My Academic Journey to UGBS ---Updates

MY JOURNEY TO THE UNIVERSITY—HOW IT ALL BEGAN INCLUDING THE DARKEST DAYS

My purpose has since 11th November, 2008 been to emerge as an outstanding and one of the rarest world renowned international figures with expertise in literature, business and information technology.

As part of this dream I want to contribute to change the world’s thoughts and thinking through my pen.

I wish to therefore reflect back to my plans since 1998/1999. The final exams of my high school education at Mfantsipim School, Cape Coast was written in November/December 1997.

Immediately after my 1997 SSSCE Examinations I felt I should improve upon the strength of my English Language via building upon my word power and by reading a lot of novels and literature books. I started working towards this dream.

Then in 1998 when the SSSCE results were released I switched my dreams from targeting to read English in the university to pursuing the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA) programme and this was because I realised I had the talent for writing corporate letters and had wanted to eventually complete the course to become a high profile secretary for a very big organisation like Unilever Ghana Limited serving next to the Managing Director of the company.

I was introduced to this course by one of the tutors of Saint Anthony’s Preparatory School, Odorkor, Accra where my dad did some teaching and was appointed to the board of the council of elders for the school before he completely pulled out of teaching. Having vacated his position as the ( he served as Headmaster of the Government Assisted Ningo Secondary School for some time)  Acting Headmaster for Ningo Secondary School, Old Ningo prior to government’s takeover in 1995.(By May/ June 1995 our family then had moved completely to settle in our home at Tabora, Accra)

My dad then met one Mr Ampem – Darko who helped my big brother Samuel and I freely without charging us money to build upon the strength of our mathematics and helped us to prepare for the 1999 Universities in Ghana Entrance Examinations in February 1999.Another tutor then also assisted me to build my mathematics spinal cord his name I cannot recollect as at this time of writing.

Mr Valentine had around this time briefed my dad of blessed memory into details about some excellent professional programmes like Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply, Chartered Institute of Marketing, Chartered Institute of Bankers(Ghana)—for it was around the same time that a number of the high profile heads of the Bank of Ghana were impeached for questionable dealings in the course of running the duties with the Central Bank of Ghana and their credentials , their academic and professional backgrounds were published all over in the national newspapers.

Mr Valentine who was then a ACCA( Association for Certified Chartered Accountants) UK student as well as a student pursuing Business Administration (Accounting Option ) at the University of Ghana,Legon ,Accra, Ghana  advised that I should come to Legon , try and excel in my first year so I could easily switch from any course I was offered upon entry to pursue Business Administration from my second year upwards in the university.

I had a love for Banking and Finance option course of the University of Ghana although I did not know what the course entailed.

Right upon the day I went to the Registry of the University of Ghana to submit the university application forms I had completed ( as I was climbing the hills a lady descending the hill upon sighting me said a spell—specifically a herbal demonic leaf had been placed upon my manhood or penis---- she said “ake ba efo no” pointing to my manhood ---and straight away I knew I had to fast and pray. Right from my final year at Botwe I was determined that upon gaining admission to study there I would spend half of my time there behind my books and the other half praying in the university gardens for God to help me achieve the very best in life and for the purpose of soul winning) upon my return or so right in front of the main road in front of Akaufo Hall or Legon Hall (main halls) a Legon student/staff member on campus there met me and entered into a brief conversation with me. It seems that day I was accompanied by my day and that my dad taught him in school some time ago and he said to me that I should not entertain any worries if I was not able to gain entry directly with my SSSCE into the university immediately because there was an option for entry into the university as a matured student at age 30.

Deep down within my spirit I prayed against his interjection because I knew 30 years from 16 years old the point in time when I completed Mafantsipim School was in the very distant future. And I began to shed tears within my spirit about the unknown future.

Another option I was introduced to was the Chartered Institute of Bankers(CIB) , Ghana programme since some of the teachers in St Anthony’s Schools being managed by Mr Kojo Liang, the literary writer and his brother of  “Che Che Kule “ fame ,were then pursuing the CIB programme.

