GCB sale must be decided by referendum – Participants
Wenchi (Brong Ahafo)
The
Brong Ahafo Regional
Minister, Nana Kwadwo Seinti, and a Deputy Minister
at the Office of the President, Alhaji Moctar Bamba, gave the directives
on Thursday when they discovered that work on the ¢2.23bn project, which is at
the foundation stage, is being shoddily done and will not stand the test of
time.
The
company used four-inch instead of six-inch blocks and sub-standard iron rods to
cast the foundation while the mortar did not contain sufficient cement. Single
kicks by the two ministers broke the blocks into pieces.
The
market is among three of such projects being financed by the German Technical
Co-operation (GTZ) under the Promotion of District Capitals (PRODICAP) II
through the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development.
Nana
Seinti, who was very furious at the shoddy work done
so far, directed the contractor and the consultant to invite him for inspection
after the demolition exercise before starting the reconstruction to ensure that
quality work is done.
He
warned that the entire contract will be abrogated and the contractor
blacklisted if he does not work according to specifications.
Alhaji Bamba, on his part, expressed concern that
the consultant arrived at the project site the very day the regional minister
and he inspected the four-week old project, adding that he did not even know
the site and had to make enquiries from people at the village.
When
the Graphic contacted the Site Manager of the company, Lie Wie
on the issue, he admitted using inferior quality sand for the project,
explaining that was what was available in the area. He, however, gave the
assurance that he will travel to other places to buy quality sand to reconstruct
the market.
When
contacted, Paapa Essel, the
Resident Engineer for the consultant, Urban Development Consortium, agreed with
the regional minister and Alhaji Bamba
that the building should be demolished and reconstructed according to
specifications using quality building materials.
On
his delay in reporting at the site until last Thursday, Essel
its the result of the lack of residential
accommodation for him at Subinso.
Nana
Seinti and Alhaji Bamba later inspected a ¢242m six-classroom block, an office
and a store which have been constructed by the Wenchi
District Assembly with financial support from USAID, through the Quality
Improvement in Primary Schools (QUIPS).
Addressing
a durbar later, the regional minister advised the people to expand their farms
and cultivate non-traditional export crops like cashew to increase the
country’s foreign exchange earnings. Alhaji Bamba assured the people that the government will not
discriminate in the distribution of development projects on political lines.
The
Wenchi District Chief Executive, Joe Danquah, gave the assurance that the village’s power
project that is dear to the hearts of the people will be completed by the end
of the year. – Graphic
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Ho
(Volta Region) 14 July 2003 – About 500 people have sought refuge in the bush,
while 90 houses have been burnt down in an attack by Nchumurus
on the Ewe community of Dindor-Chinderi, a fishing
village in the northern part of the Volta Region.
The
attack, which took place on Friday, was said to have resulted from the Nchumurus’ disagreement with the method used by the Ewe
settler fishermen to catch bigger fishes. The Police, deployed to the area to
ensure law and order arrested thirteen of the attackers.
When
contacted, Dr K. K. Manfo, Commissioner of Police,
Operations, confirmed the incident to the “Times” and said that the police,
backed by a military detachment, was undertaking patrols in the area.
The
“Times” has learnt that the unorthodox fishing method called “Kponka” is allegedly used to prevent bigger fishes from
moving up stream to the northern part where the Nchumurus,
the original owners of the land are based. Consequently, only the Ewe settler
fishermen get the bigger fishes.
The
Nchumurus, who had for sometime been expressing their
disapproval of the method, which they claimed caused them to have poor catches,
therefore, launched the attack to vent their spleen on the “offenders”.
For
fear of their lives, the Ewe fishermen fled into the bush while their houses
and fishing equipment were destroyed. Meanwhile, the police have appealed to
the communities to exercise restraint and use legitimate means to resolve the
misunderstanding. – Ghanaian Times
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 14 July 2003 - The National Reconciliation Commission (NRC)
described as unfortunate the allegation by Dr Abdul Gamel
Nasser, chairman of the Political Affairs Committee of the Convention People’s
Party (CPP), that there are cases against the UP which should have been heard
by now but the commission has chosen to hear only those against the
revolutionary and PNDC eras.
A
statement issued in
“On
the other hand, the commission will also welcome evidence from anyone who has
filed a statement during the period under reference,” it said.
