The first political party (U.G.C.C.) was under the leadership of lawyers who were a little proud and failed to reach out to the common man

The U.G.C.C. insisted on the use of constitutional methods so as to obtain independence. Even when it was clear that negotiations with the British were producing partial results, the U.G.C.C. insisted on non-radicalism.

 Political, tribal and religiuos divisions

There was a split of nationalistic efforts when Nkrumah broke off from the U.G.C.C, in 1949 and formed the C.P.P. The two parties remained antagonistic throughout the struggle for independence; the U.G.C.C. accused Nkrumah of being a self-seeker.

Tribal and regional feelings tended to surface and sabotage nationalism in Gold Coast. The, Asante felt proud and feared that national unity would sub-merge their traditional greatness. Due to their resistance against the British, the Asante were backward. They wished to use the money from their Cocoa to develop their hospitals and schools. However part of their money went to develop other areas. This nearly alienated the Asante from the struggle.

 

The formation of the National Liberation Movement (NLM) by the Asante in 1954 threatened national Unity in Gold Coast. The NLM under Dr. Busia became so antagonistic with the CPP that several clashes occurred in Kumasi between the supporters of both parties. Deaths and destruction occurred.

The Ewe of Gold Coast wanted to unite with their tribesmates in Togo. This posed a big challenge to nationalists until 1956 when the UNO organised a referendum by which the Ewe of Togo were brought under the control of Gold Coast.

The Northern tribes of Dagomba and Mamprusi felt jealousy of the Southerners and formed their own party called "The Northern Peoples' Party" (NPP). This parochialism endangered the quick pace towards independence.

Religious divisions also slowed down the pace of the independence struggle. Muslims formed their Muslim Association Party (MAP) with its headquarters in Kumasi. This tended to work for only the interest of Moslems.

Divisions over the suitable form of government also worked against the quick pace towards independence. While some elites like Nkrumah advocated for a Unitary form of Government, the leaders of NLM, MAP and NPP wanted federal governments and therefore advocated for a federal constitution.

After winning the 1951 elections, Nkrumah became rather dictatorial. He stopped listening to the advice of his comrades and instead expelled a number of them from the C.P.P. This scared other C.P.P. members who voluntarily resigned from the party between 1951-1952. This threatened to tear the C.P.P. apart.

The internal self-government, which Nkrumah headed between 1951-1956, was characterised by corruption. Public funds went into the pockets of parliamentarians and ministers.

The British desire to continue exploiting the Gold and Cocoa resources of Gold Coast also proved an obstacle.

The use of violent/harsh means to calm down strikes also scared a number of nationalists and delayed Gold Coast's independence. Between 1950-51 the British declared a state of emergency in Gold Coast and jailed a number of nationalists for example Kofi Bako and J. Marckhan - the editor of Accra Evening news were jailed for writing seditious articles.