‘Year of Return’ started under my father’s regime – Zanetor Rawlings

The member of Parliament for Korle Klottey, Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, has urged Ghanaians to promote and support local tourism to boost the country’s economy as her father the late J.J Rawlings did with the popular PANAFEST.

She said the Ministry of Tourism must make efforts to unearth the real history of some historical edifices in the country, especially along the coast of Osu where a lot of pre-independence activities took place.

To her, the efforts of the government to support such activities will attract tourists to these sites all year round to generate revenue.

Dr Agyemang Rawlings, who was speaking on Power FM’s Dwaboase programme on the back of the popular ‘Chale Wote’ street festival which took place at Osu in her constituency ahead of the celebration of the Homowo festival, expressed excitement about how the activities kept Osu and its environs awake for days.

Despite the numerous activities that brought a lot of Ghanaians both home and abroad and other foreigners to the heart of Accra to witness the beautiful street carnival and arts, the legislator believes much can be done to make such festivals bigger than the nation witnessed.

Zanetor, the first daughter of the late Ghanaian leader, J.J Rawlings, told Dwaboase host Kwame Minkah that there are a lot of historical buildings in Osu aside the Independence Square and Osu Castle, stressing that those old buildings and certain families have a rich history that needs to be retold to attract other Africans abroad.

Making reference to the Pan African Historical Theatre Project which is now known as PANAFEST, a cultural event held in Ghana every two years for Africans and people of African descent, Zanetor urged the government to invest in the tourism sector beyond what is being witnessed.

She said the Year of Return which was introduced by the Akufo-Addo government drew its strength from PANAFEST which her father introduced and was first held in 1992 to promote and enhance unity, Pan-Africanism, and the development of the continent of Africa.

“I have always tried to bring attention to the fact that tourism is not about building a cathedral. You have things that are there already. In other countries like Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago or Cuba, those old buildings that they have, they make sure they refurbish, they renovate and maintain them,” she said.

She said the old houses in Osu when refurbished can create employment for the local folks who would like to narrate their family history to the people and improve upon the micro economy in the area.