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14.02.2007 Feature Article

President Kufuor, The eyes of Africa

President Kufuor, The eyes of Africa
14.02.2007 LISTEN

On Monday 29th January 2007 His Excellency President John Agyekum Kufuor chocked yet another success when he was unanimously elected as the 'President' of Africa during the eight African Union (AU) Summit, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. President Kufuor took over the 1 year chairmanship from Congolese President Dennis Sassou Nguesso after the automatic turn of Sudanese President Omar al- Bashir was bypassed last year.

President Kufuor's election by his peers makes him the voice and leader of the whole African continent. In addition, the President has elevated Ghana to its rightful position in the history of Africa as the crusader and the knight in shining armour of the continent. This is what the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon told the summit “solution must be found to the tragedy of Darfur. We must open a new and a different chapter.” The 53 member head of states all agreed that the only person and country that can open this new chapter and bring solutions to the conflict situations in Africa is president Kufuor.

Now the UN, EU, USA and the rest of the world by necessity will have to make transit or pass through President Kufuor and for that matter Ghana as the chair country before getting to the rest of Africa. Diplomatically President Kufuor becomes the first point of call to all the 52 Presidents of Africa. The President is expected by his colleagues' head of states to bring his immense diplomatic skills and ability to resolve conflicts to the advantage of the continent as the conduit, eyes and voice of Africa.

Ghana has indeed become the gate way to the rest of Africa and will bring peace, security, good governance and economic liberation to Africa. It will be recalled that it was under President Kufuor's leadership as ECOWAS chairman that peace came to Liberia, Guinea Bissau, and Cote d'Ivoire. As the saying goes if the blind man leads a group they fall into a ditch but the African Presidents realised this and voted for president Kufuor as somebody who successfully led ECOWAS and a visionary who is currently leading his country into success. The shadow of what President Kufuor as the eyes and conduit of Africa will bring to the continent was the immediate commitment by the French Government to “strengthen ties with the continent.” This was made known by French Foreign Ministry's spokesman, Mr. Jean-Baptiste Mattei.

President Kufuor's chairmanship was not a birthday gift as some vocal minorities who called themselves senior journalists want us to believe. The AU member states were aware that Ghana will be @50 this year as at last year but they promised Al Bashir of the AU chairmanship this year. The AU would have promised Al Bashir the chairmanship next year because Ghana will be @50 this year and also nobody would have contested Ghana since it is our 50th birthday gift. When Sudan was sidelined, any of the 51 Presidents (excluding disqualified Al Bashir and outgoing Nguesso) could have taken the AU chairmanship since it was not the turn of anyone of them. But president Kufuor stood tall amidst serious competition from Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Ethiopia. Ethiopia was knocked out because of its recent invasion of Somalia. In any case it was the turn of the Eastern block of Africa of which all the contenders belong. So why didn't they give it to anyone of them but Ghana? President Kufuor won not because of Ghana @50 but his excellent exemplary leadership he has brought to bear on the African continent.

The attempt by some mischievous ingrates that President Kufuor's election was not based on Ghana's excellent human right records, rule of law and good governance will not make the grade.
Mr Kwesi Pratt's accretion that the main reason Al Bashir was bypassed this time around was conflict of interest raised by AU is not true. Conflict of interest situation was not raised by AU members but by a lobby group called Amnesty International, according to the group “Sudan's chairmanship will be a glaring conflict of interest.” The main reason for Al Bashir's bypass was the strong accusation by AU members against Mr. Bashir for backing the janjaweed militias and the Darfur conflict which has seen 200,000 people dead and about 2million displaced.

This is a historical victory won for Ghana by President Kufuor, lets us endeavour to live beyond party colours and welcome this great news that has positioned our President as the eyes and the voice of Africa.

To the AU, we the million patriotic Ghanaians say thank you for having high confidence in President Kufuor and Ghana. To president Kufuor, we (Ghanaians) say that Mr. President, it should not end here but continue to climb the ladder of success and bring more glory to Ghana. There is no doubt that with you Mr. President as the eyes of Africa; the continent will see tremendous changes.

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