Child panel for Ga South Municipal Assembly
A seven-member child panel for the Ga South Municipal Assembly has been inaugurated in Accra.
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The panel will adjudicate issues of children’s welfare and mediate in civil matters concerning the rights of the child.
The team would also see to the protection and welfare of children as well as promote the rights of children within its area of authority. It will also ensure that government agencies and the district liaise with one another in addressing issues affecting children, as stipulated by the Children’s Act, 560 of 1998 and the 1992 Constitution.
Members of the panel, selected from the sub-committee of the district assembly, took the oath of allegiance as required by the constitution.
Educate children
Inaugurating the panel, the Ga South Municipal Chief Executive, Mr Jerry Thompson, called on parents to attach importance to their responsibilities of educating their children to ensure their development.
He said children constituted a potential human resource and the bedrock for the development of the nation, adding that, “The cherished leaders of this nation were once children and if their rights had not been protected, they would have withered away”.
Good moral standards
Advising the panel, Mr Thompson said they should be of good moral standing and adjudicate issues with transparency.
He indicated that the district was battling with lots of challenges such as irresponsible parenting and child labour, and charged them panel to work hard to surmount the to pave way for sustainable development.
Instil discipline
On behalf of the panel, the chairman, Mr Daniel Danfro, called for the support of the assembly members and chiefs of the Ga South District, as well as parents to help inculcate discipline in the children, adding that, when they grew they would not depart from it.
Christian Council
The Director of Programmes at the Christian Council of Ghana, Ms Joyce Steiner, said as part of its effort to promote peace, the council was also putting in effort to tackle issues of child abuse.
She said district assemblies should monitor the children in their district and ensure they had access to education.
She called on the government to assist institutions and regulatory bodies with the needed resources to implement provisions in the Children’s Act to ensure better development of the child.