Otumfuo canvasses support for education, health in Netherlands
Twenty–two to plan National Farmers' Day
Global Water Partnership ends in Accra
Ghana’s university system irresponsive to needs - Dr Agyemang
Major boost for Tano River rehabilitation project
Mauritanian Ambassador bids farewell to President Kufuor
Rights Commission wants independent enquiry
into killings
Tribunal grants bail to armed robber with HIV
Teachers abscond after further studies- GES expresses concern
Teacher Training Colleges to award diplomas
Inexperienced drivers contributing to road accidents
President Kufuor urges Judges to restore
confidence in the Judiciary
Sunyani (Brong Ahafo) 19 June 2002- Alhaji Ibrahim Mahama, a Tamale-based legal practitioner, on Tuesday denied ever assuring Ya-Na Yakubu Andani II, Paramount Chief of Dagbon that the former Northern Regional Minister, Prince Imoro Andani, would lift the curfew imposed on Yendi.
He was testifying at a sitting of the Wuaku Commission probing into the Yendi crisis as the 28th Commission witness in Sunyani. In an answer to a question by counsel of the Commission, Mr George Owoo, Alhaji Mahama denied that he visited Yendi in connection with the curfew and said, "it was absolutely false that his arrival was announced on the local radio station".
He maintained that it was only after the conflict that he got to know that the curfew was short-lived, adding that he did not influence the former Regional Minister to lift the curfew imposed by the Yendi District Security Council. Alhaji Mahama, however, admitted causing an announcement to be made on Radio Savanna, a Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) FM Station in Tamale that the Ya-Na Andani was not dead.
He said that announcement was made after the GBC had announced the death of the Ya-Na to calm the nerves of the people of Dagbon Traditional Area. Alhaji Mahama stated that he was shocked to hear from the GBC that the Ya-Na was dead and "the purpose of my announcement was to calm the storm".
When asked by the Commission whether he now believed that the Ya-Na was dead, witness replied in the affirmative but gave a reply to another question that he had not announced Ya-Na's death. Alhaji Mahama, however, said he had given indications about the death of Ya-Na Andani through interviews he granted to some radio stations. He added that he made the counter announcement about the death of the Ya-Na in his own capacity as the nephew of the Ya-Na.
At this juncture, the Commission informed witness that it had been alleged that he accompanied all witnesses to give statements to the Police in connection with the conflict. Alhaji Mahama replied that he never did so and added that announcement was made inviting people to give statement to the Police and they complied.
He stated that he only visited elders of the Andani Gate after the conflict since the former Regional Minister asked him to do so to summon them to meet a government delegation led by Mr J. H. Mensah. Alhaji Mahama told the Commission that some of the elders escaped to Tamale during the conflict and only saw them again on Thursday, March 23.
Asked whether he was protecting the interests of the Ya-Na, witness said the biological children of the Paramount Chief were staying in his mother's house.
To another question, Alhaji Mahama replied that he did not know the number of wives, children nor subjects currently staying with his mother in Tamale, whom he (Mahama) was catering for.
Earlier, Kwadwo Ngula, a 40-year-old farmer, also testified before the Commission as the 27th witness and said that more of the men in the Gbewaa
Palace fired back at the Abudus although they had local and single barrel guns. The Commission told Ngula his claim was untrue since some witnesses at the palace had testified that they also fired.
He said that the Ya-Na told his men not to use their arms but to seek peaceful means to resolve the misunderstanding between them and the Abudus. Ngula alleged that after he and one Zibia Ila had been rescued to the Yendi Military Camp he saw the Yendi District Chief Executive, Mohammed Habibu Tijani, wearing a local bullet proof attire.
He said Mr Tijani, who removed the local bullet proof attire he and Ila were wearing, asked whether they preferred the curfew, which was imposed earlier to the conflict that was then raging on. At this point, leading counsel for the Abudus, Nana Obiri Boahen, requested the Commission to send Alhaji Ibrahim Mahama, who was to give evidence away from the hall.
After some deliberations, Alhaji Mahama was prevailed upon by the Commission to leave after he made it known that he was prepared to give evidence to answer some allegations made by some witnesses. In an answer to a question by Nana Obiri Boahen, Ngula told the Commission that he and his men did not use their weapons to protect the Ya-Na because he (Ya-Na) did not order them to do so.
After being asked a series of questions by leading counsel for the Abudus, Ngula told the Commission that Nana Obiri Boahen was going too far. This, the leading counsel for the Andanis, Charles Hayibor, thought was not fair and cautioned Ngula that such retorts could land him in trouble since "it could be contempt of the Commission."
The Chairman of the Commission reminded Ngula about the oath he had sworn to tell the truth about what he knew adding; "a lot of evidence that you have given are lies and your own people will bear me out. "He told the Commission that the Ya-Na asked them to frighten the Abudus and not to kill them in an answer to a question, adding that he only saw dead bodies in the main hall of the palace and nowhere else.
