The Matriarch’s Verse Experience: Our children are watching – Apiorkor urges for peace ahead of December 7 polls

The Matriarch’s Verse Experience poetry concert organized by visionary poet and media practitioner Apiorkor Seyiram Ashong Abbey, better known as Apiorkor, left a lasting impact on the audience that filled the National Theatre on Saturday, November 16, 2024.

This year’s event, themed “Roots & Blossoms,” presented a fresh and deeply resonant narrative that speaks to Ghanaian and African identity across generations.

One significant moment that defined the well-attended poetry concert was Apiorkor’s powerful performance, during which she called for peace ahead of the 2024 election.

Supported by Breathing Art Studio, Team Apiorkor, Lioness Communications, and UNESCO, some lines from her poetry about the 2024 Election read:

“As 7th December approaches …remember those nights not so long ago when flames kiss the sky hungry, the street scrambled in the footsteps of neighbours who were no longer called brothers…Voices were swallowed by chaos and we were so eager to feed the earth with the blood of our own people.

Our Children our watching…in their innocence they hold the question that we seem to have forgotten: Will we leave a country that is still bleeding or will we leave them with memory lost in dust and ashes?

Politicians, leaders and every heart in this room that swells with pride for your country know this: Power that is built or broken in spirit is power that crumbles because the foundation is weak.

I call all of you here, every heart, every voice, every vote let peace be your anthem”.

Apiorkor is also the Head of Programs Production at Accra-based Citi FM/Channel One TV and the host of ‘What’s Cooking?’ on Channel One TV

Her work as a poet, cultural advocate, and founder of Breathing Art Studio has established her as a powerful force in the African Arts and Literature space, consistently challenging and inspiring her audiences.

Apart from Apiorkor’s magnificent performance on the night, patrons were also thrilled with mega performances from Nana Asaase, Dede Padiki Padi, Susan Augustt, the National Symphony Orchestra, and the National Drama Company.

The National Ghanaian Music treasure, Kwan Pa Band, also serenaded patrons with musical roots and blossoms on stage, as the carpet band for the night.