Editorial
Is Valentine’s Day worth celebrating?
All too soon Valentine’s Day (usually called Val’s Day) is here again and come Tuesday February 14, 2023, the Day will be celebrated in diverse ways all over the world.
Usually, weeks before the celebration, shelves of stores are decorated in red, white, and pink. Reports indicate that the streets of Accra is already flooded with red, which is usually associated with love, in preparation towards Val’s Day and traders are taking advantage to cash in on the event.
Some restaurants, hotels and entertainment centres have not been left out but they are also making feverish preparations to welcome and entertain guests all in the name of Val’s Day.
Despite the history surrounding Valentine’s Day, when a Priest named Valentine was executed for breaking the law and secretly performing marriages for young men which was forbidden, the Day has now evolved into a day when lovers take the opportunity to renew their love, friendship and admiration for one another.
While lovers spend quality time together to reignite their love with families and friends others exchange gifts such as chocolates, bouquet of flowers, greeting cards, toffees, dresses, food and drinks.
Although the celebration of Val’s Day has become a commercial venture sometimes with its related stress, one needs to be mindful of the fact that showing love can be a token, which is not so expensive. What is more important is the acknowledgement of love and admiration to keep the relationship vibrant.
Sometimes the expectations from some partners may be so high that eventually it leads to disappointments but one needs not spend lavish gifts to express love. If you cannot afford lavish gifts, celebrate it in moderation.
It is surprising that despite the noise made about Valentine’s Day some Ghanaians are not perturbed at all by its celebration which is observed all over the world.
Some are of the view that partners need to express their love everyday and should not wait for Val’s Day before they do so. Others consider it a ‘taboo’ and would not even dream of celebrating it.
The Spectator is of the view that whatever it is Val’s Day is now celebrated as National Chocolate Day for the consumption of chocolate to promote made-in-Ghana chocolate and other cocoa products, which has caught on well with many Ghanaians and that in itself is refreshing.
Valentine’s Day is now a Day for love and chocolate so more people buy chocolate to share with their loved ones on this special day. It is no more a Day when most of the youth engage in promiscuity; it is a day to eat more chocolate and promote Ghana’s chocolate products.
We say a big thanks to Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey (of blessed memory), the then Minister of Tourism in 2007 who spearheaded this great initiative and announced that Val’s Day would be replaced with the celebration of chocolate.
So whether you are in a relationship or not the Day offers a good opportunity to take time off your busy schedule and spend time with your family and friends to share happy moments and eat chocolate.
The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) must also ensure that made-in-Ghana chocolate is available and affordable for people to consume chocolate and its other products to stay healthy.
Let us be kind and share what we have with the needy in our own small way to make Valentine-Chocolate Day worth-celebrating.
Editorial
Merits and demerits of scraping betting tax
Dear Editor,
Over the past years, a lot of concerns have been raised about the rise of sports betting companies in the country, their operations, and how it impacted negatively on the youth of the country.
I have also witnessed how some of the youth go to the extent of borrowing money from friends or use companies’ money to stake bets, which they were not guaranteed of winning.
Due to this, I was happy when the previous government introduced the betting tax, as I felt it would deter the youth from engaging in it.
However, some Ghanaians hold the view that the betting tax would help create employment.
It wasn’t surprising to see the excitement that greeted the announcement of the scrapping of the tax by the Finance Minister.
My worry now is how, as a country, the youth can be discouraged from engaging in betting.
I believe that as the betting tax has been scrapped, it is about time that the government finds ways of addressing the issue of betting among the youth as it is becoming more serious than before.
I believe that there should be a multi-stakeholder engagement between the various stakeholders to proffer solutions to address them.
Editorial
Rail crossing point at circle- Kaneshie road needs attention
Dear Editor,
I read with happiness a letter published in the previous edition about the poor state of the rail crossing stretch of the Circle-Kaneshie road.
I totally agree with the concerns raised by the writer and I wish to add my voice to the call on the authorities to quickly work on that stretch of the road.
What the writer left out was the occasional happenings when vehicles break down on the rail line. I have witnessed that before.
It is not a comfortable thing driving on it at all. It is a huge dent on the beauty the interchange was expected to bring to the area.
The traffic it creates is a major inconvenience to people who are rushing to work.
I wish to appeal to the authorities to quickly do something about that portion of the road to make it convenient for drivers. Thank you for the space.
Maxwell Amamoo,
Odorkor
