#asthedaysturn On Republic Day, a number of Ghanaians gathered at the Efua Sutherland Park in Accra to register their protest in respect of issues relating to the economy and governance of the republic. A number found their way subsequently to the Ako Adjei Interchange, where they demonstrated loudly in front of police personnel blocking their access to the Flagstaff House, where a petition outlining the issues raised was to be presented. The merits or otherwise of the contents of the petition notwithstanding, the event raised two important but unprecedented and directly related developments that have interesting repercussions and probably are a pointer to political and social developments in this country. I have argued in the past that the Ghanaian middle class of intellectuals, professionals and business persons seem to have largely detached from the rest of the population in terms of social issues and seem to have found their own private solutions to public problems, be it electricity, water, bad roads or poor school standards. This may be due to a fear of being tagged an opposition sympathizer, which in our highly polarized political space, can have a number of repercussions. The difficulty with this, I argued, is that the middle class cannot always be insulated from the consequences of the difficulties in this country and that history has shown that in other parts of the world, the middle class has been the driver of social change. The Republic Day event, dubbed ‘Occupy Flagstaff House’, had a huge, if not overwhelming, middle class profile. They came in their posh cars and wielded their smart phones and their ipads and were well-behaved. They did not need to be bussed by political show masters and certainly did not receive ‘allowances’ or T-shirts from anyone to attend. They came because they wanted to and believed in what they were demanding. In fact, what was refreshing about the event was that there was not a single political party flag or other paraphernalia. It was a Ghana flag event. Many had never been to a demonstration. This event, to my recollection, is the first middle class protest in this country. So what caused the middle class to wake up and step out the way they did? Three major factors, in my view. First, aside the general economic challenges in this country, a 17.5% VAT was to be slapped on banking services. This hugely affects the middle classes, who use banking services a great deal, certainly compared to say the village peasant farmer. It hit them with gale force. Second, the recent fuel crisis saw many motorists traversing great lengths for fuel. These two difficulties were such that the middle class could not find private solutions to them as it largely does with water and electricity. After all, one cannot dig for oil in one’s backyard garden and refine it in one’s kitchen to fuel the car. We are all hooked into the shortage, whether a tro-tro or Porsche. These two developments pinched them hard and made them realize that an insular life in Ghana was simply impossible. I think the third factor that galvanized middle class anger was the international embarrassment that this country suffered with the $3m cash airlift to Brazil during Ghana’s participation in the ongoing World Cup. Suddenly this country had become the butt of jokes in the international community and even Hollywood is reportedly planning to make a movie out of it. Social media was awash with the embarrassing international news coverage of the saga. But perhaps the most important factor that encouraged the middle class to step out was the lack of partisan political coloration of the event. In the publicity, it was stressed that this was a non-partisan event and that it was all about Ghana. And it lived up to its billing in two interesting way. Aside not a single political party flag being in sight, a prominent opposition political figure who arrived at the Ako Adjei interchange protest and tried almost immediately to address the crowd and speak to news crew purportedly on behalf of the protesters was roundly booed with ‘No politician!!’ chants until he left without saying a word. To me, this speaks volumes, in the sense that the middle class found a space they could be comfortable and express their anger without being dubbed opposition lackeys. I think the middle classes see both major parties as two sides of the same coin. I am sure if the protest had been called by one of the opposition parties, the numbers would probably have been the same or even more but the profile of protesters would definitely have not been the same. I think that the middle classes are waking up to their responsibility in demanding a change in the way things are done, but in order for this refreshing development to be sustained in the republic, it is important that it be kept a million miles away from political overlords on either side of the political divide. Aside the novelty of the middle class being out on the streets, the other new idea was the role played by social media. ‘Occupy Flagstaff House’ started as a simple urge on Facebook two days ahead of Republic Day, when a number of economic measures were due to bite. It spread like wild fire and struck a chord. Remarkably, little organization or logistics or money was involved. Of course the middle classes have a huge presence on social media so it seemed like a natural recruitment ground. I am sure the organizers did not expect the numbers that turned up eventually, estimated in the region of 500. And that is an impressive figure, given the notice. I think that social media as a huge tool for social mobilization has come to stay. Not only does it allow friends to meet up for fun events like beach trips and old students’ reunions, but as an outlet for highlighting public consciousness on various developments in politics and the economy. Tunisia and Egypt offer ready examples of how social media can get people unto the streets in a matter of hours. It would be dangerous for any government to ignore social media commentary because it is free of censorship and it helps government to know what the people are thinking. It is easy to sneer at social media by arguing that in Ghana and indeed in most of Africa, it is populated not by the largely illiterate and huge numbers of the rural poor but only a small segment of the society. But coupled with the massive radio network in this country, there is a huge force out there. Perhaps the Republic Day event marks a turning point in the political process in this country. Perhaps it means a new way of doing politics, serving notice on the government of the day to sit up without the back-and-forth of political bickering and cheap point-scoring that is the hallmark of partisan politics. The middle class in this country must sit up and speak up. This republic deserves better and expects nothing less.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Jul 2014 16:09:25 +0000
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