Following the comments of the Governor of the Bank of Ghana describing the #OccupyBoG protestors as hooligans, Professor Ransford Yaw Gyampo has called for an apology from the governor to Ghanaians.
He expressed his shock at the comments from the Governor.
Prof. Gyampo was disappointed with the remarks of the governor, believing he misspoke.
“What worries me is the aftermath, the comment, the reaction from the governor. How dare he make such descriptions of them? How dare the Governor of the Bank of Ghana describe the demonstrators as hooligans? I am so appalled. I am so disappointed. He owes Ghanaians a great deal of apology. He didn’t do well, he misspoke and we are disappointed”
Professor Ransford Yaw Gyampo
He further added that the governor’s comments were made out of ignorance of the tenets of democracy.
“Does, he appreciate the tenets of democracy does he appreciate the fact that in a democratic dispensation, there is a right, guaranteed right to dissent, and that in expressing the right to dissent you can resort to all things which include the right to peaceful demonstration? His comments are below the belt. His comments were expressed out of sheer ignorance “
Professor Ransford Yaw Gyampo
Professor Gyampo noted that the Governor ought to realize that his appointing authority was an active demonstrator even under the Rawlings regime and was not described as such.
“Is he superior to all of us? Is he suddenly oblivious to the fact the one who appointed him is a serial demonstrator? Is the BoG governor more civil than those who were on the street?
“When he (Nana Addo) demonstrated in the “Kume Preko” and even when he demonstrates people listened, Rawlings who is not a fan of multiparty democracy listened. What is the meaning of all this? Saying there are civil ways of doing it? He doesn’t appreciate the tenets and canons of democracy.”
Professor Ransford Yaw Gyampo
He emphasized that fiduciary rights are entrusted to people to solve problems. The privileges accorded to them are to make sure they serve us well. Hence, he entreated public servants to proffer solutions and not explanations. He therefore asked that the nation place more weight on solutionists than those who explain challenges in government.
“It appears that we have been able to tool Ghanaians into appreciating and accepting those who offer or who proffer explanations to problems rather than those who offer solutions or who solve problems. The essence of governance is to solve problems not to set contexts and offer explanations as to why the problems are there. We are looking at the interventions that are proactively being fashioned out to address the problem.”
Professor Ransford Yaw Gyampo
“Though he believes that the minority may have overstretched to some extent their instance on the governor to receive their petition in person, he still believes that request was still within their rights.
“I thought that at some point in time the insistence that the governor was supposed to be there to receive it was too much of a stretch but that was within the right of the minority to make such demands was not an illegitimate demand.”
Professor Ransford Yaw Gyampo
Justifying the demands though, he underscored that the caliber of people who had staged the demonstration warranted the request.
“Because if you looked at the caliber of people who were at the demonstration, then they had every right to demand that the governor himself to be there. I was just giving an example, that if you were sent to meet me at the University of Ghana, I can probably ask my research assistant to meet you or I can meet you myself. But if your boss is coming, I will ask my head of department to be there too.”
Professor Ransford Yaw Gyampo
Professor Gyampo also bemoaned the government’s posture of blaming every economic challenge on COVID and the Russian-Ukraine war.
