Accra, July 20, GNA - United in grief, Ghanaians from all walks of life on Thursday morning converged at the forecourt of the State House to pay their last respects to the late eminent historian and politician, Emeritus Professor Albert Adu Boahen.

Clad in red and black colours, the assembled mass, including politicians, traditional rulers, the academia and the clergy, started filing past the body that laid in an open casket mounted on a platform, as early as 0700 hours.

President John Agyekum Kufuor and the First Lady, Theresa; Vice President Aliu Mahama and Hajia Rahmatu, the Second Lady, were among the large crowd of mourners. He would be buried on Saturday.

President Kufuor in a tribute described Emeritus Prof Adu Boahen as a great social being, who established himself as a strong personality by using marked traits of fearlessness; outspokenness and deep commitment to democracy; great sense of humour and love of nation to leave lasting impressions on people that encountered him.

"In politics, he took positions derived from convictions, which could not be shaken by fear or self-interest, but which neither disposed him to spite his opponents.

=93Even though, he never held public office, his principled and exemplary political career cast him as a statesman. Indeed, he was invited in 2005 to serve as a member of the Council of State and in March this year, he was listed to be conferred with the highest State Honour of the Order of the Star of Ghana."

President Kufuor said the late Professor's service to the nation in the area of education where generations on end had been and would continue to be nurtured on his textbooks, endeared him to many, not only in Ghana but also throughout Africa.

Emeritus Professor Adu Boahen, he said, left giant footmarks in the history of the country adding: "The life of this distinguished son of Ghana should inspire the current generation of politicians and youth of the country to greater service to the nation with tolerance and selflessness."

There were also tributes by the widow, Mary, the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) on whose ticket he contested the 1992 Presidential Election; the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences; University of Ghana; Mfantsipim Old Boys Association; his children and friends. Running through all these was the acknowledgement of his academic credentials, rare political courage, strong opposition to dictatorship and sense of nationalism.

His widow summed up her sense of loss in the eulogy: "Adu was an incredible man. His integrity was legendary; his humour disarming; his love for his children proverbial and his passion for life and fair play supreme.

'There was never a dull moment with Adu and my life without him will never be the same."

The NPP said the late Professor advocated and demonstrated the use of civil protests and peaceful demonstrations as tools for political change, by which the Party won political power in 2000. It said the Party would continue to uphold this legacy.

The Right Reverend Dr Yaw Frimpong-Manso, Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, in a pre-burial funeral service, said the Gospel was a lethal weapon that could be used to fight injustices, political abuse and marginalisation in the society.

He, therefore, called on the country's political leaders to give their lives to God and use the Gospel to save the nation. Emeritus Professor Adu Boahen, born on May 24, 1932 at Osiem in the Eastern Region died on his 74th birthday.