TIG Post

Author: Chris Kodo

  • Nungua, Ablekuma and others to experience shutdown of ECG prepayment platform this weekend

    Some customers of the Electricity Company of Ghana would experience a shutdown of prepayment platforms which could result in power cuts this weekend.

    According to the ECG, this would affect the customers on the BXC prepayment systems.

    This is because the utility provider would be undertaking a “scheduled upgrading of the BXC prepayment system,” an ECG statement said.

    To avoid experiencing a power cut, the ECG has advised customers living in the Nungua, Teshie, Bortianor, Nsawam and Ablekuma district to purchase enough prepared power to last them over the weekend.

    Read the full statement from the ECG below.

     

    Source: kuulpeeps.com

  • Black Queens coach hopes injured players recover during coronavirus break

    Head Coach for the Black Queens of Ghana, Mrs. Mercy Tagoe-Quarcoo is taking positives from the Coronavirus (Covid-19) break as she notes that it will give injured players the time to recover.

    Football in Ghana and Africa has been on suspension for the past 3 months as a measure to curb the spread of the deadly Covid-19 disease.

    Despite the enormous effects it is having on clubs, Coach Mercy Tagoe-Quarcoo says it has presented a good opportunity for some players who are nursing various injuries.

    According to the gaffer, injured players can use the period to continue their road to recover and hope they are back to full fitness when the football season resumes.

    “The only benefit derived from this pandemic period is that those that are injured will have ample time to recover while I also keep in touch with the Doctor to see to their health. Currently, all the ladies who traveled to Turkey are aware of how competitive the team has become and want to retain their position by trying hard to keep up. I make them take videos while training, the technical team accumulates all the program so that we make corrections”, the coach said in an interview with the Communication team of the Ghana FA.

    Source: footballghana.com

  • Flirting with danger: Message apps add to China marital woes

    Echo couldn’t figure out why her Shanghai businessman husband routinely came home well past midnight, straining their 10-year marriage – until she looked at his phone.

    Flirtatious messages from other women revealed a pattern of affairs facilitated by WeChat, China’s top messaging app.

    WeChat and other platforms have helped revolutionise inter-personal relations in China, but are also blamed for adding to growing strain on Chinese marriages by making it easier to flirt with potential new partners.

    Divorce is rising in China due to a range of factors, causing a concerned government to pass a law in May imposing a month-long “cooling-off” period on feuding couples before they split.

    But thanks to technology, “making acquaintances has become more convenient. It’s possible there will be temptations,” said Echo, who declined to give her full name and is now seeing a marriage counsellor along with her husband.

    Extramarital sex is hardly a new phenomenon in China, with its thriving sex industry and hostess bars, and a 2015 study by a respected Chinese sex researcher found a sharp increase in affairs in recent years.

    The errant-partner issue went viral in April when Chinese model-celebrity Zhou Yangqing revealed that her boyfriend of nine years, Taiwanese singer Show Lo, had used WeChat and other platforms for dalliances with multiple women.

    Technology adds to rising socio-economic stresses on couples, said Zhu Shenyong, a Shanghai marriage counsellor.

    They include growing career and financial pressures, surging business travel, meddling in-laws, and less willingness by Chinese women to endure a poor marriage.

    “(Chinese) society is developing too fast, extremely fast,” he said.

    “We have quickly become a relatively well-off society, but material happiness means working more and spending less time building and maintaining marriages.”

    Casual hook-ups

    Many find an outlet through technology-enabled dalliances, Zhu said.

    In particular, he cites WeChat’s “People Near Me” function, which is often used for casual hookups.

    But even seemingly innocent use of WeChat, China’s default communication tool, can lead people astray.

    Zhu recalled a recent counselling case that grew from a man and woman becoming business contacts through a “friend” group.

    “The man said, ‘You’re divorced. I actually want to divorce too,’” Zhu said.

    “After discussing business and signing a deal, they went out for a drink and ended up together.”

    WeChat makes it “incredibly easy to find the opposite sex”, Zhu said.

    Annual Chinese marriage registrations grew nearly 14 percent from 1998-2018 to more than 10 million, according to government figures. But divorces nearly quadrupled to 4.5 million per year over that span.

    Dai Pengjun, a Shanghai private detective who investigates suspected infidelities, says messaging apps are a common thread in cases.

    ‘More and more affairs’

    The business has taken off in recent years and he now has seven staff handling around 10 cases monthly across the country, 40 percent of which involve unfaithful women.

    “I’ve thought a lot about why there are more and more affairs nowadays,” Dai said.

    “Is it because of lower morals? I don’t think so. It has a lot to do with people’s material lives and technological development.”

    Cases typically involve staking out, tailing, and photographing “targets”.

    An AFP journalist tagged along as Dai and his team tailed a man — whose wife suspected him of mid-day trysts — for several hours through Shanghai’s financial district and subway system. Nothing overtly incriminating was observed.

    In extreme cases, Dai has found male targets who juggled not one, but two long-term extramarital affairs, including some that produced offspring.

    Lack of education is a problem, said Zhu.

    “Our sex education starts from primary school, but education on love and marriage is non-existent,” he said.

    Chinese media have speculated that lengthy COVID-19 lockdowns earlier this year could fuel more divorce as hunkered-down couples tire of each other.

    Echo experienced the opposite. Shanghai’s shutdown gave the couple time to work on their marriage. She is hopeful.

    “Sometimes I even feel thankful to the other women,” she said.

    Disclaimer : “Opinions expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not in any way reflect those of backend.theindependentghana.com. Our outfit will hereby not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article.”

    Source: france24.com

  • Nana Agradaa hot: Thunder TV to be closed down with her possible in jail

    Nana Agradaa is in hot Waters as her Thunder TV could be closed down permanently and herself going to jail for showing pornography on live TV.

    According to the rules and regulations of the National Communication Authority, pornography display on live TV is an unpardonable offence punishable by law.

    Nana Agradaa who telecasted a recorded version of a young man purported to be the son of Archbishop Duncan Williams and his girlfriends having naked sex in a swimming pool on her Thunder TV has breached the laws of the National Communication Authority NCA.

    People have lashed at her for showing those videos because they felt she could have advised the young man rather than showing the video to the world.

    Television stations that goes contrary to the National Communication Authority’s rules and regulations is fined, or jailed,or television station closed down.

  • Honduras President tests positive for virus

    Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández has said that he, his wife two of his two aides have tested positive for Coronavirus.

    In a televised address, said he began feeling unwell over the weekend, and his condition was confirmed yesterday.

    Mr. Hernández said he was feeling better and would continue to work remotely.

    “I feel enough strength and energy to continue forward and beat this pandemic,” he said. “We are going to get ahead of this. I trust in God, Honduran doctors and medicine.”

    Honduras has confirmed more than 9,600 cases of coronavirus and 330 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University in the US.

    Its economy began to reopen last week after nearly three months of lockdown measures including border closures and curfews.

    Source: bbc.com

  • Coronavirus: Prince Charles’s sense of smell and taste still not back

    Prince Charles has still not fully regained his sense of smell and taste after having Coronavirus in March, he revealed on a visit to NHS staff.

    The prince discussed his personal experience with the virus as he met workers at the Gloucestershire Royal Hospital – at a 2m distance.

    He was accompanied by his wife, the Duchess of Cornwall, who said the staff had showed “Britain at its best”.

    It was the couple’s first face-to-face public engagement since lockdown began.

    They met frontline staff and key workers from several NHS trusts, including consultants, nurses and cleaners, at the hospital near Prince Charles’s Highgrove estate.

    Social distancing rules were observed, with those waiting to meet them standing on yellow dots to ensure they were 2m apart.

    Prince Charles greeted some of those he met with a “namaste” – clasping his hands together – instead of a handshake.

    Jeff Mills, 47, a healthcare assistant from Cheltenham General Hospital, said: “He did speak of his personal experience, so first-hand experience for him.

    “He also spoke about his loss of smell and taste and, sort of, still felt he’s still got it now.”

    Source: bbc.com

  • Facebook hopes to help millions of Americans register to vote

    Facebook said Tuesday it plans to help four million Americans register to vote, and insists it can be a positive force in the presidential election later this year.

    The move comes amid renewed scrutiny of the social media giant for failing to stem foreign interference in the 2016 US election and after a heated debate over how the network handles misinformation and inflammatory posts – including from Donald Trump.

    Mark Zuckerberg has been strongly criticized for his company’s decision to not moderate controversial, incendiary and inaccurate posts by US President.

    Zuckerberg, in an opinion piece published by USA Today, announced a Facebook campaign “to help 4 million people register to vote.”

    He said the social network was creating a new hub for users, allowing them to access “authoritative information, including how and when to vote, as well as details about voter registration, voting by mail and information about early voting.”

    Addressing foreign interference, Zuckerberg wrote that the threat “is real and ongoing, but our systems are more prepared than ever.”

    Facebook first announced the voter hub at the beginning of June, as well as promising to review its policies that led to the decision to not moderate controversial messages.

    But in the USA Today piece, Zuckerberg again defended the network’s guidelines.

    Facebook has “rules against speech that will cause imminent physical harm or suppress voting, and no one is exempt from them,” he wrote.

    “But accountability only works if we can see what those seeking our votes are saying, even if we viscerally dislike what they say.”

    The best way to ultimately hold politicians accountable is by voting, Zuckerberg wrote.

    But for Facebook users who have already made up their minds “and just want the election to be over,” the network is “also introducing the ability to turn off seeing political ads.”

     

    Source: france24.com

  • NDC petition before Supreme Court can invalidate EC’s registration exercise – Kwesi Pratt

    Seasoned journalist, Kwesi Pratt Jnr has said the decision by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to abandon one of the reliefs in their legal case at the Supreme Court regarding the EC’s mass registration exercise doesn’t mean the Commission can compile a new voters register.

    The Electoral Commission (EC) has slated the registration exercise for Tuesday, June 30, 2020, despite oppositions.

