Before Marian Akoto, 24, agreed to receive the injection, immunized peer volunteers had to provide proof of their advice in the form of a COVID-19 vaccination card.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recognises themes in news sources especially social media as a tool that may impact on vaccine confidence.
Its Confidence Insights August 2022 Report, says, a section of the public globally believes that vaccines are not safe or effective.
Marian’s initial posture towards the vaccine is not different from many especially PLHIV who are said to have a weakened immune system, because of their unique medical conditions.
But with timely and accurate communication on Covid-19, she was not left behind.
Currently, some 150,000 of 346,120 PLHIV in Ghana are on antiretroviral therapy to boost their immune system, according to 2019 National HIV estimates and projections.
PLHIV were part of the groups that were hardest hit by COVID-19.
To cater for their needs, she says an initiative called, “Reduce COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and maximize vaccine uptake towards attaining the National HIV targets” was introduced.
The initiative trained youth-PLHIV to undertake a door-to-door education to convince and encourage members on the need to take the vaccine.
Madam Elsie Ayeh, President of NAP+ Ghana told GNA that a team of volunteers were formed in Kumasi and Accra to help convince their “community members” to take the vaccine.
She says to cure the claim of getting sick after taking the jab, the group carried along the outreach with meals to take before the vaccine is administered.
Nearly, 10, 000 PLHIVs at 11 communities in Accra and 13 communities in Kumasi, Ashanti Region were convinced and took the COVID-19 vaccine as a result of the project.
This has contributed to Ghana’s gains of administering 19,055,059 doses of all the five vaccine types, AstraZeneca, Sputnik-V, Moderna, Pfizer-BionNTech and COVID-19 Vaccine Janssen as of August 30, 2022, according to GHS.
She says none of the PLHIVs died of COVID-19 and members although facing the pandemic disruptions they were doing well.
Ms Catherine Bentum-Williams, PACTGH2022 Project Coordinator at Hope for Future Generations explains that the members of the group could not access their medication due to lockdown and other restrictions.
In other to cater for their needs, she says an initiative called “Reduce COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and maximize vaccine uptake towards attaining the National HIV targets” was introduced.
The initiative trained youth-PLHIV to undertake a door-to-door education to convince and encourage members on the need to take the vaccine.
Ms Bentum-William says the project, which ended in August 2022, worked with closely with key partners including NPL+ and GHS to ensure easy access to vaccine centres at the convenience of the targeted group.
Other vulnerable populations like pregnant women and the aged benefited from the project activities.
The initiative supports the ideals of the Africa Health Strategy 2016 – 2030, Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want” and Sustainable Development, which talks about ensuring long and healthy lives and promoting the well-being of all in Africa
False videos and audios on the COVID-19 vaccine that circulated on social media prior to the vaccine roll-out programme heightened her fears.
These contents, which were wildly shared by prominent persons made claims about how people’s health conditions had worsened.
Strong partnerships with stakeholders
Dr Kwame Amponsa-Achiano, the Programme Manager for the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) at the Ghana Health Service, told the Ghana News Agency that the main objective of the vaccine programme was to reduce morbidity, hospitalization, complication and death.
While more than six million people globally lost their lives, according to the World Health Organisation Ghana’s share stands at 1,450.
The country’s health sector, he states achieved these objectives through strong partnerships with many local and international partners and unique initiatives such as that NAP+ and Hope For Future Generations.
He says the inter-sectoral action for health engages other ministries, levels of government and non-state actors in a manner that demonstrates broad stewardship by ministries of health towards all actions conducive and necessary for health.
“Everybody realised that the pandemic was grinding the nation to a halt so there was that united front to find solutions. From vaccine development, cold chain storage and sensitization all hands were on the wheels to reduce protect lives. This is the power of partnership as enshrined in the sustainable development goal 17,” he said.
The Ghana Police Service has been urged to take every necessary action to apprehend two people in connection with the now-famous Mankessim ritual murder saga by Nana Akwa III, the Chief of Akwakrom in Mankessim in the Central Region.
The two people he wants detained are Christopher Ekow Quansah (Nana Clarke), the Tufuhen, who is now in detention, and the community’s fetish priest who was connected to one of the key suspects.
The other is a man named Mr. Kwesi Gyan, also a relative of Nana Clarke and the Abiradze Ebusuapayin.
The duo have disappeared since the issue of the murder of one Georgina Asor Botchwey, blew the lid on the alleged criminal activities of Nana Clarke and an accomplice Pastor Michael Darko Amponsah (Sofo Kofi).
The chief explained at a September 29 press conference why he wanted the “who could not be tracked since the news broke out,” to be arrested.
“We are appealing to the police to interrogate his fetish priest in the community who the Tufohen liked so much and took cover prior to his arrest,” Nana Akwa pleaded.
“Since the arrest of the Tufohen, all attempts to reach his Ebusuapanyin, who was always in the community, has not been successful. There is no way anyone can dig out two pits in two separate rooms in a family house without the knowledge of the Ebusuapanyin. This is incomprehensible.
“More so, prior to the arrest of the Tufohen, his Ebusuapanyin was billed to meet the Chief and elders on some teething community issues, but he cannot be found. And why is he not answering our calls,” the Chief revealed.
The Tufuhen and Sofo Kofi are facing charges of conspiracy to commit crime to wit murder and murder, contrary to Section 46 of the Criminal and Other Offences Act, 1980, Act 29.
A Cape Coast District court presided over Her Lordship Bernice Mensima Ackon remanded them on their last appearance on September 2.
The court agreed to the request of prosecution – led by DSP Daniel Gadzo – for more time to conclude investigations. The case was adjourned to October 4, 2022.
A third person, one Aggrey, said to have dug the pit in which Georgina was buried has also been arretsed.
GNA report on police arrests and latest discoveries
Hundreds of people on Thursday gathered in front of the house of Christopher Ekow Quansah, the Tufuhen of Mankessim, to catch a glimpse of him and self-styled pastor Michael Darko, who allegedly murdered one Ms. Georgina Asor Botchwey.
A police team had led the two accused persons, who allegedly confessed to the killing of three more people, to the house of the Tufohen, located just after the Pacific Fuel Station, near the Mankessim Lorry Station for further investigations.
The crowd hooted at them amid name calling and casting of aspersions as drivers in traffic temporarily stopped over to watch the two, who have notoriously become famous.
A source told the GNA that the two accused persons had confessed to killing three other people, a male and two females and led the police team on Thursday afternoon, to the various locations.
The witness said the accused persons first took the team to the house of the Tufohen at Mankessim and Akwakrom near Mankessim, where they carried out their criminal activities.
The police thoroughly searched the rooms and took vital document and information for further investigation.
Again, in Mankessim, the two took the police team to a location where a male teacher was allegedly invited by them and was shot and killed instantly and his toes cut.
The police were also taken to a location in the Ekumfi District where they allegedly shot and killed a female trader and buried her under a bridge in the Ekumfi District.
The team also visited a location at Batanya in the Abura-Asebu-Kwamakese District, where they allegedly killed a young lady from Kumasi.
Apparently, the two pretended to be travel agents and prepared a traveling document for her to travel to Holland.
The two allegedly told the police that they met the lady at Batanyaa on the Cape Coast-Assin Fosu Highway and killed her.
He argues that because permits are granted without consulting traditional authority, chiefs cannot be held accountable for the threat’s reappearance.
“At the district level, we have the District Chief Executive, the Security Council, and the political administration.
Are they all claiming that they are not aware of what these galamseyers are doing?
It’s that simple, the Asante king said: “If they are unable to identify and stop the activity of these galamseyers, then they are unworthy to be there.
He further questioned the failure of local authorities and security agencies to end the menace which has seen many forests and water bodies destroyed.
The Asante monarch made these remarks when the new US Ambassador to Ghana Virginia E. Palmer, paid a courtesy call on him at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi.
Early last month the leader and founder of the United Progressive Party, Akwasi Addai ‘Odike’ incured the wrath of the Manhyia Palace after he questioned the role of chiefs in the fight against illegal mining.
Odike, who was speaking on Kumasi-based Oyerepa FM also charged the youth in mining areas to demonstrate against such chiefs.
But his comments did not sit well with the Kumasi Traditional Council (KTC) which summoned managers of the station over the development.
The radio station seized operations for nealy 78 hours but was back on air after the issue was resolved at the Manhyia Palace.
Along with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union (AU) has denounced the September 30, 2022 coup that occurred in Burkina Faso and saw one military junta overthrow another.
A report on National TV announcing the takeover on Friday night confirmed what had initially appeared to be a significant gunfire exchange earlier in the day.
