GRi Newsreel Ghana 06 - 10 - 2000
Rawlings holds talks with South Africa's Mbeki
Mills was right in boycotting forum - Ankomah
NPP government will continue with ongoing
projects - Secretary
African renaissance not a dream - Mbeki
Women parliamentarians asked to dialogue with
media
Chief cautions against inflammatory remarks in election campaign
IPR holds annual general meeting
Concerned civil servants
want SSNIT streamlined
CPP cautioned to stop relying on destiny.
Journalists humiliated at luncheon
Unite to meet common challenges, govt, business
and labour told
Rawlings holds talks with South Africa's
Mbeki
Accra (Greater Accra) 06 October 2000
President Jerry John Rawlings on Thursday rolled out the red carpet at the Castle, Osu, to formally welcome South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki for a four-day official visit and held talks with him.
President Mbeki arrived on Wednesday night at the head of a large delegation from Nigeria for the second of a three-nation African tour, which will conclude in Senegal.
On arrival at the Castle, he inspected a guard of honour formed by a detachment from the 48 Engineer Regiment of the Ghana Army commanded by Major Mohamed Mustapha.
The two leaders mounted a rostrum to acknowledge the national anthems of Ghana and South Africa while 21 guns boomed their salute at the background.
This is the first time an official welcoming ceremony for a visiting Head of State was held at the Castle. An official of the State Protocol Department explained that the ceremony could not be held at the airport on Wednesday due to the late arrival of President Mbeki.
Mr. Victor Gbeho, Minister of Foreign Affairs, who opened the talks, recalled Ghana's role in the liberation struggle, the fight against apartheid and said now the "the struggle has entered another phase which is the fight against racial discrimination."
He told President Mbeki: "I know you will succeed because since you emerged as President of your country, you have achieved many successes."
Dr Nkosazana Zuma, Foreign Minister of South Africa, said: "our past leaders, like the late President Kwame Nkrumah, ex-President Nelson Mandela and a host of others, fulfilled their mandate of liberating Africa.
"Now, the baton has been passed on to us to pursue the economic emancipation of our continent."
At the talks were Ghana's Ministers of Trade and Industry, Defence, Local Government and Tourism.
President Mbeki later went on a ride through some of the main streets of Accra and acknowledged cheers from thousands of people.
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Mills was right in boycotting forum - Ankomah
Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 06 October 2000
Mr. Owusu Ankomah, an independent presidential candidate who later pulled out of the race, said Vice-President John Evans Atta Mills was right in refusing to take part in the first-ever forum for presidential candidates last month.
Freedom Forum, an American foundation dedicated to free expression, organised the forum in collaboration with the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) and the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC).
Mr. Ankomah described Professor Mills' action as right and therefore asked the media and those who were criticising him to leave him in peace.
In a statement issued in Kumasi on Thursday, Mr. Ankomah said the fact that Ghanaians had to sit down for a foreign organisation to organise an important forum of that nature for them was not proper.
He said Ghana is an independent sovereign state capable of organising the forum without any outside interference, adding: "the election is about choosing leaders to solve the numerous problems of the nation so any outside interference would mean intrusion into Ghana's internal affairs".
Before the forum, which was under the theme "Press, Power, and Politics: The views of Ghana's Presidential Candidates", the National Democratic Congress (NDC) expressed misgivings about the nature and manner of organisation of the programme.
It also explained that the multiplicity of roles of the Vice-President, including his functions as Acting President, would not afford him the time to participate in the programme.
Mr. Ankomah therefore cautioned against allowing foreigners to tell us how to conduct our affairs, pointing out that it was a dangerous thing to do.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 06 October
2000
The statue of General Emmanuel
Kwasi Kotoka, a key member of the National Liberation Council (NLC) that ousted
President Kwame Nkrumah in 1966, was on Thursday de-mounted to facilitate the
commencement of the second phase of the rehabilitation of the airport named
after him.
The statue was erected in 1969 in
his memory at the fore court of the airport terminal building where his body
was found after an abortive coup in 1967. It would be kept in the custody of
the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board (GMMB).
At a short ceremony before the de-mounting,
the Reverend Samuel Tettey Bamfo of the Presbyterian Church offered Christian
prayers whilst a representative of the La Mantse, Nuumo Laryea, poured
libation.
