Let's dream again: A Republic Day's reflection of a youth

I may not be born on that fateful day of July 1,1960 when our beloved country, Ghana, was declared a republican state. However, if my mind travel backwards in time, I imagine a great sense of pride, euphoria and optimism that would have characterised the minds and spirits of our countrymen and women at the time especially taking cognisance of the fact that this was happening barely three years after we set the pace as the true beacon of hope for the sub-Saharan African nationality struggle. Could same be said of today as we commemorate our 1st Republican Day 61 years on? Even half? Certainly not!

Our forebears have taught us how to fight and win challenging battles. Countless were those moments when their sense of perseverance and dogged determination was called to the fore. Today, ours is a battle of ideas, one of integrity and honesty. One of possession of a great sense of community life. One of how to mobilise and tap into the potentials of our community folks for the greater good of its people irrespective of the nature of where and how they were born; majority or minority ethnic affiliations. Battles of the urgent need of righting the wrongs in our communities, fighting corruption, battles of fixing our virtually broken systems at all levels, even right here in my beloved South Tongu constituency/district. We are being called today by the circumstances of our local and national lives to dare to dream again and create that tomorrow, that future, that our children will be proud to live in. Comrades, let's begin to dream again!

Today, the youth are clamouring for a renewed way of doing things; fixing that which have been broken, let's fix our communities and our country. That gives me hope and belief that we can get it done again, we can lead the pace of improving the lots of our people. We can get our people back to work, we can and must get our people to live decent lives, again. Today, right here in my home constituency, South Tongu, I see and hear youth who are earnestly believing and craving for opportunities to contribute their quota to our development. That gives me joy and optimism that even right in my life time, our people, our children, even those in the forgotten corners of our constituency/district will have the basic necessities of life. It's unimaginable that a people who are described by their localisation as 'Tongu' (by the river) cannot boast of having clean, potable water, even if it's not reliable. Let's dream again, my elders and fellow youth. Let's embrace the potentials of our people, let's see that bigger picture of what we can achieve together, believe and make it happen.

Our illustrious Nation's founder, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, attained many enviable heights including gaining a Republican status for us as a country with great assistance from the industrious men and women who were around him. Similarly, at the Constituency level, a powerful party machinery will require a highly competent Member of Parliament who will equally need a hardworking, assertive and unified team of executives to achieve the party's policies and programmes. South Tongu, the cradle of Tongu civilization, can and must assume its position as a 'Star Constituency' not only in the region but beyond.

There is a high sense of cynicism and doubt among those with the potential to usher us into the much cherished world and communities that those before us dreamt of. Until now, in most places, the youth have become disillusioned as nothing seems to bear any whisper of hope. It is said that cynicism is contagious, so do I believe hope is too. As we mark this momentous day in our history, let's begin to dream again, together, let optimism run as blood through us and one day, we will all look back and say, it was that day that we put things right again. It was that day that we dreamt and believed, again, together!

Ten years ago, in my book (To the Dreamland), I elaborately shared my belief in the highly acclaimed axiom; 'leadership is everything'. I have always believed that leadership is service and that with the right leadership, we can make things happen right here in South Tongu. Comrades, let's dream again and believe, together!

Happy Republic Day to you!
Author @: [email protected]