Political Odyssey 3: WILL NPP & OTHERS SIGN 2008 MAGNA CARTA?

Right now, too many Ghanaians are thinking of themselves as powerless to address the injustices meted out to them by politicians. They forget that they are the ones who lend politicians their power. And hence, the politician is the servant of the public, and not the other way around. Come 2008, Ghanaian voters would do well to remember what Cassius says, in Julius Caesar Act I, sc. ii:

Men at some time are masters of their fates: The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings.

Likewise, Ghanaian masses possess the means to be in charge of their own destinies, come 2008. The first step is to critically consider the quality of our candidates, not merely relying on surface gossip and deliberate, malicious mischaracterization.

?The frontiers are not east, or west, north or south, but wherever a man ?fronts? a fact?. Henry David Thoreau 1817-1862.

Wikipedia describes Magna Carta, as originally, an ?English charter from 1215 and is the most significant early influence on the long historical process that has lead to the rule of constitutional law today. Magna Carta was originally created because of disagreements between the Pope, King John and his English barons over the rights of the King. The influence of Magna Carta outside of England can be seen in the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights. Indeed just about every common law country with a constitution (including Ghana) has been influenced by Magna Carta, making it perhaps the most important legal document in the history of Democracy.?

Ghanaians have reached a ?Factual Frontier?, where we must look deep into ourselves to create a fresh and modern ?Magna Carta of dos and don?ts? for our politicians when they mount their political planks. We must simplify the essential facts of life, like Thoreau did. Essential development ethos devoid of high sounding noise must be the watchword. This ?Magna Carta? should be an article of faith between the electorate and politicians, considering where we have come from. It has been shown throughout history, that improvement on the old 13th Century Magna Carta has been the catalyst for human growth and development. Now, as Ghana stands at the crossroads of transforming her fledgling democracy into a vibrant, innovative, and truly inclusive society, it is time for politicians to be straightforward about their intentions, so t! hat the electorate can have at least a minimum of faith in their public statements and declarations on the political platform, before they are voted into office.

Articles 12 through 33 of Ghana?s 1992 Constitution enunciate fundamental human rights and freedoms distilled from the Magna Carta of the 13th Century to modern times. Oath swearing is prescribed in Articles 57(3) for President, 60(5) for vice President, 80 for Ministers and their Deputies and 100 for parliamentarians. Other Public Officials such as Chief Justice etc are required to swear oaths as well. Yet, these politicians do not swear any oath to the voters before elections. The result has been the wanton display ! of delirium, outright lying and deceit by politicians. As soon as they are declared winners, politicians create a wide gulf between them and voters. As the NPP showed in 2001, whatever promises they made to get elected became anathema to their ears. Is it not time for politicians to swear to a political Magna Carta for the peace of mind of the electorate?

That majority of Ghanaians ?front? hunger, disease, misery and poverty in their daily existence is a fact that cannot be dismissed. Almost half a century of our nationhood has done little to overcome this ignoble frontier of under-development and squalor. How do we become victorious? 2008 presents a great opportunity for voters not to let politicians run amok with the same old political platitudes just to garner votes and disappear fro! m their midst for the next four years.

According to the 1992 Constitution, the people have to go to the polls to elect a president and parliamentarians every four years. Although the Judiciary is exempt from this four year ritual, the power of the President to appoint judges effectively circumscribes that institution. The 1992 Constitution is executive-friendly. It grants such immense power to the Presidency; power which affects the lives of every Ghanaian in myriads of ways that have not even been thought of. It is important that during elections, voters must carefully consider what they are giving away; their collective power is all being deposited in one, single individual, referred to as the President. Once he becomes President, the Constitution gives him virtually unlimited author! ity over every single thing the masses do. Parliament, as another, supposedly equal branch of government, can also significantly affect the lives of the masses. Basically, it cannot be stressed enough that government is a powerful force in the lives of all; so when it comes to the privacy of the ballot box, the voter needs to think very, very hard about the quality of his choice and its implications, not only for himself but for society as a whole. Those who think politics is only for the greedy and the ambitious, and therefore would not partake in it, are indeed fooling themselves, since their lives are equally affected by petrol increases, ROPAL, and the mother of them all ? taxation.

