Friday, May 30, 2008

THERE'S HOPE FOR AFRICA

THE third Daily Graphic Governance Dialogue was launched in Accra yesterday by the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mr Freddie Blay, with a call on African nations to cultivate the virtue of optimism in their quest to develop into First World nations.
He told the gathering at the launch of the dialogue, which was on the theme, “Effective Democratic Governance: The Role of Stakeholders”, that there was no need for these countries to “raise their hands in frustration” and harbour the conviction that the situation was hopeless.
The Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) instituted the dialogue in 2006 to provide the platform to highlight governance issues in Africa, with the view to making governments on the continent work towards improving the quality of life of their people.
Indeed, Africa is confronted with many challenges, such as, violence, poverty, famine, disease and weak economies and governments.
However, there are celebrated stories on the continent that give hope to its people that with a little push and a collective resolve, the challenges can be surmounted.
Africans have a strong will to survive any odds and that is why the obnoxious slave trade, which was in operation about 500 years could not deter the determination of the continent to stand tall in the world.
The Daily Graphic agrees with the First Deputy Speaker when he said, “The future holds open promise of a new more cohesive community linked by shared democratic values, in spite of drawbacks and challenges here and there ... We should encourage each other to look for the sunlight through the clouds.”
The theme for this year’s dialogue is appropriate and timely because 2008 is an election year and the expectation is that the dialogue will provide the platform for serious engagement of all the stakeholders in offering the way forward for a peaceful and transparent election and transition thereof.
Already, the political parties and the electorate expect a fierce contest for the leadership of the country on December 7, 2008. All eyes are, therefore, on Ghana.
The days ahead will be days of anxiety, tension and fear as the politicians battle for the leadership of the country.
Nonetheless, it is the hope of the Daily Graphic that all the stakeholders are mindful of their roles in maintaining the unity and stability of the country, for which reason they will work in concert to maintain Ghana as the oasis of peace in a sub-region inundated with failed states.
We are on the threshold of recording another historic election leading to a peaceful hand-over of power from the sitting President to any of the leaders of the contending political parties.
It happened in 2001 without bloodletting, only the pain of losing power. Eight years on, the culture of the people has not changed from being peace loving, hospitable and affable to being violent and destructive.
The Daily Graphic calls on all who have a stake in the future of the country, particularly the political parties, the Executive, the media and the electorate, that the upcoming election is not a war of conquest but a contest for the mandate of the people to govern.
For this, those who seek that mandate must be prepared to submit to the scrutiny of the electorate and not seek power for their selfish interests or attempt to destabilise society just for the sake of power.
It is our hope that the interest of Ghana will guide all on election day to make a decision that will make Ghana a good example of a successful, peaceful and stable country.

Thursday, May 29, 2008

NATIONAL HONOURS BLUES

IT is difficult to understand why the nomination of the presidential aspirant of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Professor J. E. A. Mills, for a national award should draw so much ire from some activists of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP).
From all indications, this award from the sitting President to an opponent of the candidate of his own party, the NPP, in the December 2008 elections is meant to open a new chapter in the country's body politic.
Activists of the two main parties in the country, the NPP and the NDC, have exhibited extreme partisanship on national issues to such an extent that a recognition for public service has divided our ranks as one people with one common destiny.
Even some leading members of the opposition NDC have rubbished the award as a gesture too late in the day and meant to score cheap political points, while some in the NPP have described the national award for Prof Mills as politically suicidal.
The NPP activists argue that the honour has the potential to give a head start to the candidate of the opposition NDC. Any good leader should recognise meritorious service and name the people who offer such service for public salute. That is exactly what President Kufuor has done in this instance. National honours should not be bestowed on people on account of their association or loyalty to the ruling party. It should be on merit.
The Daily Graphic believes that this honour should mark a turning point in the way we have done politics in the country over the last 16 years.
Politicians who are criss-crossing the country now seeking the votes of the electorate to govern mean well. They are seeking power in order to better the lives of the people and, indeed, wherever they mount the platform, they take the opportunity to offer hope to Ghanaians for a better future.
If really our politicians are committed to the welfare of the people, then the struggle for governance should not be a do-or-die affair where some politicians are prepared to sacrifice the peace and stability of the country for political expediency.
It is in this context that the Daily Graphic commends the former Member of Parliament (MP) for Kumbungu, Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni, for coming out boldly to support President Kufuor’s decision to nominate the former Vice- President for a national award.
The former MP told the Daily Graphic in an interview yesterday that in a country where party politics had brought so much division and polarisation, such a move should be seen as seeking to unify Ghanaians and send the signal that although “we may disagree politically, we are all important to the development of Mother Ghana”.
The Daily Graphic cautions the extremists on both sides of the political divide who try to politicise every move either by the government or the minority, to mend their ways in order to maintain the country's peace, unity and stability.
Let us use President Kufuor’s gesture to build bridges across the divide and bring people who, hitherto, had been sidelined for political reasons on board to contribute their quota to the national development agenda.
Everybody's contribution matters in our search for viable solutions to the challenges of nation building.

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

WE NEED SERVANT LEADERS

THE campuses of our various tertiary institutions have nurtured a number of the country's leaders. As beneficiaries of the services of such centres of teaching and learning, most of our leaders have used the opportunity offered by higher education to launch themselves into national politics.
The academic freedom enjoyed in the tertiary institutions helped a number of them to develop their potential and skills in leadership. The list of student leaders who found themselves in public office is inexhaustive.
However, some of them are not good examples of role models for our youth, although they hold high public offices today.
The DAILY GRAPHIC, therefore, urges students who aspire to leadership positions on our campuses and at the national level to reflect seriously on the admonition by the Pro Vice-chancellor of the University for Development Studies, Professor David Millar, to students not to seek those positions with the intent of diverting students funds.
He said the situation where some national leaders used their offices for personal gain could partly be attributed to attitudes nurtured in their youthful days, particularly those who were student leaders (see pages 24 & 25 for story).
The Scriptures implore us to train the child the way we want him or her to go, so that when he or she grows up he or she will not depart from it. This, in essence, requires that parents and teachers give the necessary training to those who pass through their hands during their formative years so that they imbibe positive character traits that will guide them throughout their lives.
Leadership is not only an honour; it is a heavy responsibility entrusted to those appointed or elected to serve in that capacity and so to make any positive impact, leaders must serve, rather than lord it over their people. Those who want to lead must always listen to the voice of the people.
The DAILY GRAPHIC reminds those seeking leadership at whatever level, particularly politicians seeking our mandate on December 7, 2008, to always remember what Dr J. B. Danquah said in 1947, that “the aim of Ghanaian nationalism was to institute a system of government where those who are in control of government are under the control of those who are governed”.
Reports abound of various degrees of malfeasance among the leadership of the student body on our campuses, while those same leaders shout on rooftops demanding accountability from our national leaders.
Some student leaders are tin gods running one-man shows. They detest everybody’s opinion on any matter and are not accountable to anybody.
Charity, they say, begins at home and, therefore, student leaders who have ambitions beyond the campuses must use the opportunity offered them at the tertiary institutions to serve their apprenticeships well and be good examples of the type of leaders the country needs to move forward.
Students in our tertiary institutions have major contributions to make in our development process. The DAILY GRAPHIC, therefore, calls on them to live what they preach on the campuses and avoid the double standards that some of them showcase there.
Those who seek to lead must submit to the wishes of those who put them there, for the mark of a good leader is how well he or she listens to and does the will of those who put him or her in office.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

A CASE FOR MANIFESTOS NOW

PARTY politics is about a contest of ideas, hence political parties spend time and resources to craft manifestos detailing how they plan to govern the country if elected.
In an election year, manifestos become very relevant because they guide the electorate to scrutinise the political parties.
It is unfortunate that barely six months to Election 2008, none of the political parties has completed work on its manifesto.
According to our lead story today, the manifestos of the political parties are at different stages of compilation.
Many of the political parties have elected their flag bearers and they are already touring the countryside to set out the strategic direction and outlines of prospective legislation they will put in place should they win the December elections to form the next government.
Our Constitution and development plans provide broad guidelines that can form the basis for the governance of the country. But how these policy issues can be harnessed into concrete actions for the governance of the country can only be captured in a manifesto.
Manifestos offer distinctive platforms for political parties to be identified and held accountable, if voted into power.
Indeed, how the various political parties plan to address unemployment issues, the rising cost of living, health and educational issues, the menace of hawkers in the cities and urban centres, as well as improved wages and salaries for workers, must be clearly spelt out in manifestos to capture the attention of the electorate who are not ready to spend time following the electioneering.
Although various arguments have been raised for and against manifestos, it is essential that the parties speed up work on their working documents before serious politicking begins in September so that the electorate will have the opportunity to separate empty rhetoric from pragmatic and workable policies that can address the concerns of the people.
After four successful general elections, Ghanaians must subject those who seek political office to serious scrutiny to ensure that no politician takes their votes as “a token of participation in the electoral process”.
If the people are offered the opportunity to scrutinise the manifestos of the parties, they will be better informed about the platform offered by all the political parties and cast their ballots in December based on the development options that will better address their concerns.
The media also have a crucial role to play in this regard through a critical analysis of the activities of all the political parties in order to help the electorate to take decisions not based on empty and vain promises.
For, after all, the media have a constitutional duty to hold public office holders and those seeking public office responsible and accountable to the people of Ghana.

