The Ministry of Works and Housing is optimistic that a Housing Authority will bring closure to all the challenges associated with housing in the country.
The Ministry also believes that with the help of the authority, there will be effective implementation of housing policies as well as a curb on the rate at which housing projects are abandoned after the government that initiated them leaves office.
Speaking on behalf of his outfit, deputy House and Works Minister, Abdulai Abanga, who lamented about the situation, said this trend (of stalled projects as a result of the change of government) should be a thing of the past.
“The conception, management, and planning of these projects were not handled by professionals but rather influenced by political considerations,” he said. “So we are hoping that when the Ghana Housing Authority is established, we will have highly qualified professionals to undertake affordable housing implementations.”
“The government led-housing projects which normally suffer in implementation, causing them to be stalled and abandoned when there is a change of government, should be a thing of the past,” Mr. Abanga said.
The comment follows the controversy surrounding the abandoned Saglemi Housing Project, which the government intends to sell to a private sector entity.
Government has clarified that the sale of the project (which was
to provide affordable housing to
Ghanaians upon completion) is the best option given the current circumstances.
However, this has been widely contested by many who believe the decision is not in the best interest of the country.
Addressing a gathering at the 2022 Ghana Property Awards, Mr Abdulai Abanga, said the authority will ensure that professionals undertake affordable housing projects in the country.
Meanwhile, the government maintains that the sale of the project is the best. Speaking on Saturday, November 26, 2022,the deputy finance minister, John Kumah, explained that “the Saglemi Housing project is no longer affordable per the arrangement that has happened to it because if you divide $200 million by 10,000, you are going to get it at $10,000, and they reviewed it to 1,500 (housing units) which makes it up (from) $40,000 to $50,000 per
unit. So how affordable can that be?”
“So in the present circumstances, the best option is to bring the private sector in,” he said.
European Union (EU) has donated five motorbikes with helmets and 50 document verification devices to the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS).
The donation, according to the EU, is to augment efforts by GIS to strengthen border security in Ghana. The donation is estimated at EUR 1Million.
Speaking at the handing-over ceremony, the Ambassador of the EU to Ghana, Irchad Razaaly, stated that “It will also be supporting Ghanaian law enforcement
agencies to acquire knowledge, skills, and tools to reinforce their efforts against international organised crime and insecurity on land.”
Receiving the donation on behalf of GIS, the Deputy Minister for the Interior, Naana Eyiah, commended the EU for their kind gesture. Expressing her appreciation, Madam Eyiah said, “we treasure the continuous support the EU continues to give the Ghana Immigration Service, as the Services strives to secure and protect Ghana’s borders, which in the long run strengthens regional security.”
This is not the first time the EU has donated to GIS. In August 2020, the EU provided COVID-19 emergency assistance to the GIS, by donating 15 laptops, five vehicles (three pick-ups and two minibuses), five motorbikes and personal protective equipment worth over €280,000.
Ghana’s oldest former president, John Agyekum Kufuor, has suggested that the tenure of office for a president or an elected government should be relooked at.
According to him, the current four-year tenure is quite problematic, leaving very little room for any leader to effectively cause a major developmental change in the country.
He added that it takes a while for any elected leader to even settle into the system before he can efficiently cause the changes needed in a country.
John Agyekum Kufuor made this known while speaking at a seminar on reviewing Ghana’s 1992 Constitution, organized by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), at his residence in Peduase, in the Eastern Region.
The former president explained that he came to the realization after he was invited to Malaysia and got to see how much developmental growth the country had made, even though at the time of independence, it was on par with Ghana.
“Malaysia, by history – ’56, ’57, Ghana was at par with Malaysia, and we were both colonies of Britain but Malaysia has gone far ahead. 4 years? The man asked, what can we do in four years? And when I considered, I thought that we should do something about the tenure as the stage of development, we need to really develop but you vote in a new president or leader,” he said.
John Kufuor also explained the breakdown of how things turn out for politicians in a new government and why his suggestion for a review of the tenure should be looked at again.
“First year, very likely, he will come in with smart, naturally bright people, well-educated and all, but just good education is not enough to, say, enable you to sense how to attract investments so it would be win-win for your country and whoever the partner is.
“First year, all the bright youngsters you recruit as ministers will be learning to get the civil service, work with it, and what I discovered with our system is that the civil servants are so bright, like the politicians – they went to the same school, perhaps even the civil servants were brighter than the politicians , but the civil servant will be sitting there, getting this meagre pay… and will also hate the politician who just dropped in and instantly became like his boss and minister, when the civil servant knows that this minister does not know his left from right,” he added.
President John Agyekum Kufuor also used the opportunity to explain another major difficulty that is faced by new ministers in a government.
He said that in most cases, the civil servants, who mostly know the job far better than the appointed politicians, are not willing to offer the best advice to them, and for some specific reasons.
He added that by the time the civil servants come to accept and appreciate the politician who has been brought as their head, time might have elapsed, leaving close to no time for the politician to effectively work and bring the needed change to the country.
“And not until the civil servant gets the impression that the minister knows what he is doing, the civil servant will not volunteer to give the best advice. And it would take the good minister averagely at least one year to get to know the civil service to, in a way, harness it to use it to do the politics that must be done and then to help him go to parliament to get the law passed and then to bring back the policy to implement, by which time two to three years is gone. Fourth year, elections, all politicians go crazy,” he said.
Deputy Minister of Finance, Abena Osei-Asare, has said that the decision to reduce the E-levy from the initial 1.5 per cent was based on a stakeholder engagement.
According to her, the Minority proposed a reduction to 1.0 in December 2021 and this was adhered to, therefore minority must approve accepted the new changes.
While debating the 2023 budget in parliament on November 29, she said, “Mr. Speaker, this one per cent was arrived at by continuous engagement with stakeholders and you (Minority) were in this house in December 2021 when the minority leader said it is better for us to reduce the E-Levy to one per cent. So, if today we are coming today with a measure that will reduce the E-Levy to one per cent, I think the E-Levy debate is closed and should be accepted.”
In reaction to this comment, the deputy minority leader, James Avedzi refuted Abena Osei’s claim that the minority leader, Haruna Iddrisu proposed a reduction to 1.0 percent in 2021.
“the deputy finance minister made a statement which was factually incorrect, and I want to correct it. She said that we were all in this house when the minority leader made a proposal for the E-Levy to be brought to one per cent. Never on this floor did the minority leader make that proposal, so for that to go into the records, it should be corrected. He never made such a proposal on this floor,” James Avedzi stated in the chamber.
Deputy Minister of Finance again insisted that the Minority leader even repeated same comments in Ho over the weekend at the Post Budget workshop, adding that she never indicated that Haruna Iddrisu said anything of the sort in the chamber.
A recent outburst by outspoken New Patriotic Party(NPP) Member of the Parliament(MP) for Assin Central Constituency Kennedy Ohene Agyapong has lend some credence to assertions that Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s role in management of the economy has been thwarted by Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta.
Dr. Bawumia has in recent times been accused of failing to demonstrate his economic prowess as Head of the Economic Management Team following the bad performance of the cedi against the dollar among other economic challenges.
However, the onsets of events and significant instances have raised concerns over the efforts of the Vice President in finding solutions to the current economic situation.
It has strongly been asserted that Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta is effectively obstructing the Vice President on matters that bother on key economic decisions and actions.
Speaking to party members in Bolgatanga as part of his campaign to be elected flagbearer of the NPP, Kennedy Agyapong lamented the loss of some $12 million as a result of the depreciation of the Ghanaian currency.
“From March this year to August this year, through exchange rate, I have lost $12 million. So today I don’t even count it,” he said to delegates.
The maverick MP stated that he would not have bullied by a Finance Minister if he were in the position of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia.
“If I’m a vice president, how can a finance minister bully me?” He questioned.
This recent outburst has been described by political watchers as grapevine information that points to a worrying situation where it is believed that Ken Ofori Atta as Finance Minister is given priority over the Vice President in decision economic decisions making.
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There is heavy police presence at the Wenchi High Court in the Bono Region ahead of the ruling of the Techiman South Parliamentary election petition today, Wednesday, November 30.
The election petition was filed by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in respect of the 2020 parliamentary elections in the Techiman South Constituency.
The NDC had said that it won the Techiman South Parliamentary election, but claimed the Electoral Commission (EC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) connived to deny it the seat.
The suit by the NDC seeks to quash the declaration of the NPP’s Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah as Techiman South MP, and declare Dr Christopher Beyere Baasongti as the legitimate winner of the Techiman South 2020 parliamentary elections.
The NPP has always maintained its candidate and current Member of Parliament (MP), Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah was legally elected as announced by the Electoral Commission, accusing the NDC of engaging in propaganda.
The Electoral Commission also maintains that Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah polled 49,682 votes as against 49,205 votes for Christopher Beyere of the NDC.
Professor Samuel Ato Duncan, the Executive President of the Centre of Awareness Global Distribution, producers of COA Mixture, formerly known as COA-FS, an immune booster medication, is to cough up GH¢2 million in damages for defaming the Chief Executive Officer of the Food and Drugs Authority, Mrs. Delese Mimi Darko.
Professor Duncan in 2020 accused the FDA boss of demanding a bribe of GHc200,000, so he could get the green light to continue selling his products which had come under scrutiny.
Professor Duncan made the allegation in a report put together by journalist, Manasseh Awuni Azure.
Prof. Duncan is said to have tried to bribe the FDA chief to get her to reverse her outfit’s decision to suspend the production of COA – FS following some of the company’s defective products on the market.
The Cape Coast High Court, presided over by her Ladyship Justice , on Tuesday, November 29, 2022, said the COA Mixture boss acted with malice by going to the press with such an allegation after efforts to manipulate the FDA CEO failed.
The Court turned down the professor’s defence that he had granted the interview in the public interest.
The Court also noted that the effects of the Professor’s defamatory publication had spilled over into other publications by other media outlets.
The court ordered the COA Mixture boss to publish an unqualified apology and retraction on the front pages of major newspapers within 14 days of the judgment.
The court also ordered the Professor to pay the sum of GHS2,000,000 to Mrs Delese Mimi Darko as damages for the defamatory publication and for the damage caused to her reputation.