NPP is the incumbent government and its promises of 2000 and 2004 are freshest in the minds of the electorate,! though NDC comes to mind as well and therefore both would be the main reference for this piece. In 2000, people were indeed hopeful that NPP?s ?positive change? would usher in fresh ideas and new faces. In came John Kufuor with some geriatric folks in tow. Was there no promise of 100,000 jobs within the first three months in office? Did voters not hear that: patients would not be detained in hospitals for lack of money, medicine would be plentiful, every voter would get a decent housing, cost of living would be drastically reduced and there would be fewer Ministers to save taxpayer?s money? 2008 will be the 5th time in the Fourth Republic that the people are likely to be cajoled, lied to, inundated by promises, or, prodded into joining queues to give their mandate to both a Presidential candidate and Parliamentary candidates. The burden of the ordinary man has become significantly worse, in the view of masses that join Wahala marches. For pro-NPP, things have never been! better. Why the sharp divide?

There cannot be consensus that by 2008 Ghana would have ceased to be classified a Highly Indebted Poor Nation (HIPC) in name and in fact. It was President John Kufuor who classified Ghana a Poor HIPC nation, after strange dilly-dallying. We are now said to have reached ?decision point?, whatever that means to the nation?s image. Until Kufuor declares Ghana a Highly Industrialized and Prosperous Nation, would it be wrong for the masses to say they are actually poor and heavily indebted as President Kufuor informed t! he whole world? Is it not a paradox that Ghana had been declared HIPC but those who made the declaration would not want voters to say they are in fact and in truth, poor and heavily indebted, as Election 2008 approaches? Wouldn?t NPP like the masses to tell the world they are rich and prosperous, even though they are poor and indebted?

It has been the practice of politicians to seek villagers and townsfolk and inundate them with a set of packaged lies and propaganda when elections are in sight. Politicians promise to serve the electorate, but make themselves masters of the people, after winning elections. Dare you remind them of their promises, and you are branded a pariah and a trouble maker. Your paria! h status is only further enhanced when any attempts to organize a recall of non-performing, deceitful MPs (including attempting to remove any MP sitting in jail in New York for powdering offence) is quickly described as evil. Even when this attempt is constitutionally mandated, political strategists are quick to decry this patriotic act.

In the alternative, it would be right for voters to follow Martin Luther King Jr?s wise words: "I became convinced that non-cooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as is cooperation with good. No other person has been more eloquent and passionate in getting this idea across than Henry David Thoreau. As a result of his writings and personal witness, we are the heirs of a legacy of creative protest." - Martin Luther King, Jr, Autobiography, Chapter 2.! Voters must protest against politicians who tell them one thing and do the opposite.

Granted that parties print their manifestoes, listing the things they would do when voted into office. Such documents largely become irrelevant pieces of paper right after the elections. Shouldn?t these vote seekers therefore subscribe to a ?Magna Carta? as bond between them and voters? In the view of this writer, historical antecedents of the various parties demand separate Magna Carta for them. Here are his suggestions, to which you the reader may feel free to create your own Magna Carta for politicians.

MAGNA CARTA TO BE SUBSCRIBED TO BY NPP 2008 CANDID! ATE (S):

1. I promise to be both Enemy of Lies and Friend of Truth.

2. I promise not to be nepotistic and abide by meritocracy.

3. I promise not to live ostentatiously and ride in convoys in expensive cars at a time when petrol prices are through the roof and remain unaffordable to tax-payers.

4. I promise not to undertake useless foreign trips just for undisclosed per diem.

5. I promise to shun CORRUPTION and be serious with the pl! edge on ZERO TOLERANCE FOR CORRUPTION, understanding that I must not appear to be guilty of impropriety, by keeping my children and family away from controversial deals like Hotel Acquisition by loan from Banks which ordinary people may not have access to.

6. I promise not to bring my high office into disrepute with sexual immorality, leading an exemplary, moral life that serves as an inspiration to all.

7. I promise to make Agriculture a top priority and turn Afram & Accra plains into the bread basket of not only Ghana but Africa as well.

