Former Presidents John Mahama and John Evans Atta Mills
……This is exactly why Akufo-Addo shouldn’t stand on Mills and Mahama’s shoulders-Final part
This is a complete synthesis and a retrospective analysis of the previous three patches which sought to give a sequential account of the irrevocable mistakes committed by Akufo-Addo’s predecessors, Mills and Mahama.
Basically, this final part grubs into the reasons why Akufo-Addo cannot afford to make the same unpardonable errors of judgment by his predecessors.
“The idea that religion and politics don't mix was invented by the Devil to keep Christians from running their own country (Jerry Falwell).”
Of course, it is possible for a devoted Christian or a Moslem to play active politics. But a supposedly religious person, in my view, must not and cannot mix both politics and religion.
It is absolutely fine if a politician is kindhearted or altruistic. But that does not mean a politician must seek to “play God”. Indeed, governance is not about “let us give to God”. It is all about cracking the whip when necessary. After all, Jesus Christ even once cracked the whip in the Temple.
Yes, “let us give to God” does not work in governance. But rather, it leads to absolute failure. It is all about assertiveness and the strict application of the existing laws and regulations.
I hate to admit this, but the fact of the matter is that the late Mills greatest mistake of his short spell in government was his decision to mix religion with politics.
Somehow, the late Mills wanted to please everyone, and hence earned the weird epithet-‘Asomdwehene’.
But the crucial question is: is it possible to please each and every one in our day-to-day living activities?
I recall my grandmother once advised me not to ever seek to please every human being on this planet.
After a brief, albeit a carefully considered deliberation, I asked my grandmother why I should not seek to play “nice man” to every person that comes my way.
My grandmother, however, retorted poignantly that it would be extremely dangerous for everyone to view me as the nicest person on the planet.
She maintained that in the event of me playing the nicest person, the people around me could take undue advantage of my leniency.
Well, I could not agree more with my grandmother. How could a leader hesitate to step on people’s toes in his/her line of duty?
Indeed, every great leader must be prepared to step on toes, if he/she is to be successful. And, to paraphrase the great man Nelson Mandela of blessed memory, any person that changes his/her principles depending on whoever he/she is dealing with, can never be a great leader.
To be quite honest, the late Mills would have been very successful in his short spell in government if not the shenanigans of the conspiratorial plotters that surrounded him.
I have always maintained that even though I have never been, and will never be an NDC apologist, I will forever vouch for the late President Mills unparalleled adherence to moral principles.
Take, for example, it is on record that prior to the dubious Wayome’s judgement debt payment of GH51.2 million, the late Mills warned the ‘create, loot and share’ cabals not to effect payment.
Nevertheless, the incompliant appointees took advantage of his leniency and disobeyed the good old Mills orders and doled out the staggering amount to Wayome, who had no contract with the government of Ghana.
Disappointingly, though, despite his unmatched moral upstandingness, the late President Mills somehow yielded to his appointees shenanigans and allowed the create loot and share cabals to have their way.
And in spite of his appointees impishness and their dereliction of duty, the late Mills blatantly failed to crack the whip. He bizarrely held on to the weird appellation of ‘father for all’.
But the truth of the matter is that the late Mills spared the rod and spoilt his children. Yes, his appointees were all over the place canvassing for people to come forward for the non-existent judgement debt. It was an illustrative case of let us ‘create loot and share’. How bizarre?
Apparently, the late Mills successor, Ex-President Mahama, was not perfect either.
I am not privy to his religious background, nonetheless I am well aware that Ex-President Mahama sought to play Mr Nice Man, and consequently, the people that surrounded him took undue advantage to dupe the nation.
Somehow, the people around him took advantage of his lacklustre approach and indecisiveness and created alliance with a view to emptying the national purse.
The scandalous bribery and corruption cases such as SUBA, GYEEDA, SADA, Bus Branding, Brazil World Cup, amongst others contributed largely to the country’s economic meltdown.
Well, we cannot deny or hide the fact that sleazes and corruption were so pervasive in Mahama’s government.
The international community even acknowledges that sleazes and corruption permeated every facet of Mahama’s government.
The Transparency International’s 2016 Corruption Perceptions Index for instance, states: “in countries like Ghana, which is the second worst decliner in the 2016 Corruption Perceptions Index in the region, the dissatisfaction of citizens with the government’s corruption record was reflected in their voting at the polls.”
“Despite being a model for stability in the region, Ghana, together with another six African countries, has significantly declined. The rampant corruption in Ghana led citizens to voice their frustrations through the election, resulting in an incumbent president losing for the first time in Ghana’s history.”
Apparently, some of us have unfairly incurred the wrath of the brassbound NDC Party loyalists for upbraiding the erstwhile Mahama’s administration on its failure to curb the sleazes and corruption which brought Ghana’s economic meltdown.
Truth be told, the erstwhile Mahama’s government’s disastrous economic management and gargantuan corruptions sent Ghana’s economy deeper and deeper into the mire.
And rightly so, discerning Ghanaians voted the NDC government out of power in the 2016 election as they were not happy about the way President Mahama and his appointees were managing the affairs.
Indeed, the good people of Ghana found in NPP, a redeemer, who they trusted to set them free from Mahama’s government economic bondage.
This is the reason why President Nana Akufo-Addo must not and cannot stand on the shoulders of his predecessors, Mills and Mahama and thereby disappoint the good people of Ghana, whose invaluable efforts brought about the needed change.
In sum, when promises are broken, the bonds of trust are breached, thus President Akufo-Addo must not and cannot disappoint discerning Ghanaians.
K. Badu, UK.
k.badu2011@gmail.com
Please visit me at: alljoycom.wordpress.com