Ghana has been downgraded deeper into junk territory by Moody’s Investors Service on the likelihood that private creditors will incur steep losses during the government’s planned debt restructuring.
The country’s credit rating was slashed by two levels to Ca, the second-lowest score at Moody’s, according to a Tuesday statement. That puts Ghana on par with Sri Lanka, which is in default.
The downgrade follows plans in Ghana’s proposed 2023 government budget to restructure both local and foreign debts.
“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. 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,” analysts Lucie Villa and Marie Diron wrote in the statement.
At the same time, Ghana’s outlook was changed to stable as the restructuring will likely happen in coordination with creditors and under a program with the International Monetary Fund, according to Moody’s.
“The stable outlook balances Moody’s assumption that the debt restructuring will happen in coordination with creditors and under the umbrella of a funding program with the IMF against the potential for a less orderly form of default that could result in higher losses for private-sector creditors.”
The West African country formed a committee last month to start talks with domestic bondholders to restructure its local-currency debt.
Ghana’s Eurobonds have been among the worst performers in emerging markets since Bloomberg reported the plans for the local debt recast in September, handing investors losses of almost 12% in that period, according to data compiled from a Bloomberg index.
The nation’s debt-exchange program will replace existing terms and exchange debts with longer tenors at cheaper rates, said Abena Osei Asare, a deputy minister of finance. The plans come after an analysis of debt sustainability showed the nation faces a high risk of distress.
Fitch Ratings scored the nation at CC, two notches above default. S&P Global Ratings also assigned it CCC+, seven levels into junk.
The Management of the National Service Scheme (NSS) has invited its Ashanti Regional Director for preliminary investigations.
Alex Opoku-Mensah is said to have verbally abused a nurse at the Manhyia Hospital for the manner in which the healthcare provider spoke with his daughter.
The nurse had called the house officer to suggest a change in prescription because what the latter prescribed was unavailable at the pharmacy.
According to the Medical Superintendent, Dr Hussein, the house officer is said to have taken offence at how the nurse spoke with her, thus protested.
Dr. Hussein said, the house officer happened to have been in the company of her father when she spoke with the nurse on phone. As such, Mr. Opoku-Mensah was infuriated by the turn of events and followed his daughter to the hospital.
In an audio recording that has gone viral, Mr. Opoku-Mensah said, “you are very frustrated…Who born dog?…you envy her, you don’t respect. Are you a doctor? Who are you? Are you mad? Is the hospital yours? Stupid idiot.. that your useless nursing that you do, useless woman… Do you know who I am? I am the Regional Director of National Service Scheme. Some of you are under me.”
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the NSS described the incident as “unfortunate” and apologised for it.
“The Management of the Scheme wishes to reiterate its commitment and assurances to the public and the nursing fraternity of our dedication to getting this matter resolved,” parts of the release read.
Twenty-four hours after the incident, Mr Opoku-Mensah rendered an unqualified apology noting that “that is not my style.”
Nonetheless, the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) has since issued a statement calling for the immediate removal of Mr Opoku-Mensah from office for the misbehaviour.
“The Public Services Commission and Government for that matter should sack the said Regional Director immediately because he is not fit for the director position he holds in public service.
“He had absolutely no right to enter Manhyia hospital and verbally abuse and threaten the nurse in question who was on duty at the time,” the statement read.
The nurses threatened that they will call upon their members at the facility to boycott their duties if Mr Opoku-Mensah is not sacked within the next 72 hours.
The Ministry of Education has assured students of Technical Universities that the government is working to resolve concerns of the Technical University Teachers Association of Ghana (TUTAG) to get them to resume work.
According to the Minister for Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, the government has shown enough commitment to address the demands of the striking teachers.
In a Citi News interview, Dr. Adutwum expressed optimism that the strike will soon be called off.
“We have had fruitful discussions. We have made appeals to them. They are also consulting their members, and we will hear from them soon.”
“Nobody wants students to be in class more than me, the Minister of Education. That is why I am saying we have made some considerable process, and I am very hopeful that the strike will be over soon,” the Minister said.
The leadership of the TUTAG on Friday, November 18 declared an indefinite strike over concerns about their conditions of service.
The union wants the government to honour its Codified Conditions of Service of members, which have been outstanding since 2016.
The leadership of TUTAG has accused the government of blatantly disregarding a ruling of the National Labour Commission on the matter, and also blamed the NLC for failing to enforce the ruling.
According to TUTAG, its members are facing some challenges with the payroll system and want the various Technical Universities to manage the payroll of the teachers.
The Association also wants the Government to pay outstanding Book and Research Allowances for the 2021/2022 academic year for the majority of its members.
The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has called for calm after the Ashanti Regional Director for the National Service Scheme, Alex Opoku-Mensah, verbally abused a nurse at the Manhyia District Hospital because of a reported dispute with his daughter, who is a junior doctor.
The GMA is worried that sharing pictures of the young doctor who is under horsemanship on social media could jeopardize her career.
“I am not happy with the way the doctor is being subjected to such an emotional trauma,” Dr. Frank Ankobea, the GMA President, said to Citi News.
“This is a young doctor who started work barely two weeks ago. She is young. She is now actually starting her career and I think we should support her. If we are only looking at what the father has done, we will throw away the baby with the bath water.”
“So it is important that all of us be measured in the kind of comments we pass and how we comment on these issues, and remember that somebody’s career is at stake,” Dr. Ankobea added.
Meanwhile, the management of the Manhyia District Hospital says it is offering psychological support to the doctor and the nurse involved in the issue and has asked them to stop working for a while.
Ashanti Regional Director for the National Service Scheme has apologised for the incident after nurses demanded that he should be sacked.
The National Service Scheme has since said it has initiated investigations into the conduct of its Ashanti Regional Director.
Harriet Thompson, United Kingdom (UK) High Commissioner to Ghana, has warned that over 70 per cent of cocoa lands in Ghana will no longer be suitable to grow the crop by 2050.
According to her, this will happen if temperatures continue to rise as is currently the case in the country.
The High Commissioner made these comments via a tweet on Tuesday, November 29 after she paid a courtesy call to the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Akoto Afriyie.
Her visit to the minister was to enable the two deliberate on issues of relevance in the agriculture sector, especially on the subject of the United Kingdom Support Climate Smart Agriculture in Ghana.
“Over 70% of land currently used to grow cocoa in Ghana will not be suitable for that crop by 2050 if temperatures continue to rise as they are doing currently.
“Now is the time to adapt – and the potential to do so is great,” Harriet Thompson tweeted.
An unnamed nurse who engaged in a heated exchange with a public official in the Ashanti Region has been transferred from her duty post at the Manhyia District Hospital and is being given psychological support.
This was revealed by the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) stating that the actions taken are to ensure her mental safety after a clash with the Ashanti Regional director of the National Service Scheme (NSS), Alex Opoku-Mensah.
Mr. David Tenkoreng-Twum, the GRNMA’s General Secretary in an interview on JoyNews’ The Pulse programme on November 29, confirmed the transfer of the nurse.
“As I am talking to you, we have removed the nurse as quickly as possible from the hospital. The said nurse is now being given psychological support to ensure her mental safety,” he said.
‘This has never been my style’ – Ashanti Regional NSS director issues apology for ‘mishap’
Alex Opoku-Mensah, who has been caught in the middle of an altercation that he had with a nurse issued an apology after the almost 10-minute exchange went viral on social media.
In the audio recording of the incident, Mr. Alex Poku-Mensah is heard hurling insults and threats at the nurse for allegedly intimidating his daughter, who is a house officer at the hospital.
But in an apology shared on his Facebook page, Alex Poku-Mensah stated that what happened was not his style.
“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,” he wrote.
He described what happened as a ‘mishap’ and asked for forgiveness.
“I do apologize for any mishap and assure all, there shall not be a repetition of such. I look forward to maintaining a cordial relationship between any affected person,” he added.
Francis-Xavier Sosu, Member of Parliament for Madina, has stated that the Ashanti Regional Director of the National Service Scheme [NSS] is suffering from what he calls a ‘superiority complex’.
This was after Alex Opoku-Mensah had stated in a Facebook post that the MP was suffering from an ‘inferiority complex’ in a January 19 post.
Sosu decided to respond to the NSS boss, Opoku-Mensah after he verbally assaulted a nurse on duty at the Manhyia District Hospital for allegedly speaking rudely with a house officer who is his daughter.
The NSS boss in a recorded audio is heard calling the said nurse a disappointed science student, adding that if he had the power, no General Arts student would be given the opportunity to be a nurse unless they study Science or Home Economics.
The MP shared a screenshot of Opoku-Mensah’s post which read “This Madina MP is suffering from [an] inferiority complex!” in a tweet on Tuesday, November 29, he added that he had proudly studied General Arts through which be became a lawyer and an economic policy management expert.
Sosu in an advice to the embattled NSS boss said “pride kills”.
“Ah well. I proudly studied General Arts. Ended with Law and Economic Policy Management. This man is obviously suffering from ‘SUPERIORITY COMPLEX’. This was what he said about me in Jan 2022. Pride kills,” Francis-Xavier Sosu tweeted.
Ah well. I proudly studied General Arts. Ended with Law and Economic Policy Management. This man is obviously suffering from ‘SUPERIORITY COMPLEX’. This was what he said about me in Jan 2022. Pride kills. ????????????????. pic.twitter.com/ZvbYyaSsyS
Meanwhile, David Tenkorang Twum, General Secretary, Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), has said that the Association will embark on a strike if the Ashanti Regional NSS boss is not dismissed.
The Management of the National Service Scheme has, however, invited Opoku-Mensah for preliminary investigations into the matter.
The National Communications Authority (NCA) yesterday inaugurated a new Broadcasting Monitoring Centre (BMC) in Accra to help monitor broadcast content in the country.
The BMC would help improve the NCA’s capability to fully monitor the Broadcasting sector and also expand its Broadcast Monitoring System (BMS).
NCA in line with its mandate under section 62 of the Electronic Communications Act 2008, Act 775, is clothed with the power to monitor the quality of service of television and FM radio broadcasting services.
