Dr. Kwame Nkrumah
Even though in our African street parlance, every mistake is a new life and every disappointment is a blessing, I think it is not every disappointment that turns a blessing.
Some disappointments are actually dooms overhanging us waiting to drop with vituperative proclivities.
Fellow Ghanaians, it is unenviable hypocrisy, and a discouraging disgrace that we abandon the hometown of Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Nkroful, to its hapless and helpless fate with a bad road network system, including other social amenities, and yet we literally 'worship' this former leader and continue to celebrate him every year, which reminds the people of Nkroful of their glorious and victorious son who delivered us from the manacles, shackles, and bondage of European imperialism to the neglect of his own people.
Indeed, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, a young teacher after being influenced by the Nigerian journalist, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, who advised him to enroll in the Lincoln College in Chester County, Pennsylvania, after failing his entrance examination for London University, had funds from relatives to further his education in the United States of America in October 1935 and not from the colonial government then.
Osagyafo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah was to later become our best bet and the most generous and selfless Messiah.
There's no doubt that every Ghanaian, whether friend or foe of Kwame Nkrumah, a son of an illiterate goldsmith, can publicly or privately admit he is the best thing ever happened to Ghana.
From the creation of the Nzima Literary Society - as a headmaster of Elimina primary school, to the construction of Akosombo dam, the Tema motorway, and numerous other projects for mother Ghana - Dr Kwame Nkrumah remains an ebullient, enigmatic, indomitable, and the most competent and visionary leader Ghana would ever produce in the Jubilee House so far.
But wait and see, this is Africa where gratitude, according to Joseph Stalin, is a disease suffered by dogs.
His flourishing young government in a baby-State didn't live to see the light of the day, neither did he himself enjoy the fruits of his labor: the young republic was shamefully and cruelly aborted by political vultures.
No wonder we have been unable to produce the like of him since then, as if the nation-Ghana had been cursed.
The country keeps on a recycle of many white collar thieves and career politicians in the political landscape who simply can't leverage and moderate their greed, and continue to steal in advance with the law, for their entire generation on earth including the unborn.
A practice that collapsed, in stages, the over 500 companies instituted by President Kwame Nkrumah.
Our men of old say a wise man does not foul his own nest.
As a proud Ghanaian, I seek not to write to ruin or damage our hard earned image but to draw our attention to an obvious unmindful and careless negligence that is simply an insult to the leaders of our republic and to every Ghanaian, because if the long mouth of the dog is insulted, definitely the crocodile in the pond would be affected.
It is tearfully painful how successive governments came after our first president: military junta after military junta, president after president, since the second Republic up till date in almost 26 years of our fourth republic, and no wise government has ever thought of honoring the village of our founder, Nkroful, by at least, linking it up to the major cities with a nicely tarred road, if they can't help put it on the global map.
It's sad that we were able to exhume the body of the founder out of Nkroful his village and created a museum faraway somewhere in the capital, and left his people in utter rejection and dejection.
Despite the fact that Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology continues to churn out competent engineers, no engineer as a product of the University, has been allowed to work on Nkroful's road.
Perhaps, the successive misrule governments that we are saddled with is because of the unending tears, sorrows, and probably esoteric curses heaped upon the country by the people of Nkroful who are not happy their son had been used and dumped.
Because charity begins at home.
Every country tries to honor their heroes who laid down their lives with sweat, blood, and even pus, to bring them freedom of foreign rule.
Washington DC is named after one of the greatest founding fathers of the USA, George Washington, the first president to occupy the White House.
George Washington was born on February 22, 1732 in the Westmoreland County, Virginia, USA. He died on December 14 1799 and was buried at his birthplace again.
Americans, whom we are mimicking as an exceptional powers wielders and a beacon of good governance and democracy, never took the body of their first president to Washington DC as their capital and left Westmoreland County to its deteriorating fate.
The Ikenne Residence of Chief Obafemi Awolowo became the hometown of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo in Ikenne, Ogun state, south west
Nigeria and his body was buried in that compound which has become
a Mausoleum and housed some of his personal belongings, which are displayed for tourism purposes.
Nigerians never buried him in Abuja and left Ikenne to wallow in self-pity.
Julius Nyerere, Tanzanian anti-colonial campaigner and the first prime minister of the then Tanganyika in 1961 to 1963, was born in Butiama and died in October 1999 in London, but he was brought home and buried at where he came from.
At the time of his death, the capital was moved from Dar re salaam to Dodoma, but he was never buried in the capital where the seat of government is, they took him to Butiama.
I can go on and on with world's leaders whose names have been immortalized on the fantastic and honorable pages of history yet their places of birth are managed on global maps for what they did to their respective countries.
How come Nkroful has been left to rot even if President Nkrumah was not buried there?
How can we be so hypocritical in Ghana?
Why do we detest filth but feed on maggots?
I believe this is an insult just like the Chinese government insulted president Akufu Addo for choosing personal issues over national issues, when they welcome him in China, and instead of the National Anthem that must be superior to any song or creed composed in the republic, decided to play "Oye" song for him as president of Ghana, when their citizens are compelled to prostrate when their National Anthem is played.
It's time to respect ourselves as a people no matter our differences.
May I therefore seize the opportunity to call upon our president, his Excellency, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufu Addo, to look in the direction of the people of Nkroful in order to fix their road and make the village of our founder a tourist attraction city.
He cannot afford to pass-by the Jubilee House and have his name written as president like some did.
Let Ghanaians see the change.
God Bless Nkroful,
God Bless KNUST,
God Bless Ghana,
And may God Bless us all.