Features
Eating ourselves to the grave
We eat to live, right? A good, balanced and healthy diet, we are told, keeps the doctor away. Food is the only natural and most effective medicine known to Man. The only adverse medical conditions that I know could cause death are bulimia and anorexia. I cook; and I love cooking. Being a vegetarian even makes it more imperative for me to be mindful of what I eat. As a result I frequent the market for my groceries.
What I see in the market these days gives me the creeps. I have taken my time to figure out how some of the foodstuffs we buy are treated, and my findings reveal an astonishing array of ignorance and downright evil intent from some of the traders in our markets.
Let me deal with the easy consumables. In order to maximise profits some traders resort to mixing groundnut paste with cassava powder, locally called kokonte. This gives a bigger volume to the paste and the customer is none the wiser. Assuming you were a diabetic who must avoid starch at all costs, what do you think this will do to your health? Avocado seed is chopped into little bits, dried, ground and mixed with powdered pepper. I am told avocado seed contains medicinal properties, but that cannot be the reason traders do this.
Palm oil is mixed with a toxic red dye to give it a more attractive red colour. Paradoxically, palm oil is one of the healthiest consumable vegetable oils in our parts. The others are groundnut oil, coconut oil, palm kernel oil and Shea butter oil. Similar colouring is done to salted lamb chunks (popularly called tolo-bifi) by the market women for whatever reasons known only to them. That I am a vegetarian does not mean I should not be concerned with what others consume. When my daughters were in the University, and because I had no right to impose my diet on them, I would go to the market to get condiments to prepare soups and stews for them.
Why do these traders do this? Is it because they are ignorant of the consequences of their actions or it is just a diabolic, evil intent to harm their clients/consumers? I once asked a woman who sold salted mutton chunks at the Kaneshie market in Accra if she ate the dyed meat at home. Her response was that because she sold it, it was like she had seen too much of it so it ceased to be a part of her diet.
I bought veal, mutton, crabs, salmon, tuna, tilapia and other smoked fish to cook for my children. Having been brought up near the coast, I knew good fish when I saw one. The only thing I excluded from the meals to my children was cow-hide (wele) because it has no nutritional value whatsoever. It was a delicacy for them though.
Let me take on the cooked food sellers briefly: Personally, I hardly eat from outside my home. However, occasionally I go for sinkafa-da-waakye (cooked rice and beans), but to save firewood, the women add too much of saltpeter (they call it kanwe) to soften the beans fast. Now, kenkey, another staple has joined the fray for saltpeter application, to the extent that kenkey has become so soft you can hardly leave it without refrigeration for a day without it going bad. Just a decade and a half ago I could leave kenkey on my dining table for a week,then heat it up for consumption. Kenkey cannot stay in the fridge for a week nowadays. It turns mouldy rather quickly.
Then is all manner of poisonous seasoning all over the place in the guise of spices. Potassium glutamate readily comes to mind. Some of these things add a false appetising aroma to the cooked food just to entice the consumer. Some of these come in the form of cubes, the favourite of lazy housewives. What has happened to the natural spices of garlic, onion/shallot, kpakposhitor, ginger, nutmeg and cloves blended together?
A health consultant tells me that excessive saltpeter consumption corrodes the mucus that lines the intestinal walls, thus slowing down movement of what we ingest down the digestive track. This, according to her, causes pain as the food rubs against the exposed walls of the intestine. Sadly, our health authorities are more interested in checking the health status of the food vendors not the quality of the food they sell to the public.
Do we blame the poor food vendor? Less than two decades ago Ghana flared Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) into the atmosphere. Then some smart alec decided we could encourage our countrymen to stop cutting down trees for firewood so they could use the LPG for domestic use instead. The reason was to prevent deforestation. Ghanaians bought into the idea and started patronising the LPG, realising it was cheaper than firewood. As I write, LPG is beyond the reach of the ordinary Ghanaian. Petroleum products have become the cash-cow for tax revenue.
Now, back to the traders. In fact, they can be forgiven for some of the stuff they sell. A few years ago I used to buy tomatoes in bulk, spread them out on newsprint on the floor and use them as and when I needed them. Right now, ripe tomatoes cannot last three days in the fridge. Same goes for many vegetables. You cannot keep okra for more than a day; it will develop dark blotches on the skin. Same goes with green pepper, cauliflower and many of the green leafy vegetables.
We used to keep yams for weeks, but if you take a tuber of yam now you have to ensure you cook the whole tuber else it gets rotten the very next day. Even if the rest is refrigerated it must be cooked within 48 hours. Our agriculture scientists are not telling us what is going on. Is anything wrong with the soil? Does this phenomenon have to do with the agro-chemicals used by the farmers? Why is no one telling us anything?
I saw a video clip of lettuce being washed with detergent. I watched another where what looked like spinach is soaked in some chemical solution so it would look fresh to the consumer. Mango, avocado, orange and papaya are doused with chemicals to speed up their ripening.
I hear there is an Authority on food and drugs. Can someone please tell me what they do? I ask because methinks we are eating ourselves to the grave and no one seems to care about us. Let me also ask if we have standards for the food we eat or the stuff we purchase? Do we have those? We are constantly admonished to eat healthy, yet the things we buy to put together as a meal give us cause for worry. Is it any wonder cases of diabetes are on the rise? Liver and kidney ailments are on the increase. What do the people we put in charge of our very existence do with statistics from our health facilities? Until they wake up to the reality and save us, shall we continue to eat ourselves to the grave?
