On Wednesday, twenty seventh August 2025, I noticed a submit on the X web page of the Ghana Tourism Authority about studies that inscriptions on the welcome signage on the Kwame Nkrumah Nkrumah Memorial Park had been modified.
A couple of minutes later, I had the complete press launch signed by the Chief Govt Officer, Maame Efua Houadjeto.
Her assertion
The eye of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) has been drawn to a social media submit circulating on Instagram alleging that GTA has changed the inscriptions “Woezoe” and “Akwaba” with “Oobakɛ”on the newly refurbished Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park signage.
We want to categorically state that at no level has the Ghana Tourism Authority ordered or authorised the substitute of the culturally vital greetings “Woezoe” (in Ewe) and “Akwaba” (in Akan) with “Oobakɛ”.
These inscriptions stay preserved and revered as a part of Ghana’s various cultural heritage. GTA can’t change or change the title on a signage on the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park with out session or approval from the Ministry of Tourism, Tradition and Inventive Arts and likewise in session with the Company in query.
The GTA needs to place within the public area that we have no idea something about it and we didn’t order or authorised the change of the title on the signage.
We subsequently urge most people and stakeholders to ignore the false info and proceed to assist the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park as an emblem of nationwide satisfaction and unity.
Import of the assertion
Though the assertion initially got here out as if she was asserting that there had not been any change within the signage on the Nkrumah Park, a vital learn reveals she was moderately informing the general public she had not sanctioned the stated change.
So who sanctioned the change?
On Thursday, August 28, 2025 Pleasure FM’s broadcast journalist Kofi Hayford known as the Performing Director of the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park Dr. Collins Nunyonameh for readability on the difficulty, however he declined to talk.
I’ve personally known as the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Tourism, Tradition and Inventive Arts, Mabel Delassie to hunt info on the event however she stated as of the time I known as she had no info to share with me, and that she would make it public as soon as it’s accessible.
However the massive query is, why would the Director on the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park be working away from answering easy questions on altering inscriptions on a signage? Additionally, why wouldn’t a complete Ministry PRO have info on it? Why would the GTA CEO Maame Efua Houadjeto hurriedly launch a press assertion to dissociate herself from the change when nobody had publicly stated or implied so?
It’s worthy of observe that regardless that the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park is a tourism facility and works in tandem with the Ghana Tourism Authority, it’s a autonomous company similar to the Ghana Tourism Authority, the Inventive Arts Company, Nationwide Fee on Tradition or any of the 13 companies underneath the ministry. The individual in command of the Kwame Nkrumah Park is Dr Collins Nunyonameh. The change couldn’t have been accomplished with out his data. However did he inform powers on the high of the ministry earlier than doing that?
I’m not certain we might be altering signages simply on the behest of agitators. That isn’t wholesome for our nation. Such actions are incendiary! Even in case you needed to vary it, it shouldn’t be accomplished when tensions are excessive. To me, that was a really careless choice taken. At finest, he might have added the Ga greeting to the Akan and Ewe.
The agitation
The Ga agitators have argued that Akan and Ewe greetings on the welcome signage on the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park in Accra needs to be changed with a Ga inscription. Just a few days after their agitation, the inscription was modified.
Their marketing campaign was prolonged to the Kotoka Worldwide Airport, the place they demanded that the phrase ‘Akwaaba’ get replaced with ‘Oobakɛ.’
Photos circulating on-line, believed to be AI-generated, present the airport signage altered to replicate the Ga greeting, though studies point out that the unique Akwaaba signage stays unchanged.
The controversy has reignited conversations in regards to the stress on Ga tradition, given Accra’s cosmopolitan character and its standing as Ghana’s capital metropolis.
The Akwaaba vs ‘Oobakɛ’ debate
Again at school, I learnt throughout historical past classes that Akan phrases like paano, krataa, asopatre have been of Portuguese origin. These have been corrupted variations of the Portuguese phrases pao, carta, and sapateiro.
I learnt that the English language, like many different languages, has many phrases which can be of Greek, Latin, French, Japanese, Dutch, German, Italian origins.
In Ghana, there are such a lot of phrases we use throughout varied tribes and ethnic teams which have assumed a nationwide acceptance and utilization.
