Mr Steven Nhyira Odarteifio, Airport Name Change Petitioner has commended President John Dramani Mahama for reverting thr name of Kotoka International Airport to Accra International Airport.

He thanked President Mahama for showing that leadership remained a fearless blend of courage and conviction.

In a statement, Mr Odarteifio said the moment would be remembered as a legacy decision because it signals that Ghana’s democracy was mature enough to hear its people, reflect and act.

He also thanked the Ministry of Transport and all institutions that would implement the transition; the Ghana Airports Company Limited, Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, Security Services, Airlines and partners.

He said on January 20, 2026, he led a petition calling for this change, not as a distraction from bread-and-butter development, but as a reminder that nation-building is both material and moral.

“A country can build roads, airports, ports, and factories and still choose to correct what it honours at its front door,” he added.

He commended every citizen who debated, criticised, supported, prayed, wrote, spoke, and stood firm and media houses that carried and amplified the conversation, civil society voices, Samia Nkrumah, Kwaku Sintim Misa, Kwesi Pratt Jnr, the Democracy Hub and many others who kept the issue alive over the years.

He said the win belongs to Ghana, the African Union, then Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and its founders, syreeing that “the spirit of Dr. Nkrumah was revived in us.”

Mr Odarteifio said the country’s development agenda must continue like job creation, education, health, food security and industrial growth, but today also proves something important that “we can pursue progress without losing our conscience.”