Funeral rites for Boni Nii Amugi II, Ga Mantse, was successfully completed at the Ga Mantse Palace on Saturday.

The solemn ceremony was nearly marred when an irate mob charged on Mr Stanley Nii Adjiri Blankson, Accra Metropolitan Chief Executive, for passing a comment which did not go down well with them.

Adjiri-Blankson had barely read his speech, when the crowd started booing. The booing & cat calls lasted for about ten minutes as the AMA boss stood dumfounded.

According to a Ghana News Agency(GNA) report "Tempers were calmed, however, when Professor John Evans Atta, Flag Bearer of the National Democratic Congress for Election 2008 shook hands with Vice President Alhaji Aliu Mahama as he left the funeral grounds, since it depicted peace and unity."

Rawlings Sets Funeral Grounds Ablaze

The charisma of Former President, Jerry John Rawlings, last Saturday caught up with Accra City Mayor, Stanley Nii Adjiri Blankson, when the latter sought to take advantage of the tribute segment of the funeral of the late Ga Mantse, Nii Amugi II held at the Ga Mantse’s Palace near North Kaneshie in Accra, to score some political points.
During time for paying tributes in the course of the funeral service, dignitaries were offered the opportunity to pay their last respects to the late Chief. Just after Former President Rawlings’ tribute, it was the turn of President J. A. Kufuor. Since the President was not present, having left for the AU Summit in Addis Ababa Friday night, Tourism and Diasporan Relations Minister, Jake Obetsebi Lamptey was called upon to read his tribute.
But even before Jake could say a word, Adjiri Blankson had mounted the podium. While people thought that he was going to pay a tribute, after craving the indulgence of the mourners, the City Mayor shocked the gathering as he begun singing praises of the NPP government of which he is a member.
He showered praises on the current government, saying that within the shortest period of 6years that President Kufuor and his NPP government came to power, they have been able to transform the Ga Mantse’s palace into a significant edifice.
This he said was as a result of the party’s love and willingness to assist the Chiefs and people in the Ga state. The Mayor’s comments infuriated some members of the gathering, who started grumbling. All of a sudden, his comments started attracting boos and jeers from some of the mourners at the forecourt.
Having realised that he was gradually incurring the wrath of the people, Adjiri Blankson retired to his seat to allow Jake to read the tribute. However, minutes into Jake’s delivery, some people started gathering themselves a few metres away from where former President Rawlings, Atta Mills and his other lieutenants were seated.
As if on cue, they started cheering on the former President, shouting: “J. J. Ogbooo,” which literally means ‘J.J. the champion.’ As is characteristic of Jerry Rawlings, he responded in appreciation by saluting his admirers. This almost brought proceedings to a standstill as Rawlings’ admirers continued cheering him on for close to five minutes as frantic attempts were made to calm them down.
It took the intervention of one priest to calm down the cheering crowd, having reminded the audience that service was still in progress. To many onlookers, including some Journalists gathered, Adjiri Blankson’s action was simply uncalled for since it could have marred the funeral. This was because according to them the occasion was not a political arena at which he could make capital on his government’s achievement.
In Former President Rawlings’ speech, which was read on his behalf, he extolled the late Nii Amugi as a “responsible and forward looking Chief.” This, he said, was because he brought the Ga state and authority in support of central government and proffered valued advice and guidance on how to tackle the myriad problems that had engulfed the country long after independence.