dust v - june 2011 edit
TRANSCRIPT
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dust
June 2011
FREE MAGAZINE
blitzthe ambassador
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MUSCLE OTHER CARS
INTO SUBMISSION. WITH THE MIGHTY, MUSCULAR SCORPIO.
Let the competition beware
LET THE COMPETITION BEWARE
SVANI LIMITED
Ground oor, Crystal Plaza building,Community 16, Sakumono, Tema
Tel: 233-22-404063Fax: 233-21-7012128
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june ‘11 S t i l l t a k e n f r o m
t h e d o c u m e n t a r y ‘ A f r i c a n R i s i n g ’ b y P
a u l a H e r e d i a
7. Editorial
8. Contributors
FREESTYLE
10. ‘You Know You’re in
Accra When...’
11. Out There
13. Playlist
14. Over Here
16. Passing Through
20. Tech: Nandi Mobile
22. Pesewa: Living in Accra
on a Shoestring23. Health: Don’t Break
Your Heart
SPORT
24. Cults & Colts
WRITE
26. Writers Project of Ghana
POLITK
31. We the People
32. Lessons from Tokyo
34. Big Men, Small Girls
36. Progressive Planning
37. Ghana’s Creative
Industries. What?Where?
FEATURES
40. Blitz the Ambassador
45. Drum ‘69
SEX & RELATIONSHIPS
52. Adventures from the
Bedrooms of African
Women
FLASH
54. Tobias Freytag
MY ICON
57. James Barnor
CALENDAR
58. Go!
COMPETITION
60. Win Tickets to
Silverbird Cinema
contentsdust
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DUST MAGAZINEEditorial +233 26 888 1111
Advertising +233 26 266 6222
CoverPhotography: Jahse
Subject: Blitz the Ambassador
Editor: Kobby Graham
Thanks to...
smael Abass, Jemima Agyare, Ama Amugu, Aba Ayensu,
James Barnor, Michael Darkwa, Tobias Freytag, Ghanyobi,
Stuart Gold, Bill Bedzrah, Joojo Graham, Toke Olagbaju, Ko-
ranteng Ofosu-Amaah, Nana Kofi Acquah, Nana Oforiatta
Ayim, Jason Nicco-Annan, Nyani Quarmyne, Nana Darkoa
ekyiamah, Edward Tagoe, Eli Tetteh, Peter Van Der Wurff
Dust Magazine is a publication of Chrysalis Publications,
P.O. Box CT2838, Cantonments, Accra
Corporate enquiries: [email protected]
Editorial enquiries: [email protected]
Subscriptions: [email protected]
Printed by Pigment Company Limited.
The views expressed in this magazine are the views of the individual
contributors and not necessarily those of the publisher.
Reproduction in whole or part without written permission from the
publisher is strictly prohibited.
All rights reserved. Copyright © Dust Magazine 2011
‘DO NOT DISTURB’ Weekend Rate-$200/$230*2 Complimentary Silverbird Cinema Tickets,
Bed & Breakfast. This rate is only applicable to Ghanaian residents
(+233) 302 765 180-2 / 289 115 922 [email protected] www.african-regent-hotel.com
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Hello my fellow Dusties.
Whether you’re holding a copy of DUST in your hands or looking at it on your phone or
your PC, thank-you for your support.
Here at DUST, we’re in the business of inspiring Ghana’s next generation of
changemakers. No future is successfully faced without fir st absorbing the past, a
fact demonstrated superbly by the man we have put on our fif th front cover: Blitz the
Ambassador.
On his new album, Native Sun, Blitz draws f rom musicians and sounds - past and
present - all over the continent, creating an epic soundtrack to the struggle of Africa and
her children, as well as a manifesto for her fut ure.
In a similar vein, DUST would like to doff its hat to editors & writers including Peter
Akinti (of Untold Magazi ne), Sofia Foster (Concrete), Claude Gruzinitsky (Trace),
Dominique Paravicini (Enjoy), Nkwaye Ansah (Canoe), Helen Jennings (Arise) and
Phiona Okumu of Afripopmag.com, each of whom inspire DUST in dif ferent ways as we
try to stri ke that balance between conscious and cool in every issue.
We reserve a special salute this issue though to Drum: a magazine that was the first to
do what DUST and many others try to do today. Koranteng Ofosu-Amaah shares wit h
us his reflections on DRUM in 1969, while Nana Ofori-Atta Ayim pays tribute to iconic
Ghanaian photographer, James Barnor, whose pictures helped make DRUM come alive.
We also salute Deborah Ahenkorah, the founder of the Golden Baobab Award for
African wr iting aimed at young children. Since we feat ured her in our last issue, Debbie
has gone on to win an Echoing Gr een award as one of today’s boldest visionaries in
social change. DUST is very proud to have recognized her befor e her success and we
are also very proud - as fellow young Gha naians - of her achievement.
Tributes aside, we still showcase the best culture, commentary, ar t, and analysis
that Accra has to o ffer. This includes insight into colt soccer, commentary on sexual
economics in Accra, the importance of nat ional planning, lessons from the Japanese
earthquake and an interview with innovative and award-winning software collective,
Nandimobile, who are showing what Ghana’s young can do when we put our minds to it .
We also feature some lovely visuals courtesy of international cont ributor, Tobias
Freytag, who shares his striking portraits of African artists in the Diaspora.
So what are you wai ting for? Kick back, dig in and enjoy.
Kobby Graham Editor
e d i t o r i a l
P h o t o C r e d i t : S t e v e n A d u s e i
d u s t 7
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Silverbird Cinema, Accra Mall, Spintex Road
0302 823270-5
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SilverbirdGhana
www.silverbirdghana.com
a snapshot of fresh local
music, books & films
being consumed at Dust HQ
books
The Chicken Thief
by Fiona Leonard
film / tvmusic
Native Sun (Short Film)
(Terrence Nance/Blitz the
Ambassador)
Africa Rising (Documentary)
The Grassroots Movement to
End Female Genital Mutilation
(Paula Heredia; narrated by
Efua Dorkenoo)
Rhian Benson feat. Jonas
(Music Video)
Be (Baff Akoto)
Ties That Band (Trailer)
Leila Djansi
Circuit City (Documentary)
Life & Work in an E-waste
Landfill (Mantse Aryeequaye)
African Gypsy (album)
Wanlov the Kubolor
Dunaquest in Budapest EP
FOKN Bois
Azingele (Chuck Wild Remix)
Ruff N Smooth
You Go Kill Me
Sarkodie
Native Sun (album)
Blitz the Ambassador
Serwa Akoto
Jahwi
June - September
d u s t 1 3
AT THE MOVIES
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In my years in Accra one thing I’ve noticed is
that there are no trash cans anywhere in public
spaces. As a result we haven’t developed the habit
of disposing of things properly and we end up just
dropping them on the ground. There is a lot of plastic
being used and hardly any of it is being recycled.
I wondered about this for a long time and worried
about what the country would look like in a few
years if this practice continues. I love to explore
and discover new things, places and people and this
month I’ve been keeping myself very busy getting a
little green in my wardrobe. In the process I made
an awesome discovery of how some residents of
Ghana are taking a hands on approach to curbing
the waste menace. I was on a hunt to find a new
handbag when I discovered ‘Trashy Bags’.
Trashy Bags is located on a quiet residential street
in Accra and apart from the few signs directing you
to it you would never guess at the magic going
on behind their gates. Early every morning people
arrive there with bags of of plastic waste, which
they weigh and exchange for money. The staff then
begin the cleaning process. The bags are taken to
the back where they are cleaned and disinfected
thoroughly before being sorted and sun dried. After
this, each bag is carefully and lovingly crafted by a
dedicated team. A warm and friendly atmosphere
permeates throughout the place. The staff are not
just staff but see each other as a family and are
very close and protective of one and other.
I spoke to Stuart Gold, Trashy Bags’ Managing
Director, after which I was given a full tour of theplace ending in their showroom where the completed
bags were on display. I was amused by some of
the slogans and graphics that found their way onto
the bags by virtue of having been printed on the
pure water sachets by the manufacturers of the
water companies.
So now I’ve found a cute pink purse to hook under
my arm this weekend. I recommend that if you’re
anything like me and like to show your individuality
via your wardrobe you should get yours too.
