TIG Post

Author: Chris Kodo

  • You keep interjecting me every second – Ato Forson to KT Hammond

    Today, November 15, 2022, the eight-person ad hoc committee officially started meeting.

    Three members of the minority and three members of the majority make up the committee.

    One of the committee chairs, KT Hammond, got into a fight with Cassiel Ato Forson, a member of the opposition side, during the discussion of the censure motion.

    Ato Forson abandoned his presentation on Ghana’s fiscal situation after the Chairperson made multiple “interjections.”

    Ato Forson noted that instead of the government seeking fiscal consolidation, i.e., embarking on developmental projects, the government has only been engaged in frivolous expenditures that have elevated Ghana’s debt position.

    He attributed the cedi’s depreciation to the unsustainable debt levels that have contributed to low investor confidence in the economy.

    KT Hammond asked Ato Forson to make his submissions in plain terms for the understanding of the ordinary Ghanaian.

    Ato therefore, said, “Instead of the government cutting down on frivolous expenditure such as the building of the National Cathedral and the size of government, they decided to go on overdraft.”

    He also bemoaned KT Hammond’s constant interjections. The interaction went down as follows.

    KT Hammond: We heard all of that, what we didn’t hear was the mention of COVID, the clash in the international world, we didn’t hear about the rise in the dollar, we didn’t hear anything of that nature.

    Ato Forson: You have not allowed me to do my presentation,

    KT Hammond: You have the whole time.

    Ato Forson: You have been interjecting me every second.

    KT Hammond: You have the whole time; it is to make sure that you have a free flow. I asked if you

    Ato Forson: No because you keep interjecting.

    KT Hammond: Oh Ato, since when did you become anxious about these things?

    The censure motion is to probe Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta over his “non-performance,” after which the report will be sent to parliament for further consideration.

     

  • People complaining about economic hardship don’t know God – Diana Asamoah

    Almost every Ghanaian is currently feeling the economic hardship in the country but Evangelist Diana Asamoah insists otherwise.

    Speaking in an interview with Sammy Kay Media, Diana Asamoah said that she is not experiencing the torture of the economic hardships of the country as many citizens are complaining.

    According to her, the people complaining about economic hardships don’t know God and that the reason they are suffering and not because of Nana Addo’s incompetence.

    “Forget about the economy; the children are enjoying free education. I’ve only heard the complaints and I’m not experiencing any of those.”

    The Onyame Tumfo hitmaker added that her faith in God has always seen her through difficult moments and entreated people to always trust in God.

    “I’m blessed beyond measure. I have faith in God and I find comfort in Daniel 11:32, which says that those who behave wickedly against the covenant he will corrupt with flattery, but the people who know their God will be strong and perform great deeds. People who are complaining do not know God.”

    She urged Ghanaians who are lamenting about the country’s declining economic fortunes to also turn to God for relief.

    A lot of personalities including actors Lydia Forson, Yvonne Nelson and Prince David Osei have publicly condemned the government for the poor economic conditions of the country.

  • Government launches YouStart District Entrepreneurship Programme, application portal

    The YouStart District Entrepreneurship Program and the YouStart Ghana Jobs and Skills application portal were both inaugurated by the government on Monday in preparation for applications from possible recipients of a GH1 billion entrepreneurship fund.

    By offering some of the crucial enablers that ensure successful entrepreneurship, the government hopes to create an enterprising nation through the YouStart program.
    These include mentorship, strategic partnerships and digital linkages, access to funding and markets, technical assistance, and business advisory support services.

    In a speech read on his behalf at the launch, Finance Minister, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, said the YouStart District Entrepreneurship Programme, a dedicated service offering aimed at easing constraints for existing and aspiring young entrepreneurs across the 216 districts of the Country to create one million jobs for the youth in three years.

    He said through the District Entrepreneurship module of YouStart, Government would offer comprehensive technical support through trainings on financial literacy, entrepreneurship and business management to support the creation of sustainable businesses across the Communities.

    Additionally, some beneficiaries who are committed to the programme will be provided with financial support to cover working capital requirements, business expansion and acquisition of equipment or machinery of some selected programme beneficiaries who go through the programme successfully.

    He said the use of an open and transparent application portal would also ensure that the benefits of the YouStart were available to all Young People.

    “In the end, a young person located either in the centre of Accra or the remotest part of the North must rest assured that through the YouStart, they will not be left behind,” he said.

    He called on the Ghana Enterprises Agency, and the NEIP and all other implementing agencies to ensure that all applicants have an equal chance of success under the YouStart.

    “There will be many phases with this YouStart intervention. At the middle of this year, we implemented the pilot phase and was successful in supporting 46 individual beneficiaries and 8 groups/associations with membership between 6 and 45 persons across the country.

    “In this first real phase of the intervention, under the Ghana Jobs and Skills Project, funded by the World Bank, over 50,000 beneficiaries will benefit from entrepreneurship training and those who are committed and intentional will have the opportunity to apply for grant funding to support their business,”Mr Ofori-Atta said.

    On her part, Nana Ama Dokua Asiamah-Adjei, Deputy Minister/MSMEs, Internal Trade, & Trade Facilitation, said the intervention was a critical intervention to address and respond to the nation’s youth unemployment demands.

    The launch of the YouStart project also underscores the importance of working together to pursue policies and programmes that will drive competitiveness and prosperity for all, she said.

    She encouraged the Ghanaian youth to apply and participate in the project, especially those who want to start their own businesses.

    “I am certain, and optimistic that successful beneficiaries will be well-equipped with both

    entrepreneurial skills and funding to start their own businesses,” she said.

    Mrs Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, the Chief Executive Officer, Ghana Enterprises Agency, said the YouStart project was part of Government’s interventions to tackle the youth unemployment situation in Ghana with the World Bank providing financing and technical support to the Government for the implementation of the Ghana Jobs and Skills Project which has the objective of supporting skills development and job creation.

    The GEA under its component would be providing entrepreneurship training to 50, 000 youth who have the potential to start a business, as well as support 5,000 of them with start-up grants.

    Youth from the ages of 18 – 40 years with minimum education of BECE, willingness to start a business as well as school dropouts already in business are eligible to apply.

    Mrs Yankey-Ayeh said the portal would be opened for a period of six weeks after which eligible applicants would be invited for a readiness screening and needs assessment.

    She said the entrepreneurship training would be in three modules: Basic level for a total of five days, Intermediate level for a total of 10 days and Advanced level for a total of 15 days.

    Applicants at the Advanced level would be eligible for Coaching and Mentoring support to assist them finalize business plans, conduct market research, formalization support and test their products on the market.

  • Economic Hardship: We are here because of stubbornness and bad governance – Tarzan

    The New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Tarzan, also known as Charles Wereko-Brobby, has attributed the current economic difficulties to the Akufo-Addo administration’s “stubbornness” and “poor governance.”

    “It’s stubbornness. We attacked the NDC for choosing a large number of individuals, so when we were elected, we intended to utilize a minimal number of appointments, but when he got into power, he even went crazy.

    “When I questioned, he responded that the task they will complete is what matters.
    Therefore, it suggests that we didn’t mean what we stated, he continued in an interview with Me Man Nti on Neat FM.

  • Anas exposé: Akufo-Addo directs Special Prosecutor to investigate Adu Boahen

    Charles Adu Boahen has been accused of corruption, and President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has asked the Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, to look into the claims.

    This comes after the president fired the minister of state for finance after the renowned journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas’ undercover investigative documentary accused him.

    On Monday, November 14, 2022, the Accra International Conference Center (AICC) will host the broadcast of the investigative piece dubbed “Galamsey Economy,” but the Tiger Eye PI team has already provided a preview of what viewers might anticipate.

    Included in that release, the investigative team said it met with the Minister of State in charge of Finance, Charles Adu Boahen, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where he stated that for the Vice President of Ghana, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, to avail himself to them, they would have to pay $200,000 as an appearance fee.

    The releases indicated that the undercover team was operating under the pretext that it wanted to establish a bank in Ghana.

    “You mean, like appearance fees and stuff? I mean he, himself (the Vice President), if you give him some (USD) 200,000 or something as a token, as thank you, appreciation, that’s fine. He’s not really, he’s not really (like) that. All he needs is to worry about his campaign money in 2020,” Charles Adu Boahen said when he was asked how an investor can get the attention of the Vice President.

    He added that an investor must also consider opportunities for the siblings of the vice president for his full support, apart from the USD200,000 appearance fee token to him.

    But following these revelations, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, in a statement dated Monday, November 14, 2022, sacked the minister.

    “The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has terminated the appointment of the Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Charles Adu Boahen, with immediate effect,” the statement read.

    Also, the president directed that the Special Prosecutor should take up the case and investigate the minister accordingly.

    “After being made aware of the allegations levelled against the Minister in the exposé, ‘Galamsey Economy’, the President spoke to Mr. Adu Boahen, after which he took the decision to terminate his appointment, and also to refer the matter to the Special Prosecutor for further investigations,” the statement added.

  • MoFA has no business in food distribution chain – GAWU

    The Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) pilot market efforts of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) in the food distribution chain have drawn some criticism from the General Agriculture Workers’ Union (GAWU).

    The government has no business acting as a food middleman, claims GAWU.

    The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) tested the sale of a few chosen food goods on Friday, November 11, 2022, at its forecourt in Accra to help some Civil and Local Government staff obtain access to affordable food items in the aftermath of food price increases in the nation.

    Edward Kareweh, the General Secretary of the GAWU, questioned the ministry’s decision to launch the program.

    He was of the view that the ministry was usurping the work of the National Buffer Stock Limited while speaking in an interview on the 505 news analysis programme hosted by Valentina Ofori Afriyie on Accra-based Class 91.3 FM on Friday, November 11, 2022.

    He was categorical in saying the ministry has no mandate to engage in such exercises when there is a dedicated company for doing so.

    He further questioned the ministry’s budget for playing the role of food middleman in the food distribution and supply chain.

    ”The ministry ought to tell us which budget they are using for the pilot programme when there is the need for the ministry to scale up its supply of fertilizers to farmers among others in the country,” he stressed.

    He said since 2021 the ministry has scaled down the supply of fertilisers to farmers across the country.

    This should be a source of worry to the minister and the heads of departments at the ministry and not dabbling in the food supply chain.

    He said there has been a drastic reduction in subsidies on fertilisers leading to a reduction in the volumes supplied to the farmers.

    He added that what is needed to salvage the situation is investments in agriculture and not the ministry drifting to areas it has no mandate.

    He said there is a shortage of maize which is a key component in PFJ crops and asked why the ministry is not working to make that available through the PFJ pilot market but rather focusing o plantain which is not part of the PFJ list of crops?

  • Diana Asamoah takes fashion to an extra mile at her ‘Abba Father’ concert

    Diana Asamoah has shared several pictures from her 2022 ‘Abba Father’ concert, looking succulent in her presentation and fashion style.

    The gospel musician’s show came off at the University of Professional Studies, on Sunday, November 13, 2022, with believers and non-believers in attendance.

    In two separate, beautiful pictures, the evangelist was captured donning dresses that screamed attention and elegance.

    One white dress was stylishly designed to look like a fitting dress while also being a ball gown to give her princess vibes.

    Her second attire, an embellished red, fitted her body so well that it had flowing fabrics that looked like wings on the shoulder area making the artiste look like she could fly.

    The 2022 worship and praise edition was dubbed ‘The Glory Of His Presence: Engaging the Power of Praise and Worship for Victory’.

    Top gospel musicians like Cecilia Marfo, Tagoe Sisters, DSP Kofi Sarpong, Brother Sammy, Celestine Donkor, and Ernest Opoku graced the event.

    Scroll below to check out her attire:

     

  • Listen to Adu Boahen trumpet his investment experience at 2017 vetting

    Charles Adu Boahen was fired from his job as Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance on November 14, 2022, which he had held since early 2021.

    His termination was announced in a letter from the president, which cited his accusation in the investigative film “Galamsey Economy” produced by Tiger Eye PI, the company run by journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas.

    Adu Boahen served as the country’s deputy finance minister from 2017 to 2021, aiding the embattled Ken Ofori-Atta in managing the finances.

    His recent woes are allied to comments he made to investigators posing as investors who wanted access to big people in government. Adu Boahen reportedly boasted about his links to the Vice President and how a fee of US$200,000 could get his buy-in.

    GhanaWeb footage of his vetting in 2017, captures how Adu Boahen boasted about his investment prowess only for him to travel to the United Arab Emirates in 2018 where he took monies intending to help investors get access to DR. Mahamudu Bawumia.

    He told the vetting Committee: “Mr. Chairman, I have over 18 years of experience in the finance industry, fundraising, attracting investments into Ghana through my two companies, I think we have seen over 30 million dollars of investment into Ghana, both in real estate and in other activities.

    “Asset management as well, so I think I can understand any of the capital markets, so, based on what my minister would like me to do, I believe I could add value….” he is heard stressing.

    Charles Adu Boahen, Minister of State at the Finance Ministry was implicated in the ‘Galamsey Economy’ investigative documentary released by investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas on November 14.

    The now-dismissed minister was captured on tape making comments to the effect that access by investors to Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia could be facilitated at a cost of US$200,000.

    Bawumia has dispelled the allegations and insisted that his integrity remains his most cherished asset in life.

    “My most cherished asset in life is my integrity and I will not allow anyone to use my name to engage in corrupt activities,” Bawumia said in a post calling for the minister’s dismissal.

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has since terminated Adu Boahen’s appointment and referred the contents of the investigation to the Office of the Special Prosecutor.

  • Cedi sells at GH¢14.80 at bureaus, BoG at GH¢13.08 as of November 15

    The Interbank forex rates from the Bank of Ghana today, November 15, 2022, have shown that the Ghana Cedi is trading against the dollar at a buying price of 13.0744 and a selling price of 13.0824.

    As compared to yesterday’s trading of a buying price of 13.0694 and a selling price of 13.0824. At a forex bureau in Accra, the dollar is being bought at a rate of 14.25 and sold at a rate of 14.80.

    Against the Pound Sterling, the Cedi is trading at a buying price of 15.3676 and a selling price of 15.3856 as compared to yesterday’s trading of a buying price of 15.4179 and a selling price of 15.4347.

    At a forex bureau in Accra, the pound sterling is being bought at a rate of 16.30 and sold at a rate of 17.00.

    The Euro is trading at a buying price of and a selling price of as compared to yesterday’s trading of a buying price of 13.5079 and a selling price of 13.5214. At a forex bureau in Accra, Euro is being bought at a rate of 14.15 and sold at a rate of 14.80.

