How much should an engineer know about platonic philosophy?

Feature Article: Dr. T.P. Manus Ulzen

I cannot but stop and wonder how many residents of Sarbah Hall at the University of Ghana, know anything about the man for whom the Hall of residence was named. In all our discussions, we have lost the continuity of our national history. This discontinuity results in fragmented plans for the future because without knowledge of the true beginnings of the struggle for freedom the quest to preserve and nourish it is poorly informed.

In 1910, the leading paper of the time, “The Gold Coast Leader” described John Mensah Sarbah, the first qualified Gold Coast barrister:

“ His natural reticence and reserve; his unobtrusiveness and quiet demeanour; his studied aloofness from society and social convivialities; his proverbial antipathy to demonstration, pomp and show, and commendable habit of not letting his left hand know what his right hand doeth; his work, his worth, his strenuous services at critical moments – all these are public property…”

“As a lawyer of more than twenty years’ standing, we know of no widows, or indigent and impotent folk whom he has ever entrapped with ingenuity, cleverness and artfulness. He has had no sordid commerce with the technicalities of the law or the sophisms of Pettifoggers. He has broken no hearts, wrecked no homes, nor raised himself upon the debris of lost reputations and crushed ambitions. He is no bland and subtle schemer, ready and eager to play upon the folly and ignorance of the unsophisticated bucolics and innocent clientele. He has forged his way ahead and built up a lucrative practice through honesty, sincerity and assiduity in the discharge of his responsibilities and obligations.”

His celebrated work “Fanti National Constitution” (1906) put in perspective the basis of the laws that govern our freedoms in Ghana today. It was truly a treatise on nationalism. Sarbah’s work inspired J. B. Danquah and Nii Amaah Ollenu to similarly acknowledge the rich legal heritage of their ethnic groups. Sarbah’s greatest protection for the freedoms we enjoy today came from representing the Chiefs and people in opposing the Lands Bill of 1897. Through this bill the colonial government attempted to seize lands for projects such as roads in a manner implying no prior ownership. They planned to disregard aboriginal title in the manner which worked to permanently separate indigenous peoples from their lands in the USA, Australia, South Africa and Canada. In August 1898, the Lands Bill was disallowed but in victory, Sarbah returned his rightfully earned fee of 400 Guineas to the Aborigines Rights Protection Society which had retained him on behalf of the chiefs and people of the Gold Coast.

An excerpt of the letter accompanying the refund states “……I do not spurn or refuse the very handsome retainer of 400 Guineas, but in serving my country, the land of my birth, within her borders, I seek no reward, nor expect any remuneration; and did I ever dream of any recognition for such humble services which I have performed, the fact that, at such a crisis my countrymen selected me to plead their cause, is in itself a solemn honour which will not be unremembered by me. I shall treasure the confidence which, in this instance, my countrymen have reposed in me…..”

Of this gesture, J.B. Danquah was later to observe “nothing nobler was ever uttered from the heart of a patriot.” Sarbah’s core ideals eventually gave birth to Nkrumah’s “We prefer self-government with danger to servitude in tranquility” in 1957. The dangers are more often from within. Our greatest danger will be our collective failure to respect and protect the basic principles of democracy, which can be subsumed in our national motto “Freedom and Justice”, but should be read and understood as “Accountability sustains and nourishes Freedom.”

No biography of a Gold Coast great has had a greater effect on me than that of Sarbah’s. His life was short, his achievements were far reaching and he is still the greatest model for all who wish to serve the public. Though he was a barrister, he viewed himself truly as a servant of the people of the Gold Coast. I have returned to Sarbah repeatedly as we consider how to best mark the 50th anniversary of independence which was effectively won in court by this man with the defeat of the Lands Bill in August 1898. He offered inspirational leadership without ever seeking anyone’s vote. We continue to be haunted by the persistent search for external solutions to our internally generated problems. The answer did not lie in the hands of the British, nor with the ideology of the erstwhile Soviet Union. American aid hasn’t done it either and for sure we must be extremely wary of the renewed Chinese interest in Africa. A few weeks ago, I had an opportunity to glean through some old family papers and pictures. I was particularly struck by a simple question my late father asked in 1964 as he toured American Universities as the Registrar of a young KNUST, in his quest to help build a premier university to train engineers and other scientific and technically skilled young men and women. Like many other public servants of his time he laboured quietly to help build a stronger and more self-reliant nation.

The question was “How much should an engineer know about Platonic philosophy?” This question begs the great need in our society not only for formal education, but for true civic literacy. One of my own central theories about Ghana’s apparent national stability is rooted in what was then a truly national education system. The system of progression to secondary schools was designed to achieve a subtle integration of Ghanaian children across the country, irrespective of their initial geographic or ethnic origins. This way of life which we took for granted, simply did not exist and still does not exist in other African countries where most children were educated locally for both the first and second cycles of schooling and are not challenged to develop a national identity. So in our growing nation, many speak more than three Ghanaian languages and have likely spent anywhere from 2 to 7 years in a part of the country away from their ‘home’ during their formative years. This has probably contributed to a great number of inter-ethnic marriages and more importantly has protected us against civil wars. The Ghana Education Trust programme has had its critics but it indeed; it was a silent unifying force in nation building. This is something to think about as we are tempted to reform the system yet again.

