* Sunday, 27.12.2009

Zuwera (U/E), Dec. 27, GNA - Reverend Joseph Anyidana, the National Head Pastor of the Kingdom Life Ministry, has advised political parties to desist from making unproductive criticisms, which he said stifle growth and development. He said instead, they should fine-tune their programmes and policies to be devoid of political "colours" so as to give the ordinary Ghanaian a life a more meaningful life.

Rev. Anyidana said this on Saturday when he gave a sermon at Zuwera near Binaba in the Bawku West District of the Upper East Region as part of activities marking the birth of Christ. He said it was important that political parties appreciated the countless needs of the citizenry, drew up favourable policies and programmes prudent enough to turn peoples' situations around.

Rev. Anyidana warned against making unwise and unproductive criticisms especially on the country's airwaves and deliberate ploys to frustrate incumbent governments. "Ghana can only realize its developmental goals when as a people we do not practice divisive politics," he said. He called on government to listen to the views of the ordinary people as well as showed some commitments in improving upon their livelihood.

Pastor Anyidana said Ghanaians must have one voice when it came to matters of national interest and said with strong faith and hope in God, they could live better lives. He advocated for a two party system with a five year term since it would give political parties enough room to be able to deliver on their promises. Rev. Anyidana cautioned the congregation against alcoholism and said the temptation to do things excessively during the yuletide is high.

Sefwi Wiawso to get a multi-purpose sports centre   * 27.12.2009

Accra, Dec. 27, GNA - A multi-purpose sports centre is to be constructed in Sefwi Wiawso, in the Western Region, to serve as a recreational facility for the people and expatriates working in the natural resources sector in the area.

The GHc 164, 000, 00 facility, which would start in July, next year is expected to be completed in 2011. The Centre would have a gymnasium, swimming pool, a bar, basket ball and lawn tennis courts, a table tennis hall and a massaging room, as well as a hostel. The Sefwi Youth Association is undertaking the project.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency on Saturday at the first Congress of the Sefwi Youth Association in Accra to launch the construction of the facility, Mr Kwesi Fokuo Kudom, Organizer of the Association said its executive members proposed three projects but after a careful deliberation, settled on the sports complex, as the first to be implemented.

Mr Fokuo Kudom said the other two projects that the Association would in due course embark on were the establishment of a University of Environmental Studies and Natural Resources at Sefwi Wiawso and a food processing factory at Sefwi Asawinso. He said the sports complex was chosen as the first project because it would provide a conducive environment for workers, especially those in the natural resources sector, who always traveled to Kumasi for recreation, to stay in the town and spend part of their earnings there. He said the facility would also serve as a health and fitness center for the residents as well as a recovery environment for accident victims. "It would boost tourism in the area since the Sefwi area abounds with several tourist attractions but they are not patronized because of the non-existent of a comfortable place for their recreation.

Mr Fokuo Kudom said the Association was seriously raising funds and had received favourable responses in terms of cash donations from some Embassies in the country and government, for the start of the project. He said the Association would also be relying on the influence of some of its prominent sons such as Messers Ato Ahwoi and Kwesi Ahwoi, Professors Ivan Addae-Mensah and Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, amongst others, to raise enough funds for the projects. He said the center would provide about 64 jobs for the youth in the area as well as other opportunities for the people in the town to raise their standard of living.

Sefwi-Wiawso is the seventh largest District in the Western Region, with a land area of 2,634 kilometers square and lies in the north-eastern part of the region and has a population of about 190,000. It abounds in natural resources including, gold and timber but unfortunately lacks several social amenities and has some of the bad roads in the country, which affect the transportation of the resources to urban centers.

Source: GNA

* 26.12.2009

WA, Dec. 26, GNA - The Wa Fruit Juice Factory, a joint venture between the Wa Municipal Assembly and Ieper city in Belgium, has hit the market with its products, following the acquisition of the necessary permits from the relevant government agencies.

The factory is extracting and packaging juices from mango and other available local fruits for the market. This would address the problem of post harvest losses and also generate employment for the youth and income for fruit farmers.