It
said the commission has been coding the statements of human rights violations
received during the periods its mandate covers. It gave a breakdown of the
1,957 statements coded over the period as PNDC, 1240; CPP 128, SMC, 82, AFRC
305; PNP, 29; NLC, 108, NRC, 65 and PP, zero.
The
statement gave the assurance that although the commission may not hear all
cases filed, all statements will be reviewed and appropriate recommendations
made and that this will reflect in its final report.
It
said the commission will continue to receive statements from the public till
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“My
pedigree in party organisational matters, excellent inter personal skills and
the desire to resource the various branches of the party makes me the obvious
choice to lead the CPP to victory in the 2004 presidential slot,” he said.
Okunor who said this in an interview in
According
to Okunor, the CPP is bedevilled with a number of
organisational problems that has affected its recruitment drive and the
creation of good public perception about the party.
“Sincerely
speaking, the CPP must within the shortest practicable time strive to outline an
elaborate and sustainable programme that will attract more people to join its
ranks as well as educate the electorate about its ideals and aspirations,” he
said.
He
said the party offices also lack logistics such as vehicles and office equipment,
which has considerably affected its operations, creating a communication gap
between the constituency and the national secretariat.
When
asked about the plans that he has to revitalise the weak structures of the
party throughout the country, Okunor conceded the
project to be a herculean task but stressed that he
will do his best to equip some of them.
He
also conceded that the contest for the selection of the party presidential
candidate will be a tough one since information reaching him indicates that few
persons are desirous of filing their nomination such as George Oposika Aggudey who has a large
following and is strong on the ground.
“I
have, however, no doubt in my mind that I will upstage the other contestants at
the congress and emerge as the presidential candidate of the CPP,’ he said.
Okunor holds a Bachelor of Law honours degree from the
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The
women, who said they were tired of living as refugees, impressed upon the
participants at the forum that they do not want to die in a strange land. The
appeal was made when the Network of Women’s Rights, a non- governmental
organisation led by Prof Takyiwaa Manu, met with the
Liberian women to express their solidarity with them.
The
women said they are now the laughing stock of womanhood across the sub-region,
adding that they are unable to take good care of their children the way mothers
should. They pointed out that some of them are now practising prostitution due
largely to the circumstances in which they find themselves.
Madam
Joyce Freeman of the Liberia Labour Union called on her colleagues to stop
fighting among themselves and learn from their Ghanaian counterparts about how
to organise people. She also called on the Liberian Government and the
belligerents in the conflict to put an end to the war.
Prof
Manu, who is also the Director of the
This,
she said, is in spite of the fact that most of the women have lost their loved
ones in the war. Prof. Manu noted that the African continent today literally
lies in tatters simply because men in
She
said the African Union’s cardinal principle of non-interference will have to be
reviewed, to make it possible for states on the continent to interfere in each
other’s matters. She pointed out that this will help to prevent civil strives
in
She
called on African leaders to seriously consider involving women in the politics
of the continent. She said unless this is done, nothing substantial can be
achieved from all the numerous peace conferences in
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GCB sale must be decided by referendum – Participants
Joe
Quist, Assistant General Secretary of Ghana
Registered Nurses Association, speaking on behalf of his group said government
is only holding the shares in trust for the people of
The
President of National Union of University Students (NUGS), Edward Kofi Omane Boamah,
on behalf of the students body said in 1996 students
joined the then opposition New Patriotic Party to resist the complete sale of
GCB. “Today we still stand by that decision”, he announced to the participants.
Rudolf Amenga-Etego, Coordinator of Advocacy and Campaigns of ISODEC also said the debate on GCB is a test for democracy, which provides for broad participation of the masses in making decisions that have a bearing on their present and future livelihood.
He
explained that the issues involved in the sale of GCB are issues that should be
decided in the public domain and not reserved for only economists and financial
experts.
Disabled
groups were heavily represented at the forum. Nicholas Halm,
General Secretary of the Federation of the Disabled People advised the
government to consider the social implications before deciding on what to do
with GCB. He said GCB is the only disability-friendly bank left in the country,
which provides micro finance for them to manage their businesses. The small
initial and minimum deposit required by the bank also means a lot for the
disabled who are marginalized.
A
former Diplomat, K. B. Asante appealed to the
government to rescind its decision to sell state interest in GCB.
