Tuesday, January 5, 2010

IMPLEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS OF NEW YEAR SCHOOL (JAN 5, 2010)

THE annual New Year School has helped to reshape the development agenda of the country since its inception more than five decades ago.
The discussions have centred on all facets of national endeavour, including the economy, health, agriculture, education, chieftaincy, decentralisation, the private sector, gender issues and democratic governance.
It is not too clear whether all deliberations at the School have impacted positively on national affairs, but we know that the School has set the stage for people from all walks of life to discuss issues affecting their well-being.
From a humble beginning of encouraging the idea of voluntary vacation work by students, the School has grown into an important adult education programme of national significance.
The themes for discussion at the School are always a product of our national aspirations. A recall of a few of the themes such as “Multiparty Democracy in Ghana - Challenges and Prospects”, “The Family and Sustainable Development”, “The 1996 Elections: Issues Before the Nation”, “Harnessing Ghana’s Resources for Development” and “Education for Development: Challenges for the 21st Century” proves how they reflect prevailing political and socio-economic conditions in the country.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that it is for the same reason that the organisers chose the theme “Sustaining Democratic Governance: Issues Before the Nation” for this year’s School because of the planned review of the 1992 Constitution.
The framers of our Constitution did not envisage some of the challenges that confront us in the implementation of the document and it is about time to review the document to reflect the circumstances of our times.
The DAILY GRAPHIC is happy that President J.E.A. Mills used the platform of the School to pledge that a characteristic feature of his tenure would be to make democratic governance real to the people of Ghana.
He said his government had begun the process of strengthening local level democracy, adding that this and other initiatives were to make Ghanaians enjoy the benefits of democratic governance.
We encourage all Ghanaians to lend their support to the efforts of the government to strengthen our democratic governance so that some of the actions that have the tendency to undermine the rule of law and respect for human rights can be contained.
For, even with the imperfections, the constitution has held in check all institutions of the government to such an extent that those who wield state power are careful about the way they exercise their mandate.
But while the DAILY GRAPHIC commends the ICDE for sustaining the New Year School, it is essential for the organisers to find other means by which the recommendations of the participants can benefit the good people of the country.
Our efforts to discuss issues openly such as what is currently going on at the School is a welcome development that should set the tone for the bi-partisan review of the Constitution.
We call on the participants to look at the issues that undermine our democratic governance and come up with the right prescriptions to enhance participatory democracy.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that Ghana stands to gain immensely if the participants help to build strong democratic institutions that will serve as a bulwark against dictatorship and arbitrariness.

Monday, January 4, 2010

BUILDING A STRONG ECONOMY (JANUARY 4, 2009)

THERE was great hope among majority of the populace when the Mills administration took office with the pledge to strive for a better Ghana.
At his inauguration on January 7, 2009, President J.E.A. Mills affirmed his commitment to pursue to the letter his four thematic areas of job creation, expansion of infrastructure, open and honest government, and investing in the people.
But the realities of the times thwarted the efforts of the government to redeem its campaign pledges to create more jobs, expand education and health facilities and create equal opportunities for all.
Major policy interventions designed by the government had to be suspended till late last year. For instance, the programme to give free uniforms to schoolchildren could only be started in December last year.
The government, in its 2009 budget, kept expenditure in check, restricted employment only to key sectors of the economy and put priorities on other activities for which the state had to commit some resources.
Native wisdom postulates that, “Wo fro dua pa a, na yepia wo” — To wit “Anyone who undertakes a good cause gets the necessary push”.
And for the simple reason that the government has adopted the right mix to revive the economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and other development partners injected millions of dollars to support the effort.
This infusion of funds into the economy halted the free fall of the cedi, provided support for the productive sectors of the economy and pushed inflation into the declining gear.
The Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Dr Kwabena Duffuor, could not have given a brighter outlook of the economy for 2010 when he declared that “with the stabilisation of the economy, the government is now set to transform the rural economy”.
The DAILY GRAPHIC is happy that the government has declared its intention to transform the rural economy in order to ensure sustained and even growth. The majority of the people live in the rural areas and the conditions under which they live cannot be anything but satisfactory.
It will not be out of place to blame the rural-urban exodus of the youth in search of greener pastures on the appalling living conditions in our countryside.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that if the government is able to allocate a lot of resources to the rural areas, the youth there will be able to access credit to undertake productive ventures.
It is good that the government has re-introduced the Youth-in-Agriculture Programme to encourage the youth to venture into farming.
From hindsight, it should be clear to the policy makers by now that anytime the government takes front-line role in the disbursement of funds, there is widespread abuse and recovery is low.
Let it be strictly for productive activities only and those who think the support for agriculture is pay-back time for their support for the ruling party should not be entertained. For if we play by the rules, the programmes will be successful.
While commending the government and its Economic Management Team for a good show in 2009, the DAILY GRAPHIC calls on the people to work harder this year to transform the economy.
There is no short cut to our goal of creating more jobs, higher incomes and improving the standard of living of the people and we urge the Finance Minister to remain steadfast in the implementation of the government’s prudent economic measures.

