Didier Deschamps said that a virus in the France team contributed to their dreadful start to the World Cup final on Sunday, but he refrained from attributing full responsibility for Les Bleus’ defeat.
After a remarkable 3-3 tie at Lusail Stadium, Argentina triumphed in a penalty shootout, preventing France from becoming the first side to defend the World Cup since 1962.
Before Kylian Mbappe‘s hat-trick enabled France to force extra time and penalties, Deschamps’ side made a slow start, becoming the first team to fail to attempt a shot in the first half of a World Cup final.
France had been without Adrien Rabiot and Dayot Upamecano due to illness in their semi-final win over Morocco four days earlier, and several other players reportedly experienced symptoms in the days preceding the final.
Asked about the spread of the virus after Sunday’s defeat, Deschamps said it played a role in France’s lethargic start.
“The whole squad has been facing a tricky situation for a while now, maybe that had a physical and psychological impact,” Deschamps said.
“But I had no concerns about the players who started the match. They were 100 per cent fit, but we only had four days since the last match so perhaps there is some tiredness.
“That’s not an excuse but we didn’t show the same energy as previous matches and for the first hour we weren’t in the match.
“In those first 70 minutes or so, we were playing a very aggressive and dynamic opponent and we weren’t at the same level for a number of reasons.
“We managed to come back from the dead and made a magnificent comeback from a very difficult situation.”
Deschamps made his frustration with France’s first-half performance clear by becoming the first boss to make two substitutions before half-time in a World Cup match when he withdrew Olivier Giroud and Ousmane Dembele.
Despite Les Bleus’ failure to clinch the trophy for a third time, Deschamps praised the players he introduced, Marcus Thuram and Randal Kolo Muani, for reviving the contest.
“I went through a lot of different emotions tonight,” Deschamps said. “There are some regrets because we were so close to winning but it wasn’t to be.
“There were a number of reasons why, we had a very strong opponent and we were lacking a bit of energy from some key players.
“We had some young inexperienced players who came on and brought some freshness and quality. They got us back in the match to keep the dream alive.”
The unstable Ghanaian cedi and late payments to pharmacies, notably by government institutions, according to Mr. Harrison Abutiate, the chairman of the national executive committee of the Ghana National Chamber of Pharmacy, are killing the pharmaceutical sector.
He claimed that although local wholesalers, hospitals, clinics, and other healthcare facilities had received credits from Chamber members, the payment delay was concerning.
Their predicament is also made worse by increasing loan rates and rising benchmark values.
Mr. Abutiate said this at the India-Ghana Pharma Business Summit, dubbed; “Managing the Economic Challenges in Pharma Business in Ghana,” which brought together the value-chain industry players to discuss areas of collaboration in both countries.
Mr. Abutiate said the situation necessitated the Chamber’s decision to return to the ‘Cash & Carry’ method recently.
He said action should be expedited on the Dawa Industrial Zone project, a 150-acre land to be developed into a Pharma park, where the production of various pharmaceutical products would be undertaken by various entities under a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV).
Mr. Micheal Okyere Baafi, the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, said the Government took a keen interest in the operations of the pharmaceutical industry and was developing a policy to attract investments into the business. It had already given out US$ 415 million as loans through Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs).
“We are only doing about 30 percent of the whole demand of the Pharmaceutical businesses in Ghana, and summits like this can spur collaboration and investments to bridge the gap,” he said.
Mr. Sugandh Rajaram, the Indian High Commissioner to Ghana, said Indian businesses were ready for opportunities to partner with their Ghanaian counterparts to explore the pharma trade.
Export from India to Ghana in 2022 was about US$ 200 million, he said. Mr. Rajaram said it was time the local pharmaceutical companies worked with Indian businesses to ensure value addition.
The term ‘affordable housing’ has been variously used in different ways in different countries in seeking to provide direction towards addressing the housing needs of the populace. While the term is normally associated with the relationship between a household’s expenditure on housing and how much they earn as income, it generates a lot of controversies, especially as it is heavily influenced by perceptions and socio-economic circumstances of households. This state of relativity has often generated hazy tangential conversations, as it has often been in the Ghanaian housing delivery discourse. In this respect, the single measure of 30% benchmark is common in most countries around the world including Ghana, as recognised in the 2015 National Housing Policy.
However, it should also be stated that many countries have indeed gone further to clarify this definition at national, regional and locality levels, introducing some form of eligibility criteria, towards targeting those most in need. It is this remit of eligibility criteria which has not been clearly communicated in the Ghanaian discourse, hence my asking the question, affordable housing for whom?
Housing indeed operates within the market economy and is thus subjected to market forces, yet it is also true that, since the post war era, housing has been considered as a welfare issue in most progressive countries around the world. Given that inadequate housing has huge socio-economic implications in affecting the mental health of households, governments have often intervened in helping to sustain functional societies. The affordability issue can be addressed from two main extremes; the social production cost of housing at the lower end and market production cost at the upper end. Social production cost focuses on housing as a public good and not necessarily profit making, while market production cost seeks to optimise profit making as would happen in any rational business sector in a market economy.
Thus, affordable housing is not intended to make full market recovery but rather satisfy social production cost. This in essence is about targeting those who are really in need, which is not what we are witnessing in the affordable housing delivery projects in Ghana. My contention here is that, we are in this situation because we have not clearly considered the big issue of housing for “whom” and what the eligibility criteria should be beyond the 30% benchmark. There is the need for clarity on the criteria for affordable housing, both on the demand and supply side, even before the project commences.
Related to this is the issue of the welfare concept to housing. This, as already stated, is integral to housing delivery in most progressive countries around the world. Within this context, three main dominant welfare schemes are in place: the social democratic welfare scheme, the corporatist welfare scheme and the liberal welfare scheme. In the social democratic scheme, the State is heavily involved in providing housing for all citizens based on the concept of equal distribution of wealth. Many of the Scandinavian countries fall within this category.
The corporatist welfare scheme is based on limited but active participation of the State in providing housing for those who genuinely need help. Most Western European countries, example Germany, Austria and Italy are involved in this. However, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), including Faith-based Organizations heavily support government efforts in reaching out to those really in need of assistance. The liberal approach involves strong market orientation but at the same time, the State actively identifies low income earners and those with specific challenges for immediate assistance.
In Ghana, it is currently not clear which of the welfare schemes aligns with the official position of the State, as the citizens have not been made aware. While it is not the intention here to go into the merits and demerits of the various welfare schemes, what is clear is that, all three are geared towards addressing the needs of those really in need of housing and/or the vulnerable in society. However, public discourse in Ghana indicates that, affordable housing programmes implemented over the years have not reached out to those really in need – suggesting the lack of eligibility criteria in place. If attempts at addressing housing needs is not trickling down to those who are really in need, then it sounds logical to question eligibility criteria and implementation. There is therefore obviously the need for some public conversation on the criteria for affordable housing, even before the scheme commences. If this clarity exists, we would not be confronted with this awkward situation of the state seeking to sell current housing projects to private sector parties, because of the claim that it is not affordable. This conversation must start now, as it is as urgent as necessary if we as a Nation, expect to make any headway in targeting those really in need of affordable housing programmes. The way forward is for the Ministry of Works and Housing to make public its policy direction on housing regarding for instance; the vulnerable and socially excluded, informal workers, people with disability, the elderly and aged in society, single mothers, first time home owners, first time renters etc. There is indeed clarity for a deliberately well thought out public policy and eligibility criteria targeting all income levels/class of the society to make true meaning to our quest to deliver affordable homes to those really in need.
The writer, Professor Divine Ahadzie is Chartered Member of Chartered Institute of Housing (UK) and also Head, Centre for Settlements Studies, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi.
Ruling party, New Patriotic Party (NPP) has said it is imperative the National Democratic Congress (NDC) provides a formidable team in the 2024 elections.
The party contends that the opposition party’s defeat in the polls will demonstrate Ghanaians’ confidence in the NPP to governthe country for yet another term.
“2024 is a foregone conclusion, we would win the election with the wider margin that will confront the NDC not to make an attempt to even appear before the Supreme Court,” he said on Saturday. We need a healthy NDC, we don’t want to defeat a limping horse,” a representative of the NPP said while delivering a solidarity message to the NDC.
The NDC held its 10th National Delegates Congress on Saturday, December 17, to elect its remaining new national executives.
The event which was held at the Accra Sports Stadium, was attended by party members from all over the country bringing together 9,200 delegates from the 276 constituencies.
At the end of the exercise, Mr Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, won the chairmanship contest with 5,569 votes while his opponent, Samuel Ofosu-Ampofogained 2,892 votes.
For the Vice chairmanship position out of the eight who contested, Sheriff Abdul-Naziru, Dr. Sherry Ayittey, and Awudu Sofo Azourka were elected as vice chairs.
Former Member of Parliament for Ketu South, Fiifi Fiavi Kwetey, was crowned the General Secretary of the party.
Deputy General Secretary, National Organiser, Deputy National Organisers, National Communications Officer, Deputy Communications Officer and Zongo Caucus Coordinator went to Barbara Serwaa Asamoah, Joseph Yamin, Kobby Barlon Elikem Kotoko, Sammy Gyamfi, Malik Basintale, Ako Gunn and Mamah Mohammed Cole Younger respectively.
The Hunters will host the new Premier League entrants at the Fosu Gyeabour Park as they look to continue their fine form this campaign.
Bechem United thrashed Nsoatreman FC 3-0 on match week eight before the league was halted. They lie 8th with 12 points.
Tamale City, on the other hand, lie 17th on the league table with six points after a slow start to the season.
Prior to the break, the Tamale based side defeated leaders Aduana Stars 2-1 at home and will hope to cause another upset when they face last season’s MTN FA Cup runners up.
The match is scheduled to kick off at 3pm on Wednesday.
