On the 21st of September 1909, in the city of Nkroful, Ghana, Opanyin Kofi Nwiana Ngolomahm, and Elizabeth Nyaniba, a goldsmith by profession and a retail trader respectively, gave birth to a baby boy who they named Francis Kwame Ngolomah. Growing up, Francis spent nine years at the Roman Catholic elementary school before proceeding to obtain a Teacher’s Certificate from the Prince of Wales College (later known as the Achimota School) in Ghana. After graduating from Achimota College in 1930, he taught at Roman Catholic junior schools in Elmina and Axim and at a seminary. Afterwards, he travelled to the United States of America where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Sociology at Lincoln University.
In 1942, he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Theology and obtained his Master of Arts degree in Philosophy and a Master of Science in Education in 1943. In 1945, Francis left the USA for the United Kingdom where he enrolled at the London School of Economics as a PhD candidate in anthropology. He later changed his name to Kwame Nkrumah in 1945 in the UK because he preferred the name “Kwame. Ebenezer Obiri Addo in his study of the future president, the name “Nkrumah”, a name traditionally given to a ninth child, indicates that Kwame probably held that place in the house of his father, who had several wives
Kwame Nkrumah returned to the Gold coast in 1947, he then was imprisoned in 1948 for his tenacity in the agitation for independence from colonial rule. In 1949, he formed the Convention People’s Party (CPP) and the Committee on Youth Organization (CYO). In 1951, Kwame Nkrumah became the first prime minister of the Goldcoast. This milestone enabled the Goldcoast to gain its Independence in 1957. This remarkable feat placed Kwame as one of the main catalysts of the African Independence revolution in the 1950s and 1960s respectively. His political rhetoric influenced world affairs in the 20th century. One of his strategic weapons was his use of Metaphor as his persuasive force. He did it in a way that inspired confidence in his leadership style.
Kwame Nkrumah was a pioneering Pan-Africanist and Ghana’s independence leader from 1957-to 1966 and was regarded by many as one of Africa’s greatest politicians. He was given the accolades of ‘the Pride of Africa’, ‘The Black Star’, and ‘Africa’s Man of Destiny’ amongst others by Historians, Commentators, and Scholars. The BBC’s African Listeners also voted him as the ‘Africa’s Man of the Millennium.
As the first Prime minister and President of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah helped to shape the global narrative of African decolonization. After leading Ghana to independence in 1957, he articulated a political vision. This vision aimed to ‘Free the African Continent’ -politically, socially, economically, and culturally from the vestiges of European colonial rule. As a result of this, the groundwork for a future in which Africans can have a voice as equals on the international stage was laid. Kwame Nkrumah was an influential advocate of Pan Africanism and a founding member of The Organization of African Unity (OAU).
As a revered and influential man, some of the Quotes of Kwame Nkrumah include;
“The forces that unite us are intrinsic and greater than the superimposed influences that keep us apart”.
“I am not African because I was born in Africa, but because Africa was born in me”.
Books written by Kwame Nkrumah include some of the following;
- Neo-Colonialism (The last stage of imperialism）
- Africans must unite
- I speak of Freedom
- The struggle continues
Kwame Nkrumah was a committed family man. He got married to Fathia Nkrumah, an Egyptian princess in 1957. Their union was blessed with three children namely Samia Nkrumah, Sekou Nkrumah, and Gamal Nkrumah. Kwame Nkrumah died on the 27th of April 1972 at the age of 62 in Bucharest Romania, after battling Prostate cancer. His struggle for the independence of Africa can never be forgotten.
KUNLE AYANO
