Earlier this week, British premier Gordon Brown went to see the Queen to request her to dissolve Parliament in readiness for a general election on 6 May.
In Ghana, we don't have a Prime Minister, but a President--who does not need to see any traditional chief before calling a general election. Elections are held every four years, and it is politicians that are wont to curry favours from these chiefs, as they represent a constituency which the politicians would want to capitalise on.
These "chiefs" in the picture--identifiable by their colourful and psychedelic traditional attire (with emblazons of red/gold/green)--are what I would call "member of the traditional class", who are closely aligned with authority figures in the rural areas. Most of these authority figures are usually chiefs in the villages, as they are the ones that citizens wanting to buy land go to seek permission from, etc, and are often turned to for the resolution of conflicts.
Modern Ghana (identified by an increasing youthful middle class) are apathetic to these kind of figures, but in the village, they are seen more than often as paragons of virtue, and icons of deference.
As you can see from these pictures, they enjoy food, too! After all, they are not gods!!
labels: ghana chiefs, ghana chieftancy
