A focus on Mr. Frank Aidoo
Mr Frank Aidoo
I continue with my narration of personalities and their accomplishments as members of the Ghanaian Diaspora in Finland, with a focus on Mr. Frank Aidoo.
Mr. Aidoo, affectionately called “Honourable”, is a former President of the Ghana Union Finland, an association of the Ghanaian migrant community in Finland. He is currently a board member of the Union and a well-respected senior member of the Ghanaian community in Finland.
He moved to Finland in the late 1990s, and he lived in other places in Finland but now lives in Helsinki with his wife and their children.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND HONOURS
It is important to recount Mr Aidoo’s accomplishments as part of the success stories of people of Ghanaian descent in Finland in order to highlight their exploits both within the Ghanaian migrant community and in the wider Finnish society.
Mr. Aidoo, sometimes also affectionately called “Frankie”, assumed office as the President of the Ghana Union Finland at a time when the vibrancy of the association had undoubtedly gone down.
He had started as the Organiser of the Union, and at a time when there was the need for someone to become the President of the association, Mr. Aidoo readily took up the mantle. Through his organisational abilities, the Ghana Union Finland was visibly transformed.
Mr. Aidoo has other accomplishments. He is the proud father of two well-known basketball players. The two sons play for top basketball clubs, and the first son even plays in the Finnish national team. They usually attract huge media attention and they are featured extensively in Finnish newspapers, radio and television as well as on social media.
RELIGIOUS LIFE
In spite of his busy working life and other commitments, Mr. Aidoo is a committed member of The Church of Pentecost in Finland (COP), which was established about 20 years ago in September 2000 as a prayer group with a small number of devoted persons in Helsinki.
Mr. Aidoo is currently the National Men’s Leader in the Pentecost Men’s Ministry (PEMEM), which caters for the interest of all the men in The Church of Pentecost.
He plays a key role in the Akan Assembly of The Church of Pentecost in Helsinki, which is a branch where worship is done mostly in the Twi language. The other branch is the English Assembly (or the PIWC), which is attended by other nationalities and African migrants, aside Ghanaian migrants.
HIS WORKING LIFE
Mr. Frank Aidoo has worked in various companies in Finland. He currently works with Wotkins company, a meat wholesale firm that deals in fresh meat as well as processed meat products, which employs a number of workers.
He is very close to the owner of that company and has worked there for over 15 years.
Mr. Aidoo worked under the company’s founder who passed on a few years ago. Mr Aidoo still works at Wotkins under the founder’s two sons who took over after their father’s death.
HIS ROLE IN THE GHANAIAN COMMUNITY
Mr Frank Aidoo has been very active in the Ghanaian community. He is still very active in the Ghana Union Finland, and has chaired many functions organised by the Union as a non-governmental organisation for the Ghanaian migrant community in Finland.
As mentioned earlier, Mr Aidoo is currently one of the Board Members of the Ghana Union Finland, having been a former President of the Union.
He is also the Abusuapanyin of the Mfantseman Kuw Finland, which is an association formed purposely to bring all Fantes living in Finland together in unity and peaceful co-existence and is also open to other nationalities who subscribe to the principles and ideals of the association.
Mr Aidoo has been a counsellor and mentor who has guided many young Ghanaian migrants on their career paths and has also been part in settling various kinds of conflicts between some people.
He lives in Helsinki with his wife and their children, two of whom are skilful basketball players who play for top Finnish teams, as mentioned earlier. (I hope to write about them soon). Thank you!
GHANA MATTERS column appears fortnightly. Written in simple, layman’s terms, it concentrates on matters about Ghana and beyond. It focuses on everyday life issues relating to the social, cultural, economic, religious, political, health, sports, youth, gender, etc. It strives to remind us all that Ghana comes first. The column also takes a candid look at the meanings and repercussions of our actions, especially those things we take for granted or even ignore. There are key Ghanaian values we should uphold rather than disregard with impunity. We should not overlook the obvious. We need to search for the hidden or deeply embedded values and try to project them
Email: perpetualcrentsil@yahoo.com
BY PERPETUAL CRENTSIL
