Ghanaian Afro-Dancehall artiste Stonebwoy will be performing at the 66th Ghana’s Independence Celebration concert slated for March 4, 2023 in the United States of America.
The concert will take place at The Forum, in Columbus, Ohio.
It will present an opportunity for hundreds of Ghanaians in the US and traveling visitors from around the world to celebrate Ghana’s historic independence through specially curated, unrivalled musical performances.
The night will also witness musical showcases from DJ Zaga, DJ Burundi, DJ Ra, DJ Michy, and DJ Aroma.
Previous editions of the AK24 Entertainment event have featured a star-studded line up of spectacular performances, including Ghanaian highlife singer, Bisa Kdei, rapper Kofi Kinaata and Singer Fameye.
Founded in 2008 by a group of creative and musically gifted young men, AK24 Entertainment is acclaimed as the driving force behind numerous popular events in the US, including the Fifa World Cup Qatar 2022 Watch Party and Columbus’ inaugural All White Party.
Through its entertainment and philanthropic endeavors, the company is still committed to empowering and creating opportunities for creatives and entrepreneurs in the entertainment and art industries, particularly those coming from underrepresented backgrounds, as well as raising cultural awareness in the diaspora.
The contentious Paracel Islands are a group of roughly 130 small atolls, the largest of which is home to Chinese military sites. The US Navy reconnaissance plane is flying at 21,500 feet over the South China Sea, 30 miles away.
A CNN crew, granted privileged access to the US flight, is listening in on the radio of the US Navy P-8 Poseidon when a voice announces that it is coming from a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) airfield.
“American planes. China has a 12 nautical mile airspace. Stop approaching or you’re responsible for everything, it warns.
In a few minutes, a Chinese fighter jet armed with air-to-air missiles intercepts the US plane, nestling in just 500 feet off its port side.
The Chinese fighter jet was so close, the CNN crew could see the pilots turning their heads to look at them – and could make out the red star on the tail fins and the missiles it was armed with.
Lt. Nikki Slaughter, the pilot of the American plane, hails the twin-seat, twin-engine PLA aircraft.
“PLA fighter aircraft, this is US Navy P-8A … I have you off my left wing and I intend to proceed to the west. I request that you do the same, over.”
There’s no reply from the Chinese fighter jet, which escorted the US plane for 15 minutes before turning away.
To a CNN crew aboard the American jet, it’s stark evidence of the tensions brewing in the South China Sea, and between the US and China.
The commander of this US Navy mission has a different take.
“I’d say its another Friday afternoon in the South China Sea,” Navy Cmdr. Marc Hines tells the CNN crew.
Over the past several years, the South China Sea has emerged as a major potential flashpoint in the Asia Pacific. Islands in it, like the Paracels near which the US Navy plane was intercepted Friday, are the subject of overlapping territorial claims in part from China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
Not only does the strategic waterway hold vast resources of fish, oil and gas, but about a third of global shipping passes through it – worth about $3.4 trillion in 2016, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ (CSIS) China Power Project.
China claims historic jurisdiction over almost the entirety of the vast sea, and since 2014 has built up tiny reefs and sandbars into artificial islands heavily fortified with missiles, runways and weapons systems – sparking outcry from the other claimants.
The Paracel Islands, called the Xisha Islands by China, are in the northern part of the South China Sea, east of Da Nang, Vietnam, and south of China’s Hainan Island.
Named by 16th century Portuguese mapmakers, they have no indigenous population to speak of, only Chinese military garrisons amounting to 1,400 people, according to the CIA Factbook.
Surrounding them is 12 nautical miles of airspace that China was claiming as its own Friday – a claim Washington doesn’t recognize.
Far to the southeast sits the Spratly Islands chain, just 186 miles from the Philippine island of Palawan.
In 2016, in a case brought by the Philippines, an international tribunal in the Hague ruled that China’s claim to historic rights to the bulk of the sea had no legal basis.
But Beijing has rejected the tribunal’s ruling and continued its military buildup, building bases in the Spratlys, which it calls the Nansha Islands.
China also conducts regular military exercises in much of the South China Sea and maintains a large presence of coast guard and fishing vessels in the disputed waters – which has frequently stoked tensions with its neighbors.
On Friday, while flying close to the Philippines, the US Navy P-8 spotted a PLA Navy guided-missile destroyer and descended to around 1,000 feet to get a closer look – bringing more warnings from the PLA.
“US aircraft. US aircraft. This is Chinese naval warship 173. You are approaching to me at low altitude. State your intention over,” a voice comes over the US plane’s radio.
PLA warship 173 is the destroyer Changsha, likely armed with dozens of surface-to-air missiles.
The US plane will keep a safe distance, its pilot, Lt. Slaughter, replies.
“US aircraft. US aircraft. This is Chinese naval warship 173. You are clearly endangering my safety. You are clearly endangering my safety,” the Chinese ship says.
“I am a United States military aircraft. I will maintain a safe distance from your unit,” Slaughter replies, and the US mission continues.
The US Navy says these missions are routine.
US vessels and aircraft operate regularly where international law allows, the Pentagon says. But China claims the US presence in the South China Sea is what’s fueling the tensions.
When a US guided-missile cruiser steamed near the Spratly Islands in November, the PLA said such action “seriously infringes on China’s sovereignty and security” and is “hard proof is that the US is seeking maritime hegemony and militarizing the South China Sea.”
The US Navy said the US cruiser conducted the operation “in accordance with international law and then continued on to conduct normal operations in waters where high seas freedoms apply.”
For Hines, the US commander of Friday’s mission, the tensions are always less when he’s talking with the Chinese side.
Silence brings uncertainty, he says.
“Whenever there’s no response, it leaves questions. Do they understand what were saying? Do they understand our intentions? Do they understand we don’t mean any harm?” he says.
For the most part Friday, the answers were there. And the encounters were “professional,” Hines says. And he wants to keep it that way.
Registered voters have begun trooping to their polling stations to cast their votes.
Exclusive photos made available to MyNigeria shows polling station official preparing for the exercise that began at 8:30 am.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) expects more than 87 million Nigerian to cast their vote in what has been regarded as the most competitive election since 1993.
The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Ghana, Charles Abani, has entreated the government to tackle current economic difficulties in time to save the youth from falling prey to violent crimes.
He made the assertion that the economic quandary was a result of the covid-19 pandemic and the unending Russian aggression, but the government must quicken its pace toward economic recovery.
Speaking exclusively to Citi News, Mr Abani underscored the need for the government to adopt homegrown solutions to relieve stress.
“Ghana needs to grow its production capacity and cut import significantly,” he said, adding “building Ghana’s robust economy makes it less vulnerable to shocks.”
He added that citizens’ participation in the Domestic Debt Exchange Program is in order to secure better agreement terms for faster debt structuring agreements with the International Monetary Fund.
He made these statements to Citi News on the sidelines of the launch of the European Union and United Nations Building Migration Partnerships Project sponsored by the European Union.
BUILDING MIGRATION PARTNERSHIPS PROJECT
Under the sponsorship of the European Union, a network of UN agencies launched the “Building Migration Partnerships Project” aimed at providing a guide for Ghana’s migration acceleration towards safe and orderly migration.
The EU Ambassador to Ghana, Irchad Razaaly, said: “This project highlights the linkages between migration and all sectors, such as agriculture, finances, and health. This is why I am glad that it will contribute to building migration-related capacities in the different ministries and in various UN agencies.”
The project aims to build the capacity of key stakeholders in the migration sector, including the Government of Ghana, for effective implementation of the country’s National Migration Policy towards safe, orderly, and regular migration with the goal of making migration work for sustainable development.
It also seeks to strengthen and leverage whole-of-UN expertise to support good migration governance in the country.
“As Ghana has signed up to the Global Compact for Migration, we, as policymakers, are working to put in place measures to manage our migration programmes effectively to derive migration benefits for the country’s social and economic development. This project is crucial in supporting Ghana’s migration governance. It reflects a true commitment to building migration partnerships, which is also geared towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals,” said Hon. Ambrose Dery, Minister for the Interior, in a statement delivered by the Ministry’s Chief Director, Adelaide Anno-Kumi.
The institutional and technical capacity building will be supported through operational guidance and tools that have been developed by the Network.
The EU Ambassador to Ghana, H.E. Irchad Razaaly, said “This project highlights the linkages between migration and all sectors, such as agriculture, finances and health. This is why I am glad that it will contribute to building migration-related capacities in the different ministries and in various UN agencies.”
Ghana has made important strides in recent years towards improving its migration policy framework, notably through the development of a National Migration Policy. In addition to supporting the implementation of this policy, the project will help the government of Ghana achieve the 23 objectives set under the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, through the formulation and development of a comprehensive five-year Plan of Action.
The UN Resident Coordinator in Ghana, Charles Abani, said: “Partnership and coordination is the goal for the UN. In whatever we do, we must ensure there is a joined-up approach to our actions that leverages all expertise to deliver lasting and sustainable outcomes.
This is especially true for cross-cutting issues such as migration. With this project, and through the UN Network on Migration, we can demonstrate our intentional approach to deliver as one and be more responsive to the needs of the Government of Ghana as far as migration is concerned.”
The launch was preceded by a media briefing attended by national editors and journalists who play a key role in contributing to balanced migration reporting and in positively changing the narrative on migration.
Boris Johnson‘s shadow continues to cast a significant shadow over the ruling Conservative party even though he announced his retirement as prime minister of the United Kingdom seven months ago.
Johnson is still trying to affect government policy despite being ousted from office in disgrace and overseeing a sharp loss in support for both himself and his party. According to his admirers, his interventions represent the Conservatives’ last-ditch effort to save their demise in the upcoming election. In the eyes of his detractors, he is not only hurting the current prime minister, Rishi Sunak, but also his party’s chances of winning elections by constantly reminding voters of his existence.
A quick recap: Johnson was forced to resign after multiple ethics scandals made his position untenable. Those scandals included the notorious “Partygate” where Johnson became the first sitting PM to be found guilty of breaking the law by holding illegal gatherings during the pandemic lockdown. The final straw came for Johnson after it allegations emerged that his deputy chief whip, Chris Pincher, had been sexually harassing party members while drunk. Johnson hired Pincher despite being aware of rumors about his conduct.
Johnson has spent much of the past week leaving Westminster guessing as to whether or not he is going to publicly come out against Sunak as he attempts to negotiate an agreement with the European Union to fix part of the 2019 Brexit deal. It is worth noting that Johnson himself negotiated and signed that deal, calling it “oven ready” during his election campaign that same year.
The part of the deal causing all the problems is the Northern Ireland Protocol, an arrangement that theoretically prevents a hard border between Northern Ireland, which left the EU along with the rest of the UK, and the Republic of Ireland, an EU member state. Both sides agree a border should not exist for fears of provoking tensions and violence. Northern Ireland has been largely peaceful since a 1998 accord ended the three-decades-long “Troubles,” in which more than 3,500 people were killed.
The UK has not implemented the protocol in full for fears it would damage trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. Northern Irish pro-British unionists claim the protocol cuts the province off from the rest of the UK, while hardline English Brexiteers believe the protocol – and any deal Sunak might make to revive it – is essentially a capitulation to the EU, despite them supporting the deal in 2019.
Those hardliners, along with Johnson, believe that Sunak should specifically not abandon a piece of proposed legislation that Johnson introduced during his time in office, the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, which allows the UK government to rip up parts of the protocol. Critics say this would break international law. The constant noise and anticipation of a Johnson intervention has effectively killed talks of an agreement being reached with the EU and left many questioning Sunak’s strength to deliver as PM.
Johnson has also publicly implored Sunak to become the first Western leader to send fighter jets to Ukraine as the conflict marks its 12-month anniversary.
The vast majority of MPs that CNN spoke with are sick of Johnson’s “attention seeking,” as many of them described it. They all declined to speak on the record for fear of derailing Northern Ireland talks which, as many of them were quick to say, is a very dangerous situation, pointing to the shooting of a detective that took place in the province just this week.
“I just wish he would get on side and realize that his efforts would be best spent supporting Rishi,” said a former government minister who served under Johnson. “The next election is going to be hard enough without this distraction. Boris is still popular in certain parts of the country that we might lose seats. He should be up there campaigning, not teasing a return to the frontline.”
Another government minister who also served under Johnson is less optimistic about Johnson’s ability to help, even if he wanted to.
“He is fundamentally too selfish to want to help the people who he no doubt believes kicked him out of office unfairly,” the former minister said. “And he is unpopular enough that the prospect of him returning to the frontline could be one of the biggest motivating factors for people to vote against us.”
The polls back up this theory. A recent Ipsos MORI survey revealed that Johnson is still less trusted than either Sunak or leader of the opposition Keir Starmer. Poll after poll on the outcome at the next general election predicts the Conservatives suffering heavy losses. The dip in the Conservative’s fortunes can be traced directly back to the start of the Partygate scandal. Before that, Johnson was enjoying an unusually high level of support, thanks in large part to the UK’s successful Covid vaccine roll-out.
Johnson’s supporters don’t entirely believe the polls and challenge the narrative that the collapse in the Conservatives’ support was due to a media obsession with Partygate.
