Latest Ghana News Ticker:

Ghana Armed Forces bid for STX deal

* Source: Citifmonline

The Ghana Armed Forces have shown strong interest in taking over the botched STX housing deal, Citi Business News has learnt.

President Mills has asserted that government is looking for alternatives in the failed housing deal.

The Deputy Minister for Water, Resources, Works and Housing, Major (Rtd) Dr. Mustapha Ahmed told Citi Business News: “The issue of STX signing an agreement to produce 30,000 houses does not mean the door is closed to anybody. ”

“A lot more companies are invited, indeed recently the Ghana Armed Forces did a presentation and came out with their own proposal and it is being considered. ”

Quite a number of companies are reported to have submitted proposals and government is currently on the due diligence state with many of the companies that have expressed interest in the deal.

The $1. 5 billion deal would see the construction of 30,000 units of accommodation for the security services. The deal, however, grinded to a halt following board room wrangling of the partners involved.

Dr. Ahmed said the Armed forces will “given the benefit of the doubt” contribute in reducing the housing deficits that confronts the nation.

One of the companies whose name has recently come up as being considered to take up the STX housing deal is Nairobi-based pan-African housing finance company, Shelter Afrique.

However, Dr. Ahmed told Citi Business News, Shelter Afrique is not one of the alternatives government is considering.

* Source: Daily Guide

THE ASHANTI Regional Police Command has arrested five Fulanis in connection with the murder of Kwadwo Billah, a 58-year-old settler farmer who was murdered on Saturday January 14, 2011 in his residence at Mpenpesem, a farming community in the Agogo Traditional Area.

According to the Ashanti Regional Police Commander, DCOP Patrick Timbillah, the five Fulanis who were arrested in the unannounced swoop were Mohammed Bashiru, 29, Osmanu Kaleo, 20, Abubakari Bukari, 22, Osmanu Bataru, 33, and Abubakar Mohammed, 33.

The farmer, who had five children, was in his house at about 8:00pm on that fateful day when some Fulanis approached him with the mission of buying cigarettes.

Realizing that the deceased was not willing to sell the cigarettes to them, the Fulanis, who were eating at the time, reportedly then requested water and as the deceased was going for the water, one of the Fulanis allegedly opened fire on him, killing him instantly.

As part of measures to calm tensions in the traditional area, the Ashanti regional police command on Tuesday organized a swoop in settler communities of the nomads and in the process arrested five of them.

Areas which were affected by the swoop were Abrewapun, Mpenpesem, Mukaila and Nyamebekyere among other communities of the nomads who were basically caretakers of herd of cattle.

According to the Ashanti Regional Police boss, when a search was conducted on Abubakar Mohammed after the arrest, a single-barreled gun, a machete and a sharp knife were found on him.

DCOP Timbillah appealed to the bereaved family to report to the Regional Police Command for an identification exercise to enable the police make a headway in their investigations, noting that the five Fulanis would be kept in police custody whilst investigations continued.

He stressed that the appearance of the bereaved family at the police command was essential in the investigations because when the murder was committed, some of the family members were around and would therefore be able to identify the alleged culprits.

The Regional Commander gave the assurance that the apprehended Fulanis would be put before court for appropriate sanctions to be taken against them immediately investigations into the matter were concluded.

DCOP Timbillah pointed out that the swoop, which was done in collaboration with some military personnel, was necessary because the police needed to do something urgent to calm the mounting tension in the area as a result of the killing.

The Regional Police boss entreated the residents to remain calm and desist from the practice of taking the law into their own hands and rather collaborate with the police to ensure that law and order were maintained in the area.

Disclosing that the police in conjunction with the military would organize regular swoops to curtail the perpetration of all forms of crime, DCOP Timbillah equally enjoined resident Fulanis to properly control their herds so that the animals would not destroy people’s farms.

Ben Kumbour takes over from Martin Amidu as acting AG

* Source: Joy Online

Interior Minister Dr Benjamin Kumbour has been directed to take temporary charge of the Attorney-General’s Department following the dismissal with immediate effect of Mr Martin Amidu for what the presidency calls misconduct.

