Ken Amankwah, Chairman, Ghana@60 Planning Committee
The Chairman of Ghana@60 Planning Committee, Ken Amankwah has suggested that the annual parade on Independence Day, should be moved to the evening from the usual morning session.
He believes that this will prevent the repetitive collapse of students, some security personnel and others which occurs every time there is an [ads1]anniversary celebration due to the long hours of standing under the sun, on empty stomachs.
This follows an increase in a public outcry that the parade and march past especially that of school children should be scrapped off. Some members of the public described the parade as child labour.
A journalist who spoke to awakeafrica.com lamented that it is unfair to keep these school children under the scorching sun while the dignitaries are seated comfortably on the dais or under canopies. She said, “most of the children wake up very early and come to the parade grounds very early on without taking breakfast to wait for the invited guest and dignitaries who come after taking all the breakfast they can”.
A parent, Lydia Agboado indicated that the parade should be left for the security services while the school children watch the programme from their homes or “the children should be allowed to sit down and only come to the park when it is time to march”. This they claim will reduce the number of people who collapse if not eliminate it completely.
But Mr. Amankwah disagreed with the view that the parade and march past should be scrapped off entirely. According to him, the parade forms an important part of the celebration and cannot be taken off. “If you remove it, it’s like taking the heart out of any living being, so the time should rather be shifted. If you take the parade out, what else do we do,” he asked.
He proposed that unless Ghanaians can find an activity as a replacement for the parade, the country cannot let go off the parade since it’s something which has been there for a very long time.
He explained that the parade is to show off our military strength to our neighbours and their preparedness to protect and defend Ghana.
A number of students collapsing during the country’s independence anniversary celebrations have been recorded over the past years with this year’s own been on the ascendency.
Source: AwakeAfrica.com | Patricia Norvisi Gbologa