Election 2024 – are we suffering leadership deficit?

By Prince HODEDZI

Leadership is very critical to the development of Ghana. Our past and present state can be argued as a direct consequence of the caliber of Leaders we had and currently have. On December 7, of the top two candidates, ceteris paribus, either of them will certainly emerge as the President of Ghana. Oops!! Jesus is not coming to save us again. He already did.

If we are going to be candid with one another, whoever emerges as the President is not winning because of their exceptional exemplary Leadership. No. Not because of the principles and values they espouse. Of the options offered to us, he is elected because he is the lesser devil.  He is only as good as compared to his contenders.

We are offered a candidate who prominently features in ‘Ghana’s Book Record’. An “enviable” record of being the first incumbent President in the Forth Republic, to have spent only a term (4 years) in office. Ghanaians, particularly the youth, the king-makers made sure he had that record to his credit. Very well deserving. He lost by a huge margin. It was a landslide victory for his close competitor. This can be nothing but a clear testament of how disappointed we were during his presidency.

A government littered with pockets of scandals and corrupt acts. The latter days of his tenure was a nightmare, particularly to Business owners. The dire underserving economic impact meted on them. They severely suffered the brunt of his government’s mismanagement. Generators are not baked but became hot cake. It was a suffocating nightmare for Ghanaians. Hope the noun DUMSOR rings a bell?

Hold on. I present you the other option. For the first time in our lives we are also presented with another candidate who is fighting tooth and nail to dissociate himself from a government in which he happens to be currently part of and plays a crucial role in; indeed orphans, I beg your pardon, Indeed failures have no friends.

I present you the Head of Ghana’s Economic Management Team; once upon a time a proud economist but now a digital wizard. If Chameleon was a person. A candidate who was presented as the economic messiah to deliver us from our economic woes. And almost eight years down memory lane, has the Oscars of the government with the worse economic record since the inception of the Forth Republic.

Take a cursory look at all our micro and macro-economic indicators ie. inflation rate, exchange rate, unemployment rate etc. A candidate who finds it convenient to be credited for the success of his government but be excused for the failures of the same. The irony. A candidate all you needed to do is to play back his old videos and he will be fumbling. Fumbling for the next lie. Now that is our next option. It doesn’t get any worse than this.

A bird whispered and asked, ‘how about the third force?’ The New Force? I am unable to tell how “forceful” this third force will be. I wonder. Admittedly, seem to be gathering some degree of momentum. But, considering our political history and binary voting pattern, this so called Third Force stands no chance in winning Election 2024.

That notwithstanding, the third force presents us a candidate, who some have said, a year or two ago can not be said to be a “Presidential Material.” But by some stroke of a Midas touch, he now looks “Presidential.” Is it a simple case of rebranding and/or packaging? A candidate accused of being seen in videos “clubbing” and surrounded by persons with questionable characters?

A candidate whose trump card appears to be his wealth and flamboyance and not really about his exemplary lifestyle and impact? Hear is his name and what comes to mind is money. Almost synonymous! I am tempted to believe if his wealth is stripped off him, he might be naked. His disciples might look away. Not look in his direction.

A litmus test: Throw Patrick Awuah (Founder of Ashesi University) into the mix, and you will get the New Force position as the possible third force rattled and shook to its core. Well The New Force is not exceptional after all. My apologies. This candidate is a dreamer. So as a gesture of my admiration for his achievements I will provide the salt when sea to Kumasi is ready. My only headache now is to choose between Annapurna or U2 iodated salt.

Interesting times we find ourselves. Unprecedented. I sincerely wish whoever emerges the winner the very best and Godspeed. I pity and sympathize with him. In four years He has a lot of mess to clean up. Heaps of workload to surmount. Ghana is losing her glory by the day.  My advice to him is precise: Mr President come clean, Be truthful and forthright with us. Show leadership. Ghanaians, with all our flaws, aren’t blind. When you lead. We will see. And We will follow. MR PRESIDENT BE DIFFERENT.

>>>the writer is a youth empowerment advocate who serves as head of operations at Codenation 1957. He can be reached via [email protected] and or 0546346870

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