The National Women’s Organiser for People’s National Convention (P.N.C), Ms Janet Mandinaam Nabla has called on President Nana Addo Danquah Akufo Addo to immediately pass the Affirmative Action Bill.
The bill when passed, she believes will help bridge the gender gap between men and women in education, social and economic status as stipulated in article 17(4) of the 1992 constitution.
She expressed worry over how Ghana has made no effort to bridge the gender gap between men and women in education, social and economic status since independence and yet celebrated the Constitution Day to mark its pride of how it has abided by the constitution since its establishment in 1992 up until date.
In a statement, Ms Nabla observed that the labour commission has a ratio of men to women employment in the formal sector being 87% to 13% respectively.
The above, she noted violates the directive principles of state policy in article 35(6b) of our 1992 constitution which states that, the state should take appropriate measures to achieve reasonable gender balance in the area of recruitment and appointments into public offices.
“This directive has been ignored with impunity yet we celebrated Constitution Day with pride,” she said.
The Affirmative Action Bill (AAB), which is also a constitutional mandate in article 17(4) of the 1992 constitution which mandated parliament to enact laws to address problems of education, social and economic imbalances in our society has since become a political banter between the NDC and the NPP between whom power has alternated since the fourth republic.
Ms Nabla also noted that although the Affirmative Action Bill has been in and out of Parliament for the past fourteen (14) years, governments have come and gone but the best they did was to pay lip service to the passage of this bill.
“why is it that the two political parties among which governance has alternated within the Fourth Republican rule only see the positives of this Bill when they are in opposition and clamouring for power but end up throwing it on the back burner once they assume power?” she quizzed.
She stated that Ghanaian women have not forgotten about the amount of emphasis that Akuffo Addo and his campaign team placed on the need for the passage of the Affirmative Action Bill on all their political platforms during the run-up to the 2016 general elections.
“I will therefore want to use this opportunity to remind the President his ruling government to walk the talk by passing the bill into a law. May I remind Mr President that in the 2016 elections, women voters were about 300,000 more than men and were the deciders of who became President?” she added.
Below is a statement:
PEOPLE’S NATIONAL CONVENTION
MOTTO: SERVICE WITH HONESTY
HEADQUARTERS
LOCATION:
Abavana Junction Kotobabi
Accra Ghana, West Africa.
PRESS RELEASE BY THE NATIONAL WOMEN’S ORGANIZER OF THE PEOPLE’S NATIONAL CONVENTION (P.N.C) ON THE NEED TO PASS THE AFFIRMATIVE ACTION BILL IMMEDIATELY
Ghana celebrated Constitution Day to mark its pride of how it has abided by the constitution since its establishment in 1992 up until date. It saddens my heart as a woman that since independence, Ghana has made no effort to breach the gender gap between men and women in education, social and economic status as stipulated in article 17(4) of the 1992 constitution. The labour commission has a ratio of men to women employment in the formal sector being 87% to 13% respectively. This violates the directive principles of state policy in article 35(6b) of our 1992 constitution which states that, the state should take appropriate measures to achieve reasonable gender balance in the area of recruitment and appointments into public offices. This directive has been ignored with impunity yet we celebrated Constitution Day with pride.
The almighty Affirmative Action Bill (AAB) which is also a constitutional mandate in article 17(4) of the 1992 constitution which mandated parliament to enact laws to address problems of education, social and economic imbalances in our society has since become a political banter between the NDC and the NPP between whom power has alternated since the fourth republic.
Ghana as a sovereign country has signed on to several international treaties like CEDAW, the Beijing Platform for Action, the Millennium Development Goals to make sure that issues of gender disparities are addressed in the country. Mr President, as an activist in Human Rights, I was expecting the AAB to be passed without any difficulty but I am surprised that the bill is not yet before parliament and does not seem to be a priority of this government.
We are in the year 2020 and this means that the all-important Affirmative Action Bill has been in and out of Parliament for the past fourteen (14) years. Governments have come and gone but the best they did was to pay lip service to the passage of this bill. The issue that touts my mind most is “why is it that the two political parties among which governance has alternated within the Fourth Republican rule only see the positives of this Bill when they are in opposition and clamouring for power but end up throwing it on the back burner once they assume power”.
Ghanaians have been described as people who have short memory but I don’t think we have so soon forgotten about the amount of emphasis that His Excellency president Nana Akuffo Addo and his campaign team placed on the need for the passage of the Affirmative Action Bill on all their political platforms during the run-up to the 2016 general elections. This time round, I think it is the members of the ruling government who have exhibited the fact that they have a short memory span. They appear to have completely forgotten about the existence of this bill. I will therefore want to use this opportunity to remind the president His Excellency Nana Addo and his ruling government to walk the talk by passing the bill into a law.
May I remind Mr President that in the 2016 elections, women voters were about 300,000 more than men and were the deciders of who became President?
- PRESIDENT, GHANAIAN WOMEN ARE DEMANDING THAT YOU PASS THE AFFIRMATIVE ACTION BILL INTO A LAW NOW!!!!!!!!!
Janet Mandinaam Nabla
National Women’s Organiser
PNC
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