Story: Kofi Yeboah
Professor Jophus Anamoah-Mensah, the man who chaired the Presidential Committee on Educational Reform which led to the most recent educational reform, says the critical challenge of education in the country is to make basic education more effective.
He said there were concerns over declining standards in literacy and numeracy at the primary and junior high school levels, pointing out that if the quality of education at the basic level was improved, implementing a three-year or four-year secondary educational system would not be an issue.
“We need to strengthen basic education because if the base is weak, whatever system you implement will not be successful,” he stressed.
Prof Anamoah-Mensah, the immediate past Vice-Chancellor of the University of Education, Winneba, made these remarks in an interview yesterday following the hint by the Minister of Education designate, Mr Alex Tetteh-Enyo, that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration intended to revert to the three-year senior high school system.
Mr Tetteh-Enyo cited the lack of classrooms, teachers and appropriate textbooks for the implementation of the four-year secondary education as some of the critical challenges that justified the reversion to the three-year system.
Although the Prof Anamoah-Mensah Committee recommended a three-year secondary education, the Kufuor administration started the implementation of a four-year system which generated public furore both in support of and in opposition to the four-year duration.
Prof Anamoah-Mensah agreed with the assertion that the implementation of the reform, particularly at the secondary level, had been bedevilled with challenges of inadequate classrooms, teachers and appropriate textbooks.
He, however, stressed the need for the government to make a thorough assessment of those challenges to find out the extent of their inadequacy before taking any decision.
He said the educational system was not working effectively in view of the poor quality of literacy and numeracy at the basic level.
According to him, frequent changes in the educational system tended to have a psychological effect on schoolchildren and created the impression that “we are not serious with our education”.
While standing by the three-year recommendation of the committee, Prof Anamoah-Mensah said he did not have any problem with maintaining the four-year system or moving back to the three-year system, provided both systems would serve a good purpose, otherwise “I’m afraid the children will suffer”.
Prof Anamoah-Mensah urged the new government to increase expenditure on education, particularly on research, science, technology and open education, as a means of propelling the country’s development.
He also asked the government to endeavour to bridge the educational gap between the rich and poor, as well as the urban and the rural areas.
Friday, January 30, 2009
ACTING IGP HITS GROUND RUNNING (FRONT PAGE) 30-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
THE first policewoman to act as Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mrs Elizabeth Mills-Robertson, yesterday assumed her new role with a pledge to wage a relentless war on criminal activities throughout the country.
In line with that pledge, the police undertook an operation to flush out criminals in some parts of Accra, with the short-term objective of ensuring that people go about their normal duties freely in the first 100 days in office of President J. E. A. Mills.
In the long term, however, she promised to offer maximum security for the nation and banish fear from among the people by sustaining the fight against crime, particularly armed robbery.
On her first day in office, Mrs Mills-Robertson chaired a meeting of the Police Headquarters Management Advisory Board, the second highest organ of the service after the Police Council, to share some of her vision with the hierarchy of the service.
Taking office as the first female police head since policing was introduced in the country in the 1800s and at a time crime has become very sophisticated, Mrs Mills-Robertson faces a Herculean task but she is counting on the support of her subordinates and cordiality with the general public to succeed.
She promised to ensure a congenial atmosphere in the country and to ensure the protection of life and property as mandated by the 1992 Constitution.
A product of Wesley Girls High School in Cape Coast and the University of Ghana, and a Barrister at Law from the Ghana School of Law, Mrs Mills-Robertson promised to inspire other female police officers to rise to the top.
She is a mother of four and married to Dr Mills-Robertson, who works in the US.
The police operation carried out yesterday formed part of a nationwide exercise to clamp down on criminals.
“We want to send a clear message to all criminals that we will flush them out,” the Nima Divisional Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Angwubutoge Awuni, told journalists in Accra, following the arrest of some suspected criminals in the operation.
Fifty-eight suspects, some of whom are said to be pushers and smokers of Indian Hemp, were arrested in separate swoops on Teshie, Nungua and Madina, all in Accra.
The suspects are to be screened by the Kpeshie and Madina Police Divisional Commands under whose jurisdiction the arrests were made. Those found to have criminal records will be prosecuted, while those identified as clean will be set free.
Meanwhile, the Nima Divisional Police have arrested three suspected armed robbers for allegedly attempting to snatch a taxicab from its driver for an armed robbery operation.
They are Evans Addison, 25; Faisal Akilu, 20, and Jonathan Akrofi Boahen, 27. A fourth accomplice, James Cofie Mensah, is, however, on the run.
Briefing newsmen on the incident, ACP Awuni said the four suspects chartered a Fiat Tico taxi with registration number GT 4876 S around 1:20 a.m. yesterday from Nima to the Nyaho Clinic area.
He said when they reached the M-Plaza Hotel area, the suspects pointed a pistol at the taxi driver and collected the car key and GH¢40 from him.
Unfortunately for them, they could not start the vehicle and sensing danger as the driver kept shouting for help, they took to their heels.
ACP Awuni said Boahen was left behind and as he struggled out of the car, he pointed the pistol at the driver threatening to shoot him.
But after realising that there was no bullet in the pistol, the driver pursued Boahen and with the help of some ex-soldiers around, he managed to arrest him.
ACP Awuni said later the police took Boahen to his house for a search only to find Akilu and Faisal there, and they were promptly arrested.
THE first policewoman to act as Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mrs Elizabeth Mills-Robertson, yesterday assumed her new role with a pledge to wage a relentless war on criminal activities throughout the country.
In line with that pledge, the police undertook an operation to flush out criminals in some parts of Accra, with the short-term objective of ensuring that people go about their normal duties freely in the first 100 days in office of President J. E. A. Mills.
In the long term, however, she promised to offer maximum security for the nation and banish fear from among the people by sustaining the fight against crime, particularly armed robbery.
On her first day in office, Mrs Mills-Robertson chaired a meeting of the Police Headquarters Management Advisory Board, the second highest organ of the service after the Police Council, to share some of her vision with the hierarchy of the service.
Taking office as the first female police head since policing was introduced in the country in the 1800s and at a time crime has become very sophisticated, Mrs Mills-Robertson faces a Herculean task but she is counting on the support of her subordinates and cordiality with the general public to succeed.
She promised to ensure a congenial atmosphere in the country and to ensure the protection of life and property as mandated by the 1992 Constitution.
A product of Wesley Girls High School in Cape Coast and the University of Ghana, and a Barrister at Law from the Ghana School of Law, Mrs Mills-Robertson promised to inspire other female police officers to rise to the top.
She is a mother of four and married to Dr Mills-Robertson, who works in the US.
The police operation carried out yesterday formed part of a nationwide exercise to clamp down on criminals.
“We want to send a clear message to all criminals that we will flush them out,” the Nima Divisional Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Angwubutoge Awuni, told journalists in Accra, following the arrest of some suspected criminals in the operation.
Fifty-eight suspects, some of whom are said to be pushers and smokers of Indian Hemp, were arrested in separate swoops on Teshie, Nungua and Madina, all in Accra.
The suspects are to be screened by the Kpeshie and Madina Police Divisional Commands under whose jurisdiction the arrests were made. Those found to have criminal records will be prosecuted, while those identified as clean will be set free.
Meanwhile, the Nima Divisional Police have arrested three suspected armed robbers for allegedly attempting to snatch a taxicab from its driver for an armed robbery operation.
They are Evans Addison, 25; Faisal Akilu, 20, and Jonathan Akrofi Boahen, 27. A fourth accomplice, James Cofie Mensah, is, however, on the run.
Briefing newsmen on the incident, ACP Awuni said the four suspects chartered a Fiat Tico taxi with registration number GT 4876 S around 1:20 a.m. yesterday from Nima to the Nyaho Clinic area.
He said when they reached the M-Plaza Hotel area, the suspects pointed a pistol at the taxi driver and collected the car key and GH¢40 from him.
Unfortunately for them, they could not start the vehicle and sensing danger as the driver kept shouting for help, they took to their heels.
ACP Awuni said Boahen was left behind and as he struggled out of the car, he pointed the pistol at the driver threatening to shoot him.
But after realising that there was no bullet in the pistol, the driver pursued Boahen and with the help of some ex-soldiers around, he managed to arrest him.
ACP Awuni said later the police took Boahen to his house for a search only to find Akilu and Faisal there, and they were promptly arrested.
ACTING IGP HITS GROUND RUNNING
Story: Kofi Yeboah
THE first policewoman to act as Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mrs Elizabeth Mills-Robertson, yesterday assumed her new role with a pledge to wage a relentless war on criminal activities throughout the country.
In line with that pledge, the police undertook an operation to flush out criminals in some parts of Accra, with the short-term objective of ensuring that people go about their normal duties freely in the first 100 days in office of President J. E. A. Mills.
In the long term, however, she promised to offer maximum security for the nation and banish fear from among the people by sustaining the fight against crime, particularly armed robbery.
On her first day in office, Mrs Mills-Robertson chaired a meeting of the Police Headquarters Management Advisory Board, the second highest organ of the service after the Police Council, to share some of her vision with the hierarchy of the service.
Taking office as the first female police head since policing was introduced in the country in the 1800s and at a time crime has become very sophisticated, Mrs Mills-Robertson faces a Herculean task but she is counting on the support of her subordinates and cordiality with the general public to succeed.
She promised to ensure a congenial atmosphere in the country and to ensure the protection of life and property as mandated by the 1992 Constitution.
A product of Wesley Girls High School in Cape Coast and the University of Ghana, and a Barrister at Law from the Ghana School of Law, Mrs Mills-Robertson promised to inspire other female police officers to rise to the top.
She is a mother of four and married to Dr Mills-Robertson, who works in the US.
The police operation carried out yesterday formed part of a nationwide exercise to clamp down on criminals.
“We want to send a clear message to all criminals that we will flush them out,” the Nima Divisional Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Angwubutoge Awuni, told journalists in Accra, following the arrest of some suspected criminals in the operation.
Fifty-eight suspects, some of whom are said to be pushers and smokers of Indian Hemp, were arrested in separate swoops on Teshie, Nungua and Madina, all in Accra.
The suspects are to be screened by the Kpeshie and Madina Police Divisional Commands under whose jurisdiction the arrests were made. Those found to have criminal records will be prosecuted, while those identified as clean will be set free.
Meanwhile, the Nima Divisional Police have arrested three suspected armed robbers for allegedly attempting to snatch a taxicab from its driver for an armed robbery operation.
They are Evans Addison, 25; Faisal Akilu, 20, and Jonathan Akrofi Boahen, 27. A fourth accomplice, James Cofie Mensah, is, however, on the run.
Briefing newsmen on the incident, ACP Awuni said the four suspects chartered a Fiat Tico taxi with registration number GT 4876 S around 1:20 a.m. yesterday from Nima to the Nyaho Clinic area.
He said when they reached the M-Plaza Hotel area, the suspects pointed a pistol at the taxi driver and collected the car key and GH¢40 from him.
Unfortunately for them, they could not start the vehicle and sensing danger as the driver kept shouting for help, they took to their heels.
ACP Awuni said Boahen was left behind and as he struggled out of the car, he pointed the pistol at the driver threatening to shoot him.
But after realising that there was no bullet in the pistol, the driver pursued Boahen and with the help of some ex-soldiers around, he managed to arrest him.
ACP Awuni said later the police took Boahen to his house for a search only to find Akilu and Faisal there, and they were promptly arrested.
THE first policewoman to act as Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mrs Elizabeth Mills-Robertson, yesterday assumed her new role with a pledge to wage a relentless war on criminal activities throughout the country.
In line with that pledge, the police undertook an operation to flush out criminals in some parts of Accra, with the short-term objective of ensuring that people go about their normal duties freely in the first 100 days in office of President J. E. A. Mills.
In the long term, however, she promised to offer maximum security for the nation and banish fear from among the people by sustaining the fight against crime, particularly armed robbery.
On her first day in office, Mrs Mills-Robertson chaired a meeting of the Police Headquarters Management Advisory Board, the second highest organ of the service after the Police Council, to share some of her vision with the hierarchy of the service.
Taking office as the first female police head since policing was introduced in the country in the 1800s and at a time crime has become very sophisticated, Mrs Mills-Robertson faces a Herculean task but she is counting on the support of her subordinates and cordiality with the general public to succeed.
She promised to ensure a congenial atmosphere in the country and to ensure the protection of life and property as mandated by the 1992 Constitution.
A product of Wesley Girls High School in Cape Coast and the University of Ghana, and a Barrister at Law from the Ghana School of Law, Mrs Mills-Robertson promised to inspire other female police officers to rise to the top.
She is a mother of four and married to Dr Mills-Robertson, who works in the US.
The police operation carried out yesterday formed part of a nationwide exercise to clamp down on criminals.
“We want to send a clear message to all criminals that we will flush them out,” the Nima Divisional Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Angwubutoge Awuni, told journalists in Accra, following the arrest of some suspected criminals in the operation.
Fifty-eight suspects, some of whom are said to be pushers and smokers of Indian Hemp, were arrested in separate swoops on Teshie, Nungua and Madina, all in Accra.
The suspects are to be screened by the Kpeshie and Madina Police Divisional Commands under whose jurisdiction the arrests were made. Those found to have criminal records will be prosecuted, while those identified as clean will be set free.
Meanwhile, the Nima Divisional Police have arrested three suspected armed robbers for allegedly attempting to snatch a taxicab from its driver for an armed robbery operation.
They are Evans Addison, 25; Faisal Akilu, 20, and Jonathan Akrofi Boahen, 27. A fourth accomplice, James Cofie Mensah, is, however, on the run.
Briefing newsmen on the incident, ACP Awuni said the four suspects chartered a Fiat Tico taxi with registration number GT 4876 S around 1:20 a.m. yesterday from Nima to the Nyaho Clinic area.
He said when they reached the M-Plaza Hotel area, the suspects pointed a pistol at the taxi driver and collected the car key and GH¢40 from him.
Unfortunately for them, they could not start the vehicle and sensing danger as the driver kept shouting for help, they took to their heels.
ACP Awuni said Boahen was left behind and as he struggled out of the car, he pointed the pistol at the driver threatening to shoot him.
But after realising that there was no bullet in the pistol, the driver pursued Boahen and with the help of some ex-soldiers around, he managed to arrest him.
ACP Awuni said later the police took Boahen to his house for a search only to find Akilu and Faisal there, and they were promptly arrested.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
UCC BUSINESS SCHOOL ALUMNI INAUGURATED (P.11) 28-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
THE University of Cape Coast (UCC) School of Business Alumni Association has been inaugurated in Accra with a call on old students of the UCC to support the development of their alma mater.
The Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof Jane Naana Opoku-Agyeman, who made the call, said by offering such support, the old students would be showing gratitude to the institution that had transformed their lives today.
