Lydia – Adomonline.com

Gov’t will strengthen digitalisation – Lydia Lamisi Akanvariba

Gertrude Okyere — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 07:00:39 +0000

The Minister of State-designate for Public Sector Reforms, Lydia Lamisi Akanvariba, has pledged to strengthen the various digital platforms introduced by the immediate past government to enhance efficiency and productivity in the public sector.

She assured that the government would leverage digital technology to minimize bureaucratic bottlenecks and curb corrupt practices, thereby promoting transparency and accountability.

Acknowledging the digital platforms and e-governance systems implemented by previous governments, Madam Akanvariba emphasized the need to build on these initiatives to improve public service delivery.

The Member of Parliament for Tempane in the Upper East Region gave this assurance when she appeared before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Monday for vetting. The vetting process aims to assess the nominee’s competence and suitability for the ministerial role.

Madam Akanvariba stated that she would collaborate with other sector ministries to boost productivity and enhance service delivery. She also pledged to reorient and motivate public sector workers while ensuring deserving staff receive the necessary incentives.

When asked about concerns regarding the dismissal of employees recruited by the immediate past government, the nominee proposed a national dialogue to engage relevant stakeholders on recruitment processes in the public sector.

She argued that a collective agreement on hiring personnel, particularly in the security services, would help minimize controversies surrounding public sector recruitment.

Madam Akanvariba expressed confidence that, with political will and adequate resources, she could help implement President John Dramani Mahama’s vision for public sector reforms.

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They think I’m mad because I don’t fake – Lydia Forson

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Tue, 18 Sep 2018 06:35:08 +0000

Ghanaian actress, writer and social advocate Lydia Forson has been a natural girl for as long as we have known her.

Now that “team natural” seems to be rapidly growing in Ghana, Lydia has taken a prominent position in comfortably leading women into their new look via her Instagram page.

Well according to the beautiful actress on her twitter post she doesn’t live a fake life, if she is broke she try to live within her means, she only spends on what she needs.

Read her full post unedited below

“When I’m broke I try to live within my means, I only buy what I need and not what I want. I won’t “free” a Gucci bag to pay later; Ha am I MAD?! But in Ghana, the broker the country is the more we borrow and the more we spend on frivolous things. Ok oh”.

When I’m broke I try to live within my means, I only buy what I NEED and not what I WANT.

I won’t “free” a Gucci bag to pay later;

Ha am I MAD?!

But in Ghana, the broker the country is the more we borrow and the more we spend on frivolous things.

Ok oh.

— Miss Forson (@lydiaforson) September 17, 2018

VIDEO: Lydia Forson assaulted by security officer

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Mon, 22 Jan 2018 16:14:17 +0000

Outspoken actress, Lydia Forson, has been assaulted by a security officer.
The assault followed a verbal altercation between Ms Forson and the said security official
The “Perfect Picture” actress posted the video of the said assault on her Facebook page Monday morning
She narrates:
I don’t even know where to start this piece from.
How do I explain that I woke up excited about my day unaware of the very dangerous encounter I was to have.
How do I write in a language that won’t be judged, misinterpreted or dismissed.
How do I speak on my assault without someone tone checking me, questioning the validity of my claim and trying to make it my fault.
Watch video: Video: I chased Nana Konadu for 5 years – Rawlings reveals
Because that’s the never ending cycle women in this country go through whenever the subject of any type of abuse is brought up.
Who we are becomes the centre of the conversation and NOT what happened to us.
How we speak on the subject will determine if we deserve sympathy or not, we have to hold back the anger we feel, speak in a more acceptable tone and basically focus more on how people receive what we’re saying instead of the pain of what we went through.
That’s why I’ve been staring at this blank page for a few hours now.
Today it happened to me.
I was psychically assaulted by a national security official ( or so he claimed).
I’ve heard the stories of the “boys boys” who’ve become oh so powerful because they’re on the pay roll of one “Big Man” (most times a politician in power).
They usually don’t have any real title and no specialities other than the endorsement from their “meal ticket”; but that’s enough to make them feel they can get away with just about anything, it’s enough for them to assault people at the flagstaff house, storm into a court room and assault a judge etc.
Read Also: PHOTO: Ghanaians are hypocrites – Moesha Boduong
But I’ll be damn if I become just another statistic, a number they get to put into their little black book, belch over cheap bottles of beer and laugh about how they “shook her”.
See, I know my rights, and not only that, I’m not afraid to stand my ground.
This knowledge is the ONLY reason why I made it out today; it’s the only reason why only my arm hurts and not the rest of my body.
Filming in Ghana has its challenges especially when it comes to locations, but our determination is what leads us to make do with what we have.
Most filmmakers being aware of this usually try to get the right permits to avoid any confusion; but even at that we’re sometimes at the mercy of passers by, polices and others in authority.
Today we chose a spot often used in movie production( mostly by NAFTI students as it is by their hostel).
A few minutes into the shoot a car drives up and a man with a walkie talkie jumps out and tells us we’re not permitted to be there.
Our director insists that we are, he together with the crew try to reason with the man but he refuses and the director decides that we should just leave to avoid what seemed like a situation that was escalating.
I observed all of this from a distance and noticed the man was fixated on the female crew member who happened to be the one driving. As she turned to leave he started to verbally assault her, why? Because she had “dared” challenge his claim that we weren’t allowed there; he continued to hurl insults at her until I heard him say finally “ you think you are somebody”.
That triggered me.
It’s something I’ve heard more times than I can count, especially when it’s in a confrontation with a man. I’m either “ashawo”, “too known”, or an “unmarried small girl”.
It’s usually comes from a place of disdain, anger and genuine surprise that a woman, who they believe they’re superior to, would even “dare”, stand up to their authority.
I’ve had too many men say to me, “My wife would never speak to me like that”, which is true in most cases, because the patriarchy that exist in our society does give a lot of men this false sense of superiority.
And by his utterances I could tell things were about to get ugly, so I walked up to him and said he didn’t need to go that far, especially since we were already leaving.
He immediately turned on me, like a poked bear ready to devour its prey.
Now before I continue you should know we were just about 4 women there with about 10 men.
Men who were shouting, calling him out and insisting that he was in the wrong, even when one rushed up to his face he didn’t as much as raise a hand to them.
But the minute I stepped in, I wasn’t allowed into the “boys only zone”, I was an intruder and my presence alone was a threat to the size of his balls.
Without hesitation he turned on me and started making threats; I took out my phone and decided to record his actions but that only aggravated him because it meant I had the upper hand, it meant he couldn’t lie about what happened later.
He quickly lunged at me and tried to hit the phone out of my hand, in the process he punched my arm and continued to come for me.
Save for the crew, this man was ready to beat me to a pulp and he said as much.
When I told him he didn’t have the right to, he responded with a smirk on his face “I can beat you if I want, my authority gives me that right and no one can do anything about it”.
Yes, you read right.
But he wasn’t alone, a policeman was there with him and although he didn’t join in the attack did very little to the man.
He said he was only there to “observe” and not participate; when asked if his “observation” meant to watch a civilian being assaulted he asked for “proof” of assault.( he’s the one in the blue,clearly in the middle of it all)
When their supervisor showed up, much to the dismay of everyone there ( and there were several witnesses) the policeman said the officer didn’t verbally or physically assault any of us.
At that moment, watching as these men threw their weight about, I knew that this wasn’t about who was right or wrong, it wasn’t about the law it was all about POWER.
Today’s incident got me to reflect on two things; the never ending abuse women face and the abuse of power in this country.
On women;
Unfortunately what happened today didn’t surprise me; if anything as a woman in a country where we’re often treated as second class citizens I expect to have confrontations like this, expect to be treated poorly by men, I expect them to try to exert their authority over me and I especially expect them to feel they can get away with it; which they do most often than not do.
But the knowledge of this doesn’t quite prepare you for the encounter; you’re filled with rage, confusion and a lot of fear, even though you try to mask it with bravery.
As you stand your ground and refuse to be abused; you’re well aware that you’re playing with fire, you’re aware that the louder and stronger you seem, the angrier they become and the more they want to hurt you, you’re aware that your strength challenges their authority and bruises their ego; and there’s nothing as dangerous as a man’s bruised ego.
But what’s worse is you’re afraid to share your story because you can’t trust that people will get it, you can’t trust that they won’t blame you, you can’t trust that they won’t justify it.
So you’re conflicted.
On the abuse of power;
Several assault cases in this country go unreported or the perpetrators go unpunished; depending on who you know you can get away with almost anything in this country.
Watch video:

And if you’re connected to anyone in power, become invisible, not even God can touch you.
It’s why this man was bold enough to say he could beat me, it’s why the police officer stood by and did nothing, it’s why making calls to people in “high places” won’t do much unless you’re connected to “power”.
And we have more than enough examples of cases like this to go by.
People have sat on radio, tv and other platforms to make threats and still got a seat at the table of authority.
Sadly, when our leaders do ever speak against this( usually after public outcry), their actions hardly ever reflect their words because they’re serving two masters; the people that put them in power and the citizens they’re supposed to govern.
So they’re tough on their reprimand but not tough enough to alienate them from their party faithfuls.
I got lucky, not everyone will and much the like unfortunate instances of killings of civilians by SARS officials in nigeria, if not careful this could creep into Ghana.
None of us ever expect to be in these kind of situations, but it’s important to stay ready for them because you never know. This got me through, and I hope you don’t ever need these tips.
1. Know your rights.
2. Know that knowing your rights might mean nothing in certain circumstances.
3. Immediately start to record a situation you believe is about escalate; it’s probably the only thing that’s going to save you from further harm.
4. Share to your social media platforms, friends and family just Incase something happens to you.

I was afraid to test for HIV – Lydia Forson

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Mon, 04 Dec 2017 08:11:35 +0000

One of the biggest reasons why people don’t get tested for HIV is because they are scared. What if it means to be positive, and what other people will think about you.
Multiple Ghanaian award winning actress Lydia Forson has revealed that she was anxious when she went to test for HIV.
Speaking on New Day on TV3 on Friday, the beautiful actress who co-hosted the farmers’ day edition, revealed she was anxious when she first wanted to take HIV test. She however indicated her anxiety was for no reason.
“As for me, I was afraid when testing for HIV, even though it was for no reason”. The 2017 Best AFRIFF actress revealed.
Lydia Forson won the African Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a leading role in 2010.
Ghana joined the world to mark this year’s edition of World Aids Days to create awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection, and mourning those who have died of the disease.
Coupled with the World AIDS Day Celebration, Ghana is also celebrating its 33rd National Farmers Day. The day is commemorated each year on First Friday of December to honour our gallant farmers and fishers.
The event acknowledges the vital roles farmers play in our society.

The President on Homosexuality; He said what he said – Lydia Forson Writes

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Mon, 27 Nov 2017 15:29:21 +0000

See I’m going to keep this very simple because I know no matter how well I put this people are still going to find a reason to be offended.
There’s public outrage over an interview President Akufo-Addo granted in which he said that the legalization of homosexuality was bound to happen.
Now I understand your anger if this is a practice you’re against, especially if it’s one your religion forbids.
But the president response doesn’t in ANYWAY condone the act, in fact he maybe equally against it.
But he wasn’t voted into power to enforce his own personal beliefs on all of us, he was voted to represent ALL the citizens of the country irrespective of their beliefs and practices.
Which is why he gave an intellectual response, devoid of emotions to that question.
Because years in LAW school would have taught him about human rights and the realities of any minority group.
Legalization of anything doesn’t suggest that everyone agrees with it, it’s to protect the few who do; which is why there are still people in America against homosexuality and are free to be, so long as they don’t harm those who’re for it.
The law exist to protect ALL its citizens and not impose ones personal beliefs and views on another.

