The Order of the Star and Eagles of Ghana is an order created by President John Kufuor of Ghana in June 2008. The award superseded the Order of the Star of Ghana as the highest national decoration. It is to be presented only to those who have obtained the office of President of the Republic of Ghana.
There was significant criticism to the order's creation. Some suggested it was inappropriate for such an order with such limited members to be the highest in the land. Others have suggested this is simple a vanity title for the outgoing president and comparisons have been made to African dictators who gave themselves titles (such as Idi Amin).
Others have suggested that the order is illegal as it was instituted by executive ordinance rather than being a parliamentary motion. It is questionable as to whether or not the President is legally allowed to create such an order Although the President is "fount of honour" (in that all honours flow from the president, similar to the British model where all honours flow from the Queen) it is debatable as to whether or not the President has the authority to simply create a new order.
Famous quotes containing the words order of, order, star and/or ghana:
“A sleeping man holds in a circle around him the thread of the hours, the order of years and of worlds. He consults them instinctively upon awaking and in one second reads in them the point of the earth that he occupies, the time past until his arousal; but their ranks can be mingled or broken.”
—Marcel Proust (1871–1922)
“In the order of literature, as in others, there is no act that is not the coronation of an infinite series of causes and the source of an infinite series of effects.”
—Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986)
“Don Pedro. To be merry best becomes you; for, out o’ question, you were born in a merry hour.
Beatrice. No, sure, my lord, my mother cried; but then there was a star danced, and under than was I born.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“While the rest of the world has been improving technology, Ghana has been improving the quality of man’s humanity to man.”
—Maya Angelou (b. 1928)