A 24-year-old commercial driver has been subjected to a fine of Gh¢14,400.00 or in default, will serve nine months in prison for biting the fingers of a police officer in an attempt to resist arrest.
The sanction was pronounced on him by the Assin-Fosu District court.
The convict, Ebenezer Nkoom, pleaded guilty to 13 different charges including causing harm, unlawful harm, resisting arrest and some seven road traffic offenses and begged for leniency in the court presided over by Abdul Majeed Illiasu.
Prosecuting, Chief Inspector Gilbert Ayongo said the complainants were General Constable Samuel Ayamba and Police Woman Constable Sophia Essel, who are officers stationed at the Central North Regional Police Command of the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD).
He said on Friday, April 7, at about 06:30 hours, the complainants were detailed to manage traffic at the Assin-Fosu old market stretch of the highway where they spotted the convict who was in charge of Hyundai Atos Taxi with registration No. CR 1157-20.
The prosecutor said while the vehicles were in motion, the convict stopped at an undesignated place to solicit for and pick up passengers without reasonable consideration to other road users.
According to the prosecutor, the police officers approached the convict and cautioned him not to pick up passengers at the place, and directed him to leave with his passengers immediately.
But the convict was adamant and replied that he would continue to pick up passengers from that spot until the police arrested all other drivers who did the same.
Barley an hour later, Chief Inspector Ayongo said the convict returned to the same location with impunity which led to his arrest.
He said the officers sat in the vehicle of the convict to be driven to the Regional MTTD office but he instead, drove the officers to an unknown destination and attempted to escape.
He was immediately rearrested and while resisting the arrest, bit the finger of General Constable Ayamba, inflicting severe injuries on his hand, the prosecutor told the court.
The prosecutor said a civilian motor rider who witnessed the incident quickly picked up the injured police officer and chased the convict who drove the vehicle into the nearby bush, abandoned it, and absconded.
The two officers returned to the office and reported the incident to ASP Mr. Wonder Lumor, the Central North Regional MTTD Commander, who deployed two plain-clothed policemen and CID officers to the scene.
He said about an hour later, the convict emerged in the company of two others, and he was arrested to assist with investigations.
A thorough check on the vehicle and documents revealed that the convict had failed to validate his driver’s license since Tuesday, February 1, 2022, and was driving a commercial vehicle at an unauthorized age of 24, instead of 25 years and above.
Also, he was driving a commercial vehicle without a spare tyre, warning signals, fire extinguisher, and others.
Ghanaian TikTok star Asantewaa has described herself as indispensable to the success of Ghanaian artists and their songs.
According to her, she is the salt, and no song would trend without her promotion on her platform.
Bragging about her relevance, Asantewaa said she has contributed singlehandedly to making so many Ghanaian songs hits by dancing to them on TikTok.
In an interview on Accra FM, Asantewaa said that even GHC 10,000 is too small an amount for her to accept to trend the song of an artist.
She initiated that her brand has gotten bigger than that, and she is currently in a position where her influence is more valuable than all other influencers on TikTok.
“I am the salt,. Without me, no Ghanaian son would trend,” she brags.
Asantewaa is considered one of the most popular personalities on Ghana TikTok and has maintained that, apart from making so much from the platform, she doubles as the glue that binds the local music industry.
A deputy communications officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Anthony Kweku Boahen, has alleged that New Patriotic Party (NPP) members who participated in the party’s unity walk at Mpreaso-Kwahu in the Eastern Region, were paid GHS 100 each.
According to him, a source privy to the organisation of the walk dubbed “Walk to Build A Better Ghana”, which took place on Saturday, April 8, 2023, informed of the said payment.
Speaking in a UTV interview on Thursday, April 14, 2023, monitored by GhanaWeb, Kweku Boahen berated the ruling NPP government for squandering Ghana’s resources.
“They are just wasting our money; they don’t know what they are doing. Look at what they went to do in Kwahu.
“I was told everybody who went there was paid GHS 100. The over 2000 people who went for the walk were paid GH¢100 each.
“You bussed these people to Kwahu, you gave them water and food and you gave them GH¢100 each for Easter, where did you get this money from? he said in Twi.
The NDC deputy communications officer said that money used for the walk could have been used for a project which will benefit the people of Kwahu.
“Couldn’t you have built a huge marker in Kwahu for people to get jobs? Because of your wickedness and inability to govern you just squandered the money.”
“… what crime did we commit for us to have such a cursed government,” he added.
Jennifer Oforiwaa Prempeh (Jennifer Queen), the deputy national communications director of NADMO, refuted Kweku Boahen’s allegations.
“He is telling lies… How can we give the over 2000 people, GH¢100 each? Was the money taken from your room?” she said.
A “predator” who raped a 12-year-old in a restroom for the disabled at King‘s Cross Station has been sentenced to ten years in prison.
When he targeted the “extremely vulnerable” schoolgirl, Alvin Tuitt, 24, was already convicted of a “similar offence.”
Police praised the victim for her bravery in cooperating with their investigation and stated that “the impact this incident has had on the victim’s life cannot be measured.”
On October 10 of last year, Tuitt approached the girl at Maryland station in east London and the two struck up a conversation.
Tuitt let her borrow a power pack to charge her phone and paid for her onward train ticket before they travelled to King’s Cross on the same train.
When they arrived at the station, he took her to a disabled toilet where he raped her and then attempted to rape her again.
Later that day, the girl reported the sexual assault to police and Tuitt was arrested, charged and remanded within 24 hours of the attack.
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Tuitt, from Lewisham, pleaded guilty to rape and attempted rape, and appeared for sentencing at Inner London Crown Court on April 11.
On top of 10 years in prison for rape, the paedophile was given a five-year extended sentence on licence.
The judge also sentenced him to eight years, which will run concurrently, for an additional count of attempted rape on the same girl.
He will be subjected to a life-long Sexual Harm Prevention Order and notification requirement for life.
Detective Constable Mark Pink said: ‘The victim in this case was 12-years-old and was extremely vulnerable.
‘She has been extremely brave in telling police what happened and providing testimony to assist the investigation.
‘The effect that this incident has had on her life and that of her family cannot be measured.
‘Tuitt is a predator with a previous conviction for a similar offence and he rightfully now faces a long time behind bars.’
Approximately 18,000 cattle have died in an explosion and subsequent fire at the South Fork Dairy Farm in Dimmit, Texas, per The New York Times.
Emergency responders arrived at the facility on Monday at around 7 p.m. local time and found the fire engulfed in flames that left a big plume of smoke rising to the sky. One employee of the farm was trapped inside the milking parlor and was recovered by firefighters who took her to a hospital in critical condition. She is still being treated for her injuries as of Thursday.
“The Southfork Dairy Farms in Castro County had one female agricultural worker trapped inside a building after the explosion and fire on Monday,” said Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller in a statement. “She is being treated at UMC hospital in Lubbock. Our prayers and our best hopes go out to her and her loved ones. While devastating, I’m grateful that there were no further injuries to Ag workers or any loss of human life.”
It is estimated that 18,000 or so cattle died in the incident, which would make it the deadliest barn fire for cattle in the history of Texas. “The cause of the fire remains under investigation, and we all want to know what the facts are. There are lessons to be learned and the impact of this fire may influence the immediate area and the industry itself,” said Miller, who noted the cleanup and investigation could take a while. “Once we know the cause and the facts surrounding this tragedy, we will make sure the public is fully informed – so tragedies like this can be avoided in the future.”
While the exact number of dead cattle hasn’t been released, it’s still the largest loss of cattle life across the United States in at least two decades, per the Animal Welfare Institute. The most recent mass death of cattle in Texas was in 2016 when a blizzard took the lives of over 35,000 cows.
An investigation is underway after someone broke into a truck trailer and made off with as much as $200,000 in dimes.
Per a report from KYW-TV in Philadelphia, the seemingly cumbersome theft in question was discovered early Thursday. Local police say the unattended trailer was broken into, allegedly with bolt cutters, while it was stationed overnight in a Walmart parking lot.
While initial reports saw police estimating that roughly $100,000 in dimes had been taken from the parked tractor trailer, that estimate—per a separate report from regional outlet WPVI-TV—was later altered to be as high as $200,000 in dimes, i.e. as much as two million individual coins.
“That’s a lot of labor involved too, moving that amount of weight,” Captain John Ryan of the Philadelphia Police Department told reporters.
The truck in question had made a stop to pick up the coins in the Old City area earlier this week, with the driver leaving the trailer in the Walmart parking lot while he slept ahead of the continuation of his trek down to Florida. At the time of this writing, police had not publicly indicated any updates regarding a suspect. The investigation is believed to remain in progress.
“There’s been a lot of cargo thefts here and there in northeast Philly and south Philadelphia over the ensuing months where we’ve had lamb, chicken, TVS, refrigerators, etc. taken,” Ryan told reporters, adding that alcohol has also been targeted in such thefts.
Complex has reached out to the Philadelphia Police Department for additional comment. This story may be updated.
South Florida had devastating flooding and tornado warnings as a result of a powerful storm that brought ferocious rain and strong winds.
This situation is ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued an urgent warning to residents of Fort Lauderdale and adjacent areas of Broward County on Wednesday.
The NWS reported that some communities had received more than 10 inches of rain, including Fort Lauderdale, where the total amount of precipitation on Wednesday was 25.91 inches.
The deluge made Wednesday the rainiest day in Fort Lauderdale’s history on record. The previous record was set in 1979, when a storm dropped over 14 inches of rain.
Two other nearby cities, Hollywood and Dania Beach, reported 18 and 17 inches of rainwater, respectively.
Tornado warnings were also issued for the more inland municipalities of Davie, Plantation, and Lauderhill.
Florida typically only sees high wind speeds and precipitation during hurricane season, which begins on June 1. Meteorologists at the NWS called the storm ‘historic and extremely rare,’ and a ‘1 in 1,000 year event.’
Fort Lauderdale urged residents to stay inside and off the roads and stay home if possible while city workers attempt to clean up the floodwaters before more forecasted storms hit the area on Thursday night.
‘Large parts of the city have been underwater because of the unprecedented amount of rainfall,’ Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis said in a message posted on Twitter. ‘Some streets remain flooded, and there are various roads with broken-down cars and tow trucks continue removing these to improve traffic flow.’
