SHOULD THE CLERGY FEAR POLITICS?

It matters to ask if the holy prophet Mohammed of Islam, the Buddha Shakuyamuni of Buddhism, the Messiah, Jesus Christ of Christendom, among others placed their reputations ahead of the welfare of the people they were raised to lead for the better; whether, the seeming disinterest of the ‘scribes’ of our time in issues of national interest tagged as “political” do any good to us.

Undoubtedly, the above religious icons were embodiments of discipline, selflessness and honesty who spoke the truth despite the threat it posed to them. They never looked on for the wrong and unjust to flourish in their sight. Their exemplary lifestyles, therefore, qualify as the appropriate litmus for checking the ‘true colour’ of those who have taken their robes to manifest the values they stood for.   

It appears to me that a red line has been drawn between national issues that the clergy can comment on and those on which they dare not take a side. Wrapped with party colours and sometimes reduced to quibbles, such untouchable issues, believed to contain high political capital, are ironically made to look like a furnace that the clergy should fear to get near. 

It is interesting to imagine how political elective office seekers and their cronies throng the churches and mosques for prayers and wise counsel during campaigns, but readily bin opinions from the same sacred mouths that pronounced fortunes on them few days after. Even fairly constructive criticisms face the fiercest knife on the altar of political convenience.  

I was taken aback reading a piece on the Montie Three where a columnist, in the August 26, 2016 issue of the Daily Graphic sought to question the legitimacy of the clerics who commented on the issue. I wondered if members of the clergy were a different breed of persons or spirit beings that were immune to the potential crises that could arise from improper handling of such matters.  

Unfortunately, most clerics in Ghana have bowed to this artificial creation that restrains them from holding to the divine virtue of calling a spade a spade. Issues of national concern have become somewhat unattractive to the attention of some members of the priestly fraternity who see such issues as ‘no-go’ areas for fear of being dented. To talk of availing themselves for elective office will be deemed ‘too far’ an adventure. 

Who cleanses the filth?

But the question is, if politics, the mechanism of governance, is thought of as filthy by the “saints”, whose duty is it to cleanse it by unconditionally offering to rescue others in service to God? Years ago, Archbishop Benson Idahosa stood against a planned conference of world witches in Benin-City in Nigeria. 

He publicly won the battle on a live television encounter with the chief convener of the conference. It was a legitimate meeting which government saw nothing wrong with. But the manifestation of the tribute, “If I be a man of God”, was at play as the occasion beckoned, and God did not fail to show up in Idahosa’s intercessory mission of saving Nigeria at the time. The clergy rose to save the situation. 

To seek refuge under the tent of past instances where the clergy came under vituperation for commenting on national issues offer a rather personal motivation for apathy that defeats the liberation theology which Jesus Christ, for instance, reflected in the world.   

Martin Luther King Jnr of blessed memory was a cleric who used his pulpit to whip up public conscience in the American society. He publicly deplored racial discrimination against the black race and marshalled support against all forms of injustice.   

What is dirty about politics if those who engage in it are not dirty? Being attitudinally and behaviourally mannered will plant positive virtues in our political discourse and make society better. The clergy should not coil back from the core issues that affect the ordinary person by allowing defective politicking to succeed in feasting on national fortunes.  

Culture of ‘prophetearing’ 

God still speaks to individuals in our generation. But that is not without space for charlatans to venture into such realm with questionable religious rhetoric that can tear us apart. The culture of prophesying on national elections is fast creeping into our body politic, which is not bad, except that God does not lie. There are concerns about the prophetic ministry becoming a safe haven for hearers of winners of elections who often put God in an uncharacteristic position of being inconsistent.

The worry is that most of these proclamations are not surgical in their manifestations, and yet condition the citizens’ mind towards a fixed outcome, and we must be careful. 

The principle of inclusive governance does not discriminate against the opinions of the clergy in national affairs neither does God whose affairs the clergy conduct on earth, condone the wrong. Let those who believe in the teachings of liberation theology speak up with a clear conscience and find divine protection and favour that posterity will benefit from.

Published: Daily Graphic, 20Th September, 2016

By Isaac Bisilki

RELIGION, PRISON SECURITY AND PRISONER REFORMATION

While it can be argued that religious clamour or ritualistic lifestyle of a group cannot be taken as a conclusive evidence of its true commitment to the professed faith, what is certain is that observers of such practices derive some form of benefit or motivation from it.  

