The Big Stories || Founders Day: Where are we as a country? - JoyNews
The Big Stories || Founders Day: Where are we as a country? - JoyNews
#AMShow
#TheBigStories
#MyJoyOnline
https://www.myjoyonline.com/ghana-news/
Subscribe for more videos just like this:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChd1DEecCRlxaa0-hvPACCw/
Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joy997fm
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Joy997FM
Instagram: https://bit.ly/3J2l57
Click on this for more news:
https://www.myjoyonline.com/
#AMShow
#TheBigStories
#MyJoyOnline
https://www.myjoyonline.com/ghana-news/
Subscribe for more videos just like this:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChd1DEecCRlxaa0-hvPACCw/
Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joy997fm
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Joy997FM
Instagram: https://bit.ly/3J2l57
Click on this for more news:
https://www.myjoyonline.com/
Transcript
00:00 Well, thank you for staying with us on the AM Show.
00:05 You know here, we are blunt.
00:07 We say it as it is.
00:08 You like it, you don't like it.
00:10 I meet a lot of people out there who say this or that.
00:12 But we do what we do because we're
00:14 passionate about the brand called Ghana, the red, gold,
00:17 green, and the black.
00:19 But as we continue today on Founders Day,
00:21 we want to have a conversation on Ghana, everything Ghana,
00:25 as much as we can with our guests.
00:27 Now, in the studio, we have Dr. Abusakara Foster.
00:31 He's founder, National Interest Movement.
00:34 He joins the conversation.
00:35 He's also the 2012 presidential candidate, Convention People's
00:38 Party.
00:39 He's here with us in the studio.
00:42 And we have other guests that we'll
00:43 be introducing to you shortly.
00:44 But I'll start with Dr. Abusakara Foster.
00:47 Thank you, Doc.
00:48 Ben, good morning.
00:49 And happy holiday.
00:51 Happy holiday to you.
00:52 And congratulations once again on Founders' apostrophe S day.
00:56 Yes, I was about to say that.
00:58 For me, it's a founder.
01:00 And it will always be apostrophe S, one founder for me.
01:04 You can't force me to--
01:07 You know, the sun rises from the east and sets in the west.
01:11 If we decide to call the east west,
01:15 it will still rise from the same place.
01:17 Nothing will change.
01:18 Nothing will change.
01:20 So I don't even believe that every Founders' Day,
01:25 that should be the focus of our discussion.
01:30 What is the state of the founding?
01:32 Where have we got to?
01:34 And what has it been worth?
01:37 And what will it be worth in the future?
01:39 Those are the areas that we should be talking about.
01:42 A reflection of Founders' Day, of the sacrifices people made,
01:46 and whether we are making it worthwhile
01:48 to have made those sacrifices.
01:50 Those are the issues that we should be talking about today.
01:53 And I believe that we'll have a good conversation on that.
01:57 Let's talk about-- you've lived for a very long time
02:01 in this country.
02:02 Indeed.
02:03 Since 2005.
02:05 And then, of course, until I was 12,
02:07 before I went abroad for my studies in the UK, I was here.
02:11 And of course, even during my entire 27-year professional
02:14 life, I kept coming back and forth.
02:17 Made sure that my kids at least went to school here
02:20 for about five years to make them properly--
02:23 and they have schoolmates.
02:24 And that's very important, because otherwise you
02:26 grow up as a--
02:27 It's an integral part of socialization
02:29 that people often miss.
02:30 Absolutely.
02:30 And then when they've been there for so long, it's odd.
02:34 You know that thing about secondary school?
02:35 Yes.
02:36 SHS.
02:37 All of that.
02:37 Yes.
02:38 If you miss certain things, it's difficult to integrate moving
02:41 on.
02:42 I mean, I go to places and, oh, you're an old founder.
02:45 Yeah, shut up.
02:46 Give me a chance.
02:47 You know, that kind of thing, that camaraderie.
02:49 And if you don't have that, it's problematic.
02:51 It's important.
02:52 And also, it's important for people's sense of identity
02:55 to know where they come from.
02:57 And one thing that provoked this--
02:59 it's good to tell it on Founders Day--
03:02 was that we had our national football team come to Zambia.
03:06 And of course, we, the expatriates, we received them.
03:09 We made a long convoy of 50 cars, made noise,
03:12 took them to the stadium.
03:14 But we fed them for food beforehand,
03:15 and we were beating 2-1.
03:18 Even Kaunda got up to come and see who was--
03:20 how a few guys--
03:22 The legendary Kenneth Kaunda himself.
03:23 --dominate the whole stadium.
03:25 So we went home with our tails between our legs,
03:27 and it was all quiet.
03:28 In those days, it was fantastic to beat the Black Stars.
03:33 Was that before the days of--
03:35 These were the '80s.
03:36 --Kamusha Gwalior?
03:37 These were the '80s.
03:38 At that time, Kamusha was a young man.
03:41 And the next day, for having beaten Black Stars-- not
03:44 one couple, just beating Black Stars--
03:46 they gave them a float along Cairo Road,
03:49 going up and down.
03:50 People were jubilating.
03:52 And all my staff in the office went to the window
03:55 to watch the floats.
03:56 So when I came out, they all went back to their--
03:58 I said, no, go ahead.
03:59 So I went home early, only for my daughter to rush home.
04:03 Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, yesterday, we beat Ghana 2-1.
04:08 And I told my wife, it's time for her to go--
04:10 It's time for her to go to Ghana.
04:12 Now she's identifying with the Zambians.
04:15 Yes, because you identify with wherever you live, you see?
04:19 So it's very important to ground them.
04:23 And I think that sense of grounding
04:25 is good not only for the younger people, but also for ourselves.
04:29 At this stage, when there's so much confusion in the world,
04:34 all the things that we held sacred are no longer sacred.
04:38 It's good ground--
04:39 The world is almost on its head.
04:40 It's a topsy-turvy world.
04:42 Absolutely.
04:42 Now, it's almost as though everything you knew
04:45 was no longer--
04:48 it's as though the script had been flipped.
04:49 Oh, yes.
04:50 Yes.
04:50 And now you're reading things--
04:52 Yes.
04:53 The fundamentals--
04:53 The fundamentals have caught up with us.
04:55 Yeah.
04:56 The fundamentals have caught up with us.
04:57 Why that play on words?
04:59 But speaking of the fundamentals,
05:01 I was deliberately talking about how much time
05:03 you had spent in the country, because you're not one of those.
05:05 Yes, you've been out there.
05:06 But you've spent substantial lengths of years in Ghana.
05:12 Yes.
05:13 You've seen many regimes, many governments
05:17 come and go.
05:18 And I call what we see now a misleadership.
05:23 What do you see in Ghana today?
