Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings; On The Path Of Destiny!

It was Shakespeare who wrote about Coriolanus; born of high gentry, schooled in the noble art of war and resolutely resolute in his convictions. Put together, he was of Patrician stock. Coriolanus distinguished himself in his chosen field of endeavour and many fell at his feet due to his discipline, training and uncompromising attitude when it came to matters of conviction. He was unwilling, unable and unready to sell his conscience for the sake of high office or a mess of pottage for that matter.

If there is one politician/ women advocate who fits this description of the Shakespearian chief, it must be Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings who unlike all the other politicians, she has always dared to be different. Her fame does precede her, having doubled as first lady during the PNDC /NDC era and served in various capacities. She is also known to have a somewhat tough personality, perhaps a legacy of his genealogy, being a direct descendant of the legendary Yaa Asantewaa of Ashanti History fame. That he has been in the forefront of many a women empowerment cannot be overemphasized within the Ghanaian body politic. I am yet to see anyone as thorough as Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings. The woman gets the job done.

I am not of the ego massaging class and therefore it would be highly preposterous of me to extol the prowess of Nana Konadu. Nonetheless where one's conscience agitates for rest, it serves a purpose to call a good woman by her name lest truth and integrity are sacrificed on the altar of political and opportunistic sentiments. The woman simply and practically knows the turf.

The exploits of Nana Konadu has given me more than enough reason and examples to make a spirited defense once again to erase the erroneous impressions that the media keeps feeding the illiterate literate masses that she is "strong-headed" and has a rather abrasive style of leadership. The question then is whether we are looking for form of leadership or substance/results of leadership. Each individual is certainly bound to have his or her own style but in this day and age, it must not be the criterion upon which decisions about policy, growth and development would be made, otherwise many of those in leadership today would not have found themselves in those positions.

For more than two and half decades, Nana Konadu has worked tirelessly to better the lot of the underprivileged in society. In 1991, through the efforts of Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, Ghana was the first nation to approve the United Nations Convention on the Right of the Child.

Through her 31stDecember Women movement, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings also played a crucial role in the adoption of an “Intestate Succession Law,” which is applicable to the survivors of anyone dying without a will. Traditionally, Ghanaian women had little or no rights of inheritance upon the death of their husbands. The new law provides a standard of inheritance.

For 19 years, she stood by her husband in the struggle to restore Ghana. Konadu has led a group of women, to empower Ghanaian women, freeing them from being hewers of wood and drawers of water to be (ing) actors, in political arena.

Her 31stDecember women movement taught Ghanaian women how to generate income and save money for community projects. It encouraged them to become part of the decision making process in their villages, and explained policies of health and education. It offered an adult literacy program to teach them to read and write, which the majority of women could not do either. Too early marriages among female children were discouraged and programs were offered on nutrition and immunization.

While doing all these, Nana Konadu was very active in party politics; participating in programmes of the NDC and contributing to the party becoming a force to be reckoned with in Ghana's politics.

Nana Konadu's vision, clarity in communication and passion for Ghana are lauded by manyand there is a significant majority both within and outside the NDC who says she is more than qualified to lead the party.

At this stage of our national development, we need a leader who would propose prudent policies, and not one who is content with mediocrity. We need a leader who is not afraid to pursue his friends, and bring them to justice, if necessary, and not one who has a specialty in offering jobs for his cronies. . We need a president who leads by example and rules with competent citizens, and not family members, “bread retailers”, “taxi drivers”, and “electricians”.

We need a leader who is prepared to leave an ineffaceable legacy for his nation, and not one who is obsessed with writing a memoir while he is still in office. We need a leader who would make effort to patch fissures at the seams, and not one who divides his ranks as his way of creating artificial need.

Ghana needs a leader who understands the changing field of international diplomacy and politics, and is in tune with policies that would generate productive outcomes for his/her nation-state. We need a leader who is ready, and is willing to take unpopular position on issues that he/she feels are morally justified, and ought to be enforced at any cost.

We need a leader who is prepared to take on the challenge, when necessary, to sacrifice his/her own as a way of demonstrating his/her commitment to law and order in the face of resurging sanity and corruption. We need a leader who sees, and takes measured comfort in seeing his/her nation grow. Konadu answers to all these needs and I dare say she is our best bet and on path to fulfill her destiny.

Take it or leave it, Nana Konadu has carved a niche for herself in simplifying issues that the ordinary Ghanaian can readily identify with without resorting to unnecessary showmanship.

Nana Konadu has bold and visionary ideas on how to make our government work better. She has done more than enough to prove her astuteness in the politics of Ghana and it would be a travesty if Nana Konadu does refuses to offer herself for the country's top job in the near future.

I rest my case!
Emmanuel Dela Coffie
www.delacoffie.wordpress.com