Following the successful coup in Niger a few moons ago, some members of Zu-za continue to sit on radio and television and gleefully proclaim that they wish same could happen in Kwame Okro’s homeland. Same narrative is being projected by media houses that are hell-bent on seeing the back of the Elephant in 2024.
But the question to ask the Zu-za coup-mongers is simple: should the current Nana Dee government be overthrown by an overzealous soldier, would he make President Ogwanfunu, Zu-za’s flagbearer, the Head of State? If no, then what would they and their party gain in the unlikely event that their coup wish came true?
And to coup-mongering journalists, do you think a military dictator would allow you to sit in your radio and television studios and run his military government down? Should there be a coup, those likely to suffer the most are journalists. So what deludes them into believing that coup-mongering is in their interest? There is this story I read about a rich merchant, narrated by Charles Yeboah, Sir Charles, on GhanaWeb a couple of years ago, and I would love to share an abridged version with you today. I hope the moral of the story would better drive home my point.
One day, a rich merchant went to the city of Goka, where he saw a beautiful damsel and instantly fell in love with her. He approached and expressed his love and admiration for her. The damsel contemptuously rejected his advances, despite the show of opulence to entice her. Â Listen to her, “You are not bold enough to win my heart, for you even shiver and can’t even look me in the eyes as you woo me for my love. I look for a brave and intelligent man who will harness me for our collective growth, not a rich stranger whose history and source of wealth I cannot tell.”
Angered and shamed by the rejection, he secretly followed the maiden to her abode. In the silence of night, he hurled a big pebble into the compound that housed the damsel, with the hope of injuring and making her unattractive to any other man. The pebble hit a female who gave a shrill cry, prompting him to take to his heels.
Morning came and it so happened that the injured female was a patient of the maiden’s father, who was a physician. The injury was so severe that the physician had to call a relative to come and transfer the injured patient to a bigger facility for surgery. You can imagine the merchant’s pain and shock when he realised that his sick mother for whom he had entered Goka the previous day happened to be the victim of his evil machinations.
The moral of the story is that, he who throws a pebble to the crowd does not know whose head it will hit. So my word of admonishment to the coup-mongers is to be careful what they wish for. They may be going through distressing economic times under the reign of President Nana Dee, but will a successful coup d’etat by an adventurous soldier improve the so-called economic difficulties? Certainly not!
This country has witnessed numerous coups, successful or otherwise, and none has improved the lot of the downtrodden they claimed to be fighting for. The pitiable situation of the downtrodden is rather worsened by the dictatorial tendencies of the coup-makers. I cannot claim to be that old, but I have lived long enough on this earth to tell my readers that a coup d’etat only brings a momentary joy. The downtrodden will shout “oseyyy yeyyyyy” and rejoice at the overthrow of the government. But ultimately, only the coup-makers and their so-called cadres end up enjoying the sweet fruits of a coup.
So I dare say only a fool or an ignoramus would wish for a coup, which would neither improve his lot nor give him peace of mind. I have done my part by spreading words of wisdom, let those who have ears hear me loud and clear!
See you next week for another interesting konkonsa, Deo volente!