President  Kufuor (middle) with members of the Queenmothers Association. In the red  shirt is the Mayor of Accra, Stanley Agiri Blankson.

An Association of Queenmothers from different parts of Ghana who live and work in Accra at the weekend paid a courtesy call on President Kufuor at his resident in Accra. Numbering about twenty-two, the Queenmothers led by their president, Nana Serwaa Bonsu from the Offinso area in the Ashanti Region wished the President a Happy 51st Independence Anniversary.

They briefed the President that the objectives of their association were to promote the well-being of adolescent women who have migrated from the rural areas to Accra in search of a better life. They emphasised, particularly, the “kaya ye” who live very miserable and risky lives on the streets of Accra.

They told the President the efforts they were making to look for support for those of them who have fallen victim to rape, teenage pregnancy and teenage motherhood. They called on the Accra Metropolitan Assembly to come to their aid in finding a suitable land to build a hostel for the girls and a nursery for their children.

They acknowledged the efforts of President Kufuor and his government in the general development of the country and achievements chalked up since he took office almost eight years ago.

They praised God for the oil find in Ghana and prayed God to shower more blessings on Ghana even after President Kufuor’s tenure.

Responding, the Mayor of Accra, Hon Stanley Aggiri-Blankson, congratulated them and pledged to support their cause and invited them to meet the AMA to discuss further in order to find a more far reaching solution to support them to help the teeming young women on the streets of Accra.

The Mayor called on the Queenmothers, who also serve as opinion leaders, particularly in some of the markets in Accra, to help the AMA in their efforts to manage the city to bring good sanitation to the precincts of the markets they operate from.

President Kufuor, on his part, expressed his gratitude to the Queenmothers for the show of support and solidarity. This goes to show that I and my government are doing the right things and that the good people see and appreciate the efforts of government.

He affirmed the resolve of his government to leave Ghana far better than he came to find it so that whoever succeeds him and his government will continue with the good works. He assured the Queenmother of better times ahead with the find of oil in commercial quantity and prayed that the country will stay focused in peace and tranquillity.

Source: Castle (Ernest Nsiah Youngmann)

Posted: 10/03/08