GRi Press Review 25 – 10 - 2002
Sordid revelations on Ghana Airways
Kufuor may have more confessions - MP
Tema Oil Refinery still imports gas oil
I never siphoned off dollars - Nana Konadu
Reconciliation Commission receives ¢6b
‘I transferred £150,000 to Austria on Sherry Ayittey’s instruction’ - Witness
"Quality Grain" woman jailed 15 years
Libya opens up for Ghanaian goods
Amsterdam mayor meets his Ghanaian counterpart
Malaysians to profit $160m in Ghana Telecom sale?
Waterfall in Ghana named after Dubai
FAO to help Ghana produce silk
Sordid revelations on Ghana Airways
Accra
Prominent among the issues that were contained
in the audit report submitted to government, is the revelation that the former
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), E.L. Quartey, gave out free and discounted air
tickets to certain public officials and friends who travelled on Ghana Airways
to the
A memo dated 26 June 2000 and written by the
Special Assistant of the Ghanair Boss, B.K. Otoo, chanced upon by The
Evening News which was referred to in the Audit report gave the names of
the officials and friends who benefited from these free and discounted air
tickets as Ato Ahwoi, Ms Sherry Ayittey, Rev J.Y. Yamoah and Victor Gbeho for
Boboli, Esther and Col B.G. Kusi.
Ato Ahwoi was given a ticket number
2374401042242 to New York- Accra at the cost of $100, Accra to Johannesburg to
Accra, $1,515; Mrs Ayittey- Accra-Johannesburg-Accra at the cost of $240; K.
Mbeah- Accra-London-Accra, $908; Rev J.Y. Yamoah- Accra-London-Accra, $1,008
with that of Victor Gbeho for Boboli, Ester and Col. B.G. Kusi amounting to
$10,069.
Another memo generated by Otoo on 21 March 2000
gave the name of L. Ankrah, Accra-New York-Accra, $950; J.L. Ankrah, Accra-New
York-Accra, $950; L. Ankrah, New York-Indianapolis-New York, $44; J. Ankrah-
New York-Indiana-New York, $44; Mrs D.M. Quist- Accra-London-Accra, $720; J.A.
Selby- Accra-London-Accra, $60; Mrs Nelson-Accra-London-Accra, $1094; D. Narh-
Accra-Johannesburg-Accra, $1403; Mr Mensah- Accra-Johannesburg-Accra, $1,403
and Mrs I.J. Otuanoboah- Accra-London-Accra, $100, all amounting to $$7,568.
Apart from this, Quartey caused ¢100m to be
paid to Business Development Consultancy (Ghana) Ltd, which was to be charged
against his salary on 2 May 2000 and another ¢45m to St Anthony’s Anglican
Church Accra on 2 May 2000 also against his salary but these were not done.
Snippets of information gathered from the report
also recommended that the past executive and General Management of Ghana
Airways totally failed in their duties in ensuring that the internal audit
function was active and performing to ensure the existence of checks and
balances in the airline’s operations.
It said by their actions, they totally
sacrificed shareholders interest and should be severely sanctioned. It again
said all CEOs and Senior Executive staff since 1998 should be sanctioned
severely for the non-performance of external auditing of the accounts of Ghana
Airways.
The Forensic Audit report said all board
members since 1998 should be severely sanctioned for non-performance of the
external auditing of the Accounts of Ghana Airways.
The report further said that no matter how
government intends to resolve the problems confronting the airline, addressing
these lapses should be considered vital component of the shareholder’s
responsibility. – The Evening News
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Kufuor may have more confessions - MP
Odumase-Krobo
(Eastern Region) 25 October 2002 - The Member of Parliament (MP) for Lower
Manya constituency, Michael Nyanu, has stated that if the President, J.A.
Kufuor, is to stand before Pope John Paul, he would have a lot of confessions
to do.
