Western Regional Communications Officer of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), Richard Ernest Kirk-Mensah, has called on Parliament to give Nkrumafest statutory and national recognition and make it a permanent feature of Ghana’s national calendar.

Mr Kirk-Mensah said institutionalising the annual celebration would help preserve Ghana’s history and ensure that the legacy of Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah remains accessible to future generations.

He made the call while commending the Member of Parliament for Ellembelle and Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, for championing Nkrumafest and the Journey to Nkroful initiative.

According to him, Nkrumafest goes beyond a cultural festival, describing it as an important platform for reclaiming Ghana’s history, identity and national memory.

He said the initiative provides an opportunity to celebrate Dr Nkrumah’s contribution to Ghana’s independence and his Pan-African vision, while taking the national conversation about his legacy back to Nkroful, where the story of one of Africa’s most influential statesmen began.

Mr Kirk-Mensah said making Nkrumafest a permanent national event would help expose younger generations to Ghana’s history, culture and heritage and encourage a deeper appreciation of the people and ideas that shaped the country.

He also cautioned against what he described as attempts to selectively reinterpret Ghana’s history for political convenience.

“History must not be rewritten to suit political convenience,” he said, arguing that future generations deserved an honest account of Ghana’s independence struggle and the various individuals and movements that contributed to the building of the Republic.

Mr Kirk-Mensah stressed that the legacy of Dr Nkrumah should transcend partisan politics, noting that governments would change and political parties would alternate in power, but Ghana’s history would remain a shared national heritage.

He therefore urged Parliament to consider appropriate legislative and institutional measures to secure Nkrumafest a permanent place on the national calendar.

Nkroful, in the Western Region, is the birthplace of Ghana's first president, Kwame Nkrumah, a central figure in the country's independence and in African liberation movements more broadly. Nkrumafest and the Journey to Nkroful were established to draw national attention back to the town and to Nkrumah's role in shaping the country.

Calls for statutory protection of national heritage events are not new in Ghana, but Kirk mensah's appeal ties the request directly to concerns about how independence history is remembered and taught, arguing that formal recognition would insulate the festival from shifting political priorities over time.