Forty-eight Assembly Members Accept Akwasi Agyeman
Outbreak of strange disease being investigated
Accra public servants reject report
Ministry assures SABAT workers of peaceful resolution of impasse
Wives of visiting British MPs visit Nana Konadu
TMA realised eight billion cedis in 1998
Nurses in Tamale Regional Hospital call off strike
B/A REGSEC holds forum on armed robbery
Additional gate opened at Cape Coast Panafest
Pastors asked to strengthen government efforts with prayers
Three killed in a motor accident
Forty-eight Assembly Members Accept Akwasi Agyeman
Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 4 Aug. '99
Forty-eight members of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) on Tuesday unanimously voted against a resolution passed by 46 others seeking the removal from office of Nana Akwasi Agyeman, Kumasi Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE).
At a meeting held at the assembly's hall, members supported a motion tabled by Mr. Gordon Kwaku Gyasi, a government appointee, setting aside the resolution passed on July 20 by a vote of 50 against two.
Mr. Anokye Frempong, assembly member for Asokore-Mampong, seconded the motion, saying at two consecutive meetings convened by the Presiding Member, Nana Osei Owusu Banahene, to vote on the issue, the 46 assembly members who passed the resolution failed to turn up.
"A few assembly members cannot take the assembly to ransom.
Therefore, we should set aside the resolution in order that the assembly can continue with its programmes for the metropolis," he added.
On July 20, 50 out of the 52 assembly members present at a meeting adopted the resolution seeking to remove the MCE from office.
This was after the Presiding Member had read the resolution in May calling for the removal of the MCE, saying they had no confidence in him.
They also levelled various charges against the MCE. These included alleged misappropriation of funds, non-compliance with the guidelines on the Sub-Metropolitan, Area and Unit Committees, the absence of a budget for the assembly and low revenue generation due to lack of supervision.
Addressing the meeting earlier, Professor Ernest Dwumor, Member of the Electoral Commission (EC), said the commission is mandated by the constitution to carry out elections to enhance the democratic process.
He said the Commission is duty bound to accept the call to perform its duties but explained that it must adhere to the electoral laws and regulations.
Prof. Dwumor said after carefully discussing the issueof the assembly with the MCE and the Presiding Member, it was decided that the latter should take over and exercise his powers faithfully and truthfully for the benefit of the people within the metropolis and the country.
He said in fairness to all the assembly members, the Commission was prepared to wait for the right thing to be done in order that the two-thirds majority could be met to decide on the voting.
Nana Banahene said, in his view, the voting should be conducted because a lot of noise had been made about it and that he had personally been accused of withholding the voting.
He said after the resolution had been adopted, a meeting was held but the 46 assembly members did not turn up.
Nana Banahene said he would like to see the development of Kumasi and, therefore, appealed to the dissenting "Group of 46" to come back into the fold of the assembly.
Following the resolution passed on July 20, the Presiding Member convened another meeting on Friday, July 23, to vote on it.
The 46 assembly members who passed it, however, filed a writ at a Kumasi High Court to restrain the Metropolitan Co-ordinating Director, Presiding Member and the Electoral Commission (EC) from holding the meeting.
Reliefs sought by the plaintiffs were that the procedure used to convene the meeting on that day was wrong and unconstitutional.
In addition, the Presiding Member not only promised that it would contact the EC but would also obtain a suitable time "for the voting on the vote of no confidence in the MCE".
They contended, among other reliefs, that the Constitution and the Local Government Act 462 have laid-down procedures for the election of the Chief Executive and the conduct of a vote of no confidence in a Chief Executive and that the two can never be the same.
The High Court, presided over by Mr. Justice A.K. Abada, fixed Tuesday, July 28 for hearing but the case was later adjourned to Wednesday, August 11.
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Outbreak of strange disease being investigated
Accra (Greater Accra) 4 Aug. '99
A team of physicians and public health doctors at the 37 Military Hospital is investigating the outbreak of a strange diarrhoea disease, which has resulted in a number of deaths at the hospital.
The disease has also been reported at the Police Hospital. The cases, which were discovered two weeks ago following the nurses' strike, are not those normally associated with cholera.
This came to light during a tour of the two hospitals on Tuesday by Mr. Samuel Nuamah Donkor, Minister of Health to assess the situation, following the influx of patients to the hospitals in the wake of the strike action by junior nurses in public hospitals.
