Bentsifi’s Tattle. A guy about town (Panafest)
Have you ever seen the Mfantsi Asafo who wield their company flags in a swirling parade, gyrating this way and that, swinging the flag in spectacular fashion from side to side?
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It's done in beautiful, elegant movements that can only be described as an art form. When in progress, it is a delight to the viewing eyes, quite a treat! And, that they will be part of the parade at the upcoming big durbar during Panafest@25 taking place in Cape Coast and Elmina in a couple of weeks, excites me no end!
This year's Panafest, which takes place from July 25 to August 2, has the theme ‘The Power of Pan-African Culture.’ It is a coming-of-age edition, that seeks to take a 360 degrees look at that all -important Pan-African festival that seeks to bridge Africa with its diaspora through a holistic milieu.
The festival suffers from apathy. A lot of it. Apathy from, particularly, participation by the local community which tends to feel it is the preserve of the handful of people who are really Afrocentric, or people from the diaspora.
Diaspora
Indeed, Panafest has over the years, looked more to the diaspora to take it as its own, and rescue it from becoming extinct. But, more than anything else, Panafest needs to shift from its morose image of being focused on only those things intellectuals like if it wants to come into the present age and move on beyond.
It has the potential to really become that bridge that will pull in a whole constituency of diaspora folk whose participation can bring about some fabulous tourism dollars.
Its main subject, slavery and emancipation, seems an arm’s length issue for contemporary Ghana, where current economic and social factors have set in a whole new set of priorities.
As important as delving into effects of the slave trade is, the dimensions of its impact, much like the galamsey menace today, has not been accurately and thoroughly dealt with.
Real kingpins
How much involvement did we Africans ourselves have in perpetuating the capture and sale of our kin? Who were the real kingpins who profited from it locally?
Much like the discussions we are holding today about galamsey - remember Gold Coast 500 years ago had no mass communication so discourse held then would not be as widespread and involving as it is today - the blame will be squarely and conveniently put at the foot of the foreigner.
Five hundred years from now, if we are not careful, generations then will dance around the effects galamsey is causing, like we are doing slavery, and not pay attention to the lessons of a rememberance festival to get closure, draw similarities with other domestic exploitive menace and ensure it never happens again!
Well, I will be at Panafest. How about you? If only just to see the gallant Asafo flag pageant during the durbar at Victoria Park on Saturday, July 29. I got my camera ready. I can’t wait to experience the extravaganza.