Hours after the announcement, the ECOWAS Commission released a statement in which it sharply criticized the act at a time when the junta led by Lt. Col. Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba was moving toward a constitutional orderly transition by July 1, 2024.
The new junta led by Captain Ibrahim Traore said a new leader – civilian or military will be be announced in due course, but before that some measures put in place include dissolution of the government, the Transitional Legislative Assembly (ALT), and the Transition Charter as well as the closure of borders.
The AU statement signed by the Chairperson of the African Union Commission was titled: ‘The Chairperson of the African Union Commission unequivocally condemns the second takeover of power by force in Burkina Faso,’ and it read:
“In strong support of ECOWAS, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, and in conformity with the Lomé Declaration of Year 2000, the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance and the Accra Declaration on Unconstitutional Changes of Government, expresses his deep concern about the resurgence of unconstitutional changes of Government in Burkina Faso and elsewhere on the African Continent.
“The Chairperson calls upon the military to immediately and totally refrain from any acts of violence or threats to the civilian population, civil liberties, human rights, and ensure strict compliance with electoral deadlines for the restoration of Constitutional order by 1 July 2024, at the latest.
“The Chairperson reaffirms the continued support of the African Union to the people of Burkina Faso to ensure peace, stability and development of the country.”
Ghana and the rest of the world are both home to numerous secret societies.
These organizations, commonly referred to as the brotherhood, meet in private and the general public is unaware of little to nothing about them.
This is because society as a whole considers their information to be confidential. The Freemasons are one of Ghana’s most well-known secret society organizations.
Former president John Agyekum Kufuor, Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Ghanaian historian Henry Martey Newman, professor Christopher Ameyaw-Ekumfi, and Effutu MP Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin are among the most well-known personalities in the nation who are Freemasons.
Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin has disclosed how he was initiated into the brotherhood; Freemason – years after his identity with this group took many Ghanaians by surprise.
The Effutu MP added that Harona Esseku ensured that he rose through the ranks to hold a good position in the brotherhood.
Disclosing this in a tribute to the late Harona Esseku on Saturday, October 1, 2022, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin said, “He [Esseku] taught me the fine details of being a politician with an enviable code. He also showed me the doors to masonry and led my young hands into its hallowed chambers.”
“Indeed, he laboured day and night to teach me that all squares and perpendiculars are perfect points to know a brother. He did not end there. He ensured that I immersed myself in the brotherhood and rose quickly through the ranks, on merit, to take a seat in the “East,” he added.
Baba Sadiq has urged Hopeson Adorye not to involve himself in issues that will call for the youth to disrespect him as though they are playmates after accusing him of being the mastermind behind the booing incident of the president at the Global Citizen Festival.
“My advice to him is that, at your level and your age, don’t search for paths where young people may have to disrespect you in this way.
“Kojo Oppong Nkrumah came to meet you at the party, Sammy Awuku came to meet you, Samuel Jinapor came to meet you, all of them, why is it that when there is a dirty job, he is the one and not them?” he said.
On October 1, 2022, Hopeson Adorye asserted that Baba Sadiq and two other leading members of the NDC recruited some youth of Fadama to boo the president during the Global Citizens Festival held in Ghana.
In an interview with Okay FM, Hopeson Adorye alleged that the Editor of the Herald Newspaper, Larry Dogbey, Member of Parliament for Tamale North, Alhassan Suhuyini and NDC Communication Team Member on Creative Arts, Baba Sadiq were the masterminds of the booing.
In a rebuttal, Baba called the parliamentary candidate for Kpone Katamanso ‘somebody who is not well in the brain’.
“Obviously, this can come from somebody who is not well in the brain. For a person to actually say this is what Sadiq will engage in; I am above that. I am above these things. I will never engage in such things. It’s a lie,” he added.
According to reports, Richard Akuoko Adiyah, the Produce Buying Marketing Company’s current CEO, has passed away.
Although information concerning his passing is still limited, according to a Myjoyonline.com report GhanaWeb saw on Friday, September 29, 2022, Mr. Adiyah was discovered dead in his chair.
Mr Adiyah also worked as Chief Finance Officer (CFO) at United Nations Observers Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG). He again served as the in charge of Budget and Finance at the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Geneva, Switzerland, and the Finance Officer, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), New York, USA.
Before becoming the CEO of PBC, Mr Adiyah was the Financial Controller of GIHOC Distilleries Company Limited.
Nigerian comedian, Michael Sani Amanesi, popularly known as Mc Lively, has revealed reasons behind his decision to dump his law degree and pursue comedy.
In an interview, Mc Lively, narrated how he struggled to put down his law degree after five years in law school.
Telling his story, he noted that although he enjoyed the law practice, he didn’t find fulfilment.
He added that it was difficult to make people understand his reason for dropping the law profession in pursuit of his comedy career.
Mc Lively also hailed popular rapper, Falz as an inspiration and his mentor. Falz is a known lawyer and activist who chose to pursue his career in music.
His words, “I love law so much, and I excelled at it. But there’s such a struggle between what one does in school, and what obtains in real life. I mean, how do I go to law school and spend such huge amounts of money, and straight out of Law School, I’m being offered N5,000 per month.
“And before I even got that particular one, I had gone to 3 or 4 different chambers”
“Now, imagine what I would have to go through when I want to get an actual job.
It was such a huge problem when I was in law school, telling people that I wanted to be a comedian. People would always ask why I spent 5 years, including law school, just to end up as a comedian.”
The comedian also added, “Most times, when you want to do something, it’s always easier when there’s someone who has done that same thing. And I’m usually like Falz the Bahd Guy also he studied Law too. I just want to say, Thank you, boss; that’s one of my greatest inspirations and mentors.”
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 8 target 8.7, which calls on countries to take immediate action against decent work deficits that are an affront to the fundamental principles and rights at work, was the focus of the two-day workshop held in Accra in collaboration with the Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC).
Under this, the workshop highlighted the elements of indecent work termed as the Unholy Quartet; forced labour, child labour, human trafficking and modern slavery, and the need for these to be eradicated in line with the UN’s target of promoting decent work globally by 2025.
The initial focus however was on the marine fisheries sector as an entry point to tackling forced labour in Ghana.
Speaking on the importance of the workshop to the fight against forced labour in the sector, the National Project Officer of International Labour Office (ILO), Emmanuel Kwame Mensah, said that there is very little attention focused on the working conditions of people in the marine fisheries sector.
Emmanuel Kwame Mensah addressing journalists
According to him, despite being one of the most important sectors that contributes to every economy, the working conditions of people in the area is often hazardous.
“Forced labour among adults, particularly in the marine fisheries sector is not only a problem for Ghana. Across the world, even though there is illegal unreported and unregulated fishing that governments are interested in, labour and decent work issues, with workers on fishing vessels is not looked at very well.
“There’s no attention to it across the world so the ILO is asserting itself to support countries to look there, because we consider that one of the most harzadous occupations. The marine environment is not an ordinary environment, we are not amphibians, we are human beings so when a human being is on water, it is an unnatural environment and we make sure that we have to give attention to it,” he said in an interview with GhanaWeb.
Journalists were further urged to push relevant stakeholders for the ratification of the ILO Conventions including C188 – Work in Fishing Convention (2007) and the Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181).
This follows the launch of the ILO Report on Forced Labour and Forced marriage on September 12, 2022.
Forced labour, as set out in the ILO Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No.29),1 refers to “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily.”
The ILO indicates that an estimated 27.6 million people are in forced labour, with 17.3 million of these persons in the private sector, 6.3million in forced commercial sexual exploitation and 3.9 million in forced labour imposed by state.
The report is expected to enable government and other authorities within the fisheries sector to facilitate measures to reduce the exploitation of fishers both on private and commercial work.
After the New Patriotic Party member claimed that he had hired 75 people to heckle the president at the event, Baba Sadiq, a member of the opposition National Democratic Congress Communication Team on Entertainment, Arts, and Culture, educated Hopeson Adorye on how tickets for the Global Citizen Festival were produced.
On October 1, 2022, Baba appeared as a guest on the United Showbiz Show. She revealed that every ticket created for the Global Citizen Festival was linked to an IP address, making it difficult for one person to register for multiple tickets.
“He mentioned that you could just go online and buy a ticket to the concert. You see the life of a liar, he doesn’t even understand the ticket. He doesn’t even understand that you cannot even buy tickets.
“The way the event was structured, you cant even go online and get 25 tickets. You have to take action. There is something called an IP address and he doesn’t know. I took my time and understood,” he said.
“Even his people in government are telling me that forget about this guy, this is not well. His people in government look at him and say forget about this guy because his own Vice President he didn’t go easy on, is it you he will go easy on?” he disclosed.