I even went to study in the CIB library at GCB Towers building at Kwame Nkrumah Circle on a number of occasions poring through their course outlines and some of their books right there in their library there. I eventually got acquainted with the librarians there after a while and they got to know that I wanted to pursue their programme.

My dad’s closest friend , Bishop A K Morkeh also of Blessed memory ( the founder of Revelation Church of God, Ghana) had prayed for some time about my ambition to pursue the ICSA programme initially and said I should study French and acquire an in- depth knowledge in French so I could be an excellent high profile bi lingual multi- national corporate secretary. Naturally my instincts after high school was that I could be a very good secretary in a very big conglomerate owing to the sterling performance I was able to exhibit ,by God’s grace, while I served as the secretary for the science club of Mfantsipim School (Nature Fan Club) in the year 1997. Because I was eventually given a special award for being the Most Dedicated Member of the Science Club during the 7th November, 1997 Mfantsipim School Awards Night.

I started teaching in some private schools at the Primary and Junior High School level right from the beginning of the 2000 Academic Year in September 2000.

Then in the year 2001, my younger brothers ,James and Festus were then schooling at St Thomas Aquinas Secondary School, Cantonments, Accra(Joseph my youngest brother was still at St Anthony’s School when James and Festus left St Anthony for senior high school education) when some past students from St Augustine’s College, Cape Coast from the IACE(Institute of Advanced Computer Education), Abeka , Accra the erstwhile computer training school visited their school for a programme briefing about the IMIS(Institute for the Management of Information Systems) UK programmes handing over to them leaflets about the Dipolma and higher Diploma pragrammes.

So I felt why not I change my mind and pursue IMIS since it had a promising future career.Bishop Morkeh who had earlier on told me to add French studies to my dreams of becoming a Corporate Secretary and an Administrator or (Managing Director of a company) was consulted in this matter too. From hindsight his worries about my IMIS programme was about the possibilities of me having brighter chances of working and having very good job opportunities. He prayed about this course before I started to pursue the programme.

I started the IMIS programme embattled with various health challenges including headaches, waking up from sleep problems, dizziness among others and I just could not fathom or understand why.

There was a particular point in time my dusk I felt sleepy whether I slept early for days or whether I woke up very late from bed for days. I could not wake up early naturally except I was aided by an alarm watch and this affected my final teaching job at Golden Child School, Nii Boi Town, Accra. This happened when I lost a special expensive watch after an IMIS evening class at the Annex Campus of the then Atlantic Computer Training School, Accra near Trust Towers, Accra.

I therefore eventually had the chance to sit in class to represent my big brother and take lesson notes for him at CASSIG, located at the then Christian Methodist High School Campus at Kwame Nkrumah Circle  when he could not find time to be present at his lectures.

My IMIS’ Accounting and Financial Quantitative Techniques Diploma module demanded that I get strong foundational ideas in business—Financial Accounting, Cost Accounting and Quantitative Techniques--- and the ACCA programme was an easy way out so I registered ,paid and joined one popular ACCA tutor Sir Carlos private classes at his residence in Dansoman near Wesley Grammar Senior High  School, Accra.

My big brother was also attending classes there for his then ACCA 1.1 and 1.2 papers which covered the afore said subjects. I was at the same time studying towards my IMIS Diploma modules at the new Atlantic Computer Training School premises which was near SNAPS Business School behind the current Societe Generale Bank close to the Kanda Overpass in Accra. Atlantic was quite a walking distance away from the main road. It was during this time that I met Mr Kuuku Welsing- Jones the seasoned journalist, morning show TV discussion panellist, later on Editor for a newspaper and a lawyer.He was a friend to one of my female friends there and we began chatting and Welsing- Jones discovered I would perform well if I considered adding journalism to my career so he advised me to enrol with the Ghana Institute of journalism(GIJ) in Accra for a Diploma in Journalism soon after the completion of my IMIS Diploma programme there in May/June 2003.

