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At the Kwahu Business Forum on Saturday, April 19, President John Mahama opened up about what he described as the "most regrettable experience" of his life.
An ill-fated attempt to set up a family member in business.
Sharing lessons from his personal life, Mahama recounted how he once purchased a bus for a relative to run a small transport venture, hoping to ease the financial pressures he faced while serving as a Member of Parliament.
However, instead of easing his burdens, the initiative turned into a costly mistake.
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According to him, the bus was poorly managed and frequently overloaded, leading to mechanical failure. He explained that the axle of the vehicle eventually broke due to the strain, and what was intended as a source of income became a constant financial drain.
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Mahama detailed how repairs became frequent and expensive, noting that it ultimately cost him more to maintain the bus than if he had simply given the money away.
Matters worsened when he discovered that the driver, a relative who lived in his family home, was diverting funds from the business to build a personal house. To this day, that house remains unfinished.
In the end, the President decided to cut his losses and sold the bus.
Ever since I sold the bus, that building, which had reached the lintel level, is still at lintel level—even today.
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President Mahama agrees with Minority Leader
Mahama shared the story in response to comments made by Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, who had observed that many businesses fail not due to a lack of funding, but because of unreliable people managing them.
The President agreed, highlighting that trust and competence are crucial for success in business.
He further pointed out that many local business owners prefer hiring foreign managers because they struggle to find reliable local staff, a trend he said is damaging to Ghana’s human resource reputation.
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Emphasising the importance of loyalty and integrity, Mahama urged entrepreneurs to be careful about the people they bring into their ventures.
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He warned that without a strong culture of responsibility, no industrial sector can thrive, adding that businesses destroyed by greed and mismanagement harm the broader economy.