Sunday, January 3, 2010

HARD WORK WILL PAY (JAN 2, 2009)

GHANAIANS from all walks of life ushered in the New Year with thanksgiving to God for guiding and guarding them through the difficulties caused by the global economic meltdown in 2009.
The typical Ghanaian character was on display on Thursday night in the churches and at social joints ready to usher in the New Year.
Even those in the drinking bars found time just before the clock ticked 12 midnight to enter churches to give thanks to God for the good things He had bestowed on us and the nation in the most challenging times of our national history.
At the beginning of 2009, the country emerged from one of the fiercely contested elections in our history, further deepening the polarisation in our country. Sceptics, both within and without, wondered whether Ghana would be able to manage the electioneering of 2008 and maintain the country as a shining example of a true democratic country to the rest of the world.
The peaceful transition notwithstanding, the country faced numerous challenges, key among them being the free fall of the cedi, rising inflation and a shattered economy. However, through hard work and tenacity of purpose, buoyed by the government’s austerity measures, the economy is once again on the path of recovery.
That optimism could be seen on the faces of churchgoers and revellers through the length and breadth of the country. President Mills was, therefore, right in stating that there was a brighter future ahead of the country.
Delivering his New Year message to the nation, he said the challenges faced last year would be confronted this year, pledging that life would be bearable for all.
Looking at the performance of the government during its first year in office, we share in the President’s position that the better part of last year was devoted to laying the foundation “that will put us in the right direction and I am convinced that with determination, our lives will be greatly enhanced”.
Around the continent and beyond, we can say without contradiction that Ghana is blessed and poised for a take-off, provided the people take their destiny into their hands.
The country is on the threshold of joining oil producers and that will help to free huge resources devoted to the importation of crude oil for other sectors.
Again, Ghana will participate in two major sporting events, Angola 2010 and South Africa 2010, where our players will be the focus, coming in the wake of our victory in the Under-20 World Cup tournament in Egypt last year.
Despite the positive outlook for 2010, success will not crown our efforts if we fail to work hard and eschew laziness and division in society.
And, as the President said, “There will be challenges, but whatever we do must be geared towards moving the country in the right direction. Let us have faith and optimism. This is the only nation we have and can only progress if we work conscientiously.”
The Daily Graphic believes that if our compatriots abide strictly by the demands of our national anthem, God will certainly bless our homeland Ghana to tower above the rest of the world.
We urge all to uphold and defend our Constitution and the laws of the land and also foster national unity and live in harmony with others.
If we play by the rules, work hard and pray to God, 2010 will produce the ray of hope all Ghanaians are eagerly looking forward to.
May peace and prosperity crown our efforts in 2010.

Friday, January 1, 2010

WELCOME 2010 (JAN 1, 2010)

