NDC Vice Chairman, 350 others defect to NPP

NPP and NDC flags

A former Sekondi Constituency National Democratic Congress Vice Chairman, Alhaji Osumanu Mohammed, and 350 other party members on Tuesday announced their defection to the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).

Addressing a press conference in Sekondi to declare their defection to the NPP, Alhaji Mohammed said they quitted the NDC due to ‘’disrespect to authority in the party’.

He said the Mills’ Government had shown gross disrespect to the founder of the party, ex-President Jerry John Rawlings and his wife, Nana Konadu.

“The way and manner President Mills is handling the NDC and its government, is an apparent deviation from the principles and ethics that molded the NDC from the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC),” he said.

Alhaji Mohammed noted that a cursory assessment and perusal of the unfolding events within the NDC as well as the government was an obvious indication of the fact that there was a lopsided agenda which smacked of clandestine efforts to oust the Rawlings’ from the party.

He added that the current economic hardships presided over by the NDC government was a clear manifestation that the ruling government had nothing good to offer the majority of Ghanaians.

“I can confidently confirm that the NDC government has done nothing to better the lots of Muslims in the Sekondi Zongo Community even though the NDC party touts itself as the only pro-Muslim political party in the country,” he said.

Alhaji Mohammed said the NDC had lost focus and vision to drive this nation forward and, therefore, he had no choice than to quit the party and join the NPP.

He said over the years the NPP had demonstrated quality leadership and good governance during its eight years in office and had proven to be pro-Muslim than the much touted NDC, hence his decision to join it.

He commended the NPP MP for Sekondi, Papa Owusu Ankomah for helping the development efforts of the people of Sekondi by offering scholarships to students, building classroom blocks, computer laboratory, among other social infrastructure.

GNA

Ghanaians must hold NDC accountable for not passing RTI Bill – Nana Oye Lithur

Nana Oye Lithur

The Majority Leader in Parliament, Cletus Avoka has expressed shock at attempts by Right to Information Coalition to blame parliament for delay in the passage of Right to Information Bill into law.

The Majority Leader told parliamentary press corps on Wednesday that the coalition is part of the problem. He said the delays by the coalition to submit proposals for review of relevant clauses have partly grounded the work of the house.

Mr Avoka also said parliament and his office have shown enough commitment this year by holding a wrap up meeting with all concerned stakeholders but have been saddled with financial difficulties and delays from groups like the Right to Information Coalition.

According to Mr Avoka, in view of demands for the passage of RTI, he has suspended a critical field trip outside the country and has demanded a report from the joint committees, legal and communications handling the bill before the floor in two weeks for debate to start.

The Convener of the Right to Information Coalition, Nana Oye Lithur, speaking to Joy FM however described the Majority Leader’s stance as a classical example of buck passing.

She said it is the responsibility of parliament to consider and adopt laws hence the Majority Leader’s position amounts to shirking of responsibility.

According to Oye Lithur, her group has prepared an expert paper on some of the grey areas of the RTI Bill but was however unsure whether the paper has been presented to parliament.

She however added that their action is just to support the parliamentary process but they can in no way delay the process of the passage of the bill.

Nana Oye Lithur further expressed the group readiness in taking on the National Democratic Congress government over the passage of the RTI.

“This will be a political election campaign issue. Because it was the NDC that put it in its campaign manifesto that the bill will be passed should they be elected. It is barely seven months to election and they have not delivered”, Nana Oye Lithur said.

“The Majority Leader belongs to the NDC and the coalition is putting him on notice that this will be a question and an issue that will dock them on the political platform, so the earlier the NDC government pushes its majority in parliament to consider its bill, the better. We will hold the NDC government accountable because they made the promise….” Nana Oye Lithur added.

Source: Myjoyonline

JJ Booms At Traitors

Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings dances with her husband while some 31st December Women's Movement members support them.

Former President Jerry John Rawlings yesterday descended heavily on President Atta Mills and members of his administration, describing them as traitors, giving up any hopes on the ability of the government to restore hope in Ghanaians.

Mr Rawlings could not fathom how the government that he so-much toiled to bring to power and the party he formed, the National Democratic Congress (NDC), had lost its enviable sense of political morality and moral high-ground. He shuddered to believe whether the NDC could win the upcoming elections.

The former president said this year’s election “will create a lot of stress in the country” looking at the “culture of political selfishness, greed, thievery and ingratitude” that had characterised the political terrain, especially with his own party, the NDC.
According to former President Rawlings, the entire country should ponder over which direction it was headed and should take into account the sacrifices made by the many who laid down their lives, for which reason the country was currently enjoying peace and stability.

That, according to him, was because the party had always won elections on the power of integrity but had now taken the path of corruption.

“We have always won our elections on the power of integrity. Now that they have chosen to monetize everything, how much of a chance do they have, having departed from the weapon and values that sustained our political success?” he asked.

The NDC founder made these comments when he gave the keynote address at a well-attended ceremony to mark the 30^th anniversary celebration of the 31^st December Women’s Movement (DWM) at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Accra yesterday.

An obviously unhappy Mr Rawlings charged: “How could an NDC government lose its enviable sense of political morality and moral high-ground?” to a rapturous applause and shouts of ‘be bold.’

The former President stuck to the prepared text and deviated from the extempore he is noted for in such public speeches.

“So long as they hold on to power and with some of our supporters persistently refusing to see the truth and what should have been done, then it becomes difficult to take back our party,” he said, warning that “some are justified in saying that those in office are not genuinely minded, NDC spirited, NDC-hearted people and want to destroy the party in favour of something else”.

Jerry John Rawlings

“How can the government, in its desire to hold on to political power, demean itself in such a crass manner? Can we sustain hope and strength in this depraved political atmosphere?” he asked, noting, “So long as they hold on to power and with some of our supporters persistently refusing to see the truth and what should have been done, then it becomes difficult to take back our party.”

According to Mr. Rawlings, those on the side of the NDC were virtually being treated like outsiders in their own party; especially he and his wife, who always had to fight against what he described as one ‘enemy’ or opposition.

“We are fighting against two enemies – one the perceived enemy and the other one the traitor,” he said, adding that the traitors in the NDC were more dangerous than the party’s opponents.

He said since the party could not fight both the opposition and the traitors at the same time, “one has to go”.

He decried the extent to which the 31^st DWM, which once served as the avenue for propagating the ideals and philosophies of the party, had virtually been neglected by the current administration.

Rather than build on the capacity that the movement brought to the party, the NDC founder stated, “they have chosen to exclude them and do worse than our so-called ‘enemies’ were doing between 2000 and 2008”.

On her part, former First Lady and President of the 31^st DWM, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, recounted the difficulties that the movement encountered before its present state.

She recounted several projects that the movement initiated and achieved since its formation in 1981.

Its pet projects included women empowerment, employment creation, setting up of childhood development centres and the provision of water in several communities.

In spite of the several challenges, she said, “30years in the life of such an organization is a period to celebrate with joy,” stating with confidence, “We are not perturbed by this because we can see a light at the end of the tunnel that will guide and guard women into their self-realization.”

Present at the event were a handful of members of the ‘old order,’ Dr Mrs. Mary Grant, Samuel Nuamah Donkor and the red beret-wearing members of the 31^st DWM.

Others included Revered Christie Doe-Tetteh who offered prayers for the movement whilst the likes of good old George Darko, Abrantie Amakye Dede and Pat Thomas provided good music for the guests.

 By Charles Takyi-Boadu

Nana Oye Lithur

The Majority Leader in Parliament, Cletus Avoka has expressed shock at attempts by Right to Information Coalition to blame parliament for delay in the passage of Right to Information Bill into law.

The Majority Leader told parliamentary press corps on Wednesday that the coalition is part of the problem. He said the delays by the coalition to submit proposals for review of relevant clauses have partly grounded the work of the house.

Mr Avoka also said parliament and his office have shown enough commitment this year by holding a wrap up meeting with all concerned stakeholders but have been saddled with financial difficulties and delays from groups like the Right to Information Coalition.

According to Mr Avoka, in view of demands for the passage of RTI, he has suspended a critical field trip outside the country and has demanded a report from the joint committees, legal and communications handling the bill before the floor in two weeks for debate to start.

The Convener of the Right to Information Coalition, Nana Oye Lithur, speaking to Joy FM however described the Majority Leader’s stance as a classical example of buck passing.

She said it is the responsibility of parliament to consider and adopt laws hence the Majority Leader’s position amounts to shirking of responsibility.

According to Oye Lithur, her group has prepared an expert paper on some of the grey areas of the RTI Bill but was however unsure whether the paper has been presented to parliament.

She however added that their action is just to support the parliamentary process but they can in no way delay the process of the passage of the bill.

Nana Oye Lithur further expressed the group readiness in taking on the National Democratic Congress government over the passage of the RTI.

“This will be a political election campaign issue. Because it was the NDC that put it in its campaign manifesto that the bill will be passed should they be elected. It is barely seven months to election and they have not delivered”, Nana Oye Lithur said.

“The Majority Leader belongs to the NDC and the coalition is putting him on notice that this will be a question and an issue that will dock them on the political platform, so the earlier the NDC government pushes its majority in parliament to consider its bill, the better. We will hold the NDC government accountable because they made the promise….” Nana Oye Lithur added.

Source: Myjoyonline

Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams

A former President of Ghana, John Agyekum Kufuor, has appealed to Ghanaians to support any well-meaning project aimed at improving the livelihood of the people. 

He emphasised that it is only through some of these initiatives that people’s lives would be impacted positively. 

Ex-President Kufuor made the appeal when he launched the Duncan-Williams Foundation in Accra. The aim of the foundation is to improve the lives of the under-privileged and the needy, mostly in rural communities.

Launching the project, Ex-President Kufuor urged Ghanaians to throw their weights behind people who take up such initiatives like Arch-Bishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams and many others who, one way or the other have touched the lives of individuals and society as a whole. He said such initiative can only survive if Ghanaians will support it whole-heartedly.

The Duncan-Williams Foundation is the brain-child of the Founder and Overseer of the Action Chapel International, Arch-Bishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams. The foundation is expected to build six classroom blocks in 12 communities across the country. The foundation will soon sink bole-holes in some selected communities to improve potable water in those parts of the country. The Arch-Bishop expressed his gratitude to former President Kufuor and invited dignitaries for having had time to support this worthy course. 

He was very optimistic that the project will go a long way to improve the livelihood of the selected communities.

Former first-lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings and former Vice-President of Zambia, Mr. Nevers Mumba all lauded the initiatives, adding that the project has come at an opportune time to bring development at the door steps of communities on the African continent.

In a related development, the Action Chapel International held a special thanksgiving ceremony to thank God for having kept the life of Arch-Bishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams for 55 years. The Arch-Bishop turned 55 last Saturday, May 12. 

In a special sermon, the Founder of the Charismatic Evangelistic Ministries, Rev. Steve Mensah admonished Christians, particular ministers of God to redirect and focus their message on eternity on less-privileged and the needy in society, adding that the Greatest Commission of the Lord Jesus Christ was centred on compassion, healing, caring and providing for the sick and the needy. 

He explained that it does not augur well for Christians to always confine themselves in what he described as “comfort zones” but must all times endeavour to reach out to the poor. “Evangelism as part of the mission of my church has made huge impact on the people of the north, who are mostly peasant farmers and live in abject poverty”, he stated. 

“With the support of the Arch-Bishop Duncan-Williams, we managed to distribute thousand cutlasses to the farmers there”, he added. According to Rev. Mensah, this singular gesture has brought hope and a lot of smiles on the faces of the farmers in that part of the country.

Quoting copiously from the Bible, Rev. Mensah appealed to members of the church and Christians in general to support the Duncan-Williams Foundation to achieve its purpose. The Senior Bishop of the Action Chapel International, Bishop James Saah also added his voice for the need for members to give their widow’s mite to ensure that the foundation survives and touches the lives of many in remote and deprived communities across the country.

Source: Citifmonline

The sexual escapades of a 65-year-old man with five minors, two of whom he impregnated in the process, has landed him in the full grips of the law.

The accused, Davis Kwadwo Danso, a lotto writer who lives in his kiosk at Konka Dome, was arrested by the Madina Domestic Violence and Victims’ support Unit (DOVVSU) when the complainant, Agnes Boamah, headmistress of Anglican Primary School at Dome, reported the case to the police for investigations.

Presenting the facts of the case, the Prosecutor, ASP Sarah Acquah of DOVVSU, said the incident was unraveled when one of the victims (name withheld), aged 13, and a class five pupil of the above-mentioned school, who lives with her parents at Dome got impregnated by the accused.

According to ASP Acquah, during the early part of 2011, the victim was introduced to the accused person by a classmate who had dropped out of school because she had been impregnated by the accused.
After their first encounter, the accused encouraged the victim to visit him regularly. He gave the victim various sums of money anytime she visited.

However, on the February 25, 2012 at about 4:00pm when the victim visited the accused, the latter forcibly had sex with the victim and warned her not to inform anyone about the incident. The accused continued to lure the victim with money and took advantage of her anytime she visited.

The last time he had sex with her was on May 6, this year, ASP Acquah said. However, the next day, May 7, the complainant noticed unusual changes in the victim and questioned her. It was through questioning that the victim revealed the sexual activities of the accused.
The victim mentioned that the accused had also had sex with some of her mates (names withheld) aged 12 and 15.

In their respective statements, the victims confirmed the allegation and indicated that the accused have been having sex with them since last year.

The victims also disclosed that the accused also had sex with one other pupil of Dome M/A Experimental School and also attempted to have sex with another pupil.

The accused however, pleaded not guilty to all five counts of charges of defilement preferred against him. The presiding Judge, Ms Sedinam Agbemava, adjourned the case to June 7, this year after remanding the accused in prison custody.

All the victims have been medically examined and treated.

Source: The Finder

The arrested gangsters belonging to Lover Boy's group. INSET: The deadly weapons found on them

ELEVEN SUSPECTED criminals believed to be part of a gang of hardened hoodlums led by notorious robber Lover Boy, have been arrested by Kumasi police.

Lover Boy, the ringleader was shot and killed by the police over the weekend,

DCOP Augustine Gyenning gave their names as Ali Ibrahim, 18, Razak Abdulai, 14, Abubakar Nzu, 19, Yammin Abdulai, 18 and 17-year-old Sherrif.

The rest of them are Mamuda, 19, Awudu Haruna, 18 and Edward Lennin, 21.

DCOP Gyenning said the eight persons are among a group of eleven gangsters arrested by the police at different parts of Kumasi last weekend.

He said three of them whose names he did not disclose were not medically fit so they were being attended to by medical personnel.

DCOP Gyenning said the arrested hoodlums formed an integral part of the criminal gang led by Lover Boy who was terrorizing Kumasi residents.

He said the arrested criminals were nabbed at their hideout at Aboabo number one, Alabar and other Zongo areas in Kumasi.

DCOP Gyenning said the arrested gangsters and their deceased boss, robbed people that attended the Bob Marley Show at dawn last Saturday of their valuables.

He said the group was linked to several high profile robbery incidents in the Garden City in recent times where people lost valuable items including mobile phones.

DCOP Gyenning said the police was aware of the illegal activities that the Lover Boy group were engaged in and even intensified their search for them two weeks ago.

The Ashanti regional police commander said the gang, wielding machetes and other deadly weapons, recently stormed the Dr. Mensah area in Kumasi where they robbed people of their valuables.

The arrest of the eleven is ample proof that the police in the region is on top of the security situation, he said emphasizing that criminals could no longer operate freely in Kumasi.

DCOP Gyenning said those arrested would be arraigned soon to face trial for the crimes that they have committed.

He said offensive weapons including locally manufactured pistols, long and frightening looking machetes, live cartridges and other deadly weapons were found on the suspects when they were arrested.

 FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi

The Ho Central Market

TRADERS AT the Ho central market have indicated that they are not moved by the launch of the Ghana Urban Management Pilot Project (GUMPP) or the promises given them by government officials and Vice President John Mahama during the launch.

According to most of them who referred to the Akan adage “Yate Abre,” to wit “enough is enough”, this was not the first time they were being assured and promised of a better market. The market women, who showed no enthusiasm for the project which is supposed to transform the Ho central market into a modern one, noted that “until they have seen evidence of a completely modernized market, they will treat the launch and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government’s assurance as one of their many yet to be fulfilled promises.”

This came to light when DAILY GUIDE visited the Ho central market yesterday to find out how the market women were taking the news of the refurbishment of the market, as well as their posture as far as the Vice President’s assurances are concerned. The visit was also to find out why they did not show up in their numbers like they did during other forum that was held in the market.

Mr. Mahama and the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Samuel Ofosu Ampofu at the launch assured the market women to be calm. The Vice President noted that government understood their frustration and that was why it had instituted the GUMMP to refurbish the Ho central market and transform the central business district.

He said although the GUMPP project was meant for metropolitan assemblies, the NDC government found it prudent to include Ho, a municipality. He however said the delay in the implementation of the programme was because the project was a participatory one. There was the need for the stakeholders, including the market men and women to be consulted to make it successful when implemented.

Mr. Ofosu Ampofo also urged the market women to be patient, adding that their market would be transformed to a state-of-the-art market by the time the five-year GUMPP project is completed.

Meanwhile, the market women have indicated that they are not moved by the GUMMP project and that they will only be convinced when they see the transformation. A pepper seller, Akua Bonsi, noted that “Until we see with our eyes “fiili fiili”, we will continue to keep the Assembly on its toes. For the past three years, they had been calling for simple street lights, a better toilet facility, warehouses and more security, yet to no avail. It took a threatened demonstration to make Mr. Ofosu Ampofu to leave Accra and come and donate some street lights to us,” she added.

Mustapha, a clothes dealer, said “we pay levies to the Assembly and so we expect them to properly manage the market and not wait for a long term five-year project to do that. The Municipal Chief Executive, Kodobisah, and his people at the Assembly have to, in the mean time, solve the small small problems in the market and not hide behind GUMPP to transform the market,” he added.

According to the market women, because the economy was affecting their living conditions, they could not afford to leave their wares for over two hours unattended to, especially when they had to sit idle and wait for the Vice President for over two hours. The launch, which was supposed to start at 10am, started around 12 noon.

Apparently, some of them had come earlier and left due to the delay. Interestingly, the French Ambassador to Ghana, Frédéric Clavier and other French officials, as well as the chairman of the occasion, Osie Adjatekpor of Avatime waited for about two hours before the programme started. The excuse was that the Vice President was yet to arrive.

A leader of the market, who refused to mention her name, also bemoaned the late start of the programme. With regard to the attendance of the programme, she said the executives did all they could but most of them refused to attend. She added that although there were street lights in the market and they had been assured of more development, the morale in the market was low.

From Fred Duodu, Ho

Samuel Sarpong, KMA boss

In spite of the decongestion exercise being undertaken by the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) in the Central Business District (CBD) of the metropolis, activities of hawkers are progressing steadily in the area.

On Tuesday the KMA, under the headship of Samuel Sarpong, embarked on a fresh decongestion exercise in the CBD of the city to reduce congestion.

The presence of hawkers in the area, particularly Kejetia, has restricted the movement of vehicles as well as human beings.

The hawkers have virtually taken over the pavements and streets in the CBD, thereby impeding the movement of vehicles and persons.

Due to the unpleasant development, human and vehicular traffic builds up during rush hours.

Several decongestion exercises have taken place in Kumasi since the National Democratic Congress (NDC) assumed power but the problem still persists.

Though the exercise, which is being carried out in phases, is on-going, some hawkers still sell their wares on the streets to earn a living.

When DAILY GUIDE visited the area, some hawkers were seen busily embarking on their activities.

While some of the hawkers boldly displayed their wares, others were seen moving from one place to another with their wares on their hands and heads.

However, a KMA task force was deployed to vintage points in the decongested areas to ensure that hawkers do not return.

Some hawkers, who were not lucky, were arrested by the task force and sent to the KMA where they were made to pay certain amounts before their wares were released to them.

