TIG Post

Author: Amanda Cartey

  • Fresh CO2 shortage fears as surging energy costs force factory shutdown

    Fresh fears have flared over a shortage of carbon dioxide – critical to the food and drinks industry – after a major supplier said it was halting production in the face of soaring energy costs.

    There are renewed worries after CF Fertilisers said it was pausing operations at its remaining UK ammonia plant at Billingham near Middlesbrough, because rocketing gas prices made it “uneconomical”.

    The development comes as millions of households learned they will see their energy bills rocket as a record 80% price hike was announced, driven by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

    The firm supplies 42% of the UK’s CO2, which is a by-product from the production of ammonia.

    CO2 plays a key role in the food supply chain, keeping food fresh and adding fizz to beer and soft drinks, as well as being used in the humane slaughter of pigs and chickens.

    It has been warned any disruption in supply poses a serious risk to food production and security, and animal welfare.

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    Ministers were forced to intervene nearly two years ago with financial support for the plant after a shutdown, blamed at the time on a surge in gas prices, triggered a food supply crisis.

    The government has said it is “aware” of the latest decision and is examining options to improve the resilience of CO2 production in the UK.

    Whitehall assurances over the impact of the stoppage are now being sought by the chair of the Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee.

    Sir Robert Goodwill, who has written to the environment secretary to express his concerns, said: “Recent reports that CF Fertiliser will be halting production of ammonia are worrying, given the knock-on impacts this decision will have on CO2 production in the UK.

    “Any disruption to CO2 supply could have serious effects on food production, national food security, and animal welfare.”

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    Why high energy bills hit everything

    Nick Allen, chief executive of the British Meat Processors Association, said the government would “need to step in”.

    He said: “Whilst we are in a much better position now than we were a year ago, if CF Industries follows through on its threat to close Billingham the British meat industry will have serious concerns.

    “Without sufficient CO2 supplies the UK will potentially face an animal welfare issue with a mounting number of pigs and poultry unable to be sent for processing.

    “It’s for this reason that securing CO2 supplies is of key strategic importance and, following this latest development, we can’t see how government can sit on the sidelines and insist that it’s for companies to work it out amongst themselves.”

    Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said the timing of the announcement “couldn’t be worse” as she also called for the government to intervene.

    “This decision raises serious concerns for the sustainable supply of CO2 to the brewing and pub industry,” she said.

    “A guaranteed supply is essential for operations across pub and brewing businesses and this announcement comes at a time when they are already facing extreme cost rising that are threatening businesses and people’s livelihoods across the country.”

    CF said: “At current natural gas and carbon prices, CF Fertilisers UK’s ammonia production is uneconomical, with marginal costs above £2,000 per tonne and global ammonia prices at about half that level.”

    A government spokeswoman said: “We are aware that CF Fertilisers has taken the decision to temporarily halt ammonia production at Billingham.

    “Since last autumn, the CO2 market’s resilience has improved, with additional imports, further production from existing domestic sources and better stockpiles.

    “While the government continues to examine options for the market to improve resilience over the longer term, it is essential industry acts in the interests of the public and business to do everything it can to meet demand.”

    The CBI warned earlier this week that many viable companies face “distress” unless urgent action is taken by the government to get a grip on the energy cost crisis.

     

     

    Source: Skynews

  • Surge in cost of dropping off passengers at airports will leave drivers ‘stunned’

    Drop-off fees have increased at two-thirds of the UK’s major airports since 2019, according to research.

    An RAC investigation found 16 of the 22 airports analysed have introduced or raised charges for dropping off passengers in the past three years.

    The motoring services company claimed drivers will be “stunned” by some of the “sky-high” fees.

    Stansted Airport is the most expensive for so-called “kiss-and-fly” charges, which are typically levied for dropping off someone as close to the terminal as possible.

    Its initial fee is £7 for up to 15 minutes – an increase from £4 for 10 minutes in 2019, before the COVID pandemic.

    A Stansted spokesman said the charge “makes an important contribution to encouraging alternative, more sustainable transport options” and reduces congestion.

    It is one of many airports that offer free options for dropping passengers off in mid or long-stay car parks connected to terminals by buses.

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    Eight airports charge £5 for dropping off passengers. They include the UK’s two busiest airports: Heathrow and Gatwick, which introduced the charge last year.

    RAC head of roads policy, Nicholas Lyes, said limited public transport options for some airports and concerns about train strikes mean many passengers are asking a friend or relative to give them a lift.

    He added: “Anyone dropping a loved one off at the terminal this summer will be stunned by some of these sky-high, kiss-and-drop charges.

    “Minute for minute and pound for pound, some of these charges could almost be as high as the airfare itself.”

    He said it appears many airports have increased fees to “partially make up” for lost revenue during the pandemic.

    Manchester Airport gives drivers just five minutes to drop off travellers for £5 (up from £3 in 2019), while Liverpool John Lennon Airport has raised its fees from £3 for 20 minutes to £4 for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, Bristol Airport has hiked its initial fee for 10 minutes from £1 to £5.

    In Scotland, dropping off passengers at the three largest airports is not much cheaper.

    Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Glasgow Airports have all doubled their fees in the past three years to £4 for 10 minutes.

    Birmingham and Belfast International have kept their fees the same since 2019 (£3 for 15 minutes and £1 for 10 minutes respectively), while drivers can take still advantage of free drop-off areas near terminal entrances at Cardiff, London City and Belfast City.

    Mr Lyes has advised drivers to research charges before heading to airports, and warned them to be aware that many sites use cameras to enforce bans on stopping in certain areas.

    A spokesman for industry body the Airport Operators Association said airports provide clear information about parking and drop-off charges to ensure travellers are “well-informed on the range of options to suit their needs”.

    He added: “Airports that operate drop-off charges directly outside the terminal do so for a number of different reasons, including to manage congestion in capacity-restricted areas and to limit the environmental and air quality impacts of ‘kiss and fly’ journeys.”

     

    Source: Skynews

     

  • Britons on £45,000 will need help paying energy bills – not just those on benefits, chancellor says

    Britons on £45,000 salaries will need government help to pay their energy bills – not only people on benefits, the chancellor has warned.

    Nadhim Zahawi also told The Daily Telegraph that households must try and reduce their energy consumption, and that he fears gas prices could remain elevated for another two years.

    Energy bills will soar for millions of families in the autumn after the price cap was increased to £3,549 a year – a record rise of 80%.

    Every household in the UK is being given a £400 rebate on their energy bills, but Conservative leadership candidates Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak are being urged to take further action.

    There has been debate over whether additional support should be distributed widely or concentrated on those with the lowest incomes.

    Mr Zahawi told the newspaper: “My concern is there are those who aren’t on benefits. If you’re a senior nurse or a senior teacher on £45,000 a year, you’re having your energy bills go up 80% and will probably rise even higher in the new year – it’s really hard.”

    Although Universal Credit is a “really effective way of targeting”, he said, other ideas are being explored “to make sure we help those who really need the help”.

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    Mr Zahawi is understood to have drawn up a series of options for the next prime minister to consider – and despite calls for urgent action from the energy regulator Ofgem, Ms Truss has said it would not be “right” to announce her full plans for tackling the cost of living crisis until a new Tory leader is named on 5 September.

    The chancellor went on to warn that the UK is “in a national economic emergency”, adding: “This could go on for 18 months, two years, if Putin continues to use energy as a weapon.”

     

    Source: Skynews

  • There is nothing wrong with presidents appointing family members Prof Agyeman-Duah

    Former United Nations (UN) Senior Advisor, Prof Baffour Agyeman-Duah, has suggested that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has done no wrong by appointee some of his family relations into positions in his government.

    Prof Agyeman-Duah explained that the president is at liberty to appoint any person, provided the person is qualified, 3newroom.com

    He added that even former President John Agyekum Kufuor and presidents of advanced democracies like the United States have appointed family members in their governments.

    “There is nothing wrong appointing your brother or your son. After all, in other jurisdictions even in the American democracy that we tend to admire, Kennedy appointed his own brother as Attorney General.

    “I think when former President Kufuor appointed his brother as Defence Minister there was nothing wrong about that, a very capable person that he appointed. So those are really not the critical issues,” he said.

    He, however, indicated that the appointment should not be in positions that breed corruption.

    “Even when appointments are made it is important to avoid clear cases of conflict of interest… where money or resources are involved, where there is a higher likelihood of somebody taking cover under the position and the connections available to him to kind of swindle the country, that is where I think my priority will be.

    “When you are in the position to make big decisions or decisions that affect all of us, at the same time closely connected to some institutions through which these decisions perhaps may pass or the institution that may be used for the implementation, closely related to you, then there is likelihood that perhaps you made that decision knowing too well that certain benefits will accrue to that institution that you belong to,” he said.

    President Akufo-Addo has been heavily criticised for appointing some of his family members and friends into top positions including Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta and Roads and Highways Minister Kwasi Amoako-Atta.

    Some Ghanaians have said that the president is not able to sack these two ministers despite the fact that they have underperformed because he is protecting them.

    Source: Ghanaweb

  • FULL LIST: NPP appoints 19 deputy national executives and directors

    The New Patriotic Party has released a list of new appointees to serve in various deputorial and directorship capacities at the executive level of the party.

    Contained in a statement signed by its General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong, it lists 29 names for the various executive positions of the party.

    Some of the notable names are Evans Nimako as Director of Research and Elections, Richard Ahiagbah as Director of Communications, and Dan Botwe as the Director of Campaign Strategy.

    “Pursuant to Articles 10 and 15 of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) constitution, the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party, at its meeting held on Friday, August 26, 2022, appointed the following persons to serve as Deputy National Executives of the party,” the statement read in part.

     

    Source: 3news

  • NPP appoints Richard Ahiagbah as Director of Communications

    The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has appointed Mr Richard Ahiagbah as the new Director of Communications.

    He replaces former Member of Parliament Yaw Buaben Asamua who served the party in that capacity.

    Mr Ahiagbah who is a former Executive Director

    of the Danquah Institute (DI) also served as Deputy Director of Research at the Office of the President.

    This was contained in a press statement released by the governing party on Friday August 26.

    Ernest Owusu Bempah, Kamal Deen Abdullai, Rabi Salifu, Jennifer Ofori Appiah, George Krobea Asante and Dr Asiedu Korko are his deputies.

    Mr Evans Nimako has also been reappointed as Director of Research and Elections for the party.

     

    Source: 3news.com

  • NHIS to cover childhood cancer treatment expenses Bawumia

    Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumiahas announced a decision by the government  to include childhood cancer treatment expenses on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

    He made this announcement at a stakeholders meeting in Accra on Friday August 26.

    In a Facebook post after the meeting, he said “This afternoon I announced the fulfillment of a manifesto promise, that is, a decision to include childhood cancers treatment expense on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) at a stakeholders meeting in Accra.”

    He added that the cost of Hydroxyurea, an essential drug for the treatment of sickle cell anemia, is also now covered by NHIS.

    “These health decisions are important to deal with the sickness and also the financial burden on families of children with cancer and people living with sickle cell will be drastically reduced while receiving treatment.

    “I commend the First Lady, H.E Rebecca Akufo-Addo, the Minister and Ministry of Health, the Board Chair of NHIA and his team, the CEO of NHIA, World Child Cancer, Roche ,and all collaborators for helping to achieve this life-saving initiative.”

     

    Source: 3news

  • Odd News: Janet Jackson’s songs had the power to crash laptops – Microsoft reveals

    An investigation into the mysterious system failures found that playing the music video didn’t just crash the laptop it was on, but also caused laptops nearby to fail.

    The music video for Janet Jackson’s 1989 hit Rhythm Nation was a sensation in terms of its choreography and direction.

    Its foggy noir-like style won it numerous accolades, including a Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video.

    But the dystopian pop video had something else going for it too – the power to crash laptops according to Microsoft, and not just those that it was playing on.

    In a blog post this week, the company’s principal software engineer, Raymond Chen, said a colleague had recently shared a story with him from the days of providing product support for Windows XP.

    “A major computer manufacturer discovered that playing the music video for Janet Jackson’s ‘Rhythm Nation’ would crash certain models of laptops,” wrote Mr Chen.

    It was not just this manufacturer either. The investigation found that playing the music video also caused some of their competitors’ laptops to crash.

    But the weirdest discovery was yet to come.

    It didn’t even have to be the laptop that the music video was playing on. Simply playing the music video on one laptop could cause another close by to crash.

    “It turns out that the song contained one of the natural resonant frequencies for the model of 5400 rpm laptop hard drives that they and other manufacturers used,” explained Mr Chen.

    The issue was similar to an opera singer being able to shatter a glass by singing a particular tone.

    Because sounds are simply acoustic waves, there is a wavelength or frequency for each material that can create the most vibration, known as the medium’s resonant frequency.

    For the affected laptops – which were shipped in approximately 2005, according to a vulnerability report filed by The Mitre Corporation – that frequency was in the Janet Jackson music video.

    Mitre describes the issue as a security vulnerability which could allow an attacker to force the system to crash using the audio signal from the Rhythm Nation music video.

    Thankfully laptops today won’t suffer from the same issue – Microsoft says the manufacturer added “a custom filter in the audio pipeline that detected and removed the offending frequencies during audio playback”.

     

    Source: Skynews

  • 51-year-old dad marries son’s ex-girlfriend who is 16

    Man, 51, marries son’s ex-girlfriend he has 24-year age gap with – and met when she was 11

    Sydney Dean, 27, from Ohio, US, first met truck driver Paul, 51, as a sixth-grader after visiting her then boyfriend, Paul’s son, and the pair got married in 2016

    A woman who met her husband while dating his son as a teenager has shared an insight into their relationship.

    Sydney Dean, 27, from Ohio, US, is married to truck driver Paul, 51 – with the couple sharing a 24-year-age gap.

    She first met him when she was in the sixth grade [aged 11] while she was visiting her boyfriend – Paul’s son.

    The teenage pair remained friends after splitting – but never anticipated that their relationship would one day have a very different dynamic.

    Sydney says she found herself as a third wheel after her ex-boyfriend got a new girlfriend and would often chat to dad Paul instead.

     

    Sydney and Paul Dean in 2019

    Jam Press/Sydney Dean)

    Sydney said: “I never expected to fall in love with Paul and we met in a non-traditional way, but I’m so happy I did.”

    The pair started dating when Sydney turned 16, the legal consenting age in Ohio and in 2016, the pair tied the knot.

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    But she says their road to true love hasn’t been without its ups and downs — with the duo spending years convincing their families they were the real deal.

    She said people still struggle to wrap their heads around their budding romance and the two-and-a-half decades between them — and Sydney says she has lost friends as a result.

    “My mum already knew who Paul was and from the few times they have talked, they got along just fine,” said Sydney.

    “But when I first told my mum that we were together, she was not happy.

    “The age gap really got to her and it stayed that way for about a year – eventually she came around.

    “[After this] we would go to her house almost every weekend just to hang out or have a BBQ.

