Oh, how I wish I could always align my state to that of the motherland nation’s state. Or maybe, not exactly that; because I would like to associate with a good state and not a bad state.
Yet, I wish all my compatriots will join me to make the state of the Republic our state; for better for worse and for richer for poorer.
Truly, if we were to tie our state to that of the motherland state, our collective development could be accelerated.
Those who come by the privilege to take from the state would probably take less than they have been taking because they would be taking from themselves anytime they take from the state.
And since people don’t want to take out of their pocket, everyone would be more careful with taking from the state resources.
A year ago, the occasion of stating the state of the nation state, was euphoric. It was hope and optimism. It was freedom from the bondage of dums?. Chop chop corruption of massive stealing from the state was thought to have been confined to past congress stealing ways.
This year, it’s been free SHS, dums? and revived NHIS benefits. It’s also been a lot of macro talk: growth rate, inflation, national debt and others. However, let’s not forget that what the micro wants to know is how much increase, or preferably reduction, in prices of petroleum products, transportation, food, rent and production inputs (agriculture and industry).
Indeed, too often, the state of the motherland state gets stated in the macro language’ even when the macro state is separated from the person compatriot.
Macro things are big, big things. Because they are big, they are somehow unconnected to small people’s issues. They are top, up there, and not down bottom; with macro language often above the small person’s head.
Everything macro, including language, is expected to trickle down to the micro level. To talk macro language must be to talk micro language, thinking trickle effects. Macro success language that is not translated into micro parlance is worth a little. Also, to talk macro must be to talk micro thinking trickle.
Otherwise it would be talking to the one of better living conditions and over the head of the little people.
Going forward, it appears the most visible link between the macro and the micro is the price of fuel. Presumably, it is the one item, variation in which directly affects every compatriot. Value added tax may affect everyone. However, its effect could still be indirectly felt. Not so the price of fuel. It is like the single most important element in the economy, which attracts the attention of everyone. Thus, a state of a nation could be best measured by the price of fuel. A state of the nation statement that mentions not the price of fuel resonates less with my compatriots.
The catch is, the same price of fuel which tells people money is going into or out of their pockets is that by which revenue is raised for nation building.
If compatriots were aware it is the revenue source for financing free SHS, taming dums? and boosting NHIS, they would or would not wish for it. The nation’s state is fuel price affordability. That assumes the health of a nation’s economy is a balanced fuel pricing system; affordable to the consumer and yet raises enough revenue for development programmes.
Sounds like any nation that wants to know its state would pay particular attention to the state of its fuel pricing system.
Usually, my compatriots expect in the state of the nation talk to state whether money being put into their pockets and particularly, whether jobs are being created for that purpose. Added to that, the more their needs get met, the more they crave. Macro dums? was a big micro issue because it affected everyone.
Compatriots in all nooks and cranny of the motherland could feel it. Today, they perhaps don’t remember dums?’s wrath that much. They want the jobs and money in pocket after free SHS and death of dums?.
K?mfoadu Baah-Wiredu’s extraordinary knack for reducing macro language to micro understanding must be missed. In those days, though, I could hear Hon Yaw Osafo-Maafo similarly communicate effectively at the grassroots level. I think ?sonomma need to revive that to establish believable links between cured dums? and free SHS vis-à-vis jobs and money in the pocket.
Let’s cultivate ‘matriotism’ and live by: ‘Me man ne me, na me nso ne me man (My motherland and I are one and inseparable).’ Our civic education we pay for must focus on that. Then, corruption will reduce drastically with no stealing from the state; because individuals would steal from the collective and never from what they own themselves.
By Kwasi Ansu-Kyeremeh