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Is Ghana a Failed State?

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Is Ghana a Failed State?
Politics
November 5, 2025 600 views

By Michael Song-Aabo Junior

Source: The Trial News

The recent revelations from the audited accounts of the Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs), as well as other public institutions by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), coupled with the numerous scandals being investigated by the Auditor-General, paint a depressing picture of a nation crippled by corruption and moral decay. Add to that the infamous National Cathedral saga, a shameful episode of looting in the name of God and it becomes painfully clear why many Ghanaians are beginning to recall, with conflicted nostalgia, the ruthless accountability that characterised the National Redemption Council (NRC) and Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) eras under the leadership of Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings.


If these revelations are indeed true, then many of our political “leaders” deserve the harshest punishment. How can a country so richly blessed with resources and human potential continue to wallow in economic hardship? It is heartbreaking to see children sitting on bare floors to learn while heartless individuals steal state funds meant to improve their lives.


No wonder politics in Ghana has become one of the most lucrative ventures, a place where people become rich overnight without sweating. Public service has been replaced with self-service, and patriotism is now an outdated virtue.


This is not the Ghana that Dr Kwame Nkrumah envisioned. Perhaps the great Osagyefo was too generous in faith when he declared, “the Blackman is capable of managing his own affairs.” Maybe he thought future leaders would share his honesty, discipline, and love for the country. Sadly, today’s politicians have proven otherwise.


It is therefore unsurprising that some of Ghana’s brightest and most innovative minds are fleeing the country. They are not lazy, nor are they unpatriotic; they are simply tired of being suffocated by a system that kills dreams and rewards corruption. Many would rather be satisfied workers in foreign lands than hungry, frustrated citizens in their own homeland.


Until our leaders sit up and restore integrity, accountability, and justice to governance, Ghana will continue to fail its people, especially the youth. Job seekers are often asked to pay bribes before being considered for employment, a sickening practice that undermines fairness and fuels hopelessness.


A country that allows greed to triumph over service, theft to replace leadership, and silence to bury truth cannot claim to be on the path of progress.


So, we must ask: Is Ghana a failed state? If not yet, then it is dangerously close and unless we demand change, the collapse will not be a question of “if,” but “when.”





Michael Song-Aabo

Michael Song-Aabo, © 2025

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Column: Michael Song-Aabo

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