A man who allegedly carried 30 locally manufactured pistols from Sinkansy in Togo through Ghana in an attempt to smuggle them to Cote d’Ivoire was arrested on Christmas Eve.
The suspect, Akwasi Kuma, was said to have been apprehended at Pillar 34 at the Cote d’Ivoire-Ghana entry point near Sefwi Yawmetwia.
He was reported to have claimed to be visiting his brother in Cote d’Ivoire for the Christmas celebrations.
According to a police source, the suspect was carrying a spraying machine, a DVD player and a travelling bag and went through the normal checks, ready to cross to the other side of the border.
The source said just before he was made to cross, the security personnel demanded to know the contents of the bag he was carrying.
It said the suspect said the bag contained his clothing, but upon a thorough search the pistols were found concealed in the bag.
The source said upon interrogation, Kuma said he had procured the pistols from Togo and brought them through the Northern Region.
Asked about where he came from, the suspect said he was a Dagarti by birth but was born and bred in Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo Region.
When contacted, the Western Regional Police Command confirmed the story and said investigations had commenced to establish the facts, the origin of the suspect, as well as the arms.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Monday, December 28, 2009
WISE ROUT HASMAL (BACK PAGE, DEC 28)
Sekondi Eleven Wise, playing one of their best games yesterday, handed a 4-1 humiliating defeat to their city rivals Sekondi Hasaacas, in their Premier League derby at the Essipong Stadium in Sekondi.
Wise, who kept the heat on their opponents from the kick-off, went ahead when a Hasaacas defender headed into his own net a powerful cross by Wise striker Bashiru Abdul on the 50th minute.
Abdul who was on the rampage in yesterday’s game scored again on the 53rd and 73rd minutes before John Antwi made it four for Wise on the 85th minute to complete the rout.
Joseph Atubisah scored a consolation for Hasaacas on the 75th minute.
Wise, who kept the heat on their opponents from the kick-off, went ahead when a Hasaacas defender headed into his own net a powerful cross by Wise striker Bashiru Abdul on the 50th minute.
Abdul who was on the rampage in yesterday’s game scored again on the 53rd and 73rd minutes before John Antwi made it four for Wise on the 85th minute to complete the rout.
Joseph Atubisah scored a consolation for Hasaacas on the 75th minute.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
TULLOW SUPPORTS HASCO AND TWO DISTRICTS (PAGE 11, DEC 23)
TULLOW Ghana has renovated and presented a complete set of laboratory and science equipment to the Half Assini Senior High School (HASCO) in the Jomoro District in the Western Region to boost the study of science.
The company has also cut the sod for the construction of 14 boreholes in the Ellembelle and Ahanta West districts in fulfilment of its promise to help improve the standard of living for people in communities within its catchment area.
Mr Kofi Esson, Government and External Relations Officer for Tullow Oil, noted that many day-to-day activities of the world revolved around science and research and it was, therefore, important to support institutions in the provision of facilities to train manpower in those areas.
He said it was important to create more skilled manpower in the areas of science and technology and Tullow, with education as part of its social responsibility, would do all within its power to help.
That, he said, could not be achieved if the foundation of students was not secured.
He said education, good health care system and respecting the cultural values of the communities they operated in were very important to them, saying, “we will do everything possible to ensure that we are not seen as a people with only business interest to protect but part of the communities and very sensitive to the needs of the people”.
The Western Regional Minister, Mr Paul Evans Aidoo, commended the company for embarking on social responsibilities ahead of actual production next year.
He said water, good health and education were very important to the people in rural communities, but “regrettably, access to safe drinking water along the coastal communities and other parts of the country had the scarcest commodity”.
The minister noted that the region’s many endowed streams were seriously polluted by reckless human activities, especially galamsey, which has made life very uncomfortable for the people in the communities.
He said Tullow’s decision to renovate and equip the science laboratory of HASCO and provide water to more than 14 communities was good.
Mr Aidoo said it was important to note that most companies in the region were moving from the profit-motive models and becoming socially responsible.
That new concept, he said, would improve the existing socio-industrial harmony as the indigenes deemed these companies as their partners in development, which were socially responsible and accountable for the economic, social and environmental impact of their business decisions to those within their operational areas.
The company has also cut the sod for the construction of 14 boreholes in the Ellembelle and Ahanta West districts in fulfilment of its promise to help improve the standard of living for people in communities within its catchment area.
Mr Kofi Esson, Government and External Relations Officer for Tullow Oil, noted that many day-to-day activities of the world revolved around science and research and it was, therefore, important to support institutions in the provision of facilities to train manpower in those areas.
He said it was important to create more skilled manpower in the areas of science and technology and Tullow, with education as part of its social responsibility, would do all within its power to help.
That, he said, could not be achieved if the foundation of students was not secured.
He said education, good health care system and respecting the cultural values of the communities they operated in were very important to them, saying, “we will do everything possible to ensure that we are not seen as a people with only business interest to protect but part of the communities and very sensitive to the needs of the people”.
The Western Regional Minister, Mr Paul Evans Aidoo, commended the company for embarking on social responsibilities ahead of actual production next year.
He said water, good health and education were very important to the people in rural communities, but “regrettably, access to safe drinking water along the coastal communities and other parts of the country had the scarcest commodity”.
The minister noted that the region’s many endowed streams were seriously polluted by reckless human activities, especially galamsey, which has made life very uncomfortable for the people in the communities.
He said Tullow’s decision to renovate and equip the science laboratory of HASCO and provide water to more than 14 communities was good.
Mr Aidoo said it was important to note that most companies in the region were moving from the profit-motive models and becoming socially responsible.
That new concept, he said, would improve the existing socio-industrial harmony as the indigenes deemed these companies as their partners in development, which were socially responsible and accountable for the economic, social and environmental impact of their business decisions to those within their operational areas.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
PAY MORE ATTENTION TO NEEDS OF TEACHERS IN SPECIAL SCHOOLS (SPREAD DEC 22)
Teachers of Twin-City Special School in Sekondi have appealed to the government to pay special attention to the needs of teachers of special schools in the country.
The head teacher of Twin-City Special School, Mrs Elizabeth Ameworwor, who made the call, said teachers in those special schools depended only on their salaries and had no other means of obtaining additional income and, therefore, they needed incentives to motivate them to do their best.
At a public forum organised by the Feed My Lambs Global Ministries and Calvary Overcomers Ministry to educate the public on the importance of caring for the mentally retarded, Mrs Ameworwor said by the nature of their work teachers of special schools were confined, and appeared to have been neglected.
“We act as the parents, nurses, educators, sisters, brothers and parents to the inmates so their biological parents could go about their duties. But there has not been any attention to plights of the inmates, teachers, and the facilities, especially those of us in the Western Region,” she said.
“It is sad that when we even requested for teachers under the national service scheme, our request was turned down. Because of the social stigma, the personnel did not want to associate themselves with the mentally retarded children,” she added.
Mrs Ameworwor said “even teachers who have accepted posting to the special school move to other schools within a shortest possible time”.
“That is because the opportunities outside the specials schools where teachers could organise extra classes or teach in private homes and make extra income are so real. Here at the special school, we give 100 per cent attention to the children, who through no fault of theirs are suffering from mental retardation,” she said.
She appealed to the government to give special package and if possible double pension to those who had accepted to sacrifice for the children.
The head teacher also hinted that if care was not taken and incentives introduced, there would not be many teachers to teach in those schools in future.
She used the opportunity to educate members of the general public on the possible causes of mental retardation and how women should take care of themselves during and after pregnancy to ensure that mental retardation was reduced if not eliminated completely.
Dr George Class-Peters of the Feed My Lambs Global Ministries and Calvary Overcomers Ministry said even though there was an attention for people with disability, there was the need for the establishment of an administrative body to ensure that they were properly taken care of.
He said his ministry would do everything possible to ensure that the voices of the disabled, especially the mentally retarded, were heard. “They are humans, Ghanaians for that matter, and they have the right to everything as we the so-called able-bodied are entitled to and it is our collective responsibility to ensure that life is made better for them,” he said.
Dr Class-Peters said it was important that society stopped perceiving people with disability as objects of pity and rather consider them as equal members of society.
The head teacher of Twin-City Special School, Mrs Elizabeth Ameworwor, who made the call, said teachers in those special schools depended only on their salaries and had no other means of obtaining additional income and, therefore, they needed incentives to motivate them to do their best.
At a public forum organised by the Feed My Lambs Global Ministries and Calvary Overcomers Ministry to educate the public on the importance of caring for the mentally retarded, Mrs Ameworwor said by the nature of their work teachers of special schools were confined, and appeared to have been neglected.
“We act as the parents, nurses, educators, sisters, brothers and parents to the inmates so their biological parents could go about their duties. But there has not been any attention to plights of the inmates, teachers, and the facilities, especially those of us in the Western Region,” she said.
“It is sad that when we even requested for teachers under the national service scheme, our request was turned down. Because of the social stigma, the personnel did not want to associate themselves with the mentally retarded children,” she added.
Mrs Ameworwor said “even teachers who have accepted posting to the special school move to other schools within a shortest possible time”.
“That is because the opportunities outside the specials schools where teachers could organise extra classes or teach in private homes and make extra income are so real. Here at the special school, we give 100 per cent attention to the children, who through no fault of theirs are suffering from mental retardation,” she said.
She appealed to the government to give special package and if possible double pension to those who had accepted to sacrifice for the children.
The head teacher also hinted that if care was not taken and incentives introduced, there would not be many teachers to teach in those schools in future.
She used the opportunity to educate members of the general public on the possible causes of mental retardation and how women should take care of themselves during and after pregnancy to ensure that mental retardation was reduced if not eliminated completely.
Dr George Class-Peters of the Feed My Lambs Global Ministries and Calvary Overcomers Ministry said even though there was an attention for people with disability, there was the need for the establishment of an administrative body to ensure that they were properly taken care of.
He said his ministry would do everything possible to ensure that the voices of the disabled, especially the mentally retarded, were heard. “They are humans, Ghanaians for that matter, and they have the right to everything as we the so-called able-bodied are entitled to and it is our collective responsibility to ensure that life is made better for them,” he said.
Dr Class-Peters said it was important that society stopped perceiving people with disability as objects of pity and rather consider them as equal members of society.
PROVIDE RECORDS ON WEAPONS — IGP directs Police units (SPREAD, DEC 22)
THE Police Administration has directed all its units across the country to provide up-to-date records of all service weapons in their armouries.
The directive was given by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr Paul Tawiah Quaye, to ensure weapon accountability as stated in their service instruction.
It is also to help trace and mop up weapons in illegal hands across the country.
According to the IGP, the police administration was developing a computerised database to store information on firearms for analytical purposes.
He said he had also directed all arms and ammunition clerks across the country to ensure proper registration of new weapons, as well as the transfer of weapon ownership.
The IGP was speaking in Takoradi where he was on a tour of duty.
He said with the progress being made in the fight against crime, “We must endeavour to identify the source of weapons in the country, including the manufacturing base with the view of destroying them and bringing the perpetrators to book.”
In this direction, he said, the police would embark on special intelligence-led operations in order to achieve maximum success and also adopt ingenious ways of infiltrating syndicates of illegal firearms and ammunition, as well as gun running businesses.
The IGP said the police were very much aware of the security challenges posed during this Yuletide but assured the people of maximum safety.
“There has been an increase in police presence in the country not only because of the Christmas and New Year but as part of our new policy,” he said.
The IGP also called on the Paramount Chief of Essikado, Nana Kobina Nketsia, and said the Police Service would now have a human face and would no longer be seen as a para-military institution to intimidate people.
The directive was given by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr Paul Tawiah Quaye, to ensure weapon accountability as stated in their service instruction.
It is also to help trace and mop up weapons in illegal hands across the country.
According to the IGP, the police administration was developing a computerised database to store information on firearms for analytical purposes.
He said he had also directed all arms and ammunition clerks across the country to ensure proper registration of new weapons, as well as the transfer of weapon ownership.
The IGP was speaking in Takoradi where he was on a tour of duty.
He said with the progress being made in the fight against crime, “We must endeavour to identify the source of weapons in the country, including the manufacturing base with the view of destroying them and bringing the perpetrators to book.”
In this direction, he said, the police would embark on special intelligence-led operations in order to achieve maximum success and also adopt ingenious ways of infiltrating syndicates of illegal firearms and ammunition, as well as gun running businesses.
The IGP said the police were very much aware of the security challenges posed during this Yuletide but assured the people of maximum safety.
“There has been an increase in police presence in the country not only because of the Christmas and New Year but as part of our new policy,” he said.
The IGP also called on the Paramount Chief of Essikado, Nana Kobina Nketsia, and said the Police Service would now have a human face and would no longer be seen as a para-military institution to intimidate people.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
VACATE POLICE PREMISES (PAGE 18, DEC 19)
The Inspector General of Police, Mr Paul Tawiah Quaye, has called for the immediate eviction of unauthorised persons from police barracks across the country.
He said the situation where personnel had vacated their barracks and their rooms given out to their relatives while personnel slept on verandas and in the open would no longer be tolerated.
The IGP, therefore, demanded head counts and positive identification of real occupants of all police barracks to ensure that the occupants of the facility were legitimate.
Speaking to officers and men of the service in the Western Region during his maiden visit as IGP, he said these relatives who dwell in the police facilities cause mischief and used the facilities at the expanse of the police administration.
“We shall eject the ‘perchers’ and reassign such accommodation to personnel who are legitimately entitled to them,” he said.
He ordered the immediate removal of such people and said station officers, who knowingly or unknowingly permitted such situations would be sanctioned.
According to Mr Quaye, issues of accommodation, safety and better service condition were very important to the police administration and it would do everything possible to ensure they had a place to lay their heads.
He deplored the current standard at various police barracks across the country and called for immediate steps to halt is decline.
“In times past, the hallmarks of police barracks were clean surroundings and neatly trimmed hedges. It was, literally speaking, a taboo to spot anything filthy in police barracks or rented quarters,” he said.
Mr Quaye said today, the reverse was regrettably the case, and added that as the police administration was doing everything possible to improve accommodation it was important to take good care of the existing ones.
He said the situation where personnel had vacated their barracks and their rooms given out to their relatives while personnel slept on verandas and in the open would no longer be tolerated.
The IGP, therefore, demanded head counts and positive identification of real occupants of all police barracks to ensure that the occupants of the facility were legitimate.
Speaking to officers and men of the service in the Western Region during his maiden visit as IGP, he said these relatives who dwell in the police facilities cause mischief and used the facilities at the expanse of the police administration.
“We shall eject the ‘perchers’ and reassign such accommodation to personnel who are legitimately entitled to them,” he said.
He ordered the immediate removal of such people and said station officers, who knowingly or unknowingly permitted such situations would be sanctioned.
According to Mr Quaye, issues of accommodation, safety and better service condition were very important to the police administration and it would do everything possible to ensure they had a place to lay their heads.
He deplored the current standard at various police barracks across the country and called for immediate steps to halt is decline.
“In times past, the hallmarks of police barracks were clean surroundings and neatly trimmed hedges. It was, literally speaking, a taboo to spot anything filthy in police barracks or rented quarters,” he said.
Mr Quaye said today, the reverse was regrettably the case, and added that as the police administration was doing everything possible to improve accommodation it was important to take good care of the existing ones.
BAKER HUGHES SUPPORTS SCHOOL OF THE DEAF (PAGE 23, DEC 19)
Barker Hughes, an oilfield service company operating in the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolis, has embarked on an educational support drive at the Sekondi School for the Deaf.
The company painted the dormitory block, changed the worn-out mosquito nets and presented 106 double beds and more than 300 mattresses, bed sheets and pillows to the school.
The company is also fixing the broken and weak louvre blades and frames in all windows of the school.
According to the headmaster, Mr Osei Bonsu Kuntoh, the school, which heavily depended on the Government, lacked many facilities to create the needed environment for the children to learn.
“But due to the pressure on the Government where every institution is trying to take their share, it becomes very difficult for them to improve their facilities,” he said.
Therefore, with support from corporate bodies and philanthropists, life at the school would become a little bearable for the students.