8. I promise to undertake Land Reform to assist Economic and Agrarian Reform

9. I promise to safeguard Ghana?s Forest Reserves as well as Natural Resources

10. I promise to ensure that Foreign Mining Companies repatriate 75% of returns instead of the 5% they currently contribute to Ghana?s economy.

11. I promise not to waste time on political vendetta and work hard for 4 years without an eye for re-election in everything I do, and if you decide I deserve re-election, I would only serve if you draft me.

Should I fail to abide by these 11 promises, I encourage every voter to join in a call for my removal before my 4 year term expires. SO HELP ME GOD.

These simple words without legalese should be recited at every campaign stop NPP Presidential and Parliamentary Candidates appear at before voters go to the polls December 7, 2008. It will constitute a covenant with the people.

As far back as the 13th Century, Anti-Corruption and Fair Trade Clauses were inserted in the Magna Carta. In the 1225 Charter, it is stated that ?no royal officer may take any commodity such as corn, wood or transport without payment or consent or force a knight to pay for something they could do themselves.? In 2001, soon after swearing to pursue zero tolerance to corruption, renovation work to the private residence of President Kufuor at the Airport West Residence gave rise to a firestorm. Opponents of Mr. Kufuor charged that Taxpayer money was used illegally for the project. A farmer stepped forward belatedly to claim that he paid 41 million Cedis for the renovation. When challenged to show his tax-return, nothing was forthcoming and it is also not clear that the President has paid gift taxes on the largesse according to Ghana?s tax Laws, if the claim is indeed true. IN THE 2008 N! PP MAGNA CARTA, NPP POLITICIANS KNOW THEY OWE IT TO THE ELECTORATE AND MUST SPELL OUT THAT THEY WILL LIVE ABOVE REPROACH AND ABOVE ANY APPEARANCE OF IMPROPRIETY.

MAGNA CARTA TO BE SUBSCRIBED TO BY NDC 2008 CANDIDATE (S):

I swear that when I am elected to the high office of president or parliament, I will be faithful and true to the Republic of Ghana: that I will at all times preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana: 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.

! I swear that I would hold regular press conferences and also, people?s assemblies with real masses and listen to their concerns of which I shall endeavor to redress expeditiously to the best of my ability.

I swear to provide a visionary form of government, one that draws upon local talent and entrepreneurship to open a new vista of hope, progress and optimism for Ghana?s future.

I swear to place a stronger emphasis on issues concerning women and children, and to promote the advancement of positive female role models in all areas of society, making sure that many of my appointees will be women.

I swear that I will be my own man and if by the time I take office, the Dagbon crisis has not been resolved, I will direct my predecessor who caused that strife, to go to Dagbon personally and plead with the people for forgiveness as a step to final resolution, after prayers for his soul at a junction between Ako Adjei or Sankara Interchange and National Theatre Tr! affic Light in Accra.

I swear to place equal developmental emphasis everywhere in Ghana. No region shall go ignored with respect to the national cake, making sure that justice will not be selective.

I swear that every Ghanaian will have equal opportunity and equal access to the means of success in society. The least advantaged will be assured of security, whilst those abundantly blessed will be encouraged to give back to society by way of charity, without stifling their natural talents.

I swear that I will lead a personal crusade to ameliorate people?s propensity for back-biting and make friends with the press, even those MisGuiding Journalists.

I swear that the affairs of my office will be open and easily accessible, so as not to make it easy for opponents who are looking to titillate impressionable minds.

I swear to lead Ghana?s agricultural sector into the future, especially by reaching out to young entrepreneurs and brilliant young minds that hold the key to Ghana?s successful agrarian transformation.

I swear to conduct my office in a humble manner, eschewing lavish, imperial lifestyles, living my life in a manner dictated by Ghana?s limited resources.

Should I fail to abide by these 11 promises, I encourage every voter to join in a call for my removal before my 4 year term expires. SO HELP ME GOD.

MAGNA CARTA FOR OTHER ASSORTED 2008 CANDIDATES

(All Together) We swear to? (Pick and choose from NPP?s and NDC?s oath) They are the big boys and we are just strutting and fretting our time on the stage?did they say 15 minutes? Tell that to Dan Lartey, the Domestication perpetual campaigner.