Our democratic system wasn’t given at independence, we worked for it – Akufo-Addo

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said that Ghana’s democratic governance system, which is celebrated today, was not bestowed upon the nation at its independence.

According to him, the British rule did not prepare Ghana for democracy, emphasising that colonial rule inherently lacks democratic principles.

Speaking at the 67th Independence Day celebration in Koforidua, themed ‘Our Democracy, Our Pride,’ President Akufo-Addo said, “It is important to note that the democratic system of government we have today was not given to us at independence; more than a hundred years (100) of British rule had not prepared us in any way for democracy, there is nothing democratic about colonial rule, and, whatever we have today, we have worked out for ourselves.”

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He explained that the nation had to create all the fundamental elements of Ghana’s current democratic governance.

“All the defining elements of a democracy that are part of our governance architecture today, we have had to fabricate ourselves. Everything we know about elections today, and we know quite a bit, we have learnt through hard practice, and, in the past thirty-one (31) years, we have been stable. We have not got a perfect system, but, every time we have had elections during this 4th Republic, it has been an improvement on the previous occasion,” he added.

The President acknowledged that Ghana still had much to learn, especially regarding the tolerance of opposing views.

However, he cautioned against relapsing, citing examples of countries that descended into chaos due to disputed elections.

“We still have a lot more to learn, especially when it comes to the tolerance of opposing views. But we also know that we dare not relapse, as there are many examples of countries that have disintegrated into chaos as a result of disputed elections.

“We know that technology is a useful tool that we must embrace to make the electoral process more transparent, but we are very much aware that technology also now makes it possible and easier for the deliberate manipulation and propagation of falsehood to influence public opinion,” the President said.