    The exercise is scheduled to last for 38 days.

    Prior to the announcement of the date of the registration exercise, the NDC rank and file had challenged the Commission’s constitutional mandate to hold the mass registration exercise and compile a new voters register, at the Supreme Court.

    The party also seeks declaration on the constitutionality of the EC to exclude the voters ID card as part of the identification requirements for the exercise.

    The NDC, however, dropped their case on whether or not the EC should conduct the exercise but their petition on the exclusion of the voters’ ID card still holds before the law court.

    Some political critics believe the NDC’s decision to go for their relief on the voters ID card while they drop their case on the registration exercise supports the EC’s decision to compile a new voters’ register.

    But Kwesi Pratt thinks differently as he told host Kwami Sefa Kayi on Peace FM’s ‘Kokrokoo’ that the NDC’s petition at the Supreme Court can invalidate the EC’s new voters registration exercise, albeit it is the Supreme Court ruling that will determine the outcome.

    “If the Supreme Court rules that the old registration form is a valid document for entering onto a register, it means that you’re not compiling a new register. You’ll be reviewing the register,” he said.

     

    Source: Peace FM

  • Coronavirus: Dexamethasone proves first life-saving drug

    A cheap and widely available drug can help save the lives of patients seriously ill with coronavirus.

    The low-dose steroid treatment dexamethasone is a major breakthrough in the fight against the deadly virus, UK experts say.

    The drug is part of the world’s biggest trial testing existing treatments to see if they also work for coronavirus.

    It cut the risk of death by a third for patients on ventilators. For those on oxygen, it cut deaths by a fifth.

    Had the drug had been used to treat patients in the UK from the start of the pandemic, up to 5,000 lives could have been saved, researchers say.

    And it could be of huge benefit in poorer countries with high numbers of Covid-19 patients.

    The UK government has 200,000 courses of the drug in its stockpile and says the NHS will make dexamethasone available to patients.

    Prime Minister Boris Johnson said there was a genuine case to celebrate “a remarkable British scientific achievement”, adding: “We have taken steps to ensure we have enough supplies, even in the event of a second peak.”

    Chief Medical Officer for England Prof Chris Whitty said it would save lives around the world.

    About 19 out of 20 patients with coronavirus recover without being admitted to hospital.

    Of those who are admitted, most also recover but some may need oxygen or mechanical ventilation.

    And these are the high-risk patients dexamethasone appears to help.

    The drug is already used to reduce inflammation in a range of other conditions, including arthritis, asthma and some skin conditions.

    And it appears to help stop some of the damage that can happen when the body’s immune system goes into overdrive as it tries to fight off coronavirus.

    This over-reaction, a cytokine storm, can be deadly.

    Disclaimer : “Opinions expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not in any way reflect those of backend.theindependentghana.com. Our outfit will hereby not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article.”

    Source: bbc.com

  • US police reform: Trump signs executive order on ‘best practice’

    US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order introducing several police reforms while rejecting calls to defund or dismantle the police.

    His order offers federal grants to improve police practices, including creating a database to trace abuses by officers.

    The order comes amid anger over the killing of African Americans by police officers.

    Several US cities have proposed more radical reforms.

    Speaking at the White House on Tuesday, Mr Trump began by saying he had met a number of African American families who had lost loved ones, including the relatives of Antwon Rose, Botham Jean and Ahmaud Arbery – the black jogger killed in Georgia earlier this year.

    In his address, the president again defended police while condemning looters and “anarchy”.

    “We have to find common ground,” Mr Trump said. “But I strongly oppose the radical and dangerous efforts to defund, dismantle and dissolve our police departments.”

    He added that “without police, there’s chaos”.

    “Americans believe we must support the brave men and women in blue who police our streets and keep us safe,” Mr Trump said.

    “Americans also believe we must improve accountability, increase transparency and invest more resources in police training, recruiting and community engagement.”

    The latest drive for reform began after the death in police custody of George Floyd last month.

    Mr Floyd died after a white police officer in Minneapolis knelt on his neck for almost nine minutes. The killing spurred global protests led by the Black Lives Matter movement.

    There was fresh outrage after the death of another black man, Rayshard Brooks, who was shot during an attempted arrest in Atlanta last Friday.

    What does the Trump order include?

    The Trump announcement comes as Democrats and Republicans in the US Congress are developing reforms of their own.

    The president’s executive order aims to provide incentives for police departments to improve by tying some federal grants to “best practices”.

    It will create a federal database of complaints against officers. It will also encourage the deployment of social workers alongside officers to deal with non-violent cases involving drug addiction and homelessness.

    The White House has stressed the idea is to bring the police closer to communities.

    The order will also prioritise federal grants to departments that obtain certifications of high standards regarding de-escalation training and use of force.

    “As part of this new credentialing process, chokeholds will be banned except if an officer’s life is at risk,” Mr Trump said. “Everybody said it’s time, we have to do it.”

    The president said the government was looking into new “less lethal weapons to prevent deadly interactions”.

    Mr Trump has described the Atlanta incident as “very disturbing”, and said his initiative was “about safety”.

    The president has also condemned George Floyd’s death, but rejected suggestions of ingrained racism in police forces.

    Critics say the measures fall short of the deep reform that many are seeking.

    Following the announcement, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called on lawmakers to pass bolder legislation.

    “Unfortunately, this executive order will not deliver the comprehensive meaningful change and accountability in our nation’s police departments that Americans are demanding,” he said.

    Disclaimer : “Opinions expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not in any way reflect those of backend.theindependentghana.com. Our outfit will hereby not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article.”

    Source: bbc.com

  • Kashmir clash: 20 Indian troops killed in fighting with Chinese forces

    At least 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a clash with Chinese forces in Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir region, Indian officials say.

    The incident follows rising tensions and is the first deadly clash in the border area in at least 45 years.

    The Indian army initially said three of its soldiers had been killed, adding that both sides suffered casualties.

    But later on Tuesday, officials a number of critically injured soldiers had died of their wounds.

    India’s external affairs ministry accused China of breaking an agreement struck the previous week to respect the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Galwan Valley.

    What have both sides said about the incident? Early on Tuesday, the Indian army said three of its soldiers, including an officer, had died in a clash in the area.

    Later in the day, it released a statement saying the two sides had disengaged.

    It added that “17 Indian troops who were critically injured in the line of duty” and died from their injuries, taking the “total that were killed in action to 20”.

    China did not confirm any casualties but accused India in turn of crossing the border onto the Chinese side.

    Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said India had crossed the border twice on Monday, “provoking and attacking Chinese personnel, resulting in serious physical confrontation between border forces on the two sides”, AFP news agency reported.

    Local media outlets reported that the Indian soldiers had been “beaten to death” but there was no confirmation from the military. China’s Global Times newspaper reported that “solemn representations” had been made with India.

    How tense is the area? The LAC is poorly demarcated. The presence of rivers, lakes and snowcaps means the line can shift. The soldiers either side – representing two of the world’s largest armies – come face to face at many points.

    Both sides insist no bullet has been fired in four decades, and the Indian army said on Tuesday that “no shots were fired” in this latest skirmish.

    But there have been tense confrontations between the two nuclear powers along the border in recent weeks.

    India has accused China of sending thousands of troops into Ladakh’s Galwan valley and says China occupies 38,000sq km (14,700sq miles) of its territory. Several rounds of talks in the last three decades have failed to resolve the boundary disputes.

    The two countries have fought only one war so far, in 1962, when India suffered a humiliating defeat.

    In May, dozens of Indian and Chinese soldiers exchanged physical blows in a clash on the border in the north-eastern state of Sikkim. And in 2017, the two countries clashed in the region after China tried to extend a border road through a disputed plateau.

    There are several reasons why tensions are rising now – but competing strategic goals lie at the root, and both sides blame each other.

    India has built a new road in what experts say is the most remote and vulnerable area along the LAC in Ladakh. And India’s decision to ramp up infrastructure seems to have infuriated Beijing.

    The road could boost Delhi’s capability to move men and materiel rapidly in case of a conflict.

    India also disputes part of Kashmir – an ethnically diverse Himalayan region covering about 140,000sq km – with Pakistan.

    Disclaimer : “Opinions expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not in any way reflect those of backend.theindependentghana.com. Our outfit will hereby not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article.”

    Source: BBC

  • U.S. bank profits plunge 70% on coronavirus loss provisioning

    U.S. bank profits fell by 69.6% to $18.5 billion in the first quarter of 2020 from the year prior as banks felt the economic impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to new data from a banking regulator.

    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation reported that “deteriorating economic activity” caused lenders to write off delinquent debt and set aside billions of dollars to guard against future losses. Over half of all banks reported a profit decline, and 7.3% of lenders were unprofitable.

    The new report, the first government survey of the industry since the pandemic shut down large parts of the economy, shows banks set aside $38.8 billion to cover potential loan losses in the future, up nearly 280% from the year prior. The number of loans banks charged off as delinquent was up nearly 15%, driven by an 87% increase in charge-offs for commercial and industrial loans.

    The noncurrent loan rate rose 7.3% from the previous quarter, the biggest increase since 2010.

    Despite the setbacks, FDIC Chairman Jelena McWilliams said banks had been able to effectively serve clients in the downturn, and were a “source of strength for the economy.”

    “Bank capital and liquidity levels remain strong,” she added in a statement.

    As many investors cashed out of the stock market, banks saw a $1.2 trillion, or 8.5%, spike in deposits from the previous quarter.

    Loan balances also jumped as companies tapped credit lines with banks, led by a 15.4% increase in commercial and industrial loans.

    The total number of “problem banks” monitored by the FDIC increased for the first time since 2011, growing from 51 to 54 firms in the first quarter.

    Disclaimer : “Opinions expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not in any way reflect those of backend.theindependentghana.com. Our outfit will hereby not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article.”

    Source: reuters.com

  • Abducted by aliens: The worst ever excuse for being late for training?

