Awutu Obrachire (C/R), March 8, GNA - The management of Youth for Christ Heritage (YUFRIST), a Christian non-governmental organisation (NGO) on Tuesday distributed assorted items worth GH¢3,500 to residents of Obrachire in the Awutu Senya District of the Central Region.

They include drinks, biscuits, candies, used clothing and shoes. Mr Jedoiada Amuzu, Executive Director of YUFRIST, addressing the residents of the community, said the presents formed part of the organisation's Independence Day outreach project to fete the less fortunate and less privileged in the community. He said the organisation's aim was to meet the people's physical and spiritual needs through the enabling power and providence of the Holy Spirit.

Mr Amuzu said the outreach project was initiated to ensure that the less privileged in the communities throughout the country were shown the type of love demonstrated by God to his children. "Most importantly, we bear all the people we reach out to in prayer and we seek among other things, that they may secure their salvation from physical and spiritual realities and predicament," he added.

He congratulated all Ghanaians on the occasion of Ghana's 54th independence anniversary and thanked God for bringing the country this far.

"We join other fellow citizens to pay homage to the founding fathers of our nation and to all our brave compatriots whose contributions and toil have brought us independence and dignity as a sovereign people.

"Our independence will mean nothing if after 54 years, we have many of our fellow citizens still living under the socio-economic conditions that demean them as a people created in the image of God", Mr Amuzu noted.

On this day of the 54th anniversary, he said there should be a resolution that with selfless and visionary leadership, backed by hardworking and dedicated citizenry and God's grace, the country would redouble its efforts and pace to ensure the realisation of National and Godly aspirations.

He observed that there were many communities in the country where people still did not have access to potable drinking water, good health care facilities, and places of convenience among others. He called on government to sit up and ensure that the Laws of the country worked and that this should translate in the action year being propagated by the President.

Mr Amuzu expressed the hope that since the government has dedicated this year's Independence Day celebration to the youth, it would institute programmes and plans that would promote the interest of the youth in all spheres of the national economy. Mr Timothy Ablordeppey, Director of Ministers at YUFRIST, speaking on the theme: 93Today Salvation Has Come to this House", said any independence without God being at the centre to direct the affairs of the leaders and their people could not be a long-lasting and meaningful one.

"When Ghana achieves salvation as a nation, and all our leaders and the citizenry devote themselves completely to the obedience of God and what is right, then true independence may result, and our country will be a better place for all," he added. He said salvation could be physical, spiritual and social, noting that when governments could give salvation to their people through the provision of necessities like good drinking water, hospitals, schools, road infrastructure, and jobs among others. He urged the community members to believe, trust and have faith in God, saying 93No matter your problems and challenges, Christ is able to save you".

He appealed to government, NGOs, Philanthropist, and civil society to come to the aid of the community by providing social amenities to improve on their lot.

Nana George Ayiku Tetteh, Elder of the Obrachire Community, thanked management of YUFRIST for sharing the gospel with the people. He said the community lacked numerous social amenities like potable drinking water and public place of convenience. He acknowledged the immense contribution of Plan Ghana, an NGO, in the development of education in the area.

Nana Ayiku Tetteh said traders in the area needed trading capital and appealed to financial institutions to provide soft loan schemes for the people to enable them to pay early. "The community is ready to give lands to any developer who intends to provide developmental projects in the area and we will also support with communal labour," he added. The people of Awutu Obrachire are predominately traders and farmers who produce cassava, maize, yam and Garden eggs. 8 March 11