A VISION OF MY COUNTRY …

It is not always I get this fortunate. I spent the last two weekends reading the breath-taking memoirs of William Leonard Roberts II, known in entertainment circles as Rick Ross. It is fair to say, his memoirs represent his music; audacious and explicit, but it also mirrors the musical journey of the man.

It is obvious age has mellowed the man who introduced himself to the hip hop culture as the boss. What was remarkable to me though was the tenacity of his character, which led him even at a very youthful age to start charting his path. He recognised his limitation academically at a very young age and therefore resolved to make it in his way.

It is interesting to note how he resolved not to be a burden to anyone else after playing truant and getting home with bad grades culminating in the Principal of his school inviting his mom to the school. Another remarkable revelation was his writing about the inspiration behind the record “Game Ain’t Based on Sympathy,” off his 2017 album “Rather You than Me”.

He writes passionately about his father’s loss of his pension in a very nostalgic manner. He expresses his anger and his sense of helplessness at the time of the situation with no shame. It is easy to figure out the immense admiration he had for his father and his resolve to be a worthy father figure to his kids.

The book makes for riveting reading. It is that kind of book I can easily recommend to anyone irrespective of the person’s view of the culture of the hip hop industry. It is a book of a compelling human story.

I got asked the other day by a friend why I have been banging on this subject of meritocracy for so long. To my friend, I was a sort of Karl Marx looking for a class war that doesn’t exist. Why am I obsessed with the creation of a meritocratic society?

What is meritocracy if one may ask? To be fair, I can’t think of any narrow definition of the word as a political ideal. However, we can think of meritocracy as the idea that a just society is one that rewards effort and capability rather than patronage–the influence of social, economic and political networks.

I first started thinking seriously about the question of meritocracy in 2010. I had just stumbled upon a damning report on the increasing levels of income inequality in Ghana and how that was hampering the poverty alleviation policies of successive governments in the country.

There was a guy in my neighbourhood, called Chris (not his real name). Chris was part of the first batch of students who wrote BECE as students of Radiant JHS in my hometown in 2004. Chris excelled in the exams and was given a scholarship by a good Samaritan to study Business-Accounting at the local senior high school.

Chris excelled during his SSCE and got another scholarship to undertake an undergraduate degree in Commerce at the University of Cape Coast. Chris was diligent and worked hard on his academics. Chris graduated with a very good GPA from his programme in 2009.

However, after his one-year mandatory national service, Chris struggled to get a job. In my last conversation with him in 2013 when I met him in Accra, he bemoaned the fact of what we now term as ‘protocol recruitment’ and how that has affected his chances of ever getting a well-paid job. He wasn’t asking for any special favour. He just wanted the playing field to be levelled.

Since the beginning of the year, just anecdotally, I’ve had a dozen people ask me: “Will the system survive?” A lot of the youth I speak to these days are unequivocal in their assessment of this country. They understand that this country no longer works for them, and they are angry about it. And unless our government offers real answers to their problems, their rage will only increase.

The profound sense of frustration of our young people about every aspect of our national life now is visible every day on our streets, campuses, and social media. They are exasperated by politics and how politicians have failed to respond to their growing concerns about the future.

Whereas, social and political connections matter in building a career in certain spheres of work. I can’t understand the situation where even the national service postings of young graduates can be manipulated depending on one’s political or social connections. I can’t understand the situation where promotions in even public sector institutions have been tied to which political party one belongs to.

I believe where people end up in life or their career should be about hard work and capability rather than social and political connections or where or to whom one was born. This is not a utopian dream but a basic tenet of any just society. We must aim to build a society that truly works for everyone, not just the privileged few. Everyone deserves a chance at a good life but we must know, the privilege must be earned. Advantage must be based on merit rather than privilege.

It is only through meritocracy that we can expand the scope for social mobility in our society. Social mobility captures the fundamental principle of justice. Effort and talent should matter more than someone’s circumstances of birth or life in determining their progress on the social ladder.

No matter the number of people who may suggest this is our reality. I refuse to accept this injustice and simply say to those with the power and willing to listen that they take a look at the words beneath the coat of arms; ‘freedom and justice’.

I dream of the day our society will be governed by politicians who hold principles sacred over short-term gains. I look forward to that day when policies or opportunities will not be driven by the sectional interest of the few or those with political influence living in their comfortable apartments in the posh areas of the city detached from the daily struggle of the ordinary Ghanaian.

I dream of that day; when the concerns of the ordinary folks living in Chorkor, Anloga, Yeji or Bawjiase for whom life can sometimes be a struggle becomes the driving force of all political decisions. I dream of the day when the people who make the big decisions will be on the side of the rural and urban poor who don’t ask for much but simply a country that is worth living in and works for them.

They want to be able to have access to an ambulance and a health facility in their hour of need. They want to have access to doctors and nurses who will provide excellent medical service to them when the need arises. But they don’t want to spend the whole day in overcrowded OPDs going to see overworked doctors who can barely afford to listen to them. It would gladly make them happy if the political class patronize the health service they claim to have improved greatly.

But most importantly, they desperately need assurances. They need the assurance that if they keep their part of the social contract; -paying their taxes, working hard and doing the right things-, then they can expect to reap the benefits of our ‘shared prosperity’.

Their loud, clear cry is for a country that works for everyone and not just the rich and socially connected. The message is clear; this system doesn’t work for them. This system works for the rich and the influential, and it is leaving everyone else behind. They want to see genuine reforms in our system; the system that has been designed to ensure the continued prosperity of a few whiles the majority wallow in abject poverty; depressed, cynical, hopeless and sullen.

For too many of my people, life in this country does not seem fair yet their demands are but modest; a country that works for the many.