He said the support from Baker Hughes had changed the face of the school, because for many years various structures had deteriorated and had not seen paint for a long time.
The beds and mattresses, he said, were weak and very uncomfortable for the children to sleep on and that the new supplies would bring great relief to them.
He said the school had a computer lab without computers for students to undertake their practical lessons.
“We need bungalows for our staff, most of whom are currently not accommodated on campus. The teachers have to compete with others in various communities for accommodation and commute daily to and from the school,” he said.
He expressed gratitude to the company for the support.
He said apart from the dormitory and the bed and mattresses, the classroom block also needed attention.
“We are also appealing to other companies to come to the aid of the school,” he concluded.
The Head of Human Resource, Naa Mildred Wulff, said the company was in the country to stay, and therefore it was very important to support the needs of the underprivileged and the deprived within the communities in which it operated.
She said the company deemed it important to start its community support programme with the vulnerable in society.
“We understand that we cannot employ everybody in our communities but we also believe that everybody should in one way or the other benefit from the oil find,” she said.
Naa Wulff said aside the presentation, the company was also considering other areas where they could support the school.
The company painted the dormitory block, changed the worn-out mosquito nets and presented 106 double beds and more than 300 mattresses, bed sheets and pillows to the school.
The company is also fixing the broken and weak louvre blades and frames in all windows of the school.
According to the headmaster, Mr Osei Bonsu Kuntoh, the school, which heavily depended on the Government, lacked many facilities to create the needed environment for the children to learn.
“But due to the pressure on the Government where every institution is trying to take their share, it becomes very difficult for them to improve their facilities,” he said.
Therefore, with support from corporate bodies and philanthropists, life at the school would become a little bearable for the students.
He said the support from Baker Hughes had changed the face of the school, because for many years various structures had deteriorated and had not seen paint for a long time.
The beds and mattresses, he said, were weak and very uncomfortable for the children to sleep on and that the new supplies would bring great relief to them.
He said the school had a computer lab without computers for students to undertake their practical lessons.
“We need bungalows for our staff, most of whom are currently not accommodated on campus. The teachers have to compete with others in various communities for accommodation and commute daily to and from the school,” he said.
He expressed gratitude to the company for the support.
He said apart from the dormitory and the bed and mattresses, the classroom block also needed attention.
“We are also appealing to other companies to come to the aid of the school,” he concluded.
The Head of Human Resource, Naa Mildred Wulff, said the company was in the country to stay, and therefore it was very important to support the needs of the underprivileged and the deprived within the communities in which it operated.
She said the company deemed it important to start its community support programme with the vulnerable in society.
“We understand that we cannot employ everybody in our communities but we also believe that everybody should in one way or the other benefit from the oil find,” she said.
Naa Wulff said aside the presentation, the company was also considering other areas where they could support the school.
BAKER HUGHES SUPPORTS SCHOOL OF THE DEAF (PAGE 23, DEC 19)
Barker Hughes, an oilfield service company operating in the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolis, has embarked on an educational support drive at the Sekondi School for the Deaf.
The company painted the dormitory block, changed the worn-out mosquito nets and presented 106 double beds and more than 300 mattresses, bed sheets and pillows to the school.
The company is also fixing the broken and weak louvre blades and frames in all windows of the school.
According to the headmaster, Mr Osei Bonsu Kuntoh, the school, which heavily depended on the Government, lacked many facilities to create the needed environment for the children to learn.
“But due to the pressure on the Government where every institution is trying to take their share, it becomes very difficult for them to improve their facilities,” he said.
Therefore, with support from corporate bodies and philanthropists, life at the school would become a little bearable for the students.
He said the support from Baker Hughes had changed the face of the school, because for many years various structures had deteriorated and had not seen paint for a long time.
The beds and mattresses, he said, were weak and very uncomfortable for the children to sleep on and that the new supplies would bring great relief to them.
He said the school had a computer lab without computers for students to undertake their practical lessons.
“We need bungalows for our staff, most of whom are currently not accommodated on campus. The teachers have to compete with others in various communities for accommodation and commute daily to and from the school,” he said.
He expressed gratitude to the company for the support.
He said apart from the dormitory and the bed and mattresses, the classroom block also needed attention.
“We are also appealing to other companies to come to the aid of the school,” he concluded.
The Head of Human Resource, Naa Mildred Wulff, said the company was in the country to stay, and therefore it was very important to support the needs of the underprivileged and the deprived within the communities in which it operated.
She said the company deemed it important to start its community support programme with the vulnerable in society.
“We understand that we cannot employ everybody in our communities but we also believe that everybody should in one way or the other benefit from the oil find,” she said.
Naa Wulff said aside the presentation, the company was also considering other areas where they could support the school.
The company painted the dormitory block, changed the worn-out mosquito nets and presented 106 double beds and more than 300 mattresses, bed sheets and pillows to the school.
The company is also fixing the broken and weak louvre blades and frames in all windows of the school.
According to the headmaster, Mr Osei Bonsu Kuntoh, the school, which heavily depended on the Government, lacked many facilities to create the needed environment for the children to learn.
“But due to the pressure on the Government where every institution is trying to take their share, it becomes very difficult for them to improve their facilities,” he said.
Therefore, with support from corporate bodies and philanthropists, life at the school would become a little bearable for the students.
He said the support from Baker Hughes had changed the face of the school, because for many years various structures had deteriorated and had not seen paint for a long time.
The beds and mattresses, he said, were weak and very uncomfortable for the children to sleep on and that the new supplies would bring great relief to them.
He said the school had a computer lab without computers for students to undertake their practical lessons.
“We need bungalows for our staff, most of whom are currently not accommodated on campus. The teachers have to compete with others in various communities for accommodation and commute daily to and from the school,” he said.
He expressed gratitude to the company for the support.
He said apart from the dormitory and the bed and mattresses, the classroom block also needed attention.
“We are also appealing to other companies to come to the aid of the school,” he concluded.
The Head of Human Resource, Naa Mildred Wulff, said the company was in the country to stay, and therefore it was very important to support the needs of the underprivileged and the deprived within the communities in which it operated.
She said the company deemed it important to start its community support programme with the vulnerable in society.
“We understand that we cannot employ everybody in our communities but we also believe that everybody should in one way or the other benefit from the oil find,” she said.
Naa Wulff said aside the presentation, the company was also considering other areas where they could support the school.
DEPRIVED COMMUNITIES TO GET POTABLE WATER (PAGE 23, DEC 19)
Deprived and endemic rural communities in the Western Region are to benefit from the Government’s rural water supply project.
Under the project, the Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA) is providing technical support to the district assemblies to construct 175 boreholes in addition to the ongoing 85 initiated last year in deprived and endemic communities in the region.
In addition, the European Union (EU) and International Development Agency (IDA) of the World Bank are providing financial support in the implementation of the Small Towns Water and Sanitation Projects which would benefit 30 small towns in the region.
The beneficiary communities under the IDA project include Akontombra in the Sefwi Akontombra District, Adjuafua in the Bia District, Chirano in the Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai District, Aiyinase and Asasetre in the Ellembelle District, Beyin in the Jomoro District and Amoaya in the Juaboso District.
The rest are Bawdie in the Wassa Amenfi East District and Manso Amenfi and Asankran Breman in the Wassa Amenfi West District.
Under the EU Small Town Water and Sanitation Project, 20 towns in 10 districts are beneficiaries.
They are Abura and Dixcove in Ahanta West District, Enchi, Dadieso and Jema in Aowin Suaman District, Essam-Debiso and Yawmatwa in Bia District, Awiebo Baseke, Nkroful/Teleku Bokazo and Kikam in Ellembelle District, Nuba, Tikobo No.1 and Bonyere/Ezinlebo in Jomoro District.
Others include Adum Banso in Mpohor Wassa East District, Boako in Sefwi-Wiawso District, Wassa Akropong in Wassa Amenfi East District and Awaso in Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai District.
The Western Regional Director of the CWSA, Mr Kwesi Brown, said these developments would greatly improve water supply coverage in the region under the National Community Water and Sanitation Programme.
He said the current coverage of potable water supply in the region was estimated at 41.27 per cent, the lowest in the country, and that by next year when the ongoing projects are completed the coverage would increase to about 57 per cent.
Mr Brown acknowledged the contributions of the Government and its development partners, especially the European Union and the World Bank, for their support to the region in efforts to improve access to these essentials.
The Regional Director said effective facilitation of the provision of sustainable potable water and related sanitation services, as well as hygiene promotion to rural communities, were important to the CWSA.
He said the CWSA, with the active participation of major stakeholders, had adopted resource mobilisation, capacity building and standards setting in small towns to achieve its set targets.
The regional director said he was grateful to various bodies including World Vision International, Water Aid, Rotary Club, mining companies, COCOBOD and other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) contributing to the provision of potable water and safe sanitation for the people in the region.
The Extension Services Co-ordinator at the CWSA Head Office, Mrs Theodore Adomako-Adjei, said providing water for communities without corresponding advocacy for cleanliness would mean neglect of the health needs of the people.
She emphasised the need for all schoolchildren to have access to safe toilet facilities and encouraged communities to provide household toilets.
This is the way we can stop open defecation and ensure good health, she said.
She explained that the current training programmes for artisans, school teachers, water and sanitation development board and members of the district water and sanitation team were aimed at enhancing their capacities to promote hygiene and sanitation in their communities. More than 300 participants are benefiting from the training programme.
She advised the beneficiary communities to embrace the sanitation concept and take advantage of the ongoing hygiene and sanitation programme to improve upon their personal hygiene and environmental sanitation in their communities.
Under the project, the Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA) is providing technical support to the district assemblies to construct 175 boreholes in addition to the ongoing 85 initiated last year in deprived and endemic communities in the region.
In addition, the European Union (EU) and International Development Agency (IDA) of the World Bank are providing financial support in the implementation of the Small Towns Water and Sanitation Projects which would benefit 30 small towns in the region.
The beneficiary communities under the IDA project include Akontombra in the Sefwi Akontombra District, Adjuafua in the Bia District, Chirano in the Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai District, Aiyinase and Asasetre in the Ellembelle District, Beyin in the Jomoro District and Amoaya in the Juaboso District.
The rest are Bawdie in the Wassa Amenfi East District and Manso Amenfi and Asankran Breman in the Wassa Amenfi West District.
Under the EU Small Town Water and Sanitation Project, 20 towns in 10 districts are beneficiaries.
They are Abura and Dixcove in Ahanta West District, Enchi, Dadieso and Jema in Aowin Suaman District, Essam-Debiso and Yawmatwa in Bia District, Awiebo Baseke, Nkroful/Teleku Bokazo and Kikam in Ellembelle District, Nuba, Tikobo No.1 and Bonyere/Ezinlebo in Jomoro District.
Others include Adum Banso in Mpohor Wassa East District, Boako in Sefwi-Wiawso District, Wassa Akropong in Wassa Amenfi East District and Awaso in Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai District.
The Western Regional Director of the CWSA, Mr Kwesi Brown, said these developments would greatly improve water supply coverage in the region under the National Community Water and Sanitation Programme.
He said the current coverage of potable water supply in the region was estimated at 41.27 per cent, the lowest in the country, and that by next year when the ongoing projects are completed the coverage would increase to about 57 per cent.
Mr Brown acknowledged the contributions of the Government and its development partners, especially the European Union and the World Bank, for their support to the region in efforts to improve access to these essentials.
The Regional Director said effective facilitation of the provision of sustainable potable water and related sanitation services, as well as hygiene promotion to rural communities, were important to the CWSA.
He said the CWSA, with the active participation of major stakeholders, had adopted resource mobilisation, capacity building and standards setting in small towns to achieve its set targets.
The regional director said he was grateful to various bodies including World Vision International, Water Aid, Rotary Club, mining companies, COCOBOD and other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) contributing to the provision of potable water and safe sanitation for the people in the region.
The Extension Services Co-ordinator at the CWSA Head Office, Mrs Theodore Adomako-Adjei, said providing water for communities without corresponding advocacy for cleanliness would mean neglect of the health needs of the people.
She emphasised the need for all schoolchildren to have access to safe toilet facilities and encouraged communities to provide household toilets.
This is the way we can stop open defecation and ensure good health, she said.
She explained that the current training programmes for artisans, school teachers, water and sanitation development board and members of the district water and sanitation team were aimed at enhancing their capacities to promote hygiene and sanitation in their communities. More than 300 participants are benefiting from the training programme.
She advised the beneficiary communities to embrace the sanitation concept and take advantage of the ongoing hygiene and sanitation programme to improve upon their personal hygiene and environmental sanitation in their communities.
Monday, December 14, 2009
BLOODY FUNERAL AT SEFWI-WIAWSO (PAGE 3, DEC 14)
THE funeral of the late Abontendomhene of Sefwi-Wiawso turned bloody last Friday when two persons were shot dead and another seriously wounded in a stampede at the royal event.
Eyewitnesses said during the firing of musketry as part of the funeral, some of the youth of the area attempted to force their way into the palace with one of the claimants to the Sefwi-Wiawso Paramount stool, resulting in the commotion.
The dead were identified as Lydia Osei, a cashier of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and Joseph Kofi Nkrumah, popularly known as Somiso, who was one of the youth forcing their way into the palace.
The wounded, who has been flown to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, was named as Clara Owusu, a secretary at the IRS.
The bodies of the deceased have been deposited at the Sefwi-Wiawso Government Hospital.
The bloody incident occurred about 3 p.m. on Friday during the funeral of the late Nana Yaw Korankye, the Abontendomhene, when the procession of Nana Kwesi Gyebi II, the Suihene, fired live bullets, which hit the two members of staff of the IRS, causing the death of Lydia on the spot, while Clara was wounded and was rushed to Kumasi.
Nkrumah also died from bullet wounds when he joined the youth carrying John Chika to the palace, apparently to proclaim him the paramount chief, when they encountered the police on guard duties.
In the struggle with the police, the gun of one of the policemen allegedly went off and hit Nkrumah.
The youth were also said to have vandalised the offices of Liberty FM, a local radio station owned by the Paramount Chief of the area, Nana Nkuah OKumdom II.
As a result of the dispute over the Wiawso paramountcy, the Judicial Committee of the Western Regional House of Chiefs was said to have, on February 24, 2006, restrained Chika from holding himself as a chief and entering the palace.
Confirming the incident to the Daily Graphic, the Chairman of the District Security Committee, Mr Stephen Wilks Kofi Mensah, said last Thursday the Queen of Sefwi-Wiawso, Adua Panyin II, prompted him that there was an attempt to move Chika into the palace on the day of the procession.
“I then prompted the police to ensure that there was enough security to contain any trouble by the other faction contesting the stool,” he said.
Mr Mensah said while his outfit and the police were moving to contain the situation, the youth took advantage to carry Chika in an attempt to instal him at the palace.
He corroborated the report that during the struggle by the youth to enter the palace, a police rifle allegedly went off, killing Nkrumah in the process.
In his bid to maintain peace in the area, he said he had been to various radio stations in the area to appeal to the people to stay calm.
When contacted, the Western Regional Police Commander, Alhaji Mahama Hamidu, confirmed the two incidents and deplored the unfortunate incidents that led to the loss of lives.
He told the Daily Graphic that the chiefs came for a permit to organise the funeral of Nana Yaw Korankye.
He said the guns the chiefs were supposed to fire were to contain musketry and not live ammunition.
On the struggle that led to Nkrumah’s death, the commander said the youth should understand that the palace was under the guard of the police to protect it and its contents.
While describing the shootings as unfortunate, he said, “I can assure the aggrieved families and the people of Sefwi-Wiawso that the police have a system of checking if the gunshot was from the police rifle. We will also launch full investigations to unearth what led to the two sad incidents.”
Members of the District Security Council, led by its chairman, have visited the families of the deceased to console them.
Eyewitnesses said during the firing of musketry as part of the funeral, some of the youth of the area attempted to force their way into the palace with one of the claimants to the Sefwi-Wiawso Paramount stool, resulting in the commotion.
The dead were identified as Lydia Osei, a cashier of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and Joseph Kofi Nkrumah, popularly known as Somiso, who was one of the youth forcing their way into the palace.
