Rawlings says the people are disillusioned
Rawlings, Mills call for unity in NDC
Co-chairmanship best for NDC - Ali
Tribunal to hear Victor Smith's case on 17 May
Ghanaian wins UN population award for 2002
Police reinforcement team sent to boat disaster area
President Kufuor in Kumasi to address chiefs
Baroness Amos calls for prioritisation of peace and security
Justice Acquah advocates strict application of criminal law
Law would take its course - Kufuor
Chief Justice appeals for rehabilitation of court
Spouses' declaration assets cannot curb corruption - Jake
Hear the cry of Ghana Medical School
Interior Ministry expresses condolences to families of boat disaster
Obed Asamoah files motion for an order of injunction
Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - Former President Jerry John Rawlings on
Saturday, said many Ghanaians have become disillusioned only 16 months after
the New Patriotic Party NPP government came to power. Majority of Ghanaians
cast their vote in protest to get the NDC government out of power but were now
hungry and angry, he said.
Former
President Rawlings who was addressing the first NDC congress after it was voted
out of office at the trade fair La in Accra, called on members to remain focussed
on the principles that had guided the party from the beginning and avoid the
temptation of expediency.
These
principles included commitment to the truth and objectivity and the urge to
fight for the rights of the underprivileged. He debunked the assertion that
anybody could lead the party into victory, saying that those who held the view
that if President John Agyekum Kuffuor, whom he said lacked charisma, could be
voted into power, then anybody could be voted into power were wrong.
He told
the delegates that there was no "Rawlings faction" in the party as
was being portrayed and traced the origin of such classification to the
"gutter press". Those in the forefront for positions in the party
should play down on their personal ambitions for the collective good of the
party, he said and offered to step aside should it come out that he was
becoming a stumbling block to the forward march of the NDC.
He
commended the NDC Parliamentary Caucus for putting the government on its toes
and cooperating with it when dealing with things that were for the national
good and resolutely resisting what was not in the people's interest.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings, Founder and
Leader of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), on Saturday said in Accra
that the unity and stability of the party should not be sacrificed for the
selfish desire of individuals wishing to hold office in the party.
He
therefore charged delegates at the fifth national congress of the party and the
first since its defeat in the year 2000 elections, to ensure that "what
emerges from congress would unite the party and ensure that it remained
formidable enough to win power in year 2004."
The
congress was to review the progress of the party since the last election, elect
a national executive council (NEC) and to chart a new course for the future,
especially for the 2004 elections. Flt. Lt. Rawlings noted that the recent
media war among party functionaries in the run up to congress, threatens to do
more harm than good to the party's fortunes in the 2004 elections.
"Focus
on winning positions to lead the party for the 2004 elections to the exclusion
of other factors such as truth, unity and stability of the party, threatens the
very survival of the party," he said.
He said
that while efforts were channelled towards the 2004 elections, the principles
of truth, loyalty and commitment to the survival of the party, which far
out-weighed the single elections, should be consolidated.
Flt. Lt.
Rawlings decried claims by some party functionaries that there was a Rawlings
faction in the NDC, which was responsible for the woes of the party, saying
that nothing like a Rawlings faction existed in the party.
"What
we have in the party is the June four factor, which is otherwise called the
Rawlings factor - not the Rawlings faction," he said. "And that
factor is clearly the uniting factor in the party".
He said
that as the leader and founder of the party, he would not stand by for any
negative campaign to become rooted in the party, adding that, "if party
members truly think I am the divisive factor, I am ready to step aside for the
party to remain intact".
Former
President Rawlings said, "I have fought for the unity and stability of the
NDC all my life and I can not allow some negative campaigners to use their
hatred against me to divide the party".
He noted
that such campaigners do not only divide the party, but were also doing the
dirty work for the party's enemies, who were only waiting to take advantage of
the situation to do the devils work against the party.
"We
must endeavour to ignite the principles of truth, loyalty and commitment to the
party to make it remain formidable to offer an alternative government in the
2004 elections and beyond.
In electing leaders to the NEC, therefore,
congress must focus more on candidates who demonstrate commitment to such
principles other than just competence to ensure that whoever holds a position
has authority and not just raw power, which leaves one as empty shells with no
respect and support from the rank and file," he said.
Flt. Lt.
Rawlings decried the situation where the ruling NPP government had excluded NDC
from the process of governance, saying that, the NDC have had the experience,
which qualifies it to offer important advice to the ruling party.
