Cote d'Ivoire unrest-a test
case for African Leaders
Strategies to solve brain
drain problem-Abutiate
Accra (Greater Accra) 30
September 2002- An emergency summit of West African leaders was set to discuss
the mounting violence in Cote d'Ivoire on Sunday, as mutinous soldiers tried to
take control of a fourth city in the country's north and Western troops
evacuated more foreign nationals.
Leaders of the
Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have gather in Accra, the
capital of neighbouring Ghana, for a summit on the military uprising in Cote
d'Ivoire. Both military and diplomatic solutions were up for consideration by
the heads of state, according to a variety of government officials involved in
the meeting.
The Foreign Minister
of Ghana said military intervention could not be ruled out, Senegal's President
said 4,000 troops could be deployed quickly, while Nigeria has already sent
three fighter jets to the aid of President Laurent Gbagbo.
ECOWAS has over the
past decade sent peacekeeping and intervention troops to conflicts areas in
Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea-Bissau. "You have to encourage dialogue
within Cote d'Ivoire to take place with all the players there because there has
to be political stability,'' said a spokesman for the South African President,
Thabo Mbeki, expected to attend the summit in his position as African Union
president.
The spokesman told the
British Broadcasting Corporation that the African Union 'would support whatever
positions ECOWAS takes.'' Rebellious soldiers launched simultaneous pre-dawn
attacks on 19 September across Ivory Cote d'Ivoire, the world's largest cocoa
producer and formerly West Africa's most stable country.
They say they are
fighting against plans to demobilise them from the army, while the government
is calling the revolt an attempted coup. But observers said the rebel's grip on
the north - and the relative support they have received from the local
population, makes the uprising look more and more like a civil war.
The dissident soldiers
already controlled three key cities in the North, Bouake, Korhogo and Odienne.
French troops using helicopters on Sunday began evacuating the estimated 200
western nationals from Korhogo, some 2,100 foreigners were evacuated from
Bouake over the past week.
Witnesses in the town
of Tiebissou, halfway between Bouake and the capital Yamoussoukro, reported
heavy fighting on Saturday between the mutineers and loyalist troops.
France on Saturday
accepted a request from Cote d'Ivoire embattled government for military
assistance. Prime Minister Pascal Affi N'Guessan told state radio he had asked
the French government for logistical help under an existing military
co-operation pact between Cote d'Ivoire and its former colonial ruler. France
would comply but would not send fighting troops, said a foreign minister
statement from Paris. Nearly 200 people- mainly soldiers- have died in the
uprising.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002- The Executive Secretary of the Economic Community of West
African States (ECOWAS), Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas said Sunday's meeting of West
African Heads of States in addition to finding solution to the problem in
troubled Cote D'Ivoire would send out a clear message to the effect that no
military overthrow of constitutional governments would be tolerated on the
continent.
"The presence of
Africa Union Chairman and Secretary General President Thabo Mbeki of South
Africa and Dr Amara Essay, respectively, gives an indication that the Union
supports every effort of ECOWAS at bringing peace to the Sub-Region".
Dr Chambas, who was
among the dignitaries welcoming the arriving Heads of States for the day's
summit on Cote D'Ivoire in Accra at the Kotoka International Airport, was speaking
to the Ghana News Agency.
He said the meeting
would employ dialogue as the first step to bringing about peace to that
country, adding that the cardinal principles of the New Partnership for Africa
Development (NEPAD) was good governance and stability, which ECOWAS would try
to employ to ensure peace in that country. He said historically, Cote D'Ivoire
had been known as a peaceful country and, therefore, all should condemn the
current mutiny.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002- West African leaders have started arriving in Accra on
Sunday for a day's emergency summit on the crisis in Cote d'Ivoire.
Among the early
arrivals were President Blaise Compaore of Burkina Faso and President Mamadou
Tandja of Niger. Bruno Amossou, Senior Minister in-charge of Government
Co-ordination, is representing Benin.
Also in Accra for the
Summit, which was called following a crisis after a mutiny of some 750 soldiers
protesting against demobilisation, is South African President Thabo Mbeki,
Chairman of the African Union.
At the airport to meet
them were President John Agyekum Kufuor, Vice President Aliu Mahama;
Ambassadors of the various countries and members of the Diplomatic Corps. The
Navy Band played the ECOWAS anthem for the WEST African Leaders and that of the
African Union for President Mbeki.
The Secretary-General
of the African Union, Amara Essay and the Executive Secretary of the Economic
Community of West African States, Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas are also in for the
Summit.
The Summit would be
held at the Parliament House. The Summit is to help find solution to the
crisis, which the Ivorian government calls an attempted coup. Hundreds of
people have been killed in the clashes and the mutinous soldiers still control
Bouake in the centre of the country and towns in the north.
The dead included
former military ruler Robert Guei and the Interior Minister, Emile Bongo
Doudou. Aid workers in that country said on Thursday that nearly 4,000 people,
mostly immigrant workers, had been displaced.
