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Government needs to get into survival mode – Ken Thompson
Chief Executive Officer of Dalex Finance, Ken Thompson, says it is about time government channels its expenditure into sectors that will improve the condition of living in Ghana.
He was referring to the ballooning public debt and expenditure amidst an economic downturn and its resultant economic hardship on Ghanaians.
The CEO listed the health sector, education sector, security and food sectors, and the private sector as key areas the government must focus on.
“From where I sit Ghana needs to move to survival mode now and we need to focus on how we make the ordinary Ghanaian survive. It is survival mode now. The point I’m trying to make is that we can’t afford not to do anything now and let’s focus on supporting in this survival mode the ordinary Ghanaian,” he said on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show.
Ken Thompson said it was imperative for government to ensure basic health care for all Ghanaians.
He called for investments into health infrastructure, the health insurance scheme and other health-centered programmes to ensure quality healthcare delivery.
Speaking on education, he reiterated calls for the scrapping of the boarding school system.
“We cannot afford this boarding school system, it’ll kill us, it is killing us. I mean, go to any school… it’s pathetic. We can’t afford it,” he added.
According to him, in its stead, the government can introduce a new system where parents who want their children in boarding schools can pay hostel fees to the school among others.
“And if you want your child to go to Adisadel or Achimota, we can have a system where you pay for the hostel fees… And if you go to countries with good educational systems the people that go to boarding school pay through their nose and the rest go to public schools which are community-based,” he said.
He called for more investment into security as well.
He said the rise in violent extremism outside of the country’s borders is a matter of grave concern and must be prevented from spilling into the country.
“Security is important because we’re aware of things that are happening outside our borders and we don’t want an overspill to disrupt the little peace that we have, and let’s not take that for granted,” he said.
On food, he said government must do more to ensure food security and arrest the rapid food inflation that continues to double food prices every few months.
“I mean food inflation in Ghana now is nearly 50%, I think it’s probably more. That means that nearly every 12, 13, 16 months or so prices double. There are Ghanaians that are going to bed hungry as we speak every day. This is survival. And if our politicians don’t understand it, we’ve got to make them understand,” he said.
“As for the list of expenditures to cut, the list is so long I don’t want to go there, but focus on getting us to survive, focus on getting ordinary Ghanaians to survive , focus on not lying to us, focus on showing us that you understand the issues and give the private sector room to work.
“I mean as private sector there are so many obstacles and we lack inspiration. If you want to do business in Ghana you give up. What is wrong with us?” he added.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
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Focus on more pressing issues like Galamsey, not hate speech – Ellen Ama Daaku to Mahama
An aide to former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia,Ellen Ama Daaku has advised President John Dramani Mahama to shift his attention from social media hate speech to more urgent national issues such as illegal mining.
Speaking in an interview, she noted that the President’s recent comments about tracking the IP addresses of people who spread hate speech were unnecessary.
According to her, President Mahama must first define what he considers to be hate speech before seeking to punish people for it.
Ms. Daaku argued that the President himself had benefitted from hate speech and social media attacks in the past when he was in opposition.
She said even during his time in government, he described his opponents and their tribesmen in unpalatable terms, which later drew complaints from former President Nana Akufo-Addo to the Catholic Bishops’ Conference.
She stressed that harsh criticism of leaders on social media should not automatically be considered hate speech, adding that former leaders, including former President Nana Akufo-Addo had all been subjected to it.
“He is only feeling what Nana Akufo-Addo went through for eight years,” she remarked.
While acknowledging the need to regulate misconduct online, Ms. Daaku insisted that going after social media activists should not be a priority.
She noted that many political activists, including herself, had been insulted and attacked online but never called for arrests.
She concluded that President Mahama should focus his energy on solving pressing problems such as galamsey and the economy instead of concentrating on critics on social media.
By: Jacob Aggrey
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Prof Alidu Seidu files nomination for Tamale Central seat
The newly elected parliamentary candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for Tamale Central, Prof Alidu Seidu, has submitted his nomination forms to the Electoral Commission.
As of 10:00 a.m. today, he was the only person who had filed to contest the seat.
Nomination of candidates will close at the end of the day.
Associate Professor and Head of the Political Science Department at the University of Ghana Legon, Prof. Alidu Seidu won the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary primaries in the Tamale Central constituency with a landslide victory.
The elections, supervised by the party’s Elections and IT Directorate in the Northern Region, saw Prof. Seidu poll 840 votes out of the total valid ballots cast.
His closest contender, Lawyer Hanan Gundadow Abdul-Rahaman, secured 536 votes.
The other aspirants could not make significant gains, with Dr. Seidu Fiter obtaining 44 votes, Aliu Abdul-Hamid 23 votes, and the rest recording fewer than 10 votes each.
In all, 1,500 ballots were cast, with 6 ballots rejected and 7 spoilt ballots recorded.
The results were signed and declared by Dr. Arnold Mashud Abukari, NDC Northern Regional Director of Elections and IT.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) held parliamentary primaries in Tamale Central to choose a candidate for the upcoming by-election following the death of the sitting Member of Parliament, Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed. Dr. Mohammed, who also served as Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, tragically died in a military helicopter crash in the Adansi Akrofuom District on August 6, 2025, alongside seven others.
His passing left the Tamale Central seat vacant, as required by Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
The Electoral Commission has scheduled the by-election for September 30, 2025. While the NDC moved quickly to open nominations and vet aspirants, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) announced it would not contest the seat, citing the need to respect the somber circumstances and promote national unity.
By: Jacob Aggrey
