Tuesday, 25 October 2011
Sunday, 21 August 2011
Ghana-Nigeria Films and Zack Orji's "Designer Beard"
Ghana-Nigeria Movies and Zack Orji’s “Designer Beard”
Most Ghana–Nigeria movies are so bad, one finds oneself entertained merely by how bad they are. And this is no attempt to impugn all the effort and hard work that probably goes into making them. They are just bad movies! In some of the films, there are obvious attempts to make a quick buck at our expense. Why do I watch them? I have no choice. I cannot watch foreigners all the time – and that, unfortunately, appears to be why they are getting away with it.
For how long can one endure the dreary jokes of Agya Koo for instance? Give the guy his due – he is naturally funny and has done well for himself. But the idea that merely employing his services and getting him to rely on his spontaneity and talking all the time is enough to sell a movie is creative laziness. The guy can play funny roles alright, but he needs help. The stories have got to be well- written and his role properly streamlined while giving him some room to improvise every now and again.
Realistically, do our rich people always live in spanking new mansions with just basic furniture and with nothing ever out of place? Not even a newspaper on the centre table? Are their bedrooms always so spotlessly clean? Surely an occasional crumpled sheet or a shirt hanging on a chair would not be unusual. Basically, however rich a person is, a house has got to look “lived-in” rather than a hired empty house. And for goodness sake, our rich people are not always impeccably groomed when they are at home.
The least said about the quality of acting, the better. But the acting is bad mainly because the directors probably do not have the ability to get the best out of the actors. A good director can make a bad actor look good and a good actor, brilliant. Our film directors are probably well-trained and qualified, but unfortunately, this does not reflect in our films.
Our artistes ought to take some responsibility for upgrading themselves, researching well for their roles and generally maintaining high professional standards. In preparing for his role in “The Last King of Scotland”, Forest Whitaker went to live in Uganda for months to not only learn Swahili, but also to pile on the pounds to attain the same body weight as Idi Amin. Of course I know he is paid millions to perform, compared with the pittance our actors receive and this comes with a responsibility to perform to the best of his professional expertise. There is absolutely no comparison. But how much would it cost to shave off Zack Orji’s “designer beard” for example?
Zack Orji is a good versatile Nigerian actor. I have seen him play a loving father, a businessman, a rogue, a chief and even a madman. I wonder, though, how many madmen walking the streets the way he was in his film, have “designer beards”. Allowing facial hair to grow for a couple of weeks or shaving it off would not cost a penny, but it would definitely enrich the film. Zack Orji has the same “designer beard.” It is not all about money.
The “Lord of the Rings” comprises three separate films that cover one very long story. The genius of the directing is in the fact that each film, though a part of a trilogy has a life of its own. Each one is a complete enjoyable film, though the three films fit together perfectly in the end. The habit of carelessly interrupting a film anywhere with “To God Be the Glory, Look out for Part 2” is as annoying as it is dishonest. It is dishonest because, you would have been sold half a film for the price of one, so you would be compelled to buy the part 2 which would be a quarter film, with the other quarter consisting of recollections from the first part.
Taking part in sex scenes in films is not “by force.” If you are not comfortable with it, don’t do it. Don’t take the part. It takes extraordinary acting skills and careful camera arrangement for two people to convincingly pretend to be having sex when they are not. Anyone who has watched Halle Berry in “Monster’s Ball” would testify to that. It looks so bad when the actress appears embarrassed by the scene. And in any case, we don’t have to have sex scenes if we are not going to do it properly. There are so many other ways of implying same.
The degree of copying from foreign movies is sad, to say the least. So for instance, when I watch Kofi Adjorlolo in “Royal Battle”, I do not expect to see an African King with a tiger on his shoulder. I do not expect to see scantily clad girls throwing petals at his feet. This was an imaginative American writer’s portrayal of kingship in Africa in “Coming to America.” He had the right to do so. It’s called poetic license. The shades of mockery therein are nevertheless, obvious to all. How inappropriate then, that Africans, who should be able to paint a better picture of their own society should resort to copying what the Americans did. Even the theme music was copied. Apart from being downright illegal, it reflects a certain lack of artistic sophistication that is insulting to the intelligence of the Ghanaian film lover.
We have not made any effort to come to terms with the simple technicalities of film-making. The sound in our movies is so bad that one often has to turn to the maximum volume to hear anything at all and woe betide you then if you absent-mindedly turned to another channel. There would be a momentary frantic fumble as everybody dashed for the remote control to bring the volume down. Worse still, there is sometimes a delay in the sound so one only hears what an actor has said after they have fallen off to sleep.
Apparently in an effort to cut costs, some film-makers in Ghana and Nigeria employ the services of a guy who writes a few verses for the whole film and then plays them repeatedly on a keyboard and sings them all himself in a rather horrible irritating voice. Sure, there must be hundreds of budding musicians in Ghana who would love their music to be on film for next to nothing. Musicians are actually paying payola to get their music played on radio. Would they not jump at an opportunity to have their music played in a film?
Even for the biggest films, I read recently, the sound engineers often pick their personal recorders and go out to record sound effects themselves. It does not cost anything. So you could sit under a tree and record birds singing or go to the market to record the market sound. These sound effects could then be used in the movie at no costs. Our movies are devoid of sound effects except for the whining “hweew” sound when a ghost disappears.
We are not doing the simple things right. Good film makers can make reasonably good films within budget constraints. A gentleman once thought of making a film. Having been afraid of ghosts all his life, he decided to counter his fears by making a scary movie. He used an ordinary camera and his own home for the filming. But he had researched the subject matter for a whole year. The result was “Paranormal Activity”, a film made with $15000 but which glossed $135,000,000 in the box office. It can be done. All we need is a little bit more imagination and creativity.
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Most Ghana–Nigeria movies are so bad, one finds oneself entertained merely by how bad they are. And this is no attempt to impugn all the effort and hard work that probably goes into making them. They are just bad movies! In some of the films, there are obvious attempts to make a quick buck at our expense. Why do I watch them? I have no choice. I cannot watch foreigners all the time – and that, unfortunately, appears to be why they are getting away with it.
For how long can one endure the dreary jokes of Agya Koo for instance? Give the guy his due – he is naturally funny and has done well for himself. But the idea that merely employing his services and getting him to rely on his spontaneity and talking all the time is enough to sell a movie is creative laziness. The guy can play funny roles alright, but he needs help. The stories have got to be well- written and his role properly streamlined while giving him some room to improvise every now and again.
Realistically, do our rich people always live in spanking new mansions with just basic furniture and with nothing ever out of place? Not even a newspaper on the centre table? Are their bedrooms always so spotlessly clean? Surely an occasional crumpled sheet or a shirt hanging on a chair would not be unusual. Basically, however rich a person is, a house has got to look “lived-in” rather than a hired empty house. And for goodness sake, our rich people are not always impeccably groomed when they are at home.
The least said about the quality of acting, the better. But the acting is bad mainly because the directors probably do not have the ability to get the best out of the actors. A good director can make a bad actor look good and a good actor, brilliant. Our film directors are probably well-trained and qualified, but unfortunately, this does not reflect in our films.
Our artistes ought to take some responsibility for upgrading themselves, researching well for their roles and generally maintaining high professional standards. In preparing for his role in “The Last King of Scotland”, Forest Whitaker went to live in Uganda for months to not only learn Swahili, but also to pile on the pounds to attain the same body weight as Idi Amin. Of course I know he is paid millions to perform, compared with the pittance our actors receive and this comes with a responsibility to perform to the best of his professional expertise. There is absolutely no comparison. But how much would it cost to shave off Zack Orji’s “designer beard” for example?
Zack Orji is a good versatile Nigerian actor. I have seen him play a loving father, a businessman, a rogue, a chief and even a madman. I wonder, though, how many madmen walking the streets the way he was in his film, have “designer beards”. Allowing facial hair to grow for a couple of weeks or shaving it off would not cost a penny, but it would definitely enrich the film. Zack Orji has the same “designer beard.” It is not all about money.
The “Lord of the Rings” comprises three separate films that cover one very long story. The genius of the directing is in the fact that each film, though a part of a trilogy has a life of its own. Each one is a complete enjoyable film, though the three films fit together perfectly in the end. The habit of carelessly interrupting a film anywhere with “To God Be the Glory, Look out for Part 2” is as annoying as it is dishonest. It is dishonest because, you would have been sold half a film for the price of one, so you would be compelled to buy the part 2 which would be a quarter film, with the other quarter consisting of recollections from the first part.
Taking part in sex scenes in films is not “by force.” If you are not comfortable with it, don’t do it. Don’t take the part. It takes extraordinary acting skills and careful camera arrangement for two people to convincingly pretend to be having sex when they are not. Anyone who has watched Halle Berry in “Monster’s Ball” would testify to that. It looks so bad when the actress appears embarrassed by the scene. And in any case, we don’t have to have sex scenes if we are not going to do it properly. There are so many other ways of implying same.
The degree of copying from foreign movies is sad, to say the least. So for instance, when I watch Kofi Adjorlolo in “Royal Battle”, I do not expect to see an African King with a tiger on his shoulder. I do not expect to see scantily clad girls throwing petals at his feet. This was an imaginative American writer’s portrayal of kingship in Africa in “Coming to America.” He had the right to do so. It’s called poetic license. The shades of mockery therein are nevertheless, obvious to all. How inappropriate then, that Africans, who should be able to paint a better picture of their own society should resort to copying what the Americans did. Even the theme music was copied. Apart from being downright illegal, it reflects a certain lack of artistic sophistication that is insulting to the intelligence of the Ghanaian film lover.
We have not made any effort to come to terms with the simple technicalities of film-making. The sound in our movies is so bad that one often has to turn to the maximum volume to hear anything at all and woe betide you then if you absent-mindedly turned to another channel. There would be a momentary frantic fumble as everybody dashed for the remote control to bring the volume down. Worse still, there is sometimes a delay in the sound so one only hears what an actor has said after they have fallen off to sleep.
Apparently in an effort to cut costs, some film-makers in Ghana and Nigeria employ the services of a guy who writes a few verses for the whole film and then plays them repeatedly on a keyboard and sings them all himself in a rather horrible irritating voice. Sure, there must be hundreds of budding musicians in Ghana who would love their music to be on film for next to nothing. Musicians are actually paying payola to get their music played on radio. Would they not jump at an opportunity to have their music played in a film?
Even for the biggest films, I read recently, the sound engineers often pick their personal recorders and go out to record sound effects themselves. It does not cost anything. So you could sit under a tree and record birds singing or go to the market to record the market sound. These sound effects could then be used in the movie at no costs. Our movies are devoid of sound effects except for the whining “hweew” sound when a ghost disappears.
We are not doing the simple things right. Good film makers can make reasonably good films within budget constraints. A gentleman once thought of making a film. Having been afraid of ghosts all his life, he decided to counter his fears by making a scary movie. He used an ordinary camera and his own home for the filming. But he had researched the subject matter for a whole year. The result was “Paranormal Activity”, a film made with $15000 but which glossed $135,000,000 in the box office. It can be done. All we need is a little bit more imagination and creativity.
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Sunday, 19 June 2011
Say it Loud, I'm Gay and Proud
Say it Loud, I’m Gay and Proud
Centuries of oppression has not changed us one little bit. We are the same people dragged in shackles and manacles into rat-infested stinky ships and sold like cattle in foreign lands. I wasn’t there, but I can still feel the pain. I can feel the pain of the whip on my great grandfathers back as he yelled out for help. And somehow, even today, I continue to bear the strips of the whip on my back. I continue to suffer the indignity and humiliation of subtle nuanced racism. So, I happen to have more issues to worry about in this world. My burden is so heavy, that I have no time to pretend to don the cloak of a sex policeman- to decide who should have sex, and in which hole.
What any two consenting adults decide to do in their own bedroom is none of my business. It is none of my business if one decides to enter hole number one or hole number two, or spend their lives with a man or woman. One would have thought that we, having suffered the indignity of years of oppression merely because of the colour of our skin, would be more considerate of others. Yet, we are the people using some obscure verse in the book the white man brought along with his gun to bay for blood of others of different sexual orientation.
A paedophile is a paedophile, homosexual or heterosexual, and they have to face the full rigours of the law. And yet, our schools have been plagued for years by teachers exploiting young females for sexual gratification who have often escaped with a wink and a gentle slap on the wrist. And yet our depth of homophobia means that we are suddenly beginning to pursue homosexual teachers with venom their heterosexual counterparts rarely have to endure.
And Ghanaians are calling for lynching, imprisonment and harassment of people merely on the basis of their sexual orientation. The fact is that despite numerous theories, no one knows for sure why an individual risks everything to maintain a homosexual relationship. I am not going to pretend to understand. What I know, is that, as much as I despise being judged by the colour of my skin rather than by the content of my character, I am never going to judge another man merely on their sexual preference.
In a rather “unghanaian” manner, we seem to be enjoying the prospect of subjecting our fellow man to a life of secrecy, embarrassment, humiliation, depression and even suicide. We are kicking people while they are down and immensely enjoying our fleeting encounter with strength and power. But, in the end, when we have all ceased collecting our bribes, and sexually abusing our church people, and domestically abusing our wives, and started to look after our kids, and stopped raping little helpless girls, we can begin to throw stones at others.
If we cannot understand, as a people, that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights irrespective of colour, sex, race sexual orientation, language or religion, then I am afraid we should all be shackled and thrown back into ships. Because centuries of oppression would have taught us nothing.
Papa Appiah
Centuries of oppression has not changed us one little bit. We are the same people dragged in shackles and manacles into rat-infested stinky ships and sold like cattle in foreign lands. I wasn’t there, but I can still feel the pain. I can feel the pain of the whip on my great grandfathers back as he yelled out for help. And somehow, even today, I continue to bear the strips of the whip on my back. I continue to suffer the indignity and humiliation of subtle nuanced racism. So, I happen to have more issues to worry about in this world. My burden is so heavy, that I have no time to pretend to don the cloak of a sex policeman- to decide who should have sex, and in which hole.
