The Charlton Athletic FC player admitted that, Ayew, son of legendary Abedi Ayew is one of the players he has always looked up to.
According to him, Crystal Palace FC have got some great attackers and he takes inspiration from them.
“They’ve got a lot of great attacking players. Wilf [Zaha], Jordan [Ayew], [Eberechi] Eze and [Michael] Olise. Those are players in my position that I really look up to. Hopefully, if I just take their advice and keep working hard, I could be there one day.
“Patrick is a great manager. We always train with the first-team. He gets the young lads to train with the first-team so you know there’s an opportunity there. If you keep working hard and performing, you know the chances will come.”
The 21-year-old Ghanaian attacker has three goals and two assists in the English League One this season for the Red and Blacks outfit since he joined on loan.
Ghana was about to participate in the 2010 World Cup semifinals in South Africa.
After Luis Suarez stopped Dominic Adiyah’s goal-bound header, the Black Stars were given a 90th-minute penalty kick that Gyan was unable to convert.
Ghana’s chances of creating history were dashed when Uruguay went on to eliminate Ghana on penalties.
However, Kingson, who was part of the squad insists that Gyan shattered their dreams, but was quick to admit that it’s part of the football.
“It was a mixed feeling, our dreams were shattered when Gyan missed from the penalty spot but most importantly we were at the center of history, missing penalty is part of the game,” he told Ignite Media.
Ghana has returned to the largest football platform in the world after failing to qualify for the previous edition of the Mundial, which was held in Russia.
The Black Stars defeated Nigeria to earn a spot in the World Cup, where they will play for the fourth time.
The West African country suffered embarrassment after failing to win a game during the 2014 Mundial in Brazil where the team exited the tournament with just a point after three games played.
“We have an opportunity to reposition our country in the world of football,” he said on the floor of Parliament on Wednesday.
“Preparations for this I am persuaded started long ago and we need to sharpen our focus and ensure our national football team gives a good account of itself in Qatar.
“As leaders, it is our duty to inspire and motivate the players, technical team, and supporters. The country should leave no stone in resourcing and financing the events despite the current state of the economy.
“The benefits of this venture to the country and people are immeasurable and we should toy with the contest and opportunity,” he added.
Former Chairman of the Ghana Athletics Association (GAA), Mr George Lutterodt is confident Black Stars will progress from their group at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Black Stars make a return to the tournament after missing out on the 2018 edition in Russia and 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.
“I think people are not giving the Black Stars a chance. That is good because it would take the pressure off the team,” Lutterodt told Times Sports.
“They will be playing top notch countries and I believe that Ghana has what it takes to come out of the group and then, the sky would be the limit.”
He added, “There are very good young players including Mohammed Kudus, Tariq Lamptey and others that can take the tournament by storm.”
Black Stars will play Switzerland in an International friendly on November 17, before travelling to Qatar for the World Cup.
“Ghana will again be represented at this year’s FIFA World Cup, this time in Qatar.
“This august house is expected to play a pivotal role in making sure players and technical team deliver to the expectations of Ghanaians.
“This is the time to right the wrongs that characterized the 2014 edition in Brazil. One which led to our early exit and brought so much shame and dishonor to Ghana football,” he added.
Ghana, who have been housed in Group H will open their campaign against Portugal on November 24 at Stadium 974 in Doha.
Former Black Stars skipper, Asamoah Gyan has ruled himself out of the upcoming 2022 World Cup.
The 36-year-old dominated the headlines for the wrong reasons after he disclosed he is looking forward to making a return to the national team ahead of the Mundial in Qatar in an interview with the BBC.
However, speaking to GHOne TV in an interview, Gyan admitted that his physical conditions are not suitable for competitive football now and that he will not force himself into the conversation about who should be called up for the tournament.
According to him, it will be a dream come true to play his fourth World Cup but he is not unaware of the fact that he is not in the best shape for football.
“The World Cup is every footballer’s dream,” he said. “If I’m fit to play active football and I’m invited to play for the national team, why not. It’s not like 15 years ago when I was young and competitive and could argue to be in the starting line-up.
“This is a different thing together. Right now people want you to go in and show your experience. The thing is you just have to be fit and be ready for competitive football. If I’m fit and invited into the national team, why not? Every player will embrace such an opportunity. This is the case where I’m not ready now. If I’m not ready but the FA and staff feel they need me now, I will be available. That one is up to them,” he added.
Gyan remains the country’s top goalscorer with 51 goals and Africa’s top goalscorer in the history of the World Cup with six goals.
The former Sunderland and Liberty Professionals forward has played in three World Cups in Germany, South Africa, and Brazil in 2006, 2010, and 2014.
His is a story of how a few months can make a big difference in the life of a footballer.
He was in action on Thursday night at Old Trafford, the home grounds of Manchester United when his club Sheriff Tiraspol of Moldova faced off with the English giants in the Europa League.
Just months ago, Mudasiru was playing for Ghana Premier League giants, Kumasi Asante Kotoko. He transferred to the Maldovan side in July 2022 and has since continued a steady climb in his career.
After the first leg defeat, Kotoko fans swarmed social media with praise for their former player who came on as a substitute in the fixture.
Mudasiru came on as a substitute minute to play the last nine minutes of the game for the Moldovan club.
He lanky defender was born on April 1, 1997, in Kumasi. He spent his entire professional career in his homeland. For the last three years, he played for Asante Kotoko FC, with whom he won gold medals in the Ghana Championship last season.
Mudasiru was part of Asante Kotoko’s 2021/2022 Ghana Premier League winning team. He left the Porcupines after a three-year stint in the Ghana Premier League.
Not Good results last night But As a warrior we never give up. One more to go ???????????? pic.twitter.com/rW9HMnrX8B
— Mudasiru Salifu (@muda_salifu3) October 28, 2022
Actor Kwadwo Nkansah, popularly known as Lil Win, brought some fun to the Bekwai SDA Senior High School (SHS) when he and his team paid a surprise visit.
As part of ongoing preparations for his DPS ‘1 Student 1 Pen’ project, LilWin took over the school to engage them on the need for education.
He gathered hundreds of students in the entertainment hall for the event.
Kwadwo Nkansah revived the Azonto genre as the students jumped on their feet amid loud jubilation and singing.
They danced their hearts out until they fell to their feet.
Ghana coach Otto Addo has promised Ghanaians that the Black Stars will be a joy to watch at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Black Stars make a return to the tournament after missing out on the 2018 edition in Russia.
Ghana will take on Portugal in their first game in Group H on November 24 before playing South Korea and Uruguay on November 28 and December 2 respectively.
“First of all we want to play our style of play and I think Ghanaian teams in the past always play good football,” the 47-year-old said as quoted by footyghana.com.
“And this is what we want and we had previous tournaments that showed that Ghana has good footballers.
“This comes surely with victories and that’s our desire. If we can survive the group stage which I said is going to be very tough, then anything is possible.”
Black Stars will play Switzerland in an International friendly on November 17, before travelling to Qatar for the World Cup.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup takes place between November 20 and December 18, 2022.
Reports indicate that Twumasi turned himself in at the Legon Police station on Friday, October 28, 2022, following the arrest of his secretary, Afia Serebour, on Thursday, October 27, 2022.
Further reports suggested that the arrest comes after the Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of a private company, Mum and Sons, reported Serebour and the NSA’s Procurement Officer, Ohene Twumasi, for fraud.
In June 2022, Professor Peter Twumasi was accused of procurement breaches, misuse of state resources, receipt of double salaries, and award of contracts to ghost and non-existing companies.
In an eight-page petition signed by Kwame Baa Mensa, the Focal Person of the National Anti-Corruption Action Plan of CHRAJ, noted that the staff demanded that Twumasi stepped aside for investigations to begin into his work as Director-General of the governmental institute.
His frigid goal celebrations were one of his numerous shenanigans.
Balotelli will give a straight, angry face and start to walk back to his half while his teammates rush to him to celebrate the goal, unlike most players who dance or make gestures.
Finding a player who celebrates goals as “cold and serious” as Mario Balotelli does is far from possible, but a trait of his is found in Ghanaian politics.
Deputy Minority Chief Whip, Ahmed Ibrahim, describes the National Democratic Congress‘ general secretary, Asiedu Nketiah, as the Balotteli of politics.
The member of parliament for Banda Constituency asserted while endorsing Nketiah to become the NDC national chairman.
“The courage of the man – general mosquito – is incomparable. When it comes to its parliament, the place we are afraid to be, that is where you will see him. When you see him you cannot relent…one thing about general is that, he is like Balotelli. When he scores, he doesn’t smile. He doesn’t care about credit so whatever you will do he doesn’t care,” he said.
