One of the first things you notice when arriving in a
different culture is the differences in news stories that capture the public
attention in the popular press. A
sample of stories from The Spectator, a Ghanaian weekly paper include a story
titled “Corpse Dumped At Landlord’s Doorstep” which describes how a ‘good
samaritan’ dropped off the body of a deceased tenant she was attempting to take
to hospital back at his lodging on the doorstep of the landlord. Her hope was the landlord would pay for
burial as the landlord had sold all of the deceased tenants belongings. The landlord unfortunately threw the
corpse into the bushes where it was later discovered and properly buried. The landlords actions were reported to
the traditional authorities (tribal chiefs) and he was summoned before
them. The subsequently fined him a
sheep and two bottles of schnapps.
Another story is titled “Uncle Anderson Drank With Me In A
Bar.” This story relates how a
young Ghanaian man was set on a positive career path due to the help and
support of his uncle. After
starting his new career in the civil service he continued to correspond with
his uncle until abruptly the letters from his uncle stopped. As his uncle was a truck driver he
assumed that his uncle was engaged in some long distance trips that were
preventing him from writing. I’ll
quote at length the continuation of the story below.
“After a hard day’s work one afternoon, I felt like taking
some drinks before I went home. I
went to a drinking bar by the street and asked for a bottle of beer. Hardly had I started to drink when I
felt a soft tap on my left shoulder.
I turned quickly to see Mr. Anderson, my uncle standing behind me. I could not conceal the instant joy
that filled me. I gave him a
hearty welcome and invited him to the table which I had occupied and offered
him some drinks.
During the course of drinking, I enquired from him the
reason for his visit from Accra and how he managed to find me. He said he was traveling to Takoradi to
purchase spare parts for his broken-down vehicle, and since I was staying at
Cape Coast, he enquired about me and made a brief stop-over to visit me. From then on, we had a lot of
discussions about certain developments at home since my departure to Cape
Coast.
He lighted a cigarette and looked at my wrist watch to
realize that it was getting late.
In view of the time, I suggested to Uncle that we should go home so that
I could prepare a meal for him. He
declined the offer and said: “I’m sorry Emmanuel, because of transport problems,
I must leave now.”
I did not object to his request. I went to see him off at the station. He boarded a bus bound for
Takoradi. Before the bus took off;
he shook my hand and exclaimed: “Thanks for all that you’ve done for me. May God bless you and help you to be
prosperous in your work. I hope we
shall meet again. Good bye.” I wished him a safe journey and left for
home. On reaching home, there was
a visitor from my home town waiting for me. He was my younger brother…He informed me that Mr. Anderson,
our uncle, had died through a motor accident…In fact, I received the news with
disbelief. How can my uncle I saw
off to Takoradi be pronounced dead at home? I was gripped with horror and my heart beat fast as I had
never experienced. I became wet
with sweat and fell and collapsed…I recollect the incident vividly and
exclaimed, “Was it really my Uncle Anderson who visited me or his ghost?”
In the afternoon after I had been discharged from the
hospital, my younger brother and I boarded an Accra-bound bus to attend our
Uncle’s funeral. Upon reaching the
house, which was full of people in mourning attire, my mother came to embrace
me, and said, “Oh Emma, your uncle is dead and the body is at the mortuary!” I broke down in tears. Surely, uncle was dead.”
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