A member of the Socialist Forum-Ghana Dr. David Pessey has described as “silly” attempts by the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) to rewrite the history of the country.
He said this Wednesday while debating against the motion that Ghana has more than one founder on GHone TV moderated by Kafui Dey.
“Even for people in the diaspora, this debate will sound quite silly to them,” he argued. “The NPP has executive power and can change the history of this country but it will not stay. The business of falsifying history will not stop now.”
President Akufo-Addo is set to propose to Parliament to adopt August 4 as Founders’ Day for the Republic.
The proposal will also request parliament to approve September 21 as a holiday to be observed in honour of Ghana’s first President Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.
In a statement, the President bemoaned the confusion that has heralded the role previous leaders played towards Ghana’s independence.
“It is unfortunate that 60 years after independence, the history of the events leading to it continues to be embroiled in unnecessary controversy, due largely to partisan political considerations of the moment,” the statement said.
It added: “It is clear that successive generations of Ghanaians made vital contributions to the liberation of our country from imperialism and colonialism. It is, therefore, fitting that we honour them, as those who contributed to the founding of our nation.”
But in his reaction, Dr Pessey said the president is pursuing a parochial interest because “three of the so called big six are his relations—a father, an uncle, and a grand uncle which also feeds into this idea of entitlement in the sense that “look” this country is ours.”
He added, “When it comes to our history and our founder, no one comes close to Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.”
For his part, Dr. Kingsley Nyarko, Executive Director of Danquah Institute retorted otherwise, stating “gaining independence and founding Ghana are two different things.”
According to him, the assertion that Ghana was founded by an individual is flawed and incomprehensible.
“I want to say that Ghana was there before 6th March 1957. We must appreciate those who contributed in founding Ghana..we can’t overlook them. It will be unfair to attribute our freedom to only one person. For me, the fight was a collective fight and not an individual one,” he stressed.
Source: Ghana/Starrfmonline.com/103.5FM
