General Secretary of the Ghana Trades Union Congress, Dr Anthony Yaw Baah, on Monday blamed the challenges being faced by Ghanaians on the country’s economic mismanagement in the last 60 years.
Mincing no words on the occasion of Workers’ Day celebration parade at the Independence Square in Accra, the trade unionist said life has become unbearable for many Ghanaians as they “lack the very basic necessity to life”.
The celebration is on the theme: Mobilising for Ghana’s Future through the Creation of Decent Jobs”.
Dr Baah said although the country has since its independence 60 years ago strived to nurture its democracy with successive peaceful elections and transition, “we have failed in economic management.”
“The socio-economic challenges facing Ghana today is an indicator of this failure. Joblessness among the youth remains the greatest challenge facing Ghana in spite of our enormous wealth,” Dr Baah stated.
He observed it was unfortunate that Ghanaians in some parts of the country still share water with Guinea infested water and a significant number of people sleep on the streets at night while some youth in desperate attempt to escape the troubles end up in their graves.
“After 60 years of independence a significant number of Ghanaians cannot afford housing and education for their children. Many Ghanaians cannot afford basic healthcare. They rely on unorthodox medication even when there is the clear need to consult a doctor,” Dr Baah said.
“It is becoming a curse to grow old in Ghana because we are unable to take care of our elderly in our society. Our compatriot with disability has to beg on the streets of Accra and other cities to survive.
“Communities feel insecure because of armed robbery. They kill for their lives and property because they feel that the Police will not respond to their emergency call partly because there is one police officer for every 1,000 Ghanaians.
“Our roads are comparable to war roads because many Ghanaians die on these roads every day. Too many pregnant women are dying because of lack of care. Many Ghanaians have died from conditions that could have been prevented if they had access to healthcare in their communities,” he added.
He expressed disappointment at the fact that 60 years on, “many workers in Ghana are still receiving slave wages,” and that some people are being forced to work overtime and under dangerous conditions.
“This should not be the features of any wealthy country like Ghana after 60 years of independence…Clearly we’ve mismanaged our economy. We chose a certain path that has led us here,” he observed.
He said given the enormous resources the country has, it “has no reason to be counted among poor countries”.
“What happened to the billions of dollars we received from gold, our diamonds, our manganese, bauxite, timber, and cocoa in the last 60 years?” he asked.
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