NPP: STOP MORTGAGING GHANA’S FUTURE!

At a time when China is able, and willing, to fund infrastructural projects in nations like Ghana on generous terms, why is our nation venturing unto the capital markets of the West, ostensibly to source funds for our country’s development? It is an outrage that the regime that has been so fortunate, as to be able to reap today, where it did not sow yesterday, and has had virtually all of Ghana’s external debt, of old, cancelled, during its tenure, is piling up yet more external debt.

The New Patriotic Party (NPP), is enjoying the fruits of the labour of some of us - and we resent the fact that although they did not have the vision or the intellectual capacity (in terms of original thinking!) then, during the nineties, to think outside the box, and see the importance of campaigning to demand that the West cancel the albatross of our external debt - because it was squeezing the very lifeblood out of our country - it is today, insisting on saddling future generations of Ghanaians, with yet even more hard currency debt. This really is monstrous, dear reader, is it not?

And as the usual spin-doctors and praise-singers swing into action, the highly irresponsible foray unto the capital markets of the West, by the regime of the masters of the universe, who are currently in charge of our homeland Ghana, is being hailed as a coup, by clueless and mercenary media types - with an agenda of their own. One particularly nauseating editorial, in one of those ghastly cliché-ridden NPP rags (that thinks so highly of itself, it actually thinks it is God's gift, to mother Ghana!), thought that this financial grand folly, was actually some kind of a breakthrough, for Ghana!

Yes, dear reader - it is indeed a breakthrough, for those well-connected and well-heeled Ghanaians, who are advising the stubborn and myopic regime (which is full of lackeys doing the bidding, of sundry special interests) that is embarking on this idiocy: and will be charging fat advisory fees in hard currency, and will now also be hobnobbing, with the greedy merchant bankers in the West (who must be drooling at the mouth, at the prospects of rooking naïve and greedy Africans silly, in gargantuan advisory fees)! It simply doesn’t bear thinking, dear reader.

It is nothing short of a national disaster and tragedy, that the men and women, who thought they were going to develop Ghana, with money hidden under the mattresses of the owners of a Chinese hairdressing salon, located in the seedier parts of London, have now graduated from that farce, to fishing for kick-backs, in the piranha-infested waters, of the capital markets of the Western world. Pastor Otabil, please call God (collect?) immediately - and ask him for a miracle for mother Ghana, “asap”.


The question we must ask ourselves, dear reader, is: why exchange generous long-term funds from China, with long grace periods, super-low interest rates, and payment due in decades hence, for the unchattered waters, of the capital markets of the West, where merchant bankers and hedge fund titans, reeling from the aftershocks of the U.S. sub-prime mortgage market debacle, will hold Ghana as a hostage to fortune? What rates of interest are we talking about - do they compare to similar rates for the same instrument, issued by other governments?

And were those governments charged similar fees by their Western financial advisors? Would it not have been far better, to have approached the Japanese government, and issued those bonds on the Tokyo market, with its super-low interest rates, if they insist on carrying on with this irresponsibility?How, dear reader, can we trust the regime, which was reluctant to itemize the 20 million U.S. dollars that was fritted away, in scandalous overpayments for outrageous items, such as a 300 million old-cedi website, and 200-plus luxury vehicles?

And will some of the money be allocated to finishing that outrageous presidential palace complex - which I predict will end up costing nearly 100 million U.S. dollars: if lawns and watering equipment is costing millions of dollars! Clearly, all this shameful irresponsibility is happening, because of our anticipated oil wealth. Well, the earlier the greedy hypocrites amongst those currently in charge of our homeland Ghana, get the message that Ghana’s anticipated oil wealth, is earmarked solely for projects and initiatives, which will bring about social transformation in our country, the better it will be for them.

Safeguarding Ghana’s anticipated oil wealth is a non-negotiable issue - and no politician or political party, will be allowed to fritter it away, under any circumstances. Period.We have all tolerated the blatant examples of causing financial loss to the Ghanaian nation-state, over the years, in order not to rock the democratic boat - but we are drawing the line where Ghana’s anticipated oil wealth is concerned. We will never tolerate any attempt to fritter that wealth on the kind of obscenities we saw prior to the AU summit and for the golden jubilee Independence Day anniversary celebrations.

And all the parties in opposition, must unite and demand that the regulators in the financial services sectors of the nations, which that expensive abomination called the “road show”, is being taken to (at such great cost to hapless Ghanaian taxpayers), find out, if the fees being pocketed by the sundry advisors chosen arbitrarily to place the Ghana government hard currency bonds (the so-called sovereign bonds!), mean that our country has been grossly overcharged by those predators, for their services.

They must also insist, in their campaigning for the December 2008 presidential and parliamentary elections, that they will tear up all inimical agreements which Ghana has entered into since the tenure of the NPP regime - especially the agreements with the oil companies operating off our coastline. Oil is a depleting asset, so we must make the most of our good fortune - and Hugo Chavez-like agreements, are the only kind, we must entertain, in Ghana's oil industry, henceforth. Period.

There will be very painful consequences for those who think they can use Ghanaian democracy as a cloak to protect themselves, as they loot our country’s anticipated oil wealth. If any such attempt is made, ordinary Ghanaians will bring the 4th Republic to an immediate end (and thank heaven they are closing that chapter of unparralled greed and hypocrisy, in our history!), declare a state of emergency, and install the Chief Justice into office, to head an interim administration of technocrats, for a period of six months, prior to the holding of elections for a new president and parliament, and the inauguration of a new 5th Republic.
The six month interim period, will see the drafting of a new constitution, which will build on the good points of the old 1992 constitution, and improve its obvious weaknesses.

And like the short interregnum of the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) era, all the crooks who have "chopped Ghana small" and participated in the gang rape of mother Ghana, will be dealt with appropriately, in the law courts - and if it means that they will have to follow in the footsteps of the Victor Serlomeys, the Kwame Peprahs, the Dan Abodakpis and spend time in the Nsawam prison, well, so be it: and we will not shed a tear for them, either. Period. Hmm.Ghana. Asem ebaba debi. May God bless and protect our homeland Ghana always. Long live Ghana! Long live freedom! Kofi Thompson can be reached by email at: peakofithompson@yahoo.co.uk and by SMS text message on: (027) 745 3109.

WHY INCOMPETENT POLITICIANS CAN KILL YOU!

If like me, virtually every household electrical appliance (and most hi-tech gadgetry) you own, has been destroyed because of incessant power outages, and constant fluctuations in the power supply, the phrase "incompetent leadership", takes on a whole new meaning!

I am just so sick and tired of living in a nation that has a largely incompetent political class, which is always playing the blame game, instead of resolving the problems that confront ordinary people - and is full of clueless journalists, interested only, in what they can get for their praise-singing, on a daily basis, on behalf of the many incompetent men and women, in charge of our homeland Ghana: instead of pointing out the effects, on the lives of ordinary people, of the monumental incompetence, of some of our leaders.

I appeared on a radio programme not too long ago - and when asked by the host, what I thought was the greatest threat facing Ghanaian democracy, replied: "...the effects of global climate change..." You could hear a pin drop - every one in the studio thought I was mad! Yet, let them go and talk to the ordinary people around the country, whose lives have been destroyed, by the devastating floods of recent times: and who feel abandoned by the authorities - and ask them what are some of the rewards, if any, that they think have accrued to them (apart from the power to choose who rules them every four years!), as a result of their participation in Ghanaian democracy!