The UCC School of Business is one of the eight faculties of the university and one of the foremost business schools to be established by any university in the country.
The school has a vision to become a leading business school in Africa, while its mission is to become a centre of excellence for business studies.
Members adopted a constitution and appointed a five-member task force to run its affairs and make preparations for the election of national executives in six months.
The members are Mr Gorkel Obro-Adibo, Mrs Florence Twum, Mr John Saakat, Mr Osae Kwatia and Mr Augustine Addo.
Prof Opoku-Agyeman urged the association to reach out to other colleagues, particularly the youth, to share their professional experiences with them.
She underlined the need for students to take the learning of communication skills seriously because it would help them in their professional careers after school.
The Registrar of the UCC, Mr Kofi Ohene, said students of the School of Business held high the image of the university with respect to academic excellence and urged the alumni of the school to continue to fly its banner at their workplaces.
The Dean of the UCC School of Business, Mr Edward Marfo Yiadom, appealed to the alumni to support the school with textbooks, computers and other education materials, as well as help sponsor awards for graduating students.
He also asked them to render services as adjunct and guest lecturers.
The Alumni Representative on the UCC Council, Nana Kusi Appiah, expressed the hope that other faculties and schools would emulate the example of the School of Business Alumni Association.
As part of its efforts to assist their alma mater, the association has proposed to construct a 40-room executive students' hostel and a block of flats for the faculty.
An appeal for funds to support the faculty project yielded about GH¢4,000
THE University of Cape Coast (UCC) School of Business Alumni Association has been inaugurated in Accra with a call on old students of the UCC to support the development of their alma mater.
The Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof Jane Naana Opoku-Agyeman, who made the call, said by offering such support, the old students would be showing gratitude to the institution that had transformed their lives today.
The UCC School of Business is one of the eight faculties of the university and one of the foremost business schools to be established by any university in the country.
The school has a vision to become a leading business school in Africa, while its mission is to become a centre of excellence for business studies.
Members adopted a constitution and appointed a five-member task force to run its affairs and make preparations for the election of national executives in six months.
The members are Mr Gorkel Obro-Adibo, Mrs Florence Twum, Mr John Saakat, Mr Osae Kwatia and Mr Augustine Addo.
Prof Opoku-Agyeman urged the association to reach out to other colleagues, particularly the youth, to share their professional experiences with them.
She underlined the need for students to take the learning of communication skills seriously because it would help them in their professional careers after school.
The Registrar of the UCC, Mr Kofi Ohene, said students of the School of Business held high the image of the university with respect to academic excellence and urged the alumni of the school to continue to fly its banner at their workplaces.
The Dean of the UCC School of Business, Mr Edward Marfo Yiadom, appealed to the alumni to support the school with textbooks, computers and other education materials, as well as help sponsor awards for graduating students.
He also asked them to render services as adjunct and guest lecturers.
The Alumni Representative on the UCC Council, Nana Kusi Appiah, expressed the hope that other faculties and schools would emulate the example of the School of Business Alumni Association.
As part of its efforts to assist their alma mater, the association has proposed to construct a 40-room executive students' hostel and a block of flats for the faculty.
An appeal for funds to support the faculty project yielded about GH¢4,000
WIREKO-BROBBY, MPIANI REBUT A-G's REPORT (FRONT PAGE) 28-01-09
REBUT (Castle) Read by E. agyeI
Story: Kweku Tsen
THE Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana@50 Secretariat, Dr Charles Wereko-Brobbey, has stated that payments made from the Golden Jubilee celebration accounts were audited by the Internal Audit Unit at the Office of the President.
In a rebuttal to statements made by the Auditor-General (AG), Mr Edward Dua Agyeman, to the government transition team on the recovery of government assets, Dr Wereko-Brobbey said more than 95 per cent of payments made from public funds for the Golden Jubilee celebrations were audited by the unit.
“More than 95 per cent of payments made from public funds were made through the Treasury Department of the Office of the President, which issued cheques written and signed by them after auditing by the Internal Audit Department,” he said.
Dr Wereko-Brobbey also said only five per cent of payments were made directly from the secretariat’s accounts, adding that even that had to be counter-signed by officials of the Office of the President after auditing had been done by the staff of the office.
The officials, the Ghana@50 Secretariat CEO claimed, were the Director of Budget, the Chief Director and the Chief Accountant, all of the Office of the President.
“Every single payment made from public funds was audited by the Internal Audit Unit of the Office of the President,” he said.
The Ghana@50 CEO disagreed with Mr Dua Agyeman that draft statements were not ready for audit, claiming that four separate statements had been provided for the AG’s team in relation to the transactions of the secretariat.
He explained that the statements included a full account of the disbursement of the US$20 million provided by Parliament in the 2006 Supplementary Budget and the statement on the receipts and uses of funds received from corporate sponsors.
Others were the statements from the African Union (AU) Development Consortium on the disbursement of its loan on the Cantonments project and outstanding indebtedness to various contractors and suppliers.
Dr Wereko-Brobbey further explained that every payment made by the AU Development Consortium for the AU housing project at LA was audited and paid by the company’s own staff who prepared their vouchers and issued cheques for payments.
Throwing more light on the AU villages at Cantonments and Ridge, the Ghana@50 CEO said the residential developments were constructed to accommodate Heads of State and similar dignitaries who attended the Jubilee celebrations and the AU Summit held in August of the same year.
He further explained that the AU villages and the fleet of 300 vehicles purchased were used for other high-level conferences which were held in Ghana after the celebrations.
Dr Wereko-Brobbey mentioned them as the Consultative Group Meeting (2007), the AU Conference (2007), the African Ministers of Finance Conference (2007), the CAN 2008, the High Level Forum on Aid Harmonisation and Effectiveness (2008) and the UNCTAD Conference (2008).
When asked to comment on why the secretariat could not provide a comprehensive report on its operations to the AG’s Department, Dr Wereko-Brobbey said, “In a situation where the accounts of the operations were still active at the time of the audit, it was impossible to provide a singular draft financial statement beyond what had been so far provided the AG’s department.”
On his part, Mr. Kwadwo Mpiani, who was also the Chief of Staff and Minister of Presidential Affairs in the Kufuor administration, dismissed the aspect of the interim report which suggested that the nation owed GH¢18 million to various organisations, reports Kofi Yeboah.
According to him, some details in the report were wrong, and he declared his preparedness to address every single query raised in the report on the Ghana@50 Project.
Mr Mpiani made the remark today on JOY FM and Adom FM, both radio stations in Accra and Tema, respectively, in reaction to the interim audit report, which was presented by the Auditor-General, Mr Edward Dua Agyeman, to President Mill’s Transition Team on Transfer of Executive Assets of the State in Accra on Monday.
The interim audit report indicated, among other things, that in addition to the GH¢60.2 million released for the celebration of Ghana@50, the nation still owed GH¢18 million to various organisations.
It also noted that the Ghana@50 Secretariat, which was established by the National Planning Committee (NPC) - a Cabinet sub-committee, to implement programmes and activities towards the celebration of Ghana’s Golden Jubilee, did not maintain good cash books for the proper auditing of its accounts.
The Auditor-General has given the NPC and the Ghana@50 Secretariat 30 days within which to respond to the queries raised in the interim report.
However, Mr Mpiani, who was the chairman of the NPC, insisted that the accounts of the Ghana@50 Project were clean and devoid of any malfeasance.
He wondered how an interim audit report could be presented and discussed as though it was the final audit report, pointing out that the report did not reflect the true account of the project.
Mr Mpiani also expressed disappointment at the manner in which the transition team opened the presentation of the report and its discussion to the media as if to create the impression that something untoward had been done.
He said if the government had any problem with the accounts of the project, it could establish a committee of enquiry to probe the matter, and that would allow officials of the previous government, with legal representation, to explain issues.
Commenting on the assertion by the Commissioner of the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), Mr Empanel Nmashie Doku, that 139 vehicles imported by the Office of the President could not be traced, the former Chief of Staff said it was not the responsibility of the Commissioner of CEPS to trace government vehicles.
He said the responsibility of CEPS was to collect custom duties on vehicles at the points of entry and not to trace where the vehicles were sent.
Mr Mpiani said he had given documents covering the vehicles to the transition team, adding that if they needed further clarifications, they should have contacted him and not the CEPS Commissioner.
He called on the transition team to carry out their activities in a professional manner and in the best interest of the nation.
Story: Kweku Tsen
THE Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana@50 Secretariat, Dr Charles Wereko-Brobbey, has stated that payments made from the Golden Jubilee celebration accounts were audited by the Internal Audit Unit at the Office of the President.
In a rebuttal to statements made by the Auditor-General (AG), Mr Edward Dua Agyeman, to the government transition team on the recovery of government assets, Dr Wereko-Brobbey said more than 95 per cent of payments made from public funds for the Golden Jubilee celebrations were audited by the unit.
“More than 95 per cent of payments made from public funds were made through the Treasury Department of the Office of the President, which issued cheques written and signed by them after auditing by the Internal Audit Department,” he said.
Dr Wereko-Brobbey also said only five per cent of payments were made directly from the secretariat’s accounts, adding that even that had to be counter-signed by officials of the Office of the President after auditing had been done by the staff of the office.
The officials, the Ghana@50 Secretariat CEO claimed, were the Director of Budget, the Chief Director and the Chief Accountant, all of the Office of the President.
“Every single payment made from public funds was audited by the Internal Audit Unit of the Office of the President,” he said.
The Ghana@50 CEO disagreed with Mr Dua Agyeman that draft statements were not ready for audit, claiming that four separate statements had been provided for the AG’s team in relation to the transactions of the secretariat.
He explained that the statements included a full account of the disbursement of the US$20 million provided by Parliament in the 2006 Supplementary Budget and the statement on the receipts and uses of funds received from corporate sponsors.
Others were the statements from the African Union (AU) Development Consortium on the disbursement of its loan on the Cantonments project and outstanding indebtedness to various contractors and suppliers.
Dr Wereko-Brobbey further explained that every payment made by the AU Development Consortium for the AU housing project at LA was audited and paid by the company’s own staff who prepared their vouchers and issued cheques for payments.
Throwing more light on the AU villages at Cantonments and Ridge, the Ghana@50 CEO said the residential developments were constructed to accommodate Heads of State and similar dignitaries who attended the Jubilee celebrations and the AU Summit held in August of the same year.
He further explained that the AU villages and the fleet of 300 vehicles purchased were used for other high-level conferences which were held in Ghana after the celebrations.
Dr Wereko-Brobbey mentioned them as the Consultative Group Meeting (2007), the AU Conference (2007), the African Ministers of Finance Conference (2007), the CAN 2008, the High Level Forum on Aid Harmonisation and Effectiveness (2008) and the UNCTAD Conference (2008).
When asked to comment on why the secretariat could not provide a comprehensive report on its operations to the AG’s Department, Dr Wereko-Brobbey said, “In a situation where the accounts of the operations were still active at the time of the audit, it was impossible to provide a singular draft financial statement beyond what had been so far provided the AG’s department.”
On his part, Mr. Kwadwo Mpiani, who was also the Chief of Staff and Minister of Presidential Affairs in the Kufuor administration, dismissed the aspect of the interim report which suggested that the nation owed GH¢18 million to various organisations, reports Kofi Yeboah.
According to him, some details in the report were wrong, and he declared his preparedness to address every single query raised in the report on the Ghana@50 Project.
Mr Mpiani made the remark today on JOY FM and Adom FM, both radio stations in Accra and Tema, respectively, in reaction to the interim audit report, which was presented by the Auditor-General, Mr Edward Dua Agyeman, to President Mill’s Transition Team on Transfer of Executive Assets of the State in Accra on Monday.
The interim audit report indicated, among other things, that in addition to the GH¢60.2 million released for the celebration of Ghana@50, the nation still owed GH¢18 million to various organisations.
It also noted that the Ghana@50 Secretariat, which was established by the National Planning Committee (NPC) - a Cabinet sub-committee, to implement programmes and activities towards the celebration of Ghana’s Golden Jubilee, did not maintain good cash books for the proper auditing of its accounts.
The Auditor-General has given the NPC and the Ghana@50 Secretariat 30 days within which to respond to the queries raised in the interim report.
However, Mr Mpiani, who was the chairman of the NPC, insisted that the accounts of the Ghana@50 Project were clean and devoid of any malfeasance.
He wondered how an interim audit report could be presented and discussed as though it was the final audit report, pointing out that the report did not reflect the true account of the project.
Mr Mpiani also expressed disappointment at the manner in which the transition team opened the presentation of the report and its discussion to the media as if to create the impression that something untoward had been done.
He said if the government had any problem with the accounts of the project, it could establish a committee of enquiry to probe the matter, and that would allow officials of the previous government, with legal representation, to explain issues.
Commenting on the assertion by the Commissioner of the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), Mr Empanel Nmashie Doku, that 139 vehicles imported by the Office of the President could not be traced, the former Chief of Staff said it was not the responsibility of the Commissioner of CEPS to trace government vehicles.
He said the responsibility of CEPS was to collect custom duties on vehicles at the points of entry and not to trace where the vehicles were sent.
Mr Mpiani said he had given documents covering the vehicles to the transition team, adding that if they needed further clarifications, they should have contacted him and not the CEPS Commissioner.
He called on the transition team to carry out their activities in a professional manner and in the best interest of the nation.
NTHC OWES GH¢3.2m... FOR SALE OF CPC, BOPP (FRONT PAGE) 28-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
FOUR years after the sale of government shares in the Cocoa Processing Company (CPC) and the Benso Oil Palm Plantation (BOPP), an amount of more than GH¢3.2 million accruing from the sales is yet to be paid into government coffers.
The principal CPC floatation proceeds from the transaction due the government is GH¢1.95 million, while that of BOPP is GH¢1.25 million.
The National Trust Holding Company (NTHC) which sold the shares has failed to pay the money to the government since the close of transaction on December 31, 2004, which liability had attracted an interest of more than GH¢1.6 million as of June 2007.
According to a final audit report on the transaction prepared by the Ghana Audit Service and dated April 11, 2007, “Interests accruing on the floatation proceeds were illegally transferred, on the instruction of management, to NTHC Ltd’s interest investment account.”
The NTHC Ltd also invested about GH¢1 million of the CPC floatation proceeds with Sterling Security Ltd, with period of maturity ranging between two and half and six months, but the interests derived thereof were not accounted for in the floatation books.
The audit report, which was stumbled upon by the Daily Graphic, further noted that some floatation funds were lodged directly into the NTHC Ltd’s own bank accounts, while other funds were channelled into short-term investments without passing through the floatation bank accounts.
“Management of the NTHC Ltd did not account for the interests accruing from the investments,” the auditors observed.
Again, the auditors detected that an amount of GH¢5 million of government floatation funds was illegally granted as loan to the government to support the national budget, adding that an interest of more than GH¢520,000 was illegally charged against the government funds.
