Going places with Kofi Akpabli: Emblematic places of ghana’s independence
Last Sunday was Ghana’s Independence Day anniversary. The achievement resulted from a very long journey, we are told. It actually started when the Whiteman first arrived on our shores and ended at that midnight moment when Kwame Nkrumah waxed the now-familiar phrase: ‘our independence is meaningless unless…’
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For us at ‘Going Places’, our interest lies in the places that were instrumental for Ghana’s liberation movement. Some of these landmarks have been decorated as they deserve, others are well…, as they are.
Cape Coast: This city did not only play ‘senior’ to Accra as capital of the Gold Coast, it also served as the venue for the signing of the Bond of 1844. Even though British colonial rule, in the strict sense, was not established until after the Berlin Conference of 1884 - 1885, British power in the Gold Coast took roots from the early 19th century through George Maclean.
Maclean finished his term in 1843 and handed over to Commander Hill who proceeded to formalise the relations in a short document of three paragraphs known as the Bond of 1844. This treaty was signed by 17 coastal chiefs.
If the 6th of March was selected as Ghana’s Independence Day it was because that was the exact date in 1844 that the Bond was initialled at Cape Coast Castle. The table on which it was signed is still available, though (hold your breath) broken in one leg.
Akyem Abuakwa
This traditional area has been referred to as 'Mecca of democracy.’ The traditional headquarters is Kyebi also home to the Okyenhene, the overlord of Akyem Abuakwa. Any JHS pupil knows about the Big Six. This place is important because it produced three members of the "Big Six" namely Joseph Boakye Danquah, Edward Akufo-Addo and William Ofori Atta.
Saltpond: If there was a Boston Tea Party town in Ghana it would be Saltpond in the Central Region. Both the United Gold Coast Convention and the Convention People's Party which led the country to independence were formed in this place.
Locally known as Akyemfo, Saltpond was a vibrant harbour town which hosted important political meetings and activities. The town’s state of decline started when the landing beach was abandoned for the Tema and Takoradi harbours in the 1960s.
Another factor was the building of a bypass on the Accra-Cape Coast Highway around the same time which meant that transit traffic through the town virtually ceased. A palm tree planted by Dr. Kwame Nkrumah to mark the formation of the Convention People's Party (CPP) still stands.
Adjeikrom: This could be your Camp David of pre-independence times. Adjeikrom is of political significance not only because it is the birth place of Ako Adjei one of the Big Six. Dr, Nkrumah and the others used to come to this cocoa village in the Eastern Region.
It is probable that a number of the strategies to wrestle Ghana’s independence from the Brits were adopted by the stream, under a cola nut tree or in the big family courtyard in this rural setting. Find out more in the book Romancing Ghanaland- the Beauty of 10 Regions.
28th February Cross-Roads
You have heard of the rather profound cliché ‘blood of our forefathers’, right? Well, this is the one venue which actually saw Ghanaian blood drip to the ground. Located between the Accra Stadium and Osu Christansborg Castle, this place witnessed one tragic event that sealed the resolve for self-determination.
On 28th February 1948, some of the Second World War veterans marched to the Christiansborg Castle, the seat of the colonial government. They intended submitting a petition to the Governor, Sir Gerald Creasy who was also nicknamed ‘Crazy Creasy’ about their poor conditions and unpaid war benefits.
Police Superintendent Colin Imray, a British police officer, ordered the veterans to disperse but they refused. He then ordered his men to open fire on the unarmed soldiers and, when they refused, opened fire himself killing three of them, namely Sergeant Cornelius Frederick Adjetey, Private Odartey Lamptey and Corporal Attipoe.
Old Polo Park: Well, technically this place doesn’t exist as it has been sub-planted by, the Kwame Nkrumah Mauselouem. At the heart of British Accra, this venue was used by the white elites to play polo until this activity was shifted to the place behind Granada Hotel near the airport. Old School sources tell me that it used to serve as training ground for new drivers with one test drive round the park costing five shillings. Old Polo Park is emblematic because this is where Kwame Nkrumah declared ‘Ghana our beloved country free is forever’
The writer is a Communication and Tourism Specialist. Books he has authored include ‘Romancing Ghanaland- the Beauty of Ten Regions’, Tickling the Ghanaian-Encounters with Contemporary Culture & ‘Harmattan- a Cultural Profile of Northern Ghana.’