Zu-Za Has Lost Its Equilibrium

I’m sure Abusuapanin and other readers of this column would be surprised to learn that yours truly was a Science student in secondary school. Indeed, I was among the best Science students in Benkum Secondary School for the year 1991. What compelled me to divert from the Sciences to the Arts and Humanities in Sixth Form is another story for another day.

It’s almost three decades since I ditched the Sciences but I vividly remember the explanation on human ear and physiology of balance: The vestibular system is the sensory apparatus of the inner ear that helps the body maintain its postural equilibrium. The information furnished by the vestibular system is also essential for coordinating the position of the head and the movement of the eyes.

I never fully believed that explanation until I watched the Wilder v Fury II yesterday dawn. From the third round, Wilder began to bleed copiously from the ear and stood on wobbly legs till the fight was stopped in the seventh round. No wonder he was quickly whisked away to see a doctor to repair his broken ear drum.

My friend Newton-Offei Justice Abeiku, who is a Science fanatic, explained on his Facebook wall exactly what happened: “There is a highly sensitive organ situated deep within the inner ear called SEMI-CIRCULAR CANAL or AMPULLA. This organ is solely responsible for maintaining equilibrium in human body during walking, standing or any other activity in upright position. In the third round of the fight, a heavy punch to the right occipito-mandibulla section of Wilder completely shattered the AMPULLA, which in turn, resulted in physiological dysfunction of this organ and therefore rendered his ability to be on his feet, totally impaired. This accounted for Wilder’s wobbly feet for the rest of the rounds and his ultimate defeat.”

The long and short of it all is that Wilder lost the fight because he could not maintain his equilibrium. I see a similar scenario being played out on the local political scene. It is obvious that Zu-za, the main opposition party, has lost its equilibrium and is struggling to stand on its feet.

Abusuapanin, the Umbrella’s persistent and irrational resistance to the decision by the Electoral Commission (EC) to produce a new voters’ register amplifies that fact. Was it not their flagbearer who, as president, advised all and sundry to allow the EC to do its work? Why then are they refusing to heed to such words of wisdom?

Another reason that proves lack of equilibrium in the party is the walkout by the Minority during the presentation of the State of the Nation Address (SoNA) by President Nana Dee. They have subsequently given all manner of absurd explanations to support their action.

Hon. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, the Information Minister, describes it as post-facto rationalization. That is very apt since the antecedents of their action and the reasons being given now are at variance.

Hon. Sampson Ahi, whose appreciation of English grammar wouldn’t be envied by a JHS pupil, was the first to sound the alarm bell. He said the reason the Minority could boycott the SoNA was because the District Assemblies Common Fund allocation had not been paid. A very absurd reason because the two have nothing in common.

The walkout eventually happened and soon after that, some Minority members cited the presence of the SWAT team in the House as the reason for their action. Others too mentioned that the decision of the EC to compile a new voters’ register necessitated that action.

Yet another reason for the walkout was that the President had closed down some radio stations, including those sympathetic to the cause of the Umbrella. The reason is absurd because the decision to shut down those radio stations was the ruling of the electronic courts. How then can anyone with a skull tightly screwed to the brain point accusing fingers at President Nana Dee?

The Minority gave different reasons at almost every opportunity. Clearly, the walkout was ill-conceived because they cannot even agree on a cogent reason for the walkout. Is that not a symptom of a party with a broken ear drum?

Any ardent reader of this column knows I’m not a fan of the eagle-headed Umbrella. But I’m a patriot so I at least want them to give my government a credible opposition in and out of Parliament. A party in opposition opposing everything just for the sake of it is a deficit for our democracy.

It is the reason I hope Wilder’s broken ear drum episode would wake them from their slumber. But being a group that has been infected by the ‘dead-goat’ syndrome, I wonder if they would pay heed.

See you next week for another interesting konkonsa Deo volente!