The Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) has stated that the elevation of President John Dramani Mahama as the Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is a testament to the fact that Ghanaians have the capability to play significant roles in international development.
It, therefore, called on Ghanaians and member states to rally behind him to enable him to have a successful tenure.
This was part of a congratulatory message sent by the council to the President after his election as the new ECOWAS Chair for a one-year tenure.
The statement, signed by its General Secretary, Reverend Dr Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong, said that the council expected the President to lead the sub-region to deal with the varied political and development challenges facing member states and facilitate efforts to make the sub-region a very strong and viable bloc on the continent.
“President Mahama will have a daunting task of facilitating the total integration of the sub-region, especially in the area of trade. Currently, the trade within the sub-region is very minimal and President Mahama will need to lead the development of strategies that will deal with the challenges such as ineffective border administration... and a host of others that are impeding regional integration,” the statement said.
It commended the President for stating in his acceptance letter as the new chair that peace and security were his priority.
“As a council we are of the belief that religious groups have a key role to play in the maintenance of peace and security in the sub-region and we would want to see the President engage the various regional religious groups in facilitating peace and security, as their role in this process cannot be underestimated,” it added.
According to the statement, “most of the member states are currently having religious conflicts and this is one of the key issues affecting peace and security in the region.”
The council further charged President Mahama to address poverty issues in the sub-region.
The council believes that poverty can be linked to current challenges of high illiteracy rate, unemployment, housing deficit, inadequate infrastructure, poor health delivery and facilities, as well as political instability, and urged him to address them.
The council assured President Mahama of its unflinching support to enable him to succeed during his tenure.
“We will continue to pray for him and urge him to continue to trust in God for guidance, wisdom and direction,” the statement indicated.