Bechem United possible starting XI: Cephas Kofi Mantey, Emmanuel Ababio, Seth Kwadwo, Iddrisu Abdulai, Agbesimah Kofi, Emmanuel Avornyo, Aaron Essel, Foster Appiah, Francis Twene, Gabriel Yapy Tenlep, Abdul Latif Anabila
The four regions were identified for rapid and significant illicit Financial Flows, according to Mr. Abdulai Bashiru Dapilah, Head of Organized Crime and member of the Illicit Financial Flows Unit, Ministry of Finance.
Regarding imports, he claimed that a review of the Customs Management Systems in 2019 revealed that around 1.8 billion dollars had been transferred outside the nation.
Mr Dapilah was speaking at a Public Forum held at the Ghana-Indian Kofi Annan Centre in Accra on Thursday on the role of the Media in the fight against Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) in Ghana.
The forum was organised by the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) in partnership with the Economic and Organised Crime Office and Oxfam Ghana.
“With regards to exports too, with the support of the Precious Minerals Marketing Commission (PMMC), we have examined about 10 gold companies for the period of 2018 to 2020 and from these 10 companies, we also established that these companies have transferred about 1.1 billion dollars’ worth of gold outside the country.”
He said his outfit was yet to establish how those funds came into the country and destination of the gold was also yet to be established.
According to him, they also established that many of these gold exporters were ex-patriates and they merely used Ghanaian gold export licenses to export the gold and give these companies commission.
Additionally, he said the vehicles used by these expatriates were the forex bureaux operators who used their personal accounts for these people who also falsify commercial invoices and used same to generate import generation form.
He said they have realised that the checks at the bank were normally weak because the banks acted after 90 days and before that these people would have effected these transfers.
Mr Dapilah said one of the endemic areas for illicit financial flows was the Fishing industries where Ghanaians front foreign companies and register vessels in the name of local companies, and some evade taxes.
“These people conceal the proceeds and in the name of paying for the vessel, they transfer these monies outside,” he said.
He, therefore, tasked the media to liaise with institutions to come out with messages that would be understood by the public thereby helping the devastating effect of illicit financial flows in the country.
Dr Emmanuel Steve Manteaw, a Policy analyst and Chairman, Civil Society Platform on Oil, noted the illicit Financial Flows persisted because of lack of proactiveness on the part of regulatory and enforcing institutions.
He noted that those institutions lacked resources to even follow up on leads of reported cases to get to the bottom of incidents.
Dr. Manteaw called for more commitment from the Government to fund institutions to fight organised crimes such as illicit financial flows.
On the gold for oil policy by government, he said it would better for the Government to think through that policy when it came to raising of finance.
He said IFFs had creeped into the banking sector, imports and exports, real estate, and fishing industry, gold, and cocoa.
He said if the IFFs were curtailed, it would have saved the country from obtaining loans from the International Monetary Fund.
Nana Akwasi Awuah, Managing Director, Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC), noted that the company had provided revenue assurance for gold that left the country, adding that “there was more room for improvement.”
The MD for PMMC said the Right to Information law was key in the fight against illicit Financial Flows and urged journalists to commit themselves to more training programmes so they could ask institutions relevant questions to curb crime.
He also appealed to journalists to arm themselves with knowledge in accounting so they could “distil stories from figures on Illicit Financial flows.
Mr Mohammed Mahamud, Accountable Governance Programme Lead, Oxfam Ghana noted that illicit Financial Flows had deprived communities of essential services.
He therefore urged the audience to reflect on the devastating effects of Illicit Financial Flows and come out with measures to curb that crime.
While stating that the Staff-Level Agreement signed with the IMF “is wonderful news,” he cautioned that progress may be hampered if the Government’s domestic debt-reduction agenda was rejected.
forum
“If we are not careful, in our attempt to polish the public balance sheet, we may be creating some crisis that later would come to bite us.
“We all know that debt restructuring is unavoidable, but let’s do it in a way that preserves financial sector stability and enables the sector to be able to support the Government’s overall economic strategy,” he said.
Also, the annual coupon on all these new bonds would be set at zero per cent in 2023, five per cent in 2024 and 10 per cent from 2025 until maturity – coupons would be semi-annual.
Prof. Bokpin said if the Government were able to reach some level of understanding with external creditors it would help expedite ongoing engagements with the IMF and further strengthen confidence in the economy.
“The domestic debt is contributing more to the interest cost and therefore that still needs to be restructured in a way that invites the participating financial institutions to the table,” he said.
Parliament approved the 2023 Budget document last week, paving way for the House to begin to consider various estimates of ministries, departments, and agencies by relevant sector committees.
Prof. Henry Kwasi Prempeh, Executive Director, Centre for Democratic Development, said the 2023 Budget presented an opportunity for the Government to take drastic measures to revive the economy under the current economic challenges.
“We missed the chance to press the reset button in this crisis,” he said.
Prof. Prempeh disagreed with the Government’s decision to allocate GHS80m for the construction of the National Cathedral Project, saying: “this is not the time for vanity projects.”
Touching on tax administration, he said the Government must institute measures that would enable the state to do “means testing” so that taxes and social interventions would be targeted.
Prof. Abena Oduro, Associate Professor in the Department of Economics, University of Ghana, said the 2.5 per cent increment in Value Added Tax (VAT) would lead to an increment in prices, reduce value of real income, all of which could increase poverty.
“The reduction of the E-Levy rate will help to reduce the burden on the public, but the removal of the threshold will increase the burden,” she added.
Industrial Relations Officer for the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU), Abass Imoro, has said the decision to decrease transport fares is built on compassion from the association to the public.
According to Mr. Imoro, the union only saw it prudent to cushion Ghanaians with a reduction in transport fares just when the cost of fuel is also declining.
Speaking to the media on Friday, December 16, he asserted that the GPRTU has played a paramount role concerning the decision to reduce fares by 15.3% and not solely the works of the Ministry of Transport as circulated.
“We considered reducing lorry fares because of the reduction in fuel prices. We thought it wise to reduce it to 15 percent which we strongly believe will be an Xmas bonus to all our clients.
“The Transport Ministry was expecting more than what we have just come out with, and we were also not prepared to go by their demand. This is because, we demonstrated to them that as we speak, there is a very big deficit between the fuel increment from some period up to now and the lorry fares that we also charged from that period up to now, so the passengers are also owing us a lot but what can we do? The passengers are our relatives so we had to do whatever we had to do to sanitize the relationship between us. So we have decided to decrease lorry fares by 15.3 percent effective December 19,” he added.
He however noted that should prices of fuel at the pumps increase, the GPRTU will have no other option than to do the needful by adjusting fares upwards.
“The price of lorry fares will remain reduced but if they [the Government] come out tomorrow and increase the fuel price to an extent where we have to change the lorry fares, why won’t we change ours too?” he quizzed.
The Transport Ministry on Thursday, December 16 asked commuters across the country to anticipate lower transportation costs.
“We understand that the fares will definitely come down. It is the margin of reduction that we are still negotiating. We are waiting for the next pricing window on Friday [December 16, 2022].
“So when the new prices are announced, we will see the clearest picture and we will see the percentage margin for the reduction of fares. We do not have the full picture until the window opens on Friday. Hopefully, by Monday, the general public should see a reduction in transport fares,” he added.
In an interview with the media, the Deputy Transport Minister, Hassan Tampuli, said his outfit is bargaining for a margin that will be equitable to both travelers and transport operators.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is confident Eddie Nketiah is ready to step up and replace Gabriel Jesus when domestic action resumes.
The Gunners will be without the services of their Brazilian for several weeks after undergoing surgery to his right knee after suffering an injury during Brazil’s World Cup group stage match against Cameroon.
Nketiah has struggled to hit top form for Arsenal, making 12 league appearances and is yet to find the back of the net, however, Arteta is backing him to lead the attack in the absence of Jesus.
“Eddie [Nketiah] is always ready. He knows that it opens an opportunity for him,” Arteta told Arsenal website, adding:
“He needs to grab it but the way he trains every day and the mentality he has, he gives us no reason not to think he’s going to be super ready to perform.
Nketiah has made 19 appearances across all competitions for Arsenal this season, scored three goals and provided one assists.
The wife of the late Ekow Blankson shared her final words to her late husband.
She was escorted by family to pay her last respect to her late husband, whose body was laid in state during a church service.
Moments before the casket was closed, Mrs. Naadu Blankson was invited to see her husband for the last time, and it was an emotional scene.
Drowned in inconsolable grief and staring directly at her husband’s remains, Mrs. Naadu Blankson stood by the casket and uttered these words,
“Thank you for everything. Go and rest well. God bless you, and we thank you. The children and I are grateful for everything,” she said.
However, it was a solemn moment, one of reflection, when the late Ekow Blankson’s body was lifted following the closure of the burial service in Tema.
The final funeral rites of the former commercial manager of the Advertiser and Publishers Solutions Ghana Ltd. and GhanaWeb was held on Saturday, December 17, 2022, at the Full Gospel Church in Tema.
The late veteran actor’s burial service saw the widow, Justina Naadu Blankson, her children, family, friends, and scores of sympathizers, including celebrities, in attendance as they bid the award-winning actor farewell.
The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has advised the public to check out for expiry dates on products before purchasing them this festive season.
In a bid to make room for new products, some retailers and importers during festive seasons are said to sell consumable products, even in a bad state, at lower prices.
This, according to the FDA, exposes buyers to food poison when they purchase and consume such products.
Speaking to the media on Friday, December 16, the Central Regional Head of the FDA, Francisca Obeng, said the Authority will penalize individuals who take advantage of the festive seasons to sell subpar goods.
“Those who will want to do [Christmas] hampers to check the products before they use them for the hampers. Please do well to check the expiry date on the products and avoid buying canned products that are dented, bloated and rusted. Buy products with clear date markings and avoid products with defaced date markings,” she advised.
The Public Health Act of 2012, Act 851, and Section 5 of the P.N.D.C. Law 3058, Food and Drugs Act of 1992 both make it illegal to change a product’s expiration date.
The FDA is the National Regulatory Body in charge of overseeing the production of clinical trial protocols as well as the regulation of food, drugs, food supplements, herbal and homeopathic medications, veterinary medications, cosmetics, medical devices, common household chemicals, tobacco and tobacco products, blood and blood products, as well as cosmetics.
