Ghana Needs Honest, Inspiring Leaders - Frimpong-Boateng

The former Director of the National Cardio Thoracic Centre, Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, has said Ghana needs inspiring leaders who can move away from the status quo and adopt realistic measures for a change. He said the lack of passion to do things right was the bane of the country�s challenges, especially in the management of the economy among others and called for a passionate approach for a change, rather than the desire to hold on to power and affluence. Speaking at the 13th graduation ceremony of the All Nations University College (ANUC) in Koforidua, Professor Frimpong-Boateng believed that, �Ghana does not need many leaders to change its fortune, we need a few honest and passionate leaders who are ready to move the economy from the era of Adam to a Noah economy�, and hoped that the new graduates would be the instruments of change Ghana needed to transform its economy. Blame game Addressing the gathering, the Omanhene of the New Juaben Traditional Area, Daasebre Prof. Oti-Boateng, called for a stop to the blame game in Ghana�s economic management, to make way for a nationalistic approach in finding solutions to the economic challenges facing the country. He said Ghana was at the crossroads with challenges on the economic front, and appealed to all to stop finding fault, and put �our shoulders to the wheel� to collectively work towards a home-grown development model to change the nation�s fortunes. Professor Oti-Boateng said �without the acknowledgement of God in all our ways as a nation, nothing will be possible, and, therefore, as a people, we need the direction of God to solve our economic problems�. Home-grown development model He said it was not out of place that the 22 points raised at the Senchi Consensus acknowledged the need for a home-grown development model, stressing that �a home-grown development model hinging on three pillars of lay experiences, conventional and folk knowledge, is imperative at this time in our bid for economic breakthrough�. According to Daasebre Oti-Boateng, who is also the Chancellor of the ANUC, for real sustainable development, the home-grown development model that involved blending of the three pillars was a must for Ghana to move in a direction that would set the pace for other African countries to follow for a breakthrough in their own economic challenges. He said without God, nothing was possible under the sun, and urged all, including the graduating students, to be conscious of God and rely on his wisdom and guidance, to contribute their quota to solving the economic crisis and the long-term development needs of the country. Entrepreneurship skills The Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Julius Debrah, called for entrepreneurial skills and training to be incorporated into all academic endeavours to ensure that graduates did not rely on government or other institutions for employment, but rather be in a position to establish their own businesses. He said job acquisition all over the world was not easy, and to reduce the unemployment rate, all universities must make entrepreneurial skills and training an integral part of study to equip every graduate with the needed and basic skills to set up their own businesses. The President and Founder of the University, Dr Samuel Donkor, appealed to the Bank of Ghana (BoG) to critically look at the foreign exchange policy, since its operation is affecting the international transaction of the universities.