NPP stop destroying Nkrumah. Come up with credible plans to develop Ghana .You hated KAG when he was alive , why use his name now. Surely NPP ,you stoop to low. Shameless idiots
NPP stop destroying Nkrumah. Come up with credible plans to develop Ghana .You hated KAG when he was alive , why use his name now. Surely NPP ,you stoop to low. Shameless idiots
United Ghana 8 years ago
Couldn't agree more. NPP seem to spend more energy & resources fighting Nkrumah than Mahama, whom they need to focus on. Danquah will never have the high regard Nkrumah has locally & internationally.
Couldn't agree more. NPP seem to spend more energy & resources fighting Nkrumah than Mahama, whom they need to focus on. Danquah will never have the high regard Nkrumah has locally & internationally.
SARPONG 8 years ago
Why don't you blame your trokosi uncles Kotoka, Harley and Deku for overthrowing fuhrer Nkrumah?
Why don't you blame your trokosi uncles Kotoka, Harley and Deku for overthrowing fuhrer Nkrumah?
Hmmm 8 years ago
Interesting and revealing history from an "inside man". But which year was this written? There is mention of only days and months.
Interesting and revealing history from an "inside man". But which year was this written? There is mention of only days and months.
ghanaman 8 years ago
The issues raised in the current publication form part of nagging matters that have been swept under the rug for far too long! Let open discussion begin, in the interest of national development!
The issues raised in the current publication form part of nagging matters that have been swept under the rug for far too long! Let open discussion begin, in the interest of national development!
samson 8 years ago
Why spend precious time discussing a letter written by a thief who stole £10 million from Ghana as Finance minster? We are in 2016 and must move on. There are important national issues to discuss and debate on current develo ... read full comment
Why spend precious time discussing a letter written by a thief who stole £10 million from Ghana as Finance minster? We are in 2016 and must move on. There are important national issues to discuss and debate on current developmental theories and principles. Komla Gbedemah unfortunately betrayed his own principles and run away with millions of pounds which could have been used to develop Ghana then.
Dr. SAS, Attorney at Law 8 years ago
“The central magical feature of Nkrumahism was its idolatrous worship of the charismatic leader; Kwame Nkrumah…. Nkrumah combined the functions of supreme legislator, supreme administrator and supreme judge. State, party ... read full comment
“The central magical feature of Nkrumahism was its idolatrous worship of the charismatic leader; Kwame Nkrumah…. Nkrumah combined the functions of supreme legislator, supreme administrator and supreme judge. State, party and nation were united in his person. He was independent of all institutions—there could be no institutions independent of him. His was the sole power to approve or to abrogate legislation, to convene Parliament, to dismiss judges, to revoke court sentences, to make all appointments of any importance. The official formula was invariably “Osagyefo the President has decided, ordered, appointed, dismissed…” ….the armed forces of Nkrumahist Ghana had to take the oath of allegiance to the person of the leader.
The justification of his power was essentially irrational: it rested on the assertion that Nkrumah was endowed with qualities lacking in ordinary mortals. These supernatural, Messianic properties of a divine or quasi-divine nature emanated from him and pervaded the State, the party and—as long as they behaved themselves—the people.
The divine origin of Nkrumah’s leadership—his presence on earth as a reincarnation of Jesus Christ--- was insisted on quite literally. And towards the end the obscene deification of Nkrumah acquired an openly fascist character. In September 1965 it was announced that “the monolithic foundation of the Party’s organization and philosophy can best be expressed in the fusion of the Party’ ideology with the personality of the author of this ideology, Osagyefo” (Ghanaian Times, 30th September 1965). The official justification of this rather incoherent new line leaves no doubt as to its source. “In our situation the people need a charismatic leadership, a beacon light to look up to in their development…. Without this charismatic leadership the people are bound to look for leaders and saviours from many other sources” (Evening News, 2nd October, 1965). The adoration of the leader was indeed vital to the continued existence of the Convention Peoples’ Party dictatorship, for the “party” was totally dependent upon him. Apart from Nkrumah it had no real existence of its own—he was the sole expression of its corporeality. The “party” was itself one of the most illusory features of this so-called one-party state.
