Audio Attachment:Listen to Baba Jamal in an interview with Kwami Sefa-Kayi on Peace FM's "kokrokoo" programme |
Deputy Information Minister, Baba Jamal, says the seating arrangement at Wednesday�s Founder�s Day celebration was inadvertent and not skewed to resign Dr Sekou Nkrumah, son of Ghana�s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah to the background nor to slight him.
According to him, the original plan was to get the former First Family seated together; however, the podium was not big enough because of an earlier downpour which rendered the normal 15 seat dais to be reduced to 12, adding that a decision was thus taken to provide space for persons who had key functions to perform on the occasion.
The Deputy Information Minister says he is willing to apologize to Sekou Nkrumah if he feels slighted.
The son of Ghana�s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, �boycotted� celebrations held at the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum in Accra in honor of his late father because he felt slighted by the �political vindictiveness� on display at the Founder�s Day.
The Founder�s Day, instituted two years ago, is marked on 21st September to commemorate the birthday of Ghana�s first President, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah.
President John Evans Atta Mills endorsed 21st September of every year to be celebrated in memory of the first President of Ghana. This is in recognition of his foresight and fortitude which led to Ghana's attainment of independence from British colonial rule in 1957.
According to Sekou, he arrived in the morning of the programme just to realize that the usual seating arrangement with his elder siblings on the podium had been changed to a �corner because someone felt he did not deserve to be on the podium this time round�.
But speaking to the issue in an interview with Kwami Sefa Kayi on Peace FM�s Kokrokoo show, Baba Jamal conceded that: ��there were some problems in the beginning. If he says he was not allowed to join his family on the dais, I can understand that. Under normal circumstances, we would all wish that they would sit at the same place. That was the original plan�he has the right to say that and we appreciate that concern�,�
He however said Dr. Sekou should have talked to him if he felt slighted since he was the one who gave him the invitation letter and informed him of the celebrations. He appealed to him not to politicize the issue because it was not deliberate.
��There was no conscious attempt by anyone to slight him�I was in constant discussion with them�I will plead with Dr. Sekou that it is not any attempt to slight him. If he has any misgivings then I personally will apologize to him�we regret any inconvenience but there was no conscious effort by anybody to say that because he is critical of the government... If he feels things didn�t go well for him, he should forgive us but he should not read political meanings into it. The government has no intention to slight him�,� Baba reiterated.
Source: Rebecca Quaye/Peacefmonline.com
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