Speaking at the 13th John Evans Atta Mills Memorial Lecture held on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, Mrs. Osei said that during her time in public service under Professor Mills’ administration as chairperson of the National Commission on Civic Education (NNCE), she once challenged a presidential decision she believed was wrong.

According to her, the President responded calmly and, months later, privately admitted she had been right.

“We argued as lawyers, and he told me, ‘When you’re president, you see things very differently,’” she told the audience. “Eventually, in one of the matters, months later, I got a message from him, he said, ‘You were right, and I was wrong.’ That was an emotional moment for me and a great lesson in leadership.”

Mrs Osei, who was appointed by President Mills in 2011 as Chair of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), shared the experience to highlight the late President’s integrity and openness to dissent; qualities she said are increasingly rare in today’s public leadership.

“Power that fears criticism is already bankrupt,” she said, adding that Professor Mills’s willingness to admit error, even in private, revealed the strength behind his quiet leadership style.

The memorial lecture, held at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), was organised by the John Evans Atta Mills Memorial Heritage.

The event drew government officials, academics, former appointees, and members of the diplomatic community to reflect on the legacy of the late President.

Mrs Osei delivered her address under the theme “Atta Mills: A Case Study for the Fourth Republic”, speaking from the perspective of a former student and mentee. She described Professor Mills as someone whose humility and moral clarity remained consistent, whether as a teacher, president, or private citizen.

She said his ability to remain grounded while holding high office had a lasting impact on her own approach to public service.

“In a world of noise, integrity is a silent superpower,” she said. “Leadership is not about being the loudest voice in the room, but the most thoughtful.”

Professor John Evans Atta Mills died in office on July 24, 2012. He is remembered for his calm demeanour, democratic ideals, and insistence on inclusive governance.

Source: Graphic.com.gh

ALSO READ:

• Late Prof Mills would be outraged by ‘galamsey’ menace – Charlotte Osei

• Gabby Otchere-Darko apologises to Charlotte Osei

Samuel Atta Mills, a brother of the late President John Atta Mills, has berated Majority Chief Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, over a proposal for a bi-partisan probe into the latter’s death.

According to Mr Mills, who is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Komenda, the proposal is a deliberate attempt to politicise the death of his brother which is very bad.

“Why do they want to remind us about the pain of his [Atta-Mills’] death every year? Does Annoh- Dompreh care more about Atta Mills than JB Danquah who was murdered in his house?

“Why are you trying to cry more than the bereaved? I used to respect Annoh-Dompreh from far away and he shouldn’t make me lose that,” he fumed on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen.

Four members of the Majority side in Parliament have filed a Private Member’s motion seeking a bi-partisan investigation into the death of the former Stateman.

They are Majority Chief Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, Tolon MP, Habib Iddrissu; Mpraeso MP, Davis Ansah Opoku and Tema Central MP, Yves Hanson-Nortey.

ALSO READ:

• Koku Anyidoho petitions CID over Atta Mills death [Listen]

• Koku Anyidoho requests probe into Atta Mills’ death 10 years on

The motion is “to unravel the unending mystery surrounding the death of late President Mills which sad event occurred on July 24, 2012.”

But the Komenda Edina Equafo Abirem lawmaker, who was livid during the interview, said there are more issues in Ghana that require urgent attention, hence cannot fathom why the focus should be on his brother’s death.

“Have they investigated JB Danquah’s death? Annoh-Dompreh sits at the front desk of NPP in parliament yet people are suffering in Ghana; worker unions are declaring strikes every now and then. is this the only thing they care about? We must be reasonable in our dealings,” he chided.

Play the audio above: