News
‘Don’t transfer marital problems to children’
The Founder of Single Parenting With Purpose (SPWP) (a support group for single parents), Mrs Josephine Alai has said that it is wrong for persons from failed relationships to transfer their bitterness or pain to their children.
She said there was the need for single parents to put aside all differences and make the welfare of their children paramount because the children were innocent as far as the cause of the tension was concerned.
Speaking in an interview with The Spectator on Wednesday, Mrs. Alai who founded the non-profit-making support group for single parents said many children from broken homes were struggling emotionally and psychologically because of the toxic relationship between both parents who had failed in effective co-parenting.
She said it was quite disturbing to note that because parents had not been able to put their past misunderstandings behind them, the children should be denied the opportunity to feel the warmth, love, care, influence and other emotional satisfactions from both parents.
The Founder of the SPWP said it was unfair to make such children pay for the “sins” of their parents.
She observed that some partners were so bitter that they would not allow their child or children to have anything to do with their ex spouses or partners because in their opinion, such closeness would only open up old wounds and so they would rather prefer that there should be no contact between such children and their other parent.
She said from her experience as a person who was a Single Parent for so many years, she thought doing so was the best way out until after a careful thought, she decided to involve the father of her children and their families in their upbringing.
She said that this turned out to do good than harm to the children an herself, and even facilitated her healing process from the broken relationship.
She advised that children should be allowed to bond with their father or mother as long as “it does not compromise their health and safety”.
Mrs. Alai said it was also important for ex spouses or partners to note that having a grudge with your ex did not mean you should not offer emotional or financial support to your child.
She said it was sad that some persons had taken such situations as an easy or convenient way out to shirk their responsibilities only to come back several years later to apologise to the children and ask for re-union.
She advised all single parents to put away enmity or tension but come together to co-parent to plan towards the interest of their children and raise them physically, psychologically, emotionally and make them healthy for a better society.
From Dzifa Tetteh Tay, Tema.
The Northern Regional Police Command has arrested three men believed to be part of a kidnapping syndicate responsible for abducting a 42-year-old man in Wapuli, a community in the Yendi District.
The suspects, Haruna Seidu, Amidu Bandi and Osman Bandi allegedly kidnapped the victim and demanded GH¢100,000 from his family for his release.
According to a police statement, officers from the Regional Police Intelligence Directorate were deployed to Wapuli after the incident was reported.
The team conducted surveillance and launched a rescue operation.
On Friday, December 5, 2025, police successfully rescued the victim and arrested the suspects after what was described as an intense exchange of gunfire.
The suspects were later taken into custody and are expected to be arraigned before court.
The Police said the a fourth suspect, who is believed to have sustained gunshot wounds during the operation, is currently on the run.
They urged the public to provide any information that may lead to his arrest.
By: Jacob Aggrey
News
Nana Yaa Serwaa Sarpong advocates Bold educational reforms at the UK House of Lords during Global Education Summit.
On November 27 2025, global development leaders, policymakers, education experts and civil society organisations gathered at the UK Parliament’s House of Lords for the Global Education Summit hosted by The Baroness Verma of Leicester and organised by the African British Business Forum.
The high-level event focused on the global rise in out-of-school children and the urgent reforms required to deliver equitable, quality education for all.
Among the distinguished Speakers was Nana Yaa Serwaa Sarpong, Founder & President of Women in Sustainability Africa (WiSA) and General Manager of the EIB Network, who delivered a compelling address on the theme “Breaking Barriers: Empowering Out-of-School Children Through Education.”
In her remarks, Nana Yaa who is currently celebrating 26years of Service in the Media, emphasized that education must be viewed as essential national infrastructure, not charity.
Borrowing experiences from her 18 years of empowering women and young people, she presented a strong case on how Africa’s poor educational systems tie into the poor state of its Gender Equality gap.
According to her, unlocking access to education is one of the most effective ways to strengthen economies, empower women and young girls, build resilient communities and drive sustainable development.
She highlighted that each child excluded from learning represents deferred innovation, delayed opportunity and a weakened society.
Nana Yaa noted that the barriers keeping millions of children out of school are complex and interconnected—ranging from poverty and cultural norms to geographical isolation and digital exclusion.
Addressing these challenges, she argued, requires solutions that are equally comprehensive and multi-layered.
Nana Yaa stressed that girls remain disproportionately affected, and investing in girls’ education has a transformative impact across several Sustainable Development Goals, including gender equality, poverty reduction, health outcomes and climate resilience.
Nana Yaa advocated for the expansion of flexible, inclusive and community-responsive educational models, such as mobile classrooms for remote and nomadic communities, community learning hubs, after-hours programmes for working children, radio-based instruction for low-tech areas and digital platforms designed to reach learners regardless of connectivity challenges.
She warned that without deliberate action, the digital divide would continue to widen, pushing already vulnerable children further to the margins.
During her presentation, she introduced three major reforms WiSA is seeking Partners for, aimed at reshaping educational access across Africa and beyond.
These are the Digital Bridge for Out-of-School Children (DBOC), the Community Education Stewardship Hubs (CESH) involving local women educators and youth volunteers and the Teen-focused Global Skills Accelerator for Out-of-School Teens (GSA-OT).
She also underscored the need for education systems that support instruction, inclusivity and healing, particularly for children experiencing autism, trauma, displacement or conflict.
Nana Yaa emphasised that emotional and psychological support must be integrated into educational frameworks in order to restore confidence, stability and long-term learning capacity.
The summit concluded with strong commitments from stakeholders to adopt sustainable financing models, strengthen data-driven policies and expand cross-sector partnerships.
The African British Business Forum reaffirmed its commitment to championing innovative, scalable solutions to educational inclusion across the UK, Africa and the wider global community.
