Tribute to Thomas Asamoah Totoe Esq

Our life is but a sleep and a forgetting;
The Soul that rises with us, our life’s star,
Hath had elsewhere its setting,
And cometh from afar.
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home.

“Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood” William Wordsworth

In this poem the poet suggests that a human being is an exile from an earlier and more perfect state. In a way, this approach is similar to what we read in the Bible about Adam and Eve before and after they were forced from the Garden of Eden. The poem reflects Wordsworth's belief that life on earth is but a shadow of an earlier and purer existence that is dimly recalled in childhood and then forgotten as the person grows into adulthood. To a child the world appears more vivid and has a strange charm which is not easily felt by an adult. In the fifth stanza of the poem, from which the above quotation is taken, the poet states that life is merely "a sleep and a forgetting". In other words, human beings dwelt in a purer and more glorious realm before they appear on the earth and, after death, their souls will return to this “paradise. To Wordsworth it was obvious that a child is nearer to this world of bliss than the full grown woman or man. In any case, the poem is intended to offer hope to those who have fears about what happens after death. Its principal message is that there is life after death. As a true Christian, Tom Totoe, who passed away on July 26, 2007 at the age of 88, shared this faith. He believed in Life after Death.

I came to know the late Thomas Asamoah Totoe Esq. in the 1950’s, but we became closer from 1986 when his eldest son married the daughter of my sister-in-law. The young lady had become more or less the eldest daughter of my wife and me since she had lived with us from the age of four until the time of her marriage to the younger Totoe. My friendship to Tom Totoe deepened when we both acted as executors of the will of a close friend of mine who passed away in 1991. I found it most instructive to work with him on this assignment. In the process I came to realize that he was not only very intelligent and wise but also extremely simple and modest in his dealings with old and young alike. It subsequently became clear to me that this was the result of his Christian up-bringing.

The life of the late Tom Totoe was in the main a life of prayer. He always had time for prayer. He had been a mission boy early in his life and he served his priests well during this period. In fact, he had toyed with the idea of going into the priesthood, but he eventually gave that up in favour of a legal career. He had immense commitment to, and compassion for, people of all types. For him no service for a person in need was ever too much trouble, and no one who went to him for assistance or advice would be turned away. He was never a figure of controversy. Rather, he was a person who helped people to change their attitude by the natural way in which he received and dealt with them. He was also ecumenical in his outlook. He valued Jesus Christ above all and wanted others to do the same. He distinguished himself in the service of the Anglican Church. In April 2007 he was awarded the Bishop Badge of Honour. The citation on that occasion stated that the award was “in recognition and appreciation of his invaluable sacrifices, selfless contribution and devoted service to the cause of Christ and the growth of the Anglican Church in Ghana as a whole”. Earlier on June 28 1998 when, at the age of 80, he retired as the Second Chancellor of the Anglican Diocese of Kumasi, the Church gave him a Citation which read as follows: “We recall with satisfaction your performance as the second registrar, a position you held with assiduity, fervency and zeal to the admiration of all and sundry. Consequently, when you were exalted to the high office of chancellor, you played the role with dignity and honour. Yours was a service of selfless devotion, commitment and dedication to the demands of the advancement of the church. As the curtain falls, we are emboldened to register our gratitude for the illustrious role so ably and admirably played and for your contribution to the nurturing of our Diocese to maturity”.

Tom Totoe was a passionate and effective defender of the downtrodden. He proved this both in his public career and in his private life. An example of this was how he performed his functions as Chairman of the Commission on the Kumasi City Council. In March 1967, he was appointed the Chairman of a Commission to investigate the affairs of the Kumasi City Council with respect to the allocation of market stalls and the financial and administrative management of the resources of the Council. This was during the regime of the National Liberation Council (NLC) which was set up following the overthrow of the government of Dr Nkrumah. At the time rumours were rife that all was not well with the City Council and the NLC established the Commission to investigate and report on these allegations. Instead of operating solely on the basis of these rumours, Tom Totoe appealed to those responsible for the rumours to come forward and provide their evidence to the Commission. When it appeared that many of them were not willing to do so, he nevertheless made arrangements to ensure that the Commission would be able to receive real evidence and not mere allegations. Witnesses who appeared before the Commission were examined by counsel for the Commission on the evidence that they had previously given to the police. Where the evidence given affected other persons, suitable opportunities were given those persons or their attorneys to cross-examine the witnesses. Where necessary these people were also permitted to give evidence on their own behalf, if they wished to do so. It was plain that Tom wanted to be as fair as possible to all concerned. In the end, the conclusions and recommendations of the Commission were based on evidence that had been led before it, and not on allegations for which no support or evidence had been provided.

Another of his qualities was his professional courage and integrity. For example, he would take on cases that not many of his colleagues would touch, and he would work so hard on them that he won most of the cases. He displayed both common sense and a wholehearted desire to achieve a just result. His submissions were models of clarity and precision. He was a fearless upholder of the rule of law. He was incorruptible and his name was revered for this. He was uncompromising on matters of principle. Indeed, it is not entirely fanciful to believe that he might have sacrificed the prospects of advancement to the top of his career by his insistence on honesty and dedication to principle.

Tom Totoe was a gentleman’s gentleman. He was kind, gentle and good-humored. He was both sophisticated, and worldly-wise. In appearance, he was dapper and always impeccably dressed. In manner he was ever courteous and considerate in his dealings with all and sundry.

