"No Akwaaba" to the Chimps!!!

by Dr. Kofi Ellison, Washington, D.C., USA

The news that President J.J. Rawlings has emphatically said No to the Chimp project and the so-called Friends of Animals (FoA) has been heartily received by all Ghanaians. It is, indeed a welcome relief for Ghana who as the statement correctly noted *lacks the requisite technical capacity* to manage such a project. As someone who took a leading role in unmasking this nefarious plan by FoA, I wish to express, on behalf of the hundreds of Ghanaians on the World Wide Web who supported our position on the Chimps, and on my own behalf, our sincere thanks and gratitude to the President for this show of executive prudence.

It must also be mentioned that without the Chronicle newspaper, the diseased animals would have been discreetly sent to Ghana before anyone knew of it. It was the Chronicle which broke the story. Thankfully, the Chronicle has an active Online edition on the Internet so that Ghanaians in the diaspora are never starved of news from the Motherland. The Chronicle deserves our praise and the Ghanaian equivalent of the Pulitzer prize for national service. I know that the Chronicle is not a popular reading in certain circles, but we Ghanaians must be proud that there are newspapers and other media who do not sing the master*s voice all of the time!

We can learn several lessons from the forthright stand taken by the Chronicle. The Chronicle*s position is a vindication of the belief that variation is the law of our being and the primary condition of progress. In the words of the historian Ephraim Lipson, a dead level of uniformity is a source of weakness rather than strength! Most importantly, in a democracy, newspapers like the Chronicle are assets that must be encouraged in order to offer a different and responsible take on issues other than what the perceived *official* media wants us to digest. Our Constitution guarantees us the freedom of speech. This most basic human right must be safeguarded at all cost. In a situation where the information is one-sided, and where everybody thinks alike, nobody thinks much! The Chronicle has done a meritorious act of national service.

It bears reflecting on, however, that the *official* press such as the Graphic remained mute on the subject, and published stories about the project only after the President had issued his initial statement on the project in November. That, in spite of the fact that Ghanaians from all walks of life, both at home and abroad, clamored for the rejection of the Chimp Project. One can only express sadness at such a stand by the so-called official media.

It did not require nuclear scientist to decipher that the FoA project was a *Trojan Horse* plan that could cost us considerable health problems in the future given that some of the animals were *rescued* from laboratories, according to FoA*s own literature on their Website. The health risks aside, the public relations nightmare for Ghana as the home of diseased chimps was incalculable. Given these and other misgivings, it is befuddling that some saw in the Chronicle*s stand anything but a national, patriotic duty to oppose the project. Any one, any organization, any news media that opposed this project must be congratulated for performing a national duty.

Another lesson to be learned is the timidity and gullibility of some of our political leaders in accepting any received idea. I am speaking specifically of Mrs. Valerie Sackey and the honorable MP Dr. Kwabena Adjei. I want to assume that it was not out of ignorance that drove them to accept the project, and then to vociferously defend it as Mrs. Sackey did in her letter to the Chronicle. These two people are both *educated* and must know the ways of the West in its relations with Africa and Africans. Indeed Mrs. Sackey is from the West, and I am not questioning his loyalty. But, her letter to the Chronicle profiling how the project will benefit the people of the area was simply patronizing. As if we do not know what is of benefit to us!

Was it arrogance that possessed these two officials to trumpet the project. If this was the case, they have received a rude awakening that Ghanaians can in fact, in accordance with the Constitution, petition the government for redress of policies that may not be in the interest of Ghanaians. And the President agrees. Was there a quid pro quo offered to these and other officials to surreptitiously bring the diseased animals to our mist? Why wasn*t the Ghana Embassy in Washington informed of this project so that they could check and verify such animals? Why was there not *adequate prior consultation with the Ministry of Lands and Forestry*, according to Minister of Communication John Mahama? Enquiring minds want to know.

It is regrettable that Chiefs of the area attributed some sinister design to our opposition to the project. Nananom, we did you a great public service. The era when other people traveled from afar, offered you beads, trinkets and spiked *Obroni Nsa*, in exchange for whatever Nananom held dear is over. Nananom, this was not a project to generate *economic development* as you wrongly stated in criticism of our stand. We are all for economic development and we support the government in that direction. But, this was not about economic development.

Not even the most gullible American would ever travel to Kpandu to see Chimps rescued from laboratories! This was simply a FoA design to rid America of unwanted, superannuated, and diseased animals used in laboratory research. Thus, FoA could continue its fund-raising activities at your expense. And then laugh at the *gullible and stupid Africans". And all you got, were pencils for your school children.

Nananom, similar silly ideas may be received and put in place in Ghana. But, we can assure you that if we become aware of such irresponsible projects that can only bring shame and disease to Ghana, we simply ask, through your beneficence, to stand aside and watch us do the job of dis-assembling such crackpots who wish to take advantage of our generosity and hospitality.

The opposition to the project has shown how a mobilized citizenry, can with a unified voice protest official and quasi official policies that are of no benefit to the citizens. This is the bedrock of democracy. We need that in our fledgling democracy. This precedent setting protest augurs well for our democracy. We may be poor materially, but we are rich spiritually. Above all, president J.J. Rawlings deserves our praise, commendation for taking a decision that benefits all of us. The president's unconditional rejection of the project is a testament that he is in tune with the times. That, he recognizes infinitely that in a democracy, the voice of the people is the voice of God, indeed. The president has performed an act of national service by saying a big "No Akwaaba" to the Chimps!!!