Students need to be disciplined - Dr Aryee

Reverend Dr Joyce Aryee, Executive Director of Salt and Light Ministries on Saturday said students needed a fundamental reorientation of attitudes towards law and order and to lead a disciplined life that seeks the good of others rather than their own.

She said the word “discipline” has a Latin origin, “discipulus” and has a close relation with the word “disciple,”“which, as most of us are familiar with in Christian history and literature means a follower or adherent of any great leader of thought, learning or conduct.”

Dr Aryee was speaking at the 86th Anniversary of Achimota School, under the theme “Discipline; The Hallmark of a Progressive Society” and Golden Jubilee celebration of the 1963 Year Group of the Old Achimotan Association (OAA) in Accra.

She said a progressive society can be described “as one that is doing and desires to do more of those things to improve the lives and livelihoods of all or majority of its citizens.”

Dr Aryee, who is also the President of the 1963 Year Group of OAA, said disciplined leadership at the national, local, traditional, religious and educational levels were needed in Ghana to enable the people to break free from backwardness.

Dr Aryee said to succeed as a nation “we must ensure strict adherence to rules and regulations, laws and policies at the national stage and be willing to conform to them by instituting strong mechanisms of retribution which are blind to personalities.”

“Ghana has every good law but living by the laws is always a challenge.’

She said the campaign on discipline in 2001 fizzled out because “we preferred our mediocrity, selfishness and undisciplined ways, so we move two steps forward and three steps backwards.”