Okogyeaman Sakyi Ako (seated 3rd from left), Nana Obiri Boahen (seated 2nd from right), Deputy General Secretary of the NPP; Mr Kwadwo Adjei Darko (seated 3rd from right), a former Minister of Local Government and Rural Development; Prof. Christopher Ameyaw-Akumfi, former Minister of Education, and other dignitaries after the lecture
The Vice President of the Bono Regional House of Chiefs, Okokyeredom Sakyi Ako, has admonished politicians to be mindful of their utterances by speaking to unite instead of dividing the country on political lines.
“We want to encourage politics of decency in debates and expression of ideas and opinions”, he stated, and asked politicians who speak on radio and television stations or use social media to help promote sanity and not create tension and enmity.
Okokyeredom Sakyi Ako, who is also the Omanhene of the Drobo Traditional Area, gave the admonition during this year’s Busia Memorial Lecture held in Sunyani last Friday, on the theme “The youth in a free enterprise society”..
The Busia Memorial Lecture is organised annually under the auspices of the Busia Institute for Rural and Democratic Development (BIRDD) in commemoration of the life and works of Dr Kofi Abrefa Busia, Prime Minister of the Second Republic of Ghana.
Taking his turn in the memorial lecture, Okokyeredom Sakyi Ako said chiefs were always full of appreciation when a son of their land “goes out there to bring honour to Ghana, and Busia was one such person”.
“His exploits in academia and politics sets a standard for others who may want to tread those paths. His was a politics of decency and respect for others, including his opponents”, he stated.
Okokyeredom Sakyi Ako, therefore urged politicians to reflect on what they could also do to enhance the society for the benefit of posterity.
“We must reflect each day the kind of Ghana we wish to help build. Is it a Ghana of acrimony and hatred or a Ghana of peace and progress,” he asked.
He appealed to the youth to emulate the peaceful, tolerant and respectful nature of the late Dr Busia by desisting from all kinds of violence, intolerance, ignoble and unpatriotic behaviour.
Paradigm shift
Speaking on the sub-theme of the lecture “Fixing the country, the need for a paradigm shift”, a Deputy Minister of Finance, Dr John Kumah, urged the youth to take advantage of the numerous government interventions to access new markets for their products, link up with foreign partners and seek knowledge of new products and services for their clients.
In the area of education, Dr Kumah said free enterprise offered a lot of opportunities to the youth, explaining that the proliferation of tertiary and professional institutions had ensured that there were no restrictions to what one could study in school.
“One of the ways that guarantee sustainable development at the individual and national levels is sincere service in integrity. As young people, let us not rush into doing things that are at variance with our age-old principles and values. Let us embrace sincerity, diligence and patriotism and aim always at giving our utmost”, he stated.
For his part, the Chairman of the board of directors of the Public Procurement Authority, Professor Christopher Ameyaw Akumfi, who chaired the function commended organisers of the function for their foresight and expressed the hope that they would continue to educate the public about the life and works of the late Dr Busia.
