Security Analyst Col., Festus Aboagye (RTD) has argued that Ghana’s democratic system has failed to deliver its promised benefits after more than 30 years.
Col. Aboagye asserts that the advantages of democratic governance have not been realized by Ghanaian citizens.
His concerns were echoed by former Minister of National Security, Francis Poku, who, during a public lecture on July 1, expressed deep concerns over what he termed the loss of confidence in democratic governance in the country.
In his lecture titled “Reflection on Democratic Control over the Military: A Way Forward for Sustainability,” Mr. Poku warned that if these issues are not addressed, Ghana could face another period of political instability.
Col. Aboagye, sharing similar sentiments in an interview with Caleb Kudah on the Citi Breakfast Show on July 2, criticized the narrow interpretation of democracy as merely a process of voting every four years.
He emphasized that the essence of democracy is to elect officials who will manage the state’s affairs across all sectors to improve the citizens’ well-being.
“When you ask whether democracy is delivering or not, the answer is an emphatic no. Democracy has not been delivered, and this erroneous misconception on the part of politicians and several other people that democracy means every four years we go and queue and vote for some people into government is democracy; that is not democracy.
“What are the reasons why we elect people into office? We elect them so that they will manage the affairs of the state—economic, social, political, security, the government, and all other aspects—to improve the livelihood of the people or the well-being of the people. What we are seeing over the last seven years as a timeframe is not democracy. The well-being of the individuals has worsened, and the data is in the statistical services data that Francis Poku presented.
“We cannot manage the cedi; we cannot stabilise it. Prices have gone through the roof. I don’t go to the market, but let me take medications that I buy alone. Some of the prices have gone up three times. Medications that were GH¢200 now sell for close to GH¢700. Fuel prices have gone through the roof, and just yesterday they went up again, yet incomes have remained the same,” he stated.
Col. Festus Aboagye also questioned the effectiveness of democracy when ministers and political leaders act with impunity and face no consequences.
“Then we come to the case of corruption. Now, can you be in a democracy where you claim that you are based on the rule of law and a minister of state misbehaves and goes unpunished? I was just a soldier before I went to the university, and I know enough from my professional education in the army and elsewhere that all laws must be publicly promulgated.
“No minister has the prerogative power to go buy medicine for the country, and that does not go through parliament for it to be promulgated. The minister is spending millions of dollars to buy us vaccines, and the minister comes to tell us, ‘Oh, I was confused’ and nothing happens to him.
“He remains in office until he retires or resigns; is that democracy? The sanctions and the checks and balances don’t apply,” he added.