PHOTOS: How Ghanaian Students in Cyprus celebrated Independence Day

• Posted on March 10, 2015March 10, 2015
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• 2 Comments

Last Friday was 58 years since Ghana gained independence from British colonial rule. This day is remarkable in the life of all Ghanaians; both home and abroad. Regardless where a Ghanaian finds him/herself, the Independence day is a day which is celebrated with a lot of pride and merry.

Below is unedited speech by the President of Ghanaian Students in Cyprus on the Independence day;

SPEECH DELIVERED BY STEPHEN KWAME OWUSU-AMOH (PRESIDENT OF GHANAIAN STUDENTS, CIU, NORTH CYPRUS) ON THE OCCASION OF THE 58^TH INDEPENDENCE CELEBRATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF GHANA.

The Vice Rector, Ms Gizem Kavaz, The West and Eastern African Representative for CIU and other Senior Members of CIU, Colleague Students’ Presidents and executives of other countries present, Presidents of Ghanaian Students from sister universities on the Island, my dear fellow Ghanaians and associates, ladies and gentlemen, it gives me much pleasure to welcome you to this independence celebration of our dear nation, Ghana.

The struggle for the independence of Ghana, which was achieved on March 6^th 1957 and the subsequent attainment of a republican status in July 1960, set the stage for the struggle and attainment of independence of other countries in Africa, as Ghana was the first country, south of the Sahara, to have gotten independence.

As we commemorate this great feat, we have to pause and pay glowing tribute to the BIG SIX who championed the struggle for the realization of this dream. These great men were: His Excellency Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, who later became the first president of Ghana, and later in his twilight years, co-president of Guinea, Mr. Obetsebi Lamptey, Mr. Arko Adjei, Mr. Edward Akuffo-Addo, Dr. James Boakye Danquah and Mr. William Ofori Atta. We cannot forget the masses, that is, the market women, student unions, security personnel and civil servants whose invaluable and unquantifiable contributions went undocumented.

We salute their gallantry and commend their unique sense of courage which snatched our dear nation, Ghana, out of the claws and talons of western imperialism and colonialism and led to the independence and spread the wave of independence across the continent of Africa.

In their quest for freedom for Ghana, some of them had to sacrifice their blood in exchange for the freedom we are enjoying today.

(A MINUTE SILENCE FOR THEM: May the souls of the faithful departed who were involved in our struggle for independence, rest in perfect peace; Amen!).

We further commend all the past heads of states and the present Administration for their contribution to the development of Ghana.

My brothers and sisters, 58 years down the line, we cannot tickle ourselves and laugh, that all is well; Ghana is faced with challenges which call for the concerted efforts of all and sundry and that includes those of us who find ourselves on this Island at this time. The ultimate question is, as future leaders of Ghana and by extension, as African Students, how are we positioning ourselves strategically to mitigate the numerous challenges confronting our nation and continent? How are we taking advantage of the knowledge and experience we are acquiring; in the disciplines of engineering, finance and management, environmental science, communication and media, pharmacy, graphic design, among others; to prepare us so as to build the Ghana and Africa we all so desire? These are the lines along which our actions, reflections, motives, visions and aspirations should be hinged and pivoted.

Ladies and gentlemen, the theme for this year’s independence celebration is: “Achieving Transformation Through National Unity”. My brothers and sisters, this theme is apt; as, national cohesion is the bedrock on which genuine transformation and the economic turn-around we so desire could be realized. Without unity, transformation in all aspects of our lives would be a mirage and a pipe dream.

Thus, oneness, positive thinking, right attitude, sense of patriotism backed by the knowledge and love of God would better position us for the ultimate independence; which is economic independence of Ghana and our dear continent of Africa. Leaders like Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, J. B. Danquah and the rest of the BIG SIX of Ghana, Herbert Macaulay and Chief Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe of Nigeria, Nelson Mandela and Steve Biko of South Africa, Dr. Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia, Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya, Julius Nyerere of Tanzania, Houphet Boighne of Ivory Coast, Patrice Lumumba of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Muamar Gaddaffi of Libya and Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt and Kofi Annan of Ghana, past UN Secretaries-General, among others, have done their part for Africa. We need to add our names to the list in the years to come and contribute to put Africa positively on the global map by spearheading the developmental agenda of Africa. We must also work hard to correct the warped and biased images of hunger, war, diseases and penury as presented of Africa by a section of the world media. The story of Africa can best be told by the African. If we are going to achieve this, then the time to strategize is now.

As I conclude, I would like to salute all Ghanaians both home and abroad on the 58^th Anniversary of the independence of Ghana. We have come this far by the grace of God. Let us continue to pray for our nation and the entire continent of Africa and work diligently and assiduously for our dear nation Ghana to continue to develop.

I thank you all for gracing this occasion.

God bless our homeland Ghana and make our nation great and strong!

Long Live Ghana! Long Live Africa! Long Live CIU! Long Live North Cyprus!

God bless us all.

Thank you.