Proposal for the institution of Founders Day, Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Day

The proposal by President Akufo-Addo for legislation to designate August 4 and September 21 as public holidays has received had mixed reaction. August 4 will be observed as founders’ day while September 21 will be celebrated as Kwame Nkrumah Memorial day. Those for the proposal see it as a good one because it will bring closure to the debate over who founded or were the founders of Ghana and honour them accordingly. Those against the decision however argue that there is only one founder of Ghana and history should remain so. They believe that Dr. Kwame Nkrumah led Ghana to independence from British Colonial rule and is nationally and internationally recognized as the founder of the nation-state called Ghana.

Truth be told, there were some who began the struggle for self-determination before Dr. Nkrumah joined and accelerated the process. Those people facilitated Dr. Kwame Nkrumah's return to the then Gold Coast to be the General Secretary of the erstwhile United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC). Nkrumah unfortunately fell out with them on ideological lines and founded the Convention People's Party (CPP) which led Ghana to independence in 1957. It will therefore be hypocritical to deny the nationalist leaders their place in history.

As a country we have always hailed the achievements of these people who have come to be known as the Big Six. They are even on the country's currency and have their effigies dotted around the country. We have also erected monuments in their memory. Indeed a country that does not honour its heroes is not worth dying for. To some however that seemingly gratitude always plays out in an unsatisfactory manner. They still lose sleep over Nkrumah's place in politics but to distort history to gratify a certain end is wishful thinking.

They world has voted Nkrumah the Africa's man of the millennium. There is no doubt that the role of the JB Danquahs, William Ofori Attas, Ako Adjeis, Edward Akufo Addos, Obetsebi Lampteys and of course Nkrumah himself in the independence struggle is always acknowledged. Nkrumah Memorial Day and a holiday will definitely be seen as partisan what will be done differently on August 4 which cannot be combined with the September activities to celebrated our past heroes and heroines.

In his time, the young pioneers sang a song; ‘Kwame Nkrumah never dies.’ Yes and truly Nkrumah never dies! Even in death the aura and controversy around the man rages on. The least said about the decision to create another holiday and the country's calendar the better some people believe it would be one too many considering the unpleasant situation the country’s economy finds itself.

We need to build consensus on the issue instead of it being impose on Ghanaians. If the proposed legislation is hurried through without the requisite consultation and rapprochement, the possibility of it being amended by a future government is high. Let us give to Caesar what is Caesar and to God what belongs to God. President Akufo-Addo has good motives for deciding on the two holidays. He however needs to tread cautiously in order not to give credence to people who have started conjecturing that it is a family agenda because his father and uncle will be direct be beneficiaries of the 4th August Founders’ Day event. Everybody who contributed in one way of the other to secure Ghana's independence deserves a recognition but this must be well thought through.

BY JUSTICE MINGLE, A JOURNALIST.

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