THE SAD SADA STORY - HOW PRESIDENT JOHN MAHAMA BETRAYED HIS OWN PEOPLE (NORTHERNERS)

 

THE SAD SADA STORY - HOW PRESIDENT JOHN MAHAMA BETRAYED HIS OWN PEOPLE (NORTHERNERS) 

IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN’S FOLDER

The Savanna Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) is undoubtedly, the ONE AND ONLY intervention instituted by the John Mahama NDC government to transform the northern part of the country. This intervention was therefore meant to better the living conditions of northerners and ultimately, accelerate the development of northern Ghana with the view to narrowing the development gap between the north and the south. 

SADA was first proposed by the then Vice Presidential candidate of NDC, who is now the President (H.E John Mahama) in the run-up to election 2008 as an alternative to Nana Addo’s proposed Northern Development Fund (NDF). This was after he [John Mahama] had pooh-poohed the NPP’s proposal [NDF] on the grounds that same was a deception and a misplaced priority. Candidate John Mahama proceeded to opine that, the then NPP government ought to rather focus its attention on settling the colossal VRA debt and forget the talk about establishing a Northern Development Fund with our limited resources. 

His party however made a quick U-turn upon realizing that the proposal [NDF] was becoming very popular among the northern electorates. The NDC then hurriedly mimicked it with a proposal to establish what they call, Savanna Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) and promised a seed capital of $200 million and subsequent injection of $100 million into the SADA account every year. This promise, which is undoubtedly, the brainchild of President John Mahama is still yet to be realised after being in government for 8 years. 

There hasn’t been any significant commitment to implementing SADA. Unfortunately, the little money that has been pumped into this project cannot be accounted for. Also, the so called already-executed SADA projects cannot be seen either. Here, mention can be made of the guinea fowl and well as the afforestation project among several other ‘phantom enterprises’ we are being told of SADA. 

Meanwhile, northerners, who are supposed to be the target beneficiaries of this SADA initiative continue to live in abject poverty whilst SADA, which still remains the one and only policy initiative of the Mahama led government to bridge the yawning gap between the north and the south is fast becoming an apology of itself. Today, SADA has metamorphosed into an epitome of UNBRIDLED CORRUPTION ever seen in the history of this country.

It has become a conduit for the deliberate and clandestine creation, looting and sharing of taxpayers’ money among government officials. What is more annoying and disconcerting is the impunity with which these government officials steal our money. They do it with a lot of swag because they have no shame and hold absolutely no modicum of respect for the poor northerner. When we complain, they tend to steal even more. How pathetic!

It is not surprising that SADA is today seen as arguably, the most corrupt institution in the country. Interestingly, SADA does not fall under any Ministry but falls DIRECTLY under THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, who himself is a northerner. Not only is the President a northerner, but also, he is someone who rigorously used “the northern card” as a trump card to campaign to northerners for votes in 2008 and 2012. Of course, he has still not repented from that dangerous and inflammatory tribal politics. With this [the sad SADA story) in mind, it becomes very clear that President Mahama is highly insensitive to the plight of his own. 

Certainly, this explains why the President doesn’t make mention of SADA anytime he campaigns in the north. He doesn’t also talk about infrastructure development as he often does when campaigning in the southern part of the country. All we hear is his tribal bigotry in the north. No more politics of ISSUES because none exists as far as his mediocre performance in the north is concerned.  

Again, for the past two years, the name, SADA never appeared in our national budgets; let alone, to make budgetary allocation to the Authority. Meanwhile, SADA still remains the ONLY POLICY of this Mahama government to transform the lives of northerners. Obviously, President Mahama has taken his own people for granted because of their seeming aloofness in DEMANDING for accountability. 

This worrying trend of lethargy and nonchalance is what you and I, as concerned northerners must REVERSE by rising-up to fight against the odds. Our people are really suffering and if President Mahama still doesn’t care about their precarious plight, we must give them the needed VOICE. We must fight for them because they may not have the means or platform to tell their story in order to galvanize public support. The government of John Mahama has given northerners a RAW DEAL and I don’t expect us to remain loudly quiet over these economic and social injustices.