    Gustavo Lorenzetti has recalled a hilarious story involving Guille Marino, a former teammate of his at Universidad de Chile.

    The Argentine-born midfielder remembered the day when Marino said that he was late for training because he had been abducted by aliens.

    “One day he was late [for training] and said that some aliens had abducted him, and he gave an explanation of what he felt and everything,” Lorenzetti recalled.

    “He said that he was lost and they kidnapped him.”He explained that they take your soul, they analyse it and meanwhile they are taking care of you.

    “Something like that.”I believed him because Guille is one of those serious people.”

    He is very serious believer and he reads many books.”

    Source: marca.com

  • MoFA Director encourages farmers to increase production

    Mr Francis Ennor, the Upper East Regional Director of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) has advised farmers in the region to farm activities to increase production without fear of contracting the COVID-19.

    “Some of the farmers are expressing the fear that if they go to the farms they will contract the virus that is not true because COVID-19 is not on the farm. You will rather contract COVID-19 when you leave farming activities and move from one spot to the other to attend social functions, so if you want to be free of the virus, go to the farm,” he stated.

    The Regional Director, therefore, encouraged the farmers to expand their production as the pandemic had the potential of posing a serious threat to the food security situation in the country.

    Mr Ennor gave the advise when he addressed Agriculture Extension Officers from the various districts in the region at a sensitization programme on the coronavirus disease.

    It was organized by the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG), to adequately empower the Extension Officers to educate the farmers particularly those in the deprived rural communities to demystify the misconceptions surrounding the virus and farming.

    The Regional Director explained that COVID-19 was real, however, it was not an excuse not to engage in farming as it could be done with strict adherence to the precautionary and safety protocols.

    The Regional Director commended the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana for contributing to ensure that the farmers went about their normal activities and encouraged the Extension Officers to ensure that only the right information was disseminated to the farmers.

    Mr Mohammed Abdul-Rahman, the National President, PFAG, explained that the COVID-19 pandemic had affected every sector of the economy including agriculture and it was imperative to put measures in place to boost the sector.

    He said the sensitization programme was part of efforts to allay the fears of farmers especially the smallholder farmers to achieve sustainable agricultural production even in the midst of the pandemic.

    He expressed optimism that with the knowledge acquired, farmers would be able to engage in farming activities without contracting the infectious disease.

    The Association also presented some Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) including masks and alcohol-based hand sanitizers, as well as hygiene materials such as veronica buckets, soap among others to the extension officers, to be positioned at the various district offices to ensure safety.

    Source: GNA

  • Information Minister wishes NHIA Boss well after testing positive for coronavirus

    Information Minister Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah has wished Dr Lydia Dsane-Selby, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), who is recuperating from Covid-19 a speedy recovery.

    In a tweet, Mr Oppong Nkrumah said Dr Dsane-Selby was a passionate and hardworking person who was committed to the national cause.

    He wrote: “I have known Dr Dsane-Selby since my days as a media practitioner.

    ” She is a passionate and hardworking person who was supportive in the COVID-19 response programme.

    “I wish her and many others who are positive a speedy recovery from Covid-19”.

    Dr Dsane-Selby announced her COVID-19 status in a media interview on Monday, June 15, saying that she was experiencing tiredness, bodily pains and headaches.

    Consequently, she contacted a colleague at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research who came with a team to her house to take her samples for a test.

    The test result turned out positive, therefore, she went into self- isolation to prevent her from exposing others to the virus.

    Dr Dsane-Selby also contacted those she had come into contact with to go for voluntary testing.

    She has become the fourth known government official to have tested positive for COVID-19, after Papa Owusu- Ankomah, Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Health Minister Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, and Mr Anthony K.K Sam, the Mayor of Sekondi-Takoradi, who succumbed to the disease on Friday, June 12.

     

    Source: GNA

  • Guardiola says Man City are not ready for punishing Premier League return

    Pep Guardiola fears his Manchester City players are not ready for the gruelling demands of the Premier League restart.

    Guardiola’s reigning champions will host Arsenal on Wednesday in the second game of the Premier League’s return to action following the coronavirus hiatus.

    City play again on Monday when Burnley come to the Etihad Stadium and the pace does not drop until the planned end of the season in late July.

    With Premier League chiefs determined to play the remaining 92 matches in less than six weeks and teams given only a short time to prepare, City manager Guardiola is concerned that his stars are not fully fit for such a hectic schedule.

    “We are ready to play one game, but three days after another and four days after another, we are not ready,” Guardiola told reporters in a video press conference on Tuesday.

    “We have to rotate and use all the players. You can play a game after three weeks on holiday but we spent two weeks on the sofa doing nothing much. That is why the players are not fully fit.

    “The way we are right now, I think other clubs and teams as well, if you ask me how the team is, I don’t know.”

    Guardiola said the game against Arsenal would show him what level of fitness his players had.

    “What we are worried about over the three weeks is the lack of preparation, not like in Germany or Spain, where they worked five or six weeks,” he said. “We know it is not enough but it is what it is.”

    – ‘Difficult time’ –

    Since the Premier League went into lockdown in March, Guardiola’s mother Dolors Sala Carrio has died, aged 82, after contracting the coronavirus.

    “All the people who lost family or friends, it’s a difficult time, but we have family to stay strong,” he said.

    While the French and Dutch top-flight seasons were cancelled because of the pandemic, football has returned in Germany, Spain and Italy.

    Now it is the Premier League’s turn to experience life during the virus, with matches played behind closed doors and twice-weekly testing for players among other new rules and regulations.

    Guardiola did not sound especially enthusiastic about the Premier League’s decision to return, but he acknowledged the need to minimise the financial fallout from the pandemic.

    “That is why we have to finish the season. We have to limit the economic damage to the clubs,” he said.

    “It is what it is. Everyone suffered during this situation, personally and economically, and we have to adapt.

    “The players are human. The health of the people is important but at the end, the Premier League, like in Spain, decided we have to play and we are going to play. ”

    City, who resume 25 points behind leaders Liverpool, will welcome back Guardiola’s former assistant Mikel Arteta for the first time since he took charge of Arsenal in December.

    “We are delighted he will come back, especially if he is happy there. We sent a message about an hour and a half ago,” Guardiola said.

    “It was about the wine we are going to drink after the game if social distance allows.”

    Source: france24.com

  • NDC expected to sign Anti-Vigilantism roadmap today

    The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), is expected to later today [Wednesday] sign and adopt a draft roadmap aimed at ending political vigilantism in Ghana.

    The document, which includes the conduct of political parties was drafted by stakeholders under the auspices of the National Peace Council.

    This follows series of engagements with the NDC, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) as well as other stakeholders in elections such as CODEO, NCCE, Ghana Police Service, Religious organizations among others.

    The NDC, however, failed to sign the document in June 2019 citing various concerns with the draft.

    But according to the National Peace Council, the NDC has agreed to sign and adopt the document today [Wednesday].

     

    Source: citinewsroom 

  • The future of media: more digital and more economic pain, Reuters Institute says

    The coronavirus outbreak has prompted a significant increase in news consumption but the economic turmoil is forcing news businesses to accelerate their move to digital, The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism said.

    The coronavirus lockdowns prompted a global rise in viewing of television and online news though concerns about misinformation remain high, with Facebook and WhatsApp seen as the main channels for spreading so called “fake news”.

    The broader picture is that the outbreak is accelerating the trends wrought by the technological revolution, including the rise of smartphones as an interface of news consumption, The Reuters Institute said in its annual Digital News Report (www.digitalnewsreport.org).

    “The headline is that we see an accelerated move to digital media and mobile media and various kinds of platforms,” Rasmus Kleis Nielsen, director of the Reuters Institute, said by telephone.

    “This is accompanied by a continued decline in trust in news and growing concerns over misinformation, in particular on social media and from some politicians.”

    The biggest increase in concern over media misinformation was in Hong Kong where anti-government protesters have opposed attempts by China to tighten its control of the former British colony.

    The business of news remains bleak. Media across the world are cutting staff to cope with a dramatic fall in advertising revenue.

    But a ray of hope may be that increasing numbers of people are willing to pay for news online, though that may also increase informational inequality as many cannot afford top quality journalism.

    And a “winner takes all” process can be seen: Around half of those that subscribe to any online or combined package in the United States use the New York Times or the Washington Post, the Reuters Institute found.

    A similar trend can be seen in the United Kingdom with The Times or the Telegraph.

    And for those predicting the dominance of video news, the Reuters Institute found that in a number of countries including the United Kingdom, Australia, France, and South Korea, people under 35 preferred to read rather than watch news online.

    The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism is a research centre at the University of Oxford that tracks media trends.

    The Thomson Reuters Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Thomson Reuters, funds the Reuters Institute.

    Disclaimer : “Opinions expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not in any way reflect those of backend.theindependentghana.com. Our outfit will hereby not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article.”

    Source: Reuters Institute

  • You’re empowering prophet Nigel if you decide to go silent on that ‘crime’ – Arnold tells Mzbel

    Entertainment Analyst, Arnold Asamoah Baidoo is calling on songstress Mzbel to spill the beans over her encounter with Prophet Nigel Gaisie, founder and leader of True Word Prophetic Fire Ministries; no matter how bitter the truth may sound.

    Speaking on Peace FM’s ‘Entertainment Review’, Arnold Asamoah expressed disappointment in the loud and maverick singer for keeping mute over the issue; stressing her silence will embolden the Prophet to victimize other innocent people.

    Prophet Nigel Gaisie has recently ended up in the bad records of Assin Central Member of Parliament, Kennedy Agyapong who accuses the Prophet of using dubious means to exploit his church members and other people who believe in his ministry.

    Hon. Kennedy Agyapong, speaking on NET 2 in Accra last week, recounted some evil dealings which are clandestinely done by Prophet Nigel Gaisie to gain clout over his victims.

    He also revealed that the Prophet has engaged in sexcapades with some prominent ladies in the country and added he raped Mzbel.

