There comes a time when men have to stand up against other men’s oppression- be it physical, emotional or economic.
The wealth gap in Ghana is one of the highest in the world with one man owning an estimated tens of billions of cedis while paying his sanitation workers a mere GH₵120 or $21 per month.
Both the NPP and the NDC in the last 29 years have shown no empathy to the ordinary Ghanaian but both parties agree to spend an estimated GH₵3.42 Billion on luxury vehicles for politicians alone.
Despite the killing of people under Jerry Rawlings in the 1979 coup and more in the eleven more years of military adventurism from Dec.31, 1981 to January 1992, all for alleged corruption, neither the NDC nor the NPP have bothered to take public theft, often softly called corruption, seriously enough to investigate and to prosecute. In the mean time the NPP under Nana Akufo Addo has set the world record in loans per capita, and the lowest public crime prosecution in the post-Independence era.
There is nothing to show save a free education that kids everywhere deserved in the first place from all adults in society.
The Public Deception:
The people of Ghana have been under the dark clouds of deception and hooligan bullying and fear since the AFRC coup of June 4, 1979 led by Jerry Rawlings. Several military offices including three former heads of state – General Acheampong, Lt. Gen. Akuffo, and Lt. Gen. Afrifa were killed at the firing squad after a mob trial accusing them of corruption. Other reasons given for the coup included economic mismanagement, poor governance, economic hardship and general frustration on the part of populace as well as high levels of indiscipline within the Ghana Army.
Kofi Koranteng
Its been more than 40 years and the PNDC that became a civilian party called NDC two years later under the same Jerry Rawlings, as well as the NPP that replaced him for 8 and now almost another 4 years, shows the following:
• Poor Governance as shown by poor or lack of prosecution of public theft or corruption. The financial planning and management is worse!
• People in leadership have shown no better examples and no fear of God in learning discipline and ethical principles:
• There is no empathy for fellow Ghanaians: thousands of tertiary students with good grades but from poor homes with admission to Universities are left behind.
• The Economy that was reported unsatisfactory in 1981 is today worse by 19,000 times if one uses the Bawumia principles of using the dollar exchange rate. (1981 was about 3 cedis/$, but today 57,000/$).
• While paying 2.5% of taxes as National Health insurance levy, there is no accountability as Health facilities are poorly equipped, and new hospitals built are left abandoned by different regimes. Again the people to Doctor ratio has almost doubled from what it was in the 1970s.
• While both NDC and NPP may boast about building infrastructures, we all know how decent neighborhoods in towns are left abandoned for years before a road is built as a political favor while the local Chiefs collect their money and could care less. Again while some talk about “digitization” and modernization none of the NPP and NDC leadership could care to develop underground sewage systems while 275 people die everyday from malaria.
• More than 80% of the people do not have clean drinking water at home and even in the cities water is still being rationed despite more than $2.3 billion in loans since the 2004 era.
There comes a time when men have to stand up! We do not need a military coup! No! We must stand up against oppression by our own kind! The man putting his knees on our necks are the NPP and NDC leadership. Period!