Indications suggest the NPP might not be part of the WILDAF dialogue with political parties in 2016. This in part is due to the scanty time– “which also smacked of disrespect” - allotted for representatives of the two big parties to articulate their party’s position on women. Women’s Rights Activist Ursula Owusu who is also the NPP candidate for the Ablekuma South constituency expressed her disappointment with the dialogue which according to her tilted largely towards showcasing personalities instead of putting out the issues. “Parade the flag-bearers and let’s see [people] that we have the capacity to attract the flag-bearers there, forget about the issues that are going to be discussed. A lot of women have worked very long and hard to put women’s issues on the agenda today. This was a huge opportunity to get our political parties who are seeking political office to tell the world exactly what they intend to do” she fumed. Miss Ursula insists the absence of the running mates of the two big parties’ should not have detracted from a successful political dialogue Thursday. According to her, the message and the position of the parties’ is more important than the personalities who come to articulate them. A three page long speech cataloguing the NPP’s agenda for women was truncated by moderator Matilda Asante who insisted the five minutes allotted time was up – something Ursula has particularly condemned -insisting the NPP was given only 3 minutes. The two main parties who command between themselves 98% of Ghanaian votes were given five minutes each at Thursday’s WILDAF encounter with political parties to articulate their position in a three hour long program because of the absence of their flag-bearers. This raises concerns about the importance organizers of the show placed on the two parties whose flag-bearers were represented by able women. Ursula also took issues with how the only woman flag-bearer of the Ghana Freedom Party, in this year’s contest for the flagstaff house, Akua Donkor, was relegated to the background and given a platform only after majority of participant had exited the program. The original concept of the WILDAF dialogue with political parties was to get the running mates to articulate the party’s position on women issues but WILDAF insisted on flag-bearers or running mates this year, Miss Ursula hinted. Apologizing for Nana Addo’s inability to attend, she said the timing was bad; “plus the invitation read ‘women dialogue with political parties’, and this does not mean that it must necessarily be the flag-bearer”. She suggested Ghana moved away from personalities and focus on the political parties as institutions in any debate and be rated based on what they have to offer. “What if the personality articulating that vision suddenly dies? Does it mean the vision should die with him?” But Communication and Advocacy Officer of WILDAF, says their objective for organizing the show was achieved. Unperturbed that WILDAF was unfair giving only five minutes to the two big political parties, Mercy Adjabeng said the representatives of the two big parties could not be put together with the flag-bearers of the PNC, CPP and PPP because it would have been a breach of protocol. Responding to claims that WILDAF has changed the original program format, she said a committee made up of the party representatives decided to make it an encounter with flag-bearers and that was not imposed by WILDAF. She refused to answer on whether the responses received from the flag-bearers were shallow as has been put out insisting that WILDAF only provided the platform and it is for the women to judge and make their minds. Responses given at the dialogue session would be used to hold the party that wins this year’s election accountable during its term in office.