In a reverse lineup of his usual arrangement of songs for his Rapperholic concerts, Sarkodieonce again reminded music lovers of why he merits the title ‘King Sark’.
The rap king started his performance at the Global Citizen Festival with some danceable tunes before switching to his popular rap songs.
After thrilling the crowd with back-to-back hits, Obidi paused for a moment and introduced the song which he terms the ‘anthem for SarkNation’.
As soon as the beat for the Original track dropped, the Black Star Square which was filled to the rafters bounced in excitement as the crowd moved and did the ‘SarkNation’ dance.
People present and watching from home could not have enough of Sarkodie’s performance as they hailed him on social media.
Sarkodie has been up in the trends on social media as Ghanaians and Africans who followed the event showered praises on him for establishing himself as the ‘King’ of music in the country.
There was a massive manifestation of the Spirit of God at the Apostolic Church-Ghana, Abeka Central Auditorium in Accra last Sunday when gospel artiste, Francis Amo ministered at the 2022 edition of Living Sacrifice.
Francis Amo electrified the atmosphere with praise and worship songs and kept the charged crowd on their feet for more than an hour.
He described the event as a “September to remember” and gave the patrons of the event an experience of a lifetime in the presence of God.
After the performance, another guest artiste, Omari Kissi Jnr, thrilled patrons of the 4th edition of Living Sacrifice 2022.
Host of Living Sacrifice, Eric Faya Praiz (Eric Adzrolo) also lighted up the event with his powerful ministration.
There were also ministrations from other guest artistes such as Gideon Hammond, Mosax (Nigeria) and Lucille Osom.
Living Sacrifice, held every September, is organised by Eric Faya Praiz Ministries.
She recounted the joy that filled her heart when she received the award unknown to her the whole thing was a scam laced with deception.
The Broadcast Journalist and Host of TV3 Morning, in a tweet, disclosed that she will never forget the award that made her a laughing stock in Ghana.
“Eeeiii so this man awarded me and I also collected it? I will never forget,” she said while sharing a video of Dr. UNperforming one of his global hit songs.
Berla Mundiwas among the many Ghanaian public figures who were awarded in a scheme purported to be from the United Nations.
These public figures have become a laughing stock in Ghana for their insatiable craving for awards which led them to take fictitious awards.
Eeeiii so this man awarded me and I also collected it? I will never forget 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 https://t.co/ETujafE85i
Just as football people often agitate for a competent foreign coach for the Black Stars, Hiplife artiste Tinnybelieves Ghana music industry will be way better off if the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA)is manned by a foreigner with a lot of industry expertise.
Although he did not have anyone in particular in mind, Tinny made the advocacy for an expatriate manager because he expected MUSIGA to be a force to be reckoned with globally by now, having had Ghanaian running the musicians’ body since its incorporation in 1975. For him, a foreigner with industry management expertise is needed to turn around the fortunes of the sector.
Asked why he thought someone from outside the country would do the job better, Tinny explained to the Graphic Showbiz, saying, “the way we go in for foreign coaches for the Black Stars, we need to do same for our industry. We need a foreigner to manage our industry for us and I am sure there is so much we can learn from whoever takes charge. He or she will impact positively on our industry so we really need to give it a thought.
“Even though the new crop of musicians are doing well flying high the flag of Ghana, the industry will be much better off if a foreigner handles MUSIGA. The person can bring something meaningful to the sector.
As a key stakeholder who wanted to see a change in the industry, Tinny was not ready to consider vying for MUSIGA president some day. “Never, never, I am not interested. If I have to become MUSIGA President, I have to go back to school and learn the rudiments of running such an organisation, I just can’t get up and say I have talent so I want to lead the Union, it doesn’t work that way,” he stated.
When asked what he would like to see changed in the industry, the artiste behind the hit song I Believe I Can Fly made a surprise U-Turn. “Change about the industry? Do we really have an industry at all? I don’t think so and I have spoken about it before.
“Well, the up and coming ones and those who have dropped hits in recent times are doing a great job, they need to be commended. You know, the industry is not like it used to be back in the day. Now, one can just go on the Internet and come out with something without too much hustle.
“Some people have also chosen one trend that they want to do and that is fine. One cannot talk too much about talent these days because that is not what people are really basing their craft on” he added.
Touching on how he gets by since he is not producing hit songs anymore, Tinny (also known as Aletse) said,“I survive because I am not just a musician but a businessman as well and even though I am not producing hits, I perform all the time.
“I have performed at about seven festivals this year, in fact, I perform all the time because I have evergreen songs which have stood the test of time so I am surviving 100 per cent”, he said.
Reacting to a recent social media post made by Wendy Shay that Nigerians should be given credit for taking Afrobeats to the world, Tinny shared same sentiment saying, “I totally agree with Wendy Shay, what she said is the truth and she couldn’t have put it any better.”
Advising up and coming musicians, Tinny asked them to be themselves, “Just be yourselves, it is better your fans will know you for who you are than your carbon copy self. Let them know you and know that you are down to earth, be original.
‘’People who will say you can’t do it, it is better you stay away from people who will distract you because they will be an impediment to your progress, just avoid such people,’’ he said.
The Black Stars on September 23 suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of the Brazil in their first pre-World Cup friendly.
Black Stars conceded 3 goals under 40 minutes in Friday’s friendly match at the Stade Océane leaving several fans disappointed.
Rapper Guru who keenly followed the match and performance of the players opined that the team wasn’t fit to play in the 2022 World Cup.
“We are not ready 4 the World Cup” Guru tweeted adding that he wasn’t impressed with the performance of the team’s new coach, Otto Addo “Coach wei paaa hmm ma try ma kwer.”
The ‘Lapaz Toyota’ hitmaker rated Mohammed Salisu as the best player in the Black Stars.
Guru urged the team to go back to the drawing board and correct all their wrongs before the World Cup in November.
Meanwhile, the rapper has maintained that the exclusion of Asamoah Gyan from the team has had a negative impact , adding that those who called for this exist are now feeling his absence.
“Now u go respect am,” read the rapper’s tweet dated September 23.
Check out the posts below:
Team no “ ENKO YIE “ Herh sleepless night Ben no no .🥹
He opined on the Kastle Entertainment Show monitored by MyNewsGh.com that “I think that with me my perspective about the Grammys is different, however, I will be very excited to win the Grammy Awards”.
According to Black Sherif who has been nominated for Best International Flow at the 2022 BET Awards, his focus as a musician is to raise high the flag of Ghana in the world of music.
“But I feel that what’s happening is about raising high the Ghana flag so me my part that I can play till I will go is what I’m playing,” Black Sherif disclosed to the host Amansan Krakye.
The multiple award-winner said he’s just playing his part and if it happens that he wins the Grammys in the future, he’ll praise God.
“Because me alone I can’t release songs from 1st January to 31st December so my part that I can try hard to play is what I’m doing and if the Grammys come Alhamdulillah,” he stated on the show.
Veteran Ghanaian actor, film director and writer David Dontoh has urged filmmakers to produce movies around their budget so that they can bring the best out of the story they have.
David Dontoh,who is the Chairman of the National Films Authority is of the view that Ghana’s movie industry is currently suffering because film producers always want to use little money to shoot a movie that in an actual sense needs a million dollars to produce
“A lot of people who found themselves in the space had no training, whether they were writers, directors, actors or producers, many of them. Those who were looking for quick money and want to shoot a film in four days, five days; they want to cut all the corners to be able to use very little money to make a blockbuster movie and obviously, you will fall short somewhere”, David Dontoh said this on ETV in a discussion monitored by MyNewsGh.com
David Dontoh however, acknowledged the fact that there are other film producers in the country who are also doing well.
“That does not mean we don’t have people who were trained, we had a lot of people who had been trained”, he said.
“We use to make better films so you would ask what happened”, he wondered.
Kwabena Kwabena has complained about the rampant negative news in the country.
In a recent interview, the singer noted that the situation which has become a big challenge is worrying.
He added that the negative news is killing the local music industry adding that investors cannot be attracted with such negative news.
Kwabena Kwabena also talked about how new artistes struggle to get support.
“It looks as if the industry doesn’t have room to actually push new talent or push people who need support. In recent times, the attacks on new artistes are too much. I have been in that position before and I know how it feels like to be struggling to find your fate in the industry, wanting to be a household name and recording a new song. It comes with a lot of stress, and then you go on an interview, and the outcome is negative. It’s worrying and a very big challenge.
“If an investor is listening to an interview and the conversation is not pleasant. The conversation is not something good and propelling and pushing the artist. It makes life difficult for the artist. We should cut all controversies surrounding artistes, especially on the radio,” he said in an interview with Nana Yaw Gyebi, host of Adwumapa Mbre on Connect 97.1 FM.
According to him, the majority of news reports about artistes in the country are always negative.
“The problem is that our cherished consumers(listeners) are ready to support us. We have a certain wing in the media, the so-called gatekeepers of this industry. They sell unpleasant news about the artiste. 80% of the news or reportage is to defame an artiste. We have the whole world watching everything we do in our country because of the internet. And then you get presenters doing their programmes and running down the artistes who are investing in their craft. The way we present the face of the Ghanaian music industry or the Ghanaian artiste needs to change. The perception that negative news sells must stop. I think it’s time to stop it because positive news brings the money, negative news kills the business.”
He continued: “We have to let the industry look attractive because that’s the only way we can attract business. That’s how it works. Before our structures can work effectively, we need to keep our house in order. Let’s be mindful of how we present and hold our artistes. KiDi, Kelvyn Boy, Mr Drew, Kwame Eugene, Black Sherif, Jackie, and Camidoh are breaking records and doing well. What is left for us to do is give them the utmost support. It has to be an agenda. We cannot find anything wrong with them. If we set that agenda and understand that these are our new breeds and all we can do is push them to the highest level, we will see something different.”
