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Corona exposes the rot in our governance and the fragility of our false existence. And when it arrives in Africa in grand style there will be collateral damage. By the way coronavirus wont be the only one we will have to pray against. It is the beginning of a new normal. Today, when we are done praying and fasting or fasting and praying this is what we should all demand as citizens:
- CSIR should be reverted to its original mandate as a science and technology centre of excellence. Currently, its workshops look like an 18th Century Alchemist shop. I have never seen so many brilliant, patriotic and demoralized scientists in all my travels around the world. And prayers wont fix it. It will take the cost of 10 V8s to fix.
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KNUST should revert to its mandate as a science and technologg institute at the forefront of our development efforts. It is now a bastion of liberal arts and ineptitude.
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Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research should bubble up to the top as a place where the next generation of soldiers: men and women that fight in the shadows against invisible enemies called Viruses, bacteria, etc are trained and equipped.
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Centers for tropical diseases and local medicines have to be revamped from centers of misery where disgruntled scientists work lottery under tree shades.
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Private universities must be freed off affiliate institutions where exorbitant amount of fees are paid for caricature oversight. So such resources could be invested into developing globally competitive world-class institutions to help push boundaries. Government should fund private institutions as well after all they are producing graduates to lead development efforts.
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Government should declare a national emergency on the state of science and technology and innovation and divert resources to prepare for the next pandemics that are coming.
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To fund these projects government must:
a. Divert petrol taxes for streetlights that never light or intermittently flicker to STI
b. Impose 10% taxes on all citizens as STI investment
c. Implement 2% GDP into STI
d. Auction off incomplete and dilapidated government buildings and cars at market value and invest the money into STI
e. Charge rent on all government bungalows that have been turned into chop bars and pito parlours and help deliberately fix this country.
So my fellow citizens after 4000 years in the wilderness the chosen people of Israel in 1948 picked up arms and created a state. 4000yrs of prayers alone did not help. So when y’all done fasting and praying, write a letter to your President and MPs and tell them Ghana deserves better! Salam aleikum.
By Professor Fred McBagonluri. The author is currently President & Provost of Academic City College, a private tertiary academic institution in Accra. He has written over 40 US patents and patent applications with 22 issued patents so far. In 2009, he was NASA astronaut candidate finalist, and in 2019 he was voted one of “The 100 Most Influential Personalities From Northern Ghana”.