The Board Chairman of NCA, Mr Isaac E. Osei-Bonsu (Jnr), said the BMC would “provide a classic example of how the provision of systems or solutions by one Agency could be useful and critical for the other Agencies.”
He said the BMC would provide information to the various agencies when needed for investigations, and verification, and provide a digital plug for the recording and storing of broadcasting content in a digital manner and format.
“Again, the BMC also shows how State Agencies can collaborate and harness each other’s systems, solutions and data to impact on their delivery without having to face obstacles or hurdles when sourcing for information critical to their work.”
“This is also the concept that the SIM Database or Registry is also intended to take. While the BMC and the SIM Registry will make it easy for State Agencies to access information or data, the difference is that State Agencies will have to provide the relevant court orders to have access to SIM Related data to protect the subscriber and to comply with the tenets of the Data Protection Act whereas information from the BMC will require no such requirements, given that the content has already been published in the public domain,” he said.
Mr Osei-Bonsu (Jnr) said until 2018, monitoring the quality of broadcasting services required human intervention which was phased out due to the implementation of the BMS system.
The Director General, of NCA, Mr Joe Anokye, said“In 2021, there was widespread public concern about the negative repercussions of the ritualists’ contents of television stations that entertained spiritualists as well as charlatanic advertisements which mislead large sections of the public,” he said.
That, he said, prompted the stakeholders to brainstorm ideas and ways in dealing with the issue.
He said the NCA last year signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the National Media Commission to regulate Broadcast Content which had helped in establishing the BMC to provide the required technical support for the objectives of the Memorandum of Cooperation.
Mr Anokye said the new system had 16 satellite receivers and monitors, all 13 satellites providing Free to Air (FTA) satellite TV services over the territory.
The Executive Secretary of NMC, Dr. George Sarpong, commended NCA for setting up the BMC and was optimistic that it would help promote the broadcasting of goon content to accelerate national development.
Economist Joe Jackson has retracted and apologized for recent comments to the effect that budgetary allocations to the Agric Ministry were less than that of the Council of State.
He made the said comments while commenting on details of the 2023 budget presented to Parliament by the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, on Thursday, November 24, 2022.
According to him, the government failed to apply sound judgment in preparing the budget with the lopsided allocations in respect of the two entities.
In a tweet of November 29, 2022; he said: “Profound apology: I got my numbers wrong on the issue of the budget allocation to the Council of State. The statement went viral and I apologize to everyone on this issue.”
He attached a link to the GhanaWeb story that carried his views as reported in a JoyNews interview.
What Joe Jackson said:
He alleged that the government ignored key ministries with the capability of pursuing the nation’s economic recovery by starving them of funding while allocating significant funds to some agencies with questionable usefulness.
“I’ll be honest just this evening I got what I thought was a reliable version of the tables and I started looking through, some of the numbers just don’t make sense to me. Why is there 80 billion still there for the Cathedral? Forgive me, I don’t know. Why is there a contingency vote of 1.4 billion?
“The office of government machinery, I don’t care where you came from, why is it at 1.4 billion? Guess what? Ministry of Food and Agric, do you know how much we’re giving them? 1.2billion. Do you know how much we’re spending on free SHS? 2.9 billion. The Council of State is receiving more money than the Food and Agric Ministry,” he said on Joy News PM Express.
In his view, the government missed an opportunity to deal with the nation’s debt and economic crisis through the 2023 budget statement and economic policy.
“The point is this, we want reassurance, we want to believe that this government can even carry the rest of the country with the austerity budget it has to impose. We want to believe somebody is trying to bridge the trust gap between the government and the public. That can be done when you trim down and all of us feel that you’re taking the pain as much as we have to take the pain,” he said.
The government of Ghana is hoping to rescue the country’s challenging economy through several policies outlined in the 2023 budget.
David Tenkorang Twum, General Secretary of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), has described the apology of the Ashanti Regional Director National Service Scheme (NSS), Alex Opoku-Mensah, in relation to a viral audio, as hollow.
The GRNMA has issued a 72-hour ultimatum for the dismissal of the Ashanti Regional NSS boss for verbally assaulting a nurse on duty at the Manhyia District Hospital for allegedly speaking rudely with a house officer who is his daughter.
The GRNMA further indicated that if the NSS fails to dismiss its regional boss, the Association would embark on a strike.
The NSS boss in recorded audio is heard calling the said nurse a disappointed science student, adding that if he had the power, no General Arts student would be given the opportunity to be a nurse unless persons who study Science or Home Economics.
David Tenkorang Twum in an interview with Accra-based Joy FM said though the NSS boss has rendered an unqualified apology, the Association would not accept such an apology because it was a mere play on words.
“Forget about his apology; his apology was hollow and as far as I am concerned, he was playing with words,” he said.
When asked whether it was necessary for the nurses to lay down their tools over an issue that could be settled amicably, Mr. Twum indicated that the nurses at the Manhyia District Hospital where the incident occurred wanted to lay down their tools, but for the timely intervention of the leadership of GRNMA.
He also recounted a similar incident two years ago, where nurses have been abused by families of patients but this time, he noted that the Association is willing to put an end to that phenomenon.
“Two years ago, a community health nurse was trapped to death, and as I speak with you, it has not been resolved. Its starts like this, we do not want to be reactive, but proactive. The man actually threatened the young lady. So it’s not just about the insults and the uncouth behaviour that he exhibited, but we think there is a need to protect nurses and midwives,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Management of the National Service Scheme (NSS) has invited Mr. Opoku-Mensah for preliminary investigations into the matter.
The Bureau of Public Safety (BPS) has urged the Ghana National Fire Service to close down shops that fail to participate in community fire training and education as well as sanction those who fail to avail themselves of an audit on electrical wiring.
The BPS’ suggestion comes on the heels of the fire outbreak that razed over 200 shops, destroying goods worth thousands of cedis at Kantamanto in Accra on Tuesday, November 29, 2022.
Despite the fact that the inferno destroyed several shops and properties, the Ghana National Fire Service was able to douse it after several hours to prevent further loss.
The GNFS complained of a lack of accessibility to the market, which made their job difficult.
The Chief of Party at the Bureau of Public Safety, Nana Yaw Akwada, speaking to Class News, said the Ghana National Fire Service must intensify its public education on fire safety and hold traders accountable.
He also chided city authorities for failing to structure market centers in the cities properly.
Martin Amidu has taken on Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin over recent comments Bagbin made on the floor of Parliament relative to his experience in Parliamentary democracy.
He accused the Speaker of behaving somewhat like a village chief who was treating Ghanaians and Members of Parliament like his subjects.
The former Special Prosecutor also admonished Bagbin to stay off boasting about his credentials and to allow colleagues and others who have known him overtime to do so.
Amidu’s views were contained in an epistle titled; ‘Games in Parliament – The Speaker and the Minority’s Motion of Censure.’
It read in part: “Mr. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin needs to be told to stop talking down on Ghanaians as though he is a village chief and we, his subjects.
“No humble, learned, erudite, and experienced person will ever seek to silence his critics in a constitutional democracy by telling them that: ‘In all humility, please note that there is deep thought in whatever I do. Don’t underrate my knowledge, skills, experience, and expertise in Parliamentary practice and procedure.’
“It is for the public or one’s professional peer group, to determine one’s level of knowledge, skills, experience, and expertise and not for one to subjectively assert them and trumpet his competencies to the world,” the statement added.
Amidu also pointed to Justice D. F. Annan, the first Speaker of the Fourth Republic, to emphasise how someone who has not been an MP distinguished himself as a Speaker.
He charged Bagbin to take a lead from his predecessors and maintain his role as an umpire in the affairs of the House and stop acting like what he termed “a transactional member” of the House.
“The conduct of Mr. Bagbin in the processes leading up to the passage of the 2022 Budget Statement and subsequent Appropriation Act, 2022 and the current motion of censure filed by the Minority Caucus of Parliament against the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta vindicate the assertion that Mr. Bagbin behaves more as a transactional Member of Parliament than the Speaker of Parliament as an umpire,” Martin Amidu argued.
The Bishop of the Konongo-Mampong Diocese of the Catholic Church in Ghana, Most Rev. Joseph Osei-Bonsu, has berated the Member of Parliament (MP) for Effutu, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, for saying that Catholics are free to join the Freemasons.
Alexander Afenyo Markin, who revealed that he is a member of the fraternal society, the Freemasons, said that the teachings and values of the organisation do not conflict with his Catholic principles and upbringing.
Speaking to Bola Ray on Starr Chat, the legislator said that freemasonry teaches its followers about God and the principles of life.
“I am a mason, and I have not been sanctioned by the Catholic Church. Freemasonry is a fraternal society that believes in God Almighty and follows certain principles that guide a man’s life, and it does not run counter with my beliefs as a Catholic. President Kufuor is a Mason and a Catholic,” he stated.
Reacting to this in an article in the Catholic Standard, Most Rev Joseph Osei-Bonsu, said that the MP’s views on the Catholic Church and the Freemasons are unfortunate.
According to the bishop, the Catholic Church’s teaching frowns on freemasonry since the fraternal society started in 1717.
“In recent times, the Member of Parliament for Effutu in the Central Region, Hon. Alexander Afenyo-Markin, in a live radio interview, stated that he is a proud member of the Lodge, and his church, the Catholic Church, does not frown on its members joining the Brotherhood.
“It is unfortunate that the Honourable Member of Parliament does not know the teaching of his Church on this matter. Contrary to what Honourable Alexander Afenyo Markin believes, Freemasonry is not approved by the Catholic Church. Indeed, Catholics are forbidden to become Freemasons.
“The Catholic Church has opposed the Lodge nearly since the birth of modern Freemasonry in 1717. Since the founding of the Grand Lodge of England, eleven popes have explicitly condemned Freemasonry or Masonic principles,” excerpts from the bishops’ article read.
Read the article below:
EXCERPTS FROM CAN A CATHOLIC BE A FREEMASON BY MOST REV. JOSEPH OSEI-BONSU BISHOP OF KONONGO-MAMPONG
INTRODUCTION
Many people regard Freemasonry as a benevolent and charitable organization, somehow similar to the Rotary and Lions Clubs, the Knights of Marshall, the Knights of St. John International or the Knights of Columbus. Undoubtedly, it is for this reason that some Catholics join this fraternity.
