Farewell ode to the "Dead Goat" aka the uber-cool, dabbing President

Former President Mahama at the official launch of his re-election campaign in 2016...as seen on TV

On Saturday 7 January 2017 at exactly 12 midnight, the tenure of the 4th President of the 4th Republic of Ghana came to an end. Later on that day, the 5th President of the 4th Republic was sworn in but that's another story for another time.

The Dabbing Commander
Source: with the kind permission of @Kwakye_ade3f3 on Twitter

Former President Mahama will not only be remembered for being the only President of the 4th Republic to be voted out after one term in office but also for being relatively young, vibrant, tech-savvy and having a whole lot of swag. 

Another unforgettable trait of President Mahama is his skills in oration and communication. Who can forget the oratory gem he delivered to Ghanaians living in Botswana in March 2015? :

I have seen more demonstrations and strikes in my first two years. I don't think it can get worse. It is said that when you kill a goat and you frighten it with a knife, it doesn't fear the knife because it is dead already.......I have a dead goat syndrome

-President Mahama

March 2015

Goats may appear to be a strange animal for any analogy but in Ghana, we love our goats and what the former president was describing was how he was impervious to attack in what he termed having 'Dead Goat Syndrome'. Unfortunately for him, this statement seemed to shatter the thin line between being impervious and not caring. 

Over the past few years, I have struggled to find the right description for former President Mahama's public demeanour. Finally, in a scathing article in November 2016, the Economist provided the word that made the most sense to me: 'insouciance'. 

Sadly, I am sure the former President cared a great deal about governance and Ghana but his public persona over the length of his tenure did not always reflect this. State of the Nation addresses were mixed with laughter, jovial jibes and swipes at the opposition. These were very entertaining but showed a lack of some degree of gravitas. 

In the end it appeared that describing himself as having 'Dead Goat Syndrome may have played a part in sounding his own political death knell. He told the people that he did not care about being attacked and he got punished for not caring enough....among other things. Former President Mahama's legacy is indeed mixed; his tenure will be remembered for impressive infrastructural achievements blended in with a plethora of corruption scandals. Regardless of where one stands, on January 7th we bade farewell to a well-spoken, warm President with a great sense of wit, charm and perhaps a not-so-presidential demeanour. 

In retrospect, any current president adding their image to buses branded with images of former heads of state is probably not the best way to remain in power...especially if the costing of bus branding was a stand-alone political scandal

The Best of the B.A.D : The Commander in Swag

One thing is for certain in the Beacon of African Democracy, the President seems to have his pulse on the beating heart of the youth. In other words, 'he got swag'. Defining exactly what 'swag' means can cause one to run into numerous problems but it loosely means displaying a cross between uber-coolness and very hipness. In other words, someone who has swag knows what is hip, fresh and new.  

President John Dramani Mahama (in dark glasses; uber-cool as usual)
at the launch of his presidential campaign in
the Central Region of Ghana.
Source: Screenshot from a live Joy TV news broadcast

President Mahama is relatively young, good-looking and seems to have always been a youth magnet of sorts. Back in the 2012 election, he eloquently and correctly stated that he was born in 'Ghana' while his opponent Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo was in fact born in colonial 'Gold Coast'. These are undeniable facts. 

President Mahama proved just how much swag he had when he read his inaugural presidential speech on 7 January 2013 using an electronic tablet. This was around the time where that very election was being challenged in the Supreme Court. The young people on Ghana Twitter and elsewhere went wild: 

Twitter search of 'Mahama, speech, tablet'

Although programmes under President Mahama specifically targeting Ghanaian youth empowerment and employment such as the Ghana Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial Agency (GYEEDA) have been.....erm......less successful, our president has remained a youth champion throughout his tenure.

Sons of Anarchy poster
Source: collider.com

In June 2016, a curious thing happened that I can best describe as a Sons of Anarchy moment. This happening further proved we were still one nation under the Swag President. Speaking of the series Sons of Anarchy, I watched two episodes and was stumped by the appeal. But alas, I digress. We were talking about Ghana in June 2016. After heavy flooding in Accra, our president, like any super hero would, donned some cool clothes and headed out on a solo motorcycle ride across the city of Accra apparently inspecting torrential flooding. There are number of YouTube videos of this tour. My first thoughts were:

1. Who actually does this?!
2. Isn't it better to take a helicopter to inspect flooding?

Ghanaian social media on the other hand, was very much impressed. 

