Ghanaian king who rules from Germany via Skype burgled

Ghana

The Superior and Spiritual Chief of the Ewes in Togo and the King of the Gbi traditional area of Hohoe in Ghana - King Togbe Ngoryifia Céphas Kosi Bansah, who rules over his kingdom via Skype, e-mail, fax and phone from Germany; has had four crowns stolen after his home in Ludwigshafen, 80km south of Frankfurt was burgled.

The 66-year old monarch returned from an evening out with his German wife, Gabriele Bansah, to find that most of his royal regalia, including the crowns and golden chains from his grandparents, were taken.

“Thieves had come [sic] over the balcony on the first floor, prised the door open, smashed the cabinets and ransacked everything,” Cephas Bansah told the UK’s Times newspaper.

The stolen items are several hundred years old and irreplaceable. Their value was put at about €20,000 (£15,900).

Céphas Bansah was chosen to be the new ruler after his grandfather, the reigning king, died in 1987. His father and elder brother were both left-handed, and therefore could not be considered rightful heirs, because the left hand was seen as unclean. The coronation ceremony took place on 16 April 1992.

The king who grew up in the Volta Region of Ghana, first visited Germany in 1970 during a student exchange programme. He took an apprenticeship at the firm Paul Schweitzer in Ludwigshafen am Rhein, and went on to earn two German Master Craftsman certificates: the first was a Master Craftsman as mechanic for agricultural machinery and the second as mechanic for vehicles.

He also took up boxing in his spare time, and in 1975 became the district flyweight champion.

He now runs a workshop of his own in Ludwigshafen, and is in regular contact with his family in Ghana, who he visits a few times a year.

He is also known as an entertainer and musician, and makes many media appearances to generate interest for his charitable projects. He has been on many television shows with almost every German television station and as a guest on many other national and international television shows, even with the ORF (television broadcaster) in Austria.

According to an entry in Wikipedia, "Throughout the years, Céphas Bansah has been able to realise several supportive ventures. Soon after his coronation, he established a non-profit organization to raise funds for the people of Hohoe. In Ludwigshafen, he was able through his good relations with the farmers to collect containers full of water pumps and pipes. They were shipped to Ghana and served to supply many people's homes with clean drinking water. Further items such as electricity poles and a new church bell for the Hohoe Evangelical Presbyterian Church were sent in subsequent containers. The town's hospital, which had been understaffed and inadequately equipped, was much improved by donations of medical equipment, wheelchairs, ambulance vehicles, and twenty-two German doctors. The king also supervised the construction of a new bridge over the River Dayi, which had previously been dangerously unstable."

In September 1995 his installation as the "Superior and Spiritual Chief of the Ewe people" in Notse in Togo – a recognition of his hard work, development achievements, and continuous support for the Ewe people – was covered by the ZDF.

He has produced and published six CDs of his songs and music, including a version of "O Tannenbaum" in his native language, and his World Cup 2006 song "King Football". The German author Horst O. Hermanni has written a biography of Céphas Bansah with the title "Majestät im Blauen Anton" (His Majesty in Blue Overalls).

He married his Gabrielle in 2000, and they are blessed with three children: Michael Kweku, Carlo Koku, and Katharina Akosua.