Youth to share in
the Vision of African Union
Minister advocates
for national blasting standards
Government
informed of death of the Nayiri
Stakeholders of
Liberian crisis consolidate ceasefire
Kumasi
South Hospital to be upgraded as Regional Hospital
GHS
Director-General tours Brong Ahafo
Region
High Court varies
sentence for sheep thief
I did not conduct
investigations on my own - Investigator
SSNIT to demolish
buildings on its Dunkunah Property
Day for African
Child observed in Ashanti
Farmers expressed
concern about indiscriminate felling of trees
TUC cautions
against prescribed foreign policies
Ghana to host
sister cities conference
Okyenhene
cited for contempt of court
Teachers condemn indecent dressing of some female colleagues
Heavy-duty dumper
kills Drilling Assistant at mine site
The policy, when implemented,
would use both non-tariff and tariff methods to reduce importation by 50 per
cent if it does not ceased completely, Ishmael Ashitey,
Minister of State in-charge of industries said when he toured to some
industries in
The tour was to enable the
Minister to familiarise himself with the production lines and problems of these
industries and find ways of solving them.
The Minister visited Golden
Biscuits Ghana Limited, Strong Plastic Limited, Ghabico
Biscuits Company and Kasapreko Gin Company, all on
the Spintex road.
Ashitey noted that the local industry
was almost on the verge of collapse and there was the need to revitalize them
to grow. "We have relied so much on importation rather than manufacturing
and exportation, and this is killing our local industries,' he said.
"If we really want to grow
then, we must change this kind of trend." Until this is done, inferior
products would always find their way onto our local markets."
He noted that the importation of
foreign products had paved way for the influx of low quality products like
biscuits, which had unfamiliar languages written on them and they sell at a
lower price than locally produced ones.
He called on the public to be
wary of such products. Ashitey said the Trade
Ministry was teaming up with the Ministry of Education to train a certain
calibre of personnel to suit certain local industries.
"The Ministry is also
discussing with donor partners to introduce technology improvement programme to
make the local industry a highly competitive one to the international
market."
He pledged government's support
to assist local industries, address their problem and make the country free of
imported inferior products. David Mireku, Personnel
Manager of Golden Biscuits, appealed to the Minister to assist them solve the problem of frequent power outage, which had
affected their level of production.
Fadi El Chami,
Manager of the Ghabico Biscuits, appealed to the
Ministry to impose higher tariffs on imported biscuits. David Yeboah, Manager of Strong Plastic, manufactures of Gye Nyame plastic chairs,
complained of some companies pirating their logo to manufacture chairs of a
lower density and called on the Ghana Standard Board to come out with a
standard density.
Kwabena Adjei,
Managing Director of Kasapreko, urged the youth to
disabuse their minds that government work was the best. He said they should
rather move into self-employment to assist government create job opportunities
for others.
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He said it was necessary that
countries that had shown mastery of the tenets of development on South-South
co-operation should be the first point of call by developing countries through
partnership before they could achieve socio-economic development.
President Kufuor
made the observation when a 13-member trade delegation from Islands of
Mauritius and the
He appealed to developing
countries such as
Michel Strub,
leader of the delegation, said the desire to invest in
The visit of the delegation was
a follow-up to the visit by President Kufuor to
Among the delegation were
entrepreneurs interested in the telecommunications, manufacturing, agriculture,
infrastructure and tourism industries.
A
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Dr Kofi
Konadu Apraku, Minister of
Regional Cooperation and NEPAD, on Thursday said one major problem associated
with the implementation of the provisions of the ECOWAS treaty is the fact that
governments have been solely responsible for the promotion of the integration
process.
"This trend needs to be
changed to empower civil society and the private sector who
are the key engine of growth to play a significant role in the integration
process."
Dr Apraku
was speaking at the official opening of the Ad-hoc ministerial meeting on the
harmonisation of ECOWAS texts (treaties, protocols and working documents).
He said; "we must thus find
creative ways to work more closely and effectively with non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) and civil society. The meeting culminated from concerns on
the inability of the region to forge ahead to realize its main goal of regional
and economic integration.
One major factor attributed to
the problem is the scattered nature of treaties, their inconsistencies and
inadequacies contained in the various texts backing concepts and goals.
To rectify the situation, the
ECOWAS Council of Ministers, of which Dr Apraku is
the Chairman, established an ad-hoc ministerial committee at its 49th session
to undertake among other things a review of the region's revised treaty,
protocols and conventions in order to come out with a legal instrument.
The committee was also tasked to
prepare a list of the inadequacies in the texts, examine and make proposals for
their improvement. Dr Apraku said at the meeting,
which has also brought together ECOWAS ministers of Justice, the implementation
of the recommendations of the committee is expected to speed the integration
process.
He said within the 28 years of
the existence of ECOWAS, the number of institutions has increased considerably,
hence there was the need to undertake the exercise to harmonise the legislative
texts of organs to enable them become more responsive among other expectations.
He however noted that in
reviewing the texts for harmonization, representatives of at the meeting should
examine how other institutions or communities treated similar issues.
The Minister added that in this
regard the community should be provided with the necessary machinery to compel
compliance and adherence to the rules, saying, "we
should look for ways to sanction non-compliance."
In an interview with the GNA, Dr
Apraku said
This, he said, was because the
implementation of a common treaty would speed integration and open up economies
for increased trade for countries, which would take advantage.
Papa Owusu
Ankoma, Attorney-General and Minister of State, noted
that in the period of existence of the community some institutions had been
established but have not functioned, some on paper but have not been set up at
all, while it has taken decades for others such as the ECOWAS community court
of justice to come into existence.
He said instead, some member
states had come together to establish rival institutions. The Attorney-General
reiterated that in view of these events, there is the need for the community to
move fast and work harder to achieve its set objectives.
Dr Mohamed Ibn
Chambas, Executive Secretary of ECOWAS, said the
creation of the right legislative environment would go a long way to help avoid
unnecessary conflict of interests and duplication of energies found in the
various texts.
Justice H. N. Donli, President of the Community Court of Justice of the
region, called for the strengthening of access to the court and also enable it to handle cases of human rights abuses to promote
democracy and good governance.
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Pele was contribution to a motion
for the adoption of the report of the committee, said members of the Judiciary
should be encouraged to investigate themselves and offer solutions if indeed
they had a problem like that.
Nana Addo
Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Minister
of Foreign Affairs, said the report had responded responsibly to the anxieties
of those who doubted the intention of the committee.
He said the Ghana Bar
Association (GBA) was fully consulted on all promotions and appointments made
within the Judiciary Service. He asked Committees of Parliament to work
diligently to uplift the image of the House.