Monday, May 26, 2008

LET'S PROMOTE IDEALS OF AU

YESTERDAY was observed as Africa Day throughout the continent. It marked the annual commemoration of the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) which, in July 2002, was renamed the African Union (AU).
The formation of the continental body 45 years ago was driven by a common aspiration towards decolonisation, liberation, equality, justice and progress.
Historically, the continental body was established principally to fight colonialism and apartheid. Presently, that agenda has changed under the AU, which is less aware of colonialism and is rather expected to be proactive and mount pressure on the leaders of the continent to respect human rights and the principles of free and fair elections to promote good governance.
For the continental body to make advances and turn the continent from one that has an unenviable record of conflicts, famine and economic mismanagement, there is the need for all to be reminded of the prophetic words of Emperor Haile Selassie on May 23, 1963, that "the task on which we have embarked, the making of Africa, will not wait; we must act to shape and mould the future and leave our imprint on events as they slip past into history...".
Forty five years on, Africans still lack the capacity to speak with one voice and take decisions on African problems as a collective body.
Last year, the continental leaders who gathered in Accra failed to reach consensus on an African Union Government, mainly as a result of the divergent forces on the continent. Those forces that emerged during the formation of the continental body in 1963 again showed up during the Accra conference when two positions were sharply canvassed on the future of Africa.
The Daily Graphic concedes that these differences that emerged as a result of the colonisation of the continent are so strong that it will take some time for them to be resolved completely.
However, it is equally important that our leaders become mindful of the economic and political forces of the world and put strategies in place to shape a better future for the continent.
The founding fathers of the continental body advocated the formation of an African High Command and economic integration. But, for some strange reasons, these were shot down by the reactionary forces. With the conflicts on the continent, everybody now sees the wisdom in the suggestion by the late President Nkrumah for the formation of an African High Command which could be deployed in conflict zones to maintain peace, security and order.
The Daily Graphic is marvelled at the fear among some of the leaders on the continent concerning the implication of the new security architecture and economic integration. After all, what use are the national armies put to when they are not supposed to be fighting their own people?
On the occasion of the AU anniversary, therefore, we call on the leaders on the continent to initiate policies that will give a new image to Africa. We need to move the continent away from one torn apart by war, famine, disease and poverty to a continent full of hope because the leaders offer strong leadership at both the national and continental levels.
Events in Somalia, the Darfur region in the Sudan, Zimbabwe, Burundi and the xenophobic attacks in South Africa only confirm fears that the continent is not ready to take up the challenge offered by globalisation and South-South co-operation.
To achieve this, there should be leadership that will engender participation and ownership of the continent's objective of achieving greater unity and solidarity among the peoples of the continent.

POLITICAL PARTIES, LEAD BY EXAMPLE

THE Electoral Commission (EC) is reported to be in a fix as to what to do with political parties that have been issued with certificates of registration but fail to operate in accordance with the law.
Understandably, the EC is worried about the lack of seriousness that has characterised the operations of some of these political parties, to the extent that some paint the houses of some individuals in party colours and present them as national headquarters or regional, district and constituency offices.
Indeed, that level of triviality and unprofessionalism can really be that irksome and the EC’s sentiments are not without basis.
The DAILY GRAPHIC wishes to associate itself with the concerns raised by the EC and stimulate the necessary discussion to address the issue.
Some have argued that in the political realm there is a battle for survival and so the lack of adequate funding and infrastructure is not a critical issue that should be used to nail political parties.
Yet the issue of operating to meet set standards is one that goes beyond such unguarded justification. Political parties are prominent organisations of immense public interest, which, in more ways than one, try to seek the mandate of the people to govern.
Any institution that seeks to govern the people must not only show great organisational aptitude but also display a high level of resourcefulness. Anything short of that will be a serious affront to the very aspirations and ideals of that party.
Political parties must respect the country’s laws and institutions so that if the people give any of them the mandate to govern, it will be able to uphold the constitutional order.
The Daily Graphic knows that Ghanaians have become more discerning in recent times and, therefore, the electorate will reject political parties that disregard the laws of the land. After all, example is better than precept.
Consequently, we wish to implore the EC to apply the rules to the letter and make politics unsavoury for self-seekers and opportunists who have virtually nothing to offer the masses but end up playing on their emotions.
While we challenge the EC to apply the laws to the letter, we also wish to admonish other state agencies and institutions that are responsible for regulating the activities of individuals and organisations, to be focused on enforcing laws and regulations.
Time and again, many people have found reason to lament the fact that some of our laws are flagrantly abused and no one seems to be bothered.
Assembly bye-laws on sanitation and hawking are flouted with impunity. There are uncontrolled levels of noise in residential areas and traffic laws are ignored.
The DAILY GRAPHIC also wishes to draw the attention of the citizenry to these regulations and the need to observe them. These regulations have been put in place to ensure that there is orderliness in our society and so disrespecting them can lead to a state of nature and confusion.
That is why the laws must work!

Friday, May 23, 2008

A GOOD ONE THERE

MANY factors account for the present global economic situation. These include increasing purchasing power of the middle-income class in China and other emerging economies, the use of food crops to produce biofuel, free trade policies promoted by international financial institutions and growing population.
The crisis has been aggravated by a surge in the price of crude oil over the last six months or so.
It is instructive that when Ghana outlined its economic and financial statement for this year in November last year, it did so on an estimated crude oil price of $85 per barrel.
The global economy this year has witnessed tremendous shock to such an extent that in some countries tens of thousands of people have staged demonstrations to protest against increases in the cost of living.
Most developing countries are at the receiving end because of the liberalised policies promoted by Western donors and multilateral organisations.
The policies designed by these institutions to stabilise the economies of many poor countries have rather become barriers to economic efficiency.
In the name of liberalisation and structural adjustment, our governments were stampeded to adopt cost recovery as the best option to compete in a globalised world.
Today, a number of countries which were self-sufficient in food production have become dependent on imports.
The way forward is for us to demonstrate the political will to re-negotiate some of the international trade terms that retard the progress of most emerging economies.
The good news, however, is that the Kufuor administration has decided to respond to the pleas of the people to stem the rising cost of living.
President J. A. Kufuor, in a nation-wide broadcast last night, announced a reduction in import duty on major food items and waived levies on some petroleum products as part of a major economic initiative to mitigate the hardship on consumers occasioned by escalating global food and oil prices.
Hopefully, this intervention will provide some space for families, particularly those in the lower income bracket, to afford their basic needs.
It will also be important for all Ghanaians to police the safety net that has been provided by the government, so that ‘economic vampires’ do not take advantage of the expected reduction in prices on the market to smuggle food items to neighbouring countries.
The development on the world market should be a wake-up call to us to take our destiny into our own hands.
The resources are here locally for economic reconstruction. What is necessary is our preparedness to work hard in all spheres of national endeavour to put the economy on an even keel.
The DAILY GRAPHIC, therefore, calls on all and sundry to de-politicise the debate on how to find solutions to our predicament and contribute to the discussion in the days ahead in the best interest of the country.
It is an election year and the temptation exists for politicians to attempt to gain political advantage, but we must all remember that anybody who plays politics with the world economic crisis does not stand to gain from it. Whatever gain may boomerang in the long term.
While we reflect on the government’s prescription for recovery, we must all learn from the bitter lessons of the economic crisis by turning to our domestic routes for growth, diversifying exports and expanding safety net initiatives.

