• President Akufo-Addo decorating Mr Henry Quartey

Men and women who had distinguished themselves in various aspects of national endeavours were decorated by President Addo Dankwa Akufo-Ad­do at the National Honours and Awards event held at the Accra International Conference Centre on Tuesday.

The recipients, with smiles and excitement, took turns to exchange pleasantries with the President as he adorned them with stunning medals and sashes.

President Akufo-Addo said the national event was organised sole­ly in recognition of the services offered by the recipients towards the development and prosperity of the country.

“As President of the Republic, I can happily say that I am not aware of the political sympathies or views of the overwhelming ma­jority of today’s awardees. Their politics is of no moment to me, only their exploits in favour of Mother Ghana,” he noted.

The event was attended by hundreds of dignitaries, including the Vice President Dr. Mahamu­du Bawumia and the Minister of Finance Mr. Ken Ofori Atta.

The list of awardees included international development part­ners, health workers and members of the COVID-19 Task Torce, and the team which won the maritime boundary dispute against Cote d’Ivoire in 2017.

Other individuals also honoured for their distinguished services inluded Ms. Margaret Sophia Darkwah, the first female Com­missioner of Police; Prof. Akwasi Osei, former Chief Executive of the Mental Health Authority; and Dr. Veronica Agartha Martinson, former Executive Director of the Cocoa Research Institute, Ghana.

A picture is worth a thousand words and indeed, one of the striking images from the event was the interaction between Pres­ident Akufo-Addo and the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Mr. Henry Quartey.

Here are some extracts of the event.

 By Spectator Reporter