Come Sunday, May 1, Ghanaian workers will converge on the Upper West Regional capital, Wa, to join millions of workers worldwide to celebrate the national Workers Day. The celebration, which will be replicated in all the regions, has the theme: “Election 2016: The role of workers in securing peaceful elections for national development”.
There is no denying the fact that a sound and peaceful workers’ front is one of the prerequisites of a stable economy. Therefore, the theme for this year’s national celebration of May Day is heart-warming.
The insatiable nature of man virtually makes it impossible to satisfactorily compensate any worker for work done, but then it is highly untenable to create the situation of ‘monkey de work, baboon de chop’. This leads to unrest in the form of demonstrations and strikes by workers in a bid to exact their pound of flesh from their employers, the government being a major target.
We definitely cannot continue with the unproductive system of “workers pretending to be working, while the government in return pretends to pay workers”. There is dignity in labour and we encourage all Ghanaians to work hard to get out of the uncomfortable poverty zone, and this must involve a paradigm shift from making white-collar jobs the ultimate in the economy.
Many in Ghana are wary of the bloody confrontations that took place after recent elections in some of the neighbouring countries, especially Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire. This has led, once again, to numerous calls ‘for peace before, during and after the elections’.
As indicated in many quarters, this year’s elections, which are barely seven months away, will, to all intents and purposes, be tough and complex and all eyes will be on us to live up to the accolade of being the bastion of democracy in the sub-region.
Our Constitution has adequate checks and balances to ensure transparency in governance and we think all the governance institutions should discharge their duties to the letter to ensure a level playing field for all.
We all acknowledge the fact that multi-party democracy is a better alternative, although the advanced democracies are also faced with challenges.
Our energy sector is not in the best of shapes. The same applies to our educational and health sectors, with the economy recording a nose-dive, coupled with a high rate of corruption.
We owe it to posterity to ensure that the elections are not turned into a do-or-die affair, nor should anybody lose a property or limb. It is gratifying that workers have taken up the challenge to ensure peaceful elections for national development.
Let’s work towards building consensus and shared responsibility in tackling the numerous challenges confronting the nation. The November 7 elections must surely not deepen our woes. We have done it before and we must deliver world- class elections this year. Let’s say ‘yes’ to violence-free elections. Yes we can.
And while we are at it, The Mirror says well done to all our hardworking workers. Happy Workers Day.
