Accra, Nov. 28, GNA - President Nana Addo Danka Akufo-Addo has conferred Ghanaian citizenship on 126 Africans from the Diaspora, who have lived in Ghana for many years.
At a historic and emotionally charged ceremony at the Jubilee House in Accra, the 126 swore the Oath of Allegiance to Ghana, and pledged to abide by the laws of the country and defend the Constitution and Sovereignty of the Nation.
The event, which bolsters their identity as Africans and Ghanaians, forms part of activities commemorating the “Year of Return Ghana 2019,” a landmark initiative of the Government to unite Africans with their kith and kin in the Diaspora.
It is to mark the 400th year of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in Jamestown, Virginia, which later became part of the United States of America.
“I am glad that you have decided to make Ghana your home, and thereby join several generations of ‘Diasporans’ who committed their lives to us,” the President told the new Ghanaian citizens.
“Your decision to take up Ghanaian citizenship means you agree to respect and abide by the laws of Ghana and live in accordance with the tenets of our Constitution,” he said.
President Akufo-Addo further urged them to preserve and promote the image of Ghana, “whose reputation among the community of Nations is high.”
“You are citizens of a country that is regarded as one of the most stable on the Continent, a beacon of democracy, governed by the rule of law and respect for individual liberties, human rights and the principles of democratic accountability, as a result of the commendable acts and deeds of past and present generations of your fellow Ghanaians.”
“I urge you to guard jealously our country's image. It is a charge I am confident you will uphold,” the President said.
Insistent on his vision of bringing Ghana to a point beyond aid, President Akufo-Addo enjoined them to work to ensure that that agenda became a reality.
“Simply put, I just want us to be self-confident and accept that we shall never reach the level of development we aspire to by relying on aid or external assistance no matter how generous…It is a mindset that I wish us to discard, a mindset of dependency and living on handouts.”
“I am insisting that we stop believing that our deliverance would come from benefactors. And I am insisting that we take our fate in our own hands…. This is not an unrealistic aspiration. It is very well within our reach and I appeal to you to be fully engaged in this endeavour,” he said.
GNA
Read Full Story
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Instagram
Google+
YouTube
LinkedIn
RSS