Accra (Greater Accra)
19 October 2002- President John Agyekum Kufuor left Accra on Friday for a
two-week two nation state visit to Japan and China at the invitation of the
governments of the two countries.
He was accompanied by
the First Lady, Madam Teresa, the Senior Minister, Mr J H Mensah and Mr Hackman
Owusu Agyemang, Foreign Minister. In a pre-departure interview, the Government
Spokesman, Mr Kwabena Agyapong, said the visit to Japan was significant because
the country was the biggest overseas development aid contributor to Ghana over
the years.
He said the highlight
of the visit would be the signing of an 80 million US Dollar Japanese grant in
aid for the construction of the Accra-Yamoransa road, which forms part of the
West African Highway.
President Kufuor
would arrive in Shanghai on Sunday, 27 October and meet the Chinese President
and Premier. The Government Spokesman said China was interested in joint
ventures with Ghana in areas of telecommunications and small-scale
agro-industries.
He said China had
also interest in Ghana's railway system, adding that, five major Chinese companies
had expressed the desire to relocate in Ghana. Vice President Alhaji Aliu
Mahama and officials from the British High Commission and the Embassies of
China and Japan saw President Kufuor off.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
19 October 2002- Dr Kwesi Botchwey, a former Finance Minister, left Accra on
Friday for South Africa to attend the United Nations Economic Commission for
Africa (UNECA) Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and
Economic Development, in Johannesburg.
A statement in Accra
said he would present a paper on the challenges of African development and
actions required to address them to help in realising the objectives of the New
Partnership for African Development (NEPAD).
It said Dr Botchwey's
presentation would be based on the report of a panel of Eminent Personalities
appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr Kofi Annan, for an
independent evaluation of the UN New Agenda for the Development of Africa in
the 1990s, which was chaired by the former Finance Minister.
He presented the
report to the special session of the UN General Assembly on Africa. President
Thabo Mbeki of South Africa and Mr Amara Essy, Interim Chairperson of the
Commission of the African Union would open the Johannesburg Conference.
The statement signed
for Mr Mike Gizo, Spokesperson of the Dr Kwesi Botchwey Campaign Directorate,
said the former Finance Minister would return early next week to formally
launch his campaign to be the flag-bearer of the National Democratic Congress
in the 2004 elections.
It said Dr Botchwey
would tour the regions and constituencies, adding that, the Directorate was
encouraged by the support received and was confident he would win the NDC
nomination to unify and strengthen the party's chances of victory in the
elections.
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Winneba (Central
Region) 19 October 2002- Ghanaians should help in entrenching rule of law,
human rights and democracy in the country, the Chairman of CIVITAX Ghana, Mr
Samuel Bosompim, said on Friday.
He said this could be
achieved through a conscious education programme in communities and schools to
develop advocacy skills especially for those in rural areas. Mr Bosompim was
speaking at a seminar on the theme, Advocacy Civic Education for the
Advancement of Democracy, at Winneba.
He said the nation
would not move forward if the people were not educated on their rights, duties
and responsibilities and encouraged to participate in all spheres of public life.
Mr Bosompim commended
the US State Department for its financial support for a civic education project
in Ghana. He said lawyers and law students owed the nation a responsibility to
promote human rights and to discourage child abuse.
This would make the
public to see lawyers in a positive role and help in creating trust towards the
country's legal system and respect for the law. He said CIVITAX Ghana in
co-operation with the Street Law Project USA would support the teaching of
civics and practical law in secondary schools by law students to promote
democracy at the grassroots.
Mr Bosompim noted
that problems mitigating, against a democratic culture in the country were
religious and ethnic intolerance, widespread abuse of human rights, cynicism
toward politics and government and irresponsibility.
The Director of
International Programmes of the organisation, Ms Trudy Forbes, said CIVITAX
Ghana would come out with a textbook on the basic principles of human rights in
the country soon.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
19 October 2002 - The next Commonwealth Heads of Government
Meeting (CHOGM) will
take place from December 5-8 next year, Nigeria, Commonwealth Secretary-General
Don McKinnon said on Friday.
A statement received
in Accra said the announcement of the date followed consultations with the host
country and other member countries. At their last meeting in Coolum, Australia,
last March, Commonwealth leaders accepted the offer from President Olusegun
Obasanjo for Nigeria to host the event.
The statement quoted
President Obasanjo as saying: "The government and people of Nigeria look
forward to welcoming Commonwealth leaders to our country.
"The 2003
Meeting should afford a veritable opportunity for us and our partners in the Commonwealth
to address important issues of collective concern with a view to further strengthening
Commonwealth ties and cooperation." Mr McKinnon said the Commonwealth
Secretariat was working closely with the Nigerian Government to ensure a smooth
and successful
meeting.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
19 October 2002 - The death is reported at Bawku of Mr Imoro Salifu, Upper East
Regional chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), who died on Thursday 17 October.
He was 72.