Traders occupying twenty percent of the Kumasi Central Market say wares in over 1,000 shops have been destroyed in Wednesday’s flooding.
They are accusing contractors of the Kejetia Redevelopment Project of blocking a sewage system at the construction site, leading to the floods.
But the contractors have denied causing the floods.
The traders had their wares floating on water after the downpour on Wednesday.
The 20 percent part of the central market space yet to be demolished for the market redevelopment project got flooded, destroying wares worth millions of cedis.
The traders blame construction firm ‘Contracta’ for blocking the drainage at the construction site.
The flood victims have been cleaning and counting their losses.
They have called on NaDMO to come to their aid.
Chairman of the eleven-member steering committee, Kwabena Fosu, wants the metropolitan assembly to help ensure there is no recurrence.
Meanwhile, the construction firm, Contracta, has denied causing the flooding.
Consultant Emmanuel Danso says they have only taken measure to gather the debris in the gutters that are connected to the Subin stream at the market.
‘We have placed net in major gutters connected to the subin-stream, to separate the solid waste from the liquid so it can flow freely in the Subin-stream thereby avoiding flooding at the Multimillion market; debris left behind the sieves are in volumes and that is causing flooding so people including the traders should desist from dumping solid waste in gutters, we will continue to do that even after completion of the second phase of the market’.
Apostle Suleman Johnson, the General Overseer of the Omega Fire Ministries, has threatened to sue Nollywood actress, Halima Abubakar over her public rants and sexual accusations.
The controversy of Apostle Suleman and Halima Abubakar began after blogger named Gistlovers revealed that the actress was seeing the pastor.
Halima who later admitted to the affair and accused him of causing her ailment. These allegations continued as the actress’s health conditions worsen.
However, in a released issued by a law firm on behalf of their client, Apostle Suleman, they described the allegations as false, untrue, malicious, defamatory, baseless, and a tool of blackmail of our client, impugn his reputation.
The letter ordered Halima to retract her earlier comments in a statement to be published via social media and five national dailies. Also asked Halima to sign an undertaking indicating her willingness to “stop spreading defamatory statements against him”.
It stated that should she fail to comply with this cease and desist notice and accede to the aforestated demands legal actions will be taken.
The letter read,
‘Defamatory statements concerning Apostle Johnson Suleman; notice to cease and desist’, was dated September 28 and signed by Rodney Adzuanaga, his lawyer.
“Dear Ms Halima Abubakar, Our client is an Apostle and Senior Pastor of the Omega Fire and Miracle Ministry International, with branches in all states of Nigeria and several countries of the world. By virtue of his Apostolic calling and reach he has several millions of followers who look up to him and his ministry for spiritual guidance and direction.
“It is our brief that you caused to be published malicious, defamatory, and demeaning statements about our client in several micro-blog sites, chiefly Gistlover, and your Instagram handle Halima Abubakar, which have wider reach within Nigeria and the world.
“These statements, made by you, knowing fully well that they are false, untrue, malicious, defamatory, baseless, and a tool of blackmail of our client, impugn the reputation of our client and reduce him in the eyes of responsible and right thinking members of the society.”
“Please be informed that in the event you fail to comply with this cease and desist notice and accede to the aforestated demands within the aforementioned 3 (three) days, we have further legal instructions to issue the Writ of Sammons against you and seek sundry reliefs for defamation, including monetary dues,” it added.
From the era where crime was tried by the Queen’s Judicial Officers in conjunction with chiefs, to the establishment of the Supreme Court of the Queen’s forts and settlements on Gold Coast and then the establishment of the various courts; Superior and lower, leadership has been a vital part of the law and its implementation.
The Chief Justice position was established as part of the law system to serve as the chair of specific courts depending on the various eras.
In 1876 for instance, under the Supreme Court Ordinance, the Supreme Court of Judicature for the Gold Coast was constituted of the Chief Justice and not more than four Puisne Judges.
On May 5, 1954, a Judicial Service Commission was set up under the Gold Coast (Constitution) Order in Council which consisted of the Chief Justice and two other judges, the Attorney General and Chairman of the Public Services Commission.
A year before independence, the first Ghanaian Chief Justice was selected; Sir Arku Korsah and a year after, the Supreme Court was divided into High Court and the Court of Appeal under the Court (Amendment) Ordinance 1957 (Number 17 S.2).
However, it wasn’t until September, 1979, under the Third Republic that the Chief Justice was given the highest judicial power.
Since 1957, after the administration of Sir Arku Korsah as Chief Justice, there have been 13 other Chief Justices who have served as heads of the Judicial Service.
Here are all the Chief Justices who have headed Ghana’s Judicial Service since independence with brief profile information from graphic.com:
Sir Arku Korsah – 1956 – 1963:
Sir Korsah was born in Saltpond and educated at Mfantsipim School, Fourah Bay College (BA degree in 1915), Durham University and London University (LLB in 1919).
In 1942, Nana Sir Ofori Atta and Sir Korsah were the first two Ghanaians to be appointed to the Legislative Council by the then Governor of the Gold Coast, Sir Alan Burns.
Sir Korsah was one of the 20 founder members of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1959.
After the Kulungugu attack on President Kwame Nkrumah in August 1962, Sir Korsah presided over the trial of five defendants. At the end of that trial, three of the accused persons were found not guilty and this displeased the Nkrumah government. Nkrumah dismissed Sir Korsah as Chief Justice in December 1963.
J. Sarkodee-Addo, Esq – 1964 – 1966:
Justice Julius Sarkodee-Addo was the second Chief Justice of Ghana during the First Republic.
He studied Law at King’s College in London, was admitted to Inner Temple in 1928 and was called to the Bar in 1932. He replaced the first native Ghanaian Chief Justice, Sir Kobina Arku Korsah, in 1964.
He was removed after the coup d’état of February 24, 1966, by the National Liberation Council (NLC) government which was formed after the overthrow of Dr Nkrumah. This coup also marked the end of the First Republic.
Justice Sarkodee-Addo passed on in January 1972 at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra.
Edward Akufo-Addo, Esq – 1966 – 1970:
Justice Edward Akufo-Addo was a member of the “Big Six,” leaders of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC). He became the Chief Justice and later President of the Republic of Ghana during the second Republic under a Westminster system of government, which had a Prime Minister.
After independence, Justice Akufo-Addo was a Supreme Court Judge and one of the three judges who sat on the treason trial involving Tawia Adamafio, Ako Adjei and three others after the Kulungugu bomb attack on President Kwame Nkrumah. He was dismissed with fellow judges for finding some of the accused persons not guilty.
From 1966 to 1970, he was appointed Chief Justice by the National Liberation Council (NLC) regime. He also chaired the Constitutional Commission which drafted the Second Republican Constitution of 1969.
E.A.L. Bannerman, Esq – 1970 – 1972:
Justice Edmund Alexander Lanquaye Bannerman was the Chief Justice of Ghana between 1970 and 1972. He was removed from office by the National Redemption Council (NRC) after the coup of January 13, 1972. That coup ended the Second Republic of Ghana.
Samuel Azu Crabbe, Esq – 1973 – 1977.
Justice Samuel Azu Crabbe was the fifth Chief Justice of Ghana since it became an independent nation. He was also a president of the National Olympics Committee of Ghana.
Justice Crabbe was born at James Town, a suburb of Accra, and completed his secondary education at Accra Academy in 1939.
He then proceeded to the University College of London, where he graduated with a law degree in 1946. He was called to the English Bar in 1948. While a student, he was quite active in sports and was the captain of a variety of junior and university football, hockey and cricket teams.
Justice Crabbe was later appointed Chairman of the Special Investigation Board (SIB), which was tasked to investigate the June 30, 1982 murder of three judges and an army officer. Their work led to the recommendation that 10 persons be prosecuted.
F.K.Apaloo,Esq – 1977 – 1986:
Justice Frederick Kwasi Apaloo served as Chief Justice of Ghana and later Kenya. He was appointed Ghana’s Chief Justice in 1977, being the sixth person to hold this position since independence.
Justice Apaloo was called to the English Bar in 1950 by the Middle Temple. He later returned to practise law in Ghana. He defended those involved in the Anloga riots following widespread protests against the imposition of taxes by the British colonial administration. This was during the era of the military junta by the Supreme Military Council (SMC).
On resumption of democratic rule under President Hilla Limann in September 1979, the People’s National Party (PNP) government attempted to replace him as incumbent Chief Justice by insisting that he should be vetted for the office he already occupied. A Ghanaian citizen, Amoako Tuffuor, took the issue to the Supreme Court and the presiding judge, Justice E. N. P. Sowah, who succeeded him on his (Apaloo’s) retirement, ruled that Apaloo became Chief Justice in the Third Republic as soon as the 1979 constitution came into force.
