President Nana Akufo-Addo
It was not surprising that after his visit to Ghana, the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Philip Alston, commended the Akufo-Addo government when he said, “Ghana met the targets for halving extreme poverty and halving the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water, and it achieved the goals relating to universal primary education and gender parity in primary schools.
“In the period ahead, Ghana is set to become Africa’s fastest-growing economy in 2018. Bloomberg News has proclaimed Ghana as the ‘Star of Africa in 2018 Lenders’ Economic Forecasts.
“And in reporting on the same fiscal policy achievements, Le Monde has pointed out that Ghana’s success is not just as the result of an oil-driven boom, but is also due to prudent economic management, an entrepreneurial population, the role of traditional leaders, and good governance.
“In addition, Ghana’s achievements in providing free schooling and free meals to students, and its creation of a health insurance scheme for the whole country are considerable accomplishments” (Philip Alston, 2018).
It is based on such estimable achievements that some of us cannot buy the skeptics’ assertion that the blossoming economy is not reflecting in the lives of Ghanaians.
It is surprising that despite the wanton corruption, the arrogance of power and the crass incompetence exhibited by the erstwhile Mahama administration which resulted in massive economic meltdown, the NDC faithful could still muster the courage to chastise Akufo-Addo and clamour inexorably for the return of former President Mahama.
Considering the conspicuous and unbridled rot in the Mahama administration, some of us cannot help but to giggle over the NDC loyalists’ renewed zeal to return to power so soon.
It is, indeed, baffling to see the ‘brassbound’ supporters of NDC fighting tooth and nail to reclaim power barely 33 months after being voted out of power by discerning Ghanaians for the dreadful errors in judgement which brought about massive economic mess.
We, however, hope and pray that Ghanaians will miraculously overcome their perceived beguiling, albeit harmful memory loss so as to hold NDC accountable for the errors in judgement which unfortunately brought the country to its knees.
If anything at all, Ghanaians cannot relent in their efforts to take Mahama and NDC to task for woefully dragging the 14% economic growth in 2011 to a disappointing 3.4% in December 2016.
Ghanaians will definitely hold NDC to account for wilfully raising Ghana’s debt from GH¢9.5 billion in 2009 to an incredible GH¢122.4 billion by December 2016 with a little to show for.
Let us be honest, the NDC cannot exonerate itself from the blame for collapsing Ghana’s currency beyond redemption. In December 2011, the exchange rate was GH¢1.65 to $1.
Regrettably, however, due to dreadful economic decision-making, within five years, the exchange rate took an unbelievable flight and stood at GH¢4.20 to $1 by December 2016.
The good people of Ghana cannot so soon forget and forgive former President Mahama and NDC for the business crippling dumsor in the past five years of the erstwhile NDC administration.
Ghanaians cannot so soon forget that Mahama and his NDC government shrunk the GDP from $47 billion in 2011 to $40 billion by December 2016.
Indeed, Ghanaians cannot forgive Mahama for unjustifiably wasting Ghana’s scarce resources on apologists like Madam Akua Donkor of Ghana Freedom Party (GFP) of two four wheel drive cars and a luxury bungalow (estimated to cost a staggering $470,000) for no work done.
Truly, no one can fault Ghanaians for holding Mahama and NDC responsible for egregiously giving away over 58% of Ghana’s bauxite to Ibrahim Mahama and his partners on 29th December 2016, just a little over one week before exiting power.
Discerning Ghanaians cannot so soon forget the over GH¢800 million dubious judgment debt payments, including the GH¢51.2 million to Woyome, $30 million to the Waterville and $325,000 to Isofoton which resulted in the drastic reduction of capital expenditure, and as a consequence, most contractors were not paid by the erstwhile NDC administration.
Besides, the $175 million loan facility secured in 2012 meant to provide seven district hospitals which the NDC hierarchy misapplied is still fresh in the memories of Ghanaians.
To be quite honest, some of us would be extremely surprised if Ghanaians failed to teach Mahama and NDC a great lesson for clandestinely diverting $6 million of a government loan facility of $175 million meant to provide seven district hospitals into researching the then governing NDC’s chances of winning the 2016 general elections.
If we do the arithmetic of the $175 million loan facility which was supposed to provide seven district hospitals, each hospital should have cost us $25 million.
Credible sources have it that out of the seven district hospitals, only the one at Dodowa in the Greater Accra Region received the full funding and was thus completed successfully.
The all-important question then is: where is the rest of the $175 million loan facility?
How can we advance as a nation when some shameless individuals keep hiding behind party colouration devoid of patriotism and disgustingly squandering our scarce resources to the detriment of the poor and disadvantage Ghanaians?
Dearest reader, tell me, if the wanton bribery and corruption, the stashing of national funds by some greedy opportunists , the misappropriation of resources and the crude embezzlement of funds meant for developmental projects by some public officials do not warrant criminal charges, then where are we heading as a nation?
In fact, Ghanaians shouldn’t let go the sadness over the GH¢200 million SADA funds wasted on trees and the guinea fowls which shockingly flew to neighbouring Burkina Faso without a trace. How bizarre?
Who says discerning Ghanaians will so soon forget the scandalous Bus Branding, the Brazil World Cup, SUBA, GYEEDA, SSNIT, NCA, the NDC MPs double salary, amongst others?
Since the birth of Ghana’s Fourth Republic (from 1993 to present), the nation has regrettably lost billions of dollars meant for developmental projects through unbridled bribery and corruption.
In ending, Ghanaians will definitely shrug off the chronic amnesia and ventilate their arousing disgust over NDC’s dreadful errors in decision-making which culminated in harsh socio-economic standards of living.
By K. Badu,
London, UK