New Digital trunking system to link Police Stations
Accra (Greater Accra)
14 March 2003- The Minister of Finance Mr Yaw Osafo Maafo has been requested by
Parliament to explain how an unspecified amount of money accrued as a result of
the hike in petroleum price would be used.
He is also to tell
the House how the money that had been lodged in an escrow account was deducted.
Freddie Blay, First Deputy Speaker, gave the directive on Thursday after the
Majority failed to convince the Minority about the legality of a bill on the
Custom and Excise (Petroleum Taxes and Petroleum related Levies) amendment.
Seidu Pakuna Adamu,
NDC-Bibiani/Anhwiaso/Bekwai, had questioned the legality of the bill since the
authority it sought to claim had already been exercised. He said the Presidency
had already levied Ghanaians without prior approval of Parliament, which was
unconstitutional.
"Perhaps, the
Minister was in dilemma, to come to Parliament and meet the disapproval of the
hike in petroleum prices as it is tied to the levy or stay away and come
later."
He said the integrity
of the House was being undermined by the Minister's request. Abraham
Osei-Aidoo, the Deputy Majority Leader, said the bill did not contain any piece
of information to suggest that it possessed a retroactive proposition.
He said Tema Oil
Refinery (TOR) was a limited Liability Company that had the right to adjust
prices of its products and set aside part of its money for any purpose that it
deemed fit.
The member said money
lodged in the escrow account could be transferred into the road fund without
breaching any string of legality. The bill whose fate is now dependent on the
Finance Minister's explanation and how the Majority organises its members for
the crucial vote in the near future, sought to increase road levy from 230
cedis per litre of premium petrol to 400 cedis. Osafo-Maafo was absent.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
14 March 2003- Two members of Parliament, whose seats sandwiched that of Mr
John Sentuni Achuliwor, on Thursday initiated a long and emotional eulogy for
the Navorongo Central Member, who crashed to his death in a road accident in
January.
Captain Nkrabea Effah
Dartey (Rtd), NPP-Berekum and Moses Dani Baah, PNC-Sissala had co-authored a
statement that was read a few hours from the lying in state of the remains of
Achuliwor at the forecourt of the State House.
"The two of us
found by providence that the seating arrangement in this House has put us side
by side to..." Captain Effah-Dartey said: "We who sandwiched him here
in this House always enjoyed his side splitting jokes and remarks as debates
went on in the House.
"In bidding him
goodbye, we want to see his death as a supreme sacrifice, and to call for a
greater degree of intensified highway patrol by our Police, to check not
highway crime but also speed on the road."
The member said:
"In mourning the exit of...we want to call on all Ghanaians to remember
that it is always better to be late to a programme than to be called the late
Mr X." He called on the Ghana Police Service to establish a towing unit
that would clear all abandoned vehicles from the roads.
"We will always
remember you, from the rising of the sun to the setting of the same on every
Monday to Sunday, from every January to December, we will recall the life you
lived on earth."
Osei Kyei Mensah
Bonsu, the Majority Chief Whip, said the late member always tried to achieve a
balance between his ministerial duties and Parliamentary duties. "His
death brings home to us all the fact that in the midst of life we live to die.
He was a strong fighter who never gave up, in his life, he lived to fight
another day".
Alhaji M. A. Seidu,NDC-Wa,
said the late Achuliwor was a self-made man, who would be remembered for his
abilities and strong principles. "He blended tradition with modernity thus
leaving a lesson for those of us living that we should be committed to what we
believe in."
Papa Owusu Ankoma,
the Majority Leader, said the late member placed "service to his
nation" above all other endeavours. "John did not do things anyhow.
Though we pass through the hazards of life, we should not lose hope and focus.
We should serve our people with all faithfulness. His life should guide
us."
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Accra (Greater Accra)
14 March 2003- The curfew hours in the Dagbon Traditional Area has been
reviewed by Government to start from midnight to 0400 hours beginning from
Thursday 14 March.
