Blunt Thoughts || Building castles in the air: Fanciful projects that lead nowhere!

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Transcript

00:00 Good morning, Ghana 4.

00:02 Time now for Blunt Thoughts from yours truly.

00:05 My name is Benjamin Akaku.

00:06 Now, as we get into my thoughts for today, stay with me every step of the way, because

00:13 what I have to share with you borders on our national life, as always, and I always share

00:19 thoughts with you that will get us reflecting on Mother Ghana and the way forward.

00:24 No one wants to remain static, even worse, retrogress, go back, which is why this morning

00:30 I've titled my Blunt Thoughts "Building Castles in the Air, Fanciful Projects that Lead Nowhere."

00:40 Building castles in the air, fanciful projects that lead nowhere.

00:47 You know, in this country, a lot of what we do in terms of governance reminds me of that

00:52 saying, it's an adenatum, right?

00:55 A form of hyperbole that exaggerates a situation to create the impression of improbability

01:03 or impossibility.

01:04 It's a literary device.

01:06 And that literary device I'm referring to is when pigs fly.

01:12 If someone says to you, "When pigs fly," they're just telling you that, "Look, this is highly

01:17 improbable, highly impossible, and you're just blowing hot air," so to speak.

01:22 I could say the same for many of the projects that we've brought to bear in this country.

01:27 And we see the signs written on the wall from one village, one dam, to one district, one

01:33 factory, to planting for food and jobs and all of that.

01:38 If we critically assess all of these projects, we'll come to the same conclusion.

01:44 They lead absolutely nowhere, which is why I'm also going to be looking at a number of

01:52 matters today, including the SkyTrain, which has led us nowhere, Ganafor.

01:56 But come with me to the slides.

02:00 In recent times, ahead of the 25th of this month and what we can expect by way of the

02:04 mid-year budget review, we hosted a number of these business figures right here in our

02:11 studios.

02:12 I was here.

02:13 And here are some of what they had to say.

02:15 You see, I'm concerned because we spoke about never going to the IMF.

02:20 Then we went to the IMF.

02:21 And then we spoke about how much the IMF would be able to help us go above water.

02:28 It appears that is not happening.

02:30 The business space is getting asphyxiated.

02:34 And that is reflected in the statements of the business community.

02:38 So let's find out what they are saying.

02:39 So in Utah, for example, the Gana Union of Traders Association, Dr. Joseph Obeng, it's

02:45 an honorary bit, so Joseph Obeng says, "The stability of the city has not reflected on

02:52 prices of goods and services."

02:54 So the city, I mean, at a point it was going for about 16 cities to the dollar.

03:00 Plus, that's how bad it was.

03:03 There is some semblance of stability.

03:07 But even then, it's still pegged around 12.

03:12 How do you expect students, people traveling to make it?

03:17 Purchasing a ticket now is a big headache.

03:20 There are many things.

03:21 Look, there's a car battery, car battery that I have to get.

03:25 These car batteries that you are getting for 400, 600, for new.

03:30 Now trust me, if you go on the market, you are getting it for about twice the same sum.

03:35 Why?

03:37 So he says, "Stability of the city has not reflected on prices of goods and services."

03:41 And that's also because the business community has incurred losses and they'll keep passing

03:45 them on till they sort of break even.

03:47 Till when?

03:48 That is the question.

03:49 Our city is still flip-flopping, hence the title.

03:54 Now the depreciation of the city has had a toll on businesses.

03:56 I mean, you just have to look out there, go out there.

03:59 If you're a business person, if you're making purchases, you'll see it, you'll feel it.

04:02 He who feels it knows it, yeah?

04:05 We cannot define stability by just measuring three months' performance.

04:09 So yes, we have the IMF money and we think after three months, no, we can't measure it.

04:13 But as time ticks, we need to do more to shore up our economy.

04:18 And the gains of the current stability have been taken away owing to, pay attention, the

04:22 high cost of doing business, taxes, benchmark reduction policy, among others.

04:27 The high cost of doing business is still something that is staring the business community in

04:31 the face.

04:32 We're talking about taxes, the taxes.

04:34 And Ken Ofereta, I am hoping that in the media budget review, you are not going to be telling

04:40 us about any new taxes.

04:41 I'm hoping and praying.

04:43 I know you'll be dressed in all white with your gold chain, with your bag, coming smiling,

04:48 but this is no smiling matter.