Yes, the trend must be reversed with immediate effect for the love of God and country. And by that, I expect that we, Northerners must all rise up to the occasion and demand that President John Mahama accounts for the over Gh¢300 million his government has pumped into SADA, which constitute only 30% of what was promised anyway. The sad reality is that this money has been embezzled by the president and his cronies because we cannot see any SADA projects. This is evidenced in the scandalous revelations on SADA during parliament Public Accounts Committee hearings which have always been mindboggling. 

In other words, there exists several unchallenged Audit Reports conducted by the Auditor-General, which reveal INCRIMINATING FINDINGS about the rot in SADA; yet, no one is held accountable. This is in spite of the fact that some identifiable government officials including Minsters of State have consistently been indicted in these Reports. For instance, the 2013 Audit Report indicts the management of SADA and the Sports Minister at the time (Dr. Mustapha Ahmed) for blowing over GH¢186,371 on a USELESS TRIP to Turkey.  

Another story is told of SADA involving some GH¢42 million which was taken forcefully from SADA by the Labour Ministry under the supervision of Hon. Haruna Iddrisu, another brother from the North and MP for Tamale South. As we speak, all attempts made by SADA to get back this GH¢42 million from the government has proven UNSUCCESSFUL. I can go on and on and on but still, the sad SADA story CANNOT be told in full. In the final analysis, what is abundantly clear is that this whole SADA business will surely go in history as President Mahama’s LEGACY OF SHAME to his own people. 

Fortunately for northerners and Ghanaians alike, in less than two weeks, we shall have a rare opportunity to pass a verdict on the performance of the John Mahama government. You and I shall have a glorious opportunity to either maintain the status quo involving corruption, hopelessness, looting and mismanagement OR chart a new path of progress and prosperity by voting for CHANGE on December 7. If we get it wrong, it would take another four years to right the wrong. So, with all sincerity and in good conscience, I am for CHANGE because I think my country deserves better. I hope you are voting for CHANGE too.  

#Mutaashi
#AriseForChange
#Nana_BawumiaB3ba

#SayNoToMahamaAndNDC
#GhanaMustWorkAgain

Assalamu alaikum

This piece was compiled by a concerned Ghanaian in the service of OCCUPYING HEARTS and MINDS for the love of God and country.

IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN

Concerned Northerner/Youth Activist

Crusader for CHANGE

(0245335197)

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OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT MAHAMA ON HIS TRIBAL BIGOTRY AND DISRESPECT FOR NORTHERNERS

OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT MAHAMA ON HIS TRIBAL BIGOTRY AND DISRESPECT FOR NORTHERNERS

IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN'S FOLDER

Dear Mr. President,

As a true son of the north, I write this letter in grief and with heavy heart having followed your style of campaign in the north, which is dominated by religious and tribal bigotry. Interestingly, when you campaign in the southern part of the country, you talk about infrastructure (real or phantom). However, when you come up-north, your campaign message CHANGES from one of issues to TRIBALISM and SECTIONALISM.  We, northerners feel highly insulted and outraged by such repugnant conduct. What do you take us for? Some zombies? We don’t deserve an issue-based campaign? Come on! Mr. President… Give us some credit.

We know your records in the north is NOTHING to talk about. Perhaps this explains why when you come to the north, you don’t talk about issues but rather TRIBALISM in order to take undue advantage of unsuspecting northern electorates. For instance, on education infrastructure, you claim you are constructing 123 Day SHS across the country. Assuming without admitting that this wild claim is true, tell us how many of these schools can be found in the north of the country. As we speak, you have completed ONLY ONE school in the entire 3 northern regions. Meanwhile, these are the regions that are lagging behind in development across all levels. Yet, you claim you have commissioned more than 16 of these schools in the country. With this clear DISCONNECT, how can you convince any sane northerner that you are committed to northern development? Such contradiction!

