Ghana: Become a Citizen and not a Spectator
“The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress.” — Frederick Douglass
Fellow Ghanaians,
Could you grant me the tribune for this appeal? Events of the past weeks compelled me to contact you with my address.
There comes a time in the life of every nation when its people must rise above petty differences, gird themselves with the armor of truth, jettison primordial mindsets, and speak out against the tides of misrule and betrayal in the land.
As we have consistently pointed out in this column, failure to speak up is criminal now; we can no longer afford it. Stop assuming that those of us who raised our voices do not have better employment or that we are “too know,” as they say in local parlance.
For eight long years under Mr Akufo-Addo, our blessed republic witnessed the collapse of dreams, the crumbling of promises, and the betrayal of the sacred trust of governance at all levels.
All the institutions of the Republic were bastardized by a ruthless cabal that turned electoral victory into a military conquest and considered the national treasury a war booty to be dispatched with haste.
The dreams and aspirations of our founder, Kwame Nkrumah, were shattered.
Full disclosure here: I was among those who wrongly supported Akufo-Addo, just as I made the same mistake in believing that the Daura tribal warlord Mohammad Buhari would herald a new dawn in Nigeria. The betrayal of my generation by Goodluck Jonathan in Nigeria and John Mahama 1.0 made me hope that the elderly duo would perform better. I was wrong.
Nigerians rightfully retired Buhari, and yesterday, Ghanaians sent the inglorious NAADA home in disgrace.
Akufo-Addo was heralded as a beacon of hope after four years of incorrigible corruption by the babies with sharp teeth that President John Mahama, in his first term, incomprehensibly selected to help him pilot the affairs of state, has left a legacy of broken promises, deep economic despair, and a Ghana that is polarized beyond belief.
Fellow Ghanaians, this is not a time for silence or apathy. As our outgoing President, the not-so-illustrious Akufo-Addo, once exhorted us, we must be citizens, not spectators.
I borrowed the title of this article from him with gratitude.
Ironically, it is under the rule of the man who championed this clarion call that has overseen an era that demanded our vigilance more than ever before.
However much we hate his person and his misrule, we must not let Akufo-Addo's words fall into the abyss of unfulfilled rhetoric. It is our patriotic duty to take them as a charge to reclaim our nation from the clutches of mediocrity and mendacity, as we witnessed in the last eight years under his rule, under whose rule the mantra “Be a citizen, and not a Spectator” came to the fore.
We do not engage in hyperbolic vituperation when we say that Mr. Akufo-Addo's rule was the greatest tragedy to befall our republic since its inception in 1957. His abysmal records speak for themselves. Incredibly, the man managed to damage almost everything he touched while holding the reins of power. Like a true Machiavellian, NAADA used state power not to advance Ghana’s national progress but to perpetuate personal egoism and the advancement of the hagiography he relished in creating for his mythical political family.
When he ascended to the presidency in 2017, Nana Akufo-Addo promised transformation. He declared a vision of a Ghana beyond aid, where we would stand on our own feet, independent and proud Ghanaians and Africans. We can rightfully ask what has become of that promise and lofty vision at the twilight of his inglorious reign.
As we strive to be thorough in this column, let us, for the records, recap what Mr Akufo-Addo promised us:
• Economic Collapse: Despite all his pontifications, Mr Akufo-Addo did not build factories or create jobs for Ghanaian youths. Our young generation, full of potential and energy, remains unemployed, their dreams deferred. The number of youth we see hawking foreign bric-a-braces in the hot sun in our cities has increased dramatically under our outgoing president.
Even the curators of Akufo-Addo in Western institutions today admit that the economy of Ghana lies in tatters. Inflation has soared, the cedi has plunged, and businesses have shuttered their doors. Many foreign companies have voted with their feet
The promise of industrialization, symbolized by the much-touted One District, One Factory initiative, turned out to be a mirage. What we see are fanciful Powerpoint Presentations and cases of massive corruption in the few companies for which the government cut the sod. The Komenda Sugar Factory is a good example.
• Social Services in Ruin: We all bear witness to the fact that under the administration of the man who told us that he has the men and the women to transform Ghana, the state of our public schools is atrocious, the food our children are fed induces tears, our hospitals remain underfunded and dilapidated, and almost all major roads are in perilous states—we do not even have a good road between our two most important cities, Accra and Kumasi.
The Free Senior High School policy is laudable and noble in intent. Still, unfortunately, like most things under Akufo-Addo, it has been plagued by corruption that has only brought tears and nightmares to parents. Meanwhile, our health sector groans under the weight of corruption-induced neglect. Patients struggle to buy the most basic supplies. Whoever has tried to use national health insurance in recent times will attest to the fact that it is in a state of comatose.
• A Culture of Corruption: Perhaps the most galling of all the nasties under Akufo-Addo is the pervasive corruption that has stained every corner of this administration.
Akufo-Addo came to power with the pledge to protect the public purse, but a child born yesterday can see how his friends, families, and cronies have raided the public purse with unimaginable impunity. Under him, scandals became the order of the day with zero accountability. The sense of shame and reckless arrogance by those in the corridors of power has shocked all of us. We never knew our officials could be so brazen and contemptuous of our feelings.
