Naija Talk community
Would you like to react to this message? Create an account in a few clicks or log in to continue.
Naija Talk community

Ghana Lotto Results, F-t-a Satellite Technology, Sport forcast, ICT forum.
 
HomePublicationsSearchLatest imagesRegisterLog in

 

 Ivor Greenstreet bids for Ghana’s presidency in a wheelchair

Go down 
AuthorMessage
Ashawo
Leader
Leader
Ashawo


Posts : 5607

ghana - Ivor Greenstreet bids for Ghana’s presidency in a wheelchair Empty
PostSubject: Ivor Greenstreet bids for Ghana’s presidency in a wheelchair   ghana - Ivor Greenstreet bids for Ghana’s presidency in a wheelchair Empty2016-12-03, 17:45




ghana - Ivor Greenstreet bids for Ghana’s presidency in a wheelchair Ivor-Greenstreet

Presidential candidate of National Democratic Party (NDP) Nana Agyeman Rawlings (L) and candidate of Convention People's Party (CPP) Ivor Greenstreet (R) sign peace pact ahead of the December 7 polls in Accra, on December 1, 2016. The presidential candidates in the December 7 elections have signed a peace accord at a meeting convened by the National Peace Council to ensure supporters of the parties eschew violence before and after the elections. / AFP PHOTO / PIUS UTOMI EKPEI

In a country where disability is still often seen as a punishment from God, one candidate in Ghana’s upcoming presidential election is gaining attention.

Ivor Greenstreet, the 50-year-old flagbearer for the Convention Peoples’ Party (CPP), is the first disabled person to run for the highest office in Ghana.

Greenstreet was already active in politics when a car accident in 1997 left him in a wheelchair.

A native of the capital Accra, he made an unsuccessful bid to enter parliament in the early 1990s, running for the CPP, a minor leftwing party founded by Ghana’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah, during the struggle for independence from Britain.

Speaking to AFP, Greenstreet said the accident transformed his politics as he became more “activist-orientated”, determined to fight for social justice for those who felt marginalised.

Minor parties stand little chance against the two main contenders in the December 7 poll, President John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress and Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party.

But Greenstreet’s nomination has inspired 14 other people with disabilities to run for parliament with his party, in what he described as an “incredible” number.

“They emerged from the woodwork,” he said.

“I guess some at the local level thought: ‘If he can do it, why not me?'”

– Fighting misconceptions –

Those with disabilities are often stigmatised in Ghana.

Speaking to AFP ahead of the UN’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities, marked every year on December 3, Alex Williams, spokesman for the Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations, said about 15 per cent of the population suffer some form of disability.
Ivor Greenstreet

“There is a perception that being disabled in any way makes the person unable to function at all,” he told AFP.

This often means those with physical limitations are rejected by society and unable to find work.

And religious beliefs can mean that some view those with disabilities as suffering a form of punishment for wrong-doing.

While there has been work across Ghana to educate the public on disabilities “we confront these perceptions day in and day out,” the spokesman said.

And having Greenstreet in a visible position has helped others with disabilities, he said.

“It is an indication of the road to follow,” he said.
Back to top Go down
 
Ivor Greenstreet bids for Ghana’s presidency in a wheelchair
Back to top 
Page 1 of 1
 Similar topics
-
» CITY WANT CASH BIDS FOR HART
» MTN Ghana Job Vacancy : Senior Specialist – BRM Mobile Money Audit(Ghana)
» GHANA LOTTO RESULT
» GHANA MSP
» GHANA LOTTO RESULT

Permissions in this forum:You cannot reply to topics in this forum
Naija Talk community :: General :: News-
Jump to: