The movie of the same name is about oil - plus greed and desperation, and then the bloody consequences of bringing all three together.
In Ghana where politics, like oil, can bring untold riches and privileges to a handful of individuals, the similarities couldn't be more striking as the 2012 elections approach and greedy and desperate politicians begin to speak in bloody and apocalyptic tones.
'All die be die' was part of the recent battle cry of a leading presidential candidate to his “Akanfu?” supporters, effectively urging them to lay down their lives for him to achieve a life-long ambition. ('We are ready', a voice in the crowd assured him, chillingly).
Despite attempts by Nana Akuffo-Addo and his retinue of vocal apologists to explain away the comment - in some cases even rationalize it by citing similar comments by other irresponsible politicians - the damage had been done.
The backlash was immediate and unrelenting, and for those of us who had viewed him as a cool head in a neighborhood of hot heads, it was the end of an illusion, the lame excuses of his handlers notwithstanding.
(Ironically, those who in spite of the public outrage take perverse pleasure in repeating this unfortunate remark are the very ones least likely to stick around to endure even a pin prick much less spill their blood for Nana Addo).
But in fairness to Nana Addo, if Ghana should go the way of Cote d'Ivoire or worse Kenya (perish the thought!) it would not simply be because of a single unfortunate statement from a 67-year-old man who is making possibly his last (and hence desperate) attempt at the presidency.
There are many other factors that by themselves or together can strain or break the strong yet delicate ligaments that have bound our young democracy for nearly two decades. Let's look at some in turn.
Media Complicity: With their dogged 24-hour frontline coverage of past elections, the Ghanaian media rightly deserve some of the credit for the consolidation of Ghana's democracy.
But on occasion, the media - or more specifically, some media houses - have also been unforgivably irresponsible. Without any attempt at verification or rectification, they have put out unfounded allegations or permitted behavior that had the potential to create social unrest - or at least worsen political tensions.
Following the 'all die be die' remark, for example, a panelist on a local TV discussion showed up in a t-shirt emblazoned with the inflammatory remark. A producer worth his salt and mindful of his larger civic duties would have required an attire change or an outright ejection.
But this never happened and that tactless and provocative act of indecency only added to a needlessly volatile situation. The panelist continues the practice with shocking impunity.
We have nearly two years for the media to develop better standards for mediating public discourse, ranging from the kinds of text messages they choose to read (do they enrich the discussion or merely insult people?) to permissible language and attire to managing dangerously agitated callers). The National Media Commission must take the lead in this crucial national assignment. Tribal Opportunism: Akuffo-Addo's crass appeal for 'Akanfo?' to die for his presidential ambition, even as he struggled to speak an Akan language, exposed a dangerous hypocrisy of the Ghanaian political class, irrespective of party affiliation. Most of them, alienated from their cultural roots, are more comfortable in the circles of power in Accra or Washington or Paris than they are with their kindred in their hometowns. Yet they quickly resort to tribal affinity and its derivative bigotry if they believe it would advance their selfish political pursuits. Such tribal opportunists litter the political landscape and we must watch out for them if we want peace in 2012 and beyond. Tribal Baiting: In what seems to be a well-conceived plan to reject the votes of the Volta Region even before the first ballot has been cast, some leading opposition figures have been demonizing the region and its people at every opportunity with the complicity of a media community that seems unwilling or ill-prepared to challenge them.
The available evidence does not only expose these rabble-rousers as dangerous to Ghana’s democracy but it also shows that the Ghanaian electorate is a lot more sophisticated than the triablists care to acknowledge.
In the 2004 elections, for example, Mr. Kufuor's share of votes, compared to those of 2000, declined in every region (including his home region of Ashanti)but went up in the Volta Region from 11.53% to 14.26%. Mills's share declined in Volta but rose in Ashanti. At 1.7%, rejected votes as a share of total votes cast in Volta in 2004 remained essentially the same as it was in 2000 at 1.6%. The share in Ashanti increased from 0.54% to 1.4% over the same period.
A thorough analysis of the data and other electoral episodes shows an onset, even if minimally so, of the diminution of tribe and the emergence of development issues in Ghanaian politics (the people of Volta must have seen something good in the NPP in 2004, popular perceptions notwithstanding).
But what seems like good news for Ghana is obviously bad news for the merchants of death who would do anything to gain power, even if that means trading in lies and stepping on dead bodies on their way to the top, leaving bloody footprints in their wake.
The media, general public, and civil society organizations, including religious bodies, have a moral duty to prevent the advance of such nation wreckers. No pasaran!
Governmental Neglect: State funding of the Electoral Commission since the beginning of the Fourth Republic has been inadequate and erratic, constraining the Commission's ability to build its capacity between elections and to conduct elections in a generally satisfactory manner.
On average, the disbursement rate of budgeted resources to the Commission has been low – an annual average of 40% (in some cases less than 20%) for the “services” and “investment” categories, which are critical to the continuous development of the human and technical capacity of the Commission. Supplementary assistance from donors has not been enough to close the gap. The negative effects of these resource constraints have been complicated by undue delays from other arms of government. The recent mess of local elections was due in part to Parliament’s late passage of LI 1967, without which the elections could not be held. Think tanks, election observers, and CSOs all have a responsibility to work against such avoidable obstacles and delays. Restive Youth: No segment of the population has, in the words of Bob Marley, been used, abused, and refused more than the youth. They are often the first to spill blood in political violence and the last to benefit, if they do at all, from any change in government.
More than a decade after a youth policy was launched and then revoked two years later by a new government, we still don't have a functional youth policy. A National Youth Employment Programme that was supposed to generate over 500,000 jobs in three years could manage only 108,000 jobs, many of them temporary. The Programme is all but comatose now. A broken and elitist educational system fails thousands of students every year, driving many to lives of despair and hopelessness, and creating a restive under-class of young and impressionable people who are manipulated into the proxy battles of unscrupulous politicians. Rather than killing themselves for these politicians and their loved ones to live, the youth should fight for issues of critical importance to their young lives and by extension national development: Decent work, good and affordable education, opportunities for civic and personal development, as well as income and social security, among others. They should, as 2012 approaches, compel politicians of all stripes to go beyond rhetoric and present credible and measurable policies for youth development. As Tunisia and Egypt have amply shown, macroeconomic stability and high growth rates mean nothing unless they translate into meaningful opportunities and empowerment for the youth. In this case, the CPP’s call for the publication of a biennial State of the Youth Report is worthy of a broad-based national discourse. Such a report will force successive governments to treat the “youth problem” more seriously than has been the case so far. External Interference: So long as we remain dependent on them for some funding, the international community will continue to be involved in Ghana’s elections. But they ought to be circumspect with the nature of this involvement.
The decision by the European Union's observer team to Kenya, for example, to call a press conference and make inflammatory and irresponsible statements in the wake of the disputed elections in that country indirectly contributed to the violence and blood-letting letting that ensued. To avoid such misconduct by the EU or any other foreign observers in Ghana, a code of conduct acceptable to all political parties must be established long before 2012.
Judiciary Credibility: An aversion to bloodshed must not mean capitulation to injustice, which was probably what Akuffo-Addo had in mind when he inadvertently betrayed his tribal bigotry and incited his audience to violence. The judiciary has a sacred responsibility to ensure that neither bloodshed nor injustice prevails in any election.
Past accusations of judicial malfeasance or incompetence in this regard can best be addressed by the Chief Justice through public education and the strengthening of transparent rules and procedures for dealing with elections-related cases as speedily and credibly as possible. Anything short of that will provide a pretext for those who live by the sword to profit from it. We’ve come too far to allow that.
The list of potential sources of trouble in 2012 obviously is much longer, but we can start with these at the very least.
Credit: Nii Moi Thompson
