We'll purge BOG - Kwabena Duffour
Lecturers to resume work on Monday
Religious Bodies agree to pay tax
MAB, Ghana post sign pact for money transfer
How phantom lady hit Bank of Ghana
Rawlings orders Investigation
NDC adopts rating system for candidates in Tamale
We'll purge BOG - Kwabena Duffour
The Daily Graphic, in a front-page story reports Dr. Kwabena Duffour, Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BOG), as giving the assurance that bad nuts in the bank will be thrown out.
The story says, Dr. Duffour, in reaction to current spate of scandals that have hit the bank, said the purge would not spare anybody. "The central bank thrives on credibility and we will not spare anyone who undermines that credibility."
Dr. Duffour said when officials of the bank first detected the scandals they sought the help of security services to unravel some of the knotty points adding that although ''the bank certainly needs men and women with skills but skills alone are not enough. Integrity must go with skills and so those who do not have both credentials have no room at the bank''.
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Lecturers to resume work on Monday
The University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) has said that lecturers in all the country's universities will resume work on Monday, in anticipation of the government's positive response to proposals submitted to it by a special committee looking into salaries and other conditions of service of university teachers, reports the Daily Graphic on page three.
Dr Daniel Obeng-Ofori, President of UTAG's University of Ghana branch, is said to have indicated in an interview that the call-off is in accordance with the arrangements made to boycott lectures for only one week to draw attention to the poor conditions of service.
"We will surely resume lectures on Monday and we hope that the government will respond appropriately to our demands", Dr Obeng-Ofori was quoted to have said.
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Religious Bodies agree to pay tax
The Ghanaian Times carries a front-page story in which it says religious bodies in the country have agreed to pay taxes on their income-generating activities as spelt out in the Income Tax Decree of 2375, SMCD 5 and Gift Tax Decree 2375 NRCD 348.
According to the Times about 300 representatives of religious bodies, at a seminar to discuss religious bodies rights and obligations under the Income Tax and Gift Tax Laws agreed to pay tax on incomes received from property or business ventures such as the operation of transport services, canteens and others.
The paper says however, that offertories, harvest proceeds, thanksgiving offerings, donations, dues, levies, pledges and tithes are exempt from tax.
IRS officials at the meeting are reported to have explained that the law enjoined any ecclesiastical, charitable or educational institution of a public character that involves itself in trade, business profession or vocation that earns income to pay tax.
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MAB, Ghana Posts sign pact for money transfer
On its business page, the Times reports that the Metropolitan and allied Bank (MAB) has signed an agreement to collaborate with Ghana Posts to deliver monies transferred by its counter parties overseas to beneficiaries in all regions of Ghana.
The pact will enable MAB to provide its money transfer services to the very doorsteps of customers at both the remitting and
receiving ends.
The signing of the agreement comes as a result of a successful pilot project undertaken between the Metropolitan and Allied Bank and Ghana Posts and its money counter parties overseas, Transcash Limited, U.K.
Times says under the pilot scheme, MAB has been able to mobilize over 600,000 pounds sterling (over 3.8billion cedis) of which more than 60 per cent have been remitted through Ghana Post.
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How phantom lady hit Bank of Ghana
The Ghanaian Chronicle, touching on the Bank of Ghana (BOG) fraud, says the bank is fighting what appears to be a dubious rear guard action to protect its flank in the midst of a leaking clearing system that allowed a phantom hustler with multiple run-ins with the law to walk off its offices with a cool US$1,485m
The story says the full panoply of state power has been employed to present an unfair one-sided account that has thrown veteran banker, Mr. Sebastian Kobla Nukpui Gavor, into 10 days of detention despite his comprehensive rebuttals to the Bank's internal investigators.
Chronicle submits that the rebuttals featured in the report which Bank Secretary, Mr. Odei denied feeding to the Graphic in a telephone interview.
Gavor, with 24 years banking experience is described by Chronicle as a 'witness' in the transaction contrary to the 'beneficiary' status given him by Graphic on Thursday.
The story says the state owned Daily Graphic was told selective truths by official BOG sources and the National Security Council that literally hanged Gavor and ignored clear and compelling evidentiary data available that demonstrated that both BOG and the international banks that issued the draft, Chase Manhattan, had goofed.
The story says the hunt for a scapegoat led to men from the National Security leaning on the Judiciary to the extent where a judgement of a High Court in response to a habeas corpus application had been questioned and defied.
The Chronicle report says close associates of Mr. Gavor have expressed their confidence about his innocence of the fraud.
"The Gavor we know can never be involved in a scheme like this", wailed a couple of friends Chronicle says it reached.
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Rawlings orders Investigation
The Dispatch in a front-page story reveals that, President Rawlings has ordered investigations into the Koforidua Water Supply Project. The paper states that, Mr. Charles Adjei, Managing Director of the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) revealed in an interview published in its Wednesday issue that the contract had been awarded to SADE, a French company, instead of a South African company, BATEMAN because Ghana would save about $20 million, the difference between the two bids.
According to the paper, a letter written by Mr. Adjei to the Minister of Works and Housing, was clear that apart from BATEMAN, the other company, which was under consideration, was URQUELL.
Mr. Adjei has also put it on record that he had no idea of a letter written by one of his deputies to the Minister and denied knowledge of the Minister’s reply, which stated, “ the Minister is of the same opinion as stated in your letter”.
However, the paper states that, highly placed sources at the GWCL have confirmed that based on reports that SADE’s was $20 million cheaper, BATEMAN have sent in another proposal, the technical details of which are the same as SADE’s but the cost is $38 million, about $9 million cheaper than SADE’s.
Meanwhile the paper discloses that the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Adjei Mensah, told Parliament on Wednesday that the contract had not been awarded, while telling the Dispatch that the contract has been awarded.
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Under this front-page headline, the statesman reveals that textile dealers in Sekondi-Takoradi went on a four-hour demonstration to protest against the recent steep hikes in textile prices.
Wearing their association’s mourning cloth with red arm and neck bands, the paper said the angry women paraded through the principal streets of the twin city, chanting war songs and dancing.
According to the paper, the demonstrators, who started from the Embassy Hotel, held placards some of which read; "Enough is Enough," "Yeabre mo asem Printex," "Jesus Christ save us."
The paper continues that the drama begun when the demonstrators gathered at the forecourt of the regional administration to present a petition to the Regional Minister Mrs Esther Nkansah.
The paper states that after waiting for over an hour in the sun for the Minister, the women climbed upstairs ignoring the heavy police presence, but the Deputy regional Minister S.P Adamu, saved the situation by asking them to exercise restraint since the
Minister was having discussions with their executives.
According to the paper the Minister later addressed the traders and assured them of government’s effort to help address the problem.
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NDC adopts rating system for candidates in Tamale
In a bid to bar any controversy over the selection of a candidate to contest the primaries for the Gukpegu/Sabongida constituency seat in Tamale, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) is to adopt a rating method to select a suitable candidate, reports the Evening News.
According to the paper, none of the four candidates is prepared to step down for the other, making things difficult for the party in the primaries.
The rating system, which started at the weekend, divides the constituency into 169 branches, while specially, designed forms with candidates names have been submitted to seven executive members in each branch to rate the prospective candidate, Mr. Alhassan Sumaila, deputy Regional Secretary of the NDC disclosed this in an interview with the paper.
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