Accra, Sept. 19, GNA – President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is joining other world leaders to pay their last respects on behalf of the Ghanaian people to Queen Elizabeth II, who would be laid to rest Monday.
Nearly 2,000 guests, including royalty, presidents, heads of governments and ministers are attending the state funeral of the late sovereign, who ruled the British Empire for seven decades.
The Queen’s lying-in-State which opened since last Wednesday, ending early Monday morning ahead of funeral. Thousands of people from across the globe travelled to the United Kingdom to pay their respects to the late monarch.
The funeral will take place at the Westminster Abbey at 1000 Hours Monday. Queen Elizabeth II will be laid to rest at the St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.
Queen Elizabeth II, 96, died Thursday, September 8, 2022, after a brief period of medical supervision at her residence, the Balmoral Castle, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
The monarch was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Head of the Commonwealth of Nations. She reigned for 70 years.
She has been succeeded by her heir, Prince Charles, now King Charles III.
Accompanied by his wife, Rebecca, President Akufo-Addo Sunday paid tribute to the late monarch when he signed her book of condolence at Lancaster House in London.
He said the queen had overseen the “dramatic transformation” of the Commonwealth into a global “force for good” during her 70-year reign.
The President who was also the first to sign a condolence book opened at the British High Commission in Accra on September 12, expressed the country’s condolences to the British people on the loss of their queen.
In an interaction with the British High Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson, he recounted his encounter with the Queen when she visited Ghana for the second time in 1999 for a state visit.
“I was in Parliament when she came to address us in Ghana in 1999. I was then a member of the opposition. I remember her presence, her friendliness especially. It is sad that she is gone,” he said.
“The Ghanaian people have very fond memories of the two visits she made to Ghana during her reign, and, on both occasions, we remember the friendliness, elegance, style and sheer joy she brought to the performance of her duties,” President Akufo-Addo said in a condolence message moments after the Queen Elizabeth II’s death.
“As Head of the Commonwealth of Nations, she superintended over the dramatic transformation of the Union, and steered it to pay greater attention to our shared values and better governance. She was the rock that kept the organisation sturdy and true to its positive beliefs.
“We shall miss her inspiring presence, her calm, her steadiness, and, above all, her great love and belief in the higher purpose of the Commonwealth of Nations, and in its capacity to be a force for good in our world.
“She was a cherished and revered monarch of the British people, the longest serving in their history, who will be sorely missed. We are saddened by her departure.
“May God bless her soul and give her peaceful rest in His Bosom until the Last Day of the Resurrection when we shall all meet again,” he said.
GNA