Women In Politics Forum (WIPF) has condemned the misogynistic and sexually degrading attacks by the Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr Frank Amoakohene, against communications professional, former Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Ghana’s National Youth Authority, and member of the New Patriotic Party, Madam Akosua Manu, popularly known as ‘Kozie’.
The Forum in a press statement by its National President, Barr.
Ebere Ifendu, Friday in Abuja, read in part: “WIPF, a leading women-led, non-partisan organisation advancing women’s political participation, leadership, and rights across Nigeria and the African region, has added its voice to the growing condemnation against the reported sexually suggestive, degrading, and misogynistic remarks directed at Madam Akosua Manu, popularly known as ‘Kozie’, a communications professional, former Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Ghana’s National Youth Authority, and member of the New Patriotic Party, by the Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr Frank Amoakohene.
“WIPF is deeply troubled, but not surprised as what has transpired in this social media exchange is not an isolated incident of poor temperament from a single individual. It is a symptom of a deeply entrenched pattern of politically motivated gender-based violence that women across Africa face every time they dare to speak publicly, defend a political position, or engage in democratic discourse.
“That a sitting government minister, a holder of high public office, appointed to serve the people, deployed sexually degrading language to silence and humiliate a woman who simply engaged him in political debate is a damning reflection of how far Ghana and the region still have to go in creating truly inclusive democratic spaces.
“The facts cannot be sanitised.
According to publicly available reports, the incident arose from a social media exchange in which Madam Manu, in her capacity as a Special Aide and NPP supporter, urged the Ashanti Regional Minister to show respect for former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia after the minister posted a mocking image of the former vice president on social media.
“In response, Dr Amoakohene deployed a Twi-language expression widely understood as carrying explicit sexual connotations, language designed not to rebut a political argument, but to sexualise and demean a woman, to reduce her from a political actor to a sexual object, and to send the unmistakable message that women who challenge men in power will be punished with humiliation.
“The intent and effect of such language is not ambiguous. It is a calculated act of political gender-based violence, technologically facilitated, publicly amplified, and perpetrated by a state official using the visibility of public office. WIPF condemns it in the strongest possible terms.
Speaking on the violation of ministerial ethics and democratic norms, the Forum noted that, “Ghana’s Code of Conduct and Ethics for Ministers and Political Appointees is explicit. Under Section 1.3 on Civility, Courtesy and Restraint, ministers are required to use decorous language even in the face of provocation, avoid offensive or provocative language or conduct, and maintain the integrity and reputation of ministerial office.
“The reported conduct of the Ashanti Regional Minister is a direct and public violation of these obligations. Holding high public office is a privilege that carries with it a heightened responsibility to model the democratic values Ghana aspires to uphold. When a minister deploys the power of his office and the platform of his public profile to sexually harass a woman who disagrees with him, he does not merely embarrass himself, he corrupts the democratic culture of the entire society he was appointed to serve.
“WIPF calls on the Office of the President, the Chief of Staff, and all relevant state institutions to take these ethical breaches seriously and to act accordingly.”
According to Forum’s president, the broader context of the act include the fact that violence against women in politics was a regional crisis; noting: “WIPF has been at the forefront of documenting and confronting violence against women in politics (VAWP) across West Africa under the Advocacy Coalition Building and Transformative Feminist Action (ACT) Project, implemented with support from UN Women and the European Union.
“Our research confirms what this incident, once again, demonstrates: violence against women in politics is not a peripheral issue. It is a governance crisis. Women across West Africa, from Nigeria to Ghana, Sierra Leone to Senegal, face a systematic and interconnected web of threats whenever they enter public life: intimidation during electoral campaigns, physical violence at polling stations, online abuse and digital stalking, sexual harassment by colleagues and opponents, and sexually degrading attacks on their character and bodies designed to deter them from political participation.
“These forms of violence are not random. They are strategic. Their purpose is to preserve male dominance in democratic institutions by making the cost of women’s participation unbearably high.
“Ghana has made meaningful progress. The Affirmative Action (Gender Equality) Act, 2024 represents a hard-won legislative milestone that reflects decades of feminist advocacy. But legislation cannot stand alone when public officials themselves normalise the very culture of misogyny and gender-based abuse that the Act seeks to dismantle.
“Each incident of this kind, when not swiftly and decisively addressed, sends a message to every young Ghanaian woman considering a career in public life: you are not safe here. You will be punished for speaking. You will be reduced to your body, not respected for your mind.
Ghana and West Africa can and must do better.”
WIPF demanded that: “The Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr Frank Amoakohene, must issue a full, public, and unreserved apology to Madam Akosua Manu for the sexually degrading language deployed against her.
“The apology must be unambiguous, must not contain qualifications or deflections, and must be made through the same public channels on which the original remarks were disseminated.
“The Office of the President of the Republic of Ghana must take immediate and visible disciplinary action against Dr Amoakohene for his breach of the Code of Conduct and Ethics for Ministers and Political Appointees. Silence or inaction by the Presidency will be read as implicit endorsement of the behaviour.
“The National Democratic Congress (NDC) must enforce its internal standards of conduct and publicly affirm that sexually degrading language directed at women political opponents is incompatible with the values of any party that claims to represent the interests of all Ghanaians.
“The Electoral Commission of Ghana, the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), and all relevant state institutions must urgently develop and operationalise protocols for addressing politically-motivated gender-based violence, including online and technology-facilitated VAWP, ahead of Ghana’s 2028 elections.
“Ghana’s media institutions and social media platforms must exercise editorial responsibility, refusing to amplify, sensationalise, or normalise content that sexualises or degrades women in public life, and actively creating space for discussions that centre the dignity, competence, and political contributions of women.”
Barr Ebere Ifendu related that: “WIPF stands in full solidarity with Madam Akosua Manu. Her experience is the experience of women across this continent who refuse to be silenced.
“The fact that she engaged in political discourse, defended a position she believed in, and did so with wit and courage should be celebrated, not punished. She is not the problem. The impunity that allows a government minister to weaponise sexual language against a woman is the problem.
“Democracy is not a building. It is a set of values, among them the equal dignity of every citizen regardless of gender, the right to participate in public life without fear of sexual humiliation, and the principle that power must be exercised with accountability and restraint. Every time a political leader uses sexualized language to silence a woman, a piece of that democracy is broken.
“WIPF reaffirms its commitment to advancing safe, inclusive, and respectful political spaces for women across West Africa and the continent. We will not be silent in the face of political gender-based violence, wherever it occurs, whoever commits it, and whatever political party they belong to.”
