There is a cry

THERE IS A CRY!!!

There is a cry!
A cry from the bosom of our nation, Mother Ghana
A cry of rescue!
Rescue from the hands of her own people

My sons and daughters
From my womb I bore you
And placed you on my laps
On these laps of mine were green vegetation, rich minerals and fresh water
What wealth did I not place you on?
But today, like the prodigal son
You've mismanaged and destroyed the wealth you received
And one day, you will return to me asking for PARDON
But it may be too late
Because by then, I may be BARREN
That is why I cry out today
And it is a cry for an IMMEDIATE RESCUE!

On this day, Your Mother
I cry out
I cry for rescue
Rescue from the hands of filth, open gutters and polluted environment

I bore you with a silver spoon in your mouth
But today, you have clothed me in debt
IMF is now your abode
And a place you run for rescue

My children,
In agony I suffer
Malaria, cholera and typhoid
Meant to be your foe, rival and enemy
Now your ally, companion and spouse
I am a mother of many, never barren
So I can't watch in silence for malaria, typhoid and cholera 
To take away my children
And leave me childless

Hear my cry my children
Today, my clear water bodies, sea, lake, rivers
Have all turned muddy
The seas roll carrying in its belly materials of all kinds.
For every net-catch of fish, is human excreta
For every rainy season comes flood, loss of lives and property

My children, give me back my GLORY!
Rescue me my children!
Because, nobody else can but you!  

My children have selfishly occupied positions
With their BELLIES, the Nations TREASURY!
And their pockets as vineyards
With the Nations currencies and wealth their harvests.
Leaving my lands for decades under developed

The poor are struggling to make ends meet
But their struggles reward them with little
Whilst the pockets of the greedy and selfish are bounty
Overflowing with milk and honey.

There is a cry!!!
An awakening cry
A deafening sound I make
To you the young and old
The rich and poor alike
To the government and the people
For you all to ARISE!

Arise and wipe away my tears
Arise and make me great again
Arise and restore my pride
Arise and make me smile

I sleep but have no rest
I await the new dawn
I await the day the storms will be over
For the sun to shine bright again

This is my cry
The sad cry of me
Your mother !
Mother Ghana!

Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+233(0)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com
Activist, Women and children
University of Ghana, Accra City Campus

Read more on
ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com

    PEACE TOUR AT POPE JOHNS SHS, KOFORIDUA

A team of selfless student leaders who under the auspices of Face of GUPS 2016 (Shemimah Dapillah) took it upon ourselves to embark on a peace campaign tour to various senior high schools; a place where majority of first time voters can be found, to engage them on issues relating to the peace of Ghana, why they shouldn't allow themselves to be used as agents of violence and how they can settle their grievances without causing mayhem.

The students of Pope Johns were hence made to swear an oath of allegiance to protect the peace of Ghana; their motherland.

It was in all, a great and worthy exercise.

Long live Ghana!

Long live Pope Johns!

I am that somebody

               I AM THAT SOMEBODY

 

I wondered why somebody didn't do something,
Then I realized I am somebody.

I am that somebody that can make the needed difference.

I am that somebody that doesn't need to occupy a National position to touch lives.

Indeed, I am that somebody who doesn't need to have exceedingly abundantly above all I can imagine to make an impact.

Oh yes! I don't need to wear a huge pair of spectacles to see that lives are not at rest, lives are not at peace, lives are in anguish, lives are in need.

And It is because of that somebody that I am, that I count it all joy to sacrifice for humanity.

Join me and the entire Project Hope team as we touch lives.
Contribute the little you can to support a worthy cause.
God bless you

Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+233(0)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com
Activist, Women and children
University of Ghana, Accra City Campus

Read more on
ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com

CAN A BULLET PICK AND CHOOSE?

DOES A BULLET KNOW PARTY A FROM PARTY B?

ELECTION DOES NOT MEAN VIOLENCE.

GHANA NEEDS PEACE AND NOT TO BE LEFT IN 

PIECES.

OUR FUTURE LEADERS, THE PRIDE OF OUR NATION, 

OUR NATION'S ASSETS, OUR

HOPE. THESE ARE THE CHILDREN WHO WILL DO

 EXPLOITS AND LIFT HIGH THE FLAG

OF MOTHER GHANA. THEY NEED AND WANT THE 

PEACE OF THEIR NATION. 

HELP SECURE IT!

 

BE A PEACE MAGNET!

BE AN AGENT OF PEACE!

WE ARE ONE PEOPLE AND WE HAVE ONE GHANA!