A statement signed by Chief of Staff, Mr Henry Martey Newman, said Mr Amidu conducted himself in ways incompatible with a minister of state during a meeting chaired by president John Mills last Friday, January 13, 2012.

“Mr Amidu’s behaviour is incompatible with acceptable standards expected of ministers and appointees of the president,” the statement noted.

President Mills has consequently directed Dr Kumbour to prosecute all cases in which the state has an interest in including the infamous Woyome judgment debt case.

Only this Monday, the dismissed AG, Martin Amidu went to court to amend his writ, contending the NDC financier had no contract with the state and therefore lacked locus on which to bring an action against the state.

He argued if Mr Woyome had any contract at all, it was procured by fraud.

That case, the president said, and all others must be pursued to their logical conclusion by Dr Kumbour who will remain responsible for the Justice Ministry until a substantive minister is appointed.

* Source: The Volta Advocacy Forum

The Global Partnership for Education (GPE), an international funding agency, has allocated $75.5 million to Ghana to help improve the quality of basic education.

The amount, representing one of the largest donor supports for the educational sector, will be targeted at deprived districts which recorded abysmal performance in the last Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) with the view to redeeming them from poor academic standards.

In the light of the poor BECE results in 2011 which sent shock waves across the nation, the Ministry of Education responded with the drawing up of elaborate intervention measures to salvage the situation.

With the causes of failure well identified and solutions aptly outlined, the Minister of Education, Mrs Betty Mould-Iddrisu, was able to convince the World Bank, at a meeting in Washington recently, to reverse its decision to disengage from basic education in Ghana.

Consequently, the World Bank agreed to particularly play the role of a supervising entity to enable Ghana to apply to the GPE for funds to implement programmes that would enhance access to and quality of basic education.

Announcing the package at a news conference in Accra yesterday, an excited Deputy Minister of Education, Mr Mahama Ayariga, said, “We are on track in our efforts to improve the quality of basic education in Ghana.”

The Ministry of Education intends to disburse the GPE funds in two forms — the Deprived Districts Grant and the Schools Grant Scheme.

The Deprived Districts Grant is purposed to increase access to education and improve learning outcomes, while the School Grant Scheme is aimed at allowing beneficiary schools to apply the funds to critical areas they believe can enhance quality learning.

Currently, the Ministry of Education has identified 61 districts as deprived in terms of academic performance, but the number is likely to increase after the application of new and broader criteria for the determination of such deprived districts.

Mr Ayariga said the district level initiatives would focus on measures to improve the qualification of teachers, quality of inputs, better materials and pedagogical approaches to increase literacy and numeracy from early grades.

He said the objective of the School Grant Scheme was to complement the existing Capitation Grant initially to schools in the identified deprived districts, with an explicit focus on improving access to and quality of education services based on priority needs defined at the school level.

Mr Ayariga said school managers did not need to call the Ghana Education Service (GES) headquarters in Accra or their district heads before applying the money to their needs.

Another component of the fund will be to finance the upgrading of at least 8,000 trained teachers, 75 per cent of whom will be allocated to the deprived districts.

Furthermore, the fund will be used to enhance supervision of education services in order to improve school monitoring, accountability and transparency to ultimately improve learning outcomes.

As part of the short-term measures to address poor academic performance in basic schools, the sector minister set up a task force, led by Mr Ayariga, and its tour of the regions revealed that particularly weak results in learning outcomes manifested in the poor performance in the BECE.

The task force, therefore, recommended, among other interventions, the need to extend teaching and learning hours for final-year JHS students, acquire and supply teaching and learning materials to the affected schools, ensure greater supervision by district directorates, undertake community sensitisation programmes, encourage greater engagement of district assemblies, traditional rulers and parents and ensure better preparation of candidates for the BECE in 2012.

