By Kwadwo Poku
The June 4th uprising although unnecessary due to the prep up to democratization in 1979, was embraced by the over whelming majority of Ghanaians. Rawlings was praised so much that many deify him by calling him Junior Jesus. His accolades reached the heavens for allowing the democratic wheels on cruise control, to the culmination of handing over power to President Limann. The doxologies heaped on Junior Jesus was in concert of the populace. But little did we know of the tendentious move of J J. You see Limann did not win the 79 election, Victor Owusu did. Rawlings had the results doctored to favor Limann. Those privy to this knowledge although not told of the reasons, surmised J J was fearful of Victor Owusu hence the doctoring of the results and his second coming. Folks, much credence can be given to this hidden info based on the rabbit trails of this human ruse and also the demographical brake downs of the last election.
After handing over power to Limann, had he not come back but allowed the just commenced democratic dispensation to take it's rightful course, every Tom, Dick and Harry will be praising him today. The vast majority of his disciples are either too young to know of him, have tribal affiliations with him or benefited financially through the ineptness of both regimes. The saying TO ERR IS HUMAN, TO FORGIVE DIVINE, renders this article useless when the wrongs of the past are sort to be made right by the culprit(s). That is why I still grieve over the death of Major Quashigah. This rejuvenated patriot admitted his wrongs by keeping his mouth shut whiles participating in the democratic process. Even when Rawlings was the elected President, never did you hear Quarshigah maligning him publicly. I wish he is with us today, because something tells me there are more we don't know about the evil deeds of Rawlings. If you are to fastidiously peruse through the names of the members of both the AFRC and PNDC regimes (coup stagers),one thing stands out, not a single solitary one of them is his friend. They are either his enemies, dead or in self imposed exile. But why? Has anyone factored that in the political equation? And can anyone justify his second coming? Overthrowing a government chosen by the people as we were made to believe after the whole of Ghana being elated about the prospects of our new found understanding of governance? I dare any of his disciples to give me a plausible justification on this note. Sometimes I wonder whether they literally believe he is indeed Junior Jesus or the color of his skin as a result of his cross breedness fancies them.
Having tasted power prior to handing over to Limann, greed, jealousy and self aggrandizement contaminated him, so he used his charismatic gifting to incite his colleagues to stage a come back on 31st Dec.1981. His second coming was uncalled for, it was motivated by his condescension towards Ghanaians as a whole, plain and simple. He had no respect for the nation. I quiet remember in his bid to be braggadocios, he once said he could have staged the coup with the siren of an ambulance, but that would have been demeaning to Limann. We were made to believe every successful entrepreneur was corrupt. Capitalism was an anathema to the regime. Factories were seized, owners of businesses had to flee for their lives, unemployment increased, gallop inflation was a business normative. One thing that ails me no end is our educational system which stagnated during his regime. Back then it was unbeknownst to us the severity of it, but as I look back in retrospect I realize this menace did as more harm than we thought. After all what were the expectations of a military regime whose perception of even having multiple toilets at home, a felony. In his both comings, he was the corruption police, but today he is a corruption infested soul and Ghanaians don't have the guts to say it. He portrays frugality but seats on mountains of wealth. He rents out his mansions and seeks to live in a state owned property because of his idiosyncratic mannerisms of entitlement.
To his disciples he is a glittering jewel, but to the political astute, he is of colossal ignorance. He doesn't' comprehend his role as a statesman, so he speaks like a hungry candidate vying to be president with no intellectual background, but in a subterfuge lingo. When I hear people give him credit for the sustenance of democratic governance, I question the historical authority on which they make such a jejune claim. Ghana is what it is today because of the ingenuity of her people who seems fed up with the dogmatic assertions of this menace coupled with the support of Ghanaians in the Diaspora. Every year remittances to loves ones back home from the Diaspora approximates half a billion dollars. And this is evidenced in the booming real estate market. Had the wheels of democracy continued till today I believe Ghana would have been the strongest democracy and largest economy on the continent.
Today, the political tension in Ghana can be traced to the door step of this menace. Rawlings, you will be a good statesman by shutting your pig instead of opening it up to prove your lack of democratic acumen. Let the youth know the importance of education rather than indoctrinating them with hate, tribalism and disrespect for authority. My mission on this forum is not to be a Rawlings basher, but as a passionate defender of democracy, I cry out to warn the nation of the threat this menace poses. His fomenting of tribal hate if not stopped will potentially breed tribal war in the near future. He who has an ear should take this seriuoly.
kWADWO POKU N Y.
