PRESIDENT John Dramani Mahana has called for a new Ghanaian as the national capital reels from Monday’s devastating floods.
He said if the country was to overcome the challenges confronting it, there must be fundamental shift in the minds, hearts, and attitudes of the citizenry.
Addressing a non-denominational National Christian Thanksgiving Service in Accra yesterday, President Mahama said there was the necessity of internal transformation and personal integrity as the foundation for national progress.
On the theme “Resetting our values to build the Ghana we want”, the congregation brought together Christian religious groups where prayers were said for the country.
The gathering emphasised Ghana as one nation under God, transcending political, ethnic, and religious divisions to offer collective thanksgiving and seek divine guidance.
According to President Mahama, the theme directly speaks to Ghana’s current realities and must become a national commitment around which a new Ghana must be built.
Government alone, President Mahama noted, could not turn around the story of the nation without citizen participation.
“Lasting national transformation is not achieved solely through policy. The laws can regulate behaviour but laws cannot instil integrity. Government can implement programmes but government cannot legislate honesty, compassion and patriotism,” he said.
“These values and virtues begin with each one of us and they are private decision we make as Ghanaians. They begin with teachers who teach with integrity, health workers who serve with kindness and compassion, farmers whose honest labour feeds our nation, public servants who faithfully fulfill their duties without collecting bribes, journalists who uphold the truth, parents who raise disciplined children, and citizens who place the national interest above personal gain,” he preached.
The Ghana citizens envisage, President Mahama stressed, would not be built through big infrastructure projects or economic reforms but through the right choices citizens make every day to do what is right.
In his view, economic transformation without moral transformation cannot endure, prosperity without integrity fragile, development without discipline unsustainable and growth without justice leaves too many people behind.
“If we are to build the Ghana we desire, we must recommit ourselves to honesty, accountability, patriotism, compassion, discipline, respect for one another, and an unwavering commitment to the common good,” he admonished.
He said in spite of the challenges that confront the country, God has been good to it; underscoring the need for a moment of reflection and thanksgiving.
He stated that Ghana’s celebrated economic turnaround since he returned to the helm of affairs is built on discipline and must now be sustained by integrity, protected by justice and strengthened by national unity.
President Mahama entreated citizens to eschew partisanship and rally behind the national cause.
“Before we belonged to political parties, we belonged to Ghana. Before we identify with a tribe or religion, we are citizens of one republic. Our constitution binds us together, our history unites us and our future depends on our ability to work together.
“Therefore, let us reject bitterness, intolerance and division. Let us reject corruption and cynicism. Instead, let us embrace dialogue over hostility, service over self -interest, unity over division and hope over despair,” President Mahama rallied.
BY JULIUS YAO PETETSI
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