The 2016 presidential election would forever be remembered not based on the fact that it is the first time an incumbent failed to be given the second bid but rather how a man tagged as a failure, divisive, ridiculed because of age and height, persevered and succeeded.
I was in Accra, February 2013, to submit a report. The office had not been opened and feeling lonely, I tuned on my phone radio to an unknown radio station. There was a man, a prophet to be precise, who indicated that God had revealed to him that Nana Addo, who had then lost 2012 presidential election, can never become a president of this nation. His destiny was not to be president. Since then, any time I see Nana Addo, the message of the prophet rings loudly in my mind. I didn’t believe the saying of that man but I have seen how messages of prophets and men had placed many people in abyss of failure. I have come across young men and women who gave up their hard work and belief after people in the name of God had spoken words of discouragement and failure to them. The victory of our president elect, is a great tool of encouragement to the youth of this country and to generation unborn that a man’s destiny is not determined by what people say but rather what you really believe in your heart to be true. Geraldine Brooks once advised, “You go on. You set one foot in front of the other, and if a thin voice cries out, somewhere behind you, you pretend not to hear, and keep going.”
Looking through the history of the President elect, it is untrue that he is a failure. Firstly, he is a man who speak frequently in French. A language I have seen great men and women struggled to learn. I don’t recall any of our past presidents speaking fluently in this language. To me, anyone who does something I can’t do is never a failure and I have come to believe that every individual, whether small or great, can do something I can’t do. No man is a failure in my world. Secondly, how can a man who co-founded a law firm that has produced outstanding lawyers in our times be termed failure? An ace journalist once indicated that one man who has suffered verbal abuses, insults and mockery in the history of Ghanaian politics is Nana Addo. This man had hundred reasons to give up in his presidential bid but, I believed in his heart he had a thousand reasons to move on. Many people forgot that he was elected three times between 1996 and 2008 as Member of Parliament for the Abuakwa South constituency in the Eastern Region. Many people forgot that he was Attorney-General and Minister of Justice as well as Foreign Minister during the government of President Kufuor. Many people forgot that he helped protected the independence of judiciary, the right of the citizen to demonstrate without police permit and the right to equal access of all political parties to the State-owned media, yet, people called him failure. In this life, you are the best person to encourage yourself. All eyes surrounding you see your failure more and not your success but you should be controlled by your small success you chopped and not the huge defeat you suffered. Indeed, what my Sunday School teacher once told me about failure is really true, “Failure is a term for the dead not for the living.”
The victory of Nana Addo confirms that life is not about what others say about you, in fact, life is staying alive to prove your critics wrong. I am imagining to hear the reaction of all those men and women who showered abusive and condemnable words to this man. Young men and women in this country, indeed, you can succeed. Young men and women in this country, today, we have had an example, he is the president elect, he made it and you too can definitely make it. Benjamin Disraeli once said, “Through perseverance many people win success out of what seemed destined to be certain failure.” All we need is to have a vision which will not serve our selfish interest but an interest that would help the people of this country.
This man called Nana Addo, as stated by a social commentator, has competed with 36 men in his race to become president in this country. It has never been so in the history of this country. He lost twice to John Agyekum Kufuor. He won the presidential candidate bid in 2007 for his party but lost to John Atta Mills in the general election. He won again to contest on behalf of NPP but lost to John Dramani Mahama in 2012. He lost again in 2013 during the 2012 election petition at the Supreme Court. Many including his own party members spoke against his decision to contest for 2016 elections but he was never discouraged despite his age. He won again as the presidential candidate for his party and there followed the worst of his attack in his life. He was called names, a murderer, divisive, authoritative, had cancer, discriminator, engaging tribalism, cocaine dealer, corrupt and so forth. What caused the pain was the caliber of people who were verbally attacking him. The least said about them the better. Yet, Nana moved on. What motivated this man so much? I saw one thing, he understood that life is a battle, and that battle is the LORD’s. As a Christian, I have never in my life seen people whose focused was not on the actions and words of men but of God, grew to be disappointed and discouraged. They always put their accusers to shame.
Nana Addo’s victory has proved that people do not need to change their names in order to excel or achieve victory in life. Many thought you need to be named “John” in order to be president. it is untrue and when in doubt, just remember the name of the 2016 president elect. Young man and woman, all you need is perseverance. This is what Martin Luther King, Jr. meant when he said, “If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.” This is how Julie Andrews defined it, “Perseverance is failing 19 times and succeeding the 20th.” The economy may be hard, family finances weakened, job unsecure, friends disappoint, relationship broken, yet move forward, just move forward.
Nana’s road to victory is one face of inspiration but his leadership and governance can decide whether his name will be immortal in the lips of people of this country or just be lost and buried. The task ahead is a difficult one and he should look up to the those who brought him to the throne especially whenever he makes decisions. He should remember that Ghanaians voted for him to be president and as he has promised, he will never fail Ghanaians, so this must be his policy. He should again remember, it’s the Lord who placed him there and therefore whatever he encounters, he shouldn’t shun this God and as he said in his acceptance speech, the Battle is still the Lord’s, so should this be his heart’s desire.
May God be with you, Nana Addo, and God bless Ghana.