A conversation with Muhammad Shuaib , the founder of Ashaiman readers club!
Give us a brief history of Ashaiman Readers Club?
Ashaiman, a suburb of Tema, had always been on the negative lists of people, institutions, and even security agencies. According to rumors, an Ashaiman indigene is mostly denied certain privileges at workplaces outside of Ashaiman due to employers’ prejudice against the people of Ashaiman as a haven of lawlessness and criminality. They are not far from the truth, as Ashaiman used to record cases of robbery, assault, and even murder.
Over the years, organizations come and go, all with the simple goal of reforming the community and shaping its citizens for the benefit of the nation. The good news is, there have been massive improvements, as we can see from the likes of Thomas Teye Partey (Blackstar Vice captain and current Arsenal player), Livingstone Etse Satekla, popularly known as Stonebwoy (highly celebrated music icon), among others, although it’s evident there’s still more to be done.
There are multiple elementary schools in Ashaiman, as well as a single public senior high school (Ashaiman Senior High), but no library or learning space. Because of the lack of these amenities (a modern library and a study environment), the majority of citizens find learning and reading unappealing, and even the sharpest students have lost interest in reading.
The TOMORROW TODAY CLUB, renamed ASHAIMAN READERS CLUB, adapted and implemented a reading culture of a popular book club in Nima (SUCESS BOOK CLUB) in Ashaiman in July 2019. The Ashaiman Readers Club was founded with the goal of instilling a love of reading in the people of Ashaiman, particularly those in the Basic School, because “catch them young, and they are yours forever,” as the saying goes. Our main goal is to build a cutting-edge library with a fully functional IT lab by our 15th birthday.
Books and reading, we believe, have the power to transport us to new worlds and transform us, and we know, like any other person, “the Ashaimanaian” could also become great, even as far as occupying the highest office in Ghana (the presidency). Like Magaret Fuller puts it, “a reader today, a leader tomorrow.” Malcom X, once upon a time, an ignorant criminal, spent his jail time reading and memorizing several texts from books, becoming one of the greatest revolutionaries of all time. As the great neurosurgeon, Dr. Ben Carson, attained the level of greatness in the field of neurosurgery through avid reading and, among dozens of other examples, got transformed through books, so can the Ashaiman citizenry.
Tell us about your activities?
At the end of each month, a member is voted to head the club. He or she is credited with being the “chairperson of the month.” This act of selecting a chairperson helps build the leadership skills within members.
At the Ashaiman Readers Club, we read from both soft and hard copies alike. Each month, members are asked to suggest books to be read. In almost 3 years of our existence, we have read several books. Among the books read are;
1.The secret by Rhonda Byrne
2. Think Big by Dr. Ben Carson.
3. Create your own Future by Brian Tracy
4. The gods should be ashamed by Suhad saalih
5. Developing the leader within you by John C maxwell
6. The 21 irrefutable Laws of leadership by John C. Maxwell
7. The gods are not to blame by Ola Rotimi
8. In the chest of a woman by Efo Kojo Mawugbe
9. 70 matters related to fasting by Dr. Muhammad Saalih Al-munajjid
10. Ego is the enemy by Ryan Holiday
11. Arrow of God by Chinua Achebe
12. Think and Grow rich by Napoleon Hill
13. Echoes from the past by Peggy Oppong
Tell us about some of the projects you have undertaken?
In November 2019 and on March 20th, 2021, we collaborated with FAATA Africa to organize an anti-drug seminar for the youth of Ashaiman.
Ashaiman Readers Club organized a reading project dubbed “THE ASHAIMAN READERS CLUB READING PROJECT,” where we visited some basic schools, got them some books, and helped them read weekly. After three months of the project, we graded it a success as the participating pupils developed a great interest in reading and their reading prowess improved massively.
During the lockdown in the month of July 2020, together with MOTHER OF ALL NATIONS AND UNITED WAY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, we distributed food items to 300 households with school-going children in Ashaiman, who were hardly fed due to the lockdown.
Do you have any awards or achievements you’d like to share?
We got featured in the Business and Financial Times newspapers.
Once, we were featured on Pan Africa TV, where Dr. Gifty Antie was the guest speaker.
Then again, before celebrating our 1st anniversary, the famous investigative journalist, ANAS AREMIYAW ANAS, recorded a short video of himself, praising our enormous work.
Finally, members of the Ashaiman Readers Club usually get featured in several book discussions. The most famous of all was ‘Author’s Haven’ on Class FM, hosted by the amazing Benjamin Akakpo.
Your Final words?
You can support our work by contacting : +233550798198
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