Screenshot from YouTube of some of the many videos of the
President's Sons of Anarchy moment 

Then came the Rio Olympics in August 2016. While watching the live broadcast, our President appeared to have been immensely impressed by Usain Bolt's amazing feats of greatness on the track. Being the P.R. guru that he is, President Mahama decided to release a photo with his swag credentials on full display. This time, Twitter was not so impressed. The general sentiment on the President's Rio gambit are best summed up in a tweet by a Twitter user named "Bearded Raiden"(tweet reproduced with kind permission of said Bearded Raiden) 

A rough translation of the tweet: It appears that President John Dramani Mahama is taking the upcoming Ghana 2016 Presidential election as if it were a Senior High School election. His actions seem to suggest that his motto is simply "Vote for me, I am a cool guy and I have swag".

Other comments on Twitter gently reminded the president that his mandate was in fact to fix the economy and create jobs rather than displays of swag... 

To borrow from young people lingo, this Bolt gambit appears to have been an 'epic fail'.  Could it be that our President is in fact all swagged out or just a case of swag overload? Stay tuned for more from the Commander in Swag.

Ghanaian Political Lexicon for the Aspiring Politician: Challenges

'Challenges': The way politicians in power describe the economic meltdown of a country. It is important that if the aspiring politician is part of a ruling party, the economic crisis showed be described only as temporary and just as a series of small challenges. It is also imperative that the people in power take no responsibility for causing any of these challenges. If the aspiring politician is in opposition, it is vital to play up the economic crisis. Words such as 'hopelessness', 'abyss', 'incompetent' and 'clueless' must be emphasized. The aspiring opposition politician should continue to incessantly jab the people in power from the sidelines. For both sides, it is imperative to remember that obtaining political power or remaining in power are key. No need to worry about getting the country out of the economic crisis.

VickyLeaks: Late-Breaking Entry into the Ghanaian Political Lexicon for the Aspiring Politician

VickyLeaks*: the unguarded and candid views of a politician that echo the sentiments of many politicians worldwide. These views are a reflection of a desire to use political office for personal monetary aggrandizement as well as to have power and influence over other people. These sentiments are not fit for public consumption since a wholly naive electorate would prefer to believe that politicians are there for the masses and not for their own personal gain. Ramblings expressed in VickyLeaks also recognize who the de facto political  power-brokers are and also how a failure to recognize these may lead to one's political downfall. Vickyleaks can also include seemingly damaging revelations about landmark judicial processes. However, these may be hard to substantiate and are likely to be downplayed by the powers that be.

As an aspiring politician, you may have your own personal agenda which is in direct contrast to the public persona you present. Most successful politicians know that under no circumstances should a dubious private persona that demonstrates complete self-interest in motivating your desire for political office be made public. To preserve your altruistic public persona, every politician should behave like they are a member of the Barksdale crew and McNulty is listening in on their conversations. A certain level of paranoia will go a long way in the quest to be a successful politician.

The Wire: One of the greatest tv series ever with good lessons on how one's dubious intentions caught on tape can be your downfall. Source: Wikipedia.com

*The term "VickyLeaks" in relation to Ghanaian politics, was first seen via social media

T'was the night before Judgement Day and all through the land...

Thursday 29 August 2013 is going to be a historical day in Ghana. On this day, the Supreme Court of Ghana will deliver its judgement on a petition brought before it challenging the results of Ghana election 2012. This is the first time that such a petition has been brought forward and it has been accompanied by televised broadcasts of proceedings at the Supreme Court. It has also been accompanied by somewhat entertaining drama as would be expected from all things politics in Ghana. 

As I watch from afar, I know that Ghanaians have matured past the point that violence is considered a reasonable response to political discontent. However, I cannot help but be wary of the reactions following the announcement of the outcome. In the meantime, I am listening to Lynx Entertainment's "Yen Ara Asaase Ni
(This is our Land)" from 2011. Great version.

Ghana Politics 101: Ex gratia (New Addition to the Ghanaian Political Lexicon for the Aspiring Politician)

Source: wikipedia.org

Ex gratia: When a low-to-middle income country is completely befuddled and overwhelmed about how to provide water, electricity, jobs and access to health-care to its populace but has absolute clarity on how to dole out masses of money to relatively small numbers of politicians at the end of their tenure. 

Closely related words: Judgement debts, emoluments  

Of Three Reasons to be excited about Ghana and 200 Pastors

American philanthropist extraordinaire Mr. Bill Gates made a somewhat unexpected visit to the Beacon of African Democracy (Ghana) last week. According to his blog, he was there to see first-hand why the Ghanaian immunization system is working so well and the people involved. Whatever Bill Gates saw impressed him enough to write a glowing tribute to Ghana entitled "Three Reasons I'm Excited about Ghana's future". 