The qualms about the commitment of prison inmates to seeking the face of God have divided opinions on the role of religion in the prisons: whether inmates resort to religion as an opium for their frustrations or it is the clarion call of the Messiah Jesus to all “who are heavy laden and need rest to come to him” that has found its fullest expression in their lives. 

Whatever the imaginary perspective that may be held, this subject will not count much. What is obvious is the indispensable and effectual role religious activities play in the lives of inmates who feel dejected and need solace. 

Some inmates have understood and taken full advantage of religious activities with the desire to amend their old ways. The moral lessons in religious teachings serve as cleansing agents on the conscience of those who commit themselves to reflecting on the word of God received textually or verbally. 

Religion in prison facilities

As human as prison inmates are, they are equally influenced by teachings that border on their spiritual and physical growth. Religious sects must, therefore, seize the opportunity to support efforts that aim at restoring the lives of inmates who have drifted to the path of moral decadence by accident or choice.        

Religious activities constitute an important adjusting force that drives the lives of inmates, without which many of them cannot bear the pain of imprisonment, detachment from loved ones, boredom and draining thoughts that engulf the whole experience of confinement. 

It is for this reason that particular attention is given to religion in prison facilities across the country. Religious activities are, therefore, employed by the prison administrators as one of the useful tools for reforming inmates through teachings and mentoring. 

By participating in religious activities, prisoners hold at bay any bad thought of attempt to escape lawful custody and render ineffective or useless the axiom that ‘the devil finds work for an idle hand’.

Role models

This helps to lessen the risk of inmates contriving with others to foment trouble or break jail. The inmates who take up leadership positions in these religious groups are, by their engrossment in those roles, naturally conditioned to conform to acceptable behaviour that places them above reproach. 

Other inmates who aspire to such roles learn to emulate them and this allows for the inculcation of the “good boy” spirit and its positive transforming effects on the inmates who avail themselves of the opportunity to accept religion as something that can change their lives for the better.  

The outstanding religions in the prisons are Islam and Christianity. The latter has the bigger fold, partly because of its receptiveness to music, a major source of entertainment for the inmates. 

Choirs

There are vibrant choirs in the central prisons with talented inmates who give splendid performances at most prison functions. At the Nsawam Medium Security Prison, there is the Reformers’ Choir, while the Sekondi Central Prison has the Messengers of Hope Choir, both being products of religion in those establishments. 

Even though being a member of a religious group in prison does not result in exclusive and preferential treatment of inmates, their natural quest for belongingness is served through such healthy and supportive associations. 

The Prison Ministry, as well as some churches and Islamic sects, have been consistent in their commitment towards the spiritual welfare of inmates but many more religious bodies are aloof but should come on board.  

What should be considered by these missionary entrants is the adoption and equipping of the musical groups in prison facilities. With a commitment to this cause, inmates with raw talents will be refined to realise their full potential. 

Other means of assisting these groups could be in the form of specific projects which have the prospects of making great impact on the inmates.  

If all religious bodies will hearken to the call to invest in this special “kingdom business”, many lives will be touched in the prisons with immense dividend to Ghana. 

                                                                         

The writer is an Assistant Superintendent of Prisons at the Sekondi Central Prison. Writer’s email:bisilkibaba@gmail.com

Published in Daily Graphic, 23rd August, 2016

TALE OF 'ZONTOLI' IN GHANA'S PRISONS: THE DEBATE OVER GH¢1.80 FEEDING RATE

Until recent times, issues related to Ghana’s Prisons and what pertains to them were shrouded in secrecy. The system operated like an occult with scanty information on its operations in the public domain. 

To compare the then clandestine nature of prison activities to the privileged priests in the old testament of the Holy Bible who had exclusive access to the holy of holies of the tabernacle will be an understatement. This anti-public syndrome bred unthinkable misconceptions that warped public knowledge about the prison institution. 

Myth about food for prisoners

Among the age-old stories that wrapped the understanding of many who had not come into contact with prisons is the kind of food prison inmates are fed with.  

Growing up as a child, I heard a lot of terrifying stories about prisons which I later found out were myths that held my imagination miles away from the facts. Even after leaving tertiary school, those stories still kept me in the dark until I became a member of the prison community.

One of the tales that got the better part of me was the type of gari, a product of processed cassava, inmates ate in prison. I was made to believe that prisoners were made to live on special gravel-mixed gari as punishment for the crimes they committed. Somehow, this and many more of such stories still linger on and I will crack the cocoons on them in the coming days.