04:50 I'm telling you that on behalf of Ghanaians.

04:54 Now when we go to the next slide, there's also talk about two new haircuts, two new

05:02 haircuts that is staring us or are staring us down the face or down the road.

05:09 Two new debt restructuring programs for 809 million Ghana cities.

05:13 Now these are two-pronged.

05:15 They target holders of dollar-denominated bonds.

05:19 If you are in there, hmm, Demerife B.A.

05:23 Or COCO bills as well, the COCO bonds.

05:26 They were left out the first time.

05:28 Now it's looking like a very different picture.

05:31 It appears we are mopping up the entire space.

05:34 Everybody is feeling the pinch.

05:36 Everybody even former Chief Justice Sophia Kufu.

05:39 We saw her picketing.

05:41 Everybody is feeling the pinch.

05:42 The program for COCO bond allows COCO bill holders to exchange for longer-term bonds

05:46 with lower coupon rates and new bonds will mature consecutively from 2024 to 2028.

05:52 Look at the time duration.

05:54 Offers accepted until the 31st of July 2023.

06:00 It's a really tight space, difficult space we find ourselves in right now as a country

06:05 and only God knows how ordinary folk are making it.

06:10 Let's go to the next slide.

06:13 If you look at these two new haircuts and then put them side by side with what we are

06:18 seeing, 850,000 Ghanaians per World Bank data fell into poverty in 2022 due to rising prices

06:29 and reduced purchasing power.

06:32 This is almost, this is about 0.7% of our population, almost a million, okay, fell into

06:41 poverty just last year.

06:43 Inflation in Ghana negatively impacted households' living standards by eroding their purchasing

06:48 power.

06:49 You have this double-pronged, in fact, multi-pronged assault on your pocket.

06:55 And yet, look at our people in government.

06:57 They are living large.

06:58 I was sharing the other day, look, I know people, staffers at the Jubilee House.

07:06 If you see the things some of them are doing, less older than we are, no real work experience,

07:13 all of a sudden they are putting up houses, not a house, houses, and purchasing cars.

07:19 And you ask yourself, where did they get all of this from?

07:23 If the largest is there, why not spread it across so a few people will keep living well

07:31 and the masses will keep sleeping rough?

07:36 How can that be leadership?

07:37 That is why I call these misleaders what they are, misleaders.

07:42 Next slide.

07:45 But then we come to the across-sky train project.

07:49 Ghana, behold, your sky train that never materialized.

07:56 Even the one on the ground, Ndudisito, Ndegudu Sky, building castles in the air, fanciful

08:04 projects that lead nowhere.

08:08 Two million dollars paid to Africa Investor Holdings Limited, two million dollars.

08:13 Imagine what that could do for your road.

08:14 That school without desks, that school under trees, that place without water.

08:19 Imagine what this could do.

08:20 If you want to do this, fine.

08:22 A crowd wouldn't be one of the worst places to bring it forth.

08:25 But what do you have to show?

08:27 It's not just about policy formulation or the talk.

08:30 It's about achievement.

08:32 What is governance without delivery?

08:34 If in political science they'll tell you people vote parties into power to deliver

08:39 the bacon, and if you don't deliver the bacon, oh yeah, away.

08:45 That's it.

08:46 That's how we have to get.

08:47 That should be our thinking, Ghana, for, and that is how we are going to progress.

08:50 Let's move on to the next slide.

08:53 What brings me to this point?

08:56 The minority in parliament, in fact, pictured here, governs Kwame Agboja, ranking member

09:00 on the Roads and Transport Committee.

09:02 Minority in parliament calls for prosecution of Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund Board

09:05 and management.

09:07 They must answer questions.

09:08 I don't know about prosecution, but I feel they definitely have to answer questions on

09:13 this matter.

09:14 Payment was made without feasibility studies getting completed.

09:17 Payment was in breach of Article 181 of the Constitution, and we know what the stipulations

09:22 are.

09:23 And the Auditor General's 2021 report raised concerns about the payment.

09:27 So why did we still go ahead, if not for nefarious reasons?

09:34 Corruption is a key source.

09:35 Or is it a la carte seminare?

09:38 We use it to bathe every day.

09:43 The president recently was talking about the fact that in the church, let's focus on

09:47 the church, because you people who are always criticizing politicians, the politicians form

09:51 just a small portion.

09:53 You are also guilty, and that these people come from your stock.

