Professor Kwesi Yankah, a former Minister of State for Tertiary Education, has publicly criticized Sammy Gyamfi, the National Communications Director of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), for misrepresenting facts about the establishment of some public universities in Ghana.
Prof Yankah strongly disputed Gyamfi’s claim that Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first president, founded those universities, stating that the assertion by the NDC National Communication Director is a lie.
“University of Ghana was not established by Kwame Nkrumah! I thought this was common knowledge even for those who have never been students of UG,” he stated.
The professor pointed out that the University of Ghana, then known as the University College of the Gold Coast, was established in 1948 through an ordinance and urged Gyamfi to verify information before making public statements.
In a social media post rebutting a recent statement by Sammy Gyamfi, Prof Yankah indicated that people who have had the opportunity of being students at the university, and even cleaners on the campus, know the history of Ghana’s premier university.
Sammy Gyamfi, in an interview on JoyNews TV, indicated that Ghana’s first president established the University of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), and the University of Education, Winneba (UEW).
However, responding to these claims, Prof Yankah stated it was terrible for Mr. Gyamfi to have boldly lied about the establishment of these notable public universities.
He noted that while Sammy Gyamfi could exhibit an admirable level of confidence when lying on very common issues that might convince the uninformed, when it comes to education, facts should be checked. He urged Gyamfi to cross-check his facts before making such statements.
Prof Yankah also debunked Mr. Gyamfi’s claim that Kwame Nkrumah founded the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). Prof Yankah emphasized that the vision for KNUST originated with Nana Agyemang Prempeh I and was carried forward by Nana Prempeh II. The university admitted its first students in 1951, a year before Nkrumah became Prime Minister.
“Nkrumah played a pivotal role in the aftermath and transformation but not the founding,” he added.
Prof Yankah described as “the most ridiculous” the attempt to attribute the establishment of UEW to Kwame Nkrumah, “which Sammy really ought not to have made such a lie.
“UEW, as we all call it, was not founded by Nkrumah. It was established in 1992 by PNDC Law 322. If not for mischief, that’s some credit to your own party founder, but to achieve whatever goals, you brought in Nkrumah. I believe Nkrumah has a lot of legacies to his name and doesn’t need lies to credit him. And Jack, there are times you do these things, and fact-checking requires documents and some extensive work, but this was too weak!” he said.
Prof Yankah indicated that Nkrumah’s legacy is substantial and does not require fabricated claims to enhance his reputation.
He advised Gyamfi to conduct thorough research before making public statements.