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Tamale (Northern
Region) 30 September 2002- President John Agyekum Kufuor has appointed a
11-member Interim Management Committee (IMC) for each of the six districts in
Dagbon to assist the District Chief Executives in administering the affairs of
the area. They are, Tolon/Kumbungu, Yendi, Savelugu/Nanton, Gushiegu/Karaga and
Zabzugu/Tatale and Tamale Municipal Assembly.
Mr. Kwadwo
Baah-Wiredu, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development said these at a
news conference in Tamale on Saturday. He said an Executive Instrument had been
signed to that effect by the President, under the powers conferred on him by
Section 6 (3) of the Emergency Powers Act 1994 (Act 472).
Mr Baah-Wiredu
explained that the appointments nullified any such earlier decision in respect
with the districts. The Dagbon area has been under a state of emergency since
March this year, following violence in Yendi.
Mr Baah-Wiredu said as
a result of the extension of the state of emergency by Parliament, the
Electoral Commission (EC) considered the Dagbon area unsafe for the conduct of
the district assembly elections, adding that their life span came to an end on
31 July 2002.
He said there was the
need for emergency arrangements for the administration of districts in the
Dagbon area. On the fate of candidates in the six districts who had filed their
nomination papers with the Electoral Commission to contest the district
assembly elections before the imposition of the state of emergency, Mr
Baah-Wiredu said the exercise had being nullified since the EC did not complete
the electoral process in those districts.
He explained that if
the state of emergency was lifted in Dagbon, the EC would re-open nominations
for prospective candidates. The Minister said 13.5 billion cedis out of the 117
billion cedis Highly Indebted Poor Country initiative fund, have been allocated
to the Northern Region for disbursement to 13 district assemblies.
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Akosombo (Eastern
Region) 30 September 2002- The Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural
Development, Hajia Alima Mahama has warned that the Ministry would investigate
all press allegations of corruption and malpractices against members of
District Tender Boards and deal with those found wanting.
She therefore, advised
District Chief Executives (DCE), who are Chairmen of the Tender Boards to
ensure that their Boards operate within laid down rules and regulations. Hajia
Mahama gave the warning at the opening of a three-day Special Sector Conference
of District Chief Executives on Friday at Akosombo.
The conference was
being attended by 44 Municipal and Chief Executives from the Volta, Eastern,
Greater Accra and Central Regions. She advised the DCEs to establish a Government
House in each District to serve as an information and communication centre for
people seeking information on employment, contracts and other matters affecting
the District.
Hajia Mahama called on
the DCEs to be alert on security issues and urged them to pay more attention to
activities at the country's borders in view of recent developments in Cote
d'Ivoire.
She announced that the
Ministry was to initiate a Clean City Contest and institute prizes for those
who would win awards in the contest. Hajia Mahama said the government was
planning the celebration of Rural Development Week later this year.
She explained that the
celebrations would involve the inspection of rural development projects by
members of the District Assemblies, DCEs, Chiefs and the public during which
video clips and still pictures would be taken.
The Deputy Minister
said the video clips and the still pictures would later be put together into a
documentary film to be shown throughout the country on the achievements of the
government since 7 January 2001.
She said during the
week a Rural Development Fund would be launched to mobilise funds for rural
development. Hajia Mahama explained that the Rural Development Fund would be
purely a private sector initiative with the Ministry of Local Government
facilitating the process.
Dr. Samuel Akor,
Director of Policy Planning, Management and Evaluation of the Ministry of
Health called on the District Assemblies to facilitate the establishment of the
Health Insurance Schemes in their Districts. He explained that, though the
District Assemblies would facilitate the establishment of the scheme, they were
not supposed to own the scheme, but the people were expected to own the scheme.
The Eastern Regional
Minister, Dr. Francis Osafo-Mensah advised the DCEs to document the tourism
potentials in their District so that when funding was made available, it would
be easy to develop them.
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Sunyani (Brong Ahafo)
30 September 2002- Mr Ernest Kwaku Debrah, Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, at the
weekend urged Journalists to support efforts by the government to make life
bearable for the people. He said the government alone could not change
conditions in the country and called on Ghanaians to contribute "for the
change that we all yearn for".
The Regional Minister
said people should not always look up to Ministers and government officials for
solutions to problems. "How many are Ministers and Directors? They are few
and their capacities are limited. We need an attitudinal change in every citizen,
every professional to be able to turn the country around," he said.
Mr Debrah was speaking
at a meeting with the Regional Press Corps at the Residency to discuss issues
including the situation in Cote D'Ivoire, the possible influx of refugees into
the country and the rampant rape cases in the region.
"As journalists
you are supposed to educate, inform and guide the people positively about
government policies and programmes as well as give the feedback from the people
to those in authority so that through our collective effort we can work to make
Ghana a better place for all".
