Author Archives: Smith

THE NPP HAVE JUST TAKEN THE FIRST STEP IN A JOURNEY OF A THOUSAND MILES…

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GUEST ARTICLE BY VICTOR AZURE 

After the 2012 election and subsequent court action by the party, the NPP has experienced some internal wrangling at least in the build up to the just ended delegates’ congress. This is not unexpected of a big party like the NPP but one cannot ignore the fact that these wrangling were born out by conflicting yet deeply seated views held by various groups relative to how the party should proceed after its defeat in the 2012 election.

Observing from afar, pieces like this lack some details, details which enhance exactitude in discussing a subject like this. Nevertheless, this piece should be seen as an appreciation from a distance; the issues in one of Ghana’s and perhaps Africa’s biggest political party.

In the months that followed the ‘supreme verdict’ as preparations for the party’s delegates congress ensued, it became clear that the party was struggling to maintain consistency in its initial stance that it did not lose the election (but was robbed victory through misapplication of certain technicalities) on one hand and the calls for changes or even an overhaul of the current executive on the other. There was a glaring dissonance in the two positions- to say that the party did not lose the election is to say that the executives did not do a bad job, after all that is what they are supposed to do, (not lose the election), however this admission tacitly bastardizes the calls for an overhaul and or changes in the executive because you simply don’t fix what is not broken.

But is it accurate to look at the issue of the reelection of the Jake led executive as necessarily based on whether or not the party lost the 2012 election? Even if the party won the election is it not possible some executives could still be removed for one reason or another? Prior to the congress, these questions were of some tentative value but in my view, post-congress, these questions have been relegated in the face of a resounding vote of no confidence in the then incumbent especially the immediate past chairman of the party. Save for the position of National Women’s Organizer, the party’s congress sought an overhaul of the national executive structure. What is also clear is the fact that the ‘left wing’ of the party has prevailed. I do not mean the left wing as organized group that is necessarily aware of itself, I use the term loosely to refer to the elements in the party who are appalled by the performance of the Jake-led executive and have shown some cynicism with regard to the stance of the party on the 2012 election and pushed for the so-called overhaul which occurred last Saturday.

The congress results raise a number of questions. Does the resounding vote of no confidence in the Jake-led executive a punishment for not securing victory in the 2012 election? That will mean the party lost the election – an admission the party as of now has not made. Or perhaps it is the end of an era where old bones give way to new blood to chart a new way forward. In the absence of an exit poll for the NPP congress these matters are subject to speculation. Instead, what cannot be a matter for speculation is the fact that the delegates have demonstrated a need for change in the party. To the extent that the ‘left wing’ of the party which I alluded to earlier pushed for this change and to the extent that for them this change is necessitated by a ham-fisted, abysmal and incompetent party executive who are incapable of wining power for the party, I am tempted to believe that the party has realized at least at the level of the delegates that perhaps the NPP did not put its strongest foot forward in the last election.

The congress results will affect the race for flag bearer in many ways. Alan Kyeremanteng has suggested that the election of men like Paul Afoko is an indication of change within the party, as to whether this change can make its way to the apex of the party is an issue that political minds will be interrogating for some time to come. For the NPP flag bearer position, there are many who think it’s really a no contest and we are just awaiting an overwhelming endorsement of the former flag bearer Nana Akufo-Addo. This belief was buttressed by what could be described as a subtle even though sometimes, overt efforts by some candidates in the just ended congress to align themselves with the former flag bearer. This alignment with the former flag bearer was seen as a way to draw support from his vast support base as the last presidential primary of the party will show. But even the most outspoken candidates who didn’t make their support for Akufo-Addo a secret have lost (Sir John) for example. Does this mean Akufo-Addo himself is not safe? A yes to this question might be an oversimplification of the nuances in the party. To start with, the about 5700 membered Electoral College that elects the national executive cannot necessarily be said to be a microcosm of the expanded Electoral College of over 100,000 that elects the presidential candidate and therefore the former must be a sign of things to come in the latter. Secondly, although there was an effort it cannot be proven that the former flag bearer’s fortunes have been successfully tied to that of the ejected Jake led executive. Case in point, after the 2008 election- Nana Akufo-Addo was retained for 2012 even though the McManu-led executive body was booted out in a similar manner.