The report identified the major cause of the financial malfeasance perpetrated by the NTHC Ltd as the inability of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP) to monitor and exercise the necessary controls on the use of the floatation funds.
“The monitoring role of the Security Exchange Commission (SEC) in initial public offer (IPO), such as that of BOPP and CPC, was ineffective,” the report pointed out, explaining that the commission did not play any effective monitoring role in the trust funds or the public deposits in the two IPOs.
The report also criticised the selected banks for the floatation funds for not ensuring strict adherence to rules on escrow bank accounts, a lapse which the NTHC management took advantage of “to withdraw floatation funds with impunity” and in contravention of Security and Industrial Law, as well as the floatation and listing agreement.
It said record keeping, custody, withdrawal and disbursement of the CPC and BOPP floatation funds were improperly administered by management, adding that there had been clear evidence of financial malpractice.
The auditors observed, for instance, that while the accounting records of the shares had not been well maintained, the floatation proceeds were not classified into various categories of depositors.
In addition, financial statements were not prepared for the BOPP floatation transactions, while in the case of the CPC floatation accounts, although financial statements were prepared for various bank accounts, they did not have any explanatory notes.
“There were a number of financial malpractices bordering on wrongful lodgement of floatation proceeds in NTHC bank accounts, illegal transfer of GoG share floatation proceeds and dissipation of bank and investment interests income,” the report indicated.
Since the transaction on the CPC and BOPP shares was terminated on December 31, 2004, efforts by the government to redeem the floatation proceeds have proved futile.
The MoFEP, in a letter to the managing director of the NTHC, dated July 25, 2007 and signed by the then Minister of State, Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, directed the company to pay the money into the accounts of the Ministry of Finance NTR (Receipt) with account number 0123050012176 at the Bank of Ghana.
That directive followed a letter signed by the Auditor-General, Mr Edward Dua Agyeman and dated July 19, 2007, requesting the managing director of the NTHC to submit a repayment plan on how the company intended to liquidate its liability for consideration by his (Auditor-General’s) office.
In response to the Auditor-General’s letter, the management of the NTHC maintained that it had not received the final audit report on the matter and that it had referred most of the queries raised in the report to the managing director (Dr A. W. Q. Barnor) for further clarification.
“Although we have not received the final audit report, which we hope will discuss the issues referred to the managing director, we are nonetheless going to circulate and discuss your letter regarding our increased outstanding liability to government to the board and the rest of the shareholders,” the NTHC responded in a letter dated July 27, 2007 and signed by the Deputy Managing Director, Mr Michael A. Addo.
However, the audit report pointed out that three officers of the company — Dr A. W. Q. Barnor (Managing Director), Mr Raziel Obeng Okon (Head of Corporate Finance and Research) and Mr Kojo Graham (Head of Operations) — who were at post during the floatation of the CPC and BOPP shares, did not honour invitation and did not co-operate with the audit team for discussions on issues raised.
FOUR years after the sale of government shares in the Cocoa Processing Company (CPC) and the Benso Oil Palm Plantation (BOPP), an amount of more than GH¢3.2 million accruing from the sales is yet to be paid into government coffers.
The principal CPC floatation proceeds from the transaction due the government is GH¢1.95 million, while that of BOPP is GH¢1.25 million.
The National Trust Holding Company (NTHC) which sold the shares has failed to pay the money to the government since the close of transaction on December 31, 2004, which liability had attracted an interest of more than GH¢1.6 million as of June 2007.
According to a final audit report on the transaction prepared by the Ghana Audit Service and dated April 11, 2007, “Interests accruing on the floatation proceeds were illegally transferred, on the instruction of management, to NTHC Ltd’s interest investment account.”
The NTHC Ltd also invested about GH¢1 million of the CPC floatation proceeds with Sterling Security Ltd, with period of maturity ranging between two and half and six months, but the interests derived thereof were not accounted for in the floatation books.
The audit report, which was stumbled upon by the Daily Graphic, further noted that some floatation funds were lodged directly into the NTHC Ltd’s own bank accounts, while other funds were channelled into short-term investments without passing through the floatation bank accounts.
“Management of the NTHC Ltd did not account for the interests accruing from the investments,” the auditors observed.
Again, the auditors detected that an amount of GH¢5 million of government floatation funds was illegally granted as loan to the government to support the national budget, adding that an interest of more than GH¢520,000 was illegally charged against the government funds.
The report identified the major cause of the financial malfeasance perpetrated by the NTHC Ltd as the inability of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP) to monitor and exercise the necessary controls on the use of the floatation funds.
“The monitoring role of the Security Exchange Commission (SEC) in initial public offer (IPO), such as that of BOPP and CPC, was ineffective,” the report pointed out, explaining that the commission did not play any effective monitoring role in the trust funds or the public deposits in the two IPOs.
The report also criticised the selected banks for the floatation funds for not ensuring strict adherence to rules on escrow bank accounts, a lapse which the NTHC management took advantage of “to withdraw floatation funds with impunity” and in contravention of Security and Industrial Law, as well as the floatation and listing agreement.
It said record keeping, custody, withdrawal and disbursement of the CPC and BOPP floatation funds were improperly administered by management, adding that there had been clear evidence of financial malpractice.
The auditors observed, for instance, that while the accounting records of the shares had not been well maintained, the floatation proceeds were not classified into various categories of depositors.
In addition, financial statements were not prepared for the BOPP floatation transactions, while in the case of the CPC floatation accounts, although financial statements were prepared for various bank accounts, they did not have any explanatory notes.
“There were a number of financial malpractices bordering on wrongful lodgement of floatation proceeds in NTHC bank accounts, illegal transfer of GoG share floatation proceeds and dissipation of bank and investment interests income,” the report indicated.
Since the transaction on the CPC and BOPP shares was terminated on December 31, 2004, efforts by the government to redeem the floatation proceeds have proved futile.
The MoFEP, in a letter to the managing director of the NTHC, dated July 25, 2007 and signed by the then Minister of State, Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, directed the company to pay the money into the accounts of the Ministry of Finance NTR (Receipt) with account number 0123050012176 at the Bank of Ghana.
That directive followed a letter signed by the Auditor-General, Mr Edward Dua Agyeman and dated July 19, 2007, requesting the managing director of the NTHC to submit a repayment plan on how the company intended to liquidate its liability for consideration by his (Auditor-General’s) office.
In response to the Auditor-General’s letter, the management of the NTHC maintained that it had not received the final audit report on the matter and that it had referred most of the queries raised in the report to the managing director (Dr A. W. Q. Barnor) for further clarification.
“Although we have not received the final audit report, which we hope will discuss the issues referred to the managing director, we are nonetheless going to circulate and discuss your letter regarding our increased outstanding liability to government to the board and the rest of the shareholders,” the NTHC responded in a letter dated July 27, 2007 and signed by the Deputy Managing Director, Mr Michael A. Addo.
However, the audit report pointed out that three officers of the company — Dr A. W. Q. Barnor (Managing Director), Mr Raziel Obeng Okon (Head of Corporate Finance and Research) and Mr Kojo Graham (Head of Operations) — who were at post during the floatation of the CPC and BOPP shares, did not honour invitation and did not co-operate with the audit team for discussions on issues raised.
LOCAL FISHERMEN STILL AT RISK (BACK PAGE) 27-01-09
Story: News Desk Report
FISHERMEN along the coastline of the country, from Keta to Axim, say another form of danger has emerged to threaten their trade since the launch last December of “Operation Stock Control”, to curb the incidence of pair trawling.
They said while the illegal practice of pair trawling was still continuing, the bigger vessels had adopted a more dangerous method, employing powerful lights and guns at night, to scare away the canoe fishermen and sweep everything, including fingerlings, from the sea.
In December last year, the government acquired two naval speed boats and launched “Operation Stock Control” involving the Ghana Navy and Air Force, to protect the country’s territorial waters against the negative activities of pair trawling by foreign fishing vessels and preserve the fish stock in the country.
However, according to the fishermen, nothing had changed since the launch of the anti-pair trawling programme. Instead, they said, more sinister moves had been adopted by some foreign vessels to exacerbate the depletion of fish stock in the country and deny local fishermen of their livelihood.
They said they had, therefore, resigned their fate in the hands of the new government and appealed to President J. E. A. Mills to take an immediate and firm action to halt the negative activities and alleviate their plight.
From Adina, near Denu in the Volta Region, Tim Dzamboe reports that two Japanese fishing trawlers reportedly trapped the nets of fishermen at Anloga, Anyanui and Tokor in the Keta District resulting in clashes between the trawler owners and local fishermen.
The Ketu South District Chief fisherman, Mr Seth Abotsi, said apart from that the fishing trawlers cast their nets very wide and threw unwanted dead fishes back into the sea.
Mr Abotsi claimed that even 20 local fishing vessels cannot load or convey the volume of dead fish thrown back into the sea and said it constituted danger to life on sea, as well as a waste to the nation’s resources.
He said several complaints had been made to the Ghana Navy at the Naval Base but because of the lack of funds they could not patrol the seas regularly revealing that a single patrol could cost not less than GH¢1200.
From Chorkor and Osu in Accra some of the fishermen alleged that operators of foreign trawlers threatened them with guns when they encountered them on the sea and tried to resist their activities, reports Kofi Yeboah.
A spokesperson for the fishermen at Chorkor, Mr Ebenezer Larbi, who made the allegation, said contrary to fishing regulations, the trawlers also used strong light in the water at night to attract all sizes of fish.
Mr Larbi said after the catch, the operators sorted out the big fish and threw the small ones into the sea, adding that because the small fish were dead, they got rotten in the water and that emitted an offensive smell.
At Osu, Messrs Michael Anani, aka Ayigbe, Musah Nikoi and Moses Nii Halm also expressed similar sentiments as the fishermen in Chorkor.
They recalled an instance when two pair trawlers swept one of their canoes, nicknamed “Otrumu”, damaging it and killing one fisherman in the process.
From Takoradi, Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu reports that fishermen along the cost of the Western Region said months after the lunch of “Operation Stock Control” by the Ministry of Defence by the previous government, pair trawling activities had increased.
According to the fishermen, the vessels had devised a new strategy of putting their lights off in the night to operate under the cover of darkness.
The fishermen said during the launch, they were promised that the Ghana Navy would be working together with the Ghana Air Force but they claimed the Air Force had not been flying.
At Half Assini in the Jomoro District, Nana Kweku Adu said the situation at the moment was very bad, “because the focus has been on the Sekondi waters, most of them have shifted to the Half-Assini-New Town water and are creating a lot of trouble for us”.
“What they do now is that they wait until night then they would descend to the prohibited 30-metre contour and sweep our nets away and as we speak many of them also pair during the day,” he said.
When contacted, the ???Head of Public Relations Col. Emmanuel Nibo??? said since the launch of “Operation Stock Control”, the Navy had done a lot of daily patrols in the country’s territorial waters.
He said in spite of that exercise, “it is the prime responsibility of fishermen to ensure that they report any illegal activity to the navy for action”.
Meanwhile, fishermen in the Western and Central regions have called for the complete ban of pair trawling.
They also indicated that single trawlers should be stopped from operating all year round, in conformity with international laws that required their operation for only three months in a year.
A chief fisherman at Takoradi, Nana Jojo Solomon, said although the last administration tried to regulate the practice, its efforts did not yield the desired results.
“What we want is a complete ban of pair trawling and the institution of open and close sessions for single trawlers,” he stated.
Taking a different view of the general happenings along the coastlines, fishermen at the Tema Fishing Harbour said the activities of pair trawlers had decreased over the past few weeks, Rose Hayford Darko reports.
The Chief Fisherman, Nii Odametey II, said the issue of pair trawling had reduced considerably since the beginning of the year because they had not sighted any pair trawling activity at sea.
He noted that the critical problem now was the use of light at sea by fishermen, including local fishermen.
Nii Odametey appealed to the government to enforce the law against the use of light for fishing, since the practice was affecting their business because the light attracted all sizes of fish, which eventually died because of the heat generated by the light.
An elderly fisherman, Onukpa Kojo Anum, was of the view that the previous government did not help the fishermen to check the bad practices at sea and called on the present government to work vigorously towards bringing to an end the bad fishing practices.
As of 8 am on Saturday morning when the Daily Graphic got to the canoe beach many of the canoes had returned from fishing with mostly fingerlings and anchovies, which gave credence to the assertion that the pair trawler were depleting the sea by catching small fish with the use of light.
FISHERMEN along the coastline of the country, from Keta to Axim, say another form of danger has emerged to threaten their trade since the launch last December of “Operation Stock Control”, to curb the incidence of pair trawling.
They said while the illegal practice of pair trawling was still continuing, the bigger vessels had adopted a more dangerous method, employing powerful lights and guns at night, to scare away the canoe fishermen and sweep everything, including fingerlings, from the sea.
In December last year, the government acquired two naval speed boats and launched “Operation Stock Control” involving the Ghana Navy and Air Force, to protect the country’s territorial waters against the negative activities of pair trawling by foreign fishing vessels and preserve the fish stock in the country.
However, according to the fishermen, nothing had changed since the launch of the anti-pair trawling programme. Instead, they said, more sinister moves had been adopted by some foreign vessels to exacerbate the depletion of fish stock in the country and deny local fishermen of their livelihood.
They said they had, therefore, resigned their fate in the hands of the new government and appealed to President J. E. A. Mills to take an immediate and firm action to halt the negative activities and alleviate their plight.
From Adina, near Denu in the Volta Region, Tim Dzamboe reports that two Japanese fishing trawlers reportedly trapped the nets of fishermen at Anloga, Anyanui and Tokor in the Keta District resulting in clashes between the trawler owners and local fishermen.
The Ketu South District Chief fisherman, Mr Seth Abotsi, said apart from that the fishing trawlers cast their nets very wide and threw unwanted dead fishes back into the sea.
Mr Abotsi claimed that even 20 local fishing vessels cannot load or convey the volume of dead fish thrown back into the sea and said it constituted danger to life on sea, as well as a waste to the nation’s resources.
He said several complaints had been made to the Ghana Navy at the Naval Base but because of the lack of funds they could not patrol the seas regularly revealing that a single patrol could cost not less than GH¢1200.
From Chorkor and Osu in Accra some of the fishermen alleged that operators of foreign trawlers threatened them with guns when they encountered them on the sea and tried to resist their activities, reports Kofi Yeboah.
A spokesperson for the fishermen at Chorkor, Mr Ebenezer Larbi, who made the allegation, said contrary to fishing regulations, the trawlers also used strong light in the water at night to attract all sizes of fish.
Mr Larbi said after the catch, the operators sorted out the big fish and threw the small ones into the sea, adding that because the small fish were dead, they got rotten in the water and that emitted an offensive smell.
