He said it was with a united front that the country’s forebears fought to break colonial rule 66 years ago.

"Our forebears were united in the independence struggle. It did not matter where they came from; the religion they belonged to did not matter; their standing on society did not matter; they were united for independence, and they got it. 

"As President, my devotion to the Ghana project is unwavering. The enemy we face is not ourselves; it is removing the barriers to the country's development," he said. 

Addressing the 66th Independence Day parade at the Volta Regional Youth Resource Centre at Adaklu Tsrefe, near Ho in the Volta Region Monday, the President said: “We cannot allow those who seek to divide us to succeed.”  

The anniversary was on the theme: “Our unity, our strength, our purpose.”

Participation

Forming the parade were contingents of the security agencies and students from selected senior high schools and basic schools.

In attendance were political figures, traditional authorities, the security agencies, members of the diplomatic corps and others. 

The President of Guinea-Bissau and Chairman of ECOWAS,  Umaru Sissoco Embalo, was the Guest of Honour at the event, which was also attended by the Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, and his wife, Samira Bawumia.

Longest era

President Akufo-Addo said the Fourth Republic had witnessed the longest era of peaceful democracy in the country and it must, therefore, be held in high esteem by all Ghanaians.

That, he said, called for greater unity among the citizenry to address the current economic challenges and move on in progress.

No compromise

President Akufo-Addo gave an assurance that the government would not compromise on its stance to ensure food security, modernised agriculture, value added economy and quality education to all Ghanaians.

“We will also continue to open up the country with good roads, rails and airports, as well as the digitisation process,” he affirmed.

The President urged the people to pay their taxes “and also demand that our leaders put them to good use.”

Calling on the citizenry to guard against all threats of divisiveness from outside and within, he said the country needed peace and unity for progress.

The success of the country, President Akufo-Addo pointed out, depended on hard work by the people, for which reason all must eschew laziness.

Economic relief

Meanwhile, he said that the government had deployed the necessary and adequate measures to bring economic relief to the country, sooner than later.

“We are implementing policies to bring back the days of rapid growth,” he added.

He pledged that his remaining 22 months in office would be dedicated to fixing the economy, saying his devotion to Ghana was unwavering.

“We are on the right path and I ask for your support in transforming Ghana,” the President said.

Confronting challenges

President Akufo-Addo further underscored the need for all stakeholders to work together to improve food security by embracing value addition. 

He said for Ghana to see the needed development, efforts must be made to improve the road network to open up all parts of the country. 

The President also stressed that consolidating the country's democratic governance required accountability and transparency in the utilisation of public resources. 

President Akufo Addo said his government was doing everything possible to address the current challenges confronting the nation.

He added that despite the many challenges, his government had ensured the supply of basic commodities to prevent the crisis from escalating.

“We all see the images around the world, here in Ghana, we’ve not had any fuel queues, we’ve not suffered shortages of food and essential items, or the catastrophe of dumsor. Undoubtedly, major global developments have had a negative impact on our domestic economic performance,” he said.

“We’ve witnessed historic heights in global inflation and food prices. Rising global interests rate triggered by the tightening of monetary policy of Central banks across several advanced economies to tame rising inflation and energy crisis, with crude oil prices reaching unprecedented heights at one point above $120 a barrel,” the President said.

He also cited the strengthening of the United States dollar against all other currencies, the tightening of global financing conditions, especially for emerging markets and developing economies as some of the challenges.

Those, the President added, had brought hardships on the people for which he said the government had deployed a number of fiscal measures to help bring relief to Ghanaians.

“I’m confident that sooner rather than later we’ll see significant relief and recovery,” President Akufo-Addo declared.