GOLDENThis Trash Is
o v e r h e r e
By Toke Olagbaju
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passinghrough
In an impressive display of genuine, cross-continental acting talent, Hollywood actress, Kimberly Elise
(Set It Off, Diary of a Mad Black Woman) and Nigerian superstar, Omotola Ekeinde were both in Ghana
to shoot alongside our very own award-winning Ama K. Abebrese in (former Dust cover star) Leila
Djansi’s latest drama, ‘Ties That Bind’. Having had a sneak preview of the script, DUST is quite excited
about this one and looks forward to seeing the finished product. Go ladies...
On Africa Day, Michael Essien brought down a star-studded list of football stars past and present
to play a match billed ‘Africa XI vs. World XI’. Sadly, the African team lost but it was a good day
for charity and a fun time was had by all.
Fabolous was the latest in a growing list of
American artists who have visited Ghana to
perform. Unlike many before him though, Loso put
on a good show and did that very rare thing: gave
Ghanaian fans good value for money. All stars
planning on coming down, please take note.
Kimberly Elise & Omotola
hley
ole
Kalusha
Bwalya
Florent
Malouda
Emmanuel
Adebayor
Salomon
KalouDidier
Drogba
Nigel
De JongYakubu
Aiyegbeni
Freddie
Ljunberg
Nwankwo
Kanu
Daniel
Amochach
Fabolous
California-based fashion designer and
Hollywood fashion favourite, Rachel Roy
touched down as part her work with OrphanAid
Ghana, sponsoring the education of 21 orphans
and vulnerable children.
Rachel Roy
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him towards a career in construction: “I was so far away from
computers by the time I got to university. My roommate was
studying Computer Engineering though. He opened my eyes to
web programming. I read manuals upon manuals and within two
years, I had such a rich understanding it. I found myself doing a
lot of web design work on the side. I realized it was something
I always wanted to do. When you have something inherently
pushing you, you just move in that direction.”
Anne was not as sure as Michael. Her mother was a nurse
and her parents wanted her to study medicine. She eventually
found herself drawn first to Mathematics and then to Computer
Engineering: “I realized I didn’t like reading and memorizing
things I’d read. I rather liked thinking logically about things, so I
wanted to do something that would allow me to think logically.”
Edward wanted to study medicine too but could not qualify.
After studying psychology, he discovered a serious interest
in entrepeneurship: “I set up a small business selling phone
credit. It got bigger and I eventually sold it to a friend. I had to
do National Service so I worked with a financial institution and
after a year, I said goodbye. I heard of the Meltwater course
around then and applied. The course was entepreneurship and
IT. I didn’t care about software side. I would have joined even if
it was ‘Entrepeneurship and Fashion’.”
The three met while studying at the Meltwater Entrepeneurial
School of Technology (MEST) in East Legon. Established in
2007, the Meltwater idea is a simple one: train students in
entepreneurship and IT. After two years, students are given the
chance to form teams and develop a complete business proposal.
If successful, they join the Meltwater Incubator where they
regularly answer to a Board of Directors (including Meltwater
CEO Jorn Lysegge and other alumni) and are given seed money
to help launch their idea and help th em reach a point where they
make revenue or attract investment. The trio says the Meltwater
model has helped them to evade many of the challenges faced
by startups, their biggest problem being the tardiness of third
parties partners at times affecting their timelines.
The Best Business Award they received from Launchpad was
in honour of the trio’s very first product. GripeLine connects
companies to customers, enabling them to interact more
effectively with the people they provide products and services to.
It can be used to track and respond to complaints and enquiries,
as well as to register people or answer questions before or
during events. Nandi Mobile has already scored a major client
in the form of Tigo, who are already piloting it with their Tigo
Cash service. It has also been used for participant support at
events like Barcamp Ghana and TEDx, and the trio have plans
to push it not just in Ghana, but to West Africa and beyond. Not
resting on their laurels, they are also already working on their
next product: “If [Gripeline] is customer service oriented, our
new product will give companies control of what information
they send to the end customer. It will crea te and measure buzz.”
Michael feels that “there is positive change happening as far
as software and technology is concerned. People are starting
to get it. Maybe it’s stories of the likes of Bill Gates around, but
even older people see the potential, so ideas like ours are given a
listening ear. One thing that keeps us positive is that people are
expecting some change. There’s a certain drive. Google coming
to Africa and trying to create a new way of doing things... It’s
creating a buzz and helps us as developers. We are lucky in that
our timing is perfect. If we succeed, we will be part of a first wave.”
Edward concurs: “It’s time. With so many people starting blogs,
movements like TED... It’s a movement. Ghana is catching up
with countries like Kenya, Uganda and South Africa.” However,
he points out that there is still some way to go: “Kenyans are
taught software development at Senior High School. The same
cannot be said for Ghana.”
Michael adds, “We have potential . I am basing this on people I’ve
met and the things they are doing. We need to have a lot more
collaboration though. People keep good ideas to themselves and
end up with shoddy execution. Ghana would have been on the
map by now if people collaborated. We have a lot of creativity
in this country. We need to move away from this “I want to be
the one in the limelight” idea.”
“If there’s something you see yourself doing well over and over
again… don’t throw it away and go for anything else because
chances are that a full circle will happen and you will wish you
invested more time in it. Find what you can do with it. Give
yourself the best education in it.”
Anne expresses concern about how the education system in
Ghana rarely nurtures talent and advises anyone following in
their footsteps to follow their heart: “It’s not all about what you
learn in school. Get to know what you love doing and develop it.”
Inspired by women who are able to achieve that rare balance
between finance and family, she also stresses the need for
people to realize that life should be about more tha n just money:
“Balance your life: you are more than just a financial person.”
t e c h
There are many things people think of when they think about Accra. Alas, “hub of
technological creativity and innovation” is rarely one of them. That may soon change
though with several young sparks laying the foundations for a digital revolution. Earlier
this year, three such individuals stepped out of the shadows to beat 100 Silicon Valley
start-ups and win the “Best Business” Award at the LAUNCH Conference (a platform
for new start-ups to showcase their products and services to potential early adopters)
in San Francisco. Not one of three was above the age of 27.
Edward Tagoe (Business Development), Anne Amuzu (Technical) and Michael Darkwa
(Product Development) are Nandi Mobile. They derived their company name from the
Bemba (Zambian) word “umunandi”, which means “my friend”: “Whatever we create
is designed to extend the friendship between one party and another. That is why our
motto is “empowering connections”. We don’t just teach it. It is something we practice,”
Edward tells DUST.
He adds that while tech giants like Steve Jobs and Marc Zuckerberg “have his attention”,
he is not inspired by any particular personality. It is a sentiment shared by his colleagues.
Rather, they draw inspiration from each other. As Michael puts it, “I like how they
approach and confront their challenges and push me out of my comfort zone. It can be
scary at first but in hindsight, I see where I would have been if I had stayed in the zone.”
Michael believes in things coming full circle. He enjoyed drawing in primary school and
wanted to study visual arts at secondary level. Like many creatives however, he was
advised by his parents to study science. He ended up studying technical subjects. It lead
nandimobile
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h e a l t h
Don’t Break Your Heart
living in Accra on a shoestring
p e s e w a
d u s t 2 3
d u s t 2 2
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Words by Mantse Aryeequaye.
Photography by Mantse Aryeequaye & Ismael Abass
cults&colts
Colt soccer matches are
where to go when you
are looking for talent and
individuals with real dreams
and tenacity.
“
“
s p o r t
I’m not what you would call a football fan. I don’t enjoy big club football,
with its over-hyped workforces. There’s always a‘Jason and the Argonauts’
feel to the enterprise. So I won’t be making any sweeping statementsabout the game here, unless in reference to one game that I have left
my house to see.
Colt soccer matches are where to go when you are looking for talent andindividuals with real dreams and tenacity.
Most of these guys may never play professionally because of how football
is structured in Ghana... how everything is structured in Ghana. Everythingis wired through patronage on so many levels: sexual and romantic
relations, access to material resources, education and even the games
we play. You almost always have to ‘know’ someone to be able to accessthings that don’t even matter. Like paying money at a police check point
just because... or paying to be assured of a place on the national team,
even if it means warming the benches.
Mainstream soccer (what I call ‘cult’ soccer) reveals an unshakeable belief
in lining the pockets of those in power at the expense of the lot who make
the enterprise thrive: the players and fans.
