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Hajia Adisa Sulemana, a retired educator from Bolgatanga, Upper East region, has described former President Jerry John Rawlings as a true nationalist and patriot whose leadership transformed Ghana’s economy.
Hajia Sulemana, former Deputy Director II and Head of the Islamic Unit in the Upper East Regional Directorate of the Ghana Education Service, expressed his shock at the death of the former president, describing his passing as “a very great blow” to the nation.
The Founder of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the first president of the Fourth Republic died on Thursday morning at the Korle-Bu University Hospital after a brief illness at the age of 73.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Bolgatanga, the former teacher explained that Ghana’s oldest leader was an embodiment of charisma and disciplinary traits who was fearless and dominated corruption even in difficult times for the common good of the common Ghanaians.
“Corruption was rampant before Rawlings came on the scene, people were smuggling goods across borders out of the country and making ordinary Ghanaians suffer because the prices of goods were high and people couldn’t afford them.
“But when he arrived, although those days were hard, his sense of nationalism and patriotism made him minimize, if not stop, corruption,” he added.
Hajia Sulemana recalled that Rawlings made sure to be disciplined in all sectors of the economy and more especially in the areas of decent politics, education and health, which he said were fundamental to the growth of the economy.
“Rawlings had a passion for development and he instilled that passion in all Ghanaians, especially teachers. There was discipline in the educational system and the performance of the pupils and students was good.
“When I was a teacher I liked my schoolchildren, so I could go to their different houses to drag them to school and make sure they learned and the children who passed through my hands at the Infant level knew how to read well before leaving primary school because I ensure the discipline that is lacking in most of today’s teachers, ”he said.
Hajia Sulemana, who has retired from active duty since 2006, said that the world icon, although he was a military leader for about 11 years, opened the political foundations for multi-party democracy, which promoted peace and unity among all Ghanaians.
The retired educator further described the former president as “a great leader and a true statesman” who was outgoing and had a passion for the elderly and traditional authorities and made him receive good advice that allowed him to govern the country well.
While expressing his condolences to the former president’s family, the NDC and the entire population of Ghana, Hajia Sulemana said that his passing was a tragedy and that he would be greatly missed and urged current leaders to emulate the leadership qualities of the former president and rule the country. with a sense of patriotism and nationalism.
Flight Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings first came to power in 1979 through a military coup under the Revolutionary Council of the Armed Forces (AFRC) before handing over power to Dr. Hilla Liman three months later.
He returned to power through another coup in 1981 under the Provisional National Defense Council (PNDC), where he ruled until the democratic elections of 1992, where he won and ruled for another eight years.
