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Let’s be careful about these reckless spendings and purchases
The latest news item that trended on social media about two weeks ago, was the spending of a whopping GH¢34.8 million on past questions for the 2021 West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) candidates by the government.
In that story the Minister of Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, was reported to have told parliament that the ministry procured 446,954 sets of past questions at a unit price of GH¢78.00. He explained that the unit price represented a 32 per cent increase over the year 2020 unit price of GH¢59.00. The ministry, he said, reportedly received 416,060 Scientific Mathematical Instruments to the tune of GH¢ 31,204,500.00.
REASONS FOR THE PURCHASE OF PAST QUESTION PAPERS
Addressing parliament on Wednesday, July 14, 2021, the minister indicated that the decision was to prepare the final year students for the 2021 WASSCE and that the items which were funded from the Free Senior High School Account, were purchased from Messrs Kingdom Books and Stationery.
“Mr Speaker, in 2020, Government through its efforts to help students amidst COVID-19 pandemic, to prepare for the 2020 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), procured 568,755 past questions for students to try their hands on before sitting for the actual exam,”he said.
He intimated that the procurement of these past questions which was funded through the Free Senior High School account ensured that the results of the 2020 WASSCE was tremendous compared with previous years’ WASSCE performance.
CONTROVERSY OVER THE PURCHASE OF PAST QUESTION PAPERS
The procurement of these items by the government has since generated a lot of controversy among the people, especially members from the main opposition party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC). Besides, there have been divergent views as to why the country should spend that colossal amount to procure these items. Why some are in favour of the purchase of the past questions which they claimed has improved the performance of the students in the past, others think it was needless and baseless because of the country’s financial situation. Both sets of opinion are welcomed and that people are entitled to them.
Whether the purchase of these items was done through the laid down procurement processes, is another issue that must be interrogated further. Besides, issues involving purchases of such items must be laid before, parliament for consensus and approval by members from both sides of the House. This, therefore, raises questions as to whether the Minority side of the house, was not aware of the purchase of these items.
PREPARATION OF FINAL YEAR STUDENTS TOWARDS WASCE
If my memory serves me right, I quite remembered that what pertained to the past regarding preparations of final year students of the former West African School Certificate Examination (WASCE) was for the students themselves to purchase their own past examination questions for which the teachers used to prepare them for the real examination. That was, indeed, necessary because it exposed the students to become familiar with the questions, so that they could answer them easily when the real examination took place. That in effect minimised fears and anxiety among the students and gave them some sort of encouragement to write the examinations.
GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE ON PAST QUESTION PAPERS
It is, therefore, surprising to hear that the government is now spending huge sums of money to buy these past examination papers for the students every year. Whether these past questions are left in the hands of the students after their examination is something that should be brought to public domain. In any case, these past questions become stale every year because of the mode of how these questions are set for the students to answer.
What is more baffling, is the tendency of government to use the COVID-19 pandemic to justify some of these purchases with our meagre resources at the least opportunity. That is not fair and we need to move away from that viewpoint.
PROCUREMENT OF MATHEMATICAL INSTRUMENTS
Another issue that need to be thoroughly interrogated and investigated was the procurement of 416, 060 scientific mathematical instruments at GH¢ 31,204,500. The public and for that matter Ghanaians will be interested in knowing the mode of distribution of these items which were purchased with the taxpayers’ money.
This country is facing financial crisis and that can be seen in the various sectors of the economy. School children are learning under trees as there are limited classrooms to accommodate them, some are even writing on bare floors, there are no classroom furniture, our roads are bad and deplorable, there are areas without pipe borne water or boreholes, public hospitals and clinics are crying for drugs and essential equipment, there are food shortages and this has facilitated the rising cost of living among the people, lack of funds to purchase vaccines to deal with the rising trend of the deadly coronavirus disease, yet money is spent aimlessly and needlessly on things that have no relevance to our survival as a nation.
PURCHASE OF SPUTNIK VACCINES
It is recalled that recently, there was a controversy over the mode of procurement of 3.4 million doses of the Sputnik vaccines from a middleman by the Ministry of Health which generated a lot of anxiety among Ghanaians.
The media, especially the internet, were inundated with criticisms of the government, especially the health ministry over the mode of procurement of those vaccines.
A popular Norwegian website on the internet alleged that the Ghana Government signed an agreement to purchase the Sputnik vaccines manufactured and produced in Russia at US$19 per dose instead of US$10. The Finance Minister alluded to the contract and explained that the government had no choice to make in order to protect the people, hence the decision to pay for the purchase of US$19 Sputnik vaccine.
This matter is currently pending before a parliamentary committee set up by the Speaker to investigate the mode of procurement of these vaccines.
LOOKING DOWN ON THE CITIZENS BY SUBSEQUENT GOV’TS
It is a fact that subsequent governments have not put the interests of the people as their priority and have allowed them to suffer unjustifiably and unduly, even though they secure their mandates to govern this country. Once they gain power, they forget them entirely to wallow in abject poverty.
