Officially known as the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), it serves as the top medical facility in the Ashanti Region and is perhaps the second largest medical facility in the entire nation.
The name of the hospital which was built in 1954, as it suggests is in honor of Komfo Anokye, the great priest who per history was instrumental in the rise of the Asante Kingdom.
But whereas official documents and people outside Kumasi know the hospital as Komfo Anokye, the locals prefer to call it Gee.
For most people in Kumasi, the name Gee rings a bell easier and faster than Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital.
The use of Gee as the alternative and perhaps more popular name for the hospital has triggered the inquisitiveness of many people who have been longing to know about the history behind it.
GhanaWeb thus spoke to a site guide at the Komfo Anokye Hospital who detailed the story behind the use of ‘Gee’ as the moniker for the Ashanti Region’s premier hospital.
“The word Gee is not the official name of the hospital. It is the name of one of the contractors who built the hospital. The name of the firm was Gee, Walker & Slater Ltd. Compared to Walker and Slater, Gee was more easy to pronounce so he was more known to the indigenes. That’s how come the name of the hospital is called Gee.”
According to ghanasonline.com, the hospital was initially called Kumasi Central Hospital before being changed to Komfo Anokye Hospital.
The report adds that “Samuel Gee, after the construction of the hospital, attempted to pull out the Komfo Anokye sword, at times using heavy-duty machinery, but failed.”
In the next three weeks, the World Bank’s Public Sector Reform for Results Projects (PSRRP) will deliver two enormous industrial printing machines to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration.
Madam Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, said the arrival of these machines would help the Passport Office to clear all outstanding backlogs within a week.
“It is imperative to indicate that these giant industrial machines have the capacity to print about two thousand passports within an hour,” Madam Ayorkor Botchwey stated on the floor of Parliament in her response to a question by Mr William Okofo-Dateh, National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Jaman South.
The MP asked the Minister about the steps being taken by the Ministry to reduce the huge backlog of processed passport application forms since 2022.
Madam Ayorkor Botchwey said the steps being taken by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration to reduce the backlog of printed passports were improving the capacity of passport printing machines and increasing the capacity to vet completed applications.
She said the Passport Office’s inability to print all processed applications within the stipulated time frame last year, as she had indicated on several numerous platforms was largely due to supply chain challenges, which was a result of COVID-19 pandemic and most recently, the Russia-Ukraine war.
“Fortunately for us, Mr Speaker, the Ministry took delivery of three hundred thousand passport booklets in October, 2022,” she stated.
“Mr Speaker, I am pleased to inform this august House that with the number of booklets supplied, the backlog cases reduced from over 120,000 in October 2022 to 22,698 by December 2022, but for the frequent breakdown of our printing machine, all the backlogs would have been cleared.”
She said it must be noted that completed applications go through various levels of vetting to ensure that only eligible applicants were issued with the Ghanaian passport.
Adding that to this end, the Passport Office had increased the number of vetting staff, who were also tasked to do extra hours occasionally, including working on weekends to clear outstanding passports yet to be printed.
“Mr Speaker, whilst efforts are underway to clear the backlogs, Passport Application Centres, particularly those in Kumasi and Accra have been saddled with the phenomenon of uncollected passports,” she said.
“Even though applicants are usually informed through text messages that their passports have been printed and sent to the various Passport Application Centres, a lot of passports are yet to be collected.”
Madam Ayorkor Botchwey said the Ministry recently issued a public announcement and some applicants did turn up and collected their passports.
She said the Ministry would continue to course such announcements to be made periodically.
“I wish to use this opportunity to apologize to our compatriots who are yet to receive their passports and also to assure this august House and the entire citizens that the Ministry has put in place enough measures to prevent a future occurrence of this unfortunate incident and promise smooth and efficient service delivery,” she stated.
She also assured the House that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration continuous to give urgent applicants for passports the utmost attention that it requires.
Former mayor of Kumasi, Kojo Bonsu, has urged administrators of the new Kejetia market to promptly halt all traders from cooking inside the marketplace.
His call comes after fire gutted the new market recently destroying thousands of items running into millions of cedis.
The former mayor while addressing the matter indicated that management of the market must have a plan which should be executed to avert future fire incidents within the enclave.
“The fire that engulfed the market you could say it was a maintenance failure. I hear there were some carbide and something that brought the fire. So you cannot blame management for that. All cooking activities should come to a halt at the new Kejetia market,” the former Mayor of Kumasi opined.
Following the March 15 fire outbreak at the facility, aside from the shops that were directly affected, some other shops were asked to be closed down for a structural integrity test to be conducted before being allowed to operate.
The Vice President,Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, says the briefing he received from the Ghana National Fire Service indicates that a fire from a trader cooking at the new Kejetia market caused the inferno at the facility.
According to Dr. Bawumia, the shop owner was cooking inside her shop when the gas cylinder she was using caught fire spreading to a nearby chemical shop, thus destroying 33 shops out of 8,000 shops at the market.
He added that the chemical shop owner amongst others sells combustibles such as carbide, turpentine and gunpowder which exploded.
A trader at the market was arrested for cooking at the facility but was later granted bail.
The Ministry of Local Government, Decentralization and Rural Development has thus inaugurated a 5-member committee to probe the recent fire incident.
The committee which has been tasked to make its findings ready within three weeks was constituted on March 17.
TheKumasi Metropolitan Assemblyhas received a report from the committee tasked to examine the cause of the Kejetia New Market fire incident.
The committee in its report among other things recommended that the epicentre of the fire should be closed indefinitely to make way for further assessment of the damage caused by the inferno and also check the integrity of structures there.
Among the key findings of the committee, it disclosed that against the measures and fire regulations instituted in the market, “there were gas cylinders in the area of the fire that should not have been there”.
It lauded the rescue services provided by emergency service providers including the Ghana National Service and intimated that though they did their best in fighting the inferno, the fire still “caused considerable damage to the structure of the fire-affected area of the building. The flames destroyed goods and properties whilst the upper area of the market structure building suffered from significant smoke staining to the soffit of the roof covering.”
The report also disclosed that the incident damaged about 42 shops out of which 12 recorded severe damages.
Parts of the Kejetia New Market went up in flames on Wednesday, March 15 destroying properties worth thousands of Ghana Cedis.
A Committee was constituted on Friday, March 17 after a visit by a delegation from the Local Government Ministry, led by Osei Bonsu Amoah, same day the Ghana National Fire Service also commenced investigations into the fire incident.
Included in the Committee’s key recommendations are; a renewal of the building permit (mandatory), renewal of the fire permit (mandatory), and renewal of the EPA’s permit (mandatory).
Several traders atKejetia Market F-line, whose stores were shut down owing to a recent fire breakout, have taken down the barricades in opposition to the city authorities.
The angry traders have decided to forcibly enter the barricaded area to resume operation.
City authorities cordoned off the affected area to enable maintenance works to be carried out.
But traders who were not directly affected by the inferno at that section of the market disagree with the decision.
The recent fire at the kejetia market destroyed 33 shops.
City authorities after several meetings placed a ban on businessactivities at the affected area.
Eight hundred and seven shops were cordoned off.
But traders who were not directly affected disagree. Shop owners at Kejetia Market protest closure
Amidst noise making and clad in red, they registered their displeasure against managers of the facility.
They say, they were not directly affected by the fire.
Leader of the affected traders, Andrews Kwofi claims Management has failed to provide alternatives for businesses affected by their decision.
9 persons have lost their lives after two 2M Express Company LimitedToyota Hiace minibuses collided on the Accra-Kumasi highway.
The commercial vehicles with registration numbers GN 3229-21 and GN 8292-21 crashed into each other at Birimso a section of the road on the main Accra-Kumasi Highway close to Bunso junction in the early hours of Sunday, March 26, 2023.
The commercial vehicles with registration numbers GN 3229-21 and GN 8292-21 crashed into each other at Birimso a section of the road on the main Accra-Kumasi Highway close to Bunso junction in the early hours of Sunday, March 26, 2023.
