KB Asante: Voice From Afar column
Ghana is not poor; it is impoverished
A radio commentator asked me the other day whether there was hope for Ghana. I answered confidently that we have a great future which is in our hands. We have the natural resources and above all the human and mental capacity. I maintained that Ghana, together with Africa in general, has been impoverished by colonialism, greed and mental apathy.
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Colonialism and neo-colonialism have been entrenched by the un-admitted acceptance of inferiority and the un-critical adoption of foreign values and practices. The mind is enslaved and it is that which for progress needs liberation today.
In Ghana we have rightly embraced democracy. But we see democracy through the eyes of outsiders, especially, the so-called developed countries. We have taken the form for the substance and we believe we are doing well when we can talk to our own hearts’ desire and change who rules the country once every four years.
We pontificate on leadership but in reality we want leaders who will take decisions which will leave things as they are even when the times call for bold, decisive action. We encourage leaders to believe that their role is to make everybody happy, especially the party faithful so that they are re-elected. Nothing can be more debilitating in a fast-changing, competitive world. The future appears misty and uncertain. That was why the commentator asked me whether we had any future.
In times like this we should find out what happened in the past. We started well. Kwame Nkrumah tried to instil self-confidence into us and he inspired us with a vision. Naturally, not all that he did was approved by all. But we should learn from what happened then and in later years. To do this we should ascertain the facts.
A learned citizen remarked at a symposium recently that Nkrumah was a good riddance. He has a right to his views. But it was rightly suggested that if Nkrumah was a dictator and a constitutional dictator is what we need at the moment so be it. Nkrumah did follow the Constitution. Even the unpopular Preventive Detention Act was approved by parliament.
Therefore if he was a dictator he could be described as a constitutional dictator whatever the learned think of the concept of a ‘constitutional dictator’. The important question to question is what the times called for and how we the people contributed to the ‘bad governance’ of the times.
Take the idea of a one-party state for example. I told President Nkrumah that it was most unnecessary since he had a two-thirds majority in parliament and could pass any law. His answer was that he was concerned about the great talent among the opposition ranks and that use could be made of this expertise in a one-party state. He said he appointed some of the members of the Opposition to key positions but the party stalwarts of the CPP prevailed on him to cancel the appointments. The party leaders argued that the CPP rank and file would not stand for such appointments.
I wonder whether a true dictator would be bothered by the strong views of the party leaders. But Nkrumah told me that he cancelled the appointments. He came to the conclusion that all should belong to one party (at any rate in that stage of our development) so that the best could be appointed to help manage the affairs of state. Some experienced true politicians may disagree with this view. But how do we bring all the talents in? Some have suggested ways of changing today’s ‘winner takes all’ concept and practice. But are elections a lotto to be won to fleece the country? Should politicians take office to make a million dollar before they retire?
Prof. Alex Kwapong will confirm that Nkrumah was concerned about using the Ghanaian talent. He was approached to help launch Nkrumah’s book on neo-colonialism in London because Nkrumah believed the Prof. could think and speak good English. Ghana has very good human material and that is more important than abundant raw materials. But how do we exploit the Ghanaian talent?
Sometimes powerful aides fear the fresh air the Ghanaian talent will feed into the governmental machine. Our great economist and banker J.S. Addo will confirm that a week or two before Nkrumah left for Hanoi, never to return, a delegation from the Bank of Ghana met him. The Bank was concerned about the state of the economy and had sent several memos to this effect to the President. There was no reaction or reply.
Therefore the Bank high-ranking offiicial decided to seek appointment by unusual means to discuss the matter. President Nkrumah was surprised to learn about the true state of the economy and decided to take appropriate measures on his return! A Minister later threatened members of the Bank delegation that stern action would be taken against them if they approached the President directly again!
How far are some of us in key positions responsible for what is happening? How far do we prevent fresh air from the corridors of power? Ghana is not poor. The present state of the economy is not acceptable. It is not only the leadership which is responsible for the necessary change. We the people must accept our responsibility and be prepared to suffer a little for a better future while we demand probity and accountability from our chosen leaders.