Atta Mills has been in the presidential office for about a year now, and already the country is witnessing so many positive changes. Some would say that the country is flying high under a friendly sky, and indeed it is. For the second time in our nation's history, Ghanaians all over the world are very optimistic about the nation's future. The first time that such an euphoric wind of optimism made its presence felt was, when Dr Nkrumah became Ghana's first prime minister. Indeed, it hasn't always been that easy for Atta Mills. He was not a good bet to begin with. Moreover, his was considered somewhat a weakling. I remember the merciless attacks, which were meted out to him during the 2000, 2004 and 2008 presidential elections by the media. Those unsympathetic with Rawlings held the view that an electoral win for Atta Mills would automatically extend the Rawlings's political tradition. Thus, the beginning of the catastrophic era of Kufour, which saw the country deteriorate for the worse. Most Ghanaians have regretted this unfortunate era ever since.
Atta Mills was considered somewhat a liability for the NDC party, when he lost twice during his bid for the presidency. Also, according some pessimists within the NDC, Atta Mills should have been dropped after failing twice at the ballot box. As if that was not enough, they also argued that his health was not in order. Of course, such negative criticisms should have been enough to deter the former Tax Commissioner from ever competing for the presidency again, but no. Atta Mills had a dream, and he was determined to see this dream come true. This said, there were also other elements within the NDC, who utterly believed that Atta Mills was the right man. After all, he had served as the nation's vice president under Mr Rawlings without blemish. Therefore, Mr Rawlings, together with most of these NDC party members were unapologetic about their support for Atta Mills. They believed that Atta Mills had the potential to win the presidency. How right they were.
We all know that Rawlings would have been a helpless leader, had it not been for an Atta Mills to rely on. Unlike most of our leaders, Rawlings never had the chance to purse a higher education. Rawlings enjoyed a mediocre military education, which didn't quite prepare him for the road ahead. Therefore, one could only imagine how fortunate he must have felt, when he met Atta Mills-the professor. Atta Mills brought to the Rawlings's administration his socio-economic insight, which helped sustain Ghana during the harsh economic upheaval in the eighties. In fact, Ghana's economy was on the brink of breaking up in pieces. However, this was prevented due to the carefully orchestrated economic policies, which were implemented during the Rawlings's administration. Undeniably, Atta Mills was the brain behind the designs of these economic programs and polices, which ultimately wound up redeeming Ghana. Undoubtedly, Rawlings was the president, but Atta Mills was the brain behind the presidency and its various successes.
Ghana has definitely arrived at a time in history, in which it should no longer be led by persons who don't have the country's best interest's at heart. This country has endured eight long years of mediocre leadership under former president Kufour, whose selfish interests contributed to the untimely demise of his own party. See, Atta Mills shares the dream of the common man. He answered the call to assist the country with his socio-economic insight, when Ghana was in crisis. He stuck by Rawlings, when others were accusing Rawlings of this and that. Surprisingly, those who were accusing Rawlings of this and that were the same people, who went on to form the NPP party. A disgraced political party, which has more or less lost its value, and overall significance in Ghanaian society due to its devious nature. I guess that Rawlings got his last laugh after all.
