Northern Ghana Elite, The Blood Suckers Of Northern Ghana

Albert Nuhu, Author

I remember very clearly how angry progressive Ghanaians and Africans were when Obama came to Ghana and asked Africans to stop blaming colonialism and rather tighten their belts and eradicate corruption in Africa.

I was one of them. 

Today I cannot help but call on all Northerners to stop blaming Southern domination and look into ourselves to fight the enemies of the North. The enemies of the North, those who seek our destruction, those who seek to imprison the North in darkness, poverty, ignorance, diseases and perpetual cup in hand begging and relying on government handouts are the Elite of the North. Yes! our own Elite. Because, our Southern brothers have given us more than enough since independence. Folks, one thing I know very well are that the Northern elite are the curse of the North.

Why did Kwame Nkrumah institute the Northern scholarship scheme? Why did Kwame Nkrumah include so many Northerners in his cabinet; such as Hon. E. A. Mahama (John Mahama’s father), Hon. Imoru Egala, Hon. L.R Abavana, Hon. Mumuni Bawumia, Hon. J. A. Brimah, Hon. Asumda, and Hon. S. S. Sakara as the National Propaganda Secretary of the CPP? The head of the Security forces and Army Bawa and Zanerigu were from the North under Nkrumah.

Folks, in recent memory, why did JJ Rawlings have almost more than a third of his Cabinet from the North? Professor Mills and the NDC followed, with Northerners occupying many Cabinet and top civil service positions. Ask yourself, why did all these regimes do that? Folks, Mr. Ibrahim Mahama was taken straight from Legon Law School to head a Cabinet Ministry under Kotoka and Afrifa; he did not even know how to drive a car, and has since not been able to drive a car. Even Kofi Busia had a special place in his heart for Northerners, and generously appointed many Northern Cabinet Ministers. 

If you don’t know the answer to my questions, here it is. Because, there is a famous saying that if you give someone a fish you feed that person for a day. But, when you teach someone how to fish, you feed that person for life. Simply put, all these regimes gave us all these opportunities and appointments to help us help ourselves. But, like spoilt brats, we blew every opportunity we had to help and raise our people out of poverty and misery. We deceived our folks and enriched our individual selves at the terrible and lamentable expense of our own people.

Folks, these Northern elite that were appointed to various cabinet positions under all these regimes, simply sucked the hell out of Northern poor and innocent brothers and sisters. They used the positions to enrich themselves, as if they were ordained by God to receive benefits on behalf of Northerners who carried latrine, worked in the mines, took care of cocoa farms, pounded fufu and washed dishes down south. 

Prez John Mahama

These Northern elite simply exploited Northerners in the name of the suffering and backwardness of the North. They used the doctrine of lack of amenities in the North to gather and secure and protect amenities for themselves. They literally stole from the Northern peoples in the name of lack of development in the North. They embezzled from the unfortunate and uneducated Northern brothers and sisters in the name of lack of good drinking water in the North. The Northern elite woefully and shamelessly exploited the plight of their own brothers and sisters in the North, and in the name of colonial injustices to Northerners to line up and oil their pockets.

Folks, the Northern elite blatantly burglarized every institution that was created to help alleviate poverty and diseases and ignorance in the North, in the name of the abandonment of the North by Colonial powers and Ashanti Landlords. They brutally corrupted every institution and agency created to narrow the gap between the south and the North, in the name of the discrimination of Northerners in the work place. They embezzled and robbed in plain day light the monies set aside to help the North, in the name of lack of respect and regard from the south for Northerners. It is like the “race card” abused by blacks in the US; everywhere you look and pass Northern elite are exploiting the historical accidents on Northerners to fill their bank accounts.

Folks, here are some examples of the very real attempts by every regime to redeem the North, and which efforts and good intentions were exploited by Northern elite to enrich themselves. I am sure you all remember the fancy names of agencies created to help Northerners, which were misused and mismanaged and robbed and abused by Northern elite in the name of compensations for Northern suffering.

