Tetteh Quarshie, who? • Eq. Guineans ask
After the Ghana - Equatorial Guinea semi final match at the recently-ended African Cup of Nations (AFCON) football tournament, during which Ghanaian supporters were pelted with stones, a popular joke made the rounds.
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It was said that Equatorial Guinea were hoping Ghana’s Black Stars would do them a big favour by losing the match as their way of saying thank you for the cocoa that has become Ghana’s major income earner for many decades.
Indeed, it was from Fernando Po in Equitorial Guinea that the pacesetter son of Ghana, then Gold Coast, Tetteh Quarshie, brought the first cocoa pods to Ghana.
Curiously, the people of Equitorial Guinea did not seem to have the slightest idea of this benefactor relationship. If they did, perhaps, the rioting at the stadium would have been worse because indeed Ghana owed them a huge debt.
The Black Stars won the match 3-0, a result which sparked off riots not only at the stadium but also in some communities in the capital, Malabo.
Not satisfied with the seemingly ignorance of the people about Fernando Po, Tetteh Quarshie and cocoa, I tried to probe further, hoping I would find some people to share in my pride.
However, my enthusiasm was more than deflated when my simple question: Do you still have cocoa was met with a simple: No. It was worse when no one seemed to know Tetteh Quarshie and what his adventurous voyage to Fernando Po has meant to Ghana.
“Tetteh who? Quien”, was the overwhelming response that greeted me as I tried in vain to find the roots of Ghana’s cocoa. Sadly, no one in Equatorial Guinea knew the history of Ghana’s cocoa.
Of course, it was understandable. Tetteh Quarshie made the trip to Fernando Po in 1870, stayed on quietly like most Ghanaians resident in that country do today, and left after six years without anyone knowing what he was taking along. Since that time, Fernando Po has seen many generations and transformation.
Fernando Po is now Bioko, about 45 minutes drive from Malabo and is the main hub for the oil and gas plants.
A typical coastal area, there is not much agricultural activity in the area, and hardly can any cocoa tree be spotted.
The next major attraction after oil and gas in Bioko, is the marine turtles that is the major tourism attraction.
Hard as I searched, it was a futile exercise as I could not find any possible trace to the roots of Ghana’s cocoa. This inspite of the fact that pre-independence Equatorial Guinea exported cocoa, coffee and timber not only to its colonial ruler, Spain, but also to Germany and the UK.
A tourist guide, Nsue Ovono, told Showbiz upon further enquiry, “It is not something that is captured in our national history. Perhaps, because of our different backgrounds or maybe, the man himself led a quiet life while here. He came and left quietly, so not much would be known about him.