Bill Gates' post
Source: http://www.thegatesnotes.com/

A simple but powerful read that it is being shared worldwide via social media. This is the kind of post that fills all Ghanaians with a deep sense of pride at the strides our country is making. 

One fascinating juxtaposition is that around the time Bill Gates was arriving in Ghana to see feasible projects that actually reduce mortality, the fiercest debate raging in our nation was about a government-facilitated trip for 200 pastors to Israel.

What trip to Israel you may ask? Well, it all started in early March when a sensational headline announced preparations underway in Ghana to "[fly] 200 pastors to Israel" for a pilgrimage. Amid the storm that the article ignited, the government communication team came out to say that this was not a 'government-sponsored' initiative but rather a 'government-facilitated' initiative. The plot grew even thicker when it emerged that the sponsor(s) of this trip wished to remain anonymous but were willing to provide $600,000 to fly the pastors to Israel to pray for Ghana. An even more intriguing question is why these anonymous donors would not rather put the money into:

1. Strengthening the immunization system that so impressed Bill Gates

2. Boreholes to provide clean potable water to a few communities

3. Investing in exploring energy alternatives to solve our persisting energy crisis

4. Various sanitation projects around the county including initiatives to convert human waste to energy  

5. Strengthening the education sector. 

Is it a simple case of us Ghanaians not realizing our own priorities? How much money could we actually mobilize in our own country without relying on outside donors? 

These are all questions I cannot possibly know the answers to but like Mr. Gates I cannot help but be excited about Ghana; a Ghana where logic and prudence wins over bad ideas.

How the Gay Debate solved the energy crisis and the water rationing conundrum in Ghana

Seems that a lot is happening in the Beacon of African Democracy from my vantage point. Thriving democracy, popular destination for UK Comic Relief and a populace engrossed with the topic of 'gayism'. Although a shocking football defeat, a president relocating workplaces and goings-on at the Supreme Court have led to a lull in the debate for now, for the past few weeks, radio discussion shows have revolved around gayism.

It all started with the vetting of a ministerial nominee who had been quite vocal about gay rights in Ghana. Aside from the usual uproar,  religious groups came together and attempted to force the President to withdraw her nomination. From then on, everyone given a chance mounted any platform available to express their disgust at the notions that gays may in fact have any human rights. 
Just listening to Ghanaian radio one would be convinced that there was a fierce battle afoot: wealthy and powerful foreign forces invading our rich cultural heritage that has remained untainted since the 10th Century. 

I was intrigued that religious leaders in Ghana were particularly worried about threats to morality. Sometime last year, I was writing a post on Men of God Behaving Badly in the B.A.D. This post was never published but came about from the alarming number of reports in the media that centered around pastors. Here are some articles I found for my piece:


**Pastor nabbed for robbery

**Bishop XXXX arrested for beating radio panelists

**[Bishop] XXXX seduced my wife with evil spirits - Pastor

**Pastor dupes a woman of GH¢ 840


I hope religious leaders in Ghana have also correctly identified that some of the major moral transgressions committed in Ghana may be perpetuated from within their ranks. Time for a little introspection and house cleaning of their own?

But I digress. I have really been pondering what makes Ghanaians so eager to discuss gayism. While my fellow Ghanaians were engaged in the all-important gay debate on social media, radio and television, I found some interesting articles in fine print:

**Doctors serve notice to embark on nationwide strike


**Load shedding until after March - Volta River Authority

**Water crisis likely to end in 2014, says GUWL

**Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) authorities threaten possible closure due to congestion

Can someone please tell me how the incessant obsessive discussion on homosexuality has provided any solutions to tackling any of this aforementioned problems? Is it time to wake-up and smell our priorities?

GhanaPolitics101: Could trend analysis in ministerial nominations be possible?

When I am not too busy procrastinating, I am an epidemiologist or more like an epidemiologist in training. Big word but what it basically means is that I am most likely to be knee-deep in some dataset analyzing trends, patterns and associations between variables/factors related to health or diseases.

But I digress. What has this got to do with Ghanaian politics anyway? Speaking of Ghanaian politics, the entertainment never ends there is:

1. Continual drama at the Supreme Court

2. A minority in parliament quizzically boycotting the vetting of ministerial nominations and

3. The newest Ghanaian president on the block busy with the business of forming a new government.

Well, given the speed of the wheels of justice, I am predicting that the Supreme Court petition(s) and drama will probably conclude around 2018 so nothing can be said about that. 

On the other hand, the new ministerial appointments are looking quite interesting. So far, five batches of names have been released with one group having gone through vetting by the appointments committee of parliament.