The city posted an update on the flood cleanup at 10.30am on Thursday, but admitted that many roads remained ‘impassible.’
The local government deployed crews with vacuum trucks to clear out storm drains, but said ‘because of the extreme amount of water, most areas will need to drain naturally.’
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport was forced to close on Wednesday night and all day on Thursday ‘due to the volume of flooding and debris on FLL’s airfields,’ the airport said.
The airport is hoping to partially reopen at 5.00am on Friday after clearing one runway for use.
Broward County Public Schools closed all schools in the area on Thursday as well as all after-school programs and extracurricular activities.
Meanwhile, forecasters are warning that the same area could see more flooding on Thursday night.
The NWS in Miami said that the storms developing on Thursday are expected to be ‘scattered and isolated,’ but said they could still form over some of the worst hit parts of Broward County, causing ‘further devastation.’
According to COPEC, the projection is based on the increase in international benchmark pricing from $772.75 per metric tonne to $900.20 per metric tonne indicating a 16.49% rise, the retail price works up to GH¢12.41 per liter.
A statement issued from COPEC and sighted by GhanaWeb Business explained that the “Price of petrol at the retail pumps is therefore expected to increase by an average of 2.01% from the current mean value of GH¢12.16 per liter.”
In that light, petrol is expected to be sold between GH¢11.79 liter and GH¢13.03 per liter.
However, diesel prices are expected to drop by -5.58% from the current value of GH¢12.71 per liter to between GH¢11.40 and GH¢12.60 per liter.
For LPG, COPEC noted that the international price has slightly increased from $530.10 per metric tonne to $535.45 per metric tonne, representing 1.01%.
“Taking into cognizance a decline in the forex rate for the period, the projected retail price of LPG will be expected to decrease by about -4.74% from the current industry retail average of 12.04 per kilogram to GHS11.47 per kilogram due to the drop in the dollar rate,” the statement from COPEC said.
By this, LPG is expected to be sold between GH¢10.90 per kilogram and GH¢12.04 per kilogram when the new pricing window takes effect.
“Knowing that, LPG consumption generally dropped by 12% in 2022, we entreat the Government to consider easing the numerous taxes on LPG or to even consider a subsidy programme on the price of LPG with the view to promoting and increasing its usage and to eventually help save the environment,” it added.
Python is one of the most popular programming languages in the world and for good reason. It’s versatile, easy to learn, and has a wide range of applications.
Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced programmer, learning Python can be a valuable skill that can open up new opportunities for you in the tech industry. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at how to create your first Python program and start your journey in Python programming.
What Is Python Used For
Before we dive into creating your first program, let’s briefly go over what Python is and what it’s used for. Python is a high-level programming language that was first released in 1991. It’s known for its simplicity, readability, and clean syntax, which makes it easy to learn and understand. Python is used for a variety of applications, including web development, data analysis, machine learning, and more.
Python Installation
Now that you have a basic understanding of what Python is and what it’s used for, let’s get started with creating your first program. The first thing you’ll need to do is download and install Python on your computer. You can download Python from the official Python website (https://www.python.org), which offers versions for Windows, Mac, and Linux.
PyCharm IDE Installation
PyCharm is a popular integrated development environment (IDE) for Python that makes it easy to write, debug, and test your code. If you haven’t already, download and install PyCharm on your computer. To install PyCharm, download the installer from the official website (https://www.jetbrains.com/pycharm/), and follow the installation process.
PyCharm is available in two versions: the Community Edition and the Professional Edition. The Community Edition of PyCharm is free and open-source, while the Professional Edition is a paid version that includes additional features such as database support, web development tools, and scientific tools.
Creating Your First Python Program
Now, let’s get started with creating our first Python program!
In case you are searching for a useful resource to assist you in developing your initial Python program, consider referring to the helpful video tutorial attached to the bottom of this article, titled “Learn Python Programming – Your First Python Program Tutorial” created by Code With Dee.
The video provides a comprehensive guide on this subject matter and also includes supplementary suggestions and techniques to help you prepare your first Python program successfully. You can also access the video on YouTube, visit the link provided: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kZS5ZMpPjw.
Or you can follow the steps below to create your first Python program!
Step 1: Open PyCharm and create a new Python file
The first step in creating your first Python program is to open PyCharm and create a new Python file. To do this, open PyCharm and click “File” > “New Project”. Choose the location where you want to save your project and give it a name. Click “Create”.
Next, right-click on your project name in the left-hand sidebar and click “New” > “Python File”. Give your file a name (e.g. “hello.py”) and click “OK”.
Step 2: Write the code
Now that you have created your new Python file, it’s time to write your code. In the empty Python file, type the following code:
name = input(“What is your name? “) print(“Hello, ” + name) print(name + ” says, Hello World!”)
This code prompts the user to enter their name, greets them, and then prints a message saying that the user said “Hello World!”.
Let’s break down this code and understand what each line does:
name = input(“What is your name? “): This line prompts the user to enter their name and stores it in the variable called “name”.
print(“Hello, ” + name): This line greets the user by printing “Hello” followed by their name.
print(name + ” says, Hello World!”): This line prints a message saying that the user said, “Hello World!”.
Step 3: Run the code
Once you’ve written your code, it’s time to run it and see the results! To run your program in PyCharm, click the green “Run” button in the top-right corner of the screen, or press “Ctrl+Shift+F10” on your keyboard.
PyCharm will run your code and display the output in the “Run” window at the bottom of the screen. You should see a prompt asking “What is your name?”.
Type your name and press “Enter”. PyCharm will then print your greeting and the message “YourName says, Hello World!” to the console.
Congratulations, you’ve created your first Python program!
Step 4: Debugging your code
While writing your Python code, you may encounter errors that prevent your code from running as intended. PyCharm has a built-in debugger that can help you find and fix these errors.
To use the debugger, simply set a breakpoint in your code by clicking on the left-hand side of the line you want to debug. When you run your code in debug mode, PyCharm will stop at the breakpoint and allow you to step through your code line by line to see where the error occurs.
Step 5: Saving your code
Once you’ve written and debugged your code, it’s important to save your work. To save your code in PyCharm, simply click “File” > “Save” or “Save As” and choose the location where you want to save your file.
It’s always a good idea to save your work frequently to avoid losing any progress if your computer crashes or if something else goes wrong.
Step 6: Further learning
Congratulations, you have created your first Python program using PyCharm! This is just the beginning of your journey into the world of programming. Python is a vast language with a lot to learn, and there are many resources available online to help you continue your learning journey. Here are a few suggestions for what to learn next:
1. Learn about variables and data types: In the example we used earlier, we used a variable called “name” to store the user’s name. Learn more about variables and data types to understand how they work and how to use them effectively in your code.
2. Explore control structures: Control structures like loops and conditional statements are essential to writing effective programs. Learn more about them to understand how to make your code more efficient and versatile.
3. Discover Python libraries: Python has many libraries and frameworks that can make your life easier as a programmer. Learn about popular libraries like NumPy, Pandas, and Matplotlib to start exploring what Python can do.
Conclusion
Python is an excellent language for beginners and experienced programmers alike, and PyCharm is a powerful tool that can help you write, debug, and test your Python code. By following these steps, you should now be able to create your first Python program and continue your journey into the world of programming.
Remember to practice often, ask questions, and explore new concepts to continue improving your skills. Happy coding!
After successfully organizing a series of entertainment events in December, Akwaaba UK, was back in action during the Easter holidays.
Akwaaba UK held quiet a number of truly entertainment shows from the 6th to the 9th of April, 2023 in Accra, drawing large numbers of ravers.
Singer Cina Soul headlined ‘SoftLife’, an Easter vibes event organized by Akwabaa UK.
SoftLife was held on Thursday, April 6, at FrontBack with live performance from Cina Soul & Asa from Nigeria.
An event organized by Akwaaba UK was ‘The Compozers & Friends’. The event took place at the Polo Beach Club on Easter Sunday.
Musician Camidoh and award-winning rapper, Sarkodie, were in attendance at The Compozers & Friends as a surprise to the many music lovers who attended the event.
Also on April 9, there was yet another highly entertaining event dubbed ‘City Rocks Easter Sunday’ which was held at Kruna The Club in Osu.
Organizers of Akwaaba UK events, Michael Ayenu, popularly known as DJ Mensah, and Dennis Tawiah, were absolutely on top of their game as they ensured that the events give audiences the best of entertainment.
The Supreme Court has declined to block a $6 billion student loan debt settlement involving for-profit schools and vocational institutions accused of misconduct.
According to NBC News, not-for-profit Everglades University, as well as the for-profit institutions Lincoln Educational Services Corp. and American National University, challenged the settlement, which was approved by U.S. District Judge William Alsup in November, claiming Education Secretary Miguel Cardona misused his power to cancel student loan debt under certain conditions.
The Supreme Court was asked to halt the ruling and hear the case. The federal government included Everglades, Lincoln, and American National on a list of more than 150 institutions linked to “substantial misconduct.”
All three claim that being part of the settlement and identified for its alleged misconduct places a dark cloud over the schools. “Being publicly branded a presumptive wrongdoer by one’s primary federal regulator based on undisclosed evidence (or no evidence at all)—without any opportunity to defend oneself—seriously damages a school’s reputation and good will,” the brief reads, according to the New York Times.
Of the thousands of cancelled student loan debts in the settlement, the Justice Department, which represents Cardona, said around 3,800 belong to Everglades, Lincoln, and American National.
The DOJ argued that the settlement is a matter solely involving borrowers and the Education Department, and has no effect on the schools. Alsup declined a request to delay his ruling from going into effect, siding with the Justice Department’s argument that Everglades, Lincoln, and American National were not impacted by being included in the aforementioned list. The Supreme Court is expected to deliver a ruling in regards to the legal battle over Joe Biden’s loan forgiveness program in June.
Paris has increased security as the nation prepares for a major decision on the legitimacy of disputed changes to France’s pension system.
Before the verdict, which might raise France’s retirement age from 62 to 64, the Constitutional Council in Paris, which is similar to the US Supreme Court, has been barricaded.
