First Lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo casting her ballot yesterday
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration on Monday evening treated President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to a surprise package.
Foreign Minister Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey led top officials at the ministry to honour the President for his selfless and dedicated service and contribution to the Foreign Service.
The President was merely honouring an invitation to attend the festival of nine lessons and carols hosted by the ministry on its premises when he was surprised with the treat.
He had been billed for award for the role he played as Ghana’s Minister for Foreign Affairs during the erstwhile Kufuor-led New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration and the President did not know about it.
President Akufo-Addo looked surprised when he was called forward for the presentation to be made. He later said he least expected anything like that since he had not been given any prior notification.
What seemed to have surprised him most was the fact that he got to learn from the minister that he was one of only two out of the 22 persons ever to occupy the position of ‘Minister of Foreign Affairs’ in Ghana to become President.
The President said it had not occurred to him that “Kwame Nkrumah and I are the only Foreign Ministers who have become Heads of State of Ghana.”
He, however, assured staff of the Foreign Service that his administration would continue to give the ministry all the support it needed to make Ghana great.
“I know that more is expected of me in terms of my relations with the Foreign Ministry; God willing, if the ‘four more for Nana comes’, you will see that that will be the case,” he emphasised.
Ms. Botchwey commended the President for his continued support, saying “your support for the work of the Ministry and Ghana’s diplomacy is unalloyed, and we welcome the strong engagement you avail us for the implementation of Ghana’s foreign policy goals, including the execution of the country’s foreign economic objectives in support of national development.”
She said “we shall continue to work to provide an effective external interface towards the achievement of the agenda of a ‘Ghana Beyond Aid’ through Ghana’s diplomatic representation abroad, which comprises 53 diplomatic missions, two permanent missions to the United Nations and 11 consular posts.”
By Charles Takyi-Boadu, Presidential Correspondent