This week's contributors: Lydia, Doré Fasolati, this week's subjects: Fashion events lineup, Our organs, Champagne, Living with crime.

Fashion events lineup

With international fashion weeks almost over, it’s about time for our local fashion shows. Which amongst these shows will be the La Crème de La Crème of fashion shows in Ghana.!!

With most fashion schools students graduating soon, there are a few major shows every individual should look out for this season.

First on the list being Glitz Africa Fashion Week which is set to be their 10th Anniversary this year themed Creativity and Sustainability which gives a platform to African designers and models to showcase their passion whilst promoting and providing clientele for their businesses. Here’s a bit of their program line up.

On October 19th is their influencers’ hangout and cocktail night. This is an intimate hangout for industry players and designers to officiate the grand opening of this year’s event. It’s strictly by invitation.

October 20th is the beauty forum; a seminar for beauty brands, entrepreneurs and all enthusiasts. Location is the UnderBridge.

October 21st is Sustainable Fashion show; a fashion show featuring sustainable fashion designers. Venue is at Nubuke Foundation. October 22nd is Business of Fashion Seminar; this seminar caters towards the growing fashion community, fashion students and emerging designers to discuss relevance of the industry. Then a Runway show to end it. October 23rd is a fashion presentation at the Lotte Boutique cantoment. Check out the other events in our next episode….

Our organs. Our body has several parts and organs in double, like you have 2 ears and 2 eyes and 2 lungs, and often you can actually live with just one of them. Same goes for kidneys, we have 2 of them, and it is not uncommon that in case of a total kidney failure (the 2) a family member donates one of his/her good kidneys to be transplanted to the sick relative, allowing the relative to survive, and the donor of the kidney as well. Since not everyone has such nice donating relatives there is a big demand for kidneys. People who need them have to wait years before one can be removed from a healthy person who has died, say in a car accident. Before that person died that person would have given consent for removal of organs, for example for kidney transplant or research. Most people don’t write such consent so kidneys remain in short supply. Like any shortness, people jump in to fill the hole. This goes in 2 ways. Either you are lured away, drugged and then one of your kidneys is cut out of you and sold on the illegal market for between $ 100,000-500,000 for the end user. The World Health Organization has been warning and alerting the public about this practice, so think twice before you accept a “too good to be true” job in an obscure country, or party and drink with people you don’t really know. This is serious, you can use search engines to read about it. Or you could agree to have a kidney removed and get around 2000 $ (only). And now comes the crunch, the Thailand Red Cross is alerting people not to sell a kidney to buy an iPhone. There are pictures on the net of proud iPhone 14 owners showing he scar on their body where the kidney was removed. And the iPhone. Talking of brand loyalty.... I once read that teenage pregnancy is mainly due to iPhones and KFC, but this one really beats my mind.

Champagne. Horay, there is to be a party and there will be Champagne. Last Sunday I saw some of these bottles at Shoprite for 920 GHS a bottle. But, tell you the truth, apart from the glamour image around it, I have yet to taste a Champagne which is worth to me even half of that money, where the taste and bubbly effect is such that I want more and more. The Frenchie's have managed to blow up the price of this sparkling wine like they do with their perfumes and haute couture's. In the case of Champagne by creating an artificial shortage by only allowing wine from a very restricted area, in the Champagne wine growing area in the north east of France to be sold under the name Champagne. If the grape grew 1 yard east or west of that area the wine cannot be called Champagne. But the same and similar grapes grow in for example Italy, Germany and Australia, where similar sparkling wines are made. The Italian one is called Prosecco, and sells at Shoprite for GHS 160, and I found one which tastes more sparkling and happy then all the Champagnes I have been served so far. The Germans have a similar thing, called Sekt, and hardly any German drinks Champagne. I don’t see the Sekt in Shoprite but it would probable cost around the same as the Prosecco, or even less. Over to you.

Living with crime

2 out of 5 children are being abused on a regular basis to the extent that most African parents cover up for these predators. The African child suffers both physical and psychological abuse in the household which is supposed to be their safe space. And have learnt to deal with the abuse by shoving it down within their souls and have normalized the abuse.

Adults who are supposed to be guardians when parents are not around have become the main perpetrators. They threaten the child of a more gruesome abuse if they ever mention what’s been done to them. Knowing the African child to be extremely vulnerable and obedient, they numb the pain and keep it to themselves till they are able to convince themselves it’s normal and live with it for the rest of their lives.

Parents need to pay keen attention to all family members around their children. Be it older siblings, cousins, uncles, aunts, family friends etc; and cultivate the habit of talking and listening to youngsters.

Dear African parents, Stop covering up for family abusers and let’s all learn to report to authorities when a close relation abuses a child. Know the difference between disciplining a child and physically abusing a child. It’s better for a child to grow up in a safe environment than with a redeemed family name. You are so focused on having very obedient children that you tend to forget your children are in crisis. Children do get depressed too. These kinds of things limit the child’s potential for a healthy relationship, amongst others.

Dear African child, do not be afraid to tell or report an abuser.  How do you spot an abuser? Any adult who asks to see or touch your private part is an abuser and should be reported immediately. Do know that it is not your fault and that adult should know better.

Lydia...

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