09:56 I agree with you, Mr. President.

09:58 But you see, whenever there's a bottleneck, someone said, "The problem is always with

10:02 the neck."

10:03 And where is the neck of the bottle?

10:04 At the top.

10:06 So lead, and let us follow.

10:09 You are the father.

10:11 If the fish will get spoiled, it starts from the head.

10:13 Have you dealt with the rot you are sitting on?

10:16 I agree, the church and all religious groups and all of us must contribute our quota.

10:23 And as we criticize, we must be responsible.

10:25 But how about you, Mr. President, and what you are overseeing?

10:29 Let's go to the next slide.

10:32 Now I want to wrap with the death penalty and the bills involved.

10:36 I just want to get us thinking, Ganafor, about this bit.

10:40 Now scrapping the death penalty, according to Cletus Avocat, who is against it, will

10:45 embolden criminals, he says.

10:48 Death sentences will appeal more to victims' families, he says.

10:52 So as some sort of retribution, you kill that person, we'll also kill you.

10:58 The sponsors have not adequately addressed the side of victims, he said, and people on

11:03 life -- you know, facing life sentences can escape, given the country's political system.

11:08 That is what he prophesied, or that is what he suggests.

11:11 There is some reason in what he says.

11:13 But let's look at the other side, and I'll leave you, Ganafor, to draw your own conclusion

11:18 and decide where you think we should be going.

11:20 Next slide.

11:22 Now if you look at Amnesty International, it says, "Condemned cells where prisoners

11:26 under death sentence were held were reported to be overcrowded, insanitary, with prisoners

11:32 forced to sleep on the floor, and suffering ill health as a result of malnutrition and

11:36 a lack of medical care and exercise."

11:39 You know, there are some prisons you go to and still you have a certain quality of life.

11:43 In Ghana, Thale, you know, it would be something like that.

11:44 I remember Operation Efiase and how much the one Ghana that they used to survive on.

11:49 Now even our school feeding, they are surviving on 97 Pesos.

11:53 There was supposed to be an increment of one CD, 20 Pesos.

11:56 I don't know whether that has taken effect yet.

11:58 But look at the parity, and look at what kind of life would you live on one CD a day?

12:03 Next slide.

12:05 So we really have to contemplate.

12:06 Next slide.

12:07 Let's go to the next slide.

12:09 And this is where we wrap, and I want you to draw your conclusion.

12:12 If you look at the death sentence and prison conditions, and by the way, in this fourth

12:16 republic we have not actually executed anybody.

12:22 According to Amnesty International, those are death sentences in Ghana between 2010

12:27 and 2022.

12:28 In 2010 we had 17, four in 2011, 27 in 2012.

12:33 That was quite a shoot up, the highest we've seen.

12:36 2013 had 14, 2014 had nine, 2015 had 18, 2016 had 17, 2017 had seven.

12:43 I said a lot of numbers.

12:45 2018 had 12, 2019 18, 2023, 2021 seven, 2022 seven.

12:52 I feel capital punishment has had its day.

12:58 Maybe it is high time we as a people had our way.

13:03 Even in biblical times people were sentenced to death, yes.

13:06 But if you look at the current dynamics, we are sentencing people to death, we are not

13:11 even executing them, and I'm not saying that is a bad thing, but I am saying there are

13:17 reasons for both sides.

13:21 Where do we find the middle ground?

13:23 Is there even a middle ground?

13:25 It's a discussion I wanted to put out there.

13:27 I'll not share my personal sentiments, but I wanted to put it out there for all of us

13:30 to reflect so that we can also impact the decisions that our lawmakers will make on

13:35 that matter.

13:37 And I go back to the title as I conclude.

13:40 Our leaders must cease building castles in the air.

13:42 You can't build castles in the air.

13:44 The fanciful projects that are leading nowhere should come to a halt.

13:48 Let's be realistic.

13:50 Let's be real in leadership and deliver the goods not just to party people, but to ordinary

13:57 Ghanaians, the suffering masses who cannot even get food, three square meals in a day.

14:04 Mr. President, my name is Benjamin Akaku.

14:10 I share these thoughts always with you because I'm passionate about the brand called Ghana.

14:15 These are my bland thoughts shared with you this morning, raw, hot, unedited, and diluted.

14:20 God richly bless Ghana and make her great and strong.

14:24 [Music]

14:50 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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