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“I know that God created us for each other, and together we are a formidable team, despite the ups and downs of life.”
This is how former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings chose to describe her late husband, former President Jerry John Rawlings, in her tribute.
At the state funeral for the late former president in Black Star Square yesterday, Ms. Agyeman Rawlings, in three pages, told the world everything she wanted to say about the man with whom, for more than four decades, she built a relationship, first as a school buddy and then as a soulmate and then as a companion for life.
She recognized the fact that she had to adjust to life with him as there were so many things she did not know or understand about real life outside of her parents’ wings and home, but with their support, she was able to understand it for him. “To take me as I am; I was who I was and there was nothing I could do about it! “
“I had to learn to understand how to be street wise, move with the flow of your friends and acquaintances… it went against all the education that I had received intensively under the roof of my parents, and after several tests, I decided that I could not change for love. You finally got it, ”he said.
In her tribute, which was read on her behalf by her third daughter, Princess Amina Agyeman Rawlings, the former first lady recounted their life’s journey together, revealing, perhaps, some of the most private and intimate moments of their lives.
“You were for Ghana and then for me”
In fact, if there was any tribute people wanted to hear read at the funeral, it was that of Mrs. Rawlings, and it revealed a lot about the relationship that was traced back to before 1978, when they married her days after Rawlings left. was. power.
She told the world why there was no military fanfare at her wedding, how she had to support him in his decision to lead the country through the various stages, and the support she received from him to have an impact on improving the lives of women. and empowering them.
“Our wedding continues to be a memorable day for me. It was not a military wedding because of his disillusionment with the military government and the Armed Forces at that time, ”he said.
She also recounted advice that could have influenced the way the former president supported her and raised his own daughters – advice given to them by their father-in-law at their wedding.
“At our wedding, my father gave us both advice: ‘There are several reasons we send girls to school, one of them is that you don’t make a man your pillow. You support yourself and earn your own livelihood.
“He advised you to encourage me in my efforts because ‘a working woman is a free woman.’ With your help and support, we were able to make the fight for the rights of women and children a reality with the passage of the Interstate Succession Act, the Family Responsibility Act and all other laws passed on behalf of the women and children of Ghana.
“They are a testament to her concern for her nation as she realized the difficulties faced by women in the country,” said Ms. Rawlings.
After recounting how they both impacted on serving the nation, he returned to the intimate note, as he had begun, saying his last goodbye with a passionate quote from Rachel Wallace Oberie, ending with the words: ‘He is life. and love, beginning and end, an hour, a day, an eternity ”.
Rest in perfect peace, my love. That you take care of us all, ”he said.
Tributes
All this was captured in three pages of the 296-page brochure that featured hundreds of tributes from personalities ranging from Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, international organizations, heads of state in office and former heads of state, family, friends, former students from Achimota School, the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the National Democratic Party (NDP), among others.
Some of the tributes described him as “the voice of the voiceless, generous, defender of justice and great patriot.”
The brochure also contained memorable photographs showing his life, in addition to those that were primarily seen in the public domain during the times when he served as a military leader and later as president-elect.
Tribute to children
The children’s tributes were equally emotional, as one of them almost burst into tears, but they also reflected how he raised them with his philosophy.
Dr. Agyeman Rawlings, in her tribute, described her father as her best friend and confidant who taught her to strive for excellence in all things.
Yaa Asantewaa Agyeman Rawlings said that their father raised them to defy the ordinary and to go beyond their limits of comfort, while Amina Agyeman Rawlings described the former president as a “domesticated man of action who was always busy in his kitchen, preparing a delicious meal for anyone who visited the town ”.
The only son, Kimathi Agyeman Rawlings, said: “As much as you did for Ghana and Africa as a whole, you were still there to instill some of the lessons that I hope every parent can pass on to their child.”
NDC
A prominent NDC member, Alhaji Huudu Yahaya, who read the party’s tribute, said that Rawlings was committed to reversing the country’s socio-economic status from a country of scarcity and queues to a country of plantations.
“Queues became a thing of the past and most Ghanaian professionals started coming back to help build their country. The black markets regarding Ghanaian currency transactions, controlled prices and kalabule became a thing of the past, ”he added.
Education
The NDC spoke about how his vision helped transform the education system, established the University of Development Studies to increase the number of medical schools in the country, as well as his help in expanding the road sector.
“The grammar-type education inherited from our colonial teachers was shifted to junior high school (JHS) and senior high school (SHS) and also public universities were increased from three to six,” he said.
Alhaji Yahaya also said that it was under the former president that the policy of each region was implemented with a polytechnic to address the medium labor requirements for the country’s industrial development.
Development
He said that the economic and social infrastructure, which had largely deteriorated due to years of neglect, underwent serious rehabilitation, and that under Rawlings, electricity from the Akosombo Dam was extended to all 10 regions of Ghana, the then 110 district capitals and cities and towns. which accelerated development in Ghana.
He noted that the road sector experienced an expansion into rural areas and the ports of Takoradi and Tema saw rehabilitation and expansion, as well as the airports of Kotoka, Kumasi and Tamale, while the education sector was not left out.
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