... Amoateng could cause its suspension?
RECENTLY, THE President of the Republic of Ghana, Mr. John Agyekum Kufuor returned home from the United States of America with the news that the US Government and Ghana had sealed the agreement under which Ghana will access its 547 million dollars under the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA).

The joy that greeted this feat of the Government was quiet astounding, with some critics describing some praises and appellations by a minister whose joy knew no bounds as bordering on sycophancy. The President just launched the scheme under the Account for the North at Savelugu and the prospect of our agriculture booming is imminent.

But the shocking news of the possibility of Ghana being suspended by the US Government and being denied the amount, surfaced at the weekend, when the Minister of Public Sector Reforms and Chief Manager of the Account, Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom threw a bombshell.

He quoted Section 5.4 of the MCA agreement under which the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), on its sole discretion, could either suspend or terminate the programme if it finds that the beneficiary country has breached its provisions, committed an act or omission or an event, which could render the country ineligible to receive US assistance under its Foreign Assistance Act.

The conditions, under which the programme could be suspended, include narcotic drugs trafficking and the application of the trade, conviction of a government official of narcotic trafficking offences, money laundering, corruption, conflict of interest and mismanagement.

Currently, the country’s image as per cocaine trafficking is sad to relate. The international community has tagged this country as cocaine dealing country and the recent Georgina Woode Committee’s findings per its report attests to this.

At least as of the time of going to bed, the 77 parcels of cocaine reported missing from the MV Benjamin vessel, are yet to be traced. Coupled with this is the indictment of the just-resigned Transportation Minister, Dr. Richard Anane of conflict of interest by the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ).

The Government of Ghana really worked hard for the country to be included in the programme and it will be very sad if we are kicked out because of the indiscretions of some Government officials through acts of commission or omission.

The assurance from Dr. Nduom that he had not received any caution from the MCC or the United States Embassy in Ghana, should not lead us into a blind alley.

Going by the provisions of the programme, we seem to have fallen short of the section that talks about narcotic drugs and conflict of interest; and in our case, it involves also senior Government officials. So what do we do now? Should we sit down for the biggest of the biggest, as Sheikh I. C. Quaye, the Greater Accra Regional Minister described Ghana’s share of the MCA, slip through our fingers?

What needs to be done therefore is for government to demonstrate its commitment to fighting these adverse incidents, to send out clear signals to the international community and our country not seen as a destination for promoting things that undermine democracy and have the potential of destabilizing the country.

It would be very embarrassing for Ghana to be suspended as the US had done to The Gambia for falling foul to the provisions earlier enumerated. All Ghanaians have toiled to see the nation through the conception till maturity of the programme, which will uplift the living conditions of the beneficiary Districts and for that matter the country at large.

The MCA is a legacy that the Kufuor administration will always be praised for, and therefore it behoves the government in particular, and Ghanaians in general to do everything possible to safeguard it.

Whether by Vision 2020 or vision 2015, going by the pace at which we are moving, we still have a long way to go and The Chronicle would appeal to our politicians in particular, to let the national interest be the overriding principle in pursuing these matters.