After insulting his coworkers for writing an editorial on Kotoko’s game versus Belize, Patrick Osei Agyemang, alias Country Man Songo, and Kwaku Obeng Maestro smoked a peace pipe as a sign of reconciliation.
Songo made a rare appearance on the show on Friday, October 28 and offered peace to the two hosts, Moshosho and Maestro. This was on the show after he had talked down on it the previous two days.
Songo underlined the importance of the three of them working together and urged everyone on the station’s crew to be calm and peaceful.
Songo who is a member of the Management Committee of Asante Kotoko said that everyone has a right to criticize the club but that must be done within the confines of the ethics that guide the profession.
“We are brothers and together in this profession. We want our viewers and listeners to know that we are together and this is a friendly fire. We’ve advised ourselves and und have resolved our differences.
“We only want the best but sometimes there are misunderstandings. We just have to understand ourselves. It’s all about professionalism. No one will gag anyone from saying something but we have to be professional.
“I work for Kotoko but I work for Ghanaians. One day I will leave but be judged on the work I did for Asante Kotoko. I’m doing everything to protect the biggest club in Ghana. Everyone has a right to talk about the club but we must be professional”, he said.
Maestro welcomed the peace offer and assured of no ill feelings towards his colleague. He clarified however that the club cannot gag him and others from commenting on issues about the club.
In October this year, Kotoko announced that they were going to travel to Belize to play a friendly game against the national team of the Central American country.
The club however announced later that the game has been canceled because the Belize FA said they were unable to put together a team for the game.
Machine Gun Kelly stars in Taurus, a semi-autobiographical film about a musician “looking for inspiration to record one final song before delving further into his drug addiction,” according to IndieWire.Born Colson Baker, Kelly reunites with Taurus director and writer Tim Sutton after the two worked together on 2021’s The Last Son.
The cast includes Maddie Haason, Demetrius “Lil Meech” Flenory, Lil Tjay, Ruby Rose, Scoot McNairy, Naomi Wild, and Kelly’s fiancée Megan Fox, who plays his ex-girlfriend.
“We were almost shying away from it being autobiographical, it felt like, at first. And then, I think, it just became me,” MGK told People at the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year.
“They stick me as a character all the time—which, maybe I presented myself to the world as—but I feel like maybe people will get to actually know me through this film.”
The movie appears to blur the lines between the experiences of the character Cole and Colson himself. The title is Kelly’s own zodiac sign, and footage of Cole walking through a crowd was taken from MGK’s surprise set at Lollapalooza last year, as reported by Rolling Stone. He hinted at the character hitting close to home during his acceptance speech after receiving the Spotlight award at the 2022 Newport Beach Film Festival.
“This movie is really close to me,” he said, per People. “It’s about the last week that a musician is alive and he’s…trying to find the good in himself. That’s kinda how I feel a lot of the time.”
MGK opened up in his Hulu documentary Life in Pink about going through a “really, really dark” moment in his life that culminated in him putting a shotgun in his mouth while on the phone with Fox, who was filming in Bulgaria. Baker said he grew incredibly paranoid that someone was going to enter his home and kill him.
“I was like, ‘You weren’t here for me,’” he recalled. “I’m in my room and I’m, like, freaking out on her.
Dude, I put the shotgun in my mouth and I’m yelling on the phone and, like, the barrel’s in my mouth and I go to cock the shotgun and the bullet—as it comes back up—the shell just gets jammed. Megan’s, like, dead silent.
That was kind of where I started realizing something’s not right.”
Taurus will be released in theaters and on demand Nov. 18.
Ghanaian socialite and Tiktok star Hajia Bintu reportedly acquired a brand new Mercedes Benz SUV just months after flaunting her first car, a jaguar.
Recall that after Hajia Bintu flaunted her Jaguar on the internet for the first time some months back, social media users strongly suggested that her Naija trip sponsored it.
This new car has sparked a new rumour on the internet about her alleged pimp activities.
According to some critics, since Hajia Bintu has no available 9-5 job or business, there’s no way the car was financed from her own pocket.
Comments under the video staunchly conclude that the car was financed by one of her numerous sugar daddies.
It’s not surprising many Ghanaians strongly believe the car was bought for Hajia Bintu by one of her numerous sugar daddies because all she does is Tiktok.
And as we all know, there’s no way she can afford this expensive car just with the gigs she gets from brands.
It can also be that Hajia Bintu only borrowed the car to flaunt on the internet as hers just to trend and make it into the news because it’s been a long time since she made it into the headlines.
Football will be played in stadiums with complete air conditioning for the first time at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which will take place in eight stadiums.
The 2022 World Cup will be the most expensive in the history of the competition, which began in 1930, due to the significant expenditure made by the Qatari government to prepare for the event.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup according to multiple reports will cost the Qatari government the sum of $200billion which is about 14 times higher than the amount any country has invested while hossting the Mundial.
Aside Qatar, we look at the top four other countries that invested billions of dollars to host the World Cup.
Russia 2018 – $14.2 billion
The host of the 21st edition of the FIFA World Cup spent $14.2 billion to prepare for the competition.
They used 12 stadiums to host the 64 games in the 2018 World Cup that was won by France.
Brazil 2014 – $11.6 billion
The record winners of the FIFA World Cup come third on our list for using $11.6 billion to host the competition which even resulted in various demonstrations in the country.
Brazil used 12 stadiums (seven new and five renovated) in twelve cities to host the 2014 World Cup which saw the Black Stars exit from the group stages without a single point.
Japan/Korea 2002: $7 billion
Two Asian powerhouses, Japan and Korea combined to host the first World Cup in the 21st century and they didn’t disappoint the world.
The stadiums in Daegu, Suwon, Yokohama, and Saitama all hosted 4 matches each, while the other 16 stadiums hosted 3 matches each.
Though $7 billion was used to host the 2002 FIFA World Cup, Japan/Korea are 5th on the list because they combined resources to host the competition.
Germany 2006: $4.3 billion
Last on the list was the 2006 World Cup staged in Germany and won by the Italian national team.
It was Germany’s second hosting of the competition, but they didn’t let that stop them from spending heavily as they invested $4.3 billion in the project.
Germany also used 12 stadiums to host the World Cup just like Russia and Brazil while South Africa used 10 stadiums to host the 2010 edition.
Former Ghana international Habib Mohammed believes there is enough time for Football Association to put certain measures in place for Black Stars to qualify from Group H at the 2022 World Cup.
Black Stars return to the tournament after missing out on the 2018 edition in Russia.
Ghana will take on Portugal in their first game in Group H on November 24 before playing South Korea and Uruguay on November 28 and December 2, respectively.
“I think the group that we are in people say it’s a group of death, but for me, I think that every country knows how to play football, so if you say this country isn’t… even when the draw came, people were talking about Uruguay, But let’s think about Portugal; they are playing very good football, Portugal is really there,” Mohammed told Onua TV.
“I think every country because now Saudi Arabia can even surprise you, and what will you say about it? So I think we should prepare well and let’s go and achieve what Ghana wants to achieve because there are some [teams] whose preparations aren’t better, and you see that it’s below standard.
He added, “I think that the preparations are advanced but lack certain things; that doesn’t mean I will stand here and say it will be difficult for us to qualify, but I think it’s not yet time, and we still have time to put certain measures in place for us to get qualification.”
The co-host of Asempa FM’s sports morning show, Kwaku Obeng Maestro, has stated that he will repress the impulse to retaliate against Patrick Osei Agyemang, well known as Country Man Songo, who insulted both Benedict Kwadwo Mensah and him.
Maestro stated on the Wednesday, October 26 edition of the program that he was not taught to engage in combat with other journalists and that his main concern was with his contributions to the growth of Ghanaian sports.
He clarified that he will avoid engaging in any friendly competition with his colleagues because he is concentrated on the shot callers in the business.
“We are not going to fight anyone. We are not trained to insult people. A brother once said, more are mad but few are roaming. When I’m on the radio, my target is the big men. I want to criticize them for them to know their shortfalls in the football administration. I target the elephants, not the cockroach. I don’t care about the cockroach. The elephant is my target the cockroach can dance and dance but it is not my target,” he said.
Songo hurled expletives at them and questioned their credentials as journalists and vowed to deal with them.
“The two of you sit on a morning show and pursue agenda. The foolish things you’ve been doing, what are your numbers? You people are funny. I went to Belize and realized an opportunity and grabbed it through the Mayor. All I told them was that during the World Cup, we will bring the team because we don’t want the players to be rusty.
