Tuesday, October 21, 2008 (Page 3 Lead)
THE High Court in Tema has restrained Zain Ghana Limited, a mobile telecommunications company, from constructing a phone mast at a house at Adjiringano, a suburb of Accra.
The order, which took effect from Friday, October 17, 2008 is valid for 10 days.
The court gave the order following an application for an order of interim injunction to restrain the company from constructing the phone mast at No.14 Manor Valley Road which was filed on behalf of some residents of Adjiringano by Mr Kojo Graham, the Executive Director of the Centre for Human Rights and Civil Liberties (CHUCIL), an NGO.
According to the residents, checks from regulatory bodies had proved that the company was putting up the mast without the requisite approval from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA), the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), among other regulatory bodies.
They further argued that phone masts and towers were internationally known and reported, through scientific research and case studies, to be sources of harmful radioactive and electromagnetic emissions against individuals and communities living near and within the environs of erected phone masts and towers.
In the substantive suit, the plaintiffs, Alex Dodoo, Leslie Dodoo, Caroline Ama Ennin, John Nii Sackey Odametey, Ellis K. Ashiagbor and George Ofori, are seeking a declaration that the erection and construction of a phone mast and tower by Zain is unlawful and illegal.
They are also praying the court to permanently restrain the company and its agents from constructing a phone mast at the said area, as well as an order restraining it from constructing a mast within the Tema metropolitan area without the requisite regulatory approvals and clearance.
They are further praying the court to award general damages and costs in their favour.
An affidavit accompanying the writ stated that some time during the first week of October 2008, the plaintiffs spotted work men excavating a deep and wide foundation trench within the precincts of House No. 14 Manor Valley Road, Adjiringano in the Greater Accra Region.
According to the affidavit, a few days after the excavation, residents observed the construction and erection of a huge phone mast and tower where the excavation had taken place.
It said the plaintiffs subsequently met an officer of the company on the premises, who confirmed that the defendant company was erecting the phone mast and tower and further claimed that the company had already received and paid for all the necessary permits and approvals.
However, according to the affidavit, on October 13, 2008 the plaintiffs followed up their search at the Tema offices of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and were informed that the defendant company had not been given permit to construct the mast.
The affidavit stated that although one WO I Agbagba had given the land to the defendant company to construct the mast, the law did not permit such agreements, especially when the land was not being used for its original purpose.
It consequently described the transaction between WO I Agbagba and the defendant company as “void and bereft of legal effect”.
The plaintiffs stated that the defendant company was erecting the phone mast tower at a furiously fast pace, in complete disregard of the objections of the plaintiffs.
They further argued that the unlawful erection of phone masts and towers by mobile telephone operators in residential and educational environs had become such a menace and blamed such practices on the lack of enforcement on the part of the authorities.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Court restrains organisers of Face of Universe Pageant
Friday, October 17, 2008 (Page 14)
THE Accra High Court yesterday restrained 1st Royal Events Limited, organisers of Exquisite Face of the Universe Beauty Pageant, from fielding the first runner-up of the 2007 pageant, Nana Yaa Adadewa, as Ghana’s representative in the upcoming international event.
It, accordingly, ordered the organisers to field the winner of the 2007 pageant, Ms Alberta Nana Adwoa Arhin, as Ghana’s representative in the pageant which will be held at the National Theatre on Saturday, October 18, 2008.
The order, which takes immediate effect, is valid for 10 days.
According to the court, irreparable damage would be occasioned if Ms Arhin was not allowed to take part in the event.
The court’s order followed an application for an ex-parte for an order of interim injunction filed on behalf of Ms Arhin by her solicitors, Awoonor Law Consultancy, pending the outcome of the substantive suit.
In the substantive suit, Ms Arhin is praying the court to order 1st Royal Events Limited to transfer the ownership of a VW Golf saloon car, with registration number GT 1318 Z, in her name.
The plaintiff is also praying the court to order 1st Royal Events Limited to pay GH¢700 plus interest with effect from January 1, 2008 till the date of final payment.
She is also praying the court to award costs in her favour.
In an affidavit in support of her application, Ms Arhin deposed that she participated in the Exquisite Face of the Universe Beauty Pageant in 2007, from which she emerged the winner.
She said as part of her price for winning the Exquisite Face of the Universe Pageant 2007, she was given a VW Golf saloon car which the defendant had to date failed to transfer into her name as the legitimate owner, despite her persistent demand for same to be effected.
According to her, 1st Royal Events Limited had failed to pay her the full amount of the price money of GH¢1,000 for winning the said pageant held in 2007.
“I caused my solicitors to write to the defendant to pay the full amount of the price money of GH¢1,000 and till date the defendant has only paid GH¢300, leaving an unpaid and outstanding balance of GH¢700 which defendant has refused and/or failed to pay, despite persistent demands for same,” she said.
“That it was when I was being engaged by some of the sponsors of the said beauty pageant that I got to know that the prices for the said pageant, as promised by the sponsors, have been honoured and given to defendant for onward transmission to plaintiff but the defendant has failed and/or refused to deliver same,” Ms Arhin contended.
According to Ms Arhin, the organisers adopted an antagonistic posture towards her when they got to know she had had credible information, through one of the sponsors of the said event, about payments made for which she had not been paid.
She further averred that to her surprise, the defendants had replaced her with the first runner-up to represent Ghana at the upcoming international event.
According to Ms Arhin, she would lose the opportunity to enhance her image and recognition as a model if she was restrained from participating in the said international event as part of her prize package.
THE Accra High Court yesterday restrained 1st Royal Events Limited, organisers of Exquisite Face of the Universe Beauty Pageant, from fielding the first runner-up of the 2007 pageant, Nana Yaa Adadewa, as Ghana’s representative in the upcoming international event.
It, accordingly, ordered the organisers to field the winner of the 2007 pageant, Ms Alberta Nana Adwoa Arhin, as Ghana’s representative in the pageant which will be held at the National Theatre on Saturday, October 18, 2008.
The order, which takes immediate effect, is valid for 10 days.
According to the court, irreparable damage would be occasioned if Ms Arhin was not allowed to take part in the event.
The court’s order followed an application for an ex-parte for an order of interim injunction filed on behalf of Ms Arhin by her solicitors, Awoonor Law Consultancy, pending the outcome of the substantive suit.
In the substantive suit, Ms Arhin is praying the court to order 1st Royal Events Limited to transfer the ownership of a VW Golf saloon car, with registration number GT 1318 Z, in her name.
The plaintiff is also praying the court to order 1st Royal Events Limited to pay GH¢700 plus interest with effect from January 1, 2008 till the date of final payment.
She is also praying the court to award costs in her favour.
In an affidavit in support of her application, Ms Arhin deposed that she participated in the Exquisite Face of the Universe Beauty Pageant in 2007, from which she emerged the winner.
She said as part of her price for winning the Exquisite Face of the Universe Pageant 2007, she was given a VW Golf saloon car which the defendant had to date failed to transfer into her name as the legitimate owner, despite her persistent demand for same to be effected.
According to her, 1st Royal Events Limited had failed to pay her the full amount of the price money of GH¢1,000 for winning the said pageant held in 2007.
“I caused my solicitors to write to the defendant to pay the full amount of the price money of GH¢1,000 and till date the defendant has only paid GH¢300, leaving an unpaid and outstanding balance of GH¢700 which defendant has refused and/or failed to pay, despite persistent demands for same,” she said.
“That it was when I was being engaged by some of the sponsors of the said beauty pageant that I got to know that the prices for the said pageant, as promised by the sponsors, have been honoured and given to defendant for onward transmission to plaintiff but the defendant has failed and/or refused to deliver same,” Ms Arhin contended.
According to Ms Arhin, the organisers adopted an antagonistic posture towards her when they got to know she had had credible information, through one of the sponsors of the said event, about payments made for which she had not been paid.
She further averred that to her surprise, the defendants had replaced her with the first runner-up to represent Ghana at the upcoming international event.
According to Ms Arhin, she would lose the opportunity to enhance her image and recognition as a model if she was restrained from participating in the said international event as part of her prize package.
Court declines to quash Tsatsu's conviction
Friday, October 17, 2008 (Page 3 Lead)
THE Supreme Court yesterday declined to quash the conviction of Tsatsu Tsikata by an Accra Fast Track High Court for causing financial loss to the state.
It also declined to arrest judgement on whether or not to order the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to testify in Tsikata’s case.
The court described both applications as being without merit and incompetent and, accordingly, dismissed them.
The decision means Tsikata will have to continue serving his five-year sentence, while he waits for a date to be fixed for the court to deliver its judgement on the IFC matter.
In less than two minutes, the court, presided over by Ms Justice Sophia Akuffo, dismissed the application and informed parties in the matter that the court would file its reasons on Friday, October 24, 2008.
The court, which had Mr Justice Julius Ansah, Mrs Justice Rose Owusu, Mr Justice Jones Dotse and Mr Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie as the other panel members, accordingly directed the registrar to notify parties when the reasons were filed.
Tsikata, who wore a white linen long-sleeved shirt over a pair of khaki trousers, looked calm and indifferent after the judgement had been delivered.
He was whisked away by security personnel in a waiting van which was parked behind the court premises to outwit anxious sympathisers who were waiting for him in front of the court building.
However, some of the sympathisers who had lined up by the roadside saw Tsikata in the van and waved at him with mixed feelings.
His wife, Esther; the running mate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential aspirant, Mr John Mahama; Mr Eddie Annan, a former presidential aspirant of the NDC; Captain Kojo Tsikata, a former Head of National Security; Mr Fui Tsikata, a brother of Tsikata’s, some NDC stalwarts and hundreds of sympathisers thronged the court premises to lend Tsikata moral support.
The sympathisers, who wore T-shirts with the inscription, “Free Tsatsu Now”, openly cursed to express their displeasure at the court’s decision.
Their unprintable words bordered on their dissatisfaction with the court’s decision.
Some, nevertheless, expressed the hope that justice would one day prevail for Tsikata.
Reacting to the court’s judgement, Mr Tony Lithur, a legal practitioner, said, “The desecration of justice has been elevated by the highest court of the land.”
He accused the President of influencing the case, adding that “the President’s wish has been fulfilled”.
Tsikata, a former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), was found guilty on June 18, 2008 on three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state and another count of misapplying public property and sentenced to five years’ imprisonment on each count, to run concurrently.
He was charged in 2002 with three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state through a loan he guaranteed for Valley Farms, a private cocoa producing company, on behalf of the GNPC and another count of misapplying GH¢2,000 of public property.
Valley Farms contracted the loan from Caisse Francaise de Developement in 1991 but defaulted in the payment and the GNPC, which acted as the guarantor, was compelled to pay it in 1996.
He, however, denied any wrongdoing.
Following his conviction by the Fast Track High Court, he filed an application at the Supreme Court, praying the highest court of the land to quash the lower court’s judgement on the grounds that the trial judge had been biased.
According to Tsikata, the action of the trial judge had the potential of undermining the authority of the Supreme Court.
He said he filed the motion to enable the court to ensure that the administration of justice was not brought into disrepute by what he termed as “the desecration of justice that occurred on June 18, 2008”, the date of his incarceration.
The Supreme Court, on July 31, 2008, fixed yesterday, October 16, 2008 for the ruling, after Tsikata and the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, had argued on the matter.
Tsikata described the attempt by the Attorney-General to support the trial judge’s action as untenable, since she had said that she was adjourning her judgement until the Supreme Court determined his fate in respect of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) testifying for him.
Mr Ghartey said once the Court of Appeal had determined the matter and refused it, the lower court did not have to entertain the matter.
The Supreme Court, on June 25, 2008, suspended judgement on whether or not the IFC should be ordered to testify in the case in which Tsikata was accused of causing financial loss to the state.
That followed a request by Tsikata to the court to “arrest” its judgement and invoke its supervisory jurisdiction by quashing his conviction by the lower court.
THE Supreme Court yesterday declined to quash the conviction of Tsatsu Tsikata by an Accra Fast Track High Court for causing financial loss to the state.
It also declined to arrest judgement on whether or not to order the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to testify in Tsikata’s case.
The court described both applications as being without merit and incompetent and, accordingly, dismissed them.
The decision means Tsikata will have to continue serving his five-year sentence, while he waits for a date to be fixed for the court to deliver its judgement on the IFC matter.
In less than two minutes, the court, presided over by Ms Justice Sophia Akuffo, dismissed the application and informed parties in the matter that the court would file its reasons on Friday, October 24, 2008.
The court, which had Mr Justice Julius Ansah, Mrs Justice Rose Owusu, Mr Justice Jones Dotse and Mr Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie as the other panel members, accordingly directed the registrar to notify parties when the reasons were filed.
Tsikata, who wore a white linen long-sleeved shirt over a pair of khaki trousers, looked calm and indifferent after the judgement had been delivered.
He was whisked away by security personnel in a waiting van which was parked behind the court premises to outwit anxious sympathisers who were waiting for him in front of the court building.
However, some of the sympathisers who had lined up by the roadside saw Tsikata in the van and waved at him with mixed feelings.
His wife, Esther; the running mate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential aspirant, Mr John Mahama; Mr Eddie Annan, a former presidential aspirant of the NDC; Captain Kojo Tsikata, a former Head of National Security; Mr Fui Tsikata, a brother of Tsikata’s, some NDC stalwarts and hundreds of sympathisers thronged the court premises to lend Tsikata moral support.
The sympathisers, who wore T-shirts with the inscription, “Free Tsatsu Now”, openly cursed to express their displeasure at the court’s decision.
Their unprintable words bordered on their dissatisfaction with the court’s decision.
Some, nevertheless, expressed the hope that justice would one day prevail for Tsikata.
Reacting to the court’s judgement, Mr Tony Lithur, a legal practitioner, said, “The desecration of justice has been elevated by the highest court of the land.”
He accused the President of influencing the case, adding that “the President’s wish has been fulfilled”.
Tsikata, a former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), was found guilty on June 18, 2008 on three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state and another count of misapplying public property and sentenced to five years’ imprisonment on each count, to run concurrently.
He was charged in 2002 with three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state through a loan he guaranteed for Valley Farms, a private cocoa producing company, on behalf of the GNPC and another count of misapplying GH¢2,000 of public property.
Valley Farms contracted the loan from Caisse Francaise de Developement in 1991 but defaulted in the payment and the GNPC, which acted as the guarantor, was compelled to pay it in 1996.
He, however, denied any wrongdoing.
Following his conviction by the Fast Track High Court, he filed an application at the Supreme Court, praying the highest court of the land to quash the lower court’s judgement on the grounds that the trial judge had been biased.
According to Tsikata, the action of the trial judge had the potential of undermining the authority of the Supreme Court.
He said he filed the motion to enable the court to ensure that the administration of justice was not brought into disrepute by what he termed as “the desecration of justice that occurred on June 18, 2008”, the date of his incarceration.
The Supreme Court, on July 31, 2008, fixed yesterday, October 16, 2008 for the ruling, after Tsikata and the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, had argued on the matter.
Tsikata described the attempt by the Attorney-General to support the trial judge’s action as untenable, since she had said that she was adjourning her judgement until the Supreme Court determined his fate in respect of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) testifying for him.
Mr Ghartey said once the Court of Appeal had determined the matter and refused it, the lower court did not have to entertain the matter.
The Supreme Court, on June 25, 2008, suspended judgement on whether or not the IFC should be ordered to testify in the case in which Tsikata was accused of causing financial loss to the state.
That followed a request by Tsikata to the court to “arrest” its judgement and invoke its supervisory jurisdiction by quashing his conviction by the lower court.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Supreme Court rules on Tsatsu's appeal today
Thursday, October 16, 2008 (Page 3)
THE Supreme Court will give judgement today in the case in which Tsatsu Tsikata is praying it to quash the five-year sentence imposed on him for causing financial loss to the state.
Tsikata, a former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), was found guilty on June 18, 2008 on three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state and another count of misapplying public property and sentenced to five years imprisonment on each count, to run concurrently.
He was charged in 2002 with three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state through a loan he guaranteed for Valley Farms, a private cocoa producing company, on behalf of the GNPC and another count of misapplying GH¢2,000 of public property.
Valley Farms contracted the loan from Caisse Francaise de Developement in 1991 but defaulted in the payment and the GNPC, which acted as the guarantor, was compelled to pay it in 1996.
He, however, denied any wrongdoing.
Following his conviction by the Fast Track High Court, he filed an application at the Supreme Court praying the highest court of the land to quash the lower court’s judgement on the grounds that the trial judge had been biased.
