The African continent and indeed the entire world, is united in grief, as quintessential international diplomat and former UN Secretary General, Kofi Atta Annan, passed on at 80, last week in Berne, Switzerland.
The departure of the African and global statesman, who was the first Black African to hold that office elicited immense praises from a wide spectrum of African and world leaders. Many of them noted that without doubt, Annan was one of the world’s most celebrated diplomats.
His aristocratic style, cool-tempered elegance and political savvy were some of the attributes that facilitated his emergence as the seventh Secretary General, and the first to emerge from within the ranks. Already, Ghanaian President, Nana Akufo-Addo has declared one-week of mourning for the unique diplomat, and national flags would be flown at half-mast across the country and in all of Ghana’s diplomatic missions across the world for one week.
President Akufo-Addo said, “I extend, on behalf of the entire Ghanaian nation, our sincere, heartfelt condolences to his beloved widow, Nane Maria, and to his devoted children, Ama, Kojo and Nina, on this great loss. I am, however, comforted by the information, after speaking to Nane Maria, that he died peacefully in his sleep”.
Expectedly, the flurry of tributes, not only drew attention to Annan’s sterling qualities, which included humility, nobility and love for humanity, they also pointed to the fact that he was a rare breed African who dedicated his life to global peace, security and democracy.
The Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, and Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, said in a statement released by the Special Adviser on Media & Publicity, Femi Adeshina, that all Nigerians and ECOWAS member-countries share in the deep loss, considering the strategic influence of the former UN scribe in global affairs and his vision for the repositioning of the West Coast and Africa.
The statement declared that as the first elected staff of the United Nations to lead the world organization and first African to win the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize jointly with the UN, Annan’s humility, nobility and love for humanity set him apart for global greatness, achieving recognition and commendation for the reform of the UN bureaucracy and multiple interventions to bring peace to the world.
President Buhari, who telephoned his Ghanaian counterpart from London, noted that Annan’s origin and home would always be traced to Ghana, but his exceptional leadership roles, humanitarian spirit and contributions to global peace and development would remain indelible in the history of the entire world, especially his efforts to combat HIV/AIDS in Africa and the launch of the UN Global Compact.