In the long term, the ministry is seeking to improve teacher quality through professional development programmes and enhanced supervision, increase access of schools and school managers to requisite resources to enable them to exercise greater control of the school environment and implement the kind of measures that will impact greatly on quality learning and increase access of districts to resources that will enable them to determine measures that will impact positively on performance. 

Martin Amidu sacked

* Source: Joy FM Online

Information reaching Joy FM indicates embattled Attorney-General and Minister of Justice Martin Amidu has been sacked.

In the wake of his public statements alleging some key persons in government had orchestrated unwarranted media attacks on him because they believed “my integrity and professionalism as a lawyer was a threat to the concealment of gargantuan crimes against the people of Ghana in which they might be implicated,” President Mills demanded proof or a resignation letter from his Attorney-General, without which he would be sacked.

It appears Mr Amidu has not met the president's demand and the axe has been brought on him.

The AG’s statement attracted a sharply divided opinion – while members of the governing NDC’s communications team, riled by the statement, called for his immediate resignation or dismissal, anti-graft agencies and some opposition elements insisted Mr Amidu needed to be allowed to stay to prosecute the people he claimed were committing crimes against the state.

Felix Kwakye Ofosu, a member of the NDC communications team who felt insulted by Mr Amidu’s statement that “The ethics of a legal profession and the Bar, of which I am a leader, are more sacred to me than that of young and inexperienced members of a communication team of the NDC who are absolutely ignorant of the functions of an Attorney-General under the Constitution of Ghana,” said the AG’s position in government had become untenable and that he must resign.

Pro-government newspapers - Daily Post; the Informer; the National Democrat; the Ghanaian Lens - described by Mr Amidu as “perverse” and “rented NDC press” joined the calls for the AG’s dismissal with a unanimous banner headline, “A-G Martin Amidu Must Go!”

Opposition elements hailed the AG’s bravery and forthrightness.

Executive Secretary of the Ghana Integrity Initiative Vitus Azeem Thursday morning told Joy FM, the president’s demands on the AG to prove his allegations or resign else he would be sacked, were improper and represented a setback in the fight against corruption.

He suggested the AG may be pressured not to reveal any proof that may embarrass government and some individuals especially in an election year.

Whether Mr Martin Amidu has chosen to protect party interest by not saying anymore, or he simply puffed and couldn’t produce any proof of his allegations when challenged to do so and so fell on his own sword, is hard to tell.

What is certain is that Mr Amidu’s resignation will not wish away the controversy ignited by his explosive public statement.

Unwholesome chicken: FDB seizes Finatrade container at Tema Port

* Source: Citifmonline

In less than 24 hours after it destroyed cartons of unwholesome chicken belonging to Sucratrade, the Food and Drugs Board (FDB) has intercepted a container full of unwholesome chicken belonging to Finatrade, the mother company of Sucatrade.

The FDB said the container which is currently at the ports awaiting clearance will be inspected and the content destroyed appropriately.

Although it cannot immediately determine the number of cartons of the product that is in the container, the FDB is certain the product is not good for public consumption.

Dr. Mohammed Alpha, the official in charge of Bio-Safety at the FDB told Citi News: “There seem to be something wrong with the due diligence that Finatrade is doing because we have just detained a container at the port, imported by Finatrade. ”

“This container contains unwholesome chicken parts, it has been declared unfit for human consumption. We want to assure Ghanaians that we would not allow this container to be declared and we would not allow the content onto our market. ”

Jubilee field to average 70,000-90,000 barrels of oil per day

*Source: GNA

Accra, Jan. 18, GNA - Tullow Oil Plc on Wednesday said it expected production at its Jubilee oil field to average between 70,000 and 90,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) for 2012.

“Gross Jubilee production is currently over 70,000 boepd and following a number of remedial activities is expected to average 70,000 to 90,000 boepd in 2012,” the company said in a trading statement and operational update.

It said Jubilee field production would ramp back up in 2012 towards the field plateau rate of 120,000 boepd as the Phase 1 remedial programme begun to take effect from January 2012 and the new Phase 1A wells were brought on stream from the second quarter.

