Biting The Bullet Outside The Tunnel (1)
A Touch of Nokoko by Kofi Akumanyi
My fellow countrymen, not too long after 31st December, a few months afterward, I was hearing from all kinds of quarters, from you, your quarter, mine, that the man has changed, the man is not like he was in 1979 I could put it down and analyse it for you, is not me, it is not I who have changed - it is you. I have fought for a dedicated cause, I have always fought for justice, you are the one who have changedNow, this statement is very significant for many reasons- Ghana is a very strange country: things happen so quickly that only those who are fleet-footed are able to keep track with the front runners. For years, successive leaders who have found themselves at the helm of affairs of that country have been shouting themselves hoarse for the need for change - change of all kinds to make the society a better place to live in. The people had to play ball.
— JJ Rawlings Chairman of PNDC and leader of the Revolution
Speech on 6th March 1984
The demands for change spearheaded by Rawlings himself have brought about many unintended consequences in the Ghanaian society which appar mly have touched everybody else but him.
To fully understand this phenomenon properly the hackneyed analogy of the tunnel which is often used by the current crop of politicians in Ghana regimes must be explained
Professor Mawar Deke, Secretary of the National Defence Council, coordinating office of the political wing of the PNDC's Workers and Peoples Defence Committees for instance, recently talked about the economic hardships which are threatening the very existence of the people. "If we are able to understand the proposals (IMF/World Bank) and go through the difficult times, we can be sure to see the light at the end of the Tunnel in a few years."
Now, many otherwise docile Ghanaians must have been incensed at this profound comment by the eminent professor who, they argued should have used his deep knowledge in engineering to design a better tunnel for the 14 million people to live in - at least a tunnel which would admit in some light instead of having to wait for a ray of light at the end of it.
I have spoken to some Ghanaians on the two issues - first, why everybody in ghana has changed but Rawlings and secondly, why they should put up with living in the dark tunnel of despair and thirdly, whether there is any connection between the two issues.
“Rawlings says you people have changed since he assumed power,”, I said
"Did he really say that?"
"Yes, he did and added that he has always fought for justice."
"And what did he say we the people have been fighting for - injustice?" my friend asked angrily.
“I presumed all he means is that Ghanaians as a people with one destiny have not fully supported the principles that he stands for - justice," I offered an explanation
"Does his kind of justice include meddling in the internal affairs of other countries?”
"He didn't say that in the speech and has not as yet commented on that statement by Captain Sankara but it surely goes to show how resolute he has been since he took over the government," I explained, not very sure Rawlings would agree with me on this.
"Well, it's not surprising because he is now known to have bitten the bullet," he said.
I immediately pricked my cars because I realised that we had entered a new area in the discussion. It always happens like that whenever bullets are mentioned in connection with military
“Bitten the bullet, did you say?"
"Yes, he has and the story about that is rather interesting. Would you like to hear it? Well, they say that soon after the 31st December take-over, the leader of the revolution and his special adviser to the PNDC (on security matters) went shopping for bullets for that's basically what keeps them in power.”
Now, if you know anything about military hardware you would realise that it takes a lot of technical know-how to shop wisely in this market. Moreover one needs a quality like unwavering dedication to a cause to pick the right type of bullet with the exact destructive power to be bitten"
When Rawlings entered the ammunition depot the following conversation took place.
“I want some bullets please", Rawlings said.
“well. Sir, if you tell me the type of guts you have, I can supply the stuff without any problems. We stock AK-47s, Assault rifles…”
"Any bullet would do, if you don't mind”, he interrupted him
"Any bullet? But Sir, you have to tell me because without correct specification you cannot load the bloody equipment let alone fire it”, the man said looking at the buyer with a strange look in his eye.
“You don't understand, Sir, I want bullets to bite”
"You what?" exclaimed the ammo seller, his earlier suspicion growing "Well, I can't stop you", He said handing him packets of hard-nosed German Mauser and AK-47 bullets which he immediately picked one and hit hard into it nodding his head
"How is that?"
"Could be better but give me the full range of bullets you have and I would do the sampling." he said his mouth full of bullets. The ammunition seller could not hide his surprise.
After going through the lot he place an order for more ammunitions for the rainy day.
"What has this story got to do with the accusation that Ghanaians have changed but he Rawlings hasn't?", my friend wanted to know.
"Not much except that perhaps the act of bullet-biting is a test of unwavering, and resolute constancy
To be continued
