2022 in Review: Celebrities who ruthlessly called out the Akufo-Addo-led government

Since the President of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, was sworn into office, the expectation many Ghanaians had of him has dwindled as the state of the economy keeps deteriorating.

His critics say that despite their dire circumstances, he has not yet fulfilled the many promises he made before moving into the Flagstaff House.

Celebrities from the media and entertainment sectors make up a large portion of individuals who vehemently criticised him.

Through interviews and social media posts, these celebrities have expressed their dissatisfaction with President Akufo-Addo, who was previously referred to as a "no-nonsense man." Finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta was not left off the hook as he also became a subject for discussion over claims he mismanaged the economy.

In this article, GhanaWeb has gathered some of the posts made by these famous people criticizing President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in 2022.

Here are some of the celebrities who attacked the government:

Samini

Samini was one of the celebrities who campaigned for Nana Addo although the musician earlier criticised colleagues for endorsing politicians. Regardless, when the economy worsened, he hurriedly uttered concerns.

Taking to his Facebook timeline on Sunday, 23 October 2022, the artiste wrote "Dear @NAkufoAddo [Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo] I supported you to bring change and stability."

"I believed in the vision and your concept of change! But with 2 [more] years to go, my soul bleeds."

Prince David Osei

Prince David Osei shared a lengthy post, threatening a demonstration against the Akufo-Addo-led government after it was reported Ghana is number one among countries with the highest food prices in Sub-Saharan Africa since January 2022.

Expressing himself on Instagram on October 10, 2022, the actor mentioned that he had noticed that the president and his subordinates have made it their agenda to inflict pain on citizens.

"Mr President! With all due respect Mr President, why are you sleeping on Ghanaians... This is not acceptable Mr President. We deserve better, we know there are global crises and hardships. Yes, we know!

"But it looks like you and your ministers are determined to inflict untoward hardship on the citizenry. I decided to give you and your government the benefit of the doubt, I reckon I was wrong!" he said.

Yvonne Nelson

Yvonne Nelson after she carried out the 'dumsor' demonstration was tagged a member of the NPP until she made some clarifications about being neutral but only hammers where necessary.

The filmmaker went on a ranting spree to lament the rising cost of living in the country and the government's seeming unperturbed posture to change the narrative.

In a series of tweets, she condemned the government for what she described as a failure on its part to deliver on the juicy promises made to Ghanaians during the campaign period.

According to her, the governing New Patriotic Party and President Akufo-Addo, have deceived Ghanaians with promises.

The rising cost of living under President Akufo-Addo's watch, Yvonne Nelson said shows that the managers of the economy do not care about the plight of Ghanaians.

Stonebwoy

Livingstone Etse Satekla, popularly known as Stonebwoy, also used his social media account to disclose his dissatisfaction with the running of the country's economy.

In a tweet the "Gidigba" hitmaker shared, he said "The system heat up ruff. And the pressure is getting..."



Cwesi Oteng

Gospel artist and ardent New Patriotic Party supporter Cwesi Oteng expressed regret for publicly endorsing the party in the 2020 election.

When Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo was running for his second term, the singer of "God Dey Bless Me" joined the list of famous people who endorsed him.

However, in an interview on Hitz FM, he said, "Openly declaring my support for a political party came with some regrets. I thought Free SHS was something to commend, but it ended up being crap in people's eyes.

"I am going through hard times. Very difficult times. I won't say the government has failed but I think things can be done better. People are saying exactly what they are feeling. They are going through the situation. They are not trees."



Kweku Sintim Misa (KSM)

Known for not shelving his thoughts on governmental issues, Ghanaian playwright and actor, Kweku Sintim Misa (KSM), in a recent post advised Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Ken Ofori Atta, to resign from his position.

He didn't mince words when he shared a post on Twitter on October 22, 2022, stating that since President Akufo-Addo has resolved not to sack him, Ken Ofori-Atta, should take the initiative and step down from the position.

The playwright has also recently made the point that government choices for citizens should occasionally be made after considerable planning and consideration.



Lydia Forson

Lydia Forson expressed her disappointment in the government over its decision to engage the IMF for a possible bailout.

She indicated that the ruling party should be apologising to Ghanaians for their failed promises, especially condemning John Dramani Mahama for resorting to IMF due to what they described as 'economic mismanagement.'

Aside from this, she made a series of tweets criticising the government for mismanaging the economy and making life difficult for citizens.



Bridget Otoo

On June 29, 2022, seasoned media personality, Bridget Otoo questioned the rationale behind the decision to prevent pressure group, Arise Ghana from carrying out its demonstration to protest against the high cost of living.

According to the outspoken journalist, the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) has no moral right to prevent citizens from protesting even at the Jubilee House.

She recounted how the NPP in opposition were allowed to stage demonstrations at the Flagstaff House and its environment.

Her tweet read, "when the NPP went on the Wongbo Demo they were allowed to go all the way, there was the occupy flagstaff house with no issues, Dumsor must stop etc... What exactly is @NAkufoAddo afraid of? Why is he not allowing citizens to use the very routes he used as an opposition leader?"



Nana Aba Anamoah

Ace Ghanaian journalist and General Manager for GHOne TV, Nana Aba Anamoah, poked the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government over its decision to return to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for support.

Her post rides on the back of the 2016 general elections in Ghana, where president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, and his team, when contesting for power, promised citizens to actualize a 'Ghana beyond aid' agenda.



Serwaa Amihere

Serwaa Amihere also called on the Akufo-Addo-led government to show some respect to the people of Ghana.

Her call was on the back of an online movement led by Joshua Boye-Doe popularly known as Kalyjay calling on the government to fix the country.

For Serwaa Amihere, it is disrespectful on the part of the government and its supporters to tell Ghanaians to fix themselves amid the hardships going on in the country.



Vim Lady

Last on the list is radio and television personality, Afia Pokuaa, popularly called Vim Lady, who insisted that the New Patriotic Party(NPP) can never 'break the eight'.

She stated that "with the breaking the eight, after my analysis with Prof., you will understand that NPP can't break the eight. With the records available, there are all indications that they can't break the eight unless there's some form of magic that changes things along the way. They can't break the eight."



ADA/BB