Features
The economy: Any Hope?
Many Ghanaians appear to have lost hope in the country following the rapid rise in prices affecting all kinds of products.
The economic situation is affecting everyone and knows no political colour. People following the NDC have been affected just as much as those who support the NPP, CPP and other political parties. What this means is that all people in the country have been badly hit by the unpleasant economic situation.
In fact, businesses are not doing well. Apart from that, all economic activities have also been affected, making life uncomfortable for all people in the 16 regions of Ghana.
In spite of all this, people are working hard and doing what is expected of them to overcome the challenges they face. This is quite encouraging because it is the only way to survive the current economic doldrums.
What has happened to the country sends a big challenge to all Ghanaians to be calm and work together towards finding a lasting solution to the problem. No one will ever come to Ghana to solve the economic problems Ghanaians are facing today.
We may seek collaboration with other entities in the world, but much will depend on Ghanaians themselves, who may have to work hard and be committed to national progress and development. Thus, there is hope for the country, but we will have to put our heads together to overcome our challenges and move forward.
Every community and district will have to organise themselves in a positive way so that better lives can be attained by such communities. If these communities do well as envisaged, it will help push up economic development for the districts and regions in which they find themselves.
Again, as each district and region progresses in this way, they will all converge at a point where all 16 regions of the country will be seen to be moving forward.
This means that the entire country will be moving forward in a positive direction. This is what is needed for our future progress.
When we work in this way, the entire country will develop economically. In other words, all locations in the north, the middle, and the southern belt will all contribute to the economic success of the nation.
In spite of the current economic conditions, there is hope at the end of the tunnel. Everyone is expected to play a role in this so that the economic situation can be overcome. When this happens, the sky will be the limit as far as economic development is concerned.
Ghana, as a country, has an abundance of resources. Some of these resources are gold, klinker, salt, and many others. What it needs to do is make full and effective use of all these resources.
In utilising natural resources, we need to ensure that technology is also applied to help the country maximise the benefits obtained from them. This can be possible if we remain committed to it.
Gone are the days when our natural resources were exported in their raw form. Today, the trend ought to be reversed, so we need to add value to them so as to be able to maximise the benefits we derive for the country.
This will have to be done in addition to the implementation of the current ongoing programmes. If this is done, much progress can be made.
Examples here are Planting for Food and Jobs, One District, One Factory, and other programmes that have been rolled out by the government. These are all good programmes that must be kept and implemented well.
Thus, if the current programmes being rolled out by the government are good, then we need to continue with them. Again, if the nation’s existing natural resources are fully exploited and effectively used, the benefits to the nation will be maximised, and the country’s revenue will be enormous. When revenue is huge in this way, it means that most of our needs or demands can be met. In such a situation, life will be better and more elegant as far as the economic development is concerned.
Therefore, the people of this country must have hope and know that the current problems are surmountable. If they are overcome, then there is hope for the future.
Once again, the question is whether we can overcome the current economic difficulties. Yes, we can, so no one should lose hope because Ghana will soon be on the verge of recovery.
Email address/whatsApp number of author:
Pradmat201@gmail.com (0553318911)
BY DR. KOFI AMPONSAH-BEDIAKO
THE typical itinerant salesman in Sikaman is a herbalist. He is normally a slim macho with the capacity to perambulate the expanse of area covering the triangle of Accra-Tema-Ashiaman. In short, he can walk a total of 60 miles a day, marketing a product that cures every disease, including poverty. 
The door-to-door herbal pharmacist advertises his product by word of mouth. He has nothing to do with the Food and Drugs Board (FDB). After all, his concoctions do not feature on FM stations.
Those herbalists who cannot walk to propagate the herbal gospel, liaise with drivers of mass transportation and their mates. They are, therefore, given the chance to sell their products on Benz buses that ply the routes.
Normally, the herbalist starts his sales message with a prayer and Bible study. He asks the passengers to bow down their heads in supplication to God the father, the son, the Holy Spirit.
When a herbalist asks the passengers to close their eyes and bow their heads, Moslems on board naturally feel offended. They feel that the herbalist has no right to assume that every passenger is a Christian. They think such an assumption is an affront to Islam.
