General News

Nana Kofi Boakye, the fake doctor

A man who posed as a medical doctor and promised to get five ladies enrolled in nursing training institutions, has found himself in the grips of the law.

Nana Kofi Boakye who used the name Doctor Owusu Batistuter demanded various sums of money from the ladies, but failed to deliver, has landed him in a remand by the Abeka Magistrate Court.

His victims included Lydia Owusu, a shop attendant who paid GH¢2,500 to gain admission, Charity Karikari, a 23-year old who also paid GH¢2,800 and Barbara Owusu who forfeited GH¢4,800 to see her dream of becoming a nurse realized.

Others are Elizabeth Akiamoah, a 48-year-old  paid $5,200 and an extra GH¢2,300 with a hope of getting admission into a nursing training school and Irene Twum Barimah, a student paid GH¢470 and $2,500 to the fake doctor.

The phone dealer turned doctor according to investigator, Charles Owusu Boateng, when he mounted the witness box told the court presided over by Emmanuel Nana Antwi-Barima,  Magistrate of the Abeka Court, that the accused deceived his victims that he was a medical doctor at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital.

Detective Owusu Boateng said on May 10, 2013 one of the victims, Lydia Owusu reported at the Abeka Police Post that the accused who was a customer in her shop located at Lapaz had collected GH¢2,800 with a promise to enrol her in a nursing training school.

Later when the accused called to demand $1,500 “she became suspicious and sensed he could not trust him” and therefore reported to the police.

On May 13, 2013, with the help of the police, the complainant called the suspect that the money was ready “and he showed up, but bolted upon seeing that the lady was not alone.”

The investigator said the accused left his car when he took off. The car was later towed to the Tesano Police Station.

“Then a man identified the car as his and claimed that he gave it to the accused who was his friend on hiring basis. He said his friend had called him that his father had arrived from the United States of America and so he gave the car to him.”

Upon the instruction of the District Commander, the investigator said, some police officers were detailed to follow the owner of the car to apprehend the accused.

When the accused was arrested, he admitted in his statement to the police that he was not a medical officer.

A search conducted in the car recovered a receipt for stethoscope, a medical instrument, with the name of the accused on it.

Police found that the shop which issued the receipt was located near the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital.

At the shop, Chris Obimaco Ventures Limited, a surgical shop which sold medical equipment, the shop attendant identified the accused as the doctor who bought the stethoscope even though the accused alleged the receipt was for a friend.

Later, the investigator said four more people came up “and reported that they were victims of the doctor who used the same modus operandi to deceive them.”

Magistrate Antwi-Barima after hearing the facts asked the accused who has been charged with impersonation and fraud if he had any question for the witness, but the man who throughout the trial had his left hand in the pocket only shook his head answering in the negative.

Magistrate Antwi-Barima remanded him into Police custody, and announced he would give his judgement on June 26, 2013.

By Emelia Ennin Abbey

some of the unauthorized structures at Takoradi No.1

Residents of Essikafoambatem No.1 near the 31^st December Day Care Centre in Takoradi have called on authorities of the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA) to, as a matter of urgency, evict squatters who are gradually turning the place into a slum.

According the residents, the squatters who have turned the area into a sprawling slum like ‘Sodom and Gomorrah’ in Accra include ‘Wee’ smokers and armed robbers.

“Some of them are alleged hardened criminals and prostitutes whose activities have now become an environmental nightmare for residents in the area,” they indicated.

They said that lately the area had been recorded several robbery cases.

“Last Tuesday at about 12 midnight an armed robber broke into the hall of one of the residents and made away with the persons flat-screen television set. The residents managed to arrest the robber at New Takoradi also in the metropolis and handed him over to the police,” they added.

They were worried that with the emergence of oil and gas companies in the metropolis and the subsequent influx of many people, the situation could worsen.

They alleged that sometimes most squatters defecate openly into gutters.

“We will not allow an illegal activity to become legal. It is a huge problem but the assembly should take the bull by the horn by demolishing all unauthorized structures in the vicinity,” they said.

This reporter was greeted with the nauseous smell of choked drains and effluent when DAILY GUIDE visited the area.

It was realized that even though most of the unauthorized structures had the inscription, “Remove by STMA” on them, they were still in the area.

Speaking on behalf of the residents, Kwesi Nketsia, an opinion leader in the area, pointed out that the metropolitan assembly should assist the residents by addressing the issues without fear or favour.

“The place is stinky and full of violent people, armed robbers, crooks, prostitutes and the unemployed,” one of the residents alleged.