Thursday, May 22, 2008

MAKING CHIEFTAINCY RELEVANT

LONG before the formation of modern-day nation states, Africans had their own governance systems which met the needs of the people.
To some people, the African chieftaincy institution is archaic, autocratic and irrelevant in contemporary polity.
But, in Ghana, we know that the chieftaincy institution is not a one-man creature but that its leadership is selected by democratic means.
In the Akan communities in Ghana, although the processes of nomination, election and enstoolment are a family matter, they are quite transparent.
Until recently when some stools were virtually "auctioned" to the highest bidder, non-royals could not get close to stools. It was a taboo and many believed that if that happened the ancestors would exact their revenge, hence the reverence for the chieftaincy institution.
As a result, the institution was the preserve of honest and upright people who were role models in society.
Having come thus far in the reconstruction of modern statehood, a lot needs to be done to reform our chieftaincy institution in order to complement the modern democratic governance system to advance the country's development agenda.
Therefore, there is an urgent need for a re-engineering of the chieftaincy institution to meet the aspirations of our times.
Some of our traditional communities continue to practise old traditional norms such as female genital mutilation (FGM), Trokosi, widowhood rites, early marriage, prolonged funeral rites, among other practices.
The heart-warming news is that despite the concerns over the chieftaincy institution, it is recognised under our new democratic dispensation.
President J. A. Kufuor hit the nail right on the head during his meeting with the Kabaga of Buganda in Accra yesterday when he called on traditional rulers to reform African traditional practices which impeded development in order to bring them into conformity with modernity.
Quite rightly, chiefs owe it a duty to support their governments to galvanise the people for development.
Our chiefs are held in very high esteem and in many communities their directives cannot be defied.
It is because of the immense influence chiefs wield over their people that the Constitution places them above partisan politics. However, in spite of this influence that chiefs have over their people, some of them have been sidelined in the governance of the country.
Although the 1992 Constitution requires that traditional authorities be consulted on the composition of the one-third government appointees to district assemblies, they are normally ignored.
It is essential for chiefs to be accorded the necessary recognition because they are the rallying platform to plan, initiate and execute policies and projects in respect of all matters affecting the people in order to deepen the decentralisation process.
This drawback notwithstanding, the chieftaincy institution can continue to play its useful role in governance if chiefs reform the traditional practices that are inimical to the people's well-being.
Our chiefs must help to give the chieftaincy institution a new image by rejecting outmoded cultural practices, for, after all, there is something in a name and that is why it is said "give a dog a bad name and hang it".

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

FLUSH OUT CABLE THIEVES

AN efficient communication system serves as a catalyst for economic growth. That is why governments spend huge sums of money improving the communication infrastructure such as roads and the telecommunication backbone.
The introduction of cellular telephony has impacted more positively on this development process. The growth in the sector is phenomenal, particularly with the advent of cellular handsets and Internet facilities.
Today, cellular handsets can send and receive information of all kinds and also be used to receive television signals. Those who are digitally minded are accessing the full benefits of the information age to do business, promote education and disseminate information at cheaper cost. The world has truly become a global village where all kinds of information can be accessed on the world-wide web.
About a decade ago, it was a status symbol to carry mobile handsets and those who owned such sets — and they were in very big sizes — held them as badges of honour. Presently, all manner of people, from the very top to the lowly placed in society, have access to mobile telephony. Such a facility can be accessed in the remotest villages in the country where it is used for business transactions and for reaching out to relations and friends.
It is refreshing that Ghana has not been left out of efforts at bridging the digital divide. Although we have a long way to go, efforts being made at the governmental level to improve the system are yielding some positive results.
But certain unscrupulous persons are bent on derailing our bold efforts at catching up with the so-called First World and updating our telecommunication infrastructure.
Reports that the frequent stealing of cables belonging to the Ghana Telecommunications (GT) Company has severely disrupted the company’s expansion work in parts of the Eastern Region are a major setback.
It is an undeniable fact that majority of the people are moving from fixed lines to mobile telephony services. In spite of this, fixed line services will have their role to play for a very long time to come. Most Internet facilities can only be accessed with fixed lines, and given the growth in that sector, it is only prudent that we collectively protect the cables that provide these services.
The DAILY GRAPHIC, therefore, appeals to the security agencies to step up their efforts at dealing a decisive blow to these nation wreckers who have been causing this country a fortune through their nefarious activities.
Most regional capitals have witnessed tremendous development in recent times, in spite of the continuous migration of the youth to our cities, particularly Accra. Business is picking up in all the regional capitals because the cost of doing business is being reduced through the provision of facilities such as telephones and so nothing should be done to disrupt the planned development activity of the government, the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies, as well as business concerns.
We believe that the reward system put in place by GT and the ECG to break the back of these nation wreckers is quite attractive to motivate the public to volunteer information on cable thieves.
The DAILY GRAPHIC, therefore, urges collective action to stop those who are bent on disrupting our forward march towards improving living conditions in the country.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

GIVE MINING NEW IMAGE

Mining is a major source of revenue for the country’s development programmes. Ghana can boast of major mines and for this reason leading players in the sector are involved in the operations.
We also mine bauxite and diamond. The recent discovery of huge deposits of oil has imposed additional responsibilities on the country to promote better collaboration between the mining companies and the communities in which such explorations are done to guarantee mutually beneficial returns.
These mining activities are normally welcomed with a lot of fanfare in the communities, with the hope that such activities will turn around the economic fortunes of the people.
But conditions in most mining areas indicate that there is the need for a review of mining operations in the country.
The level of environmental degradation in areas like Obuasi, Tarkwa, Prestea and Akwatia should be a wake-up call to all that mining operations have not lifted up the living conditions of the people.
From hindsight, it is crucial to appreciate that for Ghana to make any major gains from mining activities, there is the need for mining companies and communities to take a long-term view of mining operations in order to design policies that are likely to provide sustainable benefits.
Therefore, the decision by the government to establish a high-powered task force to find solutions to problems in the mining sector, although long overdue, should be welcome news.
The task force will also seek a new paradigm for the mining sector to make it better suited to the national development agenda, as well as erase the erroneous perception among the public that mining companies are exploitative and contribute nothing in real terms to the economy.
It is an undeniable fact that mining activities in the country are characterised by some negative practices, such as galamsey operations, human rights abuses, environmental degradation and clashes between the mining companies and the local communities, brought about by a misunderstanding over the payment of compensation.
With a clear movement towards openness and transparency in our society in recent times, there is the need for mining companies to follow open processes in their dealings with members of the communities within which they operate.
The Daily Graphic believes that it is also important for the central government not to abdicate its responsibility concerning local community issues to the mining companies so that the companies can be held accountable for their actions.
It is only through the active involvement of local communities and civil society organisations that mining companies can be made to be more socially responsible by playing a more proactive role in community development programmes.
While steps are being taken to promote sustainable development in mining communities, the country must also provide a better legal framework within which to maximise returns from the sector.
The exportation of our mineral resources in raw form must give way to value addition.
The Daily Graphic appeals to the government to grant special tax incentives to entrepreneurs willing to invest in refinery plants to add value to our bauxite, gold and diamond.
While wishing the Ghana Chamber of Mines a happy 80th anniversary, we also call on it to join hands with the government to enforce best practices among the mining companies.

