The Ablekuma West Municipal Assembly has carried out its demolition exercise at Dansoman Beach Road and its environs.
The exercise, which started at 6:30 last Friday, saw many residents gather at the scene as excavator pulls buildings down.
The residents told Adom News the Assembly should not abandon the place after the demolition, but construct the drain to save them from perennial floods.
Award-winning broadcaster Nana Aba Anamoah is known to be the mother of young man who is already a university student in the United States.
While Nana Aba has often flaunted her son, Jyoti Paa Kow Anamoah, and spoken fondly of him, rarely does one hear her speak about the circumstances leading to her giving birth.
The GHOne presenter and news editor has finally opened up about the story of how she became a teenage mother.
According to Nana, she unexpectedly got pregnant immediately after senior high school (secondary school) and it hit her like a missile.
Before she turned 20, Nana Aba had become a mother and had to work in order to cater for her baby boy.
She added that though the pregnancy and motherhood were challenging for her, she took solace in her son who became her source of strength.
“I had my son before I turned 20. It was an eye-opener and shocking but there was a bit of fun as well just seeing my son smile made me happy.
“I got pregnant immediately after SHS and it happened really fast for me so some of the things 20, 21, 22 years olds were doing I never got the chance to do because I had to work and also be a mother.
“It was a shock for me, I never imagine that. It hit me like a missile but it was fun in a certain way,†she said. Nana Aba made the revelations while appearing as one of the guests on Joy FM’s Strong and Sassy show on Wednesday, July 24, 2019.
The show, hosted by Nana Ashorkor, discussed the topic “Things I wish I had known/done in my 20s.”Â
Source:Â yen.com.gh
Management of the Akyem New Tafo Government Hospital is appealing for infrastructure expansion to enable it meet the healthcare needs of its exponential clients in the newly created Abuakwa North Municipality.
In spite of being a District Hospital Hospital, the current total admission capacity stands at 69 due to limited infrastructure. Apart from this, the Hospital needs critical medical equipment for delivery of quality healthcare.
The Akyem New Tafo Government Hospital established in 1962 was initially to serve staff and relatives of then West African Cocoa Research Institute (WACRI), now Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG).
The name was however changed to New Tafo Government Hospital when government converted it to general hospital to serve all patients in the entire municipality and beyond but since then no major infrastructure has been added to the existing facility.
The 69 bed compliment hospital serves as the only government hospital in the Abuakwa North Municipality and parts of Abuakwa South in the Eastern Region. Attendance at the hospital has increased by 21.96% in the first half of 2019.
However, the Hospital is unable to admit more patients due to inadequate space.
The male ward for instance is 14 -bed capacity while the female ward is only 16 bed capacity. The Maternity Ward and Pediatric ward are only 25 beds and 14 beds respectively. Casualty Unit was only 7 bed capacity but handles many emergencies .
Dr.Kwabena Awotwe Wiredu, the Medical Superintendent of New Tafo Government Hospital said despite strives made by the facility over the years, the challenges remain daunting .
“The Hospital has no fence Wall and is therefore open and Prone to all kinds of invasions from hawkers and other intruders. Accommodations for our critical stafff posted to the Hospital is also woefully inadequate. We all gathered here will agree without shred of hesitation that these are daunting challenges that absolutely have a negative impact on health care deliveryâ€.
Dr.Awotwe said †in the next couple of years, the Hospital has an agenda to embark on a visionary infrastructural revolution†hence a call on citizens of the area both home and abroad as well as corporate bodies to support .
Meanwhile to partly relieve the facility of the dire infrastructural needs, the hospital has commissioned the refurbished Out Patient Department and Casualty Unity extension project.The facility has Triage, Information Center, and additional consulting rooms.
The Project was initiated by the immediate Past management led by former Medical Superintendent of the Hospital Dr.Joseph Kojo Tambil to ease the pressure.
Dr. Joseph Tambil told Starr News it is time the the facility is given a face-lift to be able to meet the service demand adding a component of the One Million Dollars Per Constituency policy of the government must be channeled to expand the hospital. .
“There is a lot still to be done in order to make this hospital a proper district hospital.There is a huge deficit of infrastructure. The delivery room of the maternity ward not up to standard, the theater needs some expansionâ€.
The Chief of Akyem Tafo Osabarima Adusei Peasah II said the Traditional Council is looking for financial support drive to expand the facility with additional 100 bed capacity infrastructure to help deliver sufficient quality healthcare to the increasing clients.
Source:Â starrfm.com.gh
Former deputy Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson has urged Ghanaians to buckle up as government readies itself to announce an increment in the tax on fuel and talk tax in the mid-year budget review.
He said an increase in the fuel tax will immediately affect the price of fuel at the pumps and therefore hardship on Ghanaians.
“Brace-up for untold hardship as government is likely to increase Tax on fuel and talk tax in its mid year review.
“Fellow Ghanaians, I bear bad news as this government is set to take its insensitive and incompetent policies a notch higher during its mid-year review.
Barring any last minute changes the finance minister will announce on Monday increases in taxes on fuel( the energy sector levies ESLA) and call time including data( communication service tax).
“An increase in fuel tax will result in a hike in the pump prices of fuel products including LPG and have a cascading effect on price of transportation, prices of goods and services, general cost of living, and eventually on general hardships in the country.
Ghanaians should therefore not expect any measures to alleviate the hardships in the country but rather brace themselves for untold hardships. Again you will need to cough-up more money to continue talking to friends and loved ones. As for data charges they will hit the roof,†he wrote on Facebook Saturday.
The finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta is expected to present the 2019 Mid-year budget review in Parliament on July 29, 2019. Speculations making rounds indicate the government is likely to introduce or increase taxes.
Source:Â starrfm.com.gh
In the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya, Michael Nganga is watching a Chinese Kung Fu movie.
His small home in Limuru village doesn’t have running water and its walls are made from corrugated metal. Yet outside, where chickens roam the yard, the father-of-two, who repairs shoes for a living, has a large Chinese-built satellite dish that connects his old television set to hundreds of channels — many of which are being beamed from Beijing.
“It’s advantageous to have many TV channels,” said Nganga, who was limited to a few local Kenyan stations before the Chinese dish. “Because you can know how the world is changing every day.”
Nganga’s connection to the wider world is directly thanks to Xi Jinping, the president of China.
In 2015, Xi announced the 10,000 Villages Project, a lofty plan to take digital television to impoverished parts of Africa, such as the village where Nganga lives. Previously, television access in many parts of the continent was a privilege of the elite, and those who were connected relied on old-fashioned, snowy analog reception.
Xi’s dream was to upgrade huge swathes of Africa to modern, digital satellite TV networks, that could broadcast a constellation of channels over long distances — so long, in fact, that a TV channel from Beijing could be beamed to African homes.
This was more than just a philanthropic gesture.
It was a stroke of soft-power genius that would raise China’s profile among Africans while giving Beijing a tighter grip on the continent’s communications infrastructure and control over how it is portrayed there in the media.
And it would boost the fortunes and power of one important Chinese company that otherwise keeps a low profile.
StarTimes has been the Chinese government’s primary contractor to carry out the 10,000 Villages Project, paving the way for the Beijing-based firm — not any of its American or European media competitors — to dominate the African market of 1.2 billion people. A spokesperson for StarTimes said it was “important” for Beijing to work with “an experienced and cost-conscious enterprise for the assignment.”
Today, the company beams Chinese TV shows into the homes of 10 million subscribers in 30 African countries, pushes China’s state-owned propaganda news network into households over Western news networks, and controls television networks to such an extent in Zambia and Kenya there have been fears the company could blackout TVs in those countries, if it wanted to.
While channels like the BBC reach more people and South African distributor MultiChoice has more subscribers, StarTimes’ breadth of reach has some critics worrying: Does the company, with its close ties to Beijing, now have too much power over African television networks?
In many ways, StarTimes’ situation runs parallel to better-known communications giant Huawei, which is battling global criticism for its control over 5G internet networks and ties to Beijing. But unlike Huawei, StarTimes has become one of Beijing’s most powerful soft power tools in Africa — without much of the world even knowing its name.
Here’s how it got that way.
The African opportunity
In 2000, the Economist ran a cover story about Africa titled “The Hopeless Continent.” The headline aptly captured the pity through which much of the Western world viewed the African continent at the time: $1 trillion in development aid hadn’t prevented famine from taking one million lives in Ethiopia in the 1980s, stemmed the scourge of AIDS, or stopped a brutal genocide from slaughtering roughly the same number in Rwanda in the 1990s.
Aid dollars served to ease Western guilt over what then British Prime Minister Tony Blair called a “scar on the conscience of the world,” but aside from drilling for oil and establishing military bases, little energy went into doing real business in Africa.
Meanwhile, China took an entirely different approach.
In the same year as that Economist cover, Chinese President Jiang Zemin invited heads of state across Africa to attend the inaugural Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in Beijing, to discuss how the two regions could better work together.
By the mid-2000s, the Chinese government, under its “Going Out” strategy, was encouraging entrepreneurs to head abroad and forge stronger ties with African nations.
Chinese entrepreneurs looking to make early inroads in nascent markets started moving to Africa. George Zhu, for example, went to Nigeria and launched Transsion, which sells cheap multi-SIM handsets and now has the biggest smartphone share on the continent. Ren Zhengfei took Huawei into Kenya, a country that today remains unfazed by the West’s concerns about the company’s ties to Beijing. And not long after that, TV enthusiast Pang Xinxing decided to pivot his telecommunications company StarTimes away from China, where the TV market was quickly becoming saturated, and into Africa.
Pang reported seeing a largely underdeveloped market where many families either did not have a TV or were sharing one with several households. “Even if there is a TV, they can only watch two or three channels, digital TV is beyond their imagination,” he said back in 2002. Furthermore, there was normally only one strong company in each country and users were being charged about $70 a month for a subscription — a huge fee on a continent where GDP per capita was around $700 a year at the time.
Pang saw an opportunity for a low-cost TV provider. Today, StarTimes has some of the world’s most affordable digital TV packages, which can cost as little as $4 a month.
His arrival was also perfect timing in another way.
A 2006 United Nations treaty had tasked African countries with making the switch from snowy, unreliable analog signals to digital by 2015. It was a deadline that nearly all African governments missed but the pressure was on to invest — and to find a company that could help them do it.
That gave StarTimes another revenue stream — building and operating the digital TV infrastructure of nations.
In 2007, Pang landed the company’s first digital TV license in Rwanda. The next year, StarTimes launched the Rwanda Digital TV Platform, offering Rwandans more than 30 channels for $3 to $5 a month, including four Chinese channels from the main state-owned broadcaster in mainland China.
When contracts came up to turn off governments’ analog networks and take them digital, at first “StarTimes was the only company competing,” said Dani Madrid-Morales, an assistant communications professor at the University of Houston, who researched the company while studying as a PhD student at City University of Hong Kong. “Then [Pang] was able to provide evidence that StarTimes had experience in African countries and offer very low prices.”
Other competitors started to join the market, said Madrid-Morales.
But StarTimes almost always won.
Control of a continent’s airwaves?
Nearly two decades later, the China-Africa summit President Jiang had hosted in 2000 has become one of the most important diplomatic events in many African nations’ calendars.
In 2018, virtually every African head of state descended on Beijing for the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation to secure a slice of the $60 billion in development loans and business deals on offer.
While in the capital, heads of state and top ministers from Sierra Leone, Lesotho, Malawi, Zambia, Central African Republic, Malawi, Ghana and Uganda all had an important appointment.
They visited Pang at the StarTimes’ huge mothership on the outskirts of the capital. “I don’t think any head of the BBC has had one-on-one meetings with so many African heads of state,” Madrid-Morales said.