“I had my plans and decided to take care of the team. How do I promise to take off the Belize national team? How do I conduct such negotiations? The two of you sit on Asempa and talk anyhow. Where is the credibility? The morning show is meant to discuss issues from the newspapers but you use the Asempa morning show for your agenda. You are paid well but because of the begging, you can’t do your job,” he said.
In October this year, Kotoko announced that they were going to travel to Belize to play a friendly game against the national team of the Central American country.
The club however announced later that the game has been canceled because the Belize FA said they were unable to put together a team for the game.
Actress and social media commentator, Afia Schwar has suggested that all the celebrities who used their influence as leverage to seriously campaign for Nana Addo should be lashed.
According to Afia Schwar, she’s a witness to the current economic hardships and hence she’s very disappointed in herself for campaigning for Nana Addo.
In a short video spotted on her IG page, Afia Schwar admitted that she and all the other celebrities who were chanting ‘4more4Nana’ are accomplices and not victims of Nana Addo’s incompetence.
Disappointed Afia Schwar boldly called out Nana Addo for betraying Ghanaians including herself and all the other celebrities who put their lives on the line so that Nana Addo could win his second term.
In the latter part of the video, Afia Schwar whose disappointment in Nana Addo is beyond redemption proposed that Ghanaians should teach herself and her colleagues a bitter lesson by matching them straight to the national theatre and giving them heavy lashes as a form of punishment for leading them astray.
Speaker Alban Bagbin has admitted the motion filed by the minority on Tuesday, October 25, to censure Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta over the current economic hardship facing the country.
The admission of the motion was contained in the Order Paper of Parliament, issued on Thursday, October 27, 2022.
The motion was only moved after a seven-day notice was given; and it was later confirmed that not less than one-third of all the members of Parliament had signed it, as expected in Article 81 of the Constitution.
The motion shall be debated in Parliament within fourteen days after the receipt by the Speaker of the notice for the motion.
During the debate, Mr Ofori-Attawould be provided the opportunity to defend himself.
The House is expected to organise “a secret vote” on November 10, 2022.
Article 81 (1) of the 1992 Constitution states that “Parliament may, by a solution supported by the votes of not less than two-thirds of all the members of Parliament, pass a vote of censure on a Minister of State.”
In the event that a vote of censure is passed against the Finance Minister, President Akufo-Addowould be compelled to revoke the appointment of Mr Ofori-Atta.
This will, however, not be necessary should Mr Ofori-Atta resign before the vote takes place.
Currently, the Minority in Parliament is hopeful of impeaching the Finance Minister, whom they hold responsible for the current economic crisis, after some NPP MPs demanded that the President replace Mr Ofori- Atta and the Minister of State at the Finance Ministry, Charles Adu Boahen.
However, such hopes may be dashed after the Majority Group suspended its demands following engagements with the President.
President Akufo-Addo has urged the aggrieved NPP MPs to allow Mr Ofori-Atta to conclude Ghana’s engagement with the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and present the 2023 Budget Statement in Parliament.
Also, the minority may not receive the backing of the majority as Deputy Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin has raised an objection to the motion filed.
He argued that the Minister of Finance had not been heard on the allegations levelled against him.
“If you go through our order paper in this House, clearly committees bring reports, we
submit applications and motions are advertised on their own. So a motion for a censure against the Finance Minister…Mr. Speaker, we should not forget that we are in a political space. The Minister has been condemned long before he is heard. The respondent in this application has been condemned with allegations, not facts. We all want a fair hearing,” he told the House on Thursday.
Ghanaian gospel singer Diana Hamilton has recounted the difficult years of her married life when she was unable to make babies.
It took her more than six years for her to eventually conceive and give birth and during those times, she went to bed each night with teary eyes.
Speaking on JOY Prime, Diana Hamilton said that due to what she went through, she urges that women who are not able to make babies be treated fairly.
“I cried at the end of every month when I was hopeful and it didn’t happen. Like a Christian, you don’t cry like an unbeliever, you cry as somebody who has hope.”
If you don’t cry, then you’re being a hypocrite. So I cried, but I trusted God and, when God did it, it was a miracle.”
Diana Hamilton added that most of her songs were inspired by the joy she felt when she started making babies. Looking back at the bitter treatment and all tears, she believes they were worth it.
The “Adom” hitmaker added that one of the lowest points of her life was when she was struck by a deadly disease that nearly took her life.
“I was hospitalised for six days or so and they couldn’t tell what it was and fear gripped me because it was at the height of Covid when nobody was allowed to come in and I was afraid for my life.”
“Tests were run and they couldn’t tell me what it was. My infection rate was going up, they were trying every antibiotic [but] in the height of my fears God brought me healing that was mind-blowing.”
Former President John Dramani Mahama has argued that it is unsustainable for the Finance Minister to depart after concluding the budget and IMF negotiations, which is the ostensible compromise made by the majority in parliament.
In response to President Akufo-Addo‘s request, the Majority Caucus in Parliament has agreed to let the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, and the Minister of State for the Finance Ministry, Charles Adu Boahen, continue in their positions until the conclusion of the IMF negotiations.
Per the press statement released by the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, the Minister of Finance will stay “until the conclusion of the round of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the presentation of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy in November, 2022 and the subsequent passage of the Appropriation Bill after which time the demand will be acted upon.”
But the former leader maintained that the Minister’s removal will have no ramifications on the IMF negotiations and the preparation of the 2023 Budget.
“Budget preparation and IMF negotiations are the result of teamwork, not the work of one individual. I fail to see how the absence of the Minister will affect the preparation of the budget or the negotiations with the
Fund,” he said while speaking at a lecture on the economy on Thursday.
He reiterated that the President must not only replace the finance minister, but also reconstitute and take control of the Economic Management Team himself.
Rihanna is back with “Lift Me Up,” her first new solo track in over six years.
Created for the highly anticipated Marvel Cinematic Universe sequel Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, “Lift Me Up” is the first fresh Rihanna track since she released Anti in 2016. It’s actually her first appearance on any song since she collaborated with PartyNextDoor for “Believe It” for his 2020 album Partymobile.
Tems, a “Lift Me Up” co-writer, offered up some details prior to its arrival. “After speaking with Ryan [Coogler, director/co-writer] and hearing his direction for the film and the song, I wanted to write something that portrays a warm embrace from all the people that I’ve lost in my life,” Tems stated, noting it’s a tribute to late Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman. “I tried to imagine what it would feel like if I could sing to them now and express how much I miss them. Rihanna has been an inspiration to me so hearing her convey this song is a great honor.”
Rihanna’s obviously been plenty busy with her FentyBeauty brand, and gave birth to her first child with ASAP Rocky in May, but to say that her return to music is long-awaited is to put it lightly. Listen to “Lift Me Up” from Wakanda Forever below.
The arrival of the single comes just over a month after it was confirmed that Rihanna will headline the Super Bowl LVII halftime show on Feb. 12 in Glendale, Arizona. She recently gave a TMZ paparazzo some brief remarks about her upcoming performance.
“I’m nervous but I’m excited,” she said. They also quizzed Rihanna on whether Rocky could show up, to which she replied, “Maybe, girl.”
Former President John Mahama is perplexed as to why the current administration, which asserts that it “has the guys,” is focusing the IMF negotiations and the 2023 budget presentation on “one individual.”
His remarks follow a meeting between President Akufo-Addo and the majority caucus, which was called in response to their demand that Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta be fired.
You may recall that nearly 80 NPP MPs asked for the dismissal of Charles Adu Boahen, the Finance Minister, and the Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance, for their failure to address the current economic situation.
But in a meeting on Tuesday, the President asked that Ofori Atta be allowed to conclude talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and also present the 2023 Budget Statement of government in November.
Speaking to this at a lecture on the economy on Thursday, Mr Mahama described this as “untenable”.
“Budget preparation and IMF negotiations are the result of teamwork, not the work of one individual. I fail to see how the absence of the Minister will affect the preparation of the budget or the negotiations with the Fund”.
He continued: “There surely must be persons with the requisite experience to carry on this work. After all, what happened to the “We have the men” mantra?”
Ace radio presenter Abeiku Santana has finally apologized to Mzbel for describing her as a former artiste who doesn’t merit a collaboration with any young musician.
Abeiku Santana’s unfortunate description of Mzbel followed after budding musician who performs under the stage name Chief One revealed that the ’16 years’ hitmaker is the only musician he wants to feature on a song at the moment.
Chief One’s admiration and praise for Mzbel triggered Abeiku Santana to throw inappropriate jabs at Mzbel who was busy minding her business.
Mzbel who is known for not sparing people who attack her unprovoked launched a smear campaign against Abeiku Santana in a self-made video she shared on social media.
