VAG pledges support to defend constitution

Tamale, Nov. 12, GNA - The Veteran Association of Ghana (VAG) in the Northern Region has pledged its preparedness to join forces with the Ghana Armed Forces to defend the Constitution.

Major Alhassan Jetumah (Rtd), spokesman of the Association, declared that it was ex-service personnel who ushered in the country's independence and that they would not sit down idle to see the freedom they fought for to be misused.

Major Jetumah made the pledge during an interaction with the Northern Regional Minister, Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idris, after a parade to mark Remembrance Day in Tamale on Saturday.

He declared that the Constitution has come to stay and urged Ghanaians not to allow any person or a group to take it away from them. Some of the veterans suggested that the military authorities should allow applicants from the three northern regions seeking enlistment into the Armed Forces to do their pre-recruitment medical examination at the Tamale Teaching Hospital.

This, they held, will help to reduce the applicants' burden of travelling to Accra to conduct such examinations. The ex-servicemen appealed to soldiers in active service to respect them and give them the necessary support all the time. Alhaji Idris urged members of the Association to remain united and give maximum support to the widows and children of their deceased colleagues, adding that this would give them a sense of belonging and make them appreciate that their spouses did not die in vain. He announced that the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly would take on board the registration of widows of ex-servicemen in the Metropolis this year for the National Health Insurance Scheme as its social contribution towards their well-being.

He said the assembly would also provide credit to the widows from its pro-poor funding sources to help them to undertake income-generating activities.

The Regional Minister called on members of the Association to share their experiences, especially in the areas of discipline and time management, to public sector employees to help enhance productivity and growth of the national economy.

He presented 10 million cedis and a bull to the Association for their celebration of the Day, which was marked by wreath laying, prayers and march past by security agencies and ex-servicemen to commemorate the fallen heroes of World War I & II.