At Osu, Messrs Michael Anani, aka Ayigbe, Musah Nikoi and Moses Nii Halm also expressed similar sentiments as the fishermen in Chorkor.
They recalled an instance when two pair trawlers swept one of their canoes, nicknamed “Otrumu”, damaging it and killing one fisherman in the process.
From Takoradi, Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu reports that fishermen along the cost of the Western Region said months after the lunch of “Operation Stock Control” by the Ministry of Defence by the previous government, pair trawling activities had increased.
According to the fishermen, the vessels had devised a new strategy of putting their lights off in the night to operate under the cover of darkness.
The fishermen said during the launch, they were promised that the Ghana Navy would be working together with the Ghana Air Force but they claimed the Air Force had not been flying.
At Half Assini in the Jomoro District, Nana Kweku Adu said the situation at the moment was very bad, “because the focus has been on the Sekondi waters, most of them have shifted to the Half-Assini-New Town water and are creating a lot of trouble for us”.
“What they do now is that they wait until night then they would descend to the prohibited 30-metre contour and sweep our nets away and as we speak many of them also pair during the day,” he said.
When contacted, the ???Head of Public Relations Col. Emmanuel Nibo??? said since the launch of “Operation Stock Control”, the Navy had done a lot of daily patrols in the country’s territorial waters.
He said in spite of that exercise, “it is the prime responsibility of fishermen to ensure that they report any illegal activity to the navy for action”.
Meanwhile, fishermen in the Western and Central regions have called for the complete ban of pair trawling.
They also indicated that single trawlers should be stopped from operating all year round, in conformity with international laws that required their operation for only three months in a year.
A chief fisherman at Takoradi, Nana Jojo Solomon, said although the last administration tried to regulate the practice, its efforts did not yield the desired results.
“What we want is a complete ban of pair trawling and the institution of open and close sessions for single trawlers,” he stated.
Taking a different view of the general happenings along the coastlines, fishermen at the Tema Fishing Harbour said the activities of pair trawlers had decreased over the past few weeks, Rose Hayford Darko reports.
The Chief Fisherman, Nii Odametey II, said the issue of pair trawling had reduced considerably since the beginning of the year because they had not sighted any pair trawling activity at sea.
He noted that the critical problem now was the use of light at sea by fishermen, including local fishermen.
Nii Odametey appealed to the government to enforce the law against the use of light for fishing, since the practice was affecting their business because the light attracted all sizes of fish, which eventually died because of the heat generated by the light.
An elderly fisherman, Onukpa Kojo Anum, was of the view that the previous government did not help the fishermen to check the bad practices at sea and called on the present government to work vigorously towards bringing to an end the bad fishing practices.
As of 8 am on Saturday morning when the Daily Graphic got to the canoe beach many of the canoes had returned from fishing with mostly fingerlings and anchovies, which gave credence to the assertion that the pair trawler were depleting the sea by catching small fish with the use of light.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
JJ MEETS NPC MEMBERS 18-11-08
Story: Kofi Yeboah
THE former President, Flt Lt J. J. Rawlings, has advised Ghanaians to revere the electoral process as the will of God and preserve its sanctity as a right that must not be toyed with.
He therefore called on the Electoral Commission (EC) to approach the December 7 polls in a way that will protect the integrity of the electoral process.
At a meeting with some members of the National Peace Council (NPC) at his Ridge residence in Accra yesterday, to address some concerns raised by members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) on the elections, the former President said there would not be any hue and cry against the elections if they were organised in a free and fair manner.
The meeting, which was held in a very frank and cordial atmosphere, was to enable the NPC to seek advice from the former President to enhance its efforts at promoting peace in the country, particularly before, during and after the December 7 polls.
For more than two-and-a-half hours that the meeting lasted, the former President and members of his team poured out their hearts as regards pertinent issues they considered worthy of urgent redress to promote peace in the country, particularly in the run-up to the December elections.
The EC, the judiciary, the security agencies, especially the police, the media, the clergy and even the NPC came under heavy criticism from the former President and his team in their forthright- submissions.
Among the concerns raised were suspicions that the security agencies, particularly the police, were in bed with the government; selective justice resulting in the lack of faith in the judiciary; lapses in the electoral process and the quiet attitude of the clergy in criticising the government for its shortcomings vis-a-vis what was the case during the administration of the NDC.
Although the two parties admitted that the meeting had come late in the day as far as the elections were concerned, they nevertheless conceded that it was significant in the interest of peace.
The NPC members present were the Chairman and Catholic Archbishop of Cape Coast, His Eminence Peter Cardinal Appiah Turkson; the Ameer and Missionary in charge of the Ahmadiyya Mission in Ghana, Maulvi Wahab Adam; the Catholic Bishop of Ho, Most Rev Francis Lodonu; the Special Assistant to the Chief Imam, Sheikh Mahmoud Gedel; a lecturer at the Linguistics Department of the University of Ghana, Prof. Kofi Agyekum, and a former President of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Mrs Georgina Baiden.
On the team of the former President were his wife, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings; a former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr James Victor Gbeho; the Director-General of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation, Mr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah; a former Chief of Defence Staff, Brigadier General Joseph Nunoo-Mensah and a former Naval Commander, Rear Admiral Owusu Ansah.
The rest were the Member of Parliament (MP) for Asutifi South, Mr Colins Dauda; an official of the Commonwealth Secretariat, Mrs Betty Mould-Iddrisu; a former Deputy Minister of Defence, Dr Tony Aidoo and the lawyer of the former first family, Mr Tony Lithur.
The former first couple spotted white apparel in celebration of the 60th birthday of Nana Konadu yesterday, a celebration whose coincidence with the meeting was described by Cardinal Turkson as providential.
After briefly exchanging pleasantries, the parties went into serious discussions at exactly 10:23 a.m.
The former President said many Ghanaians had expressed various concerns about the state of affairs in the country but regretted that such concerns had been given a black-out in the media through the orchestration of the government.
Flt Lt Rawlings challenged the media not to allow themselves to be manipulated by the government but endeavour to bring out such concerns to the public domain.
According to Mr Gbeho, some senior police officers had compromised their neutrality by making certain public statements that exposed their intentions against members of the opposition in particular.
He said the inaction of the government against some senior police officers implicated in the Georgina Wood Committee probe of the cocaine scandal in 2007 and the Anloga chieftaincy dispute, for instance, gave credence to the assertion that they (some senior officers) were working for certain interests in government to clamp down on NDC activists.
He expressed the hope that the interaction between the former President and the NPC “will push Ghana an inch further towards the goal that we all want to achieve for ourselves.”
Rear Admiral Owusu Ansah, for his part, said after serving in the Armed Forces for 37 years, he had been banned from visiting any military installation just because he had lunch with the former President, also the founder of the party he (Ansah) belonged to.
He said as a result of the ban, he could not even have access to the 37 Military Hospital for medical treatment even as a man with one kidney. He questioned the justice in such an action.
Mr Spio-Garbrah expressed concerns about how the nation was being portrayed to the international community, especially with false information by the government, pointing out that it was the responsibility of all Ghanaians to ensure peace in the country.
Cardinal Turkson promised to take up all the concerns raised with the appropriate bodies to seek further resolution of the problems for the enhancement of peace.
For his part, Maulvi Wahab Adam said the meeting had enlightened the NPC about a number of issues and pledged the council’s commitment to address them.
THE former President, Flt Lt J. J. Rawlings, has advised Ghanaians to revere the electoral process as the will of God and preserve its sanctity as a right that must not be toyed with.
He therefore called on the Electoral Commission (EC) to approach the December 7 polls in a way that will protect the integrity of the electoral process.
At a meeting with some members of the National Peace Council (NPC) at his Ridge residence in Accra yesterday, to address some concerns raised by members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) on the elections, the former President said there would not be any hue and cry against the elections if they were organised in a free and fair manner.
The meeting, which was held in a very frank and cordial atmosphere, was to enable the NPC to seek advice from the former President to enhance its efforts at promoting peace in the country, particularly before, during and after the December 7 polls.
For more than two-and-a-half hours that the meeting lasted, the former President and members of his team poured out their hearts as regards pertinent issues they considered worthy of urgent redress to promote peace in the country, particularly in the run-up to the December elections.
The EC, the judiciary, the security agencies, especially the police, the media, the clergy and even the NPC came under heavy criticism from the former President and his team in their forthright- submissions.
Among the concerns raised were suspicions that the security agencies, particularly the police, were in bed with the government; selective justice resulting in the lack of faith in the judiciary; lapses in the electoral process and the quiet attitude of the clergy in criticising the government for its shortcomings vis-a-vis what was the case during the administration of the NDC.
Although the two parties admitted that the meeting had come late in the day as far as the elections were concerned, they nevertheless conceded that it was significant in the interest of peace.
The NPC members present were the Chairman and Catholic Archbishop of Cape Coast, His Eminence Peter Cardinal Appiah Turkson; the Ameer and Missionary in charge of the Ahmadiyya Mission in Ghana, Maulvi Wahab Adam; the Catholic Bishop of Ho, Most Rev Francis Lodonu; the Special Assistant to the Chief Imam, Sheikh Mahmoud Gedel; a lecturer at the Linguistics Department of the University of Ghana, Prof. Kofi Agyekum, and a former President of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Mrs Georgina Baiden.
On the team of the former President were his wife, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings; a former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr James Victor Gbeho; the Director-General of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation, Mr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah; a former Chief of Defence Staff, Brigadier General Joseph Nunoo-Mensah and a former Naval Commander, Rear Admiral Owusu Ansah.
The rest were the Member of Parliament (MP) for Asutifi South, Mr Colins Dauda; an official of the Commonwealth Secretariat, Mrs Betty Mould-Iddrisu; a former Deputy Minister of Defence, Dr Tony Aidoo and the lawyer of the former first family, Mr Tony Lithur.
The former first couple spotted white apparel in celebration of the 60th birthday of Nana Konadu yesterday, a celebration whose coincidence with the meeting was described by Cardinal Turkson as providential.
After briefly exchanging pleasantries, the parties went into serious discussions at exactly 10:23 a.m.
The former President said many Ghanaians had expressed various concerns about the state of affairs in the country but regretted that such concerns had been given a black-out in the media through the orchestration of the government.
Flt Lt Rawlings challenged the media not to allow themselves to be manipulated by the government but endeavour to bring out such concerns to the public domain.
According to Mr Gbeho, some senior police officers had compromised their neutrality by making certain public statements that exposed their intentions against members of the opposition in particular.
He said the inaction of the government against some senior police officers implicated in the Georgina Wood Committee probe of the cocaine scandal in 2007 and the Anloga chieftaincy dispute, for instance, gave credence to the assertion that they (some senior officers) were working for certain interests in government to clamp down on NDC activists.
He expressed the hope that the interaction between the former President and the NPC “will push Ghana an inch further towards the goal that we all want to achieve for ourselves.”
Rear Admiral Owusu Ansah, for his part, said after serving in the Armed Forces for 37 years, he had been banned from visiting any military installation just because he had lunch with the former President, also the founder of the party he (Ansah) belonged to.
He said as a result of the ban, he could not even have access to the 37 Military Hospital for medical treatment even as a man with one kidney. He questioned the justice in such an action.
Mr Spio-Garbrah expressed concerns about how the nation was being portrayed to the international community, especially with false information by the government, pointing out that it was the responsibility of all Ghanaians to ensure peace in the country.
Cardinal Turkson promised to take up all the concerns raised with the appropriate bodies to seek further resolution of the problems for the enhancement of peace.
For his part, Maulvi Wahab Adam said the meeting had enlightened the NPC about a number of issues and pledged the council’s commitment to address them.
LACK OF FIRE ENGINE AT SEFWI BOTHERS CHIEF (P.20) 20-01-09
Story & Pix: Kofi Yeboah
THE Krontihene of Sefwi Anhwiaso Traditional Area, Nana Ngoa Kodom, has expressed concern about the lack of fire engines in the Sefwi area, which consists of five districts.
“It is very strange that out of the five districts in the whole of Sefwi, there is no fire engine to serve the people”, he said, and appealed to the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) to address the situation.
Making the appeal through the Daily Graphic at Bibiani, Nana Kodom recalled instances of fire outbreaks in some communities in the past, which destroyed property worth thousands of Ghana cedis.
He said the damage caused by the fire outbreaks could have been minimised if there was a fire engine to check the situation.
Nana Kodom, who is also the Chief of Bibiani, congratulated Professor John Evans Atta Mills on his election as the President of Ghana, and urged him to endeavour to fulfil his campaign promises, particularly those he made to the people of Sefwi.
He said although the Sefwi area contributed immensely to the nation’s fortunes in view of its mineral resource endowment, the people had benefited very little in terms of development.
Nana Kodom, therefore, urged President Mills to see to the undertaking of development projects in Sefwi to open up the area.
He appealed for the provision of schools, health facilities, roads and other infrastructure to facilitate the development of the area.
THE Krontihene of Sefwi Anhwiaso Traditional Area, Nana Ngoa Kodom, has expressed concern about the lack of fire engines in the Sefwi area, which consists of five districts.
“It is very strange that out of the five districts in the whole of Sefwi, there is no fire engine to serve the people”, he said, and appealed to the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) to address the situation.
Making the appeal through the Daily Graphic at Bibiani, Nana Kodom recalled instances of fire outbreaks in some communities in the past, which destroyed property worth thousands of Ghana cedis.
He said the damage caused by the fire outbreaks could have been minimised if there was a fire engine to check the situation.
Nana Kodom, who is also the Chief of Bibiani, congratulated Professor John Evans Atta Mills on his election as the President of Ghana, and urged him to endeavour to fulfil his campaign promises, particularly those he made to the people of Sefwi.
He said although the Sefwi area contributed immensely to the nation’s fortunes in view of its mineral resource endowment, the people had benefited very little in terms of development.
Nana Kodom, therefore, urged President Mills to see to the undertaking of development projects in Sefwi to open up the area.
He appealed for the provision of schools, health facilities, roads and other infrastructure to facilitate the development of the area.
BANKS DELAYING PENSION PAYMENTS (P.3) 20-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
SOME commercial banks are alleged to be holding back pensions paid through them by the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), thereby delaying payment to the beneficiaries, SSNIT officials have observed.
The banks allegedly create the impression that SSNIT had delayed in the payment of pensions.
The Director of Public Affairs of SSNIT, Mr Kwaku Osei-Bimpong, who made the observation, advised pensioners who experienced such problems to change the banks with whom they transacted business.
He made the comment at the annual get-together of the Retired CEPS Officers Association (RECOA) held in Accra at the weekend.
Mr Osei-Bimpong explained that monies for the payment of SSNIT pensions were sent to the banks by the first week of every month and so it was expected that by the third Thursday of the same month, the pensions would have been paid to the beneficiaries.
