Mothers in charge of Dipo ( puberty rites) at Dodowa in the Shai Osudoku District in the Greater Accra Region are now allowing non-virgins to take part in the rites because it is becoming difficult to get virgin adolescent girls.
However, girls who have had abortions, given birth or carried pregnancies are still not allowed to go through the rites.
Dipo rites
According to them, many girls were now sexually active, leaving them with no choice but to allow “non-virgins” to take part in the rites.
The modification, they believe, will attract more adolescent girls to the rites which in the past were to usher only virgin girls between the ages of 10 and 15 into puberty or womanhood.
The mothers shared their concern when The Mirror team visited the Dipo House at Dodowa to witness this year’s ceremony.
The mothers are the elderly traditional women ensuring that the Dipo rites are performed.
Lack of interest
The mothers who were in their 80s, said they were unhappy that the current generation was not interested in learning the processes of the rites.
Their fear is that, in the event where they all pass away, there will be no one to replace them to perform the rites for the girls in the community.
Ushering this reporter into the Dipo house, one of the mothers asked: Do you see any deity here?
There were 30 girls wearing various types of beads which covered their nakedness.
The old woman said people had a lot of misconceptions which destroyed “the beauty and essence of our culture. And because of that no one wants to come to us and learn.”
Girls getting ready to enter the Stone room
The leader of the “mothers, Awunye Ashiakie, who has been involved in Dipo rites for the past 60 years, said she started assisting older women when she was 20 years old.
She explained that although she prepared over 100 girls for the puberty rites each year, the number was still small as compared to the past.
She attributed the low patronage to modernity ,particularly education, the introduction of new media as well as influence from some pastors.
Awunye Ashaikie’s main worry was about the activities of some religious leaders who saw the puberty rites as an evil doctrine.
Another mother, Maameo, said the decline in virginity affected the numbers such that if they continued to stick to only virgins, Dipo rites would soon fade out.
Modification
Asked whether Dipo had outgrown its usefulness and should be cancelled, they all retorted loudly, “y3 ntwa mu,” to wit “we will never cancel it.”
Awunye Ashaikie who seemed very resolved to preserve Dipo said: “Dipo means “nhyira” in Akan which means blessings and “yo” in Ga and Krobo means a woman, so it is all about asking God’s blessings for the girl and so when we say “Dipo yo”, that is what we mean.
“It is the misconception people peddle around that is preventing others from bringing their daughters. I have heard people say you will not give birth or get married when you go through it and that is false,” she said.
Although Dipo is popular, it is one of the criticised traditional practices in the country.
The Mirror observed, however, that it attracted many tourists.
Dipo is celebrated by a few Dangme groups, namely the Shai and the Krobo in the Eastern Region, and it is held in the month of April.
Some community members told The Mirror that the mothers made the announcement of the dates for the rites and parents sent their girls to take part.
Unlike the past where the girls were lined up bare-chested and almost naked, this reporter observed that that was no longer the case. Girls who exposed their breasts were those who wanted to take photographs to portray the rites as done in the past.
This reporter saw that as part of the changes, girls as young as two years of age were allowed to go through the rites.
Some fathers are very supportive of the Dipo rites
There were girls whose mothers brought them without the consent of their fathers and so such girls refused to shave their hair so they could go home quietly with no traces of the rites.
Girls who refused to shave their hair as the rites demanded paid a penalty of GH¢5 to the mothers.
Currently, to enable a girl to go through the rites, parents are supposed to pay GH¢500.00 to the mothers.
Preparation
The girls are camped in the Dipo house for a week and are given a ritual bath, taught some cooking skills, housekeeping roles and personal grooming.
They are also taught the Dipo dance which is called ‘’klama’’. The girls perform the dance all through the rites.
The kind of beads being used by the girls are those hardly seen on the market and this made each girl look unique and beautiful.
Parents of these girls were there to support them. It was exciting to see fathers cheering their daughters on.
A resident, Mr David Tetteh, said: “the men are always supportive and that’s because we practise the patrilineal system”.
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