Features
The saga of being Ewe… (Part 4)
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In this penultimate episode in the series I intend to address the Ewe directly. The final part will delve into the Komfo Anokye narrative.
I am accused of being a de-tribalised Ewe. To this, I plead guilty as charged. It is true I have more friends and acquaintances from other ethnic groups than from Ewe. It is not deliberate I drifted towards others in my professional career as I worked outside of Ewe land.
Apart from English, which is our official language, how often do you come across an Akan, Ga-Dangbe or Dagomba speaking another language other than their own among themselves? Virtually none. But it is common to see the Ewe speaking Twi, Fante, Ga among themselves. It beats my mind.
It is understandable if they are born out of mixed marriages where the choice is obvious. Sadly, a good number of my own siblings and cousins speak other languages among themselves. Because of this their own children follow in their footsteps to the extent that when I converse with some of them, their end of the conversation sounds Ewe patois.
Is it a lack of confidence in our identity as Ewe? Of course, no other reason can be adduced for this. Personally, I speak to friends in Twi, Fante, Ga and Guan when we meet, but never speak another language to my fellow Ewe, even de-tribalised as I am.
I have had colleagues lambast me at the workplace when I spoke Ewe to Ewe colleagues. Meanwhile, they were all comfortable speaking Akan among themselves. I am aware this happens in almost all workplaces. I do not yet know what accounts for this.
If we allow ourselves to be cowed by this behaviour of others, then we have the propensity to sell our birthright to others. We will then recoil into our closet and complain of discrimination. We can only be purchased at the price we sell ourselves.
I recollect a visit with a friend to a restaurant in Baychester area of the Bronx in summer of 2012. There were some Akan speaking women at the joint. My pal and I were chatting in Ewe. On their way out they greeted us in Twi. We responded in English that we did not understand their language.
“Are you not from Ghana?” One asked. We answered in the affirmative. “And you cannot speak Twi?” Suppressing my revulsion to this uppity, I slowly asked if Twi was Ghana’s lingua franca. “Sorry, but every Ghanaian understands Twi,” she pressed on. I shot back, asking her how many of the “every Ghanaian” she spoke to. Her companion told her in Twi, “Let’s go. You are getting the man angry.” Wishing us a good day, they sauntered to the door and into the summer sun.
I am proud of our compatriots from the north of the country. They speak their languages with such finesse and pride wherever they are. So do the Akan and the others, but not my people. Many languages have atrophied for lack of usage and Ewe is likely to follow if this attitude does not change. The Latin I read in school has only enriched my vocabulary and understanding of certain expressions but there is no one to speak it with.
The only positive thing for the Ewe language is that it is the main one in Togo and parts of Benin so if we kill it in Ghana, it will still be alive elsewhere. I cringed when I saw a niece on Whatsapp Status describing herself as “Ayigbe toffee”. How can a people accept to be called what they are not? Are we being mentally enslaved or we are allowing it?
All of a sudden we are importing other cultures into our own. It is not in Ewe culture to have a one week celebrated when a relative dies, but this has crept into our culture. We all saw the Akan display at the funeral of my own friend Jerry John Rawlings. Rawlings was not Akan. Even if it was because he was at a time our head of state, then all major traditional practices must be involved. In my estimation, Rawlings suffered an indignity at his funeral.
Also, the Akan funeral dirges are on display at Ewe funerals these days. It is true that the Ewe in the north of the Volta Region are closely linked to some Akan cultures, which is understandable, but what of the rest? The etenteben (flute) invented by Tata Dr Ephraim Amu, a native of Peki-Avetile in the Volta Region, has become the Akan instrument of choice for dirges.
The only honour for the great Ephraim Amu is a dirty road that passes by the western gate of the Central University at Mataheko in Accra.
We have condoned it and we have embraced it. If you fear to speak your language, who will speak it on your behalf? I have friends who are not Ewe meanwhile they speak the language flawlessly but among their people they speak their own language. This is the way to go.
