Commemorating Dr J.B. Danquah’s legacy on his 60th Memorial anniversary
Today, we gather in solemn remembrance and profound reflection as we mark sixty (60) years since the passing of one of Ghana’s most remarkable patriots, Dr Joseph Boakye Danquah, who endured the ultimate sacrifice for his love for his country and the freedom of her people.
His legacy is woven into the fabric of Ghana’s political, intellectual, and constitutional development.
Dr Danquah was more than a scholar, politician, statesman and advocate.
He was a poet, a playwright and a chronicler of our history, customs and norms.
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He was a visionary who dedicated his life to laying the foundational principles of our democracy.
Indeed, the principles of democratic accountability, free enterprise, free expression and the rule of law, which are all today enshrined in the 4th Republican Constitution, are the very ones he fought for from the 1920s and died for in 1965.
It is a testament of his foresight and that of the many others who shared those ideals, that the 1992 Constitution has given rise to the longest enduring democratic rule in Ghana’s history.
His journey, from Bepong in Kwahu, through his administrative work at the Ofori Panin Palace in Kyebi, to the halls of the University of London, was not merely a pursuit of personal academic excellence but the stuff of African intellectual resilience and excellence.
As a royal, legal practitioner, philosopher, historian, and nationalist, he sought to shape a governance system of freedom and progress that reflected the pluralistic and cultural depth of our people.
He foresaw what an independent Gold Coast represented: a role model for the rest of Sub Saharan Africa and he was determined to see this future shaped strictly by the fundamental tenets of inclusive development in freedom.
When Danquah speaks of liberating “the energies of the people for the growth of a property owning democracy in this land, with right to life, freedom and justice, as the principles to which the government and the laws of the land should be dedicated in order specifically to enrich life, property and liberty of each and every citizen,” indeed, he means, the goal should be to build a society of what he called, “adehyia”, where every citizen is treated with dignity and has the opportunity and privilege to create, grow and enjoy wealth in freedom and responsibly.
His vision for Ghanaians remains the Ghana we all want, desire and deserve.
Waston Commission
It is no wonder, then, that the Watson Commission Report in 1948, the recommendations from which helped pave the way for Ghana's independence, acknowledged Dr Danquah’s towering leadership in the long push to end colonialism in the Gold Coast. The report said:
“Dr Danquah might be described as the doyen of Gold Coast politicians. He has founded or been connected with most political movements since his adolescence.”
This recognition reflects not only his pioneering role in political organization but also his unwavering commitment to the political emancipation and economic transformation of the Gold Coast.
Scholarship
Dr Danquah’s scholarship was pioneering. His work, The Akan Doctrine of God, challenged colonial narratives and asserted African cosmologies as deserving of scholarly attention.
He was not merely an intellectual for academia’s sake; his studies were meant to shape governance, policy, and national identity. It was his belief that democracy must be built on what he called Ghanaism: a vision of a shared national identity and unity among the diverse ethnic groups in the Gold Coast, rooted in the country’s history, culture, and traditions, while also embracing modern democratic principles and governance.
The key elements of his Ghanaism are (1) cultural pride (2) unity in diversity (3) self-determination and (4) democratic values.
We are called Ghana today because of the research and advocacy of Dr Danquah. Prior to independence, Dr Danquah travelled near and far to conduct extensive research on a suitable name that would reflect the history, identity, and heritage of the people of the Gold Coast. He spent considerable time at the British Museum and other libraries, meticulously studying primary historical sources on the origins and traditions of the ethnic groups within the Gold Coast.
Through his scholarly investigations, Dr Danquah discovered a historical connection between the people of the Gold Coast and the ancient Ghana Empire.
He argued that adopting the name "Ghana" would symbolize the strength, heritage, and continuity of the region’s ancestral past, fostering a shared national identity and pride.
The United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), formed in 1947 by Paa Grant, Danquah, R S Blay, Edward Akufo-Addo and others, agreed to use the name “Ghana” upon independence. This proposal was ultimately accepted when the country attained independence in 1957.
His role in the formation of the UGCC was instrumental in setting Ghana on the path to independence. Dennis Austin, in his work "Politics in Ghana," page 7, affirms Dr. Danquah’s central role in conceptualizing and organizing the UGCC. He states:
“The idea of a new political movement was almost certainly that of Danquah. He was associated with several quasi-political bodies, representative on the Cocoa Marketing Board for the Colony Farmers Movement as well as the Joint Provincial Council and representative on the Legislative Council.”
This view is corroborated by Peter T. Omari in his book, “Kwame Nkrumah the Anatomy of African Dictatorship,” emphasizing Dr. Danquah’s organizational efforts in the early stages of the UGCC’s development. Omari states:
“The man who has organised the United Gold Coast Convention earlier that year, in April and May 1947, and who had been instrumental in launching it in August, was Dr J. B. Danquah.”
In 1948, the consensus from the Watson Committee Report was that Ghana would achieve independence within ten years. UGCC were for a peaceful transition to independence “in the shortest possible time.” Nkrumah and his Convention People’s Party in 1949 called for “independence now!” Yet, we achieved independence in 1957 and became a republic three years after.
Dr Danquah championed a constitutional approach, one that safeguarded freedoms and built enduring institutions.
This belief in the supremacy of the rule of law made him a fierce opponent of unchecked political power, which reached perverse heights when by 1964 party and nation became one, with the Ghana flag being replaced by the flag of the CPP.
