Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, Chancellor of the Pontifical Academies of Sciences, has called on ministers, presidential appointees, and all Ghanaians to rally behind the President’s vision, emphasising that national transformation could not rest solely on the shoulders of one man.

He said the success of any national vision depended not only on its leader, but on the unity, virtue, and action of all who were called to serve, and of the people themselves.

Cardinal Turkson, who was the guest speaker for the Christian service of the maiden edition of the National Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving (NDPT), was speaking to the media prior to his departure from Ghana to Rome.

He commended President Mahama and his cabinet for initiating what he described as a “movement worth creating” a nationwide day dedicated to gratitude, spiritual resetting, and moral renewal.

“A vision comes from the head of one person but it becomes a movement only when it is shared and carried by others,” he said.

Cardinal Turkson highlighted the significance of unity in governance, warning that the national agenda would falter if each appointed official worked in isolation.

He said the cabinet ministers and all appointees must recognise their roles not just as political actors, but as co-bearers of the President’s vision for the country, adding that “this is a call to communion, to unity, and to collective responsibility.”

Cardinal Turkson praised Ghana for drawing together a remarkable coalition of religious leaders from across denominations, stating that being a preacher for 50 years, he had not witnessed such a thing.

He said the NDPT was one that involved both gratitude and self-examination, where drawing from his knowledge of Hebrew, he explained that “thank you” in its truest sense also involved the recognition of one’s shortcomings.

“Thanksgiving invites us to enter into ourselves, to reflect, to reset, and to renew,” he stressed.

Cardinal Turkson praised the committee responsible for organising the event, for their dedication, efforts and sacrifice for executing their mandate, stating that this was driven not by remuneration but by purpose, the kind of drive needed to build nations.

He said the success of the President’s initiative, and by extension, the nation required more than symbolic gestures, calling for a change of lifestyle across the country.

He also called for national alignment of Ghana’s resources, saying that Ghana’s collective wealth and resources must be realigned with the real needs of its people.

“Prosperity for everyone, wellbeing for everyone, that’s what it means to turn a vision into a reality,” he said.