Government has recently launched a series of Townhall Meetings dubbed the Results Fair which is mainly put together to touts its achievements in the last 3 years.
In as much as there is the need for government to account to the people for its stewardship, it is also important that we draw a clear line between this important Political Exercise and the apparent Celebration of Mediocrity.
To understand this phenomenon, we must first understand what a VISION actually is.
Contemporary Political Studies defines a VISION as a set of ideal goals or conditions.(the keyword is IDEAL)
So the VISION of Government is the ideal Socio-Economic targets that it sets for itself to achieve to better the lives of the People and so Visions are largely unattainable and that is what peculiarly differentiates it from a Mission.
(So if VISIONS are literally unattainable, then what is Dr.Bawumiah and the Government celebrating?)
Even though VISIONS are largely unattainable, they are set out to actually check Mediocrity and Underperformance!
For Example; It is the Vision of Government X to achieve overall Poverty Reduction which would be an ideal Socio-Economic condition for it’s people.
(that is the vision of Government X) But at the end the first four years Government X has been able to achieve 30% poverty reduction which is very significant but Government X may be highly unsatisfied with its performance(of 30%) because its VISION actually is to achieve overall Poverty alleviation.
But the People would be hailing and praising Government X for its efforts and performance for achieving the 30% Poverty reduction in four years.
So the inverse theory is that if a Government is visionary, it is people that praises the Government due to its performance and not the other way round.
Other experts may also suggest that a high performing government may be too busy working towards its Vision that it may not have the time to celebrate or tout its intermittent feats.
So the point is, the Standard of every Visionary Government is too High and the Celebration of interim Achievements do not form part of the prime actions of a Visionary Government.
Once a Government begin to get comfortable with little achievements, it’s a high indication that that Government has no Vision for the Country.
So the fundamental questions then is, How do Governments account to the People for the power given them without immersing themselves in a pool of empty clanging cymbals and getting caught up in the aura of mediocrity?
The answer is simple….
Transparency and Inclusiveness in the processes towards the attainment of Government set goals and Objectives.
Carrying the People along in every step of the way is a cost effective way of accounting to them.
Once the people are involved in the planning and execution of Government goals and objectives, they become the carriers of the output and the agents that sells Government’s story and achievements.
Very efficient and cost effective rather leaving the People in the loop and then spending huge tax payers resources again to show the same people (who are supposed to be the beneficiaries of your performance) what you have actually done for them.
For Example, the Resources spent in this town hall Meeting in Kumasi, could have been used for the rehabilitation of major roads in the City or Provide some healthcare logistics to the Medical Facilities in the Region.
So the opportunity cost of this townhall Meetings will be the basic developmental challenges in the Region that could have been solved with those resources.
But quite frankly why must it take the Vice President and the entire Government Communication Machinery to fly from Accra to Kumasi to tell the people of Ashanti what Government has actually done for them?
It just doesn’t make sense (unless those projects are virtual projects that only appears at the behest of the Vice President.)
Let me repeat, a Visionary Government does NOT tout it’s own achievements, its performance will speak for itself and the people would tell your story for you if you have indeed delivered, until then can we just leave the People and their grieving Chiefs out of these depressing townhall encounters?
Mensah Thompson
Executive Director, ASEPA
0542120628
Cc.
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