According to eyewitnesses, the vehicle from Accra while trying to swerve a container which had fallen onto the road off a trailer slammed into the other vehicle heading towards Accra fromKumasi direction.
The severity of the impact led to the death of the 9 passengers, 7 males and 2 females on the spot.
“Personnel from the Bunso fire station and the police who had a torrid time extricating the injured from the wreckage hurriedly rushed 19 victims to the Kibi Government hospital and Hawa Memorial Saviour Hospital in Osiem where they are currently receiving treatment,” the Bunso Fire Station Officer ADO II Doe Samuel said.
This latest carnage brings to 18 the number of deaths recorded from road accidents in the region in the past two days.
Citi News understands the National Road Safety Authority is set to hold some emergency engagements on the 3 separate accidents which were recorded in the Eastern region over the weekend.
Meanwhile, road users have described the carnages as unacceptable and called on stakeholders to be proactive.
This action is aligned with the corporation’s commitment to education demonstrated by the Coca-Cola Unearthing Greatness Workshop, its premier educational initiative.
The initiative benefited pupils from Ahinsan MA Junior High School, as well as Pentecost schools in Abrepo and Atonsu, who were taught goal-setting, time management, and learning comprehension.
To ensure sustained learning beyond the program, each student was given a supplementary workbook as a reference material.
Before interacting with the students, the teachers underwent the “Teacher Transformation Program,” which educated them on effective teaching and encouraged them to adopt innovative approaches to make teaching more relevant to students’ environments.
Since its launch in 2018, the Coca-Cola Unearthing Greatness Workshop has impacted over 5,000 pre-teens and teenagers in the Greater-Accraand Ashanti regions and plans to reach every region in the country.
In order to watch theBlack Stars play Angola in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, some Kumasi football fans have vowed to throng the Baba Yara Sports Stadium.
Most of the supporters said they planned to show up at the stadium in large numbers to watch the in-form Ghanaian players Mohammed Kudus and Thomas Partey.
These supporters believe Kudus and Partey have both demonstrated impressive play at the club level and would like to see them repeat that effort on March 23, 2023, at Baba Yara.
“I have heard the Black Stars are in town. I will come to the stadium to watch the match. I just want to see Mohammed Kudus in action” a taxi driver when GhanaWeb visited Kumasi said.
“Kudus and Partey are the stars in the team and we have trust in them to deliver victory for us,” a phone seller stated.
Despite the poor performance of the team at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar most of the fans expressed optimism in the team. They explained that the appointment of coach Chris Hughton has renewed their hope in the Black Stars.
“God willing we will come to the stadium in our numbers. No matter what when the Black Stars play in Kumasi we will come and cheer them to victory and pray for them,” one of the traders said.
The Black Stars’ match against Angola would be their first match in 2023 after the World Cup in Qatar.
The last time the team played in Kumasi back in March 2022, fans filled the Baba Yara Sports Stadium to the rafters and the fans have promised to replicate it once again.
To stop employees at theKomfo Anokye Teaching Hospital from using social media while at work, administrators have disabled the hospital’s computer systems.
The change is meant to maintain staff attention on patient care and raise the level of medical treatment provided at the hospital.
This is one of a number of measures and interventions implemented by the hospital’s administration to improve patient safety and comfort at the facility.
Professor Otchere Addai-Mensah, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the hospital, says the lives of patients who visit the facility, which serves as a referral hospital, cannot be jeopardized.
He said they have blocked the hospital’s “[IT] system to YouTube and other social media platforms to prevent staff from possible loss of concentration on patient care through the use of such platforms.”
The CEO was speaking to department and division heads at the hospital’s end-of-year performance review conference inKumasi.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Foundation, in collaboration with Jamerson Strategic Consulting, a Non-Governmental Organisation in the United States of America, have presented maternity kits to new mothers on admission at three hospitals in Kumasi, in the Ashanti Region.
The items including baby feeding bottles, disposable nappies, towels and baby oils were to the Suntreso Government Hospital, Kwadaso Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Hospital and Tafo Government Hospital.
Executive Director of the Foundation, Madam Afua Kobi Prempeh said women contributed so much to the socio-economic development of the nation and needed to be treated in the best way possible when pregnant and make their welfare paramount as they continued to be women even during pregnancy.
The main motive of this foundation was to promote the sustainable development goal three, which includes good health for women as a thematic area.
Also, the foundation seeks to promote education by providing infrastructure and other learning materials to schools in the country to complement the government’s efforts in providing free and quality education to children.
The Director of Jamerson Consulting, Mr Jill Coleman said the organisation shared the same vision as the Otumfuo Foundation which is to help the marginalised in society.
Medical Superintendent of Kwadaso SDA Hospital, Dr. Randolph Adu-Baah called on other organisations or NGOs to support maternity blocks of various hospitals, to help give mothers quality
Healthy babies would help prevent and reduce infant and maternal mortality.
The national team of Angola has arrived in Kumasi for the opening leg of the two-match qualification series for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations against Ghana.
The Palancas Negras arrived at the airport in Kumasi directly from their headquarters in Algeria, where they were camped out in preparation for the two games.
After replacing the trio of Nurio Fortuna, Zito Luvumbo, and Nelson Da Luz with Augusto To Carneiro, Loide Augusto, and Geraldo Costa Bartolomeu, respectively, Pedro Goncalves has the complete complement of players he invited to play against the Black Stars.
Goncalves has acknowledged that the game against Ghana will be challenging, therefore his team must play well, and they are prepared for that.
“We know the difficulties we are going to encounter, but we are ready to play a good game in Kumasi,” he told reporters
“It is obvious that Ghana has changed coach but I believe there won’t be much change in what from their performance at the World Cup.”
The Black Stars host the Palancas Negras at the Baba Yara Stadium this Thursday, March 23 before the second leg Tuesday, March 27, 2023, at Estadio 11 de Novembro in Luanda.
Did you know Baoule people from Ivory Coast are a subset of the Akan tribe?
And oh, presentIvory Coastwas founded by a great woman….
Queen Abla Pokou born between 1700 and 1720 on Tuesday, in Kumasi, was King Osei Tutu‘s niece, a co-founder of the Ashanti Empire in present-day Ghana.
Osei Tutu was ambushed and assassinated in 1718, Pokou’s second brother Dakon took over as leader of the Ashanti. The King’s reign lasted for almost two decades.
Following the passing of King Osei Tutu, a succession dispute resulted in the death of Dakon.
Pokuo got married but could not conceive, this became a challenge as she had needed to produce a son in order to succeed her brother.
One day, while Dakon and his army were engaged in battle away from the Ashanti capital of Kumasi the town was taken over by troops. Pokou was the only royal princess who survived the massacre, as such she was prepared to die at her post.
The enemy however, took her hostage, Dakon upon rival noticed her absence.
In rescuing the royal princess, Dakon appointed Tano, a warrior in leading the army to the camp of the enemy.
The warrior later married Pokuo, an heir to the golden Ashanti throne was ensured by the birth of a boy from the union.
In no time Dakon became ill and died, before his death, named a successor to the throne, since Pokuo’s son was young.
Nevertheless, Kwissi, Dakon’s rival, assassinated the successor shortly after.
Knowing that Pokou’s son would ultimately be the legitimate heir, Kwissi asked Pokou for permission to rule, but she refused.
Abla Pokou,however, fled out of fear for her safety and that of her family. She escaped with Dakon’s faithful subjects to modern-day Ivory Coast.
Queen Abla Pokou and her fugitives were unable to cross the Comoe River, upon rival.
Abla Pokuo and her people could not cross the river due to the high water caused by the continuous rain. The Comoe is a natural border between present-day Ghana and Ivory Coast.
Queen Abla Pokuo
According to the wise man with Pokuo a child from a noble lineage must be offered as sacrifice to appease the river gods. She flung her son into the river, he vanished among the waves. The trees on the bank immediately bent their trunks to create a bridge.
Another account indicates that, Abla and her escort were able to cross the river after a hippopotamus appeared on the river to pave way.