He
argued that JAK’s confession recently at the press encounter at the Castle that
his criticism of the former government’s number of ministerial appointees drained
the economy was not enough since the President has a lot of confessions to
make.
Nyanu
stated these at a meeting to formally welcome ex-Vice President John Atta Mills
to begin a three-day tour of the Eastern Region at Agomanya on 23 October.
According to the MP, the NPP used the number of ministers in the past
government to campaign against the NDC, but today the NPP has done even worse
by exceeding that number, even to the extent of appointing what they call
Special Assistants (SAs) for every minister apart from their deputies and
directors in their ministries. He questioned whether that is also not draining
the economy.
The
politician recalled that the NPP made many frivolous promises to Ghanaians, one
of which was to create more jobs for the ordinary man on the street, which it
has not done for the past two years.
“They
say there is positive change in the system, maybe yes, because they have
created jobs for only their families to enjoy so there is positive change for
them,” he lamented.
He
lambasted the President for embarking on too many foreign trips as he
questioned, “what type of investment is he bringing into the country that calls
for such trips outside the country”?
Prof
Mills on his part, clarified his point on his statement, “I will consult
Rawlings 24 hours…” which has become a propaganda weapon against him, saying
that he will consult because God did not create a single mind for a man to rule
a country.
And
that if President Kufuor had consulted his elders before appointing his
ministers, he would have been guided not to repeat the mistakes of the NDC by
appointing even more ministers than the NDC did, to contradict himself only to
come back and apologise.
He
cautioned the supporters against internal fighting, deceit and making derogatory
remarks about the party in public since such acts could collapse the party.
The
Eastern regional chairman of the NDC, Fred Ohene Kena, stated that looking at
the number of ministers who served in the former government who have no
criminal charges levelled against them in the law courts, it makes the NPP
statement that they were corrupt unjustifiable but are only lies being peddled
by the NPP.
Ohene
Kena charged all the supporters to give their mandate to or elect a flagbearer
who can work hand in hand with the founder of the NDC Jerry Rawlings since the
party cannot do away with him. There was an open campaign launched by the three
regional chairmen, which goes to vindicate Chronicle’s earlier reports that the
party is in full support of Atta Mills.
At the open forum, most of the supporters
called on the party executives to provide them with the needed logistics to
start work from now, since the 2004 elections are not too far away. – The
Chronicle
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Tema Oil Refinery still imports gas oil
Tema
(Greater Accra) 25 October 2002 - The Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) continues to
import 15 per cent of gas oil for the local market from Nigeria. This is to
beef up local production.
The
refinery’s deputy managing director in charge of operations, Robert Forson,
made this known at Tema. According to him, Ghana used to import gas oil but
with the construction of the Residual Fluid Catalytic Cracker (RFCC) the
country stopped the importation of gas oil and LPG.
However,
we continue to import 15 per cent of the total gas oil required to supplement
local production. Our leaded petrol, the deputy director said, is still being
produced by TOR and assured that 2004 has been targeted as an end to its
production. Plans are far advanced for this to take place before then.
When
asked on preparations being made to avoid flooding of the yard, especially the
pump house anytime it rains, Robert said that studies have gone on to see how
best diversions could be effected to the existing drainage system.
The
American Petroleum Institute (API) Separator, he said, is being worked on to
absorb and function properly. Further inquiries have it that because TOR has
not got enough steam, two main plants, Distillation Unit and the Reformer Unit
have been shutdown during the tie-in into the ¢200m RFCC plant.
This
is to allow enough steam to operate the new RFCC, which is not operating at
full capacity. Petrol, kerosene, LPG and naphtha are processed through this
system of distillation before the naphtha finally goes through the reformer to
produce gas oil.