I espied a video on social media addressing what the person referred to as Eυegbetɔwo. There is nobody or group as Eυegbetɔwo. We are Eυeawo (Ewe) and we speak Eυegbe (Ewe language). If we are even wrong in addressing who or what we are, who does the right thing for us?
Are you aware that there are more Ewe landlords in Accra than any other ethnic group except Kwahu? Yet they cannot assert themselves on the capital’s social ladder? Is it a lack of a rallying call for the Ewe to stand up and be counted?
Then there is this other thing about the Ewe being interested in juju. I have been trying to understand where this one came from. The first time I heard this was when I was in training college in the early seventies but took it as a stupid joke. Later in my interactions with people, I heard if you offended an Ewe, you are either killed or hurt through juju. If it were really so, I reckon I would have sent scores of people to their graves.
I spent ten uninterrupted years in the Volta Region and only saw mystical display at certain cultural festivities. People thrust burning fire in their mouths and strike themselves with daggers that did not cut their flesh.
I heard that if you wanted witchcraft you went to Nzema. This was after I joined my family in Koforidua. I later learnt of deities called Antoa, Akonedi, Nogokpo etc. etc. I know there are deities in almost everywhere in this country. Where do the Ewe feature in all this?
In my study of philosophy and psychology, fear-induced guilt has the potential of killing faster than any known ailment and so crystalisation of such thought forms send people to their early death and others are blamed for it.
What are the opinion leaders (Dumegāwo) doing in all these? What are Togbewo/Torgbuiwo doing to preserve the culture and traditions of the Ewe people? They are the custodians and embodiment of the soul of Eweland and must act to stem the negatives assailing their people.
Our chiefs must not be seen or heard only at festivals or when politicians come calling. We need them to lead us every minute of the day throughout their reign.
Now, I have realised that it is only in the heat of party political activities that I get the Ashanti Region pitted against Ewe. This is stoked by political activists and their masters who should know better. Truth is that the Asante generally are not tribalistic. You realise this when you live with or among them. Neither are the Ewe, so the toxic atmosphere can only be blamed on the political actors.
Ghanaians have a way of poking fun at one another without hurting one another’s sensibilities. It happens in every society, but it becomes rather serious when people we see as leaders poison the atmosphere for whatever gains only they can tell.
This is where I call on our traditional rulers to use their authority to ensure unity and camaraderie among all peoples living in their areas of traditional control. That way, everyone of us will have a sense of belonging as Ghanaians.
Writer’s email address: akofa45@yahoo.com
By Dr. Akofa K. Segbefia
“A woman who abandons her baby in a dustbin at Kasoa Lorry Station is not always a wicked woman. Sometimes, she is a wounded woman whose mind has broken, whose family has rejected her, and whose society has left her with only one terrible option: disappear or be disgraced.”
That is the hard truth Ghana must hear.
In the last 10 days alone, our nation has been confronted with the same painful headline, twice.
Case 1 – Kasoa Main Lorry Station, Central Region: A newborn baby girl was found abandoned inside a dustbin at the public toilet of the Kasoa Main Station. A woman who went to use the facility discovered the infant and raised an alarm. Commercial drivers and bystanders quickly retrieved the baby and rushed her to the Kasoa Polyclinic for emergency medical care.
Case 2 – Asante Bekwai, Ashanti Region: On Thursday morning, August 20, 2026, a two-week-old neonate was reportedly abandoned by an unknown nursing mother at Bekwai in the Ashanti Region. Residents who came across the child raised the alarm. The baby was admitted to the Bekwai Government Hospital as police commenced investigations.
Let me be clear from the start: Newborn abandonment is wrong. It is dangerous. It is criminal. And it can kill. This article does not excuse it. But if we only arrest and shame, we will never stop it. We must treat the root, not just punish the fruit.
What exactly is newborn abandonment? – The two definitions
The Legal Definition: Under Ghana’s Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), Section 96, and the Children’s Act, 1998 (Act 560), abandonment of a child under 12 years is a criminal offence. It is classified as exposure and abandonment, punishable as a misdemeanor or felony. The law sees the mother as a perpetrator.