Meanwhile, some residents, who lauded the exercise, have entreated the KMA to continue the exercise to ensure that hawkers do not return to the area.

From Moragn Owusu, Kumasi

From R-L Danny Graymore, Pat McKay and Keith Ashong-UK Police liaison officer at the British High Commission, Ghana behind are some of the beneficiaries.

The United Kingdom (UK), under the auspices of the Department for International Development (DFID), has launched a two-week tactical training course for some officers of the Ghana Police Service in a bid to equip them on public order management ahead of the December polls.

The course, which opened on Monday, May 14, 2012 at the Police Headquarters in Accra, is the first in a series of training programmes for 16,000 security officers drawn from the various security services.

They would mainly be trained in election security and election laws.

Also 11 national communication base stations would be created across the country to enable nationwide radio communication for the police service.

The beneficiary officers would not be trained in only public order management but also intelligence gathering.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Country Director of DFID, Danny Graymore, observed that Ghana has become a beacon of hope in the West Africa sub-region.

Ghana must therefore ensure that the police have the right skills and are positioned in the right place at the right time to make right decisions when the need arise while employing new tactics when new risks emerge, he indicated.

He urged Ghana not to leave events to chance but plan in advance against any unforeseen circumstances, adding that the public expect that the police to remain bi-partisan and impartial to ensure peaceful and credible elections.

Mr. Graymore said even though the challenges are daunting evidence from the participation of the Ghana Police in peace-keeping operations showed that the police were up to the task.

The Director-General, Operations, COP John Kudalor, said the training could not have come at a better time since the police service was fervently preparing to ensure successful polls.

He said even though the police had chalked a lot of successes in its quest to maintain law and order to ensure that businesses thrive in a peaceful atmosphere, it needed such courses to enhance the professional posture of the service.

He urged beneficiaries to translate the theoretical knowledge and skills they would acquire during the training into practice by bringing it to bare on operations.

The police boss commended the UK government and the DFID for the immense support, stressing that their interest to build the capacity of the Ghana Police Service to attain a higher standard is duly recognized.

The Deupty IGP, Mohamed Alhassan observed that even though Ghana has gone through previous elections successfully, there was the need to adequately prepare for the impending polls since no two elections were the same.

He urged police personnel not to use force in managing public order, adding that the course would boost the capacity of the various Command and Control Centres (ops rooms) across the country.

One of the resource persons, Pat McKay reiterated the need for Ghana to prepare adequately for the polls to avoid several wars that took place in neighboring countries.

 BY Rocklyn Antonio

Stephen Kpordzih - ADB Boss

The Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) committed a total of GH¢156.85 million as loans to various categories of Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (SMEs) by the close of 2011, a release issued by the bank recently has noted.

The figure marks a 42 percent increase in the asset book of ADB’s SME Unit from GH¢110.40 million recorded in 2010. The growth thus underscores the fact that the industry and market place have responded positively to the activities and operations of ADB’s SME Unit.

Steve Kpordzih, Managing Director of ADB, commenting on the development, said the growth of Ghana’s economy no doubt lies in the growth and development of the private sector and most especially the strengthening of SMEs.

“Consequently, ADB’s SME asset book points out the importance to which ADB attaches to the industry. As a result, asset-wise, the ADB’s SME portofolio contributes to 37 percent of total corporate banking assets and 24 percent of the total bank’s asset.”

The introduction of products by ADB for SME owners has increased accessibility of credit to SMEs.  In addition, ADB has served its SME customers with other innovations and programmes to help the steady progress and development of SMEs with innovations such as local purchasing order (LPO) product programs, interim payment certificate/invoice discounting/factoring product programs, stock and collateral management arrangements and a series of self-liquidating short term loans as supplementary working capital for operations.

The bank’s quest to support SMEs is further strengthened in the division of the bank’s SME portfolio into two – small and medium. The classifications are made to distinguish the various SMEs and to offer specialized terms of credit to each category. For liabilities/deposits, the SME (small) should have annualized credit turnovers between GHS100,000.00 to GHS1,000,000 and GHS1,000,000.00 to GHS6,000,000.00 for SME Medium. For assets, both small and medium SMEs should be between GHS30, 000 to GHS2, 000,000.00 being one third of the annualized credit turnover.

Other Services offered by ADB’s SME Unit include cash collection, trade finance (L/C, bills), funds management, structured short term loans, bridging loans/ODS, term loans, contingent liabilities including performance guarantees, advance mobilisation guarantees, bid/tender bonds and bank guarantees for suppliers’ credit, among others.

 By Samuel Boadi

Eric Anku (left), Marketing Executive of AXAS, explaining a point to a customer after the launch

American Xpress Auto Solutions (AXAS), a wholly-owned Ghanaian firm that imports American and non-American spare parts into Ghana on order, has launched its Accra office off the Roman Ridge road.

Nii Aryitey, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AXAS, speaking at the launch of his outfit over the weekend, noted that AXAS provides clients with every order they place and delivers it in spite of the many bottlenecks associated with clearing vehicle parts at the Tema Port.

He described AXAS as the best service for securing hard-to-source vehicle parts of any sort from overseas, stressing that the company is the leading supplier of all American auto mobile spare parts and accessories in the country currently.

“We deal in all array of the finest Auto spare parts for American cars like Ford, Chryslre and American-spec vehicles such as Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Benz, etc. AXAS is the right automobile company where vehicle owners can order any spare part, quality oil, chemicals and additives, auto accessories, tools and equipment.”

The company also deals in high quality original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts, aftermarket parts and also used and re-manufactured parts.

“Our dedicated team of procurement specialists sources vehicle parts from the USA with various options to meet price point. This makes us pride ourself as the best choice for vehicle parts and accessories.

“We can find any part for American-made vehicles and our aim is to provide our customers with an extensive range of parts and accessories. We currently operate conveniently from Accra and Tema.”

Fafa-Barbar, Supervising Sales Coordinator, AXAS, commenting on the service stated: “We can assure customers of the finest quality parts at unbeatable prices and our customer service is second to none.  We truly believe that everybody will greatly benefit from our products and services since all our products are from leading brands in the USA.”

 From the business desk

Tomatoes

The price of tomatoes went up at the Agbogbloshie, Kumasi Central, Takoradi and Hohoe markets at all trading levels over the week At the wholesale trading level, prices went up by 29 percent (GH¢ 4.00 to GH¢5.19), 3 percent (GH¢2.94 to GH¢3.03), 14 percent (GH¢3.50 to GH¢4.00) and 20 percent (GH¢5.00 to GH¢6.00) respectively. Retail prices of the commodity went up by 30 percent (GH¢3.84 to GH¢5. (GH¢2.30 to GH¢2.50), 7 percent (GH¢2.80 to GH¢3.00) and 13 percent (GH¢3.80 to GH¢4.30) respectively.

The Agbogbloshie, Kumasi Central, Techiman and Hohoe markets also registered price increase in groundnut (edible) at the retail trading level over the week. Prices went up marginally by 9 percent (GH¢3.84 to GH¢4.20), 4 percent (GH¢ 2.92 to GH¢3.04), 5 percent (GH¢3.54 to GH¢3.70) and 6 percent (GH¢3.54 to GH¢3.75) respectively.

Wholesale and retail prices of maize (white grain) increased in the Takoradi, Kumasi Central and Hohoe markets over the week. Retail prices increased by 20 percent (GH¢ 1.00 to GH¢1.20), 25 percent (GH¢1.23 to GH¢1.54) and 22 percent (GH¢0.85 to GH¢1.04) respectively. 

From the business desk 

Herbert Acquaye, National President of the Ghana Hoteliers Association, has emphatically stated that about 42,000 youth in the country are currently working in the hotel industry.

He said about 62 percent of them are below the age 35 and stressed the need for the government to pay much attention to the industry to reduce the high unemployment rate in the country.

He indicated that out of the number, 40 percent of them leave to join other industries within a period of five years.

Mr Acquaye made the revelation at the opening of the second National Executive Council Meeting for 2012 at Elmina in the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem Herbert Acquaye, (KEEA) Municipality of the Central Region on Thursday.

The programme, which was on the theme “Improving the Retiring Benefit of the Ghanaian Hotel Employee,” was attended by hundreds of stakeholders and promoters under the sector.

The programme was also used to launch the Ghana Hoteliers Pension Fund by Axis Pension Trust Limited, who are Fund Managers.

Databank Asset Management Services and Custodians, Stanbic Investment Management Services Limited have the capability and trade record to effectively administer the pension funds to the benefit of their employees.

The National President called on hoteliers to improve their conditions of service in order to be seen as a first-class employer.

“Most hotels have a challenge in filling some vacancies due to the shortage of career oriented employees as a result lack of interest by new prospects to join the hotel industry,” he added.

The Central Regional Chairman of the Association, Ben Aidoo appealed to the government to develop the Foso Lagoon.

Mr. Aidoo noted that although the region is said to be the heartbeat of tourism in the country, it can boost of only two major tourist sites which was built by the white man many years ago.

“We, as businessman, can see the potential in the Foso Lagoon since it will create jobs and generate a lot of revenue for the people of Ghana” he said

The regional chairman appealed to government to provide the operators with soft loans since they cannot borrow from the open markets because of the high interest rate that overseas counterparts charge.

Mr Aidoo bemoaned the excessive destruction of the country’s beaches due to the commercialization sand winning and therefore appealed to the authorities to address the matter.

 From Sarah Owusu-Darlington, Elmina

Journalists

To develop the capacity of journalists to report effectively and consistently on the extractive industry, Revenue Watch Institute (RWI), in collaboration with its stakeholders, is organizing a training programme for 16 journalists in Kampala, Uganda.

RWI, with support from the International Institute of ICT Journalism (Penplusbytes), Thomson Reuters Foundation and African Centre for Media Excellence, will equip the journalists with skills and information to increase the quantity and quality of coverage on oil, gas and mining issues.  

Eight participants were selected from both countries.

Esther Awuah, a journalist with Daily Guide’s Business Desk, is part of the Ghanaian team.

The course, which started from May 14 -23, is the third in the series to be organized by RWI.

A release from RWI said “In countries where oil, gas or mineral production is new, such asGhanaandUganda, journalists face the additional problem of having little knowledge about the industry and related economic issues.”

It noted that many governments and private-sector interests avoid media scrutiny by remaining silent on public interest issues such as royalty and tax agreements, budgets and spending.

“Addressing the media’s role in resource-rich countries such as Ghana and Uganda is critical because both nations will soon receive significant revenues from newly-developed oil fields.

“To report fairly, accurately and comprehensively, journalists need a sound knowledge of the sector and the ability to analyze and report on its complexities.”

It added that helping the media to perform its role more effectively will contribute to using natural resources for the public good.

From Esther Awuah, Kampala, Uganda

A section of the participants

Coconut growers in three Nzema districts of the Western region have expressed their determination to support the establishment of a local oil market in the area.

The people of the Ellembelle, Jomoro and Nzema East are mostly engaged in the production of coconut oil which provides employment for about 70 per cent of the working population in the districts.

However, an absence of a local coconut oil market centre in the Nzema area has resulted in high cost of transportation to oil markets outside the region. In addition to that, they lose income through robbery on the highways, coupled with poor pricing of products by market queens in the cities.

They pledged to support the coconut oil processors and marketers to have a common place for sale of coconut oil to improve profitability and enhance the local economy as well as create more employment avenues for the people in the area.

John Nat Awoin, Chairman of the Nzema Coconut Processors and Marketers Association, stated these at a stakeholder’s forum organized by the association at Nkroful in the Ellembelle District last Friday.

The forum, which was on the theme, “Enhancing Coconut Oil Marketing through Establishment of a Local market,” was funded by the BUSAC fund, USAID, International Development Cooperation and DANIDA.

He noted that a common market for the coconut processors would give them a strong bargaining power and help curb highway robbery suffered by the women who transported the products for sale in other regions.

“It will also create an avenue for the three districts to collect tolls and levies from them and use the proceeds for developmental projects.

Mr. Awoin commended BUSAC Fund and Sekondi-Takoradi Chamber of Commerce and Industry for training coconut processors on proper record keeping.

The District Chief Executive for Ellembelle, Daniel k. Eshun, gave the assurance that the assemblies would support the establishment of the proposed coconut oil market.

Mr. Eshun said a local market would be a suitable centre for Essiama Oil Mills and other oil industries and charged the network of oil processors and marketers in the three districts to come to a consensus on a common market place for sale of the product.

The DCE noted that the Government of Ghana, in collaboration with Zoomlion-Ghana, has been nursing hybrid coconut seedlings for supply to coconut farmers for cultivation.

He said the seedlings were highly resistant to the deadly Saint Paul Coconut disease, which had plagued the coconut industry for some time.

According to Emmanuel Otoo, Service Provider for the Association, the establishment of the local market will address the poor pricing of the products by market queens in the cities.

He mentioned that it would also help improve the revenue earnings of oil processors and associated ancillary businesses in the Nzema Districts.

The participants at the stakeholder’s forum proposed either Ayisakro in the Nzema East or Essiama in Ellembelle for the establishment of the new market.

From Emmanuel Opoku, Nkroful

The Executive Director of Image Consortium, Marilyn Efua Houadjeto (left) and The Chief Executive Officer of Stratcomm Africa, Ms Esther Cobbah in a chat after the opening ceremony

The first-ever homes and interior exhibition opened on Friday at the Accra International Conference Centre with a call on Ghanaians to show interest in home and interior designs in order to maintain the beauty of homes, hotels, offices, among others.

The three-day exhibition, which is expected to end on 13 May 2012, was organized by Image Consortium Limited, an event management and logistics company which organizes conferences, seminars and events.

The exhibition, which brought together homemakers and people from all walks of life, was aimed at showcasing creativity in homes.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Stratcomm Africa, Esther Cobbah, who made the call, noted that every individual has an in-born urge to see things nicely arranged, organized and presented in a manner that has a compelling effect on people.

According to her, interior decorators today are in demand than ever before as most are hired to decorate homes and interior.

“I therefore want to encourage our home and interior designers to seize the opportunities offered by the exhibition to present themselves boldly not only to a local clientele but literally to the world.

According to Ms Cobbah, the exhibition would pave way for participants to get international contracts.

“I would encourage all of us to value our own culture and our surroundings and use them as resources for the work.  Our creativity, our ability to make beautiful end products can attract visitors and investors to our country just as much as our natural resources such as gold or oil. Ghanaians should be cultural sensitive”.

She urged Ghanaians to allow African art and creativity to burst out like the African sunshine which pours warmth into the hearts of those who care to visit.

The Executive Director of Image Consortium, Marilyn Efua Houadjeto, on her part, noted that beautiful homes and apartments with exceptional interior finishing were not impossible to find.

According to her, estate developers, furniture and home accessories boutiques must make good use of their talents to assist Ghanaians get well decorated homes.

“Beautiful homes and apartments with exceptional interior finishing are no longer impossible to find. Estate developers, home builders and property owners now have an array of shops, designer furniture and homes accessories boutiques to make a choice from.”

“I am constantly reminded of an old adage, which states it is on the outside but rather what’s on the inside that matters, it is interest that we build.”

 By Stella Danso Addai

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Alhaji Iddrisu Bature and Ex-President Jerry John Rawlings

The Managing Editor of the Al-Hajj newspaper, Alhaji Iddrisu Bature, has taken a swipe at former President Rawlings for describing some leading members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the government as traitors.

According to Alhaji Bature, Mr, Rawlings has consistently vilified President Mills for no apparent logical reason and his recent comments attest to this fact.

The former president, in an encore, launched a scathing attack on members of the Mills-led administration while addressing supporters at a ceremony to mark the 30th anniversary of the formation of the women’s group – 31st December Women’s Movement – on Tuesday.

Reiterating his earlier allegation of corruption against the current government, former President Rawlings said: “How can the government in its desire to hold onto political power demean itself in such a crass manner? Can we sustain hope and strength in this depraved political atmosphere?” adding “the current leadership knows it very well but rather than build on the capacity that the Movement brought to the party, they have chosen to exclude them and do worse than our so-called ‘enemies’ (NPP) were doing between 2000 and 2008.”

Mr Rawlings further added that “this time, however, we are fighting against two enemies – one, the perceived enemy and the other one, the traitor. We cannot fight both at the same time and therefore one has to go.”

But Alhaji Bature, a known sympathizer of the government would have none of that. In an interview on Radio XYZ 93.1 FM’s current affairs programme, What’s New, Alhaji Bature said “this is coming from a confused and a vindictive person.”

He said instead of Mr. Rawlings addressing his own internal family issues and calling Nana Konadu to order, after his wife recently threatened to take back the party’s logo, he spent time bashing a party founded.

“He is now advocating the rejection of the party he has founded. A candidate he has imposed on the NDC party. If this is not a confused mind then I don’t know.” Alhaji Bature said the former first couple and his associates cannot continue to blame the government for cases such as that of the Ya-Na’s murder, which went south.

He added that the accusations of ineffective leadership and corruption leveled against the government by the former first couple are also unfounded as the constitutional courts of the land have adjudicated these cases, stressing “the NDC government cannot rule the country like President Rawlings did between 1982 and 1992.”

He said on the case of accountability, Mr. Rawlings falls afoul of his own much-touted values of probity and accountability because he failed to address parliament on the state of the nation before he left power in 2001.

“Was Rawlings accountable to the people of this country…Did he account for his stewardship,” he queried.

Source: radioxyzonline

Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has said its investigations reveal that its flagbearer for the 2012 elections, Nana Akufo Addo was prevented from entering the Koforidua Midwifery College per the express instructions of the Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service. 

The flagbearer of the NPP was prevented from entering the Midwifery College in the Eastern Region to deliver a talk to the students as part of his ‘Restore Hope Tour’. 

The First Vice Chairman of the NPP in the region, Alhaji Umar Bobinga told Citi News the party was not allowed to use the premises even though they had served notice several days back.

He said “we know by the Constitution of Ghana, we practice politics in tertiary institutions, we sent our application to the principal of the school and he accepted seven clear days before Nana’s arrival.

“Yesterday, around 9 o’clock we had information from the midwifery school that there is a directive from above that they shouldn’t usher Nana Addo into the campus.”

He added: “We went on further to ask the principal, she said we know she is under somebody. This instruction was carried and communicated to her through the regional director of health service.”

Source: Citifmonline

NPP and NDC flags

A former Sekondi Constituency National Democratic Congress Vice Chairman, Alhaji Osumanu Mohammed, and 350 other party members on Tuesday announced their defection to the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).

Addressing a press conference in Sekondi to declare their defection to the NPP, Alhaji Mohammed said they quitted the NDC due to ‘’disrespect to authority in the party’.

He said the Mills’ Government had shown gross disrespect to the founder of the party, ex-President Jerry John Rawlings and his wife, Nana Konadu.

“The way and manner President Mills is handling the NDC and its government, is an apparent deviation from the principles and ethics that molded the NDC from the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC),” he said.

Alhaji Mohammed noted that a cursory assessment and perusal of the unfolding events within the NDC as well as the government was an obvious indication of the fact that there was a lopsided agenda which smacked of clandestine efforts to oust the Rawlings’ from the party.

He added that the current economic hardships presided over by the NDC government was a clear manifestation that the ruling government had nothing good to offer the majority of Ghanaians.

“I can confidently confirm that the NDC government has done nothing to better the lots of Muslims in the Sekondi Zongo Community even though the NDC party touts itself as the only pro-Muslim political party in the country,” he said.

Alhaji Mohammed said the NDC had lost focus and vision to drive this nation forward and, therefore, he had no choice than to quit the party and join the NPP.

He said over the years the NPP had demonstrated quality leadership and good governance during its eight years in office and had proven to be pro-Muslim than the much touted NDC, hence his decision to join it.

He commended the NPP MP for Sekondi, Papa Owusu Ankomah for helping the development efforts of the people of Sekondi by offering scholarships to students, building classroom blocks, computer laboratory, among other social infrastructure.

