Gender
‘Domestic abuse still rife in Upper West amid COVID-19 pandemic’
Whilst frontline workers are battling to save the lives of patients from the deadly coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection in the country, some wives in the Upper West Region are also battling their husbands over too much sexual demands as a result of the CODVID-19 stay-home protocol.
The high demand for sex has been fueled by the inability of some men to patronise other women such as commercial sex workers and ‘side chics’ in addition to their wives, due to the fear of contracting the disease in the process, and therefore have to rely solely on their wives for sexual satisfaction.
A Station Officer at the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Upper West Regional Command of the Ghana Police Service, Inspector Stella Niabi, who disclosed this at a meeting at Wa said this had led to physical abuse of some of the women who had refused their husbands sex.
Inspector Niabi was speaking at the launch of a Reproductive Health programme dubbed “Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights and Sexual and Gender-Based Violence” (SRHR/SGBV) campaign by a non-governmental organisation, Plan International Ghana, at Wa last week.
The campaign would among other things ensure access to SRHR services as well as protect vulnerable groups, such as women and girls from abuse, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Wives have been sexually abused by their husbands because they denied them access to their bodies after they had had enough of the” stay-home” sex, especially during the lock down because of the fear of contracting the disease, the men say they are unable to patronise other women,” she said.
She stated that most of those cases were treated as civil cases and were resolved through counselling and other negotiation alternatives that had yielded positive results to the satisfaction of the parties.
Inspector Niabi explained that the CODVID-19 break from school had also led to quite a number of teenage pregnancies and sexual abuse of children in the region.
“Most of these teenage pregnancy cases come to us because the victims come to report the men who deny the pregnancies after they have put those innocent girls in the family way,” she said.
Touching on other abuses, the Station Officer said girls had become more vulnerable in the CODVID-19 season as they were over burdened with house chores and other responsibilities whilst their male counterparts idled about.
She explained that the girls were in some cases subjected to beating when they were unable to perform the many responsibilities they were assigned to at home whilst the males went scot free even after doing nothing the whole day.
“We have these and several other reports of abuses at home due to CODVID-19 pandemic, and so we are very grateful to Plan International Ghana for introducing a programme that would cater for these developments,” she added.
On his part, the District Development Coordinator of the Upper West Regional Programme Unit of Plan International Ghana, Mr Kamaldeen Iddrisu, hinted that the rampant media reportage on sexual and gender-based abuse informed their decision as an organisation to introduce a programme to address these issues.
“We have trained some young ladies from Wa, Sissala East, Wa West, Wa East and Sissala West Municipal and District Assemblies on the making of re-usable nose masks as well as sanitary pads to help them earn income in this CODVID-19 season to limit their dependence on men and subsequently limit abuse,” he said.
From Lydia Darlington Fordjour, Wa
Gender
Ngleshie Alata Queen mother pledges to champion girl-child education
The newly enstooled Paramount Queenmother of Ngleshie Alata, James Town in Accra, Naa Affipong IV, has pledged to make girl-child education the cornerstone of her reign, emphasising its critical role in transforming communities and empowering future generations.
Speaking after her recent enstoolment, Naa Affipong IV, known in private life as Mrs Alberta Addo, called on parents and guardians to prioritise the education of their daughters, stressing that educating a girl has a far-reaching impact beyond the individual.
“I pledge to dedicate my reign to champion girl-child education, which is a crucial tool for youth empowerment and community development,” she declared.
She pointed out that empowering girls through both academic and vocational training would not only reduce social issues such as teenage pregnancy but also prepare them to become responsible and influential leaders in society.
Naa Affipong IV highlighted the urgent need to provide young girls with equal opportunities and create environments that support their growth and confidence.
She urged parents to be intentional about their daughters’ futures, saying “an educated girl has the power to lift her entire family out of poverty and transform her community. We must not fail them.”
The Queen mother also appealed to chiefs, elders, and community leaders to join forces in promoting initiatives aimed at empowering the youth, particularly young girls, through education, mentorship, and entrepreneurship.
While advocating girl-child education, Naa Affipong IV stressed the importance of peace, unity, and moral values within the community, especially among the youth.
The Queenmother also emphasised the importance of collaboration between traditional authorities and state institutions to address broader community challenges such as unemployment, infrastructure deficits, and social vices.
Her enstoolment ceremony was marked by vibrant cultural displays and attended by chiefs, queen mothers, elders, and residents of the Ngleshie Alata community. As part of the rites, she swore an oath of allegiance to the elders of Adjumako Durampong, promising to serve her people with dedication
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
Gender
Vice President Opoku-Agyemang visits five families of victims of helicopter tragedy
Vice President Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang on Tuesday led a government delegation to pay a courtesy visit on the families of the five civilian victims of the August 6 helicopter tragedy.
The visit, which was on behalf of President John Dramani Mahama, who is currently on a working visit to Japan, was to comfort the widows and children of the deceased persons, and to find out how they were doing.
The Vice President’s delegation visited the families of Dr Samuel Sarpong, Vice Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and Mr Samuel Aboagye, Deputy Director-General, National Disaster management Organisation (NADMO).
The rest were the families of Alhaji Mohammed Muniru Limuna, Deputy National Security Coordinator in-charge of Human Security; Dr Edward Kofi Omane Boamah, Defence Minister and Alhaji Dr Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, Minister of Environment, Science and Technology.
Members of the Vice President’s delegation included Mr Julius Debrah, Chief of Staff at the Presidency; Dr Valarie Sawyerr, a Senior Presidential Advisor for Governmental Affairs; Mr Alex Segbefia, Chief of Staff at the Office of the Vice President and Mr Seth Terkper, Economic Advisor to the President.
The rest are Nana Oye Bampoe Addo, Deputy Chief of Staff in-charge of Finance and Administration; Mr Fifi Fiavi Kwetey, General Secretary of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC); Hajia Shamima Muslim, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson; Nana Yaa Jantuah, a Presidential Staffer and Mr Rex Omar, Presidential Staffer.
The Limuna Family expressed gratitude to the Government for the visit, stating that the visit would go a long way to strengthen and comfort them.
Hajia Shamima Muslim, a Deputy Presidential Spokesperson, speaking to the media at the end of the visit, said President Mahama had directed that the delegation should visit each family of the deceased persons to find out how they were doing, especially the spouses and the children.
She noted that because the President was out of the jurisdiction, the Acting President, Vice President Professor Opoku-Agyemang, led the delegation to pay visitations to each one of the families of the victims of the tragedy.
She said basically, the visit was also to communicate the President’s commitment to support the families through this very difficult period and to reassure them of the pledge that he had made, especially for the families with young children, who were still in school, with the announcement of the Children’s Support Fund.
Hajia Shamima Muslim announced that a lot of donations were already coming through.
She said those who might want to also visit the Government Communication portals on how they could also donate to the Children’s Support Fund for the various victims or the families of the nation’s fallen heroes could do so.
That, she said, was also to help the Government ensure that whatever their fathers would have done for them, the Government would step in and do the same.
Touching on the adult children of the victims, Hajia Shamima Muslim said conversations were around on how to support their own aspirations; stating that it was the same commitment to them.
“So today we just came to reassure the families that the President is with them and will stand with them throughout this very difficult period,” she said.-GNA
