GHATROMOTIVE
If you have been driving on Ghana roads for a while, you must have come across various Trotsky’s popularly known as Trotro in the local parlance for some transportation services. Most of these commercial buses have hilarious inscriptions or quotes on them. These write ups can be found on mudguards or back windscreens. The writings range from quirky observations, distilled wisdom, modified proverbs to corrupt sayings in the society. Most of these inscriptions are the world views of the owners of the automobiles in Ghana.

When things get tough, many a Ghanaian turns to a motivational quote for a bit of inspiration or comfort and writings on trotros are no exception. These have become celebrated parts of society lexicon of which owners and passengers are stake holders. Is it not stress relieving to read such touching quotes in a long traffic jam after the day’s work? These captions capture the facts of the society in a creative satirical manner. One will wander what provoked or inspired these inscriptions.

Motivation words or quotes inspire or stimulate people to work. Gods time is the best,Jah bless, it is well,Egyapa good father, man no be god, life is war, hard work pays, no hurry in life are some motivational quotes these trotros can be identified by in Ghana. Next time you join a troskys  in Ghana pay attention to those captivation motivation inscriptions.


Author: Emmanuel Attigah Winner

CASTING INSINUATIONS (slight)

 

 CASTING INSINUATIONS (SLIGHT)

In Ghana , writing at the back of vehicles has become a social phenomenon and a medium for communicating a commonly held view , a believe or maxim. It is also a way of ‘subbing’ . Subbing is a social media jargon for using derogatory statements about someone and not tagging them . In the Akan language , it is called ‘akasaatwiw’ or ‘akutiabo’ .

Insults and insinuations are more likely to be frequent in societies with less human development index , where individuals result to indirect form of insults for fear of victimization but the more endowed or elites in the society . These inscriptions represent generally held views in a society , though specifically individuals use it as a conduit for expressing their gratitude , the language, the choice and structure of sentences use in these represents the form and subject of at least small group discussions of the various age groups . While some shanty areas like Nima, Abosokai, etc may result to instant justice , individuals result to writing at the backs of their vehicles hoping that their messages would get across to their targeted audience . In the example above , when the driver was interviewed , it was clear that he feels his efforts and hardwork was irritating some people . Though his statement hasn’t got any recipient on it , the recipient will quickly know its for him .

An akan proverb says , ‘ akutia biara nim ne wura’ to wits , every criticism knows its target . Insinuations also serve as an alternative to expressing bottled up emotions when it is difficult to find someone you can confide in on personal matters .

Additionally , the educational levels of those engaged in such practice are relatively lower and this explains why such inscriptions are often fraught with grammatical errors and spelling errors . meanwhile they mean to demonstrate or tell their own philosophies in life , it evokes humour in the minds of its audience .

It tells the type of social structure that exist within the community where these vehicles are from. In communities where ‘ mechanical solidarity’ is practiced , inscriptions on vehicles as a means of slight is rampant . 







BY : IRENE OFORI AGYEMAN

PROVERBIAL INSCRIPTIONS ON TROTRO IN GHANA.

Although there are other means of transportation, Trotro (mini buses) is Ghana’s number one public vehicles that transport people and goods to their destination and in case you haven’t ridden on a Trotro and you are in my beloved country, Ghana, then you are really missing out.
Did you know that Trotro system was created after first world war to serve as means of transportation to the people of Ghana?

Hmm! I guess you didn’t know that.

While growing up in the city of Accra and up till date, I have realised there are some inscriptions (writings) at the back of most Trotro in Ghana and what piqued my curiosity is the Akan proverbial inscription at the back of these mini buses.

Akan proverbs are short sayings, gives a piece of advice or states a general truth. Therefore, most drivers share their experiences through these Akan writings.

The Akan proverb writing at the back of this Trotro is “OBI M) DEN B) Y3 OBI AHI” which literally translate “someone’s effort disgusts someone”, and it’s the gospel truth. Upon all the efforts, the Up and Downs and disappointment in whatever success you want to achieve, I bet it disgust someone.

Remember I told you Trotro is not the only means of transportations, YES! We have the Taxi’s as well. With a Taxi, you can get an exclusive ride or share with three other passengers only but Trotro carries between nine to sixteen passengers depending on the seats in the bus.

Taxis have some writings at the back of their vehicle as well and the Akan proverb writings at the back of this Taxi is “ATANFO 3NY3 NYAME” which literally translate “Enemies are not God”, and indeed enemies are not God but you just have to be careful since you might not know them.

According to some drivers, these writing serves a daily reminder of their experiences, how life is treating them and also ginger them to succeed in life.

As Thomas Fuller once said “Seeing is believing, but feeling is the truth”, and I am also saying "come see for yourself"

Anytime you visit my homeland, Ghana, never hesitate to hop in a Trotro because it is the cheapest means of transport; you can join anywhere, alight wherever you want and just pay for the distance you covered.


Author: Diana Asare

THE GHANA TRO-TRO, OUR FRIENDLY REMINDER.

There are a lot of things that catches one’s eye upon arrival in Ghana especially Accra but nothing is as eye catching and attention grabbing like the Tro-tro. One can easily spot a tro-tro whether in the day or at night. Most of them are either still working and picking up passengers or on their way home with empty seats but what is always eye catching about it is not the time at which they operate nor the rampant number of it that can be seen in Ghana. What is recognizably different and extra ordinary about these buses are the inscriptions on them. This is a unique feature of the Ghana Tro-tro that often leaves one in awe and bewilderment. 

These inscriptions can regularly be seen at the back or on the windshield. It could be in a form of a religious affirmation, a picture of a religious leader, a brief motivational statement, a proverb, a funny statement and even sometimes just a word. These inscriptions are things that drivers and owners of the car can relate to from personal experiences and want to convey to others. They can also be a vague inscription to meet the trend attached to a picture of a popular Ghanaian musician or perhaps that of a foreign musician like the Stonebwoy and Bob Marley ones seen around day in, day out. Whiles some are complete sentences; others are phrases with errors in them. None the less, there is always a hidden meaning behind them and are used to create awareness either in the form of a bible verse, a warning or an advice, a relief from stress or a distraction from the everyday hustle and bustle. Regardless of the intentions of the drivers and car owners with these inscriptions, undoubtedly, most of them serve as a reality-check for pedestrians, passengers and other drivers.

Some inscriptions encourage people to pause in their steps and reflect on life. They serve as a reminder, on not only the importance of living in the moment and Carpe diem which means “to seize the day” in Latin, but also on the brevity of life. People become conscious and informed on a decision to be made. Some people even get inspired by these inscriptions and take them as a sign they were looking for to take an endeavor in life. These writings make individuals aware of something so much that it causes reflection about an event that took place in their life. 

                                                                                                 

The inscription here which states in the Asante Twi language “nkodaa bedidi” is not only telling us why the driver is driving a tro-tro bus but it is also reminding others of the reason why they should work, especially, parents. It translates as “the children have to eat” which will definitely enlighten a parent on the reason why they should be working. It is a friendly reminder that will unwrap their thinking of the welfare of their children whether by the driver’s intention or not. It is almost likely the tro-tro buses in Ghana indirectly create a specific messaging campaign about a particular issue thereby raising awareness, informing and shedding light on public issues that everyone can relate to. As unbelievable as it may sound, a Ghana tro-tro can make one reflect on life and change their attitude or behavior. One can even say it is a force to be reckoned with when you visit Ghana.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  
                                                                   
                                               Author: Jessica Fati Gyimah