TIG Post

Author: Persis

  • Robbers attack bullion van ferrying CAL Bank cash in daylight operation at Baatsona Spintex

    There is suspicion from all sides as armed robbers in a broad daylight operation attacked a bullion van carrying an unspecified amount of money belonging to CAL Bank.

    The robbery operation took place behind Danpong Hospital and in front of Harvest Christian Academy on the Spintex Road, Baastona. At the back of the hospital, the road is unmotorable and untarred.

    According to a police report intercepted by MyNewsGh.com, at about 3:30 pm yesterday, police control received a call about the robbery where onlookers had gathered.

    Eyewitnesses account was that at about 3:30 pm, the bullion van was seen coming from Danpong Hospital direction ahead of a black Toyota Camry towards the main Addogonno road linking Baatsonaa and Nungua.

    Just opposite the Harvest Academy, the black Camry overtook the bullion van and abruptly stopped. One of the occupants quickly came down and gave a warning shot into the air and quickly, the driver of the bullion van and one other got down and escaped through the school leaving only the Police Officer in the car.

    According to an eyewitness account, the Policeman was ordered out of the bullion van by the robbers who numbered four. They assaulted him with a mallet and again ordered him to lie down on the road. They disarmed him and took away his Service rifle.

    The robbers used the mallet to damage both the padlock and the second lock on the bullion and packed the money and escaped with it in the waiting black camry.

    A shot taken by an eyewitness shows that the registration number of the black camry which police believe to be fake was GX 6337-14.

    The driver of the Bullion van, a staff of CAL Bank, Baatsona Branch, one Ebo Amissah appeared later at the scene with other officials from the bank.

    According to the driver, at about 3:30 pm, he was from Paa Nii Agency dealers of building materials accompanied by a colleague CAL Bank personnel named Elijah Asante and the policeman identified as Evans Baafi of Sakumono Police Station with the cash when they were suddenly overtaken by the robbers and got them robbed.

    Besides the cash, the amount of which is unspecified, one Samsung tablet and two CAL Bank cheques from Paa Nii Agency with face values of GH¢17,000 and GH¢50,000 each were also taken by the robbers.

    According to the bullion driver, the Police Officer and his colleague sustained injuries so they both joined a Police vehicle to be sent to the hospital.

    Information indicates that the Policeman is receiving treatment at the Police Hospital. In the course of combing the area, one Philip Tamakloe aged 26 of Addogonno was arrested by Police Patrol on suspicion that he might be part of the gang.

    Three spent and one live AK 47 ammunition were collected from the scene.

    Investigation is ongoing. Suspect Philip Tamakloe has been detained for thorough interrogations.

    Source: My News GH

  • Jospong group, government in court over Ayensu Starch Factory

    Alan John Kwadwo Kyerematen, the Trade and Industry minister-nominee has explained why the Ayensu Starch factory in the Central Region has not been in operation.

    Taking his turn at the Appointments Committee vetting of Ministerial nominees on Friday, February 26, Kyerematen explained that there is litigation over the factory between the Government of Ghana and Tiberias Company Limited, a subsidiary of Jospong Group.

    This, he indicated, has made it very difficult for the company to operate.

    Alan Kyeremanten explained that in August 2015, the Government of Ghana offered 70 per cent shares of the Ayensu Starch Factory to Tiberias Company Limited at a bid price of $4,450,000. As a condition, the 70% shareholder, Tiberias Company Limited, was to pay 50% of the amount to which they complied.

    He disclosed that Tiberias made an initial payment of $269,000, and there was a requirement in the Sales and Purchase agreement for Zoomlion, which is another subsidiary of the Jospong Group, to complete the payment of the outstanding money in order to have full control of the 70% shares. However, Zoomlion failed to do so even though the factory was handed over to it.

    Alan Kyerematen further disclosed that when the Akufo-Addo administration assumed office in 2017, the factory was no longer operational and Tiberias Company Limited had still not paid the balance of 20% to have full ownership of the factory.

    “So, we engaged PricewaterhouseCoopers, a financial advisor, to see how they can have an amicable resolution. However, the money has still not been paid,” he said.

    The nominee noted that per the provisions of the Sales and Purchase agreement, Tiberias was supposed to pay back a certain percentage of the shares to the Government of Ghana.

    The Government of Ghana, Alan Kyerematen explained, subsequently became the majority shareholder and found out that Tiberias Company Limited had not paid its workers for some time. This compelled the government, in its capacity as majority shareholder, to pay the outstanding salaries from September 2017 to December 2019, in order to prevent chaos.

    Tiberias Company Limited, he added, subsequently abandoned the factory. The government then requested security to ensure that there was no undue interference with the factory property.

    Tiberias Company Limited, however, filed a writ in court praying for an injunction against the Government of Ghana.

    The successful injunction has subsequently prevented the company from functioning.

    Alan Kyerematen believes that once the court process is over, the Government of Ghana will find a lasting solution to the problem.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Ghana U-20 goalie Danlad Ibrahim delighted with semifinal victory over Gambia

    Black Satellites goalkeeper Danlad Ibrahim is ecstatic with Ghana’s progress to the final of the Africa U-20 Cup of Nations.

    The Asante Kotoko shot-stopper was at his best as the three times Africa U-20 champions reached the final with a 1-0 win over the Gambians.

    Ibrahim wrote on Twitter after the game, “Glory be to Ya ALLAH. Great Win and a Clean Sheet. Happy Independence Month for Ghana.”

    The 18-year-old has conceded only three goals at the tournament and remains in contention for the golden gloves award at the tournament following his outstanding displays at the competition in Mauritania.

    The Black Satellites will face debutants Uganda in the final on March 6, 2021, at the Stade Olympique in Nouakchott.

    https://twitter.com/danlad_ibrahim/status/1366455991194296322?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1366455991194296322%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ghanaweb.com%2FGhanaHomePage%2FSportsArchive%2FGhana-U-20-goalie-Danlad-Ibrahim-delighted-with-semifinal-victory-over-Gambia-1193530

    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • Ghanaians storm Michael Essien social media to express disgust over LGBT support

    Michael Essien has received a lot of stick on his Instagram page after he openly declared his support for the LGBTQ community in Ghana.

    He wrote: “We see you, we hear you, we support you. Our LGBTQIA plus Community in Ghana. #ghanasupportequality ????????????????”

    Homosexuality is a forbidden topic in Ghana and country president Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has categorically stated it will not be legalized in the country.

    An exasperated fan wrote: “You just lost your one follower, good luck, byee.”

    Aikins_Lucky also wrote: “Am unfollowing u right away Kojo”.

    See some of the reactions in the post below:





    Source: Ghana Soccernet

  • Hearts of Oak land bumper sponsorship deal with Sunon Asogli Power Ghana

    Ghana Premier League giants Accra Hearts of Oak have sealed a bounty sponsorship deal with Sunon Asogli Power Ghana Limited.

    The Power distribution company will become Hearts of Oak’s new headline sponsors replacing Strategic Africa Securities (SAS) whose deal expired in 2014.

    Sunon Asogli Power which is situated in the jurisdiction of Board Chairman and majority shareholder of the club Togbe Afede XIV will become the new headline sponsors.

    This announcement was made by Togbe Afede XIV during the official presentation of new coach Samuel Boadu on Monday.

    Hearts of Oak have a tall list of sponsors which includes GOIL, StarLife Assurance, official kit suppliers Umbro and Fintech company Cloud Africa.

    Other partnership deal the club have include GTV Sports Plus, Financial Technology firm Cloud Africa, SAS Finance Group, Koflex Gym and Software and Firmware developers Bitsweaver Limited

    Sunon Asogli Power Ltd is a modern, high efficient, environmentally friendly, natural gas fuel combine cycle power plant situated at Tema, Accra owned by Shenzhen Energy Group Company Ltd and the China African Development Fund.

    Sunon Asogli Power (Ghana) Limited is jointly owned by Shenzhen Energy Group Company Ltd (shares 60%) and the China African Development Fund (shares 40%).

    Source: Ghana Guardian

  • Michael Essien deletes post supporting LGBTQ+ community in Ghana after backlash

    Former Black Stars midfielder Michael Essien has become the first football star in the country to openly declare support for the Lesbians, Gays, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ+) group in Ghana.

    Essien in a social media post assured the group of his support and urged to continue fighting for their rights.

    “We see you, we hear you, we support you. Our LGBTIA community in Ghana,” a post on the Black Stars legend reads.

    The post was however deleted after it attracted backlash from some Ghanaians on the platform.

    LGBTQ+ continues for be a raging topic on Ghanaian media platforms despite the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo being emphatic on his position that under no circumstance will same-sex relationship be legalized in the country.

    The President who had come under pressure from religious institutions said that homosexuality will not be legalized under his watch.

    “It will not be under the presidency of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo that same sex marriage will be legalized in Ghana, it will never happen in my time as president,” he stressed.



    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Alan Kyerematen explains why Komenda Sugar Factory is not working

    Alan John Kwadwo Kyerematen, the Trade and Industry minister-nominee has explained that the Komenda Sugar Factory is not working because a full test run was never completed before the factory was commissioned on May 30, 2016.

    According to him, the reason was from an audit report conducted in October 2017.

    Answering questions from the Appointments Committee when he appeared to be vetted, Alan Kyerematen stated: “A number of critical parts of the factory had not been installed. For instance, there should be a crushing plant for crushing sugarcane. There should also be a vertical and horizontal crystallizer and it is only when these components are in place, one can produce white sugar.”

    Alan Kyerematen was responding to a question posed by Lawyer Francis Xavier Sosu (NDC- Madina MP).

    The nominee said a re-evaluation and a forensic audit have been conducted and the sugar factory has been handed over to Agrotech, but for the COVID-19 pandemic, work would have commenced at the factory to ensure that it was fully operationalised.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Coronavirus mass vaccination begins today

    COVID-19 vaccination begins today in 43 districts in three regions of the country.

    The regions are: Greater Accra-25 districts, Ashanti-16 districts and Central-two districts.

    This will mark the beginning of a nationwide exercise expected to vaccinate 20 million Ghanaians against the virus.

    Front line health workers, adults aged 60 years and above, people with underlining health conditions such as diabetes, kidney diseases, hypertension, cancer, frontline security personnel, frontline government officials, and all front line workers in the formal sector are in the first group of people for the mass vaccination.

