Editorial
The Ghana Cedi – A mirage?
Dear Editor,
Having the Ghana cedi with you is like beholding a mirage ahead of you. It may come to you in very bulk quantities but its strength is fleeting when you analyse your daily cost and expenditure.
There are basic needs in life. Everyone has a need. Needs are real and they must be met. Our needs may vary from food, to good clothing, to a comfortable shelter – a cosy place to accommodate yourself, to good means of transportation, to costs of getting good education or higher degrees, to settling telephone, electricity, gas and water bills amongst others.
One must eat good and healthy foods to stay fit and strong. These comprise vegetables and fruits, carbohydrates and cereals, legumes, fish, meat to mention a few. Yet all these come at a cost.
Your means of transportation from one point to another to get to work or to pursue an important transaction would be either your own car or a public transportation system. Just imagine you ply from Tabora to Kaneshie both close points in Accra. Your Uber costs would be GH¢ 30 cedis to Kaneshie and GH¢ 30 cedis back to Tabora, totalling GH¢ 60 cedis.
You realise after getting back to Tabora that you have to quickly go back to Kaneshie because you left an important transaction untouched or that you did a wrong transaction on your first trip.
You would end up spending GH¢ 120 in all covering the entire trip. How much do you have to spend or spare in a day? Yet this is a dire need.
Next, is the cost of raising a family. Most pre-schools take about GH GH¢ 5,000 per term. So , assuming you have three or more children the cost you incur on their education would be tens of thousands of Ghana cedis per term.
The average Ghanaian marries at age 30. Being 30 years at the point of marriage implies you have 30 more years to retirement ( for males ) and 35 more years( for females).This is how the working career of an average Ghanaian professional looks after marriage. At retirement it is likely some of your wards or kids would be studying in the university or would be at the starting point of their working career having just completed the university.
As you picture all these, could luxury be enjoyed at the point of retirement? What other investment opportunities or options would be available so your money today would be much worth better for you tomorrow?
Farming, a private business or a chain of private businesses like owning a shop, a school or a hospital? The issue is that the strength of the cedi may suggest that you think your dreams through with proper planning, prayer and preparation.
Ebenezer K N Baiden-Amissah
P O Box LG 1254
Legon, Accra.
Telephone +233245310380
Editorial
Kudos to Ho Teaching Hospital staff, but …
Dear Editor,
If there is any group of professionals that get bad-mouthed the most, then you are referring to nurses and medical doctors assigned to public hospitals across the country.
For this particular letter, I want to sing the praises of this same group of professionals that work at the Ho Teaching Hospital, famously known as Trafalgar.
Despite the work load and the mass casualties received at the emergency ward of the hospital, the welcoming nature of the nurses and the professional touch by the doctors can’t be ignored. My personal experience has got me travelling from my base in Accra to seek medical services from these professionals.
Special mention has to be made of the likes of Precious of the Pharmacy Department, Dr Brandon Banor (a maxillofacial resident) of the Dental unit, male nurse Justice assigned to the female surgical ward. Words cannot really do justice to their affable, professional caring nature. A simple thank you is all that I can say.
In the same vein, I can’t but call out the bad attitude of the auxiliary staff and contractors of the hospital.
Chief among them is some of the contracted bank staff that handle the payment section of the hospital and the patient registration section (those that check the status of the patient as to whether they are fee paying patients or NHIS sponsored).
The attitude at times leaves a bad taste in the mouth. One such occurrence was a night staff of the registration section who had her legs on the office table whilst talking to patients.
The CEO of the hospital needs to shine his torch light on this support sections before they erode the awesome performance of the direct medical staff of the hospital.
Thank you for the space.
Kwesi Manu
Accra
Editorial
Develop policies to address disability concerns
Dear Editor,
AT the beginning of the year, when I went to the bank to deposit money into my uncle’s account, I observed a very sad situation where a man in a wheelchair struggled to navigate his way around the facility.
This is because the structure is disability unfriendly.
As I stood and watched how the man struggled to move his wheelchair, I felt sad and wondered if this is how the life of a disabled person should be. It becomes worse if there is no one to offer help.
In Ghana, People With Disabilities (PWDs) are often treated differently and are often subjected to all forms of discrimination.
Most of these people find themselves in such a situation as a result of unfortunate happenings such as accidents and injuries.
It is, therefore, not appropriate for anyone to discriminate against them. Discrimination against such persons take many forms, including how buildings are constructed.
Most of the public structures are not disability friendly and impede their movement.
As a country, we should consider the PWDs in designing our structures. I also think that there should be a national policy that seeks to address this issue.
I have a strong conviction that when such a policy is developed by the government, people with disabilities would feel appreciated and also promote social inclusivity.
Ray,
Kasoa
