Criticisms would not make us lose focus- Botwe

Larteh (E/R), Oct 23, GNA - Mr Dan Botwe, the Minister of Information, has said though government would often listen to the people, it would not allow criticisms of its policies to force it to lose focus.

He said the government was not afraid to say what it thought was in the best interest of the country and when necessary to change its policy if it realized that it was not in the interest of the majority of the people.

Mr Botwe was speaking at a durbar of chiefs and people of Larteh to mark the Odwira festival on Saturday.

He called on the people of Larteh to use the Odwira festival to teach the youth of the area their culture and history. Mr Botwe explained that such education could help inculcate in the youth moral values to promote the economic and democratic development of the country.

Mr Ato Essuman, a member of the Council of State, reminded parents and guardians that it was their responsibility to ensure that their children and wards learn after school.

He commended the chiefs and people of Larteh for establishing an Education Trust Fund that had so far provided scholarships to 50 junior secondary school graduates to study at the secondary level.

Mr Yaw Barimah, the Eastern Regional Minister, said in a speech read for him that the youth of the country seemed to be in arms against constituted authority and warned that if such phenomenon was not checked, the country could be breeding a generation that could trample on all time-honoured morals and virtues.

He described as unfortunate the situation where parents seemed to be chasing business, wealth and money at the expense of their children who have become "little monsters" who could grow up to become miscreants and misfits in the society.

Mr Barimah appealed to parents to spend more time with their children to inculcate in them religious and moral values. Osabarima Asiedu Okoo Ababio 111, the Lartehene, appealed to the government to acquit and discharge some politicians whose cases had dragged on at the courts for about four years if the government had no evidence to continue with their cases.

He said this would relieve ''the affected families of the psychological warfare being wagged on them.''

Osabarima Asiedu Okoo Ababio praised the government for the various successes it had chalked for the past four years and expressed his appreciation to Larteh citizens in Europe, Canada and the USA for supporting projects in Larteh.