One Johnson loyalist told CNN that “people forget he won us the largest majority since Margaret Thatcher” and believes he is still “a giant” in the eyes of the public. His supporters in the party welcome his interventions, with one saying of the Northern Ireland debate, still taking aim at the press, that the media “should welcome the widest possible debate on this major constitutional issue for our nation.”
Other Conservatives fear that the Johnson loyalists, who are mostly at the harder end of the Brexit-supporting spectrum, will learn the hard way that their assumptions are wrong.
“Most of his supporters in parliament have either already decided to stand down at the next election, probably because they know the writing is on the wall, or stand a very good chance of losing their seat,” the former government minister said.
A senior Conservative and former cabinet minister who worked in government with Johnson looks on with some degree of bewilderment. “I don’t really know what these hardline Brexiters are hoping to achieve. The public largely views Brexit as a mistake, so why double down on it so aggressively,” they mused.
There are an increasing number of Conservatives who look at the polls and think a heavy loss at the next general election is inevitable. They see one big advantage of Johnson returning to the frontline: that him lose losing might finally kill the myth that he is the “chosen one” and finally draw a line under the whole Johnson experiment.
It seems unlikely that Johnson will end his agitation from the backbenches, especially over policies that he believes might trash his legacy. However, the louder he shouts and the harder he stamps his feet, the biggest threat to the Johnson legacy could easily become Boris Johnson himself. Whether he brings down his party too seems a matter that doesn’t unduly bother many of his supporters.
Following the discovery of model and influencer Abby Choi‘s dismembered remains, police in Hong Kong announced on Saturday that they had detained three suspects.
In a rental apartment in Hong Kong’s northern Tai Po area on Friday afternoon, pieces of the 28-year-body, old’s together with a meat slicer, an electric saw, and some clothing, were discovered, according to a news release from the police.
Three people, according to the police, were taken into custody and questioned.
As a model, Choi had enjoyed international exposure and was photographed at the Elie Saab Spring Summer 2023 Haute Couture show in Paris, France, as recently as last month.
The police received a missing person’s report on Wednesday for Choi. She had not been seen since the day before.
The investigation, including the cause of death, continues, police said.
Germany says it is ready and willing to help achieve debt relief for Ghana but insists it will only do that if the government of Ghana would put its house in order.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Friday, February 3, 2023, urged Germany to “encourage” China, an ad hoc member of the Paris Club, to support Ghana’s debt restructuring efforts.
He said it was critical that the Paris Club swiftly establishes, with the participation of other official creditors, a creditors committee, to support the efforts that would enable Ghana to restore economic growth.
Linden, who led a delegation from his country, held bilateral talks with the President aimed at boosting relations and economic ties between the two nations.
President Akufo-Addo told the minister that the main concern for his government was to conclude negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), particularly at the Board Level and seal a deal with the Bretton Woods institution by mid-March this year.
“Our main concern right now is the arrangements that we are in the process of concluding with the IMF…and the specific assistance that will be useful to us and help us fast-track the process”.
“Our target is that by the middle of March, we should be before the Board for the full agreement. We have already taken one important step forward in concluding a staff-level agreement with the IMF and we are now looking to go the full haul in concluding the agreement. We are hoping that it will be done by the middle of March”.
“One of the steps towards that has been the domestic debt exchange programme that we are on, which fortunately, we have quite a lot of difficulties, has now been virtually concluded,” he stated.
However, President Akufo-Addo stressed that there was a vital need for other creditors to support the efforts that his government was undertaking to restructure both the external and domestic debts of the country, to enable the IMF deal to fall through quickly.
“We now have our relations with the Paris club and the common framework, and we are looking for as quickly as possible a creditor committee to be established, so we will have the body with whom we can engage to bring those discussions as quickly as possible”.
“We have good relations with China. We will like you to encourage China to participate in these programmes as quickly as possible…A very important consideration for us is the financial stability fund that has been promised us as one of the key outcomes of these negotiations and definitely once again, your voice in trying to bring that into being is something that we would appreciate very much,” President Akufo-Addo told Finance Minister Lindner.
The President commended the German government for extending support to Ghana to enable her to overcome the current economic difficulties. He said the German government had proven to be a reliable ally and Ghana would continue to count on the European nation as “a privileged partner” as the country seeks a bailout from the IMF.
The IMF, last December reached a Staff-Level Agreement on a $3 billion, three years Extended Credit Facility with Ghana to relieve its debt.
Speaking with Accra-based Joy News on the president’s appeal to the German Finance Minister for debt relief help, as far as China is concerned,
German Ambassador to Ghana, Daniel Krull, said laid out some conditions that he said Ghana must first meet before his country could offer the requested assistance of convincing China to restructure or forgive Ghana $1.7 billion of the West African country’s total debt portfolio of $5.7 billion owed its bilateral partners.
Mr Krull said: “First of all, we insist that those measures that can be taken here in this country have to be taken”.
“The second condition is that; yes, we are willing to take our share of responsibility as one of the major bilateral donors to Ghana but only if all the others also join in this effort”, the ambassador pointed out, adsing: “And there is a multilateral framework that was set up exactly for these kinds of crises and we urge and try to convince all stakeholders in this process to stick to this agreed framework. It’s the G20 framework”.
Being more specific about the pre-conditions, Mr Krull outlined: “Let me point to three elements: the biggest loss maker in Ghana is the energy sector. In this sector alone, each year, GHS1.5 billion in new debt is piled up. So, if that is not solved and you can ask the IMF for $10 billion, you still will not solve the problem in the medium term”.
“So, there has to be an answer in Ghana to the 50% technical and non-technical losses in the energy sector”, Mr Krull notes, stressing: “If that is not resolved, I don’t see how we can make finding a sustainable solution for the financial problems of the country”.
“The second part”, the ambassador said, “is on the other side of the budget and that is the revenues”.
“Ghana has the lowest; one of the lowest tax-to-GDP ratios, not even 13%. So, we have been cooperating with the local authorities and setting up a very smart system of property tax collection”.
“So, I think that is an important way forward and this has to be done and processes and decision-making have to be faster to meet the goals, to be able to meet the targets that have been agreed with the IMF”.
The Ambassador also said he is “still amazed on the procedures for how the budget is set up and how difficult it is to get an understanding of how this all works”.
“And, I think that is something that has to be [improved]. He is, however, confident that with the necessary political will, new opportunities will be created to enhance economic growth”.
Fire prevention at GRIDCo’s Substations and Safety Training was the focus of discussions when a delegation from the company, led by its CEO Ebenezer Essienyi engaged the Chief Fire Officer and Management of the Ghana Fire Service (GNFS) on February 16.
The discussions with the GNFS reflected diverse ways to best protect the assets from fire.
One of GRIDCo’s core values is safety; for staff and the protection of its 68 substations and other assets nationwide.
The GNFS emphasised the need to undertake a risk assessment of GRIDCo’s facilities.
Based on the report, the GNFS will then advise on the best strategy to adopt to protect the substations from fire.
At the meeting, both entities agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to govern how the proposed collaboration, which includes safety training, will be executed.
Of critical mention is GRIDCo’s work with the Forestry Commission to create a green belt along GRIDCo’s Right of Way (or where the transmission lines are located) to protect them from encroachment and other risks.
The GNFS suggested the creation of a “brown belt” alongside the “green belt” to ensure it does not become a fire hazard for the assets (as branches and leaves scattered around the green belt can function as fuel for fire).
Ebenezer Kofi Essienyi thanked the Service for the audience and reception offered to him and his team. The entourage also included Bernard Gyan, Director-Technical Services; Samuel Kow Acquah, Manager of Strategy Risk and Compliance, and Kojo Kwarteng, Special Assistant to the Chief Executive.
Present at the meeting on behalf of the Service were ACFO II George Wiafe, Deputy Director, Fire Safety Education; David Sam Afful, Assistant Director of Investigations; Michael Ato Korsah, Deputy Director – of Fire Certification; Ernest Ampene of Investigation Directorate; Husbert Atobra Nyame-Boame of the Safety Directorate and Ackah Desmond, Deputy National Public Relations Officer.
In a vital presidential election, Nigerians will cast their ballots to choose the nation’s new leader. In addition to electing members of the nation’s parliament, the contentious election is taking place concurrently.
According to the electoral agency INEC, 93 million Nigerians are registered to vote, but only 87 million have a permanent voter card (PVC), which is a necessary prerequisite for voting.
The polls will be open beginning at 8:30 a.m. local time and closing at 2:30 p.m. (or 2:30 a.m. ET Saturday to 8:30 a.m. ET). Yet according to INEC, those who were in line to cast their ballots by the polls closed still have the opportunity to do so.
Ballots will be counted at polling places at the close of voting and transmitted electronically in real-time to INEC’s Result Viewing portal (IReV), a first of its kind in Nigeria, the commission tells CNN.
“With the electronic transmission system (IREV), people will already know the winners before the official announcement is made,” adds Rotimi Oyekanmi, a spokesman for INEC’s chairperson.
To win, a candidate must garner a sufficient number of ballots to meet the 25% vote spread in 24 of Nigeria’s 36 states. In the absence of this, a second round run-off between the top two candidates will be held within 21 days.
Eighteen candidates are on the ballot for Nigeria’s top, but three are leading the race for the popular vote, according to pre-election surveys.
One of the key contenders is Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the candidate of term-limited President Muhammadu Buhari’s party, the All Progressives Congress (APC). Another is the main opposition leader and former vice president Atiku Abubakar, of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). And third strong contender, Peter Obi, is running under the lesser known Labour Party, and altered early predictions of the presidential vote, which has typically been two-horse races between the ruling and opposition parties.
Seventy-year-old Tinubu, 70, is a former governor of Nigeria’s wealthy Lagos State, who wields significant influence in the southwestern region where he is acclaimed as a political godfather and kingmaker.
He boasts of aiding the election of Buhari to the presidency and declares it is now his turn to lead the country.
Here’s what to know about Nigeria’s presidential election
Candidate of the opposition party PDP Abubakar, 76, is a former Nigerian vice president and a staunch capitalist who made his fortune investing in various sectors in the country.
Abubakar’s presidential bid (his sixth attempt) had fueled concern that it might usurp an unofficial arrangement to rotate the presidency between Nigeria’s northern and southern regions, since he is from the same northern region as the outgoing leader, Buhari.
Labor Party’s Obi is a two-time former governor of southeastern Anambra State and has been touted as a credible alternative to the two major candidates by his hordes of supporters, mostly young Nigerians who call themselves ‘Obidients.’
Obi is also the only Christian among the leading candidates. His southeastern region has yet to produce a president or vice president since Nigeria returned to civil rule in 1999.
The ruling party’s Tinubu, from the religiously mixed southwestern part of the country, is a Muslim and also chose a Muslim running mate, despite the country’s unofficial tradition of mixed-faith presidential tickets.
All top three candidates are confident they can turn Nigeria’s fortunes around if voted into power, as the country battles myriad economic and security problems that range from fuel and cash shortages to rising terror attacks, high inflation, and a plummeting local currency.
Nigeria’s security forces have mobilized personnel to ensure hitch-free electioneering across the country.
The run-up to the polls has been fraught with violence that stemmed from protests against unpopular government policies and lethal attacks by armed criminal gangs.
On Wednesday, a senatorial candidate for the Labour Party, was shot and burned in his campaign vehicle in the country’s southeastern Enugu State, police said.
Before the killing, violent protests had erupted across Nigerian states as citizens railed against the scarcity of gasoline in petrol outlets and a shortage of cash that followed a controversial currency redesign.
Electoral body INEC hasn’t been spared from the chaos; its facilities have been torched in parts of the country.
Voting was canceled at more than 200 planned polling units across Nigeria and voters redirected to other poll locations, INEC said, due to security concerns.
Ahead of the elections, national police ordered a restriction of non-essential vehicular and waterway movements from midnight on election day until 6 p.m., while the country’s immigration service has ordered the closure of Nigeria’s land borders from midnight Saturday until midnight Sunday.
Weeks before polling day, the service had confiscated over 6000 voter cards from illegal migrants, whom it said had other national documents in their possession.
INEC spokesperson Oyekanmi nevertheless insists the poll results will be free and fair.
“The experience Nigerians will have for the 2023 elections will be far better than previous elections and the integrity (of the polls) will be clear for everyone to see,”Oyekanmi told CNN days before the election.
Final results are expected to be announced a few days after polling.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has been rescheduled to address Parliament on the state of the nation on March 8, 2023, instead of February 28 as earlier announced.
Presenting the House’s business statement for the ensuing week, Majority Chief Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, said: “the message of the state of the nation would not come off as earlier advertised.”
He didn’t give reasons why the address was rescheduled to the chagrin of the Member of Parliament for Tongu North, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.
According to him, the delivery of the state of the nation address is the most important constitutional assignment in the current meeting of the lawmaking chamber and must be prioritized.
For him, rescheduling it without any reason is unacceptable.
Mr Annoh-Dompreh, however, disagreed, arguing that the committee’s action, as regards the scheduling of the date, is within the provision of the law, and has not faulted.
A Sunyani-based mining engineer, Ernest Ayesu Snr., has joined the NDC’s parliamentary primaries in the Sunyani-West Constituency.
Mr. Ayesu, who is currently a general foreman at Newmont Ghana Gold Limited, made this known in an interview with MyJoyOnline.com on Friday, February 24.
