Day 13 – Accra
We left out at 5am on the nose. Good job, Driver. In fact, most of the taxi Drivers from the Elmina area don’t hire out for Accra, because they don’t know the city. And this Driver is from Brenu, so you KNOW he doesn’t know. But he has stepped up to the plate and IT’S ON.
We arrived in Accra and traffic as usual. We figured, let’s go to the Registrars General Department first to finish OBey Foundation’s NGO and change of Board Members filings. This is another task that puts Kofi in a tailspin because these guys are too slick for their own good. I found out that this office is under the Attorney General’s Office. Good to know. So we called the Brother, Mensah, to meet us and he was just arriving to work at 9am. Cool, so far so good. Kofi went to exchange some money and our worker is ready to get into it so he takes me to the back of the building where his office is; which is a small little room with a desk and 3 chairs. And 3 long rows of CRAZY files of Organizations’ papers and documents. You have no choice but to bump into each other in this room. I start right up with this guy because I felt his energy when I called him from the States. Once he finished our phone conversation back then with “Oh, and something small for me after.” THAT WAS A WRAP! So you all know my energy from the jump. I said, “Damn, look at all these papers! Where is the computer? They got yall in this little room, WRITING everything?!” I got him opening up people’s files to show me the hard work that he does, and all along I’m trying to see the receipts so that I know what people are paying for their filings. He’s got $$$$ on his mind, so his hustle is very weak right now. He explains for the first of which felt about 50 times about how hard he is working for our filing to get done. And that the regular process would take months AND they would make us run back and forth to waste our time until we dashed them. I said, “Cool Bro, thank you so much for DOING YOUR JOB.” So, we went through the procedures with his Supervisor as to what we needed today. We go out to the Document Preparers. Can I accurately paint this picture? LOL! 3 tables in an ‘L’ shape under a make shift canopy with benches for people to sit at. 4 workers with OLD typewriters in front of them. Ribbons, seals and ink stamps to make things look official. I’m already in my Jester mood and you bring me to the OUTSIDE OFFICE?! WHYYYYYYYYYY?! So, Kofi and I avoid eye contact because he knows that I am going to start up and he doesn’t know WHAT to do when I start. To make it worse, Mensah starts back up about our paperwork is making him “Suffer” today. Don’t worry family, they use ‘suffer’ like when we say something is ‘working me’. So, now I’m like he is going BACK to the Dashing thing when I just gave him a lesson on what Ghana needs to clean up in order to move forward as an international force?! Now, I’m loud and everyone in there is trying to ignore me as if they don’t speak English. I am talking about this “Dashing Bull…” and this “Begging mentality”. Yes, it got hectic and then I told Kofi to take a photo. He says, “We should ask Dad.” I responded with, “Why?! We are OUTSIDE! Stop being scary and let’s take these photos.” What, he wants to pay yet someone else for a service that they are not qualified for…Modeling. LOL!
As we are patiently waiting for this guy to key punch our document out, I engage Mensah again about politics and the ‘GHANA WAY’ of doing business. We actually had a good session. But I think his eyes were still focused on $$$$$. I think he just thought he had a talkative Rasta with him. He didn’t know the other side, YET.
We went walking to another office. But this one was at one of those market type stands with an Elder Queen that was also punching out docs on her Typewriter. Here we are about to get the change of Board Members filed. You HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME?! This is when things began to turn. He was pushing our stuff through knowing that we didn’t have everything in order, like the members who needed to be present to sign the docs. So you all know what that meant. But here’s the BEST part. My Man started up early in his office asking about the 2nd member that needed to be replaced. “Where is his signature?” he asked. We told him that we were not able to find him for about a year now. So he started practicing his signature and then told us that, “We will pay.” I let it go the first two times he said it. Now, we are at the point when THAT document has to come forward. He starts practicing again and the does it. Why is this guy making such a BIG DEAL out of this when most of what they do is twisted?! Anyway, our documents have to go to the Inspector who has to sign now, so he takes 10 cedis for the Inspector and 10 for HIS OWN signing. WHAT?! NO, this guy is not jackin’ me for 10 right now?! LOL! Oh, you know it is ON now. I was actually going to hook him up, but NOW…
We pay and are packing up our documents to leave the woman’s ‘Office’. I start up with Kofi by telling him that I want him to change his career to ‘Signature Writer’. 20 signatures will get you 200 cedis. Then we leave and I am following Mensah, telling Kofi that if you go to small village, then maybe you should only charge 5, but Cape Coast, Accra, Kumasi…10! You see how Mensah, did it?! I KNOW his Wife will be very pleased today that the ‘Professional Signature Writer’ has done very well today. Oh no Family, I did not let up until we were just outside his office. He couldn’t even get a word in with me and then he begged me to NOT say any of this stuff when we arrived in his office with his Supervisor there. OH REALLY?! This guy is making it TOO easy. I stopped and said, “Oh, Sorry Bro.” With a wonderful grin on my face. We go inside and he takes Kofi to the Cashier to pay. I know he is WORKING Kofi, but I am not worried about that because Kofi wouldn’t dare give out any of my money without my approval. So he has the wrong one for that. I am in the office with two Elders that work here and my Man Mensah walks in to bring some other paper to his Supervisor to review. The other gentleman gets on Mensah for wasting my time today. Oh, I forgot to tell you that it is Noon by this time. He said, “In fact this was a 15 minutes job and then he is on his way to his other business. You could’ve charged him his filing fee and did all of this running around without them. You have wasted their time.” Mensah jets out to join Kofi again without any words to the Elder. Then I told them that I let your boy get his hustle ON with me today, because I need the papers and I am in the mood today. But you need to retrain him. It’s these business practices that is scarring Ghana. They agreed and we talked about different things until Kofi and Mensah returned.
