DON'T ABANDON BABIES ...Women groups tell mothers (PAGE 11)

THE rampant dumping of babies into toilets and at refuse dump sites in the Wa municipality and other areas of the Upper West Region has prompted some women’s groups in the region to call for proactive measures to address the issue.
The frustration of the women stem from the fact that in recent times a number of newly-born babies, some with their unbilical cord attached, were dumped at various sites in the municipality.
They have, therefore, called for intensive education on the dangers of teenage pregnancy and abstinence from pre-marital sex, and appealed to men not to shirk their parental responsibilities.
Members of the concerned women’s groups who went on a demonstration through the principal streets of the municipality to express their displeasure at the criminal act, later converged at the forecourt of the Regional Co-ordinating Council where Madam Evelyn Debari, leader of the group, presented a petition to the Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, Mrs Winifred Dy-Yakah.
Carrying placards, some of which read, “save the tears of our innocent babies”, “stop illegal abortion” and “life, not death” included members of the Christian Mothers Association of the Wa Catholic Diocese, the Federation of Muslim Women Association of Ghana (FOMWAG) and the House of Liberation for Empowerment, also of the Wa Catholic Diocese, who were supported by some schoolchildren.
The petition indicated that in July this year alone, five newly-born babies were dumped either in toilets or at refuse dumps at different areas of the municipality. It added that three other babies were also dumped at different times in the early part of the year.
It said only two out of the nine babies that were abandoned survived, stressing that such acts were becoming habitual hence the need to start talking about the issue to let people know that babies also had the right to live.
Mrs Winfred Dy-Yakah commended the women for taking up the issue, and promised to assist to address the issue. She urged them to spread the message to organisations and institutions to let people appreciate that the act constituted a criminal offence, and urged members in the communities to be vigilant and report suspects to the appropriate agencies.