What any two consenting adults decide to do in their own bedroom is none of my business. It is none of my business if one decides to enter hole number one or hole number two, or spend their lives with a man or woman. One would have thought that we, having suffered the indignity of years of oppression merely because of the colour of our skin, would be more considerate of others. Yet, we are the people using some obscure verse in the book the white man brought along with his gun to bay for blood of others of different sexual orientation.
A paedophile is a paedophile, homosexual or heterosexual, and they have to face the full rigours of the law. And yet, our schools have been plagued for years by teachers exploiting young females for sexual gratification who have often escaped with a wink and a gentle slap on the wrist. And yet our depth of homophobia means that we are suddenly beginning to pursue homosexual teachers with venom their heterosexual counterparts rarely have to endure.
And Ghanaians are calling for lynching, imprisonment and harassment of people merely on the basis of their sexual orientation. The fact is that despite numerous theories, no one knows for sure why an individual risks everything to maintain a homosexual relationship. I am not going to pretend to understand. What I know, is that, as much as I despise being judged by the colour of my skin rather than by the content of my character, I am never going to judge another man merely on their sexual preference.
In a rather “unghanaian” manner, we seem to be enjoying the prospect of subjecting our fellow man to a life of secrecy, embarrassment, humiliation, depression and even suicide. We are kicking people while they are down and immensely enjoying our fleeting encounter with strength and power. But, in the end, when we have all ceased collecting our bribes, and sexually abusing our church people, and domestically abusing our wives, and started to look after our kids, and stopped raping little helpless girls, we can begin to throw stones at others.
If we cannot understand, as a people, that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights irrespective of colour, sex, race sexual orientation, language or religion, then I am afraid we should all be shackled and thrown back into ships. Because centuries of oppression would have taught us nothing.
Papa Appiah
Wednesday, 16 March 2011
England vs Ghana- The Essien Saga and Other Issues Arising
England –Ghana –Essien Saga and Other Issues Arising
I woke up this morning to some interesting news related to the England –Ghana match. Firstly, and I am sure we all know that, the match is a complete sell-out. The English FA are delighted. They are going to make roughly 10 million pounds from this match alone. I am yet to know how much Ghana will earn. Part of this money, of course will go towards completing their Centre of Excellence in Burton which they hope will help improve skills in their youth.
It amazes me how poor the English are when it comes to football skills. This is an example of a situation where over-development probably works against you. Their weather does not help of course. Take a walk on a sunny Sunday afternoon in the UK and you will find a group of boys playing football, all well dressed in nice jerseys and boots with their parents waiting by the sideline and a paid coach in the centre. You naively walk up to enquire if your boys can join in, and you are given a phone number to call and register to join some other time.
So I cast my mind back on the football we used to play in our backyard. You were actually lucky if you had a proper football. Nobody was barred, unless of course, if you had had a fight with the ball owner. Twenty of us would play in a little space and you were thankful for every touch. You instinctively learned to control the ball, dribble and keep the ball to yourself from a very early age. Of course we never learned to shoot, and that shows in some of our professionals as well. Where we played, if you shot too hard, the ball would probably end up in Mr Alhassan’s wife’s soup. There was neither coach nor referee. You learned to kick and be kicked and generally look after yourself. That is one reason why, man-for man, the Black Stars are technically better than the English. Of course we all know that being technically gifted does not always win you football matches.
For the match against Ghana, I heard today, that the England coach Fabio Capello is considering re-instating John Terry as permanent captain. This is a controversial decision. As we recall. John Terry was stripped of the captaincy after having an affair with the former partner of a team mate. The public humiliation he endured was well-deserved. And yet, to the credit of the guy, he has since then, always made himself available to play for his country and performed to the best of his ability, even though some believe his weary legs are giving way. Good luck to him if he gets the captaincy back. It would be a reward for patriotism and dedication.
Talking of patriotism and dedication, John Paintsil, in the same news item about the England-Ghana match was asked about how difficult it must be to balance club and national commitments. He gave a very wise answer. He said, that the reason why most of them got to play in Europe and in the premiership in the first place was because of the national team. They therefore owed a certain level of commitment to the national course. Well said John.
There are some players who play for their national teams for years and then decide at some point, in order to prolong their careers, to concentrate on club football. Football fans round the world respect that. Stephen Appiah has done it. Ryan Giggs has done it. Paul Scholes has done it. We have no problem with that. Michael Essien’s wish to be given a “break” from the national team when he is performing consistently for his club, however, is most annoying to say the least. A break till when? Is it till when the next big tournament comes? Is it to allow the “mental scars” of getting injured in Africa to heal? What is it?
Paul Scholes owes England nothing. He joined Manchester United as a school kid and has played there all his life. And yet he insists, he would probably have changed his mind if Capello had spoken to him. He is only human. He wants to feel loved. So I must commend our coach for taking the trouble to visit Michael Essien and trying to win his confidence and affection. But that should be it. Michael Essien should come and play our next match or be kicked out of the national team for good. As John Paintsil implied, he is where he is because of the national teams and not the other way round. There are boys in my village that can play better than Essien’s awkward bravado in midfield. Getting in the national junior team is everything in Ghana and we can only take so many players at a time. Essien was lucky. He should be saying a prayer for Ghana every morning.
Let’s face it; we got to the final of the African cup without Essien. We got to the quarter finals of the world cup without Essien. While it is important that we bring all our best players on board, this should not be at the expense of team spirit and discipline. What message do we give the other players when it appears we are falling backwards to ensure one player plays against his will? Look at Anthony Annan. He is now a constant for Shalke 04 except for the Champion’s League where he is cup-tied. Prince Boateng is performing brilliantly for AC Milan. Ayew is winning praises from the likes of Ferguson. What about Kwadwo Asamoah and Agyemang Badu in Udinese? Who needs Essien?
In the end, team spirit is what brings results, over and above the brilliance of any one particular player. Lionel Messi, arguably the best player the world has ever seen played for Argentina in the world cup and what happened? Eto’o, the Cameroonian superstar arrived at the world cup in style – with ten thousand pound wrist watches for each of his team mates, and what happened. It has never been and will never be about one man.
Olele!! Good old Olele! What can I say? Olele has had a rather difficult time in England, to say the least. He was the initial beneficiary of Steve Bruce’s “love” of Ghana when he signed him for Birmingham. He later moved with him to Wigan. In both of these clubs, Olele was only a third choice goalkeeper. Indeed, when Steve Bruce left Birmingham acrimoniously, the owners accused him of signing “waste of space” players like Richard Kingson. When Steve Bruce left Wigan to coach Sunderland, Olele’s contract in Wigan was not renewed and we all thought his carrier was over. Then a splendid performance at the world cup, against all the odds, brought him into the limelight again and he was signed for Blackpool by Ian Holloway.
Olele was signed for Blackpool as a reserve goalkeeper. But when the number one got injured, it was an opportunity to show what he was made of and prove his critics wrong. The problem, though, was that Ian Holloway knows only one way of playing – attack!! attack!! and attack!! This means poor old Olele is left with virtually no defensive protection and the goals are going in in their fours and fives. Inevitably, attention is drawn to the goalkeeper and people begin to question his competence. I pray he does not lose his confidence and continues to believe in himself.
Anyway, I will be going to the England –Ghana match. This is more than a friendly. Always nice to be able to stick one up your colonial masters. I will let you know what I see. We all pray for a Ghana victory.
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
I woke up this morning to some interesting news related to the England –Ghana match. Firstly, and I am sure we all know that, the match is a complete sell-out. The English FA are delighted. They are going to make roughly 10 million pounds from this match alone. I am yet to know how much Ghana will earn. Part of this money, of course will go towards completing their Centre of Excellence in Burton which they hope will help improve skills in their youth.
It amazes me how poor the English are when it comes to football skills. This is an example of a situation where over-development probably works against you. Their weather does not help of course. Take a walk on a sunny Sunday afternoon in the UK and you will find a group of boys playing football, all well dressed in nice jerseys and boots with their parents waiting by the sideline and a paid coach in the centre. You naively walk up to enquire if your boys can join in, and you are given a phone number to call and register to join some other time.
So I cast my mind back on the football we used to play in our backyard. You were actually lucky if you had a proper football. Nobody was barred, unless of course, if you had had a fight with the ball owner. Twenty of us would play in a little space and you were thankful for every touch. You instinctively learned to control the ball, dribble and keep the ball to yourself from a very early age. Of course we never learned to shoot, and that shows in some of our professionals as well. Where we played, if you shot too hard, the ball would probably end up in Mr Alhassan’s wife’s soup. There was neither coach nor referee. You learned to kick and be kicked and generally look after yourself. That is one reason why, man-for man, the Black Stars are technically better than the English. Of course we all know that being technically gifted does not always win you football matches.
For the match against Ghana, I heard today, that the England coach Fabio Capello is considering re-instating John Terry as permanent captain. This is a controversial decision. As we recall. John Terry was stripped of the captaincy after having an affair with the former partner of a team mate. The public humiliation he endured was well-deserved. And yet, to the credit of the guy, he has since then, always made himself available to play for his country and performed to the best of his ability, even though some believe his weary legs are giving way. Good luck to him if he gets the captaincy back. It would be a reward for patriotism and dedication.
Talking of patriotism and dedication, John Paintsil, in the same news item about the England-Ghana match was asked about how difficult it must be to balance club and national commitments. He gave a very wise answer. He said, that the reason why most of them got to play in Europe and in the premiership in the first place was because of the national team. They therefore owed a certain level of commitment to the national course. Well said John.
There are some players who play for their national teams for years and then decide at some point, in order to prolong their careers, to concentrate on club football. Football fans round the world respect that. Stephen Appiah has done it. Ryan Giggs has done it. Paul Scholes has done it. We have no problem with that. Michael Essien’s wish to be given a “break” from the national team when he is performing consistently for his club, however, is most annoying to say the least. A break till when? Is it till when the next big tournament comes? Is it to allow the “mental scars” of getting injured in Africa to heal? What is it?
Paul Scholes owes England nothing. He joined Manchester United as a school kid and has played there all his life. And yet he insists, he would probably have changed his mind if Capello had spoken to him. He is only human. He wants to feel loved. So I must commend our coach for taking the trouble to visit Michael Essien and trying to win his confidence and affection. But that should be it. Michael Essien should come and play our next match or be kicked out of the national team for good. As John Paintsil implied, he is where he is because of the national teams and not the other way round. There are boys in my village that can play better than Essien’s awkward bravado in midfield. Getting in the national junior team is everything in Ghana and we can only take so many players at a time. Essien was lucky. He should be saying a prayer for Ghana every morning.
Let’s face it; we got to the final of the African cup without Essien. We got to the quarter finals of the world cup without Essien. While it is important that we bring all our best players on board, this should not be at the expense of team spirit and discipline. What message do we give the other players when it appears we are falling backwards to ensure one player plays against his will? Look at Anthony Annan. He is now a constant for Shalke 04 except for the Champion’s League where he is cup-tied. Prince Boateng is performing brilliantly for AC Milan. Ayew is winning praises from the likes of Ferguson. What about Kwadwo Asamoah and Agyemang Badu in Udinese? Who needs Essien?
In the end, team spirit is what brings results, over and above the brilliance of any one particular player. Lionel Messi, arguably the best player the world has ever seen played for Argentina in the world cup and what happened? Eto’o, the Cameroonian superstar arrived at the world cup in style – with ten thousand pound wrist watches for each of his team mates, and what happened. It has never been and will never be about one man.
Olele!! Good old Olele! What can I say? Olele has had a rather difficult time in England, to say the least. He was the initial beneficiary of Steve Bruce’s “love” of Ghana when he signed him for Birmingham. He later moved with him to Wigan. In both of these clubs, Olele was only a third choice goalkeeper. Indeed, when Steve Bruce left Birmingham acrimoniously, the owners accused him of signing “waste of space” players like Richard Kingson. When Steve Bruce left Wigan to coach Sunderland, Olele’s contract in Wigan was not renewed and we all thought his carrier was over. Then a splendid performance at the world cup, against all the odds, brought him into the limelight again and he was signed for Blackpool by Ian Holloway.
Olele was signed for Blackpool as a reserve goalkeeper. But when the number one got injured, it was an opportunity to show what he was made of and prove his critics wrong. The problem, though, was that Ian Holloway knows only one way of playing – attack!! attack!! and attack!! This means poor old Olele is left with virtually no defensive protection and the goals are going in in their fours and fives. Inevitably, attention is drawn to the goalkeeper and people begin to question his competence. I pray he does not lose his confidence and continues to believe in himself.
Anyway, I will be going to the England –Ghana match. This is more than a friendly. Always nice to be able to stick one up your colonial masters. I will let you know what I see. We all pray for a Ghana victory.
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Friday, 4 March 2011
ICED KENKEY - My Struggles With Obesity
Iced Kenkey – My Struggles with Obesity – Part 1
I am not a nutritionist. Everything I say here is derived from my personal research and experience from my long struggle with obesity. I hope that writing this article will not only motivate me to continue my personal battle to maintain my weight, but will also inspire others to try to do the same. I welcome people more knowledgeable on the topic to chip in with some tit bits in the comments for the benefit of us all.
Loosing weight is not fun. Because, basically, being hungry is not fun. During the 1983 food crisis in Ghana, a man collapsed in the centre of Kejetia, and as is our wont, a few Ghanaians surrounded him and began to share ideas as to how best to help him;
“Leave him alone for a while. He must be tired. It’s too hot today” said Mr A
“No. Let’s take him to hospital” said Miss B
“I think we should buy some ice-kenkey, add some milk and give it to him” Mr C said.
On hearing Mr C, the collapsed man suddenly raised his head, rolled his eyes to the heavens and mumbled ever so softly;
“Listen to what Mr C is saying”
Obesity is a killer. There are no nice euphemisms for saying this. It increases your risk, not only of developing diseases like hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and stroke, but also of dying prematurely from complications of these diseases. It causes often forgotten problems like snoring and sleep apnoea with interrupted sleep resulting from blockage of the wind pipe at night and subsequent tiredness during the day. Erectile problems for men may also be worsened by obesity.