In recent times, the Member of Parliament for Effutu in the Central Region, Hon. Alexander Afenyo-Markin, on a live radio interview stated that he is a proud member of the Lodge, and his church, the Catholic Church, does not frown on its members joining the Brotherhood. He added, “I am a mason and I have not been sanctioned by the Catholic Church. Freemasonry is a fraternal society that believes in God Almighty and follows certain principles that guide a man’s life and it does not run counter with my beliefs as a Catholic” (https://newsghana.com.gh/is-afenyo-markin-a-true-catholic/)
It is unfortunate that the Honourable Member of Parliament does not know the teaching of his Church on this matter. Contrary to what Honourable Alexander Afenyo Markin believes, Freemasonry is not approved by the Catholic Church. Indeed, Catholics are forbidden to become Freemasons.
FREEMASONRY AND THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
The Catholic Church has opposed the Lodge nearly since the birth of modern
Freemasonry in 1717. Since the founding of the Grand Lodge of England, eleven
popes have explicitly condemned Freemasonry or Masonic principles. These popes are: Pope Clement XII (28 April 1738); Pope Benedict XIV (18 May, 1751); Pius VII (13 September 1821); Pope Leo XII (13 March 1825); Pope Pius VIII (24 May 1829); Pope Gregory XVI (15 August 1832); Pius IX (between 1846 and 1873); Leo XIII (15 February 1882; 20 April 1884; 1887; 15 October 1890; 18 December 1892; 20 June 1894); Pope Pius IX (1907); Pope Pius X (1907); Pope Pius XI (1924).
A recent condemnation of Freemasonry is contained in the “Declaration on
Masonic Associations” issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on 26 November 1983, declared that Masonic principles are irreconcilable with the doctrine of Church, and that Catholic membership in Freemasonry remains forbidden.
The Church’s position is that Freemasonry is a religion in its own right with its own doctrines, which are not compatible with Christian beliefs. For this reason, one
cannot simultaneously be a Christian and be a Freemason. What it teaches about the following cannot be reconciled with Christian beliefs, i.e., God, Christ, the denial of the role of grace and Christ in salvation, morality, its attitude towards the Bible, eschatology, the masonic oaths and the notion of rebirth and enlightenment. For this reason, one cannot simultaneously be a Catholic and a Freemason, just as one cannot be a Catholic and be Muslim, a Hindu, a Shintoist or a practitioner of African Traditional Religion. One will have to make a choice between Catholicism and Freemasonry.
CONCLUSION
Let me conclude by drawing attention to the DECLARATION OF THE GHANA CATHOLIC BISHOPS’ CONFERENCE ON SANCTIONS FOR CATHOLICS WHO JOIN MASONIC ASSOCIATIONS, issued on 7 May 2009. Among other things, it says:
1) Any Catholic who is a member of any Masonic Association and participates in its programmes, or promotes its views, or holds any office therein, and refuses to renounce such membership despite at least one warning (cf. Canon 1347) is to be punished with an interdict (cf. Canon 1347), that is:
a. He is not allowed to receive Holy Communion and other sacraments (cf. Canon 1332).
b. He is prohibited to act as sponsor in Baptism and Confirmation.
c. He is not to be admitted as a member of parish or diocesan structures.
d. He is to be denied funeral rites, unless he shows some signs of repentance before death (Canon 1184 §1, no. 3).
e. Where funeral rites are allowed by the bishop, no Masonic service shall be allowed in the Church or cemetery immediately before or after the Church rites in order to avoid public scandal (cf. Canon 1184, §1, no. 3, and Canon 1374)
Any Catholic who is a convinced member of a Masonic Association and notoriously adheres to the Masonic vision is already considered to have incurred automatic excommunication (cf. Canon 1364). This means that the censures described in Canon 1331 automatically take full effect on this person. According to Canon 1331 §1, an excommunicated person is forbidden:
I. To have any ministerial participation in the celebration of the Eucharist or in any other ceremonies whatsoever of public worship.
II. To celebrate the sacraments and sacramentals and to receive the sacraments.
III. To discharge any ecclesiastical offices, ministries, or functions whatsoever, or to place acts of governance.
It is possible that some Catholics joined Freemasonry without knowing that it is forbidden to Catholics. Such people are advised to see their priests or their bishops who will assist them to renounce Freemasonry and avoid incurring the sanctions that will be imposed on them if they do not renounce Freemasonry.
The Member of Parliament for Builsa South, Dr. Clement Apaak has questioned the Ministry of Health on steps being taken to ensure that Medical Doctors posted to deprived parts of the country take up their postings.
The lawmaker also requested the Minister of Health to give a timeline on the policy on posting of doctors to deprived areas.
According to him, “as we speak this is a practical reality. For example in the Upper East region last year of all the ten doctors posted there not even one took up his position and this year only five.”
In responding to the questions in Parliament, the Minister for Health, Kwaku Agyeman Manu indicated that his ministry is validating a report on the situation which will be subsequently presented to the cabinet for action.
“Mr. Speaker, all the activities are not controlled by me, some of them are outside my environment. Depending on when we finish the validation I get my cabinet Memo done and approved then I come to Parliament to what we have agreed upon then we roll out.
“That is why we said we can’t wait for the problem you have mentioned to continue to exist. It is not the Upper East alone when you go to the Eastern regionk last year we sent ten there only one reported,” Mr. Agyeman Manu stated.
He said the Ministry has decided not to go about its usual way of posting rather the vacancies will be opened for applications.
“So if we tell you that there is a vacancy for a doctor and you are ready and apply we will interview you and post you there. So that idea of we will just get financial clearance and post doctors where they need to go and some will not go, we are stopping that.
“You will sit at home and look at adverts for vacancies if you are interested Mr. Speaker, we will post you. If you are not interested we can’t continue adding on to doctors in Accra. So that is the measure we are adopting,” the Health Minister added.
The Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) has described the government’s decision to increase Value Added Tax (VAT) by 2.5% in the 2023 Budget as insensitive.
“For me, it was insensitive for the VAT to have been increased in these times,” the chief executive of GNCCI, Mark Badu Aboagye, told sit-in host of The Asaase Breakfast Show Benjamin Offei-Addo on Monday (28 November).
“In our submission to the Finance Minister before the 2023 budget was read, we made it clear that an increase in any tax will be suicidal in respect to the current state of affairs,” he added.
Increment
Value added tax (VAT) is expected to increase by 2.5 percentage points, the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, has announced last week.
The standard rate of VAT is 12.5%, except for supplies for a wholesaler or retailer of goods, which are taxed at a total flat rate of 3%.
Ofori-Atta said the proposal to increase the rate forms part of the government’s seven-point agenda to revitalise Ghana’s economy.
Presenting the 2023 Budget Statement in Parliament on Thursday (24 November 2022), the minister said that the increase in the VAT rate by 2.5 percentage points is “to directly support our roads and digitalisation agenda”.
He also announced that the government will undertake major structural reforms in the public sector.
Ofori-Atta said the government is determined to change Ghana’s fortunes and he admitted that the country has been going through difficulty.
“The government is determined to change the negative narrative and rebuild for a better future,” the minister said.
Ghana has not imported maize for past five years due to the government’s continuous support to the sector, the deputy agriculture minister Yaw Frimpong Addo, has said.
Addo said over the period, the government has put in a lot to boost production of maize.
Appearing on The Asaase Breakfast Show on Tuesday (29 November) in Koforidua ahead of this year’s National Farmers’ Day celebration, Addo said the government is committed to ensuring food sufficiency in the country.
“Our duty as a ministry was to increase production which to a large extent we have succeeded. Since 2017, we haven’t imported a grain of maize into this country,” he said.
“There are several stages in agriculture that an investor can add value. For us, it’s the private sector that has to be encouraged to support us.
“There’s a close collaboration between the ministry and the researchers. There’s a lot of variety that we’re giving farmers to increase yields,” Addo said.
This year, the celebrations at the regional level have been restored as a cost-cutting strategy to ease the financial burden on the 16 regional coordinating councils, which hitherto bore the cost of travel expenses, accommodation and lodging of regional award winners and other accompanying officials to participate in the celebration at the national level.
There will be five regional award categories per region, namely: Regional Best Farmer; Regional Best Livestock Farmer; Regional Best Crop Farmer; Regional Best Fisher and Regional Best Agricultural Extension Agent.
The district award categories have been revised from six to three per district, namely: District Best Farmer; District Best Livestock Farmer and District Best Crop Farmer.
The districts that have the financial wherewithal to cater for additional award categories are, however, advised to do so at their own expense.
A Labour Consultant Mr Austin Akufo Gamey has said that hiring freeze must be discriminatory.
He stated that no matter how difficult the situation is, the application cannot be total.
Speaking on the Ghana Tonight show with Alfred Oansey on TV3 Monday November 28, Mr Gamey said “It is obvious that no matter how hard the situation is they cannot do it flat-footed, they will have to do it in selective application.
“Teaching is teaching, you necessarily must have teachers in the classroom, nursing and all other health service providers and some emergency type of public service, first respondent if there is a disaster you have no choice therefore they have to be selectively.”
The Secretary General of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) Dr Yaw Baah has also said that net freeze on employment into the public sector is better than total embargo.
He explained that net freeze is when retirees are replaced when they exit. This, he said, allows productivity and efficiency to go on.
Total freeze on the other hand, he added, is when the retirees are not replaced neither are new employees recruited. That will be detrimental to productivity hence, they do not want that to happen.
Speaking in an interview with TV3’s Daniel Opoku on the sidelines of a post budget analyses forum held by the TUC in Accra on Monday November 28, Dr Yaw Baah said “we still don’t have the details of the IMF conditionality but you will not be wrong if you think this is part of IMF conditions. Since 1965 when Ghana Government started going to IMF, employment freeze has always been part, in the last one that ended, employment freeze was one but in that case it was net.
“Net meant that if somebody retires you can replace the person. So the net freeze is what we need. But this one, we don’t know the details, whether it is the net freeze or total freeze.
