I survived as an MP in Accra because I learned to speak Ga - Nana Akomea

Politician Nana Akomea has disclosed that he managed to survive as a Member of Parliament for Okaikwei South Constituency because he had command over the Ga dialect.

Sharing his story of how he succeeded in becoming a 4-time MP of his constituency despite hailing from the Eastern Region, Nana Akomea revealed that he learned the Ga language having had his nurturing in a community in Accra.

“Some of us have survived in this game because we can speak the local language. Somebody like me 100 percent Akyem to be accepted in the center of Accra, then it means you must speak the language to have that kind of acceptance,” Nana Akomea said on the Good Morning show on Metro TV.

According to him, the Ga language gave him an upper hand over his rivals in the National Democratic Congress because they elected candidates who couldn’t speak the Ga language.

“When I was standing then, they will go and bring people who cannot speak Ga, so it was always a walkover for me. When we went to Bubiashie, they say we’ve brought our son, Sackey Akumeah because apparently they also name Akumeah.”

The former State Transport Corporation boss added, “I wish I could speak Hausa, I want someone to teach me.”

The Ga language has come under scrutiny after the Valley View University Basic School served notice to parents that it is phasing out the teaching and learning of Ga, as a Ghanaian language, in their school.

Reacting to the news from the school, Nana Akomea described the issue as unfortunate because he couldn’t understand why the Ghana Education Service [GES] were unable to enforce the policy of schools to teach the local dialect of a particular region in schools.

The former lawmaker suggested that the GES provided scholarship to individuals who wished to attain higher education to become tutors in the local language.