Daasebre Kwame Atamafowiese Bonja II, the Overlord of Chonke Traditional Area, has called on Ghanaians to stop copying foreign cultures blindly as a first step to emancipate themselves.
The overlord, whose traditional authority covers Dambai in the Krachi East up to Borae, under Krachi Nchumuru District, said most Ghanaians no longer valued the traditional names and have adopted foreign names.
In an exclusive interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), Daasebre Bonja said Ghanaians embraced everything foreign more than their own and end up leaving our valued heritage in exchange for foreign ones.
He expressed concern about traditional marriage ceremonies and noted that society no longer accepted traditional marriages but rather preferred wedding ceremonies.
The Paramount Chief stated that Ghanaians traditional marriages, where parents of spouses had given consent, were termed engagement, but that was supposed to be our marriage ceremony.
He further said it was important that we emancipate ourselves from
mental slavery before extending it to fellow Ghanaians in the Diaspora.
Nana Otubea II, Paramount Queen Mother of the Nkonya Traditional Council, has underscored the need for attitudinal charge towards the promotion of the country’s culture.
She urged Ghanaians to consciously promote their culture and tourism industry, which holds the key to the development of the country’s creative economy.
Nana Otubea II, mentioned that there is the need for Ghanaians to attach significant importance to the country’s culture, which include music, tourism, arts, craft and dance as the bedrock of our development, adding ‘we cannot do away with our culture as it guides our day-to-day activities.’
She said, it is sad to observe that whilst others have improved upon their cultures to make it more competitive and a huge foreign exchange earner, we have virtually subordinated ours to foreign cultures.
She, however, stated that Ghanaian culture when promoted and valued, would enable in diverse ways to educate the people who di
d not know the true history and culture of Ghana.
Source: Ghana News Agency