Question

Discuss any four features of Nkrumah's policies that led to the collapse of his government in Ghana (1966).

Answer 1

Reasons for the downfall of Nkrumah's government in Ghana:

1. Role of Foreign Agents: It becomes clear that the British Secret Service, the CIA, and American and British capitalist circles worked with the military to remove Nkrumah from office.
2. Type of Mixed Economy: The economic system of Ghana was a unique blend of "welfare socialism" similar to that of Western Europe and conventional neo-colonialism. A combination like that hardly seems feasible.
3. Parallel Private Enterprises: Several entrepreneurs from Ghana established their own private companies, specialising in consumer items. Nkrumah was brought down by a counterrevolution that had the potential to occur when the socialist-democratic revolution gained strength.
4. Failure to Disarm Generals: The people were terrified and panicked during Nkrumah's terror rule, as the conspirators of the coup would subsequently claim. Mistrust resulted in a general insecurity that eventually replaced the tightly connected Ghanaian culture. Nkrumah was a multifaceted individual. His project was highly complex, and the times were unstable and unpredictable. His accomplishments, passion for all things African, the political energising of a highly heterogeneous, multidimensional society, the gaining of Ghana's independence, and his pioneering contributions to the economy have secured him a significant historical position. His failure highlights how incredibly vulnerable the underdeveloped world is. There is little room for social, political, economic, or environmental deficits. Because of his serious mistakes, Nkrumah lost his political position and almost destroyed the beautiful country and its people.