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, together with their spouses, showed leadership by being the first to take shots of the AstraZeneca vaccine on Monday, March 1, 2021, ahead of the mass immunisation.

    The vaccination is expected to run from March to October, 2021.

    A total of 12,500 vaccinators, 2,000 supervisors and 37,413 volunteers will facilitate the vaccination exercise across all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies in the country.

    Coronaviruses are a large group of viruses that are common among animals.

    In rare cases, they are what scientists call zoonotic, meaning they can be transmitted from animals to humans, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

    It has incubation period between 4-6 days and fatal, especially for those with weakened immune system – the elderly and the very young.

    It could also result in pneumonia and bronchitis.

    Ghana has since the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020, recorded over 84, 023 cases, 77,972 recoveries and 607 deaths.

    On Wednesday, February 24, Ghana became the first country in the world to receive the COVAX COVID-19 facility when it received about 600,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccines produced by the Serum Institute of India.

    Source: GNA

  • More accidents recorded at traffic light intersections in the Upper East Region


    Traffic lights are intended to control accidents, but there is rather unfortunate incidents of accidents at traffic light intersections in the Upper East Region.

    In an exclusive interview with Ghanaweb’s Upper East Regional correspondent, Sarah Dubure, the Upper East Regional Head of National Road Safety Commission, Mr. Dennis Yeribu, attributed the cause of the phenomenon to human error, which he categorized into three.

    He mentioned the categories as road users who jump traffic lights, those that are inconsiderate of other road users, and those who use the road wrongly.

    Mr. Yeribu emphasized that the primary cause of the accidents was the jumping of traffic lights by recalcitrant road users who felt their movement would not be interrupted by those who were in motion because the traffic light had turned green and given them the go-ahead to move.

    The Road Safety Officer noted, that over the past few weeks, they recorded cases of recalcitrant road users who jumped red traffic lights and bumped into those who were given the green light to move, resulting in some injuries.

    He further noted, that three kinds of collisions occurred at the traffic light intersections.

    He explained them as pedestrian hit where motorists collided with pedestrians, vehicle to vehicle collisions, and property damage, where a vehicle ran into a property, a traffic light, or ab infrastructure.

    Mr. Yeribu also expressed worry over reckless riding by motorists at the traffic intersections.

    “We have the situation where a lot of motorists, once it (traffic light) gets to the green, they want to speed up, so that the number does not get them at the stop side, and we want to admonish the motorists to stop that because it can cause a lot of accidents”. He observed.

    He cautioned that in other to avoid situations like that, it was very important for drivers and motorists to go below a speed of 30km per hour, at the intersections.

    This he noted, would help drivers and motorists to stop on time in the event of looming hazard, as their thinking and stopping distance would be accurate.

    Mr. Yeribu also observed that another phenomenon was the knocking down of pedestrians by motorbikes at the intersections.

    He noted that in order to ensure the safety of pedestrians, they should use the demarcated section for them, where there are two thin lines ahead of a thicker one.

    He advised that anytime the pedestrian traffic light turned green, they should briskly cross the road, while listening and looking; they should look left, right and left again while the ‘green man’ was still on.

    Mr. Yeribu also advised drivers and motorists to be patient and allow pedestrians to cross the road anytime the ‘red man’ turned red and the pedestrians were yet to finish crossing.

    He also admonished pedestrians against the use of mobile phone while crossing the road.

    The Road Safety Officer charged pedestrians to avoid wearing dark coloured clothes like, black, red and brown, but rather wear bright coloured clothes like white and yellow at night to make them visible to other road users.

    He added that they could alternatively hold flashlights at night, if they did not have brought coloured clothes.

    Mr Yeribu also cautioned cyclists against the act of riding their bicycles across the road. He noted that the best way was to dismount the bicycles and push them across the roads.

    The Road Safety Officer cautioned children to desist from tying pullovers around their waists whiles riding bicycles, as they could easily get into the bicycle spokes and make them trip over.

    He also kicked against the riding of bicycles by children at night.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Volta region has UK strain of the Coronavirus – Dr Djokoto

    Dr Senanu Kwesi Djokoto, Deputy Volta Regional Director of Ghana Health Service, in-charge of Public Health, has disclosed that the region has recorded the United Kingdom (UK) COVID-19 variant.

    He said this was known after genetic sequencing of the variant performed by researchers at the University of Health and Allied Sciences coronavirus testing centre in Ho.

    Dr Djokoto, speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said the transmissibility of the UK strain was high, resulting in an increasing number of cases in the Region.

    The Deputy Director said the region, as of February 28, recorded a total of 321 active cases with 20 deaths and 1,551 recoveries, bringing the cumulative case count to 1,887.

    He said some schools in the region had recorded the virus, however, the affected students, including three primary pupils, were doing well.

    Touching on the vaccine, Dr Djokoto said the vaccine had been tested and proven to be safe and effective against the COVID-19.

    He said Ho Municipal topped the chart of cases in the region followed by Ketu North and Hohoe, recording 56 and 44 cases, respectively.

    Dr Djokoto urged the populace to ignore the misinformation that the vaccine was produced to wipe out Africans, adding it was just like other vaccines that the country received from the outside world to treat other diseases.

    He said the vaccine would not render people who took it infertile or alter their DNA as was being peddled by conspiracy theorists.

    Source: GNA

  • Judicial threats to media houses defy logic – GJA

    The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) says it is plainly of the view that the threats by the Judicial Service against the media defy logic.

    It is the case of the GJA that the notice served media houses is tantamount to an unwarranted assault on all the tenets of freedom of speech and freedom of the media as guaranteed by the 1992 Constitution.

    The Judicial Service of Ghana, through its lawyers Sory@Law, last week wrote to media houses that have published “hateful, spiteful, vengeful and incendiary” comments about the Justices of the Supreme Court hearing the election petition of former President John Mahama, to “pull or cause to be pulled down and cleared from your platforms”, all such statements and speeches.

    The notice also demanded that those media houses, as well as all others, “prevent the publication of such statements and speeches on your platforms”, and “forthwith, exercise the highest level of discernment, discretion and responsibility insofar as the publication of statements and speeches regarding the administration of justice is concerned”.

    But reacting at a press conference today, Monday, March 1, 2021, the GJA President Affail Monney said if the statement from the judiciary is not reversed, it will provoke a tsunamic backlash of the court.

    ”If not reversed immediately, the ill-advised, ill-timed, ill-crafted and ill-issued statement by the Judiciary can provoke a tsunamic backlash, lower the dignity of the court in the eyes of freedom lovers and critical citizens, pollute the media environment, undermine our impressive media rankings globally and dim the beacon of our democracy.”

    Read the full statement below

    STATEMENT BY GJA PRESIDENT, AFFAIL MONNEY, AT A PRESS CONFERENCE HELD AT THE GHANA INTERNATIONAL PRESS CENTRE ON MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021, IN REACTION TO THREATS AGAINST THE MEDIA BY THE JUDICIAL SERVICE

    Good morning, members of the GJA National Executive, our distinguished menbers, ladies and gentlemen. A special welcome to senior members and veterans of our profession who have joined us at the Ghana International Press Centre, the citadel of press freedom and free expression as well as a bastion of our democracy.

    This hurriedly convened press conference has been triggered by a statement by the Judicial Service in which it ordered the media to “ immediately pull down “ from their platforms “ statements and speeches which convey, and/or insinuate hateful, spiteful, vengeful, incendiary communication against justices of the Supreme Court, especially, those hearing the election petition.

    Furthermore, the media must prevent the publication of such statements and speeches. The Judicial Service then threatened to take , what it called , “ appropriate action to ensure that the media do not abuse the right to free speech.” Ladies and gentlemen of the media. The GJA is, to put it mildly, dumbstruck in reading this obnoxious directive pregnant with insidious threats to media freedom in Ghana which is touted as a land of freedom and justice. With all due respect, this is scandalous. Unsurprisingly, our telephones have been flooded with calls, both local and international , from journalists, media watch organisations, defenders of press freedom and free expression, seeking to know what exactly was happening since that contentious statement by the Judicial Service was issued.

    It is universally acknowledged that media right is not absolute, but qualified. And legal experts teach us that such qualification must chime with the dictates of the law, due process, and must be exercised in such ways as to achieve legitimate aims and objectives. In crafting the scandalous statement, the GJA is principally of the view that the Judicial Service ought to have avoided any impression or situation that has the tendency to instill fear and promote a culture of silence into which Ghana had been enveloped during the period of autocratic misrule.

    Criticism , they say , is a gift which all arms of government need. So it will be miscarriage of fairness to deny the Judiciary that gift. Ann Landers once said “ the naked truth is better than a well dressed lie. “ Contextually, the naked truth is that the Judicial is not immune from criticism. However, that criticism must be done in a manner that does not bring the administration of justice into disrepute. To this end, the GJA urges the media community to be calm , and not to be led into temptation to scandalize the court with unhinged comments or verbal stones , no matter how provocative the statement of the Judicial Service might be.

    The GJA will like to remind its members that far from acting on the basis of any threat or intimidation to “immediately pull down” from their platforms as requested, the media should rather act in the spirit of the GJA Code of Ethics that says “A journalist corrects inaccuracies and mistakes at the earliest opportunity and offers a chance for a rejoinder and/or an apology as appropriate”.

    It is lodged in our memory that the Judiciary has the power to commit any erring journalist or media house for contempt, using of course, acceptable protocols, and appropriate mechanisms . What they should not consider at all in this context is any unprecedented or antiquated method which smacks of censorship, intimidation, or resuscitation of the culture of silence which can spell unthinkable socio- political consequences .

    The GJA is plainly of the view that the threats by the Judicial Service against the media defy logic and are tantamount to an unwarranted assault on all the tenets of freedom of speech and freedom of the media as guaranteed by the 1992 Constitution.

    If not reversed immediately, the ill-advised, ill-timed, ill- crafted and ill- issued statement by the Judiciary can provoke a tsunamic backlash, lower the dignity of the court in the eyes of freedom lovers and critical citizens, pollute the media environment, undermine our impressive media rankings globally and dim the beacon of our democracy.

    Long Live Media Freedom Long Live Media Independence Long Live Ghana.

    Source: rainbownradioonline.com

  • Group kicks against appointment of Amoakohene Baafi as NLA boss

    The Association of Lotto Marketing Companies has kicked against the appointment of Yaw Amoakohene Baafi as the Director-General of the National Lottery Authority.

