“Remove
bottlenecks inhibiting growth of economy’
Suspend Obed Asamoah from NDC - Action Forum
Amandi runs riot!
Bursar rapes
student at OLA Girls
Fetish
priest steals goat
Environmental
body lauds Otumfuo, Okyenhene's efforts
Metro TV
scores hat-trick
Miss
Universe Ghana - the homestretch
In spite of
the belief of most Ghanaians that the National Reconciliation Commission Bill
is the product of Parliament, the “Voice” can reveal that it was decided and
approved by cabinet and only brought to the House for its approval.
According
to Honourable Doe Adjaho, NDC Member of Parliament for Avenor and the Minority
Chief Whip, the whole Bill was designed behind the scenes and that it is his
believe that some NPP front liners were not even in favour of the Bill.
Honourable
Doe Adjaho was speaking to the Ghanaian Voice in an interview at Parliament on
last Thursday January 8. In the same interview, Hon Adjaho threw a challenge to
the Ministry of Finance, Mr Osafo Maafo to disprove that his Minister did not
over spend on contingency and administration contrary to the 2001 Appropriation
Act that was approved by Parliament.
Whiles
lauding the NPP for the focus of the People’s Assembly, he said some of the
questions and answers were misleading.
GRi…/
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A former
PNDC Secretary, Dr Ayirebi Acquah has suggested that people who are appointed
to the proposed National Reconciliation Commission be vetted by Parliament.
He said
Parliament is more representative of the people of Ghana and its endorsement of
people charged with such great responsibility would go a long way to make them
credible and make their report more acceptable to the people.
Dr Ayirebi
Acquah made the suggestion in an interview with the “The Evening News” at the
Accra International Conference Centre (AICC) where he participated in the “People’s
Assembly” to mark the ninth anniversary of the Fourth Republic.
He stated
that such a move by Parliament would also signify the involvement of the
minority in the appointment of people to the Commission. According to him, it
was only when the appointees were fully vetted by Parliament that their
recommendations and report would be credible and acceptable to both the
majority and the minority.
He stressed
the need for the reconciliation, saying that many acts of commission and
omission had happened over the past 50 years some of which were criminal. Dr
Ayirebi Acquah said there was the need for a new spiritual foundation to be
built for all Ghanaians considering what had happened in the past.
On the
trial of some former government officials, which some people described as
political persecution, Dr Ayirebi Acquah said where there was criminal charge
against any individual, investigations must be fully conducted and the law
takes its course in a most transparent manner in accordance with rule of law
and natural justice.
He
commended the government for its good economic policies, which had brought down
inflation, interest rate and stabilised the cedi.
The former
PNDC Secretary however, cautioned the government to be wary of giving out high
salaries and wages to workers without a corresponding measure to ensure real
purchasing power.
He said
such a move could cause serious problems for the government and make it very
unpopular in the end. On the first anniversary of the NPP, he said it had a
quite peaceful and successful year, which all Ghanaians must be congratulated.
He said it
was the perseverance and resilience of Ghanaians that made the year a very
successful one.
On his
part, Mr Johnny Hansen, a leading member of the Convention People’s Party
(CPP), said the NPP government had done well so far by being very democratic.
He said the government had also heightened the democratic consciousness of the
people and hoped that the trend would continue.
Mr Hanson
called on the government to liberate the economy from massive external
influence.
More…/
The
chairman of the Ghana National Commission on Culture (GNCC), Professor George
Hagan has described the NPP’s first year in office as one free of intimidation.
He noted that the NPP’s one year in office has succeeded in laying a very solid
foundation needed for the development of the country.
Prof Hagan
who was also the leader and presidential candidate for the CPP in the last
elections said this in an interview with The Evening News in Accra on
Wednesday. “At least one can now easily get up in the night and just go
anywhere without anybody harassing or intimidating him or her.”
He said for
the one year that the NPP has been in office, the economy has stabilised and the
security system improved. He said there has been an air of freedom.
Commenting
on the celebration of the fourth republic and the ninth anniversary and the
first anniversary of positive change, Prof Hagan said, it is very significant,
because it has given opportunity for people from the length and breadth of the
country to interact with the President and his Ministers aimed at moving the
country forward.
