Accra, Feb. 20, GNA–The former Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has expressed misgivings about some recent developments in Ghana that threatened the country’s democracy.
In a statement issued in Accra and copied to the Ghana News Agency, Dr Bawumia expressed unhappiness about the government’s mass termination of appointments of civil servants employed by the immediate past government.
“The government of President Mahama has pursued a series of actions targeting Ghanaians who were legitimately employed during the previous administration.
“It is ironic that a party which campaigned on the wings of jobs for all Ghanaians is arbitrarily dismissing the same Ghanaians, rendering them jobless, just because a different government employed them,” Dr Bawumia stated.
The former Vice President reminded President Mahama and his government the overriding duty to live by the democratic tenets envisioned in the 1992 Constitution, and “do justice and right to all manner of persons”.
“This statement is released against a personal vow I made since leaving office. I made a personal affirmation to allow our new President and his government to get the needed space to get a hold of things and settle down quickly to tackle the important business of governance, and by extension nation building.
“Having been Vice President for the past eight years, I have come to appreciate the enormity of the task; a task that requires that those entrusted with the responsibility of governance, especially the President, get the needed support and composure to implement their vision for the betterment of our dear country,” he noted.
“Unfortunately, I need to speak up on recent developments that pose significant threats to our democracy. To look away whilst these ills persist is to abandon my responsibility to remind President Mahama and his government of the overriding duty to live by the democratic tenets envisioned in the 1992 Constitution and do justice and “right to all manner of persons,” Dr Bawumia emphasised.
The former Vice President stated that when Ghanaians voted for change in the 2024 general elections, it manifested the desire to continue with national development, albeit with different people at the helm of affairs.
“It was within this spirit that I gave an early concession speech, urging all Ghanaians to support our new president as he attempts to make his contribution to the cumulative progress successive governments have chalked over the years.
“Since the assuming office, however, the government of President Mahama has pursued series of actions targeting Ghanaians who were legitimately employed during the previous administration.
“It is ironic that a party which campaigned on the wings of jobs for all Ghanaians is arbitrarily dismissing the same Ghanaians, rendering them jobless, just because a different government employed them to put their talents to bear on the nation’s development and earn income to cater for themselves and their families,” Dr Bawumia noted.
He said the least a party that campaigned on jobs could do under conditions of unemployment was to also innovate and create jobs rather than dismiss people.
“Regrettably, these dismissals have been extended to directors who are public servants and not politicians.
“In some of the cases, the only reason for dismissal was that the persons whose livelihoods have been destroyed are known to or related to politicians as if to suggest that they cannot live independent professional lives, however qualified they are.
“There are also reports of government’s intention to terminate the appointments of persons performing critical jobs such security personnel, nurses, and teachers simply because they were appointed during the tenure of the previous administration,” Dr Bawumia stated.
GNA