According to Tsikata, the action of the trial judge at the Fast Track High Court had the potential of undermining the authority of the Supreme Court.
He said he filed the motion to enable the court to ensure that the administration of justice was not brought into disrepute by what he termed as “the desecration of justice that occurred on June 18, 2008”, the date of his incarceration.
The Supreme Court, on July 31, 2008, fixed today, October 16, 2008 for the ruling, after Tsikata and the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, had argued on the matter.
Tsikata described the attempt by the Attorney-General to support the trial judge’s action as untenable, since she had said that she was adjourning her judgement until the Supreme Court determined his fate in respect of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) testifying for him.
Mr Ghartey said once the Court of Appeal had determined the matter and refused it, the lower court did not have to entertain the matter.
At its sitting on July 16, 2008, Tsikata told the packed court that he objected to the empanelling of Mr Justice S.A. Brobbey to hear the matter because the judge had conducted investigations into allegations of bias against the trial judge, Mrs Justice Henrietta Abban, who sentenced him.
On July 22, 2008, Tsikata again objected to the empanelling of Mr Justice Annin Yeboah, who replaced Mr Justice Brobbey, on the grounds that the judge was part of the panel at the Court of Appeal which heard his appeal regarding the immunity of the IFC to testify for him.
The Accra Fast Track High Court, on July 15, 2008, stayed proceedings in a mini trial requested by Tsikata to determine allegations of bias against Mrs Justice Abban.
That followed a motion filed by Mr Ghartey on the grounds that the reliefs being sought by Tsikata were the same as another application before the Supreme Court.
Tsikata, however, thought otherwise and insisted that his application before the superior court was different.
The Supreme Court, on June 25, 2008, suspended judgement on whether or not the IFC should be ordered to testify in the case in which Tsikata was accused of causing financial loss to the state.
That followed a request by Tsikata to the court to “arrest” its judgement and invoke its supervisory jurisdiction by quashing his conviction by the lower court.
THE Supreme Court will give judgement today in the case in which Tsatsu Tsikata is praying it to quash the five-year sentence imposed on him for causing financial loss to the state.
Tsikata, a former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), was found guilty on June 18, 2008 on three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state and another count of misapplying public property and sentenced to five years imprisonment on each count, to run concurrently.
He was charged in 2002 with three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state through a loan he guaranteed for Valley Farms, a private cocoa producing company, on behalf of the GNPC and another count of misapplying GH¢2,000 of public property.
Valley Farms contracted the loan from Caisse Francaise de Developement in 1991 but defaulted in the payment and the GNPC, which acted as the guarantor, was compelled to pay it in 1996.
He, however, denied any wrongdoing.
Following his conviction by the Fast Track High Court, he filed an application at the Supreme Court praying the highest court of the land to quash the lower court’s judgement on the grounds that the trial judge had been biased.
According to Tsikata, the action of the trial judge at the Fast Track High Court had the potential of undermining the authority of the Supreme Court.
He said he filed the motion to enable the court to ensure that the administration of justice was not brought into disrepute by what he termed as “the desecration of justice that occurred on June 18, 2008”, the date of his incarceration.
The Supreme Court, on July 31, 2008, fixed today, October 16, 2008 for the ruling, after Tsikata and the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, had argued on the matter.
Tsikata described the attempt by the Attorney-General to support the trial judge’s action as untenable, since she had said that she was adjourning her judgement until the Supreme Court determined his fate in respect of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) testifying for him.
Mr Ghartey said once the Court of Appeal had determined the matter and refused it, the lower court did not have to entertain the matter.
At its sitting on July 16, 2008, Tsikata told the packed court that he objected to the empanelling of Mr Justice S.A. Brobbey to hear the matter because the judge had conducted investigations into allegations of bias against the trial judge, Mrs Justice Henrietta Abban, who sentenced him.
On July 22, 2008, Tsikata again objected to the empanelling of Mr Justice Annin Yeboah, who replaced Mr Justice Brobbey, on the grounds that the judge was part of the panel at the Court of Appeal which heard his appeal regarding the immunity of the IFC to testify for him.
The Accra Fast Track High Court, on July 15, 2008, stayed proceedings in a mini trial requested by Tsikata to determine allegations of bias against Mrs Justice Abban.
That followed a motion filed by Mr Ghartey on the grounds that the reliefs being sought by Tsikata were the same as another application before the Supreme Court.
Tsikata, however, thought otherwise and insisted that his application before the superior court was different.
The Supreme Court, on June 25, 2008, suspended judgement on whether or not the IFC should be ordered to testify in the case in which Tsikata was accused of causing financial loss to the state.
That followed a request by Tsikata to the court to “arrest” its judgement and invoke its supervisory jurisdiction by quashing his conviction by the lower court.
KUTU, OTHERS TO GET ASSETS BACK - Before end of December this year
Thursday, October 16, 2008 (Lead Story)
THE assets of some prominent Ghanaians which were confiscated by various military regimes are to be returned to their owners before the end of this year.
Highly placed sources told the Daily Graphic yesterday that the Office of the President was finalising the list of assets to be handed over to the affected families, including those of a former Head of State, the late General I. K. Acheampong.
Others whose property are to be returned include General Robert Kotei, Squadron Leader George Tagoe, S.K. Kpegah, E.A. Amoah, the owner of Association International School, Commander J.C. Addo and Major Kwame Asante.
The other prominent personalities are the J.K. Siaw and Kowus Motors, among others.
More than 100 of those assets are expected to be released as a result of recommendations from the Confiscated Assets Committee of the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC).
As a result of those recommendations, 1,551 individuals have already received GH¢952,297.52, being compensation for atrocities and human rights abuses they suffered under military regimes.
More people are expected to benefit from the compensation package which began two years ago.
According to the source, the return of the assets would be on a “where is as is basis”, meaning “you will take it in whichever condition you find it”.
However, the source indicated that compensation might be paid to those whose property had been sold and totally transformed.
It further disclosed that the full list of beneficiaries would be published in the dailies next week, pointing out that the Attorney-General would implement the deconfiscation process of beneficiaries.
Under the deconfiscation process, beneficiaries will be asked to provide some basic information, such as proof of identity, letters of administration or will, in the instance where the original owners are dead.
In December 2001, the Parliament of Ghana passed the National Reconciliation Commission Act, 2002, (Act 611) which came into force on January 11, 2002 when it was gazetted.
The goal of the commission, as expressed in the Long Title to Act 611, was to seek and promote national reconciliation among the people of this country by recommending appropriate redress for persons who had suffered any injury, hurt, damage, grievance or who had in any other manner been adversely affected by violations and abuses of their human rights arising from activities or inactivities of public institutions and persons holding public office.
The commission comprised Mr Justice Kweku Etrew Amua-Sekyi, a retired Supreme Court judge (now deceased), Chairman; the Most Reverend Charles Gabriel Palmer-Buckle, then Catholic Bishop of Koforidua; Maulvi Abdul Wahab Bin Adam, the Ameer (Head) and Missionary in Charge of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission; Professor Florence Abena Dolphyne, a former Pro Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana; Lt Gen Emmanuel Alexander Erskine, the First Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
The others were Dr (Mrs.) Sylvia Awo Mansah Boye, a former Registrar of the West African Examinations Council; Mr Christian Appiah Agyei, a former Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress (Ghana); Uborr Dalafu Labal II, the Paramount Chief of the Sanguli Traditional Area, Northern Region, and Professor Henrietta Joy Abena Nyarko Mensa-Bonsu, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Ghana, with Dr Kenneth Agyemang Attafuah, the then Director of Public Education and Anti-Corruption at the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, as the Executive Secretary.
THE assets of some prominent Ghanaians which were confiscated by various military regimes are to be returned to their owners before the end of this year.
Highly placed sources told the Daily Graphic yesterday that the Office of the President was finalising the list of assets to be handed over to the affected families, including those of a former Head of State, the late General I. K. Acheampong.
Others whose property are to be returned include General Robert Kotei, Squadron Leader George Tagoe, S.K. Kpegah, E.A. Amoah, the owner of Association International School, Commander J.C. Addo and Major Kwame Asante.
The other prominent personalities are the J.K. Siaw and Kowus Motors, among others.
More than 100 of those assets are expected to be released as a result of recommendations from the Confiscated Assets Committee of the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC).
As a result of those recommendations, 1,551 individuals have already received GH¢952,297.52, being compensation for atrocities and human rights abuses they suffered under military regimes.
More people are expected to benefit from the compensation package which began two years ago.
According to the source, the return of the assets would be on a “where is as is basis”, meaning “you will take it in whichever condition you find it”.
However, the source indicated that compensation might be paid to those whose property had been sold and totally transformed.
It further disclosed that the full list of beneficiaries would be published in the dailies next week, pointing out that the Attorney-General would implement the deconfiscation process of beneficiaries.
Under the deconfiscation process, beneficiaries will be asked to provide some basic information, such as proof of identity, letters of administration or will, in the instance where the original owners are dead.
In December 2001, the Parliament of Ghana passed the National Reconciliation Commission Act, 2002, (Act 611) which came into force on January 11, 2002 when it was gazetted.
The goal of the commission, as expressed in the Long Title to Act 611, was to seek and promote national reconciliation among the people of this country by recommending appropriate redress for persons who had suffered any injury, hurt, damage, grievance or who had in any other manner been adversely affected by violations and abuses of their human rights arising from activities or inactivities of public institutions and persons holding public office.
The commission comprised Mr Justice Kweku Etrew Amua-Sekyi, a retired Supreme Court judge (now deceased), Chairman; the Most Reverend Charles Gabriel Palmer-Buckle, then Catholic Bishop of Koforidua; Maulvi Abdul Wahab Bin Adam, the Ameer (Head) and Missionary in Charge of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission; Professor Florence Abena Dolphyne, a former Pro Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana; Lt Gen Emmanuel Alexander Erskine, the First Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
The others were Dr (Mrs.) Sylvia Awo Mansah Boye, a former Registrar of the West African Examinations Council; Mr Christian Appiah Agyei, a former Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress (Ghana); Uborr Dalafu Labal II, the Paramount Chief of the Sanguli Traditional Area, Northern Region, and Professor Henrietta Joy Abena Nyarko Mensa-Bonsu, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Ghana, with Dr Kenneth Agyemang Attafuah, the then Director of Public Education and Anti-Corruption at the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, as the Executive Secretary.
Monday, October 13, 2008
FREDDIE BLAY FLOORS CPP - It's victory for rule of law, he says
October 10, 2008 (Lead Story)
THE Accra Fast Track High Court yesterday affirmed Mr Freddie Blay as the duly elected parliamentary aspirant of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) for the Ellembele Constituency.
It, accordingly, ordered the CPP, its flag bearer, Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom, and five other executives to uphold Mr Blay as the parliamentary aspirant and slapped them with total costs of GH3,500 in favour of Mr Blay. Each of them was ordered to pay GH¢500.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Edward A. Asante, further barred the CPP, Dr Nduom, as well as the CPP Chairman, Mr Ladi Nylander; the Vice-Chairman and now running mate to the flag bearer, Dr Abu Sakara; the General Secretary, Mr Ivor Greenstreet; the Treasurer, Mr Mike Eghan, and Mr Kosi Dedey, the Spokesperson, from organising a fresh primary in the Ellembele Constituency.
Quashing the decision of the Central Committee of the CPP which nullified the re-election of Mr Blay as the parliamentary aspirant on the grounds that the committee acted in excess of its powers, the court held that “Mr Blay’s election is lawful, proper and valid”.
Mr Blay filed the suit after Mr Greenstreet had issued a statement on August 28, 2008 to the effect that the party’s central committee had declared Mr Blay’s election null and void.
Giving its judgement on the matter, the court additionally held that it was unwarranted for the central committee to declare Mr Blay’s election null and void because the CPP’s constitution did not give the committee that power.
According to the court, Article 48(f) of the CPP constitution enjoined the central committee to refer the objection of Mr Blay’s candidature to the constituency executives for further action.
Based on that premise, and the fact that the central committee failed to adhere to the party’s constitution, the court declared the press release which nullified Mr Blay’s election as null and void.
It said the central committee acted ultra vires and accordingly quashed the entire proceedings of the committee which culminated in the press release nullifying Mr Blay’s election.
The court read its judgement in the matter after a leading member of the CPP, Mr Bright Akwetey, had informed it that he could not broker an out-of-court settlement between the parties.
He said, “I regret to announce that I did not succeed in the efforts I embarked upon” and the court thanked him for taking the initiative.
Mr Akwetey had indicated at the court’s previous sittings that efforts were underway to settle the matter out of court.
Counsel for the CPP indicated that the respondents would file an appeal against the court’s ruling.
Speaking to journalists afterwards, Mr Blay said the court’s ruling was a victory for democracy and the rule of law.
“We have come a long way. We must subscribe to the rule of law and we must have democracy within our party,” he pointed out.
He said it was unfortunate that the matter had to travel to the law courts and stated that as a member of the CPP, he did not believe the central committee constituted the party.
Mr Blay said the litigation had derailed the progress of his campaign, but indicated that he was going to embark on a vigorous crusade to make up for lost time.
“I am at a disadvantage but I will make up to ensure there is victory for us,” he said, in apparent reference to his inability to campaign like his rivals from other political parties.
Mr Blay, Mr Francis Quayson, Mr Kwasi Kutea, Mr Kwame Appreh, Mr Samuel Akainyah and Mr Kwasi Andoh, all members of the party, filed the suit seeking an order of certiorari to quash the decision of the central committee which nullified his election on the grounds that the decision was without jurisdiction, was against the CPP’s constitution and, therefore, unlawful.
The applicants also sought an order prohibiting the respondents or any agent, organ or officer of the respondents from organising any primary for the election of a CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele, as well as an interim order directed at the respondents and their agents from engaging in media attacks on Mr Blay or make any disparaging statement in the public against the applicants pending the final determination of the application.
However, the respondents, in their affidavit in opposition, said the correct position of the party was contained in a press release which expressed the consequence of the central committee’s decision to object to the election of Mr Blay as the party’s parliamentary aspirant for the 2008 election.
According to the affidavit, what it meant was that if Mr Blay failed to regularise his position with the central committee, then there would be the need for the Ellembele Constituency to hold fresh elections in order to elect another candidate, thereby rendering the initial primary null and void.
It said all the written invitations sent to Mr Blay only invited him to attend a meeting concerning his presence at a New Patriotic Party (NPP) rally at Ainyinase on April 30, 2008.
“The invitation never stated that any charge had been preferred against Mr Blay, neither did the CPP say that Mr Blay had breached any provisions of the party’s constitution,” the affidavit stated.
It said in a letter purporting to request for a statement of his charge, Mr Blay had exhibited gross disrespect to and contempt for the CPP, a political party on whose ticket he was asking for endorsement to stand as a parliamentary candidate for the 2008 election.
THE Accra Fast Track High Court yesterday affirmed Mr Freddie Blay as the duly elected parliamentary aspirant of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) for the Ellembele Constituency.
It, accordingly, ordered the CPP, its flag bearer, Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom, and five other executives to uphold Mr Blay as the parliamentary aspirant and slapped them with total costs of GH3,500 in favour of Mr Blay. Each of them was ordered to pay GH¢500.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Edward A. Asante, further barred the CPP, Dr Nduom, as well as the CPP Chairman, Mr Ladi Nylander; the Vice-Chairman and now running mate to the flag bearer, Dr Abu Sakara; the General Secretary, Mr Ivor Greenstreet; the Treasurer, Mr Mike Eghan, and Mr Kosi Dedey, the Spokesperson, from organising a fresh primary in the Ellembele Constituency.
Quashing the decision of the Central Committee of the CPP which nullified the re-election of Mr Blay as the parliamentary aspirant on the grounds that the committee acted in excess of its powers, the court held that “Mr Blay’s election is lawful, proper and valid”.
Mr Blay filed the suit after Mr Greenstreet had issued a statement on August 28, 2008 to the effect that the party’s central committee had declared Mr Blay’s election null and void.
Giving its judgement on the matter, the court additionally held that it was unwarranted for the central committee to declare Mr Blay’s election null and void because the CPP’s constitution did not give the committee that power.
According to the court, Article 48(f) of the CPP constitution enjoined the central committee to refer the objection of Mr Blay’s candidature to the constituency executives for further action.
Based on that premise, and the fact that the central committee failed to adhere to the party’s constitution, the court declared the press release which nullified Mr Blay’s election as null and void.