BY: JOYCE OHENEWAA KWAPONG
        +233(0)246234950
        joycekwapong@gmail.com
       Activist, Women and children
       University of Ghana, Accra City Campus

 "KAYAYIE" (HEAD PORTER'S) PROJECT

 

"I expect to pass through life once. If therefore, there be any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do to any fellow being, let me do it now, and not defer or neglect it, as I shall not pass this way again." William Penn

A few students and youths, who have the passion to impact lives and humanity,have taken upon ourselves to engage in a "kayayie" project dubbed Voices On The Streets.

Yes indeed, there are a lot of voices crying out loud on the streets unto you and I.
Will we pay no heed to them or try to reach out?

We need each other to survive.
Dare to reach out your hand into the darkness, to pull another hand into the light.

Support a worthy cause.
Nothing is too small.
Donate the little you can to make a lifelong impact.
God bless you.

Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+233(0)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com
Activist, Women and children
University of Ghana, Accra City Campus

Read more on
ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com

I stand with Girls

I stand with girls.
A girl is a girl, not a wife.
Say NO to forced early child marriage.
School is where she belongs.
Empower the girl child with education and she will change the world.

Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+233(0)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com
Activist, Women and children
University of Ghana, Accra City Campus

Read more on
ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com

Happy International Girl Child Day

I AM A GIRL

I am a girl
Not a bride
I belong to the classroom
Not the aisle

I am a girl
I have the right to my body
And not to be sexually exploited
As your hobby

I am a girl
Precious as gold
I deserve the best
And not to be treated cold like your foe
Awaken the hero in me
And don't look at me so low

I am a girl
A girl for positive exploration
To use my strength in saving my nation
Say no to my exploitation

I am a girl
I have a bright future
Embrace it
Don't degrade it

I am a girl not a mother
I am to live a life of responsibility
And not to make motherhood a liability

I am a girl
Empower me with education
And not endanger me with ejaculation

I am a girl
Feeble as I may seem
Within me lies an inner strength
The strength to take bold decisions
The strength to face and overcome life's hurdles
The mother of tomorrow
The future of my Nation
Yes, that is the girl I am

Today, 11th October 2016 I, Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong celebrate with all girls across the world, and wish them A Happy International Girl Child Day

Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+233(0)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com
Activist, Women and children
University of Ghana, Accra city campus

Read more..
ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com

WOMAN OF VALOUR

"WOMAN OF VALOR" Inspires...

Woman, you failed once, twice and counting.

What else could you do?
You could try again.
Don't give up, Press on and Persevere.
Many of the things that seem impossible now will become realities tomorrow.
Woman, you can make what seems IMPOSSIBLE, POSSIBLE.
Keep pushing, because Victoria Ascerta!
Victory is assured!

Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+233(0)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com
Activist, Women and children
University of Ghana, Accra city campus

Read more..
Ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com

I have a dream, I am capable of more than I can possibly dream...

I am the story you will read some few years to come.
I am not the next Maya Angelou or Malala Yousafzai.
I am the first Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong.
A young and promising woman who is passionate about issues concerning women and children.
I have a DREAM, I am capable of more than I can possibly dream.
I believe in being a VOICE, not NOISE to the voiceless women and children.And above all, helping such voiceless women and children find their voice.
I believe one day, God through me will raise a generation of WOMEN OF VALOUR.
Women who will no more speak with tears in their eyes, but with much respect, humility and power over themselves.
A generation of such fearless women is emerging.
The story of the woman will soon be rewritten.
Victoria Ascerta, Victory is assured!

Read more on ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com
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Email: joycekwapong@gmail.com
Contact:+ 233(0)267968373

TOO MUCH TO FORGET

I didn't realize how powerful being young was

If I could turn back the hands of time

I would replay and delete all those terrible acts I did

All those I did during my formative years

But now, what can I say or do?

I made my peers lead my life

As I traced their footsteps into a shameful life

Indeed, there's too much to forget.

I didn't realize how beautiful being young was

If only I could open up the chapters of my youthful days

I wouldn't have made men mess up with my life

The bells of "IF ONLY"

The cymbals of "I WISH" keep ringing in my ears

The drums of "HAD I KNOWN" is beating

Beating so loudly that my ears ache

Indeed, there's too much to forget

I didn't realize how glamorous being young was

If only I could move back into the days gone

If only I could retrace my steps into my past

Goodness me! This time around,

I would have seen glamor

What makes a glamorous woman these days?

