The introduction of the ‘Live Inside and Win the Ride’ (LIWTR) competition by Global media Alliance Group- owners of YFM, Happy FM and e. TV Ghana- has succeeded in transforming and remolding the face of reality shows in Ghana because of its unique nature and the fact that it has not been done in the sub-region before.
The concept behind the LIWTR reality show is to bring together five individuals from different backgrounds across the country to endure sitting together in a five-sitter saloon car for an unknown period of time. During that period, contestants are evicted till there is one person left. The ‘last man standing’ wins the car.
But to emerge winner, all contestants are expected to be tolerant, time conscious, cunning and most of all strategic to torment – without disrespect to – fellow contestants in order to get them out of the ride.
As part of the rules of the competition, contestants have a schedule during which they can do whatever they want. Based on these rules, a contestant faces eviction for lateness after breaks as well as being disrespectful. A contestant may also voluntarily leave the car due to their inability to cope with the other car mates.
Previous LIWTR Reality Show
A brand new Renault Logan saloon car housing the contestants was parked within the foyer of the West Hills Mall at Weija for a period of 40 days.
Ghana’s first Live Inside the Ride competition started with Abdul Malik Jaberl, Setor Jinadu, Vittor Faustinus Komla, Sarah Ayim and Ernestina Fiah on March 7, 2016 –a day after Independence Day– and ended on April 15, 2016 at the West Hills Mall, Weija with one contestant pulling a surprise on all patrons to emerge winner of the show.
The Evictions
On the first day of the LIWTR, retired security officer, Vittor Faustinus Komla, the oldest contestant, suffered a premature eviction for not reporting on time after a break.
The 61-year-old who was 10 seconds late after the first allocated 15-minute break in the competition, attributed his lateness to his failure to find his way back to the car at the West Hills Mall. This cost him his chance of driving home the brand new Renault Logan. He lasted less than 24 hours in the captivating reality show which caused several of his fans to start a social media campaign to bring him back, but was to no avail.
Abdul Malik Jaberl, a 27-year-old entrepreneur, was also disqualified after he brought an ‘unhygienic’ item into the car. He was kicked out of the competition after an investigation found him guilty of placing the ‘unhygienic’ substance in the car; an act which according to organizers was against the rules of the competition.
The disqualification and eviction brought the number down to three constants– Setor Jinadu, Sarah Ayim and Ernestina Fiah-. Each one of the three had hopes of emerging the ultimate winner of the competition.
The Drama
Setor Jinadu, one of the three finalists in ‘Live Inside and Win the Ride’ reality show, vowed to kick out contestant, Sarah Ayim, from the competition but he failed to accomplish that.
Setor, junior brother of Coded – a member of the hiplife trio 4×4– and considered by patrons of the event as the ‘bad boy’ of the completion had since day one pulled various stunts to make the other contestants very uncomfortable. His main target had been 23-year-old model, Sarah Ayim.
The young model, who carved a niche for himself as the troublemaker of the reality show, pulled several stunts to make the other contestants as uncomfortable as possible. He targeted to kick out the two ladies by threatening to sleep naked in the ride during the entire period.
“Annoyance is the most important part of this contest. You need to work on your temperament to fit in this contest and I started with a bad temperament. My temperament can’t go to the extent of throwing blows but I can sometimes go to the extreme,” Setor said during a media interaction.
There was however confusion over who really is Setor’s girlfriend with over 3 beautiful ladies coming up to say he is their boyfriend. Setor on the other hand remained silent on who was actually his girlfriend.
However Sarah, on the other hand remained firm throughout the competition, enduring all the stunts by her car mates. She appeared to have had her own game plan to stay in the competition and eventually win the car.
To get things heated a bit, the family of Sarah moved to the West Hills Mall to warn Setor about his persistent tormenting of Sarah. “If I have been courageous to live with them, I think the public has noticed it and they will help me to win. I have learned about time management, how to control temper, live with people with different attitudes and those who want to stab you at the back,” Sarah shared her experience inside the car.
Ernestina, one of the three remaining participants, said during the competition, she missed her 8-year-old daughter. “I have found myself where they -Sarah and Setor- are before so being with them is like living with siblings. Trust me, it has not been easy. I have missed my daughter so much and want to be with her,” Ernestina said.
The show received an appreciable level of corporate support with Premium Motors, MTN Pulse, Mentos and New York Sizzler sponsoring.
As the contest ended on April 15, Sarah Ayim (model), Sector Jinadu (model) and Ernestine Mawuse Fiah (Hairstylist) were the only contestants left to demonstrate their fortitude for the Renault Logan. Before the grand finale, Setor disclosed that he would use the car to serve at orphanages . Ernie would run her hairstyle business with it while Sarah would use it to run her ticketing agency.
Patrons enjoyed the show, with regular updates and live feed from the event on e.TV Ghana, YFM and Happy FM as well as on social media.
On April 15, friends, family and patrons of the event received a shock of their lives after the results were collated. Sarah polled 75 percent votes with Setor and Ernestina splitting the remaining 25 percent unevenly. The overwhelmed Sarah was presented with the keys of the brand new car becoming winner of the maiden edition of the show.
By Nii Ogbamey Tetteh