In the video, Mzbel alleged that Abeiku Santana is pained that she didn’t allow herself to be used and dumped by him.
In furtherance, she claimed that the OKAY FM presnter disses his wife to his side chicks plus other dirty allegations.
The majority caucus in parliament has reversed course and stated that it completely supports Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta in his decision to remain in office until President Nana Akufo-Addo decides to act on the caucus’ prior call for the minister to be fired.
On Thursday, October 27, 2022, Deputy Majority Whip Habib Iddrisu made the following statement to the media: “At the end of the day, we all came to the conclusion that we have agreed to the request of the president” for the caucus to grant Mr. Ofori-Atta permission to complete his talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), as well as to present the 2023 budget in November of this year and finally move the motion for the approval of the appropriation bill.
“So, the entire majority caucus agreed to the request of the president to allow the finance minister to continue with the negotiation with the IMF and also the request of the president to make the finance minister present the 2023 budget”, he said.
Mr Iddrisu added: “So, because of that the leadership, led by the majority leader, Hon Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, led a delegation yesterday – I was part of it – and we communicated to the president that his request has been accepted by the majority caucus and that we allow that the finance minister should continue with the negotiations with the IMF, the finance minister should come and present the 2023 economic statement and budget of the president of the Republic of Ghana and also, to move the motion for the appropriation bill”.
“So, at the moment, the entire majority caucus, the 138 of us, are all behind the finance minister to continue with the negotiations with the IMF, to come and read the budget statement to us and also move the motion for the approval of the appropriation bill for the 2023 budget. So, that is the stand now”, he indicated.
“The statement has been made clear that: ‘Yes, we do respect our president, we have heard the request and appeal of the president and the majority caucus is fully behind the finance minister”, he stressed.
The caucus, led by spokesperson Andy Appiah Kubi, MP for Asante Akyem North, issued the ultimatum within the precincts of parliament on Tuesday, 25 October 2022 when the house resumed sitting after a long recess.
He told the parliamentary press corps: “We are members of the majority caucus of the parliament of Ghana and we, here so, present; represent a greater number of the said caucus”.
“My name is Andy Appiah Kubi and I am only here as the spokesperson for the majority group – without more”, he caveated.
Mr Appiah-Kubi continued: “We have had occasions to defend allegations of conflict of interest, lack of confidence [and] trust against the leadership of our finance ministry”, however, “the recent developments within our economy are of great concern to the greater majority of the members of our caucus and our constituents”.
“We have made our grave concerns [known] to the president through the parliamentary leadership and the leadership of the party without any positive response”, he revealed.
“We are, by this medium, communicating our strong desire that the president change the minister of finance and the minister of state at the finance ministry, without further delay, to restore hope to the financial sector and reverse the downward trend in the growth of the economy”, the group demanded.
“The summary of our concerns lead to a plea that the Minister of Finance, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta and the Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance, Mr Charles Adu-Boahen, be removed from office. We pray that this prayer would be carried to the presidency”.
The caucus then threatened: “Meanwhile, we want to serve notice, and notice is hereby served that until such persons, as aforementioned, are made to resign or removed from office, we, members of the majority caucus here in parliament, will not participate in any business of the government by or for the president by any other minister”.
“We hope that those of us at the backbench and members of the majority caucus will abide by this prayer”, the group added.
“We are saying that if our request is not responded to positively, we will not be present for the budget hearing nor will we participate in the debate”, Mr Appiah-Kubi stressed.
Also, the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) had demanded that President Akufo-Addo reassign Mr Ofori-Atta and Mr Adu Boahen if he cannot dismiss them.
The pro-government pressure group said in a press statement that the two ministers are to blame for the poor performance of the Ghana cedi in relation to other international trade currencies.
“The Minister of Finance and the Minister of State at the Ministry, Ken Ofori-Atta and Charles Adu Boahen, must be reassigned,” the group demanded.
AFAG’s demand came a few days after media personality and comic Kwaku Sintim-Misa, alias KSM, asked Mr Ofori-Atta to resign.
He said this in a tweet where he claimed to be giving advice to Mr Ofori-Atta.
The award-winning comic posited that President Nana Akufo-Addo, who is cousins with Ken Ofori-Atta, has no desire to sack him from office for a more competent person to assume it, even though it is the best for Ghana’s ailing economy.
“Advice to Ken Ofori-Atta. Bra [brother] Ken, it is obvious the President cannot and will not fire you,” Mr Sintim-Misa began.
“Please do him and Ghana a favour and respectfully resign for a competent financial manager to take charge,” he advised.
According to the TV show host, the resignation of the Finance Minister will be followed by restored confidence in Ghana’s economic recovery.
“I am sure that the financial markets will react positively to the news,” is how he put it.
Also, another entertainment personality, Lydia Forson, recently said: “It makes absolutely no sense that Ken Ofori-Atta is still the finance minister,” and queried: “How?”
“He’s lost the confidence of the people!” she argued.
The clamour for Mr Ofori-Atta’s head come on the back of the cedi’s very poor performance against the US dollar.
Bloomberg has named the Ghana cedi as the worst-performing currency in the world.
At the time of KSM and Lydia Forson’s tweets, one needed more than 15 cedis to obtain a dollarin Accra, the capital of Ghana.
Recently, the United Kingdom’s Finance Minister Kwasi Kwarteng was sacked and subsequently their Prime Minister, Liz Truss, also resigned.
A section of the Ghanaian public have asked why this is not common in Ghana.
President Nana Akufo-Addo, last week, said Mr Ofori-Atta has been an excellent handler of the Ghanaian economy and, thus, sees no reason to sack him as being clamoured for by his critics.
Speaking to OTEC FM in the Ashanti Region on the first day of his four-day official working tour of that part of Ghana, Mr Akufo-Addo parried criticisms that his cousin is to blame for Ghana’s return to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for help since he mismanaged the economy.
The president said he takes full responsibility for Ghana’s return to the IMF since he took the decision as the head of state.
He argued that the same Ofori-Atta was able to manage an IMF-programmed economy that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) inherited in 2017 to become one of the fastest-growing economies in the world with an average annual growth rate of 7%.
The president, thus, wondered, how he could cut ties with Mr Ofori-Atta as finance minister.
The president said he has a lot of difficulty understanding the clamour for Mr Ofori-Atta’s exit, since, he noted, even the IMF confirmed that the causes of the current economic situation in Ghana are global in nature rather than a result of internal mismanagement.
“It is very easy for people to say we went back to the IMF due to mismanagement of the economy. I do not accept that criticism because the reasons why we got into the situation we find ourselves has very little to do with us. In fact, the IMF confirmed this.”
Former Ghana international Habib Mohammed believes there is enough time for Football Association to put certain measures in place for Black Stars to qualify from Group H at the 2022 World Cup.
Black Stars make a return to the tournament after missing out on the 2018 edition in Russia.
Ghana will take on Portugal in their first game in Group H on November 24 before playing South Korea and Uruguay on November 28 and December 2 respectively.
“I think the group that we are in people say it’s group of death, but for me, I think that every country knows how to play football so if you say this country isn’t… even when the draw came people where talking about Uruguay, But let’s think about Portugal; they are playing very good football, Portugal is really there,” Mohammed told Onua TV.
“I think every country because now Saudi Arabia can even surprise you and what will you say about it? So I think we should prepare well and let’s go and achieve what Ghana wants to achieve because there are some [teams] whose preparations aren’t better and you see that it’s below standard.
He added, “I think that the preparations are advanced but lack certain things that doesn’t mean I will stand here and say it will be difficult for us to qualify, but I think it’s not yet time and we still have time to put certain measures in place for us to get qualification.”
Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has indicated that the government is exploring innovative ways and also taking proactive steps towards tightening the country’s foreign exchange regime.
Speaking at the Standard Chartered digital banking Innovation & Fintech Festival held in Accra, the Vice President acknowledged that Ghana’s foreign exchange systems appear to be unreliable.
He attributed the current economic hardships to this, stressing that something must urgently be done to avert the situation.
“It is very clear that our foreign exchange regime is quite loose, and that is why we are going to see how we can tighten our foreign exchange regime. In broad terms, you cannot address the current economic situation without addressing the fiscal and debt sustainability, production, and foreign exchange regime.”
An exchange rate regime refers to the ‘way’ the value of the domestic currency in terms of foreign currencies is determined. The exchange rate regime can influence economic growth through investment or increased productivity.
Touching on how it can be improved in the country, the Vice President noted that the government and key stakeholders must examine as well as reconsider innovative ways of production.
He further gave the assurance that the government would soon present details of how it intends to address the shortfall of the cedi.