Monday, May 19, 2008

DEPOLITICISE OUR DEVELOPMENT AGENDA

OUR country has witnessed a rather unfortunate trend, since the overthrow of the First Republic, of projects being abandoned after a regime change.
That development has not helped our forward march, as there is no continuity in the development agenda of the country.
It all began when, after the overthrow of the First President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the seven-year development plan of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) government crafted in 1963 was abandoned.
That development blueprint meant to transform the country was then described as a very ambitious plan and if it had not been abandoned, could have helped to leapfrog Ghana from a poverty stricken country into an African economic giant.
Since then, the country has had various economic blueprints, such as the Operation Feed Yourself (OFY) programme, the Vision 2020 and currently the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy II (GPRS II).
Whether GPRS II can stand any future regime change is only a matter of conjecture. For the country to accelerate its development agenda, stability is required on both the economic and political fronts.
If policies, especially economic plans, are varied just because of a regime change, we risk perpetuating the culture of inconsistency in our efforts to break the back of poverty, disease and unemployment.
It is in this context that the DAILY GRAPHIC welcomes the position of the Chairman of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Mr J. H. Mensah, that Ghana can attain its goal of a middle-income status if politicians learn to divorce partisan politics from national economic objectives.
The suggestion from one of our society’s leading lights, himself a member of the committee that crafted the seven-year development blueprint of the First Republic, is quite timely because of the forthcoming elections.
Already, the politicians seeking our mandate to govern are canvassing various positions to win our votes.
Slogans restating the flag bearers’ commitment to work towards a better Ghana have started appearing on billboards, in the newspapers and on the airwaves. This presupposes that all the flag bearers wish the best for Ghana and its people.
Really, if that is the position of our flag bearers, then it does not matter very much who is in power because any of them who is elected will place Ghana and its people first before his political party and its members.
Unfortunately, during most of the regimes that we have had, the party card entitled one to juicy contracts and high offices in the public service without regard to the capabilities of the person seeking those positions.
Ghana is endowed with the necessary human and material resources to lift itself out of the group of nations referred to as developing countries. That can be achieved if the government that the people elect provides a platform for all to have a say in the vision for the attainment of a middle-income status by 2015.
The DAILY GRAPHIC, therefore, calls on all the political parties, especially the ruling party, to build consensus on the long-term development plan for the country to ensure ownership at the national and local levels of our governance structure.
We call on all the political parties to contribute to the development plan so that in the event of regime change, our new rulers will have no basis to discontinue the implementation of the plan.
In all that we do, Ghana should always be placed above all sectarian considerations.
The moment that happens, Ghanaians will buy into the company called Ghana Incorporated and work hard to attain the national vision of transforming the economy through our collective efforts.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

LET'S GROW WHAT WE EAT

THE assurance by the government that it is doing everything within its power to avert any negative effects of the global food crisis and increasing fuel prices on consumers is a step in the right direction.
When rising fuel prices, the global food and the economic crises in the USA threatened the world economy, captains of business and industry called on the government to take steps to put in place measures to avoid the destabilisation of the economic gains made so far.
So far, Ghana appears to have weathered the storm, as the economy remains resilient, inflation is within manageable levels, interest rates are still better than they were some years ago, while the cedi remains strong against other currencies.
The worrying development, however, is that the government has decided to cut its economic growth target to 6.8 per cent as crude oil trades above $100 per barrel. It had expected to expand the economy to a seven per cent growth this year based on an oil price of $85 per barrel.
Speaking in Maputo, Mozambique, during the African Development Bank (AfDB) annual general meeting, the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, said, “The oil impact is massive,” adding that “there is no one in Ghana who wants to see galloping inflation. It is not good for us. It is not good for any economy”.
Ghana cannot be an island in the sub-region and beyond and that is why we have to do something pretty soon to ensure that our people are not adversely affected by the global crisis, while at the same time maintaining the resilience of the economy.
The Daily Graphic urges the Cabinet sub-committee tasked with coming up with recommendations on how to stem the effects of the global food crisis and fuel prices on Ghanaians to use its mandate to engage in broad consultation with all stakeholders so that the outcome of the government’s action will lead to a win-win situation.
The Managing Director of the Finatrade Group, a major rice merchant in the country, Mr Nabil Mourkazel, has already appealed to the government to remove tariffs on staples such as rice and wheat to reduce the pressure on local consumers.
Since it is reported that some neighbouring countries have reduced tariffs on such imported staples, it will be economically prudent for the government to take a similar step to avoid the situation where traders will smuggle those commodities into the country. If that happens, the government will not get the intended revenue, as the smugglers will distort the market.
The Daily Graphic believes that while the government takes steps to address the difficulties posed by the global economic crisis, every well-meaning Ghanaian should contribute his or her quota to the discussion to help the country maintain a stable economic environment devoid of partisan considerations.
The government is also encouraged to provide the necessary credit support for our farmers during this year’s farming season to help them expand production.
Ghana has escaped the street protests that have engulfed some countries largely because of the availability of local food staples such as cassava, rice, yam, plantain and maize.
We can only continue to maintain a peaceful environment if our farmers are motivated to produce abundantly to feed the country and even for export.
Yes, our heads have remained above water so far, but conditions can remain better if we continue to “grow what we eat and eat what we grow”.

Friday, May 16, 2008

THERE WE GO AGAIN

LONG before the Electoral Commission (EC) fires the starter’s gun for the elections to begin, the political parties have hit the road canvassing for votes and promising the electorate a better tomorrow.
Every electoral contest is also a contest of ideas, hence the airwaves and newspapers are inundated with all kinds of messages from the political parties seeking our mandate to lead the country from January 7, 2009.
The high level of interest being demonstrated by governance institutions shows that our democracy has come of age and that the days are gone when politicians took the electorate for granted.
For this reason, various forums are being organised for the political parties to canvass their positions on the challenges facing the people and how they hope to address those concerns.
Recently, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) organised what was called “Flag bearers on Energy” to seek the perspectives of the flag bearers of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the Convention People’s Party (CPP) and the People’s National Convention (PNC) on how they will deal with the energy challenges facing the country.
The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) which has been helping to build the capacities of the four political parties in Parliament has also decided to deepen its support for democratic governance by providing the flag bearers the opportunity to share their vision with the electorate.
The DAILY GRAPHIC commends the IEA and its partners for the opportunity they are offering the political parties to build the capacity of their members and reach the electorate with their messages.
Now we are faced with the challenges of redefining the level to which our politics must be carried to make 16 years of democratic governance relevant and beneficial to the people.
Therefore, any move, that makes democracy more functional must be welcomed, nurtured and sustained.
As a result of the policies initiated so far by various governments, Ghana is touted as a good example of good governance and economic development on the continent.
Notwithstanding Ghana’s international image, the ordinary people still feel left out of the governance and economic process as they remain on the periphery of the gains made so far.
However, the people are tired of the rhetoric of the past when promises made were unrealistic but the electorate bought into them, only to be disappointed.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that the voters have now become more discerning than before and it is our hope that this year the presidential candidates will dwell on the issues backed by facts and figures.
We call on our presidential candidates to get down to brass tacks and state how they hope to raise the emoluments of workers, provide affordable housing, health care, education and jobs for the people.
What the DAILY GRAPHIC asks of the flag bearers is simple: They should tell Ghanaians in simple terms how they hope to raise the resources so that the Ghanaian can afford three square meals a day, without overburdening them with taxes or perpetuating our over dependence on donors.
Until they provide concrete steps by which our woes will be addressed, what they say on the campaign trail will be mere rhetoric which will not help the electorate to make informed decisions.
The DAILY GRAPHIC calls on the flag bearers not to remind the electorate of a popular Akan adage which says: “Se kwatrikwa se obema wo ntoma a, tie ne din” — to wit, if the naked person promises you a piece of cloth, consider his name by refraining from promising to build bridges where there are no rivers.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

WEED OUT UNACCREDITED JOURNALISM SCHOOLS

THE Northern Regional Branch of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has raised the red flag over the looming danger posed by the mushrooming of journalism training schools in the country.
A statement issued by the branch expressed worry over one such institution in Tamale because the school “had the potential to churn out mediocre products who could pose real danger to society as the institute did not have the qualified personnel to teach journalism”.
The Northern Regional Branch of the GJA is not a lone voice in this regard, as others have expressed disquiet over the mushrooming of journalism institutions and the large army of impostors who have invaded the profession.
The national secretariat of the GJA and lovers of democracy have also voiced out their frustrations at the sub-standard schools and their potential to undermine quality journalism if immediate steps are not taken to rectify the situation.
Another problem confronting media practice in the country is the tendency among media owners to recruit any school leaver to practise journalism. And because such employees are not qualified, they are paid very low remuneration, while some of them drag the name of the profession into the mud by fighting for what has become known in journalism circles as “Solidarity” or brown envelopes.
The liberalisation of the media landscape has made journalism practice a glamorous enterprise. Young people — from tertiary and secondary institutions — seek employment opportunities in media organisations such as radio and television stations, newspapers and online services.
The advent of other gadgets of communication such as mobile phones, laptops and personal computers has expanded the frontiers of media freedom and freedom of expression.
Presently in vogue in many emerging economies is what is known as citizens’ journalism, where ordinary people use all means available to them to gather information for established media houses.
But media practice has become more complex in view of the important role that journalism plays in the democratisation and development process. Indeed, the media are seen as the oxygen of democracy. That is why it is hard to think of a profession of greater public importance than journalism.
Journalism also provides independent information about government and other public office holders and, therefore, acts as one of the main checks on the powers of the state. Journalism monitors public accountability on behalf of the people, as enshrined in the Fourth Republican Constitution.
It is against this background that the Daily Graphic thinks that the National Accreditation Board (NAB) should do more to sanitise the system to ensure that only accredited institutions provide journalism training for young men and women desirous of using their pens to better the lot of their communities.
The NAB must assist parents who desire continuous education for their children to distinguish the “wheat from the chaff” so that trained journalists can be given the most powerful set of tools to help the people to make informed decisions.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