Mahamadu Michael, 59, Registrar of Dagbon Traditional Council, who also gave evidence, recounted events in Yendi on Saturday, March 23 and Sunday, 24 March and the imposition of the curfew and its subsequent lifting by Mr Prince Imoro Andani, ex-Northern Regional Minister.
He told the Commission that the Ya-Na, having told the ex-Minister of the importance of the Fire Festival, added that he had no problem with anybody in Yendi. The Ya-Na, therefore, gave assurance to Mr Andani that there would be no cause for alarm and the festival would be celebrated in peace, Mr Mahamadu said.
He said on Monday, March 25, however whilst at the hall of the Gbewaa Palace with Ya-Na, he heard a gunshot directed at the palace and when he inquired, he was told that the palace was under attack.
Witness said between 0900 hours 1000 hours there was a telephone call from Joy FM in Accra, in which a woman's voice asked about events in Yendi, to which he replied that the Ya-Na's palace was under attack. Mahamadu said the caller wanted to know if the Police and the DCE were there but he replied that neither of them was there.
Mahamadu answered in the affirmative when the Commission asked if people were firing back from the palace on Tuesday morning. Defence men were returning fire at that time, he said. The Registrar indicated that whilst in his house, which was about half 800metre away from the palace on Tuesday, March 26, he received a message through one Mahamadu Patina, an employee of the Yendi District Centre for National Culture that the firing exchanges had intensified.
He said as he had been sick since Friday, 22 March and could, therefore, not do anything, his children took him on a motorbike at 1130 hours to Gushegu and he left for Tamale after two days. When asked by Commission's counsel if the two gates celebrated the Fire Festival separately, he replied in the affirmative.
Mahamadu explained that the two gates used to celebrate the festival together on the same day until a division erupted between them in the 1950s. But in answer to another question, he replied that, it was nevertheless celebrated differently on the same day last year.
When asked what created the division between the two gates, he said he did not know. At this juncture, proceedings were halted for more than 30 minutes as the Commission found a lot of inconsistencies in his answers. The cause of the problem was that whilst the Commission saw two letters, one dated March 30 and a second dated April 12, as "figments of Mahamadu's own imagination", witness insisted that he wrote them under the instruction of the elders of the Dagbon Traditional Council.
The Registrar alleged that some people he had mentioned in the first letter had before the Yendi tragedy conspired that, the time was ripe to overthrow the Ya-Na. The names in that letter were, however, not disclosed at the sitting. When the Commission wanted to know as to the last time that the Dagbon Traditional Council met before the tragic events of 24, 26 and 27 March in Yendi, witness said he could not tell.
At this juncture, the Commission Chairman asked of his age and told him "I expect you to speak the truth as the Registrar". When the Commission, therefore, continued with a question about the first time the Dagbon Traditioal Council met after the tragedy, he responded as 1 April.
Meanwhile, in response to questions by Nana Obiri Boahen, Counsel for the Abudus, Mahamadu told the Commission that since he left for Tamale from Gushegu, he had not been to Yendi again and had even been operating from an office in the premises of the Northern Regional House of Chiefs in Tamale.
The Commission pointed out to witness that his claim that elders of the Dagbon Traditional Council held a meeting and authorised him to write those letters to the Regional Police Commander was his personal initiative. He replied in the negative as he had earlier responded to a similar question by Nana Obiri Boahen. Sitting was adjourned till Wednesday.
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The Hague (Netherlands) 19 June 2002 - Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Asantehene, has called on non-governmental bodies and the business community in the Netherlands to support his initiatives in the educational and health sectors.
In a statement read on his behalf by Nana Osei Manhyia, Manwerehene, at a Press conference in the Hague, Otumfuo indicated that he would use the occasion of his official visit to highlight the major challenges facing 'our people at home.'
“If indeed we all live in a global village, then it is important that we share the concerns of each other." Otumfuo Osei Tutu, who is on a week-long official visit to the Netherlands at the invitation of Queen Beatrix and the government of the Netherlands, stated that chieftaincy in Africa had taken a positive turn in Ghana and other parts of Africa. “We are determined that traditional leadership should be a progressive partner to central government in bringing development to our communities,” he underlined.
The Asantehene arrived yesterday morning at Schipol Airport, near Amsterdam, at the head of an 18-member delegation, which included Nana Kwadwo Nyarko, Pranghene (Brong Ahafo Region), Nana Agyeman Atwereboanda, Hiahene, Nana Osei Manhyia, Manwerehene, Dr Sir Kwame Donkoh-Fordwuor and Dr Lovelace Prempeh, both members of the Board of the Golden Development Holding Company.
He was met on arrival by a delegation from the Dutch Foreign Ministry led by Mr Roeland Van Der Geer, Director of Africa Department and officials of the Ghana Embassy led by Dr Mrs. Grace Amponsah-Ababio, Ghana's Amabassador to the Netherlands. Before the Press conference, Otumfuo was invited to play golf with some top management staff of Heineken.