    The group in a petitioned signed by its Vice Chairman, Nana A.K Boaponsem, prayed President Akufo-Addo not to appoint Amoakohene Baafi due to his conduct.

    According to the group, Amoakohene has over the years demonstrated that he does not have the temperament to deal with the operators.

    They also alleged that Amoakohene Baafi has on numerous occasions attempted to create disunity among the members of the group.

    “The Deputy Director-General on many occasions sought to create confusion among our membership and to break our front by inciting a section of our members, members of staff and some management personnel who are known to be adversaries of the current Government to engage in constant agitations against the management,” part of the statement reads.

    The association also noted that the NLA which is already cash strapped will suffer further losses should the president appoint Amoakohene Baafi as Director-General.

    “Mr Yaw Amoakohene Baafi has nothing to bring on board so far as the progress and outlook of the NLA is concerned, should he be made the substantive head of the NLA or Deputy Director-General or in an acting capacity.

    Below are copies of the petition



    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Ghana, UK to sign new trade agreement

    Ghana and UK will today sign a new trade agreement that will further deepen ties between the two countries whilst giving exporters of the two countries more hope, Trade and Industry Minister-designate, Alan Kyerematen has disclosed.

    The agreement is expected to come into full force from Friday, 5th March.

    Mr. Kyerematen said the agreement will be in the form of the regional partnership pact signed between the European Union and ECOWAS.

    “Technical consultations took place for a year until December 2020 when the UK was exiting from EU [European Union]. We wanted to avoid trade disruptions. So we were proposing that we used an original text of an economic regional partnership agreement that has been signed between the EU and ECOWAS. We felt that the agreement will be consistent with the requirement of the customs.

    “So I escalated the negotiation to the level of my counterpart in UK in December. She gracefully agreed to the principle of continuity, accept our position to use the test of the regional partnership agreement signed between EU and ECOWAS as the basis of the new bilateral Ghana UK agreement because once it comes into force it will not be difficult to convince ECOWAS to adopt that”, Mr. Kyerematen further said.

    “So basically where we are now the President [Akufo-Addo] has issued an executive approval for the agreement, we have forwarded the agreement to Parliament. The UK government has signaled that on the 2nd of March both country will sign the Ghana UK agreement and then it will enter into force from 5th of March.”

    Ghana, UK finalises interim trade partnership agreement

    Ghana and the United Kingdom in January signed a new interim Trade Partnership Agreement after days of negotiations, ending the Transition Period following the withdrawal of UK from the European Union

    The agreement is expected to provide for duty free and quota free access for Ghanaian goods to the UK market and preferential tariff reductions for UK exporters to the Ghanaian market.

    According to a statement released by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, “the agreement will enter into effect following the completion of relevant internal procedures required in both Ghana and the UK”.

    Banana exporters prefer UK market

    Banana exporters in Ghana to the aforementioned agreement expressed delight, staying, it boost their sales.

    According to them, they prefer the British market because there is high level of awareness by consumers of fair trade and it would be difficult to get consumers in other countries to fully appreciate the value of produce especially banana coming from Ghana.

    The Head of Fair Trade-West Africa, Edward Kapire told Joy Business while explaining the challenges producers and workers could face should the Interim Ghana-U.K Trade Agreement fail.

    Source: Goldstreet Business

  • How this Nigerian trader was left paralyzed for 22-years in Ghana due to medical negligence

    Life is unpredictable making success or failure an unscripted event.

    The story of Mr. Peter Tamuno is the literal meaning of my words. Born on July 7, 1952, in Benin, Nigeria, Tamuno was a fairly successful businessman whose life changed in 1999 after the ever-present negligence exhibited by doctors in our hospitals.

    He became homeless. From success, he became a failure. From having his legs, he became paralyzed from the waist down – spending two years in the hospital. This was after a doctor (name withheld) working with one of Ghana’s premier hospital, Korle Bu administered an incorrect injection that left him for dead.

    The ordeal cost him his wife and two kids.

    Before his sad ordeal, Mr. Tamuno sold ladies shoes or sandals in Nigeria. He constantly shuttled between the three busiest cities in the region, Lagos-Accra-Kumasi and back. Business was booming of course the currencies of both countries were in good standing at the time.

    The nature of the relationship between Nigerians and Ghanaians then was less hostile than it is now. As we speak, Nigerians living in Ghana experience hostilities from locals from the highest to the lowest form of business.

    Mr. Tamuno exhibited the true spirit of ‘Nigeriansism’ in our deep-yet-sad conversation. Despite all the odds that were and are stacked against him, he still exhibited that perseverance, hard work, and ingenuity that is known from Nigerians from the South East and South West.

    Lack of education, lack of a roof over his head, and the loss of his legs won’t derail his stride to success.

    He declined any attempt to sue the hospital. In his words, “I don’t think of suing Korle Bu. Who am I going to sue? He quizzed.

    He continued: “Most of the staff by then are not there. Most of them have died and most of them have left. So, what am I going to do?”

    “I always thank God for restoring my life and that’s what I am doing,” he added.

    Source: mynigeria.com

  • SHS Reopening: Parents aren’t permitted to visit their children – GES

    Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Prof. Kwesi Opoku Amankwa says parents are not allowed to visit their children in their schools.

    Prof. Kwesi Opoku Amankwa urged the parents to give all necessary items their children need for school to them before going to campus because once they enter their various schools, there is no way they can reach out to their children in person.

    Senior High Schools will reopen on Wednesday, March 10.

    Form 1 single track, Form 2 gold and Form 3 single track students are the ones resuming on Wednesday.

    In an interview on ”Kokrokoo” on Peace FM, Prof. Opoku Amankwa said; ”The directive is that they can’t visit their children. The parents are allowed to send the children to school but after that, they are not permitted to visit them.”

    He also advised parents to ensure their children follow the COVID-19 protocols both in and out of the school premises.

    Source: Peace FM

  • Anticipation high as parliament resumes sitting to debate recommendations of Appointments Committee

    When parliament resumes sitting today, March 2, 2021, one of the key issues it will be looking at is the recommendations of the Appointments Committee which has for the past three weeks been vetting ministerial nominees of President Akufo-Addo.

    According to Minority Chief Muntaka Mubarak, the report of the committee on thirty-two nominees who have so far been vetted will be laid before parliament.

    The house will then debate the report on Wednesday, March 3, 2021.

    Interest in the report has been heightened by the rejection of three of the nominees by the committee.

    The Ministers-designate for Food and Agriculture, Fisheries and Aquaculture and Information could not be approved by the committee after minority members of parliament voted against them.

    A decision on five other nominees was deferred pending the provision of further and better particulars.

    The five are Roads and Highways portfolio Kwesi Amoako-Atta, Minister-designate for Communications and Digitization, Ursula Owusu Ekuful, Health Minister-designate, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, Attorney General-designate, Godfred Yeboah Dame and John Peter Amewu, Minister-designate for Railways Development.

    The rejection of the three nominees is expected to generate heated debate and go down to the wire with secret balloting expected.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • What happens to Oppong-Nkrumah, Hawa Koomson, Akoto Afriyie after rejection by Appointments Committee

    The Appointments Committee of Parliament has rejected the nomination of Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Mavis Hawa Koomson and Dr Afriyie Akoto as Ministers for Information, Fisheries and Aquaculture and Food and Agriculture, respectively.

    This is, however, not the end of the road for the three nominees as the laws of parliament are clear on what should be done in situations like this.

    The Appointments Committee derives its power from Standing Order 172(1) which states, “The Appointments Committee shall be composed of the First Deputy Speaker as Chairman and not more than twenty-six other Members.”

    The current committee has Joseph Osei-Owusu of the NPP as chairman with thirteen members each for the two sides of the house.

    Sub-order 2 (a) of 172 states the duty and powers of the committee concerning appointments by the executive or the president.

    “It shall be the duty of the Committee to recommend to Parliament for approval or otherwise persons nominated by the President for appointment as Ministers of State, Deputy Ministers, and such other persons as are specified under the Constitution or under any other enactment.”

    Sub-orders 4 to 8 which are stated below deals with the steps that the committee and the plenary which is the main house ought to take in the event that a nominee of the president is approved or rejected.

    (4) The Committee shall report to Parliament within three days after it has concluded its proceedings when Parliament is sitting. Parliamentary approval of persons recommended for appointment shall be by secret ballot or by consensus.

    (5) Where the procedure for [a] secret ballot is resorted to, each Member shall be provided with a sheet of paper on which appear the names of all candidates for approval or rejection. Against the name of each candidate shall be two columns, one for AYES, indicating approval and the other for NOES, indicating rejection.

    (6) A cross against one name in the AYES column and another cross against the same name in the NOES column shall render the vote null and void.

    (7) Every ballot paper shall bear the stamp and the initials of the Speaker.

    (8) A candidate who fails to secure fifty per cent of the votes cast is rejected.

    The import of these sub-orders concerning the current situation is that the committee will present its conclusions to the main house.

    The house will debate the report and then hold elections on the three nominees. If any of them fail to garner 50% of the votes, he or she will not be approved.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Vaccines are safe, get the jabs and protect yourself – President urges

    As Ghana kicks off its COVID-19 immunization process on Tuesday, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has urged citizens to come out and get vaccinated.

    He implored Ghanaians not to be taken in by the negative narrative about the coronavirus vaccines, as the jabs remained the only protection against the impact of the pandemic, assuring that the inoculation had been duly certified by the FFA and was safe.

    “I know there are still some who continue to express doubts about the vaccine, others have expressed reservations about its efficacy, with some taking sides with conspiracy theorists who believe the vaccine has been created to wipe out the African race.

    “This is far from the truth. Our domestic regulatory agency, FDA, one of the most reputable in Africa and in the world, has certified the safe use of the vaccine. It will not do so if it had any reservations about the safety of the vaccine,” the President said in a televised national address on Sunday to give an update on Ghana’s enhanced response to the pandemic.

    He reiterated that no vaccine will be deployed in the country for use without the express certification of the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA).

    President Akufo-Addo stated that the vaccination process will help protect the citizens against the health impacts of COVID-19, adding, that exercise was also “a major catalyst to restoring livelihoods and the national economy to the robust level it belongs.”

    “Taking the vaccine will not alter your DNA, it will not embed a tracking device in your body, neither will it cause infertility in women or in men. As your President, I want to assure you that the vaccine is safe,” he added.