With the privilege I had with one Sir Blackus, a Mfantsipim School old boy (MOBA- Mfantsipim Old Boys Association) member belonging to quite an earlier school year group than I had completed Botwe there to take me through some of the IMIS Diploma Financial and Cost Accounting as well as Quantitative Techniques(one module then) ,  I kept telling one of the main administrators for the Atlantic Computer Training School that come what may I would study hard to be the international best student for the IMIS Dipolma Accounting and Quantitative Techniques module , win a gold medal in that subject and bring more stronger reputation for Atlantic Computer Training School, Mr Kevin stepper the Managing Director then for Atlantic Computer Training.This was despite the fact that I had been feeling sleepy and had been dozing in his class for the brief period of time Sir Blackus taught me at Sir Carlos residence.

It was rather a big surprise to me that in Business Communication module of the IMIS UK London examinations I had 77 percent and the world best student for that paper had 84 a foreigner I think from Kenya of from the UK but news began spreading from the UK IMIS office that a Ghanaian from Atlantic Computer Training School, Accra actually deserved the prize but failed to create a very strong academic impression.

Fact was that some months ago before I took that paper I had a dream in which my mother( who had been supporting the whole family financially shortly in 1999  and later from the year 2000 onwards until October ending 2007 when she returned to Ghana )when she went to London upon invitation of one of our family relations there told me (that was one of the very good dreams I had ever had before in which my mother acted in my favour like an angelic being) to get a new used book and select possible examination questions for my then impending Business Communication module and to write the questions as well as their solutions in the book.

I felt strongly I would be assessed on writing a CV but little knowledge did I have that the CV I had been using then for my job openings in the area of teaching then was extremely obsolete: it had no personal email address, no postal address, no telephone numbers, no career objective and no references but even without all these I was very close to the gold medal.

Fact is God is faithful but we humans sometimes disappoint God. I had seen one Mr Blankson looking through a very modern CV of someone I did not know at a staff gathering at Golden Child School when I was also teaching there and I felt a very strong urge to request to look through that person’s CV but Mr Blankson denied me access. Sad I felt very much but it never dawned upon my conscience that I could have googled for a sample CV online to take a careful study for it and actually CV preparation was thought in class at Atlantic when I was absent at a ACCA class trying to sharpen my skills for an award in the IMIS Diploma Accounting and Quantitative Technique module.

I for one do believe that every leader is supposed to use his discretion, gut feeling and divine guidance from within to handle issues during every crises situation rather than to follow laid down principles because at that moment the laid dawn principles might not work for you though it had worked for some persons in time past. If laid down traditions and principles applied always to every situation without having any exception then society does not have to call upon you to do one thing or another in a managerial capacity or they would not delegate anything into your hands. And when everyone sees that your leadership foresight has stood the test of time the past actions you took as one out of discretion, gut feeling, instinct and combined with you listening to the “Voice of God” would soon be ratified by all your superiors.

This had worked for me and the Science Club when I served as Secretary and use my office capacity to get the then School headmaster and the Science Club patron to sign a letter the then President of the club would not have signed if the “ powers that be” had not signed first. Everyone would feel uncomfortable at the outset but after the trip to Aburi Botanical Gardens upon my sole initiative( my big brother secretly knowing it) , the President of the club then one very good friend of mine one master Nicholas Andrews De- heer was extremely grateful for my “unapproved act” and ratified it after the trip with lots of thanks.

My brother and I did not even attend the trip God helped the two of us to secretly give birth to but learnt of the success of the trip although we took letters for the trip to Achimota School, Aburi Girls Senior High School as well as Aburi Botanical Gardens authorities for assent, permission and approval to use their facilities.