The 1992 Food and Drug Law (PNDCL 305B), which was later revised by the Food and Drugs Act of 1996, served as the legal foundation for the 1992 establishment of the FDA as the Food and Drugs Board (FDB).
The Food and Drugs Authority was created in 2012 as a result of the 2012 Public Health Act 851, which included updates to the Food and Drugs legislation.
A Governing Board established in accordance with the Public Health Act of 2012, Act 851 ensures that the Authority’s duties are carried out in an efficient manner.
Currently, the Governing Board of the Authority consists of eleven people.
A list of prices that will be charged from Monday, showed that fares that used to be GH¢2, GH¢3, GH¢4, GH¢5, GH¢6, and GH¢10 will now be GH¢1.70, GH¢2.60, GH¢3.40, GH¢4.30, GH¢5.10 and GH¢8.50 respectively.
According to FIFA, the amount is USD One billion more than budgeted for the year.
In addition, FIFA has allocated USD 9.7 billion for investments in the development of football between 2023 and 2026.
Mr Gianni Infantino President of FIFA announced this at a press conference in Doha, on Friday, adding that, a lot of investments would be made into Talents Developments Scheme (TDS) of FIFA.
Mr Infantino said, the Executive Council has also approved USD200 million TDS, which is aimed at attaining a sustainable legacy for long-term development, by helping Member Associations (MA), to reach its full potential, and ultimately give every talent a chance.
He said the allocation of funds to the MAs participating in the TDS would follow a tailor-made approach that would take into consideration their specific needs.
“These MAs would also benefit from extra solidarity funding, subject to specific criteria.
“Any TDS funds not allocated by 31 December 2026 would automatically be transferred to the Football Development Fund to provide indefinite and exclusive support to FIFA Forward 3.0 beneficiaries,” he added.
He stated that more waste management and recycling rules, as well as stronger producer duties, among other things, will be required to survive in the circular economy, even though policy making takes time to complete.
Olu Raheem was speaking in an interview on the sidelines of the ‘Plastic Recycling Transformation in Ghana – World Circular Economy’ forum, said it requires a wholesale transformation of the plastics system and can only be achieved by bringing together all links in the chain under a shared commitment to act.
According to him, Finland as a partner is ready to collaborate; and he urged businesses and organisations to demonstrate a will to act on plastic pollution.
Records show that an industry-wide circular approach to the global plastics sector has the potential to create 700,000 jobs and generate savings of US$200billion per year.
The Finland Ambassador to Ghana, Leena Pylvanainen – also speaking in an interview, noted that the circular economy portends huge potentials for Ghana, while adding that her country is keen on exploring partnerships between the two countries on it.
Among other objectives, she said transforming the way people think about plastic waste – seeing it as a resource and seeing it as full business potential – remains a key priority.
“It is about seeking synergies and forging partnerships. At the government level, Finland and Ghana have partnered at the World Trade Organisation. We worked together on bringing circular economy onto the WTO, and it is a cooperation we are very keen to continue.”
Several local stakeholders at the event acknowledged the need to rethink plastic, both to make use of its value and prevent it from damaging the environment.
The Chairman and Founder of Block Solutions, Markus Silfverberg, said the circular economy provides an opportunity to innovate, drive superior business results and better customer loyalty as well as job creation.
Block Solutions uses bio-fibre and recycled products to produce blocks for construction; and Mr. Silfverberg plans to construct 10 factories across Ghana.
By so doing, he said, they are cutting down their carbon footprint by 90 percent and also creating about 800 jobs with the establishment of these factories – and in the area of waste-picking as well.
Finland was the first country to adopt a national circular economy roadmap in 2016, the ambassador stated.
An emerging way for companies to combat waste and help consumers get the most out of their products is now referred to as the circular economy – the products stay in use for longer, then the idea is to recover and regenerate products and materials at the end of each service life.
The 2022/23 Ghana Premier League season will resume on today, Monday, December 19, after a one-month break.
When the season picks back up the following week, the league will enter matchday 9 and clubs will continue to compete for points in an effort to push over their season-long goals.
For the matchday, there will be matches played on Monday through to Wednesday, December 21.
On Wednesday, Asante Kotoko will go up against Berekum Chelsea in a tough encounter.
Form:
Defending champions Asante Kotoko are aiming to make it back-to-back Ghana Premier League wins for the first team in a long time.
Although the Reds had a tough run before the Ghana Premier League went on break, they still managed to hold onto third on the league table.
During the world cup period, the Porcupine Warriors played a number of friendly matches and have improved especially with their attacking play.
For the opponent, Berekum Chelsea have looked good in training this week and looking forward to the resumption of the league next week.
Chelsea only have 12 points this season and are currently 9th on the league table. Looking forward to the game against Asante Kotoko, the Blues are pumped up and want to upset the defending champions.
Predicted scoreline:
Asante Kotoko will ride on the back of the home advantage and should be able to cruise past Berekum Chelsea with a win.
Asante Kotoko 2-0 Berekum Chelsea.
Probable starting eleven – Asante Kotoko
Frederick Asare (G), Christopher Nettey, Yussif Mubarik, Sherif Mohammed, John Tedeku, Richard Boadu (C), Enoch Morrison, Isaac Oppong, Georges Mfegue, Samuel Boateng, Steven Mukwala.
Residents living in the environs of Kusasi and Mamprusi in Bawku in the Upper East Region have been thrown into a state of shock following a resurgence of ethnic unrest between these two towns.
A shootout between members of these towns on Sunday, December 18, has led to the death of two more individuals.
Giving a breakdown, the public relations officer for the Upper East Regional Police,ASP David Fianko-Okyere, stated that five people were killed in the intermittent gunfire that followed the reported murder of an elderly man at Sing-Naatin on Saturday, December 17, 2022.
On Sunday, December 18, 2022, two more people died as a consequence of gunfire, bringing the total death toll to seven.
The Quality medical centre in Garu is now providing care for a young guy in his 20s who sustained an injury during the clash.
The cause of last night’s disturbances is currently unknown.
According to Mr. Fianko, his organization was unable to disclose specifics on last night’s event because it lacked sufficient information.
However, the police have begun an investigation into the unfortunate incident to ascertain the cause of the clash and bring the orchestrators of the violence to book
Meanwhile, the Police Service has advised residents to stay indoors.
No finance minister has served a second term since the fourth republic, even when the president who selected them does.
“If Ken Ofori Atta is appointed finance minister.
Ghana will have the chance to elect a finance minister for a second term for the first time in history, he said.
In the country’s Fourth Republic history, no finance minister has served in office for the full two terms of a president.
However, Paul Adom-Otchere is asking if Ofori-Atta is likely to break the one-term cycle in the face of his track record.
Speaking on the Good Evening Ghana Programme, Adom-Otchere said finance ministers do not last in Ghana.
“Since the 4th republic, no finance minister has made a second term even when the president who appointed them gets a second term.
If Ken Ofori Atta is made a minister for finance. This will be the first time that Ghana will have the opportunity to give a finance minister a second term”, he said.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is expected to nominate persons to steer the affairs of various ministries.
History beckons
Although Professor Kwesi Botchwey served as Finance Minister for 13 years nonstop, a greater part of those years was under the military regime. Under the Fourth Republic, Prof. Botchwey was only Minister of Finance between January 1993 and 1995 before he handed over to Mr Richard Kwame Peprah, who served in that capacity until January 2001.
Since then, all Finance Ministers (Messrs Yaw Osafo Maafo, Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, Anthony Akoto Osei, Kwabena Duffuor, and Seth Terkper) served for a maximum of four years, with Dr. Akoto Osei, who replaced Baah-Wiredu, serving the shortest period.
Thus, should President Akufo-Addo reappoint Mr. Ofori-Atta as Finance Minister, the latter will be on his way to breaking the pattern that all finance ministers have suffered since the advent of the 1992 Constitution.
It will also set him up on becoming the second longest-serving Finance Minister in independent Ghana, should he remain in that position until the end of the President’s tenure in January 2025 (without prejudice to the election petition at the Supreme Court).
Business people in the Bolgatanga Central Market expressed confidence in President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo‘s ability to strengthen the cedi during his second term.
“We typically spend more to obtain foreign currencies, so by the time we import the goods, pay import duties, and other expenses, we are essentially left with nothing,” the woman added.
Read the entire article
initially released by GNA on December 19, 2020
Some of the traders in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Bolgatanga said if the cedi were to appreciate against currencies such as CFA and United States dollar, it would go a long way to boost Ghanaian businesses.
Their expectations from the new government were that the Ghanaian economy would improve with superior quality education and access to healthcare services made easier.
Madam Mariam Aviska, a businesswoman, said the government’s policies in the last four years were commendable but could have been better if the cedi was stable.
She noted that the instability of the local currency led to the collapse of several Ghanaian businesses and called on the government to ensure that the cedi gained stability in the international market.
“We usually pay more to acquire foreign currencies, so by the time we import the things, pay import levies and others, we are basically left with nothing,” she said.
Madam Alice Alana, a Wholesale trader, added that she was expecting the government to reduce import levies and taxes paid by businesses.
That, she said would enable businesses to regain their financial capacities since they suffered many losses due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Madam Ayishatu Akolgo, a Wax Prints Seller, said she expected timely payment of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) claims to ensure health facilities were stocked with essential medicines and equipment.
She also said there was a need to abolish the double-track senior high school system and provide more infrastructure to absorb all qualified students.
Mr Godwin Dzinake, a dealer in electronics, said he expected the government to award contracts in a free and fair manner without any conflict of interest.
That move would promote quality work among contractors and also safeguard the public purse from exploitation.
He urged government to revamp the Pwalugu Tomato factory and the defunct meat factory in the Upper East Region.
After being the catalyst for Argentina’s victory in Qatar, Lionel Messi vowed to continue playing for his country so they could enjoy “a few more games being world champion.”
After Sunday’s thrilling final, in which Kylian Mbappe scored a hat-trick for France but still lost, the World Cup now belongs to Messi and Argentina.
