Opinions of Sunday, 24 October 2010

Columnist: Atawura, Philip

Cape Militia

According to Molefi Kete Asante in The History of Africa: The Quest for Eternal
Harmony, they sang in Twi and the drummer played on the fontonfrom and the atumpan
the ancient wisdom:
The river crosses the path,
The path crosses the river.
Which is older?
The river is from long ago.

A section of the Zulu Declaration also has it:

We are mutually fulfilling complements;
We are simultaneously legitimate values;
My neighbor's sorrow is my sorrow
His joy is my joy.
(Asante and Abarry 1996, pp. 371-3)

This is an advise to CAPE MILITIA. Whether they fight and bring about disunity or
cooperate with the laws of this nation, they can not wipe the country away.

This is a serious adversarial act on the integrity and social order of this country.
We are an exceptional nation with exceptional moral values and would not tolerate
the actions of any Militia for whichever reason.

I would urge the security bodies especially BNI and the various CIDs to look
critically into the matter. This might be an indicator for the infiltration of arms
into the country. The source of supply should also be taken into serious
consideration. I believe that you render the group powerless if you disconnect the
source of power supply.

We must all understand that any natural resource found within the domain of Ghana is
for the benefit of all Ghanaians. What then would be the outcome if the youth at
Obuase disallow the mining of gold? What would be the outcome if the youth at
Akosombo greedily interrupt with hydro supply to other parts of the nation as the
CAPE MILITIA is doing with the black gold.

Their concern is the concern of all but to form a deadly and unlawful group is
surely not the best way to arbitrate your worries. The governament on its part
should put structures in place to make sure they get what is their fair share of the
national cake.

But until that is done, we should remember not to count our chicks before they hatch.

Philip Atawura

Academy of Young Writers- Ghana
Creative Writers and Orators Club
0267514131