Moving forward, the party has clearly come out of a successful congress. This will be followed by the presidential primary. The political milieu in the country is somewhat favorable for the party. With the economy in trying times and the cedi continuously falling, the sitting president and his government are not so enviable and hence a window of opportunity for the NPP to kick out the NDC government come January 2017. However, the party ought to be clear about one thing; the next election is not just going to be won by a poor performance of the sitting President, it will require creative strategies and an efficient communication to create a good image of the party in the eyes of the electorate. On the whole, the party is at a rejuvenating state one which should be replete with decorum, sensitivity and inclusion.

 

 

 

THE ARGUMENTS OF LAWYER AYIKOI OTOO – Not Exactly Master Class

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Lawyer Ayikoi Otoo by his display in court yesterday has earned the copyright to produce the instructional video entitled ‘How to Beg’. His performance has been described as master class but really, did he have any other choice than to beg without second thoughts? …. Click on the link below…

http://myghanalinks.com/index.php/articles-and-opinions/item/314-the-arguments-of-lawyer-ayikoi-otoo-not-exactly-master-class

READING MAKES A MAN (a personal campaign)

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Whenever I have had the opportunity to discourse with superior minds or even where it is that I just read about them; the firmest reason for their success more often than not simply lies in reading.

A man’s mind must be fed or else it shrivels. Knowledge is the mind’s nutrients. Knowledge exposes the mind to the world; what it has been, where fellow mortals and nature have taken it and where men could take it. Constant reading will constantly prove to you that you do not know anything. That is lovelier than it sounds. It is said that he who knows not and knows that he knows not is wise. I do not necessarily concur with this fully, for to me, the wise is he who is embarrassed that he knows not and goes ahead to remedy the situation.
In such people, reading stirs up an insatiable yearn for more knowledge. Such people know that this curiosity will not kill them. Successful men are those who have the right answers. No man can have all the answers but its only through reading that one could get any good answer. These answers shape our thinking and make us know why things are the way they are and how possibly they can be bettered. That is enlightenment and inspiration rolled into one.

Reading can improve any kind of mind; whether that of a genius or a dull dude, that of a rich man’s daughter or a poor mother’s son. Abraham Lincoln as a youngster trekked for miles daily just so he could borrow books to read and self-educate. In the end, he became a lawyer then became the 13th President of the USA. Do you think Bob Marley’s songs could have been that good if he was not an avid reader? I remember listening to Nas’ songs and guessing he had a Phd in History or Political Science or something. To my utter surprise, he dropped out of school in grade 9 but decided to make it up by consuming books. If you don’t know Nas; go and listen to him and you will get my drift.

It is said that if you want to hide anything from the African; put it in a book. It sounds demeaning but from what I have seen, it is not erroneous. Those who don’t read will forever hold on to false assumptions and stereotypes as if they are the gospel truths. Such men don’t see far thus won’t go far. Reading does two things; it makes you know yet proves to you that there are many more things you still don’t know and have to know. This sparks a journey of daily discovery and each discovery makes you a better person.

My favourite line in the Bible is where Jesus goes like; ‘It is written.’ If Jesus did read; how much more you and I? In Nkrumah’s autobiography, there is this time after he became head of state that he took the opportunity on a trip to America to collect his books that he had left with a friend of his. The great man loved reading. All the time he was fighting for independence in Ghana, he was also thinking about his books.

I don’t know much but if you are ever considering grooming yourself or your child for a life of greatness; then reading is the way! If one has never read about space, how can he dream of being an astronaut?

Our generation is blessed with the internet. That is a powerful tool. One could lie on his bed and read all the newspapers in the world on the phone. Imagine if Einstein, Nkrumah or Aristotle had this opportunity.

One of the wisest men that ever lived was Seneca. In one of his famous letters to his mentee, Lucillius, he advised him to read every day and keep in his head what he reads. No man can read all the books in the world but we should all endeavor to read all we can. Make it a point to inspire yourself, your friends and any kid you come across to fall in love with reading for READING MAKES A MAN!