GNA

From Left - Bless Kugblenu, Hayford Kugblenu, Togbe Sylvester Ansah and Ishmael Koranteng

AS THE battle for votes heats up, it appears the fortunes of the NDC in the Volta region, the ruling government’s ‘World Bank,’ will record a major blow as chiefs, opinion leaders and people of Kpeve in the Hohoe municipality and South Dayi district have vowed to boycott the December elections if their desire for a united Kpeve is not granted.

The beef of the people is that although Kpeve is one traditional area, it has interestingly been divided among two assemblies namely, the South Dayi District Assembly and the Hohoe Municipal Assembly. Now the area has been divided into Kpeve Old Town (Hohoe) and Kpeve New Town (South Dayi).

The people say attempts including numerous petitions to the President, minister for Local Government and Rural Development, former Regional Minster, Joseph Amenowode and the two assemblies to correct the anomaly have proved futile.

They have consequently resolved that they have no other choice than to take drastic measures by boycotting the December elections.

The chiefs and people of Kpeve New Town have also decided to boycott all assembly and traditional council meetings under the Hohoe municipality.

These issues came to light when the Regent of Kpeve Old Town, Togbe Sylvestor Ansah, Kpeve New Town Assembly Member, Ishmael Koranteng, Hayford Kugblenu (Head of Kpeve Old Town Royal Family) and one Bless Kugblenu stormed the Ho offices of DAILY GUIDE last Wednesday.

During their interaction with the paper they showed this reporter their petition to the President signed by Kpeve Old Town Regent, Togbe Samuel Kugblenu in which they explained that there is no existing boundary line between the two Kpeve communities.

This situation has thwarted national exercises such as house numbering, voter registration, and censuses and created misunderstanding and near fatal clashes in the community.

The two communities believe that if they are placed under one district, preferably South Dayi, the boundary issue will be solved.

The regent and his entourage said the worst part is that the land which the South Dayi District Assembly is occupying belongs to Kpeve Old Town which is in the Hohoe District.

Togbe Ansah said they gave out the land in hopes that the twin Kpeve communities will be once again united under the New South Dayi District.

When DAILY GUIDE visited the area it was clear there was no distinct boundary between the two communities.

This reporter observed that the South Dayi Education office and Kpeve Old Town clinic were situated at the same place yet the clinic is under the Hohoe municipality. While some used street lights as the boundary others used electricity and telephone poles as border lines.

 From Fred Duodu, Ho

Dr Bawumia being mobbed at the Juaben Serwaa market on Monday.

The Vice Presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has criticized the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC)  government for pursuing wrong economic policies that have crippled the economy and created unprecedented hardship for majority of Ghanaians.

Speaking at a youth forum at Koforidua in the New Juaben Municipality on Monday, during a tour of the Eastern Region with the party’s flag-bearer, Nana Akufo-Addo, Dr Bawumia, who was a deputy governor of the Bank of Ghana during the NPP’s regime, said the NDC government had borrowed more than any other government, yet the money had not been used prudently to create jobs and boost the economic fortunes of Ghanaians.

“The NDC government, within three years, has borrowed GH¢16 billion, almost tripling Ghana’s foreign debt from GH¢9billion to GH¢25billiion,” he indicated, saying that all these unprecedented borrowing had not been properly invested, with people still crying of hardship.

According to the NPP vice presidential candidate, the NDC government had not been able to pay most local contractors who had executed various road contracts, whilst many teachers and nurses who took post about a year ago had still not been paid.

“Where are all these monies that the NDC has borrowed?” he asked, stressing that corruption had ‘eaten’ a chunk of the money.

“It is not surprising that everybody is complaining about hardship because there are no jobs to do, while many government employees had not been paid so there is no money to spend,” Dr Bawumia said, adding that under the NDC government, the agricultural sector which gave employment to many Ghanaians  had shrunk from 8.4% to 0.8%.

Dr Bawumia said day in and day out, prices of food and other necessities kept rising, with little money in people’s pocket to spend, thereby creating huge economic hardships for the ordinary Ghanaian.

“How can one run an economy like this, creating unprecedented hardships for its citizens,” he noted, stressing that the NDC must be booted out of power for a more competent government to take over and make things better for Ghanaians.

“There is a lot of potential for Ghana’s economy but the way the NDC is governing the country, we are definitely heading for doom.”

The party’s flag-bearer, Nana Akufo-Addo, who was also at the youth forum, said an NPP government under him would be very committed to the creation of jobs for the teeming youth.

He said apart from industrial setups, construction of pavements in most of the cities and towns, as well as afforestation programmes, could also create jobs for Ghanaians.

“When we come to power, we will expand the National Youth Employment Programme which we introduced during Kufour’s regime and add more modules to absorb many of the youth,” he said, adding that the NPP government under him would not go on any witch-hunt and sack any person perceived to be sympathetic to the NDC, from their government job.

“We will create a lot of jobs for people to do so that they can improve on their standards of living,” the NPP flag-bearer noted.

The youth forum, which was put together by the regional youth wing of the party, brought together students, artisans, market women, hawkers, auto mechanics and petty traders.

The National Youth Organizer of the party, Anthony Karbo, praised the regional youth wing for initiating such a forum, and said such forums would be replicated in the other regions.

Earlier on in the day, the flag-bearer and his running mate stormed the Koforidua Juaben Serwaa market, where market women abandoned their wares to give them a rousing welcome.

They were there to interact with the market women and learn from them what the prices of commodities were.

They were mobbed while most of the traders were seen displaying NPP colours on their wares.

 From Thomas Fosu Jnr, Koforidua

Speaker of Parliament, Justice Joyce Adeline Bamford-Addo

PARLIAMENT YESTERDAY reconvened after recess, with the Speaker, Joyce Bamford-Addo calling on Members of Parliament to improve upon their attendance to the House to enable the legislature complete its business for the meeting.

Welcoming MPs to the second meeting of the fourth session of the fifth parliament of the fourth republic, Justice Bamford-Addo said she would need the cooperation of all members as the work load in the House was enormous.

“The present meeting will be hectic as we have a lot of business to conduct. I trust honourable members will, as usual, continue to give the chair and the leadership the needed cooperation and improve their attendance to the House to enable us complete our business on time”, she urged.

Speaker Bamford-Addo indicated she was aware the MPs did not have the opportunity to rest and invigorate themselves as a result of many pressures, including the just-ended biometric voters’ registration exercise.

“But as exhausting as your work has been, I wish to state that this is all about the call to national service as Members of Parliament and sacrifices associated with it”, she noted.

Meanwhile, the MPs were also welcomed by a highly discomforting stench from all the washrooms in the House as the taps were not running.

The smell emanated from the lavatories and got more intense in the corridor leading to the main chamber and the Speaker’s chamber.

However, workers, particularly the Zoomlion staff, got busy trying to make things more comfortable for the parliamentary proceedings.

Minister for Environment, Science and Technology, Sherry Aryitey, was in the House, answering three questions from MPs on environmental pollution.

During this meeting, the House is expected to consider a number of bills.  There would be 18 new bills, including the National Youth Employment Bill, National Sports Bill, Public Holiday Amendment Bill, National Youth Bill, Rent Bill and Gold Fund Bill.

Others are the Integrated Aluminum Authority Bill 2012, Tax Revenue Bill, Ghana Civil Aviation Amendment Bill, Public Officers Code of Conduct Bill, Enforcement of Foreign  Judgment Bill, Off- shore Petroleum (Health& safety) Bill 2012 and Integrated Aluminum Authority Bill,2012.

Three bills which are at the consideration stage would also be considered, whilst others at the second reading include the Ghana AIDS Commission (amendment) Bill 2012 and Criminal Offences (amendment) Bill.

 Bills at the second consideration stage include the Intestate Succession Bill 2009, Public Health Bill, 2011; University of Professional Studies Bill 2011.

Bills at the committee stage are; Electoral Commission (Amendment) Bill 2009, Right to Information Bill, Property Rights Of Spouses Bill 2009; General Health Services Bill,  Traditional and Alternative Medicine  Bill, Health Professors Regulatory Bodies Bill, Development and Classification of Films Bill 2011 and  National  Health  Insurance Bill 2011.

Instruments to be laid include Noise Regulation, Road Traffic Regulation, 2012; BNI Regulations 2012, National Accreditation Board Regulation 2012.

 By Awudu Mahama

Alfred Agbesi Woyome

Counsel for Alfred Agbesi Woyome, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) bankroller, and the state attorney handling the case in which the state is seeking to claim a GH¢51,283,480.83 judgment debt paid to Woyome, yesterday asked an Accra Commercial Court to adjourn the case.

Musah Ahmed,   counsel for Woyome, and Dorothy Afriyie Ansah, the state attorney, both told the court presided over by Justice Barbara Ackah-Yensu that the Court of Appeal would on May 22, 2012 hear the application filed by Woyome to stop the court from hearing the case till the final determination of the Appeal.

Woyome has also appealed against the decision of the trial judge to grant the Attorney-General the opportunity to file their amended statement of case which the Appeal Court is expected to give a verdict on.

The trial judge had the matter adjourned to May 23, 2012.

The court last week Monday dismissed the preliminary objection raised by lawyers of Woyome that the court did not have jurisdiction to review a GH¢500 cost awarded against the state.

The State is seeking a downward review of the GH¢500 cost awarded against it for failing to prosecute the case in which lawyers for Mr. Woyome had challenged it on procedural grounds.

Arguing against the procedure adopted by the A-G, Osafo Buabeng, counsel for Woyome, said “It is the Court of Appeal that has the jurisdiction to hear the motion and not the Commercial Court.”

Dr. Benjamin Kunbuor

However, the court ruled that it had the jurisdiction to review the GH¢500 cost awarded against the state but would wait for the Court of Appeal.

Justice Ackah-Yensu was not pleased with the conduct of the Attorney-General and awarded cost of GH¢500 against the state.

Woyome, who was dissatisfied with the ruling, filed an appeal challenging the decision of the High Court.

In addition, Woyome filed for a stay of proceedings to restrain the lower court from hearing the matter between him and the AG till the final determination of the appeal.

Counsel for Woyome, led by Osafo Buabeng, challenged the High Court’s jurisdiction to hear the application while there was an appeal pending on the issue.

Dorothy Afriyie Ansah, a state attorney, moved an application for a review of the cost awarded against the state for its inability to commence the case in which it was contesting with Woyome to reclaim a judgment debt of GH¢51,283,480.59 paid to him.

The lawyer argued that per the rules of the court, when an appeal was filed, the court of first instance had to transmit record of proceedings to the appellate court to determine the matter.

In view of that, when there was an application while the appeal was pending, it was the appellate court that had the jurisdiction to hear the matter and not the high court.

The state attorney, who also based her argument on Order 42 Rule 2, argued that the parties did not have the same common grounds in the appeal since the State was challenging the appeal.

According to her, the judge, under that order, could go ahead to review the cost.

Arguing further, Mr Buabeng told the court that it was wrong for the state to have brought her application under the said order, indicating that the appropriate one should rather be Order 74 Rule 12 because it was the proper order dealing with review of cost in civil matters.

By Fidelia Achama

Harrison Afful

Ghana coach Kwesi Appiah has named his 30-man squad for next month’s 2014 World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho and Zambia.

Europe-based youngsters Ishmael Yartey and Christian Atsu were among the six players who were handed their maiden Black Stars call-ups.

Nine home-based players were also named in the squad with Berekum Chelsea trio of Ernest Sowah, Emmanuel Clottey and Richard Kissi Boateng included.

The team will start a non-residential camp in Accra on 21 May, 2012.

The squad will be pruned before the team departs to Kumasi on 27th May ahead of the match against Lesotho on 1st June, 2012.

Ghana face Lesotho in Kumasi for Appiah’s first game before they play Zambia on June 9 in Ndorla.

Ghana Squad

Goalkeepers: Adam Kwarasey (Stromsgodset, Norway), Robert Dabuo (Wa All Stars), Daniel Adjei (Liberty Professionals), Ernest Sowah (Berekum Chelsea)

Defenders: Samuel Inkoom (Dnipro, Ukraine), Daniel Opare (Standard Liege, Belgium), Harrison Afful (Esperance, Tunisia), Richard Kissi Boateng (Berekum Cheslea), Masawudu Alhassan (Genoa, Italy), John Boye (Rennes, France), Lee Addy (Dalian Aerbin, China), Daniel Addo (Arsenal Kyiv, Ukraine) Rashid Sumaila (Dwarfs), Jerry Akaminko (Manisaspor, Turkey), Isaac Vorsah (Hoffenheim, Germany)

Midfielders: Anthony Annan (Vitesse Arnhem, Netherlands), Derek Boateng (Dnipro, Ukraine), Emmanuel Agyemang Badu (Udinese ,Italy), Rabiu Mohammed (Evian, France) Richard Mpong (Medema) Albert Adomah (Bristol City, England), Christian Atsu (Rio Ave, Portugal), Ishamel Yartey, (Servette, Switzerland), Sulley Muntari (AC Milan, Italy), Kwadwo Asamoah (Udinese, Italy).

Forwards: Jordan Ayew (Marseille, France), Dominic Adiyiah (Arsenal Kyiv, Ukraine), Ben Acheampong (Kotoko), Emmanuel Baffour (New Edubiase), Emmanuel Clottey (Berekum Chelsea).

Source: Ghanafa

Carlos Tevez

Manchester United have accepted an apology from Manchester City over a controversial placard held up by Carlos Tevez during their title celebrations.

City striker Tevez, formerly of United, was filmed on TV with a sign which read ‘RIP Fergie’ during his club’s open-top bus tour of Manchester city centre with the Barclays Premier League trophy.

The banner, thought to have been passed onto the bus by a fan, may have referred to a remark by United boss Sir Alex Ferguson three years ago when asked if his side would ever be underdogs against City.

“Not in my lifetime,” the Scot said.

City reacted quickly on Monday night to express “sincerest apologies” while Tevez also spoke of his regret.

United chief executive David Gill told Sky Sports News: “I think it’s right. The club acted pretty quickly.

“I think it was rather silly, frankly, in terms of what it said, but City acted with commendable speed.

“We move on and concentrate on other issues.”

Tevez, who joined City from United in 2009, said he “got carried away in the excitement of the moment”.

The Football Association are looking into the matter after chairman David Bernstein also described the Argentinian’s actions as “silly”.

: Kyeremeh (L) in a discussion with Clottey on arrival

The pitting of Berekum Chelsea against giants like Al Ahly, TP Mazembe and Zamalek in the Champions League draw, has spurred them on rather than putting them down.

Club president Emmanuel Kofi Kyeremeh told DAILY GUIDE SPORTS shortly after the Cairo draw, “We are not perturbed by the draw. It is good for us. In fact, it has rather challenged us to go the extra mile. Some of the players have called me to give me an assurance that they armed to the teeth for the task.

“I have realized the boys give their best shot when the task is arduous: They did it against Raja, and recently Coton Spot. The good news is our record shows that we fare well when we travel.”

“We won two of our games on foreign soils, even the one we lost against Raja, the first half was barren. I can’t really tell what accounted for the three goals.

“We are putting our house in order for the challenge ahead. I believe we will qualify for the semi final,” Kyeremeh added.

Group A has defending champions Esperance of Tunisia, Sunshine Stars, Etoile du Sahel and AS Chlef.

Chelsea have determined and disciplined players, one of whom- Emmanuel Clottey- is the competition’s top scorer with six goals, and they are   hungry for success.

 By Kofi Owusu Aduonum

CK Akunnor

GLORIOUS HEARTS Of Oak are leaving no stone unturned in their pursuit of dethroning rivals Kotoko for the league title next season so they want to poach quality materials for the season ahead.

Reports reaching DAILY GUIDE SPORTS indicate that Hearts want to sign Ibrahim Moro of New Edubiase to beef their squad in order to make it winsome next season.

Ibrahim Moro has improved significantly in almost all the matches that he had featured for New Edubiase this season and his significant rise has caught the attention of Hearts.

The phobians are reported to have given their scouting officials the green light to open talks with Moro who, reports emerging indicate, has been charmed by the Hearts interest.

Though Hearts of Oak and Moro are yet to finalize a contract, observers believe that both parties will soon reach a deal for the player to make the switch from New Edubiase to Accra next season.

FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi

Samson Deen, CEO, Africa Origin

The president of African Origin Travels and Sports Tourism, Samson Deen, has said Chelsea’s sensational Champions League feat will boost tourism.

To Deen, their qualification to the group stages would boost local tourism, advising the club owners to put proper structures in place to package the team.

“It is a great door of opportunity for the team and the tourism industry in the country. Chelsea should open up and it will pay off,” Deen said in an interview.

“What it means is that more people will travel to watch when a team like Esperance or Etoile is playing in Ghana. The hotel industry at the match venue will benefit as well as traders in the location.

“Internationally, being an up-and-coming club, and not the traditional ones like Hearts and Kotoko, many will be keen to monitor their progress considering the fact that they have conquered giants like Raja and Coton Sport,” he added.

Meanwhile, African Origin, with specialty in sports tourism, has congratulated Berekum Chelsea on their qualification to the group stages of the CAF Champions League.

“We at African Origin say ‘ayekoo’ for doing yourselves and Ghana proud. It is our prayer that you go the extra mile to win the ultimate,” Deen noted.

Chelsea qualified to the money zone of the Champions League, beating Coton Sport 2-1 at their backyard last Sunday after a 0-0 stalemate in the first leg in Ghana.

By Kofi Owusu Aduonum

Kwasi Appiah

Ghana coach Kwesi Appiah will announce his squad for the upcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers this week.
The Black Stars will come up against Lesotho on June 1 in Kumasi in the opening Group D match before they make a trip away against African champions, Zambia on June 9.
The full squad would be announced first on www.ghanafa.org, the Black Stars coach confirmed.
“I will name my team this week. We are on schedule with our planning towards the opening games,” Kwesi Appiah said.
The Black Stars are attempting a third-straight qualification to the World Cup finals after appearances in 2006 and 2010.

Ernest Sowah

Ghana’s only representatives in the CAF Champions League, Berekum Chelsea, were handed a tough draw in the group stage of the competition where they will face three former champions.
Chelsea, making their debut after winning the domestic league last season, will take on TP Mazembe, Al Ahly and Zamalek in Group B.
The Berekum side, which has the competition’s leading scorer, Emmanuel Clottey in their fold with six goals, must overcome tough tests in the last mini-league of the Champions League to inch closer to the semi-finals.

They will be traveling to Congo to meet Mazembe and make a double trip to Egypt where Ahly and Zamalek are based as they have six group matches lined up.
Chelsea will know not to take their opponents lightly after they qualified for the last 8 at the expense of Raja Casablanca and Coton Sport.
In Group A, holders Esperance are joined by fellow Tunisian side Etoile du Sahel, Sunshine Stars and AS Chlef.

FA

Majid Jamali Fashi delivered a "confession" on Iranian television

A man convicted of killing an Iranian nuclear scientist in Tehran two years ago has been hanged, Iran’s state media report.

Majid Jamali Fashi, 24, was convicted of killing Professor Massoud Ali Mohammadi by detonating a bomb outside his home in January 2010.

Fashi was also accused of being a spy for the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad and receiving $120,000 (£72,000) for the killing.

Israel does not comment on such claims.

“Majid Jamali Fashi, the Mossad spy and the person who assassinated Masoud Ali Mohammadi, our nation’s nuclear scientist was hanged on Tuesday morning,” Iran’s Irna news agency reported.

Professor Massoud Ali Mohammadi was a particle physics professor at Tehran University. He is one of several high-profile nuclear scientists to have been killed in Tehran in recent years.

Iran has repeatedly accused Israel and the US of trying to harm its nuclear programme.

The two countries believe Iran is trying to acquire the technology to build nuclear weapons – something Tehran denies.

The country says it is developing its uranium enrichment program for peaceful purposes.

Fashi, who was tried and convicted in August 2011, appeared on Iranian TV in January confessing to the professor’s killing, and giving details of the intelligence gathering operation he said he was involved in.