According to the mining technician, his decision to join the parliamentary contest stems from his vision of making the Constituency a more prosperous community through the creation of employable opportunities.
These opportunities, he said when created will be made available to all indigenes, especially the youth in the Constituency.
Per his policy outline, the aspiring MP wants to “Reduce unemployment among the youth by developing and impacting them with employable skill sets; most importantly in the mining, construction and built environment fields”.
He also has plans of developing “a comprehensive list of job opportunities for young people”.
Ernest touts his competence, humility and visionary leadership in the upcoming contest
The Sunyani-West Constituency is currently a stronghold of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), with the current Minister for Labour and Employment Relations, Ignatius Baffour-Awuah, serving as its Member of Parliament.
Since 1996, the New Patriotic Party has won the seat, despite attempts by the NDC to snatch it. The closest effort by the NDC was in the 2012 elections, when it managed to garner some 49.1% of the parliamentary votes.
A statistical trace of the NDC’s performance in the parliamentary polls in the Sunyani-West Constituency since 1996
However, Ernest Ayesu, a master’s degree holder in Business Administration from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) believes that he has what it takes to make the NDC triumph in Sunyani-West; despite the party’s unsuccesful records.
His commitment to this goal, he notes can be deduced from his past contributions to the party, including the furnishing of the party’s constituency office as well as the funding of election day activities for the NDC during the 2020 elections.
The mining engineer’s emergence adds to the number of other professionals who have so far expressed their desires to contest in the NDC primaries across various constituencies.
A landmark example is the former General Secretary of the Ghana Medical Association who recently resigned his position to contest in the Lambussie primaries.
Meanwhile, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) will hold its presidential and parliamentary primaries on Saturday, May 13, 2023, to elect a new flagbearer as well as its parliamentary candidates for the 2024 elections.
Per the schedule announced by the party on January 18, aspirants are expected to pick their nomination forms at the party’s headquarters at Adabraka or access them via the party’s official website.
Parliamentary aspirants picked their forms from Monday, 20th February to 24th February at a fee of GH¢5,000; and later submit them at a fee of GH¢40,000 between March 20 to March 22.
This will be followed by the vetting of aspirants from 27th March to 29th March, 2023.
The groups, made of Okada riders, farmers, traders and beneficiaries of John Dumelo’s benevolent works in the district, said they wanted him as their representative in Parliament after the 2024 elections.
John Dumelo, an actor, farmer and politician, contested the 2020 parliamentary elections at the Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency in the Greater Accra Region.
His performance was one which was hailed by many political analysts although he failed to secure a seat in the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Bulley Harrison, Caretaker of a factory being built by John Dumelo, received the token on behalf of the actor and promised to relay the information to him.
Dzamesi Lawrence, a leader of Okada riders in Likpe, said they called on the caretaker to present the token due to John Dumelo’s absence.
He said the developmental projects and lives touched on in the district formed the basis for their support.
Tsatsu Godwin, a resident of Lolobi, noted that John Dumelo’s representation of the area in Parliament would give the area the development it needed for years.
Miss Abdullah Salamatu, a trader, said Mr Dumelo had a lot of plans for the youth and women, and it would be a disservice on their part to allow him to represent a different Constituency in Parliament.
She said John Dumelo’s commitment to seeing that everyone benefitted in society was there for all to see.
Ghana News Agency’s checks revealed that although the Party has opened nominations for the presidential and parliamentary aspirants, Mr Dumelo is yet to pick his nomination form as well as declare the Constituency.
After more than one year of posturing, and preparations the stage is finally set and the die is cast.
Nigeria will hold her historic seventh democratic transition polls today.
One woman is contesting the presidential election as 17 men lock horns in the battle to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari, who will complete his second term on May 29, 2023.
Princess Chichi Ojei, the presidential candidate of the Allied People’s Movement, APM, is the only woman in a crowd of 36 presidential and vice presidential standard bearers.
Apart from the presidential election, there will also be battle for the nation’s 109 senatorial districts and 360 House of
Representatives seats. The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has cleared 1101 senatorial and 3122 House of Representatives candidates for the election. However, there will be no senatorial election in Enugu East, where the Labour Party, LP, Candidate, Mr. Oyibo Chukwu, was assassinated by gunmen, last Wednesday.
Section 34 (1) and (3) of the Electoral Act, 2022 provides that if a candidate dies before the elections begin, the elections will be rescheduled within 14 days by the INEC to enable the affected party replace the dead candidate.
in spite of insecurity concerns following series of violence and killings that trailed the campaigns, and attacks on INEC’s facilities, the Police and the electoral commission have declared their readiness to conduct free, fair and violence free polls.
Already, the Police have deployed 310,973 personnel across the over 176,000 polling units where voting will take place.
Polling Units
Nigeria has 176,846 polling units but elections would only take place in 176,606 as 240 of the total figure have no registered voters according to the INEC.
Readiness of electoral umpire
The INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood, said the commission had recovered from the recent 50 attacks on its facilities and is set for the elections.
Police riot act
The Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba, has ordered restriction of vehicular movement on roads, waterways, and other forms of transportation from 6am to 6pm today except for those on essential duties. The IG said the Police would ensure public order management, safety of the electorate, as well as assist security agencies in effective policing, thereby preventing hoodlums and criminally-minded elements from disrupting the electoral process.
87.2 m voters to decide Atiku, Tinubu, Obi, others’ fate From a voters’ list of 93.469 million, only 87.209 million voters will are eligible to vote today. They were those who collected their Permanent Voters Cards, PVCs, before the deadline to do so ended on February 5, according to the INEC. Among the 18 candidates jostling to succeed President Buhari are Asiwaju Bola Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC; Alhaji Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP; Mr. Peter Obi of the Labour Party, LP; and Senator Rabiu Kwakwanso of the New Nigeria People’s Party, NNPP. Others include Prince Adewole Adebayo of the Social Democratic Party, SDP; Mr. Dumebi Kaachikwu of the African Democratic Congress, ADC; Chief Kola Abiola of the Peoples Redemption Party, PRP; and Mr. Omoyele Sowere of the African Actin Congress, AAC. Also in theerace are Felix Osakwe, National Rescue Movement NRM; Prof Peter Umeadi, All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA; Dan Nwanyanwu, Zenith Labour Party, ZLP; Oluwafemi Adenuga, Boot Party, BP; Christopher Imumolen, Accord; Hamza Al-Mustapha, Action Alliance, AA; Sani Yabagi Yusuf, African Democratic Party, ADP; Malik Ibrahim Ado, Young Progressive Party, YPP; and Osita Nnadi, Action People’s Party, APP.
Worries over BVAS A key feature of today’s election is the use of Bimodal Voters Accreditation System, BVAS, to authentic voters’ PVCs The INEC has insisted on using BVAS With the introduction of BVAS, balloting may drag into the night today. Reports from the February 4 mock accredidation of voters by INEC in 436 polling units across the country showed that it took two to three minutes to accredit a voter. At two minutes per voter, 30 voters will be accredited in one hour and 300 voters in 10 hours. So if INEC officials arrive on time today and begin the exercise at 8am 300 voters will be accredited by 6pm using one BVAS. With two BVAS, 300 voters may be accredited in five hours. Sorting, counting and announcement of the results of the presidential, senatorial and House of Representatives polls may take two hours or more. So, if voters turnout is impressive, the election may drag into the night and the INEC must make arrangements for power supply or torch lights.
Poor run of women
Only one woman is on the presidential ballot in spite of women’s fresh push for more accommodation for women in the political arena. Women were not on the radar in 1999, when only two candidates, General Olusegun Obasanjo of the Peoples Democratic, PDP, and Chief Olu Falae of the Alliance for Democracy, AD/All Peoples Party, APP, slugged it out with Obasanjo emerging the winner. However, women were on the ballot in 2003, which so far remains their best attempt at occupying Aso Villa. Of the 20 presidential candidates, two were women – Mrs Sarah Jubril of the Progressive Action Congress, PAC, and Major Mojisola Adekunle Obasanjo, retd, of the Masses Movement of Nigeria, MMN. While Major Obasanjo polled 3,757 votes at that election, Mrs Jubril scored 157,560 votes, the highest any woman has ever got in a presidential election in the country. Ever since, the fortunes of women have been dwindling at the presidential polls. In a pool of 27 candidates in 2007, there was only one woman – Major Obasanjo, who garnered a miserly 4,309 votes. In 2011, with 63 political parties in which 20 parties fielded candidates, there was also only one woman – Ebiti Ndok of the United National Party for Development, UNPD, who polled 21,2017 votes. Mrs. Sarah Jubril’s efforts to be on the ballot did not yield dividend. She got one vote at the PDP presidential primary. In 2015, the poor run of women continued. Mrs. Oluremi Sonaiya, was the only female in a crowd of 14 presidential standard bearers and she got 13,076 votes. In 2019, in a crowd of 73 presidential candidates, there were six women, the highest so far in the history of electioneering in Nigeria. However, the women fared badly polling altogether 25,594 votes in a contest that President Buhari polled 15,191,847 of the total votes cast while his closest opponent, Atiku Abubakar of the PDP got 11,262,978 votes, an astonishing victory margin of 3,928,869 votes. The women who part in the 2019 election were Mrs Oby Ezekwesili (ACPN, 7,223 votes); Angela Johnson (AUN, 1,092 votes); Olufunmilayo Adesanya-Davies (MAJA, 2,651 votes); Eunice Atuejide (NIP, 2,248 votes); Rabia Yasai Hassan Cengiz (NAC, 2,279); and Maina Maimuna Kyari (NPC, 10,081 votes). The gains made by women in the last five electoral cycles appeared to have been eroded in 2023 with only one woman standing
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 11 military vehicles on patrol made a stop over at the office, which caused some minutes of gridlock, prompting motorists to divert to other routes.
Also, several Police officers were seen patrolling the vicinity, while some men of the Vehicle Inspection Office (VIO) were equally seen in and around the vicinity.
Meanwhile, the office was a beehive of activities as materials were being sorted and dispatched to Wuse, Gwarimpa and other wards under the municipal.
Several vehicles were seen as late as 8: 30 p.m carrying materials from the office to the various voting points.
NAN reports that expectations were high among business operators and residents as many were seen discussing about the likely outcome of the election.
Some of the residents interviewed by NAN expressed their readiness to vote for their preferred candidates on the election day.
A business woman, Amanda, said in spite of her busy schedule, she made out time to collect her Permanent Voter Card (PVC).
According to her, she has decided to carryout her civic responsibility to choose leaders that would take the country to the “promised land”.
An elderly man, who gave his name as Yakubu, said the 2023 election would be a deciding moment for the country.
He said he would go out very early on Saturday to cast his vote.
He further said all his family members of voting age also had their PVCs and would be going out to vote.
NAN reports that Feb. 25 has been scheduled by INEC for Presidential and National Assembly elections while March 11 is scheduled for Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections.(NAN)
Ukraine honored its dead and vowed to keep fighting on Friday while Russia told the world to accept “the realities” of its war but faced new Western sanctions on the invasion’s anniversary.
At a ceremony in Kyiv’s St Sophia Square, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy bestowed medals on soldiers and the mother of one killed, fighting back tears during the national anthem.
“We have become one family … Ukrainians have sheltered Ukrainians, opened their homes and hearts to those who were forced to flee the war,” he said in a televised address.
“We withstand all threats, shelling, cluster bombs, cruise missiles, kamikaze drones, blackouts and cold … And we will do everything to gain victory this year.”
Zelenskiy reiterated calls for more Western weaponry and attended an online summit with United States President Joe Biden and other leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies who pledged to intensify their support.
“A dictator bent on rebuilding an empire will never erase the people’s love of liberty,” Biden said on Twitter.
“Ukraine will never be a victory for Russia. Never.”
Washington announced a new $U.S. 2 billion ($A3 billion) package of military aid for Ukraine and a raft of additional sanctions and tariffs hitting Russia’s mining and metals industries, as well as companies from third countries accused of supplying Moscow with restricted goods.
However, Biden reiterated in an interview with ABC News that he had no plans to send Ukraine the F-16 fighter jets Zelenskiy has been seeking for months, saying the US does not currently see a rationale for sending the advanced aircraft.
“I am ruling it out for now,” Biden said.
G7 members Canada and Britain unveiled similar measures, as did the 27-nation European Union, after some hectic last-minute negotiations.
At the same time, Ukraine’s military said Russia had doubled the number of ships on active duty in the Black Sea on Friday and predicted it could be preparing for more missile strikes.
In Russia, where publicly criticising the war is punishable by long prison terms, a human rights group said dozens of people were detained by police for actions to commemorate victims of the invasion, in some cases just for placing flowers.
Ukraine’s blue and yellow colours lit up the Eiffel Tower, Brandenburg Gate, Empire State Building, and Sydney Opera House in a wave of international solidarity.
Tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides are believed to have died since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion, saying it was necessary to protect Russia’s security.
Ukraine sees it as a bid to subjugate an independent state.
Its outnumbered and outgunned forces repelled Russia’s attempt to seize Kyiv early in the war and later recaptured swathes of occupied territory.
But Moscow still occupies almost one-fifth of Ukraine, which it claims to have annexed.
Russia’s foreign ministry said the world should recognise “new territorial realities” in Ukraine to achieve peace.