…the CPP had no regular membership… The CPP held no congresses, took no decisions. It had no Central Committee, or regular leadership of any kind—apart from Nkrumah.
…the CPP was not so much a strictly disciplined, carefully selected elitist party, as an inchoate, rather shapeless “movement”, representing a mere extension of the Leader’s will. Instead of the individual selection of members… [the CPP] resorted to the wholesale incorporation by decree of certain social or occupational groups, such as government officials…. [the movement was] comprehensive enough to accommodate various autonomous or semi-autonomous bodies within their ranks….. while the CPP included a number of “integral wings”: the Trades Union Council, the United Ghana Farmers’ Council, the Co-operative Council, the National Council of Ghana Women, the Young Pioneer movement (famed for their slogan “Nkrumah never dies”), etc. To complicate things further, the CPP apparatus was hopelessly mixed up with the governmental bureaucracy, so that it was frequently impossible to disengage State offices from party posts.
Nkrumahist Ghana was an ideological state without an ideology, a one-party dictatorship without the party. It was also a Socialist state without traces of socialism, whether of the Western or Eastern brand---if by “socialism” we mean something more than extravagance, waste, incompetence and shortages. The Ghanaian economy under Nkrumah was basically a capitalist one. The “commanding heights”-- the foreign currency earners—were ranged firmly in the private enterprise sector. This essential fact should not be obscured by the existence of numerous State corporations (run almost invariably at a fantastic loss), of rigid (and highly lucrative) State controls, and of elements of (quite disastrous) State planning”
Kwame 8 years ago
Komla Agbeli Gbedeman was back in CPP and was a member of the Council of elders and Central Committee member before he dead. Dr SDS my look at all political parties in Ghana today shows that they all have various wigs.
A loo ... read full comment
Komla Agbeli Gbedeman was back in CPP and was a member of the Council of elders and Central Committee member before he dead. Dr SDS my look at all political parties in Ghana today shows that they all have various wigs.
A look at trade unions which are political organization of workers shows that they are made up of various unions from diverse aspects of human endeavour.
I am of the view that you have not find time to read about any of the works of the Communist to know that communist do not say that wands should be used to effect change in socioeconomic structure of a socialist country, the reason why there are various ways in building a socialist society.
Ghana was not a socialist country in 1966 when Nkrumah was overthrow by the forces of imperialism and their local quislings. It is a fact that no foreign company was nationalized before that time. The state was just about to effect state capitalism with state companies competing with private foreign companies, which they were doing effectively those days. The lase remaining state company the GIHOC Distillery in still in production and making profit. Other sectors of the GIHOC were productive and making profits during the time of Kwame Nkrumah as the President of Ghana.
It is a fact that after the downturn in the economy as a result of the 24/2/1966 coup foreign companies like UAC, which was then running the Kingsway Shop, Bata Shoes among others all collapsed. In 1985 as a young civil servant I went to close down Phizar Pharmaceutical Company in 1985, I could remembers that redundancy well because that was my assignment as a Labour Officer.
It is also an undeniable fact that it is not only state owned establishments that go solvent, but even huge corporations in the capitalist world.
Mr. SAS some of your colleagues politely ask me to explain and identify to them an animal in which name and colour they do not know in legal parlance.
So do your research well before you come here to goof.
It is also a fact that there was still a private sector in the Soviet Union in 1983 when I left there. There was a private state market where farmers who do not want to work in state farms sell their farm products. You can also buy works of arts from retired workers in the arts. Animal head, legs and intestines which the most of the citizens do not eat, but are delicacies for foreign citizens, including students from Ghana.