PeaceFM Online has some up-to-date information on the New ministerial appointments
source: peacefmonline.com

Aside from some new ministerial designations, there are also completely fresh faces on the list. In Ghanaian politics, there are always the questions as to whether the ministerial list fulfills unspoken quotas. One such question is whether there is gender balance. Attempts to supposedly ensure gender balance always makes me laugh because if we were to really go according to actual population figures wouldn't 50%+ of ministerial appointments be women?

Other questions include whether there is regional balance and sometimes what the religious affiliation of the minister designate is. This is where my epidemiological mind starts kicking in. Wouldn't it be handy to have a database with all this information? Something like this: 

Data analysis could then be used to get a good descriptive analysis of the characteristics of the ministerial nomination list and allow one to answer some of these questions about balance. Sadly, I do not have time to put together such a database. Now, if someone could compile this list in excel, I would gladly analyze it! Anyone?

President John Dramani Mahama: Fourth President of the Fourth Republic of Ghana

The President of Ghana- His Excellency Mr. John D. Mahama
Source: JoyFM online

It is Monday 7th January 2013 and the city of Accra is abuzz. This is simply because a new president, Mr. John Dramani Mahama, has just been inaugurated into office. He becomes the 4th President under the Fourth Republic of Ghana and the 7th President of Ghana overall. It seems fitting that in the age of the smartphone, netbook and tablet computer, President Mahama read his first address to the nation from an iPad. My warmest congratulations to President Mahama and best wishes for a successful tenure. May you work hard to fulfill the pledges and promises you have made to the Ghanaian populace. The Ghanaian people are watching closely.

T'was the [day of the election] and all through the [land]....#GhanaDecides at last

After years of campaigning Ghana Election 2012 is finally here. Sadly, my view is not of people lining up at my polling station deep in the hinterlands of Ghana but rather of this:

It snowed quite heavy this morning in Holland and although I decided to work from home instead of braving the cold on my bicycle, I must admit that following the election coverage in Ghana is what has occupied most of my day. Please do not tell my supervisor. 

Four years ago around this time, my family and I had all voted. This was after an epic battle the day before to make it into the hinterlands by public transport. It was all extremely stressful but worth it. This year, I am unable to vote but following events keenly from a distance. The internet and social media have revolutionized Ghana election watching from a distance. Four years ago there was Twitter and Facebook and I regularly posted tweets about the journey to vote and the general atmosphere. Four years later, not only has the number of Ghanaian users on Twitter increased exponentially but political parties have come to realize the power of social media. Most candidates have facebook pages and have Twitter accounts. 

Here are some of the trailblazers in revolutionizing Ghana election 2012 via social media:

Ghana Decides: This is a ".....non-partisan project launched on March 24 2012  [that] aims to foster a better-informed electorate for free, fair and safe 2012 Elections using online social media" -Their website.

Not only has Ghana Decides led an active campaign all year to educate potential voters, mobilize people to register as well as vote, but they have also organized several interactive debates and discussions.

JoyFM On Youtube and the IEA Ghana Debates: 

Indeed debates hosted by the Institute of Economic Affairs have been a feature of past elections in Ghana. However, for the first time, the decision by a sitting president to participate in these took the event to a whole new level. Being able to watch the live discussion via the JoyNews Channel on youtube and follow comments on Twitter was nothing short of amazing for me. However, the criteria by which the IEA decides on whom to include in the debate has to be re-examined. Does it make sense to have 4 political parties represented when many more are on the ballot?

Ghana Vote Compass: I must admit I know nothing about how this interactive tool works and the algorithms involved but it is fun and really gets one to reflect on issues rather than personalities and political parties. Sadly, I am not sure that people in Ghana even know the finer details of their political parties' manifestos.  

VoteKast GH: Another great interactive tool with data on past elections in Ghana and hopefully data on election 2012 will be available through this tool as it becomes available. Always interesting to see region by region, constituency by constituency trends. 

Google Ghana: Not only have they hosted interactive discussions via the Google Hangouts+ platform but they have had some cool google doodles along the way. 

Check out the election doodle at google.com.gh which I first saw via a post by fellow blogger Maya Mame.

So as election day comes to a close, I will continue to watch events from a distance hoping that peace and stability are maintained. Will losers concede defeat graciously? Will winners unite the nation? Only time will tell but I hope and pray so.

Ghanapolitics 101: Deja Vu moments and being Too Close to Call

In the Beacon of Democracy, the incumbent and main contender are in an outright fight to the death. A show of hands please for the number of people in the class who thought I was talking about Ghana? Wrong you were. In fact, since 2000, the parallels between the Ghanaian elections and the US elections are a tad eerie. 

