From Nkrumah to Professor Do-Little

Last month we celebrated Heritage Day here in South Africa.
A popular holiday also known as braai day. The day is spent by millions of South Africans consuming tonnes of jolly good braai ( that is roasted meat for those of you who have no southern African connection) and drinking generous amounts of beer, wine and various derivatives of alcohol in homes and gatherings across the land.
I must add though that the link between heritage and braai remains evasive to me though. Perhaps one day I need to do some research on this quintessential South African thing.
However, instead of hovering around chunks of roasted meat and liquor, my day was spent quietly in and around the bedroom drifting between reading, sleeping and reflecting on life.
A pretty decent and daintily choice it was, if you ask me.
So here I was reflecting on my own heritage as a Ghanaian in South Africa. After all who will not grasp such an opportunity to reflect on the issues of heritage with both heart and mind?
So I did or should I say I was doing in between bouts of idyllic naps. Naps that came only when I tried to reflect on the question of the Ghanaian heritage. Lol. Perhaps, those recurring naps were an indication of boredom or probably an 'allergy' to the very idea of reflecting on something as banal as national heritage. I don't know.

One thing which was far from boring though was the passionate discourse that took place in many Ghanaian communities regarding the centenary anniversary of Kwame Nkrumah's birthday.
It was an opportunity for Ghanaians to reminiscent about the life and times of one of our own, probably the greatest Pan-Africanist that ever lived.
In the firmament of Africa's political superstars, the name of Osagyefo will continue to shine very brightly. So far no other Ghanaian politician has come close to the exploits of the man.
One question though. Why is it that almost always politicians are the only ones we attach greatness to in our national discourse? Where are our great industrialists, farmers, economists, businessmen, educationists, scientists?
Probably, as a people, our cultural heritage as a whole is skewed towards the overestimation of politics and politicians. Until our focus is shifted from politics to economics, science, business, technology and education we will continue to be dogged by underdevelopment.
Apart from Kwame Nkrumah and perhaps two other individuals, our long-suffering Ghana has been (mis)ruled by political and military chancers. And with those misfits, the nation has become increasingly polarised along tribal lines. It is sad to see successive leaders continue to ignore the issue of national cohesion. Today many Ghanaians view their heritage exclusively through the experience of their tribal affiliations. The tribe is being gradually pushed ahead of the nation. I wonder if today's Ghanaianness does have any grand nationally ubiquitous underpinnings. Yes we sing the same anthem and carry one flag. But that is all there is to our unity. Is the Ghanaian heritage a congregation of deeply relating tribal identities or a set of clusters of different tribal identities ever moving apart? Where is the centre of the Ghanaian heritage? What has damaged any meaningful prospects of a grand national heritage is the intentional and mischievous gravitation towards tribal clusters in our body politic and the adherence and promotion of such by political parties.
The question is can this unfortunate tendency be reversed? I thinks so. The best way to bring about a "better Ghana" is to unleash the forces that will create economic growth and development across all the regions of our land. This brings my attention to what is happening in Ghana at the present moment. NDC is playing the same old political game. Having promised to put money in every pocket and chicken in every pot, the reality they are facing is that they are inadequately prepared for the challenges. Ghanaians believed their tall tales and then oops! Don't we always learn after the fact. Now we have quickly come to the shocking realisation that at the 'tortoise' rate the Atta Mills' administration is crawling, our pockets and pots will be long gone by the time, if ever, the clueless bunch finally figure out where the switch of the economic engine is.
For the past nine months the government has been searching for the elusive switch to no avail. They are now pinning their impotent hope on the windfall from our oil, thinking that spending money is the essence of governance. Wait for the oil to start flowing and see the spenders wake up from their bewildering comatose state.
For goodness sake, let the clueless bunch admit that the " better Ghana" mantra was a cheap propaganda. They do not have the capacity nor the means to deliver on the tall promises.
Shame.