....the court case Kojo Tamakloe

Why did traders visit Nana? By Kpakpo Allotey

I re print a posting on the above question What has it got to do with the question? Since it has no connection may I ask how a nation can make progress by not finding SOLUTIONS but concentrate on insults ? It is like you are going to Tema and jump on a truck going to Pokoase . You will never get to Tema . “EWE – ANLOS cannot be allowed to set Ghana back!

We must seriously defend our elders and leaders of state because of the ewe-anlo attitude; we would need to now find out more about these people from Volta Region, who joined the country only in 19th century: Before then, the major tribal groupings were at peace with themselves, each with their own polities and chieftaincies and struggling over land and resources before the Portuguese, and later other Europeans arrived in the Gold Coast in the late 15th century. The devastation, destruction, exploitation, slavery, battles upon battles between tribal nations and collectively against the Europeans from the early 16th to 19th century was shocking in present day Ghana. The people became exhausted over all these things and gradually built bridges across the tribal nations, especially after the defeat of the Asantes in (1874) by the British in the Sagrenti war. The people of Ghana reconciled and resolved to accommodate each other as we all aspire to be one. It was this ideation that formed the basis for agitation for independence right from the period of the Aborigines Rights Protection Society. All these events occurred before Ewes came from Nigerian Ketu to Benin’s Notsie, before Agorkoli’s tyranny drove them to flee to present day Volta Region in (1878)…late 19th century. At this time so much water had passed under the bridge. For example, Kwamena Asameni had seized the Osu castle; the Dutch had had their fill in the exploitation of gold in Ghana and left to discover South Africa in 1652…I am writing this as a true historian, who has studied Ghana, lectured by a proper Anlo man. I reiterate herein that the evil combination of slave trade, imperialism and colonialism engendered strife and restlessness in Gold Coast, which affected us grievously and exhausted us immeasurably and so we became tolerant ofEWE – ANLOS cannot be allowed to set Ghana back”. I have put the dates 1874 and 1878 in parenthesis for you to compare Mr Paa Kwesi Sakyi my “ cousin” is an NPP supporter but an educationist and I want him to tell me if as a teacher what grade he will give to a person like that in an exam. Also if the Minister responsible comes to meet you and you turn it down , then the question is, are you looking for a solution or not. After that then do you expect sympathy from the wider populace? . Telling us you have a lease from the railways , a State institution is not a solution either. The railways may have erred in granting the lease or put in conditions under which it can revoke the lease . The State can also take the Land under” eminent domain’ law . So snubbing the Minister was not wise. To me it is a matter of law instead of politics and shows a lack of understanding on the part of the lessee . In many ways I see this as part of Ghana’s problem , Lack of understanding borne out of little education.

My research shows a gross distortion of history .Apart from the fact t,he entity known as Ghana came into being in 1957. Prior to that was the Gold Coast .We know of a Cpl Atipoe who was shot on February 28th at the cross roadswith Sgt Adjetey and Pte Awhaitey . We also know of a Maj Anthony who was even commissioned in the Gold Coast Military and many more . Look, I know in Anlo there are names like Da Pilma, Joao, D”Almeida, Grunisky , VaN Lare. These are Portuguese and Dutch names who are neighbors and blood relatives and so I wonder why these “ alien Ewes” will have these names if they were not there when these Europeans came . Also what is the Old Danish fort doing at Keta ?.Did the Anlos carry the Fort ,on their head to the present site from Notsie? So guys sorry , your history does not match the facts on the ground. Our educational system needs to do better by teaching the correct historical accounts instead of these Grandma’s fairy tales’.

Now the brouhaha about Nana Akufo Addo’s certificate . Could it not have been simpler for Nana to produce the certificate and the transcripts to put the matter to rest.? Why has Nana not addressed the issue of drug abuse and his sojourn at Oxford? What were the circumstances that led to his departure and why did he need to hide it. Justice Kpegah , the “ demented, poverty stricken, trokolised, envious, jealous Ewe” , has made “ false claims “ in the public domain. Many people have poured out vitriol upon Justice Kpegah and the whole of the Ewe tribe . But Nana is an attorney and all he needs to do is sue Justice Kpegah. Why is he not doing it ? We need credible leaders especially as we are fighting corruption. Even school kids writing examinations are searched to the body and write with no shoes on. Should our leaders not be above reproach.? Below I print 7 characteristics of a good leader. I want us the note especially the first point of EXEMPLARY character and the fifth which talks about TOLERANCE.

Seven Personal Qualities Found In A Good Leader:

1. A good leader has an exemplary character. It is of utmost importance that a leader is trustworthy to lead others. A leader needs to be trusted and be known to live their life with honestly and integrity. A good leader “walks the talk” and in doing so earns the right to have responsibility for others. True authority is born from respect for the good character and trustworthiness of the person who leads.

2. A good leader is enthusiastic about their work or cause and also about their role as leader. People will respond more openly to a person of passion and dedication.

3. A good leader is confident. In order to lead and set direction a leader needs to appear confident as a person and in the leadership role.

4. A leader also needs to function in an orderly and purposeful manner in situations of uncertainty.

5. Good leaders are tolerant of ambiguity and remain calm, composed and steadfast to the main purpose. Storms, emotions, and crises come and go and a good leader takes these as part of the journey and keeps a cool head.

6. A good leader as well as keeping the main goal in focus is able to think analytically. Not only does a good leader view a situation as a whole, but is able to break it down into sub parts for closer inspection. Not only is the goal in view but a good leader can break it down into manageable steps and make progress towards it.

7. A good leader is committed to excellence. Second best does not lead to success. The good leader not only maintains high standards, but also is proactive in raising the bar in order to achieve excellence in all areas. So can Nana be said to be showing exemplary character with all the scandals ranging from groping women on the set, deserting women with whom he had children, his alleged vehicular man slaughter and the mysteries surrounding his professional qualifications . Would Nana appoint someone who says “ I have lost my certificate” or would he be comfortable with such a person? I do not see the envy, jealousy, or tribalism in this

As for the court case we are all watching it , so why the distortions being perpetuated by the likes of Sir John and the rest. Why all the insults on Tsatsu Tsikata ? The judges are there and it is for them to judge what is permissible or not. Does the myriad of NPP supporters know better than these people? Let us give them space to do their job while we continue to work the country out of poverty. I am saying again, the 8 years of NPP rule was nothing to write home about. If it had turned Ghana into a ‘paradise” then why are we cleaning plates and doing security work all over the world and then marching and writing junk about the NDC ? Why are we in Libya being kidnapped ? Why are we not in our “ golden cities” ?

NPP tell us how you will solve the myriad problems Ghana has. With all the “ wealth” we have ,why did the Chinese have to fund the dam while we paid only 10% of the amount? Why did Kuffour not complete the roads he started, for lack of funds? Why did Kuffour increase school fees in 2007? Why are we still short of our housing needs to the tune of 2 million? Why can we not feed ourselves and clothe ourselves.? Why are we patronizing “ obroni wewu” , hand me down clothes. How many cars on our roads do we manufacture from our factories.?Why do we have terrible roads with all our wealth? Why are our best players plying their trade abroad while we wallow in “ wealth”? Stop living in a dream world and come down to earth. Stop making up stories and putting blame . I was alive when Busia told us it is “ aliens “ who were causing our economic problems . We sent them away and our problems multiplied. Let us accept the problem is, us ( you and me). No one else is the problem and we need to solve it together . Neither Nana nor Mahama has a “ magic wand” .

“it is only fools who do the same thing and expect a different result

The writer Kojo Tamakloe is an Nkrumaist who believes it is only through African Unity that our underdevelopment can be solved