Actress, Yvonne Nelsonhas apologized to Stephen Appiah and former Black Stars players.
In a post on Twitter, sighted by Zionfelix.net, Yvonne apologized on behalf of Ghanaians for how they insulted them.
According to her, it is obvious they were the greatest crop of footballers the nation ever had.
She stressed that Ghanaians are sorry for the insults rained on them during their era.
Yvonne Nelson wrote: “On behalf of Ghanaians, I’d like to apologize to Stephen Appiah and his colleagues for all the insults rained on them during their era. Its obvious y’all were/are the GREATEST. WE ARE SORRY.”
Her apology comes after Brazil defeated the Black Stars in a friendly match on Friday, September 23, 2022.
On behalf of Ghanaians, i’d like to apologize to Stephen Appiah and his colleagues for all the insults rained on them during their era. Its obvious y’all were/are the GREATEST.
She noted that it is always right to tell “your story yourself because if you leave it for others to tell it for you, they will twist it and tell it to favor them.”
In an interview with Eunice Toryni on e.tv Ghana’s ‘African Women’s Voices’, she said, “So you have to tell your own story because you will be accurate and you will know how to tell it better than anyone else. We need to tell our stories and the best and right ways to do it is through film.”
According to her, one of the ways colonial masters used to teach their colonies was through film.
“They used film to teach us how to drink tea, how to dress or what to wear and till date, we’re still doing everything they taught us because they were able to change and manage our perception through filmmaking,” she said.
She emphasized that this is why she always pays attention to what she wears as an icon in the creative space.
“Also, I take culture very seriously. For the past 30 years or more, 98% of the time, I make sure that I’m dressed in African wear or Ghanaian accessories and people know me for that. So it’s a conscious choice I make and when I make a movie, I make sure I project these things in there because I know what my country stands to benefit from doing that and Africa as a continent,” she added.
She furthered that this is why if Ghanaians want to tell their story right, “it’s up to our directors and producers to have that consciousness when making a movie and agree on what they want out there it.
People are afraid of what they don’t know and one of the ways to let people love and understand where you’re coming from and where you want to go is through film. So, the things you say and project in your film is how you brand your country and yourself,” she stated.
Chief Executive Officer of Paris Fashion, Paris Hannahbell, has urged individuals to put their body type into consideration before selecting a particular type of dress.
She explained fashion as the art of designing and beautifying clothes with accessories to fit a particular figure.
According to her, a lot of clients just bring in styles to be made for them without taking into consideration their body type.
Speaking to Rashida Hamid on e.tv Ghana’s ‘Girl Vibes’ show, she said, “They expect what you’re sewing for them to fit them the same way they see it in the picture or video they brought, forgetting they don’t have the same body type as the model, hence, the style might not look good on them.”
She emphasized that as a designer, she will always want her client to look good, prioritizing their looks before proceeding to sew a particular dress for her.
“I sometimes try to talk them out of it and help them find a solution to it. Only a few listen and others don’t. When things don’t turn out as expected, they blame me,” she disclosed.
Paris furthered that designers should not only consider the money they’ll make but should also think about their reputation and that of clients.
She advised fashion designers to always find a polite way to tell their clients when a design they bring doesn’t fit.
Fast-rising Ghanaian comedian, SDK Dele born Sadik Sulley has honoured and lauded veteran comic actor, Kwame Dzokoto for being a pioneer in the creative arts industry.
According to the content creator and skits maker, his senior, Kwame Dzokoto who was popular for the ‘Edziban’ television show deserves respect for starting way back.
Speaking on the Kastle Entertainment Show, SDK Dele told Amansan Krakye on Cape Coast-based Kastle FM monitored by MyNewsGh.com that Kwame Dzokoto inspired him to venture into eating to advertise for food joints.
He said “With the social media comparison to Kwame Dzokoto, he is also an inspiration because he was the one who started with this food thing and eating, besides he’s a big man.
“He started way back that is a long time ago so I always give him his due honour because he’s the originator so when I see comments I feel we should give him the due respect,” he added on the show.
“You know that Kwame Dzokoto started way back before social media was a thing but he started on television and had viewers all over the country so big respect to Uncle Kwame Dzokoto,” SDK revealed.
The prestigious annual Predecessors Awards 2022, held on Wednesday 21st September, was arguably one of the best awards events to be hosted in Ghana since independence.
In an atmosphere charged with joy and gratitude, various unsung heroes in Ghana and in the diaspora were acknowledged, celebrated and honored by the Relevant Achievers Impacting Nations – Rain Foundations.
In his address, the Founding President of RAIN, Ralph Antwi explained to the audience that the ultimate intent of the event was to immortalize the achievements, impacts and legacies of predecessors. Essentially, to have their footprints in the sands of time and fingerprints in the pages of history.
Author Ralph unveiled a richly-packed project to be undertaken by the Predecessors Awards Worldwide for all the 25 honorees. The project, being undertaken for 12 months before the 2023 awards includes the publishing and launching of a book for each honoree, free website, one-year free healthcare, celebration of their birthdays, and so on.
The list of honorees included Alice Annum, Grace Nortey, Rama Brew, Dr. Jane Irina Adu, Hannah Addo, Rev. Mary Ghansah, Rev. Dr. Esther Nyamekyeh, Nombulelo Constance Zwane, Regina Ohemeng Donkor, and Dora Amoako.
The rest are Justice (Rtd.) J.C. Amonoo-Monney, Elder S.K. Ampiah, Dr. Emmanuel Okeson, Rev. Thomas Yawson, Rev. John Gordon Egyir-Croffet, Rev. Dr. Nicholas Opuni, Apostle Bismark Akomeah, Bishop Elvis Acheampong, Bishop Joejo Dadzie, Apostle Dr. Claude Halm Adjepong, Rev. Frank Bennin, Otuo Achampong, Rev. Osei Kofi, Rev. Professor Enoch Agbozo, and the Outstanding Personality of the Year – Prophet Peter Baffour Appiah-Adu.
Many dignitaries from all walks of life were present to honour the occasion. These included Apostle Dr. Alfred Koduah, Rev. Dr. Stephen Wengam, Rev. Dr. Lawrence Tetteh, Prophet Dr. Emmanuel Baidoo, Mr. Sammi Awuku, Maame Afia Akoto, and many more.
Rev. Osei Kofi with Coach Sarpong
Predecessors Awards Worldwide will launch their Predecessors Magazine in Johannesburg, Accra, and Virginia before the close of this year. We will bring you more updates from the one-year project for honorees of the 2022 awards.
Relevant Achievers Impacting Nations is an international Christian Missions organization sold out to encourage the maximization of life and fulfilment of purpose.
Instead, he had asked that more joint efforts be made among the two countries.
In an interview with Hitz FM, the deputy minister described the banter between the two West African nations as “old-fashioned.”
“I hear this conversation on Ghana and Nigeria. Are we not tired of asking the same question for far too long? The truth is that the thing between Ghana and Nigeria is outmoded.
“We are supposed to talk about how our collaborations can help us forward and not the competition between Ghana and Nigeria,” he said.
He, furthermore, stated that Ghana has signed a treaty with over fifty other African countries to encourage these countries to work together.
“We have signed a treaty called the African continental free trade area, which means Africans are supposed to work together.
“Now we are even breaking the boundaries of the countries. 55 countries signed this treaty and Ghana signed first,” he stated.
According to Mark, the discussion about who is better between Ghana and Nigeria must be settled.
He also conceded that all energies should be directed toward pushing joint efforts among other African nations.
“I think I am here to make that conversation rest. Let’s begin to think of how to do more things together to compete against other parts of the world,” he added.
“Ghana today; time for a third force or a convention?” focuses on Ghana’s current political climate.
It explores the trajectory of the transition of power in the Fourth Republic between the two leading parties, the National Democratic Congress, NDC, and the New Patriotic Party, NPP, and how both parties have contributed to the country’s socioeconomic development and otherwise.
It begs the question of whether it is time for a third force, especially with the continued, increase in activism for structural reforms and good governance. the recent demonstrations by the “Fix the country movement”, “Arise Ghana demonstration”, and a host of activist movements including the Economic Fighters League; in addition to the current harsh economic conditions: could be a testament to an indication of the coming into force of a third party?
Arguably, Ghana is by what many will call a convention, becoming a two-party state since the inception of the Fourth Republic. The chances of either the largest opposition party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) or the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) staying in power are increasingly becoming the norm rather than the exception.
Democracy is fast spreading in Africa with Ghana gaining an enviable position as the beacon of Africa’s democracy.
The country has so far experienced three successful transitions of power from incumbents to challengers since 1992.
The current governing NPP is poised to break the eight years cycle convention after its reorganization exercise in June 2022 while the NDC is currently in the process to complete its reorganization exercise with hope of maintaining the eight-year convention.
Your guess is as good as mine when it comes to the smaller political parties. There have been several assertions on why these parties are unfit to govern as they are constantly being engaged in internal wrangling instead of uniting against their opponents.
The People’s National Congress (PNC) is a classic example. Independent candidates are also unable to penetrate due to their inability to reach out to the people or perhaps lack of good policies to convince Ghanaians.
However, with Ghana’s current economic woes and the continual increase in prices of goods and services, and the recent downgrading of the economy by rating agencies, one would wonder if the ruling party will be able to fulfill its ambition of breaking the eight in 2024.
