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THE GHANA PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE-THANK YOU,
VERY MUCH!
Nii Bonney Andrews
Hurricane SANDY had passed and the Cayuga Lake had returned to
its quiet and placid self. On the opposite shore line the
variegated leaves on the trees continued their sublime display
of colors.
At 5pm Eastern Standard Time, the debate in Tamale was being
streamed online- "Thank you very much"! And so what happened?
We must start with the moderators. They were at best not
confident and searching enough-"Thank you very much". The
introductory address was long winded and boring; surely it
could have been shortened and made more focused. The problem
with time keeping at the beginning of the debate was shameful;
can we not simply run a time clock properly especially when
the whole world is watching?
The rules of the debate debarred the audience from clapping or
booing. But let us be frank, one of the candidates deserved to
be booed-at least once; his syntax was outrageous!! Any school
pupil listening to him would have come away with multiple bad
habits and would certainly have had his command of the English
language debilitated. The people of Ghana deserve
better-"Thank you very much".
Now to the candidates, the CPP candidate's answers were the
most comprehensive and polished. He began well when asked to
introduce himself; unlike the others, he did not give us a
truncated biography. He went further to consolidate this when
he elaborated on his vision and the role of the National
Development Planning Commission. When addressing taxation,
agriculture, education and unemployment his answers
were well considered especially with respect to the needed
transformation of the economy.
Predictably, the candidates of the two largest parties kept
going at each other. However, this was not necessarily on
matters of strategy but on matters of fact. Thus we were
treated to the usual bane of Ghanaian politics, namely, "he
said and she said". The only substantive issue from which
there was clarity was with respect to the proposal FOR A FREE
SHS. It is simply a question of priority-"Thank you very
much".
Throughout the session, there was a marked lack of focus on
the weighty issues that plague us. Why was there no bold
statement on attitudinal change or the problem of sanitation,
or corruption, or water supply, or the menace from the
parasitic pastors and their cacophonous churches-surely they
impact negatively on the mind set of our people and their
capacity to function in a modern manner-"Thank you very much".
Why were there no strong questions on discipline and social
cohesion? What about security, chieftaincy and land tenure?
All told the debate gets a C+, with the CPP candidate getting
a B+ and the PNC getting an F. The moderators get a C.
Finally, on a personal note; by the end of the second session,
I had counted over 100 incidents of "thank you very much"! Now
this is a torture that must be curtailed forthwith. Thank YOU
very much!....now back to the lake side.....with no "light
off".
Nii Bonney Andrews
Ithaca, NY, October 31, 2012
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