Franklin Cudjoe, President of IMANI Africa, has emphasized that President-elect John Mahama’s promise to “reset Ghana” is primarily focused on governance, rather than the economy, though the economic challenges are undeniably important.
According to Cudjoe, a reset would involve rethinking and restructuring the entire governance framework, which is crucial for the country’s long-term stability.
He believes that once the governance system is properly realigned, the next step would be to address broader issues, including economic concerns, ensuring a more comprehensive approach to national development.
“I think just on the issue of governance, I suspect that when the word reset restart or reset is used, it actually applies to the kinds of governance we’ve witnessed for which we were all appalled and, really, surprised that Nana Addo, a defender of human rights, and indeed, someone who championed economic rights, would actually have taken us through those dark days.
“And so when President Mahama says a reset or a restart, in part, it means that we would not we’ll try not to witness or try not to replay those darker periods again”.
Franklin Cudjoe
Reflecting on John Mahama’s previous administration, which ended in 2016, Cudjoe acknowledged that it was not without its challenges.
Cudjoe recalled Mahama famously declaring himself a “dead goat” and responding to critics, including those who called his actions purposeless, by dismissing their complaints. “Those ones I suspect he will never ever go back to them again”.
He further noted that, when it comes to the economy, unemployment has clearly been a significant issue.
He also mentioned that Mahama’s 24-hour economy idea is not a concrete policy but rather an aspirational concept.
According to Cudjoe, for such an idea to work, conditions like reduced taxes, lower business costs, less bureaucratic red tape, and reduced interest rates would need to be in place. “If they can do something about it, at least we can begin to breathe some sort of fresh air”.
Cudjoe Urges Mahama to Address Taxes, Energy, Regional Security
Furthermore, Franklin Cudjoe expressed concern that Ghanaians are being suffocated by an overwhelming number of taxes—currently 40, which he described as excessive and punitive.
He believes that even if the incoming Mahama administration manages to reduce them by half, it would mark the beginning of the process to reset the economy.
“And I suspect also that he [Mahama] needs to work hard on the energy side of things because you need a lot of energy to be able to, to be able to promote this 24-hour economy because people would need cheaper power, and people who use might obviously have to have some rebates”.
Franklin Cudjoe
Commenting on Mahama’s readiness to face challenges from the opposition, media, and Civil Society, Cudjoe remarked that the former President has actually benefited from such scrutiny in the past.
He pointed out that some political critics like himself have consistently held the current administration accountable since it took power, and Mahama is fully aware of what they can do and what Ghanaians are capable of.
As a result, Cudjoe emphasized, Mahama would be the last person to claim that Ghanaians have short memories. “He’ll be reminded that the Ghanaian is pretty much alive and would take nothing but good governance and indeed account accountability”.
Meanwhile, Cudjoe also emphasized that the next administration’s approach to positioning Ghana’s leadership role in West Africa is crucial, especially as the Sahel region has become a hotspot for growing rebel activity.
“And so without a doubt, I think he needs to have a hold on that because we cannot afford, an implosion from the Sahel region. It’s already happening, but we cannot afford it scaling all the way down to the south. So he needs to put his leadership antenna up quickly and see how it can rally around regional leaders”.
Franklin Cudjoe
He insisted that the incoming President must take action on this issue, expressing his belief that Mahama will likely draw on his past experience as a regional leader to guide Ghana towards peace and stability in the region.
READ ALSO: A Plus Recounts How Deceased Father Helped in Election Victory