    Ghana last Wednesday secured the first batch of 600,000 doses of the UN-arranged COVAX vaccines manufactured by AstraZeneca in India.

    The Ghana Health Service will from Tuesday, March 2, to Monday, March 15, 2021, deploy of the 600,000 AstraZeneca vaccines.

    Persons who would be inoculated during this first vaccination campaign include healthcare workers, frontline security personnel, persons with underlying medical conditions, persons 60 years and above, and frontline members of the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary.

    Others who would benefit from the 600,000 doses also include the rest of the security agencies, and essential services providers such as water and electricity supply services, teachers and students, supply and distribution of fuels, farmers and food value chain, telecommunications services, air traffic and civil aviation control services, meteorological services, air transport services, waste management services, media, public and private commercial transport services, the CEPS Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, and other members of the Executive, Judiciary, and Legislature.

    Presidemt Akufo-Addo, ahead of the roll-out of the vaccines will on live television on Monday, March 1, 2021, receive the first dose of the AstraZeneca Vaccine at the 37th Military Hospital in Accra, to persuade the Ghanaian public that shots are safe.

    First lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo, Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawuma and his wife Samira will also be taking shots along with the President.

    Key public officials such as the Speaker and Members of Parliament, the Chief Justice and Justices of the Superior Court of Judicature, Chairperson and Members of the Council of State, the Chief of Staff and senior officials at the Office of the President, and prominent personalities like some Eminent Clergy, the National Chief Imam, the Asantehene, the Ga Mantse, and some media practitioners will also, on Tuesday, take the jab publicly.

    The AstraZeneca vaccine is one of two vaccines that have, so far, been approved and declared as safe-for-use by the FDA.

    Source: GNA

  • Akufo-Addo to receive coronavirus vaccine at 37 Military Hospital

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will today receive the first dose of the COVID-19 AstraZeneca vaccine at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra, alongside his wife Rebecca Akufo-Addo.

    The event will be telecast live on TV to show Ghanaians that it is safe to take.

    President Akufo-Addo is doing this to boost public confidence in the safety and efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine that has been approved for use to slow the spread of the virus in Ghana.

    Announcing this during his 24th televised Coronavirus address to the nation on Sunday, February 28, Akufo-Addo said, “as your President, I want to assure you that the vaccine is safe. That is why tomorrow, on Monday, 1st March, ahead of the commencement of the vaccination programme on Tuesday, 2nd March, my wife the First Lady, the Vice President, his wife the Second Lady, and I will take the vaccine publicly at two health facilities in Accra.”

    He further announced that on Tuesday, March 2, 2021, other key public officials including the Speaker and Members of Parliament, the Chief Justice and Justices of the Superior Courts of Judicature, the Chairperson and Members of the Council of State, the Chief of Staff and senior officials at the Office of the President will take the jab publicly.

    The rest are prominent personalities such as some Eminent Clergy, the National Chief Imam, the Asantehene, the Ga Mantse, and some media practitioners.

    He subsequently called for an all-hands-on-deck approach for a successful vaccination programme saying, “I encourage faith-based groups, civil society, media and all Ghanaians to support the public education campaign associated with the exercise.”

    “Our domestic regulatory agency FDA (Food and Drugs Authority),” the President said, “has certified the safe use of the vaccine.

    “Taking the vaccine will not alter your DNA; it will not embed a tracking device in your body,” the President further assured. “Neither will it cause infertility in women or men. As your president, I want to assure you that the vaccine is safe.”

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Frimpong Boateng chairs committee to ensure locally produced coronavirus vaccines

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has revealed that steps are being taken to ensure that coronavirus vaccines are produced locally as part of the fight against the virus in Ghana.

    Mr Akufo-Addo said in an address to the nation on Sunday February 28 that a committee to that effect which is chaired by a former Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Professor Kwabena Frimpong Boateng, has been formed.

    “I want to reiterate my determination that we should manufacture our own vaccines here in Ghana. To that end, a Committee has been established under the Chairmanship of a former Minister for Environment ,Science, Technology and Innovation, the world renowned scientist, Professor Kwabena Frimpong Boateng which is formulating a concrete plan of action towards vaccine development and manufacturing,” Mr Akufo-Addo said.

    Mr Akufo-Addo further said that the Vaccines Deployment Plan Ghana submitted to the World Health Organization (WHO) for approval was well received.

    His comment follows the arrival of the vaccines into the country.

    “We are the first country in the world be recipient of vaccines from the COVAX facility. I want to express my appreciation to members of the COVID-19 taskforce which I chair and to officials of the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service for this commendable feat.

    “The vaccine deployment plan we submitted to the WHO was well received. We are grateful also, naturally to the managers of the COVAX facility.”

    He assured that the vaccines is safe for Ghanaians. Mr Akufo-Add0o told the nation that he and his wife the First Lady as well as the Vice President and his wife will public take the vaccines as a way of motivating to get vaccinated.

    Source: 3 News

  • Roll out of vaccination campaign does not mean you shouldnt wear nose mask Akufo-Addo

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said that the arrival of the coronavirus vaccines in Ghana does not mean that Ghanaians should no longer observe all the protocols outlined to tackle the virus.

    The COVAX Facility on 23 February delivered 600 000 doses of the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine to Ghana, making it the first African country to receive the vaccines.

    Addressing the nation on Sunday February 28, Mr Akufo-Addo said “The roll out of the vaccination campaign does not mean we should let our guard down and discard the safety protocols that have served us well thus far.”

    Following the arrival of the vaccines, information Minister-designate Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, said the vaccines will be deployed to health facilities from Tuesday, March 2.

    “Covid-19 vaccination will be conducted in phases among segmented populations,” Mr Oppong Nkrumah, who is also the Member of Parliament for Ofoase Ayirebi Constituency, stated.

    “The first segment of the population that will receive from the 600,000 doses will be health workers, adults 60 years and over, people with underlying health conditions, frontline executive, legislature, judiciary and their related staff, frontline security personnel, some religious leaders, essential workers, teachers and other personalities in Greater Accra Metro including Awutu Senya West and Awutu Senya East in the Central Region.

    “A similar segmented population in the Greater Kumasi Metro and Obuasi municipality will also be covered.”

    He said the government remains resolute at ensuring the welfare of all Ghanaians “and is making frantic efforts to acquire vaccines to cover the entire population through bilateral and multilateral agencies”.

    He acknowledged the “hardwork” of the technical teams of stakeholders including the Ghana Health Service, the Ministry of Health and the Covid-19 Task Force.

    “Our development partners are also acknowledged for their tremendous financial and technical support.

    “It is our hope that they will continue to support us in our sustained efforts in combating this virus and putting Covid-19 behind us.”

    Source: 3 News

  • Coronavirus vaccines will not cause infertility Akufo-Addo

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has dismissed concerns that the coronavirus vaccines will cause infertility in men or women.

    Addressing the nation on the arrival of the vaccines into the country, on Sunday February 28, Mr Akufo-Addo said “Taking the vaccines will not alter your DNA it will not embed a tracking device in your body, neither will it cause infertility in women and men.”

    President Akufo-Addo further said that the arrival of the coronavirus vaccines in Ghana does not mean that Ghanaians should no longer observe all the protocols outlined to tackle the virus.

    The COVAX Facility on 23 February delivered 600 000 doses of the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine to Ghana, making it the first African country to receive the vaccines.

    Mr Akufo-Addo said “The roll out of the vaccination campaign does not mean we should let our guard down and discard the safety protocols that have served us well thus far.”

    Following the arrival of the vaccines, information Minister-designate Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, said the vaccines will be deployed to health facilities from Tuesday, March 2.

    “Covid-19 vaccination will be conducted in phases among segmented populations,” Mr Oppong Nkrumah, who is also the Member of Parliament for Ofoase Ayirebi Constituency, stated.

    “The first segment of the population that will receive from the 600,000 doses will be health workers, adults 60 years and over, people with underlying health conditions, frontline executive, legislature, judiciary and their related staff, frontline security personnel, some religious leaders, essential workers, teachers and other personalities in Greater Accra Metro including Awutu Senya West and Awutu Senya East in the Central Region.

    “A similar segmented population in the Greater Kumasi Metro and Obuasi municipality will also be covered.”

    He said the government remains resolute at ensuring the welfare of all Ghanaians “and is making frantic efforts to acquire vaccines to cover the entire population through bilateral and multilateral agencies”.

    He acknowledged the “hardwork” of the technical teams of stakeholders including the Ghana Health Service, the Ministry of Health and the Covid-19 Task Force.

    “Our development partners are also acknowledged for their tremendous financial and technical support.

    “It is our hope that they will continue to support us in our sustained efforts in combating this virus and putting Covid-19 behind us.”

    Source: 3 News

  • Ignore propaganda against coronavirus vaccine Dr Asare

    Dr William Collins Asare, Fund Administrator, COVID-19 National Trust Fund, has urged Ghanaians to ignore the false claims against the potency of the COVID-19 vaccines.

    He said the vaccines were safe and being used in other countries and encouraged the public to make themselves available for the vaccination exercise, scheduled to start this week.

    He noted that the United Kingdom and the United States of America were reported to have experienced a reduction in the number of cases when they started vaccinating their citizens.

    Mr Asare was speaking at the climax of the first phase of a nationwide COVID-19 awareness campaign at the Art Centre in Accra.

    It was organised by the Centre for National Culture under the auspices of the National Commission on Culture, and partnered by Rescue Volunteers. He said to curb the spread, the Fund would continue to empower its partners to intensify education and sensitisation in the communities and called for support from all.

    The second phase of the educational campaign would also focus on debunking the myths and fallacies surrounding the covid-19 mass vaccination programme.

    Additionally, Mr Asare said the exponential rise in the COVID-19 cases in Ghana presented a challenge to all and urged the citizenry to keep to the protocols.

    Madam Janet Edna Nyame, the Executive Director, National Commission on Culture, said the programme covered 33 selected communities in six regions.

    She said the team adopted drama, dance, puppetry and poetry, which had proven to be effective methods of public education and sensitisation, throughout the campaign.

    Madam Nyame said the vaccines were not different from those used to prevent infections like poliomyelitis and measles and encouraged all to partake in the vaccination.

    Mrs Alice Alima Kala, the Director, Centre for National Culture, said the first phase of the campaign was held in some major markets in the capital including the Makola, Dodowa, and Kpone-Katamanso markets and climaxed at the Art Centre.