This followed the
concerns and complaints of the people living in the traditional area about the
hardships they faced during the curfew hours. The old time was from 2200 hours
to 0400 hours.
Dr Kwame Addo-Kufuor,
Minister of Defence and Acting Minister of the Interior said this in a
resolution he presented to Parliament for the extension of the State of
Emergency in the Dagbon Traditional Area.
The 119 Members
present voted for the extension of the State of Emergency with none against and
no abstention. The Parliament granted the last extension on 14 February 2003.
Dr Addo-Kufuor-Kufuor
said in view of the various initiatives, much had been covered in terms of
consolidating the fragile peace and it would be premature to lift the curfew at
a time when consultations with both gates to find a lasting solution to the
crisis were at a delicate stage.
He thanked the
Members for their bi-partisan support in the wake of the crisis, adding that
Government would continue to count of the support of the House "as we try
to fashion out a strategy to make progress at reconciling the two gates".
The Minister said it
was the general consensus that if the curfew had to be lifted at all, then
certain conditions must be satisfied to minimise the threat to peace. Dr
Addo-Kufuor-Kufuor said the requirements included enhanced mobility and
communication gadgets, reinforcement of the security forces and the provision
of other logistics among other requirements which all had heavy financial
implications on government.
He said the Northern
Regional Security Committee (REGSEC) met to reassess the security situation in
Dagbon with specific reference to the possibility of lifting the curfew but the
situation was still described as an uneasy calm with simmering tension between
the two Gates.
Dr Addo-Kufuor said
he acknowledged the soundness of the socio-economic arguments in favour of
lifting the curfew but the sticking point in the consideration was the
approaching first anniversary of the unfortunate incident that would occur on
27 March and the possibility of trouble should the curfew be lifted.
He said the UNDP
sponsored Akosombo and Tamale consultative workshops and meetings for both the
Andani and Abudu Gates were meant to allow the participants and other
stakeholders to consult among themselves and help design a comprehensive peace
building process for Dagbon for Government's consideration.
During the Tamale
meeting, the Andani family appreciated the challenges in the peace building
process and committed themselves to an inclusive process towards durable peace
in Dagbon based on the respect for the rule of law and justice.
He said the family
reiterated the need for the perpetrators of the criminal acts to be identified,
apprehended and dealt with according to the laws of the country. Dr Addo-Kufuor
said the Tamale meeting identified the need to take steps to retrieve all
weapons in unauthorised hands in the Dagbon Traditional Area, especially in
Yendi, and also that the search for durable peace in Dagbon must be based on
the adherence to established Dagbon norms, culture and traditions.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
14 March 2003- Over 120 teachers of primary and Junior Secondary Schools have
left the Yendi District because of the conflict in the area while six districts
of the Northern Region also lost almost 30 per cent of the teaching staff.
These were made known
by the Minister of Defence and Acting Interior Minister, Dr Kwame Addo- Kufuor
when he presented a resolution for the extension of the State of Emergency in
the Dagbon Traditional Area in Parliament in Accra on Thursday.
Dr Addo Kufuor said
Peace Corp Volunteers in the Yendi Secondary School had left due to the conflict,
commercial activities had slowed down and businesses were likely to lose
revenue because of the curfew situation.
The conflict in Yendi
in particular and the Northern Region as a whole has also contributed to the
delay in development projects or even their abandonment.
Apart from the
teachers, other professionals such as nurses, doctors, pharmacists, senior
civil servants among other professionals are reluctant to work in the
traditional area and the Northern Region is no more attractive to foreign investors.
Dr Addo-Kufuor said government was concerned about the restrictions and
inconveniences to the inhabitants of the Dagon Traditional Area.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
14 March 2003- The Crisis in the Dagbon Traditional Area has had adverse
effects on the socio-economic activities of the inhabitants of the area. The
six districts in the Northern Region have together lost almost 30 per cent of
the teaching staff for the primary and junior secondary school levels since the
inception of the conflict last year. Yendi alone lost over 120 teachers.
