Opinion
Folks, I am forced to return to the NPP’s Akufo-Addo for a good reason. He is running around the political landscape, focusing the searchlight on himself in many guises, claiming to be honest, incorruptible, not seeking political power to steal Ghana’s money, and many other highfalutin, fluffy utterances that do nothing but project him as self-righteous and arrogant. In that posture as a political matador, he is waving a red flag before us (the political bulls); and once enraged, we will charge at him. Is he ready for the tango?
Last night, I read this particular news report about his belated reaction to the corruption scandal damaging the Ghanaian judiciary: “New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has claimed that he never bribed a judge during the many years he practiced law in Ghana.” (See https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/I-have-never-bribed-a-judge-Nana-Addo-384249).
He really turned my crank with such fudge; and in responding to his claims, I said on Ghanaweb:
• Will you be so stupid as to come out openly to tell us that you bribed a judge for a favourable verdict/judgement?
• Why don't you tell us how you got admitted into Middle Temple with a Third Class in Economics from the University of Ghana in 1967 and a failed stint at Oxford University? Obviously, it is a strongly defended policy of Middle Temple not to admit anybody falling below Second Upper.
• Again, will you be honest, Akufo-Addo, to tell the whole world where you did your pupillage, a mandatory requirement for any candidate hoping to pass out from Middle Temple?
• Will you be honest to clarify this part? Indeed, you left Middle Temple without doing your pupillage as required and found yourself at Coudert and Freres in Paris, where you worked as an administrator and not a lawyer.
• Thereafter, you returned to Ghana and got the General Legal Council to enroll you as a lawyer. You were the only person called to the bar on that day, even without your providing the mandatory law qualifying certificate.
• Can you tell us why you couldn't produce that certificate and instead showed up with an entry in Middle Temple's "station diary" about your being enrolled into that institution?
• Can you tell us why in your affidavit challenging Justice Kpegah's suit you stated to the then Administrative Secretary to the General Legal Council (Bart-Plange) that you had lost your certificate? And why Bart-Plange boldly included that statement in that affidavit or why in a revised affidavit your lawyers omitted that part? What for?
• For your information, I have copies of the duly certified original affidavit and the amended one filed by lawyer Dame on your behalf. If need be, I will publish all those copies for people to judge you for what you are—a fraud!!
• I am insisting on this aspect of your life because you are cancerous. I wish you'd take me on and go to court. Then, we shall see who is who!!!
This reaction prompted a faceless person calling himself “Paa” into action in Akufo-Addo’s defence. Among others, he said:
“How Did Nana Get Admitted to Middle Temple? How do the children of the famous, the rich and former Ivy League graduates end up in US Ivy Leagues even lower grades (e.g. Walker Bush at Yale and Harvard)? Ever head of legacy admissions? Incidentally, Edward Akuffo Addo, Nana's father, was called to the English Bar at Middle Temple and went on to become Chief Justice and President in Ghana. You think legacy admissions wouldn't work in his son's favour?"
My immediate reaction to such claims was a loud “Oh, my gracious God!!!” So, you are telling the whole world that Akufo-Addo got into Middle Temple on the basis of LEGACY ADMISSION by the Middle Temple, and not on his academic performance (1st degree)? No wonder he left the Middle Temple with no record on his completion of training (the mandatory pupillage, especially). Where is his qualifying certificate, if he was ever issued one by the Middle Temple?
Paa, you are muddying Akufo-Addo's waters all the more. Be careful. Granted that we even accept your porous claim, can Akufo-Addo tell us where exactly he did his pupillage to be certified as having completed training in law under the auspices of the Middle Temple? I have looked around but not found any information to that effect. Remember that he went straight to Paris when he disengaged himself from the Middle Temple (but if he had done pupillage, he couldn't have left for Paris at that time). So, how does he plug the gap for us? And should he not have the conscience (as he claims to be an honest man) to do so?
Folks, be reminded that I am just being the devil's advocate in this pursuit so the question marks hanging over this power-hungry Akufo-Addo can be cleared by himself first, and others second.
He can’t seek refuge in silence (being golden) because the more we interrogate the rot in the judiciary as confirmed by Anas Aremeyaw Anas’ clandestine investigative journalism, the more the need arises for us to know what we have to know about those parading themselves as legal luminaries seeking to use politics as a crutch for realizing their childhood ambition of becoming Ghana’s President “at all costs”. And we have every right to do so.
The truth is that no other politician in our time is so mired in controversy as this Akufo-Addo is. Can we sleep with our eyes shut if ever he becomes Ghana's President? Go and ask Kofi Coomson of the Ghanaian Chronicle.
For someone seeking the highest office of the land, Akufo-Addo needs to do more as far as his own credibility problems are concerned. Otherwise, he will remain a tailless kite, spiralling himself out of contention; and he will plunk at Election 2016!! Na who cause am?
I shall return…
E-mail: [email protected]
Join me on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/mjkbokor to continue the conversation.