Again, the NDC has been accused of contributing to Ghana’s current challenges as they have had the opportunity and could have changed the fortunes of Ghana in their sixteen years of stay in power.
At the moment, the economy is afflicted with increasing labour agitations resulting from skewed income distribution, skyrocketing public depth, and unemployment.
There is perceived poor implementation of social programmes largely due to underfunding. Many of the population are increasingly impoverished. Social tensions are on the ascendancy. A section of the public bitterly complain about unfulfilled promises.
This results in the “change” of parties every eight years. Other developments to consider in recent times are the influx of non-political actors and pressure groups in the current political landscape.
Their impact cannot be overlooked because of their vociferous nature. Their taking stance on critical national matters, and strong advocacies; all of these have a tremendous impact on national discourse and to a large extent, a palpable effect on public opinion.
Another thing that is worth noting is the prospects of these groups and organizations being third forces; one that the two dominant political parties should reckon with.
A classical example can be cited from Fix the Country and their merger with the Economic Fighters League.
What accounts for the current state of the political landscape?
The clarion call is being sounded for all those who love and want the betterment of Ghana, rise and serve this generation Holistically, Security experts say the current economic hardship is a national security threat. On the political level, segregations and factions are leading to various internal wrangling.
Barely two years to 2024 electioneering, many questions are lingering on the minds of voters just like myself. One would ask; why should we retain the NPP with the current economic situation being witnessed across the country? One may also argue that the NDC cannot be an option because they have also partly been blamed for the current economic woes. What then will be the next option? Perhaps the smaller parties joining a force or maybe, just maybe, we may have to continue to ponder while we allow time to be the best judge.
The writer is a student journalist at the Ghana Institute of Journalism ( GIJ)
DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author’s, and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana.
The scary global estimates (from the World Health Organization,) that “somebody dies by suicide every 40 seconds” makes it imperative for all, to support efforts at addressing this public health concern. The good news is, prevention is achievable through timely evidence-based intervention.
Ghana joined the globe to mark Suicide Prevention Day on 10 September on the theme “A renewed worldwide commitment to prevent suicides: Creating Hope through Action”.
The commemoration, and the declaration of September as Suicide Prevention month, aim to create awareness about suicide, its risk factors and the proactive ways to reduce the incidence, stigma around it, and to provide support.
Ghana’s situation demands an all hands on deck approach, beyond advocacy by a few NGO’s. Our laws and Mental Health system must be responsive and equipped to fight the issue because our stress levels in this country are high.
Suicide among young people
Experts say, suicide is one of the leading causes of death in children, adolescents, and young adults age 15-to-24-year-olds. They maintain that, majority of children and adolescents who attempt suicide have a significant mental health disorder, usually depression.
Admittedly, the teen years are stressful because of the rapid developmental changes in the body, mind and emotions. These strong feelings of stress, fear, confusion and anxiety have a way of impacting the teen’s performance and sense of self-worth. While some adolescents can manage the transition, the developmental process can be very challenging and unsettling for others.
For some adolescents, the stage of development combined with factors like problems at home-including divorce, financial issues, sibling rivalry, moving towns, changes in friends, problems in school, body shaming and other losses are risk factors that push them to think suicide is the solution to end all the problems. Other risk factors include a family history of suicide attempts, exposure to violence, aggressive or disruptive behavior, bullying, access to firearms and drug, as well as the inability to cope with pressure from peers.
Suicide in Ghana
The Ghanaian situation is alarming! According to the Ghana Mental Health Authority, there were 797 recorded cases in 2018, the figure shot up to 880 in 2019 and slightly dropped to 777 in 2020, but shot up to an alarming 902 cases in 2021. Sadly, these are only reported cases; several other cases are not reported for fear of stigma. The Ghana Mental Health Authority is gravely concerned about this worrying situation, and has made a clarion call for organizations and institutions to step up advocacy and institute measures to curb the growing trend. It is also crucial that we all join the advocacy to decriminalise suicide because the punitive law does not help solve the problem.
Suicide is a desperate cry for help!
Since depression, stress and anxiety are risk factors for suicide, we can conclude from the human behavioural perspective that suicide is a desperate cry for help! It could be a point of hopeless despair of inability to handle challenges or changes that are perceived to be death sentences, rather than stepping stones or opportunities for development.
Particularly for adolescents and young adults who are confronted with somewhat harsh changes compounded by the fast transient world system of information and individualistic lifestyle, we can only support them with the requisite information to make informed choices. To these, suicide may only be an expression of that inner desperate cry for help navigate the transition.
Need for a community of support
That’s why parents, teachers, counsellors and psychologists must build their capacity to provide mental, emotional and spiritual support for teens so that the teens can also build their own independent coping and problem solving skills. Organizations and communities should also provide safe spaces and platforms of support networks first, to handle the challenges associated with adolescence and then to deal with suicidal tendencies. These groups and platforms can help provide a caring environment where adolescents can safely and confidently talk about their problems with people who share their concerns.
This is especially for teens and young adults facing issues of low self-esteem, bullying, domestic violence and abuse, body image issues, living with an alcoholic family member or sexuality and sexual health concerns. This is where the role of Discovery Teen Magazine and Foundation is crucial.
Discovery Teen Magazine & Foundation
Discovery Teen Magazine & Foundation is a not-for-profit organization, committed to mentoring and empowering adolescents to make informed choices. The Foundation educates adolescents and young adults about the changes and challenges associated with their stage of development, the likely implications and how to navigate the transition. It also highlights adolescent challenges and helps parents, teachers and policy makers to provide the appropriate support for the transition.
The Discovery Teen Chats and Discovery Dialogues are safe spaces and platforms where adolescents and parents interact and discuss the peculiar challenges adolescent face in order to provide appropriate solutions for them. WE continue to receive positive feedback on the impact.
What Are the Warning Signs of Suicide?
When a teen commits suicide, many people are affected, including family, friends, their school, and the entire community. While the reasons behind an attempted suicide or suicide can be complex or shocking, there are warning signs which can help us pick hints once we pay attention.
Children and adolescents thinking about suicide may openly express their intentions through statements or comments like “I wish I was dead,” or “Very soon, I won’t be a problem or burden for anyone.” They may also engage in activities such as songs, books, music, drawings or painting and films about death. Other warning signs associated with suicide can include:
• talking about suicide or death in general
• withdrawal from friends, family and regular activities
• suddenly develop interest in activities and things that make them be alone
• become very secretive
• talking about “going away”
• referring to things they “won’t be needing,” and giving away possessions
• talking about feeling hopeless or guilty
• having no desire to take part in favorite things or activities
• trouble concentrating or thinking clearly
• changes in eating or sleeping habits
• self-destructive behaviors (drinking alcohol, taking drugs, or cutting themselves
• frequent or pervasive sadness, frequent complaints about physical symptoms often related to emotions, such as stomachaches, headaches, fatigue, etc.
• decline in the quality of school work
Seeking professional help
Depression and suicidal feelings are treatable mental disorders. Affected adolescents need to have their illness recognized and diagnosed, and appropriately treated by professionals. People often feel uncomfortable talking about suicide. However, asking your child or adolescent whether he or she is depressed or thinking about suicide can be helpful. Specific examples of such questions include:
• Are you feeling sad or depressed?
• Are you thinking about hurting or killing yourself?
• Have you ever thought about hurting or killing yourself?
Temporary helplines provided by the Ghana Mental Health Authority
The Ghana Mental Health Authority must be commended for the provision of temporary helplines across the country, manned by trained personnel. This is a great boost to addressing the issue because the first step to addressing suicidal behaviours is the need for availability support systems.
We also applaud the advocacy efforts of the Authority in pushing for the decriminalising suicide attempts in the Ghanaian laws. We applaud the efforts that have resulted in the private member’s bill seeking to repeal the law criminalising attempted suicide from our criminal code.
National Helplines
020-000-9997
020-681-4666
050-344-4793
Regional Helplines
055-538-3056 – Ashanti
020-922-8954 – Brong and Ahafo
024-425-5594 – Central
024-401-4348 – Eastern
024-424-9928 – Greater Accra
024-450-8838 -Northern, North-East, Savanna
024-395-0520 – Upper West
020-630-4788 – Upper East
024-267-1862 – Volta, Oti
024-489-0018 – Western, Western North
Conclusion
We can only provide solutions to issues concerning our adolescents and young adults when we hold objective discussions and address them through a concerted and collaborative efforts. That is why parents, teachers, religious and traditional leaders and other stakeholders must be part of the advocacy to prevent suicide at all levels in or society.
Finally to anybody, especially young person experiencing any life changing situation that makes you feel hopeless and think you want to take your life, suicide is not the solution. There is help, just call for help. Your life counts and there is more to live for!
The writer, Mercy C. Adjabeng, is a Communication Specialist and Gender Advocate. Founder, Discovery Teen Magazine and Foundation
DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author’s, and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana
Funerals permitting, I start my Saturday mornings resting peacefully with my radio. Joy FM’s “Home Affairs” which starts soon after the 6 a.m. news dovetails into the Weekend City Show around 7.30a.m. and then crosses-over into Newsfile at 9 a.m.
While the first discusses family issues and relationships, the third discusses serious current affairs on national issues.
However, the “Weekend City Show” (WCS) is a comedy show designed to make listeners laugh and in the process hopefully, bring down unruly high blood pressures to the 120/80 doctors demand of us.
On Saturday, September 17, 2022, one of the quotes which came up during the humorous “Weekend City Show” programme was: “Give me my flowers while I can still smell them!”
Before delving into what the quote means, what is “Weekend City Show” about?