AN OPEN LETTER TO THE BOSS OF THE NATIONAL SERVICE SCHEME…

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Dear Mr. V.S. Kuagbenu,

I have only gotten to know you in the past week. I attended the NSS orientation for the final year students of the University of Ghana which you addressed and also heard you on Joy FM’s morning show on Tuesday. My first impression has been that you are a man who is ready to make the scheme better so it plays the role it is supposed to play which according to the NSS website is the ‘institutional option for the Ghanaian youth especially tertiary education graduates to exercise their civic responsibility towards the state through service’. You have very interesting ideas but you surprised me greatly when you said boldly and in the full glare of public eye that from this year some service personnel will be posted to the roads to direct traffic. I humbly will like to ask you the following questions;

  1. Your advertisement last year to solicit applications from organizations in need of service personnel led to a request for about 120,000 personel though only 73,000 graduates were available. So why post graduates to the roads?
  2. What potential gain warranted the conception and entertainment of this idea?
  3. Who did you discourse on this with and how did you get them to agree with you?
  4. If the NSS knows the value of tertiary education, will graduates be asked to direct traffic?
  5. After all the investments the nation has made in students, is it an apt compensation for mother Ghana if graduates direct traffic?
  6. If Ghana needs traffic wardens then what happened to the Natonal Youth Employment module which was to serve that purpose?
  7. Even without that NYEP module, how much will it cost the nation to properly train traffic wardens and get the unemployed person who is ready to do that work a job?
  8. How long will graduates posted to the roads be trained for them to be good enough?
  9. Judging by the high risk which comes with the job, will the traffic wardens be insured by the scheme and will they be paid more?
  10. Knowing very well that one’s course of study influences the placement he/she gets, which academic programmes will be the talent scouting pool for the traffic-warden module?
  11. Why do we avoid coming up with permanent solutions as a people and always opt for temporary answers and pretend to be solving the problem? 

When the Scheme was set up in 1973 by NRC Decree 208, it was mandated to mobilize and deploy Ghanaian citizens of 18 years and above especially new qualified University graduates on national priority development programmes that contribute to improving the quality of life of the ordinary Ghanaian for a one year mandatory national service (NSS website).                                                                

Sir, I wish to draw your attention to ‘priority development programmes’ as used in the sentence before this. Maybe the priorities have changed for us as a people. Of course in 1973, all Ghanaians knew the clear-cut priorities of the State. Acheampong had rallied the nation around three main objectives; ‘Yentua’, ‘Operation feed yourself’ and ‘Operation feed your industries’. What are our priorities as a nation today? As Ikechukwu chorused in his popular song 10 over 10; THINGS ARE NOT THE SAME ANYMORE.Today the roads are crowded, the working traffic lights are few … so the solution is that the cream of Ghana’s youth should be stationed on the roads to control the flow of traffic. That I guess presupposes that there are too many graduates to deploy or maybe, recent graduates, often taunted as half-baked have proven not to be capable of helping out with national priority development programmes.

Please Sir, I humbly ask that you help out with answers to my queries where you can for my mates ad myself don’t know what to make of your plan. Thank you.

Yours faithfully…

marfo.oduro@gmail.com

And the Disciples said NO to the Lord’s Supper… an essay on the UG Vice Chancellor’s proposed Meal Plan…

