Disclaimer:
If you are a politician reading this article, please relax your shoulders, this article isn’t here to harm you; it’s here to help you, the same way bitter-leaf quietly repairs the liver while assaulting the tongue. As we say in Ghana, the truth shall set you free, even if it drags you through a few uncomfortable emotions on the way.
Consider this piece a small dose of truth serum. Yes, it’s bitter. And the Doctor says it may cause temporary ego irritation.
But give it a moment, you’ll feel much better once the honesty starts circulating. If it stings too much, don’t panic; that’s just your conscience waking up from a long nap. For everyone else, fasten your seatbelt, put your tray tables away and enjoy the ride.
The Humility That Should Come with Power
Globally, politicians have earned their reputation as sweet-tongued manipulators, always dancing to the tune of powerful puppeteers.
Nobody is ever going to mistakenly nominate them for sainthood at the Vatican.
The Vatican wouldn’t even let them near the nomination form.
But the African politician? Ah, that’s a special edition. While others take orders from their puppet masters, ours wakes up with one item at the top of the agenda, circled in red, highlighted in yellow, and laminated for emphasis: himself or herself. Everything else is merely background noise.
But! And yes, it’s a very big but, there’s still evidence that good African leaders exist.
Even today, right here in Ghana, we actually have a few doing genuinely solid work. Miracles do happen! Only problem here is that, they’re still orbiting in a galaxy of the usual suspects who come with the standard “what’s-in-it-for-me” agenda.
Once upon a time, leadership was supposed to mean humility; the quiet strength to serve, to listen, and to sacrifice.
In Ghana, though, humility now means putting on your Sunday best, visiting the villages every four years, and sometimes crying on live television about “the plight of the ordinary Ghanaian.” Some even go as far as washing clothes or pounding fufu in front of cameras.
It’s called “public relations”; some call it “comedy.”
Now, picture the ordinary voter: a farmer in Bawku surviving a dry season with the optimism of a saint, or a teacher in Techiman marking nine-page essays by candlelight because “dumsor” paid a surprise visit.
These people have modest dreams, such as drinkable water, stable electricity, maybe a tarred road that doesn’t double as a fishing pond after rain.
Then comes campaign season. Politicians arrive in convoys longer than a wedding procession, armed with promises so sweet they could give you cavities. They vow to fix everything: the roads, the economy, even your broken heart. The villager listens, smiles, and votes. Weeks later, the politician returns to Accra and promptly forgets everyone’s name.
Fast-forward a few years: the voter’s problems are unchanged, but the politician’s complexion has. The man who once wore sandals is now allergic to dust, owns three SUVs, sends his children abroad “for quality education,” and flies out for medical checkups because, well, Korle-Bu is too ordinary for his refined health conditions.
The transformation is so miraculous, we should probably put it on the national tourism website.
Then a couple of years down the line, come the headlines, and the same politicians who promised a better Ghana find themselves starring in scandals fit for a Netflix series.
Sounds made up? Well here are some recent scandals to jog your memory, translated by yours truly;
National Service “Ghost Names” Scandal
Date: May 3, 2025 | Source: Daily Graphic
Headline: “EOCO Uncovers 23 Million Cedis Lost to Ghost Names on NSS Payroll.”
Translation: Proof that in Ghana, you don’t need to be alive to earn a living, just be well-connected.
”Buffer Stock Scandal
Date: 24 Oct 2025 | Source: JoyNews
Headline: “Officials Divert Millions from Buffer Stock Intended for Food Security.”
Translation: Buffer Stock became Buffet Stock… Hunger for the masses, heavy lunches for the officials.”
National Signals Bureau Scandal
Date: 24 Mar 2025 | Source: Citi Newsroom
Headline: “Top NSB Officers Implicated in Misappropriation of State Security Funds.”
Translation: “National Signals Bureau, sending a clear signal that National money is not in safe hands”
SML Scandal
Date: 30 Oct 2025 | Source: The Chronicle
Headline: “Audit Exposes Dubious Payments in Revenue Monitoring Contract.”
Translation: “We hired people to monitor revenue, and the revenue immediately vanished! What as top-tier magic show!
NPA Scandal
Date: 2 Jun 2025 | Source: Graphic Business
Headline: “NPA Officials Fingered in Fuel Importation Kickback Scheme.”
Translation: “The only thing these officials imported in bulk was greed.”
