Accra, Sept 21, GNA - Vice President John Dramani Mahama on Tuesday called for partnership among African leaders, to ably confront the continent's major challenges of hunger, conflict, poverty and disease. "Many years after the death of Dr Kwame Nkrumah of blessed memory, his ideas of African Union and Partnership are still relevant for us to achieve both our domestic and continental challenges." Vice President Mahama made the call during the second Founder's Day celebration which showcased the intellectual and academic works of the late Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.
The occasion was also patronized by members of the Convention People's Party (CPP), Late Nkrumah's family, Pan-Africanists from all over the world, Reggae Musicians in Ghana, students and other Africans in the Diaspora.
The Vice President said although Nkrumah was born as an Nzema and Ghanaian, his ideas and activities had over the years moved him not only beyond the confines of Ghana, but also beyond Africa. "As Africans we therefore need to be guided by his intellectual literature to move and accomplish some of the good programmes he outlined for the country and the continent as a whole." Vice President Mahama commended the Kwame Nkrumah Centenary celebration Committee for their high level of modesty during the year-long activities for refusing to take allowances for their services. Professor Akilakpa Sawyerr, Chairman of the Centenary anniversary celebration, recommended to government to consider involving youth groups in subsequent celebrations to inculcate in them the long-term ideas of the first President.
He also called for the establishment of Kwame Nkrumah Memorial School to teach some of his ideas, develop a film and audio-visual archives for his activities and a video documentary on all his activities, among other issues.
Professor Sawyerr further appealed for an inter-ministerial follow-up to the celebrations that would equip them with fresh ideas for subsequent celebrations.
Professor Kofi Anyidoho who launched the reprinted copies of all Dr. Nkrumah's books, said the reprinting exercise was to educate Ghanaians and Africans on the intellectualism of the late leader and to revisit some of the issues that were raised decades after his death. A symbolic presentation of copies of Dr. Nkrumah's books was made to the Universities of Cape Coast, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and Accra Polytechnic while other tertiary institutions would receive their copies in due course.
