Transport Minister: Airport Rename Not Political (Restoring Accra’s Historic Identity)
Joseph Bukari Nikpe, the Minister of Transport, has denied that the proposed name change for Kotoka International Airport is politically motivated. He says that it is a neutral effort to bring back the airport’s original name, Accra International Airport, which it had during Dr. Kwame Nkrumah’s time. He said that the change is part of the Ministry of Transport’s legislative agenda that is currently being discussed in Parliament. It is also a nod to the airport’s historical role as Ghana’s capital city hub, which is important to the country’s independence struggles and African identity. The Minister said that the site started out as a British Royal Air Force base around 1946. In 1956, under Nkrumah’s leadership, it became a civilian airport called Accra International Airport. Later, it was renamed to honor someone who was involved in the 1966 coup, which many Ghanaians find troubling. He said that changing the name back to its original form honors Ghana’s founding history and Nkrumah’s work without any political motives.