"They
are behaving as if we are not committed to peace, stability and
development," he said. "They have forgotten so soon that we laid the
foundation for peace and stability in the country before they came".
Professor
John Evans Atta Mills, the NDC flag bearer in the 2000 elections said "if
we leave congress divided then we are wasting our time thinking we can wrestle
power in 2004". He said the NDC in opposition should be an opportunity for
the party to unite and demonstrate it political maturity, adding, "we must
conduct ourselves in such a way that all forces work for us in the coming
elections".
Prof.
Mills said the party had a responsibility to prove its critics wrong and
rebuild its image to win power in the next election, adding; "I want to
believe that those who have in recent times used the media to divide the party
meant well but they must recognise that the media campaign is not helping the
party".
He
congratulated former ministers and those who held office in the NDC government
for staying home to help the party to fight for power and urged members to be
guided by the goals of the party's year 2000 manifesto in their work as
citizens of the country.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - Mr. Enoch T. Mensah and Mr. A. A. Munufie, both
leading members of the National Democratic Congress, Saturday led party members
to chant new slogans, which seeks to demonstrate the party's resolve to
recapture power in the 2004 elections.
Mr.
Munufie set the ball rolling when he asked the party supporters to respond
"Sankofa," which literally means "go back for it" instead
of "Ehe ejor" meaning "it is easy", to the call
"NDC".
He said
the party must re-direct its efforts at wrestling power back, adding that,
"wrestling power is not easy and has to be done in the sankofa
spirit". Mr. Mensah on his part asked the party members to respond
"Emashi kpen," which in the Ga language means "it is still
stable" and again, "Wommba ekon," which also means "we are
coming again".
He
cautioned the NPP to watch the NDC in the 2004 elections since "we are
definitely coming back again and this time round victory for the NDC is
assured". Beyond the brief chanting of the new slogans, there was colour
and pomp at the congress with
supporters from all the 10 regions, dressed in party colours, wielding party
flags and carrying placards saluted functionaries when they arrived at the
congress.
Professor
John E. A. Mills, NDC flag bearer in the 200 elections, Mr. Alban Bagbin,
Minority leader and some few others were greeted with thunderous roars when
they entered the venue.
In what
was described by some party members as a sign of unity and life for the party,
Former President Rawlings' appearance was welcomed with over 10 minutes ovation
as against the welcome for the aspirants of the chairmanship race.
Party
members carried placards, one of which read, "no Rawlings, no NDC" to
show the Former President Rawlings as the uniting factor in the party. Former
President Rawlings invited the three persons vying for the chairmanship and
presented them to the people by lifting they right hands one after the other,
beginning with Dr, Asamoah.
"I
thought I was coming to witness a congress full of tension and antagonism
against factions, but I can see that the atmosphere is already charged with the
spirit of unity and brotherliness," the former President said.
Former
President Rawlings said he was aware of campaigns by some party functionaries
to form groups but was not going to hold it against them saying, he expects
them to behave in a manner that would not give the chance to political enemies
to capitalise.
Present at
the function were members of the diplomatic corps, traditional rulers,
representatives of political parties and media houses with some radio stations
carrying the event live.
As at the
time of filing this story, out of the 75 persons who collected forms to file
nomination for various positions, only 40 persons had returned them. Out of the
40, five were women, including Mrs. Margaret Clarke-Kwessie, vying for National
Treasurer, Madam Sherry Ayittey, National Executive Council (NEC) member, Mrs.
B. Fynn-Williams, also for the NEC.
The rest
are Mrs Hilda Salifu, National Vice Chairperson and Honourable Akua Sena Dansua
for Deputy National Propaganda Secretary. The other positions to be contested
are Chairman or Co-chairman, Vice Chairman, General Secretary, National Organiser,
Deputy National Organiser, Deputy National Treasurer and Propaganda Secretary.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - Alhaji Issifu Ali, a co-chairman of the
National Democratic Congress (NDC), Saturday said the principle of
co-chairmanship helped the party in the past and had to be maintained.
He kicked
against calls to replace the principle with a chairman, saying, the
co-chairmanship principle affords the party the resourcefulness of two persons
at the helm of affairs instead of one.
"My
experience with my co-chairman, Mr. A. A. Munufie proved that two heads are
better than one," he said. Speaking at the 5th National Delegates Congress
of the NDC in Accra, Alhaji Ali said the congress was historic since it was the
first since the defeat of the party in the 2000 elections.