Mr Debrah said it was
not enough for journalists to report on only on bad conditions in an area. Such
reports must be balanced this with the people's efforts to rectify the situation.
If people in an area smuggle cocoa to neighbouring countries and refuse to pay
taxes, such acts could be due to ignorance and it was up to journalists to
support educational campaigns for them to change, Mr Debrah stated.
He noted that financial
support from donor countries were mostly from the taxes of their people and
asked why Ghanaians should perpetually expect such foreign assistance without
thinking of helping ourselves.
This is where
Journalists, as well-informed professionals should endeavour to educate our
people about for them to realise that the world is fast changing and we need to
create our own wealth without looking up for manna to fall from any other
country, he said.
Mr Charles Koomson,
Vice Chairman of the Brong Ahafo branch of Ghana Journalists Association (GJA),
asked journalists to operate within the ethics of the profession to avoid
public condemnation.
He advised journalists
not to allow material consideration to becloud their professional judgement. Mr
Koomson, who is the Regional Manager of the Ghana News Agency, urged Journalist
as the fourth estate of the realm to assist the people and the government to
meet their aspirations.
Present at the meeting
were Mr Francis Opoku Boateng, Regional Co-Coordinating Director and Mr Leonard
Amengor, Regional Chairman of the GJA.
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Kintampo (Brong Ahafo)
30 September 2002- Mr Yaw Adjei Duffour, Deputy Brong Ahafo Regional Minister,
at the weekend reiterated the government's determination to ensure that every
citizen developed in freedom.
I want to assure you
that the NPP Government is determined to maintain peace, law and order in all
parts of the country so that law-abiding citizens can go about their businesses
in true freedom, he said. Mr Duffour was addressing the Chiefs, elders and
people of the Wangara Community in the country at Kintampo during the third
celebration of their Kurubi festival.
The theme for the
celebration was "Peace and Unity Brings Stability, Development and
Happiness". The Deputy Regional Minister stated that the government would
not tolerate acts by any person or group of persons, which would disturb peace.
As our motto
indicates, we want the people to truly develop in freedom, he added. Mr Duffour
expressed regret that "the humility, tranquility and discipline, which
existed in our communities have given way to arrogance and gross
indiscipline".
The spirit of
self-help, voluntarism and service to humanity have almost disappeared from our
society, he said adding that, these virtues had been replaced by indiscipline,
corruption, human trafficking, child abuse, rape and armed robbery.
The Deputy Minister
stressed that the situation, which he attributed to "our insatiable love
for power, supremacy, money and pleasure" was a challenge to teachers,
community leaders, parents and the nation as a whole.
He commended the Wangara
Community for using the festival to map out strategies to improve the quality
of life and to forge ahead with hope. Mr Duffour urged the chiefs to join
forces with the government in fighting the HIV/AIDS for the accelerated
development of communities.
In a speech read for
him, Mr Kwamena Bartels, acting Minister of Tourism acknowledged that the
festival was to foster peace and unity and to encourage tourism. He mentioned
the immense tourism potentials in the Kintampo and including the Kintampo Falls,
which the Ministry was seriously considering to develop.
"Plans are far
advanced to create a befitting receptive facility in the form of a modern Rest
Stop in this locality to offer travellers the basic necessities and also serve
as an information base on attractions including the Buabeng Monkey Sanctuary,
Fullar and Kintampo Falls".
Alhaji Mouktar Bamba,
Deputy Minister of Presidential Affairs, exhorted Muslims to rally behind the
government for an improvement in living standards.
Nana Fanyinama, 111,
Chief of the Wangaras urged his people to continue to co-exist peacefully with
other ethnic groups. Chief Alhaji Baba Issa, General Secretary of Council of
Wangara Chiefs said the significance of the festival was to create a forum for
discussions of issues of common interest.
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Kumasi (Ashanti
Region) 30 September 2002- The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has accused
the New Patriotic Party (NPP) of intimidation and intolerance as the campaign
for the Kumawu constituency parliamentary bye-election enters its final stage.
It said apart from a
deliberate smear campaign being waged against its candidate, Mr Richard Martin
Osei, the NPP was also organising its supporters to boo and prevent the NDC
campaign team from mounting platform to canvass for votes in certain
communities.
A statement signed by
Mr Bede A. Ziedeng, Deputy General Secretary of the party on Sunday, said the
incident took place at Besoro and Drobonso. It said posters of Mr Osei had been
defaced and removed at Besoro, the hometown of the late MP for the area, Mr Reo
Addai Basoah, pointing out that, such acts were not only objectionable but
undermined efforts at building democracy.
The NDC therefore
called on the leadership of the NPP to advise its supporters against the
practice and to organise a 'clean' campaign. The statement noted that in spite
of the intimidation and rough tactics, the NDC had grown in strength and was
poised to take the seat from the NPP.