It said the central committee acted ultra vires and accordingly quashed the entire proceedings of the committee which culminated in the press release nullifying Mr Blay’s election.
The court read its judgement in the matter after a leading member of the CPP, Mr Bright Akwetey, had informed it that he could not broker an out-of-court settlement between the parties.
He said, “I regret to announce that I did not succeed in the efforts I embarked upon” and the court thanked him for taking the initiative.
Mr Akwetey had indicated at the court’s previous sittings that efforts were underway to settle the matter out of court.
Counsel for the CPP indicated that the respondents would file an appeal against the court’s ruling.
Speaking to journalists afterwards, Mr Blay said the court’s ruling was a victory for democracy and the rule of law.
“We have come a long way. We must subscribe to the rule of law and we must have democracy within our party,” he pointed out.
He said it was unfortunate that the matter had to travel to the law courts and stated that as a member of the CPP, he did not believe the central committee constituted the party.
Mr Blay said the litigation had derailed the progress of his campaign, but indicated that he was going to embark on a vigorous crusade to make up for lost time.
“I am at a disadvantage but I will make up to ensure there is victory for us,” he said, in apparent reference to his inability to campaign like his rivals from other political parties.
Mr Blay, Mr Francis Quayson, Mr Kwasi Kutea, Mr Kwame Appreh, Mr Samuel Akainyah and Mr Kwasi Andoh, all members of the party, filed the suit seeking an order of certiorari to quash the decision of the central committee which nullified his election on the grounds that the decision was without jurisdiction, was against the CPP’s constitution and, therefore, unlawful.
The applicants also sought an order prohibiting the respondents or any agent, organ or officer of the respondents from organising any primary for the election of a CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele, as well as an interim order directed at the respondents and their agents from engaging in media attacks on Mr Blay or make any disparaging statement in the public against the applicants pending the final determination of the application.
However, the respondents, in their affidavit in opposition, said the correct position of the party was contained in a press release which expressed the consequence of the central committee’s decision to object to the election of Mr Blay as the party’s parliamentary aspirant for the 2008 election.
According to the affidavit, what it meant was that if Mr Blay failed to regularise his position with the central committee, then there would be the need for the Ellembele Constituency to hold fresh elections in order to elect another candidate, thereby rendering the initial primary null and void.
It said all the written invitations sent to Mr Blay only invited him to attend a meeting concerning his presence at a New Patriotic Party (NPP) rally at Ainyinase on April 30, 2008.
“The invitation never stated that any charge had been preferred against Mr Blay, neither did the CPP say that Mr Blay had breached any provisions of the party’s constitution,” the affidavit stated.
It said in a letter purporting to request for a statement of his charge, Mr Blay had exhibited gross disrespect to and contempt for the CPP, a political party on whose ticket he was asking for endorsement to stand as a parliamentary candidate for the 2008 election.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Court decides Blay's fate Thursday
October 7, 2008 (Page 3 Lead)
THE Accra Fast Track High Court will, on Thursday, October 9, 2008, decide whether or not to sanction the re-election of the Convention People’s Party’s (CPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Ellembele, Mr Freddie Blay.
The aggrieved MP, who is also the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, sued the CPP and six of its leading members, including the flag bearer, Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom, seeking a declaration that the primary held to elect him as the party’s parliamentary aspirant was proper, valid and in compliance with the party’s constitution.
The trial judge, Mr Justice Edward A. Asante, fixed the date after counsel for the parties had argued their cases at the court’s sitting in Accra yesterday.
He, however, expressed the hope that the parties would be able to resolve their differences before the adjourned date.
Mr Justice Asante’s comments were based on an earlier prayer by a leading member of the party, Mr Bright Akwetey, that the parties wanted to resolve the matter out of court.
“If by Thursday you are able to settle, all the better,” the judge stated, adding that it was not good for political parties to engage in in-fighting.
Mr Akwetey had, on September 18, 2008, pleaded with the court to give the party some time to resolve its differences, but from yesterday’s proceedings it was apparent that the issues had not been resolved.
The court then enquired from Mr Akwetey why the party had not been able to resolve the matter out of court, to which he said efforts were being made to resolve the matter and expressed the hope that the matter would be resolved before Thursday.
Mr Akwetey said the dispute was not healthy for the party and for that matter efforts were being made to settle it.
Mr Blay and five others, namely, Mr Francis Quayson, Mr Kwasi Kutea, Mr Kwame Appreh, Mr Samuel Akainyah and Mr Kwasi Andoh, are also seeking an order of certiorari to quash the decision of the Central Committee which nullified Mr Blay’s election on the grounds that the decision was without jurisdiction, against the CPP’s constitution and, therefore, unlawful.
Also joined in the suit alongside Dr Nduom are the CPP Chairman, Mr Ladi Nylander; the Vice-Chairman, Dr Abu Sakara; the General Secretary, Mr Ivor Greenstreet; the Treasurer, Mr Mike Eghan, and Mr Kosi Dedey, the Spokesperson.
Counsel for the defendants, Mr Yao Yegbey, prayed the court to dismiss the application on the grounds that the party did not nullify Mr Blay’s re-election.
He said what happened was that an objection was raised to Mr Blay’s candidature and explained that the matter could have been resolved.
“If the applicants had taken time to find out what happened, they would have realised that the election had not been nullified,” Mr Yegbey told the court.
According to counsel, Mr Blay did not exhaust the processes set out in the party’s constitution for aggrieved party members.
He said it was a contractual agreement for Mr Blay to obey the rules and regulations of the party, adding that the claim by Mr Blay that the party had violated his fundamental human rights was a fallacy.
Responding, counsel for the applicants, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, said the arguments by counsel for the defendants were misleading and unmeritorious, especially when it was clear that the Central Committee of the party had acted in excess of its jurisdiction.
Counsel argued that the committee had the power to either approve or object, but not to nullify the election of a candidate.
He said Mr Blay’s argument bordered on an infringement of his fundamental human rights, as enshrined in Article 33 of the 1992 Constitution, adding that the court had the jurisdiction to look into matters that bordered on the fundamental human rights of persons.
Mr Dame prayed the court to declare that the primary held on August 23, 2008 to elect Mr Blay as the CPP’s parliamentary candidate was proper, valid and in compliance with the party’s constitution.
He also prayed the court to declare that Mr Blay was the properly elected CPP parliamentary candidate for the Ellembele Constituency, as well as grant an order of mandamus compelling Mr Dedey and the Central Committee of the party to hold Mr Blay as the duly elected CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele.
The applicants are also seeking an order prohibiting the respondents or any agent, organ or officer of the respondents from organising any primary for the election of a CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele, as well as an interim order directed at the respondents and their agents from engaging in media attacks on Mr Blay or make any disparaging statement in the public against the applicants pending the final determination of the application.
The defendants, in their affidavit in opposition, said the correct position of the party was contained in a press release which expressed the consequence of the Central Committee’s decision to object to the election of Mr Blay as the party’s parliamentary aspirant for the 2008 election.
According to the affidavit, what that meant was that if Mr Blay failed to regularise his position with the Central Committee, then there would be the need for the Ellembele Constituency to hold fresh elections in order to elect another candidate, thereby rendering the initial primary null and void.
It said all the written invitations sent to Mr Blay only invited him to attend a meeting concerning his presence at a New Patriotic Party (NPP) rally at Ainyinase on April 30, 2008.
“The invitation never stated that any charge had been preferred against Mr Blay, neither did the CPP say that Mr Blay had breached any provisions of the party’s constitution,” the affidavit stated.
It said in a letter purporting to request for a statement of his charge, Mr Blay exhibited gross disrespect to and contempt for the CPP, a political party on whose ticket he was asking for endorsement to stand as a parliamentary candidate for the 2008 election.
THE Accra Fast Track High Court will, on Thursday, October 9, 2008, decide whether or not to sanction the re-election of the Convention People’s Party’s (CPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Ellembele, Mr Freddie Blay.
The aggrieved MP, who is also the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, sued the CPP and six of its leading members, including the flag bearer, Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom, seeking a declaration that the primary held to elect him as the party’s parliamentary aspirant was proper, valid and in compliance with the party’s constitution.
The trial judge, Mr Justice Edward A. Asante, fixed the date after counsel for the parties had argued their cases at the court’s sitting in Accra yesterday.
He, however, expressed the hope that the parties would be able to resolve their differences before the adjourned date.
Mr Justice Asante’s comments were based on an earlier prayer by a leading member of the party, Mr Bright Akwetey, that the parties wanted to resolve the matter out of court.
“If by Thursday you are able to settle, all the better,” the judge stated, adding that it was not good for political parties to engage in in-fighting.
Mr Akwetey had, on September 18, 2008, pleaded with the court to give the party some time to resolve its differences, but from yesterday’s proceedings it was apparent that the issues had not been resolved.
The court then enquired from Mr Akwetey why the party had not been able to resolve the matter out of court, to which he said efforts were being made to resolve the matter and expressed the hope that the matter would be resolved before Thursday.
Mr Akwetey said the dispute was not healthy for the party and for that matter efforts were being made to settle it.
Mr Blay and five others, namely, Mr Francis Quayson, Mr Kwasi Kutea, Mr Kwame Appreh, Mr Samuel Akainyah and Mr Kwasi Andoh, are also seeking an order of certiorari to quash the decision of the Central Committee which nullified Mr Blay’s election on the grounds that the decision was without jurisdiction, against the CPP’s constitution and, therefore, unlawful.
Also joined in the suit alongside Dr Nduom are the CPP Chairman, Mr Ladi Nylander; the Vice-Chairman, Dr Abu Sakara; the General Secretary, Mr Ivor Greenstreet; the Treasurer, Mr Mike Eghan, and Mr Kosi Dedey, the Spokesperson.
Counsel for the defendants, Mr Yao Yegbey, prayed the court to dismiss the application on the grounds that the party did not nullify Mr Blay’s re-election.
He said what happened was that an objection was raised to Mr Blay’s candidature and explained that the matter could have been resolved.
“If the applicants had taken time to find out what happened, they would have realised that the election had not been nullified,” Mr Yegbey told the court.
According to counsel, Mr Blay did not exhaust the processes set out in the party’s constitution for aggrieved party members.
He said it was a contractual agreement for Mr Blay to obey the rules and regulations of the party, adding that the claim by Mr Blay that the party had violated his fundamental human rights was a fallacy.
Responding, counsel for the applicants, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, said the arguments by counsel for the defendants were misleading and unmeritorious, especially when it was clear that the Central Committee of the party had acted in excess of its jurisdiction.
Counsel argued that the committee had the power to either approve or object, but not to nullify the election of a candidate.
He said Mr Blay’s argument bordered on an infringement of his fundamental human rights, as enshrined in Article 33 of the 1992 Constitution, adding that the court had the jurisdiction to look into matters that bordered on the fundamental human rights of persons.
Mr Dame prayed the court to declare that the primary held on August 23, 2008 to elect Mr Blay as the CPP’s parliamentary candidate was proper, valid and in compliance with the party’s constitution.
He also prayed the court to declare that Mr Blay was the properly elected CPP parliamentary candidate for the Ellembele Constituency, as well as grant an order of mandamus compelling Mr Dedey and the Central Committee of the party to hold Mr Blay as the duly elected CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele.
The applicants are also seeking an order prohibiting the respondents or any agent, organ or officer of the respondents from organising any primary for the election of a CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele, as well as an interim order directed at the respondents and their agents from engaging in media attacks on Mr Blay or make any disparaging statement in the public against the applicants pending the final determination of the application.
The defendants, in their affidavit in opposition, said the correct position of the party was contained in a press release which expressed the consequence of the Central Committee’s decision to object to the election of Mr Blay as the party’s parliamentary aspirant for the 2008 election.
According to the affidavit, what that meant was that if Mr Blay failed to regularise his position with the Central Committee, then there would be the need for the Ellembele Constituency to hold fresh elections in order to elect another candidate, thereby rendering the initial primary null and void.
It said all the written invitations sent to Mr Blay only invited him to attend a meeting concerning his presence at a New Patriotic Party (NPP) rally at Ainyinase on April 30, 2008.
“The invitation never stated that any charge had been preferred against Mr Blay, neither did the CPP say that Mr Blay had breached any provisions of the party’s constitution,” the affidavit stated.
It said in a letter purporting to request for a statement of his charge, Mr Blay exhibited gross disrespect to and contempt for the CPP, a political party on whose ticket he was asking for endorsement to stand as a parliamentary candidate for the 2008 election.
Ghana's Governance ranking improves
October 7, 2008 (Page 31)
GHANA is ranked seventh in the latest Ibrahim Index of African Governance.
The country, which ranked eighth in the last index, improved its overall score to 70.1 per cent between 2005 and 2006 among 48 sub-Saharan African countries. It placed second among 16 West African countries.
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation, a non-governmental organisation committed to helping to improve the quality of governance in Africa, arrived at the results based on data compiled from the World Bank, the United Nations, Transparency International and other credible and reputable international organisations.
According to a report made available to the Daily Graphic, for the second year running Mauritius topped the Ibrahim Index, scoring 85.1 per cent this year.
The top five countries whose positions remained unchanged over the last index included The Seychelles, Cape Verde, Botswana and South Africa.
According to the report, the Ibrahim Index looked at the areas of Safety and Security; the Rule of Law, Transparency and Corruption; Participation and Human Rights; Sustainable Economic Opportunity, and Human Development.
"The most notable improvement was in the Rule of Law, Transparency and Corruption, where Ghana’s score rose by 2.2 points," the report said.
The country scored 86.1 per cent under the Safety and Security category in 2008, as against the 86 per cent it scored under the same category in 2007.
According to the report, Ghana scored 72.7 per cent under Rule of Law, Transparency and Corruption in 2008, as against the 70.5 per cent it scored in 2007.
Under Participation and Human Rights, it scored 80.2 per cent, thus scoring an additional 0.4 points over the past year’s.
It said the country scored 47.3 per cent under Sustainable Economic Opportunity, against the 46.6 per cent it gained in 2007, while it scored 64.3 per cent under Human Development, as against the 64.1 per cent it scored last year.
It further stated that newly published data showed that two-thirds of sub-Saharan African countries had improved their performance, especially in the areas of good governance, with notable progress in participation and human rights.
It explained that the 16 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) demonstrated strong performance in the Ibrahim Index, with Cape Verde, Ghana and Senegal ranking within the top 10 of the overall Ibrahim Index.
"With respect to last year, 10 members of ECOWAS improved their scores, four saw declining scores and a further two saw no change. Within ECOWAS, Ghana ranked second out of 16 member countries, outperformed only by Cape Verde,” it said.
The Ibrahim Index indicates that two-thirds of sub-Saharan African countries improved on their governance performance during the last year. Liberia, the fastest riser, ranks 38th, with a change in score of 10.4 points to give a score of 48.7.
Participation and Human Rights was the category with the largest improvement, with 29 countries demonstrating progress. Many of these have demonstrated improved participation in elections.
The full board of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation convened in Addis Ababa, the home of the African Union, to make the announcement yesterday morning.
Mo Ibrahim, the Founder and Chairman of the foundation, said, “Obscured by many of the headlines of the past few months, the real story coming out of Africa is that governance performance across a large majority of African countries is improving.”
“According to this comprehensive analysis, progress is being made across the continent against a range of key governance indicators. I hope that these results will be used as a tool by Africa’s citizens to hold their governments to account, and stimulate debate about the performance of those who govern in their name,” he continued.
Ms Mary Robinson, a member of the Board of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, who has previously served as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and President of Ireland, said, “It is particularly fitting that during the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we are seeing the most notable improvement in governance take place within the category of participation and human rights. More sub-Saharan African countries than ever are holding democratic elections, and I am hopeful that this will help form the platform for continued progress across the
continent.”
The Ibrahim Index is a comprehensive ranking of sub-Saharan African nations according to governance performance, which is assessed against 57 criteria. These criteria are divided into five overarching categories which, together, make up the core obligations which governments have to their citizens.
The index was created in recognition of the need for a comprehensive and quantifiable method of measuring governance performance in sub-Saharan Africa and it has been designed as a tool for civil society and citizens to hold governments to account, stimulate debate on governance and provide a diagnostic framework to assess governance in sub-Saharan Africa.
The index is produced by Professor Robert Rotberg, Dr Rachel Gisselquist and his team at the Programme on Intrastate Conflict and Conflict Resolution at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, under an agreement with and funding from the Foundation Board.