It irritates me no end, that virtually no one in either government or the media, is interested in what is the greatest threat facing humankind - a threat that is here with us: not in some distant future, generations ahead. The floods in the north and before that, in Accra and other places in the southern half of our country, are all a result of the impact of global climate change - and they are a harbinger of worse things to come. Extremes in weather will be the norm, going forward, dear reader, and we must adapt to the changed circumstances, of our times, or be ruined en masse, if we continue to ignore it: and carry on with business, as usual.

What planning is going into the business of capacity-building of vital state institutions like NADMO - which our political class simply use as cushy sinecures, for their cronies and their favourite party foot-soldiers, dear reader? And how much are we making available to our scientific community, as our leaders fritter away scarce resources released into the system, by no longer having to pay any interest on our cancelled external debt, in the building of presidential palaces, and collaring banks in which the state has an interest, to fund the hotel-building projects, of the scions, of the family clans, of some of our leaders? Zilch - that is how much, dear reader.

And if you dare to complain about this misapplication of scarce resources, which we constantly insist on calling corruption, instead of super-clever white collar thievery, they have the gall, to say you are envious, of them. Yet, not all of us care about money, to the extent that we are prepared to sacrifice core human values, such as honesty, decency and modesty, in pursuit of our personal wealth creation. Our leaders must never forget that there are many ordinary people, who actually believe, that a good name, is far better, than tainted riches.

So when I hear of the huge sums being spent in pursuit of the personal ambitions of some members of our political class, to become the next president of Nkrumah's Ghana, and who say, in response to those who ask where the money is coming from, that "friends" of theirs, are funding their presidential ambitions, visions of a large army of insufferable individuals, possessing the belligerent arrogance, of men like the Kennedy Agyapongs, who say they spent all their money funding one of the then candidate Kuffuor's failed bids for the presidency, and had to go back to America to become taxi drivers to rebuild their personal net worth, and think that that entitles them to act as if they are all-powerful, stalking the corridors of power, after January 7th 2009, are immediately conjured up my mind's eye.

And that puts my blood pressure up, and resentment builds up in me again, about the collateral damage of incompetent leadership, which the destruction of my home electrical appliances and hi-tech gadgetry represents - and a determination to work hard to ensure that the political party, whose obscene philosophy of greed that says "each one for himself, and God for us all", has turned selfishness and greed into a national obsession for many Ghanaian public officials, never gets back into power again, in my lifetime and that of my dear and precious grandchildren, in far away London, is renewed in me.

Why let them back into office again, when their example, has encouraged many a public official, paid by the hard-pressed Ghanaian taxpayer, to ensure that we all live in a civilised society, to rather focus on becoming high net worth individuals overnight, and are thus busy feathering their own nests, to the exclusion of everything else? Has our entire system not been put more or less on auto-pilot, for that reason, dear reader? A resolve never to allow this particular crowing crowd, to get back into power again in our country, is rekindled in me, every time I see an example of incompetent leadership in the Ghana of today - and there are so many one comes across on a daily basis: which does one's blood pressure, absolutely no good at all, and can kill one!

Ghana's oil wealth, must never be allowed to fall into the hands of the men and women who espouse today's creed of greed and selfishness - ever. Period. And in case you want an example of the monumental incompetence I speak of, take this example, for instance, dear reader: Ghana recently spent some 6 million US dollars, to import energy saving bulbs, to help us conserve energy - doubtless, a worthwhile cause, at a time of global climate change. Yet, the sad fact, is that if we had creative thinkers able to think outside the box, as our leaders, we could have found any number of large multi-national companies, in the developed world, able, and willing, to offset their carbon footprint, to pay for the cost of those energy saving bulbs for Ghana!

Would that not have saved that 6 million US dollars - which could have provided some relief to our flood victims countrywide: many now left high and dry, so to speak? Yet, you will constantly hear our leaders, who do not hesitate to fritter away the public purse, when it comes to spending lavishly on 'prestige' projects that provide them with some personal comfort and benefit, saying government does not have the resources to look after all our flood victims. Electing such politicians to power, could end up literally killing you tomorrow in a flood - because no one could come from the woefully under-resourced NADMO, to rescue you and your family. Hmmm, Ghana. Asem ebaba debi! May God bless and protect our homeland Ghana always. Long live Ghana! Long live freedom! Kofi Thompson can be contacted by email at: peakofithompson@yahoo.co.uk and by SMS text message on: (027) 745 3109.

WAKE UP, GA DANGBE CHIEFS!

I have never understood the mindset of the traditional rulers of the Ga Dangbe people. It is simply beyond belief, that traditional rulers, whose people occupy the most expensive bit of land in all of our homeland Ghana, are rather busy fighting amongst themselves about who has the right to occupy one position or the other - when they should be thinking outside the box to realise value from government lands which rightly should be reverting to them today: but is being hijacked by greedy outsiders, who are also contemptuous of them. Is it not simply incredible, dear reader, that their traditional state should be in such disarray - when one thinks of the influence they could wield? Is this not the capital city of Ghana?

Are all the foreign diplomats accredited to Nkrumah's Ghana not resident here? Yet, how many of them come to pay their respects to them? Have they ever thought of asking all the foreign firms that have made vast fortunes over the years and have their local head offices in Accra and Tema (such as Taysec,Ghacem and sundry Chinese construction firms, profiting mightily here now), to come together to undertake a joint-project to build suitable residences, as well as traditional crafts workshops, and a museum, in East Legon, Ridge or Cantonments (taking over some of the valuable land with expired leases, which the masters of the universe in charge of our homeland Ghana, are busy selling to their nearest and dearest friends and family), as their joint gift to the Ga Dangbe people?

Has it not dawned on the traditional rulers of the Ga Dangbes that society is dynamic - and that a new and powerful Ga Dangbe State can be fashioned out of what currently is but a pale shadow of a once-powerful kingdom? Oh, how King Tackie Tawia1 must be turning in his grave! If they were to devote half their energies to thinking creatively, they could become the kings of Ghana's capital markets: by setting up a mutual fund into which every single entity dealing in our capital markets would have to contribute - as a modern-day form of the "tribute" paid to traditional rulers in the past. Why do they think sundry corporate Titans in Ghana, travel all the way to certain parts of our homeland Ghana, to donate money to the non-transparent funds, set up by their peers elsewhere? Is it not a modern form of "tribute" they are paying?

And when the outsiders who are so contemptuous of them direct foreign dignitaries to go and pay "tribute" to their favourite traditional rulers, do they not know it is a deliberate policy to use the machinery of state to increase the power and influence of those favourite traditional rulers of theirs? Did any one consult any of them when the government that is playing with them as if they were primary school children, was in discussion with super wealthy foreigners about a new future for that very valuable parcel of land known as the trade fair site - which they ceded to Nkrumah on the understanding that the Ghanaian nation-state, not foreigners, would use it as a trade fair site?

Let the the traditional rulers of the Ga Dangbe state continue quarrelling amongst themselves over who should occupy positions in parts of Ga Dangbe, whiles the super greedy oligarchs now controlling Ghana, make it possible for foreigners (who no doubt, like the past owners of Scancem, most certainly know a thing or two, about how to make sure that some of Ghana's choicest assets, fall into their hands too!), to eventually end up building luxury hotels, shopping malls and posh homes there: and pretend it is a new and modern trade fair site. And whiles our greedy rulers and their foreign cronies grow even richer, the Ga Dangbe people will continue to grow poorer still.

