Ghanaians are becoming more scientific, perhaps too scien­tific for their own good. Some say they are scientific Christians and want to subject the doctrine of Jesus Christ to scientific analysis and proof. Such Christians need to be delivered in good time, lest they get struck on the way to Damascus.

Did I hear someone say the other day that he was following scientific diet? The person had formulated his own complex dietary regimen and called it scientific. I call it disaster. But who can blame him? There is freedom of speech. And the person’s stomach also has the freedom of expression, whether the stomach is manual or automatic.

A man has been battling a court case for some time now. His case is simple. He impregnated his girlfriend and together they were expecting the baby. A bouncy baby was delivered after five months and he celebrated with booze and break-dancing.

As he was preparing for an outdoor­ing, someone came to whisper into his left ear that his baby had already been outdoored and named by anoth­er man. He nearly developed stroke.

When he made discreet enquiries, he realised it was true. A thick-tall barrel-chested man had already out­doored his baby in pomp and pageant­ry, brass band and spin-music backed by a live band performance. A come­dian was at the ceremony providing all the laughter needed to make for a grand occasion.

ARGUMENT

He furiously confronted the girlfriend and she told him curtly: “The baby is not yours!” He nearly collapsed. Since when did the baby not become his? He endured a brief argument and then decided to send the matter to court.

Meanwhile he had information that his baby’s new father was someone who had been infertile or precise­ly was infertile. It meant that he couldn’t impregnate a woman no mat­ter the number of rounds he went per night. However, he was very success­ful and rich.

He was alleged to have been looking desperately for offspring. So when he had an affair with a lady and she came with the news that she was pregnant, he did not even enquire whether it was by him or not. He quickly accepted responsibility.

However, another school of thought has it that the man plotted with the lady to get pregnant by another man and let him (the infertile man) take responsibility. Unfortunately, the alleged true father of the baby won’t let go, so the matter went to court.

When a paternity case winds up in court, then scientificity comes to play, because the judge cannot use his legal knowledge, no matter how vast, to ascertain the true father of the baby.

In hospital, the simple method of using the ABO blood group test has been often employed. If the father has Blood Group A and the mother has Blood Group B, it is automatic that the offspring must have Blood Group AB and not O. However, the child could have AB and still not belong to the man because the other man might also have Group A.

So the most reliable method is what has made Ghanaians more scien­tific in their outlook lately. Everybody is talking about DNA. Even my grand­mother in the village knows about it, and she can tell you exactly what it is.

DNA in full is ‘Deoxyibonucleiacid’. It represents the genetic code of the human person. In other words your DNA determines how you look like. And there is a link between your DNA and that of all your offspring are iden­tical in a way. It is 99 per cent accu­rate in determining paternity.

JOY FM recently did an interesting programme on paternity. A man who won a US Visa lottery and wanted all his four kids to accompany him on the trip was required by the embassy to do a DNA on the kids. Lo and behold, two of them were certified as NOT his children. CHECK out the embarrass­ment!

ATOMIC

If this is true, then it means that other grand exposures are in the pipe­line. Happy families are going to be shattered with the force of an atomic bomb. What is man going to do with a child he has loved and cared for, educated and has become emotionally attached to only to hear that he was spending all his fortune on another person’s child.

The human female is not supposed to have the attitude of a nanny goat who doesn’t know or care to know the father of her children. After all, no outdooring or naming ceremony will take place. And there will be no US VISA requirement, if a nanny goat “jams an international luck.” By acci­dent or by fate.

Well, I guess and more people will be getting curious about their off­spring, especially when your kid looks exactly like a man living a hundred metres away.

I am aware of a man who has three children and two are not his. The man is however content. I’m sure the wife would be in for some hefty cut­lass wounds. So in circumstances like this, it is better to let sleeping dogs lie. Revelations can bring tragedy. They can bring death.

Now the question every family man should be asking himself is: How many of my children are mine? If you have cause to believe that all your kids are not yours, you can drag your wife for a DNA together with the kids trailing behind you. But remember you might end up with a hefty slap from your wife if the DNAs prove that the kids are all yours, after all.

Whatever it is, women should be coming to terms with the fact that people are indeed becoming more sci­entific. So gone are the days that you get pregnant by another man and give the child to another. Chances are that you might be found out and disgraced.

The human female must stop being a problem unto herself.

This article was first published on September 3, 2005

 Social comparison: The unrealistic standard

SOCIAL media platforms promote social compar­ison, with users often comparing their lives to the curated and manipulated content of others. This can lead to decreased self-es­teem, decreased motiva­tion, and decreased overall well-being. According to a study by the American Psy­chological Association, social comparison on social media is associated with decreased self-esteem and decreased life satisfaction.

Online radicalisation: The spread of extremist ideol­ogies

Social media platforms have become breeding grounds for extremist ideol­ogies, with many users being radicalised online.

According to a study by the Counter Extremism Proj­ect, social media platforms have been used to spread extremist ideologies, recruit new members, and plan violent attacks.

Decreased attention span: The consequences of brevity

Social media platforms promote brevity, with users often scrolling through their feeds in a matter of sec­onds.

