Actions of politicians make profession unattractive — Kufuor

Former President John Agyekum Kufuor has observed that the behaviour and actions of some politicians has made the profession not to attract any sense of honour anymore.

He has, therefore, advised politicians to conduct and carry themselves in an honourable manner to erase the perception that anybody seeking to enter into the profession is only aiming to use it for a dubious purpose.

Addressing a delegation that paid him a visit at his house in Accra on Monday, the former President said the actions of some politicians had affected the entire profession so much that the title honourable bestowed on politicians had lost its true meaning.

"Anywhere you raise the topic of politics, people raise their eyebrows as if it is a dishonourable thing to be a politician. People think you are going in for some dubious consideration," he said.

Visit

The delegation was made up of the relatives of the eight senior military officers who were executed on June 16 and June 26, 1979 for alleged corruption and embezzlement of public funds.

They visited the former President to thank him for the role he played in assisting the families to retrieve the bodies of the executed military men for reburial.

In 2002 when former President Kufuor was in power, he granted permission to the families after they had petitioned him in 2001 to allow them exhume the bodies of the executed military officers for reburial.

This was after former President Kufuor had set up a Reconciliation Commission to ensure peace within the country.

The senior military officers, including three of Ghana's former Heads of State, were executed after a military tribunal convicted them for misusing their positions to enrich themselves while in office.

They were a former head of state, Gen. A. A. Afrifa; former foreign affairs minister, Col Roger Felli;  a former Head of State, Gen. Ignatius Acheampong; former border guards commander, Maj. Gen. E. K. Utuka.

Other officers executed were a former army commander, Maj. Gen. R. E. A. Kotei; a former air force chief, Air Vice Marshal George Yaw Boakye, and chief of the navy, Real Admiral Joy Amedume.

This year marks the 40th anniversary since their execution.

Protect the profession

Former President Kufuor said, in Ghana, people, including politicians had came to love the honourable title attached to the profession so much that they had forgotten " it is just a service to the nation".

He said the title honourable should come with a meaning and that it was the responsibility of politicians to carry themselves well so that their attitudes would not affect the image of the profession.

Former President Kufuor also attributed the wrong perception around the profession to the way the media sometimes twisted the words of politicians which, he said, made them appear bad to the public.

" Sometimes the way the media twist the words of politicians make it difficult for people to open their doors for them. This also affects the way the profession is seen," he said.

Regarding the visit, the former President said he was not expecting any "thank you message" from the families because he acted in the best interest of the nation.

"Those who were killed served Ghana and died in the course of duty and I thought that they deserved a proper burial," he added.

Spokesperson

The spokesperson of the families, Mrs Linda Brown, who is the daughter of Air Vice Marshal George Boakye, expressed gratitude of the families to former President Kufuor for his role in the whole process of reburial.

She said the families would on June 26, this year, hold a ceremony to mark the 40th anniversary of all the executed military officers.