It is with this same sense of Divine feeling I am using as a guide as far as my plans to marry are concerned and work it will that I would not by God’s grace marry anyone who is currently in any of the Apostolic Faith Churches worldwide. God being my helper I would surely prevail no matter how some of the key leaders we have might angrily react or frown initially upon my good motives.

Well the darkest scenes began unfolding in my life when I noticed at a point in time that I was having unusual headaches, unusual demonic attacks in my dreams and there was also a very strong sense of oppression upon my manhood(my penis) and I had to seek the face of God to overcome all these. This was also a period in time when I had the need to seek God’s face personally for major breakthroughs to occur in the future and as far as the issue of marriage was concerned.

I began to pray about the issue of marrying as far back as at this time since the year 2000….I would vividly discuss my relationship history in a lengthy writing later but I noticed that whenever I moved in public lots of people had a very funny way of looking at me and would usually spit for me to know that they wish I would amount to nothing in life.And the lines of Psalm22 which reads “they shoot out their lips, they shake their heads saying he trusted in the Lord” would many times occur to me that it meant “they spat saying he believed in God”

I had to see the prayer leaders at Action Faith Chapel personally on this issue a step I took without the knowledge of any body in my family because I sat down and said to myself I have read about Evangelist Dr Morris Cerullo and have always said he is God’s true Servant.And when he came to Ghana in 1996/1997 he definitely he definitely prayed with some people to serve as lights in this nation for God in his absence so why not I try to avail myself to be prayed with.I had been praying very seriously by myself though I had previously written to some evangelists like Rev Franlkin Hall’s wife , Helen Hull , Reverend Ernest Angley, Joyce Meyer but the devil had a way of making me try to think that they were operating with evil spirits because right from the post till I got their letters or books they were actually filled with some evil spirit during the mailing process by some bad people and I had each time to pray upon materials to break the powers therein.

I had this problem with this IMIS Diploma Business Communication textbook that I could not study the book because of demonic attacks I would feel whilst reading it until about only two weeks to the exams when I mustered courage and requested my dad to lay hands on the book and to pray over it.The demonic control broke instantly at once during his prayers and I was able to use it without any demonic interference and the book is even at home as at this time of writing.

After high I would have dreams of been attacked and sometimes not having the strength to escape.I would have dreams sometimes of snakes with many heads chasing me(I had a dream of this sort once after high school in which I was at Botwe in the dream being chased by such very huge demonic creatures) and sometimes it was war against these creatures.

I started evangelism during school worship time since the year 2000 and since that time I have been seeking to spend most of my Sundays at my church’s mission house at Abossesy Okai where I would pray regularly non -stop for about almost seven hours or slightly more on each Sunday—my food in between the prayers being water and bread.

Sometimes soon after the prayer I would have a great feeling of relief and it would rain heavily at times soon as I finished praying at dusk at around exactly five to six o’clock in the evenings upon the return of the church leader then Rev Akwasi Badu-Debrah of Blessed Memory to the mission house from the church’s national headquarters at Chapel Hill Weija Barrier.

Upon 9th June, 2003 while I was at home at tragic event occurred at Nyamekye near Pambos Spot near the then Oxford international School, Accra. It was a Monday or Tuesday or so but exactly on June 9 when I was having an IMIS Diploma paper to write upon the next day so while at home in bed room, my dad being in the living room then,  I decided to take a short nap after my prayers around eleven or twelve that day when I saw myself within the confines of Oxford International School praying for somebody who had just died.I prayed so hard and long but life was not re- granted the person in the course of my prayers but all of a sudden I saw Mr Vasco( one of the co-owners of the school come to me in the dream) with some people who said the prayers were enough and they wanted to take the fellow to the hospital. Since they were insisting I had nothing to do in the dream but to let them go with the dead fellow.