He decried
what he called "the media war" between factions of the party before
the congress, saying, such practices were not helpful and gave way to political
opponents of the party to capitalise on its weaknesses.
"The
NPP and its media allies are already propagating falsehood that the two decades
of the PNDC-NDC rule did not bring any development to this country," he
said. "There is no need giving them another opportunity to trade in their
ill tactics to deceive Ghanaians".
Alhaji Ali
said that contrary to the falsehood the NPP was preaching about the NDC,
Ghanaians could see the progress of the nation in the past two decades as
against the "fumbling" of the NPP in just one year in government.
"We
need a sense of unity and maturity to handle issues that concern us in such a
manner as would not compromise our efforts at wrestling power in the coming
elections," he said. Mr. Joshua Alabi, Greater Accra Regional Chairman
said contrary to the expectations of some sections of the public, the NDC was
bound to emerge from congress more united than ever.
He assured
party members that the congress would provide the necessary direction,
guidance, encouragement and unity needed for the people to contribute their
quota to the progress of the party.
"Let
us demonstrate to Ghanaians that the NDC has not only come to stay but would
also emerge more united from this congress and reclaim power in 2004 to redeem
Ghanaians from the NPP government's unfavourable economic policies".
In a
solidarity message read on his behalf, Mr. Haruna Esseku, Chairman of the NPP
acknowledged that the 5th congress had demonstrated that the NDC was truly a
democratic party.
He said it
was important for the NDC position itself so that it would not to be left
behind the path of political liberalism. "May whatever decisions the
congress take buttress the efforts that all our people are making to move Ghana
into a prosperous, happy and truly democratic nation," he said.
Mr.
Twetwere Opoku, General Secretary of the National Reform Party said in electing
leaders and charting the course of the party's future, the NDC must remember to
take the aspirations of the people into consideration to ensure that the
party's focus would go to better the lot of the people.
Mr. Alex
Segbefia and Mr. Eddy Commey, Chairmen of the United Kingdom and North American
branches of the party respectively, called on the leadership to apologise to
persons who deserved it and to learn to listen more to the opinions of party
members in taking decisions.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - An Accra Circuit Tribunal would on 17 May begin
hearing a case in which Victor Emmanuel Smith, an aide to former President Jerry
John Rawlings, has been charged for allegedly issuing threats to two
journalists.
The two
journalists are Mr Kweku Baako Junior, Editor of the Crusading Guide and Mrs
Margaret Amoakohene, a social commentator and lecturer at the School of
Communication Studies, University of Ghana, Legon.
He has
pleaded not guilty to issuing a threat of death and has been granted 50 million
cedis bail. Dr Josiah Aryeh and Wahid Iddrisu, both legal practitioners,
represented Smith. When the case was called on Friday, Superintendent of
Police, Mr Patrick Sarpong asked for a firm date for hearing. The tribunal
chaired by Mr Imoru Ziblim obliged and adjourned it to 17 May.
Superintendent
Sarpong had told the court that on March 18, the accused and Mr Abrampah
Mensah, interim president of the Action Forum, which is affiliated to the
National Democratic Congress (NDC), wrote a correspondence to be handed over to
Mr Baako Jnr and Mrs Amoakohene that they would not sit down unconcerned over
their criticisms of the former President.
He said
the accused also warned that if the victims failed to stop their criticisms
after receiving the letters, members of the Action Forum would be given pickup
vehicles to track them down and crash them. The prosecutor said the accused
stated that should these steps to silence the two fail they would devise other
means to kill them.
Superintendent
Sarpong said Mr Mensah, who is a witness in the case, was alarmed and revealed
the plot to a friend and handed the letter to him. This friend in turn gave it
to Mr Baako Jnr. who informed Mrs Amoakohene. The Prosecutor said when the
accused was arrested he admitted being the author of the threatening letter.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - Dr Kwasi Odoi-Agyarko, 55, a Ghanaian medical
practitioner and Executive Director of Rural Help Integrated (RHI), has been
selected as one of the two co-laureates for this year's United Nations
Population award.
Dr
Odoi-Agyarko is the second Ghanaian to have won the prestigious UN award after
Professor Fred T. Sai in 1993. According to a statement issued by the United Nations
Population Fund (UNFPA) in New York and received in Accra, the other laureate
is Engender Health (formerly AVSC international), USA, an international
non-governmental organisation (NGO) that promotes reproductive health services.
The United
Nations Population award was established by a resolution of the UN General
Assembly in December 1981. It is presented to individuals and/or institutions
for the most outstanding contribution to increasing awareness of population
questions or to their solutions.
