In
the early 2000s, I was unfortunate enough to be an illegal immigrant in
Obimanso (loosely translated as ‘overseas’). I had just finished my first Degree
in Agricultural Science and instead of looking for a farm to practice my profession,
was busy exploring life options on the shores of the United Kingdom- London, to
be precise. During those times, the common call to fame to get into a well-paid
job, mostly as a cleaner, was to introduce yourself as ‘Hello, my name is
so-and-so, I come from Ghana, just like Kofi Annan’. And you were always
welcomed with a smile and if you were lucky enough, a 2-hour-a-day stint
cleaning toilets in one office complex or another.
Later
on, I had the unique and unforgettable opportunity to meet this man when I was
Mo Ibrahim Fellow working with the United Nations Economic Commission for
Africa (UNECA). Kofi Annan had come to Addis for a two-day visit to meet with
some high level persons. This had not been shared with the media so the meeting
was quite hush-hush.
My
Boss, the then UNECA Executive Secretary, Carlos Lopes, had worked with Kofi
Annan for many years when Kofi Annan was Secretary General of the UN. Carlos
had been Kofi’s head of the Political Unit. Between the two of them, they
grappled with a lot of the global issues at that time such as the Iraqi war, the
Rwandan Genocide and some genocide that was taking place somewhere in the
European Union. Carlos Adored Kofi Annan. Indeed, Kofi ranked very highly next
to the other mentors that Carlos had, such as Cabral, Adebayo Adedeji and Samir
Amin.
Whenever
I had to do research to feed into any of the speeches or documentation that Carlos
required, I knew the persons whose works I had to research, and that a quote
from Kofi Annan will always make the cut. Secretly, I believe that was because
Carlos himself might have contributed to the writing up of some of those
speeches.
Outside
the work environment, Carlos and Kofi remained friends and always kept in
touch. From time to time, Carlos will regale his staff and assistants (myself
included) with wonderful stories of how he and Kofi worked under pressure and
how much he (Carlos) had learnt at as a close Aide to Kofi.
So
if Kofi Annan is in Addis for a hush-hush meeting with who-and-who on
what-and-what for something-and-the other, I knew that my Boss, Carlos will
most definitely be called upon to sit in the meeting-that-did-not-take-place-because-Kofi-Annan-was-never-here
or have lunch or dinner with him. And I so knew this was my opportunity to meet
with Mr. Annan. I knew this would be one of the very few opportunities I would
have for a one-on-one meeting.
So
early in the morning, I positioned myself right next to Carlos’ office, waiting
for him to arrive. I informed Mestawet, Carlos’ able secretary that she should
let me know when ‘Sir’, as we called him, arrived as I had very important
business to speak to him about.
When
Carlos came into the office, I allowed him the requisite 5 minutes to enter his
office and settle down and then I barged in with my request.
‘Good
morning, Sir’, I said respectfully, ‘we were going through your agenda and
meetings for the day this morning and wanted to check with you on this-so and
so- information’. I started. We discussed a few of the research I have had to
do for him and he provided critical and useful advice on how to improve on my
work. But I am not sure I was listening hard enough. I was waiting for the
right opportunity to make my request.
At
the end of the meeting, I thanked ‘Sir’ and prepared to leave. He had not
mentioned that he was meeting Kofi Annan later on in the day at a 5-star hotel
in Addis.
‘wow!’
I thought to myself, ‘this must be a really high level and secretive meeting’.
How do I get in? I wondered?
So
I decided to bite the bullet.
‘Sir;
I said ‘I notice from your calendar that you have a 1 o’clock meeting with Kofi
Annan, would you require any support because I would like to meet with
him’. I asked meekly and straight to the
point.
Carlos
looked at me and chuckled.
‘Rebecca’,
he responded, ‘that is possible, but I will not require note taking support
during this meeting as it would mostly be informal. He noticed my crestfallen
face and quickly concluded, ‘ I will speak to Kofi so that you can meet with
him later, after I have met with him. Get ready to come to the hotel at 2 pm.
My meeting with Kofi starts from 1pm to 2 pm so you can meet with him immediately
after. Come to suite number so and so’
‘Thank
you Sir’, I responded gratefully.
I
am not sure I was able to concentrate on much between the 9am meeting I had
with Carlos and the time I left for the meeting. Was I wearing the right colour
suit? What questions would I ask him? How will I begin the conversation? I
pondered and fretted all through the morning.
Due
to the high security around this particular hotel, the taxi I had picked to
drop me there refused to go near the hotel, so I had to get down at the
junction, about a mile from the hotel gates. I had to walk in the mid-morning
Addis Ababa sun to the hotel. Addis is not as hot as Accra, but walking a mile
wearing trouser suit and heels is not a comfortable venture. When I finally
arrived at the hotel entrance. I was sweating.
‘Thank
God I came early,’ I said to myself, ‘at least I will get to rest before I meet
with my hero.’
