We must jealously guard our democracy – W/R Minister

Mr Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, Western Regional Minister, has called on the citizenry to do everything in their capacities to guard the democratic principles of the country.

He said it was only through democracy that the country could realize its development aspirations.

He said: “We must jealously guard our young democracy, and not allow pettiness and parochial interests of certain people to destroy the beautiful and envied democracy we have built together”.

Mr Darko-Mensah was speaking at a public forum, organized by Parliament, as part of activities to commemorate 30 years of uninterrupted parliamentary democracy under the fourth republic, in Takoradi.

The commemoration is on the theme: “Thirty Years of Parliamentary Democracy Under the Fourth Republic: The Journey Thus Far.”

The forum, which was part of a series being held nationwide, was to engage citizens and take stock of the successes and challenges chalked over the last three decades of practicing parliamentary democracy, which is geared towards repositioning Parliament to become a formidable and independent institution.

He said 30 years of uninterrupted parliamentary democracy was a great milestone worth celebrating.

The Regional Minister noted that the fourth republican Parliament had made great impacts in playing its role of serving as a link between governments and the people and fostering and deepening the democracy in the country.

Mr Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Member of Parliament for Ellembelle, urged politicians to work collectively and develop pragmatic strategies to strengthen and consolidate the democratic values of the country.

Mr Buah, who is also the Deputy Minority Leader in Parliament, said it was important for the citizenry to remain focused on using the tools of democratic practice such as consensus building and use of dialogue to resolve differences, saying, such steps were better than violent takeovers.

“As we take stock of the successes and challenges, we have experienced over the last three decades, let us continue to cherish our parliamentary democracy and make it more responsive to the needs and aspirations of our people, and work towards building a strong and independent Parliament,” he added.

Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, MP for Suame Constituency and Majority Leader in Parliament, in a speech read on his behalf by Mr Joseph Cudjoe, MP for Effia Constituency, said despite the significant impact of democracy to the stability of the country over the last three decades, democracy had come under threats in recent times.

He said problem of under-development, unemployment, poor governance among others threatened Ghana’s democratic values.

“We are in an era where the principles and dividends are under serious threats. …Many citizens including the constituents are angry and unhappy about democratic institutions.

“They say we have not been able to bring the required development and good governance to the citizenry, but rather the system has delivered under-development, unemployment poor governance among others which has left more of the people impoverished,” he noted.

He, therefore, called on relevant authorities to re-evaluate the current societal trends and devise strategies to address such issues, while delivering good governance for the people.