Since
these two plants have been shut down, the TOR depends solely on what comes out
from the residue being recycled at the RFCC to obtain gas oil. When the TOR,
then Ghana Italian Petrol (GHAIP) was installed about 40 years ago, it was
equipped with five steam boilers but now has only two. The three have been
declared as scarp. – The Ghanaian Chronicle
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I never siphoned off dollars - Nana Konadu
London
(United Kingdom) 25 October 2002 - The former First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman
Rawlings, has stated emphatically that she has never siphoned off millions of
dollars from the national coffers into her foreign account as being peddled by
a section of the media in the country.
According
to her, such publication is an attempt to criminalise and downgrade her and the
husband to the citizens of the country as well as the international community.
“Look, my father advised me that I am better off and a good name is better than
riches, so I should not engage in any act that would tarnish my image,” she
said.
Nana
Konadu made this claim when she spoke to Ben Dotse Marlor on “Post Mark
Africa,” a BBC programme last weekend.
When
Nana Konadu was asked by the BBC reporter whether she feels embarrassed on such
allegations, she answered affirmatively, adding that she pities those who read
such miscalculated information about her in newspapers and believe it to be
factual, adding that “posterity would judge us all.”
The
former first lady stressed that if this is how the media in the country is
going to operate, then she is afraid of what the country will become in future.
Readers
will recall that after the NDC government had relinquished power to the NPP
administration nearly two years ago, the former First Lady had been bombarded
by a section of the media which accused her of stashing millions of dollars
from the national coffers in her foreign account.
Recently,
Kweku Baaku, the managing editor of the Crusading Guide assured
Ghanaians that he was leaving for Europe to bring what he described as “Apo
Kronkron” that would expose the said huge amount of money he (Kweku) claimed
the former First Lady had deposited at one of the banks in Europe. – The
Ghanaian Chronicle
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Reconciliation Commission receives ¢6b
Accra
(Greater Accra) 25 October 2002 - The government has released an additional ¢6b
($830,000) to the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) to facilitate its
work.
This
brings to the total amount released to the commission so far as ¢7.6b, since it
began its work this year. The initial amount released was ¢1.6 billion.
The
Director of Public Affairs of the NRC, Ms Annie Anipa, who announced this at a
news conference in Accra yesterday, said, “this swift response of the government
to our needs is a clear indication of the government’s commitment to the
reconciliation process.”
The
commission requires about $5m to enable it to complete its work. Giving a
breakdown of how the money will be utilised, she said ¢2.2b will be used to
purchase vehicles and equipment for the five zonal offices and the
headquarters.
Ms
Anipa said the commission is gearing up particularly at the zonal offices to
deploy staff to the districts to take statements from alleged victims and
persons with complaints of human rights violations.
She,
therefore, described the release of the funds for the acquisition of the
vehicles and equipment as refreshing as it will facilitate the work of all the
offices while public education on the reconciliation process will be extended
to cover the districts.
Ms
Anipa noted that the commission has accepted the challenge contained in its
mandate “that’s why in spite of the apparent lack of logistics in the first
month of its work, all the directorates of the commission kept working
conscientiously.”
She
expressed the hope that this would lay to rest the concerns expressed about
funding and logistics. s Anipa said the money will be able to sustain the
commission for the last quarter of the year and January next year when it will
require another release.
On
the number of people who have filed complaints with the commission so far, she
said a total of 1,983 people have filed, with Greater Accra still in the lead
with 755, followed by Kumasi with 527.
Ms
Anipa said Takoradi has 281, Tamale 256 while Bolgatanga has 53. Ms Anipa
dispelled the misconception that the commission is targeting the military and
other security agencies because it held interactive fora with the armed forces,
the police and the prison services in the Greater Accra Region.
She
said the interactions have rather deepened the understanding of these services
on the commission’s work and also helped to dispel the misconceptions that the
commission is targeting the military and other security agencies, especially
when information was made available that ex-military and ex-police officers
have submitted statements to the commission.
Ms
Anipa said the commission has also been able to put counsellors in all zonal
offices to deal with the emotional needs of alleged victims.
