Former President Jerry John Rawlings has called on the United States to be cautious in judging the success of democratic regimes on the African continent.
He said that on numerous occasions, the US and other Western countries had supported the election of regimes that disregard the true meaning of freedom and justice.
Flt Lt. Rawlings who was speaking to a US congressional delegation that called on him last weekend, said many elected governments had failed their electorate because they were "wittingly or unwittingly" propped by Western countries "who see no wrong with these governments because they were assumed to have been elected by popular vote".
He said in the United States, elections were won on economic policy rather than the application of freedom and justice because institutions that protected such freedoms had passed the test of time and worked efficiently.
The Congressional delegation was led by Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee.
Former President Rawlings thus called on the US not to ignore freedom and justice as a measuring rod in determining the success of African democracies.
He noted that in Ghana and some parts of Africa governments gained the confidence of the electorate by guaranteeing freedom and justice and ensuring that the wrongs of the past are corrected expeditiously.
Congresswoman Jackson Lee commended Ghana for the strides it had made in its democratic development and praised former President Rawlings for the role he played in establishing the current political dispensation.
She encouraged the government and people of Ghana to protect the country's democratic ideals and to work to develop it further.
On Ghana's oil find, Congresswoman Jackson Lee counselled stakeholders to ensure that the newly found natural resource was prudently applied for the socio-economic development of Ghana so the ordinary people can enjoy the benefits.
Colleague Congressmen Bob Inglis and Henry Brown, as well as Donald Teitelbaum, United States Ambassador to Ghana, accompanied Congresswoman Lee.
Others on the delegation were Congressional staff Genell Brown and Dave Grimaldi, as well as Vernelle Trim, Political Counsellor at the American Embassy in Accra.
Congresswoman Jackson Lee represents the 18th District of Texas and has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since 1995. She serves on the House Committees on Foreign Affairs, Homeland Security and the Judiciary.