Befriending governments has been crucial to the StarTimes’ business, as it bids to win state contracts to help countries make the leap from analog to digital TV.
Angela Lewis, a PhD candidate in the international communications department of Nottingham University in Ningbo, China, who has been researching the company for years, said the company has had full backing Beijing in doing this.
StarTimes is the only private Chinese company with authorization from the Ministry of Commerce to operate in foreign countries’ radio and TV industries. Furthermore, China’s state-owned EXIM bank has provided the company with hundreds of millions of dollars in loans to enter the African market. StarTimes claims to be a private enterprise pursuing business goals while maintaining “cordial relations with its parent state.”
The idea that a company with such close ties to Beijing has control over many African nations’ TV networks has sparked headlines such as “StarTimes plots to take over Africa public broadcasters” — echoing concerns that internet security experts have expressed over 5G giant Huawei and how its ties to the Chinese state could compromise other nations’ communications infrastructure.
In Zambia, for example, StarTimes entered into a joint venture called TopStar with state broadcaster ZNBC to help the country make the switch to digital TV. The deal gave the Chinese player a 60% share in the state broadcaster for 25 years. That split in the Chinese partner’s favor has caused critics to fear that StarTimes has effectively taken control of the country’s television network.
Josephat Nchungo, an international trade analyst at the University of Zambia, said: “The primary objective of this partnership is providing the infrastructure for digital TV. The secondary objective is also to exchange culture and knowledge between the two countries. StarTimes has been so controversial because people interpreted it as a sale of the state broadcast to the Chinese and hence the loss of sovereignty.”
Similar concerns have been raised about deals in Ghana, by the Independent Broadcasters’ Association, and Kenya, where StarTimes has also partnered with state broadcasters to operate the new digital network.
“If the StarTimes pulled out of some countries,” said Madrid-Morales, “the country’s TV stations would stop working. Essentially, StarTimes has the power to blackout some countries’ TV networks, if it wants.” That’s a claim that StarTimes pushes back on, saying that the company “does not control any country’s TV network and does not have the capacity to spark media blackouts.”
That matters because satellite television is the preferred and more affordable option for many Africans.
While viewers in the West increasingly consume content through online streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu, the prevalence of pay-as-you-go data contracts in Africa makes watching shows on these type of services expensive.
George Mbuthia, research analyst for East and West Africa, at IDC, said: “Although video streaming services are on the rise in Africa, for the majority of the population, mobile video streaming remains out of reach. This is due to poor connectivity and high cost associated with live streaming. Few users use mobile phones for streaming while majority prefer pay-TV.”
There are also economic concerns in the deals that StarTimes has made.
To pay for the $271 million contract, for example, Zambia took out loans from China’s Export-Import Bank. “In order for partnerships to happen, the African country must usually take money from Exim bank,” said Lewis. That raises fears that countries will be saddled with debt to China.
It’s just one example of how Beijing benefits when StarTimes prospers.
Haggai Kanenga, from the department of development studies at the University of Zambia, said: “The loan shows the money for this project is coming from the Chinese government itself, so these two — the StarTimes and the Chinese government — cannot be separated. In Zambia, they are widely viewed as one.”
A hard play for soft power
While StarTimes chased big government contracts to operate digital TV infrastructure, it also wooed consumers with cheap TV packages they could buy on digital networks, which often severely undercut local competitors.
From the beginning, the Chinese startup was regularly offering more channels than MultiChoice, the South African market leader in Anglophone Africa, and Canal+ in French-speaking countries — and for half the price. Consumers could get StarTimes cable and satellite TV packages for as little as $4 per month.
Competitors often complained they were facing unfair competition because StarTimes was so cheap, Madrid-Morales said. But there was little they could do.
The content offering by StarTimes included the sort of Filipino and Turkish soap operas that audiences in places like Kenya had been watching for years. But it added Chinese dramas and Kung Fu films to the mix — the latter proved so popular that StarTimes launched the StarTimes Kung Fu TV channel dedicated to them.
While not overtly political, the Chinese dramas were carefully curated to portray China as a modern, urban place, said Madrid-Morales — despite the fact that about half of China’s population still lives in the countryside. The idea, he says, was to portray China as a wealthy, modernizing country.
That aspirational narrative worked. One Chinese drama “A Beautiful Daughter-in-law Era” — about the intermarriage of a countryside migrant woman to an urban man — proved wildly popular in Africa in the early days after being translated into Swahili, Madrid-Morales said.
In 2011, the company established a huge translation campus on the outskirts of Beijing, where it hired mostly foreign staff to voice Chinese dramas into English and African languages including Swahili and Yoruba. The StarTimes Dubbing Contest scoured African countries seeking out voice actors to be whisked to China to narrate new content.
There was also another key component to StarTimes’ programming: pro-Chinese news.
The cheapest TV packages only gave viewers access to Al Jazeera and China Global Television Network (CGTN) — a state-owned news broadcaster that is part of Xi’s soft power mission to “tell the China story well.” That has often translated into reporting the news with a pro-China slant, to such an extent that in the United States, CGTN recently had to register as a foreign agent under anti-propaganda laws. One analysis of the 2014 Ebola outbreak in Africa, for example, found that 17% of stories by CGTN (then operating under a different name) mentioned China, emphasized the role its doctors played in the relief efforts. In reality, China had spent far less than the US, United Kingdom and Germany fighting the disease.
Western news channels, such as the BBC, whose broadcasts in many African nations are not subject to the kind of government censorship that they are in China, were available only on more expensive packages.
A huge turning point
In a flashy business district in downtown Nairobi, Japhet Akhulia is celebrating at the StarTimes’ new glass headquarters.
After another round of price slashing, StarTimes has hit 1.5 million subscribers in Kenya, putting it just behind the established player MultiChoice, says Akhulia, brand marketing director for the company in the East African country.
StarTimes has been in Kenya since 2012, but its recent growth has been driven, at least in part, by the support of President Xi.
In 2018, Beijing gave Akhulia’s team 800 million Kenyan shillings (roughly $7.8 million) to roll out the 10,000 Villages project in Kenya. That money would take StarTimes to an additional 16,000 households and 2,400 public institutions, such as schools and hospitals, across the country for free. Half that money was for equipment, and the half was for implementation costs including travel of StarTimes’ staff.
In most villages where the StarTimes installs TV for free, a mural is painted with the flags of Kenya and China side by side. That StarTimes enjoys a mutually beneficial relationship with Beijing is clear: the company is paid to execute the 10,000 Villages Project, and gains more customers from doing so. Xi gets to put Chinese content into households across Africa.
That symbiotic relationship caused onlookers like Lewis to question how private StarTimes really is.
“It’s obviously a proxy for the Chinese state,” she said.
Pang has never given an interview to Western media, enabling him to answer such allegations. As the StarTimes’ founder’s fortunes have amassed, he has kept an assiduously low profile even on matters such as whether or not he is a Communist Party member.
When asked about the government’s relationship with StarTimes, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing said via fax: “The Chinese government is always encouraging quality and reputable Chinese enterprises to develop in Africa.”
“It’s not easy to carry out the 10,000 villages project. Many foreign countries have neither the capability nor willingness to do this. In fact, the project has earned extensive recognition from local governments and people,” the spokesperson continued. “Last year, elementary students in remote Zambia watched the World Cup thanks to this project. Zambian president Edgar Lungu said publicly several times that the China-Zambia relations are mutually beneficial, and any distorted publicity can’t stop us from advancing our friendship for mutual principles and benefits.”
Localized content
Sande Bush is a comedian known as Dr. Ofweneke. But recently he’s been wondering if his stage name should be Dr. Love. That’s because Bush is the co-presenter of hit dating TV show “Hello, Mr. Right,” which pairs Kenyans with potential love matches.
“Actually, men have proposed on air,” says Bush. “These guys were literally just falling in love at first sight. It was beautiful.”
“Hello, Mr. Right” is important because it was StarTimes’ first foray into producing African-made content in Kenya, having already successfully tested the waters in Nigeria. The project shows how the Chinese company is evolving in local markets to maintain its foothold.
While conceived and directed by Chinese executives, the format of the show was shaped by its African co-hosts Bush and Vera Sadika. “It was easy to communicate. We gave them fresh ideas. We’re very modern and we know what’s trendy,” Sadika said.
As StarTimes secured its stronghold in Africa, creating localized content was key to growing its position in the market — and warding off Western competitors, who having seen the success of Chinese companies like StarTimes and Transsion on the continent. Meanwhile Netflix has been painfully slow to the continent. It finally entered Africa in 2016 — but even then it encountered criticism for demanding too much bandwidth for many slow internet connections in the region, where many people still have pay-as-you-go data contracts. Good internet speeds can be prohibitively expensive.
StarTimes’ localization has benefited local African creative industries, which have received investment from the Chinese firm.
“Africa is a scientific experiment for the creative industries of China,” Lewis said, noting that the underdeveloped market in Africa often gives entrepreneurs a blank slate to play with.
The more Chinese firms invest and experiment in Africa, the deeper their marketplace dominance is entrenched on the continent — and the more Beijing’s soft power grows. While Spotify and Apple Music target users mostly in developed markets, for example, Boomplay, which is owned by two Chinese companies, has become the largest streaming music service in Africa; it has 46 million users on the continent with a catalog of five million videos and songs, according to the company’s figures.
That early adoption advantage is what StarTimes has been banking on for decades, as it hoovers up government contracts and customers, from poor to elite, sewing up television markets across the continent. As the African continent continues to migrate to digital TV, StarTimes’ subscriber base is predicted to jump to 14.85 million by 2024, according to Digital TV Research — putting it ahead of MultiChoice.
That will only deepen China’s influence in a region that the West once saw as “the Hopeless Continent.” But should African nations be worried about StarTimes’ influence and relationship with Beijing, in the same way the West is about Huawei?
Madrid-Morales doesn’t think so. The potential negative consequences of having StarTimes dominate Africa’s television networks are still just possibilities, he said. Secondly, the costs associated with building these networks are enormous.
Many countries couldn’t have done it without Beijing.
“In the tradeoff between letting go of some sovereignty and building a state-of-the-art telecommunications network, most African countries have chosen the latter,” he said.
Source:Â cnn.com
Pencils of Promise (PoP), a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) with a focus on education and public health has fortified the ground floor of the six-unit classroom block of Aflao Border Basic School.
The NGO also constructed another six unit classrooms on top of the ground floor and a 20-seater toilet facility for the School.
The initiative is to rescue the infrastructure from collapsing, improve sanitation and make the environment appealing to pupils.
The Aflao Basic School has not seen any major modern works since it was built in 1984 by Border Guards apart from some new structures which were added by the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND) in 2009.
Mr. Freeman Gobah, Country Director, PoP, at a ceremony to handover the completed project to the School’s Management Committee and the community, said the NGO had to renovate the ground floor before building the first floor because the structure was too weak to withstand the pressure of the first floor.
He said the Aflao Border Basic School project was the most expensive project the NGO had undertaken in the country since its inception, estimated at over GHC500,000.00
Mr Gobah said the project was the 160th by his outfit in seven years across 24 districts within the Volta, Oti and Eastern Regions and urged both teachers and pupils to help maintain its longevity to benefit generations yet unborn.
He added that PoP also provided 272 pieces of furniture for the classrooms.
Mr Gobah commended the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) of the School for the support and commitment to the development of the School.
Mr Emmanuel Attipoe, Headteacher, Aflao Border Basic School, said the School was on a sanitation time bomb with no toilet facility for the about 3,000 pupil population and commended PoP for the intervention.
He said the School still needed more classroom blocks, science and ICT laboratories, and library.