Why, when God created humankind, did he create a special breed of human beings called Kings or Queens? Was it not the most brutal individuals willing to fight to take territory - even if it meant killing scores of their fellow humans, who ended up ruling their fellow human beings, as Kings and Queens? So what is the point of quarrelling over titles - whiles greedy outsiders are busy using legal technicalities to steal what is rightly and justly the property of the traditional rulers and people of the Ga Dangbe state? Do they not see what is going on elsewhere - where their peers disregard the law, even as the machinery of state is manipulated, to enable them further their overweening ambitions?

Let the Ga Dangbe traditional rulers wake up - and if they want to fight court battles, let them sue the crafty regime that has taken over their lands at "cable and wireless" - and is now about to hand over those valuable lands to their speculating cronies for a song, to sell to make super profits! Do they not know that whiles the unbelievable nonsense on stilts, which the various court cases represent, about who should be "Nii-this" or "Nii-that" goes on, clever traditional rulers elsewhere, have illegally taken over land owned by the state - and are busy selling those lands right in front of the noses of officials of the Lands Commission, whiles our rulers look on benignly, because they feel their favourite traditional rulers, are above the laws of Nkrumah's Ghana: and are consequently getting away with the blatant illegality, with impunity?

And if, dear reader, the Ga Dangbe traditional rulers ask what right a complete nonentity like Kofi Thompson has to speak his mind about matters concerning the affairs of the traditional state of the Ga Dangbe people, well, first of all, I happen to be a Ghanaian - and although it is not of the slightest significance to me, my paternal grandmother was a Bruce and a Sempe royal - so although I am Paul Kofi Asare from Adukrom, I too (like the politicians who are playing with them as if they were primary school children), have a right to poke my nose, into their affairs! Period. May God bless and protect our homeland Ghana always. Long live Ghana! Long live freedom! Kofi Thompson can be reached by email at: peakofithompson@yahoo.co.uk and by SMS text message on:(027) 745 3109.

ORIGINS OF NPP'S PROPERTY-OWNING DEMOCRACY!

Listening to a young friend expressing his worries about the continued inability of the current regime to make the real economy grow at a faster rate, I realised just how clever the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has been, in successfully hiding the true origins of the phrase "a property-owning democracy", from the current generation of Ghanaians - and is busy using it to gain their support. This political sleight of hand, shows the deviousness of the current ruling party's spin doctors.

A clever disenfranchising device, dreamt up by the too-clever-by-half political forebears of the NPP (the greedy quislings of the pre-independence years) during the struggle by Ghanaians to throw off the yoke of colonial bondage, has now been recycled - and having acquired a new respectability, is being used to lure and ensure the loyalty, of Ghana's young upwardly mobile middle class professional elite, to the NPP.

Today, the innocuous-sounding political slogan, an evil political creed, inspired in this context, by the elitist philosophy of the English philosopher, Edmund Burke (whose work had a profound influence on both Dr. Danquah and Dr. Busia - proud and arrogant descendants of our pre-colonial feudal ruling elite),which was deployed as a stealth weapon and instrument of control, which the descendants of the ruling elites of the pre-colonial feudal societies, sought to use to deny the sovereign masses political power permanently, upon the departure of the British colonialists from the Gold Coast, has given political respectability to a political party, which has been hijacked by a ruthless clique, made up of a few powerful and selfish oligarchs, driven by unfathomable greed, seldom seen in our political life.

What is the genesis of the phrase, you might wonder, dear reader? As part of measures designed to enable the Gold Coast move gradually towards self-government, the colonial government called for the drafting of a new constitution, which would give some responsibility for policy decisions to a new elected government. Danquah and Busia, who shared Burke's belief that society ought to be ruled by a pre-ordained elite, ensured that under the new constitution, wage and property requirements, would be the basis for suffrage - effectively disenfranchising the masses! Incidentally, the new constitution was drawn up by a selected commission of the African elite at the time - who sought, through it, to dominate the country permanently. It is instructive that those who now dominate the NPP, have succeeded in turning parliament, into a pliant instrument, to legalise their tyranny.

It was an alternative "People's Assembly", brought together by Nkrumah's party, the Convention Peoples Party (CPP), and made up of the type of people Busia once contemptuously labelled collectively, as "veranda boys": CPP representatives, veterans of the second World War, trade union representatives, as well as those of youth organisations, which called for immediate self-governing status, for the Gold Coast - and universal franchise without property qualifications. Those amendments, which were made by the "People's Assembly", to the proposals of the quislings and their colonial lords and masters, known as the "Constitutional Proposals of 1949", were roundly rejected by the British colonial administration.

It was this rejection that led to Nkrumah declaring "Positive Action" - a move that led to a general strike and riots in the Gold Coast: and resulted in the arrest, trial and imprisonment of Nkrumah. So let all those middle class Ghanaians who have allowed themselves to be led up the garden path, by the the greedy masters of the universe, who now dominate and control the NPP and our country, understand the gigantic fraud, that this sophistry, is. For, it seeks to give ordinary Ghanaians the impression that it is in their interest, to ally themselves to a party controlled by a powerful few with greedy ambitions - who dominate the ruling party (and are busy "chopping Ghana small"). However, such loyalty is completely misplaced. The truth of the matter, is that the proponents of the property-owning democracy of today are no different from the quislings of yesteryear - they too seek to dominate our country and collaborate with foreigners to bleed mother Ghana dry: at the expense of ordinary people and mother Ghana. Period.


So let all those middle class Ghanaians who have allowed themselves to be led up the garden path, by the the greedy masters of the universe, who now dominate and control the NPP and our country, understand the gigantic fraud, that this sophistry, is. For, it seeks to give ordinary Ghanaians the impression that it is in their interest, to ally themselves to a party controlled by a powerful few with greedy ambitions - who dominate the ruling party (and are busy "chopping Ghana small"). However, such loyalty is completely misplaced. The truth of the matter, is that the proponents of the property-owning democracy of today are no different from the quislings of yesteryear - they too seek to dominate our country and collaborate with foreigners to bleed mother Ghana dry: at the expense of ordinary people and mother Ghana. Period.

And let them remember who those busy influence-peddling their way to vast family fortunes in Ghana, today, are. Are they not the political progeny of those same greedy and arrogant people of yesteryear, who sought to deny ordinary Ghanaians the right to vote, in the pre-independence era - because they did not own properties? So when you next hear the phrase "a property-owning democracy", dear reader, do not be fooled into thinking you will be able to fulfil your personal aspiration, of becoming a property owner, by voting for those too-clever-by-half individuals. Over the years they have been in power, they have succeeded in deploying a devious spin-machine, made up of their paid lackeys in the media (professionals supposed to be watchdogs of society, but who for mercenary reasons, have today become the guard dogs of our oppressors), to sell you a piece of fool's paradise.

In reality, they are seeking to keep you oppressed and loot Ghana freely - so beware! If they believed in their interpretation of that phrase today, dear reader, why have they not nationalised land held in trust for their people by traditional rulers: paid compensation to those blood-suckers, and distributed the land to tenant farmers in Ghana - so that they, who feed our nation and make up the bulk of our population, will also became property owners? Would that not make such farmers (and their descendants!) vote for the current ruling party, to remain in power, till kingdom come? Hmmm, Ghana. Asem ebaba debi. May God bless and protect our homeland Ghana always. Long live Ghana! Long live freedom! Kofi Thompson can be reached by email at: peakofithompson@yahoo.co.uk and by SMS text message on: 027 745 3109.