An authority on French constitutional law told CNN that this is the first time police had protected a court. Laureline Fontaine remarked, “As far back as I can remember, I’ve never seen images like this before.”
Sweeping protests have paralyzed major services across the country this year over French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal, a move that has also riled opposition lawmakers and unions. Uncollected garbage has mounted in the streets of Paris.
There are several possible outcomes to Friday’s ruling. If the law is green-lit, it will go into effect in September. The first retirees will have to wait an additional three months for their state pensions. With regular, incremental increases, by 2030 the retirement age will have reached 64.
There could also be a partial strike down of the law. If only part of it is deemed unconstitutional, the court can opt to pass the remainder of the legislation into law. This would likely still be seen as a win for Macron, who would then be able to offer dialogue to trade unions.
If the court finds that the law in unconstitutional, it cannot be enacted. This is unlikely and would be a political earthquake for Macron, whose government pushed through the legislation without a direct vote by using special constitutional powers.
The council will also decide Friday whether to allow a referendum on the law, called for by the opposition.
Macron has argued that the reforms are essential to rein in public finances, and has been standing firm, this week saying “the country must continue to move forward.”
Thursday marked the 12th nationwide day of protests against the proposals. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets but the interior ministry’s turnout figure – 380,000 – is nearly 200,000 less than the previous round of protests.
Some protesters in Paris forced their way into the headquarters of luxury giant LVMH, with one union leader telling CNN, “if Macron wants to find money to finance the pension system, he should come here to find it.”
The protests have for the most part been peaceful but they have also seen violent clashes.
The higher pension age will still keep France below the norm in Europe and in many other developed economies, where the age at which full pension benefits apply is 65 and is increasingly moving towards 67.
In the United States and the United Kingdom, the retirement age is between 66 and 67, depending on the year you were born. Current legislation envisages a further rise from 67 to 68 in Britain between 2044 and 2046 (although the timing of this increase is being reviewed and could change).
State pensions in France are also more generous than elsewhere. At nearly 14% of GDP in 2018, the country’s spending on state pensions is larger than in most other countries, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Drake has shared his thoughts on a viral clip of an AI-generated version of his voice rapping Ice Spice’s “Munch.”
“This is the final straw AI,” wrote Drizzy in a post on his Instagram Stories alongside a repost of the clip. The original post, as shared by The Shade Room, also highlights the recent report from the Financial Times that Universal Music has asked major streaming services to block companies from training their artificial intelligence using music on their respective platforms.
The post also included AI-generated versions of Rihanna singing Beyoncé’s “Cuff It,” Travis Scott rapping Pop Smoke’s “For the Night,” and Kanye West singing Justin Bieber’s “Love Yourself.”
Image via Instagram
Drake and Ice Spice have a bit of history, as the Canadian rapper was one of the first big stars to show his appreciation for “Munch,” her breakthrough song. He later unfollowed her on Instagram, for whatever reason, and fans speculated that he dissed her on his song “BackOutsideBoyz.” Whatever was going on between them, he’s since refollowed her on Instagram.
Drizzy’s post also comes not long after Nicki Minaj hopped on Ice Spice’s “Princess Diana.”
There’s been growing concern over the use of AI to copy people’s voices, and prolific audio engineer and producer Young Guru has repeatedly voiced his issues with the worrying power of AI with fake Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar verses. Meanwhile, Google has developed a project entitled MusLM, which can generate music from a description after it has been trained on over 280,000 hours of music. The company has not released the project, due to the obvious risk of copyright issues.
UMG is working to block these AI models from using copyrighted content to train their algorithms without any compensation, which is something that has worried creators both small and big for quite some time.
“We have a moral and commercial responsibility to our artists to work to prevent the unauthorized use of their music and to stop platforms from ingesting content that violates the rights of artists and other creators,” said a UMG spokesperson. “We expect our platform partners will want to prevent their services from being used in ways that harm artists.”
Deputy Minister in charge of Mines Hon. George Mireku Duker, has assured the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources that it will collaborate with the Security authorities to ensure that culprits behind the attack at the Benso Mine of Golden Star Wassa Limited are brought to book.
The Deputy Minister also gave the assurance that government will play a frontal role in strengthening the broken relationship between the company and the community.
He added that the Ministry has decided to assume these responsibilities as it recognized its key position as a facilitator of the operations of licensed mining companies in the country.
Speaking during a working visit to the company on Friday, 14 April 2023, Hon. Mireku Duker relayed the messages of sympathy and commiserations from the substantive Minister, Hon. Samuel A. Jinapor to the victims, management, and staff of the company.
Whiles condemning in no certain terms, the actions of the misguided youth, Hon. Mireku Duker said the government has already taken measures to avoid a recurrence of the same.
“On behalf of the Sector Minister, Hon. Samuel A. Jinapor, we convey our heartfelt empathy to the workers, management, and board of this company. The act was uncalled for and I believe that incident must not in any way be encouraged. We are here to comfort the management and workers of this company”, he stated.
“Know that once you have your requisite license, government will always create the enabling environment for you to work. Other issues that called for this will be addressed in due time but we want to comfort you and indicate to you that the government is solidly behind you”, he added.
“We will assist in making sure that the perpetrators are brought to book and I’m happy that the law enforcement agencies are dealing with this”, he said.
The Western Regional Minister, Hon. Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah urged the company to improve its relationship with the community.
While assuring them of his readiness to contribute to the process, the Western Regional Minister said the company must take the initiative to address the concerns of the community.
He also condemned the incident and promised that efforts must be made to avoid the destruction of properties and lives.
Mr. Owusu Achiaw, the Senior Manager of the Processing Department of the company recounted the events of the day and counted the losses of the company.
He described as welcoming the visit of Hon. Mireku Duker and the Regional Minister, noting that it is a firm indicative of the government’s interest in their operations.
After a tour of the site, Hon. Mireku Duker expressed delight with the renovations works ongoing and commended the company for restoring their operations in a relatively short period after the incident.
36-year-old Texas man Larry Pearson has been sentenced to 70 years in prison for allegedly spitting at Lubbock police officers, KLBK/KAMC reports.
Pearson was arrested in May 2022 when a person flagged down an officer for alleged domestic violence. The victim informed the officers that Pearson hit her multiple times and that he had a firearm. Prosecutor Jessica Gorman said the gun later turned out to be an airsoft gun, and the victim had “multiple visible injuries” at the time of the incident.
Pearson was taken into custody. At one point, he started to kick the doors inside the police vehicle, and when he was told to stop he spat at both of them. When he arrived at the Lubbock County Detention Center, he allegedly kept spitting at officers.
At the sentencing this week, Pearson was found guilty of two counts of harassment of a public servant. Gorman asked the jury to “send a message” to Pearson with his sentencing, noting that he had previous convictions of continuous family violence and aggravated robbery. On account of those convictions, he was facing a minimum sentence of 25 years. Instead, he was sentenced to 70 years.
“If you’re going to live the life of crime, you’re going to do that among other criminals [in prison],” said Gorman. “You’re not going to get 70 years for something like this when you’ve never been in trouble before.”
Pearson’s defense attorney Jim Shaw argued that his client was involved in a “simple misdemeanor,” and that the situation simply got “out of control.”
Controversial Ghanaian socialite, Afia Schwarzenegger, has hurled heavy insults at media personality, Yaa Yeboah, for adding her to the list of Ghanaian celebrities who advertise ‘kayamata’ (Love charm/spell) products online.
Trolls targeted at Hajia Bintu for advertising ‘kayamata’ brands have intensified after a viral video where she was spotted vigorously selling such products flooded the internet.
Wadding in the ongoing conversation, MC Yaa Yeboah, while stating that Hajia Bintu isn’t the only female celebrity that sells such products, cited Afia Schwarzenegger as another clear example.
“I have seen people post Hajia Bintu’s video about products that attract rich men, tight vagina and so on. Afia Schwarzenegger is one of the most followed influencers on social media in Ghana, arguably. But Afia Schwarzenegger endorses such videos,” Yaa stated in a video shared on her Instagram page.
Afia Schwarzenegger, after chancing on the said video has torn the lady into shreds.
According to her, she sells sex enhancement products and not ‘kayamata’ as being purported.
“I have heard a lady mentioning my name about some kayamata products and so on. I want to tell you that your mother! Foolish girl! Fool! Do you know the difference between sexual enhancement education and Kayamata? To the lady who mentioned my name, your mother! Fool, goat! Villager! You’re a descendant of a villager. Must you include my name in everything? Were you not the same ones questioning my source of income?” she fumed.
Afia added that she doesn’t sell any product that isn’t FDA approved.
“Fool! All the drugs I sell are approved by FDA. Have you seen me ever selling Kayamata? Child of a goat!” she added.
KiDi in a public statement that announced his comeback after a two-month break highlighted the love and support Ghanaians and music lovers offered him during his absence.
On Friday, April 14 some colleagues of the music and his fans took over the comment section of the post that confirmed the artiste was in good health. This comes after speculations that the reigning VGMA Artiste of the Year was down with a stroke, a claim his management had earlier debunked.
“I have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love from family, friends, fans and the brands I work with. You all made me feel incredibly loved in this difficult period and I can’t appreciate you enough,” parts of KiDi’s statement read.
Die-hard fans of KiDi breathed a sigh of relief and wished him the very best following his assurance of getting back to music production.
“I am glad to be back to doing what I love most; creating music and performing for you. Thanks for sticking it out with me,” he added.
Medikal, Berla Mundi, Fameye, Camidoh, Efya, D-Black are among the lot to have welcomed KiDi with well wishes.
This is in spite of the fact that two weeks earlier, Rishi Sunak gave one suspension-breaker in the County Durham town an extremely hard glare.
After proposing a £200 million fund to address the widespread issue, he was seen looking into a pothole.
However, The Sun adds that it is still empty and appears to have gotten much broader and deeper.
Stephen Harker, Labour leader at Darlington Council, said: ‘If the Conservative council can’t even fill potholes pointed out by the prime minister, what hope do drivers have?
‘Rishi Sunak is running out of road here in Darlington.’
