Letta to Osagyefo - Samia Nkrumah the wonder aba!

Greetings Osagyefo,

I hope you are doing well and getting into another gear for the festive season. As for me, I'm following Kaakyire Kwame Appiah's 24 song to the tee, I'll be going to Sikakrom to spend Christmas. Even though there is a credit crunch, I still have some money to purchase a ticket from one continent to the other and buy Christmas gifts. It's called 'saving by being chisel and hustle' . I'll be going to meet a Ghana I haven't seen in awhile, a Ghana that is gearing up for an election. That should be interesting. Ghana's election is going to a second round. The NPP and NDC would be going at it. One person who will not be going against anything is sure to be Samia Nkrumah. She's the new member of parliament for Jomoro.

Osagyefo, your daughter is a wonder o! Many people didn't give her a chance to wrest the parliamentary seat from Hon. Lee Ocran, and besides the NPP did have a candidate in the Jomoro race. Your name does do wonders! Samia's opponents were running against your name, the name that rings synonymous with Ghanaian independence. It could be likened to running a long-distance race against an Ethiopian or Kenyan. Maybe Jomoro voters were enthralled by the beauty of Samia Yaba on that ballot box. Fair-coloured woman with an Nkrumah last-name? Done deal. There was talk of her campaign being funded by the ruling NPP government. That didn't break her down. Her brother and your ‘prodigal son’, Sekou, fired shots at her from the camp of the NDC, but that didn't rattle her. I wish Sekou had run for MP too. Imagine if he run against Ellembelle Mugabe? Samia still trounced Ocran and is now the sole CPP parliamentarian.

Yes Kwame, sole CPP parliamentarian. Freddie Blay, popularly known as Ellembelle Mugabe, lost his seat too. His association with the NPP and the two independent CPP candidates must have 'caused' him. Kojo Armah lost too. Paa Kwesi Nduom stood for the presidency and his replacement could not retain the KEEA seat for the CPP. Nduom got under 2% of Ghanaians' votes. He chew koraa. He couldn't even win the most votes in his own constituency and the fact that the 'cockerel' was marked by his name in Jomoro, didn't help him either. So yes, Samia is the sole bright spot for the CPP in this election. Are you coming back, Osagyefo? Is this whole outcome intentional? Did you decree that Samia would win a seat and the rest of the CPP would get walloped like that? You are selfish, Kwame. That's not what African Showboys do and selfishness is not in the dictionary of a redeemer.

Samia was not even in the country until about 2 years ago. Many Ghanaians didn't know about her. She came and held Nduom's hand, pledging to work the CPP back into national prominence. We hear she speaks English, Arabic and Italian. Notice the absence of Fante, Twi, Ga, Hausa, etc in that sentence. How did she even communicate with her constituents? She claims to have gone to every nook and cranny to spread her message to voters. Did she go with a translator? I will like to see a video of her saying ‘Yeresesamu’ and ‘Edwumawura’. Did the people say, "Hey, this is a 'broni' running for office, we should vote for her". You know our people are in love with the Obroni. Some of us believe in the Obroni to make things happen. A.B. Crentsil did sing ‘Anyen’ and how the white man used his magic to build planes and trains while the black man used his magic to destroy his fellow black man. Why the black man didn’t use his magic to destroy the white man, no one knows. Put two and three and three together, and you have the people of the 233 country code voting for the fairest of them all because they believe she can bring change, progress, and development. Say it ain't so. Kwame, didn’t you say that we should dedicate our efforts to build our country together and that the black man was capable of running his own affairs? Maybe, the people of Jomoro had seen what the black man had done for them over the years. I am just saying.

Don’t you have to have lived in the constituency or born there to run for the parliamentary seat? Samia was born in Aburi, when you and Fathia were getting busy in the Peduase lodge, I suppose? We know your hometown is Nkroful which is in the area of Ellembelle, the mere fact that seemed to keep Freddie Blay in parliament. So what’s up with Jomoro? Samia had not been living in Ghana, she descended or ascended from Italy to come and stake a claim to be part of Ghana’s legislature. She is the very definition of a returnee. She was supposed to be frustrated with the pace of Ghanaians (and Ghana) and face the “mebaayE akyE” treatment. No, not Samia. We didn’t hear her complain, in fact, she didn’t create any news. She went about her business quietly. She had just come to the country, people didn’t say she had to suffer small first before she chopped? We can’t say she had connections, because the people who hand out the connections opposed her. I want to know what Samia did differently. She seems to have enjoyed a very smooth transition back into Ghana for a returnee. If there is ever a “Saga of the Returnee” sequel, it should be about her.

Kwame, Samia gives me hope as a future returnee. She is inspirational and I am sure, she will quickly become a role model for many Ghanaian women. This includes Ghanaian women with poor knowledge and literacy in Ghanaian languages. She has been involved with policy talks and public service before. She was one of the people in Europe leading the Diasporean charge as Africa’s sixth region. Just like you, she is a strong proponent of African unity, in whatever way feasible. She does have the name recognition but she is like many a Ghanaian who wants to return home, just returned home or plans to return home soon. Her story is an interesting one and mostly because she is now the sole CPP MP. Who would have thought?

Some people believe Samia should become the face of the CPP and involved in its leadership. I definitely agree with the latter point. Hey, she could become Ghana’s first female president, following in the footsteps of the Iron Lady of Liberia, Ellen Sirleaf-Johnson. One step at a time. Dubya followed his father, Akufo Addo is following his, Samia can do it. Osagyefo, you can make that decree, can’t you? I don’t mean to jinx anything, I am just thinking out loud like I always do. Your party is looking for answers and prescriptions for its poor electoral performance. Maybe the solution will start with the lone bright spot from December 7. They can latch on Samia and say ‘Yaaba’. Every pun intended.

Kwame, I have to leave . My shopping list is long. Akosua Kwansima wants an i-phone for her reserved Zain number. I have to go and start filling my polythene bag or else I may be repatriated back to ‘aburokyire’ when I get home. I am excited about this trip, and excited to be reunited with my family. With the Sekou-Samia thing going, I pray for a reunion in your own family, Kwame. Blood is thicker than water as family is thicker than politics. We are Ghanaians first. Wait, or are Fantes, Dagombas, Ewes, Gas first? I’ll write about that in another missive later. I don’t want to keep you from your Tuo Zaafi any longer. Did you even cook it yourself? Just thinking about the one served at Asanka local on Sundays is making me hungry. Enjoy your meal, A-chi-ray.

Chop time no friend,

Maximus Ojah.