IS THE MEDIA FAILING GHANA?

As the ruthless and mostly corrupt oligarchs, who now maintain such an iron grip on the party currently ruling our homeland Ghana, continue to be accused by some of their more uncharitable critics, of blatantly using the resources of the country’s secret services, to buy off sizable sections of the Ghanaian media, the need for the masses to continue encouraging the ever-dwindling numbers of journalists, who are dedicated to protecting the national interest (as opposed to being ensconced in snug corners of the ever so deep pockets of some of our greedy oligarchs), has never been greater.

One of the most effective means for the honest but financially-challenged journalist, to continue remaining dedicated to the agenda of protecting the interests of mother Ghana (as well as the masses); and fighting against the baleful influence of our oligarchs on our national life, is to link up with anti-corruption organisations outside Ghana. They can strengthen their hands considerably, by building alliances with organisations such as Global Witness, which are willing and able, to investigate (whenever the need arises) the murky financial affairs of those responsible for the miasma of greed, which now so densely envelopes Nkrumah’s Ghana.

The Scancem scandal, is a classic example of the inability of the media to investigate cases of grand corruption in Ghana. The revelations about Scancem's slush fund, exposes so cruelly, the impotence of the largely under-resourced private media, when it comes to investigating high profile corruption in Ghana. It is embarrassing that up till now, incredibly, the Ghanaian media has been spectacularly unsuccessful, in unearthing any significant details, about payments, over the years, of large sums of money, by the Norwegian cement manufacturer, Scancem, to a host of key public officials. Those payments, were clearly to ensure that the officials concerned, would close their eyes to what its critics say, has been Scancem's shameful rip-off, of the Ghanaian nation-state.

The question, dear reader, is, why has the Ghanaian media never cottoned on to what a number of Scancem's critics say is a practise that effectively amounts to grand larceny, all these years? Perhaps if some of the well-paid mercenaries in the media, who have more or less sold their conscience, stood for the truth, instead of sitting down to scheme with our ruthless oligarchs, to hide the truth about what is going on in our homeland Ghana today, companies like Scancem, would think twice about blatantly engaging in what is actually a crime: bribing public officials.

There are many observers, dear reader, who say that the incestuous deals, in which Scancem apparently purchases clinker from its own subsidiary companies, instead of developing the substantial deposits of suitable raw materials found in parts of our country, as a substitute for imported clinker, is a clever scheme, solely designed to enable the company to continue syphoning vast sums from Ghana ’s foreign currency reserves. Scancem's critics also claim that the subsidiaries from which the clinker is purchased from, persistently over-invoice its Tema operation and that it has got away with that sharp practice over the years, because those who were supposed to protect Ghana from this predatory Norwegian company, had all been bought off - effectively enabling the company to legally bleed Ghana dry.


Those payments, were clearly to ensure that the officials concerned, would close their eyes to what its critics say, has been Scancem's shameful rip-off, of the Ghanaian nation-state.
There are many observers, dear reader, who say that the incestuous deals, in which Scancem apparently purchases clinker from its own subsidiary companies, instead of developing the substantial deposits of suitable raw materials found in parts of our country, as a substitute for imported clinker, is a clever scheme, solely designed to enable the company to continue syphoning vast sums from Ghana ’s foreign currency reserves.

Ghanaians cannot understand why, for example, none of the parties in opposition have come out to condemn Scancem - and served notice, that when they come to power, they will re-nationalise all state enterprises that were acquired fraudulently, no matter how many years ago the event took place.

And the irony in all this, dear reader, is that if the media had looked in the direction of the very organisation that now spoonfeeds the mercenaries amongst them so copiously, when the story first broke, and nudged it to approach its counterpart, the Norwegian secret service, for the list of names of the public officials from Ghana, who were paid from the Scancem slush fund, no journalist would have had to travel all the way to Oslo, to suffer the indignities, which Africans in the West have to put up with, on a daily basis, as a result of the rascist nature of Western societies.



It is such a pity that influencial and important journalists from Nkrumah's Ghana, were treated so shabbily in their quest for the truth. And it is also a pity that they themselves too, never thought of asking Ghana's secret services (a collective that seldom thinks outside the box, itself!) to contact their colleagues in the CIA and MI6, as the two organisations would have obtained the information from the Norwegian secret services in no time at all - and we would all have been saved the agony of having to watch the embarrassing farce called "Oslo Quest". And two of our most seasoned journalists would have spared themselves the trouble of travelling all the way to far-away Oslo, just to cool their heels, and ending up literally throwing good money away and watch it disappearing into the ether, in the process.

The importance of the Scancem scandal, is that it has created an awareness amongst ordinary people, that our rulers are busy disposing of our nation's assets (built with the blood, sweat and tears of ordinary Ghanaians), not for the spurious reasons they advance to justify the unjustifiable, but only because they profit mightily from handing over Ghana's assets to crooked foreigners in league with our greedy and ruthless oligarchs - and this shameful practise, which did not start today, has now come full circle: it was the political progeny of that paid agent of the CIA, Dr. J.B. Danquah, the regime of Dr. K.A.Busia, which began the process, after the overthrow of Nkrumah. The present crowd of stooges for neo-colonialsm are only taking up, from where yesterday's crop of stooges for neo-colonialism, left off, in 1972.

It is the "kick-backs" (a particularly high yielding "Anansekrom" financial instrument - if a certain verbose ex-NPP chairperson is to be believed!) derived from selling Ghana's assets to sundry rogues, which was the motivating factor, in the refusal of the the regime currently in power, to consider inviting that ethical and principled British tycoon, Sir Richard Branson, to take over Ghana Airways, when many of us suggested it - as a better alternative, to the opaque transaction, in which offshore entities, some structured like a Russian doll, and non of which was an existing established scheduled airline, were working feverishly, to be allowed to replace the defunct Ghana Airways, as the national flag carrier (an incredible situation that only an "Anansekrom nation's" government, would ever confront - and today we are all seeing the result: after the crooks behind it have all obtained their kickbacks!).

The highly principled Branson, dear reader, is famous for not paying or recieving bribes, in all the countries he invests in. And the result is that today, the Nigerians have a well-run and profitable national carrier, Virgin Nigeria, whiles Ghanaians are saddled with a national flag carrier, Ghana International Airines, that is worse than even its notorious predecessor - and does not even have a single aircraft of its own! No matter how long today's ruling party stays in power for, all those of its members, who have taken part in the gang rape of mother Ghana, will pay for it one fine day, for sure. For, the Ghana of today, is not the kind of nation any sly politician can take advantage of, and get away with, permanently.
Hmm, Ghana. Asem ebeba debi. May God bless and protect our homeland Ghana always. Long live freedom! Long live Ghana! Kofi Thompson can be reached by email at: peakofithompson@yahoo.co.uk and by SMS text message on: 027 745 3109.

J.H.MENSAH'S ADB SOPHISTRY!

On 17th August 2007, the Ghana News Agency (GNA) reported what it said were the views of Mr. J.H. Mensah, on the future of the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB). Mr. J.H. Mensah, is without question, dear reader, a brilliant intellect. And it is precisely that fact, which makes one wonder, exactly what his motives are, for making the kinds of curious "Kweku Ananse" arguments he puts forward, in his attempt to justify the unjustifiable outrage, which the regime over which he still has some considerable influence, is apparently so determined to commit. The trouble about some of our rulers, dear reader, is that they seem to think that ordinary people can never see through them - yet, they are just so transparent!

