Honorable AMA boss again.

I often feel that I have had enough of my opinions published on Ghanaweb that I

should sit back and read and soak in other people's opinions. As I start to get

comfortable in that endeavor, I get hit in the face by headlines that make my heart

bleed and I only get relief when I express my opinion and hope that maybe, just

maybe I will cross path with some politician on Ghanaweb, and the blood from my

heart will smear his/her conscience somehow. So if I seem to be on Ghanaweb often,

please pardon me.

Before I go on, I will like to express my sincere thanks to the people of Ghanaweb

for giving us a place to express ourselves. As long as I am able to, I will speak

for "the least of these" for I am of "the least of these".

"Time ripe for 5 aircraft for Ghana - Majority"

"Accra Is Now Clean And Free Of Hawkers - AMA boss"

Anyone remember "Redeployment"? Whatever that was supposed to be, what I remember

of it is mass dismissals that turned many people into merchandisers. Where were

they going to sell their merchandise? No one thought of that before the dismissals.

Mr. AMA boss, you should also take pride in taking people's livelihood from them.

These people have to figure out where their next meal will come from. They have to

figure out where their children's school fees will come from. That takes some

intelligence: intelligence that you have not demonstrated by your actions because

the thinking of offering alternatives comes before the actions that you seem to have

taken. Be proud of yourself.

If I am not mistaking, the last war that Ghana's military saw was World War II which

was before I was born (and I am not a Spring chicken). In that war, we were doing

our colonial masters' bidding. Can someone tell me again what we need 5 airplanes

for? Peace Keeping? Why, don't they equip us to keep peace in someone else's

country? I thought peace keeping was lucrative for our military and that's why they

do it.

I think we need toilets along our beaches more than we need planes for our military.

The cost of one plane can build a handful of toilets along the beaches of Accra

(better than nothing). If we must, why not buy 4 planes and build a few toilets?

And guess what, we don't build planes. How many Ghanaians will be employed to build

the planes? I dare to guess that a few Ghanaians will get employed if we build some

toilets along our beaches; to say nothing about the marketable experiences that they

will acquire which will possibly get a couple of people off the street hawking

business and make the AMA boss happy.

We don't have much, but we can do something with the little that we have. What we

are lacking is the thinking that needs to precede our actions.

Lastly, I will dare our presidential candidates, Mr. Mills and Mr. Akufo Addo to

issue a statement on AMA boss's actions. Here is your chance, Mr. Akufo Addo.

Impress me. This is better than breaking bread with "the least of these."

Tony Pobee-Mensah