Speaking of the US, where terms like Romnesia are new entrants into the political lexicon, a new Gallup poll is describing the upcoming election as "too close to call" .Very reminiscent of the (in)famous US Election 2000. 

Meanwhile, over in the Beacon of African Democracy, Ghana, current events are rapidly evolving the political landscape which are also making election outcomes hard to predict. With just under 50 days to go until poll day, some rules that have applied in recent elections are now being defied /thrown out the window as the soap opera qualities of Ghanaian politics are becoming more apparent.  

Despite the unexpected twists and turns, Ghana Election 2012 is beginning to have a strange deja vu quality reminiscent of Ghana Election 2008 where things were also too close to call:

BBC Focus on Africa magazine cover: 2008

Interestingly, JoyFM's online poll of the moment appears to suggest otherwise. 

Polls on JOY [FM]: "If elections were held today, who would you vote for?"

Fascinatingly, 105,375 people voted in this poll. This is more than any other poll featured on Joy FM's website which usually attracts around 5,000 voters at the most. So where are all these voters coming from in a poll that opened on 11 October 2012?

According to the poll results, 45.14% of voters would vote for the incumbent party the NDC. The poll also predicts that 37.75% of the 105,375 would vote for the newly emergent party the PPP. In 3rd place is the party that is perceived/believed to be the main contender to the incumbent, the NPP commanding 16.71% of the vote. So how credible is this JoyFM poll? Are the PPP being seriously underestimated?

Or is it just a simple case of clear-browsing-history-vote again? So I did try just that to find out. I cleared my browsing history and could in fact vote again.....three times.

The moral of the story is that its important to take polls, predictions and prophesies regarding Ghana election 2012 with a pinch of salt. 

My money is still on the election being way too close to call. What are your thoughts?

Ghanapolitics101: Of Deja Vu and Election 2012

As we draw closer to elections in the Beacon of African Democracy, Ghana, the rapidly evolving political landscape is making election outcomes unclear. With just under 50 days to go to the general elections, some rules that have applied in recent elections are now being defied /thrown out the window as the soap opera quality to politics is becoming more apparent in Ghana. No other figure in Ghanaian contemporary politics is defying the well-established unwritten rules than former President Jerry John Rawlings. Here are some examples:

Sept 19, 2012 : JoyFM- Rawlings endorses [ruling party candidate] Mahama 

Oct 11, 2012 : JoyFM- Rawlings assures [main opposition candidate] Akufo-Addo he may not campaign against him

Oct 15, 2012: BBC - Ghana's Jerry Rawlings 'backs' wife's presidential bid [in a newly formed political party]

Well, it appears Mrs. Rawlings' presidential bid may have been nipped in the bud for now. When it comes to the other front-runners, it is becoming too close to call. Just two weeks ago, it appeared the opposition candidate had the upper hand. He was criss-crossing the country with his vision of free senior high school education and had a rather quizzical photo-op meeting with the former president Mr. Rawlings. Government communicators downplayed this meeting at the same time and at the same time punched serious holes in the free secondary high school plan without articulating a clear alternative. A week later, President Mahama gives a stellar performance at the IEA encounter. Luckily for him, none of the questions he was asked by the audience dealt with some of the nagging questions on corruption.

Interesting, three other parties, the PNC, CPP and PPP have all announced female running mates. Some have viewed these moves as mere window-dressing ploys to appeal to women voters. Speaking of women in Ghanaian politics, I participated in a lively Twitter debate on this topic on Friday hosted by GhanaDecides. Many commentators emphasized that competence of women politicians should be key of course without questioning the competence of male politicians. Anyway, that is a topic for another blogpost. 

Despite the unexpected twists and turns, Ghana Election 2012 is beginning to have a strange deja vu quality reminiscent of Election 2008: it is all turning out too close to call.

BBC Focus on Africa magazine cover: 2008

Interestingly, JoyFM's poll of the moment appears to suggest differently. 

Polls on JOY [FM]: "If elections were held today, who would you vote for?"

That is, if we are to believe that 105,375 voted in this poll which is about 1000 times the usual number of voters on 'Polls on Joy' and that 39,9779 people would vote for the PPP. My money is still on the election being too close to call.

As the week drew to a close, the Electoral Commission announced what the ballot paper will look like on December 7th. 

JoyFM: Prez Mahama is Number 1, Akufo-Addo No. 3 on ballot paper

Apparently, prophets all over Ghana have had the nation in rapt attention over the prophetic significance of the ballot positions. 

