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Slave Trade reparations not a plea for alms – Akufo-Addo
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President Akufo-Addo has stated that the call by Africans and Africans in the diaspora for the payment of reparations by European nations who carried out the transatlantic slave trade some 400 years ago is not a plea for alms but it is a demand for justice.
The demand for reparatory justice, according to President Akufo-Addo, must go hand in hand with the subject of restitution. He indicated that the restitution should be executed through the return of all cultural properties of African nations that were illegitimately and barefacedly taken from Africa and transported to European countries.
Speaking at the maiden edition of the Accra Reparations Conference (ARC 2023) held at the Kempinski Hotel, Gold Coast City, on Tuesday, 14 November 2023, President Akufo-Addo said reparations for African and Africans are long overdue, noting that victims of other injustices in human history have rightly received reparations and that, Africans deserve the same for the damage caused by the transatlantic slave trade.
“The call for reparation is not a plea for alms but a valid demand for justice. If reparations can rightly be paid to victims and the descendants of victims of the Holocaust, so can reparations also be paid to the descendants of the victims of the slave trade. It has been four hundred years, and we want to bring closure to this tragedy.
“While at it, let me point out that the subject of reparations must go along with the subject of restitution. The initiative for the return of African cultural properties to the continent must also be an issue of major concern for all Africans. We must call for the return of African cultural properties that were illegally and shamelessly transported from the continent” President Akufo-Addo said.
Tracing the history of the transatlantic slave trade, President Akufo-Addo, said “It began with some 20 slaves from West Africa being forcefully sent in 1619 to the commonwealth of Virginia, in what was to become part of the United States of America. This initial action he noted, “was the first of 36,000 voyages to and from Africa which resulted in some 20 million Africans from Central and West Africa being sold into slavery in the Americas and the Caribbean”.
“We are also told that 10% of this number, that is, some 2 million Africans lost their lives en route to their destinations with the Atlantic Ocean serving as their final resting place. As if this was not enough, the continent had to endure centuries of being colonized by the same people who undertook the slave trade.
Source: Citinewsroom.com
General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Justin Kodua Frimpong, has filed his nomination to contest the position of General Secretary again as the party begins its rebuilding efforts ahead of the 2028 general elections.
He was accompanied by party stalwarts and supporters who were in high spirits, expressing confidence that he is the right person to hold the position.
Speaking after filing his nomination, Mr Kodua Frimpong assured the rank and file of the party that he would not disappoint them.
“I can assure you that the faith the rank and file of the party have had in me, I will never disappoint them,” he said.
He also pledged to run a clean campaign devoid of personal attacks.
“I can assure you that our internal campaign will be devoid of personal attacks,” he told his fellow contestants and the rank and file of the party as he seeks to retain his position.
His tenure has seen the party through the 2024 general elections, where the NPP lost power to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) after eight years in government.
The party is currently in a rebuilding phase, with internal elections scheduled to elect new national executives to lead its reorganization towards the 2028 polls.
The General Secretary position is considered one of the most influential in the party’s administrative structure, responsible for the day-to-day running of the party secretariat and implementation of party decisions.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
The University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC) has disputed claims made on social media by comedian Michael Blackson concerning the treatment given to his late mother, saying a review found that the allegations did not accurately reflect what happened during her stay at the hospital.
In a statement issued in Accra on August 5, 2026, the management of UGMC expressed condolences to Mr. Blackson and his family over the death of his 83-year-old mother, who died at the facility on July 16, 2026.
The hospital said it had taken the concerns raised by Mr. Blackson seriously and conducted a thorough review in line with its clinical and administrative procedures.
According to the statement, the facts presented by Mr. Blackson on social media contained “numerous inaccuracies” and did not accurately reflect the medical care provided to his mother.
UGMC explained that she was referred to the facility from another hospital and received treatment there from May 27 to July 16, 2026, a period of about eight weeks.
The hospital stated that it would not release details of her diagnosis, treatment, medical records or other aspects of her care because it had a duty to protect patient confidentiality, even after death.
It said the decision was intended to respect the dignity of the deceased and the privacy of her family.
UGMC further stated that all clinical decisions at the facility are made by qualified healthcare professionals based on medical judgment, established standards of care and the best interests of the patient.
The statement added that such decisions are made in consultation with authorised family representatives where necessary and that billing and financial procedures are governed by institutional policies and are separate from clinical decision-making.
The hospital noted that it values feedback from patients and their families and considers both positive and negative comments important for improving the quality of care.
Mr. Blackson had earlier used social media to criticise the care his mother received at UGMC, prompting the hospital’s response.
By: Jacob Aggrey
