GHANA TO SET ANOTHER RECORD (NOV 29)

WE have lost count of the number of times we have drawn attention to the essence of free, fair and peaceful elections as a prerequisite to the country’s development.
We are also aware that sometimes our readers get bored with the constant reminders of imminent danger or chaos, if certain measures are not put in place before December 7.
With this impression created in the minds of some people, such characters, with the support of a section of the media, managed to poison the atmosphere with the looming Armageddon, if the outcome of the polls did not favour them.
Ghana is on the threshold of a fifth democratic election and on previous occasions, the tension was not that high to compel a section of foreigners to compile a register of their nationals in the country. This was done apparently in anticipation of election-related violence.
And to aggravate the situation, a section of the media also put out information to the effect that some prominent citizens had left the country with their families to escape from the anticipated violence on Election Day.
With the events in Kenya and Zimbabwe very fresh in our minds, the doomsday prophets lost no opportunity to make reference to those countries and warned that should they lose the polls, Ghana would go the way of these two countries.
Even the persistent assurances from the Electoral Commission (EC) to all the political players that it will conduct peaceful polls will not allay their fears as they continue to undermine the credibility of the EC and other governance institutions with their unsubstantiated claims.
The Daily Graphic believes that all genuine concerns should be put on the table for discussion with the view to arriving at a consensus.
It is very dangerous to sweep people’s concerns under the carpet because that attitude has the tendency to bottle up grievances and the consequences can be disastrous.
The Daily Graphic heaves a sigh of relief that almost about a week to the elections next week Sunday, the electorate is beginning to have faith in the security agencies to be in firm control of the situation.
The appeal from the National Security Co-ordinator, Dr Sam G. Amoo, to all Ghanaians to go out and vote as their security is guaranteed is quite refreshing and we urge the security agencies to walk the talk by ensuring the safety of all on Election Day.
The contest for power on December 7 is not about war, so all Ghanaians should approach the event in the same spirit that we went about the four previous polls.
The Daily Graphic warns those who are beating the war drums to desist from such unpatriotic acts and confront the reality of our times by simply engaging the electorate in dialogue by prescribing their visions to the people.
We salute the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) for consistently engaging journalists in round-table discussions to remind them of the need to apply professional and ethical standards to their reportage during the run-up to the polls.
The GJA is not teaching journalists any new ethical values but reinforcing what is already in their professional code and the guidelines drawn up by the National Media Commission (NMC).
At a workshop for political reporters in Accra yesterday, the Charge d’Affaires of the Canadian High Commission in Accra said "the whole world is asking if there is a future for democracy in Africa. Ghana is able to provide the answer."
With responsible reportage and the facilitating role of the media, our democracy will be on course and become an example to the rest of the continent.
Consequently, the Daily Graphic urges the GJA to purge journalists of the tendency to descend into the gutter and smear the profession with irresponsible reportage that would bring the elections into disrepute and destroy our fledgling democracy.
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LESSONS FROM TECHIMAN EXPLOSION (NOV 28, 2008)

IT was like a nightmare. The roasting of 25 able-bodied human beings alive in an explosion from an overturned fuel tanker in Tanoso, near Techiman, last Wednesday was a national tragedy.
According to reports, the incident occurred while the people were trying to scoop petrol that was spilling from the vehicle and in the process, the truck exploded, with fire engulfing the crowd.
The dead were said to have been burnt beyond recognition and were buried hours later in a mass grave in the town. At least 50 others, who received various degrees of burns, are in hospital — some at the Techiman Holy Family Hospital while those with cases perceived to be severe have been airlifted to the Okomfo Anokye Hospital in Kumasi and the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra.
And as was to be expected, the story received international publicity and while we were still trying to come to terms with the disaster, some of the Western media insulted our integrity by linking poverty to whatever happened.
The DAILY GRAPHIC is really saddened by this unfortunate incident and, on behalf of our numerous readers, we express our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families.
What makes it even more pathetic is the fact that the incident of people being killed while looting fuel is not a common feature in our country. Such incidents are more common in Cameroon and Nigeria. Indeed, barely four months ago, a similar incident happened in northern Cameroon, while in May, last year, 98 people died as they tried to scoop fuel from a broken-down tanker in Kaduna State, Nigeria.
But since this phenomenon has now caught up with us, it behoves all of us to rally round and educate our people on the danger of scooping fuel from overturned vehicles and other unorthodox sources, if we must avoid another calamity in future.
Furthermore, given the nation’s oil find and the numerous oil pipeline accidents recorded world-wide, it is important that we treat this matter with the urgency it deserves.
Certainly, one sure way to make inroads is to mount an intensive campaign on radio, television and in the newspapers, highlighting the dangers one is exposed to in handling fuel unprofessionally.
In this regard, we are happy that the father of the nation, President J. A. Kufuor, took the lead yesterday to visit the town to mourn with the people and also to advise the chiefs, elders and opinion leaders to educate the people never to go near vehicles of any kind involved in accidents to siphon fuel.
While applauding the President’s timely action, we hope it won’t be the end of the matter, but will be followed by a sustained effort to get everybody to appreciate the danger fuel poses to us in our everyday life. Fuel serves a very useful purpose in our daily endeavours but we can have our fingers burnt if not handled with care.
Finally, we pray for those currently on admission at various hospitals. We wish them speedy recovery.

