Ghana demonstrates mature politics, shatters myth

In the mist of sorrow and international expressions of grief following the sudden death of Ghanaian President John Atta Mills, his country has shown that having democratic credentials is not a monopoly of the West.

Thursday, July 26, 2012

In the mist of sorrow and international expressions of grief following the sudden death of Ghanaian President John Atta Mills, his country has shown that having democratic credentials is not a monopoly of the West.True to the book, when news of President Mills demise broke, Parliament convened immediately to swear in his Vice President, John Dramani Mahama. There were no attempts to delay the constitutional exercise in order to devise means of torpedoing the process as happened in Malawi recently, nor did the military go the Burma-Mali-Egypt way. They let the constitution do the talking.Many a time, some self-appointed king makers put it upon themselves to hijack the due process when change does not serve their interests, relegating to the bottom drawer the very instruments they helped to coin.This kind of behaviour is not the preserve of so-called third world countries only, it’s just that some countries do it so crudely and attract the attention of the western controlled media who are quick to stereotype it as "the African way” of doing things.Ghana has shattered that myth.The speedy and smooth transition should bring shame to some countries that openly flout their own laws and constitutions when the wind is not blowing their way.