Celebrating 57 Years of Independence (Or Some Form Thereof)

Yesterday, on March 6^th, Ghana celebrated 57 years of independence. Ghana gained independence in 1957 under the leadership of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.  Ghana was the first African nation to remove the colonial powers (in this case, the British) and retains a lot of credibility for this accomplishment. In the 57 years that have occurred since, Ghana has had, until relatively recently, a very fragile and somewhat compromised democracy.  Nkrumah was overthrown in 1966 and between 1966 and 2001 there were 2 more coups and one president who remained in power for 20 years.  In 2001, this president, Jerry John Rawlings stepped down after John Kufour (a member of the opposing party) was elected president.  This marks the birth of Ghana’s more effective democracy.

Fort Usher in Jamestown (Accra's oldest section) went from being a slave holding prison to a colonial prison.  Now it stands largely untouched and serves as a powerful visual reminder of history not so long ago. 

Ghanaians are proud of their history and proud to be the beacon of “African” democracy that the rest of the world has appointed it.  However, they tend to be hypercritical of their failure to figure out democracy to the extent that they think that the rest of the world has it figured out.  It’s frustrating to have so many conversations allude to democratic imperfection in Ghana and democratic perfection in the United States.  I’ve had to convince people that in the US we too have dirty politics, a ruling class, and nepotism.  I’ve explained how my country just repealed a major voting rights act and scoffs at campaign finance reform. I relay how when Senators finish in the Senate, they roll back in as a lobbyist, ensuring that they are still effectively a law maker, just a much better paid law maker.  And though we are never threatened with having our politics labeled as “tribal,” who are we kidding with our red and blue maps??

On any given day in Ghana, Ghanaians are decked out in the colors of their own flag.......it was a bit surprising to see red, white and blue on the actual Ghanaian Independence Day. 

The Ghanaian flags at Jubilee Park in Wa where the Independence Day festivities were held. 

It’s scary that they keep looking to us as a role model, especially when Ghana has actually accomplished some things that we have yet to accomplish.  Ghana figured out a decent enough version of national health insurance in its democratic infancy. The Ghanaian National Health Insurance Scheme just celebrated 10 years of service.  We put together a majorly patch worked version in our geriatric years.  Ghana also did a better job at resolving a contested presidential election.

Not only does Ghana have national health insurance, but a call center to handle questions and concerns.  Maybe they should be contractors for the US?

In September, the Ghanaian Supreme Court overruled a petition from the losing party claiming that 2 million of the votes that elected John Mahama president were fraudulent.  During the Supreme Court deliberations the country was abuzz with declarations of the need to maintain peace through the judicial process.  Banners displaying such messages as “Our Peace is Profound” were draped from buildings.  Commercials pleading for people to remain peaceful no matter what the Supreme Court ruling were on repeat play on TV. I found this public messaging to be kind of annoying and sometimes amusing.  In expressing my befuddlement to someone, I was politely reprimanded for forgetting the turbulent decades that followed independence. I think I was also undervalueing the value of peace in Africa.  In an otherwise "violent and volatile" climate, if a country can handle elections peacefully, it is accredited by the rest of the world and open for commerce. Of course everything went peacefully upon the ruling and Ghana was able to maintain its title of a peaceful African democracy.

Nana Akufo-Addo, unsuccessful presidential candidate and unsuccessful petitioner of the Supreme Court

Yet the discontentment that abounds for how elected leaders lead is perhaps the most unifying topic of conversation in the country.  No one is pleased with government here.  So while independence is something unique and important to celebrate, the state of democracy that is in place is something that warrants more discussion and action.  Furthermore, questioning just how independent Ghana remains is also up for discussion. It is pretty profound that USAID chose Independence Day as the day to reveal its second phase of a multi-billion dollar project incentivizing private enterprise (often foreign) and higher reliance on improved (aka externally derived and expensive) technologies as a means to achieve food security in Ghana.  Powerful international authorities no longer wear pith helmets, but they still wield a lot of power for directing policy and practice.

To be independent is a real thing, but how that independence is defined and enacted is a much more complicated matter.  

An exhibit at the National Museum in Accra highlights what kids think the next 50 years of Independence should hold