Opposition sources in Iran have accused the government of killing Professor Mohammadi because he was one of their supporters.

BBC

Francois Hollande with Nicolas Sarkozy at the Elysee Palace

Francois Hollande has been sworn in as president of France, becoming the first Socialist in 17 years to occupy the Elysee Palace.

Mr Hollande will later name his prime minister and fly to Berlin for talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

He will try to “find a compromise” over the German-led focus on austerity as the way out of the economic crisis.

On Monday, the value of stock markets and the euro fell amid continuing political uncertainty in Greece.

The chairman of the eurozone finance ministers, Jean-Claude Juncker, insisted on Monday night that they would do “everything possible” to keep Greece in the euro.

Mr Juncker said he looked forward to the swift formation of a new Greek government, nine days after the general election.

But he also warned that Greece had to continue the “significant efforts” already made to restructure its economy despite these policies having been rejected by a majority of voters.

Cabinet posts

Mr Hollande was sworn in for a five-year term at the Elysee Palace in central Paris.

Outgoing President Nicolas Sarkozy shook hands with his successor in the palace’s courtyard before leading him inside for a private meeting, at which France’s nuclear launch codes were handed over.

The new leader asked that the inauguration ceremony be kept as low-key as possible, and invited just three dozen or so personal guests to join the 350 officials attending. Neither Mr Hollande’s children nor those of his partner, Valerie Trierweiler, were there.

The ceremony will be followed by the traditional procession in an open-topped car along the Avenue des Champs-Elysees and the laying of the wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under the Arc de Triomphe.

Mr Hollande will then pay tribute to the 19th-Century educational reformer Jules Ferry and the Nobel Prize-winning chemist Marie Curie.

His first lunch as president will be with the former Socialist prime ministers Pierre Mauroy, Laurent Fabius, Michel Rocard, Edith Cresson and Lionel Jospin.

The BBC’s Christian Fraser in Paris says the 57 year old has spent the past week preparing to take up the presidency, and now the work begins in earnest.

His first job is to name a new prime minister, who our correspondent says will most likely be Jean-Marc Ayrault, leader of the Socialist group in parliament, a German speaker and a close ally.

Michel Sapin, a key economic adviser to Mr Hollande, is tipped to be finance minister.

‘Compromises’

On Tuesday afternoon, Mr Hollande will fly to Germany for dinner with Chancellor Merkel, who says she will welcome the new leader “with open arms”.

But her embrace will hide some embarrassment, says the BBC’s Europe editor Gavin Hewitt, after Mrs Merkel openly supported Mr Sarkozy in the election battle.

“We don’t think the same on everything,” Mr Hollande acknowledged on French television on Monday. “We’ll tell each other that so that together we can reach good compromises.”

Mr Hollande has demanded that a European fiscal pact that cracked down on overspending be renegotiated to include a greater emphasis on measures to stimulate growth, while Germany insists the treaty must be respected.

Whatever their differences, the crisis in the eurozone will put them under huge pressure to compromise, our correspondent says.

As the eurozone’s two biggest economies – and biggest contributors to its bailout funds – Germany and France are key decision-makers over the strategy supposed to pull Europe out of crisis.

According to official figures released on Tuesday morning, the French economy showed no growth in the first quarter of 2012. Growth in the final quarter of 2011 was also revised down to 0.1% from 0.2%.

However, Germany’s economy grew by a stronger than expected 0.5% in the first three months of the year.

Following his German trip, Mr Hollande will hold his first cabinet meeting on Thursday followed by a visit to Washington to meet US President Barack Obama on Friday.

BBC

Nato has hit back at a report urging the alliance to investigate fully the deaths of civilians in air strikes in Libya last year.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) said at least 72 civilians had been killed in the strikes and the bloc needed to bear responsibility where appropriate.

But Nato’s spokeswoman said the campaign was conducted “with unprecedented care and precision”.

She said Nato “did everything possible to minimise risks to civilians”.

“But in a complex military campaign, that risk can never be zero,” spokeswoman Oana Lungescu acknowledged.

She added that the alliance “looked into each credible allegation” of harm to civilians and “confirmed that the specific targets struck by Nato were legitimate military targets”.

Aircraft from the US, the UK and France conducted most of the 9,658 strike sorties last year, targeting forces loyal to Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi.

The point of the Nato air campaign in Libya last year was to protect civilians, so how many innocent people died is still a sensitive issue, BBC diplomatic correspondent Bridget Kendall reports. 

‘Position of denial’

In its report published on Monday, the US-based HRW said it had examined in detail evidence of claims of civilian deaths from eight separate Nato strikes.

In one instance, it said a first bomb killed 14 people and a second, moments later, killed 18 more who had rushed to help victims.

“We’re calling for prompt, credible and thorough investigations,” HRW’s Fred Abrahams, the main author of the report, told BBC News.

Mr Abrahams says Nato refuses to acknowledge the deaths and has offered no compensation to families.

“Until now, Nato has taken a position of denial,” he said.

“I think it will lead to unnecessary civilian deaths in the future if Nato refuses to look at what went wrong and make corrections.”

In March, another human rights organisation, Amnesty International, said it had documented 55 cases of named civilians, including 16 children and 14 women, killed in air strikes.

It said Nato had failed to investigate these cases thoroughly.

Adel Ebsat, a relative of three victims who died from an air strike near the eastern town of Zlitan, told the BBC he had repeatedly asked the Libyan government to launch a case against Nato and for an investigation to be carried out.

But there appears to be a reluctance by Libyan officials to hold Nato accountable for any civilian deaths that may have been caused by air strikes, the BBC’s Rana Jawad in Tripoli reports.

Most Libyans feel that the alliance helped the country succeed in its uprising against Col Gaddafi, which toppled and killed him last year, our correspondent says.

The overwhelming belief, she adds, is that countless deaths were avoided because of the West’s intervention.

Nato has stressed that it is ready to co-operate with the new Libyan authorities in assessing what further action is appropriate.

However, the alliance says it cannot take responsibility because it has had no presence on the ground to confirm the deaths.

BBC

The accounts of the Nigerian Embassy in Washington DC and the Nigerian Mission in New York might have been frozen by the Bank of America and Wells Fargo, two leading financial institutions in the United States of America over alleged money laundering activities.

Sources informed African Examiner that the action of the banks was sequel to a suspicious money transfer remitted to the United States from Nigeria.

Following the suspicious transactions in favor of the accounts between February and May this year, the two banks requested the mission to explain the source of the funds which the Mission could not immediately avail the financial institutions.

Consequently the sanction had adversely impacted on the finances of the Mission which has made it extremely difficult for the Embassy to pay its operational bills and staff salaries.

These monies wired from Nigeria were aside from the regular money that normally comes into the embassy accounts to run its operation and other official activities.

Our source said the embassy was unable to provide satisfactory explanation for about $3.6 million that was wired into the accounts prompting the banks to freeze the accounts till further notice.

African Examiner also learnt that these monies are allegedly wired into the accounts of the embassy by some state governors and other government functionaries, and when they arrive in the US, the embassy would make the money available to them.

This perhaps helps these officials to beat some security hiccups which may arise at the point of entry into the US if they are to carry the huge amount of money with them. It is not clear whether the two US leading banks have the right to freeze accounts of a diplomatic mission.

In view of this development, our source said auditors have been flown in from Nigeria to reconcile the embassy’s books.

In his reaction to the issues, Amb. Adefuye, the Nigerian Ambassador to the US told African Examiner that “It is simply false.

How can an account that does not exist be frozen? I know that the New York consulate which is part of my mission has no account with these banks.”

Meanwhile Wells Fargo spokesperson could not immediately comment on the issue over the weekend but promised to properly look into the matter and get back to us.

However, Bank of America spokesperson did not answer our phone calls and has not replied our email as at press time.

Source: The Examiner

US President Barack Obama

*With the tailwinds of a fresh same-sex marriage endorsement at his back, President Barack Obama flew into Los Angeles on Thursday to attend a star-studded fundraiser hosted by George Clooney.

Chef Wolfgang Puck fed the roughly 150 guests, including Barbara Streisand and her husband James Brolin, Billy Crystal, Selma Hayak and Robert Downey Jr. The event, held under a stretched transparent tent outside Clooney’s sprawling tudor-styled canyon home, raised nearly $15 million, a record for a single fundraiser.

The guests paid $40,000 to attend, accounting for about $6 million of the evening’s financial haul for Obama’s campaign and the Democratic Party. The remainder came from a raffle for small dollar donors. Two winners — both women — got to take part in the dinner and, even though Clooney was the host, they brought their husbands.

According to the AP, Obama didn’t even need to mention gay marriage to get a vigorous applause. “Obviously,” the president said obliquely, “yesterday we made some news.”

After a round of applause, Obama continued: “But the truth is it was a logical extension of what America is supposed to be. It grew directly out of this difference in visions. Are we a country that includes everybody and gives everybody a shot and treats everybody fairly and is that going to make us stronger. Are we welcoming to immigrants? Are we welcoming to people who aren’t like us, does that make us stronger? I believe it does. So that’s what’s at stake.”

He also told the crowd that his iconic Hope poster from the 2008 campaign was derived from a photograph of him sitting next to Clooney when Obama was a U.S. senator. Clooney had been in Washington advocating on behalf of Darfur.

“This is the first time that George Clooney has ever been photo-shopped out of a picture,” Obama said. “Never happened before, never happen again.”

In fact, the artist who created the poster, Shepard Fairey, used another photograph of Obama but said he relied on the Obama-Clooney picture to avoid a copyright infringement case with The Associated Press. He pleaded guilty in February to criminal contempt for fabricating and destroying evidence.

“We raised a lot of money because people love George,” Obama said. “They like me; they love George.”

Then seriously, he added: “He seems to occupy a constant state of grace, and uses his extraordinary talents on behalf of something truly important.”

Puck’s dinner menu included an artichoke salad followed by roasted duckling “Peking style” with tiny buns, a duo of lamb and beef cheek with potatoes and Brussels sprouts, and sweet corn tortelloni.

Also attending the dinner were actors Jack Black and Tobey Maguire, who shared a table with Clooney and Clooney’s girlfriend Stacey Kiebler.

Heading to Clooney’s house, along the exclusive canyon roads, families gathered at dinner time to gawk, wave and cheer the presidential motorcade. Children manned a lemonade stand with a sign: “Presidents drink free.”

Around the corner, a boy held up another hand-drawn piece of cardboard: “Will trade Lakers for Bulls if you stop.”

And yet one more: “Our gay family says thanks Mr. President.”

Source: eurweb

US President Barack Obama

*In the first 90 minutes after news of President Obama’s support of gay marriage Wednesday, his campaign banked $1 million in spontaneous contributions, according to BuzzFeed.

“This is beyond unifying — it’s electrifying,” said Eugene Sepulveda, a former fundraiser for Obama who withdrew to take a non-political job early this year. “This man stands for right, despite the political consequences.”

Jeff Soref, a longtime Democratic activist in the gay community, told BuzzFeed: “I think the people who were disappointed by the president’s failure to support marriage quality will now have that barrier removed for them.”

Indeed, top gay donors have been using their expensive access to bend Obama’s ear on the issue for years. Some now feel that their specific pleas have been answered.

“There have been a lot of us urging him to do this for a very long time. I imagine he and Michele felt some pain for us after North Carolina yesterday,” said another longtime gay Obama bundler. “There are more LGBT co-chairs across the country are raising more money than we’ve ever raised. And you’ll see a lot more of that now,” the bundler said.

Soref said that aside from energizing supporters, Obama’s decision sharpens the choice for the general election.

“There is a contrast between the President and Mitt Romney, and this clarified the contrast, and that will help with fundraising,” he said.

The Obama campaign sees the announcement and the contrast with Romney’s position, as playing into the campaign’s narrative of Obama as the forward-looking candidate and Romney as the one of the past.

Source: eurweb

US President Barack Obama

US President Barack Obama has ended months of hedging on the issue of gay marriage by saying he thinks same-sex couples should be able to wed.

He has become the first sitting US president to back gay marriage.

Mitt Romney, the Republican who is set to challenge Mr Obama for the White House in November’s elections, promptly said he was against gay marriage.

In recent days, Vice-President Joe Biden and cabinet member Arne Duncan had expressed support for gay unions.

A Gallup poll on Tuesday suggested that 50% of Americans were in favour of legalising gay marriage – a slightly lower proportion than last year – while 48% said they would oppose such a move.

The interview with ABC News was apparently hastily arranged as Mr Obama came under mounting pressure to clarify his position on the issue.

“At a certain point, I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married,” Mr Obama told ABC.

He pointed to his administration’s commitment to increasing rights for gay citizens. He cited the repeal of the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy and said his administration had dropped support for the Defense of Marriage Act.

“I’ve stood on the side of broader equality for the LGBT community. I hesitated on gay marriage in part because I thought civil unions would be sufficient,” Mr Obama said.

He said he had changed his views after seeing gay members of his own staff who were in “incredibly committed monogamous relationships”, and service personnel who felt constrained by not being able to wed.

Mr Obama also said discussions with his own family had helped the “evolution” of his views on the issue.

“There have been times where Michelle and I have been sitting around the dinner table and… Malia and Sasha, it wouldn’t dawn on them that somehow their friends’ parents would be treated differently,” Mr Obama said.

“It doesn’t make sense to them and frankly, that’s the kind of thing that prompts a change in perspective.”

In 2010, Mr Obama said his views on the issue were “evolving”, a stance that had frustrated gay rights supporters and donors.

His comments aired on Wednesday come a day after North Carolina approved a constitutional amendment effectively banning same-sex marriage or civil unions. 

The Obama campaign had opposed that measure, which was passed with 61% in favour and 39% against.

In the US, 31 states have passed constitutional amendments or legislation against same-sex marriage.

Meanwhile, Mr Romney set the stage for an election year clash over the polarising social issue by saying he was against gay marriage.

The former Massachusetts governor told a Fox News affiliate: “I do not favour marriage between people of the same gender, and I do not favour civil unions if they are identical to marriage other than by name.

“My view is the domestic partnership benefits, hospital visitation rights, and the like are appropriate but that the others are not.”

BBC

Nadia Buari and mum at the Silverbird Cinema on monday

Ghanaian celebrities seem to have a problem with the media and they are not hiding their frustrations, with ace actress Nadia Buari being the latest to join the complaints wagon.

The beautiful actress, over the weekend, poured out her heart on how she feels about journalists and how they handle her stories when NEWS-ONE attempted to speak with her concerning her latest movie ‘Heroes & Zeroes’.

“You are probably going to twist whatever I’m going to say. Journalists are always waiting for one bad news to sell their papers.

Journalists are not willing to tell the truth. They are only willing to sell their papers.”

The actress however failed to point out a particular instance when she was misquoted or her interview was twisted.

Rather, she said she would not go into details but claimed there instances where a single sentence or comment from her was blown out of proportion.

Actor Majid Michel recently expressed similar frustrations when he met Nigerian journalists during the 2012 AMMAs.

The Nigerian media had reported that American actor Morris Chestnut had passed derogatory comments about the Eko Hotel in Lagos and Majid attempted defending his colleague actor.

“Journalists are always writing stuff, we can’t stop them. Keep writing until the day you die. Write what you want, make your money; bring twenty percent to us if you make the money.

Nothing is wrong here, this is a wonderful hotel. I don’t know what they are writing about the hotel.

They are always writing fake stories, fiction, negative stuff, I don’t know why but be careful,” Majid warned.

Nadia, in her interview with NEWS-ONE, denied media reports that she was taking acting lessons in the United States of America to pave way for her to get into Hollywood.

She said it was not true and if such a thing was happening, she wouldn’t hesitate to let her teeming fans know about it.

“I don’t know where they got the story from,” Nadia noted.

According to the beautiful actress who graduated from the University of Ghana with a degree in Fine Arts, she studied a similar course while in the university.

Therefore even if she would be studying in Hollywood, it would not be acting as circulated by a section of the media.

Nadia’s ‘Heroes and Zeros’ movie is a story of the destructive pursuance of Tonia (Nadia Buari) by Amos Fele (Bimbo Manuel).

Ten years ago, Amos Fele was a wealthy celebrity director in the Nigerian film industry.

Now he lives in a ramshackle flat, doing occasional low-paying TV commercials for nameless products.

He’s a daily comic relief on the local soccer practice pitch; because though he’s already 45 years old, he nurses a new, insane dream of making it into the dollar-soaked world of international soccer!

His joyless marriage to Tinuke (Tina Mba), a junior bank worker, is crumbling fast, especially after the death of their only child.

A boost to his sagging spirit comes when a big-budget French-Nigerian film project appoints him as director.

Suddenly, the press begins to (re)celebrate him. Top actors and producers begin to call him.

To his wife’s distress, Fele also quickly reestablishes his waning reputation as a first-class womanizer.

Fele’s new rise coincides with that of Dibu Ijele (Gabriel Afolayan) as Yellow Journalism’s new enfant terrible. Dibu is a reporter with Naija Scene, a weekly tabloid.

The paper’s new board of directors (led by Olu Jacobs), with its eyes on profit, supports Dibu’s theory that the only way to beat the competition is to scoop and sell dirt about anyone with a famous face or name.

Dibu’s editor, Mr. Ayodele Alisa (Akin Lewis), an urbane fellow, tries to fight him and the board.

Fele becomes obsessed with Tonia, a ravishing beauty and lead actress of the Nigerian-French film project.

Ignoring the warnings of his best friend, Nnamdi (Norbert Young), a psychology professor, Fele pursues his obsession with Tonia to its tragic conclusion: losing his new job, ending his marriage and ending up in a mental hospital.

Unknown to him, Tonia and her sister, Bisola, have something up their sleeves.

The movie will be premiered on June 8 at the Silverbird Cinema in Accra for movie fans to see for themselves.

Nadia promised that if proper and favourable arrangements were made, she would be at the movie’s premiere.

She said she had not been at some of her movie premieres in the past because she was not informed about such premieres.

Nadia said it was an amazing experience working on set of ‘Heroes & Zeroes’ with Olu Jacobs, Tina Mba, Akin Lewis, Funsho Adeolu, Norbert Young, Linda Ejiofor, Gabriel Afolayan, Jude Urhorra, Brigette Cherile and others.

Source: News-One

Kiki Banson and Becca

Ghana’s award-winning sensational Afro-pop musician, Rebecca Acheampong, who goes by the stage name Becca, is reported to have reignited her love relationship with her manager-turned-lover, Kiki Banson of EKB Records.

Though the two had always denied being in a love relationship, NEWS-ONE reported last month that the two had been in a deep love relationship for the past three years but the relationship hit the rocks because Becca was apparently dating one of her GIMPA mates, a handsome deep-pocketed married man who goes by the name Carl.

The ‘Carl’ factor nearly marred the Becca-Kiki love affair and their relationship got so strained that the celebrated musician, according to reports, was moving from EKB Records.

She was said to have planned moving to either Black Capricon belonging to ace broadcaster Kofi Otchere Darko aka KOD, or Sparrows Productions belonging to award-winning movie producer/director Shirley Frimpong Manso.

Freshest reports on Becca and Kiki say the two love-birds have somewhat settled their differences and reunited.

They were spotted together in Kumasi during the birthday celebrations of the Asantehene and reports say they have again been seen together in several parts of Accra behaving like lovers.

A source close to the two told NEWS-ONE that Kiki recently ended his marriage to a Ghanaian based in the USA, adding that his relationship with Becca was one of the factors that led to the breakup of the marriage.

Another source close to the EKB studios at Tesano has also told NEWS-ONE of a series of open quarrels between Kiki and Becca.

The source stays in a story building that shares a wall with EKB Records and therefore sees what transpires on the compound.

Another interesting observation is that the black-coloured BMW X-5 believed to belong to Carl, that was often seen at Becca’s newly acquired luxuriously furnished three-bedroom house at East Legon in Accra, has never been spotted at the place since NEWS-ONE broke the story last month.