This is the time for Ghanaians to rise up and hold government accountable for any funds used in the provision of goods and services for our country. Let us not allow these reckless spending and purchases to go on without speaking against them because, after all, it is our own money (taxpayers’ money) which is being used to provide social and economic infrastructure for our dear country.
We cannot continue to spend money recklessly and aimlessly, only to fall back on the multilateral and bilateral institutions internationally to bail us out of our predicaments. The public purse must be well protected and safeguarded through the adherence of the procurement processes as enshrined in the 1992 Constitution.
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THE state of feeling rejected, could be a terrifying experience especially for those who have become used to fame. If not properly addressed, it could lead to depression and the consequences, could be disastrous.
When you are on top of your game in whatever profession you find yourself such that you become famous, a lot of people try to associate with you. The phone never ceases to ring and one is tempted to feel loved and very important.
When a disaster strikes and the fame or the money which was the source of the attraction fades away, the circle of friends and fans begin to shrink and the phone will start to stop ringing until the call stops voting completely.
You will be shocked at how people you considered friends, will no longer be calling you or pay casual visits as they used to. You will begin to notice that messages you leave after calling them and not getting a response are not replied to and that is when you begin to know who your true friends are.
One of the most popular movie stars was an actress called Sharon Stone. In an interview with one of the media houses that was published, she spoke about how people who should have come around to encourage her in her moment of depression, shunned her. The calls stopped coming.
This is what the Bible admonishes that the arm of flesh will fail you and therefore we should put our trust in God. It could be a very frightening experience and can easily lead to depression.
Human nature being what it is, people will want to get close if things are okay. Everybody wants to associate themselves with interesting things, famous people, rich people etc for mainly selfish reasons.
We need to develop the habit of putting our trust in God and relying less on human beings. The lesson we have to take along in life is that, no one marries his or her enemy so how come people who took vows that they will love each other become so hostile to each other that they want to go their separate ways in life? Such is the reality of life.
It is therefore prudent for people to recognise that, life is full of uncertainties and so there is the need to prepare your mind for uncertainties so that when they occur, they do not disorganise your mental sanity.
A lot of people have experienced situations where people who they could have sworn will never betray their trust have disappointed them when they were through challenging moments.
If there is one thing famous people should desire, it should be the ability to identify who are true friends are. Countless stories abound regarding incidence of celebrities who have lost their shine and their wives divorcing them soon after.
It is sometimes useful as a famous or rich person to sign a prenuptial agreement before marriage to safeguard or protect yourself from any future unpleasant surprises.
People can be very pretentious these days, it goes both ways. There is this real life story where a man married a divorced wealthy woman and convinced her to sell her house so they could build a new one together, with the excuse that people are gossiping that he is being housed by a woman.
The woman agreed and they put up a new building. After a few years the man asked for a divorce, only for the woman to realise that the land on which the building was situated, was bought in the man’s name.
This can drive a person insane, if you are not mentally tough and this happens to you. When people hear that you are homeless, a lot of your so-called friends will stop calling, so that you do not become a burden on them.
By Laud Kissi-Mensah
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‘But, er …. I don’t even know your name’.
‘Paul. Paul Allotey. I’m Sarah, by the way. Paul, why don’t you leave me here, since this is the last important thing I’m doing today’.
‘Okay. Now Sarah. I was just thinking. You will be here at the cafe for about an hour. By then it will be about twelve thirty. Then, you would be thinking of buying yourself some lunch, to eat here or to take home. So if you would please allow me, I will take you to one of the nicest eating places in town, and after you have sorted that one out, then I can drop you home. Just that one errand, then I won’t bother you again’.
‘You are not bothering me at all. You are being very kind to me. And I just realised you are a mind reader too. The last item on my agenda was lunch’.
‘I’m so glad I appeared at your doorstep, just in time’.
‘Okay. Now Paul, since you say the cafe is a comfortable place, let’s go in together, and you can do your work while I get my application done’.
‘Okay, Sarah. Thanks. Let’s go’.
We got back in the car at eleven forty-five.
‘So where are we going, Paul?’
‘To Royalty restaurant. It’s a twenty minute drive away’.
‘So, do you enjoy your job?’
‘Most certainly. I won’t change it, not even to be President. And am I right to say that you are preparing to enter the university?’
‘That’s my plan. I hope it works’.
‘It will, if you are determined, and disciplined. You look very much like a disciplined person’.
‘Thank you very much’.
We arrived at Royalty in twenty-five minutes, ‘You are joining me for lunch, Paul’.
‘Thanks for the honour, Sarah. But the bill is on me’.
‘Aren’t you taking on too much for one day?’
‘I never do anything that is bigger than me, Sarah’.
Over the next hour and a half, we discussed fashion, local and international politics, and sports, as we ate and relaxed. Finally, he drove me to the shop.
‘I will never forget you, Paul’.
‘I’m glad to have been helpful. But if you don’t mind, I’ll say it again, your husband is extremely lucky. You are really beautiful’.
