Ernest Armah writes: Duty Calls on Dec 7.
In a few days, my motherland Ghana will be going to the polls.
Under the stable tenure of the Fourth Republic, the most enduring of Ghana’s democratic practices since 1992, we and the rest of the world will witness a contest between a consummate politician making a comeback and a seasoned economist who has adopted the alias of a digital advocate.
The Economist, in its forecast for the world this year, had an interesting yet grim prediction for Africa. It presciently noted that Sub-Saharan Africa lacks the means to invest in the future and that, the future looks like a struggle. Youth agitations in Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, Uganda and Nigeria reaffirm this prediction. Ghana is no different. In the Central Sahel, where Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger are located, over 10,000 people died in armed conflict in 2022 alone, and the number of fatalities more than doubled in 2023. It is forecasted that the conflict in the Central Sahel will probably grow even more violent.
If one in four people in the world will be African in the next 25 years, then an African issue is a global issue. At all levels therefore, the leadership of lip service must urgently transition to a leadership of meaningful impact.
Once an inspiration, a torchbearer for the rest of the continent, Ghana’s light is now dimmed. The quality of life of 850,000 Ghanaians has been hampered by an ailing economy addicted to debt. Following the default on our debt obligations to creditors, the burden of reviving this moribund economy has been placed on the shoulders of young Ghanaians. The social contract is broken. Now, young Ghanaians ask: What’s democracy good for?
“I am not going to vote in the upcoming election,”
an acquaintance said to me when the matter came up at a meet-up lunch.
“Why?” I asked.
“I am tired,” he replied.
I felt his frustration because I had made a similar decision a few months ago—until it dawned on me that not voting in an election is not a vote of no confidence in democracy. Rather, it shows an underestimation of my agency. Democracy may enable the tyranny of the majority over the minority, but however flawed it may be, the danger of being indifferent and not consistently engaging in its processes can be severe, as it increases the space for its further perversion.
Those who don’t care about elections are ‘cared for’ by those elected. A vote is how we make a strong statement about the quality of care we want.
On December 7, we face a choice between two familiar paths. The character and track record of the top contenders are public knowledge. This election is our chance to make a statement about the kind of leadership and care we believe Ghana deserves. However imperfect democracy may seem, it thrives when we engage and weakens when we retreat. Our vote is a testament to hope, responsibility, and the belief in a brighter future for our nation.