    The South African Rand is trading at a buying price of 0.7555 and a selling price of 0.7563 compared to yesterday’s trading of a buying price of 0.7563 and a selling price of 0.7570.

    At a forex bureau in Accra, South African Rand is being bought at a rate of 0.65 and sold at a rate of 1.10.

    The Nigerian Naira is trading at a buying price of 33.8188 and a selling price of 33.9717 as compared to Friday’s trading of a buying price of 33.8799 and a selling price of 33.9839.

    At a forex bureau in Accra, Nigerian Naira is being bought at a rate of 18.00 Naira for every 1 Cedi and sold at a rate of 22.00.

    For the CFA, it is trading at a buying price of 48.4627 and a selling price of 48.5107. At a forex bureau in Accra, CFA is being bought at a rate of 19.30 CFA for every 1 Cedi and sold at a rate of 23.50 CFA for every 1 Cedi.

     

  • What to Know About Tiffany Trump’s Husband Michael Boulos

    Former President Donald Trump’s daughter Tiffany Trump tied the knot with her fiancé Michael Boulos on Saturday, Nov. 12.

    The youngest Trump daughter made her relationship with Boulos both Instagram and White House official in 2019 when she posted a photo with him in the Red Room. A source told PEOPLE at the time that Tiffany and Boulos first connected after meeting at Lindsay Lohan’s club in Greece.

    Boulos, the son of a wealthy family with businesses in Nigeria, proposed to Tiffany in January 2021. A source told PEOPLE that July that the couple were focused on wedding planning amid her family’s scramble to sort out their post-White House lives.

    “They both want to marry in a big ceremony, your basic international spectacle,” the social source said of the couple. “Tiffany likes the idea of a glamorous and glitzy affair and, surprisingly, so does Michael.”

    While Tiffany and Boulos were reportedly considering having their wedding in Miami or Greece, they ultimately settled on her father’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, as the location for the main ceremony. The pair wed just after Tropical Storm Nicole passed through Florida and days before Donald is expected to launch his third presidential campaign for the 2024 presidential election.

    Here’s everything to know about Tiffany Trump’s new husband Michael Boulous.

    He and Tiffany met at Lindsay Lohan’s club

    Tiffany Trump and Michael Boulos.Dia Dipasupil/Getty

    Shortly after Tiffany and Boulous made their public debut, a source confirmed to PEOPLE that the pair met in the summer of 2018 in Mykonos, Greece, at the Mean Girls alum’s beach club, which was the subject of the MTV reality show Lindsay Lohan’s Beach Club.

    Speaking with PEOPLE at her show’s premiere party, Lohan downplayed any possible matchmaking role.

    “I wasn’t there when they met,” she said.

    “I know him … and I know her … but I don’t know what happened,” Lohan explained, noting that she was only recently introduced to Boulos through mutual friends and described her relationship with Tiffany as “friendly.”

    He grew up in a prominent family in Nigeria

    SAUL LOEB/AFP

    According to Page Six, Tiffany and Boulos both have wealthy families and prominent parents in common. The outlet reported that Boulos’ family founded SCOA Nigeria as well as Boulos Enterprises. His brother is the performer Farastafari.

    Boulos Enterprises is “a distribution and trading company for commercial motorcycle, power bikes, tricycle and outboard motors” based in Nigeria, according to Crunch Base. It’s the sole importer and distributor of Suzuki products in the country.

    The outlet also reported that Boulos’ family is Lebanese and that he grew up in Lagos, Nigeria — a part of the world the president reportedly mocked as a “s—hole” while discussing immigration in 2018. Trump quickly denied these accounts but said he had used “tough language.” Nigeria at the time said that he did use such a label and that it was “deeply hurtful, offensive and unacceptable,” according to Reuters.

    A Tiffany source, however, told PEOPLE that she wasn’t phased about dating someone who grew up in an area her father reportedly mocked.

    “Tiffany’s not keeping her finger on the pulse of that BS,” the insider said.

    He’s spent plenty of time with Tiffany’s family

    Nicholas Kamm / AFP

    According to Page Six, Tiffany first introduced Boulos to her relatives at the Trump family’s Mar-a-Lago Thanksgiving dinner in 2018. A source told the outlet, “Tiffany is happy she has so far been able to keep things with Michael under the radar. But she introduced him to her family at Thanksgiving, and he comes across as a very intelligent young man from a great family.”

    Since their initial introduction, Boulos has seemingly spent plenty of quality time with Tiffany’s family. He shared a photo of him and Tiffany smiling behind Donald in the Oval Office in December 2020 and has posted several photos with her half-siblings — Don. Jr, Ivanka and Eric.

    Boulos has also gotten to know Tiffany’s mother, actress Marla Maples, and was photographed sitting front row at New York Fashion Week with her in 2019.

    He proposed to Tiffany at the White House

    In a farewell message to her father ahead of his departure from office in January 2021, Tiffany announced that she and Boulos were engaged.

    “It has been an honor to celebrate many milestones, historic occasions and create memories with my family here at the White House, none more special than my engagement to my amazing fiancé Michael! Feeling blessed and excited for the next chapter!” she wrote on social media along with a photo of her and Boulos smiling together.

    Boulos shared a message of his own on his Instagram profile, writing, “Got engaged to the love of my life! Looking forward to our next chapter together.”

    A year into their engagement, Tiffany shared photos from the couple’s proposal in the White House Rose Garden. “One year down forever to go ♾❤️,” she wrote alongside a photo of Boulos on one knee holding a ring box. A second photo shows Tiffany and Boulos hugging after she said “yes” to his proposal with a $1.2-million diamond ring.

    They live in Miami

    Pierre Suu/GC Images

    After Tiffany graduated from Georgetown Law School in May 2020, PEOPLE reported that she and Boulos had been spending time socializing in Miami while she contemplated her next move away from her father’s political turmoil.

    “She is actively looking for a house in Miami Beach,” a local source told PEOPLE in January 2021, noting that Tiffany had “been in Miami Beach for five or six days.”

    The pair ended up settling in Miami not far from other members of the Trump family. Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner live in the area while Donald Trump Jr. and his fiancée, Kimberly Guilfoyle, bought a home in north Palm Beach County. Meanwhile, the former president, first lady Melania Trump and their son Barron live seasonally at the Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach.

    “She and Michael picked Miami because it is so multicultural,” a source told PEOPLE in October 2021. “They want to marry in Greece and may have a ceremony there with another one here in the States.”

    The insider added that having two weddings was not off the table for the couple. “Tiffany loves Mykonos and would like to marry around there even if she has another celebration in the U.S., maybe at Mar-a-Lago,” the source said.

    They got married at her family’s Mar-a-Lago club

    Photo: Hy Goldberg for Denis LEON + Co.; Wedding Plan + Design: Toni Breiss; Publicity: Stuart Watts.

    On Nov. 12, 2022, Tiffany and Boulos said their vows at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach. Tiffany’s mother Marla Maples told PEOPLE that the family chose the venue because “this was Tiffany’s childhood home and where she was brought into the world.”

    “We are focused on this sacred union and welcoming beloved friends and family, not on politics,” she said.

    A social source described the nuptials as a “joyous family occasion,” noting that all of the Trumps were in attendance.

    According to Maples, both of Tiffany’s parents played roles in the wedding. Donald walked Tiffany down the aisle and partook in a father-daughter dance while Maples shared a prayer during the service.

    As for the bride’s dress, Tiffany chose a gown that nodded to Boulos’ heritage. “It’s a Lebanese American wedding, so we were so happy to have Elie Saab create the magic,” said Maples. The couple’s cake also had special meaning: it was modeled after Donald and Maples’ custom, 7-foot-tall Sylvia Weinstock wedding cake.

  • ‘I have never seen a receipt for bribe before, what of your lies?’ – Adongo to Bawumia

    Isaac Adongo, the member of parliament for Bolgatanga Central, has questioned Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s honesty.

    This came after the vice president denied reports that he charges a $200,000 “appearance fee” to meet with potential investors interested in investing in Ghana.

    Adongo questions whether Dr. Bawumia claimed to have honesty because he was unaware of any payments made to him.
    A receipt for a bribe is something I’ve never seen before.

    Then he continued, “What about your lies?”

    This was contained in a Facebook post by the Bolga Central MP almost 24 hours after snippets of Tiger Eye PI latest investigative piece surfaced.

    The Vice-President after the news broke wrote on his Facebook page on Monday, November 14, 2022: “I would like to state that if what the minister is alleged to have said is accurately captured in the video, then his position as a minister of state is untenable. He should be dismissed summarily and investigated.”

    “I am not aware of any such meeting held by Minister Adu Boahen or a supposed “appearance fee”. My most cherished asset in life is my integrity and I will not allow anyone to use my name to engage in corrupt activities,” Bawumia added.

    However, Charles Adu-Boahen was sacked by the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo hours after the news broke online.

    Anas’ investigative piece titled “Galamsey Economy” aired on Monday 14th and will also air today, November 15, 2022.

  • What Adongo said when Adu-Boahen was appointed Minister

    The now-former Minister of State with responsibility for Finance should not be confirmed in 2021, according to a number of arguments made by Isaac Adongo, the member of parliament for Bolgatanga Central.

    One of the three consulting firms for government borrowing, Black Star Brokerage, was owned by Adu Boahen, according to Adongo.

    He mentioned that Adu Boahen’s Black Star Brokerage and Ken Ofori-Atta’s Databank would be sharing the profits from the government’s borrowing.

    He said this was the reason the country’s debt levels had skyrocketed since 2017, due to reckless borrowing.

    In a video during a press conference in February 2021, he said: “The Ministry of Finance headed by Messers Ken Ofori-Atta and Charles Adu Boahen just announced a list of primary dealers and introduced a new term called Bond Market Specialists. Interestingly, firms owned by these two personalities, Databank owned by Ken Ofori Atta, and Blackstar Brokerage Limited owned by Charles Adu Boahen have been selected as two of the three local investment advisory firms.”

    He added: “the duo, Ken Ofori Atta and Charles Adu Boahen have thus literally awarded to themselves through their companies the lucrative contracts that involve managing Government’s borrowing program with an estimated Ghc60 billion a year gross financing. The fees to be shared by the transaction advisors of the Government borrowing program, including Ken Ofori Atta and Charles Adu Boahen’s companies, are estimated at Ghc210 million a year.”

    Read the full article below

    This press conference was during the vetting of Charles Adu Boahen as minister of state in February 2021. Hon Isaac Adongo made a strong case for him to be rejected by the Appointments committee of Parliament!

    Please read the article and watch the video ????????

    Hon Isaac Adongo unveils the “blood-sucking vampires” at the Ministry of Finance.

    If you ever wondered why Ghana’s public debt has since 2017 been growing at an unexplained geometric sequence, the reasons are here:
    Those in charge of the borrowing, stand to personally profit from the borrowing through the reward in fees to their companies who serve as their transportation advisors.
    Whilst the corporate esteem of Ghana is on a nosedive and the future generations are being saddled with a debilitating debt, the worth of companies owned by persons at the forefront of the borrowing decisions keep soaring.

    Appointment of Databank and Black Star Brokerage as Transaction Advisors to the Ministry of Finance is a deadly combination of Ken Ofori Atta and Charles Adu Boahen in Motion without shame.

    The Ministry of Finance headed by Messers Ken Ofori-Atta and Charles Adu Boahen just announced a list of primary dealers and introduced a new term called Bond Market Specialists. Interestingly, firms owned by these two personalities, Databank owned by Ken Ofori Atta and Blackstar Brokerage Limited owned by Charles Adu Boahen have been selected as two of the three local investment advisory firms.

    The duo, Ken Ofori Atta and Charles Adu Boahen have thus literally awarded to themselves through their companies the lucrative contracts that involve managing Government’s borrowing program with an estimated Ghc60 billion a year gross financing. The fees to be shared by the transaction advisors of Government borrowing program, including Ken Ofori Atta and Charles Adu Boahen’s companies is estimated at Ghc210 million a year.

    This is a clear conflict of interest. The Minister for Finance has made the government borrowing his private business and benefit each time Government borrows through Databank either as a bookrunner or Co-Manager of Eurobond issuance.

    Ken Ofori Atta’s Databank has now been joined by Charles Adu Boahen’s Blackstar Brokerage Limited to share the spoils. The combination of this deadly team is set to further engage in reckless borrowing as evidenced in the more than doubling of Ghana’s public debt from Ghc120 billion at the beginning of 2017 to about Ghc300 billion by the end of 2020. In addition to the about Ghc180 billion increase in Ghana’s public debt, about Ghc70 billion of the end of 2016 debt of Ghc120 billion was refinanced and in some instances reprofiled between 2017 and 2020.

    This means that a total of about Ghc250 billion Government borrowing program was carried out in the last four years with Ken Ofori Atta’s Databank acting as his transaction advisors. The accrued fees shared by the transaction advisors, including Databank is estimated at 0.35% of the borrowing program of Government. That is about Ghc875 million fees paid by Ghana to these transaction advisors.
    No wonder Ghana is bleeding from excessive reckless borrowing without any meaningful benefits to the suffering taxpayers.

    This harrowing public debt program was fested on Ghanaians when only Ken Ofori Atta’s Databank was involved. I am scared for Ghana when I think of Charles Adu Boahen’s Blackstar Brokerage now joining the fray to share the spoils. How big will the Government’s borrowing program be to ensure that Databank maintains its fees income from the last four years and leave some spoils for Charles Adu Boahen’s Blackstar Brokerage to help itself with?

    Since they came to power, there is no bond transaction for government that the Minister didn’t benefit personally from through Databank and now Charles Adu Boahen through Blackstar Brokerage.

    Charles Adu Boahen who sat and is expected to sit on the Board of Bank of Ghana where Databank and Blackstar Brokerage will be operating from as transaction advisors. He also sat and is expected to sit on the Governing Board of the Securities and Exchange Commission that regulates Databank and Blackstar Brokerage Limited. The bonds and other Government debts to be issued through these companies are also expected to be approved by Charles Adu Boahen sitting on the SEC.

    As a matter of fact, any complaints relating to these companies would be directed at SEC on whose Governing Board sits Charles Adu Boahen and controlled by a former Vice President of Databank, Rev Ogbamey Tetteh who masterminded policy rollout that has collapsed the securities sector of Ghana.

