Former President John Dramani Mahama
Interestingly, some concerned Ghanaians believe that it would be devilishly suicidal if Mahama was to reclaim the presidency, given the calamitous errors in judgement which led to the business's crippling dumsor amid massive economic collapse(dragged 14% economic growth in 2011 to 3.4%, and 15.4% inflation in 2016).
While some of us really appreciate discerning Ghanaians' genuine apprehension over Mahama’s desperate attempt to reclaim the presidency, the NDC loyalists, unfortunately, seem oblivious to the dire consequences of Mahama returning to the Jubilee House.
Frankly stating, it would only take a doubting Thomas or a disputatious character to suggest that discerning Ghanaians have soon forgotten and forgiven Mahama and NDC administration for wilfully keeping Ghanaians in darkness and collapsing businesses for well over five years.
Based on the simplest definition of a failed state, I would like to submit that Ghana found itself at the doldrums of a failed state between 2012 and 2016 largely due to the unspeakable dumsor which threatened the security of the country and the livelihood of most Ghanaians.
The simplest definition of a failed state is one that cannot provide its basic responsibility such as electricity which is a security threat to a nation.
According to the 2021 Failed States Index, some of the states most in danger of failing include states like Nicaragua, Brazil, Sudan, and North Korea, due to corruption. States like Libya, Iraq, Pakistan and Siberia are in danger of failing because of rebellion. Other states including Nigeria and Nepal are at risk because of democratic collapse.
States including Iraq, Yemen and Turkey are in danger of religious and ethnic conflicts (see: https://worldpopulationreview.com › country-rankings).
Apparently, I was in Ghana in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016 and dumsor was a thorn in the flesh of the good people of Ghana.
Back then, the then-running mate of NPP, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, made it clear to the good people of Ghana that the dumsor was a result of financial constraints and nothing else.
As was expected back then, the NDC faithful vehemently repudiated Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s exposition. It would appear that the Mahama’s government did not take the dumsor as a priority.
Dearest reader, tell me, if the dumsor was a priority for the Mahama administration, how come the outgone NDC government rather paid dubious judgment debts to the tune of GHC800 million instead of purchasing fuel to generate power?
Interestingly, in the 2013 World Bank’s Enterprise Survey on the African economy, with special emphasis on Nigeria and Ghana, the report concluded that ‘dumsor’ (erratic electricity supply) is the biggest obstacle to economic growth in Africa and hindrance to multi-national investors (World Bank 2013).
In the gloomy days of dumsor under Mahama’s administration, we witnessed plangent buzzing of generators all over the country. Most businesses folded up amid massive unemployment.
In those days, self-employers like Hairdressers, Ice Kenkey Sellers, butchers, among others, were the worst affected.
The revoltingly annoying and costly buzzing of generators across the length and breadth of the country, unfortunately, went on for well over five years to the utter dismay of the good people of Ghana.
Considering the negative effects of dumsor on Ghanaians, it would only take a disputatious character to suggest that discerning Ghanaians have soon forgotten and forgiven Mahama for wilfully collapsing their businesses through dumsor.
Given the circumstances, we can understand how and why some concerned Ghanaians, including some supporters within the NDC, have been expressing their arousing disgust over former President Mahama’s desperation to return to the presidency after being voted against massively in 2016 and 2020 due to his abysmal performance.
Disappointingly, however, in his desperation to solve the serious problem such as dumsor, the Mahama administration ambivalently sign superfluous ‘Take or Pay’ Power Purchasing Agreements (PPAs) in which Ghana is needlessly paying over $600 million per year for extra power we do not need.
By gleefully signing the excessive Power Purchasing Agreements and entering into a calamitous ‘Take or Pay’ deal, Ghanaian consumers are unfairly being forced to pay exorbitant electricity tariffs as a result of the Mahama administration’s negligence.
The dumsor was so annoying to the extent that my uneducated, albeit reflective-thinking mum, who had a soft spot for NDC, underwent a carefully considered reflection and graciously detached herself from the Umbrella fraternity.
I recall prior to the 2016 general elections, I had an interesting telephone conversation with my mother about politics and socio-economic standards of living in Ghana.
In fact, at no point in time during our interesting conversation that my mother indicated her intention to detach herself from her unbridled loyalty to the NDC.
It, therefore, came as a surprise to me when my mother confided in me that she has ceased being a die-hard supporter of the NDC.
Wonders shall never end, they say. In fact, I never envisaged in a million years that my mother could one day cease being a brassbound supporter of the NDC.
So, what was her excuse for detaching herself from the Umbrella fraternity?
According to my mother, the straw that broke the camel’s back was the catalogue of sleazes and corruption amid the business crippling dumsor under the erstwhile NDC administration.
It is therefore quite disheartening to see the NDC loyalists whose businesses were wilfully crippled by Mahama’s appalling dumsor squeamishly clamouring for the return of Ex-President Mahama.
Whatever the case, the loyal supporters of Mahama should accept the painful fact that discerning Ghanaians have overcome their supposed memory loss and cannot so soon forget the terrible errors in judgement which culminated in economic hardships amid the business crippling dumsor.
Apparently, the vast majority of unhappy Ghanaians voted against the NDC and Ex-President Mahama in the 2016 election largely due to the unresolved business crippling dumsor.
Nevertheless, the business crippling dumsor has since been brought under control by the NPP administration to the delight of discerning Ghanaians.
While it is true that the Mahama loyalists are moving heaven and earth to help him reclaim the presidency in 2024, the sceptics, both outside and inside the NDC, are insisting that Mahama was not up to the task during his tenure in office and must thus be ditched and replaced with a competent flagbearer.
With all due respect, it would appear that Mahama loyalists are living in a denial. They have indeed lost touch with reality.
In fact, we do not have to look any further than the 2016 and 2020 general election results to acknowledge how Ghanaians were disgusted over Mahama’s dreadful errors in decision-making which culminated in the unspeakable dumsor.
That being said, in as much as the sceptics hold the preponderance of the argument about former President Mahama’s unpopularity, the diehard supporters will keep cheering him on.
Indeed, the vast majority of the NDC loyalists are living in a denial about former President Mahama’s perceived capability and popularity and will thus push him to another embarrassment in 2024.
The all-important question every discerning Ghanaian should be asking the Mahama loyalist is: where is the justification for former President Mahama’s popularity and competence when his terrible errors in judgement sent Ghanaians into darkness for well over five years?
How can the diehard supporters convince some of us about former President Mahama’s ability to lead Ghana again when he woefully wasted Ghana’s scarce resources instead of purchasing fuel to generate power?
Mahama allegedly doled out huge sums of money to all sorts of people who contributed nothing to the nation-building. Madam Akua Donkor of the Ghana Freedom Party comes to mind.
The Mahama loyalists must accept the painful fact that discerning Ghanaians cannot so soon forget the dreadful errors in judgement which culminated in economic hardships amid the unbridled business crippling ‘dumsor’.
In ending, some of us, as a matter of principle, are not oblivious to the inexpressible anguish and the negative effects of dumsor and therefore we are well aware of the apocalypse of Mahama reclaiming the presidency in 2024.
