The President has Spoken (1)

On Sunday, October 30, 2022, the president of the republic, H.E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo spoke to the nation in his latest series of “Fellow Ghanaians.”

Even though I had speculated in Church that day, that he was going to share freebies, which it turned out that he did not, I must say I was not disappointed in his speech. But before I state why, I find it an obligation to respond to the statement below, which appeared in social media, allegedly by NDC’s Ras Mubarak. If he is innocent of this, I humbly apologise, however, since it looks like the handwriting of an NDC guru and activist, I intend to respond.

Ras Mubarak’s statement are in italics, below.

“This is what I expected the President to say in his address.

1. That he is sorry for the pain and difficulties families and businesses are facing in the country.
2. As part of efforts to restore confidence, he has accepted the resignation of the Minister for Finance.
3. Name a replacement and encourage parliament to expedite action in passing the new minister
4. Announce a 50 percent cut in salary of the President, Vice President, Ministers and Chief Executive Officers.
5. Reduce the size of government by 40 percent
6. All none-essential public sector workers should work from home to ease the burden of the cost of commuting to work.
7. Extension of the moratorium on all none-essential foreign travels by ministers, and government appointees.
8. All Ministers, and appointees who have to travel out of the country should fly economy class
9. Announce a review of the SHS implementation to cover only wards from low-income families.
10. Tax on sugar products, as well as imported rice and other consumer goods that are imported. This is to encourage the citizenry to patronize more locally made food items.
11. Offer incentives to business to stay afloat.
12. Call a national dialogue/summit on the economy to include Professionals, and persons from different political persuasions among other solutions.

These are practical solutions to a crisis. But alas, they won’t listen to anyone but themselves.

Ras Mubarak.”

The NDC is well noted for doing the worse things but would always come out to portray itself as the best and most caring political party, who always does things to benefit Ghanaians. To me Ras’ points, 3,6,7,8 and 12 are very irrelevant and need not to be responded to. My response:

1. Has the NDC ever apologised to Ghanaians for the hardships it meted on us, even in eras where there were no external economic crunches?
2. The president said earlier that he would replace the finance minister and the minister of state of finance, after the IMF deal is sealed, the 2023 Budget, read and the Appropriation Bill, passed.So, what else?
3. How much cut did the Mills/Mahama government implemented on salaries of appointees, during the harsh economic conditions of their regime? When without any external forces, Ghana went deep down and with dumsor which lasted over three years. The NDC has successfully placed, dumsor in the English dictionary. During the first six years of Mills/Mahama regime, Ghana recorded annual single digit inflation only once. But during Nana Addo’s, single digit inflation is recorded four times.

After six years, of Mills/Mahama the average annual inflation rate in Ghana was 13.95%. Under Nana Addo, with the 2022 inflation, projected at 32%, the six-year average will be 13.19%.

5. During the harsh conditions under Mills/Mahama due to gross mismanagement, over costing of projects e.g., Kwame Nkrumah interchange and Kasoa overpass and looting of state coffers, by government appointees and party activists, led by Woyome, the crook, by what percentage did that government reduce its size?
6. Accepted. But will this be fair on parents who judiciously pay taxes, while the supposed poor do not pay taxes.
7. When Hon. Maj. Courage Quarshigah was promoting local rice, did the NDC not use TV3 to bastardise our rice and promote foreign rice? With eight years in office, after the Kufuor administration, what did the NDC do to promote local products?

In 1971, the Busia Administration of the Progress Party UP Tradition, placed a ban on importation of certain items. This led to a boost in Ghana own businesses and industries. The AFRC and PNDC came to collapse all such vibrant businesses. The NDC in 1995 decreed that Ghanaians must not patronise some made in Ghana goods because, the owners of such businesses and industries would use profits they make to sponsor political parties to campaign against him.

11. Where is the money to do this? When the NPP introduced E-Levy, the NDC polluted the minds of Ghanaians that the 1.5% levy would make them poorer. Meanwhile in the NDC’s 2020 manifesto, it proposed a similar levy if voted into government. Ghanaians are now poorer by not sending money by MoMo but by hand delivery. Example, it will cost GHc3.00 to send GHc200.00 by MoMo (GHc1.50 MoMo charge and GHc1.50 on E-Levy), but the NDC has encouraged Ghanaians to travel and deliver money to the love-ones. Assuming someone, living around Circle in Accra, has to send GHc200.00 to a friend or relative in Ashiaman, the NDC strongly advises, that he spends a total of GHc26.00 on transportation, than spending only GHc3.00 via MoMo. Does this make sense?

Ras’ solutions are hypocritical and impractical.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect The Chronicle’s stance.