Was it not this same regime, that insisted that it would not interfere in the takeover (the so-called "merger") of the defunct Ashanti Goldfields - because it was the prerogative of the company's management, not government, in their view, to decide the future course of that company? So why is Mr. Mensah now busy poking his nose into the affairs of ADB - and seeking to decide its future, so blatantly, by "remote control"? Presumably, dear reader, Mr Mensah did have (we hope!) a blind trust to take care of his investments (one wonders whether his famous Adumase Farms still exists!), when he was a government minister, in order to prevent possible conflict of interest situations, from arising. Did the existence of his own blind trust (if such an entity did actually exist,i.e.), mean that he was running his businesses, if any, on a day to day basis, whiles he was a government minister?

So why does he say the Bank of Ghana, because it is a regulator and has a stake in it, ought to get rid of its ADB shares, to prevent a possible conflict of interest situation arising - when those shares are lodged in a blind trust? Does the Bank of Ghana run the day to day affairs of ADB? Or are Mr. Mensah and his crowd, now somehow trying to tell Ghanaians, that fifty years after our independence, the destiny of our country is apparently in the self-serving hands of the World Bank - and so our nation must obey its neo-colonialist strictures, willy nilly? What incredible nonsense on bamboo stilts! It is not for the World Bank to tell our nation what to do with an ADB, some of whose shares, although held by the Bank of Ghana, are in the hands of a blind trust, set up by the Bank of Ghana: precisely in order to prevent possible conflict of interest situations, from ever arising. Period.

Mr. Mensah and his crowd are going about the business of being stooges for neo-colonialism, just a little too enthusiastically, for the liking of some of Ghanaians - and as the rulers of a free people, they are simply going far too far, now. And it is time they understood, that life in an African democracy, does not mean that once you are elected to power, you can do pretty much as you please, regardless. This nation, surprising though it might be to Mr. Mensah and his crowd, is not some feudal basket-case, in which our rulers are unaccountable demi-gods. The ruthless and greedy oligarchs amongst those who currently rule Ghana, dear reader, must understand that they are just mere tenants of the Ghanaian masses, at the Osu Castle, with a full repair lease (to paraphrase the former British Prime Minister, Baroness Thatcher!), which will end in January 2009: without further renewal of that lease, by the good people of Ghana.

And if they continue to insist on acting with such blatant impunity, they must not be surprised, to wake up one fine day, to discover that out of the Ghanaian masses, has suddenly arisen a new political movement, born out of the frustration of the masses, which then decides to run for office, on a political platform, that seeks an end, through constitutional means, of the 4th Republic - and the setting up of a new 5th Republic: complete with a new constitution, which adheres strictly to the constitutional principle of separation of powers; and in which government ministers will consequently not be members of the legislature; and in which the judiciary and the legislature, are both funded from the consolidated fund, out of the hands of a sly and manipulative executive, such as the one we are currently lumbered with. Ghanaians will then consign the era of the 4th Republic, with all its dreadful baggage, mostly of unparallelled greed and hypocrisy, to the dung heap of history, permanently. Period.

And both Mr. Mensah and his crowd, which is jam-packed with the progeny, of our corrupt and arbitrary feudal elite, of the dreadful slave-owning societies, of the pre-colonial era; as well as the I-cannot-really-make-up-my-mind-precisely-what-I-stand-for, and the constantly ground-shifting ("Kotoka is a hero"), hero of June 4th 1979; his crowd of cruel and unfeeling erstwhile jackboots, and brutish myrmidons, will all be swept away from our political landscape, for good. Period. Why, is the highly knowledgeable Mr. Mensah, not aware, of the plethora of financial institutions existing in the West, which exist solely to ensure that the agricultural sector of the economies of the Western nations, never fall into the hands of outsiders, in any shape or form, and under any circumstances: and are consequently insulated from market forces - so that food security, a strategic national security objective (for sensible nations with foresight, i.e.), is always assured?

Has the World Bank ever ventured to tell the US government and the other governments in the West, to 're-organise' those financial institutions - so that they will become "more attractive" to foreign commercial entities: and their local lackeys, who think of nothing but money, 24/7? How do we know, dear reader, that the use of words and phrases such as 're-organise' and "to make it attractive", by the erudite Mr. Mensah, is not simply code for a cashless-takeover, in which ADB is delivered to foreigners and their Ghanaian collaborators, on a silver platter, without Ghana as much as seeing even a pesewa of cash - whiles the greedy hypocrites amongst those now running Nkrumah's Ghana, get paid massive "kickbacks" in hard currency? Is that not the modus operandi of the Scancems of this world: of which there happen to be far too many on the continent of Africa, including mother Ghana?

Mr. Mensah and his crowd must not think Christmas has come early for them this year. Does Mr. Mensah not know that many ordinary Ghanaians are aware that an item of expense, totalling a hefty 500,000 pounds sterling, was rejected for payment, by the board of AngloGold at a meeting in London, not too long after the takeover of Ashanti Goldfields (the so-called merger!)? Does he think Ghanaians will stomach a smoke and mirrors share-swap deal, just to make ADB "more attractive" for greed-consumed foreigners? And what will Mr. Mensah's reply be, to the cynics amongst us, who say that perhaps some of the politicians in the pockets of our high net worth oligarchs, are rather hoping that the same item of expense, will appear in the books of the entity, on whose behalf they are working so feverishly, night and day, to engineer the "re-organisation" of ADB, for? Could the cynics also be right, in claiming that the drivers of what they describe as a self-serving deal, are driven solely by dreams of massive "kickbacks" - and that our greedy high net worth oligarchs, are mightily pleased that in this particular case, no such busy-body board of directors apparently exists: it being packed with men and women , who are pretty wise, in the ways of this world?

Well, it may come as a surprise, to the well-heeled hypocrites, amongst those who currently rule our homeland Ghana (who mostly seem to think we are all envious of them, when we criticise them openly - forgetting, irritatingly, that many Ganaians live by the simple credo: "A good name is better than riches"!); but the Ghana of today, is most definitely not the kind of society, in which the ruling elite, can get away with such impunity, permanently. They must understand that there will be consequences, for the individuals, whose unfathomable greed, seems to be driving most of the disposal of state assets, today, one fine day for sure. December 2008, is just round the corner - and the J.H.Mensahs will get their comeuppance then. His contemptuous dismissal of the money ADB makes from the Western Union franchise, speaks volumes about the hypocritical nature of some of the members of the regime in power today. Many members of the current regime, never tire of linking the increases in remittances from Ghanaians abroad (which they think is somehow a barometer of the confidence, which Ghanaians abroad have, in the nation, which is currently so firmly, under their collective thumb), to what they claim is the NPP's good stewardship, of the national economy.

Yet the highly intelligent Mr. Mensah, uses contemptuous language to dismiss the service, which ADB had the vision to pioneer, and has facilitated greatly, the remittance of money by Ghanaians abroad - and has ensured that many families, in the hell-hole that is the Ghana run by Mr. Mensah's crowd, do not starve. One would think he would at least show some gratitude to ADB, by not dismissing the Western Union franchise, so arrogantly. And when Mensah talks so glibly about 're-organisation' of ADB, dear reader, what precisely does he mean? Since he is so contemptuous of the "new-fangled trade in money transfer", are the cynics amongst us, dear reader, to assume, that as sure as night follows day, there will be unbundling when that 're-organisation' takes place - and that the extremely profitable franchise, which makes the "new-fangled trade in money transfer" possible, will find its way into the investment portfolios, of their favourites, amongst Ghana's greedy and ruthless high net worth oligarchs?