    “She tried to come out but they prevented her. I’ve spoken to her. He raped her. Yes, he raped her!” he exclaimed.

    Responding to the issues in an interview on Peace FM, Mzbel refused to set the records straight on the rape case.

    But Arnold Asamoah, unhappy with Mzbel’s low tone on exposing the Prophet, stressed she is building a defense wall for the Prophet and aiding him to continue his alleged diabolic activities.

    ”Assuming without admitting that the Prophet indeed did that to her and she claims some elderly people have advised her and so she has to let go, it equally doesn’t help. What it means is that it will embolden the Prophet if indeed, again I am saying assuming without admitting, that’s the real case. If she cannot talk now because of the elders who counseled her or if she was given money to keep mute, you’re only emboldening the Prophet. He will continue to do that because he knows how to shut people up,” he said.

    Watch his full submissions below:

    Source: Peace FM

  • Do not self-medicate newly found life-saving coronavirus drug – Physician Anesthesiologist warns

    The discovery of the common steroid dexamethasone as a treatment for coronavirus has been hailed as a “major breakthrough” but a Ghanaian Physician Anesthesiologist has warned against self-medicating the cheap and widely available drug.

    Having been available for decades, relatively cheap and readily available, Dr Nana Dadzie Ghansah of the Anesthesia Associates of Lexington says even though dexamethasone has been said to help save the lives of patients who are seriously ill with the new coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the drug should not be used in mild cases either.

    To him, doing so might weaken the immune system and make one more susceptible to getting a severe form of the disease.

    The cheap and widely available dexamethasone drug according to a report by the BBC can help save the lives of patients who are seriously ill with coronavirus.

    According to the report, the low-dose steroid treatment is a major breakthrough in the fight against the deadly virus as it cuts the risk of death by a third for patients on ventilators, while it cuts deaths by a fifth for those on oxygen.

    It said the drug was part of the world’s biggest trial testing existing treatments to see if they also work for coronavirus.

    It said the drug was already being used to reduce inflammation in a range of other conditions, and it appeared to help stop some of the damage that could happen when the body’s immune system goes into overdrive as it tries to fight off coronavirus.

    The body’s over-reaction is called a cytokine storm and it can be deadly.

     

    Reaction

    But reacting to the development, Dr Nana Dadzie Ghansah explained that preliminary data from the Recovery Trial in Oxford, UK, shows that Dexamethasone reduces mortality in patients with severe COVID-19 significantly and “That is great news.”

    “With COVID-19, it is only useful during the cytokine-storm stage of the disease,” he explained.

    “So do not self-medicate with dexamethasone as a pre – or post-exposure prophylactic,” he added.

    He also advised that it should not be used in mild cases either.

    “Doing so might weaken the immune system and make one more susceptible to getting severe form of the disease.”

    He explained that treatment is guided by inflammatory markers that are measured in a hospital.

    Moreover, after taking it for a while, it cannot be stopped abruptly since that might lead to a life-threatening condition called an Addisonian Crisis, he added.

    “So be wise! Do not self-medicate with dexamethasone or any steroid for that matter to prevent or self-treat Covid-19,” he cautioned.

    Nana Dadzie Ghansah is a former Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology at the University of Kentucky and also a former Resident Physician at Emory University School of Medicine. He studied Medicine at the University of Leipzig, Germany.

    Oxford trial

    Meanwhile, according to the BBC report, in the trial, led by a team from Oxford University, around 2,000 hospital patients were given dexamethasone and were compared with nearly 4,000 who did not get the drug.

    For patients on ventilators it cut death risk from 40% to 28%. For patients needing oxygen it cut death risk from 25% to 20%.

    Chief investigator Prof Peter Horby said: “This is the only drug so far that has been shown to reduce mortality and it reduces it significantly. It’s a major breakthrough.”

    Lead researcher Prof Martin Landray says the findings suggest that for every eight patients needing ventilators that you treat, you could save one life.

    In patients on oxygen, you save one life for every 20-25 or so treated with the drug.

    “There is a clear, clear benefit. The treatment is up to 10 days of dexamethasone and it costs about £5 per patient. So essentially, it costs £35 to save a life. This is a drug that is globally available.”

    Prof Landray said, when appropriate, hospital patients should now be given it without delay, but people should not go out and buy it to take at home.

    Dexamethasone does not appear to help people with milder symptoms of coronavirus – people who don’t need help with their breathing.

    The Recovery Trial has been running since March and included the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine that has now been ditched amid concerns that it increases fatalities and heart problems.

    Another drug called remdesivir, an antiviral treatment that appears to shorten recovery time for people with coronavirus, is already being made available on the NHS in the UK.

    What is dexamethasone and what has it been used for until now?

    A report by Sky News has been explaining the history of the drug, what the research around its effectiveness in COVID-19 patients actually find, and what are its possible side-effects?

    It is a widely used steroid drug, known as a corticosteroid, which works to reduce inflammation.

    In use since the early 1960s, it treats a range of conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis and asthma.

    The drug can work to prevent the immune system from destroying blood platelets in people with blood disorders and is also used in end-of-life care

    People with a brain tumour may also be prescribed dexamethasone to reduce swelling around the tumour.

    What did the study on coronavirus patients find?

    A total of 2,104 patients received 6mg of dexamethasone once a day by mouth or intravenous injection for 10 days.

    Researchers then compared their outcomes with those of a control group of 4,321 patients.

    They found that – over a 28-day period – the death rate among patients requiring ventilation was 41%, and for those needing oxygen it was 25%.

    The figure was 13% among those not requiring respiratory intervention.

    However, there was no change in deaths among patients who did not require respiratory support.

    How much does it cost?

    It is relatively cheap, with researchers putting the cost of a course of treatment for eight people seriously ill with coronavirus at £40.

    Dexamethasone is also available globally at cheap prices, allowing lower income countries to benefit.

    What are the potential side-effects?

    The UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) lists the following conditions as common or very common side-effects of all corticosteroids, including dexamethasone:

    Anxiety; behaviour abnormal; cataract subcapsular; cognitive impairment; Cushing’s syndrome; electrolyte imbalance; fatigue; fluid retention; gastrointestinal discomfort; headache; healing impaired; hirsutism; hypertension; increased risk of infection; menstrual cycle irregularities; mood altered; nausea; osteoporosis; peptic ulcer; psychotic disorder; skin reactions; sleep disorders; weight increase.

    More uncommon side-effects include increased appetite, eye disorders, heart failure, seizure, tuberculosis reactivation and vertigo.

    Further warnings around side-effects centre on increased risks associated with prolonged therapy with corticosteroids, which is unlikely to be the case with patients suffering from COVID-19.

    However, those taking corticosteroids are advised to take special care to avoid exposure to chicken pox – unless they have previously had the illness – and measles, both of which are believed to place a patient at greater risk.

    The NICE guidance also says systemic corticosteroids, particularly in high doses, are linked to “psychiatric reactions including euphoria, insomnia, irritability, mood lability, suicidal thoughts, and behavioural disturbances”

    Additional files for this report is from the BBC and Skynews

    Source: Graphic.com.gh 

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  • Koforidua residents swarm Jackson Park for TIN numbers despite coronavirus

    Hundreds of applicants on Tuesday swarmed the Koforidua Jackson Park to register for Tax Identification Number (TIN) with the Ghana Revenue Authority to enable them access the COVID-19 Relief Fund for SMEs.

    The applicants were relocated from the GRA office after crowding the office on Monday, however, officials again were unable to control the crowd to enforce social distancing protocol.

    Though majority of the applicants were wearing nose masks, the gathering of large crowd raises serious public health concerns with fear that it could spread coronavirus in the regional capital which has already recorded a spike in the number of confirmed cases which currently stands at 32.

    President Akufo-Addo on April 5,2020 announced the establishment of the Coronavirus Alleviation Programme (CAP), as part of measures to effectively manage social and economic recovery in Ghana.

    An amount of GH¢1.2 billion was subsequently earmarked towards its implementation. Out of this, an initial commitment of Six Hundred Million Cedis (GH¢600 million) was set out as soft loan scheme for SMEs in the country.

    According to the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI), the main government institution in charge of implementing the programme, the interventions will be rolled out in the form of grants and soft loans, via participating institutions banks, microfinance, mobile lenders, NGOs that, the amount and type of financial support provided will vary depending on the size of the enterprise, their need, and repayment capacity.

    The soft loans will be for a period of 3 years, one-year moratorium and two-year repayment period.

    One of the key requirements for eligible beneficiaries -Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) is the TIN hence the rush to obtain it .

    Coronavirus cases in the Eastern region have jumped from 214 as of Friday to 235 on Sunday, June 14, 2020, the Ghana Health Service has announced.

    One more person has died of COVID-19 in the region bringing the total number of confirmed deaths to three(3).

    The latest fatality occurred on June 12, 2020. The deceased was among patients on admission at Covid-19 treatment centre in the region.

    The first death recorded was a Senior Police officer who died on May 29,2020, while a health worker also died few days ago.

    Currently, eighteen(18) of thirty-three(33) districts/Municipalities in the region have recorded cases.

    New Juaben South, Kwahu West and Akauapem North are the hotspots areas.

     

    Source: Starr FM

  • NPP is a ‘manifesto poor party’ – Kwaku Boahen

    Deputy National Communications Officer for the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Kweku Boahen, has urged members of the ruling government to be truthful in their 2020 manifesto and not repeat the lies told in the 2016 handbook.

    According to him, the NPP government in power had the chance to convince Ghanaians to vote them into power in 2016 but they have failed in delivering the promises they made that led to their victory.

    He explained further that the ruling government does not have the skills and zeal to embark on developmental projects like the previous NDC government led by former President John Dramani Mahama did, the reason why they have fulfilled only 86 out of the 631 promises made in their 2016 manifesto.

    “NPP is a manifesto poor party, always performing below promises made in their manifesto and needs not to be given a second chance to remain in government,” he said on UTV’s ‘Adekye Nsroma’ programme.

