Opinions of Saturday, 29 October 2022

Columnist: Joel Savage

Kwame Nkrumah, I beg you to pardon Ghana

Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana's first president Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana's first president

Not only do Ghanaians need to mourn the chaos, carnage, and destruction that have befallen their beloved country, but they also need to ask for forgiveness for despising Kwame Nkrumah, one of the key figures in Ghana, who fought for the liberation of the nation and the entire African continent. For decades, his family has received nothing but hatred and contempt from an empire of dishonest rivals and tribal bigots, who can't stand the success of Kwame Nkrumah. Jesus once stated, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own house," yet Nkrumah's accomplishments and legacies were beneficial for the entire nation of Ghana, not just the region where he was born. Nkrumah's adversaries, who are not even equipped to clean his shoes, have continued to dislike him in the context of tribalism for decades, ever since driven greed and hate planned his overthrow. While leaders who fought for their countries continue to receive honor and recognition around the world, Nkrumah is not given that recognition in Ghana. Instead, his factories and businesses have been left to rot, so there will be no remnants of his accomplishments for the nation's growing population of Ghanaians to know what this great man accomplished for our country. Even if his legacy has been messed with and his accomplishments have been left to fester, his contributions to history will never be forgotten. Many Ghanaians find it hard to applaud Nkrumah; instead, people glorify ethnic bigots who are ruining our country. Ghana has reached this point as a result, and those who detested Nkrumah are reaping the benefits of their actions. Is the full weight of Nkrumah's curse today being felt in Ghana? I have no way of knowing if Nkrumah cursed Ghana, but what I do know is that the gentleman spoke many things out of bitterness that, in the end, have come back to harm Ghana. Such disdain for Nkrumah is inappropriate decades after his passing. Even though the NPP political party was unable to accomplish even one-tenth of what this great Ghanaian leader accomplished, certain NPP politicians and tribal bigots made statements about Nkrumah to discredit him. More importantly, I urge Ghanaians to pay close attention to current political developments in their nation, study the economic challenges of the era, assess what Nkrumah accomplished, and compare whether similar accomplishments were made by any of our prior leaders up to the present. There are none; the only leader that made an effort to promote growth was the former president of Ghana, John Mahama. Sadly, Mahama's accomplishments have been forgotten because of political avarice, hatred, and the same tribalism Kwame Nkrumah faced. People in Ghana don't want to discuss it, even though Nana Akufo Addo, the country's current president, is not only the most corrupt and lazy leader in the country's political history but also the worst. If you fail as a leader, refuse to take ownership of your mistakes, and continually place the blame for your failure on Mahama, COVID, and the Russian-Ukrainian War, this shows that you cannot lead and that you have no answers to the concerns of the people. Because of this, I penned "By Force President, By Force E-Levy, Everything About Akufo Addo Is By Force" for my column on March 30, 2022. Yes, Akufo Addo employs force like the military regime because he lacks the brains as a leader. The events that are taking place under the Akufo Addo administration resemble the Mafia's efforts to continue operating and expanding as a criminal organization. Ghana is led by a man who lacks leadership knowledge and experience, so he must use force to accomplish everything. Several Ghanaian politicians, including former president John Agyekum Kuffour, Matthew Opuku Prempeh, and Stephen Amoah, Member of Parliament for Nhyeaso, have all disparaged Nkrumah with discriminating and offensive remarks. The most recent claim is made by the Ghanaian comedian Agya Koo, who asserts that Akufo Addo has outperformed Nkrumah in every way. Such statements are motivated by ignorance and tribalism because if you're a Ghanaian and pleased with the current tragic events happening in your country, amidst a devalued currency, a high unemployment rate, crime, inflation, and a massive debt without accountability, you should visit a psychiatrist to determine whether your brain is functioning. I'm overjoyed to see the shame of the critics of Nkrumah. All of them have been exposed to the current occurrences in this government, and they will undoubtedly live to witness more shame because their party appears to be the most incompetent political party in Ghana. If you are a Ghanaian and you are unable to honor Nkrumah, please stop disrespecting him and the family because by doing so you are adding additional curses to your head, which will have severe political repercussions tomorrow. "It is obvious that we need an African solution to our problems, and that this can only be achieved through African unity. "United we are strong; divided we are weak; Africa could become one of the greatest forces for good in the world,” This is one of the most important quotes by the late Ghanaian leader Kwame Nkrumah, that Akufo Addo must learn something from it because his incompetence, tribalism and arrogance have destroyed Ghana. He and the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, ought to resign.