The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) is calling on Ghanaians to respect the National Anthem, National Pledge, and other state symbols.
In a statement on Monday, June 12, the NCCE encouraged citizens to stand up whenever they hear the National Anthem or National Pledge being played.
The NCCE’s statement follows a viral video from the 2023 edition of the Green Ghana Day Celebration, which was organized at the University of Ghana, in which President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is seen angrily directing the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Henry Quartey, to tell a chief to stand up and observe the National Anthem.
The NCCE reminded citizens that national symbols such as the National Pledge, the National Anthem, the National Flag, the Coat of Arms, the Ghana Currency, and the Mace of Parliament are important symbols of Ghana’s sovereignty and identity.
“The NCCE reminds citizens that national symbols such as the National Pledge, the National Anthem, the National Flag, the Coat of Arms, the Ghana Currency and the Mace of Parliament among other symbols and State identities must be respected. These symbols identify us, as citizens of Ghana and they must be accorded the requisite levels of recognition and decorum”.
The NCCE added, “The words in our National Anthem and the National Pledge are sacred. As citizens with deeply held religious values, we must not just say the words but sing and recite them with great commitment. This commitment is important because the words embody our values as people with one destiny. The Commission reminds citizens that at the sound of the National Anthem and the National Pledge, it is the civic duty of every citizen of Ghana to stand as a sign of respect to the State and these national symbols”.
The NCCE bemoaned the increasing spate of disregard for national symbols.
“The National Commission for Civic Education is concerned about the increasing disregard for patriotic values among citizens of Ghana. This trend is gradually negatively redefining our identity as Ghanaians,” the NCCE advised in its statement.
Read below the full statement by NCCE:
