<<Print>>

�The mistakes of the fool are known to the world, but not to himself. The mistakes of the wise are known to himself, but not the world��Charles Caleb Colton. The truth is said to manifest itself in many ways. One of the many characteristics of truth is its bitter nature. It�s the reason we commonly hear the phrase �bitter truth�. This year�s Afrobarometer Report was released last week. The main highlights of the report state that many of my compatriots do not trust the country�s governance institutions. Except the armed forces which had a vote of confidence, the public virtually had no confidence in the rest of the institutions. Many political analysts and governance experts have thus expressed alarm. Some have even suggested that subsequent reports of that nature could embolden the military to once again takeover reins of power in this country. I clearly heard one political science lecturer from the University of Ghana on radio calling on my compatriots to increase their confidence in the governance institutions, lest they risked inviting the military to stage a coup d��tat. But I ask, �how can we have confidence in institutions which do not inspire confidence?� The fact, as captured in the report, is that majority of my compatriots are not in the least inspired by many of our governance institutions. That is the truth, and a very bitter one at that. Take the executive for instance. The wanton dissipation of resources by those who are supposed to protect the public purse is puzzling. Pure thievery in the name of judgment debts and riding on the wings of Embraer jets to milk the state are schemes the ordinary man is not unaware of. Using state cowries to feed �nkonfem� which always fly to Burkina Faso is another looting scheme imprinted on the minds of the masses. Not forgetting the tree projects which grow and bear fruits only in people�s individual pockets. The actions of the police, the highest ranked corrupt institution in the report, have continued to damage its image. Do you remember the so-called BNI official who went on a shooting spree during the Chereponi bye-election some five years ago? He is still walking a free man because we have a highly prejudiced police service. Just go and ask about the case, and they would tell you they are still investigating. Do you think my compatriots would have confidence in such an institution? Again, do you remember the story of the Guerrilla Training Centre up north in late 2009? We all saw pictures of the hoodlums wielding G3 and AK47 rifles. One of the instructors was said to be the son of a leading member of the ruling Zu-za. He is also walking free because he is wearing an umbrella-embossed shirt. Obviously, with such biased actions and other shameful acts such as the cocaine missing episodes, such an institution cannot gain the confidence of the masses. I had the occasion to write a piece about our so-called House of Honourables, and what a bashing I received! My only crime was that I had the audacity to ask if they were deserving of the title �honourable�. You see, one can find all manner of characters in that house. Drug traffickers can be found there. Ask Hon Eric Amoateng if you doubt me. Those who use their wives� heads as punching bags and those who verbally abuse their wives are there as well. To make matters worse, the so-called honourables are more partisan than patriotic. As I write, the second highest ranking official in the House is someone who has not hidden his support for the infamous �woyomisation� saga. Indeed, he is said to be the main architect of the looting saga. How then can such an institution inspire confidence in the public? Abusuapanin, we wake up every day to be greeted by stories of corruption in the judiciary. I do not have any evidence to support the claims so I would not cite any instance. But what has heightened the corruption perception about the judiciary was Sister Vicky�s revelation on how Zu-za won the election petition at the Supreme Court. Some of us find her story difficult to doubt because she spoke in private and did not know that she was being recorded. Though Sister Vicky�s allegations have been rubbished by the committee formed by the Chief Justice to investigate the matter, it has not erased the lingering doubts in the minds of the masses. For sure, that allegation alone is enough to kill the public�s confidence in the judiciary. While I do not intend joining the fray of a blanket levelling of corruption allegations against specific individuals in high office, I�m definitely not enthused about the manner in which the subject has been handled so far. And I�m sure most of my compatriots are not enthused as well. It�s obvious that ours is increasingly becoming a rotten sweet potato. And when a sweet potato becomes rotten, it is thrown into the rubbish bin because it becomes uneatable. I hope I have spoken well! See you next week for another interesting konkonsa, Deo volente!