The greatest leader of our time has to be waiting indeed of our time. Today, we all know in our hearts that one man can make a difference to bring back our past glory to lives on the immortal words and works that our elders left behind. He lives on in our mind and memories and in the hearts of all our countrymen.
No words are sad enough to express our sense of loss to call a spade a spade. No words are strong enough to express our determination to continue the forward thrust of Ghana that ancestors began.
The dream of living in partnership across boundaries, party lines the Atlantic and across Pacific as well the dream of a Peace Corps as a highly developed nations, the dream of education for all of our children, the dream of jobs for all who seek them and need them, the dream of care for our elderly, the dream of an all-out attack on mental illness and, above all, the dream of equal rights for all Ghanaians whatever their race or colour or party affiliation.
These and other dreams have been victimised by driven out the dedicated ones who can sacrifices for our nation Ghana without thinking to enrich their pocket. And now the ideas and the ideals which he so nobly represented must and will be translated into effective action.
Looking at such leadership this nation may have demonstrated that it has the courage to seek peace, and it has the fortitude to risk war. We have proved that we are good and reliable friends to those who seek peace and freedom. We have shown that we can also be a formidable foe to those who reject the path of peace, and those who seek to impose upon us the yoke of tyranny.
Let’s keep our commitments to build a nation that our next generation will be proud of
We the people of Ghana should keep our commitments to fight for a good and reliable Government that will bring back our affordable healthcare, free education, jobs for our graduate, good care for our soldiers and above all fight corruption. We will be unceasing in the search for peace; resourceful in our pursuit of areas of agreement even with those with whom we differ; and generous and loyal to those who join with us in common cause.
In this age when there can be no losers in peace and no victors in war we must recognize the obligation to match national strength with national restraint. We must be prepared at one and the same time for both the confrontation of power and the limitation of power. We must be ready to defend the national interest and to negotiate for our common goal.
This is the path that we shall continue to pursue. Those who test our courage will find it honourable. We will demonstrate a new that the strong can be just in the use of strength, and the just can be strong in the defence of justice. And let all know he will extend no special privilege and impose no persecution on our fellow Ghanaians who failed to do the right thing for our nation.
He will carry on the fight against poverty and misery and disease and ignorance in our society.
He will serve all Ghanaians, not one section or one sector or one group but all Ghanaians.
We are a united people with a united purpose. Our Ghanaian unity does not depend upon unanimity. We have differences but now, as in the past, we can derive from those differences strength, not weakness; wisdom, not despair as a people and a Government we can unite upon a program which is wise and just, enlightened and constructive.
He will share many moments of pride with our neighbours on the continent, pride in the ability of well assembled parliament to act good laws, to meet any crisis, to distil from our differences strong programs of national action and national reconciliation.
This is something of nation interest that needs thrust upon honesty to deliver the awesome burden of a President. I am here today to say we need everyone’s help. We cannot bear to lose this burden of ours. We need the help of all Ghanaians in Ghana especially registered voters to decide the faith of our Country.
This nation has experienced a profound shock and in this critical moment it is our duty, yours and mine, as the people of Ghana to do away with uncertainty and doubt and delays and to show that we are capable of decisive action that from the brutal loss of our economy we will derive not weakness but strength that we can and will act, and act now.
From this our individual party let us set apart any difference that will be set us let all in our world to know that no misunderstanding, that will deprive us this day of the unswerving support of our elders to honourably determine, execution of our commitments to our unborn generation to maintain unity and strength second to none, to build our nation Ghana. The defending of our strength and the stability of our cedi to the expansion of our foreign trade to reinforce our programs of mutual assistance and cooperation in the world and Africa starts now.
On the November 7th 2016 will be that day to decide the faith of our economy, our integrity to choose and build our destiny, therefore countrymen our national pride lies at the finishing end is in the first 1,000 days, not in the life of any Administration, not even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet and therefore let us begin now.
Today in this moment of new resolve, I would say to all my fellow Ghanaians, let us continue.
This is our challenge: Not to hesitate, not to pause, not to turn about and linger over this evil moment, but to continue on our course so that we will fulfil the destiny that history has set for us.
Our most immediate tasks are here now let us first know that, no memorial oration could more eloquently honour our memory than the earliest possible passage to fight corruption and stand up for our rights so long as there is breath in us.
We have talked long enough in this country about equal rights for all, now is the hour.
It is time now to write the next chapter, and to write it in the books of law.
Source of Strength that can be seen
I urge you again, as I did in my early writings to act rights law so that we can move forward to eliminate from this nation every trace of discrimination and oppression that is based upon tribe or language. There could be no greater source of strength to this nation, both at home and abroad than the ballot box.
And, second, no act of ours could more fittingly continue fight poverty than the work of early passage of the tax bill for which was fought all this long years. This is a bill designed to increase our national income and Government revenues, and to provide insurance against recession. This bill, if carefully executed without delay, meaning more security for those who are now working, more jobs for our graduates those now without them we will not be able to come out of our current problem and more incentive for our economy.
In short, there is no time to delay. It is a time for strong action, forward-looking action on the pending education bills to help bring the light of learning to every home and hamlet in Ghana. Strong forward looking action on the pending economic struggle, making clear that we are not forfeiting our responsibilities to this generation or to the world at large. We are not erasing our Executive flexibility in the conduct of our foreign affairs with prompt and précised action on appropriation task.
In this new spirit of action let us expect the full cooperation and support of the Elders and in particular I pledge that the expenditures of our Government will be administered with the utmost thrift and frugality.
I will insist that the Government get a dollar's value for a dollar spent and will set an example of openness to the economy. This does not mean that we will not meet our unfilled needs or that we will not honour our commitments. We will do both.
'The Need Is Now'
As one who has been following Ghanaian politics, I firmly believe in the independence and the integrity of the legislative branch has brought to us on 6th March 1957. And perfectly we should always respect this. It should be deeply written in the marrow of our bones.
With equal firmness, I believe in the capacity and the ability of Parliament, despite the divisions of opinions which characterize our nation, to act wisely, and vigorously, to act speedily when the need arises.
The need is here and the need is now I ask your help to meet in grief, but let us also meet in renewed dedication and renewed vigour. Let us meet in action, in tolerance and in mutual understanding of our liberty.
The time has come for Ghanaians of all races and creeds and political beliefs to understand and to respect one another. So, let us put an end to the teaching and the preaching of hatred and evil and violence. Let us turn away from the fanatics, from the far left and the far right, from the apostles of bitterness and bigotry, from those defiant of law, and those who pour venom into our nation's bloodstream.
I profoundly hope that the tragedy and the torment of these terrible days will bind us together in new fellowship, making us one people in our hour of hard economic dispensation.
So let us highly resolve issues to show that our ancestors did not live or die in vain but on this economy hardship Eve, as we gather together to ask the Lord's blessing and ask for the means to fix it, let us unite in those familiar and cherished words, God Bless Ghana.
…………To be continued
Philip Odei Tettey( Assistant secretary NPP Ireland)
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