THE HOOD DOES NOT MAKE THE MONK JUST AS THE WIG DOES NOT MAKE THE LAWYER

By definition, an intellectual is one with a highly developed intellect. One who engages in critical thinking and reflections about the ills in society and comes up with practical solution on how to address them. Intellectuals are the brains, the think tanks and conscience of the society.

But let's get one thing clear here attending all the high profile centres of learning in the entire universe and acquiring all the academic titles doesn't automatically make one an intellectual in the real sense of the word hence the title of my article "the hood does not make the monk just as the wig does not make the lawyer".

Some of our intellectuals have contributed enormously toward curing some our societal ills and others have developed wonderful concepts and policies to support our reconstruction agenda. Some are a disgrace to that powerful term "intellectualism" and have subjected the title (intellectuals) and the term intellectualism to worst form of ridicule.

In the run up to the 2016 elections, some of these intellectuals who operated as neutrals but suffered from binary thinking syndrome, threw their weight behind a Nana Akufo-Addo and spearheaded attacks and lies unleashed on the last administration. These intellectuals witnessed how Nana Addo and his henchmen raped democracy in his own party in opposition and showed utter disdain for all who opposed his position in the party by sacking and suspending elected party executives he perceived as anti his dream.

Mercenaries were recruited into the country to train their vigilante groups in how to handle weapons, a party chairman was painfully murdered, a young man was stabbed at Asasewa, Nana declared his famous all die-be-die concept and emptied his party's coffers. This is the man the so called intellectuals threw their weight behind during the last election. With their so called highly developed intellect, these so called intellectuals believed that Nana who failed woefully to instill discipline in his party and made those dangerous pronouncements, was the best man to bring the desired change. We were made to believe that Nana Addo was the Messiah.

Under the immediate past government, these so called intellectuals made Ghanaians believe that fuel price, electricity tariff, rent were all signs of ineptitude and incompetence on the part of Mahama-led administration but today, these intellectually fraudulent souls no longer blame President Akufo-Addo for high fuel price, high tariff and rent. They are now blaming some fictitious nonsense known as deregulation.

We still have some wonderful intellectuals around. You may not agree with some of their thoughts but at least, you see genuine love for country in them. Some have openly declared their ideological inclination and the party they support but intermittently attack their own government over some of its reckless decisions and actions.

Let me salute Prof Kweku Azar, one person I admire so much. Under the Mahama-led administration, these so called intellectuals quoted all the sections in the constitution and supported them with theories and thesis of some renowned lawyers and philosophers as part of their regime change agenda but under Nana Addo, hoodlums invaded a court, chased out a judge, vigilante groups subjected a police officer and national security coordinator to severe beatings, vandalised offices and we have these same guys quoting bogus legal hypothesis  in a bid to justify this clear case of thuggery exhibited by these vigilante groups.

How can souls with this high degree of sycophancy and blind partisanship still claim to be neutrals, think tanks and conscience of the society.

I have no problem with those who criticised the last regime. Some are still doing same under this regime Prof Gyampo, Franklin Cudjoe and few others have not lost their fire. They are still offering constructive criticism to help shape the conscience of the politician.

That is what our society needs and we must encourage such brains to do more. Intellectual hypocrisy is gradually destroying this beautiful country. A little over two years ago, Prof Addei was trying to cause tsunami here with his bogus intellectual analysis and high sounding grammar in protest over what he described as nepotism in the Mahama administration but we have still not heard any grammar from Prof. and he and other pseudo- intellectuals no longer talk politics. Some of them now discuss Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United football clubs and can tell you next year's premier league features. Many of them are just bunch of sycophants and hungry political jobbers who have allowed tribal hate to cloud their sense of reasoning.

An intellectual condemning building of secondary schools in our rural areas? How? An intellectual supporting the "we don't eat road" nonsense? An intellectual who believed that a first lady was constructing a warehouse inside the flagstaff house?.

Good lawyers society respected and admired so much have reduced themselves to mere sycophants standing the same law they spent years practicing upside down in desperate bid to justify every act of illegality carried out by the Akufo-Addo government. Some have metamorphosed into poem writers writing beautiful poems with the President's name.

Part 1