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21.05.2019 Headlines

It Is Not Easy To Woo Ghanaian Women Into Politics---Minister

It Is Not Easy To Woo Ghanaian Women Into Politics---Minister
21.05.2019 LISTEN

Hon. Kwasi Boateng Adjei, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development says it is difficult getting Ghanaian women to participate in politics over fears that politics is a dirty game dominated by men.

In a speech read on behalf of the incumbent minister, Hon Hajia Alima Mahama at a 5-day training workshop organised by the Otumfuo Centre for Traditional Leadership (OCTL) of University of Professional Studies (UPSA) on governance at the district level, conflict resolution, land management and other chieftaincy related topics, the former Member of Parliament for New Juaben North constituency in the Eastern Region indicated that there is a need for government to ensure equal participation of women at both the district and national levels.

"We should be keen and interested in ensuring that we have a lot of women going into the business of politics. I will particularly call on women, PWDs and the youth to put themselves up for assembly and unit committee membership and further pleaded on queen mothers present at the workshop to encourage women within their jurisdiction to venture into politics," the sector minister stated.

The electoral commission report on District Level Elections (DLEs) indicates a decline in voter turnout from 41.6% in 1998 to 39.6% in 2015.

According to the Deputy Minister, beyond the training workshop, a lot of sensitization and education is required to increase participation women in the 2019 District Level Elections.

"I am therefore requesting traditional leadership to join the education and awareness-raising effort of government to ensure a massive turnout to make the 2019 DLE a success," the Minister intimated.

In an exclusive interview with Bridge Wurch Barchisu, Gueen Mother of the Savannah Region told Modernghana that women who aspire to join the political race dash their hopes as a result of the polygamy society.

" From the area where I come from, the husband cannot take all the resources at home to support one woman at the expense of the other wives since it's a polygamous home.

"Women at the grassroot level feel politics is reserved for the affluent men and a few educated elites in society. I am therefore calling on stakeholders to provide intensive education on politics particularly at the grassroot level and I believe it would go a long way to dispell such notions" she added.

Mama Dzito, a queen mother from the Hohoe Municipality expressed her gratitude to the Energy Minister John Peter Amewu for sponsoring 10 queen mothers and three chiefs to participate in the workshop.

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Justice Agbenorsi
Justice Agbenorsi

News ReporterPage: JusticeAgbenorsi

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