By Laudia Sawer
Tema, April 23, GNA – The AfriKan Continental Union Consult (ACUC), a think-tank in African good governance, has commended President John Dramani Mahama for announcing the provision of 1000 scholarships for tertiary students of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Sub-region.
President Mahama announced the scholarship package during the launch of the ECOWAS@50 Anniversary Celebration and the unveiling of the Anniversary Logo in Accra, indicating that the offer formed part of efforts to strengthen regional bonds.
Dr Benjamin Anyagre Aziginaateeg, the Chief Executive Officer of the ACUC, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that the scholarships to students of the Sub-region to study in Ghanaian Universities, was a good signal of rejuvenating the spirit of ECOWAS.
He however, stated that its effectiveness would depend on what the students would learn at the universities, and that it should meet the aspirations of Pan Africanism.
Dr Aziginaateeg, stated that “Fidel Castro did the same thing for Africans in Cuba in the late 70s till he left the office, yielding a mirage of professionals for national development and transformation in many African states”.
Again, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first President, also trained many Africans to be patriotic human resources, to grow the new African nations that emerged from colonial rule, therefore, the move was in the right direction, he said.
Touching on the 50 years of ECOWAS’ existence, he said it was worrying that instead of counting its blessings, its leaders were rather licking wounds of lack of trust, disunity, and constitutional coups.
“The protocols of ECOWAS, which include complete freedom of movement, equality and inter-dependence of Member States alongside sovereign solidarity and collective self-reliance; spending of a common currency, has remained inactive,” he stated.
The ACUC Chief Executive further noted that the free movement of persons was swiftly restricted by the Berlin Conference structural lines, and democracy in the sub-region, often substituted with fraudulent elections and constitutional coups.
He said ECOWAS could survive and recapture its reasons of existence by throwing its full support behind the Sahel Alliance Confederate Flag in driving home equality, purposeful solidarity, and people’s self-sovereign dependency.
Dr Aziginaateeg cautioned sub-regional leaders to be aware of the huge support for the Sahelian Cultural revolution, which was unmeasurable in Africa due to good governance, in order not to be caught by the people’s anger in Africa.
“On the 50th anniversary, and with the gathering of Sub-Regional body leaders in Accra, we should issue a communique to condemn the consistent organised threat of capitalist sponsorship to derail the administration of Quagadogou, Niamey and Bamako,” he added.
He called on the leaders to be self-evaluating, reflective, and constructively critical to ascertain whether the sub-region was succeeding or failing the people after 50 years of series of consultations and meetings.
He asked the leaders to respond to the questions of whether member states were stable enough and peaceful both politically and economically to make ECOWAS meaningful? and called for a reset of the community.
GNA
LS/CAA