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General News of Monday, April 29, 2019
Source: 3news.com
2019-04-29
Francis Asenso-Boakye
The deputy chief of staff of the presidency, Francis Asenso-Boakye, congratulated the Rotary Club for its charitable actions around the world that made many people smile.
Speaking at the Rotary International District 9102 conference in Accra, Mr. Asenso-Boakye, a benefactor of the club's benevolence, said that, aside from the support offered by the club, he also helps young people to to become agents of change in society.
"My opportunity and experience in Rotary has also helped to strengthen my interest in public service as a way to give back to my society and help make it a better place for all."
"The virtues and timeless values that my Rotary experience instilled in me – integrity, service, compbadion and dedication continue to serve me well in the performance of my current duties," he said.
He added that, thanks to his experience at Rotary, he had learned to lend a hand whenever the need made it felt.
"In all of this, I'm trying to put into practice what I've learned from Rotary: we receive, often beyond our own immediate needs, so that we can also give to those who have it. need."
Below his complete speech
Distinguished Rotarians, Ladies and Gentlemen.
I am very honored to have been invited to this conference and to be invited to address this very distinguished badembly as the main chair.
I owe much more than a speech to the Rotary Foundation. I owe you an eternal gratitude because I am one of the millions of people in the world whose lives have been enhanced or transformed by the Rotary Foundation's vision and generosity.
As a young boy growing up in Bantama, in the heart of Kumasi, I was spared the misfortune of many of my childhood friends who dropped out of school at the elementary level. As I progressed in education, my close-knit community kept encouraging and encouraging me. At the end of my university studies, when I responded to a newspaper ad and was selected from over 300 applicants, and received a scholarship to study in North America, my entire neighborhood was put to shine. This announcement in the national dailies had been placed by the Rotary Foundation and the scholarship that I awarded Rotary has allowed me to pursue graduate studies at Michigan State University in the United States, where I am I obtained a master's degree in public policy and administration.
During my stay at Michigan State, as a Rotary Fellow, I had the chance and pleasure to speak at many Rotary District 6400 clubs, compromising part of Michigan, USA and from Ontario, Canada.
These were extraordinary moments in my life and they offered me a unique opportunity to appreciate and experience the enduring values of Rotary, which are service above self and life dedicated to a cause.
I've had the chance and the privilege of staying in incredibly generous and sincere family homes. I cherish the moments shared with them, I learned new things and new ways of doing things, and I was able to appreciate and appreciate the beauty and value of people from diverse cultures and worldviews. .
I would like to take this opportunity to pay special tribute to Bob Gallagher and his lovely wife, Mary Jean, my host family. It was during the period when Bob Gallagher was governor of Rotary District 6400 that his district offered a scholarship to a young man they had never seen before, somewhere in Africa. God bless them. I am pleased that during a trip to North America last winter, I was able to visit them in Windsor, Canada; although I can never quite repay their generosity.
My opportunity and experience in Rotary also helped to strengthen my interest in public service as a way to give back to my society and help make it a better place for all. While I was still at Michigan State, I had the opportunity to work as a Legislation Trainee at the Michigan House of Representatives, which allowed me to become familiar with with the internal functioning of the decision-making process in government and legislative process.
Back home, I looked for interests in the public and private sectors before responding to the call to return to the interest in politics that I had started to cultivate as an undergraduate student at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. This path soon led me to occupy the post of political badistant of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party in 2008, a post that I have the privilege of saying, I am still, but this time, with my boss as President of the Republic.
I think you'll agree with me and it's no exaggeration to say that Rotary's investments and experience have paid off. Thanks again from the heart.
The virtues and timeless values that my Rotary experience instilled in me – integrity, service, compbadion and dedication continue to serve me well in the performance of my current duties.
As deputy chief of staff of the presidency, I am often called upon to help people with all kinds of needs, bbad or exceptional. Although it is often impossible to respond to these requests in a personal way, they constantly remind me of the struggles and persistent needs of my compatriots and therefore motivate me to continue to serve the president to enable him, as well as to help him. to our government, to meet the needs of society. fairly. In my own community of Bantama, I stayed in touch with young people, providing mentoring and advice. I have also tried, within the limits of my resources, to support my community in different ways.
In all of this, I strive to put into practice what I learned from Rotary: we receive, often beyond our own immediate needs, so that we can also give to people in need.
I remain grateful to the Rotary Foundation for putting me on a path that has allowed me to be a better citizen and an badet to my community and to society in general.
Thank you and God bless us all!
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