Ghana Politics 101: The Radio Lawyer

Anyone keeping up with Ghana politics will know that it is reaching a whole new level of farcical. It is a never-ending theatrical drama with comedy, irony, absurdity and of course tragedy. But that is another post for another day. One of the key actors actively involved in this drama is the "Radio Lawyer" a term that is worthy of an entry in the Ghanaian Political Lexicon for the Aspiring Politician. 

1. Radio Lawyer: any politician, journalist or social commentator who is a regular panelist on one of the many political discussion programmes aired on Ghanaian radio who provides legal interpretations. The radio lawyer will preface their submission with "I am not a lawyer but..." and then proceed to discuss cases pending in court, give legal opinions and also buttress their arguments with references to the Ghanaian constitution. The radio lawyer will vehemently argue the law with real lawyers and perhaps muddy issues which may mislead the public. The radio lawyer is actually not just restricted to radio but you may find "lawyers" giving opinions in public transport, work place canteens or even markets. In reality, Ghana is not only a country of 25 million football coaches, 25 million political commentators but also 25 million lawyers. 

Dust Magazine: The Aspiring Politician's Complete Guide to the Ghanaian Campaign Trail

It has been quite a busy and exciting month for me. There was a short but sweet sibling reunion in London, a conference in Geneva that turned out to be awesome professionally and of course getting an article I wrote in print. Indeed, my piece entitled "The Aspiring Politician's Complete Guide to the Ghanaian Campaign Trail" is featured in the June issue of the creative master-piece that is Dust magazine. This is a particular honour for me since I've long admired the ingenuity and creativity of Dust. Edited by the veritable Renaissance man Kobina Graham, it really is one of those publications that gives you hope in Ghana's future by reminding you that there are indeed great minds at work in our country. Not only do Dust articles capture the spirit of contemporary Ghana but they always have pieces immortalizing our glorious and often forgotten past. Then there is the colourful creativity underlying their work.When I submitted the article in its final form, it was a black and white dud. This was then transformed into something readable by the Dust magazine team that includes the super-talented Ghanyobi.

June edition of Dust magazine

Please do check out Dust magazine. It can be downloaded here and is also available for free in Accra. In addition, they also have a cool website here.

REPOST: Ghana Politics 101: To avoid unnecessary damage, control your loose cannons

Very recent events in the BAD (Beacon of African Democracy), Ghana, have prompted me to repost this from 2010. Clearly politicians in Ghana never seem to heed advice proffered freely in my lectures for Ghana Politics 101. Maybe they are all taking the course pass-fail. 

Cannons at Fort Antonio in Axim in the Western Region, Ghana
Source:  My personal album of fabulous pics

In military history, cannons transformed the art of warfare and were essential artillery for some key battles dating back to Ancient China. Cannons were also vital to naval combat and the phrase 'loose cannon' alludes to the fact that if your cannons were not secure, they were likely to roll about on deck and cause damage to your ship.  It is not surprising therefore that modern English has adopted the term:

Main Entry: loose cannon

Function: noun

: a dangerously uncontrollable person or thing

Source: Merriam-Oxford Dictionary Online

Over the years, a number of colourful 'loose cannons' have dotted the Ghanaian political landscape. Just like improperly secured cannons, these are usually from one's own armory and cause damage to one's own interests.

Class, the take-home message is simple: if you do not want your political opponents to make mischief of ambiguous statements emerging from your camp, then control your  loose cannons. If you are unable to do so, the ensuing damage could be serious. You would then be forced to field spokespeople who have the excruciating task of explaining the indefensible to the general public. At that point, you just have to hope that the spokespeople are able to use enough circular logic to dazzle the populace and prevent further questions.

I got the (Biometric Voter's Registration) Blues - Observing Ghana go Biometric from a distance

The 2008 Election summed and effectively captured 

Election year is here again in the country I call the Beacon of African Democracy -Ghana. On December 7^th 2012, Ghanaians will go to the polls for the 6^th time since what is known in Ghanaian history as "the return to democratic rule" in 1992. This return heralded a new political era in Ghana known as ‘The Fourth Republic’.  Since the start of The Fourth Republic, the Ghanaian electoral process has gone on successfully although not always so smoothly. Some called the 1992 election a farce but then again there were similar grievances with the 1996, 2000, 2004 and even the 2008 elections.

Ah but who could forget the down-to-the-wire 2008 election? It ended up being the stuff movies are made of…literally. I kid you not. Apparently the behind-the-scenes electioneering of this election are chronicled in the film, An African Election by Swiss-born actor/producer/director of Ghanaian descent - Jarreth Merz.