Professor Rotberg is supported by an advisory council of African academics and corporate leaders.
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation was launched in October 2006 and is committed to supporting great African leadership.
It was founded by Mo Ibrahim, one of Africa’s most successful business entrepreneurs, and has the support of a number of world leaders, including Kofi Annan, Nelson Mandela and Amartya Sen.
The foundation also confers the Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership, the largest annually awarded prize in the world.
The Prize Committee, chaired by Mr Annan, awards US$5 million to a former African Executive Head of State or Government who has demonstrated excellence in leadership during his or her tenure in office.
The former President of Mozambique, Joaquim Chissano, in October 2007 became the inaugural Ibrahim Laureate.
The report added that the next Ibrahim Laureate will be announced on October 20, 2008.
GHANA is ranked seventh in the latest Ibrahim Index of African Governance.
The country, which ranked eighth in the last index, improved its overall score to 70.1 per cent between 2005 and 2006 among 48 sub-Saharan African countries. It placed second among 16 West African countries.
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation, a non-governmental organisation committed to helping to improve the quality of governance in Africa, arrived at the results based on data compiled from the World Bank, the United Nations, Transparency International and other credible and reputable international organisations.
According to a report made available to the Daily Graphic, for the second year running Mauritius topped the Ibrahim Index, scoring 85.1 per cent this year.
The top five countries whose positions remained unchanged over the last index included The Seychelles, Cape Verde, Botswana and South Africa.
According to the report, the Ibrahim Index looked at the areas of Safety and Security; the Rule of Law, Transparency and Corruption; Participation and Human Rights; Sustainable Economic Opportunity, and Human Development.
"The most notable improvement was in the Rule of Law, Transparency and Corruption, where Ghana’s score rose by 2.2 points," the report said.
The country scored 86.1 per cent under the Safety and Security category in 2008, as against the 86 per cent it scored under the same category in 2007.
According to the report, Ghana scored 72.7 per cent under Rule of Law, Transparency and Corruption in 2008, as against the 70.5 per cent it scored in 2007.
Under Participation and Human Rights, it scored 80.2 per cent, thus scoring an additional 0.4 points over the past year’s.
It said the country scored 47.3 per cent under Sustainable Economic Opportunity, against the 46.6 per cent it gained in 2007, while it scored 64.3 per cent under Human Development, as against the 64.1 per cent it scored last year.
It further stated that newly published data showed that two-thirds of sub-Saharan African countries had improved their performance, especially in the areas of good governance, with notable progress in participation and human rights.
It explained that the 16 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) demonstrated strong performance in the Ibrahim Index, with Cape Verde, Ghana and Senegal ranking within the top 10 of the overall Ibrahim Index.
"With respect to last year, 10 members of ECOWAS improved their scores, four saw declining scores and a further two saw no change. Within ECOWAS, Ghana ranked second out of 16 member countries, outperformed only by Cape Verde,” it said.
The Ibrahim Index indicates that two-thirds of sub-Saharan African countries improved on their governance performance during the last year. Liberia, the fastest riser, ranks 38th, with a change in score of 10.4 points to give a score of 48.7.
Participation and Human Rights was the category with the largest improvement, with 29 countries demonstrating progress. Many of these have demonstrated improved participation in elections.
The full board of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation convened in Addis Ababa, the home of the African Union, to make the announcement yesterday morning.
Mo Ibrahim, the Founder and Chairman of the foundation, said, “Obscured by many of the headlines of the past few months, the real story coming out of Africa is that governance performance across a large majority of African countries is improving.”
“According to this comprehensive analysis, progress is being made across the continent against a range of key governance indicators. I hope that these results will be used as a tool by Africa’s citizens to hold their governments to account, and stimulate debate about the performance of those who govern in their name,” he continued.
Ms Mary Robinson, a member of the Board of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, who has previously served as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and President of Ireland, said, “It is particularly fitting that during the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we are seeing the most notable improvement in governance take place within the category of participation and human rights. More sub-Saharan African countries than ever are holding democratic elections, and I am hopeful that this will help form the platform for continued progress across the
continent.”
The Ibrahim Index is a comprehensive ranking of sub-Saharan African nations according to governance performance, which is assessed against 57 criteria. These criteria are divided into five overarching categories which, together, make up the core obligations which governments have to their citizens.
The index was created in recognition of the need for a comprehensive and quantifiable method of measuring governance performance in sub-Saharan Africa and it has been designed as a tool for civil society and citizens to hold governments to account, stimulate debate on governance and provide a diagnostic framework to assess governance in sub-Saharan Africa.
The index is produced by Professor Robert Rotberg, Dr Rachel Gisselquist and his team at the Programme on Intrastate Conflict and Conflict Resolution at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, under an agreement with and funding from the Foundation Board.
Professor Rotberg is supported by an advisory council of African academics and corporate leaders.
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation was launched in October 2006 and is committed to supporting great African leadership.
It was founded by Mo Ibrahim, one of Africa’s most successful business entrepreneurs, and has the support of a number of world leaders, including Kofi Annan, Nelson Mandela and Amartya Sen.
The foundation also confers the Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership, the largest annually awarded prize in the world.
The Prize Committee, chaired by Mr Annan, awards US$5 million to a former African Executive Head of State or Government who has demonstrated excellence in leadership during his or her tenure in office.
The former President of Mozambique, Joaquim Chissano, in October 2007 became the inaugural Ibrahim Laureate.
The report added that the next Ibrahim Laureate will be announced on October 20, 2008.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Govt gives back land to Nungua stool
October 3, 2008 (Page 23)
THE government has handed over 1,016 acres to the Nungua Stool as part of its policy to return part of excess lands acquired by the State to its original owners.
The land is situated at Borteyman in an area popularly known as Nungua Farms in Accra.
To this end, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between the government and the Nungua Stool at the offices of the Ministry of Lands, Forestry and Mines.
The Minister of Lands, Forestry and Mines, Mrs Esther Obeng-Dapaah, signed on behalf of the government while the Nungua Mantse, Odehekpakpa Odaifio Welentsi III, initialled on behalf of the stool.
Under the agreement, the remaining 1,524 acres, which constitutes 60 per cent, would remain state property, maintaining the State with the right to apply the said parcel of land to any relevant public purpose.
It was also agreed that the development of returned lands shall be in accordance with an approved planning scheme prepared for the land.
According to the MoU, until the development scheme had been prepared and duly approved for the area, Nungua Stool Land representatives could not develop the land.
"That for the avoidance of doubt, in the event of a breach by the second party (Nungua Stool Land) of this obligation the State shall be entitled to re-enter and forfeit the grant of land hereby made," the MoU explained.
The MoU further stated that the Nungua Stool had irrevocably undertaken, agreed and accepted to waive any present or future claims and/or demands in respect of the said parcel of land.
Mrs Obeng-Dapaah stated that although the government had acquired the land and paid compensation for its acquisition, it decided to give back 40 per cent of the land to its original owners to promote the optimal use of lands.
She said the move was also aimed at engendering trust and co-operation between the State and land-owning groups.
Mrs Obeng-Dapaah expressed the hope that the land would be put to optimum use.
For his part, Odehekpakpa Welentsi described the agreement as unique, because although the government had already paid compensation for the land it still went ahead to allocate the 40 per cent for free.
He said he was happy the government had respected their views and handed over that portion of land for development purposes.
THE government has handed over 1,016 acres to the Nungua Stool as part of its policy to return part of excess lands acquired by the State to its original owners.
The land is situated at Borteyman in an area popularly known as Nungua Farms in Accra.
To this end, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between the government and the Nungua Stool at the offices of the Ministry of Lands, Forestry and Mines.
The Minister of Lands, Forestry and Mines, Mrs Esther Obeng-Dapaah, signed on behalf of the government while the Nungua Mantse, Odehekpakpa Odaifio Welentsi III, initialled on behalf of the stool.
Under the agreement, the remaining 1,524 acres, which constitutes 60 per cent, would remain state property, maintaining the State with the right to apply the said parcel of land to any relevant public purpose.
It was also agreed that the development of returned lands shall be in accordance with an approved planning scheme prepared for the land.
According to the MoU, until the development scheme had been prepared and duly approved for the area, Nungua Stool Land representatives could not develop the land.
"That for the avoidance of doubt, in the event of a breach by the second party (Nungua Stool Land) of this obligation the State shall be entitled to re-enter and forfeit the grant of land hereby made," the MoU explained.
The MoU further stated that the Nungua Stool had irrevocably undertaken, agreed and accepted to waive any present or future claims and/or demands in respect of the said parcel of land.
Mrs Obeng-Dapaah stated that although the government had acquired the land and paid compensation for its acquisition, it decided to give back 40 per cent of the land to its original owners to promote the optimal use of lands.
She said the move was also aimed at engendering trust and co-operation between the State and land-owning groups.
Mrs Obeng-Dapaah expressed the hope that the land would be put to optimum use.
For his part, Odehekpakpa Welentsi described the agreement as unique, because although the government had already paid compensation for the land it still went ahead to allocate the 40 per cent for free.
He said he was happy the government had respected their views and handed over that portion of land for development purposes.
Kosmos Energy to bring in 4 oil rigs
October 3, 2008 (Back Page)
KOSMOS Energy and its partners are expected to bring in four oil rigs to facilitate early production of oil, which was discovered in commercial quantities at the Cape Three Points in the Western Region.
One of the rigs, called Blackford Dolphin, is expected to arrive in the country in two weeks to begin the drilling of oil wells.
According to the Chief Executive Officer of Kosmos Energy, Mr Jim Musselman, the remaining three rigs were expected in the country before the end of the first quarter of 2009.
The other rigs, namely Eirik Raude, Aban Abraham and Atwood Hunter, are expected in November 2008 and the first and the last quarter of 2009 respectively.
He said the rigs were expected to drill a total of 17 wells at the Jubilee Field, adding that it would cost $100 million to drill and complete each well.
Mr Musselman said Kosmos Energy and its partners would spend $3 billion between now and the first quarter of 2010, adding that a total of $5 billion would be spent on the project.
Detailing the company's plan of development, Mr Musselman said the drilling of the 17 wells was part of the plan of development and that nine wells would be produced out of the 17 in the first phase.
He said five water injection wells, as well as three gas injection wells, would be drilled in order to maximise the ultimate recovery of oil from the rocks, which were embedded 4,000 feet deep in the ocean.
Mr Musselman, who has since left for the United States of America (USA), where he is based, stated that a Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel would also be installed for offloading, production and storage of oil.
He disclosed that more than two trillion cubic feet of gas would also be produced.
Kosmos's oil discovery in June 2007 is the largest discovery in the world in the past 12 months and the largest in West Africa in the last 10 years.
Tests have proved that oil discovered at the West Cape Three Points is among the finest in the world.
KOSMOS Energy and its partners are expected to bring in four oil rigs to facilitate early production of oil, which was discovered in commercial quantities at the Cape Three Points in the Western Region.
One of the rigs, called Blackford Dolphin, is expected to arrive in the country in two weeks to begin the drilling of oil wells.
According to the Chief Executive Officer of Kosmos Energy, Mr Jim Musselman, the remaining three rigs were expected in the country before the end of the first quarter of 2009.
The other rigs, namely Eirik Raude, Aban Abraham and Atwood Hunter, are expected in November 2008 and the first and the last quarter of 2009 respectively.
He said the rigs were expected to drill a total of 17 wells at the Jubilee Field, adding that it would cost $100 million to drill and complete each well.
Mr Musselman said Kosmos Energy and its partners would spend $3 billion between now and the first quarter of 2010, adding that a total of $5 billion would be spent on the project.
Detailing the company's plan of development, Mr Musselman said the drilling of the 17 wells was part of the plan of development and that nine wells would be produced out of the 17 in the first phase.
He said five water injection wells, as well as three gas injection wells, would be drilled in order to maximise the ultimate recovery of oil from the rocks, which were embedded 4,000 feet deep in the ocean.
Mr Musselman, who has since left for the United States of America (USA), where he is based, stated that a Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel would also be installed for offloading, production and storage of oil.
He disclosed that more than two trillion cubic feet of gas would also be produced.
Kosmos's oil discovery in June 2007 is the largest discovery in the world in the past 12 months and the largest in West Africa in the last 10 years.
Tests have proved that oil discovered at the West Cape Three Points is among the finest in the world.
Abrantie pays tribute to Baah-Wiredu
October 2-8, 2008 (Graphic Shhowbiz - Page 3)
THE death of the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu has not only sent shock waves through the corridors of power in Ghana and among ordinary Ghanaians but also in showbiz circles.
One of the hardest hit is music legend, Amakye Dede, who described the death of Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, as a "great loss to Ghana".
"Honourable Baah-Wiredu was humble, dedicated to his duties, down to earth and approachable. I have never met such a selfless personality in my life," the music legend stated with wet eyes.
In an interview with the Graphic Showbiz, the music legend said "the family, the people of Asante Akim North, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and all Ghanaians have lost a hero. I am praying to God to give us a replacement."
"We have lost a gem. People should help us mourn our departed genius”. According to the music legend, he had known Mr Baah-Wiredu since childhood and recounted how the late Minister had been very instrumental in his musical career right from the scratch.
"He encouraged me to move on when the terrain was rough. He is one person who liked my music and anytime I was playing at a function, I gave off my best especially when he was present," Amakye Dede recounted.
He explained that Mr Baah-Wiredu appreciated his music and called him to congratulate him anytime he released a new album adding that the late Minister called him once a while to find out how he was doing even after the latter had became a powerful political figure in the country.He said Mr Baah-Wiredu was a simple person who interacted freely with his acquaintances and preferred not to be treated as a Minister.
Full of acclamation for the late Minister, Amakye Dede, said words could not describe how sad and shocked he was on the announcement of the death of Mr Baah-Wiredu.
"I am sad and at a loss for words. Why should death deal such a big blow to us? This was a man who was so selfless and always prepared to assist people who came his way irrespective of their political affiliation," Amakye Dede said.
Amakye Dede recounted that Mr Baah-Wiredu formed the Agogo Youth Association and even built the Agogo Community Centre.
According to him Mr Baah-Wiredu bought a silver cup and organised a football gala for the youth in Asante Akim among other laudable laurels he had achieved for the Asante Akim North constituency.
Mr Baah-Wiredu died in South Africa on Wednesday, September 24, 2008 where he had gone to receive medical attention.
He left behind a wife and six children.
THE death of the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu has not only sent shock waves through the corridors of power in Ghana and among ordinary Ghanaians but also in showbiz circles.
One of the hardest hit is music legend, Amakye Dede, who described the death of Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, as a "great loss to Ghana".
"Honourable Baah-Wiredu was humble, dedicated to his duties, down to earth and approachable. I have never met such a selfless personality in my life," the music legend stated with wet eyes.
In an interview with the Graphic Showbiz, the music legend said "the family, the people of Asante Akim North, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and all Ghanaians have lost a hero. I am praying to God to give us a replacement."
"We have lost a gem. People should help us mourn our departed genius”. According to the music legend, he had known Mr Baah-Wiredu since childhood and recounted how the late Minister had been very instrumental in his musical career right from the scratch.
"He encouraged me to move on when the terrain was rough. He is one person who liked my music and anytime I was playing at a function, I gave off my best especially when he was present," Amakye Dede recounted.
He explained that Mr Baah-Wiredu appreciated his music and called him to congratulate him anytime he released a new album adding that the late Minister called him once a while to find out how he was doing even after the latter had became a powerful political figure in the country.He said Mr Baah-Wiredu was a simple person who interacted freely with his acquaintances and preferred not to be treated as a Minister.
Full of acclamation for the late Minister, Amakye Dede, said words could not describe how sad and shocked he was on the announcement of the death of Mr Baah-Wiredu.
"I am sad and at a loss for words. Why should death deal such a big blow to us? This was a man who was so selfless and always prepared to assist people who came his way irrespective of their political affiliation," Amakye Dede said.
Amakye Dede recounted that Mr Baah-Wiredu formed the Agogo Youth Association and even built the Agogo Community Centre.
According to him Mr Baah-Wiredu bought a silver cup and organised a football gala for the youth in Asante Akim among other laudable laurels he had achieved for the Asante Akim North constituency.
Mr Baah-Wiredu died in South Africa on Wednesday, September 24, 2008 where he had gone to receive medical attention.
He left behind a wife and six children.
Former security officer jailed three years
September 27, 2008 (Mirror - Page 27)
AFTER two years of trial, the Accra Circuit Court has sentenced a former security officer of Yasarko Printing Press Limited, a printing firm in Accra to three years imprisonment for stealing GH¢33,850 belonging to his employer.