“The final outcome will be dependent on the well performance achieved, the downtime required to execute the recompletions and the scheduling of available rigs for other operations to ensure the Group’s exploration and appraisal commitments are also fulfilled,” it said.

Gross production from the field reached 88,000 boepd during 2011 before declining to approximately 70,000 boepd at year-end, with an average production for the year of 66,000 boepd. "The cause of this decline in well productivity has been identified as a technical issue related to the design of the well completions and is not expected to have any impact on field reserves and resources. Remedial work aimed at recovering lost well productivity has commenced with the successful sidetracking of the J-07 production well utilising a new completion design," the statement said.

The well was flow tested to the rig at rates of up to 15,000 boepd and started production to the FPSO in early January. The production rate is being gradually increased to allow close monitoring of the performance of the new completion over the next two to three months. I

It is expected that the redesigned completion will be utilised in the new Phase 1A wells and the sidetracks of a further three existing Phase 1 wells in 2012. The cost of these Phase 1 recompletions, including J-07, will be approximately $400 million gross.

Government of Ghana's approval for the next phase of development, Phase 1A, was received on January 9, 2012. This development will consist of eight new wells; five producers and three additional water injectors and the expansion of the subsea network.

It will be conducted over an 18-month-period. The total cost of Phase 1A is expected to be approximately $1.1 billion. The Phase 1A production wells are expected to commence drilling in February 2012.

The statement said total revenue for 2011 was expected to be of the order of $2.3 billion, compared with $1.1 billion in 2010.

The significant increase in revenue is due to higher sales volumes in 2011, principally due to Jubilee sales, together with the increased realised commodity prices.

Group Petitions CHRAJ To Probe Kufuor Over Woyome Saga

* Source: Peace FM Online

The Coalition Against Corruption has submitted a petition to the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice[CHRAJ] to investigate ex-public officials, involved in the organisation of the 26th African Cup of Nations tournament, (CAN 2008).

The petition called on CHRAJ to investigate members of the past NPP government, namely, former president John Agyekum Kufuor, former Minister of Education and Finance and Economic Planning, Yaw Osafo Maafo, former Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Mr. Agyeman Manu.

The rest are former Deputy Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Mr. O. B Amoah and Mr. Kofi Amoah, the former Chief Executive Office of the local organizing committee of CAN 2008 Tournament.

This follows the refusal of indicted ex-governmental officials to appear before the Economic and Organised Crimes Office [EOCO] for questioning into the controversial Gh¢51 million judgement debts paid to Mr. Alfred Woyome.

Convener of the petitioners, Ali Dantani Joseph, told Citi FM that CHRAJ is more equipped to summon the named officials “to provide clear answers to the matter,” objectively.

According to the petition statement, the circumstances surrounding the fiscal engagements of the CAN 2008 tournament indicates that “there has been a serious case of abuse of power, corruption, unfair treatment, injustice, misappropriation of public money by the above named former public officials which needs to be investigated urgently. ”

Mr. Osafo Maafo earlier today, in the company of Mr. O. B Amoah, appeared before court to pray it to grant an injunction to prevent him from appearing before the Economic and Organised Crimes Office (EOCO).

A photo journalist with Daily Guide newspaper, Gifty Lawson was said to have been manhandled by BNI Officials last Thursday 12th January after she attempted to take a photograph of DSP Gifty Mawuenyega Tehoda who appeared in court over the controversial cocaine turned into baking soda saga. Some Newspapers and radio stations went as far as to say BNI officials indecently groped the photo journalist Gifty Lawson.

The alleged assault has attracted widespread condemnation from the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Trade Union Congress (TUC), Media Foundation for West Africa, Ghana Pentecostal Council and other groups. The National Security Coordinator on the other hand has maintained that “Information available to me on the incident of the 12 January 2012, indicates that no journalist was molested or manhandled by the BNI “.

