Ghana’s Circus of Cheap Stardom – Kwame Sowu Writes

In Ghana, you don’t need brains, hard work, or vision to endear yourself to the lazy idle masses. All you need is cheap money, not earned, usually stolen, and a bit of performance art.

The formula is embarrassingly simple. Convert a stolen bundle into two and five cedi notes, hire or borrow a shiny car with a loud private number plate, and drive into the crowd during rallies, funerals or festive jams. Then, toss the notes into the air like a frisbee champion on steroids.

The crowd will scream. Children will chase the notes, adults will scramble with dignity thrown out the window, and in that moment you will become a national “star.” Overnight, your name will be on lips, your fake generosity baptized with praise-songs. You will be crowned a “Don Papa,” a “Nana Nie,” “Bossu” “Prophet One” or another variant of Shatta like “Shatta Zuckerberg”.

This is how fake pastors build congregations. This is how crooked politicians buy votes. This is how fraudsters announce their “arrival.” And the worst part? If you are ever caught for fraud, theft, or even outright robbery, the same crowd you insulted with two cedi handouts will march in your defense, hailing you as their saviour.

That is the Ghana we have nurtured. A place where spectacle trumps substance, where ill-gotten cash earns more loyalty than sweat and integrity, and where the masses are conditioned to worship the flashy, even when it is rotten.

Until we stop cheering this nonsense, we will keep sinking. Splash, flash, scam, repeat.

Bonjour!

Kwame Sowu, East Legon, Accra

NOTE: The author, Kwame Sowu,  is a seasoned professional with a diverse background in business and leadership. He is a former Chairman of the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board.