TIG Post

Author: Chris Kodo

  • Mali crisis mediation falters amid opposition defiance

    Mali’s opposition on Wednesday reiterated calls for President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita to resign, again spurning a compromise floated by West African leaders seeking to resolve a weeks-old political crisis.

    Using the acronym by which the president is known, prominent opposition leader Choguel Maiga told a news conference that “the only watchword remains the resignation of IBK”.

    He said a “second phase of civil disobedience” would occur three days after the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha, which the faithful will celebrate this week.

    Mahmoud Dicko, a Saudi-trained imam who is considered the figurehead of the opposition June 5 Movement, also told reporters that he had asked Prime Minister Boubou Cisse to step down.

    The announcements mark an entrenchment for the movement, which has not budged from urging Keita’s resignation despite several high-profile efforts to mediate the political impasse.

    The loose alliance of opposition groups and religious leaders has since last month has been channelling deep anger in Mali over a dire economy, perceived corruption and a brutal jihadist conflict.

    The disparate alliance of opposition groups and religious leaders had already on Tuesday dismissed a plan to break the impasse with Keita, which the 15-nation regional bloc ECOWAS had put forward the previous day.

    West African leaders had suggested forming a new unity government to resolve an election dispute that has sparked outrage.

    By Monday evening, Keita had already appointed a stripped-down government with the intention to recruit opposition members.

    Cisse also visited Dicko on Tuesday evening to invite him to bring his June 5 Movement into a unity government, at which point the imam asked him to step down.

    “Mali is not a submissive or resigned people,” Dicko said on Wednesday. “The Malian nation must be restored by Malians for Malians and for Malians.”

    ‘Not going to resign

    Keita, in power since 2013, has come under increasing pressure to resolve Mali’s brutal eight-year-old jihadist revolt, and kickstart the slumping economy.

    But much of the Sahel nation’s current tension was sparked in April, when the Constitutional Court tossed out 30 results from long-delayed parliamentary elections – a move that benefited Keita’s party.

    Protests ratcheted up into a crisis on July 10 when an anti-Keita rally organised by the June 5 Movement turned violent.

    Eleven people died in clashes with security forces over several days, marking the bloodiest political unrest the former French colony has seen in years.

    But the June 5 Movement has continued to insist on Keita’s departure, despite two ECOWAS mediation missions which suggested a new unity government, and a resolution to the election quarrel.

    ECOWAS leaders confirmed that plan via video link on Monday – sticking by Keita – and backed a new vote for the 30 disputed seats in the election.

    But 29 of the 30 MPs whose election victories are in question refused to step down on Wednesday.

    “We’ve come together and we’re not going to resign. Our constitution is being violated by the ECOWAS declaration,” opposition MP Gougnon Coulibaly told reporters.

    Storm clouds

    Wednesday’s rejection marks at least the fourth time that Mali’s opposition has rebuffed efforts at compromise, raising the spectre of further unrest.

    The standoff with Keita has alarmed Mali’s international allies and neighbours, who are keen to avoid the country sliding into chaos.

    Far from the capital, much of the vast West African state lies outside government control and is overrun by jihadists and ethnic militias.

    Mali has been struggling to quell a Islamist revolt that first emerged in the country in 2012, then spread to the centre, and to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.

    Thousands of civilians and soldiers have died in the conflict to date, and hundreds of thousands have had to flee their homes.

    Source: Pulse Ghana

  • Newmont Gold worker dies after his car rammed into a truck

    A staff of Newmont Gold Ghana Limited, Daniel Asiedu Akrofi has died after his car rammed into a stationary truck near Sunyani Technical University.

    The deceased, driving a Toyota Camry with registration number GR 258-18 was heading to work at Kenyase in Ahafo region when the incident happened on Wednesday morning.

    The parked truck, a Kia Rhino with registration number AW 7461-14, loaded with pipes, broke down last night but there was no warning triangle to alert oncoming vehicles.

    According to eyewitnesses, the deceased was speeding.

    Speaking with the Adom News, the Operations officer of Bono regional office of the Ghana National Fire Service, Ignatius Noekor said poor driver training and licensing are to blame for road accidents.

    He noted with concern that some drivers “behave as if they operate with their own laws of physics, which unfortunately lead to the loss of innocent lives in preventable accidents.

    The fire officer said the rate of road accidents in the country, must be of grave concern to all Ghanaians.

    Mr Noekor called on drivers to patronise towing services whenever their vehicles become faulty and also utilise the warning triangles at vantage points to help reduce road carnages.

    “The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority cannot be entirely blamed, I suggest that licenses of drivers who are involved in accidents must be authenticated to ascertain their qualifications to drive, he added.

    The fire officer also urged the MTTD and other vehicle regulatory bodies to sit up and help reduce road accidents drastically.

     

    Source: Adom News 

  • Fresh tension at Abossey Okai as Ghanaian traders lock-up Nigerian shops

    There is fresh tension at the Abossey Okai spare parts market as Ghanaian traders lock-up shops of their Nigerian counterparts.

    The Ghanaian traders insist the laws of Ghana do not allow foreigners to engage in retail trade, reason for their actions.

    They also accuse the Nigerians of selling substandard products at cheap prices, a practice the Ghanaian traders say is killing their business.

    The local traders also lament unequal to trading space as they claim the Nigerians have enough money to pay for steep prices charged by shop owners, a practice which disadvantages the locals.

    These grievances forced the local traders to lock-up the shops of the Nigerians and demanding that they shut down their “illegal” operations.

    But the Nigerian traders are infuriated over the repeated attacks.

    The leadership of the Nigerian Traders Association of Ghana has urged their members to resist the attacks from the locals.

    Chief Emeka Nnaji who spoke to JoyNews lamented what he said is inaction from the government and police after the repeated attacks on them.

    “I cannot live in this illegality anymore,” he charged, adding that if the Ghanaian traders want them out, they should buy all their goods and they would pack and leave the country.

    Following the Tuesday disturbances MP for the area, Ebenezer Gilbert Nii Narh the leadership of the traders union at Abossey Okai and the Police Commander for the area went into a meeting to iron out the differences.

    The resolutions from the meeting are yet to be made public.

     

    Source: myjoyonline 

  • Shut down ‘witch’ camps GPCC as it condemns ‘barbaric’ lynching of 90-year-old

    The Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC) has said it is time for the government to consider closing down the various “witch” camps in the country.

    The Council also called for the reintegration of the inmates of those camps mostly found in the Northern Region of the country, into society through their families.

    The call by GPCC comes days after a 90-year-old woman, Akua Denteh, was lynched following an accusation of witchcraft levelled against her by a seer, who had been invited by the villagers to help them drive away their misfortunes.

    Scores of the locals watched aloof as two women flogged and bludgeoned the helpless grandmother despite her pleas of innocence.

    Ghanaians have condemned the cruel act.

    On Monday, 27 July 2020, President Nana Akufo-Addo said the lynching incident has “disfigured the face of our nation.”

    Mr Akufo-Addo said he hopes “the quick response of the police will lead to the rapid administration of justice in this unfortunate matter”.

    In a statement issued by the Council and signed by its General Secretary, Rev Emmanuel Teimah Barrigah, the GPCC added its “voice to those of other well-meaning Ghanaians in calling for serious investigations and arrest of all those involved in this heinous crime, which can best be described as very cruel and barbaric.”

    The Council emphasised: “We must, at all cost, seek justice for this 90-year-old woman and all those who have suffered such atrocities in the past.”

    According to the Council, “it is heart-breaking to note that in this modern day and age, our society seems to be drifting into an era of lawlessness where some people can take the law into their own hands”.

    “There is an urgent need to inject some discipline and sanity into our everyday behaviour as a society.

    “We must intensify our education of the public on what their rights as citizens are and what they can do or not do so as to make the society a safe and secure place to live in”, it added.

    The Council further indicated: “There is also the need to consider whether it is not time to close down “witch” camps which are predominantly found in the Northern Regions and find ways and means of reintegrating inmates of such camps, who are mostly elderly women and sometimes their children and grandchildren, into the society.

    The GPCC added that the lessons of such gruesome murders must be used “to right the wrongs in our society. The elderly, weak and vulnerable must be targeted for the care and protection of our society.”

     

    Source: Class FM

  • Teenage girl dumps newly born baby in bush

    A newly born child has been rescued after the mother dumped it in a bush for unknown reasons.

    The young girl, only identified as Maame wrapped the toddler in a polythene bag and dumped it shortly after giving birth.

    In a video circulating on social media, the teenager led a group of people to the site where she dumped the baby after several interrogations and persuasions.

    The videographer is then heard requesting for the child to be taken from the “irresponsible” mother and sent to the hospital to receive medical care.

    The newly born has since been sent to the hospital to receive medical attention.

    Watch the video below.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • US to relocate more troops in Germany than previously thought

    Defense Secretary Mark Esper has outlined proposals that foresee bringing about 6,400 troops back to the US and relocating another 5,400 within Europe. That entails reducing the presence in Germany by roughly one third.

    US Defense Secretary Mark Esper confirmed on Wednesday that troops will be pulled and relocated from Germany. The move is set to be the largest shake-up of troops in Germany since the end of World War II.

    Wednesday’s announcement was the first time the US set out concrete proposals on its “European Strategic Force Posture Review.”

    A German government spokesman had responded to a DW question in Berlin earlier this week by saying that details on the long-touted plan would come imminently.

    Under the plan, the US will send home some 6,400 forces and relocate 5,400 out of Germany and to other European countries in Europe, the US Defense Department said. Roughly 25,000 troops are set to remain in Germany.

    The reassignment will see troop members moving to Italy and Belgium, but some could also go to Poland and the Baltic states, if Warsaw agrees to an accord that the two sides have been working on, Esper said.

    He added that the troop reassignments were part of a larger plan to update US strategy against Russia. “We are following the boundary east, where our newest allies are,” the Defense Secretary said.

    ‘Germany should pay more’

    Esper did not explicitly say whether the decision to move troops had to do with President Trump’s comments regarding Germany. He has blasted the European ally for not investing enough in defense and being “delinquent” in its NATO payments.

    But Esper did back the president’s premise. “To give President Trump credit, we have seen an increase in defense spending by NATO,” the Defense Secretary said of White House efforts to get more countries to invest in NATO.

    He said that Germany was a “rich country” and that “Germany can and should pay more to its defense.”

    Source: dw.com

  • Komenda Sugar Factory will work again – Naana Opoku-Agyemang

    Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, Running Mate of the former President, Mr John Dramani Mahama has called on the people of Komenda and its environs to appreciate the confidence reposed in her by the Party and vote for NDC in the upcoming December general election.

    Addressing party faithfuls and supporters at Komenda as part of her two day visit to the Central Region, the Former Education Minister gave the assurance that the next NDC government would make the Komenda Sugar factory work better again.

    She explained that the decision of the Party to revamp the defunct Komenda Factory when it was in government was to create more employment to offer alternative livelihoods to the people aside fishing, but it was abandoned.

    “So let us forge ahead in the right direction to get the recognition that we deserve and also get our factory back”, she stressed.