He said a
country like Ghana needs a platform like the people’s assembly to serve as a
feedback for the government to make amends and evaluate where necessary. Prof
Hagan said President Kufuor and his party’s one year in office of positive
change has been one of genuineness and openness in administration.
He wished
the NPP and President Kufuor good luck and all the best in the country.
GRi…/
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“Remove
bottlenecks inhibiting growth of economy’
The President,
Mr J.A. Kufuor, has directed the Minister of Private Sector Development, Mr
Kwamena Bartels, to constitute immediately a core group of business experts,
economists and accomplished entrepreneurs to help government identify and
remove bottlenecks inhibiting the growth of the economy.
The
directive is designed to accelerate economic growth, provide more jobs and
better incomes for the people and thus give practical meaning to the
President’s vision of Golden Age of Business in Ghana.
Mr Kwabena Agyapong,
the Government Spokesman, made the disclosure in an interview in Accra on
Wednesday. He was shedding light on measures government was adopting to help
achieve real growth and development this year and realized some of the
electoral promises it made to the people in the run up to the December 2000
elections.
According
to Mr Agyapong, while declarations of making the private sector the engine of
growth had always existed and represented a statement of good intent, practical
steps designed to clear obstacles in the path of both business people and
investors and create a conducive atmosphere for businesses to thrive are the
best way forward to achieving this laudable objective.
President
Kufuor, in giving this directive, is signalling the seriousness he attaches to
the realization of his vision of promoting the growth and success of businesses
in the country.
It is also
a further testimony to his determination to make this year a year of action,
hardwork, growth, economic prosperity, more jobs and better standard of living
for Ghanaians without discrimination on political, ethnic, religious and other
grounds,” he stressed.
The
government spokesman disclosed that January 18 to January 21 this year has been
set for the convening of the round table discussion by experts and
entrepreneurs to help point the way forward for the economy.
He noted
that this consultative process is not only motivated by the desire of
government to seek, attain and utilize valuable information from the people but
also an integral part of the involvement of the people in the framing of
government policies and programmes as well as in the implementation of measures
that have varying effects on the lives of the people.
Mr Agyapong
further indicated that the government would also adopt a holistic approach,
involving the harmonization of the actions of the Ministries of Finance, Trade
and Industry, and Food and Agriculture towards realizing this objective.
“The
Justice Ministry would also be closely involved in this respect and would be
tasked with drawing or fine tuning the legal framework upon which this
enterprise would be anchored,” he added.
Mr Agyapong
said the donor community would also be invited to participate in this endeavour
and assured that not only would the recommendations of the participants be
taken seriously by government but also that the requisite resources to help
translate such ideas into positive economic growth would be made available by
government.
“Without
positive economic growth, there cannot be more jobs and better incomes for the
people and without support for the private sector this growth cannot also be
attained. This explains why the government of President Kufuor wants to act
with speed to resolve the problems facing that sector so that having achieved
some appreciable level of macro economic stability, the long awaited economic
take off would come for the benefit of all,” he added.
More…/
The Kumasi
Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) has decided to send 30 organisations to court to
compel them to pay back ¢300 million they collected under the Poverty
Alleviation Fund (PAF).
Mr Maxwell
Kofi Jumah, Kumasi Metropolitan Chief Executive, who made this known in an
interview, said the only means to collect the loans after persuasion has failed
is to send the defaulters to court.
He said
that the assembly has written to the organizations, giving them one month grace
for action to be taken against them.
He said among
the organisations that owe the assembly are Garden City Producers Association,
¢30 million; Ayedekyew Grains Marketing, ¢24 million; Nyamekyere Traders, ¢23
million; and 31st December Women’s Movement, ¢10 million.
He
indicated that although the time to start repayment of the Poverty Alleviation
Fund become due last year, only ¢2.6 million had been retrieved by November,
representing less than three per cent of the amount.
He said the
first disbursement of the loan was made in January 2000 while the last one was
made in October 2000 and that the organizations should have started paying back
by instalments before the end of the two-year deadline.
He revealed
that currently, the outstanding interest on the loan stands at ¢17 million. He
said while the assembly has been able to locate some of the defaulters, others
are yet to be identified, thus raising doubts about their existence.
He
mentioned some of the groups as The Young Shall Grow, Adum Small-Scale
Industries, Ala Sariki Association and Gymnastic Training Centre. He said most
of the organizations took the money without the necessary structures to
retrieve it.