Norbert Awulley,
NDC-Builsa South, said corruption was a Ghanaian
problem that should be addressed by all. He said the Judiciary should be encouraged
to carry out its constitutional duties unhampered by corruption.
The Minister of Finance, Yaw Osafo Maafo said in a situation
where systems are left to be operated by discretionary measures, corruption
flourishes. He said the Procurement and Financial Administration Bills now
before the House would seek to prescribe who handles what measures in the
handling of finances and procurement in the Public Service.
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Youth to
share in the Vision of African
The youth, he said should
therefore, base their commitment on respect for human rights, the rule of law,
fellow feeling and sustained awareness.
President Kufuor,
who was addressing the premier ECOWAS Student Summit in
About 100 students' leaders from
all the 15 ECOWAS countries are attending the three-day summit to which the
National Union of Ghana Student (NUGS) is playing host.
President Kufuor
said the summit was an initiative of the next generation of leaders of the
sub-region who are seeking solutions to the problems that they found themselves
in within the continent.
This youth conference, he said must
therefore be launched on the basis of respect for human rights, the rule of
law, fellow feeling and sustained awareness of the place of the West African in
the world around him.
"The leadership of the
ECOWAS youth should propagate this in their various educational campuses, so
they carry with them, the critical mass of the region's youth in the march to
liberate
President Kufuor
called on the student leadership to sacrifice and become like missionaries in
their effort to help heal the malaise afflicting
President Kufuor
said central to the solution of the problems besieging the Sub-region was the
factor of humanity, which needed to be accepted and recognized as the singular
justification of all attempts at nation building and advancement.
"It is only when this is
acknowledged that all your efforts will be rightly directed," he said,
adding that this was the realisation that the current crop of leaders on the
continent have made in their decision to convert the erstwhile OAU to the African
Union and also form the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) as the
union's main engineering agency.
President Kufuor
said the main pillars of the NEPAD framework were democratic governance with
its attributes of respect for human rights, the rule of law and functional
partnership between government and civil society.
"Good governance should
promote internal peace and enshrine citizenship, meaning equality of all before
the law and also of equal opportunity," he said.
President Kufuor
said the accountability and transparency that issued from good governance would
enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of both the government and the
governed and thereby help to create an enabling atmosphere and environment to
attract investment, both domestic and foreign.
He said, "The lack of
investment on our continent is the root cause of the poverty that continue to
engulf us and is at the base of our social instability".
President Kufuor
said many reasons have contributed to the failure of the sub-region namely
tribalism, economic mismanagement, corruption, religious intolerance, moral and
intellectual dishonesty and absence of good governance through national
politics.
"Compounding these grave
distortions have been rampant coup d'etats or their attempts
throughout all the countries in the sub-region," he said. President Kufuor said presently
Edward Kofi
Omane Boamah, NUGS
president, said what the youth expected from their national leadership was the
need for them to involve them in the development of the sub-region.
"We want to be able to take
part in the development of our sub-region not by accessing political power, but
to be able to take advantage of opportunities under institutions that respect
personal choice, voluntary exchange, freedom to compete, freedom to innovate
and the protection of person and property," he said.
Boamah urged governments of the
sub-region to replace repressive political and economic systems established by
post-colonial leadership with systems based on a market economy and the
politics of inclusion.
President Kufuor
was later presented with the ECOWAS peace Award for ensuring peace in the
Sub-region as chairman of ECOWAS.
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Bonsu (Brong
Ahafo)
He said since the Government was
making heavy expenditure through the provision of infrastructure, logistics and
other facilities in the education sector, teachers should not indulge in acts
contrary to the demands of their training and expectations of the GES.
The Regional Minister said to
complement the efforts of the Government in delaying a solid educational
foundation for children, teachers should be more
serious and devoted without compromising the ethics and ideals of the teaching
profession.
Nana Seinti
was speaking at Nkoranza on the first day of his
two-day familiarization tour of the Nkoranza District
in the Brong-Ahafo Region
He said teachers were opinion
leaders in the society and role models to their pupils and students and
"any acts of indiscipline and immorality on their part, scandalized the
children and also tended to have a negative effect on most of them which could
eventually ruin their lives".
Nana Seinti
stressed that the Government could not afford to empower the people
economically by just distributing monies to individuals as gifts saying that,
any money that went to the people might be accounted for justifiably
"That was why the
Government had introduced various poverty alleviation
and training programmes for people, both employed and unemployed to take
advantage and create jobs for themselves", he said.
The Regional Minister urged the
people to develop the attitude of hard work to better their lots since economic
prosperity is achieved through hard work.
He said the Government would not
shirt its promise to serve the interest of the people, stressing that, it would
continue to serve for the interest of Ghanaians. The Regional Minister
inspected HIPC and Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND) projects being
undertaken by the Nkoranza District Assembly and addressed durbars organized by the chiefs
and people in his honour at Bonsu, Nkwabeng, Akuma and Akumsa-Domase, all in the district.
The chiefs and people of the
towns appealed for good drinking water, roads, health and educational
facilities and agro-processing industries to process watermelon and pineapple,
which are grown in large quantities in the area.
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Minister
advocates for national blasting standards
He said this was because
blast-induced vibrations that caused cracks in buildings and in some cases the
collapse of structures had been a source of great concern to the Ministry due
to the number of complaints from major mining towns as well as quarry areas
such as in the Akwapim South District.
Prof. Kasanga
said this in Parliament when Seth Dankwa Wiafe, NPP- Akwapim South asked
what steps the Ministry was taking to check frequent use of dynamite by quarry
companies in the Akwapim South District that was
affecting structures in the towns and villages.
The Minister said blasting
standards should take into consideration the type of materials used for buildings
and the nature of buildings since the country did not have any standards as
regards blasting.
He said regulating the quantity
of explosives used in each blast and the number of blast holes at any time had
been a problem of regulators and the proposal for standards had been discussed
with sector institutions including the Geological Survey Department, Mines
Department and Minerals Commission among others even though funding was not
forthcoming.
Prof. Kasanga
said following several complaints received from Sakyikrom
and its environs in the Akwapim South District
bordering on the impacts of quarry on the buildings in the area, the Ministry
through the EPA carried out investigations into the matter.
He said the main company there;
Pablo Company Limited was urged to employ a certified blast man to monitor each
blast. The Minister however drew the attention of the House to the fact that
the use of explosives for mining including quarrying fell within the purview of
the Mines Department of the Ministry of Mines in line with Legislative
Instrument 665 of 1970.
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Kaleo (Upper West) 20 June 2003 -
Japan International Co-operation Assistance (JICA) a Non-Governmental
Organisation (NGO) has supported Kaleo Baptist Women
Development Project (KBWDP) a Nadowli District based
NGO with a total of ¢328m to undertake a three-year development programme in
the Nadowli District.
Apart from that, KBWDP has also
been mandated to recommend two more local NGOs to replicate their activities in
other parts of the Region with a total of ¢68m to "Amasachina
and Upper West Women Association" the two selected NGOs.
The Rev John Bagonluuri,
executive director of KBWDP announced these when he conducted newsmen round
some of the projects and organisations at Kaleo on
Tuesday.
He explained that under the
sponsorship, KBWDP would engage in "rural community food security, animal
traction, reproductive health, training of traditional birth attendants and
organisational strengthening."
Pastor Bagonluuri
said the project would be on expansion upon the existing one to include Ombo and Booduri as the new
communities where women groups would be supported with micro-credit facilities
to raise their income levels of ¢50,000 per member to ¢600,000 per member by
September 2003 at their operative areas.
Pastor Bagonluuri
commended the management of JICA for their continuous support for the
vulnerable groups, especially the rural communities who are engulfed in abject
poverty in their areas.
The executive director also
commended JICA for their vigilance and effective monitoring system, which had
ensured that projects were properly executed.
On HIV/AIDS, Pastor Bagonluuri said KBWDP had within three months sensitised
about 4,000 people in 15 communities through the use of theatre for extension
communities at market places and other public gatherings. He said plans were
far advanced to extend such theatre programmes to schools as a way of combating
the HIV/AIDS canker.
The executive director said
Ghana AIDS Fund had support KBWDP with a total of ¢200m to carry out HIV/AIDS
programmes in the District out which ¢40m had been transferred within the last
three months.
"We have decided to
concentrate on the use of theatre communication because it has proven to be one
of the most effective communication tools in the rural areas", he added.
He gave the assurance that by
the next three months KBWDP would form HIV/AIDS clubs in all the basic and
secondary schools in the Nadowli District and called
on AIDS fund and other organisations to assist them to extend their activities
in the entire region.
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He said 39.7 per cent of
children in rural areas and 17.6 per cent in the urban centres were engaged in
economic activity. Dr Twum-Baah, who was speaking at Amasaman at the launch of the first Ghana Child Labour
Survey Report, said about 57 per cent of the children were found to be working
in areas like agriculture, forestry and fishing.
He said 21 per cent worked as
hawkers and street vendors, selling iced water, food and other items. The
report is a two-in-one survey, which canvassed children, from five to 17 years,
in 10,000 selected households as well as children at 98 known locations of
streets nationwide.
The fieldwork was conducted in
February 2001 with technical assistance from the International Labour
Organisation. Dr Twum-Baah said the 1998 Children's
Act stated that children under 15 years were not to be employed but could do
light work if they were 13 years and above.
The Act, he said, also
stipulated that 18 years was the minimum age for the engagement of a person in
hazardous work. Dr Twum-Baah said more than a million
children aged less than 15 years were engaged in economic activities for pay,
profit or family gain.
He said using the age limit set
by the Act, and the hazardous nature of the work as criteria, an estimated
total of more than one million children were in child labour in the country
according to the boundaries defined by the Act. He said Mole Dagbon in the Northern Region had the highest proportion of
children on the street followed by Akans.
Dr Twum-Baah
said poverty was the underlying cause for child labour, it had been recommended
that government's policy of creating wealth to reduce poverty should be given
the needed local and international support especially in rural areas.
He said parents also needed to
be educated on the relevant sections of the Act and on the damaging effects of
child labour on the future development of children.
Mrs Angela Ofori-Atta,
Deputy Minister, Ministry of Manpower Development, said the Ministry agreed
with the report on the need to educate the parents and to restructure the
Junior Secondary School System to make it attractive, relevant and accessible
to children.
She said the System must be made
to provide opportunities for final year students to re-sit their examinations
in order to reduce the number of school dropouts swelling the number of
children on the streets.
Mrs Ofori-Atta
said though the Ministry had been involved in the implementation of the street
children's component of the community-based poverty reduction programme with
the World Bank, the result of the survey would provide it with the indicators
to effectively monitor them.
She said the worst forms of
child labour included slavery, debt bondage, prostitution, pornography, armed
conflict and trafficking and must be eliminated. She said data on these
activities were captured by the survey, the Ministry intended to undertake
qualitative research in these areas with the desire to designing the
appropriate interventions towards their elimination in
She said the Ministry would
utilise the data from this survey in rethinking its stance on child labour in
A Senior Statistician of the
International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC), George Okutho said 180 million children aged between five and 17
years were engaged in dangerous and hazardous labour activities in the world
risking permanent damage to themselves.
He said eight million of those
children were victims of modern slavery and sexual exploitation. Okutho said another 66 million children, who went to work
were simply too young to be working, even though, they were not in the worst
forms of child labour.
Mrs Gladys Asmah,
Minister of Women and Children Affairs, said government had done its homework
and was poised to deal ruthlessly with people, who indulged in child labour.
She said legislation to deal
with it would be submitted to Parliament shortly. "We are bent on enacting
laws to criminalize this illegitimate trade once and for all."
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The Minister spoke to the GNA in
a telephone interview through the Public Relations Officer at the Ministry. The
GNA had contacted the Minister on allegations in part of the media that
President John Agyekum Kufuor
had dismissed Dr Charles Wereko-Brobby, Chief
Executive of VRA and the Board of Directors of the Authority.
Dr Nduom
said as at the time he was talking at 1715 hours on Thursday no such decision
had been taken by the President and added that a decision could not be taken
without his knowledge.
The Energy Minister on Wednesday
told Journalists that he was in consultation with President Kufuor
over the recommendations of a Committee he set up to investigate allegation
made against Dr Wereko- Brobby.
He said the Committee basically
exonerated Dr Wereko-Brobby from allegations of
mismanagement but said for now, the decision of the CEO to step aside for
investigations to be completed and other measures taken during the workers'
agitations would remain as they were.
He said the report and its
recommendations covered three main areas - collective bargaining, specific
allegations against Dr Wereko-Brobby and the Board of
the Authority and technical and financial matters in relation to the running of
VRA.
Dr Ndoum
said the collective bargaining aspect was handled with the appointment of a
retired labour expert whose recommendations settled the issue. What remained to
be done was to implement the recommendations.
The second area of the report
dwelt on the specific allegations against Dr Wereko-Brobby
and the Board bordering on salaries, impropriety in the procurement of cars for
management staff, mismanagement of provident funds, impropriety
in the procurement of crude oil and changes in working hours.