Alright, receipts and papers…Let’s go. “Oh Mr. Kojo, now that these are finished, I have to take them for FINAL APPROVAL.” “Alright, when can we get our copy.” I asked. He said “I have to dash one or two people and something small for myself and then I can have them ready for you to pick up tomorrow.” In the office with the Elders. Of course I got loud and watched the Elders from my peripheral vision and they turned their heads. DAMN! Not good. Now I have to blast off. He brought me outside because that small room was getting smaller from the energy. He explained to me more intensely why he needed 70 cedis to dash when my filing only cost us 50. I stopped him and told him to listen to me and don’t talk until I am done. “I called you and asked you how much and what do I need. You told me and that is what I brought. I even LET you hustle me out of the 10 for the signature and now you are getting greedy Bro.” “Oh, then let’s make it 60.” He says. I told him that “You are not listening to me. I don’t have any dash money with me!” He says, “Alright, 45 is final Kojo Bey. Let’s go file these and they will be ready.” Oh, I see. I grabbed his hand and gave him a piece of gum and said, “I am late for my next meeting with one of our Advisors, Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr. Appiah. Since I don’t have your dash money and I can’t come by tomorrow to see you, I will have him come by to settle with you.” WHOAH! Talk about change of tune. As I was walking away trying to give him the Minister’s phone number and name, he kept begging me to “Please don’t bring a Minister here. We are people that are not even able to speak with a Minister and you have one as an Advisor. If he comes, I will surely be sacked. I will do this for you, I will find the money for the dashes and take care of your papers for you and they will be ready tomorrow.” I looked over at Kofi and he was filled with THE POWER. I loved what it was doing for him. For me, it was sad that I had to pull that card out. But if I didn’t then I would have started to insult him personally and I REALLY didn’t want to do THAT. He made me promise that I wouldn’t even speak about this to the Minister and whisked us off to our car. Kofi and I are still joking around about our new careers as Professional Signature Writers. LOL!!!!
I’m not going to talk about the 1500 people that Kofi and our Driver were asking directions from to our next meeting. It was getting comical. But it was real. In REAL Accra traffic. We finally arrived at IOM…International Organization for Migration. They have a division that does the rescuing of the Fishing village child slaves. I met with the Man that started this whole movement up there. He was the one that was interviewed for that NY Times article on this issue. The one that Oprah picked up on and sent her reps there to report on. He was on the Oprah show and travels the world promoting their work and raising funds for the rescue missions. He brought some real good points to me today and after some good ole reasoning, we decided that we would find a way to partner and establish relationships with other NGOs that do the work as well. He said it may be a stretch, but he is hosting the American Ambassador and another American National to tour the area where the children are being forced into that labor. And by the end of the meeting, he said that if the Ambassador DOESN’T go for it for privacy reasons, then he will work to put a tour together for me before I leave. They go up and dialogue with the fishermen and youth for about 4 months and then roll on up for the rescue mission. By that time, the fishermen practically give them to the IOM. IOM doesn’t pay for the youth. I am WITH THAT. We agreed that OBey will be a Safe Haven in the Central Region for rescued youth and they and other NGOs will do the rescue and reunion with their families. Sounds good to me. I will be back in January to prepare for our first youth or maybe 5. We will see. CHANGE IS GOOD. Eric Peasah, IOM Rep, is fine with me. A little tight assed, but a good and sensible man. He also had some fire for the other rescuer that I contacted and the NGO that supports him. I liked that, so he earned points right there.
I called Mr.Appiah about our two farm contacts and it turns out that the actual Mango Farmer is inquiring with the Chief in his village to see if there is land that they can offer us. Then he will contact us about a tour of his farm. Mr. Appiah also put me in touch with the Consultant that just returned from Brazil. He is hyped and pumped to meet with me. He couldn’t today, but will be ready next week when I return. He said, “I am going to give you the complete plan so that you won’t waste ONE DOLLAR. You don’t spend ANY money on a farm until we meet and I give you the plan.” I’m FEELING that, but something tells me that it is going to cost me.
I was going to spare you family, but I have to give you the finale. I ate at Paloma tonight and we received a call. Yes folks, it was Mensah, the Professional Signature Writer. He said that we made a mistake by signing my new signature on the document that was from my old name. I was supposed to sign with the old name. He told us that he would stay around so that we can sign the document. But of course we had to get there. WOW! THIS GUY! We get there and he has just as much attitude on his face as I do. But he starts off THE WRONG WAY. He says, “You made a mistake and signed our new signature on the old documents.” I said, “No, YOU made the mistake. How were we to know to sign with my old signature without anyone telling us to?!” So, he pulls out the doc and now I am faced with studying a signature that I’m pretty sure Theo signed, so that I can sign ‘my name’…’kojo Ben Ruben’. I practice and then he practices. While he is practicing, I am looking at Kofi like; I know this man did not bring us here to do another signature job?! It turns out that he ended up signing it and looks at us like…SEE what I did?! It didn’t even look good, but hey, YOU THE HUSTLER. So, I asked, “So, are we good?” He looked at Kofi and said, “Still no money.” As he walked by us, I went to the car and he followed us over. He had to get one more hit in by saying, “I suffered with your papers because of YOUR mistake. I had to dash people and your papers were not right.” I said, “Bro, this was YOUR fault. You WATCHED me sign every document and I asked you with each one if this was correct.” I was getting too heated and about to put the finger in the chest, and then he pulled back and asked in Twi, “Alright Alright, which way are you going, I need a ride.” I LOVE MY PEEPS.
“I’m awake, I have worked, and I’ve been Blessed. It’s Time to Take Me Home!”