The award
consists of a gold medal, a diploma and a monetary prize. Dr Odoi-Agyarko
currently directs RHI, an NGO that operates in the Bolgatanga and Bongo
Districts of the Upper East Region, to provide culturally sensitive and
innovative integrated reproductive health services to the people.
Since
1994, RHI programmes have earned UNFPA support under the fund's third and
fourth cycles of assistance to the government of Ghana. An important aspect of
Dr Odoi-Agyarko's work, which earned him both national and international
recognition, is his research, clinical and advocacy work on Female Genital
Mutilation (FGM).
The
statement said his action research programme, involving the clinical management
of complications resulting from the FGM and untiring advocacy work towards
total eradication of the practice, has contributed greatly in the reduction of
the prevalence of the practice in the region.
Dr
Odoi-Agyarko has attended many international meetings and conferences.
Currently, WHO and other international agencies work closely with him to tap
his technical expertise.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 26, GNA - The Volta Region Police Commander has
dispatched a reinforcement team to maintain law and order at Amevlovikope, near
Tepa Abotoase in the Volta Region where a boat disaster one week ago had
claimed at least 50 lives.
A
statement issued by Superintendent Angwubutoge Awuni, Director of Public
Relations of Ghana Police, said the team was being despatched because of an
attack on a rescue team made up of Police and members of the boat and canoe
owners association, who had gone there to assist in retrieving bodies of
victims.
It said on
19 April, police visited the town to assist in the rescue mission but were
attacked by the residents. The Police said members of the Regional Security
Council were visiting the area to have first hand assessment of the disaster.
The boat
believed to have been carrying about 100 passengers sank leading to the
drowning of at least 50 of them out of which 36 were school children. The cause
of the accident has been attributed to engine failure. Police said post-mortem
had been done and the bodies had been released to their relatives.
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Kumasi
(Ashanti Region) 27 April 2002 - President John Agyekum Kufuor arrived in
Kumasi on Friday to address the National House of Chiefs. President Kufuor was
met on arrival by the acting Ashanti Regional Minister, Mr. Isaac Edumadze who
is also the Central Regional Minister, Mr Maxwell Kofi Jumah, Kumasi
Metropolitan Chief Executive and other officials of the Regional Co-ordinating
Council and the security agencies.
On
arrival, President Kufuor, accompanied by the Chief of Staff, Mr. Kwadwo
Mpiani, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, Minister of Local Government and Rural
Development, Nana Akufo Addo, Minister of Justice and Attorney-General, Mrs
Cecilia Bannerman, Minister of Manpower Development and Employment, paid a
courtesy call on the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and the Asantehemaa, Nana
Afua Serwaa Kobi Ampem at the Manhyia Palace.
President
Kufuor and his entourage had a closed door meeting with the Asantehene. This
was the first time President Kufuor is addressing the House since assuming
office a year ago.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - Baroness Valerie Amos, the visiting British Minister
for Africa at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, on Friday advocated the
prioritisation of conflict resolution under the New Partnership for Africa's
Development (NEPAD) to ensure peace and development on the continent.
Economic
growth, skills development and their retention on the continent and the support
for health programmes should also be given an urgent attention, Baroness Amos
said when she paid a courtesy call on Vice President Alhaji Aliu Mahama, at the
Castle Osu.
The visit,
her second in less than two years, is to follow up on discussions on NEPAD,
held in February during British Prime Minister Tony Blair's visit to Ghana. Baroness
Amos, who is also the British Prime Minister's personal representative to
Africa for the G8, would also seek the country's views on NEPAD and the way
forward.
She
described NEPAD as a historic opportunity for the creation of a new
relationship between Africa and her development partners to facilitate the
socio-economic development of the continent. The Baroness said for this vision
to materialise, African leaders had to assume mutual responsibility and direct
the path of growth.
She
reiterated her country's commitment to ensure success of NEPAD, saying Britain
was playing a crucial role within the G8 to seek assistance to resolve
long-standing conflicts in Africa, promote investment and trade for economic
growth.
"Support
to Africa should not come only in the form of development aid, but as foreign
direct investments," she said. Mr. Rod Pullen, British High Commissioner
to Ghana, and other officials at the High Commission accompanied her.