When they reached the other side, Abla Pokou she wailed and said “Bâ wouli,” to wit the child dead.
The Baoule people, who now reside in modern-day Ivory Coast, derived their name from this phrase (“ba wouli”). to serve as a reminder of the sacrifice of their leader.
Today, Abla is considered as the first and matriarch of the Baoule ethnic group in West Africa, in Ivory Coast. She reigned from around 1750 until around 1760.
She controlled a division of the great Ashanti Kingdom as it spread westward.
One of the main ethnic groups in present Ivory Coast is the Baoule people, a subset of the Akan.
She is acknowledged for her braveness to save her people and provide them with a better life.
The Queen’s jacket crafted from Baoule loincloth pays homage to the Baoule ethnic community and its heritage.
Yesterday, Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia attended the second Akwasidae of the year at Manhyia Palace in Kumasi.
According to reports, he was met with loud cheers.
He was accompanied by theAshanti Region Constituency Executives of the party, some party elders, and Ministers of State and their Deputies.
Earlier, speaking at a brief event ahead of the Akwasidae, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia hailed the NPP in the Ashanti Region for the tremendous show of love for him.
He described the gesture, not only as surprising but also tremendous, urging the rank and file of the party in the region to continue to forge ahead in unity.
Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has a lot of support from the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) membership to lead the party as leader into the general elections of 2024, according to First Deputy Speaker of Parliament Joseph Osei Owusu (Joewise).
He claimed that the number of NPP MPs and Ministers of States that accompanied Dr. Baswumia to the Manhyia palace inKumasi for the second Akwasiadae of the year, 2023, is evidence of the support the party accords him.
The Bekwai Member of Parliament said “All the MPs and ministers following Dr Bawumia are ministers and MPs who support the bid of Dr Bawumia to lead the NPP in the flagbeareship race. So we came with him to demonstrate or support for his bid to lead the NPP in the flagbeareship race.
“That is why all of us are here today to support him to greet the Otumfuo and also for us to pay homage to Otumfuo on Akwasiadae.”
He added “The number of MPs and Ministers following Dr Bawumia demonstrates the support he has within the leadership of the party and even within the rank and file of the party, it shows that in the competition to lead the NPP Dr Bawumia is high above everybody else.
“Those who supported the other candidates have followed him to come and greet Otumfuo so why would the rest of us who support Dr Bawumia not follow him?
“There is no controversy, in competition, it is a choice and everybody is able to choose freely, so this is a free choice.”
The Black Stars’ senior national team’s new head coach, Chris Hughton, will be formally unveiled today.
Around 10:00 am today in Kumasi, the unveiling will take held in the SG Mall, Ayigya.
The 64-year-old takes Otto Addo’s place as the team’s new head trainer. The talent coach for the German team Borussia Dortmund, Addo, resigned from his position when his nation was eliminated early from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
According to the Ghana Football Association [GFA], George Boateng and Didi Dramani will be the former Brighton manager’s assistants.
The nation’s football governing body will announce the terms of the contract and Hughton’s stay length.
Before his appointment as the head coach of the team, Hughton worked as the technical advisor for the team when Otto Addo was in charge as the head coach of the team ahead of the playoff games against Nigeria.
Following Ghana’s qualification to the Mundial, Hughton kept his role.
The former Newcastle United and Tottenham will be aiming to lead the Black Stars to its glory days due to his rich experience in the world of football.
Hughton’s first game will come up against Angola in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations [AFCON] qualifiers in back-to-back games this month.
The Black Stars will host the Palancas Negras at the Baba Yara Stadium on March 23 before travelling to Luanda for the return game in four days’ time.
Ghana are joint top of Group E alongside Angola with both teams with four points after two games.
Chris Hughton, the coach of the Black Stars, attended the Akwasidae festival just hours after arriving in Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti region, for his official unveiling and Ghana’s match versus Angola.
Mark Addo, vice president of the Ghana Football Association, and Akwasi Agyemang, deputy chairman of the Black Stars management committee, accompanied Chris Hughton to the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi for the Akwasidae festival.
At the gathering where the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II meets his 52 divisional chiefs to make merry and talk about how the kingdom may advance, his first assistant coach, George Boateng, was also present.
It's a beautiful sunny day in Kumasi and it's Akwasidae too 🤩
According to Ambrose Dery, minister of the interior, due to equipment purchases made by the security forces, criminals can no longer hold the nation hostage.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament during a debate on the President’s State of Nation Address, Mr. Dery assures the public that NADMO is now ready to deal with disasters such as earthquakes.
“Ghana now, Mr. Speaker, we do not have a threat of being held hostage by criminals. Is it perfect, no, we intend to continue to do more and Mr. Speaker let’s use this opportunity to appeal to the public. That we should not shield suspects even if they are relatives. Because if we do that then it means that they will harm us, and harm other people.
“So we will like to say that we will continue to depend on them and that security is a collective responsibility. With the numbers we need more even though the recruitment on the Immigration, Fire Service, Prisons and all have been unprecedented as compared to the past,” the Interior Minister stated.
He however stated that despite the number of recruitment the nation still needs more.
“Because each person does want to have a police station established. Mr. Speaker the other agencies under the Ministry of Interior are doing very well. Right now with NADMO, we are moving into the contingency plan in the short term,” Mr. Dery indicated.
Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi, and a few other locations across the nation are likely to experience flash floods from April to June, according to the Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMet).
The flash floods might make some routes impassable, according to GMet’s seasonal estimate for 2023.
“The total cumulative rainfall amount for March April May (MAM) both in time and space will be near normal to above normal at the eastern coast of the country, South Western parts of the country towards the north-western parts of the country will experience normal to below normal rains and the extreme North Eastern parts of the country will experience below normal to near normal rains,” GMet said in a statement.
The statement said, the rest of the country will experience near normal rains adding that, March, April, May, and June is the major rainfall season for the south of the country (8°N and below).
“At the peak of the MAM/AMJ season, there is a high probability of heavy rains accompanied by strong winds and lightning which could lead to flooding and damage to structures. There is also a high probability of experiencing relatively short to normal dry spells at the beginning and towards the end of the season.
“Places such as along the coast and its inland areas are likely to have some surplus rainfall, albeit not so significant from the normal rainfall. The western parts of the country will also experience some deficit rainfall amounts for the MAM and AMJ seasons.”
Road users are thus advised to be mindful when plying roads and refrain from driving through floodwaters.
“Light aircrafts are advised to take utmost care and avoid flying through deep convective clouds that are associated with severe turbulence and lightning, especially in the afternoon hours. Motorists should be mindful of fallen trees and objects on roads during or after a storm.”
Following a fire that destroyed portions of the market on Wednesday afternoon, Wednesday March 16, the New Kejetia Market has been temporarily shut down by its managers.
This is to allow appropriate authorities assess the facility for more investigation after the fire that tore through parts of the enclave on Wednesday.
According to eyewitnesses, the fire started on the first floor in a section where combustible materials are sold.
It took firefighters several hours to fully control the situation.
The Ashanti Regional Director for the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), Frank Duodu says traders should allow the closure for proper assessment of the incident.
“Activities at the market cannot be carried out today until 12pm. That is what we are recommending for proper works will be carried out so I am not sure business can go on in the early hours”, he said.
In an interview with Citi News, Ashanti Regional Fire Commander ACFO 1 Henry Giwaa advised traders and members of the public to be cautious when dealing with combustibles.
He also emphasized the importance of calling the Fire Department early, in the event of a fire.
“Averagely, we have counted about 33 shops that have been affected. Investigation is underway. It started right after we arrived here. So, when we are done, we will let the public know. Just as we have been educating every now and then, the public should immediately call as soon as there is an outbreak because even with this incident, the call came in from our National Headquarters in Accra before we were able to dispatch when we are just here.”
The fire comes barely a week after some parts of the market got flooded after a downpour.
Information reaching our news desk is that Kejetia Market in Kumasi of the Ashanti Region has caught fire.
Per reports, the Dubai section of the market caught fire at 4:30pm.
