Child Maintenance on the increase

Half Assini (Western Region) -Child maintenance cases are on the increase in the Jomoro District of the Western Region. Benjamin Amanfi Jr., District Director of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) disclosed this to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview at Half Assini over the weekend.

He said, whereas parental irresponsibility is high, children are forced to fend for themselves at a very tender age. Amanfi attributed the problem to broken marriages, poverty, death of either or both parents and ignorance about children rights and relevant provisions on child maintenance, care and protection.

He said as a result, most of these children resort to truck-pushing, fishing, sand winning and truancy, among others. Amanfi said the Commission records between three and four child maintenance cases every month.

He hinted that between January and March this year, the Commission received a total of 23 cases with child maintenance topping with nine cases. Amanfi said nine cases were settled amicably while two were dismissed for lack of merit and another three dismissed for lack of prosecution.

He called on the Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) fighting for child rights and other relevant organisations to extend their activities to the district, since "the rights of many innocent children are being jeopardised".

He stressed that human rights issues are not foreign or alien to the Ghanaian culture," we need to see human rights as part of everyday life". Amanfi regretted that many parents do not accord their children respect and dignity due to vulnerability and dependence on adults and stressed that, "such attitudes towards the child should be changed and replaced with love, compassion and respect".