Offinso Municipal NCCE Directorate Commemorate 2022 Citizenship Week Celebration

The Offinso Municipal Directorate of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) which was led by Mr. Emmanuel Oduro (MD), Adu Kofi (CEO), Rose Nabika Ababio (ACEO), Linda Serwaa Owusu (ACEO) and Paul Amoateng (NSP) started this year’s Annual Citizenship week celebration on Thursday 26, May 2022 in the Offinso Municipality with educational talks to 30 selected basic schools.  To mention but few were; Offinso State ‘A’- Newtown, Offinso State ‘B’-Asamankama, Offinso State ‘C’-Agyiempra, Nasr Deen Islamic –Saboa, Offinso Training College basic school, Kokote Methodist, Kokote M/A and Namong M/A basic schools. The week-long celebration spans a period May 26 to June 1, 2022.

The theme for this year’s week-long celebration is premised from the Commission’s broad theme for the year ‘SUSTAINING OUR DEMOCRACY, GHANAIAN VALUES IN PRACTICE: ‘THE ROLE OF THE CHILD’. The chosen theme is to instill in the child our Ghanaian values such as patriotism, nationhood, and to promote unity and national cohesion among Ghanaian youths so as to become good citizens in the near future.  The Commission seeks to organize the week’s activities under its continuous drive to catch them young.

During the week-long celebration, the commission involves people in leadership positions and prominent persons with right standing in our society to interact with the young ones and impact in them the virtues of patriotism and good citizenship and acts as role models and mentors.

Speaking at one of the programme held at Offinso Training College Basic School on May 30, 2022, Mr. Emmanuel Oduro, Municipal Director briefed the pupils about the rationale behind the celebration of the Citizenship Week every year. He said the citizenship week celebration focuses on the basic schools and it is meant to inculcate in the pupils the values of a good citizen and also to remind them of their responsibilities and the roles they can play to build a prosperous democratic Ghana.

Mr. Emmanuel Oduro reiterated that the theme for the 2022 citizenship week was premised on the broad theme of the Commission for the year, and that is, Sustaining Our Democracy, Ghanaian Values in Practice: ‘The Role of the Child’. He went on to tell them that the Commission engages persons in leadership position to interact and impact in them the virtues of good citizenship so as to become responsible adults in future.

He also brief them the importance of the week-long celebration and how far we have fared as a country since the adoption of the 1992 Constitution which is exactly thirty years.

He went ahead to explain to the pupils the role of the Ghanaian Child in sustaining our democracy such as upholding and defending the 1992 Constitution at all times and showing interest in the study of the provisions in the  Constitution.

The Municipal Director explained Ghanaian values to hold unto as responsible citizens such as; Nationalism, Patriotism, national cohesion, hard work, Honesty, decency, etc. discipline to their level of understanding.

He went further to test their knowledge during the presentation; they were made to mention some of the national symbols they knew.

They were made to understand that as a child, in as much as the Constitution guarantee them so many rights, they also have an important role to play in the development of the country thereby contributing to the sustenance of our fragile democracy.  They were further taken through the responsibilities/duties of a child as citizens of Ghana enshrined in Article 41 of the 1992 Constitution.

i) To respect the National symbols and institutions such as flag of Ghana, National Anthem etc..

ii) To participate in National assignments such as national immunization and communal labour.

iii) To abstain from hard drugs and alcohol as children

iv) To Respect the right of others.

v) To encourage their parents to pay and file their tax returns

vi) To protect and safeguard the environment

vii) To respect authorities and elderly

viii) To participate in clean up exercise in school and in their community

ix) To report crime in and around their community

Finally, they were made to appreciate that they are the future leaders of our country Ghana and what they do today will reflect in their tomorrow. Their minds were drawn to the fact that NCCE believes in the slogan ‘’catch them young’’ and we are with them to imbibe in them positive Ghanaian values that would propel them to becoming responsible adults in future.

They were further admonished that, the nation belongs to them and they are the makers of tomorrow hence they should be disciplined in all facets of life and help in sustaining our democracy.

They were made to recite some of the patriotic songs to fill the euphoria of standing for their country as well as the salutation below;

Long live the young generation

Long live the 1992 Constitution

Long live Ghana 

The programme was highly participated with meaningful contribution from the pupils and teachers as well. The head teacher, Mr. Antwi Mensah Francis commended NCCE for selecting their school in this year’s Citizenship Week Celebration. He thanked the organizers of the programme and appealed to the Commission to continue to remember their school at all times and requested that motivated items should be added in subsequent programmes. Below are are pictures of what transpired;