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| Late President John Evans Fiifi Atta Mills |
The day he died
THE passing of Prof. Mills on Tuesday, July 24, 2012, or on ‘Black Tuesday’ as some call it, left Ghanaians in a state of shock till date.
Daily Graphic reporters in town that day observed that the atmosphere was calm, the streets were quiet, and most people were seen discussing the sudden passing away of Prof. Mills.
“If we had the power, we would have reversed the hand of death from touching him, but all the same, God is the controller of human life”, Bright Einstem, a passer-by on Graphic road, said.
He said he was disappointed and sad about the President’s demise but would console himself with the legacy that the President had left with Ghanaians.
“It has come as a complete shock to all Ghanaians, we have lost a great academia and leader”, a former President of the Ghana Bar Association, Nii Osah Mills, said with sadness in his voice.
He advised Ghanaians to be courageous and learn to unify, and then expressed the family his condolence.
A day after the late President’s demise
A day after his death, most Ghanaians were still shocked and devastated: their mood was written all over their faces.
Although businesses went on as usual, traders complained business was slow and dull, attributing it to the sudden news about the death of the President.
Madam Rebecca Authur, a tomato seller, said if the death hadn’t occurred, trading would have been better for her.
Madam Authur, who had folded her arms in her cloth, said she was so hurt and felt sad on hearing of the death of the President because she loved him.
One week funeral rites
The the principal streets across the country were busy, colourful and loud with activities; contrary to the expected solemness that usually characterises the traditional observance of the seventh day after a death occurs.
At the Kwame Nkrumah Circle, the observation was marked at the Odorna market with dancing to the sound of music and dirges by sympathisers adorned in red and black dresses and red arm bands.
While hawkers moved around, others danced to mark the one week.The atmosphere was noisy with lots of screaming from traders, hawkers and horns of vehicles amidst dancing to the tune of music and dirges being played along the streets. Certain people also mounted canopies with sound systems in front of their houses and shops.
Four minutes before 2:15 p.m., the time for the observance of a minute’s silence for the late President, drivers started hooting their horns to alert people that the time was near.
Observing the minute’s silence, the traders and hawkers stood still to sing the National Anthem and said the National Pledge after which they screamed around for some few minutes.
A trader at Odorna market , Felix Amoah, said though he was sad and mourning, he could feel some kind of unity among Ghanaians and noted that the late President’s death was indeed a sacrifice to unite the country.
What people say about President Mills
The President has won admirable and laudable tributes. He is described as a peacemaker, gentle, humble, honest and simple. Interestingly, giant billboards with inscriptions such as, “Man of Peace Rest In Peace”, and “Asomdwehene Rest In Peace”, were erected across the country, while entrances of shops, companies and organisations were decorated with black and red banners bearing portraits of late President Mills.
World leaders, organisations, institutions, chiefs and individuals also sent messages of condolence to the government and people of Ghana with the underlying messages stating that President Mills was a champion of democracy and a man of peace.
While the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, described President Mills as a statesman and a real African leader who wanted the best for all, US President, Barack Obama, hailed him as a "good leader who worked tirelessly to improve the lives of the Ghanaian people in the midst of challenging global circumstances”, and Liberia's President, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, said, on a personal level, Mills’s moderation and integrity stood out.
Prof. John Evans Fiifi Atta Mills, “Wo Ojogbaa”!!!(Rest In Peace)
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