A trader at the Dr. Mensah market in Kumasi met her untimely death after a truck ran into the market on Thursday morning.
The 51-year-old cabbage vendor, known as Akua Serwaa, was crushed to death when a truck ran into pedestrians at the market.
The long vehicle was loaded with second-hand clothing.
An eyewitness reported that the driver of the truck, with the registration GT 7452-11, had lost control of the wheels, possibly due to brake failure.
The truck ran over the woman, who traded along the roadside, after crashing into a parked taxi cab.
The mutilated body of the deceased, a resident of Antoa in the Kwabre East District, has been deposited at the morgue of Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital.
A US court has ruled that Ed Sheeran did not copy Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On when composing Thinking Out Loud.
The British singer-songwriter had denied stealing elements of the song for his 2014 worldwide hit.
Heirs of Gaye’s co-writer argued that Sheeran, Warner Music Group and Sony Music Publishing owed them money for copyright infringement.
Sheeran reportedly told the trial in New York that if he was found guilty he would give up his music career.
“If that happens, I’m done, I’m stopping,” he said when asked about the toll the trial at Manhattan federal court was taking on him.
Sheeran reportedly stood up and hugged his team after jurors ruled that he “independently” created his song.
Image caption,Kathryn Townsend Griffin, the daughter of composer Ed Townsend, accuses Sheeran of copyright infringement
During the civil trial Sheeran sang and played parts of Thinking Out Loud on the guitar.
He said he wrote the song at home in England with his friend Amy Wadge, and had been inspired by his grandparents and a new romantic relationship he had just begun.
Sheeran’s lawyer, Ilene Farkas, told the jurors that similarities in the chord progressions and rhythms of the two songs were “the letters of the alphabet of music.”
“These are basic musical building blocks that songwriters now and forever must be free to use, or all of us who love music will be poorer for it,” she said.Media caption,
How similar are Ed Sheeran and Marvin Gaye’s songs?
Keisha Rice, who represented the heirs of Gaye’s co-writer Ed Townsend said her clients were not claiming to own basic musical elements but rather “the way in which these common elements were uniquely combined.”
“Mr Sheeran is counting on you to be very, very overwhelmed by his commercial success,” she said, urging jurors to use their “common sense” to decide whether the songs are similar.
Last year Sheeran won a copyright battle at the High Court in London over his 2017 Shape of You.
Sheeran is also facing claims over Thinking Out Loud from a company owned by investment banker David Pullman that holds copyright interests in the Gaye song.
In 2015 Gaye’s heirs won a $5.3m judgment from a lawsuit claiming the Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams song Blurred Lines copied Gaye’s Got to Give It Up.
Background
In September 2022, Pop star Ed Sheeran was ordered to stand trial in the US over claims he copied his hit song Thinking Out Loud from Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On.
A judge denied Sheeran’s bid to dismiss the case, saying a jury should decide on the similarities between the songs.
The move comes six months after Sheeran was cleared of copying his hit song Shape Of You at a trial in London.
After that ruling, the singer hit out at “baseless” copyright claims, which he said were “way too common”.
The claim over Thinking Out Loud was originally lodged in 2018, not by Gaye’s family but by investment banker David Pullman and a company called Structured Asset Sales, which has acquired a portion of the estate of Let’s Get It On co-writer Ed Townsend.
Seeking $100m (£90m) in damages, they allege that Sheeran and his co-writer Amy Wadge “copied and exploited, without authorisation or credit” the Gaye song, “including but not limited to the melody, rhythms, harmonies, drums, bass line, backing chorus, tempo, syncopation and looping”.
On Thursday, US District Judge Louis Stanton cited a disagreement between musical experts on both sides of the lawsuit as a reason for ordering the civil trial.Media caption,
The prospect of a jury trial will be an unwelcome one for Sheeran. Copyright lawyers have often argued that juries have difficulty understanding the complexities of copyright law, and why superficial similarities between two songs are not necessarily proof of plagiarism.
In his order, Judge Stanton also ruled that jurors must decide whether SAS can include concert revenue in damages, rejecting Sheeran’s argument that ticket sales weren’t tied to the alleged infringement.
Sheeran’s 2014-2015 tour earned $150m (£135m), according to music industry trade publication Pollstar.
His lawyers did not comment on the judge’s ruling. A lawyer for Structured Asset Sales, Hillel Parness, told Reuters the company was “pleased” with the ruling.
This is not the only trial Sheeran is facing over Thinking Out Loud, which went to number one in the UK in 2014 and won song of the year at the Grammy Awards in 2016.
SAS has filed a second case, which is currently on pause, while a separate suit by another portion of Townsend’s estate is awaiting trial.
Majority Leader of Parliament Hon Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu has described the decision by the Minority side of the House to oppose the recent approval of a loan agreement between Ghana and its development partners as hypocritical.
According to him, the loan agreements were discussed thoroughly at the committee level with the Minority supporting it and so it was surprising to see the same group opposing it at the plenary level.
Hon Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu said this in an interview with Captain Koda on the Kumasi-based OTEC 102.9 FM’s morning show Nyansapo on Wednesday, May 3, 2023.
Parliament on Tuesday reconvened for an urgent business and approved seven loan agreements totaling $750 million to enhance public sector reforms, food security, COVID-19 response measures and digital acceleration agenda.
The facilities, which were approved during the emergency sitting, were an on-lending agreement between the Government of Ghana (GoG) and the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank Group for an amount of $150 million to finance the West Africa Food System Resilience Programme phase two under the Multipurpose Programme Approach.
The Minority caucus prior to the final approval of the loan facility however said they were not in support of the decision.
The Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, said that given the enormous impact of loans on the country, he did not think it was time for the government to take additional loans.
He said Ghana was currently insolvent and had defaulted in the repayment of its external and domestic debts.
Hon Kyei Mensah Bonsu maintained that the loan agreements, which had been on the books already, were supposed to have been approved by the House before it adjourned sine die on March 31, 2023.
He noted that the approval of the loan agreements was in the good interest of the country.
Some Ghanaian celebrities have experienced the worst kinds of breakups as well as romantic whirlwinds in their relationships.
In some cases, these celebrity couples never even got married before their relationship fell apart.
However, one thing they had in common was their interesting public proposals to their partners.
Many would have thought that, perhaps, engaging their partners at public events, goes to prove their obsession with each other which could’ve led to something great.
But consequently, things took a good start but ended up in jeopardy.
Let’s take a look at some Ghanaian celebrities whose relationships hit the rocks despite proposing to their partners in public
Shatta Wale and Michy
Shatta and Michy were once a star couple, a ‘relationship model’ for fans but experienced a nasty fallout that took social media by storm.
In spite of the countless public display of affection, most especially the famous marriage proposal on stage, there wasn’t a ‘happily ever after’.
Shatta Wale engaged Michy on stage midway through her performance at the Reign concert sometime in October 2018 but as it stands the couple have gone their separate ways.
Shatta Wale and the mother of his son, Michy, broke up on the basis of infidelity, abuse from both sides among others.
Elikem and Pokello
Their marriage lasted for just two years although they were perceived as a ‘power couple’.
The ‘Big Brother Chase’ lovebirds Elikem Kumordzie and Pokello Nare became the envy of every relationship, particularly when the former proposed to the latter live on stage at the 2014 Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMAs).
However, in the same capacity, social media witnessed their dramatic fallout which resulted in Pokello relocating to Zimbabwe with their son, Tristan.
On reasons why their marriage failed, Pokello stated in an interview sometime in 2020, “Elikem is not ready to be a husband and unfortunately, after 4 years of trying to be patient with all his transgression, I just couldn’t do it anymore”.
Criss Waddle and Mary Obeng
In 2016, rapper Criss Waddle proposed to his girlfriend, Mary Obeng, in front of a crowd at the Accra Mall. The couple had a bitter breakup in 2018, with Mary accusing Criss of being abusive and cheating on her.
Funny Face and Elizabeth Ntim
Comedian Funny Face proposed to his girlfriend, Elizabeth Ntim, during a live TV interview in 2016. The couple had a publicized breakup in 2020, with both parties trading insults on social media.
Medikal and Sister Derby
Rapper Medikal proposed to his then-girlfriend, singer Sister Derby, during a concert in 2018. However, the couple had a messy breakup later that year, with both parties releasing diss tracks aimed at each other. The breakup was highly publicized in Ghana and attracted a lot of media attention
Away from Ghana, below are some of your favorite celebrity breakups that broke your heart.
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie: One of the most high-profile celebrity breakups was that of Hollywood power couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. The couple, who had been together since 2005 and married in 2014, shocked fans when they announced their split in 2016. The divorce proceedings were highly publicized and included a custody battle over their six children.
Taylor Swift and Calvin Harris: Pop star Taylor Swift and DJ Calvin Harris had a highly publicized breakup in 2016. The couple had been dating for over a year and had collaborated on several hit songs. However, their relationship ended on a sour note, with both parties deleting all traces of each other on social media.
Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez: Pop stars Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez had an on-again, off-again relationship that captivated fans for years. The couple, who first started dating in 2010, had several public breakups and makeups before finally calling it quits in 2018.
Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux: Hollywood couple Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux announced their split in 2018 after two years of marriage. The couple had kept their relationship mostly private, and the news of their breakup came as a surprise to many fans.
Chris Pratt and Anna Faris: Actors Chris Pratt and Anna Faris had been married for eight years when they announced their split in 2017. The couple, who had a son together, released a joint statement saying that they had “tried hard for a long time” but that they were both “disappointed” in the end.
Ghanaian-American musician Amaarae has released her new single “Co-Star,”
The track comes along with a captivating music video that pays homage to the 90s supermodel era.
The music video, directed by Lauren Dunn, features a “Co-Star” competition in which competitors battle it out to be the best by showcasing their zodiac signs, swag, and skills, breaking traditional beauty standards placed on women.
Amaarae’s “Co-Star” competition features some of the most influential women in the industry, such as The Clermont Twins, model Biba Williams, Nigerian rapper Deto Black, 1XBlue designer Lois Saunders, photographer and model Moyosore Briggs, among others.
In a statement about the release, Amaarae said, “Co-Star is a fun song about star signs! I wanted to give people something cute and flirty for the summer! Astrology is such a huge part of our youth culture, it felt like a missed opportunity to not lean into that and give the girls an anthem that reads and celebrates them all at once!”
The music video features some of her favorite women, including The Clermont Twins, Biba, Deto, Moyo, Bijou & Chi, who represent a significant part of alternative African culture and are the tastemakers of our time.
“The video is amazing too! Having some of my favorite women in the whole wide world represent themselves in such an iconic way. The Clermont Twins are such an iconic duo. Also Biba! Deto! Moyo! Bijou & Chi are such a huge part of alternative African culture. These are the tastemakers of our time! It’s really so amazing to bring them all together,” the Reckless & Sweet hitmaker added.
Amaarae’s work centers around female empowerment, subversion of gender norms, and exploration of female sexuality and artistic self-expression while simultaneously highlighting her West African heritage through a global lens.
Ghanaian-American polymath, Amaarae, is one of music’s most groundbreaking artists, and her highly anticipated album “Fountain Baby” is set to be released on June 9 via Interscope.
“Fountain Baby,” her forthcoming album, will undoubtedly establish Amaarae as one of the premiere artists in the global pop arena. It is an expansion of her towering talent and vision beyond genre and regional boundaries, resulting in a remarkable and tangible body of work that solidifies her position as an essential architect of the future of music.
In addition to the upcoming album, Amaarae recently performed at the Mugler x H&M collaboration launch in New York City on April 19th as the face of the campaign. The collection will be available for purchase online and in stores starting May 11th.
It is no easy task to build a strong reputation and simultaneously forge a unique path in a developing industry on the cusp of global headway.
However, Amaarae has managed to pave the way for herself and her sound in the Sub-Saharan space. Born July 4, 1994, to parents Ama Bawuah and Kwadwo Boateng Genfi, Ama Serwah Genfi (popularly known as Amaarae) is the eldest of two children. A truly multifaceted artist, the Ghanaian singer, songwriter, producer, and sound engineer is fast becoming a force amongst her peers in the West African music scene.
Amaarae has placed her mark firmly in Africa’s bubbling new sub–genre; Alté. Her eclectic sound and cool demeanor, coupled with her bold-colored hair has solidified her as one of the best new artists to watch. She cites the likes of Billie Holiday, Anthony Kedis and Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks as some of her influences.
However, her own unique experiences and penmanship contribute to her genre-bending sound.
Within a year of pursuing music professionally, her art and talent have been recognized both locally and internationally by outlets such as Boiler Room, Apple Music, and Vogue.
She was named Apple Music Africa’s Favorite New Artist in April 2018 and became an Apple Music Beats 1 Featured artist for her debut project Passionfruit Summers later that year.
Her work with musicians such as Ghana’s Stonebwoy and Nigeria’s Santi and Odunsi has brought her name into the limelight as an artist with an uncanny ability to find comfort and success within any genre she pursues. Amaarae has also been acknowledged for her style and fashion sense.
In 2018, she was featured in Vogue Magazine online in an article on 5 women across the globe with buzz haircuts and snagged a mention as one of Vogue online’s Top 100 Style Influencers of 2018, in addition to being nominated as Artiste of the Year at the Glitz Style Awards in Ghana.
