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‘Women attain positions on merit, not through sexual favours’
It is disheartening to hear some men shamelessly tagging women in responsible positions as using their bodies to get to the top of their field or career.
“Women are also capable, women have skills, women have abilities so stop tagging every successful woman as having used her body to have reached her current positions, we don’t use our bodies, we use our brains”
The Chairperson of Network for Young Women Empowerment, Ms Ida Nakkar said these in an interaction with The Spectator Newspaper on the sidelines of a women empowerment programme at Wa last Saturday.
The programme was to project women as “necessary component of development and encourage society to do away with biases that affected the progress of women.”
The Chairperson who seemed appalled by such comments against successful women in society indicated that negative comments discouraged women from working harder towards national and human resource development.
“There are a lot of women who are capable of and interested in assuming political positions for instance but once the call is placed, they do not avail themselves because of the unwarranted name calling that come with assuming such positions”, she lamented.
She explained that the situation was compounded in instances where the women were unmarried and said some of them were even called all sorts of names that seemed to suggest that they attained their successes through sexual relations.
“We even hear people tag unmarried successful business women as witches and prostitutes and try to belittle their achievements and capabilities because they are not married”, she said and condemned such acts against women.
The Chairperson explained that in order for women to progress and remain empowered, it was necessary for society to recognise their unique capabilities and talents.
“It is really difficult as a woman to make it to the top because aside dealing with domestic issues that consume your time, you have to deal also with rumours that kill your energy”, she said.
She called on society to consider women capable people who had the ability to reason for themselves and make concrete decisions on issues and give them opportunity to thrive.
“If we think women are not capable, how then are they able to raise children, take care of the home as well as the needs of men; these silent roles that are very important for livelihood are often taken for granted, yet women handle them perfectly so with same managerial skills they can fit into any sector without qualms”, she added.
A dressmaker at the event, Madam Memuna Kipo also encouraged women who had little or no education to endeavour to acquire skills that would help them survive on their own
“I am not educated but I have a skill which gives me income so I want to encourage my colleague females that education is one of the ways to make it in life so if they are unable to access it due to one reason or the other, they should learn a trade and live by it in order to make them beneficial to society”, she stressed.
FROM LYDIA DARLINGTON FORJOUR, WA
The professor who spends his days exploring the intricacies of African languages found himself at the centre of a different kind of lesson on Friday, October 2, 2026. 
This time, there were no lecture notes, academic arguments or university classrooms. Instead, there was the weight of tradition, the rhythm of a community celebration and the solemnity of an oath at a royal palace.
Professor Ọbádélé Kambon, a full Professor of African Linguistics at the University of Ghana, was enstooled as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene of Akuapem Mampong in the Eastern Region in a ceremony that brought academia and traditional authority together.
For the professor, the occasion was more than a new title. It was a moment that connected his academic interests in African languages and indigenous knowledge with the living traditions of an Akan community.
The day’s events unfolded through a series of customary observances. Kambon was first taken to the compounds of the Ɔkyeamehene and Gyasehene, where the preparations for his installation continued.
Then came the application of hyire, the white kaolin powder associated with traditional rites.
With the customary proceedings underway, the new chief was lifted onto the shoulders of celebrants and carried along the main thoroughfare of Akuapem Mampong.
The procession transformed the streets into a public stage for a ceremony rooted in the community’s traditional institutions.
There was something striking about the image, a university professor, accustomed to the measured language of academic discourse, being carried through the town in a display of traditional recognition.
Yet the celebration was not complete with the procession.
A ram was sacrificed at the Mamponghene’s compound before Kambon was taken to the palace, to swear the oath associated with his new offices.
The ceremony brought him formally into his roles as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene.
Beyond the colourful proceedings, the titles themselves carry layers of historical meaning.
Kambon in his research explores the historical connections between Apagya and Akan political and military organisation.
Accounts cited in his work linked Apagya to an asafo, or military company, while historical writing traces an Apagya stool in Asante to the reign of Opoku Ware I in the eighteenth century.
These historical associations offer a glimpse into the institutions that have shaped Akan society over generations, although they do not automatically define the precise responsibilities of the office in Akuapem Mampong.
Kambon’s own professional life reflects a similar interest in preserving and examining African knowledge.
His work encompasses Akan language structure, naming practices across the Black world, proverbs and indigenous intellectual traditions.
Through Abibitumi, the platform he founded, he also promotes language learning, scholarship and cultural engagement.
But tradition was only one part of the story that day.
When the formal ceremony gave way to a reception, the occasion expanded into a celebration of three milestones: Kambon’s enstoolment, his promotion to full professor and his daughter Ama’s admission to the University of Ghana.
The gathering therefore carried a personal significance that went beyond the honours bestowed on one man. 
It celebrated professional advancement, the continuation of family aspirations and a connection to cultural heritage.
For a father, seeing a daughter gain admission to the same university where he holds a distinguished academic position offered another reason to celebrate.
For the professor, the moment placed family achievement alongside his own professional and traditional milestones.
Kambon had already established a place in the traditional life of Akuapem Mampɔn through an earlier installation as Banmuhene Kyidɔmhene, recorded in 2017.
His latest enstoolment adds another chapter to that relationship.
In Akuapem Mampɔn, the day brought together the university, the palace and the family table in one celebration. And for Kambon, the journey from the lecture room to the traditional procession showed how scholarship, cultural responsibility and family achievement could converge in a single memorable occasion.
By Enoch Ntiamoah Siaw
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Intercity STC Coaches Limited has interdicted a driver captured in a viral video allegedly hitting a Sprinter bus during an overtaking manoeuvre at Pokuase before driving away from the scene.
In a public notice, the company described the driver’s conduct as unacceptable, stressing that it did not reflect the safety standards and professionalism it upholds.
Management said it had commenced an immediate investigation into the incident and identified the driver, who has been interdicted pending the outcome of the disciplinary process.
The company added that it was awaiting an official report from the Pokuase Police Command to help establish the facts surrounding the incident.
STC reaffirmed its commitment to passenger safety and responsible road use, while thanking members of the public for bringing the incident to its attention.
Management assured the public that appropriate action would be taken following the investigation.
By: Jacob Aggrey