Russian troops have destroyed Ukrainian cities, set a third of the population to flight, and left behind streets littered with corpses in towns they occupied and lost.
Moscow denies war crimes.
In recent weeks, Russian forces, replenished with hundreds of thousands of conscripts, have waged intense trench warfare, making only small gains despite fighting both sides call the bloodiest so far.
In the latest reports from the battlefield, Russia’s Wagner private army, run by a Putin ally, claimed to have captured another village on the outskirts of Bakhmut, a small eastern mining city that is the focus of Moscow’s offensive.
Costly Russian assaults have yielded little in the way of advances elsewhere.
Ukraine, for its part, is awaiting new Western weapons before starting a counter-attack.
Despite strong support for Ukraine in the West, big developing nations, above all China and India, have kept clear of imposing sanctions on Moscow.
At a meeting of finance ministers of the G20 group, which includes Russia, host India made no mention of the conflict.
China, which signed a “no limits” partnership with Russia just before the war and sent its top diplomat to Moscow this week, called for a ceasefire, sticking to its principle of public neutrality. (Reuters/NAN)
Ms Agnes Akpe, Head of Voter Education and Publicity Department INEC FCT, told the Newsmen that the non-sensitive materials were distributed weeks ago.
Akpe said that the distribution of sensitive materials began on Feb. 23 and the last batch was distributed to the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) on Feb. 24.
She said that on Feb. 23, the sensitive materials were collected from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN ).
She said that the materials were brought to the six area councils so that stakeholders such as the media, political parties, IPAC and other agents could witness the distribution.
“So, we brought the materials for the six area councils here , the reason for bringing them here was that the media could be a witness and the political parties, IPAC was also present and other agents.
“Aside from that, we also needed to add the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) that was with us because we had to configure them for each of the polling units.
“So, when they brought the ballot papers, we now added the BVAS for each of the area council and sent them under heavy security.
“So far we have concluded that by this morning ,so we are pretty much ready. ”
Akpe, therefore, advised FCT residents to come out and vote for the change they want to see.
“Your prayer points will not count , it is your vote that will count,” she said.
Akpe debunked the notion that people without their vote cards could vote with just the last six digits of their cards.
She said that the electoral Act stipulated that people must be present with their PVCs before voting, “without your PVC, there is no voting,” she said.
She called on residents to come out with their PVCs, locate their polling units ahead of time and vote.
Afriyie of Ghanaian music group Wutah has disclosed how top-rated Nigerian musician, Burna Boy, sampled one of his songs without his consent.
Per the Wikipedia definition of sampling, it is ‘the reuse of a portion (or sample) of a sound recording in another recording. Samples may comprise elements such as rhythm, melody, speech, sounds or entire bars of music, and may be layered, equalized, sped up or slowed down, repitched, looped, or otherwise manipulated’.
So, in the view of Afriyie, the above is just what the ‘Last Last’ hitmaker did.
Speaking with Nana Romeo on Accra FM’s midmorning drivetime show, he mentioned that he was aware from the very moment Burna Boy released his ‘Common Person’ that it was his ‘Here To Stay’ that was sampled.
However, he got really convinced after another colleague in the music industry called Jack called to confirm the same.
Afriyie added that later some other people also called to confirm the same thing and stressed that what Burna Boy did could be likened to theft because he made a few changes.
“Some people are saying it’s creativity, while others are saying it’s theft. He also somehow changed the key, and he didn’t sing like me, but the sax and the flow…For some of my melodies, he played the guitar,” he said.
Asked if he had any plans to confront Burna Boy over this issue, he quickly said he was not going to do so because people will attack him and possibly tag him a hater of the ‘African Gaint’
Afriyie was quick to add that he was however happy that people who have musical ears have seen this and are talking about it.
The family of Christian Atsu led by Nene Gabriel Kofi Tswasam on Friday, February 24, 2023, called on the Minister of Youth and Sports, Mustapha Ussif to officially inform him about the death of their son.
The meeting according to the Ministry was also to discuss the burial and funeral of the late Black Stars winger as the government had earlier promised through Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia to fund the cost of the funeral.
“On Friday 24th February, 2023 the family of the late Christian Atsu Tswasam called on the Minister for Youth and Sports, Hon Mustapha Ussif to officially inform him of the death of their son and to deliberate on the burial and funeral of the late Atsu.”
“After deliberating on the burial of the late Atsu, it was concluded that a meeting will be held with the President of the Republic of Ghana on Monday 27th February 2023 to agree on a suitable date for his burial,” part of the Minister’s statement sighted by GhanaWeb Sports read.
Background
Christian Atsu was found dead on the morning of Saturday, February 18, 2022, at the site of his collapsed apartment twelve days after a devastating earthquake hit parts of Turkey and Syria.
The one-week observation of Christian Atsu has been scheduled for Saturday, March 4, 2023, in Accra.
Christian Atsu played in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil and four other African Cup of Nations tournaments.
In all, Christian Atsu made 65 appearances and scored 9 goals for the Black Stars from 2012-2019.
The incident happened on the Twifu Mirekukrom to Twifu Agona deplorable road in the Twifu Attimokwa District of the Central Region.
The incident has left residents in about five Communities who share this abandoned bridge leaving in fear as they wonder what will happen next.
They say their movement has become very difficult as they can’t travel on the road.
The residents claim five pregnant women have died on this abandoned bridge just two months into 2023.
Speaking in an interview with Ghone News, Yaw Boagyan, the Chief of Twifu Mirekukrom, Nana Mireku Ababia I, said he and his people are disappointed in President Akufo-Addo and his District Chief Executives for Twifu Attimokwa, Hon. Robert Agyeman Nyantakyi for deceiving them to win their vote in the 2016 and 2020 general election.
He said he will mobilize his community members to campaign against the New Patriotic Party over the abandonment of projects in the area.
The Chief who led his Community Members to sing war song saying they won’t vote if their abandoned roads and bridge is not fixed.
Ghanaian kumawood actor and producer, Samuel Ofori says he owes his life to the late Ghanaian footballer, Christian Atsu, who came to his aid in the nick of time.
The actor revealed for the first time that he would have been long dead but for a single phone call Atsu placed to him right on time when he was about committing suicide.
In a self-taken video, Mr Ofori revealed at that time, he was depressed following some false accusations against him in Germany which made him trend for the wrong reasons.
According to him, Ghanaians descended heavily on him without hearing his side of the story, and he felt his good reputation was over and he was better off dead.
However, as he sat thinking of how to end it all, he said Atsu called to check up on him and inquired about the multiple headlines he read on social media.
“I was so frustrated at that time that I neglected all calls, but when I saw his, I answered. He was worried about me and asked for my side of the story. After I narrated everything to him, he motivated me to ignore because it was a trivial issue. What he did not know was that if that call had not come, I would have drank something poisonous. Just the single call changed my life.”
Not only did he comfort him, Mr Ofori said Atsu requested for his Ghanaian wife’s number and explained the entire situation to her.
Due to Atsu’s intervention, the matter was quickly resolved and he went on to make the most of his life.
On how his relationship with Atsu started, the filmmaker said Atsu called to compliment his talent after watching his 2019 movie, Make Up Girls starring Jessica Williams.
Since then, they were the very best of friends until Atsu lost his life under the rubble after an earthquake in Turkey.
A group calling itself the ‘Bole-Bamboi Youth for JM 2024’, have donated an amount of GH¢20,000 to former President John Mahama to support his 2024 presidential bid.
According to the group, the gesture is an expression of their unwavering belief in Mahama to transform the country’s economic fortunes.
In a presentation at Mahama’s office at Cantonments in Accra on Thursday, the group handed the sum to the former Chief of Staff, Mr Julius Debrah, who received it on behalf of the ex-president.
Mr Debrah thanked the donors for the gesture and reiterated Mahama’s commitment to salvaging the economy when given the nod in 2024.
Speaking to MyJoyonline.com after the donation, leader of the group, Mr Abdul Rafiu Haruna, said the group’s support for Mahama is connected to his ethnic relations to Bole-Bamboi, hence a gesture to one of their kinsmen.
“John Dramani Mahama has been tried and tested. We all lived in this country when he was the president of this country and were witnesses [and] can attest to the good works he embarked on when he was given the privilege to rule this country”, leader of the group added.
He further stated that, “the peculiarities of this election, the 2024 elections are such that we’re presented with candidates that we can measure their track records and we all agree that John Dramani Mahama, has even earned the title the ‘nation builder’ because of the massive developmental projects he has engaged in.
“So I believe that we all can attest to what he has done for Ghana”.
The donation by the group adds to a groundswell of support Mr Mahama has received since expressing his desire to contest the 2024 presidential elections.
Incumbent Members of Parliament, as well as aspiring MPs and other key members of the party have thrown their weight behind the former president’s candidature.
The NDC’s 2020 campaign manger, Professor Joshua Alabi is one of those who believe that Mahama is the best option amongst the party’s other flagbearer aspirants.
Meanwhile, the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) says it is prepared to face former President John Dramani Mahama at the 2024 polls.
Addressing a press conference on Wednesday, the NPP’s Director of Communication, Richard Ahiagbah, said his outfit is not intimidated by Mahama’s intentions.
According to him, Mr Mahama did not give a good account of himself while in office, but rather subjected Ghanaians to untold hardship; including the one-time power fluctuations, termed ‘dumsor’.
Both presidential and parliamentary nominations were opened for interested aspirants to pick forms on 21st February, 2023.
Chairman of the Elections Committee, Kakra Essamuah at a media engagement after the closing of nominations, announced that four aspirants have picked forms to contest the upcoming flagbearer race.
He mentioned former President John Mahama, Dr. Kwabena Duffour, Kojo Bonsu and Ernest Kwaku Kobeah.
According to Mr. Essamuah, applicants are expected to receive endorsements from all 275 constituencies before filing between 20th to 22nd March.
He has, however, indicated that nominations for the parliamentary elections are still ongoing and expected to close by midnight Friday.
Meanwhile, the freeze on 27 constituencies across the country is still active until further notice.
There are others lamenting their inability to get their PVCs and therefore are ineligible to vote.
Nigerians record myriad of problems every election time and each time appeared worse than the previous one.
The head of the electoral commission, Professor Mahmood Yakubu has promised to make the 2023 general elections ‘the best’ Nigeria has ever had and all eyes are on him.
Will he deliver or not?
One of the disappointments of today’s election is the disenfranchisement of many Nigerians who registered to vote but could not because they could not access their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs).
Some did not get to register at all. Some who did merely engaged in wasted efforts.
Reports abound of discovery of thousands of PVCs in the forests, inside gutters or toilets which the Independent National Electoral Commission could not explain.
Some PVCs have ended up in the palace of Baales and traditional rulers who know nothing about their owners and whose owners could not trace them.
With over 90 million registered voters and over 23,000 election duty staff, Nigeria’s election is a big endeavour.
“It’s like conducting elections for the whole of West Africa and beyond,” Prof Yakubu said on numerous occasions and this is because Nigeria has more registered voters than all its 14 West African neighbours combined.
The elections have always been problematic. Insecurity is rife in four of the six geo-political zones of the country.
Several attacks have been carried out on the facilities of the electoral commission, INEC, in the last four years.
Nigerians have raised issues against some INEC officials but INEC was not seen to have responded to these allegations of bias against its officials.
While they allegedly did not renew the tenures of Outstanding Commissioners, they retained some of those whom the public has identified to be allegedly corrupt and partisan and their actions appeared to have aided some controversial judgments.
For instance, the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) called for the redeployment of the Lagos Resident Electoral Commissioner of the INEC, Olusegun Agbaje, in the buildup of Nigeria’s presidential election.
The letter to the INEC chairman had accused Agbaje of working against the Igbo in Lagos by depriving them of their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and trying to incite violence.
Intersociety’s letter alleged that millions of citizens of voting age of full blood Nigerian citizenship have been denied voting right by not being captured as voters and issued with permanent voters’ cards.
The group alleged massive reports of personal data theft and destruction, diversion and impersonation of the registered citizens and citizens-under-registration’s PVCs or personal data supplied to INEC.
Intersociety alleged that tens of millions are denied registration and issuance of PVCs particularly the non Muslims of South-East and South-South residencies. “Denied registration and massively disenfranchised are large numbers of citizens of the two regions living outside their regions where they reside or work.
“Contrarily, citizens of voting age especially the non Christians in the North and other parts of the country are so maximally captured as registered voters and issued with PVCs that millions of children of underage and illegal Muslim migrants sharing same faith with them are sought after and registered as “voters” and issued with PVCs”
Following widespread outcries that greeted the brazen partisanship of the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Lagos State, Olusegun Agbaje, over his anti South-East or Igbo genocidal comments/PVC posture, the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) called for the immediate removal of the REC.
Apart from allegations made by Intersociety, most citizens of the southeast and the south-south have stories of woe to tell about their PVCs.
There were video clips circulating on the social media showing the discovery of thousands of PVCs hidden in underground locations, or dumped in dustbins and in the streets and these residents suspect they belonged to the zones.
One of the political parties, Zenith Labour Party (ZLP once charged the Independent National Electoral Commission,INEC, Police and the Department of State Services,DSS, to fish out and arrest INEC officials and politicians responsible for hiding Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) under the ground.