As a lawyer, he built an extensive and extremely successful practice that focused primarily on land and chieftancy cases. He consulted the chiefs extensively so he was well-acquainted with the principles and rules of the law and custom relating to chieftaincy cases. His attention to detail was meticulous and his grasp of the minutiae of administration superb. At the same time he never lost sight of the whole picture and he had the ability to perceive the implications of policy on the legal issues that he dealt with. Although he involved himself in detail he was also an excellent manager and had the ability and readiness to delegate whenever necessary. He was an outstandingly efficient administrator, but with a light touch that endeared him to all who dealt with him. He was an excellent judge of people. He had the facility for getting the best out of people: he never left any of his staff in doubt as to his estimate of them or the standard to which they were expected to rise. He was fatherly in his attitude to them, always seeking their welfare and ready to show his pride in their performances and achievements in court and elsewhere. At the same time, he made it plain to all of them that he was intolerant of sloppiness, whether in expression or in action.

Tom Totoe was a good advocate. He was always calm and collected. He was never rude or cantankerous in his dealings with anybody. He was respectful even to his juniors. As counsel, he always studied his brief and made sure that he had mastered it both with regard to procedure and substance of the law. He was a meticulous cross-examiner, but he never tried to mislead, bully or threaten witnesses. He always made sure that he had a good legal peg on which to hang his argument. He never presented a claim or case before the court without a good deal of research because he always believed that knowledge of the law and wisdom did not reside in the brain of one person. As a result his success rate was very high - well above 90%. It is not surprising, therefore, that the Ashanti Bar Association instituted the Thomas Asamoah Totoe Award in his honour for the Advancement of the Legal Profession. In this regard, it is also worth mentioning that the Ghana Bar Association honoured him in 1999 in recognition of his contribution to the development and practice of law.

There was never any doubt that Tom Totoe was of high judicial material who would have made a competent Supreme Court Judge. Indeed, he was recommended for elevation to the bench on several occasions. However, he always politely declined the invitations. While the reasons for his reluctance were best known to himself, it would not be out of place to assume that part of the reason might have been the shabby treatment that was very often meted out to judges, as for example the murder of the three Judges in 1982. He had too much self-respect and personal dignity to subject himself to such risks. It is also possible that, given his strong concern for his personal reputation, he was not too keen to become in any way associated with the perception of corruption in which the Bench has, rightly or wrongly, been viewed in recent times.

He acted as counsel for Asanteman on several occasions. One case in which he excelled himself was the case concerning the rights of the Asantehene with respect to the chiefs and lands of the Brong Ahafo region. It will be recalled that the Nkrumah government redrew the boundaries of Ashanti by carving the Brong/Ahafo region out of the historical territory of Ashanti. The purpose was to reduce the power and influence of Ashanti in the political system of the country. When Otumfuo Opoku Ware II came to the throne he wisely decided to accept the existence of Brong/Ahafo as a fait accompli. However, he noted that as Asantehene he had certain well-defined powers in certain parts of the Brong/Ahafo regions which were backed by the Constitution and the law and customary practice, and he was determined to assert those rights without fear or favour. In exercise of these rights Otumfuo considered it advisable to elevate a number of the stools in the region to the status of paramount chiefs (Amanhene). This action resulted in a major dispute between Asanteman and the Brong/Ahafo regional authorities. In the dispute it became clear that Asanteman needed a lawyer of very high caliber to represent it, and the choice easily fell on Tom Totoe.

Totoe approached the task with his usual dedication and competence. He consulted a wide variety of sources and documents in order to justify the right of Otumfuo Opoku Ware II to elevate some of the chiefs concerned. One of the important documents that he consulted and cited to support the case for Asanteman was Hansard or the record of parliamentary debates relating to the creation of the Brong/ahafo region. In particular he referred to a statement in the Hansard by Mr Aaron Ofori- Atta, the Minister who in 1959 piloted the Brong/Ahafo Bill through Parliament. The relevant passage read:

“There are just two points which I should like to mention which are not specifically dealt with in the Bill. The first is traditional allegiance and organization. It is not the intention of the present Bill to disturb any traditional allegiance which may be cut across by the new boundary; the Government is at the moment considering the question of Chiefs who may feel that they are being cut off either from their subjects or from their traditional superiors. I hope that before long we shall come to a satisfactory conclusion”.

“The second matter is the administration of Stool lands. All stool lands in the Kumasi state whether lying in the Ashanti Region proper or in the new Region are administered by the Commissioner for Lands as administrator under the Ashanti stool lands Act. This Bill involves no change in that arrangement”

This, he pointed out, demonstrated that Otumfuo had well-defined powers, backed by the constitution and the law and customary practice, to elevate the chiefs as paramount chiefs. With these arguments, Totoe won the argument for Asanteman.

Tom Totoe also played a leading role in other cases, including the case of the Ex-Adansihene against Asanteman, and the case of Kaasihene against the Kumasi Traditional Council.

I cannot end my tribute to Tom Totoe without mentioning his love and concern for the members of his nuclear family and for his extended family. He was a family man, whether in relation to his own nuclear family or the extended family to which he belonged as an Akan. He was alive to his responsibilities and had the right priorities to all his relations. He made sure that the members of the different families understood the meaning and significance of solidarity and collective responsibility. Selfish individualism was taboo to him. He was the first person to whom members of his family confided. They all trusted him absolutely and so found it easy to share their most difficult problems with him. He in turn used the opportunity to impress on them the need for truth, humility and self-reliance. But, while underlying the importance of self-reliance, he stressed that this should not be interpreted to mean an attempt to be completely independent or to be unconcerned about the needs or contribution of others. To him self-reliance meant the ability both to give and also to receive with grace and dignity what they found necessary and useful from others. I can only hope that the members of his immediate family as well as those of his extended family will always remember the lessons that they were so fortunate to receive from one who was so true and genuine.

Uncle Tom Da Yie