My father didn’t know his father – Francisca Oteng discloses

Deputy Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection nominee, Francisca Oteng Mensah, has disclosed that her father, Dr. Kwaku Oteng, grew up without his father actively playing a role in his life.

She said the Angel Group of Companies founder did not know his father while growing up.

Francisca Oteng made this statement in the presence of her father and members of the parliament’s Appointment Committee while being vetted for the Deputy Minister of Gender, Children, and Social Protection position.

In a bid to throw more light on the ‘Mensah’ attached to her surname, after one of the Appointment Committee members inquired if it was her husband’s name, she explained that:

“Mensah isn’t my husband’s name, it’s my father’s name. Growing up, my father didn’t have a good relationship with his father, or let me say, he didn’t know his father. After he grew up to a certain age, he discovered that his father was called, De-Graft Oteng. I was named after three people, Francisca is my father’s best friend who is a pastor, Oteng is my father’s biological father’s name and the Mensah is my father’s name.”

Meanwhile, Francisca Oteng, who doubles as the Kwabre East MP, is part of the two nominees appointed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo after he revoked the appointment of Sarah Adwoa Safo, who was absent from work for an extended period.

President Akufo-Addo also nominated the Deputy Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, and MP for Walewale, Lariba Zuweira Abudu, as minister-designate for Gender, Children, and Social Protection, following Adwoa Safo's exit.