    She expressed the confidence that the people of Komenda would make the right decisions as always, come December, because Komenda deserved more than it was getting, she added.

    Prof Opoku-Agyemang admonished NDC supporters to desist from engaging in insults and violence saying, “the only fight we have to engage in and play our respective roles to achieve is the fight for the progress and development of the nation”.

    Earlier, she paid a courtesy call on the paramount Chief of Komenda Traditional Area, Nana Kojo Kru II to officially introduce herself to him and to seek his blessings as a daughter of the land.

    Nana Kojo Kru commended Former President Mahama and the NDC for believing in one of his daughters and choosing her as the running mate, saying she was more than capable to hold the Vice Presidential office.

    He however, advised Prof Opoku-Agyemang to be accommodative and tolerant and bring to bear her massive experience to justify her selection.

    Prof Opoku-Agyemang is the first female to be selected as a running mate of the NDC.

     

    Source: GNA

  • Ghana’s operational performance in first six months strong – Tullow PLC

    Tullow Oil PLC has said its operational performance in Ghana has been strong in the first half with uptime on both Floating Production and Storage and offloading vessels in excess of 95 percent.

    Overall, the company said it produced 77,700 barrels per day in the first half of the year, at a realised oil price of US$52 per barrel, including hedge receipts of US$131 million.

    In its trading statement and operational update for the first six months of 2020, which was copied to the Ghana News Agency, in Accra, Tullow said gross production from the Jubilee field stood at 84,700 bpd, of which 30,000 bpd was net to Tullow. The TEN project averaged 50,900 bpd with a net of 24,000 bpd to Tullow.

    Production for the rest of the year is expected to range between 71,000 and 78,000 barrels per day (bpd).

    However, the production from the Ghanaian oilfields is expected to fall to 51,600 bpd over the full year, from 54,000 bpd in the first half.

    The statement said the completion operations on the Ntomme-9 production well at TEN were ongoing, adding that, the well was due onstream in August.

    Tullow said it had also cut its oil price assumptions and as a result, it expected impairment and exploration write offs of US$1.4-1.7 billion before tax.

    Commenting, Rahul Dhir, Chief Executive Officer, Tullow Oil PLC, said, “Since becoming CEO on 1 July, I have been impressed by the quality of Tullow’s people and the potential of our assets and I am confident that we can build Tullow into a competitive and successful business once again. Despite the challenging external environment in the first half of the year.

    “Tullow has performed well; delivering production in line with forecast, agreeing the sale of the Ugandan assets and re-shaping the Group’s structure and cost base.

    “In the second half of 2020 our focus will remain on continuing to deliver safe and reliable production from West Africa, reducing debt and building a cost effective and efficient organisation that can compete in a low oil price environment.”

    The company will release its half-year results on September 9, 2020.

    Source: GNA

  • Germany’s exploited foreign workers amid coronavirus

    After major coronavirus outbreaks at several businesses, German lawmakers are finally considering cracking down on the exploitation of foreign workers.

    “I will never go back to Germany, not even for a holiday,” Mariana Costea, a seasonal worker from Romania, told DW. She spent two months toiling away on a Bavarian farm until she decided that was all she could take. Mariana was forced to work unpaid overtime, had to sleep in filthy dorms, and was at risk of contracting the coronavirus — as no safety precautions were in place.

    “I could not accept that eight of us had to share one bedroom and bathroom,” she recalls. To make matters worse, 30 seasonal workers were expected to share a single bathroom.

    Every morning 14 or 15 of them would pile into a minivan with just eight seats to be driven out to work on the fields. In the evenings, the Eastern Europeans would be shuttled back to their overcrowded accommodation. Costea says those in charge made no effort to enforce social distancing and other precautions to prevent them from contracting the coronavirus.


    German slaughterhouses face scrutiny after COVID-19 outbreaks
    We can no longer turn a blind eye

    Costea is one of many Eastern Europeans seasonal workers who have recently spoke out about the catastrophic working and living conditions they have endured in Germany. They have recounted harrowing experiences as meat processing plant workers, delivery men and women, caregivers, construction workers and seasonal farmhands. Yet much of this has been known for years, as German Labor Minister Hubertus Heil openly acknowledged at a recent press conference in Berlin. The difference, however, is that the pandemic has made it impossible to ignore this situation.

    Alex, whose name has been changed to protect his identity, told DW about his experience of spending two years working for Tönnies, Germany’s biggest meat producer. He fears he could face serious consequences if anyone learns his identity. “They made us work between 10 and 13 hours a day, instead of 8 hours with a 45-minute break,” he told DW. “It was exhausting, and psychologically draining.”

    Most seasonal workers are hired by subcontractors; workers are employed by an external company — and not the meat producers, which are are not directly responsible for the laborers. Alex, too, was hired by a subcontractor that oversees parts of the meat production. But he also had to accept the subcontractor’s terms.

    Most subcontracted laborers do piecework — which is when workers are paid according to items processed, rather than the actual time spent working. Alex says the tasks expected were simply impossible to fulfill during a regular 8-hour workday. This, he says, constitutes systematic exploitation, adding that anyone who protests is fired. German labor standards have gone absent.

    According to numerous accounts of workers, little to no precautions were in place to protect workers at the Tönnies meat processing plant. When, in early June, some 1,500 laborers of the 7,000-strong workforce tested positive for the coronavirus, the development hardly came as a surprise. As a result, the region of Gütersloh, where the site is situated, was placed on lockdown.

    Federal prosecutors are now taking legal action against the company and numerous subcontractors accused of violating Germany’s law on the prevention and control of infectious diseases.

    Subcontractors hard to monitor

    There are many subcontractors and recruitments agencies that supply laborers to German companies. Keeping tabs on how they treat the workers and house them, however, is difficult.

    Marius Hanganu counsels Eastern European workers hired by subcontractors on behalf of the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB). Hanganu, who was born in Romania, says Germany’s customs agency and public health departments are responsible for ensuring that basic labor and housing standards are fulfilled. But, he says, checks are not as thorough as they should be.

    Hanganu recalls how Bavarian companies were tipped off about impending inspections by the customs agency. “It is puzzling how a state department could have such “leaks”…there must have been a mole,” he says. According to Hanganu, there must have been an informant up in the higher echelons of the agency.

    DW reached out to Germany’s Central Customs Authority for comment on the claim. “There is no knowledge of this!” said the federal authority in a brief reply.

    After news broke of soaring coronavirus infections at German farms and meat processing plants due to dismal working and housing conditions, German lawmakers were forced to act. They plan to outlaw the practice of subcontracted laborers in the meat industry by January 1, 2021. From then on, companies will have to directly employ all their workers.

    Labor Minister Hubertus Heil has tabled a bill that will be debated and, potentially, adopted after parliament’s summer recess. It is unclear, however, why this measure will only be applied to Germany’s meat industry.

    Heil told DW: “There are areas where labor standards need to be monitored; we will raise the standards so we have more influence on crucial sectors.”

    “There are other areas in which it is about workplace safety inspections. Those (inspections) will be increased mandatorily so that we can go into vulnerable areas more frequently.”

    An opportunity for change

    An ongoing coronavirus outbreak in Bavaria has yet again put the spotlight on businesses’ apparent disregard for coronavirus precautions — and the lack of state checks to enforce them. Over 170 seasonal workers at an agricultural business in Mamming, some 140 kilometres (87 miles) northeast of Munich, tested positive for COVID-19. Most of the laborers hail from Romania. Several others are from Bulgaria, Hungary and Ukraine. The business has been placed under quarantine.

    At a press conference Monday, Bavarian State Premier Markus Söder said the company had knowingly breached hygiene rules and other standards — prompting the state leader to call for tougher, unannounced checks, both during the day and night.

    Source: dw.com

    Söder also suggested increasing fines for such breaches from €5,000 to €25,000 ($5,800 to $29,000). In addition, Söder wants to see all seasonal workers in Bavaria tested for the coronavirus. A complete regional lockdown might also loom, he said.

    The pandemic has drawn attention to the inhumane treatment of workers that has persisted in Germany for years. The outbreak might present an opportunity to finally improve the lives of many Eastern European workers in the country.

    Alex is certain that without the pandemic, everything would have continued as before. He has now started working for a different meat processing company. He has been given a permanent position — and says he will never again allow himself to be exploited.

  • Turkey’s MPs vote to tighten grip on social media

    Turkey’s parliament has passed a law to control social media platforms, a move human rights groups say poses a severe threat to freedom of expression.

    The law requires social media firms with more than a million Turkish users to set up local offices and comply with requests to remove content.

    If companies refuse, they face fines and may have data speeds cut.

    Facebook, Twitter and YouTube have not yet commented.

    President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has described social media sites as “immoral” and made no secret of his desire to see them tightly controlled.

    The bill was submitted by the ruling AKP and its partner the MHP, which together have a majority in parliament, and passed on Wednesday morning.

    In the past Turkish authorities have temporarily cut internet bandwidth to stop citizens using social media, after terror attacks.

    Under the new law, social media platforms face cuts of up to 95% of bandwidth, rendering them unusable.

    ‘Brazen attack’

    The internet remains a crucial tool for dissent in the country and critics say the move will lead to more censorship. The hashtag #SansurYasasinaDurDe (Say Stop to the Censorship Law) has been trending on Twitter since Tuesday.

    Amnesty International describes it as “the latest, and perhaps most brazen attack on free expression in Turkey”.

    “The internet law significantly increases the reach of the government to police and censor content online, exacerbating risks to those who are already ruthlessly targeted by the authorities simply for expressing dissenting opinions,” said the human rights group’s Turkey researcher Andrew Gardner.

    Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin denied that the bill would lead to censorship, saying it was intended to establish commercial and legal ties with the social media platforms.

    Source: bbc.com

  • Coronavirus: Government to take cost of testing players

    Government is to take up the cost of COVID-19 testing for players of national teams returning to train, Dr Anthony Nsiah Asare, the Presidential Advisor on Health, has said.

    “We will be doing the mandatory testing for these national teams as FIFA has recommended and European clubs are doing,” he said.

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, in his 14th Address to the nation on measures to contain the COVID-19, asked the Black Maidens and the Black Princesses to resume camping and prepare for their international assignments later this year.

    Dr Nsiah Asare said the decision followed a proposal by the Minister of Sports on the need to consider national teams, which had international assignments, to start training with strict adherence to all safety protocols.

    He said the return matches would be played behind closed doors at venues chosen by the Ghana Football Association (GFA).

    Dr Nsiah Asare said the teams would be camped under tight security as done for second cycle institutions until all return matches were played.

    The Black Maidens have a FIFA U-17 World Cup qualifier against Nigeria whiles the Princesses will take on Guinea-Bissau in a 2021 FIFA U-20 World Cup qualifier in September, this year.

    Source: GNA

  • IMANI to organise Presidential Debate for candidates of minor political and independent parties

    IMANI Center for Policy and Education to organize a presidential debate for presidential candidates of minor political parties and independent candidates prior to the 2020 general elections.

    The debate which is dubbed “IMANI Presidential Talk for Minor Parties and Independent Candidates in Ghana” will be held in the coming weeks and televised for a larger audience.