I lost that glamor in my prime

Indeed there's too much to forget

Family, friends, classmates alike

Heard laughter always

But those were not sounds of happiness

Those were the laughter that only a bitter youth can cry

They saw me smile daily 

But those were not smiles of joy

The smile that only a disturbed youth can frown at

They heard me sing

But my heart could hear me weep

There's so much missing as I'm old

My smile, my dignity, my worth

It took me a while to understand what youthful days are

But it will surely take me forever to forget what it was to me

When advice and correction was not heeded to

Oh yes! It will take forever

Because I learnt nothing from the school of hard knocks

Indeed there's too much to forget



Poem written by:
Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+233(0)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com
Activist, Women and Children
University of Ghana, Accra City Campus
Read more on my blog:
ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com

   *** I believe this poem will inspire you and I              to make good use of our youthful days
        Together, let us make hay whilst the sun             shines
        So that if there's too much to forget, those         memories will be positive ones.

        

        

        

        

 MY DAYS WON'T FADE

Even when my enemies unite as one front
And friends plot to destroy me
I have an only friend who will always be there
My days won't fade

Even when my presence is unnoticed
And my voice is never listened to
And my name never mentioned
One day, I will be celebrated and called before kings
My days won't fade

Even when my ribs can be numbered as a one, two, three, four and five
And there's nothing to feed on to survive
With starvation becoming a norm,
I believe! A time is coming
When there will be more to eat, share and store
My days won't fade

Even when my academics won't work for my good
And my grades keep telling me stories of failure
My brighter days are ahead of me
My days won't fade

Even when my debts are high
And my accounts go bankrupt
And my creditors deny me of my sleep
Surely! Currencies will one day be in abundance in my life
My days won't fade

Even when my tears won't cease 
And my smile suppressed so deep down my throat
And my heart so grieved with pain
As I cry myself to sleep each day
Someday, my pillow will be dry
Oh yes!
Someday,my handkerchief will no more be soaked with tears
My days won't fade

Even when my body grows cold
And my blood runs dry in my mortal remains
And my breath goes dead silent
Generations will remember me
For my love, my impact, my legacy
Men will smile and proclaim
"She emptied herself for humanity"
My name would forever remain
And my light will eternally shine
My days won't fade



Poem written by:
Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong

+233(0)267968373

joycekwaoong@gmail.com

Activist, Women and Children
University of Ghana, Accra City Campus
Read more on my blog:
ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com


*** I believe this poem will make an impact in your life and that of generations unborn.

In every circumstance you find yourself in, cheer yourself up

And always remember to inspire and motivate yourself by saying,

Whatever my lot, My days won't fade.

Their Failure, Our Failure

          THEIR FAILURE, OUR FAILURE!!!

To them, the street was home.
The leftover and decays were food.
The floor was bed and the trees were shelter.
All these secrets they won't tell.
For fear of being deprived of these
All of which they deem as privileges

At night they lie down and tremble with fear.
At sunrise,they are attracted by the sound of loud music
And flashing lights of flashy cars break the darkness of the night
They would watch and longingly imagine
The pleasure you must be having
And the luxury within which u live.

Pain wraps their souls the more
As they continue to live in misery
And it feels like playing with hot coals and thorns.
In their hearts they cry,
"All have neglected us"
They feel torn apart with trouble and pain.
They hope to see the light
But darkness overwhelmed their pitying souls.
Life is not as sweet to them as others
Thinking death would bring them gain.
They starve as food and thirst as water
Hoping to say goodbye to the saddest world in which they live.
Yet, live each day hoping for a better tomorrow

Our lives is not important except in the impact it has on other lives
In our attempt to give,
We remember the dark side of giving
Forgetting we could be such as they are
Forgetting we have been made rich to reach out.
Not remembering that we have been made who we are
So as to make these ones who they are meant to be.
Why can't we make a difference in their lives?
Doesn't it hurt to see them suffer in pain and agony?
When we have more than we need?
Doesn't it hurt to bargain so hard with them as they tread on an empty stomach all day
Carrying on their heads all sorts of items?
Tomatoes, pepper, garden eggs, onions, pear, fruits
Just to earn a living?

