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In the work of William Shakespeare, he quoted the following from Julius Caesar:
“Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste death
but once. Of all the wonders that I have yet to hear, It seems to me most strange that men should fear, seeing that death, a necessary end, Will come when it will come.”
History has shown that Julius Caesar was not a violent character, and he was
not advocating violence with his expressions, rather he was admonishing the
need to stand up against injustice, oppression, and tyranny.
Injustice, oppression, and tyranny only permeate and succeed within a society when there is disunity among the masses. The masses are powerful to the extent that, whenever they stay united, no oppressor can defeat them, as Wael Ghonim stated: “The power of the people is much stronger than the people in power.”
In Ghana, our politicians are aware of these and are too smart to allow us to
unite, they are aware that our unity will mean their weakness, and they have
therefore engaged in all sorts of gerrymandering and divide-and-rule tactics in
order to continue oppressing us, willingly or unwillingly. It is important to know that oppressors are weak and cowards; no strong man oppresses.
The Kenyan youth have shown that they are not stupid and unintelligent; they
have shown that with unity of purpose, they can fight for their rights. I decry
the violence that took place in Kenya; however, I salute our colleagues in Kenya
for coming together to fight for their rights.
The young Kenyan activists have successfully forced the government to shelve
$2.7 billion in tax hikes, and are now focused on ending years of what
they see as endemic corruption and shoddy governance.
Even though the finance bill was abandoned by President William Ruto, the
United Youth said it was only a symptom of the problems plaguing a country, where many young people have few job prospects despite strong economic
growth.
It suffices to say that the situation in Ghana is worse than in Kenya. The level of nepotism, cronyism, and corruption in Ghana is worse than in Kenya. The opulence, arrogance, and chicanery being displayed by our leaders in Ghana today is worse than in Kenya. Yet, the Ghanaian youths are cowed into submission using party affiliations and emotional attachment to divide us.
During the passage of the controversial E-Levy bill, a lot of Ghanaians
expressed their displeasure against the tax; what did our politicians do? They
played the political card and branded those with divergent views as enemies of
the government. They simply put the youth on a collision course so that the NPP
youth would side with the government. The NPP youth were made to support the
E-Levy to counter genuine opposing views.
In Kenya, even the youth in President Ruto’s hometown were out demonstrating against the injustice. What would the Kenyan heroes do if a $50 million hole was dug with their taxes in the name of a national cathedral? Yet some Ghanaian youths are celebrating and defending this act of corruption with emotions. What would have been the reaction of these brave youths of Kenya if an attempt had been made?
to bequeath their national resources to descendants of those in power through
Agyapa deal?
What would have been the reaction of our gallant compatriots in Kenya if
those in power had attempted to “gift” their vibrant national institution like
the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to themselves in the Power Distribution Services PDS (PDS) scandal? Let’s ponder their possible reaction to the $11 million wastage in the Pwalugu Multipurpose Dam without a single structure in sight.
What would have been the reaction of the Kenyan youths if President Ruto’s
daughter was to establish a $6 million ultra-modern restaurant within three
years of her father becoming president?
Clearly, the Ghanaian youths have more reasons to be angry and rise for this
country in a more united and peaceful demonstration than our counterparts in
Kenya, but cowardice, gerrymandering, and divide and rule have been used to
keep us silent while we suffer.
The Kenyan Judiciary, Clergy, and all other Civil Service organizations deserve
recommendations and respect for being sensitive to the plight of the citizens
and allowing them to express their feelings and concerns in this critical moment.
The Ghanaian judiciary and clergy, I believe, can learn from their Kenyan
counterparts and allow people to express their concerns in a peaceful manner
without any hindrance, using the law and the scripture.
