Deputy Attorney-General (AG), Alfred Tuah-Yeboah, says he disagrees with Justice Eric Kyei Baffour that the proposed settlement in the Capital Bank trial will make crime attractive.
On Thursday, the Commercial Division of the Accra High Court presided over by the Justice rejected the terms of settlements reached between state prosecutors and the founder of Capital Bank, William Ato Essien.
Mr. Essien, per the proposed settlement, agreed to pay GH₵90 million in total: GH₵30 million on Thursday and GH₵60 million in an agreed installment settlement with the state.
Responding to the question posed by Newsfile host, Samson Lardy Anyenini, on what his outfit thought of the assertion that the agreed settlement seeks to make crime attractive to people, he said the claim was far from true.
Mr Yeboah explained that “the judge spoke from an advantaged position, he is the one presiding and he knows what he may want to do. As a prosecutor, we cannot be certain that we will win the case, it will go the other way but perhaps the judge passed that comment because he is sitting in a privileged position so that is the response that I will give to that.”
He explained that previous experiences have informed his outfit to always pursue innovative ways to collect state monies from culprits before other punishments are meted out.
The Deputy AG further said that the approach his outfit used was not as simple as it seems because it still limited the accused from occupying some positions.
“Let’s go to our constitution, if you want to hold any public office, if you want to be an MP, if you want to be Minister, Deputy Minister, if you have been convicted of an offense involving dishonesty, you are limited from holding such position,” he said.
He stressed that the proposed approach dented the reputation of the former boss and creates limited opportunities for him.
“If you are a business person like Ato Essien who is into financing from the banks and specialized deposit taking institution Act, Act 930, you can not be a director of any financial institution or work in any position relating to the finances of the company, you cannot,” he noted.
Mr. Tuah-Yeboah further noted that the Attorney-General’s insistence on retrieving the monies from Ato Essien is because previous experience had shown that often when culprits were sent to prison, the State could not fall on any asset to recoup stolen funds.
“If someone does not have the asset you can fall on, you cannot say you are going to imprison the persons. So in this particular matter, maybe they are convicted by the court which we are certain the court may do because we have a very good case.
“If they are convicted and Ato Essien imprisoned and the court says we should go and then get his property and auction, do we know his property?” he said.
Senior Vice President of IMANI Africa, Kofi Bentil says the unrest in the labour sector is the doing of government.
The lawyer, who was speaking on the issue of disparity between Article 71 officeholders and Single-Spine workers, said the country has failed when it comes to “dealing with public sector wages over time”.
Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile, he said none of the problems caused can be attributed to public sector workers.
“Zero of the problems are with the public and civil servant. All the problems are with the leaders. When you employ somebody, the person’s wage is not a net loss to you because the person helps you to make more money than you pay them.”
“So if you take the civil and public servants, the government workers, whatever we’re paying them, if they were producing well enough, it will not be a net loss to you, it won’t be a problem, it will be a fraction of what they’re making,” he said.
Mr. Bentil argued that politicians and government officials are “messing up” the public sector.
He said proof of the above was the fact that workers from the public sector work efficiently when they are in the private sector than they do in the public sector.
“The public sector has about three times more qualifications than the private sector. And whenever they move, whether to international organizations or into the private sector, they produce massively. So why don’t they get the same levels of productivity when they’re in the civil and public service?
“It’s because of the leadership and the political messing up of that space. It’s because people are appointing political misfits into office. It is simply because the leadership there is poor at every level.”
He reiterated that the country should not blame the public sector workers for low productivity.
Public sector workers have been raising concerns over the huge gap between the salaries of Article 71 officeholders and Single-Spine workers.
By 2016, the difference between average salary earners of these two groups amounted to ₵17,088 with single spine workers taking as low as 1,128 as against Article 71 holder’s 18,211.
In view of this, organized labour recently rejected a proposal of 18% salary increment.
The group which consists of unions such as; GNAT, CLOGSAG and TUC stated that they will not accept any increment less than 60% although they are demanding a 65% increment.
A 67-year-old woman, Antie Aba Yaa has been found hanging in her uncompleted house at Nkusukum, a suburb of Mankessim in the Mfantseman Municipality of the Central Region.
She was found dead and hanging on Saturday, December 3, 2022.
Speaking in an interview with EIB Network Central Regional Correspondent, Yaw Boagyan, a daughter of the deceased, Sister Esi said she woke up early in the morning going for jogging and her mother was nowhere to be found, but she thought her mother had gone out to visit a neighbour.
After she returned from the jogging, she noticed that her mother was still not in the house so she began searching for her.
Upon searching, she noticed that there were signs that an activity had happened in the house, hence she went nearer and found that her 67-year-old woman was hanging.
According to her, the incident has left residents shocked and struck with fear.
They therefore called on the police to beef up security in the area.
Meanwhile, police in the Mankessim have conveyed the body to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital Mortuary for autopsy and preservation.
Government in the 2023 Budget Statement has only allocated 12 percent to the education sector which is about three to eight percent short of the international benchmark of at least 15 percent to 20 percent, a situation the Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) describes as alarming.
In the budget statement, out of the projected government expenditure of GH₵205billion, only GH₵24.7billion, representing 12 percent of the total budget, is allocated to the education sector.
Meanwhile, at the Global Education Summit held in July 2021 in the United Kingdom (UK), President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo pledged to spend at least 23 percent of the national budget toward the development of education in the country over the next medium term from 2021 to 2025.
According to Eduwatch, this is not only one of the lowest proportions of government budget allocation to the education sector in about two decades, but also raises concerns about Ghana’s ability to meet the upper limit of the international education financing benchmark of 15 percent to 20 percent of public expenditure, and 4 percent to 6 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
Even more alarming, according to Eduwatch, is that only 39 percent (GH₵1.8billion) of the GH₵24.7billion was allocated to Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund), against total GETFund levy accruals of GH₵4.6billion for education financing.
Furthermore, out of the total allocation to education, GH₵2.7billion, representing 12.1 percent of the total education allocation, is earmarked for Capital Expenditure (CAPEX), where education infrastructure is financed.
This, compared to the 2022 allocation of GH₵1.4billion, represents an increase of 92 percent but is still too insignificant to tackle the gargantuan education infrastructure needs, hence, fewer infrastructure projects outcome should be expected.
“The declining proportion of the national budgetary allocation to the education sector has a strong potential to negatively affect the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG-4) targets, especially at the basic education level. Government must take steps to augment the deficit in the 2023 supplementary budget, and revise the medium-term expenditure framework to reflect its international commitments on education financing, as well as the real needs of the sector,” Eduwatch lamented.
The Executive Director of Eduwatch, Kofi Asare, has called on Parliament to interrogate the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori Atta, about why the 25 percent capping of the GETFund could possibly lead to an allocation of only 39 percent of accruals to the GETFund levy, adding that the continuous capping of GETFund is inimical to education development, especially at the basic level where the infrastructure gap continues to widen.
Out of the total allocation to education, GH₵4.9billion, representing 21.4 percent of the education budget is allocated to goods and services.
This, compared to the 2022 allocation of GH₵4.4billion, does not only represent an increase of 11 percent, but indicates an increase in the proportion of the education budget spent on goods and services from 17.9 percent in 2022 to 21.4 percent in 2023.
Out of this Gh₵2.95 billion representing 60 percent is earmarked for financing the free Senior High School (free SHS) programme. This constitutes an increase of 26 percent from the 2022 allocation of Gh₵2.3 billion.
Infrastructure deficit at basic level
There are 1.2 million children out of basic school in Ghana, mainly because of huge deficits in the availability of public basic schools in underserved communities.
This, coupled with the over 5,000 basic schools taking place under trees, sheds, and dilapidated structures, and the lack of Junior High Schools in about 4,000 primary schools must be enough reason for the government to listen to calls by Parliament and Civil Society for uncapping the GETFund.
Police in the US state of Alabama have arrested an 82-year-old woman over an outstanding rubbish bill.
Martha Louis Menefield said she was confused as officers handcuffed her and arrested her on Sunday.
The amount that led to her arrest was reportedly $77.80 (£63.28).
In a statement on Facebook, City of Valley police said they treated Ms Menefield respectfully and that they had notified her several times that she had not paid the bill for three months.
“Ms Menefield was treated respectfully by our officers in the performance of their duties and was released on a bond as prescribed by the violation,” said Mike Reynolds, police chief for the City of Valley in Alabama, in the statement, which has drawn significant criticism online.
People from Alabama and across the country denounced the police department in the comments section.
“Everybody who played a role in arresting this 82-year-old Valley, Alabama resident must be held accountable for their actions,” wrote Donald Watkins, a former attorney in the state, in one example.
“You’re not kidding?” she asked the officer. But when the police explained that he was indeed there to arrest her over the unpaid bill, Ms Menefield said, “I was upset because I didn’t know why they would come and arrest me.”
Once in handcuffs, one of the officers “kind of whispered it to me: ‘Don’t cry’”, she said. She recalled telling an officer: “How would you feel if they came and arrested your grandmama?”
Following her arrest, she was taken to the Valley police department and temporarily held before she was released on bond.
“I was in a little cage-like thing at the police station,” Ms Menefield told CBS News. “And I said, ‘Y’all put me in this cage? You ought to be ashamed of yourself.”
Mr Reynolds did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment.
In his Facebook statement, Mr Reynolds wrote that city officials had attempted to contact Ms Menefield about her bill multiple times.
He said that she had received a citation in August for the unpaid bills, and that the city’s code enforcement department “tried to call Ms Menefield several times and attempted to contact her in person at her residence.”
Officials left a notice on her door, Mr Reynolds said, providing contact information and an advisory that she was required to appear in court in September.
“A warrant for Failure to Pay Trash was issued when she did not appear in court,” Mr Reynolds said, adding that Ms Menefield also had her trash services suspended three times in the past two years.
Ms Menefield told CBS News that she did not know the bill in question had not been paid, and that she had never received a notice to appear in court.
A Russian businessman has been arrested at his multi-million-pound London home by officers investigating potential criminal activity by oligarchs.
The man, 58, was held on suspicion of money laundering, conspiracy to defraud the Home Office and conspiracy to commit perjury.
A 35-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of money laundering.
He was also arrested for obstructing an officer when trying to leave with a bag containing thousands of pounds in cash.
A third man, 39, who is the former boyfriend of the businessman’s current partner, was arrested at his home in Pimlico, central London, for offences including money laundering and conspiracy to defraud.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) said more than 50 officers from its Combatting Kleptocracy Cell were involved in the operation at the businessman’s property, where a number of digital devices and a significant quantity of cash was seized following a search.
Graeme Biggar, director general of the NCA, said the unit, which was established this year, was having “significant success investigating potential criminal activity by oligarchs”.
He added: “We will continue to use all the powers and tactics available to us to disrupt this threat.”
All three of the arrested men, who have not been named by the NCA, have been released on bail.
The NCA said it was the latest operation carried out as part of its efforts to disrupt the activities of corrupt international business figures and their enablers.
Almost 100 “disruptions” – actions that remove or reduce a criminal threat – have been carried out against Putin-linked elites and their enablers, including account freezing orders (AFOs) over accounts held by people closely linked to sanctioned Russians, according to the NCA.
Almost 20% of unaccompanied child migrants from Albania taken in by Kent County Council this year have disappeared, the BBC has found.
The local authority took in 197 Albanian children up to 31 October, 39 of whom have gone missing.
Ecpat UK, which campaigns to protect children from exploitation, said the figures were very concerning.
The council said it had worked closely with the Home Office and police to safeguard vulnerable children.
The figures were obtained by the BBC via a Freedom of Information request.
The council said 197 Albanian children processed at the Home Office’s Kent Intake Unit came into its care between 1 January and 31 October.
It added that, as of 7 November, 39 were recorded as missing. However, it said some of those children would have since turned 18.
Government figures collated by the BBC show 44,122 people have crossed on small boats so far this year, compared with 28,461 who arrived in 2021.
This contributed to overcrowding at the Manston processing centre in Kent, which at one point was holding more than double its capacity, at about 4,000 people.
The rising number of diphtheria cases among asylum seekers who have recently arrived in the UK has also been a concern.
Meanwhile, a government plan to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda is currently on hold as it faces a legal challenge in the court.