Mr Jumah
gave the assurance that despite this hindrance, his outfit will identify all of
them in order to compel them to pay back. He said the problem is making it
difficult for the assembly to provide support to new applicants.
More…/
The Chief
Executive of the Ashanti Goldfields Company Limited, Mr Sam Jonah, has been
made a member of the United Nations Secretary-General’s Global Compact Advisory
Council.
The compact
initiative promotes action in support of nine internationally accepted
principles on human, labour rights and the environment. Mr Jonah is the only
African on the body, which consists of business executives, international
labour leaders and heads of civil society organizations from across the world.
The council
will assist Mr Kofi Annan in his effort to promote co-operative solutions to
the dilemmas and challenges of globalisation.
Speaking at
the meeting of the council in New York, which is the first UN body composed of
both public and private sector leaders, Mr Annan said: “The world is currently
involved in an ongoing historical experiment; attempting to create a truly and
inclusive market.
He told the
council members: “The outcome of this experiment depends increasingly on the
foresight and political will of leaders in all sectors of society to find
pragmatic solutions that transcend ideologies.”
He
challenged the Advisory Council to “think creatively about measures that might
enhance the quality and concrete impact of participation in the Compact.”
He also
called on the council members to recruit new ones and serve as champions for the
initiative internationally; to make recommendations on standards of
participation that will help protect the integrity of the Global Compact; and
to offer suggestions on how to most effectively channel the rapidly growing
global interest in the Compact.
At a press
briefing after the meeting, Michael Doyle, Special Advisor to the
Secretary-General, said the encounter had been productive. “We had a thorough
and enthusiastic discussion, taking forward the Global Compact in two areas
especially-having to do with questions of governance and also new directions in
leadership-so that as the Global Compact continues to grow, it not only grows
in numbers, but also in quality of participation.
To date,
the Global Compact, an entirely voluntary initiative, has attracted several
hundred companies from countries such as the Russian Federation, China, Brazil,
India, Germany, Norway, Indonesia, Thailand, the United Kingdom and the United
States.
The 17
members of the Advisory Council-all acting in their individual rather than
institutional capacities-have been asked by the Secretary-General to serve
rotating terms of two and three years. The Advisory Council will convene for
formal meetings twice per year.
Mr Sam
Jonah, Chief Executive Officer of Ashanti Goldfields, supervised the
transformation of the company into a mining multinational with gold production
up from 240,000 ounces each year to over 1.6 million ounces per year in over 10
years.
Currently,
the Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, Ghana, Mr Jonah serves on
various boards, including Lomin plc, the Commonwealth African Investment Fund
and President Thabo Mbeki’s International Investment Advisory Council of South
Africa.
He holds
several awards several awards and honours, including honorary Doctor of Science
from the Camborne School of Mines and the University of Exeter, United Kingdom.
More…/
The Ghana
Telecom (GT) Company Limited loses about ¢4 billion of its revenue monthly
through shady deals. The amount is equivalent to the monthly pay of the
company’s entire workforce.
The
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company, Prof S.K.B. Asante announced
this when he paid a working visit to installations of the company at Koforidua
on Tuesday.
He said the
GT has consequently signed a contract with DETECOM, a telecommunication
engineering management consultancy firm in Germany, to critically review the
internal auditing system and also overhaul the company’s Customer Management
Billing System.
One of the
complaints of consumers against the GT is the poor billing system. On the
restructuring of the company, which has been a major source of worry to some of
the workers for sometime now, Prof Asante said for the company to meet some of
the challenges of the information technology age, the support of international
organizations such as the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has
sought to make the company more viable.
He gave the
assurance that the company will retain most of its staff, adding that only a
few uncommitted ones will be laid off.
The Eastern
Regional Director of GT, Mr Paul Evans Amuzu called on the workers to be
dedicated and committed to their work, to ensure sustainable development in the
country.
GRi…/
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Suspend Obed Asamoah from NDC - Action Forum
The Action Forum of the Ashanti National Democratic Congress (NDC) has urged the National Executive Committee of the party to suspend Dr Obed Asamoah, former Attorney General and the Minister of Justice from the NDC.
In a statement dated January 7, 2002 and signed by nine members in the Sekyere West Constituency, the Forum indicated that Dr Obed Asamoah “must be aware that the ¢100 million theft case was part of the reasons we lost the elections in 2000 so he must treat it as a travail matter.”
