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President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has touted Ghana as operating the best democracy in the West African sub-region.

The president pointed out the political successes of the Fourth Republic in arriving at that conclusion.

Among others, he cited the peaceful transfers of power since 1992 and the resort to the courts to deal with major electoral disputes after presidential elections.

“We have had five presidents in the history of the 4th Republic, with peaceful transfers of power from a governing to an opposition party on three separate occasions.

"Even when there was disagreement with the outcome of an election, it was the Supreme Court, on two occasions, rather than the streets, that validated its result. We are, arguably, the most stable democracy in West Africa,” he added in an address on April 28 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the referendum that birthed the Fourth Republic.

In making a strong case for Ghanaians to protect the democracy that has been nurtured over three decades, he stressed: “there are no short-cuts for the progress and prosperity of our country. Only hard work, creativity, innovation, a sense of enterprise and unity in the nation can produce the accelerated economic development that we all yearn for and deserve."

The President also urged the citizenry to consolidate their trust in democracy and remain vigilance given that, “the price of liberty is eternal vigilance.”

“I say so because there are some, who for their own parochial and selfish interests, would want to see a return to the dark days of authoritarian rule, simply because, with no respect for the Ghanaian people, they are either unwilling to subject themselves or their vision to the open scrutiny of the Ghanaian people, or because they know they will be rejected by the Ghanaian people and, thus, seek a shortcut to office and power. Let us strengthen our resolve to resist such persons for our own common good,” he said.