Challenges notwithstanding, Ghana has cause to celebrate at 58 - President Mahama

President John Mahama is convinced Ghana has justification to celebrate 58 years of freedom from colonial domination despite setbacks along the way.

Speaking at this year's Independence Day Parade held at the Black Star Square in Accra, the President disagreed with a section of the public who say Ghana has failed and so celebrating the anniversary today would be to glorify failure.

One of Ghana's first female Parliamentarians Lucy Annin said the national parade and the associated funfair is needless, suggesting that the day should be used to clean the country's filthy environment.

Others have cited the severe power deficit, a troubled economy and a huge indebtedness as a sign of failure after 58 years of independence.

However, President Mahama disagrees.
 He said, "all individuals and nations who have achieved greatness have celebrated both their successes and failures. Their successes so they can build on them and their failures so that they will never repeat them anymore."

According to him, there is a need to celebrate and enhance the country's success, recognise and minimise its failures.

"I dare say that notwithstanding any mistakes we may have made, our nation today is celebrated for our strong democracy, our respect for human right, our freedom of expression, our ethnic harmony and, above all, our religious tolerance", President Mahama pointed out.

He said every citizen plays a role in Ghana's collective history, hence everyone is equally a critical factor whether the nation succeeds or fails.

The Independence Day celebrations, which is on the theme 'Achieving Transformation through National Unity', started with a national parade of schoolchildren  and contingents of security personnel at the Black Star Square.

Similar parades were held simultaneously in all the regional and district capitals across the country.

Former Presidents Jerry John Rawlings and John Agyekum Kufuor, Chief Justice Georgina Wood, Speaker of Parliament Doe Adjaho and other key figures from Ghana were present at the Black Star Square.

New Patriotic Party (NPP) leader, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, his running mate, Dr Mahamuud Bawumia and other top party officials were also at the national event. Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | George Nyavor | [email protected]