Show
As stated, this is a Saturday morning comedy show. Hosted by Sammy Forson, it involves two actors, Joseph Langabel of Black Stars Cheering Squad fame and Reuben Adarkwa of Dome-Kwabenya fame.
Joining the cast himself, Sammy Forson humorously leads this trio as an “agent-provocateur” to entertain listeners.
They call themselves “weekend doctors” who heal listeners of their ailments by making them laugh during their comedy show.
After Langabel and Reuben had taken listeners to the moon and back by trying to explain the quote “Give me my flowers when I can still smell them,” Sammy Forson explained what the quote meant.
In the words of the American rapper Kanye West, it means “if you admire somebody, you should go ahead and tell them.”
Simply put, if you admire someone for any positive reason, make the person aware of it by praising him or her while alive.
Do not wait till after their death before showering them with praises.
Flowers
Said to have started in ancient Graeco-Roman times over 2000 years ago, the physical act of giving flowers is a form of expression to show others one’s appreciation, love and gratitude for their good deeds.
The use of the quote took me down memory lane.
Bob Cole
At a Saturday night “dance” in an Accra nightclub in the 1970’s, Ghana’s ace comedian/musician Bob Cole, who was going through difficult times financially, made a passionate appeal to the revelers that those who appreciated him should show their love to him while he was still alive.
He added that flowery praises, huge expenditures on a grand funeral to honour him after his death would serve no purpose as he lay motionless in his casket unable to appreciate goings-on.
In effect, “Give me my flowers while I can still smell them!”
Bob Cole’s situation resonates with that of many Ghanaian oldies who live in penury and die miserably.
However, on their death, their children living abroad jet in to give them grand “befitting funerals” at which money is splashed about rather obscenely!
The question often asked is, if such children had that much money, why did they not take good care of their parents?
Friend’s quip
Congratulating a friend on his book launch some years ago, a lady quipped saying humorously in Twi, “Daakye w’ayie ase beye fe paa!” to wit “someday, your funeral will be a beautiful/grand one.”
Asked why that unusual way of congratulating him, she simply answered, the number of people there and the goodwill and love shown were testimony to what people thought and felt about him.
To her, he had been given his flowers while he could still smell them, living.
Abraham Lincoln
The 16th President of the United States, who was assassinated in 1865 for abolishing the slave trade, Abraham Lincoln said, “A nation that does not honour its heroes will not long endure.”
Over time, it has been modified though with the same import to, “a nation that does not honour its heroes, is not worth dying for!”
Has Ghana honoured our deserving heroes?
In September 2001, Zimbabwe’s Centre for Peace Initiatives in Africa (CPIA), honoured the first African United Nations Force Commander, Ghana’s General E.A Erskine by naming a Centre after him called the “General Erskine Research and Documentation Centre” (GERDC.)
With his death in 2021, hopefully a monument will be named after him posthumously.
However, there is a waiting opportunity to honour Ghana’s second UN Force Commander and former Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS), General Seth Obeng, while he is alive.
While there certainly are others, I have restricted myself only to the institution I know well, the military.
As Bob Cole said, multitudinous platitudes heaped during thanksgiving services mean nothing to the deceased as they lie stiff in the “chop-box” as a little boy called his grandfather’s casket!
While they are alive, let us give deserving individuals the recognition, praise and honour for their contributions to Ghana or humanity and also to encourage the younger generation to make sacrifices, in the words,
“Give me my flowers while I can still smell them.”
Leadership, lead! Fellow Ghanaians, wake up!
The writer is former CEO, African Peace Support Trainers Association, Nairobi, Kenya & Council Chairman, Family Health University College, Accra..
DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author’s, and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana.
It is not for nothing that in the BBC Poll conducted in 2000, the majority in the world chose Kwame Nkrumah as Africa’s Man of the Millennium, 28 years after his death and in a period when Mandela was not only alive but his popularity had soared.
Kwame Nkrumah owned no mansions; even his official clothes belonged to the State. His ideology was Africanism and his constituency was Africa. In Accra, Ghana’s capital, though he was not to the native born, he polled 22,780 of the 23,122 votes in the Accra Central seat and his CPP won 34 of the 38 popularly contested seats in the 1951 elections.
Because he was a human being, he had his faults, plenty. For instance, the declaration of Ghana as a one-party state made him out to be a megalomania intolerant of criticism or organised opposition. Twinned to the one-party state was the Preventive Detention law.
All of the above notwithstanding, I am an Nkrumahist and I come bearing no apologies. I am not CPP but I would vote for that party if either Professor Agyeman Badu Akosah, Kwesi Pratt or Abdul Malik Kweku Baako ever become its flag bearer.
Last Wednesday’s holiday was not because Nkrumah was one time President of Ghana: his birthday is a commemoration of a man who was so visionary that it was in the interest of the West to get rid of him.
Nkrumah gave them a few headaches. They may have asked themselves at the time: if, in 1964, Ghana was leading Africa to own an atomic reactor, what would be the fate of the western powers by 2022? If by 1957, Ghana knew what it was going to do with hydroelectric dam and could manufacture glass (!) et al, then this African is better dead than alive.
Yes, they overthrew him, but his ideas for development are still a master plan. Yes, he is dead, physically, but in death, Nkrumah is larger than life.
Have we paused to ask ourselves how many other pioneer African leaders remain in memory, let alone celebrated?
Poorest
Nyerere? The poorest President that ever lived! At the time he was exiting office, he did not own a vehicle; someone had to mobilise Parliament and others to raise money to buy him a car!
At a time many (most) African Presidents would have sold their mother to get an invitation to the White House, Nyerere turned down an American President’s invitation, seeing it as an invitation to negotiate a sell-out of his country’s resources.
Nyerere may have been anything (his Ujama, for one, did not work) but he was not a kleptomaniac – where kleptomania is defined as the irresistible tendency to steal – African Presidents’ irresistible tendency.
Sankara? One of a kind revolutionary. He sold the luxury cars bought for use by elected officials and replaced them with the country’s cheapest economy cars. A direct result of his agricultural revolution was that wheat production rose in three years from 1,700 kilos per hectare to 3,800 kilos per hectare, making the country food self-sufficient without foreign aid.
Some types of leaders emerge once in five decades. Paul Kegame is one of them. He is seen as the next after Kwame Nkrumah. Accuse him all you can about strong-arm tactics but Kegame is the answer Africa has needed for years. Maternal mortality ratios in the country decreased by 77 per cent between 2000 and 2013. The city of Kigali that used to be the dirtiest in the world is now the cleanest. The country is so safe ministers no longer require personal security detail.
Pitched against the two shining examples are four former Presidents whom Africa wishes to forget in a hurry.
We will not deal with Hastings Kamuzu Banda of Malawi for now.
The writer is Executive Director, Centre for Communication and Culture.
DISCLAIMER: Independentghana.com will not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article. The views expressed in the article are solely those of the author’s, and do not reflect those of The Independent Ghana
The Convention People’s Party (CPP) is embarking on an expanded national mobilisation to ensure that the base of the party is strong and capable of securing seats in Parliament and winning elections.
For a start, the party is ensuring that it has at least 17 polling station executives and 13 electoral area officers who would form the base of the party in each constituency to dedicate themselves to preaching the policies and programmes of the party and elect constituency executives as well.
The National Organiser of the CPP, Yirimambo Moses Ambing, who disclosed this to the Daily Graphic in Accra, said the mobilisation programme was the product of introspection the party organised after its 2020 polls performance.
He explained that it was clear from interaction with party members across the country that the base of the party must be widened at the polling station and electoral areas so that these executives, together with the parliamentary candidate, could secure more votes and seats.
“With this mass recruitment exercise, we will have nearly 34,000 polling station executives and when we add the electoral area numbers to it, the party’s members will be big. With this, if each member can get five voters, the party will be making a great stride come 2024. We will definitely spring a surprise,” Mr Ambing indicated.
Piloting
He noted that when it became clear that the party members wanted to have that expanded executives at the local level during the introspection, the national executive piloted the same across 12 regions just to find out if it was empirically feasible..
Mr Ambing said the party hierarchy was overwhelmed with the interest and participation of members for the expanded base programme and noted that “the success of the piloting is an indication that the members at the grassroots want to own the party and drive its success”..
He explained that the report of the successful piloting had been documented together with all the findings and would be placed before the Central Committee of the party for their perusal and green light so that it would be rolled out..
He said the party had already developed a template form for the mobilisation and would also train some of the executives to ensure that they appreciate the nitty-gritty of the new programme and be in a better position to shepherd the process to a successful end..
Mr Ambing, who took the Daily Graphic round an office where computer servers and monitors had been set up, said it was capable of taking the database of at least eight million members, including their names, pictures, voter identification numbers, polling stations and constituency numbers.
Members
He appealed to the members of the party who had been sitting on the fence to join the current executive in the mobilisation programme, noting that they should take up positions at either polling station or electoral areas and work assiduously to secure a resounding victory..
He said the prospects for the party to win elections were bright but the realisation of this feat would require all hands on deck.
The Functional Executive Committee of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has extended the deadline for picking of nomination forms for its upcoming constituency elections.
The NDC in a statement today [Thursday, September 22, 2022] said it extended the deadline in view of some challenges its members across the country had encountered.
The picking of the nomination forms was slated to end on Thursday, September 22, 2022. However, the party has extended the date by two more days, meaning that the new deadline ends on Saturday, 24th September, 2022.
According to the party, all other processes on the approved internal elections timetable remains unchanged.
It further directed all Constituency Secretariats of the party to take note of the extension of the deadline and comply accordingly.
Below is the statement
For Immediate Release:
22nd September, 2022
EXTENSION OF DEADLINE FOR PICKING OF NOMINATION FORMS.