    Sydney and Paul Dean in 2021

    Sydney and Paul Dean in 2021 (Image:

    Jam Press/Sydney Dean)

    “Now that we live pretty close to each other, she comes over all the time.

    “She’s 100% supportive of us and absolutely loves Paul. In fact, they probably chat more than me and her do.

    “In the beginning my father didn’t like the age gap either and as he lives out of state, he didn’t see him as much.

    “But now, he really likes him.”

    As for Paul’s two children, the couple believe that his youngest took their romance the “hardest” as Sydney already knew him.

    Sydney said: “He didn’t agree with the relationship for a couple years, but now that we have been together and are married, he supports us being together.

    “He comes over with his girlfriend and their three children every other weekend just to hang out with us and BBQ.

    “Paul got into a horrible truck accident last July and was in the SICU for nearly three weeks.

    “While he was in there, I would talk to his son everyday and we would come see him together.

    “Now all the family is OK with us being together.

    “I did have one friend that wasn’t OK with mine and Paul’s relationship.

    “This friend would never want to come hang out or even talk to me much at all if he was around.

    “She eventually didn’t want to be my friend anymore because of the age difference in the relationship.”

    She added: “I wish people would understand that couples with an age gap can truly love and care for one another.

    “There are a lot of negative assumptions about age gap relationships, but that doesn’t mean couples can’t be in it for the right reasons.

    “He is the best husband I could have asked for, and he treats me so great.”

     

    Source: .mirror.co.uk

  • Is Noah’s curse responsible for black people’s woes?

    Noah’s curse on black people is a real thing. It’s been happening for centuries, and it’s time we talked about it.

    The story goes like this: Noah was a man who lived during the time of the great flood. He built an ark and saved his family from the deluge. But when the waters receded, Noah saw that all of humanity had been wiped out except for him and his family.

    In his anger and despair, Noah cursed God saying that he would never again allow his children to prosper. And as punishment, he placed a curse on Ham’s descendants (Ham was one of Noah’s sons). That curse has been passed down through generations, affecting black people to this day.

    There are many theories as to why this particular curse was placed on black people. Some say it was because Ham sinned against Noah by laughing at him when he was drunk and naked; others say it was because Ham refused to help build the ark; still, others believe that the curse of Ham is actually a racist myth invented by white people to justify slavery and oppression. Whatever its origins, there’s no denying that the effects of this curse have been felt by black people throughout history.

    From being forced into slavery to being subjected to Jim Crow laws and racial segregation, black people in America have always faced discrimination and hardship all because of something their ancestors did centuries ago.. Even today, racism is still a very real problem in our society one that needs to be addressed head-on if we’re ever going to move forward as a nation

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

  • Police search for persons who ransacked Odikes office

    The Ashanti Regional Police Command is on a manhunt for the persons who ransacked the office of the founder of United Progressive Party, Akwasi Adae Odike.

    The Regional Command confirmed that some damage was caused to the glass doors, vehicles, television, and chairs at the office of Odike.

    According to sources, the attackers who held pistols were led by one Jamal, who is currently on the run with his accomplices.

    The offices of Akwasi Addai Odike were on Monday ransacked and vandalized by some unknown persons.

    This occurred on the back of tensions between Mr. Odike and traditional authorities in the Ashanti Region following recent commentaries the UPP founder made against chiefs in the area.

    Akwasi Addai Odike in a recent interview on Kumasi-based Oyerepa FM criticised chiefs within the Asante Kingdom for failing to help end illegal mining activities in the region.

    He was also accused of threatening to incite the youth to rise against the chiefs if they fail to play their roles in curbing the illegal mining menace.

    His comments were, however, described as distasteful and disrespectful by members of the Kumasi Traditional Council.

     

    Source:  Citinewsroom

  • Here’s what accounts for thievery at workplaces – Kwaku Aninkorah states

    Employees try their best at the workplace to meet the targets set by both the company and themselves.

    As the take-home is sometimes meagre for some, others, do receive an appreciable amount of money at the end of the month.

    According to the Chief Executive Officer of the Mckeown Group of Companies, Kwaku Adu Aninkorah, businesses are unable to pay their workers well due to a disorganized system at the workplace.

    He noted that the meagre amounts received as salaries give room for employees to become corrupt.

    Speaking on Luv FM, he emphasized that employees who take below GH¢500 stand a high risk of finding dubious ways to generate extra cash from the company amidst the high price of goods and services on the market and the increase in transport fares.

    He said, “Businesses are unable to pay workers well because the system is not well-structured. As a private person who checks me, to make sure I record every sale that I make? The internal revenue officials come with a mindset to get something from me. Whether everything is recorded or not, at the end, I am ready to do business with the one who checks my books.”

    “Look at the rate at which the prices of goods and services are going up. If the person is taking 200 or 300 cedis, what do you expect? The person will want to find a way of filling the gap. This is because transport fares and the cost of food have gone up,” the businessman stated.

    Mr Aninkorah stated that the negative attitude of workers due to lack of motivation leads to both thievery and the collapse of businesses.

    He however noted that the lack of proper structures at the workplace, including record keeping and tax payment, makes it difficult to report theft to the police, myjoyonline reported.

     

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

  • Bright Simons digs out 2 ‘new’ loan sharks in Ghana

    Vice President of IMANI Africa, Bright Simons, has labelled Sokoloan and Truecedi as two illegal financial institutions operating in Ghana.

    According to him, Sokoloan, which has a branch in Nigeria, has now set up a shop in Ghana where unsuspecting victims work with them for loans.

    He further said Truecedi, owned by Jain Finscap, is also an unregistered company in Ghana.

    Taking to micro-blogging site, Twitter to share his grievances, Bright Simons asserted that regulators of financial institutions in the country were being inactive to chase out these illegal businesses.

    “I thought the Ghanaian regulators would take cue but as with the ponzi schemes, they’re dormant. So the likes of Sokoloan have set shop in Ghana & milking new victims. One fintech called Truecedi claims to be owned by Jain Finscap. It is not even registered as a company in Gh,” Bright Simons’ tweet read.

    Beware of loan providers operating without licences – BoG to Ghanaians

    Meanwhile, the central bank has urged Ghanaians to desist from doing business with loan providers operating without licences in the country.

    The operations of these unlicensed banks, the central bank said, were in contravention of the Banks and Specialized Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).

    The Bank of Ghana added that these unlicensed entities mostly use mobile apps and social media for their activities.

    In a press release copied to GhanaWeb, it said, “Bank of Ghana has observed that a number of unlicensed entities are engaged in the provision of loans to the Ghanaian public, in contravention of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930). These illegal entities mostly employ the use of mobile applications and social media in their activities.

    “The activities of these unauthorised entities amount to non-adherence of the consumer protection requirements and an abuse of customer data and privacy laws,” it stated.

    Below are the banks providing loan services to Ghanaians without licence from the Bank of Ghana

    1. SikaPurse Quick Online loan
    2. 4Cedi Instant Mobile loan application
    3. Zidisha Online Loans
    4. GhanaLending Application
    5. ChasteLoan Application
    6. LoanClub-Ghana Instant Loan
    7. AdamfoPa Loan
    8. MetaLending- Instant Cash Loan
    9. Wohiasika Loan (Ghanaloan.net)
    10. Boseafie Bosea Micro-Credit
    11. SikaKasa Online Lending
    12. LoanPro digital and instant loan
    13. SikaWura Loan Application
    14. BegyeBosea Loan
    15. LendingPapa Online Loans
    16. CrestCash Loan
    17. Credxter Loans and Hire- Purchase
    18. MobiLoan Application
    19. Cedi Now Cash Loans Application

    The Bank of Ghana said it is taking steps to bring to book the afore-mentioned banks operating without licences.

     

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

  • Were largely undisciplined, corrupt, lawless society Bawumia

    The Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has said that the Akufo-Addo administration is putting systems in place to check corruption.

    Dr Bawumia noted that since independence, governments after governments have not focused on building systems to reduce bribery and corruption in the country.

    He also said systems that will make the delivery of public service efficient, enhance domestic revenue mobilsation and the systems that will make life generally easier for Ghanaians are also lacking.

    But Dr Bawumia said the current Akufo-Addo is fighting corruption through digitalization.

    Speaking at the Ghana Baptist Convention 59th Annual Session in Ejura in the Ashanti Region on Tuesday August 23, Dr Bawumia said “The problems that we have as a nation are, we are largely undisciplined society, a corrupt society, a lawless society, an untrustworthy society, an inefficient government bureaucracy, a tax dodging society, an informal society and nontransparent society.

    “These are elements that we see in our society. Unfortunately, as a country we have had no data and system to check the prevalence of these inimical elements to our development.

    “In fact, since independence, governments after governments have, by and large, not focused on building systems to reduce bribery and corruption, the systems that will make the delivery of public service efficient, systems that will enhance domestic revenue mobilsation and the systems that will make life generally easier for Ghanaians.”

    He added “It is for this reason that our government had decided that we have have to bring light to the system to shine the light on the problems that we have been facing.

     

     

    Source: 3news

  • Make prompt payment of royalties to mining communities – Chamber of Mines CEO

    The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Sulemanu Koney, has called on the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and other relevant institutions to ensure that royalties and other funds meant for the direct benefit and development of mining communities are paid on a regular basis into the Minerals Development Fund (MDF).

    Describing the situation where the release of the funds delay as “not healthy”, he noted that his checks revealed that for the whole of this year, funds had not been paid into the MDF, as required.

    He stressed that the GRA, the Ministry of Finance and the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) office should make sure that the funds were immediately released to the MDF for the accelerated development of the beneficiary communities.

    “After close of work or business, it is expected that funds will be paid into the MDF immediately or the next day, but, unfortunately, it is not happening and it is a major issue which calls for concern, especially for those of us who have the mining communities at heart and advocated the establishment of the MDF,” Mr Koney said.

    He made the call at a development partnership symposium in Accra yesterday.

    Socio-economic development plan

    The symposium was aimed at exploring partnership opportunities for implementing the 10-year Socio-Economic Development Plan (SEDP) of the AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine.

    A wide range of stakeholders, including bilateral agencies, the private sector, foundations and development non-governmental organisations, attended the event.

    The MDF, the Act

    Explaining the purpose for the establishment of the MDF, Mr Koney said it was a public fund set up by Act 912 of Parliament in 2016.

    The source of the fund is principally 20 per cent of mineral royalties that are received by the GRA on behalf of the Republic.

    These are gained from holders of mining leases in respect of their mining operations. Parliament may also release money approved by Parliament for the fund.

    Other sources of the fund are grants, donations, gifts and voluntary contributions. The MDF may also be financed by money that may become lawfully payable to the fund.

    The act also permits MDF money to be accrued from investments made by the board.

    Also, the fund is to provide financial resources for the direct benefit and advantage of mining communities and all mining-associated individuals and entities interested in land within a mining community.

    It is also to equip traditional and local government authorities, such as the various metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) within a mining community, to carry out their mandates.

    It is anticipated that the MDF will generally promote sustainable mining in various areas through the implementation of the Mineral Development Scheme (MDS).

    Benefits of fund

    Mr Koney pointed out that the MDS, when effectively implemented, would, among other things, help address the harmful effects of mining on affected communities and persons.

    It would also enable local economic development projects and alternative livelihood projects in communities affected by mining activities, he said.

    Challenge

    Mr Koney emphasised that the funds needed to be released in “a timely manner” to complement what the various mining companies were doing as part of their respective corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes.

    “The various MMDAs cannot speak for themselves, for various reasons, but they are starved of the needed funds to execute their mandate,” he indicated.

    Migration, timelines

    The Chamber of Mines CEO further observed that due to the lack of resources, it would be difficult to execute projects on schedule, resulting in the escalation in project costs.

    “We have been complaining about the poor state of mining communities; it is, therefore, important to implement and operationalise the MDF to ensure that the funds are ploughed back into the mining communities,” he said.

    He intimated that when the required resources were channelled into the development of mining communities, it would ensure that rural-urban migration would be curbed.

    Development plan

    The Managing Director of AngloGold Ashanti Ghana Limited, Eric Asubonteng, said the mining firm developed the 10-year SEDP as a social investment strategy to contribute to resilient and socio-economically self-sustaining communities.

    It, therefore, prioritised the mine’s host communities and the traditional capitals of paramount and divisional stools to which the host communities belonged, he said.

    He said the long-term SEDP was developed after the Social Management Plan ended in 2021.

    Presentations

    The Planning officers of the Obuasi Municipal and the Obuasi East District assemblies, Joseph Bashir Asibi and Jones Agyemang, respectively, made presentations on the socio-political context of Obuasi.

    The Senior Manager of Sustainability of the AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine, Emmanuel Baidoo, also gave an overview of the SEDP plan and what was expected from other partners to help sustain the development of mining communities.

     

    Source: Graphiconline

  • US to return $23m loot of Nigerian ex-military ruler Sani Abacha

    The US has agreed to return another instalment of $23m (£19m) to Nigeria part of money allegedly looted and stashed abroad by former Nigerian military ruler Sani Abacha.

    This is part of a deal sealed on Tuesday in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, between the two countries.

    Justice Minister Abubakar Malami signed on behalf of Nigeria while the US ambassador to Nigeria Mary Leonard signed the agreement on behalf of the US government.

    Mr Malami said the funds to be repatriated ”soon” will be spent on infrastructural development in the country.

    The US had in 2020 returned more than $300m to the West African country.

    General Sani Abacha died while in office in 1998. He was accused of stealing billions of dollars of public funds and stashing them in Europe and the US.

    In recent years, the Nigerian government has secured the release of part of the loot from several countries including Switzerland, Britain and the US.

     

    Source: Myjoyonline.com

  • Apple users in Ghana to pay more for apps starting this week

    Users of Apple devices in Ghana are to brace themselves for changes in their online lifestyle.

    Spending on their iOS applications through the app store is expected to go up this week as the company has announced changes to its pricing.

    This will affect apps and in-app purchases in both Ghana and Turkey.

    The upward adjustments exclude auto-renewable subscriptions.

    Apple users in Ghana to pay more for apps starting this week

    “In Ghana, these increases also consider a new value-added tax of 12.5% and additional levies of 6%,” the company said in a statement.

    This comes in the wake of a worsening economic crisis being faced in the country as complaints of the high cost of living remain rife.

    In the August 19 release, Apple Inc explained that proceeds will be adjusted accordingly and will be calculated based on the tax-exclusive price.

    Furthermore, “Exhibit B of the Paid Applications Agreement has been updated to indicate that Apple collects and remits applicable taxes in Ghana.”

    Other relevant information contained in the communique;

    Once these changes go into effect, the Pricing and Availability section of My Apps will be updated. You can change the price of your apps and in-app purchases (including auto-renewable subscriptions) at any time in App Store Connect. If you offer subscriptions, you can choose to preserve prices for existing subscribers.

