Former Director of Communication at the presidency under the late Prof. John Evans Atta-Mills, Koku Anyidoho has described the last State of the Nation Address (SONA) delivered by President Akufo-Addo brief and straight to the point.
As someone who wrote the speeches for the late president, Koku Anyidoho said there was no need for a "winding speech”.
In his view, brevity is a strong mark of persons who are focused and the president is one of such persons.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in keeping with the time-honoured constitutional tradition delivered his last State of the Nation Address in Parliament on Tuesday, January 5, 2021.
In his address, the president stated that his administration will continue to implement prudent fiscal measures to quicken the pace of fiscal consolidation, and, in March this year, the Minister for Finance will come to this august House to provide further details on the measures to be taken to restore our country back to the path of economic recovery.
He among other things touted his achievements saying: "Mr. Speaker, Government, in four years, has recorded a number of significant milestones in our quest to formalise and modernise the Ghanaian economy. We believe it is the fairest and fastest way to achieve our goals. The National Identity Card rollout, the National Digital Property Addressing System, the interoperability of mobile money transactions, the introduction of the paperless operations at the port, e-business registration system, and access to digital financial services are all part of the drive to formalise our economy, and enhance its productivity.”
He said: "Mr. Speaker, by dint of hard work, we have ensured that, presently, our country’s reputation amongst the comity of nations is high. For the first time in our history, Ghana has been honoured by her peers with the privilege of playing host to a pan-African institution – the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), one of the most momentous developments in the modern history of our continent. I have also been honoured to follow in the footsteps of my predecessor Presidents – specifically, their Excellencies Jerry John Rawlings, John Agyekum Kufuor, and John Dramani Mahama – with my appointment as Chairperson of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). I am aware of the enormity of the task ahead, and I assure the Community that I will discharge my duties to the best of my abilities.”
Reacting to the SONA, Koku Anyidoho who is the founder and CEO of the Atta-Mills Institute said: "The brevity of President Akufo-Addo’s SONA speech yesterday, is commendable. No need for a long winding speech. As the speechwriter of President Atta-Mills, I used [to] keep his speeches crisp and straight-to-the-point. Brevity is a strong mark of persons who are focused.”