    According to IMANI, Ghana has over the years focused on only two dominant political parties which are the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).

    IMANI believes that in view of the high stake in the upcoming 2020 general elections, other political parties unlike the NPP and NDC should be given the needed platform to tell Ghanaian voters about their vision.

    Source: ghanavanguard.com

  • Continue to wear your nose masks even at night – NCCE to Ghanaians

    Mr Daniel Glikpo, North Tongu District Director of National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has called on the citizenry to continue to wear their face masks at night in public places to avoid contracting the virus.

    He said though majority of Ghanaians wore masks in the day, less people wore it in the night.

    Mr Glikpo who said this at the COVID-19 sensitisation programme at Mangoase in the North Tongu District added that most people behaved as if the virus did not exist in the evening.

    “It has been realised that most people behave as if the virus does not exist at night and go around their duty without adhering to any of the safety protocols,” he said.

    He reiterated the need to wear nose masks at all public gatherings and adhere to the safety protocols at all time.

    “Coronavirus can be contracted in the day or night so it is necessary to observe all the protocols at any time to stay safe”, he said.

    The North Tongu NCCE Directorate is deploying interpersonal communication strategies, information centres together with street broadcasts through 25 communities to do sensitisation on the coronavirus pandemic in the district.

    This NCCE’s massive awareness campaign was sustained to reduce the incidence of coronavirus pandemic to the barest minimum.

     

    Source: GNA

  • How we handle the national teams will determine the fate of Kotoko, Ashgold – Dr Asare

    Presidential adviser on health, Dr Anthony Nsiah Asare has disclosed that how the two female national teams are handled will determine the fate of Asante Kotoko and AshantiGold SC.

    It appears government is using the two female national teams; the Black Maidens and Black Princesses as a pilot project in order to open up or ease restrictions on football in the country.

    The two clubs have been selected to represent the country at CAF inter club competitions since the 2019/2020 Ghana Premier League season was annulled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

    “The African club competition is a continental competition, how we handle the national teams situation now will be a basis for government in deciding the fate of Asante Kotoko and Ashantigold whether to allow them train or not,” he told Kumasi FM.

    “When the time approaches and the GFA, MOYS and NSA present a legitimate proposal,precautions and protocols on the safety mechanisms,we will allow them to play to bring happiness back to the fans.”

    “The health experts will look into the health risks and if its low, we will allow them.The countries our clubs will go to will also influence our decision, some countries do not even conduct Covid-19 test.”

    “They will have to go through the same process the national teams are going through now” he added.

    Source: Ghana Guardian

  • C.K Akonnor lauds Jordan Ayew after sweeping three awards at Crystal Palace

    Coach of the Black Stars, C.K Akonnor has showered praises on Crystal Palace striker Jordan Ayew after picking three end of season awards during the club’s awards night.

    “Over the years Jordan Ayew has improved and as the Black Stars Coach, I am very proud of him. Jordan’s progression has been a very good example especially for the young players” he told Accra based Angel Fm.

    Jordan Ayew capped off an impressive campaign by scooping a hat trick of awards at Crystal Palace end of season gala awards.

    The 28-year-old striker took away the clubs player of the season accolade which is solely voted for by fans of the club and also made away with the players player of the year award which is voted for by his teammates.

    He crowned it all by picking up the club’s goal of the season award with his wonderful solo strike against West Ham United in the matchday 17 game in the English Premier League.

    Jordan Ayew netted nine times across the campaign and featured in 38 games for the Eagles in the Premier League.

    Source: Ghana Guardian

  • Modern football is all about speed – Legon Cities Coach

    Goran Barjaktarevic, Head Coach of Legon Cities FC has said he wants to build a team that has speed as its unique hallmark since modern football is all about speed.

    The Serbian is seeking to build a team that can compete well when the Ghana Premier League (GPL) returns in October after the 2019/20 was canceled by the Ghana Football Association (GFA) due to the coronavirus pandemic.

    Speaking in an interview with the GNA Sports, the coach said, he was looking forward to combining techniques, tactics, and speed as the unique qualities of the team adding that, “modern football is all about speed”.

    He said “I want to have a team that has a unique style of play, that will be associated with my team.

    “People must identify my team with these unique qualities. That is why I want to make speed, techniques, and tactics as the hallmark.

    “Mistake is the difference in modern football now. I want to make sure we commit fewer mistakes and capitalise on the mistakes of our opponents.

    “In football, you can be punished with your mistake in three seconds, but i want my team to punish their opponents in less than three seconds,” Barjaktarevi stated.

    Commenting on the cancellation of the GPL, Barjaktarevic said, it was unfortunate adding that, it was at a time, his team was gradually picking up in the league.

    According to Coach Barjaktarevic, the cancelation of the league had dis organised his team-building process.

    “It was at a time my team was playing at the level i wanted them to play. As it is now, it looks like we would be training without knowing exactly when competition would be organised.

    “But I convinced we would not struggle as we did in the league last time. We would be better and survive the keen competition in the next league,” he added.

    Legon Cities FC, formerly Wa All Stars was battling with relegation before the 2019/20 GPL was canceled due to the outbreak of Coronavirus pandemic.

    Source: GNA

  • Inter stay second ahead of Atalanta in Serie A final push

    Inter Milan eased past Napoli 2-0 to hold on to second place in Serie A on Tuesday ahead of Atalanta who earlier fought back to beat Parma. Juventus have already sealed their ninth straight league title, but three teams are fighting for second spot – Inter Milan, Atalanta and Lazio – going into the last round of matches in Italy.

    Antonio Conte’s Inter have a one-point lead on Atalanta with the two teams set to go head to head in their final match this season on Saturday.

    Lazio, in fourth, will play Brescia on Wednesday, with Simone Inzaghi’s side also still in with a chance of finishing second, with their final game against Napoli at the weekend.

    Danilo D’Ambrosio put Inter ahead after 11 minutes at the San Siro with Lautaro Martinez adding a second with 15 minutes to go against seventh-placed Napoli.

    Gennaro Gattuso admitted Napoli would need to find goal-scoring solutions before they face Barcelona in the Champions League last 16 on August 8.

    “We have to work, we’re lacking a bit of soul,” said Gattuso, whose side have nothing to play for in the league as they are already assured a place in the Europa League as a result of the Italian Cup win.

    “After the Italian Cup we’ve performed well but don’t have the knife between our teeth. Against Barcelona it will be a different story.”

    Atalanta reacted well after a difficult start in Parma, with Ruslan Malinovskyi and Papu Gomez’s second-half goals sealing a 2-1 victory.

    “That was probably our worst first half of the season,” said coach Gian Piero Gasperini.

    “After 12 matches at this rhythm, there could be drop in pace but if we come back as good in the second half, it’s because we’re in form.”

    The Bergamo club’s former Swedish midfielder Dejan Kulusevski had opened the scoring for mid-table Parma just before the break.

    But Malinovskyi sent in a free-kick with 20 minutes to go, and Gomez grabbed the winner six minutes from time as Atalanta warmed up for next month’s Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain.

    Gasperini’s side are already assured of Champions League football next season and are targeting a club-best second-place finish in the league.

    Parma dominated early at home with Kulusevski, on loan from Juventus, putting the hosts ahead two minutes before the break.

    Ivorian Gervinho broke through from midfield, sending the ball forward for 20-year-old Kulusevski who fired in for his third goal in as many matches.

    Atalanta struggled after losing defender Jose Luis Palomino who pulled up injured and could be in doubt against PSG.

    But Malinovskyi finally got the equaliser with his free-kick passing through the Parma wall, and captain Gomez rifled in the winner to extend his side’s unbeaten league run to 17 games, with the club’s 98th league goal this season.

    Source: Pulse Ghana

  • President Akufo-Addo has football at heart – Dr Nsiah Asare

    Contrary to claims by some persons within the football industry that the current government does not value football that is why restrictions have still been placed on football despite the easing of many sectors.

    Presidential advisor on health, Dr Anthony Nsiah Asare has debunked those assertions saying that the President is a football person and has the beautiful game at heart.

    He has, however, told actors in football to be patient as things are been done in phases and as has been started with the national teams it will get to clubs.

    “Government have much interest in football. Everything we do as government is in phases reason we have allowed for national teams to train for now,” he told Kumasi FM.

    “We are in talks with the MOYS and the GFA on the resumption of the league.The government wants every sector of the economy to function normally.We do not want to rush in doing things,reason why we are doing it in phases.

    “President Akuffo Addo has football at heart,he is a football person and wants to see its return but not in a manner that will resurrect other problem,” he added.

    Two female national teams the Black Maidens and the Black Princesses have been given permission to start training ahead of assignments in the months of September.

    Source: Ghana Guardian

  • Bulgarian club Ludogorets Razgrad wants Bernard Tekpetey on loan

    Bulgarian top-flight side PFC Ludogorets Razgrad are interested in landing Ghanaian winger Bernard Tekpetey this summer.

    Ludogorets want to sign Tekpetey on loan with an option to buy permanently.

    The 22-year-old joined relegated Bundesliga side Fortuna Dusseldorf last summer on loan for two seasons from Schalke 04 until June 2021.

    Tekpetey is reluctant to continue with Fortuna next season as manager Uwe Rosler doesn’t consider him enough in the team.

    Ludogorets will have to pay a compensation of 200,000 Euros to be able to take the winger on loan for the 2020/2021 season.

    The Fortuna officially released Tekpetey on Monday until Wednesday, July 29, “so that he can take care of his personal future during this time,” said the Fortuna

    Tekpetey made only 9 appearances for the Fortuna in the German top-flight this season.

    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • NDC to provide proper social protection for the aged – Otokunor

    The Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress and a Deputy Campaign Manager of the NDC, has hinted that the next NDC government will accelerate efforts towards building a robust social safety net for the aged in order to prevent dreaded and shameful incidents such as the lynching of a 90-year-old lady accused of being a witch.

    In an interview with Kwame Nkrumah Tikesie on Okay FM, Peter Otokunor hinted that the NDC is planning a comprehensive “social safety net” for the aged in our society if elected on December 7th, adding that ‘Witch Camp’ should be scrapped so that a carefully planed ‘homes for aged’ concept which could create jobs for lots of nurses across the country can be implemented to take care of our vulnerable mothers.

    According to him, such comprehensive initiative will open up opportunities for massive job creation in the hospitality and allied health sector.

    He said, “this will afford the thousands of qualified trained nurses who are still idling at home the opportunity to be employed to make a living for themselves and their families.”

    He recounted, how qualified nurses have been reduced to hawkers, prostitutes and beggars under the leadership of President Akufo Addo, hence the introduction of this policy will provide an effective avenue to provide employment for all this nurses.

     

    Source: Citizen Edem, Contributor

  • Free healthcare will bring relief to Ghanaians – Otokunor

    A Deputy General Secretary and a Deputy Campaign Manager of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Boamah Otokunor, has said his party’s plan to implement a free healthcare policy if elected on December 7 will bring huge relief to the people of Ghana.

    His comment is in the wake of the collapse of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) by what he describes as the incompetent Akufo-Addo government.

