Former Chief Justice, Mrs Georgina Theodora Wood, has admonished Ghanaians to uphold moral values in the society to help put the country on the path of growth.

She said values such as integrity, honesty and fairness were necessary for cohesive and sustainable nation building.

Mrs Wood who is also a member of the Council of State was speaking at the Annual Conference of Rotary International District 9102 in Accra last Friday.

“Over time, it has been men and women imbued with these strong value systems that have succeeded in birthing ideas and movements that bring about positive and long-lasting change. At no point in our future would we not need men and women devoted to these basic norms and causes,” she said.

Rotary way

Mrs Wood said the importance of these values were evident in Rotary International’s own values which stretched beyond the very important material contributions made by its members to worthy causes to the moral lessons it taught.

“Our world would certainly be better if many more of us adopted the Rotary way and defined our actions by the official mottos and the four-way test,” she said.

Touching on the mandate of judges, for example, she said the most crucial virtue that every judge must have is integrity.

She explained that judges often discovered that integrity and its natural ally, truth, were the two most important of the basic ethical values in justice administration.

“But honestly speaking both in and out of the courtroom truth and integrity is essential in everyday successful living. Therefore, the first of the four-way tests and indeed all the tests are tests I am more than happy to recommend to all of us no matter in what capacity we find ourselves,” she said.

COVID-19

Mrs Wood lauded interventions of Rotary in expanding access to quality education and improved sanitation and hygiene.

She also acknowledged the organisation’s ability to respond and adapt to extreme challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It takes the small steps to create the great overall goals of working together as a team to promote peace, fight diseases, provide clean water and sanitation and hygiene, support education and grow local economies with a view to eradicating poverty and hunger is what would be remembered of her tenure in what will be a true and lasting legacy,” she said.

Women leadership

On women serving in leadership positions, the former Chief Justice expressed appreciation to Ms Yvonne Kumoji-Darko, for becoming the Governor of District 9102 (Ghana, Togo and Benin), a position that was notably occupied by men in the past.

“Rotary has been in Ghana for over 60 years. Governor Yvonne Kumoji-Darko being the first female governor of Rotary District 9102 has brought great honour to herself, to the women folk in general and her country Ghana,” she said.

A Past District Governor, Mr Emmanuel Katongole, who was the Special Representative of Rotary International President urged members of the charity organisation to continue to support and create opportunities for people to help make the world a better place.

“We need more hands, fellow Rotarians. Go out and look for them and request,” he said.