When contacted, Opoku Boateng, the Deputy PRO of the STMA indicated that all the structures in the area that had been marked ‘remove’ would soon be demolished.

“Ejecting the squatters and demolishing their illegal structures are mandated by law,” he said.

 From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi

Cutlass

A man believed to be in his early 20s is on the run after he allegedly killed a 40 year-old man at Asante Akyem Muoso on Saturday.

The deceased, whose name was given as Kwaku Kyei, was brutally butchered by the suspect who wielded machetes.

The on-the-run suspect, believed to hail from the Northern region, also attempted killing a JHS student who saw him committing the crime.

It is unclear what motivated the suspect to brutally kill Kyei but the incident caused fear and panic among the residents.

The development is said to have infuriated the youth of the area who are said to be on the heels of the suspect to bring him to book.

Assemblyman of the area, a certain Dickson, who spoke to Ali Baba of Kessben FM in Kumasi said, “I know him by face but I don’t know his name.”

The suspect and deceased resided at Muoso, he said.

According to him, the suspect was the caretaker of cocoa farm belonging to a certain man in the area.

Reports say someone hired the suspect to work on the farm and he demanded GH¢150.

The same person reportedly engaged the services of Kyei who demanded GH¢50 as fee.

The job was eventually given to the deceased and this perhaps infuriated the suspect.

The suspect pounced on Kyei on Saturday morning and killed him instantly.

Hon. Dickson said he had admonished the irate youth not to take the law into their hands.

 FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi

Dr. Omane Boamah presenting a computer to one of the beneficiaries as Ashanti Regional Minister, Eric Opoku looks on

The Communications Minister, Dr. Edaward Omane Boamah has sternly cautioned Ghanaian youth, notably students, not to indulge in cyber fraud, popularly known as ‘Sakawa’ in an attempt to get rich quickly.

According to him, the youth of the country should not use the internet to dupe innocent people.

He also warned Ghanaians in general to be cautious at all times in order not to fall prey to the nefarious activities of fraudsters.

Dr. Omane Boamah said there is “no free lunch” and charged the youth not to succumb to free offers from aliens on the internet.

The Minister made the remarks during the presentation of 180 desktop computers to selected Community Information Centers (CIC) in the Ashanti region in Kumasi on Tuesday.

Dr. Omane Boamah said government was collaborating with South Korean government to introduce technologies that would help protect the people.

The donation formed part of plans by government to distribute 4,000 computers to CIC, ministries, departments and agencies to help boost the learning of ICT.

Dr. Omane Boamah said ICT development was a priority for the NDC government, noting that the Mahama administration believes the country cannot develop appropriately without ICT in this computer era.

He disclosed the NDC government would in the next four years distribute a whopping 400,000 laptops and computers to students and schools to boost ICT learning.

The government, he said, had invested a staggering 37 million Euros in a 780 kilometer optic fiber project nationwide, which is geared towards boosting the internet to enhance businesses.

The Minister sternly cautioned people against cable theft which negatively affects communication.

The beneficiary areas in the region were Adansi North, Affigya Kwabre, Amansie West, Atwima Nwabiagya Kwabre, Sekyere Central and Sekyere South.

The Ashanti Regional Minister, Eric Opoku said the Regional Coordinating Council had secured land to construct an ultra-modern press center to enhance the work of the media in the region.

He said drawings for the building had been completed and some funds had been secured to start the construction of the edifice soon.

 FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi

Pastor

A 33-year-old self-styled pastor at Gomoa Aboso in the Gomoa East District of the Central Region, Samuel Arthur, has been remanded by the Agona Swedru Circuit Court for defiling a 14-year-old girl.

Suspect Arthur who was remanded into prison custody is expected to reappear on June 27, 2013.

Prosecuting, Inspector Alfred Boakye said the incident happened on March 1, 2013, around 12:00pm at the residence of the suspect and the victim.

The victim felt sick at school and went home. On reaching the house, she realized her mother was not there and therefore waited in front of their room for her.

Inspector Boakye added that the suspect came out of his room and enquired from the victim why she was at home at that time. The victim said she was not well. So the suspect went to his room for a concoction for her to drink.

Inspector Boakye hinted that the victim felt dizzy after drinking the concoction. The suspect then asked the victim to go and sleep in his room, which she did.

The prosecutor said the suspect then went into the room and had sex with her.

When the victim later woke up and found the suspect sleeping beside her she asked him why he was sleeping beside her.

The suspect answered by telling the victim that he had sex with her and warned her not tell anybody or she would die.