NEPAD,
launched in October last year in Abuja, seeks to evolve several strategies by
African leaders to bring global attention and solutions to the profound issues
of poverty, inequality, conflicts, poor governance and development throughout
Africa. On bilateral relations, Baroness Amos said British support for Ghana,
which is about 65 million pounds this year, had not been tied to specific
programmes so that the government could utilise it on its areas of priority.
Vice
President Mahama commended Britain for championing Africa's cause in the
International Community and her invaluable support to Ghana. He said the
special summit held in Abuja on NEPAD in March, was very useful, adding that,
there was near consensus among the leaders on the priorities of the programme.
Vice
President Mahama expressed the hope that the G8 meeting to be held in Canada,
in June, would make commitments for the implementation of NEPAD. Mr Hackman
Owusu-Agyemang, Minister of Foreign Affairs, said discussions he held with the
Baroness and the Minister of Economic Planning and Regional Cooperation, was very
fruitful. Their meeting reviewed issues relating to the ECOWAS, the Mano River
Basin, Liberia and Zimbabwe.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - Justice George Acquah, a Supreme Court Judge on
Friday said that subject to the provisions of the Armed Forces Act (105),
proceedings of court-martials must be in accordance with the relevant
procedures under (Act 30) of the Criminal Procedure Code of 1960.
This, he
said, means that the basic principles of criminal trials like proof beyond
reasonable doubt, and giving reasons for decisions are equally applicable to
trials before court-martials.
Justice
Acquah said this after administering the Oath of Allegiance and the Judiciary
Oath to the Deputy Judge Advocate General of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), Col.
Thomas Allotey, a Legal Officer at a ceremony at Burma Camp in Accra.
He said in
a recent decision of the Supreme Court, which set aside the conviction of a
court-martial, the Supreme Court held that failure of the trial court-martial
to give reasons for its decision was improper, adding that a court-martial was
under the duty to give reasons in support of its decisions in acquitting or
convicting an accused.
He told
the Deputy Judge Advocate General: "As a Deputy Judge Advocate General,
the service attaches much importance to your comportment on the bench and in
public. You must avoid excesses of every kind and be courteous and polite. You
must above all exhibit integrity and honesty in all your dealings with the
public."
Brig.
Alexander Donkoh, Judge Advocate General of the GAF said it was more adequate
to begin an evolution of the military justice system, which may be peculiar to
the needs of the country and those of the armed forces, since the Armed Forces
Act of 1962, under which military law has been practised, has been in existence
for 40 years.
The Armed
Forces Act of 1962 required that the Judiciary Service provided the GAF with a
Judge Advocate to officiate whenever there was a court-martial, because at that
time there were no legally trained Ghanaians with military exposure to
undertake the assignment of Judge Advocate.
Brig.
Donkoh said that the main difference between the old system and the new
experiment was that both Judge Advocate General and his Deputy, who would be
officiating as a Judge Advocate would be legal officers with experience or
service in the military.
He said
the new arrangement was not meant to compromise the rights and privileges of
any service personnel, who may appear before a court-martial but that it was
meant to hasten trials.
Brig.
Donkoh noted that apart from the continued observation of an accused person,
the GAF's court-martial system would continue to be under the supervisory role
of the superior courts under the Chief Justice of Ghana.
Present at
the ceremony were the Deputy Minister of Defence, Mr Edward Akita, the Chief of
Defence Staff, Lt. Gen. Seth Obeng, the Army Commander, Maj. Gen. Clayton
Yaache, some members of the Ghana Bar Association, senior military officers and
some retired legal officers of the GAF.
Col.
Thomas Allotey read Law at the University of Ghana. He obtained the
professional law certificate (Counsellor-at-law) from the Ghana School of Law
in 1972. He was commissioned into the
GAF 1973. He holds a Master of Laws Degree from the Judge Advocate General
Graduate School, Virginia, USA. He was the Director of Legal Service of the GAF
from 1991 to 2001.
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Kumasi
(Ashanti Region) 27 April 2002 - President John Agyekum Kufuor on Friday said
although the government revered the chieftaincy institution, it would have no
choice but to let the law take its due course on those who sought to disrupt
the peace and stability the nation needed to develop.
He,
however, expressed appreciation to the chiefs in their efforts to redress the
spate of chieftaincy disputes and urged them to accelerate the process of
resolving these disputes.
President
Kufuor addressing the general meeting of the National House of Chiefs (NHC) in
Kumasi said the chiefs had an accumulated wealth of skills, expertise,
experience and influence, which could and must be mobilised for development.
