Nkrumah Unique Indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
A political strategist and a visionary
Initiator of the African Personality
A fighter for the total liberation of Africa
A strong proponent of African Unity
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
He planned his Presidency, future oriented
And lived ahead of his time
Chose African people first
Before himself
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
He wrote a book “Neo-colonialism:
The Last Stage of Imperialism”
The USA government punished
Ghanaians for this publication
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
During his reign no affirmative action
But women excelled
And education for all
And tribalism unknown
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
After he crossed over to the ancestors
He was buried three times
At three different places
A monument for his achievement
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
There were six assassinations on his life
With bombs and grenades
But he escaped them all
And no vengeance on his part
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
He formulated a political ideology- Nkrumaism
He created an institution
“Kwame Nkrumah Ideological Institute”
To propagate Nkrumaism
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
While in varsity in the USA
He was declared, the most popular and much respected student
In the1939 edition of Lion, the annual varsity publications,
Nkrumah the most interesting of students at Lincoln
The verse below accompanied his picture
“Africa is the beloved of his dreams’
Philosopher, thinker, with forceful schemes,
In aesthetics, politics, he’s in the field’
Nkrumah, tres interessant, radiates appeal.”
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
After his death his peers confessed
That he was 100 years ahead of them
And they were 100 years behind him
All the criticism and opposition were baseless
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
When he was overthrown
He was made a Co-President of Guinea
And wrote many books
Including Dark Days in Ghana
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
President J. F. Kennedy broke all diplomatic protocol
By climbing into the plane to welcome Nkrumah
The first and last President
To be accorded such an honor
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
He used constitutional means
To break the back of the British Empire
And set the momentum
For the total liberation of Africa
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
He used the constitution to accomplish his ends
While the opposition used political violence
Bombs, grenades and false propaganda
He united the opposition instead of dividing them
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
While in the USA the FBI opened a file on him
Because he was preaching African Nationalism
To Africans in the United States
Who were suffering under Jim Crow laws
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
For his doctoral dissertation
He chose the topic
“The Philosophy of Imperialism
With special reference to Africa”
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
While in the USA
He preached Liberation Theology
In African churches and community centers
Like his mentor Marcus Garvey
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
He was co-secretary with George Padmore
An intellectual Pan-Africanist giant
For the Fifth Pan-African Congress
This revolutionalized African political thought
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

Nkrumah unique among his peers
His speech at the15th Anniversary of the UN
Drew the longest standing ovation
In the history of the UN
Thus a worldwide recognition for Africa
Nkrumah, unique indeed!

By Nii Ardey Artoo