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Centre for National Culture (CNC) – Accra sensitises local communities to ways of curbingCOVID-19 through drama
The Greater Accra Regional Centre for National Culture, under the auspices of National Commission on Culture (NCC) has adopted drama as a way of creating awareness and sensitising people within the Region on COVID-19.
Dubbed: ‘Mask-Up”, the Centre has so far staged drama at Makola, Dodowa and Kpone-Katamanso markets as well as within the Greater Accra Region.
The Centre has been using the event to distribute also hand sanitisers, face masks and T-shirts to people in these areas where the drama was staged.
Purpose
The campaign, funded by the COVID-19 National Trust Fund, is intended to raise awareness and educate people on the safety protocols on the disease.The campaign admonishes citizens on the need to adhere to the COVID-19 safety protocols, help mitigate the spread and impact among residents in the various areas. The Centre’s awareness campaign takes the form of drama, which is a communication tool for community development.
The drama, “COVID-19 Down” performed by the CNC Accra Drama Group involves acting out scenes on coronavirus with actors playing the roles of individual characters in the play and telling “a life-changing story” with scientific facts on the coronavirus pandemic.
The drama is interwoven with informative dialogues and music, helping the audience to remember the story with a visual force. The drama is supported with other performances including, poetry, traditional music and dance.
Appeal
The Director of Accra CNC, Mrs. Alice Alima Kala expressed worry about the current trend of COVID-19, particularly how some people disregarded the safety protocols.She, therefore, appealed to the public to consider the COVID-19 safety protocols one of the surest ways of dealing with the pandemic.
Expectation
On her part, the Executive Director of National Commission on Culture, Ms Janet Edna Nyame, expressed optimism that the campaign “will give the participants the opportunity to once again become“ more conscious about the pandemic and help disseminate their knowledge among their family members, friends and neighbours and make them aware of COVID-19 health issues”.
Expressing excitement about the campaign, the Public Relations Officer of the Centre for National Culture, said as the drama was performed in a local language for a local audiencehas the tendency to reach out to a larger target audience with a particular message that could make a lasting impact.
Support
A non-governmental organisation, Rescue Volunteers – Ghana, supported the campaign with some PPE.
Country Coordinator of Rescue Volunteers – Ghana, Mrs. Lydia Tsotsoo Odai Tettey expressed worry on the low use of PPE and the breach of the social distancing rule by the traders and said her agency would continue to distribute PPE and hand sanitisers to traders at the market centres.
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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