Don't celebrate Kwame Nkrumah as the founder of Ghana - Prof Adei

Professor Stephen Adei, the renowned administrator and educationist has joined the debate on who founded Ghana, saying that there is no reason to celebrate Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the first Prime Minister of the country, as the founder of Ghana.

According to him, Dr Kwame Nkrumah broke out of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), the first political movement to be formed in the country to fight the colonial powers because he wanted to become a Prime Minister.

He explained that if Kwame Nkrumah had been with the UGCC to fight for the country's independence, there was no way he [Nkrumah] could have become a Prime Minister, hence breaking away from the united front to form his own political party, the Conventions People's Party (CPP).

Speaking at the official opening of a photo exhibition by the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) at the La Palm Royal Hotel in Accra, dubbed 60years through the lens of Graphic, Prof Adei said there is no need to celebrate him [Nkrumah] as the founder of Ghana since others started the fight before he joined.

He said one of the founders of UGCC, Paa Grant, paid for the travelling expenses of Kwame Nkrumah to come from abroad to the country to become the secretary of UGCC.
He said since there was already a political movement with the aim of emancipating the country from the shackles of colonial powers, Kwame Nkrumah cannot be solely celebrated as the founder of Ghana.

Background

There is an ongoing debate in Ghana as to who or whom to celebrate as the founder or founders of Ghana.

While some think only Kwame Nkrumah needed to be celebrated as the founder of the country, others are of the view that many people contributed to the country's independence struggle, hence the need to celebrate all actors that contributed to the country's political liberty from colonial masters.