Former Dean of Business Administration and Communications Arts at Academic City University College, Professor Enoch Opoku Antwi, has opened up about a deeply painful childhood marked by political persecution, poverty, and early responsibility, revealing how those experiences shaped his journey to becoming a professor.

Speaking on The Career Trail on Joy Learning TV and Joy News, he recounted how his early years were defined by fear and instability following the repeated arrest of his father.

“I normally don’t talk about my childhood because I had a very awkward childhood. My father was taken because he voiced out his opinion. In those days, you dare not write about the military government, but he was a writer and spoke about the excesses of the regime,” he said.

According to him, soldiers frequently stormed their home, subjecting his father to brutal treatment.

“Soldiers would come and surround the house. They beat him until he started coughing blood. That got him into jail many times. I went to see him there, being beaten. They were even slashing him with broken bottles. I saw a lot of these things,” he recalled.

“That is why, when I returned to Ghana permanently a few years ago, I had to go back to the village to heal from the emptiness. I had seen too much pain and torture,” he added.

With his father frequently imprisoned and later absent, the burden of survival shifted to the family, with him bearing the brunt as he struggled to cope.

He described taking on multiple menial jobs at a very young age to keep the family afloat.

“My mother could not handle the pressure, so I had to do everything I could to support her and raise my siblings,” he recounted.

"There is no job I haven’t done. I searched for snails, made baskets, sewed, and sold secondhand clothing. I pounded fufu at chop bars. One day, my mother came back and saw me pounding fufu. She stood there for a while and started crying. I did everything to make my family survive,” he continued.

Despite the hardship, he said moments of small achievement brought immense joy.

“The first time I had a Christmas dress was after I worked on a maize farm. You know, during vacation, I stayed with a man who had no legs but owned a big rice farm. We would harvest, and whatever you gathered, you got one fifth. That was how I was able to buy the Christmas dress. That was my best Christmas because it came from my own sweat,” he revealed.

Following his father’s eventual release, tensions within the family led to a separation, after which he stayed with his mother and siblings. His father later passed away, leaving him with an overwhelming sense of responsibility.

“I remember my mother telling me, ‘Your father is no more. If you fail us as the first child, we all die.’ From that moment, I did everything I could to make my family survive,” he stated. 

Reflecting on his journey, Prof. Antwi said his early struggles instilled in him resilience and humility, values he carries to this day.

“One thing I know is that God has a sense of humour. When He has great things for you, He gives you a very humble beginning,” he noted.

 “This is the first time I am saying this so people will learn that if I have become a professor, anybody can also become something,” he concluded.