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‘Don’t use places of worship for chastisement
● Sheikh Shaban speaking at the meeting
Mosque and other places of worship should not be used for chastisement but a place to embrace those considered wayward and reform them in love to become very responsible people in society.
Islamic Cleric in the Upper West Region Sheikh Shaban Mohammed Alhassan who said this, noted that oftentimes places of worship had been used to chastise people who were struggling with certain forms of secular addictions and had prevent such persons from approaching the places of worship for emotional support and advice.
“Imagine a young girl going to a place of worship to confide in the Cleric about an unplanned pregnancy as an adolescent in a bid to get emotional support and words of encouragement when she is yet to get married; such news will definitely not be welcomed by a Cleric and the girl would definitely be chastised”, he said.
To this end, the Sheikh has advocated the establishment of adolescent corners at major mosques to help meet the needs of youth who had issues with receiving education on sexual and reproductive health.
The Islamic cleric made this known at a meeting on sexual and reproductive health at Wa by youth advocacy groups in the region.
He said that in order to achieve this, engagement meetings on sexual and reproductive health and adolescent sexual behaviours should include religious leaders so that they would be updated with happenings in that area and the role they were to play to curb the situation.
“When the Ghana Health Service for instance presents statistics on the number of children sexually active or use contraceptives within a specific time-frame because they want to indulge in sex to the clerics at such meetings, they will come to terms with the real happenings on the ground and accept to identify ways to assist in the education of these young ones”, he said.
He indicated that these statistics could assist the clerics in preparing their sermons to include issues of such nature and to sensitise the youth to abstinence.
The cleric who was concerned about the trend said some of his colleagues needed capacity building to be abreast of issues of the secular world and appreciate the need to freely talk about them and help educate the young ones.
He believed opening an adolescent corner at major mosques and equipping the facilities with a health worker who understood the word of God would help put adolescents in check and maintain responsible sexual behaviours amongst them.
From Lydia Darlington Fordjour, Wa
The prosecution has officially rested its case in The Republic v Solomon Asamoah & Another, the high-profile legal battle commonly referred to as the “Sky Train” case.
The Deputy Attorney General Justice Srem Sai announced the development, praising the state’s team of hard-working prosecutors for successfully anchoring the state’s evidence before the High Court.
The criminal trial centers on the former Chief Executive Officer and the former Board Chairman of the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF).
The duo stands accused of illegally authorizing and paying out US$2 million to a foreign company without obtaining board directives or other mandatory statutory approvals.
State investigators have confirmed that the disbursed millions cannot be found.
Following the closure of the prosecution’s case, the accused persons moved the court for an opportunity to file a submission of no case.
The presiding judge granted the application, ordering the defense to submit their arguments by June 8.
The outcome of the June 8 filings will decide the fate of the trial:
With this, if the judge finds the defense’s submission convincing, the accused will be acquitted and discharged however, If the judge dismisses the submission, the court will order the accused officials to take the stand and explain why they should not face prison sentences.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
Member of Parliament for Akuapem North, Sammy Awuku, has expressed deep sorrow following the sudden passing of Isaac Batsa, the constituency secretary for the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) lawmaker issued a statement on Tuesday reacting to the news, which has shocked the local political community.
Mr.Awuku praised the late NDC secretary for his bipartisan approach to local governance.
He noted that despite their different political affiliations, Batsa consistently rose above party lines to serve the constituency with diligence.
The MP revealed that the news was particularly shocking given that he had last interacted with Batsa just three days prior on Saturday.
Concluding his statement, Sammy Awuku extended his heartfelt condolences to Batsa’s family, the constituency and regional executives, and the entire NDC fraternity, wishing the deceased peaceful eternal rest.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
