OPEN LETTER TO THE YOUTH: WE DEVELOP OR PERISH !!

Dear Comrades,
Modernisation and contemporary politics have made all of us legitimate royals to shape the affairs of the country. “Africa has great potential and more than 65% of Africa’s people are young,” Gasnolar Andrew. It is in this respect that I want to share the words of a sage with all because, “the foundation of every state is the education of its youth.”
Grandfather: Boadu, even the most powerful of our priests know that true magic come from minds and spirits of people not from deities. Where there is a will, magic will naturally flow from the mind and soul of the individual. I want to share with you the great secret of our fallen ancestors of years ago.
Boadu: Is it the secret of the Agona Clan royals?
Grandfather: It used to be our secret but now pride in clan and tribe is no where near pride in nationality and race. It is going to be a secret if used by you and your friends, will transform Ghana. School taught you dates as history, but it is my duty to teach you lessons from the dates.
Boadu: I am all ears chief.
Grandfather: You are a Ghanaian and proud to mention resources like gold, timber, bauxite and many more. Do you know we are immigrants here and this land was discovered through blood shed by ancestors of years ago? The very great people the youth of today naively called uncivilised. Uncivilised? With all the struggles they went through for us, you spit in their face because you have been brainwashed with lies. If today doesn’t appreciate the struggles of yesterday, tomorrow wouldn’t appreciate the toils of today.
Boadu: Okay. I am a royal and already know the history but continue.
Grandfather: You know the dates, that I know, but the lessons, I don’t think your teachers taught you in the classroom. If you knew the lessons, you would have been more patriotic, selfless, and showed true signs of royalty. You are a royal, but that was given to you by virtue of birth. Your actions will tell if you deserve to be mentioned as a royal or not.
There are many chiefs in Ghana who are royals by birth but royalty is not in their spirits. Some shamefully sell same piece of land to three different persons, sell valuable ancient artifacts meant to be used to educate younger generations, and also take tokens at the expense of their people. That is not royalty! That is what I don’t want you to become when someday you become leader!
Boadu: Hmmmm!!!
Grandfather: In Old Ghana Empire, we moved after several wars broke out between us and invading enemies. Our family heads, chiefs , priests and wise men led our people through dangers. They put their lives on the line to search for fertile land and peaceful place for their people. The safety and happiness of our subjects are what true royals look after. It is their toil, vision, selflessness and courage that compelled them to move to discover this place we now called Ghana.
Those days, forests were like Kakum Forest in Cape Coast or Amazon Forest. The forests were active with dangerous animals like leopard, tiger, cobra, anaconda, buffaloes, dwarfs and many creatures. Can you lead a team of 100 people to stay in Kakum Forest without modernised technologies like GPS reader, firelighters, sniper rifle and foldable tents?
Boadu: Even with all those equipment, I would not even dare to enter Kakum Forest.
Grandfather: Your great ancestors led their people without foldable tents and sniper rifles through evergreen forests in quest for finding better place for their subjects. Royalty is not about amassing gold, it is about sacrifices to give your people comfortable life.
In those days, their greatest mission was to discover fertile land and peaceful abode for their subjects. Do you remember the story of Agona Mensah (Adansi Bodweasanwo) when a deadly monster (sasabonsam) terrorised and killed over 30 people? Again, your ancestors had to put their lives on the line to save their people from the monster!
All that our ancestors toiled for have been ruined by this greedy, myopic and ungratfeul generation who call themselves civilised. Is selfishness the etymological meaning of civilised? Is greediness another term for civilised? Is immorality synonymous to civilised now?
I know you remember the bond of March 6, 1844 which shaped the adoption of Independence Date of Ghana ! This bond was led and signed by your ancestors because they thought it was good bargaining to give our people comfort not distress. However, it was that bond that catalysed the British rule in Gold Coast. It is so sad that royals and politicians of today just learn dates not lessons. Anytime I hear Ghana is going to IMF, World Bank, and other foreign aids, I remember the bond of 1844; it tasted sweet temporary but became extremely bitter in the end.
You need to master the art of bargaining! Our ancestors left us land, due to lack of bargaining skills despite your numerous years in classrooms, foreigners are building their countries with our resources. Singapore had nothing but because of bargaining, it is one of the global giants. Gold has been mined in Obuasi for over 100 years yet our people are suffering. Our bargaining skills is what has decorated the average Ghanaian with the ‘survive on less than $2.00 a day’ medal.
Don’t cry on God for help but cry on those whom you trusted your resources in their hands for help. The law clearly states, government is the owner of all mineral resources. Our ancestors knew man has to do all physical works for his personal growth. God is only consulted for spiritual protection. There emerged the axiom, “a bird that perches idly sleeps hungry!” But this generation want God to protect them spiritually and also farm to feed them, clean their gutters, construct their roads, and even become the wheels of their cars. As a royal, the psychology of your people must be constructively improved by you! Do you remember when your ancestors had to institute sacred laws to protect the water bodies, some plants and animals species. You would have to learn to psyche your people to reason more and stop disturbing God for blessings He has already given them in the form of natural resources.
My final words to you, now, the mission of royals has changed! It is your responsibility to remove the “survive on $2.00 a day” tag on your average subject and replace with “we are managing this $800.00 a day” tag. I don’t know how you will do that but remember, your ancestors didn’t know they could discover this land for their subjects. But when the well being of their subjects became too paramount to them, they had faith to fight on without accepting alibis for failure. Economic independence is the number one priority of your subjects, so give them that just as your ancestors toiled to provide the number one priority (peace and fertile land) to their subjects! Same people but different demand now!
Remember, back then, human races were not broadly categorised into Black and White. Our ancestors found pride in their tribes and didn’t hesitate to war with neighbouring tribes to extend their territories. We are today known to the world as Ghanaians and Blacks. An European wouldn’t bother to know your tribe when you travel to Europe. A Black man to them, is an exploited African, no matter your tribe.
The issue of nationality has given us the greatest advantage our ancestors didn’t have - strength in unity and numbers! Ghana is now a country with different tribal colours, when the colours stick together, they will form rainbow to adorn your economic independence struggle. Stick together and develop, foreigners will travel and beg to serve you like you travel to other countries to serve! May the spirits of the great ancestors be with you!
Boadu: Thank you. I promise to make myself worthy of my ancestral sacrifices. I have now understood royalty as a vow to give my subjects comfortable life no matter the dangers to be faced.
Comrades, henceforth, it is my fervent hope to see positive change in us. Thank you.

(Kboadu105@gmail.com)

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