Konadu Rawlings Let your education be the difference

I would like to make a contribution towards what the former first lady, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings said in her address to the Kumasi faction of the so called 31st December Women Movement congress in Kumasi just yesterday. It is sad that we allow politics to cloud our sense of thinking when it comes to national issues.

There are issues that are of sensitive and technical nature that before anyone opens their mouth to talk about them, they should arm themselves with all the facts and figures so that the not too privileged people in our society would be able to understand. I understand the former first lady graduated from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and without being disrespectful, I would not expect the comments in her address to have come from such an educated person.


It is sad that at times one finds it extremely difficult to identify with those who were fortunate to grace our secondary schools, training colleges, polytechnics and the universities. When there are national issues, those of us who were not so fortunate to be educated to this level would depend on the so called educated ones to lead the way but more often than not, they disappoint.


Mrs. Rwalings,without even looking at the economic benefits of the redenomination, you come to realise that millions are stolen from these same market women you were peddling your lies to. These women, most of them don't know much about the large volumes of the so called millions and billions-that counting becomes a problem for them. They would have to depend on the trust of people who have some form of education to do their counting and cash processing for them. Have you taken the time and effort to find out why most of them who were in business by the time your husband took power, in 1981 when the Cedi,exchanged for just $2.75(US dollar) and are still in business but without anything to show for their effort? Have you ever sent your trusted educated friends to help them count and process the volume of cash they always carried? Have you ever, in your position first as the former first lady and then president of that movement to help them find secure storage for the volume of cash they always carried around? How about what they always lost because they could not understand our millions and billions associated with the cedis?


We may not like a government, which is logical and rational because as human beings, if we were all to think alike at any point in time, then there would be something wrong with our setup but when it matters, we should demonstrate our quality of education. My father never went to school,but if you went to the village to tell him that, the government wants to make the Cedi meaningful to make it possible to carry around, he would applaud you the messenger. It makes sense that, he would realise that,theives would not be watching his movements to steal the large quantity of money he would be carrying to the bank.

Mrs. Rawlings,the government has been in power for just 6 years. Ghanaians, for whatever reasons I am yet to know gave your husband 20 years to rule Ghana.Yes,his government introduced the structural adjustment programme in 1983,what did he do during the 1992 elections to bring the whole gains down to zero? Why did he not do anything about the Energy problems? What did his government do to expand the Akosombo dam? Did the problems start over night? You see the difference is that this government is EXPANDING CAPACITY in all spheres of the economy and as such the daily Energy consumption has not caught up with supply but the unfortunate truth if the fact that this same NDC,which is opposed to anything good and meaningful, would not support the efforts of attracting the required investments.


We should let the time we wasted on education benefit people in our society like my father and mother, who because of who they are, never had that opportunity. Whenever we are addressing them we should let the neutral by-stander notice the difference. Otherwise: 10years elementary education +5 years secondary school+2 years Advanced levels +3/4 years University,should not "equalled" to my father's and mother's zero classroom education.

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