‘If the world, Africa honoured Nkrumah as the Millennium Man, why are we not doing same?’ – Asiedu Nketia

National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has questioned why Ghanaians are not giving Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah the same level of recognition and honour he has received across Africa and the world. Speaking at NkrumahFest 2026 at Nkroful in the Western Region, Mr Asiedu Nketia said he was pained by what he described as attempts to diminish Nkrumah’s image and legacy. “If the world and Africa have honoured him as the ‘Man of the Millennium’, why are we not doing that as Ghanaians?” he asked.

According to him, Nkrumah deserved to retain the recognition as the founder of Ghana because of his role in bringing together the various territories that now make up the country. He said before Nkrumah’s emergence, the territories that now constitute Ghana existed as separate political entities, including the Gold Coast Colony, the Ashanti Kingdom, the Northern Territories and Trans-Volta Togoland. Mr Asiedu Nketia argued that it was Nkrumah’s leadership and political struggle that brought these territories together to form the Ghana that exists today.

“Before Nkrumah came to the scene, there was nothing like Ghana,” he said. He maintained that the struggles of earlier freedom fighters were largely concentrated in the Gold Coast Colony, while other territories had different political arrangements. He said Nkrumah’s contribution to the formation of Ghana therefore distinguished him from other nationalists associated with the country’s independence struggle.

“No other politician or nationalist can compare themselves to Dr Kwame Nkrumah,” he said. Mr Asiedu Nketia also described NkrumahFest as an attempt to “purge” the country of what he considers the shame of denigrating Nkrumah’s image and legacy. He thanked former Minister for Roads and Highways and Ellembelle MP Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah for bringing the NkrumahFest celebration together and said he had always been part of the event.

NkrumahFest 2026 is being held at Nkroful to commemorate Nkrumah’s 117th birthday and celebrate his enduring legacy.