Ghanaian President Mahama sworn in

ACCRA - Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama was sworn in here on Monday for the next four-year tenure after winning elections last month.

He took both the oath of allegiance and presidential oath administered by Chief Justice Theodora Georgina Wood before a record crowd that thronged the more than 30,000 capacity Independence Square.

Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama (L) takes the oath during his inauguration ceremony at the Independence Square in Accra Jan 7, 2013. [Photo/Agencies]

"I have taken an oath that, as president of this nation, I will work hard to place us on the right path, and I will lead us over the hurdles and past the obstacles that might threaten to keep us from meeting our goals. The promises that I have made are promises that I intend to keep," Mahama declared shortly after being sworn into office.

He said although the country had made tremendous gains over the past 55 years, there was no denying the fact that Ghana was still a young country that "goes through its share of instability and difficulty as it struggles to find the direction toward permanence. "

He also conceded that despite the achievements under the government of the ruling National Democratic Congress over the last four years, a lot more work remained to be done.

"More jobs must be created, more roads must be built, bridges, schools, and hospitals must be built; the infrastructure that we have already expanded must be strengthened and made better able to withstand increased usage," he stated.

In these efforts, he craved the support of all Ghanaians in the growth and development of their beloved country, stressing, "In our hands, yours as well as mine, rests the success or failure of Ghana's future."

"I will be counting on you to maintain the faith and the trust that you have placed in me as president and I promise I will not let you down," he affirmed.

Mahama assured Ghanaians that the country was on the path of enormous transformation, moving forward at a rapid pace and with new resources at its disposal.

A senior policy advisor at the country's National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Ferdinand Tay, commented that, by the inauguration, Ghana had taken one more step in its forward march.

"Ghana is in very good hands," he told Xinhua in an interview, urging Ghanaians not to despair but rally behind Mahama to deliver on his promises.

Present at the colorful inauguration were two former Ghanaian presidents Jerry Rawlings and John Agyekum Kufuor, former UN secretary general Kofi Annan and Benin's President Thomas Yayi Boni.

Chinese President Hu Jintao sent his special envoy and Minister of Water Resources Chen Lei to the presidential inauguration in the Ghanaian capital Accra, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Mahama won the elections on December 7-8, 2012, with 50.70 percent of the total valid votes cast, ahead of the 47.74 percent scored by his closest rival, Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo of the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).

The NPP believed the election results were rigged in favor of incumbent President Mahama. Jake Otanka Obetsebi-Lamptey, chairman of the NPP, petitioned the Supreme Court on December 28, 2012 to challenge the validity of the presidential results.