Ghana’s Culture Ministry Has No Work To Do – Ghanaians Are Now ‘Aliens’ to Their Own Culture

The word Culture, added to the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts is only making the ministry’s name as long as a sentence for nothing, because, that portfolio of the ministry has no work to do – Ghanaians are now subsets of Western culture.

Do you known that every 14^th March, 2014 is Ghana Culture Day? Well in case you never knew, it is. I recently read that during the March 14, 2013 edition of Ghana Culture Day, Ghana Culture Forum called for a tangible change in the policy environment and attitudes towards culture in the country.

I ask myself – does Ghana still have a culture? What is the practical evidence of or to Ghana’s culture? Ghanaian ladies are now interested in wearing Brazilian hair, Bolivian hair, Indian hair, etc. as against our organic natural hair styles like: Ntekua, School Girl, Aware So, Kenten, Adesewa, and others which defines who we are – not to talk of the artificial eye lashes, eye brows, pedicure, lip sticks, manicure, etc.

Our young brothers and sisters now don’t listen to our folkloric arts like Anans3m (example By the Fireside in the 90s) and Anwens3m (poetry), do not mould cars from empty milk tins to manifest their creativity, or mould things from the sand or clay, play Alikoto, Stay, etc. but rather, watch and play; Nintendo Mario, Mortal Combat, Tom and Jerry, and others.

We organize events in Ghana and prefix it with the name, Ghana, yet you attend these events and about 90% of the event’s patrons are in foreign (Western) fabrics or dresses. Can you imagine organizers of Ghana Movie Awards once came public to announce that if you attend the event and you are not in Tuxedo, you won’t be allowed to enter the auditorium? Well they did!

“Together, we dedicate ourselves to ensuring that culture is no longer seen and treated as a barrier to development but rather as a foundation and anchor for the nation’s development agenda.” This is the vision of culture as enshrined in the Directive Principles of State Policy of the 1992 Constitution, yet, majority of our Parliamentarians wear suits more than our own fabrics.

Today, majority of Ghanaians take delight in eating Pizza, fried rice and kitchen chicken, all forms of Burgers you can mention, and drink Red Label, Jonnie Walker, Black Label, and the rest, but feel diffident to eat Ghanaian foods like; 3t), mp)t) mp)t) or mpiho, abunu abunu soup, and others.

What about our agw3s3, banfo bese, and drinkables like Brukutu, nsafuo, asaana, Burkina, etc. these are eatables we could serve at every State event, yet, that is not the case. Ghanaians now take pride in wearing China Kente – at the expense of our own hand woven Kente.

Our original Kente is gradually losing its commercial value through the importation of these ‘adulterated’ forms of Kente popularly known as China Kente. It took a non-Ghanaian, a once former United States Ambassador to Ghana, Donald Teitelbaum, to advise Ghana.

“Ghana must patent Kente now. Kente is considered a symbol of pride in Ghana but its losing value abroad as a result of its piracy.” He further added that, there’s the need for Ghana to attach its name to the Kente brand. Ghanaians don’t even patronize our Kente!

We have our different cultural forms of marrying; yet, we first complete our traditional marriage, and marry again – by adding white wedding to it. We marry twice in Ghana at the same time! Will a white man in England do their traditional marriage rite – white wedding and follow it up with any of Ghana’s traditional forms of marriage? Think it over.

Most Ghanaian television stations now show more foreign contents – Telenovelas, though Ghana’s National Cultural Policy says otherwise. The National Cultural Policy was drafted and gazette since 2004, but because an LI has not been drafted and ratified by Parliament, the policy is just on paper whilst our culture dies.

Ten (10) years now, since the National Cultural Policy was drafted and foreword by then President of Ghana, His Excellency Kohn Agyekum Kuffour – no LI for its enforcement! Read what the Policy – 11.2 directs under TELEVISION: Television shall be used:

“A – To project Ghanaian arts, culture and value systems, enhance national consciousness and self-reliance by; drawing on indigenous sources and resources to its project content, making its programme content relevant to Ghanaian realities…”

It goes on to stress that “C – making its programmes 70% Ghanaian and 30% foreign.” Meaning, TV stations in Ghana are required by this National Cultural Policy to show 70% Ghanaian content and 30% foreign content, but, Telenovelas have flooded our TV channels as though we are living in Mexico or Asia.

Every aspect of culture – food, dance, music, dressing, marriage, belief systems, etc. is virtually lost! What more is there about our culture? Our culture is ho-hum to the current generation – all because our elders failed in imbibing ‘who we are’ into us but quetch about our cultural-deviance! I ask: ‘Na who cos am? ‘Who is to blame?’

“With the way Westernization is fruiting in Africa, you will someday live with your child in Africa – Ghana, but he or she will ask you, ‘father is it true we once lived in a continent called Africa? What will you tell him or her?” South Africa’s award winning musician, Hugh Masakela, once came to Ghana and remarked on Metro TV. Think it over. Until then…MOTWUM!!

Editor’s note: The writer is an Akan, hence most of his illustrations hinged on the Akan tribe and culture.