Minority urges government to reduce oil prices
Bawku (Upper East) 14 December 2001 - Some married women in Bawku have said they were now happy with the curfew imposed on the township owing to the ethnic clashes, because their husbands stayed home to help them in their household chores.
The women, who, according to the GNA wanted to remain anonymous, said prior to the curfew, their husbands stayed late outside and by the time they came home, they the women were fast asleep with the children.
They said the curfew had compelled them to complete their daily chores early to have enough time to sit with their husbands and the children.
In another development, the Bawku East District Co-ordinating Director, Mr Ibrahim Alhassan, said the conflict had adversely affected the revenue of the District Assembly.
He said revenue sources were mainly the markets but prevailing conditions had prevented traders from selling their wares and the few who patronised the markets were not willing to pay tolls.
Mr Alhassan could not, however, tell how much was lost but said that would be determined at the end of this month when the assembly's trial balance would be prepared.
Though commercial activities were gradually booming back, smugglers found it difficult to operate, because security forces searched all vehicles, entering or leaving Bawku.
Some smugglers, who brought in goods from Togo or Burkina Faso twice a day, now found it difficult to do so.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 14 December 2001 - Reconstruction of the road from Kwame Nkrumah Circle to the Neoplan Junction at Achimota will start in July 2002 and completed in 2005, Dr Richard Anane, Minister of Roads and Transport announced on Thursday.
The three-lane road, to be funded by the International Development Agency (IDA), an affiliate of the World Bank, would have an interchange for the railway, three footbridges and 10 traffic lights, Dr Anane told a public forum in Accra on the environmental impact assessment of the rehabilitation of the Nsawam Road (Nkrumah Circle to Neoplan Junction).
The forum was to afford the public the opportunity to express their views on the design and concept of the road. Dr Anane said construction of the road was going to have both positive and negative repercussions for a number of persons who had been living and working along the corridor of the road.
"The reconstruction will have a positive impact on the national economy in general and within the route corridor in particular," he said.
"There will however be disruption of economic activities, destruction of property - houses and shops - relocation of utilities with attendant problems for households along the route and traffic congestion during the construction period."
Dr Anane said those who would be affected would be compensated, adding that the ministry would ensure transparency at all stages of the project to ensure value for money.
"You taxpayers deserve nothing but the best from your financial contributions towards the development of the nation."
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Accra (Greater Accra) 14 December 2001 - Five NDC Parliamentarians from the Upper East Region on Thursday called for the removal of the Acting Bawku East District Chief Executive (DCE) from office, saying his presence in the area contributed to the present unstable situation there, however, the Regional Minister says there was no Acting District Chief Executive but his Special Assistant.
They also objected to the lack of transparency and objectivity on the part of the Regional Minister in the handling of the Bawku Peace Initiative sponsored by a coalition of non-governmental organisations.
In a letter to the President, Mr John Akologu Tia, NDC-Talensi, Mr Cletus Avoka, NDC-Bawku West, Mr Ben Achidago, NDC-Binduri, Mr Moses Asaga, NDC-Nabdam and Mr Albert Abongo, NDC-Bongo, said these were the main sources of the conflict.
"As the people's representatives who are privy to the facts on the ground, we shall be shirking our responsibility if we don't acquaint government, the good people of this country and the world at large as to the causes of the latest conflict in Bawku."
The Members said: "The appointment of Mr Abdul Rahman Guma by the Regional Minister as his Special Assistant to oversee the affairs of the District Assembly despite the fact that he was rejected as the President's nominee by the assembly in a poll dated May, 17th, 2001, by a vote of 51 per cent. His subsequent appointment was seen as an imposition on the people."
They said: "He polled only 49.3 per cent of the votes cast instead of the two-thirds as required by the Constitution. He also failed to secure 50 per cent to qualify him for a second round of ballot as demanded by section 16 (8) of the standing orders of the District Assembly."
The members said the Regional Minister foisted him on the assembly after the President withdrew his nomination. The MPs said the President had directed the Regional Minister to take personal responsibility over the administration of the district.
"The perception on the ground was that the Regional Minister had fraudulently imposed a DCE on the people and also that he had done this to spite them."
The members said despite pleas from well-meaning citizens of the Region to Mr Mahami to remove Mr Guma from office, the Regional Minister stood his grounds.
"Some group of people in Bawku were waiting for the least opportunity to show by might that the Regional Minister's special assistant must stay in office and damned the consequences whilst another group wanted him out as demanded by law. This was the recipe for the conflict which the Regional Minister knew, but failed to avert."
On the Regional Minister's role, they said he should have convinced the Mamprusi faction that pulled out of the peace process to return and beefed up security in the area as it became apparent that a crisis was looming.
The Regional Minister, Mr Salifu Mahami told the Ghana News Agency that the Bawku conflict was long standing and the immediate cause of the recent outbreak was the burning of a kiosk and a retaliatory burning of a cargo truck.
He said it was not true that Mr Gumah failed to obtain 50 per cent of the votes cast by the members of the District Assembly on May 17 since he obtained 38 of the 76 valid votes cast.
A letter from the EC dated July 4, 2001 and signed by Mr A. K. Arhin, Director Elections, for the Chairman said: "The total votes cast in the case of the Bawku East confirmation is thus 76 and not 77 due to the single ballot that was rejected because it had no mark on it. Mr Guna thus obtained 38 votes to his credit with 38 against him, hence obtaining the 50 per cent.