    Kweku Boahen mentioned that the detestable part of this government is how they have destroyed a lot of private businesses but have also increased taxes yet they claim to have promoted the private sector

    Watch video below:

    Source: Peace FM

  • Change Mahama and come back strong Sekou Nkrumah advises NDC

    Sekou Nkrumah has advised the opposition NDC to change their flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, in order to come back strong to contest Nana Akufo-Addo for the presidency in the December elections.

    According to Dr Sekou Nkrumah, son of Kwame Nkrumah, the corruption and incompetent scars of the eight-year rule of the NDC under the late President Mills and later under John Dramani Mahama, are still fresh on the minds of Ghanaians.

    In a series of Facebook posts, Dr Nkrumah, who was a member of the party stated, “It baffles me that the NDC leadership thinks Ghanaians have forgotten so soon their corrupt and incompetent eight years in government (under Mills and Mahama)? Why the leadership was not changed for 2020 is another mystery?”

    “NDC should wait for another four years! Change Mahama, and come back strong!”

    Sekou Nkrumah noted that the Ghanaian voter in less than six months to the December polls is not interested in what the ruling NPP has not been able to do under the leadership of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo; rather they are interested in what the opposition has to offer.

    He said the leadership of the opposition needs to convince Ghanaians “that with the same leadership we will not have the same corruption we had under them? Personally, I have not forgotten the rot at NYEP and the subsequent jailing of the boss over there!”

    Sekou Nkrumah wondered why Ghanaians keep demanding a manifesto from the NDC. To him, Ghanaians should just get the manifesto of the NPP and “read the opposite”.

    “Why are people asking for the NDC manifesto? They should just get the NPP one and just read the opposite!”

     

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Find out the 10 women contesting in the upcoming NPP primaries in Eastern Region

    Sixty-three candidates including 10 women are contesting the New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary primaries on June 20 to represent the Party in 27 constituencies in the December 7 general election.

    The 63 candidates were cleared by the vetting committee and upheld by the National Executive Committee, out of 79 aspirants who filed their nominations for consideration to contest.

    Four out of the 10 women are sitting members of Parliament (MPs) with two of them going unopposed. They are Mrs Abena Osei-Asare, MP for Atiwa East and Deputy Finance Minister, and Mrs Nana Dokua Asiamah-Adjei, MP Akropong, and a Deputy Information Minister.

    However, Mrs Gifty Twum-Ampofo, Abuakwa North MP and Deputy Minister of Education, and Mrs Mercy Adu-Gyamfi, MP of Akwatia, are being contested.

    The other women contesting are Nana Serwaa Acheampong, Abuakwa North, Ida Adjoa Asiedu and Josephine Awuku Ansaa, Ayensuano, Gifty Klenam, Lower West Akim, Joyce Opoku Boateng, Nkawkaw, and Afia Kyerewaa Nyantakyi, Nsawam-Adoagyiri.

    Ten others going unopposed include Mr Daniel Botwe, Minister of Regional Reorganization and Development, Okere; Mr Joseph Tetteh, former Deputy Eastern Regional Minister, Upper Manya Krobo; Mr Bryan Acheampong, Minister of State, Abetifi; Mr George Kwame Aboagye, Asene Manso Akroso; and Mr Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Minister of Information, Ofoase-Ayirebi.

    The rest are Mr Kwasi Amoako-Atta, Minister of Roads and Highways, Atiwa West; Mr Samuel Atta-Akyea, Minister of Works and Housing, Abuakwa South; Mr Kwabena Amankwah Asiamah, Fanteakwa North; and Mr Osei Frimpong, Abirem.

    Nkawkaw has the highest number of contestants going to battle out with Mr Eric Kwakye-Darfuor, the sitting MP, who is also the Eastern Regional Minister.

    They are Mr Kwabena Okerchiri, former MP, Mr Seth Baah, popularly known as Shaba; Mr David Asante, Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Publishing, Mr Joseph Frimpong, and Mrs Joyce Boateng, Deputy CEO of the Middle Belt Development Authority.

    The New Juaben South and North is seeing a replay of the 2016 primaries where the same aspirants, Mr Mark Assibey-Yeboah, incumbent and Chairman of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, faces Mr Michael Okyere Baafi, Chief Executive Officer of the Free Zones Board, for the New Juaben South seat, while Nana Kwasi Adjei-Boateng, incumbent and Deputy Local Government Minister, would face Mr Sampson Kwasi Annor for New Juaben North.

    Ms Gifty Klenam, a former Member of Parliament for Lower West Akyem and former Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Export Promotion Authority, is battling it out with Mr Charles Acheampong, Mr Kwabena Sintim-Aboagye, a former District Chief Executive, Mr Kwabena Nkansah Asamoah, and Mr Kwadwo Odame Antwi.

    Ms Mercy Adu-Gyamfi, popularly known as Ama Sey, faces three men; Mr Bernard Owiredu Donkor, Mr Ernest Kumi, and Mr Robert Boateng Ampretwum for the Akwatia seat while Mr Frank Annor Dompreh incumbent is facing Mr David Adu-Tutu and Ms Afua Kyerewa Nyantakyi for the Nsawam-Adoagyiri seat.

    Mr Samuel Aye-Paye, incumbent MP for Ayensuano, is battling it out with three others; Ms Adwoa Asiedua, Ms Josephine Awuku Ansaa, and Mr Mark Tetteh Reindorf.

    Source: GNA

  • No new constituencies EC

    The Electoral Commission (EC) says it does not intend to create new constituencies this year ahead of the December 7 general elections and that claims of such assertion are false.

    Deputy Commissioner in charge of Corporate Services, Dr. Eric Bossman Asare stated that the Commission has no such plans to do that, emphasizing, “We are not creating new constituencies.”

    Speaking with the media in Parliament on Tuesday, June 16, the deputy EC boss explained that the Commission is seeking to realign the new electoral areas and polling stations created as a result of creation of the new regions.

    Members of the Committee on Subsidiary Legislation met on Tuesday, June 16, to consider a draft Representation of the People (Parliamentary Constituencies) Regulations, 2020 said to have been brought to Parliament by the EC.

    This has fueled speculations that the Commission intends to create new constituencies in addition to the 275 existing ones.

    However, Dr. Asare said “What we are basically doing is that because new electoral areas were created it meant new polling stations were created. We have to make sure that we have a C.I. that will cover all that.”

    “No new constituencies are being created by the Electoral Commission as it is being speculated,” he said in an answer to a question on the draft Representation of the People (Parliamentary Constituencies) Regulations, 2020.

    Source: Daily Mail

  • Not wearing face mask attracts GH¢20 fine in Ho

    The Ho Municipal Assembly is enforcing the directive of President Akufo-Addo to make wearing of face masks compulsory.

    The assembly has instituted a spot fine of GH¢20 against persons who are caught without nose masks in public.

    The fine is in accordance with the current Fee Fixing Schedule of Assembly Bye Laws, a circular from the Assembly had stated.

    President Akufo-Addo on Sunday issued a warning that anyone found in public space without a face mask will be arrested by the Police.

    He said the act constituted an offence and the Police have been instructed to enforce this directive, which was the subject of an Executive Instrument.

    Speaking during his 11th address to the country on the management of coronavirus, President Akufo-Addo said the wearing of masks was mandatory.

    He reminded residents of the Greater Accra, Ashanti Western and Central Regions, where the Covid-19 has recorded high figures to continue to adhere strictly to the social distancing and enhanced hygiene protocols announced.

    “Our survival is in our own hands. If we are lax and inattentive, we will continue to have serious challenges with the virus. If we are mindful and self-disciplined, we have it in us to defeat this pandemic, and help return our lives to normalcy. I appeal to each and every one of you for your help in this regard,” he said.

    “That is the surest way to realising our collective vision of building a new Ghanaian civilization where the rule of law is not a slogan, but a directive principle of state development; where we deliver social and economic transformation that has a meaningful impact on the lives of all our people…”

    Source: Daily Guide Network

  • Truck with agric inputs being smuggled to Togo intercepted in Saboba

    Immigration officers at Saboba in the Northern Region on Tuesday intercepted a truck loaded with assorted agricultural inputs and sound appliances allegedly being smuggled into neighbouring Togo.

    Sources within the Immigration post say the officers acted upon a tip-off leading to the arrest.

    The interception was done at the time the items were being offloaded at the riverbank into a canoe at Boagban, a suburb of Saboba.

    The items include knapsack machines, weedicides and some musical items.

    Confirming the incident to the media, the Saboba District Chief Executive, George Bingrini said a task force was formed after the district witnessed massive smuggling of inputs in the previous seasons.

    “Last year Saboba was among the districts that were barred from distribution of the fertilizer because of the smuggling but this year we have put a lot of measures in place. We have written to the Ministry of Agric and they have approved supply to Saboba so that the farmers can get access to it. We have developed a task force to make sure that fertilizers are not smuggled out of the district again.”

     

    Source: citinewsroom 

  • V/R: Ho Municipal Assembly to fine persons not wearing face masks GHS20

    Persons in the Ho Municipality of the Volta Region who fail to wear nose masks in public places will be made to pay a spot fine of GHS20.

    This comes after the Ho Municipal Assembly passed a by-law to that effect.

    The Volta Regional Minister Dr Archibald Letsa in a Citi News interview said the Regional Security Council has instituted a task force at the various assemblies to oversee the implementation of the directive.

    “The Ho Municipality passed a by-law to institute a fine of a minimum of GHS20 for those who will not comply with the directive of wearing a face mask. We are in the regional capital and we know what is going on. There is a lot of enforcement in the Ho township.”

    The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in his 11th address made the wearing of face masks mandatory.

    He pointed out the Police and law enforcement agencies will enforce this directive through an Executive Instrument.

    “With the doctors and scientists telling us that the virus is transmitted from human contact, through talking, singing, coughing and sneezing, which results in sending droplets of the virus from one person to another, residents of these four regions, and, indeed, all Ghanaians, must remember that the wearing of masks is now mandatory.”