05:25 You've lived in other countries.
05:27 Comparatively, what do you see in Ghana?
05:29 And again, comparatively, with everything
05:32 we've been blessed with.
05:33 Sometimes you struggle to find what Ghana doesn't have.
05:35 Small country, yet we have everything,
05:38 from water resources, mineral resources.
05:40 Now we've even discovered lithium.
05:42 We have iron.
05:43 We have bauxite.
05:44 We have everything.
05:45 And the human resource, thankfully,
05:47 we have a large population, a youthful, vibrant population.
05:52 Yet, look at where we are.
05:54 And I have this document, Ghana at 100.
05:56 As the conversation goes on, I will
05:58 share some of what our aspirations are,
06:01 and run them by you, whether you think
06:04 these are even feasible on our trajectory.
06:06 But what do you see when you picture Ghana today?
06:08 I see a glowing ember.
06:11 A glowing ember.
06:12 Of a flame that was once bright.
06:15 But nonetheless, it is still there, glowing in the dark.
06:19 And all we need to do is reignite it.
06:23 Nation will achieve what it's supposed to achieve.
06:26 But if there is no attempt to reignite it,
06:31 then we have a problem.
06:33 Because the glowing ember will dim, and dim, and dim.
06:37 And the fewer people that see it,
06:39 the less hope they have of reigniting the nation back
06:43 on the course, to get where it's supposed to be.
06:47 Many of the people that I have been here with have left.
06:53 Some came and left.
06:54 Some came, stayed for a while--
06:56 Your contemporaries.
06:57 Yes.
06:58 Expatriates who came.
07:00 And there was a time--
07:01 I must tell you this.
07:02 There was a time when, as an expatriate community
07:06 in the diaspora, we felt Ghana was abandoned.
07:11 Then, over a period, we came to a stage
07:16 where now Ghana was ready to take off.
07:19 It was like a plane sitting on the tarmac,
07:22 waiting to be given the clearance.
07:24 Just to ready itself, yeah.
07:25 Then, slowly, slowly, slowly, the air hostesses got down.
07:31 The pilot got down.
07:33 Even the wheels of the plane were removed.
07:35 The drinks were taken to kiosks to serve people.
07:38 And the passengers began thinking,
07:40 maybe it's time to get out of the plane.
07:42 Because that time when we felt Ghana was about to take off,
07:47 that time when we felt that if you don't come here,
07:50 you'll miss out on something, that time has passed.
07:54 Now, people are telling their kids who are abroad,
07:57 don't come home.
07:58 Stay where you are.
07:59 Yeah, that's the rhetoric, though.
08:01 I mean, let's be honest.
08:01 I speak to a lot of people.
08:03 In fact, I have colleagues.
08:04 I say this all the time.
08:05 Some of my colleagues, my contemporaries,
08:08 these are doctors.
08:10 Nurses.
08:10 Yes.
08:11 Pharmacists.
08:11 Yes.
08:12 Accountants.
08:12 Yes.
08:13 Engineers.
08:13 Yes.
08:14 Who have all left the shores of Ghana.
08:15 Yes.
08:15 Sometimes they tell me, ah, Ben, you
08:19 have all these linguistic talents,
08:21 all these languages in law, toolbox, French, Spanish,
08:24 Portuguese, a bit of this and that, German.
08:27 You have law.
08:28 You have political science, international relations,
08:30 a bit of the business.
08:32 Why are you still in Ghana?
08:36 Well--
08:36 It's always difficult explaining to them.
08:39 Because in a way, they see it as a bit of,
08:42 where do you make a crack?
08:43 It's a bit of--
08:44 Well, it's--
08:44 Difficult.
08:45 No, it's not that.
08:46 I mean, when you walk into this studio,
08:48 you smell the air of patriotism.
08:50 That is why you are still here.
08:52 And the truth of the matter is, if you won't pound the fufu,
08:56 who should pound the fufu for you to come and eat it?
08:58 That's the question.
08:59 So some people have to do it.
09:01 And I think that people who have been blessed,
09:04 who have the opportunity, should invest more here.
09:08 It's very sad for me when I look at the profiles
09:12 of many countries to see that the richest people do not
09:17 invest in the productive sectors of the economy.
09:20 They rather actually keep--
09:22 safely keep the money in trading or put it outside.
09:25 We have to create the atmosphere where people invest here.
09:28 And the biggest investment that you can make in Ghana
09:32 is your children.
09:35 When you encourage your children to come back here,
09:38 and because of who they are, their name,
09:40 or the political color people have put on them,
09:43 they cannot achieve their full potential,
09:46 because they're always cramped, not given opportunities,
09:50 because of the right political coloring,
09:53 or because of the right ethnic background.
09:55 Then they begin to wonder, why am I here?
09:58 So those are the things that we have to get rid of.
10:01 And when we talk about Founders' Day,
10:03 we have to remember how we were founded.
10:05 When we were founded, we were given a sense of nationhood,
10:10 where everybody was the same.
10:12 Whatever we say about that period,
10:15 we cannot deny the fact that that first republic created
10:21 the most patriotic group of Ghanaians.
10:23 At the same time--
10:24 Unrivaled.
10:25 At the same time, it also contained the biggest
10:29 betrayals of the nation.
10:32 So this mixture is always there, and it is the yin and the yang.
10:38 And you always have to strive to make sure
10:42 that the strive for the common good
10:45 overcomes those who are working for the selfish parochial
10:50 interests.
10:50 And that is why it is very important at this time,
10:55 on this Founders' Day, to think carefully
10:58 about the kind of democracy that we have.
11:01 This is the state of our nation.
11:03 What are the prime driving factors
11:05 that have brought us there?
11:07 And we all know that it is the kind of adversarial democracy
11:12 that we chose to adopt.
11:14 Right from the foundings of this nation, people couldn't agree.
11:20 And the storyline goes that there's so much disagreement,
11:24 we have to break the pot and make it again.
11:26 So how do you carry water if you are
11:28 willing to break the pot because you don't
11:30 like the color of the pot?
11:32 And these are stories that must be told in the real context
11:37 so that people get it clear in their head
11:40 that it is never a good idea to break the pot from which you
11:44 drink just because you have a disagreement.
11:48 All around us now, we see fires, Burdina, Mali, Niger, et
11:55 cetera.
11:57 Why is this happening?
12:00 Why are people choosing to re-break the nation?
12:05 And that's an interesting bit because it
12:08 started in the '60s post-Ghana's independence.
12:10 It stopped for a while.
12:11 1866, February the 24th.
12:15 And then there was a bit of a-- you know, there was a trend.
12:18 And it stopped.
12:18 I mean, up to the '80s, these things were still happening.
12:21 Then that was cut.
12:22 It started again.