When the Preventive Detention Act (PDA) of 1958 threatened the very liberties he had fought for, Dr Danquah stood firm in defence of justice.
Though his challenge to the Act in court failed, his moral victory paved the way for future constitutional reforms, including the enshrinement of Human Rights and judicial independence in Ghana’s post-1966 legal framework.
His tragic death in detention in 1965 remains a sombre reminder of the cost of tyranny and the unyielding price of defending democracy.
Beyond politics, Dr Danquah embodied the delicate balance between tradition and modernity.
As Twafohene of Akyem Abuakwa, he understood that traditional authority was not an impediment to development but a crucial pillar of governance.
He envisioned a Ghana where local traditions and national policies complemented each other, rather than being at odds.
His advocacy for decentralization remains ever relevant as we continue to grapple with governance structures that must both empower local communities and unify the nation.
For decades, Dr. Danquah served as legal counsel to the Effutu State, passionately defending its land and heritage.
Today, the Reconciliation Roundabout in Winneba, where he and Dr Kwame Nkrumah are immortalized in a handshake, serves as a powerful metaphor for our national journey - one marked by struggles, disagreements, and ultimately, the pursuit of unity.
It teaches us that true leadership requires not just vision, but the ability to bridge differences in service of the greater good.
Knowledge
Dr Danquah believed that knowledge was the foundation of national progress. His tireless advocacy led to the establishment of the University of Ghana; an institution that has since become a beacon of academic excellence in Africa.
His vision was for an enlightened citizenry, one that questions, innovates, and upholds democratic principles. In an era of misinformation and political apathy, his call for intellectual rigor and civic responsibility remains as crucial as ever.
The principles for which Dr. Danquah fought are what hold us together today.
The rule of law, judicial independence, and the protection of individual freedoms must never be taken for granted.
Recent incidents, such as the troubling raid on a former Minister’s residence, incidentally a grand nephew of Danquah, reminds us of the fragility of our democracy.
We must never allow the machinery of state power to operate beyond the bounds of justice.
The memory of Dr Danquah demands that we remain vigilant, ensuring that democracy in Ghana is not just a theoretical ideal but a lived reality.
As I stand before you today, I cannot help but reflect on the weight of Dr Danquah’s legacy. His portrait in my office is more than a symbol - it is a daily reminder of the duty we bear as public servants, as citizens, and as inheritors of the democracy he envisioned.
His life teaches us that opposition must be constructive, governance must be principled, and leadership must always be in service of the people.
Dr J.B. Danquah’s story is not one of mere remembrance but of responsibility.
The best way to honour him is not with words alone, but with actions that protect the freedoms for which he lived and died. Let us commit ourselves to preserving justice, strengthening our institutions, and ensuring that no Ghanaian ever suffers the fate he endured.
It is, indeed, a mark of the undeserving indignity he suffered and the evil lies that Dr Danquah still endures that on the occasion of Parliament marking this 60th anniversary, a member of the Majority told a bold and naked lie that Dr Danquah was a CIA spy and, to support this lie, and referred falsely to a book that rather praises the Doyen of Ghanaian politics.
Danquah in his lifetime lamented over these lies against his person from his political opponents. When he led efforts to raise money from Britain to build the Accra Sports Stadium, his opponents twisted it to say, apart from Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Danquah and the others in the UGCC had been bribed to abandon the independent struggle for sports!
In the end, we got both, independence and the stadium, which still stands today.
Danquah lamented how the front of the people, united for a greater anti-colonial struggle was split by those who split from the UGCC to become its political opponents; those who used populist, false propaganda to create an unhealthy society of “us against them”.
In his own words, “the adversary in the struggle no longer was imperialism as such but the well-to-do African, the professional man and the businessman… and a new class, “the masses”, of the “common people”…
It was made to appear that those who fortunately or unfortunately did not look common, but were in a way distinguished by wealth or learning or success in life, were enemies of the people and stooges of imperialism.”
Sadly, this old hate campaign is still with us today, fed daily with oxygen by those who should know better.
Indeed, I dare say that, perhaps since the 1940s, no group of people have suffered a hate campaign as enduring as that which Danquah and his people have had to go through.
A people who have contributed so much to public service and the betterment of our nation and yet maligned beyond measure for sacrifices that are pure and patriotic.
I leave you with a quote from a letter from Danquah to Nkrumah in October 1961.
“… I am now more than ever convinced that I have never known myself as my Maker knows me inside out.
He fashioned me and has used me in His own fashion, and, as I see it, the reason why I still live and breathe and am able to exert myself in life must be the simple one that my Maker hasn’t quite finished with me yet.
There are lots more He wants me to suffer for, and to use me for.
I do not myself mind suffering so long as it is not suffering for myself. To suffer for oneself is the emotions of all suffering; to suffer for others is the greatest spiritual elevation.”
Ladies and gentlemen, let us leave here today with a renewed sense of purpose, knowing that democracy is not a gift handed down through history but a perpetual struggle, one that we must embrace with courage and resolve
Let us leave here, denouncing hate campaign, whoever and whichever group it may be directed at.
Let us put the love and dignity of Ghana and Africa above our differences, because what unites us is far greater than the desire of those who seek to divide and weaken us.
May the legacy of Dr Joseph Boakye Danquah continue to inspire us, guide us, and challenge us to build a Ghana that truly upholds the principles of freedom, justice, and unity.