Tories appear to enjoy pointing and staring at the pothole that remains unfixed (Picture: PA)No, this isn’t Reservoir Dogs 2 (Picture: PA)
However, a Darlington Council spokesperson insisted: ‘The pothole will be repaired this week in line with our procedures.’
The Conservatives have claimed their councils fix more potholes than Labour-run councils as the issue becomes a battleground ahead of next month’s local elections.
Labour hit back, accusing the Tories of a ‘decade of broken pothole promises’ after then-PM David Cameron promised to tackle the issue in 2014.
Rishi’s promise has not stopped people taking matters into their own hands, however, with one man filling potholes with pot noodles.
The PM has also come under fire over reports his heated pool uses so much energy the local electricity network had to be upgraded.
As part of the conditions to secure a US$3 billion extended credit facility from the International Monetary Fund, some taxes and tariffs must go up.
These include a power tariff hike, electricity tariff hike, and an upward adjustment of both the Value Added Tax and Electronic Transaction Levy (E-levy).
Among these conditions that were outlined by finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta are also the preparation of an ambitious 2023 budget, with a front-loading of the fiscal consolidation programme and a comprehensive set of structural reforms, notably a public expenditure review.
Also, the Bretton Wood institution expects to see continued monetary policy tightening by the Bank of Ghana to bring inflation under control.
Accra-based Joy FM reports that these were captured in the Investors Presentation by Ken Ofori-Atta and supported by the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Ernest Addison.
Ofori-Atta noted that the government adjusted revenue and expenditure measures to improve debt sustainability and restore macroeconomic aimed at addressing structural bottlenecks contingent liabilities of state-owned enterprises, commitment controls, and arrears accumulation, and domestic revenue mobilisation.
Mr Ofori-Atta also said the government is committed to rebuilding reserve buffers, mobilising external concessional financing from multilateral and bilateral partners, and suspending external debt service payments.
Also, he said the government will safeguard social protection programmes and ensure the burden of adjustment is fairly distributed.
Additionally, he noted that social spending will be targeted to protect the most vulnerable from the impact of the economic crisis and fast-track the implementation of growth-oriented socio-economic policies, such as Ghana CARES to mitigate the impact of the pandemic and support economic recovery.
As part of measures to secure the bailout, the government is aiming at reaching a 1.5% of Gross Domestic Product primary surplus in the medium term, bringing inflation below 8% in the medium-term and restoring external buffers with gross international reserves reaching 3 months of import cover by 2026.
Also, the government is targeting a real Gross Domestic Product growth of 5% over the medium-term and being competitive with exports surpassing 37% of GDP in the medium term.
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has urged landowners all over the nation to settle their debts or face legal action.
Property owners have 42 days to settle their bills.
“All property ratepayers are to settle their bills within 42 days of the bill date,” the GRA announced in a public announcement on, Thursday, 13 April 2023.
The GRA also cautioned property owners against failure to pay their bills, noting defaulters will be prosecuted.
“Defaulters will be prosecuted in accordance with the Local Governance Act 936, Section 154 (1) the court may authorise the sale of your property to recover the outstanding amount owed,” it stressed.
“Pay promptly to prevent any inconvenience,” the GRA added.
Award-winning Nigerian actor, Bisola Aiyeola and Ghanaian actor, Adjetey Anang have been announced as the hosts of the 2023 Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards nominees announcement.
This follows the AMVCA press briefing that took place a few weeks ago.
The announcement is scheduled to broadcast on April 16, 2023, across all Africa Magic Channels on DStv and GOtv from 7 PM WAT.
The movie stars will announce all categories except the MNET original category which will be presented by two child actors, Jasmine Olarotimi and Nifemi Lawal who are also actors in Africa Magic Original telenovelas, The Johnsons, and Ajoche.
Dr. Busola Tejumola, Executive Head of Content and West African Channels at MultiChoice Nigeria said, “We are happy to unveil the nominees for the 9th edition of the prestigious Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards.
“This year, we saw a 40% increase in the number of entries received and hundreds of hours have gone into painstakingly reviewing each of them to arrive at our nominees. Each of the nominees for this year’s award is a reflection of the abundant talent our continent boasts of, and we can’t wait to celebrate them”.
The call for entries which commenced on February 20, 2023, and ended on March 17, 2023, was opened to filmmakers from across Africa whose made-for-television movies or television series fell within the specified timeline and relevance to the categories available.
Of the 33 categories, 10 will be open to a public vote, 2 categories will be decided by live voting at the event and 22 categories will be decided by the AMVCA panel of judges headed by veteran filmmaker, Femi Odugbemi. The AMVCA jury is working alongside Deloitte to ensure the voting process is free and fair.
The ninth edition of the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards is brought to viewers by Africa Magic in partnership with Amstel Malta, and Zagg Energy Drink.
This edition is a 3-day event with the award show scheduled for May 20, 2023, with a live broadcast across all Africa Magic Channels on DStv and GOtv.
The 30th Annual Meetings of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) will take place in Accra, Ghana.
The event schedule for June 18 to June 21, 2023 will mark the high point of the Bank’s year-long 30th anniversary celebrations.
The meeting is on the theme: “Delivering the Vision. Building Prosperity for Africans.”
In a statement, the Bank said thousands of people, including African and Caribbean leaders and senior government officials, African, Caribbean and other policymakers, corporate leaders, bankers, academia and other thought leaders would be in Accra for the meetings.
There will be the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders and an extensive seminar programme, featuring plenaries and side events.
“We thank His Excellency President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and his Government for graciously accepting to host Afreximbank’s 30th Annual Meetings.
“Thirty years ago, the founding fathers of Afreximbank launched a bold initiative for Africans.
The hard work of the past three decades, in pursuit of that vision, has shaped what Afreximbank has become today” said Professor Benedict Oramah, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank in the statement.
The statement urged stakeholders including Member States, the business and international trade community to celebrate the Bank’s achievements and reflect on its future.
“Afreximbank Annual Meetings are open to all those interested and/or active in promoting African trade and supporting the socio-economic
development of African economies,” the statement said.
The previous meetings took place in Cairo, Egypt in June last year.
Afreximbank is a Pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra-and extra-African trade.
For 30 years, the Bank has been deploying innovative structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of the structure of Africa’s trade, accelerating industrialization and intra-regional trade, thereby boosting economic expansion in Africa.
It has launched a Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) that was adopted by the African Union (AU) as the payment and settlement platform to underpin the implementation of the AfCFTA.
Working with the AfCFTA Secretariat and the AU, the Bank is setting up a US$10 billion Adjustment Fund to support countries in effectively participating in the AfCFTA.
At the end of 2022, Afreximbank’s total assets and guarantees stood at US$31.1 billion, and its shareholder funds amounted to US$5.2 billion.
The Bank disbursed more than US$86 billion between 2016 and 2022.
Afreximbank has ratings assigned by GCR (international scale) (A), Moody’s (Baa1), Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) (A-) and Fitch (BBB).
A student convicted guilty of threatening behavior for yelling “f**k the King” and “King Charles is a paedophile” after throwing eggs at the new king.
During a walkabout in York on November 9, 2016, Patrick Thelwell, 23, was detained after tossing “at least five” eggs in the direction of Charles.
He had disputed committing the public order offense, claiming that his use of “low level violence” was “lawful” because it was done in self defense against “the violence committed by the British state.”
Chief Magistrate Senior District Judge Paul Goldspring found him guilty of the charge, saying Thelwell ‘intended to cause King Charles to believe immediate unlawful violence would be used against him’.
Charles and the Queen Consort had just arrived in the city to unveil a statue in honour of the late Queen at York Minster when Thelwell threw the eggs, all of which missed them.
The King continued shaking hands with a member of the public as they sailed overhead, pausing briefly to look at the shells cracked on the ground.
Patrick Thelwell arrives at York Magistrates’ Court (Picture: PA)King Charles reacts after an egg was thrown in his direction in York (Picture: Reuters)Thelwell is charged with threatening behaviour (Picture: PA)
Michael Smith, prosecuting, told York Magistrates Court on Friday that Thelwell shouted ‘paedophile’, ‘King Charles is a paedophile’ and ‘friends with Jimmy Savile’ during the incident.
The court heard the university student was later heard to say: ‘I threw eggs at him because that’s what he deserved. It’s the only justice the victims of colonialisation will ever get.’
He is said to have added: ‘Did I get him? I didn’t get him. Someone will get him.’
Defending himself, Thelwell denied committing unlawful violence, telling District Judge Goldspring he acted ‘out of necessity’.
He said: ‘The violence I was accused of is throwing an egg.
‘If that amounts to unlawful violence then the violence carried out by the British state is at such a severe level I can’t be held accountable for my crime while the crimes of the British state go unpunished.’
He told the court ‘millions of people’ agreed his actions were ‘just, moral and necessary’.
Thelwell, of the University of York, was convicted of using threatening, words or behaviour.
MUSIGA has called on Gyedu-Blay Ambolley and Kofi Otchere-Darko (KOD) to bring a stop to their feud.
In a statement issued and signed by the union’s Acting President Bessa Simons, MUSIGA also asked music fans to stoking up the fires of the feud.
MUSIGA indicated that it believes both Ambolley and KOD “are passionate about the growth, development and preservation of highlife music.”
It also expressed belief that the awards scheme cited by both Ambolley and KOD in their fight; the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMAs), and others “all have good intentions for the Ghanaian music industry in general, and highlife music in particular.”
Finally, MUSIGA revealed that the National Folklore Board has applied to The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for Highlife music to be listed as part of Ghana’s Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH).
See the entire April 13 2023 statement below:
In a March 2023 interview, Ambolley asserted that the premier and flagship music awards scheme VGMAs has over the years sidelined Ghana’s indegenous music Highlife for foreign genres such as Jamaiaca’s Reggae/Dancehall.
By so doing, Ambolley argued, Highlife has been buried.
KOD, in reaction, called Ambolley’s opinion “nonsense,” arguing that the Highlife musician had failed to evolve with the times and was now blaming an awards scheme which, in his opinion, has offered great support to Highlife music and its artistes.
From here, Ambolley called KOD “shallow-minded” and KOD in turn called him “insincere” and a “charlatan.”
Luxury brand Dior has been accused of racism on Chinese social media over an advertisement showing an Asian model pulling up the corner of her eye.