You did this your tribal politics in 2012 and got away with it. I’m afraid you can’t have your way this time round. Mr. President, have you averred your mind to the dangerous implications such tribal incitement may have on the peace and stability of this country? Remember that, Ghana, has since independence, been a nation of INCLUSION where all her citizens live in peace and harmony without recourse to geographic, religious or tribal differences. It is therefore not for nothing that this country is seen as the oasis of peace and the beacon of hope on the Continent. Mr. President, why do you want to divide and destroy this country on the altar of political expediency?  Does life begin and end with political power?

You and your party have polarized this country enough. Your problematic style of campaign has the tendency of compromising the peace and stability of Ghana. You are either inciting Muslims against Christians, Easterners against Westerners, or Northerners against Southerners and the vice versa in your desperate attempt to score cheap political points. Such a shame! Must you win this election at all cost, including destroying Ghana? When you asked us (northerners) to vote for you in 2012 because you were one of us and we did, tell us one single thing you have done to better the lives of northerners. SADA, we all know, is the ONE AND ONLY POLICY your government introduced to turnaround the fortunes of the north.

Tell us what has become of SADA, which falls DIRECTLY under your office Mr. President. You have turned SADA into an AVENUE FOR LOOTING our money. The money pumped into SADA cannot be accounted for. No SADA money and no SADA projects. It is not surprising that you don’t talk about SADA in your campaign tour up-north. Meanwhile, the lot of the poor northerner continues to get worse and worse each passing moment. If as a result of this social and economic injustice, we call for CHANGE, you turn back to say, you feel pity for northerners who are calling for change. Surprisingly, you don’t feel pity for the suffering Ghanaian masses. How INSENSITIVE! You want to prevent us from crying after beating us? Your government has made life unbearable for the ordinary northerner.

Respectfully, I'm sorry to tell you Mr. President that, in you, we northerners see nothing but a complete departure from the northern brand, which includes honesty, hard work, truthfulness, assertiveness and above all, HUMILITY and INTEGRITY. You are an 'embodiment of betrayal' of these enviable qualities that northerners, throughout history, have always been known for. You have not only destroyed our brand but also, you've given politics a bad name, making same UNATTRACTIVE for the northerner.

Except that, we are quite fortunate to be blessed with one man (one of our own), in the person of Alhaji Dr. Mahamoud Bawumia in whom, northerners see HOPE. In Alhaji Bawumia, we see the RESTORATION of our brand. In him, we, the youth of the north and Ghana at large, see a BRIGHT FUTURE for ourselves and our children. Ultimately, he is the reason why we, the youth of the north and elsewhere find some comfort in this business of politics and indulge in same.

So, in the light of the foregoing, Mr. President, we all appreciate your state of jealously and envy in respect of Alhaji Bawumia's award winning gravitas and persona, under the circumstances. We all know that his rising fame in the north and across every nook and cranny of this country gives you a lot of sleepless nights. However, Mr. President, you are your own enemy and not Bawumia. So instead of attacking the innocent economic doctor (Alhaji Bawumia) of our time, look within yourself and you will come to terms with all your predicaments. Go back and get your FUNDAMENTALS right Mr. President.  

Whilst at it, I wish to on behalf of the concerned youth of the north, make it clear to you that, any further attacks on our only HOPE [Alhaji Bawumia] from you, would be met with a TUMULTUOUS RESISTANCE. In the meantime, I am telling you that we (northerners) have RESOLVED to RIGHT the wrongs of our time and thus, vote against impoverishment, legendary corruption, hopelessness, mediocrity and hardship. CHANGE is what we need and CHANGE is what we are voting for to make our country work again and RESTORE our lost hope. Eight years of your presidency (as luckiest VEEP and President) is more than enough.

I wish you well Mr. President as you prepare your handing over notes. You’ve done your best for this country but unfortunately, your best is not enough at all. I hope you learn the relevant lessons in opposition.  