Otumfuo would begin his working programme tomorrow with a meeting at the Dutch Foreign Affairs Ministry and an address at a roundtable conference hosted by the Ministry on the theme 'Development Opportunities in Ghana'. Later in the day, Otumfuo will be the keynote speaker at a Business Forum hosted by the Netherlands-Africa Business Council before he holds audience at the Palace Huis Ten Bosch with Her Majesty, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands.
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Twenty–two to plan National Farmers' Day
Accra (Greater Accra) 19 June 2002 - Major Courage Quashigah, Minister of Food and Agriculture, on Tuesday commended the organising committee of last year's Farmers' Day and donors, who made it possible to increase the value of prizes given to the farmers.
Major Quashigah, who was inaugurating a 22 member re-organised national committee for this year's Farmers' Day said the Agricultural Development Bank did well in donating a 3-bedroom Estate house as the first prize and in securing one pick-up for the runner up.
He said although the committee of the 2001 Farmers Day Celebration did its best yet a few shortcomings made it necessary for a re-examination of the sequence of events. The minister mentioned the lack of ushers to handle invited guests, poor press coverage, a bit of confusion in the sitting arrangement and failure of performing artistes to turn up.
Major Quashigah charged the new committee, which is under the Chairmanship Dr Abde-Majeed Haroun, Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture in charge of
Crops to do all that was necessary for the successful implementation of programmes. He urged the committee to learn from the lapses of the 2001 event and ensure a much more successful one this year. "I am certain that I have put together a good team and hope that you would deliver," he said.
Some of the committee members are; Dr Francis Ofori, Acting Chief Director of the Ministry of Agriculture as First Vice Chairman, and Mr Frank Apeagyei, Special Adviser to the Minister of Agriculture as Second Vice Chairman. Others include Mr Ben Amallattey, Senior Editor-Ghana News Agency, Mr Samuel Abbey Mensah, Chief Controller of Programmes- GBC-Radio, and Mr Okyere Djin, National Farmers Award Winners Association.
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Global Water Partnership ends in Accra
Accra (Greater Accra) 19 June - Mr. Yaw Barimah, Minister of Works and Housing on Tuesday lauded the just ended two-day Global Water Partnership (GWP) Conference in Accra as a relevant forum to boost the capacity of Ghana to promote integrated water resources management.
He said the conference, which took place in Sweden for six years running, had also facilitated consultation on the successful completion of the Tano River Basin rehabilitation project, which aims at preventing the basin from drying up as a result of bad environmental practices.
The 250 participants at the conference from over 60 countries engaged in a variety of discussions such as dialogue in water and poverty, effective water governance and also brainstorm on how to improve capacity building in integrated water management.
There was a panel discussion by African Ministers in the water sector on water governance, which discussed with water financing and cost recovery, problems encountered in tariff increases and private sector participation in the water sector. Interventions by the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) to solve the water crisis on the continent were also discussed.
Mr Barimah said water issues transcend borders and are no longer internal matters hence the need for frequent international interactions to deal with them. He mentioned water boundaries as one particular issue that involves international consultation and collaboration adding that recommendations adopted at the conference would be a focal point by the government in promoting effective water management.
Mrs Margaret Catley Calson, chairperson of the GWP said deliberations at the conference were very exhaustive but helpful to promote strategies at attaining integrated and sustainable water resource management.
She said collaboration with the political leadership, especially in Africa was also promoted at the conference. Dr. Daniel Adom, Acting Secretary of Ghana's Water Resources Commission was elected a member of the steering committee of the GWP.
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New Ministry for Water advocated
Accra (Grater Accra) 19 June - Nana Dwomoh Sarpong, President of the Friends of Rivers and Water bodies, a local non-governmental organisation (NGO) on Tuesday advocated a separate Ministry for Water to give priority attention to integrated water management.
He said although water management was under the Ministry of Works and Housing, it was not getting the needed focus because it was not the core concern of the sector.
Nana Sarpong, who participated in a two-day conference of the Global Water Partnership (GWP) in Accra that attracted over 250 stakeholders in integrated water resources management, was speaking to the Ghana News Agency in an interview. He said water was gradually becoming a scarce commodity in the country and yet there was no effective management to check its continuous misuse.
Nana Sarpong said farming on the banks of water bodies was one of the major causes for their silting up yet regulations on creating buffer zones to protect them were not being enforced.
He appealed to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to encourage irrigation and other alternative farming that discouraged farming along water banks. Mr Jonathan Nii Ahele Nunoo, Acting Managing Director of the Ghana Water Company Limited, also told the GNA that the water crisis being experienced in Africa was the by-product of political instability and mismanagement hence the need for the political will to reverse the situation.