Wing Commander Andy Mensah,
Director-General of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, said an appropriate
place for the statue would be decided after the project is completed.
The new location would be decided
in consultation with the government and management of the museum.
He said the "Meeters and
Greeters Hall" would be located at the site of the statue, as part of the
expansion programme of the airport.
The second phase, estimated at 74
million dollars, would involve the expansion and reconstruction of the arrival
and departure terminals and the completion of the road network modification.
The runway and the domestic
terminal will also be extended and a modern navigational aid provided.
The project, which forms part of
the medium-term plan to modernise the entire airport to international standard,
is scheduled to be completed by December 2001.
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NPP government will continue with on-going
projects - Secretary
Ga (Upper West Region) 06 October 2000
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) will not abandon any development project being undertaken by the present government when voted into power, Alhaji Sahanun Mogtari, Upper West Regional Secretary of the party has said.
"All these projects are being financed with the people's taxes and loans which you and even future generations will have to pay. There will be no justification to stop them."
Mr. Mogtari who was addressing separate rallies at Ga and Daffiama in the Wa East and Nadowli North constituencies, pointed out that the Akosombo Dam was constructed by the CPP government from which the NDC is extending electricity.
He assured the people that the NPP would make the cost of the use of these facilities affordable through job creation, better remuneration, good prices for farm produce and more rewarding income generation activities.
Mr. Mogtari said the party would abolish the cash-and-carry system of paying for medical care to discourage people from the practice of self-medication, which they do because they cannot afford hospital bills.
At Daffiama, Alhaji Mogtari who defected from the NDC, asked the people for forgiveness for contributing to their hardships by helping to plant NDC in the region.
He pledged to uproot the party wherever he was instrumental in its victory, describing the NDC leadership as ungrateful.
Mr. Godfrey Tangu, parliamentary candidate for Wa East said he would enter into partnership with the people to develop the constituency when elected.
He challenged the incumbent MP to show what he has done with his share of the MPs common fund all these years.
He said the NPP has the right type of human resources to propel the nation forward and urged the people to vote for Mr. J.A. Kufuor as president and the party's parliamentary candidates.
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African renaissance not a dream - Mbeki
Accra (Greater Accra) 06 October 2000
South African President Thabo Mbeki on Thursday said African renaissance is not a dream as some incidents on the continent have falsely portrayed.
"We are already seeing the seeds of this renewal being planted everyday by many brave and pioneering ordinary people as well as leaders in business, politics, culture and other fronts."
Mr. Mbeki was delivering the third annual Nelson Mandela Memorial Lectures on the theme "African Renaissance: The Challenge of our Time" in Accra.
It was organised by the Ghana-South Africa Friendship Association (GHASAFA) to honour Mr. Mbeki, currently on a four-day visit to Ghana.
Mr. Mbeki cited Telkom, South African parastatal that had secured over 600 million dollars to fund the implementation of an undersea telecommunications project to link the continent with Asia and Europe.
The project, expected to cater for the continent's communications needs for the next 25 years, is "vital for the bridging of the digital divide between ourselves and the developed north".
There is also the billion-dollar aluminium smelter in Mozambique expected to generate 1.3 billion dollars annually and the partnership between some South African mining houses and leading Ghanaian mining companies.
Mr. Mbeki said the challenge of today's Africa is to ensure that the pursuit of African renaissance becomes part of the daily activity of Africans.
He said Africa is ready to meet the challenge on the basis of the richness of the human and natural resources, "something that has contributed to the enrichment of outsiders rather than ourselves".
Africa, he said, abounds in gold, diamonds, platinum, cobalt, chrome, uranium, tantalum, radium, oil and natural gas, all of which have been of little benefit to the people.
He said the ravages of slavery, colonial plunder, neo-colonial dependence, conflicts, wars and natural disasters are situations Africans could not expect other people to correct for them.
"It is a situation that should not only shame every African patriot, but should surely mobilise all of us into action."
Mr. Mbeki said the challenge facing Africa is to consistently nurture its intellectual capacity to arrest the outflow of human capital and create conditions for the retention of their skills and expertise for development.
"We cannot be fully integrated into the global economy if we do not develop the necessary skills to participate in the knowledge-based communication society."
