2016 Senior Citizens’ Day in Akatsi North District

Mc-Solo Dziwornu-Ziddah (0244506823/0507752092) writes on the 2016 Senior Citizens’ Day in Akatsi North District

The expected 2016 Senior Citizens’ Day celebration at Ave-Dakpa, the Akatsi North District Capital, did not come off. The senior citizens or pensioners who reported at the district capital for the celebration had to go back to their home towns or villages very disappointed.

It also became very clear that there was no organisation in relation to the celebration and no provisions were made for the day and above all there was no venue. One could see some of the senior citizens loitering about in the capital and then finally vanished highly disappointed.

The Senior Citizens’ Day is a statutory one, which means that it is a fixed day and it is controlled by law. It is just like any other day like the Farmers’ Day and Founder’s Day and for any individual or group of individuals to have ignored or disregarded the celebration of this special day amounts to sacrilege.

It may interest readers to note that after some senior citizens left the capital very disappointed, District Assembly allegedly managed to secure three crates of Malta Guiness and three crates of mineral water which were being deposited in somebody’s container for collection by the group-a very myopic organisation, indeed.

When the group met at their usual monthly meeting on July 29, 2016, it was decided that they would have nothing to do with those crates of drinks and water. The senior citizens who worked for many years and retired were just blatantly underestimated, undermined and disregarded by the Akatsi North District Assembly.

Some of us have observed that the Senior Citizens’ Day has been instituted for a purpose, which has gone beyond just dealing with Malta Guiness and mineral water. The Day has been set aside to honour the senior citizens for their contributions to national development. The state, through the district assemblies, acknowledges the contribution of the pensioners on this Day.

The senior citizens themselves see it as a day of re-union during which they interact with one another. Those who lack company use the occasion to enjoy company and have the feeling that they belong to our country. So one can see that the Senior Citizens’ Day is not a matter of Malta Guiness and mineral water as being portrayed by the Akatsi North District Assembly.

The Senior Citizens’ Day was celebrated in every administrative district of Ghana. In the Ketu North District at Dzodze, for instance, it was celebrated in a grand style. All the ingredients which would make the celebration grand were there. The would-be senior citizens were also invited and celebrants were presented with T-shirts with some other gifts, including travelling allowances to those who who came from far and near. Congratulations, Ketu North District Assembly, and more grease to your elbows!

I am very sure as a statutory day, there may be some protocol provisions in terms of logistics. As the Day was not celebrated, if I may ask what happened to those provisions which would have been made for the Day? I stand to be corrected any way. Some of us have seen the action of the Akatsi North District Assembly as very irresponsible and a breach of the law which must not be left without any sanctions.

When mistakes are pointed out to those administering the District Assembly instead of admitting guilt, they go out to issue empty threats as if they are responsible for people’s lives in the communities. I wish to remind those responsible for the administration of the Assembly that I do not need their permission before I grant audience to any press house. The Constitution allows for freedom of speech or expression of one’s opinion and so if they are sure that what I am saying is not true, why can’t they write a rejoinder or go to court instead of issuing empty threats which can never shake even my finger?

I have more interesting items to release to the public so stay tuned! And there are rumours of plans being hatched to have me eliminated from this life but I am not scared of that. After all, it is better to die for something than to live for nothing!

The writer is a retired social worker and now the Secretary of the Ave Council of Chiefs in the Akatsi North District of the Volta Region.