Colt teams on the other hand have a good many players whose careers are in transition or whose
quality is debatable. I find these matters fun to think about. Here on this not-so-grassy mini-pitch, youmay hear a cuss words that will remind you where you are in case you forgot. The conversations
amongst onlookers are certainly not about a team’s bankruptcy woes or some useless managerial
uncertainty. Money troubles are constant in these places too, but colt soccer in Latebiokorshi is differentin interesting ways.
One doesn’t have to be a football fan to understand the difference between the colt soccer fan base
and that of the major leagues. Colt teams like Monday Stars have somewhat middle-class support,which must be confusing for them. These guys idolize European players to a fault. The word ‘local’
has some demeaning slant to it. It means forever orbiting nowhere land: a circuit that doesn’t lead
anywhere profitable.
These guys aspire to be anything but local. This says a lot about their confidence in a domestic league
perceived to be plagued by corrupt behavior. The only way these young men will ever play in major
games will be through some sort of recommendation, which only comes after said player agrees tobe “managed” by a patron.
The energy on the pitch is always high: it’s like giving everyone in Accra rabies and amphetamines,
then dropping them into a borehole. One can only come away with a glorious respect for the athleticismof these guys. They play for the pure love and respect and entertainment too. If for nothing at all, they
get to be ghetto superstars and some ghetto Gbemi while they are at it.
d u s t 2 4
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We are our literature and WPG brings together
writers and readers, engendering dialogue and interestin the nuances of our artistic landscape. This issue, we
present a poem by the young Nana Korantemaa.
Let her fill your imagination as she speaks from where
she sits.
d u s t 2 6
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T ig o is leadin g the wa y in Innovation.
volunteers /2011
Tigo Ghana has been at the forefront of innovation.
_02
Continues in pa ge 05
Tigo Ghana has been at the forefront of
driving innovative solutions to subscribers
in Ghana. Products such as Talk for Free,
Tigo Number 1, Smartalk and Xtreme Value
have built a value-for-money image for the
Tigo brand and have over the years helped
demonstrate to both subscribers and
competition that the company is focused oncontinually delivering solution based
innovative products and services that meet
the expectations of subscribers.
Tigo Facebook phone.
It is in pursuit of this strategy that the
company introduced the Tigo Face book
phone which was the first of its kind in
Ghana. e Tigo facebook phone is a mobile
handset with a dedicated facebook button
for easy and immediate access to facebook,
a QWERTY keypad for easy, faster text
communication. Based on subscriber
feedback for enhanced features, Tigo has
gone a step further to introduce the new
and improved facebook phone.
e new facebook handset has a couple of
fascinating features which are an
improvement on the old facebook phones.
e phone comes with camera, QWERTY
keypad, Email access, Fm radio, Memory
Card slot, Java, Big 2inch screen, 64 MidiRingtone/ MP3, 2Ghc airtime and 1GB of
data for 30days. is innovative handset will
be retailing for only Ghc49.99
throughout the country.
Tigo Ads.
Tigo Ads, another first from Tigo, is a mobile
permission based marketing tool which
informs subscribers of promos and oerings
from their favorite brands. is innovative
form of interactive advertising will take the
form of SMS interactive messaging and is
delivered to subscribers free of charge. To
join the service, subscribers must text the
key word ADS to 9000.
For companies, we say whatever your targetaudience, whatever your product, Tigo Ads
can help! Consumers are 100% profiled and
100% opted in. Only people, who want to
receive your messages, get your messages.
To celebrate the launch of this great new
service, Tigo is oering companies the
chance to “Buy one, Get one free” in the
months of July and August to try this
fantastic medium of advertising your
products and services. To find out more
about this service, call our sales
representative on 0274808080.
Tigo Ads is powered by Optism. From
Industry leader Alcatel-Lucent.In keeping
with this trend, Tigo has introduced a series
of other innovative and solution based
services such as the Tigo Voice SMS,
facebook chat and the Tigo Sports fylla
service.
Tigo Voice SMS service.
e Tigo voice SMS service will allowsubscribers to send voice messages to
friends and family on any network in Ghana.
To record a message, simply dial * and the
recipients number and follow the prompts.
To retrieve a message Tigo users can dial *0*
to retrieve new messages and *1* to retrieve
old messages. Subscribers can retrieve
messages by dialing 0277500213 and
0277500214 .
is leadin g the wa y in Innovation.Continued from page 02.
Tigo Facebook Chat Service.
e rapid growth of the social media
landscape has created a craving for
innovative tools to satisfy the urgent need
to constantly stay connected to the social
webscape. It’s on this premise that the
facebook chat service has been launched.
e facebook chat service will allow Tigo
subscribers the opportunity to chat with
friends and loved ones without having to
log onto the internet.
To subscribe to the service, send your
facebook USERNAME followed by space to
the shortcode 6500. You will then receive a
list of you contacts who are online. To chat
with one person in the list, prefix the
message with the person’s first, middle or
last name so for example To chat with Ama
send ‘Ama’ followed by the message to 6500.
To reply a message, prefix your message
with or without the name of the person.
To chat with two or more persons in the list,
prefix all messages with the person’s first,
middle or last name. e.g. to chat Kwame and
Ama, send ‘Ama’ followed by your message
to 6500 and send ‘Kwame’ followed by
message to 6500.
Tigo Sports Fylla
SPORTS FYLLA is an SMS social network
intended for all sports enthusiasts in Ghana.
e service has been put together to make it
possible for sports fans to share among
themselves matters arising in SPORTS and
the particular clubs that they support. A
sports fan can share with the entire
community share their opinions on issues
about their club, happenings in the
football world or even make mockery (as
fans sometimes do) of other clubs or
football p ersonalities.
e idea is to bring all who share the same
sentiments, or sympathizers or followers of
the various sports clubs (especially football
clubs) together as one community on an
Instant Messaging Network (via SMS).
With SPORTS FYLLA, dissemination of
sports info is made very easy and cheap.
To register for this service send FA (football
association) and UID (userID) to 6070. To
join a particular club community on the
service, users will have to send the
keyword assigned to the club/community
to 6070. (E.g. to join the Arsenal
community, subscribers shall send ASL
(and then nickname/userID) to 6070).
After becoming a member of the SPORTS
FYLLA network or member of a particular
sports community, the subscriber can
send FYLLAs or receive FYLLAs from other
subscribers.
To send a message to the entire SPORTS
FYLLA community, a subscriber shall
prefix his/her message with the FA and
send to 6070.
To send a message to a particular club
community, a subscriber shall prefix
his/her message with the keyword
assigned to the club (E.g. CFC, MUFC, BFC,
LFC, AC, etc) and send to 6070
advertisement
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we the people
dust magazine | june 2011
Supporting Communitiesand Im proving Lives.
_Tigo volunteers at hospital.
n keeping with the promise to support
ommunities and improve lives of
ommunities in which it operates, Tigo
hana celebrated this year’s mother’s day
with patients, mothers and workers of the
ediatrics and Burns Unit of the Komfo
Anokye Teaching Hospital.
apping Into mother’s day celebrations,
igo treated workers of the unit to a
uet lunch and rewarded employees
who have excelled in the performance of
uties.
igo’s mother’s day treat also took thepportunity to foot the bills of some
atients at both the Burns and Pediatrics
wards
e Tigo Ghana CSR train together with
the Peace and love hospital, Kumasi on
the 13th of May stopped over at the Head
oce of the mobile operators to conduct
a breast cancer awareness campaign to
help demystify some myths about the
disease.
Ladies were encouraged to conduct
regular screening to enhance early
detection of the disease. e Health and
wellbeing train on the 25th of May, 2011
joined the Peace and love hospital team,
the Asantehene, the ‘Susan G. Komen
Race for Cure’ campaign and otherstakeholders to embark on a health walk
to raise awareness about the disease and
raise funds for further research into the
disease.
In the not too distant past, the Tigo
health and wellbeing team took
advantage of the recent Independence
Day holiday to provide free health
screening for over 2,000 head porters
usually known as ‘Kayayei’. With the help
of MedEx Insurance and some medical
practitioners the beneficiaries were
screened for general health related issues.
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On March 11 earlier this year, the world woke up to shocking images of a Japan
devastated by the 9.0 magnitude Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. Over the
following days and weeks, Accra’s heart went out to Tokyo as we watched and
admired the resilience of the Japanese people as they tried to reassemble the
literally broken pieces of their lives.
The word ‘Tsunami’ is actually a Japanese one. The Asian country is hit by
hundreds of earthquakes and thousands of tremors every year, recorded from
as far back as the 15th century. Most are too small to be detected while others -
like Tohoku this year, Kobe in 1995 and Kanto in 1923 - will never be forgotten.
