We are all Woyomes

Hello Ghanaians. I am sure that if Alfred Agbesi Woyome was paid 1 Cedi for every single mention of his name by Ghanaians, he could have, legally and morally, made more than whatever sum of money that he was purported to have been paid.

Over the past couple of weeks, Ghanaians from every corner of Ghana, and indeed the diaspora, have discussed at length, the circumstances and issues, surrounding the payments alleged to have been made to the esteemed gentleman. But to me, it’s a simple case of double standards at work nationally. Most of us discuss the log in Woyome’s eye, but ignore the specks in their very own eyes, pardon the twist if you may. To my simple mind, Alfred Agbesi Woyome hasn’t done any worse than what the average Ghanaian routinely does.

That is to benefit from the taxpayers largesse without necessarily working for it or deserving it.

Everybody in Ghana is asking exactly what quantum of work Alfred Agbesi Woyome put in, to warrant such a huge sum of money being shelled out to him. The irony of it is that, some of those asking that very question publicly, are people who routinely benefit from the taxpayer without necessarily putting in the concomitant amount of work.

Allow me to explain. Since the days of Kwame Nkrumah, the average Ghanaian mindset has slowly but surely been conditioned to expect something for nothing. The Ghanaian Government paid for people to go to school, the Ghanaian Government paid for people to go to University, the Ghanaian government paid for those graduates to pursue Graduate and post graduate programs abroad. The Ghanaian government guaranteed them jobs. The Ghanaian government paid for trips abroad, the Ghanaian government gave them houses, the Ghanaian government gave them cars, fuelled them and paid for drivers to chauffeur them around. The list goes on and on but basically an entire generation of Ghanaian middle to upper class functionaries have grown up, with their mindsets conditioned to expect certain perks from the government, as a basic human right. To those who might counter with the argument that such people work and as such deserve such perks, I put it categorically to them that the perks are simply disproportionate for the amount of work that those people put in or the value that such people create. I dare say that for such people, the amount of money taken from our GDP to support them far outweighs their contribution to Ghana’s GDP. Britain, with a GDP 65 times that of Ghana, does not give it’s Ministers Land Cruisers to ride in, neither does the UK taxpayer give their Ministers the option the purchase the government houses that they live in.

At the very top of the government pyramid, the same mentality prevails. A Presidential commission, legally constituted and populated by Presidential appointees, determines an overly generous package of retirement benefits for our ex Presidents. From houses, offices, flights, hotel accommodation abroad, staff and even vehicles, everything is paid for by the government of Ghana. I hereby ask the question again? Whatever work they put into their roles, is it commensurate with the benefits that they are slated to receive post retirement? Take a look at the United States and the United Kingdom. Even with their vastly larger resources, they are not as generous as we are when they are allocating state resources for the luxurious upkeep of their former Heads of States.

Further down the social ladder, those in the public sector, have the same Woyomic mentality. These government employees are paid every month to deliver on their jobs and render a service. They clamour to clamber upon the Single Spine bandwagon but still deem it their inalienable right to demand money from the public for the very services they are paid to render. To my simple mind, this is basically money they are not entitled to, have not worked for but are demanding and receiving.

So the next time you hear or see someone castigating Alfred Agbesi Woyome remember where he works and the perks he enjoys by virtue of where he works. And make your mind up accordingly.

That is assuming that you yourself are not a Woyome.