No one begrudges - or should begrudge - Ghana this celebration but I think we need to be mindful of a few of the issues surrounding the 6th March 'afahye' (perhaps leaving God out of it, he tends to complicate things somewhat): the total lack of transparency with regard to exactly how the 50+million was spent; what will happen to the arenas constructed for the celebration (and writing this a few months on: nothing); who those at the forefront of the celebrations in the major towns/cities actually were (from my seat I would say quite alot of Afro-Americans and doped-up oboronyi 'aid' workers all so GENUINELY excited about Ghana's 'fahodi'); and the slightly telling fact that Kumasi had a lights-out on the night of Tuesday 6th - pretty much epitomises it all and should have caused more outrage than it actually did....

I also have some awesome photos of what is behind the arena in Cape Coast...not even the Zoom Lions will go there....

Emma , Cape Coast, Ghana

No one begrudges - or should begrudge - Ghana this celebration but we need to (perhaps without reference to God, because he tends to confuse matters somewhat) consider a few nuts-and-bolts realities surrounding the events of March 6th, such as: the total lack of transparency in regard to exactly where the 50+ million went; what is going to happen to these fantastic arenas in Accra, Kumasi et al (and I can answer months on: nothing); who were the prominent people at the forefront of the celebrations (from my seat, largely black Americans and doped-up white 'aid' workers being 'indigenous' with those nice little Africans who were given their 'fahodi' in 1956); and just a few telling realities indicating the real problems Ghana is facing today - most prominently the blackout in Kumasi on the night of Tuesday 6th where (arguably) the celebration would have been at its loudest.

Emma , Cape Coast, Ghana

You call Accra the "shabby capital" (which it isn't, shabby that is. Now London...) then you go on and complain about spending money on "sprucing up" and infrastructure projects - shabby, lazy, journalism.

keith grimaldi, London,

We are happy to be independent now under a civilian regime. As Jesus said, the poor will we always have. We need to prevent coups and will be alright. Cynics believe there was no need for celebrations but we nned to appreciate independence at all costs. look at Iraq facing new occupation and colonialism. by the time the british and americans finished with them they will be in the throes of emptiness. The Europeans were in Ghana from 1482. The british came in 1507. Centuries later they left us with the outlying coastal villages, a small elitist universities, some missionary schools attended by children of intelligentsia and mulattoes. Roads and railways only reached resourced areas. politics was in the hands of the colonialists divide and rule tactics. Our economy fed industries abroad, having lost our gold, diamond, oil palm, cocoa, slave. No akosombo dam whiles same existed in colonial countries like UK. We built what we have now so be happy and enjoy your freedom, my dear

K.F. Amponsa-Dadzie, London, U.K.

Sabina Asare- Browne says: I was only four when GHANA gained independence, I came to Britain at the age of nine years and have virtually lived here all my life. Even in the early 60 s in England when one announced they were from Ghana, the pride and the repect and the recoginition which went with this announcement is so reminisent of the feeling I had watching the jubilee celebrations on OBE tv. What I can say is that the values of independencs instilled in me then is the same spirit that everyone Ghanain feels I am sure. I would love for every Ghanaian child from birth to have that sence of pride and liberation whether born in GHANA or Abroad. Every returning african desendant who is able to make embrace this richness of the nation will truly be free. GOD has blessed Ghana with everything we need to recognise this and move forward and to re inforce ourselves that any thing that is negative is not a true reflection of that great nation GHANA

SABINA ASARE-BROWNE, LONDON SW2, ENGLAND

Yes, Ghana have come a long way and I am sure on the surface it all looks very pretty. However, please awake and realise that celebrating on day of triumph whilst many people continue to live in poverty does not cause much to celebrate. I recently visited Ghana and saw a lot of unnecessary suffering.

Thank God we have reached this far, my only I hope is that this is only the beginning for bigger and greater achievements for all Ghanaians and Ghana.

God bless our homeland

Adjoa, Enfield, United kingdom

Ghana is the becon of Africa with flourishing democracy and a booming economy. All of which has been achieved by the Oxford educated Honourable President J. A Kuffuor. I urge you all to visit and make you mind up for yourselves. I was there just last week and o my what a beautiful place and people. You can always count on a publication such as the Times to send their journalists out to a beautiful African country like Ghana to find NEGATIVE information on this beautiful flourishing country which does not conform to the stereotypes of black Africa especially on the day they mark their 50th anniversary of freedom from western oppression (or oppresion from their forefathers - Times staff). Long live Ghana and down with negative reporting on every issues (stories) concerning Africa. Long live Ghana and their great and freindly citizens.

Peter Anderson, London,

Perhaps the best way that the west can help the African nations is not to help at all. It appears that by giving aid to Africa we are only creating a continent of beggars. Would it not be better to build up trade with these people? The entire continent has an abundance of rich commodities. Stong trading relations would surely serve to create employment and start to give them the best possible form of aid... self respect. Otherwise we find ourselves in another situation where poor people in rich countries give money to rich people in poor countries.

george, London,

Once again, we are presented with another example of the spectacular failures that decolonisation in Africa has heralded. Although my opinions are out of step with the current mood, we are faced with the fact that Ghana, along with Rhodesia and many other colonies, was better off, better managed and healthier under the Western Powers.

And although no country would volunteer, the UK and other Western Powers could once again step in and direct some kind of Economic restructuring that would reverse the dramatic failures of independence. These countries in Africa could once again become colonies of the West and see the massive economic benefits that 're-colonisation' would bring. And the results would be a damn sight better than those we see before us today.

Daniel, Manchester, UK

Is it a coincidence that all the people interviewed in this article are from the Northern part of Ghana? Here are a people who have had free education since independence and choose not to have an education. We must first strife to give ourselves an education. That is the basic we can have and then we will be able to build on with any others. No wonder the article has gone to the lowest of the low as if the whole of Ghana is like this. We have come this far and have celebrated the 30th aniversary which I can remember was when we were actually starving in the 1980s in Ghana. Why was the celebration not condemned then? The majority of Ghana are very happy to celebrate this day!

Jen Snelling, Surrey, UK