This summer, David de Gea‘s current contract will end, and a new one has not yet been reached. The veteran goalkeeper’s inexperience with the ball at his feet is cause for concern.
Fellow Spaniard David Raya could be the ideal successor. The Brentford stopper will only have a year left on his deal by the end of the season.
Unlike De Gea, the 27-year-old is comfortable in possession and would come with the additional bonus of being an English-trained player, having come through Blackburn’s academy as a youngster.
Other possibilities include Ten Hag’s former Ajax goalkeeperAndre Onana who is now at Inter Milan, Porto’s Diogo Costa and Borussia Dortmund stopper Gregor Kobel.
David de Gea so far has conceded 44 goals and make 138 saves. He has a clean sheet of 10 and 44 crosses safely catches.
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag’s tenure has started off well, and he will now be looking at some summer signings that can make next season even more fruitful.
The Red Devils have already won this year’s Carabao Cup, advanced to the FA Cup final, and appear poised to earn a spot in the Champions League.
The next phase will be to mount a challenge for the Premier League championship after winning some hardware and possibly returning to Europe’s top tournament.
We examine some of the players Manchester United may target to fulfill that goal before their trip to Brighton.
A new $300 million security assistance package for Ukraine was disclosed by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday.
“This most recent package will assist Ukraine as it heroically defends itself against Russia’s harsh, unjustifiable, and unprovoked aggression. Russia’s conflict could be over today. The United States and our allies and partners will support Ukraine until Russia acts, for however long it takes, Blinken added.
It is the 37th reduction in US weapons and equipment for Ukraine, according to the top US diplomat.
Testing and diagnostic equipment to support vehicle maintenance and repair
Spare parts and other field equipment
Earlier Wednesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the package comes after “extensive work by the US government over the past few months to fulfill Ukraine’s requests ahead of its planned counteroffensive and ensure they have the weapons and equipment they need.”
The White House said it will continue to work with allies to support Ukraine.
Previewing this aid package earlier this week, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby suggested the new package would be “very much focused on ammunition and clearing capabilities” to give Ukraine “what they need to break through Russian defenses.”
Shatta Michy has praised songstress Gyakie for her approach to music and her use of talent instead of her body to achieve success in the industry.
Michy, who made an appearance as a guest on the Ladies Circle on TV3, praised Gyakie for changing the game and serving as an inspiration for young female musicians by demonstrating that great music can be created without the use of explicit material.
The pressure on female artists to use their bodies to gain attention and success in the music industry has been a longstanding issue, but Michy believes that Gyakie has shown that it is possible to be successful without relying on sexualization. Michy hopes that more female artists, including herself, will follow in Gyakie’s footsteps and focus on their talent and artistry instead.
Michy has also faced criticism for her own clothing choices and perceived sexualization, but she says that she is learning to build a sound that is quality and does not need sexuality to sell. She believes that the music should be quality and that sexy can always be incorporated in a way that is classy.
Michy’s comments are a reminder that female artists can be successful without resorting to sexualization, and that the industry should focus more on talent and artistry rather than physical appearance. Gyakie’s success is a testament to this, and hopefully, more artists will follow in her footsteps and pave the way for a more inclusive and empowering music industry.
Gyakie is a talented Ghanaian singer and songwriter who has been making waves in the music industry. Born Jackeline Acheampong, she grew up in Kumasi and is the daughter of the famous Ghanaian highlife musician, Nana Acheampong. Gyakie started her music career in 2019 with the release of her debut single “Love Is Pretty”, which received positive reviews from music lovers.
However, it was her hit single “Forever” that catapulted her to international fame. The song, which features a blend of Afrobeats and R&B, became a viral sensation on TikTok and gained millions of streams on various music platforms. It also received critical acclaim from music critics, who praised Gyakie’s songwriting skills and unique vocal style.
Gyakie’s music is known for its positive and uplifting messages, and she draws inspiration from her personal experiences and those of others around her. Her songs are a mix of Afrobeats, R&B, and highlife, and she infuses her native Twi language into her lyrics, making her music relatable to Ghanaians and fans of African music worldwide.
In addition to her music career, Gyakie is also an accomplished graphic designer and holds a degree in International Business from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. She is signed to the record label Flip the Music and has performed at several high-profile events in Ghana and beyond. With her talent, hard work, and dedication, Gyakie.
Gyakie, the sensational afro-fusion artiste has topped the Apple Music Ghana chart with her newest single ‘Scar’ featuring North London’s rapper JBee.
The song released on Friday, April 21, 2023, has achieved a record-breaking success by dominating Apple Music Charts in less than 24 hours after its release.
SCAR, her latest track, is a powerful track detailing love and pain, tells two sides to the story of the hardships in a relationship. Depicting the duality both sonically and lyrically, the story of nuances and layers is heightened through the song’s combination of R&B, hip-hop, and drill.
Flip The Music signed artist, Gyakie teamed up with UK rapper JBee, one of the go-to fresh faces in British Rap to bring her latest single, ‘SCAR’ to life.
Speaking on the release, JBee said, “I was in Ghana for New Year, even though it was the holiday season when Gyakie calls, you answer! We linked up in Ghana and ‘Scar’ was born. Even though I am London born and raised, I’m Ghanaian myself and I’m so happy we got to collaborate and make this track. I hope the fans love this one seeing two worlds collide!”
A group identified as an anti-LGBTQ+ campaigners are rooting for some Members of Parliament from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) ahead of the party’s parliamentary primaries.
The group called the National Coalition for Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values, an umbrella body for a number of organizations championing the passage of the Anti-gay bill has thrown its support for 7 Members of parliament sponsoring the bill.
In a statement by the Executive Secretary/National Spokesperson of the National Coalition for Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values, Lawyer Moses Foh-Amoaning, he urged delegates within the constituencies of these Honourable Members of Parliament to vote massively to keep them in their seat and to help them steer the passage of this all-important bill.
“The Coalition publicly prays for them to be maintained in their constituencies as Members of Parliament to continue the godly works they are doing for their constituency and the nation. Therefore, we ask all delegates within the constituencies of these honourable members of parliament to vote massively to keep them in their seat as they help steer the passage of this all-important bill.
“We are enjoined by the Holy Scripture in Nehemiah 2:18 and encouraged by Zachariah 4:6-9, that the by the help of the Lord and the joint-support of all and sundry, victory shall be secured for these Seven (7) honourable members of parliament who have worked tirelessly to bring the bill to its current status in parliament, where it has now been placed before the plenary for full debate,” portions of the statement said.
The seven NDC MPs led by Sam George are spearheading the passage of the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and the Ghanaian Family Values Bill, 2021 which seeks to criminalize LGBTQ activities by establishing proper human sexual rights and Ghanaian family values, outlawing LGBT-related activities, and protecting and supporting children.
The others include Ho West MP, Emmanuel Bedzrah; South Dayi MP, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor; Krachi East MP, Helen Adjoa Ntoso; La Dadekotopon MP, Rita Naa Odoley Sowah; Kpando MP, Dela Sowah and Tamale North MP, Alhassan S. Suhuyini.
The report on the Anti-LGBT bill was laid before the house on Thursday, March 30, 2023, by the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee and is expected to be debated and approved when the house returns from recess.
Strongman Burner and Medikal, two of Ghana’s best rappers, are currently engaged in some heated beef.
Strongman has released his latest single ‘Dirge,’ which features some scathing lyrics directed at Medikal.
In his rap, Strongman took a shot at Medikal’s taste in women, insinuating that the latter has no taste at all since he decided to marry a woman with a triangle shape. This reference to Medikal’s wife, Fella Makafui, did not go down well with her, and she had to bear the brunt of Strongman’s wrath.
Strongman did not stop there. He went ahead to diss all the rappers in Ghana, stating that they were weak as f*** because all he sees are female rappers. This assertion is sure to ruffle some feathers in the Ghanaian rap industry, with many rappers likely to feel offended by Strongman’s words.
The beef between Strongman and Medikal is nothing new. It has been going on for quite some time now, and it seems like it will not come to an end anytime soon. Medikal is known to be quick to respond to any form of attack, and he has promised to deliver a reply to Strongman’s diss in a day or two.
Fans of both rappers have taken to social media to air their opinions on the ongoing beef. While some are in support of Strongman, others believe that Medikal is the better rapper. The beef has also generated a lot of buzz in the media, with many news outlets covering the story.
It remains to be seen how this beef will end. Will Medikal respond with his own diss track, or will he take the high road and ignore Strongman’s jabs? Only time will tell. For now, fans of both rappers will have to wait and see what happens next in this never-ending beef.
About Strongman’s single ‘Dirge’
Eclectic and sharp-mouthed Ghanaian rapper, Strongman has just released a new single titled ‘Dirge’, and it’s already generating buzz in the hip-hop scene.
Produced by renowned beatmaker Tubhani Muzik, ‘Dirge’ is a hard-hitting track that showcases Strongman’s lyrical prowess and the producer’s exceptional production skills.
The song opens with a haunting piano melody that sets the tone for the track’s somber theme. Strongman raps about the fact that he still remains an undisputed name in the rap game. His lyrics are poignant and heartfelt, and they’re delivered with a raw intensity that’s impossible to ignore.
Tubhani Muzik’s production on ‘Dirge’ is equally impressive. The beat is sparse, with a slow, steady drum pattern that allows Strongman’s vocals to take center stage. The subtle use of strings and horns adds to the song’s mournful atmosphere, creating a mood that’s both introspective and powerful.
Overall, ‘Dirge’ is a standout track that showcases Strongman’s skills as a rapper and Tubhani Muzik’s talents as a producer. It’s a must-listen for fans of Ghanaian hip-hop and anyone who appreciates quality music.
With this release, Strongman has cemented his place as one of the country’s top rappers, and he shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Stream Dirge across all music platforms now and follow Strongman across his socials!
Strongman and Medikal are popularly known for beefing.
The beef between Strongman and Medikal started in 2019 when Strongman released a diss track titled “Don’t Try” aimed at Medikal.
Medikal responded with “To Whom It May Concern”, calling out Strongman for his lack of commercial success.
Strongman fired back with “Immortal”, a track that received critical acclaim for its hard-hitting lyrics.
The beef continued with both rappers releasing several diss tracks, including “Ups and Downs” by Medikal and “Odo” by Strongman.
The feud eventually died down after both rappers agreed to end it and focus on their respective music careers.
State-run news outlet Tass said early on Thursday that a fire started in the reservoir of Russia‘s Ilsky oil refinery in the country’s southwest Krasnodar region.
Tass said that a drone strike was what started the fire, citing emergency services.
According to emergency services, a gasoline tank at theIlsky Oil Refinery in the urban-style hamlet of Ilsky in the Seversky district caught fire because of an attack by an unidentified drone. Firefighters have been sent to the scene, Tass said.
There were no casualties, according to Krasnodar Gov. Veniamin Kondratiev, who said in a Telegram post that residents are no longer in danger.
“It’s been a second turbulent night in a row for our emergency services. A tank of petroleum products at the Ilsky Oil Refinery in the Seversky District has now been confirmed to be on fire. Fire brigades and MES staff of 48 people and 16 vehicles are already at work,” he said.
It comes after Russian state media on Wednesday said a drone strike ignited a fire that engulfed an oil storage facility in the port of Volna in Krasnodar.
Videos published on social media and geolocated by CNN show the oil storage tanks burning.
That facility is close to the Kerch bridge that was set ablaze by Ukrainian forces in October 2022. It is unclear how the fuel storage tank caught fire and Ukraine has not commented on the incident.
Pastor and founder of Bible Counsel International Church at Nuaso in Odumase Krobo in Eastern Region, Rev. Peter Narh has been hospitalized after a near deadly night attack by a self styled prophet alleged to be suffering from hay fever.
The suspect identified as Prophet Narh visited his colleague Pastor at his church in Nuaso on Tuesday May 3, 2023 for evening service.
Both decided to pass the night in the temple, however, the self styled prophet attacked his colleague with some implements picked around to hit the head and face of the victim multiple times leading to serious injuries with blood oozing from the mouth and ears.
He screamed for help prompting neighbors to come to his aide. The suspect however managed to escape.
The victim was rushed to St. Martins De Pores Hospital in Agormanya.
Wife of the Pastor, Mrs. Elizabeth Mamley Narh, told Starr News, the family of the suspect claim he may be suffering from hay fever but escaped from the house for some days.
She said the case has been reported to the police .
Ghanaian actress Nadia Buari and Nigerian actor Ramsey Nouah have been spotted in a wedding photo together.
The picture which has got lots of people talking is actually a sneak peek from the upcoming ‘Merry Men’ movie which is being produced by Nigerian comedian AY Makun.
Nadia shared the photo on her Instagram page and expressed her excitement for everyone to see the “magic” they created in the film. She also teased fans to “anticipate” the release of the movie, which will star other top-notch actors like William Uchemba, Regina Daniels, Sam Dede, and AY himself.
The ‘Merry Men’ franchise has been a huge hit in Nollywood, with both the first and second installments grossing over N200m and becoming some of the highest-grossing movies in the Nigerian film industry. The third movie is expected to be just as successful with a star-studded cast and the addition of Nadia and Ramsey.