    Ms Lydia Tsotsoo Odai-Tettey, Country Coordinator, Rescue Volunteers, said the team donated 150 branded T-Shirts, 2,000 pieces of nose masks and 450 bottles of hand sanitizers to assist participants and the traders to keep safe of the virus.

    She emphasised the need for social distancing in markets and crowded areas.

    Madam Mercy Naa Afrowa Needjan, the President, Greater Accra Markets Association, urged traders not to remove their masks when attending to customers, while adhering to all the protocols

    Source: GNA

  • Coronavirus vaccine will protect us – Akufo-Addo assures

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has stated that the Covid-19 vaccine received will help protect us against the impact of Covid-19 on our health when taken.

    He also said the vaccine is also a major catalyst to restoring livelihoods and the national economy to the robust level it belongs.

    He said this during his 24th update on measures taken against the spread of the coronavirus disease.

    President Akufo-Addo encouraged faith-based groups, civil societies, the media and all Ghanaians to support the public education campaign associated with the exercise.

    “We need all hands on deck to make this a success,” he said.

    Ghana took delivery of 600,000 doses of AstraZeneca Vaccine on 24th February 2021.

    Rollout of the vaccine will begin on Tuesday, March 2,2021 at 43 epicenter districts accros the country.

    Meanwhile, the President assured that the vaccine is safe and will not kill people as speculated, stating that himself and his wife, others, will take it publicly for all to see it is not harmful.

    He urged all to continue to adhere to the safety protocols despite having the vaccine.

    Source: Atinka Online

  • NCCE to step up education on coronavirus vaccination

    The Central Regional Office of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) is to step up public education on the COVID-19 vaccination scheduled for March 2, 2021.

    More than 20 million Ghanaians are expected to be vaccinated during the exercise estimated to cost $52million.

    The vaccination exercise is in three phases, beginning with health workers, people with known underlying health conditions and security personnel.

    In this direction, the Commission organised a COVID-19 vaccination sensitization capacity building workshop for its Metropolitan, Municipal and District Directors (MMDD) to help provide the public with the right information.

    The directors were tasked to arm themselves with information on the pandemic to adequately sensitize the public on the vaccination exercise.

    They must provide truthful and accurate information to counter misinformation and fake news circulating on social media and other platforms.

    Mr Nicholas Ofori Boateng, Regional Director of the NCCE, noted that anti-vaccine campaigners had captured the attention of the populace with fake information which needed to be debunked with the right messages.

    Participants went through basic information about COVID-19, history and benefits of vaccination, currently approved vaccines for COVID-19 treatment in Ghana and COVID-19 vaccination myths.

    They were also educated on the adverse effects of the vaccine, the processes it went through before approval, the roll-out plan and the safeness of the approved vaccines for use in Ghana.

    Mr Ofori Boateng advised the MMDDs to collaborate with the Ghana Health Service, Ghana Medical Association, the Assemblies and stakeholders to discharge their duties.

    The second phase, he said, would benefit essential service providers, people above 60 years, second cycle and tertiary students, teachers, members of the Executive, Legislature, the Judiciary and the media. He said other members of the population, excluding children under sixteen years and pregnant women, would be vaccinated in the third phase.

    Mr Ofori Boateng said the vaccination was a complementary measure to slow down the rate of spread of the virus and did not mean that once people were vaccinated, adherence to the established protocols should seize.

    He charged the officers to remind citizens of adherence to the existing safety protocols and restrictions even after vaccination.

    He advised the civic educators to demonstrate an understanding of the concerns that would be raised by the public and reasonably address them.

    Source: GNA

  • Ghana working to manufacture vaccines Akufo-Addo reveals

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has hinted that a committee has been established to produce a plan on how Ghana can develop and manufacture its own vaccines.

    Addressing the nation on Sunday, February 28, for the 24th time since the outbreak of the novel Coronavirus in March 2020, the President revealed that steps are being taken to ensure that coronavirus vaccines are produced locally as part of the fight against the virus in Ghana.

    He said he is committed to combating the Coronavirus pandemic from the country therefore Ghana must produce its own local products.

    Akufo-Addo indicated a committee to that effect which is chaired by a former Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Professor Kwabena Frimpong Boateng, has been formed.

    “I want to reiterate my determination that we should manufacture our own vaccines here in Ghana. To that end, a Committee has been established under the Chairmanship of a former Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, the world-renowned scientist, Professor Kwabena Frimpong Boateng which is formulating a concrete plan of action towards vaccine development and manufacturing,” the President said.

    He further said that the Vaccines Deployment Plan Ghana submitted to the World Health Organization (WHO) for approval was well received.

    His comment follows the arrival of the vaccines into the country.

    “We are the first country in the world to be recipients of vaccines from the COVAX facility. I want to express my appreciation to members of the COVID-19 taskforce which I chair and to officials of the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service for this commendable feat.

    “The vaccine deployment plan we submitted to the WHO was well received. We are grateful also, naturally to the managers of the COVAX facility.”

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • COVID-19 Vaccine rollout: Who gets vaccinated and when

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has named four identifiable groups which will be receiving the first batch of the AstraZeneca vaccines, which will be rolled out by the National Vaccine Deployment Plan from March 2.

    “Our population has been segmented into four groups, and this will determine which section of the population gets vaccinated at a particular time,” President Akufo-Addo declared during his 24th Coronavirus address.

    He stated that the vaccination campaign is to be conducted in 43 districts, which are the epicentres of the pandemic in the country.

    There are 25 in Greater Accra, 16 in Ashanti, and two in the Central Region. Public health officials are expected to give fuller details of the programme.

    “Whilst we are, initially, concentrating on the 43 epicentre-districts, preparations are being made for the vaccination of twenty million Ghanaians through the deployment of some 12,471 vaccinators, 37,413 volunteers, and 2,079 supervisors for the entire vaccination campaign”, Akufo-Addo added.

    Below is the list of priority persons

    Group 1

    · Persons most at risk and frontline State officials

    · Healthcare workers

    · Frontline security personnel

    · Persons with underlying medical conditions

    · Persons 60 years and above

    · Frontline members of the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary

    Group 2

    · Other essential service providers and the rest of the security agencies

    · Water and electricity supply services

    · Teachers and students

    · Supply and distribution of fuels

    · Farmers and food value chain

    · Telecommunications services

    · Air traffic and civil aviation control services

    · Meteorological services

    · Air transport services

    · Waste management services

    · Media

    · Public and private commercial transport services

    · Police Service

    · Armed Forces

    · Prisons Service

    · Immigration Service

    · National Fire Service

    · CEPS Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority

    · Other members of the Executive, Judiciary, and Legislature

    Group 3

    This group consists of the rest of the public, that is, all persons over 18 years, except for pregnant women.

    Group 4

    This final group will include pregnant mothers and persons under the age of 18, and they will be vaccinated when an appropriate vaccine, hopefully, is found, or when enough safety data on the present vaccines are available according to the president.

    Akufo-Addo said, “special arrangements will be made for persons with disabilities who fall within these groups.”

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • KSM speaks on his interview with Tsatsu Tsikata

    Host of the KSM show, Kwaku Sintim Misa, has been speaking about his interview with the Lead Counsel for the petitioner in the ongoing 2020 election petition at the Supreme Court, Tsatsu Tsikata.

    In a tweet, Sintim Misa announced he had a “great time” with Mr. Tsikata, describing the latter as a “legal wizard”.

    The said interview according to KSM, would be televised on Tuesday, March 2, 2021, on Pan African TV at 7.30 pm.

    “He’s the Man Of The Moment. I had a great time with this legal wizzard. “LETS CHAT WITH TSATU” on Tuesday, March 2nd on an exclusive KSM SPECIAL on Pan African TV at 7:30 pm. “E no be small”” He tweeted.

    Tsatsu Tsikata is notable for his affiliation to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and regarded as one of the leading members of the party. He has always served as the legal counsel for the party.


    Source: Ghana Guardian

  • BoG affirms commitment to innovation, financial inclusion

    The Bank of Ghana has reaffirmed its commitment to addressing the financial inclusion needs of the unbanked and underserved persons and businesses.

    In a release following the launch of its regulatory and innovation sandbox pilot in collaboration with EMTECH Service LLC., the bank said it remains committed to evolving an enabling and inclusive regulatory environment that promotes FinTechs and supports innovation.

    Within the financial sector, a regulatory and innovation sandbox is a supportive and controlled policy environment that enables firms to test innovative products, services and business models under the supervision of a regulator.

    “Effectively, the regulatory and innovation sandbox will provide a forum for financial sector innovators to interact with the sector regulator to test digital financial service innovations while evolving an enabling regulatory environment,” the bank said.

    “In this regard, the bank and the innovator are able to assess the usefulness, viability and safety of innovations through shared understanding of their respective interests,” it added.

    The sandbox will be available to banks, specialised deposit-taking institutions and payment service providers, including dedicated electronic money issuers, as well as unregulated entities and persons that have innovations that meet the sandbox requirements.

    The central bank noted that innovations eligible for the sandbox environment will have to satisfy broad categories including new digital business models not currently covered explicitly or implicitly under any regulation; new and immature digital financial service technology; and innovative digital financial services products that have the potential of addressing a persistent financial inclusion challenge.

    Within these broad categories, the Bank of Ghana said it will give preference to products and services leveraging blockchain technology, remittance products, crowdfunding products and services, e-KYC (electronic know your customer) platforms, RegTech (regulatory technology), SupTech (supervisory technology), digital banking products and services targeting financial inclusion for women, and innovative merchant payment solutions for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

    “Notably, the sandbox is of strategic importance in driving financial inclusion through innovative digital financial services, as it presents the opportunities to reduce time-to-market; allow regulators to learn about innovations faster; encourage innovators to formalise their business and incentivise incumbents to experiment with new ideas; reduce the cost of innovation for innovators; and provide valuable insight for regulators to evolve effective regulations,” the bank said.

    Source: thebusiness24.com.gh

  • MTN commits to further localise holdings in Ghana

    The MTN Group, the pan-African mobile services operator, has said it is committed to its agreement with the government of Ghana to further localise its holdings in the country.

    Last year, the group and the government agreed to increase local ownership in MTN Ghana by a further sale of 12.5 percent shares to Ghanaians.

    In its 2020 annual report to investors released this week, the group said it remains committed to the agreement, which will increase local shareholding to 25 percent in MTN Ghana, also known as Scancom Plc.

