Congratulations,Ghana!

Congratulations,Ghana!
By Editor
Wednesday March 07, 2007 [02:00]

On the occasion of their 50th independence anniversary, which fell yesterday, we greet the people of Ghana and we express our hope that they shall continue celebrating their freedom for many more years to come. Yesterday was an important point in the history of Ghana as it was the day which marks half a century since Ghana became the first black African country south of the Sahara to gain independence from colonial rule.

March 6, 1957 remains very historic to the liberation of the peoples of Africa. With Ghana’s independence on March 6, 1957, a pattern was set for the continent to tread on a path to political freedom. Within a decade from the day of Ghana’s independence, most African countries had freed themselves from the colonial yoke.

This day also helps us to recall and acknowledge the role that was played by Ghana’s founding father, Kwame Osagyefo Nkrumah, not only in the struggle for the political freedom of his country, but for the rest of the African continent.

There is no ambiguity about the fact that Nkrumah emerged as one of the most influential Pan-Africanists of the 20th century who dedicated a lot of his time and efforts against the evils of colonialism, neo-colonialism and imperialism.

We do realise that as a leader of his new government, Nkrumah did indeed encounter a number of challenges. It is true that under Nkrumah’s leadership, Ghana took enormous steps forward. For instance, as a way of lifting the nation out of poverty, Nkrumah created a welfare system for the people of Ghana, apart from initiating various community programmes, as well as establishing schools.

To further commerce and communication in Ghana, Nkrumah worked hard to ensure the construction of roads and bridges. And in the interest of the nation’s health, he had tap water systems installed in the villages and ordered the construction of concrete drains for latrines.

Also very important to note was Nkrumah’s strong commitment to the promotion of Pan-Africanism. Political history shows us that Nkrumah was one of the architects of the Organisation of African Unity, the forerunner to the present African Union. His vision was to see that not only were African countries united, but that the continent, having won the struggle for political freedom, also led the struggle towards economic emancipation.

It was unfortunate that the strong influence and machinations of imperialism brought down his government in February 1966. Nkrumah had no option but to leave for exile in Guinea-Conakry where he was made honorary co-president by his host Sekou Toure. He died in April 1972 from skin cancer.

Owing largely to his legacy, especially his commitment to the liberation and development of the African continent, Nkrumah remains one of the most respected leaders in the history of Africa.

But as we celebrate with the people of Ghana their many years of political independence, the sad reality is that the African continent in general is still faced with the same challenges that Nkrumah sought to deal with from the outset.

Today, we are aware that even though nearly all African countries can make a claim for political independence, the same cannot be said in so far as economic freedom is concerned. Yet we need not be reminded that political sovereignty and economic independence go hand-in -hand.

If a country does not have its own economy, if it is penetrated by foreign capital, then it cannot be free from the tutelage of the country it depends on. This is the case for most of our African countries. Today, there may be no colonial master directly superintending the political affairs of our countries, but there are plenty of masters who determine how our economies should operate.

And this is why Africa’s forefathers such as Nkrumah lay emphasis on the fact that the continent’s pillars of political sovereignty, which were put in place with the independence of Ghana on March 6, 1957, would only be totally consolidated when economic independence was achieved.

As we look back and take stock of Africa’s affairs since the independence movement was launched with the independence of Ghana, let us learn to seriously start counting that which is of great value to our countries’ total independence.

Let us remember that our African countries will only be truly independent when they develop their own means, when all their natural resources start making value for their own people and not for foreign capital.

African countries will only celebrate true independence when their economies are no longer dominated by foreign multinational capital, which has long been diagnosed and associated with the terrible disease of excessive capital flight.

African countries will only claim true freedom from the subjugation of other nations or forces of the world when their economic policies are no longer written or drawn by trainee students of Western economics, students who are completely detached from the realities of the continent of Africa, but hired by the pre-eminent faces of imperialism - the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Africa will only claim true freedom when, through balanced and equal-terms trade negotiations with the rest of the world, it will make sure that no unilateral action or decision by any foreign power can prevent it from expanding its geographical boundaries - like the powerful nations have done - on the world trading map.

In other words, with the same zeal that the African people fought and won the fight for political freedom, so should they apply their enthusiasm in fighting for Africa’s total economic independence.

Otherwise, we once again salute our Ghanaian brothers and sisters for having set the trend for the political freedom of their brothers and sisters elsewhere on the African continent.