He advised pensioners who attained the age of 72 to fill a life certificate form to ensure the continued payment of their pension. That was because after 72 years, many people were taken to be dead.
Mr Osei-Bimpong urged workers, particularly the youth, to take a keen interest in the social security scheme and advised them to visit the SSNIT offices regularly to update their social security records.
In an address, the Commissioner of CEPS, Mr Emmanuel Nmashie Doku, commended RECOA for its steady growth in numbers over the years and the intensification of outreach programmes for sick colleagues.
“I encourage you to continue these visits to your sick colleagues. We have also made plans to register all RECOA members on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) this year, and additionally, provide free medical screening for all of you,” he assured the retired CEPS officials.
Underlining the strength in unity, Mr Doku suggested the establishment of branches of the association in Kumasi, Sunyani and in northern Ghana to cater for retired CEPS officials in those areas.
He assured RECOA members that efforts were being made to address some of their concerns, such as delays in processing certificates for their retirement benefits and to practise as Customs House Agents.
“We have already taken steps to minimise the delays in processing these certificates. We have also directed the welfare officer to strengthen the staffing of his office so as to meet the needs of retired officers in particular,” he said.
Mr Doku further promised to increase financial support for RECOA, adding that plans to put up a club house to meet the needs of serving and retired officers were on course.
SOME commercial banks are alleged to be holding back pensions paid through them by the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), thereby delaying payment to the beneficiaries, SSNIT officials have observed.
The banks allegedly create the impression that SSNIT had delayed in the payment of pensions.
The Director of Public Affairs of SSNIT, Mr Kwaku Osei-Bimpong, who made the observation, advised pensioners who experienced such problems to change the banks with whom they transacted business.
He made the comment at the annual get-together of the Retired CEPS Officers Association (RECOA) held in Accra at the weekend.
Mr Osei-Bimpong explained that monies for the payment of SSNIT pensions were sent to the banks by the first week of every month and so it was expected that by the third Thursday of the same month, the pensions would have been paid to the beneficiaries.
He advised pensioners who attained the age of 72 to fill a life certificate form to ensure the continued payment of their pension. That was because after 72 years, many people were taken to be dead.
Mr Osei-Bimpong urged workers, particularly the youth, to take a keen interest in the social security scheme and advised them to visit the SSNIT offices regularly to update their social security records.
In an address, the Commissioner of CEPS, Mr Emmanuel Nmashie Doku, commended RECOA for its steady growth in numbers over the years and the intensification of outreach programmes for sick colleagues.
“I encourage you to continue these visits to your sick colleagues. We have also made plans to register all RECOA members on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) this year, and additionally, provide free medical screening for all of you,” he assured the retired CEPS officials.
Underlining the strength in unity, Mr Doku suggested the establishment of branches of the association in Kumasi, Sunyani and in northern Ghana to cater for retired CEPS officials in those areas.
He assured RECOA members that efforts were being made to address some of their concerns, such as delays in processing certificates for their retirement benefits and to practise as Customs House Agents.
“We have already taken steps to minimise the delays in processing these certificates. We have also directed the welfare officer to strengthen the staffing of his office so as to meet the needs of retired officers in particular,” he said.
Mr Doku further promised to increase financial support for RECOA, adding that plans to put up a club house to meet the needs of serving and retired officers were on course.
'EX-GRATIA RECIPE FOR DISASTER' (P.1) 20-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
A LECTURER at the Department of Sociology of the University of Cape Coast, Mr Joseph Kingsley Adjei, has stated that the quantum of ex-gratia for former presidents is a recipe for political tension and coups d’etat.
He said apart from raising the stake in the competition for the presidency and other political offices, some military officers who enjoyed small benefits after long years of service might be tempted to take over power under the pretext of saving the economy from dissipation.
“We are gradually turning our politics into an arena for making wealth and this is not good. The honour accompanying the ex-gratia award is being taken away under such circumstances,” Mr Adjei observed, and called for a review of the package to make it moderate and unnecessarily material.
Commenting on the proposed ex-gratia award for former Presidents in the wake of public criticism of the package recommended by the Chinery-Hesse Committee and approved by Parliament, Mr Adjei said the package was such that politicians would do everything, including vote rigging, violence and insults, to get power.
He said in every society people who served in leadership positions made a lot of sacrifices and so there was nothing wrong in honouring them, adding that a society that did not honour its leaders was not worth dying for.
Mr Adjei, however, expressed concern over the size of the proposed ex-gratia for former presidents in relation to the general well-being of society.
“If we go begging for loans and asking for aid and give so much to our ex-presidents, nobody will give us the money,” he remarked.
He said if by divine grace and with the prospects of oil the country’s economy improved, then the package could be reviewed for the better.
He said the award of such huge ex-gratia “makes the government the executive committee of the bourgeoisie class” whose interest was to get richer at the expense of the poor.
He said the recommendations for the huge ex-gratia fed into the country’s culture of reducing everything into wealth.
Mr Adjei observed that the only thing that Members of Parliament (MPs) appeared to agree on without debate was something in their personal interest.
A LECTURER at the Department of Sociology of the University of Cape Coast, Mr Joseph Kingsley Adjei, has stated that the quantum of ex-gratia for former presidents is a recipe for political tension and coups d’etat.
He said apart from raising the stake in the competition for the presidency and other political offices, some military officers who enjoyed small benefits after long years of service might be tempted to take over power under the pretext of saving the economy from dissipation.
“We are gradually turning our politics into an arena for making wealth and this is not good. The honour accompanying the ex-gratia award is being taken away under such circumstances,” Mr Adjei observed, and called for a review of the package to make it moderate and unnecessarily material.
Commenting on the proposed ex-gratia award for former Presidents in the wake of public criticism of the package recommended by the Chinery-Hesse Committee and approved by Parliament, Mr Adjei said the package was such that politicians would do everything, including vote rigging, violence and insults, to get power.
He said in every society people who served in leadership positions made a lot of sacrifices and so there was nothing wrong in honouring them, adding that a society that did not honour its leaders was not worth dying for.
Mr Adjei, however, expressed concern over the size of the proposed ex-gratia for former presidents in relation to the general well-being of society.
“If we go begging for loans and asking for aid and give so much to our ex-presidents, nobody will give us the money,” he remarked.
He said if by divine grace and with the prospects of oil the country’s economy improved, then the package could be reviewed for the better.
He said the award of such huge ex-gratia “makes the government the executive committee of the bourgeoisie class” whose interest was to get richer at the expense of the poor.
He said the recommendations for the huge ex-gratia fed into the country’s culture of reducing everything into wealth.
Mr Adjei observed that the only thing that Members of Parliament (MPs) appeared to agree on without debate was something in their personal interest.
TWO NPP MPS CONDEMN EX-GRATIA AWARD (P.25) 21-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
TWO legislators of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have described the ex-gratia award recommended by the Chinery-Hesse Committee for ex-Presidents as scandalous and called on the two former presidents to reject the offer in order to salvage their personal image and that of politicians from public ridicule.
Expressing shock at the quantum of the ex-gratia and the manner it was passed by Parliament, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Okere, Mr Dan Botwe, pledged to join forces with any group to stall the deal, while the MP for Asikuma-Odoben-Brakwa, Mr P. C. Appiah-Ofori, threatened to take legal action to stop its implementation.
The comments made by the two NPP legislators are in sharp contrast to those expressed by many leading NPP activists since the brouhaha over the ex-gratia for the former presidents began.
“I’m a politician of conviction and I’ll speak against anything I consider to be wrong,” Mr Botwe told the Daily Graphic in an interview yesterday, adding that the issue had nothing to do with whether one was a member of the NPP or the NDC.
The former General Secretary of the NPP and one-time its aspiring presidential candidate said anyone who contested for the presidency had everything he needed and that the presidency was not a platform for acquiring wealth.
He said he had always criticised former President Rawlings for staying at his current Ridge residence in Accra when he (Rawlings) had his own house to live in and so he did not understand why former President Kufuor should be given two houses when he (Kufuor) also had his own house.
Mr Botwe questioned the rationale for paying ex-gratia as a token of appreciation for a former President who willingly offered himself, without coercion from anybody, to render service to the nation.
He said he could not understand why such quantum of ex-gratia should be thought of in the first place at a time when there were millions of Ghanaians wallowing in poverty.
Mr Botwe said the whole idea sent wrong signals to the public that politicians were only out to make personal gains.
He challenged the two ex-presidents, as men of honour, to reject the ex-gratia award and urged Ghanaians to demand that decision from them, even if the package remained law.
“It’s a bad law and it should be overturned,” he remarked.
Commenting on the issue on JOY FM, an Accra-based radio station, Mr Appiah-Ofori, the anti-corruption crusader, denied knowledge of the Chinery-Hesse Committee Report having been approved by Parliament.
“Who is saying that it has been approved by Parliament? Who is that criminal? Who is that thief?” he asked in an angry tone.
Mr Appiah-Ofori further wanted to know who had moved the motion for the report on the floor of the House and who had seconded it.
“Ghana belongs to all of us,” he said, pointing out that there was the need to protect the interest of the state for the sake of posterity.
TWO legislators of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have described the ex-gratia award recommended by the Chinery-Hesse Committee for ex-Presidents as scandalous and called on the two former presidents to reject the offer in order to salvage their personal image and that of politicians from public ridicule.
Expressing shock at the quantum of the ex-gratia and the manner it was passed by Parliament, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Okere, Mr Dan Botwe, pledged to join forces with any group to stall the deal, while the MP for Asikuma-Odoben-Brakwa, Mr P. C. Appiah-Ofori, threatened to take legal action to stop its implementation.
The comments made by the two NPP legislators are in sharp contrast to those expressed by many leading NPP activists since the brouhaha over the ex-gratia for the former presidents began.
“I’m a politician of conviction and I’ll speak against anything I consider to be wrong,” Mr Botwe told the Daily Graphic in an interview yesterday, adding that the issue had nothing to do with whether one was a member of the NPP or the NDC.
The former General Secretary of the NPP and one-time its aspiring presidential candidate said anyone who contested for the presidency had everything he needed and that the presidency was not a platform for acquiring wealth.
He said he had always criticised former President Rawlings for staying at his current Ridge residence in Accra when he (Rawlings) had his own house to live in and so he did not understand why former President Kufuor should be given two houses when he (Kufuor) also had his own house.
Mr Botwe questioned the rationale for paying ex-gratia as a token of appreciation for a former President who willingly offered himself, without coercion from anybody, to render service to the nation.
He said he could not understand why such quantum of ex-gratia should be thought of in the first place at a time when there were millions of Ghanaians wallowing in poverty.
Mr Botwe said the whole idea sent wrong signals to the public that politicians were only out to make personal gains.
He challenged the two ex-presidents, as men of honour, to reject the ex-gratia award and urged Ghanaians to demand that decision from them, even if the package remained law.
“It’s a bad law and it should be overturned,” he remarked.
Commenting on the issue on JOY FM, an Accra-based radio station, Mr Appiah-Ofori, the anti-corruption crusader, denied knowledge of the Chinery-Hesse Committee Report having been approved by Parliament.
“Who is saying that it has been approved by Parliament? Who is that criminal? Who is that thief?” he asked in an angry tone.
Mr Appiah-Ofori further wanted to know who had moved the motion for the report on the floor of the House and who had seconded it.
“Ghana belongs to all of us,” he said, pointing out that there was the need to protect the interest of the state for the sake of posterity.
Monday, January 19, 2009
DECLARE ASSETS (P.1) 19-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
THE Auditor-General is to submit asset declaration forms to the Chief of Staff today for completion by the President, the Vice-President and cabinet ministers to be appointed by the President.
Other public office holders whom the Auditor-General has targeted for the declaration of assets are the Speaker of Parliament, Members of Parliament (MPs), officials of Parliament, incoming regional ministers, metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCEs) and senior civil and public servants.
The Auditor-General, Mr Edward Dua Agyeman, who made this known to the Daily Graphic at the weekend, said the initiative formed part of measures to streamline the administration of asset declaration forms to ensure that all public officials complied with the law.
He indicated that about 20,000 forms had been printed for distribution to all public office holders from the Castle, the Golden Jubilee House, down to the regions and districts.
The move comes at a time when President John Atta Mills is in deep thought concerning the compilation of a list of his cabinet and other officials to fill various positions in public office.
The Public Office Holders (Declaration of Assets and Disqualification) Act, 1998 (Act 550), requires public office holders to submit a written declaration of the assets they own, directly or indirectly, to the Auditor-General before taking office, at the end of every four years and at the end of their terms of office.
Properties required to be declared under the act include land, houses, buildings, farms, concessions, vehicles, plant and machinery, fishing boats, trawlers, generating plants and trust of family property in respect of which the officer has beneficial interest.
Others are business interests, securities and bank balances, bonds and treasury bills, life and other insurance policies, jewellery and art objects of the value of GH¢500 and above.
According to Mr Agyeman, the attitude of public officials towards declaring their assets had been very “lackadaisical” ever since the act came into force.
He, however, commended the immediate past President, Mr J.A. Kufuor, for discharging that legal obligation with diligence, pointing out that the former President filled the asset declaration form within one week of assuming office in 2001 and in 2005 when his mandate was renewed.
Mr Agyeman said even after leaving office, Mr Kufuor had requested for the form to complete, as the law required, adding that he (Auditor-General) personally obliged the former President’s request last Thursday.
The lackadaisical attitude of public officials towards declaring their assets is attributed to the fact that many of them lack knowledge of the law, do not know where to access the forms or do not know how to complete the forms.
It is to address some of these challenges and ensure maximum compliance that the Auditor-General, in collaboration with the Head of the Civil Service and the Chairman of the Public Services Commission, has taken steps to review the administration of asset declaration forms.
The review process involves the adoption of a proactive approach whereby the asset declaration forms will be taken to the public officials and the intensification of awareness creation to encourage obligation to the law.
Previously, irrespective of where newly appointed public officials lived in the country, they had to go to the Auditor-General’s office in Accra to pick and submit their asset declaration forms.
But under the new regime, such public officials can pick and submit their forms at the regional offices of the Audit Service.
Mr Agyeman said as part of the collaboration with the Head of the Civil Service and the Chairman of the Public Services Commission, prospective public officials would be required to complete their forms as part of the criteria for appointment.
To ensure effective administration of the forms, regional auditors were taken through a refresher course in Accra last Friday to update their knowledge of the process.
The current assets declaration regime has come under intense criticism for certain inadequacies, prompting calls for a review of the law to make it more effective.
One aspect of the law that has been criticised is that the assets declared by public officials are kept under seal by the Auditor-General as custodian and the only time the seal can be broken is when a court of competent jurisdiction so orders in connection with the trial of a public official.
