TUC objects to HIPC
Ex-Ministers given 7 days to pay, or…
Shake-up at BNI
Indutech 2001 exhibition opens in Accra today
Kwesi Ahwoi’s 100m cedis ESB stopped
‘Ex-government used illegal means to rip-off resources’
‘War with private press cost NDC elections’
Army probes x-minister
Kufuor in near Air disaster
Gov’t to probe castle loan
NPP’s plot to disband SFO leaked
NDC accuse NDC
Energy adviser dares Tsatsu Tsikata to a public debate over GNPC saga!
TUC objects to HIPC
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has asked the government to open a full national debate on the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative, reports The Ghanaian Times.
It explained that the issue was too important for the government alone to take a decision on.
Mr Kwasi Adu Amankwah, the Secretary General, told a press conference held in Accra on Wednesday, to state the Union’s stand on the HIPC issue.
He described the HIPC Initiative as just an accounting exercise for creditors and consequently cautioned the Government against hastily joining it without knowing its full implications.
Mr Adu Amankwah said that HIPC was only to ensure that developing countries complied with IMF reforms, which had already widened and perpetuated poverty in Ghana.
Even though the initiative was supposedly aimed at helping poor countries to clear their debts arrears, “what it does in fact is to get the countries to continue more stringent structural reforms.”
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Ex-Ministers given 7 days to pay, or…
An Accra High Court on Wednesday ordered the former Ministers who took home cars as part of their End-of-Service Benefits (ESB) to pay within seven days, the difference between the valuation as supplied to the court by the Attorney General and what they have actually paid, or surrender the vehicles to the Registrar of the High Court.
The court, presided over by Mrs Justice Georgina Woode, however said that if the Attorney General was not able to prove, in the course of the matter, that the valuation supplied to it (the court) was the original value, it would give out the cars or the difference paid back to the plaintiffs.
The court has adjourned to March 8.
Nineteen former ministers last month filed a writ at the High Court praying it to set aside an order by President J.A. Kufuor directing them to either pay the difference between the price paid and the official valuation or return the cars.
But Mr Mike Afedi Gizo, former Minister of Tourism, who was reported to be among the 19, has withdrawn from the case and paid the difference in amount of the valuation of his car.
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Shake-up at BNI
The Daily Graphic reports a major shake-up that has been undertaken in the command structure of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) as part of a reorganisation exercise.
“All regional and divisional commanders have been transferred to other regions and divisions,” and have been given two weeks to report to their new stations.
Twenty-two senior officers of the BNI, including the deputy director, have also been asked to proceed on their earned leave and would be reassigned or relocated after that.
Some of the commanders would lose their command positions while others would be elevated.
A highly-placed source, which confirmed the changes, said as part of the reorganisation exercise, some units of the BNI are also to be reorganised to ensure effective and efficient service delivery.
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INDUTECH 2001 exhibition opens in Accra today
INDUTECH 2001, 5th Ghana Industry and Technology Exhibition, opens at the Ghana International Trade Fair Centre, La-Accra on Thursday, the Graphic reports.
The 12th day exhibition is under the theme “Innovation Quality and Price competitiveness – the key to survival in the New Global Market”.
640 registered foreign participants and local industrialists are taking part in the fair to show case what local producers can offer in terms of quality products, capacity of supply and the potential to deliver on time.
The fair is being organised by the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) under the auspices of the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
INDUTECH exhibition, started in 1987, have established itself as the most patronised and well-organised exhibition in the sub-region, seeks to expose the positive contribution of industry and technology to the socio-economic development of Ghana.
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Kwesi Ahwoi’s 100m cedis ESB stopped
The Evening News says hints of the unbridled expenditure of Mr Kwesi Ahwoi, former Chief Executive of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) and his near withdrawal of 100 million cedis, a personal End of Service Benefit (ESB) have started emerging.
Mr Ahwoi who for six years was at the helm of the GIPC was entitled to only 13 million cedis (going by the formula used for all the others), but he allegedly contrived to drop the signature of one of the three signatories to cheques for official payments, and in collusion with the third person attempted to pay himself 100 million cedis.
The number two to Mr Ahwoi who served for 18 years received 10 million cedis whilst a director who worked for 34 years went home with 17 million cedis.
Sources at the GIPC indicate that Mr Ahwoi went through with his plan and was only stopped at the eleventh hour by the Minister of Finance from cashing the 100 million cedis cheque.
