I knew I will be a lawyer since my primary school days – Joe Wise

• Joe Wise says he dreamed of becoming a lawyer since childhood

• He was called to the bar 31 years ago and is currently the first deputy speaker of Parliament

• He underlines the role of focus in pursuing his dreams throughout life

Member of Parliament for Bekwai, Joseph Osei-Owusu has said he knew since his childhood that he wanted to be a lawyer and subsequently worked towards that goal.

He is currently the first deputy Speaker of Parliament, a post he retained from the last Parliament, but prior to entering the lawmaking chamber, he had trained to be a lawyer.

GhanaWeb monitored comments he made when he appeared on the October 5 edition of the GTV Breakfast show where he spoke on a myriad of issues.

At the tail end of the programme when he was asked about his parting words, he spoke about the need for focus in life stressing that knowing what one wanted in life was the best way to focus.

He said being focused has helped him throughout his political career especially when his followers expressed discomfort about the internal opposition he faced in the New Patriotic Party.

“I would tell them to ignore (opponents) and stay focused, at the end of the election they come back and say we understand you. Wherever you are try to understand yourself, what is my strength, what do I want to do? What are my weaknesses and how can I improve on them,” he said.

On his childhood dream of becoming a lawyer, he said it was sandwiched between growing in a palace where arbitration was a norm and always going to stand by the courts to observe proceedings.

“When I was in primary school, I always went to stand at the court building, I knew I will be a lawyer. I was also raised in Ahenfie (palace), where every Saturday there is arbitration.

“I will say we were like bailiffs, you will take the witnesses, go and hide them (and) when they are needed you brought them. But in any free time, I went to stand by the court to listen to lawyers. I told myself I will be a lawyer.”

He was called to the bar 31 years ago.

Source: www.ghanaweb.com