PHOTO: Make-up free Lydia Forson

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Mon, 11 Sep 2017 09:15:50 +0000

Rashida's video: Leave Anita Erskine alone; Jesus ‘welcomed’ prostitutes – Lydia Forson

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 09:19:48 +0000

Actress Lydia Forson spits fire on a section of the public who are condemning Anita Erskine for reaching out to Rashida Black Beauty over her release of “nude” video, noting that Jesus Christ did same by reaching out to Mary Magdalene who was a prostitute.
According to the movie star, she is shocked some Ghanaians are unhappy with radio personality “Anita Erskine” for not condemning the act of Rashida Black Beauty but instead reaching out to her.
The obviously peeved Miss Forson shared the post on her Instagram page.
“So Anita is in trouble because she didn’t insult Rasheeda, she didn’t give her a stern reproach, she didn’t call her a shame to womanhood, wasn’t singled out to represent all women and condemned for it?
“Anita is in trouble for reaching out, and trying to help a girl clearly in need of it? She’s in trouble for doing what NONE of us did? Wow”
“If you listen to the likes of Mannaseh they’ll have you believe that people cannot be reformed, that they can’t amount to anything because of their past”
“That video should break your heart; break your heart that people in the country have to grow up in an environment so bad that this seems “NORMAL”.
As religious as he is he forgets the story of Mary Magdalene, the prostitute, the loose woman, the one men like Manasseh in the bible turned their noses at but Jesus welcomed with open arms,”
“Today the bible makes several references to her, and do we look at her with disgust? No, she represents Gods forgiving nature and repentance”
“His lack of comprehension makes him misinterpret any attempt at speaking up for a victim as “condoning” the act. (And he did the same with the whole Hamamat issue). You don’t have to like a person, their choices or their lifestyle to support them when you think they need it most”
“It’s OUR collective responsibility to make sure we create an environment where girls like Racheeda can be saved from themselves. Don’t let the privilege of your upbringing fool you; any of us born in certain environments could have turned out this way. She’s no different from the Kayaye girls, or the “streets girls with several children, she’s no different from the girls pimped into prostitution; all these girls had no one looking out for them, grew up in an environment where they had very few options.
And even if she had grown up privileged, privilege doesn’t always shield you from making bad choices; and when you do your only saving grace is someone who cares.”
“At Anita Erskine I CELEBRATE YOU on being what we all ought to be, our neighbours keeper, better christians ( for those who’re religious) and even better citizens for the self proclaimed patriots. You’re either a part of a problem or a solution” she averred.

The art of ‘wooing’ a woman and the Ghanaian man by Lydia Forson

Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy — Tue, 18 Apr 2017 11:11:14 +0000

A lot of Ghanaian men have much to learn about the art of “wooing” a woman.
Most don’t know how to take a girl on a date, and if they do it’s always “food”, which automatically translates to love, and once those words are spoken it’s enough foreplay to begin a sexual affair, first by attempting to shove those long tongues into your mouth and swirling it around.

If you’re unwilling to jump into the sack after this you’re “long”, and if you are then you’re “easy”.

When I shared this on Facebook the response from a lot of women suggested that I wasn’t alone in this feeling.

But as usual, bloggers added their own meaning to it and tried to spin it into something it wasn’t.

And as expected many men were angry over the post, especially those who felt this was an attack on them.

And instead of attacking the issue, choose to attack me instead, how “manly”.

Now, I specifically said most and not all men, because it would be unfair to the good ones out there, plus have come across some great Ghanaian men who’re absolutely nothing like what I described, but they’ve been very few.

A lot of men and even women were quick to assume that describing my experience with Ghanaian men, it mean I’d slept with the lot I described, and this is the underlining problem, SEX.

Dating doesn’t automatically mean SEX, but because many people presume it does is why for many men especially, their only focus is on getting a girl into bed.

Now dating means several different things to people, depending on their background, age, religion etc.

But ultimately it’s about getting to know someone and through it deciding if you want more from the relationship.

This sometimes leads to a committed relationship or even marriage; but it doesn’t mean however, that it’s the sole intent either.

Some people like to keep it causal depending on where they are in their lives, it really boils down to what each party is looking for, which is why honesty is extremely important at this stage.

Traditionally it was a period of courtship, through which a man expressed interest in a woman, and if she liked him in return, they spent time getting to know each other.

However, the world has evolved and so has the meaning of the word, which is way it’s maybe confusing sometimes.

