Couples urged to register traditional marriages

Ho, March 26, GNA - Couples in traditional marriages have been urged to register such marriages in order to avoid problems relating to succession in the event of the death of one of them. A traditional marriage could be registered at a cost of GH¢20.00 and a man could register more than one wife, Mr Ablorde Awunyo-Akaba, Chief Personnel Officer of the Ho Municipal Assembly said. Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on Wednesday, Mr Awunyo-Akaba observed that many customary marriages in the area went unregistered because couples were not compelled to do so. He said couples would come to appreciate the importance of registering their marriages when they had to assert their rights as surviving spouses. Mr. Awunyo-Akaba said only 90 marriages had been registered for the past two years, 41 for 2006 and 49 for 2007, with two of them being Muslim couples. He said five divorce cases were registered during the same period, three in 2006 and two in 2007 even though several traditional marriages have ended in divorce. Mr. Awunyo-Akaba said the reasons given for registering fewer divorces include the payment of 50 Ghana Cedis which was considered more expensive than the 20 Ghana Cedis required to register marriages.