Writing about Komla Dumor : a village boy's fantasies

“When we come to understand that, survival doesn’t mean having food to eat-it means consistently being at least 10 years ahead of the competition” Charles Kofi Fekpe

For me just like many Ghanaians I have not had the opportunity of meeting Komla Dumor in person neither did I have the chance of listening to him for long before his departure to the BBC.

I said so because growing up in Kadjebi, a small town supposed to be a district capital in the northern part of the Volta Region at the time, radios were the privilege of elite few.

One voice on morning talk show radio that couldn’t elude my ears the morning after my Senior High School days at St Mary’s Seminary Senior High School located in Hohoe in the Volta Region of Ghana was that of a man for me at the time was not a celebrity in my eyes.

Don’t get it twisted, where I went to school, the word celebrity was a rare mentioning and was not to be abused anyhow.

Naturally, I am a lover of current affairs programmes and I will put on hold any trivial assignments to listen to any form of discussions ranging from politics, social, business, entertainment etc.

After an attempt to apply to the University of Ghana to do political science programme which was unsuccessful, I decided to apply to the Ghana Institute of Journalism and got admission after successfully going through an entrance exams and admission interview.

My only resolve to succeed at the Ghana Institute of Journalism was because I believed that after successfully completing my course and gaining some experience in the media in Ghana I could end up at the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) not because it was impossible but because Komla Dumor “is there”.

I quickly researched about Komla Dumor, and the following facts popped up: He is a Ghanaian, educated in Ghana, started broadcasting in Ghana, was determined, and the trivial one he is a tribe’s man- ewe

Komla Dumor continued to be my only point of reference in my determination to get to the apex of my career until I heard about Akwasi Sarpong and then I again decided to find out more about any other Ghanaian who is or has been to the BBC then names like Yaw Sakyi- Addo, Yaw Ampofo etc came up.

But the difference between Komla and the rest is the fact that he represents a generation I can obviously identify.

He exudes more beyond just confidence and passion for his work.

Well just as destiny may have it I find my path in the field of communications not exactly in the media but Corporate Communications within the energy sector while Komla soldiers on.

He may no more be someone I look up to or still hope to be mentored by, but the place he goes never requires neither looking up to nor being mentored for. It’s a place called home and we shall all end up there.

In the words of William Shakespeare, Komla came, he saw and he conquered. You were the Boss Player, KD. Rest in Peace!