President John Dramani Mahama, has said the short- term challenges the country is going through are not the creation of his government but the result of a combination of past difficulties the country has to endure both from within and internationally.
He said the current challenges were bound to happen no matter who was the president, and therefore appealed to Ghanaians to have patience with the government as it moved to fix them.
Speaking at a service at the Grace Pentecostal Assemblies of God church in Takoradi yesterday to round off his three-day working visit to the Western Region, the President said the fall in cocoa and gold prices, combined with the insatiable taste for foreign goods among others, had a telling effect on the economy.
But, he said, the steps taken to address the challenges were workable and nothing would be left to chance to achieve results.
President Mahama urged Ghanaians to put the country first in whatever they do to facilitate effective development.
President Mahama described the 2012 general elections as the most peaceful ever in the country and thanked God for the blessings he showered on the country to come out successfully.
He said he was also thankful to God for protecting him and all the other presidential candidates on their campaign trial.
"Myself, Nana Akufo-Addo and the rest crisscrossed the length and breadth of the country with God protection and we have to give praise," he said.
He thanked the congregation for the prayers they offered for him during the 2012 electioneering campaign.
President Mahama said a lot of opportunities existed in the Western Region and asked the people to take advantage of them to improve their lot.
He said God would not put wealth in the pockets of the people and as a result it was necessary for all to take advantage of the opportunities the Lord had created for the them.
He enumerated the number of development projects the government was undertaking in the region and promised more of such projects in the years ahead.
President Mahama said this year, he would cut the sod for the construction of the Takoradi - Kumasi railway line development project.
The congregation prayed for the President and his government and the entire nation.
<<Print>>