My Pick Of The Week

I could not help but marvel at the decision by the Police Force last week not to grant pro-opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) elements, the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG), a permit to hold a public demonstration to, among other things, draw public attention to some of the hardships in the country today.

The reason from the Police authorities was that they do not have enough personnel to give the demonstrators adequate protection. Why? Because the men are preparing for President Barack Obama's impending visit to Ghana on Friday, July 10.

It is good to hear that our Police Force is busy preparing two weeks ahead of the visit. It gives one the impression and certainly the US Embassy authorities in Accra who no doubt they have been working hand in hand with over weeks, the assurance that from the minute the Air Force One touches our soil for the third time in a decade till the following day when it takes off again with the most powerful political figure in the world today, we can count on the dutiful Ghana Police Force for the security and safety of all.

I am sure the American President will be happy to hear that his hosts have been gripped with the 'Obama fever' but I am not sure if he would embrace the explanation the Police Force gave the intended demonstrators.

The month of July is historical for both Ghana and America. Both countries are on the heels of each other marking the day their forbears gained for them freedom and liberty.

For goodness sake, I have been trying to imagine the look on Mr Obama's face if he was told that because of him some people's constitutional rights had been curtailed. He would not be amused at all. Why do I say that?

In a recent interview granted in the White House to Charles Cobb of all Africa.com, the US President said he picked Ghana as the first place to visit in black Africa because of its deep understanding of democracy, following two successful elections resulting in change of government with one very close to call.

Also, he said that he thinks our President is committed to the rule of law — the kind of democratic commitments that ensure stability in a country. According to President Obama, there is a direct correlation between governance and prosperity.

America is a love and hate country to everybody in the world today, Americans themselves know this. Some of us love it to bits though.

A land of possibilities, from their Hollywood stars to their pop stars, their advancement on the world stage, their big cars, the endless range of beauty products, their fashion, their foods – the eat all you cans — plus the way they rattle the English language.

Boy! It is all a dream wish for some. But America unfortunately, is also a hate country for others. The mere mention of the country brings outrage in others.

For sure, its people, including the President himself do not look out for or expect a perfect world where all is laughter and happiness with wide arms to receive them wherever they might find themselves.

Mr Obama certainly will not mind the Ghana Police allowing a section of the citizens to go on demonstration with full Police protection especially when he is coming with loads of his own secret service men to flood both Accra and Cape Coast.

I am even pretty sure, that knowing him, he would have made a joke out of it when here if the demonstrations were allowed to go on.

The man is very relaxed and knows how to relax people around him. I would not be surprised to see him hold hands or put his arm on the shoulders of our President.

No, he would not have minded citizens going on a public demonstration so far as it is within their rights. Remember where he is coming from?

A true democrat, he is from a minority group living in a country of the majority group where they preach equality but not in reality.

He has fought all odds, stood for the rights of the individual and has been consistent in that fight thus bringing him to where he is now.

Mr Obama would indeed be the sad man of the moment going through the media picks around the world which his office would have put together for him and realising that that shinning black star called Ghana which he has picked out of many countries in sub-Saharan Africa to visit after all does not know him and what he propagates.

Well, the American President will cast his mind back to his first official visit to England in April when he attended the G-20 Summit.

London did not come to a stop. Life went on and indeed, the love shown by the Britons to President Obama and his wife Michelle for the two days they were in town was enough warmth for that early spring season.

It caught on with most people. But with all that also came two big protests. The two demonstrations exposed the thorns in the rosy welcome received earlier.

No doubt the London Police knew about the demonstrations ahead of time. They knew the world's most powerful 20 heads of state or governments and their wives were going to be in town and it was their responsibility to protect them as well as the demonstrators and in addition, go on the beat to ensure the safety of its citizens.

They gave the go ahead for two demonstrations to go on - one a day before the summit in the financial district of London and the other the day of the summit at the London Drydocks.

The Police had a hectic time with the demonstrators particularly with the estimated 4000 protestors who descended on the financial district with some hard-core activists hurling chairs and computers through the windows of one of the banks.

Nasty as it was, one of the police officers on duty over-reacted by pushing a demonstrator down to the ground. Unfortunately for the cops, the man died minutes later and a CCTV camera picked the scene.

He was identified and interdicted. The law worked on both sides and that is the beauty of democracy and the rule of law – the protestors were given the opportunity and the over-reacted officer was not shielded. He got sanctioned.

We are all excited that the first black American President is making our home country his first point of call ever on a black African soil.

A drive through town, particularly around Osu and the Independence Avenue through the Ridge roundabout heading towards the stadium gives one the feel that yes; some important personality is coming to town.

Yes, we are putting our house in order to welcome the President and the First Lady of America who we hear is after all, one of our own with her ancestral tree traced back to Ghana.

America's number one family, I am sure, are looking forward to a visit as real as possible and as fulfilling as ever so that having traced her routes, First Lady Michelle Robinson Obama will one day bring her mother, Mrs Marian Robinson and her two daughters to see their ancestral home and hear the story told even more vividly than what they may have read in the history books.

For as long as there is no mischief, let the whole aura of the visit be special in the sense that it happens only but once, and let people be themselves, it will last not longer than 36 hours and we are back to our old selves.

Demonstrations and counter-demonstrations would be allowed because after all, Mr Obama would have been long gone and more importantly, our President has signed off any form of protest for as long as it remains permissible under our constitution — I find it a fine document that every Ghanaian should be familiar with. Welcome to the Obamas. For now, demonstrators can hold it. The Police are busy at work.

   Comments0