It is about time we think of giving not as a duty but as a privilege as rightly said by John D. Rockefeller Jr.
Matt Kahn made it right when he said,
"You give to yourself by giving of yourself"
And Mother Theresa,she made it all complete when she made the assertion;
If u can't feed a 100 people, then just feed one

Let us wake up
Ye privileged and fortunate ones
To attend to our young and needy.
To attend to the rejected and abandoned.
Let us turn to the streets
To the street corners
To every nook and cranny of society
Let us not turn a blind eye
To the deprived areas in our society.
Let us not loose sight of the helpless orphans

We need to try and be a rainbow in their clouds
A rose amongst their thorns
A lily in their valley
A moon in their night
A light in their darkness
A smile in their sad hearts
And a restoration to their lost joy

Realizing there exists a needy world
Realizing a bleeding heart needs love
And a feeble hand needs help
Knowing a sleepy and homeless head needs shelter
And a hungry mouth needs food.
We've got to challenge ourselves
Dare to stand out of the crowd
Set an example for others to rise,shine and lead
Set an example for others to love,care and share

In your formative years,
People spent time and resources to help and bring you up
Or perhaps you may have joined this world
With a silver spoon in your mouth, Probably not!
You may have lived contrary to luxury
But in a gentle and caring way,
You and I can shake the world and impact lives
Yes! You and I
We can show love to these ones
Who need more love than we ever received.

Poem written by:
Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+233(0)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com
Activist, Women and children
University of Ghana, Accra City Campus
Read more on ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com

Periodical Guilt

PERIODICAL GUILT is a poem I write to emphasize on the saying that, "Our lives begin to end the day we remain silent about the things that matter".
Let us not die out of silence, rather let us RIGHT THE WRONG of our friends, families, society and all other things that surround us.
Be a VOICE not NOISE to someone each day in your life.
Let the instances in this poem "Periodical Guilt", not be your story
Take a read....

  PERIODICAL GUILT

She never got what she liked
Perhaps she liked what she got
She now deeply regrets
As she reflects on the events that led to her plight

She yearned to move from the scorching sun to warmth

She hoped her tears would give way to smiles
But it was rather unfortunate
What she went through was a sad way to start life

She got hooked up to him

Like a bait on a hook
She is now being used as a cautionary tale
She now fights to live
Her life is one that now never knows joy
She cries herself to sleep each day
Pain has consumed her heart
To everyone, she is an object of ridicule
The drugs she took, so deadly
Yet, her baby still lived

Initially, her dress so skimpy and inviting

Now she bears a child
A child conceived out of rape
A child whose dad cannot be traced

You! her friend, perceived this will happen

But you never gave her a prompt
You never stopped her
You never gave her your counsel

She's on her sick bed

She groans in pain
She remembers her past
She wonders if she will breathe her last
Leaving her child an orphan
She remembers you, her friend
A friend who silently watched her go astray

She struggles to say her final words

Thinking her words would be of love
That would leave memories no one can steal
You plead with her to speak
Her last words left a heart ache no one can heal

"YOU'RE GUILTY! MY BLOOD CRIES BECAUSE YOU REMAINED SILENT ON MY DEEDS"

And now, your life is full of periodical guilt

Poem written by:
Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+(233)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com
University of Ghana, Accra City Campus
Activist, Women and Children
Read more on my blog ohenewaa-kwapong.blogspot.com

ADVANCING WOMEN AND CHILDREN!

PART 1:

9th August, 2016

Why will a child be made to labor and not enjoy the joys of childhood?
Why will a child be handed tools to EARN a living and not pens and pencils to LEARN?
The issue of CHILD LABOR.....

Each day, the streets are flooded with children who are engaged in various trading activities that harm or keep them from attending school.
Some of these children are found engaged in slavery-like jobs that threaten their physical, mental, emotional, moral and social wellbeing.

Society may have forgotten that these vulnerable young ones deserve better than to be handed to the streets and market centers to labor for what to eat and drink for survival.
These children are forced out of homes like sheep being sent out to a pack of wolves.
What more do we expect of such a rampant situation, if not an increase in illiteracy rate, teenage pregnancies, social vices, child prostitution, illegal drug dealing and many other dangers associated with such childhood encounters?  

A great man asserted, "We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors. We borrow it from our children"

It is in line with this quote that I inquire, Why will we make life on this earth unbearable for the custodians from which we borrow the land?

Why would we subject and place our young ones into such heart bleeding positions?
A position where if they do not go out to labor, they will have nothing to eat.
A position where if they do not go out to labor, they will be rained with insults and beatings from the very people who have been irresponsible in their actions yet occupying positions  at home as parents, guardians etc.

A child is meant to LEARN and not to EARN.
A child is to be given BOOKS to learn and not TOOLS to earn a living.
Children have only few years to be a child but have their whole lives after childhood, to work a profession or job.
More so, education is the birthright of a child.
So why deny them their rights, childhood joy and privileges?  

