President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo
Folks, it is not for out-of-place to repeat what our elders have often said: Pride always precedes a (down) fall. And I relate this proverb to happenings under the watch of Akufo-Addo.
In opposition, Akufo-Addo and Bawumia led the NPP's political armada to haunt Ghanaians with their boasts as the most enlightened, the most educated, and the most capable people to move Ghana out of the woods. In effect, they were Ghana's "interrectuals" to be put in power, not those in the NDC whom they mischievously wrote off as "riff-raff".
Now in power, the difference between a government of the riff-raff and the "interrectuals" is glaring; and it doesn't favour the latter, clearly because their performance doesn't accord with their bombastic boasts.
More intriguingly, they are sowing seeds of discord everywhere in the body politic, creating insecurity, and running head-over-heels to outdo each other in schemes to fleece the national coffers, hiding behind the smokescreen of an Office of Special Prosecutor to energize their fight against corruption. As my friend puts it, "All be lie". And they will be exposed and dealt with.
I have said several times and will continue to repeat it that it is far easier to overthrow a government formed by the Danquah-Busia political nonsense than it will be for the NDC camp. Every informed observer of the Ghanaian political scene knows why. Let's praise Rawlings here. No more.
In case you don't, let me simply tell you that the Danquah-Busia camp is handicapped when it comes to security and national intelligence work. Despite all the stinking boasts of being "interrectuals", its adherents don't have the capacity for security and intelligence work to be ahead of the pack.
Flashback: Busia bought into rumours that his government would be overthrown and deployed a military detachment under the command of Col. I.K. Acheampong to the premises of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation. Of course, Busia and his backers foolishly trusted Acheampong as one of their own (even though Acheampong had been a product of the Kwame Nkrumah ideological Institute at Winneba).
In the night of January 12, 1972, Acheampong met his girlfriend at a spot in Nima. Fed up with his girlfriend's numerous and persistent demands for money, poor Acheampong told her that she shouldn't worry much because not far from that moment, he would become Ghana's Head of State and the poverty crisis would be over.
Intelligence reached Professor Ofosu-Amaah, Busia's trusted appointee as the Director of the Special Branch at the time (now the BNI). Such an "interrectual" flopped, clearly because he couldn't tell whether the initials of Acheampong were I.K. or I.J. or something else. In hesitation, then, he didn't forward the information to Busia.
Come early January 13, 1972, Acheampong had the easiest task of walking into the studio of the GBC to announce the overthrow of Busia without a single gunshot being fired. Can you imagine that, folks?
And we know what Acheampong’s intrusion of himself and his NRC/SMC did to Ghana, why those who pushed himself aside in July 1978 to form SMC II couldn’t reverse the trend, and why all of them ended up at the Teshie firing squad when Team Rawlings struck, even when those who saw them off can’t claim to be saints. They are part of the problem pushing Ghana further down the drain today. It is a cycle, folks,
More flashback. Kufuor and his gang also bought into useless rumours, pinpointing Rawlings as preparing grounds to overthrow the government. Kufuor openly made the allegation at Offinso without even supporting it with any evidence, even when Rawlings fumed and demanded such. Should we be surprised why Rawlings isn't at one with Kufuor?
Now under Akufo-Addo, a lot is happening to destabilize the system. How about the NPP's vigilante groups that have been a menace all this while? How about the targeting of just anybody suspected of being an NDC supporter or sympathy in any public office (be it in the security services or where else) for dismissal from service?
Beyond that comes the needless tension that this government's acts of commission or omission have provoked all over the country. We are even not talking about the spate of armed robbery or why public institutions charged with maintaining national security have become emasculated.
Truth be told, there is much fear of insecurity among the people.
Add to that the inability of the government to fulfill its electioneering campaign promises verging on measures to improve living conditions. Implementing the free SHS policy won't put food on the table; neither will it end the woes of the citizens because not all of them have wards aiming at SHS.
The situation at the markets isn't improving. Importers and exporters are crying over high bills. They are out, blaming Akufo-Addo and Co. for deceiving them for votes at Election 2016.
In truth, no day passes by without something ominous happening to suggest that nothing new is emerging under Akufo-Addo to warrant all the bombastic boasts of "We have the men"!! Even, all the appointments made to the sector of national security and whatever aren’t solving problems. Just shells filled by hungry wolves!!
The real moment of truth that alarms the people is this so-called "security co-operation agreement" that Team Akufo-Addo has entered into with the United States to Ghana's disadvantage in all senses. Public discourse makes it clear that such an agreement shouldn't have been conceived of, in the first place, let alone being rammed down the throats of Parliament for ratification. In truth, then, this obnoxious agreement has emerged as a major seed sown by Team Akufo-Addo that will blossom into a tree of destruction.
So far, so bad for Akufo-Addo. As is characteristic of him, he has chosen silence as his tool and said nothing in reaction to the enormous lambasting from the public. In any case, going this way in ceding Ghana's sovereignty to the United States by way of this despicable agreement will prepare the grounds for what will definitely jolt this government. Mind you, I have used the word "jolt", which doesn't necessarily translate into "overthrow".
In a democracy of the kind that we have had since January 1993, no one expects the government to be overthrown. That is why despite all the security lapses emerging under Akufo-Addo, I don't want to agree with this so-called prophet predicting that Akufo-Addo's government will be toppled
(See https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/President-Akufo-Addo-will-be-overthrown-Prophet-claims-636293).
I have long since stopped bothering my head over such charlatans, especially when they cap their drivel with "unless Ghanaians pray for him..."
In any case, there is too much tension in the country under Akufo-Addo. My fear is that given the lapses in the handling of security-oriented matters, the situation may worsen. In that sense, then, danger looms.
I shall return…
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