National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has questioned why Ghana continues to denigrate the image of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah at a time when the rest of the world and Africa have honoured him as the African of the Century.
Mr. Asiedu Nketia was speaking at the 2026 edition of NkrumahFest at Nzema in the Western Region on September 19, 2026.
Addressing chiefs, traditional leaders, Pan-Africanists and guests including, renowned Pan-Africanist, Prof. P.L.O. Lumumba, he said the festival instituted by the Member of Parliament for Ellembelle, Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah, is an attempt to cleanse Ghana of the shame it brought upon itself.
“First of all I want to thank Honourable Armah Kofi Buah for instituting this NkrumahFest because I see it as an attempt to purge our dear country of the shame we had brought onto ourselves by denigrating the image, name and legacy of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and continue doing so even at a time when the whole world and the rest of Africa have voted to recognize him as the African of the Century.
In fact it remains a dent on the image of Ghana. So I see this NkrumahFest as an effort to purge the country of that problem,” he said.
Mr. Asiedu Nketia, who described himself as an unrepentant Nkrumahist, recounted how Nkrumah’s Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE) policy changed his life.
According to him, he was picked from the streets of Seikwa by members of Nkrumah’s Young Pioneers movement when all other children had gone to school.
“I was picked up on the streets of Seikwa when everybody else had gone to school and I was picked up by the Young Pioneers and in the evening I was sent to my relatives and they were warned that because of the introduction of Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education, my parents should choose between sending me to school or facing prosecution.
And that was how they were compelled to send me to school because they wanted to reserve me as a royal to inherit them and inherit their cocoa farms,” he narrated.
He said that singular intervention paved the way for him to become educated and to rise to become the National Chairman of the NDC.
“And so I am here today as the National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress because of a very important policy that was introduced by Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. And because of this I have decided to use that education to study the works of Nkrumah and to help to keep his legacy alive,” he added.
The National Chairman of the NDC described Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, as a transformational leader whose policies and vision continue to shape the country.
Speaking at the 2026 NkrumahFest at Nkroful in the Ellembelle District of the Western Region, Mr. Asiedu Nketiah said he remained an “unrepentant Nkrumaist” because of the direct impact of Nkrumah-era policies on his own life.
The 2026 celebration, which marks Dr. Nkrumah’s 117th birthday, is being held under the theme: “Nkrumah @ 117: Celebrating His Enduring Legacy – Africa Must Unite or Perish.” The annual festival was established by Ellembelle MP and Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, to commemorate Dr. Nkrumah’s life and legacy.
He said the continued international recognition of Dr. Nkrumah made it important for Ghanaians to properly preserve his historical legacy.
He explained that the experience motivated him to study Nkrumah’s works and contribute to preserving his legacy.
Mr. Asiedu Nketiah also made a strong case for what he described as proper recognition of Dr. Nkrumah’s role in the formation of modern Ghana.
He said efforts to place Nkrumah on the same historical footing as all other personalities involved in the independence struggle failed to adequately reflect his assessment of Nkrumah’s contribution.
According to him, the territories that eventually constituted modern Ghana existed as separate political and administrative entities before independence.
He mentioned the Gold Coast Colony, the Ashanti Kingdom, the Northern Territories and Trans-Volta Togoland, arguing that Nkrumah played a central role in bringing these territories together to form the Ghana that exists today.
“It was the work of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah that brought all these four blocks together to form the Ghana we see now.”
He therefore maintained that Nkrumah’s contribution to Ghana’s independence and nation-building deserved distinct recognition.
The NkrumahFest 2026 is being held in Nkroful, Dr. Nkrumah’s birthplace, with a week-long programme of cultural, educational and community activities culminating in a grand durbar. Kenyan Pan-Africanist scholar Prof. Patrick Loch Otieno Lumumba is among the headline guests for this year’s celebration.
