Nyonkopa Daniels, Executive Director of Peace Watch Ghana
Nyonkopa Daniels, Executive Director of Peace Watch Ghana, has strongly condemned the growing trend of widows contesting parliamentary seats vacated by their late husbands.
She described the practice as culturally inappropriate, insensitive, and “politically unwise,” calling for an immediate end to the strategy.
According to her, widows should be given adequate time to mourn their spouses rather than being pressured or encouraged to replace them in Parliament.
Daniels cautioned the country’s two major political parties against pursuing this approach, warning that it could undermine Ghana’s democratic foundations.
Her comments follow the decision by Hajia Amina Adam, widow of the late Ayawaso East Member of Parliament, Mahama Naser Toure, to file her nomination to contest the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary slot.
The by-election is scheduled for March 3.
Hajia Amina Adam is expected to compete against five other aspirants for the NDC ticket, including Ghana’s High Commissioner to Nigeria, Baba Jamal Mohammed Ahmed.
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Madam Daniels expressed strong opposition to the emerging trend.
“What is happening is terrible and must be stopped immediately,” she said. “It started under the NPP and is gradually moving towards the NDC, which I find culturally inappropriate and politically unwise. It is painful for a husband to die, but that should not be the basis for the widow to replace him in Parliament.”
She further questioned the cultural and emotional implications of the practice.
“Should the widow not mourn her late husband? I am appealing to our political leaders to address this matter with urgency. It is not healthy for our democracy. We should stop entertaining this political strategy because it will eventually destroy us as a people,” she stated.
The peace advocate lamented what she described as the gradual erosion of Ghana’s cultural values and called on traditional authorities to intervene.
“Are the wives seeking to replace their late husbands the ones who killed them? This is a rhetorical question,” she said. “I am appealing to the Asantehene, the Ga Mantse, and the National House of Chiefs to intervene and put a stop to this. We must be serious as a country, respect our cultural values, and end these needless practices.”
She concluded by expressing disappointment in the NDC’s involvement in the issue.
“It is a shame. I did not even expect the NDC to engage in this. The widow of the Ayawaso East MP should not have joined the race; she should have allowed others to contest,” Daniels added.
