Has Sydney Gotten His Priorities Wrong This Time?

As if we didn�t have enough to worry about already as the country awaits the verdict of the Supreme Court petition. People with nothing better to do with their time ,feel quite justified in saying the most stupid and offensive things imaginable about Ghanaians in their songs, once they sit in front of the microphone or in their studios to record. In the mythical land of �Anything Goes,� where citizen obedience, and lukewarm attitude breeds laziness, and where for every abysmal, gut-wrenching and harrowing happening, the people quickly buy into any propaganda, it must be done with some caution, as the purpose for whatever message you send out must be measured. Timing is very important in everything we do, especially for an artiste whose music resonates well and is loved by the people. Barima Sydney, whose music over the years have been controversial, yet insightful and educative, has this time around chose to do the unthinkable, by releasing a song at a time, when what all well-meaning Ghanaians are calling for is peace, ahead of tomorrow�s verdict. His latest single titled �Eboboba Reloaded�, is currently receiving air play, but I am at a loss as to what it is intended to achieve, what is the purpose for that song? An artiste worth his salt, must have gauged the mood of the notion and realize that this was not the time for name calling and tongue lashing. It was the legendary Lucky Dube, who said that those who call themselves the voice of the voiceless, the only time they use their voice is to criticize what other people have done. Sydney has released some rather controversial songs that were timeous and achieved the desired effect. Mention could be made of �Africa Money�, �Obia Nye Obia�, �Enkoyie� and other songs that became household tunes, because of their relevance at the time they were released. The purpose of releasing his songs is so that whoever it is directed at, will know that even if the whole country is sleeping, one man is wide awake, and will always wake them up to their responsibilities. This is the main reason why Sydney, will remain one of the most idolize musicians this country could ever have. It is not for the love of money, but purely based on his love for his motherland and by extension the whole of the continent. As what happens here is not peculiar to this country, but a canker that is robbing Africa of it progress and development. Sydney, is not only a household name in Ghana, he has made his mark in the sub-region, as a young man who cares and love his continent. I am among the few people, who have always admired his courage, because at the time most of us, especially the youth are shying away from making our voice heard, he stands out and says it as it is, except this time around, Sydney has gotten his priority wrong. There must be peace, if we can all be alive to listen to him and for him to continue doing what he knows how to do best. So, first things first, you do not count your chickens before they are hatched. We are currently dealing with the election petition case before the Justices of the Supreme Court, challenging the legitimacy of President John Dramani Mahama. This is what is topical and as I started with this article, the whole nation and the International community are busying themselves, propagating and preaching peace. Sydney should also fall in line. Nobody is saying with President John Dramani Mahama in the saddle, every evil is going to be over. There will be problems long after he has come and gone as the President, so it is good to criticize him and his administration. Indeed, it is said that the price wise men pay for doing nothing, is to be ruled by fools. Sydney certainly doesn�t want to sit down and do nothing, when things are going wrong, but in the same vein and in the spirit of fighting for the ordinary man, you need to consider the supreme interest, and this is where the timing of the release of the �Eboboba Reloaded�, does not make sense. It was former President, John Agyekum Kufuor, who said that corruption is as old as Adam, so Sydney is asking the impossible, when he expects that John Mahama has a magic wand that could easily be swung and corruption becomes a thing of the past, then he is living in a different world and time. In the said song, he made allusions to the fire outbreak as a curse from God, how God would curse his people through fire outbreaks, and for what crimes, only Barima Sydney could best explain. I don�t know, if he has also joined the league of Rev. Owusu Bempah, who sees only vision that does not advance the course of Ghanaians. We should always put the government on it toes that is the only way we would expect them to deliver on their promises and be truth to their words. But that must not be misconstrued to mean that all we see happening is negative. It was Abraham Maslow who said that �If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail�. Let us have faith in our leaders. The �dumsor dumsor� that he mentioned in the track is now a thing of the past. At least for the second time in the history of this country, apart from the days of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana is generating electricity in excess of our demand. This could only mean that the future is bright. The only problem now is not generation but distribution, so Sydney, the next time you sit behind the microphone to compose a song, you might want to highlight the good things happening in the country, we are not a basket case, a lot is happening, if only you care to know. The problems we all know, what we need is solutions, not a reminder of what is obvious to everybody. There is no better time to be a Ghanaian than now. We all know what is happening, because the government has decided not to sweep the incidence of corruption under the carpet, we can only be grateful to President John Mahama, for been courageous and steadfast, in ensuring that Ghanaians know how their monies were used in times past. The joy of living today, is a promise of a better future. I see that future and is not far from today.