MY IDEAL MAN AND WOMAN

It is the dream of every man or woman to find the right partner in life. Beauty they say lies in the eyes of the beholder, but many have their own way of choosing their beloved. It is important to note that, while some guys are looking out for ladies who are slim, beautiful attractive and more importantly good in bed, others are  also looking out for fat ladies who also have the physical beauty to attract them.
ladies are usually perceived to like men who are tick, tall and muscular. Obviously not all ladies like a man like that.  The current aspirant for the position women's commissioner at the Ghana Institute of journalism, Divine Esther Bedzra says, " I like a man who is taller than me, not too skinny. he must be a guy who dresses well". In her opinion when you dress good you will feel good about yourself, and the way you dress reflects the person you are". Divine was quick to add that, the guy must the be a Christian.
Moving on, I spoke to some guys and ladies about their ideal man or woman. Jesse Yirenkyi revealed that, "he likes a woman who is neither fat nor slim,caring, has an open heart and must be able to tell the truth at all times; and most importantly she must be a good cook.  

JESSE YIRENKYI

Joan Sefakor Akpkli also  expressed her opinion on her ideal man.She said," I like a guy who is tall not too skinny,not too fat and must be very very good in bed". Joan indicated that, she is not bothered when  her boy friend eats a lot since that will make her happy seeing her man eat the food she prepares.

JOAN SEFAKOR AKPAKLI

 Finally, kweku Zurek, a sports analyst says," my ideal woman must be someone I can talk to, that is someone I can relate to and  has something in common with. Am not bothered about physical appearance, though the looks are important". kweku added that the lady must be good in bed and if the sex is not good then the communication is not going on well.
There are so many guys and ladies out there. Be careful who you choose for a wife. Pray for God to direct you as you choose your ideal man or woman. He or she may have all the qualities in your check list but the inner man is important. Sometimes when you are praying to God for a wife or a husband, you already have somebody in mind. Clear your mind and he will direct your part.
Am open to any suggestions on this topic and comments.

THINK TWICE IF YOU WHATSAPP

Communication on phone started a long time ago, but with the current development in technology; phones have become of great importance and also a source of worry since it is being abused. What is whatsapp messenger? The first time I heard the name whatsapp, I asked myself,”what is this new software”. Then the unexpected happened when students started to rush in for whatsapp phones. It seems they always want to try something new. People no longer want the phones with television and application to browse, but a combination with a lot of applications that can satisfy their appetite for more.  

The whatsapp Messenger is a cross-platform mobile messaging application which allows you to exchange messages without having to pay for sms. When students press their phones as if they are behind a computer, get closer and you will see that messages are being sent to friends. In addition to basic messaging, whatsapp users can create groups, send each other unlimited images, video and audio media messages. For those who don’t use iPhones, BlackBerry, android, windows phones and some specific nokia phones, perhaps they may be missing out on a way to save credits.  

Those on the whatsapp messanger have also started missing out on something very important, and that is time. A communication student at the Ghana Institute of journalism Patrice Amegadzie says,” the whatsapp messenger enables me to get in touch to friends as soon as possible and also makes it easy to send tracks, pictures and audio messages at a lesser cost. I use whatsapp when the time is convenient for me”.

For some communication students, the situation is different since the application can be installed on a computer or a laptop with the help of the blue stack software. Another student, Nii Boye Manasseh who has installed whatsapp messenger on his laptop said,” I can decide to use two hours on whatsapp messenger. It is good to get information but is bad when you are too much into it, because it takes much of your productive time”. Manasseh revealed that, he has spent four hours on whatsapp messenger before. If a student like Manasseh can spend four hours whatsapping with friends on his laptop, then you can imagine the number of hours he will spend if he has a whatsapp phone.

Elizabeth Amoatey uses a whatsapp phone and had this to say when she was contacted,” people I met ask me if I am on whatsapp messenger, so I decided to get a whatsapp phone. It waste time and I can’t calculate the time I spend on whatsapp”. She revealed that she is addicted to whatsapp since she uses it every day.

My dear reader, technology is to make us effective and productive. The software will make or unmake you. Please use it wisely. You can share your thoughts on the subject and also follow the blog at sambarly.blogspot.com

THE LIGHTS GO OFF.

Public transport is a service we pay for since everybody cannot afford to buy a car. The problems associated to this kind of transportation in Ghana are of major concern to the public. The use of light is for a better view or vision.  