THE year 2009 went down in the country’s history as a challenging one, and yet it was full of hope for what could be a better future.
Coming on the heels of crunch elections in December 2008, 2009 was initially characterised by political tension and acrimony. But as nation, we managed to organise a smooth transition from the NPP government to the NDC government.
Thereafter, the nation was confronted with the stack reality of economic difficulties which had been precipitated by our own internal factors and accentuated by the global economic downturn.
The initial fall in the value of the cedi, high inflation, general increases in the prices of goods and services, increase in crime, as well as oil price hikes on the international market, gave cause to a lot of people to worry about what the future could hold for us.
Fortunately, in the course of the year, the grim situation gave way to hope: The economy has stabilised, the cedi is now stable, expenditure is controlled, inflation has reduced and peace and understanding are replacing the tension and acrimony.
We should be proud as a nation and thankful to God for the great things we have witnessed in the just-ended year. We played host to President Barrack Obama, whose visit placed the country on the world platform and endorsed our democratic experiment as a shining example in Africa and the developing world. Additionally, the nation won the FIFA Under-20 World Cup tournament in Egypt for the first time and the first ever by an African country.
Having crossed over to 2010, the Daily Graphic hopes that with unity, understanding, love and peace, we can overcome the challenges as the New Year unfolds.
Happily for all of us, we cruise into the new year at the time when the nation has discovered oil in commercial quantities, when our democracy has deepened, when we have taken the fight against crime to the criminals and when there is apparent peace and stability. The global economic downturn, which impacted negatively on our economic fortunes, is easing up and the hope is that the world economy will recover by the first half of the year.
Let us, at this point, take a cue from history and some piece of advice from the Holy Book, the Bible. At one time when the people of Israel were to cross the River Jordan to the Promised Land, their leader, Moses, advised them to put their trust in the Lord to deal with the challenges that would confront them in their new settlement.
As a very religious nation, we should put our trust in the Lord and eschew acts such as corruption, greed, pettiness, self-centredness, rancour and acrimony. Let us continue to work hard, otherwise nature’s endowments such as oil, gold, timber, tourist attractions and the environment will be meaningless.
It is also important at this juncture to thank all those who have contributed in diverse ways to the development of the country. Their zeal and patriotism must always spur us on to contribute our quota towards the well-being of our dear nation.
We of the Daily Graphic wish to use the occasion of the New Year to thank our cherished and numerous readers for patronising our products and services.
We assure them that we will continue to use our products and services to facilitate the country’s development and overcome the challenges that will confront us in 2010.
Happy New Year.

OUR CHILDREN SAY THANK YOU

THE government yesterday took a bold step to invest in the future of the country with the distribution of free school uniforms to children at Kwao Larbi in the Awutu Senya District in the Central Region.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC), during the 2008 electioneering, pledged to provide free school uniforms for schoolchildren in deprived communities if voted into power.
Some people who doubted the capability of the Mills administration to fulfil the campaign pledge derided the government for delaying in the provision of the school uniforms. But, alas, the school uniforms are here and more than 300 schoolchildren in six basic schools who benefited from the programme yesterday shed tears of joy in appreciation of the government’s gesture.
The government has already committed some resources into the provision of free exercise books for schoolchildren, while it has increased the Capitation Grant, among other efforts, to make education more accessible.
The DAILY GRAPHIC commends the government for committing itself to the policy of creating more access to education for all children.
The decision of the government to commit GH¢21 million towards this programme will yield fruitful results, with the collaboration of all the stakeholders.
The government is making a lot of sacrifices in trying to bring education to the doorstep of children of school age, but that effort will come to naught if other stakeholders, such as teachers, parents and, indeed, the entire community, renege on their responsibilities.
This policy fits directly into the government’s policy of investing in people so that our future leaders can be better empowered to look for and create employment in our competitive world in order to fulfil the better Ghana agenda.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mrs Ernestina Naadu Mills hit the nail right on the head when she said, “There is no gainsaying the fact that yesterday’s education opens today’s doors and today’s education will open tomorrow’s doors, hence the commitment of the government to invest heavily in our people.”
In the present technological age, it is only countries that invest in education that will position their people well to take advantage of the opportunities.
The DAILY GRAPHIC is aware of the challenges in the implementation of the free school uniforms exercise. We know of the lack of capacity of the local manufacturing firms to contain the challenges inherent in the supply of the uniforms to all children in the deprived communities.
But where there is a will, there is a way and so the DAILY GRAPHIC believes that the government will explore all the opportunities to make the programme a big success.
It is our prayer that the gesture initiated yesterday will help to motivate more children of school age to enrol in our schools and remain there until they at least graduate from basic school.
Many positive endeavours in the past suffered setbacks because of the lackadaisical attitude of those put in charge of their implementation. Therefore, the government should make it unattractive for any of the stakeholders to benefit from the free school uniforms programme at the expense of the children.
The DAILY GRAPHIC salutes the government for its commitment to the programme, in spite of the odds. We, however, urge it to speed up the processes so that all children in deprived communities will benefit from the programme.