The highly intelligent Mr. Mensah is also quoted as saying that : "... need for agricultural transformation was the sole purpose for establishing the ADB with state resources". He apparently also went on to add: "And indeed, most of those resources were being contributed by these same farmers and self-employed entrepreneurs: so it was also a matter of equity to extend to them the benefits of the nation's financial system." One wonders, dear reader, whether it has ever occurred to Mr. Mensah and his crowd, that the real question to address in the matter of "equity" (which will actually ensure that the "benefits of the nation's financial system" is extended to farmers and self-employed entrepreneurs!), is to undertake far-reaching land reform in Ghana, so that land, currently held in trust for their people, by traditional rulers (many of whom are simply selling parcels of such land and pocketing the proceeds), will be nationalised, and redistributed to, amongst other sections of society, landless tenant farmers and small entrepreneurs - who make up the bulk of our population?

Fortunately for Mr. Mensah and his crowd, many Ghanaians, including even the cynical ones, will then immediately start believing that the NPP actually means it, when it says it wants to make Ghana a property-owning democracy, whenever such land reform takes place. The bind for them, is that currently, the impression most Ghanaians have, is that about the only ones actually acquiring properties in today's property-owning Ghanaian democracy, are: some of those who rule our homeland Ghana; their sons and daughters; and the most ruthless of Ghana's greedy high net worth oligarchs. Hmm, Ghana. Asem ebaba debi. May God bless and protect our homeland Ghana always. Long live freedom! Long live Ghana! Kofi Thompson can be reached by email at: peakofithompson@yahoo.co.uk and by SMS text message on: (027) 745 3109

WHY STOOGES FOR NEO-COLONIALISM HATE NKRUMAH!

It was a piece of extreme good fortune for the ordinary people of the Gold Coast, that as a result of a recommendation made to his colleagues by Mr. Ako Adjei, the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), paid for Dr. Kwame Nkrumah's passage back from the UK, to the Gold Coast - and employed him as its general secretary, upon his return. For, if the ruling elite of the traditional societies of the pre-colonial era, had had the slightest inkling, that Nkrumah was an egalitarian, who would end up demanding for a post-colonial multi-party democracy, which was based on universal adult suffrage, they would never have countenanced his return (on 16th December 1947 ) to the Gold Coast, under any circumstances.

The intention of those quislings of old, who held sway then, and were forever toadying to the British colonialists (as do their political progeny today, to Ghana's sly and ruthless neo-colonial exploiters - and with such annoying enthusiasm too, one should add!), was to step directly into the shoes of the British colonialists, whenever those super exploiters deigned it fit to depart from the shores of the Gold Coast. To that end, they devised a devious plan, which, had they succeeded in implementing, would have enabled them to permanently enslave the ordinary people of the Gold Coast, after the departure of the colonialists.

Their ultimate goal, in negotiating the transfer of power from the British colonialists, was to regain as much of the absolute power, which their predecessors had wielded, before the smooth-talking British colonialists outwitted them, and succeeded in imposing colonial rule, on what had more or less been the personal feudal fiefdoms, of those predecessors of theirs. Their dream, was that they would become the permanent ruling elite, and lord it over the ordinary people of the new federal nation, which they hoped they would succeed in replacing the colonial state of the Gold Coast, with.

And the instrument of permanent control, which they hoped to make that dream a reality, was to ensure that voting was restricted to property owners and wage earners - effectively disenfranchising a vast majority of ordinary people. And that, dear reader, is the origin, of that much-favoured phrase of today's hypocrites: "property-owning democracy" - bandied about so often by them, to hoodwink the innocents abroad, in our midst!Had they succeeded in their aim, of establishing their property-owning democracy then, dear reader, the course of our history, would have been so different.

And instead of the united African nation-state of today, in which virtually every extended family has, through either marriage or blood ties, a relation from at least three or four of the various ethnic groups in Ghana, in it, we would be in a situation, where periodically, we would experience the horrific pogroms of the kind that erupted in Rwanda almost a decade ago - as the ethnic majority in the various ethnically-based states in the federation, embarked on ethnic-cleansing of the "foreigners" in their midst - to purify their society and cleanse it of "filthy foreigners." Their disdain for "outsiders" was the reason Danquah disparaged Nkrumah's regime by saying it had "Ntafuo" in it - whiles Busia, not to be outdone, at a point in time, said some of Nkrumah's ministers, would not be fit to be even messengers, in a regime run by him!

And as a foretaste of things to come, had Nkrumah not appeared on the scene, dear reader: For years, Dr. Danquah and his half-brothers Nana Ofori-Atta 1 and his successor Nana Ofori-Atta11, terrorised the Krobos; Akwapims; Northerners; Ga; Juaben; Ewe; and Kwahus, who had long been settled in Akim Abuakwa: forever issuing arbitrary edicts of one kind or the other - even though, as the Akyem saying has it: " Abuakwa ebetwuu Akyem" (meaning, dear reader, that: "the Abuakwa's met us - Akyems - here, when they first set foot on Akyem soil"). Amazingly for a man whose political progeny would have ordinary Ghanaians believe, was a true democrat, Danquah, together with Nana Ofori-Atta11, warned, at a meeting of the Akyem Abuakwa State Council, on the 1st of September 1955, that heirs to traditional stools, and members of Ofori Panyin Fie, would be viewed as committing high treason against Akim Abuawka, if they supported the Convention Peoples Party!

And upon pain of destoolment, if they did not support Dr. Danquah and the National Liberation Movement (NLM) in the forthcoming elections, the 140 traditional rulers in Akim Abuakwa, were made to swear the great oath of Akim Abuakwa, and ordered to vote for Dr. Danquah and the NLM. However, seeing an opportunity to finally put a nail in the coffin of feudalism, and bury it for good, ordinary people throughout the Gold Coast (including ordinary Akyems and Abuakwas - who voted in favour of Kofi Asante Oforo-Atta: and against the elitist and autocratic Danquah!), voted massively for the CPP, in the ensuing general election of 1956.

The defeated elitist cabal that wanted to deny ordinary people the vote, never forgave Nkrumah for handing down such a crushing defeat to them - and ridding our country of the miasma that their feudalistic ambitions represented, at the
time.It is not therefore surprising, that today, some of the political descendants of Danquah, who, like their political forebears before them, have a world-view and mindset, which neither sees nor comprehends, life, beyond the ramparts of the bastions of tribalism (significantly, about the only thing, which they have been successful in rebuilding, in the period of time they have been in power for, thus far! ), simply cannot resist the opportunity to belittle the achievements of a man, universally regarded as a true African hero and visionary, and one of the towering figures of the 20th century, whenever it presents itself to them.

Yet, Nkrumah dwarfed all his contemporaries - and is regarded throughout the world as a colossus of history!And the irony was lost on discerning Ghanaians, who listened to the philistines amongst our current rulers, pouring insults on Nkrumah, at the ceremony, held to mark the start of the Bui Dam project, that had the man whom they were insulting (and who spent huge amounts of money during his tenure, to create a truly world class scientific community, in Ghana), been alive today, he would, based on the advice of Ghana's scientists, never have made the grave error of judgement, of choosing to build a hydroelectric dam, at a time of climate change!