The driver of the vehicle whose service I had purchased turned off the light when I needed it so much to read a document. To my surprise, nobody complained. It seemed the rest of the passengers were comfortable with the lights off. I was then curious and started to observe things around me. On my way, I did observe that, all the drivers had their inner lights switched off. What hit me like an atomic bomb was when a passenger respectfully asked the driver to turn off the lights.

So I tried to find answers to the questions that have flooded my mind from one the passengers. Diana Odoi, a student of Ghana Telecom University said,” I don’t know why the drivers put off the light, but I know they put it on when a passenger will alight to prevent him or her from falling”. The second person who didn’t give his name had this to say,” the drivers put off the light to prevent thieves from stealing in the bus”. He also reiterated that, the lights generate heat and therefore there is the need to put it off. Reasonable as it may sound, he added that the lights are put off to avoid eye contact.

If the reasons given are true, then what about this reason from an anonymous person,” the lights go off so that drivers will see the readings and know how fast they are going. Share your thoughts with me and lets all get a clearer understanding of why the lights must or should go off in the public transport, when students can read a book before alighting at their destination.

THE POLICE AND IT'S IMAGE

Policing started in 1821 by the British Colonialists.  The Ghana Police Service is tasked to perform the following functions in Ghana. 

1. Crime detection and prevention

2. .Apprehension (arrest) and prosecution of offenders

3. Maintenance of law and order

4. Due enforcement of the law.

The Ghana police service is currently doing a great job in the country. The police must be commended for their effort in curbing crime and ensuring that the country remains peaceful during and after the 2012 elections. I like to specify that, there are good police men and there are bad ones. The bad ones are currently destroying the image of the police which has been built by hard working police personnel. 

An incident caught my attention at 5: 55 am this morning, when a well dressed police man parked in front of a car I had boarded to work. The driver stopped to pick up passengers at the metro mass transit station here in Accra. The well dressed policeman asked the driver to alight from the vehicle. He obeyed the officer and came out of the car to talk to the policeman.

Stay with me dear reader, the policeman asked the driver to follow him. Now in an attempt to escape from the law, the driver collected money from his conductor normally referred to as “driver’s mate”.

According to some information I gathered from the next car I boarded, this has been a routine of the policeman who constantly collects bribe from the drivers before day break. The mate told me that, “we don’t have anybody to talk for us, but if we do then this nonsense will stop”. Everybody in the car complained bitterly about the performance of this police man whose motor number I clearly caught in time. Who will speak for our drivers? The police indeed are our friends, but actions from some police officers are causing the police as a unit to lose its friendship with the public. I therefore call on the Ghana police service to address this problem to protect its image.

POLITICAL UNPRECEDENTED HAPPENINGS IN GHANA

Strange things happened in the year 2012 and I would like to take this opportunity to update you on some of the unprecedented things that  that occurred this year. We have been through a lot as a nation. The year carried with it a lot of good as well as bad things. My year of unprecedented happenings started with the death of a sitting president. For the first time in Ghana, a sitting president died and his vice president was sworn in on the same day. His Excellency John Evans Atta Mills passed on the baton to his vice president John Dramani Mahama, on the 24^th of July after a short illness at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra. A lot of people wish to be president of this country one day, but how many have their dreams come through. His Excellence John Dramani Mahama now president elect of Ghana, left home for the office as a vice president in the morning; and returned home as the president of Ghana. Something that was unprecedented in this country. I must commend Ghanaians for the way they came together to give the late president Mills a befitting burial.

Another unprecedented thing that happened in this country, was the visit of the presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Danquah  Akuffo Addo to the residence of ex. President Rawlings. His visit to the ex. President was to discuss issues that will ensure free and fair elections in the December polls. He also discussed matters that would ensure that Ghana will remain peaceful during and after the elections. This was the first time an opposition party has held a meeting with the other party to discuss matters like this. Again, I will take this opportunity to thank Nana Addo for such an act.  Some people however found it difficult to accept such kind gestures from the opposition as politics as usual is full to tricks. This was an unprecedented thing in the year 2012.

Still on politics, the political scene was taken over by one man called Hassan Ayariga. The presidential candidate of the PNC became a popular figure due to his jovial nature. We cannot bring the curtains of 2012 down without talking about Hasaan Ayariga. Indeed he changed the face of politics in Ghana from a rigid one to a much flexible one. When politicians mount the stage, they all talked seriously on the issues at hand.

