Apostle Paul’s Letter To All Eligible Voters

(Appiah Kusi Adomako, Leaders of Tomorrow Foundation, Kumasi)

This letter is from Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus appointed by the command of God Our Saviour and by Christ Jesus our hope. To all eligible voters who would be casting their votes to elect the president in the run-off on this Sunday 28th December, 2008. May God our father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy and peace.

For many years I have been writing letters to empires, nations, churches and people. In the Christian Bible I wrote letters to the Romans, Corinthians, and Ephesians and to brother Timothy. It has been more than two thousand years since my last letter appeared in the Greek’s New Testament.

It has been my throbbing desire to preach in your synagogues, cathedrals and temples but the demands here have not given me the opportunity to do so. Whilst the churches in Ghana wait for my visit do make available this epistle to all the members of the church-Jews, Gentiles, Protestants, Catholics etc.

Ghana, I have been following up with the events going on in your country. All the reports that I receive indicate that you are a very good nation. You have a high sense of tolerance and you are peaceful. I am also informed that your democracy is one of the best in Africa with the rule of law working effectively. Most of African countries cannot have this testimony given about them. Keep it up for the scripture says that Happy are the peace makers for they shall be called the sons of God.

Just last week I had a message from Brother Kwadwo Afari Gyan that your presidential election has run in to run-off because neither of the top two candidates got the required percentage as enshrined in your country’s constitution. The report indicated that the first round of the presidential election was largely peaceful, and free and fair. The report also contained the breakdown of votes for the presidential candidates and parliamentary constituencies. One thing which I have seen that I want to talk about is the tribal lines at which the votes were casted. I realise that NPP did well mainly in the Akan zones- Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Eastern and Western regions whilst the NDC also did well in Central Region, Volta Region and the three Northern Regions. Greater Accra was the only region which acted as a swing region. This tells me that tribalism is still deeply seated in your national politics. Even now the reports that I am hearing now are not favourable. The parties in the run-off instead of appealing to the conscience of the voters on how to reduce poverty, turn the poor into a purchaser, have rather been preaching tribalism. This aspect of the campaign worries me a lot. It appears that insults, propaganda and lies have become the flagship of the campaign. Oh how can you allow this? This is blasphemy and stands against all the noble principles of democracy and our Judeo-Christian principles! Are you not familiar with what happened in Burundi and Rwanda? Oh, Ghana! You are such a big nation to allow tribalism to seep into your national politics.

As I wrote to the NPP delegates sometime ago that in God there is no Northerner or Ashanti nor Ewe or Ga but the brotherhood of mankind. You have all inherited a house called Ghana where all of you- Ewes, Gas, Akans, Hausas, Dogombas, etc must leave dwell together. Why do you allow division to happen among you? Oh Ghana! Ghana is greater than any tribe in your country; so reducing the race to tribal politics would defeat the very purpose which democracy wants to achieve.

I am also informed that political violence in the country has been on the ascendency especially between the NPP and NDC. I wonder why party activist have made the contest bitter such that it has taken the lives of many people. Knowledge born from common sense tells us that it is never good to fight in politics. Let me ask you this question: Where is the leader of the party who instructs you to go and fight? Does he allow his children and nephew to join you in the fight? Can you see his wife in the frontline? Have you heard that a politician has been injured in any political scuffle? The answer is NO. The leaders of the party which you belong to always keep their children from political activities. Even should event turn worse they have their visas and plane tickets to leave the country the very moment; they would leave you the grassroots member to the peril of any pandemonium Oh Ghana, so the need for peaceful election should be paramount. There is nothing wrong in praying to God for peaceful election. You cannot pray to God for peaceful election and be beating war drums that ‘if our party does not win we would not understand’. Peaceful election would not only come through prayer but through the commitment on each and everyone to be committed to the ideas of democracy and work earnestly to achieve it. You need to tell your brothers and sisters to conduct themselves honourably, put their down their swords and beat them into a ploughshare.

Oh, there is also one thing that I want to talk about. Your country needs to elect a leader who has the affairs of the country at heart. . You need to elect intelligent, courageous and dedicated leadership. This is one of Ghana’s most pressing needs. This urgency calls for leader of wise judgment and sound integrity--leader not in love with money but in love with justice; leader not in love with publicity, but in love with humanity; leader who can subject their particular egos to the greatness of the cause. You need to select a leader who can mitigate the misery of your nation; a leader who can part the waters and lead your nation into the direction of the Promised Land; a leader who can lift the boats stuck at the bottom, especially brothers and sisters in your three northern regions; a leader who can synchronize his head and heart together; a leader who can transform the economy of Ghana from primary producers of agriculture products to an industrialized and service economy. Again and again you need a leader who would be willing to prosecute his own party members when they are found foul of public funds is what you need to elect. A leader who believes that with hardworking and commitment Ghana would be able to surmount every challenge that the country faces.

May God give you his peace which surpasses all understanding. May you stand firm in the light of financial enticements and desire to vote on tribal lines. I pray that every cataract of narrow provincialism be removed in you as you go to the polls on Sunday so that you can elect a world class president.. I pray that God sustains your country during and after the election. I hope that circumstances would make it possible for me to come for the inauguration of next president whether Brother Atta Mills or Brother Akuffo Addo. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Shalom! Peace.

Sincerely yours, Apostle Paul

Postmark AD 2008