Ghanaians from all walks of life have paid tribute to three of their compatriots whose shooting to death by colonial authorities 70 years ago is credited with the renewed push for freedom which saw the country attain independence on March 6, 1957.

Numerous callers to radio stations, social media posts and newspaper articles praised the three men- Sergeant Adjetey, Corporal Attipoe and Private Adartey Lamptey; as true heroes who remained victorious even in their deaths.

The three are said to have been among the 2,000 or so soldiers who had fought in World War II as part of the Gold Coast Regiment of the Royal West African Frontier Force. However, the ex-soldiers felt shortchanged with the small gratuity and the one shilling per day pension they were awarded.

Unarmed soldiers

They thus decided to directly approach Sir Gerald Creasy, who was the Governor and Commander in Chief of the Gold Coast Regiment.

An editorial in the Daily Graphic said: So the unarmed soldiers, before noon on Saturday, February 28, 1948, decided to march from Accra to the Christianborg Castle to present a petition to the Governor when they were stopped at the Christianborg Crossroads by a contingent of armed policemen led by a British Superintendent, Mr Collins Imray.

It is instructive to note that the three were shot by the superintendent himself when his orders to his men to shoot the ex-servicemen were disobeyed. News of the death of the three spread like wildfire and spurred on further agitation for the independence of the Gold Coast.”

Celebratory mood

According to the newspaper, with the security forces unable to cope with maintaining law and order in Accra, anti-colonial movements stepped up their agitation, forcing the Britons to constitute a committee to probe the killings.

“The committee recommended self-government for the Gold Coast,” it said.

Meanwhile, the whole country is in a celebratory mood ahead of the Independence Day celebrations slated for Wednesday. A visit to the Independence Square, also known as the Black Square, found preparations in high gear. The situation was the same in the northern region headquarters of Tamale.

This year’s ceremony will also act as an audit to the performance of President Nana Akufo-Addo one year in office. Opinion here is divided and success or failure of the head of state will depend on whether the person you are asking is a government or opposition supporter.

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