We want to discuss the activities and grievances of nationalists in Ghana during the inter-war period, specifically, 1919 – 1939. This period stretches from the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. It was marked by what has come to be known as the period of proto-nationalism in British West Africa.
Note that the activities and grievances of nationalists in Ghana or the Gold Coast were similar to what was happening in the rest of British West Africa. I’m referring to the other three West African British colonies of The Gambia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.
Let’s quickly take a look at the activities and grievances of the proto-nationalist groups in Ghana and the rest of British West Africa during the inter-war period.
We are going to start our essay outline for this question on the activities and grievances of Gold Coast and West African nationalists with a brief background to the events of that period.
Introduction
Nationalism can be defined as the struggle by Africans to free themselves from colonial rule. Nationalism within the period 1919 to 1939 is described as proto-nationalism. It is so described because the nationalists within the period were not concerned about the gaining of immediate political independence. Their main concern was about constitutional reforms for the betterment of conditions of the people within the colonial system.
This period, which is also refereed to as the inter-war period, saw the beginnings of nationalist agitation in Ghana. It was the same in other parts of British West Africa. The activities and grievances of such proto – nationalist groups as the Aborigines’ Rights Protection Society (ARPS), the National Congress of British West Africa (NCBWA) and the West African Youth League (WAYL) can be described as political, economic and social in nature.
SEE ALSO: The Contribution of Governor Guggisberg to Constitutional Development in Ghana
Political Grievances
- The educated elite condemned the system of indirect rule. Under indirect rule, the colonial administration relied on chiefs to implement British colonial polices. To them, they were better qualified and more educated than the chiefs. The traditional rulers, they cliamed, only acted as stooges of the imperialists.
- In addition, the educated elite found untenable their exclusion from the executive and legislative councils. These were the decision making bodies of the colonial administration. For example, under the 1925 Guggisberg constitution (a successor to the Clifford constitution of 1916), out of the 14 unofficial members in the legislative council, 6 were chiefs and only 3 were educated elite. In the executive council there was no unofficial representation.
- Another grievance of the educated elite was that the executive and legislative councils only served as advisory bodies.
- The nationalists criticized the restricted franchise granted in the elective principle introduced in the 1925 Guggisberg constitution. The franchise was limited to the coastal areas of Accra, Cape Coast and Sekondi Takoradi. Moreover, one had to own property before one could be eligible for election.
Economic Grievances
- The nationalists spoke against the control and domination of the commanding heights of the economy by foreign nationals. These included Syrian, Lebanese and other foreign merchants.
- They were also unhappy with the situation whereby the banks discriminated against Africans in the granting of loans.
Social Grievances
- The nationalist complained about the denial of executive positions in the civil service. All these positions were occupied by whites.
- Finally, they complained about unemployment, limited educational opportunities (e.g. absence of a university) and the poor health and housing conditions of Africans.
Activities and Methods of Proto-Nationalists
Against the backdrop of the above grievances, the nationalists of the inter-war period adopted various methods to make their concerns known.
- They formed associations and protest movements such as the A.R.P.S, N.C.B.W.A and W.A.S.U.
- The nationalists organized symposia and other public forums to air their views.
- They published newspapers to raise the nationalist consciousness of Africans e.g. The West African Pilot.
- Finally, they drew and presented petitions to the colonial office in London. For example in 1920, the National Congress of British West Africa sent a delegation to London to petition the secretary of state. In fact many of their demands wee incorporated in the 1946 Alan Burns constitution.
So these were the activities and grievances of nationalists in Ghana during the inter-war period.
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Ralph Nyadzi is the Director of Studies at Cegast Academy. He is a qualified English tutor with decades of experience behind him. Since 2001, he has successfully coached thousands of High School General Arts WASSCE candidates in English, Literature and related subjects. He combines his expertise with a passion for lifelong learning to guide learners from varying backgrounds to achieve their educational goals. Ralph shares lessons from his blogging journey on BloggingtotheMax. He lives with River, his pet cat, in the Central Region of Ghana.