BOOST FOR EDUCATION (NOV 27)

ONE refreshing news that will surely gladden the hearts of the people of the Northern Region is the decision by the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) to construct 30 schools in five districts in the region.
The $2.8 million project, which has already been awarded to contractors, will be located in the Savelugu/Nanton, West Mamprusi, Karaga and Tolon-Kumbungu districts, as well as the Tamale metropolis.
The project, which marks the first phase of the construction of school infrastructure, will have such basic amenities as water reservoirs, information and communications technology (ICT) centres, teachers’ quarters, canteens, sanitation facilities, electricity, potable water, among others.
This is a very progressive step in skills empowerment to position our next generation in good stead to contribute to nation-building.
It is hoped that the selection of districts for the first phase of the project was not linked to any political consideration but was done transparently to help in reducing poverty to promote sustainable economic growth.
The Northern Region, arguably the biggest region in Ghana, is one of the highly deprived regions and it is our expectation that the injection of the investment will help to improve the quality of teaching and learning in the beneficiary communities and in the long term engender a paradigm shift in dealing with the challenges of our times.
The DAILY GRAPHIC concedes that the MCA may not have the magic wand for the development challenges, but it is our hope that just like elsewhere where the MCA has supported the people’s endeavours, the fund will make a significant impact on the development of the physical infrastructure, as well as the human resource base, of the country to boost agricultural production.
Similarly, the professional competence of the Ghanaian contractors executing those projects will be put to test, as they are expected to deliver to specifications as a testament to our preparedness to maximise returns from the investment. This is so important because they are expected to deliver the works within six months and the client’s insistence on quality explains why some of the sites for the construction of the schools have been relocated to places where the menace of floods and disasters will be avoided.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that the confidence reposed in the local contractors must not be undermined in any way, so that the general perception about the Ghanaian contractor carrying out shoddy work will be a thing of the past.
If they fail in this bid to deliver quality work, their iniquities will surely affect the schoolchildren, the country’s future leaders, and eventually impact negatively on the demand by local contractors to be given preference over their foreign counterparts.
The DAILY GRAPHIC hopes that within the five-year span of the project, which covers $241 million for agriculture, $143 million for transportation and $101 million for rural development, nearly 230,000 Ghanaians will be lifted from poverty.
The MCA support alone will not yield the desired results without the resolve of the beneficiaries, civil society groups and the government to co-operate with the contractors to achieve value for money and thereby change the fortunes of school-going children in the catchment areas. Let us use our own resources to complement those of the MCA to end the “under-tree schools” syndrome by constructing more school blocks throughout the country.

GIVE US A BREAK, MALLAM ISA (NOV 26)

