Embrace the wind of change – Mahama tells Ghanaians

In his maiden Independence Day address, Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama has told citizens to embrace the wind of change that the country is seeking.

Ghana today March 6, 2013 marks her 56th Independence anniversary.

President Mahama indicated that change does not come easily.

“I want to use this occasion to appeal to all Ghanaians to embrace the wind of change. Change does not come easily,” he said.

According to the President, there will always be those who want to maintain the status quo; even if they do not like the world they live in, it is easier for them to complain than to make the effort to change it.

“And then, there will always be those who want miraculous change; they want everything to be perfect by tomorrow and when it is not, they decide they are already bored with the whole process and want no part of it. But the change we seek is one that is intended to make our nation a better place for all,” he said.

He urged all Ghanaians to join the change of building Ghana. “It can an act of help…a change of attitude at work,” Mr Mahama added.

“Every one must be part of the change,” the President said.

The President backed his statement with a quote from former US President John. F. Kennedy saying “Ask not what your nation can do for you but what you can do for your country”.

“We must work as a team…governance is a shared responsibility,” Mahama added.

Despite winning the war for political freedom, President Mahama admitted that the country has not done same for poverty, diseases and economic freedom.

“Governance is a shared responsibility. Government can, and will provide the necessary social infrastructure and incentives, but unless we take collective ownership of challenges that face us; unless we demonstrate a strong desire and an unflinching commitment to be part of the solution, most of our efforts will come to nothing,” he said, calling on citizens to work together as a team.

He urged Ghanaians to remember that “the words we speak matter.” “If we speak of success, we envision success, and we work toward realizing that vision, we will achieve it. If we speak and focus on failure, any inspiration to believe, to see, and to create has already been killed. We also must remember that our actions do matter,” he said. He indicated that they matter in the short–‐term and they matter in the long–‐term. “With our actions come repercussions,” he noted.

“We cannot throw plastic waste into our drainage systems and expect not to be confronted with floods when it rains; we cannot continue to drive recklessly on our roads, and hope that ours will be a society free of vehicular accidents; people cannot pay and collect bribes, and hope that somehow public services will automatically improve; we cannot create markets for the purchase of stolen items and expect that crime in our society will cease by itself,” he said.

On the current water and energy crises, he said “Our economy is burdened with a major energy and water crisis. I have already visited Aboadze, Bui, Daboase, Kpong, and Weija to inspect and ascertain the progress of ongoing projects aimed at increasing our electricity and water supplies. I will work with the utility companies to ensure that these challenges are over in the shortest possible time.”

“Fellow Ghanaians, while we await the complete resolution of the utility problems, I wish to make a personal and passionate appeal to you my
countrymen and women to demonstrate a high sense of individual responsibility by taking a stand against the abuse and misuse of water, electricity, and other public services.

“All those who abuse our utility supplies, either through unauthorized connection or through other misuse, create problems for everyone else. We appeal to your patriotism and we urge everyone to demonstrate a commitment to collective responsibility. We are working hard to bring this crisis to an end, and every bit of assistance will take us one step closer to that goal,” he said.

The President paid tribute to the founding fathers of the country, and he made special reference to Ghana’s first President Dr Kwame Nkrumah saying Ghanaians are still enjoying the infrastructure he built during his time as leader of the country.

By Ekow Quandzie