Historian Says Celebration Of Founders' Day On August 4 'Totally Wrong'
- Kwaku Darko Ankrah has criticised President Akufo-Addo's decision to select August 4 as Founders' Day
- According to the historian, August 4 does not represent the beginning of Ghana's independence struggle
- He advised that a new date be selected to unify the country, as August 4 just marks the UGCC's formation
Historian Kwaku Darko Ankrah has stated that President Nana Akufo-Addo erred by selecting August 4 as Founders’ Day.
According to him, marking this date does not fully represent those who contributed to the struggle for Ghana's independence.
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In 2019, Ghana’s parliament declared August 4 as Founders’ Day to honour the various heroes and heroines who contributed to the independence struggle.
Parliament also established September 21 as Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Day to honour and celebrate the legacy and contributions of Ghana’s first president post-independence.
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However, the establishment of Founders’ Day sparked outrage from Ghanaians who believed Kwame Nkrumah was the only one who could be ascribed the title of ‘Founder of Ghana’.
Nevertheless, in a 2024 Founders’ Day address, Akufo-Addo said he firmly rejected the notion that one man could have founded Ghana, as opposed to the collective efforts of many Ghanaians spanning many generations.
Historian says Founders' Day date a problem
Reacting to the President’s statement on Channel One TV on Wednesday, August 7, 2024, Kwaku Darko Ankrah stated that while there was nothing inherently wrong about celebrating the collective effort that had culminated in the country’s independence, observing that day on August 4 was the problem.
He explained that the date was simply when the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) was formed. The UGCC is the antecedent to the New Patriotic Party’s Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition.
The historian said that celebrating Founders’ Day on the day a political party was formed inherently meant the exclusion of all those who had ignited the struggle for self-rule years prior.
He said the formation of UGCC does not represent the entirety of Ghana’s founding efforts, and thus, he suggested a date change.
Darko Ankrah said keeping the celebration on August 4 would likely lead to a future non-NPP government scrapping the holiday altogether.
He urged parliament to select a date to unify the country rather than create conflict.
Akufo-Addo rejects Nkrumah as Ghana's sole founder
Meanwhile, President Akufo-Addo said the notion that Dr Kwame Nkrumah single-handedly fought for and won the country’s independence is at odds with the collective efforts his forebears and contemporaries had made towards the same goal.
He stated that while the significance of Dr Nkrumah’s role remains unassailable, he cannot be credited as the sole architect of Ghana’s independence.
The President said the celebration of the Founders’ Day holiday should allow Ghanaians to reflect on the efforts of those who had supported the fight for independence.
He added that the struggle for the country’s self-determination had spanned generations, and all those who had played significant roles must be recognised and honoured.
CPP slams Akufo-Addo for Founders’ Day speech
Yen.com.gh also reported that the Convention People's Party had rejected President Akufo-Addo's claim that Dr Kwame Nkrumah was not Ghana's sole founder.
According to the CPP, the president and the New Patriotic Party's seeming attempt to denigrate Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and his unviolable legacy would not succeed.
The party also said as a result of his remark, Ghanaians would reject the NPP and its flagbearer, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, in the upcoming December 7 elections.
Proofread by Bruce Douglas, senior copy editor at YEN.com.gh
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Source: YEN.com.gh
