#dumsor Must Stop Vigil– 16th May, 2015

“Never underestimate the power of a small group of committed people to change the world. In fact, it is the only thing that ever has.” ~ Margaret Mead

The situation we have in Ghana today is equivalent to that of a patient and her doctor. As her health by the day continues to deteriorate, the doctor keeps on pledging that the medicine would soon be ready. The doctor continues to promise timelines for the drug which never gets ready and this naturally will ignite further, the frustration, anger and anxiety of the patient. When the patient complains about this, apologetics of the doctor, his medical assistants and the nurses are brought in to rain insults and unprintable words on her for being cynical, for preaching doom, gloom, despondency and hopelessness.

Initially, the Dumsor – Dumsor was 6 hours of lights out. The Government came out with all the assurances that things are in place to get the crisis resolved. It did not take long for the lights out duration to be increased to 24 hours. The Government continued with the assurances and then it became 48 hours of dum (no light) and later, dum koraaa (complete black out).

I pray that WAEC does not set questions on the number of promises President Mahama has made to resolve the power crisis, lest all the students will fail. Not because they are not smart enough, but surely, even PHD minds as of now must be tired of carrying the heavy burden of plethora of failed promises by the President to end the crisis.

Whilst the situation clearly gets worse after each promise, President Mahama and his Government continue to delude disgruntled Ghanaians and industries by making more and more promises. Everyday, President Mahama has yet again, another explanation for why we should continue to suffer the crisis. If citizens cannot trust in the solemn pledges of the President of the land; if in crisis times such as this, all that the President of the land does is rewording plethora of failed promises to just set new timelines, then where are we heading to as a country? Like the patient in my analogy above, the Government has commissioned with our taxes, a high powered army of loud and foul-mouth young literate Ghanaians (paying them as Presidential Staffers, Communicators, Ministers and Deputies) whose sworn duty is to run down and insult any descent Ghanaian calling for real solutions.

It did not take long for the let’s– throw– cold– water– on– their– efforts– brigade to be released onto Yvonne Nelson, Sarkodie, Lydia Forson and the other celebs leading the #DUMSORMUSTSTOP VIGIL. They contend that the Government and the President did not create the Dumsor – Dumsor and must therefore be left alone. So the rich deduction in this elderly reasoning is that we should no more worry the Ghana Police Service to intensify patrols and arrest armed robbers, after all, the Police Service has not established schools in Ghana to train armed robbers. Really? We thank them for their elderly opinion though.

I woke up to a rather exceedingly unfortunate 7th May, 10:38pm tweet, attributed to President Mahama’s handle (my reason for authoring this article), in which he trivialises the #DUMSOR MUST STOP VIGIL campaign which has gathered enormous traction in the country as a bad enough politics spreading into our creative industry. The eternal shame however is that the President himself and his party and other politicians first politicised our creative industry by recruiting it into electioneering campaigns. But as a people, produced hardships and events have taught all of us the belated lesson that we should not situate our nation building in extreme partisanship. There are enough level headed and smart people in this country to always and unwisely corrupt and bundle disastrous national crisis into partisanship.

I feel compelled to wake the President up to learn that the Dumsor tribulations from the four corners of the country have no political colours. The sad situation, if the President needs a reminder is that our country has become an ongoing catastrophe – Ghana is sinking, really! Our GDP has declined to $29bn from $43bn. School children are fighting with mosquitoes for spaces around filthily choked gutters to do their assignments. The dressmaking, barbering and saloon, cold store, printing & photocopying as well as the corn mill (‘nika-nika’) businesses are all collapsing by the day. Hotels and shop owners are being drowned by deep pools of debts. Our friends at the various magazines, vulcanizers, blacksmiths, welders, carpenters, shoemakers, ice water sellers are having a hell of life of helplessly watching their businesses as they collapse. We sweat profusely and battle with mosquitoes every other night, after being frustrated by Dumsor–Dumsor at the workplace.

Yet, as citizens, we keep on hoping, hoping that one day one day, the government could fix the problem. The tragedy however is that all that is happening is, whiles he President Mahama keeps on rehashing old plethora of broken promises just to make new ones, his appointees are on the other hand, busily raining insults and unprintable words on people demanding real solutions. Certainly, the Government can never promise or insult away the Dumsor–Dumsor. Neither, will the NDC-NPP blame game of who did and who did not do what bring the solution. But it seems this has been the conversation ever since the crisis began.

Rallying around political parties to deal with serious national problems has never brought any meaningful results, otherwise why are we here today? Fortunately or unfortunately, produced hardships have awakened a new wave of political activism in Ghana. Extreme partisanship is tailing off and Ghanaians are now finding alternative ways to articulate their problems to Government outside political parties. I think this development is very refreshing. One of such opportunities is what we are going to have on 16th May, 2015 – the #DUMSOR MUST STOP VIGIL to be led by the Yaa Asantewaas of our time, actresses Yvonne Nelson and Lydia Forson and the best rapper in Ghana, Sarkodie, the Obedep)nbede and a host of other celebrities.

These people are by any measure, rich enough to survive the Dumsor– Dumsor till anytime the Government may decide to end it. Unlike most of us, the celebs could have just picked their passports and ship out from Ghana to selfishly enjoy life in any country they so desire. Yet, they have chosen to remain with us in the trenches; they are braving illiterate and wicked propaganda, insults and name calling; they are putting their brands, their careers and all their all on the line to lead us to yet again face President Mahama and his failing Government with our plights come 16th May, 2015. The least we could do is to support them in this uneasy enterprise.

DUMSOR has been with us and plagued us for long enough to be allowed to fester further. It should not extend beyond the September deadline. We must all have the need to turn up at the #DUMSOR MUST STOP VIGIL on May 16th to send a clear message to the Government that, the September deadline cannot and must not become just one of the many failed promises. I urge every Ghanaian living everywhere to support this cause. Friends in and around Accra may join. Those of us who cannot make it because of location and other challenges can share this message and tell a friend to tell the other friends to turn up for the #DUMSOR MUST STOP VIGIL.

The Ghana Police Service has already okayed the VIGIL. Participants are encouraged to wear black and attend the Vigil with torches, lanterns and “bobo”. The event shall set off from “On–the–Run and proceed peacefully with Police escort to the Green Park opposite the Villagio Apartment at the Tetteh Quarshie Interchange, Accra. Participants shall be given the platform to share their Dumsor experiences. You can also send your Dumsor story to [email protected] and it shall be shared as well.

Surely, Ghana should be made to work for the Ghanaian!!!!!

FESTIVAL GODWIN BOATENG
An ordinary Ghanaian