     

     

    Source: Myjoyonline.com

  • 14-year-old black girl earns 1st degree as youngest OCCC graduate in US

    A bright 14-year-old girl has shown that self-confidence is key to obtaining not just one, but two associate degrees

    Shania Muhammad made history as the youngest graduate from Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC) at 14-year-old

    The teenager also earned another associate degree from Langston University and is planning to pursue a master’s degree

    When Shania Muhammad enrolled in Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC), she was barely a teenager, and now, she is the youngest to graduate from the establishment.

    Muhammad, 14, received her associate degree in Diversified Studies at OCCC, where she made history.

    But that’s not all about her achievements; she graduated with another degree from Langston University and is planning to pursue a master’s degree in Business Administration from Oklahoma State University.

    Aside from being a bright person, Muhammad is also an entrepreneur who launched a clothing line named Smart Girl.

    The teen is a published author with a book titled Read, Write, Listen, which highlights the story of how she became one of the youngest African-American college students in the US.

    Muhammad was previously home-schooled by her parents before she enrolled in OCCC.

    Source: yen.com

  • See Jennifer Lopez’s 3 ‘Dreamy’ Ralph Lauren Wedding dresses for Georgia Ceremony to Ben Affleck

    Jennifer Lopez’s wedding wardrobe is befitting of a style icon.

    The bride turned to fellow Bronx native Ralph Lauren to design her dream wedding capsule — three striking dresses that she wore throughout her Georgia wedding celebration on Saturday, Aug. 20, with husband Ben Affleck.

    After marrying in an intimate Las Vegas affair last month, the newlyweds celebrated their nuptials during a weekend of festivities with family and friends at their home in Riceboro, Georgia, on the Hampton Island preserve outside of Savannah. Lopez dazzled in three different designs from the Ralph Lauren team.

    <a href="https://people.com/tag/jennifer-lopez/" data-inlink="true">Jennifer Lopez</a> Ralph Lauren Wedding Dresses; On the JLO newsletter photos; On The JLo: Wedding Dress First Looks

    On The JLo

    For her ceremony look, the superstar walked down the aisle in a custom Ralph Lauren collection gown. Over 1,000 handkerchiefs were attached to the dress by hand to create a voluminous ruffle skirt and “to make an ethereal version of Ralph Lauren’s classic turtleneck column dress,” according to Vogue. She added a cathedral-length veil to the regal look.

    <a href="https://people.com/tag/jennifer-lopez/" data-inlink="true">Jennifer Lopez</a> wedding

    John Russo / VOGUE

    “The dresses were dreamy… thank you Ralph Lauren 🤍,” Lopez, 53, shared in an edition of her On the JLo newsletter Tuesday along with sketch photos of the deigns as well as her wearing them. She added: “I will be sharing a few more pics and delicious details on our big day coming very soon On The JLo…”

    Lopez later changed into a chandelier pearl gown which featured micro-pleats of silk tulle, pearl embellishments and Swarovski crystal detailing. 30 artisans worked to hand-embroider the one-of-a-kind, open-back design across 700 hours.

    <a href="https://people.com/tag/jennifer-lopez/" data-inlink="true">Jennifer Lopez</a> Ralph Lauren Wedding Dresses; On the JLO newsletter photos; On The JLo: Wedding Dress First Looks

    On The JLo

    The bride’s third custom Ralph Lauren gown featured a sleek mermaid silhouette and a removable hood. The look also had a keyhole neckline embellished with Swarovski crystals of varying sizes.

    Affleck kept things classic in a Ralph Lauren Couture white tuxedo jacket, black trousers and a matching bow-tie. Their five children — Violet, 16, Seraphina, 13, and Samuel, 10, whom Affleck shares with ex-wife Jennifer Garner and Lopez’s 14-year-old twins Max and Emme from a previous marriage with Marc Anthony — also wore white Ralph Lauren Couture.

    Lopez’s stylist Rob Zangardi, who has been collaborating with the superstar alongside his partner Mariel Haenn for years, shared a closer look at her gowns on Instagram, writing, “The most beautiful bride there ever was.”

    Lopez and Affleck first began dating in July 2002 and got engaged that November. They later postponed their September 2003 wedding. They rekindled their relationship close to two decades later in 2021, with Lopez telling PEOPLE, “It’s a beautiful outcome that this has happened in this way at this time in our lives where we can really appreciate and celebrate each other and respect each other.”

    Affleck proposed to Lopez in April with a gorgeous green diamond ring, a color that is particularly symbolic to her.

    John Russo/OntheJLo

    “I always say the color green is my lucky color,” she shared at the time. “I’ve realized there are many moments in my life where amazing things happened when I was wearing green.”

    The couple’s wedding celebration, where they exchanged vows during a 45-minute ceremony in front of 135 friends and family members, was hosted at Affleck’s 87-acre compound on Hampton Island Preserve and officiated by life coach and author Jay Shetty.

    A source told PEOPLE that the location holds a special meaning to the couple. “Ben bought the property 20 years ago when they were engaged first time around,” the insider said. “They have a special connection there, and his 50th birthday was last week so it made sense to do it there and then.”

     

    Source: People.com

  • All details on Sarah Hyland’s wedding glam, including her ‘Princess’-inspired hairstyle

    Sarah Hyland’s bridal glam was fit for a princess.

    For her California wedding on Aug. 20 to Wells Adams, the Modern Family alum went with romantic glam that was both timeless and elegant.

    “Sarah’s glam was effortless, romantic, and delicate for her wedding day,” makeup artist Denika Bedrossian said in a press release. “We wanted to use all rose and pink tones to enhance her beautiful features and create a timeless glam.”

    Bedrossian partnered with Charlotte Tilbury for Hyland’s total makeup look. She kept the bride’s skin glowy and dewy for the outdoor wedding in Santa Ynez, California. “We did a lot of skin prep with layers of moisture, combined with a facial massage to take down any inflammation and bring the bounce up to the top layer of the skin,” Bedrossian told Vogue.

    For Hyland’s delicate eye look, Bedrossian used the Luxury Palette in Pillow Talk Dreams, Luxury Palette in The Sophisticate, Eyes to Mesmerise in Sunlit Glow, Rock n Kohl Eyeliner in Barbarella Brown, Pillow Talk Push Up Lashes! Mascara and Brow Fix. She then gave Sarah a subtle dash of color on her lips with Lip Cheat in Pillow Talk and Matte Revolution Lipstick in Pillow Talk.

    John and Joseph

    When it came time to decide what to do with her hair to match her four — yes, four — bridal dresses, Hyland, 31, wanted to keep it fairly simple but yet still glamorous enough for a princess.

    “We created plenty of texture and tendrils around the hairline and nape of the neck,” hairstylist Ryan Richman told Vogue. “The goal was a look that was appropriate for a princess on her wedding day, but ‘make it as if the princess had just finished riding her horse through the countryside—not too perfect.’”

    John and Joseph

    In the first photo Hyland shared on Instagram from her big day, it’s clear that her slightly undone hair matches not just her Vera Wang wedding gown but the backdrop of her nuptials to Adams, 38. Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Hyland’s Modern Family co-star and the officiant at her wedding, also shared a sweet photo of the actress with her onscreen sister Ariel Winter, where you get another look at her bridal hair.

    Thanks to Hyland’s classic bridal beauty, it was able to perfectly match any dress she picked. In addition to her Vera Wang gown to walk down the aisle, which included a “train as long as [her] engagement,” she also wore another Vera Wang gown.

    Hyland, 31, first wore an ivory silk Vera Wang Haute Couture ballgown featuring a sweetheart neckline, hand-pleated bodice, tulle sleeves and a thigh-high slit. She finished off her ceremony look with a cathedral-length tulle veil with an Italian macramé lace trim.

    John and Joseph

    “Charm personified. So happy to share in your happiness! Much love. XXV,” Wang captioned a beautiful bridal shot of Hyland on Instagram.

    She then changed into a strapless lace Vera Wang Haute Couture gown featuring a draped neckline and hand-detachable tulle sleeves.

    According to Vogue, Hyland switched it up again after cutting her wedding cake with Adams. She changed into a Galia Lahav bias cut silk gown, before then swapping that out for a short beaded dress by Georges Hobeika Couture.

    Hyland told Vogue that when she started planning her wedding in 2019, she knew she wanted a Vera Wang gown. “We had already decided on our venue before I started the process of styling with Brad [Goreski] and Daniela [Viviana-Romero], so it really was about creating a piece that fit the aesthetic of the property,” she said. “Our venue has the color palette of a chateau in the countryside of France with the architectural design of an Italian castle.”

    Jerod Harris/FilmMagic

    She tried on a Vera Wang gown that she fell in love with, and after a few adjustments, she decided on it for her big day. However, after having to postpone her nuptials for so long, she worried that the dress wouldn’t still be the one when the time came.

    Fortunately, when she put the dress on in the lead-up to her August wedding, she still loved it as much as she did three years ago. She also fell in love with other dresses, which is why she decided to just wear them all.

    She told PEOPLE in July that while her vision for her wedding hadn’t changed since she started planning in 2019, her fashion choices had. “I’m going with more dresses than I originally planned,” she said, while keeping her dress plans under lock and key.

    Adams proposed to Hyland in the summer of 2019 after almost two years of dating. The couple originally planned to wed in August 2020, but delayed the nuptials multiple times due to COVID-19 concerns amid the pandemic. The pair met through social media and first flirted on Twitter in 2016, but didn’t get together until the fall of 2017. Before they started dating, Hyland was not shy about Tweeting about her not-so-secret crush on Adams during his time vying for JoJo Fletcher’s heart on season 12 of The Bachelorette in 2016.

     

    Source: People.com

  • Meghan Markle says listeners can expect ‘the Real Me’ on new podcast: ‘I’m just excited to be myself’

    The Duchess of Sussex released the first episode of Archetypes, featuring guest Serena Williams.

    Meet Meghan Markle!

    In a promo for her new Spotify podcast Archetypes, which debuted on the platform Tuesday, the Duchess of Sussex shared what her listeners will hear.

    Sitting on a couch in front of a microphone, Meghan says, “People should expect the real me in this, and probably the me that they’ve never gotten to know — certainly not in the past few years, where everything is through the lens of the media as opposed to, ‘Hey, it’s me.’ “

    “I’m just excited to be myself and talk and be unfiltered and…yeah, it’s fun,” she adds.

    Meghan, 41, spoke with longtime friend and longtime pal and tennis champion Serena Williams for the podcast’s first episode, tackling the double standard for men and women when it comes to ambition.

    “I loved talking about so many important topics with my dear friend Meghan as her first guest on #archetypes for @spotify!” Serena, 40, captioned an Instagram photo featuring Meghan and her daughter, Olympia. “It’s out now and worth the listen, especially if you’re ambitious.”

    “I don’t remember ever personally feeling the negative connotation behind the word ‘ambitious’ until I started dating my now-husband,” Meghan shared.

    Reflecting on life in the limelight as Prince Harry’s partner, she continued, “and apparently ambition is a terrible, terrible thing, for a woman that is — according to some. So, since I’ve felt the negativity behind it, it’s really hard to un-feel it. I can’t unsee it, either, in the millions of girls and women who make themselves smaller — so much smaller — on a regular basis.”

    Meghan also got personal about motherhood, revealing for the first time that a fire broke out in son Archie’s nursery during the couple’s royal tour to Africa in 2019. Although Archie was ready to go down for his nap, his nanny Lauren decided to bring him downstairs with her while she grabbed a snack — the same time that the heater in Archie’s room caught on fire.

    “He was supposed to be sleeping in there,” Meghan said.

    The Duchess of Sussex, who welcomed daughter Lilibet Diana in June 2021, said they then “had to leave him and go do another official engagement.”

    Serena replied, “I couldn’t have done that. I would have said, ‘Uh-uh.’”

     

    Source: People.com

  • Keta sea defence project: What are the socio-economic benefits after 18 years of completion?

    At the turn of the 20th century, Keta was the 3rd largest and most important town in Gold Coast after Accra and Sekondi-Takoradi.

    Keta was the administrative head of the Eastern Province of the Gold Coast colony, a centre of excellence, an international commercial hub, a port city, an educational centre of repute, and major centre for the missionary churches.

    It is of note that the first diocese of the Catholic Church in the Gold Coast was in Keta. Indeed, Keta was a town in its own class, a great pride of Anlo land.

    Geographically, Keta is a town nestled between the sea (the Atlantic Ocean) and the lagoon (the Keta Lagoon Complex). It was/is a narrow steip/sanbar between the lagoon and the sea. But the beautiful town has a geographic and well as geomorphological disadvantage: it has a sandy coast and lies below see level along most portions of its coast, between 1-3 metres below sea level. This is Keta’s weak point that did not help her much as the decades went by.

    Surfacecially, Keta is often used to cover all the other settlements which border it with their own individual names, such as Vodza-Adzido, Kedzi, Abutsiakope, Dzelukope, etc. And so shall it be construed in this write up.

    From around 1907, the first noticeable signs of sea erosion started showing. By 1924, it accentuated. From 1932 to the 1978, it became clear that Keta may not survive into the 21st century. The 1960s witnessed the construction of the first sea defence system in Keta under the CPP regime.

    In early 1980s the sea unleashed its renewed onslaught on Keta. It was now very apparent that if nothing was done, then, the whole town of Keta would be obliterated from the map of Ghana. There was, therefore, the need to call on central government again to do something to save Keta.

    The response was heeded to. Government commissioned an Italian firm to design a comprehensive engineering and economic plan to save Keta’s remaining land, reclaim additional land and regenerate its lost economic vibrancy. In June 1987, Cooperativa Muratori and Cementisti, the Italian firm which undertook the study and design works, submitted its report to central government. The report was comprehensive. It had an infrastructural component and a socio-economic component. It was an integrated project, according to the report.

    The infrastructural aspect had two phases, 1 & 2. There was the need to seek foreign funding for the project. There were initial hitches getting funding. Remember, it was a military government then, and Ghana was well noted for coups d’état in those years and notorious for either cancelling or discontinuing projects when there were change of government, a bad habit that has continued even into our democratic dispensation.

    But hope came alive, when we entered into the democratic dispensation. In 1996 Parliament approved a facility for the project. So, the United States’ Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank) approved an $84 million long-term loan to enable Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company, located in Oak Brook, Illinois, USA and their partners, Bird Associates and their local representatives Messrs Pentrexx Limited to build a sea wall and other infrastructure to protect the Keta Beach and Lagoon from erosion and also resuscitate the almost dead socio-economic life of the area.

    The project, which was announced in a February 16, 1999 news release, would have far reaching positive impacts on agriculture, fisheries, commerce, coastal infrastructure and living conditions of the inhabitants of Keta and its surrounding areas. The area under consideration receive the most devastating sea erosional attacks in the history of the country and regular flooding of farms from the lagoon and the Volta River.

