The Release Of The Cedi From Bondage Appears To Have Failed The Miracle Test

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Created on Wednesday, 05 February 2014 00:00

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The Release Of The Cedi From Bondage Appears To Have Failed The Miracle Test

That was a very interesting week-end. Government officially informed Ghanaians that the ‘Akomfem’ project in the north, under which the state of Ghana splashed GH¢17 million on the domestication of guinea fowls, which we were told had migrated to Burkina Faso, is officially abolished.

A Methodist Bishop, identified as Rev. Stephen Richard Bosomtwe-Ayensu, is on fire for stating the obvious -that the Mahama administration is a non performing asset which has left the economy gasping for breath and the average Ghanaian struggling to exist.

Another Man of God, self-proclaimed Archbishop Duncan-Williams, founder and leader of the Action Chapel International, broke the spiritual chain, he claimed had held the cedi in bondage and commandeered the local cedi to rise up again. He was preaching at his Spintex Road Chapel in Accra on Sunday.

As bemused Ghanaians tried to make some meaning out of all these, the first rain to fall in Accra in the New Year, brought some relief from the heat.

RAIN IN ACCRA

Unfortunately, it also rendered many parts of Accra, the Millennium Capital city of Ghana, certainly the latest middle income nation in the universe, flooding after barely two hours of downpour.

They all add up to the thrill of living in a country where serious problems are reduced into jokes. There is the small matter of the local Black Stars playing in the finals of the CHAN tournament in South Africa and losing on penalties to Libya, handing the North African country its first continental silver ware, since football became an organized sport in Africa.

In one man’s estimation, the Black Stars’ performance was as mundane as the Government of the Republic of Ghana. “The Black Stars played like Mahama’s Government,” a street hawker joked, referring to lack of cohesion and indecisiveness that characterized the national team’s performance in South Africa.

It was the week-end that was. The new star at Jubilee House, Ben Dotsei Marlor, officially described as Communications Adviser to the President and Head of Communications at the Presidency, issued his first press release and courted so much controversy.

Apparently, the Communications Director got his own designation wrong. Ben Dotsei Marlor signed as Presidential Spokesperson. The press release was also one year late. It was dated 2013 instead of 2014.

It is not known whether the official designation communicated to this hapless nation, announcing Mr. Marlor’s appointment has changed. If it has not, Mr. Ben Dotsei Marlor should be addressed as Communications Director to the President, and Head of Communications.

I would like to believe that the mix-up in the date was purely accidental. But then again, it tells much about how messy things are at Jubilee House at the moment.

The guinea fowl episode for instance, cannot be wished away by directing the abrogation of a contract that did not exist in the first place.

Both Mr. Gilbert Iddi, the immediate past Chairman of the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority and his successor, Dr. Charles Jebuni, say SADA had no contract with the Asongtaba Cottage Industry in respect of the infamous guinea fowl project and the failed pilot GH¢33m afforestation project.

If it were so, the issue is not simply announcing that the two non-existent contracts had been abrogated. Who paid those monies and who received the GH¢50 million paid in respect of these two projects?

The people of Ghana are interested in recouping the money and not roof-top advertisement of cronyism. For the new head of communications at the Jubilee House, the baptism of fire should dawn on my good friend, Mr. Ben Dotsei Marlor that he has a very bad message to sell.

If I were him, I would keep the family away from the shores of Ghana until I am sure of a safe job. It is a very murky world in the Mahama administration, I dare state.

When former President Jerry John Rawlings described the youth in deceased President John Evans Atta Mills’ administration as ‘Babies with Sharp Teeth,’ he was spot on.

These are young men with the tendencies of Rottweilers and devouring anybody who dared criticize the moribund administration that has led Ghana into a deep economic hole.

SQUAD

When President Mills visited his ancestors, many political pundits began writing the obituaries of the marauding squad. Apparently, the ‘Babies with Sharp Teeth’ had only gone into hibernation.

At the week-end, they re-emerged with the venom of vipers. Mr. Okudzeto-Ablakwa, Deputy Minister of Education, Kwadwo Twum-Boafo, Chief Executive of the Free Zone Board and Mr. Victor Condubrey, former Chief Executive of the Hohoe Municipal Council, all proudly wearing their umbrella badges, backed by a section of the criminally-rented NDC press, tore into the Methodist Bishop of Obuasi, Rev. Stephen Bosomtwe-Ayensu, for daring to state that the Mahama administration had failed to perform.

In the diction of these ‘BABIES’ and some other followers of the NDC, any person making negative comments about government performance must be seeking protection under the elephant.

Over the week-end, one of the most acidic mouths in the NDC broke ranks with the party praise singers and virtually attacked Archbishop Duncan-Williams, a known man of God, with a soft spot for the reigning party.

SPIRITUAL SPELL

The head of Action Chapel claimed on Sunday that he had broken a supposed spiritual spell that is responsible for the free fall of the cedi, the local currency against the major trading currencies, especially the dollar.

“I hold up the cedi with prayer and I command the Cedi to recover and I declare the Cedi will not fall… It will not fall any further. I command the resurrection of the Cedi. I command and release a miracle for the economy.”

The self-proclaimed Archbishop led his congregation to pray for the President of the Republic of Ghana, Minister of Finance Seth Terkper, and Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Henry Kofi Wampah, asking for divine intervention to streamline the economy.

“In the name of Jesus, I say Satan take your hands off the President; take your hands off the Central Bank and the Finance Minister. We release innovation for the President, my God, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Central Bank, in the name of Jesus Christ, the son of God, the Finance Minister. We command new ideas, breakthroughs and a miracle for the economy. Let the Cedi rise in Jesus name,” Archbishop Duncan-Williams prayed.

The news in the Archbishop’s miracle is that a day after the Cedi was supposed to have been released from bondage, its value fell again. Official release from the Bank of Ghana yesterday, quoted the value of the cedi at GH¢2:40 to the dollar.

On Sunday, when the leader of the Action Chapel was performing his miracle, the cedi was exchanging for GH¢2:39. At the forex bureau, one could sell the dollar for GH¢2:43 at the forex bureau. On the other hand, one could buy the dollar at GH¢2:55.

Immediate reaction on the currency market does not appear to support the Archbishop’s miracle. It is a far cry from the instant result recorded in the miracle performed by Peter and John, when they encountered the cripple at the entrance to the Church of Beautiful.

According to the Holy Book, when the cripple demanded alms from the two disciples of Christ, Peter responded: “Silver and Gold have I none. What I have I shall give thee. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.”

The Bible says, immediately the cripple rose up and followed the two disciples into the church, glorifying God.

POWER

With the Cedi falling a day after being released from bondage, many faithful are beginning to question the source of the power of the Archbishop of the Action Chapel International. A number of Christians believe though that God’s intervention may not be instant.

Whatever it is, the pronouncement from the leader of the Action Chapel International is an innovation in invoking the spiritual realm to solve matters that are purely the making of men.

One other mystery that remains unresolved is why the creation of a Millennium City in Accra is failing the flooding test. It looks like the more authorities de-silt the Odaw River and its lagoon, the more Accra is prone to flooding.

On Saturday, the rain fell for just under two hours and yet the devastation caused by the floods in Accra, could not be quantified.

It only tells the story that roof-top advertisement never builds a ‘Better Ghana.’ Like the economy, we are reaping the result of building infrastructure on the campaign trail, with very little on the ground. ‘Better Ghana’ is far from becoming a reality.

Source: Ebo Quansah/The Chronicle