Kojo Asamoa-Caesar, the first Ghanaian-American nominee for the US Congress has urged leaders across the world and current democracies to care more about the common good.

In an interview with Ghanaian academic, researcher and political communication analyst Etse Sikanku, Mr Asamoa-Caesar said societies must cultivate leaders who align with their national values.

Asamoa-Caesar won Oklahoma’s first Congressional District primaries for the Democratic party.

He will go up against the incumbent Keven Hern in the November 3 elections.

In the process, he has scored a number of firsts. He is the first Black nominee from Oklahoma’s District One to run for office.

He is the youngest-ever Democratic nominee for the state of Oklahoma’s First Congressional District.

He’s also the first resident of North Tulsa to be the nominee for his district.

And very significantly, he is the first Ghanaian-American nominee for Congress.

His win has been touted as inspiring, especially at a time of widespread concerns about racial injustice and limited opportunities for minorities in America.

Mr Asamoa-Caesar said leadership is very critical to the success of any community and has called on citizens to elect leaders who care about their communities.

"We have to elect public servants who care more about the common good and the public interest than they do about their own self-interest”, he said.

Asamoa-Caesar asserted that leadership is about the people.

He said for democracy to work, leadership matters and explained that selecting leaders with the right values is very important for democracy to work effectively.

“You can have all the right sounding values on paper but if you do not cultivate great leaders with values that are aligned to these statements on paper, you are not going to have a thriving democracy. This is about leaders and it’s about people", he said.

Ghanaians who joined in the conversation were full of admiration and support for Kojo Asamoa-Caesar and expressed their best wishes to him in the Congressional election.

The candidate added that he believed education is always a great game-changer. 

He has made revamping education one of the major pillars of his vision for his district among others. He said the values of kindness and togetherness are things he picked up during his formative years in Ghana which have stayed with him till date.