This was
President Kufuor's maiden meeting with the House since his assumption of office
about 15 months ago. "There is no doubt that the chieftaincy institution
complements government in serving the social, cultural and other needs of the
people".
President
Kufuor pledged the government's commitment to entrench a culture of multi-party
democracy and improve upon the quality of lives of the people by transforming
the economy, adding, "a dynamic partnership between the government and
chiefs would set up the platform for the transformation of our nation".
President
Kufuor commended the chiefs who had instituted education and health foundation
or trusts for the benefit of their people and called for a collective and
sustained effort to make the dramatic changes required to transform the country
into modernity.
"This
would only happen if the integrity of the institution is not wantonly
compromised. Unfortunately, the current spate of chieftaincy disputes runs the
risk of undermining this most revered institution forever", he added.
President
Kufuor said land was a basic capital requirement needed for economic
development and as trustees of the country's lands, chiefs must be at the
forefront of development and industrialisation.
Unfortunately,
he said, a number of problems had cropped up on land acquisition thus retarding
the country's goal of encouraging investments, adding, "these problems
have made it evident that there is the need to take another look at the
modalities of land acquisition and the general management of our natural
resources".
President
Kufuor said as custodians of the country's heritage, the chiefs had a sacred
duty to be in the forefront in the protection of the environment, adding,
"too many of our towns and villages are engulfed in filth. Nananon can and
must take an interest in the sanitation of their areas".
President
Kufuor advised the chiefs to close their ranks and support the government in
its efforts to develop the country, adding, "we need unity to fight the
debilitating poverty that demoralises our people so much, we need unity to fight
the forces of evil that spread armed robbery, murders and fear".
Odeneho
Gyapong Ababio II, President of the NHC, earlier in a welcoming address, said
the House, having examined the true nature of the problems confronting the
institution, has identified measures that are to be taken to ensure lasting and
permanent solutions to most of the chieftaincy problems. As part of the
measures, a pilot research project mainly on succession to stools and skins
covering 20 traditional areas all over the country was almost completed.
The second
phase of the project is to start by June this year and would also cover
additional 20 traditional areas. He was hopeful that successful coverage of the
exercise throughout the country would tremendously help to minimise succession
disputes if not totally eradicate them.
Odeneho
Ababio spoke of plans to develop a database on chieftaincy and to update and
publish a code of ethics to govern the institution. The President of the NHC
called for action to be expedited on the Bill to amend the Chieftaincy Act 1971
to bring it into conformity with the 1992 constitution.
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Kumasi
(Ashanti Region) 27 April 2002 -The Chief Justice, Mr. Edward Kwame Wiredu, has
appealed to the President to continue to solicit funds from donors to
rehabilitate the 28th February Road court.
The court
as it was now, was a complete death trap and should be rehabilitated as a
matter of urgency, Mr. Justice Wiredu appealed at the third triennial delegates
conference of the Judicial Service Staff Association of Ghana (JUSAG) in Kumasi
on Thursday.
The
three-day conference has as its theme, "JUSAG and the challenges in
national development". In a speech read on his behalf by Justice William
A. Atuguba, a Supreme Court Judge, the Chief Justice disclosed that the Board
of Directors for the Institute of Continuing Judicial Administration would soon
be inaugurated.
He said
the training school would be well equipped to offer training in modern court
techniques while the judicial staff would undergo computer courses to be able
to impact positively on the administration of justice.
Mr Justice
Wiredu assured JUSAG that he would take human resource development seriously,
saying that, that was why he was pressing home his demand for more court houses
and equipment to ensure the quick delivery of justice.
The Chief
Justice said his concern was to ensure that all organs dealing with the law
such as JUSAG played their part in the dispensation of justice, adding,
"we have a democracy which must be protected. Those entrusted with the
responsibility of administering justice in Ghana should always remember that
they have a duty to perform".
He
reiterated his appeal to the public to report any court official, be he a judge
to his office for misconduct without fear or favour. Mr Justice Wiredu asked
the association to take investment very seriously, especially real estate
development so as to provide accommodation for the members.
In a
speech read on his behalf, Mr Sampson Kwaku Boafo, Ashanti Regional Minister,
said the NPP administration would go strictly by its avowed aim to govern by
the rule of law.
Mr. S.A.
Amissah-Aggrey, the National President of JUSAG, called for improved pension
scheme for workers of the Judicial Service and therefore supported the call by
the Civil Servants Association of Ghana for the government to return them to
the Cap 30 pension scheme.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - Mr Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, Minister of
Information and Presidential Affairs on Friday said the call for government
official's spouses to declare their assets would achieved no results in
stemming corruption, if there was no political will to prosecute offenders.