Ayariga treated matters with a lot of flexibility and still managed to send his message across to Ghanaians.  He became the talk of the day and others could not help but design a mixture called “Ayaricough” in his honor. The year 2012 will always remember you Mr. Hassan Ayariga for your immense contribution of jokes and laughter that you placed on the faces of Ghanaians. This was unprecedented.

The unprecedented year did only take away a president but also a vice president, leaving Ghana with no living vice president. Former vice president of Ghana, your Excellence Alhaji Aliu Mahama died after he was taken ill and hospitalized at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra. Another beloved son of the land is gone and we seem to have lost all our former vice presidents.

Share your thoughts with me by writing the unprecedented things that happened in the year twenty 2012 which is not stated.

DO YOU AGREE THAT WOMEN ARE STEREOTYPED?

Using examples from local television programs and advertisements examine, “whether women are stereotype?” (Cardwell, 1966) Stereotype is defined as a fixed over generalized belief about a particular group or class of people. Many have accepted a belief based on the people involved.In Ghana, the Ewes are attributed to spiritual medicines, while the Gas’ are generalized to be radical people. The Krobo’s are also known for engaging in prostitution. This is something that has gone on for a long time and has eventually become a representation of the people. The media presentations of these tribes or people have played a vital role in these representations.Representation therefore refers to the way in which ideas, objects, people, groups and life forms are depicted by the mass media. In an attempt to find out whether women are stereotype or not, I took into consideration, some local television programmes and advertisements..On Saturday, the 10^th of November 2012, at 5pm, I observed a programme on TV3 network hosted by Babiee. The title of the programme created internal wrangles as to whether it was true or not, but universally accepted. The title of the programme is “Hot Gossip”. It is universally accepted that women are naturally gossips. This is the perception created when two or more ladies gather at one place to discuss an issue.The programme looked at stories, gossip or rumors naturally relating to people. Babiee, speculated that Nigerian artists, P. square had killed their mother. This hot gossip is linked to the notion that, the two brothers committed the ordeal after producing a clip with Rick Ross who happens to be a member for the free mason group. The story is actually false based on a statement released by the two brothers in response to the rumors going on in the media.The programme “Hot gossip” also covered a story on an American hip-hop artist Snoop Dog. Reports from the programme say, he had changed his name to Snoop Lion after several killing scandals. The programme which is also hosted by a woman had already created the impression that, indeed women are gossips and good at fabricating stories.Indeed, I could not agree more with (Cardwell: 1996) that stereotype becomes a fixed over generalized idea or belief about a particular group of people. Even though some of the stories on the programme “Hot Gossip” were discarded by the people involved, some happened to be true. A story about Ghanaian hip-life artist Samini making a claim that, Rastafarians who eat meat should not be accepted as Rastafarians. Though this is a rumor from the camp of some ladies, it is true. I therefore believe that the perception about ladies being gossips is true. In the olden days, women were relegated to the kitchen. The “Onga Food Tour” was also shown on TV3 network and was hosted by Moon, a woman. The program was aired on Sunday the 10^th of November 2012, at 5:30pm. The thirty minutes programme was hosted in the Brong Ahafo region, Berekum to be precise.The person invited to prepare the meal was a woman. The representation and history of the programme revealed to me that, only women were invited to cook on the programme.The stereotype that, women are good when it comes to cooking cannot be erased. Some people can therefore not discard the notion that a woman’s place is always in the kitchen.The programme enlightened us to accept the idea that, women are the best when it comes to cooking. You can try and argue about this fact, but the ladies are good when it comes to cooking. Some are also worst. Linking the “Onga food tour” programme to the “Onga shrimp” advert, women are always the people in the kitchen cooking. This caused me to accept the fact that, it is women’s responsibility to cook in the house.A good view at “Kiss” advert, clearly shows that the young man and woman were not married. In the first scene, the young woman portrayed a character of rejection of the young man, who may be the boyfriend for not having a condom. But after the young man was advised to use “kiss” condom, the young woman was satisfied after sex and seen to be very happy in the next scene. The advert therefore confirms the stereotyped perception that, women are always happy when their men are able to satisfy them sexually. Is that true? In an attempt to look at whether women are stereotypes, I considered the “Maggie” spaghetti advert. In this advert, a woman was cooking whilst her husband watched a football match on television. When the food was well cooked, the man was served but his concentration was still on the football match. The facial expression on the woman’s face showed that, she was not happy with her husband’s behavior  The man switched off the television set and suddenly the woman smiled and sat next to him. I can vehemently say that women are stereotyped and will always like their husbands to concentrate on them when it comes to issues concerning them.The media, through various means stereotypes women.  From the television programs and adverts elaborated, women were being fixed in a permanent character; through gossip, always in the kitchen cooking, requesting for sexual satisfaction in bed and feeling bad when their husbands reject their cooked meals. These acts in nature are common to all genders; males and females, but why then should the media represent women in such a manner? This type of stereotype has gone on for so many years and is now a representation of women. Have your say on this topic. 

