Government initiates consultation with stakeholders over the referendum

The government has created various teams to initiate consultation with political parties, traditional authorities and other stakeholders over the referendum for the repeal of Article 55 Clause 3 of the Fourth Republican Constitution.

This is to help build a national consensus over the issue.

This was contained in a speech read by Nana Ajei Boateng, Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development on behalf of the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at this year’s grand durbar to climax the celebration of the Akwantukese festival of the chiefs and people of New Juaben Traditional Area at Koforidua in the Eastern Region.

President Akufo-Addo said the referendum is a national issue and not a contest between the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Daasebre Professor (Emeritus) Oti Boateng, the Paramount Chief of New Juaben Traditional Area, urged political actors in this year’s local government elections and the 2020 national elections to make peace, tranquility and united Ghana their overriding goal.

The paramount chief urged the political actors to compete on the basis of ideas for national development.

He said this is not the first time that the country is going through an election in the fourth republic and called on stakeholders to remember that their predecessors bequeathed to them a country a peace and a united one – we demand nothing less than that.

Daasebre Oti Boateng said the stakes of development in Ghana are too high to trade the collective destiny of the country on the altar of political violence, divisionism, disrespect for the elderly and scattering insults on leaders of the society.

As part of the celebration, a motorized palanquin which was invented by Daasebre Oti Boateng and constructed with the support of the Koforidua Technical University was commissioned at the durbar grounds.

Source: GNA