The Functional Executive Committee of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has taken notice of widespread concerns from various parts of the country over the picking of nomination forms for the upcoming Constituency elections.These concerns have centered around network and other challenges relative to the download of forms.
In view of this, FEC has effective today, extended the deadline for picking of nomination forms by an additional two days, to end on Saturday, 24th September, 2022. All other processes on the approved internal elections timetable of the party remains unchanged.
All Constituency Secretariates of the party should take note of this directive and comply accordingly.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, says Ghana will not recognise any territory forcefully taken from Ukraine by Russia.
She has, therefore, called on Russia to immediately and unconditionally seize its operations in Ukraine by withdrawing its troops and also respecting the internationally recognised borders of Ukraine.
The Minister who was speaking at the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York Thursday, further urged Russia to respect Ukraine’s sovereignty and political independence.
For her, “Ghana does not and will not recognise any territory that is unilaterally and forcefully acquired as dismembered from a sovereign entity.”
Ms. Ayorkor Botchwey said there was the need for Russia and Ukraine, to chart diplomatic course to resolve the impasse between them.
She noted that the two nations cannot resolve their differences through the barrel of a gun, adding that the use of gun to resolve differences only “leads to needless bloodshed on both sides.”
She expressed the concern that with the rising death tolls of the civilian population and growing reports of war crimes in Ukraine, including human rights violations, there was the need to investigate such issues and perpetrators sanctioned.
“We must uphold our responsibilities as a country and send a clear message that the perpetrators of the atrocities will be held to account,” she noted.
Twenty one foreign nationals have been arrested by the police at Ejisu in the Ashanti Region following their suspicious behaviour.
The arrest followed a tip off by some community members in the area who noticed the abnormal behaviour of the foreign nationals in the area.
According to the community members, they observed the “suspicious activities” of the foreign nationals for months and therefore decided to report them to the police for further investigations.
The move followed the “See something, say something” campaign being spearheaded by National Security as a citizens’ awareness campaign aimed at protecting the country against terrorist attacks.
The campaign, dubbed: “See something, say something”, encourages the public to be vigilant of the activities of suspicious characters and report such activities and characters to the security agencies.
The campaign forms part of the ministry’s border counter-terrorism strategy aimed at sensitising the public to terrorism threats and encouraging the citizenry to collaborate with state security agencies to reduce the threat of terrorism in the country.
One of the community leaders, Mohammed Ali said they reported them to the police because they believe they pose a security threat and want the security agencies to probe their operations.
“For several times, I entered and asked them, what are they doing. They said that they were learning. In the evening, you see them making phone calls, different phone calls, everybody making a phone call. Maybe they are trying to convince someone or I don’t know, so that is what they have been doing around here,” Ali said.
The police have resorted to the use of teargas to disperse some protesting students of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW).
The students were protesting what they say were discrepancies in their results as posted on the university’s notice boards and what appears on the online portal.
The university is about going on vacation and according to the students, they wanted to know their true results before the break for the new semester to commence.
The university management had reportedly scheduled a meeting with level 400 students in particular, for a discussion on the issue today, Graphic Online has been told.
However, after waiting for sometime, with no sign of the meeting happening, the students reportedly massed up and went on rampage.
Some reportedly disrupted lectures and other administrative duties.
They reportedly broke some sign posts, tree branches and used them to block some roads on campus.
This resulted in the calling of the police to intervene.
When the first police responders arrived, they were unable to control the students and therefore called for reinforcement.
This resulted in the firing of teargas to disperse the students, Graphic Online understands.
All junior high school candidates, who will write this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examinations (BECE) in the Sagnarigu Municipality of the Northern Region, have undergone orientation on the rules and regulations of the West Africa Examinations Council (WAEC) regarding the BECE.
It was to prepare them adequately for the BECE for improved performance.
This year’s BECE would begin on October 17.
The orientation was organised by the Sagnarigu Municipal Directorate of Education with support from the Centre for Active Learning and Integrated Development, a non-governmental organisation, based in Tamale.
During the event, the students sought clarifications on issues regarding the BECE.
Mr Bob Basharu, Examinations Officer at the Sagnarigu Municipal Directorate of Education, who spoke during the event in Tamale, urged the candidates to avoid health risks and prepare themselves psychologically ahead of the examinations.
He urged them to psych themselves as individuals, who would write the examinations independent of others.
Mr Bashiru encouraged them to seek their teachers’ assistance for clarity on topics they deemed difficult to enable them to prepare well for the examination.
He urged them to set goals for themselves in terms of desired grades and aggregates to serve as motivation to work hard towards achieving them.
Madam Linda Amoah, Northern Regional Girl-Child Education Coordinator, encouraged candidates, who were pregnant or nursing babies, not to boycott the examination and appealed to their mates to give them the needed support.
Madam Zelia Mahamadu, Sagnarigu Municipal Guidance and Counseling Coordinator took the candidates through career sessions, and encouraged them to manage examination anxiety well to perform creditably during the BECE.
Fitch Ratings cut Ghana’s credit assessment further into junk on concerns the West African country may restructure debt as interest costs surge.
The ratings agency lowered Ghana’s long-term issuer default rating to CC, or four levels below investment grade, from CCC, according to a statement Friday. The assessment signifies a “very high level of credit risk” where a “default of some kind appears probable,” according to Fitch’s rating scale.
“The downgrade reflects the increased likelihood that Ghana will pursue a debt restructuring given mounting financing stress, with surging interest costs on domestic debt and a prolonged lack of access to eurobond markets,” Fitch said. “We believe there could be an incentive to spread a debt restructuring burden across domestic and external creditors.”
Ghana is considering reorganizing part of its $19 billion of local debt in order to secure a $3 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund, Bloomberg reported this week. External liabilities could also be included depending on how much Ghana would have to reduce its debt-servicing costs to achieve fiscal sustainability, according to people familiar with the situation.
“There is a high likelihood that the IMF support program currently being negotiated will require some form of debt treatment due to the climbing interest costs and structurally low revenue as a percentage of GDP,” Fitch said. “The most recent IMF debt sustainability analysis, conducted in 2021, found Ghana at a high risk of debt distress and vulnerable to shock to market access and high debt servicing costs. Interest costs have risen substantially since then.”
Ghana’s 2026 dollar bonds fell 1.1% to 57.42 cents on the dollar by 4:20 p.m. in the capital, Accra, driving the yield 47 basis points higher to 28.94%. The securities have slumped 6% this week. Domestic notes are trading at an average yield of 38.9%, according to the AFMI Bloomberg African Bond Index.
Freight charges for transporting cocoa from Ghana to all international destinations, with the exception of the United Kingdom, has been increased by five per cent.
Similarly, mega bulk shipments have been increased by 10 per cent for the 2022/2023 cocoa season as agreed by the Cocoa Marketing Company (CMC), Ghana Shippers Authority and 18 shipping lines.
Per the agreement, the rate as calculated per tonne, meant cocoa currently stands at £31.50 to the United Kingdom (UK) for both bagged and bulk, while bagged and bulk cocoa shipped to the Northern Continent stands at €54.02 for bagged and €56.60 for bulk.
For Estonia, it is €61.74 for bagged and €64.70 for bulk; Mediterranean Europe €60.64 for bagged and €63.53, for bulk; Far East, US$100.44/106.09 for bagged and to Brazil US$116.24 for bagged and US$121.78 for bulk.
Subsequently, Bunker (Fuel) Adjustment Factor (BAF) to all destinations apart from UK has been increased by two percentage points from 28 – 30 per cent.
Those were the agreements reached after a meeting at this year’s Cocoa Freight Negotiation Conference held at the Hilton Sorrento Palace, Sorrento, Italy on Tuesday, September 20, 2022.
Global developments in the shipping market, including increasing charter rates, container shortage and rising bunker prices accounted for the new upward rates in freight charges.
Again, the need to keep a competitive freight rate for Ghana’s cocoa, especially in the light of competition from neighbouring countries was considered in the decision making.
Commenting on the recent charges, Mr Vincent Okyere Akomeah, the Managing Director of CM, said he was confident that the agreed rates would be “a win-win for the Government and the shipping lines.”
Mr Akomeah was hopeful of a good cocoa year with the help of key stakeholders such as the Ghana Standard Authority, the shipping lines, buyers and insurers.
Ms Benonita Bismarck, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Shippers Authority, expressed appreciation to the shipping lines for their support and cooperation.
She also thanked them for keeping faith with Ghana, promoting trade and serving as trusted conduits between CMC and the buyers for the international transportation of Ghana’s cocoa.
Shipping lines present at the conference included Maersk Line, Mediterranean Shipping Company, ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd, Grimaldi, COSCO Shipping Lines, Messina Lines, Ocean Network, CMA-CGM and Arkas.
Four persons seized in connection with the murder of a newly wedded woman at Abeka, an Accra suburb, have appeared before a Kaneshie District Court.
The four: Imoro Salfu Zakaria, Adams Salfu Zakaria, Amdiya Mohammed and Abass Mohammed, are said to have conspired and murdered Muniratu Moro a few days after she was married off.
The four are facing charges of conspiracy to commit a crime to wit murder and murder.
The Court preserved their pleas.
The court presided over by Mr Oheneba Kufour, a Circuit Court Judge sitting with additional responsibilities as a Magistrate has admitted the accused persons to bail in the sum of GHC 300,000 with three sureties to be justified.
The matter has been adjourned to October 20.
During the Court’s sitting, the prosecution led by Inspector Apeweh Achana opposed the request for bail for the accused, with the explanation that the matter was under investigation.
