Make June 4 a national holiday in honor of Rawlings – Asiedu Nketia

Asiedu Nketia, the General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress has called for the institution of June 4 as a national holiday.

According to him, making June 4 a holiday will be a perfect way to honor the memory of late Former President Jerry John Rawlings.

The NDC scribe at a vigil held in memory of Rawlings contended that it is important for the nation to reignite the conversation about making it a holiday to remind Ghanaians of the need to fight corruption.

He said that if the government refuses to heed his calls, the NDC government will make it a holiday.

“Let us fight to come to power. Let us revisit the idea of June 4 becoming one of the national holidays. We can only do this when we are in power. In opposition, it cannot be done,” he said.

“If the current government thinks that President Rawlings was a great man, then let them honour his great works and his great works can be remembered if we observe June 4, at least for one day when the nation will stand still, go back and review what June 4 stood for and to re-energize ourselves to live by the principles,” he said.

He noted that the nepotism and corruption being in the NPP government is worse than the things that triggered the June 4 revolution.

He reiterated the need for Ghanaians to visit the principles of ‘positive defiance'.

“What is happening today? The nepotism we are seeing, the corruption we are seeing, which in several ways can be said to be worse than what prevailed before the June 4 [revolution]. It is happening because we have abandoned the important principles of positive defiance. The best way for us to remember President Rawlings is to go back that principle and pledge to live by them,” Asiedu Nketia said.

The NDC on Sunday, November 15, 2020, held a vigil in honor of the party’s founder who died on Thursday.

Flagbearer of the party, John Dramani Mahama; Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin; the Minority Leader of Parliament, Haruna Iddirisu; General Secretary of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah; the family of the late J.J Rawlings represented by Zanetor and Kimathi among other leading members of the NDC were in attendance.