A justice of the Court of Appeal, Justice Jerome Noble Nkrumah, has called on students to take the art of public speaking more seriously and get involved in extra-curricular activities to help sharpen their skills in that domain.

He made this call on Thursday in his remarks as chairman of a debate held by the Writers and Debaters Club of Opoku Ware School as part of activities to mark the school’s 71st anniversary. The motion for the debate was ‘Knowledge without Discipline is Futile’. 

The event was organised by the Global Executive Committee of the school’s alumni fraternity (Akatakyie) and sponsored by a group of Akatakyie lawyers.

Justice Nkrumah, a Katakyie with school number AD16, noted that the ability to succeed in today’s workplace goes beyond mere academic knowledge, important as it is. 

“Education is not, and should not be just about excelling in academic pursuits. The confidence to present oneself before a group of people, whether it is a large rally or a small meeting, organise one’s thoughts in a concise manner and put one’s points across in order to persuade is an important skill to be mastered”, he stated.

He commended the headmaster and staff of the school for making it possible for the Writers and Debaters Club to flourish, noting that it is a very useful channel to nurture public speaking and debating skill and talent. He further lauded the Akatakyie Global Executives for liaising with the school to organise the event.

For his part and speaking on behalf of the group of lawyers who sponsored the debate, Katakyie Kwaku Appiah (AW232), a legal practitioner with Totoe Legal Services in Kumasi, announced that the group had decided to formally adopt the club and support it in any way possible to train and nurture its members.

He expressed the hope that members of the club, and indeed a considerable number of the students, will consider a career in law, describing it as an exciting and noble profession.

The debate, which was held at the school’s assembly hall before a packed audience of students, staff and Akaytakyie was won by the team opposing the motion, with the three-member panel of judges chaired by Katakyie Ken Kuranchie (AK63), a lawyer, journalist and managing editor of the Daily Searchlight newspaper.

Prizes awarded included certificates, books and cash for the two teams, as well as a laptop for the club to aid in their research.