He served through the Third Republic and continued after the overthrow of the Limann government on December 31, 1981. Due to his independence, the new military government, the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC), led by Jerry John Rawlings, also tried unsuccessfully to remove him in 1983. He retired at the age of 65 years in 1986.
Kenya had a vacancy for Chief Justice in 1993, since there was no obvious candidate to fill it, Justice Apaloo was appointed as Chief Justice of Kenya in March 1993 until 1995 when he was replaced by Mr Justice Abdul Majid Cockar.
E.N.P. Sowah, Esq – 1986 – 1990:
Justice E. N. P. Sowah was the Chief Justice of Ghana from 1986 to 1990. He presided over the case brought by Amoako Tuffuor, a Ghanaian citizen, when the PNP government of Dr Hilla Limann attempted to replace Justice Fred Kwasi Apaloo as the Chief Justice of Ghana by vetting him. He ruled in favour of Apaloo to remain the incumbent Chief Justice.
He went on to succeed Apaloo in 1986 and was retained by the PNDC as the Chief Justice beyond the compulsory retirement age, a controversial move at the time.
Philip Edward Archer, Esq – 1991 – 1995:
Justice Philip Edward Archer was the Chief Justice of Ghana between 1991 and 1995. He was the eighth person to hold this position after independence. He was educated at St Peter’s School in Sekondi, Adisadel College, Cape Coast, and the University of Nottingham in England.
Admitted a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales in 1957, he returned to Ghana and joined the office of the Registrar-General. He was appointed Registrar-General in 1959 and Judicial Secretary in 1961. He became a High Court Judge in 1964 and a Supreme Court Judge in 1980.
He was Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the University of Cape Coast Council from 1979 to 1983.
On his retiring as a judge in 1983, he was appointed full-time Chairman of the Law Reform Commission.
Justice Archer became a Member of the Council of State in 1995. In 2000, he was honoured with the Order of the Star of Ghana.
Isaac Kobina Abban, Esq – 1995 – 2001:
Mr Justice Isaac Kobina Donkor Abban was the ninth Chief Justice of Ghana. He was in office between 1995 and 2001.
Edward Kwame Wiredu, Esq – 2001 – 2003:
Justice Edward Kwame Wiredu became the Chief Justice between 2001 and 2003, the 10th since independence. He is noted for introducing the Fast Track High Courts in Ghana, as well as Alternate Dispute Resolution and the Judicial Training Institute (JTI).
George Kingsley Acquah, Esq – 2003 – 2007.
Mr Justice George Kingsley Acquah was appointed Chief Justice on July 4, 2003 but died in office on March 25, 2007.
Mr Justice Acquah, the 23rd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and the 11th since independence, was in private legal practice in Cape Coast from 1972 until September 19, 1989, when he became a High Court Judge. He worked in Ho in the Volta Region. He became an Appeals Court Judge in June 1994 and then a Supreme Court Judge a year later.
He was awarded the Order of the Star of Ghana (Member) – the highest honour of Ghana – in June 2006.
Georgina Theodora Woode (Mrs) – 2007 – 2017:
Mrs Justice Georgina Theodora Wood was appointed to the Supreme Court on November 12, 2002.
In May 2007, she was nominated for the position of Chief Justice of Ghana. On June 1, 2007, Parliament approved her nomination as the Chief Justice by consensus. This made her the first woman in the history of the country to head the Judiciary and also made her at the time the highest-ranked female in Ghana’s political history. She officially assumed office on June 15, 2007.
She swore in three Presidents: the late President John Evans Atta-Mills in January 2009; then Vice-President John Dramani Mahama upon the death of the President on July 24, 2012, and President-elect Mahama, winner of the December 2012 general election on January 7, 2013.
She retired on June 8, 2017, after 40 years of dedicated service to the country.
In accordance with the provisions of the 1992 Constitution, Justice Wood has since been appointed as a Member of the Council of State. She is the only surviving former Chief Justice.
Sophia Abena Boafoa Akuffo – 2017 – 2019:
Justice Sophia Abena Boafoa Akuffo was on Monday, June 19, 2017, sworn into office as the 13th Chief Justice of the country by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Justice Akuffo has been a Judge of the Supreme Court for two decades.
She obtained her Master’s in Law (LLM) from Havard University in the United States and cut her teeth as a lawyer under Nana Akufo-Addo.
She has been a member of the Governing Committee of the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute and the Chairperson of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Task Force.
In January 2006 she was elected as one of the first judges of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, where she once served as its vice-president.
Kwasi Anin Yeboah – 2020 to date:
Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah was born on May 1953 at Toase in the Ashanti Region of Ghana.
He attended Amaniampong Secondary School and Apam Secondary School and then moved to the University of Ghana and the Ghana School of Law where he graduated in 1981.
After graduating from law school he served as an Assistant State Attorney at the Attorney General Office Koforidua. He proceeded to work as a partner at Afisem chambers at its koforidua Branch.
He was later elected as the Eastern Regional Bar President. He served as a Justice of the Court of Appeal (2003-2008) and the High Court (2002-2003) in Ghana.
Justice Anin Yeboah has also provided his legal experience to football in his country, serving as Chairman of the Appeal Committee at the Ghana Football Association from 2004 to 2008.
He rose to become a member of the adjudicatory chamber of FIFA and he was subsequently in May 2017, appointed as Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee of the 67th FIFA Congress in Bahrain and was also Chairman of the FIFA Ethics Committee.
Member of the opposition National Democratic Congress Communication Team on Entertainment, Arts and Culture, Baba Sadiq, has schooled Hopeson Adoryeon how tickets were generated for the Global Citizen Festival after the New Patriotic Party member alleged that he had contracted 75 people to boo the president at the event.
Sitting in as a guest on the United Showbiz Show aired on October 1, 2022, Baba disclosed that every ticket generated for the Global Citizen Festival was traced to an IP, which makes it impossible for one person to get more tickets after they have registered.
“He mentioned that you could just go online and buy a ticket to the concert. You see the life of a liar, he doesn’t even understand the ticket. He doesn’t even understand that you cannot even buy tickets.
“The way the event was structured, you cant even go online and get 25 tickets. You have to take action. There is something called an IP address and he doesn’t know. I took my time and understood,” he said.’
According to the former 3Music Boss, after Hopeson accused him and others of contracting 75 people to boo the president, some people in the NPP reached out to him not to take Hopeson seriously.
“Even his people in government are telling me that forget about this guy, this is not well. His people in government look at him and say forget about this guy because his own Vice President he didn’t go easy on, is it you he will go easy on?” he disclosed.
The Media Coalition Against Illegal Mining wants officials of Akonta Mining Limited to be prosecuted.
The Lands and Natural Resources Minister yesterday directed the mining company to cease operations after undertaking mining operations in Samreboi, in the Western Region, though the company has no mineral rights to undertake any mining operations in the Tano Nimiri forest reserve.
Speaking to Citi News, Convenor of the Coalition, Ken Ashigbe demanded the prosecution of persons running Akonta Mining Limited’s operation in the Nimri Tano forest reserve.
“If we really want to solve the problem of galamsey, which we is being run by the rich in society, this will be a very good example to make. If the President actually wants to stop this, we need to see the arrest of the directors of this company.”
”If the court establishes that these directors have actually flouted the rules, they will have to be dealt with according to the law. When this is done, it will serve as a deterrent to others.”
The booing of President Nana Akufo-Addo by some youngsters at the Global Citizens Concert in Accra, according to Percival Kofi Akpaloo, founder and leader of the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), is just the “tip of the iceberg” of what’s to come.
He claims that the severe hardship experienced by the nation during the Akufo-Addo administration has caused the majority of people to lose faith in their government, which may be a contributing factor in the activities of the youth.
The man said on Angel TV’s Anopa Bofo: “When I saw this video, I said this is just a tip of the iceberg [there could be worse ones coming up] because people are not happy. Nobody should sit there and say people are pleased.
President Akufo-Addo received the shock of his life when some patrons of the Global Citizen Concert organized at the Black Star Square hooted at him for failing as President.
As the crowd chanted “Away!” the President delivered his speech without a hitch.
However, the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) has attributed it to the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).
According to them, the NDC wanted to use it to score “cheap political points.”
But the NDC has denied it outrightly.
According to the party, it did not have any hand in it.
The party said the incident reflects the “excruciating and frustrating times Ghanaians presently find themselves.”
In a press release signed by the Communications Officer of the party, Sammy Gyamfi, NDC said it had no hand in the “embarrassment.”
Akpaloo who would want to engage in any blame game however argued it’s only a sign that the average Ghanaian who once admired President Akufo-Addo feels he has disappointed them.