TEACHER, KEY TO EDUCATION

EDUCATION is one of the key drivers of the development process in any society. A sound education structure triggers manpower empowerment, knowledge and an enlightened society, which is able to lead a crusade for social transformation and economic progress.
The teacher is key in the success of the educational enterprise, so the direction of the teaching and learning process hinges on the quality of the teacher.
The teacher’s role in education involves imparting the broad content of knowledge within which students can understand their environment better by developing an enquiring and critical mind. This learning process enables students to express their thoughts and confront difficulties that face them.
Thus, the teacher has a very difficult task in character formation because although the student spends a greater part of time in the home, most parents have neglected their character training aspect of their parental responsibilities and left it in the hands of teachers.
While majority of Ghanaians concede that teachers deserve better than their present conditions of service, it is equally objectionable for some of them, trained at the taxpayer’s expense, to abandon the profession after upgrading themselves.
This frustration was echoed by President J. A. Kufuor yesterday during the Golden Jubilee celebration of the Association of French Teachers when he said “when the Ghana Education Service (GES) sponsors your education, it is unethical for you to leave the profession when you have not sufficiently given back what is expected of you”.
As the President noted, there could be no functional education without teachers and so our teachers must continue to commit themselves to the policy of character formation of our youth.
Teachers generally are unhappy about the present level of recognition from society and expect that society would do more to restore that dignity in order to enhance their confidence level to deal with the challenges in the education sector.
Gone are the days when the teaching profession was a status symbol and the teacher acted as a spokesperson for any community.
The irony of it all is that while the popular dictum reminds us that “if you can read and write, thank the teacher”, society believes that the teacher’s reward is in heaven.
However, the harsh realities of our time dictate that immediate action is taken to address the unfavourable service conditions of teachers to bring back the glorious days of the teaching profession in order to motivate teachers to serve in any part of the country and train the future leaders of this country wholeheartedly.
The Daily Graphic believes that teachers have to change some of their bad habits such as absenteeism, lateness, drunkenness, refusal to accept postings to rural areas and using state facilities for private business and rather support the government’s new educational reform to turn out a new breed of Ghanaians.
Teachers must take up the challenge under the new educational reform programme to prepare students for a range of career pathways by helping them to develop the skills, habits and attitudes they can retain over a lifetime.
We think that the country needs teachers who can help in moulding the character of their students by developing in them the ability to recognise and seize opportunities in their environment so that they can be creative and self-reliant. But most important, the teacher must be able to mentor and act as a role model to his or her students by providing support structures that make learning purposeful and engaging.

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

TOLLING OUR ROADS

REPORTS that heavy traffic is back on the Mallam-Kasoa road following the tolling of the road is quite worrying.
For many years, users of the Mallam-Winneba road expressed frustration at the snail’s pace at which traffic moved on that portion of the Western Corridor of the country. The situation was aggravated in the last decade or so following the development of new houses in satellite communities such as Weija, Aplaku, Tuba, Bortianor, GICEL, Kasoa, Nyanyano and Buduburam along the road.
As if that was not enough to make travelling a nightmare, a major market developed at Kasoa until recently when it was relocated to the Kasoa-Bawjiase road amidst fierce protests from market women, drivers and residents.
The rebuilding of new roads and rehabilitation of existing ones require massive investment. Nonetheless, donor fatigue requires that our government look within to raise the resources necessary for the development of the country’s roads and other infrastructure.
A recall of the difficulties that Ghana went through in accessing funds from the Japanese government to reconstruct the Mallam-Kasoa-Yamoransa road, particularly when the country went HIPC, makes the decision to provide toll booths on that road and others reasonable.
The tolling of the roads may also be understandable for economic reasons, in order to recoup the cost of the reconstruction and for maintenance purposes.
However, it is our expectation that the Ministry of Transportation would have carried out a more extensive public education on the tolling process. The inadequate nature of the public education on the issue creates the unfortunate impression that the travelling public is against the exercise.
Travellers have disliked toll roads not only for the cost of the tolls but also for delays at the toll booths, a situation that would confront road users on the Kasoa Road for some time.
Ghana lacks the capacity to introduce electronic toll collection, which reduces delays in tolls collection. Ghana, like many other countries, is turning to toll booths to meet increasing demands for well-paved roads because of a constrained budget.
Currently, road users are paying for road use through fuel taxes and registration fees and it is expected that road tolling would deliver substantial benefits to road users, taxpayers and the economy as a whole.
The country has a long way to go to achieve acceptable standards for its road networks. Presently, a larger portion of the roads is untarred, making transportation a major headache.
It is a sad commentary that more than 50 years after independence, all major roads to and from the city are under construction.
The Daily Graphic is aware of the tax burden on the people but the government has the responsibility to provide for the needs of the governed.
Nevertheless, in a situation where everybody seems to be singing from the same hymn sheet that the country should look within for the resources to develop, the only option is for all responsible citizens to live up to their civic responsibility of paying their taxes.
The Daily Graphic thinks the tolling idea is good but in future, the Ministry of Transportation should engage all stakeholders on the implementation of the programme so that there will be ownership at the leadership and local levels.
While we are at it, the ministry can consider increasing the toll plazas to more than one as pertains on the Tema Motorway to ease the traffic.

Monday, May 12, 2008

WE'VE TO CHANGE OUR ATTITUDE

In our last Saturday’s edition we spoke about how filth has engulfed the various metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies in the country.
Because of the serious health and related problems garbage accumulation in our cities and towns create, we are forced to discuss the issue once again. The bottom line of our problem today is our attitude towards sanitation.
Our attitude is that when it comes to disposal of wastes we do not have any value, for we throw them anywhere anyhow without giving a thought to the repercussion of our actions.
This is seen in the way we litter our streets, markets and other public places in our cities and towns and in our villages and rural communities, at our river banks, just to mention but a few.
What is painful is that in the past we had good sanitation practices in our villages where you will see community members sweeping their compounds and adjoining areas.
In those days it was very common for some rural communities to set aside specific days for communal exercise to clean up their surroundings.
Whilst this practice is not entirely gone from our rural communities, it has dramatically reduced due to pressures of modern-day life and particularly because of our complete indifference and the promotion of individual interests.
In our towns and cities today even when people sweep their compounds and frontages, they dump the rubbish in gutters, others gather their garbage and dump it at any open spaces they can find.
Along our coastal areas people defecate on the white sandy beaches with careless abandon.
All these we do without thinking about their implication for our health.
But it is about time we started to change the way we think, feel and behave towards our surroundings: We should have an attitudinal change in our society towards sanitation.
We should stop the way we throw things out of cars onto the streets, we should stop throwing papers and empty plastic water bags and what have you, at any place we find ourselves and start to make conscious efforts to avoid throwing things about indiscriminately. We should stop the littering.
Because our surroundings speak volumes about us: When your surroundings are dirty people presume you are dirty and rightly so.
As we admonish the populace against bad sanitation practices, we in the same way call on the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies to mount more litter bins at vantage points in their various communities for people to dispose of their rubbish.
In Accra for example, Zoomlion, a leading sanitation company, has placed litter bins at vantage areas but these are not enough. Others need to reciprocate this good example.
The assemblies should also strengthen their various enforcement agencies so that when people flout the bye-laws on sanitation especially littering and wrong disposal of refuse they could be arrested, prosecuted and given stiffer penalty to serve as a deterrent to other people who flout the law.
As the Minister of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment, Mr Kwadwo Adjei-Darko, pointed out last Friday, sanitation should not be the burden of only the city authorities. It indeed requires the collective effort of all.
We all need to be very disciplined and stop littering our public places with small pieces of rubbish such as paper, cans and bottles.
For us to have clean cities and towns we need to change our attitudes towards sanitation.