Analysis: BBC reporter Simon Jones
For a local authority which is taking on the role of a child’s guardian, just one young person going missing is one too many.
For Kent County Council, to not know the whereabouts of 39 of the Albanian children it was tasked with caring for must be extremely worrying.
The council says candidly that it can be very difficult to prevent some children from going missing.
It’s trying to identify proactively those who might be at risk of exploitation, and, when missing children are found, it will carry out a debrief to see if lessons can be learned.
It has certainly felt under pressure in recent years over the number of asylum-seeking children it has been required to take on, at times refusing to accept any more, saying services were at breaking point.
Now, more unaccompanied children are being dispersed around the country. But the challenge of protecting those children from potential harm remains very real.
More than 12,000 migrants from Albania have reached the UK by boat so far this year – an increase of almost 4,000% compared with 2021.
The issue has been highlighted by Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick, who said that on some small boats 80% of those on board were from Albania.
Laura Durán, head of policy, advocacy and research for Ecpat UK said this was a “really high” number of missing children.
She said: “We’re really concerned they are at risk of exploitation or have effectively been trafficked.
“They could be facing labour exploitation in different industries such as construction or car washes; they could be criminally exploited in drug distribution or in cannabis farms, or they could be sexually exploited.”
Image caption,
Migrants rest at an unnamed Home Office facility in Kent
In a statement, Kent County Council said it had seen a “significant increase” in the number of unaccompanied Albanian children referred to its services.
It said: “Whilst all unaccompanied asylum-seeking children are vulnerable to exploitation… research and experience evidences that some nationalities are particularly vulnerable and can go missing from local authority care very quickly.
“Kent County Council has used both established safeguarding protocols, including the National Referral Mechanism, and initiated multi-agency strategies to minimise the risks for these children as much as possible.
“The council continues to take a proactive role in safeguarding all unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in its care.”
Russia is consolidating its military presence in the captured port city of Mariupol by constructing a large army base, satellite photos released from the Earth observation company Maxar appear to show.
The new, U-shaped compound sits near the centre of the city. On its roof, the red, white and blue star of the Russian army can be seen, with letters reading “Russian army, for the people of Mariupol”.
Image source, Maxar
Image caption,
The newly constructed Russian military base in Mariupol suggests Russia is seeking to dig in in the city
Moscow’s forces laid siege to the city for almost three months earlier this year, and constant artillery barrages left much of it in ruins.
Ukrainian officials estimated last month that some 25,000 civilians were killed in the strikes, while the UN said it had confirmed the deaths of 1,348 civilians, but said the true death toll was “likely thousands higher”.
Images of the city’s graveyard appear to show it being extended. Russian troops have reportedly been removing dead bodies from destroyed buildings in recent months and taking them away for burial. Last month, an analysis of images obtained by BBC Panorama suggested 1,500 new graves have been dug at the cemetery.
Image source, Maxar
Image caption,
Photos of the Mariupol cemetery taken in March 2022
Image source, Maxar
Image caption,
Images of the cemetery taken in November show new graves being dug in the right foreground and the left foreground
A large protective screen has also been erected around the remains of the city’s theatre, where hundreds of people are believed to have died after Russian forces targeted it in a missile strike on 18 March. The attack – which Amnesty International called “clear war crime” by Russia – left the site in ruins.
Image source, Maxar
Image caption,The remains of the Mariupol theatre after a missile strike in March
Image source, Maxar
Image caption,In new images, a large screen can be seen around the theatre
Ukrainian officials estimate that up to 90% of the city’s infrastructure was left in ruins by the Russian bombardment, and the new images suggest that Moscow has started to demolish many of the residential buildings that were left beyond repair.
Image source, Maxar
Image caption,Residential buildings after being targeted by Russian strikes in March
Image source, Maxar
Image caption,The new images show the damaged buildings have been demolished in anticipation of reconstruction
Other images show huge amounts of building supplies at the city metro station. During the Russian bombardment of Mariupol, many civilians could be seen waiting outside the station for food and other necessities.
Image source, Maxar
Image caption,An image showing building supplies at Mariupol’s metro station
Image source, Maxar
Image caption,
The metro station in March
The images come amid reports that Russia is slowly building up its defensive positions in Mariupol, as Ukrainian counteroffensives in the south and east increasingly put the city under threat.
Last month, UK defence officials said the Russian military was using two plants in occupied Mariupol to produce large numbers of “dragon’s teeth” – concrete blocks designed to slow advancing enemy armour and other vehicles.
The city is strategically important for Russia, forming part of its “land bridge” linking Russia to annexed Crimea.
The Air Force on Friday unveiled its newest stealth bomber aircraft, the B-21 Raider, in Palmdale, California. Built by Northrop Grumman, the bomber was named in honor of the “courageous spirit” of airmen who carried out the surprise World War II Doolittle Raid.
The sixth-generation aircraft is expected to help the Air Force “penetrate the toughest defenses for precision strikes anywhere in the world,” Northrop Grumman’s press release said. Six bombers are currently in “various stages of final assembly” in California, according to the release.
The event on Friday was even more significant given that it marked the first time in more than 30 years a new US bomber has been publicly unveiled since the B-2 Spirit was presented in 1988. While the US originally planned to have a fleet of 132 B-2s, just 21 were ultimately purchased.
The release of the new bomber comes amid heightened tensions between the US and both China and Russia. Just days ago, the Pentagon released its annual report on China, which said the country has doubled its number of nuclear warheads in a fraction of the time the US expected it to.
By 2035, the report said, China could have roughly 1,500 nuclear warheads – an “accelerated expansion” of its stockpile, a senior defense official told CNN.
The B-21 was designed with that competition in mind. Northrop Grumman’s rundown of the new bomber’s abilities said that while adversaries “continue to invest in and develop advanced weapons,” the B-21 will allow the US to penetrate enemy air defense and hit targets “anywhere in the world.”
“America’s defense will always be rooted in deterring conflict. So, we are again making it plain to any potential foe: the risk and the cost of aggression far outweigh any conceivable gains,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said during the unveiling ceremony Friday. “This is deterrence the American way.”
While Friday marked the “first time the world’s first sixth-generation aircraft (was) seen by the public,” Northrop Grumman said, airmen and aircraft enthusiasts alike will have to wait until next year to actually see one in the air.
The first B-21 flight is expected to happen in 2023, Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek said, though she emphasized that the timing of the first flight “will be data and event, not date, driven.”
The Air Force previously said that the new nuclear-capable stealth bomber, which has the ability to carry both nuclear and conventional weapons and which will fall under the Air Force’s Global Strike Command, will be “the backbone of the future Air Force bomber force,” designed in a way that is ripe for future modernization efforts.
The service named Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, as the home of the B-21 and home to the aircraft’s training program. Each aircraft was anticipated to cost $550 million when the price was set in 2010; after adjusting for inflation this year, Stefanek said, the cost of each aircraft, including training materials, support equipment and other components of the bomber, is $692 million. The Air Force plans to purchase at least 100 of the stealth bombers.
“Even the most sophisticated air defense systems will struggle to detect the B-21 in the sky,” Austin said at the unveiling.
The B-21 has been built with long-term sustainability and maintainability in mind, Northrop Grumman said in the release. It has also been designed to be rapidly upgraded when future threats demand it – a process that can often be slowed down by bureaucratic red tape and delayed timelines when it comes to older military aircraft and vehicles.
The bomber won’t undergo “block upgrades,” according to Northrop Grumman, which is a method of periodically upgrading parts of a system. Instead, the company said new “technology, capabilities and weapons will be seamlessly incorporated” through software upgrades.
“This will ensure the B-21 Raider can continuously meet the evolving threat head on for decades to come,” the company said.
The name “Raider” was submitted by airmen with the 337th Test and Evaluation Squadron out of Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, and beat out more than 2,000 other suggestions. It refers to the April 1942 Doolittle Raid, during which 80 airmen flew a retaliatory mission to bomb Japan just months after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Led by then-Lt. Col. James “Jimmy” Doolittle, the airmen flew roughly 650 miles to Japan, bombing military installations, storage facilities and factories, according to the Air Force. But because of limited fuel, they knew it was unlikely they’d make it back to safety as planned.
Instead, the pilots and crew “ditched at sea, bailed out, or crash-landed in China,” according to the National Museum of the US Air Force, many reaching safety with the help of Chinese citizens. According to the museum, as many as a quarter of a million Chinese citizens were later executed by the Japanese as punishment for assisting the Americans.
Former Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James announced the new bomber’s name in 2016 alongside one of the airmen who flew on that World War II mission, retired Lt. Col. Richard Cole, who died in 2019.
“We wanted [to] ensure the aircraft had a strong name airmen could take pride in, especially those who will have the opportunity to fly and maintain the B-21,” Lt. Col. Jaime Hernandez, commander of the 337th, said in 2016. “We also wanted to take an element of our history into account, and the story of the Doolittle Raiders embodies just that.”
Nearly 20,000 people in the United States were admitted to the hospital for flu last week, almost double the number of admissions from the week before, according to data updated Friday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC estimates that there have been at least 8.7 million illnesses, 78,000 hospitalizations and 4,500 deaths from influenza this season.
In a letter to the nation’s governors Friday, US Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra notes that flu and other respiratory viruses are “increasing strain” on the country’s health care systems.
In a letter obtained exclusively by CNN, Becerra wrote that the Biden administration “stands ready to continue assisting you with resources, supplies, and personnel.”
Last month, children’s health leaders requested a formal emergency declaration from the federal government to support hospitals and communities amid an “alarming surge of pediatric respiratory illnesses, including respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza, along with the continuing children’s mental health emergency.”
The Biden administration has not declared a public emergency for RSV or flu, but the Becerra letter outlines ways the public health emergency declaration for Covid-19 can be applied to more broadly address challenges brought on by a confluence of Covid-19 and other respiratory and seasonal illnesses.
“The Administration has exercised regulatory flexibilities to help health care providers and suppliers continue to respond to COVID-19. These flexibilities – while critical in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic – can also help address many of the challenges you face during the spread of non-COVID-19 illnesses, including RSV and flu,” the letter says. “They remain available to you and health care providers as you all make care available in response to flu, RSV, COVID-19, and other illnesses.”
For example, if a hospital has staffing shortages that have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, it may use a waiver that would allow increased surge capacity or easier patient transfers – even if the patients need treatment for something other than Covid-19, such as flu or RSV.
The letter also highlights available funding, including $400 million from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to prepare for and respond to public health threats each year, including flu and other respiratory diseases such as RSV, along with data, analysis and other planning resources put together by the federal government. It also notes that the federal government is monitoring the supply chain for critical drugs and devices and that federal health officials over the past month have been engaging with the nation’s governors through a meeting hosted by the National Governors Association.
“As your federal partner, we stand ready to evaluate any request for federal medical assistance and support – including requests for medical personnel and equipment – working in close coordination with you and local jurisdictions to determine the needs and availability of matching resources,” Becerra wrote.
Flu activity has been highest in the South, with hot spots spreading from El Paso to southwest Virginia. All but six states are experiencing “high” or “very high” respiratory virus levels, and seasonal flu activity remains “high and continues to increase,” according to the CDC.
There have been nearly 17 flu hospitalizations for every 100,000 people this season, rates typically seen in December or January. The cumulative hospitalization rate hasn’t been this high at this point in the season in more than a decade.
The latest surveillance data probably does not reflect the full effects of holiday gatherings, as it only captures through November 26, two days past Thanksgiving.
While flu continues to ramp up, RSV has shown signs of slowing nationwide, but test positivity rates are still higher than they’ve been in years, and cumulative hospitalization rates are about 10 times higher than typical for this point in the season. Less than two months in, the RSV hospitalization rate this season is already nearing the total RSV hospitalization rate from the entire 2018-19 season.
There is no vaccine for RSV, but health officials have urged people to get their flu shots and updated Covid-19 boosters heading into winter. With the holiday season – and flu season – underway, Dr. Anthony Fauci warned this week of the potential for an emergency situation.
“When you have very little wiggle room of intensive care beds, when you have like almost all the intensive care beds that are occupied, it’s bad for the children who have RSV and need intensive care. But it also occupies all the beds, and children who have a number of other diseases that require intensive care or ICU, they don’t have the bed for it,” Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “So if you get to that situation, that’s approaching an emergency.”