Absolute fact

For readers who have not had the opportunity to visit a prison facility to see what inmates eat, this piece brings you an absolute fact. 

There exists not any unfamiliar food in the prisons from what is consumed in the larger society. The only difference in the prison situation is the limited array of foods and the calibrated quantities of meals due to the low daily feeding rate, which is currently GH¢1.80 per prisoner.

Although gari is one of the major foods for the prison population, it is not served in any weird form to inmates from how it is enjoyed by the Ghanaian population. Gari is either soaked with sugar or with grinded pepper and fish or shito. Any preferred mode of eating it in prison is permitted.

Checking process

Any ration that is served to inmates goes through a checking process. The superintendent of prison and the medical officer of the facility are compulsorily required by Prison Standing Orders to taste and sign a ration book. Standing Order no. 263 is unequivocal on the inspection of inmates’ ration. It states, “Should the medical officer be of the opinion that any of the food to be issued as rations is unfit for human consumption … the superintendent shall immediately replace the portion of food declared unfit.” This is routinely complied with to ensure the wholesomeness of each ration. The practice does not amount to eating of inmates’ ration as only the above designated officers are assigned this responsibility.

Improvised fufu

What is intriguing to learn is that inmates have devised an ingenious means of converting soaked gari to fufu. Inmates crush soaked gari until its molecules gain complete smoothness and elasticity comparable to that of fufu, which is enjoyed with an incredible zeal.  

As a matter of fact, most inmates in the Western Region’s Prisons prefer gari to other available meals on their menu because of the fufu it offers them. This improvisation is a perfect substitute for fufu that no inmate wants to be left out.

In 2014, I happened to be at a bus station at Nkwanta in the Volta Region where many passengers were gathered to board a bus to Accra. While waiting to get on board, a group of passengers, who apparently knew someone who had been sentenced to prison on that day, started an interesting discussion on how difficult life in prison was.

The leader of the spell-bound discussion touched on the type of food in prison and how a particular ration known as “zontoli” was made of water with palm oil. It was funny and heartbreaking listening to them at the same time. To the surprise of the discussants, I sought permission to contribute to the topic in question which they agreed. There was total silence and rapt attention after I had introduced myself as a prison officer.

At a snail’s pace, I demystified the stories and addressed the barrage of questions they posed to me. Many of those who listened expressed the desire to know more about the prisons because they were immersed in myths that could not be verified or taken with a pinch of salt.

Feeding rate

The current feeding rate of GH₵1.80 raises concern about the quality of food it could buy. Questions have also been asked about whether it is worth offering prison inmates decent and nutritious meals. But the most important question that is missing in the debates is whether anybody can survive on GH₵1.80 for a day in Ghana now.

A negative answer to this question will bring to mind a picture of how magical prison authorities could be to manage or contain the situation: maneuvering to feed these inmates with this meagre sum without experiencing riots in the prisons.

Backyard farming

The antidote that has reduced the risk of this situation to prison security is the diligence and innovation of prison superintendents. Most establishments that are farm stations or have parcels of land around them have introduced backyard farming. Vegetables such as cabbage, carrot, green pepper, okra, garden eggs and other foodstuff are cropped to serve as supplement to inmates’ ration.

However, with the increases in food prices over the years, there is the need to adjust the feeding rate to relieve the inmates and prison authorities of the untold hardship that is likely to besiege prisons.

What should be borne in mind is that a hungry and malnourished prison population has consequences for the society. Much of the prison population is the youth who are released back into society on a daily basis. And we cannot look on for their health to deteriorate in the future. Considering an upward adjustment of the feeding rate will help forestall any future threat to inmates’ health and by extension the security of society. 

Writer is an Advocate of Prison reforms in Ghana

Writer’s email: bisilkibaba@gmail.com

Published: Daily Graphic newspaper, Ghana, 7Th April, 2016

-

CUSTODY TIME LIMIT IMPACT ON PRISON CONGESTION IN GHANA

The adage ''Nature cannot be cheated" is a tune successive governments fail to dance to anytime issues of congestion in the country’s prisons surface.

The fact that over 70 percent of the country’s prisons were built during the colonial era without commitment to a practical containment plan for the increasing population explains it all.

There is no correlation between crime tracking and vigilance efforts and adequate preparation for the final destination of offenders, which is the prison.

