GRi Newsreel Ghana
09 - 10 – 2001
Seventeen ex-District Chief Executives to get retirement benefit
Armed
robbers attack missionary
Ban
on firecrackers still in force
Change
mode of selection of ‘Best Farmers’ - NPP executives
Dist
Assemblies urged to evolve poverty reduction strategies
Concerned
citizens initiates tree planting in Ashanti
Accra (Greater Accra) 09 October 2001 - The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, has directed that 17 former district chief executives DCEs) be paid their end of service benefits (ESB).
The recommendation is based on findings of interim audit reports received by the ministry from the Auditor-General's Department.
They are the former DCEs of Akatsi, Keta, Ketu, South Tongu, Atebubu, Wenchi, Bawku East and Yilo Krobo. The rest are the former DCEs of Dangme,West, Sefwi Wiawso, Tema, West Akim, Aowin, Suaman, Berekum, Offinso, Lawra and Kwabre.
Capt Nkrabeah Effah-Dartey (rtd) the Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development announced at a press conference in Accra and said so far interim audit reports have been received from 68 districts while 42 are yet to be submitted.
Capt Effah-Dartey said "the reports are littered with the grave queries about gross misappropriation of the district and the wanton misuse of the district assemblies common fund".
The reports have revealed that more than 400 million cedis, misappropriated by some of the assemblies were used to finance operations of the 31st December Women's Movement (DWM).
He gave instances where the Atwima District Assembly spent a total of 12 million cedis on a day's visit by the President of DWM, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings and when she visited Assin Fosu, the assembly spent 23 million cedis on her visit.
At Koforidua in the New Juaben District, 15 million cedis was spent on the construction of the DWM Day Care Centre, and 11 million cedis on other programmes of the movement.
Capt Effah-Dartey said reports further revealed that the Keta District Assembly spent 24 million cedis on the DWM branch at Afiadenyigba, while at Dodowa in the Dangme West District, the assembly spent 46 million of the common fund to build a workshop which the DWM took as its own. The Jasikan District also spent 60 million cedis to build a complex for the movement.
He also said the ministry after going through the findings in the interim audit reports, has referred 28 reports to the Attorney-General's Department for study and advice. He did not disclose the names of the affected districts but said "the facts are horrifying and are enough to stun even die-hard supporters of the NDC".
He cited the Zabzugu/Tatale District, where the former DCE spent 336 million cedis and an additional 50 million cedis of the common fund on supplies that were not delivered. According to him, the former DCE also spent 170 million on "ghost projects", while he personally administered the poverty alleviation fund of the assembly and disbursed 80 million cedis without a list of beneficiaries.
He said two days before the December 2000 elections the former DCE withdrew 18 million cedis from the common fund which he has not accounted for.
In the Ahafo Ano South DIstrict, Capt Effah-Dartey said a total of 34.2 million cedis was spent on what was described as "election expenses", and in the Jaman District, an amount of 3 million cedis was spent on NDC campaign billboards.
He said the Asuogyaman District was found to have spent 7 million cedis on elections, while the Bole District used a total of 17 million cedis on the NDC and its affiliated organs. In the Nkwanta District, the former DCE was also found to have given 14 million cedis to the NDC.
Meanwhile a total of 107 million cedis from the poverty alleviation fund of the Asuogyaman, Atwima and Bole Districts and the Shama Ahanta East Metropolitan Assemblies, given as loans to CASHPRO, a private commercial company, cannot be accounted for.
Capt Effah-Dartey said "all these loans were granted to the private company from the poverty alleviation fund of the assemblies, after denying poor women and youth the facility".
He mentioned the Kumasi, Shama Ahanta East Metropolitan Assemblies, the Asanate Akim North and South, and the Sunyani Districts as some of the assemblies whose cases "require further investigations" as a result of huge inexplicable spending.
Capt Effah-Dartey said the exercise is still going on in earnest and gave the assurance that "we will not unduly delay the payment of ESBs to former DCEs who deserve to be paid, but we also pledge to protect the tax payers' money". - Daily Graphic.
Send your
comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Return to
top
Wa (upper
West) 09 October 2001-A gang of armed robbers at the weekend attacked the
residence of the Reverend Keith Wayne Jaggers, an American Missionary working
with the Glorious Assembly Church at Wa.
They
attacked in the early hours of Friday, took 350,000 cedis and 100 dollars and
drove away his white air-conditioned Land Rover cross-country vehicle with
registration Number AS 4965 D that was parked in the garage before Police
arrived at the scene.
