Male chauvinism in officialdom

The president’s intervention in the imbroglio between the Black Queens and the sports ministry might have ended a nagging stalemate, not so however, the emotional pain the medal winners suffered.

The ladies might have let sleeping dogs lie but would never forget what was doled out to them as reward for their fruitful efforts – the relative peanuts and the humiliation.

They did not deserve to go through the government-inflicted pain, especially after lifting high the flag of Ghana on the international scene.

The government as it were, has presented a bad template for the management of all-female international sports unworthy of emulation by future governments worthy of their salt.

It took many commentaries – written and oral – alongside personal calls to relevant political figures to have the president eventually step in with a drop in the ocean grade intervention.

From being snubbed by government appointees to their dignity trampled upon, including the denial of food, their story would go down as the worst to be endured by a sports team in the country.

If their gender accounted for their predicament then the creation of a Gender Ministry was just a showpiece intended only to hoodwink the female population in the country.

We are unsurprised that Madam Otiko Djaba, National Women Organiser of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), stepped in to reap the PR gains waiting to be lapped. She raised an important issue which many had already brooded over. Did the female players endure the ordeal because they are females? Would they have gone through similar trauma were they males?

Discrimination against the opposite sex is still a reality in our society. If some harboured the impression that such discrimination belonged only to the rustic parts of the country, let them have a rethink, considering what has just unfolded.

President John Mahama deserves a plaudit for the timely intervention, although the money falls short of the expectation of the ladies and their compatriots. To avoid suffering the repercussions of the ill-treatment, it is important that the president orders a probe.

The need to salvage the dampened spirits of the young ladies cannot be overlooked, if we want to maintain the tempo of nationalism among the youth of this country, especially the opposite sex.

Nationalism should be seen to being encouraged among the youth at this time when we seek to develop the country in all departments of life. Little but critical deficiencies in our treatment of issues such as meted out to our soccer ladies, cannot be a favourable factor.

When male chauvinism is displayed at such levels we are constrained to find out what the take of government is on such a sensitive subject – one very dear to the hearts of the civilized world.

The last moments of the ladies at the hotel were tormenting: lockset no longer responding to the keys when they were inserted and meals denied.

Male chauvinism in officialdom it is!