The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has urged Ghanaians to not ruin people’s reputations in the name of politics.
According to the President, actions that promote disunity, especially in an election year, would undermine the cohesion of the nation.
“Let us remember that this country is more important than our egos and ambitions,” he said on Thursday, April 11, 2024, when he joined the National Chief Imam and the Muslim community for the Eid-al-Fitr celebration at the Black Star Square, Accra.
“We should be careful about the spread of misinformation and disinformation, especially such misinformation and disinformation that destroys the hard-earned reputation of people,” he added.
President Akufo-Addo used his remarks to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence among religions in the country as the election approaches.
He called on Ghanaians to reject all forms of divisiveness that threaten the country’s unity and cohesion.
“I make this point, particularly because we are in an election year and there is the tendency for self-seeking people to exploit our differences of religion and ethnicity to foment divisions to promote narrow, parochial, sectarian, and political agenda,” he remarked.
PROPAGANDA
He urged Ghanaians to avoid disinformation and manipulative propaganda that could undermine the country’s democracy, rule of law, and fundamental rights.
President Akufo-Addo stated that the age of technology and news media, which also provided people with a high degree of anonymity, provided a space for the peddling of half-truths and blatant lies to form perceptions.
RAMADAN
Eid-al-Fitr marks the end of the month-long fast in the Islamic month of Ramadan.
The President told the gathering that the significance of Ramadan was not lost on the average Muslim since it sought to inculcate the spirit of sacrifice, brotherhood, commitment to ethical living, love of family and nation, and God-consciousness.
He urged Muslims not to abandon these values after the passage of Ramadan, adding that indeed the purpose of Ramadan is to instill these values in Muslims and for them to keep them all their lives.
He continued that, “These are the exact same values every nation needs to develop. No Muslim has been unable to fast in this month of Ramadan because they do not have what it takes to either eat the dawn meal or break their fast during Iftar, thanks to the time-tested practice of communal sharing of the feast at dawn and in the evenings.
TOGETHER
He told them to make the spirit of togetherness a national value that would give true meaning to the principle of one nation, one destiny.
President Akufo-Addo reminded the gathering that Ghana remained the envy of the world due to the religious unity it created and the practice of various religions in a circular state that promotes religious freedom.
He urged them to continue to promote religious harmony and co-existence because “it is the essence of Islam, which means submission to the essence of Allah.”