Sunday, May 11, 2008

PAY FOR WASTE COLLECTION

FOR the past few months, media reports have shown that our metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies have been finding it extremely difficult to cope with the management of waste generated by the populace.
The fact is that most of the assemblies do not have the capacity and equipment to manage the disposal of refuse.
They also do not have the funds to pay private waste management companies they have contracted to collect refuse at various points for disposal.
At the launch of the International Year of Sanitation in Accra last April, the Minister of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment, Mr Kwadwo Adjei-Darko, disclosed that four metropolitan assemblies — Accra, Shama-Ahanta East, Tema and Kumasi — owed waste collectors and other related service providers GH¢23.5 million as of December 2007.
Currently, the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) alone is said to be owing private waste management contractors GH¢12.5 million, more than half the amount of money owed by the four metropolitan assemblies.
Following this development, some of the contractors have suspended their services, leading to the accumulation of garbage and the creation of filthy surroundings in sections of the affected cities.
Besides, the inability of the assemblies to pay the waste management contractors is a great disincentive to the contractors and also against the government’s policy of encouraging the private sector to take up waste management as a business.
Various markets in our metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies are now engulfed in filth as a result of rubbish pile-ups.
The refuse heaps at the Kaneshie, Odorkor, Teshie-Nungua, Agbogbloshie and Adabraka markets in Accra; Central, Asafo and Bantama markets in Kumasi, and the main roundabout and Kwesimintsim markets in Takoradi, indeed pose a health hazard to the traders and residents of those areas.
Just yesterday, an official of the Environmental Protection Agency warned that an epidemic would hit Accra soon if the accumulation of garbage in sections of the metropolis was not halted.
He was emphatic that when this happened, the AMA was to be held responsible.
Unlike the past when many residents in Accra for instance paid nothing to dispose of household rubbish, for some years now designated companies have taken up the responsibility of waste collection and management for a fee.
While the system has been designed such that residents would contribute to paying for the services of the designated companies, in practice majority of such residents do not pay any fees.
There is also the large population of commuters who visit Accra daily. They include traders in foodstuffs and hawkers who by the nature of their trade, create a lot of refuse, but they do not contribute anything towards the collection and management of what they create. No wonder the AMA and other assemblies are overwhelmed by the cost involved in cleaning up their administrative areas.
It is in view of this development that the proposed Polluter-Pays Principle should be given the needed impetus. It is also timely that the Minister of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment has reopened the debate on the system, advocating its adoption in view of the increasing financial burden of waste management on the government. (See back page story.)
As the minister pointed out, environmental sanitation should not be the burden of only the city authorities. It indeed requires the collective effort of all. What is required is discipline in waste disposal by all, along with environmental cleanliness and the preparedness to pay for an efficient waste collection and management service.

Friday, May 9, 2008

WE NEED PEACEFUL ELECTIONEERING

LAST Wednesday, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) launched its national campaign at the auditorium of the National Theatre amid pomp and pageantry.
The party’s national campaign is to focus on four thematic areas — investment in the people, the creation of jobs, building a stronger economy, as well as the provision of a transparent administration.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP), in March, this year, launched its national campaign team at the party’s headquarters in Accra with all the pomp and ceremony of a political party campaign.
The NPP, on the other hand, is to base its national campaign on four thematic areas — the consolidation of democracy, modernisation of the society, structural transformation of the economy and the full engagement of Ghana in the process of regional and continental integration.
The Convention People’s Party (CPP), also in April this year, launched its campaign team at its headquarters in Accra.
The People’s National Convention (PNC), the Democratic Freedom Party (DFP), the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP) and the other smaller parties have not yet launched their campaign or campaign teams.
What is common in these political activities is that the various political leaders have called for an electioneering devoid of rancour, acrimony and vituperation. The bottom line is that the political leaders are calling for peace.
The December general election will be a watershed in the country’s democratic development and consolidation.
If the electoral process comes off without violence and a rejection of the results, then we would have advanced the consolidation of our nascent democracy.
This country is being held up by the international community as a model when it comes to peaceful elections and it has, since 1992 when we ushered in the Fourth Republic, shown the way.
If we cast our eyes around us, we will find that Ghana has become an oasis of peace within the West African sub-region.
Examples abound of countries in this same region which, some time ago, were beautifully charting the course of democratic governance but have today become strife torn because they did not give peace a chance when it mattered most.
It is because of this that all the stakeholders in the December elections should endeavour to ensure that everything goes right for us to have peaceful elections.
The political parties and their leaders should conduct themselves in a decorous manner that will not bring any strife or conflict during this electioneering.
Our Electoral Commission is known to have done its duty impartially in past elections and we expect nothing short of that.
We will urge the commission to be transparent in whatever it does at this period, have regular consultations and interactions with the political parties so that no one will suspect any foul deal.
Violence, the hallmark of a number of countries in the West African sub-region, is not the preserve of any group of people or country.
When emotions get bruised as a result of cheating, intimidation, circumvention of rules and regulations, when sections or groups of people are denied a level playing ground, they demand redress in various forms and the easiest one which comes handy is violence.
The December elections are seen as very crucial, especially because after eight years of the NPP (2000-2008) and eight years of the NDC (1992-2000), each party is poised to win at all cost. The other political parties are also bent on winning the elections.
The political parties and their supporters should, therefore, be guided by the experiences of neighbouring West African countries which are in political turmoil and help to sustain the peace in the country.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

SCHOOL FEEDING AUDITING MUST BE THOROUGH

THE World Food Programme (WFP) states that for a hungry child, going to school is not important. What is important is having food to eat, and enough too.
This is a truism that everybody associates with, for every adult has been a child before.
A hungry child does not only show disinterest in going to school but also disdain for everything else, even in frolicking, which is so common with children and keeps them happy and strong.
In 2005, the government launched the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) for public primary schools and kindergartens in the poorest areas, providing the pupils with one hot nutritious meal per day, using locally grown foodstuffs.
According to officials of the programme, about 900,000 schoolchildren were benefiting from the programme as of January 2007
The GSFP has since been hailed by all as a good intervention and, indeed, just a year after its introduction, school enrolment is said to have increased dramatically.
Because locally produced food items form the major component of the meals served, produce of farmers in the respective communities now have a ready market.
Besides, the cooks are employed from the community, hence ready jobs now await community members who are interested and qualified.
But, not so long ago, the Committee for Joint Action (CJA) made public the findings of an audit carried out by PriceWaterhouse Coopers, an accounting and auditing firm which revealed instances of corruption, stealing and maladministration in the programme.
In fact, in July 2007, the former Executive Chairman of the programme, Dr Kwame Amoako-Tuffuor, himself had warned self-seekers whose avowed aim was to siphon resources meant for the feeding of schoolchildren to desist from that selfish act.
Some District Chief Executives, Members of Parliament and local monitoring groups were reportedly conniving and using the names of some caterers to collect money and using it for purposes other than the intended one.
There have been bitter recriminations among the CJA, other stakeholders and Dr Amoako-Tuffuor since PriceWaterhouse Coopers came out with its audit findings imputing corruption and maladministration to the programme. Since then, Dr Amoako-Tuffuor has been relieved of his post.
It is in light of these that we are happy that the Ghana Audit Service has begun a nation-wide audit of the school feeding programme. (See story on Pages 24 and 49.)
The exercise is supposed to cover the activities of the programme at all the 975 beneficiary schools, the national secretariat, the national warehouse and the project office at the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment from the 2006 and 2007 financial years.
We pray that the Audit Service will undertake this national exercise with all the thoroughness that is needed so that all the grey areas — be they financial, administrative, operational, etc — will be smoothened out for the programme to continue and subsequently cover all schools and achieve its noble objectives.
The exercise should be devoid of any partisan politicisation, as we are wont to do of late in this country.

