News
Chief implores citizen to help develop rural c’nities
The Paramount Chief of Enyan Denkyira Traditional Area, Osabarima Otsibu VI, has appealed to citizens of rural communities who have made it to see it as a mission to help develop their towns and villages.
According to the chief, life has always been difficult in rural communities and help from elsewhere, even government assistance, is hard to get and the well-to-do citizens constitute the easiest source to fall on for support.
Osabarima Otsibu said this last Saturday during a short ceremony held at his palace at Enyan Denkyira in the Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam District of the Central Region, to affirm Mr Kweku Gyasi Essel, the Ghanaian Times/The Spectator Night Editor, as head of the Twidan Ebusua (clan) of the town.
Praising the citizens for their support in the town’s development, he said, “just recently, one of these public-spirited citizens single-handedly renovated basic school blocks at the cost of GHc200, 000.”
He encouraged Mr Essel, now going by the title Ebusuapanyin, to do well to bring a change in traditional leadership that would maintain the cordial relationship between his clan and the rest of the community.
“This will eventually help to enhance the development of the clan and our town,” he said.
He said all manner of leaders had failed in things they could have avoided and asked Ebusuapanyin Essel to “eschew hearsay and cronyism.”
In a brief acceptance, Ebusuapanyin Essel, who now has the responsibility of presiding over issues that concern his maternal clan and being the traditional contact between the clan and any individual, group or community that would like to have any dealings with the clan, promised to maintain the unity in the clan and share ideas with the clan members with regard to how to improve their lives.
The newly-appointed traditional leader said, “I pledge to support the chiefs and other traditional leaders to develop the town.
“I will make sure l don’t bring disappointment and disgrace to my clan and community; rather I will endeavour to help to improve lives”.
The Adontsenhen of the traditional area and a member of the Twidan clan, Okumanyin Eduah I, also promised to support Ebusuapanyin Essel to succeed but asked him to “be selfless, firm and tolerant.”
Another traditional leader, Etsifi Asona Ebusuapanyin Kwesi Tweiku, a businessman known in private life as Uncle Siisi Crentsil, welcomed Ebusuapanyin Essel into the midst of the traditional leadership of the town and asked him to be resolute in all his dealings.
The ceremony was attended by other traditional leaders mostly clan members.
By Spectator Reporter
Mrs Patience Antonio, a Child and Family Development Advocate, has called for a national campaign to reduce the growing reliance on breast milk substitutes among nursing mothers in Ghana.
According to Mrs Antonio, scientific evidence shows that breastfeeding improves a child’s emotional stability, boosts intelligence, strengthens the immune system, and provides long-term health benefits. She made these remarks in an interview with The Spectator in Accra last week, emphasizing the importance of breastfeeding for a child’s overall development.
She explained that breastfeeding is not just a biological act of feeding but a key emotional and developmental bridge between mother and child. She also highlighted the need for the recommended six-month maternity leave period to ease the pressure on mothers to return to work prematurely.
“Breastfeeding creates intimacy and trust. It assures the baby of love and security, which becomes the foundation for their emotional health,” Mrs Antonio noted, warning that abandoning exclusive breastfeeding could have long-term implications on children’s social and emotional wellbeing.
Consequently, she called for a minimum of five months of fully paid maternity leave for Ghanaian mothers to enable effective breastfeeding, bonding, and healthier child development. She also urged workplaces to implement family-friendly policies, including private spaces for breastfeeding, flexible working arrangements for nursing mothers, and stronger support systems for new parents.
Mrs Antonio further encouraged families and society to actively support mothers during breastfeeding, stressing that many women struggle due to lack of assistance at home or the pressure to return to work too soon. She emphasized, “If we want a healthier, emotionally stable generation, then we must make breastfeeding a priority and support mothers to do it without stress.”
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
Spectator
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The Nanvili Community School in the Mion District of the Northern Region is facing severe infrastructural challenges, affecting teaching and learning for pupils in the area.
The school, which serves five surrounding communities with a total of 58 pupils, has deteriorated to the extent that many children have stopped attending classes. Poor classroom conditions and the lack of desks have made teaching and learning difficult. During a visit to the school, the gate-free classrooms were found filled with goat and sheep droppings.
During the rainy season, both teachers and pupils are often cut off from the school due to bad roads and flooding. Teaching activities are frequently suspended for weeks, negatively affecting academic performance.
The Assemblyman for the area, Mr. Dawuni Mutawakil, expressed concern, noting that the situation is worrying since these pupils are expected to compete with their counterparts in urban areas who have access to better facilities. He added that due to limited space, classes have been merged, with pupils from Primary One and Two, Three and Four, and Five and Six sharing the same classrooms.
The Chief of Nanvili, Abu Kassim, also appealed to the government and non-governmental organisations to come to the aid of the community. He emphasized that the current state of the school discourages children from nearby communities from attending.
Both the Chief and Assemblyman have called for urgent intervention to improve infrastructure and provide furniture for the pupils to ensure quality education for children in the Nanvili area.
By Geoffrey Buta, Nanvili, Northern Region
Spectator
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