Ace satirist, Kwaku Simtim-Misa has called on Ghanaians to celebrate people “while they are alive” instead of waiting till they are dead.
In a tweet on February 7, 2023, which came with the hashtag #celebraetheliving, KSM, as the stand-up comedian is affectionately called, expressed concern about the reaction of some Ghanaians to news that Christian Atsu was a victim of the earthquake in Turkey that killed more than nine thousand and injured tens of thousands.
He suggested that it was imperative to give people their flowers before they depart with a spotlight on Asamoah Gyan (Baby Jet), a former captain of the national senior soccer team, Black Stars.
“Ei Ghanafour, You see the copious OUTPOURING of LOVE, SYMPATHY and PRAISES we UNLEASHED on Christian Atsu when we thought he was dead? Can we recognize and celebrate folks “small” while they are ALIVE? Baby Jet and PLENTY others on my mind o,” KSM’s tweet read.
Background
A powerful earthquake struck South-eastern Turkey, near the Syrian border, killing more than 5,000 people as they slept and trapping many others in the early hours of Monday.
The US Geological Survey said the 7.8 magnitude tremor struck at 04:17 local time (01:17 GMT) at a depth of 17.9km (11 miles) near the city of Gaziantep.
Hours later, a second quake, which had a magnitude of 7.5, hit the Elbistan district of Kahramanmaras province.
In September 2022, the 31-year-old Black Stars winger penned a one-year deal to join the Turkish side following a spell in Saudi Arabia.
A video footage has revealed that America rapper, XXXTentacion, withdrew a sum of $50,000 prior to his death. This was revealed on the opening day of the trial for the three men accused of fatally shooting the rapper.
In court on Thursday, February 2, 2023, one of the South Florida rapper’s friends detailed how he and the artist were ambushed while driving in his BMW.
“If I run, I can get shot, but I can live. If I sit…” Leonard Kerr began recalling for the court, while detailing how his friend XXXTentacion was killed while pulling out of the Riva Motorsports parking lot near Fort Lauderdale on June 18, 2018. The Associated Press said Kerr then trailed off “until he stopped to regain his composure”
According to Kerr, the two men confronted them with weapons, urging them to get out of the car. Kerr obliged, while XXXTentacion stayed in the vehicle. As Kerr fled, he heard “at least two loud bangs,” before he noticed the two men got back into their car and had taken the $50,000 XXXTentacion is seen withdrawing from his bank account in the above video.
XXXTentacion withdrawing $50,000 from the bank moments before he was killed in 2018 has been released following the start of his murder trial. pic.twitter.com/WtCSyxcvZz
Three men involved in the murder face charges, with Michael Boatwright, 28, accused of being the shooter; Trayon Newsome, 24, accused of being the other gunman; and Dedrick Williams, 26, accused of being the driver.
The trio were arrested after they hopped on social media and flaunted the money allegedly stolen from XXX.
“They go on social media and start bragging that they have this influx of cash,” prosecutor Pascale Achille said. “They flash it like it’s Christmas Day.”
Popular Ghanaian fashion designer, Elikem Kumordzie, has incurred the wrath of ‘Sark Natives’ after a post meant to critique Sarkodie’s outfit gave out the wrong signals.
‘Elikem the Tailor’ shared a photo of Sarkodie wearing a brown two-piece linen outfit and circled out areas where according to him, had malfunctioned.
Elikem, who emphasized that the Ghanaian rapper’s outfit, lacked proper finishing touches took to Instagram to rant about how he (Sarkodie) could have done better.
“Still got love for your talent bro, but your tailor no try.
Let me hook you up with something fresh next time. Other African tailors will disappoint you, except Elikem KUMORDZIE “the tailor,” Elikem’s post read.
However, the former BBA housemate’s post has since gathered over 1,000 comments, most of which are filled with insults and backlashes from netizens.
Some individuals have slammed the tailor for what they describe as ‘setting the rapper up for ridicule’, while others said he could have channeled his observations to him privately.
Meanwhile, that particular outfit was said to have been made by popular Ghanaian fashion designer, Atto Tetteh.
The new Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, has pledged that the NDC Caucus in Parliament under his leadership will not tolerate any bad governance from the current administration.
In his maiden speech to Parliament as a Minority Leader, Dr. Ato Forson said the minority will offer fair and unbiased, balanced, consultative, and principled leadership to ensure the Akufo-Addo and Alhaji Bawumia’s government account in a manner that helps deliver public goods.
“To you my colleagues in the Minority Caucus, we pledge to offer fair and unbiased, balanced, consultative, and principled leadership in our journey to broaden the frontiers of Parliamentary oversight and hold the Akufo-Addo & Alhaji Bawumia government to account in a manner that helps deliver public goods,” he said.
He thanked the party and colleagues for allowing him to serve, and also commended Haruna Iddrisu for his distinguished public service since 2017.
“In January 7, 2009, I took the first step in this very chamber towards becoming a representative for the people of Ajumako Enyan Essiam and contributing my quota to Ghana’s Parliamentary Democracy. Fourteen years on, from a fresh legislator, I have the unique honour of being entrusted with the leadership of the Minority Caucus in the 8th Parliament of the 4th Republic.
“I wish to convey our profound gratitude to my party, the great National Democratic Congress, and our colleagues on the Minority side for this opportunity to serve at an even higher level and help shape the trajectory of this Parliament. I want to express on behalf of my colleagues, our profound appreciation and thanks to the immediate past Minority Leader and my senior brother, the Hon Haruna Iddrisu, for his many years of distinguished public service and his sterling leadership of the Caucus since 2017,” he said.
20 High Court judges have been sworn in by President Akufo-Addo following their promotion.
The 16 judges from the Circuit Court were all promoted to the third highest court of the bench following recommendations by the Judicial Council.
The newly sworn-in Justices are; Kwame Polley, William Appiah Twumasi, Baah Forson Agyapong, Marian Affoh, Nana Brew, Abena Amponsah Buansi, Ellen Lordina Serwaa Mireku, Priscilla Dapaah Mireku, Alexander Oworae,Joyce Boahen, Edward Twum and Gwendolyn Millicent Owusu.
The rest are Rosemary Baah Tosu, Frederick Kwabena Twumasi, Adelaide Abui Keddey, Harry Acheampong- Opoku, Kenneth Edem Kudjordjie, John-Mark Nuku Alifo, Kwesi Adjenim-Boateng, George Aikins Ampiah- Bonney and Marie-Louise Simmons.
President Nana Akufo-Addo while swearing them in said his government will continue to invest in infrastructure for the judiciary in order to ensure justice delivery is improved.
According to the President, the government is currently putting up 16 bungalows across the country to accommodate High Court judges in the various regions.
President Nana Akufo-Addo urged the judges to ensure that they deliver justice without fear or favour.
He said the government is committed to improving infrastructure to ensure that the judiciary is able to work properly.
For his part, Justice Kwame Polley on behalf of his colleagues thanked the President and pledged to work according to the provisions of the laws of Ghana.
He claimed that steps had been taken to restart the oil refinery.
Read the complete article written by Michael Afful and first published on February 8, 2019.
Isaac Osei, the managing director of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), is optimistic that the refinery will soon be operating at full capacity and explains that measures are being done to properly position it.
Since the facility missed the necessary shutdown for maintenance in 2009, the Isaac Osei-led administration has performed extensive work at the refinery.
Due to the obsolete nature of some components at the refinery, the facility which resumed operations last year, and continued this year, has been shutdown as a result of a damage to the Orific, a component of the Residual Fluid Cataritic Cracker (RFCC).
“I can say without fear of contradiction that we will be back by the end of the third quarter. Also, let me just say that 2017 when the President and his team took over, TOR had been in a situation where we had not been able to maintain the plant since 2009. In fact, TOR had missed three cycles of maintenance, so what we did was rehabilitation,” he said.
The refinery has the capacity to process 45,000 bopd, but is now only able to process 25,000 bopd as according to Mr Isaac Osei, one of the components of the facility was removed some years ago.
“We intend to replace that and it should come from overseas early in the second quarter after which we will install it,” he explained.
Mr Isaac Osei explained that his outfit and the Ministry of Finance, as well as the Energy Ministry, are holding discussions and considering options that would be suitable in order to revive the refinery and make it more viable.
Pensioners gather at Ministry of Finance over debt exchange programme
The Ghana Police service has alleged that the late Shadrack Arloo who died during an arrest by some of its Officers at the West Hills Mall, died from swallowing a package that had narcotic substance, as he tried to resist arrest.
A police statement dated February 7, 2023, said that the late brother of Gospel musician Perpetual Didier resisted arrest by a police officer on duty who was being assisted by private security guards at scene.
The statement furthered that the deceased after swallowing the the package became unconscious and was taken to the Sonotech Clinic for medical attention but was pronounced dead on arrival.
“Police Statements taken from witnesses at the scene of the incident, including some private security guards at the mall, and the arresting Police officer revealed that the deceased had resisted arrest by the Police Officer who was being assisted by the private security guards.
“The narrative of the events, as gathered by the police, indicated that during the course of the arrest, the deceased pulled out a substance from his bag, which he quickly swallowed before anyone could stop him. He became unconscious shortly afterwards and was taken to the Sonotech clinic for medical attention but was pronounced dead on arrival,” part of the statement read.
It added that per a post-mortem examination conducted on the deceased, it was confirmed that the cause of death was Asphyxiation and Obstruction of the airway by a foreign body.
“On 7th February 2023, a post-mortem examination was conducted on the deceased’s body in the presence of Alfred Boafo, father of the accused, Dr Rosana Polinicio Segborwortso Pathologist of GA East Municipal hospital representing the accused, Mr Francis Xavier Sosu lawyer for the deceased, Louis Melabah Edeafor, uncle of the deceased, Isaac Anim Anno, father of the deceased and Anna Cobbina sister of the deceased.
“The pathologist gave the verbal cause of death as Asphyxiation and Obstruction of the airway by a foreign body. He also retrieved from the throat of the deceased, eight (8) zipped bags containing dry leaves suspected to be narcotic drugs tied in a piece of black polythene.
“The retrieved, suspected narcotic substances tested positive for cannabis when submitted for forensic examination, in the presence of all the interested parties,” he said.
Background
Gospel musician, Perpetual Didier alleged in a viral video that her brother was killed by some police officers.
According to her, the incident happened at the West Hills Mall in Accra on January 30, 2022.
The musician explained that her brother, was brutally assaulted by the uniformed policemen, leading to his untimely death.
“Someone should tag the IGP. I need justice for my brother. Tell him that this is a crime one of his men has done to my family by killing my brother. We are all Ghanaians with equal rights and freedom. Why will you use your position to take someone’s life?” she said in her Facebook Live video, amidst tears.
How the incident came about:
In her narration, her brother (the deceased) had gone to the West Hills Mall to withdraw money in order to purchase some items intended to be sent to his sister in Germany.
She added that, from what an eyewitness told her, the police demanded that her brother hand over his bag to be searched, but he refused.
This then led to the police officer getting agitated and then hitting and pushing him to the ground.
Perpetual added that her brother fell to the ground and hit his head on the floor, breaking his neck in the process.
He is said to have lost consciousness, at which time the police officer tased the motionless man on the floor.
It is believed that this worsened the state the young man was already in, leading to his death.
A member of the NDC’s communication team, Peter Akwesi Mensah, has criticised the Akufo-Addo led administration over the economic hardships.
He says the names of the President, Vice and Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, should be captured in the Guinness book of records over the current difficulties the ordinary Ghanaian is facing.
According to him, the Akufo Addo-led administration is reckless and has caused the people of Ghana enormous pain.
Speaking in an interview with TV XYZ on Tuesday, February 7, 2023, he argued that for the first time in the history of Africa, weird happenings are being experienced in the wake of the government factoring individual bondholders in its domestic debt exchange programme.
He claimed that Ghana becomes the first country in the history of Africa to include individual bondholders in a domestic debt exchange programme.