Dr Kwame Addo-Kufuor,
Minister of Defence and Acting Minister of the Interior said this when he moved
a resolution for the extension of the state of Emergency in the Dagbon
Traditional Area in Parliament on Thursday.
He said apart from
teachers, other professionals such as nurses, doctors, pharmacists, senior
civil and public servants were reluctant to work in the traditional area and
the Northern Region was not attractive to investors.
Dr Addo-Kufuor said
American Peace Corps Volunteers in Yendi Secondary School had to leave due to
the conflict. Commercial activities had been restricted and businesses were
likely to lose revenue because of the restrictions on time available t provide
services.
The Minister said
that development projects had either been delayed or abandoned and the
government was concerned about all the restrictions and inconveniences to the
inhabitants of the Dagbon Traditional Area.
He explained that the
State of emergency was designed to allow the security agencies to retain the
initiative and to be able to deal with fleeting situations as they occurred
without necessarily waiting for guidance or directives from Accra.
Dr Addo-Kufuor said:
"In as much as government was prepared to review the curfew, the time was
not ripe to do so. The situation that necessitated its imposition has not
changed neither is there any positive indication that either Gates was prepared
to smoke the peace pipe."
Joseph Darko-Mensah,
NPP- Okaikwei North, said it was gratifying that both Gates were now responding
positively to the peace initiatives. He called on government to respond to the
request for the re-building of the Gbewaa palace for the traditional authority
area so as to bring about lasting peace in the area.
Lt-Col. Charles K.
Agbenaza (Rtd), NDC- Ketu South, said the question was for how long the State
of Emergency in the Dagbon area would be maintained since the crisis was almost
getting to a year.
He said there was the
need for the security agencies to make use of their intelligence reports to nip
in the bud any future crisis adding that there was also the need for the
establishment of a permanent security detachment in the area.
Mumuni Abudu Seidu,
NDC- Wa Central, said it was a necessary evil to continue to extend the State
of Emergency adding that other avenues should be sought to keep the peace in
the area.
He said any time the
conflict was mentioned it caused a big embarrassment to the government and,
especially to people from the Northern parts of the country and so it was high
time a solution was found.
Alhaji Mohammed
Mumuni, NDC - Kumbungu, said keeping the peace must be a collective
responsibility and the minority side had played its expected role but it should
be the duty of the Ministry of The Interior to continue to assist in finding
lasting peace in the area.
He said getting to
one year into the crisis there had not been a road map to solving the crisis
adding that if there were deeper consultations, a well detailed scheme of
solving the problem would have been found by now.
Alhaji Mumuni said
there were various sources of information concerning the Dagbon chieftaincy
that could guide and lead to finding solution to the crisis. Stephen Manu
Balado, NPP- Ahafo Ano South, said all those with sources of evidence
concerning the conflict should endeavour to make such information available to
government in its search for the truth on the conflict.
He said nobody could
solve the Dagbon crisis better than the people themselves and so they should be
prepared to lend their support to the peace initiatives. Alhaji Abubakar
Sumani, NDC - Choggu / Tishigu said the worrying aspect was that the State of
Emergency could not go on forever and since Dagbon needed peace, the people
must unite for a solution to be found to the crisis.
He said for peace to
prevail in the Dagbon area, justice must be ensured and the perpetrators of the
atrocities brought to book. Papa Owusu-Ankomah, the Majority Leader, said
government was interested in justice and ensuring that the perpetrators were
made to face the full rigors of the law. He appealed to all those, who had any
pieces of information on the crisis to report to the security agencies for the perpetrators
to face the law.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
14 March 2003- The Ghana Police Service has embarked on plans to recruit about
4,000 Police personnel within the next two years in a bid to solve the under
-staffing in the Service.
