All set for Ho congress
Select marketable candidates that can
win-Mahama Iddrisu
Johnny Hansen has links with NDC-Kwesi Pratt
Sexual abuse in schools… Teachers face
dismissal
Mini ECOWAS summit opens Thursday
Woman in labour sent out of Hosp…Taxi driver
plays the role of midwife
Businessman fined 10m cedis over VAT deal
Business deals of a Minister and his DCE… 40
million owed ADB
Doom for Ghana if NDC loses
CPP is back
J.A. Kuffour, Hawa fly out
NPP retains MPs
Jerry’s story not true
Big search in the NPP kicks of
The Ghana Palaver
All set for Ho congress
All is set for the extraordinary national
delegates congress of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) scheduled for Ho,
the Volta Region capital from 28 – 29 April, writes the Ghana Palaver.
The paper says two weeks to the millennium
congress the party has already booked all hotels in Ho, Kpando, Hohoe and
Akosombo while classrooms of boarding schools in Ho namely, Mawuli Secondary
and Mawuko Girls have all been reserved for delegates and observers.
According to the report the Deputy
Secretary-General of the NDC, Mr. Kofi Attor said over 500 delegates and
observers are expected to grace the great event. As a constitutional
requirement for the holding of a national congress, all the 200 constituencies
of the party and the 10 regional bodies have all concluded their conferences to
meet the two weeks deadline before the major event.
Mr. Attor said the main item on the agenda of
the special congress is the selection of the party's flagbearer and the passing
of resolutions. It is also expected
that a committee working on the party's manifesto will finish its work by the
time of the congress to enable party officials to launch it.
Mr. Attor is quoted as saying, "if we are
unable to do so (launch the manifesto) then the National Executive Committee
will be empowered to adopt it at the appropriate time and have it duly
launched."
More../
Select marketable candidates that can
win-Mahama Iddrisu
The Ghana Palaver reports in a back page story
that Alhaji Mahama Iddrissu Presidential advisor on Government Affairs on
Friday called on constituency executives and members of the National Democratic
Congress (NDC) to choose marketable parliamentary candidates who can win the
election rather than selecting people on tribal and occupational grounds.
The Palaver says he urged the executives not to
encourage factions and infighting, which he said, "do nothing but create
loopholes for the opposition to capitalise on".
Alhaji Iddrissu who the paper says was speaking
to delegates at a regional congress, said the performance of the NDC government
particularly in rural development, is ample evidence for the people to return
it to power come December this year.
He is quoted as saying, "the NDC
government is doing a lot in the country irrespective of whether we won at a
place or not, which shows our concern".
GRi../
The Evening News
Johnny Hansen has links with NDC-Kwesi Pratt
In its lead story the Evening News reports that
Mr. Kwesi Pratt (Jnr.), a member of the planning Committee for the Convention
Peoples Party (CPP), has described as 'ridiculous', Mr. Johnny Hansen 's
allegation that some leaders of the CPP have an agenda to sell the party to the
National Democratic Congress but could not name them..
Mr. Pratt
who was reacting to a call by Mr. Hansen’s call that "genuine and
well-meaning followers and activists of the party should boycott the 19 May
national congress announced by the central committee of the party," said
"if there are any people in the CPP with organised links with the NDC it
will include Mr. Johnny Hansen".
Mr. Pratt recalled that Mr. Hansen had no
qualms about taking up the position of PNDC secretary for the Interior after
the 1981 coup in spite of the fact that he was a leading member of the Peoples
National Party (PNP) which had been overthrown by the PNDC.
Mr. Pratt further denied the allegation that
Mr. Felix Amoah, the acting national chairman, appointed the party's current
central committee and asked Mr. Hansen to ascertain which of the positions is
illegal and does not conform to the party's constitution.
Mr. Pratt said he is utterly shocked by what he
called the complete degeneration of Mr. Hansen who was his childhood political
mentor.
"His recourse to peddling half truths and
out right lies and the glaring propensity to tribalism has completely shattered
all the confidence I had in him", the paper quotes him as saying, adding
"it is becoming apparent that Mr. Hansen is old and tired and needs to
take a long rest".
GRi../
The Daily Graphic
Sexual abuse in schools… Teachers face
dismissal
In a front-page lead story the Daily Graphic
reports a warning given by Mr Ekow Spio Garbrah at a meeting of heads of basic schools in the Sunyani
District on Monday that any teacher who is found to have had a sexual affair
with a student will be dismissed.
According to the paper the Minister said a list
of all affected teachers was presently being compiled and that all
"offenders should be prepared for dismissal".
Mr. Spio-Garbrah said sexual abuse is
widespread in most schools, adding that, "what comes into the media is
only a small fraction of what is actually happening on the ground."
According to the report, Mr. Garbrah also said
the time has come for teachers to adapt to the changing trends in education in
the country by leading lives worthy of their noble profession and assured them that
the government is taking measures to address the problems facing them.