The wounded, who has been flown to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, was named as Clara Owusu, a secretary at the IRS.
The bodies of the deceased have been deposited at the Sefwi-Wiawso Government Hospital.
The bloody incident occurred about 3 p.m. on Friday during the funeral of the late Nana Yaw Korankye, the Abontendomhene, when the procession of Nana Kwesi Gyebi II, the Suihene, fired live bullets, which hit the two members of staff of the IRS, causing the death of Lydia on the spot, while Clara was wounded and was rushed to Kumasi.
Nkrumah also died from bullet wounds when he joined the youth carrying John Chika to the palace, apparently to proclaim him the paramount chief, when they encountered the police on guard duties.
In the struggle with the police, the gun of one of the policemen allegedly went off and hit Nkrumah.
The youth were also said to have vandalised the offices of Liberty FM, a local radio station owned by the Paramount Chief of the area, Nana Nkuah OKumdom II.
As a result of the dispute over the Wiawso paramountcy, the Judicial Committee of the Western Regional House of Chiefs was said to have, on February 24, 2006, restrained Chika from holding himself as a chief and entering the palace.
Confirming the incident to the Daily Graphic, the Chairman of the District Security Committee, Mr Stephen Wilks Kofi Mensah, said last Thursday the Queen of Sefwi-Wiawso, Adua Panyin II, prompted him that there was an attempt to move Chika into the palace on the day of the procession.
“I then prompted the police to ensure that there was enough security to contain any trouble by the other faction contesting the stool,” he said.
Mr Mensah said while his outfit and the police were moving to contain the situation, the youth took advantage to carry Chika in an attempt to instal him at the palace.
He corroborated the report that during the struggle by the youth to enter the palace, a police rifle allegedly went off, killing Nkrumah in the process.
In his bid to maintain peace in the area, he said he had been to various radio stations in the area to appeal to the people to stay calm.
When contacted, the Western Regional Police Commander, Alhaji Mahama Hamidu, confirmed the two incidents and deplored the unfortunate incidents that led to the loss of lives.
He told the Daily Graphic that the chiefs came for a permit to organise the funeral of Nana Yaw Korankye.
He said the guns the chiefs were supposed to fire were to contain musketry and not live ammunition.
On the struggle that led to Nkrumah’s death, the commander said the youth should understand that the palace was under the guard of the police to protect it and its contents.
While describing the shootings as unfortunate, he said, “I can assure the aggrieved families and the people of Sefwi-Wiawso that the police have a system of checking if the gunshot was from the police rifle. We will also launch full investigations to unearth what led to the two sad incidents.”
Members of the District Security Council, led by its chairman, have visited the families of the deceased to console them.
Friday, December 11, 2009
TAXI DRIVER KILLS CYCLIST, DUMPS BODY...With connivance of passengers (PAGE 34, MIRROR, DEC 12)
From Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Prestea
A taxi driver whose vehicle collided with a motorbike, killing the rider in the process, decided to dump the body and the bike in a nearby bush, instead of taking the body to hospital and immediately reporting the accident to the police.
The driver later told the police that two passengers aboard his cab at the time of the accident had helped him carry the body of the deceased rider, Kweku Bukro, into the boot of his Opel Vectra taxi cab, with registration number ER 7889 U, and dumped the body and the bike a few metres away from the scene of the accident.
The accident occurred near Nananko in the Wassa Amenfi East District of the Western Region.
The driver failed to report it to the police the same day but did that the following day, without giving the police the full details of the accident.
The taxi driver, Kwesi Asante, was arrested after initial police investigations, while efforts are being made to apprehend the two passengers who allegedly helped him dump the body and the bike.
According to the police, after Asante had been arrested, he confessed that his vehicle had collided with a motorbike and the rider had died. He also added that some passengers on board the taxi had helped him carry the body into the boot.
Initially when Asante reported the accident to the police, he was issued with a form to attend hospital, but he failed to return to the police to help them in their investigations.
The police later got him to take them to the scene of the accident.
The police team, led by the Prestea/Huni-Valley District Commander, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Ben Wonkyi, then decided to conduct a search around the scene of the accident, during which it was discovered that Bukro’s body had been dumped in the bush and his bike at another location.
Asante was then arrested and placed in police custody.
According to the District Commander, Bukro’s body had been deposited at the Wassa Akropong Government Hospital in the Wassa Amenfi District of the Western Region.
DSP Wonkyi said Bukro’s motorbike had also been sent to the Wassa Akropong Police Station, adding that Asante was currently in police custody helping the police in their investigations.
A taxi driver whose vehicle collided with a motorbike, killing the rider in the process, decided to dump the body and the bike in a nearby bush, instead of taking the body to hospital and immediately reporting the accident to the police.
The driver later told the police that two passengers aboard his cab at the time of the accident had helped him carry the body of the deceased rider, Kweku Bukro, into the boot of his Opel Vectra taxi cab, with registration number ER 7889 U, and dumped the body and the bike a few metres away from the scene of the accident.
The accident occurred near Nananko in the Wassa Amenfi East District of the Western Region.
The driver failed to report it to the police the same day but did that the following day, without giving the police the full details of the accident.
The taxi driver, Kwesi Asante, was arrested after initial police investigations, while efforts are being made to apprehend the two passengers who allegedly helped him dump the body and the bike.
According to the police, after Asante had been arrested, he confessed that his vehicle had collided with a motorbike and the rider had died. He also added that some passengers on board the taxi had helped him carry the body into the boot.
Initially when Asante reported the accident to the police, he was issued with a form to attend hospital, but he failed to return to the police to help them in their investigations.
The police later got him to take them to the scene of the accident.
The police team, led by the Prestea/Huni-Valley District Commander, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Ben Wonkyi, then decided to conduct a search around the scene of the accident, during which it was discovered that Bukro’s body had been dumped in the bush and his bike at another location.
Asante was then arrested and placed in police custody.
According to the District Commander, Bukro’s body had been deposited at the Wassa Akropong Government Hospital in the Wassa Amenfi District of the Western Region.
DSP Wonkyi said Bukro’s motorbike had also been sent to the Wassa Akropong Police Station, adding that Asante was currently in police custody helping the police in their investigations.
JURORS ABANDON COURTS...They are afraid of death (MIRROR, DEC 12, LEAD STORY)
From Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Sekondi
For murder suspects on remand in various jails in the Western Region, justice may be denied or delayed for a long time, due to a lack of jurors to sit on their cases.
Some cases are said to be pending for years, because requests for people to serve on juries are turned down, due to the meagre allowances that the job attracts. There are also reports that some of the prospective jurors refuse to be on the panels because they fear that the suspects, when finally convicted, may curse them to death.
The long delays are, however, in contravention of the 1992 Constitution which guarantees the fundamental human rights and freedom of the people and also calls for the trial of suspects within a reasonable time frame. These provisions are to be respected and upheld by the Executive, the Legislature, the Judiciary and all other organs of the state.
The Supervising High Court Judge, Sekondi, Justice Reuben Batu, made the comments at the inauguration of the Western Regional Police Committee.
Quoting the constitution to support his remarks, he said Article 14 (3-4) of the 1992 Constitution stated that “A person who is arrested, restricted or detained — (a) for the purpose of bringing him before a court in execution of an order of a court; or (b) upon reasonable suspicion of his having committed or being about to commit a criminal offence under the laws of Ghana, and who is not released, shall be brought before a court within forty-eight hours after the arrest, restriction or detention.
Referring to clause (4), he said, “Where a person arrested, restricted or detained under paragraph (a) or (b) of clause (3) of this article is not tried within a reasonable time, then without prejudice to any further proceedings that may be brought against him, he shall be released, either unconditionally or upon reasonable conditions, including in particular, conditions reasonably necessary to ensure that he appears at a later date for trial or for proceedings preliminary to trial.”
He said the failure to empanel juries was as a result of the refusal of people to accept requests by courts to serve as jurors, transfer of CID personnel and the inability to get lawyers for the suspects.
“There are many cases and the people have been on remand for so long, some from 2003 to date, which is not the best. At the moment, we have about 46 cases in Tarkwa, out of which 26 are murder cases,” he said.
That aside, he said transfer of police investigators without checking if they had cases pending in court led to the cases they were handling being put on hold, thereby increasing the plight of the suspects on remand.
He, therefore, appealed to heads of departments to release people to enable the court to empanel jurors to sit on cases of murder and manslaughter.
He said to ensure that the cases were tried within reasonable time and before officers were transferred, they should check whether or not they had cases pending in court.
For her part, the Deputy Western Regional Minister, Ms Betty Bosumtwi-Sam, urged the committee to help ensure effective policing in the region.
She said even though the region recorded a decline in crime, there was still much to be done to ensure a drastic reduction and possibly a crime free society.
The committee of 24 members, mainly made up of ex-police/military officers, was under the chairmanship of the Western Regional Minister, Mr Paul Evans Aidoo.
For murder suspects on remand in various jails in the Western Region, justice may be denied or delayed for a long time, due to a lack of jurors to sit on their cases.
Some cases are said to be pending for years, because requests for people to serve on juries are turned down, due to the meagre allowances that the job attracts. There are also reports that some of the prospective jurors refuse to be on the panels because they fear that the suspects, when finally convicted, may curse them to death.
The long delays are, however, in contravention of the 1992 Constitution which guarantees the fundamental human rights and freedom of the people and also calls for the trial of suspects within a reasonable time frame. These provisions are to be respected and upheld by the Executive, the Legislature, the Judiciary and all other organs of the state.
The Supervising High Court Judge, Sekondi, Justice Reuben Batu, made the comments at the inauguration of the Western Regional Police Committee.
Quoting the constitution to support his remarks, he said Article 14 (3-4) of the 1992 Constitution stated that “A person who is arrested, restricted or detained — (a) for the purpose of bringing him before a court in execution of an order of a court; or (b) upon reasonable suspicion of his having committed or being about to commit a criminal offence under the laws of Ghana, and who is not released, shall be brought before a court within forty-eight hours after the arrest, restriction or detention.
Referring to clause (4), he said, “Where a person arrested, restricted or detained under paragraph (a) or (b) of clause (3) of this article is not tried within a reasonable time, then without prejudice to any further proceedings that may be brought against him, he shall be released, either unconditionally or upon reasonable conditions, including in particular, conditions reasonably necessary to ensure that he appears at a later date for trial or for proceedings preliminary to trial.”
He said the failure to empanel juries was as a result of the refusal of people to accept requests by courts to serve as jurors, transfer of CID personnel and the inability to get lawyers for the suspects.
“There are many cases and the people have been on remand for so long, some from 2003 to date, which is not the best. At the moment, we have about 46 cases in Tarkwa, out of which 26 are murder cases,” he said.
That aside, he said transfer of police investigators without checking if they had cases pending in court led to the cases they were handling being put on hold, thereby increasing the plight of the suspects on remand.
He, therefore, appealed to heads of departments to release people to enable the court to empanel jurors to sit on cases of murder and manslaughter.
He said to ensure that the cases were tried within reasonable time and before officers were transferred, they should check whether or not they had cases pending in court.
For her part, the Deputy Western Regional Minister, Ms Betty Bosumtwi-Sam, urged the committee to help ensure effective policing in the region.
She said even though the region recorded a decline in crime, there was still much to be done to ensure a drastic reduction and possibly a crime free society.
The committee of 24 members, mainly made up of ex-police/military officers, was under the chairmanship of the Western Regional Minister, Mr Paul Evans Aidoo.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
THOSE JUDGING MILLS MUST RECONSIDER STAND...Western Regional branch of NDC (PAGE 16, DEC 8)
THE Western Regional Branch of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has called on those judging the Professor Mills- led- government after barely 11 months to consider the supreme interest of the party and the people of Ghana.
It said the party’s council of elders should as a matter of urgency step in and take the necessary steps to bring order into the party.
The regional office said it was unacceptable that in the name of internal democracy it had become fashionable for people in key positions in the party who had access to better channels for redress rather resort to radio stations and other forms of mass media at the least opportunity.
The Regional Secretary of the party, Mr J.R.D. Kobinah said the NDC was given a four-year mandate by the people of Ghana and it was mind boggling that a few selfish people in the party are attempting to cut short the full length of the party’s mandate to 11 months.
“It is disturbing to note that some of these colleagues, who are washing our dirty linen in public, are key members of the party,” he said.
Mr Kobinah told the Daily Graphic that, what was confronting the party today was to ensure that together as a team they worked towards the fulfillment and delivery of better standards of living for the people of Ghana.
“We contested an election, we all played our individual roles to ensure that that we won power, therefore, after power we have to work as team to ensure that our aim is achieved,” he said.
“The Western Regional branch will like to appeal to all protagonists and in the supreme interest of the party to close their ranks and support President Mills to deliver on the Better Ghana Agenda,” he said.
The regional secretary said the youth would lose should the government fail to deliver.
He said it was important that any member of the party who had reservations about some development in the party should first use the existing channels of communication to put their message across instead of rushing to the media.
The Western Regional branch therefore assured the president of their unflinching support adding that everything possible would be done to ensure that the dream for delivering a better Ghana would be realised.
Relatedly, GNA reports that, Alhaji Sumani Zakari, the Northern Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has appealed to the rank and file of the party to unite and stop the internal bickering.
He said party members should rather rally behind President John Evans Atta Mills and help him to deliver on his campaign promises.
He said recent criticisms and attacks on the President by members of the party on the perceived slowness of his administration in running the affairs of the country was not a healthy development.
Alhaji Zakari, who made the appeal at a press conference in Tamale, said such public criticisms could distract the President from his core agenda of working hard to ensure a better Ghana.
He, therefore, called on all NDC members, including former President Rawlings to "cease fire" and rather support President Mills in his efforts to make Ghana a better place for all.
Alhaji Zakari used the occasion to thank delegates of the party who re-elected him as regional chairman at the recent party congress to elect new party executives.
The Eastern Regional Branch of the NDC has also expressed surprise and displeasure at the way some members of the party were openly criticising the government.
A press release issued by the Regional Secretariat of the party in Koforidua said the criticisms were contrary to the good performance of President John Evans Atta Mills government within the 11 months in office.
It said Ghanaians voted for the NDC on the basis of the pledges the party made in its manifesto.
The release said it was, therefore, fair to use the promises made in the document as the basis to judge the performance of the government.
The release expressed faith in the government of President Mills and called on all Ghanaians, especially members of the NDC, to support the government and desist from criticisms that only distract the Executive from its course.
The regional branch expressed confidence in the 2010 budget, which the members said catered for all segments of the Ghanaian society.
The release explained that the government inherited a budget deficit of 20 per cent with shocking revelations of mismanagement and misapplication of huge sums of money by the previous administration.
It said members of the party should not be echoing tunes of the opposition who are less informed about the party's programmes.
The release said the party clearly stated what it would be doing for the first 100 days in office, the first year, the second year and at the end of its first term.
THOSE JUDGING MILLS MUST RECONSIDER STAND...Western Regional branch of NDC (PAGE 16, DEC 8)
THE Western Regional Branch of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has called on those judging the Professor Mills- led- government after barely 11 months to consider the supreme interest of the party and the people of Ghana.
It said the party’s council of elders should as a matter of urgency step in and take the necessary steps to bring order into the party.
The regional office said it was unacceptable that in the name of internal democracy it had become fashionable for people in key positions in the party who had access to better channels for redress rather resort to radio stations and other forms of mass media at the least opportunity.
The Regional Secretary of the party, Mr J.R.D. Kobinah said the NDC was given a four-year mandate by the people of Ghana and it was mind boggling that a few selfish people in the party are attempting to cut short the full length of the party’s mandate to 11 months.
“It is disturbing to note that some of these colleagues, who are washing our dirty linen in public, are key members of the party,” he said.
Mr Kobinah told the Daily Graphic that, what was confronting the party today was to ensure that together as a team they worked towards the fulfillment and delivery of better standards of living for the people of Ghana.
“We contested an election, we all played our individual roles to ensure that that we won power, therefore, after power we have to work as team to ensure that our aim is achieved,” he said.
