ROTARY INT.TO HELP BUILD PEACE


ROTARY INT.TO HELP BUILD PEACE                                                 June 22, 2012
BY PETER ATOGEWE WEDAM
AG.PRO-UE/RCC

An international non-governmental development oriented organization, Rotary International, has pledged to work closely with government and other organizations to ensure peace and stability in the Upper East Region during this year’s electioneering campaigns and beyond.

The President of the Bolgatanga Goodwill club of Rotary International, Pastor Emmanuel Atia, made the pledge on the behalf of Rotary International at Bolgatanga during a ceremony to officially outdoor the Bolgatanga Rotary club and also, present it with a charter to complete its admission into Rotary International since it was accepted on 17th August, 2011.

Rotary International which operates in over 200 countries of the world mostly provides intervention in the areas of peace and conflict prevention/ resolution, health, basic education and literacy, water and sanitation.
He said the club has noted with worry the recent pockets of communal clashes in some parts of the country and warned especially the youth not allow themselves to be used by unscrupulous  politicians to foment violence during the campaigns for the 2012 general elections.

Pastor Atia said he and his colleagues in the club have all pledged to work for the development of the Upper East Region especially in the areas of providing furniture for schools, providing boreholes and hand-dug wells, extension of support for health facilities and elimination of schools under trees saying, these fall in line with the motto of Rotary International “service above self’’.

According to the Goodwill Rotary club president, steps are being fashioned out to equip basket weavers and other artisans in the region to maximize their output so as to increase profits.

The District Governor of District 9100 of Rotary International which covers Rotary members in many West African countries including Ghana, Honourable Bouraima Salifu who presented the charter to the Bolgatanga Goodwill Rotary club disclosed that the first Rotary meeting was held in 1905 in the USA, while Rotary International first came to Africa through South Africa in 1929. It was however in 1960 that the organization was outdoored in Ghana and has since contributed significantly to the country’s development.

D.G. Salifu who is based in Benin entreated the fresh members of Rotary International to always operate within the confines of the group’s values which are service, fellowship, integrity, diversity and leadership. According to him, every committed Rotarian should be guided by the four way test in all that he/she does, thinks and says. These are: is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build goodwill and friendship? and Is it beneficial to all concerned?

Municipal Chief Executive for Bolgatanga, Mr. Edward Ayiriba Ayagle who chaired the function commended Rotary International saying since its inception in Ghana, Rotary has over the decades complemented the work of government by extending development projects to mostly rural areas. He observed that Rotary International has for example provided boreholes for numerous communities, assisted the Ghana Health Service and the Ghana Education Service in providing for the health and education needs of Ghanaians respectively.

Mr. Ayagle advised Rotary club members to attend meetings regularly and pay their dues since these will further boost the assistance that Rotary can offer to many more Ghanaian communities. He advised Rotary members not extend politics to Rotary meetings and activities warning that, this act will wreck the very foundation on which Rotary is built.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

MoGCSP & ISD TRAIN ISD OFFICERS FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION ON SWCES 15th FEBRUARY, 2024

THE POLICE WON'T CONSIDER FAMILY TIES & FRIENDSHIPS IN APPLYING LAW DURING ELECTIONS 21st NOV., 2024

MoFA RECEIVES APPROVAL TO SPEND & RECRUIT IN FIGHT AGAINST HPAI 25th OCTOBER, 2021