“It is a shame on the party, they have demonstrated that the Fiscal Responsibility Act, is not actually a Fiscal Responsibility Act but rather it is a recklessness responsibility act. I am telling you. They’ve demonstrated a high level of recklessness and that’s Akufo Addo… do you know that the whole of Africa, this is the first time a government is seeking an IMF bailout and is including individual bondholders in a domestic debt exchange programme? “This is the first time in the history of African politics. So, I’m saying, Akufo Addo, Bawumia and Ken Ofori Atta need to be named in the Guinness Book of Records. They’ve set an unbreakable economic record in Africa’s history,” he said.
Meanwhile, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is optimistic that Ghana will conclude talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a possible financial bailout programme.
According to President Akufo-Addo, though government’s debt exchange programme was fraught with several challenges after its announcement, it has largely been accepted by the citizenry.
He made this known when the German Federal Minister of Finance, Christian Lindner, paid him a visit at the Jubilee House.
“We have already taken one important step forward in concluding a staff-level agreement with the IMF. One of the steps was the domestic debt exchange programme which encountered a lot of difficulties, but it has now been virtually concluded…We are now looking towards going the full hog and concluding the agreement. We’re hoping that will be done by the middle of March,” President Akufo-Addo said.
He also called on Germany to encourage China, an ad hoc member of the Paris Club to support Ghana’s debt restructuring efforts.
“Ghana is a serious country to do business and we are happy to be here,” Dr Thumbay Moideen declared at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding for the establishment of a Thumbay Teaching Hospital and a medical university to be known as the Gulf Medical University (GMU) in Ghana.
“From the research done by our team in Africa – we have been to almost all countries – Ghana is the best place to do business” Dr Thumbay indicated.
The signing of the MoU comes three months after the Vice President of the Republic, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, paid a working visit to the campus and facilities of the Thumbay Group and the Gulf Medical University at Ajman, United Arab Emirates at the invitation of the authorities.
Explaining the rationale behind the choice of Ghana, Dr Thumbay Moideen said the Thumbay Group had explored the possibility of setting up such a facility in several African countries including Nigeria, Egypt, Ghana, South Africa, Tanzania, Mozambique, Cameroun, and Kenya but failed due to a number of factors.
“But Ghana is a serious place to do business and we are happy to be here. We pledge to fulfil our part of this agreement to ensure the University and Hospital are built to benefit both Ghana and the Thumbay Group” he stated.
The Group is expected to collaborate with the Ministries of Education and Health to build and establish the Ghana campus of the Gulf Medical University and the Thumbay Teaching Hospital in the Greater Accra Region, in phases over a period of 5 to 8 years, at an estimated cost of $600 million.
The proposed university would offer Vocational, Diploma, Undergraduate, Post Graduate, and Doctoral programmes in Medical Sciences, Allied Health Sciences among other disciplines to Ghanaian and International students.
It is expected to employ about 3000 Ghanaians in addition to attracting a student population of over 3000 from around 80 countries. It would also provide opportunities for local hospitals through cross-referrals and partnerships.
It is expected to be sited on a 25-acre plot of land provided by the Government of Ghana.
Mathew Opoku Prempeh, Minister for Education and Kwaku Agyemang Manu, Minister for Health signed on behalf of Ghana while Mr Thumbay Moideen, Founder President of the Thumbay Group initialled the MoU at a brief ceremony witnessed by Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia at the Flagstaff House on Friday February 9, 2018.
Also present at the ceremony were the Minister for Aviation, Cecilia Abena Dapaah and Ghana’s Consul-General to the United Arab Emirates, H.E Hajia Samata Gifty Bukari.
In brief remarks before the signing ceremony, Vice President Bawumia lauded the Thumbay Group for its decision to set up the medical university and the hospital in Ghana, saying it fits into President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s vision to provide first class health care to Ghanaians while providing enhanced training to medical personnel.
“We are very happy with the proposed establishment of this medical university, as well as the Thumbay Hospital, as it will help to train more doctors and allied medical personnel and fill in a gap in our health care delivery.
“It is also a demonstration of confidence in Ghana, and we encourage other companies and organisations to take advantage of the enabling environment Government is providing to put down roots and set up business in Ghana” the Vice President added.
The Thumbay Group, is a UAE – based diversified international business conglomerate, headquartered in Dubai, with operations across 20 sectors including Education, Healthcare, Medical Research, Diagnostics, Retail Pharmacy, Health Communications, Retail Opticals, Wellness, Nutrition Stores, Hospitality, Real Estate, Publishing, Technology, Media, Events, Medical Tourism, Trading and Marketing & Distribution.
They also blamed the collapse on financial institutions’ high interest rates and the collapse’s high exchange rate.
“We want to draw the government’s attention to the fact that the cedi’s depreciation against other significant trading currencies is out of control, and that the rise in the monetary policy rate is also contributing to excessive loan rates in the nation.”
“Businesses have reached a situation where its survival is seriously threatened if no immediate action is taken by the government to find a solution,” President of the Association, Joseph Obeng narrated in a press statement.
Read the full story originally published on August 8, 2022 by Starrfm.
According to the Association, the situation is a result of the current skyrocketing exchange rate.
“We want to call the attention of the Government to the fact that depreciation of the cedi against other major trading currencies is getting out of hand, and the increase in the monetary policy rate is also leading to high lending rate in the country.
“Businesses have reached a situation where its survival is seriously threatened if no immediate action is taken by the Government to find a solution,” President of the Association, Joseph Obeng narrated in a press statement.
As a result of the current exchange rate situation in the country, businesses are seriously bleeding to death.
The Government, therefore, needs to do something to salvage the situation as soon as possible.
We want to call the attention of the Government to the fact that the depreciation of the cedi against other major trading currencies is getting out of hand, and the increase in the monetary policy rate is also leading to a high lending rate in the country.
Businesses have reached a situation where their survival is seriously threatened if no immediate action is taken by the Government to find a solution.
By this statement, we are calling on the Government, as a matter of urgency, to reconvene the Foreign Exchange Committee that was set up a few years ago by the Finance Ministry which involved all relevant stakeholders, to help find immediate solutions.
It could be recalled that since December 2021 when the dollar was 6.4 cedis, our working capital has been depleted by 40%. Now that, the dollar has reached about 9.00 cedis, our worst fear is that we are now going to make Christmas orders from our suppliers, which may aggravate the situation.
If immediate remedial measures are not taken to control this alarming situation, we may be using One Million Ghana cedis to buy only One Hundred Thousand US dollars when the dollar reaches 10.00 Ghana cedis.
At this point, if nothing is done, speculations would be rife and serious panic will set in for people to invest in forex as a matter of security for their hard-earned working capital, thereby making control of such a situation difficult for the government.
We recognize that excessive importation is one of the major causes.
Here we think that the government has failed to take due advantage of our National Investment Laws, especially on foreign retail trade and wholesale to tighten imports.
Allowing foreigners into the retail trade and wholesale sectors of the economy will not help this country, but rather defeat the action plan set for implementing 1D 1F, AfCFTA, and the general industrialization in Ghana.
We also want to remind the Government that the big-time institutional importers, especially, those who serve as conduits for dumping goods mainly from China are the culprits.
Small and Medium Scale importers like GUTA members import only 15% out of the whole volume of imports into the country.
For the locals, the import business has become gloomy and pathetic as the multinationals have taken over. We have started looking out for goods to export to support the economy and be able to sustain our businesses, but the same cannot be said of these foreigners.
We, therefore suggest that since they do not bring in physical cash to invest but rather resort to dumping and repatriating our hard-earned foreign exchange as a country, the investment law should be amended to make them deposit their capital fund here in Ghana to make their transfers.
Most of these foreigners come under the guise of manufacturing but divert to trading; taking advantage of the loopholes in the laws, as well as the lack of enforcement of same, and cause damage to our economy.
The juiciest part of our economy such as banking, telecommunication, oil, and mining – the extractive industries are all dominated by foreigners who repatriate all their profits to their home countries leaving us with virtually nothing except a few taxes and some royalties.
We herein suggest that the Government should devise an effective method to schedule this repatriation in a staggered manner over a reasonable period, apart from revising the investment law to ensure that investments in all these profitable and juicy areas have some reasonable equity for retention in Ghana rather than the current situation where these companies consume all our foreign exchange earnings.
Most foreign direct investors overpriced their investment to have the advantage to repatriate the same value to their home countries to our detriment. This explains the reason we hardly physically see these investments corresponding with the amounts that are being declared as foreign direct investments in the country.
Over-dependence on foreign services such as health care, education, and others by Ghanaians are also to be blamed for this problem.
The movement and money transfer by churches should also be monitored and controlled.
We believe that the government should have full control of the management of our national resources as well as, the capability to solve this problem in the shortest possible time; unless this rapid depreciation of the cedi is a deliberate plan by the government to devalue our national currency.
How can we go on like this as a nation? because this is not just a simple matter of passing on the cost to the consuming public. The purchasing power of the consumers is drastically reduced due to high inflation rates and other factors. As a result, consumers are not even buying at the moment, let alone increasing the prices. Businesses’ turnover is negatively affected, thereby rendering us unable to service our loans, especially for those whose capital is borrowed from commercial banks and other sources.
At this stage, the only prudent thing to do is to hold unto your stocks without selling, but the problem here is, that you might be owing your suppliers and banks, and at the same time, you cannot also punish the consuming public.
The only option now is for the Government to think outside the box and find a pragmatic solution to bring the economy back to its feet.
We agree that there is a problem in the world, and Ghana is no exception. This period is the best time to bring leadership skills to bear and make a difference, of course, with the support of all Ghanaians regardless of political leaning.
Businesses are indeed bleeding and are in dire need of emergency rescue.
Ghana’s promising Dancehall musician, Priscilla Opoku-Kwarteng, popularly known as Ebony Reigns passed away on February 8, 2018.
The hitmaker died in a ghastly car crash that claimed the lives of two other persons; Franky Kuri and Atsu Vondee on Kumasi Sunyani road on their way back to Accra.
Ebony nicknamed ’90sBadGyal’ made a name for herself in Ghana’s music industry through her songs and stagecraft.
Popular among her monster hit songs include, Hustle’, ‘Kupe’, ‘Poison’, ‘Date Ur Fada’, ‘Sponsor’, ‘Maame Hwe’ and ‘Dancefloor’.
Ebony who was signed to RuffTown Records, owned by Bullet died at the age of 20, just a few days before her 21st birthday.
The late singer whose demise broke the hearts of many was regarded as one of Ghana’s promising stars.
She holds the record as the first-ever female to have won the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards. The posthumous award was received by her management in 2018.
On February 7, 2023, Mr. Nkrumah gave the keynote address at the beginning of the National Chocolate Week Celebrations for this year in Accra. He stressed the importance of utilizing the occasion to intensify efforts to increase local processing of cocoa while continuing to increase domestic cocoa production.
“One of the ways to do this is to guarantee the light crop for the local producers so that they do not have to buy the main crop for domestic processing. As we know, the main crop is comparatively more expensive. If we are serious about boosting local production then we must move quickly to ensure that local processors are able to fully meet their bean needs from the light crop,” he said.
Mr. Nkrumah charged COCOBOD to use policy instruments to ensure that financing support is provided for domestic processors.
“The financial sector should be incentivized to provide financing for the domestic processors using the cocoa beans as security and escrowing into an account of the off-takers. The challenge of financing domestic processors will be lightened via this channel,” he added.
On the matter of stimulating domestic consumption of cocoa products, Mr. Nkrumah suggested the following:
“We need to promote more chocolatiers to join the value chain. The more domestic chocolatiers and nuanced products there are on the local market, the better our chances of deepening the local taste and demand. The red carpet of incentives as we would give a foreign direct investor should be rolled out for local chocolatiers as well.”
“Secondly, the thirty-five percent (35%) tax on butter and liquor (raw materials for chocolatiers) should be re-considered. This will make it less expensive to finance operations. It will also make the final products more affordable on the market.”
“And finally, we should support initiatives across Africa to stimulate consumption among school children. Sectors of our economy making super profits can be encouraged to finance such initiatives which will serve as an investment for the growth of a future market in Africa for our cocoa.”
The core purpose of the Chocolate Week Celebration is to promote local consumption of chocolate and other cocoa-based products among others.
The Information Minister who is also the MP for Ofoase Ayirebi praised stakeholders on the cocoa value chain for their respective roles in working to build a robust cocoa economy.
