ELECTION PETITION; NEGATIVES OUTWEIGHED

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, which seems to be balancing on a scale of uncertainty. None knows who judgment might favour. And so, all live in wait. All are watching keenly. None wants to fall victim to a judgment debt saga! No one wants to be a second Wayome. 

The issue of underemployment or unemployment pertains in all sectors of the economy, and so, Ghanaians are complaining. Business is slow! There are no jobs! There is no money! In our markets, sales have declined, because there is no money.

Rather interestingly, it is as though our honourable leaders and politicians are unaware. Nothing is being done to boost this rapidly declining economy. We need an intervention of some sort. We need money. We need jobs. What is our leadership doing to make things better? 

For a fact, the election petition is having its toll on the economy. Of course, we all acknowledge the importance of the whole procedure in the area of transparency and accountability. But the question now is: How long until judgment? How long must we wait until the judgment is declared? How long must we sit idle, unemployed or underemployed, until things return to normalcy? How many more months would the country be in court? 

We need normalcy for prospective investors. We need normalcy for stability. We need our country back in order to ensure our growth and development. At the moment, everything seems to be at a standstill! Productivity in this country has rapidly declined. How long must Ghanaians endure the repercussions of the election petition? This is a question from all Ghanaians to our leaders?

I would want to believe that the whole election results re-battle is truly for the sake of promoting democracy, as has been publicly and widely acclaimed, and not solely for the selfish interest of someone or some people. We can to some extent feel the impact of this whole process on our nation’s economy, and do hope that such a somewhat unfortunate incidence, does not repeat itself because Ghana is beyond us all. Ghana continues paying the price for the atrocities that have been committed by her people. Ghanaians ought to start thinking beyond themselves, by putting the nation first.

Let us not create turmoil, where there is not. For a fact, the whole world is watching us. Ghana is a country that has found herself sandwiched between warzones, but has always managed to remain steadfast. That is our pride as a nation. Let us not take it for granted. The price of peace is negligible, when compared to the price of war or chaos. Let us not take our harmony for granted as a nation. 

We need our nation back. We need to steer this nation back on the track of progression, and not retrogression. Ghana needs us all! Our supreme court ought to fast-track the election petition because prolonging it, would kill this nation, rather than serve anything good. In Ghana today, most businesses and business plans, are created, with the election petition in focus. I am even sure that in parliament, most proceedings are taken with respect to the election petition. Whatever plans being made, are being done with the election petition in focus. The judgement is the focus. Most business negotiations now have a common condition; ‘if’. 

By far, the negatives of the election petition seem to be outweighing the positives...

Anna Esi Hanson (nnhanson2@yahoo.com); esociocomm.blogspot.com