A statement signed by
Mr Jake Obitsebi-Lamptey, Information and Presidential Affairs Minister said in
Accra. The late Salifu was a founding member of the United Gold Coast
Convention (UGCC) from 1948-54. He became secretary of the Northern People's
Party (NPP), 1954-56 and was also a founding member of the United Party (UP).
He became the Upper
Regional Minister under the Progress Party (PP), which he was a founding member
in 1969. He was also a founding member of the NPP and became the Upper East
Regional chairman of the party until his untimely death. The Vice President
Aliu Mahama would lead a government delegation to Bawku for the funeral.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
19 October 2002- The 52nd session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa has
started in Harare, Zimbabwe, with the adoption of resolutions aimed at scaling
up action in critical areas that are key to improving the health situation in
Africa.
The Regional
Committee, WHO's governing body in the African Region, adopted resolutions
endorsing strategy documents prepared by the Brazzaville-based WHO Africa
Regional Office (AFRO), according to a statement from the WHO office in Accra.
These are on
accelerating the development of human resources for health, poverty and health,
environment and health, and accelerating the Expanded Programme on Immunization
(EPI) activities in order to improve the health of children. The meeting also
approved AFRO's Programme Budget and the Regional Contribution for the
2004-2005 biennium.
The resolution on the
development of human resources for health urged Member States not only to make
the issue a priority, but also to put on the international agenda moral and
ethical considerations in the recruitment, by developed countries, of health
workers from developing countries.
The strategy on
poverty and health adopted by the meeting aims at providing counties with
analytical instruments for elaborating and implementing health policies that
contribute significantly to national poverty reduction goals.
Delegates to the
five-day meeting also adopted an environment and health strategy whose main
thrust is to strengthen the capacity of countries to improve the health of
people through the development and implementation of policies and advocacy in
the management of environmental health.
In adopting the
immunisation strategy, the meeting urged member states to re-orient their
national strategic IEC plans to cover the period 2003-2005 with emphasis on
strengthening immunization systems, accelerating disease control, particularly,
polio eradication, neonatal tetanus elimination, measles and yellow fever
control, and the introduction of new vaccines.
Other issues discussed
by the meeting included the health component of the New Partnership for
Africa's Development and the Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB)
and malaria.
Three roundtables
discussed health financing, cardiovascular disease factor reduction and the
health sector response to the dual epidemic of TB and HIV/AIDS. The 53rd
session of the Regional Committee would be held from 1 to 5 September 2003 in
South Africa.
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Cape Coast (Central
Region) 19 October 2002- A total of 700 girls from various junior and senior
secondary schools in the Central Region benefited from the Science, Technology
and Mathematics Clinics (STME) held recently in the various districts.
Girls in the
Twifo-Heman-lower-Denkyira district could however not attend the clinic due to
lack of funds. Mrs Kate Amartey, acting Regional Director of Education who said
this on Thursday at the inauguration of the Regional Co-coordinating Council, (RCC),
appealed to the various districts assemblies to expose more girls to science
and technology by sponsoring the clinics.
She reiterated that
the institution of the STME, was an integral part of the wider national
campaign aimed at developing and maintaining a science and technology culture
among Ghanaians, especially girls, for accelerated national development.
The exposure of girls
to the clinics therefore, helps to bring out the best in them and develop their
potentials as well as the career opportunities available to them in areas of
science and technology.
On the best teacher
awards, she was not happy that the region received only two awards this year,
and appealed to district assemblies and other stakeholders to sponsor teachers'
awards to motivate the teachers to give of their best.
She was however,
happy that the region performed creditably in the basic schools sports
festival, and clinched the over-all best positions in the table tennis, netball
volleyball competitions.
The Regional
Minister, Mr. Isaac Edumadze, repeated his concern about the region's poor
performance in soccer, and suggested that the various district assemblies
should raise their own teams to enhance the sport in the region.
Mr. Muniru Arafat
Nuhu, Cape Coast Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), said the assembly and the
National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) had drawn up a list of the
victims of the recent fire outbreak at the Kotokuraba market for the Ministry
of Women and Children's Affairs for assistance.
He said goods valued
at 350 million cedis were destroyed by the fire, which gutted 104 shops and
stalls, affecting about 102 traders, and appealed to those who could afford to
assist the victims.
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Bawku (Upper East) 19
October 2002-The Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama, on Friday led a government
delegation to attend the burial ceremony of the late Mr.Imoru Baba Salifu, the
Upper East Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, (NPP) at Bawku.
The delegation included
Mr C. K. Tedam and Mr Francis Afoko, both Council of State Members, Mr. Mahami
Salifu, the Regional Minister, and Mr Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, Minister of
Information and Presidential Affairs.
Others were Madam
Hawa Yakubu, Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Dr Kwaku Afriyie, Minister
of Health, Mr Felix Owusu Agyepong, Minister of Communication and Mr Kwabena
Agyei Darko, Minister of Mines.
The rest were, Mr Dan
Botwe, General Secretary of NPP, Mr Stephen Ntim, First National Vice-Chairman,
NPP, Mr Kwame Pianim, an Economic Consultant, District Chief Executives and the
NPP executives from the region.
