The Director of Policy Engagement and Partnerships at CDD-Ghana, Dr Kojo Pumpuni Asante has expressed deep concern about the current governance system, which according to him, is “perverse,” as it allows leaders to avoid accountability even on issues that endanger citizens’ health and survival.
Referencing the government’s perceived inaction against illegal mining commonly known as galamsey, which has destroyed water bodies and forest reserves, Dr Asante stressed that the political class only prioritises electoral votes by delaying action on critical environmental threats like water pollution and galamsey.
Dr Asante said this at Ashesi Citi Dialogue on Thursday, November 14, 2024, held under the theme “Scholarship, Leadership, Citizenship, and Nation Building.
“To have a situation where everybody appreciates that most of our water bodies are polluted and we have a health risk and then your leaders conclude that because an election is coming and they might lose votes, they want to postpone action on tackling it to after they’ve won the vote with the logic that they are going to govern the people who are already dying from the pollution and somehow, the whole society is okay with it.
“Organised Labour said let us hold on and that we are doing somethings, and the demonstration didn’t come on. I think it is so perverse because the person who is making this decision is one man and with all of us now watching what we eat and where it is coming from, we are also able to kind of accept their argument on not tackling galamsey. So, this makes the governance a bit perverse such that you cannot hold the leader accountable even for your own survival,” he stared.
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