Many also lamented the unearthing of PVCs buried in some states, adding that INEC staff may have connived with some politicians to cart away PVCs with the intention to perpetrate electoral fraud in 2023.
Recently, two hunters discovered a bag full of Permanent Voter Cards, PVCs, in a forest in Nnewi, Anambra State.
This discovery was made just four days to the general election in Nigeria.
The hunters saw the bag containing the PVCs in a bush in Akamili, a community in Nnewi and took it to the premises of a popular radio station, Authority FM.
A video of the PVCs, which was made in the compound of the radio station in Nnewi, showed that most of the PVCs belonged to people of the area.
Besides the PVCs, Nigerians have also expressed fear with the deployment of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS.
A recent ruling by the Osun State election tribunal has cast doubts on the integrity of the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS), a technology introduced to address over-voting and inflation of votes.
Despite the promise that it would eliminate over-voting and inflation of votes, the Osun state election tribunal sacked Ademola Adeleke earlier declared the winner of the election, stating that the BVAS, in fact, accommodated over-voting which spurred Mr Adeleke to victory. INEC and Mr Adeleke have, however, appealed the ruling.
The deployment of technologies, including the BVAS, INEC Voter Enrolment Device (IVED) and the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal, should increase confidence in today’s process but will it?
After deploying the BVAS and IReV in three off-cycle elections, INEC will today, deploy them on a large scale for the first time.
However, these technologies appear to not be without their own challenges. While INEC is optimistic that there would be no hitches, some of the challenges experienced with these technologies during the mock accreditation that was held on 4 February are worthy of note.
For instance, YIAGA Africa observed cases of result discrepancies in some polling units where the number of accredited voters as uploaded by BVAS is different from what is on the snapshot of the result sheet uploaded.
The report also stated that the BVAS finds it difficult to accredit some voters who registered in 2011.
Despite these issues raised, even many voters with PVCs will not be able to vote at the end of the day due to other unforeseen circumstances.
And there is still the scarcity of petroleum products and naira banknotes to reckon with.
This, Daniel Krull attributes to China’s unwillingness to engage in possible debt relief.
“The biggest elephant in the room is China. China is the largest creditor to Ghana and so far, it’s not fully supporting the setting up of the creditor’s committee where all the creditors will sit down and agree on a package for Ghana,” he said in a yet-to-be-aired interview on Foreign Affairs on the Joy News Channel.
“Time is of the essence, time is running out. Without this agreement with the bilateral creditors, the IMF package is in severe danger,” he added.
For this reason, he encouraged Members of Parliament as well as Ghanaians with strong ties with China to convince them to come to the table and agree on a package.
According to him, Germany is ready to come to the table and assist Ghana.
A high-powered government delegation is set to jet off to China in March, hoping to restructure $1.7 owed China as Ghana hopes to complete restructuring of its external debt as part of conditions required to secure an IMF programme.
The meeting with China on debt cancellation was postponed to late March 2023, following the upcoming National People’s Congress of China meeting scheduled for early March.
Ghanaian singers Manifest, Sarkodie, Ko-Jo Cue, E.L, and Kwesi Arthur have been named as part of the top five Ghanaian artists with the best lyrics game in the industry, according to ChatGPT.
Like many other countries, Ghana’s music industry has a diverse range of artists who are extraordinary when it comes to their pen game.
Although, we have quite a number of artists who have the best lyrics game in the industry, here are some names that are often mentioned when the battle of who has the best lyrics comes on.
The top five Ghanaian artists with the best lyrics game, in no particular order, are:
Manifest – Manifest is known for his thought-provoking and socially conscious lyrics, with songs that touch on a variety of topics, including politics, social issues, and personal struggles. His wordplay and storytelling abilities are top-notch, and he is widely respected in the Ghanaian music industry for his lyrical prowess.
Sarkodie – Sarkodie is one of the most successful rappers in Ghana, and his lyricism is a big reason for his success. He has a unique style and flow, and his lyrics often touch on his personal experiences and struggles. He is also known for his witty punchlines and clever wordplay.
Ko-Jo Cue – Ko-Jo Cue is another Ghanaian rapper known for his impressive lyricism. He has a laid-back flow that complements his introspective and deeply personal lyrics, which often touch on issues like mental health and self-discovery. He is widely regarded as one of the best lyricists in Ghana.
4.E.L – E.L is a versatile rapper who is equally skilled at delivering catchy hooks and hard-hitting verses. His lyrics often touch on personal experiences and social issues, and he is known for his wordplay and ability to craft memorable rhymes.
Kwesi Arthur – Kwesi Arthur is a rising star in the Ghanaian music industry, known for his smooth flow and introspective lyrics. His songs often touch on issues like poverty, identity, and personal growth, and he has a talent for crafting catchy hooks and memorable verses. His lyrics have earned him a reputation as one of the most promising young talents in Ghana.
ChatGPT is a chatbot developed by the American artificial intelligence research lab OpenAI. It has become an internet sensation, with some experts warning that similar automation tools are set to kill some careers.
A year and a half ago, Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine for adults was loaded onto trucks and airplanes and shipped out for distribution across the United States – the beginning of what would be one of the largest vaccination campaigns in this nation’s history.
The excitement surrounding the shipment brought out groups of cheering spectators. Former US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Robert Redfield stated “This is the next step in our efforts to protect Americans, reduce the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and help restore some normalcy to our lives and our country.”
We are now at the same pivotal moment, this time for the roughly 18 million children under the age of 5. On Friday, these young ones became eligible to receive a Covid-19 vaccine after the US Food and Drug Administration granted emergency use authorization of Pfizer’s and Moderna’s pediatric vaccines. For the Pfizer shot, this provides eligibility for children ages 6 months to 5 years; for the Moderna shot, it covers children 6 months to 6 years (the oldest of which were already eligible for the Pfizer vaccine). Shots in arms will become a reality as soon as CDC gives the green light.
Many parents of children under 5 have been anxiously waiting for a Covid-19 vaccine to be authorized. I am one of them, as I have a 2-year-old daughter. I previously shared how I planned to vaccinate my older boys, ages 8 and 6, once a Covid-19 vaccine for their age group was authorized. They are now both five months out from their second vaccine and eligible for a booster dose, an appointment I will gladly make.
Parents may be wondering if it is even worth vaccinating their little ones considering that children tend to fare better against Covid-19 than adults – and that we are in a better place in the pandemic. I am here to tell you it is worth vaccinating your children, and here is why.
Covid-19 can infect children – and for some, can result in poor outcomes. Since the beginning of the pandemic, over 13 million children have tested positive for the virus – an undercount of how many children truly got infected.
A nationwide analysis by scientists at the CDC, estimates that two in every three children between the ages of 1 and 4 in the US has been infected. (Though the study is not peer-reviewed and used a small sample of young children, according to one expert, “the results are consistent with the rapid rise in documented infections in that age-group.”)
What’s more, according to the CDC, since mid-May 2020, 8,525 children have been reported to have multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), a condition associated with Covid-19 in which body parts, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, or gastrointestinal organs, can become inflamed.
During this past winter Omicron surge, pediatric Covid-19 cases spiked to its highest levels with over 1 million reported cases in just one week’s time, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Per CDC data, the number of children who required hospitalization, many of whom were under the age of 5 and ineligible for vaccination, also increased precipitously during that time to the highest levels since the onset of the pandemic.
A CDC report showed infants and children ages 0 to 4 were hospitalized at approximately five times the rate of the previous peak during Delta variant predominance. And even now, nearly 88,000 child Covid cases were reported just last week, reports AAP.
While taking my daughter out for a stroll, a neighbor, who is up to date with his Covid-19 vaccines, approached us and shared how he got infected with Covid-19 a month ago and is suffering from long Covid. He’s experiencing low energy levels, shortness of breath after engaging in minimal activities and episodes of brain fog – enough to disrupt his daily routine.
While it remains unclear how many children go on to develop long Covid, studies suggest that it’s between 2% and 10% of those infected with the virus, but the number may be larger. A growing list of studies are showing that Covid-19 vaccination reduces the risk of long Covid (though this hasn’t specifically been shown in kids). And a CDC report noted that two doses of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine reduced the risk of MIS-C in children ages 12 to 18 by 91% during a time when the Delta variant was dominant.
The reality of long Covid is enough for me as a parent to want to protect my children from getting Covid in first place. We still go out as a family and enjoy most of the activities we did pre-pandemic, apart from now avoiding high risk activities in areas of high community transmission with our daughter. She can’t tolerate wearing a mask consistently, so my husband and I decided not to take trips that requires her to be around large groups of individuals until she is vaccinated.
While the vaccines are great, they’re not foolproof, and the risk of contracting Covid-19 is still a possibility. But lowering the chance of my child suffering from any illness, especially a trip to the hospital, is still a step in the right direction.
Many people have put the pandemic behind them, but for the youngest children, the threat posed by this virus still looms. A Kaiser Family Foundation survey from April shows just 18% of parents say they will get their child under 5 vaccinated as soon as a Covid-19 vaccine is authorized in their age group. The next hurdle will be to educate parents and caregivers and to address all their questions and concerns about these vaccines.
If the 29% of 5-11-year-olds who, according to the AAP, have now received two doses of Covid-19 vaccine are any indication, this will not be an easy task. Misinformation still runs rampant. To get ahead of the predictable misinformation and disinformation that will ensue by fringe groups to undermine confidence in the vaccines, we must ensure timely and accurate vaccination messages are ready to go by health care providers, public health institutions and pediatric groups, and that social media platforms can readily connect parents to this information.
We have waited over a year to get to this pivotal moment for these young kids – now that a vaccine is authorized, we must do everything we can to get shots into these little arms.
DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author’s, and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana
Dancehall musician, Jupitar, has supported Michael Blackson after he claimed that there are only four superstar artists in Ghana.
Michael Blackson earlier revealed that Ghana can only boast of four superstars, unlike Nigeria which is flooded with ‘music heavyweights.
During a discussion on ‘Drinks Champs’ podcast, the Ghanaian-American comedian threw the spotlight on only four music stars namely; Shatta Wale, Stonebwoy, Sarkodie, and Black Sherif where he announced that Ghanaian rapper, Gambo was now under his “Blackson Management” label.
“Nigeria has all the stars. Nigeria is like the New York of music in Africa and Ghana is like the Dubai of Africa I can only count about four superstars in Ghana. We have Shatta Wale, Stonebwoy, Sarkodie, and Black Sherif. I want to make Gambo the fifth star and that’s why I signed him,” Michael Blackson said.
Blackson’s comment has since generated massive reactions on social media with netizens sharing varied opinions on it including Ghanaian musician, Fuse ODG, who disagreed with the assertion.
According to him, there are a lot of great musicians in Ghana hence the comedian should focus on promoting the country rather than embarrassing the people on international platforms.
However, dancehall artiste, Jupitar, has come out to support Blackson’s statement, arguing that it is true because the focus has been on promoting only those four artists, neglecting the others
“Why are you going hard on for saying he’s only familiar with just 4 artists? I’ve said this before, the focus is just on few acts so for obvious reasons only few will get recognized, until we change our ways to give equal and fair support on every act.” Jupitar tweeted.
Meanwhile, Michael Blackson, who seems to have been experiencing attacks over his comments, has taken to social media one more time to clarify his statements.
Musician Gyakie has joined the star-studded lineup of South African rapper AKA’s posthumous album, Mass Country.
The album was released on February 24, 2023.
The album, described as a “parting gift” and “love letter to South Africa,” showcases AKA’s love for his homeland and the diverse sounds that make up the local music scene.
It also features a host of South Africa’s hottest hip-hop talent, including Khuli Chana, Blxckie, Nadia Nakai, Emtee, Yanga Chief, Sjava, and more.
Gyakie’s feature on the album is a pre-released single titled “Paradise,” which features Musa Keys. It’s a love song where AKA sings and raps about all he’s willing to do and has done for the love of his life.
AKA expressed his love for Gyakie’s voice in a Guide Radio interview in 2022.
The duo recorded the song later that year during one of Gyakie’s visits to South Africa, where she performed at South Africa’s Homecoming Festival and also received a double platinum certification plaque for her 2021 single, Forever.
Gyakie has been making waves in the African music industry, gaining recognition for her exceptional talent and unique sound. She is making strides and crossing borders in the music space.
This is not her first time collaborating with South African artiste. She also featured on a track by Major League DJz.
Meanwhile, “Mass Country” released posthumously after AKA’s tragic shooting a few weeks ago is out now and features music from AKA with Nasty C, Khuli Chana, Nadia Nakai and more big names in the South African music scene.
Sista Afia delivers some scinalliting vocals on this new tune produced by Abochi, accompanied by some melodious hooks and lyrics.
On this new song, the award-winning musician goes emotionally charged on heartbreakers while consoling the heartbroken and healing them with positive vibes.
In the new music video, directed by Xbills Ebenezer, Sista discusses her romantic life and her objectives in entering into a relationship.
The central theme of the song and video illustrates how money plays a crucial role in modern relationships.
Sista Afia demonstrates her sense of fashion in the visuals, coupled with her impressive choreographed dance moves.
Possibly a contender for the music video of the year, “Carry Go” is available across all streaming platforms.
After students objected over forthcoming rules governing bathroom use during class, police were summoned to several schools.