    Last year, MTN Ghana sought authorisation from shareholders for the implementation of an employee share scheme by way of an Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP) for lower-level staff and a Performance Share Plan for senior staff.

    The total amount of shares subject to the scheme will be allocated on an estimated share price of GH¢0.60, representing about 4.41 percent of the issued share capital of GH¢1.097bn of Scancom Plc.

    Efforts are also being made to localise 30 percent of MobileMoney Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Scancom Plc, which is a licence requirement according to the Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019 (Act 987). The deadline to meet this requirement was extended by the central bank to January 15, 2022.

    Significant market power

    The company says it is optimistic of a positive result from discussions on its significant market power status that was declared by the regulator, the National Communications Authority, last year.

    “Importantly, engagements and discussions with relevant stakeholders continued after they were briefly suspended leading up to the national elections in December 2020, and we are optimistic that these discussions will result in a positive outcome for MTN Ghana and the long-term sustainability of the industry.”

    2020 Performance

    MTN Ghana recorded a profit of GH¢1.3 nillion last year, representing about 38.4 percent year-on-year growth. Total revenue was GH¢6 billion, a 16.4 percent increase over that of 2019.

    The board of the company recommended a final dividend of GH¢0.05 per share, bringing the total dividend for the year to GH¢0.08 per share.

    MTN Ghana subscribers increased by 23.4 percent to 24.4 million, whilst active data subscribers increased by 32.4 percent to 10.8 million.

    Source: thebusiness24.com.gh

  • AfCFTA will create more employment opportunities in pharmaceutical industry

    Ernest Bediako Sampong, the Chief Executive of Ernest Chemist, says the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) will create more employment opportunities in the pharmaceutical industry.

    He said new markets would help manufacturers increase employment due to the high demand for products.

    Mr Sampong, speaking at the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce Industry (GNCCI) virtual sensitisation seminar on AfCFTA in Accra, said AfCFTA was a laudable idea but, “I do not think it is going to be easy.”

    He said it was not going to be easy because of the attitude of Africans towards products that were manufactured on the continent, especially Ghana.

    Mr Sarpong said the industry was going to experience the transfer of technology with international pharmaceutical companies setting up plants and factories in Africa and creating employment opportunities.

    The event was organised by GNCCI in partnership with Joy Business and the Ghana Shippers Authority on the theme: “AfCFTA: Adopting the right business strategies to fully benefit.”

    It was aimed at sensitizing small scale businesses on how they could strategise to benefit from the Agreement.

    He said there would be opportunities for some multinationals to also collaborate with existing companies to enable them export to the sub-region.

    Mr Sarpong said there was going to be a possibility of medicine security and a boost in industrial investment and called for workable policies and a free will for the policies to be implemented, adding that government should try and harmonise policies and systems in doing business in Ghana.

    The CEO urged government to support the private sector to develop their businesses to contribute to the development of the economy.

    ”We urge government to waive taxes on equipment used for manufacturing.”

    Mr Anthony Nyame Baafi, a Technical Advisor at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, said government through the Ministry had set up institutional structures to support the implementation of the Agreement.

    “We have the inter-ministerial, the national AfCFTA Secretariat to provide information to everybody, who wants access any information,” he said.

    He said arrangements were in place to ensure the Member States take advantage of the Agreement, stressing that the government needed the private sector to partake in the implementation of the Agreement and if there were any challenges, the Ministry and the Ghana Export Promotion Authority were ready to assist.

    Ms Benonita Bismarck, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Shippers Authority, said it was an opportunity to partner with the GNCCI to educate the private sector on how to maximise the benefits of AfCFTA.

    “It is all about education and sensitisation, so at the end of it, we will go across the nation to ensure that our stakeholders fully understand and take advantage of this all-important concept,” she said.

    Source: GNA

  • Flights disrupted as KIA workers withdraw services

    Workers of Kotoka International Airport (KIA) have withdrawn some of their services effective today, Friday, February 26, 2021, as part of a protest of alleged mismanagement by the Managing Director, Mr Yaw Kwakwa.

    The situation is largely expected to disrupt all departures at the Kotoko International Airport (KIA) this morning.

    A statement issued by the Divisional Union of the Public Services Workers Union at the Ghana Airport Company Limited (GACL) said: “action has become necessary following the Boards attempt to shelve the report of an investigative committee comprising the Ministry of Aviation, the Board, Senior Management, and the Public Services Workers Union which confirms the allegations of mismanagement and abuse of office leveled against the Managing Director, Mr Yaw Kwakwa.”

    The affected services include; Screening of pre-board passengers and access control, Fire/Safety cover for all aircraft, Water supply and sewage treatment and Public announcement and flight display.

    Source: Starr FM

  • Farmers and other stakeholders trained on Agroecology in WR

    Mr Patrick Kowuah, the Western Regional Director of Agriculture, has called for an innovative approach to farming due to decreasing yields in farm produce, low soil moisture, disturbance of the soil structure and climate change.

    He said farmers, small or large scale, could not continue to farm using approaches that were very detrimental to the environment.

    He stressed the need to go back to the traditional model of farming where soil cover was protected and land fertility was not destroyed with chemicals.

    “We must continually feed generations and so the duty to maintain a healthy environment…we are to produce food in a friendly environment and not at the detriment of the environment,” he added.

    The Director of Agriculture was speaking at a two-day workshop organized by the Peasant Farmers Association for farmers, District Agriculture Directors, Media and other stakeholders in the sector.

    The workshop exposed participants to rudiments of Agroecology, where farming was done either on a small or large scale using conventional methods with little or no disturbance to the soil structure.

    Agroecology employs farming methods such as crop rotation, intercropping, application of manures among others as against bush burning, and excessive ploughing of the land.

    Dr. Kofi Boa, a research scientist and practitioner of Agroecology, said the sustainability of produce hinged on the quality of land and described bush burning for Agriculture activities as the cruellest decision any mankind could think of.

    “Burning farmlands is wickedness. You kill soil nutrients and thus make it unproductive over time,” he added.

    He said Agroecology is sustainable and could also be done on a large scale and urged farmers to clear any misconception about the practice.

    “We have equipment to help even on 100 to 1000 acres of land.”

    Dr. Boa, therefore, urged farmers to adopt sustainable farming practices to help save the environment.

    Dr. Charles Kwowe Nyaaba, the Executive Director and Head of Programmes for the Peasant Farmers Association, organisers of the workshop, said the ultimate aim was to create agroecology hubs across the country as an indicator that such practices were relevant to modern day farming.

    He said the project with support from Open Society Initiative for West Africa, 11th Hour project and the Joint Action for Farmers’ Organisations in West Africa (JAFOWA) have selected Jomoro, Shama, Sefwi Wiawso for its pilot projects.

    Dr Nyaaba said, “We believe that such actions may in future influence policy for more attention to be turned to Agroecology.”

    He lauded the government for helping the sector and appealed for more funds for activities, especially in fighting bush burning.

    Source: GNA

  • Tema Banks upscale adherence to coronavirus protocols

    Scores of Banks in Tema Metropolis have upscaled the enforcement of the COVID-19 protocols ascribe by the World Health Organisation and the Ghana Health Service.

    A visit to some of the Banks by the Ghana News Agency in Tema on Wednesday revealed that Banks in Community 1, including Zenith, Standard Chartered, and Ghana Commercial Banks are strict in the enforcement of the preventive protocols to curb the spread of the COVID-19 Virus.

    At the Standard Chartered Bank GNA-Tema observed that to enforce the social distancing protocols chairs had been arranged outside the banking hall where customers wait for their turn before being allowed into the hall.

    According to an official of the bank, the arrangement was to reduce the number of customers inside the Banking Hall at all times.

    Private Security personnel have been assigned to ensure that all the customers follow due process per the COVID-19 safety protocols.
    As part of the arrangement, the security personnel would signal and guide customers to a veronica bucket for the handwashing protocols.

    The Tema Banks despite the strict measures are also enforcing the “No Nose Mask, No Entre,” directives, where customers without facial masks were denied access to the Hall, or in some cases, the security personnel will give the customer one.

    At the Zenith and GCB Banks in addition to the social distancing protocols security personnel ensured that customers go through hand washing, hand sanitizing, and temperature checking.

    The recent surge in the new COVID-19 variant has put the country on red alert to ensure that everyone joins the fight to stop the spread.

    Source: GNA

  • Arabic-Speaking journalists to be schooled on AfCFTA

    The African Trade Policy Centre (ATPC) of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) on Wednesday outlined plans to school French and Arabic-speaking journalists on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

    The AfCFTA headquarters is based in Accra, Ghana.

    About 40 journalists from across the continent and beyond have already are to participate in the virtual training scheduled to take place on February 25, 2021, a statement from ECA and copied to the Ghana News Agency at Tema stated.

    As part of its objective, the workshop is intended to sensitize journalists on the current status of the Trade Agreement and to examine how the trade bloc could affect Africa in the future.

    The workshop further aims at assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the continent and media coverage of the AfCFTA amid the health crisis.

    Speakers are from the African Union Commission (AUC), ATPC, ECA Sub-Regional Offices in North, Central, and West Africa, will give an overview of the state of the agreement, its impact on African regions, its implementation through National Strategies, and its gender dimensions.

    The AfCFTA agreement, which was entered into force on May 30, 2019, after the treaty, was ratified by 22 countries the minimum number required by the treaty, with 36 countries ratified so far.

    “It provides an opportunity for Africa to create the world’s largest free trade area with the potential to unite more than 1.2 billion people in a $2.5 trillion economic bloc and ushers in a new era of development.

    It has the potential to generate a range of benefits through supporting trade creation, structural transformation, productive employment, and poverty reduction” the statement said.

    “Through the ATPC, the ECA has been working with the AUC and member states of the AU to deepen Africa’s trade integration and effectively implement the agreement through policy advocacy and national strategy development” it informed.

    The ECA works with the International Trade Centre (ITC), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), and independent trade experts with financial support from the European Union to assist with the implementation of the agreement.

    Source: GNA

  • Tamale residents share thoughts on coronavirus vaccine

    Some residents of Tamale have expressed mixed feelings on the Covid 19 vaccines which the government of Ghana has procured for the citizens.

    The first consignment of the vaccines which is about 600,000 doses has already hit the shores of the country since yesterday, February 24th, 2021.

