Anomabo climaxes Okyir festival – Graphic Online

 Nana Baffoe IV delivering an address on behalf of the Omanhen, Kantamanto Amonoo

Nana Baffoe IV delivering an address on behalf of the Omanhen, Kantamanto Amonoo

The chiefs and people of Anomabo in the Central Region, at the weekend, climaxed their annual Okyir festival with a call on the government to reinforce discipline as a critical component in the nation’s educational structure for sustainable development.

In a message delivered on his behalf by Nana Baffoe IV, the Kontihen of the area, the Omanhen of the Anomabo Traditional Area, Nana Amonoo Kantamanto XI, said disciplined educated citizens remain a significant ingredient for the nation’s accelerated socio-economic development.

He indicated that while there was so much attention on developing education through financial investments, little attention was given to the attitudinal and behaviourial growth of students.

This year’s durbar themed “Education and discipline: Tools for development” was in its full grace and colour, as hundreds turned out to celebrate the festival after its two-year break due to COVID-19.

Kantamanto Amonoo said the country needed a discipline-oriented education system to shape behaviour and attitude for an accelerated sustainable development.

Meaning of Okyir

Okyir, which literally translates as “abomination”, is used as a platform to campaign against social vices, including poor sanitation, teenage pregnancy, greed and injustice.

The week-long festival, which is celebrated in the second week of October, is also used to thank the ancestors for their protection and guidance and engender unity for progress among all citizens in Anomabo.

Kantamanto Amonoo called for a shift in focus, saying that discipline remained an invaluable asset needed for development in Ghana, stressing that no country could attain a meaningful growth without educated and disciplined citizens.

He thanked successive governments for their contributions to the development of Anomabo and appealed to the government to expedite work on ongoing or abandoned projects in the town.

Government pledge

In a message delivered for him by the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Mfantseman, Ike Lord Enu, Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia said government would continue to impact every community with development.

He said Anomabo had had the greatest share of government’s support in the area, with, among others, a five-million-dollar sea defence project, a gari factory and a fisheries college which was 97 per cent complete.

He stated that these projects and the Anomabo new market, which would be completed next year, would all promote the well-being of the people of the area.

A management consultant and chairman for the occasion, Mr Ernest Egyir De-Graft, touching on the theme, said discipline should be an integral part of education and adopted as a major Key Performance Index.

Eschew greed

The chairman further urged leaders on all levels to eschew selfishness and greed that enrich themselves at the expense of the people they served in order to support development efforts in their communities.