Former Senior Governance Advisor at the United Nations, Professor Baffour Agyeman-Duah, has asserted that the significant contributions of Ghana's first President, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, should not be underestimated.

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Despite having personal disagreements with some of Nkrumah's domestic policies, Professor Agyeman-Duah believes that Nkrumah's impact on Ghana's development warrants full acknowledgment.

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In a recent address on August 3, 2024, President Akufo-Addo rejected the notion that Ghana was founded by a single individual, emphasizing the collective efforts of various figures in the independence movement.

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While acknowledging Nkrumah’s vital role, the President asserted that Ghana's independence was not the result of one person’s efforts alone.

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During a discussion on the JoyNews AM show, Professor Agyeman-Duah commented, “No matter what you say, Nkrumah stands tall in our politics, and nobody can belittle his accomplishment. Even though personally as I speak, there were certain domestic policies that I never liked and still don’t like, but still, even after discounting all those negativities, Nkrumah is a person that deserves the fullest recognition. After all, he (Nkrumah) was the man of the millennium, and that in itself says it all.”

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Professor Agyeman-Duah emphasized that while many contributed intellectually to Ghana's founding, it was Kwame Nkrumah who played a crucial role in shaping the nation's ideological and emotional direction.

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He stressed the importance of recognizing both Nkrumah's ideological contributions and the significant role of the UGCC (United Gold Coast Convention) in achieving independence.

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He remarked, “After all, they [UGCC] brought Nkrumah; perhaps even if they had not brought him, he was going to come himself. Yet he was brought down to help them achieve independence. How can you take that away?”

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