12:23 And then it appears across the swathes of countries
12:26 across the continent started adopting democratic--
12:29 Yes.
12:30 --dispensation.
12:30 Yes.
12:31 Subscribing to the ideals of democracy.
12:33 Yes.
12:33 And then all of a sudden, it has started again.
12:35 It tells you that the people have lost something.
12:37 That democracy has failed us.
12:40 Democracy has failed us.
12:40 That the kind of democracy we have chosen to practice
12:44 has failed us.
12:45 Why?
12:46 It has led to exclusion.
12:49 It has led to disempowerment of the masses.
12:53 It has led to a very extremely partisan society
12:59 and polarized society.
13:01 And it has led to the cultivation
13:04 of an elite political class who have an entrenched self
13:07 interest in the preservation of the status quo,
13:10 thereby eliminating possibilities
13:14 for a change in the status quo through the democratic process.
13:17 And when that happens, it becomes like a volcano
13:21 where there are no dikes.
13:23 It's only the central chamber.
13:26 Democracy is like the dikes in a volcano.
13:28 When the pressure builds up, it divests it into the dikes.
13:32 But when there are no dikes and the dikes are all blocked,
13:35 it blows the top of the mountain off.
13:38 And that is a process that whether you like it or not
13:42 will happen.
13:43 And we have to think of our society
13:46 as human beings in a laboratory.
13:49 Just like you have physical reactions, chemical reactions,
13:53 you have social reactions.
13:55 If the society is managed in a certain way
13:57 and frustrations are pent up and opportunities are denied,
14:02 and there is an elite class suppressing
14:04 the rest of the people, then of course,
14:06 you'll get certain reactions.
14:07 It's a standard.
14:08 It happens everywhere.
14:09 It doesn't matter about the color of the people.
14:11 It doesn't matter about their ideology, et cetera.
14:14 And these are--
14:15 That was a reaction we saw with the Arab Spring.
14:17 Yes.
14:17 Those are some of the reactions you're
14:18 seeing in other African countries.
14:19 Absolutely.
14:20 So these are things that we should reflect on deeply
14:23 on Founders Day.
14:24 Where are we?
14:26 What is the pressure in the nation?
14:29 Are we giving the right kind of vents for these pressures
14:32 to be released?
14:33 Are we creating opportunities for other people
14:35 to feel included?
14:37 And is the political system delivering?
14:39 Or has it just become a dance in the park?
14:42 Before I move on to Dr. Asaas Sumaila Muhammad,
14:45 he's a development expert at the UDS.
14:47 Before I get to him, just on something you said,
14:49 I want you to quickly talk about it.
14:51 You say democracy has failed.
14:53 I said the kind of democracy that we are practicing
14:55 has failed us.
14:56 OK.
14:57 Because we know of that ideal democracy of the people,
15:00 by the people, for the people.
15:01 The question is, is it of the people, really?
15:03 Is it by the people?
15:04 Exactly.
15:04 Is it for the people?
15:05 But I'll ask you then, if not democracy, then what?
15:08 Well, this is why we have to redefine--
15:12 you see, it's not a question of democracy or something else.
15:16 If the kind of democracy you're practicing has failed you,
15:19 that is a very partisan democracy,
15:22 creating this elite, then you have
15:24 to redefine that democracy so that it works for all of us
15:29 and not just for a few of us.
15:31 And the only way of doing that in a proper legal manner
15:35 within a democratic society is to pursue the legislative route.
15:40 We have to make sure that people are sent to parliament,
15:43 not to represent parties, but to represent people.
15:46 So we have to start building a cadre
15:49 of independent parliamentary candidates
15:52 that can go to parliament as independent parliamentary
15:55 candidates on a reform agenda and fight for that agenda
15:59 tooth and nail.
16:01 And if, as you have seen in this particular dispensation,
16:05 just one MP is able to hold sway in parliament,
16:09 can you imagine what five seasoned, substantive,
16:13 self-made parliamentarians will do in a parliament that
16:18 is very close?
16:20 Can you imagine the agendas that they will change?
16:23 But if we all put this aside and every day people
16:27 are running up the ramp wanting to achieve the presidential,
16:30 wanting to achieve the presidential and falling back,
16:33 then nothing is going on at the parliamentary.
16:36 And that is the beginning of the place
16:38 where we need to redefine the democracy.
16:41 So as we are going into this election,
16:44 I am hoping that we will have a body of people that
16:49 are thinking critically about how we redefine this democracy
16:53 through seeking a group of independent parliamentary
16:57 candidates, self-made people, you and me,
17:00 people committed to a reform agenda,
17:03 and so that we can have the kind of reforms we want.
17:07 Listen, it will not be overnight.
17:09 Anybody who promises you that there will be a substantive
17:13 overnight change has smoked something this morning,
17:17 you and me, unless of the kind that we don't want.
17:21 But if we begin the process as a journey that will take time,
17:26 but we will achieve significant results step by step.
17:31 You see, the journey of 1,000 miles begins with one step.
17:35 And the fact of the matter is that going quickly
17:38 in the wrong direction is much worse than going slowly
17:42 in the right direction.
17:44 Interesting words, food for thought.
17:46 Let me bring in Dr. Asa Somaila-Mohammed.
17:49 We're also joined by Dr. Asa Santé.
17:51 And he is a political scientist and head
17:55 of the Center for European Studies
17:57 at the University of Ghana.
17:58 But to you, Dr. Asa Somaila-Mohammed,
18:01 this fourth Republican experiment--
18:03 we've had the first Republic, second Republic,
18:06 third Republic.
18:07 Now this is the fourth Republic, the longest we have had,
18:11 uninterrupted.
18:13 What do you make of it?
18:14 Has the fourth Republic delivered?
18:17 And on a day like this, when we celebrate for me,
18:20 the Osada for Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and the others,
18:24 because there were even women who aided this cause,
18:28 and some people spilled their blood.
18:31 We say Nkrumah never dies, but I'm
18:34 putting it practically to you.
18:36 Nkrumah's dream for Ghana, I think, is dead in the water.
18:42 And some people subscribe to that.
18:44 So does Nkrumah live on after all?
18:46 I know Dr. Abusakar Afosa will have a take on that,
18:49 but that will be later.
18:50 To you now, Dr. Asa.
18:59 You would have to unmute, sir.
19:01 OK, sorry.
19:05 Yeah, so good morning, and then happy Founders' Day to all,
19:08 and my senior, Dr. Kwame Asante.
19:12 And all--
19:13 Morning, sir.
19:15 Good.
19:16 Very interesting day, and a very interesting topic.
19:19 I think we have been discussing this issue for a very long time
19:24 now.
19:24 And then the purpose of our discussions
19:26 has always been bordered on the challenges
19:29 that we, as a nation, we have not
19:32 been able to do the right thing to become a nation.