The National Chocolate Day Celebration was instituted in 2005 to coincide with Valentine’s Day which falls on 14th February every year to boost the domestic consumption of Ghana chocolate and other cocoa-based products among others. What used to be a day celebration, was transformed into a week-long celebration in 2022 due to the numerous benefits the country stands to gain if the cocoa industry is nationally promoted.
Experienced football administrator, George Afriyie has given an indication that he will contest Kurt Okraku for the Ghana Football Association (GFA) presidential seat once his tenure expires.
According to the former Ghana FA vice president, he will assess the performance of Kurt Okraku when his mandate expires in October later this year before finally deciding whether he will contest for the top job or not.
“What I know is that Kurt Okraku’s first mandate will end on 25th October 2023 and definitely there will be an assessment to see if he’s done well or not.
“After the expiration of his first tenure, the assessment will determine if some of us will contest him or support him,” George Afriyie told Original FM in an interview on the Super Sports Show.
In the interview, George Afriyie opened up on reservations about the GFA’s sponsorship agreement with betPawa, particularly citing concern about the $1 million allocation made for promotion.
“If a sponsorship is signed and $1m is been used for marketing and promotion by the same brand that needs promotion, we will determine if he’s done well or not to deserve another term,” he said.
George Afriyie contested Kurt Okraku in the last election but lost. He is considering his option and will hope that if contests in the next election he will win.
The Vice President of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC), The Right Reverend Dr Gordon Kisseih has called on the youth to desist from watching telenovelas with scenes that have the potential of arousing their sexual appetite.
He explained that social media and some telenovelas were having a negative influence on adolescents, contributing to the increasing indulgence in immoral acts.
Rt. Rev. Dr Kisseih told the Ghana News Agency in an interview on Tuesday, ahead of this year’s Chocolate Day celebration on February 14, that “sexual immorality is a demonic temptation and sexual intercourse should be between married couples.”
The Government, in 2005, renamed Valentine’s Day Chocolate Day to promote the consumption of chocolate and disabuse the minds of the youth on immoral conduct on the day.
He urged Ghanaians to develop the habit of consuming more cocoa products to ensure good health and prevent diseases.
“On Valentine’s Day, which has been renamed Chocolate Day, people should focus on giving chocolates as gifts to their loved ones,” he said.
“I am not anticipating the minister-designate for agriculture to go and also transform the agricultural ministry into a farm gate; my expectations are that he will address the wrongs at the agricultural ministry.
“I am expecting him to come up with policies, I am expecting him to ensure that the smuggling of cocoa beans will be stopped and that using his security knowledge, he will be able to stop the flow of stolen fertilisers that we use taxpayers money to import.
“I am expecting him to ensure that those who are benefiting largely from the smuggling of fertilisers, he will stop it, get them arrested and prosecuted. And also ensure that he comes up with good policies that will help the ordinary farmer,” Dr Bonaa told GhanaWeb in an interview.
The outgoing minister during his tenure spearheaded some of the government’s flagship policies including the Planting for Food and Jobs policy.
On the back of the recent rise in food prices, the ministry under Dr Akoto’s leadership introduced an open market at the ministry dubbed the Planting for Food and Jobs Market.
Critics of the outgone minister say he failed in his duty although Mr Akoto vehemently argued otherwise.
Describing the current state of the agric ministry as petty, Dr Bonaa further challenged the incoming minister to redeem the image of the agric sector in Ghana by turning things around.
“At the moment it looks so petty, the agric ministry has suffered. You know how much food crops cost today in this country. I do believe that he should also take what we have done in the past. Some of the best persons who helped this country in terms of agric; animal husbandry and the rest actually had security background. Look at the famous operation feed yourself, was it not led by Acheampong?
“When you take Major Courage Quoshigah when he was the agric minister we all saw what happened to the agric ministry in this country. So I am expecting Bryan Acheampong to use the skills and expertise he has gained over the years at the back of security and as other security persons have done, to raise the bar a lot higher,” he stated.
He also urged the incoming minister to solve the ever-present conflict between farmers and nomadic herdsmen using his background in security.
Currently a member of parliament, Bryan Acheampong is a former Minister of State at the Ministry of the Interior and the former Minister of State at the Ministry of National Security.
With a history as a retired soldier of the US Air Force, Bryan Acheampong’s experience spans Security, Intelligence, Politics, and Business Leadership.
His expertise includes Anti-Terrorism, Force Protection, Laws of Armed Conflict, Conventional Defence Training, Weapons, Small Arms, and Fuels. His experience spans Security, Intelligence, Politics, and Business Leadership.
Dean of the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Professor Vladimir Antwi-Danso says the conflicts in Bawku is politically motivated.
He accused politicians of fueling the Bawku conflict despite severe repercussions for peace and order.
Professor Antwi-Danso claims that due to the political character of the problem, the war has been ongoing for more than 100 years with decreasing chances of achieving a lasting resolution.
He pointed out that the matter remains difficult to resolve because the two feuding factions are politically aligned, which makes it very challenging for the security authorities to restore calm in the region.
According to him, the conflict now poses a severe security threat to the nation since one of the fighting factions could call on terrorists to aid them in their cause, which situation could result in a catastrophe for national security.
“It is because of politics that’s why we cannot fight the Bawku conflict. It is just politics…the Bawku conflict has been in existence for over 100 years old, so if every government was to implement peace resolution measures since then, we could have resolved the matter.
“But as times go on, the conflict becomes severe day in and day out. Whether you like it or not, the Kusasis are NDC and the Mamprusis are also NPP. Why should we experience this? This is the political angle, when there’s a crime there’s a crime.
“I’m most worried about the security threat that this conflict is posing to the country because if we don’t take care, a group can invite terrorists to support them in the fight and that will be a national disaster,” he said.
In an interview with Accra-based Peace FM, the academician made a suggestion that it is now time for the media and all Ghanaians to use a name-and-shame approach to expose the perpetrators of the dispute and aid in reestablishing peace in the area and the entire country.
Background:
It may be recalled that personnel of the Ghana Armed Forces who were deployed to Bawku to maintain law and order were accused by some residents of allegedly killing at least 10 unarmed civilians from Kusasi in their homes and communities.
Meanwhile, according to a publication by the BBC published on February 2, 2023, Mahama Ayariga was reported to have accused the military of being behind the deaths and called for an immediate investigation.
Mahama Ayariga went a step further to petition the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to investigate the killings of 10 citizens and also demanded GH¢500,000 compensation for each deceased person.
On the other hand, the Ghana Armed Forces in a press statement signed by the Director of Public Relations, Naval Captain Michael Addo Larbie, described the allegations as “false” and “untrue.”
Ghanaian dancehall musician Stonebwoy is of the view that African submissive men are husbands who adore their wives.
As a husband, married to Dr. Louisa Satekla the internationally recognized artist indicated that men being submissive in a marriage would be recognized in their love for their wives. “Submission from a man would be showing love,” he stated, with a description of how that love can be shown.
“Stemming it from the African man conversation, submission would be him taking care of her, listening to your woman’s problems,” he expounded on the Breakfast Club Show, A New York-based streamed radio show.
The Bhim Nation President however revealed how important it is for African wives to be submissive as well, emphatically stating how African men in charge love to be respected and he as an African man is attracted to submissive women. “It’s very cool to be submissive; I am attracted; I respect women who are; not like you are being abused no, not like that; There’s beauty in that for me.”
Stonebwoy while sharing his opinion as an African man, with an African upbringing, in a Ghanaian cultural setting noted that African men like to be in charge and prefer to have control over their wives. But he implied what he meant by ‘control’ as men who have wives who are respectful, submissive, supportive, among others and not abused.
Men need to be in charge, it’s not about the woman being dull or something, but we love to have women who are respectful, submissive, and supportive; they consult you and treat you with respect; its general men love to be respected; I think that’s how it is for African men,” he opined.
In the bustling market of Abossey Okai in Accra, Ghana, one will find a vast array of imported auto parts from Europe and other parts of the world. The market is known for its wide variety of auto spare-parts, including both new and used parts, and is a popular destination for those looking to repair or upgrade their vehicles.
However, the importation of end-of-life vehicles and used auto parts from Europe to the market is not only putting lives at risk but also contributing to significant environmental pollution in Ghana.
Robert Dumevo, a mechanic who runs his shop at Lapaz – a suburb of Accra, recounts how he narrowly escaped death on the N1 motorway in Accra. He had replaced a broken exhaust pipe on a client’s Hyundai Sonata, unaware that the replaced part was also faulty – and it in the vehicle catching fire during a test-drive.
“I was driving a ticking time-bomb. My lungs were engulfed in smoke and I struggled to breathe. I realised there was trouble when I tried to escape and my seat belt got jammed. I could feel the fire under my feet,” Robert recalled with some hint of trepidation.
Photo credit: Used spare parts shops at Abossey Okai, Accra, 2022, Ghana. Daniel Abugre Anyorigya
Robert blames “unscrupulous spare-part dealers” at Abossey Okai – Accra’s largest hub of spare-parts importers where he bought the replacement part. “When you buy a used spare-part at Abossey Okai you cannot tell if it is fake, sub-standard or faulty. Some businessmen are involved in the selling of sub-standard spare-parts, making it difficult to do our work,” he explained.
Abossey Okai – A morgue for used car parts and end-of-life (ELVs) vehicles from Europe
Clement Boateng the chairman of the Abossey Okai Spare Parts Dealers Association, admitted that the prevalence of sub-standard auto parts ending up in vehicles and causing safety and environmental issues stems from the nature of auto parts imported from abroad. “Most of the second-hand auto parts dealers import parts from salvaged and end-of-life vehicles,” Clement revealed.
There are “over 15,000 shops” at Abossey Okai, with over fifty-five percent engaged in the import of used auto spare-parts from abroad, he said, adding: “When importing used auto parts, you must be there for physical inspection or have a trusted client. Otherwise, you stay in Ghana and they will load trash auto parts into containers to you”.
The used automobile parts and vehicle industry is one of the biggest in Europe and West Africa. Data provided by the Dutch Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT), show that “Europe exports over a million light-duty vehicles” to Africa annually. UN Comtrade data show that the European Union has exported over US$275million worth of vehicles to Ghana in the last five years, with Germany being the biggest exporter.
“Many of these vehicles are comparable to those we consider end-of-life vehicles,” ILT notes, bringing into question the nature of port inspections that take place in Europe before export.
Frank Duru is a car exporter with several years of experience based in Germany. He explained that there are instances when an official car inspection before export is replaced by a personal glance of approval. “A few of them [vehicles] do not have the roadworthiness certificate, but we see they are in good condition,” he disclosed.
“Neither the exporting nor importing countries have minimum requirements in place to ensure that only quality used vehicles are traded,” said Veronica Ruiz Stannah, an expert on transportation at theUnited Nations Environment Programme.
This allows for a lot of used cars and car parts in poor condition to pass inspections at European harbours and depart for West Africa, where they create substantial safety, environmental and health problems for people like Robert.
Response to trade of ELVs and used spare-parts in Europe and Ghana
In 2020, ILT conducted a study on the European export of used vehicles to West Africa. The study revealed that 80 percent of 280,000 vehicles exported to West Africa from the Netherlands were “old and below the Euro 4/IV emission standard”, and often lacked requisite “roadworthiness certification”.
The study also noted that the trend was not entirely different among other European markets such as Germany, Belgium and France, Netherlands and Italy.
Marietta Harjono, a coordinating specialist at the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT) of the Netherlands, explained that at the harbours inspectors can stop the “worst vehicles, when they are waste or hazardous waste,” after conducting checks with Customs officials.
Exhaust fumes from commercial vehicle in Accra, 2022. Credit Maxwell Ocloo
She however stressed that while a lot of the used cars may not be categorised as waste, they might still not be appropriate for export.
ILT in a 2021 proposal to the European Commission (EC) on the revision of EU regulation on end-of-life vehicles concluded that: “Environmental and health problems will arise in cases where third countries lack a proper system for handling vehicles that reach their end-of-life situation and become waste”.
The European Commission is currently in the process of revising its Directive on end-of-life vehicles (ELVs), but it remains uncertain if a “cross-border aspect” will be included in the final regulation to end the export of ELVs to places like Ghana and Nigeria according to the ILT.
