The Ghana national anthem is a powerful prayer enshrined in the virtues of Jesus Christ and must be harnessed for sustainable development, The Most Reverend Alfred Agyenta, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Navrongo-Bolgatanga, said.

The bishop said the life and leadership of Jesus Christ was an embodiment of solidarity, humility, honesty and integrity found in the Ghanaian Anthem and must inspire the country's leaders and citizens to build an inclusive and resilient nation.

Speaking at the Sacred Heart Cathedral Parish in a homily in Bolgatanga as part of the Christmas celebration, the bishop said, "As we are choosing our leaders in this Holy season, we should be inspired by the type of leadership that Jesus Christ, the King of the universe once showed as an example.

"Fortunately, these virtues, that is, humility and integrity, are enshrined in our national anthem, which is a solemn prayer that invoked God's infinite blessings significant for transforming the country."

The Most Rev. Agyenta said that although the national anthem was sung at all national and other important events, many citizens did not realise it was a prayer that sought the blessings of God to strengthen their efforts and inspire leadership to build a resilient nation.

"The national anthem is a prayer because all that we say in it is addressed to God, so anytime we sing or pray this Anthem, we are addressing God and we are asking God to do a number of things for us, thus, bless our homeland Ghana and make it great and strong…," he added.

He explained that it was about time Ghanaian leaders and citizens in general not only see the national anthem as a song or words they recited but as a solemn request which had held the country's fortunes for decades.

He regretted that the virtues of true humility and integrity had been lost in Ghanaian society, giving rise to bad leaders, corruption, abuse of power, and arrogance at the expense of the well-being of the people.

He urged Ghanaians to use Christmas to reflect on the example of Jesus Christ's leadership and the national anthem and pray for the new government, which assumes office on January 7, 2025, to be inspired by Jesus Christ's leadership and the virtues enshrined in the Anthem.