So a Moslem on board will raise the hand for a point of order. He’ll remind the herbalist that it would be in his own interest to mind his language.
“Be careful the way you address people in a public place. Not every person here is a Christian,” he’d state assertively.
Of course, the herbalist will promptly ignore him, but would all the same “watch” his tongue. Who knows whether or not the Moslem brother is inspired by Quoranic zeal to defend the tenets of Islam to the hilt?
When he starts saying, “Wallahi!” and “Inshallah!” it could be the beginning of proclaiming Islam as supreme, a point which must be driven home with talibanic precision.
So the herbalist must tread carefully lest he steps on fire.
The herbalist could even add a measure of mirth to it all, by announcing that Christians on board today have very interesting company on the journey, but that should not detract from the business of the day.
The Moslem brother will weigh the words carefully and offer a wry smile.
He must be careful the occasion does not degenerate into the use of semantics and proverbial oration to deride his conviction that public utterances must be mindful of religious sensibilities. He has made his point very clear and expects that it is taken in good faith in the interest of a peaceful journey.
The herbalist will now open the New Testament and preach salvation, stating clearly that salvation can come only through Jesus Christ and NOBODY else.
The Moslem brother will now start twitching his moustache. The visible and almost revolutionary reflexes of his upper lip can be an indication that sentiments have begun superseding reason, and the outcome could well be tragic now shift uneasily in his seat.
The time has come for him to also express his right to the religion of his fore-bears. He’ll put his hand into his pocket and rise to his feet. The time has indeed come!
This article was first published on Saturday, September 9, 2006
When the cause of a particular problem like sickness, disease, sudden illness, a social issue etc. are not known, it stands to reason that resolving it becomes a huge challenge.
Citizens would understand the government when public announcements are made to the effect that government is trying to find a solution to the issue, even though it is taking a while for it to be resolved because citizens are rational beings.
On the other hand, if the solution to a particular issue is known to everybody but the government for whatever reason, is dragging its feet in resolving it, citizens become frustrated and begin to lose trust in their leaders.
One such issue is the heavy traffic along a section of the Kasoa – Odokor road. A short stretch of bad road between the traffic light at the Weija Government Hospital and the entrance to the entrance of the overhead that leads to the N1, is the cause of the problem but nothing is being done about it, day after day, week after week, month after month. Thus is clearly unacceptable.
Another issue that requires urgent attention is the lack of pavements along a lot of streets in parts of the various Municipal Assemblies. Exercise is a prerequisite for long life and healthy living and for those of us who it has become a way of life, this issue of people putting up structures right to the edge of the drains beside the roads, are making life difficult for us.
We are compelled to walk along the roads, putting our lives at serious risk. Pedestrians should never be compelled to compete with vehicles on our streets and roads. Roads and streets are made for vehicles and pavements are made for pedestrians. That is the norm. Any attempt to normalise a situation where pedestrians are mingling with vehicles is insanity.
It is the road regulations that makes it so and therefore district or municipal assemblies are to take responsibility and ensure that spaces for pavements are not encroached upon. Citizens have rights that must be protected by their leaders and making pavements available to pedestrians, is one of them.
When we hear of teachers having sex with students, it appears it is something recent. It is not a new phenomenon. It has been there since Adam. Perhaps this issue is getting much attention due to the proliferation of social media. It was an open secret in times past when Teachers were in relationships with female students and some married them immediately after completion of school.
Some teachers were also known to be having unholy interactions with female pupils but due to the times that these acts occurred, human rights issues and the awareness around it, allowed such unscrupulous teachers to get away with their crimes.
Now we are in a different era and so a Headmaster is now in hot waters. He is alleged to have raped about 19 female students and as usual, some officials tried to cover it up and are also in hot waters and their actions or inactions in the matter are under investigation.
Why the man has been allowed to roam freely without being arrested is simply mind boggling. It appears that the law applies differently, depending on who you are. This issue came to public attention sometime in August this year, yet the police had not arrested or invited this man for question regarding the rape allegation.
It has come out that he is a Constituency Secretary of the ruling party and the question in the public domain is that, is it because he is a political figure that is why he is still walking around without questioning? I believe in the rule of law so let us hold our breadth and let the proper thing be done.
The police must however be seen to be active in this matter. God bless.
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