THE SOCIO-CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT AND ITS IMPACT ON ADVERTISING IN GHANA.

The environmental influence refers the uncontrollable factors which gets involve in organizations activities when such organizations are developing marketing strategies. There are many environmental influences that have had magnificent impact on advertising here in Ghana. Some factors of environmental influences are demographics, economics, socio-cultural, technological and political.

Socio-cultural environmental influence and its impact on advertising in Ghana, is the focus of this work. This factor also affects consumer purchase decision making. The social and culture, which forms the socio-cultural influence refers to the way of life of people living in a particular environment. Culture influences consumers through their language, customs, attitude, lifestyle and values. Environmental influences over the years have not had tremendous impact on advertising than in recent times.

The first, which is language, has had an impact on advertising in Ghana. In Ghana, the print media uses only English language to advertise products. The electronic media however, are well known for using local and foreign languages in advertising. Due to this, advertiser are very are careful of the language used in advertising their product. This particular environmental influence has forced advertisers in Ghana to use a common language that is understood by many for advertising. In a Ga community for example, if a product like “nku” is advertised on the radio or television, consumers of that product will understand the marketer. If the same product is advertised in an Ewe community, there will be a problem. This is because “nku” means shea butter in Ga language but the same word connotes eyes in the Ewe language. The use of language has influenced advertising in Ghana since consumers must understand the use of the product, its benefits and functions before they make a purchase. This is the nature of the Ghanaian market and advertisers are always studying the environment for changes.

Another socio-cultural environmental influence is custom, which affects products and services that people buy. Custom refers to the norms or traditions of people living in a particular area. In some environments or communities in Ghana, people dislike certain products due to their custom. According to the customs, many Muslim communities in Ghana will purchase a commodity like scarf, since the women of that religion covers their head all the time. This forms part of the environmental influence that plays a role when organizations are developing their marketing strategy.  It has therefore had an impact on the advertising in Ghana. Another example is the custom of the Gas which prevents the playing of music for a period of time. Advertisers can therefore not create awareness of music in that community, since it will go against the customs of the land. It is a period where noise making is prohibited. This is the level of influence that custom has on adverting in Ghana.

In our Ghanaian society, cultural values are really respected in a lot. Culture is the way of life of people living in a particular community. Marketers are therefore very careful about the environmental influence since its impact of advertising is great. This is considered because it may be for or against the culture of the people. A clear example of impact by culture on advertising in Ghana is the absence of nudity in advertising in Ghana. Though the adverts are still persuasive enough to attract the attention of consumers and customers, mannerisms are considered. Products like contraceptives are advertised in the Ghanaian media with all decency exhibited. This has created a strong impact on advertising in Ghana.

Another factor that has had an impact on advertising in Ghana is Religion. This is done by monitoring society in order to identify areas where new opportunities are available. In Ghana, all the adverts are carefully looked at in terms of the images that are used for the advert. For example, advertisers consider the kind of society they find themselves before they create awareness of a product like Bible. Some religious societies don’t take alcoholic beverages. Therefore, its goes against their religion to purchase that product. Some religious communities do not allow their members to watch certain adverts to avoid rebellion against the religion. It’s evident that advertising plays on our emotions and cause many people to do or practice what they see or hear in the media. The impact of Religion on advertising is so strong and cannot be overlooked by advertisers.

Advertising in Ghana is heavily characterized by moral standards. It is an offence to many people in Ghana to see or hear of adverts that speaks against their moral teachings.

The socio-cultural environmental influence helps advertisers to identify threat and eliminate them.