Opinions of Tuesday, 22 April 2008
Columnist: Oto, Kwadjo
Prof. John Evans Fiifi Mills, the two times defeated NDC Presidential candidate and the 2008 flagbearer of the party, has over the years been epitomised as the citadel of peace which has led to his self acclaimed accolade “Asomdwe Hene- King of Peace.” But Professor’s recent utterances and actions have sharply contrasted that self acclaimed assertion.
In the round up to the nomination of Hon. John Mahama as Prof. Mills’ running mate, it was reported that, the NDC’s glorified hooligan, Sofo Azorka, and his ‘killer’ boys descended heavily as well as inflicting pains on some NDC supporters in the Northern Region for not supporting their candidate for the party’s running mate. This same Azorka also demolished some constituency properties and the worse of it all, defaced Prof. Mills’ billboard with dirty oil.
Shortly after that incident, Prof. Mills invited this hoodlum called Azorka into a meeting to confer with him as to who should be his running mate, or as it were, to plead with him to accept his choice of running mate. It was these same Azorka boys who whipped Miss Frances Asiam at Koforidua with horse tail; terrorised Mr. Obed Asamoah and made him glued to his seat for more than 12 hours without access to even urinal. Instead of Prof. Mills as the leader of the NDC reprimanding this Azorka man, he, if you like, rewarded him by calling him to a high powered meeting. What for Professor? Was it for defacing the Professor’s own picture, thrashing Miss Frances Asiam, razing party office and terrorising some party supporters? Was the invitation not approval of hooliganism and terrorism by Prof. Mills? How can Prof. Mills then call himself “Asomdwe Hene”?
Is Prof. Mills saying that, in the unlikely event that he becomes President of Ghana, if Azorka and his boys threaten mayhem, he is going to invite Azorka into cabinet meetings before he can take those decisions? Good people of Ghana, can you imagine the kind of presidency we will be having, if the President will have to discuss with thugs and hoodlums before coming out with his decisions?
In any case, what has Prof. Mills done to be called “Asomdwe Hene” by the NDC? Busumuru Kofi Anan, the former UN Secretary-General, was awarded Nobel Peace Prize Award for his contributions towards conflicts in some war zones and he has since been known as such. So what did Prof. Mills do for the NDC to impose him on us as a man of peace? Some will say he conceded defeat at the last election which prevented a blood bath. This is infantile. The NDC polling agents signed Polling Station results as well as the representatives in the Electoral Commission’s strong room before President Kufuor was declared winner. The NDC and Prof. Mills had no choice but to concede defeat. They should forget about those cheap political jargons because they won’t work. In any case, base on what percentage was the NDC going to declare itself winners of the last election as they used to say? The 43.8% or what?
Do you remember Prof. Mills’ comment on the bloated register and the Kenya issue? Do you also remember what happened at New Fadama, a suburb in Accra, when both NDC and NPP paid a courtesy call on the Chief Imam, Sheikh Usmanu Nuhu Sharubutu at his residence? Let’s even admit that the NPP eared for parking their cars in the middle of the road, the least one could heave expected from somebody who called himself “Asomdwe Hene”, was to call on his supporters, as a matter of peace, to use the alternative route. But Prof. Mills looked on when the NDC supporters attacked the supporters of NPP and even hooted at the NPP flagbearer. Was that a sign of somebody who wants us to believe that he is a man of peace?
Until Prof. Mills tells us what he did to merit that self imposed accolade “Asomdwe Hene- King of Peace”, the NDC and the Professor should forget about that title. And if it is for votes, then they should put it out of their mind because it won’t work. Prof. Mills should stop behaving like the biblical Pharisees, who preached one thing but do otherwise. I believe the Professor is more of a war beater than a man of peace. Feature page