There is a saying that “those who live in glass houses don’t throw stones”
but if you live in a fortified mansion, protected by the full state armoury
and even if within a twinkle of an eye, your house gets burnt down without
any trace of the perpetrator and the state can give you a new house without
having to pay a pesewa, it is easy to say whatever you want say. More so, if
you live in a country where almost seventy five percent of the population
are cowards and are proud to disguise it as peace-loving and because of
that they are prepared to put up with any lies you preach to them, it is
always easier to talk as much as you like. Recently, Mr Rawlings said he
wanted justice from Kufuor before he would reconcile with him and that was
when the Asantehene invited them both to his 60th Birthday Service. The
question is why should it become former President Kufuor’s duty to seek
reconciliation with Mr Rawlings? As a Christian, I would say it is the right
thing to do but if Rawlings feels too big to need it, Mr Kufuor why do you
worry yourself? Today, he calls for justice because for him, whoever
performed their national duty to serve Ghana under Kufuor is corrupt and
they should all be imprisoned. What an attitude!
According to the gospel of Flt. Lt. Rawlings, who by the virtue of the
Ghanaian cowardice was allowed to misrule Ghana from 1979-2000, corruption
is defined as:
Anybody who owns property in Ghana no matter how hard you worked for it
(remember that Rawlings has never *owned a property* in Ghana in his life,
he lives in houses built by angels who are all his friends); if you are a
successful businessman or woman who worked hard for what you have; you are
law abiding and you respect the rule of law; you did not insert any
provisions in the Ghanaian constitution to absolve you from any crime or
corrupt action your leadership of the country has created; you did not
execute anybody without fair trial whether by military tribunal or the
courts of the land; you worked hard to educate your children without the
help of friends; you won elections through the ballot box without twisting
the electoral process in your favour; you would not allow yourself to be
manipulated and intimidated by him, Rawlings.
Mr Rawlings, you are found of using these two words interchangeably, Justice
and Corruption and I think the time has come for the bold Ghanaians to
challenge you on those. According to you on Ghanaweb on Thursday 3rd June
and I quote:
“People would be prepared to sacrifice and ensure economic pain they are
going through when they know no one is exploiting them”. At times you make
me sick when you use such words. What is exploitation? What did you do to
Ghanaians from 1979-2000? What did you do to hard working men and women who
crossed your path? What did you do to those who had businesses? Those who
had 50 Cedi notes? After you had shut down all those businesses, what did
you do? Didn’t your assets disposal cronies take all those businesses for
themselves? Did you ever understand the norm that these are people who had
worked all their lives to acquire those businesses but because you had the
rights to arms which they did not have, you took those assets free of
charge? Exploitation is “when a bully takes over all states assets and
distributes them to his friends without minding what would happen to the
rightful owners”.
You said and I quote: “*Let us be bold,* let us not allow ourselves to be
intimidated. Let us not allow those who compromise themselves to stand in
our way. Government must become more proactive to deal with the ills of
thieves because if we don’t they will begin to feel bold and will want to
come back and misbehave all over again” What an irony, this is where you are
hundred percent right. If Limann had listened to the word of wisdom, you
will not be preaching this sermon. If Limann had been bold and dealt with
your corruption for those three months, we would not have witnessed the most
inhumane government in our country’s history. For 19 years, you never
allowed anybody the right to express themselves; you turned our nation
upside down by destroying our educational system, the place where all
thinking and boldness is born. You use the word: Let us, and I want to know
whom you are referring to. Are you using US to mean those you deprived the
fundamental right to education or those who sing you praises all the time?
Ghanaians, Rawlings is telling you in the strongest of terms to be BOLD. If
you would be bold, then start with Rawlings himself because according to
Rawlings by the time Kufuor came to power, he had removed all the evil men
and women from our society and left the incoming president with only angels.
Listening to his sermons, you realize that for once, Ghana had a population
of well over 22million men and women who never had the corruption gene in
them. The truth of the matter is that this gentleman lives in a utopian
world where he says things in the direct opposite of his real behaviour, a
man who speaks from envy and bitterness. In order for you Ghanaians to know
the real Rawlings we are dealing with, let us travel the memory lane and
take a look at this. According to the Auditor General’s report for the
financial year ending 31st December 2000 there were cash irregularities in
the disbursement of the District Assemblies Common Fund amounting to ¢80
billion. In 1997, proceeds from the sale of state-owned companies amounting
to ¢134 billion were lost within the system by treating the funds under
different headings. The Auditor General’s report of 1992 lamented over how
the Bank of Ghana was swerved in the sale of millions of dollars worth of
tuna to Star Kist (USA) without the involvement of the Customs, Excise and
Preventative Service (CEPS). All these happened under Rawlings although it
is only when he is out of power that he claims to abhor corruption.( Source:
Adu,Kwasi Ghana web)
It is about time Ghanaians begin to consider issues by taking account of the
substance rather than outward appearance and play-acting. To say you are
looking for justice is an insult on the intelligence of the millions you
denied them justice. You stepped on every toe in Ghana, have you had the
courage to tell them you are sorry? Were you denied Justice when Boakye Djan
and company freed you from military custody in May 1979? Why did you deny a
similar thing to the senior military officers you single headedly murdered?
You can fool some of the Ghanaians most of the time but I bet you, you can’t
fool all Ghanaians all the time.
Kufuor has made a big mistake by looking for your friendship; to me it is
not worth it. You have demonstrated not to be statesman to deserve that.
Kufuor has no justice to give you because you have never accepted to have
offended anybody so why ask for justice? What has Kufuor done to you
personally that you want him to bow down before you as if you are God? When
you had the chance to accord justice to others, what did you do? You
murdered the Judges, the former heads of state like Afrifah, Acheampong,
Akuffo and hordes of innocent Ghanaians, you stripped women naked and your
soldiers played with their private parts, you denied innocent children their
parents but you kept yours and gave them the best education outside Ghana,
you destroyed the fundamentals of our educational system do you call that
justice?.
You are right, Ghanaians should be bold and they must ask you to give them
answers, especially the friends who educated your children in Ireland, the
insertion of the indemnity clause in the constitution, the sale of national
assets like the Black Star Line and all the GIHOC group of companies. Then
we shall know you hate corruption and that you deserve justice, but as long
as 49.77% of our population have no justice, Mr Rawlings you don’t deserve
any.
Source: K.Owusu-Ansah
