By
Godwill Arthur-Mensah, GNA
Accra, Sept. 12, GNA – The Mfantsipim Old Boys
Association (MOBA) on Wednesday, took their turn to pay a memorial farewell
honour to their departed fellow, Kofi Atta Annan.
It was, indeed, a touching moment at the Accra
International Conference Centre, when they sang the song on their school motto,
“Dwen Hwe Kan”, which inspires thoughtfulness and foresight.
And with the tributes that have poured in
since the passing of Ghana’s illustrious son on August 18, 2018, there is no
doubt that the Seventh United Nations Secretary-General, who once sat on the
floor of the School’s first black headmaster’s office to take his weekly
lessons in Spoken English, literally lived out his alma mater’s
motto.
“He was the shining light of Africa; he has
left behind millions and millions of blazing bright spots in every corner of
the world,” Mr Michel Sidebe, the Executive Director of UNAIDS, has said in an
article that captures it all.
“An African at heart, a global citizen in
truth, Kofi Annan symbolised the best of humanity. As United Nations Secretary
General, his contributions to society spanned across continent and covered
multiple issues. He was a rabble rouser, trouble-shooter, change-maker-all
combined in one.”
Thus when the Reverend W.T. Balmer, the man
accredited with nurturing the School, from 1907, to give it a solid foundation
and a future, declared, “I want to raise a generation of men from Mfantsipim
School who will be bold enough to face the problems of their own continent
practically and un-selfishly, he might have envisaged the likes on Kofi Annan.
Mr Goosie Tanoh, an alumnus, told the Ghana
News Agency in an interview that Kofi
Annan’s passing was ‘a big loss to Ghana and the world.’
The global statesman, he said, lived an
outstanding life, and expressed his resolve to emulate his values and sterling
leadership qualities.
Mr Annan passed away peacefully in the Swiss
city of Bern, after a brief illness.
He was aged 80.
He was the UN Secretary-General from January
1997 to 2006, leading a number of reforms at the global body.
He successfully negotiated peace deals in many
countries plagued with conflicts and wars.
In 2001, he was co-recipient of the Noble
Peace Price with the UN.
He initiated the Millennium Development Goals
to minimise poverty around the world.
Upon his retirement from UN, he was appointed
as a special envoy to Syria and led UN Commission to negotiate for peace during
the Rohingya crisis in September 2016.
He was survived by a wife, Nane Maria
Lagergren, and three children, Kojo, Ama and Nina.
GNA