Former MP asks: Why are Ghanaians intolerant of Mahama gov't?

Former NDC Member of Parliament for Adenta constituency is clearly unhappy with what he sees as the impatience of Ghanaians towards the Mahama-led administration.

Kojo Adu Asare does not understand why Ghanaians appear intolerant of the current government in spite of repeated assurances from President John Dramani Mahama to Ghanaians that ‘he is working on those challenges facing the economy and the entire country’.

President Mahama, over the weekend asked Ghanaians to exercise patience because his administration is only in the first gear in terms of accelerated development and will, in the not too distant future, switch to the second, third and fourth gear. At a gathering at Awutu Senya in the Central region, he assured that Ghanaians will soon see transformation in the country.

However, his critics say there is no way the President will be moving to the other gears of acceleration because he was Vice President before becoming President. Some even posit Ghanaians will die of economic hardship, corruption and misappropriation of funds before the president reaches the fourth gear.

But speaking to the issue on ‘Kokrokoo’ Monday, the former parliamentarian dismissed the assertions of the critics and sided with the fact that development does not come “at once”; but “it is a gradual process”.

“It was just a figurative speech…some people have made it a point that they will criticize anything the President says or does; whether good or bad, but that will not derail his agenda. He needed to assure (Ghanaians) that things will get better. For me, I think it was in the right direction and we should all listen and support him…where is this impatience coming from…so you would ask whether somebody can perform magic…where do you get things happening every day? These are things that takes time to fix, and that is what the President is saying. There are challenges but slowly, they are being sorted out…” he indicated.

But in a sharp rebuttal to Adu Asare’s question, James Kwabena Bomfeh Jnr., popularly known as ‘Kabila’, a former National Youth Organiser of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), said the seeming ‘impatience’ of Ghanaians is as a result of the so many promises made to the electorate as captured in the Manifesto of the NDC, which unfortunately, have not been met.

According to him, this is not the first time President Mahama is giving such “mere rhetoric” assurances which at the end of the day, ‘nothing changes’.

“How can you ask where this impatience is coming from…it is coming from the height of arrogance of power from the President to his appointees. The President has been given the mandate to work and make the lives of Ghanaians better and so he is accountable to us. Listen to the tone of the President when people complain. Complains over corruption, naked thievery of state resources, cannot be relegated…every move of this President is an attempt to cover up corruption and you are telling us to be patient with that; I am sorry I can’t be,” he said curtly.