Malaysian who spat on driver deported
Rawlings exit
a blow but no alarm - Minister
Credit Unions bill being drafted –
Minister
Accra(Greater Accra)15 April 2000
Latib Abdul Tokimin, a Malaysia employee of Ghana Telecom, who spat
onto the face of his Ghanaian driver, was on Thursday deported to his country.
An official of the Malaysian Embassy escorted Mr. Tokimin, his wife and
four
children.
He told newsmen that he was treated well in Ghana and described Ghana
as a good country to live in, "I don't have any bad feelings and it is a
good place for investment" he said.
Asked why he spat on his driver, Tokimin said, "this was a
brotherly problem that was blown out of proportion" and apologised to
Ghanaians for what happened. He however refused to comment further.
Mr. Tokimin was alleged to have spat on his driver when he went late to
pick him for work. He was also said to have made unsavoury remarks about the
driver.
The Ghana Immigration Service withdrew his resident and work permit and
gave him 72 hours to leave the country.
GRi…/
Accra (Greater Accra) 15 April 2000
Former South African President Nelson Mandela on Thursday made a
one-hour stopover in Accra on his way back home from Ireland after a private
visit.
Mr. Mandela was met by Vice-President John Atta Mills, officials of the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the South African High Commissioner in Ghana,
Dr. Nmereki Phologane.
Mr. Mandela stopped over to invite President Jerry John Rawlings to attend
peace talks on the crises in the Great Lake Region to be held in South Africa
next month.
He said he has invited some other Heads of State to join his mediation
team to find a lasting solution to the crises in Rwanda, Burundi and the Congo.
In Ireland, Mr. Mandela received an Honorary Doctorate Degree from the Trinity
College in Dublin.
GRi…/
Accra, (Greater Accra) 15 April 2000
The Electoral Commission announced on Thursday that the Convention
Party has notified it of its intention to change its name and slogan.
A statement issued in Accra by Mr David A. Kangah, Deputy Chairman
(Operations) of the EC, said the party wants to change its name to the
Convention People's Party while the slogan will change from "Forward
Ever" to "Forward Ever Backward Never".
The symbol of a white cockerel on a red background remains the same.
"Within seven days of the date of this notice, the public may object to
the change of name and slogan of the Convention Party," the statement
added.
CP claims its roots from the Convention People's Party of Dr. Kwame
Nkrumah who led the country to independence in 1957. The name was banned after
the 1966 coup, which ousted Dr. Nkrumah.
Subsequent legislation banned the use of the name of all political
parties that had been in existence since 1966.
The CP took legal action to permit it to use the name CPP.
GRi…/
Accra (Greater Accra) 15 April 2000
Professor Mawuse Dake, engineer, politician and sports
administrator is dead, a family spokesman announced in Accra on Thursday.
Prof. Dake, was a Secretary of Works and Housing in the
PNDC during its early days, and was for many years a lecturer in engineering at
the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and at the
University of Zambia, Lusaka.
The spokesman said the professor was taken ill suddenly at
his Madina residence a few hours after his arrival from the United States and
was rushed to the University Hospital, Legon, where he died.
An executive member of the Convention Peoples' Party (CPP),
Prof Dake together with others, struggled since 1992, to establish what they
called "Nkrumaist Unity" among persons, who claim the political
heritage of the First President of Ghana, Dr Kwame Nkrumah.
A delegation of executives and elders of the CPP led by it
Acting Chairman, Mr. Felix Amoah and General Secretary, Dr Nii Noi Dowuona,
paid condolences to the bereaved family on Thursday morning.
Prof Dake was one time an executive member of Accra Great
Olympics Football Club and later, became a founding member and administrator of
the Voradep Football Club that campaigned briefly in the premier league. He hailed
from Ziavi, near the Volta regional capital, Ho
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Sunyani (Brong Ahafo) 15 April 2000
The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr. John Henry
Owusu-Acheampong, on Thursday stated that even though the exit of President
Jerry John Rawlings is a blow to the National Democratic Congress (NDC), there
is no cause for alarm.
This is because Professor John Evans Atta Mills who would
step in his shoes has the intellectual ability and character to prove equal to
the task.
He was addressing an extra-ordinary delegates congress of
the Brong Ahafo Regional branch of the party at Sunyani attended by about 500
members, Minister, Members of Parliament and District Chief Executives. The
theme for the congress was "consolidating national unity for development
in the year 2000 and beyond".