The French label posted the picture on its Instagram account earlier this week, before swiftly taking it down.
Dior has not made any public comment. The BBC has asked them for a response.
Chinese netizens have become increasingly sensitive to the depiction of Chinese people amid rising nationalist sentiment online.
The controversial picture was posted six days ago to promote Dior’s new makeup collection. It shows the model pulling up her eye with the caption “Channel your feline fierceness”.
It was later reposted by netizens on Chinese social media platforms, where it received criticism and sparked the viral hashtag “Dior makeup advertisement accused of discriminating against Asians” on Weibo.
The picture was posted on Dior’s Instagram account but has since been taken down
Angry comments have also flooded the label’s Instagram account. “It’s racial discrimination,” a top-liked comment reads.
“Are you trying to make money and play racism at the same time?” a Chinese user posted.
State-owned newspaper Global Times published an editorial calling on the brand to apologise.
“‘Pulling your eyes back’… makes fun of the appearance of Asians, especially East Asians,” it said. “We hope that Dior can face up to its mistakes, make a sincere apology and response to Asian society, and make clear statements on how to prevent similar problems from happening in the future.”
Some netizens have also called on Chinese celebrities who model for Dior to end their association with the brand.
But there are also some who think the discussion is over the top.
“An extreme unconfident person won’t be able to take any level of humour,” one Weibo user wrote.
“Those who buy Dior never think it insults China, it’s always those who don’t buy that are concerned by it,” another one said.
This is not the first time Dior has been caught up in controversy in China, one of its biggest markets.
A Chinese fashion photographer’s picture for the brand sparked outrage in 2021 after some netizens said it perpetuated Western stereotypes of Asian faces. The photographer later apologised and Dior said it “respects the sentiments of the Chinese people”.
In 2022, Dior was accused of “culturally appropriating” a Chinese traditional design for one of its skirts.
A Chinese snack brand was also previously accused of racism for using a model with narrow eyes in its advertisements.
TikTok influencer, Hajia Bintu has since attracted numerous backlashes from the public including Us-based Ghanaian Economist, Dr. Sa-ad Iddrisu after a viral video of herself promoting love charms or “Kayamata” to extort money from sexual partners.
Dr. Sa-ad Iddrisu has condemned the act and described women who indulge in that with low self-esteem.
He believes a confident woman does not need love charms to stay attracted to men or be gifted money.
In a post on social media, Dr. Iddrisu says “Low self-esteem women are those who need love charms to tie a man down. You can make a man love you without a single charm. Well, unless you are using men as a business to make money. In that case, you would definitely need thousands of love charms.”
Expressing disappointment in the TikTok star of her recent stands describing women as a sex symbol and now advertising love charms such as “Do As I Say, Love Me Alone, Love & Pay, etc. while calling on the feminine society to call her to order.
Dr. Iddrisu also advised young ladies to be vigilant and not allow themselves to be brainwashed. “Young Ladies, don’t be brainwashed by social media advertisements. The advertisers themselves hardly use the products they advertise on their pages”
Nigerian-born music superstar, business visionary and international nomad Mr Eazi has announced the formation of a new pan-African music group, Choplife Soundsystem.
The group will also consist of UK-based, Kenyan-born afrobeats selector and tastemaker DJ Edu, as its resident DJ, along with an informal crew of contributing DJs, artists and producers from across the continent. Mr Eazi will be the primary vocalist on Choplife Soundsystem recordings, and will also serve as its MC — or Minister of Enjoyment— at live events.
Choplife Soundsystem derives its name from the popular West African pidgin slang phrase chop life, meaning “enjoy life,” along with the traditional soundsystems that are the backbone of Jamaican music culture. In Jamaican parlance, a soundsystem is a mobile crew of DJs and MCs, typically financed by a prominent local businessperson, who present music together at public events, such as street parties, clubs and festivals.
Recent years have seen international outfits like producer Diplo’s Major Lazer project put their own spin on the format, functioning as both creators and performers of original music, as well as a tastemaking DJ crew. With Choplife Soundsystem, the always-visionary Mr Eazi is putting a modern, African twist on soundsystem culture, incorporating genres like amapiano and afrobeats to curate the ultimate African party experience— both on original studio recordings and at curated live events.
Inspired to take the vibe and spirit of his successful Ghana holiday party Detty Rave on the road, Mr Eazi “soft launched” Choplife Soundsystem with events in Cotonou, Benin; Stockholm, Sweden; and Kigali, Rwanda, in 2022. Mr Eazi will announce further details about Choplife Soundsystem, including new music releases, partnerships and live events, later this Spring.
“I’m going back to where I started from, hosting the biggest parties at uni,” Mr Eazi says. “That’s how I started singing. I am looking forward to this new and fun ride, and I can’t wait for all the music to start dropping and the accompanying live experience”.
Follow Choplife Ministries on Instagram and on Twitter for further updates and announcements.
Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has explained that there will not be another round of domestic debt restructured.
An earlier report had indicated that whiles the minister was making an address at the ongoing IMF/World Bank Spring meetings, he hinted at a possible debt restructuring targeted at pension funds.
According to him, the statement he made was misconstrued to mean he said there would be a second round of DDEP.
“We are not planning a second round of the domestic debt exchange programme for pension funds. I think it was a misunderstanding,” he is quoted by myjoyonline.com
He maintained that the earlier agreements reached with organized labour to exempt pension funds from the DDEP still hold and have not changed.
“We reached an agreement with organised labour association that pension funds were exempted. That has not changed,” he added.
The finance minister and other members of the economic management team are currently in Washington D.C. for the annual IMF/World Bank spring meetings.
The team is expected to make the final push for Ghana’s pending request for a $3 billion request from the IMF.
A former auctioneer has consented to admit to fabricating numerous false Jean-Michel Basquiat artworks, which a significant art museum later displayed.
According to the US Attorney E Martin Estrada‘s office, Michael Barzman, 45, of North Hollywood, California, was charged with lying to FBI agents about a conspiracy to sell knockoff Basquiat artwork on Tuesday.
According to the plea deal that Barzman signed in March, he produced the paintings in 2012 with a partner who could only be known as JF, and they divided the proceeds 50/50.
Basquiat’s artwork has fetched record sums of money in recent years, with one painting selling for $110.5million at Sotheby’s in 2017.
The paintings were displayed at an Orlando Museum of Art exhibit entitled ‘Heroes and Monsters’ in 2022 (Picture: AP)
‘JF spent a maximum of 30 minutes on each image and as little as five minutes on others, and then gave them to defendant to sell on eBay,’ the court document reads. Barzman and JF created about 20-30 paintings in 2012 on pieces of cardboard – some of which were taken from FedEx packages sent to the swindler’s home.
‘After finishing the images, defendant and JF placed them outdoors to expose them to the elements and thus create an aged appearance consistent with works made in the 1980s when Basquiat was painting,’ prosecutors said.
Barzman and JF then worked to establish a fraudulent provenance for the paintings. Provenance is the record of ownership of a piece of artwork dating back to the original artist.
Barzman was able to do this through his auctioneering business, which focused on purchasing and reselling the contents of storage units.
Barzman’s business purchased a storage unit previously belonging to Thaddeus Mumford Jr, a prominent screenwriter from the 1970s through 1990s who worked on television shows including M*A*S*H, Home Improvement, and The Cosby Show.
Barzman claimed he found the fake Basquiat pieces in Mumford’s storage unit after he died in 2018. After they were sold on TKTKTK, they were eventually exhibited as part of the ‘Thaddeus Mumford, Jr Venice Collection.’
When FBI agents interviewed Barzman in June, 2022, he repeated this story, telling them the paintings ‘might have been’ Basquiat’s. At a later interview that August, he told the FBI ‘I was like almost 90% sure they did.’
The paintings eventually made their way to the Orlando Museum of Art, where they were exhibited as part of a Basquiat collection from February 12 to June 30, 2022.
However, critics quickly pointed out that the paintings might be fake.
The museum’s art director, Aaron De Groft, insisted that the pieces were legitimate. ‘My reputation is at stake as well,’ he told the New York Times.
The FBI eventually raided the Orlando Museum of Art, seizing the counterfeit paintings on June 24, 2022 – just six days before the exhibit was set to close. De Groft was fired five days later.
In the plea agreement, prosecutors revealed that FBI agents noticed another startling clue about one painting’s authenticity: ‘agents pointed out that a shipping label bearing defendant’s name and former address was attached to the cardboard on which the painting had been created. There was dried paint on top of the shipping label.’
Barzman eventually admitted to the scheme after another interview in October 2022. He faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for the charge of lying to a government agency.
‘Mr Barzman was drowning in medical debt after battling cancer for decades,’ the counterfeiter’s attorney stated. ‘In desperation, he participated in this scheme because he was afraid of losing his health insurance. Since then, he has cooperated and done everything asked of him to compensate for his poor judgement.’
The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA)’s move to clamp down on unregistered products continues in various parts of the country. In the latest twist, nine persons have been arrested by the FDA in some parts of Koforidua, the Eastern Regional capital for selling unregistered products.
The Eastern Regional FDA office together with the Koforidua Central Police Command on Thursday, April 13, 2023, organized a swoop at five major information centres within three areas.
The suspects were apprehended for engaging in the sale of unauthorized products such as herbal medicines and cosmetic products in the form of capsule mixtures and balms.
Areas visited by the three teams included Nkurakan, Asokore, and Efiduase.
Other areas include lorry stations and Herbal retail shops within the New Juaben South Municipalities.
Mr George Ampofo Ayeh, the Regional FDA Public Relations Officer on Nkawkaw-based radio station, Agoo FM said authorities are on the verge of eradicating unregistered drugs from the Ghanaian market.
He said a series of similar exercises will be held across regions with their focus on suspicious information centres and hidden areas.
The five-hour operation, which commenced at 5:30 to 10:00 am was the first phase of the exercise which targeted information centres due to complaints reaching the FDA of suspicions of selling illegal products.
Adding up, he indicated that the second phase of the exercise would also be on the selling of unregistered sex enhancement products or aphrodisiacs.
Aspiring flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr Kwabena Duffor has promised to treat grassroots consultation with the utmost importance should he be given the nod.