Madam Enyonam Afi Amafuga, Volta Regional Director of Education, in a speech read on her behalf, praised PoP for their intervention in the educational sector in the Volta and Oti Regions.
She said the literacy quiz challenge introduced by the NGO had heightened interest and commitment to reading among pupils and was on course to improving literacy skills and learning outcomes in the two regions.
Madam Amafuga urged parents to provide their children with basic material needs, affection and psychological support to motivate them to learn.
Old students of the School presented nine laptop computers and a projector to the School.
Source:Â ghananewsagency.org
“Bring it on,” says the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, Mr. Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as ‘Chairman Wontumi’ to the National Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).
This was after Samuel Ofosu Ampofo dragged the NPP stalwart to court over an allegation peddled by the Chairman Wontumi that the former bought a car for one of the suspects who kidnapped the Canadian girls.
Speaking on Neat FM in an interview, Chairman Wontumi said: “I am litigant and I am ready for him…he should come and let’s face each other. I am not afraid of him…”
Listen to the rest of the conversation in the interview below
Source:Â peacefmonline.com
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said the successful implementation of the Free Senior High School (SHS) program and the prudent measures put in place to address its associated challenges has left critics with nothing to talk about.
“There were many who doubted that we can actually roll out the free SHS we promised Ghanaians. Many people especially those from the opposition said it was just a promise to win votes, but I also told them it was not for votes but my resolve to build a strong human resource base for the country.â€
“Having successfully implemented the free SHS, they have nothing to talk about, I was expecting them to come out to commend me but they are quiet. The truth has been separated from the lies,†he added.
Addressing the people of Cape Coast on Thursday as part of his three-day tour to the Central Region, the President indicated that starting September this year, every Ghanaian child from KG to SHS would enjoy free education.
The intervention, according to him would propel Ghana onto the path of progress and development.
Additionally, he said, the One District One Factory concept would also bring economic empowerment to the people of Ghana, stressing that it was only through industrialization that the country could achieve the desired development.
He said his government remained committed to creating jobs for the teeming unemployed in the country.
President Akufo Addo catalogued a number of road projects that would be undertaken in the Cape Coast Metropolis under the first phase of the synodro project which included Ayifua, Apewosika, Ankaful, Kwaprow, Ebubonko and Bessakrom roads.
He appealed to the people of Cape Coast to prepare adequately to receive the many Africans from the Diaspora who would be visiting for the year of return event, for them to always want to come back.
Source:Â asempanews.com
The hopes of a multi-millionaire fishing magnate, Charles Hagan, to contest the Sekondi parliamentary seat for opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Western Region hangs in the balance due to inability to speak English.
Regional Organiser of the Party, Japheth Baidoo who confirmed the development to Empire News said the rich fisherman popularly known in Sekondi as “Panya†could hardly express himself in the English language which is the medium of exchanges in Parliament.
“When he (Charles Hagan aka Panya) appeared before us, we asked him, what is your name? he could not respond, again we asked him how old are you, he could not express himself and when asked lastly, why do you want to contest he could not answer in english.
“This was strange to us and we asked ourselves how such a person can represent the NDC in parliament where serious business takes place, so we have referred the matter to the national secretariat to decide on this development,†the Western Regional NDC Organiser revealed.
The fisherman cum philanthropist is on record to have told party well wishers that he is mainly going to parliament to help his party ensure the fishing industry is well regulated.
Mr Charles Hagan recently acquired the latest edition of Toyota Fortuner for his campaign and has even gone ahead to open accounts for all the branches in the Sekondi Constituency to resource them well.
Mr Japheth Baidoo revealed that so far 26 aspirants out of 32 have been vetted in 11 out of the 17 constituencies in the Western Region.
Source:Â starrfm.com.gh
The National Youth Organizer of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Henry Nana Boakye aka Nana B has once again warned all political party groups to abide by the new Vigilante Law passed by Parliament.
According to him, he will not shield any party member who decides to frolic around; taking the law into their own hands.
The vigilante law is to prevent political vigilantism.
Contributing to a panel discussion on Peace FM’s, ‘Kokrokoo’ Nana B maintained that he will not shield or protect any young person who will misbehave or act in any lawlessness in the country.
“As politicians, our posturing should allow the law take its cause and I have done it before”, citing some incidents that happened in Talensi and Tafo Pankrono respectively.
He asked them to comport themselves and ensure they don’t flout the laws because having the intent to kill or harm somebody is an act of crime and when the law catches up with you, you will be punished severely.
Watch his submission below:
Source: peacefmonline
Joy Sports has posed ten key questions to Sports Minister Isaac Kwame Asiamah after briefing Parliament on how US$ 4.5 million was expended on the Black Stars for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
The sector minister claimed the country budgeted US$ 6.3million and thus, an amount of $1.7million was not spent.
CAF caters to the needs of each team’s players and technical team during the tournament. How many technical team members did team Ghana present?
In 2017, the Black Stars were convinced to take a $5,000 winning bonus. Why couldn’t we do same this time?
CAF gave each participating nation $260K for preparation. Why was that amount not factored into the minister’s presentation?
Ghana won just a game but paid winning bonuses of over $965K for players. Does it mean each player got about $42K?
Ghana has a culture of paying the Black Stars appearance fees before tournaments. Did it happen again? If so, how much?
The minister’s presentation said the $6.3m budget covered NINE categories of people, but the actual breakdown mentioned expenses incurred for only the players and technical team. What happened to expenses for the other seven groups?
The entire sports ministry budget for 2019 is GHS 43m ($7.9m), but the AFCON budget alone was GHS 34m or $6.3m (representing 79% of the total amount). How does the state justify that expense when many other sports urgently need help?
Joy Sports understands that the AFCON expenditure was taken from outside the sports ministry’s budgetary allocation? What was the source of the money?
Budgets, by definition, are presented before expenses are made. Why did parliament not demand this be done by the sports ministry before the AFCON?
Who constitutes ‘additional technical staff’ in the minister’s budget, and why are their per diem/winning bonus payments separate from ‘technical staff’?
Source:Â GHANAsoccernet.com
Rufftown Records singer Wendy Shay joined a team from the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) to pay a visit to Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.
The team made up of YEA’s board, management, and some ambassadors visite the Manhyia Palace on Friday, July 26, 2019.Â
Apart from Shay, the other ambassadors present included Kwesi Arthur, Bola Ray, Emelia Brobbey, Bibi Bright, and Becca Donkor.
According to YEA’s board chairman, Sammy Awuku, who announced the visit on social media, it was mainly to introduce the Agency’s new programmes and initiatives to the respected king.Â
“The YEA Leadership used the occasion to introduce the new Flagship Program and initiatives of the Agency to Otumfuo. The Wise King also admonished us not to let the younger generation down. He commended our resolve to help support the Nana Addo Administration with such programs aimed at alleviating poverty and tackling unemployment among the Youth.Â
On our part, we assured him of our determination to see these initiatives through for the good of our youth,” Awuku’s post on Facebook partly read.
From photos Awuku shared, Shay dressed decently unlike the last time she and the team visited former President J.A. Kufuor.Â
It will be recalled that Shay recently came under massive criticism for visiting Kufuor in an outfit which many people thought was indecent.Â
After sharing a photo in which Kufuor was caught watching her bosom, the singer quickly deleted it as it caused a stir on social media with a lot of people blasting her for showing disrespect to the former president.Â
Following that saga, Shay who later apologised was rumoured to have been taken off the ambassadorial role after she and Kwesi Arthur’s names went conspicuously missing from a list the Agency brought out.
However, the Agency later denied taking her out and she looks to have learnt from her lesson.
Source:Â yen.com.gh
A man who is in a relationship with a lady who just graduated from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology [KNUST] did the romantic thing when he publicly proposed to his girlfriend at the graduation grounds yesterday, 25th July 2019.
The young lady who read Bsc Chemistry got the shock of her life when her boyfriend who accompanied her went down on his knees and popped the question “Will You Marry�
Despite the shock and surprise of everyone around, the young lady said “Yes!†to the proposal and received loud cheers and applause from the people gathered after seeing what was going on.
In recent times, public proposals are on the rise in Ghana when it was barely unknown in most African countries.
Whiles some were lucky enough to get a positive answer from their proposals, others get a flat negative response which mostly ends in social media humiliation and trolls.
Source:Â ghpage.com
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Jomoro Constituency of the Western Region has described the visit of President Akufo-Addo to the area as “hopeless, uninspiring and waste of public resources”.
President Akufo-Addo on Tuesday, July 23, 2019 as part of his two-day working visit to the Region, interacted with teachers and students of Half Assini Senior High School (HASCO) and some Chiefs in the Jomoro Municipality.
“We express with utmost shock and disappointment the hopeless and uninspiring visit by President Akufo-Addo to the Jomoro Constituency”, a statement issued and signed by the party’s Deputy Communications Officer, Emmanuel N. Benle read.
“On Tuesday, 23rd July, 2019, President Akufo Addo visited Half Assini in the Jomoro Constituency with a 75-car convoy only to answer four questions from students of Half Assini SHS”, the statement added.
He indicated that the Jomoro Constituency cannot boast of a single completed project under Akufo-Addo-led government since 2017.
According to the communique, “In a Constituency whose Member of Parliament is a Deputy Minister, it is sad that Jomoro Constituency can’t boast of a single completed, worth commissioning project under a government which is almost three years in office.”
The statement also indicated that President Akufo-Addo, in 2017, visited the Constituency and promised to visit the area again to cut sod for the construction of a fertilizer plant but failed to honour his pledge, adding that the President has deceived the entire Constituents.
“In August, 2017, President Akufo Addo promised the good people of Jomoro a fertilizer factory as part of the 1D1F policy & assured the people that his next visit to the Municipality will be the commissioning of the factory. He visited yesterday, however, there wasn’t any mention of the fertilizer factory in his speech”, he noted.
The statement continued that “The MP of Jomoro has made a whole lot of noise about the establishment of the fertilizer plant and has even sent a so-called delegation to Awulae Annor Adjaye, the Paramount Chief of Western Nzema, to assure him of plans to establish the factory in Jomoro”.
The statement added that “A handful of people who went to the auditorium of Half Assini SHS with the expectation of hearing the President speak about the failed promise he made to the good people of Jomoro in August, 2017 got more disillussioned and gobsmacked. They have now come to the realization that ‘King Promise’ has no plans of establishing a fertilizer factory in Jomoro & that his 1D1F promise to Jomoro was made to deceive the people”.
The NDC further descended heavily on the MP, Paul Essien stating that “It is surprising to know, that the plethora of needless billboards that have been mounted by the MP of Jomoro to announce proposed projects since last year haven’t resulted in any single completed project.
“Where are the projects from the one million dollars per Constituency per year?” the opposition quizzed.
Below is the full statement
National Democratic Congress, Jomoro Constituency
THE VISIT OF PRESIDENT AKUFO ADDO TO JOMORO CONSTITUENCY WAS HOPELESS, UNINSPIRING AND A DISSIPATION OF PUBLIC RESOURCES
We express with utmost shock and disappointment the hopeless and uninspiring visit by President Akufo-Addo to the Jomoro Constituency.
On Tuesday, 23rd July, 2019, President Akufo Addo visited Half Assini in the Jomoro Constituency with a 75-car convoy only to answer four questions from students of Half Assini SHS.
In a Constituency whose Member of Parliament is a Deputy Minister, it is sad that Jomoro Constituency can’t boast of a single completed, worth commissioning project under a government which is almost three years in office.
In August, 2017, President Akufo Addo promised the good people of Jomoro a fertilizer factory as part of the 1D1F policy & assured the people that his next visit to the Municipality will be the commissioning of the factory. He visited yesterday, however, there wasn’t any mention of the fertilizer factory in his speech.
