October 19, 2022

To achieve a gender balanced Legislature, Member of Parliament for Krowor, Naa Momo Agnes Lartey said the political parties have a role to play in this as we have most governments talk about it but do not walk the talk.

“Most people do not show political commitment towards gender inclusiveness, if we do not have the commitment and it becomes always talk-shop it would not help us, is like taking a step forward and two steps backwards”. In an interview she noted that you would not be making progress and the political parties have a major role to play when it comes to some of these things,saying as a nation an affirmative action would be good for us as a nation.
She further pointed out that, the way internal parliamentary primaries are structured and organized do not help women following the keen competition that is involved, given the fact that women have to compete with men with the challenge of most of the women coming from the background of being in the informal sector and the care given roles of women, you find a woman taking care of the home from the informal sector you still have to use some of the resources taking care of the home – parents, in- laws, husband and children.

At the end of the day, building wealth for women is a much long and tedious task of that of the men there is the need to start with the political parties, if you look at it critically there is the need for commitment.“I was sharing with a colleague, we have not passed the affirmative action bill that is another step we need to take to show commitment. Mr. Speaker has spoken about it and pointed out that he is looking forward to passing it by the close of the lifespan of the current eighth parliament”.

And it is left for them to advocate and keep pushing for it and bring colleagues who do not understand it on board. It is a corrective measure to bring men and women together at the same level to run an equal race, that is the only way to ensure development at a very fast pace, she stated.

“There is the need for affirmative action where we should have women contesting women, where there are safe seats in our strongest constituencies – be it in the Volta for the NDC should be for women this time and NPP in the Ashanti Region on women this time, so that we have a kind of rotation. In the case of Ghana now, we have under fifteen percent women representation in the parliament, she said.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com/Rwanda/Kigali