* Wednesday, 20 January 2010 | TOR sets up committee to probe fire Outbreak * Source: Peace FM | According to Peace FM, in an interview with the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), Madam Aba Lokko has disclosed that a committee has been set up to probe the fire outbreak that engulfed TOR on Tuesday. Speaking to Peace FM on “Kokrokoo”, she said, fire outbreak was the main hazard that threatens most refineries around the world, but they were always ready to prevent such outbreaks. | | > BACK to TOP < | Volta Star Textiles Limited faces imminent collapse * Source: GNA | Juapong (V/R), Jan. 20, GNA - The Volta Star Textiles Limited at Juapong faces imminent collapse, operating only eight percent of its installed capacity since its inauguration in May 2007.
This came to light on Tuesday when the Ghana News Agency visited the factory upon a hint that junior workers at the place had laid down their tools over poor working conditions and having been engaged without appointment letters.
Mr Albert Amponsah, Technical Services Manager of the Factory, who confirmed that junior workers had gone on a sit down strike, said the factory was facing teething problems, which if not addressed in time could be out of hand.
He said at the moment the factory "is stagnant and not making profit.
"Our work is volume intensive and needs a big capital push for it to expand, make profit and get stabilized," Mr Amponsah said. On workers wages and appointment letters, he said general emolument at the factory was low and appealed to junior workers to return to work while their grievances were being attended to. He said a delegation had been sent to the Ministry of Trade and Industries on the issue and expressed the hope that things would change after that.
Mr Godwin Adjei, spokesperson for the aggrieved workers said until the situation was resolved they would not return to work. He said a take home salary of GH¢97 a month was woefully inadequate considering their transportation to and from work and called on
management to address these concerns immediately. Mr Adjei also called on government to as a matter of urgency intervene to check mismanagement at the place to save it from collapse. | > BACK to TOP < | Defence Minister Goes Berserk! * Source: Daily Searchlight | | The Defence Minister, a three-star General J. H. Smith (Rtd) shocked guests at the commissioning of the new Ministry of Defence building, on Wednesday 23rd December 2009 | How about that: 
04.12.2008 * the official inauguration day! - Chinese-funded Ministry of Defence complex opened | when he threatened a reporter of the Daily Searchlight.
The poor reporter (Prince Prah) who had been invited to the event by the Public Relations Directorate of the Ghana Armed Forces could not believe his eyes when the retired Army General pounced on him and threatened him intermittently.
No sooner had an official at the event introduced the reporter to General J. H. Smith than the latter fumed with anger uncontrollably and moved threateningly towards the reporter.
In a matter of seconds, as if he had already rehearsed the encounter, General Smith shouted “You, you, you”, pointing fingers in the face of the reporter, “You have been writing silly things about me; you have been calling me a liar; I had been in the Army for over 50 years and nobody ever called me a liar.”
With his Lebanese wife solidly behind him and encouraging him, General Smith continued by saying that his son was twice the age of the reporter and ‘this stupid boy is calling me a liar.’
Some of the officers around who found the encounter to be very uncomfortable, inappropriate and unfortunate tried to prevail upon General Smith to cease fire and leave the reporter alone especially when they realized the reporter had kept his composure and did not utter a single word.
Unfortunately, General Smith, with his wife still solidly behind and urging him on would not left the opportunity of revenge go.
He kept ranting until the officers called the Director of Public Relations Directorate of the Ghana Armed Forces, Col Nibo to escort the reporter out of the building for a while. General Smith in an attempt to justify his action said in Fanti to the officers that “it is this stupid boy who has been writing silly things about me with the support and assistance of Kojo Damoah.”
According to Prince, “Joe Smith and his like minds can say whatever they want; they have accused me of meeting Damoah, the former CDS, General J. B. Danquah, Col Mensah and so on and if is the reason why the Military High Command and Defence Intelligence have bagged my phone and have put men on me, they are welcomed to listen in.”
On realizing that his reprehensible conduct could become a subject of report in the newspapers, General Smith returned to the reporter again menacingly and said “I don’t care, you can go ahead and do anything you want to do in your newspaper,” Prince claimed.
The reporter is really surprised at the behaviour of General Smith.
The reporter has tried to be as fair as possible to the Minister and the Ghana Armed Forces by trying to seek their version of “the story” before any publication. However, on all occasions that the reporter got through to the Minister and/or the DPR on phone, they either “snubbed him, yell at him or declined to talk with him.”
“Armed with documentary evidence or direct evidence from sources, I would go ahead and make the relevant publications, despite the hard hitting stories, the DPR brought only two rejoinders last year and on each occasion, they confirmed the stories and took exception to why I don’t call them first,” Prince Prah said.
