Ho, Jan 17, GNA- Captain George Nfodjo (rtd), Ho-Central Member of Parliament (MP) has tasked Queens to lead a crusade against sexual permissiveness in the country.

He said it was a crucial mission that these women traditional leaders must undertake now to avoid leaving a legacy of their town or communities being labelled haven of loose people.

Captain Nfodjo was addressing an entrepreneurship workshop for members of the Volta Region Council of Queens in Ho on Thursday. Royal Vision International (RVI) a Ho based NGO; the Regional Office of the Women's Department of the Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs and an American couple, Victor and Cissy Elinoff collaborated to organize the workshop.

Captain Nfodjo also urged the Queens to strengthen their traditional role as counsellors to enable them to spot disagreements and assuage bitterness among opponents before they grew into conflicts to destabilize their areas.

He charged to Queens to take the education of their people with utmost seriousness, sourcing funds, if need be, to help pay school fees. Captain Nfodjo pledged to continue to use his share of the District Assemblies Common Fund to pay fees of brilliant but needy pupils, 300 of who benefited during the past three years. Miss Edem Wutor, Research Officer of the Volta Regional House of Chiefs said the workshop was to give business skills to the Queens to enable them to build enterprises whose profits they could use to address their numerous social responsibilities. Lack of money was cited as the main limitation of the Queens to mobilizing women during discussions.

Others included refusal of governments to put chiefs and queens on the same pedestal and the uncooperative attitude of colleague chiefs in the handling of traditional affairs.

Mamaga Amega Kofi Bra, Paramount Queen of the Peki Traditional Area and President of the Volta Council of Queens said male chauvinism even in official circles was not ebbing and wondered why Paramount Chiefs would be given allowances by the state, leaving out Paramount Queens. Miss Hellen Alai, Regional Director of the Women's Department said the fight for women's rights would make a bigger impact if women's groups came together.