It said "the NDC
would gracefully accept defeat if the elections are truly free, fair and
transparent. Anything short of that would be unacceptable not only to the NDC,
but we believe, to all Ghanaians."
The statement said the
NDC had so far conducted its campaign responsibly and called on the Electoral
Commission and the Ashanti Regional Security Council to ensure security at all Polling
Stations on the voting day.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002- A swarm of journalists from across Africa and Europe on
Sunday swarmed Parliament House in Accra to suck the nectar of the on-going
ECOWAS Emergency Summit on the crisis in La Cote d'Ivoire.
They came from far
away Nairobi, Johannesburg, Niamey and Dakar and nearby Abidjan and Lome with
their cameras, recorders, laptops and notebooks to keep their countries and
peoples informed about deliberations at the Summit.
Accra was for a very
long time hosting as many as 12 Heads of States and Governments, the assemblage
of the highest number since the days of Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah in the First
Republic.
A mass band of the
Ghana Armed Forces and Police gave a rendition of the African Union and ECOWAS
(Economic Community of West African States) anthems to herald the emergency
summit.
Many were they who
were hearing the anthems for the first time and were quick to suggest that
school children across the continent should be made to learn them. After the
anthems, a minute silence was observed for the victims of the Ferry disaster in
Senegal, which claimed the lives of about 700 people last Thursday.
The tone for the
search of peace and stability was set when President John Agyekum of Ghana in
welcoming the delegates, recalled a Ghanaian proverb that it was a fool who
would sit unconcerned when his neighbour's house was on fire.
President Olusegun
Obasanjo of Nigeria went a step further and said: "It is our own house
that is on fire" and thus revitalising the African passion for good neighbourliness
- the driving force for holding the emergency summit on the political crisis in
Cote d'Ivoire.
Dr Mohamed Ibn
Chambas, Executive Secretary of ECOWAS said all the Heads of State attached
great importance to the situation in Cote d'Ivoire and that was why within 48
hours of summoning, as many as 12 of them had assembled.
President Obasanjo had
to cut short a foreign visit; President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa and
Chairman of Africa Union, had to put aside serious domestic and continental
issues to dash to Accra.
President Abdoulaye
Wade of Senegal and Current Chairman of ECOWAS, left home when rescue teams
were still searching for about 700 Senegalese who got drowned a ferry accident
off the coast of The Gambia.
The summit, which was earlier
moved from October 5 to 29 September was shifted from Abidjan to Accra because
of "security concerns" for ECOWAS Leaders. It reviewed the security
situation in Cote d'Ivoire, which since 10 days ago has been under siege from
750 mutinous soldiers resisting plans to demobilise them.
About 270 people
including former Junta Leader General Robert Guei and the Ivorian Interior
Minister, Emile Bongo Doudou have been killed and 300 others injured in the
crisis.
An extraordinary
meeting of the ECOWAS Defence and Security Commission, comprising Armed Forces
Chiefs of Staff of ECOWAS member states would also hold in Accra after the
summit, to discuss the implementation of decisions taken.
Ivorian President
Laurent Gbagbo had formally asked the 15-member Sub-Regional bloc for
"support and assistance." Nigeria, acting on the request of ECOWAS,
had already deployed three Alpha jets and about 30 support personnel in Cote
d'Ivoire.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002- Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas, Executive Secretary of ECOWAS, on
Sunday said if the events in Cote d'Ivoire were not controlled it would be a
major setback for the implementation of the New Partnership for Africa's
Development (NEPAD) in the Sub-Region.
He said; "NEPAD
advocates the building of a culture of democracy, respect for human rights and
the rule of law as essential conditions for creating stable conditions for
sustainable development.
"Indeed Cote
d'Ivoire had been in the forefront in the advocacy of the effective
implementation of NEPAD." Dr Chambas was speaking at an emergency summit of
ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) in Accra organised by the
ECOWAS Secretariat to discuss the military uprising in Cote d'Ivoire.
The Summit, which was
earlier scheduled for October 5 was moved to 29 September and shifted from
Abidjan to Accra because of "security concerns" for ECOWAS Leaders.
The meeting would review the security situation in Cote d'Ivoire, which since
10 days ago has been under siege from 750 mutinous soldiers resisting plans to
demobilise them.
About 270 people including
former junta Leader General Robert Guei and the Ivorian Interior Minister,
Emile Bongo Doudou have been killed and 300 others injured in the crisis.
An extraordinary
meeting of the ECOWAS Defence and Security Commission, comprising Armed Forces
Chiefs of Staff of ECOWAS member states would also hold in Accra after the
Summit, to discuss the implementation of decisions taken.
Ivorian President
Laurent Gbagbo had formally asked the 15-member sub-regional bloc for
"support and assistance". Dr Chambas said the crisis was "a
threat to the process of Democratization and Constitutional governance, which
had been gaining ground in the
Sub-Region and
threatens to unravel the important threads that link the peoples in the
Sub-Region".