    This batch is expected to cater for the front-line health workers, the judges, the legislators, and the executives, and also with the front-line security personnel.

    Speaking to the residents, some of them said they are willing and ready to go for the vaccination as and when the vaccines are ready.

    They said, despite the negative rumors making rounds about the vaccine, they are not perturbed by the scary news.

    “The disease is already killing us, so if the vaccines weren’t good, government wouldn’t go and spend money procuring it for us.” Ishawu, a resident of Tamale told GhanaWeb.

    They also said they trust the government and believe whatever decision he takes is in the interest of the Ghanaian populists.

    “Taken the vaccine is good, if it wasn’t good, government wouldn’t say we should go for it,” said Abdul Rashid, another resident.

    They said if the said vaccine is approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other countries have accepted to use it, why should Ghanaians be scared of going for the vaccination? They asked.

    Meanwhile, some residents have also said though they wouldn’t go for the vaccination but would rather stick to the protocols in other to remain safe.

    “I wouldn’t go for the vaccination, I would rather protect myself against the disease by strictly adhering to the safety protocols; washing hands, wearing of the face mask, regularly used of sanitizer, and also avoid overcrowded places.” Said Mohammed Firdaws, another resident of Tamale.

    Firdaws, however, urged the general public to take advantage of the vaccination as and when the opportunity presents itself.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Drobo residents against legalization of same sex marriage

    Some residents of Drobo in the Jaman South Municipality of the Bono region have expressed concern over the legalisation of homosexuality and lesbianism in the country.

    Sharing their views on whether same-sex marriage should be legalised or not, the residents in unison have declared the issue as an abomination that should not be entertained.

    According to them, the government should not consider that option at all as it is not good for the image of the country.

    Mr. Emmanuel Gyamfi believes now is the time for the government to clamp down on gayism and lesbianism once and for all. Gyamfi disclosed that the call against the practice should be louder than before as it is against our cultural values.

    “ I think we should not entertain the practice at all as it is not good for our image as a people. I think the time has come for us to clamp down on the practice with some seriousness”, he urged.

    Afful Stephen, a tutor in one of the Senior High Schools told Ghanaweb that it is ethically wrong for a group of persons to engage in lesbianism and gayism in the name of enjoying their rights.

    Quoting the book of Leviticus to back his argument, he averred that it is an abomination for people of the same sex to engage in sexual activities. He warned that any attempt to give it legal backing in the country will incur the wrath of God and warned authorities not to entertain such thoughts at all.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • BoG unveils sandbox pilot

    The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has launched a regulatory and innovation sandbox pilot.

    According to the Bank in a release, the launch took place on Thursday, February 25, 2021.

    The release indicated that the launch was in collaboration with EMTECH Service LLC.

    “This is in line with its commitment to evolve an enabling and inclusive regulatory environment that promotes FinTechs and supports innovation,” it added.

    “Within the financial sector, a regulatory and innovation sandbox is a supportive and controlled policy environment that enables firms to test innovative products, services and business models under the supervision of a regulator. Effectively, the regulatory and innovation sandbox will provide a forum for financial sector innovators to interact with the sector regulator to test digital financial service innovations while evolving enabling regulatory environment,” it noted.

    In this regard, the release added, the Bank and the innovator were able to assess the usefulness, viability and safety of innovations through shared understanding of their respective interests.

    “The sandbox will be available to banks, specialised deposit-taking institutions and payment service providers including dedicated electronic money issuers as well as unregulated entities and persons that have innovations that meet the sandbox requirements.”

    “Innovations eligible for the sandbox environment will have to satisfy any of the following broad categories: New digital business models not currently covered explicitly or implicitly under any regulation; New and immature digital financial service technology; and Innovative digital financial services products that have the potential of addressing a persistent financial inclusion challenge,” it said.

    “Within the broad categories outlined, the Bank of Ghana would give preference to products and services leveraging blockchain technology, remittance products, crowdfunding products and services, e-KYC (electronic know your customer) platforms, RegTech (regulatory technology), SupTech (supervisory technology), digital banking, products and services targeting women financial inclusion and innovative merchant payment solutions for micro, small and medium size enterprises (MSMEs).”

    “Notably, the sandbox is of strategic importance in driving financial inclusion through innovative digital financial services as it presents the following opportunities: Reduce time-to-market; Allow regulators to learn about innovations faster;
    Encourage innovators to formalize their business and incentivise incumbents to
    experiment with new ideas;
    Reduce the cost of innovation for innovators; and Provide valuable insight for regulators to evolve effective regulations.”

    The Bank of Ghana through this project, would like to reaffirm its commitment to addressing the financial inclusion needs of the unbanked and underserved persons and businesses, it added.

    Source: Goldstreet Business

  • Avoiding stillbirths: Need to avoid malaria in pregnancy

    Midwives at some health facilities in the Tamale and Sagnarigu Assemblies have advised pregnant women to report early for antenatal care (ANC)and be put on SulphadoxinePyrimethamine (SP) to prevent and protect them and their fetuses from malaria.

    They also advised pregnant women to stop giving excuses and rather embrace SP because it would help to prevent premature deliveries, anemia amongst other life-threatening complications.

    They gave the advice when GNA visited their facilities to assess efforts being made to prevent malaria in pregnancy in the country.

    The facilities visited were Tamale Central Health Centre, and Builpela Health Centre in the Tamale Metropolis, and Kalpohin Health Centre in the Sagnarigu Municipality.

    Malaria infection during pregnancy is a major public health problem with substantial risk for the mother, her fetus, and the newborn, and for women living in moderate-high transmission malaria areas in sub-Saharan Africa, failure to take sufficient doses of SP increases the woman’s risk of malaria, anemia, and subsequent stillbirth, preterm delivery, or delivery of a low birth weight infant.

    The Ghana Health Service, therefore, recommends preventive treatment for malaria using the Intermittent Preventive Treatment during pregnancy (IPTp) approach where SP drug is given to pregnant women when they are 16 weeks old, and once every four weeks until they deliver.

    There is a benefit for each dose of SP, and pregnant women need to take sufficient doses to protect themselves and their fetuses.

    However, the Midwives said even though reporting early for ANC was encouraging, some pregnant women still reported later than 16 weeks after getting pregnant, which meant that they would not be able to take the full complement of SP.

    Despite the benefits of SP, some pregnant women refuse to take it with the excuse that it causes them to vomit, feel dizzy, unable to walk amongst others.

    Madam Barikisu Adam, a Midwife at ANC at Tamale Central Health Centre said “We know that some pregnant women do not like to take the SP. So, we give them sachet water at the facility to take the drug in our presence so that we are sure they take it.”

    Madam Adam added that “Some pregnant women like to take the SP with drinks and or porridge and they bring them to the facility to take it in our presence. Those, who do not bring porridge or drink, request to take it home. We suspect some do not take it.”

    She said, “We also give them insecticide-treated nets and repellents to use and also advise them not to stay outside for long for mosquitoes to bite them.”

    Madam Augusta Dorbu, Midwife in-charge of ANC at Kalpohin Health Centre said “We tell them the benefits of SP and impress on them to take it. Where some do not take it, and we record complications, we refer them to hospitals where there are Neonatal Intensive Care Units to take care of the babies to save their lives.”

    Ayesha Attu, a Midwife at ANC at Builpela Health Centre said “Just this week, a 37 week-old pregnant woman came for ANC for the first time. That is her first pregnancy. We did a malaria test on her and put her on SP.”

    Given the challenges being faced to ensure uptake of SP, the Midwives advised pregnant women to prioritise their lives and those of their fetuses by embracing SP and reporting for it on time to protect them.

    Source: GNA

  • Coronavirus: Religious leaders among first to be vaccinated in Ghana

    Religious leaders have been listed as part of the segmented population to receive the first 600,000 doses of the Coronavirus vaccines received on Wednesday, February 24.

    The deployment of the vaccines is scheduled for Tuesday, March 2 in the Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi metropolitan areas. Awutu Senya East and Awutu Senya West in the Central Region as well as Obuasi will also be covered.

    In a statement issued on Wednesday, Minister-designate for Information Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said the COVID-19 “vaccination will be conducted in phases among segmented populations”.

    “The first segment of the population that will receive from the 600,000 doses will be health workers, adults 60 years and over, people with underlying health conditions, frontline executive, legislature, judiciary and their related staff, frontline security personnel, some religious leaders, essential workers, teachers and other personalities in Greater Accra Metro including Awutu Senya West and Awutu Senya East in the Central Region.”

    In the early days of the outbreak of the viral disease in Ghana, some religious leaders lived in denial, espousing divine protection.

    However, churches have since instituted temporal measures to ensure that the disease does not spread during services.

    Social distancing, wearing of masks and hand washing-cum-sanitising are strictly enforced by churches.

    Source: 3 News

  • Tamale chieftaincy clash: Police arrests 15, declares chief wanted

    The police command in the Northern region has arrested 15 people in connection with a recent chieftaincy clash at Yong Dakpem Yili in Tamale, in which dozens of homes were torched as well as motorbikes, foodstuffs among others.

    Also, five fugitives, including a chief, Fuseini Chemson, have been declared wanted.

    So far, the 15 arrested suspects have been remanded by the court.

    The Regional Crime Officer, Superintendent Bernard Baba Ananga, told the media that the remaining suspects will be arraigned before court on February 25, 2021.

    “We are going to take the issue very seriously to ensure that justice is brought to the good people of Yong Dakpem Yili”, Supt. Anango told local journalists, adding: “That particular chief who led the group to burn some of the houses will be pursued and dealt with according to law”.

    “As we are making progress, we are also sending signals out to those would-be offenders that they should take note that we will bring the law and justice to their door steps and then ensure that such mayhem will not be visited on any other community”, he warned.

    “We are going to make sure that we follow this case and ensure that it is properly dealt with according to law”, he stressed.

    The suspects are facing charges including conspiracy to committing crimes, rioting with weapons, causing unlawful damage, and unlawful assembly.

    Background

    Angry youth of Yong Dakpem Yili, a suburb of the Tamale metropolis in the Northern Region, burnt down 24 houses in the chieftaincy dispute.

    The incident, which occurred on Thursday evening (18 February 2021) was sparked by a disagreement over a funeral.

    The fight forced women and children to flee to nearby villages for refuge.

