Editorial

RECENT TARIFFS INCREASE MISPLACED

The recently announced huge increase in public utility tariffs seem  to becoming everyday bother for majority of Ghanaians, except those in political offices – they always ‘believe’ Ghanaians need to pay what they call realistic price for these services in order to get the national economy moving. This assertion may be true at its face value and in the absence of fair-mindedness.

However, one may ask how satisfied the service being provided by providers of these services to the Ghanaian public is. But to be fair and objective, even the service providers themselves could attest that their efforts at providing the said services to the people often leave much to be desired.

But who speak for the Ghanaian consumer?

 The nation’s rulers often believe and stick religiously to the axiom that the shouts and wailing of the people, often at the advent of this kind of perpetration of social injustices are ‘9-day wonders’. And indeed, it is when the politician finds himself or herself out of government that their social IQ works properly toward the people.

The tragedy of Ghana’s democracy, however, has been ‘let God care for all, but each one for himself’. Ghanaian workers cry every other day for sufficient take-home salary and human-faced condition of services, but to the official deaf ear.

The grievous economic implications resulting from the recent 52% and 78% increase at a go in water and electricity user fee respectively; and at the heels of the increase in fuel and other commodities in Ghana, could turn out to be the straw that breaks the camel’s back: Especially so, as the increases also come at a time schools have re-opened with parents clutching crown of head at the excruciating economic  hardship being experienced in their country.

The tariffs increase, as misplaced as it may be, and of no socio-welfare benefit to the ordinary Ghanaian, just remind one of not only incompetence in the services workplaces and their echelons, but wanton measure of apathy to the people’s plight by the system.

The services providers could have harnessed all the large-scale illegal connections in people’s homes and factories, bribery, under-invoicing and over-invoicing for parochial gains and all official manipulations, to help cushion, out of passionate patriotism, the unfortunate countrymen and women who are being made unjustifiably to pay for professional incompetence and inefficiencies of services officials, most of whom were at the various posts through sheer political patronage and or nepotism, but lack the ability to deliver.

One would ask if workers’ salary status remains status quo at the face of the gargantuan increase in these essential commodities of a kind, how they are going to cope with the already precarious economic situation.

Ghana seems to be under certain kind of economic depression today, when day in and day out people of all age and status are committing suicide and others venting their economic anger on their spouses.

One wonders if those who have the god-giving privilege of trust to rule over the dying, are questioning well, their business of being power.

A country blessed with almost all the earthly wealth; how on earth the same can be held ransom by acute poverty that wouldn’t let the ‘ordinary’ sleep?

Indeed, the economic managers of the country seem not in their own sufficient best. Because, the recent increase in fuel, water and electricity, is not only uncalled for but also intimidating.