Only time will tell if Akufo-Addo made wrong decision or not – Gabby Otchere Darko

Founder of Danquah Institute, Gabby Otchere Darko, following the decision by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as regards the lifting of the partial lockdown in some parts of the country, has said that only time will vindicate the president.

According to Mr Otchere Darko, it is early days yet to criticize government for lifting the restriction on movement.

He said though several Ghanaians have begun castigating government for prematurely lifting the restriction on movement, the decision was arrived at based on science and data.

However, Mr Otchere Darko was quick to note that the imposition of restrictions is rather difficult to enforce in developing countries than it is in other developed nations.

In an article targeted at assessing the decision of government and its impact on the ordinary Ghanaian, Mr Otchere Darko wrote that, “…There is evidence across the world that the way it spreads, the speed, pattern and impact of that spread may vary from country to country, community to community. Yet, those who are convinced that lifting the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi now was wrong may have a point. Only time will tell. But, they will be wrong to think that their opinion is supported by science and data and that of the President not.”

He added that, “…The truth is that it is harder to impose a lockdown in a developing (poor) country than in a developed (rich) country. But, the President believes, as he showed three weeks ago, that it is better to lockdown, when in doubt, and use that period to gather a deeper understanding of the situation in order to allow you take a decision, based on the information gathered, on what the next step should be.

He advised Ghanaians to be wary of being unduly swayed by what he describes as ‘imported groupthink’.

“We should be careful about being unduly influenced by imported groupthink. We must develop our own groupthink based on our own circumstances and available scientific evidence.”

After three weeks of imposed restrictions on the movement of persons within some parts of Greater Accra, Tema, Kasoa and Greater Kumasi, the president has announced an end to the lockdown.

According to the President, this is to give government the opportunity to try to contain the spread of the virus, scale-up effectively the tracing of persons who had come into contact with infected persons, test them for the virus and quarantine those who tested positive and isolate them for treatment.

This was announced by President during his live televised address to the nation today, Sunday, April 19, 2020.

Although the lifting of the restrictions may come as a reprieve to the many whose livelihoods may have been hit hard following the imposition, access to some major sectors remains restricted.