“Our
counsellors have been making follow-up visits to the homes of aggrieved persons
who are unable to come to the commission’s offices. This is because counselling
is an important aspect of the commission’s work, as it is the beginning of the
healing process which is vital for achieving reconciliation,” she added.
Ms
Anipa said the complaints from non-resident persons are also welcome and
described the response from Ghanaians living abroad as encouraging. She said
the commission requests persons with vital information who are not resident in
Ghana to submit their statements through any reliable means.
On
media coverage so far, she said it has been satisfactory but called for more
circumspection. Ms Anipa said for instance, that the media have published
reports of complaints by alleged victims of human rights violations after such
complaints have been lodged with the commission.
She
said as much as the commission would want to believe that such publications are
done with good intentions, it is the observation of the commission that such
publications could interfere with its investigations as vital evidence could be
destroyed or tampered with.
Ms
Anipa, therefore, appealed to the media to co-operate and help the commission realise
its objectives by exercising their editorial judgement to publish or not to
publish such stories when approached by aggrieved persons.
“This
will ensure that the commission’s work is made easier,” she said. Meanwhile,
the government has stated that money will not hamper the work of the National
Reconciliation Commission (NRC). It said in spite of the initial financial
problems confronting the NRC, it will always find the resources to enable the
commission to fulfil its mandate.
A
Government Spokesperson, Kofi Amponsah Bediako, who gave the assurance in an
interview, said the government accepts that the reconciliation process is
necessary and must begin immediately without delay. He was reacting to
assertions in the media that the commission was under-resourced. – Daily
Graphic
GRi…/
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‘I transferred £150,000 to Austria on Sherry Ayittey’s instruction’ - Witness
Accra
(Greater Accra) 25 October 2002 - A Prosecution witness in the Ghana Rubber
Estate Limited (GREL) divestiture case told the Fast Track Court in Accra on
Thursday that he transferred £150,000 into a numbered account in Austria in
September, 1996, upon the instruction of Hanny Sherry Ayittey, former Managing
Director of GIHOC Distilleries.
The
witness, Dr Albert Owusu Banafo, said he made the transfer based on a
hand-written note Sherry Ayittey, who is, also the treasurer of the 31st
December Womens Movement (DWM), sent to him through Miss Georgina Okaitey.
Dr
Banafo identified the hand-written note when the prosecution showed it to him.
Sherry Ayittey and three others are being tried on various charges of
corruption in connection with the divestiture of GREL.
The
other accused persons are Emmanuel Amuzu Agbodo, former Executive Secretary of
the Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC); Ralph Casely-Hayford, a
businessman, and Satire Dorcas Ocran, a housewife.
They
have all pleaded not guilty to the charges and the court, presided over by
Justice J.C. Amonoo-Monney, an Appeal Court judge sitting as an additional High
Court judge, has granted each of them self-recognisance bail.
Dr
Banafo told the court that the transfer was the last in a series of payments
made to DWM by Societe Industrielle Plantation Herea (SIPH), the France-based
majority shareholders of GREL, in its bid to acquire government’s interest in
GREL.
Led
in evidence by Osafo Sampong, the Director of Public Prosecutions, Dr Banafo
said after receiving the note, he asked Miss Okaitey to contact Sherry for the
full details of the
account
into which the amount was to be transferred.
He
said he contacted the bank when the details were made available to him, but was
later told that the information was insufficient. As a result of this
development, witness said, he requested Miss Okaitey to contact Sherry for the
correct details of the account to empower him to effect the transfer. According
to witness, he finally executed the transfer after Sherry had provided him with
the correct details of the account.
Dr
Banafo tendered in evidence, a copy of the full details of the account, which,
he said, he had kept since the transaction was made. However, Johnny Quarshie-Idun,
counsel for Sherry objected to the document being tendered. The objection was,
however, overruled by the court.
Earlier,
Dr Banafo had told the court that he delivered $250,000 cash to Sherry as the
treasurer of DWM in October 1996 and another $180,000 in April 1998. According
to him, he made another payment of $120,000 to Sherry in May 1998.