There was also a Cooperative Building Society that build high rise building with cheap materials, which include burnt bricks and the then famous Soviet Union dissident Andrei Skharov was a member. There is also a fact that under socialism in both China and North Korea there are companies from capitalist countries which are established to use efficient, skilled and advance socialist labour for their operations. SAS you lost the argument even before you started it because you do not know the animal you are about to talk about, courtesy to Mr. Ansa-Asare one of those lawyers who will pretend that he does not know because he want to identify an animal well before pronouncing on it.
SAS at times some of you raise absurdity to its highest level. Some people hold the belief that Jesus and Mohammed dos not die, but you see it as a sin for a Ghanaian saying that one of us does not die.
Komla Agbeli Gbedema was back in the fold of the CPP before he dead and had not stone to grind with Nkrumah. To us members of the CPP Nkrumah and Gbedema are one and the same.
tontrobi 8 years ago
Thank you Kwame. These people like SAS and his befuddled acolytes, do not have a mind of their own. They are still being happily remote-controlled by their slave-masters and that is why all their strange utterances seem to co ... read full comment
Thank you Kwame. These people like SAS and his befuddled acolytes, do not have a mind of their own. They are still being happily remote-controlled by their slave-masters and that is why all their strange utterances seem to come straight out of the Ku Klux Klan handbook of 'how to undermine niggers and Africa'.
Kenedy 8 years ago
It will take an open mind and objective analysis to understand Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah's political philosophy. Nkrumah like John Stuart Mill can be accurately described as a socialist, his is a socialism that a classical li ... read full comment
It will take an open mind and objective analysis to understand Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah's political philosophy. Nkrumah like John Stuart Mill can be accurately described as a socialist, his is a socialism that a classical liberal ought to be able to live with, if not to love.Nkrumah, like Mill's view is that capitalist economies should at some point undergo a `spontaneous' and incremental process of socialization, involving the formation of worker-controlled `socialistic' enterprises through either the transformation of `capitalistic' enterprises or creation de novo.
This process would entail few violations of core libertarian principles. It would proceed by way of a series of voluntary transactions. Capitalists' property rights would be respected throughout. The process would take place within a national system of laws that permits private ownership of productive property and competition, and would not result in that system's overthrow.
And, if we accept some basic tenets of Nkrumah's social philosophy, the outcome at which we should expect the process to arrive is a `patchwork' economy in which capitalistic and socialistic enterprises exist side by side.
Kwadwo Sarfo 8 years ago
I rather doubt if you have actually read Mill's "Princioles of Political Economy" (1852). You have misrepresented Mill's position on a wide variety of issues. Mill was never a socialist and his critique of aocialism and commu ... read full comment
I rather doubt if you have actually read Mill's "Princioles of Political Economy" (1852). You have misrepresented Mill's position on a wide variety of issues. Mill was never a socialist and his critique of aocialism and communism is devastating. Mill however agreed with the basic criticism of capitallism as inherently exploitative. For what it is worth, Nkrumah was not much of a socialist either; the 7 year development plan was based largely on the ideas of Prof Arthur Lewis, the same ideas that provided the basis for developments in Singapore, Malaysia, South Korean and even Japan. In that sense, Gbedemah's criticism is wrong headed.
Kenedy 8 years ago
Well I familiar with that work which was one of many but I am confused about your date 1852. To the public at large, Mill was better known as the author of Principles of Political Economy 1848, a work that tried to show that ... read full comment
Well I familiar with that work which was one of many but I am confused about your date 1852. To the public at large, Mill was better known as the author of Principles of Political Economy 1848, a work that tried to show that economics was not the "dismal science" that its radical and literary critics had supposed.
Its philosophical interest lay in Mill's reflections on the difference between what economics measured and what human beings really valued: leading Mill to argue that we should sacrifice economic growth for the sake of the environment, and should limit population as much to give ourselves breathing space as in order to fend off the risk of starvation for the overburdened poor.