‘Thanks again. But do you mind if I call you sometime in the future?’
‘Certainly not. Let me write it here. I will not ask for your number, for obvious reasons. But I will be looking forward to hearing from you. And hopefully, I will see you next month, when I call to drop your bill’.
‘Okay Paul. See you then’. What a lovely day, I said to myself as I opened the front door. I closed the shop and got home by seven. I went straight to the bedroom, stood in the mirror and took a good look at myself. ‘You are a very beautiful woman, Sarah. Never forget that’. I will not forget that, again.
Over the next several weeks, Martin and I had very little to do with each other. In the morning he ate his breakfast and after a shabby ‘I’m going’, he left. He came home around eight at the earliest, ate his dinner and, already soaked in beer, went off to sleep.
He spent the greater part of the weekends at the club house with his friends, playing tennis and partying. My mind was focused on furthering my education, so I didn’t complain to him, and didn’t bother to inform my parents about what was happening. I had decided that I would only take action if he lifted his hand against me again. I spent my free time reading all manner of interesting stuff on the internet, and chatting with my sister on WhatsApp.
One evening, he came home at about eight, rushed to the bedroom and rushed out. An envelope, obviously containing money, dropped out of his pocket, and I picked it up and followed him. I was going to call him and give it to him, but I noticed that there was a young woman in the car, so I went back in, counted it and put it in a drawer in the hall. He came back after some ten minutes.
‘Excuse me, I dropped an envelope containing money. You must have seen it’.
‘Yes, I saw it. Actually, I followed you, and was about to call you and hand it over to you when I realised that there was a woman in the car, so I came back in. I counted it. One thousand cedis.
‘Well let me have it. I have to be going’.
‘I will let you have it if you will tell me who the woman in the car is, and why you are going to give her that amount of money’.
‘Listen, if you waste my time, I will teach you a lesson you will never forget. Give me the money now!’
‘Here’s what we will do, Martin. I know you will give money to her anyway, so I will give it to you, if you will withdraw the threat you just issued. But I want you to know that I will be taking some steps from tomorrow. Things are getting out of hand’.
‘Okay, I’m sorry I threatened you. Can you please give me the money’. I handed it over to him, and he ran out’.
The following morning, I waited for him to finish having breakfast, and told him I wanted to have a word with him urgently.
‘You better be quick. You know I’m going to work’.
‘Well, I want to inform you that I will inform my parents, and your parents, about the situation in this house. As I said yesterday, things are getting out of hand. You spend most of your time drinking. You get drunk every evening, and through the weekend. And you are also spending your time and money on a prostitute’.
‘How dare you? One more stupid word from you …’
‘Am I lying, Martin? You have just started life, yet you are behaving like a rich, elderly man who has already seen his children through university, and can afford a life of fun. As I said, I’m going to inform our parents. Maybe your parents can straighten you out before it is too late’.
‘Look, we can talk this evening. It’s nothing like what you are saying’. He walked away, shocked.
That evening, I was expecting to have a meaningful discussion with him, but his mother called early in the evening to offer me some ‘advice’. Her son had called to say that certain developments at home were disturbing him so much that they were beginning to affect his work.
And, ‘as a loving mother to her daughter’, she was advising me to submit to my husband, and support him in prayer, and not ‘drive him from home’. Men would always be men, and she was telling me ‘from experience’ that no matter how much time Martin stayed away from home, he would always come home to me.
She had been a young wife before, so she understood the challenges I was facing. So I could be assured that if I followed her advice, all would be well. And, of course, she didn’t allow me to tell my side of the story.
Martin came home very late, and very drunk. And from the next morning, he carried on as before. With some hesitation, I called my dad and told him all that had gone on.
‘Well, my daughter. I’m not going to say “I told you so”. I was only trying to protect you. So here’s what we’ll do. Continue doing the best you can, and try not to give him any excuse to harm you, but if things continue to deteriorate, I will take you back.
A couple of days later, my cousin Dinah arrived in Accra from Brussels, having completed her medical course. With Martin’s agreement, I went to Koforidua and spent a couple of days. I spent most of the time chatting about her experiences in the US, but we also discussed my relationship with Martin, and she endorsed Dad’s decision to take action if Martin’s behaviour did not change after two weeks Elaine informed Mom and Dad. We endorsed Dad’s decision to take action if there was no change in two weeks.
Dinah returned with me to Takoradi. Her plan was to spend a couple of weeks, and return to Accra to be posted. I called Paul Allotey, and asked if he would meet her for lunch and, if possible, show her some interesting spots. Delighted, he suggested that we meet at Royalty the next day.
I told Martin about it, to remove any possibility of future disagreement over ‘going out with men’.
‘It’s fine with me’, he said, ‘if, of all the people who could show your sister round this town, you chose a borla man. Doesn’t that indicate the kind of person you are?’
‘ First of all, Martin’, I’ve spoken to him a few times, and he comes across as a decent guy, so I think it is rather unfortunate that you are writing him off when you don’t know him’.
By Ekow de Heer
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