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Celebrating the 129th Anniversary of the birth of Shirley Graham Du Bois, a Pan-Africanist
Born on November 11, 1896, Shirley Graham Du Bois was a pioneering African American writer, composer, historian, and civil rights activist whose voice helped shape the cultural and political landscape of the twentieth century.
In 1961, she traveled to Ghana with her husband, the legendary scholar and Pan-Africanist Dr. W. E. B. Du Bois, at the invitation of President Kwame Nkrumah. While Dr. Du Bois laid the intellectual foundation of Pan-Africanism, Shirley gave it rhythm, colour, and voice.
She played a key role in introducing television to Ghana and worked closely with President Kwame Nkrumah to build a new national broadcast identity.
She later became Ghana’s first woman to direct the nation’s television service (Ghana Television), using
media to celebrate African identity and independence.
In her own right, Shirley set remarkable records. She was the first African American woman to write and produce an all-Black opera, Tom-Tom: An Epic of Music and the Negro (1932).
She was also among the first Black women to earn a master’s degree from
Oberlin College and one of the earliest to publish widely read biographies of Black heroes such as Frederick Douglass and Paul Robeson.
Her books were later included in U.S. school curricula in the 1940s.
Her final years were spent in China, where she continued to champion peace and equality until her passing in 1977.
Today, her ashes rest beside her husband’s at the W. E. B. Du Bois Memorial Centre for Pan-African Culture in Accra, a lasting symbol of their shared dream of a united and liberated Africa.
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The Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Abena Osei Asare has expressed concerns about the failure of the Administrator of the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) Mr. Paul Adjei to honour invitation of the Committee to assist in dealing with abandoned projects cited in the 2024 Auditor-General’s report.
She emphasised that some of the projects have been abandoned for more than 20 years and it kept reoccurring in the Auditor-General’s report yearly, stressing that the GETFund Administrator could assist by prioritising these projects.
However, he has failed to personally appear before the Committee since the commencement of the Committee’s public hearing in the 9th Parliament.
According to the 2024 Auditor-General’s report on Pre-University Educational Institutions, nine (9) Institutions with 16 projects awarded by the GET Fund Secretariat had been abandoned/delayed for a period ranging between three (3) and 28 years.
Some of the affected schools include Adanwomoase Senior High School (Boys and Girls dormitory abandoned for 12 years), Atoa Senior High School (Home Economics Block abandoned for 27 years), Beposo Senior High School (Dinning Hall and Kitchen Complex abandoned for 10 years and lastly KNUST Senior High School (Three storey classroom block abandoned for 20 years).
The Parliamentary Select Committee on Energy continued its oversight responsibilities with a working visit to the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) yesterday.
Chairman of the Committee, Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah, said the visit formed part of efforts to familiarize members with the Authority’s operations and to explore ways Parliament could provide the necessary support.
He explained that the NPA’s work is focused on regulating Ghana’s downstream petroleum sector, a critical area for national energy security.
Mr. Bedzrah noted that the Committee is particularly interested in assessing whether the country has adequate petroleum stock to meet demand.
He noted that rising geopolitical tensions, including the ongoing US–Iran conflict, could have adverse effect on Ghana’s energy supply and pricing.
He further disclosed that the Committee intends to engage closely with the Authority on a proposed new petroleum bill.
According to him, a draft of the legislation will be reviewed and possibly presented to Parliament under a certificate of urgency.
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