    This therefore, necessitated the most urgent political action to save the remaining portion of Keta, once a thriving and vibrant commercial hub in colonial Gold Coast and securing the socio-economic livelihoods of the whole Keta Lagoon Basin. The Keta Basin Integrated Development Project was thus born.

    Keta Sea Defence Project (KSDP), as designed, was supposed to be a part of the Keta Basin Integrated Developmemt Project (KBIDP), a physical, infrastructural, social and economic rehabilitation or regeneration project.The Project as finally executed, was/is therefore, a good physical infrastructural project BUT a bad socio-economic investment, as the latter aspects were left out. My reasons for saying so are not far-fetched:

    One, the original project involved sea defence groynes, flood control, access road, land reclamation for housing and agricultural development, aquaculture industry, fishing harbour, chemical industry and tourism facilities. Two, other aspect that was supposed to be the phase 2 of the project was the supposed beach nourishment between Keta and Abutiakope area, and the reclamation of about 400 hectares of land on the lagoon side from around Keta Anlo State School area to Vui Torkor Area was not done too.

    The KSDP which was supposed to be the panacea to Keta’s socio-economic problems brought on her by the constant sea erosion for over 90 years (from 1907 till 1999) failed to achieve the other purposes. If the KBIDP were executed as originally designed, it would have made Keta great again: industrial salt mining, chemical industries, aquaculture, agriculture development, tourism, water transport, fishing harbour, housing, etc. KSDP is therefore a good project but a bad investment, an investment without much socio-economic returns.

    This has made Keta to remain poor 18 years after its completion. The people of Keta District which included current Anloga District then and beyond got the KSDP as against KBIDP. This single political mistake or negligence has cost the people of Keta an economic misfortune of a lifetime. The big question is: Na Who Cause Am?

    In the end, the $84 million sunk into the KSDP between 1999 and 2004 served only to protect the remaining portion of an eroded town but miserably failed to resuscitate, regenerate and rehabilitate the socio-economic life of once a thriving and economically vibrant district.

    Indeed, after the completion of the project, what was given to Keta District was an 8.3 km of causeway between Havedzi and Keta, a flood control bridge at Kedzi, six groynes/armor block walls between Hlorvi and Keta, a coastal revetment around the Fort Prinzenstein area, about 108 hactares of reclaimed land between Kedzi and Keta, a construction site building at Havedzi, a staff quarters at Weta, an 8.3-km long, eight-metre wide and sixteen-metre deep dredged trench/canal inside the lagoon.

    Folks, eighteen good years after the completion of the project, Keta is yet to reap the socio-economic benefits of a capital project. The big and hard questions we must always ask are: why were the phase 2 and the socio-economic component of KBIDP not done as part of the project? Were political, local and community leaders aware of this? Were Keta denizens aware? Who is to answer? Who is to be blamed? Hard questions indeed.

    It is not too late to remedy the negligence. Urgent steps must be taken Keta, in association with the planned Keta Port or Harbour, to incorporate those aspects of the KBIDP which have been shelved. If this is not done, the port when constructed will not benefit very much the mass of the people in the Keta Basin. The port was envisaged as only a part of the KBIDP.

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

    DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana

  • Mpohor District’s maltreatment: Constituents preparing to demonstrate against the government

    The Mpohor constituency prides itself on having one of the past illustrious pillars of NPP – Stephen Kraikue, who is also a founding member of the Party.

    But it appears the sacrifices made by the selfless Stephen Kraikue for the formation of the New Patriotic Party had been swept under the carpet by today’s NPP government. History is on the side of the Mpohor constituency. When it became difficult to organize political activities in Ghana, it took the boldness of Stephen Kraikue to offer his residence for holding meetings. These meetings gave birth to the NPP, and today, Stephen Krakue will be turning in his grave, doubtful of such neglect.

    With all these life-threatening sacrifices having been made, it is a big shame, that Stephen Krakue’s constituency is still underdeveloped, with bad roads, and poor infrastructure. To think that Stephen Krakue’s legacy will be remembered and honored accordingly had remained a mirage. His death had also ended the much-needed development in his constituency of Mpohor.

    Infrastructure deficit, precisely very poor road is what has become an albatross around the neck of the people as the government continues to fail them.

    It would be recalled that on the 10th of June, 2018, there was sod-cutting for construction work to begin on the Kejebir-Mpohor-Adum Banso road, however, four years down the line, the story remains the same with no end to the people’s suffering.

    “Cry a beloved Constituency”

    The constituents still cannot fathom why after four years and still counting, just a 20 km bad road had not been reconstructed. The President of Ghana once assured constituents that the road will be completed in eighteen months, but it is informative to say that the road is still in a deplorable state.

    Plying this bad road is a nightmare, and when it rains it becomes a death trap. On shiny days, the road becomes dusty, and people are exposed to coughing as pulmonary diseases increase. Asthmatic attacks are on the increase too.

    Are the constituents of Mpohor still part of Ghana? Does the government still think about them and had kept its promise? No.

    The truth is that no one joins a political party for the heck of it. This is just not right as the people prepare to react by showing their displeasure.

    The deception and fabrication of stories associated with this bad road have rendered the Mpohor constituency hapless. It is even recalled that the Roads and Highways Minister, Kwasi Amoako Attah was on a Western Regional tour on the 12th of January 2022, when he made the pronouncement that the road will be completed in August 2022. Government officials must drive through the road and report back to the President. The story of unfulfilled promises continues, and agitations are growing in the Mpohor constituency.

    Nothing convincing has been done on the Mpohor stretch of the road, and that suggests a continuation of deception with no end in sight.

    News trickling in from the grapevine is disturbing, of how the youths are mobilizing themselves to demonstrate against the government and deception.

    They have vowed to call a spade by its name, and name those who came to the Mpohor constituency to trick them into believing untruths as people continue to die through dust and pulmonary diseases.

    They have sent the strongest signal, that they will not vote again until their major concern on the bad road is addressed. Until that day, the youths have decided to put their destiny into their own hands and act in the interest of their people, saying “enough is enough” with the current government.

    “We are prepared to die, and whether it rains or shines, we will demonstrate against the government”, one of the youth leaders recently told the media.

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

    DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana

  • The Animal Farm: A sad reality of today’s NPP

    Can we really toe this path as a people whose very essence is premised on freedom, equality, and accountability? Can we? Have we suddenly stooped too low to make some people more equal and greater than the rest of the family?

    Background

    On August 13, 2022, an event was held in the Metropolis of Kumasi, Ashanti Region. The program, which was an all-inclusive health walk for friends of Alan Kyeremanteng climaxed with speeches from great party men.

    Hon. Hopeson Adorye, a party stalwart and a former parliamentary candidate for Kpone Katamanso also spoke. Sadly, however, his speech which was a rallying cry for patriots was misconstrued by opponents as a divisive and bigot statement —a development that generated widespread condemnation and chastisement so much so that, he had to make a press release.

    Mr. Hopeson Adorye has since been referred to codes of the party which sort of outlaw his utterance and or any other utterances of that magnitude in the party. In fact, the office of the General Secretary of the party has supposedly called him to order and is currently exploring befitting sanctions for his action.

    Our take

    How these protocols and codes suddenly appeared from nowhere to implicate and discipline Mr. Adorye is a development that cast doubt over our widely touted democracy spirited in freedom. Sincerely, this smack was meant for someone bigger, not Mr. Hopeson Adorye. I mean, who has not seen or heard Chairman Wontumi talk about the obvious romance he has for the Vice President? Who hasn’t heard the campaign songs he is singing for Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia?

    What about the declaration Mr. Aziz Futah, the National Nasara coordinator made? What disciplinary actions or chastisements were reserved for these people? Hon. Samuel Atta-Kyea suggested that the Vice President be made the flagbearer and Alan Kyeremanteng his running mate, we were asked to laugh over it; Nana Obiri Boahen, the former Deputy General Secretary is very public about his wish for the Vice President’s candidature; we see and hear all of these, but we mostly label them as mere praises born out of venerations for the Vice President.

    All these people and many other party faithfuls, publicly made varied statements which to a large extent, supported or endorsed Dr. Bawumia for the flagbearership race; these, they did and still do without any malice and without having the all-embracing arms of the law clamp down on them. But when someone from Alan’s bloc says something, he is taken on and the long and sharp claws of the party’s structures begin to clatter for action. Is this the kind of party we wish to build going forward? I mean, for a party that is preparing to secure an unprecedented feat, divisive administration aimed at victimizing other Patriots is definitely way below the bar. We are not breaking anything with this attitude, for whoever wins the race, will need the other bloc for the long battle that neighs.

    It has always been long service, commitment, and loyalty —so it shall remain! The God of Alan will speak…

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

    DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana

  • Owami Davies: Missing student nurse found alive and well

    Met Police has confirmed Student nurse OIwami Davies who went missing months ago has been found and alive in Hampshire.

    After a police appeal, a member of the public came forward which saw a huge public response and 117 possible sightings.

    Ms Davies, who was studying nursing at King’s College London, left her home in Grays, Essex, on 4 July, and was last seen on CCTV in Croydon on 7 July.

    The Met said it would now review its investigation along with Essex Police.

    Ms Davies left her home in Grays, Essex, on 4 July and was reported missing to Essex Police two days later

    Police have been working to retrace the 24-year-old’s steps, with some 50 officers trawling through 50,000 hours of CCTV footage.

    Five people were arrested and bailed in connection with her disappearance – two on suspicion of murder and three on suspicion of kidnap – but the Met later said there was no evidence that she had come to harm.

     

  • EOCO boss, five others donate to Ark Foundation

    The Executive Director of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), Commissioner of Police (COP) Maame Yaa Tiwaa Addo-Danquah, and five others have donated GH¢30,000 and some relief items to the Ark Foundation.

    The donation was part of their birthday celebration on Friday, August 19 and a form of benevolence to society.

    The items presented were bags of rice, bottles of water, biscuits, drinks, sanitary towels, toothpaste, toothbrushes, sardines, slippers, detergent, packs of toilet rolls, among others.

    Celebrants

    The celebrants, who included the EOCO boss, were the Director in charge of ICT at the Police Hospital, DCOP Vance Gariba; a gynaecologist specialist at the Police Hospital, Supt Alex Ackon; a psychologist at the Police Hospital, Supt Adwoa Nuoro-Panin, and a Medical Specialist at the Lister Hospital, Dr Edem Hiadzi.

    They were accompanied by their family members, friends and some members of staff of EOCO.

    Donation

    Mrs Addo-Danquah said the donation was an activity which the group undertook often to celebrate their birthdays with the less-privileged, while giving back to society.

    She said the selection of the foundation for the donation was because of the support it gave the Police Service and EOCO in their workshops, training and, most importantly, ensuring that the lives of women and girls were protected from all forms of abuse.

    Speaking on behalf of the group, DCOP Gariba said: “It is always fulfilling to give back to society, and with the symbiotic relationship we have with the foundation these past years, we felt the need to celebrate this special day of ours by giving a little to help in its operations.”

    He commended the foundation for the sacrifice and support it gave the neglected and battered in society and prayed for a continual partnership with the foundation as its vision came to fruition.

    Gratitude

    The Executive Director of the Ark Foundation, Angela Dwamena-Aboagye, expressed her gratitude to the group for donating the items to help address the needs of the foundation.

    She described the needs of some survivors in the shelter as basic necessities, from slippers to jobs, saying the donation “goes a long way in delivering some of these necessities to our survivors”.

    Mrs Dwamena-Aboagye said since the inception of the foundation 23 years ago, the security and medical agencies had remained a core partner to its operations, saying supporting both professionally and socially was important and called for the support of stakeholders, individuals and corporate organisations.

     

     

    Source: Graphic

  • National Customer Service Week launched

    The National Customer Service Week has been launched with a call for private and public sector to collaborate and build the capacity of employees to revamp service delivery in the tourism and hospitality industry.

    The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), Kwasi Agyeman, indicated that partnership with the private sector would drive the industry to attain excellent customer service delivery.

    This partnership, he said, would build the foundation to ensure that clients, both local and international, would experience good service delivery that competed with global standards.

    “So customer service is not something that you finish; you always have to work at it, and so this initiative of celebrating Customer Service Week by putting the spotlight on service delivery is one that is important and should be applauded,” he added.

    Mr Agyeman made the call at the launch of the second edition of the event scheduled to take off in the first week of October, this year.

    Launch

    The celebration is a collaboration between Service Excellence Foundation and the GTA under the theme: “Enhancing the Customer Service Experience Through Excellence”.

    It will target both employees and customers in areas of food, transportation, hotels, ecotourism, amongst others.

    As part of activities for the week, there will be roadshows, capacity building fora, and raffle draws to award deserving customers and employees.

    The Executive Director of the Service Excellence Foundation and Creative Lead of the event, Caleb Koffie, explained that the event would create national awareness on the role and impact of customer service in businesses, while appreciating the efforts and contributions of employees and customers for service excellence in their sectors.

    He stated that promoting customer service excellence in tourism and hospitality was a strategic tool for sustainable job creation, stimulating investor confidence and accelerated economic growth in business establishments in the country.

    “Customer service is not a favour, but an opportunity to build relations for wealth creation,” he stressed.

    Mr Koffie called for the support and participation of stakeholders within and across the sector to raise exceptional customer service delivery levels throughout the service week and beyond.

    The past Vice-President of the Ghana Tourism Federation, Stella Appenteng, commended the team for the initiative in recognising the efforts of the customers and employees in the tourism sector as a way of motivating them to put up good work.

    She stated that it was the responsibility of the industry players to lead the service in building a strong and resilient service delivery by training and building the capacity of their employees to give them the adequate and right orientation in their field of work.

    Ms Appenteng also encouraged the service players to uniquely identify themselves with the traditional culture such as their dressing, the use of local names and dishes, among others, to put the country on the map rather than always adapting to the trends of the Western world.

    Sponsorship

    As part of prizes to reward the customers and employees during the service week, Emirates Airline presented a fully paid return ticket to Dubai for the prospective winners of the raffle draw.

    Africa World Airline also supported with five tickets for the winners to any country of their choice among other prizes that would be awarded to the customers and employees for their exceptional service from the beginning of the year.

     

     

  • My life is in danger Odike cries as armed thugs ransack his office

    Founder and Leader of the United Progressive Party (UPP), Akwasi Addai aka Odike, says his life is at stake after escaping an attack on him by some unidentified thugs.

    According to the businessman the gunmen raided his office  in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region Monday amid the firing of gunshots.

    Speaking on Kasapa News, Akwasi Addai Odike, who went into hiding when the thugs stormed his office, said his life is in danger.

    He stated that a bullet hit nobody but a few of my staff were physically assaulted and sustained minor injuries.

    “They could not spot me, otherwise I would have belonged to the silent world by now,” the politician indicated.

    The attack comes three days after the Asanteman Traditional Council held an emergency meeting at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi on 19th August 2022, where Odike was banned from visiting the palace after he accused some Ashanti chiefs of their involvement in illegal mining [Galamsey].