 

Assalamu alaikum

Yours in the struggle for northern development   

IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN

A Concerned Northerner/Youth Activist

A Crusader for CHANGE

(0245335197)

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OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT MAHAMA ON HIS TRIBAL BIGOTRY AND DISRESPECT FOR NORTHERNERS

OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT MAHAMA ON HIS TRIBAL BIGOTRY AND DISRESPECT FOR NORTHERNERS

IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN'S FOLDER

Dear Mr. President,

As a true son of the north, I write this letter in grief and with heavy heart having followed your style of campaign in the north, which is dominated by religious and tribal bigotry. Interestingly, when you campaign in the southern part of the country, you talk about infrastructure (real or phantom). However, when you come up-north, your campaign message CHANGES from one of issues to TRIBALISM and SECTIONALISM.  We, northerners feel highly insulted and outraged by such repugnant conduct. What do you take us for? Some zombies? We don’t deserve an issue-based campaign? Come on! Mr. President… Give us some credit.

We know your records in the north is NOTHING to talk about. Perhaps this explains why when you come to the north, you don’t talk about issues but rather TRIBALISM in order to take undue advantage of unsuspecting northern electorates. For instance, on education infrastructure, you claim you are constructing 123 Day SHS across the country. Assuming without admitting that this wild claim is true, tell us how many of these schools can be found in the north of the country. As we speak, you have completed ONLY ONE school in the entire 3 northern regions. Meanwhile, these are the regions that are lagging behind in development across all levels. Yet, you claim you have commissioned more than 16 of these schools in the country. With this clear DISCONNECT, how can you convince any sane northerner that you are committed to northern development? Such contradiction!

You did this your tribal politics in 2012 and got away with it. I’m afraid you can’t have your way this time round. Mr. President, have you averred your mind to the dangerous implications such tribal incitement may have on the peace and stability of this country? Remember that, Ghana, has since independence, been a nation of INCLUSION where all her citizens live in peace and harmony without recourse to geographic, religious or tribal differences. It is therefore not for nothing that this country is seen as the oasis of peace and the beacon of hope on the Continent. Mr. President, why do you want to divide and destroy this country on the altar of political expediency?  Does life begin and end with political power?

You and your party have polarized this country enough. Your problematic style of campaign has the tendency of compromising the peace and stability of Ghana. You are either inciting Muslims against Christians, Easterners against Westerners, or Northerners against Southerners and the vice versa in your desperate attempt to score cheap political points. Such a shame! Must you win this election at all cost, including destroying Ghana? When you asked us (northerners) to vote for you in 2012 because you were one of us and we did, tell us one single thing you have done to better the lives of northerners. SADA, we all know, is the ONE AND ONLY POLICY your government introduced to turnaround the fortunes of the north.

Tell us what has become of SADA, which falls DIRECTLY under your office Mr. President. You have turned SADA into an AVENUE FOR LOOTING our money. The money pumped into SADA cannot be accounted for. No SADA money and no SADA projects. It is not surprising that you don’t talk about SADA in your campaign tour up-north. Meanwhile, the lot of the poor northerner continues to get worse and worse each passing moment. If as a result of this social and economic injustice, we call for CHANGE, you turn back to say, you feel pity for northerners who are calling for change. Surprisingly, you don’t feel pity for the suffering Ghanaian masses. How INSENSITIVE! You want to prevent us from crying after beating us? Your government has made life unbearable for the ordinary northerner.

Respectfully, I'm sorry to tell you Mr. President that, in you, we northerners see nothing but a complete departure from the northern brand, which includes honesty, hard work, truthfulness, assertiveness and above all, HUMILITY and INTEGRITY. You are an 'embodiment of betrayal' of these enviable qualities that northerners, throughout history, have always been known for. You have not only destroyed our brand but also, you've given politics a bad name, making same UNATTRACTIVE for the northerner.

Except that, we are quite fortunate to be blessed with one man (one of our own), in the person of Alhaji Dr. Mahamoud Bawumia in whom, northerners see HOPE. In Alhaji Bawumia, we see the RESTORATION of our brand. In him, we, the youth of the north and Ghana at large, see a BRIGHT FUTURE for ourselves and our children. Ultimately, he is the reason why we, the youth of the north and elsewhere find some comfort in this business of politics and indulge in same.

