The REPUBLIC OF GHANA @ 55 has been “celebrated” with a torrential downpour of massive price increases in the costs of basic utility services. . Water charges have gone up 15%. Electricity charges by 51%, though ‘mercifully’ delayed. Fuel prices are up an average of 15%; third party insurance premiums for motorists are up 300%, etc.

The  net effect of all of the above is that the lives and of the most vulnerable and poorest people in Ghana will become more intolerable and miserable, whilst the life of those whose actions and inactions were largely responsible for the misery heaped on the poor, huddled masses, will  not feel the pinch at all.

58 years ago, Independent Ghana told the whole world that ‘the Black man was capable of looking after his own affairs.’  To back this assertion, the Government of Dr. Nkrumah , and every subsequent one to date, extended to the Ghanaian Public Managers, the same privileges and perks which had been given to Scotsmen to make the supreme ‘sacrifice’ of coming to administer the Gold Coast and other colonies.

Those, privileges and perks, which included, paid for accommodation, free cars, free petrol and electricity (denoted in volume instead of cash), etc. have come to be known as ENTITLEMENTS. As the numbers of Black men & Women who have joined the Entitlement Class has grown, this unsustainable charge to the public purse of Ghana has grown in leaps and bounds. 

The cost of ENTITLEMENTS has run out of control so badly that a recent estimate, suggests that about 70% of the total annual tax revenue of Ghana is used to support only 700,000 government employees out of a total population of 25 million people (Economist Intelligence Unit, 2015). That  same report goes on to moan That “ successive leaders have failed to save during boom years, leading to an unhealthy addiction to tee IMF to which it has turned to no fewer than 16 times since 1966” 

Clear as the evidence is that Ghana’s Black men & women have palpably failed to run our affairs, those responsible have held on fast to and some cases enhanced their ENTITLMENTS.  Yes, the punishment for the failure of the ENTITTLEMENT CLASS is being borne completely by the SUFFERING CLASS.  Those whose failure  to manage the  fundamentals of keeping our expenditure within our means, arresting the Cedi’s fall as commandeered by God’s prophet,  failed to check the misuse and abuse of our funds, are all shielded  from the effects of the Republic Day surprises because they are entitlements are 10 gallons of petrol and 1000kWh of electricity period.

The Republic Day that we declared 55 years ago was an affirmation that, not only had we freed ourselves from the colonial Monarch of England, but more importantly we had adopted “a state in which the supreme power rests in the body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly by them” (Definition of Republic)

It is an affirmation of the equality of all the people as exercised by the principle of universal adult suffrage in which ‘Toono’ Tarzan has only one vote, the same as Alhaji my watchman. It is further buttressed by the bald statement in our Constitution that states unequivocally that “the powers of Governance shall be exercised in our name and on our behalf”

It is not for nothing that all the nations classified as Developed and civilized, whose generosity we depend on to sustain the largess and wasteful lifestyle   of the ENTITLEMENT CLASS, have well developed public transport infrastructure in the form of buses Urban transits, cross and country railways. The London TUBE, The Paris METREO; The New York, TRANSIT; and the Melbourne TRANSIT; all offer alternative and often subsidized and cheaper transportation options for their citizens, usually used by both the Governors and the Governed.   

Here in Ghana, we do not have a credible public infrastructure system to speak about. Therefore the bulk of the people have to depend on private carriers such as tro-tro, taxis and privately run buses to move  people around;, and haulage vehicle of various description to move goods around the country. So for the majority SUFFERING CLASS, the cumulative effects of the Republic Day assault of exorbitant price rises will result in an inevitable increase in misery and hardships.

Ghana’s 16^th visitation to the IMF involves us being given a loan of 918 million dollars over three years in exchange for the Fund presiding over the ENTITLEMENT CLASS to do that which it had claimed it was competent to handle and for which they have been given all the entitlements. This sum is far less than the combined plunder and pilferage of our national purse as a result of various nefarious activities presided over by the ENTITLEMENT CLASS over the stewardship of several political administrations.

 Two particular IMF Conditionalities have been instrumental in the astronomic utility price rises of this year’s Republic Day, namely: 

1.  “STRICTLY implement the existing automatic price adjustment mechanisms for utility tariffs and fuel prices to eliminate subsidies (except for items that benefit from cross subsidy in the petroleum price build-up and the life line consumers of utilities);

 

1. “IMPOSE a  Special Petroleum Tax of 17.5 percent as part of a rationalization of VAT regime and change in the petroleum pricing structure, estimated to yield GH¢1,490 million”

The first conditionality is just asking us to do that which has already been part of our law and practice for decades. The only difference here is the use of the word “STRICTLY” which removes the undisciplined manner in which the ENTITLEMENT CLASS has applied our own law.  One of the main drivers of this, international crude oil price, is beyond our control. However, the other, the cedi exchange rate, is very much within our control and is indeed the major driver of the price adjustment formula

Unfortunately, this is where the ENTITLEMENT CLAAS, has completely let we the people down. Since the beginning of this year, the cedi has lost about 25% of its value against the US$. This means even if crude oil prices have stayed the same in the world for the last six months, petrol prices would have increased by at least 25% over the same period. The same would apply to electricity prices even though we have been poorly served for the last three years.