It is currently unknown the damages caused by the fire and what exactly led to the incident. But some individuals are said to have collapsed and have been transported to the Komfo Ankoye Teaching Hospital.
Officers of the Ghana National Fire Service are currently at the scene to douse the flames. Also, the Ambulance Service is present to offer first aid service.
Traders are busily salvaging items that have not been torched.
According to reports, the fire is currently under control.
The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has criticized the Education Minister for threatening to shut down underperforming schools.
At a meeting with the Conference of Heads of Aided Secondary Schools (CHASS) in Kumasi, the Minister, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, warned that failing schools risk shutting down.
However, GNAT’s General Secretary, Thomas Musah, believes the Minister’s remark is misplaced.
“This is totally misplaced. That is not where that comment should go. For these schools that he is talking about, those who go there have poor grades, you put all these in one place and expect the heads to do magic. The Minister should sometimes consult.”
The Education Minister, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, challenged the Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS) and Principals of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Institutions to produce better results.
He explained that a school with a consistent zero to ten percent pass rate should put together intervention programmes to ensure that majority of their students will find opportunities for further studies rather than becoming a liability to their parents and society due to their inability to pass their exam.
The Minister explained that closing down the schools would help save the nation from the huge financial losses being incurred by the government as a result of the existence of the schools so that the affected students would be redistributed to other nearby schools, so they could continue their education.
Two drivers in Kumasi have been speaking to the media to defend their decision to restore GH200,000 to its rightful owner.
The two drivers, whose identities were withheld, told UTV in a television interview that they found the money wrapped in a plastic bag in their car late at night and only counted it after finishing their shift at a truck stop in Oforikrom, Kumasi.
They said they kept the bag and after counting it, it amounted to GH¢200,000 and they contemplated handing it over to the Police.
They said they handed it over to a trusted Police officer, which one of them knew personally and later reported it to Kumasi-based radio station Hello FM to make an announcement about the money.
Meet the kind-hearted drivers who returned missing GH₵200,000 1/2#UTVGhana pic.twitter.com/vFjouC0ouq — UTV Ghana (@utvghana) March 10, 2023
Reasons
In an interview, one of the drivers said it was better to return the money to its owner than to keep it and attract curses for their future generations.
He said they had no regrets and were grateful to God that they returned the money to its owner.
In another interview, the owner of the money told Hello FM that he contemplated suicide after losing the money and had not had a proper meal in days.
There has been a mixed reaction to their decision to return the money with some social media users praising them for their honesty while others have criticised them for rejecting a blessing from God. Read some of the tweets below;
The brutalization of Ashaiman residents on Tuesday, March 7, 2023 by members of the Ghanaian Armed Forces has reignited discussions about instances where the Armed Forces, in the opinion of the majority of Ghanaians, engaged in misconduct and violated the rights of citizens.
The incident in Ashaiman has some people thinking back to the time when Ghana was under military rule, when some soldiers would randomly attack innocent civilians and even murder some of them.
Raymond Acquah of the Multimedia Group has revisited a 1982 story that demonstrates how military officers clashed with civilians and violated their rights during the military era as discussions about the Ashaiman incident gain traction.
He shares the story of how one Major Joe Darko of the Ghana Army Medical Corps, Kumasi stormed a church with a pistol to order the church members to stop the service and fill potholes.
The pastor and the church members per the narrative rejected the order, pleading to carry out the assignment when they are done with the service.
Their plea fell on the good ears of the major who left the church but the leaders of the church followed it up with an official complaint to the military hierarchy about the conduct of the major.
The major was queried about the said incident which infuriated him, forcing him to go back to the church with his pistol and threatened them.
His presence sparked a clash and he, in the process discharged his firearm which injured a police officer who was a member of the church.
His driver who escaped, informed the military officers about the incident which sparked a wave of attacks on the church members and their communities, resulting in the death of a police officer and a football fan.
Efforts to decongest the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) are under as the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly is set to rid the city of unapproved containers and kiosks scattered across the Metropolis.
The inappropriate citing of kiosks have contributed to the congestion of Kumasi.
The authority observes that these structures were sited without proper planning and approval.
The Spatial Planning Committee of the KMA has been tasked to remove all containers by the end of March, 2023.
The KMA in a press statement advised affected persons to comply with agents assigned for this exercise.
“By this release, the Assembly is ordering anyone with kiosks or containers around the underlisted areas to remove them by Friday, 31st March, 2023”.
1. Western By-Pass Abrepo Junction to Santasi Roundabout
2. Southern By-Pass (Santasi to Ahodwo)
3. Eastern By-Pass (Asokwa interchange to Anloga Junction)
4. Old Bekwai Road (Harper Road to Daban)
5. New Bekwai Road (Bekwai Roundabout to Daaban)
6. Ministries Area, Adum
7. Ridge Danyame and Residential Areas
8. Hudson Road (Mall Junction to Children’s Park)
9. Osei Tutu ii Boulevard (Kumasi to Ejisu Road) Asafo Interchange to Anloga Junction.
10. Kumasi- Barekese (Abrepo Junction to Ohwim)
11. Kumasi- Mampong Road (Kejetia to Mbrom, Tafo Nhyiaeso)
12. Kumasi- Antoa Road (Airport Roundabout to Duase)
13 .Kumasi -Sunyani Road (KATH to Sofoline Interchange)
14. Kumasi-Lake Road (Abinkyi to Mall Area)
15. Kumasi Sports Stadium and its environs and other areas within the metropolis
The Assembly says recalcitrant persons will face an additional charge or payment for damages.
A young man met his untimely death after he was lynched by an angry mob.
He was lynched at Asafo in Kumasi after being accused of attempting to steal a bus at the VIP station in the area.
The deceased believed to be in his 30s reportedly broke into one of the buses VIP-branded bus and drove it away.
The bus conductor saw this and jumped onto a motorbike to give him a hot chase.
According to the Dadiesoaba Assembly Member, Akwasi Agyeman, the conductor, while on the chase sounded the alarm and some residents joined in.
“When he got to the GRA office, the hill there, he needed to climb but because the bus also moves with air and apparently there was not enough air to keep it going.
“And because he didn’t get the chance to fill it with air before moving it, he got stuck and the mate was able to catch up with him,” Mr Agyeman told Accra-based Class FM.
The growing mob subsequently caught the suspect after another desperate attempt to flee the scene.
“When the mate shouted to attract the crowd, he attempted to get down and run away, he tried going back but run into someone’s vehicle. So people came and beat him up. The mob beat him up.”
His remains have been deposited at the morgue by police in Asokwa.
Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has achieved another significant accomplishment at the 2023 World Universities Debating Championships (WUDC).
The Kumasi-based university attained second position in the competition’s English as a Second Language (ESL) category finals.
As a result, the school has broken records by becoming the first African university to achieve this position in a competition that began 43 years ago.
They finished second in Madrid, Spain in January and qualified for the semi-finals in 2023. As reported by the Voice of KNUST, the university was ably represented by Prosper Michael Ametu, a fourth-year BA Sociology student, and Vincent Johnson Attakpah, a fourth-year BSc Statistics student, who qualified through nine rounds of debate.
At Asafo, in the Ashanti Regional capital of Kumasi, a man in his mid-30s has reportedly been lynched after attempting to steal a Grand Bird VIP bus.
According to reports, the incident took place on Wednesday, March 8, 2023.
The deceased according to reports entered the terminal of V.I.P Transport Company at about 4am, started the bus in question and attempted driving off with the Grand Bird bus with registration number GE 2304-10.
The driver’s assistant of the said bus upon taking notice pursued the suspect in a tricycle with the help of some members of the public.
The deceased at a point decided to ditch the moving bus but was apprehended by the mob who subjected him to severe beatings.
The abandoned bus which still in motion is reported to have damaged a car around the area before coming to a halt.
The body of the deceased who died as a result of the mob action has since been conveyed to a morgue for preservation and investigation by the police at Asokwa.
People with Disabilities (PwDs) in the Ashanti Region have protested the government’s refusal to construct a clinic for their orthopedic care.
According to the group, government has over the years reneged on its promises to provide quality healthcare for PwDs.
The current facility for treatment is dilapidated, wears an old painting, benches and tables as furniture, and completely dysfunctional equipment. An uneven road worsens their access to the facility.
Members of the group took to the streets of Kumasi in their prosthetics legs, wheel chairs and crutches to register their displeasure and present a petition to the Ashanti Regional Director of Health Services.
Speaking with JoyNews on Friday, Group lead, Vera Kusi Asamoah, who described the situation as disheartening said, “the situation over here is not good at all, we don’t have technicians well trained and committed and lack of mechanism to operate.”
She complained that the road leading to orthotics and prosthetics centre is terrible, thus hindering their access to the already dilapidated structure.
Madam Asamoah said the equipment at the centre are all malfunctioning, “we don’t have chairs to sit on… over here we don’t have any good chairs, we sit on benches which is not good for us,” she lamented.
Receiving their petition, the Director of Health Services, Dr Emmanuel Tenkorang admitted that the region could not boast of a facility for Persons with Disability.
He therefore assured that plans are afoot to improve the quality of health delivery.
“We don’t have a good centre in Ashanti Region, it is so dilapidated and its not good for purpose. So, we took a decision that we will use part of the old Bekwai hospital as a new centre at least for orthotics and prosthetics.
“We have started the process, I have sent a couple of letters to the Director General to see whether we can indicate a new centre, because the one we have in Ashanti region is not good for purpose,” he said.
He assured the PWDs to expect swift response from the government.
“I believe that we have to get at least a new orthopedic hospital as part of agenda 111, so if we can convert some of the orthopedic hospital to support you.
“We will take your petition and put a covering letter on it and send it to our Director General and I believe he will follow it up,” he assured.
Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia was greeted with loud applause as he handed over the reconstructed Kumasi Central Mosque to the Mosque’s committee after it was commissioned on Friday amidst excitement.
The commissioning ceremony was graced by the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the National Chief Imam Sheikh Osman Nuhu Sharubutu and a host of distinguished dignitaries including Ministers, MPs, Members of the Diplomatic Corps, Regional Imams, Zongo Chiefs, as well as top Muslim and Christian clerics.
The enthusiastic Muslim community from the Ashanti Region and beyond, turned up in their numbers to show appreciation to Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, for what is being hailed as a remarkable gesture of providing a breathtaking piece of architecture.
The mosque was officially commissioned by the Vice President and the Asantehene in time for Jummah prayers. In no time after it was opened to the public, the 7,000 capacity mosque was filled with several others praying outside.
As the excited people entered the mosque, some were seen shedding tears of joy in excitement and admiration of the sheer beauty of the mosque.
To The Glory of Allah Speaking at the ceremony, Vice President Bawumia said he undertook the project “to the glory of Allah “, and expressed gratitude to God for giving him the strength and the will to be able to complete it single-handedly.
“I am really grateful to the Almighty Allah for giving me the vision, guidance and commitment to be able to undertake this massive project. I was touched by the Almighty Allah when I visited the mosque in 2020 and realised that it needed urgent attention.”
Dr. Bawumia noted that, the Kumasi Central Mosque, as one of the oldest mosques in the country, represents the vision of “our forefathers” and expressed his delight at the transformation of the mosque into a modern edifice, befitting the status of Kumasi as a renowned city.
The reconstructed Kumasi Central Mosque
Asanteman’s cooperation with Muslim community While acknowledging the roles of the founding fathers of the Kumasi Central Mosque, Vice President Bawumia also commended the Manhyia Palace and Asanteman for the peaceful co-existence and cooperation between Asanteman and the Muslim community, as well as the support Otumfuo Agyemang Prempeh II offered the Muslim Community in building the first Kumasi Central Mosque.
“As history beautifully captures, the Manhyia Palace played an instrumental role in the first Kumasi Central Mosque during the reign of Asantehene Otumfuo Sir Agyemang Prempeh II,” Dr. Bawumia said.”
“This clearly underlines how long-standing the relationship between Asanteman and the Muslim community has been, and the extent of support and cooperation, the Manhyia Palace in particular has offered.”
“The Asante Kingdom, predating the days of Otumfuo Sir Agyemang Prempeh, is documented to have cooperated with Muslims within the Kingdom. This beautiful tradition has also continued under successive Asantehenes”
“The presence of Otumfuo Osei Tutu II today, signifies the premium the Asantehene and the Asante Kingdom place on the historic relationship.”
A call for unity and peaceful co-existence While urging Muslims to continue to use the mosque as a converging point not only for prayers, but also for community integration, he called for even greater tolerance and cooperation between Muslims and neighbours of the Christian faith.
“This is our beautiful Ghana, where we tolerate, respect and support each other as one people. God has blessed our country with peace and unity amongst us, so let us be grateful to him. Let us also continue to uphold the religious tolerance we show, which has endeared our country.”
Plaudits for Dr. Bawumia The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu commended Dr. Bawumia for the gift he has given to, not only the Muslim community, but Asanteman as a whole.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu added that, Dr. Bawumia, as a responsible son, has done what he ought to do, and as a father, he could not thank him enough.
He urged the Zongo Community to take good care of the mosque and ensure it is well maintained at all times.
The custodians of the mosque, the Kumasi Central Mosque Committee also expressed immense gratitude to Dr. Bawumia for his remarkable gesture.
After the Accra Central Mosque, the renovated Kumasi Central Mosque can be regarded as the second-largest mosque in Ghana.
Today, Friday, March 3, 2023, Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia will dedicate the 7,000-seat mosque, which also has a 100-person ablution center and 30 underground restrooms.
The Vice President alone provided the funding for the Mosque’s reconstruction and upkeep, making it one of Kumasi’s most up-to-date structures and fulfilling a promise he made to the Muslim population in the Ashanti region.
In addition to 11 equipped offices, the mosque also features a conference room with a capacity for 500 people, two-bedroom flats, and other exquisite electrical fixtures.
A motorcyclist, Yaw David, 30, has lost his life in an accident on the Juaboso Afere road.
Information indicates that David was riding his motorcycle from Juaboso to Afere with a friend.
According to reports, the rider attempted to overtake a car in front of them on a sharp curve and crashed into a Kia with the registration number GW 39 46 Z.
The deceased’s body has since been deposited at the Juaboso governmentmortuary.
The other person is being treated at Juaboso government hospital.
Over two years after it was finished, the GETFund-built girls’ dormitory block for Asanteman Senior High School is still not open for use.
While the school is grappling with accommodation challenges due to the huge infrastructural deficit it is facing, authorities of the school say they are unable to use the new facility due to security concerns.
The authorities say the location of the new dormitory is outrun by squatters which makes it dangerous to move students there without the necessary measures.
Assistant Headmistress in charge of Domestic, Georgina Osei, said the dormitory has been completed, but a water system is yet to be fixed “but we can make use of thedormitory while we wait for the water to be added.”
“Because of the challenges of space here, we are thinking of sending some of the form ones there. We have spoken to the relevant authorities, and we wrote to the regional director of education and the regional minister but nothing was done about the security concerns that we raised.”
“We will be happy if the authorities can come to our aid so that the place will be secured for us for use,” Madam Osei further appealed.
On his part, the Kumasi Metropolitan Educational Director, David Oppong, said: “the discussions and consultations that we have done with the headmaster indicate that the block is completed, but the problem is that they have to be supplied with water which hasn’t yet been done. The second issue has to do with security because a number of squatters have taken up the place. So before the students can be accommodated in that dormitory, the security must be beefed up. The discussion we had with the management is that while waiting for the government to recruit security personnel to the school, the PTA should step in and hire temporary staff to secure the place, so the students can be moved there.”
A former mayor of Kumasi, Kojo Bonsu, has said that the Kumasi market women adore him as a result of the Kumasi Kejetia Market Phase 1 he built for them.
Speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen, Kojo Bonsu said many people did not believe the construction of the market was possible, but he did it.