The EC did not respond to questions about ELVs and used spare-parts ending up in places like Ghana.
Despite the health and environmental problems caused by end-of-life automobile parts and vehicles from Europe, Ghana’s local regulators – the Ghana Road Safety Authority and Ghana Standards Authority – do not currently have any scientific specifications and emissions standards for auto spare-parts exported to the country.
Head of Regulation, Inspection and Compliance at the Ghana Road Safety Authority, Kwame Koduah , told iWatch Africa that his Authority and the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) are engaged in a conversation “to ensure that spare-parts imports at least meet some conformity test and standards”.
The Ghana Standards Authority in a written response as part of this investigation also noted that: “The GSA does not have a written policy specific to vehicle spare-parts. The Authority is currently pursuing the development of national standards for replacement parts (spare-parts)”.
Meanwhile, in 2002 Ghana introduced a regulation that made the import of vehicles over ten years more costly by imposing penalties.
Emissions, Health and Environmental Problems
In spite of this regulation, it is typical to encounter many cars releasing thick exhaust fumes while driving through Ghana’s capital, Accra – a health hazard for many pedestrians, street hawkers and shop owners resulting in thousands of deaths annually.
Accra’s air pollution is considered critical as around 16 percent of the air is severely polluted and unhealthy, with an additional 30 percent unhealthy for sensitive groups such as people with asthma, according to the Air Quality Index.
At an event to mark the International Day of Clean Air Blue Skies last September, Dr. Francis Chisaka Kasolo – the World Health Organisation Representative to Ghana, noted that air pollution was the biggest environmental risk responsible for premature deaths from heart-attacks, strokes and respiratory diseases in the country.
With an estimated 40 percent of Accra’s air pollution concentrations related to vehicle transport emissions, its yearly concentration of air pollution was 11 times higher than the WHO air quality standard as of 2020.
The country imports about 100,000 vehicles per year, 90 percent of which are used vehicles. Most of the cars currently used in Ghana are Euro 1 and 2, meaning that they are the most polluting according to the EU emission standards.
So far, officials in Ghana have failed to implement legislation passed in 2020 that aims to completely ban the import of vehicles older than 10 years.
Daniel Essel, Deputy Director at the Ministry of Transport in Ghana, during a session at COP27 praised the legislation but failed to mention that government had chosen not to implement it: raising issues about the commitment of Ghanaian officials to addressing concerns related to ELVs and used car parts.
“Policymakers in Ghana are not doing enough to curtail used vehicle consumption, and to that end reduce the harm – crashes, pollution, etc. – that come with it,” says Festival Godwin Boateng, a Ph.D. researcher at the Centre for Sustainable Urban Development at Columbia Climate School in New York.
Way Forward
To safeguard the environment and public safety, Dr. Boateng insists that any ban on ELVs in Ghana should be couched as part of broader policies: such as investments to make public transport, walking and cycling cleaner, safer and affordable, as well as investments in city planning and mini-bus electrification.
For a regional solution, the ILT recommends that: “African governments must agree as much as possible to harmonised or regional import standards for used vehicles. Whether it is on maximum age, minimum euro class, maximum mileage, proof of roadworthiness, and/or condition of the vehicles at export”.
Robert narrowly avoided a fatal outcome but, unfortunately, thousands – including the environment – bear the consequences from years of ineffective policies on the import of ELVs and used car parts.
Until the necessary actions are taken, Robert believes that “many people will continue to perish each
In the bustling market of Abossey Okai in Accra, Ghana, one will find a vast array of imported auto parts from Europe and other parts of the world. The market is known for its wide variety of auto spare-parts, including both new and used parts, and is a popular destination for those looking to repair or upgrade their vehicles.
However, the importation of end-of-life vehicles and used auto parts from Europe to the market is not only putting lives at risk but also contributing to significant environmental pollution in Ghana.
Robert Dumevo, a mechanic who runs his shop at Lapaz – a suburb of Accra, recounts how he narrowly escaped death on the N1 motorway in Accra. He had replaced a broken exhaust pipe on a client’s Hyundai Sonata, unaware that the replaced part was also faulty – and it in the vehicle catching fire during a test-drive.
“I was driving a ticking time-bomb. My lungs were engulfed in smoke and I struggled to breathe. I realised there was trouble when I tried to escape and my seat belt got jammed. I could feel the fire under my feet,” Robert recalled with some hint of trepidation.
Photo credit: Used spare parts shops at Abossey Okai, Accra, 2022, Ghana. Daniel Abugre Anyorigya
Robert blames “unscrupulous spare-part dealers” at Abossey Okai – Accra’s largest hub of spare-parts importers where he bought the replacement part. “When you buy a used spare-part at Abossey Okai you cannot tell if it is fake, sub-standard or faulty. Some businessmen are involved in the selling of sub-standard spare-parts, making it difficult to do our work,” he explained.
Abossey Okai – A morgue for used car parts and end-of-life (ELVs) vehicles from Europe
Clement Boateng the chairman of the Abossey Okai Spare Parts Dealers Association, admitted that the prevalence of sub-standard auto parts ending up in vehicles and causing safety and environmental issues stems from the nature of auto parts imported from abroad. “Most of the second-hand auto parts dealers import parts from salvaged and end-of-life vehicles,” Clement revealed.
There are “over 15,000 shops” at Abossey Okai, with over fifty-five percent engaged in the import of used auto spare-parts from abroad, he said, adding: “When importing used auto parts, you must be there for physical inspection or have a trusted client. Otherwise, you stay in Ghana and they will load trash auto parts into containers to you”.
The used automobile parts and vehicle industry is one of the biggest in Europe and West Africa. Data provided by the Dutch Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT), show that “Europe exports over a million light-duty vehicles” to Africa annually. UN Comtrade data show that the European Union has exported over US$275million worth of vehicles to Ghana in the last five years, with Germany being the biggest exporter.
“Many of these vehicles are comparable to those we consider end-of-life vehicles,” ILT notes, bringing into question the nature of port inspections that take place in Europe before export.
Frank Duru is a car exporter with several years of experience based in Germany. He explained that there are instances when an official car inspection before export is replaced by a personal glance of approval. “A few of them [vehicles] do not have the roadworthiness certificate, but we see they are in good condition,” he disclosed.
“Neither the exporting nor importing countries have minimum requirements in place to ensure that only quality used vehicles are traded,” said Veronica Ruiz Stannah, an expert on transportation at the United Nations Environment Programme.
This allows for a lot of used cars and car parts in poor condition to pass inspections at European harbours and depart for West Africa, where they create substantial safety, environmental and health problems for people like Robert.
Response to trade of ELVs and used spare-parts in Europe and Ghana
In 2020, ILT conducted a study on the European export of used vehicles to West Africa. The study revealed that 80 percent of 280,000 vehicles exported to West Africa from the Netherlands were “old and below the Euro 4/IV emission standard”, and often lacked requisite “roadworthiness certification”.
The study also noted that the trend was not entirely different among other European markets such as Germany, Belgium and France, Netherlands and Italy.
Marietta Harjono, a coordinating specialist at the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT) of the Netherlands, explained that at the harbours inspectors can stop the “worst vehicles, when they are waste or hazardous waste,” after conducting checks with Customs officials.
Exhaust fumes from commercial vehicle in Accra, 2022. Credit Maxwell Ocloo
She however stressed that while a lot of the used cars may not be categorised as waste, they might still not be appropriate for export.
ILT in a 2021 proposal to the European Commission (EC) on the revision of EU regulation on end-of-life vehicles concluded that: “Environmental and health problems will arise in cases where third countries lack a proper system for handling vehicles that reach their end-of-life situation and become waste”.
The European Commission is currently in the process of revising its Directive on end-of-life vehicles (ELVs), but it remains uncertain if a “cross-border aspect” will be included in the final regulation to end the export of ELVs to places like Ghana and Nigeria according to the ILT.
The EC did not respond to questions about ELVs and used spare-parts ending up in places like Ghana.
Despite the health and environmental problems caused by end-of-life automobile parts and vehicles from Europe, Ghana’s local regulators – the Ghana Road Safety Authority and Ghana Standards Authority – do not currently have any scientific specifications and emissions standards for auto spare-parts exported to the country.
Head of Regulation, Inspection and Compliance at the Ghana Road Safety Authority, Kwame Koduah , told iWatch Africa that his Authority and the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) are engaged in a conversation “to ensure that spare-parts imports at least meet some conformity test and standards”.
The Ghana Standards Authority in a written response as part of this investigation also noted that: “The GSA does not have a written policy specific to vehicle spare-parts. The Authority is currently pursuing the development of national standards for replacement parts (spare-parts)”.
Meanwhile, in 2002 Ghana introduced a regulation that made the import of vehicles over ten years more costly by imposing penalties.
Emissions, Health and Environmental Problems
In spite of this regulation, it is typical to encounter many cars releasing thick exhaust fumes while driving through Ghana’s capital, Accra – a health hazard for many pedestrians, street hawkers and shop owners resulting in thousands of deaths annually.
Accra’s air pollution is considered critical as around 16 percent of the air is severely polluted and unhealthy, with an additional 30 percent unhealthy for sensitive groups such as people with asthma, according to the Air Quality Index.
At an event to mark the International Day of Clean Air Blue Skies last September, Dr. Francis Chisaka Kasolo – the World Health Organisation Representative to Ghana, noted that air pollution was the biggest environmental risk responsible for premature deaths from heart-attacks, strokes and respiratory diseases in the country.
With an estimated 40 percent of Accra’s air pollution concentrations related to vehicle transport emissions, its yearly concentration of air pollution was 11 times higher than the WHO air quality standard as of 2020.
The country imports about 100,000 vehicles per year, 90 percent of which are used vehicles. Most of the cars currently used in Ghana are Euro 1 and 2, meaning that they are the most polluting according to the EU emission standards.
So far, officials in Ghana have failed to implement legislation passed in 2020 that aims to completely ban the import of vehicles older than 10 years.
Daniel Essel, Deputy Director at the Ministry of Transport in Ghana, during a session at COP27 praised the legislation but failed to mention that government had chosen not to implement it: raising issues about the commitment of Ghanaian officials to addressing concerns related to ELVs and used car parts.
“Policymakers in Ghana are not doing enough to curtail used vehicle consumption, and to that end reduce the harm – crashes, pollution, etc. – that come with it,” says Festival Godwin Boateng, a Ph.D. researcher at the Centre for Sustainable Urban Development at Columbia Climate School in New York.
Way Forward
To safeguard the environment and public safety, Dr. Boateng insists that any ban on ELVs in Ghana should be couched as part of broader policies: such as investments to make public transport, walking and cycling cleaner, safer and affordable, as well as investments in city planning and mini-bus electrification.
For a regional solution, the ILT recommends that: “African governments must agree as much as possible to harmonised or regional import standards for used vehicles. Whether it is on maximum age, minimum euro class, maximum mileage, proof of roadworthiness, and/or condition of the vehicles at export”.
Robert narrowly avoided a fatal outcome but, unfortunately, thousands – including the environment – bear the consequences from years of ineffective policies on the import of ELVs and used car parts.
Until the necessary actions are taken, Robert believes that “many people will continue to perish each year” through no fault of their own.
Additional reporting by Raluca Besliu, Daniel Abugre Anyorigya and Elfredah Kevin-Alerechi. This investigation was supported by Journalismfund.eu
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.
Lakers forward LeBron James is now the NBA’s all-time scoring record-holder, after hitting 36 points versus the Oklahoma City Thunder.
LeBron needed only 36 points on the night, after breaking the 38k barrier only 3 weeks prior, and it took him 26 minutes on the night to surpass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who was courtside and watching.
“A record which has stood for almost 40 years, and no one thought will be broken, has now been broken. LeBron, you are now the NBA’s all-time scoring leader,” Adam Silver said on the court some five minutes after LeBron toppled 38,378.
With a fadeaway, the 38-year-old reached 38,388 with a fadeaway, after receiving from Russel Westbrook.
The elder brother of professional footballer Christian Atsu, Isaac Teye Twasam has spoken about the family’s reaction to the news of Atsu being trapped under the rubble following a massive earthquake in Turkey.
Isaac stated that he was taking feeding fees from school pupils when he was informed of the incident and immediately headed home to turn off his phone and lie flat on the floor.
