The teacup and the bucket
The teacup and the bucket are two extreme measures, each serving an entirely different purpose. There is no modern household without both. To mistake one for the other is a mark of insincerity as portrayed by the phrase, “nationalism by the teacupful and treachery by the bucketful” attributed to Winston Churchill, the great wartime Prime Minister of Britain.
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Though the usual sources of reference could not confirm the attribution, one could not put it past the man whose prodigious tongue had produced many beautiful quotations. He was said to have used it to shame those elements in the British Isles who secretly supported Germany in the two world wars.
There is yet another phrase which comes in the form of a rhetorical question, “My mouth be gun?” which is attributed to a cook of a British expatriate in the then Gold Coast. The cook was said to have done something reprehensible and as punishment, his master made him forfeit a day’s salary. As a mark of protest, the cook got drunk on purpose and went round shouting, “As for this war, Hitler should capture Churchill.” Hauled before a court for treachery, his only defence was that his mouth was not a gun to fight a war.
To bring the above two quotations into context, no Ghanaian who watches the television needs to be reminded that on Saturday, January 19, 2015, a contest between Ghana and Senegal took place in Equatorial Guinea. That Ghana lost the match which required several months of preparation involving the sweat of the finest of the sons of our land is part of painful history.
It is painful because to be able to watch that match live on TV, Ghanaians had to forgo the use of electricity for 12 hours. But the greater pain was that some Ghanaian football fans actually jubilated over the Black Stars loss. They claimed to have behaved that way as punishment for the Black Stars for disgracing the nation at Brazil 2014. It is said that one of the people who jubilated when confronted, retorted, “But does my mouth wear boots?” It was the same logic as the aggrieved cook’s.
To put it mildly, they are teacups in terms of nationalism. It is to be remembered that for the same acclaimed purpose some fans had shown open support for the Ugandan national team in an elimination match with the Black Stars at Baba Yara last October. How long could we tolerate this “against” streak when our national team did not play particularly well?
While it was not easy to pin down those who jubilated over the Black Stars loss to a particular group, it would certainly be fair to link their motives to those who have created a pastime of organising demonstrations against President Mahama on foreign soils. They want to embarrass the country and gloat over his discomfiture. This is wrong because that type of treatment befits only dictators whose human rights records have rendered their citizens refugees living under dire conditions in foreign countries. Admittedly, there are many Ghanaian economic refugees all over the world but they have left home on their own volition to seek greener pastures, as nationals of so many nations do.
It is no exaggeration to say that the level of public discontentment with the economic policies of the Democrats in the US and the Conservatives in the UK are as high as it is with that of the NDC in Ghana. Yet, it would be unthinkable that the American and the British citizens in Ghana would organise demonstrations respectively against President Obama and David Cameron should they visit this country.
It is Mr Frazier’s fervent hope that by time this article is read, the result of Ghana’s second match in Equatorial Guinea will have put all the “against elements” to shame. Further, it is the hope of all Ghanaians that all the economic challenges that have led some citizens to resort to the teacup measure for nationalism will be surmounted in the shortest time. While the nation is not out of the woods, the least expected of every citizen is unalloyed support.
The Ajax Bukana gimmick of carrying two flags and a placard with the inscription, “Today be today; I’m on the winning side” is no show of nationalism. Nationalism demands that you support your side, especially when they are not doing well. We can remonstrate and castigate the players and the coaches for poor performance. We can and should do the same for poor political leadership and we must offer suggestions for improvement. But to go beyond that by showing open support for opponents or hooting at your Head of State in a foreign land has a name: It is treachery by the bucketful.
(Author: Blame not the Darkness; Akora)