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| Inusah Iddrisu |
A Public Education and Investigative Officer at the
Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice CHRAJ) in the Northern
Region Inusah Iddrisu, has cautioned the general public to respect the civil
liberties and human rights of persons with mental illness and epilepsy (PWMIE).
According to Mr. Iddrisu, any citizen of
Ghana who suffers from any form of mental illness or epilepsy still have their
basic human rights and freedoms intact for them to enjoy, and such rights must
be respected by their families and other members of the public as stated by the
country’s Constitution.
Facilitating a
sensitisation workshop at Walewale in the West Mamprusi District in the
Northern Region, he urged chiefs, religious leaders, police and health
personnel to help government in its quest to fight the social stigma and abuse
of PWMIE in their respective communities and workplaces.
He stressed
that, it was a crime to beat, torture and deny PWMIE treatment or sack them
from their places of work and called on the security agencies such as the
police not to delay in seeking justice for such vulnerable people when issues
concerning their health and welfare came to their notice.
The
workshop, organised by Gub-Katimali Society (GKS) in collaboration with
BasicNeeds-Ghana and with financial support from the UK Department for
International Development (DFID), was part of the implementation of a 5-year (2013/14 – 2017/18)
mental health and development project in all 26 Metropolitan, Municipal and
District Assemblies (MMDAs).
The project was
aimed at supporting the government of Ghana to build a national mental health
system that effectively and efficiently responds to the mental health needs of
Ghanaians. This would reduce the high mental health treatment gap currently existing
in Ghana and enable men, women, girls and boys with neuropsychiatric conditions
to live and work successfully in their communities.
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| Sheik Yakubu Abdul-Kareem |
The Executive Director of GKS Sheik Yakubu Abdul-Kareem
told Savannahnews, that the project sought to increase capacity of
Ghana's Mental Health Authority to effectively and efficiently run community
based mental health services; and support 100,000 women, men, girls and boys
with mental health needs to access quality mental health services within the
proximity of their communities.
He also explained that, the
project would ensure an organised and active mental health service user and
care-giver movement got involve in mental health service and policy advocacy in
Ghana; and the reduction of social stigma and discrimination towards mental
health and women, men and children living with mental illness and epilepsy.
He indicated that, so far the project had benefited over 853
people in 17 communities in four districts comprising of 209 mentally ill patients,
304 epileptic patients and 340 primary caregivers had been interacted with in
various ways.
GKS, through the DFID
project, Sheik Abdul-Kareem noted, had also organised training and capacity
building workshops for 486 PWMIE and their caregivers in all four districts. “Also, about 31 community volunteers
have been identified and are asked to offer support to caregivers whereas 104 traditional healers from
Tatale-Sangule and Kpandai Districts sensitized in best treatment practices”,
he said.
Gub-Katimali Society (GKS) is a grassroots
non-profit-making organization founded in 1991 by a Northern Ghanaian citizen
committed to bringing change to the vulnerable and downtrodden. GKS also seeks
to sensitise, empower and enable local communities, to realize their own
development through collective participation, partnership and pooling resources
together for sustainable development.
Currently, GKS currently operates in 17
Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in the Northern Region
and has since its establishment and with the support of its partners such as
Trull Foundation, US, Charity of Rebecca, Hope for Children and Village Aid UK,
and BasicNeeds-Ghana.
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