“The Western Regional branch will like to appeal to all protagonists and in the supreme interest of the party to close their ranks and support President Mills to deliver on the Better Ghana Agenda,” he said.
The regional secretary said the youth would lose should the government fail to deliver.
He said it was important that any member of the party who had reservations about some development in the party should first use the existing channels of communication to put their message across instead of rushing to the media.
The Western Regional branch therefore assured the president of their unflinching support adding that everything possible would be done to ensure that the dream for delivering a better Ghana would be realised.
Relatedly, GNA reports that, Alhaji Sumani Zakari, the Northern Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has appealed to the rank and file of the party to unite and stop the internal bickering.
He said party members should rather rally behind President John Evans Atta Mills and help him to deliver on his campaign promises.
He said recent criticisms and attacks on the President by members of the party on the perceived slowness of his administration in running the affairs of the country was not a healthy development.
Alhaji Zakari, who made the appeal at a press conference in Tamale, said such public criticisms could distract the President from his core agenda of working hard to ensure a better Ghana.
He, therefore, called on all NDC members, including former President Rawlings to "cease fire" and rather support President Mills in his efforts to make Ghana a better place for all.
Alhaji Zakari used the occasion to thank delegates of the party who re-elected him as regional chairman at the recent party congress to elect new party executives.
The Eastern Regional Branch of the NDC has also expressed surprise and displeasure at the way some members of the party were openly criticising the government.
A press release issued by the Regional Secretariat of the party in Koforidua said the criticisms were contrary to the good performance of President John Evans Atta Mills government within the 11 months in office.
It said Ghanaians voted for the NDC on the basis of the pledges the party made in its manifesto.
The release said it was, therefore, fair to use the promises made in the document as the basis to judge the performance of the government.
The release expressed faith in the government of President Mills and called on all Ghanaians, especially members of the NDC, to support the government and desist from criticisms that only distract the Executive from its course.
The regional branch expressed confidence in the 2010 budget, which the members said catered for all segments of the Ghanaian society.
The release explained that the government inherited a budget deficit of 20 per cent with shocking revelations of mismanagement and misapplication of huge sums of money by the previous administration.
It said members of the party should not be echoing tunes of the opposition who are less informed about the party's programmes.
The release said the party clearly stated what it would be doing for the first 100 days in office, the first year, the second year and at the end of its first term.
It said the party’s council of elders should as a matter of urgency step in and take the necessary steps to bring order into the party.
The regional office said it was unacceptable that in the name of internal democracy it had become fashionable for people in key positions in the party who had access to better channels for redress rather resort to radio stations and other forms of mass media at the least opportunity.
The Regional Secretary of the party, Mr J.R.D. Kobinah said the NDC was given a four-year mandate by the people of Ghana and it was mind boggling that a few selfish people in the party are attempting to cut short the full length of the party’s mandate to 11 months.
“It is disturbing to note that some of these colleagues, who are washing our dirty linen in public, are key members of the party,” he said.
Mr Kobinah told the Daily Graphic that, what was confronting the party today was to ensure that together as a team they worked towards the fulfillment and delivery of better standards of living for the people of Ghana.
“We contested an election, we all played our individual roles to ensure that that we won power, therefore, after power we have to work as team to ensure that our aim is achieved,” he said.
“The Western Regional branch will like to appeal to all protagonists and in the supreme interest of the party to close their ranks and support President Mills to deliver on the Better Ghana Agenda,” he said.
The regional secretary said the youth would lose should the government fail to deliver.
He said it was important that any member of the party who had reservations about some development in the party should first use the existing channels of communication to put their message across instead of rushing to the media.
The Western Regional branch therefore assured the president of their unflinching support adding that everything possible would be done to ensure that the dream for delivering a better Ghana would be realised.
Relatedly, GNA reports that, Alhaji Sumani Zakari, the Northern Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has appealed to the rank and file of the party to unite and stop the internal bickering.
He said party members should rather rally behind President John Evans Atta Mills and help him to deliver on his campaign promises.
He said recent criticisms and attacks on the President by members of the party on the perceived slowness of his administration in running the affairs of the country was not a healthy development.
Alhaji Zakari, who made the appeal at a press conference in Tamale, said such public criticisms could distract the President from his core agenda of working hard to ensure a better Ghana.
He, therefore, called on all NDC members, including former President Rawlings to "cease fire" and rather support President Mills in his efforts to make Ghana a better place for all.
Alhaji Zakari used the occasion to thank delegates of the party who re-elected him as regional chairman at the recent party congress to elect new party executives.
The Eastern Regional Branch of the NDC has also expressed surprise and displeasure at the way some members of the party were openly criticising the government.
A press release issued by the Regional Secretariat of the party in Koforidua said the criticisms were contrary to the good performance of President John Evans Atta Mills government within the 11 months in office.
It said Ghanaians voted for the NDC on the basis of the pledges the party made in its manifesto.
The release said it was, therefore, fair to use the promises made in the document as the basis to judge the performance of the government.
The release expressed faith in the government of President Mills and called on all Ghanaians, especially members of the NDC, to support the government and desist from criticisms that only distract the Executive from its course.
The regional branch expressed confidence in the 2010 budget, which the members said catered for all segments of the Ghanaian society.
The release explained that the government inherited a budget deficit of 20 per cent with shocking revelations of mismanagement and misapplication of huge sums of money by the previous administration.
It said members of the party should not be echoing tunes of the opposition who are less informed about the party's programmes.
The release said the party clearly stated what it would be doing for the first 100 days in office, the first year, the second year and at the end of its first term.
MUST 'GALAMSEY' BE LEGALISED?
EMMANUEL ABAKA, DUNKWA
The people engaged in galamsey operations do so because of poverty. I was engaged in the practice myself sometime ago, and I can vouch that people will do everything to keep body and soul together.
A keen observation of what galamsey operators go through each day would show that it is a blessing for one to go to work and come back unscathed. In fact, I will not recommend it for anybody.
However, there is money to be made and as such people are willing to die. And as some say “all die be die”, it means they either take part in the activity and get killed somehow or they are equally dead out of hunger if they do not take part.
There are people who provide funds for galamsey operations. Unfortunately, they do not provide technical know-how or insurance cover, and that is why it is important for the Government to step in and legalise the operations to make them enjoy the benefits that accrue to the sector, while at the same time, making them responsible for their actions, particularly on the environment.
Since the activities of galamsey affect the environment, especially river bodies through dangerous chemicals used for extraction, it is paramount that the operators are given education particularly on the use of chemicals used in the extraction processes, notably on cyanide and mercury.
MUST 'GALAMSEY' BE LEGALISED?
ALBERT ANTO, PRESTEA/HUNI-VALEY
Those of us living in areas where the practice of galamsey is rife, consider it as a necessary evil. Though many of those engaged in it would have wished not to be where they are, there is nothing much that they could do since they have to keep body and soul together.
My honest opinion is that there is no way galamsey would cease insofar as poverty levels in the country are high. Under the current circumstances, its practice would exist forever. What is required now is for experts in mining, the supervising authority, that is, the Minerals Commission and the Government, to fashion ways of making galamsey operations acceptable and in a manner that would protect the operators, the communities and the environment.
Gold has been mined in Ghana for a very long time, but there is nothing to show for it. A cursory look at communities in Ghana, particularly in the Western Region, where gold and other minerals are mined, shows a picture of abject poverty.
We have the School of Mines and the polytechnics, and it was about time these institutions were tasked to design basic courses for galamsey operators.
MUST 'GALAMSEY' BE LEGALISED?
J. ATTA PRAH, AUTO ENGINEER
I have visited places like Tarkwa, Prestea/Bogoso, Wassa Akropong and other parts of the Western Region, where this deadly trade is practised, on many occasions.
I have observed the risk involved and wonder if it is worth the lives of those who have taken it upon themselves to engage in galamsey operations.
I also know for a fact that though the activity is risky, it is nonetheless very lucrative. Practitioners make a lot of money. At Nanankor, near Wassa Akropong, for instance, there is a market where they trade in all manner of items. The galamsey operators even own generating plants that provide them with electricity.
But come to think of it, why should people risk their lives in such a manner when they know that they are engaged in a near-death activity. Must the Government look on unconcerned while precious lives are lost? In my view, most governments have rather paid lip-service to the call for legalising the activity of galamsey operations. I think the time is ripe for galamsey to be accepted and accorded its rightful place.
I say this because no matter what, people will continue to engage in galamsey, considering the general economic hardships people face.
MUST 'GALAMSEY' BE LEGALISED?
MAAME ADWOA SARPONG, SEKONDI
Galamsey operators derive their daily bread from engaging in the illegal mining of gold. Much as their operations deviate from the norm, it nonetheless serve as their source of employment.
But having said that, I also do not think that there cannot be solutions to the problem of galamsey operations in this country. It is, therefore, important that structures that ensure the smooth implementation of galamsey operations are put in place by the Government or the governing agencies concerned. This will give assurance that operators are operating safely and in a manner that will safeguard the environment and avoid accidents.
The people who engage in galamsey operations have to eat. In fact, some have children and also look after extended family members as well.
So the time has come for us to find a way out. The operators may not have the technology to be able to reclaim land and use the appropriate means of extracting gold, so they need training and support.
If as a country, we look on unconcerned and people die, that would be another bad episode in our history. I think that if the sector is given the support that it needs and accidents are reduced to the barest minimum, it will be good for the economy and will also provide employment for thousands of the people.
The Mineral Commission owes it a duty to ensure that they not only regularise the operations of galamsey practitioners, but also give them opportunities to undergo training, or else we will always give ‘the dog a bad name and hang it’.
MUST 'GALAMSEY' BE LEGALISED?
FRANCIS ADUKONU, TAKORADI
One of our biggest problems as a country is that people begin to do things without first assessing the viability of whatever enterprise they are engaging themselves in.
That aside, one major factor that is driving young people to engage in galamsey is poverty. It is, however, sad that after many years, following the discoveries of gold and other natural resources, Ghanaians have as yet not been able to master and take control of the mining industry.
Many of the young men and women who take to galamsey die in their quest to look for their daily bread in their bid to cater for their immediate and extended families, having exhausted all other avenues in their job search.
I understand that the Mineral Commission has put in place measures to ensure the regularisation of galamsey operations. But the point is, how easy and accessible are the registration and the documentation processes?
It was about time that a fund was set up for the training of these young Ghanaians in the areas of mining and safety as a way of ameliorating the frequent deaths that occur at the mines.
One of the things that should have been done long ago was to ensure the transfer of skills to the indigenous people. As things stand now, the people keep practising galamsey using old and uncouth methods for extracting the mineral.
They have genuine interest in the mine work. Therefore, let us not only regularise mining and make it legal, but also give them the needed skills to ensure that they operate in a very safe and acceptable manner.
MUST 'GALAMSEY' BE LEGALISED?
SEWAAH AKOTO ANING, TAKORADIIt is about time the nation got serious about finding solutions to the nagging issue of galamsey. Young people engaged in the practice are dying in their numbers, and so something needs to be done soon to stem this unfortunate tide.
Galamsey is no longer the preserve of men. Now, many women too are actively engaged in the activity. This goes to show that in spite of the dangers involved, there is money to be made, and this is what is driving many of the youth into the sector.
I think it is about time the nation invested some effort to ensure safety in the sector. I suggest that a committee be set up to study the intricacies of galamsey operations in the country and its impact on the local and national economy.
Many people do not know this, but galamsey contributes significantly to the economies of the local communities in which they operate, and so it is important that the sector is given the necessary support to make it more viable.
Monday, December 7, 2009
MUST 'GALAMSEY' BE LEGALISED?...Views from Sekondi-Takoradi (PAGE 31, MIRROR, DEC 5)
It is about time the nation got serious about finding solutions to the nagging issue of galamsey. Young people engaged in the practice are dying in their numbers, and so something needs to be done soon to stem this unfortunate tide.
Galamsey is no longer the preserve of men. Now, many women too are actively engaged in the activity. This goes to show that in spite of the dangers involved, there is money to be made, and this is what is driving many of the youth into the sector.
I think it is about time the nation invested some effort to ensure safety in the sector. I suggest that a committee be set up to study the intricacies of galamsey operations in the country and its impact on the local and national economy.
Many people do not know this, but galamsey contributes significantly to the economies of the local communities in which they operate, and so it is important that the sector is given the necessary support to make it more viable.
One of our biggest problems as a country is that people begin to do things without first assessing the viability of whatever enterprise they are engaging themselves in.
That aside, one major factor that is driving young people to engage in galamsey is poverty. It is, however, sad that after many years, following the discoveries of gold and other natural resources, Ghanaians have as yet not been able to master and take control of the mining industry.
Many of the young men and women who take to galamsey die in their quest to look for their daily bread in their bid to cater for their immediate and extended families, having exhausted all other avenues in their job search.
I understand that the Mineral Commission has put in place measures to ensure the regularisation of galamsey operations. But the point is, how easy and accessible are the registration and the documentation processes?
It was about time that a fund was set up for the training of these young Ghanaians in the areas of mining and safety as a way of ameliorating the frequent deaths that occur at the mines.
One of the things that should have been done long ago was to ensure the transfer of skills to the indigenous people. As things stand now, the people keep practising galamsey using old and uncouth methods for extracting the mineral.
They have genuine interest in the mine work. Therefore, let us not only regularise mining and make it legal, but also give them the needed skills to ensure that they operate in a very safe and acceptable manner.
Galamsey operators derive their daily bread from engaging in the illegal mining of gold. Much as their operations deviate from the norm, it nonetheless serve as their source of employment.
But having said that, I also do not think that there cannot be solutions to the problem of galamsey operations in this country. It is, therefore, important that structures that ensure the smooth implementation of galamsey operations are put in place by the Government or the governing agencies concerned. This will give assurance that operators are operating safely and in a manner that will safeguard the environment and avoid accidents.
The people who engage in galamsey operations have to eat. In fact, some have children and also look after extended family members as well.
So the time has come for us to find a way out. The operators may not have the technology to be able to reclaim land and use the appropriate means of extracting gold, so they need training and support.
If as a country, we look on unconcerned and people die, that would be another bad episode in our history. I think that if the sector is given the support that it needs and accidents are reduced to the barest minimum, it will be good for the economy and will also provide employment for thousands of the people.
The Mineral Commission owes it a duty to ensure that they not only regularise the operations of galamsey practitioners, but also give them opportunities to undergo training, or else we will always give ‘the dog a bad name and hang it’.
I have visited places like Tarkwa, Prestea/Bogoso, Wassa Akropong and other parts of the Western Region, where this deadly trade is practised, on many occasions.
I have observed the risk involved and wonder if it is worth the lives of those who have taken it upon themselves to engage in galamsey operations.
I also know for a fact that though the activity is risky, it is nonetheless very lucrative. Practitioners make a lot of money. At Nanankor, near Wassa Akropong, for instance, there is a market where they trade in all manner of items. The galamsey operators even own generating plants that provide them with electricity.
But come to think of it, why should people risk their lives in such a manner when they know that they are engaged in a near-death activity. Must the Government look on unconcerned while precious lives are lost? In my view, most governments have rather paid lip-service to the call for legalising the activity of galamsey operations. I think the time is ripe for galamsey to be accepted and accorded its rightful place.
I say this because no matter what, people will continue to engage in galamsey, considering the general economic hardships people face.
Those of us living in areas where the practice of galamsey is rife, consider it as a necessary evil. Though many of those engaged in it would have wished not to be where they are, there is nothing much that they could do since they have to keep body and soul together.
My honest opinion is that there is no way galamsey would cease insofar as poverty levels in the country are high. Under the current circumstances, its practice would exist forever. What is required now is for experts in mining, the supervising authority, that is, the Minerals Commission and the Government, to fashion ways of making galamsey operations acceptable and in a manner that would protect the operators, the communities and the environment.
Gold has been mined in Ghana for a very long time, but there is nothing to show for it. A cursory look at communities in Ghana, particularly in the Western Region, where gold and other minerals are mined, shows a picture of abject poverty.
We have the School of Mines and the polytechnics, and it was about time these institutions were tasked to design basic courses for galamsey operators.