According to him, the party was founded primarily because the founding father of the NDC, the late Jerry John Rawlings, was passionate about the poor and needy, as well as issues confronting delegates at the grassroots level.
Thus, Dr Duffour indicated that grassroots levels are the pillars of the party and need to be prioritised.
“We must take care of the grassroots. You are the bedrock of the party, the foundation of the party. How do we make appointments without consulting you?
“In my administration, when I become the leader, yesterday I mentioned it, we have to link the government and the Party. And the Party structures must be well-formed. Right now, the government is here, the party is somewhere.”
“That’s why Yendi, all these years have not seen the place of a minister, deputy minister as ambassador or the CEO. It has to change immediately,” the aspiring flagbearer emphasised.
He made these statements at Yendi in the Northern Region on Thursday, April 14, 2023.
Subsequently, Dr Duffour emphaised the essence of consulting people from the grassroots level in the appointment of persons for some positions.
He also assured that should he become flagbearer of the NDC, he would ensure that there is a unit designated for such purposes is created.
“In my administration, there will be a unit within the party headquarters that will also be involved in the appointment of ministers and other jobs, ambassadors. We have do it from the grassroots.”
He also hinted at a pension scheme for cadres who formed the party have dedicated their lives to the service of the NDC.
“We owe it to them to provide them with the financial security they deserve in their retirement years. The Pension Fund is a symbol of our commitment to serving the party and its members, both in the present and in the future,” he added.
The expression “blood, sweat, and tears” is frequently used to describe the efforts of dedicated workers, but it is rarely meant literally.
After it was discovered that a server had poured her own blood into a customer’s cocktail, the café where she worked in Japan fired her.
Beginning in March, the Sapporo city’s entertainment sector saw the opening of the Mondaiji Con Café Daku, which loosely translates to “Problem Child Dark Café.”
Its ruse is to employ young ladies who are “problematic” and “mentally unstable” as waitresses while dressing gothic and donning black makeup.
But it appears one of the waitresses took her role a little too far and added her blood to a drink, reportedly at the request of a customer.
The café apologised for what happened in a tweet on April 2, saying what happened was ‘absolutely not acceptable’ and calling the incident ‘borderline terrorism’.
It confirmed the woman was fired 18 days after opening, and the café was closed for a day while it replaced all its glasses.
Blood cocktail? No thank you. Thankfully this is just a stock image and no real blood was used to make it (Picture: Getty Images)
It apparently costs 2,500 yen (around $25) for customers to drink all they want at the café.
The owner of the café further tweeted: ‘I started the shop with the idea that if I could give a little bit of wages to a girl who would find it difficult to work in a normal workplace and stabilise her life, I would be mentally stable [for her]. I’m here.
‘However, as long as we gather people with this kind of concept, it’s fair to say that it’s the responsibility of the management who couldn’t anticipate it.’
Dr Zento Kitao told Japanese magazine Flash: ‘Drinking the blood of other people is an extremely dangerous act.
‘Cases of people getting infected from drinking another person’s blood are rare, but major diseases can be transmitted through blood, including HIV, Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B and syphilis.
‘If there are wounds in the mouth, it is easy to be infected by blood transmissions.’
He advised both the waitress and person who consumed the cocktail to get their blood tested.
Japan recently also hit the headlines for introducing controversial vending machines selling meat from Asian black bears.
Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) today released financial results for the March quarter and provided its outlook for the June quarter of 2023. Highlights of the March quarter, including both GAAP and adjusted metrics, are on page five and incorporated here.
“Thanks to the outstanding work and dedication of the Delta team, 2023 is off to a strong start. We provided well-deserved pay increases for our people and paid more profit sharing than the rest of the industry combined. Delta is building momentum, with the best people in the industry generating nearly $5 billion of operating profit over the last twelve months,” said Ed Bastian, Delta’s chief executive officer. “For the June quarter, we expect to deliver record revenue, and an adjusted operating margin of 14 to 16 percent with earnings per share of $2.00 to $2.25.”
“With solid March quarter profitability and a strong outlook for the June quarter, we are confident in our full-year guidance for revenue growth of 15 to 20 percent year over year, earnings of $5 to $6 per share, and free cash flow of over $2 billion,” Bastian said.
March Quarter 2023 GAAP Financial Results
1. Operating revenue of $12.8 billion
2. Operating loss of $277 million with an operating margin of (2.2) percent
3. Pre-tax loss of $506 million with a pre-tax margin of (4) percent
4. EPS of ($0.57)
5. Operating cash flow of $2.2 billion
6. Payments on debt and finance lease obligations of $1.2 billion
7. Total debt and finance lease obligations of $22 billion at quarter end
March Quarter 2023 Adjusted Financial Results
1. Operating revenue of $11.8 billion, 45 percent higher than the March quarter of 2022 and 14 percent higher than the March quarter of 2019, including a 1-point impact from flying lower capacity than initially planned
2. Operating income of $546 million with an operating margin of 4.6 percent
3. Pre-tax income of $217 million with a pre-tax margin of 1.8 percent
4. Earnings per share of $0.25
5. Operating cash flow of $2.9 billion
6. Free cash flow of $1.9 billion
7. $9.5 billion in liquidity* and adjusted net debt of $21 billion at quarter end
Paramount Chief (Omanhene) of Gomoa Ajumako Traditional Area, Obrempong Nyanful Krampah XI, has joined scores kicking against same-sex marriage or relations in the country.
He said any other foreign cultural practice that is inimical to Ghanaian cultural values should be rejected.
“Such cultures are alien to Africans and we, Nananom as custodians of the land will not support those practices which are completely against our traditions.
“We will therefore encourage our parliamentarians to pass the LGBTQ+ Bill pending before the House into law.
“I know the stiffer punishment as contained in the bill would deter people who want to engage in such illicit acts and behaviour to bring sanity in the society,” the Omanhene said.
Obrempong Krampah made the remarks while interacting with chiefs, heads of clan, kingmakers and government officials at the funeral of the late Nana Afadzi Mensah VI, Chief of Gomoa Aboso in the Gomoa Central District of the Central region.
The Omanhene said sanctions in the bill, if passed would send a message to the whole world that Ghana was an independent country and could manage its own affairs, including “our way of life and cultural beliefs.”
He said all those who claimed to be human rights advocates could move out of the country into other countries to practice whatever they believe.
He called on traditional authorities and other stakeholders to stand firmly against the alien culture to safeguard the customs and traditions of the land.
Obrempong Krampah said, “We cannot sit down unconcerned while the youth who are our future leaders are pushed to engage in foreign cultures and practices contrary to our tradition.”
He condemned some of the practices of the youth who were copying blindly, saying, “All of these have come about because we go with cup-in-hand to borrow money for developmental projects and programmes.”
The Omanhene said the independence of the country must empower Ghanaians to wean themselves from the colonial rulers, adding that Ghana beyond aid must work for the betterment of the citizenry.
He urged traditional rulers to initiate self-help projects in their communities through contributions from both residents at home and abroad to stop contracting foreign loans for infrastructural development.
He called on chiefs to involve the youth in day-to-day activities as a way of preparing them for responsible leadership while inculcating in them the true culture and tradition to enable them to embrace their own heritage.
Mr. Woodberry, also known as Jacob Ponle, a close associate of notorious internet fraudster Ramon Abbas, popularly known as Hushpuppi, has admitted to engaging in wire fraud.
In a plea declaration filed on April 6, 2023, at the US District Court of the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, Mr. Woodberry admitted guilt to one count of the indictment.
As part of his plea agreement, he agreed to relinquish his luxury cars, watches, and $8 million in wire fraud proceeds to the US government.
According to the Nigerian blog, People’s Gazette, the court plea agreement requests that Mr. Woodberry repay the $8 million he fraudulently obtained from seven businesses that he defrauded.
The plea reads: “Defendant understands that by pleading guilty, he will subject to forfeiture to the United States all rights, titles, and interests that he has in any property constituting or derived from proceeds obtained, directly or indirectly, as a result of the offence.”
In addition, Mr. Woodberry was ordered to relinquish his claim to the expensive cars and designer watches he had hidden in Dubai, including a Lamborghini Urus, a Mercedes-Benz G-class, and a Rolls-Royce Cullinan.
In addition, six gold neck chains, three pairs of gold and diamond-studded earrings, four Rolex watches, one Patek Philippe watch, three Audemars Piguet watches, and one Patek Philippe watches were confiscated.
It’s important to remember that Mr. Woodberry already gave the American government 151.8 Bitcoin in 2022. On June 10, 2020, Hushpuppi and Mr. Woodberry were captured in Dubai for their participation in cybercrime.
Mr. Woodberry had a reputation for flashing his money on social media before his arrest, notably by donning pricey designer attire and showing off his ill-gotten earnings to his enormous Instagram following.
Following the discovery of the leak of highly classified military papers pertaining to the Ukraine War, a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard was detained in the United States.
The Pentagon has deemed Jack Teixeira, 21, to be a “very serious risk to national security” after he allegedly removed confidential information about national defense without authorization.
According to US attorney general Merrick Garland, FBI agents descended upon Teixeira’s residence on Thursday, and highly armed tactical agents arrested Teixeira outside the building ‘without incident’.
Who is Jack Teixeira, exactly? Here is what you should know:
Who is Jack Teixeira?
Jack Teixeira, who comes from a military family – his stepfather having served in the US military for 34 years – was an airman 1st class at Otis Air National Guard Base in Massachusetts, according to his service record.
Having joined the Air National Guard in 2019, he is reported to have worked as a ‘cyber transport systems journeyman’ – basically an IT specialist overseeing the security of military communications networks.
He lives in North Dighton, Massachusetts – a small town around 50 miles away from Boston – with his family, and attended high school there.
Teixeira is also the leader of a small online chat group hosted on the chat client Discord, which is believed to have uploaded hundreds of photographs of classified documents.
The online group which calls itself Thug Shaker Central, has around 20-30 members who share their love of guns, racist memes and video games.
Two members of the group allegedly identified Teixeira as the source of the leak, on condition of remaining anonymous.
What was in the leaked documents?
