Cedi’s stability not superficial - Databank
Demolition exercise sabotaged
Attorney General considers way to help
convicted mothers
Tutor in exam fraud
Stop invading the President’s office-to look
for jobs
Ghana Water Company awards fraudulent contracts
Two Cops interdicted for extorting money
Overhaul education reform …President directs
Ministry
Osafo Maafo fails to deliver
World Bank condemned
Kufuor will take his leave
Dr Boadu vanishes in the USA
Libya ‘Abrabo’ – more
mystery over missing million dollars
Documents missing at Sports Ministry
Cedi’s stability not superficial - Databank
A senior analyst of the Databank Financial
Services Limited, Frank Senyo Dewotor has dismissed the notion that the
stability of the cedi is superficial, explaining that unlike the past years
when the local currency was over-valued, the cedi has now gained its real
value, reports The Ghanaian Times.
In
the last few years, the cedi has fluctuated in value markedly. In 1997, it
depreciated by 22.7 percent, while in 1998 the depreciation was under five
percent. In 1999 and 2000, depreciation again accelerated, reaching 33.0
percent and 49.2 percent respectively. However, in 2001, the cedi has
substantially stabilised with cumulative depreciation of about 2.0 percent by
end-July.
In
an interview with the Times in Accra, Dewotor also attributed the stability to
the high income yielding nature of the cedi-based securities on the money
market.
“Investors
are now interested in investing in these securities rather than buying the
major foreign currencies and hold on to them and sell on a rainy day. This has
helped to reduce the demand on the foreign currencies”, he explained.
The
senior analyst added that the Bank of Ghana’s (BOG) refusal to reduce the
interest on the government’s securities in spite of the gradual drop in
inflation had also helped in investors keeping to the cedi-based securities.
However,
Moses Asaga, the Minority Spokesman on Finance disagrees. He maintains that the
appreciation of the cedi was superficial and unsustainable since it was
dependent on the fact that the government has frozen its legitimate
expenditure.
He
said, “government has not paid contractors, it is only paying emoluments of its
workers but holding up money for administration. The needed foreign exchange of
250 million dollars and 2.3 trillion cedis to support the budget is not
forthcoming”.
“All
that it means is that you have money, which you can use to pay your debts but
you refuse to pay and keep that money. When the time comes and you are
compelled in one way or the other to meet your obligations, you will discover
that you don’t have anything left”, he added.
More…/
Demolition exercise sabotaged
A demolishing exercise ordered by the Cape
Coast Municipal Authority (CCMA) to get structures used by criminals and drug
dealers pulled down was abandoned on Tuesday due to its sabotage by some police
personnel.
The
police personnel were reported to have given the criminals a tip-off and
collected sums of money totaling over 5 million cedis to allow them pack their
stolen items and drugs away before the exercise.
The
personnel had been requested by the CCMA to round up the criminals to ensure an
effective demolishing of their structures.
The
Ghanaian Times says its investigations revealed that the police personnel and
even some security guards of the CCMA, allowed the criminals to carry away
quantities of leaves suspected to be Indian hemp from their hide out.
The
three police personnel who were dispatched on Tuesday to carry out the
demolition became helpless and abandoned it when they were informed about the
actions of their colleagues who took moneys from the criminals.
The three policemen and officials of the
CCMA, including two security officials and two fire personnel, were confronted
by the criminals who demanded the reason for the demolition after they had paid
the moneys.
For
the fear of being attacked, the nine-member team, led by Mr. Robert Essuman
Mensah, Municipal Building Inspector, abandoned the idea and returned to their
work places.
More…/
Attorney General considers way to help
convicted mothers
The Ministry of Justice and Attorney General is
working on a policy framework of Alternative Sentencing for convicted pregnant
women and nursing mothers.
According
to the ‘Times’, an official at the AG’s office said in Accra on Tuesday
that “the Ministry is seriously looking
into the issue and will soon come out with its response when things are
finalised”.
The
paper was following up on its earlier story of the presence of babies and
pregnant women in prisons.
“We
do not want to see babies and their parents in prisons but the current
situation is such that “you cannot avoid it now”.
The
official said that the framework would be sent to the appropriate quarters for
the necessary action because the current rules and regulations on the issue
needed to be removed.
More…/
Tutor in exam fraud
Haruna Abdulai, a tutor of the Nyinahin
Catholic Secondary School in Ashanti, was last Friday, arraigned before court
for engaging in examination malpractice.
Abdulai,
an English language tutor, was arrested on August 1 at the Mpasatia Examination
center when he attempted to pass on a sheet containing answers to questions to
his students during the ongoing Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination
(SSSCE).
He
is on a 400,000 cedis bail until August 31.
The
Times reports an official of the West Examinations Council (WAEC) as saying in
Kumasi on Tuesday that on August 1, while students at the Mpasatia centre were
writing their English Language examination paper, one of them managed to sneak
a question paper to Abdulai.
