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“BOAKYE GYAN’S WAR”
What is this I am hearing? That self styled OSAHENE Kojo Boakye Gyan (Major retired) says there will be CIVIL WAR in Ghana if the Electoral Commission insists on writing a new Voters’ Register for Ghana?
As an OSAHENE (War Chief) Boakye Gyan fully knows well all about WAR – breakdown of law and order, senseless baseless vengeful killings, rampant rape of women, hunger, total chaos and brigandage – and Major Boakye Gyan says all this will happen in Ghana just because EC wants to write a new Voters’ Register?
I wonder what thought processes took place in his mind to lead him to make such a far-fetched absolutely unrealistic declaration.
Fate brought Boakye Gyan into my life in Legon in 1976. One evening, I returned late from lectures at the Law Faculty to hear my room mate Tony Osei Tutu telling me “Effah, Captain was here – he said he will be back, so wait for him”.
Captain? Which Captain?
In those days the military was in power, SMC I under General I. K. Acheampong. I was a leading student anti-military campaigner. One day I remember so well after a lecture by Kwesi Botchway, I stood up from the floor and descended heavily on the military – abuse of power, corruption and so on to a surprisingly wild applause from my colleagues.
When I sat down, the next student seated by me whispered to me” “Effah, the man behind you is an Army Officer – Major Abobor. “I turned to look at him – he was staring at me, smiling!!!! (He later became a lawyer, a judge and died as a Circuit Court Judge).
Later that night, in entered my room – A34, Commonwealth Hall – a tall fair colored handsome gentleman: “My name is Captain Kojo Boakye Gyan – Ghana Army”.
He told me he was doing Qualifying Certificate in Law but he could not get time to attend lectures, so he went to see the Dean of the Law Faculty who suggested to him that I was one of the good students whose lecture notes he could rely on, so he had come to ask whether I could ensure that I don’t miss a law lecture so that every Saturday morning he would come for my law notes?
In a familiarization discussion, it turned out that he hailed from Jaman District in B/A Region, and that he was an old student of Achimota School, just like me!!!
Thanks to Boakye Gyan my lecture notes for my third year law were up to date and superb – I never missed a lecture. One evening he came to Commonwealth Hall in the company of another handsome very smart looking Air Force officer, chain smoking, whom he introduced as Jerry, his bosom friend, another old Achimotan!!!!
Every week end the three of us would meet and reader the debates! The arguments!!! Hot solid reasons for this or that viewpoint, and slowly my perception of the military changed: all soldiers are NOT zombies. If you commission half-baked drunks as officers, you will get drunks as officers, and if you commission highly intelligent level headedchaps you will get a military commandedby highly intelligent level-headed officers.
These two officers had such a gripping influence on me that I abandoned the pursuit of law and enrolled at the Ghana Military Academy as a law graduate cadet officer. I was sent to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and returned in time as an officer to see the outbreak of 4th June 1979 military uprising, led by my two paddies, Jerry Rawlings and Boakye Gyan.
I love history as a field of study so much that I personally talked to over 50 participants in 4th June 1979 and the conclusion I came to was that the principal master brain behind 4th June was L/Cpl PETER TASIRI of 5BN and a cabal of Boys Company soldiers who wanted to save the life of Jerry Rawlings from then ongoing General Court Martial. L/CplFulavi of 5BN radio room was the first casualty of 4th June, killed accidentally by my intake mate 2/LtAgyemang Bio who then committed suicide.
In subsequent years, anytime I hear Boakye Gyan high on oath pontificating about his role in 4th June – I laugh. He only came into the picture because after the release of Jerry Rawlings from the BNI cells by the 5BN soldiers, Jerry in his initial announcement mentioned his long time old Achimotan colleague as one of the principal officers – that is all, but now, Boakye Gyan keeps saying ad infinitum that they masterminded 4th June in order to punishAcheampong,Utuka,Kotei and co for removing the democratically elected Government of Prime Minister K A Busia on 13th January 1972!!!!
After 4th June, he was promoted Major and sent to London UK to study “War Studies” and then compulsorily retired from the Army. He lived in self-imposed exile in London for over 20 years and returned to Ghana, calling himself OSAHENE (Chief of War), joined the NDC and became Constituency Chairman for Jaman South Constituency then resigned to contest as NDC Parliamentary Candidate for Jaman South but lost the contest to NPP.
Now he lives in Accra, Iike Rawlings over 70 years old, restless, desperately seeking attention, once in a while being garrulous making wild baseless claims.
I had a very good laugh when the Editorial of Daily Guide Friday 15th May 2020 page 4 described the Osahene as suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Syndrome!!! There is a world famous surgeon at 37 Hospital, called DrAsumani. Doc, what is the meaning of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Syndrome??
What has the writing of a new voters’ Register got to do with Civil War? Jean Mensah and her officers at Electoral Commission want to write a new Register because the Charlotte Osei Electoral Commission had so many ghosts- both human and imaginary non-existent polling stations – but even so, NPP, we won, so what is the fuss all about? As Mac Manu said and I agree with him, if because of COVID-19 time is against ElectoralCommission for writing a new Register, no problem, NPP will win all the same.
My worry is that either Osahene is being okro mouth, revealing the dark secrets of NDC, beating macabre war drums, vide ElectoralRegister, or he himself, suffering from Daily Guide’s Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Syndrome is planning something sinister todestabilize our peace and quiet.