Speaking on the government’s engagement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Vice President highlighted the significance of key policy adjustments in the negotiations with the Bretton Woods institution.
“Once those [negotiations with the IMF] are concluded, it will be clear that it will not be, and it should not be business as usual because we have to adjust to the new global and domestic realities,” he noted.
He noted that, considering the country’s trade surpluses and deficits, production must change to allow for more exports than imports.
In this regard, he said Ghana would be working to reduce import dependency to also address the country’s forex problems.
The Standard Chartered digital banking Innovation & Fintech Festival was held on the theme: “Powering Africa’s Digital Economy: Platforms | Players | Policy.”
It brought together experts from the Finance and Banking industries to explore Africa’s digital transformation by engaging local and international players who are powering Africa’s digital transformative agenda.
It was at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel on October 26 and 27, 2022. Dignitaries that graced the occasion aside from the Vice President were the Governor, Bank of Ghana, Ernest Addison, Second Deputy Governor, Bank of Ghana, Elsie Addo Awadzi, Deputy CEO, Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), John Bosco Sebabi, Vice President, Africa Fintech Network, Noha Shaker, among others.
Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, a ranking member of the Support Committee of the House of Representatives, has advised the government against creating money to finance its spending.
According to him, the government’s efforts to combat inflation are harmed by the practice, also known as monetary funding.
He highlighted that the Bank of Ghana should prioritize the fight against inflation while delivering a public lecture titled “Building the Ghana we desire.”
In his opinion, “The first objective should be to reduce inflation because Ghana does not want it to get entrenched. We must do this before it is too late. Inflation expectations need to be immediately anchored by the Bank of Ghana.
To finance government spending, they ought to stop producing money, also referred to as “monetary financing.””
Ato Forson charged the Bank of Ghana to institute an emergency monetary policy committee to consider hiking the monetary policy rate as a signal for investor confidence.
“To stem the rapid depreciation of our cedi, the Bank of Ghana may have to call for an emergency monetary policy committee meeting and consider the need to hike the monetary policy rate, even if it is for purposes of signalling that somebody is in charge,” he said.
The $44 billion sale was finalized on October 27, 2022, and according to people familiar with the transaction, the platform will be controlled privately by the billionaire.
Prior to the agreement, Musk and Twitter officials were in court because Musk had initially agreed to buy the platform in April of this year but had subsequently backed out over worries about the amount of bots and charges made by a whistleblower.
The move is expected to further send shockwaves within the company which already has many of its staff in limbo over their future.
According to a Bloomberg report on October 28, Elon Musk is expected to take over the company as CEO and reverse lifetime bans on users who had violated the platform’s policies.
Minority leader Haruna Iddrisu has clarified that his side in Parliament has not declared support for Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, who is seeking the chairmanship position of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
It was earlier communicated by Deputy Minority Whip, Ahmed Ibrahim, that the NDC Caucus supports the candidature of Mr Asiedu Nketiah, the current General Secretary of the Party.
Mr Ahmed Ibrahim, who is also the Member of Parliament for Banda, made the comment at the launch of the election campaign of the aspirant on Tuesday, October 25, 2022.
However, the Tamale South MP explains that “the Leadership of the Caucus never met on the matter and have not taken any decision on the matter.”
Mr Iddrisualso noted that neither has the Caucus met to deliberate nor taken a decision on any candidate contesting any position within the Party, therefore, has urged the rank and file and the public to disregard the purported statement made during the launch.
The Minority leader further explained that such a decision cannot be taken since the Leadership of the Caucus “has no position on any of the candidates vying for the respective positions in the Party.”
According to him, Mr Ahmed Ibrahim’s attention has been drawn to the matter and “has since rendered an unqualified apology to the entire Caucus.”
“We further wish to urge all Members of the Caucus to refrain from making such comments in the immediate future,” Mr Iddrisu entreated.
The chairmanship race
Mr Nketiah, who has been the NDC General Secretary for the past 17 years, believes he is now experienced, trustworthy, and fearless to serve as the chairman of the party.
He will go up against the incumbent chair, Ofosu Ampofo, who seeks to lead the NDC to victory in the 2024 general elections.
Aspirants for the various national positions of the party are expected to file their nominations on November 5 and 6, 2022.
Successful candidates will be vetted on November 9-10, 2022, while November 12 and 13 will be set aside for appeals ahead of the Women and Youth Conference on December 10 and a National Conference on December 17, this year.
On the other hand, the Council of Elders of the Party has called for calm and decorum between the two contestants in the chairmanship race.
“In the interest of party cohesion, internal discipline and long-term stability, the Council urges all contestants to regional and national positions, especially the incumbent national chairman and General Secretary, to be circumspect in their campaigns by adhering to ground rules discussed and agreed upon,” it said.
“These include the use of decorous language, refrain from media attacks, breach of confidentiality and misrepresentations of decisions taken in relation to past actions of leadership,” the Council added.
The Manchester United superstar returned to the starting XI after being banished from the first-team for his refusal to come on as a substitute against Tottenham.
He led the line and found the back of the net nine minutes from time to complete the scoring at Old Trafford.
Ronaldo scored his side’s third goal after smashing home from close range.
And as the Portuguese forward wheeled away in celebration, he ditched his trademark sui
celebration and performed the same gesture he did against Everton.
He pointed to the stands then stood upright with his head back, eyes closed and fingers crossed in front of his chest.
Ronaldo produced the same celebration after scoring Man United’s winner against Everton earlier this month.
Fans online are loving it and think it’s another iconic celebration.
One Twitter user wrote: “Cristiano Ronaldo might have just invented the second greatest celebration ever… From SIUUUU to ‘inner peace’, I love it.”
A second tweeted: “This Cristiano Ronaldo celebration is really epic.”
A third added: “Ronaldo has replaced the SIU with this celebration and I love it already.”
A fourth commented: “I’m loving this new Ronaldo celebration.”
Another said: “Cristiano Ronaldo’s celebration is cold.”
Ronaldo’s celebration is a ‘self-deprecating’ nod to the position in which he sleeps when travelling with the squad, which hasn’t gone unnoticed by the rest of the team, hence why Antony joined in on the celebration at Goodison Park.
On the club’s official website, they explained: “We can now reveal that Ronaldo’s celebration was a self-deprecating in-joke with his fellow team-mates, highlighting the strong bonds among the players in Erik ten Hag’s squad.”
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner will be hoping to retain his place in the starting XI when Man United resume their Premier League campaign on Sunday against West Ham United.
President Akufo-Addowill, on Sunday, October 30, 2022, address Ghanaians on the current state of the economy.
This comes after scores of Ghanaians called on the president and his economic management team to update the country on the way forward in restoring the dwindling economy.
According to a pressure group, OccupyGhana, the country’s economic outlook is nothing to write home about.
Thus, an update from the presidency on the state of the economy and the general affairs of the country could calm some nerves.
In a press statement, the group said, “no one expects the President to physically halt the fall of the cedi or conjure inflation away. However, it is imperative in such times that Ghanaians get the reassurance that their elected leader is doing all he can and that he cares. The cedi is ‘burning’. The Ghanaian economy is in tatters. It is a disaster. Yet we do not see commanding leadership in this matter.”
The country’s local currency is being battered by other foreign currencies while the annual inflation as of September 2022 has increased to 37.2%. A dollar is currently trading at about GH14.
Also, fuel prices have escalated, and transport fares have been revised three times just this year.
This increase in fuel prices and transport fares has translated into an increase in the prices of food goods and services.
Some Ghanaians and lawmakers have urged President Akufo-Addoto dismiss Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta because of his poor performance in the midst of this economic crisis.
The President is expected to further address the calls for the dismissal of Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta as well as the country’s engagement with the International Monetary Fund, on Sunday.
Ghana international, Bernard Tekpetey has backed Ludogorets Razgrad to keep fighting following their narrow 1-0 defeat to Real Betis in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday night.
The 25-year-old, who lasted the entire duration of the game put up an impressive display in their match day five encounter in UEFA’s second tier competition.
“No matter how much falls on us,we keep plowing ahead. That’s the only way to keep the roads clear. Fight till the end,” he posted on his twitter page after the game.
In the first half, Tekpetey and his teammates put up a fantastic display but could not get on the score sheet.
Ten minutes into the second half, Real Betis had the breakthrough when French attacker Nabil Fekir scored after he was assisted by Luiz Henrique.
Although Tekpetey was a bright light in the attack of Ludogorets, it could not inspire a comeback at the end of the 90 minutes.
The defeat means that the Bulgarian giants must win their final group game to advance to the knockout stage of the Europa League.
Tekpetey has made 25 appearances for Ludogorets across all competitions, scored eight goals and provided six assists.