In women, in addition to the above, there is an increased risk of cancer, especially of the womb, but also of the cervix and breast. Excessive unwanted hormones produced by fat deposits interfere with the natural cycle of hormones so the monthly periods become irregular and achieving pregnancy becomes more difficult than usual. And if you do become pregnant, your risk of having a miscarriage, having an abnormal baby, developing diabetes and blood pressure during pregnancy or having complications during childbirth, are all increased.
In women seeking pregnancy, the single most important thing they could do to help themselves is to loose weight. Often, weight loss results in regular cycles and pregnancy soon follows, of course, if all other factors are normal. That is God’s grand design to maintain procreation in mankind at all times including periods of famine. You see, the last thing on a hungry man’s mind would be to have children. So God has designed us such that loss of weight increases the women’s fertility and enhances sexual arousal in men. How clever is that.
The strongest scientific evidence for this is in very large men and women who undergo surgery to, among other things, close part of the space in their stomach. (Bariatric surgery). It was found that, following surgery, women who had tried for years to get pregnant to no avail, suddenly became pregnant. Also, people who had adult-onset diabetes often realised, that they did not have to take their medication anymore and indeed, it is the belief among some scientists, that in the future, this kind of surgery may be recommendable for the treatment of adult-onset diabetes.
The official definition of an obese person is anyone with a body mass index (weight in kilograms divided by height squared) greater than 30. Recently, the waist to hip ratio has been found to be a better way of determining health. So all the young men thinking they are generally slim and alright, remember your little “pot belle” may mean that you have a higher waist lenght/hip length and make you prone to similar diseases as obese people. The people of South India are smallish people and yet they have a high rate of heart disease and diabetes. This has been found to be due to their higher percentage of body fat compared to others. So even if you are small, you may still benefit from watching what you eat.
I was a slim young man before I got married. So I have every right to blame the regular fufu from a dedicated wife for my obesity. Of course, the beer did not help either, as my wife is often quick to remind me. At my worse a few months back, I was 110kg. My mother, may her soul rest in peace, died of complications of diabetes and high blood pressure and at a routine check-up, I was told both my blood pressure and blood sugars were borderline. I had to do something.
Over the past few months, I have lost a total of 20kg. It has not been easy and I still have a daily battle to try not only to maintain the weight, but even to loose some more. As the weight fell off, I kept a little screw driver in my room to make new holes in my belt so they could fit better. Making a new hole was always a joy to me and that singular act kept me motivated.
My wife turned to me one morning and said a tad sarcastically, I thought, that I had become the young man she met again.
“What do you mean?” I asked suspiciously.
“Well, you know.....mmmh” My wife has a great sense of humour.
“So why didn’t you tell me before that there was something wrong?” I asked?
“I never thought of it before” she said “but I think I prefer you this way. Let’s face it, who wants a panting perspiring man on top of them?”
I have had my lapses. But the secret is not to give up but to get back on course as soon as possible. I remember that night when I was watching television with my wife. I had had my small portion of fufu but on this one night, the hunger pangs would not go away. Soon, my wife started to nod off. Normally, I would just go upstairs with her or allow her to sleep in the sofa and wake her up when I was ready to go. But this day was different;
“Go and sleep sweetheart” I said
“Oh, I am waiting for you” she said sleepily
“Go and sleep sweetheart, you are going to work tomorrow” I said
My wife looked at me suspiciously and went upstairs, but she did not sleep. She waited a few minutes and came quietly down to find me enjoying a huge bowl of gari, sardine and shitto. We both had to laugh.
But I am determined to battle on. I have put on some 2kg from recent lapses, but I am deliberately still using the last hole I made in my belt. I won’t loosen it, ever, even though it squeezes the hell out of me. For, it is a constant reminder, of the difficult daily battle I am faced with.
So, the next time you see me collapsed in Kejetia, please remember, not only to get the bottle of ice kenkey, but also to quickly loosen my belt. It just might be squeezing all the air from my lungs.
NB - Part two will detail how I achieved my weight loss
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Papaappiah.blogspot.com
www.facebook.com/papaappiah
I am not a nutritionist. Everything I say here is derived from my personal research and experience from my long struggle with obesity. I hope that writing this article will not only motivate me to continue my personal battle to maintain my weight, but will also inspire others to try to do the same. I welcome people more knowledgeable on the topic to chip in with some tit bits in the comments for the benefit of us all.
Loosing weight is not fun. Because, basically, being hungry is not fun. During the 1983 food crisis in Ghana, a man collapsed in the centre of Kejetia, and as is our wont, a few Ghanaians surrounded him and began to share ideas as to how best to help him;
“Leave him alone for a while. He must be tired. It’s too hot today” said Mr A
“No. Let’s take him to hospital” said Miss B
“I think we should buy some ice-kenkey, add some milk and give it to him” Mr C said.
On hearing Mr C, the collapsed man suddenly raised his head, rolled his eyes to the heavens and mumbled ever so softly;
“Listen to what Mr C is saying”
Obesity is a killer. There are no nice euphemisms for saying this. It increases your risk, not only of developing diseases like hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and stroke, but also of dying prematurely from complications of these diseases. It causes often forgotten problems like snoring and sleep apnoea with interrupted sleep resulting from blockage of the wind pipe at night and subsequent tiredness during the day. Erectile problems for men may also be worsened by obesity.
In women, in addition to the above, there is an increased risk of cancer, especially of the womb, but also of the cervix and breast. Excessive unwanted hormones produced by fat deposits interfere with the natural cycle of hormones so the monthly periods become irregular and achieving pregnancy becomes more difficult than usual. And if you do become pregnant, your risk of having a miscarriage, having an abnormal baby, developing diabetes and blood pressure during pregnancy or having complications during childbirth, are all increased.
In women seeking pregnancy, the single most important thing they could do to help themselves is to loose weight. Often, weight loss results in regular cycles and pregnancy soon follows, of course, if all other factors are normal. That is God’s grand design to maintain procreation in mankind at all times including periods of famine. You see, the last thing on a hungry man’s mind would be to have children. So God has designed us such that loss of weight increases the women’s fertility and enhances sexual arousal in men. How clever is that.
The strongest scientific evidence for this is in very large men and women who undergo surgery to, among other things, close part of the space in their stomach. (Bariatric surgery). It was found that, following surgery, women who had tried for years to get pregnant to no avail, suddenly became pregnant. Also, people who had adult-onset diabetes often realised, that they did not have to take their medication anymore and indeed, it is the belief among some scientists, that in the future, this kind of surgery may be recommendable for the treatment of adult-onset diabetes.
The official definition of an obese person is anyone with a body mass index (weight in kilograms divided by height squared) greater than 30. Recently, the waist to hip ratio has been found to be a better way of determining health. So all the young men thinking they are generally slim and alright, remember your little “pot belle” may mean that you have a higher waist lenght/hip length and make you prone to similar diseases as obese people. The people of South India are smallish people and yet they have a high rate of heart disease and diabetes. This has been found to be due to their higher percentage of body fat compared to others. So even if you are small, you may still benefit from watching what you eat.
I was a slim young man before I got married. So I have every right to blame the regular fufu from a dedicated wife for my obesity. Of course, the beer did not help either, as my wife is often quick to remind me. At my worse a few months back, I was 110kg. My mother, may her soul rest in peace, died of complications of diabetes and high blood pressure and at a routine check-up, I was told both my blood pressure and blood sugars were borderline. I had to do something.
Over the past few months, I have lost a total of 20kg. It has not been easy and I still have a daily battle to try not only to maintain the weight, but even to loose some more. As the weight fell off, I kept a little screw driver in my room to make new holes in my belt so they could fit better. Making a new hole was always a joy to me and that singular act kept me motivated.
My wife turned to me one morning and said a tad sarcastically, I thought, that I had become the young man she met again.
“What do you mean?” I asked suspiciously.
“Well, you know.....mmmh” My wife has a great sense of humour.
“So why didn’t you tell me before that there was something wrong?” I asked?
“I never thought of it before” she said “but I think I prefer you this way. Let’s face it, who wants a panting perspiring man on top of them?”
I have had my lapses. But the secret is not to give up but to get back on course as soon as possible. I remember that night when I was watching television with my wife. I had had my small portion of fufu but on this one night, the hunger pangs would not go away. Soon, my wife started to nod off. Normally, I would just go upstairs with her or allow her to sleep in the sofa and wake her up when I was ready to go. But this day was different;
“Go and sleep sweetheart” I said
“Oh, I am waiting for you” she said sleepily
“Go and sleep sweetheart, you are going to work tomorrow” I said
My wife looked at me suspiciously and went upstairs, but she did not sleep. She waited a few minutes and came quietly down to find me enjoying a huge bowl of gari, sardine and shitto. We both had to laugh.
But I am determined to battle on. I have put on some 2kg from recent lapses, but I am deliberately still using the last hole I made in my belt. I won’t loosen it, ever, even though it squeezes the hell out of me. For, it is a constant reminder, of the difficult daily battle I am faced with.
So, the next time you see me collapsed in Kejetia, please remember, not only to get the bottle of ice kenkey, but also to quickly loosen my belt. It just might be squeezing all the air from my lungs.
NB - Part two will detail how I achieved my weight loss
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Papaappiah.blogspot.com
www.facebook.com/papaappiah
Monday, 28 February 2011
All-Die -Be-Die-Reinforcing the Cycle of Fear -2
All Die Be Die – Reinforcing the Cycle of Fear – 2
I am as much disappointed with President Mills’ response to all-die –be-die as I was with Nana Akuffo-Addo for uttering it in the first place. The response of our president should have been less of a promise of fire and brimstone, and more of humility and reconciliation, recognising that there is more that unites us than divides us, and that our common goal, after all, is for a more transparent electoral process, of which Ghana can be well proud. Sometimes, a threat of a security red-alert, in our experience, has the potential to cause even more panic and fear amongst the populace than an off-the-cuff all-die-be-die comment.
So, rather than promising rain of fire and brimstone, President Mills should have risen above all of us, mere mortals, and realized, that Nana Akuffo-Adoo may have been reckless in his utterance, but in reality, all he was crying for was an electoral process fair to all, and staining the presidency with the blood of Ghanaians may not, in truth, have been his remotest wish. He could have referred to the fact, that he had been friends with Nana for many years and knew what he stood for. He could have offered to do what he could, including, yes, meeting Nana, other political leaders and the electoral commissioner at the appropriate time to discuss pertinent electoral issues, to help make our system better. He could, on the other hand, have taken the opportunity to admonish Ghanaians to exhibit more civility in our national discourse to enable us continue to enjoy, the fruits of our hard-earned democracy.
Ghana would have listened. For in so doing, President Mills would have succeeded in casting himself in the mould of that great emperor in days of yore, in front of whom was dragged a man pleading for his life. The emperor had only to blink and this man would be beheaded by the single stroke of a soldier’s sword. But he looked into the man’s eye, and for no apparent reason, said, “I pardon you!” That was power! In pardoning a condemned man and giving him back his life; he had exuded more power than if he had done the expected. Who in Africa does not know of our security forces and the havoc they can reek when unleashed on unarmed civilians? Libya is a stark reminder. We do not need any more reminding of security forces and red alerts and “acting within the laws of the land”!! A reconciliatory speech would have been a much more powerful tool, in attempting to unite the country behind efforts at achieving our common goals.
Nowhere was this more in evidence, than in President Obama’s recent speech in Tucson, Arizona. When a crazed gunman went on the rampage in Tucson, shooting a democratic congresswoman in the head and killing a few of her associates and bystanders, America was deeply divided in its views as to the reasons or motivation behind this tragedy, with the majority of democrats alleging, that utterances by Sarah Palin of the Republican party, had in no small measure, helped to create the environment that may have facilitated this crime.
President Obama did not promise fire and brimstone. He cleverly tried to avoid pointing the finger in any one direction –“...none of us can know exactly what triggered the vicious attacks. None of us can know with any certainty what might have stopped these shots from being fired or what thoughts lurked in the inner recesses of a violent man’s mind...” and then took the opportunity to plead for and encourage more civility in America’s national discourse – “......it is not a simple lack of civility that caused this tragedy, but rather, only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to the challenges of our nation in a way that will make our children proud “ He added “what we cannot do is use this tragedy as one more occasion to turn on one another...” In one speech, Obama had managed to diffuse all the tension surrounding the tragedy, while not neglecting the damage that could potentially be caused by extreme polarization of views in American society.
The fact of the matter is, that even America, the America of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, with hundreds of years of democratic experience to count on, is still struggling to control extreme polarization of views and lack of civility in national discourse. So while all-die-be-die was wrong and was roundly condemned by many of us, and rightly so, Ghana had expected a more measured response from our president, rather than further reinforcing the cycle of fear with threats of security red alerts!
Ghana is not doing that badly. And our democracy will grow. Our democracy will grow out of its youthful exuberance, and maturity will bring along the realization, that freedom of speech comes with responsibility, and humility and reconciliation is no sign of weakness.
But while our democracy toddles along, partially blinded by the sweet innocence of youth, we cannot afford not to learn from the history and experiences of others. For, as Steven Turner, the English biographer and poet once said – “history keeps repeating itself. It has to. For, at the end of the day, no-one really listens.”
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Papaappiah.blogspot.com
I am as much disappointed with President Mills’ response to all-die –be-die as I was with Nana Akuffo-Addo for uttering it in the first place. The response of our president should have been less of a promise of fire and brimstone, and more of humility and reconciliation, recognising that there is more that unites us than divides us, and that our common goal, after all, is for a more transparent electoral process, of which Ghana can be well proud. Sometimes, a threat of a security red-alert, in our experience, has the potential to cause even more panic and fear amongst the populace than an off-the-cuff all-die-be-die comment.
