Somewhere deep in the northern savannah there is an ideological clash that will affect the lives of the 5,000 inhabitants of Binaba for decades to come. Leninist collectivization meets autocracy in a system perhaps harking of the early communist era before the purges and realities of the system crushed the soviet dream beyond the imaginings of the populace.
The chiefs bookshelf is well stacked with major Marxist works, the thought of Lenin sits somewhat disconcerted by ‘The Teaching of Don Juan’, where hallucinatory experience mixes with the ancient structures of New Mexico. The chief himself is descended from a powerful medicine man the death of whom was heralded by the appearance of a lion that tore at the grave, said later to be the spirit of the aged hunter.
In the North of Ghana literacy rates are optimistically set at around 12% of the population, in a nearby village the elders used paintings to educate their children in other areas there are only the stories. The spirits that determine the land rights, the rain and sacred right of local crocodiles to snag the odd fisherman are real and intractable.
The town of Binaba is rural, the major source of livelihood is agriculture, the young men tend to leave during the dry season because there is no work, most people live in mud built compounds and witchcraft is popular although illegal when designed to bring harm. Having said this, a complex number of ontology’s jostle for the ‘hearts and minds’ of the largely uneducated population.
The notion of a duality of experience is perhaps nothing new, traditionally each community has had their own ancestors and belief systems based on their own particular doctrines and fetishes. The arrival of the Islamist tribes brought the monotheist conception of being but this even among those who whole-heartily ascribe to Allah does not always bring about the extinction of the local deities.
A bus conversation with an avowed Muslim was enlightening on this point, the great god Allah was in his dominance unsurpassed, was clearly immutable. The power of the earthly spirits and gods was also impeachable. When asked about this perceived duality, or rather claims by strict Muslims about the misplaced belief of idolaters he replied that they had not entered far enough into the bush.
The later advent of Christianity added a new level of complication to the metaphysical universe however interestingly not one that was problematic in the sense of clashing forces. Perhaps the already populated and layered belief systems were in Ghana more able to sustain the inclusion of yet another monotheist god.

In the villages and communities near to the Binaba town there is excitement about the new chief, he brought the vast majority of the roads to the area during his time as the District Chief Executive. The form of decentralization that was settled upon in Ghana is based in the District and Municipal Assemblies these are two thirds elected and then one third appointed by the central government. Obviously those that are appointed are almost exclusively party supporters so that those that are elected are banned from party membership. Assembles work in cycles of 5 yearly plans that are subject to a dynamic schedule of revisal. The content of these plans will be partially decided by central government but mostly through consultations however the actual functioning of this is described in opaque terms that do not necessarily allow for description.
The governments here are vindictive toward their rivals, upon the election of a new government the encumbering party is often found sacking the office to ensure that useful data does not fall into unfriendly hands. The necessity of removing the information from these politically charged silos is then of relevance to all.
Using the chieftaincy network as the structure for the information to pass through there are some interesting effects to be explored in trying to open up the institutions of government to greater scrutiny through information exchange. The assemblies are driven by a need for greater knowledge of their own activities; these are often carried out far from their ability to ensure that the project is necessarily operating in an acceptable manner. Or that contractors involved in the project are actually carrying out the work they are paid for.
On the chiefs’ side are the necessities of gathering information at a local level; this too often might be an expensive and deeply imprecise exercise open to abuse. Recently the government wanted to increase the amount of maize grown so offered incentives in the form of cash for seed and chemicals. Some farmers took advantage of this by simply turning up, claiming to have planted ‘x’ number of acres, the later inspections went so far as asking the farmers where they were going to plant. Responses were favorable, as the farmer waved their arms at a suitably large package of land the money was paid in cash. The more unscrupulous then pocketed the money selling any seeds or chemicals that they may have received.
For the government these sort of exercises are common with many of the programs frustrated by the inadequate systems of accountability. This is partially why the possibility of using the local system of governance may find credence with funders, but conversely it is also a potential stumbling block as politicians are well aware of the impact chiefs have at the local level. Most communities will support the party of the chief, as they are aware that the political patronage of the chief is the most effective means of harnessing funds.
For the chief, politics is potential poison, he knows only to well the tides of political support or abandonment. There can be organized a successful delivery program and also greater movement of information between the various structures. Through this we may plum the possibility of ‘doing politics’ without ‘doing politics’, involving ourselves as a reflexive switching point for the needs and concerns of the community.
More on this later, the related readings are: Richard Chambers ‘Rural Development, Putting the last first’, Chantel Mouffe, ‘On Democracy’, and Delanda’s ‘A new Philosophy of Society’ (which I have leant to the chief to soften those Marxist edges)

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