It will be recalled that a few years ago Obed claimed that two policemen who were guiding him had stolen ¢100 million belonging to the NDC-from his bedroom, but the matter has seemingly died a natural death.
Referring to the case, the Action Forum charged Obed Asamoah to tell the nation what the courts have said about that matter. The statement was in reaction to a statement, which the Forum said the NDC top notch had made it in a press statement that had appeared in some newspapers.
According to it, Dr Asamoah had claimed that those who had signed its (Forum’s) earlier statement had been suspended from the membership of the NDC for persistent indiscipline and anti-party activities”.
The Action Forum accused Obed and those high-ranking NDC members of disrespecting them. The Forum queried, “Is Dr Asamoah assuming that members, sympathizers and followers of the Action Forum are some daft and non-voting members of the party and that they have no right to question him on party matters over which he presided? Dr Asamoah fed fat on the trappings at the top, winning the confidence of his colleagues in the process and was entrusted with the party’s treasury only to turn back to announce that the monies have been stolen”.
They further stated that the missing ¢100 million is a theft case in the house,
Adding, “This is dishonesty and smacks of a large measure of hypocrisy”. They stated
that if Dr Asamoah could not keep his party’s money, he could not keep that of country as a future President.
They added that Dr Obed Asamoah is a bully and does not respect even his colleagues and argued that there would be a disintegration in the NDC under him. They questioned Dr Asamoah over the whereabouts of the Verandah Boys and Girls
Club. He (Asamoah, is the only person who can make any learned positive assessment of Verandah Boys and Girls at a time that our youth and women’s wings were gasping for air”, cried the Action Forum.
Members of the Forum said that the party needs re-organisation for future elections and called for a complete overhaul in the party and its leadership at all levels.
“Unfortunately, the party allowed a so-called Re-organisation programme under the steering of Obed Asamoah to restate and reaffirm some of the very things that led to the defeat of the NDC: It is a pity that it is taking us too long to learn”, the
Action Forum lamented.
More…/
Amandi runs riot!
The unrepentant tax dodger, Mr Boniface K. Amandi, Managing Director of
Alluminium Enterprises Limited (AEL) last Tuesday put up a fierce fight against the
Ghana Police and in the process tore the shirt of one of the police personnel. He then locked him up in his residence after resisting arrest for evading tax.
The Policemen, according to a source, had gone to Amandi’s residence to effect his for non payment of taxes totalling several millions of cedis. On their arrival, the
source disclosed that the AEL managing director challenged their right to effect his arrest despite the fact that he was shown the arrest warrant.
In a bitter struggle Amandi is reported to have over powered one of the policemen, tearing his shirt into pieces and locking him up in one of his rooms. This called for further reinforcement from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) who went to save their colleague from further harassment from Amandi.
When the Crusading Guide got to the CID Headquarters Mr Amandi had also just arrived at the Headquarters. When contacted, ASP Ernest Owusu Donkor of the CID confirmed that he had sent three of his men to arrest Mr Amandi. He disclosed a warrant was issued for the arrest of Mr Amandi on the 24th December 2001 by the community Tribunal chaired by Mr George Agyekum Nana Donkor.
ASP Owusu Donkor added that his men to the court for confirmation which they did
with the original copy of the arrest warrant given to them (police) to carry out their work.
He submitted that he sent three of his men to arrest Amandi only to hear that one of them had been molested. ASP Owusu Donkor intimated that he did not know the details of the assault because the Inspector who was said to have been assaulted had not yet reported back to him.
Amandi was later released on bail. Mr Boniface Amandi was being arrested for failing to furnish the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) with returns for the assessment of his personal income tax (PAYE) and failing to pay ¢61,897,474.11 and ¢674,557,116.40 being arrears of PAYE and corporate taxes respectively and their penalties, contrary to section 149 of Internal Revenue Act, 2000, Act 592 and section 59A of income Tax Decrees SMCD 5 of 1975.
Amandi had been boasting under NDC government that he had powerful links and for that matter would never pay tax to the revenue collection agencies. His tax evasion spans over 10 years.
The Crusading Guide and The Guide (then edited by Kweku Baako, Jnr.) had waged a long-standing relentless crusade to compel Amandi to fulfil his personal and corporate (AEL) tax obligations.
