Signs Of The Times

We are at a loss as to what exactly is happening to this country.

Politics under President Mills and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Ghana has been reduced to something unworthy of attraction to men of repute. It is an unfortunate situation which demands intervention by good people lest the otherwise noble occupation of politics eventually becomes the preserve of fiends.

We pray that things do not degenerate to this lowly notch because the political leadership of every democratic dispensation is chosen from among politicians.

It is difficult to regard the present crop of men at the helm as presenting a good image of politics. It is unfathomable why those entrusted with the management of the affairs of the country would embark upon a course of destruction of the nation’s political values.

Yesterday, news about the veiled dismissal of Dr. Grace Bediako, Government Statistician, competed with the resignation of Betty Mould-Iddrisu, the immediate past Minister of Education.

Both reflect the unusual times the country finds itself in today, a period in which mendacity has become the order of the day in the seat of government.

If Betty-Mould’s exit can be attributed to the smelly Woyome debacle, the former is shrouded in the usual opaqueness associated with government business. It has sent Ghanaians trying frantically seeking answers to what informed the disguised dismissal.

We hasten to remark that asking such a high-profile personality, a Government Statistician and her deputy, to proceed on leave smacks of something sinister.

It is regrettable that government’s obsession with manipulating the people’s electoral verdict is driving it to engage in actions untoward and incompatible with civility.

In a country where rumours are rife, when there is a situation aggravated by a dearth of credible information from government sources, there is a tendency to be swayed by the fear being expressed by many that the dismissal of the Government Statistician and her deputy is part of a grand design to fidget with the population figures.

Gerrymandering is one of the preferred means of upturning the electoral verdict of 2012 by a government which is abhorred by most Ghanaians today. There is credibility in the fear being expressed about the real intentions of the government.

Such electoral manouvres are unsafe and should be avoided by all who seek the peace of this country. President Mills’s speeches are mostly ironic and for those hearing him for the first time, he is a gentleman intent on avoiding conflict in his country. It is an untenable impression however when such blunders, given their combustibility, are played out by the government at the behest of the President.

Ghana, he once said, would not burn when, in one of his cynical moods, poured scorn on his opponents; yet his supervision over the reckless treatment of high-level professionals such as Government Statistician and the Medical Director of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Prof Frimpong-Boateng, all under mischievous circumstances, makes us wonder where we are heading towards as a nation.

All matters related to elections call for sincerity of the highest order because as flammable issues, they can be injurious to the fate of the country.

In nearby Ivory Coast, such manouvres left unattended, exacted a killer aftermath. Need we allow a reckless government to take us down such a path? No, because Ghana will outlive all of us and the worst we can do to her is to be irresponsible with such important matters such as elections. As for the Government Statistician and her deputy, we demand answers to what has befallen them. We are waiting.

Source: Daily Guide (editorial)