This news comes at an interesting time as rumours of marital issues have been swirling around Nadia Buari, who has been married for a while now and has four children. However, it seems like she is keeping busy with her successful acting career and bringing her A-game to the big screen.
Stay tuned for more updates on ‘Merry Men 3’ and the exciting developments in Nollywood!
Meanwhile, netizens have reacted to the lavish wedding ceremony between Nadia Buari and Ramsey Nouah
Many of Nadia Buari’s fervent followers admired the beautiful bride Nadia Buari made.
Many of them could not believe it was a movie as they had wished it happenend in real life.
chidoxflash commented:
Is so beautiful
iniscodugo said:
Something in me is telling me how I wish it was real it’s looks so real
sexyfotografa commented:
Ramsey Noah with the love ❤️…beautiful
afua_lartebea said:
you both look perfect in real life
nimi_ekubo commented:
The decor is mindblowing omo! U guys would have used this for a wedding reception after the movie o instead of wasting this beautiful decor just for movie
gennie_fer_ said:
omg can’t wait
itsvibesangel_ stated:
We are waiting
alexanderboateng commented:
Congratulations
Nadia Buari and her daughter converse in video
Recently Information circulating on social media alleges that Ghanaian Actress Nadia Buari’s marriage is in shambles.
According to a report, Nadia Buari and her husband are having issues and the man has requested for a divorce.
It’s been alleged that Nadia’s husband has moved on and currently dating a woman who he wants to marry. But Nadia is refusing to grant him the divorce.
According to the report, she has allegedly requested $1m before she grants him the divorce.
This comes after Nadia flaunted photos of her husband.
For the first time, Nadia revealed the face of her hubby with a caption that hinted there is a problem.
Controversial German-based Ghanaian blogger, ThoseCalledCelebs featured them on her gossip blog.
From there, secrets about the couple started dropping. As it stands, Nadia Buari’s marriage has allegedly ended in tears!
This is not the first time the duo has been featured together in a movie. Below are some of the movies they have both featured in:
“The Supremo” (2007) – Nadia Buari and Ramsey Nouah co-star in this action-packed Nigerian movie about a young man who is forced into a life of crime and must fight his way to redemption.
“Dangerous Twins” (2004) – Nadia Buari and Ramsey Nouah play twins separated at birth who end up on opposite sides of the law in this Nollywood drama.
“Beyonce: The President’s Daughter” (2006) – Nadia Buari stars as Beyonce, the daughter of the President of Ghana, while Ramsey Nouah plays her love interest in this romantic Nigerian movie.
“Heart of Men” (2009) – Nadia Buari and Ramsey Nouah play a couple whose relationship is tested by jealousy and betrayal in this Ghanaian movie.
“My Love My Sorrow” (2007) – Nadia Buari and Ramsey Nouah star in this Nollywood drama about a young couple whose love is threatened by family interference.
According to Dutch public broadcaster NOS, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in the Netherlands on Wednesday in preparation for a speech he will give on Thursday at The Hague.
The title of Zelensky’s speech is “No Peace Without Justice.”
He will go to the International Criminal Court in The Hague later on Thursday, where war crimes from the invasion of Ukraine are being looked into, according to NOS.
Zelensky left Finland for the Netherlands, where he had a meeting with his Nordic colleagues on Wednesday.
In a statement ahead of that meeting, the Finnish president said the prime ministers of Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland planned to discuss the war in Ukraine and Kyiv’s “initiative for a just peace.”
Twenty-five per cent of pastors are experiencing mental illness according to a mental health clinician.
Dr Kwame Frimpong says this is due to the burden of mixing running the church with challenges posed to them by their members.
The clinician who practices in the USA explained that the men of God play the role of psychologists and counsellors.
He revealed this on an episode of ‘A Walk with Jesus‘ with Pastor Ato Acquah on the ‘Christian and Mental Health’.
The discussion was based on a real-life story of a caller who phoned into Joy FM’s late afternoon programme, ‘Drive Time’, to talk about his decision to commit suicide due to a marital problem.
He said that the issue of mental health has become relevant, compelling some pastors to acquire knowledge in clinical psychology to put them in a good position to speak or help church members on such matters.
This he added, has made pastors become more interested in the subject of mental health.
The mental health clinician urged pastors to take good care of themselves and their souls.
“You can be spiritually powerful and mentally weak if you do not take care of yourself and your soul. Pastors will be overwhelmed if they do not take care of themselves”.
Although there is a growing and worrying inclination toward mental health disorders in churches, the clinician said, “Pastors must not turn themselves into counsellors or psychologists.
“They must employ clinical psychologists or professional counsellors to partner with them in their work”, Dr Frimpong advised.
“As typical Ghanaians, we associate every mental health disorder as spiritual and coming from the devil, and we become ineffective this way in our thinking to help our people. Some of these cases, however, could be demonic”, he said.
Dr Frimpong further recommended local churches get a psychologist or a professional counsellor on board with the church staff so they can partner with the church prayer warriors to work effectively.
He, however, revealed that some of the mental health disorders could be demonic, and others could be psychological.
Dr Frimpong also admonished churches to bring the subject of mental health back to the pulpit and educate its members, “if not, we will see so many things from the pulpit that will affect their performance and eventually cause them to burn out”, he warned.
The campaign team of NDC presidential aspirant, Dr Kwabena Duffuor, is accusing the party of abhorring intentions to rig the NDC presidential primaries.
Per a letter written to the General Secretary of the NDC from the Duffuor campaign team, there seems to be a pervasive feeling that attempts are being made by certain paid persons within the Elections Directorate of the NDC, to rig the upcoming presidential primaries in favour of a certain candidate.
According to the Duffuor team, those persons engaging in obvious underhand activities, are not believing the extent to which the Duffuor-mania is buzzing all over the regions as the former Finance Minister continues to make solid engraving in-roads, hence the attempt to do the unthinkable.
Not prepared to allow any form of thievery nor rigging, the Duffuor Campaign Team, on Tuesday, May 2, 2023, fired a warning letter to the General Secretary of the NDC vis-a-vis the non-citing of the Delegates List/ Voters Register that is to be used for the May 13 elections.
This letter which was very blunt, stated emphatically the legal ramifications of not making available the Voters Register per the Guidelines and Regulations of the NDC.
It is quite obvious that keeping the Voters Register away from the Duffuor camp is to prevent them from having enough time to do a thorough auditing of the register ahead of the election.
“We are too smart for this type of archaic childish rigging formula and so they can never use it to steal our victory” Kofi Kukubor, a member of the Duffuor Campaign Team has said.
Indeed, the letter to the General Secretary was signed by the same Kofi Kukubor, and he is very empathetic that the Duffuor Team shall not accept any attempts to use underhand tactics to rig the election in favour of any candidate.
“In fact, we are so principled that we shall not even accept any agenda to rig the elections in favour of us. We are confident of winning hence our commitment to ensuring that the right things are done”.
It is very baffling how 9 days before the elections, the voters register is still not available to even the a particular Presidential candidate.
Obviously, there are very good reasons why the election should be postponed for all the right and proper things to be done so as to ensure a free and fair voting process.
There is also credible information that some individual delegates have written to their constituency Chairmen demanding the registers to confirm if their names are on it.
From all indications, there is a looming legal process to place an injunction on the election because of the very dangerous nature of the current situation.
The popular rapper took to Twitter to criticize the media outlet for its lack of due diligence before publishing untrue statements about him from a fake account purporting to be him.
He criticized the media for exhibiting no level of professionalism and misinforming the public.
In a tweet,Medikal said, “Some of y’all wake up in the morning, put on some cheap clothes, and spread some BS on national television without doing any research. No form or level of professionalism is exhibited here. When and where did I say this? My question is who de employ these people? Smd.”
The false publication made by the media house claimed that Medikal had asserted that Shatta Wale paved Burna Boy’s path to success and must be given the respect he deserves.
The fake account reported, “Truth be told, it’s time to give respect. Shatta Wale paved Burna Boy’s path to success. But some folks are too proud to accept. Lets give credit where it’s due, and show some respect!!! Without Shatta, Burna may not have had his big break.”
However, the rapper vehemently denied ever making such a statement and demanded that the media house retract its false publication.
Many people on social media agreed with his sentiments while advising him to verify his account if he doesn’t want more bad news circulating in his name.
Samuel Adu Frimpong (born 4 April 1994), popularly known as Medikal, is a Ghanaian hip-hop musician born to Portia Lamptey and James Frimpong in Sowutuom, a suburb of Accra.
He comes from Sowutuom, a suburb in Accra, Ghana. Medikal and Sarkodie had the highest nominations for the 2017 edition of the Ghana Music Awards. In 2018, he was on the Tim Westwood Show. Medikal had his high school education at Odorgonno Senior High. He is the son of James Frimpong and Portia Lamptey. Samuel adopted the name Medikal because he was fascinated with rapping about doctors, surgeons, medical practitioners and hospitals in general. Before he became a musician, he worked as a professional footballer for Ghana Premier League team Sekondi Hasaacas. He has made a name for himself in the music industry through hard work and numerous collaborations with successful artists. Apart from his nominations in 2017, he won the best discovery video in the MTN 4Syte Video Award in 2016. Medikal is known for his fast-paced rap style and witty wordplay in music, and he often incorporates Pidgin English and Ghanaian slangs in his music.
In March 2021, he won the Hiplife/Hiphop Act of the Year in the 3Music Awards.
In June 2021, he won the Hiplife/Hiphop Artist of the Year at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards.
Rapper Medikal is married to entrepreneur and movie star Fella Makafui with one child.
In October 2021, he was arrested for brandishing a gun on social media. He was later charged for unlawful display of arms and ammunition and he pleaded not guilty. He was then remanded to prison custody for 5 days by an Accra Circuit court.At the hearing on Tuesday, October 26, after five days on remand, he was granted bail to the tune of GH¢100,000 with one surety.
The most trending entertainment news in Ghana is the beef between Me Eno Barony and Strongman both renown Ghana Hiphop/Hiplife artists from Ghana. As it stands now both artists have released two diss songs for each other and from the look of things, the beef is just starting.
In an interview on Hitz FM earlier this month, Medial named Eno as one of the best rappers in Ghana but was however quick to note that she can not rub shoulders with him. “She raps better than a lot of the male rappers in Ghana apart from me. I am not part, I am a better rapper, I am in my own world,” he said.
Eno who has been monitoring MDK’s rants on Friday, April 28 released a diss track to MDK titled ‘Warning’ with a music video directed by Narrow Geez.
This is not the first time Medikal and Eno have thrown shots at each other. In 2020, Eno Barony named him as the ghostwriter for Sista Afia when the two female musicians topped trends with their beef.
Tamale North MP, Alhassan Suhuyini, has praised his colleague MP, Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa for exposing what he describes as a ‘holy scam” in the construction of the National Cathedral.
Speaking in a panel discussion on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana on May 3, 2023, the lawmaker stated that if the court had upheld Rev. Victor Kusi Boateng’s case, Okudzeto Ablakwa would have been in prison for daring to expose what he called a “scam done in the holy name of God.”
“Well, if the court had upheld the applicant’s case, Hon Ablakwa would have woken up in prison this morning, for daring to expose a holy scam. It is a scam that is done in the holy name of God. I think Hon Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has to be commended by all well-meaning Ghanaians for how he stayed on this cathedral matter,” he said.
He added that Okudzeto’s exposé has brought to light all sorts of malfeasance and financial impropriety surrounding the project.
He noted that many Ghanaians are now waking up to the scam which was being carried out under the guise of building a house of God.
The Tamale North MP also criticized the government’s decision to pull down bungalows occupied by some justices of the court with their families to make way for the Cathedral. He argued that many people had expressed reservations about the project from the outset, but the size of the crime was not immediately apparent.
He expressed the hope that the project would be subject to greater scrutiny to ensure that it was not used as a cover for financial malfeasance.
“When it began, many people expressed reservations especially when the government at the time decided to pull down some slightly used bungalows that were occupied by some justices of the court with their families.
“…but people didn’t see the size of the crime that we were going to perpetuate in the name of God but fortunately, with the dedication and the focus of Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, many people are beginning to wake up to the scam. You know all manners of things that are not just downright leading to losses of huge sums of money to the Ghanaian people all in the name of building a house of God,” he added.
Meanwhile, an Accra High Court has dismissed the contempt case against Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa brought by the Secretary to the Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral of Ghana, Rev. Victor Kusi Boateng.
This was after the court indicated that the evidence presented by Kusi Boateng and his lawyers was fraught with inconsistencies and doubt.
The court further noted that the contempt application failed to meet the legal standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
Background:
Reverend Kusi Boateng had filed a motion, pleading with the court to commit Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa to prison.
The opposition lawmaker, Okudzeto, had kicked a writ meant to be served on him by a court bailiff on Friday, February 3.
He had given the pretext that he was on his way to Parliament when the bailiff approached him at the forecourt of Accra-based Metro TV to be served Rev. Kusi Boateng’s writ.
Kusi Boateng’s motion sought to draw the court’s attention to a possible contempt case against the lawmaker, citing what he said was untruths when Okudzeto said he was served while on his way to parliament.