“I have experienced it first hand after going down to woo people to join our political party, people will tell you point blank that they are fed up with the NPP and NDC, some have even decided not to vote again…,” he added.
Both clubs’ supporters view the other as their main adversary, and many people consider the derby to be one of the most storied and competitive derbies in the world.
Fire has destroyed goods and property at Kuuks supermarket at American house Junction in East Legon Accra.
According to an eyewitness account, the fire began in the early hours of today, October 1, 2022, after heavy rains with thunderstorms.
There were no casualties, but the entire supermarket has been razed down.
District Commander for the Legon Command of the Fire Service, Osmond Annum, spoke to Citi News.
“We had a distress call around 6:17 am, and we proceeded to the scene only to see the supermarket on fire. We realised there was a high tension pole involved, and so we called the ECG for assistance.”
“So far we have been able to contain the fire, and there has been no casualty. We are still investigating the cause of the fire”.
Liberia’s RNB, Afropop, and Afrobeat artiste, Lourell Andymark George, known by his stage name Stunna, is aiming to popularise Liberian music in Ghana and other African countries.
Stunna gained traction in African music circles after his superb outing on the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) 1Xtra show with DJ Edu last month.
According to the sensational vocalist, he wants to push Liberian music to an international level and has embarked on a series of tours on the African continent and Europe to be able to accomplish the mission.
“I want Liberian music to be followed just like how Ghanaian and Nigerian music are gaining traction around the world. My primary goal is to make Liberian music better and explore it on an international level so that everyone will get glued to Liberian culture and entertainment.
“My appearance on the BBC has set the pace to showcase Liberian culture on the international stage,” he said.
The RNB hitmaker is a leading member of Aeg Group and a managing partner of the 50/50 Entertainment record label, headed by CEO Pumpaye, a record label that has been doing extremely well in branding and shifting the perspective of Liberian music to an international level.
He has received a massive commendation from Ghanaian-Netherland artiste, Smallgod, who described Stunna as the next biggest music star from Liberia.
Stunna has been one of Liberia’s trending musicians and has won several accolades such as RNB Artist of the Year 2018 (Tunes Liberia), MLMA Afropop Artist of the Year 2020, and MLMA Video of the Year 2021.
He has numerous hit songs to his credit including ‘Baby o’, ‘Mr. Right’, and ‘For Life’ with his latest track ‘Green Light’ also making waves across the continent.
“Every group is tough whatever it is that’s why you’ve qualified for the competition. Which group do you want to be in? God knows what he is doing.
“What we have to do is to prepare well to progress in the group. I don’t see it as an easy group but it depends on your preparations and how you approach every match. The most important thing is your preparations,” Coach Annor Walker told Ghanasportspage in an interview.
The 2023 CHAN is scheduled to be played from January to February next year.
The Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy, Ben Boakye, says government is propping up Genser to kill state energy companies.
This comes after IMANI Africa and the Africa Center for Energy Policy (ACEP) alleged that Ghana buys gas for 95.8 million dollars and sells to Genser for 43.5 million dollars accounting for a $1.5 billion financial loss to the state.
According to Ben Boakye, the underpricing of gas sold to Genser by the government has given the energy company an undue advantage over state energy companies which continue to buy gas at market price.
He noted that as a result, Genser has managed to capture about 60MW of the energy market from state energy companies.
Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, he said, “Genser is into a competitive market where they are selling power to mines just as VRA is generating and selling to everybody else including the mines. As we speak today, VRA has lost 40MW of the market to Genser because they can’t compete. ECG has also lost 20MW of the market because they can’t compete.”
He explained that the government subsidizing the price of gas sold to Genser will enable the energy company capture a large portion of the energy market; eventually crippling the state energy company.
He noted that should the calls for a review of the energy deal with Genser fall on deaf ears, Ghana stands to lose billions in revenue.
“And Genser is creeping in and grabbing all the big market because we have given the gas to them essentially for free. So what we are doing and the manner in which we are propping Genser, we don’t fight the entry of the private sector if they can make genuine efforts to take up market without being supported by the state against other entities or other players in the market.
“But the way that we are doing it, we are setting them up against the state institutions and they’re going to kill them essentially. Because they’re gradually taking all the big market from them and the state sits there and complains about excess capacity.
“I mean if you have taken 60MW, it means VRA has lost 60MW so whatever the IPVs are generating and they cannot sell to the mines the state has to find money to pay. So those calculations we have not even gone there yet. If we go there to then begin to analyse the full impact of all these subsidies we’ll run into several billions at this point,” he explained.
Ben Boakye added that as Genser expands their operations across the country, state energy enterprises will have little fighting chance to survive.
“And gradually they’re building to Kumasi, they intend to build a pipeline all the way to the Eastern Region, Kyebi area to also supply the mines over there and it’s the state that is supplying all these subsidies.
“So if you look at all that is happening in the space it appears to me that we’re actually developing a Trojan horse to cannibalise all the state enterprises in the energy sector in the long run and that shouldn’t be patronized by independents like us who are also interested in how the state agencies function even with all of their difficulties.
“We have a responsibility to ensure that we do not add on to the pressures that they’re facing by just doing some of these transactions,” he said.
Ghanaian entertainment pundit and artiste manager, Bulldog, has dared some government officials in the Akufo-Addo-led administration supposedly threatening to arrest him.
Speaking on the United Showbiz Show hosted by Nana Ama McBrown, the outspoken pundit expressed that he supports the president being booed.
According to him, after his statement, he received several phone calls from some people at the presidency threatening to deal with him.
“They asked me if the booing was good and I supported it, I said yes it was good for them to boo the president,” he said.
“After that, I got follow-up calls threatening me and more that they will jail me. I am telling them to watch me, they should jail me.
“You guys at the jubilee house or wherever, come and jail me. I swear…[pause]…come and jail me. Because of you guys, can’t we talk? Come and jail me. I am waiting for you,” he added.
Bulldog’s fury follows a booing incident that went down at the Global Citizen festivalwhere the president wasn’t given the chance to start his speech on a good note and was met with an angry crowd that booed him to get off the stage.
A section of the crowd could be heard clapping and chanting “away, away” while thousands of patrons at the venue witnessed the Global Citizen Festivalwhich had several local and international artistes performing.
While Akufo-Addo was being booed in Ghana, in the United States of America House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, was also being booed.
Bulldog reveals some officials threaten his arrest for supporting Akufo-Addo booing, he dares them to try
In the 88th minute, Genk took the lead when Munoz assisted Hubert to make it 2-1. After a turbulent final phase and after the intervention of the VAR, the substitute David Atanga was sent off.
Atanga joined KV Oostende in August 2021 on a three-year deal.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has announced plans by government to convert the Kwadaso Agriculture College into a University.
Established in 1922, the Kwadaso Agriculture College has over the years trained more than 75,000 persons.
Despite the institution serving as one of the pillars in training more agriculturists, it is bedevilled with a number of challenges.
The School authorities have thus over the years appealed to government to upgrade the institution into a University and provide them with adequate infrastructure to correspond with it.
Speaking at the institution’s 100th-anniversary celebration, President Akufo-Addo assured that “plans are far advanced to convert the school into a University.”
Notable fashion show, Rhythms on the Runway 2022, has been launched in Accra.
The event was graced by popular celebrities from all around Ghana and internationally.
Spearheaded by media expert and fashion designer, Kofi Okyere Darko, popularly known as KOD, the launch which came off on September 30, saw a smooth sailing even when the rains threatened to end it.
With the crème de la crème in fashion coming through, KKD, in an interview, disclosed that the show will be better than the previous years.
According to him, the ten years of the fashion show have seen massive change, and while many people are looking to see what this year will bring, there is a surprise catch.
The launch had many interesting performances from some artistes including Edem, who delivered a beautiful live band performance to some of his hit tracks that got the guests shaking and wiggling their bodies to the tune.
Taking a stroll around the grounds, one could spot the likes of Rocky Dawuni, Freedom Jacob Caeser, popularly known as Cheddar, Juliet Ibrahim, fashion designer, Kwaku Brommon, and Dionne Slash Garvin among many notable faces.
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has handed over some managers of two facilities to the CID Unit of the Ghana Police Service for an investigation into non-compliance with the country’s tax law.
The facilities which were swooped on Friday night, September 30, (names withheld) were found not to be issuing the Commissioner-General’s invoice.
Speaking to the media after the exercise, Area Enforcement Manager of GRA in charge of Accra Central, Joseph Annan presented that the apprehended facilities had violated regulations of the Value Added Tax (VAT).
He said the exercise or operations were part of an ongoing nationwide VAT Invigilating exercise by the authority to retrieve some taxes due the State.
