News
Bleaching dangerous to lactating mothers — Queen mother
The use of bleaching creams containing hydroquinone by a section of women particularly lactating mothers in the Wa Municipality of the Upper West Region, have become a source of worry to stakeholders who are bent on promoting nutritional wellbeing of children in the area.
The Queen of Duori in the Waala Traditional Area, Pognaa Amamata Mumuni who tabled the issue for discussion at the launch of infant nutritional wellbeing project at Wa, expressed concern of the use of such creams by lactating mothers in their quest to lighten their skins in preparation for the naming ceremony of their babies.
She said the women used the creams to lighten their skins in order to get rid of the change in body colour which mostly happened during pregnancy instead of allowing nature to gradually restore their colour in due time.
“According to Islamic tradition, a new born baby is named seven days after birth in a modest Islamic naming ceremony.
However, the event has recently been magnified by the youth with pomp and pageantry accompanied by expensive photoshoots by mother and baby in heavy cosmetic make-up”, she said.
The queen stated that in order to look good in front of the camera, the women resorted to using those harsh body creams immediately after birth to lighten their colour without the slightest knowledge of the effect it could have on their breastfeeding babies.
“Women who use these pomades often sweat a lot but when they are breastfeeding the babies, they do not clean the sweat off the breast and so feed the baby with those chemicals”, she stressed.
Pognaa Amamata Mumuni who is the Girl-Officer of Ghana Education Service (GES) in Wa Municipality called on the Ghana Health Service to introduce such topics in their nutrition sensitization programmes in order to minimise the practice but encouraged women to stop bleaching as it could have negative health implications on them.
The Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Damien Punguyire also said there was the need for mothers to protect their infants’ health by avoiding products that were inimical to the wellbeing of their babies,
“Aside the babies we are trying to protect, bleaching can also cause skin cancers and other health complications for the mother especially given the volume of sunshine we enjoy in this region, hence we encourage women to maintain their natural colour”, he added.
Taking the discussion a notch higher, the Regional Director at the Department of Gender, Mrs Charity Banye advised lactating mothers whose children were in school to spare some time and visit the schools in order to breastfeed them.
“It is disheartening to see that the lunch you packed for your toddlers is intact after picking them up from school with the excuse that they were not hungry when they actually were but there was no time for that one teacher who is attending to about 30 or more other children to concentrate on spending over 30 minutes feeding one child”, she said, painfully.
From Lydia Darlington Fordjour, Wa
News
Richard Ahiagba calls for future review of alleged injustice against former Chief Justice Torkornoo
The Director of Communications for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Ahiagba, has called on a future government to revisit what he described as the abuse of the rights of former Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo.
In a Facebook post following the decision of the ECOWAS Court of Justice to dismiss all claims filed by the former Chief Justice against the Republic of Ghana, Mr. Ahiagba described the ruling as “deeply disappointing” and said it should concern all Ghanaians who believe in the independence of the judiciary.
According to him, the ruling raises questions about the ability of regional judicial institutions to protect public officials from what he termed targeted persecution and also casts doubt on the health of Ghana’s democracy.
Mr. Ahiagba alleged that the process leading to the removal of Justice Torkornoo was unprecedented and hurried, and accused the government of publicly humiliating one of the country’s highest judicial officers.
He further claimed that constitutional safeguards meant to protect the independence of state institutions were disregarded.
He argued that the former Chief Justice’s removal has sent a worrying signal to judges and public officials that exercising independence could come with consequences.
The NPP Communications Director accused President John Mahama and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) of weakening state institutions and seeking to exert political control over the judiciary, which he said should operate independently of partisan influence.
Mr. Ahiagba described Justice Torkornoo’s attempt to defend her rights and office as a significant moment in Ghana’s democratic history and called on a future government to investigate and address what he considers an injustice against her.
He further urged Ghanaians, irrespective of their political affiliation, to speak against any actions that could undermine judicial independence, warning that a weakened judiciary poses a threat to every citizen.
Mr. Ahiagba called on supporters of democracy to channel their concerns into political action and work towards voting the NDC out of power in the 2028 general elections.
The ECOWAS Court of Justice recently dismissed all seven claims brought by former Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo against the Republic of Ghana, including her claim for damages, ruling that Ghana had not violated her rights under the African Charter as alleged.
By: Jacob Aggrey
The Member of Parliament for Gomoa Central, Kwame Asare Obeng, popularly known as A Plus, says the proposed Gomoa Eco Park in the Yenku Forest will become the biggest eco-tourism park in Africa and could rival the famous Kakum National Park.
Speaking in an interview with the ghanaiantimes.com.gh, the MP said the development would transform tourism in the Central Region and attract visitors from across the country and beyond.
He said the park would feature several attractions, including canopy walks, glass walkways, zip lines, hiking trails, quad biking and an increase in the forest’s animal population.
“We are going to do everything in that forest,” he said, adding that the project would make Gomoa a major tourism destination.
Mr. Obeng urged authorities at Kakum to invest more in their facilities and expand their offerings to remain competitive.
“If you are in Kakum, start looking for investment and start expanding and making it better because what we are going to do in the Yenku Forest, if you’re not careful, nobody will come to you,” he said.
The MP announced plans to introduce a hot air balloon attraction from Kenya during next year’s Easter celebrations in Gomoa.
According to him, the initiative forms part of a broader plan to turn the area into one of Ghana’s leading tourism destinations.
He further disclosed plans to build an artificial waterfall and dancing fountains that would be visible from the Lagos-Abidjan Highway at night.
Mr. Obeng expressed confidence that the tourism projects would be completed during the tenure of President John Dramani Mahama and would help position Ghana as Africa’s premier tourism destination.
He said the government and local authorities are committed to ensuring that the vision for Gomoa becomes a reality.
By: Jacob Aggrey
News1 week agoNFS, AACMA raise GH¢300K for new fire tender
- News6 days ago
FSD Africa, others launch Green Project Preparation Facility to unlock investment in climate infrastructure in Ghana
- News6 days ago
Merck Foundation holds 13th Africa Asia Luminary with 12 First Ladies to advance healthcare capacity across Africa and Asia
