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Avoiding the populist trap in governance

Sonething seems to be going entirely wrong with politics and governance in the country. Acts of populism, in one form or another, seem to be on the ascendency and running rampant within the fabric of society.

Today, the nation is experiencing the emergence of vigilante groups and acts of hooliganism by groups hiding behind some political parties and some amorphous organisations to perpetrate their dangerous intentions.

Groups such as the Homeland Study Group Foundation from the Volta Region, Delta Force, Invincible Forces, Kandahar Forces, Azorka Boys and Bolga Bull Dogs exhibited acts of hooliganism before, during and after Election 2016 and they need to be checked.

Vigilante groups in our political dispensation is not a new phenomenon. Even under the People’s National Party (PNP) in 1979 there emerged a group of vigilantes which paraded the streets of the country under the guise of protecting the interest of the party. 

For some time now, no day passes without one hearing of acts of hooliganism and lawlessness by these groups affiliated to some political parties. Sometimes the issues are even inter-party where members of a political party, regardless of laid down channels, go on the rampage in protest against why their party lost an election.

Key factors

It appears these groups of people are angry and disillusioned because of their high expectations from the party which they claim to have worked for to win political power. 

A classical example is when some youth associated with the Delta Force forcibly removed and prevented Mr George Adjei  from discharging his duties as the Ashanti Regional Security Liaison Officer last week. 

It is very strange for a whole Commander in Chief and President of the Republic to appoint a security coordinator for a group to violently kick against the appointment and go beyond that to attack the person, lock the offices and sack the appointee. Clearly, their behaviour is a mark of gross disrespect to the office of the President and this cannot be tolerated in anyway much more allowed to prevail. This is because if this trend festers, it will bring difficulties to the promotion of good governance and democracy in the country.

Politics, I concede, can be emotive and a volatile business at times, but it is also important that political actors endeavour to work in the service of the nation first and foremost.

In so doing, efforts must be made to avoid populist paths, and rather pursue the difficult path which include inclusiveness to improve good governance for all.

Populism on the rise

It looks as if populism in governance is on the rise in the country and how to nip it in the bud must be a matter of great concern to lovers of democracy.

If, for instance, appointments are always seen to be political and not by ability and capability, then there is a problem somewhere. No wonder a section of society is yet to come to terms with the number of ministerial appointees by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. While some questioned the need for 110 ministers in a small country such as Ghana, others believe that the end result justifies the means and ultimately will make the so-called high numbers irrelevant.

But whichever way one looks at the issue, governance should not be a place for sharing largess but a place for service.

Ideally, bowing to political pressure must not be the key consideration for the appointment of political officers but one’s ability and capability to serve the nation. Populism tends to get ugly when it gets into the fray of political power. 

Until we work to avoid populist policies, good governance will continue to elude the nation for a long time.

President means well 

So far, by his acts and speeches, President Akufo-Addo seems to mean well and appears determined to transform the economic fortunes of  the country and bring prosperity to all.

Since assuming the highest office of the land, as Head of State on January 7, 2017, President Akufo-Addo has never stopped to encourage and inspire the citizenry to highest attainments. His confidence in the ability of the Ghanaian to do well under his government is in no doubt, but he can only do much for the nation if he also focuses on strengthening state institutions to carry out his vision.

State institutions such as the law enforcement agencies, the judiciary, Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, revenue collection agencies, the media, among others, all have pivotal roles to play in an open society.

Defenders of open societies 

Defenders of open societies must be up and doing and work to prevent the preachers of populism from expanding their acts. In my view, good governance must always endeavour to consciously avoid choosing a populist course and rather opt for a more difficult path of correcting the defective government machinery.Truthfulness in governance is also key. It is important to remind political actors and government servants that they are servants of the public and have the national responsibility to restore discipline in good governance practices. This is because nothing good comes out of violence. This is how conflicts began in Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire and Rwanda. Ghana must, therefore, watch its steps as it consolidate the gains of democracy.

Today, everything is changing rapidly in the nation but it must change for the betterment of society, and that is what political leadership must seek to do as well as avoid the populist trap.

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