'Why you gatz say sorry to deadi bodi if you mistakenly step on am' - Mortician

Young Ghanaian mortician and hearse driver Ewurabena Quartey dey inspire pipo wit her choice of profession.

Di young lady wey follow BBC News Pidgin tok say she dey also undertake and she begin di profession afta she finish tertiary institution wia she study Hospitality Management.

Ewurabena wey dey stay for mortuary say her aim for di industry na to help families of pipo wey don kpai give dia loved ones befitting burial.

"Pipo die anytime. So wen dem die, pipo dey fear to keep dem for house till morning. So around 2am, around 12, pesin fit just come knock your door and wake you up say dem don bring deadi bodi.

"Pipo dey come wit dia eyes open. Becos wen dem die, pipo dey fear to close am back. Some pipo dey come wit dia mouth still open. Dat na di part wey dey scary. But apart from dat, you no dey see anytin," she tok.

Di youngest hearse driver for Ghana Central Region say she bin learn di profession from her parents.

About di myths around ghosts, she say: "Sometimes you go go pick bodi from somwia, you go take am to anoda destination, you no go see wia to sleep, at di end of di day, you go sleep inside car. You no go see any ghost.

"I no say ghost no dey, I believe say ghost dey, but I neva see am bifor. I dey sleep well, I dey wake well, notin dey happun to me, I no dey see any ghost, nobodi dey tell me anytin. Wen I go undertake, I no dey see dem for my dreams.

"I dey undertake mostly around 11, 12am bicos of di time. I no dey see anybodi, nobodi dey cry to me, nobodi dey send me message to family members. I make sure say dem look elegant, dem look presentable, and we dey okay. I no even fit remember di faces wey I don see."

Respecting di dead

Ewurabena, wey don dey embalm for seven years and driving hearse for five to six years, say dem dey knock bifor dem enta dead bodis room out of respect.

According to her, di respect wey humans dey give di pesin wen e still dey alive suppose continue even in death.

"For Ghana, bifor you enta pesin house, you go knock and dem go respond. So wen we knock on dia (dead bodis) door, no be to get response, no. We know dem no dey alive, we know dem no dey active, na why we dey knock on dia door. We dey maintain di respect wey dem get wen dem dey alive. We no suppose throwey di respect becos dem don kpai, no. We still maintain di respect, knock.

"If you step on dem, you say sorry. If you dey baff dem or dey turn dem and accidently you leave dem, you gatz say sorry, becos you gatz treat dem as such.

"I believe dem dey protect me, I believe dem dey do me well, I believe dem no dey worry me becos I no dey worry dem," she tok.

On how lucrative di job be, Ewurabena say e get times and season wey she dey get more dan five bodis for one week.

"Yes, more dan five bodis for one week, and times also dey wey be say a whole month you no go see any deadi bodi. So e dey fluctuate, e no dey stable."

Stigma around di profession

Ewurabena say stigma dey around di profession especially becos she be woman.

According to her, a lot of pipo dey question her friends why dem be friends wit her.

"You fit be mortician and smell nice, you fit mortician and speak good English. Pipo tink say we wey dey work for mortuary no get right to speak good English, no get right to dress well, no get right to smell nice. But we get right to do evritin wey evribodi dey do.

"Sometimes wen pesin ask me if I dey see pesin or if I get partner and I say yes, di reaction dem dey give me be like I no get di right to get am.

"But fortunately for me, I get genuine pipo wey dey stick around and sometimes even wan learn, even come around, dem go tell me to rest, to relax so dem go take ova. So, yeah, fun dey dia and e dey nice," she tok.