The Minister presented medical supplies, including anti-malaria drugs, infusion fluids and syringes worth over 32 million cedis to the 37 hospital. A similar donation worth 30 million cedis has already been made to the Police hospital as part of measures to replenish depleted supplies.
Dr D. A. Twum, Commanding Officer of the 37 Hospital, declined to give the number of deaths so far recorded from the disease but said, "quite a number of people have died".
He said, "the disease represented 30 per cent of all the cases, which came in during the two week period".
The Commanding Officer said they do not know the cause and have already reported the outbreak to the regional health authorities.
Dr Twum appealed to all health workers to stop strike actions and take the interest of the public into consideration.
He expressed the hope that a permanent solution would be found to industrial disputes.
Mr. Nuamah Donkor congratulated personnel of the two facilities for helping out and said their supplies would have to be adjusted because of the diarrhoea case, which has further depleted their resources.
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Accra public servants reject report
Accra (Greater Accra) 4 Aug. '99
The Accra Branch of Public Service Workers Union (PSWU), on Tuesday rejected the Universal Salary Structure, calling it "a sham that has not addressed the inadequacies in the salary regime".
The group said the old way of negotiating on the strength of "Collective Bargaining Agreements" should be reintroduced in the public sector to address the frustrations workers face.
Mr. Joseph Auch, Chairman of the branch, said in an interview that representatives of its 43 members voted unanimously at a regular monthly meeting in Accra to reject the package.
He said, the much-tooted slogan of "equal pay for equal work," associated with the salary document "is a deceit. It rather demeans the worker due to the many anti-welfare clauses.
" What we have found is that people with equal titles receive equal salary and that the majority of the workers down the ladder are denied allowances. Only those in management can be said to be safe.
"In fact, it is in to destroy the lives of workers and their dependants".
Mr. Auch said "if the Price Waterhouse report is allowed to rule, the labour movement, which has been the only protector of the worker, would wither away giving way to" a situation we can never fathom".
He said the workers appreciate the fact that government cannot pay "living salary" but that does not mean they should be made poorer overnight by the new salary regime.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 4 Aug '99
Public awareness on the importance of protecting, promoting and supporting breast feeding as the standard for infant development and growth, need to be increased, Mrs Rebecca Adotey, a Deputy Minister of Communications, said when she launched this year's breast feeding week in Accra on Tuesday.
Stressing the need for exclusive breast- feeding for the first six months, she said: " Let us make this the recommended practice, and possibly continue for the next two years".
Mrs Adotey, therefore, appealed to educators and professional institutions to find ways of improving relevant curricula to contain the necessary information.
The theme for the celebration is, "Breast-feeding, Education for Life".
It is being organised by the Ghana Infant Nutrition Action Network (GINAN), a non-governmental organisation (NGO).
The celebration, the seventh in Ghana since the inception of World Breast feeding week, gives opportunity to heighten awareness of the public about the benefits of breast feeding to the individual, the family and the nation.
Activities scheduled include radio and television discussions, outreach programmes, seminars and sports in selected schools.
Miss Stella Nyinah, UNICEF representative, urged teachers and their students to disabuse the minds of parents that using breast milk substitutes and pacifiers make them "look modern".
Mrs Alberta Quartey, Chairman of the Ghana National Commission on Children (GNCC), who chaired the function, said it was important that the week's activities focus on teachers and school children.
She said the children would not only impart information to their parents and community members but also adopt breast-feeding habit when they grow up.
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Ministry assures SABAT workers of peaceful resolution of impasse
Accra (Greater Accra) 4 Aug '99
The Ministry of Trade and Industry on Tuesday assured workers of SABAT Motors Company that it would do "all it could to facilitate a peaceful resolution" of the crisis in the company.
A Deputy Minister of the Ministry, Mr. Peter Wiafe Peperah said "the Ministry would continue to play its role as a facilitator to ensure that all parties in the SABAT saga reach a common agreement".
Mr. Peperah said this after a long meeting with workers of the company, who besieged the Ministry to demand the early resolution of the conflict between the workers and Directors of SABAT.
SABAT Motors, which was a public company, was placed on divestiture and is now a wholly-owned private company, but has never known peace since then.
At the centre of the crisis are the Divestiture Implementation Committee, the Serious Fraud Office, and Directors and Workers of the Company.
According to the Minister, a meeting involving all the parties was held on July six and the consensus was that the Company should be closed down for inventory to be taken.