This is probably an issue most football fans hardly think of, however it really happens. Naturally all athletes are placed on good diets and avoid a lot of junk foods so it rarely happen they have discomfort in their digestive systems during their field activities.
To be honest if it’s just a pee or urine, players can hold until halftime or the end of the game. But what will be the case if it is a nature’s call. Whoever that player is would be in trouble because on the pitch, a player has a lot of important things to do, from running, tackling, shielding and jumping. So just imagine doing all these with an uncomfortable stomach.
Some footballers were just unfortunate as in the case of Gary Lineker who shat on himself on the pitch during a worldcup match against Ireland. The former England hero revealed in a documentary that he was very desperate to leave the pitch but didn’t want to let his teammates and his country down. He was having a terrible discomfort in his stomach before the game but didn’t backed out. He scored in the match anyway but at a point in the match, he had to stretch for a ball and lost control of his bowels in the process. Indeed that would be a wired feeling.
The laws of the game of football does not permit a player to leave the pitch as the game is in progress because it’s a cautionable misconduct. This is intended to prevent footballers from unsporting departure as the game is in progress.
However, footballers who desperately want to answer an urgent nature’s call can leave the pitch but would have to alert the referee or any nearby official. Similar incident happened in 2018 in a spanish league game between Eibar and Real Madrid. Madrid have had their lead cancelled by Eibar with the scoreline being 1-1. In the 76th minutes,Sergio Ramos left the pitch after informing one official discreetly. He went missing for close to 10 minutes before returning later. In that time Ronaldo had scored again to make the scoreline 1-2. Zidane was asked after the match why Sergio left the field. And bluntly he said ” I think Sergio had to take a shit, he went to the toilet and returned in a minute”. How commanding a nature’s call can be.
Referees will treat such departures just as he allows a player with a torn uniform to go and get it changed. The referee would signal a player to enter the pitch as soon as possible even if play is in progress when he is back.
Again, it will be highly unsporting and offensive for a player to defecate on the pitch, unless it was severely involuntary the player would be cautioned.
The actor who is out with his first single studio recording song seems not happy with how rapper Sarkodie treated him some time ago at Tema.
The actor believes he was despised by Sarkodie because of his awful protruding eyes nature.
According to the actor, he had visited his footballer friend Prince Tagoe at Tema, where Sarkodie and other celebrities like Criss Waddle, Nhyiraba Kojo et al live, so he decided to visit any of these artists since he will be spending some days in their area but the multiple awards winning rapper Sarkodie made his stay short by despising him.
This is how he narrated the story to Kwadwo Boateng Coxbi on Adom FM:
“I respect everybody, though Sarkodie might be older than me but I became popular before him to behave in that manner towards me and he can’t pretend he doesn’t know me.
See, Criss Waddle isn’t my friend but he welcomed me with a great smile, and we had fun with other important conversations.
However, when I saw Sarkodie, it was a different scene. I came out of my car to his car with a wider smile but brother man frowned with a strange attitude and never responded to any of my greetings and words as if he was deaf. I was shocked because he is one of my favorites. I kept asking questions and concluded that it might be my skittish protruding eyes since people of my type are considered evil children in our society.”
He continued: From that day, I told myself I will add music to my acting career to shame Sarkodie and continue to encourage people of my likeness to come out and not feel shy about their nature.
That is why I’m out with my first song titled ‘Flexing on You”, it tells people with either emotional, financial, or special conditions to come out and happily flex,” Sunsum said.
Sunsum Ahoɔfe appealed to the general public to respect others with special conditions and not to behave like Sarkodie.
He also pleaded with listeners to stream his song which is already on most online platforms.
Sumsum Ahuofe
Sumsum Ahuofe Dua is a Ghanaian actor based in the Kumawood movie industry. He is also an MC, brand Influencer, and entrepreneur. He has starred in movies such as Aboro Ne Bayie, Handsome Paddies, and Bosom Ba.
Sumsum Kumawood actor was born in Buokurom, in the Ashanti Region, on November 23, 1994. He is 28 years old and comes from Nkoranza, in the Bono East Region. He had his education up to class five, and this was because there was no money to fund his education. He is the eldest child of his parents. Sumsum has six siblings, two brothers, and four sisters. However, two of his siblings are from the same parents, and the rest are from different fathers.
Sumsum started his acting career at the age of fourteen. He was introduced to acting by the late Ghanaian comedian Ecolac. But before acting, he was a cobbler and a trader in the Buokrom, Ashanti Region, where he grew up. He became a popular actor and got the name Sumsum after featuring in “Aboro Ne Bayie,” a Miracle Films Production. It was a film director and producer named Jones Agyemang who introduced him to the owner of Miracle Films Productions, Mr. Samuel Nyamekye. Aboro Ne Bayie wasn’t Sumsum’s first movie, but that brought him into the limelight, and after this film, he has starred in several Kumawood movies.
Awards
• Comedian of the Year – Kumasi Celebrities Awards 2021. • Honorary Award – FOGYA (Face of Ghana Youth Awards 2022).
The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has promised to reward persons who report incidents of illegal connection to the company.
Members of the general public who report incidents of illegal connection in their various communities will earn 6 per cent of the total debt of the illegal connection reported.
“Citizens who report illegal connection will get 6 per cent of the amount,” the Managing Director(MD) of the ECG, Samuel Dubik Mahama, disclosed at a press conference held on Thursday, 4 May 2023.
He appealed to the public to seize the opportunity to assist the power-distributing company to recover monies owed it.
“Let’s all use this as a means to help ECG. ECG is not for one person, it is for all of us,” Mr Mahama said.
He also revealed that the ECG has so far been able to recover over GHS3.1 billion from defaulting customers over the past weeks.
The ECG recently embarked on a 1-month nationwide mobilisation exercise.
In a statement released early on Thursday, the Ukrainian Air Force said that 18 of the 24 drones fired by Russia on Wednesday night had been destroyed.
“On (Wednesday night), the enemy again attacked with Shaheds from the north (Bryansk region) and from the south – the eastern coast of the Azov Sea,” the statement read. This time, the Air Force destroyed 18 attack UAVs in collaboration with other Ukrainian Defense Forces components’ air defense.
Explosions were heard in the capital Kyiv and Odesa early Thursday morning, with air defenses activated and people told to stay in safe places until air alerts stopped ringing, according to Ukrainian officials.
The capital region’s military chief said Ukrainian air defenses withstood Russia’s most intense air attack on Kyiv since the start of the year overnight and into Thursday morning, and destroyed all Russian missiles and drones.
There were no civilian casualties or damage to residential buildings and infrastructure, he added.
It was eye-saw at the premises of Tamale-based Dagbon-FM, a subsidiary of Class Media, when a former Deputy Northern Regional Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), stormed the premises with a ‘macho man’ and attacked a presenter who was live on air.
Mr. Sadiq was hosting his political talk show in Dagbanli dubbed Panpantua on Class Media’s Dagbon FM when the visibly angry former Deputy Communications Officer, Iddrisu Hardi Pagazaa, stormed into the studio with a macho man to attack him while the programme was broadcast live on Radio and Facebook.
The attack coincidentally happened on World Press Freedom Day when Ghana dropped to 63rd on the Press Freedom Ranking by Reporters Without Borders.
“Sadiq [host] what have I done to you?” Mr. Pagazaa is heard quizzing the presenter in Dagbanli before aggressively holding him by his neck and off his seat.
“Let me hit him just once… You see this man, don’t joke with him, else you’ll die” the macho man was also heard on live radio threatening to beat the presenter before Mr. Pagazaa stopped him.
A fisticuff then ensued amongst them as the presenter attempted to set himself free.
“We are live and I don’t want us to spoil items in the studio, if you know you are a man, let’s go out and fight one-on-one,” Mr. Sadiq was also heard in the exchanges which were carried on live radio.
The NDC Communicator was unhappy that the presenter was constantly using an audio recording of him campaigning for Alhaji ABA Fuseini, MP for Sagnarigu while framing him up for public ridicule.
In the viral audio, Mr. Hardi Pagazaa is heard urging Sagnarigu Constituency delegates of the NDC to vote for Alhaji ABA Fuseini because he was the only candidate among the other candidates contesting the NDC primaries in the constituency to have openly stood and supported the Andani Royal Family during the critical moments of the defunct Dagbon chieftaincy crisis.
The presenter has since been critical of the comments of Mr. Pagazaa, drawing his anger.
A media development and rights advocate, Leatrice Naa Kwarley Richardson urged the media in Tamale to suspend all political talk shows in protest against the attacks.
She told GhanaWeb on Thursday that the media must begin to boycott persons or political parties that continuously attack them.
Madam Naa Kwarley blamed management of media houses for doing little to protect their staff from the constant attacks.
“Most of these politicians treat our media guys with gross disrespect because management does nothing to address abuse when it happens.
They use the platforms and take its moderator for granted because they assume it’s for useless people without no future,” she said.
The General Manager of Yendi-based Sankara Radio, Mohammed Shaharan Suhuyini called for the immediate arrest of Mr Pagazaa.
“Tamale is not an Island. This harassment must not go unpunished,” he said.
Gospel musician Michael Oware Sakyi publicly known as Minister OJ has decided to rebrand his music to suit the deaf.
In collaboration with Silanem Productions has launched a new project to rebrand his music to reach the deaf community by inculcating sign language in his music videos.
“My heart and passion have always been to help the deaf community to understand our music through their language and I believe that this initiative will go a long way to conscientize the entertainment community to include them in our efforts. My music brings healing and encouragement and that is what I am sending to this community with this initiative.”
Minister OJ went on to explain that the project begins with a sign language video of “Ma ye se mo pen” (one of his popular songs) with many more to follow.
Richard Baidoo, the CEO of Silanem Productions added that they were grateful to the musician and his team.
“We are grateful that Minister OJ thought of the deaf community and initiated this, we know it will go a long way to motivate and heal many since it is the first of its kind in Ghanaian Showbiz, we would like to appeal to other entertainers to join the initiative.
Sign Language is a system of communication using visual gestures and signs, as used by deaf people, sign language is not universal, there are many which include, American Sign Language (ASL), British Sign Language (BSL) and Australian Sign Language (Auslan).
However, there are common ones that Minister OJ implies inculcating in his music videos.
Michael Oware Sakyi, popularly known as OJ, is one of the most prolific gospel artists in Ghana. After releasing his debut album, Adom Ne Odo which had songs such as Obi Nya W’aye and Koso Na Koso in 2003, OJ did not go the way of other new artists by following up on his success with a new album. Instead, he got lost for five long years and has now resurfaced.
I have been around but it’s just that the places I have been to are not covered on radio or TV so people don’t hear of me. OJ, however, pointed out that the real reason why he had not been active on the music scene was that he was in school.
I was at the University of Ghana and I wanted to finish and finish well with good grades, so I wanted no distractions,†he explained. OJ was also involved with the British Council on a project that involved extensive touring.
The tour began in September last year and ended in March 2008. Before I even got selected for the tour, I had to go through a lot of things that took up a lot of my time. I wanted to have enough time for my album so I put it on hold, he added.
The second album that his fans have been waiting for has finally arrived titled Ete Sen.
Asked if the long lay-off has affected him in any way, OJ said: Not at all, I have not been affected. In fact, the public response to this album has been very good. Compared to the debut, I think this has been better in terms of sales. This makes me realize that people appreciated the good work I did on the first album which is why they have received this album so well.
Ete Sen is generally an improvement on the first album, Adom Ne Odo. Unlike Adom Ne Odo on which almost all the songs were in the slow vein, Ete Sen has more up-tempo songs though not danceable.
OJ’s songs induce inner reflections in people because of the lyrics which are thought-provoking and he says his inspiration is from the Bible, books he reads, and from life.
The “most-watched halftime show of all time” was Rihanna‘s halftime performance at the 2023 Super Bowl game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs.
In the latest report by Nielsen, a media research and data analytics organization, Rihanna’s performance attracted a total number of 115.1 million viewers.
In February, the multi-award-winning singer took the stage in a half-zipped bright red baggy jumpsuit to entertain spectators at the game.
At the show, the musician also announced she was expecting her second child with rapper boyfriend A$AP Rocky while showing off a visible baby bump.
According to the adjusted report, the figure which was originally set at 113.1 million has now been improved by an additional two million due to “encoding irregularities as well as issues with out-of-home measurement.”
“I really appreciate their diligence in conducting the review and coming to the most correct number possible,” Michael Mulvihill, Fox Sports head of strategic and analytics, said.
“Super Bowl Sunday is the most difficult day for them because you have not just the scale but people are watching on English and Spanish, in and out of home, online and all of that has to be stitched together into a credible number.
“I give them credit for acknowledging the issue, being transparent about it, and get to the most correct number they can get to.
“It was a little deflating when it seemed like we didn’t get the record but now that we know that we did, it’s validating. It gives us pride in the year that we had.”
With the new report, Rihanna’s performance has surpassed the previous record set by Katy Perry’s halftime show during the 2015 game between New England and Seattle — which stood at 114,442,000 viewers, excluding streaming.
Nielsen’s revised report also revealed that the Super Bowl 57 Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles game has become the most-watched Super Bowl in history.
