Member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko says Ghana’s first Dr. Kwame Nkrumah had intended to return home from the UK to either start a restaurant business or a library when the UGCC invited him to join the struggle for independence.
Speaking in an interview on ChannelOne TV, Gabby suggested that Dr. Nkrumah had no intention of venturing into politics and leading Ghana’s struggle for independence upon his return to Ghana from the UK.
He said correspondence between Nkrumah and his uncle while he was still in the UK indicated that the man considered by some as the sole founder of Ghana was seeking funds to set a library or start a restaurant business upon his return home.
“He was asking for money because he was tired of being abroad and wanted to come to Ghana, but his focus was to set up a restaurant. Another correspondent was looking whether he could set up a library,” he stated.
Gabby Otchere-Darko noted that the struggle for freedom, which had started even before the 20th century, had by then gained momentum, resulting in the formation of a political movement known as the United Gold Coast Convention.
The UGCC, he stated, then invited Nkrumah and paid him to help galvanize support for the movement’s quest for independence.
“When they formed the UGCC, a person like Ako Adjei said, ‘I met this young man in England, and he’s an amazing organizer. Let’s bring him in’. So they paid to bring him in”.
He added, “In fact, an uncle of mine who just died two years ago, was the one who went to Takoradi to drive him in JB Danquah’s car to bring him to Accra. And even before he came, he negotiated about how much he was to be paid”.
Gabby Otchere-Darko, who is a cousin to president Akufo-Addo, said this while rejecting the assertion that Kwame Nkrumah is the sole founder of Ghana.
President Akufo-Addo reignited the old age debate when in his Founders’ Day address, he voiced his disapproval of Kwame Nkrumah as the sole founder of the country.
Gabby, who shares similar sentiments, said he does not understand why people would take such a position despite the available facts about the fight for independence.
He argued that although Nkrumah played a critical role in galvanizing the people for independence and eventually, leading the country to self-governance, he cannot be solely credited for the foundation of Ghana.
“He was one of many. And I’m saying that the struggle started even before the J.B. Danquahs, the Paa Grants. So I don’t know why we’d want to give him the credit as the founder”.