Health officials are urging parents to look out for symptoms of Strep A after six children died with an invasive form of the bacterial infection.
Strep A infections are usually mild, causing illness ranging from a sore throat to scarlet fever, but can develop into a more serious invasive Group A Strep (iGAS) infection.
Experts say there are more Strep A cases than usual this year.
Prof Beate Kampmann said parents should seek medical help if they were worried.
Health officials confirmed on Friday that six children had died with iGAS – including five under 10-year-olds in England and a girl from Wales since September. No deaths have been confirmed in Scotland or Northern Ireland.
The UK Health Security Agency said the last time there was an intensive period of Strep A infection was in 2017-18, when there were four deaths in England in the equivalent time frame.
The rise in Strep A cases and deaths is most likely due to high amounts of the bacteria circulating and increased social mixing, the UKHSA said.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Saturday, infectious diseases paediatrician Prof Kampmann said Strep A caused “an a-symptomatic infection in the majority of people, then there is a sore throat, then scarlet fever, and in a very, very small minority will there be invasive Group A Strep”.
She said there had been three times as much scarlet fever this year than was seen pre-pandemic: “It starts off with a high fever, very sore throat and very red tongue, which has this sort of papillae – eventually developing a rash which feels a bit like sandpaper.
“The rash starts in the elbows and behind the neck. It tends to then peel after about ten days because the disease is caused by a toxin that is produced by this bacterium.”
Prof Kampmann said if children became really unwell, or if parents were in doubt, they should seek help. She also said children with a fever should be kept off school.
She continued: “The good news is that Group A Strep is very, very treatable with penicillin.”
But she added, “if your child is deteriorating in any way, you feel that they’re not eating, drinking, being quite flat and lethargic you need to take them to the doctors and to get them checked out”.
The latest data shows there were 851 cases of scarlet fever reported in the week of 14-20 November, compared to an average of 186 for the preceding years.
Virologist Dr Chris Smith said the general rise in Strep A infections could be due to a drop in immunity following the pandemic.
He told BBC Breakfast: “There’s something about the vulnerability of the population and particularly younger people.
“What has changed is that younger people have been through three years, almost, of relative isolation from each other.
“They haven’t caught the normal infections at the normal rates and at the normal times that normal children of that sort of age bracket would have done.
“So, we wonder whether it is that we are seeing a big rash of cases all at once.”
There have been 2.3 cases of the invasive Strep A disease per 100,000 children aged one to four in England this year, compared with an average of 0.5 in pre-pandemic seasons of 2017-19, the UKHSA said.
There have also been 1.1 cases per 100,000 children aged five to nine, compared with a pre-pandemic average over the same period of 0.3.
UKHSA advises people to call 999 or go to A&E if:
your child is having difficulty breathing – you may notice grunting noises or their tummy sucking under their ribs
there are pauses when your child breathes
your child’s skin, tongue or lips are blue
your child is floppy and will not wake up or stay awake
What is Strep A?
Image source, BSIP/Getty Images
Group A streptococcal (GAS) infection is caused by strains of the streptococcus pyogenes bacterium
The bacteria can live on hands or the throat for long enough to allow easy spread between people through sneezing, kissing and skin contact
Most infections cause mild illnesses such as “strep throat” or skin infections
It can also cause scarlet fever and in the majority of cases this clears up with antibiotics
On rare occasions the bacteria can get deeper into the body – including infecting the lungs and bloodstream. It is known as invasive GAS (iGAS) and needs urgent treatment as this can be serious and life-threatening.
The German government wants to stop energy companies from increasing electricity and gas prices in 2023, Bild newspaper reported Saturday, citing draft legislation.
The government has already ordered a cap on energy prices for next year to quell the energy crisis that threatens household budgets and the viability of many businesses.
What is the government planning?
A draft law on next year’s energy price brake, which was announced by Berlin last month, will also force utility companies to justify any increase in price, for example, extreme volatility in financial markets, Bild reported.
Otherwise, they would be banned from increasing prices in 2023.
The measure, if passed, would mean that hundreds of price increases already announced by energy firms for next year would have to be reversed.
The government wants to prevent energy firms from abusing an €83-billion ($87-billion) subsidy scheme to pay for the price cap.
The price rise justification will be part of the mechanism that firms will need to adhere to receive those subsidies.
“We want to prevent free-rider effects that encourage utility companies to charge higher tariffs,” Michael Kruse, spokesman for energy policy for the neoliberal Free Democratic Party (FDP) parliamentary group, told Bild.
Free riding occurs when one firm benefits from the actions and efforts of another without paying or sharing the costs.
One passenger was killed and four injured when a “rogue wave” hit their cruise ship during a storm earlier this week.
The passengers had been taking an Antarctic cruise aboard the Viking Polaris when it was hit by the storm as it sailed towards Ushuaia, Argentina, late on Tuesday evening.
The storm caused a giant wave that broke several panes of glass on the cruise ship and these fell onto and killed an American woman.
Viking Cruises confirmed in a statement issued Saturday that the ship had been hit by a “rogue wave” – a type of wave the US National Ocean Service describes as being “greater than twice the size of surrounding waves.”
“It is with great sadness that we confirmed a guest passed away following the incident,” Viking Cruises said.
It did not reveal the passenger’s name or nationality.
However, the Argentine state news agency Telam said the dead passenger was an American woman who “received blows from a glass surface that collapsed in the middle of the storm.”
“Four other guests sustained non-life-threatening injuries during the incident and were treated by the ship’s onboard doctor and medical staff,” Viking said.
The cruise line said it is investigating and has canceled the Viking Polaris’ next trip scheduled for December 5 to 17.
The boat arrived in Argentina Wednesday and had sustained “limited damage” during the incident, Viking Cruises said.
The US National Ocean Service describes rogue waves as being “very unpredictable” and says they often come unexpectedly from directions other than prevailing wind and waves.”
The US Air Force has unveiled its newest nuclear stealth bomber, the B-21, which will gradually replace aircraft first flown in the Cold War.
The first new bomber in 30 years could cost nearly $700m (£569m) each and can carry nuclear and conventional weapons.
As expected, specific details of the aircraft remain shrouded in secrecy.
But US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said it was “a testament to America’s enduring advantages in ingenuity and innovation”.
The B-21 Raider was unveiled during a ceremony on Friday at manufacturer Northrop Grumman’s facility in California.
Mr Austin said the plane would offer significant advances over existing bombers in the US fleet, stating that “even the most sophisticated air defence systems will struggle to detect the B-21 in the sky”.
“Fifty years of advances in low-observable technology have gone into this aircraft,” he said.
Image source, Reuters
He added that the plane was also built with an “open system architecture,” which allows for the incorporation of “new weapons that haven’t even been invented yet”.
While the potential for an uncrewed flight was not mentioned during the ceremony, a US Air Force spokeswoman said the aircraft was “provisioned for the possibility, but there has been no decision to fly without a crew”.
The first flight by a B-21 is expected to take place next year.
It will eventually replace the B-1 and B-2 models and the fleet is estimated to cost $203bn (£165m) to develop, buy and operate over 30 years, according to Bloomberg.
Six planes are currently in production, the manufacturer said, adding they would feature the “next generation of stealth” and that it is employing unspecified “new manufacturing techniques and materials”.
The US Air Force is planning to acquire at least 100 of the aircraft.
A cap on the price of Russian oil will restrict Russia’s revenues for the “illegal war in Ukraine,” the US says.
The cap, approved by Western allies on Friday, is aimed at stopping countries paying more than $60 (£48) for a barrel of seaborne Russian crude oil.
The measure – due to come into force on Monday – intensifies Western pressure on Russia over the invasion.
Ukraine said the Western-proposed cap should be halved. Russia said it would not supply to countries enforcing it.
The price cap was put forward in September by the G7 group of industrialised nations (the US, Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the EU) in a bid to hit Moscow’s ability to finance the war in Ukraine.
In a joint statement, the G7, the European Union and Australia said the decision was taken to “prevent Russia from profiting from its war of aggression against Ukraine”.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the price cap would also further constrain Russian President Vladimir Putin’s finances and “limit the revenues he’s using to fund his brutal invasion”, while avoiding disrupting global supplies which could send petrol prices soaring around the world.
“With Russia’s economy already contracting and its budget increasingly stretched thin, the price cap will immediately cut into Putin’s most important source of revenue,” she said in a statement.
UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said the UK would not waver in its support and would continue to look for new ways to “clamp down on Putin’s funding streams”.
The agreement of a price cap comes just days before an EU-wide ban on Russian crude oil imported by sea comes into force, also on 5 December.
The price cap – which is meant to affect oil exports worldwide – is meant to complement that.
Countries which sign up to the G7-led policy will only be permitted to purchase oil and petroleum products transported via sea that are sold at or below the price cap.
Ukraine’s Western allies also plan to deny insurance to tankers delivering Russian oil to countries that do not stick to the price cap. This will make it hard for Russia to sell oil above that price.
Senior Russian politician Leonid Slutsky told Tass news agency the EU was jeopardising its own energy security with the cap.
Though the measures will most certainly be felt by Russia, the blow will be partially softened by its move to sell its oil to other markets such as India and China – which are currently the largest single buyers of Russian crude oil.
Image source, .
Before the war, in 2021, more than half of Russia’s oil exports went to Europe, according to the International Energy Association. Germany was the largest importer, followed by the Netherlands and Poland.
But since the war, EU countries have been desperately trying to decrease their dependency. The US has already banned Russian crude oil, while the UK plans to phase it out by the end of the year.
In the era of tweets being coughed up under the mantra of ‘The internet doesn’t forget,’ politicians are often the subject of social media posts that literally slap them in the face.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is facing one such social media post in the wake of the Black Stars exit from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The Otto Addo-led team fell 2 – 0 to Uruguay in a must-win fixture on December 2, 2022; which result meant the two teams exited the tournament with Portugal and South Korea advancing.
A 2014 tweet by the president has resurfaced as people mock its content relative to recent happenings in the country.
It reads: “No water, no electricity, no petrol, no jobs, no mercy, no World Cup cictory! #Ghana”
The president had urged the team to take revenge on the Uruguayans after a 2010 incident where Luis Suarez, their captain in yesterday’s game thwarted Ghana’s prospect of making history by becoming the first African side to qualify for the semi-finals of the World Cup.
Akufo-Addo has yet to comment on the outcome of the match.
In 2014 when his tweet was made, the then Asamoah Gyan-led Black Stars made a disastrous outing in Brazil when they failed to win a single match yet ‘cooked’ a global spectacle that saw dollars being flown to pay their appearance fees for fears of a boycott.
Ghana ended bottom of Group H with Portugal topping whiles South Korea finsihed second ahead of Uruguay on goal difference – both teams finished with four points apiece.
The Black Stars recorded three points from three games – losing to Portugal and Uruguay and beating South Korea. They scored five goals and conceded seven.
Coach Otto Addo has resigned his position in the post-match press conference.
Match Report: Uruguay vs. Ghana
The Black Stars of Ghana had one task going into their final Group H fixture at the 2022 World Cup.
Win at all costs, worse case draw against Uruguay and secure passage into the Round-of-16 stage of the competition.
The match was, however, settled with three major incidents in the first half. A penalty miss by Black Stars skipper Andre Dede Ayew, when the score was goalless.
Then Giorgian de Arrascaeta’s two goals for Uruguay which came in quick sucession, consigned the Black Stars to a second World Cup defeat against the South Americans who broke hearts of Africans in 2010.
Their 2 – 0 victory over the Black Stars was, however, not enough to get them through to the next round of the tournament as South Korea beat Portugal 2-1.
With Uruguay in dire need of a third goal to progress to the next round of the World Cup, Suarez was reduced to tears as efforts to score another goal proved futile.
Portugal and South Korea advanced from Group H as Uruguay and Ghana exited the tournament after finished 3rd and 4th respectively.
Nurses at the Manhyia District Hospital in the Kumasi metropolis have rescinded their decision to strike.
This was contained in a statement issued by the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), Friday, December 2, 2022.
According to the GRNMA, their employers, the Ministry of Health (MoH) and the Ghana Health Service (GHS), “have reached out in writing to condemn the actions of Mr Alex Opoku Mensah.”