    “Leaving our homes without a face mask or face covering on is an offence. The Police have been instructed to enforce this directive, which is the subject of an Executive Instrument,” the President said in his address to the nation on Sunday.”

     

    Source: citinewsroom 

  • Prisoners have high risk of coronavirus infections POS Foundation

    Prisoners in the country could easily be infected with the COVID-19 if overcrowding in the cells is not addressed, says the Perfecter of Sentiments (POS) Foundation, facilitators of the Justice for All Programme.

    The Foundation regretted what it described as worsened congestion of inmates in prisons across the country, and called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to grant pardon under Article 72 of the 1992 Fourth Republican Constitution.

    It is also proposing exclusion of Convicted Non-Violent Drug Users (not Trade/traffickers) serving below 10 years from the old PNDC Law 236 which enforces, controls, and sanctions offences relating to narcotics.

    Mr. Jonathan Osei Owusu, the Executive Director, POS Foundation, called on the Ministry of Interior to speed up processes for the passage of the Community Service Bill, which seeks to give offenders chances for reformation, instead of incarceration.

    He made the call when the Foundation presented Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other items worth GH¢39, 000.00 and a cheque of GH¢2, 000.00 to the Sunyani Central Prisons.

    Some of the items included Vitamin C, thermometer gun, veronica Buckets, automated hand washing machine, liquid soaps, bins, tissue, gloves, and food items would be supplied to the Duayaw-Nkwanta and Kenyase Prisons Camp in the Ahafo Region.

    Mr. Owusu indicated that it would be suicidal if the COVID-19 hit the various prisons in the country due to the overcrowding of inmates in cells, saying, instead of the 815 designed capacity, the Nsawam prisons currently contained 3,305 inmates.

    The Kumasi Central Prisons were also designed to accommodate only 800 inmates, but currently, the cells have more than 1,880 inmates.

    “There is nothing like social distancing in the prisons”, a situation he observed places the life of prison wardens and inmates in danger.

    This, he explained, was the reason why the POS and its funding Agencies- German Development Cooperation (GIZ) and Open Society for West Africa (OSIWA) was undertaking COVID-19 Response Prisons Outreach Project in the country.

    Under the project, the implementers would donate several PPE to Prisons and support them with cotton materials to produce one million nose masks to protect personnel of the Ghana Prison Service (GPS).

    The project engages prison inmates in tailoring and dressmaking to sew the nose masks.

    Deputy Director of Prisons (DDP) Kwasi Asamoah Fenning, the Bono, Bono East, and Ahafo Regions Commander of the GPS said overcrowding was also a major problem in the prisons, saying, the prison was built in 1960 and instead of 350 inmate capacity, it now has 866 inmates.

    He thanked the Foundation for the support and appealed to other corporate organisations to emulate the patriotic gesture.

    Source: GNA

  • Sunyani Technical University to crack whip on students who flout coronavirus protocols

    Management of the Sunyani Technical University (STU) in the Bono Region has warned it will sanction members who flout the laid down protocols as far as the COVID-19 is concerned.

    Management reveals that it has put in place all the necessary protocols such as temperature check, provision of Veronica Buckets at vantage points for washing of hands, and the compulsory wearing of face to prevent a possible outbreak on campus of COVID-19 on campus.

    Each student has also been given three washable face masks and a hand sanitizer for personal use.

    According to the Public Relations Officer of the Sunyani Technical University, Mr. Dickson Kyere-Duah, recalcitrant staff and students who flout the protocols instituted by the University will be duly sanctioned.

    The PRO revealed that even though they are expecting a total of 1,500 final year students back on campus, they have instituted stringent measures for both staff and students in compliance with the directives of President Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo.

    “Staff and students who flout the Covid-19 protocols we have put in place would be sanctioned. We have given three reusable face masks to each student so without your face masks you will not be allowed entry to campus and without washing your hands you cannot enter any department.”

    He revealed that aside these measures that have been instituted, there is a COVID-19 team that will also undertake continuous training and education to ensure compliance in the interest of the university community.

     

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • SHS student arrested for kidnapping

    An 18-year-old final year student of Eguafo Senior High school (SHS) in the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Municipality of the Central Region is in the grips of the police for kidnapping.

    The police are also on a manhunt for two other accomplices who are currently on the run.

    The student, whose name was given as Daniel Wallace together with his accomplices, kidnapped two children aged five and six years respectively at Komenda on Thursday, June 4, 2020, and demanded an amount of GH? 8,000 from their parents.

    Narrating the incident to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), Mr Paul Arkorful, assembly member for Kisi Electoral Area said one of the kidnapped children was a nephew of Daniel.

    He said on Thursday, June 4, he received a distress call from the police about the kidnapping of two children at Komenda.

    According to him, the police implored the community leaders to make announcements at their information centres and also help apprehend the perpetrators.

    Mr Arkorful said with the help of the Queen Mother of Kissi, Nana Efua Badu II, the police CID and the community leaders, Daniel was arrested but he refused to mention the names of his two accomplices.

    On how Daniel was apprehended, he said a policewoman posed as the mother of one of the kidnapped children and bargained for the amount to be reduced on phone.

    According to him, she bargained with the kidnappers until the amount was reduced to GH? 500 and the kidnappers provided a mobile money number for the money to be paid into.

    He said the police contacted MTN for that number to be blocked after the money had been paid and subsequently traced the owner of the number to Kissi where Daniel was arrested on Sunday, June 6.

    The assembly member expressed worry about the increasing level of crimes in the community and called for police patrols in the area.

    The Central Region Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Irene Oppong confirmed the arrest of the suspect, saying further investigations were on-going.

     

    Source: GNA

  • Ablekuma North: Discrediting me because of my father childish Sheila Bartels

    Sheila Bartels, a New Patriotic Party parliamentary aspirant for Ablekuma North, has urged people asking her to abandon her parliamentary ambition because her father served as the Member of the area, to desist from doing that.

    “I think that it is a bit childish when somebody says your father has done it so you should not do it. Nobody started off saying this is a legacy that should be given to me,” she said on the Point Blank segment on Eyewitness News.

    Her father, Kwamena Bartels, was elected MP for the Ablekuma North constituency in 1996 and served for three terms.

    “My father came in and did his bit, but as a citizen of Ghana and somebody who grew up in Ablekuma North, I look around me and I see so many things I can also do to help make the constituency better.”

    In her view, her move to serve has been informed by a desire to channel her efforts towards ensuring “impact in her community”.

    “It is not so much as my father did this and did that. It is about what can I do, what value can I also bring,” Sheila Bartels stated.

    Sheila Bartels already has some regard in the NPP because of her role in mobilising an independent volunteer campaign organization known as The HOPE Campaign ahead of the 2016 election.

    The HOPE Campaign is viewed by some as being instrumental in ensuring that the electorate could connect with the NPP campaign message for 2016.

    Sheila Bartels will be contesting against the incumbent MP, Nana Akua Owusu Afriyeh, John Kojo Agbotey, and Kwadwo Poku Adjei-Barwuah.

     

    Source: citinewsroom 

  • Two persons who allegedly stole NIA laptops granted bail

    The Accra Circuit Court 4 has granted bail to two persons allegedly involved in the stealing of 64 HP Probook laptop computers belonging to the National Identification Authority (NIA).

    The computers were allegedly stolen in the course of the Ghana Card registration.

    The first accused person, Frank Nketiah, a trader is said to have bought the laptop machine from an NIA employee and in turn, sold it to Victor Maduka who plies his trade at Kwame Nkrumah circle.

    Lawyers for the suspects told the Court presided over by Emmanuel Essandoh that the accused persons have been on police enquiry bail for nine months and needed mercy.

    The lawyers assured the Court that the accused persons were of no flight risk and would keep with Court dates if granted bail.

    The two have subsequently been granted bail; Frank Nketia with GHS85, 000 with four sureties three of whom shall be public officers earning not less than GHS3000; and Victor Maduka with GHS85,000 with two sureties one of whom must be a public servant earning not less than GHS2,000.

    The case has been adjourned to 6th July 2020.

    In a related development, three NIA laptops were stolen at Asokore Mampong in the Ashanti Region in December 2019.

    Officials of the National Identification Authority at one of the centres at Aboabo in the Asokore Mampong Municipality could not trace the laptops when they returned from the Christmas break.

    After a similar instance, the Nsuta Circuit Court in the Sekyere Central District sentenced a 20-year old student of the Agona Senior High Technical School (ASTEC) to four years imprisonment for stealing a laptop used in the ongoing Ghana Card registration in the Ashanti Region.

     

    Source: citinewsroom 

  • Law students association demands withdrawal of entrance exams advert deemed defective

    The National Association of Law Students has called for the withdrawal of an advert for the Ghana School of Law entrance examinations.

    The association feels the advert in the June 11, 2020 edition of the Daily Graphic by the Independent Examination Committee (IEC) of the General Legal Council (GLC) lacks critical details and is in need of an amendment.

    The association noted that, unlike previous years, like in “2018 and 2019 where 65 and 53 days notice was given, the 2020 advert, Paragraph B, has no date at all.”

    In a statement, the association, for example, noted that the advert does not indicate a date. The association, thus called for its “withdrawal and amendment to disclose an ascertained date, time and venue” before it is re-published.

    “Sufficient notice, including date and venue, is a right, and not a privilege. It is a reasonable expectation and fair to persons desiring to sit the exams,” it stressed.

    The students say a minimum of 50 days notice is also “the reasonably established practice hitherto, which projected points to August 2020.”

    The association remains distrustful of the IEC and “finds the advertised aberration a cause for worry and is unable to accept same.”

    It insists that the lack of sufficient notice means the advert “is defective and/or allows capriciousness, which GLC must guard against if it is committed to doing substantial justice.”

    Need for admissions criteria

    As part of its call for transparency, the association called on the GLC to declare the number of students it expects to admit “and the criteria used for the determination/estimation and this should be the norm for subsequent years.”

