By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Gold-rich West African nation, Ghana will be the host country for the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation 2025 Democracy Dialogue, a gathering which aims to interrogate democratic governance in the sub-region as a means of weighing its impact on the people.
This year’s dialogue which is the fourth in the series since 2021, when the foundation launched the annual discourse, will hold in Accra on Wednesday September 17.
Expected in attendance is the host President John Mahama, Nigeria’s ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, and many other African statesmen.
Distinguished leaders also expected at the event are former Nigerian leader, Goodluck Jonathan who is also the host, and the former Prime Minister of Burkina Faso and former President of the Commission of the Economic Community of West African States, Kadré Ouédraogo, Special Adviser to Jonathan, Mr Ikechukwu Eze said in a statement.
Others according to the statement are the current President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Alieu Touray, as well as the Most Rev. Matthew Kukah, the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese.
This year’s dialogue with the theme, ‘Why Democracies Die’, would be co-hosted by the Foundation in collaboration with the Government of Ghana.
The statement says the dialogue would give participants the opportunity to beam their searchlights on the progress, challenges and prospects of decades of democratic rule in the sub-region.
The event will be chaired by Obasanjo while Kukah will serve as the keynote speaker.
Jonathan became Nigeria’s President in May 2010 following the death of President Yar’Adua and ruled till 29 May 2015.
He has attracted global accolades for allowing a smooth transition from a governing party to opposition, the first since return of democracy in Nigeria in 1999, ushering a new era in West Africa where there is a high rate of sit-tight leadership.
