Editorial

Supervise children when they are online

Published

5 years ago

October 23, 2020

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic which hit Ghana in March this year posed a lot of challenges to Ghanaians, notable among them is the closure of schools for safety reasons.

As a result the use of the internet by children has increased significantly as they get the opportunity to be educated by mostly using the internet to access information while at home and also interact with others. Unfortunately, some abuse this opportunity.

Schools have been organising online classes for children to complete their academic work and to ensure that the children do not miss much academically while at home.

Although children use the internet to access information and to educate themselves, the danger is that some may be tempted to visit unsuitable sites that may harm them as parents are busy and most often not around to monitor closely what their children do online.

Due to technological advancement it is now common for children to use mobile phones, tablets, laptops and other electronic media or communication gadgets for their assignments.

What is so disturbing is that some children are so addicted to the internet that even while eating, they are still glued to their phones and browse alongside but this behaviour must be checked. This is not about child rights, it is more of protection and security.

With the growing trend in cyber crime, children are at risk and need to be guided for security reasons, therefore, parents or care-givers must be vigilant and inculcate in the children the need to be honest and self-disciplined to avoid being lured by predators.

Children are curious and vulnerable to all forms of attacks by these fraudsters who usually hide their real identities and use fake images to lure children and engage them in a hearty chat online.

There have been cases where parents have also set bad precedence to their children by watching harmful movies with them thus allowing these innocent children to imitate blindly.

The Spectator is worried about children being exposed to all forms of attacks online and so urges stakeholders, especially parents to support the Child Online Protection (COP) initiative launched by the United Nations Agency for Information Communication Technology (ICT), the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to protect children while they are online. This is spearheaded by the National Communications Authority (NCA).

In this era of COVID-19 where when most children are home, they become bored and want to entertain themselves by going online as an option but parents can find alternative means to occupy their children.

In this technological age you cannot isolate your children by refusing them the use of the phone or going online but they must be guided and monitored closely as the online environment is risky for them.

Parents who are educated must avail themselves and discuss online safety issues with their children by advising them not to interact with strangers and divulge vital information about themselves to others.

Supervise children when they are online.

Editorial

Would there ever be beds?

Published

6 days ago

February 28, 2026

WeeklySpectator

Dear Editor,

I WRITE to condemn the circumstances under which an accident victim died recently after three major hospitals reportedly turned him away due to what has earned a place in our local parlance as ‘no bed syndrome.’

Reports suggested that this motor rider who got knocked by a vehicle was taken to three major hospitals – Police Hospital, Greater Accra Regional Hospital (Ridge Hospital), and the Korle-bu Teaching Hospital – but they all claimed they had no beds.

But one may ask, would there ever be beds?

Such is the treatment Ghanaians endure every now and then when one visits our hospitals, especially the public ones which are run with the taxpayers’ money. Many a time when one visits the hospitals, the sight of patients admitted and lying on benches, and some sitting on chairs while receiving care, is visible to all; making one wonder why this particular motor rider was not admitted at any of the facilities, looking at his condition.

This leads to the reason for this letter, which is to bring out a perceived apathy against these motor riders, the majority of whom are referred to as ‘Okada’ riders.

Due to their recklessness on the roads and the inconvenience caused to commuters, people always speak ill about them; drivers equally have no regard for them. Every user of public transport would attest to this. These riders are blamed for every offence, even when it is obvious drivers may be at fault sometimes.

Motor riders have become like orphans on the road; people care less about them, and when they are unfortunately knocked down, no one cares about them.

This is the mischief our authorities and agencies, including the police, must seek to cure to make the road safe for all users.

These are young folks that want to make a living for themselves, and with no skill or education, ‘Okada’ rides have become their source of livelihood. They need the protection accorded drivers and commuters as well.

In other countries, some facilities have been provided to make their work safer, but in Ghana, we lack them, leaving them with no alternative than to share the available space with the cars.

What has happened should serve as a wake-up call on our authorities to aim to take a second look at the ‘Okada’ menace. With the numbers increasing, there should be a way to regulate them because no government would have the guts to ban it totally.

Drivers should be made to accept the reality that they are sharing the roads with them, and therefore the need for patience and tolerance.

For some of our hospitals, I suggest the Ministry of Health conduct their own investigations to see what patients go through in accessing medicare, which is even not for free.

Thank you, Editor, for the space.

F. Morgan, Kokrobite

Editorial

Ending the ‘No Bed’ syndrome

Published

6 days ago

February 28, 2026

WeeklySpectator

Dear Editor,

THE heartbreaking death of 29-year-old engineer Charles Amissah in a hit-and-run accident has exposed once again the failures in our health system.

Even more painful is the fact that his father had previously donated beds to some hospitals, yet when his son needed urgent care, he was moved from one facility to another because there were ‘no beds.’

This is not only tragic but unacceptable. How can a country lose its bright young citizens simply because hospitals cannot provide emergency treatment? The ‘no bed syndrome’ has become a national disgrace, and Charles’ death is a reminder that reforms cannot wait.

Our hospitals must be equipped to handle emergencies, and accountability must be enforced. If donations are made to improve facilities, then those facilities must serve the people when it matters most. Ghana cannot afford to keep losing lives to negligence and poor infrastructure.

Charles Amissah’s death should be the turning point. Let us honor his memory by fixing the system so that no family would suffer this kind of preventable loss again.

Princess Wonovi
Accra