He said the lofty objectives
by ECOWAS to building peace, stability, democracy and integration in the
Sub-Region in order to better fight poverty and improve on the lives of the
people was being threatened by the escalating violence and the disloyal
activities of certain elements in the Ivorian army.
"These rebellious
troops are in breach of their sacred oath to protect and defend the
Constitution of Cote d'Ivoire," he said. Dr Chambas said: "We must
send a clear and unambiguous message out, not only to the rebellious troops,
but to all the armed forces in the Sub-Region that the days of coup d'etat are
gone".
He referred to the
Algiers Declaration of the African Union and the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy
and Good Governance, which, he said, were emphatic that there would be no
recognition for any government which comes to power by unconstitutional means
and said: " That is to say that there is a "zero tolerance" for
coups and military interventions in Africa".
Dr Chambas appealed to
leaders in the Sub-Region to remain steadfast in defending this principle as a
demonstration of their commitment to build democracy and good governance in
their countries.
President Abdoulaye
Wade, President of Senegal and Chairman of ECOWAS, condemned the crisis and
proposed the establishment of a mediation committee to solve the crisis through
dialogue between the government and mutineers.
He said ECOWAS
Protocols had mechanisms to solve such crisis and to lend heir support to the
legitimate government in member states. President Wade said the presence of
most leaders in the Sub-Region at the emergency summit bore testimony to their
resolve to solve the crisis and commitment to deal with conflicts therein.
He said there was the
need to have a look at the remote causes to the crisis and to try to avoid
recurrence in any country within the Sub-Region. Mr Ahmedou Ould Abdallah,
Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for West Africa, said the UN
was prepared to work with ECOWAS to find amicable solution to the crisis in
Cote d'Ivoire.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002- African Leaders at the opening of an emergency summit to
discuss the mounting violence in Cote d'Ivoire, said their ability to find a
quick and appropriate solution to the problem would determine how successful
their resolve to maintain the culture of democracy, peace and respect for the
rule of law on the continent would be.
"If we are able
to find an amicable and peaceful solution to the problem of La Cote d'Ivoire
and continue to nurture and sustain democracy there, all of us would be one
inch-taller as African Leaders because we would have found our own solution and
met the expectation of the world," said Nigerian President Olusegun
Obasanjo.
Twelve Heads of States
and Governments, including President Laurent Gbagbo of Cote d'Ivoire, Charles
Taylor of Liberia, Gnassingbe Eyadema of Togo and Koumba Yala of Guinea Bissau
were at the Summit, expected to consider both military and diplomatic solutions
to the conflict.
Conference sources say
the Nigerian Leader favours an action that would quell the rebellion, unlike
his counterparts such as ECOWAS Chairman Abdoulaye Wade, who has proposed a
mediation team to dialogue between the Ivorian authorities and the rebels.
South African
President Thabo Mbeki, who also chairs the African Union, pledged the commitment
of the Union to work with ECOWAS to speedily find a solution to the crisis.
He noted: "All
our colleagues are worried about the situation and have expressed the need to
do something about it. All of Africa looks up to us." "Expectations
are high from the people of Cote d'Ivoire, who look up to Your Excellencies, in
their hour of dire need. The attention of the world is on ECOWAS to prove its
capability to respond appropriately to stabilise the situation in Cote
d'Ivoire," was the concluding remarks of Dr Ibn Mohamed Ibn Chambas,
Executive Secretary of ECOWAS.
In an interview with
the Ghana News Agency, Vicky Delore Ndjeuga, a Chief Editor of Le Jour, an
Ivorian daily, said his country was on the verge of a civil war. He said he had
high expectations that a solution would emerge from the Summit.
"The rebels are
about 400 kilometres from Abidjan and there is much fear and anxiety, and that
is very terrible," said the Journalist, who is in Accra to cover the
Summit.
He gave the name of
the rebel leader as Adjutant Tuo Fotie. The leaders reaffirmed their belief in
sustaining democracy and the rule of law on the continent famous for political
instability and conflicts.
This they intend to
achieve by the application of the Protocols of ECOWAS, African Union and the
principles of New the Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). ECOWAS has
over the past decade sent peacekeeping and intervention troops to conflicts
areas in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea-Bissau.
Rebellious soldiers
launched simultaneous pre-dawn attacks on 19 September across Cote d'Ivoire,
the world's largest cocoa producer and formerly West Africa's most stable
country. They say they are fighting against plans to demobilise them from the
army, while the government is calling the revolt an attempted coup.
But observers said the
rebel's grip on the north - and the relative support they have received from
the local population, makes the uprising look more and more like a civil war.
The dissident soldiers already control three key cities in the North, Bouake,
Korhogo and Odienne. Nearly 200 people - mainly soldiers- have died in the
uprising.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002- A 10-member new executive of the National Union of Ghana
Students (NUGS) were at the weekend sworn in at the University of Ghana Medical
School Auditorium at Korle-Bu.