On July nine, the Accra branch was closed down but the inventory is yet to be taken. "This might have heightened the frustrations of the workers," Mr. Peprah said.
The Deputy Minister said the workers marched to his office to plead for a speedy resolution of the problem, which had dragged on for over seven months.
A member of the workers union said while the Accra branch has been closed down and the workers have not been paid for the last seven months, other branches of the company are still operating.
"We marched to the Ministry today because we think we are being taken for granted," he said.
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Wives of visiting British MPs visit Nana Konadu
Accra (Greater Accra) 4 Aug. '99
The First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings on Tuesday called on women in the sub-region to make sure that the continent advances in peace as a major tool for progress and development.
She said good governance, transparency and honesty are necessary tools to create a peaceful atmosphere, which would take people's mind off conflict and move the continent forward.
The First Lady made the call when a six-member delegation made of the Wives of British Parliamentarians called on her in Accra.
The delegation, led by Ms. Diane Abbott, Britain's first Black Woman Member of Parliament since 1987, is finding at first hand the role women are playing in the country's political, economic and social arena.
Nana Konadu, also the President of the 31st December Women's Movement, said peace and poverty reduction have been two major components the Movement is striving to achieve.
She said the African continent is beset with many problems manifested by wars especially, in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Angola.
"It behoves all to join hands to achieve the peace needed for our advancement."
The First Lady said Ghana has enjoyed a certain level of a peaceful atmosphere and attempts must be made to ensure that peace prevails in neighbouring countries.
She also touched on the empowerment of the Ghanaian woman and how to get a greater number into the political arena saying, "women are more practical when faced with challenges and can work to the best of their ability".
Ms Diane Abbott said the last British Parliamentary election had over 100 women participating and this is a sign of a great achievement for women.
She congratulated the First Lady and her team for the work they are doing adding that they would endeavour to assist to improve the status of women in Ghana and Africa as a whole.
The delegation, which arrived last Sunday, would leave on Monday.
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Tema (Greater Accra) 4 Aug '99
The Tema Municipal Assembly (TMA) realised eight billion cedis in revenue as against an estimated annual budget of 9.1 billion cedis in 1998.
Expenditure for the same period was 8.393 billion cedis as against a budgeted expenditure of 9.118 billion cedis.
Nii Armah Ashietey, Tema Municipal Chief Executive announced this in his sessional address at the Assembly's third ordinary meeting of the first session on Tuesday.
He said the Assembly was expected to generate 4.676 billion cedis from its own sources, but at the end of December 1998 total revenue realised amounted to 4.642 billion cedis, representing 99.34 per cent of projected revenue.
As at the end of April this year, 2.466 billion cedis out of a total revenue of 10 507 billion cedis had been realised, including grants from central government, Mr. Ashietey said.
The Assembly is expected to mobilise 6.269 billion cedis from its own resources and 2.178 billion cedis have been realised representing 34.7 percent.
On developments, the Municipal Chief Executive said, the French government has granted nine million dollars for the rehabilitation of certain roads with heavy vehicular traffic in the municipality.
He said 333.99 million cedis out of 999.24 million cedis voted has been spent on maintenance of some roads, while 5.99 billion cedis out of 8.8 billion cedis have also been spent on maintenance of minor bridges, drains, among other things.
On the rehabilitation of the central sewerage system, Nii Ashietey said a contract has been awarded under the Urban Environmental Sanitation Project (UESP), and urged residents to pay their sewer fees promptly to enable the Assembly to provide quality services.
The Municipal Chief Executive said so far 46.166 million cedis out of the poverty alleviation fund has been disbursed to the first batch of 16 groups of farmers comprising 494 individuals.
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Nurses in Tamale Regional Hospital call off strike
Tamale (Northern Region) 4 Aug. '99
The Out Patient Department (OPD) of the Tamale Regional Hospital has returned to its usual hustle and bustle following the return to work by striking nurses on Monday.
The children's, gynaecology, maternity and surgical wards, which were virtually deserted during the one week stoppage of work by the nurses, have bounced back to life whilst the admission of patients, suspended has been resumed.
Dr Anthony Nsiah-Asare, Medical Superintendent, said the Ministry of Health released the January to July extra duty allowances of the nurses last Friday.
He said the nurses had to start work on Monday because they insisted on being paid before.
