Who is Nana Kwame Bediako, Cheddar or Freedom Jacob Caesar

Nana Kwame Bediako, popularly known as Freedom Jacob Caesar or Cheddar, is a Ghanaian businessman. He is the founder and chairman of Kwarleyz Group, focused on real estate and property management in Ghana.

The latest addition is the leader of the New Force movement.

He runs at least four entities under the Kwarleyz Group - Petronia (Petronia City in the Western Region), Wonda World (a developer), New Africa Construction (contractor), BELFAST (city management and property management) and New Africa Foundation (a civil society organisation).

He wants to be President of Ghana and, according to him, he wants to create thousands of entrepreneurs and "liberate Africa" and make Ghana a middle-income country.

He has formed a movement called the New Force, and currently has about 150 billboards across Ghana, advertising his political ambition.

It is on the ticket of this New Force movement that he intends to contest the 2024 presidential election in Ghana as an independent candidate.

Currently, the New Force, per his explanation, is not a political movement or a political party. 

He has said he is not a politician but a voice from above, told him to run for President.

Read this: I’m not a politician, a voice told me to run for President - Cheddar Nana Kwame Bediako 

He has been engaged in a series of media interviews since January 8, 2024 on his political move and talking about why he wants to be President and what he intends to offer.

The New Force, prior to January 7, 2024, had been advertising itself with a series of billboards in town with a mask man on it.

There were a number of videos and artwork on the internet as well. 

A Belgian national, Shalima Abbuisi, later introduced herself as the spokesperson for the group.

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There were questions as to who was behind the mask. Some linked it to Nana Kwame Bediako, aka Cheddar, but his close associates denied it.

An independent presidential aspirant attempted to take advantage of the public curiosity and said it was him, hoping to take advantage of the public attention for his political campaign, but the New Force reacted and defused him. 

On January 7, 2024, Nana Kwame Bediako finally revealed he was the face behind the New Force movement, to confirm the public suspicion.

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Why three names?

He is known to the public as Nana Kwame Bediako or Cheddar or Freedom Jacob Caesar and this is his explanation for the three names.

He says the three names represent three different people.

Nana Kwame Bediako is more of the corporate guy, who is more interested in investments and development.

Cheddar is just a street nickname that means money in the rap industry and connects more with the youth.

Freedom Jacob Caesar, according to him, is "very enigmatic" and that it is a character he created and re-christened himself to be that person. 

He says it is "royal, it is empowerment" and a character that has a particular style of presenting itself but also as a leader of a movement "introducing Africa to the world."

"I thought that Africa needed that, Africa needed someone from Africa that goes out there to the Western world and portray Africa as royalty." 

As to whether he was from a royal family, to select a royal name for himself, he says "no," but feels like God has ordained him and put a crown on him to be the "Prince of Africa" to inspire the youth. 

Early Life and Education

Nana Kwame Bediako was born at Asokwa in Kumasi, Ghana.

Bediako attended Accra Academy and later Apam Secondary School.

He moved to the United Kingdom and attended Waltham Forest College.

He is reported to have ventured into business during his university days and even sold cloths. 

In some media interviews in the past, he said he started his business when his rich father gave him and his brother some money to help their mother, Kwarley. 

While his brother bought eggs and bread with the money, Bediako said he bought a hen and a cock, and started a poultry business. 

The business grew and he later used to sell about 200 eggs a month.

He entered the scrap metal business and sold scrap metal.

In his past media interviews, he explained that when he started earning money, he dropped out of school because in his view, the traditional education system had little to offer him.

In addition to the scrap metal business, Bediako said he went into the telecommunications industry in 1999, and founded Global Telecommunications and Utilities (GTU), a company that billed individuals for their internet usage. 

He moved to Ghana in 2001, opened a nightclub in Osu in Accra called Temptations.

It was from his personal experience in renting a place for the Temptations nightclub that motivated him to move into real estate.

He then started Kwarleyz Group with diverse interests in real estate, finance and property management. 

Nana Kwame's first capital and investments in Ghana in 2002

Nana Kwame Bediako says his first capital was from the two houses he built on one land in Ghana.

And before he went into real estate, he was renting a place to run a nightclub in Osu called Temptations - around 2002, and was introducing lifestyle in Ghana.

This was when he was inviting "people from Holland, London and America [to come to Ghana] and that was because I didn't want to stay in Ghana alone; I had just come from London."

"And the place that I rented, my capital at that time was 20,000 pounds [sterling]. My main capital that I had made in London from telecommunication and [selling] scraps, [and what] I had invested in Hawaii was a million pounds. And the money I brought to Ghana [20,000 pounds] was what I did the club with. But when I did the club, I made US$75,000 and that US$75,000 is what I used to enter real estate."

He explained he was changing his Ghana cedis into dollars because of depreciation at the time.

He says the first money he made in England, altogether at age 21, was one million pounds (£1 million) and he was working for himself, with the company, Global Telecommunication and Utilities (GTU) and he was selling scraps in addition to that. He says he had his own office in London and had two employees.

Investments in Ghana

According to Nana Kwame Bediako, when he did the nightclub and got the US$75,000, someone later bought the club for US$150,000 - [Matador] - (that is where Citizen Kofi is currently located in Osu).

"So that is how I went into real estate with the US$150,000. I went to rent the next building, arranged the same nightclub and used it to buy it again, made profit before I entered into building my own properties," he says.

According to Nana Kwame Bediako, when he did the nightclub and got the US$75,000, someone later bought the club for US$150,000 - [Matador] - (that is where Citizen Kofi is currently located in Osu).

"So that is how I went into real estate with the US$150,000. I went to rent the next building, arranged the same night club and used it to buy it again, made profit before I entered into building my own properties," he says.

Political activities for Nana Kwame Bediako

On January 7, 2024, Bediako announced that he would run for presidential of Ghana. 

This followed weeks of speculation that he was the face behind the mask for the New Force. 

Addressing the media at a press conference on January 7, 2024, following the cancellation of the New Africa Foundation’s Convention, Nana Kwame Bediako stated that he firmly believes his purpose on earth is to contribute value to it. 

He emphasised his commitment to this goal, declaring, “I am a son of the soil, and my mission is to enhance humanity. I came here to contribute value to this world and nature. I won’t depart without making God proud of me.”

Personal Life

Jacob Caesar is married to Ruby Bediako and they have four children.

What is Cheddar's leadership track record?

Nana Kwame Bediako says he has leadership skills and is not sure if his leadership track record has clearly been demonstrated to people but he says he started from just giving to the needy under the umbrella of his New Africa Foundation as an example.

Going to neighbourhoods and offering philanthropic assistance by paying school fees and giving free food to the needy are some of his leadership track records in addition to paying about 300 workers every month under the Kwarleyz Group.

more to follow...

Writer's email: enoch.frimpong@graphic.com.gh 

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