    “Regulation 1 of LI2355, discretional in totality, reasonably indicates, as NALS expects, that the admission process is for GLC, firstly, to determine and announce publicly the number to be admitted in each academic year, secondly, to allocate quotas to all law faculties, together with, thirdly, conduct the entrance exam for the admission. GLC is to exercise all three discretions together or none at all,” the association outlined.

    The students also called on the GLC to include its pass mark in the notice, “to end or avoid any randomness with the pass mark.”

    It noted that the GLC could “later come out to announce 60 percent as the pass-mark in order to avoid admitting students.”

     

    Source: citinewsroom 

  • Man seeks justice after losing pregnant wife at Amasaman hospital

    When Collins Tekolibe took his wife, in labour, to the Ga West Municipal Hospital at Amasaman in the Greater Accra Region, on the afternoon of May 2, 2019, little did he know that it would be the last time the two would be together.

    He lost his wife due to what he now believes was the negligence of health workers at the hospital.

    After 12 months of enduring the pain and anguish of his loss and chasing after authorities to seek answers for her death, he is yet to be granted an appropriate response.

    Despite having the baby who is now a year old, he lamented that the baby has had to put up with medication almost every day.

    Collins was on the Citi Breakfast Show on Tuesday, June 16, 2020 to share his ideal.

    Click below to listen to Collins as he recounts how he lost his wife:

     

     

    Source: citinewsroom 

  • Id rather pour water in my ears than listen to Patapaa’s song – Lilwin

    Kumawood actor cum musician, Kwadwo Nkansah ‘LilWin‘ says he would rather pour water in his ears than listen to Patapaa’s songs.

    According to the actor, Patapaa is a disgrace to Ghana’s music industry.

    Speaking in an interview on Nkonkonsa YouTube, LilWin stated that Patapaa has been living a fake life and deceiving his fans and Ghanaian music lovers about his relationship with his German girlfriend.

    ”Patapaa lives a fake life. We were all in Ghana when Patapaa said his wife had bought a car for his birthday. Where is the car?” he questioned.

    He also likened Patapaa to an ”animal” and stressed that he (Patapaa) is destroying the image of Ghana’s music.

    ”I would soak water in my ears rather than to listen to Patapaa’s song…He looks like an animal”, he said.

    Source: Peace FM

  • Emmanuel Adebayor is my godfather Bernard Mensah

    Ghana midfielder Bernard Mensah has named Togolese striker Emmanuel Adebayor as his godfather due to the positive advise he derives from him.

    Mensah, who plies his trade for Turkish outfit Kayserispor in an interview with Don Summer of Angel FM in Kumasi revealed how the former Arsenal forward has been influencing his career.

    The former Atletico Madrid player after scoring a sublime goal over the weekend for his side attributed his fine form to Adebayor and has, therefore, lavished praises on him.

    “Emmanuel Adebayor is like a godfather to me. He uses to teach me how to get to the top”

    “While at home during the COVID-19 period I was training. I normally talk to Asamoah Gyan but Adebayor is one person who does not joke with his training. He always tells me to train hard. So during the coronavirus break, I was training. The COVID-19 has helped me a lot” he said.

    Source: footballghana.com

  • Eddie Nketiah can help Arsenal move to the next level – Arteta

    Eddie Nketiah can help Arsenal move to “the next level”, according to Mikel Arteta, who has been impressed with the striker during the first few months of his tenure at Emirates Stadium.

    Nketiah rose through the youth ranks at Arsenal before graduating to the senior squad in 2017, but was made to wait for his breakthrough after a string of cameo appearances.

    The 21-year-old notched his first Premier League goal on the final day of the 2018-19 campaign against Burnley, and went onto enjoy a strong summer under Unai Emery.

    Despite scoring four goals during Arsenal’s pre-season tour of the United States, Nketiah was sent out on loan to Leeds in August to continue his development.

    Unfortunately, he struggled for regular playing time at Elland Road, and the Gunners ended up calling him back to the Emirates in January.

    Arteta. who replaced Emery in December, says he quickly decided not to allow Nketiah to go out on loan again after witnessing his ability at close quarters, and he is now expecting the young English forward to reward him for his faith by helping Arsenal finish the season strongly.

    “We treat Eddie as an important part of our squad,” the Gunners boss said in a press conference on Monday.

    “We had to make an important decision not to let him go on loan again after the spell he had at Leeds.

    “I watched him train and I was very convinced he was the right player for us to move us to the next level, that he can contribute in a big way to the way we want to play.

    “He has been fantastic so far.”

    Nketiah hit three goals in seven outings for Arsenal after returning to the club from Leeds, before seeing his progress interrupted by the coronavirus outbreak.

    He will be hoping to pick up from where he left off when the action resumes on Wednesday, as Arteta’s men prepare to come up against reigning Premier League champions Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.

    Arsenal slipped to ninth in the top flight when play was stopped in March, eight points behind Chelsea in the race for a top-four finish, but they do have a game in hand on their Champions League rivals.

    Source: goal.com

  • Arsenal ready to triple Parteys wages

    Ghana International Thomas Partey could be about to hit a financial jackpot if news coming from England is to be believed.

    Rumours in the English press suggest that in an attempt to lure Thomas Partey away from Spain, Arsenal are ready to triple the wages of the Atletico Madrid midfielder.

    Partey’s future in Spain has become one of the transfer window’s soap opera’s but it is understood that the Madrid outfit do not want to sell the Ghana international and they are working to extend his current deal until 2025.

    Meanwhile, Parteys’ future lies in his hands amid growing interest from the Gunners.

    At 27, Partey is well aware that his next deal and next move could define his career as he enters what many believe to be his peak years.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Ex-Ghana star Christian Saba reveals late Sam Arday made him choose Hearts over Okwahu

    Former Ghana youth international, Christian Saba has said he had to seek the blessings of Sam Arday in choosing Accra Hearts of Oak SC over Okwahu United in 1994.

    The FIFA U-17 World Cup winner was torn between the decision of joining his senior brother Robert and mentor Offei Ansah at Hearts and national team coach Sam Arday’s Okwahu United.

    “I discussed it with Ofei-Ansah and he told me I had to choose Hearts. So in a friendly game between Okwahu United and my SSNIT team, Arday was informed and he gave his blessings,” he told godfred.substack.com.

    “That is how I became a Hearts of Oak player. Quite a few people in our neighbourhood at the time told my brother, Robert that we had made the wrong decision. Hearts at the time had Sam Johnson, Armah, Dowuona and Nettey. He shut those talks down though”.

    Saba did not stay at Hearts of Oak for long after earning a mammoth move to Bayern Munich following his impressive performance at the Africa U-17 Cup of Nations in Mali in 1995.

    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • Anell Agyapong: Meet Kennedy Agyapong’s daughter who dropped out of school (photos)

    Assin Central MP Kennedy Agyapong recently narrated how one of his daughters has virtually become a beggar because of her wrong choices.

    The daughter, Ken Agyapong revealed, begging for funds to continue her education after squandering many opportunities he gave her.

    According to Ken Agyapong, his daughter dropped out of California Institute of Technology (CIT) while in her third year of her five-year Architecture programme.

    The Assin Central MP who was speaking on Oman FM indicated that he was paying $84,000 in school fees every year and was thus not pleased with his daughter’s decision.

    The most painful thing to him was the fact that he had just paid half ($42, 000) right before his daughter called him while he was on a plane to China to inform him that she was dropping out.

    From that time, Kennedy Agyapong added, he cut her off and even used the other half of her school fees for the year to buy a Bentley.

    While Ken Agyapong did not mention the name of the daughter he was talking about, YEN.com.gh checks have revealed the identity of the young lady. She is Anell Agyapong.

    YEN.com.gh has gathered Anell is the daughter of Kennedy Agyapong and one Araba Dawson. She was born in 1994.

     

    View this post on Instagram

     

    Meet Anell, Kennedy Agyapong’s daughter who dropped out of California Institute of Architecture

    A post shared by Maame Adwoa Amponsaah (@sweet_maame_adwoa) on

    Anell got admitted into Southern California Institute of Technology in 2014 to study for a Bachelor of Architecture but she left in 2016 without completing.

     

    View this post on Instagram

     

    Meet Anell, Kennedy Agyapong’s daughter who dropped out of California Institute of Architecture

    A post shared by Maame Adwoa Amponsaah (@sweet_maame_adwoa) on

    Before going to America, Anell studied at SOS Hermann Gmeiner College for her International Baccalaureate which she passed with distinction.

     

    View this post on Instagram

     

    Meet Anell, Kennedy Agyapong’s daughter who dropped out of California Institute of Architecture

    A post shared by Maame Adwoa Amponsaah (@sweet_maame_adwoa) on

    From the photos, Anell is a very pretty young lady and we pray that she resolves whatever difficulties and get her life back on track.

    Source: yen.com.gh

  • Clubs need to invest in talented players – Asiedu Attobrah

    Former New Edubiase Football Club (FC) midfielder, Abraham Asiedu Attobrah has emphasized the need for clubs in the country to invest in talented players.

    Speaking to Ashaiman TV, the former Ghana U-20 offensive midfielder has indicated that the level of play in the Premier League has taken a nosedive.

    According to him, he watched Hearts of Oak’s Super Clash with Asante Kotoko before the football season was suspended and was not impressed by the level of play he witnessed.

    He is, therefore, urging club administrators of the various teams to pay attention to making investments into players with talent rather than signing raw players who will not add quality to the team.

    “I watched the Hearts vs Kotoko game in Accra before the Covid-19. I did not see any quality football in that game. It was only Mudasiru who impressed me, it is so unfortunate he got injured and was replaced.

    “In Ghana, our game is all about talent. Our club management and administrators must help players with talent. They should spend on players with talent, not raw players”, the midfielder said.

    Asiedu Attobrah, 24, is a former player for Ashanti Gold SC and is relishing playing for any of the Ghanaian giants after ending his stint with Iraqi side Al-Shorta.