Knowing this, Japan has an advanced system in place to lessen its potential
destruction at the hands of natural disasters. It goes beyond computers and
satellites monitoring seismic tremors. As Ghanaians know, earthquakes do
not send text messages ahead of their arrival. Buildings are made of particular
materials, in particular places and in particular ways, and the people are
taught – like cub scouts - to be prepared. Even then, Japan could not predict and
prepare for Tohoku. That said, fewer lives were probably lost than might have
been without preparation.
Unlike Japan, Ghana actually knows when its seasonal natural disasters are
coming. We don’t need an advanced prediction system: the rainy season is an
old friend. Yet, year in and year out, we needlessly lose our lives and property to
rainfall, everywhere from right here in Accra all the way up to the North.
In one of his last shows on radio, you could hear the anger in veteran journalist
Kwaku Sakyi-Addo’s voice as he explained how his first-ever Frontpage show
was on flooding and ten years later, it was still an issue. The Accra authorities
told him that they know what needs to be done, but they are hampered by a lack
of political will to do it: move people (rich enough to pay bribes or poor enough
to not have alternatives) from the waterways that they have built upon and
blocked.
The best kind of politician is not the one who gives the people what they want.
It is the one who is savvy enough to know, do and say whatever it takes to give
them what they need.
Dust prays that Ghana’s politicians fall into the latter category.
KG
BEING PREPARED
Lessons from Tokyo p o l i t i k
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When the news broke that IMF president, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, had been acccused
of raping a hotel maid, it sounded like something out of a sleazy made-for-TV movie.
Things took a more sordid turn once it emerged that the maid in question was West
African. Rumour even had it she was Ghanaian... before some smart journalist realized
the difference between Ghana and Guinea.
Anyway.
There is something deeply distasteful about the notion of the head of an organisation
that many feel helps keep the developing world in a developing state taking advantage
of a citizen of a developing country. In fact, the image conjures up other images. Of
power taking advantage of powerlessness. Of the rape of Africa.
big mensmall girls
That said, the ‘Big Man, Small Girl’ thing is not so shocking here. In the past
few months, there has been more than one story of pastors, for example, being
accused of abusing female members of their flock. One suspects that this sort of
thing happens here more regularly than one might think. Barely below the surface
of regular life. In the same way that most of Ghana’s sexual shenanigans occur
just below the surface. There is so much that Ghanaians publicly disapprove of
but privately revel in.
I know too many girls with stories of unwanted attention, from anyone from the
man on street to the family friend who developed less than family-like thoughts
for them. If I had a Cedi for every female friend I have with such a story, I would
be one of Ghana’s wealthiest men.
Men often say it is women who have changed. “Poor man in wife o, be r ich man in
girl o / As you no get money, them go carry baby go” is the way one song puts it.
Some men believe Ghana is already an equal society and feel that girls have just
grown lazier over time, and more demanding of their money. Of course, it’s not as
simple as that. Usually money is given exchanged for sex or the promise of sex.
Men have financial power while women wield another form of power within this
sexual economy.
Everyone struggles to send their little girls to school but where men have problems
taking orders from women at work or won’t vote for a female presidential candidate
on principle, how many of these girls do we really expect to grow to be completely
financially independent? Educated or not, our girls are groomed to rely on men.
In fact, they are insulted – not admired - by both men and women if they become
too independent.
This is in itself bad enough. The fact that these relations can turn violent is worse.
Rape is more common than we think. Not every case of rape is reported, especially
by those who do not think of the rape of a wife by her husband as rape. While they
may not go as far as describing it as an act of love, they may still say it is about rights.
Everyone has the right to say no though.
Especially a hotel maid.
KG d u s t 3 4
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Ghana’s
CREATIVEIndustrywhat? where?
We have in Ghana many a rtists and creatives who
wonderfully express their emotions and feelings through
a range of cultural mediums. A creative economy of ideas,
images, symbols, design and cultural expression is formed
through the production, consumption and exchange of these
expressive outputs.
Why then does Ghana not take the creative and c ultural
arts seriously? Simply put, because most of us see it as
unproductive activity: we don’t believe it generates revenue.
‘Creative industry’ refers to the management of creativity
and innovation; from the generation of original ideas, to
their realisation and consumption. In Ghana, this includes
advertising, architecture, crafts, design, designer fashion,
visual arts, music, performing arts, publishing, software,
TV and radio.
Regrettably, much of what is produced in Ghana lacks
originality. Besides that, too often, ideas don’t make it pastgeneration to full realisation (much less consumption),
especially when profit-making is the raison d’être of industry.
Now, there are real reasons for this. (Real ) creativity emerges
from a depth of diversity of experience, perception or
sensation; not easy to acquire in Ghana. There isn’t enough
public support for art and culture; there are no art and design
schools, decent museums nor well-resourced theatre or
dance companies.
Creativity is sparked by challenges to the status quo, but
too many of us are afraid to embrace difference. Moreover,
most Ghanaians - still struggling to meet their basic material
needs - don’t have the luxury of satisfying their more complex
emotional and psychological needs satisfied by culture and
creativity. Money goes towards the basics, not towards the
consumption of art.
All is not lost though.
The increasing number of Ghanaians using the internet
(including 1 million+ Fac ebook users) is a tribute to our desire
to not only interact with the world, but to express ourselves
creatively. Access to books, film, music and images are
cheaper than ever, stimulating our demand and capacity to
enjoy creative offerings.
We don’t have to reinvent the wheel to solve the problem:
there are already business models for each creative industry
that we can appropriate to commercialise our creative ideas.
We should embrace the growing demand for (and - as such -
the commercial value in) non-traditional art forms, like digitalphotography and comic strips. New distribution channels –like
YouTube, Bandcamp, & Topspin– join a diversity of outlets
through which our products can be exhibited to potential
consumers. Such digital distribution is cheaper than its
traditional equivalents and the organisations and individuals
who adapt to them quickest will reap the rewards.
Building business to make profit from creative
expression has its own challenges. I’ve only
touched on the very tip of the anthill. Yet, it
seems to me that if we think about it creatively,
we can begin the process.
This is what I think… for now.
By Aba Ayensu
Picture this: You’re about to embark upon a long
journey. You only have a vague idea of where you
want to go. In fact, you’re not too sure of what
mode of transport you should use so you try out a
number of different ones, in a trial and error fashion,
as you think it’ll take you closer to where you want
to go. Despite the fact you’re rather unsure about
your destination, you spend an inordinate amount
of money and energy trying to find this vague
place. To worsen the situation you are all the while
travelling whilst blindfolded. What’s the likelihood
you’ll reach your destination? The whole scenarioseems rather absurd, right? However, this sad state
of affairs is the situation Ghana is heading towards
if it continues to neglect the need for a long term
development plan.
Our Constitution under the Directive Principles
of State Policy requires that the government
develops a long term national development plan.
However, presently our country has no long term
development plan and this is a fatal flaw. The
National Development Planning Commission
(NDPC) is mandated by the Constitution to engineer
Ghana’s development strategy but, unfortunately
this institution with so much potential, has been
rendered a toothless dog. It has fallen victim to petty
puerile party politics and this is detrimental to the
country’s general progress. It is embarrassingly
under-resourced, which further exacerbates its
impotency. NDPC should be freed from polΩitical
suppression and sufficiently resourced so that it
can carry out its mandated duties.
The national development of the country should
transcend social and political boundaries therefore
citizens and political parties of all persuasions
should play an active role in its development.
Without the ownership of all sections of society,
any development plan is bound to fail. It is for this
reason that the development of Ghana’s long term
national development strategy necessarily needs
to be inclusive and participatory. The citizens of
Ghana must have the opportunity to participate
in decision making processes on all matters
concerning the development of the country. Citizens
should be actively involved in the determination
of development priorities to which our resources
are used.
The absence of a long term development plan gives
room to ad hoc and speculative spending which will
not help in the development of our country. There is
abundant evidence that most resource rich countries
have failed to turn their wealth into lasting benefits
for their citizens because they did not have long-
term development plans and this should not be
repeated in Ghana.
All government spending should be done in
adherence to a long term development plan,which not only states the long term vision for the
country’s development but also practical, time-
bound, measureable targets in order to achieve
this vision. This is important because any spending
we do has different implications for the economy.
