MY TOP FOUR RADIO MORNING SHOWS IN GHANA- PART 1

It’s the desire of every morning person to be fed with what’s happening around the world. For even the most religious among the lot, their quest to be current and abreast of world events supersedes their early morning encounter with their objects of worship. In a cosmopolitan city like Accra, city dwellers satisfy this quest in most cases, by listening to the radio; while in the shower, while taking breakfast or while stuck in traffic on the way to work. With the multiplicity of radio stations in Ghana, one doesn’t have to go through much stress finding a suitable frequency. In fact, it seems wherever one tunes to has one show or another going on each morning.

But do morning shows live up to their name? Are they able to light up the days of their listeners? What about their content? Whom are they aimed at? Well, these questions are going to guide the study of my four (4) favorite radio morning shows and no doubt Ghana’s top four morning shows. This write-up presents a listener’s point of view of these shows. Having spent some time following these shows, I believe it’s in the right direction that I undertake this study. To start with, I would give an overview of each show before delving into the analytical phase.

In no particular order, the following radio shows are going to be the specimen for this study; PEACE FM’S KOKROKOO, ADOM FM’S DWASO NSEM, JOY FM’S SUPER MORNING SHOW (SMS) AND HITZ FM’S DAYBREAK HITZ. 

The first show to be considered is PEACE FM’S KOKROKOO. The show’s host Kwami Sefa Kayi, affectionately called “Chairman” by his panelists and listeners expertly drives Ghana to work from 6:30am-10:00am every other working day.  According to him, the best thing about being a broadcaster is “The ability to affect millions of lives positively and to contribute to the development of my country.” A line he has become known for on radio is “We are soldiering on for God and country” and actually, that’s what he does.

Serving his breakfast in Twi, he is able to capture a wider audience. From the newspaper review segment through the phone-ins and the part where his panelists, usually from the different political divide, battle issues out, KOKROKOO comes across as an interesting show. Chairman’s probing questions always hit the right spot, making his respondents let whatever cats they have out of their bags. Mention can be made of how he was able to draw out the inner feelings and thoughts of the infamous Bishop Obinim. That interview no doubt added more salt to Obinim’s injury as he said more than he should have.

Lovers of politics are left full and smiling all day as their respected partymen and women try to defend various political actions. While Uncle Allotey Jacobs, the ‘educated fisherman’ as he’s widely called, is always violently championing the cause of the ruling NDC and justifying their every action while code-switching between Fanti and English, the sharp-tongued Ursula Owusu of the NPP also presents the minority’s view of nation building and as always, tries to point out loopholes in what the ruling party does. You can also trust Kwesi Pratt Jnr. to be as analytical as ever and with his favorite word “Massa”, he can stop anyone in his or her tracks, just to make his submission. KOKROKOO is never complete without the presence of the man who has a copy of every document underneath the sun, Kwaku Baako Jnr. who in most cases is torn between speaking Twi/Fanti and English. He is more often than not championing the course of the NPP and not his CPP and it can be noted that it was even on KOKROKOO that he admitted having voted for the NPP Flagbearer, Nana Addo Danquah Akuffo-Addo during the 2008 general elections.

On the average, Kwami Sefa Kayi proves to be a good moderator of his show and of course his station’s flagship programme. No doubt he’s the current holder of the Morning Show Host of the Year (Radio) title as well as the Radio and Television Personality of the Year.  Yes, you can say he’s cemented his name in history. This can be attributed to the fact that he is with one of Ghana’s best radio stations, if not the best. Running about a 70% of his show in Twi, a language that most of his listeners; young, old, elite, unlettered, can relate to, he reaches a wider audience. Quite positively, most businesses deem it prudent to advertise their products on his show. Although that’s purely a marketing strategy that also fetches the station lots of money, one thing the show’s producers may not have noticed is that these commercials take away most of the show’s time.

Besides being hugely tainted by politics, KOKROKOO really is a force to reckon with in the area of radio morning shows. Kwami’s occasional humorous nature tends to relax things when they go out of hand in his studio. His studio-hands also contribute to the show’s success. Wherever they learnt how to embellish from, they were studious in the learning process. They can make serious issues appear as child’s play and vice versa, although this sometimes draws attention from the issue at stake.

Nevertheless, when next you want to know what’s going on in Ghana when you wake up, remember to tune in to the Chairman’s show on Peace Fm on 104.3 MHz.  Quite interestingly, his show runs on over 25 affiliate radio stations in and out of Ghana each morning. It’s little wonder therefore that KOKROKOO makes my top four (4).

Sleep's Victory

Once I saw a man battle Sleep,

A fight to the death it was, on the plains of Dreamy Deep.

Sleep lured him gently, like a cobra lured by a charmer,

A couple of dozes and he was almost a goner-

But he regained his senses and opened his eyes wide,

He looked around to see who pushed him over to Sleep’s side.

He shrugged off the lure and thought of a cure,

He stood from his seat and walked about; never to sit for sure!

His shadow followed submissively, and so did Slumber,

Every step he took was mimicked by the sneaky stalker.

He pinched himself to ward of Comfort: a harbinger of Sleep,

He stifled his yawns: the whistle for calling in Sleep,

With blood-shot eyes he staggered wearily back to his seat,

He looked at his watch, still too early to accept defeat,

He rested a while; the battle might still be won.

The stalker threw into his eyes the potent mesmeric powder,

He rubbed his eyes in agony; praying silently for power,

The powder started to work; it inundated his nerves and senses,

Like an inebriated man, his head dropped and his shoulders sagged,

He saw the stars, the moon, the heavens and the angels,

He called for help; he felt his strength ebbing, his resolve flagging.

He stretched out his hand to touch a star but fell from a cloud,

Falling down onto the earth, he let out a mighty yelp and turned,

Onto the floor he fell, for he had fallen off his seat.