The halftime show for Super Bowl LVII is set up to deliver one of the most memorable solo performances in history.T
Rihanna, a once in a generational artist, will take center stage on Feb. 12 in Glendale, Arizona. She is set to steal the show at Super Bowl in State Farm Stadium — home of the Arizona Cardinals — in a contest between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles. Rihanna is a nine-time Grammy Award winner, a 12-time Billboard Music Award winner and has recently been nominated for Best Original Song [Lift Me Up] at the upcoming Academy Awards.
Rihanna follows Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar, who performed at last year’s halftime act during Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles, Cal. Some of the past Super Bowl performers include The Weeknd, Jennifer Lopez, Shakira, Justin Timberlake, Coldplay, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Bruno Mars, Prince, Madonna, and the legendary list goes on and on.
Rihanna has delivered some all-time hit songs in Umbrella, Only Girl, Don’t Stop the Music, Work, and many more.
Super Bowl LVII
Super Bowl LVII is an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2022 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Kansas City Chiefs defeated the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles, 38–35. The game was played on February 12, 2023, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. It was the fourth Super Bowl hosted by the Phoenix metropolitan area, and the third at this venue, with the most recent previously being Super Bowl XLIX in 2015 (then known as University of Phoenix Stadium).
Both teams finished the regular season with a league-best 14–3 record. This was the Chiefs’ fifth Super Bowl appearance overall and third in the last four seasons. This marked the Chiefs’ third Super Bowl win, having previously won Super Bowls IV and LIV; the Chiefs previously lost Super Bowls I and LV. This was the Eagles’ fourth Super Bowl appearance after a win in Super Bowl LII and losses in Super Bowls XV and XXXIX.
After the Eagles went into halftime up 24–14, the Chiefs mounted a comeback to win the game 38–35 with a game-winning field goal kicked by Harrison Butker. The 73 combined points was the third-highest scoring Super Bowl game.
According to the Ukrainian military, messages aboard Russian drones that were launched towards Odesa overnight read “for Moscow” and “for the Kremlin,” which are ostensibly references to an alleged murder attempt against Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The words on the drones’ two tails can be seen in photos published by Ukraine’s Southern Command, which the command claimed demonstrated the apparent “reason for the attack.”
15 Shahed-131/136 drones were fired at Odesa, according to the Southern Command, and 12 of them were shot down by mobile fire units and air defense forces. The other three impacted student housing at a university.
Ukraine has denied any involvement in what Russia says was a drone attack on the Kremlin and an assassination attempt against Putin early Wednesday morning.
Video on social media shows a bright flash and a puff of smoke over a part of the Kremlin, the official residence of the Russian president and the most potent symbol of power in Moscow. Putin was not in the building at the time, said Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky denied the accusations, saying during a news conference: “We don’t attack Putin or Moscow.”
US officials said they were still assessing the incident, and had no information about who might have been responsible.
Meanwhile, A former Russian lawmaker linked with militant groups in the country told CNN the alleged attack was the work of Russian partisans, not the Ukrainian military.
The best friend of the suspect connected to the killing of Victoria Tetteh, a 23-year-old girlfriend at Dunkwa-Mfuom in the Upper Denkyira East Municipality of the Central Region, has been apprehended by the Dunkwa Divisional Police Command.
He was arrested in his store at Mfuom based on intelligence gathered by police in the late hours of Wednesday 04, 2023.
However, the main suspect is currently on the run.
Stephen Tetteh, a senior brother of the deceased confirmed the arrest.
He alleged that all information that led to the death of their beloved sister were relayed by him to the main suspect.
Tetteh revealed that though they are unable to track the suspect’s location, he has been using the deceased phone which he seized to chat some people.
He appealed to the police to thoroughly investigate, and apprehend the main suspect for justice to prevail.
On Tuesday dawn between 12:00 hours and 01:00 hours, a jealous boyfriend allegedly murdered his girlfriend to death with building blocks over misunderstandings.
It has been gathered that the boyfriend accused the lady of cheating with another, bringing about the anger, envy and hatred which led to her demise.
The boyfriend (main suspect) happens to spend huge monies on the girl and after detecting the act resulted in her gruesome murder.
The body of the deceased was picked up by the police and deposited at the morgue for examination, autopsy and preservation.
Tracey Boakye revealed that she dated her husband for over 13 years.
In a question-and-answer session online, the actress opened up about how she met her husband 13 years ago, dated, broke up, and finally ended up together.
This was in a bid to respond to a fan’s question about how she met her husband.
Tracey stated, “My husband doesn’t want me to talk about him, he doesn’t like trouble. He was my ex. We didn’t just meet and start dating. We were childhood lovers who finally settled. We were lovers for 13 years, broke up, and finally settled. I met my husband 13 years ago.”
In confirmation of what Tracey said, a social media user who claimed to have witnessed their love journey stated that she usually fights ‘Doubting Thomases’ online.
“I knew about this and I fight people who doubt you,” the netizen wrote.
Tracey responded, “You don’t have to fight let them say whatever they want to.”
Tracey Boakye, however, described the feeling of being in love as heavenly.
“I feel like God has opened the doors of heaven. I feel like I am in paradise. True love is sweet. You have inner peace and you don’t even think about anything. That’s how it feels when you find true love,” she stressed.
Tracey got married to her German-based husband, Mr. Frank Badu Ntiamoa sometime in July 2022, and social media have since witnessed a series of public displays of affection from the couple.
Tracey Boakye is a Ghanaian actress, movie producer, and entrepreneur. She was born on January 17, 1991, in Kumasi, Ghana, and grew up in Ashanti Region. Tracey Boakye started her acting career in Kumawood, the Ghanaian movie industry that produces movies in the Akan language. She has appeared in several Kumawood movies, including “Asoreba,” “Odo,” and “Devil Between My Legs.” In addition to acting, Tracey Boakye is also a movie producer and has produced several movies, including “The Devil Between My Legs” and “Baby Mama.” She is also the CEO of Shakira Movie Production, a movie production company based in Kumasi. Tracey Boakye has been in the news in recent times for her controversial social media posts and public spats with other Ghanaian celebrities. However, she has also been praised for her philanthropy work, including the establishment of the Tracey Boakye Foundation, which supports underprivileged children and women in Ghana. Overall, Tracey Boakye is a popular and influential figure in Ghana’s entertainment industry, and her work as an actress, producer, and philanthropist has helped to raise awareness about various social issues affecting women and children in Ghana.
The Kumawood star married colleague actor Frank Badu Ntiamoah in a private ceremony last year July.
In some photos posted on her Instagram account, Tracey Boakye wore a bejewelled mermaid dress.
The couple matched in their kente outfits for the traditional wedding.
Piesie Esther, Obaapa Christy, Afia Schwarzenegger, Brother Sammy and some colleagues of the actress were present at the ceremony.
In one video, the mother of Tracey Boakye was seen fervently praying for her as she readies to walk down the aisle.
This came days after the actress dropped hints about her upcoming nuptials. However, she kept social media users wondering who she will be getting married to.
Weeks before thwedding the actress shared a flyer with the inscription #Francey22. She thanked her team for being discreet with details of her wedding.
She however shared pictures of her fiancé with her fans. The groom, she revealed, is called Frank Badu Ntiamoah.
Mr Ntiamoah also took to his Instagram handle to share some of the pre-wedding photos.
“Thanks for accepting to spend the rest of your life with me YAA, @tracey_boakye I LOVE YOU #francey22,” he wrote.
People’s National Convention (PNC) has commiserated with leader of the party, Dr Edward Nasigre Mahama, over the loss of his son.
The Naval Officer, Ishmael Mahama, is reported to have died on May 2.
Even though there are no details as to what caused his death, the PNC party has expressed its deepest condolences to their leader.
In a statement, the party said, “We feel how weak and fruitless our words would be in our attempt to beguile you and your family from the grief of your son but we cannot refrain from tendering to you the consolation in the Bible that, nothing happens in this world without the knowledge of God, and he has a reason for everything,” his party said in a statement on Wednesday, May 3.
“We pray the God of Abraham would appease the anguish of your bereavement and leave you only with the cherish memories of your son.”
Funeral arrangements for Ishmael Mahama will be announced in due course, 3news.com has gathered.
“Once again, kindly accept our deepest condolences, Your Excellency,” the PNC statement issued by General Secretary Janet Asana Nabla concluded.
Dr Mahama has led PNC in a record five presidential elections in the Fourth Republic.
Convicted Asabke Alangde, who has been sentenced to death after a seven-member jury panel found him guilty has filed a notice of appeal urging the Court of Appeal to set aside his conviction
Asabke, a former Station Master of Bolgatanga-Kumasi Lorry Station was unanimously found guilty after the jury returned a guilty verdict for him on conspiracy.
But returned a 4:3 verdict not guilty for him and Gregory Afoko for the charge of murder while the court had ordered for Afoko’s retrial who also had a 4:3 verdict on conspiracy in his favour.
The two were accused for the acid incident which led to the death of New Patriotic Party’s Upper East Regional Chairman in May 20, 1015.
Six days after his conviction, documents sighted by Starrfm.com.gh indicated that the lawyers for Asabke have filed a notice of appeal to the appeal court for his conviction and the entire ruling to be set aside.
“Please take notice that the 2nd Accused / Appellant herein being dissatisfied with the ruling/conviction by Her Ladyship Wood JA (sitting as an additional High Court Judge) delivered on the 27 of April 2023 at the High Court, [General Jurisdiction 11], Accra, hereby Appeals to the Court of Appeal on the grounds set out in paragraph 2 below and will at the hearing of the Appeal seek the relief set out in paragraph 3 below,” the notice of Appeal filed on Wednesday, May 3, stated.
Grounds of Appeal
Per the groups of Appeal, the notice of appeal states that, “the trial judge failed to adequately direct the jury on the offence of conspiracy in the summing up leading to misdirection and conviction of the 2nd Accused/ Appellant.
“The unanimous verdict reached by the jury on conspiracy and a 4-3 majority verdict for murder for the 2nd Accused/Appellant; and 4-3 majority verdict on both counts of Conspiracy and murder in favour of the 1s Accused person, on the same set of facts and charges cannot be grounded in law and thus void.
“The conviction of the 2nd Accused/Appellant is erroneous and same is not supported by the evidence adduced at the trial.
He is seeking for a relief that, “the entire ruling / conviction of the High Court dated 27 April, 2023 be set aside.”
EIB Network’s Legal Affairs Correspondent, Murtala Inusah, gathered that, his legal team are also contemplating filing Certiorari at the Supreme Court to Quash the conviction of ASABKE on grounds of errors on the record.
*Jury verdict*
The seven member panel on Thursday , April 27, unanimously found him guilty for the offense of conspiracy for murder but returned a 4:3 verdict for him for murder
For Gregory Afoko, the jury which comprised of four ladies and three men also returned a 4:3 not guilty verdict in his favour on both counts of conspiracy and murder.
Justice Afua Merley Wood, a Justice of the Court of Appeal said per the law, said, a 4:3 means it is a “Hung jury” and Afoko must be Retried before another jury.
Before passing her sentencing, the judge said. “Asabke Alangde, the men and women you have chosen to try you have found you guilty of conspiracy,” the court informed him.
Asabke in his last words to the court said, “I have not done anything. I’m pleading with the court.”
Justice Wood while passing her sentence said, “you are sentenced to death by hanging. May God have mercy on your soul.”
Since August 2022, a 13-year-old girl has been the victim of sexual assault by her blood brother, an 18-year-old.
This was discovered when the minor’s brother discovered her being raped in a hut.
The two ran away and didn’t go back home till the next day.
Six kids, including the victim and the culprit, reside with their single mother in a one-room cabin.
Assistant Inspector Webster Dzvova, the acting spokesperson for the Harare Provincial Police, verified the incident and stated that the offender had been detained.
For medical evaluations, the victim was brought to the Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals.
“Police arrested one suspect, in connection with rɑpǝ case involving a minor,” said Ass-Insp Dzvova.
“Circumstances were that the victim and accused person are brother and sister who were staying together in Mvurwi up to December 2022 and later moved to Harare.
“Initially, the incidents started in Mvurwi sometime in August 2022.
“When the family moved to Harare, they continued to stay together as a family of six children and their mother.
“On April 27, at around 0900hrs, the victim and the accused were home after their mother had gone away to perform some jobs in the area.
“Their elder sister had gone to attend a church service when the accused begged the minor to have sexuɑl intercourse with him, promising her some money.
Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, vice president of Ghana, has urged churches to pressure elected officials to put their attention on finding answers to the nation’s problems rather than engaging in divisive and propagandist politics.
He said that rather than trying to hide their actions in the shadows, politicians should let politics shed light on what they did.
At the 46th session of the General Council Meetings of the Church of Pentecost, which began yesterday at the Pentecost Convention Centre in Gomoa Fetteh in the Central Region, Dr. Bawumia made this statement.
“When you see a politician trying to talk, demand data to support what they are saying, so let us focus on light, let us focus on data, let us eschew insults and propaganda, and let us focus on solving problems that face this country on an everyday basis,” he said.
He endorsed an upcoming meeting between the Church of Pentecost and politicians in the country which, he said, had been scheduled to take place from June 14 to 16, 2023, and commended the church for the “bold initiative”.
