The negative influences of partisanship on local development is a big challenge we all bear witnesses to in our part of the world. In the name of fanaticism, selfishness, laziness and petty power-play, we have disrupted and distorted the continuity of several development projects that could have benefitted thousands of Ghanaians. The luckiest of such projects are those that have been dragged and delayed but still hope for a ‘latter glory’ someday. Now, I give you an example – ‘𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺 𝘈. 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘕𝘺𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘢𝘬𝘶𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘩𝘢 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺 𝘉. 𝘈𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯, 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘖𝘣𝘪𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘸𝘢. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘷𝘰𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘶𝘴’. You clearly understand it now. Thank you.

Fortunately, this careless behaviour ends today, the 27th day of June, 2023. Two by-elections we have seen in a space of two months have proven, sufficiently, beyond all doubts, that allocation of resources for local development is never a challenge to any incumbent political industry. It is never a challenge as long as there is an opportunity to grab power, in a separate circumstance as such, to heighten legislative power for parochial interests. Ebei Ghana mpanyinfo! What a shame!

Now, kindly read the title of this piece again. Do you get it now? All of a sudden, the political industry that waved goodbyes to the poor citizens are back to perform magical and miraculous developmental projects. Tout á coup (for our French-speaking leaders), ancient roads and schools abandoned the day our Messiah ascended into heaven have been completed and polished in a fortnight. Such possibilities!

Well, that should be fair then for all constituencies in Ghana, particularly the deprived ones, to start praying for opportunities, positive causative agents for that matter, to have a by-election that will surely extend care, concern and affection to their communities. That will also be a better expression of the citizenry’s desire to never wave goodbye to by-elections. Ha-ha. After all, an extremely capitalist industry should be proud of this bargaining power its clients wield in this commercial intercourse.

It is evident we cannot continue this way. If we would always have to colour development with partisan interests and pass an execution of duty only when it is directly proportionate to such interests, we may, unconsciously, be building an evil market of patronage whose products we may all not be able to consume within the journey of time. No goodbyes to by-elections!

𝗟𝗲𝘅𝗶𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀

𝟭. 𝗘𝗯𝗲𝗶 𝗚𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗮 𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗶𝗺𝗳𝗼: 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗼𝗳 𝗚𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗮! (𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻)

𝟮. 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝘁 á 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗽: 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗽𝗵𝗿𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 ‘𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝘀𝘂𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻’

𝟯. 𝗡𝘆𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗯𝗲𝘀𝗲𝘀𝗮𝗸𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗵𝗮: 𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗚𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆

𝟰. 𝗢𝗯𝗶𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗱𝘄𝗮: 𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗚𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆

Source: 𝗝𝗼𝘀𝗵𝘂𝗮 𝗔𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗺𝗼𝘂 𝗔𝗴𝗯𝗲𝗻𝘂