Minister for Communication, Ursula Owusu Ekuful has touted her advocacy for the empowerment of women.
According to her, she advocates for the empowerment of all women and the recognition of their rights regardless of their political, social background or her relationship with them.
Speaking in an interview on 2020 Woman on Ghone TV, the Member of Parliament for Ablekuma West Constituency recalled that she spoke in defense of former Deputy Communication Minister, Victoria Hammah when she was dismissed in 2013 despite Ms Victoria Hammah’s offensive behavior towards her when she was contesting for the Ablekuma West seat on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Describing Madam Hammah’s campaign against her in 2012 as aggressive, Madam Ursula Owusu claimed that the former Deputy Communication Minister under the erstwhile Mahama’s administration while campaigning would park her vehicle in in front of her (Ursula) mother’s house making unpleasant noise and offensive comments against her as well as tearing her posters just to irritate her.
But Communication Minister said she stood in Madam Hammah’s defense when she was sacked from office following a leaked tape in which she was allegedly captured making comments that some considered unpleasant.
“In my gender advocacy, I don’t politicize; so it doesn’t matter which political party you are on. Even Victoria Hammah, when she got into trouble, hers was a very aggressive campaign. At times, quite offensive because she would park her Pickup right in front of my mother’s house and be making loud noise, tearing my posters down. When her issue came up about somebody recording her and she was removed from office, I didn’t think it was right for her to have been removed from office, “she stated.
Madam Ursula Owusu Ekuful, argued that Madam Hammah should have been given another opportunity to right her wrong. She claimed male appointees of the erstwhile administration who had misconducted themselves in line of their duties were reassigned to the presidency and it is her argument that Victoria Hammah should have been reassigned just like her male counterparts.
“I thought that just like men who made mistakes were given another opportunity, many of them were sent to the presidency at the time, she should also have been treated just as leniently and compare the situation of women in the NDC who’d lost their positions because of one thing or the other as against men who’d also been found wanting but we’re sent to the presidency. I think that the differential treatment of women in politics is wrong,” she said.
