If you have
spent any time visiting Humjibre, chances are you’ve been woken up at 5 A.M.
Indeed,
this town, known as the place of rest, comes wildly alive very early thanks to
the two information centres in town.
Over loudspeakers, announcements are broadcast at peak volume; loud enough for everyone
in Humjibre to hear them, loud enough to wake you up.
When I
first arrived, I loved the concept. It’s a giant audible internet message
board! It’s Humjibre’s morning news program!
It’s like someone took the 'Local' section of the newspaper and yelled
it at you! Neat! My enthusiasm did not
last long…
Somehow,
I’ve adapted my sleep patterns to it and the loud voices in Sefwi don’t always wake me
up. Now, I only really wake up if I recognize the voice. GHEI often makes announcements about its
outreaches or if they have a special PSA like the one Aggie made last month,
but why, Saga, why? Why do you have to
tell everyone about the Early Childhood Literacy classes so early!
After
several months of lingering curiosity, I set off to the origin of the early
morning noises. I’d spent a summer
hearing questions from volunteers that I felt needed to be answered: “Why are
they so early?” “What are they announcing?” “Singing? Really!?!”
With
Lawrence in tow, as my translator/cultural attaché, we set off for the Aduanaba
Information Centre near the centre of town to answer those questions and learn more about the early morning cacophony.
We found it empty but I had my first look inside, and with all the
equipment set up just so, it was like a compact, pirate radio station. There was room for only one.
We asked
around where the proprietor was.
Lawrence gave him a call, while I snapped some photos. He was at home, and off we went. We met Isaac Baidoo as he was spreading cocoa
out to dry after a day of farming. We
sat on a bench in front of his house, and I presented our mission in English.
He looked confused, so I nodded to Lawrence who presented our mission in
Sefwi. He was still confused, but now also
amused.
For 1 ($.75) Cedi, Isaac makes
announcements for others, or allows others to make announcements, at two times,
once in the morning and once in the evening.
Each follows a similar sort of pattern, but the mornings are laid out
this way: Between 4:30 and 5 AM is the time for various religious
announcements, whether they be church gatherings, preaching, or a new sect that
might be setting up. The price for this
time is negotiable and often Isaac lets them on for free for no more than 20
minutes, expecting that if they are blessed by donations, he will also be
blessed with a small gift from them.
This is often when the singing happens: Pre-Sunrise Hymns in
Humjibre.
The second
segment is for personal announcements, and these announcements happen
between 5 – 5:30 AM. These announcements can be a place to make
announcements about important events in families such as funerals, or births, and
it is when the chief would be broadcasting decrees. It is also a place to air out grievances, such
as announcing theft from your farm, whether the culprit is known or not. One
can also broadcasts insults and comebacks to insults slung out earlier, which
seems to me could lead to a vicious war of words over the airwaves. I suppose
the 1 cedi price tag restricts the frequencies of this, I mean, surely at some
point it’s going to cost too much to continue insulting each other… I posed
this to Isaac.
He assured
me that he has a small interview with everyone before they make an announcement
to judge the content of their message, and, I’m guessing, the content of their
character. I don’t think the chief would let excessive hate flinging happen in
Humjibre, either. In fact, the chief was
the one who decreed the time limits on the announcements to begin with.
The last
session lasts between 5:30 and 6 AM, but often longer. This is where people can try their hand
selling some products, like all natural healing balms or various other wonder
cures, like efficient door to door selling. Different chop (*food) stalls along the
Humjibre strip will take this time to announce special additions to their menus or moments when soup is on. Breakfast
is one of the busiest moments for the chop industry in Humjibre, so these last
minute announcements for ampesi or hot
stew dishes with yams are probably a good bang for their cedi.
Isaac has
been in the announcement business for five years now. The Aduanaba Information Centre is one of two announcement systems in
Humjibre, I asked about competition between the two. “Daabi, daabi,” he said, quickly shaking his
head. They were the first to make
announcements in Humjibre, they were pioneers in the field, and he affords them
all respect. Yes, I said, but what if
you both make an announcement at the same time?
Who wins then? The loudest volume?
Isaac laughed at my barbaric view of media, and said that he defers to
them. They give him a signal when it’s
his turn, and he starts his announcing.
I was
impressed by how complex this system was.
From my bed, stewing in groggy frustration, it sounds like the blown-out
chaos of overly excited voices, and now I see there’s not just a regulatory system
in place but consideration and respect.
I asked
Isaac if I could make an announcement, he said of course. I asked if I could give him some nice, soft
music to play in the morning, music that wouldn’t wake us up but give us a
relaxing sleep for another 20 minutes. I
imagined Chopin lilting out of the speakers.
He said
sure, it’s your money. I asked if people
would like this, because there are a number of people at GHEI, now and
previously, that would probably love it.
He said maybe, but not many people complain about the morning announcements
in Humjibre. Most people, he said, complain during
the evening announcements, when their nightly news comes through their radios, when
they’re trying to sit and have a meal and a conversation with the family, when
the youth are hanging out on the streets.
 |
| Isaac and Lawrence |
Lawrence
elaborated, “Everyone’s already awake at 5 AM. The only one still sleeping is
you.”