Mr. Mbeki stressed that Africa must add value to its primary products to stop being regarded as exporters of raw materials and importers of manufactured goods.
In addition, "we need to consistently engage the developed north on the question of access to their markets for our products."
However, such steps cannot succeed unless the continent's political and economic integration are accelerated and any obstacle removed.
Mr. Mbeki said colonial relics that identify African countries according to their colonisers must also be overcome.
"Of critical importance is that we should have a leadership that is committed to defending the interests of our people, the leadership that has turned its back from corrupt practices and abuse of power for self-interest."
He said Africans must always demonstrate deep levels of seriousness and urgency in what they do and avoid the casual approach "and a belief that things would happen on their own".
Africans must also find a permanent solution to the self-serving promotion of ethnic, religious, racial and narrow nationalist interests responsible for many conflicts within and between countries.
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Chief cautions against inflammatory remarks
in election campaign
Accra (Greater Accra) 06 October 2000
A traditional ruler on Thursday re-stated the need for people to refrain from making inflammatory remarks about others holding opposing views in their anxiety to score political points.
Nana Nketsia Afful, Abontsidomhene of Abeadze traditional area in the Central Region, who was speaking to the GNA in Accra, said any behaviour that could breach the prevailing peaceful atmosphere in the run up to the December 7 general election should be avoided.
Nana Afful said as much as possible people should not make hostile political arguments while the quick-tempered should abstain from attending programmes of their opponents.
He said elections form an important part of the process for socio-economic development and it is therefore important that nothing is done to mar the process of selecting people to handle the affairs of the nation.
He said people aspiring for elected public office should be encouraged to tell the electorate what they are capable of doing with the mandate they are seeking, adding that this should be done without animosity or rancour.
"It will be very unfortunate if we allow the electoral process to divide us and destroy the gains we have achieved so far".
Nana Afful urged chiefs to set up early warning mechanisms to draw the attention of political parties to activities that have the potential of breaching the peace.
He expressed his appreciation for efforts by some non-governmental organisations to ensure peaceful elections and exhorted the political parties to co-operate.
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IPR holds annual general meeting
Accra (Greater Accra) 06 October 2000
Mr. John Mahama, Minister of Communications, on Thursday urged members of the Institute of Public Relations (IPR) to take cognisance of changes in information technology in order to design and produce the right information needed by the public for development.
He said the demand for information is growing at a very fast rate due to improved technology and this poses "a great challenge to PR practitioners to really prove their competitiveness towards the provision of quality and marketable information".
Mr. Mahama, who was addressing members of the IPR at their annual general meeting, said the world is in a new dispensation in terms of political, economic and technological advancement. The role of Public Relations practitioners is, therefore, very vital in ensuring harmony between organisations and the public.
The meeting will consider the 2000 annual report, appoint auditors for this year and approve the budget for next year.
The Minister stressed the need for the IPR to design training workshops and seminars for its members to upgrade their knowledge on information technology and be able to create an electronically well-packaged information on their respective organisations for public consumption.
He noted that PR practitioners are often not involved in critical management decisions and yet they left alone to defend these decisions when they come under press scrutiny.
Mr. Mahama said this attitude is affecting the performance of PR practitioners in providing up-to-date information on their organisations.
He urged members to insist on their rights as members of the management team of their respective organisations so that they can advise on decisions that are taken.
The Minister announced that government has taken a firm lead towards the establishment of electronic governance through a computer networking called the National Information Clearing House Project to encourage communication flow with institutions, individuals and organisations.
Mrs. Margaret Amoakohene, Vice President of IPR said the institute would take up the challenge of establishing an electronically packaged information that could be easily accessible and suitable on the Internet for both local and international consumption.
She congratulated Mr. Robert Kafui Johnson and Nabanyin Pratt who are members of the institute on their new appointments as General Managers of Ghana News Agency and New Times Corporation respectively.
She appealed to all PR practitioners to work hard towards the sustenance of the good image that the IPR has created over the years.
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Concerned civil
servants want SSNIT streamlined
Accra (Greater Accra) 06 October
2000
A group of civil servants on
Thursday called for a policy that will help workers benefit from their
contributions to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) fund before
they retire or die in service.