Addressing the last ordinary meeting of the Assembly for this year on Thursday, Mr Duogu Yakubu, the Municipal Chief Executive said the Assembly was expected by Ieper city to secure the site where the factory was located by fencing the structure and also provide the facility with a bore hole to sustain production.

He called on the management board of the factory to work out a sale strategy and present it to the manager of the factory for implementation. He said Ieper city also intends to improve sanitation services delivery in the Municipality, through the establishment of a factory, to convert plastic waste materials into rubber products.

Mr Yakubu announced that, health services delivery in the Municipality had been given a big boost by the construction of five clinics in the Municipality, by the Municipal directorate of the Ghana Health Service. The clinics have been sited at Kanbali, Dobile, Piisi, Wa central market and the Wa community centre.

Mr Mahmud Khalid, Upper West Regional Minister noted that, the services of Zoom Lion was not being fully utilized in the Municipality, and called on the Assembly to work out a way of making use of the company. He urged the Assembly to take another look at the planning of the Wa township and come out with a proper layout, which should create room for roads, water and sanitation service, schools and recreational facilities and also ensure that all the streets had names.

He observed that the way the cities and towns in the country were planned, it would be highly impossible for the navigator system to operate well in this country.

Source: GNA

Malaria cases to rise by the end of Christmas   * 26.12.2009

 Accra, Dec. 26, GNA - More than 10,000 malaria cases would be reported in the country's health facilities by the end of the yuletide with about 60 of them resulting in infant mortality.

A report released in Accra cautioned that if immediate steps are not taken to forestall the situation, there would be loss of productivity and joyous times for families experiencing the drubbing of malaria. This was disclosed in a press statement issued on Saturday by Mr Emmanuel Fiagbey, Country Director of Voices for a Malaria-free Future (VfMfF) project, an advocacy group.

The statement said targeting a malaria-free New Year was attainable through simple tasks such as getting pregnant women and children under five treated mosquito nets and to ensure that they slept under these nets. "Instead of burning orange peels and other materials to ward off mosquitoes, we should all learn to sleep under Insecticide Treated Bed Nets (ITNs) every night," it said.

The statement expressed the need for the country to improve malaria treatment through the use of approved medicines such as artesunate amodiaquine or artemether-lumefantrine and dihydroatemisinine piperaquine. It called for the improvement of the referral system for complicated malaria treatment and ensuring laboratory diagnosis of the disease.

The statement said it was also important to ensure that government-designated funds such as the one per cent District Assemblies Common Fund for malaria were utilised solely for malaria programmes. "Some of these funds can be used to purchase ITNs for the poor and needy and other vulnerable segments of the society," it said, adding that laboratory diagnosis should be enhanced and made widely available in health facilities throughout the country.

The statement called on Ghanaians to reorient and reengage themselves in order to be effective in the fight against the devastating effects of malaria in the society.

It said that there was the need to separate superstitious beliefs from the realities of the cause of malaria fever, stressing that the disease was not caused by such factors as witchcraft, starchy food, mangoes, working in the sun but the female species of anopheles mosquito, which bred in relatively clean stagnant water.

It called on the public to use the festive season to reflect on what could be done to militate against the terrible consequence of the disease on the country's socio-economic development.

"The celebrative atmosphere does not protect us from mosquito bites, leaving us at the mercy of more infections as we party, go to the jamborees, and engage in merry making inside and outside our homes. In the end, thousands more will yield to the malaria death squad between now and January when the euphoria had died down," it said.

The statement expressed disquiet of the fact that the disease, though preventable, had become the leading cause of morbidity and death in the country accounting for more than 19 per cent of all mortality cases with 22 per cent of under five mortality, according to the 2007 World Health Report. "On the whole, an estimated 3.5 million Ghanaians will have reported at one health facility or the other due to malaria infections each year and about 20, 000 of our children would have died from malaria," it stated. Quoting from two medical researchers, the statement said "malaria infection not properly treated among pregnant women causes anaemia and also leads to miscarriages, still births, underweight babies and maternal deaths. Malaria in school children is a major cause of absenteeism and frequent episodes of severe cases may negatively impact on their learning abilities and educational attainment."

