Member of Parliament for Ellembelle and Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has unveiled the Osagyefo Roundabout at Sanzule, near Eikwe, in honour of Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah.
The unveiling formed part of activities marking the 117th anniversary of Dr Nkrumah’s birth.
The monument recognises Dr Nkrumah as an iconic figure who spearheaded Ghana’s independence struggle and championed Africa’s liberation.
Unveiling the monument alongside Kenyan lawyer and Pan-Africanist, Professor Patrick Loch Otieno Lumumba, Mr Armah-Kofi Buah said Nzemaland produced a son who led Ghana to independence, but the area plunged into darkness for more than 30 years after his overthrow.
He said detractors once attempted to erase Dr Nkrumah’s name from Ghana’s history, including removing his image from the currency, but failed.
He described the Osagyefo Roundabout as a monument to self-reliance, saying, “Ghana could no longer lean on the people who colonised us.”
He added that government will next year renovate Dr Nkrumah’s residence in his father’s hometown of Half-Assini to preserve his memory and legacy.
Prof Lumumba said Dr Nkrumah stood tall among his peers and his legacy endures because his ideals, memories and philosophy continue to live on, commending Mr Buah for the honour.
NDC National Chairman Johnson Asiedu Nketiah said two prominent figures of Ghana’s pre-independence struggle, Paa Grant of the UGCC and Dr Nkrumah of the CPP, were both sons of Nzemaland from Axim and Nkroful respectively, and attempts to obliterate Nkrumah’s name have failed.
Daughter of the late President, Madam Samia Yaba Nkrumah, expressed the family’s appreciation and said they look forward to more leaders who embody Nkrumah’s ideals of freedom, development, prosperity and self-reliance.
Source: Citinewsroom / GNA / Leticia Osei
