President Akufo-Addo says the phrase ‘Fellow Ghanaians’ which became very popular during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic was the country’s symbol of resilience.
Delivering his final State of the Nation Address before the 7th Parliament of the Fourth Republic, he noted that although the country was facing a difficult time, innovative artists and designers capitalised on the situation to rekindle the fighting spirits among citizens.
In his view, the mantra inspired Ghanaians that despite the extent of damage caused by the pandemic, it will eventually pass for everything to return to normalcy.
“Amidst the pandemic, I have tried to keep the Ghanaian people informed with regular broadcast for us to know what is going on. This has led to the phrase, ‘Fellow Ghanaians’ attaining a new status as Ghanaians brought fore their intellect to find relieve in the doom of devastation being wrecked by the pandemic.
“Our artist and designers with their expertise to brought unexpected relief; where [by] wearing the “fellow Ghanaians” and “This too shall pass” fabric. With pride and knowledge they were able to find something positive out of the darkest events,” he stated.
One of Ghana’s local textile firms, GTP gave a positive narrative to the coronavirus pandemic in 2019 by chronicling national events from the lockdown to the various presidential updates.
Since fabrics imprint the experiences of memorable events in people’s lives, the firm produced Fellow Ghanaians, Closing of boarders, Lockdown, This too shall pass, and Easing of restrictions designs to tell the story of how Ghana dealt with the disease.
Meanwhile, President Akufo-Addo urged the citizenry to continue to adhere to the Covid-19 protocols stressing that the virus is still in existence and all precautions must be upheld.
“I am using this opportunity to again remind all of us that the pandemic is still with us and we need to maintain the protocols to keep us safe.”