A 4-2 victory on penalties after a 3-3 draw gave Argentina their third World Cup success, after lifting the trophy in 1978 and 1986 and means Messi’s final appearance on the biggest stage of all ended in a fairy tale manner.
It was the trophy he had been striving to win before the end of his career, and the 35-year-old finished the tournament with seven goals and three assists, becoming the first player to score in every round and the group stage.
He took the Golden Ball award as the best player but Mbappe pipped him to the Golden Boot with eight goals.
Messi told TyC Sports: “Obviously I wanted to close my career with this, I can’t ask for anything any more. Thank God, he gave me everything. Closing almost my career like this, it’s impressive.”
Messi knows his career is winding down and he put in the work to make sure he was in prime shape for one last shot at the World Cup.
His emotional reaction after the final whistle, kissing the trophy at the first opportunity, reflected how dearly Messi wanted this moment.
A double in the final meant Messi became the highest-scoring South American player in major international tournaments with 26 goals — 13 in the World Cup as many in the Copa America. That took him one goal ahead of Brazil great Ronaldo, who previously held the record.
“After this, what will there be? I was able to get the Copa America, World Cup… It came to me almost at the end,” Messi said
“I enjoy being in the national team, the group, I want to continue living a few more games being world champion.
“It’s every little kid’s dream, I was lucky to have achieved everything and what I was missing is here.”
Tom Cruise is currently filming parts one and two of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, but the 60-year-old actor wanted to take a moment to thank everyone who went to the theaters to support Top Gun: Maverick as his latest film heads to Paramount+ this week. Cruise showed his appreciation by delivering a heartfelt message while jumping out of a plane.
“As always, thank you for allowing us to entertain you. It truly is the honor of a lifetime,” Cruise said. “I’m running out of altitude, so I’ve got to get back to work. We’ve got to get this shot. You have a very safe and happy holiday. We’ll see you at the movies.”
Maverick is the first film of Cruise’s career to eclipse the $1 billion mark. In September, the Top Gun sequel surpassed Black Panther to become the fifth-highest grossing film in domestic box office history with $701 million.
Cruise performed another plane-related stunt while flying over South Africa as part of a pre-taped video message for CinemaCon earlier this year.
Top Gun: Maverick will be available on Paramount+ on Dec. 22. Dead Reckoning Part One, which will be directed by Christopher McQuarrie, is scheduled to hit theaters on July 14, 2023 with Part II coming out one year later on June 28, 2024.
The ‘Sugar Daddy’ of the Ghanaian music industry, Dennis Nana Dwamena, fondly called KiDi, has just set another record as a music star who is still learning the ropes.
The official video for Kidi’s new single titled ‘Shut Up’, which featured popular Indian music star, Tulsi Kumar has got him to set this new record.
The video was released on Saturday, December 17, 2022, and barely 24 hours after it landed on Youtube, it has garnered over seven million views — which appears to be a record in Ghana.
The collaboration between KiDi and Tulsi Kumar started after the two music icons met via Instagram.
The new song, ‘Shut Up’ is a remake of KiDi’s global smash single Touch It.
‘Touch It’ was originally released in 2021 and it became one of the biggest songs of the Lynx Entertainment signed musician, who eventually it got a platinum status in the Asian country, India.
After Argentina ended their lengthy wait to win a third World Cup title with a thrilling victory over France, Lionel Messi expressed his shock.
In a thrilling six-goal battle, the Paris Saint-Germain attacker scored twice, and Lionel Scaloni’s team prevailed on penalties.
It brought an end to a 36-year wait for World Cup glory, with Argentina previously suffering defeats at the final hurdle in 1990 and 2014 – the latter of which saw Messi on the losing side.
After a seven-goal haul and taking home the Golden Ball for the best player of the tournament, Messi finally got his hands on the biggest prize of all and took to social media to share his thoughts.
“I dreamt about it so many times, I wanted it so much that I still can’t believe it,” he posted on Instagram.
“Thank you so much to my family, to all who support me and also to all who believed in us. We prove once again that Argentinians when we fight together and united we are able to achieve what we aim.
“The merit is of this group, which is above individuals, is the strength of all fighting for the same dream that was also the one of all Argentinians… We did it!!!”
Awarded player of the match in the final, Messi was expected to feature in a post-game press conference but skipped attendance as celebrations continued with the squad.
However, he did speak on the field following Argentina’s triumph and made his desire to continue representing his nation clear.
“I enjoy being in the national team, the group, I want to continue living a few more games being world champion,” he told TyC Sports.
On penalties, Scaloni’s team defeated France 4-2 after a remarkable 3-3 stalemate in extra time on Sunday at Lusail Stadium.
It was Argentina’s first World Cup triumph since Maradona inspired them to glory in 1986, earning Lionel Messi his maiden success in the competition.
Maradona, who played for his national team between 1977 and 1994, died in November 2020 at the age of 60 after suffering a cardiac arrest.
His death was followed by three days of national mourning, putting into context just how significant a figure he was in Argentina
.
And for Scaloni on Sunday, being reminded of Maradona’s passing was difficult.
Asked what he would say to Maradona if he had been present, Scaloni told reporters: “Well, you make me realise that he’s not here, otherwise you’d think he was amongst us.
“Well fortunately we managed to lift this trophy, something we’ve been dreaming of for so long, we’re such a football passionate country.
“I hope he enjoyed it from above. I’m sure if he was here he’d have enjoyed it so much, he’d have been the first one on the pitch.
“Now you ask me this you make me realise he’s not here. I wish he was here to enjoy this moment.”
Ghanaian star rapper and music producer ELhas disclosed to his fans that making music is not a priority at this point in his life.
The VO Nation founder said this on Twitter on Monday, December 12, 2022.
He indicated that some “concerned” and unnamed people had been sending him direct mail (DM) asking about music.
“To those concerned, to those DM’ing and enquiring,” he wrote. “Music will become important to me again early next year.”
Without offering details, the ‘Efa Wo Ho Ben’ hitmaker noted that he is busy with something else at the moment.
“On some other vibes rn [right now],” he said, promising to “make it up to” his fans at the stipulated time.
On Saturday, November 5, the rapper, singer-songwriter, on the same App, gave the impression he was studying outside of his home country Ghana.
“So so [plenty] study study [book emoji],” he said. “Back home soon bearing gifts!”
The multiple award-winning artiste of Ewe and Ga descent was crowned the ultimate winner, Artiste of the Year, at the 2016 Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMAs).
His latest projects are 2021’s 13-track Afrobeats ‘WAVs (West African Vibes)’ and the 14-track Hiphop ‘Bar 6’.
Paris Saint-Germain will put the pressure on Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe to build on their incredible World Cup performances by winning the Champions League in 2019.
The team, which is controlled by Qatar, is aiming for European success, and they face Bayern Munich in the final 16 of the competition. Matches against the German champions are scheduled for February and March.
After seeing Mbappe win the Golden Boot as top scorer, and Messi take the Golden Ball prize as the outstanding player, PSG undoubtedly had a strong World Cup.
The sight of Mbappe and Messi in opposition with France and Argentina, as they were in Sunday’s World Cup final, will soon be replaced by them uniting on the field, possibly even by the end of the month.
PSG have a Ligue 1 game against Strasbourg on December 28, and it remains to be seen whether coach Christophe Galtier will have both men available for that game, given Messi is heading back to celebrate in Argentina in the coming days.
In a string of messages on social media, PSG addressed the two chief protagonists in the final, in which Messi scored twice and lifted the trophy, while Mbappe hit a hat-trick but finished on the beaten side.
“An extraordinary final from our two Parisians,” the club said. “One of them had to win. You’ll forever go down in footballing history, @leomessi.
“What a final! Bravo @leomessi, thank you @k.mbappe for all these emotions. You have been heroic. You have marked this World Cup with your talent. You should be proud.”
Whatever French envy there might be towards Messi should soon subside, with a photograph of Mbappe and Messi touching hands during the game receiving plenty of love from PSG’s players.
Club-mates Nuno Mendes and Danilo Pereira both posted the picture, adding emojis of applauding hands.
Midfield stalwart Marco Verratti addressed Messi’s success, writing on Instagram: “You deserve it friend. Congratulations.”
To Mbappe, Verratti wrote: “Head high. You showed the whole world that you’re a phenomenon.”
“Congratulations” was the message from defender Juan Bernat to Messi, and “Bravo to you too” he said to Mbappe.
Former PSG boss Mauricio Pochettino praised Argentina coach Scaloni, saying in a message to his compatriot: “Congratulations Lionel. Thank you!”
PSG have never won the Champions League, and it is the footballing holy grail for them now, with each incoming coach knowing winning domestic silverware alone is not considered to be fulfilling the remit of the job.
They went closest in 2020, losing out in the final to Bayern, for whom Frenchman Kingsley Coman scored the only goal in Lisbon. Coman was one of two France players to fail from the spot in Sunday’s World Cup penalty shoot-out, along with Aurelien Tchouameni.
Given the outstanding form that Messi and Mbappe have shown over the last month, PSG may never be better placed to strike for continental trophy glory.
Yet there is another matter brewing, which is that Messi and Mbappe may be in the final throes of their club alliance.
With Messi’s two-year contract at PSG due to expire at the end of this season, removing uncertainty over his future might become as great a priority as the next trophy.
President Nasser Al-Khelaifi said in early December the matter would be discussed after the World Cup, with Messi having been linked with a possible end-of-season switch to Inter Miami.
A video of the captain for the Black Stars, Andre Dede Ayew, having a good with two great African musicians – Davido and Stonebwouy – have popped up on social media.
The music stars had a good time at the residence of the Ghanaian footballer who plays for Qatar Stars League club Al Sadd.
On December 17, 2022, Dede Ayew marked his 33rd birthday. He was celebrated by many, especially friends and family. In the video which has gone viral, the two artists are heard wishing Dede Ayew a happy birthday.
Dancehall musician, Stonebwoy was captured behind the drums as friends lead a ‘jama’ session. The celebrant who cheered on was showered with accolades.
