Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, Member of Parliament for the Klottey Korle seat in the Greater Accra area, has gone to social media to convey her grave worries about the condition of democracy and governance in Ghana.
In a thought-provoking LinkedIn article, she questioned the democratic process’s fairness, openness, and honesty, and if these values would drive the approaching 2024 general elections.
Dr Agyeman-Rawlings highlighted her frustration with the current political atmosphere and the prospect of “waiting until 2024” for a possible change of leadership. She questioned if the democratic process would be preserved during the elections or tainted by attempts to subvert democracy and the rule of law.
The parliamentarian and late Ghana President Jerry John Rawlings’ daughter also emphasised the long-standing issue of a winner-take-all approach to Ghana’s interpretation of democracy, criticising the focus on elections while failing to address bad governance and corruption between electoral cycles, allowing a few individuals to lead the nation into turmoil.
She questioned the efficiency of institutions designed to serve as checks and balances on the executive, questioning whether they were just tools for change after elections or kept the administration accountable during its term.
Dr Agyeman-Rawlings voiced worry about the flight of Ghanaians seeking better prospects overseas, which would provide a serious challenge to the future government. She emphasised the importance of using the nation’s human resources to overcome present difficulties and reestablish Ghana’s self-esteem.
“For a long time, we have lamented about the zero-sum/winner-takes-all approach to our interpretation of democracy and yet we have failed to change the status quo. Our collective myopic focus on elections and inability to pull the brakes on the bad governance and corruption in between has allowed a few selfish individuals to take us into the abyss.
“So, I ask myself, of what use are the institutions that are meant to act as checks and balances over the executive if all we can do is wait for a change in government in the hope that they will do better or be different? What kind of example are we setting for the younger generation and what kind of hope are we offering the youth of today??? At a time when we need our human capacity more than ever, we are seeing an exodus of our people on an unprecedented level – with one outcome: whoever wins the next elections will have a Herculean task in mobilising the human resources required to clean up this mess and restore this nation’s self-respect.”
The parliamentarian questioned whether individuals with knowledge of the rule of law and democracy intended to use their expertise to demolish what others had built, and he called for a collective commitment to stop the nation’s backsliding and to ensure that democracy and governance are not undermined.
Dr. Agyeman-Rawlings underlined the need for a collective proclamation that Ghana would not allow democracy to be hijacked, and she called for a limit to the people’s patience when it comes to political intervention and partisanship that undermine the nation’s institutions.
“As I look at countries in the midst of conflict whose people are suffering but fighting for a better future, I look at my own beloved country Ghana and I wonder at which point will we all collectively declare that we will not allow people to hijack us under the guise of democracy and take our compliance for granted. When will enough be enough?”
Zanetor’s tweet generated debate on Ghana’s democracy and the necessity for a re-evaluation of the country’s governance and political scene.
