News
Stop abusing mental health, epileptic patients – Advocate
Discrimination and use of abusive words and negative language on persons with mental health conditions as well as epileptic patients, have been identified as “debasing and an affront to their full recovery.”
The use of words such as ‘imbecile’, ‘mad’, ‘idiot’, ‘stupid, ‘moron’, and ‘crazy’ particularly in local language or any other language are said to downgrade patients and slow down their pace of healing.
Through no fault of his Mr. Polycarp Yelyuo a 42-year-old man with epilepsy at Fian in the Daffiama-Bussie-Issah District of the Upper West Region is constantly faced with abuse and stigma from neighbours and this has affected his self-esteem.
“I am not mad, I only have epilepsy which I have been fighting for a while with not much success but people often refer to me as the ‘mad man’, among other names”, he said.
Epilepsy is a neurological disorder in which nerve cell activity in the brain is disturbed and causes seizures.
Although it is a neurological disorder, recurring epileptic seizures as noted by the Regional Mental Health Coordinator, Mr Sylvester Basagnia could affect a part of the human brain given the concussion, a traumatic brain injury that affects your brain function, that occurred with every episode.
He said the frequency could cause mental health conditions but was quick to add that “some patients with seizure disorders had no mental health conditions at all”.
For Mr. Polycarp, the breaking point was when a family member referred to him a ‘useless mad man’ just because another family member wanted to gift him some used clothing to keep warm.
He told The Spectator that due to stigma, he had not been able to marry and lived by himself in his home at Fian where he reared fowls for sale.
“People sometimes call me wizard and claim I will use my witchcraft to kill them so they don’t associate with me; members of my family do not eat together with me as they claim I might infest them”, he narrated.
According to him, he had experienced quite a number of episodes within shorter intervals as a result of depression which stemmed from negative attitude received from people.
“I am used to outsiders bullying me but it becomes very difficult to contain when my own family members do that to me and refuse to support me”, he said.
A mental health advocate and Programmes Coordinator of the Centre for People’s Rights Initiative (CPRI), Mr Dominic Wunigura said Polycarp started receiving treatment for his condition when he was 20 years at which time it was difficult to stabilise the condition.
“Epilepsy when identified early and treated on time from the infant stage can be cured completely in some cases but when the disease lingers on for a while before management, then it becomes difficult to stabilise the condition”, he said.
He said in partnership with the Ghana Somubi Dwumadie, a project targeted at promoting positive language among persons with mental health conditions as well as recovered mental health patients, his outfit had been able to organise these people into Self-Help Groups to among other things, share emotional and physical support.
“Under the project, we are sensitising people and also the media to the use of positive language on persons with mental health conditions”, he added.
From Lydia Darlington Fordour, Wa
The Government of the Republic of Korea has presented a second consignment of equipment to support the study, maintenance and preservation of Ghana’s historic forts and castles under the Korea-Ghana ICT Climate Project.
At the handover ceremony in Accra, today, Abla Dzifa Gomashie, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, expressed appreciation for Korea’s continued support, including its US$4.5 million intervention towards heritage preservation, technical assistance and capacity building.
The equipment will strengthen the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board’s efforts to address the impact of climate change on Ghana’s historic heritage infrastructure.
The Ministry noted that they remain committed to working with international partners to safeguard Ghana’s priceless heritage for present and future generations.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
The Association of Spouses of Heads of Diplomatic Missions and International Organizations (ASOHOM) brought art, diplomacy and philanthropy together for its glamorous black-tie charity gala, centred on the urgent theme of sustainable water futures.
At the heart of the evening was ‘Woven Currents’, a thought-provoking commissioned exhibition co-curated by Fang W. Linulf of LogonART and Fadila Njoya from Gallery Sankofa, showcasing five outstanding Ghanaian artists confronting water pollution, coastal decay, ancestral memory and ecological regeneration.
Housed within a versatile multi-function hall, far from a conventional white-cube gallery, the venue underwent a dramatic creative transformation.
Drawing on her professional architectural background, curator Fang W. Linulf reimagined the standard event space into a vivid, immersive exhibition environment through bold spatial storytelling.
Monumental art installations encircled gala guests, breaking traditional viewing boundaries and forging a remarkably intimate, visceral connection between viewers and the artworks.
Guided by a powerful curatorial vision, ‘Woven Currents’ positioned art as a call to action: to honour, safeguard and collectively steward Africa’s precious shared water heritage.
Each artwork responded directly to Ghana’s pressing aquatic realities.
Emmanuel Aggrey Tieku’s towering textile installation breathed new life into discarded local second-hand ‘Oburoni Wawu’ garments, delivering a searing commentary on waste colonialism and textile-fuelled ocean contamination.
Patrick Tagoe Turkson crafted intricate assemblages from beach-salvaged flip flops and abandoned ghost fishing nets, weaving Asafo flag and Kente cloth iconography into marine debris to unite indigenous cultural wisdom with modern-day ecological crisis.
Sena Burgundy presented introspective blue-hued figurative canvases exploring inner reflection set against shifting environmental realities.
Nana Frimpong Oduro exhibited dream-like surreal photography rooted in Akan cosmology, capturing ancestral echoes and human resilience within Ghana’s coastal waters.
Evans Torngmortey Akornor built evocative threshold-themed mixed media works from fishing shore remnants, unpacking visible and unseen layers of shoreline history.
Attendees also experienced the poignant live dance performance ‘Cry of the River’ by Vivie’s Dance.
The night featured a high-energy live auction of five signature exhibition artworks alongside a raffle draw. Every penny raised went toward vital humanitarian support for vulnerable communities across Ghana.
Diplomatic delegates, collectors, artists and cultural leaders filled the room.
The curatorial team stressed that ‘Woven Currents’ was never mere gala decoration.
It delivered grounded, locally-centred artistic narratives that enriched formal policy conversations on water conservation, repurposing a diplomatic social gathering into a dynamic public platform for ecological dialogue and meaningful giving.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