He
said the letter of approval from the DIC that authorised SIPH to acquire 75 per
cent of government interest in GREL was received on June 26, 1996. He said the
letter, which was addressed to SIPH and copied to him and others, was signed by
Agbodo.
Witness
said SIPH made a down payment of 2.1m French francs to DIC, representing 10
percent of the total amount of 23m French francs for the acquisition of the
shares, as prescribed in the letter of offer from DIC.
Dr
Banafo said the second payment of 14.7m Fremch francs was made to the DIC in
July 1996. He said after the second payment, he accompanied Miss Okaitey to the
house of Sherry, near the offices of the West Africa Examinations Council,
where he gave her ¢25m.
He
added that in view of the smooth progress of the divestiture of GREL and the
intention of SIPH to participate in future divestitures, the top hierarchy of
the company authorised him to give ¢25m to Agbodo. Dr Banafo said based on this
instruction, he telephoned Agbodo, who later went to his (Banafo’s) office to
receive the money around the end of August 1996.
He,
however, conceded that nobody was present when he gave the money to the accused
person. He said when another company earlier expressed interest in GREL,
officials of SIPH became worried and, therefore, asked him to contact the
relevant people to ensure that its proposal was not rejected.
Witness
said Miss Okaitey accompanied him to the office of Casely-Hayford around Pig
Farm in Accra to seek his help on the matter. He said during discussions,
Casely-Hayford expressed the need for the company to make some payment to Dan
Abodakpi, a former Minister of Trade and Industry.
Dr
Banafo said as a result of the discussions, he gave Casely-Hayford ¢70m in
September, 1996 out of which, he said, ¢60m was to be given to Abodakpi.
Proceedings were adjourned to Wednesday 30 October.
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"Quality Grain" woman jailed 15 years
Atlanta (USA) 25 Oct 2002 - A suburban Atlanta woman was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison on Thursday following her conviction on charges of bank fraud, money laundering and false statements.
US
District Court Judge Charles A. Pannell Jr. also ordered Juliet R. Cotton, 38,
of Duluth to pay restitution of $22,225,016, with about $20 million going to
the government of Ghana and about $2 million to South Trust Bank.
A
jury deliberated for three hours after the 10-day trial and found Cotton guilty
of 35 charges, including one of defrauding the bank in loans purportedly
obtained to build a rice plantation in the Republic of Ghana.
Cotton
used the money for things such as a Bentley automobile and a Rolls Royce
automobile, a Jaguar, two Mercedes Benz, a $540,000 down payment on a $1.1
million home, $22,000 for a 50-piece orchestra at her wedding and a $30,000
Caribbean honeymoon, federal prosecutors said. - Ledger-Enquirer - http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/mld/ledgerenquirer/news/local/4363179.htm
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Libya opens up for Ghanaian goods
Accra
(Greater Accra) 25 October 2002 - Ghana and Libya have signed a trade pact
which will allow for the export of $100m worth of Ghanaian goods annually to
that country. Areas to be covered include agro products, fruit juice
processing, fresh fruits, lumber and tuna.
Hon
Kofi Konadu Apraku, Minister of Trade and Industry, disclosed this at the 42nd
Annual General Meeting of the Ghana Employers Association in Accra on Thursday.
He said a lot of investment opportunities existed in Libya and promised that
the government was doing everything possible to ensure that exporters took
advantage of it.
Apraku
said the government’s investment drive was yielding fruitful results. Already,
plans had been concluded for a Chinese company to build a paper industry in the
Western Region,” he said.
The
Minister was quick to point out that government’s efforts at attracting
investments would come to nothing if local investors did not offer the needed
matching capital. The government is eager to provide opportunities for people
who have the technical know-how and capital capabilities to partner with
foreign investors to ensure the sustained growth of the economy,” he stated.
