Bernice Heloo

Hon.
Dr. Bernice Adiku Heloo
Member of the Ghana Parliament
for Hohoe
2013.to 2016
In office
7 January 2013 – 6 January 2017
Succeeded byJohn Peter Amewu
Former Deputy Minister for Environment, Science and Technology and Innovation
In office
2013–2017
PresidentJohn Dramani Mahama
Personal details
Born
Bernice Adiku Heloo

(1954-09-24)24 September 1954
Hohoe, British Togoland (now Ghana)
Died25 December 2024(2024-12-25) (aged 70)
Political partyNational Democratic Congress
ProfessionDevelopment expert
CabinetMinister
CommitteesAppointments Committee

Bernice Adiku Heloo (24 September 1954 – 25 December 2024) was a Ghanaian politician who served as a Member of Parliament for the Hohoe Constituency.[1]

Early life and education

Heloo was born in Hohoe, Volta Region, Gold Coast on 24 September 1954,[2][3] to Rev. E. T. Adiku and Comfort Adiku.

Heloo attended Mawuli School and OLA Girls' Secondary School, Ho. She obtained a BA in study of religions and an MPhil in adult education from the University of Ghana. She also obtained an M.Ed. in adult education, literacy for rural development from the University of Manchester. She obtained her doctorate degree in political economy from the Swiss Management Center University.[4]

Career

Heloo was the immediate past president of Society For Women and AIDS in Africa and founder of Prolink, an NGO in Ghana. She was later the member of Parliament for Hohoe constituency.[4]

Politics

Member of Parliament

Heloo was a minority member in the 6th and 7th parliaments of the 4th republic of Ghana. She was the member of parliament for Hohoe, Volta Region from January 7, 2013, to January 2021; this is her second term.[5] As the parliamentary member for Hohoe Constituency, Heloo criticized the president of the Republic of Ghana Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for not addressing the kidnapping of the Takoradi girls in the 2019 state of the nation address.[6]

2012 election

Hon. Heloo contested the Hohoe constituency parliamentary seat in the Volta Region on the ticket of National Democratic Congress during the 2012 Ghanaian general election and won the parliamentary seat with 40, 486 votes representing 81.58% of the total votes. He was elected over Obro- Adibo Janet Einefa of New Patriotic Party, Agbenorwosi Rich- Doh of Progressive People's Party (PPP), Cecil- Rhodes Dodge of PNC and Kutuadu Beauty of Convention People's Party. They obtained 6, 358 votes, 2, 462 votes, 193 votes and 129 votes respectively. These are equivalent to 12.81%, 4.96%, 0.39% and 0.26% of the total votes respectively.[7]

2016 election

Hon. Heloo was re- elected as a member of parliament for Hohoe (Ghana parliament constituency) in the Volta Region on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress during the 2016 Ghanaian general election with 35, 437 votes representing 82.09% of the total votes. He won the parliamentary seat over Marlon Praises Anipa of New Patriotic Party who pulled 6, 462 votes which is equivalent to 15.01%, parliamentary candidate for NDP Justine Kumordzi had 383 votes representing 0.9%, Ameckson Frank Sellasie of Progressive People's Party (PPP) had 269 votes which is equivalent to 0.6% and the parliamentary candidate for Convention People's Party Wisdom Kweku Adetor pulled 179 votes representing 0.4% of the total votes.[8]

Deputy Minister

Heloo was appointed by President John Dramani Mahama in 2013 to serve as deputy Minister of Environment, Science and Technology and Innovation. She served in that role in the John Mahama administration from 2013 to 2017.[9][10][11][12]

Personal life and death

Heloo was a Christian and was married.[4] She died on 25 December 2024, at the age of 70.[13]

References

  1. ^ "Former Hohoe MP and Pencils of Promise partner to give Gborxome M/A Basic School a 6-unit classroom block - MyJoyOnline". MyJoyOnline. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  2. ^ "Members of Parliament | Parliament of Ghana". Parliament Of Ghana. Archived from the original on 30 November 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  3. ^ "Parliament of Ghana". Parliament of Ghana. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  4. ^ a b c "Ghana MPs - MP Details - Heloo, Adiku Bernice". GhanaMps. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  5. ^ "Ghana MPs - MP Details - Heloo, Adiku Bernice (Dr)". GhanaMps. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  6. ^ "MP criticizes President for not highlighting kidnapping girls in SoNA". GhanaNewsAgency. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  7. ^ FM, Peace. "Hohoe Constituency Results - Election 2012". Ghana Elections - Peace FM. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
  8. ^ FM, Peace. "Hohoe Constituency Results - Election 2016". Ghana Elections - Peace FM. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
  9. ^ Lumor, Shallom (3 December 2016). "NDC advised against voting skirt and blouse". Graphic Online. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  10. ^ "We need more of Zoomlion's Recycling plant - Dr. Oteng Adjei". AcarpGhana. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  11. ^ "Ghana Deputy Minister highlights progress in PCB Project". UNITAR. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  12. ^ "The ICAITM 2016 conference kicks off". Blog Aau. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  13. ^ Aggor, Desmond Selase (25 December 2024). "Former Hohoe MP Bernice Heloo passes away". Citi Newsroom. Retrieved 25 December 2024.