Hanson Lawrence Agyare-Sefah pleaded guilty at a time when he had opened his defence, gave his evidence-in-chief and was expected to answer questions under cross examination from Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Eric Amoako.
He was sentenced on his own plea.
The court found him guilty on 34 counts of conspiracy and stealing and sentenced him to three years imprisonment on each count. His sentence is to run concurrently.
Hanson had admitted in his caution statement that he forged the signature of the company's chief executive to steal money from the company's accounts.
According to him he sneaked into the office of the Director of the company, Mr Yaw Sarkodie, to steal an unspecified number of leaflets from the Standard Chartered Bank cheque books and further admitted using part of the stolen money to purchase two Nissan Urvan buses.
However, counsel for two other accused persons namely Joseph Oppong and Christian Aban, both former drivers of the company have made submissions of no case after the prosecution closed its case.
The court has fixed Wednesday, September 24, 2008 for ruling on the submission of no case.
Oppong and Aban had each pleaded not guilty to one count each of abetment of crime and have since been granted bail.
The facts of the case are that on August 17, 2006 the accountant of Yasarko Press Limited detected the theft of 29 cheque leaflets from the company’s cheque books which were normally kept at the Managing Director’s office.
According to the prosecution, the accountant informed the Managing Director, who then followed up to the Dansoman branch of the Standard Chartered Bank where 13 photocopies of stolen cheques were obtained.
Following the arrest of the accused persons, the police retrieved four additional photocopies of stolen cheques from the bank.
It was later found out that a total of ¢338.5 million had been withdrawn from the company’s accounts.
Security cameras at the Dansoman Branch of the Standard Chartered Bank revealed Oppong and Aban cashing money with the stolen cheques on June 23, 2006 and June 28, 2006 respectively at the instance of Hanson.
Forensic examinations revealed that Hanson prepared and signed all the cheques.
Investigations also revealed that Hanson cashed majority of the cheques with Oppong and Aban cashing two of the stolen cheques.
Two mini-buses which Hanson allegedly used the stolen money to purchase have been impounded by the police.
An amount of GH ¢3,100 was also retrieved from Hanson’s bank accounts.
AFTER two years of trial, the Accra Circuit Court has sentenced a former security officer of Yasarko Printing Press Limited, a printing firm in Accra to three years imprisonment for stealing GH¢33,850 belonging to his employer.
Hanson Lawrence Agyare-Sefah pleaded guilty at a time when he had opened his defence, gave his evidence-in-chief and was expected to answer questions under cross examination from Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Eric Amoako.
He was sentenced on his own plea.
The court found him guilty on 34 counts of conspiracy and stealing and sentenced him to three years imprisonment on each count. His sentence is to run concurrently.
Hanson had admitted in his caution statement that he forged the signature of the company's chief executive to steal money from the company's accounts.
According to him he sneaked into the office of the Director of the company, Mr Yaw Sarkodie, to steal an unspecified number of leaflets from the Standard Chartered Bank cheque books and further admitted using part of the stolen money to purchase two Nissan Urvan buses.
However, counsel for two other accused persons namely Joseph Oppong and Christian Aban, both former drivers of the company have made submissions of no case after the prosecution closed its case.
The court has fixed Wednesday, September 24, 2008 for ruling on the submission of no case.
Oppong and Aban had each pleaded not guilty to one count each of abetment of crime and have since been granted bail.
The facts of the case are that on August 17, 2006 the accountant of Yasarko Press Limited detected the theft of 29 cheque leaflets from the company’s cheque books which were normally kept at the Managing Director’s office.
According to the prosecution, the accountant informed the Managing Director, who then followed up to the Dansoman branch of the Standard Chartered Bank where 13 photocopies of stolen cheques were obtained.
Following the arrest of the accused persons, the police retrieved four additional photocopies of stolen cheques from the bank.
It was later found out that a total of ¢338.5 million had been withdrawn from the company’s accounts.
Security cameras at the Dansoman Branch of the Standard Chartered Bank revealed Oppong and Aban cashing money with the stolen cheques on June 23, 2006 and June 28, 2006 respectively at the instance of Hanson.
Forensic examinations revealed that Hanson prepared and signed all the cheques.
Investigations also revealed that Hanson cashed majority of the cheques with Oppong and Aban cashing two of the stolen cheques.
Two mini-buses which Hanson allegedly used the stolen money to purchase have been impounded by the police.
An amount of GH ¢3,100 was also retrieved from Hanson’s bank accounts.
Monday, September 29, 2008
It's a big blow - Rawlings, others pay tribute
September 26, 2008
Earlier, hundreds of sympathisers trooped to the residence of the late Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu to express their condolence to the bereaved family reports Mabel Aku Baneseh.
The sympathisers included Ministers of State, Members of Parliament from both the ruling government and opposition, District Chief Executives, traditional rulers, officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, a delegation from the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) and the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT).
Representatives of the Ghana Supporters Union as well as representatives from the Old Soccer Stars Association, the famous poet, Attuquaye Okine, close associates and members of the general public also thronged the residence to express their condolences.
These groups of people openly wept and wondered why such a gem and national asset should die.
Sympathisers signed a book of condolence which was opened in memory of the Mr Baah-Wiredu who passed away in a hospital in South Africa on Wednesday.
The Agogohene, Nana Akuoku Sarpong, said he could not believe Mr Baah-Wiredu was dead until he arrived at his residence this morning adding “it is a reality and we have to live with it.”
According to him he had met Mr Baah-Wiredu and Nana Akufo-Addo’s delegation two weeks ago and nothing indicated that Mr Baah-Wiredu was sick.
“His death came as a shock. He has served my traditional area, the constituency and Ghana well. His death is a great loss to me and the entire nation,” Nana Akuoku Sarpong stated.
He described Mr Baah-Wiredu as a genuine, hardworking, approachable and a humble personality.
The Head of Family (Accra), Mr Apeagyei Mensah, said he and other family members heard of the Minister’s death on air and decided to visit his residence to verify.
According to him they were told on arrival at the residence that it was true the Minister was dead.
He said he was told doctors did everything possible to save Mr Baah-Wiredu but the latter could not make it.
He said Mr Baah-Wiredu’s death was a blow and a great loss to the family and the entire nation.
Mr Mensah thanked officials of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and the government for the tremendous assistance they had so far given to the family.
He took the opportunity to deny media reports that an 83 year-old uncle of the deceased collapsed and died after hearing of the death of Mr Baah-Wiredu.
He said the octegenarian was alive and well.
The Public Relations Officer of the CEPS, Ms Annie Anipa, said the entire CEPS workforce was shocked at the death of Mr Baah-Wiredu.
She said Mr Baah-Wiredu was a hardworking Minister who worked very cordially with the CEPS to raise revenue for the state.
“He is down-to-earth. This is unexpected and it will take time for us to recover from the shock,” Ms Anipa added.
Meanwhile, the Auditor-General, Mr Edward Dua-Agyemang, has expressed shock at the sudden death of Mr Baah-Wiredu.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic from Beijing, China, where he is attending an Africa-China auditors conference, he said his death was a big blow to the nation particularly the business and financial confraternity.
Mr Dua-Agyemang who for many years worked with Mr Baah-Wiredu in the same accounting firm Asante-Wiredu, Osei Kwabena and Associates said the Finance Minister would be missed by all for his selfless devotion to duty and humility.
“Mr Baah-Wiredu treated everybody like his equal and was prepared to learn even from his subordinates no doubt he came out as one of the best Finance Minister in the history of the country,’ he added.
Earlier, hundreds of sympathisers trooped to the residence of the late Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu to express their condolence to the bereaved family reports Mabel Aku Baneseh.
The sympathisers included Ministers of State, Members of Parliament from both the ruling government and opposition, District Chief Executives, traditional rulers, officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, a delegation from the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) and the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT).
Representatives of the Ghana Supporters Union as well as representatives from the Old Soccer Stars Association, the famous poet, Attuquaye Okine, close associates and members of the general public also thronged the residence to express their condolences.
These groups of people openly wept and wondered why such a gem and national asset should die.
Sympathisers signed a book of condolence which was opened in memory of the Mr Baah-Wiredu who passed away in a hospital in South Africa on Wednesday.
The Agogohene, Nana Akuoku Sarpong, said he could not believe Mr Baah-Wiredu was dead until he arrived at his residence this morning adding “it is a reality and we have to live with it.”
According to him he had met Mr Baah-Wiredu and Nana Akufo-Addo’s delegation two weeks ago and nothing indicated that Mr Baah-Wiredu was sick.
“His death came as a shock. He has served my traditional area, the constituency and Ghana well. His death is a great loss to me and the entire nation,” Nana Akuoku Sarpong stated.
He described Mr Baah-Wiredu as a genuine, hardworking, approachable and a humble personality.
The Head of Family (Accra), Mr Apeagyei Mensah, said he and other family members heard of the Minister’s death on air and decided to visit his residence to verify.
According to him they were told on arrival at the residence that it was true the Minister was dead.
He said he was told doctors did everything possible to save Mr Baah-Wiredu but the latter could not make it.
He said Mr Baah-Wiredu’s death was a blow and a great loss to the family and the entire nation.
Mr Mensah thanked officials of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and the government for the tremendous assistance they had so far given to the family.
He took the opportunity to deny media reports that an 83 year-old uncle of the deceased collapsed and died after hearing of the death of Mr Baah-Wiredu.
He said the octegenarian was alive and well.
The Public Relations Officer of the CEPS, Ms Annie Anipa, said the entire CEPS workforce was shocked at the death of Mr Baah-Wiredu.
She said Mr Baah-Wiredu was a hardworking Minister who worked very cordially with the CEPS to raise revenue for the state.
“He is down-to-earth. This is unexpected and it will take time for us to recover from the shock,” Ms Anipa added.
Meanwhile, the Auditor-General, Mr Edward Dua-Agyemang, has expressed shock at the sudden death of Mr Baah-Wiredu.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic from Beijing, China, where he is attending an Africa-China auditors conference, he said his death was a big blow to the nation particularly the business and financial confraternity.
Mr Dua-Agyemang who for many years worked with Mr Baah-Wiredu in the same accounting firm Asante-Wiredu, Osei Kwabena and Associates said the Finance Minister would be missed by all for his selfless devotion to duty and humility.
“Mr Baah-Wiredu treated everybody like his equal and was prepared to learn even from his subordinates no doubt he came out as one of the best Finance Minister in the history of the country,’ he added.
Don’t buy products exposed to sunlight- FDB
September 29, 2008 (Page 32)
THE Food and Drugs Board (FDB) has warned the public to desist from purchasing cosmetics, drugs and canned products that are exposed to direct sunlight.
According to the FDB, such products tend to lose their value when exposed to the high temperatures, posing a health risk to consumers.
The Deputy Chief Executive of the FDB in charge of Food, Mr John Odame-Darkwah, told the Daily Graphic that it was, therefore, wrong for traders to expose such products to the sun.
He said cosmetics, drugs, canned foods and perishable food items must be sold under 15 degrees Celsius, adding that “it is mandatory to sell drugs and cosmetics under these conditions.”
According to him, storing products under poor conditions posed health risks as the products lost their full potency and nutritional value as declared by the manufacturer.
Mr Odame-Darkwah advised consumers to look out for expiry dates, as well as the condition of packaging, to find out whether or not the packaging was defaced, discoloured, dented, rusted, bloated, as well as look out for anything that might look suspicious.
He cited instances where some retailers either scratched off expiry dates or covered those dates to prevent consumers from knowing that their products were expired.
He also advised consumers to purchase products from places where retailers could easily be traced if the need arose.
Mr Odame-Darkwah noted that the problem was that people did not carefully examine the authenticity or otherwise of products before purchase.
According to him, it had come to the Board’s notice that majority of Ghanaians purchased products anywhere and at anytime without paying attention to the genuineness or otherwise of those products.
He noted that such attitude gave room to miscreants to continue to produce fake and inferior products while traders sold them with impunity.
He, therefore, urged the public to partner the FDB in curbing the sale of expired and fake products by paying more attention to products they purchased and report their suspicions to the FDB for the necessary action to be taken.
“The issue of safety calls for collective responsibility on the part of the producer, the distributor, the retailer, the consumer, the general public and regulatory bodies as a whole,” Mr Odame-Darkwah stated, adding that when that was done “we will save ourselves and generations to come”.
According to him, “the wealth of every nation depends on the health of the populace”.
Mr Odame-Darkwah explained further that dates were written to assure consumers that the manufacturer could guarantee the nutritional quality of products.
He said it was expedient for products to be stored under effective ventilation, as well as hygienic conditions, adding that consumers must always look out for information regarding storage conditions and strictly adhere to them.
He also warned consumers to refrain from using canned products as decorations, adding that “you must buy as and when you need them. Do not over stock because the products would get damaged when you do not store them under appropriate conditions”.
THE Food and Drugs Board (FDB) has warned the public to desist from purchasing cosmetics, drugs and canned products that are exposed to direct sunlight.
According to the FDB, such products tend to lose their value when exposed to the high temperatures, posing a health risk to consumers.
The Deputy Chief Executive of the FDB in charge of Food, Mr John Odame-Darkwah, told the Daily Graphic that it was, therefore, wrong for traders to expose such products to the sun.
He said cosmetics, drugs, canned foods and perishable food items must be sold under 15 degrees Celsius, adding that “it is mandatory to sell drugs and cosmetics under these conditions.”
According to him, storing products under poor conditions posed health risks as the products lost their full potency and nutritional value as declared by the manufacturer.
Mr Odame-Darkwah advised consumers to look out for expiry dates, as well as the condition of packaging, to find out whether or not the packaging was defaced, discoloured, dented, rusted, bloated, as well as look out for anything that might look suspicious.
He cited instances where some retailers either scratched off expiry dates or covered those dates to prevent consumers from knowing that their products were expired.
He also advised consumers to purchase products from places where retailers could easily be traced if the need arose.
Mr Odame-Darkwah noted that the problem was that people did not carefully examine the authenticity or otherwise of products before purchase.
According to him, it had come to the Board’s notice that majority of Ghanaians purchased products anywhere and at anytime without paying attention to the genuineness or otherwise of those products.
He noted that such attitude gave room to miscreants to continue to produce fake and inferior products while traders sold them with impunity.
He, therefore, urged the public to partner the FDB in curbing the sale of expired and fake products by paying more attention to products they purchased and report their suspicions to the FDB for the necessary action to be taken.
“The issue of safety calls for collective responsibility on the part of the producer, the distributor, the retailer, the consumer, the general public and regulatory bodies as a whole,” Mr Odame-Darkwah stated, adding that when that was done “we will save ourselves and generations to come”.
According to him, “the wealth of every nation depends on the health of the populace”.
Mr Odame-Darkwah explained further that dates were written to assure consumers that the manufacturer could guarantee the nutritional quality of products.
He said it was expedient for products to be stored under effective ventilation, as well as hygienic conditions, adding that consumers must always look out for information regarding storage conditions and strictly adhere to them.
He also warned consumers to refrain from using canned products as decorations, adding that “you must buy as and when you need them. Do not over stock because the products would get damaged when you do not store them under appropriate conditions”.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Shock all over
September 26, 2008 (Second Lead Story)
CLOSE associates, family members, journalists and the general public thronged the residence of the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, to verify the authenticity or otherwise of his death.
Some broke down in tears while others simply gaped with shock when it was confirmed that one of the affable politicians in Ghana was dead.
Most of the people who thronged his residence said they heard of the Finance Minister’s death on air but did not believe it until they entered his residence.
It was a sorrowful scene as Mr Baah-Wiredu’s family members including some of his children, his friends and sympathisers openly wept and wondered why death should lay its icy hands on such a hardworking, dedicated, selfless, down to earth, respectful and humble person.
His family members said despite his tight working schedule, he always ensured he had time for them.
Journalists from both the government and private-owned media said they had lost a source who operated an open-door policy and was always willing to explain issues no matter how busy he was.
They described him as a down-to-earth politician who welcomed, accommodated and patiently and respectfully answered all sorts of questions no matter how sensitive those questions were.
On the premises of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, work grounded to a halt when news of his death broke.
Some workers could not suppress their tears when they openly wept and described the Minister as one of the best they had ever had.
Most of the workers the Daily Graphic spoke to said they were shocked and dismayed at the death of the Minister.
They said he would be sorely missed and prayed he would rest peacefully in the bosom of the Lord.
