President John Dramani Mahama has disclosed that he monitors social media platforms, including TikTok, to pick up complaints about government performance and forwards them to ministers for attention.
Speaking during an engagement with the Ghanaian community in Moscow, he said public criticism, regardless of political affiliation, helps him identify problems and demand answers from his ministers.
The President said he sometimes comes across complaints online and contacts the relevant ministers to find out what is happening in their sectors.
“Sometimes I go on the media, and I see something, and I call the minister, and I say, ‘Hey, my friend, what is happening in your sector?'” he recounted.
He cited a complaint about a bridge in the Ashanti Region that had reportedly been washed away following illegal mining activities as an example of how social media feedback can prompt government action.
According to him, he saw the complaint online and forwarded it to the responsible minister, who subsequently visited the area and identified a blocked channel as part of the problem. An excavator was then deployed to clear it and allow water to flow.
“That is how you solve some of these things,” he said, describing new media as an advantage because it provides government with information in real time.
President Mahama assured citizens that their concerns and videos shared online do not go unnoticed.
“So all your TikToks and things, don’t think I don’t see them. I see them,” he said.
He added that he does not take offence when citizens accuse his administration of leading the country in the wrong direction, insisting that criticism helps him improve his leadership.
“I don’t mind if people tell me that I’m leading the country in the wrong direction. I’m trying to do my best. Criticism helps me to do better,” he said.
The President urged Ghanaians to speak up whenever they notice problems with governance and to hold leaders accountable regardless of their political affiliations.
“The more we see the danger signs that somebody is leading us the wrong way, we must, all of us, not based on partisan leanings, all of us must say no, we’re not going in the right direction,” he said.