The people engaged in galamsey operations do so because of poverty. I was engaged in the practice myself sometime ago, and I can vouch that people will do everything to keep body and soul together.
A keen observation of what galamsey operators go through each day would show that it is a blessing for one to go to work and come back unscathed. In fact, I will not recommend it for anybody.
However, there is money to be made and as such people are willing to die. And as some say “all die be die”, it means they either take part in the activity and get killed somehow or they are equally dead out of hunger if they do not take part.
There are people who provide funds for galamsey operations. Unfortunately, they do not provide technical know-how or insurance cover, and that is why it is important for the Government to step in and legalise the operations to make them enjoy the benefits that accrue to the sector, while at the same time, making them responsible for their actions, particularly on the environment.
Since the activities of galamsey affect the environment, especially river bodies through dangerous chemicals used for extraction, it is paramount that the operators are given education particularly on the use of chemicals used in the extraction processes, notably on cyanide and mercury.
Galamsey is no longer the preserve of men. Now, many women too are actively engaged in the activity. This goes to show that in spite of the dangers involved, there is money to be made, and this is what is driving many of the youth into the sector.
I think it is about time the nation invested some effort to ensure safety in the sector. I suggest that a committee be set up to study the intricacies of galamsey operations in the country and its impact on the local and national economy.
Many people do not know this, but galamsey contributes significantly to the economies of the local communities in which they operate, and so it is important that the sector is given the necessary support to make it more viable.
One of our biggest problems as a country is that people begin to do things without first assessing the viability of whatever enterprise they are engaging themselves in.
That aside, one major factor that is driving young people to engage in galamsey is poverty. It is, however, sad that after many years, following the discoveries of gold and other natural resources, Ghanaians have as yet not been able to master and take control of the mining industry.
Many of the young men and women who take to galamsey die in their quest to look for their daily bread in their bid to cater for their immediate and extended families, having exhausted all other avenues in their job search.
I understand that the Mineral Commission has put in place measures to ensure the regularisation of galamsey operations. But the point is, how easy and accessible are the registration and the documentation processes?
It was about time that a fund was set up for the training of these young Ghanaians in the areas of mining and safety as a way of ameliorating the frequent deaths that occur at the mines.
One of the things that should have been done long ago was to ensure the transfer of skills to the indigenous people. As things stand now, the people keep practising galamsey using old and uncouth methods for extracting the mineral.
They have genuine interest in the mine work. Therefore, let us not only regularise mining and make it legal, but also give them the needed skills to ensure that they operate in a very safe and acceptable manner.
Galamsey operators derive their daily bread from engaging in the illegal mining of gold. Much as their operations deviate from the norm, it nonetheless serve as their source of employment.
But having said that, I also do not think that there cannot be solutions to the problem of galamsey operations in this country. It is, therefore, important that structures that ensure the smooth implementation of galamsey operations are put in place by the Government or the governing agencies concerned. This will give assurance that operators are operating safely and in a manner that will safeguard the environment and avoid accidents.
The people who engage in galamsey operations have to eat. In fact, some have children and also look after extended family members as well.
So the time has come for us to find a way out. The operators may not have the technology to be able to reclaim land and use the appropriate means of extracting gold, so they need training and support.
If as a country, we look on unconcerned and people die, that would be another bad episode in our history. I think that if the sector is given the support that it needs and accidents are reduced to the barest minimum, it will be good for the economy and will also provide employment for thousands of the people.
The Mineral Commission owes it a duty to ensure that they not only regularise the operations of galamsey practitioners, but also give them opportunities to undergo training, or else we will always give ‘the dog a bad name and hang it’.
I have visited places like Tarkwa, Prestea/Bogoso, Wassa Akropong and other parts of the Western Region, where this deadly trade is practised, on many occasions.
I have observed the risk involved and wonder if it is worth the lives of those who have taken it upon themselves to engage in galamsey operations.
I also know for a fact that though the activity is risky, it is nonetheless very lucrative. Practitioners make a lot of money. At Nanankor, near Wassa Akropong, for instance, there is a market where they trade in all manner of items. The galamsey operators even own generating plants that provide them with electricity.
But come to think of it, why should people risk their lives in such a manner when they know that they are engaged in a near-death activity. Must the Government look on unconcerned while precious lives are lost? In my view, most governments have rather paid lip-service to the call for legalising the activity of galamsey operations. I think the time is ripe for galamsey to be accepted and accorded its rightful place.
I say this because no matter what, people will continue to engage in galamsey, considering the general economic hardships people face.
Those of us living in areas where the practice of galamsey is rife, consider it as a necessary evil. Though many of those engaged in it would have wished not to be where they are, there is nothing much that they could do since they have to keep body and soul together.
My honest opinion is that there is no way galamsey would cease insofar as poverty levels in the country are high. Under the current circumstances, its practice would exist forever. What is required now is for experts in mining, the supervising authority, that is, the Minerals Commission and the Government, to fashion ways of making galamsey operations acceptable and in a manner that would protect the operators, the communities and the environment.
Gold has been mined in Ghana for a very long time, but there is nothing to show for it. A cursory look at communities in Ghana, particularly in the Western Region, where gold and other minerals are mined, shows a picture of abject poverty.
We have the School of Mines and the polytechnics, and it was about time these institutions were tasked to design basic courses for galamsey operators.
The people engaged in galamsey operations do so because of poverty. I was engaged in the practice myself sometime ago, and I can vouch that people will do everything to keep body and soul together.
A keen observation of what galamsey operators go through each day would show that it is a blessing for one to go to work and come back unscathed. In fact, I will not recommend it for anybody.
However, there is money to be made and as such people are willing to die. And as some say “all die be die”, it means they either take part in the activity and get killed somehow or they are equally dead out of hunger if they do not take part.
There are people who provide funds for galamsey operations. Unfortunately, they do not provide technical know-how or insurance cover, and that is why it is important for the Government to step in and legalise the operations to make them enjoy the benefits that accrue to the sector, while at the same time, making them responsible for their actions, particularly on the environment.
Since the activities of galamsey affect the environment, especially river bodies through dangerous chemicals used for extraction, it is paramount that the operators are given education particularly on the use of chemicals used in the extraction processes, notably on cyanide and mercury.
FARM LANDLORD BEATS TENANT TO DEATH (MIRROR, PAGE 34, DEC 5)
What started as a misunderstanding between a farm landlord and his 56-year-old tenant degenerated into a nasty incident when the landlord allegedly assaulted the tenant, leading to his death.
According to the police, after the assault, the landlord, whose name was only given as Bere Kwao, with the help of some people from the Bedibewu community conveyed the victim, Yakubu Apambilla, to the Prestea Government Hospital.
Those who accompanied the landlord to convey the deceased to the hospital said when the landlord realised the bad state in which the victim was, he absconded from the hospital. He is currently wanted by the police.
True to the fears of the runaway suspect, the victim died a few minutes after his assailant had vanished from the hospital premises.
The incident was then reported to the police at Prestea, who have initiated investigations and a search for the landlord.
According to the Regional Crime Officer, Mr Victor Agbetornyo, the police are currently searching for the suspect to establish exactly what made him assault Apambilla.
He said the villagers were of the view that, the quarrel might have ensued over the parcel of land which Bere Kwao had given out to Apambilla for farming purposes.
According to Mr Agbetornyo, since the community was a settler community with scattered hamlets, the police had to arrest the suspect to help them in their investigations.
He, therefore, used the opportunity to appeal to members of the public who might have any information about the whereabouts of Bere Kwao to report to the police.
Mr Agbetornyo also appealed to the public to control their temperament and advised that under no circumstance should anyone take the law into his own hands.
“In the face of fierce provocation, please control yourselves and keep faith with the police for redress and do not take the law into your own hands as actions taken in the heat of the moment were always regrettable”, he cautioned.
According to the police, after the assault, the landlord, whose name was only given as Bere Kwao, with the help of some people from the Bedibewu community conveyed the victim, Yakubu Apambilla, to the Prestea Government Hospital.
Those who accompanied the landlord to convey the deceased to the hospital said when the landlord realised the bad state in which the victim was, he absconded from the hospital. He is currently wanted by the police.
True to the fears of the runaway suspect, the victim died a few minutes after his assailant had vanished from the hospital premises.
The incident was then reported to the police at Prestea, who have initiated investigations and a search for the landlord.
According to the Regional Crime Officer, Mr Victor Agbetornyo, the police are currently searching for the suspect to establish exactly what made him assault Apambilla.
He said the villagers were of the view that, the quarrel might have ensued over the parcel of land which Bere Kwao had given out to Apambilla for farming purposes.
According to Mr Agbetornyo, since the community was a settler community with scattered hamlets, the police had to arrest the suspect to help them in their investigations.
He, therefore, used the opportunity to appeal to members of the public who might have any information about the whereabouts of Bere Kwao to report to the police.
Mr Agbetornyo also appealed to the public to control their temperament and advised that under no circumstance should anyone take the law into his own hands.
“In the face of fierce provocation, please control yourselves and keep faith with the police for redress and do not take the law into your own hands as actions taken in the heat of the moment were always regrettable”, he cautioned.
FARMER JAILED FOR CHOPPING OFF WIFE'S ARM (PAGE 39, MIRROR, DEC 5)
From Moses Dotsey
Aklorbortu, Bibiani
A farmer who amputated his wife’s left arm after he caught her in bed with another man at Wassa Wairatrem, in the Western Region, has been sentenced to 10 years imprisonment with hard labour.
This was after he failed to arrange for the victim to have an artificial limb.
The convict, Kweku Yenam, also slashed the forehead of the man after he amputated his wife’s arm and then reported himself to the police.
The prosecutor, Superintendent Raymond Kofi Erzuah, told the Bibiani Circuit Court, presided over by Mr Emmanuel Ankamah that the convict for many years suspected his wife of infidelity.
He said in order to prove his case, Yenam decided to trail his wife who had moved out of their matrimonial home as a result of persistent misunderstanding.
Supt. Erzuah said after reporting to the police, Yenam was arrested, placed in police custody and charged with causing harm and possession of offensive weapon.
The prosecutor said on the said day, the convict, at about 1:am went to the residence of the man he had all along suspected to be sleeping with his wife.
Superintendent Erzuah said Yenam knocked on the door several times but the man refused to open his door.
He, therefore, forced the door open, attacked them and left to make a report to the police.
After the incident in November last year, the convict was given time by the court to have an artificial limb fixed for the victim but he failed to do so.
The wife and her lover who were attacked are said to be doing well.
Aklorbortu, Bibiani
A farmer who amputated his wife’s left arm after he caught her in bed with another man at Wassa Wairatrem, in the Western Region, has been sentenced to 10 years imprisonment with hard labour.
This was after he failed to arrange for the victim to have an artificial limb.
The convict, Kweku Yenam, also slashed the forehead of the man after he amputated his wife’s arm and then reported himself to the police.
The prosecutor, Superintendent Raymond Kofi Erzuah, told the Bibiani Circuit Court, presided over by Mr Emmanuel Ankamah that the convict for many years suspected his wife of infidelity.
He said in order to prove his case, Yenam decided to trail his wife who had moved out of their matrimonial home as a result of persistent misunderstanding.
Supt. Erzuah said after reporting to the police, Yenam was arrested, placed in police custody and charged with causing harm and possession of offensive weapon.
The prosecutor said on the said day, the convict, at about 1:am went to the residence of the man he had all along suspected to be sleeping with his wife.
Superintendent Erzuah said Yenam knocked on the door several times but the man refused to open his door.
He, therefore, forced the door open, attacked them and left to make a report to the police.
After the incident in November last year, the convict was given time by the court to have an artificial limb fixed for the victim but he failed to do so.
The wife and her lover who were attacked are said to be doing well.
Friday, December 4, 2009
3 OFFICERS OF HASMAL LADIES IN POLICE GRIPS (GRAPHIC SPORTS, BACK PAGE)
THREE officials of the female team of Sekondi Hasaacas have been arrested by the Takoradi Police for an alleged trafficking of three young girls to Europe.
The officials, who have been charged with conspiracy to traffic humans by the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of the Western Regional Police Command, are Mohammed Ben Hassan, 56, the director of the club, Yussif Basika, 37, Coach, and Caesar Amo Coleman, 31, who posed as a welfare officer of the club.
According to the police, the officials of the team left Ghana with 17 players in July this year for a tournament but failed to return with three of the girls of the team.
They were said to have transported the girls to Valencia in Spain after the game from where they allegedly attempted to move them to another European country for other purposes than the game of football.
The welfare officer, who was said to have left the camp with the girls, promised to meet them with the rest of the team at the airport on the day of departure but failed to do so.
The said officials were said to have presented 17 players, including the three, who are at large and the one who posed as the welfare officer of the team to the Spanish Embassy in Accra and managed to secure the visas for the young girls for an international friendly with a Spanish side, Victoria Gazettein, in July this year.
However, a promise by the host team to sign the three girls failed to materialise and that compelled the Ghanaian team to look elsewhere in Europe.
The Officer Commanding the Anti-Human Traffic Unit, Mr Daniel Darteh, disclosed that after playing a game with the Spanish side, the welfare officer left with the three girls and failed to produce them on the day of their depature from Spain.
He said the three officials and the remaining players returned to Ghana without the three girls and failed to report to the police in Spain, the Ghana Police or the Ghana Football Association.
The unit commander said the officials at the embassy instructed the team officials that upon their return, they should report to the embassy with all members of the team, but they failed to do so.
The unit commander, who is also the second in command of the Regional Crime Unit, said some of the officials upon interrogation said the welfare officer was the one who was obliged to produce the girls he travelled with to Valencia after the game.
“Those interrogated, including with some of the players who travelled with them, said Coleman promised to meet them at the airport with the remaining members of the team but failed to produce them ,” the unit commander said.
“They said when they asked the welfare officer whereabouts of the girls, he only said they had vanished and that he could not find them,” Mr Darteh said.
On the next line of action, the unit commander said the three have been charged with human trafficking which was an affront to the country and international law.
He said the police deemed issues with human trafficking seriously and would do everything possible to ensure that the issue was thoroughly investigated and the culprits handled according to law.
The signals picked by the police investigations team also indicated that some members who did not go with the team to Spain were not happy with the deal and therefor decided to blow the cover.
The officials, who have been charged with conspiracy to traffic humans by the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of the Western Regional Police Command, are Mohammed Ben Hassan, 56, the director of the club, Yussif Basika, 37, Coach, and Caesar Amo Coleman, 31, who posed as a welfare officer of the club.
According to the police, the officials of the team left Ghana with 17 players in July this year for a tournament but failed to return with three of the girls of the team.
They were said to have transported the girls to Valencia in Spain after the game from where they allegedly attempted to move them to another European country for other purposes than the game of football.
The welfare officer, who was said to have left the camp with the girls, promised to meet them with the rest of the team at the airport on the day of departure but failed to do so.
The said officials were said to have presented 17 players, including the three, who are at large and the one who posed as the welfare officer of the team to the Spanish Embassy in Accra and managed to secure the visas for the young girls for an international friendly with a Spanish side, Victoria Gazettein, in July this year.
However, a promise by the host team to sign the three girls failed to materialise and that compelled the Ghanaian team to look elsewhere in Europe.
The Officer Commanding the Anti-Human Traffic Unit, Mr Daniel Darteh, disclosed that after playing a game with the Spanish side, the welfare officer left with the three girls and failed to produce them on the day of their depature from Spain.
He said the three officials and the remaining players returned to Ghana without the three girls and failed to report to the police in Spain, the Ghana Police or the Ghana Football Association.
The unit commander said the officials at the embassy instructed the team officials that upon their return, they should report to the embassy with all members of the team, but they failed to do so.
The unit commander, who is also the second in command of the Regional Crime Unit, said some of the officials upon interrogation said the welfare officer was the one who was obliged to produce the girls he travelled with to Valencia after the game.
“Those interrogated, including with some of the players who travelled with them, said Coleman promised to meet them at the airport with the remaining members of the team but failed to produce them ,” the unit commander said.