The MP of Jomoro has made a whole lot of noise about the establishment of the fertilizer plant and has even sent a so-called delegation to Awulae Annor Adjaye, the Paramount Chief of Western Nzema, to assure him of plans to establish the factory in Jomoro.
Surprisingly, in all the speeches made yesterday by the President and his entourage in Jomoro, there wasn’t even a mention of the said fertilizer factory.
A handful of people who went to the auditorium of Half Assini SHS with the expectation of hearing the President speak about the failed promise he made to the good people of Jomoro in August, 2017 got more disillussioned and gobsmacked. They have now come to the realization that ‘King Promise’ has no plans of establishing a fertilizer factory in Jomoro & that his 1D1F promise to Jomoro was made to deceive the people.
It is surprising to know, that the plethora of needless billboards that have been mounted by the MP of Jomoro to announce proposed projects since last year haven’t resulted in any single completed project. Where are the projects from the one million dollars per Constituency per year?
The people of Jomoro are wild awake and have noticed the deceit and disrespect of this failing government towards Jomoro.
You can lie your way to power but can’t lie your way through power. The people of Jomoro deserve better and will register their displeasure in the 2020 polls.
Signed!
Emmanuel N. Benle
Deputy Communications Officer, NDC Jomoro
Source:Â Daniel Kaku
A business mogul, Joseph Apor Adjei popularly known as Boin, has picked nomination forms to contest for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary primaries in the Ellembelle Constituency of the Western Region slated for September 28, 2019.
The current District Chief Executive (DCE) for Ellembelle, Kwasi Bonzoh has been running unopposed since 2012 but this time around, he is facing tight competition.
As of the time of filing this story, two NPP members including the business mogul have picked nomination forms to contest.
The Ellembelle DCE, who has declared his intention publicly to contest for the third time, is however yet to pick nomination forms.
Since 1992, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has not won the Ellembelle parliamentary seat. The seat is being occupied by the NDC’s MP, Emmanuel Armah Kofi-Buah
The occasion, which could be described as a rally, was characterized by a procession of NPP faithful and sympathizers and also over 200 delegates from the constituency who picked the nomination forms on his behalf through the principal streets of Aiyinasi amidst brass band music and dance on Friday, July 26, 2019.
Presenting the forms to Joseph Apor Adjei, the Polling Station Chairman of Baku, Saint Akpoh stated that the party has been divided into two camps adding the grassroot was looking for a unifier hence their support for Apor Adjei (Boin).
He added that the business mogul has the party at heart and has demonstrated to the rank and file of the party in the Constituency.
Mr. Akpoh disclosed that through Boin, the party could boast of an ultra-modern party office. He added that party was renting office for its activities.
“We are supporting him because he has the party at heart and for the first time the party can boast of an ultra-modern party Office. This office has a 250-seated conference room. Look at he has done for us, he has not becoming an MP but he has started resourcing the party. Please let us all support him”, he emphasized.
He opined that “He is a unifier. We the delegates need him to help more people in Ellembelle as he is doing”.
Receiving the forms, the business mogul, Mr. Apor Adjei thanked God, the NPP delegates and all adherents of the party for giving him the maximum support to contest to capture the seat for the party for the first time.
Addressing the enthusiastic gathering, Mr. Apor admitted that party in Ellembelle has been divided adding that the party can only win the seat if there was a unity.
He said the party needs unity, love and peace to win the Ellembelle seat for the first time in 2020.
He opined “If we have unity, love and we work hard, I know victory will be ours in 2020”.
He added that “…we shouldn’t elect anybody at all but someone who is ready to win the seat and we also need someone who has resources to win the seat for the party and we also need someone who can become a Minister to help the Constituency a lot”.
He, therefore, charged the delegates to vote someone like him who has created job opportunities for the teeming unemployed youth and not anybody at all who doesn’t have a track record.
“We should also elect someone who has created jobs for the youth in the Constituency and beyond, so if you should rally behind me to become your MP to create more jobs”, he said.
He seized the opportunity to urge the delegates to investigate all the Aspirants to know their backgrounds before voting.
Mr. Apor emphasized that “Our primaries on 28th September will decide whether we NPP like unity or not, vote for me because I am a unifier to unite the party for victory”.
He concluded that “I have used myself as a sacrificial lamb for the party and I know you the delegates will elect me to win the seat for the NPP for the first time”.
Speaking to one of the delegates who picked the nomination forms for him, Samuel Ainooson disclosed that their move became necessary of the businessman’s committment and unwavering appetite in helping ordinary people especially youth within and outside the Constituency by already employing over 700 youth in the Western Region.
Source:Â Daniel Kaku
The Chief Executive Officer of Menzgold Nana Appiah Mensah popularly known as NAM 1 is expected to spend the weekend in custody as the police begins verification process for documents of properties his lawyers have supplied to meet the GHC1 billion bail bond placed on him by the court.
According to Starr News sources, the police is verifying the authenticity of the documents from agencies including the lands commission.
During the Court sitting today, the 26th of July 2019, the plea of Nana Appiah Mensah (NAM1), was taken on everyone of the thirteen counts preferred against him and four others, two of which are at large namely Rose Tetteh and Benedict a Appiah. NAM1 pleaded not guilty to all 13 counts simply by responding “I am not guilty your lordship†to all the counts as read to him. The Police initially changed the accused persons with eight (8) counts but have added five move to bring the total charges to thirteen (13).
The prosecuting officer, Assistant Supretendant of Police (ASP) Sylvester Asare, took the floor to read the brief facts of the case to the hearing of the parties in Court. He indicated at the end of his submissions that investigations are still on going into the matter.
Lawyer for the accused person, Kwame Boafo Akuffo in his nearly 20 minutes submission for bail for his client put up a strong case why NAM1 should be admitted to bail after being in custody for 9 months in and out of the Ghanaian Jurisdiction in pursuit of some 39 million dollars owed him in the United Arab Emirates (Dubai).
He further argued that in setting the bail conditions if the Court so desires, the Court should be minded that his client has already surrounded his passport to the State and several of his assets and properties including 70 vehicles have already seized by the State. “With this I yield back my lady†Kwame Boafo Akuffo stated in Court.
Judge Jane Harriet Akweley Quaye, in her ruling admitted NAM1 to bail. The bail conditions were 1 Billion Ghana Cedis with five (5) sureities, three(3) of which must be justified. The accused person the Court also indicated must present himself to the Police ones every week on Wednesday. She subsequently adjourned sitting to the 12th of August 2019.
The the Security detail at the court premises as well as those who accompanied the accused person to Court due to the huge presence of supposed Menzgold customers at the entrance of the Court, managed to get NAM1 out of the Court Premises through the back door.
Source: starrfm.com.gh
Four female national football stars have today passed out as officers of the Ghana Prisons Service.
They include two players of Black Queens – the national female football team; Juliet Acheampong and Azume Adams and Black Princesses duo; Ruth Animah and Helena Obeng.
They were part of the 112th course run by the Ghana Prisons Service for recruits.
A total of 423 recruits passed out as officers, comprising 269 young men representing 63.6% of the total number and 154 young women, which represents 36.4% of the total number.
Source:Â Graphic.com.gh
Ghana Premier League giants Hearts of Oak have handed youngster Mitchelle Sarpong an improved contract ahead of the upcoming season.
The Phobians have been handed a major boost ahead of the next season as Sarpong committed his future to the club.
The highly-rated youngster has been o of the standout of players in the Ghana Premier League since his promotion from the club’s youth side.
The 18-year-old was promoted from the club’s feeder side Auroras FC after an explosive performance last year.
Hearts of Oak confirmed Sarpong’s improved contract on twitter.
Source:Â GHANAsoccernet.com
Ghanaian International, Amos Frimpong has today joined Guinea top-flight side AS Kaloum Star on a two-year deal from Kumasi Asante Kotoko.
The former Captain of the Porcupine Warriors has been in talks with the side for the past couple of weeks after the Kumasi based side mutually agreed to let him go.
Following successful talks between the parties involved, Amos Frimpong has been announced by AS Kaloum Star as their new player after undergoing a mandatory medical test.
The defender leaves Asante Kotoko after playing for the side for 8 years and establishing himself as one of their best players in the last couple of seasons.
Amos Frimpong who can play any role in defense joined Kotoko on July 1, 2011, and managed to win a number of trophies with the Reds. His recent success with the club came when he helped them to clinch the tier 1 trophy of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) Normalization Committee (NC) Special Competition.
Source:Â footballghana.com
Lawyer for the Chief Executive Officer of gold dealership firm, Nana Appiah Mensah, has challenged the State to provide the list of the alleged 16,000 complainants who claimed that they have been defrauded by his client.
According to the charge sheet, Police had claimed they “received petitions from about 16,000 complainants to the effect that the 1st and 2nd accused made a representation and/or invitation through its officers to the public including the complainants to deposit money for a fixed period with interest under the pretext of purchasing gold from the 2nd accused.â€
“Upon such representation, the complainants deposited varied sums totalling 1,680,920,000,†the prosecutors stated in the charge sheet.
But NAM1 through his lawyer Kwame Akuffo during the court hearing on Friday indicated that he will demand the state to list all the 16,000 persons who are said to be complainants in the case brought by the state.
According to the lawyer, it is a requirement for an accused person to know his accusers to be able to defend himself.
His comments follow criminal charges taken against NAM1 by the state where prosecution mentioned one Francis Agodzie and 16,000 others as complainants.
The Chief Executive Officer of Menzgold, Nana Appiah Mensah, was earlier today granted a GH¢ 1 billion bail by an Accra Circuit court.
He is to present five sureties, three of whom must be justified.
This was after he made a second appearance before the court. NAM1 pleaded not guilty to all charges against him in court.
Kwame Akuffo while praying the court for the bail asked the court to reduce the monetary condition because all his assets had been seized by the State.
Menzgold customers besiege court Some customers of Menzgold clad in red besieged the premises of the court earlier on Friday.
Background
NAM1 is on trial for two counts of abetment to defraud by false pretence and two counts of abetment to carry out banking business without licence, contrary to Section 6 (1) of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).
Nana Appiah Mensah arrived in Ghana on July 11, 2019 where he was picked up by security operatives at the Kotoka International Airport and sent to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service for interrogation after spending several months in Dubai in another legal battle.
He was remanded at a previous court hearing.
Source: citinewsroom.com
Lawyer for the Chief Executive Officer of gold dealership firm, Nana Appiah Mensah, has challenged the State to provide the list of the alleged 16,000 complainants who claimed that they have been defrauded by his client.
According to the charge sheet, Police had claimed they “received petitions from about 16,000 complainants to the effect that the 1st and 2nd accused made a representation and/or invitation through its officers to the public including the complainants to deposit money for a fixed period with interest under the pretext of purchasing gold from the 2nd accused.â€
“Upon such representation, the complainants deposited varied sums totalling 1,680,920,000,†the prosecutors stated in the charge sheet.
But NAM1 through his lawyer Kwame Akuffo during the court hearing on Friday indicated that he will demand the state to list all the 16,000 persons who are said to be complainants in the case brought by the state.
According to the lawyer, it is a requirement for an accused person to know his accusers to be able to defend himself.
His comments follow criminal charges taken against NAM1 by the state where prosecution mentioned one Francis Agodzie and 16,000 others as complainants.
The Chief Executive Officer of Menzgold, Nana Appiah Mensah, was earlier today granted a GH¢ 1 billion bail by an Accra Circuit court.
He is to present five sureties, three of whom must be justified.
This was after he made a second appearance before the court. NAM1 pleaded not guilty to all charges against him in court.