It said besides the human tragedy, the burden on African economies was staggering, projected at 1.3 per cent of GDP annually in lost productivity. "This translates to an annual loss of 12 billion dollars for the entire African continent. Monies that could be channelled into other development projects being expended on a preventable ailment," it said. VfMfF is an international advocacy project which promotes effective strategies for malaria control by highlighting successful programmes and evidence-based results.

It operates in Ghana, Mali, Tanzania, Uganda, United States and the global partnership level, raising awareness among decision makers, forging consensus and breaking down the barriers that hamper implementation.

Source: GNA

Koforidua Dec. 25, GNA-The Right Reverend Fredrick Nnuroh, Bishop of the Koforidua Diocese of the Methodist Church, has called on Ghanaians to burry their political, religious or ethnic differences and be at peace with one another.

He said for the country to move forward, there was the need to be at peace with each other and rally around one common goal. Rt. Reverend Fredrick Nnuroh made the call in his Christmas message at the Wesley Methodist Church in Koforidua. He observed that Christmas was the time people shared love and good things with one another "just as God gave His only son to die for them." At the International Central Gospel Church, Reverend Dickson Tufuor Sarpong said Christmas was about hope and advised Ghanaians to have hope for the future.

He urged Ghanaians to be happy and praise the Lord even if they had financial problems, because that would lead them to better times.

* 24.12.2009

The seized cars debacle took a ballistic turn Wednesday as the deputy to the Castle-appointed Chairman of Confiscated Vehicle Disposal Committee, Carl Wilson, pulled a pistol on a National Security operative attached to the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) at the Tema Port State Warehouse.

Nana Kublan Olivier, thought to be a French national and a deputy to Mr Wilson, is being held by the Ports and Railway Police after he was disarmed by Chief Collector Nicholas Okporah of CEPS, when he threatened to blow off the head of a national security operative.

Olivier turned up Wednesday at the Golden Jubilee Container Terminal at the Port of Tema in the company of some National Security operatives from the Castle, armed with a document signed by his boss, Carl Wilson, seeking access to a container loaded with cars.

The CEPS officials at the spot, finding the procedure a breach of the stipulated arrangement, prevented the man from having his way.

The CEPS officials' stance was premised on the fact that the opening of containers with the marking UCL or Undeclared Container List must be guided by the Customs Act No. 634.

Angry at the turn of events, the man with the delegated authority of Carl Wilson and therefore the Castle, pulled a pistol after engaging in a brief war of words with some National Security operatives attached to CEPS at the port.

As he pulled the pistol, a scene was created but in a flash, Chief Collector Nicholas Okporah, the CEPS officer in charge of the State Warehouse at the Port of Tema, disarmed the Castle man to the relief of his colleagues.

Olivier was handed over to the National Security Council's representative at the port, a certain Lt. Col. Agodogoh (rtd) who ordered an emergency meeting between representatives of CEPS at the port and their National Security counterparts to discuss what had transpired as the gun-pulling Olivier was handed over to the Port and Railway Police, according to Oman FM's Moses Dawutey.

The Port and Railway Police Commander, ACP Adu-Amankwah, confirmed the story to Oman FM.

The Confiscated Vehicle Car Disposal Committee attracted disturbing headlines last week when it was disclosed that the chairman of the Castle-established body was involved in dubious deals as regards the disposal of the vehicles.

While some of the vehicles went for pittance, others simply went away gratis, to people dangling flimsy chits issued at the Castle.

The Deputy Chief of Staff, Alex Segbefia, defended the committee and the procedure for the disposal, asking that anybody with evidence against his appointee, Carl Wilson, should come forward.

Carl Wilson was arrested by some Castle operatives when he sent a car to a joint at Asylum Down for spraying under the cover of darkness, but he was released almost immediately.

The disposal of cars is part of the party cronies supporting mechanisms and the government is set to defend it to the hilt.

* 23.12.2009

 Accra, Dec. 23, GNA - Farmer groups in the country have urged government to impose more tariffs on imported rice as a policy tool to support and step up local production. They argued that funds generated from the taxes could be channeled to support local farmers to increase production.