The
Minister of Manpower Development and Employment, Mrs Cecilia Bannerman, said
that government had made in-roads in its desire to lower the costs of doing
business especially for local entrepreneurs seeking to start or expand their
businesses in areas such as agriculture, service and manufacturing. She
however, appealed to private sector operators to upgrade their existing
technologies and to support local research. – The Ghanaian Times
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Amsterdam mayor meets his Ghanaian counterpart
Accra
(Greater Accra) 25 October 2002 - The Deputy Mayor of Amsterdam, Mark van der Horst,
on Thursday paid a courtesy call on the Chief Executive of Accra Metropolitan
Authority (AMA), Solomon Ofei Darko to discuss issues of development and
bilateral cooperation between the two sister cities. The visit forms part of a
fact finding mission to the country by the Deputy Mayor and the Managing
Director of the Amsterdam Port Consultants, Venda K. Sykora, ahead of a
business delegation from Amsterdam expected to visit the country in March next
year.
The
informal meeting which took place in the garden at the residence of the Darko,
was also attended by the Minister of Information and Presidential Affairs, Jake
Obetsebi-Lamptey, the Presiding Member of the AMA, Ben Annan and other key
heads of department of AMA.
In
his remarks Horst said the delegation which arrived last Tuesday for a five day
visit, which ended on Thursday, has been observing some of the activities
around Accra, to determine the kind of support they could offer through
technical and other forms of assistance. Therefore, he said one of the areas
identified is the management and disposal of waste.
Three
priorities include creating a stronger sister city relationship between
Amsterdam and Accra to promote culture and fight social problems in Accra,
establishing a proper linkage between the ports of Amsterdam and Nortredam in
the Netherlands and that of Tema and Takoradi in Ghana.
He
said they are also interested in investing in the agriculture and food
production industries as a way of developing the country's trade through
increased exports. Horst said since most of Ghana's exports to Europe goes
through the Port of Amsterdam, assistance in that direction would help to bring
improvement in the country's economy.
Venda
Sykora said his role was to find ways to intensify the relationship between the
ports of Tema and Amsterdam and also try to intermediate between the Amsterdam
stevedore companies and their Ghanaian counterparts. "Our goal is to find
whether there is the possibility for them to have joint ventures to haul cargo
between Tema and Amsterdam".
In
response, the Chief Executive of AMA recounted his experiences in the two
cities of Amsterdam and Nortredam, last week, during a brief visit after
attending a conference in Kuala Lumpur, in Malaysia. He said, the meetings with
the mayors of the two cities, were based on some priority areas of concern to
the metropolis. These are sanitation, city planning, revenue generation, IT
application in revenue administration, technical support and management.
He
said his impression, after those meetings is that the authorities of the two
cites are prepared to assist AMA in developing Accra. Migrants from Accra who
are resident in Amsterdam, he said, have also agreed to form an association to
raise funds to support some development projects in the city. The assembly in
collaboration with the Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies,
Darko said, is currently developing a proposal at the request of the two
mayors, to assist in infrastructure development, and housing and planning in
Accra.
Obetsebi-Lamptey,
Minister of Information and Presidential Affairs, announced that the Government
of Ghana is receiving assistance from China to improve the transport sector. He
said, work would soon begin on a multi-million dollar project that involves the
construction of a railway line, through the Shai Hills, to link the ports of
Tema and Akosombo. He explained that goods and containers bound for the
northern part of Ghana and other land locked countries, would be transport from
the Tema Port via train to Akosombo and ferried along the Volta River to Yeji,
for further transportation to their intended destinations by land.
He
said this has become necessary because of the increasing use of Ghana's ports
by neighboring countries. This, the minister said, would also help to reduce
the amount of pressure exerted on the country's road transport system. He
invited the Dutch business community to consider making investment in this
direction, or form partnerships with local companies in Ghana.
