The euphoria that greeted the Black Star Square on the eve of Ghana’s Independence in 1957 is being revisited in the Ho Municipality as the Volta Region gears up to host the 66th Independence Day Celebration on March 6, 2023. Since the launch of the Celebration last month, the Volta Regional Coordinating Council has been working feverishly to put the necessary arrangements in place to make this year’s celebration memorable. This year’s event, which will be held at the Youth Resource Centre at Ho, is on the theme: ‘Our Unity, Our Strength, Our Purpose’. President Umaro Sissoco Embaló of Guinea Bissau, who is also the Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), will be the Special Guest of Honour. More than 5,000 people from across the country, including members of the diplomatic corps, the clergy, traditional rulers and other dignitaries are expected to touch down in the Municipality to participate in the event. In 2017, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo decided the independence celebration be held on rotational basis to open each of the 16 regions of Ghana to the world to boost the local economy. It will be the first time that the Volta Region will be hosting the national independence parade, which commemorates the day Ghana formally weaned itself from British colonial rule. A total of 22 contingents from the various security agencies and 12 from the various schools in the Volta Region would be on parade, aside other performances. The 66 Artillery Regiment in Ho is in charge to lead preparations for the march past. As of Saturday, March 4, 2023, many hotels in the Ho Municipality were reported to have been fully booked – with some even booked a week earlier. All roads leading to the Ho Municipality as well as the principal streets of Ho had been decorated with Ghana flag, with several workplaces also draping their buildings in Ghana colours (red, yellow, green) to mark the occasion. Ho township roads as well the Atimpoku-Ho road are being fixed. The streetlights on the road leading to the Youth Resource Centre at Adaklu have also been fixed. The indigenes outside Ho, local and foreign tourists are already pouring in on Ho, which is christened ‘Ghana’s Oxygen City.’ Police armoured vehicles and armed personnel of the various security agencies have been positioned at various intersections and vantage points to ensure law and order. On 6th March, 1957, Ghana gained independence after 83 years of British colonial rule – becoming the first sub-Saharan African country to achieve independence from Britain. The country’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah declared Ghana as ‘free forever’ from colonial rule, marking a historic turning point in the governance of the country. Since that day, every March 6 is celebrated across the country and among Ghanaians abroad with various activities, some of which are observed throughout the month of March.
Source: Ghana News Agency