Electronic system taxis
The Vice-President also used the occasion to give a hint that commercial taxi drivers, particularly in the Greater Accra Region, would be hooked onto a digital system in the coming months to enable them to operate in similar fashion like the other electronic system-based taxis.
“We will be able to place all our taxis, at least in Greater Accra, to start with, all in an Uber-like platform, and you will be able to call for their services just like the Uber and other electronic taxis. It is a practical solution to a practical problem,” he said, adding that “those are the sort of things we as politicians should be focusing on.”
The Vice-President also announced that the public and private sector transport system would soon go on a “tap and go” system to be accessed with oyster cards by the end of this year.
Conference
The three-day meeting, which is being attended by delegates from the Church of Pentecost from across the country and abroad, is on the theme: “Repositioning the local church for maximum impact in the nations”.
The meeting is the highest decision-making body of the church, and would, as part of its deliberations, witness the election of a General Secretary, Chairman and four other executive members to steer the affairs of the church in Ghana for the next five years.
Dr Bawumia underscored the need for good leadership if the country was to advance as a nation.
He noted that “with the Lord at the centre of everything, it is possible for us to make a maximum impact on our nation with the right leadership”.
Dr Bawumia said the Church of Pentecost provided the country with the needed example that, with good leadership, Ghana had what it would take to manage its affairs and make the country the envy of many.
Commendation
While commending the church and its leadership for its commitment and dedication to both the church and national development over the years, Dr Bawumia said the flock of the church had been blessed with very good leaders.
He catalogued a number of projects and initiatives by the Church of Pentecost, particularly, during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying the nation received significant relief from the church.
Dr Bawumia said it was instructive that the church had done all these as an indigenous organisation with no foreign or external support.
He further solicited for prayer support of the Church of Pentecost and other Christian leaders for the peace and prosperity of the country and the world.
State of the church
Delivering his report on the “state of the church” during his five-year stewardship as Chairman of the Church of Pentecost, Apostle Eric Nyamekye paid tribute to leaders of the church, some of whom were retiring and others still in service for their roles and contributions.
He said the church in Ghana during the period grew in membership by 7.9 per cent to reach a total membership of 3,597,955 as of December 2022.
Apostle Nyamekye also announced that the European Commission recently awarded the Pentecost University and five other leading international universities with a €2.69 million grant for, among others, research in application of artificial intelligence, cyber-physical systems and robotics.
The over-an-hour report also touched on various sectors of the church, including the youth and children’s ministry, women’s ministry, education and health.
Apostle Nyamekye, however, expressed disappointment that despite all the successes chalked up, the nationwide outbreak of cocoa disease and rehabilitation programmes continued to affect the socio-economic life of members within cocoa growing areas.
He called on area heads and district ministers of the church to devise measures to tackle the challenges hindering the growth of the church in their respective jurisdictions.
Various medications have been given to the Leklebi-Duga Health Centre in the Volta Region by a group of US philanthropists.
Anthony Kokutse, a US-based traveling nurse, presented the check on behalf of the organization and stated that Le Ann Tedder of Faith in Action in Dallas, Texas, Not Just Tourist in Austin, Texas, Michelle Cunningham in Houston, Texas, and Melissa Cox in Charlotte, North Carolina, were responsible for the donation.
The center’s midwife, Ms. Exornam Togbar, expressed gratitude to the donors after accepting the gifts and added that the medications will be given to patients who visited for treatment.
She appealed to other donors and philanthropists to assist them.
The Chairman for ‘Leklebi Connect’ ( an Organisation of all Leklebi Citizens in Ghana), Reverend Paul Adafia, also lauded the donors for their kind gesture and prayed for God’s protection for them.
The Secretary/Linguist to the Chief of Leklebi-Dugah, Christopher Degboe,who led the various representatives from the adjoining towns of Dugah, Daffor, Agbesia, Fiafe, Kame and Kudzra, was also grateful to the donors of the assorted medications.
The church has been warned not to use the pulpit to advocate or support any candidate or political party before, during, or after the 2024 presidential and legislative elections by Rev. Benson Osafo Kantankah, Chairperson of the Asante Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG).
In order to preserve the church’s impartiality and preserve the tranquility of the nation, he explained, this was necessary. At the durbar of the 101st Presbytery Session of the (PCG) in Kumasi, Rev. Osafo Kantankah made the announcement. Advice
For peace and tranquility to reign, he counseled Christians to properly fulfill their advocate role by fostering unity and sharing Christ’s love with one another.
The clergyman also appealed to the leaders of the country to handle issues relating to LGBTQ+ carefully devoid of politics.
He said those involved in the unfortunate act should not be discriminated against, instead, assisted to change their mindset and help to integrate them into society to lead normal lives.
Rev. Kantankah said it was sad that bribery and corruption were gradually becoming an accepted norm in the society and urged Christians to pray with the necessary actions to tackle the situation.
Galamsey menace
Speaking on the illegal small scale mining menace, Rev. Kantankah called for a stakeholders’ engagement by government through roundtable discussions to make the church make inputs for consideration and necessary action.
“The church as a stakeholder has a major role to play, this is an opportune time for Christians to do something concrete about our physical and spiritual environment,” he added.
Achievements
He said during his tenure as the Chairperson of the Presbytery, there has been a massive growth in church population, acquisition of lands for developmental projects and renovation of existing structures to modern standards, among others.
He said the Presbyterian Church would continue to play its role in supporting the central government’s effort through the provision of developmental projects in the health and educational sectors.
Collective Fight
The Member of Parliament (MP) for Nhyiaeso and Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Stephen Amoah, expressed the belief that the galamsey menace was a national issue that needed a collective and holistic approach by the major political parties since those involved were also members of the parties.
He encouraged the church to continue to support the government’s developmental efforts through the provision of educational and development projects and programmes.
The MP donated Gh¢10, 000.00 and 100 bags of cement to support the church’s development projects.
Dr. James Duah, the Deputy Executive Director of the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG), has pleaded with the healthcare sector to keep the COVID-19 pandemic in mind at all times.
Because “cases are still being recorded at the district level,” he urged Ghanaians to keep up with the COVID-19 protocol.
“We saw positive instances being recorded as we were returning from the field. Dr. Duah stated in an interview on the CHAG’s COVID-19 response and institutional capacity-building (CRIB) programme that among them were serious instances in the Central Region.
CRIB project
The project is helping to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 in 40 districts where CHAG facilities are the designated district hospitals.
With funding from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), CHAG has been complementing government’s COVID-19 response in 40 districts since July 2020.
The CRIB project sought to support the national response to the COVID-19, build institutional capacity to support the continuation of basic healthcare service and also to monitor and evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on health service delivery while sharing lessons learned about implementing COVID-19 response measures.
The 33-month project launched in 2020 also sought to support strengthening the country’s health systems to maintain the delivery of essential healthcare services and mobilising all available resources for quality COVID-19 response actions.
The project provided over GH¢6.0million direct funding to the beneficiary facilities for various activities, including, ICU beds and PPE. Equipment, including ventilators, monitors, ICU beds, and PPE were all provided to the facilities
While the first two years focused on 39 districts in 15 out of the 16 regions, where CHAG facilities are the designated district hospitals, the remaining months sought to improve vaccine uptake in four selected regions and improve vaccine rates and quality of health services to vulnerable groups, including women, girls, children and people living with disabilities (PWD).
Capacity-building
Briefing the Daily Graphic on the report, Dr Duah explained that staff training and equipping facilities with logistics were an integral part of the CRIB project to strengthen health facilities to deliver essential services.
He hinted that a total of 6,998 health staff benefited from a training programme on case management, screening & triaging, COVID-19 testing, contact tracing, risk communication and others.
Those trained, Dr Duah said, were from the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG), the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and quasi government facilities in 39 districts, where the CHAG implemented the CRIB project.
Partnerships
He said there was a wide multi-stakeholder involvement in planning and implementation through the District Health Executive (DHE) platforms, “a situation that deepened partnerships at the local level and elicited direct involvement of district directors of health services in the activities of CHAG facilities.
“The project addressed logistical and financial challenges by directly releasing funds, equipment and PPE in volume and value.
“These supported the establishment of High Dependency Units (HDUs) that were hitherto not available in the CHAG nor the districts in which they were set up. There were also 40 isolation units that were set up,” Dr Duah added.
Case management
The Deputy Executive Director said together with the COVID-19 testing that was extended to the district level, the project facilitated containment, case finding and case management.
“These, together with the nearly 7,000 health professionals who were trained and the logistical supplies, allowed the beneficiary facilities to continuously provide health services to their communities,” Dr Duah stated.
That, he said, had, to some extent, shifted service utilisation closer to the people with outpatient utilisation increasing from 50 to 52.7 per cent at the sub-district level.
“In no small way, the project contributed to reducing maternal mortality by nearly 58 per cent in two years,” he said and added that the facilities also improved in delivery of quality of health services evidenced by the increased average SafeCare rating from an average of level two at baseline to level three.
The World Press Freedom Day is a day to honor the dedication and hard work of journalists around the world, to emphasize the value of press freedom, and to serve as a reminder to governments of their responsibility to protect and preserve the right to free expression.
The Windhoek Declaration, a statement of press freedom principles issued by African journalists in Windhoek, Namibia, which had an impact on UNESCO’s proposal, had recommended World Press Freedom Day to the General Assembly of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1993.
The anniversary theme for this year is: “Shaping a Future of Rights: Freedom of Expression as a driver of All Other Human Rights,” and the local interpretation: “Freedom of Expression: A driver for all human rights for Ghana’s development,” seems not to reflect the happenings in Ghana. Yet, the worldwide remembrance of the day is notable because it also marks the 30th year of its observance.
Thus, the theme is a call to all to refocus on freedom of expression and the media as critical to the enjoyment of all other rights and freedoms, even as the world around us changes dramatically, with events such as the Russia/Ukraine war, the recent Sudanese war between rival military leaders, climate change, near economic downturn and so on.
Article 162 (1) of the 1992 Constitution declares, “Freedom and independence of the media are hereby guaranteed.”
Indeed, Chapter 12 of the said Constitution grants a variety of liberties to the media, including freedom from censorship (Article 162 (2)), total freedom in the establishment of private press or media (Article 162 (3), and freedom from control or interference of editors or publishers of newspapers and other mass media institutions (Article 162 (4)).
These privileges come with responsibilities, which are spelt out in the same document. Ghana’s media has a troubled past.
There have been ups and downs even under long-established democratic regimes.
We recall incidents of brutalisation of media personnel in the discharge of their duties that are considered unconstitutional and stifle the freedom of expression.
These acts of brutality do not find favour with the Constitution and moreover run against the belief that the free expression is a driver for all human rights for Ghana’s development.
As we observe the Day, a rallying cry is issued for the country to refocus on media freedoms and to establish a prerequisite for access to all other rights and freedoms.
Another sore point in the promotion of the rights of freedom of expression is the poor conditions of service of media practitioners.
According to the newly released State of the Ghanaian Media Report by the Media Foundation for West Africa and the University of Ghana’s Department of Communication Studies, journalists have long been abused economically in the country, with salaries in the industry averaging around GH¢1,000.
Other challenges, as detailed in the research, include safety of journalists which is not always guaranteed, particularly for investigative reporters; deplorable working conditions and policies that dwindle the hope of practising.
We request that the government settles all unresolved situations affecting journalists as that would be a good demonstration of faith to journalists.
Furthermore, there must be evidence of commitment to make the media so independent that they do not fear whose ox is gored in their reporting.
To be independent and efficient, the media must never be an attachment of any administration or rely on the generosity of any.
We support the Ghana Journalists Association’s commitment to champion the rights of journalists and promote their cause.
In a recent interview granted by the Member of Parliament for South Dayi, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, revealed the mounting pressure that some National Democratic Congress (NDC) MPs are facing ahead of the upcoming primaries on May 13.
Dafeamekpor explained that MPs are being overwhelmed with requests from constituents to cover various personal expenses such as education, medical bills, and funeral expenses.
According to Dafeamekpor, MPs often feel the need to sponsor these requests not only out of kindness and goodwill, but also to maintain good relationships with their constituents. He noted that this pressure becomes more intense during political seasons, when constituents believe that politicians are under pressure to fulfill their demands.
Dafeamekpor revealed that these requests are coming in “bits and pieces” from various constituents and sometimes include expenses that are not directly related to their role as MPs. He stated that he has personally received requests for funding for naming ceremonies, building school blocks, child support, and farming expenses.
The South Dayi MP also spoke about the financial burden that these requests put on MPs, especially during the primary season. He stated that MPs are already under financial pressure due to the cost of running a campaign, and the added pressure of fulfilling personal requests can be overwhelming.
“There’s a very queer feeling to this as though you maintain the constituents for all these years, maintain your branch executives as well. You sponsor a lot of things, funerals, pay for rent, education, child support, farming, and the demands come in bits and pieces,” he said.
Despite the financial strain, Dafeamekpor emphasized the importance of maintaining good relationships with constituents. He stated that sponsoring some of these requests can go a long way in building trust and goodwill with constituents.
“This continues and when it comes to another election cycle such as this, everyone thinks that well then this is the time to put my demand across because we are under pressure to meet it so that we don’t incur somebody’s wrath,” he added.