Speaker
after speak recognised the fact that it was the World Bank and IMF that are
pushing government to sell GCB and thus promised to stand by the government to
resist the pressure. – Public Agenda
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They
agreed to heal their wounds, remain as a family and stay focused as they attend
to the authority’s core business of generating electricity for the nation. The
power producers, however, reiterated their stand not to admit Dr Charles Wereko-Brobby in their midst again.
This
was the concensus at a meeting held at
According
to them the President has asked that they remain calm while he takes a decision
on the findings of the ministerial committee appointed to investigate
allegations the workers levelled against Dr Wereko-Brobby.
The President was reported to have assured the workers that there would not be
any victimization of any individual or group of persons identified during the
impasse.
He
advised them to desist from rushing to the press to publicize their problems
but try to solve them internally. The was however grumbling when the Energy
Minister, Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom announced that reforms would take place at the VRA,
to make hydro, thermal and transmission separate companies with their
respective managing directors under one chief executive. – Chronicle
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Dr Apraku has denied using funds from the Ghana Free Zones
Board (GFZB) to establish a private office at Dzorwulu
in Accra, saying that, he instituted investigations into an alleged ¢3bn
scandal at the Board and could therefore not have misappropriated funds. He
also challenged the SFO to give him a copy of the report.
But
the Serious Fraud Office says it is not part of its duty to provide a copy of
the docket on the alleged ¢3bn scandal at Board to Dr Apraku.
According
to the Executive Director of the SFO, Theophilus Cudjoe, a complainant’s obligation towards the SFO, ends
once he or she finishes filing a complaint, stressing that “if you are a
complainant, it does not mean the investigations belong to you”. Cudjoe made this known when he and his deputy, Tetteh Mensah met reporters of
the “Evening News” in
He
said during their investigations, they found out that the private office o Dr Apraku was equipped with the Board’s property. The SFO
therefore wrote a letter to the acting Director of the GFZB, Andy Appiah-Kubi to retrieve the items from Dr Apraku’s private office.
Cudjoe noted that investigations were currently ongoing to ascertain how the
property of the state got to the Minister’s private office. He said the SFO was
wrapping up its findings and would come out with a docket on the case by the
end of the month. – Evening News
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According
to him, political parties are considered as the bedrock of the nation’s
democracy, and are therefore, expected to operate all year round. “There should
not be any off-season period for political parties since their continued
operation sustains the consciousness of the people,” he emphasised.
Dr Afari-Gyan expressed these sentiments at Bolgatanga when he set the tone for the Upper East Regional
Consultative Forum on Funding of Political Parties in
The
forum is being organised nationwide, with the collaborative effort of the EC,
USAID and KAB Government Consult, a non-governmental organisation.
The
Chairman of the EC conceded, however, that the inability of the political
parties to operate throughout the year is mainly due to lack of funds. He said
as a result of lack of financial support, the parties run into difficulties and
that they cannot even keep their offices running, especially those established
outside the regional capitals.
Dr Afari-Gyan noted that for the political parties to compete
favourably and effectively, there is the need for the spread of resources
across board to them, saying that attempts by the parties to fund themselves
have not been successful.
He
emphasised that it is only when the parties have “a level playing field” that
they could effectively organise themselves and continuously communicate with
their people, as well as mount effective campaigns during elections.
The
EC chairman observed that in a situation where an individual provides funds for
a political party, he or she obviously expects favours from that party in case
it wins power.
This,
he said, can result in the party in power offering political positions to
people who might not be the best materials, pointing out that in such a
situation, “square pegs are put in round holes”. - Graphic
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Nonetheless,
it still trails
He
told the “Business and Financial Times” that the country would assume its
previous placing with a 20,000 metric tonnes lead over
The
Finance Minister told the paper that government is stepping up efforts at
introducing a new hybrid and improve the production
per acre with the right fertiliser.
An
estimated 50,000 to 60,000 metric tonnes of cocoa were smuggled to
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He said the concessionaire,
which is expected to be selected through a bidding process by February next
year is to revamp the railway system in the country. Speaking at the inauguration of seven-member
Technical Advisory Committee on GRC
Lands, Prof. Ameyaw-Ekumfi said the Committee
would take care of Railway lands and their associate problems.
The Committee would also
trace all land allocations ns and illegal developments on such lands
especially, in areas like Accra-Tema,
A Chief State Attorney Ms Ama Banful chairs the Committee
whose other members include George Mensah, Town and
Country Planning dept., Appiah-Adu, land Commission
and Agyei Tabi, Ministry of
Local government. Others are D K Osei, AMA Albert Adjei,
Shama Ahanta East Metro
Assembly and Ampong of KMA. It has been two months
now since the Ghana Railway Company sacked traders from the railway tracks at Kantamanto,
The source said some of the
traders made the place into homes, doing all kinds of things like cooking which
had burnt the wood supporting the tracks.
