Let’s have peaceful elections…President urges nation
Prosecute corrupt officials…Rawlings tells Serious Fraud Office
Our local industries
The dark side of Ashanti Goldfields…
Thieves rob fire victim of 300mC
Let’s have peaceful elections…President urges nation
The Daily Graphic devotes its front page to the sessional address delivered by President Jerry Rawlings last Thursday, to open the last session of the Second Parliament. Among the number of stories on the address, the President’s call for peaceful elections, wins the top spot.
In the story, President Rawlings is reported as calling for a national consensus on issues of national importance during the run-up to this year’s general election. "We must all work to ensure free, fair, transparent and peaceful elections, devoid of violence, insults and acrimony", he is quoted saying.
The Graphic reports that the President in his last sessional address to the legislature in Accra, said "this year’s elections will be the real test of transition as it will mark the end of my second term of office". The paper says that President Rawlings recalled his 18-year rule and in a very conciliatory tone, admitted that there may have been some lapses, which might have hurt some people during the period.
"We could not have turned the country round, nor come this far, without taking some difficult, painful, unpalatable but necessary decision he said. The President apologised to all those who were offended the actions of his government, saying that in the desire of his government to revive the soul of Ghana, "we have offended some people, we have upset some people, to all such person, I say we are sorry".
GRi../
The Evening News
Prosecute corrupt officials…Rawlings tells Serious Fraud Office
In its lead story, which is based on President Jerry Rawlings’ sessional address to mark the state opening of the first meeting of the fourth session of the Second Parliament, the Evening News reports that the President has tasked the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) to prosecute individuals and organisations it has investigated and found guilt of corruption.
The paper says that President Rawlings expressed the government’s concern about the level of corruption n Ghana. It says that the Commissioner of Human Rights and Administrative Justice, Mr Emile Short, came under criticism from the President, following his contribution on a "GTV" programme, which questioned the commitment of the government to control corruption in Ghana. President Rawlings is reported as noting that the Commission was reversing most of the cases involving fraudulent contracts, tax evasion, embezzlement and misappropriation, which had been decided on.
President Rawlings is said to have told Parliament that the SFO, in 1999, investigated 37 cases involving fraud, embezzlement and other malfeasance, that amounted to 9.5 billion cedis. Out of this amount, 2.2 billion cedis has so far been recovered. He said although
The amount recovered is not a bad beginning, a lot more needs to be done, adding, " we expect the Serious Fraud Office to commence prosecution of those found guilty".
GRi../
Our local industries
The Ghana Palaver notes that although the government’s economic liberalisation policy has instilled general confidence in the people about a hopeful future, one area, which still appears gloomy is that of local industry.
The Palaver in an editorial, says that due to the wasteful nature of the free imports of goods, which puts undue pressure on the cedi, even the minutest of raw materials needed to keep industry running, increases cost thus creating price hike in the end product.
The Palaver opinion indicates that the availability of consumer items on the market, certainly, provides Ghanaians with inner satisfaction, which was completely lost during the painful period of shortages, when the people lived in wretchedness, an embarrassment to all.
The paper says, however, that one can now hardly bear with a situation in which almost every item, from bare necessities like sugar and matches (which can be produced locally, anyway), to incinerator-bound bicycles and garments, will have to be imported to flood our market, just to advertise our purchasing capabilities.
The paper, therefore, is please that the government is taking another look at the over-liberalisation of trade and possibly make the system beneficial to all.
GRi../
Free Press
The dark side of Ashanti Goldfields…
The lead story of the Free Press says that it is an undisputed fact that the Ashanti Goldfields Company (AGC) is now in serious crisis. The story says that since late last year, the company has moved from crisis to crisis, each more complex than the other.
According to the paper, in August 1999, AGC was caught pants down, when the sudden rise in gold price revealed a fundamental flaw in the company’s hedging activities, saying that AGC paid dearly for this. The story says that in the long run, the company faces a potential loss f over 600 million dollars because it gambled on a continual decline in gold prices and was wrong.
The Free Press says that next came the aggressive but unsuccessful merger attempt by Lonmin, a giant mining company, which proposed to merge with AGC and give the government a 4% stakes in the new company as payment for the 20% share the government had in AGC, for the takeover.
AGC is said to have apparently entered into the deal without the government’s approval, and when the government, at the last minute, refused to agree to the deal, Ashanti was left in a dilemma, which had disastrous consequences at home.
The Free Press says that the Minister of Mines and Energy, Mr Fred Ohene-Kena, who was also a member of the AGC board, was summarily dismissed while he was at the negotiating table in London. According to the paper, Finance Minister, Mr Kwame Peprah is believed to have fallen out of favour because of his role in the Lonmin merger affair
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The Weekend Statesman
Thieves rob fire victim of 300mC
In a front-page screaming headline story., the Weekend Statesman reports that thieves, masquerading as "Good Samaritans", have stolen 210 million cedis, CFA 60,000 and $20,000 belonging to residents of a burning house at the Kumasi suburb of Dichemso.
The fire and robbery victims are said to have told official of the Kumasi Metropolitan Secretariat of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) that the fire, which razed the top floor of the three-storey house, was spotted at about 1.30 p.m. on January 7, this year.
The Weekend Statesman says that the Fire Service was called in but before the fire personnel could arrive, people who should have been helping the victims save their belongings, went from room to room and made away with money and other valuables.
According to the story, so fierce was the fire that at one point, the fire tenders ran short of water and had to leave the scene for water in the city centre.
The paper says that there had not been any casualty but in the rush to salvage belongings, an 80-year-old man was nearly forgotten in the burning house. He was, however, rescued through a backdoor, unhurt but visibly shaken, the Weekend Statesman concludes.
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