Youthful idealism, calculated pragmatism and timeless foresight

As a devoted young citizen of this most dignified sovereign Republic of Ghana, with an insatiable desire and perpetual drive for nation building, I customarily deliberate upon the socioeconomic and cultural aspirations of our united people under the Ghanaian identity; our status amongst the Republics of the earth and our common destiny as one people.

On the threshold of liberty, I founded the Sankofa Society of Ghana, to conduct research into the open sesame of our unexplored past, preserving the unique intellectual heritage and practice of age-old traditions; customs; manners and native institutions of the various traditional nation-states that came to birth this Republic, guided by the moral instruction of Good Citizenship and Quality Public Administration.

Through her cornerstone annual Ghana Youth Conference, and various other civic mass-based initiatives, the Society seeks to nurture a fervent affection in the breast of the youth towards the Republic of Ghana, transcending all traditional nationstates; tribes and clans; religious affiliations and partisan sentiments.

Thus, upholding the values of civic nationalism, alpha, as opposed to ethnic nationalism.

The Society made a cri du cœur for direct youth involvement in nation building at the Ghana Youth Conference (GYC) held in the ambiance of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre at Teshie, Accra on 27th August 2016. This was the first GYC organised since 1948 and the second held at Accra, after the convention assembled at the illustrious Achimota College, 1930 to discuss The Essentials in the Progress and Development of the Country.

Today, I regard the Ghana Youth Conference as a Movement of Brinksmanship pioneering unmatched passion; expertise and innovation into bridging the gap between the Republic we envision and the Ghana of today. It is us citizens, whom by birth-right, possess the noble duty to ensure the sustenance of the Republic, and our success shall forever be dependent on our participation as a united front in constructing our Republic.

I am positive that a path ought to be paved, broadening our most basic powers as Ghanaian Citizens, enabling increased direct influence and inclusiveness on public decision-making process networks. Thus bringing an abrupt end to a long era of invisible governance, reorienting and restructuring our public institutions to uplift our infant democracy out of the restricted sense of periodical elections in which it is ‘mainly’ practiced in.

At this critical juncture, we are in a race against time. Our civil problems, for centuries dragging, have over-relied on solutions from missionary enterprises; foreign governments and other forms of expatriate enterprise. The stench of neglect shall plague our Republic until our strides in socioeconomic advancement respond directly to our domestic issues. We alone can resolve our issues through our very own indigenous innovations, inspired by our own set of unique challenges, and for our common quest to realise nirvana on earth.

We must thrust upon the dazzling intelligence of our own cultural civilisations and ever-progressive intellectual resources, most beautiful in its diversity, in the renaissance of our public institutions and free markets throughout the Republic. Indeed, our puzzling challenges shall not be resolved with a few brusque strokes of excellent effort.

The charms of legal sovereignty still remain deceptive. The task of erecting this most supreme Republic on a hill shall be arduous and painstaking. But the energies of the cosmos are on our side and our feet are washed by the indomitable mogya of our ancestors for this onward noble march to progress.

It is, therefore, imperative that change occurs above all in the minds of the citizens. This shall be Ghana’s century of light and beauty. The Republic shall thread a positive revolutionary path. And I continue to advocate, as a matter of urgency, and in the spirit of fraternity, equity,freedom and justice, an alliance of all Ghanaian youth oriented groups under one convention, representative of the ideals of a new generation, and one Republic under God.

The next great move of social cohesion and conscience shall be to usher a post-partisan civic movement above the backward limitations of our political divide. It shall be work and happiness for all!