Davido in a self-recorded video described the Ghanaian player as a legend in football.
Dede Ayew on Saturday, December 17 turned 33 years.
Stonebwoy performed at FIFA Fan Festival on Friday, December 16 as the only Ghanaian artiste.
Nigerian music icon Davido featured at the closing ceremony of the 2022 World Cup in the match between defending champions France and Argentina on Sunday, December 18 at the Lusail Stadium.
The Afrobeats singer, together with Trinidad Cardona and AISHA, were featured on the official 2022 World Cup soundtrack titled Hayya Hayya (Better Together).
“Investments for such security must not be touched under any circumstances, the General Secretary of the ICU-Ghana, Mr. Morgan Ayawine, stated in a press release copied to the Ghanaian Times in Accra on Wednesday.
According to the union, such a decision would have an impact on the country’s workforce retirements.
“ICU-Ghana is vehemently opposed to government’s intention, as outlined in the 2023 budget statement, to an appropriate interest on workers’ pension funds in its bid at economic recovery and outrightly rejects it,” he said.
“If the meagre pension paid to majority of retired workers in the country, which is already insufficient to sustain them, is going to be given a ‘haircut’ as it were through withholding of interest on the pension funds, then the fate of retired workers who paid their dues to the nation and deserved a decent and comfortable living was in jeopardy.
“Contemplating the deprivation and bleak future that the proposition by the government would foist on poor pensioners, the ICU-Ghana cannot but join in the demonstration being organised by our sister trade union organisations and call on the government to rescind its decision and never ever touch the pension funds in the domestic debt exchange programme,” Mr Ayawine said.
Ghana exited the 2022 FIFA World Cup at the Group stage after defeats to Portugal and Uruguay and a win against Korea.
But since the team’s exit rumours have been rife in the local media that members of the Black Stars Management Committee were paid some amounts of money as appearance fees something which the EXCO member has vehemently denied.
“Let me add this, no member of the management committee of the Black Stars took a dime, not even a pesewa as an appearance fee. The Ministry of Sports prior to the tournament said this time no appearance fee,” Oduro Sarfo said in an interview with Kessben FM.
He added that the GFA is not looking to gag the press and general public with their letter as he says they are not against Criticisms but eschew half-truths and lies.
“We are not saying people should not speak because they are Ghanaians, we are also Ghanaians. Are we (GFA people) Togolese? If something is going wrong with lies, we have to protect it as FA.
“People have been doing this for a long time and it is getting too much. It is deliberate for some others. What have we done? Speak but say the truth,” the GFA exco members said.
President Akufo-Addohas called on traders and other industry players to reduce the prices of goods and services.
Speaking on Sunday during the Centenary Celebration of the Ga Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, the President asserted that adjusting prices of commodities is the best way to alleviate the already burned citizens as the cedi regains its strength against major international currencies.
“I add my voice to those of GUTA, GRTCC and others, to appeal to manufacturers, traders and transport operators, that with the height of the cedi’s recent depreciation and increased prices of goods and services, to reduce their prices of goods and services now that the cedi is regaining much of its strength. I believe this is not only a fair request but also a just one.”
In recent times, the two main drivers of the economy (the local currency and fuel prices) have seen tremendous adjustments in prices.
The Ghana cedi is currently trading at GH¢8 on the forex market, according to the Bank of Ghana.
It will be recalled that the Ghana cedi, which lost 45.1% of its value against the US dollar this year, was tagged by Bloomberg as the worst-performing currency in the world on October 17, 2022.
In a turn of event, the Ghana cedi witnessing an overwhelming appreciation in value against the dollar has been adjudged as the best performing currency against the US dollar by Bloomberg.
Also, a litre of petrol and diesel now sells at ¢13 and ¢16 respectively.
Commenting on the cedi appreciation, Akufo-Addo noted that the local currency is performing so well due to prudent financial decisions his government has implemented to salvage Ghana’s economy.
“Things are beginning to turn around, what seemed impossible yesterday is now becoming possible. Today the cedis is appreciating against the dollar and all major currencies and the prices of petroleum products are reducing at the pumps.The strengthening of the cedi has not happened by chance but the deliberate policies of the government in collaboration with the Bank of Ghana,” President Akufo-Addo stated.
He said that after Moody’s lowered the nation’s creditworthiness.
The ratings agency also stated that it is particularly concerning because the nation’s Gross Domestic Product is anticipated to reach 80%.
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originally posted by mynewsgh on January 19, 2021
According to Felix Ofosu Kwakye, a former deputy minister of information under the John Dramani Mahama administration, the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia administration has produced the worst economic results in the previous 40 years.
Moody’s has said that Ghana’s debt levels under the current administration are worrying. They’ve predicted that that country’s economy could come under pressure from the rising debt.
According to Moody’s, the country’s Gross Domestic Product is expected to hit 80% which is extremely worrying.
To him, the Nana Addo Dankwa, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia administration has taken Ghana beyond HIPC. He said debt is swallowing the country due to poor economic decisions taken by the current administration.
“The Akufo-Addo /Bawumia government has delivered the worst economic performance in forty years. When they took over, our debt to GDP ratio was under 56%, now it is nearing a staggering 80% which is way beyond HIPC levels,” he stated.
Obed Ansah, a former Hearts of Oak and Black Meteors midfielder, has revealed details about events that took place in Iran in 2007, where Black Meteors players were compromised by a betting ring.
The betting syndicate accessed players through goalkeeper Abukari Damba in order to obtain the desired outcomes for the syndicate.
Damba is said to have wanted a 2-0 loss for the Black Meteors by paying six players $1,000.00 in the friendly match but Ghana lost 4-2
One of the players Tuah Khamix reported the incident to his head coach, the late Jones Attuquayefio who in turn told the leader of the delegation Randy Abbey.
Ansah divulged that a meeting was held where all players who took the money were asked to own up which many of them did.
“Black Stars got a friendly international match but the U23’s were asked to play the match…in Iran that time Claude Le Roy was managing Black Stars. Randy Abbey was our chairman and I heard that we should come for a meeting when I got to the meeting I was sitting in front. Then we were told that all those who went to Damba and he gave them money should raise their hand. I was in front and to my surprise Saban was up and counting (the hands) 1,2,3 and it was still going on,” he said Dan Kwaku Yeboah TV on Youtube.
“Later on Emmanuel Alan Skido who played for Liberty told me that Damba was calling me and I told him to tell him (Damba) that I am bathing so when I finish I will come. I did not know we were all in the meeting with Damba he was the keepers trainer. What I was told was that the money was with Damba and each player was to get 1000 but when they went he gave them 500,”
“What surprised me is that time there was a new phone on the market Erisson or Nokia phone it was expensive and we were all waiting to receive the per diem so that we buy the phone. All that I saw was all the players holding the phone the hotel we were in the phone was been sold in a shop at the ground floor reception. Seven players were holding the phone and I asked myself these people when coming they didn’t have that kind of money where did they get this kind of money so later the matter got to management and I realized that the bribe issue made it possible for them to buy the phone,”
The Ahafo Regional Director of EPA, Dr Jackson Adiyiah Nyantakyi, in a presentation said human retailers were exposed to all sorts of risks, which resulted in loss of human lives and properties, thus the need for the training workshop.
He noted that hazards at fuel retail points included fuelling a car while the engine was on, smoking around a tank farm, making phone calls and charging of electronic gadgets around dispensers, leaked tank and naked electric wire.
Dr Nyantakyi stated that fuel station business had become lucrative as prices of oil kept increasing but the rising number of explosions at filling stations in the country posed a serious concern to residents.
“The June 3, 2015 Accra explosion which killed about 154 people still lingers in the minds of Ghanaians. There is the need to be constantly watchful and careful. Safety protocols must be strictly observed,” he added.
The regional director indicated that risk activities at fuel stations resulted in fire outbreaks, air, surface water and land pollutions, flooding, loss of human lives and robbery incidence among others.
He entreated owners of fuel filling stations to ensure the strict enforcement of the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), prevention of rodents and noise pollution at the station and proper waste management.
Dr Nyantakyi stressed that “you must stick to the colour code, where red represent gasoline, green stands for high octane gasoline, light -blue for kerosene, black for Ago and yellow for high octane Ago, in order to prevent accidents”.
He urged the executives of the Ahafo Fuel Retailers Association (AFRA) to intensify sensitisation and awareness creation, strengthen supervision, recruit strong people and ensure safety protocols at the fuel stations.
The regional director warned that the licence of fuel stations who breached health and safety measures at their premises, would not be renewed coupled with other punishment saying that “prevention is always better than cure.”
Mr Stephen Boateng, the Chairman of AFRA, on behalf of the beneficiaries, thanked the EPA for their routine inspection and training workshop, adding that “we will strictly adhere to all health and safety measures at our stations.”
Ghana Football legend Abdul Razak has called for his inclusion in the Black Stars team, saying his presence will push the national team to success.
The Asante Kotoko legend who feels he is competent to lead the team has been ignored many times when he applies for the vacant job.
“What do we want to win? Cup of Nations, we would have won it if I were the coach of the Black Stars. Even if I will not get the coaching job, let me be with the team in spirit and I believe wherever we want to go, we can”
“I cannot force them to give me the Black Stars job. I have not been given any job to do not to even serve on the management. I think my presence can push the boys”
Abdul Razak won the AFCON with the Black Stars in 1978 and was named the African Best Player of the year later in that year.
The Black Stars were eliminated after the first round of the tournament following a 2-0 defeat to Uruguay.
After defeating South Korea in their second group game, the Black Stars needed a draw or win against Uruguay to advance to the last 16 stage.
But the team failed to negotiate for points against their ‘enemies’ Uruguay.
Ghana made a strong start to the game, but fell apart after captain Andre Ayew missed a penalty in the 21st minute, a repeat of what happened in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
The Black Stars is currently without a coach after the exit of Otto Addo.
The cedi has made some progress over the last two weeks when compared to other main trading currencies, particularly the US dollar, registering a 63.7 percent increase in mid-December 2022.