During the sitting, tempers flared as relatives and sympathizers of the accused stormed the court. The Police had a hectic time controlling the crowd.
Defence counsels prayed for bail for their clients.
The deceased was said to have been stabbed to death barely 10 days (about 1 and a half weeks) after she was wedded at a colourful ceremony on August 28, 2022.
The accused persons were picked up by the police days after the alleged murder and arraigned.
The much-awaited musical concert dubbed ‘AK Songstress Era Concert’ being organised to entertain music fans in Accra and its environs, will take place this Sunday, September 25, 2022 at the Labadi Beach.
The event which is an afternoon show has over 15 performing artistes on the bill.
‘AK Songstress Era Concert’ will bring together artistes that have bombarded the airwaves and music charts with outstanding hits throughout the year on one platform.
The concert which is bringing the best of talents to Accra for a memorable show, it is being powered by Paradise Entertainment, an Accra-based record label.
The venue is expected to be filled with music lovers from all walks of life who will witness the best of AK Songstress, Akwaboah Jnr, Mr Drew, Eno Barony, Lasmid, Wendy Shay, Portable, Abochi, Edem, Keche Global and a host of others.
The artistes, widely respected for their creativity and ability to churn out regular hits, are expected to deliver their finest performances so far on the stage come Sunday September 25.
Widely known for her creativity and ability to rock the stage for hours, AK Songstress, the headline act, is expected to deliver her finest performance, performing her major hits including Jonathan.
The event, which forms part of activities lined up by the organisers to entertain patrons, is meant to celebrate AK Songstress brand and her achievement on the music scene and to give the Ghanaian music fans a party like no other.
It is being organised to celebrate Ghanaian music and to offer an entertaining and relaxing atmosphere to Ghanaian music fans.
The Hohoe Circuit Court has sentenced, Erica Borke, 44, and unemployed, to two years in jail for stealing a crankshaft and oil pump valued at GH₵3,300.
Borke pleaded guilty with an explanation, but the explanation was not accepted by the court, presided over by Mr Michael Johnson Abbey.
Borke was convicted on his own plea.
Chief Inspector Charles Aziati, the Prosecutor, said the complainant was a businessman, the convict claimed to be a driver by profession and the complainant’s father, was an owner of a fitting shop.
He said on June 11 at about 0545 hours, one Gbetoryedzi who was also a witness in the case was in his blacksmith shop close to the shop of the complainant’s father when he saw the convict moving about in the said shop.
Chief Inspector Aziati said the witness who became suspicious about the presence of the convict, monitored his actions and in the process, he saw the convict pick a crankshaft and oil pump in the shop and put them in a sack he was holding.
He said the convict left the sack with its contents in the shop and went to the roadside and brought in an Okada rider to convey the items in the sack.
Chief Inspector Aziati said the witness got the convict arrested and managed to reach out to the complainant who sought the assistance of police, and the convict was escorted to the police station.
He said the convict admitted the offence during investigations.
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has handed over some managers of three facilities to the CID Unit of the Ghana Police Station for investigation into non-compliance of the country’s tax law.
The facilities are Champion Dishes, a Restaurant at Adabraka, Grace Has Found Us and Celeb’s all at Dansoman were found not to be issuing the Commissioner-General’s invoice.
Mr Joseph Annan, Area Enforcement Manager of GRA in charge of Accra Central, told the Ghana News Agency that they had violated regulations of the Value Added Tax (VAT).
He said the exercise or operations were part of an ongoing nationwide VAT Invigilation
exercise by the authority to retrieve some taxes due the State.
He said the Police would do their investigations, but for them as tax administrators, “we will assess their books and then apply all the penalties and interest that are applicable.”
He said it was an offence not to issue the VAT invoice and the law would take its own course.
Mr Annan said the GRA as part of a nationwide invigilation would continue to embark on mystery shopping exercises across the country to apprehend culprits evading tax.
“We will continue this exercise until our taxpayers do the needful,” he added.
He said the Authority in their auditing process would conduct a preemptive assessment, which meant that they would have to pay immediately, but then they would recommend a full audit to be conducted.
Mr Annan said even though they would audit their books the legal aspect would be handled by the CID, where they would prepare their docket for possible prosecution.
Set in Teshie in Accra, the film explores the livelihood of fisherfolks and tackles the impact of plastic waste on the environment.
It features awesome performances by acting talents; Kirston-Acquah Elisha, David Tontie, Incoom Kwabena Victor, Gabriel Narh Addo otherwise known as MysterGabby and Numo Ablorh.
The Rome Independent Prisma Awards is described as the number one most reviewed film festival in Europe among the nearly three thousand currently running on FilmFreeway.
In a time where the conflict between quality and quantity is deeply reshaping also the filmmaking panorama, it monthly selects and awards independent movies from all around the world, of any nationality, genre and budget, proposing a competition and a film festival that showcases the most impressive and meaningful among them.
The Chief Executive Officer of Dalex Finance, Kenneth Kwamina Thompson, says while the Statistical Service pegs Ghana’s inflation rate at 33.9%, for him it feels more like 80%.
He explained that the cost of basic things, particularly food items, have since January inflated above 80% and there is no sign of it slowing down soon.
This, he says, has placed undue burden on his pocket and that of ordinary Ghanaians.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express Business Edition, he said, “They say inflation is what, 33.9%? In my pocket it feels more like 80%.I mean if you take the cost of basic things – frozen foods January 2022 120 cedis, now it’s 250 cedis, that is 108% increase. That is frozen foods, frozen chicken.
“Royal Aroma Rice 5kg 32 cedis to 58cedis, 81% increase. Frytol, 15 cedis to 30 cedis, that is an 88% increase. The things I haven’t asked is pure water, salt, pepper, tomatoes. So inflation is for me, in my pocket, and I’m not disputing what the statistical service has, in my pocket it is more like 80.
“And then you know, for us as a company, we pay for our IT services, most of them are in dollar rates … and that has almost doubled. So for me in my pockets that is over 80%.”
Ghana’s annual inflation rate accelerated for the 15th straight month to 33.9% in August of 2022, from 31.7% in July, but below market forecasts of 34.3%. It was the highest reading since August of 2001, even after Ghana’s central bank delivered a record 300bps rate hike during an emergency meeting in August.
Speaking concerning the situation, Mr. Thompson noted that the rise in inflation and the subsequent plummeting of the cedi have had a rather devastating effect on businesses.
He noted that due to the fast eroding purchasing power of Ghanaians, fewer people are now able to engage the services of businesses, thus leading to drastic falls in revenue.
He also added that the case of hiked interest rates means that now either businesses that need funding cannot go for it or when they do it is too expensive, thus causing more problems.
“So it’s a serious problem, real serious problem. I mean, these times are hard,” he said.
British-Ghanaian grime MC Michael Ebenezer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr. who goes by the monicker Stormzy is back on the scene with the latest single which features ex-Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho as a cameo.
The seven minutes track “Mel made me do it” arrives with a visual that has an appearance from Jose Mourinho, Dave, Usain Bolt, and others playing a cameo.
Stormzy samples Mourihno’s comment “I prefer not to speak, if I speak I am in big trouble”
José Mourinho has made a shock feature in rapper Stormzy’s new single ‘Mel Made Me Do It’ 👀 pic.twitter.com/mdSK7KYE0X
The AS Roma coach shared a photo of himself and Stormzy on social media with a message appreciating the rapper for including him in the project.
“Was great fun doing this cameo for Stormzy’s new music video out today. I had a great time,” the AS ROMA manager wrote.
Well, its no surprise to see or have footballers turn up as video vixens, a couple of football stars have either way starred in music videos or movies. Didier Drogba’s made a dramatic appearance in Julia Channels’ dance hit “Forever in a day”
Former Arsenal player Emmanuel Frimpong also appeared in Lethal Bizzle’s song “Leave It Yeah” Alessandro Del Piero in Oasis, Peter Crouch, and other on-field stars.
In April 2022, M.I Abaga announced his plans to marry after he unveiled to the world his girlfriend whom he had been secretly dating since December 2020.
The 41-year-old rapper’s wishes came to be on Thursday, September 22. M.I Abaga and his fiancé, Eniola Mafe, tied the knot traditionally.
Taking to his Instagram story, the rapper announced he and Miss Mafe were tying the knot. Later in the day videos of the couple began circulating on social media.
The wedding ceremony took place in Lagos and was attended by family members, friends, and some high profile personalities in the Nigerian entertainment industry.
Banky W, Basketmouth, Lord Vino, Noble Igwe, IK Osakioduwa, and Akin Oyebode were among those who attended.
The ex-husband of gospel musician Obaapa Christy, Pastor Love, says he has not seen their last child for over a decade.
According to him, the last time he saw his son was when the boy was about two years old adding that the singer has not allowed him to see his kid since then.
Speaking to Afia Tamakloe on the M’ahyease TV show, Pastor Love said that because he wants to have a relationship with his child, he has sought to use other means to get her to change her mind especially since she has custody of all their three children.
He stated that over the years he chose to be patient and urges close associates to speak to Obaapa Christy but she is yet to heed their advice.
Pastor Love said that he did not want to pursue a custody battle or use other means to see his children because he does not want to make a big problem out of the issue.
He said that consistently he had to pull a brake on taking the case further.
But the Action Grace Chapel Head Pastor noted that if Obaapa Christy continues to create a barrier between him and his child, he will be forced to seek other means which may unearth more problems.
The couple was married for 4 years before finally separating with quite an unpleasant divorce in court.
Meanwhile, this is not the first time Pastor Love has expressed his pleasure at the rate at which he sees his children.
In 2019, shortly after Obaapa Christy’s remarriage, Pastor Love demanded to have custody of their children after claiming they were being maltreated.
