President Mills, AFRICOM and Obama: An Open letter

Dear President Atta Mills,

This is my first time writing to congratulate you on your recent ascendancy to the highest office in our land. Ghanaians voted for you because your message of “change” resonated with us the most. Like the United States president Barrack Obama, you promised to bring true democracy, regardless of ethnic and tribal affiliation back to Ghana. Although your administration is only a few months old, I believe that your campaign promises are being fulfilled.

Mr. President, we citizens of Ghana were made aware a few days agothat PresidentBarrack Obama would be visiting Ghana during the early part of July. Like most Ghanaians, I was enthusiastic to know that the most powerful man in the world will come to our small country without any motive, but I remember reading an article on My Joy Online Tuesday March 3rd, 2009, entitled “Rawlings, Africom Deputy Commander discuss Africa drug problem.” The article points out that the formal U.S ambassador to Ghana, Ms. Mary Yates, and now the current Deputy Commander for Africom, discussed the possibilities of an Africom base in Ghana. Dear Mr. President, Is this the sole reason why President Barrack Obama is coming to Ghana? I often ask myself, why will he pass over his own home land Kenya, and African super powers South Africa and Nigeria to visit Ghana? I believe that it’s not really about the fact that we are experimenting with true democracy. I also remember former U.S president George Bush considering Ghana for a permanent Africom base. The May 16th 2009 online edition of the Washington Times also hints at the possibilities that President Obama’s July trip is about Africom. Also, my friends in Accra and Takoradi tell me that the U.S already has Africom training facility in our country. They informed me that Africom has done numerous of joint missions with our Navy and Army. Is it true President Mills? With all due respect to U.S President Obama, a U.S military base in our country or any where else in Africa is not in our national security interest. Although we are a small poor nation, we have been blessed in Ghana to not have had any wars or terrorist attacks. We Ghanaians are friendly people and have distaste for bloodshed. And although we have been rampaged with drugs, we don’t need President Obama’s help to resolve this issue. Moreover, America has its own drug problem that they have not yet to solve. What we need from President Obama is help with our infrastructure. We admire America for being the land of opportunity. We would like for President Obama to help us create the same opportunities that exist in the U.S for Ghana. We Ghanaians do not want Americans and the West to continue seeing us backwards, primitive and unable to solve our own problems.

Dear President Mills, we welcome President Obama and his family to our beloved country. He is welcome to visit our thirty-six (36) slave dungeons and to enjoy some our tuo zaafi, banku, fufu, and hot pepper. He is also welcomed to Paga to visit the Crocodile ponds so that he can see how human beings live in harmony with wild animals. But I want to reiterate that he should not force the issue of Africom on us. We love our peace! I would like to by say that I am a true patriot of Ghana and also love the Americans, however, their problems are not ours. Africom is not welcomed in our beloved country, Ghana.

Sincerely yours,

Charlotte K. Bugase Paga, Ghana.