Stop using children for your campaigns – Child Rights International

The Executive Director of Child Rights International, Bright Appiah, has chastised political parties who use children for campaign adverts because of the parties’ policies for children.

He said the law indicates that children must be protected, so it is a violation of the children’s right if political parties use children for adverts in the media because they have policies related to them.

Mr. Appiah said this in an interview on Onua FM’s Yen Sempa, Monday, November 30.

“Children for political adverts are totally wrong because they cannot vote so we can’t use them for any political activities,” he explained.

He added that “the laws say we have to protect them so if we have done something for them, there is no need to use them in adverts to indicate the policy is better”.

Mr. Appiah suggested that “[the children] should participate in the process so that they would have the knowledge about the process but we are not doing that”.

“We are asking politicians to desist from that but they are not doing but there is a reduction in the engagement of children in that direction,” he said.

Advice to children

Mr. Appiah advised that “if you are not above 18 years, the law does not allow you to vote as a child [so] we need to do things that will bring blessing and peace and not violence”.

“Children cannot actively participate in elections and I will urge politicians to desist from using them.”

He noted that politicians who use vulgar language on political platforms and in the media must desist because the children are listening and watching.

“Our campaign messages, the children are listening. If we want the good for Ghana, we should use decent words so that when they grow, they can also do same.”

Mr. Appiah added that “if we recruit children to indulge in violence it will not help”.