Our reliable source close to EKB Records said Kiki, after the story broke, bragged in the studios that he was dragging NEWS-ONE to court.

The paper has therefore decided to reserve its arsenals on the two as well as Carl and release them when the legal battle starts.

Source: News-One

K.K Kabobo

The Ghana Music Rights Organization’s (GHAMRO) anti-piracy taskforce, made up of police personnel and task force members, yesterday announced that it was ready to embark on a nationwide anti-piracy exercise to arrest all those involved in music piracy in the country.

The executives of GHAMRO, who expressed concern about the increasing rate of music piracy in the country, warned those involved that it was ready to intensify its war against all those who had deprived musicians in the country of their daily bread.

The purpose of the anti-piracy exercise is to arrest several persons who engaged in illegal downloading and sale of music and audiovisual works which violated Ghana’s Copyright Laws and International Treaties.

Piracy does not only rob musicians of their expected revenue, but significantly tampers with the quality of their products, thereby causing public disaffection against them.

According to GHAMRO executives, the exercise, which began a couple of weeks ago in Accra, would be extended to other parts of the country, adding that the activities of music pirates had brought untold hardships upon musicians and music producers, who lost heavy investments through such illegal activities.

The activities of pirates, GHAMRO pointed out, if not checked, could kill creativity in the music industry as the pirates were living on the sweat and toil of musicians and music producers.

GHAMRO warned that music sellers should desist from selling pirated musical works and rather purchase original copies of music produced from authentic sources.

 By George Clifford Owusu

Yvonne Nelson

Actress Yvonne Nelson is staging a comeback this month in a role with ladies’ man Chris Attoh and a host of others in an upcoming movie titled ‘Single & Married’ by Media GH.

The two are working together for the first time and reports from the movie’s set over the weekend assured Ghanaian movie enthusiasts to brace up for a thrilling experience when the movie finally hits the big screens.

Pictures from the set are interesting, with one capturing Yvonne and Chris in a wedding scene.  Anita Erskine and songstresses Efya and Tiffany are some of the stars on the set and sources say there is a more interesting cast list to be made public soon. Nadia Buari is also on the set of the movie.

A-list actresses Nadia and Yvonne last starred together in 2009 when they appeared in ‘Heart of Men’. It has been four years since then and their new movie is expected to clear the air on rumours that they don’t see eye to eye. Some interesting things are happening on set as reports say Chris Attoh has good chemistry with Efya and the two were in some sizzling kissing scenes which amazed director Pascal Amanfo.

Last week reports said Efya and Anita Erskine were joining the movie industry. Efya’s decision interestingly raised a lot of arguments, with some people in support of her move and others against it. Signals from the set indicate that she is doing well. Tiffany, who just released a new single ‘Akye Wo’, is the latest to join the cast. The movie’s story has been described as captivating and an everyday story that the ordinary African can relate to. It will be told in a narrative form, with Anita Erskine as the narrator while Yvonne, Nadia and Chris play the lead. Anita is reportedly ‘killing’ her role with her celebrated eloquence while Chris appears to be taking his bad boy role to the next level. Yvonne and Nadia’s roles are a bit relaxed in this movie while Efya and Chris’ “shake the levels”, according to the source.

Apart from photos of Yvonne and Chris in the wedding scene, there were group photos from the set.

By Francis Addo      

Blakk Rasta and KOD

Ghana’s multi award-winning conscious reggae superstar, Blakk Rasta, last Friday, May 11, staged a concert at the Nsawam Prisons to celebrated Bob Marley Day with the inmates.

During the concert, dubbed ‘Jailhouse Rocking’, the reggae artiste/radio presenter on Hitz 103.7 FM performed a lot of his hit songs with his Herbalist band for four hours, as allotted by prison authorities in the first ever reggae performance in a Ghanaian prison.

The theme for the performance was ‘The Storm Will Soon Be Over’.

The prisoners danced and sang to reggae music until the live band concert ended at 4:00pm, when they were asked to retire to their cells.

They lamented the concert had ended too soon but that was all the time allotted by the authorities.

Many cried as Blakk Rasta delivered very inspiring messages to them in-between his set.

Prison officers could not withstand the heat and also joined in the dancing and celebration right on stage.

Toiletries, food, toothbrushes, deodorants, clothes and beverages were donated by the artiste to the inmates, who asked to have the celebration done every year.

Fiifi Selah (formerly of TH4 Kwages), Saba and a prisoner, King Grapha, also entertained the inmates.

Deputy Director of Ghana Prisons, Ackom Gyedu, was so glad to have reggae in the jailhouse and agreed to help make it a yearly affair.

He said the prisoners loved Blakk Rasta a lot, therefore he should never let them down.

It was an emotional moment when the artiste said bye to the inmates, after which he embraced Exopa boss and model, Ibrahim Sima, Goodies Music boss Isaac Aidoo, Ramzy (of Stars of the Future fame) and other celebrity prisoners.

Blakk Rasta won the Reggae Song of the Year award at the just ended Ghana Music Awards. He is also the current winner of the Reggae Radio Host of the Year award at the Radio and TV Awards.

Yaw Oxbon

A member of the Ghana Association of Phonographic Industry (GAPI), Yaw Oxbon, has called on government to direct its attention towards the music and creative industry, where thousands of sustainable job opportunities can be created.

According to him, the music industry alone had about 20,000 job opportunities which people, especially the youth, were taking advantage of to better their lives and that of their dependants.

Against this background, Yaw Oxbon has reiterated GAPI’s call on government for an investment of GH¢10million in the music and creative industry to engage some thousands of additional hands needed in the industry. He said apart from the jobs that would be created, government’s revenue would increase and other sectors would have their share of the benefits.

Yaw Oxbon gave the reminder in an interview with BEATWAVES in Bolgatanga after a workshop for musicians from all over the Upper East Region.

“The money, if allocated to the industry, would be a fund that will be grown and added to other revenues that will be collected by the Ghana Musicians Rights Organisation (GHAMRO) to serve as the seed capital for a proposed copy right bank. GAPI is in talks with a Norwegian partner organization to run a sustainable source of funding projects in the music and creative industry, but will only invest in this venture if we in Ghana make a commitment investment.

“This is why we have been calling on the government to invest at least GH¢10 million to give a strong backing to the music and creative industry,” he noted.

According to Yaw Oxbon, the music and creative industry had not grown as expected and many good and talented practitioners had given up due to lack of access to long-term investment to support their business.

From Ebo Bruce-Quansah, Bolgatanga

Maneta and Teclar

The first eviction show on Big Brother Stargame witnessed some unexpected twists as all nominated housemates from last week’s random nomination in the Downvile House were evicted from Downvile.

Zimbabwe’s pair of Teclar and Maneta was first to be asked to leave the house. Their fellow Housemates did not seem too gutted about the news and proclaimed “there are now 26 of us, more food for us, more drinks”.

Maneta simply made a dramatic beeline for the eviction doors, telling Julio not to touch her, as he reached for a hug. She was quick to leave the house while her partner took her time to bid her farewells and to beat Big Brother’s countdown.

Teclar told host, IK that she didn’t want to talk but when asked if she had a thing for Seydou she was quick to explain that she didn’t have any romantic feelings for Seydou or any other person in the house.

She added that it was particularly tough for her to find out that she had been nominated for eviction only minutes after entering the house.

Just as Julio and the bubbly Hilda from Tanzania were getting ready to celebrate their survival, IK announced that they also had to leave the house.

The announcement sparked speculations as housemates tried to figure out what was happening. Julio told IK, “This is crazy, don’t know what’s going on”. Hilda said she was in shock and pain when she found out she was up for eviction moments after entering the Big Brother House.

IK then received the envelope with the week’s result and told Maneta to head into the posh Upville House to now compete as an individual while her partner Teclar, together with Julio and Hilda went back home.

Soon IK made a call into the Downville House to make another random nomination. Unfortunately, the debutant countries, Sierra Leone and Liberia, came up for eviction. This means that the housemates up for eviction are Luke and Yadel from Liberia and Dalphin and Zainab from Sierra Leone. Africa must now vote for which housemate and not group they want to save.

This year’s Big Brother will be available on DStv Mobile in Ghana. Broadcast service includes Walka, Drifta, Drifta USB, DVB-H phones. In Ghana, Big Brother will be added to the existing Maxi and Maxi+ packages.

DStv Mobile is the mobile television division of MultiChoice. It gathers and produces mobile TV content and services for a number of mobile devices and technologies.

What are we hearing? Did the National Communications Authority (NCA) contemplate withdrawing the operating licence of Ken City Media, operators of Oman FM and Net2 TV in the past few weeks?

For the first time in the brief but momentous history of the network, they have suffered a deliberate and consistent tampering with their signals.

The sophisticated yet subtle manouvre left many in Accra cut off from the network and for those who were still hooked to it, the reception was so horrible that many just put off their sets. It was a Castle-authorised operation intended to warn the network to watch out for possible sanctions.

Juxtaposing this against the recent ban on the Multimedia Group by government from covering their activities emits a parlous signal about the health of press freedom in the country.

One of the lawyers for the ruling party, in the heat of the ban on the Multimedia Group, had the guts to even warn other media establishments that they too could suffer a similar rod.

For the time that the ban lasted, the democratic world focused their attention on the unfolding anomaly. So much was the internal and external pressure on the government that they beat a retreat, with their tail between their hind legs.

One of the most outstanding features of a democratic dispensation is the prevalence of press freedom; one in which media organizations operate without any fetter of censorship.

Unfortunately, however, we appear to be near crossing the red line of democratic decency, with the NCA effectively dangling the rod of censorship in front of selected media houses.

In the case of Ken City Media, it was so subtle that one could not immediately point a finger at the burgeoning aberration. A painstaking probe showed however that much as they were at the forefront of pulling the brakes on the group’s signals, the directive to do so came from the corridors of power.

We wish that we have not reached that worrying milestone because chalking another minus in our governance rating among the comity of the civilized would add so much to our already unenviable democratic credentials.

Since the proprietor of Kencity Media, Kennedy Agyapong stepped on the toes of government by harping upon the Woyome debacle and seeking the refund of the lost state funds, there has not been a turning-back on making things difficult for the network.

Denying media houses advertisements by consciously and deliberately directing against doing so, the subtle pulling of the brakes as in the case of the NCA, has proved effective.

It is an effective means of strangulating media houses so tagged to deny them the necessary oxygen for their survival in a challenged economic environment.

Civil society organizations and donor partners interested in measuring the tolerance level of government and the success or otherwise of democracy will find such subtle ploys interesting areas of study.

The NCA might have released the brakes on the operations of Oman and Net 2 TV: the message has adequately been registered that under the Mills/Mahama administration, press freedom prevails only at the pleasure of government.

Accident

Sixty persons lost their lives in the Brong Ahafo Region between January and March this year, a worrying data from just one of the ten regions in the country.

The N1 Highway claimed three more lives yesterday and only Heaven knows how many would follow suit even as we pray that should be the last blood shedding on that highway.

An infrastructural upgrade ironically becoming a nightmare is beyond imagination; human error and responsibilities on the part of largely commercial drivers are to blame.

Elsewhere in the Upper West Region, the regional minister there has charged the Police to ensure the safety of the roads in the country.                        

In spite of the aforementioned and disturbing statistics on the state of our roads, checks by the Police have been suspended as directed by COP Rose Atenga-Bio, the lady in charge of Administration at the Police Headquarters.

Just what this is intended to achieve is beyond our ken. News about the unusual directive came as a surprise to many who heard it and coming at a time when our highways have become slaughter roads is mind-boggling.

We find the directive worrying and therefore worth probing because the avoidable killing and maiming of citizens through recklessness on our highways should not remain a permanent feature in the country.

We dread the day when accidents no longer constitute news because of their frequency on our roads.

We ask the Police Administration, as represented by Rose, to take another look at this order because if it is to protect her fleet of vehicles plying the Madina to Accra route, she is doing a disservice to the country.

Let the management of the Police take it or not, there is a certain degree of sabotage against the Motor Traffic and Transport Unit of the security agency in our estimation.

Otherwise, how can personnel of the unit, regardless of the overzealousness of some of them, be stopped from undertaking motor checks in one breath and in another expected to ensure road safety. Let us be realistic about directives we issue because some of them would not help in the attainment of the objective of instilling discipline on our roads and saving lives.

Conflict of interests has a way of impeding efficiency when, for instance, those responsible for contributing towards road safety are themselves transport owners whose drivers flout road traffic regulations and policemen and women who attempt checking them stand the risk of being transferred to distant districts as a punitive action. Come on compatriots, let us be realistic and sincere with ourselves and be up and doing about moving this country forward.

We await a rebuttal from the PR Directorate which as usual would ramble on and on about the commitment of the Police Administration towards the maintenance of law and order. Have we not heard enough of such commitments which have mostly come to naught?

Anytime issues are raised about anomalies in state institutions especially, the Police PROs are authorized to quickly respond to the orders of their superiors in countering same in a manner seeking to rubbish such stories.

As we have pointed out on many occasions, it is not our wish to rundown critical state institutions such as the Ghana Police Service.

The media, and we humbly pride ourselves as being part of it, have assisted immensely in bettering the Ghana Police Service in diverse ways.

We have not rested on our oars in shielding the security agency from the interference of politicians even though each time we try doing this, the Public Affairs Directorate is ordered to print out the standard rejoinders to rubbish such interventions.

We would not stop our noble interventions as the fourth estate of the realm, regardless of how these are treated at the Police Headquarters.

NDC Flag

Last week witnessed a regrettable return to the gutters by the rented press of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), some of them ironically edited at the Castle.

Just when Ghanaians began relishing the near return of sanity in the media, as a result of a seeming lull, they had the jolt of their lives when a Castle-edited rented newspaper overstepped the line of decency.

If the Christian Council of Ghana and women rights civil society organizations have not considered a reaction to the bedlam, they had better do so lest they give credence to the notion that they are selective in their treatment of political issues.

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, whose discourse on the unusual realities about our local economy triggered it all, was subjected to a coordinated myriad of personal attacks, and now his spouse.

Although we expected an unsavoury reaction from the rented press when Dr. Bawumia delivered his magnum opus of a submission on the economy, we did not expect this quantum of insanity. Avoiding a decent debate clearly shows that all the admonitions from concerned groupings in the country about the need for decent politics were mere hot air.

The leopard will forever spot the characteristic markings of its fur, come what may. Even the founder of the party has not been spared the foul-mouth and mischief of the leadership of the political grouping he founded.

The fundamental principle of politics at the hands of those at the helm is to ensure the appropriate amalgam of economics and statecraft so that the citizenry can have unhindered supply of food, shelter, access to education, good health and an enjoyment of all the freedoms; a life worth living.

The provision of the foregone is being challenged by a number of anomalies in the economy and therefore leading to a stasis of sorts in governance.

That was the concern raised by Dr. Bawumia, an action which, as a citizen and a frontline politician, is not untoward.

The people of this country should be able to raise concerns about their plight without being subjected to insults, as it appears to be the order today.

It is a pity that some do not see things this way and would prefer to maintain the uncouth approach to very serious matters about the management of the economy which is interlinked with politics or governance. Bad governance begets a bad economy and indeed widespread poverty, with wealth stuck in the hands of a few privileged citizens, mostly those close to the corridors of power.

The rented press largely managed by Koku Anyidoho will charge on whoever dissents under a government which professes to uphold the principles of democracy.

They will pour water on whatever suggestion or observation is intended to correct the ills which make the economy refuse to respond to treatment.

As for the NPP, we would appeal to its leadership and its rank and file membership to remain focused on what they have set out to do for the country.

The NDC understands better the language of the gutters and would do all they can to draw its opponents into that domain. The NPP must be wary about this trick and steer clear of falling prey to the trick. Ghanaians are discerning and would advise themselves appropriately when the day of reckoning is due.

Dr Frank Nyonator, Ag Director of Ghana Health Sercive

A CHOLERA outbreak at Elubo in the Jomoro district of the Western region has since last Tuesday claimed the lives of two persons, with 33 others battling for their lives.
Medical Assistant in charge of the Elubo Health Centre, Thomas Kwesi Addai, made this known to a team of top officials from the Jomoro district who visited the centre to assess the situation on Sunday.
The officials led by District Chief Executive, Sylvester Dadieh, included Abudu Amadu, Jomoro District Coordinating Director, Raymond Serwoh, Jomoro District Environmental Health officer and Joseph Azabire, District Disease Control Officer.
Mr. Addai told the team that eight of the affected people were responding to treatment at the facility and the rest had been treated and discharged.
He said the dead, Kwasi Nyameke, 57, and Grace Taylor, 42, both residents of Elubo, had been buried by Ministry of Health officials.
The medical assistant said the outbreak was caused by pollution of the Tano River that serves as the source of drinking water for over 10 communities along the river.

The DCE promised the assembly was going to assist in the setting up of a special camp for cholera cases to avoid further spread of the disease.
Mr. Dadieh appealed to people in the area to boil water they fetch from the Tano River before drinking.

There have been over 200 reported cases of cholera within the last four months in Accra. The death toll from the outbreak in Accra and its environs is now well over 30 and

still rising. Sources at the Ghana Health Service (GHS) say over 30 people had died from the latest outbreak.  

Media reports late last month had initially put the figures at 25 which were expected to rise following anticipated field reports from the Eastern region.

At the time, GHS Public Health Director, Dr. Kwesi Amankwah told Radio XYZ that for the past 16 weeks, 1773 people had been infected mainly in the Greater Accra and Eastern regions.

GNA

A community member undergoing the screening

NEWMONT GHANA Gold Limited has distributed over 5000 insecticide treated bed nets valued at about $37,000 to residents of its Ahafo Mine operational area.

The individuals were selected through door-to-door education and demonstration exercises in the communities around the mine since the mining giant launched its Community Malaria Programme (CMP) in 2009 to help prevent malaria as part of its corporate social responsibility.

This came to light during a free health screening held at Susuanso near Yamfo in the Tano North district of the Brong Ahafo region as part of activities marking this year’s World Malaria Day under the theme “Sustain gains, save lives: Invest in malaria.”

In line with the CMP, Newmont has so far sponsored the training of Asutifi and Tano North district health service staff in malaria diagnosis at the Kintampo Health Research Center (KHRC), and equipped the Gyedu Health Center with malaria diagnostic tools.

In addition, Newmont Ahafo Mine has spent about $26,000 on the training of peer educators to be ambassadors of the campaign to eliminate malaria in the Ahafo Mine area.  

The health screening was organized in collaboration with German International Cooperation (GIZ) and the Ghana Health Service (GHS).

The nearly two hundred residents who participated in the celebration and checked their health status were screened for HIV, malaria, high blood pressure, sugar levels and body mass index.

Addressing the people prior to the health screening, Tano North District Director of Health Services, Dr. Yakubu Bayayinah, stated that 22% of OPD cases in the district were malaria related.

He therefore advised the public to seek early treatment when they feel feverish to avoid any complications.

District Chief Executive for the area, Apraku Lartey, also noted that the rate at which people die of malaria is higher that deaths recorded as a result of HIV and AIDS. He called for collaborative efforts to fight the disease.

He commended Newmont and GIZ for their continued support toward malaria control in communities around the mine and called on all stakeholders to contribute towards prevention of the disease as well.

 FROM Fred Tettey Alarti-Amoako, Sunyani

The alleged weevil infested rice served to the children at Ahanta West

THERE IS growing fear of food poisoning and other diseases among children in the Ahanta West district of the Western region after reports that unwholesome and weevil infested rice is being prepared for school children in the area under the School Feeding Programme.

DAILY GUIDE gathered the health of children in the beneficiary schools may suffer if they continue to eat the alleged contaminated rice purportedly been supplied to the caterers who cook for them.

Reliable sources at some beneficiary schools told the paper that because of the unpalatable rice, most of the school children particularly those in upper primary throw it away, refusing to eat it.