A Santa Claus impersonator in the Quebec City area has been arrested on multiple sexual assault and drug related charges.
According to a news release by the Sûreté du Québec provincial police, 71-year-old Réjean Bacon is believed to have sexually assaulted five women. Bacon also faces charges of voyeurism, drug possession and trafficking, and obtaining sexual services.
Local media reports say Bacon has been identified as a popular Santa Claus impersonator in the area. According to CTV News Montreal: “images of a man dressed in a Santa suit on a Facebook profile under the name Réjean Bacon match the photo of the accused.”
The provincial police say Bacon was arrested last May. Police received a search warrant for his home, which led to the seizure of computer equipment.
He was later released with conditions. The analysis of the computer material then made it possible to lay these latest charges.
Several residents of Amasaman in the Ga West Municipality District of the Greater Accra Region have been displaced as a result of a demolition exercise carried out to allow for the rehabilitation of the Ofankor-Nsawam road.
The structures pulled down included wooden structures, shops, office buildings, and other structures that served as accommodation for the people.
Some affected people were seen clearing the remains of their structures and salvaging some of their belongings when The Independent Ghana visited the site around 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday.
Residents accused authorities of treating them unfairly and demanded compensation.
Speaking to The Independent Ghana, the majority of the victims claimed that they did not receive prior notice from the assembly concerning the exercise.
A trader who was affected also claimed that the authorities had informed them of the road construction but didn’t specify the exact day they would be undertaking the demolition exercise.
“They should have informed us a day before they were coming, so we prepared. As they are sacking us, where do they expect us to go?” she lamented.
Another trader also bemoaned the action, saying that selling is her only means of survival. She, thus, wants authorities to get the affected traders a market where they can continue with their business.
“How can you come and destroy our home, and you sleep in an air-conditioned room, “an angry woman said, throwing jabs at President Akufo-Addo.
She added that they haven’t been given a penny as they claim they have. We need to be compensated. If we are not compensated, we don’t know what we are going to do next,”
Another resident speaking to The Independent Ghana revealed that her son was in the room when the demolition began.
In her haste to save her son, she suffered some injuries, which she showed by pointing to fresh cuts and bruises on her right arm.
She was unable to pack her belongings and has since lost everything.
“The Amasaman assemblyman came to the area to inform us to get prepared from Monday to Friday but didn’t state the exact day for the demolition. They only came in the evening while it was raining and instructed us to pack out because they are coming to demolish the place.I am a mother of 4,where do they except us to go “another victim lamented
Other victims lamented the loss of property, with some saying they had nowhere to sleep.
According to the demolition tax force, they were instructed to pull down all the structures to pave the way for a road construction.
The traders and residents are however appealing to the government to compensate them for the destruction of the properties
The Independent Ghana Checks show that the demolition exercise was sanctioned by the Amasaman Municipal Assembly.
Attempts to reach out to the Amasaman Municipal Assembly to respond to these allegations have proved futile.
Ghana defender Lumor Agbenyenu is elated to joined to La Liga 2 side Malaga and is ready to give his all for the club.
The left-back signed a short-term deal with the club which will see him feature until the end of the 2022/23 season from Greek side, Aris Thessaloniki, having been released at the end of last season.
Malaga are currently 21st on the league table with nine points after 12 matches played so far.
“I am so excited to be a part of this Family, I have been working so hard for this. It’s my greatest wish to help This great team achieve more greater things.”
“Thus, I will give in my all on and off the field. And play with all intensity and integrity anytime I’m given the chance. The love and support from the fans will not go in vain. vamos MALAGA FC,” Agbenyenu wrote on Facebook.
Agbenyenu has previously played for Sporting Lisbon, Portimonense, 1860 München, Göztepe, and Portimonense before he made it to the Spanish division in the 2019/20 season while playing for Mallorca.
LeBron James is parting ways with the Dallas Cowboys.
James made the announcement while speaking with Maverick Carter on Instagram Live on Thursday, claiming Cowboys owner Jerry Jones requiring that his team’s players stand for the national anthem four years ago was the last straw.
LeBron confirmed he’s “all in” on his hometown Cleveland Browns, a decision he didn’t seem entirely satisfied with. The Browns are currently tied for third place in the AFC North division with a 2-5 record, as the controversial return of quarterback Deshaun Watson draws near.
Watson was suspended for 11 games in August after being accused of sexual misconduct by two dozen women.
The announcement comes after LeBron teased “something special” for NFL fans on Twitter.
James later revealed his show The Shop would be a part of the Thursday Night Football stream on Prime Video for the Nov. 17 game between the Tennessee Titans and Green Bay Packers.
Ex-Ghana winger Laryea Kingston is confident coach Ghana Otto Addo has a fine blend of experienced and young talents who have the potential to excel at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Black Stars make a return to the tournament after missing out on the 2018 edition in Russia.
Ghana will take on Portugal in their first game in Group H on November 24 before playing South Korea and Uruguay on November 28 and December 2 respectively.
“The team is full of quality players who have the potential to make a good account of themselves at the biggest stage of world football,” Kingston told Daily Graphic.
“I have confidence in the technical team to deliver on their mandate and all I ask is for them to be clinical in their attack.”
Black Stars will play Switzerland in an International friendly on November 17, before travelling to Qatar for the World Cup.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup takes place between November 20 and December 18
Only three sides from the continent have ever progressed to the quarter-finals; Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002, and Ghana in 2010.
He added that President Nana Akufo-failure Addo’s to embrace the problem is another reason why the discussions are failing.
“The talks with the IMF [are] not going well.
I am positive about this.
The president needs to make a big, credible announcement, like he did regarding COVID. According to Accra-based TV3, the president declared, “I accept full responsibility, I’m in control, and I’m going to make sure that Ghanaians are safeguarded from COVID.”
“We need a president to own the crisis, to come out and say: ‘There is nothing that I will not do to stabilise the economy of Ghana to stop this pressure, the economic crisis that is looming, and that there are no sacred cows. All the flagship programmes would be looked at and reviewed for efficiency; free [SHS], the feeding [programme], we are going to look at all that’,” Mr Pianim noted.
Additionally, he said the President must tell the world: “I, myself, I’m going to set the example.”
According to Mr Pianim, “there are expenditures that need to be cut” rather than “spooking traders by planting GRA officers in their shops,” insisting: “It’s wrong”.
“Look, when people are suffering, that’s not when you irritate them by starting things new.”
“The hardship on Ghanaians is unprecedented, so, he should save Ghanaians additional misery by stepping down,” Mr Pianim said.
He said there are consequences for the governing party if Mr Ofori-Atta continues to stay on as finance minister.
“The second part is that the NPP has a reasonably good reputation as a good manager of the Ghanaian economy and it’s time that he stopped so that irreparable damage is not done to the reputation of the NPP as a good manager of the economy.”
“And the third one is: if he doesn’t go and the president doesn’t let him go, we risk, irreversibly dragging the president and his presidency into the gutters.”
Meanwhile, the majority caucus of parliament has made a U-turn, saying it fully supports Mr Ofori-Atta to continue his job until President Nana Akufo-Addo decides to take action on the caucus’ earlier demand for the minister’s removal from office.
Deputy Majority Whip Habib Iddrisu told journalists on Thursday, 27 October 2022: “At the end of the day, we all came to a conclusion that we have agreed to the request of the president” for the caucus to allow Mr Ofori-Atta to finish his negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and also present the 2023 budget in November this year and finally move the motion for the approval of the appropriation bill.
“So, the entire majority caucus agreed to the request of the president to allow the finance minister to continue with the negotiation with the IMF and also the request of the president to make the finance minister present the 2023 budget,” he said.
Mr Iddrisu added: “So, because of that the leadership, led by the majority leader, Hon Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, led a delegation yesterday – I was part of it – and we communicated to the president that his request has been accepted by the majority caucus and that we allow that the finance minister should continue with the negotiations with the IMF, the finance minister should come and present the 2023 economic statement and budget of the president of the Republic of Ghana and also, to move the motion for the appropriation bill.”
“So, at the moment, the entire majority caucus, the 138 of us, are all behind the finance minister to continue with the negotiations with the IMF, to come and read the budget statement to us and also move the motion for the approval of the appropriation bill for the 2023 budget. So, that is the stand now,” he indicated.
“The statement has been made clear that: ‘Yes, we do respect our president, we have heard the request and appeal of the president and the majority caucus is fully behind the finance minister,” he stressed.
The majority caucus gave the president the ultimatum to dismiss not only Mr Ofori-Atta but also the Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance, Mr Charles Adu Boahen, or they will boycott the 2023 budget hearing and other government businesses on the floor of parliament.