Mr Baah-Wiredu died in South Africa yesterday (Wednesday) at the Little Company of Mary Hospital in Pretoria.
The announcement of the death of Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, threw the whole of the Ashanti Region into a state of mourning report Kwame Asare Boadu & Nana Yaw Barimah from Kumasi.
At his home town Agogo, the entire town has been in melancholy mood when they received the shocking message. Many also expressed shock at his death as they did not even hear that he was sick.
Some called for explicit explanation to clear doubts about the death of their beloved patriot. Mr Baah-Wiredu at the recent New Patriotic Party (NPP) primaries won over Mr Andy Appiah Kubi, Deputy Executive Secretary of the Free Zone Board, with a little over 30 votes to consolidate his position to stand for the party in the December polls.
Many party members the Daily Graphic spoke to were dump-founded and could hardly come to terms with what led to his death.
When the news gained currency around 2.30p.m. in Kumasi it became the topic of the town and people started touting his good works.
Madam Akosua Frimpong of the Central Market said he saw the Hon. Baah-Wiredu as a respectable gentleman and wondered how he died at that early age.
Another market woman, Mary Afrifa, also of the Central Market, said he was jovial and humorous, which made her have confidence in him. She stressed that the legacy he left for the country was a strong economy.
Mrs Sophia Adjei, also of Asafo Market, noted that when she first heard the news on radio, she thought it was not true.
She remarked that the good works exhibited by Baah-Wiredu in all the three ministries he worked were very remarkable and therefore urged the government to ensure that "we give him a befitting burial".
Mr Kwame Asante Barnie, a Kumasi-based business executive, described Hon Baah-Wiredu as a genius because according to him he excelled in all the ministries he worked.
He said he was one minister who did not show off and also welcomed everybody.
Mr Kusi Appiah, the District Co-ordinating Director for Kwabere, who could not hide his sentiments on hearing the death, said the country had lost a hardworking and industrious minister.
Mr Charles Bruce Appiah, the Managing Director of Trade Link Agency in Kumasi, who said the late Baah-Wiredu was his friend, said he did not believe the story and expressed his profound shock.
A chartered accountant who got elected into Parliament on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in 1996, Mr Baah-Wiredu had been a minister in President Kufuor’s government since 2001.
Born on June 3, 1952 in Agogo, he started his secondary education at the Kumasi High School, Kumasi in 1967 and obtained the GCE Ordinary Level Certificate in 1972. He had his sixth form education at Prempeh College, also in Kumasi, and proceeded to the University of Ghana in 1974, obtaining a BSc in Administration (Accounting option). He then did a four-year course with the Institute of Chartered Accountants qualifying as a chartered accountant in 1985.
He has worked at various positions with the now defunct Ghana Airways and the Volta River Authority and as a senior consultant on computer systems and as finance manager of Ananse Systems. In addition, he was a partner in Asante Wiredu and Associates, an accounting firm, prior to being an MP.
He would be remembered, among others, as the Sports Minister during whose tenure the Ghana Black Stars qualified for their maiden World Cup finals in Germany in 2006.
He left behind a wife and six children.
CLOSE associates, family members, journalists and the general public thronged the residence of the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, to verify the authenticity or otherwise of his death.
Some broke down in tears while others simply gaped with shock when it was confirmed that one of the affable politicians in Ghana was dead.
Most of the people who thronged his residence said they heard of the Finance Minister’s death on air but did not believe it until they entered his residence.
It was a sorrowful scene as Mr Baah-Wiredu’s family members including some of his children, his friends and sympathisers openly wept and wondered why death should lay its icy hands on such a hardworking, dedicated, selfless, down to earth, respectful and humble person.
His family members said despite his tight working schedule, he always ensured he had time for them.
Journalists from both the government and private-owned media said they had lost a source who operated an open-door policy and was always willing to explain issues no matter how busy he was.
They described him as a down-to-earth politician who welcomed, accommodated and patiently and respectfully answered all sorts of questions no matter how sensitive those questions were.
On the premises of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, work grounded to a halt when news of his death broke.
Some workers could not suppress their tears when they openly wept and described the Minister as one of the best they had ever had.
Most of the workers the Daily Graphic spoke to said they were shocked and dismayed at the death of the Minister.
They said he would be sorely missed and prayed he would rest peacefully in the bosom of the Lord.
Mr Baah-Wiredu died in South Africa yesterday (Wednesday) at the Little Company of Mary Hospital in Pretoria.
The announcement of the death of Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, threw the whole of the Ashanti Region into a state of mourning report Kwame Asare Boadu & Nana Yaw Barimah from Kumasi.
At his home town Agogo, the entire town has been in melancholy mood when they received the shocking message. Many also expressed shock at his death as they did not even hear that he was sick.
Some called for explicit explanation to clear doubts about the death of their beloved patriot. Mr Baah-Wiredu at the recent New Patriotic Party (NPP) primaries won over Mr Andy Appiah Kubi, Deputy Executive Secretary of the Free Zone Board, with a little over 30 votes to consolidate his position to stand for the party in the December polls.
Many party members the Daily Graphic spoke to were dump-founded and could hardly come to terms with what led to his death.
When the news gained currency around 2.30p.m. in Kumasi it became the topic of the town and people started touting his good works.
Madam Akosua Frimpong of the Central Market said he saw the Hon. Baah-Wiredu as a respectable gentleman and wondered how he died at that early age.
Another market woman, Mary Afrifa, also of the Central Market, said he was jovial and humorous, which made her have confidence in him. She stressed that the legacy he left for the country was a strong economy.
Mrs Sophia Adjei, also of Asafo Market, noted that when she first heard the news on radio, she thought it was not true.
She remarked that the good works exhibited by Baah-Wiredu in all the three ministries he worked were very remarkable and therefore urged the government to ensure that "we give him a befitting burial".
Mr Kwame Asante Barnie, a Kumasi-based business executive, described Hon Baah-Wiredu as a genius because according to him he excelled in all the ministries he worked.
He said he was one minister who did not show off and also welcomed everybody.
Mr Kusi Appiah, the District Co-ordinating Director for Kwabere, who could not hide his sentiments on hearing the death, said the country had lost a hardworking and industrious minister.
Mr Charles Bruce Appiah, the Managing Director of Trade Link Agency in Kumasi, who said the late Baah-Wiredu was his friend, said he did not believe the story and expressed his profound shock.
A chartered accountant who got elected into Parliament on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in 1996, Mr Baah-Wiredu had been a minister in President Kufuor’s government since 2001.
Born on June 3, 1952 in Agogo, he started his secondary education at the Kumasi High School, Kumasi in 1967 and obtained the GCE Ordinary Level Certificate in 1972. He had his sixth form education at Prempeh College, also in Kumasi, and proceeded to the University of Ghana in 1974, obtaining a BSc in Administration (Accounting option). He then did a four-year course with the Institute of Chartered Accountants qualifying as a chartered accountant in 1985.
He has worked at various positions with the now defunct Ghana Airways and the Volta River Authority and as a senior consultant on computer systems and as finance manager of Ananse Systems. In addition, he was a partner in Asante Wiredu and Associates, an accounting firm, prior to being an MP.
He would be remembered, among others, as the Sports Minister during whose tenure the Ghana Black Stars qualified for their maiden World Cup finals in Germany in 2006.
He left behind a wife and six children.
Monday, September 22, 2008
AG advocates introduction of non-custodial sentencing
Monday, September 22, 2008 (Page 53)
THE Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, has advocated the introduction of non-custodial sentencing in the country’s criminal justice system.
According to him, such a move would ease congestion in prisons across the country.
Mr Ghartey said it cost the state more when a convict was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment for stealing a cellular phone than if the convict was made to embark on community service.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting on the Justice For All Project in Accra, the Attorney-General said there was the need for persons convicted for petty crimes to be made to embark on community service in areas such as sanitation, instead of being imprisoned.
For instance, he suggested that convicted persons could be made to wear special uniforms and work in collaboration with Zoomlion to improve sanitation in the country.
The Justice For All Project is an initiative of the Ministry of Justice and Attorney-General’s Department and is aimed at bringing justice to the doorstep of all citizens, especially the vulnerable in the society.
According to him, custodial sentencing of petty cases such as the stealing of goats, cellular phones, among others, had contributed to the congestion in the country’s prisons.
He also called for a review of the sentencing and remand system policies as part of efforts to decongest the prisons in order to ensure that the state benefited from the services of convicts.
Presenting a report on the Justice For All Project, a Principal State Attorney, Mrs Stella Badu, said the AG’s Department had called for the dockets on 100 people who had been remanded in mental homes.
She said the dockets on those people who were sent to the mental homes on the orders of judges would be reviewed.
According to Mrs Badu, under the project, juveniles could not be kept on remand for more than three months, adding that the project would be replicated in all prisons across the country soon.
For his part, a Supreme Court judge, Mr Justice Jones Dotse, said it was sad that the country did not have a sentencing policy.
According to him, judges had been granted too much discretion which sometimes was not exercised judiciously.
He said it was important for guidelines to be set to bring uniformity into the sentencing of accused persons in order to avoid the miscarriage of justice.
Mr Justice Dotse also called for the proper documentation of cases, adding that policemen must be given a definite time frame within which to finish investigations in order to bring remarkable success into the criminal justice system.
The President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Nii Osah Mills, said the GBA was very much concerned about the issue of remand prisoners in the country.
He, therefore, pleaded with the various stakeholders to do more to curb the incidence of the increasing number of remand prisoners in the prisons.
The acting Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Ms Gertrude Aikins, suggested that two investigators should be attached to each case to ensure that a case could be continued in the absence of one of them.
THE Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, has advocated the introduction of non-custodial sentencing in the country’s criminal justice system.
According to him, such a move would ease congestion in prisons across the country.
Mr Ghartey said it cost the state more when a convict was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment for stealing a cellular phone than if the convict was made to embark on community service.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting on the Justice For All Project in Accra, the Attorney-General said there was the need for persons convicted for petty crimes to be made to embark on community service in areas such as sanitation, instead of being imprisoned.
For instance, he suggested that convicted persons could be made to wear special uniforms and work in collaboration with Zoomlion to improve sanitation in the country.
The Justice For All Project is an initiative of the Ministry of Justice and Attorney-General’s Department and is aimed at bringing justice to the doorstep of all citizens, especially the vulnerable in the society.
According to him, custodial sentencing of petty cases such as the stealing of goats, cellular phones, among others, had contributed to the congestion in the country’s prisons.
He also called for a review of the sentencing and remand system policies as part of efforts to decongest the prisons in order to ensure that the state benefited from the services of convicts.
Presenting a report on the Justice For All Project, a Principal State Attorney, Mrs Stella Badu, said the AG’s Department had called for the dockets on 100 people who had been remanded in mental homes.
She said the dockets on those people who were sent to the mental homes on the orders of judges would be reviewed.
According to Mrs Badu, under the project, juveniles could not be kept on remand for more than three months, adding that the project would be replicated in all prisons across the country soon.
For his part, a Supreme Court judge, Mr Justice Jones Dotse, said it was sad that the country did not have a sentencing policy.
According to him, judges had been granted too much discretion which sometimes was not exercised judiciously.
He said it was important for guidelines to be set to bring uniformity into the sentencing of accused persons in order to avoid the miscarriage of justice.
Mr Justice Dotse also called for the proper documentation of cases, adding that policemen must be given a definite time frame within which to finish investigations in order to bring remarkable success into the criminal justice system.
The President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Nii Osah Mills, said the GBA was very much concerned about the issue of remand prisoners in the country.
He, therefore, pleaded with the various stakeholders to do more to curb the incidence of the increasing number of remand prisoners in the prisons.
The acting Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Ms Gertrude Aikins, suggested that two investigators should be attached to each case to ensure that a case could be continued in the absence of one of them.
Security officer jailed 3 years for stealing
Monday, September 22, 2008 (Page 32)
THE Accra Circuit Court has sentenced a former security officer of Yasarko Printing Press Limited, a printing firm in Accra to three years imprisonment for stealing GH¢33,850 belonging to his employer.
Hanson Lawrence Agyare-Sefah pleaded guilty after two years of trial and at a time when he had opened his defence, gave his evidence-in-chief and was expected to answer questions under cross examination from Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Eric Amoako.
He was sentenced on his own plea.
The court found him guilty on 34 counts of conspiracy and stealing and sentenced him to three years imprisonment on each count. His sentence is to run concurrently.
Hanson had admitted in his caution statement that he forged the signature of the company's chief executive to steal money from the company's accounts.
According to him he sneaked into the office of the Director of the company, Mr Yaw Sarkodie, to steal an unspecified number of leaflets from the Standard Chartered Bank cheque books and further admitted using part of the stolen money to purchase two Nissan Urvan buses.
However, counsel for two other accused persons namely Joseph Oppong and Christian Aban, both former drivers of the company have made submissions of no case after the prosecution closed its case.
The court has fixed Wednesday, September 24, 2008 for ruling on the submission of no case.
Oppong and Aban had each pleaded not guilty to one count each of abetment of crime and have since been granted bail.
The facts of the case are that on August 17, 2006 the accountant of Yasarko Press Limited detected the theft of 29 cheque leaflets from the company’s cheque books which were normally kept at the Managing Director’s office.
According to the prosecution, the accountant informed the Managing Director, who then followed up to the Dansoman branch of the Standard Chartered Bank where 13 photocopies of stolen cheques were obtained.
Following the arrest of the accused persons, the police retrieved four additional photocopies of stolen cheques from the bank.
It was later found out that a total of ¢338.5 million had been withdrawn from the company’s accounts.
Security cameras at the Dansoman Branch of the Standard Chartered Bank revealed Oppong and Aban cashing money with the stolen cheques on June 23, 2006 and June 28, 2006 respectively at the instance of Hanson.
Forensic examinations revealed that Hanson prepared and signed all the cheques.
Investigations also revealed that Hanson cashed majority of the cheques with Oppong and Aban cashing two of the stolen cheques.
Two mini-buses which Hanson allegedly used the stolen money to purchase have been impounded by the police.
An amount of GH ¢3,100 was also retrieved from Hanson’s bank accounts.
THE Accra Circuit Court has sentenced a former security officer of Yasarko Printing Press Limited, a printing firm in Accra to three years imprisonment for stealing GH¢33,850 belonging to his employer.
Hanson Lawrence Agyare-Sefah pleaded guilty after two years of trial and at a time when he had opened his defence, gave his evidence-in-chief and was expected to answer questions under cross examination from Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Eric Amoako.
He was sentenced on his own plea.
The court found him guilty on 34 counts of conspiracy and stealing and sentenced him to three years imprisonment on each count. His sentence is to run concurrently.
Hanson had admitted in his caution statement that he forged the signature of the company's chief executive to steal money from the company's accounts.
According to him he sneaked into the office of the Director of the company, Mr Yaw Sarkodie, to steal an unspecified number of leaflets from the Standard Chartered Bank cheque books and further admitted using part of the stolen money to purchase two Nissan Urvan buses.
However, counsel for two other accused persons namely Joseph Oppong and Christian Aban, both former drivers of the company have made submissions of no case after the prosecution closed its case.
The court has fixed Wednesday, September 24, 2008 for ruling on the submission of no case.
Oppong and Aban had each pleaded not guilty to one count each of abetment of crime and have since been granted bail.
The facts of the case are that on August 17, 2006 the accountant of Yasarko Press Limited detected the theft of 29 cheque leaflets from the company’s cheque books which were normally kept at the Managing Director’s office.
According to the prosecution, the accountant informed the Managing Director, who then followed up to the Dansoman branch of the Standard Chartered Bank where 13 photocopies of stolen cheques were obtained.
Following the arrest of the accused persons, the police retrieved four additional photocopies of stolen cheques from the bank.
It was later found out that a total of ¢338.5 million had been withdrawn from the company’s accounts.
Security cameras at the Dansoman Branch of the Standard Chartered Bank revealed Oppong and Aban cashing money with the stolen cheques on June 23, 2006 and June 28, 2006 respectively at the instance of Hanson.
Forensic examinations revealed that Hanson prepared and signed all the cheques.
Investigations also revealed that Hanson cashed majority of the cheques with Oppong and Aban cashing two of the stolen cheques.
Two mini-buses which Hanson allegedly used the stolen money to purchase have been impounded by the police.
An amount of GH ¢3,100 was also retrieved from Hanson’s bank accounts.
