News
Bleaching dangerous to lactating mothers — Queen mother
The use of bleaching creams containing hydroquinone by a section of women particularly lactating mothers in the Wa Municipality of the Upper West Region, have become a source of worry to stakeholders who are bent on promoting nutritional wellbeing of children in the area.
The Queen of Duori in the Waala Traditional Area, Pognaa Amamata Mumuni who tabled the issue for discussion at the launch of infant nutritional wellbeing project at Wa, expressed concern of the use of such creams by lactating mothers in their quest to lighten their skins in preparation for the naming ceremony of their babies.
She said the women used the creams to lighten their skins in order to get rid of the change in body colour which mostly happened during pregnancy instead of allowing nature to gradually restore their colour in due time.
“According to Islamic tradition, a new born baby is named seven days after birth in a modest Islamic naming ceremony.
However, the event has recently been magnified by the youth with pomp and pageantry accompanied by expensive photoshoots by mother and baby in heavy cosmetic make-up”, she said.
The queen stated that in order to look good in front of the camera, the women resorted to using those harsh body creams immediately after birth to lighten their colour without the slightest knowledge of the effect it could have on their breastfeeding babies.
“Women who use these pomades often sweat a lot but when they are breastfeeding the babies, they do not clean the sweat off the breast and so feed the baby with those chemicals”, she stressed.
Pognaa Amamata Mumuni who is the Girl-Officer of Ghana Education Service (GES) in Wa Municipality called on the Ghana Health Service to introduce such topics in their nutrition sensitization programmes in order to minimise the practice but encouraged women to stop bleaching as it could have negative health implications on them.
The Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Damien Punguyire also said there was the need for mothers to protect their infants’ health by avoiding products that were inimical to the wellbeing of their babies,
“Aside the babies we are trying to protect, bleaching can also cause skin cancers and other health complications for the mother especially given the volume of sunshine we enjoy in this region, hence we encourage women to maintain their natural colour”, he added.
Taking the discussion a notch higher, the Regional Director at the Department of Gender, Mrs Charity Banye advised lactating mothers whose children were in school to spare some time and visit the schools in order to breastfeed them.
“It is disheartening to see that the lunch you packed for your toddlers is intact after picking them up from school with the excuse that they were not hungry when they actually were but there was no time for that one teacher who is attending to about 30 or more other children to concentrate on spending over 30 minutes feeding one child”, she said, painfully.
From Lydia Darlington Fordjour, Wa
News
Chief of Abesim destooled
The Dominase Royal Family of Abesim, near Sunyani in the Bono Region, has destooled Barima Kumi Akyeaw III as Chief of Abesim, following a ruling by the Sunyani High Court.
The decision was announced at a media briefing at Abesim on Sunday by the Head of the royal family, Nana Agyei Saarah, who stated that the chief, known in private life as Kelvin Anane Addo, was improperly nominated, elected, and installed.
According to Nana Agyei Saarah, apart from the irregular installation process, the former chief engaged in several actions that brought the Abesim stool into disrepute.
The Sunyani High Court, presided over by Justice Nathan P. Yarney, delivered the ruling on March 25, 2025.
The court upheld that Barima Kumi Akyeaw III was invalidly enstooled, citing a breach of customary procedure.
The Court further noted that the nomination process, conducted by the Adehyepanin (Abakomahene), following the death of the Queen mother of Abesim, failed to follow due traditional process.
He emphasised that under Abesim stool custom- which forms part of the Kyidom Division of the Dormaa Traditional Council, the Abakomahene assumes the authority to nominate candidates in the absence of a Queen mother.
Three candidates—Christian, Kelvin, and one Agyekum were reportedly nominated.
However, the court held that since there was a pending petition before the Judicial Committee of the Dormaa Traditional Council against Kelvin Anane Addo, it was inappropriate for the Dormaahene and his Divisional Chiefs to proceed with his nomination and installation.
Justice Yarney ruled that any act, whether described as opinion, advice, or otherwise, that causes grievance to another, may be subject to the supervisory jurisdiction of the High Court.
From Daniel Dzirasah, Abesim
News
Man narrowly escapes death, accused of stealing 19 fowls, a dog
A 42-year-old man, Kwabena Otoo, narrowly escaped death on the dawn of Monday when residents of Assin Adubiase lynched him, having been accused of stealing 19 fowls and a dog.
“I heard the commotion from my house,” said a resident who wished to remain anonymous. “By the time I reached the scene, there was already a crowd surrounding him. His pleas for mercy were drowned by angry voices.”
Otoo, bleeding profusely and severely injured, might have lost his life if not for a timely distress call to the Assin Fosu Divisional Police Command.
Officers arrived around 4am, pushing through the mob to rescue the battered man.
“We found him in critical condition,” shared one responding officer. “Every minute counted in getting him medical attention.”
Now recovering at the Assin Fosu Polyclinic, Otoo suffered physical wounds but also faces uncertain future as investigations continue.
Medical staff report indicated that he suffered multiple injuries requiring immediate treatment.
Community members claim Otoo’s contradictory answers during questioning triggered their suspicions and subsequent assault.
One witness explained that, “people here have lost too much to thieves… frustration has been building for months.”
The Police have confirmed Otoo is from neighbouring Assin Odumase and are calling for anyone missing fowls or a dog to come forward as part of their investigation.
“This could have ended in tragedy,” warned a police spokesperson. “We understand community frustrations, but mob justice is never the answer. We urge citizens to report crimes rather than taking matters into their own hands.”
From Kingsley E. Hope, Kumasi
