Dear Nyoka: How time flies! It’s been five years since our last meeting. I remember our deep passion-filled discussions interrupted by heavy arguments centred on the place of Black Africa in the global scheme of things.
Dear Nyoka: How time flies! It’s been five years since our last meeting. I remember our deep passion-filled discussions interrupted by heavy arguments centred on the place of Black Africa in the global scheme of things.
I remember that special evening timeout at Koforidua with those highly enlightened friends of yours. How could I have forgotten what Prof thought us then - the incontrovertible fact that you cannot correctly and currently define leadership without the component called the power to influence – When a true leader mounts the console, every part of the system feels his touch positively.
Nyoka – the beautiful girl – my distance from you did not translate into my distance from your country Ghana. I have kept in touch with the home of the Black Stars just as I always do with all African countries especially those on the Western axis of the continent. I must confess, I have been heavily impressed with the positive stories emanating from your dear country since then. No, no, I’m not pulling your legs – I am very serious this time and I will tell you why.
Firstly, you remember not a few Nigerian comedians used to ridicule your country’s currency Cedis with varying forms and creative presentations of rib-cracking jokes implying the ‘worthlessness’ of your currency notes – that someone would need a giant ‘Ghana-Must-Go’ bag just to hold only a ten thousand Naira equivalent of Cedis! Yes, I was so surprised to hear that it’s all history now. It is incredible to know that your money is now almost numerically equal to the US dollar and way more than the Nigerian Naira. In fact, it is on record now that your currency is now the highest-valued currency unit issued by sovereign countries in the whole of the African continent. So it’s bad news for me, you have reversed the jokes – it’s now the turn of Ghanaian comedians to joke with the Nigerian Naira putting me on the receiving end of those demeaning ludicrous jokes. Life could be so unpredictable.
I never wanted to say this, but I remain heavily burdened by my good conscience to do it especially whenever the history of the popular “Ghana-Must-Go” bag comes to mind. With deep sense of remorse, I apologise to you for the brazenly immodest and inhumane way you and your family were ejected from my country many years ago. I find it hard to believe that the same Ghanaians that some Nigerians chased out in droves away from some parts of Nigeria back to then suffering and corruption-drunk Ghana less than thirty years ago are now suddenly the hospitable and comfortable chief hosts of a very large volume of Nigerians scattered around the nooks and crannies of Ghana today – such is life - it's never a straight line!
Some of my old friends in Nigeria have not stopped telling me how much they missed the brilliant Chemistry and Mathematics Ghanaian lecturers ubiquitous in Nigerian schools in the good old days. Their constant reminder of this massive fundamental science education loss has given me a clearer insight as to the reason more Nigerian students desirous of affordable high quality education by the day jettison Nigerian schools, opting instead for your more expensive but as they make me believe more qualitative Secondary schools and Universities spread across the four compass points of your country.
Lest I forget, I felt so proud to be a West African after reading all the positive predictions for Ghana from just about all global economic experts. Your country has been projected to be the world’s fastest growing economy in 2011. In fact, IMF, World Bank etc expect you to achieve a double digit growth in your economy in 2011 alone – and they say this is not just about your newly found ‘little’ crude oil. Again, another top position for your Ghana!
Given your passion for attitudinal re-alignment and social transformation, I am sure you would be connected in some way to the re-orientation and training programmes for my country’s ex-Niger Delta militants taking place in your country sponsored by our federal government as part of the post-Amnesty arrangement for the ‘retired freedom fighters’. Kindly guide them well and inculcate in them the recondite competences our generation direly needs.
Good news seems never to be in short supply in your country, or perhaps my reliable sources are so skilled in sieving the news such that I only get the very good ones, ha-ha.
Yes, talking about crude oil, only few months ago I received yet more cheery news that your beloved Ghana has joined the coveted league of petroleum producing and exporting countries in Africa - shipping out your first consignment of cargo from your new Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel which you christened after your country’s inspirational leader Kwame Nkrumah. Though your current production of 55,000bopd which I hear you expect to ramp up to 120,000bopd within the next few months is negligible relative to my country’s whopping 2,400,000bopd, I nevertheless congratulate you on your emergence as the world’s newest oil producer. Yet, another first for your country!
While I celebrate with you and your compatriots, I beg you not to allow your God-given grace to become a curse to your land, you must make sure it remains a blessing which it is and as such you must ensure to freely donate your quota to the knowledge pool of other forward-thinking Ghanaians towards the betterment of all your citizens especially those living in the hazardous hydrocarbon producing areas.