The paper was told that the former Chief Executive owns a fleet of personal vehicles, which together constituted about 50 per cent of the Centre’s fuel cost.
Although he had an official 4-wheel drive Cherokee with registration number GR 1140B, he nevertheless allocated another 4-wheel drive GV 1375C to himself. Among his personal cars include a BWM, a Nissan and a most recent being a white Mitsubishi 7-seater cabin imported from Canada and registered GR 7S on January 15, 2001.
Mr Ahwoi who together with his brothers Ato and Kwamena established Cashpro, a cocoa, coffee purchasing agency, is the chairman of the board of directors of the company.
It is further learnt that although Ahwoi was officially asked to proceed on leave by the Minister of Finance.
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‘Ex-government used illegal means to rip-off resources’
The New Patriotic Party (NPP), has stated that the erstwhile NDC government engaged in blatant illegalities to rip of Ghana’s scare resources.
Reacting to the Greenstreet Committee’s statement that it did not recommend the sale of vehicles to ex-Ministers of State, MPs and other government appointees, Mr Kwadwo Afari, a member of the Publicity Committee of the party, said all those involved in the alleged “looting” of the vehicles should return them or pay the difference in accordance with the President’s directive.
“During their reign for almost two decades, the NDC made all illegalities legal and paid to themselves huge sums of money from 1992 through 1996 and the year 2000,” he said.
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‘War with private press cost NDC elections’
The Chronicle says that the former deputy Western Regional Minister and MP for Bibiani, Seidu Paakuna Adamu, has attributed the defeat of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the December general elections to the antagonistic attitude it adopted towards some of the media houses in the country thus making it impossible for them to carry their messages to the public.
He said the NDC, as a party, has now realised that the adoption of such hostile attitude towards a section of the press would no more be in the best interest of the party, therefore they have decided to forge a closer link with all press houses in the country to enable them put their programmes across to the people.
Seidu Adamu, who was addressing executive members of the party in the Takoradi constituency last Monday, said in view of this, NDC party will now support the NPP government for the repeal of the criminal libel law from the statute books because they (journalists) have now come of age and therefore need to be given a free hand to operate.
He noted that the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has also come out with code of ethics to guide the operations of their members, whilst the Media Commission is also playing its constitutional role of checking the excesses of the media.
“It would, therefore be wrong for any one or group of people to argue that the criminal libel law should be retained in our statute books.,” he said.
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Army probes X-Minister
The Chronicle says its investigations have revealed that a six member board of enquiry has been set up by the top hierarchy of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) to probe the former minister of Defence, Lt. E.K.T. Donkoh for ordering the purchase of tinned fish worth 1.308 billion cedis for the Ghana Armed Forces in the run-up to the December 2000 elections.
Senior military officers told the paper that they smell a rat and that the transaction was shrouded in secrecy and was contrary to laid down procedures by the Ghana Armed Forces in the procurement of food items.
The board has been tagged to investigate the circumstances leading to the procurement and supply of tinned fish by MYROC Food Processing Company Ltd to the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF).
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Kufuor in near Air disaster
President John Kufuor’s disdain for the Presidential Jet bought by the NDC administration has, according to ‘The Ghanaian Voice’, been brought to the fore again.
Two weeks ago, it was President Obasanjo of Nigeria who sent an aircraft to pick the Ghanaian President to Abuja, Nigeria.
Last Tuesday, February 27, it was the turn of Libyan leader Muammar Ghaddafi to send a Boeing 727 aircraft to President Kufuor, but there was near disaster when ten minutes into the flight, the aircraft had to return to the Kotoka International Airport because the pressure in the aircraft had fallen sharply and needed re-fixing on ground. The Ghanaian technicians were called in to assist their Libyan counterparts to rectify the situation.
When contacted, Ms. Elizabeth Ohene, Minister of State for Media Relations, confirmed that there was a problem of lack of pressure so it had to return for the problem to be rectified.
“It eventually took the President to Libya” She stated. A Ghana Airways source told the paper that the national carrier had prepared a Boeing 727 leased from South African Airways ready for the President’s trip to Libya, but the Libyan leader had offered to send an aircraft to convey the President.
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Gov’t to probe castle loan
The Minority NDC members in Parliament were on Tuesday shaken to the core when the Member of Parliament for Old-Tafo-Suame, Hon. Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu dropped the hint that the NPP government would soon institute a probe into the disappearance of two billion cedis (2 billion) allocated for the renovation and refurbishment of the Castle, the official seat of government.