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has handed over some managers of two facilities to the CID Unit of the Ghana Police Service for an investigation into non-compliance with the country’s tax law.
The facilities which were swooped on Friday night, September 30, (names withheld) were found not to be issuing the Commissioner-General’s invoice.
Speaking to the media after the exercise, Area Enforcement Manager of GRA in charge of Accra Central, Joseph Annan presented that the apprehended facilities had violated regulations of the Value Added Tax (VAT).
He said the exercise or operations were part of an ongoing nationwide VAT Invigilating exercise by the authority to retrieve some taxes due the State.
Martin Odegaard, the captain of Arsenal, said that Thomas Partey’s spectacular goal in their 3-1 victory over Tottenham with 10 men came directly off the practice field.
Hugo Lloris and Cristian Romero made a mistake, and Gabriel Jesus took advantage of it to give Arsenal the lead from close range. Granit Xhaka then scored a crisp third goal after Emerson Royal was sent off for a dangerous foul on Gabriel Martinelli.
“It was a great goal. We knew before the game he was going to be free in those areas and we practised that a lot, to find him in those areas, and he made a great shot,” Martin said as quoted by the club’s website.
“I think he played a great game as well so a lot of credit to him, and of course the team.”
Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard has disclosed that Thomas Partey’s wonderful strike their 3-1 win over 10-man Tottenham was something straight off the training ground.
Partey lashed home an inch-perfect curling effort from 25 yards out 20 minutes into the north London derby to put the Gunners on their way to victory, which was his first goal for the club from outside the box.
Gabriel Jesus capitalised on a mix-up between Hugo Lloris and Cristian Romero to put Arsenal in front from close range before Granit Xhaka struck a clinical third after Emerson Royal had been red carded for a reckless foul on Gabriel Martinelli.
“It was a great goal. We knew before the game he was going to be free in those areas and we practised that a lot, to find him in those areas, and he made a great shot,” Martin said as quoted by the club’s website.
“I think he played a great game as well so a lot of credit to him, and of course the team.”
The deputy minister’s disappointment comes after a tweet by Sarkodie bemoaning that creatives work tirelessly to project the country to investors and tourists with no help whatsoever from the government.
“I was somehow disappointed when Sarkodie made those comments,” Okraku-Mantey said.
According to the government appointee, the international Global Citizen Festival, which was held at the Black Star Square and graced by performances from creatives, including Sarkodie, was spearheaded by the government. In that regard, it would be unfair for Sarkodie to say the government does not support creatives.
“Sarkodie made those comments despite performing a few days after the Global Citizen Festival. So was the government not a key player in bringing the festival to Ghana?” he quizzed.
The politician further noted that the general impression concerning the government’s support of creatives should be re-accessed. He explained that government could provide logistical support, technological innovations and other initiatives that will benefit the entire creative ecosystem but not directly offer financial support to creatives.
“I see that people think government will carry money for you (creative) to operate. Government will not be able to do that. It can only support with logistics, technology and initiatives which will inure to the benefit of everyone at once,” he explained.
He ended by asserting that financial investment is at the behest of the private sector.
“It is the private sector that provides financial investment opportunities for creatives. Government will not invest, as in providing cash to a creative,” he maintained.
The deputy minister made these comments during the entertainment review show with Kwasi Aboagye on Peace FM, Saturday.
Following Kirani Ayat’s copyright fight against the government, Sarkodie threw his weight behind his colleague.
“We (creatives) do a lot to put our country out there, attracting a lot of tourists and investors that translates to money to help nation building yet that’s one sector with no support… I feel my brother and support him especially if he actually reached out and didn’t get help,” Sarkodie’s tweet read.
Inaki Williams scored a goal and provided an assist in Bilbao’s rout of Almeria on Friday night.
In the game, his brother Nico Williams not only scored but also picked up an assist.
A 43-year-old fetish priest has been sentenced to 15 years imprisonment by a Koforidua Circuit Court for defrauding people with counterfeit currency.
Richard Vormowor alias Nana Buame will serve his jail term in hard labour after he was convicted on his own plea.
He was on the police’s wanted list for various cases of money doubling pretence.
In court, the prosecutor, Chief Inspector Solomon Keelson, said in recent times the Koforidua District Police Command has been receiving several complaints of money doubling fraud.
According to him, on April 5 at about 1300 hours, the police conducted a search of the Hyundai minibus at the Nkurakan police checkpoint.
The convict, according to the prosecution, was onboard the vehicle which was searched thoroughly.
During the operation, the officers retrieved seven bundles of ¢20 notes and two bundles of ¢10 notes suspected to be counterfeit currency belonging to the convict.
Richard was immediately arrested and sent to the Koforidua Central Police Station.
During the interrogation, he admitted that the monies were fake, explaining the bundles were made up of white papers he cut into sizes of the money notes embossed with the currency to look like original notes.
He was on his way to defraud unsuspecting persons in Koforidua with his fraudulent acts of money doubling.
He was arraigned in court where he pleaded guilty to a charge of preparation to commit a crime; to wit, defrauding by false pretences.
The judge ordered the fake money notes to be burnt at the court premises.
Dr. Theophilus Acheampong, an economist, doubts government will be able to conclude the deal with the International Monetary Fund before the year ends.
“We have done our own Debt Sustainability Analysis as part of the budget cycle. When the IMF comes to town, they also do theirs, and then both sides sit to agree on the numbers, the debt schedule, how much of that will potentially have to be reprofiled, among others.”
“We are going to the conversation with a sense of where we are as a country, whilst the IMF is also coming with their own DSA. Beyond that, we have to look at how to bring our creditors together to restructure the debt. That is what could potentially extend the duration of the engagement exercise and that means that the December timelines we are looking at to conclude the IMF deal will actually slip a little bit,” he said on The Big Issue on Citi FM/TV,
He further explained that should any of the foreign creditors decide to trigger a number of the collective action clauses or decides to prolong the process, the process will be further delayed.
“From where I sit and given past experiences I struggle to see how we will conclude the Debt Sustainability Analysis and then sit down with the creditors to agree on some sort of Debt Restructuring package, after which we will go through the IMF board for approval and the programme signed.”
“I think we are looking at about a 6-month time period which could go into the first quarter of next year, especially when we are looking at a comprehensive package.”
Reacting to Dr, Acheampong’s projections, the New Patriotic Party’s Director of Communications, Richard Ahiagbah, said they are nothing but “mere speculations.”
He urged stakeholders not to jump the gun, but to be hopeful and see how things unfold.
The formal negotiations for a Fund-supported programme have begun, with the IMF team currently meeting government officials for a period of ten days.
Talks have begun on a comprehensive debt sustainability analysis with the IMF for a US$3 billion support programme.
Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta on Wednesday, September 28, 2022, said government will fast-track negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to ensure key aspects of the programme are reflected in the 2023 budget statement.
Head coach for the Black Galaxies of Ghana, Coach Annor Walker has welcomed the draw for the 2023 CHAN tournament which has pitted his side in Group C.
On Saturday, October 1, CAF officially held the draw for next year’s tournament at a ceremony in the host country, Algeria.
At the end of the draw, Ghana was drawn in Group C to face Morocco, Madagascar, and Sudan.
Reacting to the draw, coach Annor Walker said his team will prepare well to ensure qualification to the knockout stage.
“Every group is tough whatever it is that’s why you’ve qualified for the competition. Which group do you want to be in? God knows what he is doing.
“What we have to do is to prepare well to progress in the group. I don’t see it as easy group but it depends on your preparations and how you approach every match. The most important thing is your preparations,” Coach Annor Walker told Ghanasportspage in an interview.
The 2023 CHAN is scheduled to be played from January to February next year.
On her Instagram page, she stated that she is struggling with a heavy heart.
The deputy governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) made this post on Thursday afternoon, September 29.
According to Tonto, her heart is so heavy and she’s not ashamed to admit that she needs the prayers.
She wrote; “I don’t ask for nothing at all.. Not ashamed to say I need you all, If you got a minute say a quite prayer for me. My hearts so heavy, Thanks”.
Her post brought about concerns from followers as they all took to her comment section to reach out to her with some words of encouragement.
The premeditated handball by Thiago Silva against Crystal Palace did not result in a red card, which has angered Ghanaian forward Jordan Ayew.
The 38-year-old defender got into a fight with Ayew during the first half when the Blues were on the back foot.
Just within the west Londoners’ half, the two engaged in a scuffle. Ayew would have had plenty of space to run in behind Chelsea’s backline when Silva went down under pressure from the Palace forward and, in classic modern football fashion, the Brazil international clawed the ball away from Ayew.
