For average Ghanaian this is not the best of times as the cost of staying alive keeps rising to crisis levels on a daily basis.
The local currency, cedi, is trading against the dollar at almost nine Ghana cedis. Inflation is hovering around thirty percent, prices of transport has been increased at least twice this year, prices of food items have seen astronomical increments over last four months.
And the preoccupation of the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, regrettably is about people he perceive are his opponents or those looking for jobs in his government.
The president, who is the leader of the country seems removed from the hardships the citizenry are going through.
There is a greater focus of attention by the president on matters that do not address the peculiarities that affect the people who are the purpose of politics and democracy.
To forestall investor confidence and inject new ideas into the economy, a lot of well meaning Ghanaians have called on the president to reshuffle his appointees, especially his ministers.
In response to the call, president Akufo Addo who is on a tour in the northern region called out those people by saying, they are either looking for job or opponents of his political party.
Quoting the president by various media platforms, he said “I am the final authority and if they are not up to the mark, I’m required to act. So if they are up to expectations then I don’t have any reason to heed to the calls for reshuffling”.
“…NDC wants to destabilise your government, there are people who are also looking for jobs,” he said amidst laughter.
These comments are not only unfortunate, but insensitive, owing to the fact that, hunger does not know any political colours.
The fact that things are hard in this country, is not only affecting members of the National Democratic Congress, but that members of his party are equally hard hit.
In the considered opinion of this newspaper, the president should listen more to people outside his circle, when things are good, it is to his legacy.
His attitude regarding his government of see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil, is the reason why we are where we are today.
He should cease the insult by telling us, he will turn the economy will bounce back strongly, basing his argument on the explanation that, the economy was doing well before the pandemic and subsequently Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
This assertion has been debunked by the World Bank, which said the economy was struggling
even before Covid hits.
It is on record, at least by the calculations of this newspaper, that the country experienced greater infrastructural development under the John Mahama administration. Yet, Ghanaians were not impressed and insisted on change.
What we are having under this administration is what this newspaper calls self-inflicted crisis.