He said most governments neglected water management for a long time leading to the break down of water systems and low tariffs paid by consumers for water supply. Mr Nunoo called on the District Assemblies to be proactive in checking environmental degradation that had been the bane of efficient water supply.
He expressed optimism that the choice of Accra as the venue for the GWP conference, the subsequent World Summit on Sustainable Development in South
Africa and a Water forum in Japan would boost investor confidence in the water sector.
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Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 19 June 2002- Dr Victor Kwame Agyemang, Director of the Forest Plantations Development Centre (FPDC) at Akyawkrom, near Ejisu, has said that the university system in Ghana was too rigid and not able to respond to changes. This he said had created a relatively poor graduate employment situation in the forestry sector in spite of its importance.
Dr Agyemang was delivering a lecture at the 10th in the series of the Golden Jubilee Inter-Faculty Lectures of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi at the weekend. His topic was: "The Impact of Natural Resources Management on National Development".
Employers in the sector have complained that graduates of the Institute of Renewable Natural Resources (IRNR) did not attain the requisite skills and knowledge for employment, Dr Agyemang said and called on the Institute to address the problem.
He said a major problem with countries in Sub-Sahara Africa, including Ghana, was the over dependence on their natural resources for economic and social needs than any other region in the world. "Unless we depart from this practice, we will continue to be poor", he said. He said at present only 16 per cent of the nation's forest was vibrant and that due to the extent of degradation, only 50 per cent out of this could be put under production, while the remaining was protected.
Dr Agyemang said Ghana loses about 24 million dollars, translating into some 65,000 hectares of vegetative cover, through bush fires annually. The loss represented about three percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
According to him the country also consumed between 220,000 tons to 380,000 tons of bush meat valued at between 210 million dollars and 380 million dollars annually while the annual soil products earn only 13 million dollars. He expressed regret that even though about 30 per cent of land was put under cultivation, the country had not been able to attain food sufficiency.
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Major boost for Tano River rehabilitation
project
Accra (Greater Accra) 19 June 2002- The seventh Global Water Partnership (GWP) Conference which ended in Accra on Tuesday reviewed the project cost of the Tano River Basin Afforestation project from the proposed 600,000 dollars to 900,000 dollars to boost efforts to save the basin from drying up.
The commitment was made in a report on the project, prepared at the two-day conference in collaboration with the Brong Ahafo Regional Co-ordinating Council
(RCC) at a plenary session, chaired by Mrs. Margaret Catley-Calson, the chairperson of the GWP.
The report, presented by Mr Gyau Boakye, the Repporteur at the conference, being attended by 250 stakeholders in the international efforts to promote integrated water resources management (IWRM) identified inadequate funding as a major setback to the project.
Out of the estimated 600,000 dollars projected by the RCC only 40,000 dollars have been spent so far on efforts to prevent the basin shared by both Ghana and La Cote D'Ivoire from further destruction by human activity.
These include the creation of a 100-metre buffer forest belt to protect the banks of the river and a 30-metre protective zone around its tributaries. According to the report, there has been a significant reduction and flow of the river due to pollution aquatic weeds bush burning and other poor farming practices. "There is excessive erosion and silt and the destruction of aquatic life."
The report expressed the need for the District Assemblies to enforce byelaws as well other laws and institutional frameworks to check environmental degradation.
Another report on capacity building of the GWP identified lack of political will, insignificant awareness and understanding of IWRM and poor institutional capacity frameworks as a setback to water supply in Africa. It suggested the need for a country water partnership and stakeholder consultants and a global survey of capacity building needs to address the problem.
The plenary session also discussed efforts by the GWP to focus on integrated water management in poverty eradication. It suggested investment in dams, irrigation, restoration or improvement of farming land, reduction of vulnerability to disasters through the facilitation of access to water resources. The report noted that although water management alone cannot tackle the issue of poverty, it is a major factor in eradicating it.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 19 June 2002- Mr Tijani Ould Kerim, non-resident Ambassador of Mauritania to Ghana on Tuesday paid a farewell call on President John Agyekum Kufuor at the Castle, Osu. Mr Kerim, based in Abidjan is being posted to Canada after 18 months duty tour.
He commended the government for the cordial relationship between both countries and the co-operation from Ghanaians during his duty tour. President Kufuor said relations between both countries had been cordial and urged Mr Kerim to continue to be an advocate for Ghana both in Mauritania and Canada.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 19 June 2002 - The Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) on Tuesday called for the establishment of an independent committee of enquiry to investigate circumstances leading to the killing of four persons alleged to be neighbourhood watchdog committee members at Taifa last Friday.
The Commission said; "It has learnt with deep regret that four persons, alleged to be members of Neighbourhood Watch-Dog Committee in Taifa, were mistaken for armed robbers and killed by a joint Police/Military team".
A statement issued in Accra and signed by Mr Justice Emile Short, Commissioner of CHRAJ, said, "It is hoped that the unfortunate deaths of these four young men will not dampen the spirits of the public to assist the Police to fight crime."
