The Ladies' Parliament of the Wa Campus of the University for Development Studies (UDS) has been inaugurated with a call on female students to maximise the opportunities it presented to nurture their political ambitions. Mr. Alhaji Abdul-Rashid Pelpuo, Deputy Majority Leader in Parliament, who inaugurated the forum on Sunday, at Wa, commended UDS for taking the lead to establish a Students' Parliament that was solely constituted by ladies. Mr. Pelpuo, who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Wa Central Constituency, in the Upper West Region said the forum had come at a time when issues about increasing women's participation in governance and the entire democratic processes had taken centre stage in most discussions on national politics. He said the last decade had witnessed very remarkable changes in the way and manner women were being treated in the Ghanaian society, noting that, the number of women who occupied key positions was on the ascendancy. The Deputy Majority Leader said for the first time in the country's history the position of the Speaker of Parliament and the Chief Justice were occupied by very capable women. Alhaji Pelpuo said this was a clear indication that Ghana was on the path of having a female President and Vice President very soon. The Wa Central MP, however, noted that despite the immense contributions made by women to national development their current situation in the decision-making process was abysmally low. He said at present there were only four were females Ministers of State with two being Cabinet ministers while only 19 out of the 230 parliamentarians were women. The situation is no better in the civil and public services where women were generally clustered in lower managerial and non-managerial positions. "I believe strongly that women, if given the opportunity and the needed support through good legislative policies and affirmative actions, could rise to the occasion and excel in their various fields of endeavour," he said. Dr. Agnes Atia Apusigah, the Patron of the UDS Ladies' Parliament, said it had come a long way in its struggle for legitimacy and recognition within the student hierarchy, the University system including regional and national structures. She said women formed a negligible minority in national parliaments, public boards, committees and councils at the regional, national and global levels. Dr. Apusigah, who is also a Lecturer at Wa Campus of the UDS, said the Ladies' Parliament was, therefore, aimed at preparing young ladies to become intellectually courageous to take up leadership positions in future. This, she noted, would help in addressing the issue of the under representation of women in decision making processes. Alhaji Issahaku Salia, the Upper West Regional Minister, in a speech read on his behalf, said education was the key to success and advised the ladies to take their studies seriously to enable them to pursue their future political ambitions. The Ladies' Parliament, with a total membership of about 100, has Ms. Akpene Seraphim Gbemou as the Speaker, Ms. Eunice Sarpong, Majority Leader and Ms. Lawrencia Ofori as the Minority Leader. Source: GNA