The second condition is the really problematic one. When Global crude oil prices more than halved last year, we the suffering people should have been given some major relief through a drastic decrease in pump prices. Instead of this happening, Hon Seth Terkper connived with his colleagues from the IMF to institute a SPECIAL PETROLEUM TAX of 17.5% which soaked up the windfall due to "we the people of Ghana.

As a co-author of the Petroleum Price Build UP, I cannot and never be against the full cost recovery principle that underpins it. But it is the addition of unjustifiable taxes such as the SPT, TOR Recovery Debt, and Exploration tax when GNPC gets one third of all our Petroleum revenues, all of this on top of an excise duty and road fund, etc to the price we pay at the pump.  I am afraid that it makes very little sense to seek to use petroleum products pricing as a major source of revenue generation beyond taxes associated with the use of the product.

It is not for nothing that the recent IMF report is worried about inflation.  Well, as Every Ghanaian Living Everywhere knows, the price of all goods and services increase each time petrol prices increase. So we are cutting our collective noses to spit ourselves if we just see petroleum as the Cash Cow for national revenues.

The IMF is only insisting that our ENTITLED CLASS acts in a disciplined, responsible and matured manner in the management of our resources. Unfortunately, the punishment for failure does not go to them because all their entitlements are also automatically adjusted to ensure they do not lose their value. Rather, the cost of their failure has to be borne by the majority poor SUFFERERS.

If you don’t believe me, read the news headline after the IMF recent visit; “ IMF Praises Ghana; Okays Release Of Second Bail-Out Tranche” In other words, the Suffering Classes have been sold down the river by the Entitlement Class which has been rewarded with  S118 million and protection of their ENTILEMENTS.  

The reality at the 55^th anniversary of Ghana becoming a REPUBLIC, is a country divided into THE ENTITLED & THE SUFFERING CLASSES; never mind the illusion of CPP v UP; NLC; NAL v PP; NRC; PFP v PNC; PNDC; NDC v NPP that has played out noisily and incessantly since 1960. Never mind what labels they attach to themselves, the Political Classes in Ghana have only ever been about taking turns to enjoy their ENTITLEMENTS. That is the unfortunate but sad truths of Leadership and Governance choices in Ghana since 1957 & 1960 respectively.   

Our efforts to uphold the principles of Republicanism have been interrupted abruptly three times since 1 July 1960. We have embarked on the 4^th and longest attempt. Each of the three previous interruptions have been by self-proclaimed ‘messiahs’ purporting to act in our names. Alas the danger is now we stand in danger of facing a revolt by THE SUFFERING CLASSES against the ENTITLMENT CLASS if we continue to go against the tenets of Equality, Fairness and other pillars of TRUE REPUBLICANISM    

Last Monday June 29, I embarked on the latest of my periodic taxi rides from my daily gym exercise at Kanda.  Then, and as usual, I engaged the driver of the cab to get the people’s views on the state of our dear nation.  He started by enquiring if the tumour about the impending price hike in petroleum products was on account of higher global oil prices. When I responded that it was really due to the falling cedi, Mr. Ennin  sighed and simply responded: “Daa,  Moofra no rebr3 papa; Mo anhw3 yie a, ntokwa b3si “9 to wit “Times are very rough for the youth. If we are not careful there will be a fight (popular revolt)

So alarmed was I by this observation that I discussed it with most of my closest friends and colleagues. Rather than assuring me that Mr. Ennin was exaggerating, they all to a person recounted their own experiences of similar dire warnings of working people close to them. No way, Mr. Ennin was reflecting genuine grassroots concern about the worsening austerity and its deleterious impacts on the SUFFERING people of Ghana.  Now the TUC and some Influential Radio platforms are also calling for a collective response of the people in whose name and for whose welfare governance shall be exercised

As the ENTITLEMENT CLASS pats itself on the IMF marking the Bailout as A++++, many of the good citizens of Ghana who constitute the SUFFERING CLASS, sigh “Could do Better “. Reflecting on the contrasting view of the 55 years of the Republic of Ghana reminded me of the opening line of Charles Dickens’s classic novel A Tale of Two Cities”:

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us,……

This marvelous book told the story of London & Paris at the height of the French Revolution whose Bastille Day anniversary is just about 10 days away. Before that, we are but a day away from another famous anniversary. In which the people declared “No taxation without Representation”.

The month of July is a feisty month traditionally. :et Ghana’s ENTITLEMENT CLASS understand that unless they and the SUFFERING CLASS  share the same common purpose and meaning of our REPUBLIC DAY, this our dear nation is heading for the eye of a great big storm of Katrina proportions

 

Charles Wereko-Brobby

Chief Policy  Analyst, GIPPO

 

Email: tarzan@eyetarzan.org