The sources said even though the caterers themselves are unhappy about cooking the alleged unwholesome rice, they have no choice since it is supplied to them from Accra.

The sources said some members of the Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs) at some beneficiary schools have made several complaints about the situation to Ahanta West School Feeding Program District Coordinator, Sumanu Haruna but nothing has been done about it.

Last Friday, DAILY GUIDE visited Egyam Catholic School, one of the beneficiaries of the programme and even though rice was not served on that day, an opinion leader and a prominent member of the PTA had kept some of the unwholesome rice for our cameras.

The PTA member who pleaded anonymity alleged that as an opinion leader in the community he had to go to the school to ascertain the truth after some of the school children complained of stomach aches after eating the rice.

“I went to the school myself to collect some of the rice and in fact the food was tasteless and smelled bad to the extent that even I an adult could not eat it,” he said. 

He wondered exactly where the rice originated from stressing it might have been contaminated before being supplied to rural communities in the district.

He alleged that the two caterers in the school had been supplied with about 25 bags of the unwholesome rice. They had used five bags so far and he called on Mr. Haruna to stop them from cooking the rest.  

A kindergarten teacher at Apimanim DC Primary, another beneficiary school in the district also confirmed that children in the school were being fed the same unwholesome rice.

Mr. Haruna did not answer calls from the paper to react to the allegations.

Meanwhile, when Ambruce Ankrah, Western Regional Coordinator of the programme was contacted, he explained that the rice currently being served in schools nationwide was locally produced and that even though it might not taste like the imported or polished ones, it was very nutritious.

On whether he had received complaints from the Ahanta West district about the issue he answered in the negative.

“I have my monitors in the district and I hope they will let me know if they receive any complaint about the rice you are talking about,” he noted.

 From Emmanuel Opoku, Agyam

Baby being weighed as part of the growth monitoringactivity

THE MINISTRY of Health has introduced two new vaccines into the Child Welfare Clinic (CWC) program popularly known as ‘weighing’ as part of measures to accelerate progress towards   achievement of Millennium Development Goal four (MDG 4), the Obuasi Municipal Health Director has said.

Dr. David Kwasi Amankwa believes the pneumococcal and rotavirus vaccines would lead to a reduction in pneumonia and diarrhea which were amongst killer diseases of children under five years.

Speaking to DAILY GUIDE after the launch of the new vaccines, the he said diarrhea and pneumonia among children accounted for 12,526 out of a total of 37,894 cases of under five childhood illnesses in the Obuasi municipality, representing 33 percent.

He explained that, “Years ago, diarrhea and pneumonia were among the killer diseases of childhood. Today, we have vaccines available to protect children against these and a number of other diseases.”

According to Dr. Amankwa, Ghana is expected to reduce the infant mortality rate to 40 per 1000 live birth by 2015 –a two-thirds reduction of mortality in children under five.

He disclosed that the Ghana Health Service through its Expanded Programme Immunization (EPI) administered vaccines to children less than one year old to improve their health.

He explained this was started in 1978 with six antigens such as BCG, Measles, DPT (3-in one) and OPV.

In 1992, the health director noted the yellow fever vaccine was added and in 2002 two more vaccines: Hep B and Hip against Hepatitis and Influenza (combined with other drugs) were added to the existing vaccines bringing the number to nine.

Dr. Amankwa disclosed that the pneumococcal and rotavirus vaccines would be administered at the various CWCs where “we carry out vaccination and childhood growth monitoring activities throughout the country.” 

 From Ernest Kofi Adu, Obuasi

Erica Blankson and Dr Onassis Fiadjoe

Two staff of the Holy Trinity Spa, Sogakope, a subsidiary of the Holy Trinity Medical Centre, have left Accra for Chandigarh, India, for further studies in sleep medicine and multi behaviour therapies.

They are Dr. Maxwell Onassis Fiadjoe, resident medical doctor and Ms. Erica Blankson, nursing officer in charge of the Spa.

Speaking during their departure at the Kotoka International Airport, (KIA) Dr. Felix Anyah, the Executive Chairman of the Holy Trinity Group of companies, said that the regular training of personnel at the Spa was to keep abreast of new technologies and management of lifestyle-induced, non-communicable ailments such as sleep disorders, stress management, addiction management and obesity management.

The Spa has adopted the holistic health service method in treating people with lifestyle-induced ailment.

The holistic service, which is a new model, uses all the three areas of medical practice which include orthodox, complementary and alternative medicine in treating lifestyle-induced ailment.

It also addresses the individual as a whole; his physical body, emotions, social, spiritual, psychological and mental needs.

Dr Anyah said health was a state of physical, emotional, mental, psychological, social and spiritual well being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity as indicated by WHO.

He said the curative medical practice with drug and injections was not only narrow and costly, but that several lifestyle-induced ailments such as addiction, obesity, sleeping disorders, high cholesterol, gout and peptic ulcer could not be effectively managed by drugs alone.

Korle Bu

Doctors at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) will begin undertaking kidney transplantation in the last quarter of this year.

This will bring great relief to many kidney patients in the country who need kidney transplant but cannot afford the high cost of travelling and transplantation abroad.

Since 2008, the nation’s premier hospital has undertaken 12 kidney transplants with the assistance of a team of transplant surgeons from Birmingham in the United Kingdom and the Transplant Links Community.

Three of those transplants were performed in April this year.

The Birmingham team is expected to perform another batch of transplants in October this year, after which the Ghanaian team will take over.

Meanwhile, Korle-Bu has sponsored the training of a consultant urologist, Dr Bernard Morton, as a transplant surgeon to lead a local team to bring hope to many kidney patients.

Currently, the Dialysis Unit at Korle-Bu, which used to operate three times a week, now runs 24-hour, seven-day-a-week service because of the increasing number of chronic patients.

An excited Chief Executive Officer of the hospital, Professor Nii Otu Nartey, in an interview with graphic.com.gh, said Korle-Bu would endeavour to provide the logistics and facilities to ensure a smooth take-off and sustenance of kidney transplantation by the Ghanaian team.

Throwing more light on the preparation, Dr Morton said the hospital had come a long way since 2008 after the first transplant.

He said the initial idea was for the local team to start the transplants after a period of assistance from the Birmingham team, but there had been a lot of ups and downs.

He expressed appreciation to the CEO of the hospital for standing firm and providing all the encouragement and support for the national project to be realised.

He said the team would continue with the usual living donor practice where a living person would agree to donate one of his or her kidneys to a recipient.

Dr Morton was hopeful that with time, the country would come up with an elaborate legal framework to support the cadaveric donations.

Cadaveric donation is where the kidney of a brain-dead person but whose heart continues to beat is harvested and given out to someone who needs a kidney transplant.

He said what the hospital needed was a complete centre, either as part of the Urological Centre or a separate transplant unit, which could be expanded to a tissue transplant centre.

Asked about the availability of the requisite human resource, Dr Morton said, “We have demonstrated that we can do it after the first transplant in 2008.”

He said the team of local personnel had continued to be around and actively taken part in the other transplantations and said the only new development was his training as a transplant surgeon.

Dr Morton was hopeful that with time, a complete centre like the National Cardio-Thoracic Centre, the Burns and Plastic Surgery Centre would be set up.

For her part, Dr Osafo, who is the Head of the Dialysis Unit of Korle-Bu, said the local renal team had built the needed experience to support kidney transplant locally.

She said besides the transplant, some of the nephrologists at the unit were considering developing a peritoneal dialysis programme, a form of self-administered dialysis, to help ease the pressure on the dialysis machines.

She expressed worry over the alarming rate at which people in their productive ages of between 20 and 50 years were developing kidney problems in Ghana.

Dr Osafo said the University of Ghana Medical School, in collaboration with other centres in Africa and the USA, had applied for a grant from the National Institute of Health (NIH) to study the genetic causes of kidney disease in Africa.

The outcome of that important application, she said, should be known later this year.

If successful, then patients with kidney disease would be studied at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital.

Source: Daily Graphic

Patrick Boateng (left) and CEO of the hospital i a handshake. Inset: Some of the incubators

VODAFONE GHANA Foundation has donated ten incubators to the neo-natal unit of the Tamale Teaching Hospital.

The donation was made at a short ceremony to assist the hospital to effectively manage the increasing number of premature births recorded at the facility every year.

Tamale Teaching Hospital which serves the three Northern regions and neighbouring countries had only two incubators available for use until the donation.

External Affairs Director for Vodafone Ghana, Patrick Boateng speaking at the presentation ceremony, said his outfit set up the foundation in pursuance of the company’s corporate social responsibility and the vision to give back to the community to build goodwill with residents of areas in which it operates.

He explained that collaborating with the hospital to save and preserve human lives in vulnerable situations was the motivation for the establishment of the foundation and hoped the donation will help save the lives of babies who need special care and attention after delivery.

He was optimistic that efficient service delivery will be provided to clients after the hospital had officially taken delivery of the new block and the equipment.

Mr. Boateng called on health practitioners to be professional in the discharge of duties to facilitate better health care in the region having been provided with internet facilities by Vodafone to assist in their research work and studies.

He disclosed that Vodafone Ghana Foundation had made several contributions to the development of the northern sector of the country in the area of volunteerism, cash donations and equipment, all aimed at creating job opportunities and boosting businesses.

He pledged the foundation’s support in future projects that would help in the socio-economic development of the northern sector.

Chief Executive Officer of the hospital, Dr. Ken Sagoe, receiving the donation on the hospital’s behalf, thanked the foundation for the incubators and pledged to use them for the purpose for which it was provided.

He called on other organizations and corporate institutions to emulate the shining example of Vodafone to assist the poor and vulnerable in society.

 From Stephen Zoure, Tamale

The NDC hoodlums weilding offensive weapons

In Greek mythology, ‘dragon’s teeth’ features prominently in the legend of the Phoenician prince called Cadmus and Jason’s quest for the Golden Fleece.  ‘Dragon’s teeth’, once planted, will grow into fully armed warriors.  According to Greek mythology, Cadmus was the bringer of literacy and civilization. He killed the sacred dragon that guarded the spring of Ares. The goddess Athena told him to sow the teeth, from which sprang, a group of ferocious warriors called the Spartoi. Cadmus threw a precious jewel into the midst of the ferocious warriors, who turned on each other in an attempt to seize the precious jewel for themselves. The five survivors joined Cadmus to found the city of Thebes. The classical legends of Cadmus and Jason have given rise to the phrase ‘to sow the dragon’s teeth’. ‘Sowing the dragon’s teeth’ is today used as a metaphor to refer to doing something that has the effect of fomenting disputes and troubles.  Legalistic purists call it ‘the law of unintended consequences’. Confused?  Wait a moment while I refill my Parker’s fountain pen with more ink.

The just-ended biometric registration exercise has revealed how the NDC foot-soldiers planted the dragon’s teeth, from which a group of ferocious warriors will spring in the run-up to the general elections.  The party secretly armed the foot-soldiers across the length and breadth of the country with machetes to cause mayhem, and they did it in a grand style.  From Agbogbloshie to Odododiodioo, Techiman to Tamale and beyond, these hoodlums were on rampage openly, while the police watched helplessly because they had “orders from above” not to take action or even arrest these criminals. I was therefore not surprised when Agyenim Boateng, the Deputy Minister of Mis-information, told the world that the pictures of machete-wielding hoodlums flashed by the DAILY GUIDE were that of a scene in Rwanda. Indeed, only in Rwanda did we see such a scene when the genocide started. Now that it has become crystal clear that the action of the hoodlums happened at Odododiodioo, the NDC has brought Rwanda to Ghana. Who ever thought that such a scene could be seen in God’s own country?  And the man who is at the helm of affairs calls himself ‘Asomdweehene’. This, to me, is a dress reversal of greater things to come.

I had cause to write in this column sometime ago that the people of the United States of America did not wake up one morning to see people with pistols in holsters hanging around their waists.  It started like what is happening in Ghana today. The cowboy from Texas had to arm himself because there were some other cowboys who used to bully him, simply because they were in possession of pistols.  From what we saw during the registration exercise, people are going to go for arms to protect themselves. And we should not hesitate to accept the fact that when people start arming themselves, gunrunners will have a field day since that is where they get their bread.  Already it is an open secret that several blacksmith workshops are sprouting in some areas in the country.  When the Abudus and Andanis started arming themselves, we looked on unconcerned until that fateful day when the war started, led to the death of the Overlord of Dagbon, Ya Naa Yakubu Andani. Similarly, when the Dagombas and the Konkombas started arming themselves, we saw it as their own business until war broke out. Then we started counting the cost as if counting the cost was the panacea. In fact, we always treat the symptoms rather than the causes.

This country is sitting on tenterhooks yet we pretend all is well. If we rely on the police to keep the peace before, during and after the general elections, we will laugh at the wrong side of our mouth.  It is an undeniable fact that the Ghana Police Service personnel have compromised their stance as an impartial security outfit which is supposed to favour no one person against the other.  Reports from Techiman during the biometric registration exercise indicated that those who were butchered by NDC hoodlums during the registration exercise were treated like second class citizens. You are turned away with your blood-stained clothes when you rush to report to the police.  In some cases, the police rather asked those who were butchered to arrest and bring to the police station the culprits who committed the offence. How stupid! The municipal BNI boss who was accused of being on the side of NPP supporters who were at the receiving end has since been transferred. When people are denied justice, they take the law into their own hands. Do you think supporters of the NPP in Techiman will turn the other cheek on the day of voting, come December?  That is my fear because it could be nationwide.

When I looked into my crystal ball, I could see machomen from the NDC and NPP flexing their muscles at polling stations while the security men stand aside, afraid to take control.  I could see the Special Forces trying to intimidate supporters of the NPP to no avail while the “all die be die” mantra is put to test.  I could also see machomen snatching ballot boxes while voters run for dear life.  You may call me a pessimist or a prophet of doom but remember, anything can happen when the market is going to an end.

To prevent this calamity from befalling the good people of this country, there is the need for the president to apply the sanctions whenever necessary. The president should be seen acting rather than talking.  He always says he took over a peaceful country and as such he was going to leave behind a peaceful country. That is fine. But what is he doing to stop the police from being bias and tilting their weight behind the NDC which he leads? And when the man is asked to act, he tells us that he is not a policeman. And yet he calls himself the Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces.  If a Commander-in-Chief cannot control his forces, then what is he the Commander-in-Chief for - Ceremonial occasions?

One person who is taking our security for granted is the Chief Constable, Mr. Paul Tawiah Quaye.  The Inspector General of Police has failed in all aspects of maintaining law and order in the country. Take the issue of armed robbery for example. Immediately he was appointed to that position, he set out to order his men and women in uniform to shoot to kill on sight any suspected armed robber. True to that, several suspected armed robbers were mercilessly mowed down. Some of us were quick to suggest that to curb the menace, mowing them down will not solve the problem.  I had cause to suggest that there was the need to shoot to demobilize these miscreants, arrest and debrief them in order to know their modus operandi and their sources of acquiring the sophisticated weapons they use. The sages say when you see red ants coming from a cracked wall, you don’t spend your time killing them one after the other. You rather go behind the cracked wall to see where they are coming from.  If you realize that they are around a dead cockroach, you simply pick the cockroach and that would be the end of the whole issue of killing ants.  If Paul Tawiah Quaye thinks sending his men with arms on a killing spree will solve the problem, then I am sorry he will never succeed.

As it stands now, the promise the president gave Ghanaians when he was being sworn into office has hit the rocks. The president told us that from the day he was being sworn in, Ghanaians would go to bed without fear of being attacked by armed robbers. Prior to that, he had used the issue of armed robbery to campaign vigorously, telling us then that the NPP government had lost the war against armed robbers and that when he got the nod, the issue of armed robbery would be a thing of the past. Four years into the regime of the law professor, the armed robbers have become more daring than ever. They even disarm policemen and attack at random with impunity. Sadly, all what the Chief Constable can do is to call a press conference to assure Ghanaians that all is well.  As for me, I always say my last prayer before going to bed, with fear written boldly inside my heart; fear that maybe I would be the next victim of armed robbery.  I don’t trust Mills and his Tawiah Quaye. They are two of a kind:  Accomplished failures!!!

From Eric Bawah

Kwesi Pratt Jnr

The 2008 electioneering campaign was characterized by insults and character assassinations from the camp of then opposition NDC. Matters bordering on bread and butter issues which are germane to the livelihood of ordinary taxpaying Ghanaian were shamefully put aside and in its place, the flag of personal attacks and character assassinations of NPP candidate was hoisted. Allegations of every wrong-doing one can ever think of was expertly sewn into a 3-piece suit and forced on Nana Addo.

A nation that had seen monumental growth in almost all sectors of the economy was christened “a failed state” and put on the same socio-economic pedestal as a war-ravaged Rwanda. This vile propaganda drive was embarked upon with an expressed purpose of deceiving the ordinary Ghanaian into believing that Ghana could have been a much better place if it was under the care of candidate saint Atta Mills.

Pseudo-Socialist Oriented Pressure Groups

Many pseudo-socialist oriented pressure groups were born at the time, all with the vision of doing whatever they could to paint the legacy of Kufuor in a terribly bad light and to make people angry towards anything that has to do with NPP.

Now, proponents of this hatred against NPP in 2008 even had their venom extended to all world leaders who had good working relations with Ghana as a nation, and not Kufuor in his personal capacity as president. And here, the former president of America, George Walker Bush Jnr became the ‘chewing stick’ for these fictitious socialists in our midst. The man was literarily torn apart in the studios of Ghana’s radio Rwanda (Radio Gold) during their abuse-laden ‘Alhaji-Alhaji’ programme on Saturdays. Bush was described as an imperialist demon that had absolutely nothing good to offer Ghana but was rather seeking to come and ‘steal’ our entire nation’s newly discovered oil.

Everything that has to do with the western world was described as imperialistic, demonic, retrogressive and highly dangerous to the well-being of Africa and therefore must be treated as a contagious disease. It was this hard-line stance and highly reckless pronouncements taken by these fictitious socialists that incensed President Bush Jnr to make his famous “Baloney” declaration which has now become the regular refrain of the Vice President John Mahama, when addressing members of the opposition these days.

A Double-Agent

Strangely, at the time a personality as Kwesi Pratt was at the fore-front of this anti American crusade, he was also dabbling as a great friend of these very same Americans, at the blind side of all Ghanaians. Effectively, he would sit on radio and condemn everything American, tell Ghanaians that we can develop to standards of these industrialized nations on our own, and then sneak under the cover of darkness to these very same Americans and say all kinds of foolish things about those he ironically describe as “best friends”.

A similar venture is said to have been embarked upon by this very same Kwesi Pratt at the time a couple of brave citizens of our dear nation decided to put their lives on the line to curtail the rule of the gun in the early 80s. There have even been cases where some of these double agents are said to have willingly offered themselves to be thrown into jail just so they could spy on activities of their very own compatriots in the prisons, and the information passed on to the authorities.

An Intriguing Track Record

I have followed the exploits of Kwesi Pratt on our Ghanaian political scene for some time now and I find something very much intriguing; he vehemently opposed Rawlings’ 1979 coup (at least that was the impression some of us got) and was happy when Dr Hilla Liman, as head of an Nkrumaist party, won the general elections of 1980. But just a little over 12months into Liman’s administration, Kwesi fell out with him (President Liman) and started criticizing him vehemently.

In the end, Liman was overthrown in the 31^st December coup and here again, some form of double faced resistance was mounted by Kwesi Pratt against the return of Rawlings on our nation’s political scene. This resistance continued for a while and when it became clear that Rawlings had really come to stay, a scheme was devised by Kwesi Pratt to fall in line with the revolution by leaking information about his very own colleagues to the authorities.

However, the resistance to Rawlings was so resolute that activities of a double agent couldn’t overcome the true determination of forces in favour of democratic governance and this culminated in restoration of democracy in 1992. Kwesi Pratt went into hibernation after that period and resurfaced only when it became clear that Ghanaians were desirous of change in the year 2000.

