NOGOKPO is a town along the ECOWAS (Tema-Aflao) Highway, in the Ketu South Municipality of the Volta Region.
The peace in the area is in total consonance with the meaning of the name Nogokpo – stay calm.
The strong religious stance of the people of Nogokpo is evident in the 13 Churches in the town, including the St Jude Catholic Church, Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Ghana, Church of Pentecost, and others.
Just a few metres from Nogokpo is Ativuta which has a branch of the Perez Chapel, with a prominent signpost bearing a portrait of Bishop Charles Agyinasare.
Temple
The Mirror on Thursday, June 1, 2023 visited a monumental feature for which Nogokpo has been known over the centuries; the Yewe Temple, also known as Torgbui Zakadza Temple.
“This is a temple and not a shrine, as many people think,” the spokesman of the Fiasa (Nogokpo Royal Palace) Nufialaga Kobla Mawufemor Nornyibey, explained.
History has it that the people of Nogokpo migrated from Notse in Togo and stopped over for a while at Agbozume before moving to their present place of abode some 800 years ago.
The people are known for kente weaving and the production of cassava, coconut, maize and vegetables which they sell in the nearby Agbozume Market to customers from other parts of the country, Nigeria, Togo and La Cote d’ivoire and parts of Ghana.
In Nogokpo, trees are not cut without tangible reasons, and so, trees adorn the neighbourhoods and homes, providing shade from the sun and beautifying the town.
But the greater beauty of Nogokpo is in the friendly nature of the people towards visitors.
Some of them offer to host them overnight with sumptuous meals of eworkple and fetri desti or pepper.
No crime
In spite of the absence of a police station in Nogokpo, crime is almost non-existent in the town.
“Anyone who conceives the idea to steal, commits rape or other forms of crime, it is believed, does so at the peril of his own life as he may incur the wrath of hebiezo (thunder god),” said Brother Paul Semevo.
In Nogokpo, it is a crime to tell a lie, and so children are regularly reminded that: Dalakpa’naku (Lie and die).
The religious harmony in the town is amazing with non-Christians bearing names like Paul.
A number of the people generally seem to live well over 90 years and remain socially active at that age and remain physically strong enough to visit their farms daily.
According Brother Paul (who is not a Christian), the people of Nogokpo live healthily by eating fresh vegetables, abstaining from binge drinking and rather do everything in moderation while abiding by the truth always and doing the will of God.
During the visit by this reporter and his guide, Gavivina Tamakloe , the Dufia, Torgbui Saba V, was away attending a funeral in another town.
But when he was told on phone that we were at the palace, he insisted we waited for him to come and welcome us, and he did that before arranging for us to visit the Yewe Temple.
At this juncture, we were given pieces of cloth to tie around our waists as a condition for entering the temple.
The temple is a modern estate with shiny tiles on the floor and walls.
There are different units for the various energies and places for believers, with traditional music in the background at the temple.
Photography is forbidden inside the temple whose beauty would have better been described in pictures.
“This African spirituality came with creation, long before the Europeans came to Africa. We practised circumcision and our women knew how to handle menstrual flow.
“This is not occultism, and no human sacrifices are performed in this temple. Sacrifices are made with goats, fowls, ducks and cows.
“What this temple stands for is nothing but the truth and pure justice,” said Nufialaga Kobla Mawufemor Nornyibey.
A striking inscription on a wall facing visitors in the temple reads: The Truth Shall Make you Free.
When asked why there were celestial Jewish symbols on the walls, Nufialaga Kobla explained that they were rather symbols of African spirituality which were stolen by other races centuries ago.
Meanwhile, Tsiamiga (chief linguist) of the Torgbui Zakadza Temple, Tataga Ametakoli made it clear that the temple had no problem with Christianity and other religions.
He revealed that Christians, including pastors, often flocked to the temple, day and night to seek spiritual assistance from the energies therein, likewise politicians, doctors, public servants and people from all works of life, from far and near.
“So, it is mind-boggling how they leave here and go and make disparaging remarks ,” said Tsiamiga.
He said the temple was not a place to come to with an evil motive to seek vengeance against one’s perceived enemies.
The energies in the temple would help to find a lost treasure, money; assist people to progress in their businesses and seek justice for the wrongly accused.
“But, you must fulfil the pledge you made to the energies when you get what you came to look for here,” Tsiamiga added.
Dr Kwame Nkrumah
He claimed that in 1956, Dr Kwame Nkrumah visited Nogokpo to seek assistance from the energies in the temple to win the elections to become Ghana’s first Prime Minister and later President.
When his heart’s desire was fulfilled, Dr Nkrumah provided materials and resources to expand the temple, in accordance with the pledge he made, said Tsiamiga.
At this juncture, the high priestess in-charge of the temple, Minao Ladzeshie, joined us and welcomed us, before engaging us in a cordial conversation.
Half-way into the conversation, she took leave of us to attend to another issue.
After what appeared to be a long wait, we decided to leave but we were told by elders in the temple that we could not do so without her permission and goodwill.
Minao Ladzeshie finally sent the Tsiamiga to inform us that the way was clear, and we could leave.
There was a similar protocol at the chief’s palace, where Torgbui Saba, who was conversing with us and sought to know about our visit to the temple, suddenly left for an inner room.
After what appeared to be another long wait, Torgbui granted us the permission to leave and wished us a safe journey back to Ho. This was close to sunset.
The majority of people of Nogokpo seemed literate and are believers in the energies at the Torgbui Zakadza Temple.
It was common to see men walking about with only pieces of cloth around their waists.
In relation to the religious harmony in the town, the Assemblyman, Jonas Agbagba, who earlier accompanied us into the temple, told us that he worshipped at the nearby Perez Chapel and served as a Sunday school teacher there, and worshipped in the Torgbui Zakadza Temple as well.
“I do not miss my dzenkple (aprapransa) meals in the temple,” he added.
The people of Nogokpo believe cleanliness is next to godliness, and so, the surroundings, just like the highway, are always kept clean, giving Nogokpo a glittering image.
It is also a place where one could travel and rest assured that neighbours would look after his or her children in his absence.
Children are all expected to be at home before sunset, and that may be the reason teenage pregnancies are not common in Nogokpo.
In their leisure times, the people of Nogokpo love their Agbadza drumming and dancing, as well as Akpaloo, Borborbor and Akpese.
Nogokpo has been a very important tourists’ destination over the decades, attracting visitors not only from within the country but also Europe and United States, whose main focus is to visit the temple and learn more about African spirituality.
Although located along the ECOWAS Highway, which is busy with traffic, there has not been any road accident on the Nogokpo portion for many years.
In the past, there were cases of vehicles knocking children crossing the road but that ended with the erection of speed humps on the road.
Rare honesty and modernity
It was common knowledge there that one could drop his wallet anywhere in the town and find it with the content intact even if it took him a week to retrace his steps to the exact spot where the wallet dropped.
The same goes for jewellery and other treasures.
As a modern town, Nogokpo has potable water and electricity, as well as restaurants and hotels to contain the ever-growing number of visitors.
If there is something I am already missing about the people of Nogokpo, it is the warmth with which I was received.
As Torgbui Saba put it : “We need positive stories about Nogokpo from the media to market Nogokpo to astonishing heights, in the broader national interest”.
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