The Minister said there were no
adverse findings against the Chief Executive in all these areas except that his
management style caused conflict. On the Board, the Committee said it had not
exercised sufficient control over the activities of both the CEO and the
workers. It had also not implemented the company's policies effectively.
Dr Ndoum
said the main findings of the Committee that needed attention was the third
area, which covered technical and financial matters in relation to the running
of the VRA, especially the running of the Strategic Reserve Plant.
Dr Ndoum
said he had written a report to the President on all issues raised and
expressed the hope that they would together take a concrete decision on the
issues.
This would not cover only the
recommendations but also come out with a clear policy path for the Energy
Sector towards reforms. He reiterated that the Thermal Sector had incurred a
deficit of ¢950bn, saying that there was the need to further investigates the
running of the Strategic Reserve Plant in order to come out with a decision
that was best for the company and the country.
The Minister said decisions that
would be taken in consultation with the President would not be limited
specifically to the recommendations of the Committee. The decision would
broadly be geared towards reforming the energy sector but would take cognisance
of the recommendations.
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Tarkwa (Western Region)
She said the institution could
only attain autonomy from the Kwame Nkrumah
University of Science and Technology through a legislation
and a draft bill to that effect would be laid before Parliament for
consideration.
Ms Ohene
was speaking to the staff and students of the
Ms Ohene
said about 70 per cent of qualified applicants were unable to gain admission
into the country's universities and other tertiary institutions due to the lack
of facilities.
She said instead of using the
Ghana Education Trust Fund (Getfund) to provide more
educational facilities, half of the amount had been channelled into the Social
Security and National Insurance Trust (SSINT) Students' Loan Scheme.
Ms Ohene
said less than four per cent of beneficiaries of the loan scheme had repaid
their loan and that was affecting the SSINT pension scheme.
Prof Daniel Mireku-Gyimah,
the Provost of the
He said ¢1.5bn had been released
from the Getfund for the construction of a Library
complex and a students' hostel at the
He said the institution was also
researching into petroleum exploration and mining of industrial minerals such
as silica, kaolin, salt and granite.
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Ga (Upper West)
"As a result, most people
are not ready to release land for tree planting if even the women are ready to
pay for the land and other services.
William Baah,
Upper West Regional Manager of Forestry Services Commission revealed this at Ga in the Wa District when Sahanun Mogtari, Upper West
Regional Minister paid a working visit to the main nursery centre of Forest
Services on Wednesday.
The Regional Manager said the
Region was planting a total of 245 hectares of trees made up of cassia,
mahogany, teak, mangoes and cashew throughout the region and called on chiefs
and landowners to willingly release land to farmers and other organisations
particularly women groups to undertake their projects in the region.
He said apart from the Ga nursery, the commission was also having four other
nurseries representing all the four district capitals of the region.
Baah said the organisation has also
engaged 25 casual workers who are each cultivating about 4,000 species of trees
to serve as examples to other community members.
Sahanun Mogtari,
urged them to step up the cultivation of economic trees such as sheanut trees, dawadawa and
cashew ''which also serve as the cocoa of the North.
He also urged them to encourage
community tree planting which would give them the opportunity to be part and
parcel of the projects. "
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The prosecution team, led by Anthony Gyambiby, Principal State Attorney has called ten
prosecution witnesses.
The officers on trial are John Asare Naami, Faakyi
Kumi, Frank Awuah, Francis Aryee, Benjamin B. Bakomora, all Assistant Superintendent of Police and Chief
Superintendent of Police, Koranteng Mintah.
They have been charged with 127
counts of manslaughter. All the officers, who have denied the charges, are on
¢20m bail each with two sureties.
The defence team, after today's
proceedings, declared its intention to make a submission of no case. The court,
presided over by Justice Yaw Appau has fixed
Wednesday 2 July for hearing.
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This led to a short break in the
day's proceedings and the subsequent adjournment of the case. Having been in
the witness box for about two hours, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Issah Ahmed Yakubu told the court
that he had a headache.
After being given first aid, ASP
Yakubu told the court that he needed to take a rest.
Justice J. C. Amonoo-Monney, the trial judge, obliged
and adjourned the matter to Tuesday 24 June for continuation.
Earlier, ASP Yakubu
told the court that in the course of his investigations into GREL's activities, it came to light that acting together
with Dr Albert Owusu-Barnafo, consultant of SIPH,
Madam Georgina Okaiteye, a member of the 31st DWM,
Etienne Popeler, former Managing Director of the
company, withdrew a little over ¢1bn from GREL's
accounts.
The witness agreed with a
suggestion by Rodney Heward-Mills, counsel for Casely-Hayford, that upon his investigations, he
recommended that the three persons, Popeler, Dr Owusu-Barnafo and Madam Okaiteye,
be charged for misappropriating GREL's funds.
ASP Yakubu
told the court that on
Four persons, including two
women, are standing trial in the case for their alleged involvement in corrupt
practices in connection with the privatisation of GREL.
They are Hanny
Sherry Ayittey, treasurer of the 31st December
Women's Movement, Emmanuel Amuzu Agbodo,
former Executive Secretary of the Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC),
Ralph Casely-Hayford, a businessman and Sati Dorcas Ocran, a housewife.
They have all denied the charges
and are on self-recognisance bail. The four allegedly used their positions to
influence the DIC board to favour Societe Industrielle Plantation Hevea
(SIPH), a French company, to win the bid for GREL.
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Government
informed of death of the Nayiri
He said they should aim at the
selection and enskinment of a deserving person who
would ensure the sustenance of peace and the interest of the people.
President Kufuor
made the appeal when a delegation from the area led by Mba
Sakpari II, most senior elder of the Nayiri, paid a courtesy call on him to officially inform
the government of the death of the Nayiri, Naa Gamni Mahamadu
Abdulai.
The Nayiri,
88, who died on Monday, June 9 had already been
buried. The enskinment of a regent had been scheduled
for Friday 27 June. President Kufuor said the country
had "been torn apart by chieftaincy disputes and prayed that his should
not befall the area.
"All of you should rally
together to ensure that you attend to the funeral celebrations with all the
customary processes and due process of selection and enskinment
of a regent with dignity, sincerity and truth as a successor."
He said the late Nayiri was a true father and statesman who served his
traditional area and the nation. "He would be remembered by the government
for the readiness with which he accepted to serve on the three-man Committee of
Intervention by three prominent chiefs in the country to mediate in the Dagbon Affairs," he said.