“They said when they asked the welfare officer whereabouts of the girls, he only said they had vanished and that he could not find them,” Mr Darteh said.
On the next line of action, the unit commander said the three have been charged with human trafficking which was an affront to the country and international law.
He said the police deemed issues with human trafficking seriously and would do everything possible to ensure that the issue was thoroughly investigated and the culprits handled according to law.
The signals picked by the police investigations team also indicated that some members who did not go with the team to Spain were not happy with the deal and therefor decided to blow the cover.
Friday, November 27, 2009
CLASH OVER MONEY CAUSES DEATH OF TWO LOVERS (BACK PAGE, NOV 27)
SECOND Heaven, a town near Sefwi-Debiso, was turned into a veritable “second hell”, when a man who could not stand his girlfriend’s demand for money for a new hairdo, allegedly shot and killed her and later committed suicide.
In what started as a normal early morning confrontation between the two lovers on Thursday, November 19, 2009, unfortunely turned tragic when the man, Kwabena Kyei, 31, a farm caretaker, shot and killed his girlfriend, Adwoa Moah, 30, an incident which threw the whole town into mourning.
According to a source in the town, Kyei welcomed the girlfriend to his house in the evening of last Wednesday, when they ate and retired to bed.
The source said a serious fight ensued between the two lovers who were full of life and love the previous night .
According to the source, what provoked the fight was Kyei’s girlfriend’s demand for money for a new hairdo.
Kyei was said to have taken offence and rained insults on his girlfriend as well as raised other issues , which provoked Adwoa.
Adwoa was said to have responded angrily resulting in a confrontation between her and Kyei.
Kyei, then rushed into his landlord’s bedroom and allegedly took his gun and fired at the lower abdomen of Adwoa, killing her on the spot.
Kyei, brandishing the gun, escaped from arrest from the people, but he was later found dead on the cocoa farm of his landlord on Friday, November 20, 2009.
When the Daily Graphic contacted the Western Regional Police Command, the Regional Crime Officer, Mr Victor Agbetornyo, confirmed the story and said they were investigating the incident.
The bodies of the two, according to the police, had been deposited at the Dormaa Ahenkro Holy Family Hospital in the Bia District of the Western Region.
In what started as a normal early morning confrontation between the two lovers on Thursday, November 19, 2009, unfortunely turned tragic when the man, Kwabena Kyei, 31, a farm caretaker, shot and killed his girlfriend, Adwoa Moah, 30, an incident which threw the whole town into mourning.
According to a source in the town, Kyei welcomed the girlfriend to his house in the evening of last Wednesday, when they ate and retired to bed.
The source said a serious fight ensued between the two lovers who were full of life and love the previous night .
According to the source, what provoked the fight was Kyei’s girlfriend’s demand for money for a new hairdo.
Kyei was said to have taken offence and rained insults on his girlfriend as well as raised other issues , which provoked Adwoa.
Adwoa was said to have responded angrily resulting in a confrontation between her and Kyei.
Kyei, then rushed into his landlord’s bedroom and allegedly took his gun and fired at the lower abdomen of Adwoa, killing her on the spot.
Kyei, brandishing the gun, escaped from arrest from the people, but he was later found dead on the cocoa farm of his landlord on Friday, November 20, 2009.
When the Daily Graphic contacted the Western Regional Police Command, the Regional Crime Officer, Mr Victor Agbetornyo, confirmed the story and said they were investigating the incident.
The bodies of the two, according to the police, had been deposited at the Dormaa Ahenkro Holy Family Hospital in the Bia District of the Western Region.
CONGESTION IN TWIN-CITY (MIRROR, NOV 28, PAGE 34)
From Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Takoradi
Prices of houses and rental accommodation, as well as demand for expansion in social infrastructure have shot up drastically in the twin city of Sekondi-Takoradi, following the discovery of oil in the Western Region.
While there has been an increase in population, the same cannot be said of infrastructure including housing, markets, road networks and the supply of water, electricity, among others.
Rent charges have soared with landlords charging fees in dollars.
Some residents have accused the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly of not showing any interest in controlling the escalating cost of living that was estimated to have unpredictable repercussions for the people.
Since the discovery of oil in June 2007, there has been a boom in economic activities and a swell in population in the twin-city.
Many corporate institutions, which hitherto were domiciled exclusively in Accra, Kumasi or Tema, are all now craving to secure a place in the metropolis.
These developments have increased the demand for water, electricity and other social services.The city, which some few years ago was without traffic congestion, is currently experiencing serious traffic throughout the day. Under the circumstances, hawkers have taken over half of the central business district, doing rigorous business, with vehicles making use of any available space as a parking lot.
Interestingly, City Guards of the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly whose duty it was to enforce law and order, have turned restricted and prohibited parking areas into car parks and collect tolls from drivers.
When The Mirror caught up with some city guards, they explained that their job was to impose fines and collect tolls, not to direct the people how to park.
“Once they manage to park, ours is to collect money. In fact, the city guard is supposed to ensure that people did the right thing,” one of them said.
Sellers of “Fanti-Dokunu” a traditional food of Fantis and fish sellers, as well as black marketers who deal in all sorts of currencies have also taken over street pavements, especially those around the market circle, forcing pedestrians and visitors to the market, shops, and the financial institutions around the Central Business District to share the street with motorists.
Prices of houses and rental accommodation, as well as demand for expansion in social infrastructure have shot up drastically in the twin city of Sekondi-Takoradi, following the discovery of oil in the Western Region.
While there has been an increase in population, the same cannot be said of infrastructure including housing, markets, road networks and the supply of water, electricity, among others.
Rent charges have soared with landlords charging fees in dollars.
Some residents have accused the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly of not showing any interest in controlling the escalating cost of living that was estimated to have unpredictable repercussions for the people.
Since the discovery of oil in June 2007, there has been a boom in economic activities and a swell in population in the twin-city.
Many corporate institutions, which hitherto were domiciled exclusively in Accra, Kumasi or Tema, are all now craving to secure a place in the metropolis.
These developments have increased the demand for water, electricity and other social services.The city, which some few years ago was without traffic congestion, is currently experiencing serious traffic throughout the day. Under the circumstances, hawkers have taken over half of the central business district, doing rigorous business, with vehicles making use of any available space as a parking lot.
Interestingly, City Guards of the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly whose duty it was to enforce law and order, have turned restricted and prohibited parking areas into car parks and collect tolls from drivers.
When The Mirror caught up with some city guards, they explained that their job was to impose fines and collect tolls, not to direct the people how to park.
“Once they manage to park, ours is to collect money. In fact, the city guard is supposed to ensure that people did the right thing,” one of them said.
Sellers of “Fanti-Dokunu” a traditional food of Fantis and fish sellers, as well as black marketers who deal in all sorts of currencies have also taken over street pavements, especially those around the market circle, forcing pedestrians and visitors to the market, shops, and the financial institutions around the Central Business District to share the street with motorists.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
GSFP HAS LOST ITS FOCUS
GSFP has lost its focus
Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Takoradi
The Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) is said to have lost its concept and direction as its services does not get to intended deprived communities in the districts across the country.
Rather, schools in district and regional capitals are covered leaving the intended rural, deprived and poor communities uncovered.
The concept of GSFP, according to experts at orientation workshop in Takoradi was to provide ready market for locally produced foodstuff in the deprived communities, but its concentration on the urban areas was not help the course.
Sadly according the experts, foods stuff produced in the intended deprived local communities by poor farmers are also not patronized, therefore, leaving the local communities more disadvantaged and poorer than before.
The focus of GSFP they said was to target deprived communities across the country and not those in urban and district capitals. But the programme has been overly concentrated in urban centers.
With the Western Region as an example, chunk of the beneficiaries in the region are in the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan area and other district and municipal capitals, while the deprived communities have less or no coverage at all.
The Sekondi/Takoradi alone had a total of 26 schools, with total of 10,958 pupils benefiting, while other districts with high rate of deprivation had little or no coverage.
According to the Assistant Director at the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Mrs Irene Mercibah, based on the principle of the programme, the menu should be 80 per cent purely locally produce food stuff but that was not the case.
She said other objective of the programme was to contribute to poverty reduction and to improve food security in deprived communities.
The assistant director said the bigger concept encompasses the ministry of food and agriculture, and other technical ministries and its foreign partners to ensure that GSFP provided the ready market for the locally produce food stuff; therefore, help in the transformation of the local economy.
She explained that if the programme did not get to the deprived communities as expected, those who would be buying in the urban centers had to settle for high prices which would not help compared to the amount allocated to it child in the beneficiary schools.
Mrs Mercibah said some of the objectives were also to increase school enrollment, attendance, and retention and to reduce short term hunger, malnutrition among school children and to boost domestic food production.
For her part, the Deputy Western Regional Minister, Ms Betty Bosumtwi-Sam, it was wrong for deprived areas to left out or giving limited coverage.
She said while the metropolis had beneficiaries of more than 10,958 pupils in 26 schools under it, Prestea/Huni-Valley had five schools with 1,431 pupils, Shama also had five with 4,849 pupils, Amenfi East with seven schools with 3,206 and Bia with 6 schools with 3,338 pupils.
She wondered why the metropolitan/municipal district assemblies with all the facilities compared to a village in Enchi or other deprived parts of the region.
Ms Bosumtwi-Sam said another problem worthy of noting was the corrupt practice that characterized the programme which nearly incurred the displeasure of the donor partners threat to withdraw their support if transparency and proper accounting system were not applied.
That aside, she said sadly, some of the beneficiary schools have every poor structures to accommodate the activities of the caterers.
Other key stakeholders such as agriculture, education and health had been neglected thereby depriving the programme of its contribution.
Various districts were taking through financial management for the GSFP, the responsibilities of the district assemblies, sample of equipment procedures among others.
Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Takoradi
The Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) is said to have lost its concept and direction as its services does not get to intended deprived communities in the districts across the country.
Rather, schools in district and regional capitals are covered leaving the intended rural, deprived and poor communities uncovered.
The concept of GSFP, according to experts at orientation workshop in Takoradi was to provide ready market for locally produced foodstuff in the deprived communities, but its concentration on the urban areas was not help the course.
Sadly according the experts, foods stuff produced in the intended deprived local communities by poor farmers are also not patronized, therefore, leaving the local communities more disadvantaged and poorer than before.
The focus of GSFP they said was to target deprived communities across the country and not those in urban and district capitals. But the programme has been overly concentrated in urban centers.
With the Western Region as an example, chunk of the beneficiaries in the region are in the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan area and other district and municipal capitals, while the deprived communities have less or no coverage at all.
The Sekondi/Takoradi alone had a total of 26 schools, with total of 10,958 pupils benefiting, while other districts with high rate of deprivation had little or no coverage.
According to the Assistant Director at the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Mrs Irene Mercibah, based on the principle of the programme, the menu should be 80 per cent purely locally produce food stuff but that was not the case.
She said other objective of the programme was to contribute to poverty reduction and to improve food security in deprived communities.
The assistant director said the bigger concept encompasses the ministry of food and agriculture, and other technical ministries and its foreign partners to ensure that GSFP provided the ready market for the locally produce food stuff; therefore, help in the transformation of the local economy.
She explained that if the programme did not get to the deprived communities as expected, those who would be buying in the urban centers had to settle for high prices which would not help compared to the amount allocated to it child in the beneficiary schools.
Mrs Mercibah said some of the objectives were also to increase school enrollment, attendance, and retention and to reduce short term hunger, malnutrition among school children and to boost domestic food production.
For her part, the Deputy Western Regional Minister, Ms Betty Bosumtwi-Sam, it was wrong for deprived areas to left out or giving limited coverage.
She said while the metropolis had beneficiaries of more than 10,958 pupils in 26 schools under it, Prestea/Huni-Valley had five schools with 1,431 pupils, Shama also had five with 4,849 pupils, Amenfi East with seven schools with 3,206 and Bia with 6 schools with 3,338 pupils.
She wondered why the metropolitan/municipal district assemblies with all the facilities compared to a village in Enchi or other deprived parts of the region.
Ms Bosumtwi-Sam said another problem worthy of noting was the corrupt practice that characterized the programme which nearly incurred the displeasure of the donor partners threat to withdraw their support if transparency and proper accounting system were not applied.
That aside, she said sadly, some of the beneficiary schools have every poor structures to accommodate the activities of the caterers.
Other key stakeholders such as agriculture, education and health had been neglected thereby depriving the programme of its contribution.
Various districts were taking through financial management for the GSFP, the responsibilities of the district assemblies, sample of equipment procedures among others.
TWO DIE IN ENCHI ACCIDENT (BACK PAGE)
Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Enchi
Enchi bound KIA truck loaded with bags of corn yesterday plunked into Disue River killing the driver and one of his mates in the Aowing Suaman District of the Western Region.
The names of the two dead persons were given as Awudu, 35 and the driver of the vehicle and the second mate, Bernard Darko 22 while the survivors were named as Agatha Nyarko 46, Listowell Kusi.
At the time of the accident at about 5p.m. on Wednesday, the vehicle was on its firs mission to the region therefore used the wrong route to the town.
The truck, KIA Riano truck, with the registration number AS 9604 – 09 was said to be loaded with corn from Braiman in the Ashanti Region and was heading to Enchi.
The size of the vehicles was said to be bigger than width of the bridge causing it to topple into the river with high current.
However, the truck has been retrieved with the body of the driver trapped in the seatbelt but the whereabouts of the second mate is yet to be established.
The search party made up of Chinese Construction firm working on Asankragwa-Enchi roads.
According to the Tarkwa Divisional Commander, Mr Kwadwo Antwi Tabi, said the driver of the truck was new to the road and best thing to do was to use the new road to the town instead where he passed.
He said the old had small wooden bridge that links Old and New Yakasi, farming communities near Echi in very sharp curve.
He said the attempt by the driver to control the vehicle, it run into the river with the cargo and the people on board.
The two people who survived, Agatha and Listowell are currently receiving treatment at the Enchi Government Hospital .
The divisional commander said due to the heavy rain at that time of the night, the river was flooded with a heavy current, therefore the passengers and the cargo was carried along it.
Mr Tabi said he said at the moment, the search is still continuing for the remains of the mate.
Enchi bound KIA truck loaded with bags of corn yesterday plunked into Disue River killing the driver and one of his mates in the Aowing Suaman District of the Western Region.
The names of the two dead persons were given as Awudu, 35 and the driver of the vehicle and the second mate, Bernard Darko 22 while the survivors were named as Agatha Nyarko 46, Listowell Kusi.
At the time of the accident at about 5p.m. on Wednesday, the vehicle was on its firs mission to the region therefore used the wrong route to the town.
The truck, KIA Riano truck, with the registration number AS 9604 – 09 was said to be loaded with corn from Braiman in the Ashanti Region and was heading to Enchi.
The size of the vehicles was said to be bigger than width of the bridge causing it to topple into the river with high current.
However, the truck has been retrieved with the body of the driver trapped in the seatbelt but the whereabouts of the second mate is yet to be established.
The search party made up of Chinese Construction firm working on Asankragwa-Enchi roads.
According to the Tarkwa Divisional Commander, Mr Kwadwo Antwi Tabi, said the driver of the truck was new to the road and best thing to do was to use the new road to the town instead where he passed.
He said the old had small wooden bridge that links Old and New Yakasi, farming communities near Echi in very sharp curve.
He said the attempt by the driver to control the vehicle, it run into the river with the cargo and the people on board.
The two people who survived, Agatha and Listowell are currently receiving treatment at the Enchi Government Hospital .
The divisional commander said due to the heavy rain at that time of the night, the river was flooded with a heavy current, therefore the passengers and the cargo was carried along it.
Mr Tabi said he said at the moment, the search is still continuing for the remains of the mate.
POLICE MAN CAUGHT IN THE ACT
Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Takoradi
Two police officers retired to blows after close of work, when the junior caught the senior in the process of sexually assaulting the junior officer’s wife amidst fierce resistance.
The junior officer after catching the senior officer whose name was only given as Inspector Fusseini, landed many slaps on his face and matched him out of his room naked for people in the flats to see.