Kofi
Annan was not my hero for anything he had done but for improving the visibility
of the Ghanaian and staying true to his roots. I remember walking the streets
of France a long time ago and hearing a voice on one of the numerous TVs that
line the high street shops. I immediately knew the voice was Ghanaian and when
I turned to watch, Kofi Annan was on TV. This was one thing I admired about
him, the fact that he never tried to hide his accent regardless of the many
years he had spent within the UN.
I
got to the hotel at about 1.30 pm and when immediately to the suite where my
boss was meeting with Kofi. The hotel receptionists themselves were not aware
of who was in the particular suite I had been informed to report to. No
problem, I know my way around this particular hotel as it is a common place for
UN Staff to stay. I will find it. In my rush to come, I had with me only my
handbag and a mobile phone. I felt unprepared. What question was I going to ask
him/ how do I ensure I sound intelligent?
So,
basically, I had implemented the core of Matthew 7:7- ask and you shall receive-
and been granted my request to meet with Kofi Annan whilst he in Addis Ababa
for a hush-hush meeting and I was unprepared to sound intelligent.
I
realised that I had some time before meeting with Kofi Annan so I could use
that time well and do some research on google on my mobile.
Surprisingly,
as with the custom for high-level persons who visit Addis, there were no
security guards at the entrance of his hotel room. Only my Boss’ personal body
guard was standing outside the door.
‘Hello
Dereje (not his name)’, we greeted amicably. I am sure you are asking why I
disclosed the name of Carlos’ secretary but not his personal body guard. Well,
such is life. Let’s get on with the story
‘Sir
didn’t inform me that you were supposed to be in this meeting, ‘he said,
sounding confused, ‘I would have informed you when we were leaving the office, do
you want to join the meeting now?’ He asked.
No,
I am meeting with him separately after Carlos.’ I answered cheerfully.
‘ok,
then, let’s wait together’. He said.
So
we sat outside the hotel room door in the corridor.
Waiting
has never been a favourite of mine. I tend to fidget a lot. Especially as in
this instance, the corridor was long and empty. This meant that anyone who
passed by would wonder why you were standing in front of a door.
Dereje,
as a personal body guard to Carlos, was used to waiting. He could stand for
hours in an at-ease military position, scanning the two ends of the corridor.
He was my first example to experience the work of personal body guards. Good at
his job, as he was quiet, stealth, efficient and deadly…with his pistol always
discreetly hidden.
We
waited. And waited and then waited some more.
Finally,
around 2.45 pm, the door opens to Kofi’s suit and the two friends come out
smiling and laughing together.
‘oh!
Rebecca, you are here!’, ‘my boss said. Turning to Kofi Annan, he said,’ this
is the lady I was telling you about.’ And introduced me to Kofi Annan. I
goofily shook his hand. Kofi welcomed me warmly with his characteristic wide
smile and his eyes looked deeply into my soul.
As
my Boss and Dereje left the hotel, I went to see them off. Kofi had requested
some time before he was able to see me. No problem for me. I returned to the
doorway and became an unofficial sentry on duty, standing behind the door
waiting for my turn to meet with this icon of peace.
After
about 10 minutes of waiting, I became quite concerned. I was sure there was no
one in the room with Kofi. That he was there alone. So it wasn’t as if he was
in another meeting. Since I was standing outside the only door to the room, I
would have noticed if someone else had entered. So why was he not coming out to
meet me?
Anyway,
he is a very busy man so I am sure he may be responding to some urgent emails
or something. So I waited another 10 or so minutes. Still silence in the room
beyond. Then I began to think about the folly of my situation.
‘woman’.
I told myself,’ why are you here alone? Why do you go to meet with a man alone
in a hotel room?’. so many things are very inappropriate with this setting you
yourself have provided.’. I began to worry about any possible consequences of
this situation. I started to think through any self defence mechanisms that may
be available to me. Maybe biting or kicking as screaming will not work; the
entire hotel room floor seems to have been deserted, not even the hotel
cleaners were on the floor.
‘what
situation is this that I have put myself into?’. Should something untoward
happen, how will I explain myself when I had specifically requested for this
meeting, left my office to come all the way to this place, and been seen by a
few people standing outside the door waiting to enter’.
So
what should I do now? I asked myself. Should I abandon meeting with the person
I have admired and followed all these years because of a slight, very slight
possibility of potential unruly behaviour, which to all intents and purposes
may be the objects of imaginations of my own very dirty mind? What sort of
blasphemy and sacrilege was this? Or
should I wait to have this one in a million opportunity and be bold and have a
good discussion with the man of the millennium.
As
I pondered over my options, I more and more saw the ludicrousness of my
thoughts. This is a man who has led the entire United Nations’ for 10 whole
years. Had won the Nobel peace prize and gone ahead to do many many good
things. He had mentored my Boss Carlos and many other high level individuals.
‘shut
your naughty thoughts, you bad mind’. I said to myself. I will wait.
So
I waited some more.
