Even before the opposition National Democratic Congress went on its ‘March for Justice’ demonstration, the NPP government had already proved to Ghanaians that it is on top of issues.
From the management of the scourge of armed robbery attacks, which serially hit the country, to the Wa and Ejura disturbances, no well-meaning Ghanaian would claim that government woke up one morning and decided to let loose on citizens the spectre of mayhem witnessed.
Of course, the level of violence was such that any Ghanaian should be concerned. That, however, was no licence to encourage any person or group to add to the worrying scourge, as the government makes efforts to ensure a more improved security in the country, as rightly demanded by the opposition NDC.
Good faith
The Akufo-Addo government is certainly a listening and caring one, and in control of the situation. This is amply shown in the prompt action in setting up a three-member committee to look into the recent Ejura disturbances.
That is aside of the fact that at each step of the way, the government has not reneged on its duties in managing the issues.
In the Wa incident, for instance, we had the Military Command chief moving out of his seat to visit the scene of the alleged act of brutality to familiarise himself with the situation.
And in the equally tragic Ejura incident, no less a person than the Vice-President of the land, in the company of the head of the Moslem community in Ghana, was present to commiserate with the families and assure residents and victims of government’s commitment to dealing with the issues
Earlier, during the serial armed robbery attacks, we saw the police and their command chiefs also moving out and making mass arrests of suspects, including those who had long been on police and national security radar.
Appropriate response
While the Daily Statesman would admit that members of the NDC have the right to hit the streets to give vent to their feelings, we believe it would also be fair on their part to appreciate the issues and how far we have come in attempting solutions, as a nation and as government which must account to the people.
Collective duty
Nobody can deny the fact that a lot of things need to be fixed in this country. The fact of the matter, however, is that it will be disingenuous for any one or group to seek to create the impression that the country had a ‘perfect’ system that has, all of a sudden, been broken under the Akufo-Addo government.
That is not to say concerned citizens cannot hold the current regime responsible for the situation. After all, it is the President and his government who are in charge now, and so must be seen to be making efforts to tackle our age-long problems.
But as they make the effort, all of us need to appreciate the fact that we all have a part to play in creating the systems to engineer the kind of development we all expect to see in the foreseeable future. We can collectively fix the system.
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