President Akufo-Addo stated in a speech marking the centennial commemoration of the Ga Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana that the government, working with the Bank of Ghana, will guarantee that achievements gained on the cedi are sustained.
Explaining the rationale behind the recent appreciation, he noted that “Cedi liquidity tightening measures, resulting in the offloading of forex, as a store of value, by speculators; the improvement of forex flows from remittances and the mining sector; and the reaching of a staff-level agreement with the IMF for a US$3 billion package.”
“Indeed, in the weeks ahead, the Bank of Ghana will continue with the purchases of forex from the mining and oil sectors to enhance liquidity supply to the market; continue with the single, unified forex forward auction and some modest targeted bilateral support to critical imports; and the implementation of the gold for oil swap transaction, which will significantly remove forex pressures on the cedi,” President Akufo-Addo said.
Despite being optimistic about the gains made thus far, President Akufo-Addo maintained that the country was still ‘not out of the woods yet’ toward restoring the economy.
The agreement is however subject to IMF Management and Executive Board approval and receipt of the necessary financing assurances by Ghana’s partners and creditors.
Actor Yule Edochie has categorically indicated that he is a polygamistand a very proud one.
He says he is saying this with his full chest and no one can do anything about that.
He made this known in a post shared on social media.
The Nigerian actor backed his position with a quote from the bible.
“I’m a very proud Polygamist. With my full chest. Read Exodus 21 vs 10.
The Bible acknowledges Polygamy. It is my destiny. God directed me to do it. So I can give my son a proper identity. Therefore it came with many blessings,
Blessings for me, blessings for my wife Queen May to calm her down cos as a human being she’ll definitely not be happy about it, and blessings for my wife Judy as well. I’m a very solid man of God. With so much grace. You may not understand my life and say negative things about me, but I won’t blame you. It’s my life, not yours. So you’re not supposed to understand it.
Yul Edochie came under attack from women after he announced that he had a child with another woman Judy Austin and intends to marry her.
His wife May Yul Edochie did not seem to like the idea of her husband getting married to a second wife but the actor held his grounds and took a decision that will make him comfortable.
A 20-year-old woman in Turkey has been arrested after it was revealed that she worked as a doctor in a public hospital, despite having never studied medicine.
Ayşe Özkiraz’s family had always wanted her to become a doctor, so after graduating high school she took the medical school exam but failed. But she didn’t want to let her folks down, so instead of admitting her failure and moving on, she told them that she had gotten into the prestigious Capa Medical University and hat she was studying to become a doctor. She even faked her exam score and her enrollment papers so that her parents wouldn’t suspect anything, but this was only the beginning of her farse…
“When I was a high school student, my parents wanted me to study in a medical school. They thought I would get a high score. But I did not get a good enough score to get into medical school,” Özkiraz recently explained. “When my family wanted to see the exam result document, I prepared a fake exam result document and showed it to them.”
But the young girl did more than just lie to her family, she started lying to everyone. She settled into an Istanbul dormitory and told people that she was a medical student. She also printed a fake student ID card and started hanging around Capa Medical University, interacting with actual med students.
One day, when her mother got sick and had to be taken to a hospital in the city of Tekirdağ, Ayşe came home to be with her parent and actually started telling staff at the hospital that she was a doctor herself. She also lied about her age, claiming to be 25 when she was only 20 years old, and used fake university student cards, doctor ID cards and even a plaque showing that Özkiraz had graduated at the top of her class, in order to make her lie believable.
After gaining the trust of the hospital staff, Ayşe Özkiraz was offered the chance to work there, and she jumped at the opportunity, despite having never studied, let alone practiced medicine.
“Over time, I gained the love and trust of the doctors in the hospital. A chief physician, whom I told that I wanted to become a pediatric surgeon, even included me in an operation. During the surgery, he told me, ‘come on, you stitch the wound,’” Özkiraz said.
Somehow, the 20-year-old managed to pose as a doctor, but despite her efforts to keep up appearances, there was only so much she could do. Eventually, actual doctors at the hospital in Tekirdağ became suspicious, because she kept avoiding answering basic medical questions or simply answered wrong. When they became convinced that she was lying about her training, the staff called the police.
While searching Ayşe Özkiraz’s rented apartment, police found several fake ID cards from several hospitals in Turkey, counterfeit documents, and medical uniforms. She was arrested and eventually admitted to posing as a doctor for more than a year.
The woman’s parents still can’t believe that their child would lie to them and believe that there must be more to Ayşe’s story.
“My child would never attempt such a thing,” Ayşe Özkiraz’s mother told reporters. “She ate meals in operating theaters, the head doctor was with her too. She is in photographs with the doctor. When we chatted on video calling, she’s sitting in the room with the nurses. Are these all lies? We can’t understand anything!”
Ayşe Özkiraz isn’t the first person to pose as a doctor. Earlier this year, we wrote about a woman in France who posed as a general physician as well as an ophthalmology expert for more than 3 years, without having studied medicine. Another woman in India managed to work as a doctor for 5 years before being discovered and exposed as a fraud.
The improvement of forex flows from remittances and the mining sector, as well as the staff-level agreement with the IMF for a US$3 billion package, are among these measures, according to him. They also include “cedi liquidity tightening measures, resulting in the offloading of forex, as a store of value, by speculators.”
The President made this known on Sunday, 18 December 2022, when he delivered an address at the centenary celebration of the Ga Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, held at the Black Star Square, Accra.
Addressing the congregation, which included the Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Rev. Prof. Joseph Obiri Yeboah Mante, he stated that with appropriate policy, determination and hard work on the part of the government, things are beginning to turn around.
While acknowledging that the country was by no means “out of the woods yet”, he assured that the government will continue to work hard to maintain and sustain the gains made.
“Indeed, in the weeks ahead, the Bank of Ghana will continue with the purchases of forex from the mining and oil sectors to enhance liquidity supply to the market; continue with the single, unified forex forward auction and some modest targeted bilateral support to critical imports; and the implementation of the gold-for-oil swap transaction, which will significantly remove forex pressures on the cedi,” the President said.
It is in view of this that he added his voice to those of GUTA, GRTCC and others to appeal to manufacturers, traders and transport operators who, at the height of the cedi’s recent depreciation, increased prices of goods and services, to reduce their prices now that the cedi is re-gaining much of its strength.
“I believe this is not only a fair request, but also a just one, and I urge all of you to join me in this clarion call so we can all have a more pleasant Christmas,” he added.
For the third time, Argentina has won the FIFA World Cup, which will be held in Qatar in 2022.
In today’s championship final, the South American nation squared off against France.
In a game of many goals, Argentina had a two-goal lead at halftime courtesy of goals from Lionel Messi and Angel Di Maria in the 23rd and 36th minutes respectively.
While the game appeared to be going the way of the Argentines, Kylian Mbappe turned things around for the French when he converted a penalty kick in the 8th minute.
Just a minute later, the PSG poster boy scored again with a fantastic volley to restore parity for his country.
With a goal each for Messi and Mbappe in extra time, the contest ended 3-3 at the end of 120 minutes.
In the shootout, Emiliano Martinez emerged as the hero when he made a big stop to deny Kingsley Coman.
Eventually, Argentina won the shootout 4-2 to be crowned Champions of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
This is the third time Argentina have been crowned champions of the world having conquered the world in 1978 and 1986.
Ghana has received a $13 million grant from the World Bank to boost its efforts to maintain a sustainable environment that depends on recycling and reuse of plastic products.
Speaking to the media after a workshop organised by the World Bank, an advisor to the Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Oliver Boachie, disclosed that the World Bank funded Ghana’s plastic recycling economy through its programme ‘PROBLUE’.
PROBLUE is a multi-donor trust fund run by the World Bank with the goal of reducing plastic waste and promoting the sustainable use of marine and coastal resources.
According to Mr. Boachie, the fund would assist Ghana in creating a system where participants in the plastic manufacturing and consumption area will be given more responsibility in the use of recovered goods.
“The World Bank is helping us develop a framework establishment together with an EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility) scheme which addresses Ghana’s needs.”
The goal of the workshop was to aid the government in creating a framework that would support an economic system based on the recycling and regeneration of materials or goods as a method of sustaining or environmentally friendly continuous manufacturing.
He also emphasized the necessity for custom policies that reflect Ghana’s culture and socioeconomic environment.
Grzegorz Peszko, an economist at the World Bank, advised the government to take into account tax incentives that would make the use of recycled plastics more cost-effective.
He contends that tax incentives for businesses using recycled plastics will promote the use of recycled plastics.
“Ghanaian producers don’t see the incentives to use the recycle content because Europe has policies in place; virgin plastic taxes on packaging. More and more European countries can introduce these taxes. It means that plastic products made from recycled content are cheaper and the difference is the tax.”
Ghanaian Songstress, Wendy Shay, is the most streamed female artist for 2022 on Boomplay.
Earlier in the year, when Boomplay released its mid-year stats for streams, the Rufftown Records signed musician was the only female Ghanaian artist who featured on Boomplay’s Top 10 out of their weekly Top 100 songs.
Wendy Shay’s ‘Survivor’ at the time came right on top of Black Sheirf’s ‘Kwaku The Traveller’, which placed tenth on the charts.
After the feat achieved by Wendy Shay for the mid-year, it does not come as a surprise that she is ending the year 2022 as the most streamed female artist.
She beat the likes of Gyakie and Diana Hamilton, who were second and third, respectively, as she walked home with this big honor.
Wendy Shay’s ‘Survivor’, which is a self-affirming story of how to pick up pieces shattered after a major heartbreak is one of the songs that greatly helped her to achieve this feat.
Also, the release of her ‘Enigma EP’, which has the viral ‘Habibi’ song has gone a long way to help the award-winning singer to go home with bragging rights as one of the artists who has gone her songs streamed a lot in 2022.
There is no doubt that this is a record the singer would want to keep and be better in 2023.
Wendy Asiamah Addo entered the musical scene in a turbulent time. Her grit and resilience over the years have manifested in her delivery of relatable hit songs.
