By Benjamin Akoto
Sunyani, Oct. 30, GNA – Reverend Jonathan Amankwah Oppong, the Second Minister at the Wesley Methodist Cathedral in Sunyani, has suggested the establishment of nationwide recreational centres as an avenue of entertainment for the elderly.
He said the elderly were often found confined to their rooms and houses, lacking opportunities to socialise and share ideas with their peers, saying the isolation only contributed to deteriorating their state of health rapidly.
Rev. Oppong made the proposal in a sermon at the burial service for the late ‘Opanin’ John Osei-Frempong, a former Brong-Ahafo Regional Manager of the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on Saturday in Sunyani.
Opanin Osei-Frempong, who worked for about four decades with GNA and retired from active service in 1997, having rose to the Agency’s highest rank of a Chief Editor, passed away in the early hours of Thursday, July 13, 2023, at the Sunyani Regional Hospital, aged 86.
“In the past, our forefathers built compound houses, ensuring that there were always people around for companionship, but, in recent times, people have been building self-contained apartments, primarily for their nuclear families,” he noted.
Rev. Oppong therefore expressed worry that current trends had negatively impacted on the lives of the elderly in society, as their younger family members often left them behind, either for work and returned home late or settled somewhere for better opportunities in life.
Mr Osei-Frempong, after completing his studies at the Ghana Institute of Journalism, joined the GNA, where he covered the courts and worked at the sub-desk.
He was later transferred to Sunyani, where he further honed his skills under the guidance of the late Owusu Ansah, also a former Brong-Ahafo Regional Manager of the GNA.
Throughout his career, Mr Osei-Frempong worked in various towns, including Tema, Accra, Sunyani and Tamale, where he was appointed as the Regional Manager for the Northern and Upper Regions, but eventually he returned to the Sunyani Office as the Brong-Ahafo Regional Manager
Mr Osei-Frempong was a well-traveled person, immersing himself in diverse academic and professional circles while exploring different cultures across countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and other countries.
He was married to the late Mrs Harriet Osei-Frempong, and they were blessed with seven children, four of them alive while three had passed away.
GNA