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

BAWKU NEEDS PEACE

HAVING in the recent past emerged from two major disasters — severe drought and unprecedented floods — the least anybody expected from Bawku and its environs was peace and freedom that would have enabled both the citizens and residents to pick up the pieces, rebuild and regain what had been destroyed or lost.
Therefore, the renewal of hostilities at this time, marked by the free use of heavy weapons by people involved in the communal clash, Kusasis and Mamprusis, arson and senseless killings, has dealt a serious blow to the needed peace and security in the area.
For instance, as of the time of going to press, several people had died following the hostilities and many people were being treated in hospital for various degrees of injury, some houses had been burnt and the curfew which was lifted a week ago re-imposed from 9.00 a.m. to 7.00 a.m. until further notice.
Stories abound of some businesses and shops closing down, workers fleeing from the Bawku municipality under police escort for fear of their lives, while students make it to their schools also under escort.
Certainly, such a situation needs urgent action and the government has acted fast by deploying police and military personnel there to bring the explosive situation to normalcy.
The conflict between the Kusasis and the Mamprusis started way back in 1958 when a Mamprusi Chief, Naba Salma Yerimiah, was destooled and sent into exile in Togo.
The Kusasis enskinned Naba Abugrago Azoka I, but after the 1966 coup d’etat, Azoka was removed and a Mamprusi, Naba Tampure, enskinned as chief of the area.
This process of destoolment and enskinment of chiefs continued with different governments until the present chief of Bawku, Asigri Abugrago Azoka II, was enskinned.
These periods of destoolment and enskinment of chiefs from these two ethnic groups had brought with them intermittent violent conflicts.
In December last year, the hostility between the two ethnic groups resurfaced, claiming many lives. Many people were killed in the Bawku municipality and Garu in the Garu-Tempane District.
The King of the Mamprugu, Nayiri Naa Bohugu Mahami Abdulai Sheriga, resolved to personally intervene in the protracted and internecine conflict by consulting the National House of Chiefs, the elders and sub-chiefs in his area to help find a lasting solution to the problem.
The Nayiri cautioned politicians and the youth in the Northern and Upper East regions to refrain from any reprisals and to rise above parochial interests to help heal the deep-seated hatred between the Mamprusis and the Kusasis.
President J. A. Kufuor, in March this year, held a crucial meeting with some chiefs, opinion leaders and politicians from the Upper East Region to find an amicable solution to the conflict in Bawku.
After the President had met the two feuding factions at the Castle, Osu, it was everybody’s expectation that they were going back home to put their act together and stop the fighting for the government to do what it could to start the reconstruction of the area.
The people of the Bawku municipality should take cognisance of the fact that the area, more than anywhere else in the country, needs peace to develop because it is one of the most deprived in the country.
The huge sums of money the government spends to deploy the military, the police and other auxiliary agencies to the area to keep and maintain peace could be used to provide basic social amenities for the people there.
The conflict in Bawku is affecting the region and the country as a whole and it is time the people there realised this and stopped the fighting for peace to prevail.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

THE POLICE SERVICE NEEDS OVERHAULING

RECENT happenings in the Ghana Police Service leave much to be desired.
Only yesterday, we published the interdiction of five policemen on the orders of the Inspector-General of Police for their involvement in two robbery incidents.
In April this year, the Kojo Armah Committee set up to investigate the missing cocaine from the Exhibits Store at the CID Headquarters in Accra recommended the prosecution of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Patrick Akagbo who kept the keys to the store for dereliction of duty.
The committee also recommended further investigations into the conduct of Chief Superintendent Alphonse Adu-Amankwah, the former Head of the erstwhile Organised Crime Unit, in his administration of the unit, especially with the arrest, transportation and handling of the cocaine which was intercepted at Prampram in the Greater Accra Region.
In the same month, two policemen — General Constable Francis Tagaar and General Constable Samuel Nketsia, both of the Agona Swedru Police Division — were interdicted following brutalities they meted out to a petty trader, Emmanuel Nii Odartey, at Awutu Bawjiase.
In January this year, the officer in charge of the Narcotic Exhibits Store at the Police Headquarters was arrested following the discovery that narcotic substances in the custody of the police had been compromised and substituted with corn flour.
In a move to enforce discipline in the Police Service, the Police Administration, in May 2007, dismissed 39 policemen and interdicted 26 others for gross misconduct, ranging from extortion, stealing, absenteeism, alleged murder, desertion of post, alleged dealing in narcotic drugs, defilement, defrauding by false pretences, assault and, the unkindest cut of all, unlawful discharge of arms.
During proceedings at the committee that investigated the East Legon cocaine bribery scandal, a girlfriend of a cocaine fugitive, Ms Grace Asibi, named some senior police officers as some of the key culprits.
ACP Kofi Boakye, the then Director-General of Operations of the Police Service, was asked to proceed on leave because of his alleged dealings with suspected cocaine barons.
And we can go on and on.
All these cases are not good for the image of the Police Service, an institution set up to prevent crime in society, protect lives and property, arrest and prosecute offenders and maintain law and order in society.
If policemen will turn on the people they are supposed to protect, beat them, defraud them, kill them and steal from them, then there is the need for something to be done, and urgently, too.
Currently, the citizenry feel insecure because they do not know who is a good policeman and who is not, for it appears that the criminals are joining the Police Service to use their uniforms and positions to commit crime.
In view of the present state of the service, and the failed attempts by the Police Administration to reverse the negative posture the service is fast adopting, it’s about time we overhauled the service to make it perform its required functions.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes the time is opportune for a Presidential commission to be set up to overhaul the Police Service and particularly come out with recommendations to transform it into an institution which will prevent undesirable characters from entering it and also make the institution live up to the task of dealing with modern intricate and sophisticated crimes.
Let’s act now.

Monday, May 5, 2008

REBIRTH OF AVEYIME RICE PROJECT

IT is good news that after nearly eight years of inactivity, the Aveyime Rice Project bounces back within the next two weeks.
At the relaunch of the project last Friday, the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr Ernest Debrah, gave the assurance that “we will not put the project into the hands of people who will fail to deliver and leave it to collapse”.
Equally reassuring was the pledge made by the Chief Executive Officer of Prairie Texas Incorporated (PTI), investors in the project, Mr Everest Anderson, that, “Sure, there will be individual and community problems and issues in the days and years to come. However, with mutual understanding and a united goal, we can solve any difficulty and keep moving forward.”
Indeed, many issues have dogged the project in the past and some of those issues remain unsolved at this phase of the project.
One major challenge that will confront the new investors in the Aveyime Rice Project will be the agitation by the people of the area for the payment of compensation.
Although the payment of compensation is not the responsibility of the investors but the government, which acquired the land for the project, the investors have to find a way of assuaging the feelings of the people for the delay in the payment of their compensation.
At a press conference in Accra last Monday, a spokesman of the citizens of Aveyime had expressed regret that “when the land was acquired by Executive Instrument (EI 15) in 1997, no compensation was paid, no arrangement was made for future payments and to date nothing has been paid”.
The people of the area, particularly the youth, feel that their future is threatened because they have lost their heritage — the land — to the investors.
Their concerns make one wonder whether their land or the compensation thereof could have been considered as equity to guarantee their future stake in the project.
Also, the agitation by the landowners for a stake in the project or the payment of compensation can be reduced if the new owners can guarantee them a percentage of the workforce.
It is unfortunate that the people in the area think that with the new ownership arrangement, public interest in the project has been lost.
With the rising cost of food on the world market, the production of rice for local consumption and export will greatly benefit all Ghanaians.
It is true that a profit motive may have driven the American investors to the Aveyime Rice Project. But whatever the case may be, some benefits will accrue to the local people, the government and all Ghanaians.
The Daily Graphic, however, calls on the government to expedite action on the payment of compensation to those whose lands have been acquired for the project.
The government should not drag its feet on this matter, to the point where the youth of the area will become very frustrated by its inaction and thereby create an unhealthy environment for the investors to achieve their target.
Everything must be done to avoid a repetition of the controversies that dogged the initial phase of the project.
The teething problems must be addressed to ensure the success of the rice project to provide food at affordable prices for our people.