19:36 I've always tried to go a little to political science
19:40 and proper work, correct me.
19:44 But at independence, the two things that you achieve
19:48 is sovereignty and power to control your resources.
19:54 And we're in the hands of the colonialists,
19:57 who by the purpose of colonialism,
20:00 came and then conquered us in our minds
20:03 and in our administration, and controlled our resources.
20:08 And that was the purpose of colonialism,
20:10 to extract and then go and build their nations.
20:14 We thought at the point, led by our founders,
20:18 and then the leaders of our country,
20:21 and then being masterminded by Kwame Nkrumah,
20:24 that we needed to stop that.
20:25 Because we, as human beings on Earth,
20:28 also thought that it was important to control
20:30 our resources and have an identity.
20:34 And that identity that we now call Ghana
20:37 was to make us proud that we belong
20:42 to a section of the world.
20:45 And therefore, we can control our resources
20:48 and develop ourselves.
20:51 Now, after independence, the purpose of independence
20:55 is where we are now struggling for.
20:58 Yes, the founders of this nation,
21:00 and led by the ideals of Kwame Nkrumah, got it right.
21:04 That after independence, you needed to change the ideology
21:07 of the people in this country.
21:10 And then, Amyong probably did not have the opportunity
21:13 to attend those ideological institute,
21:16 but we had, and those ideological institutes
21:19 were there to establish and then imbibe in the citizens
21:24 the culture of citizenship and the sense of ownership
21:29 of that sovereign nation that we acquired from the colonials.
21:34 That particular moment was the moment
21:37 that we needed to continue.
21:39 The longevity of that period was the challenge.
21:43 We were not able to elongate the process
21:46 of inculcating into the citizens
21:48 to have that feeling and ownership of the nation.
21:53 Now, somebody asked me some way,
21:56 "Does anything called Ghana exist in us?"
21:59 That question is a bit quite tricky.
22:03 When you wake up in the morning,
22:06 and then they say, or somebody say,
22:08 "You have worn a jacket, $1 million."
22:11 Not to go into the one that was found in the bed somewhere.
22:15 "Well, $1 million."
22:16 And they ask you, "What will you do with it?"
22:19 Many Ghanaians will not mention to pay tax.
22:22 You will probably go straight to buying a house
22:26 in the UK or in Europe.
22:28 That is where we are getting it wrong.
22:32 Now, the state is our own.
22:36 Then understanding of what is Ghana among Ghanaians,
22:41 we have a challenge.
22:43 Because one, if you say you are a Ghanaian,
22:46 it means that you own the Ghana.
22:49 If anybody is found to be stealing money from Ghana,
22:52 you'll be angry with that person,
22:54 even if it's your father or your mother.
22:56 Because collectively, we have contributed
22:59 to gather that resources,
23:00 whether from sale of our gold, diamond,
23:03 forest resources, or oil,
23:06 or any source of funds that comes into this country.
23:09 It's for we Ghanaians.
23:10 But unfortunately, we don't have that in mind.
23:13 So if somebody is found to be corrupt,
23:14 and then he's stealing money,
23:16 and then you are the beneficiary of it,
23:18 you say, "Hallelujah."
23:19 So unfortunately, the ownership of the state
23:25 or the nation called Ghana is seen more as an abstract,
23:29 but not a reality.
23:31 And that's where we are getting it problematic
23:33 in our current practice of democracy.
23:36 Because it is like winner take all.
23:37 So if you are able to win power,
23:39 then you have absolute control of the resources,
23:43 and you will now decide what you want to do with it
23:46 among your cronies.
23:48 - It's like they'll teach you in political science.
23:50 There's this, I think Dr. Asa Asante
23:52 will be able to get it for me,
23:54 who says, "Then you get to determine who gets what,
23:57 "when, and how."
23:58 - When and how.
23:59 - How, exactly.
24:00 - How it lasts well.
24:01 - Yes, lasts well.
24:03 - And yes, and it continues like that.
24:07 So now the question is,
24:08 I share a simple experience
24:12 that has guided my thoughts for a very long time.
24:15 I worked more with the NGOs in the past,
24:18 with Care International, with the EU,
24:20 and a number of MA programs.
24:22 And there was one particular incident.
24:24 I visited a colleague.
24:27 He was, I mean, he came to Ghana.
24:29 I, at the time, I did my national service
24:33 at KwaTka International Airport.
24:36 And I had access to going to the arrival, departure.
24:41 And this particular time he came,
24:45 and then he came with some two phones.
24:47 When he came with the two phones,
24:49 I was able to go to the KwaTka International Airport.
24:52 And then with my relationship there,
24:55 I got him out with the phones.
24:57 Apparently he was bringing the phones for his girlfriend.
24:59 What did I do?
25:01 I aided him to evade tax.
25:03 Is that not so?
25:05 This same person, I went to Denmark.
25:08 This same person that I visited in Denmark
25:12 were to take a train, sorry, a tram, rather,
25:15 from one point to the other.
25:16 In fact, we got it wrong.
25:18 We didn't buy the full ticket.
25:19 So we bought a ticket.
25:20 And when we got there, he said,
25:21 "No, we needed to go to the next stop."
25:24 Then I said, "Oh, then we just move to the next stop."
25:25 He said, "No, we need to buy the ticket again.
25:28 Because if you don't do that, the trains cannot run."
25:30 You know what he was telling me?
25:33 That I was stupid and I was really a stupid man.
25:36 I felt stupid at that particular moment
25:38 because I never protected Ghana when he was in Ghana.
25:42 So that is nuts.
25:45 And among a lot of us,
25:47 you have been given the responsibility
25:49 to guide how much gold is taken from Ghana.
25:52 They give you a V8 and then $100,000.
25:56 And it's enough to allow the mining company
25:59 to under declare how much gold is taken from Ghana.
26:02 And that is what is happening.
26:03 I don't think we debate about this.
26:06 - Oh no, we shouldn't.
26:07 Because I mean, there have been times
26:09 when even one country like India or the UAE will say,
26:13 "This is what we got from Ghana by way of gold in a year."
26:17 And yet our total year exports of gold to the whole world
26:21 will not amount to that.
26:22 So you ask yourself, where did it go?
26:24 - Where did they get it?
26:26 So these are the things.
26:27 So I'm saying that at independence,
26:29 the power that was given to us
26:31 or the power that we received from the colonialists
26:33 was to allow us to have control of our resources
26:36 and our destiny.
26:37 And that's why along the line,
26:38 we started thinking about what they call it,
26:41 decentralization.
26:43 Started thinking of development planning.
26:45 We instituted a National Development Planning Commission.
