A letter to the President - Final Part

Your Excellency,

Martin Luther King Jnr once said, “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope”. Your promises and good leadership during the first term of office as President of our dear country, Ghana, gave us, Ghanaians; especially the youth, confidence to give you a second term.

Indeed, one cannot write off or ignore some of the good interventions your administration has initiated and executed. No wonder Ghana has received commendation from both local and international organizations. One of such is the award, “Forbes African of the Year” in 2021. Congratulations.

But times have become hard and dangerously so; and to say Ghanaians are becoming disappointed, disillusioned and frustrated will be an understatement. Citizens from all walks of life are worried and have been engaging in discourses and debates concerning the economic and social hardships the country is facing presently.

Some of your appointees ascribe these hardships to the COVID19 pandemic, while others say it is due to the hanged parliament. In fact, this posture of some of your appointees is rather irritating and rather exacerbate the situation. Your Excellency, Ghanaians are wiser and more discerning; they have become better political analysts no matter the party color they wear. Let us call a spade a spade and not a long spoon. It is evidently clear and we do know that the root cause of this unprecedented hardship in the country is a result of mismanagement. We (the youth) therefore advise that more attention should be given to parliament to find ways of resolving disputes that will foster unity and promote fruitful dialogue to solving our problems. We are tired of the many lectures, seminars and addresses on why the country is in this mess. Indeed, we entrusted the destiny of this country to you and the NPP for its growth and development; not to pester us with complains and blames. We, the youth know and believe you have the country at heart; however, at this juncture we have to make our voices heard as citizens on this mess; for we are all involved in building our motherland, Ghana. Ghanaians are suffering, people are dying, businesses are collapsing, and your students to a large extent are the end point receivers of all these. As a result, we call on you to hear the voices of your NSS personnel who are hungry to the extent that the scheme is now referred to as the “National Slavery Scheme”. It is not surprising that young folks are therefore looking for unacceptable and corrupt alternative ways to survive. One cannot wish this for the future leaders of our motherland.

Your Excellency, Mr. President, there is plenty of evidence in the market to prove that times are really hard. Today, taking 100 Ghana cedis to the market is like making a fool of yourself. The recent rampant hikes in fuel prices has led to increases in transportation fares and other services. The rise in the dollar exchange rate is exposing you and your Government to the fact that ‘our fundamentals are weak’, rampant power outages again reminding us of the days of “Dumsor”; a phenomenon you vowed to eliminate totally when voted into power. However, I do honestly believe that there are several interventions, if adopted, will help avert the current difficulties we face as a country.

As a young concerned citizen, after several months of observation, research and consultation, here are some suggestions for consideration.

First, a reduction in salary of the President by 20% and that of your ministers by 10% until the economy return to normalcy. This will show your commitment to the people in these hard times. If possible, there should also be a temporary hold on payment of all allowances given to you and your cabinet ministers. Also, it is advised that you reduce the number of your ministers, merge some for now, and assign additional roles to the ministers.

Secondly, I suggest the toll both systems be brought back with immediate effect. Road tolls contribute massively to revenue generation and to the general development of the country. The Road Fund established in 1997 has been a major source of finance to the rehabilitation of our roads. The fact that the monies from these tolls are not enough does not justify it to be scrapped. Rather, proper measures and strict supervision should be put in place to enhance its operation.

Next, Review the E-levy and reduce it to at least 1%. E-levy is no where near being the panacea to Ghana’s economic development.

Finally, you may also have to make a quick re-shuffle of your ministers and engine drivers to bring in some new ideas.

Your Excellency, I am one of the few Ghanaians who still believe there is hope for the future generation and our motherland Ghana. I am also convinced beyond reasonable doubts that if these measures are considered and adopted, we will have a fast-reviving economy. I anticipate, with great expectancy that as listening as you are, these few suggestions will be considered.

Your Excellency, I remain committed as a valuable citizen of this amazing country and I hope to hear from you soon. Thank you.

A Concerned Youth Citizen

University of cape coast

Counselor