The other two chiefs were the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and the Yagbonwura, Bawa Doshie, overlord of the Gonja Traditional area.
Edward Dramani
Mahami, the Warigbandana
and Spokesman for the delegation, said the late Nayiri
was the father of one of the most prominent traditional area in the Northern
Region and that his death was an irreparable loss to the people.
The late Nayiri
born in 1915 and enskinned on
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Stakeholders
of Liberian crisis consolidate ceasefire
Accra (Greater Accra) 20 June
2003 - Stakeholders of the Liberian crisis are consolidating the ceasefire
agreement signed by the warring factions on Wednesday in Accra with closed-door
consultative meetings to chart a future political course for the war-wrecked
West African State.
The ceasefire agreement signed
by the Liberian government, and two rebel groups - Liberians United for
Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) and the Movement for Democracy In Liberia
(MODEL)- prescribed a 30-day time frame for political reconciliation that would
fashion out a panacea for a comprehensive peace agreement.
ECOWAS Spokesperson for the
peace talks, Sonny Ugoh said in an interview with the
Ghana News Agency on Thursday that two consultative meetings were going on at
the M-Plaza Hotel with the warring factions in one group and the 18 political
parties and other civil society groups in another discussing the 10 points
outlined by the ceasefire agreement.
These include deployment of an
international stabilisation force, commencement of disarmament, demobilisation
and re-integration of combatants, restructuring of the security forces and human
rights and reconciliation.
The consultative session would
also consider humanitarian issues, socio-economic reforms, reconstruction and
rehabilitation of
"All that the various
groups are discussing is the composition of the stabilisation force, who will
lead it, who will be part of the transitional government amongst other
things."
The sticky point would, however,
be the factional differences over the leadership of President Taylor following
his indictment by the UN War Crimes Tribunal, an issue that bedevilled
negotiations for a ceasefire.
Ugoh, however, referred to paragraph
eight of the agreement that made it explicit that President Taylor would not be
part of any transitional government.
Meanwhile, the rebels have been
given until Friday to submit the names of their representatives on the
ECOWAS-led Joint Verification Team (JVT) that would members from the government,
UN, African Union and the International Contact Group on
The JVT is to come out with a
map on the location of the fighting forces and their equipment based on
information to be supplied by the factions.
The team is expected in
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Professor Kofi
Agyeman Badu-Akosah,
Director-General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), said looking at the
population of
Professor Badu-Akosah
was addressing the management and staff of the
He noted that the two health
institutions already have the infrastructure and said the
Professor Badu-Akosah
stated that a lot is being done by the government to help check the exodus of
health personnel from the country and said besides the number of vehicles so
far provided for smooth administration and operation by all health
institutions, 350 more vehicles would be distributed to senior staff before the
end of the year.
He said plans are far advanced
for a housing scheme, which would start by next year to enable health workers
to feel comfortable and work in the country.
Dr Kofi
Asare, Ashanti Regional Director of Health Services,
said the uncompleted maternity block of the hospital would be completed by the
end of the year to enable the hospital to perform effectively.
He appealed to health workers to
be committed to their work and keep proper records of the duties performed
especially with the extra duties to avoid complications in computing the
allowances.
Dr Frank Abebrese,
Medical Superintendent of the hospital, appealed to the government to help
provide the staff with accommodation to enable them to respond quickly to
emergencies.
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GHS
Director-General tours Brong Ahafo
Region
Sunyani (Brong
Ahafo)
He said the motivation for both
medical and para-medical members of staff in the
service would be in the form of personal accommodation after retirement,
promotion for deserving ones who had been "marking time" and means of
transport.
Professor Akosah
was answering questions at a durbar held in his honour by the staff of the
Service in and around Sunyani at the
He described as unfortunate the
exodus of medical doctors and nurses from
This, he said, could be possible
by getting the support of the Government by way of making life worth living for
workers in the Service.
Prof. Akosah
said negotiations were going on to make the Service enticing to work with
adding that, even though such negotiations take time the workers should have
the hope that better times are ahead of them.
He said he was particularly not
happy at a situation where some honest and dedicated workers in the country
after serving the nation for about 40 years only retire to go home without
personal accommodation and stressed that the proposed housing scheme for the
Service would go a long way to relieve GHS workers.
Prof. Akosah
said his administration would make sure that those in the Regional and District
Offices were catered for in any better thing that might come into the Service.
The Service plans purchasing 350
additional cars, he said and advised those who are qualified for means of
transport to apply and assured that approval for the facility would be
transparent.
Earlier Prof. Akosah accompanied by the Regional Director of Health
Services Dr. Mohammed Bin Ibrahim, Dr. Daniel Asare, Medical Superintendent of the Sunyani
Government Hospital and other top health personnel in the Region called the
Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) and were received by the Deputy Regional
Minister Yaw Adjei Duffour
on behalf of the Regional Minister Nana Kwadwo Seinti who was away on official duty.
Duffour assured that the RCC would
continue to support the Service to perform to the best of its ability. Prof. Akosah thanked the Council for establishing good
relationship with the staff of the Service in the region.
Dr. Asare
conducted Prof. Akosah round almost all the
Departments, Wards and Offices of the
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High Court
varies sentence for sheep thief
Koforidua (Eastern Region)
The judge reduced the sentence
to 10 months, which covered the period the accused who was convicted by the
court presided over by Mr G.K. Koomson on 12 March
2002, had served.
Varying the sentence, Justice Sau explained that the accused, a first offender, did not
benefit from the theft since he was arrested during the act. He said he found
the sentence "very absurd and outrageous even though lawful" and
therefore allowed the appeal against the sentence.
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I did not
conduct investigations on my own - Investigator
Detective Inspector Hanson Gove of the Criminal Investigations Department of the Ghana
Police Service said he did not visit the scene of the 9 May Stadium Disaster
because he was only asked to investigate and charge the accused persons for
manslaughter.
Led in evidence by Anthony Gyambiby, Principal State Attorney, he said his superior
officers told him that the Commission of Inquiry had completed the greater part
of the investigations into the matter.
The officers on trial are John Asare Naami, Faakyi
Kumi, Frank Awuah, Francis Aryee, Benjamin B. Bakomora, all Assistant Superintendent of Police and Chief
Superintendent of Police, Koranteng Mintah.
They have been charged with 127 counts
of manslaughter. All the officers, who have denied the charges, are on 20
million cedis bail each with two sureties.
Inspector Gove,
who is the 10th Prosecution Witness, explained that he was instructed by the
Police authorities to expedite action on the investigation by collecting
cautioned and charged statements from the accused persons.