    As a result, a ram was slaughtered to invoke ancestral curses against the businessman.

    He has since filed a report with the police following which the police visited the crime scene for preliminary investigation.

     

  • OSP probes vehicles auctioned by GRA Customs Division since July 2016

    The Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) is once again undergoing scrutiny by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).

    This time, the focus is on some suspected corruption and corruption-related offences related to the auction sales of vehicles and other goods between 1 July 2016 and 15 August 2022.

    The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has commenced investigation into the number of vehicles auctioned by the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) from July 1, 2016 to August 15, 2022.

    In a statement dated August 22, 2022, the Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng revealed that the OSP has observed some suspected corruption and corruption-related offenses related to the auction sales of vehicles and other goods, thus its initiative.

    As the OSP investigates the matter, the Commissioner of the Customs Division is to “immediately halt and discontinue all auction sales,” the statement noted.

    The OSP commenced investigation on August 19, 2022, when it directed the Commissioner of the Customs Division to furnish the Office with some vital information needed before September 20, 2022.

    In its directive, the OSP is requesting the following; “the particulars and clear description of all auctioned item, quality of all auctioned items, prices at which the items were auctioned, date of each auction sales” as well as “the full names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the successful bidders at all the auction sales.”

    The Office of Special Prosecutor’s recent investigation comes a time when it has received black lash from some groups and citizens over its Labianca report.

    On August 8, 2022, the OSP published an investigative report which revealed that Labianca Group of Companies, a frozen foods company owned by a member of the Council of State, Eunice Jacqueline Buah Asomah-Hinneh, evaded import duties in excess of ¢1.074 million.

    The OSP contended that Ms Asomah-Hinneh used her position as a member of the Council of State and member of the Board of Directors of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) to get a favourable decision from the Customs Division.

    The Customs Staff Association (CSA) in response said the approvals made by Commissioner of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Colonel Kwadwo Damoah to the Labianca Group of Companies were in accordance with the law, particularly “the Customs Laws and established procedures in force.”

    For this reason, the Association has described the investigative piece by the Office of the Special Prosecutor as one borne out of a misconception and, therefore, technically flawed.

    On the matter, former Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu, has also accused the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) of unconstitutionality, arguing that the investigative report and the directive for the payment of GHC1,074,627.15 do not form part of the mandate laid out for the OSP in the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959).

    Following the probe that cited Labianca Company Limited for corruption-related acts, the Special Prosecutor has also commenced a wider investigation into the issuance of customs advance rulings and markdowns of benchmark values between July 2017 and December 2021.

    In a statement, the special prosecutor said the Commissioner of the Customs Division was expected to submit the particulars of all applications for customs advance ruling, applications for a markdown of benchmark values, applications for private rulings and class rulings pertaining to the application of customs law and the decision on each of the applications.

    Find below the full statement

     

  • Social protection: Mahama’s unsung achievements

    Very often, communicators of the ruling New Patriotic Party shout on rooftops asking the NDC to name just one social intervention policy under the Mahama-led Administration. Whenever I hear this, I shake my head and laugh. I am going to provide proof of the intensive work he did and its massive impact on the poor and vulnerable.

    President Mahama remains committed to implementing policies aimed at cushioning the poor and vulnerable. Consequently, existing social intervention schemes were expanded to rope in more beneficiaries under his Government.

    New interventions were also introduced. They include EBAN Card, a welfare card for the elderly. It was launched to offer priority access to public services such as health, transport, banking services, etc.

    A national rollout exercise registered over 25,000 elderly persons and about 6,000 beneficiaries were captured on the enhanced Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP).

    The LEAP programme saw exponential expansion from 1,654 beneficiary households in 2008 to 116,000 households. This represented an increase óf 6,913.3% and translated into 522,000 beneficiaries. It covered 4,072 communities in 188 districts.

    A new category of beneficiaries known as LEAP 1000 was added to the programme. It comprised extremely poor pregnant women and children under 5 years. This was aimed at addressing the incidence of malnutrition and stunting, especially in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions. 6,200 were registered under the scheme and received cash transfers.

    Following the twin flood and fire disaster of June 3, 2015, an emergency LEAP intervention programme was implemented under which GHC3.9 million was disbursed to support households affected by the disaster.

    Furthermore, the Ghana National Household Register was set up to create a database of extremely poor people. The objective was to compile a database using scientific and accurate means to facilitate the planning and rollout of social intervention programmes.

    Reference: NDC Green Book

     

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

     DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana

     

  • ‘From chicken seller to president’: How Belgian newspaper reported win of Kenya’s Ruto

    William Ruto emerged as President elect for the Kenyan Republic after going to the polls recently.

    The Belgian newspaper decided to announced him by associating him with a trade that used to earn him a living.

    A twitter post was shared with the caption, ‘From chicken seller to president,’ the headline of the paper screamed.

    This has triggered light reaction on Kenya’s social media space with most people wondering how Ruto’s chicken business of years ago ‘trumped’ his immediate role of deputy president or a leading maize farmer.

    Ruto has often spoken about his poor background, tending his father’s cattle as a boy and selling chicken at a point in his youth.

    After vigorously pursuing his studies, he joined student politics and later frontline national politics.

    He has served as a Minister of Agric and in the last decade as deputy president to outgoing Uhuru Kenyatta.

    Ruto was on August 15 elected fifth president of Kenya with 50.49% of the valid votes from the August 9 election, the International Electoral and Boundaries Commission, IEBC announced.

    He won his first run for the top job, beating former prime minister Raila Odinga who ran for the fifth time. Odinga got 48.5% of the vote.

     

     

  • Papa Kwesi Nduom fills eyes of Ghanaians with tears

    Some social media users are in a state of devastation over a recent post shared by the Chief Executive of Groupe Nduom, Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, concerning his lost fortunes in the past three years.

    The businessman and politician has taken to his Facebook page to recount the collapse of his GN Bank which had several branches nationwide three years on.

    The Bank of Ghana on August 16, 2019, revoked the licences of some 23 insolvent savings and loans and finance house companies including GN Savings and Loans Ltd which he owned.

    Announcing the closure, the Central Bank indicated that the financial condition of GN Savings and Loans Limited had deteriorated since its reclassification from GN Bank in 2018, with both negative capital adequacy ratio and negative net worth.

    BoG further explained its Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) was -61% in breach of the minimum requirement of 13%.

    But to Dr Nduom, a dream to develop a safe and sound regulated financial institution present everywhere in Ghana was deferred with thousands of young men and women now at home.

    “Hundreds of millions of assets have been lost, abandoned, destroyed or rotting away: 300 branches remain locked up. The unbanked remains unbanked,” he wrote in a Facebook post.

    Quoting inspiration from Jeremiah 29: 11, he stated his faith, however, remains strong in the face of the challenges.

    Papa Kwesi Nduom fills eyes of Ghanaians with tears

    His post has sparked mixed reactions amid prayers for God to restore everything he has lost in the course of the financial sector clean-up.

     

     

  • Mahama’s infrastructure in the health sector is matchless in the history of Ghana

    In his quest to put people first in the health sector, Mahama’s Government pumped billions of Ghana cedis into the provision of modern hospitals and the upgrading of facilities for speedy and quality healthcare delivery. The Mahama-led Government undertook many major hospital projects which could deliver about 6,000 new hospital beds to facilitate access to improved quality healthcare, something unprecedented in the history of the Republic of Ghana.

    In line with this, President Mahama addressed the healthcare needs of Ghanaians in an aggressive manner.

    About US$ 2 billion was invested in the provision of modern hospitals and the upgrading of facilities to ensure quality healthcare delivery.

    This was premised on his belief that the health of our people is our wealth, therefore, infrastructure, equipment, and personnel needs representing access, quality, and affordability, all received urgent attention under his tenure as president of the Republic.

    He built two brand new Teaching Hospitals: the 617-bed University of Ghana Teaching Hospital and the second phase of the Tamale Teaching Hospital Expansion Project of 400 beds to make it an 800-bed facility, following the provision of 400 beds under the first phase of the project.

    Three institutional hospitals: 500-bed Military Hospital Project in Kumasi, 104-bed Police Hospital in Accra, and 130-bed Maritime Hospital in Tema were constructed.

    Also, four Regional Hospitals, namely: the 420-bed Ridge Hospital Expansion Project in Accra, 250-bed Ashanti Regional Hospital at Sewua in Kumasi, 295-bed Bolgatanga Regional Hospital, and the 160-bed Upper West Regional Hospital were built.

    Furthermore, seven District Hospitals each with a capacity of 120-beds at Dodowa, Fomena, Kumawu, and Abetifi, among others were completed. There are other six District Hospitals with 60-bed capacity at Tepa, Nkawkwa, Konongo, Salaga, Twifo Praso, 100-bed Madina Hospital, and 120-bed Bekwai Hospital.

    Dozens of Polyclinics, scores of Health Centres, and thousands of CHPS Compounds were done. Some were at various stages of construction when he left office.

    These include the completion of Polyclinics in the then Brong Ahafo Region at Nkrankwanta, Wamfie, Kwatire, Techimantia, and Bomaa.

    Work started on 15 more Polyclinics. They comprise ten Polyclinics at Besease, Gomoa Dawurampong, Biriwa, Etsii Sunkwa, Esikuma, Gyemera, Agona Duakwa, Bimpong Akunfude, Ekumfi Naakwa, Twifo Atimokwa, and Gomoa Potsin, all in the Central Region.

    Five 30-bed Polyclinics were also started at Adentan, Ashaiman, Bortianor, Oduman, and Sege, all in the Greater Accra Region.

    There are more, 18 Health Centres were completed at Amasaman, Duffor, Pokukrom, New Jejeti, Paakro, Gwollu, Funsi, Sang, Northern Buipe, Manso Nkwanta, Abuakwa, Mase Sosekpe, Kedzi, Adamso, Kayoro, Timode, Bonsu Nkwanta, and Dadieso.

    In the case of CHPS Compounds, out of 2,948 functional CHPS zones, 1,260 were completed and another 1,600 were at varying stages of completion.

    Besides, the completion of the Eye Care Centre at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital by President John Dramani Mahama made it possible to offer enhanced specialist eye care to the people of Kumasi and the surrounding areas. There are more! Stay tuned!

     

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

    DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana

  • Why Africans never respect time for appointments?

    It is quite disappointing that Africans are never on time for scheduled appointments. This is well recognized because the majority of Africans in the Diaspora also disregard the passage of time. Africans are constantly late for appointments they have with you.

    The Polish author and journalist Ryszard Kapuscinski’s book “The Shadow of the Sun” further explains this viewpoint. He made extended trips all over the world, especially to Africa.

    As one of Poland’s most prolific non-fiction writers, he is renowned for his sharp and intensely intimate assessments of social and political upheavals around the globe. The author passed away on January 23, 2007, in Warsaw.

    To get to the heart of the story, Kapuciski braved malaria, civil conflict, and confrontations with brutal rulers.

    His books dive into the causes of racial and political conflict, sifting through millennia of strife, chaos, and even ritual to build a picture that is at once real, educational, and moving.

    The lack of concern towards Africa’s time is one of the topics the author of “Shadow of the Sun” highlighted in his account of his journey to Ghana. Yes! From the colonial era to the present day, many Africans have no concept of the passing of time.

    If an African says, “I’ll be coming at 9 a.m., it’ll be 11 a.m., or I’m leaving at 2 p.m., it’ll be 4 p.m. For many Africans, time has no real meaning. Not just in Africa is the illness present. It has also been exported by Africans to Europe and America.

    Kapuscinski boards a bus from Accra, the nation’s capital, on his route to Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. When he asks when the bus departs, he is informed, “Until it is full.” Ryszard Kapuscinski feels compelled to include this information in his book; he most likely first saw it on the continent of Africa.

    If we look at the history of poor China from decades ago, Africa has a long way to go because we are far behind in every area. Years after gaining freedom, Africa continues to look to heaven for miracles, forgetting that God supports those who support themselves.

    Africa must battle corruption, build its nation, provide jobs for its citizens, and cease accusing its erstwhile colonial overlords of devouring the continent now that the riches are available. Yes! They pillaged, yet they left some of Africa’s wealth behind.

    Despite its wealth, Africa remains the least respected continent. People are subjected to ongoing discrimination as a result of their attitudes, behaviors, and methods of doing various tasks. By making changes on the continent and in relation to time, we can disprove the white man.

     

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

  • Volta Regional Social Welfare receives more child adoption applications

    From the year 2021 till date, 15 applications from couples seeking to adopt children have been forwarded to the department of Social Welfare in Volta Region, however only one has recieved approval.

    Speaking in an interview last wednesday, the Regional Director of Social Welfare, Mrs Stella Mawusi Mawutor, disclosed that people are beginning to understand adoption because only 10 applications were received in 2020.

    “I think people are now beginning to have a better understanding of child adoption and so they are coming forward readily to apply for it,” she added

    She described the trend as phenomenal, saying the applications were not only from married couples without children but also from couples with children.

    On child protection,Mrs Mawutor said the department last year received 1, 471 reports of child protection violations in the region out of which 953 were resolved.

    The figure for 2020,she said, were 1,160 cases out of which 869 were resolved.
    The cases included denial of paternity, child custody dispute, defilement and forced marriage.
    They also involved gender-based violence, child abandonment, stranded children and adolescent pregnancies.

    In some instances, the affected children were taken into foster care, she explained.
    “So far, we have trained 26 individuals in the region as foster parents to cater for and protect such children, the director said.

    She said the department would team up with the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) and other stakeholder organisations to resolve the pending cases.

    Mrs Mawutor said 81 of the pending cases were before the law courts.

     

     

     

  • Can a Ghanaian be deported from his own country?

    Dear Mirror Lawyer, what is deportation? Is it possible for a Ghanaian be deported from his own country?

    George Sampson, Tema

    Dear George, Deportation is the removal of a foreign national to his or her country of citizenship or permanent residency for reasons such as illegal entry, serious criminal behaviour, overstaying the permissible entry visa duration, breach of the conditions of the visa, potential threat to the public welfare or otherwise for other reasons lost their legal status to remain in the country.

    In Ghana, the law governing deportation is the Immigration Act, 2000 Act 573. Section 35 provides that a foreign national is liable for deportation if:
    (a) A Court recommendation for the deportation of the foreign national is effective after conviction for an offence punishable by a term of imprisonment exceeding three months with or without a fine and on an appeal against the conviction, the Appellate Court has upheld the recommendation; or an appeal has not been brought within the time allowed for appeal but the recommendation was made by the High Court, or an inferior court and has been approved by the Chief Justice and a report made in writing to the Minister, or
    (b) The foreign national has been found by a Court to be destitute or without means of support, or to be of unsound mind or mentally handicapped, or is a prohibited immigrant, or is in Ghana without a valid permit, or any of the conditions on which the permit was granted has been broken, or
    (c) The presence in Ghana of the foreign national is in the opinion of the Minister not conducive to the public good. An order deporting a person liable for deportation is made by the Minister of Interior by executive instrument, and may be made subject to such conditions imposed by the Minister including deporting the dependents of the person liable to be deported.
    Once the deportation order is made, a person to be deported shall leave Ghana in accordance with the requirements of the deportation order and shall so long as the deportation order is in force remain out of Ghana.