He once filed a court suit against Baako, The Guide and the publishers of the paper. He openly commended the one-month jail sentence imposed on Baako and Harruna Atta in July 1998.
“Time appears to have caught up with Boniface Amandi. There’s no longer any hiding place for him. The law certainly laughs last”, quipped a Tax officer who requested anonymity.
More…/
Mr Patrick Kwame Kusi (PKK) Quaidoo, a former Politician and Minister of State in the First republic died on January 1, 2002, in Accra after a short period of illness. He was 77 years old.
Burial service will be observed at the Holy Spirit Cathedral in Accra on Friday, February 15, 2002 followed by his interment at Abesewa Gyaman, Western Region on February 16, 2002.
Educated at St. Augustine’s College, Accra and the University of Bristol, Ireland, the late Patrick Quaidoo was first elected to Parliament (1954-1956) and subsequently to the Independence Parliament of Ghana (1957-1961).
He held various portfolios in the First Republic of Ghana as Minister of Trade and Labour (1957-1958), Communications (1958), Commerce and Industry (1958-1960) and Social Welfare (1960-61). He also led several government delegations and goodwill missions to China, Hong Kong, Japan, Addis Ababa and tangier in Morocco.
In 1969, he formed and led the All People’s Republican Party (APRP) and was elected onto the Opposition Front Bench until the 1972 coup d’etat.
The late P.K.K. Quaidoo was a prolific writer and contributed many articles to the Catholic Standard newspaper. He was the author of several monographs, poems and “AFRICA My NATIVE LAND” published in 1988. He left behind a wife, Victoria, four daughters and two sons.
GRi…/
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The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has kicked against the National Reconciliation Bill, which was recently passed by Parliament, contending that it is fundamentally flawed and totally incapable of achieving national reconciliation for the people of Ghana.
The party has, therefore, petitioned President J.A. Kufuor to take a second look at the bill before giving his assent, since in the party’s view the bill threatens to divide Ghanaians as it goes contrary to the popular will.
In a press statement signed and issued by Alhaji Huudu Yahaya, General Secretary, in Accra last Tuesday, the National Executive Committee of the party said it was convinced that to avoid the spectre of the nation’s negative past haunting the people and adversely affecting national unity and coherence, the reconciliation effort should seek to address past abuses on the basis of understanding, not vengeance.
“The process should be holistic and not desegregated and selective. It should encourage reparation and not retaliation in order to promote lasting unity and forge national consensus,” it stated.
According to the statement, the view of the party has always been that the best framework for a sustainable, genuine and sincere reconciliation for the nation is one that is extensive, inclusive, transparent, participatory, non-retributive and incorporates bipartisan political support.
The statement drew attention to public hearings on the National Reconciliation Bill on issues relating to the mandate, time-frame, composition and selection process of the members of the Commission vis-a-vis the rights, liberties and privileges of witnesses appearing before it or persons affected by the findings of the Commission.
The Party’s position also informed and guided the amendments which the minority group in Parliament proposed to the National Reconciliation Bill, stating that the intention of those amendments were to achieve the following effects:
(a) extension of the time mandate from the March, 1957 to the January, 1993 (or to the eve of the inauguration of the Commission, if that was preferred). In doing so the Minority Group in Parliament was guided by the sentiments and widespread support for this view by many well-meaning Ghanaians, citizens, religious and civil society groups such as the Catholic Bishops Conference, the Ghana National Association of Teachers, the Northern Region House of Chiefs, to mention but a few. It was also noted that it was the consensus of participants at a high profile international conference on national reconciliation in Ghana, organised and sponsored by the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development in conjunction with Civil Society Coalition and Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA). This was on June 20-21, 2001 at M-Plaza, Accra. Section 9 of the Conference Declaration was in the following terms:
“The time frame for examining cases of abuses and injustice should not be too restrictive and targeting people. It was agreed that the time frame for the Commission work should be from March 6, 1957 to 6th January 1993.”
(b) The Minority Group also proposed amendments on the selection process which, it was felt, should be more participatory, inclusive and consultative-a process that included a role for Parliament and civil society which would contribute to the legitimacy, credibility and independence of the Commission and assure broader interest, ownership consensus regarding the mandate of the Commission.
