Woman king

Mar 16th, 2010 9:55 AM UTC
By Chris Scott

This weekend, the Washington Post published a piece by Eleanor Herman about Peggielene Bartels, the first woman to become the ruler of Otuam, Ghana. It’s a fascinating study of both Bartels– who was actually a secretary in Washington, DC– and Otuam, and a really good read.

Towards the end of the piece, Herman writes:

Bartels’s organizational skills and decades of administrative experience are greatly admired in Otuam. For one thing, she is literate, which many of the elders are not. She knows computers, having received a diploma from Strayer University in computer information systems. She has lived in the United States since 1979, when she was offered an embassy job during a visit, and has faced daily challenges they can’t even imagine.

Armed with such an impressive résumé, Bartels is a symbol of hope to younger residents. Twenty-five-year-old Kweku Acheampong, a student, asked for a private audience with her, with no elders at the table. Acheampong was tall and muscular with golden brown skin, alert eyes and a trim moustache. He came with nine friends in tow.

Acheampong stood respectfully and cleared his throat. “We have been waiting for you,” he said. “We have been waiting for years. Why do you think this town has no water? Why is there no library? No Internet? Why does the elementary school have no toilet, and 250 kids use the bushes? Why are our roads so bad? Why does our clinic have only nurses and not a single doctor? Why can we not move forward? It is because the elders have been stealing the town’s funds, so there is no money for development. That’s why! This must change.”

Acheampong continued: “We, the youth of Otuam, want to make sure it will change! We stand behind you as our king. You are young, you are American, and you are a woman. The ancestors sent you here to change things. We want to join your council of elders to make sure no more money is stolen.” His companions grunted in approval.

“You are right,” Bartels replied. “I will get to the bottom of the corruption and appoint some of you to the council to collect the fishing and farming fees. Now that I have been gazetted, it is time to get serious about this.”

As a follow up to the article, the Washington Post hosted a Q&A with the author, which you can read here.

TAGS: ONE, Women ONE2ONE