Ghanaian female composer, AK Songstress, has disclosed a vital lesson she has picked up since she entered the music industry.
In an interview with ace journalist, Abeiku Santana, the ‘Jonathan’ hitmaker mentionedthat people don’t offer help out of their own goodwill as there is always a catch.
“What I have learnt on earth is that no one will dedicate themselves to support willingly unless the person has a personal interest in what you are doing.
“It could be they believe they can make money from your craft, help, or some shine. Apart from that, it’s between you and your God. It is also between you and the team God will give you, but apart from that, don’t expect anything,” she said.
While advising people to depend on God and themselves because human beings are bound to disappoint you, she added that keeping one’s expectation low protects you from being rude to others.
“Even when you do songs with some artistes, they don’t post the song. What do you want someone to do for you?
“You will get a broken heart, be bitter and become resentful in the industry. Because of my personal experience from the past, I don’t expect anything from individuals, be it an artiste or a blogger, to support me so much,” she stated.
She concluded by showing her appreciation to people who have been there for her, saying, “Anyone who has supported me, I appreciate it but then if you don’t support me, I don’t feel so disappointed.”
The National Association of Law Students has called for a full-scale investigation into reported leakage of the Ghana School of Law entrance paper scheduled for Friday morning.
The Association said the leakage, which had been confirmed by some candidates, raised questions of credibility of the Independent Examination Committee of the General Legal Council – the body supervising the examination.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Mr Asare Hassan, President of the Association, said the situation would disorganise the students and affect output.
“It’s been confirmed by some of the candidates and the exam has been cancelled. Our sources say the exam has been rescheduled to 1330 hours but we are not sure because there has not been an official confirmation,” he told the GNA.
The 2022 entrance examination for admission to the Professional Law Course was scheduled to take place on Friday, September 23, 2022, from 1000 hours to 1130 hours.
However, hours before the exam was supposed to have started, copies of the said paper allegedly circulated on social media.
The General Legal Council is yet to officially respond to the reported leakage. But unconfirmed reports indicate that the said paper had been cancelled, awaiting further direction from the Council.
The Association of Law Students said the development vindicated its position that there was the need for reforms in the conduct and management of the entrance examination to make the process more transparent and credible.
“We think that this exam is even not an exam, it is a selection. Because it is a human institution, they should allow for students to seek for remarking and all that. Even when they make a mistake, they will stick to what they have,” Mr Hassan said.
“We need to put systems in place to resolve some of these issues that come up every now and then. If we need to fire where necessary, if we think people are incompetent, fire them. We need to investigate and get to the bottom of some of these issues,” he added.
This is not the first time an examination at the Ghana School of Law has been cancelled.
About two months ago, the Independent Examinations Body cancelled the Civil Procedure paper, which was expected to be written on, July 15, 2022.
The examination was cancelled after a copy of the paper was widely shared on social media.
Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia says the Government, for the past five years, has been pursuing an inclusive development agenda to ensure holistic growth and progress of all communities across the nation.
He mentioned the Coastal, Middle Belt, Northern and Zongo Development Authorities as the development vehicles the government had established to mitigate the suffering and challenges of the people, especially those in deprived areas.
In addition educating and empowering the people economically, and providing them with functional skills were the only realistic ways to alleviate extreme poverty and underdevelopment.
Vice President Bawumia said this on Thursday in a keynote address at the second edition of the Annual National Muslim Conference at the national Mosque, Kanda, Accra.
He said the four thematic areas around which the conference revolved – education, health, finance, and economic empowerment – were in conformity with the development goals of the Government, the African Union and United Nations to address the challenges of unbalanced growth in deprived communities.
It brought together key stakeholders within the Muslim Ummah to discuss ways of developing an action plan and education strategy to achieve those goals and to empower the Muslim youth.
It was also intended to galvanise the energies, human and material resources of the Muslim Community in Ghana to spur growth.
The conference was on the theme: “Towards the coherence and holistic economic empowerment strategy for national development- The Ghanaian Muslim Ummah in Context”.
Vice President Bawumia said: “For our government, bridging the development gap between the less privileged communities and others is important for the overall growth of our country.”
“Ghana will suffer if members of these communities grow and leave others behind. Therefore, government is working to get rid of any form of exclusion.”
He called for the pursuance of continuous intra-face dialogues and interface engagements with the Christian counterparts to proffer strategies to mitigate the daily challenges facing Ghanaians.
He noted that several studies had established a strong link between education and social mobility and believed that with the right educational policies like the Free SHS, Free TVET and a guarantor free access to loans for tertiary education, a child from any background should not have any barrier to his or her development.
Data shows that the biggest beneficiaries of the Free SHS had been members from deprived communities including the Zongos, witnessing significant rise in secondary school enrolment.
The Vice President urged the Muslim leaders to take advantage of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and TVET education as a strategy to empower the youth, which underpin government’s resolve to invest more in that sector.
As customary of the Adonai rapper, Sarkodie stepped out in style, rocking a white Cole Buxton t-shirt on black shorts. He completed his look with a pair of Nike Dunk sneakers and a red scarf with white polka dots.
Posting a photo collection on Instagram, Sarkodieshared several pictures of his stage rehearsal. He also included pictures of himself getting off the stage and walking with his crew. Captioning the post, he wrote;
The Global Citizen Festival will take place on Saturday, 24 September, for the first time in Accra and will see performances from Sarkodie, Stonebwoy, Gyakie and Nigerian singer Tems. In addition, international acts like Usher, SZA, H.E.R and Stormzy will thrill fans during the show.
Candidates writing this year’s West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in the La Dade-Kotopon Municipal Assembly (LaDMA) have been advised to desist from all forms of examination malpractices, but study hard to come out with flying colours.
‘Handling of foreign material, copying, asking or teaching friends and others could lead to your exam papers being cancelled by the the West African Examination Council (WAEC) or you could be arrrested by the police and imprisoned’ .
The Member of Parliament (MP) for La Dade-Kotopon Constituency, Ms Rita Naa Odoley Sowah, gave this advise on Thursday when she and others visited candidates at Labone and Presbyterian Senior High Schools (SHS) in her constituency.
Accompanying her was the Municipal Director for Education of LaDMA, Ms Habiba Kotomah.
They had earlier visited St Thomas Aquinas and Forces Senior High Schools within the municipality.
The visit was to monitor and motivate the candidates writing this years WASSE exams which started on August 1 to end on September 27.
She stressed the need for the candidates to approach every subject and topic wholeheartedly, focusing on straight forward answers without wasting too much time.
“Tackle easier questions first before moving on to more challenging ones to save time,” Ms Sowah said.
The MP told them to read through the questions and be sure they understood them perfectly before attempting to answer it so that they don’t get confused and start cancelling.
She stressed the need for candidates to prove their worth by passing their exams with flying colours as parents and teachers had done their best for them.
Ms Kotomah said this year’s exams had been smooth and encouraging since it started expressing the hope that there would be no challenges to the end.
However, she explained that there had been few lateness in schools within the municipality and urged parents to assist their wards to report to the examination halls early.
She reminded parents that any students who reported to the examination hall 30 minutes after the exams had started would not be allowed to write that oparticular paper.
Ms Kotomah urged the candidates to be positive in their minds and know that once their friends had done it they could equally go through it succesfully.
Mrs Rejoice Akuah Acorlor, Headmistress of Labone SHS and Madam Juliana Mensah, Headmistress of Presbyterian SHS thanked the MP and her team for taking time off their schedules to visit and motivate the pupils to be disciplined, determined and aim high by looking at a brighter future after the examination.
About 2,620 candidates from four SHS in LaDMA are participating in this years WASSCE exams making up of 964 from Labone SHS; 668 from St Thomas Aquinas, 578 from Forces and 407 from Presbyterian SHS.
The government and the Bank of Ghana (BoG) must collaborate to address the factors causing inflation to rise, the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), has said.
According to the economic think tank, the current inflation rate of 33.9 per cent in August 2022 was largely driven by supply and cost factors, particularly food, fuel, transport, and exchange rate.
In a statement issued by the IEA in Accra on Monday and copied to the Ghanaian Times, it said the “supply and cost factors fueling inflation should be directly targeted with appropriate policy interventions.”
Inflation for diesel in August stood at 116.9 per cent, petrol was 80.5 per cent, and transport inflation (embedding fuel costs) stood at 45.7 per cent, imported and food 34.4 per cent.
IEA called for subsidies on basic staples and reinforcement of measures to ensure that food stocks were easily transported from farm gates to markets.
“Also reduction of fuel taxes or levies and the use of part of Government’s windfall gains from higher oil prices to cushion pump-prices, while expanding public transport and subsidising fares to cushion the masses,” it said.
Further, IEA urged the BoG to enforce the foreign exchange laws, including relating to forex carry-on limits for travellers, forex trading, pricing of goods and services in forex and forex transfers through banks.
“We call on the BoG and the government to work to adopt additional targeted measures to fight the inflation crisis and also negotiate with foreign companies to stagger repatriation of their dividends and profits to reduce pressure on the exchange rate” it stated.
IEA said in countries, including major economies where inflation, tended to be mostly demand-driven, a more appropriate tool such as Inflation Targeting had resorted to interventions directed to the supply factors.
The economic think tank said some advanced countries had taken unorthodox and innovative measures to cushion its citizens and was time for the country’s policymakers to be equally proactive.
“The United States has passed the Inflation Reduction Act, where the new UK Prime Minister has imposed caps on energy prices for two years, also France has capped fuel prices and limited electricity tariff increases to 4 per cent” IEA said.
