Stay Away From ‘Apio’ – First Lady Warns

Ghana’s First Lady, Mrs. Rebecca Akufo-Addo, has admonished the entire Ghanaian populace to reduce their intake of alcoholic beverages.

This she said will help them stay healthy and strong.

She sternly warned that too much intake of alcohol, especially, locally brewed ‘Apio’, can lead to dangerous diseases such as cancer.

Speaking at an event to commemorate the World Cancer Day celebration, Mrs. Akufo-Addo further admonished Ghanaians to stay away from smoking and also exercise their bodies regularly.

“I will urge you to adopt a healthy lifestyle. Exercise your bodies, stop drinking alcohol, quit smoking and adopt a healthy lifestyle,” she said.

World Cancer Day, organized by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) and celebrated each year on February 4, is an opportunity to rally the international community to end the injustice of preventable suffering from cancer.

This year’s theme, “I can, we can” acknowledges that everyone has the capacity to address the cancer burden.

The historic programme took place at the Great Hall of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), in Kumasi on Monday.

The President of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), Her Royal Highness (HRH), Dina Mired, who is also the Princess of Jordan, was present at the event.

The First Lady called for collective effort from all-and-sundry so Ghana overcome quickly mitigates the impact of the deadly cancer disease.

“We can work together to reduce cancer risk factors. We can overcome barriers to early diagnosis, treatment and palliative care. We can work together to improve cancer control and achieve global targets to reduce premature mortality from cancer and NCDs,” she said.

On her part, HRH Dina Mired applauded the Ashanti Region for having the determination to champion the fight against cancer of all forms.

She said she was impressed about the progress the region had made in the fight against cancer, promising to give her support to cancer fight in the region.

HRH Dina Mired said Kumasi had done a lot in the fight against cancer “and that is why UICC chose Kumasi as the first city in the cancer cot challenge programme.”

Kumasi Mayor, Osei Assibey Antwi, stated that Kumasi is determined to lead the path in the fight against cancer in Africa, calling for total support from all.