It is imperative you learn from the mistakes of my dear country Nigeria. It will be cheaper to do things right from the beginning than to start on a wrong foot only to attempt to right them mid-way. I have already spoken about the ex-militants from my country currently in your country for training and re-orientation, so it is otiose reminding you of the catastrophe that awaits you should you tow our misleading path.
Nyoka, that is not all. How can that be all when I have not talked about your Black Stars? With Michael Essien the only big name in the squad injured, your national team surprised all book makers to reach the final of the 2010 Nation’s Cup in Angola. They did not stop there – the Black Stars took the entire world of soccer by storm in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. I am sure they could have done even better were it not for the sudden unusual permission Uruguay had to use two goalkeepers in the dying moments of the match. Again I reiterate, when a good leader is in charge, it radiates across to every cranny of the system.
Your country has suddenly become a top tourist destination now! Two days ago I received an email from a group of my foreign friends. They have decided to spend this year’s summer vacation in West Africa. Nyoka, can you guess their country of choice? Yes, you’re right! It’s Ghana. They told me they spent over three months sorting out the best country, and Ghana came out as the unassailable top choice. I must confess that I did try to change their mind to opt instead for Nigeria to no avail as they presented me their facts lists upon which they arrived at their Ghana option. It was then I realised why every international agency, Western leaders including the incumbent US President Barack Obama has only kind words for your rapidly improving country. Sadly they say mostly the reverse about my country. But not to worry, we have started our march to greatness – Nigeria shall overtake you sooner rather than later ha-ha.
My friend, I never for any day thought Ghana would pioneer truly free and fair elections in West Africa receiving commendations from election local observers from your country Ghana, from West Africa, from the larger African continent and from the normally hard-to-please Western delegations, as well as praise and admonition from both the victors and the vanquished in the elections. I had always thought that this historic trailblazing feat would come to my dear country Nigeria – you’ll agree with me that we deserve it more at least if not for anything but the singular fact that we are your far richer, more populous and more powerful big brother frothing with countless numbers of intellectuals, you know everybody used to call us the Giant of Africa.
And that reminds me, how on earth did an incumbent West African President’s political party lose elections – and warmly accepted the ‘false’ result? Are the president and the ruling party’s stalwarts ‘cowards’? Tell me why and how President John Kufour’s party candidate lost the presidential election to the opposition, Professor John Atta Mills – who had hitherto lost the presidential election twice! You must tell me why the president did not use the resources of the State to pay all the big celebrities in Ghana to sing his candidate’s praise on TV, radio, mobile phones, and on the internet; I need to know why he did not spend tax payers’ money making voters file behind him painted in the ruling party’s colours and dressed in his party’s robes. Please you have to confide in me why he did not organize elaborate and well structured network of campaigns from state to state, city to city, community to community, ward to ward, door to door even with the mammoth legion of bootlicking foot soldiers and the endless pile of cash at his disposal to drive the mission!
I may be wrong, but in all sincerity, John Kufour did not do too badly as president of Ghana – and chairman of the African Union, but whatsoever lubricated your passion for change, I commend your resilience and the very peaceful and rancour-free way you executed your mission.
I read that Mr Kufour praised the electoral process and congratulated the winner – his old political foe, Professor Atta Mills as soon as the results were released. It is for this reason and more that I stand up to nominate your vanquished ex-president, John Kufour as the new model of democracy for West Africa. He might not have been the best president of Ghana; he might not sit at the crest when past West African leaders are stacked in order of performance or intellect, but he arguably stands head and shoulders taller than any other West African leader in history for his rare ability to midwife a truly transparent democratic process and his accompanying commendable show of good spirit when his party lost both the presidential elections as well as the majority seats in the parliament.
Sadly, we cannot say the same for Ivory Coast’s Laurent Gbagbo and his likes.
Please in your reply to my letter kindly supply me the tips that enabled this incredible feat because as you may have known, my country is at the threshold of elections – and we are all working towards meeting the new standards your country has set. Our president Dr Goodluck Jonathan has promised us the same credible elections Kufour promised you and your compatriots – the same credible elections Laurent Gbagbo promised our suffering Ivorian friends.
Within the next few days we Nigerians hope to see the glaring manifestation of this promise – hopefully and prayerfully your peaceful, commendable Ghanaian way.
It’s me, your Nigerian brother and fellow believer in a new truly great Africa.
Philips Akpoviri.
Seoul, 4 April 2011.
[email protected]
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