Cape Coast, Dec. 31, GNA- The Bishop of the Cape Coast Diocese of the Methodist Church, Right Reverend Isaac Quansah, on Sunday charged all Ghanaians to bury their individual and political differences and work towards national unity to facilitate the socio-economic development of the nation next year.

Giving his New Year's Message in an interview with the GNA at Cape Coast, Rev. Quansah said the celebration of the country's Golden Jubilee should serve as a platform for reconciliation and nation building to pave the way for 93God's abundance blessings for the nation".

He stressed the need for Christians and Ghanaians in general to have their 93hearts and minds transformed and renewed socially, politically, religiously and economically for them to make a positive impact in society".

All Ghanaians he said should be development minded in the coming year and work hard to change the industrial sector of the nation for the better.

"We need to be mindful of our utterances and the kind of language we use on radio and in the newspapers, watch our attitude towards work, stop polluting the environment and also ensure that we eschew all forms of social vices that hinders the progress and development of our nation", he declared.

Rev. Quansah also urged Ghanaians to extend love to the vulnerable in society by supporting them, particularly HIV/AIDS victims, the poor and the disabled through cash or in kind 93to put smiles on their faces".

He exhorted all Christians to exhibit the virtues of their religion throughout the coming year for them to be true ambassadors of Christ.

The Archbishop of the Cape Coast Diocese of the Catholic Church, Peter Cardinal Appiah Turkson, on his part said just as Jesus came to repair and restore the world, Ghanaians should endeavour to use the 50th anniversary of the nation's independence for the renaissance of Ghana and to put to right what went wrong in the past and start afresh. He said the exuberance and enthusiasm that Ghanaians had on Independence Day 50 years ago was much stronger than what was being experienced now, and asked that the same will power should be exhibited during the jubilee celebration.

Cardinal Appiah Turkson regretted that the pivot of the late Dr Kwame Nkrumah's development programmes were not met, adding that "our classmates in independence" such as India and Malaysia were far ahead of Ghana in terms of development.

He attributed the situation to the fact that leaders after Dr Nkrumah did not continue or complete with the projects he started. He mentioned the Tema harbour, motor way and the Volta lake and a number of factories and industries as some of the giant projects Dr Nkrumah put in place but regretted that many of the factories and industries were allowed to deteriorate with others collapsing due to the lack of maintenance.

Cardinal Turkson however said all was not lost for Ghanaians and that they should not be discouraged and lament too much about the lack of success and development, but should recognize the bright opportunities of the future and endeavour to do things in a new way to give Ghana a new birth.

He in this regard called on the government to identify and implement sound and solid economic policies that would make the country a 93big market" such that it would produce and sell its own goods and not allow all kinds of inferior goods to be dumped on her. He urged Ghanaians not to only recount the failures of the nation but should also talk about its successes and achievements. This he noted would help market the country, stressing that with solid economic policies and committed political will, Ghana would be restored to the original plans Dr Nkrumah had for the nation. Touching on religion, he noted with concern that if the issue of inter religious conflict was not well managed it could bring the nation some problems in the near future and called for religious tolerance and the respect for dignity and rights of others.

Cardinal Turkson called on parents to protect and take care of their children since they are vulnerable and defenceless and prone to all kinds of hazards and dangers.

He said just as the parents of Jesus Christ, protected him from being killed by king Herod, it was important for all parents to also protect their children since they could easily be destroyed, adding, "Let us recognize the vulnerability of children and protect them accordingly".

He said irresponsible child birth, single parenthood, teenage pregnancy and pushing children onto the streets did not help with the wellbeing and success of children. He suggested that measures should be evolved to address the situation, saying 93the evil consequences of irresponsibility would be reaped in the land if nothing is done to save the situation". He prayed for the "renaissance of Ghana" as well as for the President, John Agekum Kufuor, Misters of State, Members of the Council of State, parliament and all Ghanaians. 31 Dec 06