The gambling industry has become closely interconnected with football. Big brands in the gambling sector are sponsoring teams in the Premier League. Players also have deals as brand ambassadors for certain gambling businesses. Daily Fantasy Sports, and eSports competitions also heavily feature this sport. Finally, there are many slots that are inspired by football. This is an ongoing trend that isn’t exclusive to gambling developers. Rocket Leagues is a massive hit that’s available on both mobile and other gaming devices. It’s basically football with cars. Here we will go over a few casino games that are inspired by football, and also touch upon why developers continue to make these titles.
Why Do Casinos Host These Slots?
Gambling businesses aim to be as appealing and as accessible as possible. There are numerous bonuses and promotions that help operators acquire new users. In Norway, their online casino Norge sites are made more accessible by allowing players to use widely available payment methods. It’s easy to find reputable visa casino, or sites that accept visa cards, as well as other popular banking methods. They also aim to provide a rich collection of slot games.
This is why there are so many different themes for slots ranging from famous IPs to other abstract and popular concepts. Since football is the favorite sport in Europe it’s understandable why many developers want to capitalize on the hype
Football Champions Cup
Created by one of the leading studios, NetEnt, Football Champions Cup features some impressive visuals. The slot is inspired by football competitions in the UK and the symbols are pretty much what you would expect. Many of the online casino Norge sites host games made by NetEnt, which is a way to show support for a Scandinavian gambling company. You can find reputable operators on toppcasinonorge.com and find out about the different promotions they offer. More importantly, you can play the Football Champions Cup on almost any of the listed websites. This game was released in 2016 and the multiplier can go up to 1000x the stake.
Football Fever
The Football Fever slot from 2022 was created by CQ9Gaming and features some neat art design. You will immediately recognize the players based on their caricatures. Let’s briefly mention some of Football Fever’s key features:
5-reels 3-row layout
243 Paylines
Max multiplier 15,000x
Min bet 0,5 euros
Max bet 1,000 euros
The game also features wild and scatter symbols that can lead to free spins rounds. If you love this sport and are a fan of the most praised player then definitely give Football Fever a few spins. Bear in mind that there are other slot games that use the same name, so if you want to try this one in particular, search for the most recent version released by CQ9Gaming.
Football Star Deluxe
This real money slot was developed through the collaborative work of Microgaming and Stormcraft Studios. It was released in 2020 as a sequel to another game. It has a 5-reel 5-row layout which guarantees you will have an exciting and engaging gameplay experience. The sound effects and animations are both great, so make sure you play with sound on. Moreover, this is a cascading slot which means a lot of things can happen in a single spin.
Bicicleta
Because of its name, this slot can easily fly under your radar for football-themed games. However, this is a really great-looking game, developed by Yggdrasil Gaming. The name is probably a nod to a popular bicycle kick, a rare maneuver that can lead to a legendary goal and a memorable match. It almost happened during the recent France-Morocco match in the World Cup 2022. It’s a 5-reel 4-row slot with an RTP of over 96%. It has 25 betways and medium volatility. So you might not get some frequent hits but the rewards for them are pretty decent.
Conclusion
There are plenty of other slots that you can try if you are a football fan. World Cup Mania, Hot Shots, and Super Striker are all great examples. It’s important to mention that you should always be responsible while playing these games. Don’t play with money you cannot afford to lose, and don’t spend anything just to give them a try. There are plenty of sites where you can play a demo version for free and see whether you like it or not. Also, be on the look out for no-deposit bonuses or other promotions that allow you to get more value for your buck.
Mila Roy
Mila Roy is known for her fascination with gaming and writing. Since she is a gamer herself, all her articles have depth, and our readers love them. Mila enjoys Resident Evil in her free time and never says no to a friendly match in Mortal Kombat.
The Ghanaian business community has experienced some respite as a result of the Ghana cedi’s increase against the dollar, and the government has received praise for the decision.
“The cedi thrives on technical causes as well as sentiments. So when the sentiment is positive and good the cedi feels okay, but what we can see in the last two weeks is that there is a lot of clarity in terms of Ghana’s economic direction. There is clarity now with Ghana’s debt situation and that debt restructuring is unavoidable even if it’s uncomfortable.
“It is good that you bring the market up to speed. Now the 2023 budget has also brought some form of clarity in terms of the way forward. More importantly, the past week we’ve been talking about whether the Staff-Level Agreement is possible before Christmas. All of these things working together moderate the economic uncertainty. When it happens that way, the positive sentiment reflects on the market,” Mr. Bokpin added.
He continued “That is why we are saying that when you are managing an economy, it is not so much about the technical economy, but the expectations. You have to anchor the expectation along a certain direction and it’s good for the economy. Because in August the cedi lost more than 20 percent on its value purely on speculation.”
But he cautioned: “People think that with the Staff-Level Agreement the three billion dollar is going to hit the account of the government like next week. To the extent that its cedi sustainability is not driven by economic fundamentals you cannot say that it’s going to last for long.”
IMF programme insufficient to address Ghana’s problems – Prof. Bokpin
The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar caused the Ghana Premier League to be suspended for a month, and it will resume on Monday. Kotoku Royals and Legon Cities will square off in the ninth-week matchup.
Kotoku Royals, who have a sluggish start to the season and are now in 18th place after eight games, will be trying to get things going.
The new entrants, who sacked their head coach Seth Ablade few days ago have won one, drawn one and lost six games.
Prior to the break before the global showpiece, they lost 1-0 to Medeama and will looking to bounce back to winning ways on Wednesday.
Legon Cities, on the other hand, have not been too impressive this season as they lie 10th on the league table with 11 points.
The Royals have failed to win their last two league games after drawing with Asante Kotoko and losing to Bibiani Gold Stars.
The match is scheduled to kick off at 3pm at the Cape Coast Sports Stadium.
Kotoku Royals possible starting XI: Wilson Kwabena, Clinton Quaye, Joe Boateng, Fawzi Ali, Stephen Cancam, Kingsley Afriyie, Abdul Razak Seidu, Mohammed Zakari, Kwaku Owusu, Richard Dzikoe, Augustine Boakye.
An Argentinian football fan was recently arrested after allegedly hijacking a bus full of people to make sure he gets home in time to watch his country’s game against Croatia at the World Cup.
Argentina is one of the few countries on this planet where football is as close to a religion as you can possibly imagine. People live and breathe the beautiful game and stars like Diego Armando Maradona are worshipped, so when Argentina played Croatia in the semifinals of the 2022 Football World Cup in Qatar the whole country was buzzing. Missing the game was an unimaginable travesty, so when one man found himself on a bus at rush hour, just minutes before the start of the historic football match, he basically felt forced to take desperate measures.
The incident took place on December 13, in the heart of the Buenos Aires town of Ciudad Santa María. The 53-year-old man was riding a bus on line 440 between Fraga and Avenida Ricardo Balbín when he realized that there was no way he would catch the start of the game at the rate that the bus was moving.
So when the vehicle stopped at a red light and the driver stepped out to buy something from a nearby kiosk, the man jumped behind the wheel and started driving towards his home. As soon as he saw the bus drive away, the driver called the police to report the hijacking, and multiple police cars were dispatched to its last known location.
According to Argentinian news sources, the man drove the bus about four miles before abandoning it near his residence and continuing the rest of the way on foot. Unfortunately, the running football fan was caught by police near the intersection of Callao and Maestro Ferreyra streets and taken in for questioning.
Despite his desperate efforts to catch the start of Argentina’s match against Croatia, the die-hard football fan ended up missing the whole game. He did however take comfort in the fact that his country won 3-0 and qualified for the World Cup Final. He was charged with hijacking a public transportation vehicle and it is unclear if he will be released from jail until Sunday when Argentina faces off against France.
People sure do some crazy things in the name of football. Just a few days ago, we wrote about a Chinese fan of the beautiful game who ended up with facial paralysis after staying up to watch every game at the World Cup for a week.
Hansel Enmanuel lost his left arm when he was only a child, but that didn’t stop him from pursuing his dreamof becoming a professional basketball player.
19-year-old Hansel became an online sensation last year when a highlight video of his high-school basketball exploits went viral. People love underdog success stories, and Hansel Enmanuel’s is particularly special. He was only six when a pile of cinder blocks fell on him, crushing his left arm so badly that doctors had no choice but to amputate it below the shoulder. It was a devastating blow to Hansel and his family, but it only made him work harder in order to fulfill his dream of playing basketball at a professional level.
After a stellar high school career, the 6-foot-6 point guard made his college basketball scoring debut last weekend when he scored his first points for Northwestern State University’s Demons in their win over the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks. He was 2-of-3 from the field and 1-of-5 from the foul line along with two rebounds in eight minutes.
“I had to keep going after the layup — that was my first bucket,” Enmanuel said after the game. “I know my family was proud. I had to keep working. You can’t give up.”
Born in the Dominican Republic, Hansel Enmanuel later moved to Florida with his family and developed a love for basketball very early on in his life. But that love went away for a while after his terrible accident. He couldn’t even tie his shoelaces or drink a glass of water, and he got so depressed that he didn’t want to do anything. But as he came to terms with his disability and discovered that he could actually do a lot of things with just one arm, his love for basketball was rekindled.
He spent hours practicing on the basketball court learning to bounce the ball and dribble one-handed, practicing one-handed shots, and gradually regained his self-confidence. His parents, however, were reluctant to let him play, fearing that his disability would prevent him from competing against able-bodied players.
“He didn’t want me to play because of the beatings I might get,” Enmanuel recently said about his father. But he didn’t get any beatings. Instead, he blew everyone away with his skills and became an online sensation in the process.
College basketball scouts started noticing Enmanuel, as did NBA players like Kyrie Irving who actually came to see him play and take his photo taken with him. Even NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal acknowledged his skillsin a social media post.
“I wish people understood how different Hansel Enmanuel is,” the LA Lakers legend said. “He outplayed some of the best high school players with one arm.”
