Coping with non-literacy in Parliament - Occasional Kwatriot Kwesi Yankah writes
The well-attended lecture was under the auspices of the world renowned Ashesi University and chaired by Dr Patrick Awuah, President and Founder of Ashesi. While the full lecture is available on YouTube, I present below the reaction of one student in the audience who could not resist tabling her feedback in the social media.
“From “I wish I could be there” to “I’m so grateful I was!”
Just a few days ago, I commented under a post by Joseph Oduro-Frimpong
“Really wish I could be there.”
At the time, my schedule was overwhelming—assignments, meetings, quizzes… the usual whirlwind. But something about the upcoming lecture struck a chord. The title alone:
“Multilingual Democracy: Non-Literacy and Leadership in Modern Ghanaian Governance” by Emeritus Professor Kwesi Yankah, challenged everything we’ve come to associate with leadership, intelligence, and worth in our society.
So, I made the decision to go.
And that decision turned into one of the most transformational experiences I’ve had this semester.
The lecture was raw, honest, and deeply reflective. It revealed:
The line that stayed with me?
“An intellectual must be literate — FALSE.”
As a student in tech, I’m learning to code in languages like Java and Python. But this experience reminded me that some of the most important “languages”—our mother tongues, our traditions, our values—are in danger of being silenced.
This lecture reignited something in me:
- 📌 And that when we uplift local voices, we elevate democracy itself.
Huge thanks to @Joseph Oduro-Frimpong for making space for these conversations, and to Emeritus Prof. Kwesi Yankah for pouring decades of experience into this eye-opening session.
To anyone reading this:
If something speaks to your heart, even when it feels inconvenient—go for it. Show up. Make time for growth. You never know how one moment can shift your perspective.”
Gertrude Akagbo