GHANAIANS last Monday woke up to another defection story on our political landscape and the man at the centre of the latest event is Mallam Yusuf Isa, a former Minister of Youth and Sports in the Kufuor administration who was jailed for causing financial loss to the state.
Ordinarily, such a development should not raise eyebrows because many people have become used to the ‘politricks’ of our times, especially as the D-day for the elections fast approaches.
However, in the statement he read to the press announcing his decision to defect to the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mallam Isa said certain things that cannot be swept under the carpet.
Hear him: “I am meeting you today to correct an erroneous impression created by the NPP government and its cohorts that I, Mallam Isa, stole and wilfully caused financial loss to the state while serving in the Kufuor administration. I have to do so especially because recent events have confirmed my long-held position that the NPP fraternity SET ME UP.” (caps ours)
The DAILY GRAPHIC is fully aware that under the tenets of the 1992 Constitution, freedom of movement and association is fully guaranteed. Mallam Isa, therefore, has every right under the sun to associate with any political party of his choice. That is his inalienable right.
But, for goodness sake, in so doing he must not insult the sensibilities of Ghanaians by propagating falsehood, untruth, fiction and plain lies. He must appreciate that in all things, comment is free but facts are always sacred.
Were we all not in this country barely seven years ago when Mallam Isa was found guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction for causing financial loss of $46,000 meant as imprest and payment of the bonuses of members of the senior national team, the Black Stars, during a World Cup qualifying match in The Sudan on February 25, 2001?
A year later — on April 2, 2002 — did Mallam Isa not get the opportunity to appeal against his conviction, only for him to lose again? So why is he being economical with the truth? Or has he, so soon, forgotten the facts of the case?
After the players and some officials had left for The Sudan, it was agreed that Mallam Isa should send the money for the payment of per diem and imprest when it was released. He said the release of the money had been processed on February 23 and Mr James Piimi, the Principal Accountant, had given it to the ex-minister. The money was in three parcels of $46,000 for the winning bonus and imprest, $8,686 for per diem and $1,042 per diem for the ex-minister himself.
Pleading for bail, Alhaji Nuhu-Billa, counsel for Mallam Isa, said he accepted the charge of fraudulently causing financial loss to the state, adding, "We are prepared to mobilise funds to pay back."
In our desperation to score cheap political points, let us not belittle the intelligence of Ghanaians by throwing the basic rule of truth, justice and fair play to the dogs.
Nobody is interested in raking old wounds, but as a responsible newspaper we cannot turn a blind eye when facts are being twisted on the altar of political expediency.
For now, we advise Mallam Isa to give discerning Ghanaians a break.

WE NEED TO WORK HARDER (NOV 25)

THE global financial crisis is taking a toll on the economies of the world’s industrialised countries, and since most developing and emerging economies are linked to those of the developed world, the likelihood that developing countries will suffer most cannot be underestimated.
However, the good news is that the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) have said that Ghana’s economy is still robust and can withstand any likely difficulties from the fallout from the world economic crisis.
At the launch of the Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu Finance and Economic Journalist of the Year Award and economic seminar series in Accra yesterday, the three institutions were quick to add that there was the need for the country to focus more on domestic revenue mobilisation. The institutions also called for more expenditure control to ensure that the government did not over run its budget.
These disclosures should gladden the heart of every Ghanaian, but it must equally be noted that we should not become complacent just because the economy has scored good marks from the Breton Woods institutions.
The government should seriously be thinking of how to generate more revenue, while at the same time bringing its expenditure under control. The country has a sizeable current account deficit which it has, in part, funded through foreign borrowing, including the eurobond issue.
It is equally becoming a challenge to keep a lid on fiscal expenditure in the run-up to the elections. The temptation for ruling governments to spend heavily during election periods is very high and for that matter it will be difficult for Ghana to escape this trap. Be that as it may, the government should muster the political and economic will to control unnecessary and unplanned expenditure in the interest of sound economic growth.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes the future of the economy rests on the government’s attitude to the country’s agricultural programmes to ensure that the country will be self-sufficient in food production all-year round.
With lower food prices, there is the likelihood that inflation will be contained, as the food component constitutes more than 50 per cent of the basket of the Consumer Price Index. The evidence is there for all to see, since the prices of foodstuffs dropped, the rate of inflation has inched slightly downwards over the last two months.
Furthermore, the government, in its efforts at making life easier for the ordinary man, recently reduced the ex-pump prices of petroleum products. This, however, has not trickled down to the ordinary person who uses tro-tros or taxis regularly. Drivers have refused to reduce their fares. The only beneficiaries of the reduction in the prices of petroleum products are private car owners.
Our position is that the government should have maintained the level of prices and channelled the revenue accruing from that into other important sectors such as the expansion of the school feeding programme, improving the road network or extending it to the food-producing areas and establishing small dams for irrigation.
It is our cherished hope that the various safety nets to absorb the meltdown of the global financial crisis between now and next year should be programmes that can be sustained till 2010 when we begin to factor in revenue from the oil boom and the West African Gas Pipeline project.
For now, Ghana has avoided the snares of the financial crisis. But what we are not sure of is the effect of the policy interventions from the industrialised nations next year. But our trump card lies in revenue mobilisation and expenditure control by growing what we eat and eating what we grow.

