Nana Frema Busia: K. A Busia vrs J.B Danquah, Re Naming UG Legon

Kofi Abrefa Busia is still a noteworthy global intellectual gem. The fact is, that as at today, 28th of August 2023, the 45th anniversary of Prof. K.A. Busia’s death, it is not easy to find many African Scholars with his widespread & distinctive international recognition or acclaim for scholarship. He is thus in an exclusive class of remarkable honor.

If there were a cause to celebrate for re-naming UG-Legon after anyone, then, it would be President Akufo-Addo’s mark of strategic Treachery to sideline and constrict Prof. K.A Busia and name it unfairly after his uncle Dr. J.B Danquah. Mr. President has purposefully named a university in the Bono Region after Prof K.A. Busia not as an honor, but as it were, a classic betrayal with malice aforethought, as a preparatory step to uplift Dr. J.B Danquah undeservedly to reap in an arena he did not sew.

If, while ironically blaming Covid-19 & Ukraine war for self- inflicted woes, Ghana’s untrustworthy President, Akufo-Addo whose governance is corruption inundated at such a volatile time as this, while he has thrown scandalous economically abysmal and military weight behind an unpopular ECOWAS war to dislodge coup plotters in Niger, wants a distraction to show democratic clout, why does he not re-name Kotoka International Airport which is named after the leader of the overthrow of Dr. Nkrumah’s regime rather than distort the historic record of UG Legon after refurbishing the Nkrumah Mausoleum ?

K.A. Busia is of course known as THE Ultimate Professor with his literal footprints of academic excellence engraved on the very fabric of UG Legon’s intellectual essence which cannot be extinguished.

Most certainly, One cannot review the intellectual Architecture of UG Legon and indeed Ghana without the intrinsic Relevance of K.A. Busia’s advent as its First dynamic African Professor and Researcher who established the three Departments of Sociology, African Studies and Music.

As confirmed by its first Vice Chancellor Prof. Balme, K.A. Busia put his indelible mark of scholarship on the fledging university as he worked dutifuly to establish its world wide Academic Credibility in a No Busia, No UG Legon adage.

The late musical maestro Prof J.H Nketsia known as a Father of UG Legon also does acknowledge being “discovered” and resourced by Prof K.A Busia to facilitate Busia’s establishment of the Music department initially under Sociology. What does that make Prof Busia!

Furthermore K.A. Busia creditably does rise to the ladder of intellectual honour by leaving a futuristic blueprint based on African values and culture to redirect educational policy and instruction to a development, technology & skill based focus in his book “Purposeful Education for Africa “, in addition to establishing the students loan scheme and national service corps for well managed training and service to country as building blocks also to industry and private enterprise so that we would not have associations of unemployed Graduates as we do now.

Perhaps H.E. President Akufo-Addo would graciously review K. A. Busia on Education in order to fine tune and breathe life into his floundering free education program instead of scheming to name UG Legon after Dr. Danquah.

Unfortunately Dr. J.B Danquah’s fame truly lies in his untimely and pathetic death in Nsawam prison under President Nkrumah’s Preventive Detention Act ( PDA) without charge or trial. Von Fleischer chronicles Dr. Danquah’s abysmal treatment and his direct pleas to Dr. Nkrumah for release and medical treatment which were unheeded, until he died a broken man in prison which causes genuine heart aches. Shall we therefore name Nsawam Prison after Danquah because he is associated with prison death? I should definitely think not. It would not do his memory justice.

Our sitting President should also not illogically augment Dr. Danquah’s record or give him a badge of overarching rights to UG – Legon for being one of several voices including intellectuals, chiefs and many ordinary Gold Coasters who supported and called for its establishment beyond a sole West African university in Nigeria as intended by British colonialists.

One Cannot by any iota of fanciful imagination say that “But for” J.B Danquah UG -Legon would not have been physically established as there is no causal or direct pivotal relationship between UG Legon and Dr J.B. Danquah. The UG legon naming suggestion of J.B Danquah as its Founder has no credibility and any impending imposition is thus quite absurd and preposterous

Furthermore, If President Akufo-Addo were looking for a national or political figurehead to name UG – Legon after, we would have to tip our hats towards K .A Busia on having served as one of only two district commissioners in the colonial administration, founded his own Ghana Congress party, won his lone seat in Parliament regardless of whatever margin, in an intricate and complex Wenchi politics where Busia is a Sofoase Yefiri royal but where Dr Nkrumah’s ancestry is also claimed as factual..