Students at Richmond School in North Yorkshire started setting off fire extinguishers and kicking down doors, prompting the call for riot police.
According to local reports, during the uproar, a tree was set on fire, teachers were knocked to the ground, and windows were broken.
Pupils shook fences, kicked down doors and set off fire extinguishers in a protest over toilet access during school time (Picture: BPM)
It is understood the protest was planned by students after the school announced plans to lock the toilets during lesson time and for a period over break time.
A petition was initially proposed, before students instead decided to refuse to go to lessons and staged a protest in the lunch hall.
There are reports that around 20 students have been since been permanently excluded due to the disturbance.
Jenna Potter, headteacher at Richmond School and Sixth Form College, said in a statement to Richmondshire Today: ‘A small group of students has protested against the use of toilets during lesson time.
‘The overwhelming majority of students were equally shocked at the behaviour of a small minority. Students have already been consulted and will continue to contribute to a solution.’
Meanwhile in Cornwall, a demonstration at the Penrice Academy in St Austell saw tables being flipped over and a girl injured after a protest kicked off which had reportedly been organised on Facebook the night before.
A message shared on Facebook on Thursday read: ‘Dear all Penrice students. We are protesting tomorrow about toilet rights.
‘Please join if you can this will run through period 1, 2, 3, 4 and will take place outside reception and year 7 yard. We will all spread out through the school and please make posters and signs.
‘Like I said please join if you can. Repost this on your story and spread the message.’
Local police were reportedly made aware of the incident but did not attend the scene.
An email sent by Penrice Academy staff to parents seen by Metro.co.uk read: ‘Due to a social media post yesterday evening, some of our students took the decision to protest.
‘Our students have the right to express their opinions in a calm and safe manner, however a small number of students’ behaviour was unaacceptable.
‘A number of parents have already been contacted to collect their children.
‘For the majority of our students, lessons and lunch time will continue as normal.
Kids revolt at Lincolnshire school over ban on toilets during lesson time
‘We hope to engage with them to find a solution that works for everyone as soon as possible.’
Elsewhere in the country, The Farnley Academy in Leeds has seen students standing outside classrooms and refusing to go in.
The students were supported in their protest by a number of ‘disgusted’ parents, who said the move was a violation of the children’s human rights.
Protests have also been staged at Bromfords School in Wickford and Castle View School in Canvey, where pupils organised a series of walk-outs which soon escalated into ‘chaos.’
One parent of a pupil at Bromfords, who did not wish to be named, told the Canvey Echo: ‘Students were setting off fire alarms and running amok at the school in protest of locked toilets, lack of school lunches and staffing issues.
‘I have just physically attended the school to get my daughter out of there as it’s kicking off.
‘I have just witnessed first-hand, the school is chaos!’
Another protest has been reported at Haven High Academy in Boston, Lincolnshire, which the headteacher has blamed on social media trends and warned students they will be met with sanctions if it happens again.
A number of videos have surfaced on TikTok depicting a large number of students gathering on the school’s field to protest the ‘prison rules’ enforced by the school.
One parent of a pupil at Haven High told LincolnshireLive claims the school is locking toilet blocks and corridors.
The parent also claimed children are not being allowed to use the toilet during lessons.
They said: ‘For some strange reason the headteacher seems to be throwing prison rules into the school where corridors and toilet blocks are locked during school time.
‘If they need the toilet or anything they have to go through this teacher and that teacher, it’s just like a prison in there. They can’t wear any sort of jewellery and no make-up. If mobile phones are switched on then they get that confiscated until after school.
‘All the students protested and went onto the school field. Some teachers were trying to get them back in but they were saying “no”.
After hearing he would only be receiving one mourner, about 100 well-wishers showed up to the RAF veteran’s funeral.
The 97-year-old World War Two veteran Ronald Gale of Ipswich, Suffolk, passed away in December without ever being married, having children, or having any close relatives.
When the Royal British Legion learned of the predicament, they launched a public plea; originally, only one neighbour and two attorneys had registered to attend the funeral.
It turned out that Mr. Gale had a close relationship with two other neighbours, who enthusiastically seized the chance to express their condolences.
Dozens of people turned up after the Legion’s appeal (Picture: SWNS)Armed forces representatives including a bugler and bagpiper also contributed to the serviceSeveral veterans bore flags outside the entrance to Ipswich Crematorium’s West Chapel (Picture: SWNS)
The appeal then spread like wildfire locally, and the service ended up so busy that the doors of the chapel at Ipswich Crematorium were kept open to allow people to hear from outside.
They were joined by uniformed representatives of the Army, RAF and cadets, as well as bagpiper who played as Mr Gale’s hearse arrived and a bugler who played at the service.
Neighbour Des Welham said: ‘I think he’d be shocked to see how many people have turned out for him today.
Mr Gale’s neighbours said he was always ‘sharply dressed in a suit’ (Picture: SWNS)
‘It was a beautiful service and so moving to see so many come to pay their respects.’
‘He’d be so taken aback’, added Maisie Perry, a close friend and neighbour of the veteran.
Arun Achary said: ‘Myself, Maisie and Des would often take him out for meals.
‘He was a wonderful man. He was caring and so polite. Every day he would be sharply dressed in a suit.’
Little is known of Mr Gale’s military service besides a picture taken in July 1944 revealing he was part of the No. 47 Flight Squadron and No. 36 R&C Wing squad at the time.
In a long-running disagreement over salary, job security, and working conditions, employees have been taking strike action.
Today, the union made the announcement that its members had accepted an offer from the railroads.
It denotes that TSSA will officially accept the offers and inform the train companies that the ballots for further industrial action have been withdrawn.
The union will enter into discussions with employers on the detail of implementing all the principles and commitments contained in the settlement.
A TSSA spokesperson said: ‘This is a clear decision from our members which will end our long-running dispute – something which could have happened months ago had it not been for government intransigence.
‘The incredible resolve we have seen from our members has resulted in a significantly improved pay deal over two years, commitments for no compulsory redundancies, improved opportunities for redeployment, as well as full consultation over proposed reforms to ticket offices and any changes to terms and conditions.
‘Thanks to the great commitment of our members across the train companies they have collectively won a better future and can be rightly proud of their actions in this historic dispute.
The offer includes
A two year pay deal covering 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 which provides for a 5 per cent increase or a minimum increase of £1,750 whichever is the greater in year 1, and a further 4 per cent increase in year 2.
No compulsory redundancies of employees within the grades directly affected by the Workforce Changes (see below) from the date of the agreement until 31st December 2024.
The grades directly affected by the workforce changes are: – All station-based grades, all on board grades including catering and train-crew, all administration grades, all Fleet & Engineering grades. All Revenue Protection and Train Service Controller grades will be regarded as in scope for the purposes of the no compulsory redundancies commitment.
Voluntary Redundancy Scheme (VRS) – offering the terms set out under the RIRG Enabling Framework Agreement in 2021, to allow affected employees the opportunity to leave the industry should they wish to apply to do so.
‘We will continue to hold the train companies and the government to account as we go forward because Britain needs a fully functioning rail network at the heart of our green industrial future, and as a means of rebuilding our economy in the wake of the Covid pandemic.’
Companies involved in the scope of the new offer are – Avanti West Coast, C2C, Chiltern Railways, Cross Country, East Midlands Railway, Govia Thameslink Railway, Greater Anglia, Great Western Railway, London North Eastern Railway, Northern Trains Limited, South Eastern Railway, South Western Railway, Trans Pennine Express, West Midlands Trains.
Although the council urged him to halt “in no uncertain terms,” one councilman has defended his choice to repair potholes in his neighbourhood himself.
The roads in Luke Mason’s ward in Coulby Newham, Middlesbrough, are in considerably better shape now that he fixed the potholes himself.
A representative from Middlesbrough Council, however, stated that while they appreciated Mr. Mason’s efforts, all highway repairs must be completed in accordance with health and safety regulations and to the necessary standards.
Cllr Mason told TeesideLive: ‘It’s one of those things, the council is coming under ever-increasing pressure, the demand for maintenance across our environmental services is outstripping supply.
‘Officers are trying their best but the statutory services we run at the council, mainly social care, are taking up an ever-increasing portion of our budget.
‘The repairs are far from perfect but they leave the roads in a far better state than what they were before. I think it’s important to realise how under pressure services are so you can’t lay the blame solely on the council and officers.’
Yet despite his good intentions, Mr Mason was told in no uncertain terms’ by the council’s environmental services that it could be ‘a serious breach’ if anything happened at one of the potholes he has repaired.
‘I think it might have to come to an end now,’ he added.
Councillor Mason admitted his repairs are ‘far from perfect’ \The Conservative council pictured with former prime minister Boris Johnson
Mr Mason, who is standing for re-election in May, said he would ‘strongly dissuade’ the public from doing repairs themselves for legal reasons that could ‘come back to haunt them.’
‘In my own defence, I am quite happy with the work I have done there but the public shouldn’t be doing it themselves,’ he said.
A council spokesperson said: ‘We appreciate the efforts of ward members and members of the public who wish to improve their local areas.
‘However, highway repairs need to be carried out in line with health and safety guidelines and to appropriate standards.
He urged members of the public not to try their own repairs, saying they could have legal issues (Picture: Luke Mason)
‘As such advice has been issued accordingly for the wellbeing of all, including road users.’
Middlesbrough Council plans to scale back a planned £15m investment to just £7.5m in their 2023/24 budget, which will save them a further £162,000 in financing costs.
However, these cutbacks are set to reduce the council’s capacity to maintain roads by approximately two thirds.
Those who are having trouble affording food may want to consider working additional hours, according to a senior Tory minister who makes £156,000 annually and recently received a pay raise.
Therese Coffey stated inflation is “very terrible at the moment” while speaking from the Commons dispatch box and then launched into a series of wisecracks.
She stated that getting a job if you’re unemployed or working additional hours is “one of the finest strategies” to increase revenues.
No need to worry, the environment secretary had different advice: anyone looking to get a higher salary should always think about “upskilling.”
Labour MP Rachael Maskell was heard saying ‘that’s appalling’ as Ms Coffey replied to her question about York food banks running out of stock.
Speaking after the exchanges, Ms Maskell said: ‘With food prices going up 16.8% over the last year, the Secretary of State said that people needed to work more hours to pay for their food.
‘It is shocking that the Environment Secretary shifted blame for food poverty onto people because they are on low wages and are poor, expecting them to work even more hours to put food on the table.
‘People are going hungry, often limiting themselves to one small meal a day or missing food altogether. It is time her Government supported families in need, not making them work harder for a crust.’
Therese Coffey’s solutions for struggling families went down like a led balloon (Picture: Getty)
Ms Coffey’s solution to the cost of living crisis came after she warned shortages of some fruits and vegetables could drag on for another month.
Bad weather, transport problems and below par harvests in Africa and Europe have left produce shelves left bare in recent days.
Caps have been placed on how many tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, and peppers shoppers can put in their baskets and trolleys.
One shopper who attempted to buy 100 cucumbers was turned away by shop staff.
Ms Coffey told MPs: ‘I am led to believe by my officials after discussion with industry and retailers, we anticipate the situation will last about another two to four weeks.
‘It is important that we try and make sure that we get alternative sourcing options. That is why the department has already been in discussion with the retailers.
‘It is why there will be further discussions led by ministers as well, so that we can try and get over this and try and avoid similar situations in the future.
‘Even if we cannot control the weather it is important that we try and make sure the supply continues to not be frustrated in quite the way it has been due to these unusual weather incidents.’
Member of Parliament for the Bole-Bamboi Constituency, Alhaji Yussif Sulemana, is seeking re-election in the coming National Democratic Congress (NDC) primaries, as well as the ultimate elections to be held in December 2024.
Alhaji Yussif Sulemana said his experience, coupled with the massive development projects he injected or influenced, makes him the best for the Bole-Bamboi Constituency.
The MP made these comments in an interview with Bole-based Nkilgi FM on the morning show of February 23, 2023.
According to Alhaji Yussif Sulemana, the announcement of his intent shouldn’t be a surprise because the rank and file of the NDC party has admonished him to contest and continue his good work for the constituency.
He added that, before he could pick a form to contest, a group known as the Brifo/Dagaaba Friends of Alhaji Yussif Sulemana, led by Mr. Daniel Manu, had already purchased the forms for him on the opening day for picking of forms.
He further thanked the group for their thoughtfulness and promised to work hard to unite all tribes in his constituency.
Alhaji Yussif Sulemana said he had always been there for his constituents and had their best interests at heart.
He highlighted his main agenda items of education, health, and agriculture, which have seen massive improvements since he became the Member of Parliament for the Bole-Bamboi constituency.
Alhaji Sulemana added that the party headquarters in Bole, which was dilapidated, has been refurbished through his own finances to make the office very conducive for all to relax and work for the party.
He indicated that all the NDC MPs in Parliament have unanimously endorsed John Dramani as flagbearer.
The incumbent MP has therefore said that delegates of the party should vote for him on May 13, 2023, to continue his good work and make sure former President, John Dramani Mahama wins the election on December 7, 2024.
The poorest people are bearing the burden of food inflation because the cost of the cheapest items at supermarkets has increased by an astounding 21.6% in only one year.
