The Economics, Policy and Politics of the Fight against Galamsey
We are back to the issue of galamsey! The president’s meeting with the National House of Chiefs and the MMDCEs, media reports with pictures of polluted rivers, conversations on social media, etc. are contributing to this renewed sense of urgency to act. The Economics of Galamsey During my doctoral dissertation research work some twelve years […]
Should The State Fund Political Parties? – Ghanaians Say No
In May this year, I gave a talk on intra-party democracy in Ghana. In preparation for the talk, I read the constitutions of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and New Patriotic Party (NPP), our two main political parties. I was quite struck by their elaborate political-administrative structure. Such a structure faces many challenges including coordination […]
Can Chiefs Allocate unto Themselves Law Making and Pseudo Criminal Law Enforcement Powers?
In the recent past, some actions taken by chiefs or traditional authorities including purporting to issue directives, banishment orders, etc. and to impose sanctions on some private citizens and corporate institutions for non-observance of local customs have generated public discussions, particularly on the legal propriety of these actions. This piece catalogues some of these actions […]
The Changing Importance Of Corruption As A Problem
How much importance do Ghanaians place on the problem of corruption in government? I recall during the 2020 elections that I made a point based on my observation of patterns in the Afrobarometer survey that, when ranking the most important problems government must address, Ghanaians would tend to rank other problems (unemployment, the economy, education, […]
Those We Elect- Who Should Make Sure They Do Their Job?
Among the many things that democracies pride themselves in is the ability to hold their governments accountable. This is driven by the notion that governments are the employees of the people and therefore all of its actions must be driven by a singular purpose – doing what the people want. What do the people want? […]
Trust, Partisanship, And Our Judiciary
Our judiciary is at the center stage of public discourse sparked by remarks from former president John Mahama. Our current president Nana Akufo Addo, as well as his Attorney General Mr. Godfred Odame have responded to the comments. As with a lot of our public conversations, one cannot overlook the partisan dimensions. A look at […]
Surcharge and disallow to curb the perennial loss of limited financial resources – Citizens’ Coalition to Auditor-General
The Coalition for Democratic and Accountable Governance (Citizens’ Coalition) has petitioned the Auditor-General, Mr. Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu, to surcharge all persons and institutions implicated in the Auditor-General’s Report on Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for 2019, 2020, and 2021. In a petition submitted to the Auditor-General after hours of picketing within the enclave of the […]
Failing Police Patrols And Ineffective Fire Alarms: The Auditor General’s Report
Once again, we are back to the same place we were a year ago, just as we have been year in and year out – agonizing over the findings captured in the Auditor General’s report. Casting my mind back to my secondary school days when excerpts of the audit report were regularly shared in our […]
Conflict of Interest – The Appearance Test vs. The Legal Test
Conflict of interest allegations continue to engulf two public officials – the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori Ata, and the Minister of State, Finance, Mr. Charles Adu-Boahen. But, beyond these two, is a conversation we need to have regarding how we resolve the tension between the private and public interests of government officials. What Really […]
Democracy Watch Newsletter #20
In the Anals of Decentralized Governance
