Award-winning gospel musician Celestine Donkor has issued an unreserved apology to the people of the Volta Region following her recent comments about their surnames.
Her apology comes after a conversation on Today’s Woman, hosted by Cookie Tee, where Celestine, upon learning that Cookie was also from the Volta Region, was questioned about her surname, “Donkor,” which is not typically an Ewe name.
During the interview, when Cookie Tee inquired about the origin of Celestine’s surname, noting its deviation from traditional Ewe names, Celestine explained that “Donkor” was her husband’s surname.
This exchange sparked discussions and reactions, particularly from individuals in the Volta Region, who felt that Celestine’s comments were insensitive or dismissive of their cultural naming conventions.
” I am a pure ewe. My parents are both ewes and I speak it fluently as well. But one thing about ewes is our heavy surnames. I was always looking for an ewe man with cute name not a heavy name. I’ve carried a heavy surname all my life so it was nice to have a simple name to pronounce. My name before marriage was Celestine Akakpo Dossou.” She stated on TV.
Recognizing the impact of her words and the unintended offence caused, Celestine Donkor took to social media to express her regret and offer a sincere apology to the Voltarians.
In her apology, she acknowledged the importance of respecting cultural diversity and sensitivity towards cultural identities, emphasizing that her comments were not intended to belittle or undermine any ethnic group. According to Celestine, her comments were a joke and should be taken as such.
To be sincere, I do this video out of Love and respect to all my fellow ewe people, even though @cookieteegh and I were just playfully teasing and joking about our heavy “Ewe Sir Names” on the show (#Todayswoman)
I do appreciate the feedback and digest all comments with a positive spirit. I say “Dzi ne fa na mi sia” Celestine Donkor still remains a proud ewe woman. God bless you. She wrote as she shared her apology video.