    According to him, this promise is the clearest indication of NDC’s desire to build a healthy and a wealthy nation.

    Speaking at the inauguration of Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang in Accra on Mondey, July 27, His Excellency former President Mahama had announced that in line with his party’s social democratic credentials, he is seeking to introduce and begin the “implementation of a Free Primary Health Care Plan”.

    Reacting to this announcement, Mr Peter Otokunor said, “A Country with unhealthy people can never see progress,” adding that “Every developed country is a healthy country. A sound mind lives in a sound body. So if you need sound minds to deliver economic development, health is a priority.”

    According to him, it is this very philosophy that propelled the previous NDC government to pay special attention to the Health Sector.

    “Look at the Rigde Hospital, the University of Ghana Medical Center, the Bank of Ghana Hospital, GA East Hospital, the Maritime Hospital, the Dodowa Hospital and many District Hospitals across the country.”

    “The numerous hospitals Mahama built have become the corner stone today for Ghana in the fight against covid-19. From January 2021, we are going to continue to aggressively build more hospitals so that primary healthcare can reach every nook and cranny of our country,” he said.

    He added: “We will build more CHPS Compounds than what we did in our previous administration and then make primary healthcare free. This is leadership. Not the clueless type that come to government and wait until when it is 5 months to election before promising to build 88 hospitals in one year.”

    “Akufo Addo made a choice to priotize corruption and has done a impeccable job in that regard. He will be remembered in history for weakening, basterdising and collapsing state institutions. Today, the National Health Insurance Scheme has virtually collapsed. Mahama’s introduction of free healthcare will bring great relief to the masses,” he said.

     

    Source: Citizen Edem, Contributor

  • Lee Kuan Yew grandson convicted of contempt of court in Singapore

    A grandson of Singapore’s founding leader Lee Kuan Yew and nephew of the current prime minister was convicted Wednesday of contempt of court over a Facebook post criticising the judiciary during a bitter family feud.
    Li Shengwu, an academic at Harvard University, was also fined Sg$15,000 ($11,000) by the High Court over the 2017 post in which he described the Singapore government as “very litigious and has a pliant court system”.

    He will have to serve a week’s jail if he does not pay, Justice Kannan Ramesh said in the judgement, although Li is currently living in the United States.

    Li is the eldest son of business executive Lee Hsien Yang, who has been at loggerheads with his brother, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, over their father’s legacy.

    He made the Facebook post as the family feud raged publicly following the death of the Lee patriarch in 2015. The spat pitted his father and aunt against his prime minister uncle.

    The Attorney-General’s Chambers had described his post as “an egregious and baseless attack on the Singapore Judiciary” and lodged contempt proceedings against him.

    Li initially took part in the proceedings through his lawyers, but withdrew later.

    “I disagree with the judgement,” Li said in a Facebook post Wednesday after learning about the court’s decision.

    He said he was worried that the verdict would reinforce the ruling People’s Action Party’s “tendency to suppress ordinary political speech” in the city-state.

    The PAP was returned to power in elections earlier this month although with a sharply reduced share of the popular vote and with the opposition gaining more seats in parliament.

    Li’s father Lee Hsien Yang joined an opposition party before the polls and campaigned for its candidates although he did not run.

    Source: Pulse Ghana

  • Investigations launched into clash between police & National Security officer

    The Ghana Police Service has begun investigations into a confrontation between one of its officers and a man who claimed to be a National Security operative.

    The confrontation, which happened at Baba Kompo Registration Centre in the Asawase Constituency of the Ashanti Region, disrupted the registration exercise at the centre.

    It took two military officers to ensured calm.

    The self-acclaimed National Security officer pulled a pistol on the police officer, who was at the Centre at the instance of the Member of Parliament, Alhaji Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka.

    The incident on Monday, July 27 was seen by registration officials as a threat to their work but calm has since been restored and the exercise is ongoing.

    But the Ghana Police Service says all the uniformed officers seen in a video of the incident, which went viral, are known and stationed in the Ashanti Region.

    “They all reported the incident to their commanders on Monday, 27th July 2020 when it occurred.”

    Source: 3 News

  • Coronavirus: China records highest new-case count in three months

    China reported 101 new coronavirus cases Wednesday, its highest single-day figure in three months, as gyms, bars and museums closed in infection hotspots. Of the new cases, 98 were domestic infections, mostly in the northwestern region of Xinjiang, where a growing cluster first discovered earlier this month has prompted mass testing and restrictions.

    China – where the global outbreak first emerged – had largely brought domestic transmission under control through targeted lockdowns, travel restrictions and testing.

    But sporadic regional outbreaks have illustrated the difficulty of keeping the virus at bay.

    The last time it recorded so many new cases was April 13, when 108 infections were confirmed – mostly imported.

    Authorities have concentrated their attention on a cluster which emerged last week at a food processing plant in Dalian, in the northeastern province of Liaoning. Officials said workers there handled contaminated packaging of imported seafood.

    Fifty-two cases have been confirmed in the major port city in the past week, of which 30 involved employees at the factory.

    More than three million people have been tested in Dalian and Zhao Lian, head of the city’s health commission, said Wednesday that enclosed public venues – including libraries, gyms, bars, museums, restaurants and spas – would be closed.

    During an inspection tour to the city this week, Vice Premier Sun Chunlan urged local authorities to increase oversight of imported goods, as well as of any people leaving Dalian, state news agency Xinhua reported Tuesday.

    “The task of prevention and control is still arduous, and there should be no slacking,” Sun was quoted as saying.

    Following a June outbreak in Beijing which infected more than 300 people, Dalian authorities are using a similar targeted approach to implement virus control measures on different districts of the city based on their risk levels.

    In total, 84,060 people have been infected with coronavirus in China, of whom 482 remain hospitalised. There have been 4,634 related deaths, according to an official count.

    Source: Pulse Ghana

  • Wild bee decline threatens major US crops: study

    Wild bees are worth some $1.5 billion to key fruit and vegetable crops in North America, according to new research that warned declines in these pollinators threatens the productivity of economically important agriculture.
    The study, which had funding from the United States Department of Agriculture, comes as evidence of steep drops in insect populations worldwide prompts fears of dire consequences for crop pollination and natural food chains.

    Researchers from several US and Canadian universities looked at seven major fruit, vegetable and nut crops that are dependent on pollination — by wild bees and managed honeybees, which are often transported around farms as hired crop pollinators.

    While honeybees have traditionally been seen as the most economically valuable pollinators in the US, the study found wild bees play a much greater role than has been previously acknowledged, “even in agriculturally intensive regions”.

    “Our findings show that pollinator declines could translate directly into decreased yields or production for most of the crops studied, and that wild species contribute substantially to pollination of most study crops in major crop-producing regions,” the authors said.

    Researchers collected data from 131 farms in the US and parts of Canada on the prevalence of different types of bees, the amount of pollen distributed per flower visit and crop yield.

    This allowed them to estimate that the nationwide annual production value of wild pollinators to the crops studied was over $1.5 billion, compared with $6.4 billion for honeybees — a figure dominated by their $4.2 billion value to almond production.

    Researchers found that in six crops – pumpkin, apple, sweet cherry, tart cherry, blueberry and watermelon – wild bee species deposited on average more pollen per flower visit than honeybees.

    The exception was in California’s vast almond fields, where there were often no sign of any wild bees at all.

    Conservation value
    The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, found that five out of the seven crops showed evidence that a lack of pollinators was limiting production.

    They concluded that agricultural firms would see little benefit in investing in pesticides and fertilisers without tackling wild pollinator declines.

    Insects are the world’s top pollinators — 75 percent of 115 top global food crops depend on animal pollination, including cocoa, coffee, almonds and cherries, according to the UN.

    In a landmark study last year scientists concluded that nearly half of all insect species worldwide are in decline and a third could disappear altogether by century’s end.

    One-in-six species of bees have gone regionally extinct somewhere in the world.

    The main drivers of extinction are thought to be habitat loss and pesticide use.

    Source: Pulse Ghana

  • Hong Kong implements tough coronavirus restrictions

    Hong Kong is on the verge of a “large-scale” outbreak that could overwhelm hospitals, its leader warned Wednesday, as authorities implemented their toughest social distancing measures yet. From Wednesday all residents in the densely packed city of 7.5 million must wear masks when they leave their homes while restaurants can only serve take-out meals.

    No more than two people from different households can gather in public with fines of up to $HK5,000 ($625) for those who breach the new emergency rules.

    The latest measures are a bid to stifle a sudden spike in coronavirus cases that have upended the city’s otherwise enviable battle against the deadly disease.

    More than 1,000 infections have been confirmed since early July — more than 40 percent of the total since the virus first hit the city in late January.

    New daily infections have been above 100 for the last six days.

    “We are on the verge of a large-scale community outbreak, which may lead to a collapse of our hospital system and cost lives, especially of the elderly,” chief executive Carrie Lam said in a statement released on Wednesday to coincide with the new measures.

    “In order to protect our loved ones, our healthcare staff and Hong Kong, I appeal to you to follow strictly the social distancing measures and stay at home as far as possible,” she added.

    Hong Kong was one of the first places hit by the coronavirus when it emerged from China at the start of the year.

    It initially had remarkable success in controlling the outbreak — helped in part by a health-conscious public embracing face masks and an efficient track and trace programme, forged in the fires of the deadly SARS virus in 2003.

    By June local transmission had all but ended.

    But the virus later snuck back into the city and began spreading.

    Health officials have been scrambling to uncover the source of the latest outbreak.

    Some have blamed exemptions from the usual 14-day quarantine which the government granted to “essential personnel”, including cross-boundary truckers, air and sea crew and some manufacturing executives.

    The government has since tightened restrictions for some of those groups.

    It has also announced plans to build a temporary 2,000-bed field hospital near the airport, something Chinese authorities have offered to help with.

    The latest lockdown measures are a new body blow for a city that was already mired in recession thanks to the US-China trade war and last year’s months of political unrest.

    Source: AFP

  • Continue leading the creation of sustainable jobs Akufo-Addo urges leadership of YEA

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has tasked the leadership of the Youth Employment Agency to continue leading the job creation agenda for the youth and ensure more jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities are created especially in the six new Regions.

    The President says it is his vision that massive infrastructural development and economic empowerment are greatly felt in every part of the country aside the traditional commercial cities.

    President was happy that the agenda for the youth is being championed by Sammy Awuku and Lawyer Justin Kodua Frimpong, boad chairman and CEO of YEA respectively and praised them for turning the image of the Agency which was bereft with corruption into a prudently managed, efficient and purposeful one.

    The president was speaking at a brief sod cutting ceremony to begin the construction of an ultra modern regional office complex for the Youth Employment Agency at Nalerigu in the North East Region. The program which was well attended by residents of North East Region saw Beneficiaries eulogize the president with placards for providing more jobs and ensuring regular payments.

    The Chief Executive Officer, Lawyer Justin Kodua Frimpong explained that the complex will house the Administrative offices, YEA Jobcentre, Artisan Directory, career centre amongst others.