Apart from that, although public officials who fail to declare their assets commit an offence under the act, there are no sanctions prescribed for the violation. Under such circumstances, the law only directs the Auditor-General to notify the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) of the deviants.
Critics of the law have, therefore, suggested a review of the regime that will empower the Auditor-General to open the seal of assets declared, ensure that the assets declared are published in the media and gazette the assets declared.
Mr Agyeman expressed the hope that a review of the law would help address some of those issues.
THE Auditor-General is to submit asset declaration forms to the Chief of Staff today for completion by the President, the Vice-President and cabinet ministers to be appointed by the President.
Other public office holders whom the Auditor-General has targeted for the declaration of assets are the Speaker of Parliament, Members of Parliament (MPs), officials of Parliament, incoming regional ministers, metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCEs) and senior civil and public servants.
The Auditor-General, Mr Edward Dua Agyeman, who made this known to the Daily Graphic at the weekend, said the initiative formed part of measures to streamline the administration of asset declaration forms to ensure that all public officials complied with the law.
He indicated that about 20,000 forms had been printed for distribution to all public office holders from the Castle, the Golden Jubilee House, down to the regions and districts.
The move comes at a time when President John Atta Mills is in deep thought concerning the compilation of a list of his cabinet and other officials to fill various positions in public office.
The Public Office Holders (Declaration of Assets and Disqualification) Act, 1998 (Act 550), requires public office holders to submit a written declaration of the assets they own, directly or indirectly, to the Auditor-General before taking office, at the end of every four years and at the end of their terms of office.
Properties required to be declared under the act include land, houses, buildings, farms, concessions, vehicles, plant and machinery, fishing boats, trawlers, generating plants and trust of family property in respect of which the officer has beneficial interest.
Others are business interests, securities and bank balances, bonds and treasury bills, life and other insurance policies, jewellery and art objects of the value of GH¢500 and above.
According to Mr Agyeman, the attitude of public officials towards declaring their assets had been very “lackadaisical” ever since the act came into force.
He, however, commended the immediate past President, Mr J.A. Kufuor, for discharging that legal obligation with diligence, pointing out that the former President filled the asset declaration form within one week of assuming office in 2001 and in 2005 when his mandate was renewed.
Mr Agyeman said even after leaving office, Mr Kufuor had requested for the form to complete, as the law required, adding that he (Auditor-General) personally obliged the former President’s request last Thursday.
The lackadaisical attitude of public officials towards declaring their assets is attributed to the fact that many of them lack knowledge of the law, do not know where to access the forms or do not know how to complete the forms.
It is to address some of these challenges and ensure maximum compliance that the Auditor-General, in collaboration with the Head of the Civil Service and the Chairman of the Public Services Commission, has taken steps to review the administration of asset declaration forms.
The review process involves the adoption of a proactive approach whereby the asset declaration forms will be taken to the public officials and the intensification of awareness creation to encourage obligation to the law.
Previously, irrespective of where newly appointed public officials lived in the country, they had to go to the Auditor-General’s office in Accra to pick and submit their asset declaration forms.
But under the new regime, such public officials can pick and submit their forms at the regional offices of the Audit Service.
Mr Agyeman said as part of the collaboration with the Head of the Civil Service and the Chairman of the Public Services Commission, prospective public officials would be required to complete their forms as part of the criteria for appointment.
To ensure effective administration of the forms, regional auditors were taken through a refresher course in Accra last Friday to update their knowledge of the process.
The current assets declaration regime has come under intense criticism for certain inadequacies, prompting calls for a review of the law to make it more effective.
One aspect of the law that has been criticised is that the assets declared by public officials are kept under seal by the Auditor-General as custodian and the only time the seal can be broken is when a court of competent jurisdiction so orders in connection with the trial of a public official.
Apart from that, although public officials who fail to declare their assets commit an offence under the act, there are no sanctions prescribed for the violation. Under such circumstances, the law only directs the Auditor-General to notify the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) of the deviants.
Critics of the law have, therefore, suggested a review of the regime that will empower the Auditor-General to open the seal of assets declared, ensure that the assets declared are published in the media and gazette the assets declared.
Mr Agyeman expressed the hope that a review of the law would help address some of those issues.
Friday, January 16, 2009
DECISION PRUDENT - 2 ACADEMICS DECLARE (P.1) 16-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
THE directive from President Mills to all metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCEs) to stay in office until further notice has been applauded by two academicians as a good decision that serves the interest of the nation.
They, therefore, dismissed comments, including the one expressed by former President Rawlings, against the decision and urged President Mills to be firm in his actions to assure the nation that he was fully in charge of affairs.
The Dean of the Department of Social Studies of the University of Ghana, Professor Joseph Atsu Ayee, and a lecturer at the Department of Sociology of the University of Cape Coast, Mr Joseph Kingsley Adjei, made those comments in separate interviews with the Daily Graphic yesterday.
“The problem the President faces now is a litmus test which he must pass,” Mr Adjei remarked.
Following the defeat of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) at the December 2008 polls, some MMDCEs under its regime were reported to have abandoned their posts, with the explanation that once their party was out of power, they also had to leave office.
However, soon after taking office on January 7, 2009 President Mills directed all MMDCEs to remain in office until otherwise notified.
That directive has been criticised by some activists within his National Democratic Congress (NDC) who insist that the MMDCEs must leave office to signify a change from the old order.
That view was echoed in public last Wednesday by former President Rawlings, who is also the founder of the NDC, at a meeting with some party executives and in the presence of the media. At that forum, Flt Lt Rawlings questioned the wisdom in the President’s directive.
According to the two university dons, the President’s directive was a wise one because it was aimed at avoiding a political administrative vacuum.
In their opinion, the comments made by former President Rawlings were a challenge to the perception that Prof Mills was not a man of his own mind.
Prof Ayee said it was a test for President Mills to demonstrate his capacity to rule the nation.
He said although former President Rawlings had a lot of experience, he should have consulted President Mills over his (Rawlings’s) concerns, instead of expressing them in the manner in which he did.
Prof Ayee, whose speciality is in local governance, said after a change of government, MMDCEs could stay in office up to about six months, since it took time for the new government to appoint new MMDCEs.
He said the President needed to appoint competent people for all the districts and that had to be done after thorough consultations. Moreover, the President needed to act in a manner that would not be misconstrued as witch-hunting of political opponents.
Prof Ayee did not have any problem with the loyalty of NPP MMDCEs working for the NDC government, explaining that for administrative expediency, the MMDCEs could be asked to work without taking major decisions.
He described instances when some NDC members were reported to have taken over the assets of district assemblies and other government establishments as unhealthy and advised those party activists to be patient because “politics is not a question of vendetta but to give and take and try to heal wounds”.
On the election of MMDCEs, Prof Ayee said it was difficult to understand why there was partisan politics at the national level where the President was elected but not at the local level in respect of MMDCEs.
According to him, the appointment of MMDCEs had created problems at the local level in the past because the chief executives tended to be accountable to the President, who appointed them, and not the people whom they served.
He said although expectations of the new government were high, it was up to the Mills administration to absorb all the pressure because one measure of good governance was the capacity to absorb pressure and take action.
Sharing his thoughts on the issue, Mr Adjei said it was appropriate for President Mills to have asked the MMDCEs to stay in office because “elections are not coups d’etat but processes that bring change”.
He said it was expected that once there had been change, the old order would give way to the new order, but pointed out that in a democracy there was the need for a smooth transition from one government to another.
Mr Adjei said under no circumstance must government business be allowed to come to a halt, stressing, “It’s a prudent decision to ensure that people keep doing government business.”
He said the nature of the elections, which went into a run-off and a decider at Tain, was such that the two front-line candidates did not know their fate for them to think about appointing MMDCEs.
He said the MMDCEs had an obligation to heed the directive of the President because their appointment to those offices made them servants of the state and not of any political party.
Dismissing any suggestion of vendetta, Mr Adjei said the comments made by former President Rawlings might have been informed by certain incidents in the past after the NPP had taken office.
He cited an incident in 2001 when some people stormed the residence of Prof Mills who had then travelled out of the country to retrieve a vehicle, an action that was said to have traumatised his wife, Naadu, in the process.
Mr Adjei said the former President’s comments also fed into the assertion by some NPP activists during the campaigning that a vote for Prof Mills would mean a vote for Rawlings.
He said if President Mills stood his ground, it would be a plus for him. On the other hand, he could also step on the toes of some NDC members who might share the concerns of the former President.
“It is up to President Mills to conduct himself in a way that will give assurance that he will be a good President,” he noted.
Commenting on the election of MMDCEs, Mr Adjei described as a “national hypocrisy” the practice of electing the President, Members of Parliament (MPs) and assembly members but not MMDCEs.
He said the election of MMDCEs would avoid the situation where the chief executives became stooges of the President.
Mr Adjei said election was one major characteristic of democracy and even suggested the election of regional ministers to ensure a fixed tenure in office and service to the state.
THE directive from President Mills to all metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCEs) to stay in office until further notice has been applauded by two academicians as a good decision that serves the interest of the nation.
They, therefore, dismissed comments, including the one expressed by former President Rawlings, against the decision and urged President Mills to be firm in his actions to assure the nation that he was fully in charge of affairs.
The Dean of the Department of Social Studies of the University of Ghana, Professor Joseph Atsu Ayee, and a lecturer at the Department of Sociology of the University of Cape Coast, Mr Joseph Kingsley Adjei, made those comments in separate interviews with the Daily Graphic yesterday.
“The problem the President faces now is a litmus test which he must pass,” Mr Adjei remarked.
Following the defeat of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) at the December 2008 polls, some MMDCEs under its regime were reported to have abandoned their posts, with the explanation that once their party was out of power, they also had to leave office.
However, soon after taking office on January 7, 2009 President Mills directed all MMDCEs to remain in office until otherwise notified.
That directive has been criticised by some activists within his National Democratic Congress (NDC) who insist that the MMDCEs must leave office to signify a change from the old order.
That view was echoed in public last Wednesday by former President Rawlings, who is also the founder of the NDC, at a meeting with some party executives and in the presence of the media. At that forum, Flt Lt Rawlings questioned the wisdom in the President’s directive.
According to the two university dons, the President’s directive was a wise one because it was aimed at avoiding a political administrative vacuum.
In their opinion, the comments made by former President Rawlings were a challenge to the perception that Prof Mills was not a man of his own mind.
Prof Ayee said it was a test for President Mills to demonstrate his capacity to rule the nation.
He said although former President Rawlings had a lot of experience, he should have consulted President Mills over his (Rawlings’s) concerns, instead of expressing them in the manner in which he did.
Prof Ayee, whose speciality is in local governance, said after a change of government, MMDCEs could stay in office up to about six months, since it took time for the new government to appoint new MMDCEs.
He said the President needed to appoint competent people for all the districts and that had to be done after thorough consultations. Moreover, the President needed to act in a manner that would not be misconstrued as witch-hunting of political opponents.
Prof Ayee did not have any problem with the loyalty of NPP MMDCEs working for the NDC government, explaining that for administrative expediency, the MMDCEs could be asked to work without taking major decisions.
He described instances when some NDC members were reported to have taken over the assets of district assemblies and other government establishments as unhealthy and advised those party activists to be patient because “politics is not a question of vendetta but to give and take and try to heal wounds”.
On the election of MMDCEs, Prof Ayee said it was difficult to understand why there was partisan politics at the national level where the President was elected but not at the local level in respect of MMDCEs.
According to him, the appointment of MMDCEs had created problems at the local level in the past because the chief executives tended to be accountable to the President, who appointed them, and not the people whom they served.
He said although expectations of the new government were high, it was up to the Mills administration to absorb all the pressure because one measure of good governance was the capacity to absorb pressure and take action.
Sharing his thoughts on the issue, Mr Adjei said it was appropriate for President Mills to have asked the MMDCEs to stay in office because “elections are not coups d’etat but processes that bring change”.
He said it was expected that once there had been change, the old order would give way to the new order, but pointed out that in a democracy there was the need for a smooth transition from one government to another.
Mr Adjei said under no circumstance must government business be allowed to come to a halt, stressing, “It’s a prudent decision to ensure that people keep doing government business.”
He said the nature of the elections, which went into a run-off and a decider at Tain, was such that the two front-line candidates did not know their fate for them to think about appointing MMDCEs.
He said the MMDCEs had an obligation to heed the directive of the President because their appointment to those offices made them servants of the state and not of any political party.
Dismissing any suggestion of vendetta, Mr Adjei said the comments made by former President Rawlings might have been informed by certain incidents in the past after the NPP had taken office.
He cited an incident in 2001 when some people stormed the residence of Prof Mills who had then travelled out of the country to retrieve a vehicle, an action that was said to have traumatised his wife, Naadu, in the process.
Mr Adjei said the former President’s comments also fed into the assertion by some NPP activists during the campaigning that a vote for Prof Mills would mean a vote for Rawlings.
He said if President Mills stood his ground, it would be a plus for him. On the other hand, he could also step on the toes of some NDC members who might share the concerns of the former President.
“It is up to President Mills to conduct himself in a way that will give assurance that he will be a good President,” he noted.
Commenting on the election of MMDCEs, Mr Adjei described as a “national hypocrisy” the practice of electing the President, Members of Parliament (MPs) and assembly members but not MMDCEs.
He said the election of MMDCEs would avoid the situation where the chief executives became stooges of the President.
Mr Adjei said election was one major characteristic of democracy and even suggested the election of regional ministers to ensure a fixed tenure in office and service to the state.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
VR BRUTALITIES UNDERMINE OUR DEMOCRACY - AKUFO-ADDO (P.1) 01-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
THE flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has said allegations of brutalities against some NPP activists in the Volta Region during last Sunday’s presidential run-off undermines the sanctity of the country’s fledgling democracy.
He said the NPP was in the process of providing the Electoral Commission (EC) with evidence on those allegations, expressing the hope that the commission would act firmly on them.
Addressing a news conference at his East Legon residence in Accra yesterday, Nana Akufo-Addo expressed confidence that the EC would uphold the party’s evidence, and that would change the tide of the elections in his favour.
Asked what the party would do if its expectations of the EC were not met or whether it was contemplating a legal action to seek fairness and justice, the NPP flag bearer responded; “We will cross the bridge when we get there”.
The news conference was the first public reaction by Nana Akufo Addo on the presidential run-off barely 24 hours after the chairman of the EC, Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, had officially announced the results.
It was attended by his running mate, Dr Mamudu Bawumiah, the Director of the NPP Campaign Team, Dr Kofi Konadu Apraku, the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Sheikh I. C. Quaye, and the Member of Parliament for Dome-Kwabenya, Prof Mike Ocquaye.
