Akosua Agyapong Blasts Advocates of Replacing Akwaaba With Oobake: “Stop Dancing Adowa”
- Akosua Agyapong has rejected calls to replace the iconic Akwaaba sign at the Kotoka International Airport with Oobake (the Ga word for welcome)
- In an interview, the Ghanaian musician argued that Akwaaba represents all citizens and that changing it would affect other Akan cultural elements in Accra
- Ga-Dangbe youth groups launched the Oobake campaign to demand greater representation of the Ga language at national landmarks in the capital
- In a chat with YEN.com.gh, cultural activist Edward Gomado (Odehebi Hewale) shared his thoughts on the Oobake controversy
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Legendary Ghanaian musician Akosua Agyapong has slammed advocates of the Oobake campaign and called for Akwaaba to be maintained.
Source: Twitter
Youth groups representing the Ga-Dangbe ethnicity have sparked a heated online debate after calling for the Akwaaba (Welcome) sign at the Kotoka International Airport to be replaced.
They argued that since the airport is situated on Ga land, the prominent sign at the airport, which welcomed foreigners into the country, should be changed to the Ga word for welcome, Oobake.
The campaign has gone viral on social media and triggered multiple debates with advocates both for and against the proposition, arguing their points.
Prominent Ga-Adangbe celebrities, including broadcaster Berla Mundi and comedian Derrick Kobina Bonney (DKB), have thrown their support behind the campaign.
Akosua Agyapong addresses Kotokoa Airport Oobake campaign
In an interview with Nana Romeo on Okay Fm on Thursday, August 28, Akosua Agyapong spoke up against the campaign.
She said that the phrase Akwaaba was representative of all Ghanaians and should be maintained at the airport.
Agyapong said if the argument was being made that Akwaaba should be changed because it’s Akan, then even dancing Adowa on Accra land should also be banned.
Her comments stirred mixed reactions on social media, with many Ghanaians pushing back against her analogy.
The TikTok video of Akosua Agyapong addressing the Oobake controversy is below.
What is the Oobake campaign?
The Oobake campaign was started by several Ga-Dangbe youth groups in August 2024 to call for the Ga language to appear at national landmarks situated in Accra.
The campaign gained steam after a viral photo showed a sign at the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial park depicting welcome signs in Twi (Akwaaba), Ewe (Woezor) and English (Akwaaba).
That sparked heated calls for the Ga welcome sign, Oobake, to be included to represent the indigenous people of the Greater Accra region.
Source: Twitter
Later calls also demanded that the Akwaaba sign at the Kotoka International Airport be replaced with Oobake.
Media personality Berla Mundi, a member of the Ga-Dangbe tribe, stirred controversy on Twitter when she appeared to support the campaign in a viral post.
"Imagine me welcoming you at the airport with ‘Oobake’. It would be so beautiful. Or I should go and sleep?" she wrote in a tweet shared on Thursday, August 28, 2025.
The Twitter post of Berla Mundi addressing the Oobake campaign is below.
Speaking with YEN.com.gh, cultural activist Odehebi Hewale said while Akosua Agyapong raised a valid point, the Oobake campaign should not be dismissed.
"Akosua Agyapong has raised a valid point, because I know of cultural troupes that welcome guests at the airport dancing adowa, and some even have people of Ga-Dangbe ethnicity in them. Tradition and culture are diverse, and they're beautiful if done the right way. However, this does not call for the erasure of one culture beneath another. Language is culture, and that is why the calls for Oobake to be placed at the airport, to represent the Ga culture to foreigners upon arrival, are a call in the right direction," he said.
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Mr Happiness defends “Akwaaba” at Kotoka Airport, says it’s practical, not tribalism, video
Hewale added that the Oobake campaign should be interpreted as a move to save Ga-Dangbe culture rather than an attack on other cultures.
"The call for Oobake to be placed at the airport is a move to save the Ga Dangbe culture, and should be seen as an expression of identity rather than a move to exclude other cultures," he added.
Akosua Agyapong visits Daddy Lumba's home
Previously, YEN.com.gh reported that Akosua Agyapong visited Daddy Lumba's home in East Legon to commiserate with his family.
She visited the home of the late legendary singer on July 31, 2025 and grabbed attention as she arrived dancing along to his iconic songs.
Agyapong’s dance moves received widespread admiration on social media as many praised her for maintaining her beauty and spirit.
Proofreading by Bruce Douglas, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
