VOTE
FOR CHARACTER AND COMPETENCE
Kofi:
Hello Ama, it’s good to hear from you again since our last conversation on
phone a couple of months ago. The situation in Zimbabwe isn’t getting better. How’s
Ghana?
Ama: Kofi,
I am confused.
Kofi:
About what?
Ama:
I
am struggling with which political candidate or party to vote for in Ghana’s
upcoming general elections. I am being ridiculed of the candidates I desire to
vote for. My friends are saying those candidates will never win so I should not
waste my votes. Auntie Asantewaa and Uncle Ahoto are also insisting that I
should vote for candidates of that political party that majority of the people
in our community have always been voting for. I am now thinking of not voting
at all so that I can have my peace of mind.
Kofi: Ama,
you have a choice to either vote or not. You also have the right to decide which
candidate to vote for should you finally decide to vote. You need to vote for a
candidate you are convinced of even if that person is not going to win.
Ama:
But why should I vote if my choice of candidate is not going to win?
Kofi:
Casting
a vote is a sacred exercise which must not be taken lightly. When you vote for
a candidate, you give that candidate power to make decisions, if he wins, that
will negatively or positively impact your destiny. That is why you should not
just vote for anybody or a political party merely because they are the choice of
many other people or opinion polls favour them. Your vote is a reflection of
your personality and what you think. Will you vote for a dishonest idiot or a
person who is morally bankrupt because he is the candidate of a popular
political party? Voting for such a person will mean you endorse his character, beliefs
and political ideologies.
Ama:
So Kofi what should a voter consider
before voting for a candidate?
Kofi:
I will say character and competence.
Ama:
What
do you mean by “character and competence?”
Kofi:
Character
points to integrity and trustworthiness. A person of integrity does what he said
he would do. They are trustworthy people because you can count on them to
deliver their promises even if doing so will hurt their personal interests and
that of their cronies. A political candidate who fails to carry out his
promises after winning elections, without reasonable excuse, does not deserve
your endorsement. You don’t have to vote for a candidate you do not trust.
Competence on the other hand points to capacity to achieve what the person is
promising. It relates to the skills, intelligence and experiences of the person
and persons connected to him. The candidate and the political party he is
leading must possess the needed intelligence and prudence to manage the
resource of a nation and lead the people in that nation to attain some desirable
goals. That candidate and his team must especially be people of character and
worthy of your trust.
Ama: Does
it then mean that good character of a candidate is enough to trust him with
your vote? What do you make of a candidate who may have good character but is
not competent?
Kofi:
Ama,
both character and competence are very necessary. But, if you were to choose
between character and competence; choose character! It is better to have an
accountant who is honest but less competent than to have a dishonest accountant
who is highly competent. Guess what, that highly competent accountant will
collapse your business because of his dishonesty. You should not entrust your treasures
into the hands of a dishonest person.
Ama:
Thanks
so much Kofi for educating me on these matters. I will reflect on them and independently
decide on candidates I desire to vote for based on my convictions about those
candidates, not ignoring every relevant information about them.
Kofi:
Ama,
before you end the call let me share with you excerpts of a message, delivered
by Dr. Mensa Otabil, I recently read from a website. He gave three other
factors electorates like you should consider before voting for a particular
candidate and his policies:
“ 1. Vote for your dreams and aspirations. Look at your future
projections, where you are going and see the proposal that best suits where you
are going in life: what kind of future do you want, what kind of vision (do) you
have for your life? Think about your life, consider the proposals and ask
yourself: which of these ones will help me become the person I want to be or my
children or my grandchildren become what I want them to be? Which idea best
fits my dreams and aspirations, not which colour I support or which slogan
sounds nice, for which idea best helps me become whom I want to be, so, vote
for your dreams and aspirations and never allow any politician to take you for
granted...
2. Vote for
your beliefs and your values: what do you value, what is important to you, what
do you believe, what are the things that you wouldn’t compromise in life? Look
at all of that...
3. Vote for the best interest of your nation.
Remember your vote doesn't just affect you but it will shape the destiny of
your nation. Look at your nation, where it is and where it wants to be. Which
of the proposals will help us get to a better place? Which of them?”
Ama: Thanks Kofi, I am very
grateful for this information as well. God bless you!
Richard
Obeng Mensah, author of Wisdom Thoughts
Blog:
www.richard-obeng-mensah.blogspot.com Email:
richardobengmensah@gmail.com