By Dr. Akofa K. Segbefia
akofa45@yahoo.com
Indeed, numerous Ghanaians across the regions, all over Africa, and even people from other parts of the world were struck with sadness and grief upon hearing the sudden passing of the former First Lady of Ghana, Her Excellency Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings, which occurred on the black day of Thursday, October 23, 2025.
Very often, it is difficult to believe the death of very high-profile persons in our communities, country, and even across the world, as recently witnessed in the passing of this indefatigable leader.
Former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings was the better half of the indomitable former President of Ghana, His Excellency, the late Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings, who ruled Ghana for a record period of 18 years.
His Excellency Jerry John Rawlings, alongside his able men like Osahene Boakye Gyan, Akatapore, and other young army officers, shook the political foundations of this country for a brief period from June 4 to the end of September 1979. Following the general election, His Excellency Jerry John Rawlings handed over power to the late President, His Excellency Dr. Hilla Limann of the People’s National Convention (PNC), in a colorful national ceremony amidst pomp and pageantry.
Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings and other colleagues in the Ghana Armed Forces, dissatisfied with the PNC Government’s administration—which was considered volatile at the time—staged another coup to topple the Limann Administration on December 31, 1981. After a successful dispensation, he reassumed the position of Head of State under the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC), remaining in power until 2000 when, following the general election, he handed over power from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to former President His Excellency John Agyekum Kufuor of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
It is noteworthy that from the June 4 period of 1979, stretching up to the 2000 general election, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings was very vocal in Ghana’s political administration.
Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings not only actively supported her husband to realize his political ambitions but also made a lasting impact across Ghana by tirelessly advocating for women’s emancipation in social, economic, and political spheres.
Consider her dynamic role in the formation of the 31st December Women’s Group. She established various food processing industries in multiple towns and villages to empower women economically.
There were countless other initiatives through which she encouraged and benefited not only women but also numerous families, enabling them to lead meaningful lives. For instance, the family home of Nene Kofi Opey-Fiagbor in Adjikpo-Amlakpo, Somanya, was highly privileged to welcome Her Excellency Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings anytime she visited.
On a Saturday in early January 1983, she visited to seek the hand of one of our beautiful sisters, Lucy Kpodjie, for Alex Dautey, who was then one of her husband’s military guards at the Castle in Osu-Accra. How can we, as a family, ever forget such a diligent, graceful, and distinguished person like her in our memories?
Your Excellency, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings, your loss is deeply felt and irreplaceable for Mother Ghana. We all join the Rawlings immediate family in Accra, the people of Asanteman, the Keta people of her late husband, and the National Democratic Congress, which she helped found, alongside the President and Government of Ghana, to mourn this loss.
To a highly beloved and illustrious daughter of Ghana: may Mother Earth lie lightly upon your body as your precious soul rests in perfect peace in the bosom of the Good Lord, until the resurrection day when we shall all meet again. Fare thee well!
DAMIRIFA DUE! DUENI AMANEHUNU!
By J. K. Tetteh Kpodjie
Concerned Citizen
Somanya
0557672086
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Sometime ago, money-doubling used to be a very lucrative trade for people who had the skill. But it all depended on the availability of street-lights, which were used as accessories in the money-doubling schemes. The more street-lights that were available, the more likely it was that money would be doubled.
Money has indeed been doubled for people—civil servants, pastors, journalists, and diplomats. People suspected of being naive and carrying cash were conned into believing their money could be doubled without chanting. All they had to do was place their money under a ‘sacred’ stone, then walk in a certain direction, counting ten street-lights in the process without looking back.
“If you look back, you’ll go mad, wallahi!” they were warned, to ensure obedience. After counting the ten street-lights, participants were told to return and collect their doubled money under the ‘divine’ stone with jubilation. And for a moment, it seemed real—the cash appeared doubled. The problem, of course, was that the entire sum was nothing but newspaper cut to fit the currency size. At first, victims would be amazed, thinking they were hallucinating, only to frantically realize the trick. Meanwhile, the money-doublers would vanish miles away with the real cash.
In this era, money-doubling schemes often occur around payday, when people have just received their salaries. Those with ¢80,000 in hand could be tempted with the promise of returning home with ¢160,000. But in reality, many end up empty-handed, learning the harsh lesson of the financial culture of today.
Not long ago, Edward Alomele, who claims he is “Original Alor,” collected his pay and walked leisurely home, planning to celebrate. A wayside lottery operator noticed his bulging back pocket and thought he could easily trick him into handing over the money. But Alor was no amateur when it came to finance.
The lottery man pointed to a display of consumer items—televisions, sound systems, cookers, water heaters—and explained the game. Alor tried a sample ticket and “won” a colour television instantly. However, since he hadn’t staked money, he was told he needed to hand over his pay to claim the prize. Alor, sensing the scam, studied the man’s reaction carefully.
He deliberately wore mismatched footwear—one red canvas shoe and one green—to signal that he was not an easy target. The lottery operator realized his mistake, apologized, and acknowledged that Alor was not a naive newcomer.
Despite widespread reporting on these scams, hundreds of people fall victim every week, losing a significant portion of their salaries. Many prefer to remain silent, ashamed of having been deceived. Some notable individuals, like Devine Ankamah, have managed to dodge these traps through vigilance and experience, but the majority remain vulnerable.
Even pastors and other respected members of society have been duped by money-doublers, proving that awareness alone is often not enough. As Merari Alomele notes, “When shall we ever learn?”
This article was first published on Saturday, August 5, 1995.
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