It was this Defence Minister who appeared before Parliament on two occasions, and was economical with the truth on sensitive issues.
For instance, on 10th February 2009, the Minister said, among other things that the training of the 420 Army Potential Recruits was suspended because it was found out that some of the persons selected could neither read nor write English; others did not go through medical examinations while some had fake driving licenses.
“Certainly, the Minister knew that he was not speaking the truth as the illegal BOI that he caused to be instituted on 6th February 2009 at a time he was not a Minister, had not commenced sitting for him to have come to those conclusions,” Prince noted.
Again, on 10th June 2009, when Gen Smith appeared before Parliament to answer questions on the fate of the 420 Army Potential Recruits, he could not tell the People’s Representatives the recruitment process and had to be bailed out by the Majority Leader and Hon. E. T. Mensah.
Another issue is the acquisition of jets for the Ghana Airforce where the Minister gave different answers from those of the CDS, Major General P.A. Blay, the Defence Security Corporation Agency (DSCA) of the USA and the document prepared by the current Chief of Air Staff.
Even in his encounter with reporter on the said day, General Smith has told lies again.
For instance, General Smith indicated that he was in the Army for over 50 years. This assertion cannot be true. General Smith was commissioned on the 16th October 1965 and released honorably like Kojo Damoah on 3rd February 2002. Therefore the maximum military service that General Smith had could be only 40 years, and not 50 years, when his training period of 2years is added.
Furthermore, the claim by General Smith that his son is twice the age of the reporter is also not true and cannot be true unless his son is above 50 years which is not possible.
General Smith who is in his mid 60s could not have given birth at the age of 16 years and even before he went to the Ghana Military Academy in 1963.
Even though it is possible for a male to impregnate a woman or a girl at the age of 16 years, which did not happen with Joe Smith. If even he was assuming that the reporter was below 25 years of age, it is not and cannot be that his son is twice the of the reporter.
“So you see, General, it is your utterances which are not based on empirical evidence that make you a liar and note the fact you are a pathological liar,” Prince stated. | > BACK to TOP < | EO Group's Darkest Secrets * Source: The Enquirer | The E.O. Group, a company whose 3.5% interest in Ghana’s first oil find is estimated to be worth over $200 million, never operated any visible office. Investigators say they traced the registered address given by the company as their place of work to Darko Farms.
Meanwhile, apart from hen coops and animal shelter, investigators could not locate any office belonging to the EO Group, whose promoters are about to face trial for various acts, which are said to border on criminality.
The Police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) say they have uncovered a web of shocking criminal conduct involving the promoters of the Group and some top government officials connected to former President John Kufuor.
According to deep throat sources within government, the evidence against the promoters of EO Group, who introduced Kosmos Energy, a US-based oil company to Ghana and walked away with a whopping 3.5% (worth over $200 million) is very weighty and has the potential of nullifying the legal existence of the company. Investigators say, right from whistle blow, some of the promoters of the EO Group demonstrated their criminal intents by falsifying claims and public documents, which enabled them to obtain shares in the name of the company.
EO Group was formed in 2002, between Dr. Kwame Barwuah Edusei and George Owusu as partners, with the initials of their surnames forming the company name. On the company’s registration documents, George Owusu is said to have forged Edusei’s signature as shareholder and a director.
George Owusu is also said to have forged another signature of his partner on the Oath of Declaration forms.
Dr. Bawuah Edusei, whose interest in EO was predicated on a forged document, served as one of the most trusted appointees of then President Kufuor. He was appointed as ambassador to Switzerland in August 2004 and later posted to Washington to head Ghana’s Embassy in the US.
George Owusu, the other partner in EO Group remained a close associate of former president Kufuor at all times, as well as a close buddy to Kan Dapaah, one time Energy Minister under the Kufuor administration.
In December 2004, George Owusu of the EO Group incorporated another company called Newbridge Hospitality Services Limited – to provide transportation services. On the company’s registration forms, Owusu is said to have once again forged the signatures of one Gustav Acquaye, Rex Opoku and Evangeline Boatey as shareholder-directors.
Again in February, 2005, George Owusu, established another company called Equiva Services Limited, to provide human resource services. There, too, he allegedly forged the signature of one Evangeline Boatey as a director of the company on the registration documents.
Whilst serving as the country representative for Kosmos Energy, George Owusu is said to have run the two companies from the office of Kosmos Energy in Accra. Kosmos is said to have allowed George to have his way because he was said to have become too powerful because of his connections.
By 2007, Kosmos was paying George Owusu $25,000 salary as country representative for Kosmos, plus accommodation, a cook, and a car. Surprisingly, whilst paying these salaries, sources say Kosmos brought down to Ghana another expatriate to do the same job for which George was being paid.