And then there’s the case of a missing Finance Minister; Ghana’s real-life Houdini. One day he’s announcing “austerity measures,” next day he’s nowhere to be found. The country’s broke, but people in his orbit seems to be doing fine. Coincidence? We’ll let the Special Prosecutor decide.
Corruption as a Culture
At this point, corruption is no longer a scandal, it’s infrastructure. Politics has transformed into the most profitable business in Ghana.
Forget Treasury Bills; “elections 2028” promises higher returns.
Over 90 percent of entrants into politics know the job description by heart: shake hands, make promises, get into office, and then suddenly “discover” how expensive fuel is then prompting salary adjustments that only benefit them. Procurement deals have replaced development projects. Kickbacks are the new national sport. Corruption has evolved from habit to identity.
The tragedy is that when everyone becomes complicit, from the civil servant cutting corners to the contractor inflating costs; corruption stops feeling wrong and starts looking normal.
The Trust Deficit
Trust, once the strongest bond between leader and citizen, has crashed harder than the cedi after an IMF negotiation. The political class has squandered this trust through endless dishonesty.
We still call them “Honourable,” but their actions look far from admirable, they are
more corrupt, disruptive, and conveniently profitable.
And act more questionable than commendable.
These days, the Ghanaian sees a politician promise the way he sees free lotto tips from the lotto doctor, just a confident promise of eminent prosperity, but usually nonsense once you commit to it.
We forget that without trust, politics becomes theatre with just glitter,
where campaign vows rhyme nicely, but taste bitter.
The drama repeats like a TV station on a broken loop,
same scandals, new faces, same disappointing cast.
A reimagined political class in Ghana would begin by finally understanding that their real currency isn’t the cedi, nor the dollars mysteriously leaking from contracts, nor the euros hiding under her bed.
Their true currency is trust. That’s the only legal tender the voter hands over in exchange for the privilege to serve. And when a politician spends that trust recklessly, it depreciates sharply. But imagine…just imagine; a political class that actually wants to improve the value of their trust currency. They’d start by dropping the “Honourable” titles, because honestly, the only people who need to loudly declare their honour are usually the ones who misplaced it long ago. A truly transformed leader would step into office with humility, walk among the people without an air of divinity, embrace accountability instead of running from it, and remember that trust grows when service is genuine, not when egos are polished.
When The “Honourable” become “Dishonourable”
Hero-worshipping politicians might feel harmless, even cultural, but is half the reason the system keeps misbehaving. The moment we start calling someone HDM “Honourable Deputy Minister” like they’re a junior deity on attachment, we inflate their ego faster than the inflation rate itself. Add a state-sponsored Land Cruiser V8 with sirens that parts traffic like Moses parting the Red Sea and floating over potholes, then suddenly they forget they were elected to serve;
Now you can almost understand how the fame gets to their heads. Before long, they become allergic to criticism and forget the simple truth that they were elected to serve, not to be serenaded.
Real public service should feel like the humility of a house help who shows up with respect and dedication.
Now imagine addressing your house help as “Honourable Mansah” or “Honourable Musah.” Suddenly sweeping becomes optional and obedience becomes negotiable. That’s the danger: when the title overshadows the task, the service quietly evaporates.The Way Forward
So, what can rescue Ghana from this swamp of political absurdity?
Real leadership. Not the kind that arrives with a convoy, but the kind that arrives with conscience.
We need leaders who treat public funds as sacred, not as part of a family inheritance. Who publish their assets without acting like they’re revealing nuclear codes. Who choose duty over V8 SUVs.
But here’s the upside: Ghanaians may be tired, but we’re not out of the game. We’re simply waiting for the day when “Honourable” stops being a costume and starts being a character trait. The day when leadership feels less like comedy night and more like a country moving forward.
Still, we wait, with side-eye and hope,
for the day “Honourable” matches the scope
of a leader who serves, not schemes…
Ironically, the only group powerful enough to fix this mess is the same group that caused it, our politicians. Transparency isn’t optional anymore; it’s survival. Accountability must stop being a campaign word and start being a career hazard.
If Ghana’s leaders could just swap greed for grace, we might yet restore dignity to public service.
No, we don’t need saints, just honest men and women willing to treat politics as a calling, not an ATM. Until then, dear voter, keep your sense of humour sharp and your expectations realistic, they can’t steal those, at least not yet.
