Bloody Saturday launched

A new book titled; "Bloody Saturday" was on Monday launched in Accra with a call on Africans to take interest in their history in order to build confidence in themselves.

Mr K.B. Asante, a former diplomat, observed that many years of struggle by founding fathers of Africa had not built confidence in the African and that there was the need for reconstruction of African history.

The book highlights the contributions of Nii Kwabena Bonney III, Osu Alata Mantse in Accra and other nationalists who joined the struggle for Ghana's independence.

The book launch was organised as part of activities marking Black African History Month.

Dr David Bosumtwi, High Commissioner to Kenya in the First Republic, said it was sad that the contributions of chiefs in the struggle for independence had been relegated to the background.

He said Nii Kwabena Bonney was the main architect of the 1948 strike against imported goods that served as “a catalyst for Ghana's independence".

Dr Bosumtwi said Nii Kwabena Bonney's action precipitated the 1948 riots, which ultimately led to the setting up of the Watson Committee to investigate the causes of the disturbances in the then Gold Coast.

"Apart from Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Nii Kwabena Bonney III should be commended for the struggle for independence," he said.

Mr Yaw Adjei, author of the book, said the exclusion of contributions of chiefs in the struggle for independence was what motivated him to write the book "in order to set the record straight"

He called on the Ghana Education Service to include the book in the curricula of schools and colleges.

Source GNA