Out of 229 constituencies whose results were declared by the EC, Nana Akufo-Addo is trailing Prof John Evans Atta Mills of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) by 23,055 votes, having obtained 4,478,411 votes, representing 49.87 per cent of the total valid votes cast as against 4,501,456 votes, representing 50.13 per cent obtained by Prof Mills.
The electorate in the Tain Constituency in the Brong Ahafo Region will go to the polls on Friday, January 2, 2009, in an outstanding election that would determine the ultimate winner of the presidency.
The NPP has already filed a petition at the EC, alleging that some of its polling agents in about 10 constituencies in the Volta Region were chased out by NDC supporters, thus making it impossible for the party to monitor the election process and certify the results in those constituencies thereafter.
The party further alleged that some of its activists were brutalised by NDC supporters, citing Dr Ohene, a psychiatrist, who was severely beaten and abandoned in a critical condition.
Nana Akufo-Addo condemned the alleged brutalities and irregularities which characterised the presidential run-off in the Volta Region, making it difficult for the party’s agents to verify the results in many constituencies in the region.
“I don’t think that is the purpose of elections in our country. The purpose of elections in our country is to have a process based on fairness”, he remarked.
The protest notwithstanding, the NPP, on the advice of the EC, has the burden of producing evidence of its concerns, since “the name of the game”, as indicated by Dr Afari-Gyan, “is evidence”.
Nana Akufo-Addo said the NPP had a box of evidence to present and expressed confidence in the EC to discharge its mandate to the satisfaction of all Ghanaians.
“We have to have elections in Ghana conducted according to our laws, which bind all of us”, he said.
Nana Akufo-Addo expressed concern about alleged brutalities that were being unleashed on NPP supporters by NDC activists, as well as the destruction of his billboards in various parts of the country after the elections, and called for a stop to those acts.
THE flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has said allegations of brutalities against some NPP activists in the Volta Region during last Sunday’s presidential run-off undermines the sanctity of the country’s fledgling democracy.
He said the NPP was in the process of providing the Electoral Commission (EC) with evidence on those allegations, expressing the hope that the commission would act firmly on them.
Addressing a news conference at his East Legon residence in Accra yesterday, Nana Akufo-Addo expressed confidence that the EC would uphold the party’s evidence, and that would change the tide of the elections in his favour.
Asked what the party would do if its expectations of the EC were not met or whether it was contemplating a legal action to seek fairness and justice, the NPP flag bearer responded; “We will cross the bridge when we get there”.
The news conference was the first public reaction by Nana Akufo Addo on the presidential run-off barely 24 hours after the chairman of the EC, Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, had officially announced the results.
It was attended by his running mate, Dr Mamudu Bawumiah, the Director of the NPP Campaign Team, Dr Kofi Konadu Apraku, the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Sheikh I. C. Quaye, and the Member of Parliament for Dome-Kwabenya, Prof Mike Ocquaye.
Out of 229 constituencies whose results were declared by the EC, Nana Akufo-Addo is trailing Prof John Evans Atta Mills of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) by 23,055 votes, having obtained 4,478,411 votes, representing 49.87 per cent of the total valid votes cast as against 4,501,456 votes, representing 50.13 per cent obtained by Prof Mills.
The electorate in the Tain Constituency in the Brong Ahafo Region will go to the polls on Friday, January 2, 2009, in an outstanding election that would determine the ultimate winner of the presidency.
The NPP has already filed a petition at the EC, alleging that some of its polling agents in about 10 constituencies in the Volta Region were chased out by NDC supporters, thus making it impossible for the party to monitor the election process and certify the results in those constituencies thereafter.
The party further alleged that some of its activists were brutalised by NDC supporters, citing Dr Ohene, a psychiatrist, who was severely beaten and abandoned in a critical condition.
Nana Akufo-Addo condemned the alleged brutalities and irregularities which characterised the presidential run-off in the Volta Region, making it difficult for the party’s agents to verify the results in many constituencies in the region.
“I don’t think that is the purpose of elections in our country. The purpose of elections in our country is to have a process based on fairness”, he remarked.
The protest notwithstanding, the NPP, on the advice of the EC, has the burden of producing evidence of its concerns, since “the name of the game”, as indicated by Dr Afari-Gyan, “is evidence”.
Nana Akufo-Addo said the NPP had a box of evidence to present and expressed confidence in the EC to discharge its mandate to the satisfaction of all Ghanaians.
“We have to have elections in Ghana conducted according to our laws, which bind all of us”, he said.
Nana Akufo-Addo expressed concern about alleged brutalities that were being unleashed on NPP supporters by NDC activists, as well as the destruction of his billboards in various parts of the country after the elections, and called for a stop to those acts.
NANA AKUFO-ADDO ACEPTS EC RESULTS (P.3) 05-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
THE flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has conceded defeated and congratulated Prof John Evans Atta Mills on his election as the new President of Ghana.
While pledging his co-operation for the development of the country, Nana Akufo-Addo called on the President-elect to prevail upon supporters of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) not to celebrate the victory by attacking NPP activists and in a manner that would further polarise the nation.
“This is, today, a divided country. These times call for leadership from all of us so that we can continue to re-build this country. Both Prof Mills and I have an obligation to foster conciliation and consensus and I pledge to do my part,” the NPP flag bearer told journalists at the NPP Headquarters in Accra a few hours after the Chairman of the EC, Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, had announced the results of the run-off.
Present were the cream of the party’s leadership, including Nana Akufo-Addo’s running mate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia; the Chairman of the NPP Campaign Team, Mr Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey; the Campaign Director, Dr Kofi Konadu Apraku; a member of the campaign team and Member of Parliament (MP) for New Juaben North, Mr Hackman Owusu-Agyeman, and the immediate past Chairman of the party, Mr Harona Esseku.
Dozens of armed policemen guarded the premises of the NPP headquarters and the street in front of it.
Nana Akufo-Addo encouraged supporters of the party not to lose hope but “remain steadfast, united and ready to confront the new challenge that we face and our effort to build Ghana as a democracy where human rights and the rule of law are respected”.
“We have much to do and I’m confident that together we will achieve our goals. I believe in Ghana and, God willing, we shall be back!” he declared.
That declaration was greeted with loud cheers from scores of NPP supporters who had gathered at the headquarters at Asylum Down, where the leadership had earlier locked themselves up in a long meeting to ponder over their electoral misfortune.
Until Nana Akufo-Addo addressed them, the mood of the supporters was one of disappointment and anger, as some of them blamed the leadership for their woes.
Nana Akufo-Addo lost the race for the Golden Jubilee House to Prof Mills by about 40,000 votes in a closely contested presidential run-off that was characterised by tension and rancour, as well as the trading of allegations and counter- allegations of irregularities between the NPP and the NDC.
Dr Afari-Gyan dismissed the allegations made by both political parties, went ahead to declare Prof Mills the winner and President-elect and immediately the tension that had hung over the nation for the past week gave way to spontaneous jubilation by NDC supporters across the country, while NPP supporters kept a low profile.
Although Nana Akufo-Addo accepted the results, he expressed reservations about the decision of the EC to dismiss the evidence submitted to it by the NPP in respect of the alleged irregularities during the presidential run-off in the Volta Region and declared his intention to contest the matter in court for the sake of good democratic practices in the country.
He said Ghana was now at the cross-roads and “we must work together to build this nation”.
About 200 metres away from the NPP Headquarters, across the Ring Road, hundreds of jubilant supporters of the NDC had gathered at the party’s headquarters near the Paloma Restaurant at Kokomlemle to celebrate their victory.
The crowd spilled over onto the Ring Road, as many of them, clad in party T-shirts and other paraphernalia, as well as white head and arm bands, moved in processions on the road, amid drumming, singing and dancing.
The tooting of horns by vehicles and motorbikes, some of which sped dangerously on the side of the Ring Road between the Kwame Nkrumah Circle and the King Tackie Tawiah Overpass, was a constant spectacle.
As a result, there was vehicular traffic that stretched from the overpass to the Kwame Nkrumah Circle for more than five hours, giving the police a hectic time in trying to sanitise the situation.
When Prof Mills and the Vice President-elect, Mr John Mahama, arrived at the party headquarters, led by a police motorcade, the crowd went into a frenzy, as the reality of the change they had been yearning for dawned on them for the first time.
THE flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has conceded defeated and congratulated Prof John Evans Atta Mills on his election as the new President of Ghana.
While pledging his co-operation for the development of the country, Nana Akufo-Addo called on the President-elect to prevail upon supporters of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) not to celebrate the victory by attacking NPP activists and in a manner that would further polarise the nation.
“This is, today, a divided country. These times call for leadership from all of us so that we can continue to re-build this country. Both Prof Mills and I have an obligation to foster conciliation and consensus and I pledge to do my part,” the NPP flag bearer told journalists at the NPP Headquarters in Accra a few hours after the Chairman of the EC, Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, had announced the results of the run-off.
Present were the cream of the party’s leadership, including Nana Akufo-Addo’s running mate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia; the Chairman of the NPP Campaign Team, Mr Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey; the Campaign Director, Dr Kofi Konadu Apraku; a member of the campaign team and Member of Parliament (MP) for New Juaben North, Mr Hackman Owusu-Agyeman, and the immediate past Chairman of the party, Mr Harona Esseku.
Dozens of armed policemen guarded the premises of the NPP headquarters and the street in front of it.
Nana Akufo-Addo encouraged supporters of the party not to lose hope but “remain steadfast, united and ready to confront the new challenge that we face and our effort to build Ghana as a democracy where human rights and the rule of law are respected”.
“We have much to do and I’m confident that together we will achieve our goals. I believe in Ghana and, God willing, we shall be back!” he declared.
That declaration was greeted with loud cheers from scores of NPP supporters who had gathered at the headquarters at Asylum Down, where the leadership had earlier locked themselves up in a long meeting to ponder over their electoral misfortune.
Until Nana Akufo-Addo addressed them, the mood of the supporters was one of disappointment and anger, as some of them blamed the leadership for their woes.
Nana Akufo-Addo lost the race for the Golden Jubilee House to Prof Mills by about 40,000 votes in a closely contested presidential run-off that was characterised by tension and rancour, as well as the trading of allegations and counter- allegations of irregularities between the NPP and the NDC.
Dr Afari-Gyan dismissed the allegations made by both political parties, went ahead to declare Prof Mills the winner and President-elect and immediately the tension that had hung over the nation for the past week gave way to spontaneous jubilation by NDC supporters across the country, while NPP supporters kept a low profile.
Although Nana Akufo-Addo accepted the results, he expressed reservations about the decision of the EC to dismiss the evidence submitted to it by the NPP in respect of the alleged irregularities during the presidential run-off in the Volta Region and declared his intention to contest the matter in court for the sake of good democratic practices in the country.
He said Ghana was now at the cross-roads and “we must work together to build this nation”.
About 200 metres away from the NPP Headquarters, across the Ring Road, hundreds of jubilant supporters of the NDC had gathered at the party’s headquarters near the Paloma Restaurant at Kokomlemle to celebrate their victory.
The crowd spilled over onto the Ring Road, as many of them, clad in party T-shirts and other paraphernalia, as well as white head and arm bands, moved in processions on the road, amid drumming, singing and dancing.
The tooting of horns by vehicles and motorbikes, some of which sped dangerously on the side of the Ring Road between the Kwame Nkrumah Circle and the King Tackie Tawiah Overpass, was a constant spectacle.
As a result, there was vehicular traffic that stretched from the overpass to the Kwame Nkrumah Circle for more than five hours, giving the police a hectic time in trying to sanitise the situation.
When Prof Mills and the Vice President-elect, Mr John Mahama, arrived at the party headquarters, led by a police motorcade, the crowd went into a frenzy, as the reality of the change they had been yearning for dawned on them for the first time.
BE ABOVE PARTISAN POLITICS - CIVIL SERVANTS ADVISED (P.1) 10-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
WITH substantive political heads yet to be appointed for the various ministries, civil servants have been advised to demonstrate a high sense of professionalism in the running of government business and be apolitical under the new administration.
The Chief Director at the Office of the Head of the Civil Service, Mrs Rebecca Amoah Aboagye, who gave the advice, said politics “is not the pastime” of civil servants and demanded selflessness, fairness, integrity and accountability from civil servants to ensure the successful execution of government programmes and projects.
She made the comments when the Daily Graphic visited the Ministries on Thursday to find out how workers were going about their duties, in the absence of ministers, on the first day of Prof Mills’s tenure in office.
The visit was also to find out the expectations of workers of the new government and how they were bracing themselves up for the challenges of nation building.
Information gathered indicated that many of the ministers under the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration wrapped up their stewardship last Tuesday and bade farewell to their workers.
Some of the ministers, the Daily Graphic learnt, had returned their cross-country vehicles to their respective ministries.
Mrs Aboagye said the Civil Service operated on rules and regulations, which prescribed the chief director as the bureaucratic head, while the Minister of State provided political direction to achieve the goals of the government.
She said in the absence of a Minister of State, the chief director was required to provide leadership in the administration of government until ministerial appointments were made.
During that period, Mrs Aboagye explained, the chief director did not perform any new activity that required political direction and leadership.
She said the Civil Service worked without reference to partisan politics but under the guidance of the Executive, which had the mandate of the people through the manifesto of the ruling party.
Mrs Aboagye cited the Civil Servants Code of Conduct whose guideline principles enjoined civil servants to exhibit a sense of fairness, selflessness and justice and take decisions solely in the interest of the public.
She said although one might have his or her political views, one must not allow those views to undermine his or her professional conduct, adding that one’s focus must be on the development agenda of the government, and not politics.
The Chief Director at the Ministry of Manpower and Employment, Mr E. A. Akuffo, said there had not been any official information from the new administration regarding the administration of the ministry and so work was going on as usual.
He recalled that after the change in government in 2001, the newly-elected government sent representatives to the various ministries to monitor events until substantive appointments were made.
Some of the workers told the Daily Graphic that they had been going about their normal duties.
On Thursday evening the President directed that until substantive ministers were appointed, ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) were not to make any payments or enter into contracts for purchase.
The Presidential Spokesperson, Mr Mahama Ayariga, said at a press briefing in Accra that “any emergencies should be referred to the Office of the President”.
The President said further that all non-statutory payments, including all cheques deposited with the banks but not yet cleared, should be referred to the Office of the President for approval.
“The Controller and Accountant-General is to take note of the above directives and ensure that they are complied with,” he stressed.
WITH substantive political heads yet to be appointed for the various ministries, civil servants have been advised to demonstrate a high sense of professionalism in the running of government business and be apolitical under the new administration.
The Chief Director at the Office of the Head of the Civil Service, Mrs Rebecca Amoah Aboagye, who gave the advice, said politics “is not the pastime” of civil servants and demanded selflessness, fairness, integrity and accountability from civil servants to ensure the successful execution of government programmes and projects.