For a lot of Ghanaian men, it doesn’t help that it’s a concept relatively new to a lot of men here in Ghana; because like I said traditionally getting to know a girl was with the intention of marrying her.

But as times have changed this rigid form of dating seems to have gradually faded away.

One thing that’s remained constant however, is the “getting to know you phase”, even though it’s taken a different form, it’s still an important foundation to any relationship.

However, a lot of men today tend to want to skip that “phase” all together and immediately get you into bed.

A man can see you today, profess his love for you (another misused word) tomorrow and the next day expect you two to be playing “mummy and daddy” under the sheets.

Now don’t get me wrong, there are those who are ok with causal sex, and I’m not here to judge it.

My focus is entirely on the fact that for a lot of men they don’t have the patience to get to know a girl the claim to want to get serious with, they don’t know how to spend time through activity to study her or even wait for the girl to like them back, before pushing for more.

Sex I believe is a level of intimacy that should be reserved for couples in committed relationships; ideally, it would be great if couples could wait until marriage, but realistically very few can.

When you have sex with someone you’re sharing a very intimate part of yourself with them, almost baring your soul; and to be able to do that you have to trust who it’s with and what their intentions are.

This is why so many people are entangled in complicated relationships because there’s a connection that you create that’s hard to break it; and when couples don’t “date” or get to know each other enough to decide what they each want from the relationship, it can be disastrous. ( that’s a conversation for another day).

But the truth is, a lot of girls also allow it, because as always there’s a fear of “losing” a potentially great guy if you don’t “give in”.

But how do I get to know you if your tongue is deep in my throat, how do we talk when you’re in between my thighs, and how do you want a relationship with me without at least getting to know me first?

Sex is an inevitable end game, and if both parties are in unison it will happen, so why rush it?

I want to talk, get to know you and you me, I want to see how you are with other people, your likes and dislikes, your plans for the future, what you like about me, what sets you off, etc.

There’s so much you can learn in this period which can help you both decide if there’s something worth exploring.

But many men find this “time wasting” they believe a girl is being “LONG”, if she is unwilling to skip this process.

If they’re paying for dinner and all the other activities they expect to get rewarded through sex for it, which is why they like to know immediately if it will be “worth it” in the long run, and why they’ll do just about anything to get a return on all they’ve spent.

Which is why they feel cheated if a girl decides she doesn’t want anymore after all they’ve invested.

But you will only feel cheated if sex was your only intention, and if you invested what you don’t have into it.

Yes it’s good to spend on someone you care about, but why spend what you don’t have or you’re unwilling to?

If you really have good intentions you won’t have to play all these games to get a girl, if she doesn’t appreciate who you are then maybe she’s not for you in the first place.

Because there’s a girl out there, that will appreciate what you can “afford”; but I guess the natural “hunting” instincts in men won’t let them see this.

And yes, you may argue that some girls expect this, and although I don’t encourage it I don’t necessarily blame them either.

Because most girls have come to recognize the games men play and in return are switching it up.

So now, both men and women are playing a game of who can get the most out of a relationship; with men doing everything it takes to have sex with a girl , and girls making sure they’re walking away with something if that’s all a guy wants.

But perhaps if many men weren’t so focused on trying to get a girl into bed, girls wouldn’t feel the need to demand certain things of them in return.

If you have the money to and want to spend on a girl, by all means do it, but know it’s a risk like any other; but if your intentions are pure, there are several other ways of getting to know someone without breaking your bank.

And yes, I’ve heard many men say “well there’s very little to do by way of activity in Ghana”, how about you get CREATIVE!

The internet can be used for much more than finding out which teams are on the champions league table, you can learn a lot about women by just do a little research.

So get reading and ask, you’re human you’re not expected to know it all, but there’s a lot you can learn if you’re willing.

If all of this doesn’t lead to what either of you wants, it’s should be ok; some beautiful friendships have formed out of situations like this.

And please for the love of God there’s timing to everything, if you pay “attention” you’ll know when a woman likes you enough to welcome your tongue in her mouth, if you really listen and pay attention, you will know.

***note: These are my personal thoughts on the matter, based on my experiences, I’m not expert on the subject and I’d like to hear from you on this as well.