President Mills' profile

8/8/09

By Musah Yahaya Jafaru

PROFESSOR John Evans Atta Mills is the third President of the Fourth Republic of Ghana. He assumed the reins of the presidency on January 7, 2009, after a keenly contested election between his ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP). He came behind Nana Akufo-Addo of the NPP in the December 7, 2009 election but beat him (Nana Akufo-Addo) in the presidential run-off on December 28, 2009.
Prof. Mills was a Vice-President of Ghana in the Rawlings administration between 1997 and 2001. He contested in two previous presidential elections on the ticket of the NDC against Mr John Agyekum Kufuor of the NPP and other presidential candidates in 2000 and 2004.
In the 2008 election, Prof. Mills campaigned on a slogan of change for a better Ghana. Since assuming office, President Mills has demonstrated his commitment to the rule of law, probity and accountability and the political will to deal with appointees found to have misconducted themselves. The termination of the appointment of Moses Asaga as the Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, for approving the release of the controversial End-of-Service Benefit (ESB) for former President and some public servants and the resignation of the former Minister of Youth and Sports, Alhaji Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak, following President Mills’s dissatisfaction with his decision to embark on the German trip with Ms Edith Zinayela, the Secretary to the Majority Leader, are some examples.
President Mills assumed power in the face of the global economic slowdown and took over an economy that was said to be weak. He has so far introduced policy initiatives to rescue the country's economy and promote socio-economic development of the country. The policies include the reduction of taxes and levies on petroleum products, the free school uniforms for basic schools and the cutting down of government expenditure.
President Mills is seen as being humble, peace-loving, a listener, an intellectual and a unifier by his admirers. His expertise transcends the classroom, where he showed his prowess as a lecturer at the Faculty of Law at the University of Ghana and the School of Administration.
He is an active sportsman and once played for the national hockey team, and was instrumental in the Ghana Hockey Association and still a member of the veteran hockey team.
The law lecturer was born on July 21, 1944 at Tarkwa in the Western Region of Ghana. He hails from Ekumfi Otuam, in the Mfantsiman East Constituency in the Central Region. He is married to Ernestina Naadu, an educationist, and has a 20-year-old son, Sam Kofi Atta Mills.
President Mills launched a life-long of learning at Achimota Secondary School, where he completed the Advanced Level Certificate in 1963. To further his education, he attended the University of Ghana, Legon, where he received a bachelor’s degree and professional certificate in Law (1967). At 27, he was awarded his PhD after successfully defending his doctoral thesis in the area of Taxation and Economic Development. While earning the PhD in Oriental and African Studies from the University of London, he was selected as a Fulbright scholar at Stanford Law School (USA).
Prof. Mills’s first formal teaching assignment was as a lecturer at the Faculty of Law at the University of Ghana, Legon. He spent more than 20 years imparting knowledge to students, and rose in position from lecturer through senior lecturer to associate professor. His contribution to the university was remarkable, having served on numerous boards, committees, and schemes. Also, during those years, Prof. Mills travelled as a visiting lecturer and professor to Temple University (USA) and Leiden University (Holland), and presented research papers at symposiums and conferences throughout the world. In 2002, he was a visiting scholar at the Liu Centre for the Study of Global Affairs, University of British Columbia, Canada.
Prof. Mills has more than one dozen publications to his credit, and these include:
* Taxation of Periodical or Deferred Payments arising from the Sale of Fixed Capital (1974),
* Exemption of Dividends from Income Taxation: A Critical Appraisal (1977),
* Report of the Tax Review Commission, Ghana, parts 1,2&3, (1977) and
* Ghana’s Income Tax Laws and the Investor. An inter-faculty lecture published by the University of Ghana.
President Mills’s expertise goes beyond the classroom, and that is evidenced by the various examiner positions he held with finance-related institutions throughout Ghana (i.e. Institute of Chartered Accountants, Institute of Bankers, Ghana Tax Review Commission, etc.). As an advocate for recreation, Prof. Mills has supported the community through groups such as the Ghana Hockey Association, National Sports Council of Ghana and Accra Hearts of Oak Sporting Club.
The following are a few of his activities and projects:
* Study on Equipment Leasing in Ghana
* Casebook preparation on Ghana’s Income Tax
* Review of Ghana’s Double Tax Agreement with the UK
A track record of financial knowledge and strong professional credentials led to several important appointments. In 1988, John Evans Atta Mills became the acting Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of Ghana and named Commissioner in September 1996. He was a member of the Ghana Stock Exchange Council, Member of the Board of Trustees, Mines Trust, Management Committee Member of Commonwealth Administration of Tax Experts, United Nations Ad Hoc Group of Experts in International Co-operation in Tax Matters, and United Nations Law and Population Project.
In 1997, Prof. Mills received another important appointment when on January 7, 1997, he was sworn in as the Vice-President of the Republic of Ghana. He contested as the flag bearer of the NDC in the 2000 election. In December 2002, John Evans Atta Mills was elected by the NDC to once again lead the party in the 2004 election. He was re-elected in December 2006 by an overwhelming 81.4 per cent, beating three other contestants, to once again have the mandate to lead his party in the December 7, 2008 election.
As indicated earlier, Prof. Mills campaigned on a platform of change for a better Ghana. He said he would confront the challenges that faced the country, such as the energy crisis, unemployment, education, health, the drug menace, as well as expand the economy. He promised to work to create a better Ghana for the people.
In his inaugural presidential address on January 7, 2009 at the Independence Square in Accra, President Mills re-echoed his election promise to be a President for all Ghanaians, irrespective of their political or ethnic affiliations, and that all Ghanaians would be given equal opportunity. He has since stuck to this stand of being gentle towards perceived opponents of the ruling party who are occupying important positions in the public sector, despite protestations by some NDC supporters. Several political and social commentators have commended Professor Mills for his respect for due process.
President Atta Mills has set up a Policy Unit at the Presidency to work towards the attainment of the goals of the NDC Government. The government is studying a report submitted by a technical team on the pay policy for further action. It is assessing past and current programmes, the 'Youth in Agriculture Programme' and National Youth Employment Programme' and doing the necessary re-engineering that would make them respond to present needs.
The government is in the process of providing free school uniforms and free textbooks to at least one million needy schoolchildren, and has already provided 50 per cent relief on the cost of fertiliser, and had also approved GH¢ 7.5 million for the continuation of the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty Programme.
He has set up the Disability Council as a way of furthering the cause of the people with disability, and indicated his resolve to ensuring that people living with HIV and AIDS are not discriminated against in the schemes of things.
President Mills has reiterated the government's commitment to create jobs in the economic and productive sectors such as Agriculture, Trade and Industry and Tourism. Besides, the government is putting in place support mechanisms to ensure the environment remains friendly to both old and new investors by way of proper legislation, as well as improving the performance of the public utility outfits.
He promised to ensure equitable distribution of national resources to the benefit of all Ghanaians. He deplored the creation of a class system, and said improvement in the lifestyles of the people would be the yardstick by which the government would be judged. He promised to collaborate with labour unions to tackle the issues of fair public sector pay, pensions, end-of-service benefits and unfair international trade terms. President Mills says he will protect local industries and ensure reciprocity in international trade by championing strong bargaining power for Ghanaian goods.
President Mills shares certain things in common with President Barack Obama of the USA, who is paying a two-day official visit to Ghana from July 10 to 11, 2009. The two presidents are lawyers. They campaigned on the slogan of change. Both President Mills and President Obama are in the first year of their four-year terms.
President Obama was reported to have telephoned President Mills to congratulate him on his election victory. His visit to Ghana is seen as a way of deepening friendship between him and President Mills and strengthening ties between the USA and Ghana.