History teaches a sobering lesson: societies collapse when they discourage their builders. Unfortunately, Ga Mashie, like many traditional communities has grown vulnerable to this destructive pattern.
Too often, those who devote years to preserving peace receive less encouragement than those who devote days to creating controversy. Genuine service goes unnoticed while loud criticism is applauded. Those who quietly shoulder the burdens of leadership are subjected to relentless scrutiny, while those who have contributed little to the welfare of the people readily position themselves as judges.
Among those carrying this burden is the young and vibrant Nii Tetteh Mowaamo (Moses Amon Quaye), the Abola Oblahia Maŋtsɛ. His experience reflects a broader reality confronting many traditional leaders: daily sacrifices that rarely attract public attention, yet remain indispensable to the peace, dignity, and continuity of Ga Mashie.
The future of Ga Mashie will be secured not by loud voices on the sidelines, but by those who quietly reconcile families, defend tradition, mentor the youth, preserve public order, and place the welfare of the people above personal ambition. These are the men and women who sustain the moral fabric of our society.
Like his predecessors Nii Ayaafio Tetteh, Nii Tettey Abloh and Nii Adotei McLean represents that tradition of service. Whether one agrees with every decision he makes is secondary. What cannot reasonably be denied is that leadership demands sacrifice and sacrifice deserves recognition, not indifference.
A people who consistently undermine faithful leadership eventually discover that criticism cannot replace governance, and controversy cannot substitute for responsibility.
Let me share a revealing irony. I, the writer of this article, have had my own academic credentials challenged by a man who has never been tested by the rigours of formal education someone who cannot string together a coherent long essay, who has never had a single family member, near or distant, serve as a supervisor for a thesis. Yet this individual vaguely claimed I attended a school in Swedru, a town I have never even visited.
And who is this critic? A Wulomo. A Kusum fɛ̃ lo, one whose behaviour betrays more animalistic tendency than spiritual discernment. Despite having only completed cursory refresher programmes in Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and Conflict Resolution and none of the comprehensive ones I have been chasing to teach at Valley View, where the school will award clinical licences. This individual sees fit to challenge me, the so-called “memory booster” in the sociology of law, who aids people in recalling facts lost over time. His fatal flaw? He has no scholarly credentials to counter what I bring to the table.
If a man so plainly unqualified to assess academic achievement can so casually impugn another’s reputation, what hope is there for reasoned discourse? This is the tragedy of our time: the loudest voices are often the least informed, and the most destructive criticisms come from those who have built nothing themselves.
My counsel to all those who are fighting for the restoration of GaDangme as human service and activism, is that great works and genuine service are often overlooked by the world, but what truly matters is God’s approval.
Teachers, nurses, and mothers exemplify some of humanity’s greatest yet least celebrated callings. Their sacrifices may go unnoticed on earth, but they are recorded in heaven. God remembers every act of faithful service and rewards those who diligently serve humanity with grace and glory the true platinum of human achievement.
Therefore, seek assurance not in human applause but in God’s eternal recognition. Christ Himself warned, “Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you.” (Luke 6:26). Human appreciation can be deceptive if it comes at the cost of truth. It is far better to have God’s approval, even if it brings the world’s displeasure, than to receive the fleeting applause of an ungrateful world.
Let me be clear: the institution of traditional authority deserves honest probing. No chief or traditional leader should be beyond constructive criticism. However, critique must never become a disguise for character assassination, personal rivalry, or deliberate attempts to weaken institutions that generations have sacrificed to preserve.
Every traditional leader who genuinely labours for peace, development, and cultural preservation deserves fairness, encouragement, and respect, not because they are infallible, but because their service is the bedrock upon which our community stands.
Every generation must answer a defining question: Do we honour those who build our society, or do we reward those who merely criticize it? The answer determines whether a people advance or slowly destroy the very institutions that sustain them.
Strong institutions are not built by spectators. They are built by servants. And history ultimately remembers the builders not those who merely stood on the sidelines pointing out imperfections.
In Ga Mashie the historic cradle of the Ga people and the traditional heart of Accra this above question demands urgent reflection.
Osɔfo Nii Naate Atswele Agbo Nartey
