Perpetrators of defilement would be severely punished - Lawra District Assembly

Lawra, (U/W), Aug. 20, GNA - The Lawra District Assembly has said it will deal ruthlessly with perpetrators of defilement in order to advance the course of girl-child education in the district.

Mr Martin Domotiere Bomba-ire, the Lawra District Chief Executive (DCE), speaking at the first ordinary meeting of the Assembly, said it was regrettable to note that four girls could not take part in the 2017 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in the district due to pregnancy related concerns.

This unfortunate incident requires a redress as the girls being put in the family way would have their education truncated, he said.

The DCE appealed to the Child Protection Committee of the Assembly, Queen Mothers and the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) to step up their game in order to bring an end to the canker.

Mr Bomba-ire said the Assembly intended to pay the entire tertiary fees for the first year of any student who obtained aggregate seven or better in any of the Senior High Schools (SHSs) in the District effective next year.

'This I believe would go a long way to incentivize our students to study harder', he said.

On health, the DCE noted that the Assembly procured air time to enable the Social Services Sub-Committee to sensitize the general public on the sale, intake and abuse of hard drugs by the youth.

Mr Bomba-ire said the district received a total of 10,109 bags of various types of fertilizer, 488 bags of different types of seeds and a total of 6,435 bags of subsidized fertilizer to help prosecute the government flagship programme dubbed 'Planting for Food and Jobs'.

He said next year, groundnuts and cowpea would be given priority attention under the 'Planting for Food and Jobs' programme while cashew and mango would be considered under the 'One District, One Export Product' initiative.

The DCE said the selection was premised on factors spanning from economic value, yield potential for large scale farming and possibility of an all-year-round cultivation where applicable.

He said the Assembly in line with the principle of inclusive governance supported four persons with disabilities with an amount of GHC 3,700.00 to cater for their education and medical concerns. GNA

By Prosper K. Kuorsoh, GNA