The caucus, led by spokesperson Andy Appiah Kubi, MP for Asante Akyem North, issued the ultimatum within the precincts of parliament on Tuesday, 25 October 2022, when the house resumed sitting after a long recess.
He told the parliamentary press corps: “We are members of the majority caucus of the parliament of Ghana and we, here so, present; represent a greater number of the said caucus.”
“My name is Andy Appiah Kubi and I am only here as the spokesperson for the majority group – without more,” he caveated.
Mr Appiah-Kubi continued: “We have had occasions to defend allegations of conflict of interest, lack of confidence [and] trust against the leadership of our finance ministry,” however, “the recent developments within our economy are of great concern to the greater majority of the members of our caucus and our constituents.”
“We have made our grave concerns [known] to the president through the parliamentary leadership and the leadership of the party without any positive response,” he revealed.
“We are, by this medium, communicating our strong desire that the president change the minister of finance and the minister of state at the finance ministry, without further delay, to restore hope to the financial sector and reverse the downward trend in the growth of the economy,” the group demanded.
“The summary of our concerns lead to a plea that the Minister of Finance, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta and the Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance, Mr Charles Adu-Boahen, be removed from office. We pray that this prayer would be carried to the presidency.”
The caucus then threatened: “Meanwhile, we want to serve notice, and notice is hereby served that until such persons, as aforementioned, are made to resign or removed from office, we, members of the majority caucus here in parliament, will not participate in any business of the government by or for the president by any other minister.”
“We hope that those of us at the backbench and members of the majority caucus will abide by this prayer,” the group added.
“We are saying that if our request is not responded to positively, we will not be present for the budget hearing nor will we participate in the debate,” Mr Appiah-Kubi stressed.
Also, the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) had demanded that President Akufo-Addo reassign Mr Ofori-Atta and Mr Adu Boahen if he cannot dismiss them.
The pro-government pressure group said in a press statement that the two ministers are to blame for the poor performance of the Ghana cedi in relation to other international trade currencies.
“The Minister of Finance and the Minister of State at the Ministry, Ken Ofori Atta and Charles Adu Boahen, must be reassigned,” the group demanded.
AFAG’s demand came a few days after media personality and comic Kwaku Sintim-Misa, alias KSM, asked Mr Ofori-Atta to resign.
He said this in a tweet where he claimed to be giving advice to Mr Ofori-Atta.
The award-winning comic posited that President Nana Akufo-Addo, who is cousins with Ken Ofori-Atta, has no desire to sack him from office for a more competent person to assume it, even though it is the best for Ghana’s ailing economy.
“Advice to Ken Ofori-Atta. Bra [brother] Ken, it is obvious the President cannot and will not fire you,” Mr Sintim-Misa began.
“Please do him and Ghana a favour and respectfully resign for a competent financial manager to take charge,” he advised.
According to the TV show host, the resignation of the Finance Minister will be followed by restored confidence in Ghana’s economic recovery.
“I am sure that the financial markets will react positively to the news,” is how he put it.
Also, another entertainment personality, Lydia Forson, recently said: “It makes absolutely no sense that Ken Ofori-Atta is still the finance minister,” and queried: “How?”
“He’s lost the confidence of the people!” she argued.
The clamour for Mr Ofori-Atta’s head come on the back of the cedi’s very poor performance against the US dollar.
Bloomberg has named the Ghana cedi as the worst-performing currency in the world.
At the time of KSM and Lydia Forson’s tweets, one needed more than 15 cedis to obtain a dollar in Accra, the capital of Ghana.
Recently, the United Kingdom’s Finance Minister Kwasi Kwarteng was sacked and subsequently their Prime Minister, Liz Truss, also resigned.
A section of the Ghanaian public have asked why this is not common in Ghana.
President Nana Akufo-Addo, last week, said Mr Ofori-Atta has been an excellent handler of the Ghanaian economy and, thus, sees no reason to sack him as being clamoured for by his critics.
Speaking to OTEC FM in the Ashanti Region on the first day of his four-day official working tour of that part of Ghana, Mr Akufo-Addo parried criticisms that his cousin is to blame for Ghana’s return to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for help since he mismanaged the economy.
The president said he takes full responsibility for Ghana’s return to the IMF since he took the decision as the head of state.
He argued that the same Ofori-Atta was able to manage an IMF-programmed economy that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) inherited in 2017 to become one of the fastest-growing economies in the world with an average annual growth rate of 7%.
The president, thus, wondered, how he could cut ties with Mr Ofori-Atta as finance minister.
The president said he has a lot of difficulty understanding the clamour for Mr Ofori-Atta’s exit, since, he noted, even the IMF confirmed that the causes of the current economic situation in Ghana are global in nature rather than a result of internal mismanagement.
“It is very easy for people to say we went back to the IMF due to mismanagement of the economy. I do not accept that criticism because the reasons why we got into the situation we find ourselves has very little to do with us.
According to the Washington Post, the billionaire tech mogul completed his Twitter acquisition on Thursday night, following months of legal threats and skirmishes. Sources told the outlet that Musk wasted little time making his first big moves as the platform’s sole owner, and immediately terminated some top executives: chief financial officer Ned Segal; Vijaya Gadde, head of legal policy, trust, and safety; and chief executive officer Parag Agrawal. One insider, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, also said Twitter’s general counsel, Sean Edgett, was given the boot.
Earlier this week, Musk was spotted entering the company’s San Francisco headquarters as he prepared to finalize the $44 billion deal. He also updated his Twitter bio to include “Chief Twit,” sparking speculation he would soon fire Agrawal and take over the CEO position.
Last week word arrived that Musk was looking at a layoff of nearly 75 percent of Twitter’s staff, bringing the number from 7,500 to just over 2,000. The company was reportedly looking to lay off 25 percent of its workforce.
The road to Musk’s acquisition has been long and rocky. He inked a deal to purchase the company back in April, but threatened to pull out of the deal just weeks later. Musk accused the platform of misleading him about the actual size of its user base, and claimed it was concealing the actual number of spam accounts. Twitter sued Musk in an effort to enforce the original agreement. Musk responded with a countersuit.
Several weeks ago, a Delaware judge told the parties they had until Oct. 28 to close the acquisition; if they failed to do so, the case would go to trial.
Though the deal has been finalized, uncertainty continues to loom over Twitter’s future. Musk attempted to alleviate those concerns in a lengthy statement shared on Thursday, where he outlined his plans for the platform.
“There is currently great danger that social media will splinter into far right wing and far left wing echo chambers that generate more hate and divide our society,” Musk wrote.
“In the relentless pursuit of clicks, much of traditional media has fueled and catered to those polarized extremes, as they believe that is what brings in the money, but, in doing so, the opportunity for dialogue is lost.”
Former president, John Dramani Mahama has urged the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo administration to cut costs, remove waste, and spend money wisely.
On Thursday, October 27, 2022, Mahama stated that one method to achieve this is by scaling back his administration. The event was titled “Building the Nation We Want.”
Additionally, he recommended that the government put on hold non-essential initiatives and eliminate or restructure governmental entities that served comparable purposes.
Again, the 2020 flagbearer of the NDC backed calls for the dismissal of the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta from office; adding that his removal will not affect the ongoing negotiations between Ghana and the IMF.
“A big contributor to the excessive public expenditure is the sheer size of government. President Akufo-Addo has been particularly irresponsible in keeping a needlessly large government. At a point, we had over 120 ministers in his government with hundreds of political appointees at the Presidency and others attached to ministers and state organisations.
“While the President has cut down this number, there is still room for a further reduction including merging some Ministries to reduce expenditure and cut down the number of Ministers to below 65. It is also necessary to trim the large number of political appointees who have sought refuge in the Flagstaff House. This will reflect the necessities of the time and the need for modesty and prudence” John Dramani Mahama noted.
The Majority Caucus has agreed to President Akufo- Addo’srequest to delay the discussion of Mr Ofori-Atta’s dismissal as finance minister until after Ghana’s negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are concluded.
On Tuesday, some 80 New Patriotic Party (NPP) Members of Parliament called for the dismissal of the Finance Minister and the Minister of State at the Finance Ministry, Charles Adu Boahen, over the economic hardship facing the country.
Spokesperson for the Majority caucus, Mr Andy Appiah-Kubi, who is MP for Asante-Akim North Constituency indicated that his side would desist from government business if their demand was not met.
The bold step taken by the Caucus was supported by many on social media, who expressed their displeasure with the hashtag #Kenmustgo.
