Ghana is today observing the birthday of its first president Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.
The day known as Nkrumah Memorial Day, is a national day set aside to honour the life and legacy of Dr. Nkrumah, a leading figure in the struggle for independence.
The day offers Ghanaians the opportunity to reflect on Nkrumah’s vision for national unity, Pan-Africanism, social progress and his enduring impact on Ghana’s history and Africa’s liberation movement.
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Background:
Francis Kwame Nkrumah (Nzema: [kʷame nkruma], 21 September 1909 – 27 April 1972) was a Ghanaian politician, political theorist, and revolutionary. He served as Prime Minister of the Gold Coast from 1952 until 1957, when it gained independence from Britain.[1] He was then the first prime minister and then the president of Ghana, from 1957 until 1966. An influential advocate of Pan-Africanism, Nkrumah was a founding member of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and winner of the Lenin Peace Prize from the Soviet Union in 1962.[2]
After twelve early years abroad pursuing higher education, developing his political philosophy, and organizing with other diasporic pan-Africanists, Nkrumah returned to the Gold Coast to begin his political career as an advocate of national independence.[3] He formed the Convention People’s Party, which achieved rapid success through its unprecedented appeal to the common voter.[4] He became Prime Minister in 1952 and retained the position when he led Ghana to independence from Britain in 1957, a first in sub-Saharan Africa at the time. In 1960, Ghanaians approved a new constitution and elected Nkrumah as president.
His administration was primarily socialist as well as nationalist. It funded national industrial and energy projects, developed a strong national education system and promoted a pan-Africanist culture.[6] Under Nkrumah, Ghana played a leading role in African international relations and the pan-africanist movement during Africa’s decolonization period, supporting numerous liberation struggles.
After an alleged assassination plot against him,[8] coupled with increasingly difficult local economic conditions, Nkrumah’s government became authoritarian in the 1960s, as he repressed political opposition and conducted elections that were neither free nor fair.[9] In 1964, a constitutional amendment made Ghana a one-party state, with Nkrumah as president for life of both the nation and its party.[10] He fostered a personality cult, forming ideological institutes and adopting the title of ‘Osagyefo Dr.’[11][full citation needed] Nkrumah was deposed in 1966 in a coup d’état by the National Liberation Council. Claims of CIA involvement in his overthrow have never been verified.[12] [13][14] Nkrumah lived the rest of his life in Guinea, where he was named honorary co-president. In 1999, he was voted BBC African of the millennium.
Source: Wikepedia
