A few years ago a very brilliant, great and Ivy League (Princeton) educated professor taught in an area of science at a university in one of the greatest and most lovely cities in the United States. This great professor passed away not too long ago. He was a very scrupulous person.

The professor taught in an area of science whose widespread application could justifiably earn it characterisation as “the mother of sciences” in that it impacts almost every aspect of human life. The countless areas of application of this science include, defense, aerospace, mining, automotive, pharmaceuticals, medicine, dentistry and development of advanced materials for countless other applications.

Any good art designed for building society, when it falls in the wrong hands can be used for destroying society and produce irreparable damage to society. This consideration is what led the late Alfred Nobel of Sweden to institute the Nobel Prize as a strong reminder of the destructive power of explosive materials whose development and performance are both based on this particular area of science in which the late professor was teaching. Consequently, practitioners of this science would be lured by the underworld to produce illegal substances for monetary gains. Unfortunately for the underworld, they cannot match the enormous rewards offered by the lawful world to the seasoned practitioner of this branch of science.

Notwithstanding, a dimwit novice in the practice of this science could fall prey to the lure by the underworld into production of illegal drugs. This is a message that the good professor used to give to students in his class, citing a specific incident as evidence of his claims. At the end of the last class of the semester, the good professor would advise the class that the science he had thought the class has widespread applications and it can be used to do good to society and it can also be used to destroy society. The good professor would advise the class to apply what he had taught them to build society because they could pay severely for it if they decided to apply it to destroy society. This is a very powerful message!!!

The university was located in a very good American city that is home to multiple sports franchises and a very popular sports arena. In the US it is not uncommon for the underworld to be splashing large amounts of money in betting and other sports related activities. The good professor would tell the class he had a student years earlier (let me call him “Mark”). The professor said other students went to watch a match at the sports arena and they came and told him that they had seen “Mark” sitting at a very expensive part of the stadium and they could not afford to pay to sit at that expensive section of the stadium and they wondered how “Mark” got money to pay to sit there.

That section of the stadium was reserved for VIP’s, people with deep pockets and of course it would be penetrated by underworld characters who always show off by splashing money. The good professor said further that shortly after people spotted “Mark” at that expensive section of the stadium, they received a report that “Mark” had gone to jail. It turned out that “Mark” was using the art he had learned from the professor’s class to serve the underworld and his expenses at the stadium were paid by the underworld.

As far back as my school days in Ghana, I have been a fan of Nana Ampadu’s music which are well composed and loaded with rhythm and melody, the essential features that make music stand out as real music as opposed to disgusting noise. Little did I know that the lyrics he was putting out invariably had global implications in the rule of law, law enforcement and uphold of ethical standards.

The message from the good professor reconciles very well with the lyrics in one of Nana Ampadu’s songs. I do not remember the title of the song but readers who are of age may remember it used to be the prelude to a TV program in the 1970’s entitled: “Meet the Lawyer” or “Ask the Lawyer” or a similar title, and it featured round table discussion by a group of attorneys answering questions on law from the public. The start of the program showed a man clad in traditional costume, running back and forth in front of the High Court building in Accra and waiting desperately for his lawyer to show up.

In Twi the lyrics of the song partially runs as follows: “Boni biara a wo beye wo wiase……….”. The English translation runs as follows: “Whatever wrong you do on this earth, you will get your reward on earth, before you pass away. For me as an attorney, I have used technicalities in law to defend you, so go and settle it with (your) God”. This is a very powerful message just like the message from the professor to his class. I suspect that the suitability of this song to the TV program might have been decided by the TV station in collaboration with the Ghana Bar Association. A powerful message well suited!!!

The lyrics tell the story of a man who fell on the wrong side of the law but he was successfully defended by a good lawyer and vindicated by the court. After the court trial, the lawyer invited the man to his (lawyer’s) office and narrated to him the lyrics of the song as mentioned in the previous paragraph.

As a coincidence, besides a Ph.D. in science from Princeton University it is my understanding that this good professor also had a degree in law. The messages from Nana Ampadu and the good professor are great messages that resonate well with all progressive persons who respect the rule of law and uphold ethical standards.

I wish to extend this comparison a bit further. The good professor was an Ivy League product but Nana Ampadu is not. However both persons have been able to put out messages that are identical in quality. The United States is a land full of the likes of the good professor who developed new ideas from Ivy League institutions and they came out to serve society very well with these ideas and this includes Bill Gtaes and the late Koch. Koch brought innovative ideas from MIT to establish Koch Industries.

Nana Ampadu, on the other hand also has company which includes the late Henry Ford who never had university education but vowed that he will build an automobile that many middle class Americans could afford. Look around the whole world and you see branches of Ford Motors Corporation at every corner of the globe.