Painstaking Investigations conducted by the Investigation Team of the_True Statesman_ indicates that there was no assault on Gifty Lawson by any officials of the BNI as reported or at all.

In following this rather interesting story, this paper has found out that, on the 11th January, 2012 at the premises of the High Court, Gifty Lawson got herself engulfed in a confrontation with persons alleged to be relatives of DSP Gifty Mawunyegah Tehoda. Some newspapers notably “The Enquirer” on page 1, “Daily Guide” on page 2, and The Finder on page 3, all reported this incident on 12th January, 2012.

The “Enquirer’ report by Felix Engsalige Nyaaba, read in part as follows:

“ _Angry family members of DSP Gifty Muwuenyegah_, a suspect in the cocaine turned baking soda saga yesterday attacked journalists covering the case in court and damaged their cameras and recorders. A female journalist photographer with the Daily Guide News Paper Ms Gifty Lawson was severely beaten for trying to take a shot of DSP Mawuenyegah …”


A GNA report captured by The Finder on the matter read in part as follows:


“… Relatives of DSP Mawuenyegah vented their spleen on a Daily Guide photo journalist who attempted to take a shot of her soon after the matter had been adjourned by the court. The relations caused damage to the camera and rained insults on journalists, raving- ‘Fools you don’t know
anything’… “

The Daily Guide report by Mary Anane on the same episode read in part as follows:

“ .. Just after proceedings when Daily Guide’s photo journalist tried to take some photographs of DSP Tehoda, a well built man rushed on her physically assaulting the journalist. He snatched the camera from her and deleted all the pictures. Security officials at the court’s parking lot who saw what was happening together with other journalists rushed to the lady’s aid and saved her from further physical blows. The situation created a nasty scene at the court with family members hurling insults on
the journalists and asking what rights they had to report the case.
Realising the mess he had created, the guy who was yet to be identified rushed into his Audi car with registration number GE 7557W and sped off to prevent being arrested by the police.”

It has also turned out that in response to the episode of 11th January, the publishers of the “Daily Guide” Western Publications, hired the services of two (2) macho men to provide body guard services to Ms. LAWSON for her jaunt to the courts on the 12th January, 2012 and that she was
accompanied by the two Macho men to the court on that day.

On the 12th January, 2012, the court ordered that DSP Gifty Mawuenyega Tehoda be returned to the BNI to prepare the documentation for her bail, the BNI Officers present had to escort her to the service vehicle provided for the purpose. The escorting team located DSP Tehoda within a
protective ring and was in the process of escorting her to a waiting vehicle when one of the Daily Guide hired Macho men bodyguards Michael Awampaga forcibly breached the ring, and sought to create access to DSP Tehoda.

The BNI officers tried to prevent him and in the process he Michael Awampaga, slapped one of the BNI escorts in the face. Effort was immediately focused on Awampaga who was quickly brought under control and detained in one of the official vehicles. Ms. Gifty Lawson who indicated
that she was working in concert with the arrested Macho man Awampaga was then also detained as an accomplice. Both were subsequently sent to the BNI Head Office.

Our investigations also revealed that speaking to the Director of BNI at the BNI Head Office, on that Thursday, 12 January 2012, Ms. Gifty Lawson who wore a dark grey pair of trousers and a grey and black polka-dot long sleeve shirt ARRIVED AT THE OFFICES OF BNI WITH HER CLOTHES INTACT AND denied being assaulted by the Officers of the BNI. She was released thereafter while Michael Awampaga was handed over to the Police.

Interestingly, on the evening of Friday 13th January, a torn dress purportedly worn for the camera by the same Gifty Lawson was shown on Metro Television as proof of the unfounded allegation that BNI officials had actually assaulted and torn her dress on the 12th January 2012. What could be the motive for this irresponsible journalism by Gifty Lawson, Gina Blay, Metro TV and those who orchestrated this charade?

Meanwhile, when this paper contacted Gifty Lawson to clear few doubts regarding her alleged assault, she declined comment insisting that her employers are handling the matter.