For example, research shows that investment in
agriculture has faster redistributive effect than
investment in industrialization. On the other hand,
investment in industrialization has a faster growth
effect than agriculture. Therefore it is only a national
development plan which can define our priorities
and what interventions must be made to achieve
the objectives of our development plan.
Having the development plan is only one of
the pre-requisites to achieving economic and
social development. The critical ingredient is its
implementation. It’s a sad fact that our ministries
are full of beautifully crafted, elaborate and detailed
policy documents that are poorly implemented (if at
all) and are simply gathering dust. Implementation is
the key and all the rhetoric/ good intentions should be
turned into concrete action. Only then can Ghana’s
development goals be fully realised.
Now picture this: You’re about to embark upon a
long journey. You know the exact location of your
destination and you’re fully equipped for the journey
with maps, satellite navigation etc. to ensure that
you arrive there according to schedule. You are
fully aware of the best mode of transport to use,
the duration of the journey and its cost, therefore
there’s a very high probability that you’ll get there.
Isn’t this a much better way to reach your ultimate
destination?
progressiveplanning
d u s t 3 7
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blitzthe ambassador
Blitz is an artist at the crossing of several paths. America and Africa. Past and present. Hip-hop and
highlife. He is not confused about where to turn though. He stands instead as a messenger between
worlds, as fluent in one reality as he is in the other. The kid once called Bazaar on the streets of Accra has
grown to become its ambassador. In his own words: “You have to be good at home first before becoming
good elsewhere.”
Samuel Bazawule discovered Rakim and Public Enemy while he was a student at Achimota. He was
soon reciting their lines over beats banged out on school tables, and tasted early success recording with
the likes of Deeba, Hammer & Obrafuor in hiplife’s early days. Along with Cy Lover and M3nsa (who he
recalls was messing with pidgin even back then), Blitz was known for rhyming in English. In fact, ‘Native
Sun’ is the first album on which Blitz rhymes in Twi:
“If I rap in Twi, I have to make sure my Twi accent is on point. The same goes for pidgin. I would expect
someone coming to Ghana to try to speak Twi authentically. If you speak Americanized Twi, it’s a problem.”
To Blitz, those same principles of authenticity apply to the music he wished to make. Not hiplife: hip-hop:
“[It] started in the Bronx. Others have influenced it but it started there. If it’s something I’m going to learn
to do, I’m going to learn to do it to that standard. It’s the same as guys who play for Asante Kotoko andHearts of Oak, and go on to play for AC Milan and Chelsea. Playing football barefoot? That’s authentic, but
you are going to have to learn to play the game by international standards. There were limits to reaching
a global audience from Ghana. We’re nominated for BET awards now but nothing like that existed at the
time. If I was going to compete, I had t o be where it was.”
“Our culture in Ghana is no better or worse than anywhere else, but it doesn’t promote the artist. The
[hiplifers] making money back in the day were those who had resources to travel to perform. Sales from
tapes were not enough to allow you to live the life of a n artist. However you can make a living doing music
out here [in the US]. There are stages, venues, festivals... things that make culture appealing. It’s not that
we lack the know-how. We don’t have the money. My success in America makes it easier for anyone
else in Africa to get shine though, to get known. When Samini played New York for the f irst time, I was
his musical director and put his band together. Everyone has a part to play.”
When Blitz first arrived in America, things were not so easy: “It’s human to try to f it in. But after a while,
you realize a piece of you is unfulfilled. You are not what you are supposed to be: a blend between where
you’re from and where you’re at. It hits everyone at some point. It happened with Fela. It happened with
Nkrumah.”
By the time he released his first full a lbum, ‘Soul Rebel’ in 2005 , Blitz was influenced by conscious MCs
like Talib Kweli and Dead Prez. Yet consciousness was not enough to represent who he was. Everything
changed with his work on the score of a documentary about a sassy American teenager’s journey to
Ghana to reunite with her father, a chief: “It was a huge learning curve. The producers [of ‘Bronx Princess’]
were looking for both hip-hop and afrobeat. I ended up making 20 tracks. It was the first time I had to
do anything like that.” On 2009’s ‘Stereotype’, he began recording with a band he called ‘The Embassy’,
replacing slick studio production with a more raw, live sound. The evolution went down well with critics
and fans, and the album managed to top the international iTunes chart.
Blitz describes his new album – ‘Native Sun’- as the combination of the ambition he showed on ‘Stereotype’
and the African sound that he rediscovered while doing the score for Bronx Princes. On ‘Native Sun’,
Blitz rhymes about displacement, consciousness, freedom, celebration and repatriation over horns and
electric guitars straight out of 1970s Africa, complete with drums inspired by the funk that hip-hop used
to sample so heavily in t he 80s and 90s. Throw in older African instruments like the kora and djembe,
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You have to be good at home
first before becoming good
elsewhere... I moved when our
industry was just beginning.
There is no real need to move
today... Like Chuck D says on the
record “It ain’t where you’re from.
Its where you’re at“
‘‘
‘ ‘
like geography and look at
what brings us together. We have to work together
to build this new Africa movement that we are so desperate to see.”
To help promote the album, he returned to Ghana late last year to shoot a short film: “Seeing is believing.
Native Sun needed to be seen. I’m extremely proud of what we were able to do. There can never be enough
positive images coming out of Africa. Often, people with important messages forget about talent and quality.People may listen to you, but there is nothing else to draw them in. That’s why we went hard with making the
film. We needed another outlet. When it starts doing the international film festival circuit, we hope people
get the good vibe and universal message being pushed in both the music and t he film.”
Returning home to shoot the short gave Blitz the chance to reconnect with his hiplife roots: ”Yaa Pono is
brilliant. Sarkodie too: I’ve been hearing about him in t he Diaspora. Of course, Wanlov: he’s been doing his
thing uniquely (and dope) for a long time. I like the Skillions crew too. The beautiful thing is the diversity.
Everyone grows. Who knows what this may grow into.”
He also paid tribute to one of his heroes: “Some people are so insecure about threats to their legendary status
that they don’t want to give people shine. I salute and will always shoutout Reggie [Rockstone] because
and you have an epic album that effortlessly
traverses time and space: here and there, back
then and right now. It’s a sound he rightly feels
proud of:
“Listen to the record. Not all the songs apply
to everybody, but even if you don’t like the
sound or the experimentation, you can hear the
authenticity. From a musical standpoint, I hope
[it] takes us to a point where we can have a pride
in the aesthetics of who we are and where we’re
from. There is nothing wrong with borrowing but
at the end of the day you have to know where
you are coming from.”
On a continent that sometimes looks distrustfully
at its children in the Diaspora, Blitz hopes to help
connect the dots: “Our Diaspora is huge and it ’s
played an important role in Africa’s growth and
development. Look at one of our most revered
sons: Kwame Nkrumah. Without him linking
with the ideas of George Padmore, WEB DuBois,
Clarke... there would not be a free Ghana today. It
takes ideologies coming together to move. This
isn’t new. We are reliving Nkrumah’s time. We
need to stop looking at things that separate us
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ever since I’ve known him, he has always given up and coming artists their shine.”
With plans to bring his band to Accra for a special concert at Alliance Française this October (alongside
fellow Embassy MVMT artists, Les Nubians) Blitz has his eyes set firmly on home: “My real impact won’t
begin until I return and settle, and people see what I have achieved. It’s not about returning home with a
superiority complex. People from the Diaspora must humble themselves and recognize the people w ho
stayed behind to struggle and build. You can’t just say you hate Ghana traffic. It’s Ghana traffic: you’re not
in Ohio or London anymore.”
“I have a three-year plan to come home. I moved when our industry was just beginning. There is no real
need to move today. There was no internet back then. Now there is. It is not about travelling anymore.
Like Chuck D [of Public Enemy] says on the record “it ain’t you’re from. It’s where you’re at.” It is about
heart and soul and what you are about, wherever you are in the world. That’s why I salute DUST.” KG
We’ve seen our fair share of rappers veering into film to complement the
release of their albums, with everyone from Kanye West to Rick Ross
releasing rap blockbusters on the Internet. Whether its shameless self-
promotion or just plain extravagance, hip-hop on film only matters if its
core - its plot and its characters - are rock solid, original and believable.
It is for this very reason that Native Sun deserves gratification: it’s just
as authentic as the album.