As we receive a new administration, we must all not forget the lessons of the past.
John Dramani Mahama, who returned to the presidency he lost eight years ago yesterday, must confront the ghosts of his first term.
We MUST FORCE him to change the wayward ways we witnessed during his first rule. We must force ourselves to become citizens and not remain spectators.
As I told whoever would listen, Akufo-Addo would never have happened if Mahama 1.0 had not been so disappointing. Serious lapses in governance marked Mahama 1.0. The nation struggled under Dumsor. And the effrontery of the young, hungry people with little professional or life experience whom Mr Mahama appointed was too brazen for many of us. They mercilessly unleashed their sharp teeth on every criticism, however well-meaning.
The late Papa JJ coined the term “Babies with sharp teeth” because the impetuous cretins did not spare even him.
Mahama has been given a second chance - a rare opportunity in politics. This is not a mandate for nostalgia or a return to the old ways. He should consider it a call for redemption, a chance to write a new chapter in Ghana’s history and define his role.
For his second term to succeed where his first faltered, Mahama must embrace transparency, prioritize competence over cronyism, and invest in sustainable development that benefits all Ghanaians. More importantly, President Mahama must know that Ghanaians voted overwhelmingly against Akufo-Addo because they want to see him fight corruption and tame the sense of entitlement and impunity by those charged with managing the republic's affairs.
Ghanaians must realize the time has come to demand more from those who govern us. Experience ought to teach us that power, if left unchecked, will always deviate from its course. As a sagacious person said, Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely. The Akufo-Addo years have shown us what happens when citizens choose to cocoon themselves in their shelters and abdicate their responsibility to hold their leaders accountable.
We paid a steep price in the last eight years for our apathy. We must learn to say: Never again. At a minimum, we should have this constantly in mind:
1. Demand Transparency: Our officials always talk about the taxpayer, but their behavior suggests that they do not know or accept that every cedi that flows into the state coffers belongs to the people of Ghana. In this age and with all the technology available, there is no reason why citizens do not know how budgetary allocations are spent. We must insist on regular audits, published accounts, and accessible records of government expenditures.
2. Embrace Participatory Governance: I have tried in this column to emphasize the need for all of us to get informed on how we are governed. In Plato's famous quote: “One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.” Governance is not the sole domain of politicians or activists. Every Citizen who cares about the future of himself and his offspring must engage actively in politics and policymaking. Write, sing, organize, and attend local meetings where the welfare of the community and society are discussed, participate in public consultations, and try to use every platform available to voice your concerns and ideas. Please don’t leave it solely for experts and activists.
3. Use the Power of the Vote: It is sad that many citizens have become apathetic and consider elections mere rituals. It is time for Ghanaians to stop and consider them tools of accountability. Mr. Akufo-Addo, who thought he had conquered all he surveyed, was pleasantly and brutally surprised by Ghanaians. That is how it should be; the politicians must realize that there is a price for non-performance.
Mahama and his team should look at the broader picture and realize that the time is past when Ghanaians will reward incompetence, corruption, or unfulfilled promises with another term in office. They have just demonstrated that their votes count. They have thrown out a leader who showed his lack of integrity, vision, or commitment to service, one riddled with cronyism, nepotism, corruption, and insane arrogance.
Fellow Ghanaians, it is time for us to begin to dream of a Ghana where governance is not an exercise in prayer but a science of planning and execution.
Too often, those we elected have told us to beseech supernatural forces for solutions to our earthly problems. We must boldly reject that mindset; divine intervention is not a substitute for good governance.
But, we did not vote for gods; we voted for men and women we remunerated handsomely. Let them keep their part of the bargain and fulfill their promises. After all, we do not see them beseech almighty before they collect their fat salaries and shiny v-8 Jeeps.
We should inform our leaders that it is time for Ghana to function like a modern state where the government collects taxes and provides essential services for citizens. In the countries we call advanced, citizens do not need to beg for clean water; they receive it as a right. Electricity, telecommunication, food, and housing are not privileges to be bestowed by goblins of the sky, NGOs, or benevolent donors but entitlements guaranteed by the social contract - We vote for you, and you provide us with social services.
To achieve this vision, we must build institutions that work and are staffed by professionals who are held to high standards of competence and accountability. We must invest in education that equips our youth with the skills to innovate and compete globally. We must foster an economy that rewards competence, hard work, entrepreneurship, and innovation. The culture of ‘Protocol’ must be replaced with mediocrity.
The failures of the past eight years should serve as a stark warning. Let us not repeat the mistakes of complacency and inaction. Let us rise as citizens who demand excellence, refuse to accept mediocrity, and hold their leaders accountable.
The Great Frederick Douglass once declared that “power concedes nothing without a demand.”
To make Ghana work for us, Ghanaians must demand a Ghana where promises are kept, resources are managed prudently, and every citizen can thrive and realize his full potential.
The future of our nation lies in our hands. Let us seize it with courage, conviction, and a commitment to justice and equity.
©️ Fẹ̀mi Akọ̀mọ̀làfẹ̀
(Farmer, Writer, Published Author, Essayist, Polemicist, Satirist, and Social Commentator.)
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