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Most students of the University of Ghana will agree that the Vice Chancellor, Professor Ernest Aryeetey has performed creditably well since his assumption of office. The good professor has come across as a change-man who can boast of many achievements like the finishing up of the 7000 stude…nts’ hostel facility, the roll-out of wireless internet throughout campus, the furnishing of lecture halls with security cameras, the ongoing upgrade of roads and pavements, supporting the purchase of two SRC buses etc. I have even held the view that the VC will make a good President for the Republic, one day.
Notwithstanding, the VC’s mooted idea of a ‘meal plan’ for students starting from next semester seem to have hit all the wrong chords. The plan simply, is for the school to directly take charge of the feeding of its students.  The reason for this is that the school feels that foods sold in the school currently are unhygienic. Students are therefore supposed to sign up for a meal plan choosing between having the school provide you breakfast and lunch or a three square meal. Students are supposed to pay 600 Cedis per semester using a baseline cost of 5 Cedis per day for two meals or 900 Cedis if one wants three meals in a day. The policy will be compulsory for the next batch of freshmen and optional for continuing students. To ‘encourage’ students to sign up, the VC has recently reminded students that cooking in their rooms is illegal as it will hasten the deterioration of our residential facilities. If one wants to cook, he/she must use the kitchen.
Personally, I don’t think that the ‘meal plan’ idea on its own is bad. School cafeterias are run severally around the world. However, I have serious issues with some dimensions of its application in the context of the University of Ghana.
Firstly, the VC has not been shy to cite openly a research done by Noguchi Memorial Research Institute which purports that the foods that UG students buy have traces of faecal matter. The fact that this public admission though it could harm the image of the school, was still made gives more than an inkling of the extent the VC will go just to make his ‘meal plan’ policy see the
light of daycanteen.
Moreover, if the food sold on campus which is consumed by students, teaching staff, non-teaching staff and the general public is unhygienic, who should take the blame? I don’t believe that those who sell food at the Night market and Bush Canteen operate without the school’s explicit permission. If so, then I don’t want to believe that these permissions were granted without any due diligence. So how come these foods are unhygienic?  Isn’t it the VC’s job to ensure that this doesn’t happen? If the cited research is true then the VC has openly accepted he hasn’t aptly performed his duty. When was this research conducted and when did our VC get to know about it? Imagine the head of Harvard University had said this; hundreds of court summons will be on his doorstep the next morning. The students didn’t know what they have been eating but the VC knew and sat back to watch the students eat and eat thus putting the lives of all students at risk. I think I know where the filth is from. The Night Market was recently relocated by the school authorities from across the street to where it is now. The sellers didn’t relocate themselves. The market is cited right behind the wall of the University Basic School. At a kissing distance from the wall, is the toilet facility of the Basic School. The faecal matter may be easily sourced from there. Right in front of the market is a dusty road which was better before the VC cleared the little asphalt on it. There is someone blatantly selling khebabs in the middle of the thick dust. Whose duty is it to boot him out; the gods? My point is that the VC is equally to blame if the food we buy is unhygienic. Moving on, the fact that the VC is supposed to ensure our wellbeing doesn’t mean that he can do things in a ‘my way or the highway’ manner. It is his responsibility to ensure that the food sold in the school is safe but he has failed with that. Now he wants to solve the problem but how can we be sure that this same person who has allowed the sale of unhygienic food will not repeat it a second time round? How can he ensure proper hygiene with his meal plan? Why can’t he apply this magic-wand of a measure to the present vendors? In both cases, he is not in the kitchen.
My biggest problem with the plan is how it is supposed to be compulsory. The story is that if a freshman doesn’t sign up for it, he can’t embark on academic registration. I BEG TO DIFFER! The University’s primary statutory function is the provision of academic tutoring. Every other function relatively is a secondary function which must only exist to entrench or promote the core function and not to undermine it. UG was not set up to sell food but that doesn’t mean that the school cannot venture into that yard. However, such a venture cannot exist when it will only end up sidelining students from benefitting from the school’s core function though they are qualified to and ready to pay for. Words come back to haunt and I will prove so. In the VC’s ‘decongestion exercise’, he often intimated that it is not the school’s responsibility to provide accommodation to students but it was only trying to help out. This is why students have the option to choose to either be ‘resident on campus’ or ‘non-residential’ before they undergo their online academic registration. The principle is that if a student can’t pay for campus accommodation, it never means he or she should be disallowed from pursuing academics. In the same vein, it is not the school’s responsibility to feed students; it can only try to help out. If a student can’t pay for that, he/she should still be able to attend classes and pursue a degree. That should be without debate.
