According to the former Trades Minister Alan Kyerematen, “Corruption and petty theft or thievery, particularly from the public purse, deny our country the benefit of utilizing its tax revenue and other resources for the development of our country”. The former Trade Minister also noted that “…the arrogance of power has been a major obstruction to progress in our country. People in positions of authority must understand that leadership is an opportunity to serve the people, and not to lord it over them. In servant leadership, humility is an asset and not a weakness, He made this known on Tuesday, 10 January 2023 during his national broadcast. Read Mr. Kyerematen’s full address below: Fellow countrymen and women. Friends of Ghana. Let me start first by wishing you all a happy, healthy, productive and prosperous New Year. Secondly, I wish to express formally, my profound gratitude to His Excellency the President for the opportunity given me to serve the good people of Ghana in his Administration over the last six years, and for graciously accepting my resignation as Cabinet Minister responsible for Trade and Industry, with effect from 16th of January 2023. Thirdly, I wish to use this platform to formally announce my decision to contest the flagbearership of the New Patriotic Party when the party officially opens nominations for that purpose. His Excellency the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has been a good friend of mine and will always remain so based on our shared commitment to the ideals and principles that inspired the founding fathers of our great Party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP). We have competed in the past but have always worked together thereafter. The president has laid a strong foundation for the socioeconomic development of our country, although I believe there are things that could have been done differently. My vision is to build a superstructure on this foundation that will bring prosperity to our nation. The pre-COVID-19 performance of our economy, the flagship programmes including the Free SHS, the One District One Factory (1D1F) initiative, the Planting for Food and Jobs programme, the Agenda 111 project and the COVID-19 Response initiatives, are all testimonies of the strong leadership that the president has provided over the last six years. In spite of all of the above, however, it is an undeniable fact that the combined effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war, has stampeded our country into a crisis of unprecedented proportions, with its negative impacts on the economy, businesses, and on our social lives. I have no doubt that the anticipated International Monetary Fund (IMF) Support Package will restore confidence in our economy, and bring it back to the pre-COVID levels. Fellow Countrymen and Women This is the seventeenth time that we have gone to the IMF over the last 57 years. We promised never to go back but we have gone back. One of the lessons that we have learnt from the recent developments is that Ghana’s economy is still fragile, vulnerable and susceptible to both external and domestic shocks. This primarily is as a result of the fact that our economy is highly dependent on the export of commodities with little or no value addition. Indeed, the 5.1% projected GDP growth for the Ghanaian economy for 2023 is based on the anticipated increase in commodity prices. To avoid going back to the IMF, we need a new plan. A plan that will lead us to a more self-reliant and resilient economy. That plan must move Ghana from stability and growth to transformation. Fellow Countrymen and Women If, by the will of God and through your goodwill, I am voted first, as the flagbearer of the NPP and subsequently as president of the Republic in the next general elections, I will become the transformational leader of our time, who will build on the foundations laid by successive leaders of our nation over the last sixty-five (65) years. To achieve this strategic goal of transforming our dear country to become the shining star of the new Africa, I will, as president, launch and lead the execution of the Great Transformational Plan (GTP) of Ghana which will span the period 2025 to 2030. The Post-COVID Economic Recovery Programme (P-CERP) currently being implemented with the anticipated support from the IMF from 2023 to 2025, will be a transitional economic programme leading to the roll out of this Great Transformational Plan. Fellow Countrymen and Women Before I proceed to provide a brief insight into the key elements of the Great Transformational Plan, seven critical considerations would need to be taken into account to guarantee the success of the Plan. The primacy of the private sector in our national development agenda. The private sector, both domestic and foreign, formal and informal has to be at the centre of our transformational agenda. The government’s focus must be to facilitate the process of making our private sector competitive, by creating an enabling environment for businesses. Attitude to work and enforcement of discipline. We, as a people, should appreciate the need for discipline in all spheres of our national lives and change our attitude to work. Whether you are working for the private sector or for government, as a worker, you are not doing a favour to your employer. It is your duty to ensure that you earn your living from the efforts of your labour. Corruption and petty theft or thievery, particularly from the public purse, deny our country the benefit of utilising its tax revenue and other resources for the development of our country. The arrogance of power has been a major obstruction to progress in our country. People in positions of authority must understand that leadership is an opportunity to serve the people, and not to lord it over them. In servant leadership, humility is an asset and not a weakness. Passion for excellence. As a country we must celebrate competence and excellence and not mediocrity. As a people, we must focus more on getting things done
Alan
