Ghana on Friday, March 6, 2026, marks the 69th anniversary of its independence from its British colonial masters.

One of the names that would certainly be mentioned during parades to mark the day is Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, who is regarded by many as the founder of Ghana.

Wonder how Dr Kwame Nkrumah got the name or title Osagyefo?

The Chairperson of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Dr Nii Moi Thompson, in a recent interview on Channel One TV, while refuting assertions that Kwame Nkrumah did not like Asantes, said that it was the Asantehene at the time, Otumfuo Nana Sir Osei Agyeman Prempeh II, who gave Nkrumah the Osagyefo title.

According to him, a book written by June Milne, a close associate of Ghana’s first president, detailed how he was given the name and how his cabinet had to approve it before he could start using it.

“I just read a couple of years ago a book by June Milne, who was the executive secretary for Kwame Nkrumah. She wrote a biography of Kwame Nkrumah, and in that book she actually says that the name Osagyefo was given to Kwame Nkrumah by the Asantehene.

“And Kwame Nkrumah then had to bring it before cabinet, I think, for them to approve before he actually started using that. So it's in June Milne’s book,” he said.

Dr Thompson said that the late Dr Nkrumah actually loved Asantes because they fought the British to remain independent.

He added that Ghana’s first president did so much for Asantes when he was in office because of his admiration for them.

“Nkrumah had great admiration for the Asantes, one for their bravery in fighting the British, you know what they say, ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend’. And so Nkrumah hated imperialism, the Asante had fought them, so he had this respect for Asantes in general.

“So, besides bringing in Asafo Agyei as a member in 1952, he launches the Accelerated Education Programme. Asantes were the earliest beneficiaries of the Accelerated Education Programme. KNUST was formed from that; Opoku Ware was formed from that. There were many, many schools that were built from the programme,” he said.

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Watch a video of his remarks below:

“Nkrumah admired the Ashantis — and earned the title Osagyefo from the Asantehene.”
Dr. Nii Moi Thompson challenges claims that Dr. Kwame Nkrumah disliked Asanteman.

Watch here: https://t.co/iciIF3pM0Z#PointofView #ChannelOneTV pic.twitter.com/FHbq0nbmxf

— CITI FM 97.3 (@Citi973) March 4, 2026