Commemoration of Nkrumah’s 115th birthday: John Mahama promises to make ‘Journey to Nkroful' major tourism event

The presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has pledged to incorporate the “Journey to Nkroful”, a festival in recognition of Dr Kwame Nkrumah's birthday, into the national tourism calendar if given the nod in the December 7 election, this year. 

He said the festival, which was celebrated privately in Nkroful, the hometown of Dr Nkrumah on September 21, would be recognised as a major event in honour of the country’s first president.

Mr Mahama was addressing a gathering of the chiefs and people of Nkroful in the Western Region last Saturday during the “Journey to Nkroful” festival held to commemorate the 115 birthday of Dr Nkrumah.

“This festival will become a Pan-African pilgrimage for people from all over the world to visit the birth place of Dr Kwame Nkrumah,” he added. 

History

Mr Mahama said that there were attempts by a group of people to dilute the role of Dr Nkrumah as the founder in the country’s independence history by introducing the idea of a big six.

He said while many, far beyond the big six, played significant roles in the independence struggle, Dr Nkrumah was the catalyst who brought the struggle to a head, resulting in the historic liberation of the country from colonial domination.

The vaunted big six, the former president said, were an accident of history, and not a united force, as some of them actively opposed Nkrumah’s vision of self-governance.

“The next NDC government will seek to remove the distortions in our history and restore Kwame Nkrumah to his rightful place in the history of Ghana,” he said to applause from the gathering.

Mr Mahama recalled that by the time the need for independence crystallised, the UGCC, which was the party of the big six, opposed the granting of independence by Britain, the colonial masters, and sent a delegation to Britain to petition Queen Elizabeth not to grant independence to Ghana.

They also boycotted the motion of destiny which begun the legislative process to grant Ghana independence.

“How can such a reactionary movement now claim the collective honour as being founders of our nation?

“This false equivalence of elevating figures whose contributions, while important, did not match the transformational and radical leadership that Nkrumah offered for Ghana’s liberation must be rejected outright,” he said.

The former president also promised to re-introduce an “oil and gas enclave road project” under which the government would construct all major roads where some of the country’s most important resources were located. 

Development

The President of the Lower Axim Traditional Council, Awulae Attibrukusu II, said no one could re-write the history of Ghana because Kwame Nkrumah’s place had since been well documented.

He said the influence and recognition of Nkrumah as founder of Ghana transcended the country’s borders, a reason he was adjudged the African of the Millennium by the BBC in 2000.

For his part, the Chief of Nkroful, Nana Kwasi Kutuah V, bemoaned the deplorable state of social development in the area, and entreated Mr Mahama to re-visit the road projects his previous government started before it lost power in 2016, including upgrading the town’s clinic into a hospital.