“When I go to the market, the market women praise me; they say ‘you are the one we like’ and they praise me for the Kejetia market,” he told Osei Bonsu OB.
He explained that many people thought the project was not feasible, and the market women resisted relocation, but he managed to fence the place one night. According to him, the work had started by the time they came.
Kojo Bonsu has also said that the party can only win the 2024 general elections with him as the lead candidate and win the Ashanti Region.
He said the NDC’s bane over the years has been the votes from the Ashanti Region and he is the best person to curb that.
“If I become the flagbearer of the party, the NDC will secure a lot of votes in the Ashanti region. This means I will break the monopoly and split the votes NPP secures in the region. Even today, the market women at Central Market and Kejetia Market are all supporting my presidential bid. The women have said that if I become the leader of the party, they will all vote for me.”
“Today they see the vision and plan to develop Kumasi that we had,” he said.
Kumasi Youth Association (KUYA) in 2016 awarded Kojo Bonsu for standing out among all former Mayors of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly.
According to the group, the innovation of the former mayor gave birth to the famous Rattray Park, Kejetia Market and renovated Prempeh Assembly Hall among other equally important monumental infrastructural projects in Kumasi.
Some Traders in Kumasi are disputing assertions by city authorities that Kumasi’s city centre cannot be decongested until space is created upon completion of the new Kejetia edifice.
They rather accuse management of the city of lack of political will to evict hawkers who have taken over pavements at the central business district.
Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah, recently told the Ashanti Traditional Council that the CBD can only be decongested after completion of the new central market because there is no other place to relocate the traders.
But Nhyira news Nana Awuku’s checks reveal many of the satellite markets created for that purpose in Kumasi remain empty as traders defy orders to move.
The central business district of Kumasi is hugely congested with human and vehicular activities. The development is increasing the cost of doing business and making it difficult to move easily within the CBD.
Plans to decongest and decentralise business activities in Kumasi over the years have hit the rocks. City authorities have blamed the congestion and the vehicular nuisance on the redevelopment of the second phase of the Kejetia project.
At the Kwadwo Edwinase market, the place was virtually empty.
“Since its completion in 2015-2016 the market has been vacant, authorities’ lackadaisical attitude to relocate traders to fill the market space has not only created congestion and nuisance at the CBD but has deprived Kwadaso and it’s environs of economic vibrancy.
The Adoato Adumanu market sits on a hill in the middle of that part of the city with a nice environment yet the market is empty.
The Ghana Police Service is looking into the alleged murder of a Ghanaian woman based in Italy who returned to Ghana for holidays.
The woman, known only as Maa Akos, was allegedly killed by one of her neighbours at Sepe Buokrom, near Kumasi, a report by myjoyonline.com has said.
According to the report, Maa Akos sustained stab wounds from her 20-year-old neighbour, identified as Baafi.
Baafi is also said to have often visited the deceased.
According to the account of an eyewitness, Baafi was seen fleeing the scene of the crime after he had jumped out of a window in Maa Akos’ apartment.
The report added that the suspect might have used the window as access to the victim, who was in her late fifties, seeing that she lived alone on the second floor of the building.
The report also stated that some residents explained that Baafi attempted to break into the apartment some weeks ago.
That issue was however resolved, they added.
However, on the day of the crime, an eyewitness said his attention was drawn to the scene after he heard a noise suggestive of a tussle.
The noise, coming from Maa Akos’ apartment, further alarmed other residents.
Hamidu Issah, one of the residents, said “I had to call other tenants to help me break into the room. We could still hear them struggle. One tenant peeped through the window and saw blood, so we had to intensify efforts to break into the room. We entered to find a pool of blood, but the body wasn’t there. We later found it in the bathroom.
“One of the tenants saw the suspect jump out of the window. He saw blood in his palms and raised alarm.”
Some other neighbours subsequently got Baafi after tracing him.
“He pulled out a gun, threatening others. With the gun he escaped, but some people were able to arrest him and drag him back,” Hamidu added.
“Investigations are still ongoing,” the report added.
Residents of Sepe-Boukrom, a town in the Ashanti Regional Capital, Kumasi have been thrown into a state of shock following the death of a 61-year-old woman.
The deceased, Rose Gyaah, was stabbed eight (8) times with a knife by the suspect, a 21-year-old man.
Body of the deceased was discovered in her bathroom in a three-storey building after she was stabbed by the suspect on Monday, February 6, 2023.
The suspect, identified as Koo Baah, according to eyewitnesses, threatened to eliminate any person who attempted to arrest him with a gun after committing the heinous act on Monday morning.
However, the fearless angry youth in the Buokrom Community overpowered the suspect and handed him immediately to Kumasi Airport Police Command.
Narrating how the incident occurred, a co-tenant to the deceased, Hamidu Issah explained,
“We heard the deceased Maa Rose shouting while mentioning the name Koo Baafi who happens to be an errand boy for her, so we thought it was a normal call which she normally does, but we realized the deceased’s voice was getting faint, so we rushed to her room at the last floor of the three-storey building.
“When got there, we saw blood stains all over the place, so we began following the blood stains and discovered the woman had been dragged to the bathroom by the suspect.
“We immediately called the police for assistance but the woman was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.”
The unfortunate incident has thrown the entire community into a state of shock and mourning.
To honor the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, thousands of people gathered at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi as part of celebrations for the first Akwasidae of the year 2023.
It was marked with drumming and dancing amidst exchange of greetings, presentation of drinks and other pleasantries.
Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II entered the Palace in a palanquin dressed in a kente cloth with gold ornaments around his wrists and arms amidst drumming and firing of musketries.
He was followed by the Queen of the Asante Kingdom, Nana Konadu Yiadom III.
The Akwasidae Festival is a magnificent Asante celebration centered on ancestral reverence, remembrance and acknowledgement of past kings and noble feats.
It serves as a celebration of the Golden Stool and a cultural vibrancy that brings together the Asantehene, sub-chiefs, subjects and dignitaries at Manhyia in Kumasi.
The atmosphere was charged with a lot of activities, which include drumming and dancing, cultural display and others.
At Sepe-Boukrom in Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti region, a 21-year-old teenager has killed a 60-year-old woman.
Body of the deceased was discovered in her bathroom in a three-storey building after she was stabbed by the suspect on Monday, February 6, 2023.
The deceased, Rose Gyaah was stabbed eight (8) times with a knife by the suspect.
The suspect, identified as Koo Baah, according to eyewitnesses, threatened to eliminate any person who attempted to arrest him with a gun after committing the heinous act on Monday morning.
However, the fearless angry youth in the Buokrom Community overpowered the suspect and handed him immediately to Kumasi Airport Police Command.
Narrating how the incident occurred, a co-tenant to the deceased, Hamidu Issah explained,
“We heard the deceased Maa Rose shouting while mentioning the name Koo Baafi who happens to be an errand boy for her, so we thought it was a normal call which she normally does, but we realized the deceased’s voice was getting faint, so we rushed to her room at the last floor of the three-storey building.
“When got there, we saw blood stains all over the place, so we began following the blood stains and discovered the woman had been dragged to the bathroom by the suspect.
“We immediately called the police for assistance but the woman was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.”
The unfortunate incident has thrown the entire community into a state of shock and mourning.
Her wedding fliers and pre-video advertisements touted a unique royal wedding that would take place at Ahodwo’s opulent and pricey Greenwood Events Center.
The alleged overseas fiancé was in his seventies. A week prior to the wedding, Wilson Dass traveled to Ghana with his family to finally see his sweetheart in person after several months of virtual courtship.
It is, however, unclear why and how the groom Dass; his parents Mr. Bura Dass and Mrs. Dhanti Dass and the rest of the Indian family; bolted the night before the wedding, without a word to the Ghanaian family.
Kasapafmonline.com gathers that the lady’s family only got wind that the wealthy Indian family had returned to India few hours to the wedding which had seen a huge digital and physical publicity awaiting a huge crowd of youth from Shelly’s community.