Being a Ghanaian citizen of age and sound mind (I hope) and having relocated to Ghana almost a decade ago, I have not taken my constitutional right to vote lightly. I was proud to vote in the 2008 election but was shocked at the level of apathy when it came to voting in general. There was apathy from rural-folk living in agricultural communities who felt that regardless of whomever was in power their lives would remain the same. Interestingly, I also observed apathy coming from highly educated urban individuals some of whom arrogantly postured that the 2008 election would be decided by rural folk anyway so they would not bother voting. Hopefully, the newly launched Ghana Decides project and similar initiatives will succeed in getting more of both of these groups involved in exercising their franchise in Election 2012.

Alas I digress. Before I was distracted by Election 2008, I meant to talk about what makes Election 2012 different from other elections conducted under the banner of the Fourth Republic. Well, maybe it is because modern technology is coming to the aid of our never-ending quest for transparent and democratic elections in Ghana. This year, after many calls, the Ghanaian Electoral Commission has decided to adopt a biometric registration process. Interestingly, I blogged about moving to electronic voting in 2009 with a post entitled Mayhem in Akwatia: Isn't Ghana ready for Electronic Voting yet? However, biometric registration and verification is NOT going to mean electronic voting at least not for Election 2012. 

My initial excitement over the introduction of biometric registration turned bittersweet quite quickly. This is simply because I will not be in Ghana for most of 2012 and the narrow window in which biometric registration will take place will not afford me the opportunity to participate. So just like that, I find myself disenfranchised. As if this was not clear already, the Electoral Commission came out recently to reiterate the point that all old voter identification cards will be null and void. 

Since the biometric registration exercise started, I have actively been following the process from a distance via online radio, social media and personal accounts from people in Ghana. At first complaints revolved around lack of information concerning the exercise in general. Later there were reports in the media on attempts to influence the process as well as acts of violence in some parts of the country. However, so far, the biometric registration appears to be going smoothly albeit slowly.

People patiently waiting for biometric registration

Source: JoyFM

Perhaps I am being cynical and a little bit bitter but I can already foresee that by the end of the allocated registration period, not everyone wishing to register will be registered. In the meantime, I will be watching from a distance enviously admiring pictures I've seen of people holding up their new voter cards. I will also keep looking for narrow windows of my own; windows that will allow me to hopefully swing by Ghana to participate in the process. After all, being able to vote for one’s leaders is a privilege that cannot be taken for granted.


P.S. This post also appears on the new website for Ghana Decides, a BLoGHA initiative that employs social media into getting the Ghanaian electorate more informed. The power of social media and technology at work. 

Gay Relief from the Woyome heat (wave)

Contrary to what most people believe, African leaders love gay people. In recent times, the African politician has come to realise that no single issue can galvanize and unite the citizenry across the usual divides than calls for gay rights. Lets face it; there are quite a lot of issues causing friction, heat and tension across the continent right now. Aside from ongoing violent conflicts, there are several instances where the masses are growing increasing discontent with their governments.

There are the events in Senegal with a populace irate at the prospect of President Wade heading for another term in office.

Shocking scenes of violence in Dakar following a court's ruling that President Wade
is eligible to run for a 3rd term
Source: cnn.com

There is the increasingly agitated populace in Nigeria refusing to accept excuses from their leaders. In Uganda the opposition has been busy organizing a series of rallies that have left the government seriously unimpressed.

In Ghana we have Woyomegate. This may seem trivial in  comparison to other serious problems across the contient but since the beginning of the year, no other issue has dominated Ghanaian media more than the so-called Woyome saga. Everyday serial callers all over the nation call into radio stations stating their opinions on the saga.  Many of us have actually given up trying to understand the intricacies and it is all panning out to be a political soap opera of costly proportions. Everyone appears to be taking the heat for the Woyome debacle but the greatest toll so far has been on the present administration. 

UN Secretary-general Mr. Ban Ki-Moon
Source: bbc.co.uk

So it must have been with much delight that the UN secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon's call to African leaders to respect gay rights hit the headlines. In my mind's eye I saw government communication teams across the continent jumping for joy since the perfect distraction had just been gift-wrapped and presented to them.

Therefore, I was not too surprised to see that the President of Ghana has already responded to the secretary-general's call equivocally stating that Ghana will not be forced to legalize homosexuality despite pressure from the international community. He was also sure to  reaffirm the government’s position on the issue. Whether there has been relief from the heat of the Woyome saga only time, and the tone of serial callers' calls tomorrow, will tell. 

