The Progressive Organisation for Women’s Advancement (POWA) has pushed back against what it describes as disproportionate criticism of Vice President Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang on issues affecting women and girls, arguing that Ghana’s first female vice president should be assessed as a national leader rather than the default person held responsible for every challenge confronting women.
In a press statement signed by Founder and President Dr. Victoria Lakshmi Hamah, POWA said the Vice President’s gender should not confine her public identity and leadership to gender-related matters . “Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang is the Vice President of Ghana, not merely the Vice President for women and girls,” the statement said .
The Context: Obuasi SHTS and Mounting Criticism
The statement follows sustained criticism of the Vice President over what critics describe as her silence on issues affecting women, particularly the viral sexual assault allegations involving 19 female students and the former headmaster of Obuasi Senior High School . In September 2026, NPP Communications Team member Lawuratu Musah-Saaka said on Starr FM that the Vice President’s “silence is too loud on the happenings in our country now,” questioning her response to women’s issues at a time when the government has pledged to achieve 30% female representation .
POWA’s intervention seeks to reframe that debate, arguing that the historic significance of Opoku-Agyemang’s election—she was sworn in on January 7, 2025, as Ghana’s first female Vice President —should expand opportunities for women in leadership rather than narrow the scope of their responsibilities.
Institutional Mandates, Not Individual Burden
The organisation pointed to the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Ghana Police Service, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), and the courts as the institutions legally mandated to address issues affecting women, children and vulnerable persons . It called for these bodies to be empowered, adequately resourced, and held accountable.
According to POWA, the Vice President can provide leadership, support policy reforms, promote institutional coordination, and advocate stronger protections. However, she should not be expected to perform the functions of institutions legally mandated to investigate complaints, protect victims, enforce the law, and administer justice. “Institutional responsibility must be respected,” the statement added .
A Broader Argument About Women in Power
POWA argued that attaining high political office should not expose a woman to additional expectations that would not ordinarily be imposed on her male counterparts. It maintained that accountability should be evidence-based and proportionate to the responsibilities of the office concerned, warning that imposing gender-specific expectations on the Vice President simply because she is the first woman to occupy the position would be neither fair nor progressive .
The organisation also emphasised that the welfare of women and girls is a shared national responsibility involving government, Parliament, law enforcement agencies, the judiciary, civil society organisations, traditional authorities, families and communities. It called on political parties to place the protection and advancement of women above partisan considerations .
Dr. Hamah, a former Deputy Minister of Communications who earned a PhD with a dissertation examining gender asymmetry in Ghana’s parliamentary committees, has led POWA as a platform for protecting women’s participation in politically hostile environments . The organisation has previously spoken out against gendered attacks on prominent women across party lines, including First Lady Lordina Mahama and former Second Lady Samira Bawumia .
For Opoku-Agyemang, whose career includes serving as Minister of Education and as the first female Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast , POWA’s intervention offers a measure of cover. Whether it shifts the terms of public debate—from demanding that she personally answer for every incident involving women and girls to holding institutions accountable—remains to be seen.