Sunday, May 4, 2008

LET'S EMBRACE HEALTH INSURANCE

IN 2003, the people of Ghana, through their representatives in Parliament, passed a law to provide the legal framework for a health financing system for the country.
The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) is one of the major policy initiatives of the Kufuor administration designed to make it possible for everybody to have easy access to healthcare services.
All over the world, health insurance is a system that allows for the show of solidarity and support for one another for the common good. It simply enjoins all adults to make contributions to a fund which can be tapped into in the event of any illness of a premium holder for affordable health care.
The NHIS has been hailed as a progressive policy initiative to replace the obnoxious “cash-and-carry” system that caused many avoidable deaths because those in need of health services could not readily afford them.
Beneficiaries of the NHIS have publicly extolled the benefits inherent in the scheme and encouraged those yet to enrol to do so immediately.
Unfortunately, most of the people sitting on the fence have swallowed the propaganda that greeted the introduction of the NHIS as a scheme by the government just to gain electoral advantage. This category of people has forgotten that when it comes to illness, there is nothing like political affiliation.
Indeed, it will be good for the political parties themselves to encourage their members to pay the necessary premiums in order to benefit from the scheme, for, after all, the parties need healthy supporters to sustain their existence.
The good news is that in spite of the teething problems encountered by the NHIS, such as delays in the issuance of identity cards, the lack of accountability on the part of some officials of the district health insurance schemes and commissioned collectors of premiums, the scheme is facilitating better access to health care.
But, for now, more public education from the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) is required to get more people to enrol into the scheme. Such education programmes should take into account our cultural values because people hardly save towards their healthcare needs.
It is commendable that 42 per cent of the country’s population have been issued with ID cards, while a sizeable number of those registered are yet to be issued with the NHIS cards and the NHIA is urged to expedite action in that direction.
The NHIA should carry the campaign to workplaces so that all workers can also register and access health care to avoid the situation where by it will take months for their health claims to be paid by their employers.
Furthermore, the introduction of the new ID cards by the NHIA to enable premium holders to access health care from districts other than where they registered is a step in the right direction.
The authority should marshall all resources to ensure the success of the pilot phase of the new ID card regime so that it can be replicated throughout the country to reduce the burden that premium holders encounter in seeking health care in any part of the country.
The Daily Graphic is encouraged by the assurance by the Chief Executive Officer of the NHIA, Mr Ras A. Boateng, that “we are focused to implement the system to make it comparable to the best health insurance in any part of the world”.
Well said, but the task ahead is not going to be child’s play. It requires tenacity of purpose and a commitment to convince all Ghanaians that the NHIS has a comparative advantage over the “cash-and-carry system” in providing easy access to health care and building a functional health system.

Friday, May 2, 2008

'AYEKOO', WORKERS

YESTERDAY, working people all over the world celebrated May Day, a day set aside to mark workers’ contribution to increased productivity.
In Ghana, organised labour and allied groups participated in the May Day Parade in Accra and other regional capitals. They carried placards on which they had expressed their frustrations at and appreciation of developments in the nation.
We celebrate the day in the belief that no economy can perform well without the contribution of working people.
It is equally true that society can only make progress in a peaceful and congenial atmosphere where the people can unleash their God-given talents on the development process.
Therefore, the theme for this year’s May Day celebration, “Deepening Democracy in Ghana: The Role of Organised Labour”, was very relevant because the country goes to the polls in December this year.
Workers, as the main producers of wealth and who are at the receiving end of any government policy, have been at the forefront in efforts aimed at articulating the concerns of society.
Democracy, with all its attributes, also promotes constructive dialogue on workers’ rights and welfare. Workers must get actively involved in the decision-making process so that they can offer their insights into efforts to fight the ills of society. If information is shared at the workplace, workers will keep their demands within the budget of their organisations, for they will know that we can only share what is available.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that positive steps must be taken to discount the erroneous impression that the relationship between management and workers should be adversarial. A peaceful industrial atmosphere will lead to increased productivity and better conditions of service in order to disabuse our minds that “the government pretends to be employing, while workers pretend to be working”.
In effect, all of us are collectively not doing enough to propel the economy into a middle-income status by the year 2015.
In order to achieve better conditions of service for ourselves, workers and their management must move away from pursuing any coercive agenda during negotiations of collective bargaining agreements.
To some groups of workers in the country, the only way to get better conditions of service is through the blackmail of industrial action.
On the contrary, the DAILY GRAPHIC believes that if organisations are managed in an open and transparent manner, working people will appreciate the challenges and be prepared to sacrifice for a better future.
Many organisations are pale shadows of themselves today or have collapsed as a result of the intransigence of their workers and sometimes their managers. As we make strides in our democratic dispensation, organised labour and management must also accept that the only way to progress lies in tolerance and accommodation.
We salute all working people on the occasion of May Day and appeal to them to rededicate themselves to selfless service to the nation.
When they fulfil their part of the bargain as working people, then they can demand accountability from their leaders, their management and, indeed, the government.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

LET'S STOP THESE PUSHERS

NEWS that narcotic drugs are now sold in the vicinity of some junior high schools (JHS) in the nation’s capital and elsewhere is disheartening indeed.
This is much so because it points to one fact — that an increasing number of students in JHS are using drugs.
And, according to the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB), the trend of drug use among this category of students is getting alarming, coupled with the fact that in some areas within the Accra metropolis, drug sales take place so much in the open that the selling points in the vicinity of some schools are known to almost the entire student population.
In line with NACOB’s preventive and educational functions, it visited 42 selected schools in Accra and its findings, which include a clever way of advertising drugs in the vicinity of schools, as well as some students’ admission of drug use and their dexterity in its preparation, must be of concern to all.
In the first half of last year, the Accra Psychiatric Hospital recorded a total of 265 mental cases among children, which included acute psychosis, neurosis, depression and drug abuse.
The commonest among these was drug abuse which involved marijuana, commonly known as “wee”, and cocaine use and the victims were students of first and second-cycle schools.
It came out then that while some of the victims were lured into drug use by their friends, drug barons, on the other hand, used the youth as couriers, in line with their slogan, “catch them young and they will get hooked”.
The NACOB lends further credence to this scenario by stating that some drug users in and around schools use students in the purchase of such drugs and that the failure to run such errands by the students results in their being flogged.
The picture painted by NACOB is so frightening that we cannot afford to ignore what the drug pushers are doing in our schools.
The fact is that they are destroying our children in the schools and something drastic should be done to stop them immediately.
The NACOB’s main goal is to ensure a drug-free society through simultaneous supply and demand reduction measures, which it is doing through the following:
• enforcement and control,
• education and prevention,
• treatment, rehabilitation
and integration.
It is imperative, therefore, that NACOB, the Ghana Education Service (GES) and the Police Service liaise to come up with immediate and long-term measures to stop these dangerous pushers from destroying the future of our young generation who, in reality, are the future of our nation.
Already, some of our youth are committing heinous crimes like armed robbery, car snatching, as well as mobile phone and handbag snatching. Sometimes they kill and maim their victims.
These crimes are creating some insecurity in the country a situation which is quite disturbing.
Let’s all act to stop the drug menace.

LET'S STOP THESE PUSHERS

NEWS that narcotic drugs are now sold in the vicinity of some junior high schools (JHS) in the nation’s capital and elsewhere is disheartening indeed.
This is much so because it points to one fact — that an increasing number of students in JHS are using drugs.
And, according to the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB), the trend of drug use among this category of students is getting alarming, coupled with the fact that in some areas within the Accra metropolis, drug sales take place so much in the open that the selling points in the vicinity of some schools are known to almost the entire student population.
In line with NACOB’s preventive and educational functions, it visited 42 selected schools in Accra and its findings, which include a clever way of advertising drugs in the vicinity of schools, as well as some students’ admission of drug use and their dexterity in its preparation, must be of concern to all.
In the first half of last year, the Accra Psychiatric Hospital recorded a total of 265 mental cases among children, which included acute psychosis, neurosis, depression and drug abuse.
The commonest among these was drug abuse which involved marijuana, commonly known as “wee”, and cocaine use and the victims were students of first and second-cycle schools.
It came out then that while some of the victims were lured into drug use by their friends, drug barons, on the other hand, used the youth as couriers, in line with their slogan, “catch them young and they will get hooked”.
The NACOB lends further credence to this scenario by stating that some drug users in and around schools use students in the purchase of such drugs and that the failure to run such errands by the students results in their being flogged.
The picture painted by NACOB is so frightening that we cannot afford to ignore what the drug pushers are doing in our schools.
The fact is that they are destroying our children in the schools and something drastic should be done to stop them immediately.
The NACOB’s main goal is to ensure a drug-free society through simultaneous supply and demand reduction measures, which it is doing through the following:
• enforcement and control,
• education and prevention,
• treatment, rehabilitation
and integration.
It is imperative, therefore, that NACOB, the Ghana Education Service (GES) and the Police Service liaise to come up with immediate and long-term measures to stop these dangerous pushers from destroying the future of our young generation who, in reality, are the future of our nation.
Already, some of our youth are committing heinous crimes like armed robbery, car snatching, as well as mobile phone and handbag snatching. Sometimes they kill and maim their victims.
These crimes are creating some insecurity in the country a situation which is quite disturbing.
Let’s all act to stop the drug menace.