Ghanapolitics 101: How to End an Action Year with a *Bang*

In January 2011, the government of Ghana declared that 2011 was an "Action Year". Indeed, the government hit the ground running with the first order of business being a  20-30% fuel price increment which came into effect on 4 January 2011. This and other swift actions that characterised the first full week of 2011 were captured in "Ghanapolitics 101: How to Start an Action Year with a *Bang*".  It seems that Action Year 2011 has also ended on a similar note with a 20% increase in fuel prices that came into effect yesterday.

Apparently the fuel price increase was necessitated by  international crude price increases and depreciation of the cedi. The ripple effects of the price hike have also been rapid with transport operators having also swiftly increased their prices. It seems public engagement is lacking and already the Ghana Trade Union Congress (TUC) is asking the government to explain the fuel price increment since it is coming at a a time when "the cost of living in the country is high".

On Peace FM this morning it was pointed out that the government does not have control over the fuel price increments and it is up to the  National Petroleum Authority (NPA). Therefore it would be great if the NPA would hold a public forum to interact with the public and explain in detail the justifications for the hike. 

Also on Peace FM this morning, the deputy secretary-general of the ruling asked people not to "play politics" with the issue. Finally, could a ceasefire on playing politics with fuel prices be in the offing? That would be great since for the entire decade that I've lived in Ghana, one thing that has remained a mainstay of Ghanaian politics has been playing politics with fuel prices!

Well, the jury is still out on whether 2011 was indeed an Action Year in Ghana. The government insists that the Better Ghana Agenda is underway while the main opposition insists a Bitter Ghana Agenda is in full effect. Ordinary people seem ambivalent to the situation but do lament that prices are going up from utilities to fuel. Hopefully the government will release a pamphlet soon with a listing of the successes chalked in 2011 to remind the populace that things are indeed getting better and not bitter. Alas, some may also then say that pamphlets are unfortunately not edible.

The Cameron Gambit

Merriam-Webster Dictionary:

gam·bit noun \ˈgam-bət\

Definition of GAMBIT

1: a chess opening in which a player risks one or more pawns or a minor piece to gain an advantage in position
2 a (1) : a remark intended to start a conversation or make a telling point (2) : topic
b : a calculated move : stratagem

David Cameron
Source: wikipedia.org

British Prime Minister David Cameron seems to be the most discussed person in Ghana this week. In fact, Mr. Cameron appears to be in serious contention for a Ghanaian national award. The award being "Special citation for your ability to unite Ghanaians in hatred across diverse religious and political divides". The last recipient of this award being the Uruguayan footballer Luis Suarez whose World Cup 2010 antic is ingrained in the Ghanaian national consciousness. 

It  all seems to have started with Mr. Cameron’s appearance on the popular BBC Andrew Marr show  where he stated:

 "British aid should have more strings attached"

In the end  Mr. Cameron basically threatened to withhold UK aid from governments that do not reform legislation banning homosexuality.

The anti-Cameron backlash in Ghana has been huge. Aside from vitriol being spewed in the media by callers, serial callers, politicians and religious leaders,  the Ghanaian president has come out to say unequivocally:

"I, as president, will never initiate or support any attempt to legalise homosexuality in Ghana,"

While many Ghanaians have been celebrating a defiant stance where advocating violence against gays has somehow been deemed acceptable, I've been contemplating this whole Cameron debacle. Is Mr. Cameron really interested in human rights for gay Africans? From his statements alone, I’m pretty sure life for gays in places like Ghana and Uganda just got a whole lot harder. Well, Mr. Cameron is a smart man. He did not get a first class in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from Oxford University for nothing. There must be more to this all.

The fact of the matter is that these are hard and economically uncertain times for the United Kingdom. The past few years have seen massive cuts to all sectors of the UK government's spending. In this current budget cut climate, could this Cameron debacle be a carefully thought-through gambit to justify future aid cuts to African countries? I present to you...

The Cameron Gambit:

Stage 1. Call for reforms on an explosive and emotive issue that you know African countries will be outraged over and make sure you threaten to withhold aid over this emotive issue

Strage 2. Ensure the countries you are threatening are appropriately vexed over the suggestion of reforms on the emotive issue and hope one of two things happen:

• The country refuses all concessions and
declares they can manage without aid. Future aid is rejected. 

• The country refuses all concessions and remains defiant although future aid is not rejected 

Stage 3. In face of refusals to reform, the UK government obtains the perfect justification  to enact  cuts to future foreign aid budgets

Stage 4. The UK is saved a truck load of money

That my friends, is 'The Cameron Gambit' in practice. Checkmate in 4 swift moves.