So, in the light of the foregoing, Mr. President, we all appreciate your state of jealously and envy in respect of Alhaji Bawumia's award winning gravitas and persona, under the circumstances. We all know that his rising fame in the north and across every nook and cranny of this country gives you a lot of sleepless nights. However, Mr. President, you are your own enemy and not Bawumia. So instead of attacking the innocent economic doctor (Alhaji Bawumia) of our time, look within yourself and you will come to terms with all your predicaments. Go back and get your FUNDAMENTALS right Mr. President.  

Whilst at it, I wish to on behalf of the concerned youth of the north, make it clear to you that, any further attacks on our only HOPE [Alhaji Bawumia] from you, would be met with a TUMULTUOUS RESISTANCE. In the meantime, I am telling you that we (northerners) have RESOLVED to RIGHT the wrongs of our time and thus, vote against impoverishment, legendary corruption, hopelessness, mediocrity and hardship. CHANGE is what we need and CHANGE is what we are voting for to make our country work again and RESTORE our lost hope. Eight years of your presidency (as luckiest VEEP and President) is more than enough.

I wish you well Mr. President as you prepare your handing over notes. You’ve done your best for this country but unfortunately, your best is not enough at all. I hope you learn the relevant lessons in opposition. 

  

Assalamu alaikum

Yours in the struggle for northern development   

IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN

A Concerned Northerner/Youth Activist

A Crusader for CHANGE

(0245335197)

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INTERNAL WRANGLING IN POLITICAL PARTIES AND THE EFFECTS OF SAME ON THE GHANAIAN VOTER - PART TWO

  IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN’S FOLDER

In the first part of this write-up, I established succinctly, with relevant facts that, intra party wrangling or implosion has very little or no influence at all on the Ghanaian voter in this fourth republic. I however used the NPP as a Case Study, where it emerged that, even in the face of serious infighting, the party performs creditably well at the polls and sometimes proceeds to win general elections as in the case of 2000 and 2004 elections. In the buildup to these elections, the party [NPP] was confronted with so many internal issues resulting in several resignations by some of its leading members but the NPP still went ahead to win. 

Essentially this meant that, the Ghanaian voter is increasingly becoming conscious of his standard of living and thus, more concerned about the “bread and butter issues” rather than the perceived or real infighting in political parties, which is common in all the parties anyway. The electorates do not care about who resigns or gets suspended in political parties and at what levels. They are concerned about their economic conditions; they are concerned about matters of development; they are concerned about good governance and the fight against corruption. These are the germane issues that influence their votes for party A or party B. In this part, the NDC is being used as a Case Study:

The History of NDC and Internal Issues 

The NDC suspended their General Secretary in the person of Joziah Aryee in 2004 and made his deputy at the time, Mr. Bid Ziden to act in his stead. Again, at the 2005 infamous national delegates congress of the party held in Koforidua, the party subjected some of its National Executives including the National Chairman (Obed Asamaoh), the then Acting General Secretary (Bid Ziden) and the National Women’s Organizer (Mrs. Francis Essiam) to severe beatings. But for the timely intervention of the police, these national executives of the NDC would have been lynched by their own. 

This unfortunate development resulted in their resignation from the NDC and subsequent to this, they formed a breakaway party, the Democratic Freedom Party (DFP) to compete with the NDC and other political parties in the 2008 general elections. In view of this, political pundits predicted that the NDC was going to lose the elections to the governing NPP (which was very united and stable at the time) in the 2008 polls. However, the NDC still went ahead to win the elections despite these internal crisis in the party. 

Less I forget, in the run-up to the 1996 elections, the NDC Chairman in the Kwesi-Mintim Constituency was bathed with acid by the party’s foot soldiers which led to his unfortunate death because of internal crisis. Of course, this notwithstanding, the NDC still won the 1996 elections. Except that it is noteworthy that, the NDC, per this revelation, is clearly the political party that introduced ‘acid politics’ in Ghana and in this fourth republic, with the acidification of their Chairman in 1992. Quite significantly, he is called Adams. 