Mill also allowed that conventional economic analysis could not show that socialism was unworkable, and suggested as his own ideal an economy of worker-owned cooperatives
Kenedy 8 years ago
This is a quote from Kwesi Atta Sakyi 24th February, 2016 on this same page titled That fateful day 24th February, 1966
"Nkrumah would not have achieved what he achieved had he been a soft leader. He was compassionate and ... read full comment
This is a quote from Kwesi Atta Sakyi 24th February, 2016 on this same page titled That fateful day 24th February, 1966
"Nkrumah would not have achieved what he achieved had he been a soft leader. He was compassionate and believed in John Stuart Mills ‘greater good for the greater number possible’, or Baumol’s optimality, and Pareto optimal economic models."
He seems to be on the same page with me.
Kwadwo Sarfo 8 years ago
Your grasp of political thought must be particularly weak if you equate utilitarianism with socialism. John Stuart Mill,unlike his father, was quite critical of the felicity calculus of Bentham.
Your grasp of political thought must be particularly weak if you equate utilitarianism with socialism. John Stuart Mill,unlike his father, was quite critical of the felicity calculus of Bentham.
Kenedy 8 years ago
one of Mill’s most important publications, and perhaps one of the most important books of the nineteenth century, is his Autobiography.
Most readers of Mill’s Autobiography will remember that Mill declared himself to ... read full comment
one of Mill’s most important publications, and perhaps one of the most important books of the nineteenth century, is his Autobiography.
Most readers of Mill’s Autobiography will remember that Mill declared himself to be a socialist, a declaration that has both surprise and mystified them.
William Stafford’s recent book is the best short introduction to the thought of John Stuart Mill I have come across.
Stafford refers to the unfinished publication of Mill’s Chapters on Socialism and claims that its unfinished character does not permit the inference that Mill changed his mind about socialism and became one of its critics.
According to William Stafford if Mill was a utopian socialist for whom liberty trumps everything, then he did not change his theoretical position but rather amended its expression to reflect contemporary events.
G. K. Berko 8 years ago
I strongly believe the Dr. SAS would love to have his Obituary carved into his stone Grave-head claiming he was the greatest enemy of Nkrumah and everything that the late President ever stood for.
Dr. SAS and Okoampa-Ahoof ... read full comment
I strongly believe the Dr. SAS would love to have his Obituary carved into his stone Grave-head claiming he was the greatest enemy of Nkrumah and everything that the late President ever stood for.
Dr. SAS and Okoampa-Ahoofe, Jr. seem to have signed a contract with certain and the same stakeholders to make Nkrumah-bashing and -hate their life-long pursuits around which they might have designed their Academic achievements.
What is sadest about their Nkrumah-hate mongering is that they often produce half-baked facts that they could have cooked up themselves, or conveniently lift pieces of other folks' works out of context to support their ultimate goal of destroying Nkrumah posthumously.
Long Live Ghana!!!
Kpenyigba Kwesi 8 years ago
I donot believe thatthat highly respected and hardworking Man, Komla Agbeli Gbedemah wrote that letter to Kwame Nkrumah. Perhaps, Dr BK Asante can confirm the veracity of the letter since he is claiming that he was Dr Nkurmah ... read full comment
I donot believe thatthat highly respected and hardworking Man, Komla Agbeli Gbedemah wrote that letter to Kwame Nkrumah. Perhaps, Dr BK Asante can confirm the veracity of the letter since he is claiming that he was Dr Nkurmah's Secretary.Let's consentrate on development issues.
Amanfo 8 years ago
This to us is one of the too many friendships gone bad scenarios and a typical example being the strained relationship that existed between late Prof Mills and the Rawlingses but, we don't want to venture into that unsubstant ... read full comment
This to us is one of the too many friendships gone bad scenarios and a typical example being the strained relationship that existed between late Prof Mills and the Rawlingses but, we don't want to venture into that unsubstantiated rumours because that will be a smack of intellectual dishonesty.
Since the columist has taken the pains to produce this article which seems to us as, the late KA Gbedemah not understanding the full reality of industrialization and other related matters, we and most readers will be very happy if you can equally take sometime and reproduce some works of Osagyefo Nkrumah and our emphasis here is on the Autobiography by Kwame Nkrumah and I think those will help set the records straight.
