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Opinions of Saturday, 22 March 2008

Columnist: Bonsu, Seth

Love and Consequences

A politician's career is always built on ethics but this has been thrown over board by almost all the politicians in Ghana or maybe the word does not resonate in the ears of parliamentarians and ministers."Truth" which is the engine of our judicial system is always pushed aside to the detriment of the citizens.

No party in Ghana past or present has found fault with a member of the party for corruption or on ethics violation yet corruption runs rout in our government. Neither the NPP or NDC really understand that the ordinary people in Ghana aren't happy with the performance of either party.Both are dis-connected.Most Ghanaians expect them to represent main street Ghana,not their party nor special interest groups and not to line their own pocket or interprete the meaning of ethics differently.

It wouldn't matter if one party or the other came up with the best solution to any of the numerous problems facing Ghanaians, the other party would take the opposite position.

In short they hold the citizens in disdain, their intergrity is always in question and they have lost sight of the responsibilities to the people. Each party should share the blame for sullying the process and eroding the public trust. For the President of Ghana and the NPP parliamentarians to bring Dr. Anane back is one of the low water marks in Mr. Kuffour's presidency.

Of all the accusations levelled against him by CHRAJ not a single one went against him yet ordinary Ghanaians are always incacerated for petty offences. The President should have parted company with or ended that cycle of scandal and disgrace to give more weight to his "zero tolerance".

I really find it unconscionable that the courts quashed all allegations against him and the parliamentarians accepted or approved of his come back.Yes,this is a fine case of party trumps truth. All that they are telling us is that the man is so indispensable that without him the government of Ghana would not function.Democracies don't work if parliamentarians follow someone who can't lead by example.Parliamentarians from both sides of the aisle should show Ghanaians that at least some of their members still hold the constitution to be more important than their political parties.

People don't hate him but his abrasive attitude and demeanour make him his own worst enemy, alienating people who might agree with him and costing him support even for good ideas.People just want Dr. Anane to do a good thing,"zip his pants".If Dr.Anane has been accepted back as the prodigal son then it makes a mockery of the justice system in Ghana and as such a prostitute in the country could compare herself to Mother Theresa as being holistic and which would be accepted.

The New York Governor Spitzer was hoistered by his own petard, brought down by the same kind of investigation he pioneered as a prosecutor.His whole career was built on ethics.It's only in our country that the top heirachy are not equal before the law. If Ghana is a pandering and hypocritical society when it comes to sex and scandals then the leaders should let us know, not forgetting the cocaine case.

Good behaviour is always rewarded and bad behaviour punished. The President made loud noises about crack downs and cleanups but the only thing he seems to do now is offer protection.Presidents don't cover problems, they eliminate them.It seems his loyalty to Dr.Anane overrides the concerns for Ghanaians and it will be hard for him to resurrect the popular agenda of Zero Tolerance when in actual fact he is going in the opposite direction.Ethical people strive to be faithful to their families and the law.He should have been held to a different ethical standard as his blunder sheet is as long as a grocery list for a summer camp.

I don't really know if there is something about the aura of power surrounding prominent politicians that make them feel potentially immune from consequences.They sometimes feel they can do things that we mere mortals are forbidden to do.In order to be in such a high profile position, you have to believe that what you are doing is innately right.Anything that is opposite to right you may blot out.I sometimes think it's deep seated compulsion or one of simple hubris which makes them stoop too low.The Priests and Bishops in the country should have spoken forcefully against Dr.Anane's behaviour of having a baby outside his marriage and what it tells the younger kids.

My question therefore, "Is Dr.Anane guilty or not guilty"?.Your guess is as good as mine.

Seth Bonsu (Denver-USA)

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