The NDC is scheduled to hold its primaries on May 13, 2023, to elect a flagbearer and various parliamentary candidates in the various constituencies nationwide. Dafeamekpor’s comments shed light on the challenges that MPs face during primary season, and the financial burden that comes with maintaining good relationships with constituents.
The issue of politicians fulfilling personal requests from constituents is not unique to Ghana. It is a common challenge that politicians face in many countries around the world. In some cases, politicians are accused of using public funds for personal gain, or using their position to enrich themselves.
However, it is important to note that not all requests from constituents are illegitimate. In many cases, these requests are genuine and reflect the needs of the community. Politicians have a responsibility to respond to the needs of their constituents and to use their position to improve the lives of the people they represent.
At the same time, it is important to ensure that there is transparency and accountability in the use of public funds. Politicians must be held accountable for how they use public resources, and should not use their position to enrich themselves or their families.
In Ghana, there have been several cases of corruption and misuse of public funds by politicians. The government has taken steps to address this issue, including the establishment of the Office of the Special Prosecutor and the passage of the Right to Information Act.
However, there is still much work to be done to ensure that politicians are held accountable for their actions, and that public funds are used for the benefit of the community.
Dafeamekpor’s comments highlight the challenges that politicians face in maintaining good relationships with their constituents, while also fulfilling their responsibilities as elected representatives. It is important for politicians to respond to the needs of their constituents, but also
In connection with a fatal stabbing in Bodmin, Cornwall, a man has been accused of murder.
During a “serious altercation” that occurred early on Sunday in Victoria Square, Castle Canyke Road, Michael Allen, 32, died and seven other people were stabbed.
Since then, six more victims have been released from the hospital.
One count of murder, three counts of attempted murder, and two counts of Section 18 causing great bodily injury with intent have been brought against Jake Hill, 24, of Jubilee Terrace, Bodmin.
He will appear before Truro Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, Devon and Cornwall Police said.
Mr Allen’s family released a statement following the incident calling him a ‘much-loved son, brother, grandson, and uncle who loved his dogs’.
Bodmin Rugby Club also paid tribute, saying he had joined earlier this season ‘and quickly became a big part of our squad’.
‘His humour and kindness has left a mark on us all and we will miss him dearly,’ the club added.
Investigate Journalist, Manesseh Azure, has expressed disgust at the level of impunity enjoyed by security officers implicated in press brutalities.
Speaking at the Ghana International Press Center to mark the celebration of World Press Freedom Day, Mr. Awuni stated that the media space is becoming unattractive to journalists, forcing them into the corporate world while deterring young ones from taking up journalism as their career path.
He, thus, has appealed passionately to the government to help end the menace.
“When an investigative journalist was murdered in the Netherlands, the EU said this was an attack on democracy. An investigative journalist was killed in Malta and it led to the resignation of the Prime Minister. An investigative journalist was killed in Ghana here and the president of the republic went to the bar conference and said this is not an attack on press freedom. If that was not it, what is it?”, Mr. Awuni queried.
He also recounted instances where he had to travel abroad for safety because of numerous death threats on his life.
“I have reported several death threats to the police headquarters but nothing came out of it. I’ve had to leave the country on two occasions and I know other journalists who have gone through hell during this period. It is not fiction, the dangers are real,” he said.
Ukraine vigorously denied Russia‘s unusual allegation that it attempted to kill Russian President Vladimir Putin by using a drone strike on the Kremlin late on Wednesday.
The attack was stopped, according to the Kremlin, and the supposed drones were destroyed. The Kremlin, the official house of the Russian president and the most prominent emblem of power in Moscow, was visible in a video that surfaced on social media.
The Kremlin said in a statement that it saw the purported attack as terrorism and a calculated attempt on Putin’s life. “Russia reserves the right to take retaliatory measures wherever and whenever it sees fit,” it continued.
Ukraine denied involvement in the alleged strike. “As President Zelensky has stated numerous times before, Ukraine uses all means at its disposal to free its own territory, not to attack others,” the Ukrainian presidential spokesman, Sergiy Nykyforov, told CNN on Wednesday.
US officials said they were still assessing the incident, and had no information about who might have been responsible. Whatever the truth, any admission of a security breach at the heart of the Kremlin is remarkable.
Moscow said the alleged attack took place in the early hours of Wednesday. The Russian president was not in the building at the time, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
CNN analysis of video showing the incident support the Kremlin’s claim that two drones were flown above the Kremlin early Wednesday, but did not show evidence of Ukrainian involvement:
A video that appeared to show smoke rising from the Kremlin surfaced on a local neighborhood channel on social media platform Telegram at 2:37 a.m. local time Wednesday. The first reports of the incident citing the Kremlin came via Russian state media TASS and RIA around 2.33 pm local time – around 12 hours later.
Shortly after the first media reports, another video appearing to show the moment a drone exploded above the Kremlin began circulating widely on social media. In the video, the drone appears to fly towards the building’s domed roof, followed by what looks like a small explosion.
In this video, two people appear to be climbing on the dome holding flashlights, and can be seen ducking down just before the moment of the explosion. The people climbing the drone are not present in the first of these videos, but appear in the second, suggesting they were responding to the fire caused by the first drone at the time the subsequent drone appeared.
The Kremlin Press Service has called the purported drone attack an “attempt on the President’s life,” said it was an “act of terrorism” and blamed Ukraine.
But Kyiv said that accusation of terrorism was better directed at Russia. “A terror attack destroyed blocks of residential buildings in Dnipro and Uman, or a missile at a line at Kramatorsk rail station and many other tragedies,” said Nykyforov, the Ukrainian presidential spokesman.
“What happened in Moscow is obviously about escalating the mood on the eve of May 9.” That day is known as “Victory Day” inside Russia, commemorating the Soviet Union’s role in defeating Nazi Germany in World War II.
“It’s a trick to be expected from our opponents,” he said.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak also denied Kyiv had any involvement and said it made no sense for Ukraine to have carried out the alleged strike.
“First of all, it absolutely does not solve any military goals. And it is very unhelpful in the context of preparing for our offensive actions. And it definitely does not change anything at a battlefield,” he said. “This would allow Russia to justify mass strikes on Ukrainian cities, civilians and infrastructure facilities. Why would we need that? What’s the logic?”
Podolyak also said Moscow’s claims were an attempt at controlling the narrative ahead of a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive.
“Russia without a doubt is very afraid of Ukraine starting an offensive on the front line and is trying to seize the initiative, distract the attention and create distractions of a catastrophic nature,” he said. “So, Russian statements on such staged operations need to be taken as an attempt to create pretext for a large-scale terrorist attack in Ukraine.”
A US official said Washington had no warning about the alleged drone attack. “Whatever happened, there was no advanced warning,” the official told CNN, adding that authorities are still trying to find out more.
Another US official told CNN they are still working to assess Russia’s claims, and have not yet validated the Kremlin assertion that Ukraine tried to assassinate Putin.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he had seen reports from Moscow about the alleged attack, but “can’t in any way validate them.”
“We simply don’t know,” Blinken said Wednesday at a Washington Post Live event.
“We’ll see what the facts are. And it’s really hard to comment or speculate on this without really knowing what the facts are,” Blinken added.
The founder and financier of the Wagner private military company, Yevgeny Prigozhin, declined to comment on the alleged attack when asked about the incident.
“I can’t comment on this phenomenon in any way. Maybe it was lightning,” Prigozhin said in a post on his official telegram channel. Instead, the Wagner leader asked for more ammunition.
In his response to the attack, Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin called for the use of weapons capable of “stopping and destroying the Kyiv terrorist regime.”
Kyiv is approximately 862 kilometers (about 535 miles) from Moscow. Russia has accused Ukraine of multiple attempted drone strikes deep inside Russian territory, including one earlier this year when the governor of the Moscow region claimed a Ukrainian drone had crashed near the village of Gubastovo, southeast of the capital.
Former National Women’s Organizer and Minister of Gender and Social Protection of Ghana under the Akufo-Addo government, Madam Otiko Afisa Djaba, has issued a word of caution to the Secretariat of the Ghana School Feeding Programme, to desist from threatening the Caterers who are employed under the policy.
“…when you owe somebody you should be able to talk well to them. I am also giving a word of caution to the secretariat, they should not threaten anybody. The school feeding Caterers are change agents and assets of mother Ghana”, she said.
According to Madam Otiko Djaba, when a child is agitated, you should get closer to that child and talk to him, not shout or threaten them. In this case, she is calling for an engagement between the aggrieved caterers under the School Feeding Program and the government in order to put differences aside and have a working consensus. She believes the caterers are a workforce and an asset to the nation, so they need to be paid accordingly, just as other workers in the country.
Speaking on GTV’s Breakfast show, Madam Otiko, described the amount being paid to the caterers as an insult, looking at the degree of effort and money they invest in feeding schoolchildren across the country. She opined that, at least an amount of GHS 5 per child should be paid to the caterers. She added the humiliation and harassment caterers go through from their creditors because of lack of payment from the government is an eye sore and the government must appreciate them as needed.
Madam Otiko also defended the idea of employing NPP members into the School Feeding Programme saying, it is no crime for someone to belong to a political party and get employed into a governmental policy and therefore will not apologize for that.
She explained that, the majority of the aggrieved caterers were employed under his administration and therefore feels a big worry about their unpaid situation and the treatment meted out to them by the Secretariat.
She further mentioned that it is very important for our future leaders in the basic level of education to be given very nutritious and healthy food as they are young and therefore, with the current economic situation, it will be impossible for that to be realized taking into account the current GH 0.97p being paid to caterers.
The Executive Directors of the World Bank today selected Ajay Banga as President of the World Bank for a five-year term beginning June 2, 2023.
Ajay Banga most recently served as Vice Chairman at General Atlantic. Previously, he was President and CEO of Mastercard, a global organization with nearly 24,000 employees.
Under his leadership, MasterCard launched the Center for Inclusive Growth, which advances equitable and sustainable economic growth and financial inclusion around the world. He was Honorary Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce, serving as Chairman from 2020-2022.
He became an advisor to General Atlantic’s climate-focused fund, BeyondNetZero, at its inception in 2021. Banga served as Co-Chair of the Partnership for Central America, a coalition of private organizations that works to advance economic opportunity across underserved populations in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras.
He was previously on the Boards of the American Red Cross, Kraft Foods, and Dow Inc.
Ajay Banga is a co-founder of The Cyber Readiness Institute and was Vice Chair of the Economic Club of New York.
He was awarded the Foreign Policy Association Medal in 2012, the Padma Shri Award by the President of India in 2016, the Ellis Island Medal of Honor and the Business Council for International Understanding’s Global Leadership Award in 2019, and the Distinguished Friends of Singapore Public Service Star in 2021.
The Executive Directors followed the selection process agreed by shareholders in 2011. The process included an open, merit-based, and transparent nomination where any national of the Bank’s membership could be proposed by any Executive Director or Governor through an Executive Director.
This was then followed by thorough due diligence and a comprehensive interview of Mr. Banga by the Executive Directors.
The Board looks forward to working with Mr. Banga on the World Bank Group Evolution process, as discussed at the April 2023 Spring Meetings, and on all the World Bank Group’s ambitions and efforts aimed at tackling the toughest development challenges facing developing countries.
The President of the World Bank Group is also the Chair of the Board of the Executive Directors of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).
The President is also ex officio chair of the Board of Directors of the International Development Association (IDA), International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and of the Administrative Council of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).
Investigative Journalist, Manesseh Azure Awuni, has asked government to sit up in the fight against press brutalities in the country.
Speaking at an event held to commemorate World Press Freedom Day, on May 3, 2023, he lamented the level of impunity enjoyed by officers from various security agencies implicated in brutalities against press men and women in the country.
In his view, government has performed abysmally in that regard.
“My appeal to the government of Ghana is to stop living in denial. When an investigative journalist was murdered in Netherlands, the European Union (EU) said it was an attack on democracy. An investigative journalist was killed in Malta and this resulted in the resignation of the Prime Minister. An investigative journalist was killed in Ghana and the President of this country went to the bar and said this was not an attack on Press Freedom. If that’s not, then what is it?’ he questioned authorities during his speech.
What baffled him the most, he said, was a claim by a government official (precisely a Deputy Minister of Information) that Ahmed Suale was not a journalist since checks with the Ghana Journalist Association (GJA) and National Media Commission (NMC) could not confirm his profession as a journalist.
He said such utterances does not help in curbing impunity.
He also lamented over the rate at which journalists are quitting the profession and moving into the cooperate world due to poor remuneration, and said the situation may worsen if the brutalities do not stop.
“So my appeal to the President of Ghana, Information Minister and government of Ghana is to stop living in denial, the dangers are real,” he said.
The Church of Pentecost in the year 2022 spent over GHS 3,652,451.00 to support the health care needs of its members at various levels of the Church in Ghana.
In the past four years, under Vision 2023, the Church has spent a total amount of GHS 8,132,040.65 on healthcare support for its members across the country through the local Assemblies, Districts, Areas and Ministries in the church.
Delivering the State-of-the-Church Address on Wednesday, May 3, 2023, at the opening of the 46th General Council Meetings at the Pentecost Convention Centre (PCC) at Gomoa Fetteh, near Kasoa, the Chairman of the Church, Apostle Eric Nyamekye, disclosed that this figure represents the support at the local, district and area levels and excludes the amount spent by the Headquarters of the Church during the period under review.