Kwame Akuffo while praying the court for the bail asked the court to reduce the monetary condition because all his assets had been seized by the State.
Menzgold customers besiege court Some customers of Menzgold clad in red besieged the premises of the court earlier on Friday.
Background
NAM1 is on trial for two counts of abetment to defraud by false pretence and two counts of abetment to carry out banking business without licence, contrary to Section 6 (1) of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).
Nana Appiah Mensah arrived in Ghana on July 11, 2019 where he was picked up by security operatives at the Kotoka International Airport and sent to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service for interrogation after spending several months in Dubai in another legal battle.
He was remanded at a previous court hearing.
Source:Â citinewsroom.com
The Paramount Chief of the Assin Owirenkyi Traditional Area, Nana Prah Agyensaim VI, has thanked the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, for fulfilling a majority of the promises he made to the Ghanaian people in the run-up to the 2016 elections.
According to Nana Prah Agyensaim VI, “If we decide to list all the things that you have done for us, we will sit here until morning. Ever since you assumed the high office, we believe that you have fulfilled most of the promises you made to the people of this nation. God bless you!â€
The Assin Owirenkyi Chief made this known on Friday, 26th July, 2019, when President Akufo-Addo visited Assin Breku as part of his 3-day tour of the Central Region.
Nana Prah Agyensaim VI indicated that “with the amount of poverty in this area, we are extremely grateful to you for enforcing the Free SHS policy, to ensure that our children can also go to school.â€
He continued, “We know the number of children that could be educated to the Senior High level before Free SHS was introduced, and we also know the number of children who now have that opportunity. Here in this municipality, I dare say that the number has doubled and yet their parents have not paid a dime.â€
The Assin Owirenkyi Chief requested for a Nursing and Midwifery Training College to be constructed for the area.
“We have been asking for this for a long time. Sometimes we see a little progress and then it retrogresses. However, we know that once the President has heard about it, he will give the necessary support to make sure it sees the light of day,†he added.
At Assin Jakai, Oseadeayo Kow Antwi Barima, the Chief of the Atandansu Traditonal Area, expressed the appreciation of his people to the President for “all the work you are doing to better the living standards of my people and the Ghanaian people.â€
“The Free SHS policy, the programme for Planting for Food and Jobs, the Rearing for Food and Jobs initiative, 1-District-1-Factory, are all policies that are geared towards benefitting the country. These are all good policies, so we, the Chiefs, are solidly behind you,†he said.
The Chief appealed to Government to assist the community in the establishment of a cassava processing factory in Assin South, which, he said, will provide jobs for some 2,000 inhabitants of the area.
Oseadeayo Kow Antwi Barima noted that “Ghanaians are, naturally, not patient. If Ghanaians had the spirit of patience, a time will come where they will appreciate the good works you are doing for them. My advice to you is that do not listen to the negative comments of some people. Forge ahead, the chiefs and people of Assin South are behind you, work hard and bring progress and prosperity to the Ghanaian people.â€
Source:Â starrfm.com.gh
Madam Paulina Patience Abayage, Upper East Regional Minister, has charged Heads of Senior High and Technical Schools in the Upper East Region to make their administration more transparent to avoid unnecessary uprising from students and staff.
Madam Abayage explained away that the causes of the uprising of students and staff against management of their institutions were often as a result of the lack of inclusive administration and the free flow of information to the right stakeholders.
Madam Abayage made the call in Bolgatanga during a press briefing after a closed door meeting with heads of second cycle institutions to address the recent uprising of students in some senior high and technical schools in the region and to find ways of addressing the menace.
She said the failure of some heads to operate an open door administration to allow for students and their teachers to forward their grievances for redress make them see their heads as dictators and autocrats which usually brings about conflict in the schools.
She pointed out that students and teachers must be made to obey institutional regulations through fair and firm measures to give them fair hearings when need be.
Madam Abayage said school cadet corps must not be allowed to enforce regulations in schools, when the school has prefects, house masters and masters on duty.
She said it was important for students and teachers to know the challenges confronting the school which would allow both parties to appreciate the state and conditions in the school.
Madam Abayage urged the heads to organize periodic meetings with their staff in order to put across issues pertaining to the development of the school, and advised management to institute proper structures to promote discipline and information flow among others.
She called on parents not to relax in the up-bringing of their children just because they are in school, and further urged them to contribute their quota to the total development of their children.
The Minister disclosed that about three schools including the Sandema Senior High Technical, in the Builsa North district, the Saint Benedict Senior High Technical in the Kassena-Nankana Municipality and the Kongo Senior High School in the Nabdam district are schools closed down due to students uprising.
Mr Augustine Ayireyang, Upper East Regional Director of Education, called for proactive leadership among heads of institutions in the region to promote discipline in the schools and improve on the quality of education.
He urged them to adopt speedy ways of resolving issues arising from their schools to prevent them from escalating.
Source:Â GNA
The Yeji Police Command in the Pru East District of the Bono East Region has impounded two trucks loaded with fertilizers meant for the Plant for Food and Jobs Programme and heading towards Burkina Faso.
The two Man Diesel trucks with registration number AS 5946 U and GT 948 J were allegedly using the Yeji route to Burkina Faso.
Each of the two trucks allegedly had about one thousand fertilizers meant for the Planting for Food and Jobs Programme.
The District Chief Executive for Pru East, Joshua Kwaku Abonkrah in an interview with Citi News said “The drivers of the trucks were arrested but have been granted bail.â€
“The trucks are currently parked at the Yeji Police Station. Peter Minka Boadu who is an Atebubu based fertiliser distributor and allegedly supplied the fertilizers is yet to be arrested but the police have begun their investigations into the issue.â€
However, the owner of Agyenkwa Enterprise, a fertiliser distribution outlet based in Yeji, Patrick Odieahun is currently in the grips of the Police helping in the investigation.
This year alone, Nkoransa South Municipality in the Bono East region and Asunafo North Municipality of the Ahafo region have all recorded incidents of missing fertilizers under the Planting for Food and Jobs Programme.
The Asunafo North Municipal Director of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Mr. Eric Aduamah is being investigated by the Ahafo Police Command following the disappearance of 14,497 fertilisers valued at Gh946,000.00 cedis.
In 2018, fertilizers worth about Gh600, 000 cedis meant for the Planting for Food and Jobs programme in the Sunyani Municipality got missing from a warehouse belonging to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Sunyani.
Seven workers of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Sunyani were placed under investigation by the police.
But one year down the lane the Bono Regional Police Command is yet to complete their investigation into the incident.
The PRO of the Bono Police Command, Chief Inspector Kingsley Augustin Oppong told Citi News that the Attorney General has directed the Police to do further investigation into the incident because the evidence provided by the Police so far is not strong enough to be used to prosecute the seven persons.
Source:Â citinewsroom.com
Deputy Minister of Finance Abena Osei Asare has hinted that most concerns of Ghanaians will be addressed in the 2019 mid-year budget review come Monday, 29th July 2019.
The Finance Minister is expected to present the Mid-Year Review of the budget statement and Economic policy of the government of Ghana for the 2019 financial year.
Deputy Finance Minister, speaking to Ghanaweb ahead of the budget reading Monday said that the budget statement will address pertinent issues and concerns of Ghanaians with regards to the economy and expenditure.
She added Ghanaians will be satisfied with the midyear budget statement.
“…we are going to talk about how far we have come with the 2019 budget that parliament approved for us. In this mid-year we will try to address the pertinent issues that are bothering Ghanaians. We will look at so many things and we would tell you how far we have fared with the revenue and also in terms of our expenditure and what we have done. We will also share with you any other thing that we believe will help give Ghanaians hope that this government is really working and is on course to deliver on everything that this government said we were going to deliver in the 2019 budget.â€
However the Minority Chief Whip, Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka, has cautioned government not to increase taxes even though government is not reaching their revenue generation target but rather find innovative ways to generate revenue in the country.
According to him, businessmen are already finding it difficult to pay current taxes hence an increment will rather worsen their situation.
“My expectation is that, yes they have not been able to meet their numbers in revenue generation but they should be careful about further increasing tax because, believe me talk to ordinary business people they are really finding it difficult. Further increasing taxes is going to exacerbate their situation so I want to caution the finance minister if truly he is thinking about increasing tax please he should revise it.â€
Source:Â www.ghanaweb.com
A woman collapsed in a sanitation courtroom upon hearing she had been found guilty in what city authorities call “trading at unauthorized location and in an unsanitary condition.â€
Edna Mensah who is a trader at the Agbogbloshie food market in Accra and 11 other traders were convicted separately on Tuesday by the Adjabeng Magistrate Court in Accra for acting contrary to provisions in the Public Health Act 851 2012 and the AMA Bye-law 2017.
Source:Â kasapafmonline.com
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane says he is “worried and bothered” about his side’s growing injury list as the La Liga season approaches.
New left-back Ferland Mendy (calf) is the latest player to pick up an injury on a pre-season tour of the USA.
Mendy joins Brahim Diaz (thigh) and Marco Asensio – who is expected to be out for up to nine months with a torn cruciate ligament – on the sidelines.
“I don’t think about who is going to replace Marco,” Zidane told Marca.
“We are devastated with Marco’s injury and we are preparing the players who are here, then we will return to Madrid.”
Zidane, who has previously said Welsh forward Gareth Bale was “very close to leaving” the club, made no comment on whether the mounting injury list meant further changes to his personnel for the season.
Real continue their tour of the US on Saturday when they face city rivals Atletico Madrid in New Jersey.
Source: bbc.com
Customers of Menzgold thronged the court as Nana Appiah Mensah, popularly known as NAM 1 appeared before an Accra Circuit court today.
Hundreds of the aggrieved customers were there with flyers and placards with different inscriptions.
The customers were asking authorities to free him so he can pay their monies.
When NAM1 arrived in court, customers cheered, calling him a hero.
NAM1 is said to have defrauded 16,000 people of GH¢1.68billion in the name of investing their monies.
The CEO, who returned to Accra on Thursday July 11, 2019 after months of detention in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, is said to have operated his gold dealership company in contravention of sections of the Banks and Specialised Deposits Taking Act, 930 and the Criminal Offences Act, while operating Menzgold and its sister company, Brew Marketing.
NAM1 was charged with 4 counts of fraud and conducting banking business without licence. He has also been charged with two counts of abetment to defraud by false pretence and two counts of abetment to carry out banking business without licence, contrary to Section 6 (1) of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).
Two of his companies — Brew Marketing Consult and Menzgold Ghana Limited — represented by him, have each been charged with defrauding by false pretence, contrary to sections 20 (1) and 13 (1) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).
The two companies have also been charged with carrying out a deposit-taking business without a licence, contrary to Section 6 (1) of Act 930.
Also facing the law are his sister and wife, Benedicta Appiah and Rose Tetteh, respectively, who have been slapped with two counts of abetment to defraud by false pretence and two counts of abetment to carry out banking business without a licence, contrary to Section 6 (1) of Act 930.
Source: theindependentghana
Ghana star Asamoah Gyan delivered a motivational lecture to the current U20 players preparing for next month’s African Games in Rabat, Morocco.
The country’s all-time leading scorer was invited by head coach Yaw Preko to inspire the youngsters.
Gyan mentioned the need for the Black Satellites to work hard since talent alone could not be guaranteed success.
Met my senior Yaw “RUSH” Preko and the U20 Satellites team at the Accra Sports Stadium when they played a friendly match with Shooting Stars in preparation for the All Afrcan games and shared few thoughts with them..@ghanafaofficial @MOYSGh lets support them…#proudGhanaian pic.twitter.com/Crw9l0bxFn— ASAMOAH GYAN (@ASAMOAH_GYAN3) July 25, 2019
Source: GHANAsoccernet.com
Boris Johnson is continuing to appoint more new ministers during his second full day as prime minister.
