Bishop calls for all hands on deck in resettling street children
Kumawu (Ashanti Region) 04 February 2002 - A commission has been set up to vet 72 areas that have applied for district status, Captain Nkrabea Effah-Dartey (rtd) Deputy Minister of Local Government announced at Kumawu at the weekend.
The commission would tour all the areas agitating for separate districts, including Kumawu, to find out their viability in terms of their population, revenue resources and other infrastructure before coming out with its recommendations.
Capt. Effah-Dartey, told the Second Kumawuman Congress, that the exercise was a collaborative work between the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development and the Electoral Commission (EC) and would be completed before the 2004 elections.
He commended the Omanhene of Kumawu, Barima Asumadu Sakyi for instituting the congress and advocated the holding of such congresses in all the traditional areas, saying that from the Kumawu experience, he had realised they could serve very useful purposes.
GRi../
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Accra (Greater Accra) 04 February 2002 - The Okyenhene, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin has directed the Okyeman Council and the family of Dr. J. B. Danquah, the Doyen of Ghanaian Politics and one of the Big Six, to form a committee to prepare a programme for his final funeral rites.
The Okyenhene, who was speaking at a memorial service to mark the 37th anniversary of Dr Danquah's death in prison in 1965, said the committee should be formed in collaboration with the Palace to finally put his soul to rest.
Explaining his request, Osagyefuo Amoatia said when Dr Danquah was in prison he wrote letters to President Kwame Nkrumah to release him on account of his health and restated that he had no interest in violently or undemocratically overthrowing the government and, therefore, there was no reason for his incarceration.
A press statement issued in Accra from the office of the Okyenhene, Osagyefuo Amoatia, said he gave an account of Dr Danquah's death and said on that fateful morning, it was out of anger and frustration from the poor treatment meted out to him in prison that he had a heart attack, which killed him.
Mr William Ofori-Atta (Paa Willie), one of the Big Six, was given barely a few hours to take Dr Danquah's body away. "And when his body was brought to Kyebi, the town was filled with policemen to ensure that there was no funeral held for him and no one was allowed to weep or him."
Recounting the contributions of Dr Danquah to the country, the Okyenhene stated that it was through the direct instrumentality of Dr Danquah that the United Gold Coast Convention and institutions such as the University of Ghana, Cocoa Marketing Board and were established.
"It was he who gave us the name Ghana. In spite of his great works, none of these institutions remember him in any way and there is no institution that has been named after him." He said it was the responsibility of Ghanaians to ensure that school children learned Dr Danquah's history and knew the truth about him and his work for Ghana.
The Okyenhene stated that the Okyeman's concern was to ensure that their royal, who sacrificed his life for the country, would be given a befitting burial as part of the reconciliation exercise. "His work for the benefit of Ghana is what he stood for and it is what we will celebrate and stand for."
The Okyenhene said: "Okyeman's only request is that Ghana must remember that it is through the instrumentality of Dr Danquah that today (John Agyekum) Kufuor is president, just as Nelson Mandela's work made (Thabo) Mbeki President of South Africa."
GRi../
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Betiako (Ashanti Region) 04 February 2002 -President J.A. Kufuor has given a cheque for 3.3 million cedis to the relatives of the late Edmund Kwadwo Amofa, leader of the Betiako cocoa spraying gang, who died through burns he sustained in December 2001, when the pre-mix fuel meant for spraying cocoa in the area caught fire.
Presenting the cheque on behalf of the President at Betiako in Ashanti, Mr Akwasi Adu-Poku, the Ahafo-Ano North District Chief Executive (DCE), expressed his sympathy and condolence to the relatives of Amofa.
He said the President appreciated the efforts of the late Amofa, describing him as a hard working leader and said the amount was to help the relatives defray the hospital bills and other expenses incurred on Amofa.
Mr Adu-Poku assured the relatives that the assembly would help them repair the damaged building in which Amofa kept the fuel that caused the accident. Nana Kankam Boadu, Odikro of Betiako who received the cheque on behalf of the family, expressed his appreciation to the President for showing concern.
He asked for God's blessing for the President and hoped he would continue to show love and sympathy towards people when misfortune strikes.
GRi../
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Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 04 February 2002 - Mr Isaac Osei-Kuffuor, Managing Director of Joki Travel and Tour, on Monday appealed to foreign missions in the country to open consulates in Kumasi.
This would save visa applicants problems associated with travelling to Accra to process visa applications, he said in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Kumasi.
Mr Osei-Kuffuor said the request is of much importance and must be considered by the embassies, adding that by his calculation, the greatest number of visa applicants were from the northern sector and by opening consulates in Kumasi, which is centrally located, processing visas could be facilitated.
It would also reduce the burden of the applicants, many of who go through a lot of stress in their quest to secure visas. On passport acquisition, Mr. Osei-Kuffuor said the Ministry of Interior should also consider establishing a branch in Kumasi to process passports.
GRi../
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Offinso-Maase (Ashanti Region) 04 February 2002 -The Most Rev Thomas K. Mensah, Bishop of Obuasi Catholic Diocese, has advised Ghanaians to desist from perceiving resettlement of street children as the responsibility of the government and religious bodies only.
It should be seen as a collective duty of all, he said and urged the rich to set aside a portion of their resources to be used to adopt and rehabilitate street children and the deprived in their neighbourhoods.
Bishop Mensah gave the advice in a sermon to climax activities of a four-day retreat organised by the Kumasi Catholic Archdiocese branch of the Sacred Heart Confraternity at Offinso-Maase on Sunday.
The 2,500 members of the confraternity who attended the retreat were made up of the clergy and laity from Kumasi, Konongo-Mampong and Obuasi dioceses of the Church.
It was aimed at creating a forum for members to assess their performance over the last year and map out more appropriate strategies for effective promotion of social and religious activities within the dioceses.
GRi../
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