Ethnic Sentimentalism, Cronyism and Plutocracy: Challenges facing Ghana’s Democracy

I am a senior civil servant with wealth of experience spanning 37 years of active service to mother Ghana and fellow citizens. My services to my own country have not been devoid of the political altercations that characterized our political history from independence as I know it. Attempts to do what is fair to all manner of Ghanaians, as demanded by the ethos of my profession and code of conduct, as a civil servant, could not pass without confrontation, even with the threat of dismissal, from the political powers that be in each political eon be it under the military or the civilian leaderships. But as the adage rightly admonishes: ‘the child who knows how to wash his hands well dines with the kings and the queens’, I have, therefore, developed attitudes over the years as a result of the accrual of experiences which make me agreeably a follower even when I dissent; a tacit espouser but never a practical believer; and a ‘yes-man’ when the answer is obviously ‘NO’.

One may be tempted to ask: ‘What at all is this elderly statesman driving at?’ Just hold your peace for a moment and we shall arrive at the home truth which should offer some insight to our leaders and the citizenry at large.

I started work as a senior civil servant in 1970 after graduating from the University of Ghana with B.A. honors. My initial job assignments brought me directly into contact with the general public in the discharge of my duties. I made scores of new friends and consolidated the old ones in the line of duty. Family relationships and former schoolmates got closer and faster that within a very short time these relationships begun to take their toll in many ways. Apart from the unwelcome visits and numerous financial demands, many were those who would like me to exploit my position to aid the recruitment of their family members, friends and other relations into the civil service and other public institutions. This situation rather got worse when I earned my second promotion 6 years on. By this time, I sit on interview panels and conducted interviews for the civil service, the private sector and other important state institutions. But the sad truth is that instead of strict adherence to recruitment criteria or principles based on qualification, diligence and merit, ethnicity, cronyism and plutocracy became the most important considerations in the processes. The result is that we have many individuals in positions they do not deserve to hold if the rules were applied to the letter. Intelligent and hardworking individuals who could come on board with qualities that could propel growth and transformation of our economy have been left to rot with their ideas and ingenuity. The recent allegation leveled against the former quasi director of the Ghana Law School, Kwaku Asare, who purportedly used his position to replace the name of a qualified candidate to the Law School with that of his daughter, is a typical example. I have witnessed many of such incidents in my 37 years of service, sitting on 28 interview panels. I have watched credible names of short listed candidates altered overnight with new list slipping through the back door the next morning (in a spectacular fashion code name Put aside with acronym P.A). I can go on to list names of people in high places who circumvented these rules for the sake of their children and relatives to the detriment of the social order of meritocracy.

I personally had to bear the brunt of politicians and other high-profile personalities in this country, Ghana, as a result of my incorruptible attitude when it comes to the creation of opportunities for young people who are not only seeking opportunities for self-development but also finding ways to eke a living and contribute their quota to national development. I have always challenged that decision which appropriate positions, but wrongly, to the sons and daughters of the wealthy and high-profile office holders who wants to enter the University or other important private and state institutions. How can you support the view that the son of a university don or a minister of state who scores aggregate 24 at the SSCE deserves a priority place in our universities than the son or daughter of a poor farmer who scores 15? Considering the facilities at the disposal of the children of these high-profile individuals, I have always spoken against what is referred to as the protocol list which guarantees a place for the children of the politician and other notable individuals in our society. I have also, on many occasions, spoken against what is termed as the concessionary list, which guarantees a place for children of state university employees. But unfortunately, for the beneficiaries and their parents, I have been a nuisance all this years. They are only thanking God that I am about to retire without success but I believe there are many Ghanaians out there who will take the challenge up in our struggle to create a just and equitable society for the poor, the rich, the weak and the powerful.