According to a Which? survey, the cost of value items has been rising more rapidly than total grocery inflation, which was 15.9% across all major supermarkets.
This includes the average cost of milk, which increased by 26.1%, and the increase in price of pork sausages at Asda from 80p to £1.27.
Other big price increases include Sainsbury’s muesli rising from £1.20 to £2.25, and tins of sliced carrots up 63% from 20p to 33p at Tesco.
The price of cheese went up by 23.8% overall, but some individual examples surged by as much as 96.6%.
The findings suggest those who are likely to be already struggling to feed their families and pay their bills during the cost-of-living crisis are being hit disproportionately with the sharpest food increases.
In comparison, branded goods rose by 13.2% over the year, own-label premium ranges were up 13.4% and standard own-brand items increased 18.9%.
The average price of milk has risen by a staggering 26.1%
However, Which? found the discounters were generally still cheaper than their competitors.
Sue Davies, Which? head of food policy, said: ‘It’s clear that food costs have soared in recent months, but our inflation tracker shows how households relying on supermarket value ranges are being hit the hardest.
‘Supermarkets need to act and Which? is calling for them to ensure everyone has easy access to basic, affordable food ranges at a store near them, particularly in areas where people are most in need.
‘Supermarkets must also do more to ensure transparent pricing enables people to easily work out which products offer the best value and target their promotions to support people who are really struggling.’
Member of Parliament (MP) for Afigya Kwabre North, Collins Adomako-Mensah, has admonished the secretary to the Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral of Ghana, to tackle the allegations leveled against him by the North MP squarely.
Mr Adomako-Mensah who criticised Rev. Victor Kusi Boateng, over his handling of allegations raised against him by Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, asked the former to present hard facts disputing the reports.
Adomako-Mensah stated in a Good Morning Ghana interview on Wednesday, which GhanaWeb monitored, that the pastor has failed to provide any tangible explanation for allegations that he is operating a double identity.
According to the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MP, Rev. Kusi Boateng’s failure to defend his identity and his attempts to stop Ablakwa from releasing more documents make it look like the accusations against him are true, which is making the North Tongu MP popular.
“I think we are making Okudzeto extremely popular… one of the most easiest things to do in life is to defend the truth.
“Why is all this thing happening? Okudzeto starts something about the Cathedral, he zooms in on a particular person. He says you have two names, if you don’t have two names just say it. What is difficult about that? He says you have two TIN numbers; no, I don’t have one. What is difficult about that?
“The fact that you are not responding to him and giving contrary facts is what has brought us here. And what is happening now looks like you are trying to suppress the truth. Now, look at Okudzeto, he has become like some hero,” he said.
Meanwhile, a High Court in Accra has adjourned the contempt hearing against the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, sine die.
The court, on Tuesday, February 21, 2023, commenced the hearing of a contempt application filed against the MP by the secretary to the Board of Trustee of the National Cathedral of Ghana, Rev. Victor Kusi Boateng, for his handling of a restraining order document issued by a court in Accra.
The MP was captured in a viral video throwing out a restraining order document from the secretary to the Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral of Ghana, Rev. Victor Kusi Boateng, who is also known as Kwabena Adu Gyamfi.
The High Court stated before adjourning the case that the Member of Parliament for North Tongue was not served with any contempt procedure as suggested.
According to the judge, Charles Gyamfi Danquah, documents procured by Ablakwa from social media cannot be accepted as a legal writ from the court.
“From the records before this court, the respondent has not been served with any contempt procedure, and the court has also not made any order for such a process. What learned counsel for the respondent procured either from social media or from learned counsel for the applicant cannot be taken as service of the contempt processes,” the sitting judge said.
Background
The latest corruption exposé on the National Cathedral by the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, suggested impropriety on the part of the secretary to the Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral of Ghana, Rev. Victor Kusi Boateng.
On January 16, 2023, the MP made some allegations against Rev. Kusi Boateng, who is the secretary to the Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral of Ghana.
In an earlier revelation about the National Cathedral, Okudzeto Ablakwa said a whopping GH¢2.6 million was dished out to a company named JNS Talent Centre Limited.
Further investigations into the alleged payment led to the discovery of one Kwabena Adu Gyamfi as a director of JNS Talent Centre.
Having confirmed the identities of two out of three directors of the centre, Ablakwa dug deeper in a bid to discover the identity of the third director, Kwabena Adu Gyamfi.
According to his findings, citing a number of statutory documents, Kwabena Adu Gyamfi was the same as Reverend Kusi Boateng, who has allegedly been operating under the pseudonym Kwabena Adu Gyamfi.
A staunch member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr Senanu Kwesi Djokoto, who is currently the Acting Volta Regional Director of Health Services, has joined the party’s parliamentary race.
He received the endorsement of some National Democratic Congress (NDC) members in the Keta Constituency, to contest the party’s parliamentary primary, slated for May 2023.
The members, who on Wednesday picked and paid for Dr Djokoto’s nomination forms at the NDC Constituency Office at Keta, said they made the move because they believed in the candidate’s capacity to restore Keta to its glorious days, not only as an economic hub but also as a place of great political history.
Dr Djokoto, a former aide to late President Jerry John Rawlings, who contested the primary in 2019 but lost narrowly to the incumbent, Dr Dzulorli Gakpey, reacting to the development, said he was humbled by the move from the NDC members.
He expressed appreciation to the party faithful for believing in him to have paid for his nomination forms to enable him to contest the primary, and eventually win the parliamentary slot in the 2024 general election.
“I do not take it lightly that you are using your hard-earned income to pay for my nomination forms – as you have indicated to me it is due to your belief in my capacity to restore our beloved constituency to its past glory”.
“Let me assure you all that I will not let you down,” Dr Djokoto said.
The candidate, a two-time chairman of the Keta Constituency, called on all aspirants and party members in the area to work hard towards a peaceful, truthful and issues-based electioneering.
Controversial Ghanaian socialite, Afia Schwarzenegger, has gone after Ghanaian fashion critic Charlie Dior for criticizing Xandy Kamel while the critic has no knowledge about fashion.
In an Instagram post on February 23, 2023, which had Dior clad in a shirt, a pair of black boots, and a fur coat, Afia said the fashionista looked nothing more than a Christmas tree.
She also added that she had nothing against him but she has observed him afar and his dressing is a no-no for her.
“Let me add my 2 cent here…This Uncle was quick to call @official_xandykamel names based on her dressing. I won’t repeat them here, but hun your dressing is so off. Blue shirt, green bag, black shoes in brown fur…hmmm.
“Never a hater, but you look colourful like a Christmas tree. You should be the last person to mock a look, and this is coming from a place of truth. I watch you from a distance n your look most times is a No-No.
“Yes, I am coming for you cos you came for 1 of my gals. Fix yourself before talking fashion…Good night,” she tackled him.
On November 16, 2022, Charlie Dior in one of his fashion analysis on his YouTube Channel rubbished Xandy’s outfit to an event.
In a bid to emphasize how bad she looked on the red carpet, Dior labeled her a flower pot.
R Kelly will spend one more year in prison in addition to a 30-year racketeering sentence he is already serving, an Illinois federal judge ruled on Thursday. The disgraced singer was sentenced to 30 years in prison last year for sex trafficking and racketeering following a trial in New York.
He was subsequently convicted in a second federal trial in Chicago on charges relating to indecent images of children and child enticement, Sky News reported. The 56-year-old has currently been sentenced to 20 years in that case but 19 will be served at the same time as the New York sentence.
Federal prosecutors wanted U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber for the Northern District of Illinois to sentence the singer to 25 years in prison, arguing on Thursday that the musician was “a danger to society” whose “sexual abuse of minors was intentional and prolific,” NBC News reported. Kelly’s attorney Jennifer Bonjean asked for a 10-year sentence to be served alongside the New York sentence, NBC News said.
“No matter what I do Mr. Kelly is not going out the door in the next 10 years, in the next 20 years,” Judge Leinenweber said. “One of the things we should bear in mind, he is 56 years old and as Ms. Bonjean points out, he has a life expectancy of not a helluva lot more.”
The victim in the Chicago trial, known by the pseudonym “Jane”, testified during the trial that Kelly sexually abused her “hundreds” of times before she turned 18. Jurors watched videos of the abuse. Four other women also said Kelly abused them while they were children.
Background
In June 2022, Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison after he was convicted in 2021 on all nine counts against him in a high-profile sex trafficking case. Prosecutors sought more than 25 years behind bars for the singer but his defense attorneys asked for 10 or less, saying prosecutors’ request was “tantamount to a life sentence”, CNN reported.
In September 2021, a jury convicted the singer on all nine counts of sex trafficking and racketeering after less than two days of deliberations. “Today’s guilty verdict forever brands R. Kelly as a predator, who used his fame and fortune to prey on the young, the vulnerable, and the voiceless for his own sexual gratification,” Jacquelyn M. Kasulis, the Acting U.S. Attorney for the EDNY, said in a news release following the verdict at the time.
Kelly had been accused of grooming and sexually abusing women and underage girls. The charges included one count of racketeering and eight counts of illegally transporting people across state lines for the purpose of sex. Nine women and two men appeared in court to testify against the singer, claiming that he sexually abused them.
Kelly, whose full name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, denied all the charges against him. But prosecutors accused him of being a predator who used his fame and influence to attract fans into his circle, where he would demand them to either obey him or be punished. After six weeks, his sex-trafficking trial in New York came to a close in September 2021.
It was reported at the time that the singer will face a “mandatory minimum” of 10 years behind bars and could face life in prison for crimes including violating the Mann Act, an anti-sex trafficking law that prohibits taking anyone across state lines “for any immoral purpose.”
The USAO-EDNY said in a release last year that Kelly had for almost three decades served as the “leader” of a “criminal enterprise” that also consisted of others including personal assistants, bodyguards and managers.
“As the leader of the Enterprise, Kelly used his fame to recruit women and girls to engage in illegal sexual activity with him,” the USAO-EDNY said.
In a video posted on Instagram, the mother of five was captured enjoying a hearty laugh with her sister, who shares the same parents.
The sisters hugged and reassured their followers that there was no animosity between them.
Stephanie expressed, “Now you see me with Akosua, you will be seeing me with her. We are not fighting,” to which Akosua added, “No, we are not, no more fighting.”
The video was accompanied by a caption that read, “I love my baby sister Akos too much and most of the time I want to put her over my knee, but she’s always the best. Sisters Forever.”
While the sisters made their reunion heartwarming, they also looked stylishly stunning in their simple bodysuits paired with sneakers.
Netizens praised the siblings for clearing the air about their relationship, while one social media user commented, saying, “Awwwwwnnnn, this is the best n beautiful thing I have seen on the internet today????.. u guys r amazing.”
Another added, “The most beautiful evergreen sisters I know ; Love to see you together” while a third praised them, saying, “This is so beautiful. Legendary.”
The Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Cylinder Manufacturing Company Limited (GCMCL), Frances Awurabena Asiam, has voluntarily stepped down from her position.
In her resignation letter which was sighted by GhanaWeb, Awurabena Asiam expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to serve in her position since 2017.
“Frances Awurabena Asiam, in all humility and respect, wish to inform you of my resignation as the Chief Executive of Ghana Cylinder Manufacturing Company Limited (GCMCL).
“I thank you for having the confidence in me to appoint and reappoint me from 2017. I wish the Government well in all its future endeavours,” parts of the resignation letter read.
Though the reasons for her resignation were not stated in the letter, which was addressed to the Office of the Vice President and the Chief of Staff, reports indicate that she resigned because of alleged interference in her work by the Minister for Energy.
According to a new report energynewsafrica.com, a source close to Awurabena Asiam indicated that Frances Essiam resigned from her post because of the actions of the Minister for Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh.
The report indicated that Awurabena Asiam and Dr Opoku Prempeh have been fighting over the GCMCL signing an agreement with Ghana Gas Company for the construction of a new gas processing company.
It added that Dr Opoku Prempeh wanted Genser Energy to establish a new gas processing plant instead of the state-owned Ghana National Gas Processing Company.
Hey there, fellow entertainment lovers! We all know how much we adore our favorite celebs, right?
They’re like the shining stars in our lives that we can’t help but look up to. Some people even treat them like gods! But hold up, did you know that our beloved Rihanna and Adele were once just tiny tots with runny noses and dirty nappies? Yes, it’s true! And today, we’ve got some super adorable images of them and other celebs in the entertainment industry that’ll make you go “aww”!
First up, we’ve got the Barbadian beauty Rihanna! She has been slaying the music scene for years, but before she became the queen of pop, she was just a little cutie pie. Take a look at this precious pic of baby Riri that’ll make your heart melt.
We have the handsome Leonardo DiCaprio. Before he became a Hollywood heartthrob, Leo was just a cute little guy with a winning smile. Check out this adorable pic of him as a kid, and we bet you’ll fall in love with him all over again.
Next on our list is the hobbit himself, Elijah Wood. Long before he journeyed to Middle Earth, Elijah was a cherub-faced kid with a mischievous grin. This precious pic of him will make your heart melt faster than the One Ring!
And who can forget the charming Chris Pratt? Before he was Star-Lord or Andy Dwyer, he was just a sweet little boy with a bowl cut. This pic of him in a clean white shirt will make you wish you could go back in time and give him a big hug. Now let’s take a look at the gorgeous Scarlett Johansson. Before she became Black Widow, Scarlett was a beautiful little girl with big dreams. This pic of her at a young age will make you believe that anything is possible.
