Ex-President of Ghana His Excellency, J.J Rawlings visit to Houston, where he aided in raising a record amount in corporate and individual donations for the upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections in Ghana.
Accompanied by his wife Mrs. Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, the pair danced to a hip-pop Ghanaian music to the admiration of the guests. In attendance at the banquet, which was also dubbed as the “Houston NDC Leadership Conference of Ghanaians in the Diaspora”, were the brother of the flag-bearer of the NDC, Dr. Cadman Mills, Mr. Cobby Boahene, chairman of the North America Coordinating Council of NDC (NACC-NDC), Mr. Zaccharia Adama, General Secretary of the NACC-NDC, the treasurer, Ms. Comfort Laryea. Others in attendance were Mr. Simon Adzraku (from Toronto, Canada), 1st Vice Chairman of NACC-NDC, Mr. Tony Amuzu, who doubles as 2nd Vice Chairman of NACC-NDC as well as Chairman of the Atlanta chapter, Mr. Kwame Agyemang, Chairman, Toronto chapter, Mr. Appiah Twumasi Ankrah, Chairman, Boston, and many, many other hardworking members of the NDC family in North America.
Dr. Joseph Manboah-Rockson, a university professor of International Relation at the Texas Southern University and Mr. Kwame Bonsu of Houston, Texas were the hosts of the leadership conference.
At the Houston Leadership Conference, His Excellency, JJ Rawlings was also honored by the Africa Political & Economic Strategic Center.
Mr. Emeka Ted Chiakwelu presents “the African Citizen of the year” to His Excellency, JJ Rawlings of Ghana.
His Excellency was reminded of some of the enduring achievements of his administration as:
1. Achieved political and economic stability in a region rife with conflicts (for example Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire, Togo, Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leone).
2. Created 110 districts through non-partisan district level elections. Education, infrastructure developments and healthcare all devolved to the district level. Annual government subvention by law goes to the district ? unthinkable in many other African countries.
3. Absorbed hundreds of thousands of Ghanaians living in Nigeria who were expelled. Housed them at El-Wak stadium in 1983 and then moved them to their family homes. Most other economies, including even advanced ones such as Germany saw their economies suffer when they reunified with integrated citizens (for example German reunification).
3. Built first ever memorials to Kwame Nkrumah and W.E.B. DuBois. Followed an independent foreign policy (unlike the pro-West policies of the PP and NPP or the pro-East policies of the CPP).
4. Returned Ghana to democratic rule in 1992, after a public referendum by a wide majority approved a new constitution. Neither Nigeria, Iraq, Togo, or Côte d'Ivoire were able to achieve this feat (in Nigeria two governments were overthrown during this period).
5. Passed the value added tax (VAT of 10%) to secure government revenue base, which today funds most government public expenditures. Passed the Ghana Educational Trust Fund (GET Fund) that is today educating millions of Ghanaians.
6. First Ghanaian President in 20 years to be received on a state visit of the US.
7. Expanded electricity to Northern parts of Ghana - hitherto ignored by ruling elites since 1957.
8. Both Bill Clinton and Queen Elizabeth II visited Ghana during Rawlings tenure to highlight the successes of the country.
9. The NDC’s agricultural policy and programme 1994-2000 resulted in the recognition of Ghana’s Food Production Index of 148% for 1995-1997 as the third highest achievement in the record after Jordan (157%) and China (156%) by the World Bank’s 1999-2000 Development Report.
10. Contributed immensely towards dispute resolution and peace keeping in several of the unstable countries in the West African sub-region and beyond.
11. The first African military ruler, who gained political legitimacy through the ballot-box and handed over power at the end of his mandate
12. The founder of a visionary party, the National Democratic Congress, who saw to the uninterrupted power supply in the history of Ghana since the time of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah of blessed memory.
The Managing Director of the African-American Pride Newspaper and magazine Mr. Kervin Emordi, also presented a copy of the African-American pride magazine to His Excellency JJ Rawlings and called on him to remain vigilant and to speak out always about corrupt practices in African politics. As a descent man, His Excellency was praised by the editor-in-chief to have demonstrated to past and present corrupt leaders of Africa that there is more to life than just being “a president who cannot look in the faces of his countrymen after office”.
