Remove 'Akwaaba' at KIA – Ga Group

Kotoka International Airport

A group representing the people of La in the Greater Accra region has strongly defended their Chief's suggestion that the widely used Akan word 'Akwaaba', which is used to welcome foreigners at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA), should either be replaced with a native Ga word or used alongside the Ga version.

La Mantse, Nii Kpobi Tettey Tsuru III, suggested the change when he received a delegation from the Greater Accra Regional Council last week.

He said the location of the airport on indigenous La land of the Ga Dangme people justifies the projection of the Ga language of the native people rather than another language.

Nii Yemo Yemofio, Country Coordinator of La Citizens Network and also National Youth Organizer of the Ga Dangme Youth Association said the Akwaaba belongs to a particular tribe which has been marketed for a long time adding that it is now time to promote the Ga language.

'The Akwaaba is a certain ethnic language and where the airport is situated belongs to a certain tribe, so what we all need to know is that where the airport is situated now is for the Ga Dangme people… Akwaaba has been projected for a very long time and we need to project other languages so we should just add 'Mo hee'.

'We also want to project our language; Accra is cosmopolitan but belongs to a certain tribe. Nii La is saying they should just add 'Mo Hee' to the Akwaaba…or they should remove the Akwaaba and leave only 'Welcome' there'