GHANA COMMENTARIES, by Anna Esi Hanson

It is obvious that the election petition is having grave repercussions on the economy of Ghana.   As a person working within the construction industry, I can feel the impact rather directly. Most contracts and projects are all pending! Most construction companies in Ghana are suffering! Workers within the industry are underemployed; people sit idle at work each day, because there is nothing to be done! Business has slowed down dramatically. Jobs are on hold for fear of the consequence of the election petition. A greater proportion of workers have been laid off, and it still continues. Workers are generally living in fear of the next day because they do not know when they would be in line for eviction. Most contracts are pending because companies and potential investors, especially foreign, are unwilling to sign new contracts for the reason of the unknown; uncertainty. National stability is a key in any investment and business. No one would want to invest in a nation, whic

Have you ever listened to a tribute that made you wonder if you were actually at the right place? Wow, am I at the right funeral? Is this the same person that I know of? Because at that moment, the person sounds like a saint! And that is supposed to be the worse person we all know of! The irony of our society! Yes, it is in death that most people are celebrated! While alive however, it is as though they do not exist! There are so many of our departed friends and relations that we constantly wish were alive with us today because if they were, we would do so many things differently. If they were alive, we would make enough time to be with them. If they were alive, we would give them all the love and support they deserved. If they were alive, we would provide them with all the material things the world can offer. If only! If only! If only! That is the prefix for our regrets.  For a fact, Ghana has a poor track record of celebrating her heroes! In all our history, one man h

In Ghana, Bibini blackman, is a popular comment that often pops out of people’s lips during conversations. It usually comes with a negative sting. Whenever Africans meet to share stories of their disappointment and betrayal by their families and friends of African descent, it usually ends with the statement, ‘Blackman’. When we encounter people who are unwilling to embrace any form of positive change, we usually say ‘Bibini Blackman’. And by and by, the word Blackman sounds so negative. But in the Ghanaian Akan parlance, can ‘Bibini’ be exactly synonymous to ‘Blackman’? I sometimes wonder what the definition of black has now become because when I examine the complexion of my African brothers and sisters, I do not see the black that we are labeled as. I see people of varied complexion, and not necessarily dark or black as we are all labeled as. A greater proportion of Africans in our various countries can attest to this. And yet, we are still referred to as black. I believe