Hundreds of mourners, including public office holders, politicians, and relatives, gathered at the State House on Friday, January 5, 2024, to pay their last respects to the late statesman, Enoch Teye Mensah, popularly known as ET Mensah.
Several dignitaries, including President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, former President, John Dramani Mahama, former Speaker of Parliament, Edward Doe Adjaho, and a host of personalities from all walks of life, were present at the ceremony to bid the former Ningo-Prampram legislator farewell.
ET Mensah, who held several government portfolios, died in South Africa in October at the age of 77 after battling ill health for some time.
He has been described by many as an affable person and a strong activist for the National Team, especially the Black Queens.
Speaking to Citi News at his final funeral rites at the state house in Accra, some of the attendees alluded to his legacy of service while noting the virtues they will remember him for.
“I think I came on the sports scene at the time when he was very much in charge. If you talk about the Ghana Football league coming into, whether it’s the premiere league or professional league, I think it was under his tenure or his initiative that we had the premiere league introduced. Of course, you cannot talk about the Black Queens and their qualification for the women’s World Cup without remembering E.T. Mensah. It was through him that we qualified for our first women’s World Cup in 1999, and he ensured that the girls had good preparation before the competition.”
Some of them also highlighted his intelligence and advice basis which have empowered the youth of Ghana.
Former Speaker of Parliament, Edward Doe Adjaho, described ET Mensah as a great organizer and an affable person.
“ET was a great organizer, very kind, very affable, but at the same time, a no-nonsense person. Once he is convinced about a position, he will push that view to its logical conclusion to his satisfaction.”
“He was one person in Parliament who could work across the aisle, and he was able to know what was happening in the NPP. Just as he knew what was happening in the NDC, he knew what was happening in the NPP, and so he would come to my office to brief me and help us take a position as to the way forward. He even opened his West Airport residence to some of us, where we met to discuss parliamentary strategies and all those things.”
National Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, also recounted some fond memories of the former Ningo-Prampram legislator.
“Something he did, which I will never forget, is that he was part of the group of MPs who recommended me to become the NDC general secretary when I was leaving Parliament after twelve years to pursue my PhD. ET Mensah, Doe Adjaho, Alban Bagbin, John Dramani Mahama, and a few others came together and suggested that the party needed a firebrand, and I did not have a pesewa at the time.”
“All the seniors in the party had their candidates, but with the backing of ET Mensah, Doe Adjaho, Collins Dauda, John Mahama, and others who pledged to work in their constituencies to ensure my election, I became the general secretary of the NDC,” Asiedu Nketiah added.