“Look, I had ironed a jacket and a kente just for this wedding. Several boys were coming but I had to put it on hold. I had to put off my phone because I was overwhelmed with calls asking whether what they had heard was true,” a source told reporter Ivan Heathcote – Fumador.
“We hear this man is a very wealthy man. He sent over 200 thousand cedis for this wedding alone so the preparation was huge. The lady was actually boasting in the community that she is going to hold the biggest-ever wedding in town, another person close to the heartbroken lady explained.
Other sources in the community indicate that the boast was hyped to spite other rival female slay queen groups in the area and to further mock the lady’s x-boyfriend whom she had a child with.
The confusion has led to a series of speculations with some purporting the lady did not show affection and warmth in the presence of Dass whenever they appeared in public in the short time the two met physically.
For now, the lady; her father who is a popular footballer and her mother Gifty Boadu remain indoors, perhaps nursing their wounds and planning how to put themselves together to face the heartbreak and embarrassment caused them by the estranged boyfriend.
More than 30,000 printed Ghanaian passports are gathering dust at the Accra and Kumasi passport application centres following the failure of the applicants to collect them.
Even though the passport office has communicated to the applicants that their passports are ready, they have still not collected them.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration under which the passport office operates has expressed concern over the growing number of uncollected printed passports.
In a statement dated Monday, January 30, 2023, the Ministry called on all passport applicants who are yet to collect their passports to visit their respective passport application centres to do so, as they would be required for future renewal.
Below is a copy of the statement
UNCOLLECTED PASSPORTS AT VARIOUS PASSPORT APPLICATION CENTRES
ACCRA, 30TH JANUARY, 2023 – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration wishes to inform the general public, particularly passport applicants about the urgent need for them to collect their printed passports from the various Passport Application Centres (PACs).
The Ministry is concerned that even though applicants have been informed through text messages that their passports have been printed and sent to the various Passport Application Centres, most of them are yet to be collected. Accra and Kumasi Passport Application Centres alone have about thirty thousand (30,000) uncollected passports.
In view of the above, the Ministry is calling on passport applicants who are yet to collect their passports to visit their respective Passport Application Centres to do so, as they would be required for future renewal.
Passport Applicants can also call the Ministry’s Client Service Unit on the following numbers to confirm the status of their passport applications — 024 079 3072, 024 091 3284.
While thanking the general public for their cooperation on this important matter, the Ministry takes the opportunity to assure that the Passport Office remains committed to its mandate of delivering enhanced service to the general public.
A six-bedroom house has been burnt in the Krofrom suburb of Kumasi, Friday afternoon, in an alleged reprisal attack by a gang.
The armed young men, looted the house before setting it ablaze in what is believed to be a revenge attack on the butchering of a colleague in the community.
Residents fear multiple reprisals if security is not beefed up in the area.
The young man in his early 30s, known only as ‘Candy’, was butchered by unknown assailants at the community on Thursday.
On Friday, some armed youth suspected to be colleagues of the deceased stormed the community in a revenge attack.
The gang burnt down a 6-bedroom apartment where one of the suspected assailants lived.
Sarah Owusu, who lives in the burnt house, claims the gang earlier looted their rooms before setting the house ablaze.
“Exactly a week today, they came to us with a gun and a knife just to threaten us but we survived. Their people came to our house to steal our TV set and clothes,” she said.
Lamisi Nuhu, a tenant, lost all her belongings to the fire.
“I couldn’t get away with anything. My children lost all their things to fire. How to even survive today will be a problem”. Lamisi added.
The mother of the suspected assailant, Abena Ayiwah, says her son has often come under attack after dissociating himself from the gang.
Ashanti Central Police Commander, DCOP Afful Boakye Yiadom, who was at the fire scene, called on the residents to help the Police arrest any suspect involved in the violent activities by volunteering information.
“You stay with them over here. They are your siblings and colleagues. Show us where they are. They need to be arrested. We won’t let anyone escape so assist the Police in finding them if you know their whereabouts.”
Some residents of Krofrom, however, say such incidents are not unusual in the community and fear a repeat of events.
The freshly built Kumasi International Airport‘s runway is currently undergoing a test run for standardization purposes.
The exercise comes ahead of the facility’s full operations of scheduled and chartered flights later this year. The Ashanti Region is expected to leverage the new airport to attract more tourists, ease international air travel for persons in the northern sector of the country, create jobs and boost the local and national economy.
The Ashanti Region is expected to leverage the new airport to attract more tourists, ease international air travel for persons in the northern sector of the country, create jobs and boost the local and national economy.
Some traders within the Kejetia market in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region have begun closing down their shops over what they describe as exorbitant electricity bills.
The traders have on several occasions clashed with the management of the Kejetia market over the decision to use one bulk meter for the over seven thousand (7000) shops in the market.
Traders over the years complained that they pay exorbitant electricity bills due to the failure of the management of the facility to provide separate meters for shops within the market.
It appears the situation is not likely to be resolved anytime soon as the leadership of the traders has blamed the management of the facility for the closure of their shops.
President of the Federation of Kumasi traders, Nana Akwasi Prempeh, said some traders have been forced to close down their shops since they are not able to pay the huge electricity bills.
Nana Akwasi Prempeh also blamed the management of the facility for the delay in providing individual meters to shops.
Meanwhile, the management of ECG has revealed that the facility owes over five million Ghana cedis in arrears.
ECG is thus insisting that the failure of the facility to pay its arrears is what has caused the delay in providing the individual meters.
A fire outbreak at the Ejisu Apromasi Police Barracks in the Ashanti Region has claimed the lives of a police officer and his family.
The officer, his wife and a four-month-old baby perished in the wee hours of Monday, January 16, 2023.
According to the Ghana National Fire Service, late detection and call up for help led to the destruction of 5 out of the 15 apartments housing some police officers and their families.
A fuel tanker containing 54,000 litres of petrol with registration number GT 8109-19 has gone missing.
According to Adom FM, the tanker was heading towards Kumasi when it was intercepted it at Okanta, near Nsawam by a gentleman who identified himself as a police officer.
The said officer tried to stop the tanker at Okanta but the driver who was descending a hill refused to stop.
The police officer then joined a taxi cab with some 3 other persons and chased after the tanker. After stopping them, the tanker driver and his mate were ordered to park the tanker and join the other persons in the taxi to the police station while the police officer remained at the scene.
NADMO Officer for Ayensuano, Nana Minta Snr disclosed on Adom Fm’s Dwaso Nsem that, “when the Police stopped the tanker, the tanker driver suggested that he parks the tanker and close the doors so that he can go with them to the Police station. The officer however told the driver to get into the taxi and that he will personally drive the tanker and follow them”.
According to the NADMO Officer, the taxi made a turn after the tanker driver and his mate sat in and headed back to an illegal checkpoint created by the said police officer at Okanta, where they were tied up by the taxi driver and the other persons in the car.
“the tanker driver and his conductor were left tied up at the checkpoint till some residents came across them this morning and untied them. They then took them to Teacher Mante Police Station. The driver and his conductor then took a taxi to the scene where they parked the tanker only to find it missing,” Nana Minta Snr added.
He also added that, neither the identity of the said person who was dressed in the police uniform nor that of the taxi driver is known.
The NADMO Officer narrated, “the act was done by one Police Officer who was in police uniform and was holding an AK 47 fire arm. The tanker driver and his mate couldn’t make out his name due to the dark; he didn’t mention his name to the driver. The driver said that, if not for the fact that he was holding the gun, he wouldn’t have stopped. So the gun he was holding was what made him stop, not knowing they are armed robbers.”
He added that, the case is currently at Ayensuano Teacher Mante Police Station. He also disclosed the tanker driver’s name as Isaac Abban and added that, they are currently at the police station but the whereabouts of the tanker is still not known.
He however stated that, he has been told a tracker is installed on the tanker so they have informed the owner about the incident and they are trying to track the tanker to find the location.
The Ashanti Region and the Greater Accra Region are considered to have Ghana’s deadliest and most dangerous roadways, respectively.
