09/01/2026
I have always been fascinated by Norway and the collective wisdom of its people, especially in the way they have chosen to manage their oil wealth. In 1958, the Geological Survey of Norway wrote a letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, more or less definitively dismissing any hope that Norway might become an oil-producing country and as a result, Norway stopped exploring for oil.
Then, the very next year, in 1959, the Dutch discovered the largest natural gas field in Europe. The discovery revived hope that there might be something under the Norwegian continental shelf as well, attracting international oil companies, including Phillips Petroleum and Esso.
Phillips Petroleum spent millions of dollars drilling 37 holes and found nothing. They concluded that the Norwegian experts were right and decided to cut their losses, informing the government that they were terminating the contract. The government, however, pointed to a clause imposing a massive penalty for withdrawal. The company realised it would be cheaper to drill one final hole, though they believed it would be empty, than to pay the penalty.
So, to fulfill their contractual obligation, they sent a rig, the Ocean Viking, to Block 24. The crew did not want to be there. It was December and the North Sea in December is brutal, with 50 foot waves and darkness lasting 20 hours a day. The crew simply wanted to go home for Christmas. But the cost of quitting forced them to stay.
They began drilling, and on 23rd December 1969, they discovered vast quantities of oil in what has become known as the Ekofisk Field, one of the largest offshore oil basins ever discovered.
Imagine what would have happened if they had left.
Leading up to the New Year, this verse had dominated my thoughts: "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."- Galatians chapter 6: 9.
You see, 2025 was a tough year for me and my team at Roverman. There were times we genuinely wondered whether we were wasting our time and energy keeping what we were doing going. We faced attacks, rejection, and even sabotage from some quarters. Yet, we kept going. firm in the conviction that this was something God Himself had given us to do.
However, interactions with patrons over the period of our Festival of Plays, which ended on January 4th, and the turnout gave me all the reassurance I needed to keep delivering quality entertainment to Ghanaians.
I know that doing good is not easy in Ghana. You will face sabotage and frustration. People practice hospitality and are repaid with trouble; people show kindness and are rewarded with false accusations; employees give their all to companie, only to receive criticism and condemnation in return. Under these circumstances, many people simply stop doing good.
By hey, we never really know how close we are to a breakthrough do we? And some us do not drill 37 holes; we give up after the first 2.
I want to encourage everyone who used to do good of any kind and has stopped to go back to doing good, because it will not be in vain. Drill 1 more hole. This is a call never to give up.
Remember the verse: "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."
It does not matter how 2026 turns out. What matters is that you do not give up and you do not lose hope. Keep hope alive in 2026.
Once again, may 2026 be our best year yet!
