Member of Parliament for Ablekuma West, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, has expressed concern that insults and vilification of female politicians have become increasingly prevalent.
The lawyer, women’s advocate, and human rights activist expressed regret that when women are encouraged to participate in politics, they are attacked and insulted.
The lawmaker and Communications Minister claimed that some people vilify female politicians, spread lies, and make baseless accusations against them.
Ursula Owusu-Ekuful revealed this in an exclusive interview with Rainbowradioonline.com during Rainbow Radio’s free breast screening exercise on Friday, October 25, 2024.
“Without exaggeration, I would declare that insults and vilification of female politicians have gotten progressively worse. Insults against female politicians are currently at an alarming level. Male politicians do not face such reckless attacks. It’s sometimes discouraging. I have been insulted, vilified, and dragged through the mud, so I have developed a thick skin to withstand these attacks.
But my main concern is for new and young females who want to participate in active politics. It is sometimes discouraging, and I am concerned about them. We need more women in politics, but the insults they face are discouraging, and we must take steps to prevent this.
As a female politician, you must have more than just courage. You can easily become discouraged, but with courage, you will succeed. We want to serve our country as women, but we shouldn’t allow others to insult, vilify, and denigrate us. We are humans; we are wives and responsible parents, so when you attack us, be measured and remember that it is unhealthy.”
She recounted a newspaper article that described her as a prostitute, to the point where her child was confronted about the story by colleagues at school, which the child denied and defended.
“I recall a newspaper publishing a story about me that portrayed me as a prostitute. My ten-year-old child was confronted about the story at school by his classmates. My child had to defend me and explain that the story was false. The students were adamant, even informing my child that their parents had read about the story. It was an unfortunate circumstance. These levels of attacks have an impact on our families, particularly our children, and we must put a stop to them immediately. You can disagree with people, but you should not insult them or make false claims about them,” she said.
