President Akufo-Addo has revealed that the Zimbabwean leader, who lived through the independence struggle of Ghana, Robert Mugabe, commended him for his address at the 60th Independence Day Parade in Accra.
There is sharp disagreement between members of the CPP (Party founded by Dr. Nkrumah) and some academics on one hand, and the New Patriotic Party on the other, over the address that sought to project other contributors on Ghana’s path to independence.
Some have accused the President of attempting to play down the influence and role of Dr. Nkrumah in the struggle for liberation from colonial rule.
Speaking at the Ghana Unity Ball 2017, Thursday, the President said his critics do not have a full grasp of Ghana’s history.
“This has been a very strange week. On Monday, I made a speech to the country which I tried to speak about how we became Ghana. And like everything I say, it’s ended up in controversy. But that is how it should be. A politician who doesn’t generate controversy is a dull politician,” he said.
“The amusing part of it is that, the people who did not live through the independence era, young people who came much after, claim that I distorted the history of Ghana and belittled the role of Kwame Nkrumah. The one man there who actually lived through the era, [who] was here in Ghana at the time, embraced me as having enhanced the image of Kwame Nkrumah. And that tells you everything about Ghanaian politics. That is President Mugabe. He gave me a big hug,” he added.