The hitherto minority bench which had been inundated with noise and heckling became dead silent, according to Thursday’s edition of ‘The Independent’.
It was very difficult from the press gallery to guess exactly the cause of the sudden despondency but the apparent shock, and murmuring after the bombshell however, offered some clue which was later confirmed by some MPs that the minority was not the least amused by the intended probe.
While some of them were shocked that such an amount was contracted for the Castle project without the consent of Parliament, others opined that the intended action only smacked of witch-hunting.
Hon Mensah-Bonsu had intervened on a point of order during a contribution by the MP for Keta, Hon. Dan Abodakpi who described President Kufuor’s description of the Castle as unfair to the former regime of the NDC.
According to the Old-Tafo-Suame MP, an amount of two billion cedis was in 1999 allocated for the renovation of the Castle and that there was going to be a probe into what the money was used for.
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NPP’s plot to disband SFO leaked
The Ghanaian Democrat reports that serious moves are being made by the NPP government to disband the Serious Fraud Office (SFO).
A letter has been signed by Mr. Jake Obetsebi Lamptey ordering SFO to justify its existence as an institution established to investigate serious economic crimes against the state.
Whilst the SFO is battling with how to deal with Jake’s letter, its offices have been invaded by NPP supporters who are sifting through confidential files and ostensibly taking some sensitive ones away.
The paper’s sources at the office of the President revealed that NPP men sent to the SFO were mandated to go through the files and remove those that have incriminating evidence against NPP business tycoons.
According to the sources, the Kufuor government is determined to protect their business crooks for their financial assistance to the party.
The sources also hinted that the scrapping of the SFO is to pave way for the NPP to personally take over the investigation of such crimes at the office of the president under the so-called Accountability Desk.
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NDC accuse NDC
The Daily Guide says accusations and counter accusations have riddled the Ashanti Regional Head office of the National democratic Congress (NDC) over who has chopped what money.
While the Regional Chairman of the party, P.E. Antwi is being accused of allegedly squandering away $25,000 of the party’s fund, to sponsor his brother’s foreign trip, Mr Nti Fordjour the party’s Vice Chairman is also being accused for allegedly stuffing 1.6 billion cedis a left over fund after the December 28, 2000 election which was allegedly kept in the custody of Nti Fordjour.
Guide sources indicate that as part of the NDC’s scheme for the 2000 elections, 6 billion cedis was pumped into the region for all manner of electoral activities, including thuggery.
The source told the Guide that after the outcome of the elections of December 28, Nti Fordjour told some party faithfuls in the open that the party was left with a balance of 1.6 billion cedis which he intended depositing in an undisclosed account.
But when the final defeat of the party was announced, Nti seized the opportunity to enrich himself, the source alleged.
There have been a number of confrontation with Nti to even release part of the money for administrative expenses, but he has treated all these with contempt, the source further alleged.
The Guide learnt that Nti eventually told his party members that he has nothing to render to any one by way of accounts.
It is however an open secret within the rank and file of NDC in Kumasi that the alleged missing 1.6 billion cedis is creating a lot of disquiet and is tearing the party apart as Fordjour is allegedly firm in his conviction not to mind anybody over the said sum and the question of accountability.
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Energy adviser dares Tsatsu Tsikata to a public debate over GNPC saga!
Dr Charles Wereko-Brobby, Special Adviser to the President on Energy matters, has challenged the former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) to debate him at any given time, ‘The Crusading Guide’ reported.
“I am willing and today confirming that I would like Mr Tsatsu Tsikata to sit down with me for whatever length it takes, for us to go through this business”. He said.
The Energy Advisor said GNPC was set up to help Ghana refine oil and if for the past two decades this corporation had been concentrating on oil exploration, being its core business, Ghana would have found oil by now.
Speaking on a Radio Universe, an Accra-based FM radio, programme ‘Newspaper Review’ he also alleged that Dr Kwesi Botchwey, a one time Finance Minister of this country, resigned because GNPC managed to incur $200 million debt.
“Now I can tell you that another $200 million debt had been accrued by GNPC when it got into crude oil trading in 1997 with Volta River Authority (VRA) and Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG)”, he disclosed.
The Energy expert further revealed that the Japanese government had given Ghana an amount of $125 million to procure 225 mega watts power barge built in Italy which had been sitting there idle for two years thereby costing the corporation almost $10 million in the payment of rent.
Again GNPC entered into hedging and had as a result, incurred another colossal debt of $65 million.
He stated categorically that all these figures are not part of the 41.1 trillion cedis debt.
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