The former boss of the now-defunct Unique Trust (UT) Bank, Retired Captain Prince Kofi Amoabeng, has expressed scepticism about Ghana's democratic system's ability to produce transformative leaders.

Speaking on the AM Show, on JoyNews, he stated that individuals elected into power often come with pre-existing corruption, prioritising the interests of their political parties and personal benefactors over the nation's welfare.

Furthermore, he pointed out that the constitution grants the President excessive power, resulting in the appointment of these individuals based on political loyalty rather than merit, he told the host Benjamin Akakpo.

“We've unfortunately arrived at a situation where we have what we call democracy, which is supposedly the best form of governance. But this democracy makes me feel hopeless about this whole situation. It will never give us a good leader that can change Ghana."

"By the time the leader gets into position, by the time the leader gets into position, he's been corrupted already. He owes too much money and too many favours. He owes the party. He owes individuals.”

“The president appoints or approves of about 6,000 appointments and he has to make sure that all his people get seats, ambassadors, board members, CEOs.

"And so the way of awarding this position to people too is that it's about who has served me or who can serve me,” Mr Amoabeng said.

He referred to the recent appointment of the NPP Parliamentary Candidate for Manso Nkwanta, Tweneboah Kodua Fokuo, as the new Managing Director for the National Investment Bank (NIB).

Many people including the opposition National Democratic Congress have protested and demanded the president rescind his decision.

• Read More: NDC MPs oppose appointment of NPP parliamentary candidate as NIB’s new MD

Mr Amoabeng believes that for the nation to progress, the systems must be allowed to work effectively and advocated against the placement of friends and family in influential positions where they lack the requisite expertise.

“People get appointed not because they know the subject or have the expertise and experience. It's because they are serving the powers that be. So it's not about merit. It's about mediocrity,” he said.