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B/A REGSEC holds forum on armed robbery
Sunyani (Brong Ahafo) 4 Aug. '99
The Brong Ahafo Regional Security Council (REGSEC) on Tuesday assured citizens of the region that it is alert to cope with the resurgence and challenges posed by armed robbers and other criminals.
The council said however, that the security agencies, especially the military and police, require the support and co-operation of the general public to curb the nefarious activities of criminals operating in the region.
The Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, Mr. Donald Adabre, gave this assurance at a public forum on the upsurge of crime, especially in the Sunyani municipality and other parts of the region.
The forum was organised to seek public opinion on how best to deal with armed robbery through the support of the civilian population.
Mr. Adabre said that the public has the duty to provide information that would lead to the arrest of criminals to create a congenial security atmosphere for ordinary citizens to go about their duties without fear.
He urged them to submit their views, proposals strategies and other relevant information to the security agencies either openly or in confidence, where necessary, and assured them that the names of such volunteers would not be divulged.
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Additional gate opened at Cape Coast Panafest
Cape Coast (Central Region) 4 Aug. '99
The Cape Coast Panafest Secretariat and some exhibitors at the on-going festival on Tuesday reached a compromise on entry arrangements to the handicrafts bazaar grounds with the opening of an additional gate.
The gate at the southeastern side of the grounds, close to where the aggrieved exhibitors are, has been opened for only pedestrians.
The exhibitors had complained that the use of only one gate to the grounds was not helping them to make good sales since that gate was for their stalls.
To press home their demand for the opening of an additional gate, the exhibitors, numbering about 20, trooped to the offices of the secretariat calling for the opening of the gate for both vehicles and pedestrians.
They threatened to pull down the gate if their demand was not met.
However, after a meeting between them and the chairman of the Panafest Bazaar Sub-committee, Mr. John Yalley Anaman, it was agreed that the gate should be opened for human beings only.
Mr. Anaman said a parking lot had been created for vehicles, adding that the arrangement forms part of security measures and to avoid congestion.
He said although the secretariat is ready to help exhibitors in difficulty, they must also intensify their marketing drive to attract visitors to where they are.
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Pastors asked to strengthen government efforts with prayers
Ho (Volta Region) 4 Aug '99
A one-week conference of Baptist Ministers in Ghana opened at Ho on Tuesday with a call on ministers of religion to pray fervently for God's guidance for the government in solving the country's problems.
Mr. Kwasi Aboagye, Deputy Volta Regional Minister, who made the call in an opening address, said the government and security agencies need the co-operation and collaboration of all to flush out criminals.
The conference, which is under the theme, "key to effective ministry", is being attended by about 200 pastors of the church.
The pastors would deliberate on, "the prophetic ministry and the prosperity emphasis today", "interpersonal relationship and conflict management", and "the effect of the independent charismatic movement on the orthodox evangelical churches".
Mr. Aboagye appealed to the pastors to use the pulpit to promote morality, help reduce crime, and promote peace because crime prevention and creation of peace are the duty of all Ghanaians.
He asked the pastors to avoid conflicts, which are caused by doctrinal differences and strive to co-exist with people of other denominations.
Mr. Aboagye called on the Baptist church to venture into the establishment of tertiary institutions in the country while promoting the spiritual development in the country.
The Rev. Frank Adams, General Secretary of the All Africa Baptist Fellowship said the church requires a new vision, especially among its ministers.
The Rev Kofi Annan, chairman of the Ministers Conference called on the government to find out the reasons why the economic gains made do not reflect in the lives of the people.
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Three killed in a motor accident
Assin Foso (Central Region) 4 Aug. '99
Three people, said to be "Good Samaritans" removing the wreckage of two vehicles involved in an accident were killed when a third vehicle ran into them at Assin Juaso near Assin Foso at the weekend.
The dead were identified as Kwadwo Job, 23, Atta Kwesi, 30, and Kwame Charles, 32, all from Assin Juaso.
Four others whose conditions were said to be critical are on admission at Assin Foso Catholic Hospital.
A police source said the three were removing the wreckage of two vehicles involved in an accident in the middle of the road at about 9 pm last Friday at Assin Juaso when they were hit by a vehicle travelling from Kumasi to Takoradi.
The source said the inhabitants of Assin Juaso, including the deceased were attracted to the scene by the impact of the collision and were in the process of clearing the road when the Benz bus ran into them.
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