The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will be the Special Guest of Honour at the grand durbar as highlight of this year’s Annual Akwanbo Festival of the Nyimfa Division of the Ekumfi Traditional Area, scheduled to take place at EkumfiEkrawfo in the Central Region on Saturday, September 10, 2022.
The week-long celebration is under the theme: ‘Peace and Development’. The event begins on Monday, September 5 and ends on Sunday, September 11, with a challenge football match between Wonder Club Accra Great Olympics and local lads Ekumfi United, for the Kwamena Biney Challenge Cup at Ekumfi Ekrawfo.
The match has been specially arranged to honour the memory of the late Mr. Kwamena Biney, one-time Executve Chairman of Accra Great Olympics.
The late Mr. Biney was also the Chief of Ekumfi Ekrawfo and Adontehen of the Nyimfa Division of the Ekumfi Traditional area under the stool name, Nana Kwamena Kwatse II.
The Kwamena Biney Cup has been donated by the Children of the late soccer administrator and traditional leader to commemorate 21 years of his being called to his maker.
Commenting on the commemorative football match, Mr. Joe Biney, proprietor of Fridays Entertainment Centre at Sakumono, in the Tema West District, said ‘We the children are grateful to the traditional area and particularly Accra Great Olympics, for the decision to honour our father.”
Read his lips: “Our father worked tremendously hard to nurture Accra Great Olympics to become the third force in club football in the country, rivaling Kumasi Asante Kotoko and Accra Hearts of Oak.
He also played a yeoman’s role in positioning Ekumfi as a force in traditional matters in the country. But in this age, when dead heroes are easily forgotten, the decision by Olympics and the Nyimfa Division of the Ekumfi Traditional Area to honour our departed father is exemplary.”
The three towns making the Ekumfi Traditional Area are; Ekrawfo, Atakwwaa and Otabenadze. The festival begins on Monday, September 5, with the traditional inspection of Asafo Drums, led by the Tufuhen, Kwesi Kwansa.
Asafo drums will be beaten to signify the beginning of festivities in the afternoon.
As part of the events marking the festival, there will be a food bazaar of only traditional food items. Indome, fried rice and chicken, as well as pizza have all been declared unwholesome for the occasion.
Akwanbo traditionally links the living with the ancestors who founded the Ekumfi State. As part of activities marking the event, the people clear the path our ancestors took on the last leg of the migration from Mankessim to their present settlement after the long migration from Techiman in the current Bono East Region,
It is also part of Ahobaa Kese, which is the celebratory part of the honour done to Ahor, a man from Gomoa Maim, who gave himself up to be used in sacrifice to end a calamity which befell Fantiland, after the migration from Techiman.
