Mahama is an incarnate of Osagyefo Dr Nkrumah – GFL

Former President John Dramani Mahama is the incarnate of Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, founder of Ghana. “As Dr. Nkrumah led Ghana to political independence, Mr. Mahama is ready through the 24-hour policy to lead Ghana into economic independence.

“The NDC’s proposed policy direction of a 24-hour economy is not only a national game changer but the missing weapon for Ghana and Africa to obtain economic independence from elements of neo-colonialism and liberate the country and the continent for shared prosperity,” Mr. Abraham Koomson, Ghana Federation of Labour (GFL) Secretary General, stated at the weekend in Tema.

Mr. Koomson, who was speaking with newsmen in Tema, stated that the “24-hour economy, which hinges on reindustrialization, job creation, revamping of defunct companies, change of the national administrative procedure, and economic architecture, would revitalize the job market and revolutionize the economy.”

The GFL Secretary General explained that “the economic progress achieved by the legendary Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah was largely achieved through a 24-hour industrialization policy and applauded former President John Dramani Mahama, who is also the NDC flagbearer for Elections 2024, and the NDC’s proposed 24-hour economy policy.”

He said the Ghanaian economy has virtually ground to a halt, causing massive job losses as a result of systemic failures of economic policies, and expressed concern that the extinction of trade unions is imminent if the current trend of reckless management of the fragile economy is not reversed.

Mr. Koomson said the manufacturing industries across all sectors of the economy (formal and informal, including business in byproducts) immediately after independence employed not less than 60 percent of the labour force in the country due to 24-hour economic policy.

He said the agro-industry, apart from food production, served as a source of raw materials for the manufacturing industry, stressing that cotton, tomatoes, cocoa, timber, meat, and sugar were champions of the economy.

“For instance, the Ghana Industrial Holding Corporation (GIHOC) had 17 subsidiary companies that greatly depended on local agricultural inputs but unfortunately collapsed at the emergency ward of the national economic destruction hospital,” he said.

The companies were: Vegetable Oil Mill; Sugar Products Division, Komenda; Sugar Products Division, Asutsuare; Bolgatanga Meat Factory; GIHOC FARMS; Meat Products, Tema; Paper Conversion Company; GIHOC Distillery; and GIHOC Footwear.

Other collapsed or distressed companies: Kade Match Factory; Bonsa Tyre; Wenchi Tomato Factory; SANYO Electronics; Food Complex/GAFCO; PWALUGU Tomato Factory; Vehicle Assembly Plant; Leather Products; Akosombo Textiles Ltd; Tema Textile Ltd; Ghana Textile Manufacturing Company Ltd; MILLET Textile; Freedom Textile Ltd; SPINTEX; PRINTEX; AQUAFRESH LTD; and State Fishing.

Mr. Koomson noted that looking at the state of the deteriorated economy, the revival of these industries cannot happen overnight. However, with the commitment of the NDC as announced by former President Mahama, if the appropriate measures and interventions suggested by GFL are considered, it will hasten the revival of industries across the country to create jobs to enhance the growth of Ghana's economic independence.

He said the GFL has made proposals on how the policy can be implemented effectively to enhance productivity and create jobs for the benefit of Ghanaians.

The leadership of GFL emphasized the need to support distressed and collapsed industries under the 24-hour economy policy for job creation.

Mr. Koomson noted that it will also lead to an increase in employment and provide a very attractive investment environment for foreign direct investment.

The GFL Secretary-General noted that the agro-industry, apart from food production, served as a source of raw materials for the manufacturing industry.

“The manufacturing industry can only grow and produce the expected added value if investors have the assurance of investment protection, growth, and uninterrupted continuity,” Mr. Koomson noted.

Mr. Koomson stressed that “investments in land, plant, machinery, and related equipment for the comprehensive package of the manufacturing business require that the investment needs not less than an assured continuous operational period of 15 to 20 years to recoup, all other things being constant.

“The current piecemeal granting of zero VAT for locally manufactured textile products is as good as the uncertainty that characterizes the investment in the industry.

"The government ought to promote investment assurance in the industry, which will also make the industry competitive. An uninterrupted relief period carries with it the assurance that every investor desires," he emphasised.