Mahama Has Whispered Words Of Wisdom

One of my favourite Old School tunes is “Let it Be” which was released by the Beatles band in 1970.

Some portions of the lyrics of the song will help put an icing on the cake for this article.

If there is something I thirst for; if there is something I so much desire and cherish: it is excellence! My love for former President Mahama can never be out of toadyism, but purely out of his terrific qualities. Even those who loathe him know this.

President John Dramani Mahama gave an extremely impressive Facebook Live address not too long ago, and this was what one of his avowed fault-finders, Francis Otuo-Siriboe wrote about his performance:

“I was one of those who made the system hot for you when in office through my articles and criticism on radio and on online blogs.”

He continued, “Before I touch on my main issue, let me commend you for your excellent performance when you interacted with Ghanaians on social media last Monday. You made the audience as the winners and positioned yourself as one of your audience. Comments about the interaction suggest that you inspired and motivated your audience. You did not take off like an express train with no stop. You invited people’s reaction by taking small pauses during your speech and also allowed your guests to ask you critical and uncomfortable questions. You used your hand gestures beautifully to convey your point and used tone variation to perfection. Ghanaians need more of this wonderful engagement moving forward.”

For the benefit of those who could not listen to what JM said, these are some salients points of his address:

1. I will provide the quality leadership Ghanaians are yearning for.

2. I will abolish the 50% increase in CST and ensure massive job creation within the ICT and Telecommunications sector.

3. We will scrap the dreaded double track system, and return to our track record of massive infrastructure development across sectors.

4. Vocational and Technical Education will be FREE.

5. We will cancel the licensure examination for teachers.

6. We will dualise the Accra-Kumasi, the Accra-Cape Coast and Accra-Aflao roads.

7. The Eastern Corridor Road will be given priority because it is a major corridor, which will facilitate movement of goods and services across many regions.

8. I commit to a peaceful and ideas-based campaign; devoid of insults.

9. I will increase the amount of money given to tertiary students by government as loans, and also pay it as a monthly stipend to students.

10. I will reduce the size of ministers, reduce the size of ministries and also reduce the expenditure that Ghanaians spend on the office of the President.

11. We will deal more with the issue of corruption in terms of strengthening the institutions that deal with corruption.

I listened to the video of the address of the former President several times, and each time I did, lyrics of “Let it Be” keep playing in my mind. The part that excited me most is:

“And when the broken-hearted people living in the world agree

There will be an answer, let it be.
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be
Let it be, let it be, let it be, yeah, let it be.
The state of Ghana’s economy has left many people broken-hearted, but JM has whispered words of wisdom, and there will surely be an answer in 2020. My prayer is that: God, let it be!

For your Christmas Season relaxation, please enjoy, “Let it Be” by the Beatles.

Author Anthony Obeng Afrane