AG's Office drafts bill on organised crime
Saturday, September 20, 2008 (Page 3 Lead)
A Bill which seeks to establish a Serious Fraud and Organised Crime Office as a specialised agency to monitor and investigate economic and organised crime has been drafted.
The objective of the bill is to detect and prevent organised crime, help eradicate economic crime and take the profit out of crime.
According to the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, the office would have the power to investigate, prosecute and recover the proceeds of crime.
He said the bill, which had since been forwarded to the Board of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) for more input, would tackle money laundering, human trafficking, cyber crime and computer-related offences.
Mr Ghartey, who announced this at the inauguration of the SFO Board in Accra yesterday, said the board and staff of the SFO were expected to make inputs to enrich the bill, which was also expected to retrieve proceeds from organised crime and related matters for the benefit of the state.
A retired Supreme Court judge, Mr Justice R. T. Aninakwah, is the chairman of the board, with Mr Edward Agyemang Duodu, the acting Chief Executive of the SFO; Mrs Elizabeth Mills-Robertson, a Deputy Inspector-General of Police, and Mr Benjamin Botwe, Executive Secretary of the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB), as members.
The rest of the members of the board are Mr William Kpobi, a Chief State Attorney at the Attorney-General’s Department in charge of the Ashanti Region, and Mr Alex Nii Kwetei Quaynor, a private legal practitioner.
The Attorney-General introduced Mr Duodu to the staff of the SFO, who welcomed him with a thunderous applause which lasted almost a minute.
Mr Ghartey described Mr Duodu as an honest man who was hardworking, unassuming but firm and full of integrity and urged the staff to give him the maximum support to serve the country.
He explained that the former Chief Executive of the office, Mr Theophilus Cudjoe, had been re-assigned to the Ministry of Justice as a Policy Advisor on serious and organised crime.
Touching more on the bill, Mr Ghartey said organised crime had reached alarming proportions in recent times and it was, therefore, important to establish a specialised agency with wide powers to curb the spate of criminal activities which were eating into the social and moral fibre of the country.
A memorandum on the bill, which was signed by the Attorney-General, said the increase in criminal activities might be attributed to the fact that the punishment for offences had not been effective to combat crimes.
According to the memorandum, crime was still high because perpetrators who were given jail terms or were fined later continued their criminal activities because they were ultimately allowed to enjoy their ill-gotten gains, adding, “It has become imperative to strengthen existing structures to help eradicate organised crime.”
It further stated that the bill transferred the assets, liabilities and property vested in the SFO established under the Serious Fraud Office Act, 1993 (Act 466) to the office established under that act.
Under the bill, the National Investigation Committee, the Office of the Revenue Commissioners, as well as the State Houses (Allocation and Policy Implementation) Committee, would also be dissolved.
It added that the bill repealed the National Investigation Committee Act, 1982 (PNDCL 2), the Revenue Commissioners Act, 1984 (PNDCL 80), the State Houses (Allocation Policy and Implementation) Commission Act, 1984 (PNDCL 83) and the Serious Fraud Office Act, 1993 (Act 466).
A Bill which seeks to establish a Serious Fraud and Organised Crime Office as a specialised agency to monitor and investigate economic and organised crime has been drafted.
The objective of the bill is to detect and prevent organised crime, help eradicate economic crime and take the profit out of crime.
According to the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, the office would have the power to investigate, prosecute and recover the proceeds of crime.
He said the bill, which had since been forwarded to the Board of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) for more input, would tackle money laundering, human trafficking, cyber crime and computer-related offences.
Mr Ghartey, who announced this at the inauguration of the SFO Board in Accra yesterday, said the board and staff of the SFO were expected to make inputs to enrich the bill, which was also expected to retrieve proceeds from organised crime and related matters for the benefit of the state.
A retired Supreme Court judge, Mr Justice R. T. Aninakwah, is the chairman of the board, with Mr Edward Agyemang Duodu, the acting Chief Executive of the SFO; Mrs Elizabeth Mills-Robertson, a Deputy Inspector-General of Police, and Mr Benjamin Botwe, Executive Secretary of the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB), as members.
The rest of the members of the board are Mr William Kpobi, a Chief State Attorney at the Attorney-General’s Department in charge of the Ashanti Region, and Mr Alex Nii Kwetei Quaynor, a private legal practitioner.
The Attorney-General introduced Mr Duodu to the staff of the SFO, who welcomed him with a thunderous applause which lasted almost a minute.
Mr Ghartey described Mr Duodu as an honest man who was hardworking, unassuming but firm and full of integrity and urged the staff to give him the maximum support to serve the country.
He explained that the former Chief Executive of the office, Mr Theophilus Cudjoe, had been re-assigned to the Ministry of Justice as a Policy Advisor on serious and organised crime.
Touching more on the bill, Mr Ghartey said organised crime had reached alarming proportions in recent times and it was, therefore, important to establish a specialised agency with wide powers to curb the spate of criminal activities which were eating into the social and moral fibre of the country.
A memorandum on the bill, which was signed by the Attorney-General, said the increase in criminal activities might be attributed to the fact that the punishment for offences had not been effective to combat crimes.
According to the memorandum, crime was still high because perpetrators who were given jail terms or were fined later continued their criminal activities because they were ultimately allowed to enjoy their ill-gotten gains, adding, “It has become imperative to strengthen existing structures to help eradicate organised crime.”
It further stated that the bill transferred the assets, liabilities and property vested in the SFO established under the Serious Fraud Office Act, 1993 (Act 466) to the office established under that act.
Under the bill, the National Investigation Committee, the Office of the Revenue Commissioners, as well as the State Houses (Allocation and Policy Implementation) Committee, would also be dissolved.
It added that the bill repealed the National Investigation Committee Act, 1982 (PNDCL 2), the Revenue Commissioners Act, 1984 (PNDCL 80), the State Houses (Allocation Policy and Implementation) Commission Act, 1984 (PNDCL 83) and the Serious Fraud Office Act, 1993 (Act 466).
CPP pleads for 7 days to resolve Blay fracas
Friday, September 19, 2008 (Page 3 Lead)
A leading member of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), Mr Bright Akwetey, today pleaded with the Accra Fast Track High Court to give the party seven days to resolve its differences with its aggrieved Member of Parliament for Elembelle, Mr Freddie Blay.
Mr Blay and five others namely Mr Francis Quayson, Mr Kwasi Kutea, Mr Kwame Appreh, Mr Samuel Akainyah and Mr Kwasi Andoh sued the CPP and six of its leading members including the flagbearer of the CPP, Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom seeking a declaration that the primary held to elect him as the CPP’s parliamentary aspirant was proper, valid and in compliance with the party’s constitution.
Also joined in the suit alongside Dr Nduom are the Chairman, Mr Ladi Nylander; Vice-Chairman, Dr Abu Sakara; General Secretary, Mr Ivor Greenstreet; Treasurer, Mr Mike Eghan and Mr Kosi Dedey, Spokesperson.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Edward A. Asante, adjourned the case to October 6, 2008 and ordered the defendants to file their response to Mr Blay’s application by September 30,2008.
At the court’s sitting in Accra today, Mr Akwetey prayed the court to give parties in the matter seven days to solve the matter in-house.
He made the plea after the court had dismissed a preliminary objection raised by counsel for the defendants, Mr Yao Yegbey, which prayed the court to dismiss the application against the defendants on the grounds that it was premature.
According to counsel Mr Blay did not exhaust the processes set out in the party’s constitution for aggrieved party members.
He said it was a contractual agreement for Mr Blay to obey the rules and regulations of the party adding that the claim by Mr Blay that the party had violated his fundamental human rights was a fallacy.
He further stated that the fixing of today for the hearing of the case was not right because Mr Blay had not filed his statement of case for his clients to respond.
According to counsel Mr Blay’s failure to adhere to the High Court rules had rendered the hearing of his (Mr Blay’s) application improper and unlawful.
Counsel further argued that Mr Blay’s application did not disclose any cause of action against Dr Sakara, Mr Eghan, Mr Dedey and Dr Nduom and accordingly prayed the court to order the names of the four to be expunged from the application.
Responding, counsel for the applicants, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, said the arguments by counsel for the defendants was misleading and unmerritorious.
He said Mr Blay’s argument bordered on an infringement of his fundamental human rights as enshrined in Article 33 of the 1992 Constitution adding that the court had the jurisdiction to look into matters that bordered on the fundamental human rights of persons.
He, however, explained that the applicants could not follow the due processes in filing the application because his client had to act in earnest to meet the deadline from the Electoral Commission (EC) to Parliamentary aspirants to file their papers.
In its ruling, the court dismissed the defendants preliminary objection on the grounds that it had no basis.
It, however, admitted that there was an error on the part of the registrar in fixing today as the hearing and accordingly gave the respondents up to September 30, 2008 to file their response.
In the substantive suit, the applicants are seeking a declaration that the primaries held on August 23, 2008 to elect Mr as the CPP’s parliamentary candidate was proper, valid and in compliance with the party’s Constitution.
The applicants are also seeking a declaration that Mr Blay was the properly elected CPP parliamentary candidate for the Ellembele Constituency.
They are also seeking an order of certiorari to quash the decision of the Central Committee which nullified Mr Blay’s election on the grounds that the decision was without jurisdiction, against the CPP constitution and unlawful and as well as an order of mandamus compelling Mr Dedey and the Central Committee of the party to hold Mr Blay as the duly elected CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele and also an order prohibiting the respondents or any agent, organ or officer of the respondents from organising any primaries for the election of a CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele.
The applicants are also seeking an interim order directed at the respondents and their agents, officers or functionaries from engaging in media attacks on Mr Blay or make any disparaging statement in the public against the applicants pending the final determination of the application.
In their affidavit in opposition the defendants said the correct position of the party was contained in a press release which expressed the consequence of the Central Committee’s decision to object to the election of Mr Blay as the party’s parliamentary aspirant for the 2008 election.
According to the affidavit, what that meant was that if Mr Blay failed to regularise his position with the Central Committee, then there would be the need for the Ellembele Constituency to hold a fresh election in order to elect another candidate, thereby rendering the initial primary null and void.
It said that all the written invitations sent to Mr Blay only invited him to attend a meeting concerning his presence at a New Patriotic Party (NPP) rally at Ainyinase on April 30, 2008.
“The invitation never stated that any charge had been preferred against Mr Blay; neither did the CPP say that Mr Blay had breached any provisions of the party’s constitution”, the affidavit stated.
It said in a letter purporting to request for a statement of his charge, Mr Blay was out of place as he showed gross disrespect to and contempt for the CPP, a political party on whose ticket he was asking for endorsement to stand as a parliamentary candidate for the 2008 election.
A leading member of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), Mr Bright Akwetey, today pleaded with the Accra Fast Track High Court to give the party seven days to resolve its differences with its aggrieved Member of Parliament for Elembelle, Mr Freddie Blay.
Mr Blay and five others namely Mr Francis Quayson, Mr Kwasi Kutea, Mr Kwame Appreh, Mr Samuel Akainyah and Mr Kwasi Andoh sued the CPP and six of its leading members including the flagbearer of the CPP, Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom seeking a declaration that the primary held to elect him as the CPP’s parliamentary aspirant was proper, valid and in compliance with the party’s constitution.
Also joined in the suit alongside Dr Nduom are the Chairman, Mr Ladi Nylander; Vice-Chairman, Dr Abu Sakara; General Secretary, Mr Ivor Greenstreet; Treasurer, Mr Mike Eghan and Mr Kosi Dedey, Spokesperson.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Edward A. Asante, adjourned the case to October 6, 2008 and ordered the defendants to file their response to Mr Blay’s application by September 30,2008.
At the court’s sitting in Accra today, Mr Akwetey prayed the court to give parties in the matter seven days to solve the matter in-house.
He made the plea after the court had dismissed a preliminary objection raised by counsel for the defendants, Mr Yao Yegbey, which prayed the court to dismiss the application against the defendants on the grounds that it was premature.
According to counsel Mr Blay did not exhaust the processes set out in the party’s constitution for aggrieved party members.
He said it was a contractual agreement for Mr Blay to obey the rules and regulations of the party adding that the claim by Mr Blay that the party had violated his fundamental human rights was a fallacy.
He further stated that the fixing of today for the hearing of the case was not right because Mr Blay had not filed his statement of case for his clients to respond.
According to counsel Mr Blay’s failure to adhere to the High Court rules had rendered the hearing of his (Mr Blay’s) application improper and unlawful.
Counsel further argued that Mr Blay’s application did not disclose any cause of action against Dr Sakara, Mr Eghan, Mr Dedey and Dr Nduom and accordingly prayed the court to order the names of the four to be expunged from the application.
Responding, counsel for the applicants, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, said the arguments by counsel for the defendants was misleading and unmerritorious.
He said Mr Blay’s argument bordered on an infringement of his fundamental human rights as enshrined in Article 33 of the 1992 Constitution adding that the court had the jurisdiction to look into matters that bordered on the fundamental human rights of persons.
He, however, explained that the applicants could not follow the due processes in filing the application because his client had to act in earnest to meet the deadline from the Electoral Commission (EC) to Parliamentary aspirants to file their papers.
In its ruling, the court dismissed the defendants preliminary objection on the grounds that it had no basis.
It, however, admitted that there was an error on the part of the registrar in fixing today as the hearing and accordingly gave the respondents up to September 30, 2008 to file their response.
In the substantive suit, the applicants are seeking a declaration that the primaries held on August 23, 2008 to elect Mr as the CPP’s parliamentary candidate was proper, valid and in compliance with the party’s Constitution.
The applicants are also seeking a declaration that Mr Blay was the properly elected CPP parliamentary candidate for the Ellembele Constituency.
They are also seeking an order of certiorari to quash the decision of the Central Committee which nullified Mr Blay’s election on the grounds that the decision was without jurisdiction, against the CPP constitution and unlawful and as well as an order of mandamus compelling Mr Dedey and the Central Committee of the party to hold Mr Blay as the duly elected CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele and also an order prohibiting the respondents or any agent, organ or officer of the respondents from organising any primaries for the election of a CPP parliamentary candidate for Ellembele.
The applicants are also seeking an interim order directed at the respondents and their agents, officers or functionaries from engaging in media attacks on Mr Blay or make any disparaging statement in the public against the applicants pending the final determination of the application.
In their affidavit in opposition the defendants said the correct position of the party was contained in a press release which expressed the consequence of the Central Committee’s decision to object to the election of Mr Blay as the party’s parliamentary aspirant for the 2008 election.
According to the affidavit, what that meant was that if Mr Blay failed to regularise his position with the Central Committee, then there would be the need for the Ellembele Constituency to hold a fresh election in order to elect another candidate, thereby rendering the initial primary null and void.
It said that all the written invitations sent to Mr Blay only invited him to attend a meeting concerning his presence at a New Patriotic Party (NPP) rally at Ainyinase on April 30, 2008.
“The invitation never stated that any charge had been preferred against Mr Blay; neither did the CPP say that Mr Blay had breached any provisions of the party’s constitution”, the affidavit stated.
It said in a letter purporting to request for a statement of his charge, Mr Blay was out of place as he showed gross disrespect to and contempt for the CPP, a political party on whose ticket he was asking for endorsement to stand as a parliamentary candidate for the 2008 election.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Business education forum held for students
Thursday, September 18, 2008 (Page 44)
A LECTURER at the University of Cape Coast, Professor Kwame Boasiako Omane-Antwi, has appealed to tertiary institutions to design innovative programmes to adequately respond to the changing needs of industry.
He said “most of the universities and other higher institutions lack high quality faculty, intellectually aggressive students and sufficient resources. These difficulties affect high standard and deny corporations of benefits of higher education”.
Professor Omane-Antwi was delivering a paper at an educational forum organised by the London School of Business and Finance in collaboration with the Association of Chartered and Certified Accountants in Accra last week.
The forum, which was on theme: “Business Education Towards a Sustainable Development” was aimed at equipping tertiary students to acquire the requisite skills to survive in a competitive business environment.
Professor Omane-Antwi said “in order to seek and sustain partnerships, higher education should position themselves as drivers of our national and regional economy”.
For instance, he said, a university might partner with an industry to build research and educational programmes that would provide new approaches to the practice of manufacturing and at the same time prepare students who had both the technical and managerial expertise to lead tomorrow’s manufacturing industries.
He also urged the government to renew its investment in tertiary institutions.
In an interview after the forum, the Chief Executive Officer of the London School of Business and Finance, Mr Aaron Etingen, said the school aimed at turning Ghana into a financial outsourcing centre in Africa.
