First Lady to establish phone-in AIDS Counselling Centre

Kyebi (E/R), July 3, GNA - The First Lady, Mrs Theresa Kufuor has expressed her determination to establish a phone-in AIDS Counselling Centre to offer assistance to AIDS patients to help check stigmatisation by their families. She called on all to show love, care and affection towards HIV/AIDS patients.

This was contained in a speech read on her behalf at the launch of AIDS awareness campaign organised by the Queen mother of the Akyem Abuakwa Traditional Area under the theme: "Economic Empowerment of Women in Akyem Abuakwa Traditional Area." "Up till now there are people in the country, who do not appreciate the gravity of the AIDS pandemic let alone join in the fight to curb the spread of the disease." Mrs Kufour said about 30 to 40 per cent of babies of HIV positive mothers were infected and they died before their fifth birthday. "Innocent as they are and through no fault of theirs children born with AIDS are condemned to death at the time they are born."

Mrs Kufuor said as the mother of the nation her greatest concern was to see to it that measures were taken to stop the AIDS pandemic. The Director General of the Ghana AIDS Commission, Prof Sakyi Awuku Amoah called on schools and organisations to form Abstinence Clubs instead of Virgins Clubs since the latter gave the impression that the boys were being left out.

Prof Amoah called on parents to support the campaign of promoting abstinence to protect the young men and women from the spread of the HIV/AIDS and not to leave that to the teachers alone. He called on opinion leaders, traditional authorities and religious organisations to join the fight against the spread of HIV/AIDS.

The Okyenhemaa, Nana Adutwumwaa Dokuaa, the initiator of the project, said she had been an armchair supporter of AIDS programmes initiated by the Okyenhene but she decided to join the campaign when she got to know that eight districts in the Akyem Abuakwa Traditional Area had recorded over 50 AIDS cases with East Akim District recording more than 127 cases. She said most people infected were the young, strong and beautiful women, who for financial difficulties tended to depend on men who were not their husbands.

Nana Dokua said it was for that reason that she decided to tackle the AIDS pandemic through the empowering of women to help reduce their dependence on the incomes of men. She appealed to all Akyem Abuakwa citizens staying outside the traditional area to support the fight against the spread of HIV/AIDS.