Dr Kwabena Duffour, winner of the Ultimate Man of the Year, has urged Ghanaians to adopt an attitude of selflessness and patriotism.
“Our forefathers possessed a noble virtue – selflessness. As they set about conquering lands for you and me, our forefathers’ major concern was to provide for the future generations and not for themselves…But now, one would struggle in vain to find evidence of selflessness in our behaviour whereas only a few decades ago, we were known to be kind, patriotic, helpful and full of love towards one another,” Dr Duffour stated over the weekend during his acceptance speech when he was honoured as Ultimate Man of the Year at the Exclusive Men of the Year Awards.
The EMY Awards Africa celebrates distinguished men in diverse fields to inspire greatness in the younger generation, under the chairmanship of Sir Sam Jonah.
The Ultimate Man of the Year Award is given only to an outstanding family man, an astute businessman and planner, a change exponent whose deeds have greatly impacted the society positively.
Dr Duffuor, a former Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), a former Minister of Finance and Founder and Chairman of HODA Holdings, in his acceptance speech, thanked the EMY Awards organisers for recognising his contributions to the well-being of society.
He lamented that even though the forefathers of Ghana struggled to provide a better society for all, the actions of the current crop of Ghanaians do not seem to promote the spirit of selflessness.
That notwithstanding, the seasoned banker expressed hope in the bright future of Ghana, saying, “That is why I wholeheartedly agree with the EMY Award Africa, organisers, when they advise that we all rise up and intervene.”
He urged that the traits of integrity and selflessness should be inculcated into young people to enable them to become good citizens.
The awards ceremony was organised by Carbon AV, in partnership with the Exclusive Men’s Magazine, with support from Forbes Africa.
BY Melvin Tarlue