    Where lies the independence of the dealers and advisers to government on borrowing. Are decisions about borrowing and interest cost being made in the interest of Ghana or private businessmen? Sheer and crude profiteering at the expense of Ghanaians. Always promoting their firms and personal interests.
    How do we protect against insider trading when the very people taking decisions on interest rates and bond structuring are themselves direct beneficiaries of the outcome of their decisions through their companies?

    Ghana has been bleeding and I fear it will bleed even more with Ken Ofori Atta and Charles Adu Boahen now hand-holding the interests of Databank and Blackstar Brokerage.

    Who watches the watchman?

  • FLASHBACK: I’m disappointed in how govt has handled matters of corruption – Prof Gyimah-Boadi

    According to Prof. Gyimah Boadi, co-founder of the Ghana Integrity Initiative, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and his administration have not dealt with corruption as they need to.

    He claims that despite the creation of avenues for solving the issue, the administration has performed poorly.

    “I consider each of these to be circumstances in which we may continue and intensify the battle against corruption.
    Prof. Gyimah-Boadi was quoted on Asaase Radio as saying, “I am, however, unhappy, especially with the current administration for its handling of allegations of corruption against its own members.

    Prof Gyimah-Boadi says government has not been proactive in fighting corruption

    Govt only interested in holding officials of previous administration accountable – Gyimah-Boadi

    Kufuor held his appointees accountable – Gyimah-Boadi

    Co-founder of the Ghana Integrity Initiative, Prof Emmanuel Gyimah-Boadi, has expressed his disappointment with the commitment of the Nana Addo Dankwa Afufo-Addo-led government to the fight against corruption.

    He said that, even though conditions necessary to fight corruption in the country had been created, the government has not properly handled corruption-related issues, particularly those that some government officials have been fingered in, asaaseradio.com reports.

    He indicated that the conditions, which include an independent media, the establishment of agencies to fight corruption like the Office of the Special Prosecutor and the passage of the Right to Information Bill, are important to ensuring accountability and transparency, but their impact is not being rightly felt.

    “I see all of these as conditions where we can sustain and deepen the fight against corruption. I am, however, disappointed, especially in the current administration for its handling of allegations of corruption against its own members,” Prof Gyimah-Boadi is quoted to have said on Asaase Radio.

    He further stated that the government was not proactive in the fight against corruption and was only interested in holding only members of the previous government accountable.

    “We have continued with the practice of being more proactive when it comes to accountability for members of the former administration and curdling, protecting and sometimes even rewarding those that are in government today that against whom allegations of corruption have been made. I would like to see in the Akufo-Addo government an example of a Mallam Issah in the Kufuor administration. I would like to see an example of Abuga Pele… I’m yet to see that in the current government, and that disappoints me,” he said.

  • IMF disagrees Ofori-Atta misreported data – Egyapa Mercer claims

    According to Andrew Kofi Egyapa Mercer, the NPP’s representative for the Sekondi Constituency in the Western Region, the Minority in Parliament is bringing up old, disproved claims against Ken Ofori-Atta, the minister of finance.

    The International Monetary Fund (IMF) reportedly rejected the claims of false reporting as inaccurate when they were initially brought up in May 2020, according to Mr. Mercer.

    Because of this, he questioned why the Minority would cite the same reasons as justification for a vote of censure against Mr. Ofori-Atta.

    The MP made the statement at the first hearing of the Ad Hoc Committee on the motion of censure brought against the Finance Minister.

    Egyapa Mercer’s claim was also in response to Dr Cassiel Ato Forson’s presentation which was centred on the misreporting of the fiscal deficit, fiscal treatment of expenditures above or below the line and general public sector accounting.

    The MP said the past Country Representative of the IMF, Dr Albert Touna Mama, had debunked the allegations on Joy News File in May when he was called to respond to them when first raised by Dr Forson.

    “Indeed, the said Dr Touna Mama was the Country Representative of the IMF. He was called to respond to allegations on misreporting of figures that the Finance Ministry had presented to IMF and he said all the figures were known by the IMF and therefore it was untrue that there was misreporting,” Mr Mercer said.

    Meanwhile, in May 2020, Dr Touna Mama said that whilst his outfit tried “as much as possible to stay out of debates” they felt compelled to clarify statements made by Fact Check Ghana concerning the $1 billion IMF COVID-19 relief fund to the government.

    Fact Check Ghana, an affiliate of the Media Foundation for West Africa, through its website, stated that government of Ghana presented data to the IMF which was different from figures in the annual budgets for 2018 and 2019.

    But speaking on Joy FM’s News File Programme in May 2020, the IMF Country Representative to Ghana, Dr. Albert Touna Mama suggested that Fact Check Ghana misrepresented the facts because the government was not the one that presented the figures that the IMF published in its statements as Fact Check Ghana reported.

    The IMF Country Director explained that the difference in figures was as a result of a difference in the methodology of calculation, adding that the figure in fiscal deficit in their statement was a figure they generated themselves from the data government presented to them, having added financial and energy sector payments in line with their methodology, which is different from government’s methodology.

    Earlier, Mr Ofori-Atta, asked the committee for a fair hearing.

    He asked that he be furnished with the documents that they intended to rely upon, to execute the motion of censure initiated against him.

    The minister’s lawyer, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, said the rules of natural justice and fair hearing required that the accused was not only heard but also necessarily be furnished with the documents that formed the bases of the allegations made against him.

    The hearing continues.

  • FDA dragged to Supreme Court over ‘no celebrities in alcoholic beverage ads’ directive

    The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has barely two weeks to file its defense in a suit brought against it regarding portions of its guidelines.

    The FDA’s directives discourage the use of celebrities in the promotion of alcoholic beverages via any medium.

    This policy forms part of efforts to ensure that minors are protected from being lured into alcoholism.

    But this, according to the plaintiff, does not augur well for the entertainment industry and robs them of potential streams of income.

    In the writ issued on November 11, the plaintiff, Mark Darlington Osae said those areas of the FDA’s 2015 regulations are tantamount to discrimination on grounds of economic status, and occupation among others.

    The artiste manager and music publisher is however praying the Supreme Court to render unconstitutional the guidelines which stipulate that “No well-known personality or professional shall be used in alcoholic beverage advertising.”

    `

    The plaintiff says it is inconsistent with and in contravention of articles 17(1) and 17 (2) of the 1992 Constitution.

    The Attorney General was also mentioned as a party to the legal action.

    This is not the first time this law has caused a stir in the entertainment industry.

    Many celebrities and public figures have had cause to vent over the situation since its introduction in 2015.

    In January 2020, musician Wendy Shay complained that the policy has made her lose valuable deals.

    Also in April this year, “Sugarcane” hitmaker, Camidoh also campaigned for his colleagues in the industry to unite against the law.

    However, no legal step has been taken for redress prior to this latest development.

  • Today in History: Ghanaians don’t take Bawumia seriously anymore – Murtala Mohammed

    According to Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed, the member of parliament for Tamale Central, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has lost his credibility and is no longer taken seriously by Ghanaians.

    Prior to the budget announcement for 2022, he made the remarks.

    “Well, I don’t think many Ghanaians take my elder brother, Dr. Bawumia anymore,” he continued, “so whatever he says, I don’t think people take him seriously. The dollar is now a fugitive, and the cedi has lost great value, and we’ve never experienced this.”

    • The Tamale Central MP wants government to show more action rather than words

    • Murtala Mohammed bemoans the increasing cost of living

    • He believes Ghanaians do not take the Vice President seriously

    Member of Parliament for Tamale Central, Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed has taken a swipe at Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia over his credibility.

    According to the lawmaker, the Ghanaian populace does not pay credence to the Vice President as he is all about just using big jargon with little to nothing to show for it.

    In an interaction with GhanaWeb ahead of the 2022 budget statement, the Tamale Central MP said, “Nothing positive will come out of the budget, this country is on its knees and this country is heading for disaster which is very clear. The finance minister will come and tell us economic jargon but what is important to the ordinary is a direct reflection of those long speeches. The conditions of life, petrol prices have increase umpteenth times and we’ve never experienced this and now the cedi is now a fugitive to the dollar.”

    He further made reference to Dr. Bawumia’s past comments on the rate of borrowing, the cedi’s performance under the erstwhile John Dramani Mahama administration.

    “Well, I do not think many Ghanaians take my senior brother, Dr. Bawumia seriously anymore and so whatever he says I do not think people take him seriously, the dollar is now a fugitive and cedi has lost its value tremendously and we’ve never experienced this”

    He further lamented the increasing price for a bag of maize on the market which he says is currently selling at astronomical prices in his constituency.

    Meanwhile, the sector Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta is however expected to deliver the 2022 budget statement before Parliament on Wednesday November 17, 2021.

    Ahead of the presentation, the Minority caucus of the House are demanding that government provides a detailed outline of its spending contained in the 2021 budget else they will teem efforts to disapprove the 2022 budget.

    The presentation of the budget is in accordance with Article 179 of the 1992 Constitution and section 21 of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921).

     

     

  • ‘Why should they spend more time in shops instead of betting online’ – Sports Minister to youth

    Mustapha Ussif, the sports minister, has observed that young people in Ghana spend their time gambling rather than engaging in worthwhile activities that promote their personal development.

    Instead of betting online, he lamented the plight of young people at numerous betting shops and centers.

    What he said was, “What I’ve seen is that the youth are congregating at these stores the whole day, becoming really addicted to gaming, instead of using their time for very useful pursuits.”

    “My main concern is that they should be spending more time in those places because you may even be doing something worthwhile today and betting online,”
    The website asaaseradio.com quotes Ussif.

    The betting economy in Ghana has become a very lucrative one as the youth of Ghana have adopted the practice as their dependent source of income.

    Some have attributed the high patronage to the high levels of unemployment in the country.

  • Fuel prices to decrease or increase – What industry players are saying

    The next pricing window is expected to see some small modifications in the cost of petroleum products, according to the Institute of Energy Security and the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC).

    According to COPEC, starting on November 16, 2022, the cost of gasoline and diesel may climb while the cost of LPG may somewhat decrease.

    The Executive Secretary of COPEC released a press release on Tuesday stating that the price of gasoline is likely to drop to 16.00 per litre.

    The statement said, “With relative stability and availability of the forex to the petroleum importation market, retail prices could likely trend downwards to 16.07/L from averages of 17.42/L. The international benchmarks experienced a little increase in price of less than $6/mt from $963.43 to $969.08.

    The price is likely to be adjusted downwards to GH¢20.25.

    “International price benchmarks have seen diesel prices decline by $123/mt from $1,220.82/mt to $1,097.35, the expected retail price average could decline from current averages of 23.43/L to averages of GH¢20.25/L.

    “International benchmarks for LPG have seen an increase of about $32 from $598.27 to $630.56, this could be expected to lead to an increase in retail price on current retail averages of 12.10/kg to a likely retail price of 13.51/kg,” the statement added.

    However, the Institute for Energy Security (IES) has projected an increase in the price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) on the local market by 4%.

    A statement by the IES said, “As a result, the IES foresees some stability in the price of Gasoline domestically. In IES’ estimation, Gasoil’s price per litre may see a slight reduction in response to the 10.11% fall in international Gasoil price. The reduction is imminent should the bulk importers decide not to price in the recent forex losses they incurred.”

    However, Oil Marketing Company, GOIL has reduced the prices of diesel and petrol as follows.

  • Ghana Bauxite Company to ramp up production to 2m MT annually

    As authorities work to realize the government’s vision of an Integrated Aluminium Industry (IAI) that seeks to add value to the resource in order to boost the local economy, the Ghana Bauxite Company (GBC) has set a target to increase its production from one million to two million metric tonnes annually.

    According to Michael Ansah, CEO of the Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC), efforts are being made to stabilize the current operations of GBC at Awaso with the help of the new partner, OPCL.

    He stated that the new outlook for GBC calls for doubling current production in the short to medium term.

    OPCL, a wholly-owned Ghanaian company, has acquired majority shares of 80 percent in GBC, which was previously held by a Chinese mining giant, Bosai Minerals Group Limited, which pulled out of operations and exited the country. The remainder, 20 percent interest, is held by GIADEC on behalf of the Government of Ghana (GoG).

    The CEO of GIADEC, speaking on the role of OPCL in executing Project 1 – one of four projects under the IAI – noted that they are assessing the capacity of OPCL to execute Project 1. This project involves the expansion of the existing Awaso mine and the building of a refinery.

    Mr. Ansah said this during a courtesy call to introduce OPCL as the new majority shareholder of GBC to the traditional leaders and people of Ahwiaso and Sefwi Bekwai in the Western North region.

    The President of the Western-North Regional House of Chiefs and Sefwi Ahwiaso Traditional Council, Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II, also speaking during the visit to his palace, commended the work of GIADEC so far.

    He particularly noted their efforts in ensuring a seamless transition from the old to the new managers of GBC, which has led to the continuity of work without any break.

    The Sefwi Ahwiaso traditional leader, who is also the President of the National House of Chiefs, noted the instrumentality of the GIADEC CEO in ensuring that there were no job losses during the transitional phase which was a major concern, especially for the local workers.

    He also commended the efforts of OPCL for taking up the management of GBC while urging them to ‘turn a new leaf in the operations of the company’, and also consider offering employment opportunities to the teeming youth in the area.

    The acting President, Katakyie Kwasi Afful, on behalf of the President of Sefwi Bekwai Traditional Council, Oyeadeyie Basape Kwadwo Armah II, reiterated the need for OPCL not to neglect the community, but see it as one of its key stakeholders.

    While pledging the support of the traditional authorities and the people to the operations of GBC under the new management of OPCL, he also charged them to contribute to the development of their host communities.

    The Executive Chairman of OPCL, Mr. Ofori Poku, on his part, expressed appreciation to the traditional leaders for their endorsement and show of support.

    He assured them that GBC recognises the traditional leaders and people in the communities as development partners, and his visit was to rekindle and further strengthen the relationship existing between them.

    The delegation from GIADEC included its Deputy CEO, Akwasi Osei-Adjei; Executive Assistant to the CEO, Kojo Yankah; Communications Manager, Sheriff Appiah; External Affairs and Sustainability Manager, Ernest Appiah; and Joseph Chibae Adjaho, a member of the Communications Team.

  • Netflix invested over $40m in Nigerian film industry – Company official

    Global streaming service, Netflix, said it had invested over $40 million in the Nigerian film industry from 2016 to 2022.

    Speaking at a Digital Content Regulation Conference in Lagos, Nigeria, Ms Shola Sanni, Director of Public Policy for Sub-Saharan Africa, Netflix, said the investments were spent on converting local film titles, capacity building and infrastructure development in the industry.