More Anon// The True Statesman
info@thetruestatesman.org.

Pratt Grabs Diplomatic Passport

 * Source: The Citizen Newspaper

.... and Smuggles son Into Foreign Affairs

In a clear case of double standard and hypocrisy, Mr. Kwesi Pratt Jnr., the Managing Editor of The Insight has allegedly grabbed a Diplomatic Passport for himself.

Mr. Pratt Jnr. was a strident critic of former President John Agyekum Kufuor’s administration for cheapening and bringing Ghana’s diplomatic passport into disrepute when his administration, in what can be described as “a mass policy and cronyism,” gave some individuals who by virtue of the laws of the country and standard practice were not entitled to have Diplomatic Passports a rare opportunity to hold the country’s enviable diplomatic passport. His newspaper, The Insight, which serves as his personal mouthpiece was awash with names of individuals, including Otufuo Osei Tutu, who, according to him, are not deserving of Diplomatic Passport yet hold Ghana’s Diplomatic Passport. As a result of the abuse of Ghana’s Diplomatic Passport, the alleged corruption tag placed on Mr. Kufuor’s NPP administration and its officials and the rising cost of living, the administration came under severe criticism from a section of Ghanaians including its political opponents especially the then opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) party.

The NPP paid the political price for the handling of the above-mentioned issues, which eventually led to the defeat of the Danquah, Busia-Dombo tradition in the crunch 2008 elections.

So, three years into the National Democratic Congress’ administration led by President Atta Mills, for the same person to be holding and flaunting a Diplomatic Passport is shocking and unimaginable. Has Mr. Pratt Jnr. sold his conscience to the President Atta Mills led NDC Government and thrown his self-styled principle to the dogs?

According to the laws of the country, those who are entitled to hold Diplomatic Passports include Ministers, Ambassadors and Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials. It is unclear why the Government of the NDC gave Mr. Pratt Jnr. A Diplomatic Passport but political analysts say it is a bait and reward for him to project positively the dwindling popularity of the seating president and the political fortunes of the NDC Gov ernment because of Mr. Pratt’s access to both radio and television stations.

The Citizen has also established that, the publisher of The Insight has held a gun on the head of NDC Government and exploited the links he has with Committee for Joint Action (CJA) “Boys” he helped get appointed into the Mills’ Government. He has allegedly smuggled one of his sons who is a twin into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the back door. According to political connoisseurs who are well versed in foreign affairs say foreign affairs job seekers go through hectic interviews and the short listed applicants are also made to sit for strict examinations before they could get hold of a job at the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

An aggrieved individual, (name withheld for now) who was sidelined and overlooked even though he had the requisite qualifications coupled with excellent grounding with respect to foreign issues and international relations, to make way for Mr. Pratt’s son, told this paper that nepotism and cronyism is now the order of the day in the President Atta Mills and John Mahama led administration.

Sources at the seat of Government, the Castle also confided in this paper that the other twin son of the Managing Editor of The Insight is now working at the office of the Vice President.

Of course, Mr. Pratt’s children are Ghanaians and are entitled to their constitutional right of equal opportunity, hence The Citizen is not in any way against their success but interested in exposing the hypocrisy of their father who always criticizes people wrongly.

Source: The Citizen Newspaper (+233 27 731 4655) thecitizen.news@yahoo.com.

