Ghanaian volunteers who contributed to the African Union interventions in the Ebola hit countries are to receive state honours, President John Mahama has announced.
All 45 health workers have since returned to Ghana and have been declared Ebola free after a period of quarantine. President John Mahama announced government’s decision to honour them during a meeting with the Council of Elders of the opposition Convention People’s Party.
The council, in following up on a petition asking the president to relinquish all seized CPP properties back to the party, had commended the president for playing a huge role in the fight against Ebola. Over 4000 people died with 9000 recorded cases of Ebola in the West African sub region.
The president in accepting the commendation said it was absolutely necessary for Ghana to intervene in the fight against Ebola. “I had the responsibility as chair of ECOWAS to visit the countries because you are supposed to be dealing with crisis anywhere in the West African region.
“…Aside from that, as a matter of self preservation I realised that if anybody didn’t do anything this disease will spread and eventually it will come to my country.
“And so it is better for me to visit and make sure we galvanize the international community to be able to come to our aid and fight the disease so that it wouldn’t spread,” he stated.
The president expressed great optimism that with the extent of work done in the three worst hit Ebola countries- Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone- the disease will soon be a thing of the past.
He was full of praise to the Ghanaian health workers whose efforts he said were crucial in fighting the menace. “I want to take this opportunity to commend the 45 Ghanaian who joined the AU volunteers to help fight Ebola in the three affected countries.
“They have highly praised in all the areas they worked. We are happy we didn’t lose any of them,” he stated.
“These are heroes. The state is preparing to honour them at a certain time for this very risky venture they were engaged in,” he announced.
