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‘Don’t use children as excuse to remain in abusive marriages’
Mrs Nyarko
Women have been advised to desist from using their children as excuses to remain in abusive marriages.
Founder of Abronoma Foundation, a women and child centered Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Mrs Linda Nyarko-Yeboah said staying in abusive relationships is dangerous. Women must not accept any form of violence against them in the name of marriage or with the excuse that they cannot raise children without fathers,” she stated.
For her, “Women are better off alive as single mother than losing their lives and turning their children into orphans.”
Mrs Nyarko-Yeboah who gave the advice in an interview with the Spectator said children who witnessed domestic violence were more likely to perpetuate the cycle in their own future relationship therefore by leaving an abusive marriage, victims could disrupt this harmful pattern and empower their children to grow up in healthier and more nurturing environments.
Domestic violence, she said was a profound issue that affected many Ghanaians considering the number of cases the media have reported so far since the beginning of this year alone, causing immense physical, emotional, and psychological harm.
She bemoaned the rise in cases where young women have lost their lives because of domestic violence, citing the recent killing of a 28-year -old woman, Eunice Ameh Narh who was hacked to death by her husband in Nungua, Accra for threatening to divorce him.
“This is not the only case of domestic violence that has led to death, there have been many other cases, including the report about a student of the Nsutam Senior High School who was allegedly murdered about two months ago by her boyfriend who is a barber.
“A cocoa farmer, Egya Atta at Wiredukrom, a farming community in the Western Region also committed the same atrocity,” she lamented.
This farmer, Mrs Nyarko-Yeboah said inflicted cutlass wounds on the head and neck of his wife, a mother of three, which led to her death.
She said children who experience domestic violence suffer long-lasting consequences that could influence their entire lives, adding that there was the need for victims to break the cycle by leaving abusive marriages to ensure their own safety and that of their children.
Touching on the consequences of domestic violence on children, the philanthropist noted that witnessing violence between their parents could lead to feelings of fear, anxiety, guilt, and helplessness, adding that such experiences could negatively influence their self-esteem and ability to form healthy relationships later in life.
Explaining, she mentioned that children who grow up in abusive households were more likely to exhibit behavioural problems like aggression, anger outbursts, social withdrawal, difficulty concentrating in school, and even engaging in delinquent behaviour.
Mrs Nyarko-Yeboah therefore urged women to ensure they were financially stable to enable them to fend for themselves and their children when
By Raissa Sambou
Troubled and anxious citizens in Damongo of the Savannah Region have expressed concerns about the number of young people, believed to be under the age of 18, involved in ‘shisha’ smoking in pubs and drinking spots within the township.
Eyewitnesses say the minors were seen patronising nightlife venues, where Shisha smoking happen in the open.
The situation has sparked renewed public concern over the enforcement of child protection laws and regulations governing the operations of entertainment centres in the municipality and country as a whole.
An eyewitness, who spoke to The Spectator on conditions of anonymity for security reasons, noted that the situation was becoming increasingly common.
“This is not a one-off incident. It is becoming very common, but residents like us cannot openly report or speak about it because our lives will be at risk,” he said.
Under Ghanaian law, minors were prohibited from patronising Shisha.
Public health experts have consistently warned that shisha use exposes users to harmful substances that can negatively affect brain development, respiratory health, and overall well-being, particularly among young people.
The residents believe the alleged incidents point to broader challenges relating to youth supervision, substance abuse, and weak enforcement of existing regulations and have called on municipal authorities, security agencies, and regulatory bodies to intensify monitoring of pubs and entertainment centres to ensure compliance with the law.
In an effort to address the menace, Mr Salisu Be-Awurbi, the Savannah Regional Minister, has led public education campaigns, engaged security agencies, and supported enforcement actions to address the rising use of illicit substances in the region.
Wura Kelly Seidu Boresah I, the Chief of Damongo, has also called on all stakeholders including parents, community leaders, institutions, and young people to actively support efforts to curb drug abuse, warning that the rising consumption of hard drugs poses a serious health threat to the future of the youth in the Savannah Region.
He also cautioned individuals involved in the sale and distribution of illicit drugs to immediately desist from the practice, stressing that offenders will face arrest and prosecution in accordance with the law.
From Geoffrey Buta, Damongo, Savannah Region
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Dr Theresa Baffour, an advocate for ending violence and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SAHM SAHW Foundation, has said that society plays a critical and pivotal role in breaking the cycle of domestic violence.
According to her, domestic violence is a major contributor of making women, who are mostly the victims, mentally derailed and unable to engage in economic activities.
She said this when the foundation called on the Ga Mantse, Nii Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, to solicit support for the initiative by the “Strong and Healthy Minds, Strong and Healthy Women” (SAHM SAHW) to combat domestic violence within the Ga State.
The visit was occasioned by the fact that domestic violence cases have become quite prevalent in the Ga communities and is retarding growth.
According to her, the canker was an impediment to national development because the victims were usually tortured and would have to go through series of therapies to return to the right state of mind.
Dr Baffour mentioned that Gender-Based Violence (GBV) places a mental toll on women, and was, therefore, important to break the cycle through comprehensive mental health support, crisis intervention and empowerment programmes in communities with high rates of GBV.
This intervention, she underscored, would help in empowering the denigrated victim of domestic violence to soundly heal, build and thrive.
Dr Baffour added that the initiative would provide holistic, trauma-informed mental health care and advocacy for young women affected by domestic violence.
According to her, the above statement would create safe spaces for healing and equipping them with entrepreneurial skills for renewed hope and empowered life.
The Ga Mantse pledged his support for the laudable initiative to combat domestic violence and also acknowledged the need to address it in the Ga State.
Further endorsement came from Justice Julia Naa-Yarley Adjei Amoah, Chief of Staff at the Office of the Ga Mantse, as she commended the team of SAHM SAHW Foundation for taking a bold step to end the canker in the Greater Accra.
She added that it was a step in the right direction to save vulnerable women from torture, stress and emotional abuse.
By Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah
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