It noted that its employers further called on “the leadership of the GRNMA and the entire Nursing and Midwifery Fraternity to remain calm and withdraw the intended and roadmap to embark on an industrial strike, and allow for the due administrative processes and investigations to be conducted by the National Service Secretariat for a final determination on the incident.”
It also indicated that “other stakeholders including our dear patients and clients and the general public have also formally and informally condemned the actions of Mr Alex Opoku Mensah and have pleaded the leadership of the GRNMA to rescind its decision on embarking on a full scale strike action and resume nursing and midwifery services at Manhyia District Hospital.”
It noted that, in view of this, it has “called off its strike in Manhyia District Hospital and the intended roadmap for a full industrial action to allow the committee set up the National Service Secretariat to carry out its mandate and to ensure that our patients and clients do not suffer unduly.”
It called on all nurses and midwives especially those in Manhyia District hospital to kindly adhere to this directive and return to work Saturday, December 3, 2022 and continue providing safe and quality nursing and midwifery services to the people of Manhyia and its environs.
For failing to sack the Ashanti Regional Director of the NSS, nurses at the Manhyia Government Hospital began a sit-down strike on Friday, 2 December 2022.
The GRNMA spearheading the strike threatened to escalate it on 6 December where all nurses in the region will remain at home if the NSS regional Director was still at post.
The Association in a statement further said there will be a nationwide strike of nurses by Friday, November 9, 2022, if their demand was not met.
Mr Opoku-Mensah has been suspended by the management of the NSS pending investigations but the GRNMA is unsatisfied.
They want him sacked from office for barging into the Manhyia Government Hospital to insult a nurse on duty.
Mr Opoku-Mensah went to the hospital to fight the nurse on behalf of his daughter after the nurse had questioned the house officer on an issue.
The nurse is believed to have used her own phone to call Mr Opoku-Mensah’s daughter to come to the hospital and log into the E-Health System and update a patient’s prescription order so that the patient is not billed for unissued drugs.
It is not clear how the nurse communicated with Mr Mensah’s daughter on the phone which made her feel disrespected.
Mr Opoku-Mensah then followed his daughter to the hospital and was captured on tape insulting the nurse and threatening to mastermind her removal from the hospital.
He went on further to say his daughter is more intelligent than the said nurse and further threatened to come to the hospital in his daughter’s defence anytime she is intimidated by anyone in the facility.
The GRNMA said Mr Opoku-Mensah had no right to enter the hospital to abuse a nurse.
The group said as a Regional Director of the NSS, he should have known that the Manhyia District Hospital has management with whom he could have lodged a complaint instead of barging into the facility to attack the nurse.
Meanwhile, Mr Opoku-Mensah has apologised for his action.
In a Facebook post, the embattled Mr Opoku-Mensah said “I understand the disappointment and appreciate the inconvenience my action has caused the general public as well as the Nursing FRATERNITY and Manhyia Hospital.
“This has never been my style but for a genuine reason to mediate a persistent issue between my daughter(Doctor) and a colleague nurse who I as well consider my daughter.”
“I do apologise for any mishap and assure all, there shall not be a repetition of such…I look forward to maintaining a cordial relationship with any affected person.”
The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) Chief Executive, Dr. Bernard Okoe-Boye has said the decision to revoke the licences of credentialed healthcare providers charging illegal fees is non-negotiable.
According to him, the NHIA is paying one and a half billion cedis annually to healthcare providers for claims submitted to the Authority for which reason it is unreasonable to demand extra money from NHIS members at the point of need.
He emphasized that any healthcare provider caught acting with impunity would not be spared.
“We are making sure our members are properly taken care of. We are ready to revoke the credentials of healthcare facilities who make extra monetary demands from our members with impunity,” he said.
Dr. Okoe-Boye expressed his misgivings at a meeting with the Upper East Regional Minister on December 1, 2022.
Upper East Regional Minister, Stephen Yakubu commended the bond between the NHIA executive management and the governing board.
He said the people of the northern belt have largely been beneficiaries of the NHIS because it is pro-poor focused.
The Regional Minister described as enormous the NHIA’s recent innovations such as the Mobile Renewal platform and the Ghana card and NHIS card linkage.
As part of the visit, Dr. Okoe-Boye paid a courtesy call on the Paramount Chief of Paga traditional area where he stated, “We trust that our revered father, the Pagapio will go on with his blessings and good counselling to enable the NHIA make progress in ensuring that all residents in Ghana are covered by the NHIS.”
“We encourage the entire population in Kassena Nankana to enroll onto the Scheme to access affordable and quality healthcare.”
He said it would soon be possible for all residents in Ghana and beyond to register onto the NHIS via online through a digital platform yet to be officially launched by the Vice President, Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia in Tamale.
He underscored the need for NHIS members to periodically renew their membership using the dedicated short code *929#.
The Pagapio, Pe Pwanalunga-Charles Awiah Awampaga II applauded the NHIA’s executive management and the Governing Board for touching base with him.
He made a firm pledge to help the NHIA succeed in increasing the NHIS active membership in his traditional area.
The Pagapio made a passionate appeal to Dr. Okoe Boye and the Governing Board to open an additional office in the area.
The team visited the NHIS Navrongo district office and also interacted with staff who talked about their achievements and challenges.
The NHIA Chief Executive on November 28,2022 embarked on a working visit to the northern belt comprising the Northern, North East, Savannah and Upper East regions, except the Upper West region.
The nationwide working tour was to interface with major stakeholders including traditional leaders, administrative heads and staff of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
He is being accompanied by some NHIA Board members and Directors, among others.
Ghana Black Stars have once again failed to live up to expectations and have left Ghanaians in shambles as a result.
Ghana faced Uruguay today in the ongoing World Cup tournament with hopes of progressing to the round of 16.
Just as hopes were built, dreams came crashing down when Uruguay tossed and ravaged Ghana.
What was to be a revenge game turned into an eyesore, particularly when captain Andre Ayew missed a penalty that would have put Ghana in a lead position.
Luis Suarez’s side scored a few minutes after Dede Ayew missed a penalty in the 21st minute.
G. de Arrascaeta took advantage of a confusion that hit Ghana and scored in the 26th minute.
Arrascaeta doubled his side’s dominance in the 32nd minute.
Ghana’s defense proved to be porous.
Uruguay’s victory however did not materialize as they missed the bullseye, which is a place in the round of 16.
South Korea ensured Uruguay’s absence when they won their game against Portugal which took place simultaneously.
South Korea beat Ronaldo’s side by two goals to one. Portugal led Group H with 6 points.
South Korea and Uruguay followed with 4 points. Ghana was at the bottom with 3 points.
A Nigerian man who is facing trial for the murder of a middle-woman identified as Vivian has told a Teshie Magistrate Court that his action was out of self-defence.
The accused known as Daniel Dennis, during court hearing on Thursday, December 1, explained that his victim, an alleged sex worker who was murdered in cold blood, beheaded and legs broken, got into a fight with him after he tried preventing her from smoking weed in his room at Spintex, Accra.
According to a report by United Television, the accused; 35 years, also claimed that the deceased woman was a Nigerian.
As earlier reported, the accused who is facing trial was picked up by the Ghana Police Service after his landlord discovered a dismembered body inside his locked room.
Earlier reports claimed that the victim was the girlfriend of Daniel, a claim he has denied according to UTV.
The Director of Ghana School of Law (GSL) popularly known as Makola, Mr. Yaw Oppong says he is no more surprised when he hears any news concerning the country’s legal training institution.
Speaking on the ‘Scoop’, a segment on GTV’s Breakfast Show with Kafui Dey on Thursday, December 1, 2022, Mr. Oppong explained that he has ceased to be surprised when matters come up about GSL after knowing the meaning of Makola.
“I have said elsewhere that when I got to know the meaning of Makola I ceased to be surprised when matters come up about GSL.
I mean it is a place where I understand the original name means to come to fetch fire “Ma Ko La” so GSL is a place where people come to fetch the fire of legal education” the Director of GSL reiterated.
He continued by saying, “we are fine about what is happening except for the number of times it matters that some people either have contrived or because of the absence of understanding about the peculiar situations that occur in the school.
According to him, a lot of good things are happening under his administration at GSL but it is not for management to go about trumpeting them. Adding that “those who are the beneficiaries know that we are doing a lot of good things for them and mother Ghana so we are fine.”
On the issues of brouhaha about law entrance exams, Mr. Oppong stated categorically that the GSL does not conduct entrance examinations.
“Well, first of all, I want to put it on record that the Ghana School of Law has an institution that is akin to WAEC, it is called Independent Examination Committee which is established under the mother institution called the Ghana Legal Council.
So sometimes when you see the Ghana School of Law entrance exams, I say that there’s nothing like that. We don’t conduct examinations.
“Sometimes it’s like WACE conducting an exam and people go to the headmaster of my former school Pope John, asking why are these problems associated with the examination that WACE conducted? But be that as it may, we are together. But when there is good news in the system, a series of good news we must also hear that,” he added.
Leave our land now or we kill all your cattle – Ejurahene to Fulani herdsmen
According to the chief, it has become clear that these herdsmen are behind the rampant armed robbery incidents and murdering of innocent persons in the traditional area.
Addressing a gathering of Chiefs, elders, and all security services heads in the Ejura Municipality, Barima Osei Hwedie II, stated that the traditional authority cannot sit down unconcerned for such criminal activities to persist hence the need to crack the whip now.
“A few days ago, Fulani herdsmen accosted, shot, and killed a police officer who was off duty on the Miminaso No. 2 to Nkoranza stretch of road and we cannot allow such crimes to continue. We have thus resolved that we will no longer entertain any cattle on our land. We’re today declaring that no cattle belonging to Fulani herdsmen should be found on our land. Any chief in this jurisdiction on whose land we find cattle will be dealt with. I’m serving notice that we’ll kill any cattle found in any village, not a single one will be spared. We don’t want any Fulani herdsman to live amongst us.”
Barima Osei Hwedie II further warned all chiefs within his jurisdiction to fully comply with his directive or have themselves to blame for the consequences of their action.
“The Miminaso No. 2 Chief who I destooled a few days ago for disobeying my order and was keeping Fulani herdsmen in his village should serve as a warning to you. As you leave this meeting, when I have evidence that any of you are having cattle on your land, you will also be destooled with immediate effect. That is not a difficult thing for me to do at all. Nobody among you should take money from these Fulani herdsmen men and keep them on your land. You the agents who live in this town and import cattle, this land is not yours, we cannot allow you to destroy our lands simply because you make money from dealing in cattle. To the cattle dealers, I direct you to use the same channel you used to import cattle into this town to send them back to where they came from.” Barima Osei Hwedie fumed.
A banking consultant has said that Ghana’s economy may be headed toward a recession if the financial managers do not act appropriately.
According to Dr. Richmond Atuahene, the country’s high debt levels, which have led to debt restructuring, will make 2023 quite difficult if things are not aligned properly.
“We’re not going to have it easy. It’s going to be very difficult because everybody is talking, but they haven’t taken into consideration the debt-restructuring process. That itself can affect the economy so much that we will possibly go into recession,” myjoyonline.com quoted him.
Dr. Atuahene added that when recessions occur, the affected countries are not able to bounce back within a short period.
According to him, measures such as; debt-reduction, debt profile, debt restructuring, debt rescheduling, and debt swap as cited in the 2023 budget, hinder cash flow, therefore businesses are bound to suffer when these measures are indulged.
Meanwhile, a financial analyst, Professor Williams Peprah, has stated that the government should not conduct debt restructuring in a way that discourages investors from investing.
According to him, interest payments can be postponed whiles principals are paid under the possible programme.
Earlier, reports have revealed that some domestic investors were losing their investments due to an order from the Securities and Exchange Commission to banks.
The supposed order was for banks to use the mark-to-market approach to pay investors.
The investors have since lamented the inconveniences that this has caused while adding that some have begun losing part of their principal.
However, Prof. Peprah advised the government to restructure debt in a way that gives room for people to be able to access their principal when they want due to rising inflation in the country.
He said: “For the bonds, loss of confidence in the Ghanaian economy, it is better to defer interest payments and then pay principals so that people will be able to get cash flow to survive.”
“The reason why we’re seeing a lot of people trying to dump or discount their bonds now is because they need cash to survive because of the high inflation. So, government will have to have a metric where a certain class of investors is allowed to receive some funds to survive,” he said.
Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Minority Leader, says the group will resist the approval of budget estimates for ministers who fail to move the motion of the ongoing debate of the 2023 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of their respective ministries in the House.
He expressed concern about how ministers of the various ministries were not taking the business of the House seriously.
“Mr Speaker, going forward, we will resist the approval of any estimates coming from ministers who absent themselves from such exercises,” he said.
Mr Iddirsu said this on the floor of Parliament on Thursday.
Parliament is expected to conclude a debate on the 2023 Budget Statement and Economic Policy presented by Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, Finance Minister, Tuesday, December 6, 2022.
The House is thus expected to subsequently approve the Appropriation Bill.
Mr Iddrisu, the Member of Parliament for Tamale South on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress, further cautioned sector ministers to avail themselves to the House for the approval of their budgets.
“When we get to the approval of budget estimates and ministers don’t appear in person in Parliament by themselves, we will not support the approval of the budget allocations to those ministries.
“Ministers must take this House very seriously, and only ministers so appointed by the President to oversee the sectors of those ministries must rise from their seats to move motions to ask for budget allocations and approval by this House. Failure to do so will mean that we will stump down a number of those motions,” Mr Iddrisu said.
He noted that Parliament and the minority would hold the government accountable, adding that “we intend to strengthen oversight, and it begins with this our decision. If ministers don’t appear in person to move motions for budget allocations, then they should expect the fiercest resistance from this side of the House.”
Since the debate on the 2023 Budget Statement and Economic Policy began on Tuesday, November 29, the MPs on the Majority side have silently protested without showing up to contribute to the debate compared to the Minority side of the House.
The group had also called for the timely debate of the censure motion against Mr Ofori-Atta since it was not captured in the Business Statement for the following week.
“On the motion of censure against the Finance Minister, the words in Article 82 do not give Parliament perpetuity to discuss the matter, we are within defined time limits to consider the motion and take decisions as appropriate so whatever committee has been set up, we need to bring closure to it,” he said.
Treasurer for Ghana National Cocoa Farmers Association, Nana Yaa Asantewaa, has warned cocoa will soon be scarce in the country
She also lamented that cocoa farmers are not given fair prices got their cocoa products, and the same applies to other farmers.
Speaking on NyankontonMu Nsem on Rainbow Radio 87.5Fm, she asserted that the major reason why several young people do not want to farm is due to these issues.
He posited that farmers are not usually not respected or treated fairly.
“Farmers are not treated with respect. We are not recognised. People determine the kind of prices they want to give us. Cocoa pricing is worse. The government of Ghana do not give us fair pricing.”
These and other challenges, she added, have prevented several young people from going into farming.
She said when the youth see how farmers struggle, and unfairly they are treated, they [youth] are discouraged from pursuing a career in farming.
She warned that “soon, cocoa will no longer be a major commodity. There would also be a scarcity of food in the country. If we fail to address these challenges, farming will no longer be lucrative, and Ghana will face a serious food crisis”.
Police say it cannot provide protection for pressure group, Justice for Ghana for more than one day regarding the group’s planned picketing at Parliament House.
However, the group contends it can hold a peaceful picketing with or without protection from the Ghana Police Service.
This came up when the leadership of Justice for Ghana met the Greater Accra Regional Command of the Ghana Police Service Thursday afternoon at the Nima Divisional Police Command.
The meeting was centered on the modalities for the picketing at Parliament House and the controversial Cathedral from 6th December 2022.
Meanwhile, police say Parliament ought to be notified of the picketing while the picketing at the Cathedral Project site should also be limited to the external perimeter.
Another meeting has been scheduled to iron out the details for the upcoming picketing in the coming days.
At the invitation of the then Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, Ghana’s former president, John Agyekum Kufuor, experienced something in the southeastern Asian country that forever changed his mindset about presidential tenures.
Narrating how that came to be, during his engagement with the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) on Reviewing the 1992 constitution recently, Kufuor said that on arriving in the country he came face-to-face with two realities.
He said that after learning that Malaysia got its oil palm seedlings from Ghana, he arrived in the country to an even more eye-opening discovery of how well the country had utilized the ‘gift’ it got from his very own country.
“I was invited to Malaysia by Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, who was Prime Minister; I was president and it must have been 2005-2006 and it was a great eye opener to me. I had learnt that Malaysia took the oil palm seedling from here (Ghana) there. I got to Kuala Lumpur, the plane, as it was coming to land, you’ll see miles and miles of palm trees all over, and very modern agriculture.
“And then when I got there, probably, they just wanted to show me something, they took me to where they had refined palm oil into some oil that will be used even as engine oil. And then they used the husks for fertilizer for the palm trees, so every bit of palm.
“So, I said these people got this thing from us and we do not know how to do this. See what they are doing with it themselves. Then, at a point, he invited me to his offices in New Kuala Lumpur; the office is like a mosque, he took me to the rooftop, and Dr Mohammed, perhaps not taller than 5 feet… and then from there, I saw the layout of the city: the streets – beautiful, and the development,” he said.
President John Agyekum Kufuor also explained that having been quite surprised at the expanse of development and innovation that the Malaysians had used the oil palm seedlings for in their country, he asked Dr. Mohamed how they did it.
In response, he said the Malaysian Prime Minister asked him a question that jolted his mind so much, he came to the realization that there is the need for Ghana to relook at its constitutional arrangement for the tenure of its presidency.
“So, I gasped and said, ‘Oh, Mr. Prime Minister, since when have you been doing this?’ So, the man looked me up and down. The question he asked me was, ‘What’s your term of office?’
“I said, 4 years. So, he said back, what can you do in four years? By then he had exceeded 10 years and I’m not suggesting we go that way, but definitely, 4 years, he made the point forcefully that you don’t really create so much in 4 years,” he added.
Black Stars midfielder, Mohammed Kudus, has had a mural of him painted on the streets of Nima to celebrate his success story so far.
The mural includes his celebration after scoring one of Ghana’s three goals during the 3-2 win over South Korea at the World Cup.
The painting was done by international graffiti artist, Mohammed Awudu, who believes the player’s rise to stardom is an inspiration to the neighbourhood and young talents in the area.
Moh Awudu in shot ( PC: Kobbi Blaq)
Present at the unveiling was the former Mayor of Accra, Nii Adjei Sowah, Dr Afua Asabea Asare, the CEO of Ghana Export Promotion Authority, Rabiu Maude, a youth activist as well as kids and other residents in the area.
Kudus grew up in Nima, a suburb of Accra, and started his footballing career there before joining Strong Tower.
The 22-year-old then joined the Right to Dream Academy where he was later developed and transferred to Danish side, FC Nordsjaelland.
In July 2020, Kudus earned a move to Eredivisie side, Ajax Amsterdam, where his performance continues to attract interest from several top clubs.
The attacking midfielder is currently in Qatar with the Black Stars for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
He further gained the world’s attention after his brace against South Korea moved Ghana to second position in Group H ahead of the final game against Uruguay on Friday, December 2.
Former President, John Mahama, has urged the government to prioritise agribusinesses and support key players in the agricultural value chain as a means to boost the economy.
According to him, in the face of recent downgrades by international rating agencies and the high inflation rate in the country, supporting the agricultural sector to reduce imports and strengthen the weakening cedi is the way to go.
He said this in a Facebook post to mark this year’s National Farmers’ Day celebrated on December 2.
“I celebrate all farmers on this auspicious occasion for their priceless efforts that feed us and keep our industries running.
“With Ghana’s economy at the brink of collapse, as proven by Rating Agencies through their unending downgrades, and the hardship it has brought to many homes, this is the time for government to begin to take farmers and farming related businesses serious,” he said.
He continued, “This is the surest way we can reduce imports, strengthen the struggling cedi and save Ghana’s economy.
“I urge government to prioritise agribusiness and support with favourable financing for farmers and all actors in the agricultural value chain.”
Meanwhile, Moody’s has downgraded the Government of Ghana’s long-term issuer ratings to Ca from Caa2 or further junk status and changed the outlook to stable.
This concludes the review for downgrade that was initiated on September 30, 2022.
“The Ca rating reflects Moody’s expectation that private creditors will likely incur substantial losses in the restructuring of both local and foreign currencies debts planned by the government as part of its 2023 budget proposed to Parliament on 24 November 2022″, a statement published on its website said..
The statement pointed out that “given Ghana’s high government debt burden and the debt structure, it is likely there will be substantial losses on both categories of debt in order for the government to meaningfully improve debt sustainability”.
Private Legal Practitioner, Martin Kpebu has commended Justice Eric Kyei Baffour, the presiding Judge for the case between the State and founder of Capital Bank, William Ato Essien for rejecting a settlement between both parties.
He agreed with the judge that the terms for the settlement do not favour the state, thus should be reconsidered.
Mr. Essien, per the proposed settlement, agreed to pay GH₵90 million in total: GH₵30 million today and GH₵60 million in an agreed installment settlement with the state.
But in court on Thursday, December 1, 2022, the presiding judge, Justice Eric Kyei Baffour, who was ready with his judgment, said the state appears to have been compromised.
“So, after three years of going through prosecution with the state calling 17 witnesses, is this the best settlement for the prosecution? It appears the state is compromised.”
Justice Kyei Baffour added that Section 35 of the Courts Act upon which the terms of the settlement were based is inapplicable in this case.
Section 35 of the Courts Act states that “Where a person is charged with an offence before the High Court or a Regional Tribunal, the commission of which has caused economic loss, harm, or damage to the state or any state agency, the accused may inform the prosecutor whether the accused admits the offence and is willing to offer compensation or make restitution and reparation for the loss, harm, or damage caused.”
Reacting to the ruling, Mr. Kpebu said “the Judge has done extremely well and he should be commended because I buy into the argument that the value of the money today is certainly far less than its value three to four years ago.”
He believes that Mr. Ato Essien’s offer is not enough per the rule of time value of money and must be prepared to offer a significant offer before such settlement could be considered.
“It is always good to recover money from accused persons rather than throwing them into jail. It does not serve anybody’s interest as such.
“Looking at it, it appears that Mr. Ato Essien would have to increase his offer significantly or like we say in Ghanaian English, gargantuan. So that the judge will find it very difficult to reject same and that would help. Because as I said we do not benefit that much when an accused person is going to jail, especially when there is no violent offence,’ he said on Top Story, Thursday.
William Ato Essien, Rev. Fitzgerald Odonkor and Tetteh Nettey, a former Managing Director of MC Management Service owned by Mr. Essien were charged with 23 counts of conspiracy, stealing from the ¢620 million liquidity support given to the bank by the Bank of Ghana (BoG), to enable it to service its maturing debt.
The accused persons, according to the prosecution, opened various bank accounts with Capital Bank through which the ¢620 million BoG liquidity support was transferred while others were carried in jute bags to Ato Essien.
Meanwhile, the court adjourned proceedings to December 13 for the parties to convince the court on the issues that have been raised.
The former Member of Parliament (MP) for Lawra and former Deputy Minister for Roads and Highways, Anthony Abayifaa Karbo has responded to claims by the Assin Central MP and New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer hopeful, Hon Kennedy Agyapong that the former embarked on a tribal campaign against him.
He has also responded to allegations of owning properties in the USA as claimed by the NPP firebrand in an audio recording earlier this week.
In a Facebook post, Karbo revealed that at a meeting held between him and Hon Kennedy Agyapong, the allegations were refuted, adding that he is not a tribalist and does not own any property in the USA.
Karbo indicated that his engagement with Hon Kennedy Agyapong together with Hon KT Hammond, Fred Oware and Dr. Gideon Boako was in the interest of brokering peace and unity among brothers and not to fault anyone for an apology.
In reaction to claims that the meeting between the parties was to apologise to Hon. Agyapong, Karbo disclosed that it was not the case but rather it was meant to “pledge to organise ourselves in a more peaceful and decorous manner as we approach the internal contest”.
“Also, contrary to a published story on Net2TV online belonging to Hon Kennedy Agyapong that the meeting was a platform for me to apologise to Hon Kennedy Agyapong, I wish to state without equivocation that NO one at the meeting apologised to the other. It was a brotherly family meeting intended to settle our differences. If any, we pledged to organise ourselves in a more peaceful and decorous manner as we approach the internal contest” – the statement on his Facebook page indicated.