‘Oh my God, I have been sleeping’! he let out in defeat.                                                                

TELEVISION ANTENNAS- LITTERING OUR TOWNS AND CITIES

T

elevision is one of the necessities of life. You find it almost everywhere you go; homes, schools, hospitals, prisons and even on the streets. In fact, for one to be able to call himself ‘a man of marriageable age,’ he should at least own a television set; be it black and white or colored, for the viewing pleasure of his wife. It is this quest and craze for the ownership of TV sets that has led to the virtual littering of the Ghanaian sky by our own form of skyscrapers - ‘TV poles.’ I was especially struck with disbelief when I spotted how TV antennas have really littered Apam, a town in the Central region of Ghana. I was travelling from Cape Coast to Accra when I decided to take a sneak peep at Apam. Trust me, the sight was awful. What amazed me more was the fact that about five or more antennas could be found situated on top of a single household. What makes the situation worse is what has come to be known as “compound houses.” A typical compound house can host about ten families. Per the number of families, vis-à-vis the number of TV sets, that makes it ten TV antennas in a single household, and that even worsens the already worsening situation.

I wrote this part of this write-up from the top of a two-storey building at Mamobi, a suburb of Accra. This gave me a perfect view of Mamobi, Nima, parts of Accra New Town, Pig Farm and Kotobabi. You can’t imagine the number of antennas I saw. Counting them was like counting the stars that decorate the beautiful heavens. The story is no different at Effiakuma, a suburb of Ghana’s oil twin city, Sekondi-Takoradi where the problem of TV antennas is virtually an eyesore. Some of these antennas come in various sizes, length and even shapes. While some seek to be as tall as Osama Bin Laden’s World Trade Center, others just hang on, possibly content with the quality that they produce.

The big question that deserves to be asked is, does it matter the height of your antenna? Is there no way there could be an embargo on the erection of outdoor antennas? How can the various television stations help curb this rather appalling phenomenon? I can’t help but wonder if all the owners of these skyscraper-like antennas really pay the stipulated TV license, as the Government would be making lots of revenue from that. For me, I strongly believe that this craze for TV sets which has capitulated into the mounting of outdoor television antennas can be really regulated. These antennas are not only visual aids but are also death taps. In view of their astonishing height and lack of proper staking or support, most of these antennas collapse during rainstorms, and you can imagine the harm it can cause- damage your roof, that of your neighbor and even injure a passer-by. Such is the dilemma we find ourselves in. This problem if not carefully looked at will definitely spell doom in due course. This emphasizes the fact that there are many pressing issues that our ‘leaders’ must carefully consider, but in most cases they ignore these issues. And for all you know, these ‘leaders’ use Satellite dishes and not TV antennas, thus not understanding what the problem is.

Come to think of it, how does an aerial or bird’s-eye view of our towns and cities look like? I bet they are nothing short of miniature skyscrapers sticking up in the deep blue sky. The earlier the right thing is done, the better, and once people’s attention are drawn to the problems that antennas can pose, we can make headways in the fight against the erection of antennas.

A day @ the P.P.C

Attending to nature’s call is one of the musts in life, just like eating and sleeping. When nature calls, one cannot do anything but answer. The best one can do would be to put the call on hold, although that cannot be for long. Even a beep from nature can spell doom. Dukes, monarchs, presidents and in fact, everybody in the second world, Facebook, answer the calls of nature.

It was in my quest to answer one of nature’s calls and also satisfy my curiosity that led me to a public place of convenience in one of the suburbs of Accra. It took me quite a while to make a choice as to where to answer that disturbing call. I had a number of choices though but I settled for one that outwardly looked attractive. There were some PVC pipes pointed heavenwards though, probably to allow some not so fresh air to get into the atmosphere. And to think that I breathe in that same air gives me chills. Thank God we don’t see the air we take in.

Well, I paid a meagre sum of Ten Pesewas and while expecting to be given a toilet roll, I was rather given a page from an old newspaper. I figured it was the Kotoko Express, the official Newspaper of Kumasi Asante Kotoko FC. With that in hand, I was directed to the male cubicles, although I had to fight the temptation to use the female cubicles which appeared much cleaner. Well, I didn’t need anyone to tell me where I was because the stench did it all and carried the message across to me. There was a queue of about three other men waiting for their own special sessions with nature. After having their turns, it was mine to do same.

Being my turn, I had three cubicles to choose from, and I carefully examined all three. My verdict was that I choose one that hadn’t undergone much staining. Well, the cubicle I chose didn’t even give me enough room to remove my garments. Somehow, I managed to do so and managed to hang them on the narrow door. Jesus Christ probably had this door in mind when he mentioned about a large and narrow door in the bible. Back to the cubicle, it was littered newspapers of various sorts; The Daily Graphic, The Mirror, The Ghanaian Times, Lottery papers, Exercise book pages, among others.

It was then time for the real deal, you know. You can’t imagine how long it took me to find a posture. I considered sitting, squatting, bending and what have you. However, I finally settled for sitting although I wasn’t so insane as to barely sit on the WC. At this point, I was as well prepared as a Ghanaian soldier on a peace-keeping duty in Lebanon. Quickly, I brought out my own newspaper from the pocket of my pantaloon and having covered the toilet bowl with it, I read my Kotoko Express and savoured the aroma underneath, or should I rather say stench underneath. Interestingly, the newspaper made me forget about where I was and even wanted to finish reading both sides of it before leaving the cubicle. No doubt there was a winding queue awaiting me when I came out of nature’s consulting room, and trust me, I have never donned the apparel I used on my trip ever again.

I don’t need to tell you why- well, it’s just that the natural perfume from my day at the public place of convenience still lingers in my dress and mind.