The Commission explained that the establishment of an independent body of enquiry was essential to ensure public acceptance of the findings and recommendations of any inquiry of the tragic incident".
It said it ought to be "emphasised that notwithstanding, the difficulty and risk involved in the task of fighting crime, those who wield deadly force in society shoulder a great responsibility and bear the burden of exercising great restraint and circumspection in the use of force in enforcing law and order".
The Commission has also charged Ghanaians to continue to perform their civic duties by assisting the Police to combat crime to help build a peaceful society. The Commission urged the government to consider whether the training of the military was appropriate to assist the Police in regular crime control or whether their role should be limited to special operations, which were beyond the control and capacity of the Police.
It called for a critical look at the neighbourhood watch committee concept especially efforts should be made to have a proper working concept with security agencies. The Commission expressed the Commission's condolences to the bereaved families.
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Tribunal grants bail to armed robber with
HIV.
Tema (Greater Accra) 19 June 2002 - The Tema Circuit Tribunal on Tuesday granted a 30 million cedis bail with two sureties to be justified to a suspected armed robber, who is HIV positive. The plea of Samuel Thorthy, 32, was not taken. He had been in prison custody since 25 March. With the accused were three others, Anthony Weimatu, Michael Safo and Moro Mahamadu all charged for allegedly robbing the house of Dr Benjamin Forkuoh of the Tema General Hospital.
Thorthy tested HIV positive when he reported sick while on remand at the Nsawam Prison. The prison authorities said they lacked facilities to quarantine the suspect. Prosecuting, Chief Inspector Alice Gyamfi told the tribunal that on 3 March at about 2:30am, Thorty and the three others in the company of two accomplices now at large, forcibly broke into the residence of Dr Forkuoh.
On entering the room, one of them shot Mrs Forkuoh in the right leg and made away with 200,000 cedis cash, some dollars, jewellery and other personal effects. The Prosecutor said a Police/Military Patrol Team was informed about the robbery, but the robbers escaped with their booty before they arrived. However, investigations later led to their arrest in a hide out.
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Ajumako (Central Region) 19 June 2002 - The Ghana Education Service (GES) on Monday expressed concern about teachers not returning to the classrooms after pursing further studies in tertiary institutions.
Mr John Budu-Smith, Acting Director General of the GES said the situation had created an imbalance in the student-teacher ratio and a yawning gap that had to be filled. Mr Budu Smith was addressing a two-day workshop to discuss the determination of the " quota system ", an initiative by the GES to ensure that teachers pursued courses that were relevant to the service.
Figures made available to the Ghana News Agency indicated that out of the 16,446 teachers, who went on study leave between 1997 and 2002, only 4,914 teachers returned to post. This according to the service had created a vacancy of 11,532.
Meanwhile for 2002/2003 academic-year, 13,513 teachers have already applied for study leave to pursue various courses. Ashanti Region alone has 2,270 applicants followed by Central with 2,121.
Eastern has 2,120 while Volta has 2,056. The rest are, Western Region, 1,281, Northern recorded 1,158, Greater Accra 981, Upper East 566, Brong Ahafo 602 and Upper West Region 358.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 19 June 2002 - Teacher Training Colleges (TTC) would become Diploma Awarding Institutions by the year 2004, Mr John Budu-Smith, Acting Director of Ghana Education Service (GES) announced on Tuesday. The minimum qualification for Basic School Teachers would be Diploma in Basic Education to improve the academic competence of teachers and to ensure delivery of quality education.
Inaugurating a 15-member implementation team in Accra to develop the modalities of upgrading Teacher Training Colleges into Diploma Awarding institutes Mr Budu-Smith said the team should take their work seriously so that the policy could be implemented on schedule at the start of the 2004 academic year.
Mr Henry Ofori-Awuah, Deputy Director General of Quality and Access Department of GES, is the team's chairman with representatives of GES Conference of Heads of Districts Directors, Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), University of Cape Coast and University College of Education, Winneba. The team is charged to arrange for college mapping exercise and to recommend to the Ministry of Education improvements to be carried out in academic facilities.
It is also to prepare a guide on the framework and content for the teacher education programme to be at the diploma level at the TTCs; to establish subject panels to review the existing syllabuses of the TTCs and to arrange for institutional and programme accreditation to be carried out by the National Accreditation Board.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 19 June 2002 - The Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) on Tuesday demolished structures at the former Ghana Publishing Co-operation premises to get rid of squatters there.
The exercise was to keep the squatters permanently away from the site to enable SSNIT to start a building project there early next year. Mr Osei Bimpong, Head of Public Affairs, told newsmen that SSNIT gave the squatters a two-week ultimatum to vacate the site but they ignored the warnings.
He said the land was acquired by SSNIT in 1994 for a building project code named, the 'Victoriasborg Development Project', which was scheduled to be undertaken between 1997and 1999 but could not be started due to financial constraints. 'We are now keeping a twenty-four hour police surveillance at the site to keep away encroachers".