This paragraph will go on to highlight some interesting contradictions laden in the VC’s plan.
1. If students are not to cook in their rooms then where should students in Akuafo Annexes A&B and Sarbah Annexes A&B cook as these blocks have no kitchens?
2. If food isn’t sold anywhere else then where should those who can only pay 600 Cedis eat their supper?
3. If a student decides to always cook and always in the kitchen, why should such a person be forced to sign up on a meal plan?
4. Why is it that the policy only obliges freshmen and not continuing students? Will the continuing students be allowed to keep eating the supposed unhygienic food?
I, at this juncture, proceed by reacting to some reported statements which seek to defend the policy. I have heard the defence that the University’s admission is only an offer and that if one doesn’t like the terms, he/she can rescind the offer to attend UG. This can only be true superficially. The University of Ghana is a public good. A public good belongs to us all and the conditions one must satisfy to enjoy it should not be prohibitive, discriminatory, profiteering or set by one or a few according to their taste.
Let us assume that 5 Cedis will fetch a student two meals and 8 Cedis, three meals. Asking someone to compulsorily pay a minimum of 1200 Cedis for meals, 500 Cedis for academic fee and opt to pay or otherwise 400-800 Cedis for accommodation before accessing the opportunity to pursue an undergraduate degree in a public University in Ghana is unfair. This unfairness is discriminatory as many qualified students will not have that kind of money. The gap in terms of fees that this policy will create between UG and the likes of UCC, UDS and KNUST will only make one wonder what type of wonderful public good that UG is. I am not a lawyer but the offer to attend a University doesn’t start from the admission letter but ‘an invitation to treat’ the school publicized to prospective applicants. The lawyers know better but I think an offer eventually must mirror the terms of the invitation for a prospective client to treat. This ‘invitation to treat’ in Universities everywhere around the world details academic requirements and academic fees first then optional fees dependent on whether the student wants to enjoy a particular service or not. Thus the offer that will go out to the freshmen if it makes compulsory the meal plan must be challenged.
I also heard that continuing students can’t partake in the discussions much, as they will not be obliged to sign up and even for the level 400s, they won’t be in school then. I sense that, the VC is trying to mute the current students by playing that chip. The freshmen will not be anywhere to partake in reaching a decision on the policy.
The truth however is that every Ghanaian is a stakeholder in the University of Ghana. If they see anything unfair ongoing in UG, they can make constitutional moves to seek remedies. More so, when the person is still a student or even is an alumnus. To conclude I will render two suggestions; Firstly the VC should just relocate the night market. Soon the dusty road there will be tarred or so I hear. Ideally, the old night market site should be converted into a proper eatery. In the meantime, the VC must find ways to ensure that the food students buy has some credibility.  Secondly, the VC can go ahead with his meal plan but should make it optional; something that people will buy on a daily basis and not pay in bulk at the semester’s beginning as that will prove overly expensive for many a Ghanaian family.
The VC has in his calculations probably mistakenly overlooked a hard reality. In the average student’s food life, the first problem is means. There are many students who will have to be helped out by friends today and tomorrow else they won’t eat. They have called home for money and have been told to expect it next week. Some University policies seem to hastily assume that the money is there in some bottomless pockets and where it is not; parents will go to every extent to get money to pay once it has to do with their ward’s education. There was this one time that I had to split my fees equally with a friend so we could both pay and register. The friend comes from a middle class family with responsible parents. The friend paid back eventually but without the few days break I helped out with, the worse would have happened. There was a generation of University students who enjoyed free meals and even had the guts to protest against the fact that they were being fed too much chicken right here in Ghana. The fact that soon students may be forced to pay through their noses for food before they can be educated tells us all how far we have come as a State and as a people.
A certain ‘COALITION AGAINST MEAL PLAN’ (CAMP) is in the offing.  CAMP will make sure that students are not taken for a ride. UG students, alumnae and Ghanaian civil society will be part of CAMP and this is a promise. You can join here  http://www.facebook.com/#!/CoalitionAgainstMealPlan
This meal plan will be better in the end, if it is put together through consultations with students and not shoved down our throats. The disciples are not ready for the supper proposed by their Lord!