Love For Country: Fixing Ghana’s Voter Apathy Problem
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Essah Tahir, Ghana
The Ghanaian man looks at the current situation of his country, the economic trend, the political brouhaha, and finally succumbs to the trend; I won’t vote. Reasons given for joining the fold of those who do not want to vote ranges from; it’s the same political parties and the same game they play, my vote won’t change anything, and I don’t want to waste my time and my vote, etc.
According to the electoral commission of Ghana, out of the total number of 17,027,641 registered voters on the electoral roll, 3,592,784 did not exercise their franchise during the December 7, 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary elections.
In the 2016 presidential election of Ghana, out of the 15,712,499 registered voters, 10,880,999 were the ones who voted. This means 4,831,500 registered voters did not vote.
4,831,500 and 3,592,784 registered voters not taking part in the 2016 and 2020 elections respectively, is a huge number.
Mind you, this trend of I won’t vote transcends Ghana. Data from the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (I-IDEA) reveals that some countries like Nigeria, Central Africa Republic, Algeria, Egypt, Mali, D.R. Congo, etc. also have low voter turnout.
We sometimes due to hardship forget to exercise our right for the better. As citizens, we need to remember that it is our exclusive right to vote; in the hope of bringing about a positive change.
As the saying goes, love for one’s country is part of faith. Some do argue; how do we love a country where the leaders exhibit such traits that show no love for the citizens? How do we love a country when its leaders do not care about the welfare of the masses? And so on and so forth.
One must remember that you do not hate the man but the bad attribute or the bad character he portrays. In the like manner, you do not hate the country but the bad rule of the leaders.
Former President of Ghana Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings once said; ‘Countrymen, either you are part of the problem or you are part of the solution’’.
To show our love for Ghana, we must try to vote for who we think is best. Every individual should vote for the candidate that they think is best capable of serving the best interests of the people. We should not vote on the mere basis of family, tribal relations, or what have you. We must vote for the one who is the most competent.
Allah commands us in the following verse of the Holy Quran:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكُمْ أَنْ تُؤَدُّوا الْأَمَانَاتِ إِلَى أَهْلِهَا وَإِذَا حَكَمْتُمْ بَيْنَ النَّاسِ أَنْ تَحْكُمُوا بِالْعَدْلِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ نِعِمَّا يَعِظُكُمْ بِهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ سَمِيعًا بَصِيرًا
“Verily, Allah commands you to give over the trusts to those entitled to them, and that, when you judge between men, you judge with justice. And surely excellent is that with which Allah admonishes you. Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing.” (4:59)
Excellent indeed is that with which Allah admonishes us. If we were to succinctly act on this injunction, many, if not all of our problems would be solved.
Another trait we the masses and the leaders need to keep an eye for is honesty. If honesty is adopted at all costs, we would experience a safe haven on earth here.
When the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) was once asked by a person which vice should he should work on for the time being before moving on to the numerous other vices he had, the Holy Prophet (sa) replied ‘Make a vow that you will not lie and that you will always tell the truth.’ Once that person resolved to always tell the truth, every time he was about to commit an evil deed, he would think, ‘If the Holy Prophet (sa) asked about this evil deed, I would feel embarrassed if I told the truth and if I told a lie, I would have to break the vow not to lie.’ In this way, all his evil traits gradually disappeared.
This is how important the habit of telling the truth and being honest is. It drives away many vices.
The 4th Khalifa Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad (rh) was once asked in a question-and-answer session that what was the one advice he could give, the adoption of which would help curtail the problems of the western world. He replied that if the western world was to adopt the attribute of honesty, most if not all of their problems would be checked.
During a virtual Mulaqat of the female students and new-converts of the Netherlands with Huzoor (aba), which was held on 23rd August 2020, a student asked; “What advice of your parents has proven to be most beneficial to you?”
Huzoor (aba) replied; “Never ever tell a lie!”
Telling lies or being dishonest breeds all sorts of other vices. In our quest to do justice to the work given to us, upholding this trait will ensure we do what is right. In our quest to also elect the right leaders, upholding this trait will ensure we do what is right. It’s high time we put an end to the I won’t vote trend and vote to bring about an improvement.
About the author: Essah Tahir is a missionary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Ghana serving at The Review of Religions Department.