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Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 19 June 2002 - Mr Kwame Baffoe, Chairman of the Kumasi-Accra Highway Express branch of the GPRTU has said that drivers without 10 years driving experience should not be allowed to join the Ford Drivers' Union.
He said new drivers employed in the transport sector without driving experience mostly contributed to road accidents in the country. Mr Baffoe was commenting on speeding and overtaking on the Kumasi-Accra highway by Ford drivers at the Odinga Station in Kumasi.
He noted that lack of maintenance culture, which has become a canker in the society, had also affected the transport industry and recommended that drivers used durable tyres to ensure safety of passengers.
The Chairman advised passengers to report careless drivers to the union saying such recalcitrant drivers would be disciplined by the Union. Mr Aaron Osei Boakye, Ashanti Regional Vice-Chairman of the GPRTU (Ghana Private Road Transport Union) called for co-operation between the Executives and the members.
Mr Emmanuel Osei Yeboah, a member of the Ford Union gave the assurance that they would co-operate in the enforcement of the driving regulations and advised that passengers, who disturbed drivers should be reported to the nearest Police station to ensure discipline on the roads.
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Lawra (Upper West) 19 June 2002 - Ms Kate Bob-Miliar, Upper West Regional Co-ordinator of National Council on Women and Development (NCWD) has said although the council was advocating for mass participation of women in the forthcoming district level elections, it would not support those without leadership qualities.
"We really need women of great substance with proven leadership qualities to serve as role models and not just any women because we want their participation," she said. Mrs Bob-Milliar said this at Lawra on Monday at a workshop to orient about 100 women participants on the forthcoming local government elections slated for July.
It was organised by the NCWD and sponsored by Konrad Adenaeur Foundation. Participants came from the Lawra and Jirapa Lambussie Districts. Mrs Bob-Milliar said it was not enough for women to be elected to leadership positions. Rather, they should use tact and diplomacy to meet the demands and aspirations of their people.
She called for partnership between women and their men counterparts. "Whether we like it or not the men have taken the lead centuries ago and all we need to do is to work in partnership with them to acquire and satisfy our desires and not use force."
Mrs Bob-Milliar said although women outnumbered men in the region, about 82 per cent of women were uneducated, culminating in a huge imbalance in favour of the men in socio-economic and political leadership.
Mr Ben Banye, Regional Director of National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) said until women took up the mantle to fight for their own rights they would always be relegated to the background.
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President Kufuor urges Judges to restore
confidence in the Judiciary
Accra (Greater Accra) 19 June 2002 - President John Agyekum Kufuor on Tuesday asked Judges to endeavour to restore the confidence of Ghanaians in the Judiciary. "I hope by your competence, conduct, probity and consistency, you will help reclaim the belief of the citizens in the country's judiciary," he said.
President Kufuor made the call when he presented the instruments of appointment and administered the oath of allegiance and judicial oath to 17 newly appointed and promoted Judges to the Superior Courts at the Castle, Osu.
They were made up of 10 Judges to the Court of Appeal and seven to the High Court. Appointments and promotions to the Superior Courts are done by the Judicial Council and approved by the President.
President Kufuor said "in all that we seek to do, be it the transformation of the economy, modernisation and strengthening of the institutions of the state and the restoration of hope to the people, much depends on the confidence of the people that there shall be fair, unbiased and speedy dispensation of justice by the courts "I have every confidence that you, the new batch of judges, will rise to the challenge and help restore the Bench to its proper place of respect and trust among the citizens, " he said.
President Kufuor reiterated government's pledge to scrupulous adherence to the Constitution and respect for the independence of the Judiciary. He said within the constraints of the economy, the tools needed for the speedy and transparent administration of justice would be made available and the conditions of service enhanced to suit the status of Judges in the society.
President Kufuor said the Judiciary like other institutions in the country had undergone traumas and the instinctive belief of Ghanaians in the integrity of the Judiciary had been severely tested and undermined.
"It is also true to say that the events of June 30, 1982, the abduction and murder of some Judges of the Superior Courts and the subsequent wholesale dismissal of Judges put off many an able lawyer from going to the Bench in the past two decades. Now we hope the position has changed for the better, " he said.
Mr Justice A. Asare Korang, a newly promoted Appeal Court Judge, on behalf of his colleagues, gave the assurance that they would not fail the nation but strive to positively change the image of the Judiciary.He said this was the first time Judges appointed and promoted to the Superior Courts had been sworn into office by a sitting President of the country.
Other Judges appointed and promoted to the Appeal Courts were, Mr Justice R. T. Aninakwah, Mr Justice K. Tweneboah-Koduah, Mr Justice E.A. Addo and Mr Justice John Augustus Osei. The rest were Mr Justice Joseph Bawah Akamba, Mr Justice Eric Kwasi Piesare, Mr Justice Samuel Kwadwo Asiamah, Mr Justice Samuel Yaw Anim and Mrs Justice Henrietta Abban.