“If it is a net freeze then it is like the previous one but if it is a total freeze it is another ball game all together. There are 644,000 people on the single spine. Let us assume without admitting that about 5 per cent of them retire yearly.
“If only five percent retire every year, we are talking now about over 30,000 people retiring and if the 30,000 people retire and they don’t replace them it will affect service delivery. If you reduce numbers by over 30,000 and they are not replaced then your effectiveness in service delivery will be affected.”
The Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta announced in the 2023 budget a freeze on employment into the civil and public service.
He also said there shall be no new government agencies established in 2023. He said these while presenting the budget in Parliament on Thursday November 23.
Mr Ofori-Atta said as a first step toward expenditure rationalisation, government has approved a number of directives which takes effect from January, 2023.
These are “All Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) and State-Owned-Enterprises (SOEs) are directed to reduce fuel allocations to Political Appointees and heads of MDAs, MMDAs and SOEs by 50%. This directive applies to all methods of fuel allocation including coupons, electronic cards, chit system, and fuel depots. Accordingly, 50% of the previous years (2022) budget allocation for fuel shall be earmarked for official business pertaining to MDAs, MMDAs and SOEs;
“A ban on the use of V8s/V6s or its equivalent except for cross country travel. All
government vehicles would be registered with GV green number plates from
January 2023; Limited budgetary allocation for the purchase of vehicles. For the avoidance of doubt, purchase of new vehicles shall be restricted to locally assembled vehicles;
“Only essential official foreign travel across government including SOEs shall be
allowed. No official foreign travel shall be allowed for board members.”
The Finance Minister added “Accordingly, all government institutions should submit a travel plan for the year 2023 by mid-December of all expected travels to the Chief of Staff; As far as possible, meetings and workshops should be done within the official environment or government facilities; Government sponsored external training and Staff Development activities at the Office of the President, Ministries and SOEs must be put on hold for the 2023 financial year; Reduction of expenditure on appointments including salary freezes together with suspension of certain allowances like housing, utilities and clothing, etc.;
“A freeze on new tax waivers for foreign companies and review of tax exemptions for free zone, mining, oil and gas companies; A hiring freeze for civil and public servants, No new government agencies shall be established in 2023; There shall be no hampers for 2022; There shall be no printing of diaries, notepads, calendars and other promotional, merchandise by MDAs, MMDAs and SOEs for 2024; All non-critical project must be suspended for 2023 Financial year.”
The minority in parliament has raised concerns over seeming failure of the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta to make an appearance for the 2023 budget debate.
At the time the Speaker gave the guidelines for the commencement of the debate, the Deputy Minority Whip, Ibrahim Ahmed said there was a need for him to be present in the chamber as he needs to take note of their input.
“Mr Speaker, conspicuously missing on the floor is the mover of the motion and it Is not for nothing that the constitution says the finance minister can lay the budget on the floor on behalf of the president. So, you can’t just move the motion and remain there. It is appropriate that the minister must be here, Mr Speaker if he is not ready to do the job, he should let the house know. He must be here to hear our input.”
Ranking Member of the Finance Committee, Ato Forson said this is becoming quite characteristic of the finance minister. He therefore urged that the house should not debate on the budget until their input is considered by the finance minister.
Speaking on the matter, the majority leader said the constitution does not provide any where that the economic policy and the budget statement should be submitted to this house by the Minister of Finance.
Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu also said that the president can choose any minister to lay the budget before the house and the minister is not obligated to speak to it.
He however stated that the finance minister had given prior notice that he would be absent from the country but indicated the availability of the two-deputy ministers to take note of suggestions.
In order to preserve our culture and traditions, Ghanaians should speak their native tongues, this is according to Nana Opare Kwafo I, the Kyedomhene of Aburi Atwiasin.
The traditional chief believed that because language is an integral element of culture, Ghanaians, especially the younger generation, would learn much more about their culture and tradition if they spoke their native languages.
The suggestions were given by Nana Opare Kwafo during his speech at the inaugural Home Builders Africa Awards, which took place over the weekend at the Ohene Konadu Auditorium of the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA).
He noted that it was absurd for anyone to believe that using one’s mother tongue is embarrassing because in Ghana today, people only speak English at home and in public settings.
Nana argued that Ghanaians in metropolitan areas are more familiar with the customs and cultures of other nations than those of their own because they speak English when they interact with one another, this, he said, is a disturbing trend.
He emphasized that if the dominant culture is foreign, the younger generations will grow up either forgetting or not knowing about Ghana’s culture and traditions.
“Speaking in our native tongues will help our country advance, so let’s adopt this practice. There are several nations that do not speak English in addition to their own tongue, like China where they speak their own language. It is imperative that we start speaking Twi in everything we do in order to preserve the cultural values and beliefs of the nation,” the chief declared.
Meanwhile, Nana Opare Kwarfo received the “International Humanitarian Hero” award from the Home Builders Africa Awards.
He used the opportunity to thank the Home Builders Africa Awards organizers for taking the initiative to acknowledge the significance and relevance of people and companies that are making various contributions to creating tranquil homes.
The event, which was organized by Build Forward Africa with support from AfCFTA’s Young Entrepreneurs Federation (AfYEF), was focused on creating a strong home from the ground up so that it could be inhabited and lived in.
Abel Antonio Cardenas Tuppia, the Peruvian ambassador to Ghana, Dr. Chris Agyemang, the president of Taabea Group, and Jane Reason Akushika Ahadzi, the CEO of Stopover JRA Enterprise, were among dignitaries in attendance at the occasion.
The Minister of Interior Ambrose Dery has visited the scene of the fire outbreak at Kantamanto in Accra to commiserate with affected traders on behalf of the President.
The Minister toured the scene with the Inspector General of Police and other senior officers of the Ghana Police Service to assess the extent of damage and also interact with the traders.
Meanwhile, Police Officers have been deployed to the scene to prevent possible looting and also direct the movement of persons and vehicles away from the incident scene.
Officials from the National Disaster Management Organisation are also supporting the exercise.
The fire service under the leadership of the chief fire officer is also on the grounds helping with the operation.
Economist Joe Jackson has stated that the government of Ghana missed an opportunity to deal with the nation’s debt and economic crisis through the 2023 budget statement and economic policy.
Reacting to the details of the budget presented to parliament by the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, on Thursday, November 24, 2022, Mr Jackson said in an interview with Joy News that the government failed to apply sound judgment in preparing the budget.
According to the economist, the government ignored key ministries with the capability of pursuing the nation’s economic recovery by starving them of funding while allocating significant funds to some agencies with questionable usefulness.
“I’ll be honest just this evening I got what I thought was a reliable version of the tables and I started looking through, some of the numbers just don’t make sense to me. Why is there 80billion still there for the Cathedral? Forgive me, I don’t know. Why is there a contingency vote of 1.4 billion?
“The office of government machinery, I don’t care where you came from, why is it at 1.4billion? Guess what? Ministry of Food and Agric, do you know how much we’re giving them? 1.2billion. Do you know how much we’re spending on free SHS? 2.9billion. The Council of State is receiving more money than the Food and Agric Ministry,” he said.
He noted that the government missed an opportunity on both fronts to bridge the trust gap between the citizenry and the markets in the 2023 budget.
“The point is this, we want reassurance, we want to believe that this government can even carry the rest of the country with the austerity budget it has to impose. We want to believe somebody is trying to bridge the trust gap between the government and the public. That can be done when you trim down and all of us feel that you’re taking the pain as much as we have to take the pain,” he said.
The government of Ghana is hoping to rescue the country’s challenging economy through several policies outlined in the 2023 budget.
Dr Kyeremeh Atuahene, Director-General of the Ghana AIDS Commission, has warned Ghanaians against engaging in transactional sex.
Speaking to Joy FM, the AIDS Commission boss said Ghana’s target of achieving zero HIV infections by 2030 is achievable, but only if the youth of the country desist from transactional and commercial sexual activities.
“Some young people see sex as a means of making income. We have hookups, which entail young men and women offering themselves as sexual providers to sugar mummies and daddies. All these expose them to HIV/Aids,” he said.
According to Dr Atuahene, HIV, unlike other diseases such as COVID-19 and tuberculosis, is contracted through deliberate actions, hence the need for the youth to be cautious in their sexual escapades.
“Nobody can force the pathogen into your body. You decide to have sex and it does not come out of the blue,” he noted.
He also urged the youth to practice abstinence and safe sex, while noting the availability of HIV/AIDS treatment.
In the first half of 2022, 495 Ghanaians tested positive for HIV.
The figure represents two per cent of the total number of 948, 094 who got tested for HIV within the period in review.
The National Service Scheme Director in the Ashanti Region, Alex Opoku-Mensah, who has been caught in the middle of an altercation that he had with a nurse at the Manhyia Hospital, has issued an apology.
This follows a viral audio that captured the NSS director on tape verbally attacking a staff nurse at the Manhyia District Hospital.
In the audio recording of the incident, Mr. Alex Poku-Mensah is heard hurling insults and threats at the nurse for allegedly intimidating his daughter, who is a house officer at the hospital.
But in an apology shared on his Facebook page, Alex Poku-Mensah stated that what happened was not his style.
“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,” he wrote.
He described what happened as a ‘mishap’ and asked for forgiveness.
“I do apologize for any mishap and assure all, there shall not be a repetition of such. I look forward to maintaining a cordial relationship between any affected person,” he added.
Read his full statement below:
Background:
The Ashanti Regional Director for the National Service Secretariat, Mr. Alex Poku Mensah, has been captured on tape verbally attacking a staff nurse at the Manhyia District Hospital.
In the audio recording of the incident, Mr. Alex Poku Mensah is heard hurling insults and threats at the nurse for allegedly intimidating his daughter, who is a house officer at the hospital.
According to multiple reports, the said nurse is said to have called Mr Poku Mensah’s daughter on phone to inform her about the need for her to return to the facility to update a patient’s record on the hospital’s patient management system.
But the regional NSS director, in the company of his daughter, stormed the hospital to accuse the nurse of intimidation.
Mr. Poku Mensah, in a heated exchange with the nurse, is heard verbally attacking her while touting his position and threatening to transfer the nurse from the hospital.