Whichever way, to be forewarned is to be forearmed.Prevention is better than cure. I suggest that the security agencies should “invite” the Osahene to explain himself and henceforth put him on the security radar.
May God spare Ghana a Boakye Gyan War.
Nkrabeah Effah-Dartey
THE typical itinerant salesman in Sikaman is a herbalist. He is normally a slim macho with the capacity to perambulate the expanse of area covering the triangle of Accra-Tema-Ashiaman. In short, he can walk a total of 60 miles a day, marketing a product that cures every disease, including poverty. 
The door-to-door herbal pharmacist advertises his product by word of mouth. He has nothing to do with the Food and Drugs Board (FDB). After all, his concoctions do not feature on FM stations.
Those herbalists who cannot walk to propagate the herbal gospel, liaise with drivers of mass transportation and their mates. They are, therefore, given the chance to sell their products on Benz buses that ply the routes.
Normally, the herbalist starts his sales message with a prayer and Bible study. He asks the passengers to bow down their heads in supplication to God the father, the son, the Holy Spirit.
When a herbalist asks the passengers to close their eyes and bow their heads, Moslems on board naturally feel offended. They feel that the herbalist has no right to assume that every passenger is a Christian. They think such an assumption is an affront to Islam.
So a Moslem on board will raise the hand for a point of order. He’ll remind the herbalist that it would be in his own interest to mind his language.
“Be careful the way you address people in a public place. Not every person here is a Christian,” he’d state assertively.
Of course, the herbalist will promptly ignore him, but would all the same “watch” his tongue. Who knows whether or not the Moslem brother is inspired by Quoranic zeal to defend the tenets of Islam to the hilt?
When he starts saying, “Wallahi!” and “Inshallah!” it could be the beginning of proclaiming Islam as supreme, a point which must be driven home with talibanic precision.
So the herbalist must tread carefully lest he steps on fire.
The herbalist could even add a measure of mirth to it all, by announcing that Christians on board today have very interesting company on the journey, but that should not detract from the business of the day.
The Moslem brother will weigh the words carefully and offer a wry smile.
He must be careful the occasion does not degenerate into the use of semantics and proverbial oration to deride his conviction that public utterances must be mindful of religious sensibilities. He has made his point very clear and expects that it is taken in good faith in the interest of a peaceful journey.
The herbalist will now open the New Testament and preach salvation, stating clearly that salvation can come only through Jesus Christ and NOBODY else.
The Moslem brother will now start twitching his moustache. The visible and almost revolutionary reflexes of his upper lip can be an indication that sentiments have begun superseding reason, and the outcome could well be tragic now shift uneasily in his seat.
The time has come for him to also express his right to the religion of his fore-bears. He’ll put his hand into his pocket and rise to his feet. The time has indeed come!
This article was first published on Saturday, September 9, 2006
When the cause of a particular problem like sickness, disease, sudden illness, a social issue etc. are not known, it stands to reason that resolving it becomes a huge challenge.
Citizens would understand the government when public announcements are made to the effect that government is trying to find a solution to the issue, even though it is taking a while for it to be resolved because citizens are rational beings.
On the other hand, if the solution to a particular issue is known to everybody but the government for whatever reason, is dragging its feet in resolving it, citizens become frustrated and begin to lose trust in their leaders.
One such issue is the heavy traffic along a section of the Kasoa – Odokor road. A short stretch of bad road between the traffic light at the Weija Government Hospital and the entrance to the entrance of the overhead that leads to the N1, is the cause of the problem but nothing is being done about it, day after day, week after week, month after month. Thus is clearly unacceptable.
Another issue that requires urgent attention is the lack of pavements along a lot of streets in parts of the various Municipal Assemblies. Exercise is a prerequisite for long life and healthy living and for those of us who it has become a way of life, this issue of people putting up structures right to the edge of the drains beside the roads, are making life difficult for us.
We are compelled to walk along the roads, putting our lives at serious risk. Pedestrians should never be compelled to compete with vehicles on our streets and roads. Roads and streets are made for vehicles and pavements are made for pedestrians. That is the norm. Any attempt to normalise a situation where pedestrians are mingling with vehicles is insanity.
It is the road regulations that makes it so and therefore district or municipal assemblies are to take responsibility and ensure that spaces for pavements are not encroached upon. Citizens have rights that must be protected by their leaders and making pavements available to pedestrians, is one of them.
When we hear of teachers having sex with students, it appears it is something recent. It is not a new phenomenon. It has been there since Adam. Perhaps this issue is getting much attention due to the proliferation of social media. It was an open secret in times past when Teachers were in relationships with female students and some married them immediately after completion of school.
Some teachers were also known to be having unholy interactions with female pupils but due to the times that these acts occurred, human rights issues and the awareness around it, allowed such unscrupulous teachers to get away with their crimes.
Now we are in a different era and so a Headmaster is now in hot waters. He is alleged to have raped about 19 female students and as usual, some officials tried to cover it up and are also in hot waters and their actions or inactions in the matter are under investigation.
Why the man has been allowed to roam freely without being arrested is simply mind boggling. It appears that the law applies differently, depending on who you are. This issue came to public attention sometime in August this year, yet the police had not arrested or invited this man for question regarding the rape allegation.
It has come out that he is a Constituency Secretary of the ruling party and the question in the public domain is that, is it because he is a political figure that is why he is still walking around without questioning? I believe in the rule of law so let us hold our breadth and let the proper thing be done.
The police must however be seen to be active in this matter. God bless.
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