He said on 2 November 2001, he
was given a government White Paper entitled "Presidential Inquiry into the
Accra Sports Stadium Disaster" that was signed by the then Minister of
Information and Presidential Affairs.
He said the Commission also gave
him videotapes, albums of the tragedy and post-mortem reports of six bodies
from the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital to facilitate his
investigation. He tendered the items in evidence.
Among the photographs the
Witness tendered in evidence, he identified Naami, Faakye Kumi, both Assistant
Superintendent of Police and Chief Superintendent Mintah.
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SSNIT to
demolish buildings on its Dunkunah Property
The exercise is to pave the way
for the development of the site by SSNIT. Osei Bimpong, Public Affairs Director of SSNIT, who briefed the
press after a tour of the Property on Thursday, said the demolishing of
buildings especially on road and waterways would not be negotiable.
However, owners of those on
actual plots would be made to pay the market value of the plot including
penalties if they wished to stay. The site to be developed into real housing
estates of single and multi storey buildings has the construction of primary
infrastructure including roads, pipe borne water and power distribution
completed.
Bimpong said in spite of the clearly
defined boundaries with SSNIT inscriptions, about 200 encroachers had invaded
the site, destroying boundary pillars and electric cables.
He said the operation of land
guards on the property had become a major problem confronting the security men,
four of whom were seriously wounded recently by land guards while they were
going about their normal duties.
Bimpong said several warnings by the
SSNIT Taskforce have not deterred the encroachers. He said SSNIT had paid 1.6
billion cedis for the land through the High Court as
compensation to the landowners after a 99-year lease dated
The landowners include the James
Town, Aplaku, Bortianor and
Weija Stools. After a while SSNIT noticed encroachment
on the land and sought the assistance of the Police Service and the Ministry of
Land and Mineral Resources to eject them.
In November 2002, the Minister
of Land and Natural Resources met all the stakeholders on the land and resolved
the issue yet the problem had worsened not only by encroachers but also those
engaged in stone quarrying.
Bimpong said though SSNIT intended to
sell part of the property to the general public in the future, the chiefs to
whom compensation had already been paid, had gone behind them to sell part of
the land.
Nii Lante
Bruce, a Supervisor of a building being erected, said he would not consent to
the demolishing of the building alleging that he paid money to some of the
SSNIT Officials, who came to inspect the place.
He said he was ready to go to
court.
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Day for
African Child observed in
Nkawie (Ashanti Region)
This, he noted, would enhance the
preparation of reliable statistics for development. Eduful
was speaking at the celebration of the African Union (AU) Day of the African
Child at Nkawie in the Atwima
District of Ashanti.
He urged parents to do their
best towards the upbringing of their children since they are the nation's
assets. Charles Yeboah, Atwima
District Chief Executive (DCE), called on unit committees and assembly members
to play leading roles in the registration of births and deaths in their
electoral areas.
The DCE announced that District
Assembly had provided funds for the purchase of a machine for the treatment of buruli ulcer in the District. He acknowledged the role
health personnel in the district were playing in efficient and effective health
delivery services and urged them to keep it up.
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Farmers
expressed concern about indiscriminate felling of trees
Akim Asuom
(Eastern Region) 20 June 2003 - Farmers at Akim-Asuom
in the East Akim District have complained of
indiscriminate felling of trees and the mass destruction of farm crops by the Oda Sawmills Company Limited causing incalculable loss to
them.
Speaking to the Ghana News
Agency at Akim Asuom on
Wednesday, a spokesman of the farmers, Kwadjo Sarpong expressed shock and dismay about the activities of
the company in the area.
According to him, the Oda Sawmills Company had resorted to the indiscriminate
felling of ceiba and other trees, destroying large
acres of farm produce without any form of compensation to the affected farmers.
Farm crops destroyed include oil
palm, cocoa, cassava, cocoyam and citrus. A victim, Opanyin
Kofi Agyapong complained
bitterly about the mass destruction of his two-hectare citrus farm, which
formed the base of his livelihood.
Sarpong said if the situation did not
improved them the farmers would have to advise themselves. He called for
adequate compensation for felling of trees like ceiba
and the re-planting of the felled trees to serve as wind brakes. There should
be a compromise between the company and the community with regards to the mode
of operation, he stressed.
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TUC cautions
against prescribed foreign policies
In a statement issued in Accra
on Thursday, the TUC said the Committee at its regular meeting on 11 June
discussed a number of issues bordering on the economic well-being of the
country and expressed concern on several subjects, including the intended sale
of Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB), withdrawal of 20 per cent import duty on
finished poultry products and the Public Procurement Bill.
The statement signed by Kofi Asamoah, Acting
Secretary-General of the TUC, said the Committee noted with disquiet the
government's intention to sell off its shares in GCB to foreign business
concerns.
"While considering the
significant contribution of GCB as a strategic asset to national development,
the Committee recognises the Bank's spread all over the country making its
accessible to a wider section of the society, especially the rural poor, in the
provision of credit and other services.
The statement said the Committee
noted the pressure being mounted by the international financial institutions on
the government to privatise GCB and called on the government to be mindful of
the relevance of a public bank to the development agenda of the county and not
to succumb to such pressures.
On the withdrawal of 20 per cent
import duty on poultry products, the TUC said it found it difficult to
comprehend the rationale behind the withdrawal and questioned the constitutional
basis of the reversal, especially coming after Parliament had extensively
debated and approved the 2003 Budget Statement.
"In the opinion of the
Committee, the unilateral action by government to withdraw the import duty is a
drawback to good governance and democracy."
It said the government should,
therefore, re-introduce the import duty to help Ghanaian poultry farmers not
only to compete with their foreign counterparts but also enhance their
productive capacity.
The TUC said it appreciated the
need for a Public Procurement Bill, but stressed that it should be thoroughly
discussed with civil society organisations and other stakeholders to ensure
that it served the broader interests of Ghanaians.
The statement said much as the
concept of transparency was key to the effective use
of government's scarce resources, the underlying issue of market access as
contained in the Bill needed to be critically examined. "Market access
implies that both foreign and local contractors and suppliers of goods and
services can access public works and supplies equally.
"This undoubtedly will
operate to the disadvantage of local enterprises, which are not as well
resourced like their foreign counterparts." It said the transparency and
prevention of corruption could be achieved without compromising the development
of local industries and consequently the economic development of the country.
The TUC said although the Public
Procurement Board was supposed to be autonomous, the provision in the Bill,
which sought to make it accountable to the Minister for Finance, would greatly
undermine this autonomy.
"Similarly, the powers
vested in the Minister of Finance...to decide the exemptions where different
procurement procedure could be adopted in the interest of the nation could be
abused," it said, adding that Parliament should be solely responsible for
such exemptions.