So, rather than promising rain of fire and brimstone, President Mills should have risen above all of us, mere mortals, and realized, that Nana Akuffo-Adoo may have been reckless in his utterance, but in reality, all he was crying for was an electoral process fair to all, and staining the presidency with the blood of Ghanaians may not, in truth, have been his remotest wish. He could have referred to the fact, that he had been friends with Nana for many years and knew what he stood for. He could have offered to do what he could, including, yes, meeting Nana, other political leaders and the electoral commissioner at the appropriate time to discuss pertinent electoral issues, to help make our system better. He could, on the other hand, have taken the opportunity to admonish Ghanaians to exhibit more civility in our national discourse to enable us continue to enjoy, the fruits of our hard-earned democracy.
Ghana would have listened. For in so doing, President Mills would have succeeded in casting himself in the mould of that great emperor in days of yore, in front of whom was dragged a man pleading for his life. The emperor had only to blink and this man would be beheaded by the single stroke of a soldier’s sword. But he looked into the man’s eye, and for no apparent reason, said, “I pardon you!” That was power! In pardoning a condemned man and giving him back his life; he had exuded more power than if he had done the expected. Who in Africa does not know of our security forces and the havoc they can reek when unleashed on unarmed civilians? Libya is a stark reminder. We do not need any more reminding of security forces and red alerts and “acting within the laws of the land”!! A reconciliatory speech would have been a much more powerful tool, in attempting to unite the country behind efforts at achieving our common goals.
Nowhere was this more in evidence, than in President Obama’s recent speech in Tucson, Arizona. When a crazed gunman went on the rampage in Tucson, shooting a democratic congresswoman in the head and killing a few of her associates and bystanders, America was deeply divided in its views as to the reasons or motivation behind this tragedy, with the majority of democrats alleging, that utterances by Sarah Palin of the Republican party, had in no small measure, helped to create the environment that may have facilitated this crime.
President Obama did not promise fire and brimstone. He cleverly tried to avoid pointing the finger in any one direction –“...none of us can know exactly what triggered the vicious attacks. None of us can know with any certainty what might have stopped these shots from being fired or what thoughts lurked in the inner recesses of a violent man’s mind...” and then took the opportunity to plead for and encourage more civility in America’s national discourse – “......it is not a simple lack of civility that caused this tragedy, but rather, only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to the challenges of our nation in a way that will make our children proud “ He added “what we cannot do is use this tragedy as one more occasion to turn on one another...” In one speech, Obama had managed to diffuse all the tension surrounding the tragedy, while not neglecting the damage that could potentially be caused by extreme polarization of views in American society.
The fact of the matter is, that even America, the America of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, with hundreds of years of democratic experience to count on, is still struggling to control extreme polarization of views and lack of civility in national discourse. So while all-die-be-die was wrong and was roundly condemned by many of us, and rightly so, Ghana had expected a more measured response from our president, rather than further reinforcing the cycle of fear with threats of security red alerts!
Ghana is not doing that badly. And our democracy will grow. Our democracy will grow out of its youthful exuberance, and maturity will bring along the realization, that freedom of speech comes with responsibility, and humility and reconciliation is no sign of weakness.
But while our democracy toddles along, partially blinded by the sweet innocence of youth, we cannot afford not to learn from the history and experiences of others. For, as Steven Turner, the English biographer and poet once said – “history keeps repeating itself. It has to. For, at the end of the day, no-one really listens.”
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Papaappiah.blogspot.com
Sunday, 20 June 2010
A Drink For Komfo Anokye
A Drink for Komfo Anokye
Things did not go as planned this weekend. I had anticipated an afternoon watching the Black Stars wallop a weakened Australian side and then proceed to the Imperial London Hotel in a celebratory mood for the grand dinner of former workers of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital. As fate and Asamoah Gyan’s right foot would have it, my mood was not nearly as good as I had expected but that is an issue I intend to revisit later.
A group of dynamic and progressive nurses who had previously worked in the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital had gotten together to form an association to raise funds for the hospital. And they had done a good job, even adopting ward B3 for special attention. This dinner was a call to everybody who had been associated with the hospital in one way or the other to come and contribute to a good cause.
It was a well-organised function in the kind of slightly over-the-top manner that only nurses can manage. A contribution of 500 pounds per association member meant that they were all able to afford the same kente design for a special cloth for the occasion. A senior doctor had been sponsored to attend from Ghana and the attendance was nothing if not impressive. And the ladies looked beautiful, very beautiful indeed. Ghanaian music boomed a tad too loudly on the loudspeakers but all was set for a wonderful evening. The dinner started exactly at seven o’clock, and the reason was, that the hotel had been booked for a specific time and we were going to have to stop at exactly twelve midnight.
The MC was good. He related a good history of the special relationship between Komfo Anokye and King Osei Tutu. Komfo Anokye was actually an Akuapim and had only met and befriended Osei Tutu in Denkyira. He talked impressively about how Komfo Anokye planted the sword that has come to represent the soul of the Asantes and the way he commanded the golden stool from the sky into the lap of Osei Tutu. Finally, he mentioned how Komfo Anokye had left to look for a cure for death. After 3 days, he had returned to see the town in mourning, having presumed his death. Saddened by this, he had turned round, walked away and was never seen again. It reminded me of what Mark Twain had once said, “Never let the truth stand in the way of a good story..."
For a thirty pound ticket to attend a Ghanaian function, the last thing I was expecting was a couple of thin slices of lamb, two pieces of roast potato, some leaves and a dessert which happened to be just glorified “boflot”. But “who was I to say?” It was all for a good cause. As we toiled through this miserable concoction that the British adore, a middle aged woman with an air of authority made a grand entrance into the hall, attendants in tow, and walked majestically to the high table to be shown her seat. We were informed she was the Deputy High Commissioner of Ghana to the UK. She had been two hours late!! And she was a deputy. How late would the boss have been? I wondered.
We all stood up for the Ghana National Anthem. I have never heard the Ghana National Anthem sang with so much enthusiasm and passion. It was quite obvious that the wine was slowly achieving its noble aim of easing our natural inhibitions. The Deputy started to speak and gracefully apologized for coming late, but she had an excuse! She had been to so many Ghanaian functions where she had been early, only to find she was about the first to arrive. So on this occasion, she had decided to do some shopping first. Brilliant, Madam Deputy! Excellent excuse! Thanks for helping to propagate the zero-tolerance-to-African-punctuality policy of Uncle Atta.
Before the serious business of the day began, it was thought necessary to stimulate our senses with a horror film on the squalor and degradation evident on Ward B3 of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital. There was one scene where faeces were seeping under a door that led into a mal-functioning toilet. When the lights came back on, there were tears on the faces of a couple of the ladies at my table. But what were the tears for? Do a few years in Europe make one so oblivious of the reality of life at home? Were they tears of guilt for having left when they could have helped? Or was it guilt for having contributed, in small and varied ways to the mess. The conversation began.
On my table, by sheer coincidence, were two doctors, four nurses, a laboratory technician and a revenue collector who had all previously worked in KATH. They talked animatedly, perhaps a trifle angrily, about how on earth conditions had been allowed to deteriorate that much. There was a mention of the Jubilee House and the presidential jet. There was a heated debate about the need to have celebrated Ghana at 50 at such expense for people to enrich themselves when conditions like these existed in one of the nation’s flagship hospitals. There was talk of corruption at high places and the recent news that some NDC functionaries had already built mansions in the short time they have been in power.
The conversation wandered off, to how much Government revenue was lost in the first place due to corruption in the hospitals. The revenue collector told us how they were able to pick out the illiterate patients and divide one ticket for two people so they could keep the money from the second patient in their own pockets. The laboratory technician told of how they took money directly from regular patients like diabetics so their tests could be done quickly. “Those who tried to be clever and insisted on getting their receipts” he said, “we put at the back of the queue and would probably not be attended to till evening.” The nurses told of how they kept their own intravenous fluids which they sold at exorbitant prices to needy patients rather than providing them with the government infusions. The doctors talked of all the illegal money they collected from patients.
One nurse told a story, confirmed by a doctor, of how the floor tiles in the D-Block which had been laid when the hospital was first built and which, except for the odd broken one in places looked very good, were all stripped off by a local contractor. New ones were laid, except that most of it came off in a few months and the floor looked much worse than it was before the renovation.
So who is to blame? It was obvious, that we are all, in our own small ways and by our actions and even inactions, responsible for the deterioration of the Komfo Anokye Hospital. In the end, the money to be collected at this function would only go in providing some bed sheets and for doing some painting to paper over the cracks. What Ward B3 needed was serious government funds to do major structural repairs which a few drinks in a London hotel and ten pounds into a bowl could not do. Perhaps, though, it was a start in helping to repair damage we had all helped to cause in the first place.
Things did not go as planned this weekend. I had anticipated an afternoon watching the Black Stars wallop a weakened Australian side and then proceed to the Imperial London Hotel in a celebratory mood for the grand dinner of former workers of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital. As fate and Asamoah Gyan’s right foot would have it, my mood was not nearly as good as I had expected but that is an issue I intend to revisit later.
A group of dynamic and progressive nurses who had previously worked in the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital had gotten together to form an association to raise funds for the hospital. And they had done a good job, even adopting ward B3 for special attention. This dinner was a call to everybody who had been associated with the hospital in one way or the other to come and contribute to a good cause.
It was a well-organised function in the kind of slightly over-the-top manner that only nurses can manage. A contribution of 500 pounds per association member meant that they were all able to afford the same kente design for a special cloth for the occasion. A senior doctor had been sponsored to attend from Ghana and the attendance was nothing if not impressive. And the ladies looked beautiful, very beautiful indeed. Ghanaian music boomed a tad too loudly on the loudspeakers but all was set for a wonderful evening. The dinner started exactly at seven o’clock, and the reason was, that the hotel had been booked for a specific time and we were going to have to stop at exactly twelve midnight.
The MC was good. He related a good history of the special relationship between Komfo Anokye and King Osei Tutu. Komfo Anokye was actually an Akuapim and had only met and befriended Osei Tutu in Denkyira. He talked impressively about how Komfo Anokye planted the sword that has come to represent the soul of the Asantes and the way he commanded the golden stool from the sky into the lap of Osei Tutu. Finally, he mentioned how Komfo Anokye had left to look for a cure for death. After 3 days, he had returned to see the town in mourning, having presumed his death. Saddened by this, he had turned round, walked away and was never seen again. It reminded me of what Mark Twain had once said, “Never let the truth stand in the way of a good story..."
For a thirty pound ticket to attend a Ghanaian function, the last thing I was expecting was a couple of thin slices of lamb, two pieces of roast potato, some leaves and a dessert which happened to be just glorified “boflot”. But “who was I to say?” It was all for a good cause. As we toiled through this miserable concoction that the British adore, a middle aged woman with an air of authority made a grand entrance into the hall, attendants in tow, and walked majestically to the high table to be shown her seat. We were informed she was the Deputy High Commissioner of Ghana to the UK. She had been two hours late!! And she was a deputy. How late would the boss have been? I wondered.
We all stood up for the Ghana National Anthem. I have never heard the Ghana National Anthem sang with so much enthusiasm and passion. It was quite obvious that the wine was slowly achieving its noble aim of easing our natural inhibitions. The Deputy started to speak and gracefully apologized for coming late, but she had an excuse! She had been to so many Ghanaian functions where she had been early, only to find she was about the first to arrive. So on this occasion, she had decided to do some shopping first. Brilliant, Madam Deputy! Excellent excuse! Thanks for helping to propagate the zero-tolerance-to-African-punctuality policy of Uncle Atta.
Before the serious business of the day began, it was thought necessary to stimulate our senses with a horror film on the squalor and degradation evident on Ward B3 of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital. There was one scene where faeces were seeping under a door that led into a mal-functioning toilet. When the lights came back on, there were tears on the faces of a couple of the ladies at my table. But what were the tears for? Do a few years in Europe make one so oblivious of the reality of life at home? Were they tears of guilt for having left when they could have helped? Or was it guilt for having contributed, in small and varied ways to the mess. The conversation began.
On my table, by sheer coincidence, were two doctors, four nurses, a laboratory technician and a revenue collector who had all previously worked in KATH. They talked animatedly, perhaps a trifle angrily, about how on earth conditions had been allowed to deteriorate that much. There was a mention of the Jubilee House and the presidential jet. There was a heated debate about the need to have celebrated Ghana at 50 at such expense for people to enrich themselves when conditions like these existed in one of the nation’s flagship hospitals. There was talk of corruption at high places and the recent news that some NDC functionaries had already built mansions in the short time they have been in power.
The conversation wandered off, to how much Government revenue was lost in the first place due to corruption in the hospitals. The revenue collector told us how they were able to pick out the illiterate patients and divide one ticket for two people so they could keep the money from the second patient in their own pockets. The laboratory technician told of how they took money directly from regular patients like diabetics so their tests could be done quickly. “Those who tried to be clever and insisted on getting their receipts” he said, “we put at the back of the queue and would probably not be attended to till evening.” The nurses told of how they kept their own intravenous fluids which they sold at exorbitant prices to needy patients rather than providing them with the government infusions. The doctors talked of all the illegal money they collected from patients.
One nurse told a story, confirmed by a doctor, of how the floor tiles in the D-Block which had been laid when the hospital was first built and which, except for the odd broken one in places looked very good, were all stripped off by a local contractor. New ones were laid, except that most of it came off in a few months and the floor looked much worse than it was before the renovation.
So who is to blame? It was obvious, that we are all, in our own small ways and by our actions and even inactions, responsible for the deterioration of the Komfo Anokye Hospital. In the end, the money to be collected at this function would only go in providing some bed sheets and for doing some painting to paper over the cracks. What Ward B3 needed was serious government funds to do major structural repairs which a few drinks in a London hotel and ten pounds into a bowl could not do. Perhaps, though, it was a start in helping to repair damage we had all helped to cause in the first place.
Tuesday, 15 June 2010
Please Leave Milovan Rajevac Alone
Last season, in a game between Manchester City and Arsenal in the Premiership, Adebayor, who had in the previous season been an Arsenal striker, scored for Manchester City against his former club. What happened after that has now become folklore and will be described in footballing circles for generations to come.