The Judges to the High Court were, Mr Justice George Afflah Aryeetey, Mrs Justice Avril Anin Yeboah and her husband Mr Justice Anin Yeboah The rest were Mrs Justice Mabel Maame Yamoah, Mr Justice Francis Gyafiiry Kobieh, former Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development in the National Democratic Congress government, Mr Justice Jones Dotse and Mr Justice Samuel Kofi Marful-Sau.
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Sunyani (Brong Ahafo) 19 June 2002- Alhaji Ibrahim Mahama, a Tamale-based legal practitioner, on Tuesday denied ever assuring Ya-Na Yakubu Andani II, Paramount Chief of Dagbon that the former Northern Regional Minister, Prince Imoro Andani, would lift the curfew imposed on Yendi.
He was testifying at a sitting of the Wuaku Commission probing into the Yendi crisis as the 28th Commission witness in Sunyani. In an answer to a question by counsel of the Commission, Mr George Owoo, Alhaji Mahama denied that he visited Yendi in connection with the curfew and said, "it was absolutely false that his arrival was announced on the local radio station".
He maintained that it was only after the conflict that he got to know that the curfew was short-lived, adding that he did not influence the former Regional Minister to lift the curfew imposed by the Yendi District Security Council. Alhaji Mahama, however, admitted causing an announcement to be made on Radio Savanna, a Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) FM Station in Tamale that the Ya-Na Andani was not dead.
He said that announcement was made after the GBC had announced the death of the Ya-Na to calm the nerves of the people of Dagbon Traditional Area. Alhaji Mahama stated that he was shocked to hear from the GBC that the Ya-Na was dead and "the purpose of my announcement was to calm the storm".
When asked by the Commission whether he now believed that the Ya-Na was dead, witness replied in the affirmative but gave a reply to another question that he had not announced Ya-Na's death. Alhaji Mahama, however, said he had given indications about the death of Ya-Na Andani through interviews he granted to some radio stations. He added that he made the counter announcement about the death of the Ya-Na in his own capacity as the nephew of the Ya-Na.
At this juncture, the Commission informed witness that it had been alleged that he accompanied all witnesses to give statements to the Police in connection with the conflict. Alhaji Mahama replied that he never did so and added that announcement was made inviting people to give statement to the Police and they complied.
He stated that he only visited elders of the Andani Gate after the conflict since the former Regional Minister asked him to do so to summon them to meet a government delegation led by Mr J. H. Mensah. Alhaji Mahama told the Commission that some of the elders escaped to Tamale during the conflict and only saw them again on Thursday, March 23.
Asked whether he was protecting the interests of the Ya-Na, witness said the biological children of the Paramount Chief were staying in his mother's house.
To another question, Alhaji Mahama replied that he did not know the number of wives, children nor subjects currently staying with his mother in Tamale, whom he (Mahama) was catering for.
Earlier, Kwadwo Ngula, a 40-year-old farmer, also testified before the Commission as the 27th witness and said that more of the men in the Gbewaa
Palace fired back at the Abudus although they had local and single barrel guns. The Commission told Ngula his claim was untrue since some witnesses at the palace had testified that they also fired.
He said that the Ya-Na told his men not to use their arms but to seek peaceful means to resolve the misunderstanding between them and the Abudus. Ngula alleged that after he and one Zibia Ila had been rescued to the Yendi Military Camp he saw the Yendi District Chief Executive, Mohammed Habibu Tijani, wearing a local bullet proof attire.
He said Mr Tijani, who removed the local bullet proof attire he and Ila were wearing, asked whether they preferred the curfew, which was imposed earlier to the conflict that was then raging on. At this point, leading counsel for the Abudus, Nana Obiri Boahen, requested the Commission to send Alhaji Ibrahim Mahama, who was to give evidence away from the hall.
After some deliberations, Alhaji Mahama was prevailed upon by the Commission to leave after he made it known that he was prepared to give evidence to answer some allegations made by some witnesses. In an answer to a question by Nana Obiri Boahen, Ngula told the Commission that he and his men did not use their weapons to protect the Ya-Na because he (Ya-Na) did not order them to do so.
After being asked a series of questions by leading counsel for the Abudus, Ngula told the Commission that Nana Obiri Boahen was going too far. This, the leading counsel for the Andanis, Charles Hayibor, thought was not fair and cautioned Ngula that such retorts could land him in trouble since "it could be contempt of the Commission."
The Chairman of the Commission reminded Ngula about the oath he had sworn to tell the truth about what he knew adding; "a lot of evidence that you have given are lies and your own people will bear me out. "He told the Commission that the Ya-Na asked them to frighten the Abudus and not to kill them in an answer to a question, adding that he only saw dead bodies in the main hall of the palace and nowhere else.
