Ghana at the Mercy of a Drunkard and a Pork Eater

By Bala Ali
It is evident that the next Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces will either be Mr John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) or Dr Mahamudu Bawumia of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), as all indications point to one of these two flagbearers winning the December 2024 national polls.

This, therefore, means that the country’s direction from January 7, 2025, will be determined by one of them. Whether it’s Mr. Mahama or Dr. Bawumia steering the wheel of the nation, their leadership will greatly influence the fate of businesses and the well-being of the citizenry.

It is thus troubling to see supporters of these two leaders reducing them to mere labels—one as a drunkard, the other as a pork eater. Supporters of Dr. Bawumia paint Mr. Mahama as a drunkard, while followers of the NDC flagbearer cast Dr. Bawumia as a pork eater.

This controversy started about a week ago when Hon Samuel Atta Kyea, Member of Parliament (MP) for Akim Abuakwa South, indirectly took a swipe at Mr. Mahama. The experienced lawyer and legislator employed his communication skills to suggest Mr. Mahama was a drunkard without stating it outright.

Speaking at what appeared to be a political campaign event, Mr. Atta Kyea said, "Ghana is going to get a calm economist, the son of a wise man, who doesn’t drink alcohol as its President." This statement sparked outrage within the NDC, which demanded that Hon. Atta Kyea retract his words and apologize to Mr. Mahama or face consequences. However, Mr. Atta Kyea countered that the NDC was asking him to apologize for something he never said—explicitly calling Mahama a drunkard.

The NDC’s reaction stems from a long history of NPP members referring to Mr. Mahama as a drunkard. In response, Mr. Malik Basintale, the NDC's Deputy Communications Officer, retaliated by accusing Dr. Bawumia, a devout Muslim, of eating pork.

As an experienced political observer with the nation’s welfare at heart, I find it necessary to look beyond these claims by supporters of both the NDC and NPP. Instead of focusing on personal attacks, it’s more prudent to assess how these two parties, which have governed Ghana for the past 32 years, have addressed the country’s issues. Have they acted like drunkards and pork eaters, or have they governed as intelligent nationalists committed to solving the nation’s problems?

The facts are clear: both the NDC and NPP, with Mr. Mahama and Dr. Bawumia playing significant roles, are guilty of corruption and poor governance, which have hampered the nation’s progress.

During the erstwhile Mahama administration, the NDC was accused of corrupt practices aimed at enriching individuals close to the former president. A notable example is the Ameri Power deal, intended to boost the country’s electricity production to 230–250 MW. According to reports from Pulse Ghana, this project was not only awarded to a company owned by Mr. Mahama’s brother through sole-sourcing, but the contract was also inflated from $220 million to $360 million, as revealed by Norwegian journalists.

Under Dr. Bawumia's watch as Vice President, Ghana’s economy suffered due to excessive borrowing and the depreciation of the cedi. While it could be argued that Dr. Bawumia wasn’t the primary decision-maker, it’s important to note that cabinet decisions, including those related to borrowing and financial management, involved him. Furthermore, the role of Databank, a company linked to the immediate Finance Minister, in profiting from the nation’s economic woes through the role it played in the nation's financial borrowing, cannot be overlooked.

Additionally, Ghana’s water bodies and forests have been severely degraded by irresponsible mining, a major contributor to the rise in kidney diseases affecting the poor, who cannot afford the luxury of seeking medical care abroad like the politicians. Both the NPP and NDC have failed to address this issue adequately, despite its devastating effects on the country.

Given these facts, have the parties of these two leaders governed Ghana as mere drunkards and pork eaters, or as competent nationalists with the intelligence and will to address the nation’s challenges?

Can we, therefore, conclude that Ghana will soon be at the mercy of a drunkard or a pork eater? This is a call for members of the NDC and NPP to take Ghanaians seriously. They should focus on solving the nation’s problems, rather than enriching themselves and reducing politics to petty insults.

The author is a columnist and an Information Officer at the ISD.