In my mind’s eye I could see the Lord Jesus Christ lying inside a boat, sleeping soundly. The boat itself was in troubled-waters and the disciples were frantically and desperately trying to salvage the boat from sinking.
The disciples might have forgotten that the Lord Jesus Christ was in the boat and so they thought as usual they could handle the mast and steer the boat to safety. As for Jesus Christ, he did not feel the impact of the about-to-sink boat. The Son of God was in a trance, communicating with his father.
Peter might have remembered the day Jesus Christ was walking on the sea and asked him to come from the boat to join him on the sea and so he sent one of the disciples to wake him up so that he could save them from sinking. I could see Jesus wiping his face with his bare hand and standing up on his feet to ask what they wanted him to do. I could see the Lord walking towards the bow while holding the mast because the boat was shaking due to the torrents. I saw Jesus looking as far as the eye could see and commanded the waves to stay still and it did to the amazement of the disciples. In my mind’s eye I saw a bewildered Peter asking the other disciples the following question: What sort of person is this man who could command the waves to stay still? Eh! Me and my circumlocution!
Good morning Mr. Kufour. Today I want to have a chat with you on certain pertinent issues and crave your indulgence to act like Jesus Christ even though you are an ordinary human being and as such you may have your shortcomings. In my mind’s eye I could see you are enchained with sorrow because of the disunity that has engulfed your dear party. I can see you are so sad and confused and have a broken wing but whether you like it or not, you are the only one the party can rely on in this trying moment. You don’t have to wait for the walls to come tumbling down. In fact, you don’t have to wait until it becomes too hot to handle.
The NPP, the party you led to chalk two successes at the polls and ruled the nation with dignity and brought smiles on the faces of Ghanaians is at the crossroads. I do understand why you have been silent as far as the wrangling in the party is concerned but the time has come for you to break your long silence. I know you are a royal of the Apedwa Fie and as such you understand adages. Think about this one: “Opanin due mante mante nanso edru nea eden a opanin kasa” (“The elder pretends not to hear but when things become tough the elder speaks out”)
In one of my write-ups recently I recounted my encounter with you and six other people who were following you in a cocoa farm in far away Sankore in the run-up to the 2000 general election. I drew the attention of the current flagbearer of the NPP to adopt your tactics and move away from Accra and hit the road running like you did. In 1996 you experienced the pain of defeat and carried your dignity on your shoulders and moved on with pride and in fact, bided your time. When that time came in 2000 you grabbed it with your two hands. They say experience is the best teacher and so if we go by that saying you are the best teacher as far as the issues concerning the NPP is concerned. You were lucky because after the 1998 Sunyani Congress all those who contested you put everything behind and worked so hard to help you win power. Power to the NPP is beckoning but the party is running away, afraid to grab power. A heart-broken Nana Akufo Addo, the flagbearer is torn between the deep blue sea and the devil. He too has been silent like you because if he opens his mouth factions in the party will misconstrue and misinterpret whatever he says and so he has chosen silence which the sages say is golden.
Since the Tamale Congress which was very successful the party has never seen peace. The national headquarters of the party has become a boxing ring and a war zone. There are suspicions, mistrust, disrespect for elders and a sheer show of foolish bravado. Those of us in our respective villages are expecting you and the Council of Elders to call them to order but sadly everybody seems to care less about what is happening. You see, Mr. Kufour if you show a blind man sugar, he will not see it because his eyes cannot see but if you put sugar in his mouth he will surely know that it is sugar. You did put sugar in the mouths of Ghanaians by introducing social intervention policies but when you left power everything has become ‘nyamaa’. That is why Ghanaians are crying for the NPP to come to power so that we will one more time lick sugar. But the multimillion dollar question is: can a divided army win a war?
And where are the Council of Elders of the NPP? Can’t they hear the cry of the foot soldiers of the party? Is their silence deliberate or tactical? Is the Council of Elders aware of the state of the party as we prepare for election 2016? I have seen the state of the party when the foot soldiers endure a lot of hardship working past exhaustion to make sure the party comes to power one more time. I have also seen the state of the party in the in-fighting that is going on which has threatened the cohesion and unity in the party. Following the untimely death of Alahji Adams the grief of the foot soldiers has turned to anger at the leadership of the party and from anger to madness. Much as I am not trying to be insolent to you, the Council of Elders, I demand that you stump your authority on the party. And remember this demand is not open to negotiation neither is it open to discussion. I hope if you step in, we can patch everything together before election 2016. After all, are you not the Council of Elders of the party whose words are laws?
FARE YE WELL ALHAJI MAHAMA ADAMS
“And it seems to me you lived your life
Like candle in the rain
Never fading with the sunset
When the rains set in
And your footprints will always fall here
Along Ghana’s greenest hills
Your candle burnt out long before your legend ever will”
My first encounter with Alhaji Mahama Adams was in the house of the late Alhaji Aliu Mahama, the former Vice President of Ghana at Cantonments in Accra. When Alhaji Aliu introduced me to him as the guy who writes the ‘Time With Angel Gabriel’ in the Daily Guide, he stood up from where he was sitting, walked straight to me and shook hands with me while wearing a broad and enticing smile. And when I jokingly told him that he was lucky because it was the first time he had seen an angel, he burst into an uncontrollable laughter. We exchanged telephone numbers and when he was seeing me off he said I had forced him to buy the Daily Guide every Wednesday because he would not like to miss any of my articles. That was the beginning of a friendship which did not break until I heard of his death. Now Alhaji Adams belongs to heaven and the stars spell out his name. Fare ye well, comrade!!!
Sancho Panza Double Maduro Quixote cigar is made in Honduras with Honduran, Nicaraguan and Dominican filler tobaccos and Connecticut broad leaf wrapper. It has a very rich and full flavor without being overpowering. The smoke is very smooth and somewhat sweet with a nice nutty taste. This particular cigar is a choice for more experienced cigar smokers like, yours sincerely. So here I go, puffing away like Fidel Castro.
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