The documents which were leaked contained sensitive and classified information about the war in Ukraine, as well as offering information on other countries including China.
They are reported to have discussed Ukraine’s troop deployments, military vulnerabilities and efforts to arm its forces before a spring counteroffensive.
Private conversations between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his intelligence chief were also intercepted, along with evidence of the US spying on its allies.
The documents have also suggested that military special forces from the UK are operating inside Ukraine – saying that more than half of the Western special forces in the country between February and March this year may have been British.
The National Guard previously said in a statement: ‘We are aware of the investigation into the alleged role a Massachusetts Air National Guardsman may have played in the recent leak of highly-classified documents.’
Air Force Brigadier General Pat Ryder, the Pentagon spokesman, referred all questions about the case to the Justice Department. But he said: ‘We have rules in place. Each of us signs a non-disclosure agreement. This is a criminal act, a wilful violation of those.’
It is believed the documents were shared in an apparent attempt to impress members of the group, rather than to achieve any particular foreign policy outcome.
A cyclist who was imprisoned for running over an elderly church minister, who later passed away from her wounds, was discovered dead months after her release.
On June 7, 2021, Stewart McGinn, 30, crashed with Jane Stone, a retired teacher, age 79, after climbing the pavement and speeding around a turn in Monmouth, South Wales.
The incident was unavoidable for Mrs. Stone, who was returning home from the theater with a friend that evening, and she was “poleaxed” by the impact, Cardiff Crown Court heard.
She begged McGinn to help her, saying, “I’m on my own. Please help me,” but he rode away, leaving Mrs. Stone laying by the side of the road with a severely shattered skull.
She died in hospital four days later.
McGinn handed himself in to police 10 days after the crash and pleaded guilty to causing bodily harm by wanton or furious driving while being in charge of a bicycle.
He was handed a 12-month prison sentence in July last year but went missing after being released halfway through the term.
Police put out a missing person appeal after he was last seen near his home address in Monmouth on Tuesday.
But on Thursday the Gwent force said: ‘A body of a man was discovered in woodland. Formal identification has yet to take place, however we have notified the family of Stewart McGinn.
‘We’re not treating the death as suspicious at this time, and a report has been prepared for the coroner.’
Prosecutor James Wilson said McGinn – who only had one working brake on his bike – came round the corner ‘at speed’ and collided with Mrs Stone.
He said: ‘She fell to the ground landing on her head and suffered a severe fractured skull. The defendant did not stop or offer any assistance but cycled away.’
Mrs Stone’s friend Janet Bromley said Jane was ‘poleaxed’ to the ground by the force of the blow and was left ‘her eyes rolling and mouth frothing’.
The prosecutor said Mrs Bromley told police: ‘He collided with Jane’s body. The front of the bike collided with the front of Jane’s body.
‘Her feet were lifted off the ground and it caused her head to poleaxe to the ground. I heard an almighty crack as her head struck the pavement.’
A victim impact statement from Mrs Stone’s brother David Bruton said his sister was not ‘a frail old lady’ and was ‘healthy and active’ who would go on long distance walks and took part in swimming and yoga.
Ben Waters, defending, said of McGinn: ‘He will have to live with the consequences of his actions and causing the death of another person.’
Ladies and gentlemen, it’s official!Kidiis back and better than ever before! The Ghanaian superstar recently took to his Instagram page to address rumors that he had suffered a stroke, and we are happy to report that he has cleared the air.
For those who may not be aware, rumors had been circulating on social media that Kidi, real name Dennis Nana Dwamena, had suffered a stroke and was unable to move his limbs. This news sent shockwaves through the music industry and among his fans, who were understandably worried about his health.
However, in a recent post on his Instagram page, Kidi put all the rumors to rest. He shared a video of himself dancing energetically to one of his hit songs, and it’s safe to say that he looks absolutely fine!
In the post, Kidiwrote, “Rumors of me suffering from a stroke are false. I am healthy and doing well. Thank you to all my fans for your love and concern.”
The news of Kidi‘s return has been met with great excitement from his fans, who have been eagerly anticipating new music from the award-winning artist. Kidi has been working hard in the studio and has promised to release new music very soon.
In the meantime, fans can catch up on Kidi’s previous hits, including “Say Cheese,” “Enjoyment,” and “Touch It.” These songs have been dominating the charts and airwaves for months, and it’s no surprise why – they are absolute bangers!
So there you have it, folks – Kidi is back, and he’s ready to take the music industry by storm once again. Let’s all join in and wish him the best of luck in all his future endeavors!
A little under two months ago, I made the painful decision of cancelling my tour to take care of my health that included taking time off social media. In that time, I have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love from family, friends, fans and the brands I work with. You all made me feel incredibly loved in this difficult period and I can’t appreciate you enough.
Unfortunately, a few bad actors took this as an opportunity to spread false stories that got a lot of you very concerned. While I do not want to give it any more attention, I want to categorically address that those stories were false.
I am glad to be back to doing what I love most; creating music and performing for you. Thanks for sticking it out with me.
Brother of late Member of Parliament (MP) for Kumawu, Philip Basoah has suggested to the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to allow a relative of the deceased MP to replace him instead of allowing other party members to contest for the seat.
He believes this is the best way the party can compensate Mr Basoah for his many years of hard work.
Speaking in an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme “eight people are currently contesting the seat. But for someone who had worked hard in the constituency, they could have just said they won’t contest and even allowed a family member to go. But the number of people contesting really puts me off and shows they never cared about him,” he fumed.
He further made some shocking revelations following his death.
To Solomon Basoah, his late brother was not treated fairly while he was alive.
He said despite the MP’s loyalty to NPP, constituency executives worked against him.
“My brother really suffered before dying. Even in Parliament, a lot of people were aware of the treatment meted out to him. The constituency executives never liked him. They even organise meetings without his knowledge. If he were alive today and we are going for elections, trust me, the executives would have deserted him because majority of them are not in his camp,” he said.
Mr. Basoah also alleged that, the District Chief Executive (DCE), Samuel Addae Agyekum was spreading false rumours about the late MP even when he was battling for his life.
The pained brother said he is shocked eight people including some constituency executives have picked forms to contest in the by-election.
Asked if he would still do politics after his brother’s death, Solomon said “I won’t bother venturing into politics again. I am an Electoral Area Coordinator and after my tenure, I won’t bother to continue. My brother went through a lot and I cannot see myself going through that too,” he noted.
Traders Advocacy Group (TAG) has said price increases on the market are not the fault of traders because the expense of doing business has escalated to astronomical proportions.
According to the group, traders are unable to travel or import goods because of capital losses.
The group noted that policymakers are not doing enough to put the appropriate policies in place to assist trade facilitation in the country.
In a statement, the group explained that as far as the commodity market is concerned, importation is necessary because some goods cannot be produced in Ghana. It said imports provide over 60 percent of the nation’s needs but the cost of importation has escalated.
It, therefore, called on Ghanaian traders to disregard groups that issue orders without taking into account the traders’ perspective on the facts.
It noted that retailers do not need to reduce their prices and run the danger of capital loss because the inflation rate is declining while adding that there are many factors, not just one, influencing the drop in pricing.
For Ghanaians to be safeguarded from price hikes, TAG called on the government to listen to their plea for a decrease in the cost of doing business in the country.
This statement comes on the back of a call by the leadership of some traders for their members to reduce prices in the market because inflation rate was declining.
First son of Ghanaian Entrepreneur Osei Kwame Despite could not withhold his love for his wife on her birthday as he flaunted her on social media.
Kennedy Osei expressed his love in an Instagram post, wishing his beloved wife, Tracy Osei, a Happy Birthday, he said: “May your GRACE continue to SHINE and never dim. God bless you boo.”
Tracy on April 14, marked her 26th birthday. She is a professional fashion designer who completed Krobo Girls Senior High School (SHS) in 2014.
The young Fashion Designer started her journey to becoming a fashion expert at Radford University College at East Legon in Accra where she studied Fashion Design.
She currently works at Saf Dieu, an emerging Ghanaian fashion brand as a fashion designer and illustrator.
She got married to Kennedy in 2020.
While Tracy may be married into a rich Ghanaian family, she is herself, from a relatively rich Ghanaian home.
It was also later reveled that Tracy designed her own wedding gown, which finishing was done by Pistis, a Ghanaian fashion brand known across the world due to its impeccable crafts.
Ghana’s projection to secure an Executive Board approval from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for its $3 billion loan-support programme by the end of the second quarter of 2023 is likely to happen.
This is because Ghana’s largest bilateral creditor, China, which the country owes $1.7 billion, has agreed to speed up processes for its debt treatment.
“China [and all creditors] has agreed that it [debt treatment] has to be speedily dispensed. That is a great step forward because once you recognise that you have to do it in time and at the earliest, it moves faster. So, I expect a resolution for these countries,” Nirmala Sitharaman, Finance Minister, Republic of India said.
She was speaking at a press briefing of the Group of 20 Presidency’s (G20) second Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) at the ongoing 2023 IMF/World Bank Group (WBG) Spring Meetings in Washington DC, US.
“We had around the table, Sri Lanka, Zambia, Ghana, Chad [which] has already been attended to, and Ethiopia. So, discussions were to ensure that the resolutions for these countries should happen on time. All stakeholders in this matter should come on board to talk,” she said.
She added that: “The point is that it [debt treatment] is very time-consuming and even when the IMF says it is handling your affair, it does take time, and we found that almost all of them, inclusive of public and private creditors, of them, said it must be addressed at the earliest time.”
During an investor presentation on the sidelines of the spring meetings, Ghana’s Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, said the Government is expecting an IMF Executive Board engagement and approval in the second quarter of 2023.
The Government is having preliminary and technical discussions with Bondholders Committee Advisors and Bilateral Creditors Secretariat and Technical Teams – as well as Bilateral and Private Creditors – which are expected to conclude by the end of April, to gain financial assurances for the $3bn loan-support programme.
“The restructuring of the external debt is necessary to restore debt sustainability and ensure the full financing of the programme,” Mr Ofori-Atta said.
He emphasised that Ghana’s creditor engagement strategy would be anchored on transparency, good faith efforts for a collaborative process to restore debt sustainability, fair treatment across creditors -consistent with IMF debt sustainability analysis.
