NPP MP: Changing Castle n Coat of Arms is needless

Hon. Anthony Osei Akoto, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tafo Pankrono in the Ashanti region has stated that the debate on whether the castle in the Coat of Arms of Ghana should be changed because the seat of government is no longer at the Castle is needless.

In his view, there are much more issues of national importance to be discussed and Ghanaians should therefore not spend their quality time on what is a purely academic debate.

“…I don’t know if I want to put it (the debate) as useful or needless, but I think it should not occupy national attention. We have too many important things we need to do. This type of debate occurs in the halls of the academia. That’s where it belongs,” the Tafo Pankrono MP argued.

Addressing the issue on Metro TV’s ‘Good Morning Ghana’ programme, Dr. Osei Akoto was reacting to a recommendation for a modification of the Coat of Arms, which signifies the seal and authority of the state.

Dr. Bossman Asare, a lecturer at the Political Science Department and Dr. Margaret Amoakohene, Director of the School of Communication Studies, both of the University of Ghana, as well as Prof. Dominic Fobih, a former Minister of Education and Member of Parliament for Assin South, made the suggestion in separate interviews in Accra.

Meanwhile, Dr. Vladimir Antwi Danso, a Senior Fellow at the Legon Centre for International Affairs and Diplomacy, and a retired diplomat, Mr. K. B. Asante, think that there should be no modification, and are of the opinion that history would correct itself.

However, Hon. Anthony Osei Akoto believes that there was some reason why Mr. Amon Kotei, the designer of the Coat of Arms “put it there to remind us of our experience. I think history is useful and we ought to keep it”.

He further maintained that the topic should not generate much interest because there are more pressing issues to be discussed.