He completed a radical overhaul of his cabinet after entering Downing Street on Wednesday, making more changes in lower-ranked jobs on Thursday.
Among the latter, long-time ally Kit Malthouse takes over policing at the Home Office, while George Eustice returns to an environment brief.
In his first Commons speech as PM, Mr Johnson promised a new “golden age”.
He promised to get Brexit done by the current deadline of 31 October.
After appointing a new cabinet, with Sajid Javid as chancellor, Dominic Raab as foreign secretary and Priti Patel as home secretary, Mr Johnson began the complex job of reshuffling the rest of his government team.
New appointments so far include:
Th̩r̬se Coffey Рpromoted within Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Conor Burns – international trade minister
Chris Pincher and Andrew Stephenson – foreign ministers
Chris Skidmore – health minister
Chris Heaton Harris – transport minister
Ministers remaining in their posts include:
Jesse Norman – financial secretary to the Treasury
Nick Gibb – schools minister
Mark Lancaster – defence minister
Andrew Murrison – foreign and international development minister
Justin Tomlinson – work and pensions minister
Caroline Dinenage – health minister
And those who have lost their jobs include:
Stephen Hammond – health minister
George Hollingbery – international trade minister
Harriett Baldwin – foreign is a hard job for prime ministers, with the possibility that those sacked – and those overlooked for a role – will become embittered.
On Thursday, former Brexit minister Steve Baker turned down a return to a junior role within the Department for Exiting the European Union.
The pro-Leave MP said he could not “repeat [his] experience of powerlessness” in the role.
With regret, I have turned down a ministerial job.
I cannot repeat my experience of powerlessness as a junior @DExEUgov minister with the work done in @cabinetofficeuk.
I have total confidence in @BorisJohnson to take us out of the EU by 31 Oct.
Disaster awaits otherwise.— Steve Baker MP (@SteveBakerHW) July 25, 2019
While Brexit Secretary Steven Barclay will nominally lead any future negotiations with the EU, most of the key work is expected to be done by No 10 and the Cabinet Office.
Michael Gove has been put in charge of overall planning for a no-deal Brexit, including its potential implications for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
As chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, a senior ministerial role without a specific portfolio, he will chair a number of key committees and taskforces.
Under UK law, a government is allowed a maximum of 109 paid ministers, of which up to 23 can be full cabinet ministers – including the PM.
The Conservative Party currently has 311 MPs.
Source: bbc.com
An international ship manufacturer, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), has expressed its readiness to assist the government to develop the Tema Shipyard and Drydock into a multipurpose facility that can design ships and accessories for the West African market.
Its Director in-charge of Shipbuilding, Admiral A.K. Saxena Rtd., who disclosed this observed that the company which was based in Mumbai, India has the needed capacity to support Ghana secure its territorial waters.
He said this in an interview at the opening of a two-day International Maritime Defense Exhibition & Conference in Accra.
He observed that the MDL was one of India’s leading Defence public sector institutions undertaking shipyard projects under its Ministry of Defence.
The main activities of the company are construction of warships and submarines with facilities situated at Mumbai having the capability to build warships, submarines, merchant ships.
The yard has design capabilities to undertake detailed design of surface ships for both military and commercial use with latest ship design software along with virtual reality laboratory that enables efficient production design.
MDL was established in 1774 and was taken over by the Government of India in 1960.
So far, MDL has constructed and delivered 795 ships including 25 warships and three submarines as well as 67 offshore platforms.
At present, MDL is undertaking construction of eight surface ships and five submarines and also carrying out refit of one submarine and one frigate.
He stated that the yard can supply vessels to provide maritime security for offshore oil installations, solutions for antipiracy as well as fight illegal fishing.
MDL can offer a wide range of vessels like OPVs, Fast Patrol Boats, Fast attack crafts and offshore structures for these purposes.
In addition, MDL can also provide a variety of other vessels such as Multipurpose Support Vessel, Tugs, Dredgers, Water Tankers, Passenger cum Cargo Vessels, Floating cranes, Offshore supply vessels, Pontoons etc.
MDL in addition to supplying ships and offshore structures, is also willing to provide handholding during design construction outside India as well as training to personnel through the OEMs of equipment.
The yard has recently modernised its infrastructure and augmented its capacity by acquiring more land parcels and water front.
Bharat Electronics Limited
BEL, another prestigious enterprise under MOD of Government of India, is also participating in the IMDEC 2019.
Set up in Bangalore (1954), BEL is a premier electronics company for the development, manufacture of professional-grade electronic equipment, systems and components.
BEL has achieved progressive, self-reliance in designing and manufacturing of equipment for Defence Communications, Electronic Warfare Systems, Radars & Sonars, Opto-Electronics, C4I Systems, Tank Electronics, Meteorology, Space Electronics, Civil Aviation, Medicare, Solar Photovoltaic based Systems and Electronic Components.
BEL provides turnkey systems solutions, contract manufacturing services on “Build to Print”, “Build to Spec” basis with the manufacturing units certified for ISO 9000/AS 9100D, ISO 14000 certification for Environment Management System.
Ordnance Factory Board
OFB is the third Indian company participating in IMDEC 2019. The Indian Ordnance Factories termed as “The Fourth Pillar” of India’s defense, is a conglomerate of 41 factories with more than two hundred years of experience in defense production.
OFB has a comprehensive product range offered in areas of land, air and marine defense systems.
These include small, medium and large caliber weapons and ammunition, mortars, explosives and pyrotechnics.
OFBs also supply Armoured and Soft Skin Vehicles, optical and night vision devices and parachutes.
The products are having wide international acceptability including NATO countries.
Source:Â thefinderonline.com
The Executive Director of the Fisheries Commission, Michael Arthur- Dadzie has said the crew of Chinese fishing vessel who were arrested, over the disappearance of a fishing observer, have been granted bail.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Thursday he said from what he has gathered, the police have granted the crew police inquiry bill and an extract.
“When I heard the report of the missing case on July 5, I asked them to lodge a report to the [Tema] Harbour police and the navy. All that was done. All the crew members were arrested and taken into custody. My information is that the police in the process of their investigation granted them police inquiry bill and have even called for an extract and a sea trip,†he said.
One Emmanuel Essien, a fishing observer assigned to the Meng Xin 15, a Chinese Vessel operating in Ghana, had been reported missing for about three weeks now.
Emmanuel Essien some three weeks ago embarked on a scheduled observer mission with the said vessel but has since not been seen.
His colleagues allege that the vessel returned from its deep-sea operations without Emmanuel.
It is standard practice to assign observers to foreign and local fishing vessels that fish in Ghanaian waters.
The Monitoring, Control and Surveillance department of the Ministry for Fisheries and Aqua Culture is responsible for the assignment of observers.
“Basically, every fishing vessel goes to sea on board with an observer who will record all activities at sea and report back to the Ministry of Fisheries. Recently, there was a Chinese vessel by name Meng Xin 15 with observer Emmanuel on board.â€
“Five days after the trip, the vessel came back reporting that the observer was missing,†one of the observers told Citi News on the condition of anonymity.
Source: citinewsroom.com
There is a cloud of uncertainty surrounding Black Stars B camping date ahead of Burkina Faso clash in the qualifiers for the 2020 Total African Nations Championship (CHAN)
Ghana will host the first leg on 26th September before travelling to Ouagadougou for the return fixture which is scheduled to be played after the WAFU tournament in Senegal.
With exactly two months to the crucial encounter, the team has still not resumed camp and it remains quite unclear when that will change.
A situation that is causing unease for the technical team who were hoping to get the boys in shape in time for the tie.
With no league ongoing, the technical was hoping to start training early so that they will prepare well for the games.
The CHAN tournament is exclusively reserved for footballers playing in their domestic leagues.
Ghana have missed out in the last two editions of the competition and are determined to pick a ticket this time.
Source: Footballmadeinghana.com
A member of the Nigerian Air Force who returned a lost parcel containing 37,000 euros ($41,500; £33,300) cash has received a two-rank promotion, as part of his reward.
Bashir Umar had been on patrol duties with other colleagues at an airport in the northern state of Kano when he discovered the cash. He then called the phone number that was written on the package and returned the cash to the owner.
He was promoted from aircraftman to the rank of corporal, a promotion that should have taken him 10 years to achieve, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.
He was also given a letter of commendation.
At Thursday’s event where he was honoured, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar said Mr Umar “displayed an uncommon act of integrity by returning the money to the owner”.
Mr Umar, who was present at the event with his parents, said returning the money was part of the discipline he got from home and in service.
Earlier in the week, President Muhammadu Buhari urged Nigerians “especially the youth, to emulate such [a] worthy gesture”, according to a statement from his spokesperson.
Source:Â bbc.com
Lawmakers in the south-western Nigerian state of Ondo abandoned their session on Thursday as a snake dropped from the roof, local media are reporting.
Members were about to begin the business of the day when the snake dropped from a hole in the ceiling, bringing the day’s work to an abrupt end as legislators and spectators in the gallery fled.
A lawmaker quoted by online newspaper Premium Times, said the snake did not bite anyone and was “eventually killed and burnt”. Another report said the snake slithered away, unhurt.
“That chamber is no longer safe for legislative business and because of that, we decided to adjourn indefinitely. The house will be going on an indefinite recess”, lawmaker Olugbenga Omole is quoted in Premium Times as saying.
Fumigation of the complex has been planned for Friday while the lawmakers are away.
Source: bbc.com
North Korea has called the test of two new missiles on Thursday a “solemn warning” against what it described as “South Korean warmongers”.
The short-range missiles were fired into the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea, from Wonsan on North Korea’s east coast.
Leader Kim Jong-un said his country was forced to develop weapons to “eliminate potential and direct threats”.
He said the test involved a new tactical guided weapons system.
Mr Kim’s comments, reported in state media, come after the North criticised a decision by South Korea and the US to hold military drills next month.
North Korea has long regarded the drills as preparation for an invasion.
Though the US and South Korea have refused to cancel the annual military exercises, they have been scaled back significantly.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said one of the new missiles travelled about 690km (428 miles). The US also confirmed that the missiles were “short-range”.
What did Kim Jong-un say?
Mr Kim said he was “satisfied” with the new weapons system’s response and claimed it would “not be easy to defend against”.
He said that South Korea should “not make a mistake of ignoring the warning”.
South Korea has urged Pyongyang to stop acts that are unhelpful to easing tension and said the tests posed a military threat.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo downplayed concerns about the launch, however, calling them a negotiating tactic.
“Everybody tries to get ready for negotiations and create leverage and create risk for the other side, he told Bloomberg Television.
“We want diplomacy to work. If it takes another two weeks or four weeks, so be it.”
Pyongyang is taking aim at Seoul – using both weapons and words.
The short range missile test yesterday puts the whole of the peninsula within range of a strike. Then there is the accusation that Seoul is “double dealing” – seeking peace while procuring new weapons and taking part in joint military drills with the US.
This language might sting a little after the South Korean President Moon Jae-in has worked so hard to develop a relationship with Kim Jong-un. Even Seoul’s offer to send rice to the impoverished North appears to have been spurned for now.
North Korea may be trying to test its influence over the South. It’s also a way of perhaps trying to split the positions of Washington and Seoul. The Moon administration has already argued for the partial easing of some sanctions to help build trust with North Korea. A move the US will not consider.
Once again, Donald Trump receives no criticism in this statement. This has become a habit for Pyongyang. Mr Kim is keeping the door open for talks with the US president. He appears to want to deal with Mr Trump directly and he wouldn’t want to do or say anything to jeopardise that chance.