More../
Mini ECOWAS summit opens Thursday
In another front-page story, the Graphic
reports that a mini-summit of heads of state and governments of the six ECOWAS
countries that have indicated their preparedness to have a common currency by
the year 2003 opens in Accra on Thursday,
Mr. Kwamena Ahwoi the minister of planning,
regional Economic Integration and Co-operation said at a press briefing in
Accra on Monday.
The Summit will discuss and approve the
technical work of the Expert Group on the creation of a second monetary zone
and will be attended by about 200 foreign dignitaries, including Heads of State
of the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Guinea, Liberia and the host Ghana.
Vice President John Atta Mills will lead
Ghana's delegation to the Summit, which is a follow up to the one held in Abuja
in March 1999.
According to the Graphic the summit will be
preceded on Wednesday April 19, by a meeting of the Council of Ministers of
Foreign Affairs, Finance, Trade, Co-operation and Integration and Governors of
the central banks of the six countries.
GRi../
The Ghanaian Times
Woman in labour sent out of Hosp…Taxi driver plays
the role of midwife
In a harrowing front page story the Times
reports how a taxi driver took on the role of a midwife and successfully
attended to his passenger, Nifa Atanyomi, 25, who gave birth to a baby boy in
the shrubs around the Dome-Barracks Bridge at Ho on Wednesday, 15 April.
The Times says this was just a few minutes
after a nursing officer, Mercy Awukobor, reportedly told the woman who had
called at the Medical Reception in labour, to find her way to the Ho District
Hospital because it was time for her to close.
The story says untouched by the patient's plea
for attention the nursing sister also suggested sarcastically that Nifa go to
her husband in the Republic of Togo to have her baby there.
Narrating her ordeal to the "Times"
at her home at Komla-Kudzo Kofe near the Volta Barracks, Nifa said she received
her antenatal care at the Medical Station clinic and that all the nurses knew
her well including Madam Akuwubor.
Nifa is quoted as saying "as soon as she
(nurse) saw me she recalled an earlier discussion I had with her on my plans to
travel to Togo to join my husband and give birth there".
In spite of offering an explanation that she
wasn't going to go to Togo any more and besides her being in labour, the nurse
refused to attend to her, she said.
The authorities at the Barracks Medical Centre
said the incident is unfortunate and will be investigated.
More../
Businessman fined 10m cedis over VAT deal
In another front-page story the Times writes
that a Takoradi businessman has been convicted by a Western Regional Tribunal
for failing to issue VAT invoice s for good bought.
Nana Owusu Ankomah, a wholesaler and a retailer
of goods, was given the maximum fine of 10 million cedis or in default go to
prison for five years.
The court presided over by Mr. Justice Emmanuel
Dzakpasu, said the accused, who is the Director of O and O Limited, failed in
his obligation as a VAT registered trader to issue a VAT invoice as contained
in section 19 of the VAT law, 1998 (Act 546).
According to the paper, the court heard that
the VAT office made a test purchase at the shop but were not issued with a VAT
invoice. Subsequently, a team from the VAT Enforcement Unit paid a went to the
premises on 5 August last year to check on the traders compliance which it
found unsatisfactory.
The paper reports that Nana Ankomah had a VAT
invoice for his wholesale outlet but none for his retail outlet and that the
amount quoted on the VAT invoices issued on 2 and 3 August did not agree with
bank pay in slips.
GRi../
The Guide
Business deals of a Minister and his DCE… 40
million owed ADB
The Guide in a front-page story says it
investigations into the activities of the Deputy Central Regional Minister Mr.
H.Q Jehu- Appiah reveals that he has used his position to take a loan of 40
million cedis from the Agricultural Development Bank for which payment is long
overdue.
It also alleged that Mr. Jehu Appiah has
registered all his business interests using the name Kweku Appiah as against
his known public name. Mr. Kow Anyanful, the District Chief Executive of Gomoa
has also registered his businesses under the name Kow Kakraba.
The two use their aliases to jointly run the
Odum K Farms limited, which is situated at Agona Asafo near Agona Swedru in the
Central Region and run a host of other businesses including transport
facilities, guest houses and shops, the paper alleges.
The Guide says when it contacted Mr. Jehu
Appiah he admitted to part ownership of the company and explained that he is a
chief whose stool name is Nana Kweku Appiah he therefore decided to use his
stool name in registering the company.
The Guide argues that this is in conflict with
Article 276(1) of the 1992 constitution, which states that " a chief shall
not take part in active party politics and any chief wishing to do so and
seeking election to parliament shall abdicate."
GRi../
Doom for Ghana if NDC loses
Presidential Aide, Professor Kofi Awooner has
warned that the country will face a crises that will lead to the disintegration
of the national fabric and collapse of the state if the NDC loses in the next
elections.