And today, these little minds, because our country has become a nation that worships at the cult of the mediocre, now fancy themselves as Nkrumah's equals - just because they are lucky to occupy a position once held by him: forgetting that Nkrumah's equal has not yet been born. How can politicians who cannot even understand that climate change has rendered hydro-power generation plants, which utilises dams for the generation of electric power, as inefficient models of the business of power generation, compare themselves to Nkrumah?

A Spanish power company, dear reader, recently handed over a 1,250 MW thermal plant that utilises gas, to the Mexican government. It was built at a cost of US$400 million, for a nation, which has installed power generation capacity of over 50,000MW! And yet politicians, who caught the wanderlust bug from their predecessors, just shortly after assuming power in January 2001 (and appear not to have succeeded in shaking it off, yet!), are crowing about building a hydroelectric dam, which will seldom be able to produce at full capacity during its lifespan, because of the effects of climate change on weather patterns today, and which is going to cost the hapless Ghanaian taxpayer, some 620 US$ million- and are happy to tell the ordinary people, whose taxes pay for their favourite pastime, of frequently venturing into foreign parts (as leaders of the world's leading superpower in begging-bowl diplomacy!), that their travels around the planet Earth, do indeed yield results. Incredible!

Well, let them continue to insult Nkrumah, dear reader, instead of thinking outside the box: and using their imagination to solve the myriad of problems, which continue to bedevil ordinary Ghanaians - who, doubtless, will turf them out of office very soon, in December 2008. Like their predecessors before them, they too, are on the wrong side of history. The man who they love to heap insults on at every opportunity they get, will be remembered by future generations of Ghanaians and Africans till the very end of time - long after they and their political forebears, have sunk into oblivion, and been forgotten. Period. Hmm, Ghana. Asem ebaba debi! May God bless and protect our homeland Ghana always. Long live Ghana! Long live freedom! Long live Nkrumah! Kofi Thompson can be reached by email at: peakofithompson@yahoo.co.uk and by text message on: + 233 27 745 3109.

KWAME NKRUMAH'S EQUAL HAS NOT YET BEEN BORN!

Mrs Aboshie Sai Cofie, is reported to have recently said, that her (lame-duck) lord and master, was stating historical facts, in saying that it took Nkrumah 16 years "long" years, to source funds to build the Akosombo Dam. If Mrs. Oboshie Sai Cofie and the praise-singing hypocrites who surround her crowd, are going to make reference to history, then let them read the declassified CIA documents, which so clearly reveal the conspiracy by the imperialists (actively backed by their own political forebears - yesteryear's quislings: who ended up as well-paid CIA agents), to thwart Nkrumah's efforts at developing Ghana. For, it is only then, that we can all put the historical facts of Nkrumah's achievements, in their proper context.

The luck which today's haters of Nkrumah have had, is that although in all the years they were in the political wilderness for, they did not have a clue (because of the Albatross of our huge external debt, then), as to how they would ever fund the building of projects like Bui, China blossomed into an economic giant, desperate for raw materials, at just the right time for them - and is happy to spend money to acquire "most favoured nation" status, amongst clueless African leaders, ever keen to discover the easy way out, of every difficult situation: and forever sacrificing the long-term national interest, on the alter of short-term political expediency! And today, a nation that did not previously figure in their thought processes, has saved the bacon of politicians, who firmly believed, at a point in time, incredibly, that somehow, they could source money for Ghana's development, from hairdressing salons, in the backstreets, of some of the more seedier parts, of London.

And if such people think they are Nkrumah's equal, why should any patriotic and nationalistic Ghanaian not be outraged, I ask, dear reader?And why are we livid, dear reader? Nkrumah was a highly principled man, who, for example, would never have entertained self-seeking female carpetbaggers, like Gizzelle Yadzi or Julia Cotton. One walked away from our shores with 20 million US dollars of Ghana's money, and the other was purposefully given the title "special adviser" to Ghana's minister of finance, to give her "credibility" in the Middle East, in the hope that she would 'dribble' oil sheiks with her charms, in a part of the world, famous for its mouth-watering "kickbacks"; take her share, and hand over the rest to the "kickback specialists" - to buy hotels with, presumably.

The idea that politicians whose regimes were taken in by such female rogues, think they are equals of Nkrumah, is an insult to his memory - and some of us do not take kindly to that, in the slightest. It is time our leaders understood that not all Ghana's journalists are clueless or hungry for money: so some of us will continue to speak our minds freely - and it is of no consequence to us, whose ox is gored, in the process. For, we fear no evil - and are thus prepared to die for mother Ghana. Period. According to the Daily Guide (Thursday, 30th August-7th September 2007 edition), Mrs. Oboshie Sai Cofie also said: "For anybody, or group of persons to misconstrue the narration of those historical facts as a slight of (the) achievements of Dr. Nkrumah, could only be borne out of malice and mischief."

If the Daily Guide has quoted Mrs. Cofie accurately, then perhaps one ought to ask her, exactly what is malicious and mischievous, about patriotic and nationalistic Ghanaians, being irritated by politicians, who pretend, that somehow, it is yesterday's self-serving colonialists, whom we must thank, for the Akosombos and Buis? Reference to Governor Guggisberg, in case the well-spoken Mrs. Cofie is not au fait with the code language adopted by those in her crowd, who are determined to rewrite the history of our country, is simply a clever psychological device, intended to make ordinary people overlook the true significance, of Nkrumah's pivotal role, in the building of the modern African nation-state, called Ghana - which she and her crowd are busy turning into a hellish 21st century African version, of 19th century American capitalism, which was dominated by the infamous "robber barons", of old.

This was a period in America's history, dear reader, chronicled so well in the novel ,"The Jungle", by Upton Sinclair: which painted a grim portrait, of man's inhumanity to man, in the hellish milieu, of working class existence, in the slums of 19th century America. There men struggled to earn a precarious living, working (slaving, would probably be a more appropriate word, dear reader) in the Chicago meat-packing industry. It was an industry, in which human beings, were regularly exploited and dumped, like used rags, when they were no longer useful, to the wealthy and callous tycoons (the "robber barons"), who owned the meat-packing factories. Life then, for many of the immigrants, who worked in the industry, was nasty, short and brutish.

The message of this protest novel, is one that will resonate well, amongst most of Ghana's urban poor, were they to read it - especially the Kayayei of the many Agbogbloshi markets of urban Ghana: for, they would recognise the many similarities between the lives of the characters in the novel, and that of their own daily struggles to survive, in the hell-hole, that is the property-owning democracy of the Oboshie Sai Cofies, and their well-heeled and well-connected crowd.Our version of the robber barons of old, are today busy handing over Ghana's assets, built with the blood, sweat and tears of ordinary people, to greedy foreigners and their local lackeys - who know a good thing, when they see one. And we all know how the Scancems of this world, operate in Africa, do we not, dear reader? Do they not buy politicians all over Africa, to take over lucrative state-owned businesses, bled dry, by the incompetent front-men and women, of Africa's political elite?

Are there not some powerful people in Ghana today, for example, dear reader, who are said to have an eye on Intercity STC, and who apparently drool at the mouth, when they dream of the asset-stripping that will take place, when they finally succeed in finding a "strategic investor" (code for foreigners fronting for our greedy high net worth oligarchs!), to buy it - having made sure, in the meantime, that few members of the travelling public, who have used their services, have a good word to say about STC (a company that was once a by-word for reliability and safety, amongst the travelling public in Nkrumah's Ghana): and are consequently, unlikely to raise their voices in protest, when the day of reckoning comes, for the hapless workers of Intercity STC!

