GRi NEWSREEL 08-01-99

Accra (Greater Accra) 8 Jan. 

President Jerry John Rawlings has called for national unity and appealed to every citizen to make an extra effort to do away with the vicious politics of lies, hatred and prejudice.

''We may have our differences of opinion as individuals and as political and social groupings, but our commitment to the long term national interest must over-ride sectional interests'', he said. The President was addressing a parade of the Security Services and some voluntary organisations at the Independence Square to mark the sixth anniversary of the Fourth Republic.

He said seeking the national interest is valid for those in high office and positions of trust, those who aspire to such positions as well as for ''each and everyone of us in everything we do''.

''As a government, it will be wrong for us to claim monopoly of solutions to all our national problems. That is why this government upholds the principle of consultation. Likewise, to be in opposition does not mean you should oppose everything under the sun''.

President Rawlings called for a rejection of ''politics of destruction'' which, he said, has become the pastime of some Ghanaians especially in the media. He added that this could easily lead to the destruction of the national sense of purpose and direction. ''As a nation, we should not create a situation where good people will be afraid to take part in government for fear of being subjected to public ridicule, undue harassment and embarrassment''.

He said the Fourth Republic has made significant progress and suggested that the nation should have a more requent recourse to consensus.

This, the President went on, would reduce ''antagonistic polarisation'' which diverts time, resources and attention from national progress.

Assin Fosu (Central Region), Jan. 7, GNA - Mr Jonathan Amangrah Armah, national president of the Ghana Timber Association (GTA), has askedGTA members to desist from the illegal felling of timber. Task forces would be formed within the timber industry to educate members on the need to follow timber felling regulations strictly, he said. Any timber contractor who indulges in any malpractice Will be dismissed from the association, he warned.

The national president spoke against backbiting and indiscipline among timber contractors and urged GTA members to apply to the Forestry Commission for proper concessions.

Accra (Greater Accra) 8 Jan. 99  

Port authorities have been asked to reduce the number of checks on imported goods in order to enhance Ghana's competitiveness in the sub-region. There is undue extra examination of goods, especially the imported ones, Mr Dan Abodakpi, deputy minister of Trade and Industry, said, adding, this must be stopped if the Gateway Project is to succeed.

He was reacting to complaints regarding undue delay of goods at the ports. The complaints were made during a visit to the Tema Port on Tuesday by the Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr John Abu and officials of the Private Enterprise Foundation, Association of Ghana Industries and Value Added Tax (VAT) Service to assess the impact and interpretation of the new tax system.Mr Abodakpi noted that a lot of money has gone into the Gateway Project and must not be allowed to go down the drain by the actions and inaction of officers at the ports.

He called on port authorities to urgently convene a meeting and resolve the causes of such delays by the end of the month.Imported goods are said to sometimes take about one month or more to be cleared.One importer, Mr Kingsley Yaw, angry about delays and extra check points, said he was contemplating using a neighbouring port.

He said: "I recently had to clear some goods at the Tema Port and I had to go through as much as 65 different check points. "Most of them were just customs officers and Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority officials sitting at tables and virtually doing nothing but going through people's goods and extorting money and goods from them".

Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 8 Jan. 

A farmer at Anwiafutu, near Nyinahin, in the Atwima district of Ashanti, has been placed in police custody for allegedly killing his son, Seidu Moshie.

The Ashanti Regional Police Public Relations Directorate said, at about 11 a.m. on December 25, last year, Tindongo Moshie, the suspect, returning from a expedition, spotted what appeared to him to be an animal in a thicket just a few metres to his cottage and, without observing the kind of animal it was, fired a shot. He rushed on the game only to find his son, Seidu, lying dead in a pool of blood.

Inspector Arthur said the suspect deposited the body at his cottage and reported the matter to the police, who took the body to the Nyinahin Hospital for postmortem examination. One shotgun was retrieved from the Tindongo and he was placed in custody pending investigations into the matter.

Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 8 Jan.

Mr Alfred Kwashiga, an agent of Original Pay All, a private lotto company, has been placed in police custody for allegedly stealing 38.6 million cedis belonging to the company. According to the Ashanti Regional police said the suspect was alleged to have collected booklets worth about 38,568,000 cedis from the company about four months ago and failed to account for them. He was arrested and sent to the Asawasi Police Station by Mr Kwaku Gyasi Nimako, security co-ordinator of the company, on December 28, last year.

The police are investigating the matter.