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Opinions of Sunday, 5 August 2012

Columnist: Sarpong, Justice

Stop President Mills Canonization

Sarpong, Justice

Ghanaians received the death of President Mills on July 24th 2012 with sadness and in solemn mood as it should be, because the death of any human being brings sadness let alone the President of our country whose moral uprightness compared to others before him can be said to be squeaky clean. The Presidency of Mills on the other hand can best be described as enigmatic due to the kind of the people he surrounded himself with.Mills moral failings is not personal but those people he chose to help him run the country with have dubious characters and hence his administration was a total failure judging by the mood of how Ghanaians were complaining before his death and that is why I am baffled by the hypocrisy of Ghanaians trying to make him a Saint in his death. Now Mills who wanted to quit because of the criticism of his government in death has almost become a Saint reading from some of the headings that have been used by others;

Mills Died A Martyr -TB Joshua

Monument To Immortalise Professor Mills At Otuam

The King Is Dead, Long Live The King

Africa is not matured enough for Mills' leadership - T.B. Joshua

Mills was a gem - Chris Ackumey

As a human being, President Mills has his own foibles and one of them was that, he was petty. His pettiness prevented him to choose People like Spio Garbrah who was the first to raise the topic about President Mills health and because of that, he became a persona-non-grata in his administration and Mills ended up sidelining some experienced people that could have helped him better serve the country instead of the veranda and ' buga-buga' riffraff boys he brought to the Castle that turned his government into a kakistocracy.

Before his death, Ghanaians were calling for Mills scalp due to the hardship his administration showered on them so the cathectic manifestation by the populace due to novelty of his death, the first sitting President to die in Ghana is understandable but his death should not change the fact that, he was not up to the task as a President due to the fact that, he was sick from day one and his duties were farmed amongst those former President Rawlings termed, 'Greedy bastards'. who took advantage of the situation to steal everything that was not bolted down.

What Ghanaians should refrain from is the precipitancy to canonize a failed Presidency. President Mills was a good man but really a bad President because his administration was hijacked by incondite neophytes who like vultures will not hunt for a prey but will feed on a carcass others have killed. These hyenas and vultures at the castle like leeches sucked the blood of President Mills until there was no blood in him to keep him alive. I do understand the sympathies and tributes being expressed by Ghanaians and others outside the country but we should not be blinded by the nubilous and his personal attributes to canonize a failed Presidency.

Mills himself might not have dipped his hands into the coffers of the country's kitty but the past three and half years have seen people in his administration aquiring assets beyond their means and new lexicons like gargantuan and settlement debts having become everyday usage due to the huge sums his administration paid to their cronies which they have benefitted from when the country continue to borrow huge sums of money. We have been saddled by 21 billion dollars of loans the past three and half years, more than all the past governments since Independence have borrowed without practically nothing to show for it. We should not allow our emotion at this time to cloud our better judgement and reward mediocrity. Lets show our deepest respect to President Mills by giving him a decent and respectable burial befitting a President with good morals but he failed as a President and doesn't deserve to be canonized.

Some people might criticize and insult me for politicking at this time and I can understand that but President Mahama is the one who couldn't observe the moratorium adopted by the opposition Parties to stop campaigning until President Mills is buried but Mahama could not wait and instead in his giddiness for his 'fortune' of being a President due to President Mills death turned his one week remembrance into a campaign rally by dancing on his grave, saying this;

“God in his wisdom shifted the mantle of power to a new generation It is a divine decision to shift the mantle of power to a younger generation."

Really? So God thought Atta Mills was too old and incompetent he has to call him home to give you Mr Mahama the mantle to rule? Enjoy your bonanza, Mr President.

Justice Sarpong

Houston, Texas

(CARDINAL of TRUTH)