By Badu, K

As a matter of fact, it is neither an insult to suggest that an individual has no competence to hold a position nor slanderous to assert that a person is devoid of the qualities requisite for effective conduct of a position.

However, it may be slanderous to refer to someone as a womanizer or a dictator, if it turns out to be untrue. It is so, because we are talking here about the individual’s reputation. Needless to say, competence has nothing to do with someone’s character.

For instance, I won’t take it as a character assassination if you tell me I am only a good lawyer but incompetent to be a communicator. However, I will take an exception to the reference of a dictator or a womanizer, because it would be a malicious and unjustifiable harm to my reputation.

Let’s therefore remind the loose talkers that while it is wrong to refer to someone as a womanizer, it is also disgusting to malign an innocent person as a dictator.

It is against this background that I am so mindful of the vineyard news about President Mahama’s extra marital affairs.

“There is this notion of me being a womanizer which is certainly not true”. “I have had children outside my marriage, but I am at peace with my wife. She understands the circumstances in which it happened” said President Mahama (Daily Guide/peacefmonline.com).

A womanizer is “an individual who pursues women lecherously or passionately”.

Deductively, a womanizer is a liar. A liar is susceptible to stealing. And, a thief is an irrevocable liar.

In practice, it is impossible for one to keep several concubines, unless you are a cognitive liar. In other words, you have to engage in a lot of 'propaganda' in order to have your way.

And more so, how do you provide all your numerous concubines with financial support if you have 'a shallow pocket'?

I am afraid the likely scenario is: you may resort to dubious practices, including corruption in order to support your income so as to feed your abhorrent habit of keeping several concubines.

“Womanizers, especially those who have no qualms about fathering children out of wedlock, are far more likely to succumb to the criminal act of bribery and corruption in order to sustain their financially consuming addiction” (Okoampa-A. K., 2012/ghanaweb.com).

Clearly, then, there is a correlation between womanizing and corruption. It is against this background that I am expressing concern about the womanizing innuendoes being directed at President Mahama.

It would be recalled that when President Mahama was first selected as the running mate of the then candidate, the late Mills in 2008, Mr Mahama’s official curriculum vitae released at the time indicated that he had nine children. However, the CV was quickly withdrawn and replaced with a new one stating seven as the number of his biological children (Daily Guide/peacefmonline.com).

Obviously, this puzzled and seemingly weird omission ignited the debate over his actual biological children. Some rumour mongers however put the figure at twenty three, while others pegged it at nineteen children and so on.

All the same, in his interview with the Africawatch, President Mahama made it clear that he had had children outside his marriage, but his wife understands his extra marital affairs (modernghana.com).

Apparently, the President’s father, “the late Emmanuel Adama Mahama, a former regional minister in the Nkrumah regime had 19 kids by various women. The president admitted in the Africawatch interview” (Daily Guide/peacefmonline.com).

“Yes, we were many siblings from different mothers, but one of the things he did was to bring us together and made sure that every single child of his was put through school”.

“He gave us the opportunity,” he said. “However, in the case of the president’s children, they are living apart, perhaps making it difficult to know one another” (Daily Guide/peacefmonline.com).

For me, I have no business digging into President Mahama’s private life. A womanizer or no womanizer, it is up to him as a president of Ghana to explain to Ghanaians and the whole world whether if it is morally right to constantly cheat his wife by keeping several women alongside his wife.

My worry though, is the vineyard news concerning his numerous children born outside his marriage.

Anyway, I hope and pray that all the numerous children are being catered for, else it would appear irresponsible on the part of ‘father for all’ President Mahama.

Hopefully, President Mahama is living up to his much touted ‘father for all’ tag.