Adding that, while the focus may now be on the immediate crisis, it would take far-reaching, comprehensive measures to address the underlying vulnerabilities and policy lapses in order to achieve durable price stability in the country.
The eloquent star is also known for her enviable fashion sense. As much as she invests hugely in the craft, she pays attention to what to wear. After all, you are what you wear, giving you the confidence to overcome the world.
It was no surprise when the talented media personality relaunched her clothing line in September 2022. A bevvy of top Ghanaian celebrities, socialites, and friends graced the occasion to congratulate and shop for themselves.
Over the years, Serwaa Amiherehas stayed true to her style; formfitting dresses flaunt her enviable curves. Recently, a hilarious video surfaced online where the TV star struggled to sit appropriately after wearing a very tight corset.
What goes on behind the scenes of celebrity lifestyle should be documented for their followers to admire the pain of beauty. YEN.com.gh lists all the times Serwaa Amihere ruled the fashion world with her corset dresses.
1. African print dress
Serwaa Amihere turns heads with a gorgeous African print corseted dress designed with quality lace fabric. The details of the dress namely the puff sleeveless, turtle neck, and incredible corset makes it a signature piece.
Serwaa Amihere loves fashion. Recently, she made headlines for overdressing at Bridget Otoo’s traditional wedding. This is a magnificent dress, an off-shoulder long lace dress she wore to a designer’s baby christening.
Serwaa Amihere has finally earned her place as one of Ghana’s best morning show hosts.
This is not an easy feat. If she gets the opportunity to mentor other prospective TV hosts, she doesn’t let her guard down when it comes to her fashion sense.
She stole the show with this beaded long-sleeve dress showing off her flawless skin.
Black and gold are attention-seeking colors especially when the lace fabric has distinguished patterns that are impossible to replicate. Gold symbolizes luck, what a perfect color for any great event.
After carefully going through all her photos on Instagram, it is safe to say that Serwaa Amihere’s loyalty is admirable.
She has been wearing custom-made pieces from celebrated fashion designer Sima Brew since the inception of her media career, and she continues to model for her.
The two creative minds are worth celebrating as seen in Serwaa’s joyful mood while posing for the cameras.
Every dog must be vaccinated once every one or two years to help Ghana achieve immunity by 2030.
The critical proportion of all dogs that ought to be vaccinated is 70 per cent in order to break the dog-to-dog transmission of rabies.
Dr Franklin Asiedu-Bekoe, Director of Public Health at Ghana Health Service, disclosed these ahead of this year’s World Rabies Day celebration at a press briefing in Accra yesterday.
He said mass vaccination of dogs should be preceded by evidence-based research of the dog ecology, population numbers and transmission in Ghana.
“After this, adequate planning in strategy and logistics informed by policy is needed. All these must be done as quickly as necessary, considering the exigencies of the times. Community engagement and participation is key in assuring success of set targets in mass dog vaccination,” he stated
Dr Bekoe said this year’s celebration would be held on the theme “One Health, Zero Deaths” to coincide with a recent record of cases of human rabies in the Ashanti Region of Ghana, saying “the one health approach is an intersectoral collaboration between institutions concerned with human health, animal health and environment health.”
“Rabies is considered a proxy for One Health because it has the human, animal and environmental components. This year, we want to remind ourselves of the One Health strategies and approaches, the systems, institutions and other resources we will fall on, and what our objectives ought to be from now till the next celebration” he stated.
He said from May 21 to 25, 2018, relevant stakeholders met to develop the current Ghana Rabies Control and Prevention Action Plan (2018-2030) whose goal was to use the ‘One Health Approach’ to control rabies in Ghana.
The plan he said highlighted prevention and control of rabies, data collection and analysis, laboratory diagnosis, dog population management, information, education and communication, intersectoral collaboration and legislation.
Dr Bekoe pleaded with all relevant stakeholders to collaborate to drive progress towards “Zero human deaths from dog-mediated rabies by 2030.”
Dr Patrick Abakeh, Acting Chief Veterinary Officer said human vaccines were expensive and that it was currently estimated to cost USD$4,087,970 annually.
For him, every exposed person who received a PEP vaccine, 50 dogs could have been vaccinated at the same cost, adding that in the hierarchy of importance of control of rabies , vaccinating dogs came first, followed by vaccinating exposed humans.
Dr Abakeh called for the resource of the Veterinary Service Directorate (VSD) to be able to deal with zoonotic diseases as Ghana, together with other countries in the sub region, were endemic to rabies which is a Neglected Tropical Zoonosis.
Dr Guyo Guracha , a representative from World Health Organisation, said his outfit regularly updated and disseminated technical guidance on rabies, for example epidemiology, surveillance, diagnostics, vaccines, safe and cost-effective immunisation , control and prevention strategies for human and animal rabies, operational programme implementation and palliative care for human rabies patients.
Benjamin M.Adjei, Assistant Food and Agriculture Organisation Representative of the United Nations, added that Rabies had a significant impact on lives and livelihoods, particularly in developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America and that the poor and marginalised communities were most heavily impacted as they often could not afford treatment or transport for care.
The Western Regional Minister, Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah has asked road contractors who are unable to undertake road contracts awarded them to return their contract certificates.
There abound a litany of roads awarded on contracts, yet contractors are not on site as some have abandoned work midstream with the excuse of they not being paid by government for works so far executed.
“The western region has a lot of road contracts, but we’ve noticed that certain contractors aren’t performing their finest work.
We are requesting that any contractor who is not prepared for the contract notify the ministry in writing of their incapacity to carry out the contract in order for us to re-award it.
He underlined, “We are not prepared to beg any contractor once more.
Chiefs and indigenous people in the Western Region have recently been protesting some of the terrible roads that politicians keep stressing are under contract repair.
The Western Regional Minister views the contractors’ behavior as unfair.
“When the contractors were coming for the tendering process they brought along letters from their respective banks assuring the government that they had enough money to complete the contract. So if all of a sudden you turn around and complain of insufficient funds to complete the work then it means you are trying to deceive the government.”
he fumed over.
Just this week, chiefs in the Ahanta West Municipality have had to take to demonstrating over poor roads at Sankor – Cape 3 points although for the past 2 years they kept being impressed upon that the roads are all on contract since 2020 yet no contractor is on-site till date.
Uganda’s health ministry has confirmed six new Ebola cases after officials confirmed an outbreak in the country earlier in the week.
The new cases were reported in the central district of Mubende, where a 24-year-old man was confirmed dead on Tuesday after showing symptoms of the disease.
The authorities are also investigating whether seven other deaths, including that of a one-year-old girl, were due to Ebola.
Of the six new cases, one was reported from a neighbouring district. This is the third outbreak of the Ebola Sudan strain in Uganda.
Over 40 people who contacted a family that reported some of the cases have been traced. Eleven of them are under isolation, said Kyobe Henry Bbosa, the incident management commander from the health ministry.
Neighbouring countries said they were on high alert in case the disease spread across the borders.
Experts say that the Ebola Sudan strain historically has lower levels of transmission, infections and deaths compared to the Ebola Zaire strain.Ugandan authorities continue to assure the public and international community that they have the capacity to contain the epidemic.
Health experts on Tuesday urged Uganda to focus on preventing and controlling the spread of the deadly Ebola virus, noting that there is no vaccine against the rare Sudan strain that broke out in the country.
This follows a Tuesday announcement by the country’s ministry of health that the Ebola virus had broken out and has so far left one confirmed case dead and six other unverified deaths.
Bayo Fatunmbi, Head of Disease Prevention and Control at the World Health Organisation office in Uganda, told reporters here that the Sudan strain is rare and had only occurred in Sudan in 1976 and in Uganda in 2011.
“We have done something before in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but we find that the vaccination that worked with the Zaire virus (strain) will not be useful for this particular Sudan strain,” he said.
Diana Atwine, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Health, said while the country has the vaccine for the Zaire strain, there is no vaccine for the Sudan strain.
PSG’s Neymar will be chasing Brazil’s top scorer record which is currently been held by Pele.
Brazil will take on Ghana in an international friendly tonight in Le Havre, France and the former Barcelona attacker will get the opportunity to break that record.
Pele scored 77 goals after 92 appearances from 1957 to 1971. Neymar is currently on 74 goals after making 119 appearances from 2010 to 2022.
Brazil has been labelled as the favourite in this encounter. Both countries are using this friendly to prepare for the 2022 World Cup which will be held in Qatar.
Brazil head coach Tite shocked football fans when he left out Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus.
The operation of a Chinese cement manufacturing plant nearby, according to Mr. Daniel Boye, Operations Manager of local salt producer Panbros Salt Industries Limited, could contaminate its product.
Therefore, he demanded that the Empire Cement Company Ghana Company be shut down.
According to Mr. Boye, dust from the manufacture of cement could condense in salt ponds and taint the final product.
In reference to the location of the cement factory, he made this statement outside of a press conference organized by the McCarthy Hill Residents Association.
Mr Boye said the Panbros area was an environmentally protected Ramsar site and that the location of a cement factory in the area could harm the ecology of the sensitive area.
He said Panbros had engaged the cement manufacturing company on its location and possible pollution of the environmental and told the factory would be using a technology that would not release dust in to the atmosphere.
Meanwhile, Nana Obokom Atta IX, Co-founder, Empire Cement Company Ghana, said the factory’s location was not part of the wetlands reserves.
Nana Atta said they had been given the green light by regulatory authorities to produce cement at the location.
He added that the Company had put in place measures not to cause harm to residents.
“This is a multimillion dollar investment project that will provide jobs for the teeming youth and contribute to development in the community and the country as a whole,” the Co-Founder said.