Karbo further opined that he and Hon Kennedy Agyapong are longstanding friends and “one family and we commit to unite in one accord for the betterment or the New Patriotic Party”,
Below is the statement by Hon Anthony Karbo:
On the Matter of Hon Kennedy Agyapong, His Northern Region Tour and Issues Arising
I have become aware of a viral audio recording of Hon. Kennedy Agyapong in which the MP was campaigning in the Upper East Region. The audio, among other things, attempted to accuse me of embarking on Tribal Campaign, impugning corruption on my part as a Former MP and Deputy Minister and suggested underhand dealings of persons believed to be working for the Vice President to prevent the Hon. Kennedy Agyapong from meeting Party members in the North.
In the interest of party unity and peace, a meeting was arranged with Hon. Kennedy Agyapong to delve into the accusations/allegations and also clarify the misinformation. The meeting was attended by Messrs. KT Hammond, Fred Oware, Dr Gideon Boako and myself.
It was a good and fruitful meeting and in the end it was clarified at the meeting that, I, Anthony Karbo had NOT embarked on any Tribal Campaign as alleged and wish to put on record that TRIBAL POLITICS is not part of my personality and political activism. All my life, I have enjoyed the support of persons irrespective of where they hail from and reciprocated same.
The Hon. Kennedy Agyapong himself will attest to this fact given my long-standing relationship with him spanning decades which is public knowledge.
I wish to state categorically that I own no such property in the USA as alleged and the claim of impugning corruption against me is non-existent.
It was also clear that none of the associates of the Vice President or myself had attempted to influence any party official in the North not to attend the meeting called by Hon. Kennedy Agyapong.
Also, contrary to a published story on Net2tvonline that the meeting was a platform for me and the Vice President’s office to apologise to Hon Kennedy Agyapong, I wish to state without equivocation that no one at the said meeting apologised to the other. It was a brotherly family meeting intended to clear the misinformation and both pledged to organise ourselves in a more peaceful and decorous manner as we approach the internal contest.
We are one family and we commit to unite in one accord for the betterment of the New Patriotic Party.
Seth Asante Asiedu, aka Kwaku Rafik, was reported to have been picked up at his residence at Amasaman by some officials believed to be National Security operatives.
According to GhanaWeb sources, Kwaku Rafik’s arrest comes on the back of a series of tweets that seemingly addressed the government and some related issues.
The incident is reported to have happened on Thursday dawn at about 3.30 am.
He was, however, granted bail later in the night.
Kwaku Rafik’s lawyer, Beatrice Annan, in a tweet at 9.49 pm, Thursday, December 1, stated:
“Bail granted. Kwaku is free. Thank you all more the massive support. Free speech will win any day.”
Bail granted. Kwaku is free. Thank you all more the massive support. Free speech will win any day.
On November 6, Kwaku Rafik is said to have, in a post, suggested that Ghana was downgraded by major banks in Ghana because of risk levels, adding that commercial banks may be next to struggle.
“Investment firms are struggling, you know who is next? I believe commercial banks. It will be difficult for them to pay depositors. Moody’s has downgraded major banks in Ghana because of their risk levels,” he said.
In a more recent one posted on Wednesday, Kwaku Rafik suggested that some government officials had abandoned their official duties to go and witness the World Cup in Qatar.
“And so they left official duties to watch the World Cup. Really? A caring government indeed,” he posted 19 hours ago. Ban on foreign travels but they are in Qatar,” he posted on November 30, 2022.
20-year-old Stephen Ansah is in the grip of the Assin Fosu police service for slashing the palm of a friend at Pomaa Pokuase, in the Assin Fosu Municipality of the Central Region.
Inspector Gilbert Ayongo, who confirmed the incident, said Mr. Emmanuel Appiah, 22, is currently fighting for his fingers at the Fosu Polyclinic.’
According to the Ghanaian Times newspaper, Inspector Gilbert Ayongo, a state prosecutor, disclosed that Emmanuel the victim, demanded his share of GH₵30 money they both worked for, but Ansah refused to give him his part, and this lingered on for two weeks.
He added that the victim, who desperately needed the money, reported the incident to Ansah’s father.
However, Ansah took exception to this and went to the victim’s home armed with a cutlass and attempted to stab the victim in the stomach.
As the suspect pulled the cutlass, the victim seized it with both hands, cutting parts of his fingers.
Ansah fled after wounding the victim but was later apprehended by the Assin Fosu Police Force after receiving a tip-off.
The report added that he will now be charged in court.
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) says it is targeting more parliamentary seats in the Ashanti Region ahead of the 2024 elections, according to re-elected Regional Chairman Augustus Nana Kwasi Andrews.
Nana Kwasi however believes this can be achieved in the ruling party’s stronghold with a united and formidable front. The party has already presented lawmakers from Asawase, New Edubiase, Sekyere Afram Plains and Ejura.
“After my victory [in the Regional Delegates’ Conference], I called all the aspirants and we have resolved to stay united. This time we want to increase our votes in 2024; and we have more seats to snatch in the Ashanti Region, that is my focus for now”, he told dailymailgh.com after a thanksgiving service at a catholic church in Ejisu on Sunday (November 27).
“We are seeking to bring everybody on board [for the task ahead]”, I am blessed with a more focused team and we shall make it happen. The NDC will win the polls without any bloodshed”, he added.
NPP not an option
Nana Akwasi also took on the Akufo-Addo-led administration for the country’s economic woes which he says has been run into a “ditch”.
“They [NPP] labeled John Mahama as incompetent but what was the exchange rate then and what is the situation now? The prices of petrol products are killing businesses in Ashanti Region. But I must say that the suffering Ghanaians now know that former President Mahama is the best alternative and we shall make it happen under my leadership.”
The event was heavily attended by former government appointees, former MPs, and other party bigwigs. The catholic church prayed for the team and wished them well in their endeavours.
Delegates’ Elections
Augustus Nana Akwasi Andrews was retained after the November 13 polls.
The elections which saw 61 aspirants contesting the various positions, gave Andrews 637 votes, beating his main contender lawyer Evans Amankwa, who polled 572.
A former deputy communications officer Alexander Asafo Agyei suffered defeat after contesting his boss, Abass Nurudeen for the communication officer post.
A Ghanaian female photographer, Senyuiedzorm Awusi Adadevoh, has disclosed that she was nearly raped in Qatar.
According to Awusi, the incident happened on one of the days when she was walking home alone since her usual companion had left early.
She added that she is only sharing her ordeal to ensure that no visitor who has travelled to witness the World Cup goes through what she experienced.
“I always travel with somebody, but with this particular tournament, I have had to come alone. But I have been working with a friend. Yesterday, she did not have two matches; I had two matches, and she was tired, and so she left.
“So, I was getting back home at about 2 a.m., and I saw a young man from afar, an Arabic young man in white, maybe between 17 to 20 years. And I saw him smile, and he went back into a house … and by the time I reached his house, he had come out and greeted me.
“He extended his hands, and I shook (him) – he was a young guy, but he was way taller and bigger than me. And then he just said ‘I want to do the sex’. So, I tried to pull my hand and he just grabbed me and said ‘I say I want to do the sex’,” she narrated in a Facebook live post which was monitored by GhanaWeb.
Awusi said that despite all her efforts to free herself, the Qatari man was still holding on to her, saying, “don’t worry, don’t worry, I will pay you, I will pay you good.”
She said that the incident left her shocked and confused because she was afraid of being raped and losing her equipment, which was worth over €30,000, but she eventually managed to free herself.
The journalist urged Ghanaians and other nationals who are visiting Qatar for the World Cup to make sure that they are always travelling in pairs.
She also urged the Qatari authorities to warn their citizens against engaging in such acts.
A one-time parliamentary aspirant of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for Kpone Katamanso, Hopeson Adorye, has refuted news publications that his removal from the National Security Secretariat was because he was not supposed to be working there after he was fired in 2017.
Speaking in an Okay FM interview monitored by GhanaWeb, Hopeson Adorye said that the sack letter he received was dated November 17, 2022.
Adorye, who was previously the Deputy National Security Coordinator in Charge of Airports, added that the reasons for his sacking were not stated in the letter because it was President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo who ordered his dismissal.
“The news publication is wrong. Why will someone be sacked and leave his post after 4 years? What happened was that in 2017, I had to leave my post at the airport and go back to the ‘blue gate’ because the security at the VIP section of the airport, which the National Security was in charge of, was being taken over by the Foreign Affairs Ministry. I was never sacked; what ‘The Herald’ is saying is false,” he explained in Twi.
“How can one person be sacked from the same job twice? Tomorrow will be exactly two weeks since I received the letter indicating my appointment had been terminated with immediate effect. The letter was dated 17th November 2022 and I received the letter on 21st November, a day after my birthday,” he added.
He added that many elders of the NPP have advised him not to talk about the circumstances surrounding his dismissal, and he will for now heed their advice.
Hopeson Adorye had previously announced on live radio this week that he had been fired from his government job.
He said during a discussion on Oman FM’s Boiling Point programme, on which he is a regular guest, that he had been fired purposefully because of his support for Alan Kyerematen.
Adorye is a vocal supporter of the Trade and Industry Minister in respect of the minister’s rumoured bid to lead the NPP as flagbearer when elections take place next year.
“God will cater for us; we will eat, Uncle (referring to the show host); God has got us. How we toiled in opposition for Akufo-Addo to come to power, we will do same for Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen to come.
“I’m not a zombie, uncle, I was told that my support is not towards a particular camp, so I should be dismissed. I have been dismissed. ‘Your appointment has been terminated with immediate effect.’ That is why I am stressing that God will cater for us; we will never die,” he stressed.
Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu has vowed to oppose the approval of budget estimates if the minister of the sector does not appear in the house alone.
According to him, some ministers have failed to show respect to the house, and there is a need to hold the government accountable.
“When we get to the approval of budget estimates and ministers don’t appear in person in parliament by themselves, we will not support the approval of the budget allocations to those ministries.
“Ministers must take this house very seriously, and only ministers appointed by the president to oversee the sectors of those ministries must rise from their seats to move motions to ask for budget allocations and approval by this house. Failure to do so will mean that we will stump down a number of those motions.
“We will hold this government accountable, and we intend to strengthen oversight. It begins with this our decision. If ministers don’t appear in person to move motions for budget allocations, then they should expect the fiercest resistance from this side of the house,” he explained.
Meanwhile, parliament has tasked the Ministry of Finance and other Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to submit their Heads of Estimates for consideration and approval by parliament on time.
A Financial Analyst, Professor Williams Peprah, has stated that the government should not conduct debt restructuring in a way that discourages investors from investing.
According to him, interest payments can be postponed whiles principals are paid under the possible programme.
Earlier, reports have revealed that some domestic investors were losing their investments due to an order from the Securities and Exchange Commission to banks.
The supposed order was for banks to use the mark-to-market approach to pay investors.
The investors have since lamented the inconveniences that this has caused while adding that some have begun losing part of their principal.
However, Prof. Peprah advised the government to restructure debt in a way that gives room for people to be able to access their principal when they want due to rising inflation in the country.
He said: “For the bonds, loss of confidence in the Ghanaian economy, it is better to defer interest payments and then pay principals so that people will be able to get cash flow to survive.”
“The reason why we’re seeing a lot of people trying to dump or discount their bonds now is because they need cash to survive because of the high inflation. So, government will have to have a metric where a certain class of investors is allowed to receive some funds to survive.
“I give an example; if I’m a pensioner, normally when they’re doing the bonds, they collect some data…so all those things are in the database. So, they must come out with some classification of individuals or age group brackets that will be allowed to withdraw some funds immediately,” he is quoted by myjoyonline.com.
“For those who are within their youthful age, between 20 and 35 in terms of years, they have time, can we have a discussion to prolong the payment of their principal and a little portion of their interest to them for them to survive. To pay a zero coupon it’s going to have a major impact on the Ghanaian economy. So, on the bond market we have to use the age bracket in order to be able to consider some issues,” he said.
A member of the Council of State, Sam Okudzeto, has suggested that the framers of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana got it wrong when they stated that Members of Parliament (MPs) could simultaneously serve as ministers of state.
According to him, MPs working at the same time as ministers of state make them ineffective in their main duty of representing their constituents.
