E
In 2016, Ghanaians
went to the polls and elected Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as the leader of this
nation for the next four years. Prior to the elections, the economic situation
in the country had degenerated so much that many thought if NPP had lost the
elections this nation of ours would have been up for sale to the highest
bidder. Happily, many Ghanaians voted wisely and rejected the NDC who believed
that they had succeeded in hoodwinking Ghanaians and that their evil deeds had been
covered. The shock waves that went through the NDC when the chosen lady of the
ballot reluctantly announced the results, were I believe, more than the shock
waves of the first atomic bomb that exploded in Hiroshima. I strongly believe
that the NDC does not still know really what hit them so badly otherwise they
would take Dr. Kwesi Botchway’s report seriously even though I believe there
are some missing links which for security reasons I cannot reveal. Two years
after the defeat, the NDC believes that the NPP has performed so abysmally to
the extent that their return to power is automatic. I will not be surprised if
given the opportunity the ex-President would demonstrate the Usain Bolt’s
victory sign to show that “he is already in the lead’’ even though he is yet to
win his party’s nomination to contest as a Presidential candidate for the NDC.
The end of the two years coincided with this year’s Christmas celebrations and many of the events as usual were politically motivated or tainted. Unlike previous years when people complained about “no money” to celebrate the Christmas, this year the main complaint was from traders who claimed they were unable to sell their goods. What really surprised me relatively was the corresponding nerve breaking traffic on our trunk roads, highways and in the cities without the cascading effect on the market. My question is – where were these people going to and why? In the cities if they were not moving to purchase items for the Christmas where would they be moving to? You may not like the NDC but admire the ability of their communication/propaganda apparatus which has earned an enviable reputation to twist, turn and fabricate or take advantage of a situation to create confusion in the minds of ordinary people. There is so much food in the country and this positive indicator of the progress of the NPP did not catch the attention of NDC communicators but only the news they think has worsened the plight of Ghanaians; well, time will tell.
One significant event that took place during the festivities was the creation of six more regions – the referendum that was held confirmed the acceptance of the people in each respective region. In all, the referendum was held under peaceful conditions, no violence was recorded and the results were stupendous. Historically, in 1902 Ghana was made up of three (3) regions namely Ashanti Protectorate, Gold Coast Crown Colony and Northern Territories. In 1953 the Crown Colony was divided into Eastern and Western Provinces and four (4) Regions was thus created. In 1956 after a successful conclusion of a plebiscite, the Trans-Volta Togoland was renamed Volta Region and added as the 5th Region of Ghana. In 1959, the 6th Region (Brong Ahafo) was carved out of Ashanti and the Northern Regions. In 1960 eight (8) Regions were created. Upper Region was carved out of the Northern Region and the Western Region was split into Central and Western Regions. In 1982, the Greater Accra Region was carved out of the Eastern Region as the 9th Region. In 1983, the Upper Region was split into Upper West and Upper East Regions and thus the creation of the ten Regions. The main reasons underlining the creation of the regions were mainly for effective administration and development. In 2018, Oti, Western North, Bono East, Savanna, North East and Ahafo Regions were created. From this brief history it can be observed that all new Regions were carved out of existing Regions and therefore the noise that was made by some elements of Southern Volta was unjustified. For 35 years, no new region was created even though many petitions had been submitted to previous Governments – the bold step taken by the President must be commended. The NDC as usual is unhappy with the current situation and has held a Press Conference to voice their disapproval and are creating the impression that the referendum was rigged and that this was a dress rehearsal to rig the 2020 elections. Well, with their rigging mentality you can’t blame them.
Whilst the festivities were going on, some of our brothers in the Northern part of Ghana chose to engage themselves in settling their own differences with dangerous weapons. The communal violence that broke out between the Kokombas and Chokosis affected Saboba and Chereponi districts with a lot of houses and properties destroyed, lives have been lost and over 5,000 people displaced. Unlike previous violence which was ‘ignited’ over the purchase of a quinea fowl, this was over a piece of land whose settlement had not been accepted amicably by both parties. We thank God that the temperament of Ghanaians who purchase Accra stool lands are not that ‘high’ otherwise, Greater Accra would have been declared a war zone. The conflicts on lands in Greater Accra are so many that you wonder whether there are existing laws to regulate the sale and purchase of lands. So many bitter experiences exist that cannot be recounted here and the sad part of it is that our law courts have not helped in finding solutions to them but rather have aggravated them. Land acquisition and processes have affected our development as a nation and the earlier we find permanent solutions to them the better because existing laws seem to have failed. I hope our brothers and sisters in the North will exercise restraint and allow peace to prevail so that displaced persons can return home to rebuild their lives.
Contrary to the sad events of Kokomba and Chereponi communal violence, the peace mediation efforts of Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II has finally yielded results and from all indications, the roadmap to peace is about to happen. The funeral rites of former Ya-Naa Mahamadu Abudulai has finally been completed by the Abudu Royal family and preparations are already in motion by the Andani Royal family. Unfortunately, those who don’t want peace in Dagbon are hiding behind the scenes to frustrate the efforts of Otumfuo and I hope they fail. Once these funeral rites are completed, other issues per the roadmap will be pursued to its logical conclusion. All peace loving Ghanaians should pray and give their support to the Asantehene’s initiatives for peace in Dagbon, an issue which has disturbed the peace in that part of our country and the solution which has eluded the country for the past sixteen years. As for the NDC, their silence is necessary because their Founder’s secret tape of which so much noise was made about, is still a mirage.
The birth of our Lord Jesus Christ was the beginning of salvation of mankind and for a man of God to choose such an occasion to prophesy the death of imminent Ghanaians in the manner he did was very unfortunate and uncharismatic. The announcement was unethical, lacked decorum and sought to generate public debate on the lives of innocent citizens whose consent had not been sought. It must be noted that no citizen has the right to forecast the death of any citizen and such acts have security implications. Rev. Owusu Bempah is a man of God, he is not God and therefore cannot guarantee that all the ‘prophesies would come through. He should not take advantage of his position to threaten or disturb the peace of other families. Does Rev. Owusu Bempah recognize the pain his declaration has put the affected families through just for the sake of his church and popularity? Men of God are supposed to soothe the pain of God’s children and not to expose them to public ridicule. It is true that God reveals and God redeems and therefore the best action for the Rev Bempah(to me) was to visit the individuals and pray with them to avert the impending calamity to show he cared.
We must be grateful to God for granting us another year and as we begin to put the agenda of the Government forward we must remember that Ghana can and will only be developed by Ghanaians. Our efforts should be geared towards achieving the objectives put forward by the NPP Government. Criticisms are necessary to guide the Government but there are some criticisms that are negative and a distraction especially those manufactured to ridicule and gain political points.
I wish all Ghanaians a Happy New Year and for once let us be PATRIOTIC.
Brig-General (Rtd) J.Odei