‘Tramadol induced commentary’- TEIN responds to Frank Asiedu

The Tertiary Education Institutions Network (TEIN) of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has expressed discontent at the utterances of the Director of Political Affairs at the office of the Chief of Staff, Frank Asiedu Bekoe.

The Mr Bekoe speaking at the NPP’s Tertiary Education Students Confederacy Network (TESCON) handing ceremony earlier this week stated that level-headed students and intellectuals do not become a part of the student’s wing of the National Democratic Congress, TEIN.

Reacting to this in a press release, the TEIN National Secretariat, on Wednesday October 23, 2019, indicated their utmost disgust at the display of ignorance by Mr. Frank Asiedu, which to them shows he was influenced by tramadol.

“… ordinarily, the secretariat would not have responded to this display of ignorance and tramadol induced commentary but for the purpose of setting the records straight, a trite response is much needed, particularly so when such reckless comments, insults and arrogance aimed at the National Democratic Congress, are becoming too rampant,” parts of the statement read.

Read the full statement below:

NATIONAL TEIN SECRETARIAT

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

23/10 /2019

RE: LEVELHEADED STUDENTS DON'T JOIN TEIN

The attention of the TEIN National Secretariat has been drawn to some spurious comments from the stables of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). This time around from a man called Frank Asiedu Bekoe, Director of Political Affairs, Office of the Chief of Staff, who if not for being a stooge of this nepotistic administration would have found himself far from anything resembling importance.

First of all, ordinarily, the secretariat would not have responded to this display of ignorance and tramadol induced commentary but for the purpose of setting the records straight, a trite response is much needed, particularly so when such reckless comments, insults and arrogance aimed at the National Democratic Congress, are becoming too rampant. In his speech at a handing over ceremony for TESCON UPSA, Mr Bekoe was reported to have said 'Levelheaded students don't join TEIN' amidst a surprising silence from students who knew his comment was erroneous and based largely on the need to be relevant.

Secondly, TEIN was formed as a revolutionary group to accommodate intellectuals and people in academia who were aligned to the ideals of intellectual revolution and social democracy. Therefore, the criteria for TEIN members was spelt out from the beginning and has been so, all these years. And this idea was conceived at a time when no other political party had any intention of doing something similar.

For years, TEIN has lived true to it's purpose by producing astute professionals and politicians for the NDC long before the NPP woke up from it's slumber of intellectual emptiness.

It is public knowledge that when it comes to intellectual and academic credentials, no partisan student political wing beats the Tertiary Education Institutions Network (TEIN). At a time when TEIN was the hub of training and grooming excellent young men and women for Mother Ghana and the NDC, the NPP was still dabbling with identity crisis.

It was not until years after, that their so called group, TESCON was formed. Thus, the establishment of TESCON was a mere response to an intellectual revolution undertaken by TEIN.

Clearly, the Director of Political Affairs does not appreciate the historical antecedent in the formation of TESCON. If he did, he would have known better than open the Pandora box and leave his party open for ridicule.

It is no surprise that even the founding President of TESCON and now Deputy Chief of Staff, Francis Asenso-Boakye in 2011 alluded to TEIN's intellectual prowess and contribution to the NDC in an article authored to celebrate the group's 10th anniversary. He said "the NPP group on the campuses was known as the NPP students wing, and such a name lacked the vitality and vigorousness that would make the group stand up to the challenge posed by the then vibrant TEIN of NDC."

We wish to reiterate that a cursory look into the products TEIN has produced over the years shows that, indeed, no other student political wing of any political party comes close to the intellectual bufferstock of the organization.

The likes of Hon Haruna Iddrisu, the erudite Minority Leader of Ghana's Parliament, the Hon Alhassan Suhini, Hon Samuel A Ablakwa, Hon Felix Kwakye, Lawyer Sammy Gyamfi and many other distinguished others who contributed to the development of mother Ghana were nurtured and produced by TEIN.

Indeed some of these comments are only a clear manifestation that the NPP is bereft of vision. At the time that we are facing a myraid of development challenges, we expected those who claim superiority in intellectualism, to have helped their family and friends government to ameliorate the excruciating hardship facing Ghanaians today. Where are the TESCON intellectuals when government is being "misled" almost on daily basis?

We wish to warn Mr Frank Asiedu Bekoe sternly, to desist from such insulting comments by acting as an intellectual. His comments indicate that he is outside the bracket of intellectualism in Ghana and that is an embarrassment to the entire NPP government because he is not less a person than the Director of Political Affairs in the office of the Chief of Staff.

We also urge Ghanaians to treat such comments with disdain. A serious government official would not define intellectualism base on political affiliation.

Thank you

.....signed...

David Dari National TEIN Coordinator 0553152014