The
Presiding Member of the AMA, Ben Annan, said the visit of the Deputy Mayor had
brought some important revelations to the assembly. He said the idea of the
city of Amsterdam owning the infrastructure such as the international port is
very interesting to the AMA. "Because it introduces the opportunity for
the authorities of Accra, to explore ways of dealing with government as to how
feasible it would be for the city to have a share in the institutions,
structures and economic activities that government solely controls in the
city".
He
said a substantial portion of the land in the city, is being occupied by
ministries, departments and agencies of government without paying any property
rates. The Dutch experience, he said, gives the assembly the opportunity to
start looking further a field for revenue generation. - Accra Mail
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Malaysians to profit $160m in Ghana Telecom sale?
Accra
(Greater Accra) 25 October 2002 - Telekom Malaysia, the Malaysian
telecommunication conglomerate which snapped up 30 percent shares in Ghana
Telecom at $38 million in 1997, are offering the same share to the Ghana
government for $200m five years after buying into the Ghanaian company.
Sources at the Kwame
Nkrumah Circle offices of the nation’s leading telecommunications company told
Weekend Agenda that the Malaysians are hell-bent on maximizing their income after
losing the right to manage the company when the two year term of D’ato Malek
Muhamed as managing director expired in April this year.
By
strange contractual agreement entered into by the previous administration of
this country, Telekom Malaysia, which owned only 30 percent shares provided
four of the seven-member board of directors as well as the managing director
and other senior members of management.
Agenda
can report that following the Malaysian offer, the Government of John Kufuor
has referred the matter to Price Waterhouse Coopers to evaluate the entire
company to be able to assess the value of the Malaysian 30 percent share.
Under
the contractual agreement, the Ghana government should have the first option of
a buy-out before the Malaysians could offer their shares to any interested
party.
Meanwhile,
Weekend Agenda has learned that Telekom Malaysia have filed for arbitration in
a London court seeking the court’s intervention in the company’s dispute with
Ghana government over events that led to the decision by Felix Owusu Agyapong,
to revoke the company’s management of Ghana Telekom. The Malaysians are
complaining among others about Ghana Government’s treatment of G-Com’s 30
percent share from which Telekom Malaysia bought 85 per cent share.
Following
the decision by the Government to take full control of the administration of
the company, Owusu Agyapong appointed a three-man Inter under the Chairmanship
of Dickson Oduro-Nyaning, Chief Network Officer as Chairman to run the company.
The two other members were Kwaku Awuah-Boateng, Chief Finance Officer and Kofi
Dua-Adonteng, Head of the Legal Department, all of Ghana Telecom, to manage the
affairs of the company until a substantive managing director was appointed.
Last
week, a new nine-member board, made up of six Ghana government representatives
and three representing Telekom Malaysia was sworn into office to replace the
old board. It is under the chairmanship of Nana Antwi Boasiako, Sekyedumasehene
and former managing director of Crocodile Matchet Company.
The
five others representing the Ghana Government on the board are Philip Owusu,
former employee of the World Bank, Dr Tanimu Tanko Usman an architect, Foster
Dzodzomenyo, a human resource consultant, Kwabena Sarpong an industrial
consultant and Yoofi Grant, an investment banker.
D’ato
Malek Muhamed, former Ghana Telecom MD leads the three-man Telekom Malaysia
representatives. The two others are Nor Hizam Hahim and J.S. Gandum. - Weekened
Agenda
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Waterfall in Ghana named after Dubai
Akosombo
(Eastern Region) 25 October 2002 - An adventurer from Dubai Men's College has
named a waterfall in the remote mountains of Ghana after Dubai. Yasir Asad, a
Level 3 Computer Networking student in the College, recently returned from a
nine-week adventure with Raleigh International Ghana Expedition.
Asad
explained that the adventurers discovered three new waterfalls that were not
listed on the official map of Ghana. "I named one of them 'Dubai
Waterfalls' and put the UAE flag at the top. This will be the official name for
the waterfall," he said.