“I think that the error we made was that we were trying to mix the Westminster system of government and the presidential system of government. That is the mistake that we made in our constitutional process.
“Being in parliament is a serious business. How on earth can you run a ministry as a minister and at the same time find time to represent your people in Parliament? You can’t.
“In fact, if you check the assembly roster, you will find out that there are many ministers who seldom appear in Parliament and yet that is the purpose for being elected as MPs. They were not elected to become ministers, they were elected to become MPs to represent the people,” he said in a TV3 interview monitored by GhanaWeb.
He proposed that the section of the constitution that allows MPs to serve as ministers be reviewed so legislators could not be part of the executive branch of the government.
The member of the Council of State also said that the current Parliament has become too partisan, with MPs pursuing the interests of their political parties rather than those of the nation and their constituents.
Akim Abuakwa South Member of Parliament Samuel Atta Akyea has called for a change in Ghana’s Agricultural policies.
He wants policies that go beyond just farming to feed the people to rather focus on the ability to supply raw materials for industrial purposes.
In his view, Ghana will realize the full benefits of agriculture when the sector is able to supply to industry in large quantities.
He was speaking in Parliament on Wednesday November 30 after the Minister of Food and Agriculture Dr Owusu Akoto Afriyie briefed the House on the the 2022 Farmers’ Day celebration.
The event is on the theme “Accelerating Agricultural development through value addition.”
The Agric Minister told Parliament that it will take place at the Koforidua Jubilee Park on Friday December 2.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will be the special guest, the Minister said.
Contributing to a discussion on the floor of the House regarding the theme for the celebration, Mr Atta Akyea said “I am also of the humble view that the theme should translate into realities.
“If we continue in that kind of agriculture which is so agonistic and ancient, you will not have the benefit of agriculture
“I believe that the pillar and prop of the economy can be agriculture, there is no dispute about it at all. We should move from the kind of agricultural policies and undertakings which are stomach directed, that we want to feed our people, I think that is too basic for our forward movement.
“We should direct our efforts that agriculture should supply in substantial terms the raw materials for industry. That is where we begin to enhance the benefits of agriculture.”
The Benkumhene of the Asaman-Tamfoe, Nana Boakye Darkwa, has denied allegations of involvement in illegal mining and pointed out that the Okyenhene, Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin II, broke traditional norm by destooling him.
He has, therefore, dared Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin II to provide evidence of his allegations.
“If Okyenhene has concluded that I am an illegal miner, then I urge him to report me to the relevant national and appropriate institutions for redress,” he stated in a rebuttal press conference on Thursday, December 1.
“I have never been into mining. In 2018, I was adjudged the Best District Cocoa Farmer in Atiwa West. I can therefore not renege on this honour by encouraging the desecration of cocoa farms.”
About a month ago, the Environmental Task Force of the Okyeman Traditional Council clashed with residents of Asaman-Tamfoe on allegations of illegal mining.
The Benkumhene, Nana Boakye Darkwa, held a press conference to deny his community members were involved in illegal mining and accused the Taskfoce of failing to do due diligence.
He was subsequently summoned by the Okyenhene over the issues arising from his press conference and alleged involvement in illegal mining and later destooled.
Asamang Tamfoe Benkumhene Nana Boakye Darkwa
But during his address to the press, Nana Boakye Darkwa said Okyenhene Amoatia Ofori Panin II cannot destool him and denied allegations of his involvement in illegal mining.
“The community members formed groups of miners and were allotted parcels of land, resulting from an MoU the community signed with Xtra Gold Mining Ltd to mine. This irked the traditional authorities who consequently orchestrated the ransacking of their sites and impounding of their equipment with some workers arrested in Rambo fashion. A press conference exposing the dastardly and cowardice actions of the Okyeman taskforce angered the overlord.”
He added: “As part of Corporate Social Responsibility agreement between the community and Xtra Gold, some monies were paid by the miners lodged in a credited account in the name of the community. Asaman-Tamfoe recognising and acknowledging the throne of Ofori Panin gave out GH¢115,000 on 7th October 2022 to the Ofori Panin Fie, disbursement as follows; Abontendomhene GH¢10,000, Osagyefo GH¢100,000.00 [and] Drinks GH¢5,000.”
The Benkumhene, who doubles as the 2018 Best Cocoa Farmer for Atiwa West, says Okyenhene’s destoolment does not hold.
“The Okyenhene broke traditional norm by decreeing that he had destooled me because as Omanhene, he is not a king maker. But in this case, he has now assumed that position hence the numerous chieftaincy issues bedevilling the Akyem Abuakwa Traditional Area.”
He gave explanation to pictures making round of him prostrating before Okyehene.
“I did not prostrate as a sign of remorsefulness or of guilt but as sign of rendering an undeserved reverence because considering the venue of the gathering, any form of resistance and an insistence on not being guilty would not have resulted in any peaceful reactions. I am still the de-facto Benkumhene of Asaman-Tamfoe.”
Ghana should be boasting of 1,500 factories by now if past presidents had done what President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is doing with the One District One Factory (ID1F) project, Former Member of Parliament for Tema West , Carlos Kingsley Ahenkorah, has said.
He said the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) can boat of only one factory, the Komenda Sugar Factory, while the Akufo-Addo has so far built 126 factories that are fully operating with 143 at various stages of completion.
He said this while contributing to a debate on the 2023 budget in Parliament on Wednesday November 30.
The former Deputy Minister of Trade said “Today, as I speak to you we have close to 300 factories under the Akufo-Addo government. Mr Speaker, out of this 296 or so factories, about 126 of them are operational, 143 are at various stages of construction and 43 pipeline projects.
“Let us assume Mr Speaker, if since 1992, all the presidents that have come to stay on for 8 years, now Akufo-Addo is the 5th President, if every president was bringing or churning out 300 factories in Ghana we will be having 1,500 companies as at today.
“Unfortunately, from 2009 to 2026 the Komenda Sugar factory is the only one that we heard off from the other side (NDC) and yet they have the effrontery to speak to us as if we have not done anything in this country.
“But fortunately for them those who have 1D1F in their constituencies or municipality their own siblings, their own children are working in these factories. I want to point out to them that if they provoke us we will mention names.
“When some president had the opportunity in this fourth republic to ensure that they provide workforce for the youth they rather sold the factories or companies that we had in Ghana.”
Some traders at the Dome Market in Accra have admitted to overpricing their products in order to stay in business in the wake of the current economic crisis.
They disclosed this during an interaction with the Independent Ghana’s Jessie Ola-Morris, who paid a visit to the market. The visit followed speculation that some traders are taking advantage of the economic crisis to price their products at exorbitant rates in order to make more profit.
Ghana’s economic woes continue to worsen unabated, despite various measures taken by the government to curb inflation and mitigate the hardships. Inflation remains high, and the prices of fuel and other essential commodities continue to surge.
A (25-litre) gallon of vegetable oil, which was selling for GH¢360 at the beginning of the year, was increased to GH¢600 in October and is now going for GH¢1,000 and over.
A bag of 5kg rice which was previously sold at GH¢40 at the beginning of the year is now GH¢105 and above.
Latest statistics from the Ghana Statistical Service indicate that the national Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) for the country reached a startling 40.4 percent rate in October 2022.
The hikes in fuel prices and the poor performance of the cedi against major currencies are the main contributing factors to the hikes in food prices.
As an import-driven economy that largely relies on international currency such as the U.S dollar ($), demand for such currencies has peaked in recent times, weakening the local currency (i.e the Ghana Cedi).
The dollar, which used to sell at GHC5.87 at the beginning of the year, is now selling at GH¢113.11 (interbank rate) and GH¢114.85 at the forex bureau.
Amidst the hardships, traders have been accused of compounding the woes of the ordinary Ghanaian by overpricing their products in order to make enormous profits.
During a visit to Dome Market, some traders refuted the claim, however, others also conceded to overpricing their products in order to stay in business.
A baby diaper retailer, Auntie Yaa, who asserted that traders are not to blame for the development, explained factors that largely affect the pricing of products.
She used herself as an example to demonstrate how the cost of transportation heavily influences her pricing strategy.
Auntie Yaa mentioned that she buys a pack of diapers at GH¢100 from the wholesale shop and slaps an amount of GH¢10 on each pack to cover the operational cost, which includes the cost of transport and other expenses involved in getting the products to their final destination (i.e the Dome Market).
“[After] I deduct these expenses from the GH¢10 I’m able to make a profit of GH¢5 from each pack, then I’m okay,” she said.
She was however baffled over the fact that the prices of the products are not stable on the market: “You make a purchase today and the next day you go back to the market to buy the same product and the price has shot up drastically, that disturbs us a lot,” she lamented.
Her other concern was with how some traders hoard their products and sell them later at exorbitant prices when demand is high. She, thus, called on the government to implement measures to curb such activities.
Another trader, Mary Oforiwaa, did not mince words about the fact that some unscrupulous traders are taking advantage of the free market to overprice their products.
“Undoubtedly, times are hard and when we lament we are told Ghana is not the only country facing an economic crisis but I think we traders are part of the problem. We are doing what we like. Even with transportation that is regulated by GPRTU, every driver has his (/her) own fare they charge, so the government is not solely to blame for the hardships. And with traders, we also price our products how we like,” she said.
Proposing a solution, she called on the government to implement a strategy adopted by the Rawlings regime. Recall that during the Rawlings administration some traders hoarded their products with the intention of selling them later at higher prices when the demand was high.
However, the former President found this out, went for the products and conducted a clearance sale on them. Going down memory lane to her
youthful days, she mentioned that “growing up I witnessed the Rawlings regime and during that time, if you hoard your products with the intention of selling them later at an outrageous rate, Rawlings comes for the goods and sells them cheaply – ‘Donkomi’ (to wit clearance sale) – but this government has been dormant in this regard and as a result, everyone is doing what they like.
“But I believe things will go according to how it’s supposed to be when the government adopts the late former president’s strategy. There are traders who also have to consult other traders before they issue prices for their goods, and all these are not helping,” she lamented.
Kwabena Asiedu Nketiah, the third trader who spoke to the Independent Ghana, acknowledged that he prices his products at exorbitant rates, however, he
attributed the development to the cedi-dollar depreciating rate and gross economic mismanagement by the government.
“Looking at the rate at which prices of products are increasing these days it’s above normal but then the dollar-cedi rate affects the prices. We import the products with dollars, so when the cedi falls against the dollar, the prices of our products also go up,” he added.
Additionally, he explained that overpricing the products was the only way to stay in business. According to him, traders risk losing their capital if they do not
toe this line.
“With business, it is wrong to wait for your old goods to finish, go for another one before you increase the price of your products. You’ll run at a huge loss if you do that.
“The moment you hear of a price increment, you instantly have to adjust your prices to the new rate otherwise, you’ll collapse your business,” he said.
Ghana operates a free market. A free market is one where voluntary exchange and the laws of supply and demand provide the sole basis for the economic system, without government intervention.
A key feature of free markets is the absence of coerced (forced) transactions or conditions on transactions. Consequently, traders largely decide how their products are priced.
We (the Independent Ghana) discovered that some traders are taking advantage of Ghana’s liberal market to overprice their
products.
To curtail this, Martha Ofosuhemaa, another trader, suggested that the government should be keen on consulting manufacturers and market women regarding
regulating the prices of products on the market.
She believes the solution to addressing the exorbitant rates at which goods are priced largely lies with manufacturers and market women.
If the prices of every product are embossed on its packaging, this will significantly help in regulating them to make them affordable, she noted.
“Take coke for instance, if the manufacturer writes on the label that the small bottle should be sold at GHC 3.50 pesewas, we traders will go for it and know that that is how we are supposed to sell it so
we will,” she said.
“Government should also speak to the market women. I believe if such consultations and negotiations are held regularly, the prices of products on the market will drastically reduce,” she added.
Overpricing in one sector of the economy affects all other sectors since they are interrelated.
Astronomical hikes in fuel prices influence transport fares, which in turn affect the prices of products on the market. This comes back to bite the ordinary Ghanaian since it escalates the cost of living.
Consequently, Ghanaians continue to lament over the hardships and have on various occasions appealed to the government to roll out measures to check these developments on the market.
The Institute of Energy Security (IES) has predicted a fall in the price of petroleum products effective December 1, 2022.