    In the case of Balogun v. Minister of Interior [1959] GLR 452, four men issued a writ as co-plaintiffs against the Minister of the Interior on March 16, 1959, claiming declarations that the Deportation Orders made against them were null and void on the ground that each plaintiff respectively was a citizen of Ghana.

    The first plaintiff claimed that he was born in Ghana, and that his mother was also born in Ghana. The second plaintiff claimed that he was born in Ejisu in Ashanti, and that his mother was a native of Kintampo in Brong Ahafo. The third plaintiff claimed that he was born in Ghana, and that his mother Ayishetu was a native of Gambaga.

    The fourth plaintiff claimed that he was born in Ghana and that his father, Mallam Imoru, was also born in Ghana. Ollennu J (as he then was) found that it is not denied by the Ministry that by virtue of the places where the plaintiffs and their parents and grand-parents were born as proved, the plaintiffs were citizens of the United Kingdom and the colonies or British protected persons immediately before the commencement of the Ghana Nationality and Citizenship Act, and must by virtue of section four sub-section (1) of that Act each be a citizen of Ghana.

    There is the further evidence in respect of three of the plaintiffs that at the time of their deportation they were registered in Ghana as voters entitled to elect members to Municipal Councils and to

    Parliament, and that in the case of the first plaintiff he had stood as a candidate for election to the Accra Municipal Council immediately before his deportation.

    On the basis of those findings, Ollennu J held that the uncontroverted evidence on the record leads to the irresistible conclusion that each of the four plaintiffs is a citizen of Ghana, and that the deportation of each of them is prohibited by section three sub-section (1) of the Deportation Act (No. 14 of 1957), which provides, “No citizen of Ghana shall be liable to deportation under this Act.”. He further declared the deportation orders L.N. 333, L.N. 336, L.N. 338 and L.N. 339 made on October 17, 1958 respectively against the four plaintiffs null and void.

    The law is clear that it is only a foreign national who is subject to a deportation order. Foreign national is defined in the law to be a person who is not a citizen of Ghana. It follows that a citizen of Ghana cannot be deported from his own country.

    A citizen can only be exiled from his own country based on an applicable law. Currently we do not have any law that permits a Ghanaian citizen to be exiled from the country. A citizen can, however, opt to go into self-imposed exile.

     

    Source: Graphic

    DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana

  • Ghana Post at doorsteps : The scuttle box is revived

    Ghana Post Company Limited (Ghana Post) has introduced an innovative postal box for the delivery of parcels and some merchandise to households and businesses.

    The re-launch of the scuttle box service entails the fixing of a receptacle to the entrance of homes and linked to digital address system for the delivery of medium size parcels such as food, fabrics, shoes, mobile phones and other items.

    Properties

    The scuttle box is fitted with an anti-theft mechanism that makes it difficult for unauthorised persons to have access to the content of the box, except the one having the key.

    It has also been sandblasted with non-corrosive finishing that enables it also to withstand humidity and adverse weather conditions and can store food for up to three hours.

    Clients using the scuttle as a delivery option will receive notification prompt to open their scuttle when an item is deposited in their boxes.

    Units

    Single or multi units scuttle boxes can be installed in a home or business address.

    While the single unit scuttle box serves as a dedicated parcel box for a household families, the multi-unit scuttle service is a combined set of boxes for apartments and communities.

    With the multi-unit scuttle box, an eligible user is provided a key to their own secured locker to have access to a parcel-sized box.

    Modalities

    In an interview with the Daily Graphic ahead of the relaunch of the service last Thursday, the Managing Director of Ghana Post, Bice Osei Kuffour, explained that the scuttle box initiative was part of the transformation drive by the company to facilitate e-commerce and deliver products to people in a secure environment without physical interaction.

    The initiative is in partnership with Collins Tee Investment, a private Ghanaian entity.

    Ursula Owusu-Ekuful (left), Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, led a team of board and management of Ghana Post to present a scuttle box to the President Akufo-Addo

    The Ghana Post managing director explained that the two companies had carefully diagnosed the challenges posed by the advent of technology to come up with home-grown technology-driven solutions for the postal and courier services.

    Mr Kuffour said subscribers of the scuttle box were required to pay GH¢20 a month, translating into GH¢240 annually.

    The managing director of Ghana Post added that private subscribers would receive their parcels free of charge, while those who used the scuttle box for commercial purposes would be made to pay additional charges.

    Old letter boxes

    Throwing more light on the innovation, Mr Kuffour said, with the birth of the scuttle box, family members or groups of people who wanted to continue using their old letter boxes at the post office could have the two linked together for prompt delivery of parcels irrespective of the distance involved.

    He explained that the names and phone numbers of such people would be linked to the letter box so that when they receive items, they would be notified

    O.B. Amoah (middle), Deputy Minister of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development, observing the scuttle box

    “A message will be sent to them that they have received an item and when the delivery is made, they will again receive a prompt on their phone,” Mr Kuffour said.

    Touching on the multi-unit scuttle box, the Ghana Post managing director said it was a novelty and formed part of the vision to make post boxes available to every person irrespective of their location.

    “Even if it is a scattered settlement or community that needs the service, we can mount a scuttle multi-unit because the idea is to bring the post office to the doorstep of people,” he said.

    Advantages

    Mr Kuffour stated that the scuttle box was important as it would serve as a viable medium for government agencies to deliver property rates, utility bills and other information to customers.

    The Ghana Post managing director also said the initiative would facilitate e-commerce, online deliveries and information dissemination.

    Bice Kuffour (middle front roll), the MD of Ghana Post with some of the dignitaries at the launch of the scuttle box

    Again, he said, given that post office box had become a key requirement for the registration of businesses, it was important for all households to patronise the scuttle service.

    “As of now, all the post office boxes have been exhausted, but because Ghana Post is the only mandated body to give postal address, if you have the scuttle box, the digital address assigned to the scuttle box becomes your post office box. When you are using it for documentation, it is valid,” Mr Kuffour said.

    Roll out

    In terms of the roll out plan, the Ghana Post managing director said the initiative would be piloted in five metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) in the Greater Accra Region for the next six months and rolled out in phases to cover the entire country.

    Godfred Yeboah Dame (middle), Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, with Ama Pomaa Boateng (right), Deputy Minister, Communications and Digitalisation, and Bice Kuffuor, MD, Ghana Post after the launch

    “We have spoken to the Ministry of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development, the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council, the MMDAs. We are yet to confirm the five MMDAs that will be used for piloting the initiative,” he said.

    However, he observed that while the initiative was being piloted, anyone interested in subscribing to it could put in a request.

    Mr Kuffour urged local assemblies to enact by-laws to make the scuttle service part of everyday life.

    Revolutionary initiative

    For his part, the CEO of Collins Tee Investment, Barimah Appiah, said the scuttle box initiative was revolutionary as it would provide infrastructure for e-commerce and reduce expenditure associated with the current system.

    He reiterated that the scuttle box had utmost security features to guarantee the safety of parcels.

    Samples of the single unit and multi unit scuttle boxes

    “The box is mounted at a height of at least 5.7 inches and coated to withstand the weather and humidity. We are considering adding an alarm to alert owners of the box when it is being tampered with,” Mr Appiah added.

    He urged households and business to take advantage of the scuttle box initiative to trade at their comfort.

    The Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, who launched the scuttle service in Accra last Thursday, said the re-introduction marked a major milestone in the communication industry as it would make the delivery process more convenient for the public.

    He said with the innovation, people could no longer hide behind non-service as an excuse for non-compliance of court processes.

    The A-G commended the leadership of the Ghana Post for its commitment to provide a refreshing excellent service to its partners, customers and stakeholders.

    Describing the innovation as a game changer, Mr Dame said it could only be sustained if the two companies strengthened collaboration with other stakeholders and government agencies to enhance patronage.

    Communication

    The Deputy Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, Ama Pomaa Boateng, said the launch affirmed that the needs of Ghanaians customers had been noted.

    She charged the Ghana Post to continue to push innovations to the doorsteps of Ghanaians by serving them with speed, loyalty, efficiency and reliability.

    A Deputy Minister of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development, Osei Bonsu Amoah, said his outfit would support Ghana Post to ensure a successful implementation of the scuttle service across the country.

     

    Source: Graphic

  • Restore the Ghana cedi to end economic woes

    The value of a currency, in my opinion, is one of the important factors in determining the performance of an economy. It determines import and export levels, the type of external investment an economy attracts, interest rate differentials, and the prices of goods and services.

    When a currency falls in value, imports become more expensive and exports become less expensive. Some countries deliberately devalue their currencies in order to lower the cost of their exports.

    According to Bloomberg, the Ghana cedi has depreciated massively, becoming the worst performing currency in Africa. As of August 8, 2022, the cedi had depreciated by -28.82% against the dollar.

    The current economic difficulty is largely influenced by the cedi’s performance, as well as other factors such as an over-reliance on the service sector as a key economic driver, excessive governmentspending, a “dollarized” economy, corruption-related activities, and a lack of a strategic economic focus.

    To restore the cedi depreciation cycle and improve the country’s economic woes, the government of Ghana must continue with its industrialization agenda, add value to the country’s exports, increase local production, and reduce imports in order to have enough foreign exchange in the economy.

    The government’s policy of modernizing agriculture through one-district-one-factory is a brilliant initiative that should be given the necessary strategic focus to improve the country’s industrialization drive. When the one-district-one-factory policy is properly implemented, the country’s economic structure would shift to a manufacturing-driven one, resulting in a reduction in consumable imports.

    It should be noted that the majority of the country’s import trade is conducted in dollars, putting significant pressure on the Ghana cedi. The net result of industrializing an economy is a decrease in inflation, particularly food inflation.

    The managers of the Ghanaian economy must put in stringent measures in checking the “dollarization” of products and services in the country. Today most real estate companies price houses in dollars, some hotels price their services in dollars, government agencies like the National Lottery Authority charge in dollars for permits to run lottery promotions, commercial activities are traded in dollars, etc. There is already a law prohibiting such activities, and the government must strictly enforce it.

    More importantly, the Bank of Ghana must make the operation of foreign currency account more expensive to check the stacking up of foreign currencies by foreign account holders. This move will achieve a cedi-driven economy if such a policy is implemented and monitored well.

    In addition, the government should take steps to boost investor confidence in the Ghanaian economy, such as cutting government spending to meet revenue targets. How can the government accomplish this?

    It must reduce the number of government appointees across all sectors, conduct regular payroll audits to identify ghost and unapproved employees on the government payroll and be more proactive in combating corruption. The country’s current taxation system must be closely monitored for leakage.

    If the outlined measures are implemented with the necessary political will, I believe it will send a positive signal to the investor community about the government’s willingness to change the country’s economic fortunes, which can influence the economy’s rapid turnaround.

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

    DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana

  • Boti Falls

    Shortly after a downpour, one can easily slip and fall, especially in a marshy area. Hence, the rate of injuries recorded in the rainy seasonskyrockets every year (Shukla et al., 2018). Even so, one can avoid tumbling down if he takes extra pain to plod cautiously. Meanwhile, there is another kind of fall that can occur at any time of the year, and that is what happened to Boti.

    Boti fell head over heels in love with Ponmpon. He quickly proposed to his crush, who readily accepted. Boti’s passion for her gave birth to intimacy instantly. They had crazy sex and longed for each other. In order to enjoy a lifelong episode of these butterflies, Boti speedily married Ponmpon.

    Not long, Boti was surprised to realize that his excitement for Ponmpon has dwindled drastically. Gradually, the string of attachment between the two became lifeless. In frustration and disappointment, they blamed each other. The only solution they had on their table was to split up, and so they did.

    This divorce adds up to the countless number of annulments out there. I wish Boti had “entered” into love instead of “falling” in love. As Eric Thoennes will say, using a verb like “fall” to portray one’s entry into something as profound as a loving relationship belittles what love really is. It is as though the person is overtaken by a force outside his control (Hamner, et al., p. 45, 2018). This headless and blinding posture is unfortunate.

    If psychologist Robert Sternberg were to analyze Boti and Ponmpon’s marital fall, I’m sure he will point out that commitment was lacking. For Sternberg, consummate love requires three components: intimacy, passion, and commitment. Intimacy is the euphoria of closeness. Passion consists of the ardour of enthusiasm and often involves an intense physical and emotional dynamic.

    Commitment, which Boti and Ponmpon lacked, is the purposeful decision to remain devoted to someone. If Boti and his wife were committed to each other, their unwavering faithfulness could have oriented in them a godly intimacy to fan their passion. This is not to say commitment is all that is needed because commitment without intimacy or passion is empty love.

    I suggest that all lovers contend for the aforementioned three components of exquisite love. I believe in the radical efficacy of these virtues because they characterize the eternal love of God: he is intimate (2 Pet. 1:4), passionate (Zeph. 3:17), and committed (Rom. 5:8).

    Even though Boti fell in love, we can stand up in love if we add a commitment to our passionate intimacy with our partners before and after marriage.

    Enjoy God’s Grace!
    Amen!

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

     

    DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana

  • Our qualified doctors of pharmacy have not been paid for 7 months

    The Doctor of Pharmacy Programme or PharmD as it is popularly called is a professional doctorate pharmacy programme that involves 6 years of training in an accredited institution which enables one to become a licensed pharmacist by the Pharmacy Council of Ghana (in this case) or an approved body (which is country specific) in order to work in the clinical space.

    The PharmD students who graduate go on to write a licensure exam before being qualified to be posted for housemanship that usually lasts one year which is mandatory in order to work as a licensed pharmacist in Ghana.

    However, the already arduous training journey has been fraught with extra hurdles such as lack of appointment letters and lack of remuneration for the past 7 months (thus for the current batch who started work on 24th January, 2022).

    In fact, that has allegedly been the order of the day since the first graduating batch of 2018 PharmD house officers started work and both their appointment letters and salaries were delayed.

    Speaking to Dr. Mizero Hope Florence and another PharmD house officer who chooses to remain anonymous, the following information below was gathered about the alleged situation on the ground –

    1. The current Doctor of Pharmacy House officers were issued a letter from the Pharmacy Council concerning mandatory housemanship for newly qualified pharmacists in accordance with Section 85 and 86 of the Health Professionals Regulatory Bodies Act, 2013 (Act 857) that talks about the mandatory 12-month housemanship at accredited hospitals in Ghana for those who have completed their 6-year Doctor of Pharmacy Programme and passed the Ghana Pharmacy Professional Qualifying Examination. The letter further states that the registered pharmacists have been posted to do their housemanship from the 24th of January, 2022 to the 24th of January, 2023.