Anyway, we are not suggesting any particular book to you by compulsion but, you can better your misgivings about Nkrumah when you analysis some of his works.
Lest we forget, can't any works be produced from Dr JB Danquah to help shore his reputation apart from the current one " What every Ghanaian child should know about JB Danquah" or better still conducting a survey on the fortunes of the opposition party which you gladly belong too.
Thank you
Ebo Letrik 8 years ago
It is a FACT that post-Nkrumah NLC/PP saw Gbedemah being played like a clueless yo-yo irritant by his fellow pro-democracy advocates.
Same clique that set up another clueless bombast, Gen. Ankrah, was very effective in sta ... read full comment
It is a FACT that post-Nkrumah NLC/PP saw Gbedemah being played like a clueless yo-yo irritant by his fellow pro-democracy advocates.
Same clique that set up another clueless bombast, Gen. Ankrah, was very effective in stabbing Gbedemah and his political ambitions in the ARSE!
G. K. Berko 8 years ago
Why can't the Danquah Institute publish the letters in photocopies so that we would know they are authentic?
By the way, what hinders the Danquah Institute to publish any letters that Danquah might have exchanged with th ... read full comment
Why can't the Danquah Institute publish the letters in photocopies so that we would know they are authentic?
By the way, what hinders the Danquah Institute to publish any letters that Danquah might have exchanged with the CIA, especially, on the one that might initiated the CIA payment of living allowance to his family?
Long Live Ghana!!!
Kojo Kanawu 8 years ago
This letter is very genuine. l met an oldman in London in 2002 and he said the same thing.
He even told me that when the big 6 were arrested and put into prison, It was Gbedemah who went tho The present James town known cons ... read full comment
This letter is very genuine. l met an oldman in London in 2002 and he said the same thing.
He even told me that when the big 6 were arrested and put into prison, It was Gbedemah who went tho The present James town known constituency and register Dr Kwame Nkrumah as a candidate and used his money to campaign for him and that Gbedemah registered himself at Quitta constituency and both of them won their constituency seats.
As a matter of fact this oldman was agoldcoast trainned teacher.
YAW 8 years ago
Lee Kuan Yew, who is constantly praised by Danquah worshippers was more forthright in what he did to nation wreckers and potential bomb throwers.
?We Decide What Is Right’
“And I say without the slightest remorse, th ... read full comment
Lee Kuan Yew, who is constantly praised by Danquah worshippers was more forthright in what he did to nation wreckers and potential bomb throwers.
?We Decide What Is Right’
“And I say without the slightest remorse, that we wouldn't be here, we would not have made economic progress, if we had not intervened on very personal matters — who your neighbor is, how you live, the noise you make, how you spit ... or what language you use. We decide what is right. Never mind what the people think.”
On Being Honorable
“I’m not saying that everything I did was right, but everything I did was for an honorable purpose. I had to do some nasty things, locking fellows up without trial.”
On Being Honorable.
"Between being loved and being feared, I have always believed Machiavelli was right. If nobody is afraid of me, I'm meaningless."
"Anybody who decides to take me on needs to put on knuckle-dusters. If you think you can hurt me more than I can hurt you, try. There is no way you can govern a Chinese society."
"If you are a troublemaker... it's our job to politically destroy you... Everybody knows that in my bag I have a hatchet, and a very sharp one. You take me on, I take my hatchet, we meet in the cul-de-sac."
JB Danquah and KA Gbedemah would have faced worst fate under Lee Kuan Yew who is hailed as a hero by the Danquah Zealots.
NPP stop destroying Nkrumah. Come up with credible plans to develop Ghana .You hated KAG when he was alive , why use his name now. Surely NPP ,you stoop to low. Shameless idiots
Couldn't agree more. NPP seem to spend more energy & resources fighting Nkrumah than Mahama, whom they need to focus on. Danquah will never have the high regard Nkrumah has locally & internationally.