* Source: NOYONAA

An association of NPP youth groups called the Northern Youth for Nana Akufo-Addo
(NOYONAA) representing the three northern regions, has called on the youth in the
regions not to allow themselves to be used by the ruling National Democratic
Congress for their political gains.
In a statement signed by the National Coordinator, Rauf Abdallah, the Youth Group
said their tour of the northern regions revealed how some agents of the ruling party
are moving from one place to the other “polluting the minds of the people against
the NPP.”
“We urge the people, especially the youth in the three Northern Regions not to allow
themselves to be swayed by the fake promises of the NDC,” Mr. Abdallah said.
Despite the divide and rule strategy used by the NDC in the three northern regions,
NOYONAA national coordinator said, “it was heartwarming that majority of the people
have now realized how untruth the NDC is…They now know how the NDC has taken them
for granted…”
Mr. Rauf Abdallah also revealed how more than a thousand youth in the three northern
region have defected from the NDC to the NPP.
“The NDC youth themselves have been disappointed, they feel embarrassed to campaign
for their party and they will soon hold a press conference to announce their
defection.”
Notwithstanding what he described as “anger the people have for the NDC government”,
Mr. Abdallah said the 2012 General Elections would depend on the collective efforts
of the youth.
He urged the youth to remain committed and dedicated to the course of the NPP
especially as the flagbearer, Nana Akufo-Addo, adding that, the Youth would be the
greatest beneficiaries of his Presidency when elected come December 2012.
NOYANAA tasked the Northern Regional Youth Wing of the Party to ensure that they
counter and beat the NDCs electioneering schemes by especially ensuring that they
turn out massively to register and also protect the process and the ballots on
Election Day emphasizing that the NDCs support in the Northern Region was not cast
in iron or steel and that with good work and the appropriate strategies, the Region
would be won by the NPP and the Presidency would be secured for Nana Akufo-Addo
handsomely.
NOYONAA has a membership of over thirty thousand (30,000) in the three northern
regions.

Contact: Coordinator - Mr. Rauf Abdallah- 0266563052

* Source: Vincent Dong (On behalf of Nadowli West Constituency Youth) 0240209485

Nadowli West Constituency Parliamentary Aspirant Mr. Gaalee Z.K. Roger At Kaleo

Fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters, members of the press, the issue in contention is the unjust disqualification of Mr. Gaalee Z. K. Roger. This is seen as a cruel decision of the Vetting Committee of the NDC to deny the people of the Nadowli West Constituency their will. The will of the people is the will of God they say. It is also a basic and obvious fact that it will sway the seat cheaply to the NPP. It is seen by the youth of the Constituency as the not the first and second of Hon. Bagbin’s cunning machination to stay afloat in the race which for many justifies his greed and self-centeredness.

But, fathers, Mothers, Brothers and Sisters; what constitutes the basis of the disqualification?

1. That Mr. Galee Z. K. Roger was caught poaching in a game reserve and subsequently convicted and that he denied this at the vetting.
2. That Mr. Galee Z. K. Roger assaulted a nurse in the Regional Hospital and that he denied it at the Vetting.
Assume without admitting that both of these were true; is it the morality behind the offence or the offence that disqualifies the individual? An assault is a civil case and in this era of rule of law who would be assaulted and would not know where to seek redress? Even domestic violence has places of redress, how much more less this. Can one be disqualified for this? Doesn’t the Ghana Health Service have rules and regulations?

To disqualify someone for being convicted the following are the categories as stipulated in the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, Article 94. 2C:
i. for high crime under this Constitution or high treason or treason or for an offence involving the security of the State, fraud, dishonesty or moral turpitude; or
ii. for any other offence punishable by death or by a sentence of not less than ten years; or
iii. for an offence relating to, or connected with election under a law in force in Ghana at any time
Brothers and sisters, members of the press present, we are not lawyers but these as read are not ambiguous or subject to technical interpretation, could any just prove the relationship. That is not to even admit that this was the truth but worst case scenario.
The NDC Constitution (Article 42, Clause 9 a, b and c) which is subject to the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana has no issue with this. So on what grounds are these two points hinged.
We the youth of the Nadowli West Constituency, having suffered the humiliation of this very cunning character of the incumbent MP over the years and his divide and rule tactics which he has continued to use just to enable him cling on to power, would resist every attempt by the vetting Committee to impose him on the Constituents.