    2. Assurances were allegedly given by the Pharmacy Council that the appointment letters of the qualified pharmacists would be available soon but this has not materialized. Hence there does not seem to be any hope that the salaries would arrive soon since the appointment letters have not even been issued.

    3. According to my sources, there have not been interventions to provide stipends for the houseofficers in order to support them in their daily activities. The director of one institution allegedly says it is not possible for stipends to be given out because that would mean singling that group out which is not justifiable. Some institutions also started giving allowances but withdrew due to the lack of appointment letters meaning that the PharmD hosueofficers are technically not recognized by the institution they work for without these appointment letters.

    4.The previous batch of PharmD houseofficers also allegedly struggled to get their appointment letters and also get paid but their appointment letters arrived before 7 months.

    5. PharmD house officers get appointment letters from Ministry of health with financial clearance from Ministry of Finance and are allegedly remunerated by the Controller and Accountants General’s Department (CAGD). It is alleged that some PharmD students were made to pay some amounts of money to ensure that their names appear on the Ministry of Health payroll.

    6. There has not been a strike by the houseofficers yet. The group has tried engaging bodies governing the pharmacy practice – Pharmacy council, Pharmaceutical society of Ghana and the young Pharmacists group. The pharmacy director in Ministry of Health was allegedly in attendance of previous meetings but not much has been done to alleviate their plight. The houseofficers were told that the situation was being worked on but no results have been seen so far.

    7. For foreign students/houseofficers, the PharmD houseofficers that belong to this group were allegedly informed by the Pharmacy council that they would receive no remuneration for the housemanship period since they are not Ghanaians. The foreign houseofficers were allegedly told that it is either they forget about being allowed to write their licensure exam alongside their housemanship training or they do their housemanship without pay.

    8. The job description of the PharmD houseofficer is the same as that of the clinical Pharmacist and the average PharmD houseofficer works for about 40hours per week with weekend and night shifts inclusive depending on the department in which one belongs to.

    In my opinion, it is not only inhumane to force an individual to work without pay but it is also against the labour laws of Ghana.

    Furthermore, the practice of allegedly forcing foreign PharmD hosueofficers to work without pay is unfair since foreign houseofficers (Medical Doctors) qualified to work in Ghana get paid for their work and this practice seems xenophobic. This practice is also against the labour laws of Ghana since Section 68 specifies that “Every worker shall receive equal pay for equal work without distinction of any kind and the law prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, sex, ethnic origin, creed, colour, religion, social, or economic status.”

    Our pharmacists are torn between the devil and the deep blue sea when it comes to matters of them going on strike (aside being part of the essential workforce) because that would most likely extend their housemanship period for over a year which also has financial implications and there is also a possibility of being victimized and blackballed for those who would want to lead this fight.

    As a concerned Medical Doctor, I empathize with our colleagues in the PharmD field because I know how it feels to have a 6-month salary delay and still being expected to show up every day for your patients.

    I call on the Pharmacy Council of Ghana, Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Finance, Controller and Accountants General’s Department, Civil Society Organizations, Media Organizations and other authorities not mentioned but responsible for their remuneration or who could help with sharing their stories to listen to the plight of our pharmacists and ensure that they are paid their due because this all contributes to people in the health sector wanting to emigrate and once again, working without pay is inhumane.

     

    Source: Ghanaweb

     

    DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana

  • Former Health Minister Samuel Nuamah Donkor has died

    A former Health Minister under the Rawlings administration, Dr. Samuel Nuamah Donkor has died.

    He passed away at the age of 64.

    His death was confirmed by the  Builsa South Member of Parliament, Dr. Clement Apaak, and former Kumbungu MP, Ras Mubarak in separate Facebook posts on Monday, August 15, 2022.

    Tributes have since been pouring in for the late Health Minister and many sympathizers are eulogizing him for paying his dues.

    The deceased is known to have also held other government positions serving as Ashanti Regional Minister and one time the Managing Director of the State Transport Company (STC).

    Mr Nuamah Donkor is survived by his wife, Irene Nuamah Donkor and five children.

     

  • Social media users unhappy about disrespect towards Wiyaala; call out Shatta Wale

     

    Fans of singer Wiyaala have reacted to a post she shared on social media indiating that organizers of SummerStageNYC disrespected her.

    Some concerned Ghanaians have taken to her comment section to call out persons she mentioned in her post including Shatta Wale’s team.

    According to a long post on her Facebook page, she explained why she rejected a presentation of Citations of Merit by the President of The Bronx Borough, Vanessa L Gibson backstage.

    She alleged that the only artiste billed to perform on the show with her might have been behind her failure to receive an award on stage.

    Parts of the post read: “Initially Vanessa blamed the organisers (SummerStage NYC), but eventually said that she had been blocked from calling Wiyaala forward by Team Shatta Wale. Wiyaala does not accept awards or citations from any organization backstage.”

    A host of music lovers who are appalled by the development called for the head of Shatta if it is proven that he was the one who orchestrated the supposed ‘disrespect’.

    Ghanaian dancehall musician, Shatta Wale has however not responded to the allegations levelled against him.

    UNNews Chief Editor, Ben Dotsei Malor, also reacting to the post wrote: “This is appalling, awful, and disrespectful, and must be condemned. Did Shatta Wale and his team actually prevent the presentation of the award to their Sister Wiyaala?

    “What did the organizers do about this? Clearly, someone needs to render an unqualified apology – though I know Wiyaala is too good to live (or perform) for awards.

    “Dear Wiyaala: thank you for saying, “We now move on. Case closed.” That’s maturity, stability, and wisdom. Sorry for what they did. They are wrong. Keep strong. Keep on excelling. Keep on roaring.

    “Dear Zoe Baraka: thank you for alerting us, (Elsie Dickson) about this. Thank you for being there to support, and enjoy.”

     

     

     

     

     

  • Tijuana rocked by wave of violent crime

    Thousands of federal troops have been deployed to several Mexican border cities, including Tijuana, amid a flare up in gang violence.

    The northern state of Baja California was hit by a wave of arson that saw nearly 30 vehicles burned and highways blocked on Friday night.

    It followed a week of violence and shootings in other Mexican states.

    The central government has blamed the chaos on the powerful Jalisco New Generation drug cartel.

    Officials have suggested that several cartels are involved in a power struggle and at least 17 people have been arrested in the most recent unrest, local media reported.

    On Saturday, few people ventured out on the streets in Tijuana, with shops remaining closed and university classes cancelled. Many bus services also stopped running.

    Tijuana Mayor Montserrat Caballero urged drug gangs to stop the violence.

    “Today we are saying to the organized crime groups that are committing these crimes, that Tijuana is going to remain open and take care of its citizens,” she said in a video.

    “We also ask them to settle their debts with those who didn’t pay what they owe, not with families and hard-working citizens.”

    Some 350 additional troops were flown into Tijuana on Saturday, and Ms Caballero said around 3,000 soldiers and 2,000 police officers have been deployed across the state to restore order.

    State Governor Marina Del Pilar pledged to “apply all the strength of our Government so that there is peace and we find those responsible for these attacks”.

    The US consulate said in a statement that it “is aware of reports of multiple vehicle fires, roadblocks and heavy police activity” in several cities in the region and urged its employees to shelter in place.

    Tijuana sits on the US border and the area around the city is a lucrative drug trafficking route. While it has long been controlled by the Arellano Felix cartel, it is believed to have become a battleground between several other gangs.

    Earlier this week drug cartel gunmen burned vehicles and businesses in the western states of Jalisco and Guanajuato after authorities attempted to detain a leader of the Jalisco cartel.

    And a gang riot at a prison in the border city of Ciudad Juarez quickly spread onto the streets, killing 11 people on Thursday.

    Source: BBC

  • Charlotte Osei congratulates Bridget Otoo on her marriage

    Former chairperson of the  Electoral Commission, Charlotte Osei has sent a congratulatory message to Bridget Otoo and her husband, Dr Evans Ago Tetteh as they tie the knot, Saturday 13 August, 2022.

    The celebrated broadcaster had a private ceremony in Takoradi with families and selected guests.

    Madam Osei who seem to be have been absent at the wedding took to her social media pages to write a special message to her good friend, Bridget.

    In a Twitter post madam Osei wrote: “Congratulations my very dear @Bridget_Otoo. Wishing you both lots of happiness and joy in the years ahead. Plenty love.”

    “Congratulations my dear Bridget Otoo – @bridget_otoo. This is the doing of the Lord and it is marvelous in our eyes. May the years ahead be blessed and beautiful. Plenty love,” she wrote in a separate post on Facebook.

    Serwaa Amihere, Lydia Forson, and Roland Walker were spotted at the wedding in videos and photos that made runs on social media on Saturday.

  • Western Wall: Several injured in Jerusalem shooting By Matt Murphy

     

    At least eight people have been injured after a gunman opened fire on a bus near the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City, Israeli officials say.

    The suspect opened fire as the pilgrims were returning from prayers at the holy site. Two people, including a pregnant woman, are in a critical condition.

    The gunman fled but is now said to have turned himself in.

    The Western Wall is one of the holiest sites in Judaism. Thousands travel to pray there every year.

    Israeli emergency services said the gunman targeted a bus near King David’s Tomb and a car park near the Western Wall.

    The driver, Daniel Kanievsky, told local media his bus was full at the time of the shooting.

    “We opened the ramp for someone on a wheelchair, and then the shooting started. Everyone got down on the floor, screaming. I tried to escape, but the bus couldn’t drive with the ramp open,” he said.

    Video on social media showed heavily armed police at the scene and local media reported that worshippers had been briefly prevented from leaving the Western Wall compound.

    The pregnant woman was shot in the stomach. She had an emergency Caesarean operation, with the baby reported to be in a serious, but stable, condition.

    A man with gunshot wounds to the head and neck also remains critical.

    Media reports say four of the injured were members of the same family visiting Israel from New York.

    The gunman is said to be a Palestinian resident of East Jerusalem.

    In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid pledged that anyone involved in the attack would “pay a price for any harm to our civilians”.

    The attack comes a week after 47 people were killed in the Gaza Strip over three days as Israeli forces targeted leaders of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and militants fired more than 1,000 rockets into Israel.

    The militant group says it lost 12 fighters. Gaza’s health ministry said the others were civilians, including at least 17 children.

    Israeli officials have said many civilians were killed by PIJ rockets that failed to clear Gaza. They have promised to investigate civilian deaths caused by Israeli fire.

    Several Israelis sustained minor injuries as a result of PIJ rockets, most of which were intercepted by the country’s Iron Dome missile defence system.

     

    Source: BBC

     

  • Zelensky warns Russian soldiers at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of using “nuclear blackmail” at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant – Europe’s largest.

    Russia seized the plant in March and has been accused of turning it into a base from where it hits nearby towns.

    Both countries have traded blame for shelling it in recent days, prompting UN warnings of a nuclear disaster.

    Mr Zelensky says any Russian soldier who shoots at or under the cover of the plant will be a “special target”.

    The six-nuclear reactor Zaporizhzhia station is located in the city of Enerhodar, on the eastern bank of the Dnieper River (Dnipro in Ukrainian) in southern Ukraine.

    Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, seizing the plant within days. Moscow has kept Ukrainian personnel to operate the facility.

    The UN has warned that continued hostilities around the station could lead to a nuclear disaster affecting much of Europe.

    Russia has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing at the plant.

    It says it seized control of the plant to prevent leaks of radioactive materials during fighting in the region.

    Map showing Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and Nikopol

    During his video address late on Saturday, Mr Zelensky said Russia had engaged in “constant provocations” by firing on the plant and said forces stationed there had used it as a base to shell the cities of Nikopol and Marhanets – on the other bank of the river.

    This was being done, the president said, to “blackmail our state and the entire free world”. But he stressed that “Russian blackmail only mobilises even more global efforts to confront terror”.

    “Every Russian soldier who either shoots at the plant, or shoots under the cover of the plant, must understand that he is becoming a special target for our intelligence, for our special services, for our army,” the president said.

    He added that “every day” of Russia’s occupation of the plant “increases the radiation threat to Europe”.

    Ukraine’s defence intelligence agency also accused Russia of a provocation by parking a Pion self-propelled heavy artillery piece outside a nearby town and painting a Ukrainian flag on it, in an attempt to discredit Kyiv.

    A BBC investigation revealed earlier this week that many of the Ukrainian workers at the site are being kept under armed guard amid harsh conditions.

    On Thursday, foreign minsters from the G7 group of industrial democracies demanded that Russia withdraw from the site immediately.

    Their warning echoed statements from the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which called for an end to “all military activities that endanger nuclear security”.

    UN Secretary General António Guterres has warned that the situation at the plant could “lead to disaster”.

    Source: BBC

  • Hong Kong suffers biggest population drop as exodus accelerates

    Hong Kong has recorded its sharpest annual drop in population, with experts blaming the decline on strict Covid-19 control measures and a political crackdown that have taken the shine off a financial hub long advertised as “Asia’s world city.”

    The city’s total population fell from 7.41 million people to 7.29 million, a 1.6% decrease, the Census and Statistics Department said Thursday.

    That’s the steepest decline since the government began tracking figures in 1961.

    Though authorities attributed some of that to a “natural” decrease — more deaths than births — experts said the figures also reflected an exodus that has accelerated in the past few years amid periods of massive social upheaval that have included anti-government protests and the coronavirus pandemic.

    Around 113,200 residents left Hong Kong over the past year, the department said, compared to 89,200 the year before. The figures include expatriates and other non-permanent residents.

    Throughout the pandemic, experts and industry leaders have warned that the city’s heavy-handed Covid-19 restrictions would drive away residents, travelers and expatriates.

    Even as the rest of the world opened up, for months Hong Kong continued to close borders, suspend air routes and impose mandatory quarantines and social distancing measures such as caps on public gatherings and limits on restaurant services.

    Mask mandates remain in effect, while public spaces like beaches and gyms have faced long closures during periods of high case numbers.

    Hong Kong's Covid divide: Expats get more perks while domestic workers lose their homes

    The measures have devastated businesses, with some of Hong Kong’s most famous sites — including the Jumbo Kingdom floating restaurant — shuttering in the past year.

    “More than two and a half years of Covid-19 restrictions are taking a heavy toll on businesses and the economy,” the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce said in a statement this month.

    The group’s CEO, George Leung, added that Hong Kong’s border closures were “stifling any prospect of economic recovery” and urged authorities to come up with a “concrete timetable to reopen Hong Kong.”

    The government has conceded the impact of its policies, saying on Thursday that flight restrictions — such as requiring all arrivals to be vaccinated, test negative for Covid, and pay for quarantine in a hotel upon arrival — “had interrupted population inflow.”

    People wearing face masks walking in Hong Kong on July 12.

    This week the government eased the quarantine requirement, lowering the number of days arrivals must stay in a designated hotel from seven to three.

    The government said some Hong Kongers may have chosen to settle elsewhere during the pandemic.

