A file photo
Our economic problems can be attributed to diverse factors. Some of the factors impeding our economic advancement include indiscipline, corruption, and exploitation.
Politicians and civil servants as well as ordinary Ghanaians blame each other for corruption in the country. There is no denying the fact that we are all culpable for certain degrees of offenses that negate the progress of this country.
A few days ago, the GhanaWeb published a news item with the following headline, "Here are the top bribe-taking institutions in Ghana, according to UN data."
The information therein spotted some state institutions as being corrupt. The most corrupt institution among them, according to the survey, is the Lands Commission. It is followed by the judicial system - prosecutors, judges, and magistrates. The Ghana Immigration Service came third. The institutions which are captured on the list are many.
In another development, the minister of Foreign Affairs, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, is reported to have dismissed overstaying officers and agency representatives at various passport offices in the Greater Accra region. She allegedly accused them of charging between GH¢2,000 and GH¢3,000 for a passport which officially attracts fees of GH¢100 and GH¢150 instead. Kudos to the minister and more grease to her elbows.
Indiscipline is very rampant in our society which culminates in various forms of corruption.
Trotro drivers and their conductors (mates), including other commercial vehicle drivers, usually increase their fares exorbitantly before the officially approved fares are announced.
Private enterprises fix the cost of their goods and services arbitrarily thus inflating prices. Pavements which are designed for pedestrians to walk on, have been converted to mini markets thus forcing pedestrians to walk onto the streets. Waste materials are dumped indiscriminately. The illegal connection of electricity and water is another phenomenon buttressing my points. And sometimes one has to pay a bribe before they have access to some basic amenities or facilities.
Governments impose some unnecessary taxes which their colleagues describe as, "nuisance taxes" because they burden taxpayers. Some business entities dodge paying taxes thus denying the state adequate revenue for development.
Sometimes government officials embezzle or mismanage state funds meant for development. Governments take loans and squander them while ordinary Ghanaians are made to pay the loans by paying taxes. These malfeasances are common and they look like normal norms which are officially accepted at various workplaces.
The problems are many. From the above narratives, we can understand that we have all contributed, in one way or the other, to the economic mess. Having noticed these problems, we may now apportion much of the blame to our governments.
We pay salaries and other emoluments to incumbent governments, for them to keep in check these anomalies, and to make sure that they steer the affairs of the nation for the betterment of its entire citizenry. But sadly, however, even though they are paid to carry out the above assignment, they also engage in corrupt practices which cripple the fortunes of the state. Let us take this story to another dimension.
If we should delve more into this discussion by targeting officialdom involved in corruption, we shall not miss another great opportunity to notice how our leaders have worked and continue to work with some foreign nations to exploit the resources of this country to enrich themselves.
Ghana is endowed with both human and natural resources. But unfortunately, outsiders and some of our governments who are corrupt, are the main beneficiaries of these resources while many Ghanaians have been left to live in abject poverty.
History is full of narratives about how slavery and its 'twin brother' called colonialism or imperialism were introduced to exploit our resources and deprive us of better living conditions.
Slavery and colonialism are diabolic systems. Slavery is said to have been abolished in the then-Gold Coast in 1874. Later Ghana gained her independence from Britain in 1957. However, the remnants of these inhumane systems continue to cause great harm to our people.
The modus operandi of the slave masters and their collaborators still exists in a disguised form. Slave masters connived with some of our African leaders, who are very wicked and selfish, to capture and sell our ancestors to them as slaves. In a similar vein, some of our leaders today collaborate with European and American governments to get rid of our good leaders, and they exploit our resources for their self-interest.
The brutal killing of Colonel Muammar Ghadafi of Libya and the coup d'etat which ousted the government of Ghana's first president, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, are some of the typical examples attesting to this assertion.
European and American governments aided Libyan citizens living abroad and those in Libya to topple the government of Colonel Ghadafi which eventually got him killed. In Ghana, similar action was taken to overthrow the government of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.
I always wonder why Western leaders get rid of our fine African leaders, who want to help their people to enjoy a better life while they walk with African tyrannical leaders who misappropriate our resources and invest in Western countries.
Some former African presidents like Mobutu Sese Seko of the Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire), Felix Houphouet Boigny of Ivory Coast, Gnassingbe Eyadema of Togo, etc., were some of the cronies of these Western countries, but I still wonder why the West did not help to shape the economies of the states of these African leaders to become prosperous for other African countries to emulate.
Western countries encourage brain drain which retard our progress as a nation. If they had not interfered in our national affairs by imposing on us their bogus political system which exploits our resources, there wouldn't have been the exodus of Africans who are getting drowned in deep oceans to reach Europe and America in search of greener pastures.
Under Colonel Ghadafi's revolutionary regime, Libya was okay politically and economically. The essence of life is to have food, clothing, and shelter. Colonel Ghadafi has made that provision for his fellow citizens. Rhetoric or free speech is not a priority. Europe and America first embarked on revolutions before they finally established the democracy they are enjoying today.
Can any African leaders interfere in the government policies of Europe and America? Certainly not! They allow our weak democracy to strive because it benefits them and our leaders but not the masses. No one can overthrow their democratic system because it is a system based on Justice and fairness where every citizen receives their fair share of the national cake. But their foreign policy is a farce because it manipulates our policy here to suit their interest and that of their cronies (our leaders).
They hypocritically say they fight for the human rights of every individual and group of people, so they are seriously promoting the course of homosexuality (LGTBQ+) yet they join some of our leaders to benefit from our resources through exploitation while poor Ghanaians suffer economic hardship. This is unfair!
Why do we have gold, bauxite, timber, cocoa, oil, etc. in Ghana but these resources are not managed very well to benefit everybody, but it mostly benefits the elites? Why should serving in a government become a lucrative business where government officials or appointees become millionaires (in dollars) and billionaires (in Cedis) overnight?
I cannot fathom out why people amass wealth illegally and live in opulence while Poor Ghanaians cannot afford to have three square meals a day.
Why do you sanction African countries and their leaders when they criminalize LGBTQ+ but you do not sanction them when they embezzle our resources to buy mansions and invest in your respective countries in Europe and America? Why do you protect corrupt African leaders who cooperate with you at the detriment of their citizens, but you punish other African leaders who do not cooperate with you?
The mansion of the former president of the Gambia, Yahya Jammeh, has been confiscated in America by the US government. I believe Yayah Jammeh was not on good terms with the West during his tenure of office hence the confiscation. If he had been their friend, they would not have seized the house.
Our economic emancipation can be achieved only when we all abide strictly by the rule of law as enshrined in the national constitution. Thus, we need to make some amendments to the constitution where we deem it necessary.
We must redefine the powers we have bestowed on our presidents which make them look like demigods. Sometimes they flout the laws of the constitution and act with impunity.
We must enhance checks and balances to revamp the economy. We must not encourage foreigners to sabotage our economy through the exploitation of our resources and other foul means. And above all, nobody is above the law, so we must all do our best to stop the canker called corruption.