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Opinions of Thursday, 12 March 2020

Columnist: Charles Yeboah, Contributor

So, do these people have Ghana at heart?

Parliament House Parliament House

In agonising moment, listening to the Radio BAR 93.5MHz Morning Show hosted by Ekow Amoako, I could only say: these guys do not have anything good for Ghana and the Ghanaian people. Which people referred to here?

It’s an arm of government, as said on the said programme - Parliament House of Ghana.

The guests on Ekow Amoako’s show were from the Food And Drugs Authority (FDA).

This time, they’ve come to inform the Ghanaian public that there's a change in the FDA laws, as put forward by Parliament. And in that, there will be spot fines for offending wholesalers and retailers who would sell expired/unwholesome products to the unsuspecting consumer.

To explain further, the guests, the FDA, said: the officers on their routine checks, if an expired product is found in a shop, unlike before that the offender would be summoned to the office or processed to court, a spot fine would be issued, and must be defrayed by the offending shop owner, or risk jail terms.

They (the FDA) actually assured Ghanaians that their officers will be identified by their identity cards, a government registered car, and an office telephone line that the offender could call for verification if feared cheated by fraudsters.

Looking at it from afar, the unsuspecting Ghanaian can hardly see anything evil in what the Parliament House of Ghana is foisting on consumers.

This law means that: an unscrupulous seller would sell unwholesome products and make huge profit, one that could bail him/her out when fined. Blood money, isn’t it?

The officers at the FDA are happy at this, because they will not inspect a shop and come out without the fearing shop owner greasing their palms, judging by our legendary affinity as Ghanaians to bribery and corruption.

So, is this the Parliament House that is having Osei Kyei-Mensah Bonsu, the majority leader, in there who thinks the long serving experience parliamentarians there are not to be challenged for their seats?

Is this the laws they experience; untouchable parliamentarians preside over putting the health of the consumer at risk?

In fact, Ghana is in a mess now. Nothing works as it’s supposed to be. Upon our abundant bequeathed resources, the legislature and the executive only thinks about imposing tax upon tax, the judiciary will have nothing doing, than to rubber stamp that.

The suffering Ghanaian masses are burdened with the ramifications of such laws in harsh fines and consumption of toxified products.

The patriotic Ghanaian I am, leading the One Ghana Movement (#1GhM), burnt on rescuing and rebuilding Ghana to her deserving status - Paradise, a pilgrim’s pride, we’re mobilising a One Million man-march Ghanaians to in a positive defiance stand against these fiendish decrees that in yonder will sink further our already caving-in beautiful Ghana of old.

Long live Ghana!