“If she does anything, come and inform me; I will use my power to ensure she is removed from here. I’ve introduced myself; I am the National Service Regional Director,” Mr. Opoku is heard shouting at the nurse.
The nurse in return is heard saying, “do you also know me? Do you know my father?” To which a furious Mr. Opoku retorted, saying, “Fool, does the work belong to your father?”
Meanwhile, the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association GRNMA has called for the sacking of Mr Alex Poku from office.
According to the association, the conduct of the Regional NSS Director at the Manhyia Hospital makes him unfit to occupy the position.
The association has warned that it will recall the services of its members at the hospital if the government fails to heed the demand for his dismissal within 72 hours.
“We wish to state categorically that if the government does not 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 upon to lay down their tools, followed by the whole of Ashanti Region and then it will be escalated to the whole nation,” the Association said in the statement dated November 29, 2022.
Only a handful of Members of Parliament (MPs) on the majority side showed up in Parliament for the post-budget hearing yesterday, November 29, 2022.
When the Speaker announced the rules for the debate to begin, only 21 members of parliament were present on the majority side of the house.
Although the majority had initially posited that they would not join in the debate due to the gross mismanagement of the economy by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, they showed up during the budget hearing.
However, the reason for their absence is unknown. The Finance Minister on November 24, 2022, presented the 2023 Budget Statement and Economic policy.
Contained in it were measures towards “expenditure rationalisation,” which include a ban on the use of V8/V6 vehicles, limited budgetary allocation for the purchase of vehicles, a 50% slash in fuel allocations to Political Appointees and heads of MDAs, MMDAs, and SOEs, etc.
The electronic transaction levy (e-levy) rate as well as its threshold have all also been reviewed, with effect from January 2023.
The presentation is in accordance with Article 179 of the 1992 Constitution and Section 21 of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921).
The government is optimistic that the new measures contained in the budget will bring the economy back to life.
The chiefs and people of the Asante Mampong Traditional Area in the Ashanti Region have decided not to allow any mining activity on their lands.
This is to prevent the destruction of farmlands and water bodies in the area.
It follows the issuance of a license to Eriant Company, an entity that deals in woods and registered in 2019 by the Minerals Commission for prospecting gold in Mampong.
They also gave another company, Active Target Minerals Resource, registered in September 2022, a similar license to do the same prospecting on November 1, 2022.
But speaking on Adom TV’s Badwem morning show on Friday, Member of Parliament for Asante Mampong, Kwaku Ampratwum Sarpong, said, “Daasebre Osei Bonsu has asked me to caution all those who want to come and mine gold in Asante Mampong not to come there because he cannot protect them should anything happen to them.”
That, he said, was because they could not sit and allow their lands, farms, and water bodies to be destroyed, as had happened in many parts of the country.
The MP, who is also the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, therefore, cautioned that “if anyone comes there for mining, I will organise the youth to restrict such people.”
“We don’t need anyone there for mining purposes. If you’re looking for gold, go elsewhere, not Asante Mampong,” he warned.
He stressed his readiness to do whatever it took to protect his people and the lands bequeathed to them by their forefathers.
“I am ready to lead my constituents to use every means possible to prevent and stop any prospecting or mining company that ventures into the Mampong Municipality. Mampong is a no-go area for gold mining,” he stressed.
He indicated that “we are forming a task force in the town so anyone who comes there to do mining would have us to contend with it. Daasebre (Osei Bonsu) has also stated that no mining prospecting would be allowed in Mampong, for he would not allow some people to pollute his lands and water bodies.”
Meanwhile, the youth of the town are said to be gearing up for a massive demonstration through the principal streets of the town next Wednesday to drum home their point.
This is expected to be followed by a press conference to reiterate their resolve not to allow mining activities in the town.
Meanwhile, the Mamponghene, Daasebre Osei Bonsu, and the Member of Parliament have cautioned the Minerals Commission to stop issuing licenses to companies to come and do prospecting in the area since they would not allow any mining activities in the area.
The United Kingdom High (UK) Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson has indicated that by 2050, over 70 per cent of the lands in Ghana used to grow cocoa will no longer be suitable for that purpose.
She says this will happen if temperatures continue to rise as they are doing currently in the country.
Madam Thompson said this in a tweet on Tuesday November 29 after she paid a courtesy call on the Minister of Food and Agriculture Dr Owusu Akoto Afriyie.
The courtesy call was to enable the two of them deliberate on issues of relevance in the agriculture sector especially on the United Kingdom Support Climate Smart Agriculture in Ghana.
Madam Thompson said “Over 70% of land currently used to grow cocoa in Ghana will not be suitable for that crop by 2050 if temperatures continue to rise as they are doing currently.
“Now is the time to adapt – and the potential to do so is great.”
Over 70% of land currently used to grow cocoa in 🇬🇭 will not be suitable for that crop by 2050 if temperatures continue to rise as they are doing currently. Now is the time to adapt – and the potential to do so is great. https://t.co/FLNuE9NZhe
Former President John Dramani Mahama has said that Ghanaians made a mistake by voting out his government in the 2016 presidential elections.
According to him, in spite of the achievements of his government, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) was able to convince Ghanaians that he was incompetent, which led to his being booted out of office.
Mahama, who made these remarks while addressing constituency and regional executives of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Upper West Region, added that Ghanaians are now suffering the consequences of the wrong choice they made in 2016.
“Whatever happens in this country affects everybody. When we make a wrong choice, it affects us not today, but tomorrow and tomorrow next, and next year and the year after.
“We made that wrong choice in 2016. Despite everything we did, the people of Ghana were convinced that we were incompetent, and so they voted against us. And the effects of that decision in 2016 are continuing to follow us every day till now,” he said.
Mahama also said that Ghanaians should not accept the excuses of the government that the Russia-Ukraine war and the COVID-19 pandemic are what caused the hardship in the country.
He implied that the government’s poor management is causing unprecedented hardships for Ghanaians.
The former president, therefore, urged the executives of the party, from the polling stations to the national level, to work hard to rescue Ghanaians from the current NPP government.
The leadership of the Government and Hospital Pharmacists Association (GHOSPA) has petitioned the National Health Insurance Authority to speed up processes leading to the revision of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) Medicines List.
The leadership of GHOSPA said that would ensure that the prices of medicines on the list would reflect prevailing market prices.
This was in a press statement issued by GHOSPA, signed by Mr Samuel Owusu, its General Secretary, and copied to the Ghana News Agency.
The statement said the review of the prices was necessary in view of the depreciation of the local currency and rising inflation, which had led to a rise in the cost of almost all essential medicines.
It said, “Although the NHIA updated the old version of the Medicines List (released in March 2021) as recently as July 2022 the acute economic straits facing the country have forced pharmaceutical distributors to hike the prices of medicines at rates of more than 50 per cent.”
It said, “This in turn has led to a situation where almost all essential medicines covered by the NHIS Medicines List are no longer within the price limits of the Authority’s 2022 Medicines List Version.”
The statement added that “A lot of the medicines on the NHIS Medicines List are lagging by an average of 100 per cent of current market prices. For example, a tablet of Paracetamol, which used to cost 0.05 Ghana Cedis, is now 0.21 Ghana Cedis on the market whilst the NHIS price is currently set at GHC0.09.”
The statement said “Consequently, adequate stocks of essential medicines in hospital pharmacies was now becoming a luxury, a dire situation, making it difficult to provide pharmaceutical care and services to NHIS-insured clients.
“Our patients residing in rural and underserved areas of the country, who are mostly farmers, whose income levels are far below the daily minimum wage, are the most affected, since they do not have the financial capacity to make out-of-pocket payments to obtain the necessary medicines, which would have otherwise been covered by the NHIS.”
It said, “We again make a clarion call on the NHIA to leave from the usual practice of waiting for one year or more before updating the NHIS Medicines List since current economic situations would not favour such “business as usual” attitude.”
It said, “Ghana’s aim of accelerating the achievement of Universal Health Coverage is strongly linked to the availability, affordability and access to essential medicines within the health system.”
The statement said, “Against this backdrop, the NHIA, which is the biggest health payer in the country, must review its medicines benefit package to ensure NHIS-insured clients, who form the majority of the working class and poor folks in our towns and villages, are not disadvantaged.”
The Alliance for Social Equality and Public Accountability (ASEPA) has asked the government to rescind its decision to purchase oil from the world market using gold.
Instead, it called on the government to put in place measures to strengthen the local currency that had depreciated against the US dollar by 50 per cent this year.
Mr Mensah Thompson, Executive Director of ASEPA who made the call, said barter trading gold for oil would deplete the country’s forest reserve.
He said this while addressing a news conference on the 2023 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government, in Accra, on Monday.
The government last week disclosed that it intends to purchase oil from the world market using gold instead of the dollar due to the depreciation of the Cedi against the US dollars.
Official data also shows that Ghana’s gross international reserves have fallen from $9.7 billion at the end of 2021 to around $6.6 billion at the end of September 2022.
Mr Thompson explained that gold was a commodity which had an extremely high price volatility on the world market and indicated that should the value of the commodity (gold) decline on the world market, government would require more gold to make the purchase.
“The sad situation about this is that Ghana has an oil refinery which has been abandoned since 2017.”
He added that: “The volatility of gold prices set another stage for the fast depletion of the mineral resources the country has if the prices of the commodity fall.”
Mr Mensah Thompson also urged the government to revise the 2.5 per cent VAT rate as maintaining the current rate would worsen the already precarious economic situation of Ghanaians.
He said: “Inflation is currently at 40.4 per cent, Producer Price Index sits at 61.7 per cent, the 2.5 per cent increase in VAT would skyrocket prices even further in such a precarious situation which would fuel inflation to unprecedented levels.
“In response to the skyrocketed inflation in 2023, the Central Bank would automatically increase the Policy Rate to curb inflation, this would worsen cost of borrowing in 2023, people would not be able to borrow due to the high interest costs, those who would be able to borrow risk falling into a debt trap, NPL sitting on the books of banks would skyrocket leading this country into a recession.”
He also emphasized the need for the government to cut down on expenditure to avoid incurring more debt.
