The story of 'Aku Sika' does not belong to a single owner - George Quaye reacts to possible copyright infringement lawsuit

George Quaye, the team lead for Image Bureau, the producers of the play 'The Legend of Aku Sika,' has responded to claims of infringement regarding the upcoming play.

On May 28, 2024, the National Theatre of Ghana received a letter from George Apraku Dentu, who alleges that the play draws heavily from the novel 'Aku Sika' written by his late father, L.D. Apraku.

However, speaking in an interview with Hitz FM on May 29, 2024, George Quaye claimed that the original tale of 'Aku Sika' is a folktale, which is a form of oral tradition, and that such folktales do not have a single owner.

"It is folklore and it is one of those stories that you grew up hearing. And I have yet to identify any of those folkloric tales for which we have been given an owner.

"Indeed, stories do emanate from somewhere, but that is the beauty of oral tradition handed down from generation to generation," he said.

He further claimed that the play, which is a homage to Professor Martin Owusu, the oldest lecturer at the University of Ghana, is not intended for commercial gain but rather to honour his legacy.

Tackling claims that the play was an adaptation of the book, Quaye made a distinction between adapting a novel and drawing inspiration for other forms of creative work, such as screenplays.

"He must understand that a novel is not a play. Otherwise, they should probably be suing Nana Ampadu for doing the song as well.

"One does not adapt a novel. One draws inspiration from a novel to turn it into other works. Maybe a screenplay. Writing for the screen is not necessarily an adaptation.

"An adaptation occurs when one picks a work, and then either you are changing the timeframe or you are changing the cultural space within which it has been written," he explained.

Quaye said he remains unfazed by the potential lawsuit, seeing it as a chance to educate the creative community and clarify intellectual property rights within the Ghanaian creative sector.

On the potential downturn of a lawsuit, George Quaye lamented a case where cultural artefacts would begin to be claimed by individuals, bringing a potential downturn for the cultural sector in Ghana.

"If we are not careful, one day, someone may claim 'all Kweku Ananse stories belong to me.' Or 'all the Adinkra symbols belong to me.'

"It is important to understand that in the creative space, there is a concept known as fair use," he said.

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