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| Nkrumah''s Son Whacks Gov''t |
2/7/2007 |
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MR. SEKOU Nkrumah, the last born of the late Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, First President of the nation, has taken a swipe at the government for losing the Pan African Agenda and the vision of his father, which pioneered Ghana into independence, as the nation prepares to celebrate its 50th anniversary this year.
According to him, even though his father was not alone in the struggle for independence, his visions and ideas have been totally neglected by the current administration, whose tradition opposed the regime of the first President.
"The struggle for independence did not involve Nkrumah alone but a lot of others, who laid down their lives for Ghana''s Independence; hence the need to cut the celebration to encompass those selfless giants.
"It seems to me that what is missing in the celebration, is the vision of Nkrumah, which the government of the day seems to have lost touch with," he told this paper when his views were sought on activities towards the Ghana @50 celebrations.
Sekou, a member of the Convention People''s Party (CPP) told this paper that, it was unfortunate that a party, which basically opposed the administration of Dr. Nkrumah, was now hijacking all the activities without involving other political parties.
He was quick to say, "But things have changed over the years. Today, Ghana and for that matter Ghanaians, have come a long way and thus recognise the efforts of Nkrumah to liberate Ghana and Africa as a whole; the more reason why the 50th anniversary celebrations should not be a thing for Ghana alone but a celebration for the whole Africa."
He continued, "Ghana needs to be self-reliant to build its infrastructure. Nkrumah''s prime Pan African Agenda, which he perused and preached during his Pan-African congresses in London and America in his school days, should be encouraged."
Sekou, who played down the chances of the CPP regaining political power in 2008, added that since most of Nkrumah''s policies aimed at ensuring that Ghana and Africa gained not only political freedom but also economic freedom, it must be applicable to today''s era; to the extent that we could integrate our economy with other African countries then eventually we can have that dream of a United States of Africa, a vision Nkrumah had shared in his time.
A Pan African Agenda and vision, he said was the greatest legacy his late father left behind, which basically should be the meaning of our independence.
To him, the anniversary celebration is not creating the excitement the world cup did.
He attributed this to the economic hardships, which he said, was as a result of the nation''s failure to emphasise on some of the policies, which his father actually stood for.
The CPP firebrand told this paper further how his father placed priority on education, which formed the basis for the human resource. "You can develop infrastructure but for poor people to really improve their lives it takes time; but if you educate them within just one generation they would be in good positions and have good jobs," he said.
Asked if the CPP is capable of championing Nkrumah''s vision, he said, that would solely depend on a dynamic leadership and the ability for the leadership to repackage the party to make it more attractive.
Pressed further, he said there would be no way the party could chalk success under the current leadership.
To him, for the party to make a significant impact on the political landscape, the current leadership must give way to the new ones for lack of vision and direction.
Admitting that all is not well with the party until the party gets new leadership, Mr. Nkrumah said plans were underway in that direction, which when successfully implemented, could see the CPP in power in subsequent elections.
He disagreed with sections of party members who said his father was neglected, asserting that a monument was erected for his father as recognition for what he has done.
Source:
Chronicle
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