Nii Kwardey Ntreh, a cultural activist and storyteller at the Ga Mantse Palace, has explained the meaning of the Ga greeting ‘Oobakɛ’, which some Ga people are demanding to see on national signages.

He said the word, contrary to claims by some people, has always existed. 

“‘Oobakɛ’ means you shall surely come. See, there is an expectation inbuilt when we speak with the long opening vowel. It’s a future participle. ‘Oobakɛ’ means we expect foreigners to come and live with us,” he told Kwame Dadzie on Joy FM’s Showbiz A-Z on Saturday, 30th August 2025.

Nii described the word as “exoteric” because it is not often used.

“Everyday language uses the basic Ga but within the circles of traditional leaders and elders they still use it.” 

He added that in daily speech Gas usually say “atuu.”

The explanation comes after some Ga people raised concerns that their language had been excluded from signages on national infrastructure located on Ga land. They argued that Akan and Ewe greetings on the welcome signage at the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park in Accra should be replaced with a Ga inscription. A few days after their agitation, the inscription was changed.

Their campaign was extended to the Kotoka International Airport, where they demanded that the word ‘Akwaaba’ be replaced with ‘Oobakɛ.’ 

Images circulating online, believed to be AI-generated, show the airport signage altered to reflect the Ga greeting, although reports indicate that the original Akwaaba signage remains unchanged.

The controversy has reignited conversations about the pressure on Ga culture, given Accra’s cosmopolitan character and its status as Ghana’s capital city.