A prominent support group within the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has issued a strongly worded demand for an apology from a fellow party communicator, accusing him of making historically ignorant and culturally offensive remarks about the GaDaŋme people.
The NPP–GaDaŋme Global Support Group, through its Convener Osɔfo Nii Naate Atswele Agbo Nartey, has called on Kwaku Osei Kurankye Asiedu, widely known as KOKA, to retract recent statements that allegedly denigrate the entire ethnic group.
The controversy stems from KOKA’s critique of Dr. Randy Abbey’s appointment as Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD). While the group acknowledges that questioning a public official’s competence is a legitimate part of democratic discourse, it draws the line at what it perceives as an ethnic attack.
“One may question or criticize the competence and performance of Dr. Ransford Annetey Abbey… that is legitimate in democratic discourse. But to suggest that the Ga people ‘know only how to go to sea’ is not merely disrespectful; it is historically ignorant and culturally offensive,” the statement read.
The group argues that KOKA’s comments unfairly stereotype the GaDaŋme people, reducing their rich and varied history to a single occupation. In a robust defense of the community’s heritage, the statement highlighted the GaDaŋme as “custodians of Accra” and pioneers in trade, governance, land stewardship, and, significantly, agriculture.
‘Beyond the Sea’: A History of Agriculture
A significant portion of the group’s rebuttal was dedicated to correcting what it calls a “historical distortion” about the GaDaŋme’s role in agricultural development.
“It must be clearly stated: the GaDaŋmes were never defined solely by fishing,” the statement emphasized. It detailed that long before colonial contact, GaDaŋme communities cultivated crops like millet, maize, and cassava on farmlands stretching into the Accra plains.
The group cited the influence of the Basel Mission in the 19th century, which introduced structured farming methods and encouraged the cultivation of cash crops like cocoa, coffee, and oil palm. GaDaŋme landholders, the statement argues, were active participants in this agricultural transformation.
Furthermore, the statement placed the community within the broader narrative of Ghana’s cocoa story, noting that indigenous farmers from various ethnic backgrounds—including Akan, Ga, and Ewe—built the country’s cocoa industry through land ownership and enterprise. “To reduce GaDaŋme’s identity to the shoreline is to erase the farms of La, Teshie, Nungua, Tema, Osu, and the inland settlements that fed Accra for generations,” the statement added.
A Call for Statesmanship
The NPP–GaDaŋme Global Support Group framed its demand not just as a defense of their ethnic group, but as a call for responsible political discourse in Ghana.
“Political disagreement does not grant anyone the license to insult an entire ethnic group,” the statement said. “An attack on one individual does not justify the denigration of a whole people.”
The group urged KOKA to demonstrate “statesmanship, maturity, and commitment to preserving harmony among Ghana’s peoples” by issuing a clear and unreserved apology. The statement concluded with a firm warning, asserting that an apology is necessary because “words matter, history matters, [and] respect matters.”