The attitude of seeing the prison system as subservient to other state institutions is the architect of this long-experienced congestion problem. This syndrome has been inimical and remains a bane to the progress of the system and well-being of offenders who equally deserve healthy and dignifying living conditions as humans.

Congestion in the prisons has undoubtedly become an albatross on the neck of the Prison Administration and the country as a whole with far-reaching effects on the incarcerated. It causes excessive strain on the limited amenities and accommodation facilities and counters daily efforts aimed at improving the environmental conditions of the prisons.

It is in view of this that the in-progress initiative by the Ghana Prisons Service to hold the bull by the horn by vigorously pursuing a permanent solution to congestion is relieving and worth applauding by all.

Guidelines launched

Though the concept of Custody Time Limit, which first surfaced at a stakeholders’ conference on Remand Administration in 2013, was warmly received, its feasibility anticipated challenges.

But the collaborative resolve of the Prisons Service, stakeholders and international partners has defied the odds. The thirst for its success has so far beckoned assurance of hope as the parent document couched Sentencing Guidelines for Judges has already been launched.

Custody Time Limit is an essential element of a definite sentencing policy which stipulates specific period of remanding and sentences for specific crimes. This policy, whose implementation will blow a new wind of fresh breath, brings many benefits to the Criminal Justice System in Ghana.

Importance of the guidelines

With its introduction, the vagueness, which hitherto gave room for undue delays in prosecuting, will be largely checked. This will lessen public complaints over perceived inconsistencies in sentences pertaining to same crime and boost public trust and confidence in the Judiciary.

Implementing this policy will also contribute to the reduction in overcrowding in the prisons as persons remanded will no longer overstay in custody in the absence of reasonable evidence for their trial. This will help mitigate the human suffering overcrowding visits on prisoners in the country.

The Roger Coventry Centre for Paralegal Services in the Central Prisons across the country is a major step towards this direction. The centre is to effectively liaise with the police and courts by monitoring remand warrants to ensure their speedy trial.

Lifeline

The lifeblood of this policy will be the continuous cooperation and support of stakeholders towards the realisation of its goal of ensuring that justice is served to the citizenry. To ensure this policy works to its fullest potential requires all hands on deck.

While Roger Coventry and other pioneers of this laudable policy will ever be remembered for working round the clock to see it materialise, persons privileged to contribute towards this aim have a call to contribute wholeheartedly in the interest of justice.

Writer’s Email:bisilkibaba@gmail.com

The writer is an Assistant Superintendent of Prisons at the Sekondi Central Prison

Published: Daily Graphic newspaper, Ghana, 4th August, 2015

STIGMATISING PRISONERS AND THE NEED FOR RENEWAL OF MINDSET

One of the tags that continues to suffer severe stigma and rejection is that which prisoners bear in Ghana.  The noun, ‘prisoner’ echoes negative meanings to a good number of the populace which in turn affects persons in prison custody badly. And this is not without implications for the larger society.

The perception that prisoners are a strayed breed of misfits who deserve interminable separation from society needs to be corrected. There is no doubt that deliberate acts of wickedness against fellow humans should not be tolerated.

But what ought to be realised is that stigmatising prisoners and ex-convicts is not a solution to crime reduction. In any case, current developments have given credence to the fact that not all the people in Ghanaian prisons are criminals. A story in 2015 which revealed that the Enquirer’s court reporter was framed up and wrongfully sentenced underpins this claim.

Prisoners need our compassion

The continuous branding of prisoners offers society nothing but egoism as against offering encouragement and support to these inmates who need to get back on their feet after serving their terms of imprisonment.  It also keeps us on the fence instead of awakening us to the urgent need to eliminate the structural violence that pushes our people into crime.

The worst of all is how  we are blindfolded from realising that each citizen is equally vulnerable to the fate of these inmates.The call for cessation of stigma against prisoners and ex-convicts is not without the grasp of the fact that some of the crimes are self-inflicted. But the reality is that there exists misfortunes and accidental law-breaking which can pin any citizen to the prison walls. The representation of various professionals and persons of all walks of life in our prisons confirms this - not a single citizen is immune to imprisonment.

Prison as accident ward

The popular likening of the prisons to accident wards is food for thought. Just as accident wards are no respecter of persons, so are life situations that impose imprisonment on victims.

    

A typical instance that reflected this reality was the case of a man in his late 60’s who got remanded in Sekondi Central Prison on February 4 , 2015.