Prosecution told the court that the victim kept the issue secret till her stomach started bloating.

The mother who was worried about the situation took the victim to several hospitals in the area but to no avail.

The prosecutor added that the suspect confronted the victim’s mother that he would do everything possible to save the life of the victim.

Prosecution further told the court that the suspect then asked the victim’s mother to give him 10 bottles of foreign schnapps, 10 bottles of floral water, three fowl and Alhaji oil to perform rituals for the victim.

He added that the sickness worsened after the victim’s mother provided the items.

Inspector Boakye said the victim’s mother therefore pleaded with the victim to tell her what she knew about the sickness.

The victim narrated the incident to the mother who also reported the matter to the Agona Police Command.

The suspect was arrested. A police medical form issued to the victim confirmed that she had been defiled.

From Sarah Afful, Agona Swedru

A SOLDIER who allegedly deceived 10 people that he could assist them to buy auctioned cars from the Castle, and succeeded in defrauding them to a tune of GH¢53,000, has found himself in the dock.

The accused, Corporal Bugu Ibrahim, was yesterday put before an Accra Circuit Court presided over by Justice Patience Mills-Tetteh, a High Court judge with additional responsibility as a Circuit Court judge, to face trial on four counts of defrauding by false pretence.

Some of the victims included Maxinums Assase, Akpalu Boateng Edinam, Joseph Amoasi, and Kwasi Issifu, from whom he allegedly took GH¢4,000, GH¢7,000, GH¢4,000 and GH¢3,500 respectively.

The accused, who pleaded not guilty to the charges, was remanded into police custody to assist the police to complete investigations in the matter.

The prosecutor, Isaac Dedoo, informed the court that in 2012, Corporal Bugu Ibrahim introduced himself to the complainants as a soldier working with the national security, who was in the capacity to assist them to acquire different types of auctioned cars from the Castle, Osu.

The prosecutor stated that the complainants expressed interest and parted with cash totalling an amount of GH¢53,900.00.

Bugu, after collecting the money, allegedly went into hiding until he was arrested three months ago at his hideout in Kumasi.

Corporal Ibrahim, in his caution statement, allegedly admitted the offence and said he handed over the money to a friend by name Mr. Osei at Dome who worked at Tema Harbour.  However, after handing over the money to his friend, he did not hear from him until he called his friend with an international number and the said friend said he was in the USA.

After investigation, the accused was charged with the offence of defrauding by false pretence.

By Mary Anane & Celestine E. Mensah

A Pregnant Woman

Mrs. Felicia Okine, Deputy Director in charge of School Health, Tema Education Directorate, has advised young girls to exercise discipline and restraint to avoid unwanted pregnancy.

She said it was much better to have enough patience to wait till they are fully grown before indulging in adult behavior in order not to jeopardize their future.

Mrs. Okine was speaking on Tuesday in Tema on the day of the African child celebration on the theme: “Eliminating Harmful Social and Cultural Practices Affecting Children’s Education, Our Collective Responsibility.”

Mrs Okine said young girls had to realize that their lives and future belonged to them, adding that it was their responsibility to ensure that no one jeopardized their future.

She urged them to report incidents of inappropriate behavior towards them by people who they might not be able to deal with themselves, such as their teachers to higher authorities to ensure their protection as well as sanctioning of the culprits.

Mrs. Okine said it was unfortunate that some authorities did not allow pregnant girls to write exams.
She said although those girls might have erred, it was important to grant them a chance towards a brighter future.

Ms. Priscilla Takiwaa Aforo, Social Development Officer at the Department of Social Well Fare, said irresponsible parenting, peer pressure, and poor education on the human reproductive cycle, were the key reasons for the high rate of teenage pregnancy.

Ms. Aforo said it was important for parents and other stakeholders such as churches and schools, to adequately educate the youth, especially teenage girls on pre-marital sex.

“There is the need for laws to be enacted to punish irresponsible parents,” she said, adding “parents should provide their children’s needs when the need arises.”

Ms. Sheila Aboagye, Executive Director of PerVita Foundation, urged children to project their ideas and dreams positively by being technologically oriented in the age of Information Communication and Technology (ICT).

“ICT in our era has very powerful developmental advantages, but it depends on how well we use it.”
She said in order for ICT to be used properly, teachers, parents and guardians needed to ensure that it was applied appropriately through all curriculum areas.

The program was organized by the Abibiman Foundation and I DAY Ghana. Mrs. Judith Sawyer, Chairperson of the Greater Accra Branch of the Ghana National Education Campaign Coalition, and Vice Chair of the School Management Committee of the Nima Cluster of Schools, chaired the function.

GNA

Queen-mother of Akim Aboabo in the Eastern Region and four others who were charged with unlawful entry, conspiracy to commit crime and causing bodily harm have been granted GH¢10,000.00 bail.

The queen-mother Nana Owusua Akoto IV, and Paulina Buruwaa, 40, Veronica Pokuaa, 38, Kofi Asare, 46, and Yaw Hyen, 46, are all from Akim Aboabo.

When they appeared before the Akim Swedru Circuit Court, presided over by Mr Yaw Atta Sampong, they denied the offenses and would reappear on June 26.

Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Kwadwo Ahenkorah told the court that there was a chieftaincy rift between the factions of the queen-mother and Nana Ampomah Kubrah Yeboah III, the newly installed chief at Aboabo and that the Akim Oda Magistrate Court earlier bonded the queen-mother to be of good behavior for a month.

Chief Inspector Ahenkorah said the queen-mother violated the court orders and together with Buruwaa, Pokuaa, Asare and Hyen, stormed the Aboabo Palace and allegedly assaulted Nana Ampomah Kubrah, the substantive chief of the town.

The prosecutor stressed that Madam Moureen Adomaa Akosua, wife of the Chief, who was pregnant at the time and wanted the situation calmed down intervened, but was also assaulted and bled profusely, adding that when she was rushed to the hospital, she had lost the baby.

GNA

AN ACCRA Land Court has set aside an earlier judgment against the Lands Commission concerning the ownership of the Shiashie registered land which is being claimed by the Apantse We family.

The court, presided over by Justice Ernest Obimpe,  further set aside a purported registration of parcels of  land  by the then Land Title Registry, now Registration Division of the Land Commission,  which did it in the name of the Apantse We family  based on the previous judgment.

According to the court, it was wrong for the High Court to have entered judgment in favour of Apantse We family when it had failed to describe clearly the boundaries of the land in question.

Justice Obimpe’s judgment was in respect of a suit filed by the family for a judicial review against the Land Commission reliefs such as injunction, prohibition, certiorari, and mandamus, among others.

The applicant family had wanted the court to stop the commission from granting portions of the family land to individuals and institutions and to compel the commission to register and process application for the registration of lands granted to people by the family.

However, the court observed that the suit constituted an abuse of the court’s process because the family, led by Nii Tetteh Opremreh, knew that the commission had commenced an action against him to set aside the judgment and yet brought the application for review.

The court also observed that apart from the claim of the plaintiff that government had allocated parts of the said land to individuals for private use, no further evidence was led on this assertion.

“Which parts of the disputed land were allocated to individuals and organisations as complained of, for what purpose were those lands put to by the said individuals and organisations etc. No such particulars were provided by the plaintiff and the judgment of April 1999 is also silent on it,” Justice Obimpe noted.

The applicant, in applying for the review, sought damages for the loss of the family and its grantees suffered during an illegal demolition exercise undertaken by the commission.

The court upheld the arguments raised by the Land Commission and concluded that “it was wrong for the trial judge in April 1999 judgment to have applied the provisions of Article 20 of the 1992 Constitution to the matter arising from acquisitions made in 1944”.

Justice Obimpe observed that at the time of giving the judgment, the trial judge did not know that the village of Shiashie and three other villages were allowed under the authority of government to continue staying there and, therefore, there was no issue of adverse possession in favour of the applicant.

The Apantse We family’s case was that it was in possession of the land in question when it was compulsorily acquired by the then colonial government in 1944 for the construction of an Airfield for the use of the Air Force of the Allied Forces during the Second World War.

When the war ended in 1945 the colonial government abandoned the project without taking possession of the land at all.

The family, therefore, remained in possession of the land as owners without the consent or the authority of the colonial and post-colonial government till date.

They subsequently went to the court to enforce their right of ownership of the land and it was granted by the court.

The commission, in opposition to the family’s claim, asked the court to dismiss their application for review because it was based on a flawed judgment.

The commission contended that the land the family was fighting over was acquired by the State in 1944 under the Public Lands Ordinance (CAP134) for the purpose of extending the existing airfield and not for the construction of an airfield for the use of the Allied Forces in the Second World War.

In line with CAP 134 the La Stool headed by Nii Adjei Quano, the Mantse of Labadi, was adjudged the rightful owner as against the competing claims by the Osu Stool and the Ga Stool.

Subsequently compensation was received by La Stool, which was apportioned among the various families under it.