In total, George Owusu was said to have received salary in excess of $2 million from Kosmos Energy as country representative over a three-year period.
Surprisingly, soon after George Owusu was questioned by investigators in connection with fictitious invoices during the ongoing probe, Kosmos fired him, supposedly for making certain serious admissions, some of which touched on the credibility of Kosmos.
During a $2.5 million investigation initiated by one of the oil companies in jubilee field, George Owusu was interviewed at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Accra, with an army of four lawyers on his side, where he was again said to have admitted to forging another document.
George, according to sources, claimed that invoices amounting to about $250,000.00 included work supposedly done by EO Group in 2002.
When it was put to George Owusu by US lawyers that at the time he claimed EO Group undertook the said job for which Kosmos was paying them, EO didn’t exist, George Owusu is said to have told them that one Glick, a top officer of Kosmos asked him to forge that invoice.
Within a month, Glick was fired, by Kosmos. Glick is believed to be back in America. After George Owusu’s allegations, the investigation wrote to Glick for comment but he refused to comment.
On January 21, 2009, the US lawyers who were conducting the due diligence for one of the partners in the jubilee field sought to interview Dr Barwuah Edusei. He gave them 45 minutes, during which he picked and chose which questions to answer.
HOW IT ALL STARTED
Contrary to claims from media impresarios that the case against EO Group and George Owusu is an act of President “Mills’ witch hunt,” it has been established that the investigation into the conduct of Kosmos and EO Group preceded the coming into office of the new administration.
It all started in late 2006, when Anadarko, a US oil giant with the capabilities in deep water exploration was invited by partners in the jubilee field to bring on board their expertise.
Since Aandarko was a publicly listed company, they were obliged to conduct proper due diligence.
When Anadarko approached the other companies they were going to partner in the field for information as part of their due diligence, Tullow Oil and Sabre Oil co-operated, but Kosmos Energy and the E.O. Group did not.
Anadarko therefore started a due diligence that was to cost them about $2.5million, using the services of an experienced US Attorney, with 40 years of experience. Anadarko got alarmed when initial investigations revealed several red flags.
Anadarko subsequently deposited their report with the Department of Justice, under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), 70-day mandatory period. Red flags popped up going through the files deposited by Anadarko. It was Anadarko’s rig that was used in drilling the Mahogany 1 exploration well, that hit oil in commercial quantities.
EO GROUP AND GHANA’S OIL
The EO group first came to Ghana in 2002, with Ennex, who presented a solid technical and financial data.
EO, after three months of data review, wrote to the Ministry of Energy to terminate the agreement with Ennex. EO at the time lacked technical and financial expertise required to undertake exploration activities. Edusei was a medical doctor, whilst George Yaw Owusu was an environmentalist. In March 2004, the license was terminated.
George Owusu claimed to have called Jim Musselman to tell him about WCTP and brought on board Kosmos in late March, 2004 and got them interested.
April 30, 2004: Kosmos and EO Group entered into a letter agreement signed between Kwame Barwuah Edusei, for EO and Glick, for Kosmos Energy.
The E.O. Group, under the said agreement had 3.5%, whilst Kosmos Energy had 86.5%.
The agreement stated that Kosmos would carry the E.O. Group and additionally, pay them $250,000.00
The EO Group then approached GNPC, seeking to substitute Kosmos Energy for Ennex under their previous agreement. On May 12, 2004 the GNPC/Ministry of Energy, in a letter to the EO Group, told the latter that they did not have an agreement. On the same day, May 12, 2004 the EO Group wrote a letter to GNPC, copied to the MOE and President John Kufuor, saying their letter terminating the agreement was a misunderstanding because they meant to terminate their relationship with Ennex and not GNPC.
Three days later, May 15, 2004 the Application with Kosmos Energy was approved and a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed, stating that they have a license. That was a record time, as petroleum agreements generally are preceded by due diligence and hard negotiations to maximize benefits for Ghana.
In July 2004, they signed a petroleum agreement with GNPC/Government of Ghana. The Petroleum Agreement was signed on behalf of the EO Group by Derrick Oppong Agyare. Even though he was neither an official, director nor a shareholder of the company, he was supposed to have done so under a Power of Attorney, granted him by the group.
Kosmos then came to Ghana. They appointed George Owusu as their Country Representative at an initial fee of $3,000 per month, increasing it to $8,000 and then to $10,000.