The family was frightened by the news, but took solace in how God saved Jonah from the belly of the big fish.
Isaac explained that they continued to pray for Atsu’s safe return, receiving motivation through numerous phone calls.
Despite hearing media reports of Atsu’s survival on Monday evening, the family wanted to confirm the news from his club and management first.
However, when Isaac called to confirm, Atsu’s agent refuted the claims, intensifying the anxiety and almost breaking Isaac down.
“I was taking feeding fees from school pupils when I was informed about the incident. Upon hearing I stopped, headed home and immediately turned off my phone lied flat on the floor,” he told Dan Kwaku Yeboah Tv on YouTube.
“We were all frightened by the news but we took solace in how God saved Jonah from the belly of the big fish. Hence we knew no matter what, Atsu would be back safe.
“So we continued in prayers just like Ghanaians did. We received motivation through numerous phone calls.
“We heard media reports of his survival on Monday evening but we wanted to confirm from his club and management first.
“Atsu’s agent refuted the claims of him being found in the evening when I called to confirm following numerous reports. The anxiety intensified after that call. It almost broke me down,” he added.
Ghanaian artist and record producer KiDi has revealed that American Hiphop/R&B superstar Chris Brown was his childhood hero.
The Lynx and EMPIRE signee was speaking to the +44 show on Amazon Music, when he was asked who his dream collaborations are.
“This is tough because the list is really long,” he said.
Expressing his faith for a dream come true he said: “The universe is listening,” and then revealed his ultimate dream collaboration will be with “Chris Brown because like… [He was my] childhood idol.”
The second artiste he mentioned was: “Drake,” and lastly, he quickly added that: “If Rihanna comes back to making music, I’d definitely like to hit the studio with her.”
On the African continent, the ‘Touch It’ hitmaker said: “I’d love to make records with a couple of people as well.” He did not mention any names, however.
“Fingers crossed,” he said enthusiastically.
Mr Dennis ‘KiDi’ Dwamena also disclosed that his favourite song to perform is: “probably my song ‘Blessed’ featuring Mavado.
“I don’t know [but] there’s something very spiritual about that song. Whenever I’m on stage, it speaks to me, you know. The song itself tells me about how it’s easy to focus on all the bad things happening in your life but sometimes you forget to just be grateful that we are blessed to be alive,” he explained.
“So whenever I’m stage, when it gets to that song, it’s just some little spirit in me that like rekindles, you know? and I love performing it,” he remarked.
MP for North Tongu, Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa, has made more revelations about Government’s payments to Sir David Adjaye.
He says Government paid additional US$5.8million to lead consultant of the National Cathedral of Ghana project, Sir David Adjaye, in 2021.
The amount according to North Tongu Member of Parliament, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, was extra payment for what he called design variations to the existing architectural design Adjaye had originally done.
Adjaye Associates & Design Team were directly paid an amount of GH¢113.040.54.67 million according to records presented to Parliament in 2022 by the secretariat of the National Cathedral.
On the specific works that led to the over US$5.8 million payment, Ablakwa wrote in a Facebook post dated February 7, 2023:
“Newly secured cathedral documents reveal that just for a minor design variation of including a 300+ seater restaurant and expansion of an already paid for Bible museum, government paid David Adjaye an additional outrageous and extortionate US$5.8million (specifically US$5,817,769.65; amounting to a staggering GHS33,539,442.03 in 2021).”
It is not known whether this figure was contained in the original expenditure document presented to Parliament or it is from a different source.
Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta told Parliament in Decembebr 2022 that a total amount of GHC339 million had been spent on the project from public funds – specifically the Contingency Fund.
Read Ablakwa’s full post on the alleged payment:
How David Adjaye billed Ghana a colossal US$5.8million (GHS33.5million in 2021) for a Minor Cathedral Design Variation
The heartbreaking images of Ghana’s pensioners and vulnerable senior citizens picketing at the Finance Ministry when they should be enjoying a well-deserved restful and happy retirement with their grandchildren is undoubtedly the result of reckless mismanagement and cruel dissipation of the nation’s resources by this Akufo-Addo/Bawumia/Ofori-Atta inept government.
Newly secured cathedral documents reveal that just for a minor design variation of including a 300+ seater restaurant and expansion of an already paid for Bible museum, government paid David Adjaye an additional outrageous and extortionate US$5.8million (specifically US$5,817,769.65; amounting to a staggering GHS33,539,442.03 in 2021).
This latest information confirms that so far, the Ghanaian taxpayer has coughed up an exorbitant US$25,444,192.42 (GHS152.6million) solely for Adjaye’s cathedral architectural designs.
Put in context, this GHS152.6million is more than the entire 2023 compensation (salaries and wages) budgetary allocation for the Ministries of Food and Agriculture; Trade and Industry; Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts; Energy; Information; Roads and Highways; Works and Housing; Communications and Digitalisation; Youth and Sports; Railways Development, and a host of others.
GHS152.6million can also complete more than 80% of the abandoned Saglemi affordable housing units. It could equally have completed the targeted 200 E-Block community senior high schools project.
Ghana’s current economic tribulations are undoubtedly self-inflicted—definitely created by this heartless NPP administration.
Our prayers and solidarity are with all pensioners—government ought to listen and immediately exempt them from its dreadful DDEP!
Like most Ghanaians, I can’t wait for Parliament’s parliamentary probe into this scandal-plagued “National” Cathedral project.
A Cristiano Ronaldo autographed shirt from Merih Demiral’s personal collection will be auctioned, with proceedings going to disaster relief.
WHAT HAPPENED? A 7.7-magnitude earthquake on Monday collapsed buildings and killed thousands of people, including at least one professional football player, and Demiral said he will do what he can to assist those devastated by the natural disaster. His personal kit collection includes a signed Ronaldo shirt from when the Portuguese star played at Juventus, and he will auction the item after speaking with the Al-Nassr forward.
“I just spoke with Cristiano,” Demiral wrote on Twitter. “He said that he was very sad about what happened in Turkey. We are auctioning Ronaldo’s signed jersey in my collection. All proceeds from the auction will be used in the earthquake zone.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Demiral’s post immediately received tens of thousands of likes, and other football players are now offering up their own memorabilia. In a follow-up tweet, he wrote: “And now I talked to Leonardo Bonucci. He expressed his sadness and said that Turkey stands by our people. He also said he donated a signed Juventus jersey.”
AND WHAT’S MORE: Demiral played alongside Ronaldo at Juventus and now turns out for Atalanta. At international level, the 24-year-old has 35 senior caps with Turkey.
WHAT NEXT FOR FUNDRAISING? Demiral chose Turkish charity Ahbap as his preferred place to donate, but international organisations such as Turkish Red Crescent and Save The Children are among the other organisations currently accepting donations as they aid people on the ground in Turkey and Syria.
Should the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) withhold specific information on a recent agreement to buy large amounts of pork from the United States, stakeholders in the domestic pig industry may take legal redress that could result in a complete import blockade on pork products across the board.
The Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana (CAG) and the National Pig Farmers Association (NPFA), two of these stakeholder civil society organizations (CSOs), have claimed that the MoFA is obstructing their efforts to access comprehensive information and records on the deal.
The lack of consultation, detailed information and documents on the agreement that was signed between government and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is creating panic among domestic pig farmers, feed producers and key sector stakeholders.
CAG and the NPFA said a legal action and petition through the International Trade Commission of Ghana, the Ministry of Trade and Industry and other relevant bodies will be presented in the coming days to ban all pork imports should MoFA fail to disclose full information on the deal.
“We don’t have the document to know the extent of the agreement and its impacts. MoFA is frustrating us and hiding information from stakeholders,” CAG’s Chief Executive Officer, Selorm Anthony Morrison, told the B&FT.
Application for right to information
Mr. Morrison said an application has been made by lawyers of CAG and the NPFA to the Right to Information Commission (RTI) to compel the ministry to release all necessary details and information on the agreement.
“The full details, when available to industry players, will enable us to learn what the agreement entails and what aspects require redress when we go to court,” he said.
On Tuesday, January 24, 2023, the B&FT reported that MoFA had reached an agreement with the USDA, confirming that the Ghanaian market is officially open to U.S exports of pork and pork products in addition to other meat products.
The agreement was reached with MoFA as the result of a request made by USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service on October 24, 2022 for Ghana to allow pork products to be imported in large quantities.
The report said the Chief Veterinary Officer of the Veterinary Services Directorate of MoFA signed and responded to the request on January 12, 2023 – that the country will not only accept pork products onto its market but also others including beef, goat, lamb and poultry.
Whereas the USDA has noted the agreement is an opportunity that will be exploited by businesses from the US, the deal has sparked concerns among stakeholders of possible dumping – with calls on local authorities to be vigilant.
Pork import figures
Ghana’s imported pork and pork products market was valued at US$16million in 2021, according to the USDA.
Total imports have increased progressively from 2017, hitting 15,000 metric tonnes in 2021. The market is dominated by the European Union, with the United States not being a significant player – not even counted among the top-ten importers of pork into the country.
About 70,000 metric tonnes of pork and pork products have been imported into the country over the last six years from 2017 to 2022, according to Trade Data Monitor LLC – with the top-ten countries being Belgium, Poland, Germany, Netherlands, Ireland, Romania, Spain, Ukraine, the UK and France.
As the government’s domestic debt exchange program (DDEP) neared its final hours on Tuesday, some holders of Ghana’s cedi bonds are grudgingly subscribing to it.
Sources in government told Graphic Online Tuesday afternoon that interest had picked up quite well among institutional investors although the pace of subscription was still below expectation.
For individual holders of the otherwise risk-free government paper, one source said: “I think there are still some difficulties here and there.”
In spite of that the sources said it was obvious that the government would meet its target and would, therefore, not extend the offer, which ends on February 7.
The sources, which are coordinating the process, have not been authorised to speak on the matter.
“Some are signing on and we are hoping that by close to day, Tuesday, we will see significant participation,” one said said.
“I think we are counting on God to see us through but as for this time round, we will not extend the deadline,” another said.
In the offer launched December last year, the government wants investors in its cedi debts to swap their existing holdings for new ones that have a maximum maturity of five years instead.
The offer is optional, the government said in a January 31 release that announced the extension of the programme for the fourth time in a row.
That release also revised the terms of the debt swap in response to protests and resistance from business associations and individual bondholders that have constituted themselves into groups.
The debt swap is needed to make the country’s debt sustainable, which is a prerequisite to sealing a US$3 billion bailout programme from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Ghanaian dancehall artist, Livingstone Etse Satekla known professionally as Stonebwoy has disclosed that his agreement with Shatta Wale to settle their disputes was never genuine.
The ‘Bhim Nation’ hitmaker in an interview on American top urban celebrity interview base, VLAD TV, recalled an unexpected incident that occurred in 2019 at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards when he was deemed reggae/dancehall artiste of the year; speaking of how he stood to defend himself against Shatta Wale and his crew who stomped the stage in the middle of his speech on that day.
“Even if I wasn’t smart, I know its two things; to try disrupting it or to try doing his sh*t” he connoted.
Stonebwoy in the interview tagged his attitude on that day as his other side and himself as one born and bred on the streets.
“Nobody has the right to feel like you are invisible; one thing led to the other and they basically saw the other side of me, they realised I’m really from the streets” he revealed.
“Because we had a whole lot of following and people looking up to us, we managed to come to a nice consensus but it’s never been genuine,” words of the 34-year old singer emphatically disclosing why they both decided to settle their differences and further added that People cannot be forced to be someone they are not.
The Member of Parliament (MP) for the Suame Constituency, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has condemned some comments made by an executive of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).
He says the inciting comment made by the Suame NDC youth organiser to the effect that the NDC is ready to “kill for power” is unfortunate.
According to the New Patriotic Party MP, such comments as made by the youth organiser is as a result of the propaganda being perpetuated by the leaders of the NDC.
“I believe it’s a very unfortunate comment from anyone engaged in politics. When you look at Article 55 of our Constitution, it clearly spells out the purpose of a political party. It says we have a duty to build this nation to prosper around economic, social and political ideas. Sell your policies to people in your constituency to vote for you, how does that warrant killing?