The court then issued a certificate of title registered at the Deeds Registry to the state.

The commission argued that the state, in the 1970s, designated the area south of the Accra-Tema Motorway, which is a part of the land, to be used for commercial purposes such as the development of hotels, offices, shops etc.

The area north of the Accra-Tema Motorway was also designated as a residential area (East Legon).

The erstwhile lands department then made several allocations of the land to individuals and organisations.

According to the Commission, in 1976, Nii Anyetei Kwakranya II the then La Mantse and president of the La Traditional council, submitted a petition to the then Head of State, General I.K. Acheampong, to permit the La villages of Shiashie, Okponglo, Bawaleshie and Abotchiman to remain within the East Legon residential area on humanitarian grounds.

The government, after recommendations of the Alomatu Committee, permitted the said four villages to remain within the East Legon residential area.

Therefore, the purported land under dispute, according to the Commission, is a state property. The plaintiff could, therefore, not raise any right of adverse possession because no such right ever accrued under the circumstance.

 By Mary Anane

Ambassador Gong Jianzhong

Official representatives of China in Ghana have pleaded with law enforcement agencies tracking illegal Chinese miners to treat them humanely.

The leader of a Chinese delegation which stormed Ghana last week, Qui Xuejun, wanted the law enforcement agencies to treat Chinese nationals in a “mild and humane” manner.

The Chinese delegation, consisting of both government officials and businessmen, met with Ghanaian officials and as part of the discussions, they pleaded with Ghana to give a human face to the crackdown of Chinese nationals in the illegal gold mining business.

According to Mr. Xuejun in a press conference in Accra on Tuesday, law enforcement agencies should “deal with the problem especially carry out law enforcement in a mild and humane manner.”

Ghana is currently faced with a disturbing phenomenon where thousands of Chinese nationals have invaded the country due to the lure of gold which they mine from small-scale mining concessions. Unfortunately, the business is exclusively reserved for Ghanaians.

Crack downs

President John Dramani Mahama has set up an inter-ministerial taskforce tasked to track down all foreigners, particularly Chinese nationals engaged in the illegal gold mining business.

Several hundreds of Chinese nationals have been arrested in special military-cum immigration operations to clamp down on illegal Chinese gold miners dotted around countless small-scale mining concessions in the country.

A number of these sting operations set up to stop the invasion of foreigners in the small-scale mining business have resulted in Chinese casualties.

Unlike traditional illegal mining operations known as ‘galamsey’ where artisanal tools are deployed to conduct the mining operations, the Chinese come with heavy duty earth moving machines which have left several farmlands, and forest reserves degraded. Those extracting alluvial gold have also left countless river bodies polluted.

“We have seen for ourselves the mining sites…my impression is that illegal mining cause pollution to the environment,” Mr. Quijun told the media.

Last week, over 200 illegal Chinese miners were rounded up and repatriated to their home countries.  Public Relations Director at the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) Francis Palmdeti told DAILY GUIDE the Chinese admitted entering the country illegally without genuine work permits and were ready to go back to their country immediately after they were processed.

Last week, several Chinese nationals hit the streets in Ghana to protest what they referred to as inhumane treatment of their compatriots in Ghana.

“This issue should be settled by not only the Chinese government, but also with the Ghanaian government,” stated the Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Gong Jianzhong.

Frustrating

Ghanaian immigration and Chinese officials have no clue about the actual population of both legal and illegal Chinese immigrants in Ghana, Gong Jianzhong stated.

This consequently meant that there was no way officials can keep track of the number of Chinese immigrants engaged in illegal gold mining operations in the country.

DAILY GUIDE could confirm that scores of Chinese illegal immigrants elude border guards daily to sneak into Ghana, and head straight to the several mining locations.

The Chinese Ambassador, Gong Jianzhong has admitted that the Chinese embassy has not yet developed any scheme to gather database of its citizens in Ghana as several hundreds of them flock the country daily.

Several others are said to enter the country through neighbouring countries. The Chinese Ambassador admitted the frustration of tracking its citizens: “We are very frustrated,” he said.

The bulk of the illegal miners are said to hail from a city in China called Sanglin City where most of the residents are farmers.

It came as a shock to the Chinese authorities how these farmers got to know the topography of Ghana’s mineral-rich zones.

Mr. Xuejun who is the Deputy Director General of the Consular department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs,  believed the influx of the Chinese was aided by some faceless Ghanaian collaborators; “Many of them are farmers, they never go abroad how…how can they know there is gold here [Ghana] in some forest?”

 By Raphael Ofori-Adeniran