Hon. Martin Alamisi Amidu, a former Attorney General of Ghana, on Saturday 14th November, 2015, in one of his contributions during the news analysis programme on Joyfm, News file, poured out his disappointing frustrations in the inability of President Dramani Mahama to fight massive corruption in the country.
His lamentations and frustrations were clearly understood by me. I had cause to ask in a publication whether the President was a Northerner. This is a President who is coming from an area of the country that is officially known as the most deprived area of the country. When he was campaigning to become President of Ghana, he told the people that he was their brother and there was therefore the absolute need for them to vote for him to enable him bring development to the people.
The people got convinced and voter massively to help make him President of Ghana after he already served as vice President for a number of years. The excitement that came in the wake of his election as President in Northern Ghana was ecstatic! The people thought at last one of their own was President and will therefore use his executive powers as president to bring acceptable development to his people through the setting up of factories for them.
Sadly, the very direct opposite is what the President is doing to the North. He has cancelled trainee allowances to teacher and nursing training colleges. Though this is done in all colleges in Ghana, the North is the hardest hit with this cancellation. Why should it be under the Presidency of a Northerner that this should be cancelled?
The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) which was of huge benefit to the North is saddled with serial mismanagement. The Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) programme which was aimed at bridging the development gap between the North and the South ended up as a corruption conduit under the direct administration of Northerners.
The NPP policy of creating jobs through the National Youth Authority has been collapsed and has become another wing of misappropriation of state funds. It is sad the level of thievery and fraud under the Presidency of John Dramani Mahama. The irony is that, the issue of thievery and fraudulent activities is not reducing. It is increasing by the day.
Under the Presidency of John Dramani Mahama, 163 officers of the National Service Scheme were caught siphoning money from the State through ghost names. The monies that got to the drains under the watch of the president could have been used to provide basic amenities for communities in the North.
As of the time of typing this article, a former Chief Executive Officer of the Driver Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), Mr Amegachi, is before Parliaments committee of Transportation for appending his signature to contract documents to a figure of 9.6 Million Dollars whilst the real figure was supposed to be 3.6Million Dollars.
The irony is that when Amegachi appeared before the committee he wanted to be forgiven by saying that to err is human! To err is not human Mr Amegachi. Why on earth will the CEO of such an organisation append his signature to such an amount without reading? It is because a president who is not committed to fight fraud, thievery and corruption is at the helm of affairs.
Some of the above could be what pushed brother Amidu to think the way he thought. The truth and the fact is that we have Northerners who are committed and desirous of seeing to the very best of the North.
Dr. Mahamud Bawumia is one such Northerners. He is honest, humble, intelligent, God fearing and deeply committed to the North and will not superintend over the massive looting and sharing characteristics of the John Mahama Presidency.
If anything at all, after the colossal failure of President Mahama, we should be praying to have another Northerner in government to prove to sceptics that John Dramani Mahama is not all the Northerners have. A Northerner must be given the opportunity to correct the wrong perception about the North quickly. I believe that Dr. Bawumia as even Vice President under President Nana Akuffo Addo will do more for Ghanaians and the North.
I definitely do agree with Hon. Martin Amidu over his lamentations about the inactiveness and ineffectiveness of our brother John Dramani Mahama but I don’t agree with him that it may take another Northerner 20 years to become President of Ghana. I believe a Northerner in the person of Dr Bawumia will become President soon not after 20 years.
It is the underwhelming performing President Mahama who should not become President again of Ghana. He should be rejected massively in 2016. Northerners should make it a duty and responsibility to vote him out in order to help restore dignity to the Northerner.
Nana/Bawumia must be voted for in next year’s election to give to the North what John Mahama has denied his own people.
Am done
Akilu Sayibu
Email: Akisayi@yahoo.com