Already, the IMF, World Bank Group and the Group of 20 Presidency (G20), have all pledged to increase concessional financing to Ghana to address the country’s current debt challenges.
“Work will be undertaken on principles regarding cut-off dates, formal debt service suspension at the beginning of the process, treatment of arrears, and perimeter of debt to be restructured, including domestic debt [for Ghana and other developing countries],” Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director, IMF said on Wednesday.
Ghanaian authorities in December last year, reached a Staff-Level Agreement with the IMF, and currently awaiting the Fund’s Executive Board approval for the three-tier $3 billion loan-support programme under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF).
The country completed its Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) and engaging its external creditors for debt operations for the loan facility, which is aimed at restoring macroeconomic stability, while protecting vulnerable.
Currently, some officials from Ghana, including Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of the Economic Management team, are with the Finance Minister and the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, at the ongoing IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings to engage commercial, bilateral, and multilateral creditors to secure the IMF Board approval.
After years of hard work in the music industry, Ghanaian rapper, E.L, in 2016 was crowned the Artiste of the Year at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMA).
He won big at the night as he also swept away the Hip Hop Artiste of the Year. It was a moment to celebrate however, critics and naysayers marred this glorious time of his life with claims of him buying the title.
Others asserted that he did not deserve the ultimate title as Artiste of the Year.
The negative energy from a section of the public later caused the rapper to take a break and go mute at the peak of his career.
“When I won the title they said I didn’t deserve it. They said I paid for the award and that thing pained me. I was around East Legon, I parked my car and cried. I wondered what on earth will make people say that I bought the award,” he disclosed in an interview on 3 Music TV in April 2023.
He added: “Artiste of the Year was when a lot of shit was going on. A lot of tension, you known they threw a party for me and I didn’t go. I had to be forced to attend that party…there was just a lot of tension going on so I didn’t even enjoy Artiste of the Year, I didn’t. It was a very surreal feeling like what is going on.”
E.L also narrated how the production of music suddenly became work for him instead of passion. The investment he put in his craft seems not to be paying off.
“It came to a time I would drop songs and nothing would happen. It came to a time I didn’t even have the drive to push the music as hard anymore,” he said.
The time has come for Ghana to invest and pay more attention to the likes of Worlasi, Bogo Blay, Black Sherif, and Gyakie as they have been tipped to be the next big thing for the international music market.
Rapper E.L who provided names of these local artistes bet his last coin on their ability to top international charts with their quality sounds when given maximum support from the industry as well as those that matter when it comes to music promotion.
The 2016 VGMA Artiste of the Year, posited that Ghana has its attention on the wrong musicians, thereby neglecting those he named as the country’s biggest exports.
“We are not giving enough priority and resources to the right people. It is at the wrong side. The people we are paying attention to, I am sorry to say, most of the artistes we are really paying attention to are not going to take Ghana music as far as we want them to.
“I could name names of the artistes who are going to do it. Worlasi, Bogo Blay. These are some artistes who are doing it now and I am happy to see it. Black Sherif, Gyakie, we need more of that because that is what is going to take us there, period!” he disclosed on 3 Music TV as he called and called for full support for his colleagues.
His latest call is for music lovers to pay much attention to the works of Worlasi, Bogo Blay and the tall list of ‘marginalized’ musicians who have not been given their flowers despite their exceptional talent.
“We need to have a shift of the mindset that we want future stuff. We want to transcend. Let’s pay attention to these artistes. These artistes are going to take us there…they are our local brands,” he charged.
The Finance Minister of Ghana, Ken Ofori-Atta, has dismissed reports that the government is planning a second round of the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) involving pension funds.
Mr Ofori-Atta refuted these claims while speaking to journalists at the IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington DC.
He clarified that the reports were based on a misunderstanding and that government pension funds were exempted from the DDEP in a memorandum of understanding signed with Organised Labour on December 22, 2022.
The minister, however, stated that the government is in talks with Organised Labour to find ways to maintain the country’s debt sustainability.
He reiterated that there is no plan to carry out a second round of DDEP involving pension funds, but discussions are ongoing to reduce debt servicing and ensure debt sustainability in accordance with the MoU.
“No, there’s nothing like that. I think maybe it was a misunderstanding but if you look at it in line with the 22 December 2022 memorandum of understanding (MoU) that we signed with Organised Labour, government pension funds were exempted and that has not changed. It’s, therefore, not correct to state that we are planning a second round of Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) with pension funds,” he said.
“What we are doing is working with them on how they can further help the government to reduce the debt servicing and ensure that we maintain in a sort of debt sustainability which was in the MoU.”
“So those discussions are continuing… you know that we still have cocobills to work with, and the domestic dollar bonds that we are still working on but really debunk any sense that there is a second round of Domestic Debt Exchange Programme going to happen,” he added.
Ghanaian actor and skit maker, Ras Nene, otherwise known as Dr Likee (or Akabenezer) was nearly scammed while shooting one of his skits.
It happened behind the scenes of a set while his team prepared to shoot one of their skits.
During the production, Ebenezer Akwasi Antwi as he is known outside showbiz, received a phone call from a strange number demanding that some mistakenly sent funds be returned. But the skit-maker thought it smelt fishy and probed further.
During the inquiry, the fraudsters realised their victim was rather a celebrity whose videos they loved. Immediately, they got star-struck and briefly suspended the operation.
The syndicate turned into a hearty chat between both parties over the phone.
“This is my personal number so please don’t defraud me,” the actor pleaded to which the suspect responded in the affirmative.
Dr Likee passed his mobile phone to his co-actor known on screens as Kyekyeku who could not hold it together.
“I follow you people a lot,” the fraudster said in an excited tone as Kyekyeku burst out into laughter.
The fraudster also recounted some of his favourite shows from the crew.
Aspiring flag bearer for NDC, Dr Kwabena Duffuor brings his tour of the Northern region to an end Thursday, April 13, 2023.
During his tour in the Kumbungu District, some of the delegates vowed to vote for him.
According to them, Dr. Duffuor has a proven track record that he can leverage to win the hearts of many Ghanaians as well as change the current economic challenges of the country in a short period.
The Kumbungu delegates said this when Dr. Duffuor took his campaign tour to the constituency.
During his tour of the Volta region, the former Minister indicated that he will restore the country’s economy if he wins the NDC’s flagbearer race and ultimately becomes President of the country in 2025.
He believes the NDC is a party that knows how to better manage the country’s economy stating that his tenure as the Finance Minister under the Atta Mills administration was the time the country made the most significant economic achievements.
It was during this period that the country also recorded the longest single-digit inflation rate.
He said, “When we left office in 2012 we had built a very strong economy, the best not only in Africa, the whole world talked about that. Now is on the ground because the current managers of the economy don’t understand how to manage an economy, they only know how to borrow -they have borrowed so much and now they are going about asking for more, now they are saying that we can’t pay our loans, can you help us.”
The former Bank of Ghana Governor indicated that the Atta Mills-led NDC administration did not borrow a dime from the Eurobond market but performed creditably.
“During our time, between 2009-12 we never borrowed a dime from the Eurobond market yet our performance has been the best since independence because we had a team that knew how to manage an economy.”
Renowned multi-industry creative and African-American businessman, Kanye West, experienced a rapid rebound in his net worth, surging back to $400 million within 20 days after a temporary dip of $2 million, attributed to the revaluation of his private assets.
Forbes, a US business magazine that monitors the fortunes of ultra-high net worth individuals, revealed that Kanye West’s net worth has surged by $2 million within a month, from $398 million on March 23 to $400 million at the time of writing this report.
The recent bump in Kanye West’s wealth follows a dip of $2 million just twenty days ago, which compounded the $1.6 billion wealth loss he experienced last year when Adidas cut ties with his brand, Yeezy due to a series of anti-Semitic remarks he made in October 2022, sparking widespread outrage and leading to the deactivation of his social media accounts.
Following his suspension from Instagram and Twitter, West announced his intention to acquire the social networking platform Parler from its parent company, Parlement Technologies Inc, asserting that platforms such as Instagram and Twitter unduly restrict users’ free speech. He explained that Parler, a conservative social networking platform, is a refuge for individuals who, like him, have been penalized by larger platforms, offering a space for those who have been oppressed by the “thought police” to express their opinions freely.
Despite facing recent setbacks, including a $2 million net worth decline just 20 days ago, Kanye West continues to be one of the wealthiest Black individuals not only in America but globally.
With a net worth of $400 million, which includes his real estate holdings, cash, a music catalog, and a five-percent stake in Skims, the shapewear company founded by his ex-wife Kim Kardashian, West ranks as the 2,649th richest person in the world, according to Forbes.
Ghanaian musician, Edem, has joined the list of netizens who have expressed displeasure about the sudden attention on ‘artistes-lookalikes’ in the country.
In recent times, social media has witnessed the influx of individuals with little resemblance to some popular Ghanaian musicians.
From dressing like them to acting like them, these young men have been seen dancing or imitating the singers on numerous occasions.
Artistes including; King Promise, Kwesi Arthur, Mr. Drew, Kuami Eugene, KiDi, Quamina MP, and many others have had their replicas suddenly trooping out of their hideouts.
It has been the case that some event organizers have booked these individuals to either perform or make appearances at their shows.
Some bloggers and media houses have also booked a number of them for interviews and so on.
But sharing his thoughts about the development which is fast becoming a trend, Edem has condemned how some stakeholders are contributing to its popularity.
In a Twitter post, the VRMG boss has slammed event organizers, bloggers, and others, for `condoning and entertaining these ‘artiste look-alikes’.
“What a “COUNTRY” u book a look alike to Sing songs that someone toiled all their life to perfect as a craftsman and bloggers who posting for free are the same ppl who take money to promote those who worked hard demma products ..SMH,” he said.
Earlier in May 2022, Kuami Eugene and KiDi’s look-alike were seen performing their songs at a private event.
This comes after Kuami Eugene performed together with his ‘replica’, at an event in Kumasi.
Read the post below:
What a “COUNTRY” u book a look alike to Sing songs that someone toiled all their life to perfect as a craftsman and bloggers who posting for free are the same ppl who take money to promote those who worked hard demma products ..SMH
