Prominent British politician and Member of the United Kingdom House of Lords, Rt. Hon Lord Paul Boateng has intimated that leaders in the political space in Ghana must be ready and willing to move the country away from aid dependence to meet its full potential in the comity of nations.
His call comes on the back of recent developments in the global geopolitical sphere and the decades past where African countries and their counterparts in the Third World have had to depend on handouts and discriminatory economic agreements which has kept such nations at the foot of the global economic ladder in perpetuity.
The 2024 Annual UPSA Leadership Lecture Series was on the theme ; ” “Fulfilling the Promise” The Challenge of Leadership! Moving from Rhetoric to Delivery!
The colorful and well attended event drew a large participation from Politicians, Business people, students , Diplomats ,Academics and members of the University community and general public to discuss issues of national importance and brainstorm on ways to shape public opinion in the country’s governance space.
Notable among the high-profile personalities were First Lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo; Dr Kofi Kodua Sarpong, the Chancellor of UPSA; Dr Kofi Ohene-Konadu, Chairman of the UPSA Governing Council; and Sir Sam Jonah, Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast.
Speaking at the 2024 Annual Lecture Series organized by the University of Professional Studies , Accra as Guest Speaker, Rt.Hon Lord Paul Boateng was of the view that until Ghanaian leaders look within the country and develop need based policies and programmes which creates sustainable development and attendant economic growth which empowers its citizens , it will be difficult to get the country fully achieve its potential in the coming years.
He added that such actionable measures must start with a paradigm shift in mindset starting from all citizens and leaders alike to be able to create a values based society where democracy can thrive and leaders will be moved to serving the needs of the electorate rather than lording power over the people who voted them into office.
” Looking at recent developments in the global geopolitical order and economic system which perpetuates the interests of the highly industrialized Superpowers in the West , i would like to admonish Ghanaian leaders and their African peers to stand up to neocolonial influences which impoverishes their citizens firmly , by crafting policies and development plans centred around the very rich natural resources they possess and educate their human resource base enough to take charge of their destinies and propel development which gives them a bigger say when it comes to dictating how much value they can get from international negotiations on economic development rather than pandering to the slavish businesses deals the Countries from the West throw at them”.
Also, Rt.Hon Lord Paul Boateng revealed that most African leaders knew the right policies and plans which will keep their respective countries on a sustained path of progress and development but rather were being lackadaisical because of a lack of willpower of commitment to see through promises which brought them into elected office.
That worrying lack of principles by the leaders in certain aspects created the situation of despair and hopelessness among the teeming youth and middle class who were yearning to be given the chance to have a seat at the table of political leadership and get their voices factored into the development of their home countries.
” Quite interestingly in all my years living as a young boy in Ghana with my family and my sojourn abroad as well as my decades in public service particularly in the United Kingdom and working extensively with African leaders , i have come to a certain conscious reality that most of the leaders on the African continent both past and present know exactly how to fully develop their countries and get their economies to have a bigger say on the world economic strata which translates into better living conditions for their citizens , but rather they choose to go for the safe and less taxing options just for cheap political and personal gains to the detriment of the very people they are elected serve”.
That attitude must significantly improve and fast to be able to give the continent a greater say on the world stage where close to half of the natural resources mined in Africa is shipped to under slavish terms and conditions and end up serving the continent a raw deal in the long run”.
Paul Yaw Boateng, Baron Boateng, CVO, PC, DL is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Brent South from 1987 to 2005, becoming the UK’s first Black Cabinet Minister in May 2002, when he was appointed as Chief Secretary to the Treasury.
