The Managing Director of the Intercity (STC), Nana Akomea says Ghana’s first President Dr. Kwame Nkrumah is only independence leader and not the founder of the country as widely known by the citizenry.
According to Nana Akomea, leading the country to gain independence doesn’t make him the founder of the country.
Until Nana Akufo-Addo came into power in 2017 and canceled the practice, Ghanaians accorded Dr. Kwame as the founder of Ghana, something that has since been replaced to celebrate those who formed the ‘Big Six’.
However, not to downplay the great effort by Dr. Kwame Nkrumah in the struggle, September 21st has been named Nkrumah’s Birthday and is a statutory holiday as well.
Nana Akomea contributing to ‘Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Day’ discussion which has been revived as a result of holiday to mark the birthday on “Kokrokoo” show said calling Dr. Nkrumah the founder of Ghana is a violation of the country’s history.
“Let’s even accept that we (Ghana) have a Founder but it can’t be only one person of the name Kwame Nkrumah. I don’t believe that. In fact, the history doesn’t support that only one person brought us our independence,” he said.
Mr. Akomea said, he agrees with the decision by the president to celebrating all the actors in Ghana’s struggle for independence, hence applauding the Akufo-Addo administration for re-naming August 4th as ‘Founders’ Day’.
As to what to call Dr. Kwame Nkrumah regarding the topic of whether or not he is the Founder of Ghana, Nana Akomea asserted; “The people who led us to 6th March are independence leaders but we have taken it as Founders’ Day and fighting over it. The basis for my statement is that before the people came, the country was already existing as Gold Coast and when they came too, Gold Coast which today called Ghana is the same country that’s there. When you take Africa, we are not the only ones who had independence.
“Togo also got independence, so if you call yourself the founder because you led us into independence, it means Robert Mugabe is founder of Zimbabwe. Nelson Mandela is the founder of South Africa . . . But there is nothing like that. I haven’t heard anywhere that Nelson Mandela founded South Africa or Kenneth Kaunda is the founder of Zambia. They are all independence leaders.”he added.
source: theGhanaianvoice.com