Indeed, the author C. E. Donkor in his book “Nkrumah and Busia of Ghana pages 9 to 11” tells us gingerly that “The ancestors of Kwame Nkrumah and Kofi Busia lived in the same “Awhene – Koko”, their ancient home; that both leaders are tribesmen of Wenchi, the land of Yefiri Tete, people of the untraceable origin destroyed by war as confirmed by Dr Nkrumah’s mother Madam Nyaniba through her sorrowful grandmother’s auratory. That Dr Nkrumah who was proud to have the same ancestry as K.A. Busia was embraced to his ancestral home Wenchi and made an honorary chief with the name Anye Amoampong by the rival Ahenfie Yefri house.

This volatile chieftaincy dichotomy is unabated and playing out to date in Wenchi as I write this interesting digression on Busia / Nkrumah as clansmen and political opponents not on personal, but on policy and ideological grounds for a suitable governance system commensurate with African value systems and traditions

In any case, K.A Busia stood stalwart with unflinching Bravery for Parliamentary democracy, but President Akufo-Addo has not named the Ghana Parliament or a democracy Park after him!

K.A Busia also Represented Ashanti with Brong & Ahafo incorporated, became leader of Ghana’s opposition, went into Exile under threat of impending arrest as Ghana became a one party state, Founded the Progress party, and surely won the 1969 election with 105 out of 148 seats and became Ghana’s Prime Minister in 1969 and handed over a ceremonial Presidency on a silver Platter to Akufo-Addo Senior, perhaps an error in Busia judgement in hindsight.

Whereas we acknowledge Dr.J B Danquah for being a nationalist lawyer and one of the leaders of the UGCC who initiated the independence agitation, it is evident that his ambitions were stifled and he was rendered sadly redundant by the fiery stampede of Dr. Nkrumah who became Danquah’s personal nemesis and led the country to Independence.

Significantly, Dr. Danquah’s draft constitutions with contribution by other legal brains were thrown in a political dustbin never to see the light of day.

Dr. Danquah’s political record also became woefully tarnished by a corruption allegation which he disputed as a ploy by the Nkrumah camp and his close involvement as a key defense lawyer in the lengthy Kyebi murder trial was unhelpful to his largely unsuccesful & acrimonious political career which was truncated by Dr. Nkrumah’s eventful split from the UGCC.

In trying to elevate Dr. J.B Danquah beyond his actual contribution, President Akufo-Addo rather subjects Dr. Danquah to critical overview, a correction of the record and some unfair commentary.

Back to the Academic arena, a university designation is based foremost on Instruction and knowledge impartation and acquisition which is where K.A Busia singularly excels and is integral not only to the establishment of faculties but made unparalleled contribution in education as he tutored myriad students at UG Legon as well as Achimota and Wesley College as a trainer of Teachers with expertise and unrivaled commitment and sheer unadulterated brilliance which is K.A. Busia’s undisputed fortè.

Now, let us inquire; Is Prof K.A. Busia who was so famous for dedicated scholarship at Oxford University, The Hague The USA and Latin American Universities etc that his name BUSIA became an acronym for B-est U -niversity S -cholar I- n A- frica. not eminently more qualified for a UG Legon naming than J.B. Danquah for goodness sakes under any insightful and truthful socio- political metric if there ever were a need or desire for a name change?

Today we remember K. A. Busia in our prayers as we pay tribute to his memory on this 45th death anniversary and wish him Damirifa due as the political party which is unknown to him and to which his name has been associated without his permission is mired in sordid and crookish mediocrity.

We acknowledge his tireless efforts in the establishment of a Ghana with integrity and a reformed non-corrupt Character on a common humanity developmental module with an ethical African Democracy which is in apparent crisis.

We are indeed articulating that on a comparative basis with Dr. J.B Danquah, it would rather not be inappropriate to name UG Legon after Prof K. A. Busia on merit, as an “Ayekoo” to a native son who did Ghana so very proud that his name became synonymous with African Scholarship but also to further bolster the academic image of his native university which he nurtured with astute direction and wisdom at its inception when it needed international intellectual gravitas.

We conclude unequivocally that the K.A Busia timeless record as a global Educationist and Premium intellectual mystique with UG- Legon hallmarks should not be diminished by re_naming the university at all or unjustifiably after anyone less deserving. Thanks Much.

Inspirational Quote : My great purpose in life is to study all I can and when the time comes to pour out my life in the service of my God and my country. Knowledge is useless unless it makes us better servants of Humanity” K.A. Busia _ Dec 1939.

Rest in Peace till we meet again
Damirifa Due dear dad

Email: busiafordemocracy@ yahoo.com