The Psychological definition: In clinical textbooks, newborn abandonment is defined as the intentional, permanent relinquishment of all parental rights, care, and responsibilities over an infant within the first 28 days of life without making formal, legal arrangements for care.
To understand this crisis properly, we must not confuse it with child abandonment. Newborn abandonment happens within 0-28 days of life, often driven by acute panic, denial of pregnancy, or postpartum psychosis where the attachment bond never formed. Child abandonment, on the other hand, involves toddlers to teenagers where a bond existed but collapsed over time due to chronic poverty, family breakdown, or parental burnout. One is an acute crisis of the first month; the other is a chronic breakdown over years. Both are harmful, but they need different interventions.
Psychologically, newborn abandonment is the ultimate rupture of the primary attachment bond. Think of a 19-year-old university student who secretly gives birth alone in her hostel room, wraps the crying baby in a polythene bag, and drops it at a refuse dump at midnight. That is not just a crime scene; it is a scene of extreme panic and psychological dissociation.
Why would a mother carry a baby for 9 months and then abandon it?
This is the question every Ghanaian asks. If you wanted to abandon it, why not abort? The answer is deeply psychological:
1. The psychodynamics of denial of pregnancy: This is a profound defense mechanism, not a lie. The mother’s subconscious mind completely rejects the reality of the pregnancy. She does not gain weight normally, feels no kicks, does not seek antenatal care, and genuinely convinces herself she is not pregnant until sudden, shocking labour pains take her by surprise in a toilet or bedroom.
2. Fantasy of a dissolving problem: This is called cognitive avoidance. She believes “my boyfriend will come back,” “my mother will forgive me,” or “something miraculous will happen before birth.” So she waits, paralyzed, until the baby is here.
3. Barriers to safe abortion: Deep religious guilt, moral anxiety, fear of dying from a back-alley abortion, lack of money for a safe procedure, and family laws force her to carry to term even when she feels incapable.
4. The shock of reality and acute panic: Upon delivery, the physical presence and crying of the newborn shatters all denial. Confronted with immediate exposure, shame, and reality, her brain enters a trauma response — “fight, flight, or freeze.” For many, it becomes “flight” — physically escape the threat of exposure to survive socially. That is why babies are left in places where others will find them -lorry stations, churches, hospitals.
Source:
Counselor Prince Offei, CPAC’s founder, is a leading Mental Health Professional, Marriage Counsellor, Author, ADR Expert/Arbitrator, and Spectator Newspaper Columnist. He writes on relationships, marriage, parenting, special needs support, and their connection to mental health. For therapy, counselling, or enquiries, contact Counselor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC) in Accra on 0559850604 / 0551428486.
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Features
Environmental stewardship is an act of worship: The Islamic response to climate change, environmental degradation (Part 4)
The environmental consequences of illegal mining have reached alarming levels in Ghana. Several major rivers, including the Pra, Ankobra, Offin, Birim and Tano, have experienced significant pollution from illegal mining activities, increasing the cost and complexity of water treatment while threatening the availability of potable water for millions of citizens (Water Resources Commission, 2024; Ghana Water Limited, 2024). These developments underscore the urgent need for stronger environmental governance and collective action.
Islam equally emphasises accountability in governance. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) taught that every leader is responsible for those under his or her authority (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 7138; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1829). This principle extends to public officials entrusted with environmental regulation, traditional authorities responsible for communal lands, mining companies, local assemblies, and community leaders. Environmental protection cannot succeed
where accountability is absent.
At the same time, addressing galamsey requires more than law enforcement. Sustainable solutions must tackle the underlying socio-economic realities that drive individuals into illegal mining. Many young people are motivated by unemployment, poverty, and limited economic opportunities. Islamic principles of social justice therefore call for the creation of alternative livelihoods through sustainable agriculture, vocational training, responsible small-scale mining under strict environmental standards, entrepreneurship, and skills development. Environmental protection and economic empowerment should not be viewed as competing priorities but as complementary goals that promote human dignity and national development.