The old man stood as surety for his son who later absconded. This exposed him to the harsh truth of the law.  He could not believe he was in lockup and would be passing the night in a cell. In fact, he trembled and sobbed in complete shock as he waited to be assigned a cell. His thoughts could almost be imagined - what he never wished for himself embraced him at mid-day.

Records of high profile personalities who have been to prisons in Ghana and elsewhere are enough proof that imprisonment is a possibility for all persons. Indeed, if the human shadow were to be a crime tracking device, all persons would have probably passed a night in the prisons one time or the other.

The fact that the police are not in every closet; not all crimes get reported and the open secret, that the powerful in our part of the world often swerve the law with impunity should purge us of condemning attitudes towards prisoners. 

Change of attitude towards prisoners

The consequence for denigrating prisoners with stigma and rejection transcends these prisoners. It does not only jeopardise inmates’ recovery and reintegration into society but also has implications for the larger society. Reoffending obviously impacts on the comfort of individuals in society: the better citizens prisoners become, the lesser society is harmed.

Individual and collective support towards the improvement of prison conditions and reformation of inmates is the way to go if there is any substance in our pride as  humane and loving people.

This can only be achieved through a renewal of our attitudes towards prisoners and the prison system in the country. Crime must not be abhorred in isolation without giving heed to factors that cause it. Stigma is one of such factors that directly mend the circle of reoffending among ex-convicts and we need to stop it.

Mandela’s authoritative view on key indicators of a society’s advancement is a great reminder that cannot go unnoticed.  According to him, the development of a society is reflected in the state of its prisons: whether prison facilities are structured and equipped to better the lives of citizens committed to lawful custody or are deserted with less impact on offenders. The former shows that a society is forward thinking.

Ghana cannot, therefore, continue to hold itself high in the sphere of human rights and respect for all citizens when its prison population which constitutes a major vulnerable section of society is the least in the priority list of what matters in national development.

Hiplife artiste Kwaw Kese has taken a giant step by launching a 20-year life-changing project that aims to establish 15 different industries in Ghana’s prisons. The objective is to engage the thousands of idle hands in the prisons and equip them with employable skills. This is the orientation that we need as individuals and as a society towards our brothers and sisters in prison custody. Stigma against prisoners must be a thing of the past as we join hands to combat the social and economic problems that face our society.

Writer's email: bisilkibaba@gmail.com

Published: Daily Graphic newspaper, Ghana, 25th February, 2016

RECURRENT CONFLICTS IN NORTHERN GHANA; THE WAY FORWARD

It is a basic fact that conflict is a powerful force that confronts every human society. No matter how enlightened a society may appear to be, it cannot claim absolute immunity over the potential of experiencing conflict.

This explains why most modern societies have committed energies and resources to developing holistic and effective fire belts, in the forms of measures and structures - to serve as insulators against the outbreak of violent conflicts.

Although positive post-conflict peacebuilding outcomes are believed to have some influence in correcting the ills of the affected communities, armed conflict for instance, remains the least of preferred options for settling differences. This is mainly because of its irreparable impact, such as loss of lives and other attendant human rights abuses. 

Sadly, armed violence has almost become the convenient panacea to ethnic and chieftaincy disputes in the country, especially in the northern sector. This development needs to be looked at seriously with a deliberate drive to finding lasting solution to them.  

While it may be argued that not a single region in Ghana is immune to armed violence, the frequent eruption of pockets of violence in the northern region this year has become a major concern to many. It is almost predictable that the situation may deteriorate on a dark day if long term strategies are continuously overlooked in a bid to deal with the situation.

Already, five lives have been lost in two separate clashes that occurred between April and May this year. This is alarming considering the space of time the lives were lost. It is in this regard that urgent steps must be taken by government and civil society groups to mitigate these incidents.

Ghana appears to have a limited scope of peace efforts as such campaigns only become prominent during sensitive national events. Evidently, elections are the most targeted of all peace efforts in the country. Other vulnerable areas such as chieftaincy and land disputes have barely received the needed attention. Whilst the current move by the Ministry of Chieftaincy and Traditional Affairs to codify the lines of succession is commendable it must be emphasised that documents do not work on their own except by human efforts.  The need for attitudinal change in the approach to dealing with these chronic conflicts, particularly in the north, is therefore critical in ensuring national peace.