Let today's stooges for neo-colonialism understand clearly, that if China had become the economic giant it is today, in Nkrumah's time, Nkrumah would have had unlimited funds to turn Ghana, into a developed and prosperous nation (in which all the citizens, not just a wealthy, well-connected and powerful few, had a good quality of life), during his tenure - and we would be permanently free, of the many neo-colonialist predators, whom Mrs. Oboshie Sai Cofie's crowd, are eagerly helping, to gang-rape mother Ghana: by the political equivalent of pinning her down and spreading her legs!
Let her take a look around the filthy streets of Accra and the other urban areas in Ghana, and see how their warped philosophy of "each one for himself, and God for us all", has created a nation of lawless and selfish individuals, concerned only with their selfish concerns - typified by the large army of scrap metal "truck-pushers" (that has suddenly sprung up), who have turned pavements in urban Ghana, constructed at great expense to taxpayers, and designed to ensure the safety of pedestrians, in what is a nation with one of the highest vehicle accident rates in the whole wide world, into thriving scrap metal exchanges: where they buy and sell scrap metal, with impunity and total disregard, for city bye-laws; total contempt of pedestrians' right to use those pavements; and, on a daily basis, create environmental hazards, which constantly endanger the health, of law-abiding citizens, going about their lawful business!

And they are all getting away with their impunity, because scores of public officials across the land, taking their cue from those at the top, have put our nation on "auto-pilot", and are busy feathering their own nests, instead of building our homeland Ghana - work they are paid to do on mother Ghana's behalf. No civilised nation, has ever been built on a foundation of selfishness. And that is why a people who have such a total disregard for the laws and regulations, designed, to ensure the creation, continued existence and survival, of a civilised society, will never succeed in building a prosperous society - one in which the built-up public space, for example, is clean, well-maintained, safe and secure. In that sense, the regime, of which the well-spoken and cultured Mrs. Oboshie Sai Cofie, is apparently a much-favoured member, and such an eloquent apologist for, is the worst regime, which we have ever had the misfortune, of electing into office, in Ghana! And we must rid ourselves of it in December 2008. Period.

We have politicians, presiding over a nation, which cannot even deal with the relatively simple task, of the safe and efficient disposal of industrial and household waste, who can be so careless, that they are happy to sanction the building of a nuclear energy plant, waste from which, even the most advanced nations on earth, have not found a fool-proof and safe method of storage, for (and which will remain radioactive, and therefore dangerous, for thousands of years).

And these same politicians, in an era of global climate change, when the rest of humankind is actively seeking green solutions, to power generation, have, incredibly, apparently, also approved the building of a coal-fired power station in Ghana - no doubt, because it is politically expedient for them, to risk creating a terrible long-term human and environmental catastrophe of Apocalyptic proportions - unacceptable and callous cynicism, in both instances, which will deny coming generations of Ghanaians the possibility of a good quality of life, which is also sustainable: and lumber them with a permanent and dangerous environmental hazard, till the end of time, literally.

And we are seeing this irresponsible style of leadership, dear reader, simply because those future generations are not voters who could threaten the hold on power, of the cynics in power today.With respect, such politicians, are too ignorant for words - and must never ever think of comparing themselves to Nkrumah. In Nkrumah's time, humankind thought nuclear energy was a safe and limitless source of energy - and no one thought about the dangers of nuclear waste. Had he been in power today, Nkrumah would be decommissioning any nuclear plant he had built in the 1960's - not seeking to build more of them.

Do Mrs. Oboshie Sai Cofie and her crowd, not know, that in spite of the determination of the Western powers (who their political forebears actively colluded with to ruin Ghana's economy at the time) to frustrate him, Nkrumah succeeded in building a modern African nation-state, from scratch? How can such clueless politicians, who constantly look to self-serving foreigners to build Ghana, think they are Nkrumah's equals? How can politicians, who do not even understand, that in a nation of diverse ethnicity, it is dangerous to play favouritism with a particular set of traditional rulers, whiles treating the others with contempt - and that such an attitude is a recipe for future possible disaster, ever dream of being Nkrumah's equals?

Can you imagine a scenario, dear reader, for example, in which security service personnel, in today's Ghana, are detailed to protect any one, bulldozing a property, claimed by the favourite traditional rulers of some of our leaders, in a part of Ghana, which, according to the German DW-TV, is a sovereign state within Ghana (and the narrator of the programme ventured derisively, to make the analogy to viewers, that it was akin to a situation in which there was a sovereign Prussian kingdom within the modern federal Germany nation-state - and that it could only happen in Africa: where the visiting German president, had had to apparently suffer the indignity, in terms of protocol, of having to pay his respects, to this 'sovereign' feudal personage!)?

Yet not too long ago, a property occupied by the traditional ruler of Osu, along Accra's Independence Avenue, was bulldozed by a party protected by security service personnel! What, dear reader, is the difference between the claims of the Osu traditional ruler, whose predecessors gave it to Nkrumah's regime, and the lease for which has expired - and should therefore revert to the traditional ruler of Osu - and the claims of the favourite traditional rulers of some of our elected leaders - who are busy selling government-owned land in their part of Ghana, illegally?

Incidentally, dear reader, I have fond memories of that part of Accra. For, I lived there, as an eleven-year old boy, growing up, and attending boarding school, at Prempeh College.Today, that land, on which our home was situated, and on which I played many a prank, on the children of our French neighbour's, whose parents worked for the defunct SCOA, is now occupied by the Mormons - who now own it and have their temple and headquarters buildings, on it. So as you can see, dear reader, I learnt the devious ways of foreign carpetbaggers very early on, in my life. But I digress!

Do our leaders not understand, that Chiefs in a nation of ethnic diversity like ours, must never be encouraged to court political influence: for, the significance of traditional rulers, does not lie in the realm of politics. Indeed, their importance to society, lies in the fact, that they ought to serve as repositories and custodians, of the best aspects of our traditional way of life. Our elected leaders must rather encourage Chiefs (who, to be frank, are an anachronism, in any modern and progressive society), to become agents of change - and help rid our society, of the worst aspects, of our traditional way of life. Civilised people elect their rulers - and Ghana's traditional rulers (surprising though it might be to those of them with overweening political ambitions), were most definitely not born, with a Divine right, to rule over the citizens, of the Republic of Ghana. Period.

With respect, today's politicians (including the hero of June 4th 1979 - who, incredibly, apparently now thinks the traitor Kotoka, is a hero!) must never compare themselves to Nkrumah. Period Have we not sunk from being a nation in which water regularly flowed through taps in the homes of many ordinary Ghanaians; and in which the brightest children, from even the poorest families in the smallest hamlets, could attend universities and become doctors, lawyers, accountants , nurses, teachers etc.etc., if they had the aptitude to learn to tertiary level; to become a hell-hole, in which treated water, seldom flows through taps, in some of the kitchens in homes in some of the poshest residential areas in urban Ghana; and in which it is mostly the children of wealthy people, who can afford to get a university education (speaking of which, can you imagine, dear reader, what the hero of June 4th 1979, would have said and done to the Archeampongs and Afrifas, if they had had the temerity to tell the ARFC, that their wards' expensive education in the UK and Ireland, were being paid for, by "friends", of theirs?). Are we not frequently forced to sleep in darkness most nights now, dear reader? Ah, adeni, mu enferi adie, anaa? May God bless and protect our homeland Ghana always. Long live Ghana! Long live freedom! Kofi Thompson can be reached by email at: peakofithompson@yahoo.co.uk and by SMS text message on: (027) 745 3109.