Walking
back and forth cross the carpeted floor of the six floor hotel building. An ideal definition of the word 'perambulating- walking for no specific objective'.
Why
is this man making me wait? Perhaps he is asleep, I thought to myself. After
all, he is an old man, past his pension age and will need his regular beauty
sleep. Ah, but if he is going to sleep, he should inform me to leave? How can
he just forget about me? I spoke to myself indignantly. Maybe this is the way
he deals with people he does not want to see, bore them to death by waiting so
that they will leave of their own accord. Hmpfh!!
Maybe
I should just leave. That will show him, the old man! How can he keep me
waiting this long? Doesn’t he know that I am a busy person with work to do? That
I am a Mo Ibrahim Fellow and have places to go to? I had then been waiting for
almost an hour since Carlos left at 2.45 by which time I had already been
waiting for about an hour. My feet were killing me.
What
should I do now? How do I proceed from here? As I paced some more in front of
the door. In my anger and frustration,
I knocked loudly on the door and in that instance asked myself why I hadn’t
thought about that option 10 or 20 or 30 minutes ago?
So
the answer had always just been right here with me. Applying the Tony Dogbe
principle of Matthew 7:7. …knock and the door will be opened to you…
In my frustration, I think I knocked a tad bit
too loudly. The sound itself startled me. ‘well, serves him right for making me
wait’, I said to myself.
After
a few seconds the door opened.
‘
hello’,
said Kofi, ‘sorry to keep you waiting. I was working on a draft document. Come
in’.
Infact,
to tell you the truth, I think he had totally forgotten about me and was taking
a nap.
I
walked into a decent sized hotel room, noting that this was a suite with a
parlour, or what we call chamber and hall. So the open space had chairs and
tables with an inner room.
He
invited me to sit down. I sat. and all my intelligent questions went straight
out of my head. In retrospect, it felt a bit like playing the video game called
‘Mario’. When you have gone through umpteen stages killing mushrooms and
turtles by jumping on them and throwing fireballs, sometimes losing your life
in the process (thankfully video games give you three chances to win) and
sometimes gaining more lives. You then arrive at the stage where you have to
battle the dragon, so that you can save the Princess, only to realise that you
are on your final life and all your arsenal is finished. A humbling experience.
So
I introduced myself in my most Ghanaian dialect and informed him that I was
happy to have met him. The meeting lasted for about 10 minutes. I cannot tell
you what we spoke about as I would then have to kill you. But he was
insightful, witty and very kind. He gave me some good advice that I still use
in my work. He spoke to me as a person and not as a nuisance, though that was
what I was. Overall, a thoroughly memorable experience.
As
I prepared to leave, I requested for one little favour. I would like to take a
picture with him. He readily agreed. But how were we going to take a photo as
it was just the two of us in the room? He was also getting ready for another
meeting and could not go with me to the hotel lobby. Problem solved, that is
why the reverse camera exists.
This
was in 2013 when ‘selfie’ was not yet a common word, at least not in the
circles in which Kofi and I operated.
I
immediately whipped out my iPhone 2 and reversed the camera to take the
picture.
‘oh’
he said’ give me a moment to put on a jacket. He went into the inner room and
emerged with a dark blazer over his casual white shirt. Sir, I said, maybe you
can comb your hair a wee bit as well? He laughed and went back inside to comb
his hair.
Click
click. I went with my reverse camera. Kofi making sure his good side was
captured in the photos.
I
realised that as a public personality, he had to look composed and well-dressed
at all times.
We
agreed which ones to use.
I
said my farewells and left.
I
don’t remember how I got into my office. I don’t remember how I left the hotel,
which taxi I picked, who I saw and what I did. Cloud 9 really existed for me
then. I had just had the most intense experience of my life and there was no
one to share it with, at least no one who will understand that feeling well
enough.
I
remember getting into my office and seated at my desk.
As
Kofi is laid to rest, I remember him as an icon for peace but also as someone
who has inspired the persons who mentored me. His life and good will give testimony
to his contribution to mankind.
The
world has lost a great person. But we will remember your good deeds. My
thoughts go out to your lovely wife and your children and wish them well in
these trying times.
My
further thought goes out to my boss and mentor Carlos, whose picture taken at
Kofi Annan’s funeral depicts the extent of his loss. Sir may God give you
strength as well in these trying times. We know you will continue to carry the
ideas of Kofi Annan as your work as the AU representative to the Europe and in
all your other roles…as well as a Board member of the Kofi Annan Foundation.
God
bless our homeland Ghana and make our nation great and strong
Damirifa
Due, Busumuru Kofi Annan. You came to serve. As a servant of the people and
made your mark. A mark that will last forever.
May
you rest in perfect peace.
Share
with me any experience you may have with meeting Mr. Annan by leaving a comment
in this blog or at teikosabah@gmail.com.
About the Author:
Teiko
Sabah blogs about Pan Africanism at Claim No Easy Victories
