Former Director-General of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Dr Nii Moi Thompson, has said the over-politicisation of Ghana’s development agenda is seriously hurting the country’s progress.
According to the astute Economist, had the current administration followed implementation timelines of the many well-thought-out policy proposals contained in the 40-year development plan, the #Fixthecountry campaign would have been prevented.
The #Fixthecountry campaign started on social media in response to high taxes, an increase in fuel prices, erratic power and water supply among others.
Ghanaians took to social media to vent their anger about economic hardships, with a protest march was scheduled for May 9, 2021. But the police scuttled the plan by sending heavily-armed men and riot vehicles to Blackstar Square, where the demonstration was to begin, on grounds that the event could spread the coronavirus.
Speaking on Citi TV’s Face to Face that was aired on Tuesday, May 11, Dr Thompson said the problem of erratic power supply, for instance, could have easily been avoided if the efforts of the previous John Mahama government were sustained by the current Nana Akufo-Addo administration.
“Because of the politics of vindictiveness, they started demonising John Mahama…where in the world do you hear anyone complaining that they have too much electricity?†he quizzed.
When the host of the show, Umaru Sanda, pointed out to him that the current government had explained that the previous government had taken on excess capacity that was costing the nation huge sums of money, Mr Thompson replied that the so-called excess capacity was the result of inadequate demand which in itself was as a result of a lack of policy.
According to him, with the right policy, demand would have easily matched the supply.
READ ALSO:Â Ghana drops 30 places in 2021 World Happiness ranking
Dr Thompson explained that the 40-year development plan which he led a team of technocrats to develop has useful and comprehensive policy proposals that the current government can tap into to move the country forward.
He said in designing the development plan, “the politicians were at the top level…but the technical work was done by some of the finest brains in this country…we had experts in electricity in water and there were even Ghanaians outside of Ghana who participated. They were all experts, technocrats; about 40 or 50 of them from all backgrounds.â€
The respected Economist said this to dispel fears that the document lacked objectivity because it was developed under the National Democratic Congress (NDC) regime led by John Mahama.
Dr Nii Moi Thompson in 2015 led a team of experts to formulate the 40-year development plan which details the overall strategy that Ghana must adopt for the proper planning and sustainable development covering every aspect of the country.
The non-binding policy proposals include the broad aims of the nation in sectors such as housing, transportation, infrastructure, community facilities, economic growth among others.
According to Dr Thompson, despite the excellent work done in the 40-year development plan, the current government has bastardised the entire document and has sought to “re-invent the wheel†with its own development plan.