“He claims Akufo-Addo killed 8 people to gain political power. That is a very sad commentary from a person involved in politics. It is a problem with propaganda because these claims started being shared by some leaders of the NDC; claiming that Akufo-Addo killed people for power. But if we are going to look back in that regard, what happened at Atiwa during elections?… When Anita Desoso drove through a crowd injuring some people was it to win them power?” he said during an interview on Hello FM monitored by GhanaWeb.
The police has announced that it had mounted a search for the said executive for his alleged comments relative to the 2024 general elections.
The announcement by the police followed the publication of the viral video in which the said organiser is seen inciting members of the party to engage in violence to win power.
Speaking to a journalist on the sidelines on what looked like a party event, the man charged members of the NDC not to hesitate to shed blood if it is what it will take to win power.
“As journalists, you were witnesses to a situation where people were shot and killed in the 2020 elections. So standing here today, I am to make sure that no NPP member can come and kill me. So we are in and I will advise every true NDC member that in the 2024 elections when it becomes necessary to kill someone to win, kill them; even if it requires that you shoot someone or club them to win us power do it,” he told a journalist with Oyerepa FM.
According to the Majority Leader, whereas there have been similar incidents of violence under an NDC administration, the blame cannot necessarily be placed on the president at the time.
“Sometimes unfortunate things happen during elections but I will not accuse Prof Mills of being behind what happened in previous elections as well,” the MP said.
An elderly Ghanaian woman living abroad is trending on TikTok after a video of her lamenting about money owed by a deceased person surfaced online. In the footage sighted by YEN.com.gh on the TikTok handle of @madleyappiah, the woman looks angry and asks her kids not to film her because she is not in the mood.
Asked why she looked so sad, the elderly woman said she had just learnt that a man who owed her money had just died.
The woman said her debtor owed her €3,000, equivalent to GH¢39,000 cedis. She wondered how she would get the money now that the man had died.
She added that the man’s death doesn’t bother her as much as losing her money under the guise of bad debt. “I am crying because of my money, as for death, everyone will die, it we those alive now that matter” she said with a straight face.”
Netizens who saw the video laughed off the woman’s gesture with some saying she was right because losing such a massive amount under such circumstances must be painful.
Netizens share their thoughts:
Shaweddy commented: I love Ghanaian parents
Kwasi said: She’s thinking about her money and not the dead man gangsta mama right there lol.
N posted: bro all Ghanaian mums are the same
AvvyAdel said: it’s sad but funny too cause I know how she feels junior reacted: auntie has had enough
Following the case’s dismissal, MTN’s share price increased 7.3 percent, rising from GH0.82 at the end of January to GH0.88 at the start of the second trading week in February. The increase in share value resulted in a market capitalization gain of GH738,000,000.
The GRA had faulted the telco for under-declaring its revenues by as much as 30 percent in the five-year period spanning between 2014 and 2018, resulting in penalties and charges.
Following extensive engagements between both parties, the case was dismissed on Friday, February 3, 2023 – with the company’s share price reacting positively at the beginning of this week.
Commenting on MTN’s performance, a senior analyst at UMB Brokers, Kofi Busia Kyei, said the development was not unexpected as the market is maturing and reacting quicker to available information.
He added that despite the general investor unease MTN remains an attractive stock, and news that an action which could impact its profitability has been resolved will inevitably result in positive market movements.
“The figure in question was quite substantial whether we looked at it in cedi or dollar terms, and investors were always going to react. Similarly, news that the case had been resolved was well-received by the market, and that is what we have seen in the price movement,” explained Mr. Kyei, who doubles as Executive Director of the Young Investors Network.
If successful, the GRA case would have seen MTN pay more than the GH¢7.7billion and GH¢2billion it made in revenue and post-tax profit respectively in 2021 – and more than 10 times the GH¢767million the telco reported as profit-after-tax for the first nine months of 2022.
Despite the wider macro-economic concerns and initially-feared impact of the E-levy on MTN’s performance, it exceeded expectations in its last audited results – quarter-three in 2022 – with revenue hitting GH¢1.41billion and GH¢4.09billion for the quarter and first nine months of 2022 respectively, due to robust data and voice revenue growth.
Over the past three months, MTN has been the most actively traded stock on the GSE with a total volume of 29.7 million shares worth GH¢26.1million. On average, 471,702 shares have been traded per session; with a peak of 13.1 million on December 23 and a low of 100 on January 10, official data show.
Despite its unit share price being 20.7 percent lower than the GH¢1.08 recorded a year ago, MTN’s stock has appreciated by 10 percent in the last six months.
Tthe convener of the Individual Bondholders Forum, Senyo Hosi, has claimed that as the deadline draws near, some banks are being pressured to force their clients to embrace the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP).
Mr Hosi described the move as illegal and immoral adding that forcing customers of banks to accept the programme could spell doom for the country in future.
“Unfortunately on the market, we see some conducts that are unethical and also illegal. We see pressure coming from different quarters compelling banks to try and force customers to try and tender or accept the DDE, that is illegal, that is unethical and immoral,” Mr Hosi said on Tuesday on Eyewitness News.
He added that “the risk of that is that tomorrow the same customer will come and say he accepted that under duress. Who is really going to take responsibility for that?”
Tuesday, February 7, 2023, is the final day for bondholders to sign up for the domestic debt exchange programme.
The government is not likely to extend the deadline for subscribing to the programme which has been postponed three times already.
Mr Hosi also added that the government has clearly demonstrated that it is not ready to make sacrifices and is only interested in using funds of ordinary hard-working citizens for the domestic debt exchange programme.
According to him, the failure of President Akufo-Addo to reduce his ministerial appointees in his latest reshuffle exposes the government’s unwillingness to cut down costs.
Meanwhile, an Individual Bondholder has disclosed that none of their recommendations made to the government to raise more revenue without involving the funds of individual bondholders in the domestic debt exchange programme has been considered in the final proposals.
“Up until now, we have essentially seen only unilateral proposals. None of the conversations that were entered into by the technical committee between the government and the individual bondholders has reflected. All the proposals that we made that we talked about almost 83 billion cedis, none has been discussed by the government.”
The Ministry of Energy has replied former President John Dramani Mahama following his criticism of the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo administration over Ghana’s oil production.
The former president berated the Akufo-Addo-led government for their lack of efforts to increase the country’s oil production in the upstream sector over the last seven years.
According to him, greed and ineptitude against national interest have engulfed the current government which has resulted in the lack of development in the oil and gas sector.
In a tweet posted on February 6, 2023, John Mahama described the development as ‘wasted years’ despite his National Democratic Congress government handing over two new oil fields to the Akufo-Addo government in 2017.
“Wasted years! We bequeathed to the Akufo-Addo government two new oil fields, TEN and Sankofa. Greed and ineptitude as against national interest means a sad reality of no additional production activity in our upstream oil sector in the last 7 years,” John Mahama wrote.
It added that the Akufo-Addo government has discovered seven new oil fields from 2017 to date.
“It cannot be lost on John Mahama and his followers, that oil production is capital intensive, high risk and dependent on the availability of investor funds, market conditions as well as prevailing global trends among others at the time discoveries are made. Thus, for John Mahama to claim that President Akufo-Addo has wasted seven years without additional production activity exposes him as a man who has no compelling knowledge of the upstream oil and gas industry.
“For the record, under the Akufo-Addo presidency, Ghana has seen an unprecedented oil well drilling success rate from all exploration wells drilled from 2017 to date. Out of seven (7) exploration wells drilled during the period, six (6) of them were successful resulting in 7 discoveries.
“These discoveries are: Aker’s Pecan South East (2018), AGM’s Nyankom-1X (2019), Springfield’s Afina-1X (2019), Eni’s Akoma-1X (2019), Eni’s Eban-1X (2021) and Eni’s Aprokuma-1X (Albian and Cenomanian discoveries) (2022),” parts of the statement read.
This was announced by the Ministry of Finance in a press release that began: “The Government of Ghana welcomes all bondholders who have so far tendered their bonds in conjunction with the current Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP).
“However, it has come to the attention of Government that some bondholders faced technical glitches as they tried to complete the online tender process.”
The statement read further: “Government is providing bondholders with a window to complete processes for tendering their bonds, in response to the terms of Exchange as amended pursuant to the 2nd Amended and Restated Exchange Memorandum. This window ends on Friday, 10th February 2023 at 4:00 p.m. (GMT).”
The release dated February 7 was signed b Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta.
This becomes the fourth extension since the first announcement was made in December 2022.
“The timetable of the Exchange is not otherwise affected by this, except for the Announcement Date which is now expected to occur on Monday, 13th February 2023.
“The settlement of the Exchange is still scheduled for Tuesday, 14th February 2023. Except as set forth in this paragraph, the terms and conditions of the Exchange are not modified or amended.”
The DDEP is part of conditionalities by government to access an International Monetary Fund bailout. The government is aiming to achieve IMF Board approval by March after sealing a Staff-Level Agreement in December 2022.
Here are the 3 times government extended its DDEP and why
First announcement of the DDEP programme
The Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, in a 4-minute address on Sunday, December 4, 2022, announced a number of measures under the government’s Domestic Debt Exchange (DDE) programme.
This announcement was in line with the government’s debt sustainability analysis, as contained in the 2023 budget he presented to Parliament on November 24, and it gave entities up to December 30, 2022, to indicate their participation in the programme.
The minister laid out, among other things, the exchange of existing domestic bonds with four new ones, as well as their maturity dates and terms of coupon payments.
Under this initial offer, for bondholders with bonds maturing in 2023, the government promised four new bonds that were expected to mature in 2027, 2029, 2032, and 2037, and 0% interest in 2023, 5% interest in 2024, and 10% interest in 2025, which will continue till the maturity of your bond.
Initially, the government stated that the programme would affect securities dealers and funds, private banks and investment companies, insurance schemes, pension funds, and non-resident investors, but not individual bondholders.
First extension from December 30, 2022, to January 16, 2023
After fierce resistance from trade unions about the inclusion of pension funds in the DDEP and the lack of enough voluntary participation, the government announced the extension of the voluntary participation in the programme to January 16 with the following modifications:
• Offering accrued and unpaid interest on Eligible Bonds and a cash tender fee payment to holders of Eligible Bonds maturing in 2023;
• Increasing the New Bonds offered by adding eight new instruments to the composition of the New Bonds, for a total of 12 New Bonds, one maturing each year starting January 2027 and ending January 2038;
• Modifying the Exchange Consideration Ratios for each New Bond. The exchange consideration ratio applicable to Eligible Bonds maturing in 2023 will be different from other Eligible Bonds;
• Setting a non-binding target minimum level of overall participation of 80% of the aggregate principal amount outstanding of eligible bonds; and
• Expanding the types of investors that can participate in the exchange to now include individual investors
Second deadline extension from January 16, 2023 to January 31, 2023:
The government on Monday, January 16, extended the deadline for DDEP to Tuesday, January 31, 2023, after resistance by some of the stakeholders involved in the programme, particularly individual investors whom the government promised not to include in the programme.
A press release on the development, issued by the Public Relations Unit of the Finance Ministry, announced some modifications by the government on the invitation to the exchange, including;
Offering accrued and unpaid interest on Eligible Bonds and a cash tender fee payment to holders of Eligible Bonds maturing in 2023;
Increasing the New Bonds offered by adding eight new instruments to the composition of the New Bonds, for a total of 12 New Bonds, one maturing each year starting January 2027 and ending January 2038;
Modifying the exchange consideration ratios for each New Bond. The exchange consideration ratio applicable to Eligible Bonds maturing in 2023 will be different than for other Eligible Bonds;
Setting a non-binding target minimum level of overall participation of 80% of the aggregate principal amount outstanding of Eligible Bonds; and
Expanding the types of investors that can participate in the exchange to now include individual investors.
Extension of deadline from January 31, 2023 to February 14, 2023
The government had to once again extend the deadline for voluntary participation in the DDEP to February 14, 2023, from January 31, 2023, citing its latest offer to individual bondholders.
Even though this time around a lot of groups, including banks, have agreed to participate in the programme, the government still wants to include individual bondholders.
The latest offer includes the exchange of instruments with a maximum maturity of 5 years instead of 15 years and a 10% coupon rate to individual bondholders below the age of 59 to encourage them to participate in the DDEP.