26:47 So we're able to plan our resources
26:50 so that we'll have a destiny.
26:52 Now you ask the question,
26:53 I was in a conference in Germany about four years ago.
26:58 And you know what?
26:59 We're thinking about how Germany can plan their energy
27:03 in 200 years.
27:04 - 200 years?
27:07 - 200 years.
27:09 - And just a few years ago,
27:10 when we were talking about planning for 40 years,
27:12 we were told we are looking too far into the future.
27:15 - Exactly.
27:16 And let me just tell you the business for that.
27:18 Now, Germany at a point has been relying
27:21 on what we call lignite.
27:24 Lignite is the next stage to coal
27:27 in the formation of the hydrocarbon.
27:30 Now, lignite, if you take, let's say,
27:32 one room full of lignite,
27:34 you get the same energy like one bucket full of coal.
27:37 Now, Germany had been mining the lignite
27:42 and they realized that if they allowed the lignite
27:45 to stay there, in the next 200 years time,
27:48 it will turn to coal.
27:49 So if you go to Europe and in Germany in particular,
27:52 you see them having a lot of alternative energy.
27:55 And that's why this Russia-Ukraine issue
27:58 and in Germany, you understand that Germany
28:01 will not really push far
28:04 because they rely a lot on Russia for gas,
28:08 which is another source of energy.
28:10 But apart from that,
28:11 they have a lot of alternative energy sources
28:13 like wind and everything.
28:14 Now, what are they thinking about?
28:16 200 years for the sovereignty of Germany
28:20 to become dominant in the energy sector in the world.
28:24 Now, Russia is controlling the world
28:26 because they have power of their resources.
28:29 Now, at independence, what did we do?
28:33 We initiated all this.
28:34 Nkrumah tried it.
28:35 Nkrumah said, "Look, the independence of Ghana is meaningless
28:40 unless it's linked up to a total,
28:42 what do you call it?
28:43 - Liberation of the African continent.
28:44 - Because Africa, naturally, by gas creation,
28:49 is endowed with a lot of resources.
28:52 And therefore, Africa needed not to go anywhere
28:54 to look for any alternative energy.
28:58 Unfortunately, we are going around
28:59 looking for alternative energy.
29:01 The River Congo was going to give us a lot of power.
29:05 But even within Ghana, look at the plants Nkrumah had.
29:09 The bui had no power.
29:10 Look how long it took before we constructed the bui.
29:12 Another alternative one at Palgu,
29:15 we are playing chess with it
29:18 and then playing football with it.
29:19 And today, no funding, tomorrow, no funding.
29:22 Meanwhile, every day, every year,
29:24 we complain, next month, we start complaining
29:26 about the Bagra Dam spillage.
29:28 So the question is, do we have an agenda
29:31 as a group of people to also dominate
29:33 another group of people?
29:34 That's another point I want to come in.
29:37 In the development history and development theories,
29:39 what we come to realize is that any country
29:43 that is developed or is in the path of development
29:46 have always thought of also dominating another person.
29:49 Just think about it.
29:50 Any nation that is seen today as powerful
29:55 has at point in time led by its people,
29:58 visionary people, thought of also dominating another country
30:01 in terms of resources.
30:04 Britain did it, and that was the theory of colonialism.
30:07 Why did they go to colonize Africa
30:10 or other parts of the world?
30:12 They moved from the theory of mercantilism.
30:13 They were doing merchant businesses
30:16 and then they were going around.
30:17 They realized that while they were going around selling,
30:19 they mentioned that they sold other resources
30:22 in other countries.
30:24 And therefore, they realized that those countries
30:25 were weak in terms of culture
30:27 and they can change ideologies.
30:29 So they started coming in with the theory of what?
30:31 Colonialism, which was powered by anthropology.
30:36 - Because-- - Doc, I'm sorry
30:39 I have to do this, but because we also have
30:41 a bit of a time situation, just round up
30:44 so that I can also bring in Dr. Kwame Asasante.
30:47 Okay, so what I'm trying to say is that a group of people
30:52 decided to look for independence.
30:56 The purpose was clear, that you can have control
30:58 of your resources and then have agenda
31:01 for your generations to come.
31:03 So that your generations will also become powerful
31:05 and respected in the world.
31:07 Unfortunately, after achieving the independence,
31:09 the generations or those who took over after Kwame Nkrumah
31:14 thought that Ghana was not a place to live their lives.
31:17 So a lot of politicians come and take the money
31:20 and rather find their way in Europe and America
31:22 to go and have their homes.
31:23 That ideology of seeing Ghana as a place to go and harvest
31:27 and go somewhere to live is where we are today.
31:30 - Let me now bring in Dr. Kwame Asasante.
31:35 I would like your take on the fourth Republican experiment
31:39 and that tag, Nkrumah never dies,
31:43 but I am positing this morning that with the death,
31:47 maybe physically we remember him,
31:48 but with the death of his dream for Ghana,
31:51 maybe that dream is dead in the water
31:56 and maybe with Nkrumah together with it.
31:59 What are your quick thoughts on that?
32:00 Because I want quick reflections
32:02 and then I'll take you into the Ghana at 100 document
32:05 so that all of us can get into it.
32:08 Many people don't have this.
32:10 They don't know what even the plan is.
32:12 But if this is our plan and we find ourselves where we are,
32:15 how do we get there?
32:16 Like Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, how do we do it?
32:19 So let's start with the fourth Republican experiment
32:22 and whether Nkrumah's dream is still alive.
32:24 - Men, good morning to you
32:35 and good morning to your viewers.
32:40 (indistinct)
32:43 Is it okay?
32:45 - It's okay now.
32:46 It was patchy at first, but it was halting.
32:49 - Can you hear me?
32:49 - Yes, go ahead.
32:50 - Right.
32:51 Good morning to you
32:52 and good morning to my colleague, Dr. Asa,
32:54 very close colleague
32:56 and then the rest of your viewers.
33:04 I must say that I support
33:07 and I acknowledge the place of Nkrumah
33:10 in the life of Ghana.
33:11 Nkrumah, the statement that Nkrumah never dies
33:14 is not (indistinct)
33:17 of what Nkrumah was and continue to remain
33:28 in the house of this country.
33:30 I have no doubt in my mind.
33:32 But before I throw into this conversation
33:35 about the Founders Day,
33:36 it is a beautiful concept,
33:37 but I think that I acknowledge
33:40 the immense contribution of Nkrumah
33:42 and how far he has brought us.
33:45 There's no doubt.
33:45 And his contribution can never be shown under the carpet.
33:48 But there are others who also contributed same
33:51 towards the cause of what freedom
33:55 and the cause of building a better society
33:57 for ourselves that we call today the modern Ghana.
