Secretary General of the Trade Unions Congress (TUC), Dr. Anthony Yaw Baah has called the Ghana Compact Citizen’s Convention, which is being spearheaded by the Founder and President of the African Center for Economic Transformation, Dr. K. Y. Amoako as a reference for national leaders to achieve development.
The Compact for Political and Economic Transformation is an initiative focused on setting a vision for our nation, outlining collectively agreed solutions for the country’s biggest challenges, and identifying targets for tracking progress towards the agreed vision.
He was speaking to the media at the Cedi Conference center at the University of Ghana on the first day of the 2-day Ghana Compact Citizen’s Convention organised by Dr. K. Y. Amoako, the Founder and President of the African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET).
Dr. Baah pledged his outfit’s availability and willingness to fully immerse themselves into the Ghana Compact Initiative, as it is aimed at unleashing the voices of Ghanaians and solidifying the power vested in them to promote national development.
“TUC is an organisation of workers and so if we are developing something that will give power to the people, we cannot stay away from it so right from the time that K.Y Amoako who initiated this approached us, we have been part of this process and we are excited because this is a process which was initiated by the people and this convention is telling us that we the people are the ones who should determine what happens in this country.”
“After all, we elect the leaders to lead us, so we give them the power. Now this Compact is about giving power to some people to lead us and also giving them their terms of reference and we have to make sure that after we have given them the terms of reference they go by it.”
Further speaking, Dr. Baah emphasized that it is crucial for the existence of an accountability mechanism, making mention of the role of some government institutions and the media in carrying the message of the Compact across the country to sensitize all.
“…Accountability Mechanism that Dr. K.Y. Mensah spoke about is very important, that is why the involvement of NDPC (National Development Planning Commission) is important, and that of NCCE (National Commission for Civic Education), because it is one thing developing the Compact as a term of reference for our leaders and it is another thing getting them to follow….the press is supposed to carry this to the people in every form to make sure that every Ghanaian knows about this Compact and that we are all part of it.”
This year’s Ghana Compact Citizen’s Convention, held at the Cedi Conference Centre at the University of Ghana saw over 500 participants, some of which were representatives for various civil society organisations, political leaders, business gurus, students and government agencies, all in attendance for a rigorous consultative dialogue geared towards the way forward for Ghana.
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Story by: Esther Esenam Ofori | univers.ug.edu.gh