(c) amendments were also proposed by the Minority Group in Parliament on the power of the Commission to ensure that the fundamental human rights of citizens as guaranteed under our Constitution are not violated by the wide powers of the Commission and that witnesses appearing before the Commission or persons against whom adverse findings and safeguards are applicable to Commissions appointed under Chapter 23 of the Constitution.
The party statement noted that the Majority in Parliament, totally disregarding the peculiar character of the Bill as a national reconciliation bill, determined to side-step the popular will of the Ghanaian people, contemptuous of the opinion of national and international experts on reconciliation and transitional justice decided to subvert the very pristine principles upon which reconciliation is based.
It was in these circumstances, the executive committee observed, that the Minority Group staged a walkout preferring not to be part of a process that is so flawed as to amount to a veritable subversion of the people. “The Bill was subsequently passed without the participation of the Minority Group and passes with all its inelegancies and flaws,” it added.
The National Executive Committee is convinced that the National Reconciliation Bill as passed is fundamentally flawed and totally incapable of achieving national reconciliation for the people of Ghana. The National Executive Committee is further convinced that in order to avoid the spectre of our negative past haunting us and adversely affecting our national unity and coherence, our national reconciliation effort should seek to address past abuses on the basis of understanding but not vengeance.
“The process should be holistic and not disaggregated and selective. It should encourage reparation and not retaliation in order to promote lasting unity and forge national consensus.” To this end the Party has petitioned His Excellency the President not to assent to the Bill in its present state but to allow further consideration and accommodation in the lee ways provide by our Constitution.
“In acceding to the request the President will not only be demonstrating mature statesmanship but will also be reaffirming our nation’s confidence in and adherence to our national declared values of freedom and justice,” the statement concluded.
More…/
An Accra Circuit Tribunal chaired by Mr Imoru Ziblim has ordered a bench warrant to issue for the arrest of a fetish priest, Nii Owufu Wulomo, of Nungua for failing to appear in court last Tuesday, January 8,2002, to answer two counts of defrauding by false pretences and fraudulent land transaction contrary to sections 131 and 34(a) respectively of the Criminal Code, (Act 30), 1960.
Making the application for the bench warrant to issue, Chief Inspector Akologo, the prosecutor said the accused person had been duly notified to attend court.
Count one of the statement of offence, defrauding by false pretences, states that Nii Owufu, fetish priest, on 28th June, 2000, at East Legon in the Greater Accra Region with the intent to defraud did obtain the consent of one Brenda Sakyi-Aikins to part with cash the sum of ¢10 million by means of certain false pretences, to wit by falsely pretending that he could secure her a building plot and upon each false representation the priest succeeded in obtaining the said amount from the complainant, which statement the priest well knew at the time of making it to be false.
Count two states that the Nii Wulomo also purported to make a grant of a piece of land at East Legon to the complainant, which he knew he had no title to.
The facts of the case are that the complainant, who is a student living at South Labadi Estate and her husband, purchased a plot of land at East Legon from the accused person who issued them with an indenture.
When the complainant later conducted a search at the Lands Department it turned out that the plot belonged to one Seth Laryea Mensah of Teshie. She, therefore, confronted the accused, who admitted having no title to the land and promised to refund the amount collected.
However, all efforts made to recover the money failed and a report was made to the police who charged the accused with the offence after thorough investigations. The case has been adjourned to January 18, for mention.
GRi…/
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Bursar
rapes student at OLA Girls
Theodore
Amanfo, 43, bursar of Ho OLA Girls' Secondary School, has been arrested by the
police for allegedly raping a 16-year-old second-year student of the school.
The alleged incident took place early last month in his office when he asked
the victim to tidy the place.
Dependable school
authorities told the 'Times' at the weekend that in the evening of December 5,
the victim, who was accompanied by a friend, went to the school's
administration block to make a phone call but the booth was locked. They
decided to wait for it to be opened.
While
waiting, the suspect arrived and invited the victim to his office. There, the
suspect was alleged to have asked the girl to sit and she obliged with the
suspect sitting close to her.
Amanfo was
said to have proposed love to the victim but she declined the request. Amanfo's
application of force was resisted by the girl resulting in a struggle between
them. To prevent her from screaming he gagged her.
After
overpowering the girl, Amanfo allegedly tore off the girl's panties and school
uniform and forcibly had sex with her. After the act, he warned the victim
never to tell anybody what took place or she would die. He also promised to
give her some money at a later date.