    Source: footballghana.com

  • Stephen Appiah narrates how Thuram helped him land Juventus move

    Former Ghana hero Stephen Appiah has recounted how former France international Lilian Thuram played a role in his move to Juventus.

    Appiah was an instrumental figure during his three-year stay at Italian side Parma.

    The 39-year-old’s success at Ennio Tardini Stadium prompted defending Serie A champions Juventus to pay €2 million in the summer of 2003 to secure his services on loan, with an option to a permanent €6 million transfer in 2004.

    Appiah went on to enjoy a good first season for Juventus, playing in 30 Serie A games and appearing in the Coppa Italia final.

    He also made his debut in the UEFA Champions League. In his second season at Juventus, Appiah played in 18 Serie A games.

    According to Appiah, former France World Cup winning defender Lilian Thuram had a hand in his move to the Turin-based giants.

    “After the season I came to Ghana for holiday and [Lilian] Thuram called me. I played with him, [Fabio] Canavaro, [Gigi] Buffon, [Alain] Boghossian at Parma so I was in Ghana and Thuram called and asked, do you want to play for Juventus? and I said my friend, why ask me such a question and he replied that he is serious, so I asked why and he said the Juventus Director [Luciano Moggi] will call me in twenty (20) minutes time and he indeed called me in twenty minutes time,” Appiah told Carol Tshabalala which was monitored by GHANASoccernet.com

    “I was so shocked because he [Moggi] was so powerful when it comes to Italian football so for him to call me was an honour. We spoke and he asked me what I was doing and I told him I was with my family on holiday, and he said I should come to Turin the following week so I asked him, director why…and he said you have to come and do your medical because we want to sign you. I was lost for words but I told him to expect me. I flew to Torino and did my medical and I became a Juventus player.”

    Appiah spent two years with the Bianconeri before moving to Turkish giants Fenerbahce in 2005.

    Disclaimer : “Opinions expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not in any way reflect those of backend.theindependentghana.com. Our outfit will hereby not be liable for any inaccuracies contained in this article.”

    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • Ex-Ghana star Stephen Appiah reveals how he got the nickname ‘Tornado’

    Former Ghana and Juventus midfielder Stephen Appiah has revealed how he got his ‘Tornado’ nickname.

    It appears these days that the majority of players have been given one kind of nickname or other, however, some are most definitely more catchy and memorable than others.

    Appiah, who is arguably one of Ghana’s greatest players to have graced the green turf, was widely known as ‘Tornado’ during his active playing days.

    Now 39, Appiah has narrated how he came by the Tornado nickname during an interview with South Africa sports journalist Carol Tshabalala which was monitored by GHANAsoccernet.com

    “I got the name Tornado after during [Parma] game against Juventus in the Coppa Italia final. I was all over the pitch and the commentator was saying that this guy is strong like a Tornado. That’s where I got the name,” Appiah disclosed.

    Parma won the 2001/02 Coppa Italia for the 3rd time in club history after defeating Juventus in the finals, winning on the away goals rule with an aggregate score of 2-2.

    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • Anderlecht preparing bid for PSV defender Derrick Luckassen

    Jupiler Pro League giants Anderlecht are exploring the possibility of making a bid for PSV defender Derrick Luckassen, footballghana.com can exclusively report.

    The 24-year-old joined Anderlecht on loan in the summer of 2019 and after making 18 appearances, the Belgian side are eager to make his move permanent.

    Footballghana.com understands that in the loan deal, Eredivisie side PSV included a purchase option worth close to 5 million euros. Anderlecht do not want to pay that amount due to the negative impact of the coronavirus and will make a lower offer. PSV will be inclined to take the deal as they deem Luckassen surplus to requirements.

    Luckassen revealed to De Telegraaf earlier this year that he does not want to return to the Dutch club.

    “I keep all options open to myself, except going back to PSV. That is no longer an option for me. I don’t feel at home with PSV.”

    Derrick is currently contracted to PSV until 2022.

    Source: footballghana.com

  • Ghanaian game developer makes racing game using city of Accra

    A brilliant software developer in Ghana who identifies himself on social media by the name @The Dynasto has made an amazing racing game with the city of Accra.

    Photos, videos and screenshots of the game have been sighted by YEN.com.gh on different social media platforms as many Ghanaians have been excited to see the innovation.

    The developer calls the game RWC Racing and is available for both android and IOS users to download and enjoy.

    See short video of game below:

    Until now, games many Ghanaians and Africans have been playing feature beautiful places overseas and @TheDynasto has broken that status quo in a remarkable way.

    Apart from the popular landmarks in Accra that have been featured in the game, the game also has the different varieties of cars used in Ghana.

    One of the most interesting vehicles spotted was the ‘yellow-yellow’ or ‘Mahama Camboo’ whose usage is only beginning to increase in the capital city of Ghana.

    See photos in the game below:

    Source: yen.com.gh

  • Ghanaian midfielder Clifford Aboagye won’t extend Querétaro FC loan deal

    Ghanaian midfielder Clifford Aboagye will not extend his loan deal with Querétaro FC when it expires on June 30, GHANAsoccernet.com can exclusively report.

    The 25-year-old pocket-size enforcer joined the Mexican top-flight side on a season long loan from Atlas FC.

    The former Ghana Under-20 star joined the side with an option to sign a permanent deal.

    But GHANAsoccernet.com can report that the midfielder will not exercise that buy out option and will leave the club by the end of this month.

    Aboagye has impressed heavily during the loan spell, scoring a goal in 33 matches.

    After being awarded with the Bronze Ball at the FIFA U20 World Cup in 2013, Aboagye moved from Inter Allies FC to Italian side Udinese Calcio.

    He later joined Spanish side Granada FC in the 2013/2014 season after spending only a season in Italy.

    Aboagye was then loaned to Atlas FC after two seasons with Granada FC.

    Having had an impressive spell in his first season, his move to Mexico was made permanent in 2017/2018 campaign.

    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • African nations seek UN inquiry into US racism, ‘police brutality’

    African countries are lobbying to set up a U.N. inquiry into “systemic racism” and “police brutality” in the United States and elsewhere, aiming to defend the rights of people of African descent, a draft resolution seen by Reuters shows.

    The text, circulating among diplomats in Geneva, voiced alarm at “recent incidents of police brutality against peaceful demonstrators defending the rights of Africans and of people of African descent”. It is due to be considered at an urgent debate of the U.N. Human Rights Council on Wednesday.

    The 47-member Council agreed on Tuesday to convene at the request of Burkina Faso on behalf of African countries after the death last month of George Floyd, an African American, in police custody in Minneapolis. His death has ignited protests worldwide.

    The United States, which quit the Council two years ago alleging bias against its ally Israel, has not commented on being put in the dock.

    The text, subject to change after negotiation at the Council, calls for setting up “an independent international commission of inquiry … to establish facts and circumstances related to the systemic racism, alleged violations of international human rights law and abuses against Africans and of people of African descent in the United States of America and other parts of the world”.

    The panel should examine federal, state and local government responses to peaceful protests “including the alleged use of excessive force against protesters, bystanders and journalists”.

    The resolution calls on the United States and other countries to cooperate fully with the inquiry, which would report back in a year.

    The Council already has commissions of inquiry or fact-finding missions into human rights violations in hotspots including Syria, Burundi, Myanmar, South Sudan, Venezuela and Yemen.

    Source: reuters.com

  • Burundi’s new president Ndayishimiye to be sworn in Thursday

    Burundi’s newly-elected president Evariste Ndayishimiye will be sworn in on Thursday, the foreign ministry announced, in a ceremony fast-tracked by the sudden death of the incumbent, Pierre Nkurunziza.

    Nkurunziza died on June 8 aged 55, of what authorities said was heart failure.

    His death came less than two weeks after his wife had been flown to a Nairobi hospital for treatment.

    The foreign ministry invited diplomats and foreign organisations to “take part in the inauguration ceremony” in the capital Gitega, in a letter sent out on Monday.

    Ndayishimiye, 52, a former army general and Hutu rebel like his predecessor, had been handpicked by the powerful ruling CNDD-FDD to run in a May 20 presidential election.

    He won the vote with 68.7 percent, and an opposition bid to have the results overturned due to alleged fraud was overturned just days before Nkurunziza’s death.

    Normally, following the death of a president, the speaker of Burundi’s parliament would step in as head of state.

    But as the country already had a president-elect, the constitutional court ruled last week he should be sworn in immediately, instead of in August as planned.

    Nkurunziza, a devout evangelical who believed he was chosen by God to lead Burundi, leaves behind a deeply isolated country in political and economic turmoil after his divisive 15-year rule.

    His 2015 run for a third term in office sparked protests and a failed coup, with violence leaving at least 1,200 dead while some 400,000 fled the country.

    United Nations human rights investigators have said the period since 2015 has been marked by likely crimes against humanity committed by state forces, citing extrajudicial executions, arbitrary arrests, disappearances, torture and sexual violence.

    Nkurunziza’s decision not to run in the May 20 election stunned many, as it came after the constitution was changed to allow him to do so.

    The government has yet to announce a date for Nkurunziza’s funeral.

    Suspicions are high that the president had contracted the new coronavirus, after months of assuring Burundi it was being protected by God from the pandemic, and taking few measures to combat it.

    Officially the country has recorded only 104 cases and one death.

    Nkurunziza’s wife Denise Bucumi was hospitalised at the end of May with the virus. A medical document seen by AFP said she had tested positive for the virus and suffered “respiratory distress”.

    A medical source at the Karusi hospital where Nkurunziza died, told AFP he had also been in “respiratory distress” before his death.

    A medical source at the Kamenge university hospital in Bujumbura told AFP that the head of the institute of public health “came to requisition our hospital’s only ventilator” last Monday.

    Both were flown to the hospital in Karusi, but it was “too late, president Nkurunziza was already dead,” a medical source in Karusi said.

    Source: AFP