Open Letter To The President: Dr. Kwame Nkrumah Would Have Been President For Life.

Dear President Mahama,

I was very elated when I saw the massive number of NDC supporters in Tamale on the 12th November, 2015 as part of your “Changing Lives” campaign tour of the region. I must acknowledge your three year tenure’s massive infrastructure across the length and breadth of the country.

But Sir, if massive infrastructure development of the country were to be the only yardstick for measuring a government performance, then Dr. Kwame Nkrumah would have been president for life. In actual fact the majority of the infrastructure the country is enjoying was built by the administration of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. The companies that Dr. Nkrumah set up provided REAL job opportunities for the people. This was not only a key component in any nation building programme but created some sort of contentment among the youth in their academic pursuits.

The 2016 budget had no plan in sight to arrest the problem of unemployment in Ghana, among graduates from the universities and other tertiary institutions which has reached a breaking point. It diminished optimism among Ghanaian youth with it capturing an insignificant figure to be employed in 2016. The 2016 budget made the projection of creating 100, 000 jobs under the National Youth Employment Programme. I doubt if your government even have a database for the total number of unemployed graduates in the country. Research undertaken proved that unemployment and the underemployment of graduates, are devastating phenomena in the lives of graduates. It is easy for law makers to ignore piloting programs that address Ghana’s long-term unemployment, given that most of the young people affected are relatively powerless, politically.

There are no two sides to the fact that any government wish that universities churn out well-educated and skilled graduates which your government is no exception but the dilemma here is how to ensure that these “desired graduates” are offered job opportunities in places where their skills and knowledge are well-utilised. I am not a prophet of doom but your government should takes steps to address this situation for I see a massive youth revolution in the air.

Sir, I must commend your government for the successes chalked in encouraging Public-Private Partnership as a means of leveraging public resources with private sector resources and expertise in order to close the infrastructure gap and deliver efficient public infrastructure and services. In this economy, the government has become the employer of the last resort .The manufacturing industry which could have absorbed a larger percentage of these unemployed graduates is now near defunct. This claim is evident at the Tema Heavy Industrial Area to see manufacturing companies now turned into warehouses. This area which is recognized as the industrial hub of Ghana is rapidly losing its ‘industrial’ attractiveness.

Lest I forget Mr. President, with the current economic growth rate and the IMF programme beginning to make impacts, I think it will be prudent to call for public sector reforms with regards to recruiting graduates into the public sector. This may restrict the youth from taking “nokofio” from political parties in order for them to make informed choices in the 2016 elections.

I hope this letter meets your kindest consideration and hoping to hear from you soon.

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

Abankwa Daniel (abankwadaniel@yahoo.com)

(A Concerned Undergraduate)

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