Women must show up - PPP women’s organizer

National Women’s Coordinator of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), Berlinda Bulley, has underscored the need for women empowerment in the county’s democratic dispensation.

According to her, the struggle for women empowerment has come a long way which must be given the necessary attention by the government.

Citing countries where women empowerment has been given a boost, she noted that in Rwanda, for instance, practical steps have been put in place to ensure women are deeply involved in the decision-making processes.

The PPP’s national women’s coordinator made these in a statement signed by her and issued yesterday in Accra.

She was however worried about the number of women involved in the decision-making process of this country.

For instance, she was not quite enthused about the number of women in Parliament which has been hovering between 7% and 10.54% since 1992.

“These figures have been widely accepted to be inadequate as a result it is important ‘safe seats’ are preserved for women in parliamentary primaries,” she noted.

While such steps are laudable, the outspoken national women’s coordinator charged Ghanaian women to fully involve themselves in politics at all levels.

According to her, to make direct impact calls for direct involvement.

“It is therefore critical that women get interested in the structuring of political parties,” she urged.

She could also not understand though “…women out-number men in the country, yet when it comes to the platform where actions affect every individual, women are less involved and less represented.”

Ms. Bully therefore quizzed: “How then will the policies addressing women be appreciably drafted and not based on assumptions? Political parties, just as many other institutions are built on patriarchal structures and to have any neutrality demands a well deepened penetration.”

She pointed out that even though most women across the country enjoy the euphoria around politics and elections, the same was not the case when it comes to active politics.

“Our mothers, sisters, and friends from Gambaga to Accra, from Wiaso to Keta must know that the action(s) and inaction(s) of decision-makers have both direct and indirect impacts in their lives and so must be concerned,” she stressed.

The PPP woman argued that since women are more than 50%, they must be equally numbered in the membership of political parties.

“Today, no political party can boast of its membership being as such or even having near equal numbers to men,” she contended.

To this end, Ms. Bulley called on all progressive women of the PPP to directly and seriously get actively involved in the activities of the party.

She further advocated for more women participation in the country’s politics.

According to her, when that is done it would be difficult for the men to sing their usual chorus of “we can’t find the women.”