34:00 Can't make mention of a few people
34:06 because time will not permit us
34:07 to go through the whole gamut
34:09 of all those who contributed.
34:11 But one of the peoples whose contribution
34:13 must be recognized and acknowledged
34:15 by the people of this country is King Agri,
34:17 who was a King of Cape Coast,
34:18 who stood his ground firm that he will not allow
34:21 the British to have their way in what Cape Coast,
34:25 that the Cape Coast belonged to what the Fante people,
34:28 nothing more, nothing less,
34:29 thing for independence.
34:30 And of course, a better Ghana one day.
34:33 This person was grabbed, taken to Sierra Leone,
34:36 man hanged out and they brought him only
34:39 for him to come and die.
34:40 Nobody has acknowledged King Agri.
34:42 It's unfortunate.
34:44 And if this country want to make sure
34:46 that people emulate their leaders
34:48 and contribute their quota effectively
34:51 towards the building of this country,
34:53 people like Agri must be what?
34:55 Acknowledged.
34:56 People like Mr. Abun- - Just a quick point.
34:59 - Who organized a lot of people.
35:02 - Just a quick point.
35:02 I just wanted to say that does acknowledging them
35:05 necessarily mean we must have founders
35:07 with an S and all of that?
35:09 There are, look at places like China,
35:11 look at many other jurisdictions.
35:13 They celebrate one person.
35:14 It's not to say that it is that one person
35:17 who, I mean, gave birth to everything
35:19 and that everything is around that person.
35:21 But in this context, it's been,
35:23 the picture has been painted that some people
35:26 brought in Crowbar into the country and all of that.
35:28 And so some of these things are happening
35:30 and some of these things cannot be overlooked.
35:32 I was mentioning earlier, Doc,
35:33 that even there were women who supported,
35:36 women, they are rarely acknowledged,
35:38 who supported through their money,
35:40 through different industrial mechanisms,
35:43 the cause of independence, yet they are not celebrated.
35:46 I mean, we could, then the list would be endless.
35:49 - There is a need not to celebrate them.
35:55 My whole conversation is that,
35:57 however small the contribution of others,
36:00 it must be acknowledged.
36:01 That is important.
36:02 So we are saying that when we single out Nkrumah,
36:05 and then it becomes a little of a difficulty,
36:07 even though acknowledge the immense contribution
36:10 of Kwame Nkrumah towards the building of,
36:12 you know, in the modern Ghana.
36:13 I have no doubts in my mind,
36:14 but I want the same to be extended
36:17 to others who also contributed,
36:19 such as what Nii Kwabena Boni.
36:20 - Doc, are you done with that submission?
36:30 Okay, the connection is frozen.
36:32 So we'll try to reconnect.
36:33 Maybe if we can get him on the phone,
36:35 I don't know which would work better.
36:37 But Dr. Asa, Dr. Abusakara Foster, let me read.
36:41 So Ghana is 66.
36:43 In 2057, 34 years time, we'll be 100.
36:48 Imagine a 100-year-old Dr. Abusakara Foster,
36:51 100-year-old Dr. Asa Sumaila Mohammed,
36:54 100-year-old Dr. Asa Asante,
36:55 100-year-old Benjamin Akaku.
36:58 What would you aspire to?
36:59 What would you have wanted to maybe have achieved
37:01 as a person?
37:02 And then let's put it side by side
37:04 with the portrait of Ghana.
37:05 This is a document I'm reading from the NDPC, among others,
37:09 and following through the Fourth Republic,
37:11 what the plan should be.
37:13 Now pay attention.
37:14 By 2057, the document says,
37:17 it is envisioned that Ghana will be a high-income country
37:20 with the following minimum characteristics.
37:23 This is the bottom line.
37:25 One, self-confident citizens with high standards
37:28 of patriotism, anchored and disciplined, good work ethic,
37:32 who put the welfare of country about self-interest.
37:35 Two, nominal GDP of approximately, this will get you,
37:41 $3.4 trillion, and per capita GDP
37:46 of no less than $50,000 equivalent.
37:48 Resilient, service-oriented, industrialized,
37:51 and globally competitive economy.
37:54 A business and financial hub
37:55 in the West African sub-region.
37:57 Modernized agriculture, minimal income disparities,
38:00 robust pension schemes, affordable and diversified,
38:04 I'm just truncating some of them, energy supply.
38:07 And this one really got me interested.
38:10 Effective, efficient, dynamic, and inclusive institutions
38:15 that ensure accountability, integrity, and transparency
38:18 with negligible levels of corruption.
38:21 This is nine out of the 18 that are listed.
38:25 - Well, what do you think?
38:26 - First of all, when we talk about Ghana at 100,
38:30 it's really not about us.
38:32 It's about our successor generations
38:35 and what life will be like for them.
38:38 And it is our opportunity now to make that life
38:42 as good for them as possible at that time.
38:45 So the decisions that we make now
38:48 is really what will be reflected there.
38:50 And therefore, in looking at this vision
38:54 for Ghana at 100, which is really a plan,
38:58 the question then is, where are we now?
39:01 What are the things we are aspiring to?
39:03 And what is stopping us from getting there?
39:05 And how can we make up that gap?
39:08 The fact of the matter is that some of the targets
39:12 that you have mentioned are clearly now not achievable.
39:16 Because if you have--
39:17 - If you look at our GDP now--
39:18 - If you have a GDP of 80 something billion--
39:20 - It is less than, it's about 2.9% of what this figure is.
39:24 - Yeah, so how do you make that gap?
39:26 If in 66 years it has taken you that time
39:30 to get to 80 billion, how do you then jump
39:33 in 40 years to trillions?
39:35 - 34 billion, exactly.
39:36 - So that is a big issue.
39:38 And what have you done now to lay the foundation
39:42 for you to make those jumps?
39:44 Other issues related to welfare of people, et cetera.
39:48 If now we see that most of the economy is outside
39:53 the formal sector, how much of it will be coming
39:58 into the formal sector so that all that planning
40:01 actually is addressing things?
40:03 Instead of you making plans, that is not addressing
40:06 the larger body of things outside it.
40:08 So that is also important.
40:11 If you talk about inclusiveness, we have drifted
40:16 towards a situation, a democracy in which a lot
40:19 of people are excluded.
40:20 You only go to cast your vote.
40:22 And essentially people are saying, look,
40:24 they're not even interested in voting anymore
40:26 because it makes no difference.
40:28 Of course, we can't have a democracy
40:29 which survives like that.
40:31 We have to rekindle it and open avenues
40:34 so that people feel that, you know,
40:36 my vote is worth something.
40:38 Even if it is just on MPs who are able to hammer
40:43 on your particular cause and get it heard in Parliament.
40:48 Now, these are things that we need to orchestrate.