To make progress in this direction requires an integrative approach that embraces specific steps at all levels of the country’s peace efforts. Clearly, beefing up the country’s intelligence gathering cannot be overemphasised. The Bureau of National Investigations and the Criminal Investigative Departments need to be further equipped with the acumen to hatch security threats through effective information gathering. Failure to place intelligence gathering at the centre of the country’s conflict prevention efforts will continue to disable all attempts to achieve this objective.

The disease of non-political assertiveness which characterise government’s willingness in dealing with northern conflicts must stop. Political lip service to the region’s conflicts is a major setback which undermines the state’s ability to apply ‘carrots and sticks’ in resolving its internal conflicts.

There is also the need for government and other nongovernmental peacebuilding organisations to be proactive by investing in fact-finding research that is capable of uncovering the subjective and objective dimensions that account for the conflicts.

Again, the use of military muscle must be diversified to include the application of positive inducement which is aimed at long-term conflict resolution. This is often not the case in the north as military involvement is limited to scattering of the feuding factions after which a cease-fire is considered the end of conflict. 

Creepy, as it may sound, is the stereotyped view some Ghanaians have about their northern based countrymen. Some individuals have the thinking that ‘pepefor’, literally northern folks, lack understanding and should be left to their fate. This mindset is unhealthy and needs to be discarded as it jeopardises the spirit of neighbourliness which is essential for national integration and development.

Indeed, no part of Ghana can be detached to function in isolation because of the resources it brings to the national table or the crises that it is bedevilled with. However, the repercussions of conflicts in any region have rippling effects on all and therefore must be a concern to all.

Writer’s email address: bisilkibaba@gmail.com

Published: Daily Dispatch newspaper, Ghana, 29Th May, 2014. 

DEFILEMENT, ANY LESSONS FOR MEN?

Hold it a bit or risk being jailed. This seems to be the strongest message from the disturbing trend of defilement cases at the Sekondi Central Prison, where defilement placed 4^Th on the chart of crimes recorded in 2015.

But the situation is not just a matter in only the Western Region. Figures available at the national level in 2014, for instance, indicate that defilement cases recorded stood at 4.9 percent, placing 5th nationally. 

Love relationship with young females often turns to pose a huge threat to their male partners, especially in situations where the exact age of the female is not painstakingly verified by the suitor.  And men must learn to either hold their ‘pendulum’ or insure themselves, by exercising the highest precaution possible. 

Persons who have been trapped in this web either blame their predicaments on inaccurate age information supplied by their female partners or the connivance of aggrieved parents to ‘pay them back’ for ripping where they have not sown.  

Love, it is said, is the sweetest adventure if found and experienced with the right person. But  the stories of many in the prison who have felt the thorny side of it forewarns a lot. I do not intend to sound quixotic by entirely faulting the male victims, since exceptions exist in some occurrences. My word of caution, which is in sync with Chinua Achebe’s statement that: “A patient  penis will certainly eat the bearded meat” is perhaps the ideal advice to all males.

Once the uncertainty of getting gripped in the strong arms of the law is very high in this adventure, much homework needs to be done before making a move. Whilst admitting the impetuous influence of the fever of love or infatuation on men and women alike, nurturing the tact of patience and will to check the age of a prospective female partner clears one of potential dangers. 

The fact is that the physical appearance of a female can be deceptive: one’s judgement may not reflect the true age and feminist power bestowed on her by the creator.  As it is said, ‘until you taste the wine of a palm tree, never limit its glory to the fruits it bears’.
    

Different age groups, ranging from 18 to 80 are in prisons for drawing water, a major necessity of life, from the wrong well. The spate of this offence is incredible; one wonders if the wise saying that when birds devise new methods of flying to shun danger, hunters should also up their game, has fast eluded the attention of some men.

The question then is, will it be prudent to demand the birth certificate or other means of proof of age before dating a lady? Well, your guess may be as unpopular and unwelcomed as mine.  Diving into the game of seeking to siphon what may turn out illicit with ruining consequences and responsibly positioning oneself against the odds, which is better?

What should serve as a warning notice to all is that, one may be short changed for mutual pleasures shared. Naturally, there is not a stimulus without a response. A male may lose out on many so-called opportunities for treading cautiously in this exhilarating but slippery path. But most men will confess that it pays off to treat a mosquito on your balls with respect.

The fact is that the young men will definitely swing the pendulum with caution, having regard for the harshness of the punishment the offence attracts.

Writer's email: bisilkibaba@gmail.com

Published: Daily Graphic newspaper, Ghana, 14Th June, 2016.