‘I am a Soldier Man’ - Why Rawlings Refused to Care When State Privileges Were Stripped.

ACCRA — When the John Agyekum Kufuor administration withdrew the diplomatic privileges and entitlements of former President Jerry John Rawlings, many viewed the move as a highly contentious political maneuver.

Fritz Baffour was among them, labeling the decision "very petty" and counterproductive to a healthy democracy. "When somebody has a certain entitlement, you don't take it away even if he offends you, because he represents a certain group of people," Baffour asserted.

However, the man at the center of the political storm remained entirely unbothered. According to Baffour, Rawlings harbored no bitterness and simply shrugged off the sanctions.

"He just didn't care. He said, 'Let them do it. I'm alive. So long as I'm not dead, I'm going to go and do my thing.'" Baffour recalled. "When they withdrew the privileges, he’d carry his own bags, get on the plane, and go. He wasn't a possessive person into material things. He’d say, 'I'm a soldier man, I can carry my stuff and move.'"