“I don’t understand – this year is really inconsistent,” Ayew said as quoted by the club’s website. “I don’t understand but I don’t want to say too much. It’s the past and my objective is to focus on the next game.
“It’s the game, and the Premier League is ruthless. From my opinion, that was the turning point in the game and that’s it, it’s football.
“We should have taken a point. We weren’t far but we need to keep working and going in the right direction and pushing to win games.
“We just need to focus on our next game, try to win and we will take it from there.”
The government of Ghana has failed to announce a new cocoa farmgate price for the 2022/2023 crop season which begun today October 1, 2022.
This is coming after Ivory Coast increased the fixed farmgate price paid to cocoa farmers by over 9% to 900 CFA francs ($1.33) per kilogramme, from 825 CFA francs for the main crop of the 2022/2023 season
Addressing a rally of cocoa farmers and other players within the value chain at Suhum in the Eastern region, Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture, Yaw Frimpong Addo, expressed regret that the government’s Producer Price Review Committee was yet to agree on a new price for the season which will end in September 2023.
The cocoa farmers at the rally, report say, expressed unhappiness, amidst boos to register their displeasure.
However, the Deputy Minister assured that the committee was working assiduously to coclude on a new price that will be accepted by all stakeholders.
He is optimistic the price will be announced in the coming week or soon.
The last time the government increased the cocoa farmgate price was in 2020, when the price went up by 28%, from ¢515 to ¢600 per bag.
This was on the back of the implementation of the Living Income Differential, a price mechanism to eliminate farmer poverty.
Increase Producer Price of cocoa to ¢838 to alleviate farmers plight – GCCP
But the Ghana Civil-Society Cocoa Platform (GCCP), an independent campaign and advocacy platform for civil society actors in the cocoa sector wants Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) to announce an increase in the Producer Price of Cocoa to ¢838 from the the current ¢660 a bag for the 2022/2023 crop season.
According to the group, its working assumption of the Producer Price Review Committee of COCOBOD, which aims at ensuring that farm gate price is pegged at a minimum of 70% of the net Free on Board (FoB) price shows that farmers should be receiving a minimum of ¢838 which translates into $98 per bag of the 62.5 kilogramme of cocoa beans.
Meanwhile, the global cocoa market recorded a supply deficit in the 2021/2022 season, which ended on September 30, largely due to strong winds and lack of rain in the world’s top two producers Ivory Coast and Ghana.
Ghana forward Daniel-Kofi Kyereh is elated to bag his first goal of the season for Freiburg in their 2-1 win over Mainz 05 in the German Bundesliga on Saturday.
The 26-year-old put up an impressive performance as he helped his side continue their winning streak after the international break.
Only the worse goal difference prevented Freiburg from regaining the lead in the table that they had already held after the fifth matchday. Mainz, on the other hand, remained without a win for the third time in a row.
Freiburg took an early lead through Michael Gregoritsch in the 3rd minute of the game before Kofi Kyereh doubled their lead in the 37th minute to secure the three points for the Europa League participants.
Aarón’s goal in the 52nd minute was not enough for Mainz to stage a late comeback.
Kofi Kyereh, who featured for Ghana during the September friendlies has made 10 appearances for Freiburg across all competitions this season, scored one and provided one assist in the process.
Food and Agriculture Minister, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto says government has banned the export of foodstuff to neighbouring countries.
Dr. Akoto says the move is aimed at preserving enough food in the country following reports of food shortages across the globe.
Speaking to journalists in Kumasi, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto said Ghana is producing enough food.
“We have officially banned the export of food to neighbouring countries to make food security even stronger. All our neighbours have faced very severe food shortages, and we want to keep food within the country, not only for human consumption but for our livestock.”
Count On Crops Hub, an agric-advocacy firm, has organised a training workshop for agriculture extension officers in the Suhum Municipality in the Eastern Region.
The workshop, which hosted 32 participants, aimed to equip the Extension Officers with new and innovative ways of data gathering as well as expose them to new data applications used in collecting agricultural-related information on the field, with a special focus on small-scale farmers they work with.
Dubbed the “Extension Alert Project”, the officers were also introduced to climate change and its consequences on a sector that is expected to turn around Ghana’s economic fortunes.
This is a part of attempts to employ technology to teach farmers and collect data through the use of various electronic agricultural platforms, which will assist the farmers to gain a deeper understanding of contemporary agricultural methods for business growth.
They were taken through the various types of data collection, sampling techniques, factors to consider in sampling design, data collection methods, and steps in data management. They were also equipped with the use of the Open Data Kit (ODK) collection latest model of application international organizations use to gather data.
A Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Expert with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Rich Kofi Kofituo who facilitated the workshop encouraged participants to use the knowledge acquired to improve their data gathering techniques for the development of other agricultural activities in the various districts.
A participant, Stephen Wonder Zigah expressed his delight about the workshop saying “the knowledge that I gathered from this workshop will help to build the farmers that I train and myself. It has been very impactful to me as an extension officer, one of the things I need to keep me going is to be abreast with current agricultural trends and today’s training has been able to give me that training”.
Meanwhile, the Chief Executive Officer of Count On Crops Hub, Enyonam Manye stated that the reason for embarking on this nationwide capacity-building training for agriculture extension officers is to equip them with the latest happenings in the agricultural sector. “That way, they can also transfer knowledge acquired to farmers,” she said.
She appealed to corporate and international organisations to support this impactful initiative for the total development of agriculture.
Besides, the Regional Municipal Director of Agriculture, Samuel Kofi Dzisah commended the organisers, Count On Crops Hub and its partners, Maphlix Trust Ghana Limited and Asinyo.com for the laudable initiative.
Head coach for the Black Galaxies of Ghana, Coach Annor Walker has warned his players that anyone who is not serious will be dropped from the squad for the 2023 CHAN tournament.
According to him, although he would love to go to the tournament with the squad that qualified the team for the CHAN, he will not condone any form of attitude that will affect the team.
“For the tournament, I would like to go with the squad I used to play the qualification unless some of them have travelled or injured. Your performance will also determine.
“If you are not serious then you will be dropped. Definitely, since the league has started I will see some new players and give them the opportunity to try and if they are able to make it then I will make some changes,” coach Annor Walker told Ghanasportspage in an interview.
The draw for the 2023 CHAN tournament was held in Algeria on Saturday, October 1.
Ghana’s Black Galaxies have been placed in Group C to face Morocco, Madagascar, and Sudan.
Soothing Ghanaian Afrobeat and Reggae singer, Israel Olga, popularly known as Dude Ari has dropped his latest single dubbed Ariana.
The jamming single, produced by Forsqzy Beatz, has a catchy hook that is apt to arrest the attention of first-time listeners.
Fused with the Ghanaian Highlife rhythm, ‘Ariana’ talks about a young man willing to die for a beautiful lady he has fallen in love with.
“I go stop ganging and banging so I fit spy you o… I dey feel this your body” parts of the lyrics says as Dude Ari tells the tale through his cherubic voice.
Ariana is steadily garnering numbers since its release date across various digital streaming platforms.
In an interview with the media, Dude Ari emphasised the need for Ghanaians to patronise his music craft since he is poised to make a mark in the music sphere.
“Ariana is one song I did from deep down and the emotion attached to it is surreal. I know soon Ghanaians will be hooked to it. I urge everyone to take time to listen to it and recommend it to your friends,” he urged.
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Meanwhile, Dude Ari, born Israel Olaga hails from Big Ada in Ghana. According to him, he fell in love with music since childhood but started he started recording professionally in 2017.
He has dropped a couple of singles including, Hustlers Prayer, which was released on March 1 and ‘Struggle’ which features Joemexx.
On August 5, 2022, he dropped his maiden EP titled, Brewed in Africa, a collection he describes as “melodious songs that leave a trace of African origins”.
Talking about his challenges, Dude Ari said, “I dropped out in the first year to get a good ground for my music since I wasn’t getting the needed help to keep me in class.”
He attended Mampong Shai Hills D/A Basic School and continued to Ashaiman Senior High School. The singer based in Tema said he is no longer signed to any record label presently.
However, he has asked state authorities and stakeholders in West African countries’ trade sectors to step up initiatives like risk profiling and cross-national, cross-sector cooperation that will be able to appropriately remove trade barriers while assisting governments in maintaining good security.
He made these remarks while analysing the state of trade facilitation across the West African Borders, and identifying associated challenges.
Mr. Hamoui chronicled the shutdown and reopening of borders where he maintained that the disuniform reopening of borders demonstrated by African countries has had its negative effect on cross border trade.
He said while many countries had for a long period opened their borders to commercial vehicles, travel restrictions for people have impeded the flow of cross border trade.
“For example if you go to Cote D’Ivoire, the borders are closed. You can leave Elubo but you will get stuck at their side.”