40:53 If we don't orchestrate them, it is not going to happen.
40:57 Okay, and there has to be the commitment to do it.
41:00 And there has to be the resolve to do it.
41:03 That resolve is not seen when we are steeped in corruption.
41:07 That resolve is not seen when we are steeped
41:11 in an electoral process that is driven by money.
41:14 That resolve is not seen when you have a system
41:18 that excludes so many people from poor backgrounds.
41:21 God does not distribute brains according to the money
41:25 in the parents' bank accounts.
41:27 He endows each person with his own opportunity.
41:31 And when a country is not tapping the brains
41:34 of its poorer people, it is losing out a lot
41:37 because you don't know who is going to be
41:39 the next Einstein.
41:40 - Yeah, and that is the whole point.
41:42 Let me bring in Dr. Asante back into the conversation,
41:45 even as I also walk through some others that are put here
41:49 for that we can aspire to.
41:52 Efficient, affordable, and equitable first-class
41:55 social services at all levels.
41:56 Social services, low levels of unemployment
41:59 and underemployment with decent work opportunities for all.
42:03 Maximum application of science, technology,
42:05 and innovation in every facet of society.
42:08 And let me leave this for now.
42:10 Sustainably managed land, forest, water, air,
42:13 and biological resources.
42:15 Now look at our water bodies.
42:16 Look at Galamsey and what it's doing to us.
42:18 Dr. Kwame Asante, back to you now on the phone.
42:21 - Yes, I want to take the opportunity to deal
42:26 with the first part you put to me,
42:28 but because of network challenges.
42:29 Can I come to it quickly before I--
42:31 - Yes, very quickly, doc.
42:32 - Right, if you look at the question of the fourth republic
42:36 and how far we have come in terms of the ideas
42:40 or the aspirations of those who founded Ghana, right?
42:45 I can say without fear of contradiction
42:47 that we have deviated from what the founders
42:51 set for this country.
42:52 We're looking for two main things,
42:54 political freedom, economic freedom,
42:57 and then to the box up with what social freedom.
43:00 Let's look at the issue of political freedom.
43:03 Yes, issue of what freedom is a very difficult commodity
43:08 to come by in this country.
43:11 We pay lip service.
43:14 Our actions and our inactions point to the fact
43:18 that we are not ready to allow freedom
43:21 to exist in this country.
43:23 There have been all manner of efforts that we have done
43:27 through what COVID and OBEC means
43:30 to prevent people from enjoying the freedom
43:33 that they're forefathered and envisaged for this country.
43:36 Issue of justice, is it something
43:40 that we can be proud of in this country?
43:43 We have tough challenges if you read the literature
43:46 from what the King Tongues and all that.
43:48 Yes, justice we have, but with some difficulties.
43:52 How far have we done or contributed
43:55 to dealing with this problem?
43:57 Issue of governance, it's a problem
44:00 that you have leaders who are arrogating to themselves
44:04 all powers, powers that they even don't have.
44:06 Where constitution prescribe them from
44:09 or prevent them from exercising certain type of powers
44:12 and all that.
44:13 They move beyond this because the constitution
44:16 is tailor made for them and they do what it pleases them.
44:20 Issue of what, privilege and accountability
44:23 because within the political freedom,
44:25 we're looking at what issue of what privilege
44:28 and accountability.
44:28 We've made it work, fine, document that is a constitution.
44:32 And if you look at the preamble of the constitution,
44:35 privilege is part of what the preamble,
44:38 but are we ready for privilege?
44:40 Are we ready for accountability and all that?
44:42 Anytime people take on people who hold political power,
44:46 there's a conversation is that it's from opposition
44:50 and it's from people who are disgruntled
44:52 and the rest of them.
44:53 But issue of what human rights,
44:56 do we have that the ability for people to develop,
44:59 to become the best of themselves for the society?
45:02 Is that a case that we have here?
45:03 There are people anytime it rains,
45:06 they have no place to lay their head,
45:08 but it's a basic human right, the right to shelter.
45:12 People don't have water to drink.
45:14 And from the fourth Republic up to date,
45:16 there are a lot of places like that.
45:17 People go and fetch water at places where animals
45:20 also go to drink water.
45:21 - Right, right.
45:22 - For exercise.
45:23 So all, look at that.
45:25 Look at the economic freedom.
45:27 Is that what we, our leaders envisage for us?
45:30 We envisage a society where we'll be able to put
45:34 all our resources together and manage in such a way
45:37 that it will improve the lives of people.
45:39 What are we seeing?
45:40 We have to move on from that time and then going down
45:45 on the line of what poverty, we are in abject poverty.
45:49 Issue of the economy has never been very strong
45:53 for this country and then it has affected means
45:56 of livelihood for people.
45:57 Look at the young people parading the streets of Ghana
46:00 without jobs and all that we hear from government
46:03 is nothing but rhetoric and banning the whole place
46:07 of all figures that do not make sense to anybody.
46:10 - Right.
46:10 - The issue of what, you know, development, all right?
46:15 A government will come to us, develop a plan
46:17 that will help us to what?
46:19 Chart a path of development.
46:21 It will be thrown away in the name of what?
46:23 Only for political expediency and all that.
46:26 Are we doing a service to the dreams and aspiration
46:29 of what our forefathers?
46:31 Is it the case?
46:32 I strongly believe that it's not the case.
46:35 - Let me just do this.
46:38 I mean, our time has basically run out, but as we conclude,
46:42 and I'll start with you, Dr. Asa,
46:45 when you look at the vision again, it couches it.
46:47 Ghana, the rising star, Ghana at 100 vision,
46:50 democratic, inclusive, self-reliant development country
46:53 by 2057.
46:54 There are four pillars, and these are the pillars.
46:57 Government, peace, and security pillar.
46:59 I will not elaborate.
47:01 Economic pillar, you can imagine what will be under that.
47:04 Social pillar, and then environmental pillar
47:07 to, you know, protect our environment
47:09 and ensure that it is managed in a sustainable way.
47:12 What do you see currently, and how do we improve it
47:17 in simple terms to make Ghana that Krabeshe,
47:20 that land of promise that we all want it to be?
47:23 Dr. Asa, so I think I'll apportion it a minute
47:26 to each of you, and we can wrap up.
47:29 Obviously, this is a conversation
47:30 that we'll always have a lot more time for.
47:33 Dr. Asa Asmaila.
47:34 Again, you have to unmute.
47:39 - I would say as the Germans did,
47:45 after the Germans broke up and then united,
47:48 and then after they lost the Second World War,
47:50 they told themselves that they've lost the war.
47:53 They admitted that they lost the war,
47:55 and that was the beginning of the reconstruction of Germany.
47:59 And then it's from 1994 up to date when they united,
48:02 Germany is the largest economy in Europe.
