Businessman Dr Kofi Amoah has challenged the citizens of Ghana, including the political elite to wake up to the existential, structural problem bedevilling the country and proffer new solutions to them.
According to the Economist who is affectionally called Citizen Kofi, the type of democracy Ghana has practiced in the last six decades has not worked, nor has it shown signs that it will work in the foreseeable future.
In a lengthy write-up on social media site X (formally Twitter), Dr Amoah said it is about time Ghana and Africa found a system that actually works, and is fit for purpose.
He argues that the current structure only deepens corruption, and does not inure to the benefit of the ordinary Ghanaian.
Portions of his thought-provoking post on Monday, November 20 read,
“Time for BIG IDEAS… (It’s long but pls read it fully). Nothing seems to work in Ghana so it is important that we begin to question everything in the search we must necessarily do to find a better arrangement that can work better for the country and her citizens PARLIAMENTARY DEMOCRACY is quite expensive and also has lots of corruption loopholes.
Is democracy the proper way with expensive elections, expensive overhead, enormous power given to a few who may use it for themselves, family and friends and with corrupted institutions may get away with it while the economy tanks and the people suffer?
Expanding further in an interview with GhanaWeb, Citizen Kofi said “The country is in a horrible nightmare, screaming with no one hearing and no rescue approaching. Something must give and the few coterie of the patriotic and dedicated must not give up too and throw their hands to the winds … if that happens, who knows where the tumbling Ghana will end up, a failed state and with what consequences?”
Dr Amoah proceeded to offer some ideas and options, which he says could be deliberated on by the citizens regarding what kind of governance will take Ghana out of the sinking quagmire of debt, joblessness, corruption and hopelessness.
“So I ask you to consider and choose:
1. Democracy as has been practised in Ghana and Africa with deepening corruption and 17 visitations to the IMF by Ghana, joblessness galore, inflation, currency depreciation etc.
2. Benign and enlightened centralized economic planning, death penalty for proven corruption, and an arrangement in which the value of the natural resources of gold, bauxite, iron ore, oil etc are deployed in a manner that enhances the welfare of all citizens but not only foreigners and the corrupt govt and political officials who sign the underlying contracts, plenty of good-paying jobs, lots of exports to generate adequate investment funds to support infrastructure and needed services of health, education, housing for the society and her people.
We must engage in these discussions and I urge our media folks to get serious and not trivialize and sensationalize our major policy issues … we need less jokes and comedy, more substance and enlightenment!! Please repost the tweet and let everyone who gets the point choose #1 or #2 above or another proposal as the preferred road for Ghana so that we can make this existential matter a major election issue for 2024.
Ideas matter and the will and choice of the people must factor into choosing political leadership to get things done properly The end point of Ghana and Africa’s journey since independence from colonialism, compared to our independence classmates of S. Korea, Malaysia, Singapore is not acceptable or encouraging but rather embarrassing We must change course, period! Repost and choose pls."
Ghana will go to the post in 2024 with the hope of electing a leader who will rescue it from crippling debt, high unemployment, hyperinflation and corruption.
KOD
Dr Kofi Amoah is a businessman and an economist