Feeling
dejected and traumatized, the victim reported the incident to the Housemistress,
who in turn, informed the Headmistress. The Headmistress instructed that the
victim be examined by the school’s nurse. The examination confirmed that she
had been raped.
A report
was made to the police and Amanfo was arrested. After preliminary
investigations, he was granted enquiry bail while investigations continue.
When
contacted, the Headmistress, Mrs Philomena Afeti, told the 'Times' that she had
reported the incident to her superiors, the Regional Directorate of Education
and the police and any information should be sought from them.
Police
sources said that the matter was being investigated after which the docket
would be sent to the Attorney-General's Department for advice.
More…/
Fetish
priest steals goat
The
Bolgatanga Circuit Court has sentenced a Fetish Priest to four years
imprisonment in hard labour for stealing a goat valued at ¢100,000.
The
accused, Ayandor Awineh, 27, from Amangaa near Bongo in the Upper East Region
stole the goat on New Year's Day.
Awineh
threw the Court into laughter when he said that he did not steal the goat
personally but it was his "juju" by name "Maame Water",
which called the goat into his courtyard. He claimed he brought the juju from
Sunyani to the village. According to Awineh, the "juju" took only the
bones whiles he consumed the meat.
The Circuit
Court Judge, Justice Albert Kuoro, ordered the accused to bring his "Maame
Water" to the court, which he obliged.
Prosecuting,
Inspector Gregory Achayire, told the court that the complainant, Atenga Anaafo,
a farmer, and the accused lived at Amanga, Bongo. He said the accused visited
the complainant's home on December 31, at about 7:30 pm and the moment he left,
Atenga Anaafo detected that his goat, which had then delivered twin kids, was
missing.
Inspector
Gregory said that the complainant made enquires and learnt that it was the
accused who stole the mammy goat.
Armed with
this information, Atenga, accompanied by some people in the neighbourhood, went
to the accused's house on New Year's Day and found the goat tied in his
courtyard.
When the
accused was challenged by the complainant, he claimed that the goat was his.
According
to the prosecutor, Awineh later admitted having stolen the goat. He then chased
the complainant and the witnesses out of his yard with a cutlass.
The matter
was reported to the Assembly member of Amanga-Bongo who organized some
strongmen and went to the fetish priest's house only to realize that he had
slaughtered the goat.
When they
asked the accused to produce the meat, he only showed them intestines and some
bones meant for the "Maame Water" juju.
To stop the
"juju" from taking bones further, it was burnt at the Court premises
as instructed by Justice Kuoro.
More…/
Environmental
body lauds Otumfuo, Okyenhene's efforts
Friends of
Rivers and Water Bodies (FRWB), an environmental Non-Governmental Organization,
has commended the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, and the Okyenhene Osagyefuo
Amoatia Ofori Panin, for their pioneering efforts at promoting environmental
protection.
While
praising the Asantehene for his immense support for the NGOs environmental
protection campaign and projects, the NGO cited the Okyenhene for his untiring
efforts to promote environmental protection in his area.
In a new
year's message, signed by the President, Nana Kwabena Dwomoh-Sarpong, the NGO
urged traditional rulers, custodians of the country's lands, to spearhead the
campaign on environmental protection by stopping the indiscriminate sale of
lands especially green belts, nature reserves, water-ways and flood-prone
areas.
The NGO
noted that whereas "Our fore-fathers, especially chiefs, used superstition
as a means of protecting the environment, some chiefs of today are treating the
environment with careless abandon through the indiscriminate sale of lands.
It
described water as an exhaustible resource and called for collaborative efforts
of both governmental and non-governmental organizations to combat the abuse of
rivers and other water bodies in the country.
GRi…/
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comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Metro TV
scores hat-trick
True to
their word of extending their broadcast to cover the southern sector of Ghana by
the middle of this year, Metro TV have been 'rocking' the capital towns of
Western, Eastern and Central regions since Christmas.
In
Koforidua, Showbiz learnt that residents of the town and its environs are heads
over heels in love with Metro TV's transmission. One will not be far from right
to say that currently about 65 per cent of the population of Koforidua and its
environs are hooked onto Metro TV.