The government, among other things, froze recruitment, purchasing vehicles and printing calendars to cut down on its expenditure.
Estimates made using the 2022 budget shows that , every Ghanaian owes approximately GH¢15,175.32.
Given the current public debt stated in the budget amounting to GH¢467.37 billion (US$48.87 billion), shared among the 30.8 million Ghanaian population, amounts to a debt of GH¢15,175.32 per person.
The domestic debt component, according to the budget, is GH¢195.65 billion making a 31.79 percent of GDP while the external debt stock was at 58.1 percent of GDP with GH¢271.71 billion.
For a decade now, the public debt has increased by about 159.67% – from US$ 18.82 billion (GH¢35.38 billion) in 2012 to US$ 48.87 billion (GH¢467.37 billion) in 2022.
The year 2022, has been on a downward stream with rising inflation and depreciating of the cedi.
Loss to depreciation of the cedi amounted to added external debt stock of of GH¢93.86 billion There have also been vast increases in the public debt on month-on-month bases.
The diagram gives the public debt per person for the year 2022. The increase per month is associated with the increases in the public debt.
On average the public debt person increased by 32.89% from January 2022 to October 2022.
Director General of Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET) has appealed to the private sector and industry to support government to ensure sustainable funding for the TVET sector.
Dr Fred Kyei Asamoah said the government alone could not shoulder the cost of funding TVET and that the private sector and industry who were beneficiaries of TEVT product must contribute their share to ensure a viable means of financing the programme.
Dr Asamoah made the call at the National TVET EXPO 2022 and Awards and the inauguration of the National Apprenticeship Policy and Skills Gap Analysis in Accra.
The exhibition is intended to provide a platform for multi-sectoral collaboration towards promoting TVET in Ghana and bringing it to the fore in national discussions.
The objective of the TVET Expo is also to promote awareness and interest among various stakeholders about the importance of TVET in Ghana, bring visibility to the key projects being undertaken by the Ministry of Education and the Commission for TVET in the TVET space as well as provide a platform for dialogue among key stakeholders on how to enhance TVET delivery in Ghana.
Dr Asamoah also stated that investments in TVET in the past had been extremely low because government had not paid much attention to the sector saying there was no particular focus on TVET even though the country needed more people in the TVET sector to support the growth of the economy.
He said the current huge investments by government in the sector were intended to fill the gaps in terms of lack of equipment, obsolete machines, and training institutions for students.
“In our quest to bridge the gap, we have to do more than the normal…we are hoping that the investments in the sector will even double so that they can catch-up with their counterpart in the grammar schools,” he added.
Dr Asamoah also explained that to address the issues of skills mismatch between training institutions and the industry the government has conducted a skills gap analysis and audit for priority sectors.
He said the survey was more critical in a time of accelerated technological development when industries globally kept transforming and TVET was at the centre of providing the skills needed for industries, employability, and enhancement of livelihoods.
Mr Samuel Thompson, Policy, and Planning Coordinator, CTVET in his remarks noted that setting up of the Sectors Skills Bodies to help with the generation and upgrading of standards within the Competency-Based Training (CBT) framework was crucial.
He explained the gaps in the curriculum were also being addressed under the Ghana Jobs and Skills Project, which were expected to develop competency-based training packages on the national TVET qualification framework.
Parts of the Kantamanto market in Accra have been destroyed by fire.
The incident on Tuesday morning destroyed many goods and shops worth thousands of cedis. It is not clear yet what started the inferno.
The fire has already engulfed more than 200 shops in the area.
Eyewitnesses say initial efforts by the Ghana National Fire Service to douse it did not yield the desired results as they ran out of water in the process.
Some personnel are still at the scene doing their best to halt the blaze.
Over seven fire tenders are said to have been dispatched with two more expected to join soon.
Other vendors stood by helpless as their wares burned on, waiting for the appropriate time to count their losses.
Director of Business Operations at Dalex Finance, Joe Jackson, says the 2023 Budget has woefully failed to tackle the situation that landed the country’s economy in the trenches.
According to him, the government should have used the opportunity of the budget statement to propose policy measures that would tackle the debt issue head-on to prevent further loss of investor confidence, however, it failed to do so.
He noted that a great policy measure would have entailed the government making significant cuts to its expenditure budget.
Instead, Joe Jackson has noted that government is still indulging in its profligate ways while imposing austerity on the rest of Ghanaians.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express, he said, “The cedi tanked because foreign investors lost confidence. And the foreign investors lost confidence because they could tell from our numbers that we’re unable to pay our debts.
“We’ve now confirmed, the Deputy Minister has confirmed that if there was ever any doubt that we can’t pay. Borrowing 61billion cedis is not what you do when you can’t pay. You take an axe to your expenditure.”
He stated that after perusing the budget statement he realized government’s failure to apply sound judgement when it came to the distribution of funds.
According to him, key ministries capable of championing an economic recovery were being starved of funds while certain agencies whose usefulness in the government machinery have recently been questioned were being furnished with disproportionate amount of funds.
“I’ll be honest just this evening I got what I thought was a reliable version of the tables and I started looking through, some of the numbers just don’t make sense to me. Why is there 80billion still there for the Cathedral? Forgive me, I don’t know. Why is there a contingency vote of 1.4 billion?
“The office of government machinery, I don’t care where you came from, why is it at 1.4billion? Guess what? Ministry of Food and Agric, do you know how much we’re giving them? 1.2billion. Do you know how much we’re spending on free SHS? 2.9billion. The Council of State is receiving more money than the Food and Agric Ministry,” he said.
Joe Jackson has opined that the 2023 budget was a missed opportunity for the government to bridge the trust gap between the citizenry and the government and the market, both local and international.
“The point is this, we want reassurance, we want to believe that this government can even carry the rest of the country with the austerity budget it has to impose. We want to believe somebody is trying to bridge the trust gap between the government and the public. That can be done when you trim down and all of us feel that you’re taking the pain as much as we have to take the pain,” he said.
Dr. Ernest Addison, the governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), has expressed worry about the solvency of some Ghanaian banks.
According to him, the Central Bank will put in measures to ensure that banks remain solvent. This, he said is the most important task of the Central Bank.
The decision by the BoG comes as the government prepares to restructure its debt to pave way for an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout. This will include haircuts to bondholders.
Dr. Ernest Addison explained at a media briefing that: “The good thing is that we think that there are adequate buffers. Nevertheless, the Central Bank will put in measures that will ensure that the banks remain solvent.”
On the subject of Ghana’s galloping inflation, the Governor said, “The inflation forecast shows that inflation will likely peak in the first quarter of 2023 and settle around 25% by the end of 2023. This forecast is conditioned on the continued maintenance of the tight monetary policy stance and the deployment of tools to contain excess liquidity in the economy.”
He noted that there are some risks associated with inflation such as additional pressures from the proposed VAT increase in the exchange rate have to be monitored.
Dr Addison added that “to continue to anchor inflation expectations, the committee, therefore, decided to increase the policy rate by 250 basis points to 27%.”
Kennedy Agyapong, the Member of Parliament for Assin Central, has taken his campaign for flagbearership of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) to the Ashanti Region.
He delivered an address to a cross-section of traders at the Race Course market in the region, calling for their support and outlining plans that he had to support their business and welfare.
“There is hope, let’s keep hope alive. I will consult with all relevant stakeholders to see how best we can help you. When I come to a place like this, I try to avoid politics.
“But I am being told to share my aim for this visit. All I am saying is that, come 2024, I will lead the NPP,” he said to loud applause.
The KenCity Media boss also underlined his credentials as someone with a background in trading: “Leaders have come and gone, none of them had a mother who was a trader. My mother sold things at Okaishie.
“I know your struggles and how you suffer to cater for your children, so I am a product of trading and of the street. So, I will do all it takes to protect the interest of women,” he stressed.
He also promised to support the market with 200 pieces of streetlights and poles to beef up security in the area as well as lobby the Roads Minister to look into the plight of traders relative to the nature of roads.
He also promised to look into the issue of MASLOC loans that had not reached a section of the traders. Agyapong was well received at the premises by hundreds of traders who cheered him.
Addressing the media, some concerned youth in Aburi noted with disdain that transportation fares in Aburi to any part of nearby areas are high compared to other places despite having good roads.
The youth in Aburi cited that, while a 23km road from Aburi to Madina now costs Ghc13.60, a 26.9 km road from Madina to Dodowa costs Ghc10.
The youth argued that transport fares from Aburi to Madina shot up during the reconstruction of Tetteh Quarshie to Mamfe road two decades ago due to the diversion of the road through Kitase -Brekuso to Kwabenya.
However, drivers failed to reverse the Ghc2 additional increment as agreed with passengers after the road construction rather keeps increasing the fares unfairly.
This they say is worsening the plight of the people and also affecting businesses and tourism.
Fred Odei Addo Duodu, Secretary to the youth group demanded an immediate reduction in transport fares else the youth will rise.
He further stated that “it is our fervent prayer that our demands today on paper must translate into a renewed action by the transport unions to expose those unscrupulous drivers who charge exorbitantly based on their own discretion, push for bolder policies to flush out drivers who disregard the approved general pricing principle by the transport unions”.
Some opinion leaders in the community said they have made several efforts to petition the Greater Accra Regional GPRTU executives and Akuapem South District Chief Executive but the GPRTU have failed to act on their grievances.
Residents have given a one-week ultimatum for the fares to be reduced else will stage massive demonstrations and subsequently expulsed recalcitrant drivers from plying to Aburi township.
However, some of the drivers told Starr News, they can’t be blamed because they only implement fares approved by GPRTU.
The former First Lady of Ghana, Lordina Mahama, has described her husband, President John Dramani Mahama, as her perfect life partner.
In a message to the former president as he marks his 64th birthday on Tuesday, November 29, 2022, Lordina expressed her love to her husband and called for God’s blessings upon his life.
“On your 64th birthday, all I ask for is God’s continuous blessings upon your life, John Dramani Mahama.
“You have been a dependable husband and inspiring father. Our Good Lord has blessed you with robust health, a great sense of judgement and a pure heart. There is nothing more I could have asked for in a life partner.
“I love you now, more than ever before. Happy birthday, John,” she wrote.
