Mahama at UNGA 81: A Powerful Speech That Echoed Kwame Nkrumah — Now Let Us Walk the Talk at Home

When President John Dramani Mahama stood on 24th September 2026 at the 81st United Nations General Assembly, it was not just a speech, it was vintage Mahama. He spoke like a philosopher, like a Pan-Africanist, like a father who knows where he comes from. He started from Damongo, his birthplace, and took all of us to the world.

From Damongo to the world stage, he reminded us that every human being belongs. Earlier this year on 25th March, his government had tabled Resolution A RES 80 250 at the United Nations and got 123 countries to agree that the trans-Atlantic slave trade was the gravest crime against humanity. He did not go there to announce it as new; he went there to remind the world that justice must follow that recognition.

He demanded a permanent seat with veto power for Africa on the United Nations Security Council, he demanded climate justice for countries like ours that suffer most, and he demanded an end to what is happening in Gaza where collective punishment has taken thousands of lives. It was fearless honesty, the kind our national anthem talks about when it says “bold to defend forever.”

We applaud him, but Mr President himself said it in that same hall: whoever comes into equity must come with clean hands. The world will not judge us by how well we spoke in New York, but by how well we live those values here in Ghana.

In a pleaful spirit, let us look at some of the areas he highlighted.

Healthcare: A Brilliant Vision Facing Implementation Gaps

The President announced that Ghana has increased domestic health financing to 72% of total health spending in 2026, up from 56.8% in 2023, with total financing of 34.7 billion cedis including the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). The Free Primary Healthcare and the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, which is called MahamaCares, are genuinely innovative ideas. Even the World Health Organization (WHO) praised it as a good example for the Global South.

MahamaCares is meant to cover chronic diseases like cancer, kidney failure and heart disease that the NHIS does not fully cover, and it even gives 500 cedis support for dialysis in private hospitals.

But the “walk the talk” challenge is still there. At Akim Oda Government Hospital, an audit by the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) found they billed for medicines they did not give and they took illegal money from people holding NHIS cards, and the Authority told them to refund 312,413 cedis. That is still happening in our hospitals.

The President himself has admitted that in hospitals he built 9 years ago, not a single equipment is working today; no CT scan, no MRI. The Ranking Member on Health in Parliament also said only about 30% of the 11.2 billion cedis meant for the NHIS and MahamaCares had been spent in the first half of 2026.

Plea, uncapping the National Health Insurance Levy was a game changer, but please let the money reach the clinics. Let us fix how we maintain equipment and protect poor patients from illegal charges.

Human Rights, Freedom and Belonging: The Contradiction We Must Fix

Mr President’s most powerful line was: no race is superior, no nation is inferior, no child’s life is worth less. He spoke passionately about the refugee, the migrant, and the marginalized belonging.

Ghana is indeed a beacon of democracy, but at home concerns are rising. The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) documented 14 arrests linked to speech laws within the first 16 months of the current National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration, compared to 8 arrests in the entire 8 years of the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) government. The Foundation warns of weaponisation of Section 76 of the Electronic Communications Act. This is painful because then-candidate Mahama himself in 2022 warned that using state power to intimidate dissent was a dangerous blueprint for democracy.

On 23rd September, just a day before your United Nations speech, the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) attempted to arrest the Member of Parliament for Manhyia South, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, inside the Accra High Court complex while he was there as a lawyer for his client. The Ghana Bar Association (GBA) on 24th September condemned that attempt, saying even if no one is above the law, arrest of lawyers while doing their work must follow due process.

In our universities, Professor Kwadwo Appiagyei-Atua warned in August 2026 that academic freedom is declining across Africa, with restrictions on expression and political interference.

Plea, Mr President, you asked the MFWA and the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) to lead a roadmap to protect freedom of expression while addressing harmful content. Let us fast-track that process. Let belonging truly mean belonging for every Ghanaian.

Education: Access Without Equity Is Incomplete

The Big Push for schools and digital connectivity is commendable, but current events worry us. At Asamankese on 15th September, the Eastern Regional Coordinator for Free Senior High School, Charles Nyame, said at a party program that if you are an NDC member or executive, he will help your child get school placement. At that same time more than 55,000 children had no placement and parents were running from office to office at resolution centres. The Ministry of Education said placement is merit-based and free.

Amnesty International notes human rights education is only infused across subjects and receives minimal attention. The Ghana National Association of the Deaf reminded us this September that getting admission does not mean learning equally; deaf students are present in lecture halls but cannot participate because there are no sign language interpreters and no accessible materials.

Plea, as we champion the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and a 24-Hour Economy, let us make education truly inclusive. A Ghana where a deaf student in Ho gets the same lesson as a hearing student in Accra — that is what will make him ready to work in the 24-Hour Economy and to trade under AfCFTA. That is the true meaning of belonging.

Climate and Economy: What We Demand Outside, Let Us Do Inside

You demanded climate justice at the United Nations and you mentioned 160 millimeters of rain in one day in seven regions. But in June 2026 Ghana recorded 593.2 millimeters for the month, the highest since 1995; 169.2 millimeters in one day; 12 dead in Accra alone, 34 nationwide. The Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) project that should fix Accra floods had no funding for 16 months from November 2024 to March 2026. The World Bank downgraded it to Moderately Unsatisfactory in May 2026. If we ask for grants not loans outside, we must fix our drains inside.

On cocoa, price was 58,000 cedis per tonne, cut to 41,392. On 25th September, just after your speech, the Ghana Cocoa Board raised it slightly to 42,400 cedis per tonne, 2,650 cedis per bag. Farmers still cry.

Conclusion

Mr President, my brother-in-law and fellow VANDAL, your speech will be recorded by history as truth spoken boldly. You reintroduced yourself to the world as a man who belongs to Gonja, Akan, Ga, Hausa and Ewe, because their tongues became your tongue.

Now, let that same inclusive belonging guide us at home. Let the Free Primary Healthcare work without extortion. Let free speech breathe without fear of arrest. Let education include the deaf and the marginalized.

You said it yourself: the freedom of any nation is insecure unless it is linked to the freedom of all humanity.

We have spoken well in New York; let us live it well in Damongo, in Accra, in Bole, and in every village.

God bless our homeland Ghana.
SeLaH!!!

References

1. United Nations General Assembly 81 speech, 24 September 2026 – United Nations Web TV

2. Resolution A RES 80/250 on slave trade – United Nations Official Documents

3. Akim Oda Hospital refund GH¢312,413.51 – National Health Insurance Authority official release

4. 14 arrests report – Media Foundation for West Africa

5. EOCO attempted arrest, 23 September 2026 – Citi Newsroom

6. Ghana Bar Association condemnation, 24 September 2026 – GBA official statement

7. Charles Nyame Asamankese statement, 15 September 2026 – GhanaWeb

8. June 2026 floods data – Ghana Meteorological Agency

9. GARID downgrade – World Bank Implementation Report, May 2026

10. Cocoa Board price 42,400 – Ghana Cocoa Board official release