The Independent reports, Prof. Awoonor who is also
Chairman of the Liberated Nkrumahist Brigade (LNB) as saying during an LNB
council of Elders meeting, that should the opposition capture power every
member of the NDC would be placed at great risk and tribalism will once more
rear its ugly head in the country leading to anarchy.
Prof. Awoonor, said he considers the NDC as the first base of national freedom, a party that closely adheres to the principles of Nkrumahism, which are anchored on the liberation of the black man from the shackles of imperialism.
In a related issue the paper reports on its
back page that the ruling NDC has vowed never to surrender the people’s mandate
to the opposition parties claiming they will destroy the ruling party.
The story, headlined ‘Defeat will spell doom'
quotes Mrs. Cecilia Johnson, NDC Vice Chairperson as saying, “ To surrender
power to them, particularly the New Patriotic Party (NPP) would mean destroying
the party (NDC) and exposing the members to harm”.
More../
CPP is back
The Independent carries on its back page a
story that says Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah must be smiling in his grave because
his Convention Peoples Party is back.
The paper says following a new political
party’s law, which allows parties to use names of their choice including
previously banned names like CPP and United Party (UP), the Convention Party is
now called Convention Peoples Party.
The story says the CP, taking advantage of the
new law, filed the necessary papers and can now call itself CPP unless there
could be a legitimate objection to it.
Party Vice Chairman, Mike Eghan, is reported to
have said the new name augurs well for the revival movement for all Nkrumahists
and that the CPP will shock every sceptic, predicting that the Party will do
well in the next elections.
GRi../
J.A. Kuffour, Hawa fly out
The Ghanaian Voice reports that the NPP
flagbearer, Mr. J.A. Kuffour and Madam Hawa Yakubu, a political firebrand and
former MP for Bawku have flown out to neighbouring African states.
The paper however says though this may be a
co-incidence the timing cannot stop political analysts from contemplating on
who the probable running mate of the NPP flagbearer is.
Madam Yakubu, according to the paper is alleged
to be in Lagos, Nigeria to wind up her business affairs before coming back home
to plunge into campaigning while Mr. Kuffour is believed to be in Lagos or the
Cote d’Ivoire capital of Abidjan.
The Voice says it is the absence from the
country of these two frontrunners on April 12 that has given rise to the
general belief that the two are working on a strategy to present a winnable
ticket come December 2000.
More../
NPP retains MPs
The Voice has another front-page story that
says the NPP at a National Council meeting on 12 April resolved to retain all
sitting MPs to contest the December 2000 elections.
The paper says the move by the party leadership
seem to have put to rest schemes to have other persons contest the elections in
some constituencies.
According to the story the resolution mentioned
that there are other 139 constituencies in the country, where any aspiring
parliamentary candidate could contest.
GRi../
Jerry’s story not true
The Crusading Guide reports that the assertion
by President Jerry John Rawlings at an NDC Regional Rally at Bolgatanga, in the
Upper East Region, recently, that his wife, Nana Konadu, was detained by the
government of the Second Republic, for being a student activist is UNTRUE.
According to the Crusading Guide,
investigations that it conducted over the last five weeks have failed to
provide any documented or oral evidence of the alleged arrest and detention of
Nana Konadu by the Busia government during the tenure of the Second Republic.
The paper says research into Ashanti Regional
Police ALUTA files, past media publications coupled with ‘live interviews’ with
some contemporaries of Nana Konadu while she was active in the UST (KNUST) SRC
between 1969 and 1971, have all failed to unearth a single shred of evidence to
authenticate the President’s claim.
The paper quotes the February 28 – March 5
edition of The Ghanaian Democrat to have reported President Rawlings’ comments
during the rally that students who went to present a petition to parliament
were chased out while most student leaders, including his wife, were arrested
and detained overnight.
GRi../
Big search in the NPP kicks off
The Statesman says intense activities at the
grassroots of the NPP are expected with the opening of the floodgates for the
filing of nominations for parliamentary candidates for Election 2000.
The paper says behind the scene deals,
horse-trading, hard bargaining and all kinds of political maneuvering are
expected to characterise the nomination process scheduled for April 17 – May
17.
The Party’s General Secretary, Mr. Dan Botwe is
reported to have said the decision to open the way for nomination was made by
the National Council who endorsed an earlier decision of the National Executive
Committee.
Mr. Botwe, who the story says touched on
Article 11(2) of the NPP constitution said among other things that a member
seeking nomination as the Party’s Parliamentary candidate would have to satisfy
the constituency Executive, Regional and National Executive Committees.
The story further says that at the end of the
closing date the various constituencies would forward any applications received
to their regional offices to be sent to the National Headquarters by 24 May.
Mr. Botwe is said to have appealed to
constituencies with sitting MPs to endeavor to retain them as candidates
saying, “This would be in the best interest of the party and will enhance its
chances of winning the election.”
The General Secretary, according to the paper,
said the MPs have so far proved their worth, both on the floor of Parliament
and outside it and need to be commended.
GRi../