After
answering the questions, Abdulai threw the paper into the room but in the
process the WAEC official supervising the paper saw him. He was arrested by the
policeman on duty at the centre.
Upon
interrogation he confessed answering the questions for his accomplice to
distribute to his students.
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Stop invading the President’s office-to look
for jobs
A Ghanaian lecturer at the Department of
Economics at the American University, Professor George B.N. Ayittey, has
advised those who have been flocking the Presidency in search of political
appointments to stop the practice.
Such
job seekers, he said armed themselves with well-oiled and professionally
written curricula vitae to convince the President to offer them appointments,
Professor Ayittey told a news conference on “the State of the Economy”
organised by the Institute of Economic Affairs in Accra on Tuesday morning.
He
condemned the practice saying “don’t go and see President Kufuor with your
curriculum vitae, instead you can go to the private sector and produce even
charcoal to make money to build your fabulous mansions”.
He
said Ghanaians need to discard the notion about wealth creation, saying that,
wealth is created in the private sector and not in the government sector.
Prof.
Ayittey, therefore, asked those elite Ghanaians who seek to get wealthy to go
to the private sector, adding that the richest person in the U.S. Bill Gates,
with a personal fortune of 60 billion dollars, had made his money in the
private sector.
More…/
Ghana Water Company awards fraudulent contracts
The Evening News alleges that two companies
were fraudulently, awarded contracts by the former Managing Director of the
Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), to the tune of 13.5 billion cedis
($1,929,000).
Fon
Limited owned by Frederick Osafo Ntim, was to supply 20,000 pieces of Madelina
brand of water meters at a total cost of $774.000. Fon is a paper conversion
company in Accra.
The
other supply contract of 10,000 pieces of Zenner metes at a cost of $430,000
went to Somfer Limited.
This
was revealed by the former Managing Director, Mr Adjei, when he appeared before
the justice N.Y.B. Adade committee of Enquiry probing the affairs of GWCL.
The
contract award was contrary to the GWCL Board’s directive that it should go for
open tender through newspaper advertisements to enable all qualified
contractors to put in bids.
The
former GWCL boss, however, ignored the Board’s instruction and went ahead to
personally award the contract to Fon and Somfer.
After
awarding the contract, he turned round and caused a number of adverts to be
published in the newspapers inviting interested contractors to tender.
Contrary
to convention, Mr. Adjei was himself, the Chairman of GWCL Tender Awards
Committee and also appointed six other members to the committee.
GRi…/
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Two Cops interdicted for extorting money
Two police constables have been interdicted for
extorting $200 from an Italian lady at Cape Coast.
The
two, Eric Adzei and Alexander Nai-Ille, both from the Winneba Police Training
School, who were on duty at the Centre for National Culture (CNC) during
PANAFEST, arrested the lady together with her boyfriend at about 2.30 am on
July 31, for kissing and caressing in public.
The
policemen handcuffed the lady, Piretore Michele, who is on an exchange
programme in Ghana, and the boyfriend, whose name was given only as Kofi, after
seizing the lady’s bag containing her passport and an air ticket.
The
policemen reportedly demanded $200 in return for the seized items and took the
couple home for the money.
After
this, the couple reported the case to the police and an identification parade
exposed the policemen.
When
contacted, a source at the police regional headquarters confirmed the story and
said further investigations into the case are being conducted.
More…/
Overhaul education reform …President directs
Ministry
The Daily Graphic says the government is to carry
out a comprehensive review of the education reform programme.
To
this end, the President has directed the Ministry of Education to set up a
committee to look at five key areas of the Education Reform Programme began 14
years ago with the view to revitalising the system.
The
Minister of Education, Professor Christopher Ameyaw-Akumfi, who disclosed this
in an interview, said the review will determine the way forward.
He
named the areas for possible review as the absorption of the pre-school system
into the regular school system, the duration of the JSS system, curriculum for
both JSS and SSS with emphasis on subjects, vocational/technical and
polytechnic education.
Touching
on specifics, the Education Minister said the three-year each for the SSS and
JSS levels will be opened to debate to determine whether or not to add an
additional year or maintain the status quo.
GRi…/
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Osafo Maafo fails to deliver
The Weekly Insight carries that the Minister of
Finance, Osafo Maafo, has failed on his promise to present an updated budget to
Parliament by the end of June.
“By
this failure, the Minster has devalued the oversight responsibility of
Parliament with respect to national financial management”, states the paper.
The
Finance Minister had urged Parliament to approve what he referred to as an
interim budget in February with a promise to submit a fuller budget by June. He
argued that the government had just taken power and was therefore not in
possession of all the facts on the national economy.
The
minority side in Parliament reluctantly allowed itself to be persuaded into
approving the budget, says the Insight.