The wife of the senior officer who is also said to be a police woman, attached to the RDF, became angry after hearing that the pandemonium was about the husband and was slapped because of a woman.
She was said to more angered by the fact that husband was slapped. She, therefore, went to flat of the junior officer and also slapped him severally and remarked “because of that you should slap my husband I have also slap you.”
The senior officer and others were said to fond of harassing young ladies both police ladies and civilians. In this particular case, the wife of the constable was said to have warned the senior officer that she was married and could not engage in such infidel act.
Narrating the story to this reporter, a source at the unit said the junior officer told his flat mates that he was traveling therefore inspector Fusseni thought the coast was clear to move in.
But unfortunately for Fusseni, the constable aborted his intended trip only to find him (Fusseni) comfortably on his bed without cloths.
The source said, prior to that, the wife of the junior officer had been reporting the conduct of Fusseni to his husband and that he should not leave her alone in the room.
True to the words of the wife of the junior officer, the inspector entered their room and undressed himself ready to descend on the women.
But for the timely return of the constable, the intended sexual assault was aborted.
The senior officer was matched out of the room naked with his manhood dangling between his legs, according to the source.
At the moment, there is some level of tension as some of the ladies want what happen to be the turning points in the lives of the officers who have been harassing them.
Many of them said, they are constantly harassed by some senior officers because they refuse to allow them to have sex with them.
That aside, junior officers are afraid to travel and leave their wives and young daughters behind because they are constantly harassed.
Two police officers retired to blows after close of work, when the junior caught the senior in the process of sexually assaulting the junior officer’s wife amidst fierce resistance.
The junior officer after catching the senior officer whose name was only given as Inspector Fusseini, landed many slaps on his face and matched him out of his room naked for people in the flats to see.
The wife of the senior officer who is also said to be a police woman, attached to the RDF, became angry after hearing that the pandemonium was about the husband and was slapped because of a woman.
She was said to more angered by the fact that husband was slapped. She, therefore, went to flat of the junior officer and also slapped him severally and remarked “because of that you should slap my husband I have also slap you.”
The senior officer and others were said to fond of harassing young ladies both police ladies and civilians. In this particular case, the wife of the constable was said to have warned the senior officer that she was married and could not engage in such infidel act.
Narrating the story to this reporter, a source at the unit said the junior officer told his flat mates that he was traveling therefore inspector Fusseni thought the coast was clear to move in.
But unfortunately for Fusseni, the constable aborted his intended trip only to find him (Fusseni) comfortably on his bed without cloths.
The source said, prior to that, the wife of the junior officer had been reporting the conduct of Fusseni to his husband and that he should not leave her alone in the room.
True to the words of the wife of the junior officer, the inspector entered their room and undressed himself ready to descend on the women.
But for the timely return of the constable, the intended sexual assault was aborted.
The senior officer was matched out of the room naked with his manhood dangling between his legs, according to the source.
At the moment, there is some level of tension as some of the ladies want what happen to be the turning points in the lives of the officers who have been harassing them.
Many of them said, they are constantly harassed by some senior officers because they refuse to allow them to have sex with them.
That aside, junior officers are afraid to travel and leave their wives and young daughters behind because they are constantly harassed.
MAN ARRESTED FOR JUJU
Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Asasetre
A young, who was slapped with fine of GHc1,000 after he accused the wife of sleeping around with other men and went to powerful juju-man at Asasetre to the wife and her entire family has arrested by the police.
He was asked to bring one black Dog, a he Goat, drinks and amount of GHc4.50p for the ritual.
But on his way to the shrine, the Black Dog died on the way which sent a strong signal to the juju man that the plan should not be executed.
The juju man realizing how dangerous it could be to carryout the ritual informed the police for the arrest of the young man and his protection.
According to the Axim District Police Commander, DSP Lovelace Tetutor, the young man, Vincent Assan, a cleaner at a hospital outside Asasetre said the wife had been sleeping around with other men.
He said the claims by Assan had degenerated into several confrontation and fight between the two.
Therefore, the wife dragged him to Axim Magistrate Court , where he was fine GHc1,000 and to pay.
Assan then decided that, the wife and her family would not live to enjoy the money, therefore, he sought after the assistance of the Juju man called Okomfo Kwame Ampofo.
He said the assignment of the okomfo was to wipe the lives of his wife and all her relatives out of this world.
DSP Tetutor said the motive of the suspect according to (he the suspect) was to ensure that none of his family live to enjoy the money.
The suspect, therefore, decided that only out was to kill all of them.
The Okomfo Ampofo told the police that, the ritual Assan wanted him to perform was very dangerous and very effective.
He (the Okomfo) did not want to kill therefore informed the police who came on the day of the ritual and the suspect was arrested.
The suspect is currently in police custody, pending further investigation.
A young, who was slapped with fine of GHc1,000 after he accused the wife of sleeping around with other men and went to powerful juju-man at Asasetre to the wife and her entire family has arrested by the police.
He was asked to bring one black Dog, a he Goat, drinks and amount of GHc4.50p for the ritual.
But on his way to the shrine, the Black Dog died on the way which sent a strong signal to the juju man that the plan should not be executed.
The juju man realizing how dangerous it could be to carryout the ritual informed the police for the arrest of the young man and his protection.
According to the Axim District Police Commander, DSP Lovelace Tetutor, the young man, Vincent Assan, a cleaner at a hospital outside Asasetre said the wife had been sleeping around with other men.
He said the claims by Assan had degenerated into several confrontation and fight between the two.
Therefore, the wife dragged him to Axim Magistrate Court , where he was fine GHc1,000 and to pay.
Assan then decided that, the wife and her family would not live to enjoy the money, therefore, he sought after the assistance of the Juju man called Okomfo Kwame Ampofo.
He said the assignment of the okomfo was to wipe the lives of his wife and all her relatives out of this world.
DSP Tetutor said the motive of the suspect according to (he the suspect) was to ensure that none of his family live to enjoy the money.
The suspect, therefore, decided that only out was to kill all of them.
The Okomfo Ampofo told the police that, the ritual Assan wanted him to perform was very dangerous and very effective.
He (the Okomfo) did not want to kill therefore informed the police who came on the day of the ritual and the suspect was arrested.
The suspect is currently in police custody, pending further investigation.
BE FINANCIALLY DISCIPLINE
Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Enchi
The lack of financial discipline on the part of some loan beneficiaries has been identified as the major setback for the development of Micro Finance and Small Loan Centers (MASLOC).
The Aowin Suaman District Chief Executive, Mr Osca Ofori Larbi, who made the call, said it was not possible for everyone with brilliant business ideas with the accompanying funds to execute it.
“But we should also be aware that those funds are not for free and we have to pay back to enable others to also benefit and to also keep the source in business,” he said.
Therefore MASLOC which was to provide some amount of funding for people in the communities to start business should not be seen as gift money.
The chief executive said those, who had benefited from the amount of GHc72,000 which was disbursed under the MASLOC few months ago should make sure the money is paid with the stipulated time.
The DCE said the strategy was to improve the local economy and to identify those who the poor were, where they live, and which aspects of activities needs financial support.
Mr Larbi said people who had benefit from the fund should make an effort to pay back for others to access.
He said it becomes extremely difficult for funds such as MASLOC to reach other people when previous beneficiaries refused to honour their loan obligations.
He used the opportunity to educate the people who would benefit from the fund to ensure that they did not go beyond repayment time.
Mr Larbi urged the beneficiaries to misapply the loan so ensure that in the end they would be able make some money for themselves and to pay back.
The lack of financial discipline on the part of some loan beneficiaries has been identified as the major setback for the development of Micro Finance and Small Loan Centers (MASLOC).
The Aowin Suaman District Chief Executive, Mr Osca Ofori Larbi, who made the call, said it was not possible for everyone with brilliant business ideas with the accompanying funds to execute it.
“But we should also be aware that those funds are not for free and we have to pay back to enable others to also benefit and to also keep the source in business,” he said.
Therefore MASLOC which was to provide some amount of funding for people in the communities to start business should not be seen as gift money.
The chief executive said those, who had benefited from the amount of GHc72,000 which was disbursed under the MASLOC few months ago should make sure the money is paid with the stipulated time.
The DCE said the strategy was to improve the local economy and to identify those who the poor were, where they live, and which aspects of activities needs financial support.
Mr Larbi said people who had benefit from the fund should make an effort to pay back for others to access.
He said it becomes extremely difficult for funds such as MASLOC to reach other people when previous beneficiaries refused to honour their loan obligations.
He used the opportunity to educate the people who would benefit from the fund to ensure that they did not go beyond repayment time.
Mr Larbi urged the beneficiaries to misapply the loan so ensure that in the end they would be able make some money for themselves and to pay back.
RESCUE OPERATIONS CALLED OFF (1B)
Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Sekondi
Rescue operations at Dompoase galamsey disaster site has been called off due to the threatening signs of more slides.
The search follows a slide that claimed the lives some 18 illegal miners at Dompoase near Wassa Akropong in the Amenfi East District of the Western Region. Sadly, most of the victims happen to women.
The rescue team was made up of the police led by the Tarkwa Divisional Commander and some the illegal miners as well as the town folks.
The grounds have become very soft due to intermittent rains and the countless pits under the mountains, where the disaster took place threatening the lives of the rescuers.
The search became dangerous since there were no proper tools and the map of the pits to carryout effective search; the police resorted to the use of bamboo sticks and shovels and their hands in search of victims dead or alive.
According the Western Regional Crime Officer, Mr Victor Agbetornyo, they were forced to call off the search because the ground had become very dangerous and the top of the mountain had become very weak and could collapse on the team.
He said due to the first slide, “the tree hanging and on the top of the mountain are not firm on the ground, therefore, I will be risking the lives of my men and those helping them.”
The regional crime officer said, they were under resourced, saying “the kind of tools we are using are not the best, shovels, stick and other odd implement are not the best for a rescue operation of this nature.”
Mr Agbetornyo said they were not in a position to tell the direction of the pit and how long it was. “Therefore if we don’t take care, we would be risking our lives.”
“The ground and the tips of the mountain wobble when the wind is blowing sending clear signals that we are at risk,” he said.
“That aside the miners have dug pits all over covered with grass and if care is not taken and somebody falls in that could be the end of the person,” he said.
When the Daily Graphic toured the place with the Regional Police Commander and the Deputy Western Regional Minister, the district chief executive some of the holes were almost under the main street.
The cracked rocks in some of the abandoned pits are very sharp and could cut if care is not taken.
About their impression about what happened, some of the miners said they are not deterred at all and that they would go back saying “that is where we pick our daily bread.”
On the journey back to the Regional office of the Graphic Communications Group Limited in Takoradi, it was common to see people openly carrying out galamsey by the road or dangerously under mountains.
According to some of them they will follow the gold to wherever it surfaces while some of them are sponsored by “big people” in Accra others it is the matter of the being able to purchase mercury and other chemicals needed for the processing.
Others were also of the view that those who have remained underground would give them more lock in their search for gold.
Rescue operations at Dompoase galamsey disaster site has been called off due to the threatening signs of more slides.
The search follows a slide that claimed the lives some 18 illegal miners at Dompoase near Wassa Akropong in the Amenfi East District of the Western Region. Sadly, most of the victims happen to women.
The rescue team was made up of the police led by the Tarkwa Divisional Commander and some the illegal miners as well as the town folks.
The grounds have become very soft due to intermittent rains and the countless pits under the mountains, where the disaster took place threatening the lives of the rescuers.
The search became dangerous since there were no proper tools and the map of the pits to carryout effective search; the police resorted to the use of bamboo sticks and shovels and their hands in search of victims dead or alive.
According the Western Regional Crime Officer, Mr Victor Agbetornyo, they were forced to call off the search because the ground had become very dangerous and the top of the mountain had become very weak and could collapse on the team.
He said due to the first slide, “the tree hanging and on the top of the mountain are not firm on the ground, therefore, I will be risking the lives of my men and those helping them.”
The regional crime officer said, they were under resourced, saying “the kind of tools we are using are not the best, shovels, stick and other odd implement are not the best for a rescue operation of this nature.”
Mr Agbetornyo said they were not in a position to tell the direction of the pit and how long it was. “Therefore if we don’t take care, we would be risking our lives.”
“The ground and the tips of the mountain wobble when the wind is blowing sending clear signals that we are at risk,” he said.
“That aside the miners have dug pits all over covered with grass and if care is not taken and somebody falls in that could be the end of the person,” he said.
When the Daily Graphic toured the place with the Regional Police Commander and the Deputy Western Regional Minister, the district chief executive some of the holes were almost under the main street.
The cracked rocks in some of the abandoned pits are very sharp and could cut if care is not taken.
About their impression about what happened, some of the miners said they are not deterred at all and that they would go back saying “that is where we pick our daily bread.”
On the journey back to the Regional office of the Graphic Communications Group Limited in Takoradi, it was common to see people openly carrying out galamsey by the road or dangerously under mountains.
According to some of them they will follow the gold to wherever it surfaces while some of them are sponsored by “big people” in Accra others it is the matter of the being able to purchase mercury and other chemicals needed for the processing.
Others were also of the view that those who have remained underground would give them more lock in their search for gold.
IRS TO SIMPLIFY TAX PAYMENT
Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Takoradi
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has declared its intention to make tax paying easy and attractive to the taxpayers across all sectors of the country’s economy.
This follows the introduction new software to enhance calculation, use of accurate tax rate, casting of total and help reduce delays in filing of returns.
At the launch of the software, “PAYE Software” for Small and Medium Enterprises in the Western Region, it was identified that hitherto the introduction of the software, the mode of filling returns was characterized by many anomalies.
According the experts and contributors at the lunch, many enterprises were still calculating taxes wrongly and using wrong tax rates which resulted into difficulty in completing the income tax return form.
Such problems did not only have effect on effective tax administration but also a drain in the mobilization by various tax agencies.
The new software per the presentation would eliminate many of these problems and SMES, other public and private institutions could now calculate tax in efficient and effective manner.
In his remarks before the launch, the Regional Manager of IRS, Mr James K. Nyantekyi said the software would help tax administrators to control the process and machinery in optimizing revenue and to increase the quality of service to taxpayers by reducing the time of processing the returns.
He said left with the taxpayers there should be no tax, therefore, in order to get the tax payer to be willing to pay, there was the need to enhance the mode of payment.
He said the software which is free and easy to installed, would enhance businesses way of filling their returns on time and to avoid penalties for late submission and subsequent payment of taxes.
Mr Nyantekyi said “as stated in the 2010 budget, the three revenue agencies are to be integrated into Ghana Revenue Authority, which means that the tax administration is going to be organised through information communication technology for faster and greater efficiency.”
He said the move means the movement from manual to automated responses, paper communications to electronic communication, cheque and cash to electronic fund transfer and assistance to self help education.”
The regional manager said revenue generated from various taxes was one of the principle means which any government finances its expenditure.
He said if the country had to execute its development project to make life more enjoyable to countrymen and women, there was the need for more enhanced tax system to rake in more.
“For more schools, hospitals, modern health care system, public transportations system and many others, it is imperative for any tax administration to improve on revenue mobilization machinery and to modernize our service delivery to take advantage of global technologies to enhance or operations,” he said.
Mr Patrick Danso of IRS took the participants through the benefits and mode of installation of the software on their machines in their premises.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has declared its intention to make tax paying easy and attractive to the taxpayers across all sectors of the country’s economy.
This follows the introduction new software to enhance calculation, use of accurate tax rate, casting of total and help reduce delays in filing of returns.
At the launch of the software, “PAYE Software” for Small and Medium Enterprises in the Western Region, it was identified that hitherto the introduction of the software, the mode of filling returns was characterized by many anomalies.
According the experts and contributors at the lunch, many enterprises were still calculating taxes wrongly and using wrong tax rates which resulted into difficulty in completing the income tax return form.
Such problems did not only have effect on effective tax administration but also a drain in the mobilization by various tax agencies.
The new software per the presentation would eliminate many of these problems and SMES, other public and private institutions could now calculate tax in efficient and effective manner.
In his remarks before the launch, the Regional Manager of IRS, Mr James K. Nyantekyi said the software would help tax administrators to control the process and machinery in optimizing revenue and to increase the quality of service to taxpayers by reducing the time of processing the returns.