Ethnocentrism, cronyism and plutocracy are rather getting worse with time, in my estimation. It will be unfair to the current political leadership to say these things did not happen in the past; they did, but have worsened under the current political dispensation. We all recollect how the NPP government embarked on a project which was to free the armed forces and other security services from what they perceived to be Ewe and Northern hegemony of the armed forces when they assumed office. Recruitments into the armed forces became regionalized if not to an extent that the processes have now been ‘tribalized’. This has created problems for recruiting officers who, in some cases, have to base their decisions on name, looks and other unimportant trivial characteristics of the individuals to make a decision whether to recruit or not, instead of the meritocratic criteria which is supposed to imbued in us the spirit of free, fair and transparent competition with the effect that ‘those who merit it are offered’.

For the tribal based recruitment into the security services---the army, the police, CEPS and the others---when it happens that one particular tribe is not able to meet its given quota, then the requirement for recruitment could be altered which could lead to recruiting low caliber men and officers into the security services. What it means then is that, the quality of service rendered thereof is affected or compromised. This is against the backdrop of qualified candidates been denied what is right and just by all meritocratic standards.

Regrettably today, the above development has taken a notorious dimension which must be nipped in the bud before it consumes our young, fragile democracy if we are to move forward in unity. I have seen names that are perceived to be particular tribe’s especially Ewe names expunged from the list of short listed candidates; I have also observed recruiting officials made strenuous efforts to doctor lists to have the names of their relations, cronies and their children fixed inn; so have I also seen money bags changed hands to influence recruitment processes. I even hear of sexual favors. Job advertisements have also become ways of satisfying legal requirements which must be satisfied by both state and private institutions in their bid to recruit new members of staff, as most of the time the names of those favorites are already known to recruiters. If such is the case, can Ewes now be campaigning for tribal balance on interview boards? What will be the repercussions for our forward march? Can the cynic be asking for close circuit cameras (CCTVs) in our interview rooms with the opportunity for playbacks by investigative teams and auditors in cases where individuals suspect procedures have been circumvented? There are many more questions to ask.

Recently, government and other important persons of note have been trying to whip up interest in the youth to consider setting up on their own, with some describing the youth as lacking creativity, drive, entrepreneurial skills and being risk averse. The paradox is that, interestingly, some of the individuals who are at the forefront of these messages lack the creativity, drive and even the credibility to be putting out these messages to a huge number of our disoriented youth. I know of a so-called business wunderkind who served Unilever for so many years who could not encourage his own son to set up but tried everything under the son to make sure the son got recruited by the manufacturing conglomerate in Ghana before his retirement (names need not be mentioned but the article gives the pointer).

Now, doesn’t the young Ghanaian graduate who has worked so hard through university the right to work in the civil service, the private sector or set up by himself? Is it not a matter of choice that the individual considers his situation, interest and God-given talent in deciding which direction to go? If the young Ghanaian graduate decides to work in the civil service, any public enterprise or state institution, I think the time-tested criteria is merit, if even we are recruiting 10 out of a million. Therefore, if the young Ghanaian graduate has failed in his endeavor to create jobs or to do well after graduating, then our leaders must first accept responsibility for failing the youth by not mobilizing their productive energies right from the universities and directing them towards what is productive and competitive.

As I prepare to embark on my retirement in a few months, I am saddened by the level of unemployment among Ghanaian graduates especially higher degree holders who are apparently being alienated from their own society by the attitude of employers who are bent on recruiting only sons and daughters of their cronies, the powerful, and people coming from similar ethnic backgrounds just as them.

If we are not careful in handling this situation, we may get to that point where some ethnic groups may be agitating for secession as is becoming increasingly apparent. Lets work hard to eschew tribal and other divisive tendencies among our people and make sure that opportunities are offered all Ghanaians devoid of discrimination of any kind.

Long Live Ghana and God bless you all.

Seth Owuo Bempong
socidem@yahoo.com

CC: THE FORMER PRESIDENT, JJ RAWLINGS
THE FORMER UN SECRETARY-GENERAL, KOFI ANNAN