Blitz and Terrence Nance’s short film tells the story of Mumin (Edward
Dankwa), a young boy from a small village in Tamale who is in search of
his long lost father after his mother’s untimely death. With only a picture
of his father as his guide, he departs for Accra, where he encounters
unlikely characters and situations beyond his imagination.
As an artistic and creative output, Native Sun’s uniquely Ghanaian
tale serves its purpose almost effortlessly. The capital’s vivid sights
and sounds are an awesome backdrop, as well as cuts from the LP
serving as a soundtrack. The film cleverly weaves cultural themes into
pleasant visuals; the funeral procession of Mumin’s mother seems moretriumphant than heartbreaking, reminding us of beliefs of the afterlife.
The film’s narration in pidgin by Blitz himself also comes off as clever
and witty without overshadowing the detail of the story.
The overall impression of this short film is that of an exclusive, if not
pioneering, visual that reignites the passion of storytelling and redefines
the way Ghanaian movies are made; with a truthful and beautiful portrait
of the country’s image. Just like his album, Native Sun is an immense
achievement for such a talented artist and an undeniable inspiration
for his peers.
By Jason Nico-Annan
FILM REVIEW : NATIVE SUN Directors : TERRENCE NANCE & BLITZ THE AMBASSADOR
Starring : Edward Dankwa, Helena Yeboah, Marcus
Quarshie, Blitz the Ambassador
3 out of 5
magazineAs part of DUST magazine’s tribute to our seminal forebear, Drum, we feature here
an adaptation of Koranteng Ofosu-Amaah’s brilliant blog post on his collection of
Drum magazines from 1969. Besides being a striking snapshot of Ghana at the
time, it also offers us all a chance to reflect on what has changed in our country
and – even more significantly – what has remained almost exactly the same.
I spent some time scanning images from a year’s worth of issues of the Ghana
edition of Drum magazine.
Truth be told, losing myself in the pages was a bit of escapism. I wanted a
glimpse of my parents’ world, of their aspirations and of the culture from which
I emerged. Those pages were a good source of any manner of cultural artefacts
and goings-on in the country. Call it nostalgia, call it social anthropology, call it a
poor man’s history, or perhaps I was simply fascinated by the advertisements.
So. Drum Magazine. Ghana. 1969. Here goes.
1969 was an election year in Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah’s one-party regime had
been overthrown and civilian rule loomed. But that was by the by - the magazine
was typically focused on lighter issues. By way of background, Drum m agazine is
most known from its South African roots but it also had Ghanaian and Nigerian
editions from the late sixties until the eighties. The equivalents would be Ebony,
Jet or say Essence (alternatively think of Hello and Paris Match) ergo, none too
weighty society papers.
‘69By Koranteng Ofosu-Amaah
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SPORTS:Baba Yara, Ghana’s greatest footballer, the “King of Wingers of West Africa” would die on May
5, 1969 after sustaining a spinal injury in a lorry accident at Kpeve in 1963. Three months of treatment at
Stoke Mandeville hospital had done nothing to improve his health. Nor had the local prophet healer. Thus his
last six years of life were spent bedridden. Asante Kotoko, the Real Republikans and, of course, the national
team, the Black Stars had suffered a grievous loss. The scenes commemorating his life leap off the page.
Born in Kumasi on October 12, 1936, it was in 1955, his debut year for the national team that he wore
the number 7 jersey of the Gold Coast team which massacred Nigeria by 7-0 at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Yara scored two goals and was the architect of four of the seven. Decades later his legend as a fearsome
attacker is as glowing as say that of the magic hands of goalkeeper Robert Mensah. Those who saw him play
wax rhapsodic to this day, my uncle Emma has been known to go on for a good hour about that golden era
and those stars. The Baba Yara sports stadium in Kumasi is a testament to his memory. Like any society
magazine Drum was sometimes shallow, other times profound and even on occasion sublime. Consider this
a profile of a country in transition, between military rule and democracy, full of hope and naviga ting between
tradition and modernity. Ghana is headed to elections [soon] and, from the outside, much of the discourse
is akin to that seen here in 1969: great promise amidst reminders of just how far we have to go. I can only
hope that my fellow countrymen take heed of those who paved the way for them and remember the words
of John Mensah Sarbah: think ahead of time.
CRIME: In 1969, the Sukura neighbourhood of
Accra was gaining a reputation for crime and squaloreven more lugubrious than Nima. Forty years on it is
the aptly named Sodom andGomorrah and takes the
prize as Ghana’s school of hard knocks, the place you
terrify your little kids about the prospect of leaving
them there. Of course this is all a matter of perception.
The settlement of shantytowns always gives rise to
dark hints of nefariousness by the establishment.
Drum was firmly of the establishment and would
editorialize about the problems of slums, runaway
children and other social ills.
TECHNOLOGY: Ghana
w a s l o o k i n g t o w a r d sspace, playing off Soviet
achievements against the
USA’s Apollo prowess (the
moon landing was duly
celebrated). Well, anyone
could dream and there were
even nuclear ambitions
(since revived in 2008).
UNIVERSITY LIFE: Siren, the journal of Mensah Sarbah Hall, University of Ghana, Legon did a satiricalend of year issue featuring a cartoon strip that gave rise to the “Wankye Wankye Scandal”. The strip was
denounced as ‘pornography’, students were duly suspended, campaigns were mounted to have them
reinstated, demonstrations were started. Things got out of hand.
Reading closely you realize how benign the commentary was, young male students frustrated at the lack of
‘internalists’: female students who dated fellow students. There were complaints about “the young lecturers
who openly fish in the limited pool of Volta Hall - and in the female wing of the controversial Sarbah Hall”.
Student militancy prevailed however. The riot police had to be called in to calm things down. Dig the uniforms.
EDUCATION: The obligatory photo of African school-children in morningprayer raises the issue of church
or state. The big question was “whether the churches should continue to manage sc hools with local, urban
and city councils or should the management of all educational institutions come under a unified system
to be directed by the Ministry of Education”. It was noted that
“the churches spearheaded the drive for education in Ghana... in 1737 the Danish chaplain attached
to the Danish Castle at Christianborg in Accra sent two boys from the Castle school to be educated in
Copenhagen. Again in 1828 the Danish governor at Osu, Accra invited the Basel Missionary Society in
Switzerland to take up missionary and education work in Osu and its neighbouring districts.”
On the perennial
question of hair,
the influence of
Motown was felt with
Supremes-styling
presumably taking
over from the corn roll
of yore.
A yearlong series on sex education draws a big response from readers, dealing with everything from birth
control and family plann ing, the pill and other contraceptives, midwives, child birth, relationships (pre-marital
and otherwise), passion and even prostitution.
Ghana Airways was continuing its expansion. By the mid 70s it would begin its inexorable decline. We
could all dream in 1969.
MUSIC: There was a vigourous music scene and perhaps a golden age of music in the country. E.T.
Mensah and his Tempos competed with Jerry Hansen and The Ramblers band, who “brought back the
boogaloo” from London and the States.
The Professional Uhuru Dance Band & the GBC Band roughed it up with The Revellers, Railway Dance
Band and the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation Band. The Aliens Band, The Planets, the Black Santiagos
rounded out the cast. The Sierra Leone Heartbeats, fronted by Geraldo Pino, set up shop in Ghana and
found a receptive audience for their brand of soul music. Echoes of Motown were in the air. Paradoxically
The Soul Messengers’ tour was judged a failure: the competition was too fierce.
FUNERALS: Every issue featured the obligatory society puff pieces. The Ga chief, Nii Bonne (the so-called
“Boycotthene”) who made a stand against inflation and organized a national boycott in 1948 against
colonial rule, died and his funeral was a major marker. It was unusual for traditional rulers to feature in
the independence or nationalist movements but Nii Bonne didn’t recoil.
On funerals, the thinking was that “it costs too much to die”. As Millicent Adamafio in Sekondi put it:
“‘grandiose and extravagant preparations must be condemned in the strongest terms. Some people have
become full-time mourners, showing their faces at almost al l wake-keeping services. Their explanation is
that the more one attends such functions and registers his condolences, the more sympathisers one gets
when he is bereaved. In fact there are voluntary organizations whose sole purpose is to give moral and
financial support to members who are bereaved’. Others countered: “what is wrong with a nice colourful
and impressive funeral for a loving relative whose face we will not see again. The dead are an important
subject in our tradition and should be accorded the due ceremony and honour they deserve.”
