I worked in a public service institution for thirteen years. One of the key lessons I walked away with from that organization, is the need for any entity, especially a country, to have a mission- guiding purpose. The French call it “raison d’être.”
After going through all the processes to develop a five-year strategic plan, we came up with a vision and a mission. We did not leave these carefully thought through words in the over 200-page document.
We teased them out, framed and hung them at strategic locations within the organization. In the end, the effect this decision by Management has had, is a constant reminder that the organization exists “to secure in the public interest the highest standards of training and practice of nursing and midwifery in the country.” And it changed staff attitude drastically towards clients within the lifespan of the strategic plan. I believe and beyond…
Recent happenings in the country have made me wonder if we, as a nation, have a mission. Of course, there is the National Development Planning Commission. There have been various medium term development frameworks and the various political parties have manifestoes with which they try to govern the country. Needful to add that manifestoes are not binding.
Then my mind went to University of Ghana. Constitutional and Administrative law class. Topic: Directive Principles of State Policy. And it occurred to me that thirty-four years ago, our forebears codified what can be considered the mission of the State Ghana in Chapter 6 of the 1992 Constitution. It makes exciting reading, given the array of responsibilities imposed on the State in this part of the 210-page Constitution.
The aspect which serves the purpose of this article is Article 36 (1)- “The State shall take all necessary action to ensure that the national economy is managed in such a manner as to maximize the rate of economic development and to secure the maximum welfare, freedom and happiness of every person in Ghana and to provide adequate means of livelihood and suitable employment and public assistance to the needy.”
I dare say that the framers of the 1992 Constitution meant every word of the above quoted section of the Directive Principles of State Policy. That’s because my lawyer friends tell me that when a legislation drafting team uses the word SHALL, it is mandatory.
And that is what it should be. Because the State is funded by natural resources bestowed on us by God the father almighty and more importantly, taxes we all pay in one form or another- income tax, value added tax, tolls, levies etc.
Has the State Ghana provided adequate means of livelihood and suitable employment?
I have observed with sadness the decision by some of our local authorities to deprive fellow citizens of their means of livelihood- Ventures they have on their own initiated, seeing as the State has failed to provide.
I am not in any way promoting lawlessness. What I seek is the welfare of the ‘ordinary Ghanaian’ as provided for in the Bible of Ghana- the 1992 Constitution. Which we must obey lest we become sinners.
It started with the KMA boss, Richard Ofori Agyemang Boadi, threatening to beat the hell of out of traders who were plying their trade in unauthorized spaces. Later, when he was made to see reason, his approach changed.
Similarly, the Mayor of Accra, Michael Kpakpo Allotey, after issuing ultimatums to traders on pavements to vacate, has upon being prompted, resorted to the Redline approach introduced by a former Mayor, Dr Alfred Okoe Vanderpuiye.
Now, I am hearing that he wants to redevelop the 31st December Market, thus is asking the traders to vacate the place. It took beautiful Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection for cool heads to prevail.
Few months ago, traders at Abeka Lapaz were asked to vacate the place for the construction of an overpass. They withdrew accordingly. After the project, their request to return to base was met with an outright no. They protested, the media brought it the front burner for the State to address. Not much was heard from those who matter.
On April 11 2026, more than one thousand residents of Coconut Plantation within the La Dadekotopon Municipality were displaced following the demolition of their homes.
The exercise, which was carried out under the supervision of the CEO of Anyok Holdings, Clemence Djato, was said to form part of a broader effort to reclaim State lands.
Somehow the State’s representatives- the MP for the area, Rita Naa Odoley Sowah, the MCE for the area, Alfredos Nii Anyetei and the Regional Minister, Linda Ocloo, were all not aware the place had been earmarked for demolition. They nonetheless promised to go to the aid of the displaced persons. Since then, these bonafide Ghanaians have been left to their fate. Or so it seems.
In all these instances cited, something is conspicuously missing- alternative trading places or accommodation. I can hear some ask by whom? My answer is, the State. That is the essence of being a citizen- to benefit from the largesse of the State. That is the essence of Chapter 6 of the 1992 Constitution.
It is with that understanding that the State has decided to pay Ethiopian Airlines to evacuate nearly 1,000 nationals of Ghana (NOT Ghanaian nationals- tautology) from xenophobic attacks in South Africa at no cost to our affected compatriots. To the extent of doling out a Welcome Home Financial Package of GHC5,000 each and Re-integration Allowance among others.
Actually, in well organised societies like the US, where leadership cares about the ordinary citizens, unemployment benefits are paid to those who are not fortunate enough to secure jobs.
What is more intriguing is that when Liberians experienced war decades ago, we gladly welcomed them as a State and facilitated their settlement at Gomoa Buduburam.
The question then is, why does it look like the State of Ghana, hates its less privileged? I can only speak about Accra because this is where I live. However, I am certain that what I’m about to describe pertains across the country, especially in Kumasi, Takoradi and Tamale.
In Accra, among the hundreds of fellow Ghanaians you see occupying the pavements and street corners in their quest to eke out a living, are destitutes. Our cousins, nephews, nieces are wallowing in abject poverty. Indeed, many are in a state of squalor.
They have no hope of a better day. Hence, they engage in all manner of perilous escapades to quench their hunger. In the process, they sometimes find themselves at the wrong side of the law.