48:04 At a point in time, we have to agree that we have failed.
48:08 We have a lot of challenges in our development,
48:11 our trajectory, and an agenda.
48:13 Let us pause.
48:14 Let us restart the thinking and then the conversation.
48:18 Let us agree that we have made a lot of mistakes.
48:22 Let's pause and point out where we have made the mistakes
48:25 and correct ourselves and start.
48:27 I don't think Ghana is for we those living today.
48:30 It's for the future and the future to come.
48:33 Let us create the opportunity for the future,
48:37 I mean, citizens to come and take over
48:39 as Nkurumanko did.
48:41 We, at the point, truncated the agenda,
48:44 and then we are at where we are today.
48:46 And in doing so, one of the key things
48:49 I think we have to understand is that--
48:51 - Gentlemen, one minute, please.
48:52 So try and manage the time.
48:55 One minute, so try and manage.
48:56 - And give us the other resources
48:57 that you made mention of.
48:59 Let's see how best we can judiciously use them.
49:02 Don't let strangers come and steal our gold
49:05 and then pollute our water.
49:06 You talk about environment and all this we need to look at.
49:09 One important, I cannot stop without saying,
49:13 is to reduce the expensive democracy that we are running.
49:17 To be frank with you, the troubles that we have today
49:21 are as a result of the fact that people spend so much
49:23 to get to power, and then they must steal the state's
49:25 resources to pay back their loans
49:27 or whatever they got their money from.
49:29 So people go to work in public service
49:32 as ministers or political appointees,
49:35 not because they love Ghana,
49:37 but because they have seen that it's an opportunity
49:39 to make money. - Right.
49:40 - People who by their individual selves
49:43 who now raise a thousand Ghana cities,
49:46 today are raising millions of dollars.
49:49 I don't think they are getting those money from anywhere.
49:51 What you and I will need to use to solve all the problems
49:54 that we have talked about, the youth unemployment
49:56 and all those ones, creating all the jobs and all that.
49:58 How can you allow one person to make that money?
50:02 You know what the person is doing?
50:03 - Okay, Natasha.
50:04 Thank you.
50:06 I see your passion, but we have to end it at some point.
50:09 But I think we get the thrust of what you're saying.
50:11 Dr. Musa Kara-Foster, interestingly,
50:13 he talks about future generations.
50:15 In Norway, they have a fund, I think since the '90s,
50:17 that has been there for future generations,
50:19 the oil resources and all of that.
50:22 They are thinking of the future.
50:23 Here, even the future, we are destroying now.
50:26 Your last words.
50:27 - Well, we have to accept that as a successor generation
50:34 to the founders, we have not lived up to expectations.
50:39 We have fallen far behind the expected schedule.
50:42 The reasons for this are clear to us.
50:47 We have been willful, self-indulgent,
50:50 and at the end of the day,
50:53 concerned only with self-gratification now.
50:57 Those things don't make a patriotic nation build.
51:00 Whether you call it ideology A or ideology B,
51:06 they are wracked with indiscipline, theft,
51:10 and a lack of ability to stick at the job.
51:16 Now, what we must do now, you, the younger generation,
51:21 those of us who are now 60s,
51:24 we have only 20% shares left in the company called Ghana.
51:28 But most of you get to our 80s.
51:32 Those of you who are younger,
51:34 who have the majority shareholding
51:37 in the company called Ghana,
51:40 stop asking the older people what to do with it.
51:43 You are the majority shareholders.
51:45 Take a grip and make sure
51:47 that we change the trajectory of this Ghana.
51:50 And we do it using the democracy we have,
51:53 but fighting very hard to make sure that the legislation,
51:58 the legislature, performs its duty.
52:01 So more of you should get into Parliament,
52:04 not on the backs of political parties
52:07 where you'll be whipped into line
52:08 with whatever the executive wants,
52:10 but go there as independents, community representatives.
52:15 Talk to the people, convince them that we are ready.
52:18 - Okay, okay.
52:20 Interesting, very interesting thoughts you've shared.
52:23 I'll wrap with you, Dr. Asa Asante.
52:24 You also have a minute,
52:25 and then we draw the curtains on the conversation.
52:27 - When you look at the few thematic areas you gave us,
52:32 at governance, economic, independence,
52:36 a issue of-
52:37 - Social and then environment.
52:39 - And then environment.
52:40 I will want to look at it this way,
52:42 that you need the ABC of all.
52:46 One is the accountability,
52:48 that having all the ideas, the dreams,
52:50 and our creations and all that,
52:52 you need leaders must be accountable for what they do.
52:56 That whatever they do, one day they have to account.
52:59 Once we begin to have that firmly placed in our mind,
53:03 we begin to work at it,
53:05 and the end result will be what?
53:07 Efficiency and productivity.
53:09 We need it.
53:10 So, governance aspect,
53:12 need to get all the basics right,
53:14 and then make sure that we are accountable.
53:17 We are accountable.
53:18 The B is what?
53:19 Getting all the basics of all that we are talking.
53:22 Basis of governance, the right formula is there
53:25 for everybody to see.
53:27 We choose the one that will work,
53:29 and this part of what?
53:30 Getting the basics right,
53:32 and then for what?
53:33 The economy, for social, and then for environment.
53:37 And then what?
53:37 The C is that we must be consistent of what we are doing,
53:41 with the hope of what?
53:43 Realizing our vision.
53:44 Once we get this ABC what?
53:47 Right through all these automatic areas,
53:50 I'm sure at the end of the day,
53:52 the story will be different,
53:53 and Ghana will be better off.
53:54 - Ghana, Datche, Obafan and Tumapifra,
53:58 and that is what we pray for.
54:00 Ghana, the land of the warrior king.
54:02 That is our name.
54:03 It's a powerful name, land of the warrior king.
54:05 And here we are.
54:07 We can't even fight our own battles.
54:08 We need the IMF every now and then to fight for us.
54:11 Joining us for this conversation,
54:12 we had Dr. Abusakara Foster.
54:14 He's beaming at me right now.
54:15 Founder, National Interest Movement.
54:18 We also had joining the conversation,
54:22 Dr. Assa Sumaela Mohammed,
54:23 Development Expert at the University for Development Studies
54:27 and Dr. Kwame Asaasanti,
54:28 a political scientist with the University of Ghana.
54:31 Now stay with us.
54:32 Coming up next, we have a conversation
54:35 with Translight Solar.
54:37 They'll be telling us a lot about what they've been up to.
54:40 We'll be right back.
54:41 (dramatic music)
54:45 (dramatic music)
54:49 (dramatic music)
54:52 (dramatic music)
55:01 (dramatic music)
55:04 (dramatic music)
55:06 (crowd cheering)