Star beer and Club lager had large budgets and blanketed
much of the magazines. It was all about the good life. The
culture and politics of alcohol have been much studied in
Ghana. Schnapps was less in evidence but featured - it is
used in libations and many of our ceremonies.
My clear favourite is Pepsodent toothpaste with Irium. Be
progressive and dig the production values and the light skin.
Skin lightening products were popular (at least
they were heavily advertised). Fela would sing
Yellow Fever a few years hence and bemoan
the extremes of the practice. It’s not just Africa
however and not simply old history, the same
thing happens in India and China today.
Head scarves abounded, the
older, traditional duukuu that
had given way to European
headgear before independence
was now reinvented as the
lappa cover cloth.
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‘ K o r a n t e n g ’ s T o l i ’ c a n b e f o u n d a t h t t p : / / k o r a n t e n g .b l o g s p o t .c o m
THE CONSTITUTION: General Ankrah resigned and handed over to General Afrifa early on in the year. The die
had been cast however, and the transition to civilian rule would account for much of the year’s manoeuvering.
The Akuffo-Addo commision enjoined that “never again should there be any tyranny in Ghana.. .” A Constituent
Assembly was sworn in to draw up a constitution taking into account its recommendations and those of
the general public.
Lt. Gen. Ankrah would state 3 principles to inform the new Constitution:
• The freedom and liberty of the people and their enjoyment of fundamental human rights
• To eliminate the possibility of the return of tyranny and dictatorship to the country
• To prevent the abuse of the Constitution through frivolous and ill-conceived amendments to it.
The last of these was a reaction to the deposed President Nkrumah and “his disrespect of the Constitution
and the frequency of amendments which rendered it a simple tool in his hands for the perpetuation of his
rule”. The worries about tyranny would prove prescient - Acheampong and his band of rogues would mount
a coup in 1972.
THE ECONOMY:There were complaints about smuggling - Ghana’s economy was still dislocated. There
were many scapegoats: “we are asking them not to have a special liking for the Syrians, Lebanese, Indians
and Nigerians who are mainly behind the illegal importation of cases of liquors, tobacco, used clothing and
cotton prints”.These days, the additions to the list of convenient scapegoats in the Ghanaian discourse
are the Liberians who arrived as refugees over the past 15 years. If you press a little harder, some might
mention the Chinese.Mark Cofie, who started an empire of car garages, becoming an agent of Japanese car
companies and dealing with repairing most of the American cars in the country, was given a glowing profile.
A consummate entrepreneur, he had grand visions of a Ghanaian auto industry. In retrospect, it wasn’t
to materialize but he at least made a go at it.The recently opened Akosombo dam was meant to enable a
new era of power and support the development of fledgling industries. “Abundant power for Ghana’s new
industries” read the headline. Manufacturing didn’t take off however, and these nascent efforts would falter
in the decades to come. It is only forty years on that these same aspirations seem to be taking off in any
sustainable fashion. Still there is much on the various factories that were sprouting up. Reports on the poor
and often non-existent infrastructure in the Volta region make for depressing reading: no drainage systems,
no street lighting, no water supply (only 8 percent with access to good drinking water), poor feeder roads,
few doctors and so forth. The proximity of the Akosombo dam seemed to be of no consequence. A few
gestures were being made to promote places like the Wii waterfalls and the mystery rock of Akosombo
as tourist venues but the capacity wasn’t there yet - indeed it has taken decades for some of those ideas
to come to fruition. Certain parts of the country were being left behind and some would exploit the resulting
grievances for political gain. The environmental degradation of Keta and the anxiety of its harried inhabitants
were a concern. Those who live between the sea and the lagoon will always find grievances. In any case,
some of our best poetry has come out of their predicament, witness Kofi Awonoor’s wonderful poem, The
Sea Eats The Land At Home.
PARTY POLITICS: There was lots of campaigning and electioneering and much of it would feature in Drum’s
pages. The elections would be won handily by Busia’s Progress Party - the heavyweight brain-trust and
shrewd electoral tactics proved overwhelming.
Ajax Bukana, the irascible trickster, rabble-rouser and all around general entertainer, launched the Mosquitoes
Protection Party during the 1969 election. His platform was thoroughly ludicrous but brought some very
welcome levity. The minstrel tradition had reached Africa and found fertile ground.
FOREIGN AFFAIRS: There are looks outward to the deadly costs of the Biafra w ar in nearby Nigeria. Nelson
Ottah termed it a “descent to the abyss” and was shocked by what he saw in Ojukwu’s Biafra.
A young Cameron Duodu takes a trip to America at the height of Eldridge Cleaver and the Black Panthers’confrontation with The Man. One gets the sense that he was really there to check out jazz groups like
the Sonny Cox Trio or watch Le Roi Jones catching the spirit in live performances but he found that there
was no escape from race in his travels in the United States. As he put it: “I see the beauty evaporate”. It is
interesting to read about America’s civil rights trauma through the eyes of a Ghanaian journalist. He titled
his pieces America the Beautiful with no little irony.
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RELATIONSHIPS
Athe bedrooms of africandventures from
women
s e x & r e l a t i o n s h i p s
by Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah
There’s more than one way to kill a cat and when itcomes to arousal, many of them are in fact non-sexual.
Here are my favourite few.
Turn Me On
MASSGES
Does anyone need to ask why?
I don’t even know if massages
qualify as non-sexual because they
are actually so darn sexy that you
can find yourself getting turned on
when you absolutely do not want
to be turned on. One day I shall blog
about this massage I had in Turkey.
I swear the masseuse was aiming
for a happy ending… The worst bit
was he was so replusive but my body
didn’t think so. Anyway, moving
right along to…
CHOCOLATE
This is almost cliche but good
chocolate is oh so hot! Chocolate
gateaux, Green & Blacks Organic
Chocolate, Golden Tree Chocolate,
Chocolate ice-cream, Cadbury’s
Fruit & Nut… chocolate does it for
me almost every time.
INTELLIGENCE What a turn on! There is something
just so sexy about smart people.
Genuinely clever people who are
knowledgeable and interesting to
talk to. The kind of person who can
introduce me to new tools like digital
applications that make my work
easier or give me critical and honest
feedback on my work. Smart people
make me think ‘oh I can so have a
baby with you’ (and if you read my
blog regularly you will know what
an achievement that is).
CREATIVES
People who can sing, rhyme, dance,
sculpt, write…I am totally jealous of
creative people. There is this energy
around them that I just love. No
wonder groupies exist.
BEACH WEEKENDS AWAY
I love the ocean! In fact, my dream
is to own a beach house. There issomething about days away with
virtually nothing but the ocean
for company that brings out the
naughtiness in me. Skinny dipping
anyone?
ishare Hospitality
iShare Hospitality Project is aimed at creating awareness to children
about hospitality so that they can grow up knowing what it means and
practicing it in the right way. The word hospitality alone means cordial
reception, welcoming someone with kindness and courtesy. Hospitality
has existed since the beginning of the human race; it has played an
essential role in our social life. Today, hospitality is present everywhere,
it’s like a spirit towards people. We however want to fuse this with
creating awareness about hospitality as well as the hospitality industry
in general. We will be organising various fun activities geared towards
educating the child to understand, know and practice hospitality
everywhere they go.
Please support this worthy cause
for a better & hospitable new generation
For more information on ways to partner and
contribute, please contact Antonia on(+233) 302 765 180-2 / 289 115 922
www.african-regent-hotel.comafricanregent.hotel
221A6151
http://gh.linkedin.com/pub/african-regent-hotel
facebook/afropolitan
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Many people complemented DUST for the
striking pictures of Ebo Taylor in our last issue.
We caught up with the man whose eye was
behind the lens of many of those shots. Here,
Tobias Freytag shares with us some stunning
shots of African musicians in the Diaspora.
D: You are an architect as well as a
photographer. Is photography just a hobby
or something more?
TF: Photography is as much a hobby to me as
architecture. I am dedicated to both and do it
from the heart and for the art. The difference is I
studied architecture but I am just an autodidact
in photography. I earn money from both though.
Your job should never just be a job. The difference
is that with photography you can see your
outcome straight away, whereas in architecture
it sometimes takes years from your first draft to
the final building.
D: When (and how) did you get into photography?
TF: I got into photography at the end of 2009. I get bored really
quickly. I graduated as the 2nd best in my architecture class in
2006 and immediately found work with a well-known architect
(Hans Kollhoff) in Rotterdam, with whom I won a big competiton
for a new town centre in the Netherlands. After a year and a
half, I left because I wanted to live in Cologne and I quickly found
work with Ortner + Ortner (a well-known Austrian architecture
duo). I started my own business at the same time to do joint
projects with them, but after half a year I thought “this can’t
be it”, and started thinking about doing another creative job.
There was a photography exhibition in Cologne that anyone
could enter. I submitted a picture of a staircase in Berlin that
I took with a digital Canon Ixus camera. It was exhibited and
a week afterwards I bought my first ‘real’ digital camera. My
skills were quite limited in the beginning but I get better every
day and my aims keep rising.
Because I‘m an architect, my eyes are trained to see th ings and
details others miss. I capture so many mentionable moments
that are sometimes hard to describe to other people, so I make
it a habbit to take a camera along everytime I’m outside.
TF: Well, I try to capture the moment. I don‘t use flashlights or
opolis of Foreign Beggars (Ghana/UK) Yahzahrah of The Foreign Exchange (Ghana/US)
Ty (Nigeria/UK)
the Ambassador (Ghana/US)
Ayers (US)
aylor (Ghana)
tobiasfreytag
f l a s h
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jamesBARNOR
When I first met eighty-two year old photographer James
Barnor, we were both being interviewed for the celebrations
of fifty years of Ghana’s independence. He as an ol der creative
from Ghana, I as the younger.
I looked through the paper photocopies of photographs that he
had brought with him, mounted on large pieces of black card. I
saw portraits from the 1940s of a Ghanaian ballroom dancing
champion and of one of Ghana’s first female policewomen
taken in his Ever Young Studios. I saw pictures of foreign
dignitaries and of local market women that came to witness
the handover of power to Africa’s first sub-Saharan country
to gain its independence from colonial rule. I saw c over shots
of young Africans who came to London to study in the 1960 s,
taken for Drum, the first magazine produced by Africans for
an African audience. These pictures filled the gap between thestories my parents told me, and the portrayals to the world of
Africans by a largely negative Western media.
I told James Barnor I wanted to do an exhibition of his work and
a few months later, the opportunity arose for us to do one at
the Black Cultural Archives in London. Only this was somehow
not enough. In the seeming absence of us presenting our own
stories to the world, others had told them for us, often in ways
that were incongruous. I decided I had to write a book on James
Barnor and his pictures an d through them trace the history of
photography and the birth of our na tion, to uncover what the
images told us about how we have represented ourselves,
and our own modernities. James Barnor’s photographs and
negatives were under his bed in his apartment, so following the
advice of David Adjaye, the Ghanaian architect, I approached
Autograph ABP, who agreed to digitize his work and put on
a major retrospective last year.
A country is nothing without its history, and yet we do not
always honour those that have told and created the stories of
our becoming. James Barnor is one of our greatest storytellers
and now, the time has come for him to have an exhibition at
home in Accra to celebrate him and his work, accompanied
by a documentary, and the book.
The story has come full circle, James Barnor, as the older,
I as the younger, will together try to tell a history of Ghana
that will allow us as Ghanaians, to reflect on ourselves, our
provenance and our direction, to reclaim the framing of
our own representations, and so to stand stronger in our
contribution to the world.
If you want to support the project (e.g. invest, in-kind, technical
expertise, broadcast, put on a
concert, print a James Barnor
T-shirt or kaba and slit, have
photographic workshops for
children, host a radio or TV
discussion on, e.g., the question
of historical representation
or the importance of the
photographic document
or in any other way
actively participate),
please
email: [email protected]
m y i c o n
By Nana Oforiatta Ayim
studio setup. I take every picture with the help of natural
light because I want it to be pure. I always use solid 50
or 85mm lenses because I think it‘s false to stand 200
metres away from the actual motive to get your picture.
I am always “right in your face.” I’m probably not the
only one who does this. There is no recipe: my eye tells
me what to do.
When I do concert photography, I always get in contact
with the musician before the show. I like to get to know
them and build up some kind of relation to get the best
picture when they perform. They also get to know who
the guy behind the camera is.
D: Between TY, Shad, Blitz, etc, you’ve invariably
shot a lot of artists of African origin. What kinds
of artists interest you enough to photograph or
listen to them?
TF: They need to have character. I need to feel that their
music is coming from their heart and of course, it needs
to make your booty shake. I am interested in music by
Fela Kuti, Tony Allen, Mulatu Astatqe, Matata and of
course Uncle Ebo [Taylor]. I am also a big fan of reggae/
dub music, which also has its origins in africa.
In my teenager years, I listened a lot to hip-hop like KRD
One, Wu Tang Clan, Biggie Smalls, Jungle Brothers... By
the end of the 90s, gangster rap became too popular and
hip-hop parties became a meeting place for little wannabe
gangster so it became quite unattractive!
Through my many friends in the music business, I was
introduced to Afrofunk and it was not just the music,
but also the people who listened to it and came to the
parties that made it more enjoyable. Everybody dances
as soon as such sounds come on and everybody is in
such a good mood. I noticed this on Uncle Ebo’s face
when he played in Cologne in January. He received such
good vibes from the Colognian crowd that he just kept on
smiling and in the end he joined the crowd and started
dancing with everybody! We all had smiles on our faces
for days after that!
D: So... any plans to come to Ghana?
TF: At the moment I live in Andalusia/Spain. From here
you can see the Atlas mountains of Morocco, so this
year I’m planning a trip there. Next year, I will hopefully
travel a bit further in and come to Ghana. I hope to make
it to the next Asabaako Music Festival where I’m really
looking forward to meeting nice people, having a blast,
taking good pictures and getting to know the interesting
characters in front of my lens.
KG
Lëk Sèn (Senegal/France)
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The Talk Parti The Ehalakasa Talk Party
The Adventurers in the Diaspora
(AiD) Series
The AiD Film Series
The Chalewote Street ArtFestival
The Open Air Stock Exchange
GO! Increasingly less of a Talk Party than an Action
Party, these events - organized by filmmaker
Mantse Aryeequaye & cultural commentator,
Dr. Sionne Neeley - have already resulted in
the Accra[Dot]Alt Festival and the upcoming
Chalewote Street Art Festival.
Poetry, performance and the power of the spoken
word from and in the company of some of Accra’s
most creative writers, artists, and musicians.
A forum for critical discussion on the role of creativity and
design in Ghana’s development, hosted by a team lead by
one of Ghana’s foremost creative minds, Joe Addo.
A spin-off of the aforementioned AiD series, this film series
fosters relationships between and creates awareness of the
work of local filmmakers and their counterparts in the Diaspora.
Music, Motorcycle Stunts, Skateboarding,
Spoken word, Caporeira, Crafts, Acrobats,
Art Installations, Graffiti, Photography,
Children’s Art, Dancing, Drumming,
Drama and even tales by the fireside from
a collective of over 20 Accra-based artists,
activists, writers, students and musicians.
What more could you possibly want?
Accra’s very first monthly flea market has
quickly established itself as a fine place to find
(or flog) home or handmade items, clothes,
crafts and more.
Like any metropolis, Accra
always has a number of cool
events and goings-on.
You just have to know
where to look.
When? First Friday of every month
Where? Passions Cafe (behind Pippa’s Gym), Osu
How Much? Free
Info: www.facebook.com/accradotalt
When? Second & Fourth Sunday of every month, 5.30-
9.00 pm
Where? The Nubuke Foundation (near Mensvic Hotel),
East Legon
How Much? Free
Info: 0246419861, 0271556786
When? First Thursday of every month, 7.00 pm
Where? The Branche Lounge at the Golden Tulip Hotel
How Much? Free
Info: http://adventurersinthediaspora.visualsociety.com
When? First Saturday of every month, 7.30 pm
Where? The Golden Tulip Hotel Tennis Court
How Much? Free
Info: http://adventurersinthediaspora.visualsociety.com
When? July 16th, 10 am-10 pm
Where? Jamestown
How Much? Free
Info: www.facebook.com/accradotalt
When? First Saturday of every month, 9.00 am-6.00 pm
Where: Nyaniba Park
Entry: Free
Info: 0244 799 134
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competitionEnjoy a movie date courtesy of DUST! We have five pairs of
tickets to the Silverbird Cinema to give away. For a chance to
win, just visit http://wwww.surveymonkey.com/s/dustaccra&
answer our short survey.
Winners will be announced on our Twitter & Facebook pages on
20th July.
We look forward to hearing from you!