Ghana’s Ambassador-Designate to South Korea, Kojo Choi, has shared a personal academic experience to emphasise his deep cultural integration and Ghanaian identity.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s Face to Face with Umaru Sanda Amadu on Tuesday, August 12, Mr. Choi recounted how he excelled in the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in Twi, despite not speaking the language fluently when he first came to Ghana.
“I couldn’t speak Twi when I first arrived in Ghana. I attended SOS Junior High School in Tema, and that’s where I learnt it. I had an aggregate 5 in Ashanti Twi for BECE, while my Ghanaian friend, who is fully Ghanaian, had six, and another had seven. I had a pass mark, but it’s not easy to get that,” he said.
Mr. Choi explained that his early education at SOS College, a boarding school, restricted students to speaking only English, French, or Swedish. “I was privileged to pick pidgin language as my third language,” he recalled.
The diplomat added that his exposure to various cultures across Ghana also shaped his linguistic abilities. “I used to go to the Upper East Region when I was very young, and because they speak just the Frafra language, I can speak a little,” he noted.
Fluent in Twi and conversant in Frafra, Mr. Choi stressed his Ghanaian roots. “I am a full Ghanaian; I don’t hold any other passport apart from the Ghanaian passport. This is my home,” he affirmed.