Additionally, all retirees (including those retiring in 2023) will be offered instruments with a maximum maturity of 5 years instead of 15 years and a 15% coupon rate.
The current deal has, however, been rejected by individual bondholders. The individual bondholders, who are pensioners, picketed at the Ministry of Finance on Monday, February 6, 2023, to demand that the government exclude them from the DDEP.
Former Black Stars player Michael Essien is happy that winger Christian Atsu has been rescued from the rubble following a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck south-central Turkey,
31-year-old Christian Atsu was trapped in the debris of a collapsed 15-story building after an earthquake destroyed dozens of houses in Turkey on February 6, 2023, leaving thousands dead and injured
The news about Atsu’s rescue was happily received by Michael Essien who shared the dressing room with the winger during the 2014 FIFA World Cup took to Twitter to wish his brother well.
“Get well soon brother @ChristianAtsu20,” Michael Esshien wrote in a tweet .
Christian Atsu before his tragedy scored a 97th-minute winner for Hatayspor on Sunday, February 5, 2023, against Kasimpasa.
Essien is one of many Ghana players who have sent special messages to the winger who as per reports is receiving treatment in a Turkish hospital.
Stephen Appiah, Mubarak Wakaso, Asamoah Gyan, among others have expressed their relief over his situation and prayed that God heals him quickly.
Whether a game of football is played at the FIFA World Cup, or on a park pitch anywhere in the world, the Laws of the Game are universal. How are they determined, and who decides them?
The IFAB (International Football Association Board) is the independent guardian of the Laws of the Game and the only body authorised to decide and agree changes to the Laws of the Game. Listening to the football community, their goal is to improve and develop the game for players, match officials and fans while protecting and strengthening the spirit and simplicity of football.
At its Annual Business Meeting (ABM) held at Wembley Stadium in London on 18 January 2023, The IFAB followed up on the recommendations made by its Football and Technical Advisory Panels in October 2022. It agreed that referees’ live communication of video assistant referee (VAR) related decisions to the public – both in the stadium and via broadcasters – would be trialled for 12 months in international competitions, and that it would initially be rolled out at the FIFA Club World Cup in Morocco, which began on 1 February.
“We decided to have this trial because we received some requests to make the decision taken by the referee after a VAR intervention more understandable for all the football stakeholders, namely the spectators at the stadium, or in front of the television” he explained.
“As language could be one of the issues, we thought this FIFA Club World Cup would be perfect because it’s a multi-language competition, with teams and, of course, spectators involved coming from all six of the different continents.”
The trial is something that global fans of football will certainly consider as an innovation, though in some other sports, the use of such technology to inform fans of decisions by match officials is more common.
“I have to say that there are other experiences in other sports, namely the NFL in American football, who have been doing this for quite a long time. It seems that the referees are pretty comfortable with this” continued Collina.
“In football, language could be a problem, particularly when you have to make this announcement in a language which is not your mother tongue. This may not be that easy. But as the announcement will be quite concise, I’m very confident that the referees will feel comfortable with this.”
The trial will continue through to the final in Rabat on 12 February, with discussions currently ongoing regarding a further trial at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Indonesia later this year. Dependent on the outcome of these trails, utilization at the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 in July and August has not been ruled out. Watch this space.
The IFAB explained
The IFAB is comprised of the four British football associations (England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland) with one vote each, and FIFA, covering the remaining 207 national associations, with four votes. In this way, all five bodies ensure that Laws are preserved respecting football’s traditions as well as its international reality. Passing a motion requires a three-quarters majority.
In more recent years, the introduction of The Football and Technical Advisory Panels FAP and TAP has included experienced members from the football world, like former players and referees, that support The IFAB’s Technical Subcommittee in the decision-making process. Actual changes to the Laws can only be introduced during the Annual General Meetings (AGM), where the General Assembly formed by the key representatives of the IFAB take part and which are normally held every February or March in England, Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland in rotation, as well as other locations decided by FIFA in years of the FIFA World Cup.
Ahmet Eyup was declared missing after the first earthquake on February 6, 2023.
According to Turkish journalist Yağız Sabuncuoğlu, the search and rescue team found Ahmet Eyup dead on Tuesday, February 7, 2023.
“The lifeless body of Yeni Malatyaspor goalkeeper Eyüp Ahmet Türkaslan was recovered from the rubble.”
The 28-year-old becomes the first football casualty since the tragic disaster on February 6.
Ahmet Eyup joined Malatyapor from Umraniyespor in 2021. He has made only two appearances, conceding four goals.
The death toll continues to rise as more than 5,000 people have been reportedly dead, according to CNN.
Background
A powerful earthquake struck South-eastern Turkey, near the Syrian border, killing more than 4,300 people as they slept and trapping many others in the early hours of Monday.
The US Geological Survey said the 7.8 magnitude tremor struck at 04:17 local time (01:17 GMT) at a depth of 17.9km (11 miles) near the city of Gaziantep.
Hours later, a second quake, which had a magnitude of 7.5, hit the Elbistan district of Kahramanmaras province.
In September 2022, the 31-year-old Black Stars winger penned a one-year deal to join the Turkish side following a spell in Saudi Arabia.
Yeni Malatyaspor Kalecisi Eyüp Ahmet Türkaslan’ın cansız bedeni enkaz altından çıkarıldı.— Yağız Sabuncuoğlu (@yagosabuncuoglu) February 7, 2023
The British-American actor came to Ghana a few days ago and as part of his visit, met with the president of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo. He was also seen at the just-ended Akwasidae festival which was held on February 5, 2023, in Kumasi.
His interaction with the president led to a number of conversations including his intentions to shoot some parts of his film in Ghana.
He stated, “What I want to do is that I have a film that I’m directing, and I’m hoping to bring that film, or at least, some of that film, to shoot it in Ghana. That film will be here in December. We start pre-production in August. Some of the films, in two or three weeks, will be in Ghana by December”.
Following up with this intention, a citizen spotted him shooting a movie in his area. Out of excitement, he took a video of it and shared it on his TikTok platform with the caption, “IDRIS ELBA AT MY AREA TO SHOOT MOVIE”.
The individual, who decided not to include the location left a lot of people guessing which area it is.
The actor together with his team were seen in the video wearing an all-black outfit and holding a camera.
The Yellow and Mauves reported the experienced midfielder will call it a quit from active football after their game against Samartex at the Akoon Community Park in Tarkwa.
But in an interview, Tetteh Zutah denied calling it a quit from football, saying he has rather ended his 15-year spell with Medeama.
“Reports in the media space that I have retired from football is not the case. I haven’t retired from football entirely but my 15-year stint with Medeama ended over the weekend” he said.
Zutah joined Medeama as a teenager in 2008, clocking 430 appearances, and scoring over 100 goals and assists.
He won the Ghana FA Cup twice with Medeama in 2013 and 2015.
He also featured prominently when the Yellow and Mauves made it to the group stage of the CAF Confederation Cup in 2016 after eliminating South African giants Mamelodi Sundowns.
Meanwhile, Zutah will continue his role as an administrator of the club.
Stephan Mensah scored in Chemnitzer FC’s 2-0 win against Greifswalder FC on Saturday afternoon in the Regionalliga Nordost.
The sky blues started very well and fired off an offensive firework: First Mensah missed a Brügmann cross by a few centimeters in the second minute, and shortly afterward Pagliuca forced GFC goalkeeper Matti Kamenz into a save from 17 meters in the 5th minute.
When Greifswald found its way into the game, the game developed into an open exchange of attacks. Furkan Kircicek dived under a Berger cross and missed the deserved lead in the 17th minute.
In the 36th minute, Stephan Mensah scored for the sky blues.
In the second round, the Greifswalder pressed for the equalizer, but could hardly create chances.
Tim Campulka took a penalty kick in the lower right corner and was denied by the brilliant GFC goalkeeper Matti Kamenz, but the Chemnitz central defender pushed the ball over the line in the 68th minute.
With the first home win of the year, Chemnitzer FC moved up to second place in the Northeast Regional League.
The ministry lists the oil-related initiatives that the Nana-Addo administration has taken on in the announcement.
Under the Akufo-Addo administration, “Ghana has seen an exceptional oil well drilling success rate from all exploration wells drilled from 2017 to present,” the Ministry claims.
It added that “out of seven exploration wells drilled during the period, six of them were successful resulting in 7 discoveries.”
According to him, greed and ineptitude against national interest have engulfed the current government which has resulted in the lack of development in the oil and gas sector.
In a tweet posted on February 6, 2023, John Mahama said described the development as ‘wasted years’ despite his [NDC] administration handing over two new oil fields [TEN and Sankofa] to the Akufo-Addo government in 2017.
“Wasted years! We bequeathed to the Akufo-Addo government two new oil fields, TEN and Sankofa. Greed and ineptitude as against national interest mean a sad reality of no additional production activity in our upstream oil sector in the last 7 years,” John Mahama wrote.
“On the back of the available evidence, the Ministry wishes to state unequivocally, that the former President’s assertion cannot be supported by the available facts and therefore must be treated with the utmost contempt it deserves,” the Energy Ministry added.
Nine-time MTN FA Cup champions, Asante Kotoko, will face Aduana Football Club away from home in the round of 16 of the competition later this month.
The Porcupine Warriors were pitted against the Ogya lads at the draw which took place on Tuesday, February 7, at the Conference Room of the Ghana Football Association (GFA).
Aduana beat Bofoakwa Tano to get to the last 16 of the cup competition while Kotoko were 2-1 winners over Benab FC in the previous round.
In other fixtures, King Faisal will play host to Divsion One League side, Steadfast FC while Nsoatreman also go head-to-head with Debibi United.
Real Tamale United have a clash against Samartex also coming up in the competition.
In the southern zone, Dreams FC will host Liberty Professionals with a view of making into the quarterfinal stage for the very first time.
Legon Cities have also been drawn against Volta Rangers while Premier League side Kotoku Royals will settle affairs with Ebusua Dwarfs.
Hearts of Lions play Skyy FC in an all Division One League battle.
The fixtures are set to be played between February 24-26.
Although the provisions of the program have changed, in his opinion, their demand for complete exemption still stands.
According to Dr. Antwi, pensioners would face difficulties and issues in the future if the government did not exempt them.
“From where I’m coming from as a securities market and a capital market person, we understand the exemption to be totally different from the condition that you are free to sign on,” he said.
“You owe some people you want to pay and you think you cannot pay, once you exempt me, you have already told me that as for these, I can handle so they are exempted. These, I cannot handle so let’s restructure,” he explained.
“In the future, the government can say that you did not take the restructuring. I already told you that I may face some challenges meeting the obligation so let us restructure and you refused. So if you go there, you become a part of it. If you decide not to take part, you already know,” he said.
Background
The Pensioners Bondholders’ demand comes after the new terms which government has introduced after various consultations with stakeholders.
Wielding placards whiles picketing the Finance Ministry on February 6, 2023, the bondholders insisted that until a meeting is granted them and a resolution is given to their plea, they would picket the premises every day.
Some of the inscriptions read: “Don’t you feel our pain? Spare us this ordeal,” “Pensioners have paid their dues to the nation”, “Don’t push pensioners to their early graves”, “Don’t turn pensioners into destitute”, and “Pensioners deserve compassion, not compulsion”.
The pensioners have thus picketed the Finance Ministry today, February 7, 2023, for the second day to register their demand.
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, has welcomed the old leadership of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Caucus back to Parliament with a heartwarming message.
He also referred to a scripture in the Bible as a way of congratulating the old leadership of the Minority caucus in parliament.
The new leadership, led by Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, who took over from Haruna Iddrisu as the Minority Leader, was welcomed by the Speaker after he announced to the House that he had received the correspondence from the NDC leadership.
In welcoming them, Alban Bagbin told the new leaders that they have come to the ‘hot seat.’
“On behalf of the House, and on my part, I warmly welcome them to the hot seat of the leadership of parliament; and I want to emphasise, hot seat of the leadership of parliament,” he said.
He referred to the famous scripture in Psalm 23 to the former leadership, led by Haruna Iddrisu.