Asad
said he learned about the expedition through an online advertisement. After talking
to Sam Shanks, Raleigh coordinator at DMC, he applied to participate.
The
expedition involved a range of activities, from construction work deep in the
rain forests, to teaching native children in a primitive school, and surveying
remote uncharted territory. Asad then spent months searching for a sponsor to
finance the enormous cost of equipment, clothing, travel, visas and journey
fees.
"The
Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department sponsored my journey. I met with
Major Jasim Abdulghafor in the Public Relations office many times. He believed
that this would help me improve my leadership skills," he said.
The
ultimate challenge for Asad was the adventure project, aimed at helping the
wildlife division gain control of the remote eastern region near the Togo
border to build a national park. "I will never forget the journey because
I learned a lot that I'll be using in my daily life," said Asad.
'In
the first week, we learned how to survive such things as animal attacks, and
first aid, and the best ways to cross rivers and how to deal with emergencies
like how to make a landing area for a helicopter. If we had an emergency, we
could trigger a satellite device in the top of our rucksacks, which sends a
signal to the field base."
Working
and living in extreme conditions forced the group members to adapt. "For
the environmental project, we were building rangers' huts in Bia National Park,
15 kilometres from the nearest village.
The
problem was when we faced huge and poisonous insects. We even found a dangerous
species, something between a huge spider and a scorpion," he recalled.
"I washed clothes and cooked for the first time in my life.
Each
day one of us was chosen as the leader responsible for everything - security,
food, and even the project site." Another phase of the adventure was the
community project phase that involved building an action aid office in the
Kwakupanfo region. - Gulf News: http://www.gulfnews.com
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FAO to help Ghana produce silk
Accra
(Greater Accra) 25 October 2002 - The Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO)
of the United Nations is to make available to Ghana more than ¢3.1 billion
($384,000) to produce silk for domestic consumption and export.
It
will also provide technical expertise to build the capacity of farmers in the
industry to produce sufficient and high quality silk as well as promote the
development of the industry in Ghana.
The
Minister of Food and Agriculture, Major Courage Quashigah (rtd) who made this
known was speaking at the launching of the Sericulture and Silk Processing
Development Project in Ghana in Accra on Thursday. He noted that the assistance
will also come in the form of equipment such as machinery for reeling and
weaving to promote the industry.
Major
Quashigah said the technical cooperation between the government and the FAO in
the development of sericulture, which is the science of producing silk, will
serve to boost the President's Special Initiative on textile and garments in
the Golden Age of Business. He assured farmers engaged in sericulture of his
ministry's support because of the "enormous potential it has for
generating huge revenue for the nation if adequately exploited."
The
minister said the project has the potential to generate employment
opportunities for many people, especially in the rural areas as well as lead to
the establishment of cottage industries.
He
disclosed that besides the support the ministry will give to research
initiatives in sericulture and other fields, it will also explore the
possibility of introducing sericulture in agricultural colleges in the country.
The
FAO Representative in Ghana, Anatolio Ndong Mbah, said next week a South Korean
cocoon processing expert will arrive in the country to embark on the building
of capacity in the industry which will be followed later by two Indian experts.
He
said the technical co-operation between Ghana and FAO in the development of the
sericulture industry will take 20 months and will aim at enhancing the
activities of small scale farmers in silk production and strengthening the
institutional capacity of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research
(CSIR) in the sericulture sciences and management in cocoon production and
processing techniques.
The
Minister of Women and Children’s Affairs, Mrs Gladys Asmah, on her part said,
women and children constitute about 70 per cent of the population, and this is
an excellent avenue that can provide jobs for the youth on the streets who are
engaged in all kinds of trade, and women who are not gainfully employed.
She
said her ministry will collaborate with the ministries of Food and Agriculture
and Trade and Industries to see how best they can take full advantage of the
benefits of sericulture to enhance the living standards of the people. – Daily
Graphic
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