In July 2004, Kosmos paid the EO Group $75,000.00 as part of the $250, 000.00. In August 2004, Kosmos paid the Group another $75,000.00. In the same month of August 2004, Edusei was appointed Ghana’s Ambassador to Switzerland. The closeness between the last payment and the appointment of Dr. Edusei as Ambassador to Switzerland got Anadarko’s investigators worried. This was because under the FCPA it is an offence for American companies to pay monies that benefit foreign public officers. | > BACK to TOP < |
_____________________________________________________ ----- | Archived News for 2010 | | | Saturday, 16 January 2010 | - TOR sets up committee to probe fire outbreak - Volta Star Textiles Limited faces imminent collapse - Defence Minister Goes Berserk! - EO Group's Darkest Secrets - $10,000 For Haiti? MP Kennedy Agyapong is ready to donate $10,000 to any fund that will be set up by government... - Earthquake scare - Quashigah’s Statement Childish! | | | | Go to 18.01.2010 | Go to 15.01.2010 Go to 14.01.2010 Go to 13.01.2010 Go to 12.01.2010 Go to 11.01.2010 Go to 10.01.2010 Go to 09.01.2010 Go to 08.01.2010 Go to 07.01.2010 Go to 06.01.2010 Go to 05.01.2010 Go to 04.01.2010 | | Your REPORT Your STORIES * Your PHOTOS PUBLISH NOW! | 
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| | | | * 20.01.2010 | $10,000 For Haiti? MP Kennedy Agyapong is ready to donate $10,000 to any fund that will be set up by government... * Source: Myjoyonline.com | The Member of Parliament for Assin North has urged the Mills administration to set up a fund that will ameliorate the devastating effects of the earthquake on the government and people of Haiti.
Aid agencies are appealing for water and food items for thousands of survivors in a deadly earthquake disaster that claimed countless number of lives.Kennedy Agyapong told Joy news he is ready to donate $10,000 to any fund that will be set up by government.
He said African countries must begin to demystify the ‘poor mentality’ noting that will earn the continent the needed respect from the world.“It looks as if Africans we consider ourselves poor and therefore what is even important to mankind we stay out. That is why we do not earn respect all over the world,” the NPP fire brand said.
The Deputy Information Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwah in an interview welcomed the donation by Hon Agyapong, adding government through the National Disaster Management Organisation is coordinating a relief package for the Haitian cause.
In the meantime, Mr Okudzeto said donations can be channeled to the World Vision office in Accra which is being coordinated by the United Nations on behalf of the people of Ghana. | Earthquake scare - Quashigah’s Statement Childish! * Source: Daily Searchlight | The Member of Parliament for Okaikoi South, Hon. Nana Akomea and the General Secretary of the Convention Peoples Party, Mr. Ivor Greenstreet yesterday gave the newly elected Propaganda Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Richard Quashigah, a baptism of fire for his comments " that the detractors of the ruling party were responsible for the earthquake scare".
Mr. Ivor Greenstreet described the comments on Citifm, a private radio as nonsense whilst Nana in an interview with this paper said it was childish and an insult on the intelligence of the thousands of people who were suffered. “It is evening and people are driving home and stack in traffic and you call me and ask me this nonsense”, Mr. Greenstreet told Shamima Muslim, host of Citi eyewitness news.
According to Nana Akomea “this business about the NPP been the caused of the earthquake is the most childish statement I have ever heard the whole of this year. Now I understand it was been promoted by the new Propaganda Secretary, if this is the style of Quashigah then he is going make the NDC more laughable.
He continued that is an insult to be a Ghanaian saying that there is a ‘scare that has deprived thousands of people of sleep and the only response government can give is that this is the work of the opposition, is an insult to the thousand of people who have suffered if this is the most intelligent response that the government can give’.
Nana Akomea wondered why Mr. Richard Quashigah could make such conclusions and say that the opposition party did so to take news away from the congress.
“So you ask yourself, what was the good news about the NDC Congress, you went to congress and elected your people, what is good about this, the good thing about this is that you did not fight among yourself and that is all”, he stated. “And what it means is that the NDC was so afraid that they were going to turn against themselves but when it did not happen they thought this was great news that a whole political party like the NPP would try and dumping that news…it is so childish”.
“The news is that they didn’t beat themselves up and that is the congratulations they need and they think that it is such an achievement and a party like the NPP is going to try and take that achievement, no way”.
Mr. Greenstreet on the other hand said he does not see any success in the congress to warrant any great that will cause a propaganda secretary to come out with his own effusions and draw the attention of the media when there are things of importance to talk about.
“I can’t advise the NDC, am not a member of the party and if you hold a congress where there would be no violence then they have no business being in government”, Mr. Greenstreet lamented.
Turning his anger unto the so-called man of God who claims he had a vision about the said scare, Nana Akomea said “I also heard there is pastor who also said he saw this in a vision and you listen to the name of that pastor, this are the people who give the church a very bad name and this are the very people who would go and do all sorts of things to woo men into churches and so on, it is a shame”. | | | | | | |
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