A phrase like osofo used for a Christian priest in Ewe and Ga, is borrowed from the Akan phrase Osofo, to imply identical. Do you know that Ayeeko, which is a extensively used throughout the nation to imply “properly accomplished” is initially a Ga phrase? What about Chalewote, the slippers or Chale the time period for buddy? Do we actually take into consideration which language it’s when utilizing phrases like dumsor and akpeteshie? And do you know Akwaaba is initially Fantse and never Asante?
What’s my level? Language grows. And language is a part of tradition. Tradition is fluid. Tradition is usually borrowed, tradition is usually influenced by different cultures.
A number of the phrases you thought have been really indigenous to your tribe have their origins in different international languages. It’s even attainable the kind of dressing you thought was unique to your tribe was borrowed from different cultures. As a result of migration, inter-marriages, commerce, colonisation, and globalisation, no tradition has retained its authentic type.
However let’s ask ourselves: Do the Gasoline have a degree in attempting to protect and venture their tradition? Sure, they do. Have they got a degree in complaining about being excluded in signages of nationwide significance? Sure, particularly when they’re on their lands.
Nevertheless, as we try to protect, and shield our varied types of tradition, we shouldn’t neglect that sure phrases and expressions though from sure tribes, have assumed nationwide worth to the extent that they’re thought-about extra Ghanaian than Ga, Ewe, Bono, Okere or Dagbani. Having ‘Oobakɛ’ on the airport is not any challenge. Including it to ‘Akwaaba’ will not be an enormous deal. If we might, we should always even litter greetings of the over 70 Ghanaian languages in all places however of what essence would that be?
The Gasoline are proper after they say the airports in Ho, Tamale and Kumasi have greetings of their native languages so the one in Accra ought to have identical. We will likely be unfair to dismiss that argument.
Nevertheless, as a result of Akwaaba, which has assumed a nationwide model similar to Ayeekoo, Chale or Agoo, has been used as signage on the airport for many years, we’d simply have to go away it untouched.
The present agitation has created consciousness of the Ga greeting ‘Oobakɛ’ which suggests welcome. Previous to this, even most Gasoline didn’t learn about it.
Nii Kwardey Ntreh, a cultural activist and storyteller on the Ga Mantse Palace, instructed me on Showbiz A-Z on Pleasure FM that the Ga greeting has at all times existed.
“‘Oobakɛ’ means you shall absolutely come. See, there’s an expectation inbuilt once we converse with the lengthy opening vowel. It’s a future participle. ‘Oobakɛ’ means we anticipate foreigners to come back and dwell with us,” he stated.
Nii described the phrase as “exoteric” as a result of it’s not typically used.
“On a regular basis language makes use of the essential Ga however inside the circles of conventional leaders and elders they nonetheless use it.”
He added that in each day speech Gasoline normally say “atuu.”
Transferring ahead, there needs to be a aware effort to get ‘Oobakɛ’ featured at nationwide edifices which can be but to be established, or people who don’t have already marketed greetings.
Influential Ga individuals and conventional authorities ought to begin utilizing them too. The Ga land has gone by way of a lot cultural stress as a result of its cosmopolitan and Capital Metropolis standing – and we should all assist them retain a minimum of some core elements of what defines and binds them.
Unity in range
Above all this, we’re one individuals bounded by frequent values. Ga man Sammy Odame wears fugu greater than some Northerners. Individuals queue to eat fufu no matter the place they arrive from. It’s so with waakye lovers. Ga kenke has been the staple for many of us throughout the nation. Once we are having fun with these delicacies, we don’t query their origin.
I’m not for the change of phrases on nationwide signages which were properly marketed to every other as a result of agitations for illustration. One of the best we might do is so as to add up.
Nevertheless, there will be unity in range. By the use of displaying the world how wealthy and various our tradition is, we needs to be intentional about getting varied cultures properly represented on the nationwide stage.
For instance, as a substitute of the Ghana Tourism Authority at all times utilizing a specific sort of music and dance ensemble to welcome guests on the airport, they might strive others.
Let’s break the monotony. We have now too many lovely ensembles littered throughout the nation to be caught to just one. It will get boring, generally.
We must always respect varied tribes and their cultures but in addition be delicate to our nationwide satisfaction.
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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Feedback, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform don’t essentially characterize the views or coverage of Multimedia Group Restricted.
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