In a recent article on this forum (see), I argued that the trinity of slavery, colonialism, and Christianity had adversely affected the natural evolution of our traditional systems and perpetrated a mentality of inferiority that continues to influence us as a nation even today. This concluding installment explores how Ghana (and by extension, Africa) can break out of the vicious cycle of poverty and despair.
‘Men at some time are masters of their fates:
The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
But in ourselves, that we are underlings.’
-Cassius in ‘Julius Caesar’, By William Shakespeare
Whilst it is true that the overwhelming majority of Africa’s past and current problems can be traced to the doorsteps of the western powers, it is equally pointless to sit on our backsides and moan about our unfortunate past as the world rushes by at breakneck speed. It is simply impossible to put everything back in Pandora’s Box, shut it, and return to life pre-European contact. Nor is it possible to ignore the real technological and industrial advancement the entire world over. To hark to a golden age of times bygone and constantly heap blame for our woes on the former colonial power is, in my view, to indulge in lazy thinking. I believe we need to draw strength from our past adversities, seize the initiative and push forward.
Even seen from a non-western development framework, it is clear that Ghana as a country is yet to attain any sustainable level of development that would make a real difference in her people’s lives. For a country of fifty years’ standing, too many of our fellow citizens die of preventable diseases and have no access to basic facilities that make life a bit more comfortable- a decent education, running water and electricity, among others. Far too many families struggle to get by in a country that is awash with natural resources. Ghana and Malaysia both became independent of British colonialism in 1957. Malaysia’s GNP per capita was $200 whilst Ghana’s was $170. By 2004, Malaysia’s GNP per capita stood at $4,650.00 whilst Ghana’s trailed abysmally at $380. Why?
Various factors have been to this growing chasm between Ghana and her then contemporaries like Singapore, and Malaysia. In an article in the West Africa Review magazine in 2004 ( Issue 5) , Benjamin Asare and Alan Wong conduct a comparative study of Ghana and Malaysia. They helpfully identify factors such as political instability, human development and diversification to explain why Malaysia is so many miles ahead of Ghana in progressive terms. Useful as this assessment is, I am of the view that there are fundamental structural weaknesses in some of our own belief systems, attitudes and perceptions that draw us back as a people and keep us marking time behind everybody else. I propose to discuss in turn.
Faith and Reason:
The average Ghanaian (and for that matter, African) has a deep-seated recourse to the supernatural as being the explanation for things (whether good or bad) that happen to him. This strong belief system, which has its roots in traditional African worship, has been transposed into Christianity and Islam, the two main religious forms in Ghana today. Childlessness is still seen by many as the work of the devil rather than a physiological issue that requires scientific research, even by so-called educated people who should know better. Too many people spend good money and precious time consulting so-called pastors and spiritualists with their business, marriage and other problems when the solution lies right in front of their noses, whilst many people actually believe witchcraft and juju are seriously at work in politics, sports, business and other aspects of national life. Many criminals when caught will blame the devil for leading them astray, rather than take personal responsibility. Most deaths are viewed with suspicion from the spiritual view, especially if it was sudden. Many would agree that one of the reasons Nigerian movies enjoyed a boom in Ghana was due to the genre of these films-witchcraft, occultism, juju etc. That an over-reliance on the supernatural and the spiritual are inimical to the advancement of society is to state the obvious.
In Europe, the Age of Enlightenment in the 18th century (led by thinkers like Descartes, Montesquieu, Diderot, Rousseau, etc) emancipated that continent by advancing the concept of autonomy of reason and dislodging the ecclesiastical establishment from central control of cultural and intellectual life. I believe that what Ghana (and Africa, by extension) needs is its own Enlightenment age, where the dark, religion-based cultural practices and beliefs that impede progress are challenged head on and defeated by science and reason in order to free us as a people. If we accept that the mind is the most important asset of every society, then this is an urgent imperative indeed. It takes
Leadership & Our Institutions
Many people argue that Ghana’s (and for that matter, Africa’s) problem is mainly that of bad leadership (i.e. mismanagement twinned with grotesque corruption/greed). Whilst this is mainly true, I do think that is a simplistic argument for two reasons. First of all, the leaders are drawn from the society and are reflective of the beliefs, norms and practices at almost every level of society. It is said that every society deserves the leaders it gets. For instance, where we generally accept that ‘no one rears chickens and eats dried fish’ (in other words, it is normal to profit from your work), then it should not be a real surprise when a minister decides to hack 10% off a contract for his personal gain in accordance with this belief. After all, that is the mindset he has become accustomed to throughout the years, and he sees it all around him, from petty customs officers to civil servants on the take simply to do their jobs. No wonder some enter politics because it is seen as a get-rich-quick mechanism, perhaps coming a close second to forming a church.
The second reason why I believe that the bad leadership argument is hollow is that corruption and mismanagement flourish because our society lacks strong, independent workable systems and institutions to effectively control such behaviour. In other words they do it because they know they can get away with it, and that is entirely rational human behaviour. By institutions, I do not mean just the structures, but the rules, systems and procedures in place to make them effective.
It is noteworthy that since independence, almost all governments (military, quasi-military or civilian) all over Africa have systematically politicised or brutally repressed the very institutions that help a modern state stay on course- the judiciary, parliament the press, the civil service, the police service, etc. And yet it is these very institutions that are supposed to deliver the foundations and clear rules on which a state should be run. All the aid in the world and all the investments by foreigners cannot help is if we don’t have the institutions to deal with them-it would be akin to fetching water with a basket. There is no point in having all the natural resources in the world if these institutions are too weak to effectively manage the revenue accruing from them. In an earlier article on this forum, Dr. Nii Moi Thompson raises this issue in respect of the recent oil find in the country. He cites the example of the lack of vigorous demands by parliament, among others, for an account of how the $20million budget for the Ghana@50 celebrations was spent. This is shameful. Why has the NPP-dominated parliament not bared its teeth on this important matter and issued a summons on the leadership of the Ghana@50 Secretariat to appear before it on pain of contempt, with serious consequences? Is parliament acting in the national interest? Where are the laws and procedures to ensure that parliament has proper clout in these matters? With the absence of a robust inquiry into the secretariat’s finances, would anyone be surprised if chunks of the budget disappeared into private long pockets? Our history is awash with such blatant weaknesses, which have failed to tackle our problems in any sufficiently clear manner, thereby allowing corruption to flourish to the detriment of society at large. For too long, we as a people acquiesced in the rot, with many of those in leadership positions in society (opinion leaders like intellectuals, religious leaders etc) who could have stood up against this too cowed to do so or having themselves taken advantage of these structural weaknesses.
No one will come to develop Ghana for us, not foreign investors, not the west, and certainly not the IMF/World Bank. It is not in their interests to do so, despite what they say. As our elders say, no matter how distasteful your own gums are, you can only lick yours and not someone else’s. Our future lies in believing in ourselves, for a start. We are not an inherently inferior people. After 50 years of independence, it is cheap and pointless to keep blaming the long-departed colonial power. Where we see weaknesses, let us challenge them, and where we see strength, let’s build on them. It is not in the interest of those that govern us to strengthen the system and they are unlikely to do so unless we make them do so. Of course, this is not to suggest that there are easy answers that real change can be seen by Christmas if we start today. That would be simplistic and foolish, given the years of decline.
But until we recalibrate our mindset for the better, we can continue to delude ourselves every 4 years with the charade of an election and change our leaders as many times as we fancy, but it will make absolutely no difference whatsoever to the state of our nation.
Our destiny lies in our hands.