Kwesi Pratt then switched camps to the NPP and vigorously campaigned not only to ensure the termination of Rawlings’ grips on Ghana’s political destiny, but also to deprive Atta Mills of the presidency because he (Kwesi) obviously saw nothing good in Mills and therefore described him in a feature article that “Mills is something”. In our Ghanaian parlance, when we say a person is “something”, then we are basically trying to say that the said individual is weird in all he/she does. Effectively, Atta Mills was extremely weird by the standards of Kwesi Pratt’s personality assessment barometer.

Dining With The Enemy

In the end, NPP won and Kufuor became the president and in years that followed, Kwesi Pratt had a very good personal relationship with Kufuor. As a matter of fact, Kwesi used to drive to the Castle every afternoon to wine and dine with Kufuor over extremely sumptuous meals. The relationship continued till somewhere during the second term of Kufuor’s administration, when we all woke up one early morning to find Kwesi Pratt singing from a different  angle of his mouth and vehemently condemning Kufuor and describing him as a president with intelligent quotient(IQ) of a 6-year-old and the most useless leader Ghana has ever had.

Here, Kwesi Pratt went back into alliance, once again, with Rawlings just so Kufuor could be demonized and NPP voted out. Those were the times Kwesi Pratt became the mouth-piece of the Rawlingses and ably defended them to the hilt. When Rawlings was asked to be moderate in his pronouncements against then sitting president Kufuor, Kwesi Pratt came out with all guns blazing to describe a personality as Archbishop Palmer-Buckle, who was a signatory to that pastoral letter, as a damn-right devil whose pronouncements are worse than that of Satan himself.

E-mail: justnoff@yahoo.com

By Justice Abeeku Newton-Offei

Arthur Kobina Kennedy

Last weekend, all over the world, our mothers and motherhood were celebrated.

As a man, I am sometimes baffled by how much bigger mothers’ day is than fathers’ day but that argument belongs to a different day.

Like most of us, I too, am thinking of my mother—or to put it more appropriately, my mothers.

I say mothers because aside from my biological mother, I have had a few other mothers who have been significant in my life. I believe that sometimes, women who have never had children of their own are outstanding mothers. Sometimes they make you wonder how providence determines who would have children and who would not.

In this piece, I hope I can celebrate my mothers, all of the great mothers I know and indeed all mothers.

Of course, there are bad mothers. Amongst these are those who take harmful illegal substances while pregnant or abuse their children. We all have bad stories about women maltreating their children or giving them bad counsel.

Despite these exceptions, I say all mothers because even a bad mother deserves some gratitude from the child she conceived and carried to term. Come to think of it, I should appreciate mothers more than most because I never had a father of my own. Now, that is not to say that my paternity was ever in dispute—it was not.

My mother, of blessed memory, was wonderful. Even though she never had a day of schooling, she was uncompromising in her commitment to the education of her children. She did everything she could, with the help of a generous government to educate all her children. She was truly, an ‘obaatan’. Whenever she cooked, she made sure every child around had enough to eat. I can still remember her ‘fufu na abenkwan’. Despite this generosity, she was a disciplinarian par excellence. Indeed, sometimes, even thinking of her makes me think instinctively of pain in my buttocks. In retrospect, while my mother, like all mothers, was sweet, she was stronger than sweet. I am sure that when they wrote, “spare a rod and spoil the child”, they had her in mind. She was the kind of mother who would discipline you before asking questions. I remember once, during my post-graduate training, a black American woman came to see me with her teenage son. The boy had an arrest record and when I started to admonish him, the mother offered a defence of his conviction. “Doctor, you know, my boy did not actually take part in the robbery; he was only the look-out and it was really unfair that they sent him to prison.” Without missing a beat, I replied, “Madam, my mom would have whopped my ass for just being in the neighbourhood while other boys were committing a crime.” I remember the first time I complained to her as a teenager about one of my friends. She listened patiently and asked, “Son, have you told your friend to his face about this?” “Well, no” I replied. “If you cannot tell him to his face, then keep quiet,” she said.

But she had help from my other mothers. My mother was a trader who used to travel quite a bit. Whenever she was away, she left my brother and me in the care of Madam Aminata, a Wangara woman who had no biological children of her own. She was wonderful. Even when my mother was around and I had one of my rare ‘last-born’ ‘head sweetness’ which led to a refusal to eat my mother’s food, she would step in with ‘Tuo Zafi’ and other delicacies! Indeed, sometimes, I looked forward to my occasional run-ins with my mother so that Madam Aminata would ‘boss’ me to eat. Whenever I think of her, I am convinced that indeed some of the best mothers around are childless.

My next really great mother would surprise a lot of my friends. She was, Miss B, my biology teacher in secondary school and she got on my list for tough love. I remember that for quite some time, I just seemed to rub her the wrong way. Then one day, in form five, a couple of months before our ‘O’ levels, right in the middle of a biology class, she started being philosophical. “Now, there are some of you who are wasting a lot of time trying to teach some girls who are not interested in learning. These girls want to just go to the market and be big market women and so do not waste your time on them. We expect a lot of some of you so do not waste time and end up disappointing us—Arthur!! Did you hear that?” That may have been one of the most embarrassing moments in my life but I took that advice to heart  and did well enough to progress to sixth form. Later on she gave me a lot of valuable advice and encouragement. Today, she is a good friend.

Then there was Maame Serwaa. It was 1983 and as NUGS President, I had been declared wanted by the PNDC regime, dead or alive. During that time, I and a few of my friends lived with Maame Serwah and her husband Nana Brefo Boateng as well as the Senavoes. Once, while we were hiding there, a member of the government actually came to visit and did not have a clue that we were there. Mind you, around that time, even relatives were afraid to be identified with me. But when finally arrangements had been completed for us to leave, she showed courage that was then rare, even in men. “But Nana, why is Kwabena leaving? He can live here for years and no one would know”. She showed no anxiety at all about the fact that if I were to be found under her roof, she would be in trouble.

The next of my mothers was a Canadian Professor, Prof. Doane. She was always positive and encouraging without saying much. Then when I finally finished my undergraduate medical education and was leaving for my post-graduate training in the United States, I went to thank her and to say goodbye. When I told her that I had an offer to begin a residency and was leaving the following week, the white-haired professor’s reserve finally broke. “Come for a hug, son,” she said. “I have been teaching for 25 years here and I have never met a student who has overcome bigger odds.” She gave me a hug. Then when I got up to leave, she uttered the sentence that got her on my list. “Son, you have done very well but do not let it go to your head. Stay humble.” When I turned at the door, she was wiping her face with her handkerchief.

Those have been my mothers—except for one—my wife. While every woman thinks unfairly that her husband is, perhaps, one of her children, my wife gets on the list as a mother of my children. She is an ideal combination of sweetness and strength and I think my greatest gift to my children is probably their mother.

I am sure that as you read this, you too are thinking of the mothers in your life. Find time to thank and celebrate them, not just on Mothers’ Day, but all year round.

While we celebrate our mothers and motherhood though, there are some tough questions we must ask ourselves.

First, if we respect our mothers so much, why is there so much domestic violence? How can we respect our mothers so much and yet beat our wives or companions?

Second, why is it that all around the world, despite our universal reverence for our mothers, women have so little power and earn less for equal work?

Third, if we think motherhood is so important, why have we not made childbirth and motherhood safer?

Fourth, if we love our mothers and mothers to-be so much, why do we not help them with chores?

Do we do these despite our adulation of our mothers because we are hypocrites? Of course, some have argued that women—our mothers—must take some of the blame for these defects because they bring us up.

Whatever your answers to these questions, as you celebrate your mother or motherhood, resolve that you will do a little more to make the plight of women better.

We cannot celebrate motherhood and be indifferent to the plight of women.

Let us move forward—together.

By Arthur Kobina Kennedy

Nicholas Sarkozy

In the last few months, all over the world, from Tunisia and Egypt through Libya and Malawi to Mali, Guinea Bissau and also out of Africa in France and Russia, incumbents have been tumbling.

Some died naturally or through illness. Some were couped out. Others were bloody warred out. One or two were bloody sprung out. A couple of them were voted out. And there is the one strange case of alleged ballot-rigged Putin back and forth shuffling which got mouthful name Medvedev out opening the door for a repeat or recycled Putin in.

Of particular interest is the snake-eyed sar something man of France. Although of an immigrant background, the man worked so hard against immigrants, curtailing religious freedom with his virulent anti-Muslim headscarf bans. His deeds looked like one desperate individual trying to be more French than anyone else with his racist acts.

I understand the man had the courage to ignorantly pronounce in Cheikh Anta Diop land, probably somewhere near the famed Diop street, that Africa has made no contribution to civilization. From there he proceeded to Brother Muammar Gaddafi to collect some millions from the brother to finance the election campaign that saw him winning that high office of the French presidency.

Now the allegation is all over the place, introduced at a crucial stage like a spoke in his election wheel. Without the clout of the incumbency which he has lost to him whom everyone-sees as a gentleman president Hollande (ɔlɔnd), I will love to see the ungrateful man thrown into prison for his vile hatred for everything African. He forgot so quickly, or he was never taught, that God is an African.

In congress, we see lies, ingratitude, arrogance and hypocrisy. We see a group of charlatans who consider themselves so much more Ghanaian that those of us who revile their stock are seen as less Ghanaian. Remember they shared a certain woyomised GH¢51 million and turned round threatening to throw the man into prison as a thief.

Congress is the group that is made up of Ghanaians who do not belong to any tribe or ethnic confraternity and consorority. They never see ethnicity in any of their actions. Yet just take a closer look at their actions and inactions and you would quickly realize that whatever they do or say is ethnic teleguided.

A congressperson in a public institution will only procure services, contracts, consultancy or whatever is paid for with public money on one condition, ethnicity. The same is true with hiring to fill a civil and public service position. To a congressperson, mediocrity is preferable over efficiency because meritocracy must come only after loyalty.

Their latest epithet, according to a caller to a radio programme is ‘Jack where are you?’ It could be their green book, policy pronouncements or fair, serially call-in statements on radio, rally talk; you will always be compelled to ask so where is this development they are mentioning. Where is that project or that other one located? Only they know.

I, Okokyrekro Kwasi, declare war on any daughter or son of the motherland who will scheme to keep congress in power come December 7, this year. Vote them out because they have no business getting themselves involved in, let alone run the motherland’s business.

Just look at them; rented press, rented qualifications, rented party, and now rented umbrella party symbol. What a collection of individuals who all they have known in their lives is renting without owning. Unable to own, they are borrowing as if what is borrowed is owned. With them, the motherland will never own; not ever.

I warned them, didn’t I? Didn’t I warn them you don’t attack an ant with a bulldozer? Now she who was crushed beyond crushing wants her logo back. Odeneho madam wants the logo which she designed using her own talent and KNUST acquired knowledge back as her bona fide copyrighted property.

Were it in good times, she would have received the full support of the woyome attorney general who used to crusade like none other at the copyright office. I wonder what the latter would be advising her congress people. One can expect the usual congress turn a blind eye if there is something to benefit us attitude.

Now that the war has moved on after the 3.5% bulldozer crushing of be bold Adwoa’s presidential nominee candidacy at the battle of Sunyani to the battle of the umbrella, I am patiently waiting to see the vanquished this time. We shall see how much a logo is worth; and wondering whether the ball will go back to the owner.

My compatriots, my dear, dear compatriots, come December 7, 2012, God bless the motherland with her own thumbed-out incumbent tumbling! Let congress be thumbed to a tumbling.

 By Kwasi Ansu-Kyeremeh

President John Evans Atta Mills

There is this secret I’ve been longing to tell you for some time now. I was compelled to shelve it under the carpet till today because the opportunity had not availed itself. With the word ‘unprecedented’ now on the lips of most of my compatriots, I believe now is the right time for me to let the obese cat out of the bag.

It is a true story which happened more than two decades ago. It is about a man who chalked unprecedented successes in the annals of his family. If you are thinking he was the first doctor or lawyer in his family, then you are way off target because it is nothing closer to that.

His nickname was ‘Kudan Zumah’, to wit ‘The Honey Bee’. He lived just behind the famous Dunia Cinema in Nima. He was then one of the few educated people in Nima so he was respected by all and sundry. He was also liked by all because of his affability.

However, just like any human, he had his weaknesses. His main weakness was his inability to control his libido. Although he chased anything and everything in skirt, he was very discreet so only a few people knew of his clandestine nocturnal activities.

Surprisingly, however, he never allowed any man to come closer to his two beautiful daughters. Any man who came closer to them was forced to run for dear life. Yours truly happened to be one of his victims so he can confirm that fact.

It therefore came as a surprise to us when we saw his elder daughter’s belly protruding as the months went by. Just as we were all wondering who was responsible for the pregnancy, we realized that the younger daughter’s belly had also started protruding. It turned out that one person was responsible for the ballooning of the two bellies. As if that was not abominable enough, that person happened to be no one else but their own father.

Puei! Father did not only have carnal knowledge of his two daughters, but also put them in the family way. The disgrace was too much for the family so they sent the girls to the village to save them from prying eyes and wagging tongues. We later learnt that both daughters had given birth to bouncing baby boys.

One can only wonder whether the boys would call Kudan Zumah father or grandfather. Some may call it abomination, but I will prefer calling it a different thing altogether. I doubt if any member of his family would ever surpass what Kudan Zumah has done. I know you will agree with me if I call it an unprecedented achievement.

Being an ardent follower of football, I’m sure you are aware by now that my darling club Kumasi Asante Kotoko has chalked another milestone. It has won its 22nd league title- an achievement unrivalled by any other club in this country. To borrow the words of my compatriots in the Zu-za fraternity, it is an unprecedented achievement in the annals of Asomdwekrom football. Kudos to all members of the Kum apem, apem beba family!

In my close to four decades of living on the planet Earth, I’ve witnessed a lot of exceptional achievements by individuals, football clubs, companies and governments. But trust me when I say the ones chalked by the Agya Ofuntuo government are extremely phenomenal.

Wey thing be money to cockroach, Abusuapanin? Within weeks of coming into office, Agya Ofuntuo and his charges managed to squander 1.6 billion old cowries on tea in the name of transition. Soon after, his minister of Youth and Sports used state cowries to buy chinchinga and pampers. A few moons later, they moved from pampers to hampers as another 1.6 billion old cowries were splashed on hampers for cronies in the media industry. The above-mentioned achievements are unprecedented in the history of the country so the government needs to be applauded by all.

Another unprecedented achievement credited to the Agya Ofuntuo government is the streak of losses in court by the government. Notable among them being the Asomdwekrom @ 50 and the Ya Na Yakubu Andani murder trials. Not even the ‘ebon kan-kan’ theory and the camping and coaching of witnesses could secure them a conviction in both cases. The acquittal and discharge of Dr. Charles Wereko-Brobbey, Kwadwo Mpianim and the 15 Abudus accused of killing Ya Na Yakubu Andani II delivered a severe blow to their vindictive ‘jail-them-all’ policy. At the last count, the government has lost 14 cases and won none. A cricket score line, don’t you think?

With unemployment on the rise, Agya Ofuntuo and his charges propounded a very effective theory to deal with the problem. They simply sat in their bedrooms and created 1.6 million jobs. Yes, just like that! Don’t you think unemployment would be a thing of the past if all governments adopted the innovative theory?

One of the most touted achievements of the Agya Ofuntuo government is the single-digit inflation it has been able to maintain for 22 moons. Without a doubt, that is an unprecedented achievement in the history of this country. Please do join me to pat the president and his charges on the back!

But wait a second! Is it not the case that a single-digit inflation rate helps among other things to stabilize prices of goods and services and reduces interest and exchange rates? Why then is the case different in our situation? Is it because the inflationary figures are baked better than the bread we eat? It is just a question, so please tell the foul-mouthed minister to spare me oo!

Did you not hear them when they said ‘sexy old fool, fruitcake, baloney and what the hell?’ Massa, we all know they do not have monopoly over insults. The reason we will not compete with them is that we were brought up well. We will therefore not begrudge them in basking in the glory of being declared most foul-mouthed ministers ever witnessed in the country.

The unprecedented failed promises such as the ‘reduce-fuel-prices-drastically’ policy and the abortive STX Housing deal are still clear in our minds. But the government’s inability to retrieve the gargantuan Woyome cowries is sending a lot of jitters down the spine of many an Asomdwekromanian. With the hide and seek the prosecution is playing in court, many are wondering when and how the country is going to retrieve the gargantuan cowries.

I don’t know about you. But as for me, I strongly believe the trial is just a gargantuan Kwaku Ananse trick being played on us. Obviously, this too is another unprecedented achievement in the making.

At the rate the Agya Ofuntuo government is breaking records in this country, do not be surprised to wake up one day and find the foul-mouthed ministers dancing agbadza on your scrotum and shouting ‘unprecedented achievement’. After all, to them, whether positive or negative, achievement is achievement.

See you next week!

Nortey Quaynor puts his fingers in his ears as if to block the noise the other children are making on the compound of the Autism Awareness, Care and Training (AACT) centre.

He turns his head occasionally, makes very little eye contact and gives very short answers when asked a question.

“He is very sensitive to sounds,” says Abeiku Grant, Nortey’s trainer. “He hears it louder.”

Nortey has autism, a developmental disability that impacts social interaction, communication skills and repetitive restrictive behaviors, but his trainer says he can focus on delivering his tasks.

Children and adults with autism typically have difficulties in verbal and non-verbal communication, group activities and games. The disorder makes it hard for them to communicate with others and relate to the outside world.

Nortey has been coming to the AACT centre for his educational therapy for the past 27 years. Through the training he receives, Nortey has acquired basic communication and socialization skills.

“I am 29 years,” Nortey says. He is also able to write an essay about himself.

But unlike Nortey, who gets training at the centre owned by his mother, Mrs. Serwah Quaynor, most persons living with autism are often ignored by society. They receive less care and attention.

Abeiku says persons with autism need special help and attention but is unsure if society is ready to accept these ‘specially-abled’ persons.

Autism in Ghana

According to reports from the last census conducted by the Ghana Statistical Service, approximately 20 percent of the Ghanaian population has one form of disability or another.

Max Vardon, executive director of the National Council on Persons with Disabilities (NCPD), says the actual number could be higher since some disabilities, such as clinical depression, are not properly reported.

He says autism is one of the fastest growing disabilities in the country, particularly among young people.

Baaba Enchill, coordinator at AACT, agrees with Vardon. She says although she is not aware of the exact number of people with autism or the prevalence of the disability in Ghana, the increasing number of children being brought to the centre indicates it’s on the rise.

“Just sitting here, I know that it is becoming increasingly prevalent. We get two or three new people at our door every week bringing in their child who has autism,” she says.

The Education for All (EFA) programme’s 2009 monitoring report says that global estimates of disability prevalence and incidence vary widely.

According to the report, the United Nations (UN) estimates that 10 percent of the world’s population has a disability of some kind. But the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimates a five percent global average.

“Based on these, and with a current population of just over 23 million, Ghana has an estimated total disabled population of 1.15-2.3 million,” the research paper states.

The report says around 150,000 people in Ghana have autism, with a large gender difference of the disorder occurring, “with four to five times as many males diagnosed with autism as females”.

Society’s Perception

Abieku, who has been Nortey’s trainer for the past three years, says he (Nortey) is a good guy only if one understands his condition. “If you don’t, you see him as a bad guy,” he says.

Nortey’s trainer says he is very calm, very humble, quiet and understands the cost of things and can purchase a commodity by himself.

“Nortey understands he should buy things with a currency,” says Abeiku.

But Ghana’s cultural beliefs, norms, history and deeply ingrained attitudinal barriers hinder society’s appreciation of these ‘specially-abled’ persons. This leads to neglect.

“People think the children are possessed. People think they are bewitched,” says Enchill who coordinates the activities of 30 students who are enrolled at the AACT centre.

The centre takes the students through a one-on-one training in sensory, speech and music therapy. It also offers academic and life skills for the students.