"The Committee is of the
conviction that the various contract value thresholds ....put local
firms/contractors at a disadvantage. Where appropriate, large
projects should be fragmented to enable local firms and contractors to bid for
such projects."
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At a press briefing on Thursday
to highlight activities on the event, Captain Nkrabeah
Effah Dartey, Deputy
Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, said the conference would
focus on four major areas including panel sessions, workshops, sister city
relations and exhibitions.
The conference, on the theme:
"Strengthening Sister Cities in
Participating cities from the
Captain Effah
Dartey explained that the Sister Cities Concept was
based on grassroots community participation and was directed at motivating and empowering
municipal and local citizens and business leaders to dialogue with sister city
partners in planning and executing development activities.
He further said the non-reliance
of the concept on central government relieved it of budgetary responsibilities
and helped to promote international peace and security among member nations.
He said the whole concept
originated after the Second World War that unleashed much horror and
devastation on mankind. "The world woke up to the need to put in place
measures that would lessen the chances of such future world conflicts and to
promote international peace and security", he said.
He mentioned cities such as
The Minister said the Ghana
Sister Cities Foundation in collaboration with the Ghana AIDS Commission, the
Accra Metropolitan Assembly and the Ministry of Health, would organise an AIDS
walk to mobilise funds for AIDS victims.
He appealed to all stakeholders
and the entire public to support the programme by making donations and
providing psychological support for victims.
Captain Effah
Dartey, who is also the chairman of the planning
committee, said a special mayors conference, apart
from the main programme, would be held to compare strategies, network and share
information on issues of mutual benefit.
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Okyenhene cited for contempt of court
Koforidua (Eastern Region) 20 June 2003 -
A Koforidua High Court on Wednesday adjourned to 22
July, this year, a case in which the Okyenhene Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin and two others have
been cited for contempt of court following a case filed against them by Barima Adanse-Akyem Omane, over his destoolment as Nkwantananhene.
The other defendants Fred Yaw Asante, a Member of the Council of State and Barima Kyeretwie Boakye Dankwa were present in
court while the Okyenhene was reported indisposed.
Justice Samuel Marful-Sau, the presiding judge, after listening to
preliminary submissions by both counsel for the plaintiff and defence, said he was
adjourning the case to give them the two parties the opportunity to go and
resolve the issue and report back to the court on the scheduled date.
The contempt case was among
three motions filed by Barima Omane
while the other two were a motion of prohibition against a lower body, the Kyebi Executive Council (KEC) from hearing a case, which
should be heard by the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs on appeal.
The next was a motion for
certiorari seeking to quash a decision taken by the Okyeman
Council to withdraw recognition of the Plaintiff as the Nkwantananhene.
Daniel Yao
Osei, a Koforidua lawyer,
represented Barima Omane,
while the defence team led by Nutifafa Kuenyehia, included Professor Nii
Ashie Kotei, Baafour Asante Bediatuo and Nana Addo Aikins. In May, this year, the Okyeman
Council ratified a resolution that Barima Omane was no longer recognised as the Nkwantananhene.
The Council also invoked the
"wiemtuo" ban on his line in the Nkwantanan royal family based on a petition written by one Opanin E.K. Frempong, a royal of Nkwantanan and others claiming to be concerned citizens of
the town, said to contain "unprintable allegations, insults and remarks
against the occupant of the very revered Ofori Panin Stool, the Okyenhene."
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Teachers
condemn indecent dressing of some female colleagues
Offinso (Ashanti Region)
They contended that the
intensive sensitisation drive on girls' enrolment and retention in schools can
achieve the desired impact if female teachers exhibited high sense of
self-discipline, good moral values and exemplary leadership qualities.
These were contained in a
resolution adopted after the one-day workshop organised by the Offinso District Education Directorate in collaboration
with Department for International Development (DFID) as part of its Whole
School Development (WSD) programme at Offinso on
Tuesday.
Forty female teachers selected
from primary schools attended the workshop, which was under the theme, "To
increase teacher participation in girls
education".
Addressing the participants, Mrs
Christiana Agyare-Boateng, Offinso
District Director of Education, noted that the development of the girl-child is
important to the eradication of illiteracy in the country. Female teachers, she
said, should be able to identify the potentials of girls and fully develop them
in conformity with the realities of life.
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Tamale (Nothern
Region)
Col. Dawuni,
who was testifying before the National Reconciliation Commission in Tamale,
said loyalty and discipline should now be the watchword of the military.
"It is not advisable for
the military to get involved in politics", he said, adding; "any
soldier who wants to do politics should retire from the military and join the
civilian group to campaign to be elected to political office".
Col. Dawuni
told the Commission that during the 4 June uprising in 1979, he and other
officers who served in the Acheampong Regime were
picked up by soldiers and brought to the Air Force Base in
He said he was later sent to the
Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) Headquarters for interrogation and
finally transferred to the Peduase Lodge at Aburi in the Eastern Region, where he faced what he
described as a "Kangaroo Court".
He said a screen shielded the
panel members and as such, he could neither identify any of them by faces nor
voices so he only answered questions posed to him. Col Dawuni
said he was given a 20-year jail term but this was later reduced to 10 years.
However, he said, he eventually served a period of four years and was released.
He said his Volvo car and a
combined harvester were confiscated to the State and the car was later
allocated to the Ministry of the Interior, which also in turn assigned it to
the Ghana Prisons Services. He told the Commission that he spotted his car
being used by a Prisons Director as an official vehicle adding that the car was
later auctioned to a Prisons Officer.
Lieutenant -General Emmanuel A. Erskine (rtd), a member of the
Commission, commended Col. Dawuni for his courage and
service to the country. He urged him to consult with members of the Northern
Regional Branch of the Veterans Association on how to help restore discipline
in the military.
Col. Dawuni
appealed to the Commission to compensate him for the loss of his car and
combined harvester.
In another narration, Alhaji Iddrissu Kpabia, a former Northern Regional Chairman of the People's
National Party (PNP), told the Commission that after the overthrow of the Limann Administration his 11 tractors, three
combined-harvesters, three private cars and five houses were confiscated to the
State
He said soldiers also took away
large quantities of his paddy and other foodstuffs and cattle as well as milk
and sugar, which were kept in his store and meant for distribution to
hospitals, prisons and schools.
Alhaji Kpabia,
popularly known as "Babuban Chairman", said
he took refuge in Burkina-Faso in the wake of the 31 December Revolution but
life was difficult for him there and so he decided to go to
On his return home, he said he
visited Ahwoi at his office in
Alhaji Kpabia
said when he came to Tamale; he was again vetted and issued with a letter
ordering him to pay two million cedis into "PNDC
Account 48" at the Agricultural Development Bank in Tamale.