This is supported by data on the amount of mishaps and fatalities in these two regions’ cities, particularly in the capital cities of Accra and Kumasi.
Data from the Road Safety Authority of Ghana shows that the two regions recorded the most accidents and fatalities for 2022 and this has been the story for years.
In 2022, Greater Accra Region, for instance, recorded the greatest number of accidents in the country with nearly 46 percent of the total number of accidents recorded in 2022. It recorded some 6658 accidents followed by the Ashanti Region which recorded 3372 accidents, representing over 23 percent of accidents in Ghana.
The Oti Region recorded the lowest number of accidents in 2022 with only 0.64 percent of the total accidents recorded in 2022. Three other regions including the North East, Savana and the Upper West contributed less than 1 percent each to the total number of accidents recorded in 2022.
In terms of death and injuries, the two regions recorded the highest in the country with Greater Accra recording 485 accident deaths (25.01 percent of total road accident deaths) and 1989 injuries while the Ashanti Region recorded 382 deaths and 1202 injuries.
But does this mean that Greater Accra and Ashanti are the regions with the deadliest roads in Ghana?
The two regions according to statista.com host more than one-third of Ghana’s population so it should not be surprising if they see more road accidents and deaths. To check the rate of accidents and casualties, cases recorded are conventionally measured per 100,000 population.
The number of accidents per 100000 people in all the regions shows that the Greater Accra and Ashanti have the highest rate of accidents in Ghana.
The Greater Accra Region recorded approximately 123 accidents per 100000 population while the Ashanti Region recorded approximately 62 accidents per 100000 people.
However, when it comes to road accident deaths, the two regions with the highest rate of accidents, do not have the highest rate of deaths.
The Eastern Region has the highest rate of accident deaths in Ghana with approximately 11 deaths per 100,000 population compared to Greater Accra which has 9 road accident deaths per 100,000 population.
The Ashanti Region, which has the second highest rate of road accidents in Ghana, has a lower death rate (7.03 deaths per 100,000 population) compared to regions like the Western North (7.44 deaths per 100,000 population) and Ahafa (8.33 deaths per 100,000 population) which have lower accident rates.
So, it can be concluded that even though the Ashanti and Greater Accra Regions have high rates of accidents, they do not necessarily have the most dangerous roads in Ghana.
A middle-aged farmer at Juaso, in the Ashanti region, is asking a High Court in Kumasi to order the Chief of Juaso and the Ghana Cocoa Board (GCB) to compensate him with Gh¢750000 for destroying his 25-acre cocoa plantation.
The farmer, Mustapha Musah, claims the chief, Nana Asafo Atta Tabi, and the Seed and Production Unit of the GCB of the Juaso division illegally invaded his plantation and destroyed it. He says some other crops including plantain, which were inter-planted, were also destroyed.
In his statement of claims, the plaintiff asserted that each acre of the 25 acres often yielded 7 bags of cocoa. He added that he would have enjoyed such return for the next 50 years if the plantation had not been destroyed.
The case, titled Mustapha versus the Juaso Stool, Nana Asafo Atta Tabi, and the Seed and Production Unit of Ghana Cocoa Board, has Juaso Stool, Nana Asafo Atta Tabi and the Seed and Production Unit of Ghana Cocoa Board as 1st defendant, 2nd defendant and 3rd defendant respectively.
The plaintiff said he was realizing an average annual income of Gh¢87,000 from his farm before the defendants destroyed it.
The plaintiff claimed he entered into an agreement on the 12th of May 2006 with the chief of the area at the time, Nana Akwasi Prempeh, to cultivate the land. The said agreement was deduced into an indenture at a Circuit Court in Juaso. The plaintiff also stated that he was always driven away and insulted whenever he sought to know why the defendants invaded his farm.
So far, the plaintiff has been crossed-examined by the defendants’ lawyers. The defendants and witnesses are scheduled to have their turns for cross-examination early in 2023.
Below is a copy of the plaintiff’s statement of claims:
The Plaintiff’s Claims against the Defendants herein as follows:
A declaration by the Court that the Plaintiff has a legal and equitable interest in all that piece of land(s) lying and situated at a place commonly known and called Pentimpa on Juaso Stool lands, across River Kome, and shares boundaries with Op. Kwasi Krah, Op. Babanatu, Op. Kwabena
Maame Mary Fosua near Morso in the Ashanti Region, measuring approximately 42 acres for forest land and 50 acres for grassland and that the 1st and 2nd Defendants cannot unilaterally grant the disputed land(s) to the 3rd Defendant without the Plaintiff’s consent.
ii.A declaration that the 3rd Defendant’s entry unto the land in dispute is/was unlawful and same amount to trespass and an order of recovery of possession of same.
iii. An order for interlocutory/perpetual injunction against the defendants herein, their agents, servants, assigns, workmen, or person(s) claiming through them from any or further cultivation(s) on the land in dispute.
Special damages for the loss of income in the next 50 years for an amount of Ghe750,000.00
General Damages.
Costs, including Legal fee.
Any further order(s) or other relief(s) that the court may seen fit to make.
The Ghanaian Armed Forces have reported unprovoked violent attacks on its soldiers by a number of communities in the Ashanti area, which is afflicted by illegal mining, while legitimate operations to drive away illegal gold miners, also known as “galamsey,” were underway.
The Ghana Armed Forces claims that despite the situation being alarming, these tendencies cannot dissuade the Forces from carrying out its mandate to assist the government in putting an end to environmentally destructive phenomena and that, going forward, any such unruly attitude toward soldiers will be met with the most suitable responses.
During this year’s West African Soldiers Social Activities at Kwadaso near Kumasi in the Ashanti region, Brigadier General Joseph Aphour, the General Officer Commanding the Central Command of the Ghana Armed Forces, issued the warning.
“The posture of some locals towards troops on anti-galamsey operations has been a cause of worry to us. There have been instances where some locals pelted troops with stones and other harmful materials which they laid their hands on. Some of these individuals sometimes wield deadly weapons at troops, all in attempt to frustrate us from undertaking our legally sanctioned duties. It is my hope that appropriate stakeholders would be impressed upon to caution these youth to desist from such acts to avoid any clash with the military and other security agencies”, the GOC cautioned.
He also issued a warning to soldiers who, alone or as part of a group, engage in clandestine activities because doing so is against operational protocol.
“I will also like to sound a note of caution to all troops to also refrain from indulging in illegal or one man operation. Any soldier who is found culpable of this unprofessional behaviour will be dealt with accordingly’’.
The General Officer Commanding the Central Command used the occasion to enumerate some progress made since he assumed duty in the regions under his command.
These include an ongoing construction of an accommodation for officers, provision of regular potable water supply systems at both the Command Headquarters and the Iddris Baracks, completion of the commercial water production factory with a delivery truck and a coconut plantation as additional income generation sources.
“ When I took office here the command major challenge included accommodation for troops, lack of portable water and other means of raising generation founds for day today management of the command. I’m happy to report that currently we no more have water problem in our barracks again. The commercial water project my predecessors started has also been completed. While 20 units accommodation for soldiers are also at the completion stage’’.
The Ashanti Regional Minister, Mr. Simon Osei Mensah, noted that, the region is now relatively peaceful mainly due to the cooperation, unity and team work among the various security services.
He commended the Command of the Central Command also for the various initiatives to generate additional income to support what the government provides, which he admitted, is inadequate.
Mr. Osei Mensah, however, reminded the military that they have more work to do to ensure absolute peace and security in the region in the ensuing year.
“I know you are under resourced but with the little resources available at your deposal you have delivered for the region. I appreciate your efforts in maintaining law and order in your operational command, however more need to be done against the potential terrorism against the region the country as such. Remains committed to ensure you are appropriately resourced to carry your constitutional defense responsibility for the country’’.
The West African Soldiers Social Activities, WASSA, is an occasion for both soldiers and civilian staff of the Ghana Armed Forces to shed off some of the work-related stress through social activities with their families and other stakeholders.
This year’s edition for the staff of the Central Command of the Ghana Armed Forces is the first since the outbreak of COVID-19.