Vanessa Adu-Akorsah, principal of the New Horizon Special School, which offers both basic education and a ‘sheltered workshop’ for vocational training of older students with intellectual disability, says most children born with autism are deserted by their parents, especially their fathers.

“Unfortunately, when these children are born, fathers desert their mothers,” she says.

The school opened an autism class in 2002 and facilitates the Parents Association of Children with Intellectual Disabilities (PACID) but participation from both parents is not encouraging.

“Eighty-two percent of students are from single parent homes,” she says, adding, “The mothers are struggling.”

Vardon says disability-related issues have been relegated to the background. “Disability is often stigmatized in Ghana,” he says. “People think it is caused by witchcraft or a sign of evil.”

He adds that the lack of understanding and little attention that is given to people with disabilities pose a barrier to those with intellectual disorder (autism) to integrate into society.

“Many of these people will find it difficult to integrate into society as it is, simply because we do not understand them,” he says.

Tamba Gbessay, deputy head of the Dzorwulu Special Needs School, a segregated special school run by the government under the Ghana Education Service (GES), states that the country has made progress in addressing the issue of the disabled.

“There was a time when nobody wanted to talk about special education,” he says, adding, “But now the fear of the unknown is now coming down, people want to contribute.”

Adu-Akorsah believes addressing the issue of disability should be a shared responsibility.

“It can’t all be on the parents,” she says.

Access to Care and Government Funding  

Article 29 of the 1992 Constitution provides for the protection of persons with disabilities (PwD) from discrimination and abusive treatment.

The Government of Ghana’s Education Strategic Plan (ESP) 2003-2015 echoes government’s dedication to EFA and dictates that all schools within Ghana be inclusive environments for children with ‘non-severe’ disabilities by the year 2015.

Apart from the segregated special schools established by the government for the visually impaired, the hearing impaired and the mentally disabled, there are but a handful of institutions that cater for the educational and training needs of persons with autism.

Private institutions, like the New Horizon School and the AACT centre, educate these ‘specially-abled’ persons.

There are currently 115million children of school-going age who are out of school, according to the World Bank reports. Out of the total 40 million, more than a third are estimated to have a disability.

Those with an intellectual disability make up an estimated 1-3 percent, according to UN figures. UNESCO also reports that only 1-2 percent of children with disabilities living in developing countries receive basic primary education.

Gbessay says the special school established by government is free, adding, “They are not paying anything; money is allocated to the schools quarterly.”

He says government has also increased its funding over the years and is training more personnel in the care of persons living with autism.

“We are doing far better than when we started in the 1960s. Government is more involved and has increased its funding for the employment of workers, maintenance, vehicles and personnel training,” Gbessay says.

But the lack of support from government to the few privately-owned special schools, like the New Horizon School and the AACT centre, is having a toll on their operations.

Enchill says the AACT accepts more than 30 children. Parents of children who are admitted to the New Horizon School are also unable to foot the token fee for their children’s training.

Adu-Akorsah says the school is run solely on the benevolence of charity and the fees paid by parents.

She says teachers in the school are paid a meager salary and other services, like physiotherapy, are only available to children whose parents can afford the extra cost.

Vardon also admits that government support to the disabled is “not going to go far” although he acknowledged government has good intensions.

“Despite the good intentions of government, the resources just haven’t been made available.” He says the distribution of the two percent allocation to the disabled from the district assembly common fund is a challenge.

“We have to basically select from applications and maybe this quarter support 20 people at a time,” he says.

Vardon adds that the Social Welfare Department responsible for social issues is also underfunded.

“They are as under-resourced, unfortunately, as many of the government departments that deal with social issues,” Vardon says.

Challenges And Solutions

“The challenges are numerous,” says Enchill, stating that because of “lack of space and trained teachers, we cannot admit new children”.

She says the centre trains its own teachers and pays its bill through money raised from the fees of the students.

Gbessay says there is no specialist trained to care for children with autism at the Dzorwulu Special School.

But he says the Ghana Education Service, under its inclusive education, will establish a unit school for children with special needs.

He says the idea is to allow the children to mix up to minimize prejudice against the children, shift from segregated schools to mainstream schools, and address the prejudices of parents.

“Once the children start sharing activities and sharing the information back home that reduces the prejudice from the side of the parents,” he adds.

Vardon says the council needs to properly assess the prevalence of people with disabilities so as to effectively address the issue.

He says the council needs about $13million to conduct a disability “census” in Ghana, adding, “Hopefully we will be able to get the resources in place.”

Adu-Korsah believes it is time for government to step in to address some of the challenges faced by private special schools.

“If government decides to support us it would take us a long way.” Could help pay teachers and rest of funds would go to services such as speech therapy,” she says.

“We need help as much as anybody can give us. Autism can affect any child anytime, anywhere.”

By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri

Often times, when a great disaster such as a fatal lorry accident, a destructive flood, a shattering earthquake or a slashing epidemic disease etc, befall some God-fearing men, people react by immediately asking: ‘’If God is really there, why did He allow that to happen?’’

Or, ’’Why should God be silent to all the sufferings of the people?’’

Indeed, the silence of God has been a subject of dispute in several societies and a number of reasons have been advanced to explain it.

First, let’s look at the negative reasons. There are those who consider the silence as an indication that there is no God at all. For, to them, if there is any God, he would speak or act immediately to save situations respecting his own God-fearing children.

There are also the materialists who think that there is no personal God to order the affairs of men; but only a Cosmic Force whose laws govern the universe and that everything is at the ‘mercy of the blind side of the Cosmic Force, but is not due to the power of God’. That means no God has any power over any disaster. Thus a lorry accident is due to an ill -luck.

Then there are those who believe that there is God, but He is either unwilling to interfere with, or is indifferent to, what pertains to the world because he has given every one the complete free will and talent  to do  whatever he wants, or to be wherever he wants.

That is to say, a lorry accident for instance happens when a man (the driver)misapplies or under-utilizes his free-will talent; or a flood becomes a disaster to a person, because he chooses to stay where the flood is ,or he does not use his faculties (or talent) enough to prevent them.

Others negatively think that God is so much involved with the affairs in his own city, heaven, that he remains unobservant to what happens to the world’s society.

But God’s silences are due to several positive reasons. The first is his paternal justice. This demand that if any one recognizes God as a father who  can help or defend him, it is his bounden duty to first call on Him as a father and tell Him all he wants and he will get  whatever he wants.

God once told Prophet Jeremiah ‘’Call to me and I will answer you   and show you great and unsearchable things you do not know… I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and society.’’ (Jeremiah 33:3:6).

The main principle in God’s paternal justice is simple: ‘’a call’’ to the father. In other words, silence from a son is equal to silence from the father, because the father feels much disregarded or disrespected when the son is silent.

So it is a question of: ’’ ibi you sabi me, me too I sabi you; ibi you no sabi me, me too I no sabi you.’’ (If you know me I too know you, if you don’t know me, I too don’t know you).

This, in point of logic, does not make God look unmerciful in the suffering of those who do not sabi (know) him or call upon him. Fact is, God does not break his principles of law which he Himself has made for mankind to obey. God’s silence is strictly according to the principle of paternal justice.

There is, in regard to this question of paternal justice, a tricky point concerning God’s prolonged silence, to those who even strongly call on Him as a father.

The answer is straight forward: the inability of believers to call under the correct or suitable prayer conditions such as: “confession’’ of their sins, ’’calling’’, with  unforgiving heart, inhumility and disobedience to God’s commandments– all of which produce stumbling blocks which make prayers go unheeded.

God’s silence might also be due to other positive reasons, namely God’s testing of the believers faith, God’s re-orientation plan for the believer or God’s unexpected miracles.

The faith-testing silence of God is confirmed by the Scripture. In Genesis 22:1 Moses writes: ‘’some time later God tested Abraham’’ by asking that his beloved son Isaac should be sacrificed to Him. Job was tested by God’s prolonged silence to his supplications for the healing of his sickness.

Job’s tenacity of purpose, in spite of God’s unusual silence, remained unwaived. And he continued to declare ‘’When He has tested me, I will come forth as a gold (Job 23:10) Job understood God’s silence as a test!

Next is God’s re – orientation plan. By his silence, God often intentionally creates ample room or gives sufficient time to the believer to change his ways: to repent and reorient his lifestyles; or to change the ways of the person about whom he is praying.

Take the latter case. God displayed initial silence to the prayers of Christ’s early Apostles who, from AD33 onwards, were being persecuted by Saul (St. Paul). After well over 3 years of silence to the Apostle’s prayers, God, through Christ, reoriented Saul to become the converted St. Paul in AD37. Lastly is God’s mysterious silence. One might consider God’s 38 years silence to the cripple who In vain had struggled to be healed in the pool of Bethsaida .The man mysteriously met his miraculous healing in a split second from Jesus Christ so that the Glory of God was manifested. God undoubtedly wanted the man to be a believer in Christ one day!

Certainly, an understanding of Gods silence will help believers to be tolerant, and this will help believers to patiently wait for answers to their patients (Psalm 40:1). Or that will help them pray more fervently to forcibly get their petitions answered (Matthew 11:12).

If God has become silent to you, first examine your prayer condition, remain steadfast in your demands, and patiently wait on Him to perform His miracles.

 By Apostle Kwamena Ahinful

AMD thinks Trinity should appeal to mainstream users wanting HD graphics on slimline laptops

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has launched its new Trinity processor family boasting “twice the performance per watt” of its earlier Llano chips.

Like Intel’s rival Ivy Bridge release, the update includes up to four CPU (central processing unit) cores and a single GPU (graphics processing unit).

AMD claims its product offers gamers a superior experience.

The first computers using the chips go on sale in June, with the US launch of a Hewlett Packard “Sleekbook”.

AMD’s focus on low power requirements reflects manufacturers’ desire to offer thinner laptops and slimmer all-in-one desktop models.

Trinity can be set to run off as low as 17 watts, half the minimum amount possible using Llano.

The move should also allow traditional-sized laptops to run off their batteries for longer. The firm says systems could last up to 12 hours, although the figure cannot be verified until models utilising the chips are released.

Recycled power

While Intel has shifted to a new manufacturing process – radically changing the design of its transistors – to make gains, AMD has opted for an alternative innovation.

The “Piledriver” architecture of its CPU cores introduces an energy-saving technique called “resonant clock mesh technology” which allows it to “recycle” some of the energy consumed as it carries out calculations.

“Over the past decade, several test chips successfully demonstrated a variety of resonant clocking implementations,” AMD’s chief technology officer Joe Macri told the BBC.

“None however, has achieved integration into a commercial processor due to various practicality or cost issues. AMD has managed to overcome these challenges.

“[It] results in a reduction in total core power consumption of up to 10%.”

GPU-powered gaming

Further power savings will be achieved by running more processes on the chipset’s GPU which is the same “Northern Islands” design used in its standalone Radeon graphics cards.

AMD claims that the component and the accompanying software drivers are superior to the equivalent products from Intel.

Third-party software including Photoshop, the media-player VLC, Adobe’s Flash plug-in and many of the leading web browsers have undergone recent updates to take advantage of GPU’s skill at handling “parallisable” tasks – processes that are split into different parts and then run simultaneously.

This ability is also particularly suited for handling computer graphics, and AMD is keen to promote Trinity’s ability to handle high definition games on systems not fitted with discrete graphics cards.

“Thirty frames per second is the industry standard for smooth gaming,” Sasa Markinkovic, AMD’s head of desktop and software product marketing, told the BBC.

“What we are able to do with Trinity is offer HD, 1080p resolution, gaming and deliver 30 frames per second.

“When you look at Ivy Bridge it is a step forward for Intel in terms of graphics performance, but it’s still not good enough for HD gaming – and that makes the difference between playable and not playable.”

‘Intel’s advantage’

Computers using Trinity will also offer AMD’s “Steady Video” feature which automatically stabilises playback of shaky videos posted to sites such as YouTube; and “Quick Stream”, a setting which ensures PCs prioritise streaming video when downloading several files from the internet at once.

Despite its advantages, one analyst said AMD might still find itself at a disadvantage against its long-term rival.

“Trinity is a compelling product from a graphics performance and power consumption perspective,” said Sergis Mushell, processor expert at the tech analysis firm Gartner.

“But Intel’s advantage is that it has a bigger ecosystem – there will be 10 to 15 times the number of systems using its chips than AMD’s.

“This gives it better economies of scale and the ability to offer its chips at more price points, ultimately putting it in a strong position to challenge Trinity.”

BBC/Tech

Olly watches what is done in your name online and marks it with a whiff of scent.

The old saying that your ears go red when people are talking about you is getting a 21st Century update.

Now your nose can tell you when you are being talked about on social networks thanks to a net-connected robot.

Called Olly, the robot watches the millions of messages passing through social networks and spots when its owner is mentioned.

For every mention or referral Olly emits a waft of scent as a “reward” for the online interaction.

Olly was thought up and refined by Benjamin Redford as a project for technology company Mint. The idea, he told the BBC, was to develop a device that was connected to the net but which did not display its output on a screen.

Make your own

“We wanted to reward people in the physical world for their digital and social interactions,” he said.

Smell rapidly emerged as a good medium for that reward, he said, because a whiff of perfume could catch someone’s attention without overly distracting them.

“We are gradually spending more and more time on screen and it’s good to have some other form of sensory stimulus rather than just video and audio,” he said.

Smell was a intuitive way to gauge online interaction without constantly having to monitor feeds, notifications and other message streams, he said.

“They can all get a bit much,” said Mr Redford.

Olly (short for olfactory) has gone through several versions since its initial design. The latest plans are for a gadget much smaller than the original.

Plans to make an Olly robot have been put online under a creative commons licence so anyone can make their own, said Mr Redford. Putting one together demands a passing familiarity with electronics, 3D printing and computer programming.

Once finished, Olly can keep an eye on Twitter, Facebook or almost any other online account. The software that controls Olly can be tuned to emit a puff of perfume for a few different types of online interaction such as a retweet, posting a comment, a mention by name or a specific text search.

The scents that Olly wafts around a room can also be tailored, as the device has a drawer on its rear where the scent can sit. Smells tried during testing included vomit, candyfloss and a partner’s perfume, said Mr Redford.

The complexity of building an Olly robot made the audience for it “fairly niche”, said Mr Redford, but he added that a small but growing number were now in use around the world.

One chef in the US had loaded his Olly with the essence of tortilla to monitor when his restaurants were being mentioned online.

Olly has proved a hit with companies too, said Mr Redford. One company had decided to manufacture lots of Olly robots to help with a marketing campaign that will launch in late 2012.

BBC/Tech

The new smartphone will compete with a multitude of other low-cost handsets in China

Baidu, China’s search giant, has announced the launch of its first smartphone.

It is the firm’s first move into the mass smartphone market.

Built by Foxconn, the low-cost Changhong H5018 is powered by Baidu’s own mobile operating system, Cloud.

Analysts say it is extremely important for the company to secure significant presence in the booming mobile industry in China, which has the largest number of smartphone users in the world.

The phone will be the first mobile device to run on Baidu’s Cloud Smart terminal platform and will come with 100GB of cloud storage on Wangpan, the local equivalent of Dropbox and Google Drive.

With a price tag of less than 1,000 yuan ($158; £99), it will face fierce competition at the Chinese low-end smartphone market.

Customers currently have a choice between low-cost handsets made by firms such as Huawei Technologies, ZTE Corp, HTC, Lenovo and Xiaomi.

But Baidu’s director of international communications, Kaiser Kuo, said he believed that H5018 would do well.

“It’s a terrific market opportunity for us, and Baidu is constantly adjusting, understanding what users are interested in,” Mr Kuo told BBC News.

“The new handset is integrated with the cloud – and with our 100GB offering, I think that no one will be able to match that.”

Baidu’s mobile OS

Earlier this year, Baidu said it had to develop a stronger presence in China’s rapidly expanding mobile space.

With its Cloud Smart terminal platform, it hopes to attract the interest of hardware manufacturers.

“Baidu is recreating itself – we used to be a product-focused company, but now we are becoming a platform-focused company,” said Mr Kuo.

It was important for internet companies to secure presence in the mobile industry, said Beijing-based digital media analyst Bill Bishop.

“Mobile internet usage is booming. If Baidu doesn’t have a significant presence, they risk challenges to their business, and they [could] miss out on a new frontier,” he said.

“That said, they also risk alienating other handset partners who might use them as the search partner, but now see them as competitors.”

The new smartphone is primarily aimed at the Chinese market.

“Access to cloud-based services is a critical piece of the technology, and since they are tailored for China, it doesn’t make sense to push outside to other markets right now,” said Mr Kuo.

With access to Google’s search hampered by the Chinese government’s internet regulations known as the Great Firewall of China, Baidu dominates the country’s search traffic.

BBC/Tech

Half a million machines are believed to have been infected

Apple has released a software update, designed to protect users of its Leopard operating system from malware attacks.

The firm had already been forced to rush out security updates for machines working on its newer Snow Leopard and Lion operating systems.

It follows the Flashback trojan attack which security experts believe infected up to half a million Macs.

Apple has faced criticism for the time it has taken to react to the threat.

Disabling Flash

The Flashback malware targeted a vulnerability in the Java software that is used in Windows machines, Apple computers and many others.

Macs were the biggest victims because Apple did not patch the loophole in its version of Java for several weeks after the vulnerability became known.

Of its latest patch Apple said: “The update removes the most common variants of the Flashback malware. If the Flashback malware is found, a dialog will notify you that malware was removed. In some cases, the update may need to restart your computer in order to completely remove the Flashback malware.”

For added security, the patch also disables versions of Adobe Flash Player that do not include the latest security updates, and encourages users to get the latest version directly from Adobe’s website.

“This additional level of protection when it comes to Safari users running Flash is good to see – as Adobe’s software is so frequently exploited by malware authors and malicious hackers to infect web surfers,” said Graham Cluley, senior consultant at security firm Sophos in his blog.

Tiger vulnerability

It shows, he added, that the firm is keen to cover all bases.

“It’s encouraging to see Apple has not left users of this older version of the Mac OS X operating system completely out in the cold when it comes to protecting against the latest threats. Clearly they realise that it’s not good for the Apple Mac’s image if older computers connected to the internet are harbouring malware,” said Mr Cluley.

But he added that more may still need to be done.

“Of course, there are still users of Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger out there – they don’t have the benefit of these security updates and are effectively playing a dangerous game with their systems as the malware threat on the Mac platform increases.”

Apple is due to release its latest OS – Mountain Lion – in late summer 2012.

BBC

Much stronger-than-expected iPhone sales helped Apple nearly double its profit last quarter.

The world’s most valuable company said Tuesday it sold 35.1 million iPhones during the first three months of 2012, soundly beating analysts’ expectations. That was a relief to investors, following weaker-than-expected iPhone activations from Verizon (VZ, Fortune 500) and AT&T (T, Fortune 500) during the quarter.

Shares of Apple rose more than 10% in pre-market trading Wednesday, halting a two-week slump that has dragged the stock down nearly 13% from its all-time peak.

The iPhone 4S got a big boost from overseas sales in the past quarter, particularly after the device launched on China Unicom (CHU) in January and China Telecom (CHA) in March. Apple’s Asian revenues grew 32% over the prior quarter.

Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) also announced that it sold 11.8 million iPads. Boosting sales was the launch of the third generation of the tablet, which went on sale in mid-March, as well as Apple’s decision to continue selling the very similar iPad 2 at a $100 discount.

The iPad is now Apple’s fastest-selling device, reaching 67 million sold since it launched two years ago. It took Apple three years to sell as many iPhones, five years to sell as many iPods and 24 years to sell that number of Macintosh computers.

Yet analysts were concerned that the introduction of the lower price point would hurt future profit. Average revenue per iPad fell to $558 last quarter from $593 in the previous quarter.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said on a conference call with analysts that the company “feels great” about offering the iPad at a lower entry cost, which has resulted in a “marked change in demand in some countries.”

Mac sales grew to 4 million, and iPod sales slipped to 7.7 million.

CNN