Ghana’s developmental issues and Woyomegate et al

Ghana's developmental issues and Woyomegate et al
The notion that Ghana is the gateway to West Africa or Africa as whole must be revised if not totally disregarded with the contempt that statement stands for. As a country our continuous believe in that perception has in one reason or the other made us complacent thereby forgetting the obvious facts on the ground.

It is no understatement that Ghana abounds in lots of natural mineral resources and has a thriving democracy which has become a benchmark for most African countries. But then of course we have equally had our setbacks in our pursuit of democratic governance in the form of military coupe de etats and so on. Thankfully all these have been overcome and our march to democratic governance is very much in the right direction. However same cannot be said of some fundamental infrastructural needs of our country.

Just like many African countries, so many years after our so called independence, the tag “developing” or worse still “third world countries” hangs loosely on our necks without us showing symptoms of tiredness from that huge humiliation. Many a time, the generation of today are very quick to apportion blame to previous leaders without assessing what impact their actions of today will have on the next generation.

It is true to some extent that our former leaders cannot be totally exonerated of blame but the myriads of problems facing Africa is really enormous and the quantum of remedies are not only insignificant in terms of magnitude but they have equally being wrongly prescribed by both our leaders and our “development partners” on most occasions.

As earlier started with, Ghana, come the 6th of March, will be marking 55 years after independence and the country is not much different from what it was when we regained our freedom from the British. It is true some strides have been made, but as compared to what we could have achieved within these years, what we have now is woefully insignificant and simply dreadful. I am not saying Ghana should be building rockets by now and neither am I saying we should be flying to space by now, though these are equally not farfetched.

Woyomegate Saga and the Issue of Judgment Debts

Having a very good road network is one of the fundamental cardinal principles that every developing country should strive for. I have continuously heard about the deplorable nature of Accra-Kumasi road but never thought it could get any worse until I journeyed that road just last week. There's no denying fact that the two biggest cities we have is Accra and Kumasi. As such it would not be out of place if by now we have a motorway or an equally good road network joining the two.

Rather what we have witnessed in recent years is total disregard for that road particularly the portions from Nsawam to Kumasi which has become a live death trap. Not only is visibility so poor during the dry season, and at night but we have a situation where dangerous gullies run concurrently at each sides of the road which itself has an undulating nature filled with huge pot holes making vehicles meander their way through theses dangerous death traps. Traveling on that road at night really demands the mercy of God as vehicles normally come face-to-face with each other.

And mind you this is one of the few of some of the major road networks which have been left neglected for a very long time. In the midst of all these we are told there are no funds to complete such monumental projects but at the same instance we budget for close $400 million to be given out as judgement debts when these basic issues are still pending.

I thought it was understandable that we face financially challenges in our execution of developmental projects just like any other developing country. However, I am now convinced that as a country we have not pushed further our developmental agenda. This Woyomegate Saga which has unraveled the mystery surrounding judgement debts is a typical example. I'm not trying to downplay the integrity of our courts in the award of such debts but rather we setting aside monies to be paid even when the cases are yet to go to court or arbitration as the case may apply.

It is really a shame that we use the little money we have to service judgements debts whereas we go cup in hand begging for loans and grants to satisfy our basic developmental challenges. As usual these loans have been proven to be more harmful than beneficial over the years, yet we continue to believe that it is the panacea to our problems.

That Ghana is tied to the strings of the apron of the west is yet to be disputed, nevertheless we have started frantically tying the knot with the East (China) as well. Well, just as we are quick to blame our fathers for today's challenges we are facing, I am of the strong conviction that our children, per the actions we are taking now will also come and blame us for their challenges. It is my only prayer when that happens, they curtail that vicious cycle.

Ghana deserves better. Happy 55th Independence day.

Nii Abbey Ga Mantse
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