Mr. Yonny Kulendi, a legal practitioner, swore in the
new officers, including a medical student from Korle-Bu, Mr. Edward Kofi Omane
Boamah, who takes over as the new President of NUGS
The position of
Secretary went to Mr. Nathaniel Papa Kwaw of the University College of Winneba
and Mr. Benjamin Sam-Benji from the Institute of Management Studies, Kumasi
becomes the new Treasurer.
The others are Mr.
Ahmed Hudeen Daud from the University of Cape Coast who becomes the Co-ordinating
Secretary and Mr. Frank Stephens from the Institute of Professional Studies
Accra, Financial Controller.
The rest are,
Programmes and Projects Secretary, Mr. Rainer Akumperigya of the University of
Development Studies, Tamale, Women's Commissioner, Miss Hajara A. Mohammed of
the University of Ghana Legon, Mr. Kingsley Ohene Amoako from the Ghana
Institute of Languages, International Relations Secretary, Mr. Kweku
Sakyi-Danso, Press and Information Secretary and Mr. Abdul-Raham Suleman, the Education
and Democratisation Secretary.
In an address, the
out-going NUGS President, Mr. Edward Bawa said that the NUGS have been at
forefront of the political history of the country with an objective and
non-partisan position.
He said NUGS has taken
inspiration from its stated mandate and has engaged in activities aimed at
introducing the safeguarding fundamental human rights in this country for both
students and the general public.
Mr. Bawa said gone are
the days when the performance of any NUGS President and his team was assessed
by the number of demonstrations organized. He therefore, urged the current new
executive officers to adopt appropriate strategies that would ensure the
attainment of their objectives.
The outgoing president
of NUGS expressed his profound gratitude to the Ministry of Education, other
government ministries and agencies that contributed immensely in making their
tenure of office a success. The in-coming President of NUGS, Mr. Edward Kofi
Omane Boamah in his address said it was time for Ghanaians to take their
destiny into their own hands and take pragmatic steps to turn Ghana round.
He called on NUGS to
take stock, accept their mistakes and push forward concrete proposals that
would impact positively on Ghanaians. On education, the incoming NUGS President
Mr. Edward Boamah was not happy with the 2.8 per cent GDP set aside by the
Government to support
education and called on the government to increase the GDP percentage on
education. He gave examples on GDP percentages set aside for education by some
countries as - South Africa, 15 percent, Namibia 8 percent, Togo 8 percent and
Burkina Faso.
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Takoradi (Western
Region) 30 September 2002- Mr Joseph Boahene Aidoo, Western Regional Minister,
has called on tourism practitioners to educate themselves on aspects and trends
in the tourism industry.
He made the call in an
address read for him at the launching of the Regional Chapter of the Tour
Operators Association of Ghana (TOUGHA) and the Second Domestic Tourism
Awareness Programme in Takoradi.
The launching formed
part of the Regional celebration of World Tourism Day. Mr Aidoo said it is only
when tourism practitioners are exposed to development in other countries that
they could be challenged to improve upon the country's tourism industry to meet
international standards.
He said in this
regard, it would always be necessary to create platforms to offer tourism
practitioners and other stakeholders the opportunity to share innovative ideas
and the rich experiences of experts, who have excelled in the industry.
Mr Aidoo said if the
country is to realise the optimum benefits of its vast tourism potentials,
there is the need for effective planning and adoption of appropriate strategies
to harness the development of the sector.
He said what the
region needs in attaining its rightful position of becoming the market leader
of Ghana's tourism industry is the support and encouragement of various
institutions, agencies and non-governmental organisations.
Mr Aidoo called for
support of chiefs who are repositories of the country's culture, which the
country is marketing as a primary tourism product. More importantly, he said,
it is Nananom who can make land available for tourism projects.
Nana Kobina Nketsiah
the third, Omanhene of Essikado Traditional Area inaugurated the Association and
the awareness programme. In a speech, Nana Nketsiah said the region has vast
tourism potentials which Ghanaians themselves must tap and develop.
He said Ghanaians and
not outsiders must spearhead the take-off of the tourism industry in the
region. He urged investors to promote heritage, nationalist landmarks and
eco-tourism in the region.
Nana Prempeh
Annin-Bonsu, National President of TOUGHA, said the domestic tourism awareness
programme is aimed at developing domestic tourism, especially among the youth.
He said the youth are
the main target in this tourism education programme as they are the future
leaders of the country. Nana Annin-Bonsu said this year's programme would
involve an essay competition on tourism related subject for JSS students in the
region. He said the first 40 students would qualify to go on an excursion tour
in the Central and Greater Accra Regions.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002- The four-day security and safety exhibition to draw public
attention to issues of security ended in Accra on Saturday with a call on banks
and other financial institutions to adopt appropriate strategies to counteract
the menace of cheque fraud in the society.