IES, in a statement, has projected that consumers of petroleum products will see a reduction of about 8 to 10 percent from Thursday.
The projection, made by the Institute of Energy Security (IES), will be the second consecutive period that will see consumers witness a reduction in the price of petrol and diesel products.
They, however, indicated that despite the estimated reduction, the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) will remain stable due to the depreciation of the local
currency against major trading currencies.
“Prices of the various finished products will be affected by the 13.45% fall in the price of gasoline [petrol], the 11.63% fall in the price of gas oil [diesel], and the
1.88% fall in the price of LPG. However, the 3.09% depreciation of the cedi against the US dollar is expected to erode portions of the gains from the reductions in international fuel prices.
The price of LPG is however expected to remain stable on account of the cedi’s depreciation,” the IES added.
The price of petroleum products has witnessed significant surges since the beginning of the year.
This has then resulted in a high cost of living, inflationary pressures, and rampant increases in transportation costs for commuters.
The Central Bank has attributed some of Ghana’s current economic crisis to external factors that arose as a result of the United States of America’s (U.S.A.) efforts to stabilise their economy.
This was stated in a report issued by the Bank of Ghana (BoG) following its 109th Monetary Policy Committee meeting on November 28.
The BoG, in its report, made sure to emphasise the US’s role in escalating economic conditions for several countries around the world, including Ghana, while citing a number of factors that have contributed to Ghana’s current economic situation.
According to the Central Bank, when the US Federal Reserve revised some of its policies, it resulted in “tight global financing conditions and a stronger US dollar against major international currencies.”
In September 2022, the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate by 0.75 percentage points, the third increase in a row, bringing the Fed rate to 3%-3.25% By doing so, the US central bank, as part of efforts to check its inflation (8.2% as of September), increased demand for the dollar from foreign investors attracted by the higher returns available in the country.
Since the US dollar is the existing currency for global trade, emerging markets faced a rise in the cost of imports.
According to the Bank of Ghana, these external shocks have had severe consequences on the Ghanaian economy, reflected in high and rising inflation and depreciation of the local currency.
“These developments have spilled over into currency pressures and imported inflation, complicated access to external capital markets, and resulted in acute capital outflows, especially in emerging markets and frontier economies,” the Central Bank added.
Per the Bank’s report, the foreign exchange market witnessed increased volatility, with intense pressure on the local currency, especially in September and October 2022.
Other external factors that led to the significant drop in the value of the cedi include; the sovereign downgrades, the de facto closure of the international capital market, portfolio reversals, and increased demand for foreign exchange amid supply constraints.
As of November 24, 2022, the Ghana Cedi cumulatively depreciated by 54.2 percent against the US dollar.
The local currency lost 48.9 percent and 49.9 percent of its value to the Pound and Euro, respectively.
In comparison with the same period of last year, the Ghana Cedi was much stronger.
It depreciated by 2.6 percent and 0.2 percent against the US dollar and the Pound, respectively, and appreciated by 6.6 percent against Euro.
Since revising the interest rate, the US has seen its inflation rate drop to 7.7% as of October 2022.
The African Development Fund’s Board of Directors has approved a grant of $6.12 million to support the improvement of public finance governance in low-income African nations.
The amount will be used to implement Phase 2 of the Regional Institutional Support Project in Public Finance Governance (RISPFG) by the African Tax
Administration Forum (ATAF) and the Collaborative Africa Budget Reform Initiative (CABRI).
The grant, which was formally approved on November 3, 2022, will be split as follows: $3.90 million will go to ATAF to support budget reforms and improve public finance management, and $2.22 million will go to CABRI to support tax administration reforms and domestic resource mobilisation efforts on the continent.
Director of the Governance and Public Financial Management Coordination Office at the African Development Bank, Abdoulaye Coulibal, stated that the project’s goals included strengthening national systems’ resilience to various shocks, enhancing disaster preparedness, and promoting the shift to low-carbon economies through climate-smart budgeting and fiscal policies.
“The project will contribute to strengthening the actions of the Public Financial Management Academy, a virtual capacity building platform for African
countries across the cycle and ecosystem of public financial management created in August 2022 by the Bank,” said Coulibaly
The African Development Bank approved the first phase of this project in 2016, and both institutions successfully closed the first phase in September 2021 (ATAF and CABRI).
The overarching goal of the project is to support recipient countries in their efforts to achieve sustainable,inclusive growth and development by enhancing domestic resource mobilization and public financial management.
More particularly, it aims to strengthen public financial management capabilities. Additionally, to integrate gender and climate change into taxation, and improve African tax systems through the development of technical ability.
This project will also assist nations in forging a unifying stance and a more powerful voice for the continent on regional and international venues.
The project will benefit the African Development Fund member nations that are also a part of the two implementing organisations.
Building capacity will be beneficial for their tax administrations as well as staff members from the finance ministries. The project
will help the African continent accomplish its development goals and fulfil a number of obligations, including finance for development, Agenda 2063, and the Sustainable Development Goals.
It will be put into action over the course of three years.
The African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF) was established in 2009 with the goal of strengthening more effective and efficient tax systems in Africa
in order to decrease reliance on aid, enhance fiscal management, eradicate poverty, and enhance the standard of living for African inhabitants.
It is made up of forty (40) African countries. ATAF has for over a decade gained international recognition as an expert institution, technical
leader, and voice of authority on tax issues.
Collaborative Africa Budget Reform Initiative (CABRI) on the other hand is an international organisation made up of 17 African nations and was founded in 2009.
CABRI’s sole aim is to increase civil servants’ ability to carryout changes that guarantee the honest, open, and accountable management of public financial resources.
For African Ministries of Finance, Budget, and Planning, it acts as a platform for learning and communication.
A yet-to-be-identified Nigerian man has been arrested by the police in Ghana for allegedly beheading his girlfriend.
A journalist in the country, Serwaa Amihere disclosed this on Twitter.
According to her, the incident occurred in Spintex.
“A young Nigerian man has been picked up by the Ghana Police Service for allegedly beheading his girlfriend at Spintex,” she posted while attaching a video of the incident.
The corpse of the lady was seen being taken to the back of a pickup vehicle in the video.
This is coming a few weeks after the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) arrested seven Nigerians in connection with alleged involvement in activities of cybercrime in Ghana.
The suspects were nabbed after the EOCO acted on intelligence to raid a residence at Manhean, Obeyeyie in the Greater Accra Region.
A young Nigerian man has been picked up by the Ghana Police Service for allegedly beheading his girlfriend at Spintex. pic.twitter.com/itSjjuwPqz
The Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) has called for the dismissal of Ashanti Regional Director for the National Service Scheme (NSS), Mr. Alex Opoku, after he verbally abused a nurse at the Manhyia District Hospital.
Mr Opoku is reported to have marched to the Manhyia District Hospital and confronted a nurse who drew the attention of his daughter to a task she had failed to execute.
His daughter, a House Officer, is said to have failed to log into the E-health system and update the patient’s prescription order. The patient would have been billed for unissued drugs but for the intervention of the nurse.
Mr Opoku’s daughter who was displeased by the incident reported the matter to her father who accused the nurse of being envious of his daughter.
The matter was brought to the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association’s attention after the media reported the story.
Reacting to the issue, the Association faulted the Ashanti Regional Director for the National Service Scheme, adding that Mr Opoku “had absolutely no right to
enter Manhyia District Hospital and verbally abuse and threaten the nurse in question who was on duty at the time.”
According to the Association, Mr Opoku should have followed due process by reporting to a Medical Superintendent or a Nurse Manager under whom the nurse works.
In view of his misconduct and gross disregard for law and order, the Association wants Mr Opoku sacked from his current position latest by Friday, December 2, 2022.
Should the government fail to relieve Mr Alex Poku Mensah of his duty as Ashanti Regional Director of the National Service Scheme within 72 hours, “nurses and midwives of Manhyia Hospital will be called to lay down their tools, followed by the whole of Ashanti Region and then it will be escalated to the whole nation.” after registering.
Nurses and midwives at the Manhyia District Hospital have been urged to remain calm and go about their normal duties as they wait for further directives from the leadership of the Association.
Meanwhile, the Association has called on the management of Manhyia Hospital to ensure that the House Officer is schooled on her role in the Medical Team and the fact that nurses and midwives are patient’s advocates and “will continue to advocate for their patients and clients even if it
makes another member in the team uncomfortable.”
They are also calling for a Team Building and Team Work for all staff of the hospital to foster unity of purpose at the facility.
On the other hand, Alex Opoku-Mensah has rendered an unqualified apology for his recent actions.
“ This has never been my style but for a genuine reason to mediate a persistent issue between my daughter (doctor) and a colleague nurse who I as well consider my daughter. I do apologise for any mishap and assure all, there shall
not be a repetition of such,” he wrote in a Facebook post.
In the next 24 hours, approximately six million network subscribers who have only linked their Ghana card and SIM card would be debarred from making or receiving calls, as well as data and SMS services.
These individuals have failed to complete the biometric stage before the fourth deadline extension of the SIM card re-registration exercise elapses.
On its part, telecommunication giant, MTN, has noted that it will deactivate 5,701,149 subscribers on December 01, 2022.
The deactivation of SIM cards forms part of measures introduced by the Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation to ensure all SIM cards are re-registered in the country.
In a statement issued on Friday, November 11, Communications Minister, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, mentioned that SIM card registration will help minimise fraudulent activities.
The SIM re-registration exercise which commenced in October 2021 was expected to end on July 31, 2022.
However, it was extended to September 30 to allow Ghanaians link their SIM cards to their Ghana Cards.
The deadline was again extended for the third time [October 31] due to the low number of re-registered SIM cards.
With several complaints about long queues at the premises of network providers, a self-serving registration app was launched to assist individuals to register in the comfort of their homes at a cost of GH5.
Yet, the numbers of registered SIM cards were not encouraging. As such, the NCA in September blocked outgoing calls for a sequential batch of numbers for 2 days.
The Ministry in a press conference noted that defaulters of the SIM card registration exercise will be blocked on Sunday, October 31, 2021.
However, after the October 31 deadline, unregistered SIM card holders continue to make and receive calls, as well as enjoy data and SMS services.
Currently, a total of 30,011,082 SIM cards have been linked to Ghana Cards, thereby completing the first phase of the registration process.
As of November 9, 20,892,970 subscribers had completed both the linkage and capture of their biometric data.
Meanwhile, the National Communications Authority (NCA) has disclosed that individuals whose SIM cards will be blocked will be given a six-month grace period to reclaim their SIM cards after registering.
Unregistered SIM cards after the six-month grace period will be churned out.
Nevertheless, it is unknown what will happen to individuals who have not begun the registration exercise due to the unavailability of a Ghana card since the
communications ministry did not factor them in their recent communique.
National Chairman of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), Nana Ofori Owusu, has alleged that some political party executives were flown to Qatar by the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
In an interview with ace journalist,Kwame Sefa Kayi, on Tuesday, Mr Ofori Owusu indicated that all the cost involved in the trip to Qatar to observe the 2022 World Cuptournament was fully funded by the Ministry.
According to him, executives of the Progressive People’s Party were not provided any sponsorship to Qatar.
“My colleague (political parties) had tickets and full packages to Qatar. They called me and asked where I was. They told me the Sports Ministry gave them packages,” he said.
His claims are yet to be confirmed or denied by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, headed by Mustapha Ussif.
Ghana is among the teams competing to win the 2022 World Cup tournament. Several Ghanaians in the country and across the globe have journeyed to Qatar, in the middle east, to support the Black Stars of Ghana.
In July this year, ahead of the tournament which began in November, it emerged that Kenpong Travel & Tours’ cheapest package for fans attending the 2022 FIFA World Cup from Ghana costs GH37,443.4, estimated at $4,710.
The package covers economy class flight tickets, accommodations for four people in a room, Category Two tickets for Ghana group
matches, COVID-19 testing, travel insurance, medicals, internal transport and a police report.
However, it comes with no feeding while in Qatar. The most expensive package, dubbed Platinum Category A goes for GH₵84,350, approximately $10,610.
It covers business class flight tickets, feeding, single occupancy accommodations in a five-star hotel, Category One tickets for Ghana group matches, COVID-19
testing, travel insurance, medicals, internal transport and a police report.
