Nana Konadu inaugurates Mepe 31st DWM

Accra, Aug. 19, GNA - Former First Lady and President of the 31st December Women's Movement, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, last Saturday received a rousing welcome when she travelled to Mepe in the South Tongu Constituency of the Volta Region to inaugurate a branch of the 31st December Women's Movement.

But the inauguration ceremony, which was organized to revive the Movement in that part of the country, turned into an unexpected mammoth party rally.

An official statement in Accra on Tuesday said thousands of supporters and sympathizers of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) took advantage of Nana Konadu's presence in the area to also revitalize the party in the area.

It said many party faithful wondered why the Rawlingses were yet to hit the campaign trail.

Nana Konadu told a durbar of chiefs and people of Mepe that the 31st December Women's Movement was borne out of a desire to get women to be recognized as part of national development.

The Movement, she noted, emanated as a result of the revolution that came to stop the rot, saying women wanted to be part of that change and not just observers hence the movement's establishment.

"We wanted to be part of the change taking place in Ghana. Issues that were peculiar to women were not being tackled so we established the movement with the four UN principles of developing women politically, economically, culturally and socially as the yardstick," she said.

She accused the NPP government of putting impediments in all projects initiated by the movement, particularly educational projects although such projects had brought enlightenment to womenfolk.

"We are tired of selfish governments. We need a selfless government that cares and runs the country with a human face," she said.

A leading member of the movement, Hanna Louis Bisiw, said followers of the NDC had to assert themselves and be proud of the P/NDC because the party gave women great opportunities.

She said the concept of feeder roads and rural developmental projects were a hallmark of the P/NDC regime but the current government was doing everything in its power to downplay those achievements. Nana Konadu paid a courtesy call on the Queen of Mepe Traditional area, Mama Awusi Sreku III before inspecting fish smoking projects undertaken by the movement as part of job creation for unemployed women. In attendance Mr Joe Gidisu, MP for Central Tongu, and Mr Charles Hodogbe, MP for North Tongu, as well as the Chairperson of the Hamburg branch of the Party, Madam Vida Addae.