What is the context?
The test is the first since Mr Kim and US President Donald Trump met at the De-Militarised Zone, an area that divides the two Koreas, on 30 June.
The launch also comes after anger from the North over planned military exercises between South Korea and the US, an annual event. The North warned they could affect the resumption of denuclearisation talks.
About 29,000 US soldiers are based in South Korea, under a security agreement reached after the war ended in 1953.
Last year, Mr Kim said North Korea would stop nuclear testing and would no longer launch intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Nuclear activity appears to be continuing, however, and satellite images of North Korea’s main nuclear site last month showed movement, suggesting the country could be reprocessing radioactive material into bomb fuel.
Pyongyang also continues to demonstrate its abilities to develop new weapons despite strict economic sanctions. Earlier this week Mr Kim inspected a new type of submarine, state media reported, which could be developed to carry ballistic missiles, according to some analysts.
Pyongyang also conducted a similar short-range missile launch in May, its first such test since its intercontinental ballistic missile launch in 2017.
Mr Trump responded then by saying he believed Mr Kim would not do anything that could jeopardise his country’s path towards better relations.
He tweeted that Mr Kim “knows that I am with him and does not want to break his promise to me”.
Source: bbc.com
Minister for Youth and Sports Hon Isaac Asiamah on Wednesday 24th July appeared before Parliament to disclose to them budget used at the just ended African Cup of Nations.
Among the issues he touched on included the performance of the team at the tournament, monies that were used to cater for the players, technical staff, fans and journalist among other people.
The Minister was asked about a purported state sponsored trip by the Ministry of Youth and Sports of supporters, journalist and the whole entourage to the pyramids and other tourist site in Egypt.
In parliament, the minister who appeared to be livid at the question posed brushed it aside stating the number of times he has been in Egypt and went further to state that the tour or excursion was catered for by FIFA/CAF.
“That I led an excursion in Egypt? That is neither here nor there.Mr Speaker It was a decision by CAF/FIFA to organize all supporters of countries that participated for an excursion so as a minister I was briefed and I communicated it to the supporters. That was what happened so the Minister never organized an excursion for the supporters.
And for your information Mr Speaker, I have been in Egypt for more than seven/eight ocassions and my last visit was four moths ago when I was there for the Arab/Africa Youth Conference in Aswan Egypt. Its not true so lets stop dwelling on these Social media discussions.” he fumed.
In the audio making rounds which was captured during a meeting of the minister with the various supporters union in Egypt, the minister is heading telling the supporters that their cry of boredom has reached his office and is therefore organizing a trip for them.
The Sports Minister could be heard calling the board chairman of the National Sports Authority Kwame Baah Agyemang and the deputy accountant of the Ministry who in the audio the minister referred to as the purse holder Hamidan to try and
organize a trip for the supporters.
Source:Â ghanaguardian.com
US President Donald Trump has demanded that Sweden “give ASAP Rocky his freedom” in a series of tweets.
The musician, real name Rakim Myers, has been charged with assault causing actual bodily harm in Stockholm. He will remain in custody until a trial takes place.
Mr Trump raged on Twitter that Sweden had “let our African American community down”.
ASAP was arrested on 3 July following a fight that was captured on video.
Two other men who were with them at the time have also been charged with assault. The musician says that his group was being followed by a group of men and he acted in self-defence.
Donald Trump said last week that he had spoken to Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven about ASAP’s case.
However on Thursday the president wrote that he was “very disappointed” in Mr Lofven for being “unable to act” and urged him to “treat Americans fairly”.
A spokesperson for Mr Lofven responded by saying that the Swedish judicial system, prosecutors and courts were independent, the government was not allowed to influence legal proceedings and “everyone is equal before the law”.
Daniel Suneson, the Swedish prosecutor in charge of the case said that he had not spoken to any White House representatives or any representatives of the Swedish government while investigating the case.
He added that there was “an obvious risk that these three suspects would leave the country if they were released”.
On Wednesday, the rapper’s mother pleaded for the release of her son. Renee Black told Swedish newspaper Expressen that ASAP “isn’t really eating properly.”
Other celebrities such as Kim Kardashian West and Kanye West have also called for ASAP’s release. More than 500,000, including fellow artists Nicki Minaj and Post Malone, have signed an online petition calling for the rapper to be released on bail.
The trial is due to start on 30 July.
How ASAP Rocky’s arrest unfolded
A video published online appears to show ASAP Rocky punching another man in the street.
In videos posted to ASAP Rocky’s Instagram afterwards, he and the people he’s with repeatedly tell a pair of men to stop following them.
One of the men accuses the 30-year-old’s team of breaking his headphones.
In the caption for the first video ASAP Rocky writes: “We don’t know these guys and we didn’t want trouble. They followed us for four blocks.”
In the second, he accuses the man of hitting his security guard “in the face with headphones”.
The 30-year-old was in Stockholm to perform at Smash festival.
Source: bbc.com
Top European officials have rebuffed the Brexit policy of Boris Johnson after his first speech to UK MPs.
The new prime minister said he was committed to “getting rid” of the Irish border backstop, which has long been a bone of contention in negotiations.
The EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, said removing the backstop guarantee was unacceptable.
Mr Johnson also spoke on the phone with EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.
Mr Juncker reiterated the EU’s position that the already-negotiated withdrawal agreement was the best one possible though he said the commission would be available over the coming weeks if the UK wanted to hold talks.
What did the prime minster say? Boris Johnson gave his first statement in the House of Commons since becoming prime minister, and set out his position on Brexit, which he has promised to complete by 31 October.
The backstop is a key piece of the deal negotiated by his predecessor’s government, dictating what will happen to the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
It is a last resort that guarantees a frictionless border if no better solution is devised in time – by maintaining close ties between the UK and the EU until such a solution is found.
“No country that values its independence, and indeed its self-respect, could agree to a treaty which signed away our economic independence and self-government as this backstop does,” Mr Johnson said.
Responding to questions from MPs, he said he was committed to “getting rid” of the backstop, describing it as “divisive” and “anti-democratic”.
“[It] poses that appalling choice to the British government and the British people – to the United Kingdom – of losing control of our trade, losing control of our regulation or else surrendering the government of the United Kingdom,” he added.
How did the EU react?
After the speech, Mr Barnier sent a note to European leaders, repeating the EU’s position that getting rid of the backstop was “of course unacceptable”, and labelling Mr Johnson’s speech “rather combative”.
But he added that despite disagreements over the backstop, the EU was prepared to “work constructively, within our own mandate”, and was prepared to analyse “any UK idea on withdrawal issues that are compatible with the existing withdrawal agreement”.
Concerning the possibility of a no deal, he said it would not be “the EU’s choice” but “we have to be ready for a situation where he [Mr Johnson] gives priority to the planning for ‘no deal’, partly to heap pressure on the unity of the EU27.”
“In any case, what remains essential on our side is to remain calm, stick to our principles and guidelines and show solidarity and unity of the 27.”
He added that he would “remain available throughout the summer for talks with the UK”.
Downing Street did not respond directly to Mr Barnier’s comments, but the prime minister’s official spokesman said the PM would be “energetic in the pursuit” of a deal.
But he added that Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement had “been rejected three times” by MPs and was “clearly not acceptable to them”.
However, at a news conference in County Donegal, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said, “without the backstop there is no withdrawal agreement, there’s no transition phase, there’s no implementation phase, and there will be no free trade agreement until all those matters are resolved”.
Meanwhile, Mr Johnson is coming under pressure from one of his own MPs to introduce a law guaranteeing the rights of EU citizens living in the UK.
The prime minister said EU citizens would have “absolute certainty” of their right to live and remain in the country.
Alberto Costa – who resigned as a parliamentary aide over the issue – welcomed the statement, but said the promise should be “underpinned by law”.
Source: bbc.com
The speaker of Tunisia’s parliament, Mohamed Ennaceur, will be sworn in as interim president later on Thursday.
President Beji Caid Essebsi died earlier on Thursday in hospital.
He was 92 years old.
The prime minister also declared seven days of mourning, reports Reuters news agency.
Source: bbc.com
Ghana Premier League side AshantiGold have dropped Sadick Adams from their CAF Confederation Cup squad according to reports.
The 29-year old is set to be on his way out of the club according to reports in the local media and will not be taking part in the miner’s campaign in the 2019/2020 season in the CAF Confederation Cup.
As his replacement AshantiGold have signed Liberty Professional attacker Benjamin Eshun to boost their squad ahead of the campaign.
AshantiGold as winners of Tier II will represent Ghana in the CAF Confederation Cup season for the 2019/2020 season.
Ashanti Gold will travel to Guinea to face Akonangui FC on the 11th August 2019, before playing the second leg a week later in Obuasi.
Source:Â GHANAsoccernet.com
President Mohamed Beji Caid Essebsi of Tunisia has died, the presidency said in a statement on Thursday after being hospitalized at a Military Hospital in the capital Tunis on Wednesday.
President Essebsi who was born on November 29, 1926 became the fifth President of Tunisia from December 2014 until his death, Ghana News Agency information indicates.
According to information available to the GNA, President Essebsi previously served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1981 to 1986 and as Prime Minister from February 2011 to December 2011.
President Essebsi was the founder of the Nidaa Tounes Political Party, which won a plurality in the 2014 parliamentary election. In December 2014, he won the first regular presidential election following the Tunisian Revolution, becoming Tunisia’s first freely elected president.
According to his profile, President Essebsi’s first involvement in politics came in 1941, when he joined the Neo Destour youth organization in Hammam-Lif.
He studied law in Paris and became a lawyer in 1952 at the Tunis Bar, where he began his career with the defence of Neo Destour activists.
He was a follower of Tunisia’s post-independence leader Habib Bourguiba. He then joined Bourguiba as an adviser following the country’s independence from France in 1956.
Source: ghananewsagency.org
The US federal government is to resume executing death-row inmates after a 16-year hiatus, the justice department has announced.
Attorney General William Barr said in a statement he had directed the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to schedule the executions of five inmates.
Mr Barr said the five had been convicted of murders or rapes of children or the elderly.
The executions have been scheduled for December 2019 and January 2020.
“Under administrations of both parties, the Department of Justice has sought the death penalty against the worst criminals,” Mr Barr said in a statement. “The Justice Department upholds the rule of law – and we owe it to the victims and their families to carry forward the sentence imposed by our justice system.”
The announcement lifts what was an informal moratorium on the federal death penalty – as opposed to state-directed executions – since the 2003 execution of Louis Jones Jr, a 53-year-old a Gulf War veteran who murdered 19-year-old soldier Tracie Joy McBride.
Under the US justice system, crimes can be tried either in federal courts – at a national level – or or state courts, at a regional level. Certain crimes that apply nationally, such as counterfeiting currency or mail theft, are automatically tried at a federal level, while others are tried in federal courts based on the severity of the crimes.
The death penalty was outlawed at state and federal level by a 1972 Supreme Court decision that cancelled all existing death penalty statutes. A 1976 Supreme Court decision reinstated the death penalty to a number of states and in 1988 the government passed legislation that made the death penalty available again at a federal level.
According to data collected by the Death Penalty Information Center, 78 people were sentenced to death in federal cases between 1988 and 2018 but only three have since been executed. There are 62 inmates currently on federal death row.
Mr Barr is to allow the prison authorities to use the single drug Pentobarbital in place of a three-drug procedure previously used in federal executions. The drug is a potent sedative that slows down the body, including the nervous system, to the point of death.
The five executions to be scheduled would take place at the US Penitentiary at Terre Haute, Indiana, and additional executions would take place at a later date, the justice department said.
