ACCRA, Jan. 8, (Xinhua/GNA) – Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo was sworn into office on Thursday to commence his second and final term.
Kwasi Anin Yeboah, the Chief Justice, administered the oaths of office, and allegiance to Akufo-Addo before the lawmakers, 12 visiting heads of state, and other high-ranking local and international guests.
« My re-election is a demonstration of the trust Ghanaians have reposed in me in appreciation of the achievements chalked during my first term, and for the considerable amount of work left for the next four years, » Akufo-Addo said.
He added that the need to take the nation firmly onto the path of progress, prosperity, and development, following the havoc wreaked by COVID-19, » I assure all Ghanaians that I will do my utmost to deliver on this mandate. »
« The sheer can-do-spirit of the Ghanaian, which I have witnessed all my life, is the bedrock on which we can build the Ghana of our dreams, » added Akufo-Addo.
He said the democracy the West African country « seeks to build and entrench will ultimately succeed if we build a prosperous nation, and our people are at peace with themselves and with the world. »
Commenting on the election of Alban Bagbin, the former opposition lawmaker, as the Speaker of Parliament, the President said though it was the first time such a thing happened under the fourth republic, he was willing to work with the new Speaker in the interest of the country.
« I am confident that both of us will be guided in our relationship, by the supreme interest of our people in ensuring good governance in the ordering of the affairs of state, » the President stated.
He further pledged that « all I do will be for the common good, and to my fellow Ghanaians, I invite all of you to join in the exciting business of developing our country. There are endless opportunities, and if we remain united, we can achieve what our forebears dreamed of. »
Akufo-Addo completed his first term as the president of Ghana Wednesday. He had, however, been declared the winner of the December 2020 presidential election.
At the same ceremony, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia was also sworn in to commence his second term.
The Ghanaian constitution allows a maximum of two four-year terms for each president.
