Editorial
Significance of Easter
Once again, the occasion of Easter will soon be with us and the need to reflect on our lives as a nation to do away with what is bad while embracing what is good to rebuild our individual lifestyles as well as our nation.
Easter should not be taken for granted. Rather, all Ghanaians must carefully reflect on the occasion and think of the great lessons that can be derived from it towards the fulfilment of our national aspirations.
The occasion is a Christian event that is celebrated every year to mark the resurrection of Christ after His crucifixion and death on the cross. This eventful moment shows that Christ gave His body and poured out His blood as a sacrifice for mankind.
Easter is closely linked to Good Friday the day on which Christ was crucified. This is because without the crucifixion there would not have been the Resurrection or Easter. Many people celebrate the event every year and participate in the activities involved in the celebration but unfortunately forget to take note of its significance.
The death of Christ offered liberation, hope and good life for mankind, signifying that people must always think of what they can do to liberate society and help others to enjoy better life. At various levels of society, people must be selfless and think about what they can do for their communities rather than what they can gain from society.
The concern of everyone in this case must be to ensure that others enjoy better life even if it means that they themselves are going to be denied of certain pleasures of life. It is not easy to allow death to come upon oneself as did happen in the case of Jesus Christ.
Before His death, He was mocked, teased, disgraced and humiliated even though He did not deserve to experience such things. Christ accepted to go through all this for the sake of mankind. If this is the case, then everyone must adopt this positive character on behalf of others in society to raise the quality of life of everyone.
It is equally important to note that Christ, after the resurrection, did not seek to pay back those who played a role in His condemnation and crucifixion. He forgave everyone claiming that they did not know what they were doing.
The great lesson here is that as individuals we need to promote unity, accommodate unfair treatments from others and be prepared to forgive and forget. It is important to go by this principle to manifest the selfless spirit of Christ in our daily lives.
Again, people must be concerned with what is good for the progress of society. This calls for truth, honesty, hard work, transparency and commitment always to achieve what is best for society. At the same time, people must move away from negative tendencies such as drunkenness, dishonesty, greed, selfishness, stealing, embezzlement, corruption, deceit and sexual immorality during occasions such as this.
Easter marks the end of the Holy Week in the Christian calendar and must, therefore, be adhered to and observed as such. The principles of Easter will continue to remain with us until the end of our lives so while we live on this earth, it is incumbent on us to strive for what is good and eschew evil even under very difficult circumstances so as to be able to propel ourselves and the entire country to a higher pedestal of socio-economic development.
The Spectator calls on all Ghanaians to reflect on the coming Good Friday and Easter and pick lessons from them to rebuild our nation.
Dear Editor,
I WRITE to condemn the circumstances under which an accident victim died recently after three major hospitals reportedly turned him away due to what has earned a place in our local parlance as ‘no bed syndrome.’
Reports suggested that this motor rider who got knocked by a vehicle was taken to three major hospitals – Police Hospital, Greater Accra Regional Hospital (Ridge Hospital), and the Korle-bu Teaching Hospital – but they all claimed they had no beds.
But one may ask, would there ever be beds?
Such is the treatment Ghanaians endure every now and then when one visits our hospitals, especially the public ones which are run with the taxpayers’ money. Many a time when one visits the hospitals, the sight of patients admitted and lying on benches, and some sitting on chairs while receiving care, is visible to all; making one wonder why this particular motor rider was not admitted at any of the facilities, looking at his condition.
This leads to the reason for this letter, which is to bring out a perceived apathy against these motor riders, the majority of whom are referred to as ‘Okada’ riders.
Due to their recklessness on the roads and the inconvenience caused to commuters, people always speak ill about them; drivers equally have no regard for them. Every user of public transport would attest to this. These riders are blamed for every offence, even when it is obvious drivers may be at fault sometimes.
Motor riders have become like orphans on the road; people care less about them, and when they are unfortunately knocked down, no one cares about them.
This is the mischief our authorities and agencies, including the police, must seek to cure to make the road safe for all users.
These are young folks that want to make a living for themselves, and with no skill or education, ‘Okada’ rides have become their source of livelihood. They need the protection accorded drivers and commuters as well.
In other countries, some facilities have been provided to make their work safer, but in Ghana, we lack them, leaving them with no alternative than to share the available space with the cars.
What has happened should serve as a wake-up call on our authorities to aim to take a second look at the ‘Okada’ menace. With the numbers increasing, there should be a way to regulate them because no government would have the guts to ban it totally.
Drivers should be made to accept the reality that they are sharing the roads with them, and therefore the need for patience and tolerance.
For some of our hospitals, I suggest the Ministry of Health conduct their own investigations to see what patients go through in accessing medicare, which is even not for free.
Thank you, Editor, for the space.
F. Morgan, Kokrobite
Dear Editor,
THE heartbreaking death of 29-year-old engineer Charles Amissah in a hit-and-run accident has exposed once again the failures in our health system.
Even more painful is the fact that his father had previously donated beds to some hospitals, yet when his son needed urgent care, he was moved from one facility to another because there were ‘no beds.’
This is not only tragic but unacceptable. How can a country lose its bright young citizens simply because hospitals cannot provide emergency treatment? The ‘no bed syndrome’ has become a national disgrace, and Charles’ death is a reminder that reforms cannot wait.
Our hospitals must be equipped to handle emergencies, and accountability must be enforced. If donations are made to improve facilities, then those facilities must serve the people when it matters most. Ghana cannot afford to keep losing lives to negligence and poor infrastructure.
Charles Amissah’s death should be the turning point. Let us honor his memory by fixing the system so that no family would suffer this kind of preventable loss again.
Princess Wonovi
Accra
Join our WhatsApp Channel now!
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBElzjInlqHhl1aTU27