“All I can say to the former leaders is, the Lord is your shepherd, you shall not want. When one door closes, many doors open, and I can tell you for sure that many of the open doors are better and higher than the closed door.
“Look at the open doors, and not the close ,” he told them.
The new leaders of the Minority in Parliament include Emmanuel Armarh Kofi Buah, as Deputy Minority Leader; and Kwame Governs Agbodza as Minority Chief Whip.
The GFL claims that it has been made aware of an upcoming tax bill that will seek to impose a 20% excise tax on locally produced fruit beverages and bottled water.
A statement jointly signed by the President of the GFL, Caleb Nartey, and the Secretary-General, Abraham Koomson, said the draft, which has been seen by some members of the Federation, shows that the framers seek to amend the Excise Duty Act 2014, ACT 878, to revise the Excise Tax rates for several products, including all sweetened drinks and processed fruit juices, which hitherto did not attract Excise duty. We bring more in the news desk report.
In the jointly signed statement, the GFL noted that the survival of locally produced fruit drinks and bottled water is already threatened by the increased cost of production and dwindling purchasing power of consumers, explaining that just last week, the Bank of Ghana, in its determination to fight inflation, which stands at 54 points per cent as of December 2022, increased its policy rate to 28 percent, which will lead to a higher cost of borrowing.
It was again mentioned that the value-added tax has gone up by two-point-five percent, aside from the Bank of Ghana’s recent policy, thereby suffocating manufacturing companies in the country.
According to the GFL, while Organized Labour expects well-crafted policies to protect local industries, the government has rather slapped an astronomical increment of 30% in electricity and 50% on water for the industry, which took effect on February 1, 2023, coupled with fuel prices that remain high with no clear signs of a downward trend as the cedi continues to depreciate against the dollar.
The GFL says there is every reason to appreciate the government’s determination to raise revenue to meet its statutory obligations; however, at this stage of the economic crisis facing the country, with the uncertainty about investments in bonds ahead of an agreement on the Domestic Debt Exchange Program, the introduction of such a tax will not be healthy for the Manufacturing Industries.
The GFL emphasized that they cannot sit on the fence and watch their members reel under the ever-mounting taxes on local manufacturing industries as companies have drastically reduced staff and cannot wait for many more fold-ups. It appealed for further engagements for a level playing ground for all.
National Communications Officer for the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi, has mounted a strong defence for the NDC youth organiser in the Suame Constituency.
Mr Gyamfi says his “the message the young man sought to convey did not come out as intended.” He, thus, wants Ghanaians to forgive the him.
Mr. Gyamfi is of the view that the message the young man sought to convey did not come out as intended.
In a statement, he said the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government has benefitted and continues to profit from violence as “we witnessed in the Ayawaso West Wuogon By-election, the 2020 Voter Registration Exercise and the 2020 General Election during which eight (8) innocent Ghanaians were murdered by state-sponsored bandits belonging to the ruling NPP.”
In his view, therefore, it is hypocritical that the Ghana Police Service “which failed to even comment on or take action against the NPP bandits who perpetrated these heinous crimes against innocent Ghanaians, most of whom are NDC members, will turn around to swiftly call for the arrest of a young man for misspeaking.”
He is calling for a pardon for the Suame Youth Organiser.
The Youth Organiser in an interview with the media was preaching violence against the NPP and urging NDC supporters not to hesitate to cause injury or even kill NPP supporters in their quest to win the 2024 elections to make former President John Mahama president again.
Below is the statement in its entirety:
We have taken notice of a video in circulation on social media in which the NDC Youth Organizer for Suame is heard making some statements that bother on possible reprisals to state-sponsored violence during elections.
We note that the young man misspoke, as the message he sought to convey did not come out as intended.
It is an indisputable fact that state-sponsored violence and thuggery have been the modus operandi of the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia/NPP government.
The Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government has benefitted and continues to profit from violence as we witnessed in the Ayawaso West Wuogon By-election, the 2020 Voter Registration Exercise and the 2020 General Election during which eight (8) innocent Ghanaians were murdered by state-sponsored bandits belonging to the ruling NPP.
It is hypocritical that the Ghana Police Service which failed to even comment on or take action against the NPP bandits who perpetrated these heinous crimes against innocent Ghanaians, most of whom are NDC members, will turn around to swiftly call for the arrest of a young man for misspeaking.
Again, it is the height of hypocrisy to hear people in the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government and the New Patriotic Party pretend to condemn the statement of this constituency youth leader, when not too long ago, NPP Presidential Candidate, Nana Akufo-Addo and other NPP national leaders threatened fire and brimstone at a time when this nation had not experienced anything close to the barbarity seen during the Ayawaso West Wuogon and 2020 general elections.
We have not forgotten about the infamous “All die be die” mantra of the current President, nor have we forgotten about Kennedy Agyapong’s call for the murder of people of certain ethnic extraction in Ghana; a comment that was celebrated by the NPP.
Sammi Awuku’s call for NPP supporters to inflict pain and injury on their opponents with pestles is still fresh on our minds, and so is Anthony Karbo’s call for Afghanistan to be visited on Ghana.
We have also not forgotten about Wontumi’s call for an Arab Spring-styled violence in Ghana.
Whilst we do not subscribe to violence as a party, except in cases of self-defence, we cannot overlook the genuine sentiment and frustration of people who feel helpless in the face of incessant and unprovoked attacks and killings under this Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government.
In the circumstances, we reiterate that the young man misspoke and must be pardoned.
The Ghana Police Service must stop harassing this innocent NDC activist, who clearly spoke out of the pain he and other NDC supporters have suffered at the hands of NPP thugs in the Ashanti Region over the years and rather, focus on arresting NPP bandits and terrorists who have attacked a Court of competent jurisdiction in Kumasi and have maimed and killed several innocent Ghanaians.
We urge the millions of our young supporters to continue to exercise restraint and not allow the fact that President Akufo-Addo rode to power on the back of so much bloodshed and barbarity to make them want to mimic Nana Akufo-Addo and his very violent political party.
An 80-year-old man is among four persons who have been slapped with jail sentences for inserting a stick into the anus of a teenager.
The convicts had accused the 16-year-old boy of breaking into a store in Agogo Market belonging to an octogenarian.
For his punishment, the convicts tied his hands to his back, tied his legs as well, and beat him mercilessly, after which they removed his boxer shorts and forcefully inserted a stick into his anus while filming the horrendous act.
This happened on March 12, 2021, at Agogo, Asante Akim North, in the Ashanti Region.
Six people, including Mr. Francis Obeng Amoako, who was then 79 years old, were arrested for the condemnable act.
The rest were Akwasi Marfo (Boat), 24, Boakye Dankwah, 65, Osei Bonsu, 53, Prince Asadu, 26, and 30-year-old Obeng Mensah.
On February 2, 2023, the Juaso Circuit Court, presided over by Her Honour Nana Asantewaa Attakora, discharged two of the accused—Obeng Mensah and Osei Bonsu—noting that though they were captured in the video, investigations proved that they did not take part in the act.
However, the remaining four were sentenced to varying degrees of incarceration, according to a local journalist, Yaw Preko of Ahwenepa FM.
Mr. Francis Obeng Amoako (now 80 years old) was sentenced to one year of imprisonment due to his age and health condition.
Akwasi Marfo (Boat) and Prince Asadu were handed down five years’ imprisonment each for abetment.
But Mr. Boakye Dankwah was slapped with six months’ imprisonment for hitting the boy’s head with his keys but failing to ask them to stop the commission of the crime.
The victim (name withheld) is currently in good health after undergoing surgery.
In an effort to deal with the nation’s debt restructuring, the German Finance Minister, Christian Wolfgang Lindner, has vowed unflinching support for the creation of a Ghanaian creditor committee at the Paris Club.
“I hope that an international creditors’ committee under the current framework can be formed soon. I would like to call on all creditors to join the efforts as swiftly as possible, and to be frank, I remind China of its responsibilities as a very important bilateral creditor to Ghana as I already have on the international level on occasion – for example, in the last IMF meeting,” he said.
Ghana became the fourth country after Chad, Ethiopia, and Zambia to request a restructuring of debt it owes to other governments under a G20 Common Framework. The programme, which was launched in 2020, seeks to streamline the process of coordinating among creditor governments and the restructuring of low-income countries’ debts after the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It is furthermore important that the economy comes back to the growth path, and the role of private sector banks must not be underestimated. We have to consider which way it will be possible to restructure the sovereign debt that is held by bilateral creditors and domestically,” Mr. Lindner said.
Government has reached a Staff Level Agreement (SLA) with the IMF that spells out measures that will put the fiscal space on a path of consolidation. Consistent with the SLA is the 2023 budget that was recently passed by Parliament.
Emphasising the need for fostering policy reforms, the German Finance Minister said: “We cannot only focus on debt restructuring without fostering the policy reforms you have already introduced, so we have to apply fiscal measures in your budget, macro-economic recovery and debt operations. Only the three of these together will bring Ghana back to sustainable economic development over the next few years”.
Calling on all creditors, the minister added that it is essential to see a fair sharing among all creditors: “This is why we need the creditor committee as soon as possible, in which China has to participate”.
Revenue-enhanced measures such as the VAT increase of 2.5 percent, the complete removal of benchmark values on imports, and a review of the E-levy should help improve the revenue outlook. On the expenditure side, the lower capping on transfers to earmarked funds from 25 to 17.5 percent and a reduction of budgetary allocation to goods and services, as well as rationalisation of executive compensation, should help contain expenditures in 2023.
“We have a vital interest in the success of Ghanaian politics. We want to see West Africa as a whole stay stable. We are interested in the economic well-being of Ghana. We know that there are opportunities across this country: it has dynamism and we really appreciate the efforts government has made over the last year; extending human capital and focusing on improving social mobility in society,” he added.
Responding to assurances from his German counterpart, Ken Ofori-Atta expressed delight with the European nation’s support.
“We are now in the middle of an IMF programme, and that is going to require the support of Germany in a number of ways. Firstly, to support us – as Christian mentioned – in the creditor committee issue at the Paris Club to accelerate their decision-making process; and support the IMF board to make sure that in March 2023 we get approval.
“And then, specifically, also looking at challenges coming with the debt exchange programme so that we will be able to establish a financial stability fund – to really ensure that even in this austerity mode, there will be a group agenda which supports banks to make sure SME lending and growth is maintained during the period,” Mr. Ofori-Atta said.
A motor accident has claimed the life of G/CPL Richard Datsomor of the Kpetoe District of the Volta region.
The incident occurred on Monday, January 6, 2023, in the evening.
The deceased died when the motorbike he was riding crashed into a cab on a section of the Denu to Adina road.
According to reports, suspect driver Seth Azaglo who was in charge of an Opel Astra taxi with registration number ER 1377-W reported that he was driving from Adina towards Denu and upon reaching a section of the road near the Agriculture Development Bank, Adafienu saw the deceased who was in charge of a Royal motorbike with registration number M-21-VD 2139 riding towards Adina fall suddenly together with the bike and rolled into his path and ended up hitting the front tire of the vehicle.
The suspect driver reportedly rushed the victim to the Ketu South Municipality hospital in Aflao for treatment but was pronounced dead by the Physician Assistant on duty, police reports indicate.
Officers from the MTTD of the Ketu Division proceeded to the hospital and found the body of the deceased lying in a supine position on a stretcher.
The deceased has since been identified as G/CPL Richard Datsomor of the Kpetoe District.
When the L.I. goes into force later this year, he emphasized that internet service providers who disobey requests to delete content that is harmful to children will face sanctions.
Although a free, open, and secure internet is an effective tool for fostering connectivity and increasing inclusivity, he claims that when it is used inappropriately, it can have harmful effects on users, particularly youngsters.
He said this will enable them to evaluate online risks and opportunities effectively.
“The CSA will be developing a legislative instrument to ensure that we strengthen a legal environment which will have provisions to hold service providers who fail to comply with orders for removal of contents that are inimical to children will be held accountable,” he said.
“It is crucial we invest in educating our young people to develop their critical thinking skills to enable them to evaluate online risk and opportunities effectively,” the Director-General of Cybersecurity Authority stated.
Every first Tuesday in February is marked as Safer Internet Day.
The annual flagship campaign is to raise awareness of the importance of staying safe online.
