CRAWLING @ 57
We have come far
57 long years after independence is no mean journey
Dr Kwame Nkrumah gained us independence from colonial
rule
But after his uncharitable removal from office
Ghana has traded her independence for porridge served
in a Chinese bowl
After 57 years of independence
We still find ourselves in needless economic and
mental yokes and shackles
The Dubais and the Saudi Arabias were once dry desert
lands
Yet today, with just one major natural resource
They have transformed their dry lands into paradises
We have gold, bauxite, manganese, diamond and other
minerals
We have vast tracts of arable land at our disposal
We have the sea and other water resources
With crude oil in addition
Yet as the legendary Robert Nesta Marley put it
‘In the midst of abundant water, the foolish man is
thirsty’
After 57 years of independence
We still cannot feed ourselves squarely
We are in dire need of everything
From common sewing needles and threads to ordinary
toothpicks
We can barely do anything on our own without foreign
assistance
Except for rigging of elections
After 57 years of independence
IMF still instructs us on how to manage our own economy
After 57 years of independence
We still prefer foreign currencies to our cedi
After 57 years of independence
Majority of the products we consume in our land are
made in China
After 57 years of independence
Water and electricity supply remains a right for the
ruling class
But to the populace, they are costly luxuries
After 57 years of independence
We still want to adopt genetically modified foods
When tonnes of foodstuffs are constantly getting
rotten in the hinterlands
Series of governments have emerged after Dr. Kwame
Nkrumah
But instead of carrying on with the vision of Nkrumah
Their major focus has been on how to stay longer in
power
Life they say begins at 40
Yet at 57 years Ghana is still a crawling adult
Who begs and depends on her neighbours for every
single thing
The Indonesias and Singapores whom we started life
with
Have matured into grown ups
Who are standing firm on their feet
And even assisting other nations to be self-sufficient
Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah
You really fought hard for independence from colonial
rule
But those who came after you are fighting harder and
harder
To return the nation to colonial rule
The mental and economic freedom you won for this
nation
Has been auctioned to the highest bidder by your
successors
Weep in your grave Osagyefo, weep!
For the nation you left on its feet
Is now an adult crawling at the age of 57!!!
