What prevents us from seeing the light?
Is it not significant that on the day that President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo went to his home town, Kibi, to lay a wreath on the grave of an illustrious son of the land, Dr Joseph Boakye Danquah who died at the Nsawam Security Prisons 52 years ago, the Black Stars were fighting for the third position in the 31st edition of the African Nations Cup (AFCON) against neighbours Burkina Faso in Gabon?
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And is it not extremely interesting to note that the wreath-laying ceremony, as solemn and spiritually important as it was for all lovers of football in the country, it did not change our destiny and the Burkinabes ran away with victory?
As if we are destined to suffer sorrows and agony of losing our glory of lifting the Cup of Nations which has eluded us for the past 35 years, after four previous successes dating back to 1982, and even bronze medals at recent tournaments.
One player, Alain Traore of Burkina Faso nailed the coffin of the Black Stars with one fantastic strike in the 88th minute of the match to determine the third position. That goal will remain unforgettable for years to come.
Can you imagine that a woman who claimed she was in her mother's womb in 1982 when the Black Stars won their fourth glory in Africa and, therefore, never saw the cup herself has brought forth four children in their teens who are also clamouring to see the Stars lifting the cup?
And why would that women and her children not be desperate to see the cup at the just-ended tournament to celebrate her 35th birthday. Indeed, all of us are disappointed again as our brothers, the Camerounians have overtaken us with their fifth win of the glory.
I remember that in 1955 when the Gold Coast Eleven met mighty Nigeria at a Jalco Cup challenge, the sacred spirit, the Gold showed her presence behind our posts, and Gold Coast won by a wide margin of seven goals to nothing, spelling Nigeria. The selection was done by Kofi Badu, then the Sports Editor of the Daily Graphic.
The trend of things happening after throwing away the glorious natural name Gold Coast must obviously give every citizen of this Land of Gold a food for thought. Enough have been seen from the day in 1982 when the Black Stars beat their Libyan counterparts in Tripoli and came home to a rousing welcome in the early days of J.J. Rawlings’ revolutionary era which lasted for many years before the return to constitutional rule.
Who has not taken note that some of the nations that played second fiddle to the Black Stars have now taken the lead and showing their class to the world, while the Stars are falling back rather abysmally and dramatically.
Can I say that a typical example is Burkina Faso who are robbing shoulders with our Stars and even beating us and telling us there is something in a name. Sometime ago, under their name Upper Volta, their football and general economy was nothing to write home about, but listening to their elders, they found solace in Captain Sankara who changed the name and the destiny of the nation, and today under the influence of their new name Burkina Faso everything is working like magic.
When in 1982 the Black Stars were dancing and hugging one another and the officials at the Tripoli Stadium, poor Cameroun had not even dreamt of lifting any African Cup, and believe me, as they danced round last Sunday at the Stade de'Lamitie in Libreville after beating Ghana in the second semi-final match. they were looking askance around to find whether the supporters of the Black Stars who were draped in their flag with the star painted black as against theirs painted gold were also enjoying themselves in the stands.
I really shudder to think what ailed Dr Danquah to abandon the natural name for an outlandish Soninke name which had been buried in the Sahara Desert as far back as 1076.
There are more questions than answers as to why this fine nation is suffering and all of us are bemoaning our fate. Have you asked how business is booming in Cameroun on their winning the cup for the fifth time, and have you bothered to find out how many cartons of beer have been consumed in Yaounde, Douala and the surrounding cities, towns and villages in the celebration of the success of the Indomitable Lions in Gabon?
One can imagine what wll happen on the arrival of the supporters who crossed the border in all manner possible and danced throughout that Sunday night. Would it not have been wonderful if we had won it for the fifth time, and I wonder how Kumasi would turn into a few days after the death and burial of the Asantehemaa.
I saw the 44-year old Egyptian captain and goalkeeper, El Hadary weeping bitterly with his fellow teammates for missing that opportunity to claim their eighth glory on the continent, and thought to myself if they felt capable of lifting the cup this time against all odds with the Camerounians tipping the scales with lofty performance.
How lovely would it have been if all their colleagues who failed to respond to the home call to save their jobs in Europe had joined them. This the second team of Cameroun that beat the Black Stars 2 - 0 in the semi-finals.
While congratulating the Indomitable Lions on their stellar display, the question that must still linger in our minds is why we should still continue to be ungrateful to the creator with a name and insignia that serve as challenge to nature and the Almighty Himself.
Things happening around us spiritually and physically from the day we celebrated our silver jubilee in 1982 are all obvious signs that call on us to rethink and re-baptise this lovely land. I wish the re-baptism would coincide with our 60th anniversary celebrations as an independent country on March 6, 2017.
It is time to give this a serious thought and act fast. The clarion call is bringing back a natural name. That's all!