She made the comments when the Daily Graphic visited the Ministries on Thursday to find out how workers were going about their duties, in the absence of ministers, on the first day of Prof Mills’s tenure in office.
The visit was also to find out the expectations of workers of the new government and how they were bracing themselves up for the challenges of nation building.
Information gathered indicated that many of the ministers under the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration wrapped up their stewardship last Tuesday and bade farewell to their workers.
Some of the ministers, the Daily Graphic learnt, had returned their cross-country vehicles to their respective ministries.
Mrs Aboagye said the Civil Service operated on rules and regulations, which prescribed the chief director as the bureaucratic head, while the Minister of State provided political direction to achieve the goals of the government.
She said in the absence of a Minister of State, the chief director was required to provide leadership in the administration of government until ministerial appointments were made.
During that period, Mrs Aboagye explained, the chief director did not perform any new activity that required political direction and leadership.
She said the Civil Service worked without reference to partisan politics but under the guidance of the Executive, which had the mandate of the people through the manifesto of the ruling party.
Mrs Aboagye cited the Civil Servants Code of Conduct whose guideline principles enjoined civil servants to exhibit a sense of fairness, selflessness and justice and take decisions solely in the interest of the public.
She said although one might have his or her political views, one must not allow those views to undermine his or her professional conduct, adding that one’s focus must be on the development agenda of the government, and not politics.
The Chief Director at the Ministry of Manpower and Employment, Mr E. A. Akuffo, said there had not been any official information from the new administration regarding the administration of the ministry and so work was going on as usual.
He recalled that after the change in government in 2001, the newly-elected government sent representatives to the various ministries to monitor events until substantive appointments were made.
Some of the workers told the Daily Graphic that they had been going about their normal duties.
On Thursday evening the President directed that until substantive ministers were appointed, ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) were not to make any payments or enter into contracts for purchase.
The Presidential Spokesperson, Mr Mahama Ayariga, said at a press briefing in Accra that “any emergencies should be referred to the Office of the President”.
The President said further that all non-statutory payments, including all cheques deposited with the banks but not yet cleared, should be referred to the Office of the President for approval.
“The Controller and Accountant-General is to take note of the above directives and ensure that they are complied with,” he stressed.
BIBIANI RITUAL MURDERS: 4 SUSPECTS ARRESTED (P.1) 13-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah, Bibiani
THE arrest of four persons suspected to be the masterminds behind the recent ritual murders in Bibiani in the Western Region has unleashed a feeling of relief in the town as most residents claim they can now go about their duties without fear.
A few months ago, fear and insecurity gripped the town, with the mantra “one head, one KIA” making the rounds, implying, “If you produce one human head for ritual purposes, you walk away with one KIA truck.”
That was the cruel and barbaric requirement which some people in Bibiani yielded to in their burning desire to get rich quick and for which residents of one of the famous mining towns in the Western Region lived in fear as suspected ritual murderers went on the rampage, killing anyone they could lay hands on, including pregnant women, children and hunchbacks.
The four suspects who are currently standing trial at a Sekondi High Court have pleaded innocent to the charge but police sources told the Daily Graphic that they had credible evidence to prove the guilt of the suspects.
According to the District Police Commander for Bibiani, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Anane Appiah, the arrest of the four suspects had brought joy to the residents, some of whom had been afraid to expose the suspects, although they knew them.
Many of the residents told the Daily Graphic that they no longer entertained any fear as they did previously, adding that they could now go about their daily activities freely.
That relief notwithstanding, the horrific experiences of ritual murders appear to be having a severe toll on businesses and development in Bibiani.
Many professionals such as teachers, nurses, paramedics and public servants are reported to have turned down posting to the town, while the number of traders who travel from various parts of the country to do business there has reduced drastically, all as a result of the alleged ritual murders.
Confirming that development, many traders interviewed said business was not flourishing now, compared to the past, because some market women who travelled from other parts of the country to trade in the town, particularly on market days, had stopped.
The Chief of Bibiani and Krontihene of the Sefwi Anwhiaso Traditional Area, Nana Ngoa Kodom, who corroborated that development, said, “We are not happy about the situation.”
For a long time the Sefwi area has earned a rather bad name as a haven for ritual murderers and a ‘market centre’ for the sale of human parts.
The infamous case in the mid-1980s of a nine-year-old boy, Kofi Kyintoh, who was beheaded by his uncle for ritual purposes, as well as many other ritual murder cases and instances of persons caught in possession of human parts in the area, inundated the media in the past.
Recently, Bibiani has come under the media spotlight in view of the horrific cases of suspected ritual murders in the town which targeted girls and hunchbacks.
Despite the new lease of security in the town, some residents are yet to exorcise the ghost of the past.
“Today, it is girls and hunchbacks; you don’t know who will be the target next time,” Nana Kodom, intimated.
Efforts to get a hunchback for an interview proved futile, as nobody seemed to know the whereabouts of any of them. In many instances, the responses given to questions were heavily laden with suspicion.
Indeed, one observation made by the Daily Graphic during a two-day visit to the town was that some people, particularly females, were sceptical about talking to strangers.
A young man who appeared friendly by offering unsolicited hospitality from a distance smelled badly of alcohol at close range, and without being helpful to the cause of news gathering, succeeded in earning for himself GH¢1.
Distraught by the alleged ritual murder cases and the bad image they were giving Bibiani, Nana Kodom expressed the belief that the situation could have been handled through traditional means, noting regrettably that the growing lack of respect for chiefs and the authority of the chieftaincy institution prevented that from happening.
He said before the advent of Christianity and the modern system of policing, chiefs had a way of dealing with such crimes by making suspects swear oaths, explaining that if the suspects were guilty of the crime, they were promptly exposed.
However, Nana Kodom said it was now difficult for a chief to summon anyone to swear an oath on suspicion of committing a crime because of the different religious persuasions of the citizenry.
Although he could not ascertain whether or not the recent murders were in connection with rituals, he admitted, “As a traditional ruler, I don’t discard the truth in ritual murders.”
Nana Kodom advised residents of the town not to hesitate to inform the police or the traditional authorities about the activities of suspected ritual murderers “because we can’t allow such atrocities to be happening in our society”.
He assured all Ghanaians that the people of Bibiani were kind, friendly and loving and so nobody should entertain any fear of doing business there or working in the town.
THE arrest of four persons suspected to be the masterminds behind the recent ritual murders in Bibiani in the Western Region has unleashed a feeling of relief in the town as most residents claim they can now go about their duties without fear.
A few months ago, fear and insecurity gripped the town, with the mantra “one head, one KIA” making the rounds, implying, “If you produce one human head for ritual purposes, you walk away with one KIA truck.”
That was the cruel and barbaric requirement which some people in Bibiani yielded to in their burning desire to get rich quick and for which residents of one of the famous mining towns in the Western Region lived in fear as suspected ritual murderers went on the rampage, killing anyone they could lay hands on, including pregnant women, children and hunchbacks.
The four suspects who are currently standing trial at a Sekondi High Court have pleaded innocent to the charge but police sources told the Daily Graphic that they had credible evidence to prove the guilt of the suspects.
According to the District Police Commander for Bibiani, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Anane Appiah, the arrest of the four suspects had brought joy to the residents, some of whom had been afraid to expose the suspects, although they knew them.
Many of the residents told the Daily Graphic that they no longer entertained any fear as they did previously, adding that they could now go about their daily activities freely.
That relief notwithstanding, the horrific experiences of ritual murders appear to be having a severe toll on businesses and development in Bibiani.
Many professionals such as teachers, nurses, paramedics and public servants are reported to have turned down posting to the town, while the number of traders who travel from various parts of the country to do business there has reduced drastically, all as a result of the alleged ritual murders.
Confirming that development, many traders interviewed said business was not flourishing now, compared to the past, because some market women who travelled from other parts of the country to trade in the town, particularly on market days, had stopped.
The Chief of Bibiani and Krontihene of the Sefwi Anwhiaso Traditional Area, Nana Ngoa Kodom, who corroborated that development, said, “We are not happy about the situation.”
For a long time the Sefwi area has earned a rather bad name as a haven for ritual murderers and a ‘market centre’ for the sale of human parts.
The infamous case in the mid-1980s of a nine-year-old boy, Kofi Kyintoh, who was beheaded by his uncle for ritual purposes, as well as many other ritual murder cases and instances of persons caught in possession of human parts in the area, inundated the media in the past.
Recently, Bibiani has come under the media spotlight in view of the horrific cases of suspected ritual murders in the town which targeted girls and hunchbacks.
Despite the new lease of security in the town, some residents are yet to exorcise the ghost of the past.
“Today, it is girls and hunchbacks; you don’t know who will be the target next time,” Nana Kodom, intimated.
Efforts to get a hunchback for an interview proved futile, as nobody seemed to know the whereabouts of any of them. In many instances, the responses given to questions were heavily laden with suspicion.
Indeed, one observation made by the Daily Graphic during a two-day visit to the town was that some people, particularly females, were sceptical about talking to strangers.
A young man who appeared friendly by offering unsolicited hospitality from a distance smelled badly of alcohol at close range, and without being helpful to the cause of news gathering, succeeded in earning for himself GH¢1.
Distraught by the alleged ritual murder cases and the bad image they were giving Bibiani, Nana Kodom expressed the belief that the situation could have been handled through traditional means, noting regrettably that the growing lack of respect for chiefs and the authority of the chieftaincy institution prevented that from happening.
He said before the advent of Christianity and the modern system of policing, chiefs had a way of dealing with such crimes by making suspects swear oaths, explaining that if the suspects were guilty of the crime, they were promptly exposed.
However, Nana Kodom said it was now difficult for a chief to summon anyone to swear an oath on suspicion of committing a crime because of the different religious persuasions of the citizenry.
Although he could not ascertain whether or not the recent murders were in connection with rituals, he admitted, “As a traditional ruler, I don’t discard the truth in ritual murders.”
Nana Kodom advised residents of the town not to hesitate to inform the police or the traditional authorities about the activities of suspected ritual murderers “because we can’t allow such atrocities to be happening in our society”.
He assured all Ghanaians that the people of Bibiani were kind, friendly and loving and so nobody should entertain any fear of doing business there or working in the town.
GOVERNANCE AUTHORITIES HAIL TRANSITION PROCESS (P.20) 15-01-09
Story: Kofi Yeboah
THE ongoing transition process of transferring power from the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has been hailed by authorities of governance and democratic institutions.
In separate interviews with the Daily Graphic yesterday, the Administrator of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), Mrs Jean Mensa, and the Executive Director of the Institute of Democratic Governance (IDEG), Dr Emmanuel Akwetey, described the transition process as very successful and cordial.
They, however, expressed reservations, particularly about reports that vehicles belonging to some NPP bigwigs were being seized by some NDC activists on the premise that the vehicles belonged to the state.
This is the second time under the Fourth Republic that a transition process is taking place to transfer power from an elected political party to a previous ruling political party.
In 2001, the outgoing NDC administration handed over to the NPP regime in a similar fashion.
Mrs Mensa described the hand over of immovable assets last Monday as very cordial.
She was happy to observe that the two parties recognised the importance of the Transition Bill drafted by the IEA and had been applying provisions in the document in the transition process.
Mrs Mensa said a lot of thought had gone into the bill, which she described as “the baby of all the political parties”, adding that “it’s actually very pleasing to note that there is a lot of emphasis on handing-over notes”.
She lauded the decision of the two parties to extend the transition period to the end of this month, explaining that the long period of hand over would afford them enough time to read through documents and thereby ensure a smooth transition.
On the seizure of vehicles from NDC activists, Mrs Mensa described the situation as rather unfortunate and one that could create tension in the country.
She recommended the establishment of a Presidential Estate Unit headed by an Administrator General with the powers of an Appeal’s Court Judge to address such problems in the future. Such a unit should be equipped with an inventory of all state assets to track them during transition periods.
Mrs Mensa said if the service regulation permitted outgoing government officials to acquire their official vehicles, then doing so should not be considered as anything untoward or a violation of the law.
With respect to the statement made by President Mills asking for time to name his Cabinet, the IEA Administrator said the President was well on track, because he needed time to think through the selection of his Cabinet.
For his part, Dr Akwetey said it was important to give the President enough time to appoint Ministers of State, pointing out that there was no need to rush.
He said the transition process had gone very well, although information on it had been sketchy.
On the seizure of vehicles from NPP activists, Dr Akwetey associated himself with comments made by the Chairman of the NDC Transition Team, Mr Paul Victor Obeng, that the action was unauthorised.
He, however, noted that the directive should have come earlier to dismiss speculations.
THE ongoing transition process of transferring power from the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has been hailed by authorities of governance and democratic institutions.
In separate interviews with the Daily Graphic yesterday, the Administrator of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), Mrs Jean Mensa, and the Executive Director of the Institute of Democratic Governance (IDEG), Dr Emmanuel Akwetey, described the transition process as very successful and cordial.
They, however, expressed reservations, particularly about reports that vehicles belonging to some NPP bigwigs were being seized by some NDC activists on the premise that the vehicles belonged to the state.
This is the second time under the Fourth Republic that a transition process is taking place to transfer power from an elected political party to a previous ruling political party.
In 2001, the outgoing NDC administration handed over to the NPP regime in a similar fashion.
Mrs Mensa described the hand over of immovable assets last Monday as very cordial.
She was happy to observe that the two parties recognised the importance of the Transition Bill drafted by the IEA and had been applying provisions in the document in the transition process.
Mrs Mensa said a lot of thought had gone into the bill, which she described as “the baby of all the political parties”, adding that “it’s actually very pleasing to note that there is a lot of emphasis on handing-over notes”.
She lauded the decision of the two parties to extend the transition period to the end of this month, explaining that the long period of hand over would afford them enough time to read through documents and thereby ensure a smooth transition.
On the seizure of vehicles from NDC activists, Mrs Mensa described the situation as rather unfortunate and one that could create tension in the country.
She recommended the establishment of a Presidential Estate Unit headed by an Administrator General with the powers of an Appeal’s Court Judge to address such problems in the future. Such a unit should be equipped with an inventory of all state assets to track them during transition periods.
Mrs Mensa said if the service regulation permitted outgoing government officials to acquire their official vehicles, then doing so should not be considered as anything untoward or a violation of the law.
With respect to the statement made by President Mills asking for time to name his Cabinet, the IEA Administrator said the President was well on track, because he needed time to think through the selection of his Cabinet.
For his part, Dr Akwetey said it was important to give the President enough time to appoint Ministers of State, pointing out that there was no need to rush.
He said the transition process had gone very well, although information on it had been sketchy.
On the seizure of vehicles from NPP activists, Dr Akwetey associated himself with comments made by the Chairman of the NDC Transition Team, Mr Paul Victor Obeng, that the action was unauthorised.
He, however, noted that the directive should have come earlier to dismiss speculations.
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