Apostle Nyamekye further indicated that the church’s ten health facilities (three hospitals and seven clinics), with a total staff strength of 1,096, provided medical attention to 204,184 patients in the various jurisdictions from where they operate.
Flagbearer of the largest opposition party NPP, Nana Akufo-Addo has said Ghana’s purse would be secured under his presidency where no kleptomaniac would be entertained.
Making a case for him to be elected to form the next government in the ruling party’s stronghold, Nana Akufo-Addo accused the government of wantonly dissipating the country’s resources.
The NPP presidential aspirant is in the Volta Region as the first stop of his nationwide tour dubbed “Arise and Build”. He was accompanied on the tour by his running mate Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia and other party officials.
Nana Akufo-Addo said Ghana has no reason to be wallowing in poverty today but for the “massive mismanagement and corruption” under the NDC government.
The NPP, he asserted, have the men and women with the mettle to work honestly for Ghana’s development.
“Where I am and how old I am at least, this is not the time I will start stealing anybody’s wealth,” Nana Akufo-Addo told an animated crowd on Thursday.
“We are coming to do a job for Ghana,” he emphasized.
Nana Akufo-Addo also addressed controversy surrounding his party’s call for a new register for the 2016 general elections. The NDC has rejected the call and accused the NPP of trying to disenfranchise people from the Volta Region.
“Some people are trying to turn our call for a new register into a tribal campaign, a discriminatory campaign,” Nana Akufo-Addo responded, adding that the NPP has nothing against the Volta region.
Only Ghanaians should be allowed to vote in the next elections, he stressed. “We are saying that Ghana’s election is for Ghanaians; Ghana’s election is not a West African election.”
He wondered why the government would have difficulty in agreeing with something that would ensure a clean register like has been done in other African countries including Ghana’s eastern neighbour, Togo.
The only agenda behind the call for a new register is simply a “Ghanaian agenda”, he explained.
The flagbearer was also highly confident that the party will overcome the internal wrangling that is badly affecting the fortunes of the party.
In another development , Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, founder of the National Democratic Party is backing calls for a new register.
The former First Lady points to manual voting and counting of ballots as one of the reasons for protest associated with elections in the country.
It is her position that adopting electronic voting will restore confidence and credibility in the electoral process.
American rapper Rick Ross has promoted Stonebwoy’s recently released album titled ‘5th Dimension’.
The Grammy-award-winning artiste reposted the intro video of the album on his Instagram story to show his support and love for the Afro-dancehall musician’s album.
Rick Ross also commented on the album under Stonebwoy’s post with fire emoji which clearly shows how the Maybach Music boss had fallen in love with the project.
The 5th Dimension album which was released on Friday, 28 April has gained massive attention around the world and it has recorded over 9 million streams on Spotify and Audiomack respectively.
“5th Dimension” is a collection of sounds that showcase the Grammy nominee’s ability to seamlessly fuse different genres and cultures into his music.
The 17-tracked album features both local and international artists such as British rapper Stormzy, Grammy award-winner and African singer Angelique Kidjo, Iconic Nigerian Afrobeats singer Davido, South African DJ Maphorisa, and Jamaican reggae rapper Shaggy, Dexta Daps (Jamaica) and Mereba (US), and Jaz Karis (UK).
After releasing the much-anticipated body of work ‘5th Dimension’, Stonebwoy together with a selected audience partied at the Polo Beach Club in Accra on Friday night to celebrate the release.
The party was to give the audience a feel of the album.
Stonebwoy thrilled the audience with all the seventeen songs on the album having with him Jamaican Sprinter Asafa Powell.
This counts as the fifth body of work of the Bhim president.
Stonebwoy, whose real name is Livingstone Etse Satekla, is a Ghanaian reggae and dancehall artist who has gained widespread recognition for his music. He was born on March 5, 1988, in Ashaiman, a suburb of Accra, Ghana.
Stonebwoy began his music career in 2009 with his debut album “Grade 1 Album.” Since then, he has released several successful albums, including “Necessary Evil,” “Epistles of Mama,” and “Anloga Junction.”
Stonebwoy has won numerous awards for his music, including the BET Award for Best International Act: Africa in 2015 and the Vodafone Ghana Music Award for Artiste of the Year in 2015 and 2019. He has also collaborated with several notable international artists, including Sean Paul, Beenie Man, and Morgan Heritage.
In addition to his music career, Stonebwoy is also known for his philanthropic work, particularly in the areas of education and healthcare. He founded the Livingstone Foundation to support these causes, and has also been involved in several other charitable initiatives.
Overall, Stonebwoy is widely regarded as one of the most successful and influential musicians in Ghana and beyond, and his impact on the reggae and dancehall music scene continues to be felt.
He is a role model to many young people in Ghana and beyond, and his music and advocacy work have helped to raise awareness about social issues such as youth unemployment, inequality, and environmental degradation.
5th Dimensions by Stonebwoy.
Stonebwoy is not letting up on his run as an Afro-dancehall front-runner, and the release of his fifth studio album, 5th Dimension, is further proof of that. The body of work features Stonebwoy’s signature reggae dancehall sound, and includes appearances from an impressive roster of artists like Angelique Kidjo, Stormzy, Shaggy, Mereba, and Davido.
The album consists of 17 tracks that showcase the celebrated Ghanaian artist’s ear for the Afro-dancehall sound and beyond. Stonebwoy’s ability to code switch and tinker with different genres shows itself in the album, underscoring the singer’s distinct story-telling ability.
Earlier in February, Stonebwoy released “More of You,” a lyrical love song and a clarion call coaxing the woman of his dreams to open up more. He kept the momentum going when he released “Far Away” a month later, a rhythmic, effortless, fusion of amapiano and dancehall.
Since his rise to fame in 2012, Stonebwoy — born Livingstone Etse Satekla — has been making waves in the music industry, putting Africa firmly on the musical map through his international touring, high-profile collaborations, and chart-topping singles.
Over the course of his career, the award-winning superstar has collaborated with renowned artists like Keri Hilson, Sean Paul, Trey Songz, Burna Boy, and Alpha Blondie, among others. In many ways, Stonebwoy has become a connoisseur of music, experimenting with different sounds to pin down what exactly works for him. One would describe his sound as ever-evolving, as it often combines his Ghanaian roots with international influences, making it appealing to a global audience. Although he has come a long way since his Grade 1 days, and has since released several successful albums, one thing is certain: he continues to push musical boundaries and put Ghana on the map.
According to state media Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA), Tuesday’s flooding and landslides in western Rwanda killed at least 109 people in the Western and Northern Provinces.
The highways Mukamira-Ngororero and Rubavu-Rutsiro are temporarily closed, according to a warning from the Rwanda National Police.
“We advise you to choose alternate routes. Traffic directing police personnel are on hand, according to a tweet from the Rwanda National Police.
The Rwanda Meteorology Agency had warned in its forecast for May that many parts of the country will receive more rainfall than average this month.
It added that the first 10 days of the month will be wetter-than-normal with increased rains compared to April.
According to the Rwandan Government’s Ministry in Charge of Emergency Management (MINEMA), more than 60 people have died from disasters between January and April this year, and the country’s Northern and Western provinces have been the most hit.
The Northern Province alone has witnessed no fewer than 1500 cases of disaster ranging from floods and landslides in the last five years, with more than 200 people killed and thousands of homes destroyed, according to MINEMA.
Last year, 205 people died from disasters across Rwanda, MINEMA said in its Disaster Effects Situation Report. Sixty-nine were from floods, landslides and rainstorms, the report said.
Moscow’s allegations from Wednesday Ukraine claimed to have flown two drones at the Kremlin overnight in an attempt to assassinate President Vladimir Putin.
The Russian president was not present, says Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for the Kremlin.
The attack was stopped, and the alleged drones were destroyed, according to the Kremlin. Their fragmentation and fall caused no injuries, according to state broadcaster RIA Novosti.
Ukraine says it had no knowledge of any attempted drone strike on the Kremlin, that it did not attack other countries. “We do not have information on so called night attacks on Kremlin,” the spokesman for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Sergiy Nykyforov, told CNN on Wednesday.
“As President Zelensky has stated numerous times before, Ukraine uses all means at its disposal to free its own territory, not to attack others,” Nykyforov added.
A still image taken from unverified footage circulating on social media appears to show the moment of the attack, including a flash and some smoke in the vicinity of the Kremlin. CNN is not yet able to verify the video.
The Kremlin Press Service called the purported drone attack an “attempt on the President’s life.” “Russia reserves the right to take retaliatory measures where and when it sees fit,” it added.
Russia referred to the incident as an “act of terrorism,” blaming Ukraine.
Kyiv said that accusation was better directed at Russia. “A terror attack is destroyed blocks of residential buildings in Dnipro and Uman, or a missile at a line at Kramatorsk rail station and many other tragedies,” said Nykyforov, the Ukrainian presidential spokesman.
“What happened in Moscow is obviously about escalating the mood on the eve of May 9.” That day is known as “Victory Day” inside Russia, commemorating the Soviet Union’s role in defeating Nazi Germany in World War II.
“It’s a trick to be expected from our opponents,” he said.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak also denied Kyiv had any involvement and said it made no sense for Ukraine to have carried out the alleged strike.
“First of all, it absolutely does not solve any military goals. And it is very unhelpful in the context of preparing for our offensive actions. And it definitely does not change anything at a battlefield,” he said. “This would allow Russia to justify mass strikes on Ukrainian cities, civilians and infrastructure facilities. Why would we need that? What’s the logic?”
Podolyak also said Moscow’s claims were an attempt at controlling the narrative ahead of a much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive.
“Russia without a doubt is very afraid of Ukraine starting an offensive on the front line and is trying to seize the initiative, distract the attention and create distractions of a catastrophic nature,” he said. “So, Russian statements on such staged operations need to be taken as an attempt to create pretext for a large-scale terrorist attack in Ukraine.”
A US official said Washington had no warning about the alleged drone attack. “Whatever happened, there was no advanced warning,” the official told CNN, adding that authorities are still trying to find out more.
Another US official told CNN they are still working to assess Russia’s claims, and have not yet validated the Kremlin assertion that Ukraine tried to assassinate Putin.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he had seen reports from Moscow about the alleged attack, but “can’t in any way validate them.”
“We simply don’t know,” Blinken said Wednesday at a Washington Post Live event.
“We’ll see what the facts are. And it’s really hard to comment or speculate on this without really knowing what the facts are,” Blinken added.
Kyiv is approximately 862 kilometers (about 535 miles) from Moscow. Russia has accused Ukraine of multiple attempted drone strikes deep inside Russian territory, including one earlier this year when the governor of the Moscow region claimed a Ukrainian drone had crashed near the village of Gubastovo, southeast of the capital.
A former Ghana Journalist Association (GJA) president, Gifty Afenyi-Dadzie, has urged the media to prioritise the fight against illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, given the devastating impact the canker is having on the environment.
The Veteran Broadcaster made the call at an event held in commemoration of the International Press Freedom Day held on May 3, 2023, at the Ghana International Press Centre (GiPC) in Accra.
During her speech, she called on all media houses to join in the fight and ensure the menace is significantly brought to a halt.
“I believe all media houses should continually highlight the challenges until the menace is brought to a minimum,” she said.
This comes on the back of recent revelations about how Ghana’s mining sector is being exploited.
First, was a documentary aired by Al Jazeera dubbed “Gold Mafia.” It was revealed in this piece that gold worth $40 million is smuggled out of the country annually.
Second is the leaked Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM) report authored by Prof Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng that exposed a number of government officials as either being involved in galamsey or interfered in the galamsey fight during his tenure as chairman of the defunct Committee.
Madam Afenyi-Dadzie during the gathering acknowledged the media’s important role in highlighting the dangers. She, however, bemoaned how the fight has become tough due to ‘powerful’ figures engaged in the menace. That notwithstanding, she urged the media not to give up the fight.
“The media played and is still playing its role in raising concern about the dangers of galamsey which threatens our existence as a people. Subsequent developments have shown that the beneficiaries of galamsey are very powerful and will not easily give up irrespective of the danger to our water bodies and environment.
“On this occasion, it is relevant to remind ourselves that based on the happenings we know now, the agenda to stop galamsey should be treated as a major existential threat that should go beyond the coalition that first highlighted the menace,” she added.
Galamsey’s impact on the environment
Illegal Mining also known as galamsey over the years has had a devastating impact on communities where such activities go on. It is also destroying the country’s virgin forests and water bodies.
At a press briefing held at the Information Ministry on Tuesday, May 2, 2023, Chief Executive Officer of the Forestry Commission, John M. Allotey, stated that thirty-four (34) of the country’s forest reserves are under threat to illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
Majority of these reserves under threat, he said, were in the Ashanti region.
He noted that out of the 16 regions of the country, seven have been experiencing some form of illegal mining.
“Out of this, thirty-four reserves have been affected. These are areas where you have significant illegal mining. The total area that has been mapped is about 4, 722 hectares of forest lands have been impacted. But then this is only the surface. Some of these impacts result in very deep holes and they excavate a lot of materials that will also impact on the forest,” he said.
