People of Tema Newtown celebrate Homowo festival

The Chiefs and people of Tema have climaxed their Homowo (hooting at hunger) festivities with the sprinkling of Kpoikpoi on the principal streets of Tema Newtown.

The sprinkling of the Ga delicacy also took the chiefs and people to the various houses of former traditional rulers who were instrumental in promoting farming among the people of Tema during the days of famine.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on the sidelines of the festivities, the Shipi of Tema and a Member of the Tema Traditional Council, Nii Shipi Amarh Somponu II, informed that Homowo was basically about the people of Tema Newtown hooting at hunger which was prevalent at a certain point in their history.

Nii Somponu II explained that, “Many years ago, there was famine and food scarcity; people therefore came together and went into the edoboa system of farming, and in the wake of that, there was abundance of food. So our forefathers hooted at hunger by sprinkling food about for even birds to feed.”

Nii Somponu II said in the wake of the hunger that affected the people many years ago, they came together and went into serious farming,

“So they saw the essence of unity and we think that that is worth celebrating to remind our people that it pays to put up a united front against any hostile power that may confront us,” he said.

Nii Somponu II informed that the festival was also a means of reconciling the people as the sheer beating of drums and embracing one another helped to settle disputes without going through the process of arbitration, and” then there was a session which allowed the clan heads to sit on cases and settle other disputes among the various family members.”

According to him, the traditional leadership seized the opportunity Homowo presented to organize games, beauty contests, etc. to bring out the talents in the youth.

“Through the football competitions, several players have travelled outside the country because we used the Homowo to entice prospective poachers into Tema Newtown,” he said.

Organizing the beauty contest means we are bringing the best out of the children academically with prospects of making it to national beauty competitions, he said.

The Shipi of Tema Newtown observed that the Tema Traditional Council also conducted educational programmes through the heads of families through which they imbibed values such as discipline, hard work, etc. in the population which was a needed ingredient for national development.

The Mankralo of Tema, Nii Adjatey Agbo II, in an address after the sprinkling of Kpoipoi, advised the people of Tema Newtown not to always rely on the chiefs and elders of their communities to develop the area, but help themselves in their own small ways.

Nii Agbo II urged them to keep their environments clean to prevent communicable diseases such as cholera from breaking forth in Tema Newtown and endeavour to always report criminals within their vicinities to the police to help reduce crime in the town.

The Tema Mantse, Nii Adjei Kraku II, asked the citizens to take the education of their children seriously and should not force any profession on them.

Nii Kraku II urged his people not to mar the beauty of the Homowo celebrations by indulging in acts that were not accepted in the eyes of the law and their culture.