Globally, there has been a recession and back home in Ghana, all are bearing the consequences. The end thereof has been the blame on the government! Come on people, let us wake up! The ?Western Giants? are all suffering and complaining! In the Americas and Europe, companies are shutting down! People are losing their jobs! Consumers are complaining! Everything seems to be chaotic! Ironically, our country is dependent on these economies; whether we like it or not! Through our importations and exportations, we are dependent! That is the reality and so, our economy also suffers!
This has never been the first and neither would it be the last. In Ghana, there has been inflation in prices for every monetary transaction. At home, parents keep complaining! On the streets, the ordinary Ghanaian grumbles on! In our various commercial vehicles, passengers are usually left in a state of overwhelming grief! Children are even complaining to each other since their chop monies have suffered a considerable decrease! Jobs are hard to come by! For some people, it is devaluation. The money that was used to purchase more only yesterday, is inadequate for a single purchase of the very item today. In our markets, sellers are now complaining to buyers. Even in our churches, the collections have reduced considerable. Subsequently on our airwaves, it is the government who suffers! The first word that is uttered by the average Ghanaian is always and usually addressed to the government, preferably, the presidency. Our poor president is once again standing trial for the increased pricing we are facing. A lot of people need laudable reasons for this but the truth is, the answers lay with us. We know the reasons for this! This secret is with us!
Quite recently, I made a single purchase for a certain item and was surprised when later on, a bulk purchase of the same item left me dumbfounded! I was being robbed each day! I sat down and calculated how much I had spent on this item on a daily basis and the finding was pretty disturbing. It was a revelation! I had found an answer to the questions most of us raise each day! Our various store owners and market men and women alike are partly to blame. They keep inflating prices of goods. From the manufacturer to the retailer, the prices of these items are quite reasonable but when it gets to the final place of purchase to the ordinary citizen, which is where the atrocities are committed. We are paying up to a 100% increment of the original price as interest to our various store owners. Forget about their usual complaints. It is only a ploy that helps them make their sales. Some greedy and unpatriotic Ghanaians are conveniently overpricing their goods! They complain to you but in the end, still record their huge sales and profits. They complain on the streets and rejoice secretly! Others would perhaps advice that we purchase in bulk them in order to curtail the additional cost but what about the ordinary man or woman who cannot afford? Of course in all business ventures, people look out to make profit in the end but over profiting is a sin! A crime that should be punishable by law! We talk about patronizing locally manufactured goods when in truth, we cannot afford! Is it then surprising that other countries are penetrating our markets? Is it then surprising that people travel far and wide beyond our shores to make purchases? Is it then surprising that the local preference is for foreign goods? In truth, they are more affordable in terms of cost and quality!
As Ghanaians, we are our own enemies! The difficulties we are facing are a consequence of our own actions and inactions! Until we put an end to our individual greed, we will still face this same recession. The cedi is being devalued because people are hoarding items! The cedi is being devalued because people are hoarding dollars! And yet, we complain!
Of course, action and reaction is equal and opposite. There is always a price to be paid for everything we do. The monies being hoarded today would be used to purchase at a higher price another day! We shall surely pay the price!
This is a passionate appeal to all stakeholders! Let us stop blaming the government and for once, take blame for our own actions! We need strict rules and regulations that would ensure that there is a consistency in pricing of goods. As expected, we could say that there are already functional regulations but that is a sad fallacy! The chaos in our market and on the streets tells us so! People are pricing items just as they well please! People are pricing items just as they feel! Without any consultation! Without any considerations!
There is the need to re-regulate the Ghanaian market! Each year, a budget is read and after that, prices of good change. In pricing these items, certain key factors are taken into account. Ultimately, these are mostly dependent on the cost of production and perhaps transportation. In the end, a price is agreed upon for the average consumer. Affordability is always a priority in the final pricing but some of our local business owners are forgetting this. There should be a special taskforce that would be charged with ensuring that there is uniformity in pricing. Why should one store sell a particular item within the same vicinity at a lower price whiles another store conveniently overprices that same item? People keep taking the law into their own hands and yet, nothing seems to be done about it. People are going scot-free for various crimes. It seems the only crimes we consider are armed robberies, murder among other. There are all sorts of robberies being committed around us each day and yet, we pretend not to see.
The Ghanaian economy is suffering and so, the ordinary Ghanaian suffers. People go to bed on empty stomachs each day. People are homeless since they cannot afford the cost of accommodation. The prices of our utilities keep soaring. The cost of a decent meal is to some people, a dream. Why must we inflict harm on others? Why must we inflict suffering on our own selves? Why must we destroy our own economy and in the end, blame it on the presidency? God is watching us all!
Source: Anna Esi Hanson ([email protected]), Takoradi.