Following this, President Akufo- Addo engaged the aggrieved legislators and asked that the Finance Minister be made to complete dealings with the IMF on behalf of Ghana and submit the 2023 Budget Statement
Briefly after the interaction, the Majority Caucus, in a statement dated October 26, noted that after deliberation among members, it would suspend its current demands.
“The President engaged Members of the Caucus and requested that the issue be stood down until the conclusion of the round of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the presentation of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy in November 2022, and the subsequent passage of the Appropriation Bill, after which time the demand shall be acted upon.”
“After deliberations among the Majority Caucus today, Wednesday, October 26th, 2022, it was agreed to accede to the President’s appeal,” parts of the statement read.
Ghana is hopeful of securing a deal with the IMF by December this year.
Despite the President’s appeal, some Ghanaians continue to demand the removal of Mr Ofori- Atta from the Ministry of Finance.
Meanwhile, the Minority Caucus has filed an impeachment against the Finance Minister and is calling on members of the Majority to support its motion.
Under Mr Ofori-Atta’swatch, the country battles a high inflation rate of 37.2% as of September 2022, and a worsened depreciation of the cedi.
A dollar is currently trading at about GH14. Also, fuel prices have escalated, with a litre of petrol going for about GHS17 at some pump stations.
Transport fares have been revised three times just this year. Since January, transport fares have risen by 54 per cent. The adjustment has been associated with a general rise in the prices of goods and services.
Ato Forson, who discussed Ghana’s economy on October 27 at a gathering in Accra, called the action “Mickey Mouse” and cautioned that the direction in which the government plans to approach the debt restructuring will be detrimental to Ghanaians.
“Mr. President, a Mickey Mouse approach to debt restructuring will seriously harm Ghana. You may not single out domestic creditors in your debt restructuring. It will ruin us, he said.
“The truth is, Ghana cannot currently afford to repay its debt according to the finance agreement and provide public goods at the same time. Ghana is simply insolvent, in other words bankrupt…,” he added.
Stating that the managers of the economy have failed, Ato Forson noted, “for them, everything is about the next elections, they never accept responsibility. They always say, ‘it wasn’t me, it was the guy behind the tree.’ They live on another planet, and don’t appreciate what the IMF will require from them, let alone start action. The ineptitude is unbelievable.
“Curbing inflation should be the top priority: Ghana does not want inflation to be entrenched, we need to confront inflation now before it becomes too late. The Bank of Ghana needs to anchor inflation expectation immediately. They should stop the printing of money otherwise known as monetary financing to finance government expenditure.”
Dr. Ato Forson suggested that the Bank of Ghana should call an emergency meeting of the monetary committee to increase the monetary policy rate to curb the depreciation of the Cedi.
“To stem the rapid depreciation of our cedi the Bank of Ghana may have to call for an emergency monetary policy committee meeting and consider the need to hike the monetary policy rate, even if it is for purposes of signaling that somebody is in charge.”
The Ghana Chamber of Construction Industry (GhCCI) has joined calls for the resignation of Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.
According to GhCCI, Mr Ofori- Atta has demonstrated gross incompetence in the face of the cedi’s depreciation and the current economic crisisplaguing the country.
“The time is now; the president must rise for once and do the needful, and not just him (Ken Ofori-Atta) alone; others also must follow because enough is enough.
The Chamber of Commerce thinks the NPP has several other people who are better qualified to handle the position than the current Minister, who has been in office since 2017.
Recent economic developments in Ghana include a high rate of inflation, rising prices for fueland other consumer goods, as well as an increase in the standard of living.
As a result, many people are concerned about their financial security and have demanded answers from the government on how it plans to address the crisis.
Many people have called for the Finance Minister’s resignation or dismissal because of how he has handled the situation.
The calls were heightened by what has been described as an “unprecedented” move by the Majority group in Parliament.
On Tuesday, October 25, 2022, the nation was taken aback when 80 Members of Parliament (MP) from the ruling party called for the removal of the Finance Minister and the Minister of State at the Ministry, Charles Adu Boahen from office.
The MPs further threatened to boycott any activity in the House if their call is not heeded.
Following their demand, President Akufo-Addo urged MPs to give the Minister at least three weeks to resign.
According to the President, dismissing Mr Ofori-Atta at this time when negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is at a crucial stage will not augur well for the country. He believes a deal could be reached within the timeframe he has asked for.
The MPs have responded by acceding to the President’s request.
In a press statement released by the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei- Mensah-Bonsu, dated October 26, 2022, the Minister of Finance will stay “until the conclusion of the round of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the presentation of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy in November 2022 and the subsequent passage of the Appropriation Bill, after which time the demand will be acted upon.”
Meanwhile, Ghanaians continue to suffer as a result of the country’s deteriorating economy. Prices of goods and services continue to skyrocket while the cedi keeps depreciating.
The Bosomtwe District of the Ashanti Region’s mobile money agents are fighting a new “direct cash-in” form of transaction that their network partner, MTN Ghana, has imposed on them.
According to the Bosomtwe MoMo Agents Association, the new regulation will permit merchants to stop the standard cash-in procedure and instead help the consumer send the money to its intended location after loading their wallets.
The agents claimed in a press release that the new regulation will further confuse their members and consumers.
“They want us to stop the normal cash-in routine and rather load customers’ wallets. As agents we cannot cooperate with the directives of the telecom giant”, said one of the leaders who gave her name as Godslove Opoku Mensah.
“We use to earn about 40% on cash-out but recently it has dropped to 36%, and our business is diminishing slowly. The direct cash in the initiative will create problems between customers and agents,” Opoku Mensah indicated.
Ex-Ghana winger Laryea Kingston is confident coach Ghana Otto Addo has a fine blend of experienced and young talents who have the potential to excel at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Black Stars make a return to the tournament after missing out on the 2018 edition in Russia.
Ghana will take on Portugal in their first game in Group H on November 24 before playing South Korea and Uruguay on November 28 and December 2 respectively.
“The team is full of quality players who have the potential to make a good account of themselves at the biggest stage of world football,” Kingston told Daily Graphic.
“I have confidence in the technical team to deliver on their mandate and all I ask is for them to be clinical in their attack.”
Black Stars will play Switzerland in an International friendly on November 17, before travelling to Qatar for the World Cup.
He claims that the minister has performed his duties admirably and is not to be held responsible for the current economic difficulties caused by outside sources.
“It is obvious that the finance minister did a great job controlling the economy when you look at Ghana’s economic track before 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic’s arrival and the Russia-Ukraine war, however, have reversed the achievements,” Domfe added.
“Cast your mind back to 2017 when he took over as finance minister,” Domfe told Accra-based Peace FM. “He managed to stabilise the dollar for a very long time. The dollar until this year was selling at GHC6. This shows the kind of work he did to stabilise it.”
“Unfortunately, the US decided to hike their prime rates which is forcing our cedi to fall rapidly. So, I don’t understand the call for his dismissal,” he added.
Ofori-Atta has come under immense pressure to resign from his post with the most recent coming from a section of the governing New Patriotic Party MPs. The lawmakers, numbering about 80 called for his dismissal to boost government’s chances of restoring confidence in Ghana’s economy.
However, Domfe dismissed their request insisting that there is no basis for President Nana Akufo-Addo to relieve him of his duties, citing the instrumental role Ofori-Atta played in steering the country towards sound economic footing prior to 2020.
Notably, he said, the minister was able to keep the country’s inflation at a single digit, supervised the implementation of the Fiscal Responsibility Act and managed to achieve a 7% growth in the economy in 2019.
Throughout order to enhance its goods and services in Africa, The Mobile Telephone Network (MTN), a worldwide mobile telecommunications firm with headquarters in South Africa, has announced plans to invest up to US$150 million in network connectivity infrastructure.
This was announced in Accra at the opening of MTN Global Connect’s Network Operation Center by Mr. Frederic Schepens, the company’s chief executive officer.
MTN Global Connect is a division of MTN that provides infrastructure services and manages the company’s global wholesale operations.
It aimed at offering reliable wholesale and infrastructure solutions to fix connectivity and sell mobility solutions.
He said Ghana had been undergoing a massive digital transformation and, therefore, positioning her as a prime destination for insourcing and outsourcing by multinational technology companies.
The choice of Ghana by MTN for its global network and service operating centres was further testament to the strides the country had made over the years and emerging as a destination of choice for global technology giants, Dr Bawumia stated.
“The tangible sign of Ghana’s digital transformation justifies our vision to benchmark the country against the best in the world,” he added.
Mr Ralf Mupita, the President of the MTN Group, in an address, said the Global Connect initiative was part of MTN’s 2025 Strategy to focus its resources and attention on the African continent to strengthen its fibre optic network to improve connectivity and services.