    Hong Kong tries to 'relaunch' its economy by lifting flight bans and cutting quarantine

    “Meanwhile, Hong Kong residents who had left Hong Kong before the pandemic may have chosen to reside in other places temporarily or were unable to return to Hong Kong. All these (factors) might have contributed to the net outflow of Hong Kong residents during the period,” said a government spokesperson.

    But the government downplayed the population drop and seemed to suggest Hong Kong was still a bustling finance hub.

    “Being an international city, Hong Kong’s population has always been mobile,” said the spokesperson. “During the past 10 years, net outflows of Hong Kong residents … were recorded for most of the years.”

    The spokesperson added that the problem of Covid-driven departures “could be resolved when the quarantine and social distancing measures relaxed,” and that numbers would rise due to government efforts to attract overseas talent.

    The political crackdown

    Covid aside, experts say another factor behind the exodus is Beijing’s political crackdown on the city.

    After Hong Kong’s 2019 pro-democracy, anti-government protests, Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law, under which the government has all but wiped out formal opposition. Authorities have raided and closed down newsrooms, jailed activists and protesters, unseated elected lawmakers, heightened censorship both online and in printed publications, and changed school curricula.

    Since the law was introduced, many former protesters and lawmakers have fled overseas, fearing prosecution. Many individuals and families have told CNN they too are considering leaving because they feel the city has been transformed beyond recognition.

    In the aftermath of the protests, a number of countries including the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada opened new visa pathways for Hong Kongers looking to leave. Many former protesters and activists have also fled to the self-governing democratic island of Taiwan.

    The government has repeatedly defended the security law as restoring law and order to the city, claiming that Hong Kong’s freedoms of speech, press and assembly remain intact.

    The security law “has swiftly and effectively restored stability and security,” the government said on July 29, adding that residents “are relieved and happy to see that Hong Kong now continues to be an open, safe, vibrant and business-friendly metropolis.”

     

    Source: CNN

  • Liz Truss likely to be Britain’s next prime minister

    The person most likely to replace Boris Johnson as leader of Britain’s governing Conservative Party and Prime Minister of the UK is a political chameleon who has gone from radical abolitionist to flag-bearer of the Euroskeptic, Conservative right.

    Liz Truss, who was only elected to Parliament in 2010, has — in a relatively short period of time — established herself as a political force of nature who pursues her agenda with relentless vigor and unequivocal enthusiasm.

    However, with most opinion polls suggesting she’s poised to get the keys to Number 10 Downing Street, her critics are asking: What exactly does she stand for?

    Many who have observed her over the years question whether she has any sincere beliefs at all, or if she simply endorses whatever is the most convenient at the time.

    To say that Truss has been on a political journey would be an understatement. She was born in 1975 into a family that she herself has described as “to the left of Labour,” the main socialist opposition. She grew up in parts of the UK that didn’t traditionally vote Conservative, moving between Scotland and the north of England.

    In contrast to her privately educated Cabinet colleagues, Truss went to a state school in Leeds, and later won a place at Oxford University. There she was an active member of the Liberal Democrats, a centrist opposition party that has long been an effective opponent to the Conservatives in large parts of England.

    UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss listens during a Conservative party membership hustings at the All Nations Centre on August 3, 2022 in Cardiff, Wales.

    During her time as a Liberal Democrat, Truss supported the legalization of cannabis and the abolition of the royal family — positions that are at total odds with what most would consider to be mainstream Conservatism in 2022.

    Truss says she joined the Conservatives in 1996, just two years after she gave a speech at a Liberal Democrat conference calling for the end of the monarchy.

    Even then, fellow Liberal Democrats questioned her sincerity and spotted traits that they still see in her today.

    “I honestly think she was playing to the gallery back then, whether she was talking about decriminalizing drugs or abolishing the monarchy,” Neil Fawcett, a Liberal Democrat councilor who campaigned with Truss in the ’90s, told CNN.  “I think she is someone who plays to the gallery with whatever audience she is talking to, and I genuinely don’t know if she ever believes anything she says, then or now.”

    Truss has certainly continued to capture the attention of her audience. Since joining the Conservatives and becoming a member of Parliament, she has fervently supported almost every conceivable ideology. She served loyally under three prime ministers in several different cabinet jobs, and is currently foreign secretary.

    Most notably, she supported remaining in the European Union in 2016. At the time, Truss tweeted that she was backing those who wanted to remain in the bloc because “it is in Britain’s economic interest and means we can focus on vital economic and social reform at home.”

    Truss now backs Brexit, saying that her fears before the referendum that it could cause “disruption” were mistaken. The aspiring Tory leader is even threatening to scrap all remaining EU legislation in the UK and override the Brexit deal that Johnson negotiated with Brussels in a way that the EU believes is illegal. She has also blamed France and the EU for border checks at Dover, the main port between the UK and France.

    Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss take part in the BBC Leadership debate at Victoria Hall on July 25, 2022 in Hanley, England.

    There is a debate within the Conservative Party as to how real this support of Euroskepticism really is. Some think Truss was reluctantly following government orders at the time of the referendum in 2016, which opposed Brexit. Others find that argument inconceivable.

    Anna Soubry, a former Conservative cabinet minister, told CNN that Truss “had the most cover out of any of us to support Brexit. Her brief at the time included the farming community, who supported Brexit on the whole. I sat around the cabinet table and heard everyone’s reason for doing what they did and find it hard to believe she’s changed her mind quite this much.”

    On the other hand, Gavin Barwell, who served as former Prime Minister Theresa May’s chief-of-staff, said that, after the Brexit vote, “Truss made a decision very quickly that there wasn’t room for a compromise. If you were to do it, it needed to be done fully. And as the stalemate dragged on, she argued that a binary choice was coming between leaving with no deal and Brexit being reversed, and the latter would be catastrophic for the government.”

    The closer she edges to power, the more Britons wonder what a Truss premiership would look like. She has campaigned to lead on the most conservative of agendas. She has pledged to slash taxes from day one, tear up EU regulations and encourage private sector growth with low corporation tax. She has said that she will not impose a windfall tax on energy companies despite them posting huge profits during the cost-of-living and energy crisis.

    These sorts of policies are, of course, red meat to the Conservative members who will ultimately vote for her. And while some of those who know her question how much she actually believes in them, there is little doubt she will put her full effort into implementing them and making her impact immediately felt.

    Liz Truss speaks during an event in Ludlow, Britain, as part of her campaign to be leader of the Conservative Party and the next prime minister, on August 3, 2022.

    It’s likely that a Truss premiership would ultimately look a lot like Johnson’s, but with a greater emphasis on cutting taxes, shrinking the state and, potentially, an even harder line on Europe. Critics have said that the tax cuts she’s promised would lead to even greater inflation and rises in interest rates amid a forecast recession. Questions have also been raised over a pledge Truss made to cut public sector pay, allegedly saving the public $8.8 billion. Her economics have been questioned by her critics, and the uproar over perceived callousness towards public sector workers forced Truss to U-turn.

    Julian Glover, a journalist and speech writer to former Prime Minister David Cameron, was a university contemporary of Truss and remembers traits in her that are still recognizable today: Determined but unfocused.

    “We only passed each other briefly and she was in a different year to me, but despite that, she stands out in my memory as a sort of strange, unfocused force, hugely in favor of action and change,” said Glover. “It was always hard to see the aim of it all, or where it might lead, except that she would be at the center of it.”

    Roger Crouch, who succeeded Truss as president of Oxford University Liberal Democrats, told CNN that he remembers a woman who was “determined, single-minded and willing to challenge orthodox and prevailing, often male, wisdom.”

    Unlike many of those who knew Truss in her younger years, Crouch, who is now a teacher, thinks that her opinions haven’t changed a huge amount since the ’90s. “Liz was always more of a privatizing, libertarian liberal so there is a consistent thread of thought there. I remember a student discussion group in which she advocated privatization of lamp posts.”

    If she wins, Truss will have a hard time uniting her party, which has been in power for 12 years and has been bitterly divided over Brexit for six of them.

    She will also have to lead the country through its worst cost-of-living crisis in decades. Inflation is at a 40-year high, energy bills are set to increase by hundreds, possibly thousands of pounds a year, and the UK is forecast to enter a recession before the end of the year. This winter, many families will have to make a tough choice between eating or heating. And for a party that has been in power for over a decade, it’s hard to deflect the blame for that onto anyone else.

    Her supporters see the chance for a fresh start in Truss. They believe that with Brexit out of the way and the scandals that led to Johnson’s downfall soon to be a distant memory, the party will turn its focus to remaining in power and winning a historic fourth consecutive general election.

    For her detractors, it is more complicated. During this leadership contest those who have supported her rivals feel that they have been unfairly maligned simply for disputing that Truss should be handed the keys to Downing Street.

    When it comes to running the country, this might be a problem for Truss. She had the support of fewer MPs than her rival Rishi Sunak during the early stages of the contest and the bad blood between the two camps has worsened over time.

    And for all of Truss’s determination and single-mindedness, if she takes over a party torn by infighting and suffering in the polls during a cost-of-living crisis that happened under the Conservatives’ watch, she might find her key objective too hard a task to achieve: Making her party electable at the next general election after almost a decade and a half in power.

    Source: CNN

  • Responding to FBI search, Trump and allies return to his familiar strategy: flood the zone with nonsense

    In response to the FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s home in Florida on Monday, Trump and his allies in Congress and right-wing media have returned to his preferred strategy for communicating in a crisis: say a whole bunch of nonsense in rapid succession.

    From his battles against impeachment to his effort to limit the political fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic, Trump has attempted to flood the zone with such a quantity and variety of lies, conspiracy theories and distractions that Americans will tune out, turn away or cease to know what is true and not. And he has regularly been joined by a large cast of eager defenders.

    Baseless conspiracy theories about the search

    Using his familiar just-asking-questions style of promoting conspiracy theories, Trump posted on his social media platform on Wednesday a suggestion that the FBI could have planted evidence. His legal team had already been suggesting the same thing. One Trump lawyer, Alina Habba, said on Fox on Tuesday: “I’m concerned that they may have planted something; you know, at this point, who knows?”

    Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky echoed this question on Wednesday, wondering on Fox how we know “they won’t put things into those boxes to entrap him.” Fox host Jesse Watters had gone further on Tuesday, saying the FBI was “probably” planting evidence, and Paul’s campaign had adopted the “probably” by Friday.

    There is just zero basis for any of this.

    Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida offered up a different baseless conspiracy theory about federal malfeasance, saying on Fox on Tuesday that he didn’t think they were looking for documents at all but were probably using that as an “excuse” to root around Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence for “whatever they could find.” Rubio’s comments were at least more plausible than the hogwash offered up Tuesday by Anna Perez, a host for right-wing media outlet Real America’s Voice, who uttered a QAnon-style monologue, falsely claiming the search was a conspiracy to prevent Trump from carrying out a (nonexistent) plan to expose criminals serving in government.

    More deception

    Another Real America’s Voice host, right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, claimed Thursday that the FBI “occupied Trump’s home — a military occupation.” Though it’s odd to describe the execution of a search warrant as an “occupation” of any kind, it’s flat false to claim the military was involved in this search.

    The former President’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump delivered an impressive variety of claptrap in a single sentence, saying on Fox on Tuesday that the searchers were “a bunch of people unannounced breaking into your home like this and taking whatever they want for themselves.” A source told CNN that the FBI gave the Secret Service about an hour’s advance notice of the search and that the Secret Service met up with the FBI agents as they arrived and ensured they had uninhibited access. And a search warrant does not allow searchers to take “whatever they want,” certainly not “for themselves”; the Department of Justice asked a court to unseal a document listing what was taken, and Trump consented.

    Republican Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the House minority whip, went on Fox on Thursday and said that “it concerns everybody if you see some agents go rogue.” There is no sign that any agent went rogue. Even Trump-friendly Fox host Steve Doocy challenged Scalise, noting that agents were simply executing a search warrant. Scalise then invoked an inaccurate report that Attorney General Merrick Garland hadn’t known about the search, falsely saying Garland himself had said he hadn’t known about it. (Later on Thursday, Garland said he personally approved the decision to seek the search warrant.)

    Whataboutism about Democrats

    As usual, Trump and his defenders tried some whataboutism — pointing a finger, dishonestly, toward prominent Democrats.

    Trump baselessly suggested former President Barack Obama had mishandled presidential records after leaving office by, Trump claimed, keeping more than 30 million documents, many of them classified, and taking them to Chicago. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) issued a Friday statement explaining it has “exclusive legal and physical custody” of the Obama-era records, that NARA itself moved about 30 million pages of unclassified records to one of its own facilities in the Chicago area, that the classified Obama-era records are maintained in a separate NARA facility near Washington, and that “former President Obama has no control over where and how NARA stores the Presidential records of his Administration.”

    Trump and some of his media defenders went back to his old chestnut about how former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had been permitted to “acid wash” emails, a fabrication loosely based on the fact that an email-deletion software program happens to be called BleachBit; Fox’s Watters was especially literal, falsely claiming Tuesday that Clinton had “poured acid” on emails.

    Trump also suggested that there was something suspicious about the fact that, he said, his lawyers had not been allowed to witness the search, posting on his social media platform on Wednesday: “Why did they STRONGLY insist on having nobody watching them, everybody out?” But there is nothing unusual about this; lawyers don’t have a right to be in the room to monitor a search.

    For good measure, Trump lawyer Christina Bobb threw in a transparently false claim about Trump’s popularity. She said on Right Side Broadcasting Network on Tuesday that the Department of Justice was trying to find an easy way to prosecute “the most popular president, and probably the most famous president, in American history.”

    Trump’s average Gallup approval rating over his term, 41%, was by far the lowest for any president since Gallup began measuring presidential approval in 1938.

    Source: CNN

  • Watch highlights of Ghana’s defeat to USA at the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup

    Ghana’s Black Princesses were thrashed 3-0 by the United States in their first game at the U-20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica.

    Black Princesses played the majority of the game with 10 players as midfielder Jacqueline Owusu was sent off in the 31st minute.

    Ghana is now bottom of Group D and risks not qualifying for the knockout stage for the first time.

    USA dominated Ghana for the majority of the game, with a significantly better pass accuracy and possession than the latter, and thus ran away with a 3-0 victory.

    The Americans got off to a fast start in their first match, as Michelle Ivory Cooper scored in the 11th minute to give the team an early lead.

    The two sides then fought hard and tested each other’s defences, and it appeared that the first half would end with an unchanged scoreboard until Alyssa Paola Thompson sneaked through the Ghana defence to increase the USA’s lead to 2-0.

    USA had a similar start to the second half, as Alysson Marie Sentnor netted the team’s third goal in just six minutes.

    Ghana then attempted to cut the USA’s commanding lead but was unable to do so because the USA defence did well to prevent them from scoring.

    Ghana’s next game is on Sunday against Japan.

    Source: Ghanaweb