And what about the swoon-worthy Ryan Gosling? Before he was breaking hearts on the big screen, he was a cute little boy with a charming smile. This adorable pic of him as a kid will make you fall in love with him even more.
Moving on to the hilarious Amy Schumer. Long before she was a comedy superstar, Amy was a precocious little girl with a love for dress-up. This pic of her in pig tails is guaranteed to make you smile.
And of course, we can’t forget about Justin Bieber. Before he was a global pop sensation, Justin was just a cute little boy with a bowl cut and a dream. This pic of him as a baby is all you need to see today!
Last but not least, we have the amazing Adele and the legendary Jackie Chan. Before they were icons in the music and film industries, they were both adorable kids with big personalities. These sweet throwback pics of them are sure to make you feel warm and fuzzy inside
11. Jackie Chan
There you have it, folks! A collection of sweet and endearing photos of some of our favorite celebs before they became household names. These pics prove that everyone has to start somewhere, and even the biggest stars were once just cute and cuddly babies.
Radio and TV personality Nana Aba Anamoah says she gets turned off by men who expect her to exhibit the skills of adult actors when being intimate.
According to her, a man who watches pornography should keep his fantasies to himself and not project such expectations on her.
The General Manager of GHOne TV and Starr FM who was contributing to the topic ‘Red flags in relationships’ on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Friday said it turns her off in a relationship.
Red flags in relationships are the warning signs that indicate unhealthy or manipulative behaviour.
They are not always recognisable at first however, they tend to grow bigger and become more problematic over time.
“A man who expects you to do things he sees on adult websites is a very serious red flag. You can never satisfy such a person,” she said.
Ms Anamoah also highlighted that a man who eats too much cannot be her partner.
“There are people who will just sit down and consume a big loaf of bread because it’s in front of them… It’s a serious thing.
“You must eat in moderate portions don’t sit down and consume three balls of kenkey it’s a red flag for me because this person you’ll cook every time,” she said.
The State of Affairs host further noted she cannot tolerate behaviours such as disrespect from her partner.
The body, dubbed “Switzerland’s most famous mummy,” gained notoriety in 2018 when Anna Catharina Bischoff, Johnson’s sixth great-grandmother, was revealed to be the corpse.
It was presumed that she had died of syphilis since her remains, which were discovered in 1975, contained significant concentrations of mercury, which was once used as a treatment for the disease.
But now an analysis of the microbes in her mummified organs has revealed not syphilis, but high levels of a bacterium previously unknown to science.
‘The initial assumption was based on the mercury presence in her body, especially in the lungs. This might indicate inhalation treatment for syphilis, as this was the followed protocol back then,’ said microbiologist Mohamed Sarhan from Eurac Research.
Her remains, which were found in 1975, contained high levels of mercury – historically, a treatment for syphilis (Picture: Gregor Brandli via Pen News)
‘We therefore analysed many samples from every organ in her body to see whether we can find any DNA traces of the syphilis-causing pathogen, but we couldn’t,’
‘Instead we found this new bacterium that was highly abundant in the brain tissues and correlated with the highest mercury concentration in the brain.’
Comparing the mysterious old bacteria with bacteria from today revealed that it contained similar sets of genes to those found in modern bacteria that cause bone lesions and pulmonary symptoms.
Bone lesions, which are visible in Bischoff’s remains, are a known symptom of untreated late-stage syphilis.
So she may have been misdiagnosed with the sexually-transmitted infection, when the true cause of her sickness was something unknown.
Her oldest daughter, also called Anna Katharina, is Boris Johnson’s fifth great-grandmother (Picture: Pen News/Ursula Wittwer-Backofen/Claudia Opitz-Belakhal)
For Dr Sarhan, it’s enough to rule out syphilis as a cause of death.
‘The assumption that she might have died of syphilis can be excluded even if she had it. Syphilis at an advanced stage has very clear signs that she did not have,’ said Dr Sarhan.
‘Additionally, she died at age of 69, so not very young. Also, she had other health issues. For example, she was overweight and had gallstones, and had other issues that are currently under research,’
‘The mercury treatment might have weakened her body and immune system over time, but was not really the main cause of her death.’
Dr Sarhan’s conclusions aren’t without controversy, however.
When she was buried in Barfüsser Church, the mercury that had been used to treat her slowed her putrefaction and turned her into a mummy (Picture: Adrian Michael via Pen News)
‘This is the point where we have different opinions. In the late stages of syphilis you don’t find a lot of bacteria in the body anymore. So it was very difficult to find the old genome of the bacteria,’ said Gerhard Hotz of the Natural History Museum of Basel, where the mummy is now kept.
‘So it’s not proof that she didn’t have it – for me personally, I still think she had it. Her skull clearly shows signs of syphilis. But we can’t prove it by genomes.’
Whatever the case, Bischoff’s illness was certainly assumed to be syphilis in her time. And for the wealthy widow of a priest, that was a damning diagnosis.
‘Nobody wanted to talk about it. Normally when people died of her social class from Basel, there was a written obituary about the person, who she was and so on. We found it about everybody, but not about her,’ said Dr Hotz.
‘So we think she died, and she was very quickly and privately buried in the church.’
An analysis of the microbes in her mummified organs has revealed not syphilis, but high levels of a bacterium previously unknown to science (Picture: Adrian Michael via Pen News)
He said her diagnosis would have barred her from using public baths and even being treated in a normal hospital. But it didn’t necessarily indicate any illicit sexual activity.
Dr Hotz said the scrutiny of the churchgoing community would have made an affair difficult to conceal, and letters from her husband detailing his own illnesses give no symptoms of syphilis.
‘We don’t think it was an affair, either from her husband or from herself. But there’s another explanation – because she was the wife of a priest, she had to visit sick people, to console them,’ said Dr Hotz.
‘And in Strasbourg, near where she lived, there was a hospital for syphilis, so we think she was going there to visit sick people. And if somebody was newly infected, you can easily be infected.’
Bischoff was born to a wealthy family in Strasbourg, France, in 1719. Her father, himself a priest, ministered to the Swiss families of the city, but when he died aged 40 the rest of the family rejoined their relations in Basel.
her diagnosis would have barred her from using public baths and even being treated in a normal hospital (Picture: Adrian Michael via Pen News)
Bischoff’s husband would ultimately take her father’s old job in Strasbourg, and she lived there for more than 40 years, having seven children – four of whom survived to adulthood.
Her oldest daughter, also called Anna Katharina, is Boris Johnson’s fifth great-grandmother.
After her husband’s death, Bischoff returned once more to Basel, where she died in 1787.
And when she was buried in Barfüsser Church, the mercury that had been used to treat her slowed her putrefaction and turned her into a mummy.
Producers of fruits and vegetables issue a warning that shortages could persist up to three months longer than anticipated.
To address the problems, major UK retailers have imposed sales restrictions on a variety of goods, including tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and salad.
According to the Lea Valley Growers Association, numerous farmers were delaying the planting of their crops because electricity prices were so high.
‘The majority of tomatoes, peppers and aubergines are not going to be around in big volumes until May, so it’s going to be longer than a few weeks,’ secretary Lee Stiles told the BBC.
‘Some Lea Valley pack houses have closed for a few days due to lack of deliveries, and others are losing workers as they could only offer three hours work a day instead of full shifts over the last few weeks.’
The Lea Valley Growers Association includes around 80 members from across Greater London, Hertfordshire and Essex. Its growers provide around three quarters of cucumbers and peppers in the UK.
Bad weather in Spain and Africa was blamed for the shortages, but the Association said growers delaying planting crops has made the situation worse.
Empty shelves are seen across the country – here in Morrisons Colindale, north LondonMajor UK supermarkets are putting limits on sales of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and salad, among other products
‘It’s too late for UK growers to step in and try and make up some of the shortfall,’ Mr Stiles added.
‘If we planted tomatoes, peppers and aubergines in December, we would be picking now.
‘And if we planted cucumbers in the first week of January like we normally do, we’d be picking on Valentine’s Day as usual.’
Although the government said yesterday the supply issues should be resolved within one month, Mr Stiles thinks it will take longer than this.
He warned growers abroad will likely sell locally first once their crops are back on track, to get a higher price for their goods while avoiding fuel costs and border fees.
Environment secretary Thérèse Coffey told the Commons: ‘I am led to believe by my officials, after discussion with industry and retailers, we anticipate the situation will last about another two to four weeks.
‘It is important that we try and make sure that we get alternative sourcing options. That is why the department has already been in discussion with the retailers.
But the government believes the issues will be resolved in between two to four weeks MPs dismissed claims that Brexit was responsible for the shortages
‘It is why there will be further discussions led by ministers as well, so that we can try and get over this and try and avoid similar situations in the future.
‘Even if we cannot control the weather it is important that we try and make sure the supply continues to not be frustrated in quite the way it has been due to these unusual weather incidents.’
She added later: ‘I’m hoping that this will be a temporary issue.’
Ms Coffey also suggested people ‘cherish the specialisms that we have in this country’ by eating seasonal vegetables like turnips.
MPs dismissed claims that Brexit was responsible for the shortages.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said ‘food security is national security’ and that his party would commit to ‘buying, making and selling more in Britain’.
Experts told Metro.co.uk about the reasons behind the shortages people are seeing in supermarkets this week.
This was facilitated by the Touch-people’s Lives Foundation, an NGO, which took up the cost of the registration.
Mr Francis Kofi Taylor, Founder of Touch-people’s Lives Foundation, speaking during the event in the community, said the registration exercise was supported by De Bruel School (Zeist) in Holland, Gethsemane Encounter (Holland) and Maganoba Farms to enable the poor and needy to benefit from the NHIS to address some of their health care challenges.
Mr Taylor said the move was to improve health care and ensure that rural people had access to the health care services that they needed.
Mr Charles Maganoba, Programme Manager of Touch-people’s Lives Foundation, urged people in rural areas to visit health centres to check their health status to reduce disease challenges.
Naa Haruna Yahaya, Chief of Jantong-Daashei community, expressed gratitude to the partners for their support to improve access to health care for community members.
After the incident, Reading passed an order allowing further police authority.
Thames Valley Police said there were reports of up to eight people armed with samurai swords and machetes, as well as damage to vehicles.
No injuries have yet been reported.
In response, a Section 60 order has been put in place until 3.20am on Saturday.
The order, which police said is used when there is a risk of violence, allows officers to stop and search people suspected of being involved in violence, without the need to have reasonable grounds.
Inspector Tom Day, based at Reading police station, said: ‘We have put this order in place while we carry out our investigation into this large public order incident.
‘The order will give our officers extra powers to carry out stop and search activity, and has been enacted for the safety of the public.
‘I understand that an order of this nature could cause concern, but while it may sound alarming, enhancing our stop and search powers provides us with another tactic to quickly identify and disrupt those carrying weapons.
‘If you are stopped by an officer, please do not be worried as this does not mean that you are in trouble.
‘You will see more police officers in the area while the order is in place and we expect to carry out more stop and searches than usual.
‘Officers who are out and about are there to reassure you as well as using their powers under Section 60 so please do stop and speak with them about any concerns that you have.’
Nigerians will go the polls on Saturday, February 25, 2023, to elect a President to man the affairs of the state.
The elections which will come off nationwide will be keenly contested by three staunch politicians in the country. Whoever will win this bid, will replace Muhammadu Buhari.
While voting to elect a new President, it will be important for voters to also take care of their well-being. In line with this, The Independent Ghana has outlined a number of ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ needed to stay safe during the election period.
Here are some tips:
1. Confirm polling units before election day
Voters should physically visit their polling stations before the polls open to avoid getting lost on election day. As an alternative, the Independent Electoral Commission has made a polling unit locator available on its website at https://punchng.com/how-to-confirm-polling-unit-location-via-inec-portal/, which offers approximate location information for every polling unit nationwide.
It’s vital to remember that moving vehicles are not allowed on election day. If a voter’s home is distant from their polling station, they are recommended to find a convenient place to stay.
2. Avoid wearing political merchandise to polling booths
Voters should safeguard themselves by not publicly announcing the people or parties they plan to support at polling places because Nigeria has a secret ballot system.
Going to polling places in normal clothes is the best option to prevent needless conflict with political thugs and miscreants.
Branded items must to be hidden as well.
3. Report unusual activities:
Reporting any odd activity to the right authorities is another crucial safety measure that voters can implement during the voting process.
The Nigerian Army has set up emergency lines for voters to use in order to report any suspicious activities occurring during the voting process. https://punchng.com/elections-army-unveils-hotlines-to-report-criminal-activities/.
Voters shouldn’t go up against people who are violent. They should first look for safety, then get in touch with security personnel as quickly as they can.
4. Avoid bringing children to the polling units:
Because of the high stakes involved, it is critical to keep children safe during the elections.
Children should not be brought to polling units in case violence breaks out. Instead, families should make adequate babysitting arrangements ahead of election day.
5. Avoid political arguments at polling booths:
Voters should go to polling units with one goal in mind: to cast their ballots and ensure that they are properly counted.
As campaign activities have been halted, it is inappropriate to engage in political discussions that could escalate into arguments or violence at polling units.