Why don't you blame your trokosi uncles Kotoka, Harley and Deku for overthrowing fuhrer Nkrumah?
Interesting and revealing history from an "inside man". But which year was this written? There is mention of only days and months.
The issues raised in the current publication form part of nagging matters that have been swept under the rug for far too long! Let open discussion begin, in the interest of national development!
Why spend precious time discussing a letter written by a thief who stole £10 million from Ghana as Finance minster? We are in 2016 and must move on. There are important national issues to discuss and debate on current develo ...
read full comment
“The central magical feature of Nkrumahism was its idolatrous worship of the charismatic leader; Kwame Nkrumah…. Nkrumah combined the functions of supreme legislator, supreme administrator and supreme judge. State, party ...
read full comment
Komla Agbeli Gbedeman was back in CPP and was a member of the Council of elders and Central Committee member before he dead. Dr SDS my look at all political parties in Ghana today shows that they all have various wigs.
A loo ...
read full comment
Thank you Kwame. These people like SAS and his befuddled acolytes, do not have a mind of their own. They are still being happily remote-controlled by their slave-masters and that is why all their strange utterances seem to co ...
read full comment
It will take an open mind and objective analysis to understand Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah's political philosophy. Nkrumah like John Stuart Mill can be accurately described as a socialist, his is a socialism that a classical li ...
read full comment
I rather doubt if you have actually read Mill's "Princioles of Political Economy" (1852). You have misrepresented Mill's position on a wide variety of issues. Mill was never a socialist and his critique of aocialism and commu ...
read full comment
Well I familiar with that work which was one of many but I am confused about your date 1852. To the public at large, Mill was better known as the author of Principles of Political Economy 1848, a work that tried to show that ...
read full comment
This is a quote from Kwesi Atta Sakyi 24th February, 2016 on this same page titled That fateful day 24th February, 1966
"Nkrumah would not have achieved what he achieved had he been a soft leader. He was compassionate and ...
read full comment
Your grasp of political thought must be particularly weak if you equate utilitarianism with socialism. John Stuart Mill,unlike his father, was quite critical of the felicity calculus of Bentham.
one of Mill’s most important publications, and perhaps one of the most important books of the nineteenth century, is his Autobiography.
Most readers of Mill’s Autobiography will remember that Mill declared himself to ...
read full comment
I strongly believe the Dr. SAS would love to have his Obituary carved into his stone Grave-head claiming he was the greatest enemy of Nkrumah and everything that the late President ever stood for.
Dr. SAS and Okoampa-Ahoof ...
read full comment
I donot believe thatthat highly respected and hardworking Man, Komla Agbeli Gbedemah wrote that letter to Kwame Nkrumah. Perhaps, Dr BK Asante can confirm the veracity of the letter since he is claiming that he was Dr Nkurmah ...
read full comment
This to us is one of the too many friendships gone bad scenarios and a typical example being the strained relationship that existed between late Prof Mills and the Rawlingses but, we don't want to venture into that unsubstant ...
read full comment
It is a FACT that post-Nkrumah NLC/PP saw Gbedemah being played like a clueless yo-yo irritant by his fellow pro-democracy advocates.
Same clique that set up another clueless bombast, Gen. Ankrah, was very effective in sta ...
read full comment
Why can't the Danquah Institute publish the letters in photocopies so that we would know they are authentic?
By the way, what hinders the Danquah Institute to publish any letters that Danquah might have exchanged with th ...
read full comment
This letter is very genuine. l met an oldman in London in 2002 and he said the same thing.
He even told me that when the big 6 were arrested and put into prison, It was Gbedemah who went tho The present James town known cons ...
read full comment
Lee Kuan Yew, who is constantly praised by Danquah worshippers was more forthright in what he did to nation wreckers and potential bomb throwers.
?We Decide What Is Right’
“And I say without the slightest remorse, th ...
read full comment