The hosting of the 68th Independence Day Celebration national parade at the forecourt of the Presidency on Thursday, March 6, will cost one-tenth of the 67th event in Koforidua last year.
Mr Felix Kwakye Ofosu, Presidential Spokesman and Minister of State in-charge of Government Communications, said it cost GH¢15 million to hold the Koforidua event in 2024 and that the government’s decision to shift this year’s national parade from the Independence Square to the forecourt of the Presidency was to save cost.
Speaking to the media in Accra on the eve of the 68th Independence Day Anniversary, Mr Ofosu said the scaled down events did not in any way undermine the significance of the day.
He said usually these celebrations were held on a grand scale at the Black Star Square or Independence Square as most people know it and that in the last few years, there was a policy of rotation among various regional capitals but these celebrations came with significant costs which at the moment the national purse could not bear.
He noted that President John Dramani Mahama made a decision a few weeks ago to scale down the celebrations and bring it to the Presidency.
He said there was a vast compound at the Presidency’s forecourt that could accommodate hundreds of Ghanaians.
Mr Ofosu said that, in the past, there were 60 contingents made up of 60 men and women each, saying, “so you are talking close to 3,600 men and women and thousands of children who marched. Now everything has been scaled down to a little over 500 people.”
“That is both security men and women and school children, who will be performing, and this is to ensure that we do not incur the sort of costs that we incurred in the past.”
The Minister said the Independence Day celebration was one that President Mahama took very seriously.
He said President Mahama believes that it must be celebrated, except that it should be done in modesty and in a way that allowed Ghanaians to make savings that they could plough back into other areas of expenditure.
“I would urge all that if you do not have an invitation, please do not come because security officials will have the unfortunate task of having to turn you away. But if you have an invitation, please show up,” Mr Ofosu stated.
He said Ghanaians could follow tomorrow’s events through the magic of television and radio and that it would also be streamed live on the social media handles of the Presidency, on President Mahama’s own Facebook and X pages.
He mentioned that it would also be on the information Service Division’s Facebook, X, and Instagram pages so that Ghanaians could follow the happenings at the forecourt of the Presidency.
He said up-to-the-minute updates would be given to Ghanaians, adding that in the comfort of their homes, Ghanaians could be part of the important celebration, which seeks to foster national unity and chart a new path towards national development.
By Iddi Yire, GNA.