"In accordance with Article 243 (1) of the constitution, Mr Guna has obtained the 50 per cent votes required and should thus be given a second chance"
Mr Mahami said the Regional Electoral Officer arranged to hold a second round of voting but he was restrained by suit filed at the Bolgatanga High Court.
However, the suit was later withdrawn that paved the way for the holding of the second round but just as the election was about to commence Mr David Adenzi Kanga, Deputy Chairman of the EC in charge of Administration, rang from Accra to stop the elections.
"We have since been waiting for the EC to conduct the second round voting." Mr Mahami faxed a copy of the "Communiqué issued at the end of peace and reconciliation consultation among Kusasi, Mamprusi, Bissa, Moshie, Dagomba and
Hausa delegations from Bawku held at Damongo from Monday June 4 to Friday June 8 under the auspices of the Bawku Peace Initiative" to the Ghana News Agency.
It showed that the Mamprusis did not pull out of the meeting as the Members of Parliament claimed since their representatives Seidu Akalifa Bugri, Alhaji Sulemana Yirimea, Clement Bugri and Madam Hawa Ninchema signed the communiqué.
"The Members of Parliament are playing politics with an otherwise serious situation," Mr Mahami said.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 14 December 2001 - President John Agyekum Kufuor returned home on Friday after a two-week official visit to France and Norway.
President Kufuor, who was accompanied by his wife, Theresa and Foreign Minister, Mr Hackman Owusu-Agyemang, was met on arrival by the Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama.
Also at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) to welcome him were Ministers of State, the Chief of Defence Staff, Lt-Gen. Seth Obeng, the Inspector of Police (IGP) Ernet Opoku, the French Ambassador, Jean Michel-Derrit and the British High Commissioner Dr Pullen.
Mr Owusu-Agyemang told newsmen later that President Kufuor held discussions with French President Jachques Chirac and the Prime Minister Mr Jospin on issues relating to African Economic development and the G8 decided to put Africa high on its agenda as from next year.
He said Ghana and France signed an agreement for a grant of 11.4 million euro for construction of roads and bridges in the northern part of Ghana. The Foreign Minister said projects including the Accra-Cape Coast road, Accra-Kumasi and Accra Aflao highway project were discussed as well as the water sector, pharmaceutical and AIDS and cultural exchanges.
Mr Owusu-Agyemang said the Accra-Kumasi road project was of interest to most French private companies who were ready to construct it on Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis.
The delegation met with the Paris Club and discussed Ghana's debt cancellation and agreed that loans taken by Ghana from 1983 to 1999 would be cancelled when Ghana reached the HIPC decision point in a few months time.
The Foreign Minister said peace and security in Africa, especially in Congo and Burundi were also discussed and emphasised the need for African leaders to find a lasting solution to the problems.
The delegation then left for Norway at the invitation of the United Nations Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan to witness his investiture as a Nobel Prize winner.
Mr Owusu-Agyemang said President Kufuor met with the King and Prime Minister of Norway to commemorate the third anniversary of September 11, attack on America.
He said the Prime Minister pledged Norway's willingness to cancel Ghana's debt and assist her in infrastructural projects, deep-water oil exploitation, fisheries, bauxite and aquaculture.
Norway again said she would help Ghana in economic development projects and the Regional Maritime Academy in Tema, he added.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 14 Dec. 13, GNA - The Minority on Thursday urged the government to be sensitive to the plight of Ghanaians and reduce the prices of petroleum products following the fall in world market price of the commodity.
Mr Abraham Kofi Asante, the Minority Spokesman on Energy, told a press conference after the Speaker, Mr Peter Ala Adjetey had ruled that the Minority's motion that sought to urge the government to reduce prices of petroleum product could not be debated according to the Standing Orders of the House.
At the time the government increased petroleum prices a barrel of crude oil sold at 29 dollars compared to the present 17 dollars per barrel. "There is an exceptional gain that has arisen from the unexpected change in the market situation and we are, therefore, enjoying a windfall which all Ghanaians must be part-takers."
He said the government's excuse that it was using the windfall to pay off the debt of Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) was untenable since Ghanaians did not know how much had accrued to the state and how much had been used in paying the debt.
Mr Asante said the government was manipulating figures on the cost and the selling price of petroleum products such as when in March the traded price of crude oil was 24 dollars per barrel and yet the import parity figure of 30.84 dollars was used to calculate the prices of the products.
"In April an import parity of 32.17 dollars was used and in May it was calculated using 34.08 and at another time it used 32.17 dollars per barrel".
Mr Asante challenged the Minister of Energy, Mr Albert Kan-Dapaah to announce to Ghanaians what figure he used to calculate the May prices of the product.
He said in August the country could have sold petrol at an ex-pump price of not more than 9,000 cedis per gallon and would have still made some savings.
Mr Asante said the sale of petrol alone fetched the country 19.33 billion cedis a month but the government had declared 53 billion cedis as total sales from the windfall of petroleum products since March this year.
Between August 17 and November, government subtly increased taxes on petroleum products by 34 per cent. This indicated that government had slapped 156 per cent increase in taxes on the poor Ghanaian consumer.
Mr Alban Bagbin, the Minority Leader, said the national Democratic Congress (NDC) would not take to the streets as NPP did last three years when petroleum prices were increased by about 20 per cent.
He said the Minority would use Parliament and other democratic methods to put their case across for Ghanaians to be the best judges "since demonstrations are not part of our political culture".
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