"Many
people Showbiz spoke to commended the station for their good work since the
extension of broadcast and praised the management of Metro TV for putting
together splendid programmes for their viewers.
"Viewers
are much happy with the entertainment programmes including musicals as well as
BBC World News broadcasts and live telecast of sporting activities especially
soccer."
A similar
report has been received from Takoradi where the residents of Sekondi-Takoradi
have welcomed the choice offered by Metro TV which has added a little more
comfort to their lives.
Perhaps the
biggest excitement has been among some residents of Cape Coast who suddenly
woke up one fine Tuesday a few days ago, to discover that they could catch
Metro TV on their television sets. Since then the message has spread by word of
mouth and currently a large number of people are enjoying the programmes of
Metro TV.
Along with
all the excitement that receiving an alternate station other than the
nationwide GTV has stirred, some residents Showbiz spoke with had a number of
complaints over some technical and programming details.
In some parts
of Koforidua, viewers complained about receiving poor pictures while others say
that Metro TV transmission sometimes interferes with GTV and TV3, the two other
television stations that telecast their programmes to the town. "This has
created problems for some residents such as those at the Old Estate SSNIT Flats
Block 3 where they have had to do extra work on their antennas to enable them
receive clearer signals.
In
Takoradi, according to our correspondent, reception is generally good except a
few places around the Beach Road residential area and other low lying areas
where eager residents have had to erect external antennas to receive good
signals.
One group
of people who appear to be benefiting the most from Metro TV's transmission, is
television mechanics who prefer to use the extra clear picture quality of the
station to assess the reception of television sets they repair. They have also
been taking advantage of Metro TV's Christmas season long transmission times to
do their work at a time when other television stations had closed.
With regard
to programmes, viewers in Koforidua who spoke with Showbiz called for more
local as well as educational programmes. On the programme dubbed Dial &
Win, some residents appealed for clearer explanation of the rules of the game
to enable them participate in it.
With
respect to musical programmes, even though many were thumbs-up for the station,
others expressed their desire to see more gospel music of Ghanaian artistes,
especially those who are up-and-coming.
Some others
still appealed to the station to be mindful of showing films about war,
terrorism and those that have nude scenes.
Besides
extending its transmission to cover some parts of Western, Eastern and Central
regions, Metro TV has since last December trebled its broadcast power to parts
of Ashanti, notably Kumasi, by installing bigger transmitters.
According
to the management of Metro TV, the station's broadcast policy is to concentrate
on establishing sites in the urban centers, which are of economic, commercial
and demographic importance to the general public.
In that
regard, Metro TV management says it intends, by the middle of this year, to
complete its expansion programme by extending transmission to the capital towns
of the Northern, Brong Ahafo and Volta Regions.
Metro's
latest hat-trick score in the Western, Eastern and Central regions follows a
string of successes that the station has chalked since its inauguration in 1998
as the first private TV station to transmit to Accra and Ashanti.
With VRA
fibre optic link to Takoradi and Cape Coast Metro TV becomes the first TV
station in sub-Saharan African to broadcast via fibre optic link.
More…/
Miss
Universe Ghana - the homestretch
After last
December, the 2002 Miss Universe Ghana Pageant has been on the home stretch
with twelve women-contestants vying for the title and all the prizes that come
with it.
The event,
curiously dubbed "Intrigue" was held at the La Palm beach Hotel in
Accra with a total of 22 young women who were made to speak much more longer
than walk and show off their endowments. Again, the programme was rather
lacking in entertainment.
However,
"Intrigue" was a good opportunity for the judges to select only
deserving contestants for the final lap that has been scheduled to come off in
March.
Having been
taken through various stages of questioning designed, as the organizers had
planned, to bring out the contestants personality, eloquence, intellect and
physical beauty, the final twelve were presented.
Those who
made it to the final are Fafa Fuga, Sandra Osei, Sally Obeng Hene, Claudia
Kwarteng Dede Odija, Sandra Ankobea, Stephanie Walkinsfia, and Antoinette
Anane. The rest are Silvia Owusu
Ankoma, Doris Doe, Naa Aneli Abbey and Enyonam Gotta. All contestants were clothed in designs by Jimi Delaja.
The search
is on for the next Miss Universe, could she be from Ghana? One of these ladies
will have the chance to represent Ghana in the international competition. The
heat is certainly on.
GRi…/
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comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com