The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has commemorated the 58th anniversary of the overthrow of Ghana’s first president, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, describing the abrupt end to Nkrumah’s visionary leadership as a day of shame that will forever be remembered.

The NDC, in a press release, stated that the February 24, 1966 coup d’état derailed Ghana from the path of accelerated development and industrialization.

NDC also accused the founders of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) of instituting a deliberate agenda to erase the legacy and immense contributions of Kwame Nkrumah from Ghana’s history books.

“This nation-wrecking act was followed by a deliberate agenda by the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition to obliterate the memory of Nkrumah by attacking his works and legacy. Despite their determined efforts to rewrite history, the memory of Kwame Nkrumah lives on, and his legacy remains unparalleled.”

The party in its press release further urged Ghanaians to unequivocally reject any resurgence of treachery and political machinations aimed at undermining democratic principles and historical truth. It urged a commitment to upholding Nkrumah’s vision of a prosperous and egalitarian society, free from the distortions of revisionist agendas.

“We must say never again to such acts of treachery that have set our nation back and rolled back the clock of progress by several years. Ghanaians must reject those whose mission is not to pursue the path of democracy for the upliftment of our citizens, but their selfish quest for historical revisionism and the recognition of their ancestors.”

Below is the NDC’s full press release.

NDC REMEMBERS OSAGYEFO DR. KWAME NKRUMAH ON THE OCCASION OF HIS OVERTHROW 58 YEARS AGO

The National Democratic Congress today joins Ghanaians in commemorating 58 years after the unfortunate overthrow of Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.

On 24th February 1966, President Nkrumah was ousted from office through Ghana’s first-ever coup d’etat. That day will be remembered as Ghana’s day of shame, as the coup truncated Nkrumah’s transformational vision which he had set in motion for the accelerated development and industrialisation of our country.

Instructively, the coup was executed by security personnel with the active orchestration of the forbears of those at the helm of affairs of our country today, in close collaboration with their foreign pay masters.

This nation-wrecking act was followed by a deliberate agenda by the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition to obliterate the memory of Nkrumah by attacking his works and legacy. Despite their determined efforts to rewrite history, the memory of Kwame Nkrumah lives on, and his legacy remains unparalleled.

We must say never again to such acts of treachery that have set our nation back and rolled back the clock of progress by several years. Ghanaians must reject those whose mission is not to pursue the path of democracy for the upliftment of our citizens, but their selfish quest for historical revisionism and the recognition of their ancestors.

Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah truly never dies.