Don’t Forget How Ghanaians Praised Ken Ofori-Atta In His First Two Years — Kofi Bentil

The Vice President of IMANI Africa, Kofi Bentil, has reflected on why some Ghanaians who previously praised former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta’s performance during his first two years in office may now have a different assessment of his tenure.

He made this observation in a post shared on his official Facebook page on November 14, 2026, in which he used a relationship analogy and a personal family story involving his parents to explain how people’s perceptions can change over time.

According to Bentil, some people find it difficult to acknowledge that they were once genuinely in love with their former partners after a relationship has ended. He explained that people often begin to focus on the negative qualities of their former partners while highlighting the positive attributes of their new partners.

To illustrate his point, he recounted a story his mother once told him about his father’s initial reaction to momoni, a fermented fish delicacy commonly used in Ghanaian cooking. Bentil said his father complained whenever his mother brought the ingredient home, describing it as rotten and smelly fish.

However, he explained that his father’s attitude changed whenever his mother used the same momoni to prepare food. His father would enjoy the meal and praise its taste without realising that the ingredient he had previously criticised was responsible for making the food delicious.

Bentil said his mother would simply roll her eyes, knowing that her husband was enjoying the same ingredient he had earlier condemned. He used the story to demonstrate how people’s judgments can change depending on their circumstances and relationships.

Drawing a connection between the story and Ghana’s political and economic developments, the IMANI Africa Vice President argued that genuine growth should be the primary consideration when assessing leadership rather than focusing exclusively on individual ingredients or details.

He maintained that, despite the criticisms surrounding Ken Ofori-Atta’s tenure as Finance Minister, it remained a fact that Ghanaians praised his performance during his first two years in office.

Bentil’s central argument was that public assessments of leadership can change over time, particularly when political circumstances change. He suggested that people should not allow their current opinions to erase what they previously admired or acknowledged about a leader’s performance.

He concluded that real growth should be the ultimate measure of success, rather than an excessive focus on the individual ingredients that contribute to the final outcome.

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