The 76th Remembrance Day parade of the Veterans Administration of Ghana (VAG) was held in Bolgatanga in honour of fallen heroes who sacrificed their lives in World Wars to attain peace and independence in the world over.
The ceremony was attended by various security service personnel and their Commanders in the Region, ex-servicemen, and women, the clergy, traditional rulers, members of the public and the media with wreaths laid in honour of the fallen heroes.
Mr Stephen Yakubu, the Upper East Regional Minister laid a wreath on behalf of the Government and people of Ghana, and Naba Clifford Asobayire V, the Paramount Chief of the Kologo Traditional Area laid one on behalf of the traditional authority.
The Military and Police Commanders also laid wreaths on behalf of the security services while the Chairman of the VAG in the Region and a representative of the VAG widows also laid one on behalf of their members.
Mr Yakubu in his address noted that Ghana’s history was incomplete without recall to the struggle and efforts of the fallen Service Personnel, “I must emphasise that, these successes of our servicemen scored over the years were due to commitment to duty and discipline in their work.”
The Minister used the occasion to appeal to servicemen and women to emulate the commitment and discipline of the fallen heroes in all aspects of their duties either in Ghana or abroad.
“The morale can be redeemed if each of you should work hard towards it,” Mr Yakubu, who is also the Chairman of the Regional Security Council (REGSEC) told the personnel of the security services.
He acknowledged the needs of the various security services were enormous, and said government was playing its part in providing logistics and modern housing facilities to enhance their work.
Mr Yakubu urged them to work hard and diligently in spite of their challenges, to restore the image of the security services to help fight social vices including armed robbery, rape, and global threats such as violent extremism and terrorism.
“As a country, we acknowledge that we need to beef up security at our borders which I know National Security has taken seriously and a lot has been done with more being done to maintain security and order.”
He also appealed to retired security men who lived in communities in the Region to offer their expert advice to citizens to be aware of threats of terrorism and to be conscious and alert about people they meet, and report timely potential threats to their communities, Region and the country.
The Minister advise ex-servicemen in the Region to maintain healthy lifestyles for good health, and observe effectively, the COVID-19 protocols so that young officers could continue to tap from their wisdom and experience.
