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Benjamin Aidoo reflects on donating money to Ukraine, leading Showmax’s ‘My Perfect Funeral’
● Benjamin Aidoo
From becoming a global sensation for his coffin dance meme (an image, video or piece of text, typically humorous in nature, that is copied and spread rapidly by internet users) to finally selling the meme as Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT )— a certificate to say you own something digitally, Benjamin Aidoo has had quite a journey.
And his luck is not about to run out anytime soon as the prominent Ghanaian pallbearer is now the face of the Showmax Original reality series ‘My Perfect Funeral.’
The 10-part Ghanaian series, which was launched in December 2022, follows five families as they prepare to bury their loved ones.
In this Showmax interview made available to The Spectator, Benjamin talks about ‘My Perfect Funeral,’ and his reasons for featuring on the show, donating his money from the meme auction to Ukraine and why the world should expect more funeral memes from him and his group.
What made you decide to be part of My Perfect Funeral?
It was to honour my friend Tommy Lee (one of the pioneers of our pallbearers’ group) and my adopted father, who both passed away. I wanted to do this for them so that the world can see and understand what celebration of life means. Being on this show made that possible.
In your own words, what would you describe as a perfect funeral?
For me, a perfect funeral means having a successful and timely funeral, regardless of any issues that may arise like family disagreements or anything else.
As a pallbearer, what has been the most interesting funeral you’ve attended so far?
There’s one I attended where someone was buried with a special coffin. The deceased was a tomato seller, and she was buried in a fancy coffin which was carved as a box of tomatoes. While we carried and danced with the coffin, people were throwing tomatoes at us. I don’t know whether they were aiming at the pallbearers or the coffin but it was very interesting. I have never witnessed something like that before and I loved it.
What lessons do you hope ‘My Perfect Funeral’ imparts to viewers in Ghana and across Africa?
Life is too short, therefore, enjoy it. Forgive easily, respect nature and honour humans because you don’t know when and where you’re going to die.
Earlier in April 2022, you sold your coffin dance meme
at 327 ETH ($1,045,409), one of the highest meme auctions in history. How did it feel to earn this much money?
It was a great feeling, but most importantly, I felt happy that we were able to give back by donating some of this money to Ukraine to help the country get back on its feet.
Did you feel any loss to see the meme go to a new owner?
No, because I’m just happy and grateful that God has been so good to me. I’m very passionate about what I do, I’m hoping that soon, everybody around the world is going to hear about my work or even adopt it.
It’s been months since you sold the meme. Has this sale impacted your life in any way? And has it impacted the way people in Ghana interact with you?
The answer is both yes and no. Ghanaians are out for my neck because they know that the money is there but they don’t know the ins and outs of it all. Part of the money from the sale went to charity in Ukraine. We need to give back to society as part of our journey and where we’re coming from.
With that money, I’m helping the needy in my community and also supporting my team of pallbearers because I have more than a 100 guys working with me and we do a lot of projects. So yes, that money has impacted a lot and there’s more to come.
Should we expect more funeral memes from you?
Yes, I’d say you should expect more funeral memes from us very soon because there’s music and dance and a whole lot of play on social media.
Catch Benjamin Aidoo as he helps families give their loved ones a fitting send-off in My Perfect Funeral streaming on Showmax, with new episodes every Thursday.
Source: Showmax
President John Dramani Mahama has commissioned four career diplomats as ambassador-designates to represent Ghana in four countries.
The commissioning ceremony took place on Friday, October 16, 2026.
The new envoys are Her Excellency Nana Antwiwaa Dodoo, Ambassador-Designate to Angola; His Excellency Louis Kwame Obeng, Ambassador-Designate to Qatar; Her Excellency Evelyn Korantemaa Ofosu-Amable, Ambassador-Designate to Israel; and His Excellency Jedidiah Reuben Adogla, Permanent Representative-Designate to Switzerland.
President Mahama charged them to advance Ghana’s national interests through strategic partnerships, economic diplomacy, investment mobilization, and expanded access to international markets.
He said Ghana’s diplomatic engagements must deliver tangible economic benefits, create jobs, and strengthen the country’s standing on the international stage.
The four envoys are career diplomats with over 27 years of experience.
On behalf of her colleagues, Her Excellency Nana Antwiwaa Dodoo thanked the President for the confidence reposed in them and pledged their commitment to emulate his leadership and deliver on the mandate given to them.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
The professor who spends his days exploring the intricacies of African languages found himself at the centre of a different kind of lesson on Friday, October 2, 2026. 
This time, there were no lecture notes, academic arguments or university classrooms. Instead, there was the weight of tradition, the rhythm of a community celebration and the solemnity of an oath at a royal palace.
Professor Ọbádélé Kambon, a full Professor of African Linguistics at the University of Ghana, was enstooled as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene of Akuapem Mampong in the Eastern Region in a ceremony that brought academia and traditional authority together.
For the professor, the occasion was more than a new title. It was a moment that connected his academic interests in African languages and indigenous knowledge with the living traditions of an Akan community.
The day’s events unfolded through a series of customary observances. Kambon was first taken to the compounds of the Ɔkyeamehene and Gyasehene, where the preparations for his installation continued.
Then came the application of hyire, the white kaolin powder associated with traditional rites.
With the customary proceedings underway, the new chief was lifted onto the shoulders of celebrants and carried along the main thoroughfare of Akuapem Mampong.
The procession transformed the streets into a public stage for a ceremony rooted in the community’s traditional institutions.
There was something striking about the image, a university professor, accustomed to the measured language of academic discourse, being carried through the town in a display of traditional recognition.
Yet the celebration was not complete with the procession.
A ram was sacrificed at the Mamponghene’s compound before Kambon was taken to the palace, to swear the oath associated with his new offices.
The ceremony brought him formally into his roles as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene.
Beyond the colourful proceedings, the titles themselves carry layers of historical meaning.
Kambon in his research explores the historical connections between Apagya and Akan political and military organisation.
Accounts cited in his work linked Apagya to an asafo, or military company, while historical writing traces an Apagya stool in Asante to the reign of Opoku Ware I in the eighteenth century.
These historical associations offer a glimpse into the institutions that have shaped Akan society over generations, although they do not automatically define the precise responsibilities of the office in Akuapem Mampong.
Kambon’s own professional life reflects a similar interest in preserving and examining African knowledge.
His work encompasses Akan language structure, naming practices across the Black world, proverbs and indigenous intellectual traditions.
Through Abibitumi, the platform he founded, he also promotes language learning, scholarship and cultural engagement.
But tradition was only one part of the story that day.
When the formal ceremony gave way to a reception, the occasion expanded into a celebration of three milestones: Kambon’s enstoolment, his promotion to full professor and his daughter Ama’s admission to the University of Ghana.
The gathering therefore carried a personal significance that went beyond the honours bestowed on one man. 
It celebrated professional advancement, the continuation of family aspirations and a connection to cultural heritage.
For a father, seeing a daughter gain admission to the same university where he holds a distinguished academic position offered another reason to celebrate.
For the professor, the moment placed family achievement alongside his own professional and traditional milestones.
Kambon had already established a place in the traditional life of Akuapem Mampɔn through an earlier installation as Banmuhene Kyidɔmhene, recorded in 2017.
His latest enstoolment adds another chapter to that relationship.
In Akuapem Mampɔn, the day brought together the university, the palace and the family table in one celebration. And for Kambon, the journey from the lecture room to the traditional procession showed how scholarship, cultural responsibility and family achievement could converge in a single memorable occasion.
By Enoch Ntiamoah Siaw
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