Summary;

Question time !!

Carrots and stick?

W.H.O’s solutions..

The Dutch example

Ghana’s political agenda... »

Mr. Speaker…

Swift rise in teen pregnancy rate in Ghana is not only turning dramatic, but dreadful and horrifying; becoming scandalous and the same time, outrageous in the sense that, no action whatsoever, has been taken to secure a cut-back, neither has any appropriate measure taken to assist victims and the resultant baby boomers, as the society proudly strides on its onward march, deeply into the 21st century.

Media signals on the issue continue to rain down like crazy hail-stones, the size of peas, transmitting deadly high voltage currents, running through the veins of concerned parents and guardians; raising many questions. Can’t the bull be tackled by the horn? Can’t, any form of action, in the provision of health care/social security programs, be initiated to cut-back this outrageous canker, to help save the teens from such human destruction and disaster? .

Reading the ff: The Kwaku district recorded 1,663 pregnancies among girls between the ages of 15 and 19, which is also an increase of 163 over the previous year's figure of 1500 for the same age groups. 23- Girls became pregnant in the Kwahu South district they were between the ages of 10 and 14 years. This is an increase of over 11 as recorded the previous years for the same age group, says GNA: now is the turn of Mfantsiman districts, -- what about Bolga and Navrongo districts-- and the figures are quite disturbing:

Being highly concerned about the issue, I decided to sneak-out of my sea-side hut in Bukom, to talk to a highly respected Solicitor in Accra. My mission was not only simple but quite ambitious; to seek first hand information on the law, protecting teens. After glancing through the report, she smiled: following are some excerpts of our conversation.

Question time: J K

Questioner: In your point of view, can’t legislation on child abuse be promulgated to protect teen-age girls?

Solicitor: Ghana has a law, she replied, re-examining the script on teen-age pregnancy and watching me with a sort of renewed interest:

I recoiled a little bit into my shell, realizing she might be thinking I was sort of coming from another planet, called Mars.

Questioner: Then why this? How many men responsible for such acts have been punished under the law, to at least serve as a deterrent?

Solicitor: I don’t think I’m the right person to answer this: perhaps the A-G can help you. I can give you my impression on the issue… there appears to be some sort of laxity to the application of this law: The reasons, I can only speculate: I believe before a Judge sentences a culprit, various aspects of the case, on issues of social, finance and maybe the politics of it, should have to be examined and taken into consideration.

Questioner: I strongly believe that, the law must be applied to its in-dept letter, in cases of such nature..!!

Solicitor: You sound very amusing and some times quite irritating. In my opinion, the spirit of the law must have to be evoked in such issues based on the prevailing social structures in place, and economic indicators available.

Questioner: Madam Solicitor, please look at this story. She reads: A teacher sentenced to 6 six months in prison for having sex with a minor in his class, resulting in pregnancy….

Solicitor: This is in Europe, where they have social provisions intermingled with proactive health care programs: In our case, the victim is completely excluded from society; at times, with aggrieved parents turning their back on their child, and she might end up in the street selling oranges or bread, by the road side, with her baby on her back; and in the final analyses, creating serious problems for society.

Questioner: Heavens, what a fate? And culprits, might be pupils, students, teachers, policeman, contractors, businessmen, even politicians what-knots, going-scoot free and with impunity, to continue to breathe air of freedom, while the unfortunate victim suffers, the rest of her life, with an overload..

Solicitor: You forgot one thing; might even include Journalists, Doctors, etc. She laughed but sarcastically. And the said over-load, if he or she is not well-cared for..the result might be a time-bomb M for society.

Questioner: Ha! We’re all suspects, ça- alors. “Time-bomb”, you mean, danger to society?

Carrot and stick: B

After a lengthy debate, I came to the realizing that, what is needed to secure a reasonable cut-back quickly in teen pregnancy, is a sort of carrot and stick application—efficient care programs and application of the law. One wonders if the blame of “parental irresponsibility” should be laid in-whole at the door-step of mothers/fathers, as alleged in GNA report which claimed that, both the District Chief Executive, Mr. Robert Quainoo-Arthur and the District Director of Education, Miss Vivian Etroo, of Mfantseman and Gomoa Districts expressed disappointment about the teenage pregnancy situation in the area, blamed it on lack of parental control.. Mr. Quainoo-Arthur attributed the problem to a break-down in "our extended family system which has made others not to care to correct children of other family members when they find them going astray."

