Regional Minister calls for re-introduction of puberty rites
Ekumfi Essuehyia (Central Region) 31 July 2000
The Chiefs and people of Ekumfi Essuehyia on Sunday organised a fund raising rally to round off their annual Akwanbo festival.
More than two million cedis were realised at the function.
Speaking at the function, Mrs Comfort Owusu, MP for Mfantseman East appealed to the people to use the festival to take stock of their development efforts.
Mr. George Duncan, Assembly Member for the area commended Plan International, an NGO for providing the community with a six-classroom block and furniture for the primary school.
A toilet facility and a library block are under construction.
Mr. Duncan expressed concern about the people's lukewarm attitude towards communal labour and appealed to them to participate in self-help efforts to encourage the NGO to contribute more towards the development of the area.
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Baifikrom (Central Region) 31 July 2000
The Central Regional Minister, Mr. Jacob Arthur, has called for the re-introduction of puberty rites to instill moral discipline in young girls.
Mr. Arthur observed that the current moral degeneration among the youth calls for the re-introduction of some traditional practices, which were used to check pre-marital sex.
He was addressing a durbar organised by the people of Baifikrom near Mankessim to climax their annual Akwanbo Festival on Saturday.
Mr. Arthur expressed concern about condom advertisements, which make feel that "so long as one has the apparatus he is free to indulge in sex".
"Condoms should not be a licence for promiscuity," he said. The Regional Minister called for the review of the custom, which enjoins a wife to slaughter a sheep for the husband after the delivery of the tenth child.
He said that such a custom does not promote family planning and population control.
Mr. Arthur urged Ghanaians, especially politicians to help make the impending general election peaceful.
The Mfantseman District Chief Executive, Mr. George Kuntu Blankson, urged landlords to take advantage of the government's gesture to bear half of the cost of providing households with toilet facilities to reduce pressure on the public ones.
He expressed concern about indiscipline among the youth and urged them to respect their elders.
Nana Seidu Arhin, Regent of the town appealed for the rehabilitation of school buildings, which are in a deplorable state.
The Accra, Tema and Kasoa branches of the Baifikrom Youth Association donated three wall clocks and two electric street lighting systems worth about 350,000 to the town.
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