In Ghana’s 58 year history, the nation has been led by a number of leaders with kinds of political shades. From those who took us from riches of the edge of colonialism to the near bankruptcy of independence, to military leaders of all shades, character and intent, to civilian leaders whose terms were so short to make any meaningful impact and to those whose vestiges of achievements are the pillars of our social and political lives today. We have, as a nation, seen a lot about leadership and even more to come yet I would like to stick my neck out of the train at this point to say so far John Mahama has been a great disappointment.
Perhaps one of the youngest and most popular to an end the high office of the presidency, John Mahama came in with a lot of promise and good will. For start having won the sympathy vote on the back of President Mills' demise, one would have thought that he would emulate his good example of honesty in office. However not long after the professor's grave at Asomdwee Park had gone quiet, John Mahama started to undo the accountable politics that his late boss had instilled in his followers.
He has not only proved to be corrupt but has also turned a blind eye to causes of corruption. He campaigned to make dumsor a thing of the past and for 4 years not only reneged on the promise but has made it worse. He promised to reduce the GDP /debt ration but has managed to increase it to 65%. He has increased the national debt to 76.1 billion cedis by the close of last year up from the 51.9 billion cedis it recorded in 2013. This means government borrowed 24.2 billion cedis last year alone.
On top of all these mismanagement of the economy, John Mahama's government has managed to return Ghana into the conditionality arms of the IMF for a bailout of just under $1bn which has been spent before it hits our central bank accounts.
His phony character plays well when he continues to assure the unsuspecting Ghanaian that he is doing everything possible to steady the economic ship which is already at the bottom of the ocean. Promising handouts to Ghanaians, John Mahama's disrespect for Ghanaian intelligence has no limits. He recently promised to build a new bridge over the Volta to equal that of Adomi without indicating where the money is coming from. He is promising free SHS Education without indicating any sustainability plan. With no new money coming in after the IMF bailout, John Mahama is going round the country promising like there is no tomorrow without indicating how to fund it.
Having promised home grown solutions to our economic problems at Senchi, John Mahama's government decision to go external and to IMF for solution has been a betrayal of the Senchi Accord.
Dumsor has already put over 30,000 out of job adding to the joblessness which is hitting 3million of our population. John Mahama who likes to dance to Lumba's "Yentie Obiaa" has plucked his ears and soldiering on towards 2016.
He has broken all records of hopelessness, joblessness, carelessness and recklessness.
His government lacks vision and thoughtfulness. The saddest part of john Mahama's thoughtlessness is his handling of SADA a project which he could have championed as a reward to the people of the three northern regions when he went and begged them for votes saying he was his kith and kin. Instead John Mahama diverted all monies for the SADA project into the hands of his "create, loot and share" cronies.
John Mahama is fast getting the accreditation of a fraud on Ghana and backdoor dark destroyer.
This is the man who wrote in his book My First Coup D'état that, “All the decisions I have made in my life were regularly plagued with doubt. It can be challenging to sustain that feeling of hope or the belief that things will turn out for the best. Again and again, I have felt like that boy Dramani, on the bicycle going downhill fast, without any brakes and not knowing which way to turn.” It is worth pointing out that that this book has just been written and was only launched in July 2012. The semblance between his 'First Coup D'état' and what he is doing as a president is his seeming obsessive compulsory disorder. His lack of control on the bike as a child has matured his lack of control in putting his hands in the national till. From STX, Cuba, SUBA, Embraer, Merchant Bank and GYEEDA, the list is endless. For a man who managed within four months of becoming a president managed to put a hole of GHC 24million in the national coffers to help him steal the 2012 elections, he must suffer from this compulsory disorder. Now with a national debt at HIPC proportions of GHC 76.1bn this compulsive coup maker is preparing the minds of Ghanaians for 2016, prophesying that we will renew his mandate. This guy is phony.


Kwesi Atta-Krufi Hayford