The group said records show that
SSNIT collects about 50 billion cedis monthly as contribution from workers
adding, "with this colossal sum of money, one expects that it should be
able to grant soft loans to workers who need financial assistance".
A statement signed by Mr. Emmanuel
Patu Amanquanor, Secretary, of Concerned Civil Servants Pressure Group said
there are instances where workers, especially Civil Servants who retire under
the scheme, are given "poor lump sums of money as their pension
benefit".
It asked SSNIT to take a cue from
the many insurance companies, which grant loans to their policy holders based
on accumulated value of their investment account plan.
"In some cases, the policy
holders are allowed to withdraw a portion of their accumulated cash value from
the account and this has enabled some of the policy holders to fulfill their
financial obligations."
The group expressed regret that,
for many years now, SSNIT has not sent statements of account to contributors.
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CPP cautioned to stop relying on destiny
Tema (Greater Accra) 06 October 2000
Mr. Kwasi Pratt Jnr, Chairman of the Publicity Committee of the Convention People's Party (CPP), on Wednesday called on leaders of the party to disabuse their minds of the notion that the party is destined to win the forthcoming elections.
"It is absolutely naïve to continue to perceive that God has finished everything for us. We can only win it if we all campaign and become active organisers in our various constituencies", he told a rally of the Tema East Constituency.
He said party activists should make it their task to explain the party's manifesto when they mount political platforms to convince the electorate to vote for it.
He said when voted into power the CPP would appoint "a new breed of leaders" who understand the cause of the party and are capable of solving the nation's problems.
"The CPP is committed to free education and affordable medical care since these sectors form the basis for the socio-economic development of any nation".
He said the private sector, as the engine of growth, should be supported to play this role effectively.
"The CPP is serving notice that it would review the divestiture programme by revamping all state-owned enterprises which are tainted with corruption to provide jobs for the people".
Mr. Samuel Adjei-Tetteh, Greater Accra Regional Secretary of the party expressed optimism that CPP would win the presidential elections without recourse to a second round of voting.
Mr. Kwaku Awonor, a leading party member said a government of the CPP would fulfill the aspirations of Ghanaians of working and living in a sound socio-economic environment.
Dr F.W. Akuffo, parliamentary candidate for Tema East blamed the government for the hardships Ghanaians are going through.
He said the party would initiate measures to ensure that agriculture is backed by a sound industrialisation programme as was practised by Dr Nkrumah's CPP.
Dr Akuffo appealed to the youth to join the rejuvenated CPP, which would pursue Dr Nkrumah's programme of creating jobs for the jobless.
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Women parliamentarians asked to dialogue
with media
Accra (Greater Accra) 06 October 2000
Women parliamentarian candidates throughout the country have been called upon to build good relationships with the media to receive favourable publicity during their campaigns.
Mrs. Charity Binka of the Women's Desk of Radio GAR, made the call at the end of a two-day Media Skills Training Workshop for Female Parliamentary candidates in Accra.
The workshop, organised by Media Women and Change (WOMEC) and sponsored by the American Embassy, brought together 70 candidates from all the regions, members of the media and observers from various organisations in the country.
It aimed at sensitising the candidates to the work of the media, give them a public voice as part of their campaign strategy and to create a forum to interact with the media.
Some of the topics discussed included knowledge about the work of the media in Ghana, organising a press conference, developing a media plan, and handling negative reportage.
Mrs. Binka, workshop co-ordinator and resource person, speaking on "Catching the Media's Eye", said women are debased and degraded as mere motionless sex objects meant simply to be admired or abused and not to be heard, adding that this attitude must change.
According to her, in catching the media's eye, candidates need to choose a press officer, create a fact sheet and issue press releases to newspapers and magazines as part of their campaigns.
Mrs. Bernadette Chinery-Hesse, Administrative Manager of the Ghana News Agency and a resource person, who spoke on "Developing a Media Plan", urged participants to develop a strategic plan that would help them to get full access to the media.
This could be done by always making sure they send out clear-cut and convincing messages to the public.
Other resource persons included Mr. Daniel Mensah-Brandt of GBC Radio, Cyril Acolatse, Assistant Director of Radio News, Ms Abla Fiadjoe and Mrs. Jeanette Quarcoopome, executives of the WOMEC.