He said left with the taxpayers there should be no tax, therefore, in order to get the tax payer to be willing to pay, there was the need to enhance the mode of payment.
He said the software which is free and easy to installed, would enhance businesses way of filling their returns on time and to avoid penalties for late submission and subsequent payment of taxes.
Mr Nyantekyi said “as stated in the 2010 budget, the three revenue agencies are to be integrated into Ghana Revenue Authority, which means that the tax administration is going to be organised through information communication technology for faster and greater efficiency.”
He said the move means the movement from manual to automated responses, paper communications to electronic communication, cheque and cash to electronic fund transfer and assistance to self help education.”
The regional manager said revenue generated from various taxes was one of the principle means which any government finances its expenditure.
He said if the country had to execute its development project to make life more enjoyable to countrymen and women, there was the need for more enhanced tax system to rake in more.
“For more schools, hospitals, modern health care system, public transportations system and many others, it is imperative for any tax administration to improve on revenue mobilization machinery and to modernize our service delivery to take advantage of global technologies to enhance or operations,” he said.
Mr Patrick Danso of IRS took the participants through the benefits and mode of installation of the software on their machines in their premises.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
FISHERMEN ON WEST COAST ADVISED TO USE REFLECTORS (BACK PAGE, NOV 24)
Local fishermen, especially those operating along the west coast of the country, have been asked to use reflectors and other safety devices to ensure maximum safety during this harmattan season.
This is because of the increase in the fleet of ships and other cargo vessels going to the Takoradi Port and the Home Port of the Western Naval Command.
The Western Regional offices of the Meteorological Services Department and the Fisheries Commission, which gave the advice, said the combination of high dry dusty winds and the moist on the sea could affect visibility.
They said the failure on the part of fishermen to use the proper reflectors would make it difficult for the crew of vessels to spot them from afar to avert any disaster.
The Western Regional Meteorological Director, Mr David Perry Osika, said the warning had become necessary because activities in the country’s maritime domain had changed and there was the need for the fishermen to adopt safety measures.
He explained that during the harmattan, dry dusty winds at sea turned to be very thick, thereby impeding visibility, and if the fishermen did not use good reflectors for easy identification by bigger vessels, there could be a problem.
For his part, the Western Regional Director of the Fisheries Commission, Mr Alexander Addo, said the office had received advice from other players in the domain about the increase in the number of fleet and the need to educate the fisher folk to adhere to safety regulations.
Some of the fishermen who spoke to the Daily Graphic at the Sekondi Fishing Harbour said the weather on the sea was not friendly and, therefore, they were trying as much as possible to use reflectors to enable bigger vessels to identify them.
This is because of the increase in the fleet of ships and other cargo vessels going to the Takoradi Port and the Home Port of the Western Naval Command.
The Western Regional offices of the Meteorological Services Department and the Fisheries Commission, which gave the advice, said the combination of high dry dusty winds and the moist on the sea could affect visibility.
They said the failure on the part of fishermen to use the proper reflectors would make it difficult for the crew of vessels to spot them from afar to avert any disaster.
The Western Regional Meteorological Director, Mr David Perry Osika, said the warning had become necessary because activities in the country’s maritime domain had changed and there was the need for the fishermen to adopt safety measures.
He explained that during the harmattan, dry dusty winds at sea turned to be very thick, thereby impeding visibility, and if the fishermen did not use good reflectors for easy identification by bigger vessels, there could be a problem.
For his part, the Western Regional Director of the Fisheries Commission, Mr Alexander Addo, said the office had received advice from other players in the domain about the increase in the number of fleet and the need to educate the fisher folk to adhere to safety regulations.
Some of the fishermen who spoke to the Daily Graphic at the Sekondi Fishing Harbour said the weather on the sea was not friendly and, therefore, they were trying as much as possible to use reflectors to enable bigger vessels to identify them.
Friday, November 20, 2009
DISGRUNTLED MAN CONSULTS JUJU MAN TO KILL WIFE (MIRROR, PAGE 3)
From Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Asasetre
A young man who did not take kindly to being fined GH¢1,000 after he had accused his wife of extra-marital affair and sought the assistance of a juju man at Asasetre to liquidate his wife and her entire family, has been arrested by the police.
The suspect, according to the police, was arrested on the day the ritual to wipe out the entire family was to be performed.
He was asked to bring one black dog, a he-goat, drinks and an amount of GH¢4.50 for the ritual.
Unfortunately for him, the black dog which was to be used in the performance of the ritual died on the way to the shrine, which sent a strong signal to the juju man that the plan should not be executed.
The juju man, realising how dangerous it could be to carry out the ritual, informed the police, who arrested the young man when he eventually arrived at the shrine.
According to the Axim District Police Commander, DSP Lovelace Tetutor, the suspect, Vincent Assan, a cleaner at a hospital outside Asasetre, said his wife had been sleeping around with other men.
He said Assan’s allegation generated several confrontations and fights between him and his wife.
Consequently, the woman dragged Assan to the Axim Magistrate Court, where he was fined GH¢1,000, which he paid.
Assan then decided that his wife and her family would not live to enjoy the money. He, therefore, allegedly sought the assistance of the juju man, Okomfo Kwame Ampofo.
According to the police, the assignment the suspect wanted the Okomfo to perform was to wipe out his wife and all her relatives from this world.
DSP Tetutor said the motive of the suspect was to ensure that none of them lived to enjoy the money.
Okomfo Ampofo told the police that the ritual Assan wanted him to perform was very dangerous and because he did not want to kill, he decided to inform the police, who went to the shrine on the day the ritual was to be performed and arrested the suspect.
Assan is currently in police custody, pending further investigations.
A young man who did not take kindly to being fined GH¢1,000 after he had accused his wife of extra-marital affair and sought the assistance of a juju man at Asasetre to liquidate his wife and her entire family, has been arrested by the police.
The suspect, according to the police, was arrested on the day the ritual to wipe out the entire family was to be performed.
He was asked to bring one black dog, a he-goat, drinks and an amount of GH¢4.50 for the ritual.
Unfortunately for him, the black dog which was to be used in the performance of the ritual died on the way to the shrine, which sent a strong signal to the juju man that the plan should not be executed.
The juju man, realising how dangerous it could be to carry out the ritual, informed the police, who arrested the young man when he eventually arrived at the shrine.
According to the Axim District Police Commander, DSP Lovelace Tetutor, the suspect, Vincent Assan, a cleaner at a hospital outside Asasetre, said his wife had been sleeping around with other men.
He said Assan’s allegation generated several confrontations and fights between him and his wife.
Consequently, the woman dragged Assan to the Axim Magistrate Court, where he was fined GH¢1,000, which he paid.
Assan then decided that his wife and her family would not live to enjoy the money. He, therefore, allegedly sought the assistance of the juju man, Okomfo Kwame Ampofo.
According to the police, the assignment the suspect wanted the Okomfo to perform was to wipe out his wife and all her relatives from this world.
DSP Tetutor said the motive of the suspect was to ensure that none of them lived to enjoy the money.
Okomfo Ampofo told the police that the ritual Assan wanted him to perform was very dangerous and because he did not want to kill, he decided to inform the police, who went to the shrine on the day the ritual was to be performed and arrested the suspect.
Assan is currently in police custody, pending further investigations.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
SCHOOL FEEDING PROGRAMME LOSES DIRECTION (PAGE 28, NOV 19)
The Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) is said to have lost its direction as its services do not get to the intended deprived communities in the districts across the country.
Rather, schools in district and regional capitals are covered leaving the intended rural, deprived and poor communities uncovered.
The concept of the GSFP, according to experts at an orientation workshop in Takoradi, was to provide ready market for locally produced foodstuff in the deprived communities, but its concentration in the urban areas was not helping the cause.
Sadly according to the experts, foodstuff produced in the intended deprived local communities by poor farmers are also not patronised, leaving the local communities more disadvantaged and poorer than before.
The focus of the GSFP, they said, was to target deprived communities across the country and not those in urban and district capitals. But the programme has been overly concentrated in urban centers.
With the Western Region as an example, a chunk of the beneficiaries in the region are in the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan area and other district and municipal capitals, while the deprived communities have less or no coverage at all.
The Sekondi/Takoradi alone has 26 schools, with 10,958 pupils benefiting, while other districts with high rate of deprivation have little or no coverage.
According to the Assistant Director at the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Mrs Irene Mercibah, based on the principle of the programme, the menu should be 80 per cent purely locally produce foodstuff but that was not the case.
She said another objective of the programme was to contribute to poverty reduction and to improve food security in deprived communities.
The assistant director said the bigger concept encompassed the ministry of food and agriculture, and other technical ministries and its foreign partners to ensure that GSFP provided the ready market for the locally produced foodstuffs and thereby help in the transformation of the local economy.
She explained that if the programme did not get to the deprived communities as expected, those who would be buying in the urban centers had to settle for high prices which would not help compared to the amount allocated to a child in the beneficiary schools.
Mrs Mercibah said some of the objectives were also to increase school enrolment, attendance, and retention and to reduce short term hunger and malnutrition among schoolchildren to boost domestic food production.
The Deputy Western Regional Minister, Ms Betty Bosumtwi-Sam said it was wrong for deprived areas to be left out or givien limited coverage.
She said while the metropolis had 10,958 pupils in 26 schools benefiting under it, Prestea/Huni-Valley had five schools with 1,431 pupils, Shama also had five with 4,849 pupils, Amenfi East with seven schools with 3,206 and Bia with 6 schools with 3,338 pupils.
Ms Bosumtwi-Sam said another problem worthy of note was the corrupt practices that characterised the programme, which nearly incurred the displeasure of the donor partners to withdraw their support if transparency and proper accounting systems were not applied.
That aside, she said sadly, some of the beneficiary schools had very poor structures to accommodate the activities of the caterers.
Other key sectors such as agriculture, education and health had been neglected thereby depriving the programme of its contribution.
Participants at the workshop were taken through financial management for the GSFP, the responsibilities of the district assemblies, sample of equipment procedures among others.
Rather, schools in district and regional capitals are covered leaving the intended rural, deprived and poor communities uncovered.
The concept of the GSFP, according to experts at an orientation workshop in Takoradi, was to provide ready market for locally produced foodstuff in the deprived communities, but its concentration in the urban areas was not helping the cause.
Sadly according to the experts, foodstuff produced in the intended deprived local communities by poor farmers are also not patronised, leaving the local communities more disadvantaged and poorer than before.
The focus of the GSFP, they said, was to target deprived communities across the country and not those in urban and district capitals. But the programme has been overly concentrated in urban centers.
With the Western Region as an example, a chunk of the beneficiaries in the region are in the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan area and other district and municipal capitals, while the deprived communities have less or no coverage at all.
The Sekondi/Takoradi alone has 26 schools, with 10,958 pupils benefiting, while other districts with high rate of deprivation have little or no coverage.
According to the Assistant Director at the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Mrs Irene Mercibah, based on the principle of the programme, the menu should be 80 per cent purely locally produce foodstuff but that was not the case.
She said another objective of the programme was to contribute to poverty reduction and to improve food security in deprived communities.
The assistant director said the bigger concept encompassed the ministry of food and agriculture, and other technical ministries and its foreign partners to ensure that GSFP provided the ready market for the locally produced foodstuffs and thereby help in the transformation of the local economy.
She explained that if the programme did not get to the deprived communities as expected, those who would be buying in the urban centers had to settle for high prices which would not help compared to the amount allocated to a child in the beneficiary schools.
Mrs Mercibah said some of the objectives were also to increase school enrolment, attendance, and retention and to reduce short term hunger and malnutrition among schoolchildren to boost domestic food production.
The Deputy Western Regional Minister, Ms Betty Bosumtwi-Sam said it was wrong for deprived areas to be left out or givien limited coverage.
She said while the metropolis had 10,958 pupils in 26 schools benefiting under it, Prestea/Huni-Valley had five schools with 1,431 pupils, Shama also had five with 4,849 pupils, Amenfi East with seven schools with 3,206 and Bia with 6 schools with 3,338 pupils.
Ms Bosumtwi-Sam said another problem worthy of note was the corrupt practices that characterised the programme, which nearly incurred the displeasure of the donor partners to withdraw their support if transparency and proper accounting systems were not applied.
That aside, she said sadly, some of the beneficiary schools had very poor structures to accommodate the activities of the caterers.
Other key sectors such as agriculture, education and health had been neglected thereby depriving the programme of its contribution.
Participants at the workshop were taken through financial management for the GSFP, the responsibilities of the district assemblies, sample of equipment procedures among others.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
COCOA SMUGGLING ON THE RISE IN WR (NOV 17, BACK PAGE)
COCOA smuggling has assumed an alarming proportion in the Western Region, apparently because of the disparity between the producer prices paid in Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire.
To counter any arrest, the smugglers are also said to have armed themselves with sophisticated weapons for self-defence.
The smuggling, according to the communities, if not checked, could derail the country’s hope of achieving its target of cocoa production this year.
The situation is said to be prevalent in Enchi, throughout the Sefwi areas, and the border at New Town in the Jomoro District.
These areas are said to have countless illegal entry points and people are ready with canoes to transport the produce across to neighbouring Cote d’Ivoire at night.
The problem, according to some farmers in the communities, had arisen as a result of the numerous illegal entry points and limited security patrols.
A joint security force formed by the Aowin Suaman District at the weekend intercepted one of many trucks loaded with cocoa. The security force, comprising the police, immigration and customs officials, intercepted the KIA truck with registration number AS 7648 Y, loaded with more than 40 bags of cocoa, and heading towards Cote d’Ivoire, using one of the illegal entry points at Antokrom.
The driver and other smugglers onboard the truck ran across the border into Cote d’Ivoire, and the vehicle and cocoa have been moved to the customs office at Dadieso.
The leader of the task force, Mr A. Asiedu of the Ghana Immigration Service, told the Daily Graphic at the weekend that they would do everything possible to stop the activities of these smugglers.
According to the District Chief Executive of Aowin Suaman, Mr Oscar Ofori Larbi, the target set by the government this year was unlikely to be achieved if urgent steps were not taken to stop the smugglers.
He said smuggling in the district was a daily activity in which people deposited bags of cocoa in the bushes on the banks of the rivers and used canoes to ferry them across to Cote d’Ivoire.
“The formation of the task force under the District Security Council became necessary because of the threat the smuggling poses to the target the country set this year,” he added.
To counter any arrest, the smugglers are also said to have armed themselves with sophisticated weapons for self-defence.
The smuggling, according to the communities, if not checked, could derail the country’s hope of achieving its target of cocoa production this year.
The situation is said to be prevalent in Enchi, throughout the Sefwi areas, and the border at New Town in the Jomoro District.
These areas are said to have countless illegal entry points and people are ready with canoes to transport the produce across to neighbouring Cote d’Ivoire at night.
The problem, according to some farmers in the communities, had arisen as a result of the numerous illegal entry points and limited security patrols.
A joint security force formed by the Aowin Suaman District at the weekend intercepted one of many trucks loaded with cocoa. The security force, comprising the police, immigration and customs officials, intercepted the KIA truck with registration number AS 7648 Y, loaded with more than 40 bags of cocoa, and heading towards Cote d’Ivoire, using one of the illegal entry points at Antokrom.
The driver and other smugglers onboard the truck ran across the border into Cote d’Ivoire, and the vehicle and cocoa have been moved to the customs office at Dadieso.
The leader of the task force, Mr A. Asiedu of the Ghana Immigration Service, told the Daily Graphic at the weekend that they would do everything possible to stop the activities of these smugglers.
According to the District Chief Executive of Aowin Suaman, Mr Oscar Ofori Larbi, the target set by the government this year was unlikely to be achieved if urgent steps were not taken to stop the smugglers.
He said smuggling in the district was a daily activity in which people deposited bags of cocoa in the bushes on the banks of the rivers and used canoes to ferry them across to Cote d’Ivoire.
“The formation of the task force under the District Security Council became necessary because of the threat the smuggling poses to the target the country set this year,” he added.
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