By Benjamin Makafui Attipoe, Tamale
A one-day capacity building workshop on disinformation and misinformation for more than fifty (50) Queen Mothers drawn from the five (5) northern regions of the country, has ended at Tamale, the Northern Regional capital. The beneficiary regions were the host region, North East, Savannah as well as the Upper East and West regions.
The annual training workshop, which was the 6th in the series, was organized and ably supported by the Ghana Office of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS) in collaboration with the National Queen Mothers’ Platform (QMP)-Ghana. It was under the theme, ‘Combating Disinformation and Misinformation: The Role of Queen Mothers in Ensuring Good Governance’.
The workshop was aimed among other things at providing the needed practical tools to support and equip the Queen Mothers to address the issues of disinformation and misinformation which have become a huge challenge in the communication space in recent times. It was also to strengthen the communication skills of the participants as role models of their communities and traditional areas.
Speaking at the event, the Director of Programmes of KAS, Ghana, Dr. Joseph A. Darmoe noted that disinformation and misinformation are a danger to the societal growth and development, emphasizing the urgent need to tackle the canker. According to him, misinformation and disinformation can damage reputations, influence election outcomes, fuel ethnic and political tensions and above all, lead to violence. ‘In a society where information spreads very quickly especially through the social media, false stories often travel faster than facts’, Dr. Darmoe pointed out.
He reminded the Queen Mothers of their essential role as trusted custodians of their communities. He explained that people trust them not only because of their positions but also their integrity, wisdom and closeness to the people. ‘In times of confusion, your voice can restore clarity’, the KAS Ghana Director of Programmes emphasized.
A Lecturer at the Centre for Peace and Security Research, Dr. Elvis B. Botah was one of the facilitators at the workshop. He noted that the structure of traditional authorities in Ghana does not only remain highly respected but also helps shape social life, norms and local governance, especially in rural and peri-urban areas. ‘Queen Mothers hold particular influence because their authority is tied to culture and matrilineal or patrilineal heritage in many ethnic groups’, Dr. Botah observed.
He also described Queen Mothers as connectors between formal state institutions and traditional communities, especially where trust in modern institutions is low. Dr. Botah however lamented the challenges facing Queen Mothers in Ghana and stressed the need for all stakeholders including government to help address these challenges.
Dr. Botah regretted that Queen Mothers are excluded from formal decision-making spaces such as the Regional and National Houses of Chiefs and advocated for institutional inclusion. He also called for an end to cultural communication norms which sometimes can resist women’s role in public political discourse.
Another lecturer and facilitator from the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), Dr. James Kwabena Bonfeh Jnr. used the workshop to admonish the Queen Mothers to always fact-check whatever information they receive. He also asked them to deal with rumours, gossips or any false information, especially half-truths. ‘I will entreat the Queen Mothers to always consider the agenda or motive behind a story’, Dr. Bonfeh Jnr. emphasized.
The UPSA lecturer also urged the Queen Mothers to appoint men and women of proven character who can stay above reproach into regulatory positions.
President of the QMP-Ghana and Paramount Queen Mother of the Osudoku Traditional Area in the Greater Accra Region, Nana Amponsah Dokua III, was grateful to KAS for the continuous collaboration and support of Queen Mothers across the country. In an interview with our newsteam, she was hopeful that the partnership gesture with KAS would impact more of their colleagues across the country thereby indirectly positively impacting their subjects.
Certificates of participation were presented to the Queen Mothers at the end of the workshop.
The KAS is a political foundation based in Germany whose mission is to promote democracy, the rule of law, social market economy and human rights worldwide. It also focuses on civic education, political consulting and scholarships.