Speaking at a stakeholders forum on the rice industry in Accra, Mr Ibrahim Akalibila, National Co-ordinator of Ghana Trades and Livelihoods Coalition, said it was high time Ghana learnt from other countries, which had successfully used tariffs to spur the growth of sensitive sectors of their economy. He said the biggest challenge to improving the rice sector was lack of adequate funds to invest, arguing that resources generated from the imposition of tariffs could be directed to the development of the sector. "When tariffs are used appropriately to invest in the growth of a sector, there may be gains in a country's economic welfare," he said. The day's forum on the rice value chain organised by the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) was to discuss the proposed rice development strategy with a view to making inputs into it to enhance the sector. Mr Akalbila said tariffs serve as the best opportunity for the country to mobilise funds for investment into expanding rice protection and agriculture in general.

Currently, demand for rice stands at some 600,000 metric tons, but the country is only able to meet 30 per cent.

It is estimated that on average every Ghanaian consume some 38kg of rice per annum and this is expected to increase to 63.0kg by 2015. Mr. Akalibila noted that in Ghana, tariff revenue is about 20 per cent of total tax revenue, and said rice tariffs would improve the balance of payments, generate employment, improve food security and improve economic welfare.

The President of PFAG, Mr Mohammed Nashiru Adams, commended government for its commitment to improving rice production but said the challenges in the sector needed to be resolved more quickly to avoid plunging the country into disaster.

He lauded the development of a Rice Sector Development Strategy and expressed the hope that it would establish the framework within which to achieve national aspirations in rice production. Mr Baba Adongo of TechnoServe, a non-governmental organisation said factors like lack of irrigation and processing facilities, poor extension services, among other things continue to be major challenges to farmers in the sector.

Mr. Adongo said given the right incentive the farmers could produce quality rice that would compete with any imported brand. Mr. Edward T. Kareweh, Deputy General Secretary of General Agricultural Workers Union, said trough commitments made by the country under the Economic Partnership Agreements with the European Union, it would be difficult imposing more tariffs on rice.

In this direction, he said the country should rather focus on increasing local production.

Mr. Twum Ankrah of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture said the intention of government under the National Rice Development Strategy was to cut rice import by half by 2018, adding that the Ministry was doing everything possible to make this happen.

Source: GNA

The Founder of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings, has commended the people of the Volta Region for the support they have given his party and that without them, the party will collapse.

Speaking at the regional congress of the party held at Hohoe last Saturday, Mr. Rawlings said followers of the party had continuously demonstrated that nobody can buy their beliefs and principles.

The former President, whose speech was read on his behalf by his special aide, Kofi Adams, however justified his recent criticism of the President Atta Mills’ administration. According to him the criticisms were in the best interest of Ghanaians who voted the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to power, because it would help the President to speed up development, a target it had set for itself.

He said it was rather unfortunate that in playing his role as the Founder and Former President, some people had misconstrued his actions to mean a deliberate attempt to undermine the presidency and create division within the NDC, a situation Mr. Rawlings stressed would never happen.

Mr. Rawlings also denied rumours that he was sponsoring people to executive positions in the party, and further entreated the delegates to treat the rumour with the contempt it deserves, because there was no way he could divide the party that he nutured.

The National Chairman of the NDC, Dr. Kwabena Adjei, assured party members that the national executives were united, and that acts of disunity would not emanate from the executives.

Dr. Adjei noted with regret that the issue of factionalism was gradually gaining currency in the party, and warned that the same negative development, which in the past affected the chances of the party, should not be repeated.

He pointed out that the growth of the party was largely at the grassroots, and that efforts would be made to support the activities at that level.

The congress elected Mr. Kwasi Aboagye as the new Regional Chairman, Mr. Kosi Kedem, Vice Chairman, Mr. Simon Amegashie, Secretary, Mr. Henry Ametefe, Regional Organizser, Mr. Nicholas Fato, Propaganda Secretary, Mr. Maxwell Owusu Siaw, Youth Organiser, Mr. Simon Baka Treasurer, and Madam Mercy Kuada, Women Organiser.

Source: The Chronicle