Wills; Women unwilling to own one
All over the world, women are aspiring to take charge of their careers and make a difference not only for themselves but their families.
Many women are climbing the ladder in their respective professions, formal or informal, saving money and building properties.
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However, a recent observation by The Mirror has revealed that only a few have wills.
For some of the married ones, they did not see the need to make wills as they assumed their husbands may die first leaving behind his properties for them and their children.
Some of the women claimed that usually, it was the men who died first and so if their husbands had wills, there was no need for them to also have separate wills.
Other women asserted that they had not acquired enough property that warranted making a will.
Observation
A will is a document in which a person specifies the method to be applied in the management and distribution of his or her estate (property) after their death.
Within the last one month, this reporter interacted with over 50 women in different professions. They included top and middle managers, women who owned a number of businesses in markets, traders and other skilled workers.
Out of the number, only 12 of them had wills with the remaining giving different reasons for not having one.
For instance, a middle manager with one of the multinational firms in the country said although she had a modest savings account and a few investments, she had never thought of making a will.
Responding to how her savings and investments would be distributed among her three children if she died suddenly, she responded “I am sure they would figure it out peacefully.”
A lot of them affirmed that they would make wills if they acquired huge properties and investments, but not their ‘regular little’ savings and properties.
Women are discreet
In the quest to find out the number of women who made wills against men, a legal practitioner, Mrs Candy Frimpong Baidoo, expressed her surprise that there was the impression that more men made wills compared to women.
According her, in her years of practice, she had realised that the same number of women make wills as men.
“People do not expect this fact to be true because the women are usually discreet. They do not even involve or inform their husbands whereas many men on the other hand inform their wives or even come to the law office with them for the instructions to be given for the preparation of the wills.
“Again, women are usually not thought of as being wealthy enough to have assets to dispose of in a will. There are also more illiterate women out there than men; hence, the impression that fewer women make wills but the women are able to dictate their instructions in their local language. So yes, it is common for women to make wills. Just like men make wills, a lot more of them have also died without making any,” she explained.
Mrs Frimpong Baidoo advised that wills had to meet some specific requirements to be considered legal, so it was important to contact a legal practitioner to prepare it “else it will end up as you made non at all”.
Wills not death sentences
The legal practitioner discounted the idea that making a will was an indication that a person was about to die.
She explained that making a will was rather an indication that the person cared about his or her beneficiaries in the event of death.
Mrs Frimpong Baidoo explained that where a woman died intestate, her estate (property) was governed by the Intestate Succession Act, 1985 (PNDCL 111) as was the case in men.
She said in all cases where women or men have died intestate (dying without a will), the law on intestacy had governed the distribution of their estate (property).
However, in many of those cases, before the law was spelt out and made to take effect, there would have been years of litigation; years of going in and out of the courtroom; years of children and surviving spouses spending the little they had on engaging lawyers to fight their battles in court.
In some cases, they even secured loans and incurred debts with the hope of repaying with their entitlements after winning the case. She added that in some cases, the person or people died because litigation could take years or sometimes decades.
“Every woman can protect her children and spouse if we all make a deliberate effort to prepare our wills. Husbands could save their wives and children the harassment after they are dead and gone by making their wills now.
“Do not wait till you are too old to make a will. Do not also think that making a will means you are about to die. No, it only means you love your dear ones so much you don’t want them to go through stress before they enjoy what you toiled so hard to give to them. Make your will now,” she advised.