Dr Danquah to be given a befitting funeral

Kyebi (E/R), March 1, GNA - The late Dr Joseph Boakye Danquah, the acclaimed "Doyen of Ghana Politics" is to be given a befitting funeral as a Statesman, 38 years after his death in detention at the Nsawam Medium Security Prison.

President John Agyekum Kufuor, who said this, appealed to the family to liaise with the Okyeman Traditional Council and government to accord the late Dr Danquah the respect and honour for his role in the struggle for the country's independence, his passionate belief and advocacy for democracy, individual liberties and the rule of law.

He was speaking at a solemn ceremony to commemorate a one-acre plot of land for a Memorial Park in honour of Dr Danquah at Kyebi in the Eastern Region on Saturday. A statue of Dr Danquah would also be erected at the park soon. President Kufuor said considering the entire s! cope of Dr Danquah's intellectual output for the nation, his indefatigable battles to entrench the rule of law in the country and his humanity and selfless dedication to Ghana, not enough honour had been accorded him by the nation, adding " perhaps he cannot be honoured enough." He said "for Dr Danquah to die in a prison cell was shameful. But we should take heart in the fact that like other great thinkers and philosophers of old, Dr Danquah was martyred by a system that did not understand nor appreciate his ideas."

"Indeed, the system was afraid of the potency of his ideas, which were all ahead of his time. Today these ideas have been vindicated not just in Ghana, but worldwide", He added.

President Kufuor said " Dr Danquah had unfinished business that we are obliged to complete. Today, the ideas and beliefs of the political party tradition to which he dedicated his life and which spawned the! New Patriotic Party (NPP) have been vindicated."

He said l ong before it became fashionable, Dr Danquah was championing democratic rule and the cause of individual liberties and after decades of doubtful experimentation, Ghanaians have now accepted that democratic system of government was best for the country.

President Kufuor said Dr Danquah also gave his life in pursuit of the right to free expression and this could be manifested in the media pluralism in Ghana that now enable the people to express their opinions on issues without intimidation. He said " it is now up to those of us who have inherited his legacy to give meaning to the life of Dr Danquah and prove that his martyrdom was not in vain. This we shall do by making a success of the task of governing his beloved country to the letter and spirit of his beliefs and ideology". President Kufuor said, "When the quality of life of the Ghanaian is improved, when we have created a property owning democracy in which individual liberties are entrenched and the rule of law thrives, then Dr Danquah would not have died in vain."

Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin, Okyenhene said the country's independence should be used to improve the education, health and social needs of the people as well as for national development. He stressed the need for Ghanaians to respect and honour national heroes for their selfless devotion and dedication to the socio-economic development of the country.

Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Attorney General and Minister of Justice said Dr Danquah was very instrumental in many facets of the country's development and his life was shrouded in controversy and ended in tragedy. Nana Akufo-Addo said despite all these, Dr Danquah gave Ghanaians and succeeding governments an example of courage, tenacity and commitment unequal in the country's national life. He said the only way society could progress w! as in freedom and if the individual was allowed to develop and not for tyrants and dictators to pave the way for development.

Nana Akufo-Addo, who is also the MP for Abuakwa, said democracy, individual liberty, human rights and rule of law, ideals that Dr Danquah stood represented the views of civilized and progressive people of the world. Dr Francis Osafo-Mensah, Eastern Regional Minister, in a welcoming address said the Regional Co-ordinating Council in collaboration with the chiefs were seriously negotiating with some land owners to secure large tracts of land free from litigation for potential investors to the region. He said since no meaningful development could thrive in an atmosphere of instability, relentless efforts were being made to resolve some of the long-standing chieftaincy and land disputes in the region. Dr Osafo-Mensah said petty rivalries between certain opinion leaders that did not augur well for rapid socio-economic development were being addressed to make the region a safe area for both local and foreign investments.

The late Dr Danquah was born at Bepong-Kwahu on December 21, 1895 and having worked as a law clerk and as secretary to the Okyenhene.

He proceeded to the University College of London in 1921 after obtaining the London Matriculation Certificate through private studies. Dr. Danquah entered the Inner Temple and was called to the Bar in 1926, the following year he obtained his doctorate degree in Philosophy and on his return home, he established legal practice and wrote a number of books and pamphlets.

He served on the Legislative Council during the Colonial period and together with others founded the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) in August 1947.

Dr Danquah was one of the "Big Six" who were arrested during the 1948 riots that accelerated the pace of the struggle for Independence by! the Gold Coast.

After Independence, he featured prominently in the opposition to the government of Dr Kwame Nkrumah's Convention People's Party (CPP). On two occasions, Dr Danquah was detained under the Preventive Detention Act and died in detention on February 4, 1965.