Briefing
newsmen at Wa on Monday, Inspector Daniel Dorkpoh, Upper West Regional Police
Public Relations Officer, said the gang first disconnected telephone lines and
scaled the fence into the house.
He said the
night watchman, who sustained serious injuries in his right palm and cheek,
struggled with them but was over-powered and his single barrel gun seized from
him.
The
watchman was treated and discharged on at the Wa government hospital. The
Missionary and his wife were not hurt. The Police have appealed to the public
to assist in their search for the robbers.
GRi…/
Send your
comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Accra
(Greater Accra) 09 October 2001-The Ministry of Trade and Industry on Monday
said the ban on the importation and the sale of firecrackers is still in force.
A statement
signed by Mrs. Rebecca Ackwonu, Public Relations Officer of the ministry,
warned the public especially, importers to desist from importing them to avoid
prosecution.
GRi…/
Send your
comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Hohoe
(Volta Region) 09 October 2001-The New Patriotic Party (NPP) executives of the
Hohoe-South and Hohoe-North constituencies have called on the government to
evolve a new method for the selection of award winners of the national farmer's
day in December.
At a
meeting last Friday, the executives suggested that the yardstick for the
selection of award winners, which included the inspection of the livestock and
crop farms should be stopped to enable poor farmers, who could afford the
construction of even a fish pond to be considered.
The NPP
executives claimed that almost all-national award winners selected by the
Ministry of Food and Agriculture's technical officers were those, who were rich
and could easily afford the prizes given them.
They,
therefore, advised the selection committee to consider the peasant farmers more
than those engaged in large-scale farming.
"The
best teacher award organised by the Ghana Education Service (GES) should be
copied. Poor teachers in the villages, who perform well irrespective of where
they teach are always selected as national award winners, but with the national
farmers award, only large-scale farmers, who are rich are awarded to the
exclusion of the poor farmer."
The
Executives called on the selection committee to come out with measures that
would allow peasant farmers in the remote villages without livestock to be
chosen for national awards instead of district award.
GRi…/
Send your
comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Tamale
(Northern Region) 09 October 2001-The Northern Regional Director of Food and
Agriculture,
Mr Sylvester Adongo, on Monday called on District Assemblies in Northern Ghana
to evolve new strategies to reduce poverty.
Mr Adongo
said the social consequences of poverty in the area are the high school dropout
rate, environmental degradation and early marriages especially among girls.
He was
speaking at a workshop for 24 presiding members from the 24 district assemblies
in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions in Tamale.
Mr Adongo
attributed the high poverty rate to illiteracy and ignorance, which must be
addressed "if we are to win the war against poverty".
The
workshop, organised by the Institute of Local Government Studies in
collaboration with Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) aimed at building the
leadership skills of the presiding members, formulate strategies on how to make
their office more effective and to help build a network of mutual co-operation.
Mr Ben
Bukari Salifu, Northern Regional Minister, in an address read for him, asked
the participants to exercise a high sense of responsibility, probity and
accountability in the discharge of their duties.
He said the
Assemblies are to help accelerate the development of the rural areas and warned
that any District Chief Executive who diverts funds for development would be
severely dealt with.
Mr Salifu
called for the organisation of similar workshops for core-members and staff of
the district assemblies to sharpen their skills.
Mrs Joyce
Mensah, Programme Co-ordinator of FES promised that the organisation would
continue to collaborate with other stakeholders to enhance capacity building of
the assemblies.
GRi…/
Send your
comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Atwima
(Ashanti Region) 09 October 2001-A three-week afforestation project for first
cycle schools in Ashanti initiated by the Concerned Citizens Association of
Ghana (CCAG) has ended.
The
project, which was in collaboration with the Forestry Commission, Ghana
Education Service, Ghana National Fire Service and National Disaster Management
Organisation, was on the theme: "The Role of School Children in the
National Afforestation Programme". Beneficiary districts were
Bosomtwe-Atwima-Kwanwoma, Amansie West, Sekyere West and Offinso.
Mr Joseph
Y. Aidoo, National President of the association expressed satisfaction about
the response and enthusiasm of the pupils and thanked the Forestry Commission,
the District Assemblies and other collaborating institutions for ensuring the
success of the project.
Seven
pupils from each school were selected to care for the trees. Mr Aidoo and the
National Women's Organiser of the association, Ms. Alberta Nortey, inspected
the association's afforestation projects at Techiman, Techimantia and Jinijini
in the Brong-Ahafo.
GRi…/
Send your
comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com