BONO REGION MARKS 66TH INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION AT SUNYANI JUBILEE PARK – MINISTER CALLS FOR A UNITED FRONT

On Monday, 6^th March 2023, the Bono Regional Parade of the 66^th Independence Day anniversary celebration was held at the Sunyani Jubilee Park. The theme for the Celebration was “Our Unity, Our Strength, Our Purpose”.

The parade saw wonderful performances by pupils and students from primary, junior and senior high schools, the security services as well as some colourful cultural displays.

The parade involved 1,272 school children and teachers drawn from 10 Senior High Schools (SHSs), 15 Junior High Schools (JHSs) and 15 primary schools, as well as 264 security personnel drawn from the Army, Police, Ghana National Fire Service, Ghana Prisons Service, Ghana Immigration Service and Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority.

The event started with the arrival of dignitaries like the Regional Head of GES, Nananom, Heads of Security Services and the Bono Regional Minister, Hon. Justina Owusu-Banahene.

Prayers were said in the form of libation pouring, as well as Christian and Moslem prayers.

The parade was under the command of Captain Christle Konadu Odame of the Ghana Armed Forces who is a female, and inspected by the Bono Regional Minister, Hon. Justina Owusu-Banahene.

In her address, the Bono Regional Minister, Hon. Justina Owusu-Banahene expressed the need for Ghanaians to preserve the unity, strength, and purpose, which were the driving force for building a prosperous nation. She touted the significant contribution of our forebears for development of the country and called on the current generation to do their part for the next generation.

“The need for a united front to build a healthy state, notwithstanding the socio-political pluralism cannot be compromised whatsoever. With abundant natural resources and the human resource capacities available to us, we cannot disappoint our future generations. Under no circumstances should we allow political interests and the ethnic and religious chauvinism to polarize our front as a people to deny us of the very professional knowledge, skills and experience needed to build a formidable economic self-reliance and wealthy nation”, Hon. Banahene said.

After the address by the Hon. Regional Minister, the Parade Commander marched off the Colour Party, followed by the departure of the Regional Minister as well as the departure of the other dignitaries and invited guests.

At the end of the parade, St. James Seminary Senior High School was adjudged the winner at the SHS level and they were also recognised for their sterling performance in the WAEC results last year. Ebenezer Presbyterian Junior High School won the JHS competition, 3 Garrison Primary School won the primary schools contest. Sunyani Senior High School were also awarded for emerging winners of the Independence debate competi­tion.

On 6^th March 1957, Ghana gained independence after 83 years of British colonial rule, becoming the first sub-Saharan African country to achieve independence from Britain. 6^th March is therefore marked as a national independence day anniversary celebration every year.