Representatives of 26 women traders’s association across Ashanti region yesterday converged in Kumasi to agitate for the selection of a female running mate to pair Dr. Bawumia for NPP’s presidential ticket in the 2024 elections.

The leadership of the groups said the membership would support and vote massively for the party if a female from the Ashanti region is chosen to champion their interest in the presidency.

According to the women, the female population of Ghana as at 2023 constitute about 17.1 million persons and therefore it would be appropriate that Dr. Bawumia considers choosing a female running mate to enable the party to attract more votes by women.

Madam Nkrumah Adasa, a leader of the Tepa Traders  Association said besides the Ashanti region being the stronghold of the party, women constitute a fairly bigger constituency in the region and need a strong woman at the presidency to champion interest of women.

Madam Kaakyire  Badu from the  Bantama  Race  course  market said it  was incumbent on the NPP  to choose  a  woman  from the  Ashanti region  as the running to match  the NDC  that has  strategically selected a woman  to attract the support of  various women’s  grouping across the  country.

She cautioned against previous mistakes of imposing candidates on the party at the expense of aspirations of women that affected the support base of the party.

The women  traders  emphasised that a woman running mate from the region would go a long way to influence voting  at the elections in December 2024.

They said the running mate must not just be a woman but a tested, affable and proven compassionate woman that has the welfare of women and children and youth development at heart.

According to the traders, male Veeps had disappointed the women folk previously hence the need for a paradigm  shift  and  consider one of their own who possess the requisite leadership qualities to fairly  represent them in government.

They also called for more women to get involved in politics to champion women emancipation as a way of improving the lot of women generally.

The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has urged Ghanaians to not ruin people’s reputations in the name of politics.

According to the President, actions that promote disunity, especially in an election year, would undermine the cohesion of the nation.

“Let us remember that this country is more important than our egos and ambitions,” he said on Thursday, April 11, 2024, when he joined the National Chief Imam and the Muslim community for the Eid-al-Fitr celebration at the Black Star Square, Accra.

“We should be careful about the spread of misinformation and disinformation, especially such misinformation and disinformation that destroys the hard-earned reputation of people,” he added.

President Akufo-Addo used his remarks to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence among religions in the country as the election approaches.

He called on Ghanaians to reject all forms of divisiveness that threaten the country’s unity and cohesion.

“I make this point, particularly because we are in an election year and there is the tendency for self-seeking people to exploit our differences of religion and ethnicity to foment divisions to promote narrow, parochial, sectarian, and political agenda,” he remarked.

PROPAGANDA

He urged Ghanaians to avoid disinformation and manipulative propaganda that could undermine the country’s democracy, rule of law, and fundamental rights.

President Akufo-Addo stated that the age of technology and news media, which also provided people with a high degree of anonymity, provided a space for the peddling of half-truths and blatant lies to form perceptions.

RAMADAN

Eid-al-Fitr marks the end of the month-long fast in the Islamic month of Ramadan.

The President told the gathering that the significance of Ramadan was not lost on the average Muslim since it sought to inculcate the spirit of sacrifice, brotherhood, commitment to ethical living, love of family and nation, and God-consciousness.

He urged Muslims not to abandon these values after the passage of Ramadan, adding that indeed the purpose of Ramadan is to instill these values in Muslims and for them to keep them all their lives.

He continued that, “These are the exact same values every nation needs to develop. No Muslim has been unable to fast in this month of Ramadan because they do not have what it takes to either eat the dawn meal or break their fast during Iftar, thanks to the time-tested practice of communal sharing of the feast at dawn and in the evenings.

TOGETHER

He told them to make the spirit of togetherness a national value that would give true meaning to the principle of one nation, one destiny.

President Akufo-Addo reminded the gathering that Ghana remained the envy of the world due to the religious unity it created and the practice of various religions in a circular state that promotes religious freedom.

He urged them to continue to promote religious harmony and co-existence because “it is the essence of Islam, which means submission to the essence of Allah.”