    Sammi Awuku who is the board chairman was categorical with the agenda of the Agency regarding the president’s vision of bringing governance, development and jobs closer to the people. He assured that the project will be replicated in the five other new regions to create more jobs.

    Board chairman and CEO were finally grateful to the president for his support to the Agency to ensure its successful operations.

    The construction according to the project consultant is expected complete in five(5) months.

    Source: YEA

  • Minority demands whereabouts of absentee Hawa Koomson

    The Minority in Parliament is demanding the whereabouts of Minister for Special Development Initiative Mavis Hawa Koomson.

    The demand follows the failure of the Minister to show up in the house today to respond to questions.

    The Minister who was in the news last week for firing warning shots at a Registration Center in Kasoa has not reported working in the house since.

    She was, however, expected in the House to respond to questions on developmental projects in Nsawam filed by MP for the area Frank Annor Dompreh.

    But Majority Chief Whip Ameyaw Kyeremeh told the House she is unavailable.

    The opposition National Democratic Congress(NDC) Member of Parliament for Adaklu Kwame Agbodza demanded explanations on why the Minister is absent but got no response.

    Speaker Prof. Mike Ocquaye faulted the Majority MPs for showing what he termed excess solidarity towards their colleagues whose actions or inactions stall the work of the house.

    Source: Kasapa FM

  • JB killers trial: Judge warns lawyer over continuous absence from court

    The trial judge in the murder trial of Daniel Asiedu and Vincent Bossu has expressed worried concerning the continued absence of counsel for the accused person.

    Asiedu, aka Sex Don Don and Bossu alias Agogo, are standing trial for murder and abatement respectively, but their lawyer Mr. Augustine Obour has not been in court for some sittings, without any permission.

    In court on Wednesday, the unhappy-looking trial judge Justice Lydia Osei Marfo of the Criminal Division of the Accra High Court said if counsel does not show up in court on the next adjourned date, she would be forced to write to Legal Aid for another lawyer.

    This was after Senior State Attorney Hilda Craig had told the court that she notified counsel in the case about the court sitting through a message.

    She told the court that Mr Obour has not been in court for not only this case but some other cases she had been doing with him in other courts.

    The Senior State Attorney however pleaded with the court to give him another chance since he might be under the weather and not deliberate.

    Free Agogo

    Asiedu, the self-confessed killer of the late Abuakwa North Member of Parliament, Joseph Boakye Danquah-Adu urged the court to free Bossu, alias Agogo.

    Daniel Asiedu said his colleague Vincent Bossu should be freed since he is innocent of the crime and charges leveled against him.

    The judge said it is not her duty to release the second accused person unless the Attorney General comes out to say that Vincent is innocent after investigation.

    The case has been adjourned to October 16, 2020.

     

    Source: Kasapa FM

  • Virus sparks bitter rift in France’s champagne industry

    France’s coronavirus crisis has sparked a fierce battle in its hallowed champagne industry over this season’s harvest, with producers and growers at loggerheads over how much bubbly should be put into bottles.
    The main production houses are demanding a sharp reduction in harvest yields as sales plunge amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Growers say this would decimate their revenues.

    Traditionally, both sides negotiate how many grapes are harvested by the hundreds of champagne growers each year, many of whom sell to merchants including big-name brands like Veuve Clicquot or Pommery.

    The goal is to limit the risks from poor harvests and drastic price swings that could put many players out of business.

    But merchants say they are already loaded with stocks and with revenues hit hard by the crisis they cannot afford to produce more bottles than they can sell.

    “The growers want 8,500 kilogrammes per hectare [about 7,600 pounds per acre] and the houses want just 6,000 to 7,000 kilos,” said Bernard Beaulieu, a grower in Mutigny, a village amid rolling vineyards south of Reims, the capital of France’s Champagne region.

    With the price per kilo expected to remain relatively strong this year at roughly 6.50 euros, the stakes are high.

    “Not having a deal with harvests just a month away, this hasn’t happened since after World War II,” Beaulieu said.

    The Union des Maisons de Champagne (UMC) trade body, however, expects to sell 100 million fewer bottles this year, an unheard-of hit that will slash overall sales to 3.3 billion euros ($3.9 billion) — down 34 percent from 2019.

    And they say over one billion bottles are currently waiting in champagne cellars, representing several years of potential sales.

    The UMC’s director general, David Chatillon, told AFP he would not comment on the dispute before an August 18 meeting of the Champagne Committee, which groups both growers and merchants.

    ‘Roll of the dice’
    Growers are especially furious because this year’s harvest, to begin on August 20, is set to be “exceptionally good, with vines able to yield up to 16,000 kilos per hectare”, Beaulieu said.

    Maxime Toubart, head of the SGV grower’s association, accused merchants of putting livelihoods at risk by trying to take advantage of a crisis to reduce storage costs.

    “Growers are demanding a yield level that covers 2020 shipments while ensuring survival for vineyards,” Toubart said.

    The situation for growers is all the more alarming, he said, since the SGV has not obtained additional payroll tax exemptions from the government to weather the coronavirus slump.

    For Yves Couvreur of the FRVIC federation of independent growers, which groups some 400 vineyards that also produce their own champagne, “9,000 kilos per hectare is the limit, we can’t go any lower than that”.

    To cope with a crisis that could last “two or three years,” he is pushing for a suspension of uniform harvest yields so that the different players could adapt as they see fit.

    “The break-even point isn’t the same for people who sell their grapes, and those who make a living off of their brands,” he said.

    Couvreur also wants more leverage against merchants by allowing growers to let their wines mature in cellars longer, up to 18 or even 24 months instead of 15 currently.

    “Any proposal that prevents a flooding of the market is good,” he said.

    For now, if no deal is reached on yields, the decision will be left with France’s National Institute of Origin and Quality (INAO), which governs the country’s wine appellations.

    “And if that happens, it’s a roll of the dice for both sides,” Beaulieu warned.

    Source: AFP

  • Life at the top Lebanon mountain club dodges economic crisis

    Panama hats and designer sunglasses, champagne buckets and luxury cars: in the mountain resort town of Faqra, Lebanon’s economic crisis is not immediately obvious. Digging into a crunchy salad at an exclusive country club in the Lebanese mountains, Zeina el-Khalil said she was glad to have escaped here for the summer.

    “The atmosphere in Beirut has become heavy and depressing. Reality is everywhere. But here we feel like we’re in another country,” she said.

    Lebanon is mired in its worst economic crisis in decades, with the downturn sparking soaring inflation and plunging almost half the country’s population into poverty.

    For the better-off, any plans of holidays abroad have been dashed this year after banks prevented dollar withdrawals or transfers and the coronavirus pandemic further complicated international travel.

    But around 200 of the country’s most wealthy families have found an escape in Faqra Club, a private club perched 1,600 meters (5,250 feet) above the Mediterranean.

    “Usually we spend our holidays abroad, but this year we can’t travel for financial reasons and COVID-19,” said the woman in her fifties with a golden tan.

    Nestled in a mountain resort town famous for its ski slopes, the Faqra Club is an oasis of luxury in an otherwise collapsing country.

    It’s motto, according to the official website, is: “Life at the top.”

    Expensive cars packed the parking lot outside, while club members shuffled between its many facilities, which include a horse stable, a tennis court and a 9D movie theatre.

    Around a long swimming pool, bronzed bodies sprawled on sofas and sun loungers, some sipping cocktails, as music blasted in the background.

    “Life must go on,” said Sara, a 26-year-old lawyer, a smile on her face.

    “We won’t stay trapped in the house,” she told AFP from in the pool.

    ‘Bank accounts abroad’ Sealed off from the many woes plaguing the rest of the country, the Faqra Club has become a magnet for those looking to make brisk business.

    Many restaurants and stores have opened Faqra chains, with the hopes of softening the blow of an economic crisis that has seen the value of the Lebanese pound plummet against the dollar on the black market.

    Along a bustling alley, around 40 kiosks dotted the side of the street, some displaying luxury swimsuits and silk Abayas.

    Selim Heleiwa, who owns a high-end liquor store in Faqra, said that people here can afford luxury, unlike the rest of their compatriots.

    “The customers here suffer less from the crisis. They are often people who work or have bank accounts abroad,” he told AFP.

    Thousands of businesses across the country have closed, but for Heleiwa it is a “satisfactory” season, and he is not alone.

    The Auberge de Faqra, the main hotel in Faqra Club, is fully booked every weekend, while landmark hotels across the country have shut down because of bankruptcy.

    Its rate stands at 795,000 Lebanese pounds per night, equivalent to $530 at the official rate of 1,500 Lebanese pounds to the dollar.

    But at the black market exchange rate, the stay costs only around $100.

    For those who have access to the greenback, the price is a bargain, even though the club has almost doubled its rate since last summer.

    “Many of our customers have dollars. For them, the stay has actually become cheaper,” said a hotel employee, who asked not to be named.

    ‘Escape’ The relative prosperity on display in Faqra has not gone unnoticed.

    In early July, a video showing a teenager flaunting a dollar banknote to a TV reporter caused a storm of social media criticism against an out of touch elite sheltered from the country’s crisis.

    But for Khalil, the criticism is unfounded.

    “Getting the economy moving and making life better is not a bad thing,” said the woman, who is a director of a Lebanese NGO that teaches underprivileged children.

    “All the people here are trying to help the poor. If they are trying to live (at the same time)… that should not be seen in a negative light.”

    Leaving a nearby restaurant with his family, Sharif Zakka, a 38-year-old expatriate, echoed a similar sentiment.

    “Being physically here doesn’t make you disconnected from people,” said the man who has rented a chalet for $2,500 a month.

    “It’s (only) an escape.”

    Faqra Club owner Liliane Rahme said the club does not just benefit the rich.

    It is also an economic lifeline for more than 200 employees, mostly young students, she told AFP. For its members, it also serves an important purpose.

    “We don’t want to die,” she said.

    “The Lebanese love life. It is our way of resisting.”

    Source: AFP

  • UK Sports Minister confident of safe return to stadiums for spectators

    The government is confident it can move towards a safe return for fans to watch sporting events in stadiums, says Minister for Sport Nigel Huddleston.

    Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said spectators could be able to return to stadiums in England from October.

    On Tuesday, Warwickshire faced Worcestershire at Edgbaston as part of a pilot programme that saw a limited number fans allowed inside the ground.

    “We need to take the natural baby steps moving forward,” said Huddleston.

    Speaking to BBC Sport, the MP for Mid Worcestershire said the government will look at the pilot events and how to build up the number of spectators over time.

    “I’m confident that we can find a way to move forward,” he added.

    “Of course, whether it’s sports stadiums or theatres and all sorts of other things, we’ve seen in other countries there is a way to get full audiences without a vaccine.

    “I’m confident that there are measures that can be put in place that can give both those taking part in the sports and spectators confidence that they are going to somewhere safe.”

    Among the pilot events are the World Snooker Championship, the Goodwood horse racing festival, and another county cricket friendly between Surrey and Middlesex at The Oval.

    Any stadium re-openings are subject to coronavirus guidelines.