I had stopped teaching in the school since August, 2002 and had stopped teaching at Golden Child School too around February ending 2003 to gain enough time to prepare for my external IMIS Diploma Examinations

So upon this fateful day a young friend in Oxford International School died during the school holidays upon June 9 being knocked by a vehicle. I was after I had written all my exams for that June and was pursuing an errand or while going about some duties in the Nyamekye neighbourhood when I met a student the school who told me that one of their colleagues had died being killed by a vehicle just along the section of the road near the school while her parents had sent her to do something for which she had to cross the street.

The student initially erred in citing the exact date but upon stating the date on which I had the dream he/she realised that was the actual day the incident occurred. The school authorities confirmed to me the facts later on and encouraged me to enter into ministry as part of my future professional plans.

Upon 1st December, 2003 when I was trimming a hedge plant at home prior to doing a little bit of revision for my unwritten IMIS Diploma exams I fell from the wooden structure that looked like a table I stood upon to cut the tree and injured my left fingers slightly with the cutlass in my hand.

That day I felt if I had injured my right fingers how would I have written the external exams the afternoon of the day.Hence I decided to fast since I had not eaten since that morning and the fast was to last for forty days avoiding one meal each day, drinking lots of lemon juices to break the fasts.

It was upon the 39th Day of the fasts when I had a divine encounter at midnight when an angelic being which appeared so powerful as Jesus Christ came down upon our building’s roof and tore a very strange chain of infirmity and weakness from my waist.My prayers were from Psalm 102 when it all happened…”thou shall arise and have mercy on Zion…to loosen those that are appointed to die”

“Lord Jesus loosen the strong chains of infirmity from my waist “ I sighed, prayed and grieved and the Mighty Being took away the weakness.

Prior to this time I had been writing prayers requests to Action Faith Chapel.I actually stopped attending the scheduled prayer meetings there not because of distance but one of the key ministers after praying with me upon the first time they saw me there said it was not necessary for me to come there often since God has a calling on my life and that I should not be afraid of my trials but should press forward in prayers. It was there too I realised some of their ministers went before God in very long fasts for major breakthroughs from hard demonic oppression among others. I learnt the need to pray very fervent prayers from here and formed the attitude of praying “violent “and loud prayers after I saw the way the ministers wrestled in prayers there.

During this same season Rev Morris Cerullo had organised a twenty one 21 day fasts period for to among other things stop the Sars disease from killing people and the Sars disappeared after the fasting period.

It was during this time that Rev Morris Cerullo in a letter to his ministry friends worldwide said an angel would visit God’s children not just to heal but to perform diverse miracles for them and I was no expection.

I started writing Apostolic Faith churches mainly USA –Portland, Oregon , Lagos ,Nigeria the then Africa Headquarters among others since I had also discovered within the same period of time from one of the church’s magazines that there were some church members who formed the habit of writing prayer requests to some of our churches worldwide until God stepped in to answer their requests.

When this miracle occurred I heard sounds that showed the enemy was striking upon object in their fury and in their attempts to resist me from receiving my miracle.Then I started to hear voices which would try to comment or threaten me in any decision I took.They said for instance “this guy has as a result of his prayers brought light into Tabora”, “he thinks we are going to attack him physically, No. we’ll just try to scare him—“huna huna no”, “this guy would get a lot of female friends” , “he was studying oh and we decided to “trap” him”, “naa ne ya le eee aaa “—on a lighter note to mean that’s just how he is or that’s his weakness, or that’s his sickness--- the word sickness here meaning a weakness or his own nature” among others.

And today some of the “voices” I heard has come true…there are churches in every area in Tabora and everywhere in Tabora and beyond is full of lots of ladies who smile to people and are friendly to people in Ghana than before. The rest in this matter is for you to conclude—I gained an unusual strong faith in God , more spiritual strength after the forty day fasts.

I had to fast a little bit more and prayed more and more until around April, 2004 when I eventually had to break the IMIS Higher Diploma programme I had started in January 2004 at the Institute of Advanced Computer Education(IACE) , Abeka to visit my aunt Mama Patricia Narteh- Ogbe in Cape Coast. I had been feeling very severe heartburns as though the main strings that held my heart compact together was being riven.