The couple recently celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary in what turned out to be a colourful, joyous celebration.
With several photos of the couple shared across multiple online platforms, they climaxed their anniversary with the inauguration of a Maternity and Children’s Ward for the Bole District Hospital.
Pedri has just turned 20. Jamal Musiala and Jude Bellingham still have a few months to go. The kids who are going to break the bank have arrived at the World Cup and are showing their quality.
There are stars who shine brighter, even veterans ready to bow out in style at their last World Cup, but the value of these three players have skyrocketed.
All three are valued at over 100 million euros. And their value continues to grow. They arrived at the World Cup with teams who are candidates to win the tournament.
England, Germany and Spain are among the options to put one more star on their jerseys, but ahead of them, teams like Brazil, Argentina or France started as bigger favourites.
Pedri is the light of Luis Enrique’s side, Musiala brings something different for Germany, and Bellingham has half of the Premier League in love with him.
Getting them out of their teams will not be easy. Especially because Pedri and Musiala are at clubs that are not very good sellers, Barcelona and Bayern Munich respectively.
However, with Bellingham, in a Borussia Dortmund side that has never been afraid to get rid of its best players, things change. The fight for the Briton started already a few months ago and promises to be fierce as soon as the English leave the World Cup in Qatar.
Gvardiol unleashed
Perhaps these three are the ones who shine the brightest, but there are others, a little more hidden, who are going to impact the transfer market in the next few windows.
Croatia’s Josko Gvardiol is one of them. The 20-year-old RB Leipzig center-back is poised to break the record price paid for a defender set by Matthijs de Ligt earlier this summer.
Fernandez on the score sheet
Enzo Fernandez’s goal against Mexico was just the tip of the iceberg. At 21, the Benfica midfielder is a quality figure and could become the next big transfer from the Primeira Liga to the Premier League.
Musah is making waves
Perhaps at another level, but also showing quality, appears the Valencia player Yunus Musah.
With the USA he is shining brightly and his price is rising. This week he turns 20 years old. Valencia are willing to sell, but want an offer of substance.
Hopeson Adorye of the New Patriotic Party has asked the government to be realistic with a budgetary directive to slash fuel allocations by 50% and also a freeze on the use of V8s.
He insisted on Oman FM’s Boiling Point programme (November 24) that it was imperative to provide the necessary support for appointees in the line of their duties.
Adorye alleged citing a text message that deputy ministers were being given GH¢250 as fuel allowance, an amount he considered very little for the kind of engagements that ministers undertake.
“On the fuel issue, I have a text message that shows that deputy Ministers get 250 cedis worth of fuel every week. GH¢250 cedis only, how much is one litre, for a minister to be given GH¢250 cedis for a week? That comes up to GH¢1000 cedis for a whole month.
“If they arrive late at an event too, they have issues. GH¢250 cedis of fuel is among some of the factors that breed corruption in this country,” he lamented.
What Ofori-Atta said about V8s and fuel allocations
Under the section of the budget on “Implementation of the Cabinet directives on expenditure measures,” the Minister said:
Mr. Speaker, as the first step toward expenditure rationalisation, the Government has approved the following directives which take effect from January, 2023:
● All MDAs, MMDAs and SOEs are directed to reduce fuel allocations to Political Appointees and heads of MDAs, MMDAs and SOEs by 50%. This directive applies to all methods of fuel allocation including coupons, electronic cards, chit systems, and fuel depots. Accordingly, 50% of the previous year’s (2022) budget allocation for fuel shall be earmarked for official business pertaining to MDAs, MMDAs and SOEs;
● A ban on the use of V8s/V6s or its equivalent except for cross-country travel. All government vehicles would be registered with GV green number plates from January 2023;
● Limited budgetary allocation for the purchase of vehicles. For the avoidance of doubt, the purchase of new vehicles shall be restricted to locally assembled vehicles;
● Only essential official foreign travel across government including SOEs shall be allowed. No official foreign travel shall be allowed for board members. Accordingly, all government institutions should submit a travel plan for the year 2023 by mid-December of all expected travels to the Chief of Staff.
A woman believed to be in her early sixties has committed suicide on her farm at Breman Essiam in the Central Region.
The deceased, Antie Esi Annan, was a popular shopkeeper who operated her own provision store at Breman Essiam.
She went missing on Sunday, November 27, 2022, so residents thought she had travelled to visit her children.
Several calls were made to reach her children to find out if she was with any of them. But it turned out that none of the children had seen her.
She was found hanging from a tree on her farm in the afternoon of Monday, November 28, 2022.
Her death has thrown residents into a state of shock, wondering what might have pushed her to take her life.
Reports gathered by Kasapa News’ Yaw Boagyan indicate that the brother of the deceased also committed suicide by hanging himself about three months ago on the same farm.
Police at Breman Nkwantanum were informed and officers proceeded to the scene and conveyed the body to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital Mortuary.
Former New Patriotic Party Member of Parliament for Obuasi East, Edward Ennin has bemoaned the level of wealth accumulation by some members of the current administration.
Speaking in an interview with Kwame Nkrumah Tikese of Okay FM on Monday, November 29, 2022, the former MP expressed worry about the quest for personal wealth characterising the current political sphere.
Do you know the reason why I don’t find politics attractive anymore? There are so many of them who are ministers today that I know very well. A lot of them used to come around when we were in parliament those days. They will follow you all around for even GHC100 but today they are millionaires. I look at that and ask myself if it is the same politics we used to do. Levels don change now,” he said.
Despite his concern about members of the government of his own political party, Mr Ennin said the issue cuts across the political divide as the situation will be no different if the opposition National Democratic Congress are to come to power.
“But even with NDC the noise they are making now is hunger induced. If they get the advantage, they will do worse,” he said.
The former MP however noted that politicians who amass wealth dishonestly tend to lose it all when they live power.
But God has a way of doing his things, you will lose all the money just after 8 years of being out of office… if you don’t make money the right way you lose it easily,” he said.
Former New Patriotic Party Member of Parliament for Obuasi East, Edward Ennin, has bemoaned the level of wealth accumulation by some members of the current administration.
Speaking in an interview with Kwame Nkrumah Tikese of Okay FM on Monday, November 28, 2022, the former MP expressed worry about the quest for personal wealth that characterizes the current political class.
“Do you know the reason why I don’t find politics attractive anymore? There are so many of them who are ministers today that I know them very well. A lot of them used to come around when we were in parliament in those days. They will follow you around for GHC100, but they are now millionaires.I look at that and ask myself if it is the same kind of politics we used to do. Levels don change now,” he said.
Despite his concerns about members of the government of his own political party, Mr. Ennin said the issue cuts across the political divide as the situation will be no different if the opposition National Democratic Congress comes to power.
“But even with NDC, the noise they are making now is hunger-induced. If they get the advantage, they will do worse,” he said.
The former MP, however, noted that politicians who amass wealth dishonestly tend to lose it all when they live power.
“But God has a way of doing his things; you will lose all the money just after 8 years of being out of office… if you don’t make money the right way, you lose it easily,” he said.
Managing Director of the Agricultural Development Bank PLC (ADB), Dr. John Kofi Mensah, is set to retire from his position, effective November 30, 2022, after serving for five years in the role.
Appointed in August 2017, ADB PLC has seen a significant transformation from a loss-making Bank in 2015/16 to a consistent profit-making bank during his tenure.
A statement issued by the Bank noted that, Dr. John Kofi Mensah led a strategic vision of refocusing the Bank to its core mandate of agricultural financing with the aim of ensuring a significant portion of its loan portfolio was dedicated to the agricultural sector and also increased the number of branches of the Bank from 78 in 2016 to 87 by the end of this year.
With a remarkable banking career of more than three decades, Dr. Kofi Mensah has positioned ADB stronger than it was in 2016 with significant growth in assets, deposits and consistent profit growth.
The Board Chairman, Dasaabre Akuamoah Agyepong II thanked Dr. Kofi Mensah for his contribution towards the growth of the Bank “On behalf of the Board, Management and Staff we wish to thank Dr. Kofi Mensah for his remarkable contribution towards the growth and development of ADB.”
According to the ADB Board Chairman, Dr. Kofi Mensah’s tenure will be remembered for the numerous positive changes that he spearheaded, including the Bank being the first in the country to establish the Security Operating Centre (SOC) and also the attestation and certification of the Bank in a number of International Organization for Standardization (ISO) certificates and the refocusing of the Bank to its core mandate of agricultural financing.
On his part, the outgoing Managing Director thanked the Board, Management and Staff for their support during his tenure which led to the stability and growth it witnessed over the period.
Shareholders have since appointed the Deputy Managing, Mr. Alhassan Yakubu-Tali as the new Managing Director awaiting regulatory approval.
ABOUT AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT BANK PLC (ADB)
Established in 1965, the Agricultural Development Bank PLC is the leading Bank in Agribusiness Financing in the country, with one of the largest branch networks of 87 locations nationwide. The Bank has won several awards, including the Best Bank in Cocoa Financing at the Ghana Cocoa Awards.
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, wants the government to be open and candid with Ghanaians as its negotiation with the International Monetary Fund nears completion.
Mr. Bagbin said the government must bring all Ghanaians on board to find solutions to the challenges.
Speaking to journalists in Ho in the Volta Region, Mr. Bagbin said the Finance Ministry must show openness in all its dealings.
“The absence of openness and transparency can lead to suspicion and a profound sense of despair and hopelessness. It is in this regard that I call on the Minister of Finance to muster the courage to be candid, open and to speak truth to power,” he said.
“Don’t come and repeat what we have been told already, We know it. Give us policy alternatives,” Mr. Bagbin added.
Critics of the government have accused it of not being forthright about the country’s finances.
The opposition National Democratic Congress, for example, accused the government of fiscal recklessness and creative accounting as Ghana’s economic crisis took shape.
The government is currently seeking $3 billion from the International Monetary Fund to support the economy.
The government sought the International Monetary Fund’s support months after being urged by the opposition to do so amid worsening inflation and forex challenges.
Before going to the International Monetary Fund, the government had claimed it was on sound financial ground and did not need International Monetary Fund support.