Spreading further is like bush fire is his continued frustration of promising individuals out of the party to enable him to continue to cling to power. May I draw your attention to the numerous individuals he frustrated out including the very man who brought him into the party, Dr. Daniel D. Bagah, into the NPP and many others.
It seems like the final and last strides of a losing candidate. His incessant sacking of executive members at meetings for no reason just to prevent any opposing views being expressed at meetings in which he is personally present. Are we growing a democracy or democrazy or even a dictatorship?
Brothers and sisters, if it was about lies who has done this worse than our own Hon. Bagbin? Yet it’s the murderer that fears the knife as is the saying.

The stagnation in the development of the constituency is partly attributable to his arrogance, greed and selfishness which know no bounds.
When two elephants fight, what happens? Brothers and Sisters, it is the grass that suffers. This is what is happening in the Nadowli West Constituency as the Hon Bagbin is not in good terms with most of the prominent people of the constituency. It is public knowledge that Hon. Bagbin is not in good terms with most of the prominent chiefs of the constituency including even his own village chief who he should pay homage to and the man who brought him into the NDC. Besides, it is also common knowledge that he is not in good terms with Sam Garbah (the administrator of the GETFund). Who are to bring development to the people? Is Bagbin in person working in isolation or the collaboration of Big Heads from the constituency? But in all this what has Bagbin actually done for the constituency? ……. I mean good not bad? Your guess is as good as mine ….nothing in particular. The bads are immeasurable to say the least.

Bringing money to a few people for campaign (even that there are disgruntlements in the sharing). Nepotic attitude of chasing people out of meetings, publicly insulting people at meetings, qualifying disqualified people at constituency elections, ceasing motorbikes and bicycles from people for changing their minds coupled with the arrogance disrespect for all others are definitely not worth mentioning.

Members of the media, brothers and sisters, what about the hosting of the vetting committee members in his multi-million mansion? What irony of a case where people who come to vet him are hosted only in his house and served to a sumptuous breakfast among other things. As the saying goes one good turn deserves another is common sense for the little mind. How just could any conclusion and recommendation be from this committee? Is it not this same Bagbin who said no one has the right to disqualify any one from contesting in the Nadowli West Constituency? Where was his head, except may be the head was too small to contain the brain? He possibly didn’t think far and never expected to be challenged. So who is disqualifying who in the Nadowli West Constituency?
We the youth of the NDC in the Nadowli West Constituency wish to state unequivocally that there is no basis in disqualifying the choice of the masses (Mr. Gaalee Z.K. Roger) from the Nadowli West Primaries and we ask the NDC National Executive to quickly intervene to prevent the Bagbin money-led machinery from executing its malicious, arrogant, greedy and selfish intentions which would work to mar the fortunes of the NDC in the 2012 general elections.

We the youth of the NDC in the Nadowli West Constituency would not sit by and aloof as Hon. Bagbin uses his infamous machinations of money to break the front of the party in the constituency, frustrate all and sundry and stifle the development of the area for the head that says it’s the neck that suffers when its being cut would definitely not stay without the neck.
The party is bigger than Hon. Bagbin and if the right decision is not taken this juncture the NDC might laugh at the wrong side of its mouth in the Nadowli West Constituency.

Fritz Amegashie Gockel is new chairman of GCB

* Source: Vincent Dong (On behalf of Nadowli West Constituency Youth) 0240209485

Citi Business News has learnt that a new board chair has been appointed by the Ghana Commercial Bank board.

The new chair, Dr. Fritz Amegasie Gockel whose appointment took effect from 30th November 2011 takes over from Kojo Thompson who was asked to step down last year.

This was after workers of the state owned bank begun wearing red-arm bands demanding the dismissal of the board chair and other members of the board over allegations of gross incompetence and corruption.

Dr. Gockel who has been at post since last month prior to his appointment as board chair was a non-executive of the GCB board.

Others members of the board include Simon Dornoo (Non-Executive Director) Samuel Amankwah (Deputy Management Director-Finance), Samuel Sarpong (Deputy Managing Director-Operation), Mrs Charlotte Osei(Non-Exective Director), Mrs Adelaide Mary Benneth, Joshua K. Peprah, Ms Lauretta Vivian Lamptey and Elliot Gordor.

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