Contributing, Miss Etroo said, a "time with grandma," a programme introduced by Ghana Health Service to make adolescents to seek guidance from selected mentors and Plan Ghana's camp meetings for girls and other program could not turn the tide. "I thought my presence in the district as a director of education will make girls see me as a role model and aspire to higher academic laurels", Miss Etroo stated. The situation was not different in Gomoa whose director of education is also a woman.

W.H.O’s solutions. \

The problem is a dodgy nation-wide canker, which calls for quick fixing and I have been wondering whether parents should be made complete escape-goats and slaughtered on the almighty-altar, or whether such precarious problem is a whole societal responsibility?

Geneva-based WHO (World Health Organization) has a tailor-measured answers to teenage pregnancy backed by a comprehensive statistical data, using Europe and Eastern Europeans issues as a study case: it says:

“Poverty has been associated with early motherhood, as a result of a lack of realizable personal goals relating to material well-being, and also through an absence of appropriate services in poorer countries’. Ghana not an exception (emphasizes mine). These absolute measures of wealth in a country, as well as disparities between rich and poor, were both expected to be associated with teenage fertility. There is, therefore, additional need for a health promotion focus on secondary prevention, that is, mitigating the adverse outcome of early motherhood for the young women involved, since problems are likely to be exacerbated by material deprivation”,

Writing on the subject, Professor Pamela Giles, research Director of the British Health Education Authority, has emphasized that “young people, their parents, professionals working in Health education and local organizations will need to work together to set and implement an agenda for change, while effective and appropriate action must be initiated through sound research and evolution.

“Research—it is important to understand the variations and variability in conception rules in young people by geographical area and by social and cultural background”.

The Dutch example: Q

As a study case, let’s have an insight into Netherlands Health care system:

1. It has the second lowest live birth rate to women aged 15-19 of all the countries in Europe, according to WHO report.

2. Contraception (including emergency contraception) is legal, widespread, free and easily obtainable. Special youth services are provided. Sex education is mandatory and well developed and starts in Primary school. Sexuality is discussed openly in society and in the media.

Its teenage birth rate began to decline soon after the PILL was introduced in 1964 And when family planning clinics opened and emergency contraception became available in 1968. Soon the PILL became available on public health Insurance and the media began to promote contraception...

Ghana’s political agenda; » running-out

Therefore, the right to sex education must be part of Ghana’s political agenda;

that the backbone of Ghana’s strong cultural attachment to that self-imposed, silent but sneaky viper- type taboo system must be busted/broken and annihilated to enable the society recover from its sluggish slumber, to become more pro-actively open to discuss issues like sex in homes, schools, in the Press and TV.

that law concerning legal age of heterosexual age be pegged between 17-18 for both males and females and should be enforced to check abuses.

that youth must be targeted for provisions of education and information materials, counseling and guidance services; provision in the form of talks, campaigns, supply of materials and training for teachers and health professionals be made available.

that condoms be made readily accessible, sold in supermarkets, chemists and kiosks; and distributed free of charge in all health centers.

that institutions be established to cater for teen-age mothers; exclusion practices be banned and victims encourage to continue their education.

that the present cultural climate based on hardened conservatism, be modified, while family planning education and other related programs intensified. to favor and revolutionize behavioral patterns to positive change, creating healthy openness to sex education; a subject which should be tackled in the sprit of free speech, spirit of dialogue and tolerance, consensus and respect.

Mr. Speaker…!! -

To continue from where I left-off, Mr. SPEAKER, Honorable members of this august House, I hurried to verify, to conduct on the spot investigations on the top of the Kwahu Mountains, first choosing Obo for political reasons. I didn’t have to borrow an eagle-eye, to realize the hardships being encountered by child-mothers and new baby boomers.

In a nearby town, I tumbled on girl and a boy (sister/brother) whose parents, a child- mother and student- father had expired in a very mysterious circumstances. I pledged on my honor: Was my journey terminated on the note of regret or sadness or ended quite fruitfully and blissful: your guess might be better than mine.

On the extended family system, spelt out by Mr. Quainoo-Arthur, my observation is that the main structures of Ghanaian society and cultural values are still going through a quite revolution, seemingly under the pressure of the present world wide economic situation: solidarity care inherent in the “extended family” system is now classified as “out-molded”. Therefore, Mr. SPEAKER, the time has come for society to shoulder its obligatory responsibilities by structuring effective health care system, married with social security provisions to cater for the needs of its citizens.

Mr. SPEAKER, Honorable Members, thanks greatly for giving me an audience, and opportunity to appear before you in this majestic/noble house. Mr. Speaker, perhaps it might be the turn of the Ministers of Health, Women Affairs and Minister Responsible for Social Welfare/Social Security, to appear.

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