The Public Relations Officer of the Ghana Tourism Authority, Mr. Jones Nelson has cautioned citizens who have decided to flout the rules pertaining to the Kwahu Easter celebrations to desist from it since they will be severely dealt with if they are caught by the Traditional Council.
This follows a decision by the Kwahu Traditional Council, GTA, and other stakeholders, to again suspend this year’s Easter activities in Kwahu due to the pandemic.
Mr. Jones in an interview mentioned that those who were visiting their hometown, Kwahu, are allowed to do so. However, the extra activities such as the durbars, nightclubbing and most especially paragliding have all been canceled.
“They have already said that they have canceled all festivities. So, things that will bring about large gatherings; that will go against the COVID protocols are going to be a bother. The Chiefs are not going to take it lightly at all. They will severely punish anyone who goes against the rules. Also, the men are on the ground will ensure that all these gatherings are going to be little”.
Mr. Jones
2021 Kwaku Easter Celebrations Cancelled chiefs
Speaking about the cancellation of the Kwahu Easter festival, Mr. Jones posited that it was necessary to cancel it due to the large number of people the event attracts. He further intimated that even if GTA and the Traditional Council decides to divide the number of people who will show up to the event, it’ll still be impossible and it will only help the pandemic surge.
“We are talking about over thousands and thousands of people gathering at a particular place. There will be so many activities; the durbars and paragliding. So, the custodians of the land, the Chiefs, and other stakeholders sat to discuss this issue critically. And we realized that it cannot be possible”.
Mr.Jones
When asked why the GTA couldn’t come up with another creative way to have the celebrations since it is one way to promote domestic tourism, Mr. Jones responded noting that some of the activities are very key to the celebrations. Therefore, taking it out will destroy the beauty of the festivities. However according to him, those activities demand “physical contact”, so, it is “just impossible to hold the celebrations”.
“There are so many other activities in Kwaku, which of course the paragliding festival is one of the major events. It’s an aviation spot which attracts a lot of people. If you look at paragliding, for instance, there is physical contact. So, if you take one pilot, he will have to handle so many people. It will be a bit of a challenge but this is the kind of situation in which we find ourselves. If all things being equal, we can organize it more nicely some other time when things have subsided”.
Mr. Jones
Lives of Ghanaians More Important Than Celebrations
That notwithstanding, when questioned if the authority has considered the financial loss this decision will bring to them, he answered stating “Human lives are more valuable than any other thing”. chiefs chiefs chiefs
Last year, preparations were far advanced for the festival. But, it was called off after President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo announced a ban on all social and public gatherings. This was part of measures to curb the spread of COVID-19. Despite the efforts that had gone into the preparation for the Kwahu Easter festivities, the ban was supported by the Kwahu Traditional Council, advising citizens and non-citizens of the area to stay away as the festival had been called off.
Read also: THE NATIONAL COMMISSION ON CULTURE LAUNCHES ‘WEAR GHANA FESTIVAL 2021’.
