Second Epistle To President Nana Dee

Warmest greetings! This is the fifth month of the second year of your reign as president and I deem it an opportune moment to write to you again. I'm told you are currently cooling off in faraway Obroniland with Mama Becky, children and grandchildren. Wherever you may be, I pray this letter reaches you in good condition.

You did not reply to my first letter, but I was told you read it thoroughly. Though I did not receive any reply, I'm encouraged by the fact that some of the issues raised in the piece have been tackled by your government. For instance, the vigilantism issue that reared its ugly head in the first few months of your reign has finally been nipped in the bud.

Mr. President, I write in response to your call on us to be citizens, and not spectators. As a citizen, I write to tell you some of my observations about your reign so far. I, therefore, hope you will not view this letter as an intrusion into your mail box.

I must say your desire to fulfill many of your campaign promises within this short period is very commendable. Many were those who said your campaign promise of a free SHS was a gimmick. But you proved them wrong and made it a reality. Even when the naysayers magnified the teething problems to make the Free SHS Policy look bad, you persevered. And your perseverance has paid off. The success of the policy so far has muted the noise from the naysayers.

Many were those who also said your campaign promise of restoring nursing and teacher trainee allowance was just to hoodwink the electorate to vote for you. Once again, you proved to be a man of your word by restoring the allowance.

By the way, is it true that the allowance has been in arrears for two months or more? I hope the rumour is not true because it may spell your political doom. The smiles on the faces of the trainee nurses after the restoration were so genuine and infectious that I shudder to imagine how they would feel if the allowance stopped hitting their accounts.

Many others doubted you when you promised to reduce electricity bills. That too has been fulfilled. The recent inauguration of the National Builders Corps (NaBCo), which will take 100,000 on board, is yet another effort at fulfilling a campaign promise. The receipt of over 70,000 applicants in less than a week is ample proof that it is a welcome intervention.

Your able Vice-President, Dr. Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia, is also leaving no stone unturned in the effort to make your reign a success. Unlike his predecessor, who was virtually a 'Simpa panin', Dr Bawumia is breaking his back to make life better for his compatriots. Not even the malicious noise-makers can distract him.

But same cannot be said of some of your appointees. They seem to have forgotten how you and your party suffered before getting the trust and mandate of the electorate on December 7, 2016. The allegations of pillage in some of the state owned enterprises cannot be wholly false. After all, there cannot be smoke without fire.

Indeed, news coming from the stables of Metro Mass Transport (MMT) is not pleasing to the ear. The allegation that the state has lost GH¢1 million in a shady auction process cannot be allowed to die a natural death. The allegations of compromises and shady dealings must be thoroughly investigated to unravel the truth. Anyone found culpable must be made to dance to a very discordant tune.

Mr. President, one thing about you that puts me off is your love for diplomacy. You are too diplomatic to a fault. Too much diplomacy tends to give your opponents ammunition to attack you and your party.

You know you have an opposition that is desperate and irresponsible. A group with such toxic combination will say and do anything to discredit its opponents. Diplomacy is good. But knowing your opponents, you need not engage in diplomacy when you know forthrightness can do the trick.

A case in point is your response on the legalization of homosexuality in this country during an interview in Obroniland. Instead of being forthright, you decided to be diplomatic in order not to attract the wrath of the Western powers.

Well, you saw the result of your diplomacy, didn't you? The desperate opposition started drumming it into our ears that you were in support of the despicable practice. Your Information Minister and party communicators had to do extra work to douse the propaganda flame by the opposition. I hope you've learnt your lessons.

By and large, your reign so far has been successful.  Dumsor has been confined to the garbage of history and the economic indicators are showing positive results. Improving access to water, education and healthcare would go a long way to make life better for your compatriots. Shine your eyes to prevent 'create, loot and share' schemes from happening under your watch because your appointees are not angels. Best regards!

I shall return soon, Deo volente!