Mr. Hamoui stated that, “even if the corridors are open for the movement of commercial vehicles, there is still that difficulty in the movement of people and until we get to a time where we have the normalization of free movement of people, trade will be stagnant because trade moves where people move. This has created uncertainty within the business space, so people have been unable to adequately plan and anticipate.”
These restrictions according to him, go beyond safety measures against the spread of COVID 19, but also a deliberate effort by nations in the wake of political unrests and widespread insecurities in certain areas of the continent.
According to the National President of Borderless Alliance, if strategic collaborative approaches are not taken, trade facilitation will suffer at the expense of excessive nationalism.
“At the end of the day, countries have to look at the risk element and enhance risk profiling and based on that, you address the core roots of the problem so we can reduce the risks,” he said.
This approach, Mr. Hamoui said, is better than the outright, ad-hoc closure of borders, which do not serve Africa’s trade liberalization objectives.
According to the trade advocate, aside the restrictions that have emerged out of nations’ desire to mitigate the wave of health and security threats, cross border trading in West Africa is becoming increasingly expensive, creating extra barriers to trade.
“We know that some traders are compliant but some others are not. On the other hand, we know some agencies are not facilitating trade at the level they are supposed to even when traders are compliant. Sometimes money exchanges are made, and with these activities, economic losses are incurred,” he elaborated.
The National President of Borderless Alliance did not fail to mention the numerous security checkpoints and barriers along the various West African corridors, where he recalled that the number of such along Ghana’s corridor was approximately 75, last time he checked.
He acknowledged that while security reasons are reasonable, the numerous checkpoints open the corridor up to corruption and uncompetitiveness.
He made a strong appeal to authorities to simplify and make affordable, trade processes in order to encourage increased trade activities especially for the informal, small scale trade sector, which represent the large chunk of businesses within the region.
Ziad Hamoui, reiterated that for success to be seen in regional protocols and interventions intended to improve trade facilitation, political will is of utmost importance.
According to an African Development Bank report, a six-year project to improve industrial skills among Ghana’s workforce has improved young people’s engineering and manufacturing skills, promoted economic competitiveness, and contributed to an improvement in beneficiaries’ quality of life and a decrease in poverty.
The Development of Skills for Industry Project (DSIP) was implemented between 2013 and 2019 with US$95.2million in financing from the African Development Fund of the African Development Bank. Its goal was to support government’s efforts to reform the Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) sector and enhance technical and professional schools’ capacity at the intermediate level.
The project achieved significant results. Over the period, 2,010 students enrolled in two technical universities and 10 technical institutes (40.7 percent of which were women) were aided by scholarships, with the goal of increasing the participation of disadvantaged groups. In addition, 2,500 apprentices – more than half of them women – benefitted from this scholarship programme. In total, scholarships were granted to 4,510 people; including 2,173 disadvantaged students, according to the Project Completion Report prepared by a team led by Efua Amissah-Arthur, social development specialist at the African Development Bank.
“The project improved access to 13 public technical institutions in 38 districts of Ghana’s 10 former regions, through the development of new infrastructure such as laboratories, workshops, classrooms, dormitories and housing for instructors.”
The project strengthened TVET capacity by training 149 instructors (20 percent of them women) and 800 master-craftspeople in 38 districts to support the traditional apprenticeship programme. Twenty masters-level degree-training sessions focused on a Competency Based Training (CBT) approach to skills training were provided, as were five doctoral programmes for personnel at the College of Technology Education, Kumasi (CoLTEK). Furnishings, workshop equipment, ICT tools and training manuals were also provided.
The report emphasises that production units and entrepreneurial operational models for student use were successfully piloted in each of the 10 technical institutes which developed and strengthened students’ entrepreneurial and professional skills.
The programme of study for skills-focused training was developed in three areas: mechanical engineering, welding and manufacturing, and electronics. The associated training manuals were prepared and printed for distribution. Another area of interest was the hospitality and tourism sector, which received a boost from the project.
“The project was beneficial for students and for the entire country, as it aligned with government’s TVET reform agenda. Women, girls in particular, benefitted from increased access to high-quality training, especially skills training, at the diploma, masters’ and doctoral levels,” the report concludes.
The Akanu, Segbe, and Aflao borders have been visited by members of the Association of Customs House Agents Ghana (ACHAG) on a working visit to familiarize themselves with the customs clearance procedures.
Akanu is a shared border between Ghanaian and Togolese customs that acts as a single point of entry for the clearing of customs.
During the tour, the association’s executives and members discussed matters of shared concern with customs officers posted at the Akanu, Segbe, and Aflao crossings.
The Base Commander of the Customs Division, GRA at the Akanu Border Post, Thelma Dotse revealed that the joint border post has ensured that the customs authorities at each side of the border work as a unit despite their own national interests of revenue mobilization and security.
While the customs officials appealed to the association to help them maximize revenue, the association also appealed to the customs officers to help in the speedy clearance of goods at the borders.
A member of ACHAG, Abraham Amanor indicated that the association has ensured that its members demonstrate integrity in their documentations and other dealings with Customs and importers in order to help boost revenue generation for the state, while facilitating trade.
The President of ACHAG, Yaw Kyei said the association is ready to comply with all customs processes and also ensure that members exhibit professionalism in the discharge of their duties.
He said his outfit will continue to take up the necessary training programs that will equip and update members with knowledge and current industry standards that will help them play their roles more effectively.
Former England defender Matthew Upson has heaped praise on Thomas Partey following his impressive performance for Arsenal in the North London derby against Tottenham.
Partey scored his first goal of the season for the Gunners in their 3-1 win over Spurs at the Emirates stadium on Saturday.
The win sees Arsenal claim the three points and ensure that Mikel Arteta became just the third manager to win his first three home north London derbies alongside George Morrell and Terry Neill.
“He was man of the match for me,” former Arsenal defender Upson told Stadium Astro.
“I thought he was excellent, obviously in terms of the goal contribution which is a big deal for a defensive midfield player.
“Today he was excellent involved in a lot of passing in the build-up, to me that’s a man of the match performance from a midfield player.”
Partey, who has missed four games due to injury this season, including his side’s only defeat of the campaign so far at Old Trafford against Manchester United has made five league appearances for Arsenal this season and scored one goal in the process.
Albert Kabenlah, the managing director of Saco Shipping Ghana, has bemoaned the potentially preventable difficulties that small- and medium-sized business owners have while trying to import items into the nation.
Speaking during the launch of the Saco shipping office in Ghana, he claimed that importers frequently incur exorbitant freight costs because small volume cargoes of shippers are loaded as full container loads.
“Our company is finally opening in Ghana to give comfort to the Ghanaian importer through the forwarders working directly with them. This day marks the beginning of the empowerment of small forwarders, a new kind of solution for those struggling to satisfy the needs of their clients on freight matters,” Mr. Kabenlah stated.
She added that the company is keen on establishing a strong trusting relationship with customers, something that has been a hallmark of the company overseas.
Some stakeholders in the shipping industry present such as the Ghana Shippers Authority, Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders were keen on supporting the new company achieve shared goals for trade facilitation.
According to Akon in an interview with The Breakfast Club crew on US radio, he narrated how he told Davido who was determined to become a musician in Atlanta to quit rap and return to Nigeria.
He described Davido as the ‘hardest working artiste because he was the underdog’ in the music industry.
Adding that the ‘Stand Strong’ crooner has more Afrobeat songs than an artiste as he continued to release songs and videos.
He said; “At the time I was pushing ‘Thug Record’, Davido was in Atlanta trying to be a rapper. I told him, n*gga you better move back to Africa & do your music over there. He listened & went back home. Today, he’s one of the biggest Afrobeats artistes”.
The CEO of PBC Ltd and the former Member of Parliament for Ahafo Ano North, Richard Akuoko Adiyiah, has passed away.
JoyNews sources confirmed Mr Adiyiah died on Friday in his home. He was found dead in his chair.
The former MP who also doubled as the CEO of Golden Bean hotel in Kumasi died at age 67.
Richard Akuoko Adiyia was a consummate Finance and International Development Executive.
He worked with the United Nations for over a decade across continents. Mr Adiyia worked as Chief Finance Officer (CFO) at United Nations Observers Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG). He was in charge of Budget and Finance at the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Geneva, Switzerland as well as the Finance Officer, United Nations Office for the Cordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), New York, USA.
He also served as a former Member of Parliament for the Ahafo-Ano North Constituency from 2008 to 2012.
Until his appointment as CEO of PBC Limited, Mr Adiyia was the Financial Controller of GIHOC Distilleries Company Limited and was credited as being part of a team that has transformed the state-owned Distilleries Company.
