Anniversary should be time for unity - NUGS

The National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) has called on individuals and groups who have threatened to boycott the events of the country's 50th anniversary celebrations to rescind their decision and see the anniversary as a time for unity and stocktaking.

At a press conference in Accra yesterday, the President of NUGS, William Yamoah said it was worrying to note that some individuals and groups of people were threatening to boycott the celebrations because of some grievances.

“A united country at its 50th statehood should undoubtedly be a rallying point for all citizens to join hands in unity, with a common destiny, a singular purpose and a shared vision to celebrate their gains as a nation,” he said.

He said the union was particularly concerned about the decision by the Committee for Joint Action (CJA) to organise a procession on Independence Day and stressed that it would not be appropriate, since there was going to be a national event to which every Ghanaian was invited.

He said participating in the anniversary would provide the platform for the nation to be united for a common cause and also an opportunity for the mutual discussion of the problems “confronting us as a people, be they political, cultural, religious or even tribal”.

He advised Ghanaians to use the period to take stock of their lives and to determine their destiny, not to use it as an avenue for scoring political points or wage any form of vendetta.

Mr Yamoah said the union had followed events of the past weeks and thought it wise to advise those Ghanaians who were making unfortunate pronouncements at this time of the jubilee.

“In this light, tribally-centred pronouncements, nepotism, divisiveness, rancour, rumour mongering and segregation must be shelved for us to have a holistic approach to our anniversary,” he stated.

He said the union would fully participate in the celebrations, since the students of this country at that time contributed about 80 per cent to the fight for independence and also in nurturing democracy.

“We are, therefore, entreating all students to join in the celebration of our hard-earned sovereignty,” he stated.

The union also commended the Member of Parliament (MP) for Keta, Dan Abodakpi, for advising his colleague National Democratic Congress (NDC) MPs to return to Parliament.

The Co-ordinating Secretary of NUGS, Mr Godfred K. Abogo, said the union had sent a proposal to the Ghana @ 50 Secretariat and other organisations for assistance to enable it to organise events for the youth throughout the country.

He said some of the events lined up included quiz programmes dubbed “Golden Jubilee Quiz”, football games, a book fair, a workshop on entrepreneurship and clean-up exercises in hospitals and at marketplaces.