BAGBIN IS STILL A GOOD MAN

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow [him] all the days of [his] life …” (Psalm, 23:6).

When in March 2025 I got the “divine” call to be Executive Secretary to the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, my response was not an instant affirmative.

I needed a human voice to affirm the spiritual inspiration. After all, God speaks through human agents. So I turned to my mentor, Naa Jamaa Matarah II, Chief of Gbankor and CEO of Orakle Communications Ltd, who is known in professional circles as Emmanuel Mwinilayuori, for his royal counsel. His response, which quickened my pace to the Speaker’s Office in Parliament was, “Bagbin is STILL a good man”.

In 2001 when I provided media support services to him, there was no doubt about Bagbin’s goodness. He was kind, compassionate, and generous to a fault. Above all, he had genuine, passionate love for Ghana and wanted the very best for his country. As Minority Leader, he won many hearts with his grit and sharp-witted eloquence. He certainly did not exhibit the guile, brash and noisy pomposity of some latter-day Minority Leaders.

But that was the Bagbin I knew a quarter of a decade ago. I experienced his goodness at a time when he had emerged into the morning dew of national political limelight, becoming the arrowhead of an NDC party which had been badly bruised from the 2000 elections, with many bigwigs scampering for cover. Bagbin’s goodness radiated at a time even when sections of the Ghanaian media ganged up in a bid to cow him into silence with damning headlines such as, “Bagbin’s ugly noises”, “Bagbin must shut up”, “Et tu, Bagbin!”. In a bid to ward off the avalanche of attacks, it was natural for him to seek allies by being good to people. Or so I thought. Besides, he had little power then.

But when the call to again serve at his table woke me up in the dawn of March 2025, Bagbin was now Speaker of Parliament, the second most powerful man in Ghana. He had climbed the silky tree of politics to become the man who presides over the most powerful arm of government. And power intoxicates. Indeed, absolute power, absolutely intoxicates even good men like Bagbin.  

That explains the trepidation with which I walked into his office in April 2025, to answer his call to service of Ghana. His welcoming smile was enough to melt the two and half decade-old ice. To my relief, I found him the same Bagbin of 24 years ago. Perhaps, a little wizened with age, but still the good old Bagbin: the infectious smile that draws you ever closer and creates camaraderie; the compassionate ear that listens keenly as you pour out your woos; the fury hatred for corruption and injustice, the burning desire to wipe out graft from Parliament and better the lot of the ordinary Ghanaian. The drowsy drink of power had not intoxicated him. After all, he has, since I knew him, been a teetotaler.

As I sat at my desk to sort out the piles of requests for courtesy calls on the Rt. Hon. Speaker, reality dawned on me: meat that invites flies is deemed wholesome. And a kind king’s courtyard never lacks visitors. This explains the scramble to visit the “King” whose honourary titles and accolades hung everywhere on his office walls, proclaiming his goodness. And etched on many stools and skins are epithets of his good leadership.

In recognition of his of his integrity and uncommon impartiality, the Awudome Traditional Area in the Volta Region enstooled him Togbe Nutefeworla Awudome I. For his peaceful disposition, the Chiefs and people of Suma-Ahenkro in the Bono Region accorded him the chieftaincy title, Adasuokohene. The Takpo Traditional Area, on the other hand, enskinned him Tinmaali-Naa, the chief who champions development across the country. For the Wala Traditional Area, he is Dakagli Naa, a spring that waters the earth, providing livelihood for the present and future generations. With the chieftaincy title, Yelminni Naa Yelkaabaare Kunkpewuo I, the Sankana Traditional Area recognized his honesty and courage.

On assumption of duties as Executive Secretary, I found a Bagbin whose goodness had radiated beyond the shores of Ghana and caught the attention of an international community which had for many years searched Africa in vain for a transformational leader of the legislature. When the spotlight shone on him, the responsibilities followed thick and fast: Chairperson of the 52-member Africa Geopolitical Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), President of the Conference of Speakers and Presidents of African Legislatures (CoSPAL), President of the African Parliamentarians’ Network Against Corruption (APNAC) etc. Prior to assuming these positions, he was the Vice President and, subsequently, President of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA).

Applause bloats to bursting point, many a leader. Praise-singing intoxicates the mind. And medals around a leader’s neck soon weigh him down into inactivity. But not Bagbin! The national and international leadership roles and awards were rather springs on his agile feet, accelerating his drive to touch more lives.

Driven by goodness and mercy for the less privileged, you will find him in the trenches. Where it matters most. In less privileged communities. Sowing hope. Hope that comes in the form of dialysis machines to the Upper West Regional Hospital, equipment to hospitals, school buildings in deprived communities, sporting facilities for the youth etc. Admittedly, Bagbin is much taller and bigger today than he was in 2001. Not in physique, though. Today, his image has soared higher and wider, beyond the shores of Ghana and Africa, even if years of hard work has drained some of his energy and chipped off his physical stature. However, time has done little to erase the goodness and mercy which are the essence of his public life. He remains the same Bagbin. Still a good man.