'Curtail the retribution, protect the Republic' – CDM to Mahama - MyJoyOnline (2025)

The Centre for Democratic Movement (CDM) has accused President John Mahama of failing to match his early gestures of calm and institutional respect with real, transformative action.

In a statement, the group warned that unless the President decisively curtails political retribution and protects the integrity of the civil service, his administration risks becoming yet another episode in Ghana’s long struggle with partisan excess and institutional decay.

“As President John Dramani Mahama concludes his first 100 days in office, Ghana stands at a crucial crossroads between the promise of renewal and the risk of relapse,” the CDM said.

“The past three months have offered glimpses of both opportunity and peril.”

While acknowledging what it called the President’s “calm demeanor, initial outreach, and respect for institutional continuity,” the Movement stressed that these symbolic gestures are no substitute for bold governance.

“Leadership must be felt through action, tested through adversity, and proven through transformation,” the statement read.

The group’s most urgent demand was that President Mahama put an immediate stop to political victimisation and preserve the professionalism of Ghana’s public service.

“Curtailing political retribution and upholding the sanctity of the civil service” topped the CDM’s list of democratic imperatives, amid growing concern over reports of partisan purges and intimidation across public sector agencies.

“The presidency, in any democratic society, is not a throne of privilege but a platform of responsibility,” the group noted. “It is not enough for a leader to avoid conflict or maintain decorum.”

The CDM’s concerns extended far beyond political victimization. It cited erratic power supply, fiscal profligacy, and what it called “creeping executive overreach” as dangerous warning signs that the administration was veering off course.

The group called for urgent, values-driven action on multiple fronts: protecting judicial independence, adopting pro-poor budgeting, combating illegal mining, innovating in energy delivery, and restoring lawful conduct within security services.

“These are not just political ideals,” the CDM stressed, “they are democratic imperatives.”

On corruption and the growing shadow of illegal mining, the group demanded “decisive, transparent action.”

It dismissed privatisation as a lazy solution to Ghana’s energy woes, insisting instead on “innovation, investment, and integrity.”

And in a pointed rebuke to the current security climate, it called for “lawful, accountable, and humane operations” by all national agencies.

Above all, the CDM warned that rhetoric would not suffice in a country where the people are no longer willing to accept symbolic gestures without tangible progress.

“The Ghanaian people deserve leadership that is anchored in principles, not populism; in progress, not propaganda,” the statement declared.

The group said President Mahama’s legacy “will not be measured by how smoothly he inherited power, but by how courageously he wielded it in service of the nation.”

“Let President Mahama demonstrate that this term will not be a repeat of the past, but a courageous break from it,” the release concluded.

“Let him lead not as a caretaker of partisan ambition, but as a custodian of national destiny.”

With the first 100 days now in the rearview mirror, the CDM warned that “the window for excuses narrows while the demand for action grows louder.” Ghana, it said, is watching, and so is the world.

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