A book of condolence has opened for one of the pioneering female politicians in the Fourth Republic, Professor Naa Afaley Sackeyfio, 85, who passed away on January 11.

Though a thoroughbred in academia, Prof. Sackeyfio had a brief stint in politics when she ran as a running mate of the National Independence Party (NIP), one of the five parties that contested the general elections when Ghana returned to constitutional rule in 1992.

Prof Sackeyfio, a Professor in English language, spent most of her teaching career at the University of Cape Coast.

She was an author and a poet who played a significant role in Ghana's literary space with her writings.

She became a prominent political figure in 1992 when she was named the running mate by the Presidential candidate of the NIP, Dr Kwabena Darko.

The NIP finished fourth in the presidential race and a year later, the party became defunct, ending the political career of Prof. Sackeyfio, who chose to return to quiet academic life.

However, she remained one of the advocates to push for more women participation in politics at the highest level.

As an author, some of her most popular books are Tales my mother used to tell; Culture clothed in tails and Comprehension plus.

Prof Sackeyfio is the second woman to have contested as a running mate in the history of Ghana politics when the country returned to democratic dispensation in 1992.

Before her, in 1979, Lt. Col Christine Kwabea Debrah made history as the first woman to contest for such a high political office, when she was chosen as the running mate by the Independent Presidential Candidate, Robert Patrick Baffour, during the elections to usher in the Third Republic.

A professional nurse who headed the  37 Military Hospital Nursing Department, Lt. Col Debrah , did not return to mainstream politics but remained in public service.

She broke barriers in both the military and politics.

After her nursing career, she went on to become the first executive chairperson of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), serving in that role from 1985 to 1990.

She then retired from public service, but remained an advocate for women empowerment in leadership and politics until her demise in 2014.

Prof. Sackeyfio is survived by her children: Nana Benyin Sackeyfio, Dr papa Amonoo Essilfie,  Awonoowa Sam and her siblings, Kathleen Afarkor Sackeyfio Odienge, Dr Alexander Sackeyfio and Dr Josephine Sackeyfio of the University of Ghana Dental School.