Former Member of Parliament and Central Regional Minister under the National Democratic Congress, Comfort Ama Benyiwa Doe has died in Tema at age seventy-three.
The astute politician and social justice advocate has been eulogized for her activism and outspokenness.
Comfort Ama Benyiwa Doe nicknamed Chavez for her staunch political activism was born on 1948 and christened Comfort Saah.
An indigene of Gomoa Abora in the Central Region, she studied at Accra Workers College and worked as a Stenographer at the University of Ghana.
She deeply immersed herself in the nasty and adversarial game of politics with the defunct Provisional National Defence Council regime and served as Deputy Secretary of Mobilization and Social Welfare.
The dyed-in-the-wool politician later studied at the Mikhail Kalinin School in Cottbus Germany and contested the Gomoa West seat in the 1992 general elections on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress.
She subsequently won the elections and served as MP of Gomoa West constituency in addition to the Pan African Parliament.
She contested again in and won in the 1996 elections against Joyce Aidoo of the New Patriotic Party. She polled 17,505 votes out of the 33,955 valid votes cast representing 35.60 against NPPs candidate, Joyce Aidoo, who polled 10,866 votes.
In the 2000 general elections, she managed to snatch 12,995 votes from the NPP candidate, Benjamin Kojo Acquah who polled 11,248 votes.
Ama Benyiwa Doe later tasted defeat by the NPP’s candidate, Joe Kingsley Hackman in 2004 after serving as MP for four terms as MP.
The outspoken Ghanaian politician continued to work for the NDC as National Women’s Organizer and later served as Central Regional Minister from 2009 to 2014.
She also served on the Council of State for a period and went to hibernation following the demise of the late President John Evans Atta Mills in 2012.
She was reported dead at Tema according to sources within her party.
Some key personalities in the political space of the country have been sharing tributes about the social advocate.
The few Pan African News can gather are that of the former president and flag bearer of the NDC in the 2016 and 2020 general elections, President John Dramani Mahama and the current President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
President Mahama on his Facebook page described Ama Benyiwa Doe as not only a “politician, but also a gender activist and champion of women’s rights”.
He said, Ama Benyiwa Doe was an embodiment of limitless courage, committed and passion for service. May her soul rest in eternal glory he added.
President Nana Addo also in his Facebook page says he was sad of the news of his former colleague in parliament.
“I’m sad to hear about the news of the death of Ama Benyiwa Doe. She was a colleague in parliament, and a good friend. May her soul rest in perfect peace until the last day of the resurrection when we shall all meet again. Amen!!
End.
Story by George Yawson Vineh.