By Opesika Tetteh Puplampu
Odumase-Krobo, Oct. 28, GNA - Basic school children in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality have participated in the maiden edition of the Manya Klo Ngmayem festival mock durbar.
The colourful event was held at the precinct of the Konor’s Palace at Odumase-Krobo in the Eastern Region.
Designed to provide a platform for the younger generation to gain sufficient acquaintance with the culture of the Krobo people, the event left parents, tourists, and culture enthusiasts in awe as the children replicated the main durbar with precision.
The initiative is the latest addition to the activities to celebrate the annual Ngmayem festival observed by the chiefs and people of Manya Krobo.
The eight basic schools that participated in the maiden edition were the Odumase Presby JHS, representing the Paramountcy; Kodjonya Millenium Presby JHS, representing the Suisi division; Agormanya Methodist JHS, acting as the Djebiam division; and Yokwenor MA Basic School, representing the Piengua division.
Others were Agormanya RC JHS, for Akwenor division; Matse Israel Basic School, as Manya division; and the Our Lady of Fatimah (OLAF) School, representing the National House of Chiefs.
Mr Gilbert Nene Domesiakor Odjidja, the Chairperson of the Ngmayem Festival Planning Committee, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, described the event as successful, indicating that the committee was in talks with the Traditional Council to widen the scope and make it a regular part of the Ngmayem festival activities.
He commended the students and tutors of the various schools that participated and lauded the parents of the selected children for adorning the children with their valuable kente cloths and their accompanying adornments.
The Manya Klo Ngmayem Festival is a vibrant and deeply rooted week-long cultural event celebrated by the people of Manya Krobo in the Eastern Region of Ghana.
Ngmayem is derived from two Dangme words: ‘Ngma,’ meaning millet, and ‘yemi,’ meaning to eat, translating into ‘the Eating of Millet’ festival.
The festival’s origin dates to 1944, under the reign of Oklemekuku Azzu Mate Kole, then Konor of Manya Krobo, who initiated the Ngmayem Festival as a replacement for the ‘Yereyeli’ (Hieyemi) festival, which had been introduced in 1893 by his father and predecessor, Sir Emmanuel Mate Kole.
Over time, the ‘yereyeli’ festival had waned in popularity, prompting Oklemekuku Azzu Mate Kole to establish a celebration that would better resonate with the Krobo people.
GNA