SNOCKINH: “Dr. Omane Boamah, Minister of Defence; Dr. Murtala Mohammed Minister of Environment; Dr. Yaw Sarpong NDC Vice-Chairman and five others killed in helicopter crash? Good Heavens..
Call us “political nincompoop” or “political simpleton” or “political chameleon”. Not bothered-except to suggest to the interlocutor that our interest is to fight for Ghana: call us loyalists or patriots and we are smart enough to discern and distinguish between truth and propaganda.
When on Thursday, 24th July, 2025, the Minister for Finance went to the
Parliament to read the… the mid – year Budget Review the Minority (NPP)
boycotted the session. The 88 or so MPs, were led in the unpatriotic act by
Honourable Frank Annoh-Dompreh, MP for Nsawam Adoagyiri and Minority Chief Whip who had urged the rank-and-file NPP MPs to assist fellow NPP member to beat an NDC member well, well, when the NPP encounters the two in a fight.
We sat glued to our TV set; we were all ears, we listened with rapt attention. There
were many items to chew on. One of such items was the construction of a highway
linking Accra and Kumasi. With Accra as Ghana’s capital, one would wish all the
big towns and cities (like Takoradi, Akosombo, Tamale, Bolga) would have good motorable roads linking them to Accra. This is not to discount the advantage of railway.
The highways would be tolled without asking for the rationality in our friend’s (ex-
Minister of Roads) decision to dismantle the existing toll-bridges. The accident on
our roads will be minimised (avoiding head-on collisions) as happened on the
Asankare on the Accra-Kumasi road on Monday, 28th July, 2025 in which we lost
16 young lives (buried in a mass grave).
Then, we hear that the NPP MPs with their tails between their legs had returned,
like the “prodigal” sons to Parliament.
The NPP MPs had little or no time to engage the house in debates. Debates over
what? What is their defence on charges of corruption? Why should any
government supervise an agency like Cocobod to have over 80 banking accounts?
Why should funds established for “Cocoa Roads” be used for rehabilitation of “non-cocoa roads”. And the CEOs of governmental agencies will be paid “opepe-
pee-pee” monthly salaries, with weekly allowances, free fuel, free accommodation
… free this, free that … and Adu Boahen will purchase 27 houses in a single day … and an official will “cut” plots in forest reserves (including Achimota forest) for family and friends!
Then, the NPP MPs will get an issue to chew on – cocoa price. Caveat: one ought
to be careful not to fall into the trap set by Dr. Enoch Acheampong on Kessben TV
on 05/08/25 insulting farmers that they are ignoramuses or other negative terms; how many people will know that you used to go to your parents’ farm at Awaduwa and Esienkyem on holidays and that you risked picking up illnesses by drinking from the polluted river…)
So, who are you to say NPP has no moral right to criticize the NDC government
for increasing the producer price of cocoa by only GH¢128 per bag”, when they had
promised to pay nothing less than GH¢6,000. Do you remind the NPP members that cocoa suffers from high volatility and that the prices are determined at the international commodity exchanges in London and New York, and that Ghana
cannot take advantage of present rise in prices at the world cocoa market because
what we are producing now is to offset the balance of a loan we had contracted
back in 2024,2023,2022.
You may recall the press statement signed by Hon. Isaac Yaw Opoku, MP for
Offinso South on 14th April, 2025, the NPP asked: “Were the promises by Hon.
Eric Opoku, the current Minister for Food and Agriculture and Hon. Dr. Cassiel Ato
Forson, the current Minister for Finance … to pay cocoa farmers GH¢6,000.00 per
bag made in vain or were they mere propaganda just to win votes? … is
government and Cocobod telling cocoa farmers in particular and Ghanaians in
general that between now and the 30th of September when the 2024/25 crop season
ends, there won’t be any price adjustment irrespective of what happens to the
international and local market?’’
As from Friday, 08/08/25, transport fares are going to be hiked up by 20%. And
this came from the Ghana Road Transport Coordinating Council. According
GRTCC to Alhaji Tanko (Chairman) and Emmanuel Ohene Yeboah (General Sec),
the increases are hinged on the price of spare parts as well as the GH¢1.00 per
litre fuel levy pushing up operational costs. Interestingly, the Ghana Private Road
Transport Union is at odds with (GRTCC). As custom, the GPRTU should have
been consulted, and together with the Ministry of Transport would have issued a communique; Is the Ministry of Transport alive? Is it a free-for-all when this
unregulated sector leaves the players to do as it pleases them?
The Speaker Alban Bagbin has lauded the spirit of consensus building pervading
in Parliament for the second sitting of the first session of the 9th Parliament. He
admonishes the members to use the recess which is not a vacation, to return to their
constituents. The majority leader, Mahama Ayariga talked about the government’s
aggressive approach to combating illegal mining (1,345 arrests, 425 excavators
arrested, 1,000 excavators held at ports). He also cautioned minority against using
Parliament to undermine investigative agencies (lawfully executing their
constitutional mandates): “I think that it is the height of hypocrisy for us to enact
such fine laws, establish those institutions and when they are exercising their
responsibilities and mandates; we sit in the house and criticise them and try to
undermine them in the exercise of their legitimate duties. In response, the Minority
leader, Hon. Afenyo Markin noted: “It is time to end the bitterness, the revenge and
the pain. We are a country of one people, if the House will continue to dictate to
the government, so be it, but we live to see.” We live to see what?
You will recall the admonition by Dr. Amoako Baah: “If I were to advise the
Minority, I would say: ‘Don’t discuss this… The cedi rise has occurred at the time
of the NDC, so you should give the NDC government the credit.
Prof. Ransford chips in: ‘Rather than being cynical or pessimistic, the best thing to
do is to pat the (economic) managers on the shoulders if it is good, talk about it if it
is bad; talk about it – success has many fathers; failure is an orphan.
Paul Adom-Otchere will have someone like the Political Scientist, Dr. Zaato
defending him, particularly when he could not satisfy the bail conditions. Dr. Zaato
calls Operation Recover All loot, rather Operation Recover some loot.