He said in 1992, the five
houses, six tractors, one car, and a combined harvester, which were
confiscated, were released to him but he found all of them in a very deplorable
state. Alhaji Kpabia
appealed to the Commission to help retrieve the two million cedis
he paid into the PNDC Account 48 and the rent they collected from his five
houses and adequately compensate him.
A petitioner, Mumuni Yakubu, now a farmer, told
the Commission that on
Yakubu, who was then a trader, said
when he rushed to the market place he saw several armed soldiers surrounding
the market, which was still burning and when he attempted to enter to retrieve
some of his items he was warned by the onlookers that he was risking his life.
He said he, therefore, left the
scene only to return to see that the fire had burnt all the items in his shop
including 12 cartons of bicycle tubes and tyres and six boxes of bicycle
spare-parts.
Yakubu, who said he could not place
any value on the items, also petitioned the Commission on behalf of his late
mother, who also had a shop at the same market. He said his mother had 70 bags
of salt and some cash in the shop, which were all burnt by the blaze, adding;
"following the loss of her property and money, my mother had a shock and
later died".
John Iddi
Nindow, a cobbler, who also had a shoe shop at the
Market, said all his equipment including 400 shoes, which were brought to him
for repairs by customers, were burnt. He estimated the loss at 30,000 cedis at that time and appealed to the Commission to assist
him to re-equip the shop to enable him to make a living and also offer
employment to the youth. Sitting continues on Thursday.
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DonPedro was chosen among entrants from
32 nations across the African continent for her story, "The Travails of
the Swamp in a Bleak Landscape," a statement from CNN received in
Chris Cramer, President, CNN International
News Networks and Peter Matlare, Group Chief
Executive Officer, SABC, presented her with the award at a gala ceremony hosted
by CNN in partnership with the SABC and the Award's sponsors at The Sandton Convention Centre,
The Chairperson of the Judging
Panel, Dr Doyinsola Abiola,
said: "Her entry demonstrated a level of journalistic excellence and
integrity which all of us felt deserved the highest recognition." She is
an amazing writer, she tells the story in a beautiful
poetic way so the reader cannot put it down.
DonPedro's work, along with that of all the
finalists, demonstrates the sheer strength and quality of journalism throughout
The overall CNN Journalist of
the Year Award prize consists of a trip to CNN Centre,
'These winners represent the
best in African journalism," said Cramer.
"CNN has always been dedicated to encouraging freedom of speech and
maintaining journalistic integrity. We
are delighted to see this competition continue to nurture such a diverse range
of talent and stories from an ever increasing number of African nations."
The Competition, now in its
eighth year, is held in partnership with SABC and in association with Multichoice Africa Foundation, South African Airways and
the Wescliff Hotel,
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Osubeng (Eastern Region)
He, therefore, advised the
communities to initiate their own projects to enable them to get the needed
assistance from the district assemblies, the Government and the NGOs.
Dr Osafo-Mensah
said this when he commissioned a ¢135m classroom-block, office and store for
the L/A JSS at Osubeng in the Kwahu
South District. He said the eight-kilometre Fodoa-Kwahu
Praso road has been awarded on contract for
reconstruction and tarring while the Kwahu Praso-Osubeng road would also be rehabilitated to
facilitate the transportation of large quantities of cocoa,cola, timber and foodstuffs to the marketing
centres.
Dr Osafo-Mensah
said the government would continue the mass cocoa spraying exercise to increase
cocoa production in the country and advised farmers to patronise the Akuafo cheque system to avoid being paid with fake
currency.
He said the government has also
given out 100 million cedis to the Okwahuman Health Insurance Scheme and advised all residents
in the district to register with the scheme.
The District Chief Executive
(DCE), Mr Raymond Osafo Djan
said the classroom block was financed from the Assembly's share of the common fund
and will construct a place of convenience, teachers quarters and provide
furniture to enhance effective teaching and learning in the schools.
The Chief of Osubeng,
Nana Sumuah Omare II,
thanked the District Assembly for the project and appealed for more schools in
the area. The Regional Minister later inaugurated a 74-member Unit committee
for the six units of the Osubeng Area Council.
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Heavy-duty
dumper kills Drilling Assistant at mine site
Nkawkaw (Eastern Region)
According to the Nkawkaw Divisional Police, at about
The source said the driver lost
control of the vehicle, which skidded off the road, and fell on the deceased
killing him instantly.
The death of
The DCE said the death of
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The Embassy said the person was pretending
to be purchasing goods on behalf of the Consular Section but disappeared before
making payment.
A statement by the Embassy said:
"The Consular Section does not employ this individual and employees of the
Consular Section do not negotiate directly with businesses for goods and
services."
The statement said the Consular
Section took fraud seriously and wished to protect the Ghanaian public from
individuals or groups claiming to represent the U.S. Embassy. "Please
report any instances of fraud or malfeasance to the Consular Section via e-mail
at consulateaccra@state.gov," it said.
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Tamale (Northern Region)
Aikins, who is in charge of WAJU in
the Region, made the appeal when he addressed a day's seminar on: "Impact
of Violence on Women and Adolescents Reproductive Health" organized for 25
Police personnel in Tamale and sponsored by the United Nations Population Fund
(UNPF).
The seminar sought to train
personnel of the Unit on the impact of violence on women and children and to
see how best such violence could be dealt with in the region to eliminate such
dehumanising activities.
The Officer said the Unit has
been dealing with cases from the remotest areas of the region adding that it
had recorded 139 cases of violence against women and children. He called for
the establishment of WAJU offices in the districts so as to lift the burden of
people having to travel to the regional capital to lodge complaints.
Akrofi Asiedu,
Northern Regional Police Commander, said the Service would deal with anyone who
tried to cover up people, who violated the rights of women and children.
He commended the Unit for
organizing the seminar and advised the participants to take the seminar
seriously to enable them to execute their duties when dealing with issues of
women and children.
Alhassan Amadu,
Northern Regional Population Officer, called on the people to give birth to the
number of children they could adequately take care of. He said the Northern
Region had the highest fertility rate in the country but unfortunately also had
the highest rate of illiteracy and polygamous marriages.
Officials from the Ghana Health
Service (GHS) educated the participants on the impact of violence on women and
children.
Chief Superintendent Esther Appiah, Commander of WAJU, who co-coordinated the seminar,
talked about: "Domestic Violence and the Rights of the Child".
GRi…/
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