Faith communities also have an indispensable role to play. Mosques, churches, schools, traditional councils, and civil society organisations possess significant influence in shaping public attitudes and behaviours. Imams, in particular, should consistently remind congregations that wealth acquired through actions that destroy communities and Allah’s creation cannot be regarded as a blessing. Religious education should cultivate environmental ethics alongside spiritual devotion, reinforcing the understanding that protecting rivers, forests, and farmlands is an expression of gratitude to Allah and a fulfilment of the trust of Khalifah.
Ultimately, the struggle against galamsey is more than a campaign to protect natural resources; it is a struggle to uphold justice, preserve human dignity, and honour the trust that Allah has placed upon humanity. Lasting solutions will require strong governance, responsible citizenship, sustainable economic opportunities, and renewed moral leadership. Only when these elements
work together can Ghana safeguard its natural heritage for present and future generations.
Water conservation, waste management and sustainable development: Practical expressions of Islamic stewardship
Religious education should cultivate environmental ethics alongside spiritual devotion, reinforcing the understanding that protecting rivers, forests, and farmlands is an expression of gratitude to Allah and a fulfilment of the trust of Khalifah.
Ultimately, the struggle against galamsey is more than a campaign to protect natural resources; it is a struggle to uphold justice, preserve human dignity, and honour the trust that Allah has placed upon humanity. Lasting solutions will require strong governance, responsible citizenship, sustainable economic opportunities, and renewed moral leadership. Only when these elements
work together can Ghana safeguard its natural heritage for present and future generations.
Islam is not merely a religion that condemns environmental destruction; it also provides practical guidance for preserving and sustaining the natural world. Through its teachings on moderation, cleanliness, conservation, and responsible consumption, Islam cultivates an environmental ethic that remains remarkably relevant to contemporary challenges such as water scarcity, pollution, waste management, and climate change. These teachings encourage Muslims to become
responsible custodians of Allah’s creation in both private and public life.
Water conservation: A sacred responsibility
Water occupies a unique position in Islam as the source of life and an essential element of worship. Allah says, “And We made from water every living thing. Then will they not believe?” (Qur’an 21:30, Sahih International). This verse reminds believers that water is not merely an economic resource but a divine blessing upon which all living creatures depend. The importance of water is further reflected in Islamic acts of worship. Muslims perform ablution (wudu) before the five daily prayers and ritual bathing (ghusl) under prescribed circumstances.
Yet, despite its central role in purification, Islam strongly discourages wastefulness. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once advised one of his companions not to waste water while performing ablution, even when using water from a flowing river (Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 425). This timeless guidance establishes the principle that abundance does not justify extravagance.
Conservation remains a religious obligation regardless of the apparent availability of natural resources.
This Prophetic teaching carries profound implications for contemporary Ghana. Illegal mining has severely polluted many rivers, increasing the cost of water treatment and limiting access to safe drinking water for numerous communities. Climate change has also intensified seasonal variability in rainfall, placing additional pressure on freshwater resources (IPCC, 2023). Against this
backdrop, conserving water is no longer simply an environmental preference—it is a moral imperative grounded in Islamic teaching.
Water conservation should therefore become a shared responsibility among households, educational institutions, industries, and places of worship. Simple practices such as repairing leaking pipes, harvesting rainwater, protecting riverbanks, avoiding contamination of water bodies, and promoting efficient irrigation contribute to safeguarding one of Allah’s greatest blessings. Every effort to preserve water is an investment in public health, food security, and the
wellbeing of future generations.
Unfortunately, indiscriminate disposal of refuse remains a significant challenge in many communities. Plastic waste clogs drainage systems, contributes to flooding during the rainy season, pollutes rivers and beaches, and threatens marine ecosystems. Open burning of waste further degrades air quality and poses serious health risks, particularly for children and the elderly (UNEP,2024).
The author is Chief Imam of Katamanso Municipal and Certified Counsellor and Governnace Expert.
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