This phenomenon is so pronounced at the Kwame Nkrumah interchange where many sleep in the open at the mercy of the weather. It is such a sorrowful sight to behold each time it rains and the place becomes flooded.
Bukom, Chorkor, Nima and many slum communities are full of hopeless youth faced with extreme deprivation. The result is anger. They are angry at the leaders of this country who have failed to give them a decent life with State resources put in their (leaders) trust.
Some say forget them, they are lazy. I say no lazy person risks his life to travel through the desert to a land where more often than not, they know nobody. No lazy person will trust the little savings he or she has made in the hands of a “connection man” to take him to Europe or America.
No lazy 30 to 50-year-old Ghanaian man or woman will sell ice water, car duster, ice cream, Blue Skies drinks, tissue, belts, windscreen wipers, plantain chips, tiger nuts or steering wheel covers under the scorching sun, just to put body and soul together.
The problem is lack of opportunities- farm plantations, factories to work in. That is the yearning of our less privileged.
The presidential portrait
When I was growing up in the 70s the symbol of state that I knew was the Coat of Arms. In primary school, we were taught about the significance of each of the items on the Coat of Arms.
We also got introduced to the national flag. Red, gold, green with a black star in the middle. All the colours had their meaning.
It was when I became politically aware, while in journalism school, that I noticed the portrait of then President JJ Rawlings in all conference rooms, receptions, and auditoriums of public institutions where I covered assignments.
I do not know who originated the practice to hang portraits of the President or when exactly it started. But I think by this practice, a great disservice has been done to persons who have had the privilege of being elected by the people of Ghana (NOT Ghanaian people- Tautology) to serve them.
Why do I say so? I asked AI what the purpose of a presidential portrait is. Here are the most plausible answers I got- symbolizes leadership and serves as a unifying representation of the nation. A presidential portrait primarily serves to document history, symbolize the authority of the office, and project a specific political and personal legacy. Note ‘personal legacy’.
My favourite portraits
I have two portraits in my living room that I cherish, apart from the one that has Jesus and the 12 disciples at table for the last supper.
One is the photo I used as cover for my book titled From Eric’s Diary: A Guide to Writing Feature Articles Using The 5ws And H (Who, What, When, Where, Why and How + M, O/R. Those of you who have seen that photo would attest to the fact that it is nice.
I got very good reviews of that photo from persons of the opposite sex. So, I framed and hung it near the TV. Each time I sit to watch TV, I see it. And it makes me feel accomplished. That’s because I have come far. From that boy who played ‘gutter to gutter’ on the streets of the Central Business District-Okaishie- to an award-winning journalist, author, BBC trained corporate coach and DW trained facilitator. What God cannot do does not exist.
The other portrait is of a quote I once chanced upon- “The height of great men were not attained by sudden flight, but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night.” By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
Each time I read it, I get a motivation to go higher. I see Ernest Bediako Sampong (Ernest Chemist), Daniel McKorley (McDan Group of Companies), Elder Dr Samuel Amoh Tobbin (Tobbinco Group of Companies), Kwasi Twum (Multimedia Group), Aliko Dangote etc and the beautiful cars they are driven in, compared with the Daewoo Matiz Joy that I drive. Whereupon I get the reawakening that I am nowhere near fulfilment of my potential.
It’s time to go
The gist of what I am driving at is that, may be. Just may be. If we change from the presidential portrait to a framed Directive Principles of State Policy, the President will be spared the temptation to be admiring himself in the photo for all his enviable accomplishments like I do. Instead, he will be reawakened to the task at hand each time he walks into the State House (My suggestion for a name change) and sees the content of the new portrait.
He or she will remember the Presidential Oath– “I,……………………. having been elected to the high office of President of the Republic of Ghana do in the name of the Almighty God swear…and that I dedicate myself to the service and well-being of the people of the Republic of Ghana and to do right to all manner of persons… So, help me God.”
Also, the Ministers of State, Chief Directors of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), Municipal, Metropolitan and District Assemblies (MMDAs) will reorient themselves to the demands of the Directive Principles of State Policy as contained in the new portrait.
Currently, with the smiley face of the President in the Presidential Portrait welcoming them daily to their offices and conference rooms, these public servants have unconsciously sworn “to do right by the President at all times. So, help them God.”
To think that Ghana’s Cabinet is officially designated as Mahama’s Cabinet. When the 1992 Constitution’s composition of the Cabinet includes the President? And every minister and top public servant is referencing President Mahama in their public speeches- “Through the magnanimity of President Mahama, “President Mahama has asked me to assure you that…,” “We thank God for a president like Mahama.” Even a State institution has been christened Mahama Cares. Hm!
I guess it is such praise singing and hero worshiping that encouraged one of our former presidents to design his own presidential chair aside the official one. He got so consumed in a premonition that he would one day become president. Such that when it happened, he forgot about the mission of the office.
Actually, he still wears a brooch made of the Coat of Arms on his shirts after leaving office. The records of his tenure, in the eyes of the non-elephant admiring Ghanaian, are there for all to see. Remember ‘personal legacy’?
Here ends my contribution to the Reset Agenda- It’s time to replace the Presidential Portrait with a framed Directive Principles of State Policy. Agree?
Au Revoir – That’s goodbye in French
Let God Lead!!! Follow Him directly, not through any human.
The writer is the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) Columnist of the Year- 2022. He is the author of two books whose contents share knowledge on how anyone desirous of writing like him can do so. Eric can be reached via email [email protected]
