Eighty-six of prestigious life:‘Yezemen Tirufat’ portrays life of President Girma Woldegiorgis
By Tibebeselassie Tigabu
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -  A new film entitled ‘Yezemen Tirufat’ depicting the life of Ethiopian president Girma Woldegiorgis premiered last weekend. The film includes testimonies by different personalities that include the Late Fitawrari Amede Lema and Wubishet Workalemahu testimonies about the president’s courage and commitment in life.
 
Presidnet Girma Woldegiorgis was born in Addis Ababa, Merkato, 86 years ago. As children of the time customarily do, he attended the traditional schooling system where he was able to read Amharic. He then joined Teferi Mekonnen School where he started studying French. He was forced to abandon school because of the Italian invasion in 1936. He moved to Sodo with his family. Girma lost his father in the war and was forced to face the cruelty of life at a young age.

He later moved back to Addis where he was hired as help hand for an Italian man. He struggled for survival and in pursuit of his dream of education.
 
After liberation, in 1941, he was recruited into the army joining with other freedom fighters at the age of 16 and was promoted to the rank of sergeant the following year.
 
When the air force was founded he joined the air force because of his language skills. He took several trainings while at the air force. After graduation, he became a navigation teacher.
 The film shows his different responsibilities and positions before he became the president. He was the first civil aviation traffic controller in Addis Ababa and civil aviation director at the Eritrean station. At the time Ethiopian air force and aviation was filled with American citizens, he had his nationalistic aspiration to see trained Ethiopians replacing the Americans who were not in good terms with the administration. He strongly believed that Ethiopians should do everything necessary for Ethiopia. Inspired by this idea he published a book on the fundamentals of airplanes entitled ‘ayerna sew’ (Sky and Man).
The book consequently caused him a transfer to transport and communication ministry because of the Americans pressure.
Besides his career  the president has involved himself extensively in setting up charities and community work.
 
He later joins the parliament wining the election for parliament at the Emperor’s regime.  During his four-year stay, he has made Ethiopia a member of International Parliament Union and has worked to abolishment of ‘Yejiraf Hig’, a law that imposes whipping of people forty five times if they disgrace or curse the emperor or royalties. 
 
The father of six from the two marriages, Girma is one of the activists who struggled for the voiceless. He is also remembered for his speech he made in 1964 at the Inter Parliamentary Summit in Yugoslavia where he condemned the apartheid system in South Africa. 

“We shouldn’t return evil deeds with evil rather we should respond through love”, he pronounced.
 
President Girma speaks six languages like Amharic, Oromigna, Tigrigna, English, Italian, and French where he also enjoys dancing, music and traditional food ‘Kurt Siga’.
 
After serving in many position in the two regimes he established Lem Ethiopia, an organization that works in the area of Environment.