For, Adebayor, peeved by incessant attacks on his dedication and application by Arsenal fans prior to his departure from the club, run the whole length of the football pitch to kneel in front of the Arsenal fans to celebrate. A rout nearly broke out as the incensed Arsenal fans charged forward, baying for the blood of the footballer.
Football etiquette is dynamic, for players and managers develop certain mannerisms and behaviour every new day. There was a time when a striker scored a goal and just run off to celebrate wherever he chose. It seems these days that a goal-scorer has to acknowledge the person who gave him the pass in the first place, so they turn round and point towards the assistant in a show of appreciation. Goal scorers who forget to do this are now scorned upon. Nobody knows where this came from, but it seems fair and right and is thus encouraged.
Even more interesting is the refusal of footballers to celebrate when they have scored against a former club. Adebayor’s antics were extreme, but it would seem perfectly alright for a footballer to celebrate with the team that currently paid his wages. But then again, who can possibly blame a footballer for appreciating, that while they remain thoroughly professional and will strive hard to actually earn their living even if it means scoring against a club that was once good to him, it would be unwise, even foolish to exhibit any behaviour that might offend his previous employers. A wise man once told me, that when you walk out of a door, whatever the circumstances, make sure you do not bang the door, for the reality of life is such that, you may have to come walking through that same door again someday.
Footballers and football fans all around the world understand this, and so, how Ghanaians were expecting Milovan Rajevac, having just thrust a sword into the heart of his beloved nation in the course of his professional duty, to go hugging Ghanaians and running around the pitch in celebration, is beyond me.
Serbia is a newly independent country, having separated from the previous Serbia and Montenegro, which had also been part of the previous Yugoslavia. The country is ablaze with extreme nationalistic sentiments. This is their first world cup as an independent country and an opportunity to lift up their flag to the rest of the world. They qualified as winners of a group that included France and were looking forward to a good opening game. To have been licked by a well-drilled Ghanaian side, coached by a Serb, would have irked badly.
What Milo was not going to do was make matters worse by openly celebrating with Ghanaians. And indeed, would it have been hypocritical for him to have done so. For, let’s face it, if he had not been working for Ghana, he would have been holding aloft the Serbian flag, singing aloud the Serbian national anthem and urging them on to victory. Which Ghanaian ever put the love of their job above the love of their family? Why are we then expecting the coach to be different? What would happen to his family in Serbia if an impression was erroneously created of him being a traitor? Never underestimate what football can do to people. The assistant coach of the Black Stars should have understood the sensitivity of the situation and not gone making a fool of himself with his over-exuberant celebration.
After all, what are we celebrating? Winning one football match in the world cup? Did anybody see the Germans after their 4-0 victory over the Australians? There were no celebrations as such. Because the Germans, with all their experience in playing in and winning the world cup, understand, that this is just one victory in seven, if they intend to win the world cup. There will be time to celebrate later. At the moment, as far as the Germans are concerned, there is work to do. It shows how inexperienced Ghanaians are with the whole world cup experience when we go overboard with celebrations after winning just one match. What does it say of our mental state in relation to the world cup, compared to the Germans? The Germans truly believe they are going all the way, Ghanaians are thankful for one victory. That is the difference.
So, rather than having a go at a poor coach who stubbornly stuck to his professional ideals and helped Ghana win, we should be thankful to him. He put his job first, and that is more than can be said for most Ghanaians.
Papa Appiah
For, Adebayor, peeved by incessant attacks on his dedication and application by Arsenal fans prior to his departure from the club, run the whole length of the football pitch to kneel in front of the Arsenal fans to celebrate. A rout nearly broke out as the incensed Arsenal fans charged forward, baying for the blood of the footballer.
Football etiquette is dynamic, for players and managers develop certain mannerisms and behaviour every new day. There was a time when a striker scored a goal and just run off to celebrate wherever he chose. It seems these days that a goal-scorer has to acknowledge the person who gave him the pass in the first place, so they turn round and point towards the assistant in a show of appreciation. Goal scorers who forget to do this are now scorned upon. Nobody knows where this came from, but it seems fair and right and is thus encouraged.
Even more interesting is the refusal of footballers to celebrate when they have scored against a former club. Adebayor’s antics were extreme, but it would seem perfectly alright for a footballer to celebrate with the team that currently paid his wages. But then again, who can possibly blame a footballer for appreciating, that while they remain thoroughly professional and will strive hard to actually earn their living even if it means scoring against a club that was once good to him, it would be unwise, even foolish to exhibit any behaviour that might offend his previous employers. A wise man once told me, that when you walk out of a door, whatever the circumstances, make sure you do not bang the door, for the reality of life is such that, you may have to come walking through that same door again someday.
Footballers and football fans all around the world understand this, and so, how Ghanaians were expecting Milovan Rajevac, having just thrust a sword into the heart of his beloved nation in the course of his professional duty, to go hugging Ghanaians and running around the pitch in celebration, is beyond me.
Serbia is a newly independent country, having separated from the previous Serbia and Montenegro, which had also been part of the previous Yugoslavia. The country is ablaze with extreme nationalistic sentiments. This is their first world cup as an independent country and an opportunity to lift up their flag to the rest of the world. They qualified as winners of a group that included France and were looking forward to a good opening game. To have been licked by a well-drilled Ghanaian side, coached by a Serb, would have irked badly.
What Milo was not going to do was make matters worse by openly celebrating with Ghanaians. And indeed, would it have been hypocritical for him to have done so. For, let’s face it, if he had not been working for Ghana, he would have been holding aloft the Serbian flag, singing aloud the Serbian national anthem and urging them on to victory. Which Ghanaian ever put the love of their job above the love of their family? Why are we then expecting the coach to be different? What would happen to his family in Serbia if an impression was erroneously created of him being a traitor? Never underestimate what football can do to people. The assistant coach of the Black Stars should have understood the sensitivity of the situation and not gone making a fool of himself with his over-exuberant celebration.
After all, what are we celebrating? Winning one football match in the world cup? Did anybody see the Germans after their 4-0 victory over the Australians? There were no celebrations as such. Because the Germans, with all their experience in playing in and winning the world cup, understand, that this is just one victory in seven, if they intend to win the world cup. There will be time to celebrate later. At the moment, as far as the Germans are concerned, there is work to do. It shows how inexperienced Ghanaians are with the whole world cup experience when we go overboard with celebrations after winning just one match. What does it say of our mental state in relation to the world cup, compared to the Germans? The Germans truly believe they are going all the way, Ghanaians are thankful for one victory. That is the difference.
So, rather than having a go at a poor coach who stubbornly stuck to his professional ideals and helped Ghana win, we should be thankful to him. He put his job first, and that is more than can be said for most Ghanaians.
Papa Appiah
Tuesday, 8 June 2010
Sunday, 6 June 2010
There Is Hope - A Ghana vs Latvia Review
There Is Hope – A Ghana vs. Latvia Review
One can only beat the opponent placed in front of one and the Black Stars did just that, beating Latvia by a goal to nil. And you should have been there; at the MK Dons Stadium in Milton Keynes in the UK. Ghanaians from all walks of life trouped to the stadium in their numbers and if Latvia had had half as many fans as the Ghanaians, we could easily have filled the stadium.
And the atmosphere was ecstatic – atenteben, congas, horns, brass band, beautiful Ghanaian women shaking their precious assets to samamo music – one could not have asked for a better outing. A few Ghanaians tried to make a quick buck by setting up tables to sell all kinds of Black Star paraphernalia, only to be led away by fussy security men claiming they had no Trading Standards permission to sell. One quietly wondered how much money these security men would have made if they were operating in Ghana. What a waste.
The music from the public address system built up to a crescendo as the two teams walked in. I had to prompt my two boys to stand up as the Ghana national anthem was played and I saw other people do the same to their kids. You can’t really blame these kids.
Coach Milovan Rajevac has had his fair share of criticism but I seemed to understand what he is up to when the game started. Basically, this coach intends to play a 4-2-3-1 system. He intends to employ two holding midfielders, one of whom, Anthony Annan will hardly go past the centre line. The other, a kind of replacement for Michael Essien will be a box-to-box midfielder. When we are under attack, he links up with Annan to form a solid barrier in front of the defence but in attack, this midfielder can join in and possibly deliver shots from the edge of the opponent’s box. This is a “Boateng” position. Kevin Prince or Derrick will occupy this position.
Kwadwo Asamoah will be in the centre of the attacking midfield trio. On either side of him will be Owusu Abayie on the right and Muntari or Ayew on the left. In attack, the two wing midfielders move up to join Asamoah Gyan to form a 4-3-3 system, but they drop into midfield when we loose the ball. This is a clever system that ensures that while the team defends together, attacking options are not compromised.
In the first half, Coach Milo employed Prince Tagoe on the right of the midfield trio in much the same way as Jose Mourinho used Eto’o on the right in Inter Milan’s champion league campaign. The advantage of this is, that while the striker goes back to help in midfield and defence, there is always the danger of him stealing quietly into the box to cause havoc, as Eto’o proved, especially in the game against Chelsea in Stamford Bridge. Prince did his best in this role, but I do not think he fits that well into the role and Quincy is the best man for the job. Prince's role may have to be coming in from the substitute’s bench to join Asamoah Gyan, especially if we are desperate for a goal in matches where we fall behind.
Some Ghanaians love to hate Dede Ayew but boy is he a player! This is the first time I have seen him play live and I will say, that Sulley Muntari will have to really up his game to stand any chance of shifting him. And he plays in such a whole –hearted manner that one can only admire. On one occasion in the match, he chased a ball that was going out for a Latvia throw-in and almost injured himself sliding on the concrete perimeter. I overheard somebody question why he was getting himself injured when this was just a friendly. But Dede knows no other way of playing. He gives a hundred percent or he does not play. At the end of the game, Ghanaians surrounded him in their numbers to show their appreciation.
Anthony Annan, in a translated Fante parlance, sticks to the ground like a stone. (Otei fom de beba). This smallish tiger put up a man-of-the-match performance that won him the admiration of all present. Like Dede, he was never afraid to put a foot in even at the risk of injuring himself before the world cup. He reminds one of good old Stanley Aboraah of Asante Kotoko and Black Stars fame. Best wishes to Stanley, wherever he may be.
Kwadwo Asamoah’s position is secured and Stephen Appiah may have to contend with cameo appearances late in games to use his experience against weary defences. Asamoah Gyan remains our best striker and there is no challenger for that role. I saw Dominic Adiyah for the first time today. He did his best to make an impact and showed lots of enthusiasm. He actually scored but was ruled out for off-side. Smallish he may be, but you do not necessarily have to be big to be a striker. The great Tostao was not big, Jermaine Defoe is not big, and Wayne Rooney is not big. One cannot help but think, however, that Adiyah needs to build a few muscles in the right places to enable him compete. I am not one of those who believe merely training with AC Milan is enough. I’d rather he was playing competitive matches regularly and scoring, even if it were in the third division. My personal opinion is that while Adiyah may be an asset in four years; this world cup may have come too soon for him.
Kevin Prince Boateng was obviously trying to avoid an injury prior to the world cup, and yet he managed to put up a decent performance. I have seen this guy perform several times in the premiership. He is a fighter and a winner and when the whistle goes in South Africa, he will be ready. Ghanaians should have no fear. Derrick Boateng also did very well in the second half. He has the physic and touch to be a big influence in midfield. I did not see him tackle, but again, who wants to get injured before the world cup. Good player.
Thank God Mensah went through the match without injury. He forms a solid rock with Vorsah. Paintsil and Inkoom will have to compete for the right full back and whiles Addy huffed and puffed in left back, he may find it difficult to completely displace Sarpei. The coach will have to work in these last few days on the quality of our crosses. Whiles our full backs overlap beautifully, the quality of crosses leaves much to be desired.
The quality of the opposition meant that Adjei was hardly ever tested. On the one occasion he was called on to deal with a cross, he fumbled badly. Yet, most times he looked confident and composed. He has built some muscles that make him look more matured. My personal opinion is that this guy should be maintained in the post for Ghana. We have a week to build him up physically and mentally. He is tall, young, intelligent and a quick learner. With the right support, he will deliver the goods. Richard Kingson has done his bit for Ghana but it is time to face reality and send him packing to the bench.
In the last ten minutes of the game, it was obvious, that the players, impressed by the kind of reception they had got were eager to reward us with a goal. They fought very hard and when it finally came, it was a delightful shot from Quincy that sent the stadium into ruptures. We all run unto the pitch to hug our heroes after the game and bid them farewell and Ghana should rest assured, that Ghanaians in the UK have not let them down. We went to the stadium in our numbers to wholeheartedly receive the boys. We built their spirits, motivated them, blessed them and sent them out to battle on behalf of our country. And from what I have seen, trust me when I say, they will not disappoint.
My starting line up;
========================Adjei======================================================
Paintsil ====== === Mensah=============Vorsah===============Sarpei=================
=================Annan======Prince Boateng=========================================
Quincy =================Kwadwo Asamoah===================Ayew======================
======================Asamoah Gyan=================================================
Papa Appiah
One can only beat the opponent placed in front of one and the Black Stars did just that, beating Latvia by a goal to nil. And you should have been there; at the MK Dons Stadium in Milton Keynes in the UK. Ghanaians from all walks of life trouped to the stadium in their numbers and if Latvia had had half as many fans as the Ghanaians, we could easily have filled the stadium.
And the atmosphere was ecstatic – atenteben, congas, horns, brass band, beautiful Ghanaian women shaking their precious assets to samamo music – one could not have asked for a better outing. A few Ghanaians tried to make a quick buck by setting up tables to sell all kinds of Black Star paraphernalia, only to be led away by fussy security men claiming they had no Trading Standards permission to sell. One quietly wondered how much money these security men would have made if they were operating in Ghana. What a waste.
The music from the public address system built up to a crescendo as the two teams walked in. I had to prompt my two boys to stand up as the Ghana national anthem was played and I saw other people do the same to their kids. You can’t really blame these kids.
Coach Milovan Rajevac has had his fair share of criticism but I seemed to understand what he is up to when the game started. Basically, this coach intends to play a 4-2-3-1 system. He intends to employ two holding midfielders, one of whom, Anthony Annan will hardly go past the centre line. The other, a kind of replacement for Michael Essien will be a box-to-box midfielder. When we are under attack, he links up with Annan to form a solid barrier in front of the defence but in attack, this midfielder can join in and possibly deliver shots from the edge of the opponent’s box. This is a “Boateng” position. Kevin Prince or Derrick will occupy this position.
Kwadwo Asamoah will be in the centre of the attacking midfield trio. On either side of him will be Owusu Abayie on the right and Muntari or Ayew on the left. In attack, the two wing midfielders move up to join Asamoah Gyan to form a 4-3-3 system, but they drop into midfield when we loose the ball. This is a clever system that ensures that while the team defends together, attacking options are not compromised.
In the first half, Coach Milo employed Prince Tagoe on the right of the midfield trio in much the same way as Jose Mourinho used Eto’o on the right in Inter Milan’s champion league campaign. The advantage of this is, that while the striker goes back to help in midfield and defence, there is always the danger of him stealing quietly into the box to cause havoc, as Eto’o proved, especially in the game against Chelsea in Stamford Bridge. Prince did his best in this role, but I do not think he fits that well into the role and Quincy is the best man for the job. Prince's role may have to be coming in from the substitute’s bench to join Asamoah Gyan, especially if we are desperate for a goal in matches where we fall behind.
Some Ghanaians love to hate Dede Ayew but boy is he a player! This is the first time I have seen him play live and I will say, that Sulley Muntari will have to really up his game to stand any chance of shifting him. And he plays in such a whole –hearted manner that one can only admire. On one occasion in the match, he chased a ball that was going out for a Latvia throw-in and almost injured himself sliding on the concrete perimeter. I overheard somebody question why he was getting himself injured when this was just a friendly. But Dede knows no other way of playing. He gives a hundred percent or he does not play. At the end of the game, Ghanaians surrounded him in their numbers to show their appreciation.
Anthony Annan, in a translated Fante parlance, sticks to the ground like a stone. (Otei fom de beba). This smallish tiger put up a man-of-the-match performance that won him the admiration of all present. Like Dede, he was never afraid to put a foot in even at the risk of injuring himself before the world cup. He reminds one of good old Stanley Aboraah of Asante Kotoko and Black Stars fame. Best wishes to Stanley, wherever he may be.
Kwadwo Asamoah’s position is secured and Stephen Appiah may have to contend with cameo appearances late in games to use his experience against weary defences. Asamoah Gyan remains our best striker and there is no challenger for that role. I saw Dominic Adiyah for the first time today. He did his best to make an impact and showed lots of enthusiasm. He actually scored but was ruled out for off-side. Smallish he may be, but you do not necessarily have to be big to be a striker. The great Tostao was not big, Jermaine Defoe is not big, and Wayne Rooney is not big. One cannot help but think, however, that Adiyah needs to build a few muscles in the right places to enable him compete. I am not one of those who believe merely training with AC Milan is enough. I’d rather he was playing competitive matches regularly and scoring, even if it were in the third division. My personal opinion is that while Adiyah may be an asset in four years; this world cup may have come too soon for him.
Kevin Prince Boateng was obviously trying to avoid an injury prior to the world cup, and yet he managed to put up a decent performance. I have seen this guy perform several times in the premiership. He is a fighter and a winner and when the whistle goes in South Africa, he will be ready. Ghanaians should have no fear. Derrick Boateng also did very well in the second half. He has the physic and touch to be a big influence in midfield. I did not see him tackle, but again, who wants to get injured before the world cup. Good player.
Thank God Mensah went through the match without injury. He forms a solid rock with Vorsah. Paintsil and Inkoom will have to compete for the right full back and whiles Addy huffed and puffed in left back, he may find it difficult to completely displace Sarpei. The coach will have to work in these last few days on the quality of our crosses. Whiles our full backs overlap beautifully, the quality of crosses leaves much to be desired.
The quality of the opposition meant that Adjei was hardly ever tested. On the one occasion he was called on to deal with a cross, he fumbled badly. Yet, most times he looked confident and composed. He has built some muscles that make him look more matured. My personal opinion is that this guy should be maintained in the post for Ghana. We have a week to build him up physically and mentally. He is tall, young, intelligent and a quick learner. With the right support, he will deliver the goods. Richard Kingson has done his bit for Ghana but it is time to face reality and send him packing to the bench.
In the last ten minutes of the game, it was obvious, that the players, impressed by the kind of reception they had got were eager to reward us with a goal. They fought very hard and when it finally came, it was a delightful shot from Quincy that sent the stadium into ruptures. We all run unto the pitch to hug our heroes after the game and bid them farewell and Ghana should rest assured, that Ghanaians in the UK have not let them down. We went to the stadium in our numbers to wholeheartedly receive the boys. We built their spirits, motivated them, blessed them and sent them out to battle on behalf of our country. And from what I have seen, trust me when I say, they will not disappoint.
My starting line up;
========================Adjei======================================================
Paintsil ====== === Mensah=============Vorsah===============Sarpei=================
=================Annan======Prince Boateng=========================================
Quincy =================Kwadwo Asamoah===================Ayew======================
======================Asamoah Gyan=================================================
Papa Appiah
Tuesday, 1 December 2009
Yeeye Aka Akwantuo Mu - Worries of a Diasporan Brother
Yeeye Aka Akwantuo Mu – Worries of a Diasporan Brother
My wife was cutting my hair the other day. Yeah my wife cuts my hair. You have a problem with that? I mean, what is the point in going to sit for precious hours at one of the two Caribbean barber shops in Leicester on a Saturday, just to have a haircut? And, let’s face it, they don’t come cheap either. It used to be eight solid pounds every two weeks for me and five pounds each for my two boys. So my wife bought a kind of barber’s machine and started experimenting with my kids. I watched from afar with interest, and as soon as the pot holes had begun reducing considerably on my boys’ heads, I playfully offered myself for more advanced experiments, and there has been no turning back.
.
So, as I was saying before you ever so rudely interrupted, she was cutting my hair the other day, and she called out to me;
“Asuo!” she said
“Yee!” I said
“You are loosing all the hair on the top of your head”
“Ok” I said, not in the least interested. I’m loosing my hair and so what? People are loosing their heads, never mind their hair, in this damn stressful country we have opted to live in.
She paused momentarily and then continued;
“So what’s happening to the building project at home?”
“Ahaaaaaa!” Now I understood.
You see, my wife is an Asante and I am a Fante. So, dare I say, our priorities are slightly different. On Saturday mornings when we are both at home, she will often sit quietly and watch me as I enthusiastically toast my bread, preferring it a bit more brown and crispy, add a slice of cheese and then a blueberry muffin with a cup of Twinning’s Classic English Breakfast Traditional Tasting Tea. She would shake her head sadly and say:
“Wo, w’aka akwantuo mu!”
When I had had enough of her nagging, I would often break into song, my favourite being one by Shane McGowan of the Pogues:
Last night as I slept
I dreamt I met with Bohan
I shook him by the hand as we passed the break of day
I questioned him on his views
On the crux of life’s philosophies
He had but these few, and simple words to say
He said
I am going, I am going
Any which way the wind might be blowing
I am going, I am going
Where streams of whisky are flowing
In other words;
“Osofo gye w’ahom. Daa yenom!”
Have a nice weekend my fellow Ghanaians.
Papa Appiah
My wife was cutting my hair the other day. Yeah my wife cuts my hair. You have a problem with that? I mean, what is the point in going to sit for precious hours at one of the two Caribbean barber shops in Leicester on a Saturday, just to have a haircut? And, let’s face it, they don’t come cheap either. It used to be eight solid pounds every two weeks for me and five pounds each for my two boys. So my wife bought a kind of barber’s machine and started experimenting with my kids. I watched from afar with interest, and as soon as the pot holes had begun reducing considerably on my boys’ heads, I playfully offered myself for more advanced experiments, and there has been no turning back.
.
So, as I was saying before you ever so rudely interrupted, she was cutting my hair the other day, and she called out to me;
“Asuo!” she said
“Yee!” I said
“You are loosing all the hair on the top of your head”
“Ok” I said, not in the least interested. I’m loosing my hair and so what? People are loosing their heads, never mind their hair, in this damn stressful country we have opted to live in.
She paused momentarily and then continued;
“So what’s happening to the building project at home?”
“Ahaaaaaa!” Now I understood.
You see, my wife is an Asante and I am a Fante. So, dare I say, our priorities are slightly different. On Saturday mornings when we are both at home, she will often sit quietly and watch me as I enthusiastically toast my bread, preferring it a bit more brown and crispy, add a slice of cheese and then a blueberry muffin with a cup of Twinning’s Classic English Breakfast Traditional Tasting Tea. She would shake her head sadly and say:
“Wo, w’aka akwantuo mu!”
When I had had enough of her nagging, I would often break into song, my favourite being one by Shane McGowan of the Pogues:
Last night as I slept
I dreamt I met with Bohan
I shook him by the hand as we passed the break of day
I questioned him on his views
On the crux of life’s philosophies
He had but these few, and simple words to say
He said
I am going, I am going
Any which way the wind might be blowing
I am going, I am going
Where streams of whisky are flowing
In other words;
“Osofo gye w’ahom. Daa yenom!”
Have a nice weekend my fellow Ghanaians.
Papa Appiah
Friday, 27 November 2009
Let's Go For It Boys! Ghana To Win World Cup
In the history of mankind, great deeds have often been achieved when least expected. The ability of the human spirit to transcend expectation and soar over the horizons cannot be underestimated. And so as our dear Black Stars start to prepare for the world cup, Ghanaians call on them to remember, that nothing is impossible, if only we believe.
They have a responsibility. A responsibility to help sever the psychological shackles of colonialism, which has so often, impaired our development as a nation and as a people. The very warped mentality that others are simply better than us and we have no prayer competing.
Let others underestimate us at their own peril. We are a proud nation and a royal people. We are the sons of Yaa Asantewaa, inspired by the indomitable spirit of Shaka the Zulu. We shall attack when the enemy least expects and return in glory, marching to the sounds of atenteben, and hoisted aloft the shoulders of our proud people. This is Ghana we are talking about –the Ghana of Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah and all our great leaders long gone, the Ghana of CK Gyamfi, Addo Odamtey, Osei Kofi, Robert Mensah. and Baba Yara.
We are four times winners of the African Cup of Nations, two times winners of the FIFA under 17 world cup, the first African winner of the FIFA under 20 world cup and bronze medallist at the Olympic games. We are one senior world cup win away from having a better footballing pedigree than England, Spain, Portugal, Holland, France and many of the so called advanced countries with all the resources at their disposal. Let’s go for it boys!
Let’s go for it, for we have come together this far. We have reached the cross roads and there is no turning back. Hand in hand, we shall traverse the storms as we head towards the light at the end of the tunnel. Throughout history, underdogs have triumphed in adversity. In 1974, Mohammed Ali, faced with the unenviable task, at the tail end of his career, of dethroning the young, strong and apparently invincible George Foreman had to summon his most inner spirit and reserves of strength and determination for the battle.
Preparing for the fight was no child’s play. In his own words, he rustled with the alligator and tussled with the whale. He handcuffed lightening and threw thunder in jail. He murdered a rock and injured a stone. He hospitalized a brick and made medicine sick. That is Ali for you, but the message was clear, he left nothing to chance. And the result was a famous victory in the Rumble in the Jungle that shocked the world.
Milo, my dear Milo. Which idiot said you can’t stand up to Fabio Capello? Who said the only brilliant coaches in the world are the famous ones we know of? Talent and skill are important but a modicum of luck and being at the right place at the right time also helps. Even the great Alex Ferguson came within a hair’s breath of being sacked from Manchester United in 1990, after a string of poor results. But for a goal scored by Mark Robins in a 1-0 FA Cup third round win against Nottingham Forest in Jan 1990, many believe that Ferguson would have lost his job as United manager. Ferguson survived, of course, and went on to build a dynasty at Old Trafford that has lasted over twenty years.
Brian Clough was a virtually unknown coach who took Derby County from the bottom of the then English second division to become champions in the first division and subsequent semi finalists in the European cup. He was later to lead a small provincial English club, Nottingham Forest, against all the odds, to back- to- back European Cup championship triumphs. When asked who he thought the best English coach was, he admitted that he was not sure, but felt he was in the top one. Such was the confidence of the man.
So Milo, this is your opportunity to shine to the world, and when the time comes, twenty million Ghanaians will be with you in spirit as you stand on the touchline, looking into the eyes of Fabio Capello. Have no fear. Be brave; be strong, for God is on our side. We are a blessed nation.
And we are not going to get a better chance, for many years, to triumph. This is a world cup being played on African soil, where the ghosts of all our brave forebears murdered by the wicked invaders, will rise to fight for us. We can count on the support of our brothers, and as the Satellites showed in Egypt, home support can take us a long way.
Let’s go for it boys because man for man, you are among the best in the world. Michael Essien, you are one of the best midfielders in the world. Even the great Steven Gerrard vaporizes into thin air at the very sight of you. You are a leader on the pitch. You have to lead off the pitch as well. Stephen Appiah, Ghanaians fasted and prayed and God has rewarded your humility at the right time. When you regain full match fitness, there is no midfielder in the world that can stand up to you. Sulley, Insha Allah, the best left foot in the business. The three of you form an impregnable midfield barrier that can hold its own against any team. The youngsters like Annan and Asamoah are there to give a hand when your weary legs give way. Who said we have no depth.
Amoah, you are an intelligent striker and a very respectful guy off the pith. On the pitch, however, you have to roar like a lion and tear into the Robert Carlos of this world. You can apologize after the match. Gyan, this is your time to shine and prove Ghanaians wrong. You are doing it in the French league and are going to do it for your nation. Paintsil, Addo, the Rock, Jonathan Mensah, Adiyah, the Ayew brothers, Laryea Kingston, Dramani, your nation summons you to duty.
Together, we shall defend the red, gold green and the black star. We shall rustle with the alligator and tussle with the whale, handcuff lightening and throw thunder in jail, and in the end, against all the odds, we shall bring the world cup home, one warm July night, in 2010.
God bless our homeland Ghana.
Papa Appiah
They have a responsibility. A responsibility to help sever the psychological shackles of colonialism, which has so often, impaired our development as a nation and as a people. The very warped mentality that others are simply better than us and we have no prayer competing.
Let others underestimate us at their own peril. We are a proud nation and a royal people. We are the sons of Yaa Asantewaa, inspired by the indomitable spirit of Shaka the Zulu. We shall attack when the enemy least expects and return in glory, marching to the sounds of atenteben, and hoisted aloft the shoulders of our proud people. This is Ghana we are talking about –the Ghana of Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah and all our great leaders long gone, the Ghana of CK Gyamfi, Addo Odamtey, Osei Kofi, Robert Mensah. and Baba Yara.
We are four times winners of the African Cup of Nations, two times winners of the FIFA under 17 world cup, the first African winner of the FIFA under 20 world cup and bronze medallist at the Olympic games. We are one senior world cup win away from having a better footballing pedigree than England, Spain, Portugal, Holland, France and many of the so called advanced countries with all the resources at their disposal. Let’s go for it boys!
Let’s go for it, for we have come together this far. We have reached the cross roads and there is no turning back. Hand in hand, we shall traverse the storms as we head towards the light at the end of the tunnel. Throughout history, underdogs have triumphed in adversity. In 1974, Mohammed Ali, faced with the unenviable task, at the tail end of his career, of dethroning the young, strong and apparently invincible George Foreman had to summon his most inner spirit and reserves of strength and determination for the battle.
Preparing for the fight was no child’s play. In his own words, he rustled with the alligator and tussled with the whale. He handcuffed lightening and threw thunder in jail. He murdered a rock and injured a stone. He hospitalized a brick and made medicine sick. That is Ali for you, but the message was clear, he left nothing to chance. And the result was a famous victory in the Rumble in the Jungle that shocked the world.
Milo, my dear Milo. Which idiot said you can’t stand up to Fabio Capello? Who said the only brilliant coaches in the world are the famous ones we know of? Talent and skill are important but a modicum of luck and being at the right place at the right time also helps. Even the great Alex Ferguson came within a hair’s breath of being sacked from Manchester United in 1990, after a string of poor results. But for a goal scored by Mark Robins in a 1-0 FA Cup third round win against Nottingham Forest in Jan 1990, many believe that Ferguson would have lost his job as United manager. Ferguson survived, of course, and went on to build a dynasty at Old Trafford that has lasted over twenty years.
Brian Clough was a virtually unknown coach who took Derby County from the bottom of the then English second division to become champions in the first division and subsequent semi finalists in the European cup. He was later to lead a small provincial English club, Nottingham Forest, against all the odds, to back- to- back European Cup championship triumphs. When asked who he thought the best English coach was, he admitted that he was not sure, but felt he was in the top one. Such was the confidence of the man.
So Milo, this is your opportunity to shine to the world, and when the time comes, twenty million Ghanaians will be with you in spirit as you stand on the touchline, looking into the eyes of Fabio Capello. Have no fear. Be brave; be strong, for God is on our side. We are a blessed nation.
And we are not going to get a better chance, for many years, to triumph. This is a world cup being played on African soil, where the ghosts of all our brave forebears murdered by the wicked invaders, will rise to fight for us. We can count on the support of our brothers, and as the Satellites showed in Egypt, home support can take us a long way.
Let’s go for it boys because man for man, you are among the best in the world. Michael Essien, you are one of the best midfielders in the world. Even the great Steven Gerrard vaporizes into thin air at the very sight of you. You are a leader on the pitch. You have to lead off the pitch as well. Stephen Appiah, Ghanaians fasted and prayed and God has rewarded your humility at the right time. When you regain full match fitness, there is no midfielder in the world that can stand up to you. Sulley, Insha Allah, the best left foot in the business. The three of you form an impregnable midfield barrier that can hold its own against any team. The youngsters like Annan and Asamoah are there to give a hand when your weary legs give way. Who said we have no depth.
Amoah, you are an intelligent striker and a very respectful guy off the pith. On the pitch, however, you have to roar like a lion and tear into the Robert Carlos of this world. You can apologize after the match. Gyan, this is your time to shine and prove Ghanaians wrong. You are doing it in the French league and are going to do it for your nation. Paintsil, Addo, the Rock, Jonathan Mensah, Adiyah, the Ayew brothers, Laryea Kingston, Dramani, your nation summons you to duty.
Together, we shall defend the red, gold green and the black star. We shall rustle with the alligator and tussle with the whale, handcuff lightening and throw thunder in jail, and in the end, against all the odds, we shall bring the world cup home, one warm July night, in 2010.
God bless our homeland Ghana.
Papa Appiah
Stealing in the Name of the Lord - Ghanaian Gospel Music
“If only you were to me like a brother
Who was nursed at my mother’s breast,
Then if I found you outside
I would kiss you and no one would mind…”
These are not the lyrics of a “wiase ndwom.” These are words from the Song of Songs in the bible. And there are more. For whoever wrote Solomon’s Song of Songs appreciated the beauty of poetry and understood that poetry nourished the human soul. Song of Songs enriches the bible and its story of love adds to the politics, murder, miracles, adultery, magic and wars that grace the good book. For the bible is after all, a human story, with all the attendant strengths and weaknesses.
In times gone by, Ghanaian musicians, the poets that they were, sang about life as they experienced daily. So when Egya Koo Nimo remembered the experience of failing examinations in Europe, he wrote “Adesua ye ya.” When Kaakeku wrote “Driver nyi na meware no” where he claimed even a driver who was out of work could earn money as a bookman and this job security made them ideal husbands, Kwabena Onyina responded with “Ye no Waawa ma Yenkodo” where he extolled the virtues of farmers.
Every now and again when the “spirit” descended on them, Ghanaian musicians would sing in praise of their maker and his bountiful gifts to mankind. So for example, Bob Pinodo’s most popular song is “Eye me se, Mento Ndwom Nnyi Awuradze Aye”, though he was not usually a gospel singer. Every now and again, CK Mann, Nana Ampadu and Pat Thomas would depart from their usual styles and sing gospels. When you bought their albums, you were exposed to a variety of emotions that made the listening experience richer. Gospel music belonged to everyone. Nobody criticised them for singing gospel, for sinful as we all were, we understood, that they had as much right as anyone else to praise their maker and I am sure angels rejoiced in heaven whenever the musical platform was used to honour His name, irrespective of who the singer was.
My earliest recollection of gospel music as we have now was when Prof Kofi Abraham released great songs like Enkaa Akyi, Fa Wadesoa, Okwan Bi and Di kan Ma Mendi Wakyi in the seventies. His pioneering role inspired other gospel singers like Yaw Sarpong, Asiedu Teku and many others. Even then, gospel remained a minority genre. Then the great mushrooming of Evangelical Churches began as every bible school student got a vision that God wanted them to establish their own church. Ghanaians left the traditional churches in droves to attend these new churches that had a style in message and in worship that appealed to the youth.
Suddenly, it was not enough to have been baptised into churches that had been in existence for hundreds of years. For salvation, one ought to have made that crucial step towards a pastor to receive “the baptism of the holy spirit.” Suddenly, you were either with us and going to heaven or with them and going to hell. Suddenly, you were either one of us and listened to gospel or one of them and listened to “wiase ndwom” Sales in gospel music blossomed and a multi-million cedi industry was born.
The young reverends, bishops and evangelists, once they could as much as whistle a tune, joined the industry. Their titles lent some credibility to their records. Listening to their records became a religious experience and the financial rewards were enormous. So if the pastor could not sing, then maybe his wife, who would also often carry the title of Reverend, might be able to get an album out. Few missed this opportunity to make hay while the sun shone. Any churchgoer who could sing a bit and was able to save some money also made a gospel album. It did not matter whether they started going to church last week.
With a churchgoing community ever ready to fork out to assist Brother John or Sister Mary, a profit was almost always assured. Not having to face the harsh unpredictable reality of the music market however meant that often times quality was compromised. In fact gospel songs are the best-selling and yet the worse produced music one could hear on our airwaves. Not only that, whiles our hi-life and hip life artists invest large sums of money to make good videos, our gospel artist hardly see the need to do that and their typical video consists of the singer waving a white handkerchief by a fountain while Brother Kwesi and Sister Jennifer dance stiffly behind. Lack of competition breeds over-confidence and the Ghanaian music lover is the one who suffers.
I dare anyone listen to Prof Kofi Abraham’s albums in the seventies and compare with recent releases to see whether thirty years on, the quality has changed. In fact, the quality and musicianship on Prof Abraham’s records is much higher despite the vast improvement in studio facilities recently. Ghanaians are being taken for granted. People invest as little as possible in gospel and rely on the loyalty and sympathy of churchgoers to sell their records and make millions in profit.
Listen to Ghana Beats on a Sunday and try momentarily ignoring your Christian inclinations and the sympathies thereof and you would be surprised how bad the music is. Most of the songs sound the same and it soon becomes obvious that in most cases, these are people out to make a quick buck. Gospel lovers have no alternative but to put up with this. We have been indoctrinated to believe, that Ben Brako’s well-produced Baya album for instance is “wiase ndwom” even though the bible allows for expression of diverse emotions and the album actually addresses pertinent social issues.
Our experienced, talented and successful artists are no longer coming out with the occasional good gospel piece for fear of being ridiculed and accused of doing it “just for the money” Daddy Lumba’s “Mesom Jesus” – a brilliant song on all accounts was ridiculed. People could not reconcile the Lumba of “Obi ato me so boo” and the Lumba of “Mesom Jesus”. The churches have thus high jacked gospel music for good.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with people making a good living from ministering to their countrymen through song and I am sure every lyric is heartfelt and the personal lives of the singers are an example to us all. However, if people are going to be discouraged from listening to good conventional Ghanaian music such as is produced by Kojo Antwi, Ofori Amponsah, Dr Paa Bobo and Samini then the least that we’d expect is gospel music of similar quality. Unfortunately, at the moment, this is not forthcoming.
Papa Appiah
Who was nursed at my mother’s breast,
Then if I found you outside
I would kiss you and no one would mind…”
These are not the lyrics of a “wiase ndwom.” These are words from the Song of Songs in the bible. And there are more. For whoever wrote Solomon’s Song of Songs appreciated the beauty of poetry and understood that poetry nourished the human soul. Song of Songs enriches the bible and its story of love adds to the politics, murder, miracles, adultery, magic and wars that grace the good book. For the bible is after all, a human story, with all the attendant strengths and weaknesses.
In times gone by, Ghanaian musicians, the poets that they were, sang about life as they experienced daily. So when Egya Koo Nimo remembered the experience of failing examinations in Europe, he wrote “Adesua ye ya.” When Kaakeku wrote “Driver nyi na meware no” where he claimed even a driver who was out of work could earn money as a bookman and this job security made them ideal husbands, Kwabena Onyina responded with “Ye no Waawa ma Yenkodo” where he extolled the virtues of farmers.
Every now and again when the “spirit” descended on them, Ghanaian musicians would sing in praise of their maker and his bountiful gifts to mankind. So for example, Bob Pinodo’s most popular song is “Eye me se, Mento Ndwom Nnyi Awuradze Aye”, though he was not usually a gospel singer. Every now and again, CK Mann, Nana Ampadu and Pat Thomas would depart from their usual styles and sing gospels. When you bought their albums, you were exposed to a variety of emotions that made the listening experience richer. Gospel music belonged to everyone. Nobody criticised them for singing gospel, for sinful as we all were, we understood, that they had as much right as anyone else to praise their maker and I am sure angels rejoiced in heaven whenever the musical platform was used to honour His name, irrespective of who the singer was.
My earliest recollection of gospel music as we have now was when Prof Kofi Abraham released great songs like Enkaa Akyi, Fa Wadesoa, Okwan Bi and Di kan Ma Mendi Wakyi in the seventies. His pioneering role inspired other gospel singers like Yaw Sarpong, Asiedu Teku and many others. Even then, gospel remained a minority genre. Then the great mushrooming of Evangelical Churches began as every bible school student got a vision that God wanted them to establish their own church. Ghanaians left the traditional churches in droves to attend these new churches that had a style in message and in worship that appealed to the youth.
Suddenly, it was not enough to have been baptised into churches that had been in existence for hundreds of years. For salvation, one ought to have made that crucial step towards a pastor to receive “the baptism of the holy spirit.” Suddenly, you were either with us and going to heaven or with them and going to hell. Suddenly, you were either one of us and listened to gospel or one of them and listened to “wiase ndwom” Sales in gospel music blossomed and a multi-million cedi industry was born.
The young reverends, bishops and evangelists, once they could as much as whistle a tune, joined the industry. Their titles lent some credibility to their records. Listening to their records became a religious experience and the financial rewards were enormous. So if the pastor could not sing, then maybe his wife, who would also often carry the title of Reverend, might be able to get an album out. Few missed this opportunity to make hay while the sun shone. Any churchgoer who could sing a bit and was able to save some money also made a gospel album. It did not matter whether they started going to church last week.
With a churchgoing community ever ready to fork out to assist Brother John or Sister Mary, a profit was almost always assured. Not having to face the harsh unpredictable reality of the music market however meant that often times quality was compromised. In fact gospel songs are the best-selling and yet the worse produced music one could hear on our airwaves. Not only that, whiles our hi-life and hip life artists invest large sums of money to make good videos, our gospel artist hardly see the need to do that and their typical video consists of the singer waving a white handkerchief by a fountain while Brother Kwesi and Sister Jennifer dance stiffly behind. Lack of competition breeds over-confidence and the Ghanaian music lover is the one who suffers.
I dare anyone listen to Prof Kofi Abraham’s albums in the seventies and compare with recent releases to see whether thirty years on, the quality has changed. In fact, the quality and musicianship on Prof Abraham’s records is much higher despite the vast improvement in studio facilities recently. Ghanaians are being taken for granted. People invest as little as possible in gospel and rely on the loyalty and sympathy of churchgoers to sell their records and make millions in profit.
Listen to Ghana Beats on a Sunday and try momentarily ignoring your Christian inclinations and the sympathies thereof and you would be surprised how bad the music is. Most of the songs sound the same and it soon becomes obvious that in most cases, these are people out to make a quick buck. Gospel lovers have no alternative but to put up with this. We have been indoctrinated to believe, that Ben Brako’s well-produced Baya album for instance is “wiase ndwom” even though the bible allows for expression of diverse emotions and the album actually addresses pertinent social issues.
Our experienced, talented and successful artists are no longer coming out with the occasional good gospel piece for fear of being ridiculed and accused of doing it “just for the money” Daddy Lumba’s “Mesom Jesus” – a brilliant song on all accounts was ridiculed. People could not reconcile the Lumba of “Obi ato me so boo” and the Lumba of “Mesom Jesus”. The churches have thus high jacked gospel music for good.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with people making a good living from ministering to their countrymen through song and I am sure every lyric is heartfelt and the personal lives of the singers are an example to us all. However, if people are going to be discouraged from listening to good conventional Ghanaian music such as is produced by Kojo Antwi, Ofori Amponsah, Dr Paa Bobo and Samini then the least that we’d expect is gospel music of similar quality. Unfortunately, at the moment, this is not forthcoming.
Papa Appiah
Wednesday, 9 May 2007
Sunday, 14 January 2007
PAPA APPIAH – MEMORIES OF
AFRICA
There was a time in Ghana, not long ago, when musical preferences were as polarized as political inclination, or even worse, support for Hearts or Kotoko. Many Ghanaians listened to Nana Kwame Ampadu, A.B. Crentsil or C.K. Mann. But the youth of the time, especially those in our educational institutions, even when they listened to “Agartha hwe menim” privately, liked to be seen by their peers to identify with black American music or reggae. So when we all had those Saturday nights in secondary school we loved so much, we did not play One Man 1000 or Obuoba J.A Adofo. We listened to Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Brass Construction, Earth, Wind and Fire, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Eric Donaldson.
There was George Darko, a man very few had heard about. He came and said, that if the thumping funky drum beat was what our youth craved for, then why not oblige their wish, and still sing our hi-life. “Akoo tse Brofo” was born and hi-life was never the same again. The youth took to the new style and were now happy to listen, not only to George Darko, but to Rex Gyamfi, C.K Frimpong and many other musicians, mainly within the diaspora, who came back to impress us with the new synthesiser sounds then in vogue. Daddy Lumba was to follow that trend and has become arguably the most successful exponent of that style.
There was Reggie Rockstone, a man very few had heard about. He came and said that giving the youth the thumping funky drums and the synthesiser sound was not enough. We could actually rap our language in the same way the MC Hammers of America were doing at the time. Hiplife was born and singing was gone. The Lord Kenyas and S Does were to follow.
There was Okyeame Kofi and Okyeame Kwame, who in releasing Maasan Aba, proved to all and sundry that a combination of rap and local hi-life rhythms worked exceedingly well. Hiplife was thus given a broader appeal and Ghanaians from all walks of life began to enjoy it. The rest, as they say, is history. The days when musicians like Abrantee Amakye Dede and the late Senior Eddie Donkor had to serve apprenticeships for many years before going alone are long gone. Young intelligent people are coming straight out of our educational institutions and going straight into music. Tic Tac, Obuor, Ofori Amponsah and Obrafuor, to mention but a few, have raised the musical bar to dizzying heights.
There have been a few musicians over the years who have refused to follow any trends and stubbornly maintained their own styles. Kojo Antwi’s music defies classification. It’s just bloody good music. Amakye Dede’s music is hilife but the style is unique. Ben Brako came at the height of the bugger hi-life revolution but sang a unique kind of hi-life that has stood the test of time. His Baya album released about sixteen years ago is still selling.
Then there was Papa Appiah! No you haven’t heard of him. I heard his music only yesterday and felt moved enough to write this piece. His newly released Memories of Africa album is very special indeed. Like Ben Brako’s, most of the songs are probably hi-life, but very much unlike anything you may have heard before. The eight songs on the album also differ so much from one to the other, that were it not for Papas ever present passionate, emotional, gravely voice, you could well be listening to eight different composers. Adjoa Serwaa on track 1 is hi-life but could well be jazz. The title track, Memories of Africa, is penned in the pan-african style of which Osibisa is the most famous exponent. My favourite track is however the up-tempo catchy All night Long on track two which is sure to send music lovers, well, dancing all night long.
In making this album, Papa put together a collection of crack musicians including Alfred Kari Bannerman of Bombaya and Osibisa fame on guitar, Love Papa Kwabina on drums and Emmanuel Afram on bass. Tony Robinson and Garry Birtles are the regular horns men of the Beautiful South and their melodious rhythms impart a certain solemnity to the sound. Paulina Oduro and Gloria Wiafe Akenteng, ably directed by sound genius Adam Ellis of Deadline Studios in Leicester, UK, sound like angels and complement Papa’s voice admirably. Papa Appiah plays the rhythm guitar on the rather emotional track 8 – I’ll be Gone.
Papa Appiah has a few things in common with Ben Brako. They both insist on their own style irrespective of whatever is in vogue. They both used the services of the best instrumentalist of the time. They are both fantes. They both released their debuts at an older age and last but not least, they both went to St Augustine’s College in Cape Coast. I think it’s something to do with the sea breeze at Augusco. They are all a bit cr…… (I won’t tell you which school I went to).
The writing at the back of this CD aptly sums up the feeling in this wonderful piece of work….
For all of you who have left loved ones at home and dream of happier days long gone…
For all those who yearn for bantama kelewele, kwasiada anopa mmotuo and circle kenkey and fish…..
For our people back home who toil to keep our dreams alive….
Memories of Africa…. Enjoy it.
John Watson, freelance journalist
AFRICA
There was a time in Ghana, not long ago, when musical preferences were as polarized as political inclination, or even worse, support for Hearts or Kotoko. Many Ghanaians listened to Nana Kwame Ampadu, A.B. Crentsil or C.K. Mann. But the youth of the time, especially those in our educational institutions, even when they listened to “Agartha hwe menim” privately, liked to be seen by their peers to identify with black American music or reggae. So when we all had those Saturday nights in secondary school we loved so much, we did not play One Man 1000 or Obuoba J.A Adofo. We listened to Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Brass Construction, Earth, Wind and Fire, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Eric Donaldson.
There was George Darko, a man very few had heard about. He came and said, that if the thumping funky drum beat was what our youth craved for, then why not oblige their wish, and still sing our hi-life. “Akoo tse Brofo” was born and hi-life was never the same again. The youth took to the new style and were now happy to listen, not only to George Darko, but to Rex Gyamfi, C.K Frimpong and many other musicians, mainly within the diaspora, who came back to impress us with the new synthesiser sounds then in vogue. Daddy Lumba was to follow that trend and has become arguably the most successful exponent of that style.
There was Reggie Rockstone, a man very few had heard about. He came and said that giving the youth the thumping funky drums and the synthesiser sound was not enough. We could actually rap our language in the same way the MC Hammers of America were doing at the time. Hiplife was born and singing was gone. The Lord Kenyas and S Does were to follow.
There was Okyeame Kofi and Okyeame Kwame, who in releasing Maasan Aba, proved to all and sundry that a combination of rap and local hi-life rhythms worked exceedingly well. Hiplife was thus given a broader appeal and Ghanaians from all walks of life began to enjoy it. The rest, as they say, is history. The days when musicians like Abrantee Amakye Dede and the late Senior Eddie Donkor had to serve apprenticeships for many years before going alone are long gone. Young intelligent people are coming straight out of our educational institutions and going straight into music. Tic Tac, Obuor, Ofori Amponsah and Obrafuor, to mention but a few, have raised the musical bar to dizzying heights.
There have been a few musicians over the years who have refused to follow any trends and stubbornly maintained their own styles. Kojo Antwi’s music defies classification. It’s just bloody good music. Amakye Dede’s music is hilife but the style is unique. Ben Brako came at the height of the bugger hi-life revolution but sang a unique kind of hi-life that has stood the test of time. His Baya album released about sixteen years ago is still selling.
Then there was Papa Appiah! No you haven’t heard of him. I heard his music only yesterday and felt moved enough to write this piece. His newly released Memories of Africa album is very special indeed. Like Ben Brako’s, most of the songs are probably hi-life, but very much unlike anything you may have heard before. The eight songs on the album also differ so much from one to the other, that were it not for Papas ever present passionate, emotional, gravely voice, you could well be listening to eight different composers. Adjoa Serwaa on track 1 is hi-life but could well be jazz. The title track, Memories of Africa, is penned in the pan-african style of which Osibisa is the most famous exponent. My favourite track is however the up-tempo catchy All night Long on track two which is sure to send music lovers, well, dancing all night long.
In making this album, Papa put together a collection of crack musicians including Alfred Kari Bannerman of Bombaya and Osibisa fame on guitar, Love Papa Kwabina on drums and Emmanuel Afram on bass. Tony Robinson and Garry Birtles are the regular horns men of the Beautiful South and their melodious rhythms impart a certain solemnity to the sound. Paulina Oduro and Gloria Wiafe Akenteng, ably directed by sound genius Adam Ellis of Deadline Studios in Leicester, UK, sound like angels and complement Papa’s voice admirably. Papa Appiah plays the rhythm guitar on the rather emotional track 8 – I’ll be Gone.
Papa Appiah has a few things in common with Ben Brako. They both insist on their own style irrespective of whatever is in vogue. They both used the services of the best instrumentalist of the time. They are both fantes. They both released their debuts at an older age and last but not least, they both went to St Augustine’s College in Cape Coast. I think it’s something to do with the sea breeze at Augusco. They are all a bit cr…… (I won’t tell you which school I went to).
The writing at the back of this CD aptly sums up the feeling in this wonderful piece of work….
For all of you who have left loved ones at home and dream of happier days long gone…
For all those who yearn for bantama kelewele, kwasiada anopa mmotuo and circle kenkey and fish…..
For our people back home who toil to keep our dreams alive….
Memories of Africa…. Enjoy it.
John Watson, freelance journalist
Friday, 12 January 2007
MEMORIES OF AFRICA
Memories of Africa, the new album by Papa Appiah may someday become
a hit, or it may not. Be it as it may, posterity will remember Papa Appiah as the guy who came from nowhere, did his own thing and left, leaving a train of baffled music lovers behind.
This album is distinctly Ghanaian and yet different. Are you confused? You are not alone. For while hye me bo (track 4) and all night long (track 2) are distinctly hi-life, adjoa serwaa (track 1) has an obvious jazzy influence to it. The title track could easily have come from an Osibisa repertoire both in the nature of the nostalgic lyrics and the guitar rhythms. Is old tradition (track 5) reggae? What about the mid-tempo love (track 6)? This album goes beyond conventional classification. It is Papa Appiah’s music and the tracks differ so much from one to the other, that were it not for the ever present passionate, emotional, gravelly voice of Papa, one could well be listening to eight different composers. You would never get bored listening to this album.
Shunning the current trend of computer programming, Papa put together a crack team of top musicians to make this album. The pan-african guitar rhythms stem from the one and only Kari Bannerman of Boombaya and Osibisa fame. Love Paapa Kwabina does his own thing on drums. Gary Birtles and Tony Robinson are the regular horns men of the Beautiful South and they lend a certain solemnity to the tunes. Paulina Oduro and Gloria
Wiafe Akenteng do a brilliant job on the backing vocals. The message in the album cover aptly sums up the feeling in this piece of work;
For all of you who have left loved ones at home and dream each day of happier times long gone…..
For all those who yearn for Bantama kelewele, kwasiada anopa mmotuo and circle kenkey and fish…..
For our people back home who toil daily to keep our dreams alive…..
Memories of Africa…..enjoy it.
John Watson
Freelance journalist
.
Memories of Africa, the new album by Papa Appiah may someday become
a hit, or it may not. Be it as it may, posterity will remember Papa Appiah as the guy who came from nowhere, did his own thing and left, leaving a train of baffled music lovers behind.
This album is distinctly Ghanaian and yet different. Are you confused? You are not alone. For while hye me bo (track 4) and all night long (track 2) are distinctly hi-life, adjoa serwaa (track 1) has an obvious jazzy influence to it. The title track could easily have come from an Osibisa repertoire both in the nature of the nostalgic lyrics and the guitar rhythms. Is old tradition (track 5) reggae? What about the mid-tempo love (track 6)? This album goes beyond conventional classification. It is Papa Appiah’s music and the tracks differ so much from one to the other, that were it not for the ever present passionate, emotional, gravelly voice of Papa, one could well be listening to eight different composers. You would never get bored listening to this album.
Shunning the current trend of computer programming, Papa put together a crack team of top musicians to make this album. The pan-african guitar rhythms stem from the one and only Kari Bannerman of Boombaya and Osibisa fame. Love Paapa Kwabina does his own thing on drums. Gary Birtles and Tony Robinson are the regular horns men of the Beautiful South and they lend a certain solemnity to the tunes. Paulina Oduro and Gloria
Wiafe Akenteng do a brilliant job on the backing vocals. The message in the album cover aptly sums up the feeling in this piece of work;
For all of you who have left loved ones at home and dream each day of happier times long gone…..
For all those who yearn for Bantama kelewele, kwasiada anopa mmotuo and circle kenkey and fish…..
For our people back home who toil daily to keep our dreams alive…..
Memories of Africa…..enjoy it.
John Watson
Freelance journalist
.
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