Ghana’s way forward , The choices we face

Kojo Tamakloe

Election time, its election time . Time for promises , lies, insults , castles in the air. But let us get past the promises , lies and the insults and look at the realistic aspects .

Not long ago, a lot was made about the price of kenkey going up and making it unaffordable. It meant Ghanaians were going hungry especially the poor . Kenkey is made from maize,a stable Ghanaian produce and maize can easily be stored and preserved. Growing up and visiting my friends whose parents were farmers I could see the way they preserved this product of life in their huts . As they cooked, the smoke and heat rose up ensuring that weevils were killed and kept away. The dry maize would last till the next harvest . Biblically we all saw the Egyptians do this on a large scale by way of silos. The CPP government of Nkrumah started it but we were convinced they were communist ideas and if we ate them we would become communists. The very people who in the year 2012 complained about the kenkey price were the same who in 1965 convinced us the silos were communist. So far we have not heard how they will solve this simple problem .Never worry, Free SHS will solve the problem.

We had free basic education and even in High school , then called Secondary schools , we did not pay school fees . it was called “ mass education” and we were told that was a communist or socialist idea . It was not good for us . Those were in the 60s . Now we are told it is a panacea for all our problems and once they bring it in , kenkey price will go down or stabilize and we will be in “ Canaan, the promised land” Never mind how . Do not ask about how many school buildings will be required, not desks, not chairs, not books, nor teachers. Ah, we will recover Woyome’s millions and that will be enough to take care of all the expenditure

We will also industrialize in 4 years .It is labeled “ transformational leadership” But what about the ones we had before? Remember, we had them ? Glass factories, rubber factories, sugar factories, paper factories, Tv and radio, 400+ , but, they were State owned . Well, that was a bad idea and communist . “ It is not the job of government to create jobs” . So stated the “ wise and knowledgeable” , Osafo Marfo. So we had them , closed down ,the factories. They lay there idle and rotting and we had to find money to pay the loans on them .Then we went to China , another socialist state to import their goods . After 20+ years the NDC sold them to recoup some money. So how do we industrialize?. Well I guess by Ken Agyepong buying himself a jet plane when he is in government . This is the “ savvy” businessman who will , or can only make money when in power. He would rather kill his customers than doing what astute businessmen do ‘ acquire customers and keep them” . His advice to shop owners , when Ewes and Gas come in, use what ever you have and kill them . Great, what a businessman ? You know , he did not attend my type of village school but an elite school ,like Adisadel College , now SHS . Then he will be a cabinet minister and that is how he will buy the jet . So where is the enterprise and the capital and even the skilled labor , that will manage the industries? They will be dead or in exile . remember “ Apollo 568” and the “ aliens compliance order” , that produced havoc in the cocoa farms we all boast about as a source of our wealth. ? Yea, Ghana was number one and after the “ aliens “ left , Ghana was number 5 . Does it remind you of the fall of Egypt after the Jewish slaves left? Sure the “ royal” Egyptians took back their land but could not grow food nor keep the sheep, nor the dams . Soon we hear about Naomi, “an Egyptian slave” in a Jewish house hold. What a turn around?. Surely “ Knowledge is power” . But I digress . Will the industrialization be State sponsored or by private individuals mainly “expatriates” with money and enterprise who will then employ Ghanaians to do the work? .Is that what independence is? Always relying on outsiders for grants, advice , direction and budget supplements? Never mind , free SHS will sort it out . It has to, if we see how we have run State Transport, now on sale, TOR, that is still struggling after the 8 years of milking , that nearly brought down even Ghana Commercial bank , and the” professional and businesslike” way we run Ghana Airways and its baby Ghana International Air. That is after 50 years of independence . States do not run enterprises , you know, that is why they failed . We do not want to know about Kenyan Airways, Ethiopian air nor South African airways

Then we will sort out the Housing shortage using Free SHS and industrialization. That is why in our wisdom we kill any idea of providing cheap and affordable housing. Oh , I forgot it has to be the NPP way other wise let us give it a label and destroy it. We NPP are the citadel of wisdom and knowledge .We create 30 new constituencies , and that is ok , but the other 45 is UNCONSTITUTIONAL. When we build a motorway , that is development and a novel idea , when any one builds it, it is a waste of money . Who else knows anything? After all ,are you not the’ veranda boys, trokosis, Togolese, Nigerians, or what else”? Foreigners on our land and once we get rid of you , then all will be well . Yea , free SHS will sort it out

The Danquah- Busia Dombo model of federalism was to make each kingdom a state with the Chief as Governor. Never worry if the others are not in the same model . How many states would we have? Baffour Akoto had the answers , the illiterate linguist and war lord who led a delegation to the Queen to block the independence. The Queen is female , but could a Queen have been the flag bearer or King or Chief of that State? What irony ?

Corruption . There is corruption alright and the person who can smell it is Ken Agyepong . So let us keep him in opposition to smell out the corruption. Free SHS will not sort it out . He should not be in parliament , but “ in the country of the blind , the one eyed is a giant” . After the free SHS we will know we need to use descent language. See all the mayhem in the Arab world caused by the film denigrating the Moslems ? Can we learn ? No . But let us wait for the Free SHS . Agor was a 13 year who did not need a free SHS to see his drowning friend in danger and without thought jumped in to save him . Both perished. What great love ? May their young souls rest in peace and be an example for others about tribal harmony

Fellows we need economic emancipation , which means we need visionary progressives, not pseudo or copy cats . Bill Clinton , gave the figures , Democrats with social democracy created, 42m jobs in the USA as against 22m by the conservative, Republicans . It follows if we need to solve our REAL problem which is underdevelopment , then use the correct people . Vote CPP or NDC

The writer Kojo Tamakloe is an Nkrumaist who believes African Unity is the solution to Africa’s underdevelopment