    She stated that Netflix had invested in over 200 local licensed titles, co-produced and commissioned original film content.

    Accordingly, more than 125 Nigerian films and TV series are available on Netflix as of November 2022.

    The Netflix official said the streaming service was investing heavily to ensure that all subscribers worldwide enjoyed the same content at will.

    “We love Nigeria and believe in it, which is why we are investing in the Nigerian film industry to entertain Nigerians and the world with the best-in-class stories from the country.

    Speaking at the same event, the Executive Director of the National Film And Video Censors Board (NFVCB), Adedayo Thomas said the event was an avenue to discuss regulation in the film industry, focusing on streaming services.

    “The overall goal of this conference is to create a platform for robust dialogue between the government, through the regulator and the Video-on-Demand (VOD) platforms.

    In his goodwill message, Prof. Sunday Ododo, General Manager/CEO of National Arts Theatre, Nigeria, commended Thomas for his tenacity in driving a full awareness of what the industry is doing.

    Ododo said the massive construction of over 100 million dollars at the National Theatre was geared toward making the venue super exotic for performances and exhibitions.

    “Work has reached an advanced stage, and part of the facility is ready. We will do a test run between Nov. 14 and Nov. 18, 2022,” he said, as the government strives to oversee, monitor, moderate and balance the digital phenomenon for all players.

     

  • Each Real Madrid Player Get a Free Electric BMW Car, Worth up to £109,000

    Real Madrid stars have made the switch to electric after being given free BMW cars as part of a sponsorship deal between the club and the German company.

    Players including Karim Benzema and Luka Modric, and manager Carlo Ancelotti, are among the recipients of the fully-electric BMW iXs or i4s.

    Prices for the BMW iX start at around £71,000 and can cost up to £109,000, while the i4s cost between £53,000 and £66,000.

    They were able to choose their own model and colour after being provided with the cars by BMW.

    Players had previously driven Audi cars during the club’s long-standing partnership with the company, which ended after nearly two decades earlier this year.

    Real are thought to have ditched their deal with Audi, which began in 2003, after failing to agree on a new contract following negotiations.

    The Spanish giants then entered into a partnership with BMW. Exact details have not been disclosed but local media reports claim the German car manufacturer is paying Real around £6.5million a year.

    A host of Real Madrid’s household names will have to wait to drive their new cars, however, as the majority of the first-team squad are heading to Qatar for the World Cup.

    Nine of their first XI that featured in their final match before the World Cup shutdown, the 2-1 win over Cadiz last Thursday, have been picked for their national side.

    The tournament begins with the opening game between Qatar and Ecuador on Sunday.

     

  • Reviving ailing, abandoned factories could aid recovery process – Economics lecturer

    According to Dr. Nkechi S. Owoo, an economics lecturer at the University of Ghana, a purposeful plan to work with the private sector to restore struggling and abandoned enterprises will give the nation’s recovery from the current economic crisis new vitality.

    While the nation spends billions on importing goods that some of these companies could make, domestic producers like Pwalugu Tomato Factory, Komenda Sugar Factory, Tema Oil Refinery, Volta Aluminum Company (VALCO), Akosombo Textiles Limited, and Wenchi Tomato Factory, among others, have either shut down or are struggling to survive.

    However, Dr. Owoo, a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Economics, in an attempt to proffer solutions to the current economic crisis characterised by high inflation of 40.4 percent, high cost of living, the rising cost of fuel, and a fast-depreciating cedi, opined that these companies, if revived and retooled, have huge a potential to help restore relative stability.

    “These companies can reduce our import bills on sugar, rice and tomato, and serve as raw materials for industries,” she added.

    Dr. Owoo said this during the 46th Annual General Meeting of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) in Accra and explained that the government could partner with the private sector to revamp them as part of an import substitution strategy, or under a broader plan to shift from import reliance to local manufacturing.

    She spoke on the theme ‘Ghana’s Cyclical Economic Crisis: Time for Bold Policies to Address the Economic Structure’, and said reviving abandoned or struggling domestic manufacturers would offer both short and long-term gains – adding real value to the economy and boosting the recovery process.

    It will also help strengthen the domestic currency which has lost over 50 percent of its value against the United States dollar this year by reducing imports, as well as creating quality jobs for young Ghanaian men and women, she said.

    While the government has constantly blamed the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia-Ukraine fight for the current economic situation, Dr. Owoo – just like many economists and business associations like the GNCCI – holds the view that the import-reliant structure of the economy makes it very susceptible to external shocks.

    For the President of the GNCCI, Clement Osei-Amoako, the government should encourage multinationals to keep a certain percentage of their earnings with local banks.

    This measure, if properly implemented, would shore up the country’s foreign currency reserve and further strengthen the domestic currency, he noted.

    “It is high time, as a country, we lived within our means. The acceptance of a fiscal deficit in the nation’s finances is unacceptable, and has been the reason for the government competing with the private sector for capital with a high-interest rate,” he said.

    Mr. Osei-Amoako further lamented that a high-interest rate remains a major obstacle to the growth of the private sector, hence, it should be tackled with all seriousness.

  • World Cup 2022: Ghana to pull off surprise in Qatar

    Ghana’s trump card in its fourth FIFA World Cup adventure in Qatar is that it has a solid technical team, which is more scientific than superstition. Moreso, the demon that bedevilled the Black Stars’ promising campaign in Brazil 2014 seems to have been exorcised.

    Having relegated the thorny issue of religious beliefs and player bonuses to the background, indications are that the Stars will shine again in Qatar as they did in their first two Mundial outings at Germany 2006 and South Africa 2010.

    Even in its worst experience in Brazil due to the infamous appearance fee brouhaha, Ghana did not disgrace itself on the field of play as it exited the tournament with the enviable record of playing the best game of the tournament against the eventual champions, Germany.

    Coincidentally, the man who scouted the Ghanaians for Coach Kwasi Appiah in that rubber match that ended 2-2 in Fortaleza is the current Ghana coach, Otto Addo. Coach Addo, who incidentally was part of Ghana’s debut World Cup squad in his native Germany, has been widely described by pundits as a rookie for good reasons. Apart from tasting the Mundial as both a player and a scout, this will be the first time he will be leading a team to the FIFA World Cup as the main man.

    Surprise element

    Quite contrary to public opinion, this could be the surprise element for Ghana at the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup. Otto’s national team background, coupled with his sensitive role as a transitional coach and a scout in Borussia Dortmund, clearly defines him as a student of the modern game, same as his assistants, George Boateng, Mas-Ud Didi Dramani, and the technical director, Chris Hughton.

    These are men of few words who prefer to let their results speak for them.

    For instance, how these four technical brains turned the tide in their favour in the crunch World Cup playoff against a highly-fancied Super Eagles side in March should be enough signal for Ghana’s opponents. Even after the Black Stars’ poor showing against Brazil and Nicaragua, which saw them losing 0-3 and winning 1-0 respectively last September, Coach Addo did not put up a defence but humbly admitted his mistakes and rather saw the setback as a learning curve to help build a more formidable team for the Qatar campaign.

    It is this telepathy among the technical team and consistency in player selection that could still do the trick for Ghana in the tight Group H, which has all three opponents rated high above them. Currently, Portugal, which is considered among the favourites of the tournament, is rated ninth in the FIFA rankings, while Uruguay and South Korea are 14th and 28th respectively. Unfortunately, Ghana is placed 61st, which also makes it the lowest-ranked team in this year’s tournament.

    History

    However, much as statistics play a key role in the modern game, history has also proved that high-ranking teams do not always have their way at the World Cup. A case in point was at Germany 2006 where Ghana shocked better-ranked teams like the Czech Republic and the USA to qualify after losing 0-2 to Italy in the opening group game. Similarly, another surprise package awaited 2014 champions, Germany, who nearly tasted defeated at the hands of Ghana in a tournament which saw them humiliate host nation, Brazil, 7-1 in front of the home fans on their way to winning their fourth world title.

    But for Luis Suarez’s mischief in South Africa 12 years ago, the World Cup narrative would have been different for Ghana and Africa as a whole as the Black Stars ran riot against better-rated opponents such as Serbia and the USA, after drawing 1-1 with Australia in another cagey encounter. This is the rich history the current generation hopes to build on in Qatar. Ghana has the men to cause an upset despite the underdog tag. Despite having adequate preparation time, the team seems to have quality in-depth, with standby players such as Joseph Paintsil, Jeffrey Schlupp, Majeed Ashimeru, Felix Afena Gyan and others all being potential starters.

    Notwithstanding the hullabaloo surrounding the selection of the final 26-man squad, Coach Addo and his colleagues deserve a pat on the back for their tenacity and focus on the bigger picture. A closer look at Otto Addo’s call-ups since assuming duty in February reveals a consistent trend, which gives little room for outsiders. But for the recent introduction of a few players who switched nationality, the character of the team would not have changed much. However, the inclusion of the likes of Inaki Williams, Tariq Lamptey, Mohammed Salisu and the rest has not changed the team’s game plan but has rather enriched the 3-5-2, 4-3-3 and 3-5-1-1 variations with more options to the coaches.

    Player selection

    Combining a strict rule of consistency in national team games, tactical discipline and high performance at the club level, the Stars technical team left no room for compromises, leading to the selection of a compact 26-man team, which they believed could make the nation proud in Qatar. Under the current circumstance, the only exception to the rule might be France-based Salis Abdul Samed and Kamal Sowah of Belgium, whose exceptional performances for their clubs cannot be overlooked.

    Aside from that, Salis’ role as a defensive midfielder is crucial to the Ghana team, the same as Sowah whose presence will beef up the attack, which is the weakest link. Just like the attack, goalkeepers Jojo Wollacott and Richard Ofori are not convincing enough. However, the midfield is rich with talents such as Thomas Partey, Mohammed Kudus, Daniel Kofi Kyereh, Baba Iddrisu, Salis, Alidu Seidu, Osman Bukari, Andre Ayew, Jordan Ayew and Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, while the defence is equally solid with top performers such as Daniel Amartey, Denis Odoi, Tariq Lamptey, Gideon Mensah, Alexander Djiku, Mohammed Salisu, Joseph Aidoo and Baba Abdul Rahman.

    All other things being equal, the final team to be named by Otto Addo today is expected to be balanced enough to meet the demands of the World Cup. As he confessed after the Brazil test, Otto has learnt their lessons going into the final friendly against Switzerland in Abu-Dhabi on Thursday.

    He is, therefore, expected to make no room for experiments as he did against Brazil but tests his probable line-up for the group opener against Portugal on November 24 in Thursday’s exercise.

    Assistant Coach, Didi Dramani, summed up the Stars’ resolve to excel in Qatar by saying that the team would be ready for the tournament after the game against the Swiss. In that case, Ghanaians will expect to see an inspiring dress rehearsal from the Black Stars on Thursday to raise their hopes for another memorable Mundial experience in the coming weeks.

    The Ghanaian contingent is scheduled to resume camping in Abu Dhabi today to finalise preparations for Switzerland, before flying to Doha on Friday for their fourth World Cup campaign.

    Key Players: Andre Ayew, Thomas Partey, Mohammed Kudus, Mohammed Salisu, Daniel Amartey, Inaki Williams Coach: Otto Addo

    Group fixtures:

    November 24: Portugal v Ghana

    November 28: South Korea v Ghana

    December 2: Ghana v Uruguay

  • 3 Ghanaian celebrities who have studied law

    After solidifying their stance among some of the hottest names in the Ghanaian entertainment industry, these Ghanaian celebrities have registered their brands in the law society as well.

    Yes, these individuals after obtaining their university degrees, have taken a step further to pursue a degree in law.

    Perhaps for a diversity of career paths or maybe to fulfil their passion, these Ghanaian celebrities have taken the pain out of their busy schedules to dedicate a number of years to fulfil this dream.

    It is also interesting to note that some of these individuals, in spite of having wealthy backgrounds still pursued academic excellence.

    In the case of others, the public is having a hard time believing that they indeed studied law and this is due to their controversial lifestyle on social media.

    With that said, let’s take a look at some celebrities who either attained a law degree or have been called to the bar.

    Sandra Ankobiah

    Aside from being widely known as a fashionista and a socialite, Sandra Ankobiah studied International and Commercial Law with a specialization in World Trade, from the University of Buckingham.

    Sandra has had to endure unpleasant comments about her capabilities, especially as a lawyer all these years and that is perhaps as a result of her flashy lifestyle on social media.

    The 2002 second runner-up of the Miss Ghana beauty pageant was officially called to the bar in 2013 after passing out from the Ghana School of Law (Makola).

    She was a part of some 39 students who were inducted into the noble profession by then Chief Justice, Georgina Theodora Wood.

    Kennedy Osei

    Kennedy Osei Asante, General Manager of Despite Media, and the son of popular businessman Dr. Osei Kwame Despite was called to the bar on Friday, November 11, 2022.

    The 36-year-old businessman gained prominence after his opulent wedding driven by a hashtag #Kency2020 went viral on social media.

    Aside from managing his father’s empire, Kennedy owns a fashion line named, ‘Kency by AV’ together with his wife Tracy.

    Although he seems to have his life well put together, Ken is fulfilling his passion for law.

    Naa Ashorkor Mensah-Doku

    Naa Ashorkor is a flourishing Ghanaian actress, brand influencer, and broadcaster.

    She has worked with a number of media companies and has established her feat in the industry but away from all the spotlight, she holds an LLB degree from the University of Ghana Law School.

    Naa Ashorkor graduated in 2015.

    Unlike Kennedy and Sandra, Naa Ashorkor has not been called to the bar yet.

  • World Cup 2022: I’m not surprised of Afriyie Barnieh’s inclusion in Ghana squad – Samuel Inkoom

    Former Ghana defender Samuel Inkoom says he was not surprised of Daniel Afriyie Barnieh’s inclusion in Ghana’s World Cup final squad.

    Barnieh, who been instrumental for the Phobians was included in the 26-man squad for the mundial released on Monday and will compete in his first World Cup with the Black Stars.

    The Black Meteors captain was among the two-home based players to have made Coach Otto Addo’s final 26-man squad for the tournament.

    Afriyie-Barnieh was with his teammates and coach when the squad was announced on Monday, November 14.

    According to Inkoom, Barnieh’s inclusion in the Black Stars did not come as a surprise to him due to his outstanding performance for Hearts of Oak.

    “I’m happy for him because you can see that he is doing very well and I’m surprised that he is in the squad. I think when you are doing a good job, you deserve to be honoured. In my opinion I am very happy for him but the most important thing is that he has to believe in himself, he has go there and show that he can do it and I believe he can do it”

    “He has a lot of potential but what he has to do is to stay focus, work hard and I think that the sky will be his limit” he said.