More…/
World Bank condemned
Explo Nana-Kofi, a political activist in London
has launched a blistering attack on the World Bank and the International
Monetary Fund, describing them as criminal organisations, which are defrauding
people of the Third World.
Nani-Kofi,
a coodinator of the Africa Liberation Support Campaign (ALISC) was speaking at
the launch of the World Bank/IMF Wanted for Fraud Campaign at the Conway Hall
in London, attended by trade union leaders, gender advocates, academics,
Marxists activities and Nkrumahists.
He
said the Third World does not owe the G-8 countries because on the balance they
have taken more out of the so-called Third World than they have given as loans.
Nani-Kofi
recounted the horrors of the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade and colonialism and said
the cancellation of debts cannot adequately compensate for these crimes against
humanity.
GRi…/
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Kufuor will take his leave
The Media Relations Minister, Elizabeth Ohene,
has hinted that President J.A. Kufuor, would be going on leave as any other
civil or public officer, The Daily Guide reports.
She
could however not tell immediately when the President’s leave would be due when
she dropped the hint in an interaction with the Presidential Press Corp.
She
pointed out that not only will the President take leave but all Ministers of
State and top civil and public servants would be taking their leave at the end
of every year to enable them to be rejuvenated.
“It
is going to be compulsory and if you don’t do it, you will forfeit your annual
leave.”
According
to Ms Ohene, it is normal for the President and his Ministers to take leave, as
is the practice everywhere. She observed that the era where Ministers of State
and top Civil Servants deliberately refuse to go on leave and pile up their
leave holidays for obvious reasons is over.
It
is in line with this policy that Dr Kwesi Nduom, the Minister of Economic
Planning and Regional Integration has gone on leave to be back after August 20,
2001, she said.
More…/
Dr Boadu vanishes in the USA
A US based Ghanaian consultant and lecturer at
the A&M Texas Station University in the United States of America Dr Frederick
Boadu is reported to have fled the country for reasons that are unclear.
It
is also not known whether his action has anything to do with a Dr Frederick
Boadu who is currently wanted in Ghana to come and assist in an ongoing trial
over a $1,297,500 Court Computerisation Project in which a former Deputy
Finance Minister, Victor Selormey, has been dragged before a Fast Track High
Court to explain circumstances leading to the transfer of various sums of
monies in hard currency to a Dr Frederick Boadu, amounting to $1,297,500.
The
Guide says its investigations in the US reveal that Dr Boadu has since quit his
position at the A&M University in Texas, and has not been seen in and
around Houston, and Boston both cities in Texas and Massachusetts respectively.
GRi…/
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Libya ‘Abrabo’ – more mystery over missing
million dollars
The Free Press says the mystery surrounding the
disappearance of over one million dollars, belonging to some Ghanaians resident
in Libya from the embassy at Tripoli has deepened following the arrival of the
man suspected to have committed the crime back to Ghana.
The
Ghana Embassy, according to the paper, had on June 14, 2001, been allegedly
burgled and large sums of monies belonging to some Ghanaians who had deposited
them at the embassy for safekeeping disappearing.
In
the aftermath, a security guard/receptionist at the embassy, Kwadwo Buabeng
Agyare, 44, was arrested and dumped into cells and tortured but he was released
on September 25, 2000 on lack of evidence. He recently returned to Ghana.
When
contacted by the Free Press, he protested his innocence about the theft and
rather hinted of an alleged mafia within the embassy engaged in money pilfering
which include the counselor, Issifu Issaka, who is also back in Ghana.
Agyare
alleged that no robbery took place on that fateful June 14 but it was a ploy to
trick all those whose monies had been embezzled by some members of the embassy
staff.
He
cited a former butler of the Ambassador, A.B. Fuseini who returned to Ghana
recently and is now the proud owner of five expensive vehicles including a BMW,
VW Golf, Mitsubishi Eclipse, a Mercedes Benz and a Toyota Land Cruiser,
wondering how he could have purchased all these vehicles with his paltry
official salary.
GRi…/
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Documents missing at Sports Ministry
The Ghanaian Chronicle says documents covering
an amount of US$1.5 million that was sunk into the architectural design and
feasibility study of the proposed national Olympic complex can not be found at
the Ministry of Youth and Sports (MOYS), even though a legal threat looms on
the government to pay an outstanding debt of US$ 345,000 to Eindhogein Philips
BV of Holland for the feasibility study conducted on the project.
Information
indicates that US$1.5 million is on record to have been paid into the project,
but there are no records at the ministry showing how payment was done and the
signatories involved.
Sources
at the MOYS have confirmed that indeed the amount paid for the contract has
caused some rabble rousing among top officials of the ministry, especially
since its discovery by the new administration.
The
security agencies have investigated the saga and have forwarded their findings
to the Auditor General’s Department where financial records of the ministry,
which until recently had Mr. Enoch Teye Mensah, MP for Ningo Prampram, as its
head, are being studied.
GRi../
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