Hansel Enmanuel is the fourth one-armed player to play in the college league and dreams of one day becoming the first to play in the NBA.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, as the Cedi strengthened against major trading currencies on Sunday, has urged producers, traders, and transport companies to lower their pricing for goods and services.
“I urge producers, traders, and transportation companies to lower their prices now that the Cedi is regaining a lot of its strength. Their prices were raised during the height of the recent depreciation of the Cedi.
“I think that this is not only a just but also a fair request…
I appeal to each of you to join me in the clarion cry so that, at the absolute least, we can have a better Christmas.
The occasion was on the theme: “Grateful for our Heritage, Forging Ahead in Unity and Faith.”
The President told the gathering that the strengthening of the Cedi “has not happened by Chance,” but through the implementation of deliberate policies by the Government in collaboration with the Bank of Ghana.
“All these have combined to bring the Cedi to an improved position, and I can assure you that the government will continue to work hard to maintain and sustain the gains made,” he said.
The Cedi appreciated 47 percent against the dollar and gained on all other currencies as of Friday’s close.
Noting that the country was not out of the woods, President Akufo-Addo said the government was determined to implement the appropriate policy measures to consolidate and sustain the gains made by the cedi in recent times.
“With appropriate policy, determination and hard work on our part, things are begging to turn around; what seemed impossible yesterday is now becoming possible.
“We are definitely not yet out of the woods, however today, the Cedi is rapidly appreciating against the US dollar and all major currencies, making up for its losses and the price of petroleum products are reducing at the pump.” he said.
The President disclosed the Bank of Ghana, in the weeks ahead, would continue the purchases of forex from the mining and oil sectors to enhance liquidity supply to the market.
The Bank would also continue with the single, unified forex forward auction and some modest targeted bilateral support to critical imports and the implementation of the gold for oil swap transaction to significantly remove forex pressures on the cedi.
President Akufo-Addo assured the gathering that his administration “is determined to bring even further relieve to you” and return the economy to the high rate of growth that characterized the country’s development in the three years before the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020.
He, however, insisted that “we can only do so if we forge ahead in unity and in faith, and have the believe that with the Almighty God, the fortunes of Ghana under the presidency of Akufo-Addo will be restored.”
“I will thus appeal to you to bear with Government in this difficult period as we work to chart a path out of the storm. I know times are hard and are affecting all of us, but this government will not shirk its responsibility to the people of Ghana to make the hard decisions that hard times demand, which may be painful just like injections, but we must take them if we are to be well again and get our economy back.
“The policies we are implementing today are meant to address the challenges, and I am sure they will, but in the meantime, I need your active understanding and cooperation …we can make it if all of us work at it,” he emphasized.
The President lauded the contributions of the Presbyterian church to national development and thanked the church for its support towards the construction of the National Cathedral.
He stated that, upon completion, the National Cathedral would serve not only as the country’s collective thanksgiving “to the Almighty for the blessings He has bestowed on our nation, sparing us the ravages of civil war that have bedevilled the histories of virtually all our neighbours, and the outbreak of deadly mass epidemics, but also as a rallying point for the entire Christian Community of Ghana, which represents 70 per cent of the population.”
The President said although there were those who did not share his view in the building of the Cathedral, “I respect their right to differ, but I am confident in my decision and by the vast numbers of enthusiastic supporters of these projects, whose spiritual dimension is limitless.
He thus asked the Ga Presbytery, and all Christians, to continue to pray for Ghana’s peace and unity, so the nation can move forward in unity.
“I ask all of you to continue to pray for God’s peace and unity for Ghana so we can continue to move forward as a united nation.
“I need the support of every Ghanaian together with the prayers of the Church, to help me and my government carry out our mandate successfully…Pray for me so that the Almighty God will continue to give me wisdom, strength, courage, and compassion to enable me to execute my duties as a good leader. With Him all things are possible for the battle is the Lord’s,” he said.
The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, Rt Rev Professor Joseph Obiri Yeboah Mante, expressed the appreciation of the Church for government’s effort at restoring economic stability
Former goalkeepers Abukari Damba and Fatau Dauda presented Lawrence Ansah of Samartex FC with the player of the month award for November.
Prior to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 finals in November, Lawrence recorded two clean sheets in two games.
This is an initiative of the retired goalkeepers Association of Ghana led by Abubakar Damba and Ali Jaraah to award an outstanding performing shot stoppers in the Premier League.
Bawa Lord Martey won the September award and Lawrence Ansah is the second to receive the award in the season.
Meanwhile, the Premier League season will resume on Monday, December 19 to Thursday, December, 22, 2022 across league centres.
The competition is on a one month break due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
The Premier League went on break after eight round of matches that saw two-time champions Aduana Stars lead the table with 16 points, one point richer than Accra Lions who are in second place with 15 points.
Defending Champions Asante Kotoko are in third place with 14 points, same as Great Olympics who are in fourth while Hearts of Oak occupy the 5th spot with 13 points.
Dreams FC, Tamale City FC and Kotoku Royals occupy the 16th, 17th and 18th positions respectively.
A Chinese woman has been arrested for allegedly pretending to be a man on social media and tricking her own friend into falling in love with her and sending her money.
Shanghai police recently announced that it had cracked one of the most bizarre online romance scams ever. The victim, a middle-aged woman, had been scammed for 12 years by someone posing as a well-known TV news anchor on social media and defrauded around 2 million yuan ($290,000) over that period of time. The craziest part of the story is that the scammer turned out to be a good female friend of the victim who had come up with the plan as payback for something the victim’s mother had said when they were very young.
The fraudster, identified only as Ms. Yu, admitted her guilt and told investigators that everything had started 12 years ago. She and the victim, Ms. Li, had been friends for a very long time, and their parents also knew each other. One day, Li’s mother jokingly told Li that she would have trouble finding a husband because she wasn’t very pretty and her family didn’t have too good a financial situation.
It was a cruel thing to say to a young girl, and Yu really took it to heart. The more she thought about what the woman had said, the more she wanted to take revenge, so she came up with a plan. If she would find it hard to find love, then so would her friend Li…
Years after being insulted by her friend’s mother, Ms. Yu approached the same woman to brag about being friends with a well-known TV news anchor who just happened to be single and in search of a suitable wife. As expected, the woman pleaded with her to match him up with her daughter, and Yu’s plan was set in motion.
The conniving woman started creating fake social media profiles of the news anchor and approached Ms. Li pretending to be this charming, successful man. She knew her friend better than almost anyone else, what she liked and didn’t like, her passions, her romantic expectations, so they hit it off. The only problem was keeping the relationship online.
Every time Ms. Li asked to meet her online boyfriend in person, he would find an excuse. He was either too busy with work, away on business, sick, or simply too tired to meet her. But he continued to charm her and declare his love, which was apparently enough to keep Li interested.
The defrauding wasn’t originally part of Yu’s plan, but by 2018 she had fallen on hard times and was in desperate need of money. Knowing that her friend was head-over-heeld about the online persona she had created, he started asking her for financial assistance, inventing all kinds of pretexts. Once she got Li to pay up once, she was hooked and continued to use her charms to bleed her dry.
Despite getting on her feet financially, Yu continued to ask her friend for money, pleading, lying, and even threatening to break off the relationship whenever Li asked too many questions or appeared reluctant to cough up the money. Whenever her friend complained about the situation, she always encouraged her to do whatever it took for love, claiming that the news anchor was worth it.
Earlier this year, after Li spent all her savings and started racking up debt, things became more complicated for Yu. Her friend came to her asking for help with contacting the news anchor, finally expressing concerns that something was wrong. Li wanted to confront him and ask for all the money back, and despite Yu’s best efforts to dissuade her she had made up her mind.
Sensing that her scam was finally at an end, Yu told her friend everything, how she had lied about knowing the news anchor, created the fake profiles, and how she defrauded her over several years. It’s unclear if she hoped that her friend wouldn’t go to the police, or if she just wanted to see the look on her face when she learned the truth.
Ms. Yu was arrested after her friend filed a complaint, and an investigation, in this case, is still ongoing. The whole story sounds like the plot of a movie, and there are some details that don’t add up, like how the victim sent 2 million yuan to someone she had never actually met, or how she went 12 years without actually meeting her online boyfriend. Still, most of the details come from the Shanghai police department, so there must be some truth to it…
The Ghana Football Association has announced that all Ghana Premier League teams, Access Bank Division One League sides and Malta Guinness Women’s Premier League clubs that their footballs for the second round of the season are ready for collection.
The Premier League will resume on Monday, December 19 while the other elite Leagues, namely, Division One League and Women’s Premier League look set to return in January, 2023.
Representatives of these clubs have been urged to pick up their footballs from the head office of the Ghana Football Association from Tuesday, December 20, 2022.
The Premier League and the Access Bank Division One League reached the 8th Matchday as the Malta Guinness Women’s Premier League stretched to the 7th round before the break.
Premier League and Division One League clubs use Tempo footballs while clubs in the Women’s Premier League use Kipsta footballs from Decathlon for their games.
The three elite Leagues went on a one-month break due to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 finals.
Transport fares will from today, December 19, 2020, be reduced by 15.3%
The reduction follows a decrease in fuel prices at several pumps in the country.
The 15.3% reduction was determined after consultations with important stakeholders, according to a press statement from the union leader.
“Following the negotiations and in consideration with the plight of drivers, commuters and the general public, we have resolved to reduce the existing transport fares by 15.3% With the recent reductions in the prices of petroleum products, it became necessary to engage stakeholders to give consideration to a review of the fares in line with the Administrative Instrument. Consequently, a series of negotiation meetings were held with the stakeholders to agree on an acceptable level of fare reduction commensurate with the current fuel prices,” portions of the statement from the transport operators said.
In recent times oil marketing companies (OMCs) have begun lowering the cost of gasoline at the pump.
The price of gasoline has dropped more than two dollars to $13.40 a litre, according to market leader GOIL.
Additionally, the price of diesel has decreased from 18.86 to 16.10 per litre.
Additionally, fuel is available from TotalEnergies for 13.40 pence per litre, while diesel costs 15.85 pence per litre.