    Ghana will open their campaign against Portugal on November 24 at Stadium 974 in Doha.

    Four days later, the Black Stars return to action with a clash with South Korea at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan.

    Ghana will wrap up their group stage adventure with their much-anticipated encounter with Uruguay at Al Janoub Stadium in Al Wakrah.

    The Black Stars having missed out in the last edition hosted in Russia in 2018 will be hoping to improve their performance in Qatar after exiting the group phase during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

    Only three sides from the continent have ever progressed to the quarter-finals; Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002, and Ghana in 2010.

    Ghana will be hoping to progress from the group stage at this year’s tournament.

  • FLASHBACK: Why Akufo-Addo is ashamed to mention the word ‘corruption’ – Manasseh Azure Awuni explains

    The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, does not want to include the word “corruption” in his speeches due to his performance on the matter, according to investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni.

    Manasseh noted that in none of the president’s addresses to the country in 2021, the word was used.

    And for the first time in 13 years, he added, “the president’s statement did not contain the words corruption, graft, or its analogues.”

    He added, “he [Akufo-Addo] is so guilty, and I think the word ‘corruption’ is now too heavy for him to mention, and that would be for anybody who has any sense of shame.”

    President Akufo-Addo has stopped mentioning the word ‘corruption’

    Manasseh said, it never featured in any of his SONA

    He assumed because the President is ashamed

     

    Manasseh Azure Awuni, an investigative journalist, has been explaining why President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is ashamed to mention ‘corruption’ in his speeches following an abysmal performance by his administration to fight the canker.

    Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express programme on Tuesday, January 25, 2022, Azure Awuni attributed the President’s failure to use the word ‘corruption’ in his speeches as a sign that he [Akufo-Addo] is feeling guilty.

    He said, in 2021 despite President Akufo-Addo giving two State of the Nation addresses, the word ‘corruption’ or any of its synonyms did not feature in his addresses.

    “And this was the first time in 13 years since the word corruption, graft or its synonyms failed to feature in the president’s statement,” Manasseh Azure Awuni said.

    He added, “he [Akufo-Addo] is so guilty and I think the word ‘corruption’ is now too heavy for him to mention and that would be for anybody who has any sense of shame.

    “You should be ashamed as a president to mention corruption or your fight against it if these are the realities on the ground.”

    The journalist made these remarks due to Ghana’s stagnated performance on the Corruption Perception Index, where Ghana managed to rake 43 points out of 100, just like it did the previous year.

    Transparency International report indicated that, “Ghana [has] failed to make progress in the fight against corruption in the year 2021 as the score of 43 is the same as the country’s 2020 score.”

    Ghana ranked 73 out of 180 countries/territories on the Index and 9th in Sub-Saharan Africa.

  • World Cup 2022: Portugal’s Ruben Diaz will be a tough opponent – Antoine Semenyo

    Ghana international Antoine Semenyo has opened up on facing Ruben Diaz at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

    The Bristol City forward is one of the strikers named in Otto Addo’s squad for the World Cup in Qatar.

    And according to him, he sees the Portugal defender as one who can pose threat to him at the mundial.

    Semenyo is expected to play a role in the opener against Portugal on November 24 and the 22-year-old has already set sights on the clash against Manchester City’s Ruben Diaz.

    “Portugal, Ruben Diaz, he will be a tough opponent and one of the best world. I want to see where I am at against him and push myself to the limit. I can’t wait,” he told Bristol City media

    .

    Ghana will open their campaign against Portugal on November 24 at Stadium 974 in Doha.

    Four days later, the Black Stars return to action with a clash with South Korea at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan.

    Ghana will wrap up their group stage adventure with their much-anticipated encounter with Uruguay at Al Janoub Stadium in Al Wakrah.

    The Black Stars having missed out in the last edition hosted in Russia in 2018 will be hoping to improve their performance in Qatar after exiting the group phase during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

    Only three sides from the continent have ever progressed to the quarter-finals; Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002, and Ghana in 2010.

    Ghana will be hoping to progress from the group stage at this year’s tournament.

  • Donald Trump dances with daughter Tiffany at her wedding

    Many thought that Donald Trump’s farewell to the White House might defuse controversies surrounding the former president of the United States, but that hasn’t been the case. The media continues to closely follow Trump’s every move and a result, he continues to steal the headlines.

    After the polls marked the defeat of the Republican party in the U.S. Senate elections, the latest development in the Trump family has had nothing to do with politics, but the celebration of the highly anticipated wedding of Tifanny Trump, where Donald clearly had a very good time.

    Donald Trump celebrates his daughter’s wedding by dancing and dedicating a few words to the new couple.

    The daughter of the former president recently had her wedding ceremony with Michael Boulos at one of the most elegant resorts on the Florida coast, the Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach.

    During the wedding, Donald Trump not only walked Tiffany down the aisle as tradition dictates, but also dedicated a few words to the new couple: “Michael you better take care of her. You are certainly a special person with a maturity beyond your years. You are two spectacular people and this day will be precious for everyone,” said the former president.

    As reported by the American media Page Six, Trump was in a very good mood that night and showed it on the dance floor where, with his daughter, he danced to ‘Here comes the sun’ before commencing a party that would last all night.

     

  • Brazil paid GFA $90,000 for pre-World Cup friendly game – Sports Minister Mustapha Ussif

    Sports Minister Mustapha Ussif has disclosed that Brazil paid the Ghana Football Association (GFA) $90,000 for the pre-World Cup friendly in September.

    Black Stars suffered a humiliating 3-0 defeat to the five-time World champions at the Stade Oceane Le Havre, France.

    Tottenham striker Richarlison combined twice with Neymar, sweeping into the bottom corner from the edge of the area, before meeting a free-kick.

    “Per the agreement I have sighted, Brazil paid the Ghana Football Association $90,000 for the friendly match.”

    “We could have gotten more but because it was (at) very short (notice),brazilhad a lot of African nations to play and because it was (at) short notice you either take it or leave and Ghana too needed the game,” Mustapha Ussif said in an interview on Joy Sports.

    Ghana will play an International friendly against Switzerland at the Baniyas club stadium on Thursday, November 17, 2022 to conclude their preparations for the World Cup.

    Black Stars. who are the lowest-ranked team at the tournament have been drawn in Group H alongside Portugal, South Korea and Uruguay.

    Ghana will take on Portugal in their first game on November 24 before playing South Korea and Uruguay on November 28 and December 2 respectively.

  • Tiffany Trump marries Michael Boulos in lavish Florida ceremony

    Former President Donald Trump escorted his 29-year-old daughter down the aisle and kissed her on the cheek before she exchanged vows with her now-husband, 25, in Mar-a-Lago on Saturday.

    Donald Trump, Tiffany Trump

    Up Next

    In the images exclusively obtained by Page Six, the “Bad…
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    The couple exchanged vows underneath a gazebo adorned with flowers.
    Larry Marano for NY Post

    The bride — who stunned in a long-sleeved, beaded wedding dress by Elie Saab — said “I do” to her new spouse in front of an altar adorned with a halo of blue, pink, and white flowers.

    Enlarge Image
    Tiffany — pictured here with her new husband, mom, Marla Maples and dad — chose an Elie Saab dress with long sleeves and intricate beading.
    Hy Goldberg for Denis Leon & Co.

    The lush floral arrangement notably matched the bridesmaids’ light blue gowns.

    See Tiffany Trump and Michael Boulos’ first dance as husband and wife at Mar-a-Lago wedding

    Tiffany’s half-sister, Ivanka Trump, pulled up to the venue earlier on Saturday for the wedding clad in her flowing dress.

    tiffany-trump-wedding-17

    Up Next

    In the images exclusively obtained by Page Six, the “Bad…

    Ivanka’s husband, Jared Kushner, their 11-year-old daughter, Arabella, and sons, Joseph Frederick, 9, and Theodore James, 6, were seen snapping some family pics outside of the venue.

    tiffany-trump-wedding-29

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    In the images exclusively obtained by Page Six, the “Bad…
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    Entertainers were positioned by a Mar-a-lago pool.
    philippefaresboulos/Instagram

    Tiffany’s older half-brother, Eric Trump, also took some photos with his family — including wife Lara Trump and their kids, son Eric, 5, and daughter Carolina, 3 — before the ceremony kicked off.

    Ivanka Trump

    Up Next

    In the images exclusively obtained by Page Six, the “Bad…

    Ivanka Trump

    Up Next

    In the images exclusively obtained by Page Six, the “Bad…

    Although Tiffany’s lavish nuptials seemingly ended in bliss, the planning process wasn’t as smooth sailing.

    Just days before the big event, Tiffany was reportedly “flipping out” after her “welcome dinner” was jeopardized due to Hurricane Nicole.

    tiffany-trump-wedding-11

    Up Next

    In the images exclusively obtained by Page Six, the “Bad…

    “They’ve sent staff home. Tiffany is still there,” an insider told us Thursday, referencing Donald’s luxurious Palm Beach residence.

    “Some guests came in for the week, and they had all these things planned. It was going to be a whole over-the-top thing,” the source continued. “They had to cancel events today and canceled a golf outing for tomorrow. Everyone is stuck inside.”

    tiffany-trump-wedding-13

    Up Next

    In the images exclusively obtained by Page Six, the “Bad…

    Hurricane Nicole slammed into Florida earlier this week and shut down Palm Beach International Airport, which affected who was able to fly in for the couple’s big day.

    A source previously told us that the newlyweds were expecting 500 guests to attend their Mar-a-Lago nuptials. It was unclear at the time just how many people had to change their RSVP due to the storm.

    Enlarge Image
    Wedding guests mingled beneath lush floral arrangements.
    VEM/MIAMIPIXX / BACKGRID

    “Tiffany has been waiting to plan a very big wedding,” the insider told us. “Her fiancé is from a very wealthy family, she is from a very wealthy family, and they want all their friends from around the world to be there.”

    Tiffany-Trump-marries-Michael-Boulos-0004

    Up Next

    In the images exclusively obtained by Page Six, the “Bad…

    Thankfully, the couple were able to get their marriage license on Tuesday — just hours before the Palm Beach County Courthouse was also forced to shut down for the week.

    While the weather may have thrown a wrench in some of the socialite’s plans, Tiffany was able to celebrate her bridal shower last weekend alongside her sisters and closest friends.

    Enlarge Image
    The twosome got married at Mar-a-Lago in Florida over the weekend.
    Instagram/Tiffany Trump

    Tiffany and Boulos met back in 2018 while he was studying at City University of London and she was on vacation in Europe.

    Boulos, whose family owns a multibillion-dollar conglomerate of companies, then proposed to Tiffany in the White House Rose Garden in January 2021.

    He got down on one knee with a custom 13-carat sparkler worth $1.2 million.

  • FDA arrests illegal traditional medicine producer in Wa

    The Upper West Regional office of the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), over the weekend, arrested one Emmanuel Bapuorador, in Wa, for engaging in the production and sale of substances considered as traditional medicine without certification.

    Emmanuel is said to have been producing the substance in liquid, powdered, and ointment form labeled as “God’s Blessing Herbal”.

    The label indicated that the substances could cure waist pains, stomach and body pains during pregnancy, general body pains, frequent urination, malaria, fever, diarrhea, and impotency among others.

    Emmanuel, who is in his mid-40s, was arrested at Zongo, a suburb of Wa, where he produced and packaged the substances in a single room.

    Mr Kelvin Dafaari, the Acting Upper West Regional Head of the FDA, who led a team to arrest the suspect, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that his outfit acted upon a tip-off by a prospective consumer of the products.

    “We had a call that this young man was moving around selling drugs at the Wa Magazine, so we traced and went to the Wa Magazine but when he saw us, he run away.

    So, we mounted surveillance on him, and we had him on Thursday, November 10, 2022, in the night when he was somewhere selling the drugs,” he explained.

    Mr Dafaari indicated that Emmanuel initially resisted arrest until he was coerced to take the team to the single room, where he produced his medicine.

    “He even told us that the product was registered, we asked for the registration certificate or registration letter from the FDA, but he gave us a programme agenda, which he attended in Bono and that is what he is using and saying that FDA has registered his products,” he said.

    Mr Dafaari explained that preliminary checks on the product indicated that it was a single product with different labels and marketed as cure for different conditions.

    He said the suspect had been handed over to the Police to help in the investigation after which the FDA would sanction him according to the Public Health Act.

    Also, the single room where he produced the products have been locked up.

    The Ag. Regional FDA Boss explained that Emmanuel would be recommended to go through the necessary certification processes if they find out the efficacy of his medicine and check to get a proper place of production that met the FDA standard.

    Emmanuel has revealed that he hailed from Subinso, around Wenchi in the Bono Region and had been in the business for the past five years, but his products were not yet registered with the FDA.

    Mr Dafaari advised the public to desist from patronizing drugs from drug peddlers since drug peddling was illegal.

    “Go to the licensed Over the Counter medicine seller or pharmacy to buy drugs. Stop buying drugs from people who go around selling drugs even if they tell you they are licensed,” he admonished.

    Source: GNA

  • LIVESTREAMING: Censure committee sittings to probe Ofori-Atta

    Alban Bagbin, on Thursday, November 10 constituted an ad hoc committee to probe allegations in a vote of a censure motion against the embattled Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.

    The 8-member ad hoc committee was made of Members of Parliament elected by the leadership of both sides of the House.

    Their main task is to probe the seven allegations contained in the censure motion filed late last month by Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu, which motion is seeking the removal of Ofori-Atta from office.

    The committee is expected to submit a report within 7 days.

    It will be chaired by Member of Parliament (MP) for Adansi Asokwa, Kobina Tahir (K.T.) Hammond and the MP for Bolgatanga Dominic Akuritinga Ayine.

    The three members from the Minority side are:

    MP for North Tongu; Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa;

    MP for Korle Klottey, Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings; and

    MP for Akatsi South, Bernard Ahiafor.

    From the Majority caucus, the members include:

    MP for Okaikwei Central, Patrick Yaw Boamah;

    MP for Asante-Akim Central, Michael Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi; and

    MP for Sekondi, Andrew Kofi Agyapa Mercer.

    Proceedings will be televised live.

    Source: Ghanaweb

  • I’m the most educated person in my family – Despite’s son

    Ghanaian businessman and son to one of Ghana’s wealthiest men, Kennedy Osei, has prided himself in being the most educated person in his family.

    Speaking at his graduation ceremony party held on November 13, 2022, he noted that no one can tell him his father is a lawyer and being a lawyer is no news as many keep caging him in his (Despite) shadow because of his wealth.

    “I can proudly say that I am the most educated person in my family right now. There is no lawyer in my family. I am the first. Nobody can come and tell me that this is normal and that, my father has done it and I am doing it too,” he expressed.

    According to Kennedy, he will forever be in his father’s shadow but his only pride is the fact that he has made his family proud by being a lawyer.

    Furthermore, he acknowledged his father and asked that he be called the ‘Lawyers father’ because no matter what he accomplishes in his life, it will all be in his father’s name.

    “Look my daddy has done a lot, where he has gotten to, even if I want to go on the international ground it will still be on the foundation of my dad. The only thing I can actually boast of now and forever is that I am a lawyer.

    “You see. In all this, however, I got money and I finished school. Whatever I do, it’s still my dad. So when you write about me, write about the son of Dr Osei Kwame Despite. If he says he hasn’t done anything in his life, he has birthed a lawyer. Don’t call him Kennedy’s father, call him lawyer’s father,” he added.

  • I failed two papers in Law School – Despite’s son Kennedy Osei

    Kennedy Osei has recounted how he failed two papers while studying at the Ghana School of Law, Makola.

    Speaking at his graduation party, the father of two disclosed that it is tough being in law school as he didn’t expect to have failed in Company Law, a course he thought he was familiar with because he sat on a Board and studied business at the University of Ghana.

    Explaining further, he noted that he studied hard with the help of his friends and passed when he had to re-sit them.

    “It was difficult. If you get into law school it’s challenging. Before you graduate you would have suffered so much for it. When I got in, I had gotten very close to Dennis and Dennis told me that ‘Ken, you in law school is news. In law school, when you fail it’s normal but when you fail, it’s not normal. When you fail, it’s news.

    “So. I was like ‘ah, Dennis koraa what is this he has told me because it’s making me restless’. It will always be on my mind so we went through the first part, six papers and I failed two. When I had to resit those papers Mr Ken will have to call me at 6 am and ask me, ‘Hey Ken, where are you? Get up I am coming.’ He will come and sit with me and we will have to learn and madam (Tracy) and madam will be cooking for us,” he shared.

    According to Kennedy, he had told his father there was a reason for him to have failed his papers because it wasn’t ordinary if he was heading a company and was familiar with the laws.

    “Look when the results came, as if I was mad. I tore the papers into shreds. I was telling my dad a few days ago that those papers that I failed, there was a reason for it. Because it’s not normal for me to fail Company Law when I sit on a board and deal with companies.

    “I did business at the University of Ghana, and I have gone to do finance. It was normal. So I didn’t understand why I had to fail those papers so, I had to kill it once and for all,” he added.

    Meanwhile, Kennedy in jest said he expects to be duly referred to as Esquire because it was not easy attaining that height.

    “I am very happy you can call me a lawyer. If you make a mistake and you write my name and you don’t add Esquire to it, I will fight with you,” he said.

  • Veterans Administration calls for honour for living heroes

    The Veterans Administration Ghana (VAG) is calling on the citizenry to honour its living heroes by patronizing the poppy.

    The Administration maintains that the sacrifices made by the Ex-Servicemen during the first and second World Wars are worth emulating.

    Speaking on the sidelines of the 77th Remembrance Day Observation at the Christiansburg Commonwealth War Cemetery at Osu, the Executive Director of Veterans Administration Ghana, Captain Retired Ben Duah urged the media to create more awareness about the wearing of the poppy.

    The poppy is a red petal symbol of remembrance that represents the blood of soldiers who died during the first and Second World Wars.

    The Observation was attended by the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, who later signed the Remembrance Book located at the Memorial Ark.

    “The awareness of the poppy is still not there. It is sinking very low, and I don’t think it is fair to people who sacrificed their lives for us. A nation which does not appreciate or honour its heroes is not worth dying for.”

    “So if we believe that people deserve to be honoured, after they have made such sacrifices, then I think we should show our appreciation in a more positive manner than what we are doing today.”

    The Remembrance Day is a ceremony of silence held at 11 am on the 11th day of the 11th month to remember the people who have died in wars around the world.

    Source: Citinews

  • World Cup 2022: Africa can make an impact – Samuel Eto

    Cameroonian Football Federation President, Samuel Eto‘o believes African nations will make an impact at the 2022 World Cup.

    Africa’s best performance at the Mundial is playing in the quarterfinal with any country yet to win the prestigious trophy.

    Ghana, Senegal, Morocco, Cameroon, and Tunisia will represent Africa at the 22nd edition of the Mundial.

    However, the legendary Cameroonian striker believes that an African nation is ready to win the World Cup.

    The former Barcelona and Inter Milan forward hinted that Cameroon can win the ultimate.

    “Africa has always had the potential to achieve a successful World Cup, but we haven’t always shown our best face up to now,” he told ESPN.

    “During the years, African teams have acquired more and more experience, and I think they’re ready not only to participate in a World Cup but also to win it.

    “Cameroun will win the World Cup final against Morocco,” he added.

    The World Cup will start from 20th November to 18th December 2022.

  • Swiss Ambassador discusses urban mobility, waste management with Mayor of Accra

    The Mayor of Accra, Elizabeth Kwatsoe Tawiah Sackey has assured of her commitment towards strengthening the existing relationship between Accra and Switzerland.

    She made this known when the new Switzerland Ambassador to Ghana, Her Excellency Simone Giger called on her at the Accra City Hall on Tuesday to formally introduce herself to the city administration and explore areas of collaboration.

    The purpose of her visit touched on areas such as urban mobility, waste management, climate change, women empowerment and sister-city relationship, among others.

    Ambassador Simone Giger in a remark outlined urban mobility and waste management as some areas that needed adept intervention adding that urban mobility is one of the areas where there could be a high impact with financial resources available.

    “I think it is certainly one key area that is very striking when you arrive here and that’s urban transport. I feel urban mobility is one of the things where we can have quite a high impact with our limited financial resources that we have available” she said.

    The Mayor of Accra, Elizabeth Kwatsoe Tawiah Sackey in her welcome address highlighted some areas of collaboration including climate change, women empowerment, and solid waste management among others.

    She reiterated the Assembly’s ardent effort to mitigate the issue of solid waste management and cited solid waste separation and the procurement of street sweepers as some actions her outfit had already set in motion to address the canker of filth.

    “Recently, there was a take-off in operations concerning solid waste separation to manage the amount of waste that is received by the city to help in proper waste management.”

    Concerning that as well, the mayor also said, “hopefully, this month we’ll be launching the Sweepers on the Streets Programme with respect to how to manage Street Sweepers like it is done in Europe” she noted.

    On solid waste management, her Excellency Simone Giger lauded the Mayor for her efforts to champion and rid the city of filth.

    However according to her, even though a lot has been done so far to tackle the issue of solid waste management, she believes the problem is still prevalent suggesting possible solutions that can be put in place to curb the problem.

    She also disclosed that her outfit was ready to assist the Assembly in terms of resources to tackle the issue of urban mobility in Accra citing a possible partnership with heads of transport in the various MMDAs to regulate public transport and improve data collection.

    “We have been working together with the cooperation for the Ghana urban mobility and accessibility project. This is a project that wants to assist the heads of transport within the MMDA’s to regulate public transport and of course, also improve data collection. The very good news here is that we have 1 million in grant funding to ease six notoriously congesting junctions and integrate into the Accra region” she added.

    The Lady Mayor of Accra, Hon Sackey also proposed a capacity-building program for staff, through exchange programs for individuals of the Assembly to acquire knowledge on climate change and global warming as well as solutions to combat climate risks.

    The Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Hon Elizabeth Kwatsoe Tawiah Sackey expressed appreciation to the Swiss Ambassador, Her Excellency Simone Giger and was looking forward to partnering with her outfit to undertake the aforementioned projects.

    Ambassador Simone Giger who leads an all-female management team at the Swiss Embassy was accompanied by Simone Harberli, Deputy Head of Mission and Head of Cooperation.

    Present at the meeting was the Presiding Member of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Hon. Alfred Adjei, Head of Development Planning, Richard Kwame Oduro, Director of Finance for the AMA, Francis Anaba and the Director for Transport, Alex Johnson, among others.

  • A/R: One more suspect arrested for disturbances at NDC executives election

    The Police have arrested one more suspect in connection with the disturbances which occurred during the Ashanti regional National Democratic Congress (NDC) executives election held on Sunday, 13th November 2022.

    The arrest of suspect Bashiru Atta brings to four the total number of persons arrested over the disturbances.

    Meanwhile accused persons Yahya Shaibu Tia and Fati Ibrahimwho were earlier arrested were on Monday November 14 arraigned before the Atwima Akropong District Court.

    Accused Yahya Shaibu Tia was remanded into Police custody to reappear before the court on November 21, 2022, while Fati Ibrahim was granted bail with three sureties.

  • 3 Ghanaian celebrities who have studied law

    After solidifying their stance among some of the hottest names in the Ghanaian entertainment industry, these Ghanaian celebrities have registered their brands in the law society as well.

    Yes, these individuals after obtaining their university degrees, have taken a step further to pursue a degree in law.

    Perhaps for a diversity of career paths or maybe to fulfil their passion, these Ghanaian celebrities have taken the pain out of their busy schedules to dedicate a number of years to fulfil this dream.

    It is also interesting to note that some of these individuals, in spite of having wealthy backgrounds still pursued academic excellence.

    In the case of others, the public is having a hard time believing that they indeed studied law and this is due to their controversial lifestyle on social media.

    With that said, let’s take a look at some celebrities who either attained a law degree or have been called to the bar

    Sandra Ankobiah

    Aside from being widely known as a fashionista and a socialite, Sandra Ankobiah studied International and Commercial Law with a specialization in World Trade, from the University of Buckingham.

    Sandra has had to endure unpleasant comments about her capabilities, especially as a lawyer all these years and that is perhaps as a result of her flashy lifestyle on social media.

    The 2002 second runner-up of the Miss Ghana beauty pageant was officially called to the bar in 2013 after passing out from the Ghana School of Law (Makola).

    She was a part of some 39 students who were inducted into the noble profession by then Chief Justice, Georgina Theodora Wood.

    Kennedy Osei

    Kennedy Osei Asante, General Manager of Despite Media, and the son of popular businessman Dr. Osei Kwame Despite was called to the bar on Friday, November 11, 2022.

    The 36-year-old businessman gained prominence after his opulent wedding driven by a hashtag #Kency2020 went viral on social media.

    Aside from managing his father’s empire, Kennedy owns a fashion line named, ‘Kency by AV’ together with his wife Tracy.

    Although he seems to have his life well put together, Ken is fulfilling his passion for law.

    Naa Ashorkor Mensah-Doku

    Naa Ashorkor is a flourishing Ghanaian actress, brand influencer, and broadcaster.

    She has worked with a number of media companies and has established her feat in the industry but away from all the spotlight, she holds an LLB degree from the University of Ghana Law School.

    Naa Ashorkor graduated in 2015.

     

  • One more arrested over disturbances during Ashanti NDC elections

    The police have arrested one more suspect in connection with the disturbances which occurred during the Ashanti Regional National Democratic Congress (NDC) executives’ election held on Sunday, 13th November 2022.

    The arrest of suspect Bashiru Atta brings to four the total number of persons arrested over the disturbances.

    Meanwhile, accused persons Yahya Shaibu Tia and Fati Ibrahim who were earlier arrested were on Monday, November 14 arraigned before the Atwima Akropong District Court.

    Accused Yahya Shaibu Tia was remanded into police custody to reappear before the court on November 21, 2022, while Fati Ibrahim was granted bail with three sureties.

  • Joe Wollacott to undergo surgery after World Cup snub

    Ghana and Charlton Athletic goalkeeper Joe Wollacott will undergo surgery after he missed out on the Black Stars squad for the World Cup due to injury.

    The 26-year-old suffered the injury during the warm up of their 3-3 League One draw against Burton Albion.

    The goalkeeper was included in the 55-man provisional squad for the global showpiece. Wollacott has made 11 appearances for Ghana.

    “Everyone at the club is bitterly disappointed for Jojo. He played such an important part in Ghana getting to the World Cup and we all know how much he was looking forward to it.”

    “For the injury to happen so close to the tournament and in such innocuous fashion is very cruel”, Charlton Athletic manager Ben Garner said.

    “My understanding is that following surgery he will still meet up with the Ghana squad and remain a key member of their travelling party. Knowing Jojo as I do he will respond to this setback with great maturity and a determination to come back even stronger.

    “I think the world of him both as a person and as a player. It goes without saying that Jojo will receive our full love, care and support throughout this coming period.”

    Black Stars have been drawn in Group H alongside Portugal, South Korea and Uruguay.

     

    Ghana will take on Portugal in their first game on November 24 before playing South Korea and Uruguay on November 28 and December 2 respectively.

    Black Stars will play Switzerland in an International friendly on November 17, before travelling to Qatar for the World Cup.

    Ghana secured a 4th FIFA World Cup tournament having participated in 2006, 2010, and 2014 in Germany, South Africa, and Brazil after drawing 1-1 against Nigeria in the return leg of the final play-offs at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja to seal qualification on the away goals rule.

    The 2022 FIFA World Cup takes place between November 20 and December 18, 2022.

    Only three sides from the continent have ever progressed to the quarter-finals; Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002, and Ghana in 2010.

  • Drink-driving MP resigns and apologises

    A Rwandan MP, who resigned from parliament on Monday, has apologised for “drink-driving”.

    On Monday, parliament approved the resignation of Gamariel Mbonimana for “personal reasons”. It was a day after President Paul Kagame criticised an MP, who he didn’t name, for drink-driving.

    In a statement on Twitter, Mr Mbonimana apologised to Rwandans and the president, adding that he has “decided not to take alcohol anymore”.

    Mr Mbonigaba confirmed to the BBC that the tweet is authentic.

    Drink-driving carries a fine of 150,000 Rwandan francs ($140; £120), and five days in police custody following an arrest.

    In his remarks over the weekend, Mr Kagame criticised police for not arresting the MP because of “his immunity”.

    Mr Mbonimana was an MP since 2018. He’s a member of the Liberal Party, an ally of Mr Kagame’s ruling party, RPF.

    Liberal Party vice president Théogène Munyangeyo told the state broadcaster that they “had never seen him drinking alcohol before”.

    Source: BBC

  • Seth Rogen will direct, write, and star in Apple TV+ Comedy series about Film Industry

    Seth Rogen’s looking to make some more TV.

    The 40-year-old got a straight-to-series order, per Deadline, for an Apple TV+ comedy that’ll see him starring and executive producing. He’ll also co-direct with longtime partner in crime Evan Goldberg, and co-write with Goldberg as well as Veep alums Peter Huyck and Alex Gregory. The latter two are the showrunners.

    The outlet reports the project is “about a legacy Hollywood movie studio trying to survive in a world where it is increasingly difficult for art and commerce to live together,” which brings to mind—at least tangentially—showbiz-adjacent films of Rogen’s like The Disaster Artist, Zack and Miri Make a Porno, and The Interview.

    Variety notes Apple TV+ nabbed the new show in “a competitive situation with multiple bidders,” and that Rogen was previously announced to be starring in the platform’s Platonic with his Neighbors co-lead Rose Byrne.

    Seth Rogen has recently acted or lent his voice to shows and limited series including Pam & Tommy, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Big Mouth. He’s also appeared in projects produced by his and Goldberg’s Point Grey Pictures company such as The Boys and Invincible. This fall’s buzzy The Fabelmans from Steven Spielberg will mark Rogen’s first movie role in more than two years, following An American Pickle in mid-2020. He’s also been cast in Dumb Money—about the GameStop short squeeze that wrought financial mayhem on Wall Street—with Pete Davidson, Sebastian Stan, and Paul Dano.

    And then, of course, there’s the recently revealed series continuation of 2016’s raunchy Sausage Party, coming in 2024.

    “Film used to be the superior art form to television, and we humbly reached the pinnacle of what can be achieved with film in our remarkable opus, Sausage Party. But now that film is completely dead and TV is the forever-king of entertainment,” Rogen and Evan Goldberg cheekily stated, “we’ve decided to continue the epic adventures of our culinary crew in the soon-to-be-legendary televised masterpiece Sausage Party: Foodtopia.

    It’s got all the heart, double the puns, and triple the food-on-food sex. In other words, it’s exactly what the world needs right now.”

    Source: Complex.com

  • Censure committee sittings to probe Ofori-Atta to be televised live

    Ad hoc committee made up of eight people and appointed by Speaker of the House Alban Bagbin to look into the troubled Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta will begin meeting today, according to a committee member.

    The North Tongu member of parliament, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, announced on social media that sessions will be open to the public and live streamed.

    He claims that doing so will eventually uphold accountability and openness.

    “The Ken Ofori-Atta Vote of Censure Parliamentary Committee will commence sittings tomorrow 15/11/22 at 11 am.

    “It’s an absolute delight to announce that the committee shall sit in public & all proceedings will be broadcast live in the true spirit of transparency & accountability,” his post read.

    Speaker sets up ad hoc Committee over Ofori-Atta censure motion

    Alban Bagbin, on Thursday, November 10 announced an ad hoc committee to probe allegations in a vote of censure motion against the embattled Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.

    The 8-member ad hoc committee was constituted with Members of Parliament elected by the leadership of both sides of the House.

    Their main task is to probe the seven allegations contained in the censure motion filed late last month by Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu, which motion is seeking the removal of Ofori-Atta from office.

    The committee is expected to submit a report within 7 days.

    The composition of the committee is as follows:

    It will be chaired by Member of Parliament (MP) for Adansi Asokwa, Kobina Tahir (K.T.) Hammond and the MP for Bolgatanga Dominic Akuritinga Ayine.

    The three members from the Minority side are:

    MP for North Tongu; Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa;

    MP for Korle Klottey, Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings; and

    MP for Akatsi South, Bernard Ahiafor.

    From the Majority caucus, the members include:

    MP for Okaikwei Central, Patrick Yaw Boamah;

    MP for Asante-Akim Central, Michael Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi; and

    MP for Sekondi, Andrew Kofi Agyapa Mercer.

    How motion of censure against Ofori-Atta was argued

    The Minority Leader filed a motion of censure late last month against Minister for Finance Ken Ofori-Atta.

    The motion was duly admitted by Speaker Alban Bagbin and on November 10, the motion was moved by Haruna Iddrisu to trigger debate and a vote on same.

    Speaker Bagbin, however, in his interpretation of the rules the Minority relied on referred the issue to an 8-member ad hoc committee formed to probe the Minority’s claims against the Finance Minister.

    The committee co-chaired by Dominic Ayine (NDC) and KT Hammond (NPP) is expected to present their report in seven-days, following which the House will proceed with the censure process or otherwise.

    Below are the seven-points for which the Minority want Ofori-Atta censured:

    a. Despicable conflict of interest ensuring that he directly benefits from Ghana’s economic woes as his companies receive commissions and other unethical contractual advantages particularly from Ghana’s debt overhang

    b. Unconstitutional withdrawals from the Consolidated Fund in blatant contravention of Article 178 of the 1992 Constitution, supposedly for the construction of the President’s Cathedral.

    c. Illegal payment of oil revenues into offshore accounts, in flagrant violation of Article 176 of the 1992 Constitution.

    d. Deliberate and dishonest misreporting of economic data to Parliament

    e. Fiscal recklessness leading to the crash of the Ghana Cedi which is currently the worst-performing currency in the world

    f. Alarming incompetence and frightening ineptitude, resulting in the collapse of the Ghanaian economy and an excruciating cost of living crisis

    g. Gross mismanagement of the Ghanaian economy which has occasioned untold and unprecedented hardship

  • New chocolate factory signals deepening U.S. ties with Ghana

    Ghana’s largest cocoa producer is building a new chocolate factory in Wisconsin, part of increasing economic cooperation between the West African nation and the United States.

    Niche Cocoa Founder and CEO Edmund Poku told an October 4 launch event that the company selected Franklin, Wisconsin, for its new facility to improve access to U.S. markets and because of the Milwaukee suburb’s proximity to dairy producers.

    “The U.S. became a natural choice for expansion, given the market size and potential, to develop both semi-finished products and also selling more products up the value chain such as chocolates,” Poku said, announcing plans for the facility, according to the Milwaukee Business Journal.

    The $30 million, 4,000-square-meter facility is one of the largest investments by an African food and beverage company in the United States. The factory will process cocoa cake from Ghana into cocoa powder, which can combine with Wisconsin dairy to make chocolate drinks. “We can serve a lot of people, especially schoolchildren,” Poku said. “Once you produce the powder, there are a lot of milk factories already” in the area.

    U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Marisa Lago called Niche’s investment “historic” and a “milestone” in U.S.-Ghanaian economic cooperation.

    “We look forward to watching Niche Cocoa grow and thrive here as it shares Ghana’s delicious bounty with Americans and the world,” she said at the October 4 event.

    The new facility will increase Niche’s access to U.S. markets and opportunities to partner with local businesses, while employing more than two dozen workers and adding to U.S. knowledge of chocolate production.

    Ghana is the world’s second-largest cocoa-producing country after neighboring Côte d’Ivoire. Ghana’s exports to the United States totaled $1.7 billion in 2021. Cocoa, along with oil and gold, makes up much of that trade, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR).

    The United States invested $1.6 billion in Ghana in 2019, according to the USTR, with U.S. exports to Ghana totaling $840 million that year.

    The United States is working to further cooperation with African nations, including Ghana. In April, the U.S. Embassy in Accra and the American Chamber of Commerce–Ghana launched the 2022 SelectUSA Summit recruiting program to attract Ghanaian companies interested in investing in the United States.

    December 13–15, President Biden will host the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington to advance shared economic, climate and security priorities.

    “The Summit will demonstrate the United States’ enduring commitment to Africa, and will underscore the importance of U.S.-Africa relations and increased cooperation,” Biden said in a statement.

    Source: america.gov

  • ‘After I drew the fish, you had the deal’ – Bullgod hits at Shatta Wale again

    Shatta Wale’s former manager, Bullgod, has once again tackled claims that he was drawing fish on a piece of paper instead of taking notes during a serious meeting with investors.

    ,

    Earlier, Shatta Wale in one of his many social media banters with Bullgod, alleged that his father (Shatta Capo) chanced on the said drawing during a meeting held to discuss a business deal with his potential client, Guinness Ghana Limited.

    Following the development, Bullgod made a mockery of such claims by sharing a video that captured a pencil art drawing of a fish.

    The video was a compilation of excerpts of Shatta Wale’s ‘fish drawing claims’ and a real paper drawing of a fish which had the dancehall artiste’s head on it.

    But this issue popped up during a discussion on UTV’s United Showbiz where panelists asked Bullgod whether he indeed drew a fish at a serious meeting and he said;

    “I’m not a secretary. I won’t go into a serious meeting and take notes. We have a secretary who handles that and the entire team was there.”

    According to Bullgod, Shatta wouldn’t have landed the said deal with Guinness Ghana if he only drew a fish at the meeting like he (Shatta) claimed.

    “I did not draw the fish. The gentleman (Shatta Wale) was not in the meeting. He said his father told him that I drew fish at the meeting. He said it himself. But after I drew the fish, he had the deal. Let us assume I drew the fish, he had the deal afterwards,” Bullgod stated.

     

  • Today in History: Corruption fight: Mahama’s worse performance is Akufo-Addo’s best – Report

    Ghanaians have pleaded with numerous governments to fight corruption ever since the country’s independence.

    Reports from the previous two years, however, suggested that Ghana’s corruption perception score did not change during the previous year.

    To help readers understand how the country performed on the index during the previous government and the current government, GhanaWeb examined Ghana’s performance on the CPI over the last 10 years in this article.

    GhanaWeb Feature

    Transparency International recently released the global 2021 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) with Ghana scoring 43 out of 100.

    Ghana’s performance was the same as last year and this has led to the worrying question of whether or not Ghana’s corruption fight is dwindling.

    This is even more concerning considering the current government’s promise to be resolute about fighting corruption to the core.

    The Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) said the score of 43 by Ghana indicates the country did not make progress in its fight against corruption in 2021 as the score remains in 2022.

    GhanaWeb takes a look at Ghana’s performance on the CPI over the past 10 years to give readers an understanding of the country’s performance on the index under the past government and the ruling government.

    Corruption under Mahama:

    First let us take a look at the performance of Ghana before President Akufo-Addo was sworn into power in 2017. Data from the Transparency international indicates that Ghana scored;

    45 in 2012

    46 in 2013

    48 in 2014

    There was a drop in 2015 by a point -47 in 2015 and then just before the then President, John Mahama handed over power to the new government, the country’s score on the corruption perception index had dropped by 4 points to 43 in 2016 – which means there was higher corruption recorded in the last year of the reign of the NDC administration under Mahama.

    In terms of ranks on the CPI, Ghana was ranked the 64th the least corrupt country out of 180 countries in 2012, then it ranked 63rd in 2013, 61st in 2014, 56th in 2015 and 70th in 2016.

    Corruption under Akufo-Addo:

    Having promised to rid the country of the persisting canker of corruption, Ghana scored 40 over 100 in its first year under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in 2017.

    This increased by a point to 41 in 2018
    And for the next year, this figure was retained when Ghana scored – 41 in 2019. This number rose by 2 more points in 2020 to become 43 but government failed to increase this score in 2021.

    During the term of President Akufo-Addo, Ghana ranked 81st in 2017, 78th in 2018, 80th in 2019, 75th in 2020, and 73rd least corrupt country in 2021.

    Where does Ghana stand?

    From these figures for the past five years, it could be said that Ghana has not made progress in the fight against corruption. The government inherited an index of 43 and it still scoring 43 which is even an improvement on its previous scores.

    According to Transparency International, Ghana’s best performance on the CPI was in 2014 when it scored 48.

    The corruption index is measured from 0 to 100. The higher the score of a country the less corrupt it is perceived to be. Countries that score below 50 are perceived to be more corrupt.

    Whilst the government insists it has made significant progress in the fight against corruption, very little has been seen as being done by the Special Prosecutor’s office which was established in the first year of his term as president.

    The Deputy Information Minister Fatimatu Abubakar, in an interview on Asaase News said Ghana has been making progress on the index since 2017 when it scored 40 out of 100 on the CPI.

    “But let us establish the fact that what this government inherited in 2017 was an average of 40, and the measurement is such that the lower you score, the more corrupt you are… so if you look at the trends from 2017, you will realise that no matter how small the figure is, Ghana has been stepping up, from 2017 to 2018 we were up from 40 to 41 and then in 2020 we moved a notch higher,” she was quoted by asaaseradio.

    But do the current figures reflect this assertion?

    Meanwhile, Transparency International indicates from its findings that Ghana’s best performance was in 2015 when it ranked 56th out of the 180 countries. This means that in the past 9 years, the John Mahama administration recorded the best records as far as the fight against corruption was concerned.

    Author: Ishmael Batoma

    GhanaWeb Feature

    Transparency International recently released the global 2021 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) with Ghana scoring 43 out of 100.

    Ghana’s performance was the same as last year and this has led to the worrying question of whether or not Ghana’s corruption fight is dwindling.

    This is even more concerning considering the current government’s promise to be resolute about fighting corruption to the core.

    The Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) said the score of 43 by Ghana indicates the country did not make progress in its fight against corruption in 2021 as the score remains in 2022.

    GhanaWeb takes a look at Ghana’s performance on the CPI over the past 10 years to give readers an understanding of the country’s performance on the index under the past government and the ruling government.

    Corruption under Mahama:

    First let us take a look at the performance of Ghana before President Akufo-Addo was sworn into power in 2017. Data from the Transparency international indicates that Ghana scored;

    45 in 2012

    46 in 2013

    48 in 2014

    There was a drop in 2015 by a point -47 in 2015 and then just before the then President, John Mahama handed over power to the new government, the country’s score on the corruption perception index had dropped by 4 points to 43 in 2016 – which means there was higher corruption recorded in the last year of the reign of the NDC administration under Mahama.

    In terms of ranks on the CPI, Ghana was ranked the 64th the least corrupt country out of 180 countries in 2012, then it ranked 63rd in 2013, 61st in 2014, 56th in 2015 and 70th in 2016.

    Corruption under Akufo-Addo:

    Having promised to rid the country of the persisting canker of corruption, Ghana scored 40 over 100 in its first year under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in 2017.

    This increased by a point to 41 in 2018
    And for the next year, this figure was retained when Ghana scored – 41 in 2019. This number rose by 2 more points in 2020 to become 43 but government failed to increase this score in 2021.

    During the term of President Akufo-Addo, Ghana ranked 81st in 2017, 78th in 2018, 80th in 2019, 75th in 2020, and 73rd least corrupt country in 2021.

    Where does Ghana stand?

    From these figures for the past five years, it could be said that Ghana has not made progress in the fight against corruption. The government inherited an index of 43 and it still scoring 43 which is even an improvement on its previous scores.

    According to Transparency International, Ghana’s best performance on the CPI was in 2014 when it scored 48.

    The corruption index is measured from 0 to 100. The higher the score of a country the less corrupt it is perceived to be. Countries that score below 50 are perceived to be more corrupt.

    Whilst the government insists it has made significant progress in the fight against corruption, very little has been seen as being done by the Special Prosecutor’s office which was established in the first year of his term as president.

    The Deputy Information Minister Fatimatu Abubakar, in an interview on Asaase News said Ghana has been making progress on the index since 2017 when it scored 40 out of 100 on the CPI.

    “But let us establish the fact that what this government inherited in 2017 was an average of 40, and the measurement is such that the lower you score, the more corrupt you are… so if you look at the trends from 2017, you will realise that no matter how small the figure is, Ghana has been stepping up, from 2017 to 2018 we were up from 40 to 41 and then in 2020 we moved a notch higher,” she was quoted by asaaseradio.

    But do the current figures reflect this assertion?

    Meanwhile, Transparency International indicates from its findings that Ghana’s best performance was in 2015 when it ranked 56th out of the 180 countries. This means that in the past 9 years, the John Mahama administration recorded the best records as far as the fight against corruption was concerned.

    Author: Ishmael Batoma

    GhanaWeb Feature

    Transparency International recently released the global 2021 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) with Ghana scoring 43 out of 100.

    Ghana’s performance was the same as last year and this has led to the worrying question of whether or not Ghana’s corruption fight is dwindling.

    This is even more concerning considering the current government’s promise to be resolute about fighting corruption to the core.

    The Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) said the score of 43 by Ghana indicates the country did not make progress in its fight against corruption in 2021 as the score remains in 2022.

    GhanaWeb takes a look at Ghana’s performance on the CPI over the past 10 years to give readers an understanding of the country’s performance on the index under the past government and the ruling government.

    Corruption under Mahama:

    First let us take a look at the performance of Ghana before President Akufo-Addo was sworn into power in 2017. Data from the Transparency international indicates that Ghana scored;

    45 in 2012

    46 in 2013

    48 in 2014

    There was a drop in 2015 by a point -47 in 2015 and then just before the then President, John Mahama handed over power to the new government, the country’s score on the corruption perception index had dropped by 4 points to 43 in 2016 – which means there was higher corruption recorded in the last year of the reign of the NDC administration under Mahama.

    In terms of ranks on the CPI, Ghana was ranked the 64th the least corrupt country out of 180 countries in 2012, then it ranked 63rd in 2013, 61st in 2014, 56th in 2015 and 70th in 2016.

    Corruption under Akufo-Addo:

    Having promised to rid the country of the persisting canker of corruption, Ghana scored 40 over 100 in its first year under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in 2017.

    This increased by a point to 41 in 2018
    And for the next year, this figure was retained when Ghana scored – 41 in 2019. This number rose by 2 more points in 2020 to become 43 but government failed to increase this score in 2021.

    During the term of President Akufo-Addo, Ghana ranked 81st in 2017, 78th in 2018, 80th in 2019, 75th in 2020, and 73rd least corrupt country in 2021.

    Where does Ghana stand?

    From these figures for the past five years, it could be said that Ghana has not made progress in the fight against corruption. The government inherited an index of 43 and it still scoring 43 which is even an improvement on its previous scores.

    According to Transparency International, Ghana’s best performance on the CPI was in 2014 when it scored 48.

    The corruption index is measured from 0 to 100. The higher the score of a country the less corrupt it is perceived to be. Countries that score below 50 are perceived to be more corrupt.

    Whilst the government insists it has made significant progress in the fight against corruption, very little has been seen as being done by the Special Prosecutor’s office which was established in the first year of his term as president.

    The Deputy Information Minister Fatimatu Abubakar, in an interview on Asaase News said Ghana has been making progress on the index since 2017 when it scored 40 out of 100 on the CPI.

    “But let us establish the fact that what this government inherited in 2017 was an average of 40, and the measurement is such that the lower you score, the more corrupt you are… so if you look at the trends from 2017, you will realise that no matter how small the figure is, Ghana has been stepping up, from 2017 to 2018 we were up from 40 to 41 and then in 2020 we moved a notch higher,” she was quoted by asaaseradio.

    But do the current figures reflect this assertion?

    Meanwhile, Transparency International indicates from its findings that Ghana’s best performance was in 2015 when it ranked 56th out of the 180 countries. This means that in the past 9 years, the John Mahama administration recorded the best records as far as the fight against corruption was concerned.

    Author: Ishmael Batoma

    GhanaWeb Feature

    Transparency International recently released the global 2021 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) with Ghana scoring 43 out of 100.

    Ghana’s performance was the same as last year and this has led to the worrying question of whether or not Ghana’s corruption fight is dwindling.

    This is even more concerning considering the current government’s promise to be resolute about fighting corruption to the core.

    The Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) said the score of 43 by Ghana indicates the country did not make progress in its fight against corruption in 2021 as the score remains in 2022.

    GhanaWeb takes a look at Ghana’s performance on the CPI over the past 10 years to give readers an understanding of the country’s performance on the index under the past government and the ruling government.

    Corruption under Mahama:

    First let us take a look at the performance of Ghana before President Akufo-Addo was sworn into power in 2017. Data from the Transparency international indicates that Ghana scored;

    45 in 2012

    46 in 2013

    48 in 2014

    There was a drop in 2015 by a point -47 in 2015 and then just before the then President, John Mahama handed over power to the new government, the country’s score on the corruption perception index had dropped by 4 points to 43 in 2016 – which means there was higher corruption recorded in the last year of the reign of the NDC administration under Mahama.

    In terms of ranks on the CPI, Ghana was ranked the 64th the least corrupt country out of 180 countries in 2012, then it ranked 63rd in 2013, 61st in 2014, 56th in 2015 and 70th in 2016.

    Corruption under Akufo-Addo:

    Having promised to rid the country of the persisting canker of corruption, Ghana scored 40 over 100 in its first year under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in 2017.

    This increased by a point to 41 in 2018
    And for the next year, this figure was retained when Ghana scored – 41 in 2019. This number rose by 2 more points in 2020 to become 43 but government failed to increase this score in 2021.

    During the term of President Akufo-Addo, Ghana ranked 81st in 2017, 78th in 2018, 80th in 2019, 75th in 2020, and 73rd least corrupt country in 2021.

    Where does Ghana stand?

    From these figures for the past five years, it could be said that Ghana has not made progress in the fight against corruption. The government inherited an index of 43 and it still scoring 43 which is even an improvement on its previous scores.

    According to Transparency International, Ghana’s best performance on the CPI was in 2014 when it scored 48.

    The corruption index is measured from 0 to 100. The higher the score of a country the less corrupt it is perceived to be. Countries that score below 50 are perceived to be more corrupt.

    Whilst the government insists it has made significant progress in the fight against corruption, very little has been seen as being done by the Special Prosecutor’s office which was established in the first year of his term as president.

    The Deputy Information Minister Fatimatu Abubakar, in an interview on Asaase News said Ghana has been making progress on the index since 2017 when it scored 40 out of 100 on the CPI.

    “But let us establish the fact that what this government inherited in 2017 was an average of 40, and the measurement is such that the lower you score, the more corrupt you are… so if you look at the trends from 2017, you will realise that no matter how small the figure is, Ghana has been stepping up, from 2017 to 2018 we were up from 40 to 41 and then in 2020 we moved a notch higher,” she was quoted by asaaseradio.

    But do the current figures reflect this assertion?

    Meanwhile, Transparency International indicates from its findings that Ghana’s best performance was in 2015 when it ranked 56th out of the 180 countries. This means that in the past 9 years, the John Mahama administration recorded the best records as far as the fight against corruption was concerned.

    Author: Ishmael Batoma

  • Opuni challenges authority of Justice Honyenuga in COCOBOD case again

    The prosecuted former COCOBOD Chief Executive, Dr. Stephen Kwabena Opuni, has challenged the authority of the trial Judge, Clemence Honyenuga, to hear the charges against him.

    His Lordship Honyenuga was expected to have retired last September but had a six-month extension from the Chief Justice.

    This extension by the Chief Justice, lawyers for Dr. Opuni argued, is unconstitutional and a usurpation of the powers of the President of the Republic.

    They maintained that “the power to extend the tenure of a Supreme Court judge is not exercised by the Chief Justice, who is not the appointing authority.”

    Relying on articles 139(c) and 145(2)(a) and (4), the DPP argued that the Chief Justice not only had the authority to appoint Judges to Courts but to also give such limited extension to Judges due for retirement to enable them to complete cases commenced under them before their retirement age.

    “In very simple terms, this means that your lordship on attaining the age of 70 years may continue in office for a period not exceeding six (6) months in relation to the case of Republic v Stephen Opuni, Seidu Agongo and Agricult Ghana Ltd. that was commenced before you prior to your attainment of the age of 70.”

    The DPP thus submitted that the question of who has the authority to grant the extension had been clearly answered by the Constitutional provisions cited.

    Therefore, “no ambiguity or confusion as to whether it is the President or the Chief Justice who grants an extension to a Judge previously determining a case to continue with that matter for a limited period” could be raised.

    The High Court presided by His Lordship Clemence Honyenuga dismissed the application and adjourned the case to November 16, 2022, for continuation.

    “The Chief Justice as the Administrative Head of the Judiciary has the power under the Constitution to grant an extension to a retiring Judge.”

    Source: Citinewsroom

  • VIDEO: Black Stars players eat breakfast before heading out for first training session in Abu Dhabi

    Black Stars tuck into breakfast this morning before the heading for their first training session in Abu Dhabi ahead of the International friendly against Switzerland as well as the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 finals in Doha.

    23 players have already reported for camp and will commence training this afternoon as coach Otto Addo await the arrival of Alexander Djiku, Kamal Deen Sulemana and Joseph Aidoo.

    The team arrived in the Arab country on Monday evening following the announcement of the 26-man squad.

    The players who have already arrived include, Andre Ayew, Jordan Ayew, Danlad Ibrahim, Lawrence Ati-Zigi, Nurudeen Abdul Manaf, Mohammed Salisu, Daniel Amartey, Denis Odoi, Baba Abdul Rahman, Gideon Mensah, Alidu Seidu, Salis Abdul Samed, Elisha Owusu, Kamal Sowah, Antoine Semenyo, Tariq Lamptey, Osman Bukari, Thomas Partey, Inaki Williams, Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, Daniel Barnieh Afriyie, Mohammed Kudus, and Daniel Kofi Kyereh.

    The team will stay in the capital of the United Arab Emirates for four days where they will take on Switzerland at the Baniyas club stadium on Thursday, November 17.

    Black Stars will miss the services of Richard Ofori and Joe Wollacott due to injuries.

    Black Stars have been drawn in Group H alongside Portugal, South Korea and Uruguay.

    Ghana will take on Portugal in their first game on November 24 before playing South Korea and Uruguay on November 28 and December 2 respectively.

    Ghana secured a 4th FIFA World Cup tournament having participated in 2006, 2010, and 2014 in Germany, South Africa, and Brazil after drawing 1-1 against Nigeria in the return leg of the final play-offs at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja to seal qualification on the away goals rule.

    The 2022 FIFA World Cup takes place between November 20 and December 18, 2022.

    Only three sides from the continent have ever progressed to the quarter-finals; Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002, and Ghana in 2010.

    Ghana will be hoping to progress from the group stage at this year’s tournament.

    Watch the video below:

     

  • Odell Beckham Jr. sues Nike for over $20 million, shares statement claiming company ‘did not honor its commitments’

    Free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has filed a lawsuit against Nike, saying the Oregon-based conglomerate “screwed him out of millions.”

    OBJ released the following statement regarding the lawsuit: “Being a Nike Athlete and Brand Icon was a dream I’ve had since being a young boy. I wanted to be the next Michael Jordan, Bo Jackson, LeBron James or Kobe Bryant in the Nike Family. When Nike exercised its right of first refusal to match the Adidas offer and not only kept me as a Nike Athlete, but also made me one of their Brand Icons—my dream had been fulfilled. Unfortunately, Nike did not honor its commitments. Throughout our partnership, I have kept my promise and fulfilled my obligations to the brand. I am extremely disappointed that I’ve had to take these measures to ensure Nike fulfills their obligations and promises.”

    Beckham continued, “Today, I’m taking a stand not just for me, but to set a precedent for all athletes who have dedicated their life to the sport they love—especially those who don’t have the means to stand up for themselves. We are held responsible for fulfilling our obligations under our contracts, but we also have to hold powerful companies like Nike accountable for honoring their commitments too. I look forward to resolving this issue and hope we can start a real conversation about protecting athletes and their rights. This happens too often in the sports industry and it’s time for change. As this is now a legal matter, please refer any questions to my attorney, Daniel Davillier.”

    Odell claims he wanted to switch to Adidas after his original deal with Nike expired in 2017, but the company exercised its right to match the multi-million-dollar offer from its rival. Since then, Beckham says, Nike withheld millions in compensation and royalties.

    Beckham claims that when Nike met the exact terms in Adidas’ offer, the company also agreed to make him a “Brand Icon,” allegedly the first player in the NFL to receive such a title. OBJ alleges Nike didn’t exactly match the language in the Adidas deal, which led to problems between the two down the road.

    Their relationship took a turn for the worse when Nike allegedly kept just over $2 million of the nearly $2.6 million he was owed in March 2022. Beckham alleges he contacted Nike about the discrepancy in pay, but also questioned the status of his guaranteed extension. Beckham was allegedly told by Nike that he failed to meet the required benchmark by almost $70 million. He attributes the dispute over the threshold to “incorrect language” in their deal.

    Odell alleges Nike “stopped actively manufacturing and/or selling royalty generating products after 2020” in an effort to ensure that he doesn’t meet the aforementioned benchmarks.

    As for the nearly $2 million in withheld compensation, Nike allegedly reduced his pay for an alleged footwear violation during one game last season, and an alleged glove violation for two games during the 2021 campaign.

    All told, Odell Beckham Jr. alleges he suffered over $20 million in damages.

    The news arrives five years after Odell signed his initial contract with Nike. OBJ is currently a free agent, and has spent the first half of the NFL season recovering from the torn ACL he suffered during Super Bowl LVI.

    Source: Complex.com