The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), has called for an introspection on Ghana’s journey through the Fourth Republican Constitutional rule and re-orient itself towards maintaining national peace for development.
It said the adoption of a constitutional rule in 1992 by Ghanaians was a call to action for a spirit of togetherness to work towards sustainable national growth.
Making the call in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on Constitution Day, Mr Paul Tetteh, the Fosu Municipal Director of the Commission, said the country was born out of indomitable courage in the face of colonialism and imperialism through shared struggle, bloodshed and tears on the backs and hopes of ordinary Ghanaians.
It was to this effect, he said, that the NCCE had for years called for a collective re-orientation of the Ghanaian citizenry on the essence of promoting national unity and development by upholding the core values of the 1992 Constitution.
Constitution Day, a public holiday, was set aside to mark the promulgation of the 1992 Constitution and the birth of the Fourth Republic on January 7, 1993, after it had been approved in a referendum on April 28, 1992.
It also defines the fundamental political principles of establishing the structure, procedures, powers, and duties of the government, the Judiciary, and the Legislature.
Mr. Tetteh, however, indicated that the country had not yet attained the dreams the forbearers fought for or the Ghana the people were craving for, most importantly, for future generations.
Despite occasional periods of economic growth, he said, Ghana continued to grapple with critical social and economic challenges that held the nation back from achieving its full potential.
Young people he noted, were disenchanted, and do not trust their leaders and institutions as they dealt with unemployment and its debilitating effects.
Moreover, he bemoaned the growing polarization of the nation by politicians which was drawing the country further and further apart when the citizenry should be working together for a common good.
At the same time, the county continued to struggle to translate its abundant natural resources into wealth and use its rich human resources for the social and economic well-being of the nation, coupled with the challenges of climate change, population growth, financial instability, and public health.
“These challenges pose direct threat to our survival. We have reached a tipping point and cannot continue along this path if we are to survive as a nation,” he cautioned
Nonetheless, Mr Tetteh said, the country had so many reasons to be proud to be at the forefront of Africa’s movement not only on independence but also democracy and citizen empowerment, particularly under the Fourth Republic.
“We are known as Africa’s ‘Black Star,’ but we are also its North star. We have led and others have followed,” he said.
For that matter, Mr. Tetteh reminded Ghanaians of the need to forge ahead as one people with a common destiny, and let national interest supersede ethnic and all forms of parochial interests.
He urged all to inculcate the core national values and principles inherent in the 1992 Constitution such as patriotism, hard work, liberty, equality of opportunity, and prosperity in their daily lives.
Others are freedom, justice, probity and accountability, respect for rule of law and fundamental human rights and freedoms as well as protection and preservation of unity and stability of the nation.
“A true citizen, for instance, will not condone corrupt practices in any form or shape and lead a foreigner to indulge in an illegality, such as illegal mining, thereby causing wanton destruction to the vegetation and river bodies as are sadly being witnessed currently in Ghana,” he added.
“If citizens continue to uphold the core values, it will result in rapid attainment of good governance, national unity, and prosperity. These are elements of our identity as one people with a common destiny, ” he noted.
