Diaries Of An Oguaa Fisherman: The 22 Year Old Francisca And The Age Of Methuselah

Extra-biblical tradition maintains that Methuselah died on the 11th of Cheshvan of the year 1656AM (Anno Mundi, after Creation), at the age of 969, seven days before the beginning of the Great Flood. Methuselah was the son of Enoch, the father of Lamech, and the grandfather of Noah.

Methuselah's father, Enoch, who does not die but is taken by God, is the seventh patriarch, and Methuselah, the eighth, dies in the year of the Flood, which ends the ten-generational sequence from Adam to Noah, in whose time the world is destroyed.

Forgive me, for taking you through these bouts of sermons in this article but one thing remains very clear and unblemished and these have left me utterly startled.

I returned from my sleep at the seashore to learn that some very eminent colleague fishermen have glitches with Francisca Oteng Mensah’s impressive showing at the just ended Parliamentary Primaries of the NPP. According to them, she is 22 and might not have the requisite experience to work in Parliament if she is eventually given the nod as the MP.

I am tempted to believe that I didn’t hear and read from them very well. What has really heightened my inquisitorial position of their argument has to do with people impugning that she is too young to enter into Ghana’s parliament- perhaps Parliament should be entered by the Methuselahs of our time.

The framers of the 1992 Constitution must have had very persuasive reasons why the likesof Franscica could enter the Parliament of Ghana.

Article 94 (1) says ‘Subject to the provisions of this article, a person shall not be qualified to be a Member of Parliament unless -

(a) he is a citizen of Ghana, has attained the age of twenty-one years and is a registered voter;

(b) he is resident in the constituency for which he stands as a candidate for election to Parliament or has resided there for a total period of not less than five years out of the ten years immediately preceding the election for which he stands, or he hails from that constituency…

I believe Francisca Oteng Mensah; the 22 year old second year law student of the KNUST satisfies all the requirements laid down by the constitution.

So what has she done wrong? Is it the case that the current adagethat ‘age is just a number’ is a self-serving, reality numbing piece of pop culture that we have foisted on ourselves?

I believe no!For those of you complaining about her winning the candidature in her Constituency, were you expecting a loss as her ultimate portion in the primaries? Why did these issues not arise when she filed to contest the primaries? Was she not in the competition to win? Is it a crime to have a father who is wealthy and you benefit from?

The most hypocritical argument aversthat her father actually used money to influence the delegates for them to have voted for her. This argument is most unfair considering what went on during all the primaries I witnessed.

As a fisherman, I took a day off to personally monitor and followthe NPP primaries from the start to the finish and I don’t need an angel to stand at the high heavens to proclaim that monies and materials changed hands. That would have been the greatest hypocrisy ever recorded in the history of the world. Tell me a candidate who did not give any money to the delegates and I will tell you how a fish gives birth to a goat. The payments of the monies were in degrees. For those complaining, it might be that the other candidates paid a lesser amount of money than what Francisca’s father might have paid. In a contest where monies are involved, you face your competitors squarely to shrug them off. This is not to say that I endorse ‘monies and materials becoming dominant in our body politic where the rich people prevail and sometimes people who could serve better but do not have sufficient funds are not voted for.

There came another argument, the shocking of them all; she is inexperienced! Who went to the House of Parliament in Ghana already experienced? What do the first timers in Parliament do when they go to Parliament? How do people acquire experience? This reminds me of the story of William Hague.

In 1977, William Hague, one of the best British career politicians at the age of 16 addressed the Conservative Party Conference to the admiration of many (would we have said that he was too young to do that?). His stirring and sterling performance back then saw his name up for a role with the Treasury in 1983.

When news and request of approval for his proposed role got to Margaret Thatcher, then Prime Minister, she had to say: "NO [underlined three times]. This is a gimmick and would be deeply resented by many who have financial and economic experience."

According to the Telegraph (quoting), John Kerr, a private secretary at the Treasury, wrote to Mrs. Thatcher about Mr. Hague’s possible appointment in March 1983. “The Prime Minister will, I am sure remember his 1977 Party Conference speech as a 16-year-old schoolboy,” he noted.

A copy of Mr. Hague’s CV was attached, including details of his extensive “public speaking and media experience”, including appearances on Nationwide, Look North, Calendar and Good Afternoon.

However, Mrs. Thatcher was unimpressed and her private secretary, Robin Butler, agreed, writing: “Promising though William Hague is, it is a bit difficult to see what a 21-year-old will contribute as a special adviser to the Treasury (end of quote). Mrs. Thatcher back then described this move as an "embarrassment to government".

This notwithstanding, Hague was offered a temporary role at the Conservative Research Department, where he rose through the ranks to become an elected MP for the Richmond constituency. He later became the Tory Leader from 1997 to 2001. Hague also served as Foreign Secretary in the first term of Cameron's Premiership.

After reminding myself of this story, a friend of mine, Mahmud Khalid who contextualized the story of Hague to young-student Francesca's success to stand on her party's ticket as a Parliamentary Candidate, asked some questions he deemed vital:

1. How well is she groomed for this role?
2. Has she been taken through her party and political structures well enough to hold the ticket in anticipation of serving in the august house?

3. Does parliament have a growth space for the likes of young Francesca, should she be elected?

4. What could she possibly bring to the table if elected?

Admittedly, the two scenarios may appear somewhat different as one was an appointed role and Francisca’s, an elective one. Irrespective of the nature of the positions- whether appointed or elected, I believe the people who are in Parliament now gathered the experiences as they learnt on their new portfolio and continued thereafter.

As a 22 year old student of law, I believe her analytical instincts are sharper and better than some of the Members of parliament we have now- while some have not contributed anything substantial on the floor of Parliament, others doze off , kind courtesy the cameras that promote their sleeping and sheepish competitions on the floor.

Parliaments are really the indispensable institutions of representative democracies around the world. Whatever the country-specific rules of any Parliament worldwide, their role remains the same: to represent the people and ensure that public policy is informed by the citizens on whose lives they impact; helping in shaping policies and laws which respond to the needs of citizens, and supporting sustainable and equitable development.

Do not forget that Parliament is a place for political, and often confrontational, debates and not a place for age competitions. It is the people who determine who should represent them and not the raving of some people that matters.

Over the years, Ghana has had People (The Methuselahs who we say are matured, experienced and are grown-ups but what have we seen?).

I am not by any stretch of imagination, writing off, age, maturity and experience. They do help but not all the time. I know that with age comes wisdom, courage, humility, compassion, patience and heart-healing laughter but these attributes are sometimes not the preserve of the methuselahs but also with the Fraciscas as well.

Forget about what age you are and how you are supposed to act - defy maturity and seize the moment!Maturity (in terms of age) can be a good thing, especially when it comes to fine wine, aged cheese or ripe, delicious fruit but with our current political dispensation, we need to revise our notes and give the young, energetic people a chance and forget about some of the methuselahs who can’t even communicate what they have to say on the floor of Parliament.

The writer, Richard Kwadwo Nyarko, is a broadcast journalist with JOY 99.7 FM. Email: [email protected] . Twitter: @quajo2009. Like my page on Facebook: RICHARD KWADWO NYARKO.