The Service is at
present severely understaffed and this has necessitated the massive recruitment
drive by the government and to this end there are plans to recruit 2,000
personnel this year and a further 2,000 next year.
Dr Kwame Addo-Kufuor,
Minister of Defence and Acting Minister of The Interior, said this when Ernest
Attuquaye Armah, NDC- Ga South, asked if the Minister was aware that the
community of Dom Sampaman with assistance from the Ga District assembly had
completed a Police station project in the town and what plans he had to support
it.
The Minister said
there was currently a recruitment exercise going on and when the training of
the new recruits was completed within the next few months, personnel would be
posted to the new station at Dom Sampaman.
Armah in another
question asked the Minister what steps the ministry was taking to assist the
Gbawe community in the construction of a Police station since the chief had
provided land and the residents were making contributions in cash and kind.
Dr Addo-Kufuor said
the issue of opening of new Police stations went beyond the provision of a
building since there was also the demand for manpower and equipment to make the
station functional.
He said the Police
administration was conducting a study into the possibility of opening more
Police stations in the country including the new township of Gbawe. Dr
Addo-Kufuor said some of the factors to be taken into account were the
population of the community, economic activities in the area and the distance
from existing Police station.
The Minister also
stated that mobile Police vans were to be provided to handle emergency and
other Police duties in areas where there were no Police in view of the
inability of opening Police stations in all towns and communities.
He said this in an
answer to a question asked by Ernest Attuquaye Armah, NDC- Ga South, as to
whether the Minister was aware that there was only one Police station at
Pokuase that catered for the whole of the Northern sector of Ga South and if so
what were the plans to provide a station around Obom or Kwaku Panfo to cater
for the people there.
Dr Addo-Kufuor said
in the interim, the Police administration was using patrol teams to operate in
the area and the arrangement would be continued until a decision was taken on
whether to open a new Police station for the area.
He said the Police
Service would show its appreciation to all communities that were making efforts
at assisting in the providing buildings for the Service and expressed the hope
other communities and District assemblies would emulate them.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
14 March 2003- The Ghana Police Service is to introduce a new communication
digital trunking system to link all Police stations to the Headquarters and
Ghana Telecom.
The provision of the
telephone facilities to all Police stations is to provide the Service with a
means of rapid response in combating the crime wave in the country. Dr Kwame
Addo-Kufuor, Acting Minister of The Interior said this in response to a
question asked by Samuel Johnfiah, NPP- Ahanta West, on behalf of Ransford Yaw
Agyepong, NPP-Suhum, as to when the Suhum Police station would be provided with
communication facilities.
He said most of the
Police stations had over the years not been provided with basic telephone
facilities and modern day communication equipment and as such it was now high
on the agenda of the Service.
Dr Addo-Kufuor said
the Suhum Police station would benefit from the new system, however, some
stations had been provided with two-way radios to make it possible for Police
personnel to communicate with each other.
Kwakye Addo,
NDC-Afram Plains South, asked when the project would take off and the Minister
said it would take off as soon as resources became available, as it was a top
priority of the Service.
Dr Mustapha Ahmed,
NDC- Ayawaso East, asked whether the Minister would consider buying the surplus
reliable communication gadgets of the Volta River Authority to equip the Police
Service and the Minister said as soon as budgetary allocation was made the idea
would be pursued.
In another
development, Alhaji Issah Abah, NDC-Chereponi on behalf of Felix
Twumasi-Appiah, NDC - Sene, asked the Minister of The Interior what immediate
plans the ministry had to provide Police patrol vehicles for the Sene District
Police.
Dr Addo-Kufuor said
the allocation of vehicles to certain Police stations was initially to address
the problem of armed robbery and other criminal activities in the country. He
said the situation was currently stabilising and the Police administration
would be taking a second look at the allocation of vehicles so that deprived
areas would be considered. Dr Addo-Kufuor said in the meantime, the Atebubu
Police station had been allocated a new vehicle to cater for the Sene District
as well.
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