Folks Sister Rosaline B. Obeng-Ofori described our frustrations with the Northern elite appropriately. She said “After FASCOM, URADEP, NORRIP, SADA 1 and now SADA2, if we do not improve our lot, we should forget it and stop blaming anybody for our endemic poverty”. 

What a woman; what a strong, honest and conscientious Northern woman. Folks, we all share Rosaline B. Obeng-Ofori’s resentment of our Northern inadequacies expressed in our morally bankrupt, corrupt, greedy, nefarious, shameless and nakedly obscene Northern Elite.

Today, we have not only been coopted and favored by all regimes but, thanks to NDC, our own boy, my little beloved brother, is President of Ghana, duly nominated by NDC and duly elected Nationwide. But, it appears the election of John Mahama has just turned loose the wolves of Northern Ghana elite. They are barking and tearing flesh left and right, they have ganged on my little brother John in the Flagstaff House and taken him ransom, they have looted from beneath him and above him, they have grabbed every pesewa that they can lay eyes on and designated to assist our poor Northern folks, they have sought to eat humans raw in the name of “gold rush” for Northern elite, and have turned governance into a mockery. The Northern elite seconded every opportunity afforded by every regime since independence in corruption, greed, and shameless thievery. What a shame! Let’s all repeat it after me “What a shame!”

Shame on you Northern elite! Shame on you Northern elite! Shame on you Northern elite blood suckers of the Northern poor! Shame on you Northern elite embezzlers of monies ear marked to alleviate Northerners from poverty! Shame on you Northern elite, who will not miss every opportunity to complain of Northern suffering and neglect since independence, and only to turn around and steal and grab every penny away from the real Northern poor! Shame on you Northern elite who only knows how to use the Northern plight to advance their individual enrichment agenda at the expense, and in fact sometimes death of Northern peoples because of hard labor and toil!

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Folks, I am deeply ashamed to be called a Northerner just for one reason. Because, that title is synonymous with bureaucratic corruption, indignant and blatant robbery and looting of government coffers; Yes, that title signifies corruption without conscience against our own people. When they talk about “from rugs to filthy rich Northern elite”, there could not have been a better description. 

The “Northern Filthy rich elite” are really dirty, made and continue to make their dirty money on the backs and sweat and suffering of Northerners.

For once, my dear dirty rich Northern elite, you have your chance to change. You have your chance with John Manama in the Presidency to reduce your greed and thievery. You have your chance to repent and assist John Mahama cleanse your names and make you men and women worthy of living. 

You have John Mahama to assist you to make Ghana and northern Ghana a better place for all. Yes, your best chance is in the person of John Mahama, who embodies all good and purity, and morally upright; and you have the obligation to cut out the bull, clean up your acts and join the community of the civilized and humane, and leave corruption to the dogs. You can do it. You can change. You owe it to your legacy to have a conscience and do the right thing and stop looting the portion of the National cake that has been allocated to the North.

As Gonjas put it, “amba kuli abre”, meaning it’s time for self-criticism. You Northern elite out there, shame on you for humiliating and increasing poverty in the North ten and hundred fold; because you have siphoned away and stolen every penny any government has ever allocated to assist the North. You have enough. You have done enough damage; you are a curse on humanity and you must stop now.

I will conclude this piece by quoting Sister Rosaline B. Obeng-Ofori again, the West Africa Program Manager of the Purdue Peace Project. Her prophetic warning/caution/advice to all of us Northerners will be the last words for this segment of “Uncle Dee gone crazy, fed up, and fed up of being fed up with the corruption and naked robbery of Northerners by the Northern elite. She is talking to all of us Northerners! She says:

““AFTER FASCOM, URADEP, NORRIP, SADA 1 AND NOW SADA2, IF WE DO NOT IMPROVE OUR LOT, WE SHOULD FORGET IT AND STOP BLAMING ANYBODY FOR OUR ENDEMIC POVERTY”.

P/S: Note that sister Rosaline is not an Ashanti woman; she is a strong, decent, honorable, conscientious Northern Lady, who goes to bed daily with worries about the misery and poverty plight of the North on her mind, heart and soul. Amen!!

This opinion was originally put on facebook by the writer on June 30.