Comment
The Elusive Dream
Some political commentators have said that it was the picture of the US President John F. Kennedy going up the gangway of the plane to hold up an umbrella to escort the visiting President Nkrumah down on his official visit to the US which accelerated the independence movement. The Houphouet-Boignys of Africa who up until then had thought that it was better to remain in a state of 'semi-independence', decided that they would rather get the benefit of 21 gun salutes and all the trimmings that come with being a head of government.
Having achieved the political kingdom, it did not take very long to realise that far from all other things being added unto it, the few amenities that were enjoyed by the people under colonial rule even disappeared. True, we had our own flags and we did not have to celebrate Empire Day, but from the perspective of many ordinary people, nothing very much had changed, the person who took over from the colonial governor was more often than not, different from his predecessor only in terms of colour and seemed often more detached from their needs than the colonial governor.
It took some time but eventually, the fascination brought by our own flag, our own national anthem and a President Kennedy holding up an umbrella to our own President wore off. That there must be something to this kingdom beyond the trappings was the general feeling and gradually and as more and more countries gained independence, the feel- ing became prevalent that the economic kingdom is the one to struggle for and all other things would then follow.
There can be no independence really, the realisation dawned, unless we are economically independent and that is where the problem came. There was no identifiable person or group to target as the new enemy against who our anger could be directed. It was much easier when things could be blamed on a foreign power, but when the people in charge of affairs were our own people then it was more difficult to apportion blame.
Kwame Nkrumah again it was, that popularised the notion of neo-colonialism- our independence was not real, he argued, through no fault of ours really. The problem was that the colonial masters had managed to retain their economic hold and were thus manipulating us through economic means.
Nkrumah never did manage to amend his dictum that the political kingdom would be the priority and all others would consequently follow, but it was obvious that he had discovered that the economic kingdom was the thing to seek first. He still thought and believed that with a strong political will, the economic problems could be overcome. By his reckoning, the problem still lay between those who would depend on 'foreign capital" the neo-colonialists and those who were the progressives - who would depend on indigenous resources.
Presently the Ghanaian authorities feel called upon to explain to the Ghanaian public the reasons why Nigeria rejected IMF loans and this they have been doing with much more spirit than they have felt was needed to explain why they accepted IMF loans and conditions. It is a curious situation which does not lend itself to any easy explanations.
There was the strange affair of the PNDC member ex- Captain Kojo Tsikata being quoted in the Nigerian press as saying that IMF loans and conditions were NOT good for African nations. This was in the midst of the furious debate in Nigeria about whether the country should take the IMF loans or not. And this from a prominent member of the PNDC which had accepted IMF loans.
Then came the equally strange affair of Dr Kwesi Botchwey's performance at his press conference when he was called upon to explain his recent massive devaluations. He expended a lot of energy telling Ghanaians that even though Nigeria had rejected IMF loans, she had still taken draconian economic measures that are not very different from the measures that Ghana had taken at the prodding of the IMF. And yet Capt. Tsikata says that IMF conditions are bad for Third World nations.
Then recently, the Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister, Bolaji Akinyemi, was being quoted as saying that part of the reason Nigeria had rejected the IMF was that there was no example of any country that had ever taken on IMF loans and turned out well. Obviously, this was a matter that the IMF itself would have been better suited to answer by pointing out their various successes to give the lie to Prof. Akinyemi.
The defence, however, has come from Ghana and it has not been in the form of "look at us after three years with the Fund, we have succeeded, here is your example". It has rather been in the manner of enumerating the draconian measures that Nigeria has taken even though IMF conditions have been rejected.
Obviously, the Ghanaian authorities find themselves in some difficulties primarily because the personalities involved in the IMF-induced economic measures are the ones who used to equate 'outside financing' with neo-colonialism.
It might very well turn out to be that President Babangida rejected the IMF more out of political considerations than out of economic reasons. It might well be that the PNDC accepted the IMF simply because as Flight Lieutenant Rawlings said: "When you are drowning and somebody throws you a rope, you don't refuse it."
There is no doubt that the Ghanaian authorities feel very much on the defensive about their dealings with the IMF and therefore consider the Nigerian position very irksome But then it seems that they have tackled their problem from a particularly awkward and by rather trying constantly to explain Nigerian positions when they have been so silent on their own measures.
However, it surely must have occurred to them that there is one reliable way of avoiding all the problems: when the economic measures are successful, there would be no need to explain anything and no Secretary or Head of State will need to point out their successes. People have a way of knowing when they are not suffering.
Fit-Lt. Rawlings and others like him in the region obviously took Nkrumah's words and seized the political kingdom. Thus far the economic kingdom had eluded them.
