Former Acting Central Regional Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Kofi Matthew, has cautioned members of the Tertiary Education Institutions Network of the University of Cape Coast (TEIN-UCC) against allowing their talents, influence, and political energy to be exploited by others to pursue personal agendas and settle battles that do not advance their own destinies.
Addressing students during the 30th Anniversary Celebration of TEIN-UCC, the seasoned administrator delivered a powerful message titled “Your Glory, Their Weapon – Stay Vigilant,” urging young political activists to be discerning about how, where, and for whom they deploy their gifts and influence.
Drawing lessons from the biblical account in Matthew 14, he recounted how the daughter of Herodias danced so exceptionally at King Herod’s birthday celebration that the king offered to grant her any request.
However, rather than using that defining moment to advance her own future and destiny, her mother manipulated the opportunity to demand the execution of John the Baptist.
According to Mr. Kofi Matthew, the young woman’s talent, beauty, and moment of glory, what should have been an opportunity to shape her own destiny, became a weapon in someone else’s battle.
“Her gift became a weapon. Her moment of glory was redirected to serve another person’s agenda,” he told the gathering. “That is the danger many young people face today, especially those with great potential.”
He warned TEIN members that their intelligence, popularity, organizational strength, communication skills, and youthful energy are powerful assets that can easily be hijacked by individuals seeking to prosecute their parochial interests.
“Your brilliance, your influence, your voice, your numbers, these are blessings. But if you are not careful, others will use them to fight wars that have nothing to do with you,” he cautioned.
To illustrate his point, Mr. Kofi Matthew cited situations familiar to many students.
He noted that a talented student speaker may be encouraged to publicly attack another party member, not because it advances the Party’s cause, but because someone senior is pursuing a personal grudge.
A socially influential student leader may be persuaded to mobilize colleagues against another student activist without fully understanding the underlying issues. In the process, relationships are damaged, reputations are tarnished, and the student bears consequences for battles that were never his or hers to fight.
He further explained that some students are often recruited into campus factions or even factions within the mainstream party under the guise of loyalty or activism, only to discover later that they were being used as pawns in power struggles driven by other people’s parochial ambitions rather than the collective interests of the Party and their own destinies.
There are instances where some of you are cajoled to campaign for certain candidates against candidates you know so well are more competent and more deserving, and this happens just because those you support work in this university or are your course mates.
Another practical example, he observed, is when gifted students use their social media influence to spread unverified allegations or engage in unnecessary attacks against fellow comrades, sometimes very senior comrades, simply because a trusted mentor or associate requested it.
Such actions, he noted, may provide temporary satisfaction to others while leaving lasting damage to the student’s own credibility and future prospects.
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