My dad prayed over water for me once and something like the spell that made me hear voices tore from me and I saw a cockroach and that was how the voices stopped completely for a while until it began again some days later.

(Do not be surprised to jump this narration a bit to the year 2009 December I had a dream one mid night at Takoradi after my dad passed on in which a it looks like the devil himself wanted to completely damage my mind. He tried twisting my mind to completely destroy it but at a point of making my brains completely damaged God stepped on the scene in the dream stopped the devil and all that I saw was that the earth opened into two and swallowed a cockroach and that was when I heard the instant news that earthquakes had swallowed some houses and people in some western countries outside the United States. )

This aunt had visited the family quite earlier on after December for some hours so I told my dad I want a change in environment and went to settle for some months in Cape Coast.

For some days there I would be prayed for every morning by our church family there until he suggested that I go for scanning or screening and a health check to narrate some of the health challenges with the medical nurses and doctors at the Ankaful Psychiatric Hospital, Cape Coast.

I was given medications and had to take them until I realised that I could not pray and was also having a problem of forgetfulness. It seemed that was the end of the line as there would be no way for me every to be able to pray or to pursue further studies.

There was a point in time that for a whole one year I was not able to pray by myself because of how heavy the medications were—I had speech problems and to form words to pray was a big burden. I could not recollect things no matter many times the matter was repeated for instance definitions while I came back to Accra to resume my IMIS Diploma Outstanding modules and the IMIS Higher Diploma modules.

But in my dreams I would be happy since prayers had been going on fervently for me some hourly every day , some monthly and all over the days of the year.

During this time I registered and attended Sir Doe’s ACCA study school at Asylum Down where one day I met my Botwe immediate junior and the multi- prize winning friend Ellis Arthur who had then completed the University of Ghana with a degree in Political Science. Philip Asiedu Yerenkyi and Joel Mensah( my Botwe friends all known to Ellis Arthur and my closest Botwe friend Sylvester Ato Appiah ) died in a terrible accident somewhere then in 2005.(Ato Appiah was then in London pursuing his Masters).

I met friends in this ACCA study school who were very friendly and would teach me after class for ACCA modules 1.1 and 1.2. Some of these friends were Tsatsu, Wendy and (Juliet—not too sure of name)  and George Kumegrah with I had very long chats with each time after the school closed in the evenings.

At the end of the Academic Year at IACE 2006 May/June  I sought from the IMIS UK an introductory letter to pursue internship but eventually Mr Sackey the then Director for the erstwhile IACE having considered my professional backgrounds plus some of my contributions in class in addition to my performance in assessment tests decided to order for an award to be granted to me that I should be certified to do my national service and I had the chance to do my service at the West African Examinations Council, National Office , Accra.

For one with the teaching of Information Technology programmes awards are given at the end of the programmes for participation but in my case I had studied the courses over and over facing health and medication challenges and meanwhile I had passed four of my UK IMIS Diploma modules except for two and I was naturally the very hardworking and very determined type.

There were some other dark days before I went to work with WAEC which I shall narrate later and the latter glory would be to God’s great name…..So I worked with WAEC completed in October ending 2008 encountered some yet darker days when my dad passed on in November 2009…some darkness lingered until I began the University of Ghana Access Course for entry into Legon as a Matured Student.

Upon setting my feet upon UGBS hills I told one of my female friends one Susana Yeboah that I believe in winning prizes and by the time I am done with my undergraduate studies I am expecting some prizes.

Today marks almost exactly ten years since I started contributing to the national newspapers , working on my hobbies, I performed poetry later at the British Council, I still believe in volunteering and in rendering service for humanity in capacities that would be of utmost blessings of inspiring and instilling happiness and joy in people and in doing investments that would eventually bring huge returns—financially and any good thing that can eventually be translated into huge money and would depict the fact that I have achieved great success.