    Source: Class FM

  • Election Petition: Asking the NDC to bring out a different figure totally irrelevant Joyce Bawah Mogtari

    Joyce Bawah Mogtari, Special Aide to John Dramani Mahama, the Petitioner in the ongoing Election Petition hearing at the Supreme Court, has indicated that asking the Petitioner to bring out a different figure to show his disagreement with the December 7, 2020, election results is not relevant to the case before the court.

    According to her, the Petitioner through his lawyers and witnesses were able to tell the Supreme Court that based on the figures of the Electoral Commission, named as 1st Respondent, the declaration by the Chairperson of the 1st Respondent was unconstitutional.

    In a series of posts on her Twitter timeline, Joyce Bawah Mogtari argued that the 1st Respondent through an unsigned press release admitted that there were errors with the figures, yet “They decided not to testify at all!”

    Joyce Bawah Mogtari asked: “How can the court determine there were errors without their evidence? What is also strange is that the number they put out in their “correction” on 10th December for total valid votes cast is not the figure they are giving in their Answer as the figure for total valid votes cast!”

    She continued: “How can that be? Yet they will not give evidence to explain what exactly is the right figure.”

    John Dramani Mahama is praying the Supreme Court of Ghana to annul the results of the elections as declared by the Chairperson of the 1st Respondent on December 9, 2020.

    He argues that the figures from the 1st Respondent show clearly that none of the candidates met the constitutional threshold of winning the election with more than 50 per cent of the total valid votes.

    All the parties involved in the case have submitted their closing statements to the court.

    The Supreme Court has set March 4, 2021, to rule on the petition.


    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Dumsor is not back, ECG replacing obsolete machines – Amewu

    Minister-designate John Peter Amewu has stated that Ghana is not back to the dark days popularly known as dumsor.

    He was responding to a question by Minority Chief Whip Muntaka Mubarak on whether Ghana was back to dumsor.

    In his response, he said dumsor is not back and the prolonged era of intermittent power is now a thing of the past.

    When asked what was accounting for the recent power outages, he said there is an ongoing replacement of obsolete equipment.

    He said President has injected an amount of $100 million for the ECG to replace some of the equipment.

    He said what the ECG should do is to inform the affected areas where the replacements were ongoing.

    Parts of the Greater Accra Region has experienced a power outage.

    The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) explained that the development was to pave way for planned maintenance work to improve service delivery.

    The outfit has since apologised for any convenience the outage will cause.

    Source: rainbowradioonline.com

  • Ghanaian woman Dora Mills found dead in her room in London

    British Police found the body of a Ghanaian female social worker in Tottenham London in her room.

    According to MyNewsGh.com, the deceased identified as Dora Mills is believed to have died on February 21, 2021.

    Relations of the deceased according to a video sighted by this portal are seeing assisting the police to unravel the actual cause of death as they ask if they knew she was on some kind of medication or had a particular health condition.

    A co-tenant is heard telling the police that she lives next door but was unable to give answers to the specific questions.

    The body has since been taken to a morgue for preservation as police continue to conduct investigations into the unfortunate incident.

    Source: My News GH

  • Government maps out areas in Ghana to first receive coronavirus vaccines

    The COVID-19 vaccines have been received at the Kotoka International Airport on Wednesday, February 24 by a delegation led by the Minister-designate for Health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu.

    Information Minister-designate Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah, says the vaccines will be deployed to health facilities from Tuesday, March 2.

    “COVID-19 vaccination will be conducted in phases among segmented populations,” Mr. Oppong Nkrumah, who is also the Member of Parliament for Ofoase Ayirebi Constituency, stated.

    “The first segment of the population that will receive from the 600,000 doses will be health workers, adults 60 years and over, people with underlying health conditions, frontline executive, legislature, judiciary, and their related staff, frontline security personnel, some religious leaders, essential workers, teachers and other personalities in Greater Accra Metro including Awutu Senya West and Awutu Senya East in the Central Region.

    “A similar segmented population in the Greater Kumasi Metro and Obuasi municipality will also be covered.”

    He said the government remains resolute at ensuring the welfare of all Ghanaians “and is making frantic efforts to acquire vaccines to cover the entire population through bilateral and multilateral agencies”.

    He acknowledged the “hard work” of the technical teams of stakeholders including the Ghana Health Service, the Ministry of Health, and the COVID-19 Task Force.

    “Our development partners are also acknowledged for their tremendous financial and technical support.

    “It is our hope that they will continue to support us in our sustained efforts in combating this virus and putting Covid-19 behind us.”

    Source: 3 News

  • ‘We did not expect such an uproar’ – Director of LGBTQ+ group

    Alex Kofi Donkor, director of LGBT+ Rights Ghana, has said the group he leads expected an uproar over their recent opening of an office in Accra but the magnitude of the uproar was unexpected.

    “We did not expect such an uproar,” Donkor told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in an interview.

    “We expected some homophobic organisations would use the opportunity to exploit the situation and stoke tension against the community, but the anti-gay hateful reaction has been unprecedented,” he added.

    The group hosted the infamous opening event on January 31 attended by European and Australian diplomats. The office has since been closed down reportedly on the orders of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

    LGBTQ+ people claim they face widespread persecution, public opinion of their actions is highly unfavourable. Ghana’s laws bar same-sex relations and gay sex is punishable with up to three years imprisonment.

    The recent anti-gay outcry has been championed by Church and Muslim groups, politicians, and anti-gay rights organisations.

    Ghana has not prosecuted anyone for same-sex relations in years, human rights researchers say LGBT+ people face frequent abuse and discrimination, including blackmail and attacks.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Akufo-Addo didn’t order closure of our office – Director of LGBTQ+ group

    Alex Kofi Donkor, leader a same-sex relations rights group has reacted to reports earlier this week that their offices in the capital Accra had been shut down on the orders of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

    In an interview with Thomson Reuters Foundation, he said the main consideration for the closure was to ensure the safety of people who sought shelter and other support services there.

    Donkor said the anti-gay rhetoric was “scary” and he could not risk the safety of people at the centre, which offers paralegal services, counselling and training through workshops, even though its location had not been made public, the Reuters report said.

    He dismissed local media reports that police had shut down the centre on the orders of Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo, adding that he had not received any communication from authorities directing its closure.

    The office was opened on January 31 in the presence of the Australian ambassador and other European diplomats.

    Since the report was published widely on local media sites, neither the government nor police have confirmed or denied the said operation which was reportedly undertaken by personnel of National Security and police.

    Donkor, however, stressed that his group will not give up the fight for recognition of their sexual orientation. The subject of same-sex relations continue to elicit strong sentiments across the social strata – especially from the clergy.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Received coronavirus vaccines to be deployed from March 2 Oppong-Nkrumah

    Government has finally taken delivery of 600,000 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines made by the Serum Institute of India (Covishield).

    The vaccines were received at the Kotoka International Airport on Wednesday, February 24 by a delegation led by the Minister-designate for Health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu.

    A statement issued by the Minister-designate for Information, Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah, says the vaccines will be deployed to health facilities from Tuesday, March 2.

    “Covid-19 vaccination will be conducted in phases among segmented populations,” Mr Oppong Nkrumah, who is also the Member of Parliament for Ofoase Ayirebi Constituency, stated.

    “The first segment of the population that will receive from the 600,000 doses will be health workers, adults 60 years and over, people with underlying health conditions, frontline executive, legislature, judiciary, and their related staff, frontline security personnel, some religious leaders, essential workers, teachers and other personalities in Greater Accra Metro including Awutu Senya West and Awutu Senya East in the Central Region.

    “A similar segmented population in the Greater Kumasi Metro and Obuasi municipality will also be covered.”

    He said the government remains resolute at ensuring the welfare of all Ghanaians “and is making frantic efforts to acquire vaccines to cover the entire population through bilateral and multilateral agencies”.

    He acknowledged the “hardwork” of the technical teams of stakeholders including the Ghana Health Service, the Ministry of Health, and the COVID-19 Task Force.

    “Our development partners are also acknowledged for their tremendous financial and technical support.

    “It is our hope that they will continue to support us in our sustained efforts in combating this virus and putting COVID-19 behind us.”

    Source: 3 News

  • Were not recruiting Police

    The Police Administration has stated that it has not put out any advertisement for recruitment and, therefore, has cautioned the public against fake police recruitment claims and advertisements.

    The Police Administration said application for recruitment into the security service and requisite qualifications for this year, 2021, would be published in newspapers in due time.

    Until then, the police in a statement noted that no person should fall victim to any advertisement purporting to recruit people into the Ghana Police Service.

    The Police Administration further stated that it will not authorize any individual or group of persons to receive monies on its behalf for recruitment into the Service.

    “As a result, no person should pay money to any individual or group of persons with the view of facilitating recruitment into the Ghana Police Service,” the statement said adding “Persons found culpable of such act would be arrested and prosecuted.”

    Source: Class FM

  • Accra police arrest 19 suspects over narcotics

    The Accra Regional Police with support from the Central District Police has arrested 19 suspects over narcotics at Klewoko and Rawlings Park, in Accra.

    The 19 persons were arrested in a swoop on Friday, February 19, with quantities of dried leaves and liquid substances believed to be narcotics, retrieved from them.

    Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Effia Tenge, who made this known to the Ghana News Agency, on Tuesday said Superintendent of Police, Mr Richard Bonsu, Accra Central District, led a 25-man-team on the operation.

    The suspects are: Daniel Dodoo, Justice Krampah, Nathaniel Nelson, Adjetey Sowa, Nii Otoo Joseph, Akushe Quaye, George Tetteh Enyo, Samuel Ahorlu, Benjamin Okyere, and Emmanuel Ofoe Caeser.

    The rest are: Ismael Garshong, Eric Eshun, Joseph Ayetey, Emmanuel Lartey, Nathaniel Nortey, Aban Addo, Solomon Cofie, Cecil MAC-Bruce and Kwame Eric.

    She said all the 19 suspects were being screened by the police.

    In a related development, two persons have been arrested over alleged attempted stealing and resisting lawful arrest.

    They are Emmanuel Nii Boye, 26 years, and Bismark Kwabena, 23 years.

    DSP Tenge, said on February 22, 2021 at about 1800hours, Accra Central District Commander, Superintendent, Mr Richard Bonsu, in charge at Rawlings Park on rush hour duties spotted the two attempting to snatch a hand bag of a market woman.

    “Upon seeing the police, they took to their heels and were given a hot chase, arrested and taken to the station for further action,” DSP Tenge added.

    Source: GNA