Mr. Owusu Acheampong said, "There is no doubt about
the ability of Prof. Mills to lead the NDC to another electoral victory come
December."
He called on party executives to mobilise the people to
support his presidential ambitions saying, "Prof. Mills is our new general
and if we work extra hard, come December, he would be the president and NDC
still in government".
The deputy Minister said even though the country is
experiencing economic difficulties due to external factors, the government
would adopt measures to ensure that Ghanaians do not suffer unduly.
He condemned exporters who retain their earnings in foreign
banks, which has led to the sharp drop in the value of the cedi and has
prevented the country from getting enough foreign exchange to finance imports.
The Regional Minister, Mr. Donald Adabre urged members of
the party to package their campaign messages in a way that would appeal to the
electorate and help them to see the tremendous transformation that the nation
has undergone since this government took office.
Mr. Adabre said that having lost twice, the opposition
would do everything to win the forthcoming elections and called on them to put
in place strategies to neutralise their propoganda.
The Regional Chairman of the party, Al-Haj Ahmed Abdallah,
said NDC is poised to win the elections to enable it to continue its
development plan for the country.
Al-Haj Ahmed urged them to close their ranks and to rally
behind the leadership of the party to enable them to wage the electoral battle
in unity.
"We must accept that the party is supreme and we
should endorse and support any parliamentary candidate who would be chosen,
irrespective of personal perceptions and interests."
The Regional Secretary, Mr. Oppong Nkrumah, commended the
government for ensuring that the region had its fair share of the national cake
and appointments.
In a resolution, the regional branch endorsed the
candidature of Prof. Mills as the party's flagbearer for this year's elections
and urged party members to allow him to choose his running mate in consultation
with the national hierarchy, devoid of tribal, religious considerations.
It said President Rawlings should be properly commended and
rewarded for his enviable leadership skills, "which has transformed the
country from a hopeless one to a developing one which has stability."
GRi../
Accra (Greater Accra) 15 April 2000
A total of 60 polling agents from the six constituencies of
the Greater Accra Regional branch of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), have ended
a three-day workshop in Accra.
Mr. Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, National Campaign Chairman of
the party, told them that the workshop was part of preparations for this year's
general election.
He said that even though the resources at the disposal of
the party are limited, with good planning, effective strategies and
organisational work, the obstacle could be overcome to ensure victory for NPP.
Mr Obestebi-Lamptey said the party attaches great
importance to the training because the vigilance of the agents on polling day
would ensure free, fair and open elections.
Members of the party should embark on a house-to-house
campaign to explain the policies and programmes of the party to the electorate
to win more supporters for NPP to wrestle power from the National Democratic
Congress (NDC).
Miss Vida Dugbatey, co-ordinator of the workshop stressed
the determination of the polling agents to ensure a transparent election and
said they would pass on their knowledge to members of the party.
GRi../
Ho (Volta Region) 15 April 2000
The Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare is drafting a
Bill to regulate and promote the operations of Credit Unions.
Alhaji Muhammad Mumuni, Minister of Employment and Social
Welfare, said this on Thursday, at the 11th Biennial Delegates Conference of
the Ghana Co-operative Credit Union Association (CUA) at Ho.
He noted that a separate credit union act would promote a
vibrant movement in the country and said the Ministry would support efforts to
pass the law.
Alhaji Mumuni urged CUA and other stakeholders to intensify
efforts to form Savings Clubs in schools to help children to cultivate the
habit of saving.
He said the Ministry would encourage the formation of
credit unions at work places because of their unique role in ensuring
industrial peace.
The Minister said the government would also create an
environment for their development to meet the needs of farmers and enterprises
in the informal sector.
Mr. Peter Der, National Board Chairman of CUA said the
movement as at last December, had more than 40.4 billion cedis in savings and
outstanding loans totalling 28.4 billion cedis, given to 7,100 members
belonging to 159 unions and 55 study groups.
He said CUA would adopt strategies to break its dependency
on the Ghana Credit Union Development Assistance Fund to ensure the growth of
the movement.
Mr Der appealed to the Ministry to expedite action on the
proposed credit unions legislation. He commended the government and Canada for
their support and expressed the hope that CUA would achieve financial
self-sufficiency in the near future.
The Right Rev Francis A.K. Lodonu, Bishop of the Ho
Catholic Diocese, said he was confident that CUA would become the real economic
saviour of the poor and called on people who get loans from the association to
use them wisely and not extravagantly or on funerals.
GRi../