    And Professor James Calder – who has chaired the cross-sport working group with government and health officials on the return to sport – has told BBC Sport that sports events are highly unlikely to have full capacity crowds this year.

    Source: bbc.com

  • Investigate alleged rot at Ministry of Health – Group

    The Patriotic Advocates for Truth, Peace and Development, a civil society group has called for an independent investigation to deal with the perpetrators of corruption at the Ministry of Health.

    A statement issued and signed by the Founder and Convenor of the group, Mr Isaac Kobina Ochem, called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Ado, to crack the whip and “clear out” elements within his party to save his image from being tarnished.

    The statement said the names of some key personalities were cited in an investigation by the Punch Newspaper who accused them of extorting money from newly appointed principals of health training institutions before endorsing their appointments.

    The statement further called on the President to ask all those involved to step aside for a full scale independent investigation to unravel the truth.

    The statement said it was wrong for such deviant characters to be allowed to perpetrate their ill motives including the fueling of nepotism.

     

    Source: Graphic.com.gh 

  • Record 212 environmental activists murdered in 2019 – NGO

    At least 212 environmental campaigners worldwide were murdered in 2019, making last year the deadliest on record for frontline activists battling  the destruction of Nature, watchdog group Global Witness reported Wednesday.

    Colombia and the Philippines combined accounted for just over half of the confirmed deaths — 64 and 43, respectively — followed by Brazil, Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala.

    The real number is likely higher due to unreported or misrepresented cases, especially in Africa, the NGO said in its annual review.

    About 40 percent of victims were indigenous people, and over two-thirds died in Latin America. One in ten were women.

    For decades, native communities in the forests of Central and South America, Asia and Africa have seen ancestral lands degraded and destroyed, sometimes with the blessing of corrupt local or national governments.

    Of the 141 murders last year that could be linked a specific economic sectors, more than a third involved campaigners protesting mining operations, some legal most not.

    Thirty-four killings related to agribusiness were overwhelmingly in Asia, especially the Philippines.

    Two Indonesian activists were stabbed to death in October near a palm oil plantation in northern Sumatra.

    In the Philippines, police and counter-insurgency operations led to the massacre of 14 sugar plantation farmers on Negros island in March, only months after nine others had been killed in similar circumstances.

    ‘Draconian laws’
    “Agribusiness and oil, gas and mining have consistently been the biggest drivers of attacks against land and environmental defenders,” said Global Witness campaigner Rachel Cox.

    “They are also the industries pushing us further into runaway climate change through deforestation and increased carbon emissions.”

    Burning forests not only robs the planet of greenhouse gas absorbing vegetation, it also releases stored CO2 into the atmosphere.

    Logging operations were directly linked to 24 deaths, with another 14 related to illegal crop substitution, 11 to land reform, and six to water management or dam construction.

    In the Philippines, a Manobo tribal chieftain was killed during a military  bombardment while protesting rogue mining operations near Kitaotao, in northern Mindanao.

    “The Philippines’ remaining virgin forests — like those protected by the Manobo — are being felled for mineral extraction and profit,” the report noted.

    “This is ‘business as usual’ for President Rodrigo Duterte and his government who are forging ahead with policies that prioritise fossil fuels and have passed draconian laws that can be used to silence those trying to stand in their way.”

    The number of killings in Colombia more than doubled last year, while in Honduras they rose from four to 14.

    The tropics and developing countries are not the only hotspots for violent attacks against those protecting natural resources.

    Threat of sexual violence
    In Romania, an EU member state, a forest ranger working in one of Europe’s largest primeval forests was shot dead for trying to protect trees against organised criminal gangs harvesting them for profit.

    A month earlier, one of her colleagues was murdered with an axe to the back of the head.

    “At a time when we most need people to protect the planet against destructive, carbon-intensive industries, we are seeing the highest number of killings of land and environmental defenders” since Global Witness started tracking the issue in 2012, the report concluded.

    Outright murders occur against a generalised backdrop of intimidation and harassment.

    “Women defenders face specific threats,” such as personal smear campaigns, the report said.

    “Sexual violence is used as a tactic to silence women defenders, much of it underreported.”

    Efforts by local and indigenous communities to assert land rights also provoke violent ripostes.

    “In many countries, peoples’ rights to their land and natural resources are either unprotected, undocumented or not recognised,” Global Witness said.

    Source: Pulse Ghana

  • Coronavirus: Trump sticks by revoked hydroxychloroquine

    US President Donald Trump has again defended the use of hydroxychloroquine to ward off coronavirus, contradicting his own public health officials.

    He argued the malaria medication was only rejected as a Covid-19 treatment because he had suggested it.

    His remarks come after Twitter banned his eldest son for posting a clip touting hydroxychloroquine.

    There is no evidence the drug can fight the virus, and regulators warn it may cause heart problems.

    Last month, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cautioned against the use of the drug for treatment of the coronavirus, following reports of “serious heart rhythm problems” and other health issues.

    The FDA also revoked its emergency-use authorisation for the drug to treat Covid-19. The World Health Organization (WHO) says “there is currently no proof” that it is effective as a treatment or prevents Covid-19.

    Studies commissioned by the WHO, the US National Institutes of Health and other medical researchers around the world have found no evidence that hydroxychloroquine – when used with or without the antibiotic azithromycin, as repeatedly recommended by President Trump – helps treat coronavirus.

    Hydroxychloroquine was first touted in March by Mr Trump, 74, in relation to Covid-19. Two months later he surprised journalists by saying he had begun taking the unproven medication to ward off the virus.

    On Tuesday, the president told reporters at the White House: “I can only say that from my standpoint, and based on a lot of reading and a lot of knowledge about it, I think it could have a very positive impact in the early stages.

    “I don’t think you lose anything by doing it, other than politically it doesn’t seem too popular.”

    He added: “When I recommend something, they like to say ‘don’t use it.’”

    President Trump and his son Donald Trump Jr were among social media users who shared video late on Monday of a group called America’s Frontline Doctors advocating hydroxychloroquine as a Covid-19 treatment.

    Facebook and Twitter removed the content, flagging it as misinformation, but not before more than 17 million people had seen one of the clips.

    Twitter also banned the US president’s eldest son from tweeting for 12 hours as a penalty for sharing the clip.

    The video in question showed doctors speaking outside the US Supreme Court at an event organised by Tea Party Patriots Action, a group that is not required to disclose its donors and has helped fund a pro-Trump political action committee.

    In the video, Dr Stella Immanuel, a physician from Houston, says she has successfully treated 350 coronavirus patients “and counting” with hydroxychloroquine.

    The president said on Tuesday: “I think they’re very respected doctors. There was a woman who was spectacular in her statements about it.”

    According to the Daily Beast, Dr Immanuel has previously claimed the government is run by “reptilians” and that scientists are developing a vaccine to stop people being religious, among other bizarre views.

    America’s Frontline Doctors’ founder Simone Gold accused social media companies of censorship for removing the hydroxychloroquine video.

    “Treatment options for COVID-19 should be debated, and spoken about among our colleagues in the medical field,” she tweeted. “They should never, however, be censored and silenced.”

    Late on Monday, Mr Trump also retweeted several tweets critical of Dr Anthony Fauci, a leading member of the White House coronavirus task force.

    But in Tuesday’s briefing the president denied he was criticising the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, insisting: “I get along with him very well.”

    Asked about hydroxychloroquine earlier on Tuesday, Dr Fauci said the medication was not an appropriate treatment for Covid-19.

    He told ABC News’ morning show the drug was “not effective in coronavirus disease”.

    At Tuesday’s briefing, Mr Trump questioned why the White House coronavirus expert and his fellow task force member Dr Deborah Birx were popular, but his administration was not.

    He said: “They’re highly thought of but nobody likes me. It can only be my personality, that’s all.”

    The US now has more than 4.3 million reported cases of Covid-19, and more than 149,000 deaths.

    Source: BBC

  • Trump to inject hope into election polls with coronavirus vaccine

    President Donald Trump of the United States and Vice President Mike Pence visited sites on Monday where multiple COVID-19 vaccines are being developed simultaneously.

    This marked the start of the largest Phase 3 clinical trial yet as he aims to deliver 300 million safe and effective doses by January 2021.

    The facilities which have begun production house the first batch of a possible vaccine developed by Novavax — a Maryland company which received $1.6 billion from the US federal government under Operation Warp Speed, and a different vaccine candidate developed by the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc. These vaccines and therapeutics include drug remdesivir and convalescent plasma.

    Mixed Responses and a Divided Public

    Trump’s standing in the polls — trailing former US Vice President Joe Biden less than 100 days before the elections in November, underscores the urgency to deliver a vaccine in time for the presidential elections in the hopes of guaranteeing a second term.

    However, it is precisely because of the impending Election Day looming over him that some members of Congress fear that this aggressive push for a vaccine — after the initial dreadful mishandling of the pandemic by the administration, might incite him to take unethical shortcuts in the vaccine-approval process.

    Many view this as not only a potentially problematic political move to secure votes but also a highly risky endeavour that could be dangerous to national public health.

    This not only comes in the wake of a fresh nationwide spike in coronavirus cases but could leave the already hard-hit US economy in an even more complex predicament if it fails.

    Only time will tell

    About 4.2 million confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported in the United States and there have been more than 146,000 deaths. Many White House officials believe that a vaccine is necessary to fully restore a sense of normalcy in the country.

    Source: africanews.com

  • Hesse Odamtten appointed Hearts of Oak assistant coach

    Hesse Odamtten has been appointed as the new assistant coach of Accra Hearts of Oak, according to footballmadeinghana.com.

    Odamtten is a legend of the Phobians and he comes in with a CAF License A certificate to augment the technical team of Edward Nii Odoom.

    The club has been without an assistant coach for close to a year since Nii Odoom assumed the role of a head coach following the sacking of Kim Grant in the truncated 2019/20 Ghana Prenmier League.

    Ex-coach Grant also did not have a substantive assistant during his tenure at the club.

    The development is to sharpen the team ahead of the upcoming Ghana Premier League season which is set to start in October.

    According to Footballmadeinghana.com, Hearts of Oak are likely to pick another manager who will assume the substantive role for Odoom to revert to his original portfolio as a youth development coach.

    Source: footballghana.com

  • Over 142,000 Persons Living with HIV do not know their status Ghana Aids Commission

    More than 142,000 Persons Living with HIV (PLHIV) in Ghana do not know their status because they have not tested, says the Ghana Aids Commission (GAC).

    Again, the Commission maintained that more than 46,000 Ghanaians who knew their status were not on live saving treatment (ARVs).

    Mr Kyeremeh Atuahene, Director General of the GAC made this known during a virtual media briefing and National Dissemination of 2019 HIV Estimates and Projections Meeting.

    He further revealed that the nearly 190,000 PLHIV who were not on Antiretroviral Treatment (ART) sustained the high level of annual new infections.

    Mr Atuahene noted that young people aged from 15-24 years accounted for 28 per cent of the total number of new infections where, as adolescent girls and young women for one in five of all infections.

    He pointed out that the annual average of infections have remained more than 20,000 although new infections had reduced by about five per cent between 2015 and 2019.