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Journalists humiliated at luncheon
Accra (Greater Accra) 06 October 2000
Ghanaian Journalists covering the launch of the Ghana-South African Business Chamber at a luncheon on Thursday were humiliated by the organisers who inexplicably told them they were not welcome.
Ms Felicia Frempong, Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Chamber, in the full glare of other invited guests, asked the dozen or so local journalists who were already seated to go out. Their South African counterparts were not asked to leave.
"I do not understand why they have come to take up all the seats we have," Ms Frempong said and turning to a TV reporter, she ordered: "You have to go out or we will throw you out."
As if this was not enough, Dr Patrick Phologane, the South African High Commissioner in Ghana, took the microphone and ordered the journalists out before the arrival of President Mbeki, "otherwise the programme will not start".
The embarrassed journalists had no choice but to troop out of the hall.
Mr. Mike Gizo, Minister of Tourism and Mr. Kwesi Ahwoi Chief Executive of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) intervened and appealed to the journalists to give them time to sort things out.
This did little to help as they could only get the journalists into the banqueting hall where they stood throughout the two-and-a-half duration of the programme.
Most of the journalists expressed disgust about the treatment meted out to them and wondered why the organisers invited the media at all if they knew they were not welcome.
The journalists present were from the Ghana News Agency, Daily Graphic, Radio Ghana, Financial Post, TV3, GTV News, The Independent, Weekly Spectator and the Ghanaian Times.
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Unite to meet common challenges, govt,
business and labour told
Accra (Greater Accra) 06 October 2000
Visiting President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa on Thursday tasked Government, business and labour in Africa to unite to meet the common and daunting challenges of the global market place.
This partnership is critical since none of them can succeed by itself, especially on a continent replete with increased poverty, disease and malnutrition, he said at the official launch of the Ghana-South Africa Business Chamber (GSABC) in Accra.
President Mbeki is on a four-day state visit. He has already met President Jerry Rawlings, gone on a state drive through some principal streets of Accra and met with some captains of Ghanaian business enterprises. President Mbeki is accompanied by a 32-man business delegation.
He said: "It is not possible for anyone on the continent to survive alone or be an oasis of success."
President Mbeki said business and industries are condemned to starve or prosper together, "unless we co-operate".
The South African President said co-operation is a necessary condition for the success of GSABC and Ghana-South Africa relations.
He said forging co-operation is the objective of the sub-regional bodies and urged businesses to support them to meet the challenges of development.
President Mbeki charged the chamber to maintain an information balance between the two countries for their mutual benefit and others in the region.
He said African countries need a lot of investment, such as in roads infrastructure, but noted that these investments must first be funded from domestic sources before foreign capital moves in.
President Mbeki urged them to urgently address the issue of encouraging domestic investment in local economies, saying they are key to initiating development.
He condemned theft of state funds and property that are later lodged in foreign banks and asked governments to work at discouraging the phenomenon.
He cited the case of Nigeria and noted that that country has recovered one billion dollars of looted funds by previous leaders and politicians from foreign banks.
President Mbeki said it is "absurd" that after all this, African nations need to address the issue of foreign debt.
"It is clearly absurd that developing countries are rather net exporters of capital to those who have surplus capital in the developed world."
He said he was happy to be in Ghana to build on the common struggles to end under-development and hardship among the millions of people on the continent.
President Mbeki said poverty and diseases such as AIDS and malaria which claim millions of lives each year are challenges that must be fought and won on the continent.
However, the continent has a very weak and underdeveloped health system that does not make people work efficiently.
"Many people in both Ghana and South Africa have no access to good water and sanitation, among other things, and this impacts negatively on the rest of the economy.
"Skilled people then leave the country, not because they want to leave but because they cannot endure the pain of underdevelopment."
He, therefore, charged the chamber to mobilise African skilled resources scattered all over the world, especially in the two countries, for the development of their present conditions.
Dr Felix Kwabena Frempong, Chairman of GSABC, said trade and business relations between the two countries are on a steady course.
"This is not withstanding the that fact that the balance is tilted toward South Africa, though on an equal term."
He said even though the Chamber is young, it will strive to increase business activities between the two countries.
"We will establish a web-site where we will provide a database for the business community world-wide and also be a point of networking between business in Ghana and South Africa.
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