We certainly underutilize our schools as a starting point for citizenship education and civic literacy. Does the Ghana Police Service have a programme in which they go to primary schools to explain the role of the Police in nation building or a constitutional republic? Do they explain to children that they are there to serve and protect? I can hear roaring laughter! I guess they have more important things to do. They are busy catching thieves, cocaine dealers and the like. True policing lies in the community. That is how criminal conduct is prevented. Who teaches children about taxation in society and where and when is this taught? Yet we are surprised that virtually everyone operating outside the public sector doesn’t pay taxes. We are all of course paying VAT which is the resultant necessity of not educating the citizen. Citizens are nourished and created they don’t just spring up like trees.

The late Edward Ulzen answered his own question. He said, “We are anxious to have our students understand the total society better.” Education continues to be our best path for eradicating poverty and creating a true meritocracy. Poverty and unemployment are the parents of disillusionment and violence. Today we are plagued by the emergence of Al-Qaeda in very narrow terms but the perverse strength of this movement lies in sustained poverty and ignorance in the midst of an oil rich part of the world. So as the G8 met with the B7 (Beggars 7) in the rarefied atmosphere of Gleneagles, Scotland, last year Al Qaeda struck in the heart of London. The sad symbolism of this tragic act was not lost on most. The main ingredients of disaster are joined. As long as riches beyond imagination remain unhappily married to unfathomable disabling poverty, the anger of persistently disenfranchised peoples will continue to undermine security everywhere.

As the budget is tabled, so much is made of how much of our debts have been written off. I for one, am nervous about considering a debt write off as an achievement. I have a hard time reconciling that with the announcements on ex-gratia awards, benefits such as car loans for MPs and the like. Why must an MP have a car? Really, should the state be involved in this? If we do not change our outlook soon, we’ll be seeking another debt write-off before you can say Kukurantumi.

Until the supposedly benevolent west abandons subsidies for its own farmers and industries, debt relief will not result in a level playing field for trade between North and South. The G8 will become the G20 and little will change. In the end we must be inspired to transform our own societies from within. We must seek the opportunity to compete with the best in the world not goodwill and sympathy.

In 1975, Canada’s Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson chaired a UN initiative called “Partners for Development”. It was agreed then, that if the richest countries devoted 70c out of every $100.00 to supporting the developing world, extreme poverty could be eliminated in the lifetime of that generation of leaders. It did not happen. Today 20,000 African children die daily from malaria, malnutrition and diarrheal diseases, all of which are preventable. In his recent book, “The end of Poverty”, the eminent economist, Jeffrey D. Sachs a big fan of Ghana, returns to the failed compact of 1975 as the best path out of our poverty. This was all before AIDS joined Africa’s already high disease burden. His book is a must for every MP and all other holders of appointed public office. We must focus on the real suffering of the people instead of celebrating the approval of various benefits for MPs and the building of presidential palaces for presidents. Palaces are for feudal leaders and kings and queens of a thankfully vanishing past. What is so bad about 10 Downing Street? These modest digs have served British Prime Ministers for centuries. The Castle may need upgrading but a Palace?

I should return to the issue of civic literacy with which I started this column. We had been making reasonable progress in this area since the first republic until 1972 when the “few amenities” coup struck. During the NRC/SMC era, the importance of education was actively subverted in our society. Doctors were told to “go away with their stethoscopic nonsense” by boosters of the regime. Other professionals were told that they were “book long” to cheers in the cheap seats. Today the standard of writing of the average university graduate is a frightening spectacle that passes for English. Now, to the new love child of the republic – tourism.

December 2006 will mark the maiden direct flight from NY to Accra by Delta Airlines. Even though this offers me greater personal convenience it saddens me to no end. It clearly punctuates the fact that we were unable to manage a national carrier on a route on which it had a total monopoly. The enemy was not competition; it was our own internal ineptitude. Now two foreign airlines are offering this service to travelers from the US to Ghana. Corruption, ineptitude, rude officials, lack of professionalism and personal greed had marked the years the national carrier roamed the skies pretending to be “Africa’s friendly airline.” It had become impossible to meet a Ghanaian who had not experienced sheer trauma, abuse and degradation at the hands of the airline. Everyone had a story to tell. I’ll spare you my three top stories. It was a national disgrace at the door of the “Golden age of business.” Let us hope that Ghanaian entrepreneurs will join the fray and make it a competitive route in truly friendly skies. I continue to hear noises about the great potential for tourism in Ghana. We should do the simple things first. As a matter of urgency, comfortable conveniences must be provided along the major highways and byways for the traveling public or all the potential which rests in tourism will never be realised. We await the re-birth of civic literacy and a comfortable place to obey nature’s call as we travel across our blessed land!

Dr. T. P. Manus Ulzen



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