    This trend if allowed to continue, 200,000 more newly infected Ghanaians would be added to the HIV population over the next 10 years, said the Director General of the GAC.

    Mr Atuahene noted that it was the determination of the Commission to end the epidemic as a public health threat by 2030.

    The National and Sub-National HIV Estimates and Projections are done yearly to generate HIV data on prevalence, and PLHIV population among others for purposes of planning, management of national programmes and global reporting.

    The 2019 Report had been produced by the National Estimates Team with Technical Support from the UNAIDS Reference Group.

     

    Source: myjoyonline 

  • Loons eliminates Columbus in penalty shootout

    Minnesota United outscored the Columbus Crew 5-3 on penalty kicks after a 1-1 draw on Tuesday to advance to the quarterfinals of the MLS is Back Tournament near Orlando.

    The Loons will play the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday.

    Minnesota goalkeeper Tyler Miller stopped Chris Cadden of the Crew in the bottom of the third round to preserve a 3-2 advantage. After Raheem Edwards of Minnesota and the Crew’s Lucas Zelarayan converted, Chase Gasper scored past Andrew Tarbell for the insurmountable lead.

    The tournament winner earns a spot in the 2021 CONCACAF Champions League.

    Minnesota took the lead in the 18th minute on a goal by Robin Lod. Gyasi Zardes tied it in the 79th for the Crew after he scored on his own rebound of a penalty kick save by Miller for his fifth goal of the season.

    The penalty was awarded when Jose Aja fouled Derrick Etienne Jr. in the corner of the box. Miller made a diving stop of Zardes’ attempt, but the ball went directly to the forward for an unmarked follow-up.

    Miller stopped a Zelarayan shot in the closing seconds to send the match to PKs.

    The Crew won all three Group E matches by a combined 7-0 score but quickly faced their first deficit this season when they couldn’t defend a corner kick that was drawn by former Columbus midfielder Ethan Finlay.

    Columbus cleared the first ball, but it bounced around to Lod for his second goal. It was the first score conceded by the Crew in 299 minutes.

    Crew goalkeeper Eloy Room (hamstring) missed his second straight match and midfielder Youness Mokhtar did not play after sustaining a leg injury in the previous match against Atlanta United.

    Minnesota midfielder Kevin Molino (hamstring) was expected to be available, but he did not play.

    The knockout stage matches at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex do no count as part of the regular-season standings though the group-stage matches did.

     

    Source: espn.co.uk

  • You’ll make a good veep, we’re proud of you – Komenda Chief endorses Naana Opoku-Agyemang

    The Omanhene of the Komenda traditional area, Nana Kwadwo Kru II has commended the National Democratic Congress for appointing Prof. Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang as running mate for the party’s flagbearer and former President, John Dramani Mahama.

    Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang paid a courtesy call on the Komenda traditional council.

    The Chief expressed exceeding joy for her Vice Presidential candidacy stressing he has always known that Prof. Opoku-Agyemang, especially from the time she was appointed Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, will go far in life.

    “It is an honour to have one of our own to be given such an appointment,” he said.

    He also believed Prof. Opoku-Agyemang will be a good partner for Mahama and make the people of Komenda proud.

    He gave her his blessings and wished her the best of luck in her appointment.

    Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang also thanked the Chiefs and sought their prayers and support stating “the journey is not going to be easy”.

    She later engaged with women groups, traders and youth in Komenda urging them to support her to restore the glory of Komenda.

    Prof Naana Opoku-Agyemang was accompanied by the Central Regional Chairman of NDC, EKT Addo, former Ministers, former MMDCEs and party faithfuls.

    source: Peace FM

  • Court empanels jury to try murderers of the Takoradi kidnapped girls

    A High Court in Sekondi, Western Region on Wednesday, July 29, 2020 constituted a seven-member jury ahead of the trial of the kidnappers-turned-murderers of the four Takoradi girls.

    The empanelling of the jury was presided over by Justice Richard Adjei-Frimpong.

    The constitution was earlier resisted by the two accused persons, both Nigerians, Samuel Udoetuk Wills and John Orji.

    The two, however were unable to state any reason for their objection to the six out of seven jurors.

    Lawyer for the alleged murderers, Mark Bosia subsequently requested for access to documents, electronic devices as well as cash seized from his clients at the time of their arrest.

    A request the judge granted.

    The case has since been adjourned to August 6, 2020 to permit for case management ahead of the trial.

     

    Source: ABCNewsgh

  • ‘Fix your bike’ vouchers launch, as cycling to be prescribed on NHS

    A government scheme offering £50 bike repair vouchers will launch in England on Tuesday as part of plans to boost cycling and walking.

    An initial 50,000 vouchers will be made available online later in the day on a first-come, first-served basis.

    The prime minister also announced that access to bikes will be available on the NHS as part of the strategy.

    But Labour said many of the government’s proposals were taking too long to come into effect.

    It comes after the government launched its obesity strategy on Monday.

    GPs in areas of England with poor health will be encouraged to prescribe cycling, with patients able to access bikes through their local surgery.

    Recent Public Health England research found that being overweight or obese puts people at greater risk of serious illness or death from COVID-19.

    Government statistics showed nearly 8% of critically ill patients in intensive care units with the virus have been morbidly obese, compared with 2.9% of the general population.

    Prime Minister Boris Johnson said cycling and walking have “a huge role to play” in tackling health and environmental challenges.

    “But to build a healthier, more active nation, we need the right infrastructure, training and support in place to give people the confidence to travel on two wheels,” he said.

    “That’s why now is the time to shift gears and press ahead with our biggest and boldest plans yet to boost active travel – so that everyone can feel the transformative benefits of cycling.”

    Former Olympic gold medal cyclist Chris Boardman, now a policy adviser to British Cycling, welcomed the plans.

    “There’s a quarter of households in Britain who don’t have access to a car at all and we’ve got public transport operating at 30%, so 70% of people have got to find another way to travel or not go to work,” he told BBC Breakfast.

    “This can be not only provision for people who don’t have a car now, it’s a consultation for the future.”

    ‘Fix Your Bike’ vouchers

    The government’s “Fix Your Bike” vouchers are being released in batches “to help manage capacity” and so that the scheme can be monitored before being rolled out more widely, the government said.

    They will typically cover the bill for a standard service and the replacement of a basic component such as an inner tube or cable.

    During a Downing Street briefing in May, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the initiative would be “available from next month”.

    But the Department for Transport (DfT) said in July that it would only begin when maintenance shops could handle the expected spike in demand.

    Halfords says it has thousands of slots available each day for customers to bring their bikes into stores to identify potential faults which could be rectified under the scheme.

    “We think the government’s ‘Fix Your Bike’ voucher scheme will not only help individuals become more confident about keeping their bikes maintained, but will help speed up the cycling revolution,” said chief executive Graham Stapleton.

    The retailer previously reported that bike sales had risen by 57.1% in the 13 weeks to 3 July, as people sought to avoid public transport during lockdown.

    Thousands of miles of new protected cycle lanes, cycle training for children and adults, and the creation of the UK’s first zero-emission transport city are also part of the plans to promote cycling and walking.

    The initiative has been welcomed by cycling groups and environmentalists.

    They have long argued that Active Travel – the new phrase for walking and cycling – fulfills twin objectives of improving health and well-being, while also reducing emissions that harm people’s health and fuel climate change.

    But they point out that the investment is less than a 10th of the £27bn that the government previously announced would be spent on new roads.

    There’s now increasing pressure for that road budget to be reduced.

    AA head Edmund King told BBC News in April that some of the cash might be better spent on improving broadband.

    And environmentalists have brought a legal challenge against the plans because the construction and use of the roads will increase carbon emissions when ministers are committed to reducing emissions.

    A recent study suggested that big carbon savings can be made by constructing cycle lanes in suburbs, to be used by e-bikes.

    ‘Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’

    Other measures to improve the well-being of pedestrians and cyclists include strengthening the Highway Code, improving legal protections, increasing lorry safety standards and working with the police and retailers to tackle bike thefts.

    The plans will be funded by a £2bn investment announced in February.

    Mr. Shapps said it was a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a shift in attitudes” to make cycling or walking part of daily routines.

    Matt Mallinder, director of the charity Cycling UK, said the plan “places cycling at the heart of our towns and cities”, but he called for even more funding “to truly shift gears”.

    Kerry McCarthy, Labour shadow cycling minister also said that the Conservative party had “failed to seize the opportunity this crisis has posed”.

    “Although funding is welcome, cyclists will be rightly concerned about how long it is going to take to actually put these plans into practice.”

    Source: bbc.com

  • Grigor Dimitrov struggles with effects of the coronavirus

    Tennis star Grigor Dimitrov says he’s unsure of competing at the US Open as he detailed the debilitating side-effects of catching COVID-19.

    World No. 19 Dimitrov recorded a positive test in late June shortly after playing at an Adria Tour tournament in Croatia, an event organized by Novak Djokovic that was widely criticized after several players including the world No. 1 tested positive for coronavirus.

    The Bulgarian has since returned to the court, competing at the Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) in France last weekend where he lost to Feliciano Lopez and Richard Gasquet.
    “The virus was hard on me,” Dimitrov told the Tennis Majors website.

    “I stayed home for about a month … I think it’s different for everyone. I was not breathing well. I was tired. I had no taste, no smell. Everything you could possibly think of. So it was no fun.

    “To be honest I’m lucky to be on the court right now. I don’t take each day for granted. I really appreciate being here. It’s so nice that during time off you can come out and play with your competitors.”

    Dimitrov said he has lost three kilos since contracting the virus, but added that the mental toll of isolating on your own can be as challenging as the virus’ physical impact, saying he had been alone for 20 days.

    “A lot of things are going through your head. It doesn’t matter how mentally strong you are, as a person, athlete, or anything. It’s inevitable to have some bad thoughts in your head.

    “I had to deal with that, too. So does everybody else out there. That’s one of my biggest messages: we should not underestimate the power of the mental state that everybody is in. If we take the right precaution and everybody is safe, things will get better quicker.

    “But it’s a strange time. You have to work on your physical (health) but on your mental aspect, as well.”

    The UTS, which is held without fans at the Mouratoglou Academy in France, sees games played in a shortened format with an average match-length of under an hour. Patrick Mouratoglou is Serena Williams’ coach.

    ‘Players are definitely a little bit confused’

    The US Open is scheduled to begin at the end of August, but Dimitrov, who has won eight ATP titles in his career and reached a career-high ranking of No. 3 in 2017, said he is unsure whether he will be able to compete in New York.

    “I don’t know if I’m going to be able to recover that quickly in order for me to fly again and have to have to put my body through a really rigorous regime again,” he said of the prospect of playing five-set matches.

    “It’s been about a week or 10 days since I’ve been back on my feet. I want to say it would be ambitious for me to go play, but I’m just really not sure how my body is going to respond.

    “I’m going to keep practicing, keep on seeing where my physicality is going to take me and hopefully have also a good mentality to kind of go through it.

    “I think a lot of players are definitely a little bit confused with what they should do. I think we all can sit down with our teams and sort of discuss the possibility of playing or not.”