ENCOURAGING WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN PUBLIC LIFE (NOV 24)

THROUGHOUT the world women face obstacles in their bid to participate in the decision-making process. These barriers exist in prevailing social and economic systems, as well as existing political structures.
In 2007, the rate of female representation in national legislatures stood at merely 18 per cent globally. Only 19 countries in the world have achieved the goal of 30+ per cent women’s representation, a goal which was adopted in Beijing in 1995.
The situation in Ghana is not different from the trend of low representation of women in the world. Currently, women constitute only 10.8 per cent of the 230-member Parliament in the country, although they constitute 51 per cent of the national population.
The fact that only few women find themselves in Parliament implies that a sizeable proportion of people in the country are under-represented and the ideal situation of ensuring parity between men and women still remains distant.
Last Friday, some women aspiring to become parliamentarians in the December 7 election made a call for the setting up of a fund to support women who will contest parliamentary seats in the future.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes the appeal for support from aspiring women parliamentarians deserves attention.
In 2006, the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs, having realised that lack of financial support was the major obstacle to the aspirations of women who wished to aspire to decision-making positions, put in place a fund known as the Women In Local Governance Fund (WILGF) to support women who aspired to contest district level elections.
Apart from the setting up of funds, we can explore the possibility of introducing quota systems to ensure that women are fairly represented in Parliament. During the First Republic in 1960, there were 10 women in Parliament. Those women were appointed by the then President through an affirmative action policy.
The current Parliament has 25 women but what is disturbing is that fewer women are contesting the December 7 parliamentary election. Of the large number of women who showed interest, only 53 successfully went through the primaries. The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is presenting 11 women; the Convention People’s Party (CPP), 15; the New Patriotic Party (NPP), 16; the People’s National Convention (PNC), 13, with the rest coming from the other political parties.
The world is moving from rhetoric to action to ensure that women play more active roles in national development. We still live in a man’s world but we need a more gender sensitive approach to national development so that women’s contribution in society can be felt in all endeavours.
The myth that certain professions are the preserve of men has long been broken, as women are currently engaged in areas such as agriculture, engineering, aviation, auto mechanics, among other sectors.
Women have won the best teacher and best farmer awards and excelled in the academic field, obtaining First Class honours in our universities.
What more evidence do we need to recognise the need for a fruitful partnership between males and their female counterparts for progress in society?

WELL DONE, PRESIDENT (NOV 22, 2008)

THE Council of State held a meeting with President J.A. Kufuor last Thursday, during which the council commended the President for his selfless service to Ghanaians.
In his introductory remarks at the quarterly meeting with the President, the Chairman of the council, Professor Daniel Adzei-Bekoe, congratulated the President warmly on his many achievements — from overcoming the HIPC economic condition at the beginning of his tenure in 2001 to the several successes and legacies which he was about to leave for his successor.
The council also mentioned physical monuments such as impressive football stadia in Accra, Kumasi, Sekondi-Takoradi and Tamale, as well as the magnificent Golden Jubilee House, which seems to have generated so much discussion over priorities and values.
We are not unaware that a section of the public will misconstrue the commendation of the President by the council, but this is to be expected in a diverse and polarised society.
Whatever our political differences, we should be able to recognise the performance of even our arch political opponents and publicly acknowledge their contributions to national development efforts.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that President Kufuor has paid his due during his tenure and that it will be a mark of ingratitude to ignore his achievements while the international community trumpets his contributions to world peace and development.
The list of policy initiatives will be inexhaustive but suffice it, on this occasion, to enumerate a few.
At the beginning of his tenure, President Kufuor adopted the HIPC initiative, much against the popular position at the time, repealed the Criminal and Seditious Libel Law, introduced the National Health Insurance Scheme, the Capitation Grant, the School Feeding Programme, Free Health Care for Pregnant Women and embarked on major infrastructural renewal in the road, health and educational sectors.
No matter the spin that is given to an assessment of President Kufuor’s tenure, the DAILY GRAPHIC thinks his tenure deserves to be celebrated because he has brought honour to Ghana.
The country’s rating in the international community is quite impressive because of our remarkable economic and political credentials. We have held four successful elections since 1992 without the violence associated with elections in other countries, while our economy remains relatively stable, even when advanced economies are on the brink of recession.
The DAILY GRAPHIC concedes that there are other areas that the government could have performed better, such us confronting corruption in a more robust manner, dealing with the unemployment problem, as well as better service conditions for all public sector workers.
As the President works hard to end his tenure, let us give praise where it is due and graciously draw attention to the shortcomings, so that his successor can avoid those pitfalls.
Furthermore, we urge all well-meaning Ghanaians to share in the glory of the President, for although leadership is a heavy responsibility, the present government has performed creditably with the support of the people.
However, for those who still think that the President deserves no such commendation, we remind them of the Akan adage, “Se wotan okwaduo a, na wayi ne mmrika”, to wit, “even if you hate the duiker, you must acknowledge its speed”.