"Most
people amass wealth in the names of their children, and other family relations
so what good will it serve if they do? What matters most is the political will
to prosecute or deal with those who are found to be corrupt or stolen
government money," he said.
The GNA
reports Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey as saying in an interview after he had addressed
the second annual conference of the Transparency International- Africa
Affiliates, in Accra under the theme "Deepening and Sustaining the African
Anti-Corruption Agenda - Implementing the Nyanga Declaration".
He was
reacting to a call made by civil society organisations, which opposed
Parliament when it refused to include the need for spouses of public figures to
also declare their assets in order to ensure transparency in the acquisition of
wealth. The constitution requires all members of Parliament and Ministers of
State, among other public officers, to declare their assets on the assumption
of office.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - The
University of Ghana Medical School, on Friday said it might have to admit more
"fee-paying" students as opposed to those on scholarships if the
government failed to provide adequate funding to run the school.
According
to Prof. Clifford Tagoe, Dean of the School, the perennial problem of
inadequate funding was making it difficult for the School to expand and provide
certain basic research and teaching equipment.
Prof.
Tagoe explained at the launch of the 40th anniversary celebration of the school
at a press briefing in Accra that the current intake of students stood at 100
out of which 25 were foreign and Ghanaian students who paid fees. The rest of
the 75 are on scholarships.
He touched
on the shortage of academic staff, saying most of the lectures were above 50
years and on their way to retirement. The dean appealed to the Ministry of
Education to put in place measures to make it attractive for doctors to
specialise in the basic sciences to staff the medical schools.
He expressed the hope that the government
would do everything possible to stem the exodus of doctors and called for
support for the local post graduate programmes, which would help train more
qualified personnel to handle the medical schools.
On some of
the achievements, Prof. Tagoe said the school had helped in the establishment
of various institutions including the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical
Research
Prof.
Andrews Ayettey, Provost of the College of Health Science, called on young men
and women in the country to stop selling their services outside the country and
stay to develop the country. The Medical School has so far trained about 1,658
doctors. The anniversary is being celebrated under the theme, "40 years of
medical education in Ghana - the challenges, achievements and prospects."
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - The Ministry of Interior has expressed its condolences
to the families of the 50 people who lost their lives in the accident on the
Volta Lake near the Amevloi Island last Thursday.
A
statement in Accra on Friday said the Acting Interior Minister, Dr Kwame
Addo-Kufuor directed the Mr. Ernest Owusu-Poku, Inspector General of Police and
the Deputy Minister of the Interior, Mr Kwadwo Affram Asiedu to visit the scene
of the accident for an on-the-spot assessment of the situation.
It said a
committee of Inquiry is to be established by the ministry in collaboration with
the Ministry of Roads and Transport, into the incident. Officials of the
ministries would be posted there to ensure that there is no overloading of
vessels. "The, committee, involving all stakeholders, will recommend to
government on how to put a stop to the numerous accidents which beset
transportation on the Volta River."
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Penyi
(Volta Region) 27 April 2002 - Two persons were killed on the spot at Penyi,
near Dzodze in the Ketu District when a car being pursued by a Customs Excise
and Preventive Service (CEPS) patrol team on suspicion of smuggling fuel to
Togo run over them last Wednesday.
They are
Afi Dogbatse, 12, a Primary six pupil of A.M.E. Zion School at Penyi who was
returning home from school after being sacked for 5,000 cedis school fees
arrears and Ayawo Ayawuli, 30, from Akoepe a village in Togo who visited her
Aunt at Penyi and was returning when the accident occurred.
The GNA
reports that the CEPS personnel who were driving from Dzodze towards Denu
spotted the car going in the same direction, with 50-litre containers in the
car, and suspecting that they were filled with fuel gave it a chase and at a
point fired seven shots, which hit the left rear side of the car but the driver
refused did not stop.
On
reaching the outskirts of Penyi, the car being driven by Richard Adzakli, 35,
hit and killed Dogbatse and Ayawuli but refused to stop. Adzakli rather
abandoned the car on a nearby road, took to his heels and later reported to the
police.
According
to the source, the CEPS team towed the car to the yard of the Service at Aflao
without reporting to the police until the father of Dogbatse who went to the
scene of the accident reported and the police retrieved the body.
