‘Tears flow!’ screamed the front page headline of the Daily Graphic of Tuesday, January 26, 2021. People have said some tears belong to the crocodile; some tears are for sadness and other tears are for happiness. The Graphic did not tell its readers which of these tears were flowing. I guess though, that, especially among congresspeople, it would be everything in different proportions and of different volumes.
Nna (mother) and Agyaa (father) taught me a value lesson of never to speak ill of the dead. I internalised that teaching so much so that I never think I will speak ill of the dead. It’s why I dare not think a soul must rest in pieces, let alone write it.
By that upbringing, I will never have the heartlessness of the sister newspaper of the Daily Graphic (which wrote the tears flow), the Ghanaian Times editorial writer who, close to 28 years before, following the death of revered selfless writer Paul A.V. Ansah on June 14, 1993, wrote to condemn his most selfless soul to ‘rest in pieces’!!!
For those grieving, it is perhaps luck, lots of luck, that they could see the decorated body of the befallen, to uptick the celebration of a departure. What about those whose remains were buried anonymously in unmarked graves until their bones would be exhumed, thanks to the sympathy and wisdom of one John Agyekum Kufuor; the sterling Senior President. They had been despatched in their prime by the now celebrated.
Tears of joy can be tears of sorrow. Tears of hypocrisy are the crocodile tears. In fact, crocodile tears are also tears of bitterness; dɛnkyɛm bɔnyoma (the crocodile bile) is known for its bitterness and lethal effect. Swallowing it is death. One dies like when Socrates was made to drink hemlock.
Speak not evil of the dead; so “twas accolades, feats and achievements, stated without modesty, untampered with moderation.” It takes some thinking, though, to understand congresspeople who spoke so much evil of a dead Paul who could not hurt a fly speaking so glowingly of Jeremiah who had caused other mortals like him to die violently; for whatever reason(s).
As mortals, we are advised and implored to be generous; that is how we may be lucky to triumph in adversity. Some though choose to throw generosity and mercy to the dogs to eat and get them to disappear. Still for those, all religions plead for inexhaustible compassion.
Needless references to Limann government having tormented anybody as justification for an unwarranted coup is the last thing I would expect at a funeral service; given the devastating consequences of human suffering and material destruction that coup caused.
That coup happened because its architects believed they would never win power to rule the motherland through elections. When too much pressure forced them to go ‘democratic,’ they learned to steal elections. Mark you, if they are unable to steal in 2024, they’ll try civil insurrection. They came so close to stealing in 2020 they believe 2024 would be easy. Perceptively, the leadership architecture of the first three gentlemen and third arm of government seems exclusionary; and there’s murmuring all over the place.
Owula Preman’s generous tribute could not help but state aptly: “winning him passionate admirers, vociferous critics, and determined lifelong enemies, all at the same time.” One may guess where I belong, having had to stay in voluntary exile for a dozen years.
Just imagine Paul A.V. Ansah of Prabiw Street, ancient Akyemfo, who the dead harassed to death, was of the Catholic faith too. As I watched for whom a Pontifical Requiem Mass was being sung on the television screen, I thought Paul Ansah must have had it too. Actually, I understand his was Pontifical too. Thus, if Jeremiah and Paul had differed in status before man, they were at same level in death before God.
Whatever blessing Jeremiah was receiving, Paul must have received same by the dictum of equal in death before the Creator. In fact, if the extreme unction had been available to both, they would have had it at par. Just imagine the Ɔsɔfo singing mass for dead Jeremiah’s sins to be forgiven himself escaped abduction and killing death at the hands of same Jeremiah!
Sadly, “twas because my classmate of Asogli’s brother, a Brother, mistakenly suffered death at the hands of Jeremiah. He had been misidentified as the singer of Jeremiah’s last mass whom Jeremiah wanted dead!”
A BBC story ended with: ‘a caring disciplinarian.’ One can preach ‘caring disciplinarian’ or live ‘caring disciplinarian.’ It is the latter that should have benefitted the motherland. Unfortunately, it has been largely lacking in the leadership of May 15, 1979 therefrom. Rather, it is preaching ‘caring disciplinarian’ that seems to have predominantly characterised leadership all through, post that day of putsch.
By Kwasi Ansu-Kyeremeh