Nana Akomea has responded to former President John Mahama 24-hour economy promise to Ghanaians.
The former President has assured Ghanaians that if re-elected President, he will ensure the economy runs 24 hours stressing this is part of his manifesto to improving the living standards of the citizenry as he believes the New Patriotic Party led by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has failed Ghanaians.
"A new NDC administration will work urgently to equip our youth with the entrepreneurial knowledge and skills needed for a sustainable future. We will introduce a 24-hour economy with incentives and tax breaks for manufacturers who will run extra shifts to create more room for employment.
"We will work to ease the burden of taxes imposed by this NPP administration on Ghanaian businesses and investors, which has robbed Ghana of its envious position as one of Africa's leading destinations for investment", he promised.
But Nana Akomea doesn't believe Mahama's 24-hour economy is applicable.
However, to him, Ghana's economy is already running 24 hours under the Akufo-Addo rule, emphasizing that no law stops any person or trader from engaging in business from dawn to dusk.
"Currently, nothing stops any person in this country to do 24 hours. It depends on the economic condition...There is no law currently that prohibits any person from operating 24 hours", he said on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" programme Tuesday morning, citing STC as an example of the companies doing a 24-hour business.
The Chief Executive Officer of STC noted that their buses travel "throughout the night" and does not work only "if we don't get passengers".
Nana Akomea also ridiculed Mahama's promise to assign Police officers to guard shops that work till daybreak, asking how is it going to be possible?
"So, every person who works after 10 pm will have a Police officer sitting in his or her office? So, if there is a pharmacy in a community and it clocks 11 pm, you will assign two Police officers to the pharmacy. Then the Police will indeed recruit lots of people because the shops on Spintex road alone, from Tetteh Quarshie to Sakumono, if everyone says I will work after 10 and so I need Police personnel, then there will be about 2000 Police officers on the Spintex road alone...", he said sarcastically.
Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana
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Mahama is full of mediocrity ideas backed.by no research. Any business that has the need and capacity to run 24/7 is already doing so
Kenya embarked on this 24 hour economy journey in 2009. I have heard some of the NDC communicators coming out with figures “ plagiarized” about job creation. There are lot of issues to be clarified because when it was first proposed by the CEO of Reroy Cables ( September 20, 2016), the emphasis was on the manufacturing sector. The proposal didn’t see the light of the day because of dumsor. We should rather be looking at sectors like sanitation which should be done round the clock. 24 hour economy can only happen in Accra and Kumasi.
Ah Akomea paaa, you look &tupid with these comment. I am petrified to see you saying such a thing. Anka ma Kwamena ana Alortey nka wei, aah.
24-hr economy train is on full blast. All should join
It appears Nana Akomea doesn’t know the concept of the 24 hour economy same as guys who are calling out the former president. I had the privilege of working with the Sydney 24-hour economy secretariat, in Australia. Had a stint with similar projects in Thailand, Vietnam and Macau. We don’t have 24-hour economy in Ghana. It seems people don’t understand that concept. It’s a whole integrated strategy that requires proper planning, execution, measurement and monitoring with certain expectations. It encompasses all sectors of the economy and this can be implemented in greater Accra and greater Kumasi. Let’s encourage the former president to articulate his vision on the 24-hour economy and offer input which will benefit the society at large. After all, some economists proposed one this, one that but the impact is yet to be seen. For now, from where I sit in Asia, Ghana does not have 24-hour economy.
It's surprising how everyone here is thinking narrowly and you have the likes of Akomea leading this cheap narrative. Does the 24hr business service means you have to assign Police personnel at every business centre in the night? is that what it mean? Is that how Akomea understands it?? This is exactly the reason why all these old folks have to go and leave the middle age to take over. These people travel outside this country see the systems there and yet come back and behave differently. Well for many who dont know how this works let me say this. Every business service centre will have their security effectively linked to the nearest Police command centre. The Police Active Response team will always be on high alert with the best of combat gear to ward off any criminal actives. Look this is workable and achievable. All those speaking against it are jealous and are not ready for a change. Whether you like it or not it will be done. There will be will challenges but a will thought out approach will work efficiently.
Mr Mahama doesn’t understand what he’s talking about as 24hr economy,it’s already in existence.He’s limited/reduce it to factories running 24hrs,night businesses and activities,buying and selling.It’s either misleading,ignorance or lack of understanding.What we need now is complete digital economy Bawumia has set the pace.Globally technology/digitization is been leveraged for economic prosperity and development,it maximizes revenue mobilization,minimizes corruption and enhance efficient service delivery and comfort.In fact modern and sophisticated tool for economic management is digitization/IT/Technology.Eg when ECG was digitized,revenue shot to over 600%,coz cashier/teller can’t pocket sales,one can pay tariff or order Pre Paid energy anytime,even 2am at the comfort of his bedroom,without physically spending fuel or T&T to sometimes queue.Internet Banking enhances access,comfort,efficiency and avoid arm robberies/attacks.DVLA services could be easily accessed at the comfort of your room without queuing and paying bribes,same applies to Passport services as well as others.If one can order anything online,including medicines,foods,wears/dresses etc and be delivered,life becomes fine.This is the vision of Bawumia!
An advisor on his team may have mentioned this 24 hour economy jargon to President Mahama. He quickly jumped at it and began to fly it . As has been made plain to the ex president, sections of the economy had operated on this 'concept, even before the attainment of Independence. So do not come and bamboozle us with a paper jargon, Mr Mahama. Granted, it is a new policy which he intends to bring on board if, he was elected president. Let us examine how, he as a president, performed over what we may describe as close to getting a 24 hour economy in place. In his four years as president, John Mahama was only able to rehabilitate one sugar factory in the Central Region . Strangely, the raw materials that would make a factory run, run a 24 hour production, was not factored in the whole scheme. He did not consider this necessity as necessary. The main aim of the rehabilitation of Komenda Sugar factory was to score a political point. And nothing at all to do with creating space for job creation, the least. So how can John Mahama turn round in seven years, to come and preach a 24 hour economy to the nation?
@Obi-Ba, we can produce fresh vegetables, salads and many other food items for our malls using a 24-hour greenhouse farming system.
I think the former president is making a valid point and we need to listen carefully to understand where he is coming from. In fact, the 24-hour economy that we have in Ghana at the moment is encouraging more retailers whose goods are mostly imported second-hand goods that are displayed and sold on the main streets of our capital cities. It is sickening to see second-hand underwear, shoes and socks being sold by the roadside, even on Sundays. But if the 24-hour economy is designed to support production in our local factories, then it makes sense and is transformative. Let us encourage the NDC to talk about policies rather than the vilification and defamation propagandist opposition politics that has become their trademark. What about the 24-hour economy in the agricultural sector? I think we can have a debate in these sectors to create jobs and promote local products in our shopping centres instead of all the imported goods and rubbish that create jobs elsewhere.