Ghana's president-elect, John Agyekum Kufuor, Saturday said his ambition is to give Ghanaians a chance to contribute towards national development and unity.

"Let me restate once more that everybody has his or her part to play in my administration; there will be no room for witch hunting of individuals or groups," he said.

Making his first public appearance after his victory, he added: "I pledge myself to work as hard as I can each and everyday to bring about positive change in the lives of all our people."

Kufuor called on Ghanaians to unite as one people and look into the future with hope.

"We must now together take hold of the challenges that face our country and resolve to solve them in a spirit of unity, of reconciliation, of compassion and understanding. We must move forward into the next century as one nation, one people and one manifest destiny," he said.

"Ahead of us lie the challenges of our deteriorating economy, our depreciating currency and other problems of which we are all aware," he added.

He thanked Vice President John Atta Mills, his opponent in the run-off "for his gracious concession." He also congratulated President Jerry Rawlings, "who at the end of his mandated term under a democratic constitution, has presided over this historic election."

He promised to accord Rawlings all the respect and support that is due to an ex head of state. "I will ensure that he is treated as I would like to be treated at the end of my term of office," he assured.

The president-elect commended the Electoral Commission for making the run-off successful and hoped that "the problems encountered in the 28 December election will form the basis for continuous improvement in our electoral process."