There exists certain laws, measures and standards that have been put in place to eliminate child labor.
The Constitution of Ghana sets the minimum employment age at 15 years, with 13 year olds for light work that cannot harm him or her as well as his or her education.
The law is also against making children work at night, making provisions for fines and imprisonment for violators.
However, these Constitutional laws have proved futile as child labor is woefully ongoing in various countries of which Ghana is not an exception.
We have children who are made to carry on their heads load of heavy goods that are meant for a truck not human.
We have children who are exposed to harsh weather conditions and made to stay for days and nights at sea to fish.
There are a number of young children in Ghana sweating blood in stone quarrying and construction activities.
Today, it is common to see children as early as 5 am on the streets, begin their daily activities of running helter skelter to sell 'pure water', plantain chips, boiled eggs, oranges, what have you?

Poverty, parental irresponsibility, limited or no access to education, high rate of unemployment, limited laws or prohibitions regarding child labor, amongst others are the obvious and global reasons for child labor being on the rampant.

Children and families living in abject poverty, who may struggle to get a piece of meal for the day may solely rely on sending their children out to trade for survival.

The high level of poverty rate in various countries have forced many children into positions of becoming child laborers.

The wide gap between the rich and the poor in recent years, have forcefully positioned millions of children to drop out of school into the labor force.

Education plays a pivotal role in putting the canker of child labor to check.
Children of school going age are totally denied access to their basic right to education.
Whilst others have to sell before and after school hours to cater for their basic needs.
Children with little or no form of education have the greatest likelihood to suffer from child labour than their counterparts who have received otherwise.

More so, parental irresponsibility on the part of some parents who do not make adequate preparations before producing children has placed financial constraints on such families and so, are left with no alternative than to send their children out to labor for themselves.
The responsibility of parents to cater for their children have been wrongly shifted to overburden children as child laborers.

In addition, a country with high unemployment rate, with keen competition for jobs by prospective workers and limited job vacancies in organizations in the country, may comply parents to send their children out in search of ways to attain their basic needs.
Wages or salaries received by some breadwinners may be too little to manage the home and as such may have to send their children out to work and complement their efforts.
Such children get engaged with various labor activities whether or not they are illegal, threatening, highly exploitative, hazardous...

Also, in some homes where old people dwell, especially those on retirement with no retirement benefits to fall on, send for children from villages to the urban areas to engage in menial jobs to cater for such elderly and retired ones.
Children as young as 10 years are sent from villages to urban areas to serve as domestic workers, who may have to labor on the streets to cater for the family.
This practice thereby leads to children becoming victims of  physical and sexual abuse in society.

To curb the issue of child labor, strict legal framework must be established to clearly identify, prevent and eliminate child labor.

In addition, labor standards of a country must be reviewed to protect the interest of these vulnerable children.
The Constitutional framework should make provisions for decent working conditions to children who are legally active to work, without any form of discrimination in terms of being guaranteed the minimum wage rate or possibly better.

The government must ensure that all children below the statutory required employment age are in school and remain in school.
Strict laws must be enforced regarding the protection of children against child labor.
Child labor is child exploitation and highly a crime. Perpetrators and culprits must be duly sanctioned as stipulated in the Constitution.

Each community must have a monitoring committee set up and tasked with the responsibility of ensuring that children below the required working age are not found going contrary to the Constitutional law.

Parents and guardians must exhibit much concern in regards to the welfare and education of their children.
They must take up responsibilities and not shift them to children to bear.

As asserted by one youth activist, E.K.D.Oppong "One core responsibility of parents is to invest in the minds of their children; educating them beyond the limited scope of schooling. A child's mind well nurtured with books grows to be a thinking adults. It is not magic, but a basic principle to personal growth and societal development"

Other stakeholders such as NGOs, Organizations, Activists etc must intensify their fight against child labor.

Children ought to enjoy their childhood days and moments and not to labor their way through life.

This article is a wake up call to the State, institutions, organizations and various bodies responsible for enforcing laws and protecting the interest of children to rise and deal with this absurd situation of child labor.

If we want to develop and ensure the progress of our country, then we should develop a bright future for the children of our land.
In a unified voice, let us say NO to CHILD LABOR.

-Joyce Ohenewaa Kwapong
+233(0)267968373
joycekwapong@gmail.com           
Activist, Women and Children.
University of Ghana, Accra City Campus.

Read more articles....
Ohenewaa-Kwapong.blogspot.com