Abuse Of Girls And Women- Nana Oye Lithur Needs The Help Of All Especially Parents, Social Workers And Churches
?BY ALHAJI ALHASAN ABDULAI
The Ministry of Gender, Women and Social Protection has the responsibility for the welfare of girl children and women. The ministry requires the cooperation of ?social workers, parents and religious bodies to accomplish their mandates. ?Pastors and Imams do rely on the Holy Bible and the Holy Quran to counsel girls and women towards their moral spiritual and general wellbeing. A whole lot of pastors have done a lot by counseling many girls? to become good and pious professionals, entrepreneurs and housewives. We must commend these pastors for preaching in churches and to some extent ????prisons to win over many girls and men to God.
However the achievements of the men God are being eroded by a few ?bad nuts? among them. While they are engaged in preaching and counseling people to stay clear from iniquities, some of these men succumb to the ?terrible hands? of Satan. Instead of shepherding their flocks they take advantage of them through rape to the extent of impregnating some of the girls.???? Even though the behavior of the men of God is no longer news to many people one wonders why they do what they do in the name of God.
Some of these men do? blame? their behaviors? on Satan.
For allegedly raping a 20 year old woman a 39 year old Rev Father of the Anglican Church Emmanuel Quartey was remanded in prison custody till December 11 when he appeared before a Cape Coast Circuit Court.
Chief Inspector Ockom told the court presided over by Mrs. Eva Bannerman Williams that on Sunday October 17, Hannah, a resident of Siwdo in Cape Coast approached Rev. Quartey to help her break a blood covenant she had with her boyfriend.
Rev. Fr Quartey agreed to help her and asked Hannah to meet him on October 18 in a hotel in Elmina.
She complied and met Rev. Fr Quartey in one of the rooms where he forcibly had sex with her and warned her not to tell anyone or she would die.
The prosecution said out of fear the victim kept the incident to herself until November 6 when she broke her silence and informed her elder sister about it.
A complaint was made on November 8 at the Cape Coast Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit DOVSU
Nana Oye Lithur Minister Gender Women and Social Protection
While ?awaiting ?the outcome of this case, it can be said on authority that some ?men of God in Ghana and across the world?? have suffered? prosecution ?for abusing women and girls in ways that are disturbing and unpardonable.
To this end the Minister of Gender Women and Social Protection Nana Oye Lithur has said that campaign to stop violence against women must be a matter of priority in Ghana for men and women who wish to contribute towards development of their societies. She made this known at a press briefing on ????gender-based violence against women in Accra recently.
Nana Oye Lithur is right.? Although?? she was an active human rights advocate and sympathetic to the cause of the less privileged before becoming a minister, ?she is faced with? ?herculean tasks resulting from failure by some leading personalities to live up to expectation. Much of her duties require advocacy and counseling by professional counselors and religious leaders whose ??duties border on moral, spiritual and general human development. ?apart from the efforts by social workers of the department of social welfare to support the less endowed, counseling ?is being done by the member churches of the Catholic Secretariat and the Christian Council of Ghana. However a few ?church leaders have been found wanting over the years. The Christian council leadership? ??would not be happy with news ??concerning immorality by leading members of? ?their churches. On learning about this unfortunate situation regarding? ?priests the good ones among them would be hurting inside. ?They are right in being worried.
Since they are in the business of preaching to the extent of doing so in prisons the religious bodies have a duty to team up with the Ministry of Gender Women and Social Protection to do the following:
- A joint ?Workshops should be organized by the ministry and the churches ??to re-orient their pastors to adhere to ?the true teachings of God regarding their work
- The pastors ?must be made to serve as true role models by staying away from iniquities that include rape and other vices with women and girls
- The churches must prepare a code of ethics that must be adhered to by all pastors and reverend fathers. All those who violate the rules especially through immoral acts must be punished by the churches.
If the above suggestions are adhered to the increasing spate of abuse of women and girls by the men of God would be controlled or curtailed completely. Although the Ministry of Gender Women and Social Protection has oversight responsibility for the protection of women, they cannot succeed in carrying out their mandates without the help of all people of Ghana especially parents and religious leaders.
Executive Director
EANFOWORLD FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
P.O.BOX 17070AN??? 233244370345/23326370345/ 233208844791
[email protected]/[email protected] /[email protected]
WE CALL FOR COOPERATION WITH INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS WISHING TO BRING OUT FACTS AND CONDEMN FALSEHOOD. LET?S JOIN HANDS