The Vice President,
in a speech said President John Agyekum Kufuor had wanted to be present to
mourn with the bereaved family and the people of Bawku himself but his tight
schedule prevented him from doing so.
Alhaji Mahama, in his
tribute described the late Mr. Salifu as honest and hard working, who was very
committed in any course he stood for, adding that, his immense contribution
shall never be forgotten.
On behalf of the
Government, the Vice President donated five bags of maize, five bags of rice,
five cartons of cooking oil, two bags of sugar and a cash of five million cedis
to the bereaved family. The late Salifu, popularly known as IB was born in 1930
and died on 17 Thursday October, 2002 from a heart related problem.
He was a teacher by
profession, who entered politics at a tender age and became one of the founding
fathers of both the Northern Peoples Party in the then Gold Coast Northern Territories
and also the Progress Party led by the late Dr K A Busia.
The deceased was the
Regional Commissioner of the former Upper Region during the Second Republic
from 1969 to 1972. The late Salifu became the first Upper East Regional
Chairman of the NPP when the ban on Party Politics was lifted in 1992 and held
the post until his untimely death.
He left behind three
wives, more than 20 children, 30 grandchildren and 10 greatgrand children.
After the burial ceremony, the Vice President and his entourage paid a courtesy
call on the Paramount Chief of the Bawku Traditional Area, Naba Asigri Abugrago
Azoka II.
The Bawku Naba, who
is also the President of the Upper East Regional House of Chiefs said that the
untimely death of Mr Salifu was a great loss not only to his family but also to
the entire traditional area.
Naba Azoka expressed
regret at how the North, within a short time had lost three of her "great
sons" who would have contributed to the socio-economic development of the
area. These citizens he mentioned were, Mr A. Asumda, Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia and
Mr Imoru Salifu.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
19 October 2002- The fate of Amina B. Abubakari Sidiq also known as "Baby
Ocansey", a businesswoman, who fraudulently cashed 1.5 million dollars
from the Bank of Ghana (BOG), will be determined by an Accra Regional Tribunal
on Monday, 21 October.
The tribunal, chaired
by Mr. Justice Isaac Duose, fixed the date after both the prosecution led by
Mr. Anthony Gyambiby, a Principal State Attorney and Defence Counsel, Mr
Godfred D.A. Laryea, had made their final submissions.
Ocansey, 61, is
charged with four counts of causing financial loss to the state, stealing,
possessing and uttering forged documents. She had pleaded not guilty to all the
charges and is on 500,000 dollars bail, with a surety to be justified.
The tribunal on
August 13, this year, acquitted and discharged three others - two former
officials of the BOG and a businessman, who were charged jointly with Ocansey.
The tribunal ruled that the prosecution had failed to establish prima facie
case against Mr Sebastian Gavor and Mr Justice Larbie, the two former employees
of the BOG and Alhaji Sidiq Gimala, the businessman.
The Principal State
Attorney had earlier told the Tribunal that in the latter part of October 1999,
Gavor called one Mr E. D. Donkoh, Manager of the Budget and Accounts Department
of the Bank into his office and asked him to furnish Ocansey with the account
number and address of the Ghana International Bank in London.
Mr Donkoh complied
with the request, which enabled Ocansey to transact business with the bank. Mr
Gyambiby said on November 11, 1999, Ocansey presented a bank draft purported to
have been issued by the Chase Manhattan Bank in New York, dated 5 November 1999
with the face value of 1.5 million dollars to Gavor for encashment.
The draft whose
maturity date was December 12, 1999, was given to Mr Ashie Djanie for
processing after which it was despatched by the BOG on 26 November 1999.
On 1 December 1999,
Citibank, New York, confirmed by a swift message having credited 1.5 million
dollars to the BOG's account, but with the following proviso; "subject to
the rules governing cheques and their clearings", Mr Gyambiby said, adding,
"this message was received the following day."
On 16 November 1999,
Mr Gavor asked Mr Djanie, who worked in the Banking Department of the BOG, to
use his (Gavor's) IDD to confer with the BOG's contact personnel at the City
Bank to know the status of the bank draft and he was informed that, the BOG had
been credited with the bank draft.
Irrespective of the
proviso about the clearance of cheques and banking procedures, Mr Larbie
instructed Mr Djanie to process the draft for payment and subsequently approved
the payment schedule, which was prepared by Mrs Nyarko and Mrs Kessie, both
workers of the BOG. The process went through and the amount was paid to Baby
Ocansey and Gavor whose names appeared on the cheque.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
19 October 2002- The Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), on
Friday issued cheques to cover additional payments of 250,000 cedis to the
750,000 cedis originally paid to 3,316 students.
This brings the total
amount paid per student at the University of Ghana, Legon to 1,000,000 cedis
for the first semester, a statement in Accra said The statement said the banks
were expected to credit the accounts of the affected students very soon but
expressed regret that students who are reported to have closed their accounts
will have their monies returned to the SSNIT.
The statement added
that 10,000 applications were expected from the University of Ghana, Legon, but
only 6,000 have been received from the District Office of SSNIT at Legon though
the deadline expired on 8 October.
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