Mahamadu Michael, 59, Registrar of Dagbon Traditional Council, who also gave evidence recounted events in Yendi on Saturday, March 23 and Sunday, 24 March and the imposition of the curfew and its subsequent lifting by Mr Prince Imoro Andani, ex-Northern Regional Minister.
He told the Commission that the Ya-Na, having told the ex-Minister of the importance of the Fire Festival, added that he had no problem with anybody in Yendi. The Ya-Na, therefore, gave assurance to Mr Andani that there would be no cause for alarm and the festival would be celebrated in peace, Mr Mahamadu said.
He said on Monday, March 25, however whilst at the hall of the Gbewaa Palace with Ya-Na, he heard a gunshot directed at the palace and when he inquired, he was told that the palace was under attack.
Witness said between 0900 hours 1000 hours there was a telephone call from Joy FM in Accra, in which a woman's voice asked about events in Yendi, to which he replied that the Ya-Na's palace was under attack. Mahamadu said the caller wanted to know if the Police and the DCE were there but he replied that neither of them was there.
Mahamadu answered in the affirmative when the Commission asked if people were firing back from the palace on Tuesday morning. Defence men were returning fire at that time, he said. The Registrar indicated that whilst in his house, which was about half 800metre away from the palace on Tuesday, March 26, he received a message through one Mahamadu Patina, an employee of the Yendi District Centre for National Culture that the firing exchanges had intensified.
He said as he had been sick since Friday, 22 March and could, therefore, not do anything, his children took him on a motorbike at 1130 hours to Gushegu and he left for Tamale after two days. When asked by Commission's counsel if the two gates celebrated the Fire Festival separately, he replied in the affirmative.
Mahamadu explained that the two gates used to celebrate the festival together on the same day until a division erupted between them in the 1950s. But in answer to another question, he replied that, it was nevertheless celebrated differently on the same day last year.
When asked what created the division between the two gates, he said he did not know. At this juncture, proceedings were halted for more than 30 minutes as the Commission found a lot of inconsistencies in his answers. The cause of the problem was that whilst the Commission saw two letters, one dated March 30 and a second dated April 12, as "figments of Mahamadu's own imagination", witness insisted that he wrote them under the instruction of the elders of the Dagbon Traditional Council.
The Registrar alleged that some people he had mentioned in the first letter had before the Yendi tragedy conspired that, the time was ripe to overthrow the Ya-Na. The names in that letter were, however, not disclosed at the sitting. When the Commission wanted to know as to the last time that the Dagbon Traditional Council met before the tragic events of 24, 26 and 27 March in Yendi, witness said he could not tell.
At this juncture, the Commission Chairman asked of his age and told him "I expect you to speak the truth as the Registrar". When the Commission, therefore, continued with a question about the first time the Dagbon Traditioal Council met after the tragedy, he responded as 1 April.
Meanwhile, in response to questions by Nana Obiri Boahen, Counsel for the Abudus, Mahamadu told the Commission that since he left for Tamale from Gushegu, he had not been to Yendi again and had even been operating from an office in the premises of the Northern Regional House of Chiefs in Tamale.
The Commission pointed out to witness that his claim that elders of the Dagbon Traditional Council held a meeting and authorised him to write those letters to the Regional Police Commander was his personal initiative. He replied in the negative as he had earlier responded to a similar question by Nana Obiri Boahen. Sitting was adjourned till Wednesday.
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London (UK)
– 19 June 2002 - The Okyenhene, Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin arrives in US
today for his first visit to USA since ascending the Abuakwa stool. En route,
he made a brief stopover in London where he was met on arrival at the airport
by the Ghana mission. Later in the day, members of the Susubribi Association in
London paid a courtesy call on him before he continued his journey to the US.
In the US,
the Okyenhene, who used to live in the US, will visit Washington, New York and
New Jersey. He is expected to hold meeting with Congressional leaders at a
reception on Capitol Hill and would attend the annual Congressional Awards
Dinner at the National Building Museum.
According to
a release from the office of the Okyenhene, signed by Nana Asante Bediatuo,
Apagyahene, the Okyenhene's schedule in Washington DC include a reception to be
hosted by Ghana's Ambassador to the United States, His Excellency Alan
Kyerematen and meetings with Christine Todd Whitman, former Governor of New
Jersey and Secretary of the Department of Environment. The rest are Bob
Johnson, Chairman of Black Entertainment Television and Michael Echardt,
President of Solar Bank, among others.
In New York
and New Jersey, the Okyenhene is expected to meet with Mr. Kofi Annan,
Secretary General of the United Nations, Bill Clinton, Former President of the
United States and Governor Jim McGreevey of New Jersey, among others.
The
Okyenhene, who is also expected to attend a special church service at
Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, would be away for two weeks and would be
accompanied by senior divisional chiefs of Okyeman and leading business
executives.
On his
return journey, he hopes to stop over in London again.
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