GNAT to opt out of SSNIT
VAT Secretariat collects ¢ 55 billion monthly
Another scandal rocks GNPC, &450,000 missing from company reserves
Reform Party : Lets End Fear Factor In Politics
Military Angry over new role as sanitary men
Big trouble in the Army
Sex scandal deepens.. lecturer calls for full scale probe
GNAT to opt out of SSNIT
The paper reports its front-page that the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) is considering a withdrawal from the National Social Security pension Scheme, to run a new scheme for it’s members.
According to the paper, a consultant has already been engaged by GNAT by the GNAT to look into the administration of the SSNIT pension Scheme and come out with recommendations for its improvement for the benefit of workers.
If the SSNIT fails to respond positively to the recommendations that the consultant may make the GNAT proposes to go ahead with its plan to run it’s own pension scheme, the paper said.
Mr. Kusi Atansah, head of Organisation and Administration at the GNAT headquarters explained during a meeting of teachers representatives in Sunyani, that the SNITT pension scheme has a lot of loopholes and teachers cannot continue to be part of it.
"GNAT has the ability to run a pension scheme that would make retiring teachers better of than the SNITT pension scheme, the paper quoted Mr. Atansah.
VAT Secretariat collects ¢ 55 billion monthly
In another front-page story, the Graphic states that the Value Added Tax (VAT) Secretariat has been collecting an average of ¢55 billion a month since the introduction of the VAT in January this year, a deputy Minister Finance, Mr Victor Selormey is said to have told Parliament.
Answering a question in the Parliament yesterday , the deputy minister said 4,294 business enterprises failed to file their returns as at February and have been issued with penalty notices.
The paper says out of the number, 388 enterprises have petitioned the VAT secretariat for redress.
Whilst the majority of the petitions against the imposition of the penalty were found to have no merit, a number of them were upheld for reasons ranging from verified claims of non-receipt of return forms and VAT registration certificate among others, the paper said.
According to the report, Mr. Selormey who was in the House to answer questions on behalf of the substantive Minister, Mr Preprah, who is indisposed, stated that a total of ¢44.5 million was received from payment of penalties imposed for late submission of February returns as at June 3.
GRi
Another scandal rocks GNPC, &450,000 missing from company reserves
The Ghanaian Chronicle reports that another scandal has rock the Ghana National petroleum Corporation (GNPC) with an amount of $450,000 is missing from the company reserves and the Mr. Tsatsu Tsikata, the chief executive of the corporation had ordered a probe.
The Paper reports that only months after it emerged that Mr. Tsikata had dumped a ¢100 billion debt on the Ghanaian tax payer through a financial gambling session in Paris, France, a whopping $450,000 equivalent of ¢1.1 billion is reported missing from the reserves of the GNPC at Tema.
The story states that in 1993, GNPC management, in a bid to improve its communication system, released $450,000 to the company’s computer and communications department headed by a Mr. Asamoah Koduah for the purchase of the computers.
According to the report, since 1993 the GNPC has failed to take stock to find out whether the amount has been properly utilised.
The irregularities are said to have been uncovered some months ago following intensive investigations by some senior staff of the GNPC.
The Management responded to the demands of the staff to at least help redeem the soiled image of GNPC, when it set up a committee to further investigate the Computer and Communication department.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of National Investigation is said to have stepped into investigate, says the paper and Mr. Koduah who is on leave has been contacted for questioning.
Ms. Ester Cobbah, head of the Public Relations department is said to have declined to give details, only stating that an internal enquiring is underway and that any stories in the paper could prejudice the findings of the committee.
Reform Party : Lets end fear factor in politics
Another front-page story in the Ghanaian Chronicle says the national Reform Party (NRP) responding to the issuance of a provisional certificate to enable the party operate in this country, appealed to Ghanaians to rid society of the fear factor that has dogged Ghanaian politics under the NDC party of President Jerry John Rawlings.
"Ghanaians should galvanise themselves to get rid of this fear factor which alone is propelling the NDC government" Mr. Tweretwie Opoku, Interim General Secretary of the party told the Chronicle in Accra at the weekend.
He asked Ghanaians to take solace in the experience of the leadership of the party who have been made to lose their businesses, but are still fighting to get rid of the NDC oligarchy which has been on its last leg for sometime now.
Mr. Tweretie is reported as stating "there is nothing to be scared of … Everybody sees this regime losing grip of national affairs. NDC is crumbling… Ghanaians should take solace in the fact that we are still moving forward . they are collapsing our businesses but we are still here.
He said the National Reform Party is Providing a credible alternative and appealed to Ghanaians to identify with the hopes and aspirations of party.
GRi
Military Angry over new role as sanitary men
The Dispatch carries a front-page story, which says the military is angry once again over the new role that it has been playing as sanitary men. The paper says the anger of the military stems from a GTV news footage carried last Saturday which showed Mr. Addokwei Addo, the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) boss and some armed military men running after half-naked men and women who were attending to natures call at some beaches in Accra.
The story says the regular use of the military for similar exercises have encountered the displeasure of serious minded professionals within the army who believe that was not their job.
The Dispatch, referring to a story it had earlier carried in its April 26 to May 2 edition, which had revealed that some members of the Army harboured displeasure for such duties, said enquiries it made at the weekend from a number of military personnel showed that they were not happy when they were used to desilt gutters recently while residents of the area stood aloof, watching and at times makes statements that were annoying.
According to the Dispatch, the beach chase over the weekend made a warrant officer questioning whether they have turned latrine men now.
The paper’s report says that public opinion does not favour the use of the military for the exercises. It says quite a number of people think that the able-bodied men of AMA who go after hawkers should rather, be used for these kind of jobs instead of standing idly by traffic lights waiting to pounce on hawkers.
GRi
Big trouble in the Army
With a screaming headline "Big Trouble in the Army", the Weekly Insight says a secret report circulating among the commanding officers of the Ghana Armed Forces suggests that the institution is nothing more or less tahn a ke of gun powder just waiting to explode.
The story says the six page report, clearly marked " RESTRICTED ", hints that many soldiers are angry about the economic conditions in the country, claiming that insufficient pay has led them to be borrowing.
The report, according to the story, also indicates that the soldiers are alleging that with their little salaries, they are unable to save while medical bills and school fees of their dependants are left unpaid.
The Weekly Insight further quotes the report that the refusal of bank loans to the soldiers has forced some of them into shylock money lenders hands.
Many soldiers interviewed, according the paper, said openly that they found it difficult to remain loyal to the army because of the absence of freedom and justice in the institution, advancing reasons that include unfairness in promotion and senior officers chasing wives of their junior colleagues.
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Sex scandal deepens.. lecturer calls for full scale probe
The paper reports under a banner headline that the sex scandal at the Cape coast Polytechnic last week deepened when Mr. Tommy Madichie, the lecturer behind the recent revelation of the scandal, appealed to the President Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings to institute a full scale investigation into the matter at a press-conference in Accra.
According to the story, Mr. Madichie gave eight points of references, which the committee to be set could follow in order to come out with all the problems culminating in the issue stake.
Among some of the eight points are a call to ascertain the truth and scale of pornographic sex scandal at the Polytechnic, investigation into the allegations that the administration of the institute is attempting to defraud the government through a student hostel project, award and costing at ¢26 million of a single room of the hostel, re-visiting the bribery allegation scandal of last year in which several members of the Polytechnic Teachers Association were involved.
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