GRi Press Review 12 – 07 – 99

The Ghanaian Chronicle

Goozie attacks Rawlings

Public Agenda

Civil servants, nurses, teachers threaten upheaval

The Dispatch

Mills vrs Konadu at NDC congress

The Ghanaian Voice

J.H. Mensah burglary unresolved

Daily Graphic

Bank of Ghana to ensure prudent banking practices

Ghanaian Times

C-Poly lecturer feels threatened

The Ghanaian Chronicle

Goozie attacks Rawlings

Mr Goozie Tanoh, a leading member of the Reform Movement, is reported to have slammed President Jerry Rawlings’ allegations against him that he used the name of the First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings to obtain a loan for his cassava chips business, as a blatant fabrication to besmear him.

"I have never used the First Couple’s name to raise money neither have I enjoyed any privileged lending or misapplied any loan", the Ghanaian Chronicle quotes Goozie as saying.

The Chronicle says in a response to President Rawlings’ claim in Tamale, when he addressed cadres, that he obtained a loan of about 1.9 billion cedis from various sources against Nana Konadu’s will, Goozie said for over 10 years now, he had neither met privately with the First Lady nor the President.

Mr Tanoh is reported to have said that the closest he had got to the Nana Konadu was in 1994, when Ms. Sherry Ayittey, an executive member of the 31st December Women’s Movement, approached his company, Transport and Commodity General Limited, to discuss the possibility of the 31st December Women’s Movement supplying him with cassava.

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Public Agenda

Civil servants, nurses, teachers threaten upheaval

In a screaming headline story, the Public Agenda reports on its front page that civil servants, teachers and nurses are demanding a tough response from their leaders to what the paper describes as the ‘chaotic’ implementation of the Price Waterhouse salary recommendations, which has resulted in at least, 64,000 workers receiving less or no salaries for the month of June.

The Public Agenda says the three groups of workers have threatened that if the government does not take immediate steps to rectify the situation, there would be an upheaval.

The paper says the negative start has reinforced the misgivings of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the University Teachers’ Association of Ghana (UTAG), who are yet to sign agreements for the implementation of the Price Waterhouse recommendations.

The leaders of the Civil Servants Association of Ghana (CSAG), Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Ghana Registered Nurses’ Association (GRNA) and Judicial Service Association of Ghana (JUSAG), have championed the implementation of the ‘controversial’ policy.

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The Dispatch

Mills vrs Konadu at NDC congress

The Dispatch says in a front-page banner headline story that the trouble brewing within the ruling NDC, has the potential to test the party’s cohesiveness.

The paper says the trouble borders on the decision some influential members of the NDC to disregard President Jerry Rawlings’ choice for the 2000 elections, Vice-President J.E.A. Mills.

According to the Dispatch, the members would rather want the First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings to be the party’s presidential candidate for the next general elections.

The paper says the President has, on a number of occasions, denied that his wife is interested in succeeding him.

The President is reported to have made it clear that his wife was not interested as he was not ‘’running a family dynasty’’.

The Dispatch quotes as source close to "The konadu for president 2000" group as saying that though the First Couple had indicated that they were not interested in the presidential slot, "we think that based on the number of demands and requests from the NDC branches and organisations, the first Lady might have a change of mind".

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The Ghanaian Voice

J.H. Mensah burglary unresolved

In its lead headline story, the Ghanaian Voice reports that almost a month after Mr J.H. Mensah, Minority Leader in Parliament, claimed to have lost some documents, including three briefcases containing working files from Parliament, personal documents, numerous business cards, 100,000 cedis, $150 and $50 in traveller’s cheques, miscellaneous amount in foreign currencies and two sets of keys, the Kpeshie Police in Accra, are still ‘knocking their heads against the wall’ trying to locate the alleged culprits.

The Voice quotes the crime officer of the Kpeshie Divisional Headquarters of the Ghana Police Service as saying that there were no indications on the doors and windows in Mr Mensah’s house that could firmly suggest a break-in. According to the crime officer, investigation in the area had led to no clue to substantiate or support the burglary theory.

"There were no finger prints on the door lock that could have been analysed at the forensic laboratory to produce leads as to who might have done Mr Mensah in", he is quoted as saying.

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Daily Graphic

Bank of Ghana to ensure prudent banking practices

The Graphic reports that the Bank of Ghana is to introduce more stringent measures to ensure prudent banking practices improve management skills and instil financial discipline in Ghana’s banking system.

The paper reports the Governor of the bank, Dr Kwabena Duffuor as announcing this in a speech read for him at the commissioning of a 1.8 billion-cedi office building for the la Community Bank in Accra. Dr Duffuor said the Central bank has identified some unprofessional banking and operational lapses in the unit-banking sector, which must be tackled immediately to guarantee growth in the sector. He mentioned some of the lapses as non-reconciliation of accounts, non-balancing of ledgers, non-submission of returns, inadequate provisions against loan losses and weakness in the internal control systems.

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Ghanaian Times

C-Poly lecturer feels threatened

The Ghanaian Times reports that Mr Tommy Madichie, the lecturer who revealed the sex scandal at the Cape coast polytechnic in the Central Region, as saying that "he will not give in" even though he is under threat to resign his position for exposing wrong-doing at the Polytechnic.

Mr Madichie told newsmen that "I am being threatened by the Polytechnic authorities to quickly resign honourably before they get my appointment terminated through the disciplinary board".

The lecturer, who is a principal instructor and head of the Building and Civil Engineering Department of the Polytechnic, alleged that a letter to that effect had been pasted on the school’s notice board.

He is said to have claimed that the letter was written and placed on the notice board, on behalf of the Polytechnic authorities, by the Dean of the School of Engineering. The action, he said was intended to disrupt school activities and incite the students against him and causes mayhem on the campus.

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