Obaa Yaa
He keeps harassing me
I am a 26-year-old girl in a tertiary institution with the optimism to excel in my academic programme.
Unfortunately, a married man who is a friend to a cousin of mine has been harassing me every day. Though this man is married with three children, he has been showering expensive gifts on me in a bid to entice me to go out with him.
Though he had offered to sponsor me to read a professional course, l was not interested and l had made myself clear to him, yet he would not listen to me.I have the conviction that accepting such offers could lead to unacceptable demands from him.
Since this man is married, l am confused and would not like to fall in love with a married man to ruin my future eventually.
Kindly help me out of this problem before l commit myself.
Linda, Takoradi.
Dear Linda,
The inference that you would not like to fall in love with a married man speaks volumes and you must stick to that.
Your decision not to accept gifts from this man because of the consequences is equally good and l wished all young girls would be fast to read through the evil plans of some men.
The possibility of using your cousin to achieve his aim is also great, for that matter, you must be careful not to fall a victim to his scheming.
Can you imagine the embarrassment you will give yourself if this man’s wife gets to know about a romance between you and her husband?
Since your desire is to do all within your power to excel academically, you must endeavour to study hard and refrain from impediments which are likely to come your way.
I wish you well.
Dear Obaa Yaa,
We bumped into each other on orientation day as freshers on campus. I liked his smile, his choice of words, and charisma. I didn’t hesitate at all when he asked for my contact. Who wouldn’t want to be friends with a guy like this, I said to myself.
We texted more often, had conversations on phone, and our friendship literally grew very strong. We attended lectures together, studied together, hanged out together; everyone thought we were lovers.
He did everything for me—surprise dates, thoughtful gifts, pays my academic fees, and gives me a listening ear everyone would wish for.
One evening at a friend’s birthday party, standing in the middle of the audience, he proposed and asked me to be his girlfriend. I declined his proposal; this was because I have no feelings for him, and I just want us to be friends.
He is a man with good morals, so gentle, God-fearing, ambitious, a man every lady would wish for, but my heart just wasn’t in it. I wondered if love was supposed to be this complicated: the more he did, the more I felt like a friend, not a lover. He still wants me, but I want us to be just friends. What should I do?
Naa Kwarley, Kaneshie.
Dear Naa Kwarley,
This is a tough situation, and you’re handling it with both kindness and firmness.
Since you’ve already told him you’re not interested in a romantic relationship, it’s crucial to be clear and direct while still being respectful. I’d advise you to reiterate your feelings to him, emphasising that you value him as a person and appreciate what he’s done, but you see him more as a close friend. Make it clear that you hope you can still maintain a strong friendship, but it can’t be anything more.
It’s essential to be prepared for him to need space or time to process, so be patient and understanding.
Dear Obaa Yaa,
I am a regular reader of your highly esteemed paper and I would like to know whether some amount of money is paid to those who write short stories for publication on the children’s page of your Weekly Spectator.
I wrote a short story which was published last month, and my friends who saw it told me that a token will be paid to anyone whose story is published.
A.J., Kwabenya.
Dear A.J.,
We don’t pay for short stories published on our children’s page. That opportunity is to encourage school children to develop the habit of writing. We believe that by publishing their short stories, they’ll be encouraged to write more.
The paper is open to everyone who wants to share ideas or write about a concern.