Again, the suspension of the NDC’s deputy general secretary, Mr. Kofi Adams in the run-up to the 2012 general elections as well as the defection of the mother of the NDC, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings from the party to form her own party, National Democratic Party (NDP) did not prevent the NDC from winning the 2012 general elections. 

Deductions  

It is obvious from the foregoing that, Ghanaians do not really consider the internal wrangling of a party before voting for that party or otherwise but their living conditions. The 2015 by-election in the Amenfi West Constituency, which occurred at the heat of the NPP internal issues, further revealed that the Ghanaian electorates indeed care less about these internal wrangling. This is because the party [NPP] moved from the 38% it got in the 2012 elections in that very constituency to 44%. Whereas the NDC that claims to be relatively stable and focused as a party, rather saw a drastic reduction in their votes; from the 60.55% in 2012 to only 52%.  

Again, I have clearly established in the first part of this piece that the internal issues of the NPP in the buildup to the 2000 general elections did not affect the party’s electoral fortunes. As a matter of fact, the NPP was able to overturn a difference of over 1.272 million votes (57.3% as against 39.9% in favour of NDC) in 1996 to beat the NDC in the 2000 general elections with a difference of over 881,000 votes in the run-off (56.7% as against 43.3% in favour of NPP). 

Once this was possible (where a difference of over 1.272 million votes were overturned in the 2000 general elections to give NPP a resounding victory), then it shouldn’t be difficult at all for the same party [NPP] to overturn a difference of less than 300,000 votes in the previous election [2012 elections] to clinch yet another resounding victory in 2016 especially in the midst of the unprecedented hardships visited on Ghanaians by President John Mahama and his incompetent administration. 

Conclusion

As evidenced above, it is quite clear that even though internal wrangling in political parties is a worrying phenomenon which ought to be brought to its barest minimum, it is also a fact that such issues, no matter how intense they are, have very little or no effect on the electoral fortunes of these political parties. This is because, increasingly, the Ghanaian electorates are becoming more and more discerning and thus, look far beyond internal disagreements in political parties to actually consider the REAL ISSUES of governance as well as their living conditions in casting their ballot.

Now, more than ever, we are going to see a lot more of that in 2016 because Ghanaians cannot forgive President John Mahama and his clueless NDC government for collapsing every sector of the Ghanaian economy and plunging this country into its worst economic crisis since independence. This, of course, is also associated with legendary levels of corruption, unprecedented energy crisis, humongous indebtedness, over taxation, acute exchange rate volatility, collapsed social welfare system, joblessness and hopelessness. Certainly, this is too burdensome for the ordinary Ghanaian.

It would be highly preposterous and quite unconscionable for anyone especially the NDCs to think that Ghanaians would, all of a sudden, forget all these difficulties they’ve been through in the past 8 years and still vote for them on the basis that the NPP had, at a point in time, gone through some internal challenges. How incredulous! Well, they [the NDCs] can continue to tickle themselves and laugh but in the final analysis, the ISSUES will once again, triumph over propaganda come December 7 INSHA ALLAH. 

Once again, I am very confident that you would agree with me that, the imminent CHANGE on December 7, is the SUREST WAY of bringing back dignity to our governance regime and restoring our lost HOPE. Eight years of NDC and John Mahama is more than enough. We are experiencing ‘hell’ on earth and need urgent SALVATION. Surely, our country must work again and on December 7, you and I have a role to play under the circumstances. We can’t afford to fail our country and that is why we must VOTE for CHANGE. 

#Mutaashi
#AriseForChange
#GiveMeHi5
#Nana_BawumiaB3ba
#SayNoToNDC
#GhanaMustWorkAgain

Assalamu alaikum

This piece was compiled by a concerned Ghanaian in the service of OCCUPYING HEARTS and MINDS for the love of God and country.

IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN

A Crusader for CHANGE

(0245335197)