    Source: cnn.com

  • Ejisu SHTS student jailed for a day over theft, abusive assistant headmaster granted bail

    The Juabeng Circuit court has sentenced a student of Ejisu Secondary Technical High School to a day in prison. Guggisberg Asameti pleaded guilty to a charge of stealing a stabiliser belonging to the school.

    Guggisberg is one of two students locked up overnight in the office of the assistant headmaster of the school a week ago.

    He is to also pay a fine of GHS1,200 and sign a bond of good behavior for 12 months.

    Meanwhile, the Assistant headmaster who locked the students in his office and allegedly slapped them in turns has been granted a GHS5,000 bail with one surety.

    Appiah Albert Kofi faces charges of assault, unlawful imprisonment and abetement to commit crime, to wit attempted suicide.

    He pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

    Background

    Mr Appiah was earlier asked to step aside from official duties ahead of processes being initiated by the Ghana Education Service (GES) to haul him before a disciplinary committee.

    The Assistant Headmaster had indicated the two students were in possession of a bag containing a stabiliser, suspected to have been stolen. A taxi driver handed them over to authorities, as they reportedly tried to scale the school fence wall.

    They were stripped half-naked and locked up by the assistant headmaster overnight where the student who attempted suicide drank liquid soap, leading to his hospitalisation.

    He was arrested and held in cells over what police describe as an illegal and condemnable act.

     

    Source: myjoyonline 

  • 43 clubs write to GFA to demand changes to statutes, demand fair representation

    All the key parts of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) have written to the federation to force a large change to the statutes of the organisation, implying it is not fit for purpose, Ghana’s leading football news outfit Ghanasoccernet.com can exclusively reveal.

    At least 33 members of congress are required to force the changes to the statutes of the GFA but more than 43 members have so far written and signed a resolution to call for the changes to the statutes.

    Clubs from all the top tiers of Ghana’s football federation as well as some regional bodies have supported the motion for the reforms of the statutes that are currently governing football in the country.

    More clubs are writing to support the motion for the changes and the number is expected to hit 60 by the close of Wednesday even though the number has surpassed what is required to force the GFA to change its laws.

    Clubs are demanding a whopping 51 changes to the articles of the GFA statutes insisting that it is not truly representative of their interests and the interest of football in the country.

    The changes to the statutes was mooted by the Chairman of the Brong Ahafo Regional FA Ralph Gyambrah and has now gained widespread support among congress members to force the change.

    Among the top clubs to have supported the changes are Premier League sides WAFA, Karela, Bechem, Ashanti Gold, Liberty Professionals, Elmina Sharks, Aduana and Medeama SC, Dwarfs and King Faisal.

    Several Division One sides have also lent their support to the changes seeking to bring sanity to football administration in Ghana and they are New Edubiase, BA United, Okyeman planners, Hasaacas, Berekum Arsenals, Swedru All Blacks and several other clubs. Women’s clubs have also supported the move.

    Among the key changes being demanded are the increase of the number of members of Congress where the number of the RFA representatives, Women’s Premier League from 8 to 16 while the RFA are increased from 2 to three to cover the broader interest of football in the country.

    The members are also demanding the increase of the number of the members of the Executive Council by seven to ensure broader views in the Council .

    Six will present the Premier League clubs instead of the current 5, 5 instead of three for DOL while RFAs will increase from the current 2 to 5 with two slots for Women’s Elite clubs.

    The other key change being sought after is to reduce the agitation, tension and anxiety that surrounded the recent GFA election with the proposed changes seeking ‘clarity and simplification of  the electoral process’.

    “For the elections of the President, where there is only one candidate, the congress may decide to elect him/her by acclamation. Otherwise if there are two or fewer candidates, a simple majority (more than 50%) of the valid votes is necessary,” the proposed changes document said.

    “If there are more than two candidates for the election of president the first two would be picked to enter into a run-off after which a simple majority shall determine the winner.”

    Large swathes of members making up the GFA are said to be unhappy with the statutes bequeathed the current board of the GFA by the Normalisation Committee and have called for a massive overhaul to the statutes.

    This comes less than one year after the Normalisation Committee left office but has left GFA leadership scratching their heads that there are several unhappy members among their ranks.

    The changes will now be moved to Congress where it would be voted on before the changes would be effected.

    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • National team players to undergo coronavirus test

    Caf Medical Committee member Prince Pambo wants Ghana to ensure all national team players are tested for coronavirus ahead of the commencement of camp for upcoming international assignments.

    Ghana’s U20 female team and both men and women’s U17 sides have been given special clearance by the national government to regroup despite a current ban on all contact sports, including football, as part of measures to curb the spread of the disease.

    “All the players must be tested before they begin camping. An isolation centre must be created in camp so that when a player is infected, they can be quarantined and possibly treated,” Pambo told Happy FM.

    “An ambulance must also be made available at the camp while all players must have a room to themselves. Two buses must be provided for the team so that proper social distancing can be done.”

    Ghana’s U17 women’s team are set to take on Nigeria in the 2021 World Cup qualifiers in October and November while the U20 women’s outfit have a World Cup qualifier against Guinea-Bissau in September.

    The U17 male team are preparing for a Wafu tournament.

    “The minister of sports had earlier on presented proposal on the national teams who had international assignments so we had to advice the president to allow the teams train beginning 1st August 2020,” Ghana’s special advisor on health at the presidency Nsiah Asare told Kumasi FM on the special dispensation for the three teams.

    “The return matches of these national teams will be played behind close doors. The GFA will choose the venues for these games.

    “The teams will be camped with tight security where no one will be allowed to come out – as is done in our second cycle institutions – until they complete the return encounters.

    “We will be doing the mandatory testing for these national teams as Fifa has recommended and the European clubs are following.”

    In a separate interview with Asempa FM, Nsiah revealed: “The Government will take care of the testing and all the health protocols of the players while in camp”.

    The Covid-19 situation resulted in the premature termination of Ghana’s 2019-20 football season

    Source: goal.com

  • Hearts forward Ademola Kuti eager return to playing football

    New Hearts of Oak signing Ademola Danjuma Kuti says he can’t wait to return to playing football after the abrupt end of the Ghana Premier League due to COVID-19.

    The Nigerian forward joined the Ghanaian giants in the second transfer window, but his debut had to be delayed following the suspension of the campaign and the subsequent cancellation of the season.

    But with government easing restriction by allowing the youth national teams to start training, Ademola is hoping football comes back so he can rejoin the Phobians.

    “It’s not easy but we just need to manage, I have being at home for a while so it’s not easy to stay out of Football and all like that,” he told Oyerepa FM.

    “I can’t wait to come back to start the game now it’s 3 months now.

    “Once a while the coach(Nii Odoom) sends me a message checking on me and all, they (Hearts family) are nice people, always checking on me to find out how am doing and everything.

    “Am training on my own here in Nigeria waiting for the boarders to be opened so I return.”

    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • Suspend Hawa Koomson Concerned Citizens of Kasoa petitions Parliament

    Some residents in the Awutu Senya East Constituency, called the Concerned Citizens of Kasoa, are demanding the suspension of their MP, Mavis Hawa Koomson, following her role in the confusion that broke out at a voter registration centre in the area.

    They insist that she engaged in acts of violence and dishonesty after she fired a gun at the Steps to Christ registration centre.

    In a petition presented to the Speaker of Parliament, Prof. Mike Oquaye, the group argued that the suspension will allow security agencies to proceed with investigations regarding her use of a firearm at the registration centre in Kasoa.

    The petition added that the suspension will strip the MP of all parliamentary privileges that may hamper ongoing investigations.

    Mrs. Koomson has so far been interrogated by the Central Regional Command of the Ghana Police Service.

    The police are also in possession of her gun and ammo.

    But a spokesperson of the Concerned Citizens of Kasoa, Humphrey Hosso, suggested that the group feels the MP is getting preferential treatment.

    “If you and I did a tenth of what she did, you and I would have been behind bars by now. Is it because she is enjoying some Parliamentary immunity?”

    “We are very much concerned about the injustice going on in this country. Nobody should be above the law. We are all fighting for this democracy,” he insisted.

    Background

    The shooting occurred during a confrontation between persons believed to be aligned to the New Patriotic Party and the National Democratic Congress.

    Both sides have claimed they were attacked by each other leading to the shooting and subsequent arrest of four persons.

    Four persons were arrested in connection with the incident.

    Mrs. Koomson insists that she fired the weapon in self-defence and has received backing from fellow New Patriotic Party members, including government appointees.

    Despite her claims, there have been calls for her to resign or be sacked from her Special Development Initiatives ministerial portfolio by political stakeholders like the National Democratic Congress and neutral observers like the National Peace Council.

     

    Source: citinewsroom 

  • Ghanaian youngster Christian Conteh earns plaudit from Feyenoord chief

    Technical Director of Feyenoord Frank Arnesen has showered praises on new signing Christian Conteh.

    Conteh, who was born in Hamburg to parents who emigrated from Ghana, joined the Eredivisie side on a four-year deal from German second-tier side, St Pauli.

    “Christian is a right-footed left winger, who can also play on the right. He is very fast and loves to go on an adventure, he is not afraid of the one-on-one. I saw him live at work a year ago when he noticed me. I kept following him a bit.”

    Conteh has had a relatively disappointing season at Sankt Pauli, where his contract expired this summer. “He’s been a bit unlucky with a hamstring injury, but he’s all over that. He has undergone extensive medical examinations and he has come through this positively,” Arnesen noted.

    “Christian is a talent, but we may not expect too much from him in the first few months. He must first get fit, get fit and then it is important that he also gets to know Feyenoord. A bit of the Luis Sinisterra scenario? Yes you can say that. We now have some good young guys in that position with Summerville, Conteh and Sinisterra. The future looks bright in that regard,” said the TD.

    “It was very important to me that Köckü and Fer would sign up. That is of course the most important: keep players who know Feyenoord, know the Dutch league and have played international matches. It is always a nice feeling when you can say in July: we are going in the right direction and our selection is almost complete before we start training on July 27.”

    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • Coronavirus: Government to take cost of testing players

    Government is to take up the cost of COVID-19 testing for players of national teams returning to train, Dr Anthony Nsiah Asare, the Presidential Advisor on Health, has said.

    “We will be doing the mandatory testing for these national teams as FIFA has recommended and European clubs are doing,” he said.

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, in his 14th Address to the nation on measures to contain the COVID-19, asked the Black Maidens and the Black Princesses to resume camping and prepare for their international assignments later this year.

    Dr Nsiah Asare said the decision followed a proposal by the Minister of Sports on the need to consider national teams, which had international assignments, to start training with strict adherence to all safety protocols.

    He said the return matches would be played behind closed doors at venues chosen by the Ghana Football Association (GFA).

    Dr Nsiah Asare said the teams would be camped under tight security as done for second cycle institutions until all return matches were played.

    The Black Maidens have a FIFA U-17 World Cup qualifier against Nigeria whiles the Princesses will take on Guinea-Bissau in a 2021 FIFA U-20 World Cup qualifier in September, this year.

    Source: GNA