For more than a decade and a half, the federal death penalty was mostly an afterthought. Although there was no formal moratorium on the procedure, as there was in some states where opposition to executions has been growing, a combination of administrative inertia, protracted appeals processes, practical obstacles and the relatively few number of federal death-row inmates combined to grind executions to a de-facto halt.
The Trump administration now wants to change that, even if a shortage of the drugs used in lethal injections remains a significant obstacle.
The president has expressed a harsh attitude toward convicted criminals in the past, claiming that they are treated too gently and given too many opportunities to appeal against their sentences.
While a majority of Americans say they still favour the death penalty in certain instances, opinion surveys indicate that the American public is turning against capital punishment, with a particular eye toward allegations that it is frequently unjustly imposed.
That suggests that while the Trump administration’s announcement will draw some sharp criticism from activists, it is unlikely to cause significant political waves.
Capital punishment in the US
The death penalty is a legal punishment in 29 US states
Since 1976, Texas has carried out the most executions (561), followed by Virginia (113) and Oklahoma (112)
There are 2,673 inmates on death row in the US
California has the most prisoners on death row – 733 – but has carried out only 13 executions since 1976
The annual number of death sentences fell by 85% between 1998 and 2018 – from 295 to 43.
Source: bbc.com
Ghana is likely to import cocoa to feed its local industries if production of the commodity continues to decline or remain at its current level, the Members of Parliament belonging to the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) have warned.
Cocoa production for the 2016/2017 crop season recorded 969,000 metric tonnes, the second annual highest in the history of the country after attaining 1,000,000 metric tonnes in the 2010/2011 crop season.
However, production dropped sharply to 904,000mt in the 2017/2018, according to the 2019 Budget and Economic Policy Statement of the Government of Ghana.
The commodity is further projected to decline to an estimated volume of 770,000 metric tonnes for the 2018/2019 crop season, representing a 21% decline in annual cocoa production since 2016/2017.
Should the country record the projected 770,000 metric tonnes of cocoa for the 2018/2019 crop season, it will have dire consequences on the fortunes of the country as local industries will have to spend huge amount of money to import the commodity to feed their plants.
Detailing why Ghana will have to import cocoa beans if trends in cocoa production continue the same, the Ranking Member on the Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs Committee and Minority Spokesperson on Agriculture, Eric Opoku told a press conference in Accra, Thursday, that over 600,000 metric tonnes of cocoa has been used as collateral for various loan facilities and should the country service those facilities, very little (about 100,000 metric tonnes) will be left for local industries to feed on.
This, the group argued, will not be sufficient to feed the local industries and the only option available to them will be to import the commodity to shore up the deficit.
“The cocoa production is coming down around 770,000mt. Remember we collaterized 638,710mt for the syndicated loan of US$1.3billion. So, when you deduct this from the 770,000mt that we have recorded this year, and then you take 30,000mt to pay for the Bui Dam because we collaterized for the cocoa for the money we sourced from China to construct the Bui Dam, you are left with less than 100,000mt for local processors to process in the country. So, for them to keep their employees; for them to produce as they produced in previous years, they may be compelled to import cocoa into this country. This is the current situation nowâ€, Mr. Opoku explained.
The reaction of the Minority NDC MPs is in response to a recent challenge by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to the erstwhile NDC administration led by John Dramani Mahama to name one policy of theirs that increased cocoa production during their tenure in office.
Source:Â kasapafmonline.com
Workers of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) are accusing their management and some politicians of interference in their work.
They say this development is leading to significant losses of potential revenue to the state.
Although they fell short of mentioning names, they said the extent of interference is such that it will make it difficult for the tax collection body to meet its revenue targets for this year.
At a durbar in Accra Thursday, the workers raised concerns about this and other cases as impediments hampering the operations of the GRA.
They cite, for instance, the irregular recruitment of personnel into the service whose competence usually is in doubt due to their poor performance.
“They are creating enmity between us [staff]…there are some people who came through political appointment who have their children as clearing agents and they use exemptions to clear goods.
“Is that not a conflict of interest? Those people had the job on a silver platter so they think that they should help or work for their godfathers or superiors at the detriment of the state,†one of the angry staff told Joy News.
Secretary of the National Union of GRA Workers, Ken Tweneboakodua sent notice to the political class to put a stop to the practice of ordering custom officers and GRA staff to discharge and release impounded contraband goods.
“We want to turn our negative target for the first half of the year into positives. We are stepping down as union leaders and we are going down on the roads, ports, offices [to collect monies],†he said.
He said they are not only going to name and shame their officers who connive and condone with others to unjustifiably take from the state in their line of work.
“We will also name and shame those who engage in excess political interference in our work. Importers are businessmen who want to make more profits and will do anything to get that profit.â€Â
Government as part of the ECOWAS protocol removed a number of Customs officers from the vantage points to allow unhindered movement of vehicles.
The Union is, however, calling on government to bring the men back because their absence is impacting on revenue generation.
“The officers were on the road to track goods in transit. Now people clear their goods meant for Burkina Faso, for instance, and they end up in Ghana because the men are not there to check them,†Mr Tweneboakodua said.
The Union after rejecting a 5% increment bonus announced by the leadership gave the board a one-week ultimatum to respond to their claims.
Source: www.myjoyonline.com
Thirty-year-old self-acclaimed pastor, Isaac Kofi, has been jailed 10 years by the Ashaiman circuit court for defrauding by false pretence.
Prosecuting, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Ahenkorah Afrifa, Ashaiman divisional police command, told the court that, the accused was arrested on 09/07/2019 from his hideout after series of complaints were made against him.
The prosecuting officer noted that, the accused Isaac Kofi succeeded in defrauding some unsuspecting persons of over 22,540.00 Ghana cedis.
According to ASP Afrifa, the accused introduced himself to one Reverend Joshua, in charge of Global Reform Church, in Adenta as someone who could “double” money for people.
He further revealed that Reverend Joshua later introduced the accused to another congregation at his local branch in Zenu within the Ashaiman municipality.
ASP Afrifa again told the court that the accused told the complainants at different locations that he had a special soap which when used after six weeks, their money in their individual bank accounts would multiply.
The complainants which included Ms. Pharida Gifty Doku, gave him 11,320.00, Ms.Faustina Doku gave him 1,700, Mr. Kojo Benjamin gave him 4, 680.00, Madam Agatha Maame Appiah gave him 2,000.00 among other three who gave out 1,060.00, 980.00 and 800.00 Ghana Cedis, in that order, the prosecutor said.
The prosecutor further explained that, the complainants took the special soap and used as instructed but their money did not increase even after two months.
The accused person went into hiding until he was arrested early this month.
The accused person Isaac Kofi pleaded guilty and vowed not to engage himself in such acts again.
The Ashaiman circuit court presided over by Mr. Gabriel Mate-Teye noted that defrauding by false pretence was an offence contrary to section 131 of the criminal offences act 29(1960).
He sentenced the accused to 10 years in jail on all five counts saying it will run concurrently.
Source:Â ghananewsagency.org
Police at Tepa-Abotoase in the Oti Region are investigating circumstances that led to the kidnapping of two girls who were later found tied in an uncompleted building near the Zongo community.
The Worawora District Police Commander, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mr Simmons Amenu, who confirmed the story to The Chronicle, said that the rescued girls have been reunited with their family.
According to DSP Mr Amenu, information gathered by police was that on Monday 22nd July this year, the father of the two girls, Helen, 8, and Felicia, 6, sent a consignment of shea nuts to their grandmother who they live with at Tepa-Abotoase.
The children, police gathered, after picking the commodity from the landing bank, went to sell it for GH¢35 to a woman living close to the Mosque.
Back home, the grandmother, unsatisfied with the price, asked the girls to refund the amount to the buyer and in return collect the shea nuts.
At about 0630hrs on Tuesday, July 23, Helen and Felicia went to return the money to the buyer and took away one parcel of the nuts.
As they went for the last one, and whilst fetching them into buckets, two unidentified men reportedly grabbed them from behind, covered their heads and faces simultaneously with clothes, and took them to an uncompleted building about 500 metres away.
Rags were forced in their mouths, they were blindfolded, and tied with their clothes, and left alone.
At about 0800hrs, some female pupils were on their way to school when one of them in an attempt to pass urine spotted the two helpless girls in the structure.
The school pupils run back to the community and raised the alarm, leading to police and a naval detachment at Tepa-Abotoase rushing to rescue the weak-looking girls.
It was said that since the police had no vehicle at the station, the navy personnel, led by Chief Petty Officer Class One (CPO1) Abotsie Michael, offered the vehicle which was used to transport Helen and Felicia to the health centre for medical attention, after which their family was traced and the children sent home.
DSP Mr Amenu went on that police was following a few leads which may lead to the arrest of the perpetrators.
Source:Â thechronicle.com.gh
The spokesperson of the Normalisation Committee, Dan Kwaku Yeboah has branded as hypocrites some journalists and officials who benefited from the $4.5million expended by the state on the Black Stars AFCON campaign.
According to him, the said journalists and some football officials who enjoyed their share of the money have now made u-turns and are criticising the budget.
Kweku Yeboah, who has been a vociferous critic of past AFCON budgets before his recent stint with the Normalisation Committee and Black Stars as spokesperson said all those who benefited must be quiet.
However, he maintained he received no winning bonuses during the tournament, adding that only per diems were paid to him.
Mr Kweku Yeboah said in the past when he criticised AFCON budgets, he declined monies from former Ghana Football Association (GFA) boss Kwesi Nyantakyi.
He also called for realistic criticisms of the 2019 AFCON budgets during a televised broadcast on Peace FM.
Budget beneficiaries
The Minister of Youth and Sports, Isaac Kwame Asiamah told Parliament on Wednesday that the state spent $4,564,532.00 during the competition.
He said the expenditure covered the playing body, the technical team, Members of the Parliament Select Committee on Youth and Sports and Culture and the Ghana League Clubs Association.
The remaining beneficiaries are the representatives of the Old Footballers Association, some staff of the Ghana Football Association, some staff of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, some members of the Ghana Supporters Union and journalists
Source:Â Graphic.com.gh
Ghana Premier League side AshantiGold have dropped Sadick Adams from their CAF Confederation Cup squad according to reports.
The 29-year old is set to be on his way out of the club according to reports in the local media and will not be taking part in the miners campaign in the 2019/2020 season in the CAF Confederation Cup.
As his replacement AshantiGold have signed Liberty Professional attacker Benjamin Eshun to boost their squad ahead of the campaign.
AshantiGold as winners of the Tier II will represent Ghana in the CAF Confederation Cup season for the 2019/2020 season.
Ashanti Gold will travel to Guinea to face Akonangui FC on the 11th August, 2019, before playing the second leg a week later in Obuasi
Source:Â GHANAsoccernet.com
Ghana and Red Star Belgrade striker Richmond Boakye Yiadom popularly known as “Boakye Magic” says he has the gift of scoring and his current form proves it in the ongoing 2019-20 season.
Boakye Yiadom scored 13 goals in 15 matches in the 2018-19 season for Red Star Belgrade as they won the Serbian league title.
The 26-year old this season has scored two goals in two games in the ongoing Champions League play-offs for Red Star Belgrade, first against Lithuanian club Suduva and then HJK Helsinki on Wednesday night.
In an interview with Ghanasoccernet.com after the game he said he has the gift of scoring and must be dedicated, discplined as well as train harder in order to deliver.
“I am always ready because the gift of scoring is upon my life so to maintain this level needs discipline, dedication and intensive training to continue”.
The Black Stars striker is eyeing Champions League group stage qualification with Red Star Belgrade in the ongoing play-offs.
Red Star Belgrade will play HJK next Tuesday in the second leg of the Champions League play-offs.
Source:Â GHANAsoccernet.com