This can lead to decreased attention span, decreased cognitive performance, and decreased ability to engage in meaningful conversations.

According to a study by the University of California, Irvine, social media use is associated with decreased attention span and de­creased cognitive perfor­mance.

Impact on relationships: The decline of face-to-face interaction

Social media can also have a negative impact on rela­tionships, with many users spending more time inter­acting online than in person.

According to a study by the Pew Research Center, 45 per cent of Americans believe that social media has decreased the quality of their relationships.

Solutions: Finding a way forward

While social media poses significant problems, there are solutions. By acknowl­edging these issues and implementing solutions, we can promote a healthier online environment.

1. Media literacy: Educate users to critically evaluate online information.

2. Regulation: Implement regulations to address online harassment and misinforma­tion.

3. Digital literacy: Teach responsible social media use.

4. Mental health resourc­es: Provide online resources for mental health support.

5. Social media guide­lines: Establish guidelines for responsible social media use.

Conclusion

Social media poses sig­nificant problems, but by acknowledging these issues and implementing solutions, we can promote a healthier online environment.

It is essential to recognise the dark side of social media and take steps to mitigate its negative effects.

By working together, we can create a safer, more compassionate, and more responsible online commu­nity.

References

1. Pew Research Center (2020): “Mobile Technology and Home Broadband 2020.”

2. Royal society for public health (2017): “#Statu­sOfMind: Social media and young people’s mental health and wellbeing.”

3. World Health Organiza­tion (2018): “Mental health in the digital age.”

4. Knight Foundation (2020): “The Future of News: A Report on the State of Journalism in the Digital Age.”

5. National Center for Victims of Crime (2020): “Online Harassment: A Guide for Victims and Families.”

6. Pew Research Center (2020): “Americans’ Views on Social Media and Priva­cy.”

7. American Psychological Association (2020): “So­cial Comparison and Social Media.”

8. Counter Extremism Project (2020): “The Role of Social Media isation.”

9. University of California, Irvine (2020): “The Impact of Social Media on Attention Span and Cognitive Perfor­mance.”

10. Pew Research Center (2020): “The Impact of So­cial Media on Relationships.”

By Robert Ekow Grimmond-Thompson

 Fire disasters are gradu­ally becoming an almost normal event in this country. The aftermath of these fire disasters, bring economic hardships to peo­ple whose properties have been ravaged, emotional traumas and negative life changing experiences.

There are two main types of fire disasters, those that affect individual homes and those which affect a large group of people like market fires, school dormitories etc. The picture of a man who was weeping uncontrolla­bly after his wife and three children got burnt in a fire disaster which struck his house, will never leave my memory.

The trauma that this individual will experience is so severe that it has the potential to permanently affect his mental health. It is something that any person with an iota of humanity will not wish upon his or her worst enemy.

The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) have report­ed that there were 6436 fire incidents in 2024 which was about 7.7 per cent more than what was recorded in 2023. If this was a GDP percentage growth figure, it would have been good news but this is incidents of fire and therefore very bad news. This year alone, there has been at least two major fire disasters, one at Kanta­manto and the recent one at Adum Blue Light area.

TV reports showing wailing women, traders whose live­lihood had been destroyed by the devastating fire, was heart wrenching. The question then is, what are the steps or measures being put in place to prevent this incidents from recurring? Given the quality and calibre of personnel in the GNFS, it beats my imagination why such market fires cannot be prevented or if they occur, are not readily dealt with to prevent them getting out of control.

The GNFS conducts in­vestigation into every fire disaster in this country. It can therefore be safely concluded that, they have identified the major causes of these fire outbreaks and there must be measures, to prevent their recurrence. It is therefore unacceptable to see that a fire breaks out and it cannot be contained fast enough, to prevent it from spreading out of con­trol.

The problem in this coun­try is that, we are quick to set up committees to investigate issues but little or nothing is done regarding implementation of the find­ings or recommendations. A certain attitudinal change is required to ensure a perma­nent solution for these fire disasters.

If markets are created without proper accesses such that, fire tenders will have easy access to all parts of the markets, not much can be done in the event of a fire outbreak. One of the major issues which accord­ing to the PRO of the GNFS, prevented them from quickly attacking the fire, was a lack of access into the market.

One important thing we have to pay attention to is a complaint from the fire men regarding access to hydrant points. The GNFS has re­ported on several occasions, a lack of access to hydrant points as a result of delib­erate building of structures over them. These issues have to be addressed so that fire disasters could be pre­vented. The fire equipment required by the GNFS must be paid attention to.

The infrastructure that ex­isted some 20 years ago are different from what exists now. Fire tenders with lad­ders which were adequate for firefighting, are now not fit for purpose because we now have very tall structures in cities like Accra.

The GNFS must be fully and appropriately resourced. Let the powers that be, pri­oritise fire prevention in this country to prevent painful experiences. God bless.

NB: ‘CHANGE KOTOKA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TO KOFI BAAKO INTERNATION­AL AIRPORT’

By Laud-Kissi-Mensah