Will The Suffering End?

In my last article I questioned why Ghanaians have allowed themselves to be subjected to such inhuman economic hardships and question again why we are always being insulted by the very people who sought our mandate to solve our problems but ended up enriching themselves, deceiving us and impoverishing us and expect us to keep quiet. Why do people in government have to exploit Ghanaians to get ahead and look better when everyone else looks worse?

My answer has always been simply our indifference and if Ghanaians have been brave enough and taken a cue from the 'Arab Springs' or acted like the Burkinabes, this situation would have been different.

Our indifference is the cause of our woes and the government has taken undue advantage to do what pleases it. Mr. Greenstreet stated that 'they just don't care' and that is perfectly true otherwise how could they increase electricity tariffs in the midst of 'dum dum dum' without the 'sor'?

Why contest to organise AFCON 2017 when the country is in darkness and the stadia and pitches bequeathed to the government by former president Kufuor have been allowed to deteriorate to the extent that in hosting another AFCON, serious rehabilitation work would have to take place at a great expense to the nation? It seems all that matters is for the government to create an opportunity for the vampires to 'suck our blood' (monies) as was done in the World Cup in Brazil and AFCON in Equatorial Guinea.

Many Ghanaians don't even understand the cause of our predicament (dumsor) as the government continues to shift the blame from one issue to the other. Initially it was excessive demand from Ghanaians as a result of the use of air conditioners and mobile phones, then a submerged damaged sea pipe, then Nigeria not supplying gas, then the low water level at Akosombo etc.

Dr. Bawumia says Nigeria refuses us the supply of gas because we owe them US $100 million. Why don't we pay the debt for the supply of gas for our idle plants to resume working? We were told some generating plants were not working for lack of gas oil. Those working have not reached the full generating capacities, so why the priority in renting barges from Turkey and generating plants from Dubai at a great cost to the nation? Dr. Bawumia said Ghana would be paying a colossal sum of GH'9.5 billion annually to service its debts in addition to the cost of hiring the barges and generators.

We were also informed that Atuabo gas was ready for immediate use but VRA now says they don't have the necessary equipment and implements to access the gas for distribution to the relevant companies. Are we serious in this country? What about our own generators we have loaned to some countries? NDCs are no fools and it seems to me that what we are witnessing is a deliberate strategy to destroy present businesses and replace them with new ones and thus shift the economic power to some pro-NDC elements who now command the dollars otherwise what is happening simply does not make sense.

If the government were serious about the 'dumsor' it would have imported crude oil and start TOR working again and stop importing finished oil products but that will never happen because that will collapse the businesses of some twenty or more NDC companies that have been established solely to import finished oil products, the cause of TOR's incapacitation. Where do all the huge profits they collect go to?

As a result of 'dumsor' many small scale businesses have collapsed, the medium ones are threatened and the major ones are feeling the pinch and yet the solution is not near. What we are witnessing is the usual 'create, loot and share'. The irony is that those responsible for the mess are those who enjoy electricity daily provided by generators and paid for by the tax payer.

Today many government institutions have been denied the necessary funds to run their activities. Elections do not pose a threat or serve as a deterrent because the Electoral Commission had been badly compromised making government always feel confident of an electoral victory in elections. Parliamentary majority enables them do what they please. The Supreme Court's decision of the NPP electoral petition has evaporated the neutrality of the judiciary. Consequently, the government has become complacent and arrogant and pounces on anyone who dares criticise them.

When nations go through crisis it takes the soothing words of leadership to restore hope but unfortunately in Ghana the president has repeatedly demonstrated that temperamentally he has a problem. In his good mood he is cynical and in his bad mood he is very insulting. On issues, he has been very economical with the truth. The truth about lies is that 'lies breed like rabbits. Once you start lying, it takes an ever-growing bodyguard of new lies to protect the old ones'. Michael Josephson - Six rules of credibility.

The situation in the country seems hopeless and most Ghanaians are waiting for the redemption from the Almighty God. God will deliver Ghana as he has delivered Nigerians from corruption and incompetent rule. Ironically, God has blessed 73 years old Buhari to take over and clean the mess the younger Jonathan has created. The story of Nigeria is no different from that of Ghana but others will like us to believe otherwise. Well, we can't blame them because Nigeria has a population of over 170 million people and Ghana a mere 28 million and comparing their economies is like comparing the elephant with an antelope but yet still there are some similarities in their recent history.

Presidents Yar'Adua and Mills failed to disclose their illness to their people. Whilst Yar'Adua's designers made feverish efforts to disguise his frail body with padded clothing, President Mills danced 'azonto' to confirm his renewed strength. Both died and were succeeded by their Vices, aged 57 and 56 years respectively. They were born after independence in their countries and claimed to be young. Both contested the general elections after completing the leftover years of their bosses and won the election under serious allegations of fraud and vote rigging. Both elections were disputed with rioting and in Nigeria it resulted in the death of about 1000 people. In Ghana, a major legal battle ensued at the Supreme Court where the corrupt practices of the EC were exposed but victory was handed over to President Mahama on a silver platter. Both reigns were messed up in corruption, serious economic hardships for their people and whilst Nigeria's situation was garnished with internal security situation with Boko Haram playing a leading role, Ghana ended up in total darkness.

Former President Obasanjo could hardly hide his worry over the new form of corruption (stealing with impunity) presided over by President Jonathan and had to resign from the ruling party (his party) to join the opposition to fight and save Nigeria from bankruptcy. Even though former President Rawlings has not resigned from the ruling party as Obasanjo did, his comments that the level of corruption which prompted his revolution was about ten per cent of what is happening today, was enough condemnation of the rot in Ghana. If the two stories were not similar, you are entitled to your views.

NPP cannot rely on Buhari's victory for its own because the NEC Prof. Attahiru Muhammadu Jega and his electoral staff had proved to be men/women of integrity in the face of billions of dollars of bribe money Jonathan had offered while Dr. Afari Gyan and his staff paraded the corridors of power and pretended to be electoral officials. In Ghana the revelations at the Supreme Court demonstrated the incompetence and corruption of the Electoral Commission and made mockery of the election results. The Supreme Court decision will forever remain a debatable issue within the legal fraternity and the integrity of some of the Justices will haunt them till they die because in the opinion of some Ghanaians, justice was not seen to have been served.

Ghanaians can only end this suffering by following the Nigerian example but must note that it is not going to be easy because monies are already being distributed in the rural areas which have not been affected strategically by the 'dumsor'. The Electoral Commissioner (EC) is about to retire and whilst challenging the government to ensure free and fair elections in 2016, the NPP must modify its modus operandi and parliament must ensure that the next EC is a man of integrity and not a sheep in wolf's skin.

Those who always preach peace during elections like the Peace Council and the clergy must stand up now and fight for the right person to be appointed otherwise the peace of this country could be disturbed should anything go wrong with the next election because many Ghanaians will not opt for the Supreme Court.

By Brig-Gen (Rtd) J. Odei