Ho, March 6, GNA – The 65th Independence Day Parade in the Volta Region was dedicated to the memory of one Etornam Gorni Attipoe, a pupil of the Ho SDA Basic School, who died during a rehearsal for the event in 2012.
Although details surrounding the unfortunate incident seem lost over the course of a decade, the Regional Coordinating Council deemed it appropriate to honour her memory.
A citation read by Dr. Archibald Yao Letsa, the Volta Regional Minister, remembered the young girl, who lost her life trying to partake in a patriotic endeavour, and said she counted among the nation’s fallen heroes.
“As we celebrate the 65th independence anniversary and pay tribute to fallen heroes of Ghana’s independence, we also remember you. Not necessarily heroine by human standard, but spiritual.
“You joined your colleagues from the SDA Basic School, hoping to march and bring honour to your school and the country at large. Unfortunately, that dream was cut short after you fell on the square some few meters to the dais where you were hoping to salute the National Flag.
“Etornam, we are proud to deem you worthy of our respect and honor. You are by far the youngest to die in the line of duty. The price you paid has brought a great change into how independence parades are organized in Ghana today. As a result, your colleague students are given special attention and preferential treatments of this special day,” the citation read.
Dr Letsa, the Education Director and the Municipal Chief Executive, presented the citation to the late Etornam parents after a sod was cut for a monument in her memory.
This year’s celebration was on the theme: “Working together, bouncing back together”, and featured eight parade contingents comprising the Police, Immigration, Prisons, Fire and the Military.
A total of 240 students from selected primary, JHS and SHSs also joined the parade.
Dr. Letsa, in an Independence Day address, said patriotism should be the hallmark of all citizens as they support the government to reclaim the economy from the grips of the coronavirus pandemic.
“I want to take the opportunity of this 65th Annual Celebration of Ghana’s Independence to call on all of us to ensure that whatever we do, whatever position we find ourselves and whatever profession we are engaged in, we should let the spirit of loyalty, honesty, commitment, dedication, transparency, accountability and love for our country, as well as, fellow countrymen and women guide us. Simply put, we should let patriotism and love for country guide all our actions,” he said.
Source: Ghana News Agency
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