There were exposing themselves to grave risks, he said, and 'even a
train had cut one of the traders' leg some time ago'.
One of the traders, who used
to sell goods on the railway tracks, told the ADM that
seven months ago, the G.R.C. served them with ejection notices.
The trader said the
petitioned the ministry, which oversees the operations of the GRC. The ministry
promised to relocate them but suddenly the railway authorities sacked
them. Another railway track market woman
said they now find it very difficult to get a place to sell, ''We do not a
place to sit and do our selling'' and added that when they sell on the
pavements the Accra Metropolitan Assembly guards also drive them off and seize
their wares. -
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At the moment, the Serious
Fraud Office (SFO) and the Ministry of Finance are trying to unravel what
happened to some 280,000 pounds, which was transferred by Selormey
to a British Firm for the minting some 40,000 June 4 medals. Currently, the
whereabouts of the medals are unknown, whilst the money had not been retrieved
yet.
Sources close to the SFO
revealed to the "Free Press " that sometime in 1999, former President
Jerry Rawlings decided to immortalise the June 4 Revolution, by minting medals,
and distributing it those who helped in the defence of the revolution.
Victor Selormey
was tasked with the duty of procuring these medals and he quickly transferred
some 280,000 pounds to a firm in Britain to undertake the minting. However, the
medals allegedly never arrived, and the money has not been refunded either. – Daily
Guide
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Accra (Greater Accra) 14 July
2003 - Over eighty thousand candidates are expected to write this year's Senior
Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSSCE) throughout the country
tomorrow July 15 2003. The examinations
would end on August 15 2003.
The students who are made up
of 45,605 males and 35,479 females come from 507 Senior Secondary Schools in
Ghana. Each student is supposed to write
four compulsory core subjects, English language, Mathematics, Integrated
Science and Social Studies in addition to three or four elective subjects
depending on the candidate's choice of course.
The Ashanti Region recorded
the highest number of candidates totalling 15,992 from 91-second cycle schools,
while the Upper West region recorded the lowest candidates in the country with
1,703 students representing 18 schools.
The rest of the regions are Greater Accra 12,832 candidates from 52
schools, Eastern 12,108 from 77 schools, Central has 10,699 from 53 schools,
Western 5,445 students from 37 schools, Northern 5,758 from 32 schools and
Upper East has 2,776 from 20 schools.
In this year's examination,
WAEC has recorded a higher number of students as compared to last year, which
had 71,728 candidates with 40627 males and 31,101 females. Mrs Agnes Teye Cudjoe, Public Relation Officer of West African Examination
Council (WAEC), told ADM in Accra that "everything is set for the 2003
SSSCE. “WAEC is well prepared and has been putting up tight security to ensure
that the examinations are completed without any hitches but with success".
She debunked speculation that
some of the examination question papers had leaked into the public domain. She said "WAEC has set up a good
investigating machinery to forestall any leakage and feed them with knowledge
about and leakage".
She warned students not to
rely on 'apor' and if possible report any person who
claims to be working with WAEC and has in possession some question papers.
She said to make this year's
examination a successful one, an orientation course was held for invigilators,
supervisors and depot keepers across the country to ensure that candidates
comport themselves and obey the laid rules and regulations of the examination
council.
Mrs Teye
Cudjoe called on students to study very hard the
rules and regulations governing the WAEC examination. "Any student who is caught indulging in
any examination malpractice would be penalized consequently".
She mentioned some of the
conducts that would attract punishment ranging from cancellation of exam papers
to barring form writing any WAEC exam for three years as follows: "Involving yourself
in examination leakage, bringing of foreign materials like text books and note
books into the exam hall, impersonation and assaulting a supervisor or an
invigilator".
She said any student who
failed to report 30 minutes after the paper had been started would not be
allowed to write that particular paper. She advised student to "remain
calm, prepare adequately, go and write the examination without expecting help
from anyone".
She described as false the
rumour being peddled around that WAEC raises the marking scheme in order to
fail students. She said WAEC only give deserving grades according the students'
performances during the examination and does not intend to raise any marking
scheme. –
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