A search
on the car revealed 50-litre containers filled with fuel and three other
containers. Adzakli the source said told the police that he was not smuggling
fuel and that three passengers who had fled boarded the vehicle with the
commodity.
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Kumasi
(Ashanti Region) 27 April 2002 - Dr Obed Yao Asamoah, former Attorney-General
and Minister of Justice, has filed a motion in a Kumasi High Court for an order
of interim injunction to restrain Mr A. K. Mensah and Mr Asamoah Atuahene of
the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Action Forum from making defamatory
attacks on him pending the determination of a suit he had brought against them.
He is also
seeking for any other order or orders that the court might deem fit. The motion
was filed on behalf of Dr Asamoah by his solicitors, Matthias Gollo and
Company, a Kumasi-based legal firm.
In his
affidavit to support the motion, Dr Asamoah said he caused his solicitors to
file a writ against Mensah and Asamoah for libel on April 10, this year,
seeking claims for damages and perpetual injunction.
He said
Mensah and Atuahene are very elusive and that "we are finding it difficult
to effect service on them". Dr Asamoah said, this notwithstanding, they
are setting in motion the necessary processes to serve them by substitution. He
said, in the mean time, the defendants have been holding press conferences and
writing articles in the print media.
The former
Attorney General said if Mensah and Atuahene were not restrained by an order of
the court, they "will continue to write, utter and publish statements
defamatory of me, which will do irreparable damage to my reputation and render
my success in the suit nugatory".
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 27 April 2002 - The National Democratic Congress (NDC) said on Friday
that in spite of the publicity it was getting about the issue of the
chairmanship of the party, it is set for its Fifth National Delegates' Congress
in Accra on Saturday.
Alhaji
Huudu Yahaya, General Secretary, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview
that about 800 delegates were expected to attend the congress. They are made up of representatives from the
200 constituencies, national and regional executives, founding members, the
party's Parliamentarians, the integral wings, that is, the women and youth,
overseas branches and other affiliate bodies.
Alhaji
Yahaya said issues to be addressed at the congress included reports from the
General Secretary, National Treasurer, NDC Parliamentary Caucus Leadership, and
other committee chairmen.
He said
the congress would also deliberate on the contemporary Ghanaian political
situation and the state of the economy and the party's constitutional
amendments. It would also elect officers, adopt resolutions and swear-in
officers.
He said
the flagbearer for the 2000 elections, Professor John Evans Atta Mills and former
President Jerry John Rawlings would also address the delegates. Other political
parties in the country would give solidarity messages.
The
General Secretary noted that out of 75 individuals, who collected nomination
forms to contest for various posts in the party only 18 had returned them by
Thursday, 24 hours to the close of nominations.
Candidates
for the National Chairmanship are Dr Obed Asamoah, former Foreign Minister and
Attorney - General and Alhaji Mahama Iddrisu, former Defence Minister. Mr
Joseph H. Owusu-Acheampong, former Parliamentary Leader and Minister of
Agriculture, was yet to file his papers.
For the
Vice-Chairman, the candidates are Madam Sherry Ayittey, Squadron Leader Clend
Sowu, Mr Lee Ocran and Mrs Hilda Salifu. Mrs Margaret Clarke-Kwesie and Alhaji
Abukari Sumani are the only candidates, who had filed for the National
Treasurer and General Secretary, respectively.
The
candidates for Deputy National Treasurer are Nana Alex Asamoah and Mr Akolbire
Opam. For National Organiser Mr Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo is the only candidate so
far, while Mr William Aggrey and Alhaji Awudu Ariff are vying for Deputy
National Organiser.
Ms Akua
Dansua and Alhaji Issa Boateng are contesting for Deputy Propaganda Secretary,
while at the time of filing this story no candidate had filed for the
Propaganda Secretary post.
Three
candidates have file papers for membership of the National Executive Committee.
They are Professor Kofi Awoonor, Mrs Barbara Fynn-Williams and Mr Anthony
Anyaa. The issue of whether the party should have one chairman or co-chairmen
has thrown the party down the line. Two groups have followed Dr Asamoah, who
wants single chairmanship and former President Jerry John Rawlings, who wants
co-chairmanship.
The party
is also expected to separate the leader and founder position, which are
presently occupied by former President Rawlings, who would retain the founder
position. The NDC, which governed the country from 1993 - 2000, has been
finding it difficult to keep itself together since it lost the vote in December
2000. Officials say they hope the party would emerge from the weekend's
congress stronger, more unified, more focused and ready to win back power in
2004.
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