Press spotlights celebration of Ghana’s independence from British colonial rule, others
APA – Accra (Ghana)
The report that one of Ghana’s biggest national celebrations, the Independence Day Parade, is underway in the Volta regional capital, Ho dominates the headlines of Ghanaian press on Monday.
The Graphic reports that the day marks exactly 66 years Ghana attained independence from British colonial rule.
On parade at the Volta Regional Youth Resource Centre, located at Adaklu-Tsrefe, near Ho, are 64 officers and 1,042 men from the various security agencies, contingents from seven senior high schools (SHS) and basic schools in the Ho municipality and Adaklu District, and representatives of voluntary organisations.
More than 5,000 people from various parts of the country are at the anniversary celebration which being graced by the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
The President of Guinea Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embalo, who is the Chairman of the Economic Community West African States (ECOWAS), will be the special guest at the parade which is expected to feature exciting cultural displays, military exercises and displays such as rappelling, acrobatics and show of various skills and capabilities.
The Regional Minister, Dr Archibald Yao Letsa, said 80 members of the diplomatic corps would also take part in the celebration.
The national parade which used to be held at the Black Star Square, with similar parades across the country in the regional and district capitals, has since 2019 been rotating around regional capitals.
The Northern regional capital, Tamale, was the first regional capital to host the national independence parade, which was held at the Aliu Mahama Sports Stadium in Tamale.
It was the 62nd Independence anniversary of the country which was on the theme: “Celebrating Peace and Unity.” The Overlord of Dagbon, Ya Na Abdulai, was the guest of honour.
President Nana Addo-Dankwa Akufo-Addo explained at the parade that the decision to move the 2019 Independence Day celebration to Tamale was to solidify the peace and unity achieved in the Dagbon Traditional Area.
“In order to reinforce and support the process of reconciliation and the restoration of peace in Dagbon, I have decided that this year, the 62nd Independence Day celebration will be held in Tamale on 6th March.
“This will be the first time in our nation’s history that the celebration is being held outside of our national capital, Accra,” he added.
The newspaper says that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Friday rewarded the 2021-2022 winners of the President’s Independence Day Awards in Accra.
The awards, which is sponsored by Nestle Ghana Limited, is an annual event which recognises and rewards young brilliant students between the ages of 14 and 19 from across the regions.
The 72 awardees were selected based on their exceptional academic performances in the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
The overall best male and female students from public schools were also selected based on the raw scores obtained in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
There was also a category for persons with disability.
Each awardee received a plaque, a certificate, an amount of GH¢3,000, a laptop computer and a full year supply of Nestle products.
President Akufo-Addo said he was always delighted to interact with brilliant and talented young people because they represented the future of the country.
“You will be part of the story of whether this country will still remain somewhat dependent on foreign assistance or it will be a self-reliant nation largely mobilising its own resources to take care of its needs,” he added.
The President urged the awardees not to allow the success chalked up to get into their heads because the achievement was the beginning of more to come for which reason they must continue to work hard.
He advised them to be diligent, hardworking and morally upright, adding that honesty and integrity were important values they must always uphold.
The Ghanaian Times reports that a Chinese delegation is in Accra to engage the government in a discussion, following a request for the restructuring of Ghana’s $1.9 billion debt owed to China.
A report on the Ministry of Finance website stated that the delegation is in Accra on a 3-day mission, ahead of Ghana’s upcoming Mission to China, all in line with ongoing negotiations for a sovereign debt treatment. The report also highlighted that scheduled meetings were going well, and discussions have been cordial and fruitful.
A highly placed source at the Ministry of Finance went further to state that there has been data sharing between the two governments, with discussions being held at the technical level, on the parameters of an effective debt treatment.
According to the source, the Ghanaian government was seeking among other reliefs, an extension of the moratorium on debt servicing; an extension of maturities; and lower interest rates.
Another source close to the Ministry of Finance, speaking on condition of anonymity, corroborated the report and said that technical discussions had been extremely positive so far. The source also hinted that plans were on course for the proposed high-level government mission to China, during the last week of March.
The Chinese delegation, as part of the 3-day Mission, had met with the Vice President, Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia, the Minister for Finance, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, and technical teams from the Ministry of Finance.
The Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Lu Kun, also hosted the delegation at a luncheon yesterday. In attendance were members of the Chinese delegation, the Minister for Finance, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta; Minister of For-eign Affairs, Ms Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey; Ghana’s Ambassador to China, Dr Winfred Nii Okai Hammond, and officials of the Ministry of Finance.
Speaking at the luncheon, Mr Ofori-Atta thanked the Chinese government for their long-standing cooperation and support for Ghana. He emphasised the need to keep and strengthen that relationship, whilst working towards an exemplary debt treatment solution that could serve as a model for China’s future engagements with other African countries.
The newspaper says that the final funeral rites of late Ghanaian footballer, Christian Atsu Twasam, is scheduled for this Friday, March 17, at the forecourt of the State House.
This was disclosed by the spokesperson of the Twasam family, Robert Ann, at the one-week observation of the footballer held at the Adjiringanor Astro-Turf Park in Accra on Saturday.
According to him, the date was chosen after consultations with the Government and the Ghana Football Association (GFA).
“We had to collaborate with the government and the GFA to come out with a date that would be suitable to everyone and we settled on March 17,” he stated.
“Atsu’s demise is a big loss to Ghana and the football world at large and the government has promised to support the family to give him a befitting burial,” he stressed.
The solemn occasion saw dignitaries, former footballers and teammates, friends, family and sympathisers throng to the venue to eulogise the late footballer for his contribution to sports and humanity.
Notable among them were the Minister for Youth and Sports, Mustapha Ussif, President of the GFA, Kurt Okraku and other officials of the FA including General Secretary Proper Harrison Addo and Communications Director, Henry Asante Twum.
The Director General of the National Sports Authority (NSA), Prof. Peter Twumasi, astute football administrator George Afriyie, the Professional Footballers Association members which had former players including John Mensah, John Paintsil, Asamoah Gyan, Godwin Attram, Ibrahim Tanko and Sammy Kufuor among many others, were all in attendance.
In his address, Mr Ussif said they would continue to engage the family and other stakeholders to give Atsu a deserved exit.
“We lost a great personality who only did not contribute to football, but to humanity and would be remembered for his good works,” he stated.
“The entire nation is mourning, and we can only pray that Atsu is resting in a good place, while we would do our best to ensure his legacy remains.”
GIK/APA
Press spotlights celebration of Ghana’s independence from British colonial rule, others