Mr Kwadwo Affram
Asiedu, the Deputy Minister of Defence, who made the call, said the efforts
were necessary to ensure that investors build and maintain confidence in the
country to boost development.
"For investors to
come into the country, we must be able to create a congenial atmosphere where
investors will not be likely to lose their lives and properties to robbers or
have their monies stolen from the banks through computer fraud," he said
in a speech read for him.
According to the
Minister the government's efforts to usher the country into the 'Golden Age of
Business' would come to naught if peace and security were not preserved. Local
and foreign investment, tourism, commerce and general socio-economic activities
stand to gain from enhanced safety and security in a country, he said.
Mr Afram, therefore,
called for effective collaboration between security providers and dealers in
safety and security equipment to ensure that Hithec equipment are acquired to
combat crime.
He lauded the
awareness that the exhibition created among the public on the need to take
security issues seriously, saying what needed to be done now was to sustain the
level of knowledge through more public educational programmes and activities.
"We urge
companies, institutions, banks, schools, churches and individuals to be
involved in this educational campaign on safety and security." The Deputy
Minister expressed the hope that more of such exhibitions would be organised in
the future to expose Ghanaians to innovations and technology in safety and
security for the general good and progress of the country.
Mr Boniface Saddique
Abu-Bakar, Deputy Minister of Trade said with the high level of technological
advancement, crime had become more sophisticated and difficult to be detected
and prevented.
He called for
concerted effort by the Police, the Association of Private Security
Organisations, the Community Watch-Dog Committees, the Ghana Immigration
Service and the Business community, among others, to ensure that the entire
populace was adequately sensitised on crime preventive measures.
The Royal Protocol
Management Services and the Association of Private Security Organisations,
under the auspices of the Ministry of Interior organised the exhibition on the
theme: "Developing Safety and Security Consciousness as an asset for
socio-economic and political stability in the new democratic era of
Africa."
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002 - Ghanaians have been called upon to work hard to enhance the
development of the society and nation at large. ''No nation has been developed
by non-nationals, Ghanaians must take up the destiny of the nation into their
own hands and we can turn things round for the better".
Mr Edward Kofi Omane
Boamah, the new president of the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) told
the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview in Accra after his inauguration. Mr
Boamah, quoting Former Zambian President, Kenneth Kaunda, said, "The IMF
doesn't care whether you are suffering from malaria, cold or broken legs, it
will give you quinine''.
He deplored the
attitude of Vice Chancellors of the country's universities, whom he accused of
providing accommodation on their campuses for non-Ghanaian students because
they have foreign moneys to pay high rents to the predicament of Ghanaian
students.
On the NUGS, Mr Boamah
said the goals of the union have not changed, but the way of achieving them
has, adding that, "society is dynamic we must change with it so that we do
not lag behind."
He said in the
thirty-six years of NUGS existence, almost half of those years had been spent
on the forefront of liberating Ghanaian students from the political entanglements
of dictatorial military regimes.
Mr. Boamah said NUGS
is coining a new image for itself, as non-partisan body with an independent
objective. He said NUGS would work to become self-sustaining to enable it to
pursue long-cherished goals of building a secretariat, buying a vehicle for the
smooth running of the organisation. He disclosed that NUGS would open a
web-site within the next six months for easy accessibility of the Union to all
students.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002- The Reverend Dr. Mensah Otabil, General Overseer of the
International Central Gospel Church on Saturday said terrorism has a direct
linkage with academic achievement and moral training.
He said: "When we
train children's mind to acquire all the academic achievements but fail to
train their heart to acquire good moral values, they would grow up to be
terrorists." Rev. Dr. Otabil was addressing parents and pupils of ASYD
Academy, at a thanksgiving service and speech and prize-giving day in
commemoration with the school's silver jubilee anniversary, under the theme
"bracing 25 years of academic and moral excellence."
He said People use:
"twisted intelligence to terrorise the world, just like it happened in the
11 September 2001 attacked on United States of America." Rev. Dr. Otabil
asked parents not to place emphasis on the academic success of their children
at the expense of their moral upbringing.
He said "Let us
not allow television or the media to do the parenting for us, because we may
win the academic war but would loose the moral war." Rev. Dr. Otabil
criticised parents, who attacked teachers for disciplining their children.
He advised children
against negatives practices such as drug abuse and pre-marital sex and asked
them to learn hard to enable them become useful citizens in future. Mrs Alberta
Quartey, Proprietor and Managing Director of the school said out of the 45
candidates, who took part in the last Basic Education Certificate Examination,
82 per cent of them had distinction.
He said the
institution's quest for morality, which reflected in the slogan "ASYD,
dare to do right" had imbibed in the pupils a sense of enthusiasm to
relate to God. Prizes were awarded to deserving pupils and staff, who
distinguished themselves through hard work.
