Tidal waves: Empathizing with people in distress is also a mark of leadership — Edudzi Tamakloe to Akufo-Addo

A Communication Team Member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Lawyer Godwin Edudzi Tamaklo has slammed President Akufo-Addo for failure to visit victims of the Keta tidal waves.

He said one of the marks of a good leader is showing empathy to people in distress.

According to him, the posture of President Akufo-Addo as someone who has always been regular in sending messages to sympathise with countries hit with a disaster has not shown leadership regarding the Keta tidal waves havoc.

“When you have a situation where there is a burn down of Notre Dame Cathedral, and our President could easily tweet to President Macron in Franc, far away. There have been instances where the Vice President had moved from here to Sierra Leonne among other things because there is disaster.

"And then there’s similar thing within your own backyard, 30 minutes, just with the people. The places that the President has been visiting, is it the case that he does not have his workmen there. Definitely, he has his workmen there, but definitely, you go there to see the things for yourself,” he stated.

He pointed that the President should have noticed that the relief items sent to the victims by National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) were “woefully inadequate.”

Lawyer Edudzi Tamaklo stressed that the President could have delegated his Vice President to visit the victims and showed some empathy even in his absence.

“It’s simply not part of their priority. That’s the simple thing. Has the Vice not been visiting places when the President jets off, he has, those are things on his priority list. It’s a very simple matter,” he stated.

The two main political parties have been engaged in accusations and counter accusations after the NDC accused government of delaying in sending relief items to the victims of the tidal waves.

The NDC has describe as a laissez faire attitude of the President towards the situation, criticizing him for not showing leadership.

But their NPP counterparts argues that the President has representatives in the region who are capable of handling the situation at Keta.