Security forces to deal with mischief makers
Chambas: Govt can’t give more for education
Refinery’s liquidity spills over…Foreign planes have no fuel
NPP forms private army…Kufuor’s residence now military grounds
Municipal Chief Executive misuses prison labour
The NDC coup alarm…Quashigah and army say it’s forgery
Security forces to deal with mischief makers
The Daily Graphic reports Mr Totobi Quakyi, Minister responsible for National Security as assuring Ghanaians that the security forces are alert and poised to deal with any mischief makers, who wish to threaten the peace and stability of Ghana.
The Graphic, in a front-page story quotes Mr Quakyi as saying: "Let me assure everyone in our dear and beloved country that our security forces are fully alert and are perfectly capable of dealing with such lunatic fringes of the country’s democratic dispensation.
The paper says Mr Quakyi was reacting to concerns raised about statements placed on the Internet by a group calling itself "Ghana Armed Liberation Movement". The Minister is reported to have said that investigations have established that the Movement is a shadowy organisation created by elements opposed to the government of the Progressive Alliance, to spread fear and panic among Ghanaians and foreigners alike.
He is said to have revealed that the group has so far, placed three statements on the Internet, the first was on October 8, the second on October 22 and the third was yesterday, November 18.
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Chambas: Govt can’t give more for education
The Ghanaian Times, in a front-page story reports that the Deputy Minister of Education, Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas, has stated that the government cannot go beyond the present 30 to 45 per cent contributions it makes towards education.
This is because of the other pressing but legitimate demands that are made on government from equally important sectors such as health, road, water and agriculture. The story says Dr Chambas has, therefore, appealed to parents and the private sector to supplement the government’s effort in funding tertiary education especially, in order to achieve qualitative public tertiary education.
The Deputy Minister made the appeal yesterday at the opening of the "Readers’ Club Jamboree" in Accra. It is made up of readers clubs from various secondary schools.
The Times says Dr Chambas expressed concern about the youth’s inability to read for pleasure, relaxation or even as a habit. "Students now read only during examinations", he said, stating that such an attitude is detrimental since it makes them fail in their examinations, due to lack of understanding of what they read.
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Refinery’s liquidity spills over…Foreign planes have no fuel
In a front-page story, the Ghanaian Chronicle says reports that with the exception of the presidential jet and Ghanaian-operated aircraft, all airlines flying to Ghana have been refuelling outside before landing at the Kotoka International Airport since October 20, this year.
The Chronicle says the reason is that the foreign airlines cannot be supplied with aviation fuel, also known as JetA-1. The paper says similarly, international shipping vessels and boats on the high seas have also been ordered to fuel outside before docking, because reliable supply of Marine Gas Oil cannot be guaranteed. According to the Chronicle, the directive to this effect had been communicated to all the airline carriers.
The paper names the affected airlines as British Airways, Lufthansa, South African Airways, Swissair, KLM, Alitalia and Aeroflot. The Chronicle says some affected airlines have already been fuelling in Lome, Abidjan, Lagos and neighbouring airports, causing losses in revenue and taxes to the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority.
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NPP forms private army…Kufuor’s residence now military grounds
The Ghana Palaver says weeks of its painstaking investigations have established that the NPP has formed a private army, which would be used to intimidate Ghanaians when, as it is certain to be, the party loses next year’s elections. According to the Palaver, the Accra residence of Mr J.A. Kufuor, NPP presidential candidate, has been formed into a training ground for the so-called NPP Combatants".
The paper says its research has revealed that the core of the NPP’s private army is made up mainly from former members of the security forces, who were dismissed for indiscipline. It says names confirmed by its scouts include Ex-Sgt Roger Fosu, who worked with the Armed Forces Public Relations Directorate and Ex-Cpl. Atiku, who worked with the Military Police.
Both are said to have been dismissed from the service for misconduct while serving as part of the Ghanaian contingent for the United Nations Mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
The Palaver says another name that has been confirmed by its scouts is Ex-L/Cpl. Asare, who was the bodyguard of Lt Colonel Amengor (rtd), when the officer was the Commanding Officer of the Third Battalion stationed in Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo Region. Ex-L/Cpl Asare is said to have been dismissed for misconduct while on border duties at the Ghana-Cote d’Ivoire border.
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Municipal Chief Executive misuses prison labour
In a front-page screaming headline story, the Free Press says to carry out an unpopular and controversial act of pulling down market structures in the Sekondi-Takoradi metropolis, the Metropolitan Chief Executive, Col. Kaku Korsah, allegedly used prisoners under the cover of darkness, to perform the demolition exercise.
The prisoners are said to have been woken from their cells around midnight and driven to the site to demolish the structures until 5 a.m., when they were brought back to their cells. The paper says this special nocturnal ‘prisoner duty’ was reported to have been carried out for two weeks continuous from September 15 to 30, 1997, until all the structures were demolished.
According to the Free Press, the MP made the revelation in Parliament last Wednesday for Takoradi, Mrs Gladys Asmah. Mrs Asmah is reported to have asked the Interior Minister, Nii Okaija Adamafio, under whose authority prisoners were brought out of their cells to work as labourers in town between the hours of midnight and five o’clock, contrary to the traditional practice whereby prisoners are confined in their cells after 6 p.m.
The Minister is said to have replied that it had not come to his notice that prisoners were brought out of their cells between midnight and five o’clock in the morning to work as labourers in any part of Ghana. He, however, stated that upon this information, he would institute a probe into the matter within two weeks.
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The NDC coup alarm…Quashigah and army say it’s forgery
In its top story, the Weekend Statesman says the November 26 coup plan claim has been described as a "totally unprecedented" move, most likely to have been created by the security agencies to create panic and confusion in Ghana.
The paper says in an exclusive interview with Major Courage Quashigah (rtd), former Chief of Operation at the Castle and Commander of the Forces Reserve Battalion, said that he was completely bewildered by the announcement. "I have never heard of any organisation which wants to stage a coup and announced it so openly that they are coming on so and so date.
These things are kept as absolute secret. I mean if you want to remove somebody, the element of surprise is the most potent weapon, otherwise he’ll be ready and waiting for you by the time you get to your target", he is quoted as saying. The Weekend Statesman says Major Quashigah stressed that the issue has been created to cause panic "This has been the tactics of the P(NDC) all these years", he added.
The paper says Major Quashigah, the celebrated Ranger, nicknamed "Tiger" by his peers in the military, recalled "those days that we were there, there were deliberate moves to create the impression that the boys were coming". This, he said, "kept the military running around on a wild goose chase for a very long time, just to keep them away from some of the funny things that were happening".
According to him, "such things are created any time the government is under pressure".
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