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Dzodze (Volta Region)
30 September - Vice President Alhaji Aliu Mahama on Saturday said the government
would spend 1.09 billion cedis on a road surface project in the Dzodze
Township.
He gave the assurance
that the people of the Volta Region would witness a big socio-economic
development in line with the government's vision for positive change. Alhaji
Aliu Mahama told the people of Dzodze that a new water scheme, sponsored by the
German Technical Assistance Programme (GTZ), was in the pipeline and urged
assembly members there to obtain the town's share of the one billion cedis of
the Highly Indebted Poor Countries fund released to the Ketu South District for
viable projects.
Vice President Mahama
was speaking at a grand durbar of the chiefs and people of Dzodze to celebrate
their maiden Oil Palm Festival, Deza at the Weekend. He said: "The government
has come to do business with the people of Volta region so let us forge
partnership for a fruitful relationship."
The Festival was a
dream come true for the people, who commissioned a three -member a committee in
1992, to institute the event as a unifying platform to foster peace and also to
kick-start a crusade to revitalize their once booming oil palm business, which
was the economic mainstay of the people.
Dzodze Traditional
Area, in times past took pride in successful oil palm business and the production
'zomi' palm oil, but lost this glory when the raw material was channelled into
the production of Akpeteshie.
However, the people
are now poised to recapture their past glory with the assistance of the
government and the Ministry of Foods and Agriculture. In response to their
call, Vice President Mahama said he had directed the Ministry to commission a
soil crop suitability study to find out why the oil palm business collapsed and
the prospects for revamping it.
He said the efforts of
the ministry would complement the President's Special Initiative on Oil Palm,
Which was inspired by his recent visit to Malaysia, where the produce was been
used for domestic and industrial purposes.
Vice President Aliu
Mahama advised the people, who engage mainly in cassava, maize and vegetables
production to guard against the setting of bush fires as a way of clearing the
land for farming activities other obsolete agricultural practices.
On the chieftaincy and
land disputes in the area, which was manifested by the presence of two chiefs
at the festival, both claiming authority as a Paramount Chief, he advised
traditional rulers in the area to settle their differences amicably.
"Disputes of any
kind and other negative tendencies have never enhanced the course of development
anywhere. They only cause loss of lives and the destruction to property and
draw us back in our developmental efforts," he said.
Vice President Mahama
urged the people to embrace the campaign against indiscipline and to help to instil confidence in
the institutions entrusted with maintaining law and order. He said Cabinet
recently granted a request to upgrade the Dzodze Town Council into an Urban
Council, adding that the relevant legislative amendment was being worked out to
that effect together with others.
On their request for
the creation of a new district in the area, the Vice President said the appeal
was being considered by the relevant authorities, but cautioned that such an
exercise would involve a great financial responsibility.
Major Courage
Quashigah (rtd), Minister of Food and Agriculture said oil palm had great
economic value, citing that in Malaysia it was processed into diesel for
running vehicles and also turned into ice cream.
He urged the
traditional authorities to release land for the cultivation of the cash crop
and gave the assurance that the Ministry would assist farmers to cultivate palm
oil. Nana Akomea, Deputy Minister of Tourism, promised the people that his
outfit would ensure that oil palm became a tourist attraction just as cocoa,
gold, water falls, and castles were to other towns.
Colonel Bruno Kafui
Gbologah (rtd), Chairman of the Town Planning Committee, said the people were
ready to use the production of oil palm as bases of turning their fortunes
around.
"The initiative
is a reminder to us that oil palm is our single most valuable source of income,
we would rise to the clarion call." He appealed to the government to
extend electricity to all the towns and villages in the area to facilitate
economic activities.
The durbar grounds was
literally littered with oil palm seedlings and palm fruits, as dancers carried
some in pots, while songs, drama and even the ceremonial clothes wore by the
people projected the oil palm.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 September 2002- Mr. Harrison Kofi Abutiate, Managing Director of Paracelsus Pharmacy
and Company Ltd in Accra, says sending trained professionals from Ghana to
countries that need their services for a fee could help solve the brain drain
problem in the country.
"I wish to state
that Ghana cannot stop the brain drain of professionals to countries of their
choice. What has to be done is to find out which of our professionals are in
high demand by which countries so that we can develop strategies to satisfy
these demands at a profit to Mother Ghana," he said.
In a press release, Mr
Abutiate said if Ghana supplied Countries in which professionals such as
Doctors and nurses were in high demand for a fee, "the income could be
used to improve the training facilities, pay the lecturers and those
professionals who remain in the country better salaries as well as generate
some foreign exchange for Ghana".
He said with the
establishment of more training facilities for the implementation of proposals,
more students would have facilities to enter higher institutions of learning,
while most professionals would also have the opportunity to gain financially.
"After all, if
Ghana could produce international civil servants, media, legal, IT, political
and medical giants for the world, there are no world professionals we cannot
produce," he said.
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