He said plans were far advanced to provide skills to students in Zenith College, Central University College and the Datalink University, all in Ghana.
According to Mr Etingen, students would be lectured by both Ghanaian and British lecturers, adding that all that was “aimed at providing the skill for students to be marketable both locally and internationally”.
He said students would be given ACCA, CIMA and CFA certificates, all of which were internationally renowned, in order to make graduates of the institution employable.
On his part, the Ga Mantse, King Tackie Tawiah III, said there was the need for stakeholders to invest limitless resources in education.
He said the educational system should be positioned to stimulate the needs of society.
According to him, the country was about to explore for oil but had not contemplated how to tackle the challenges of the industry.
A LECTURER at the University of Cape Coast, Professor Kwame Boasiako Omane-Antwi, has appealed to tertiary institutions to design innovative programmes to adequately respond to the changing needs of industry.
He said “most of the universities and other higher institutions lack high quality faculty, intellectually aggressive students and sufficient resources. These difficulties affect high standard and deny corporations of benefits of higher education”.
Professor Omane-Antwi was delivering a paper at an educational forum organised by the London School of Business and Finance in collaboration with the Association of Chartered and Certified Accountants in Accra last week.
The forum, which was on theme: “Business Education Towards a Sustainable Development” was aimed at equipping tertiary students to acquire the requisite skills to survive in a competitive business environment.
Professor Omane-Antwi said “in order to seek and sustain partnerships, higher education should position themselves as drivers of our national and regional economy”.
For instance, he said, a university might partner with an industry to build research and educational programmes that would provide new approaches to the practice of manufacturing and at the same time prepare students who had both the technical and managerial expertise to lead tomorrow’s manufacturing industries.
He also urged the government to renew its investment in tertiary institutions.
In an interview after the forum, the Chief Executive Officer of the London School of Business and Finance, Mr Aaron Etingen, said the school aimed at turning Ghana into a financial outsourcing centre in Africa.
He said plans were far advanced to provide skills to students in Zenith College, Central University College and the Datalink University, all in Ghana.
According to Mr Etingen, students would be lectured by both Ghanaian and British lecturers, adding that all that was “aimed at providing the skill for students to be marketable both locally and internationally”.
He said students would be given ACCA, CIMA and CFA certificates, all of which were internationally renowned, in order to make graduates of the institution employable.
On his part, the Ga Mantse, King Tackie Tawiah III, said there was the need for stakeholders to invest limitless resources in education.
He said the educational system should be positioned to stimulate the needs of society.
According to him, the country was about to explore for oil but had not contemplated how to tackle the challenges of the industry.
Ataa Ayi gets 20 more yrs
Wednesday, September 17, 2008 (Second Lead Story)
THE Accra Circuit Court yesterday sentenced Ghana’s notorious armed robber, Aryee Aryeetey, alias Ataa Ayi, and three others to a total of 80 years’ imprisonment with hard labour for robbery.
Ataa Ayi, whose full name is Raymond Aryee Aryeetey and the three, namely Sarfo Sarpong, Michael Tagoe and Nana Osei, aka Razak, were found guilty of raiding the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) at gunpoint on May 19, 2004.
They were each sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for conspiracy and 20 years imprisonment for robbery. Their sentences are to run concurrently.
Ataa Ayi, who is already serving a 70-year sentence imposed on him in 2006 is currently facing trial in different courts on a string of cases involving him and other accomplices.
The convict, who has grown lean compared to his looks two years ago, looked indifferent after the sentence was imposed on him by a High Court judge who sat with additional responsibility as a Circuit Court Judge.
“I would have imposed a higher sentence if I had sat here in my capacity as a High Court judge,” the judge held.
The trial judge said Ataa Ayi and his cronies needed to be “flushed out of society” because they were the reason Ghanaians could not sleep in their homes peacefully at night.
The court further held that it was now common to see people rob during daylight.
According to the court, armed robbery was on the ascendancy and it was, therefore, important for the convicts to be flushed out of society.
The court said it took into consideration the prevalence of armed robbery in the country, the overwhelming evidence adduced against the convicts by the prosecution, the character and antecedents of the convicts among others before imposing the sentence.
The court congratulated the prosecution on calling eight witnesses within three days, thereby ensuring a speedy trial.
The prosecution was led by a State Attorney, Mrs Rebecca Adjalo.
Ataa Ayi and the other convicts were whisked away by armed prison officers and policemen to continue their sentence.
The facts of the case were that the chief cashier of the CAC and two other employees of the church went to cash GH¢5,625 from the Standard Chartered Bank, Osu branch, and were driving to the office when the accused persons chased them amidst gunshots to the premises but the complainants managed to run away with the money.
While looking for the chief cashier and the others, the accused persons chanced on some officials of the church counting some money in another room and robbed them of GH¢662 at gunpoint.
The convicts denied the offence.
Ataa Ayi has been shuttling from the Nsawam Prisons to the courts where a string of armed robbery cases in which he has been named are pending.
THE Accra Circuit Court yesterday sentenced Ghana’s notorious armed robber, Aryee Aryeetey, alias Ataa Ayi, and three others to a total of 80 years’ imprisonment with hard labour for robbery.
Ataa Ayi, whose full name is Raymond Aryee Aryeetey and the three, namely Sarfo Sarpong, Michael Tagoe and Nana Osei, aka Razak, were found guilty of raiding the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) at gunpoint on May 19, 2004.
They were each sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for conspiracy and 20 years imprisonment for robbery. Their sentences are to run concurrently.
Ataa Ayi, who is already serving a 70-year sentence imposed on him in 2006 is currently facing trial in different courts on a string of cases involving him and other accomplices.
The convict, who has grown lean compared to his looks two years ago, looked indifferent after the sentence was imposed on him by a High Court judge who sat with additional responsibility as a Circuit Court Judge.
“I would have imposed a higher sentence if I had sat here in my capacity as a High Court judge,” the judge held.
The trial judge said Ataa Ayi and his cronies needed to be “flushed out of society” because they were the reason Ghanaians could not sleep in their homes peacefully at night.
The court further held that it was now common to see people rob during daylight.
According to the court, armed robbery was on the ascendancy and it was, therefore, important for the convicts to be flushed out of society.
The court said it took into consideration the prevalence of armed robbery in the country, the overwhelming evidence adduced against the convicts by the prosecution, the character and antecedents of the convicts among others before imposing the sentence.
The court congratulated the prosecution on calling eight witnesses within three days, thereby ensuring a speedy trial.
The prosecution was led by a State Attorney, Mrs Rebecca Adjalo.
Ataa Ayi and the other convicts were whisked away by armed prison officers and policemen to continue their sentence.
The facts of the case were that the chief cashier of the CAC and two other employees of the church went to cash GH¢5,625 from the Standard Chartered Bank, Osu branch, and were driving to the office when the accused persons chased them amidst gunshots to the premises but the complainants managed to run away with the money.
While looking for the chief cashier and the others, the accused persons chanced on some officials of the church counting some money in another room and robbed them of GH¢662 at gunpoint.
The convicts denied the offence.
Ataa Ayi has been shuttling from the Nsawam Prisons to the courts where a string of armed robbery cases in which he has been named are pending.
300 held illegally • Nsawam Medium Security Prison
Wednesday, September 17, 2008 (Lead Story)
THREE hundred remand prisoners are still being held at the Nsawam Medium Security Prison, in spite of the fact that their warrants have expired, an Executive Director of the Centre for Human Rights and Civil Liberties (CHURCIL), Mr Kojo Graham, has disclosed.
At a stakeholders’ meeting on the Justice For All Project organised by the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney-General’s Department in Accra last Monday, Mr Graham said the continued stay of the accused persons in prison was illegal because their warrants had not been renewed.
He later explained to the Daily Graphic that the expiration of the remand warrants meant that those remand prisoners were being kept illegally unless a court renewed the warrants for their continued detention.
The prison authorities, on the other hand, cannot release the remand prisoners because they have not received any court order to that effect.
Mr Graham further explained that the courts could only renew the warrants if the remand prisoners were put before them by the police.
In addition to those whose warrants had expired, he said, the dockets on a total of 600 prisoners, including the 300 at the same prison, could not be traced when officials of the centre conducted a six-month check on remand prisoners at Nsawam.
The Justice For All Project is an initiative of the Ministry of Justice and Attorney-General’s Department and is aimed at bringing justice to the doorstep of all citizens, especially the vulnerable in the society.
The meeting, which was attended by the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, his deputy, Mr Osei Prempeh, representatives from the Ghana Prisons Service, the Ghana Police Service and the Judicial Service, was aimed at reviewing the progress, challenges and the way forward for the project.
Other stakeholders at the meeting included officials from the Attorney-General’s Department, the President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Nii Osah Mills, representatives from Legal Aid, the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs (MOWAC), the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), among other stakeholders.
According to Mr Graham, it also came to light during the inspection that 40 of the remand prisoners had been on remand for between six and 14 years.
He said it was unfortunate that the documents on the said remand prisoners could not be traced by officials of the CHURCIL who were working in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney-General’s Department, the judiciary and other stakeholders to ensure the effective administration of justice to all Ghanaians.
Mr Graham, therefore, called for a review of the system, by which the contact addresses of remand prisoners, as well as the police stations where they were remanded and the name of the judge who remanded them, would be provided.
He said there was also the need for the name of the investigator of the case, the nature of the offence, among other relevant information, to be provided for effective follow-ups on remand cases.
According to Mr Graham, it also came to light that there were not more than 10 prosecutors handling criminal cases at the Cocoa Affairs Court in Accra where a chunk of the remand prisoners emanated from, adding that there was, therefore, the need for the development of a database from which all cases could be tracked.
He said apart from the initiative to give freedom to deserving remand prisoners, special courts must be set up to handle the backlog of remand prisoners at the country’s prisons.
Another Executive Director of CHURCIL, Mr Andrew Daniels, explained further that the remand prisoners were being held in contravention of Article 14 of the 1992 Constitution.
He said more remand prisoners were being interviewed and noted that the number might exceed the 600 on completion of the project.
He said under the project, remand prisoners who were already in the prisons and those who were remanded daily were being monitored.
According to him, the project was aimed at coming up with mechanisms to decongest the prisons, adding that majority of those remand prisoners were being held for basic offences like theft and assault.
He called for an effective system for the monitoring of dockets on prisoners, adding that the situation which put accused persons at the mercy of the availability or otherwise of dockets should be a thing of the past.
For his part, Mr Ghartey congratulated CHURCIL on working effectively on behalf of the Justice For All Project and called for a system to ensure the effective monitoring of arrests and the subsequent remand and conviction of persons.
He also called for the training of prosecutors to carry out their work efficiently in order for justice to prevail at all times.
The Attorney-General said his outfit, the Police Service, the Judicial Service and all other stakeholders needed to work together as a team for the speedy and satisfactory adjudication of criminal cases in order to maintain public confidence in the country’s criminal justice system.
Mr Ghartey formed sub-committees which would be co-chaired by the Attorney-General’s Department, the judiciary and the GBA to speed up the quest to provide justice for all Ghanaians.
A representative of the Ghana Prisons Service, Mr Ben Quaye, said the issue of remand prisoners must be looked at critically because majority of the inmates of the Nsawam Prison were remand prisoners.
He said the large number of remand prisoners occupied majority of prison officers who escorted them to court on a daily basis, instead of the officers staying in the prisons to fully cater for the needs of convicted prisoners.
A Supreme Court judge, Mr Justice Jones Dotse, said following public outcry against the piling up of cases in the courts, the Chief Justice set up a committee to look into the matter for redress.
He said as a result, 426 cases, comprising robbery, narcotic offences, rape and defilement, were put before vacation judges who were currently hearing those cases.
He said it was the first time such an initiative had been taken and expressed the hope that other stakeholders would contribute their quota to ensure effective justice delivery.
Mr Justice Dotse said delays in the adjudication of cases could be attributed to poor handing-over notes by judges and police officers who went on transfer or peacekeeping operations.
He also called for the establishment of guidelines and deadlines for the adjudication of cases.
The Justice For All Project was launched by Mr Ghartey on September 27, 2008.
There are four components under the project, namely, the remand review, the sentencing policy, the prosecutor’s capacity building and the systems and procedures analyses project.
More than 56 prisoners have received their freedom since the inception of the project which is currently ongoing .
THREE hundred remand prisoners are still being held at the Nsawam Medium Security Prison, in spite of the fact that their warrants have expired, an Executive Director of the Centre for Human Rights and Civil Liberties (CHURCIL), Mr Kojo Graham, has disclosed.
At a stakeholders’ meeting on the Justice For All Project organised by the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney-General’s Department in Accra last Monday, Mr Graham said the continued stay of the accused persons in prison was illegal because their warrants had not been renewed.
He later explained to the Daily Graphic that the expiration of the remand warrants meant that those remand prisoners were being kept illegally unless a court renewed the warrants for their continued detention.
The prison authorities, on the other hand, cannot release the remand prisoners because they have not received any court order to that effect.
Mr Graham further explained that the courts could only renew the warrants if the remand prisoners were put before them by the police.
In addition to those whose warrants had expired, he said, the dockets on a total of 600 prisoners, including the 300 at the same prison, could not be traced when officials of the centre conducted a six-month check on remand prisoners at Nsawam.
The Justice For All Project is an initiative of the Ministry of Justice and Attorney-General’s Department and is aimed at bringing justice to the doorstep of all citizens, especially the vulnerable in the society.
The meeting, which was attended by the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, his deputy, Mr Osei Prempeh, representatives from the Ghana Prisons Service, the Ghana Police Service and the Judicial Service, was aimed at reviewing the progress, challenges and the way forward for the project.
Other stakeholders at the meeting included officials from the Attorney-General’s Department, the President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Nii Osah Mills, representatives from Legal Aid, the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs (MOWAC), the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), among other stakeholders.
According to Mr Graham, it also came to light during the inspection that 40 of the remand prisoners had been on remand for between six and 14 years.
He said it was unfortunate that the documents on the said remand prisoners could not be traced by officials of the CHURCIL who were working in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney-General’s Department, the judiciary and other stakeholders to ensure the effective administration of justice to all Ghanaians.
Mr Graham, therefore, called for a review of the system, by which the contact addresses of remand prisoners, as well as the police stations where they were remanded and the name of the judge who remanded them, would be provided.
He said there was also the need for the name of the investigator of the case, the nature of the offence, among other relevant information, to be provided for effective follow-ups on remand cases.
According to Mr Graham, it also came to light that there were not more than 10 prosecutors handling criminal cases at the Cocoa Affairs Court in Accra where a chunk of the remand prisoners emanated from, adding that there was, therefore, the need for the development of a database from which all cases could be tracked.
He said apart from the initiative to give freedom to deserving remand prisoners, special courts must be set up to handle the backlog of remand prisoners at the country’s prisons.
Another Executive Director of CHURCIL, Mr Andrew Daniels, explained further that the remand prisoners were being held in contravention of Article 14 of the 1992 Constitution.
He said more remand prisoners were being interviewed and noted that the number might exceed the 600 on completion of the project.
He said under the project, remand prisoners who were already in the prisons and those who were remanded daily were being monitored.
According to him, the project was aimed at coming up with mechanisms to decongest the prisons, adding that majority of those remand prisoners were being held for basic offences like theft and assault.
He called for an effective system for the monitoring of dockets on prisoners, adding that the situation which put accused persons at the mercy of the availability or otherwise of dockets should be a thing of the past.
For his part, Mr Ghartey congratulated CHURCIL on working effectively on behalf of the Justice For All Project and called for a system to ensure the effective monitoring of arrests and the subsequent remand and conviction of persons.
He also called for the training of prosecutors to carry out their work efficiently in order for justice to prevail at all times.
The Attorney-General said his outfit, the Police Service, the Judicial Service and all other stakeholders needed to work together as a team for the speedy and satisfactory adjudication of criminal cases in order to maintain public confidence in the country’s criminal justice system.
Mr Ghartey formed sub-committees which would be co-chaired by the Attorney-General’s Department, the judiciary and the GBA to speed up the quest to provide justice for all Ghanaians.
A representative of the Ghana Prisons Service, Mr Ben Quaye, said the issue of remand prisoners must be looked at critically because majority of the inmates of the Nsawam Prison were remand prisoners.
He said the large number of remand prisoners occupied majority of prison officers who escorted them to court on a daily basis, instead of the officers staying in the prisons to fully cater for the needs of convicted prisoners.
A Supreme Court judge, Mr Justice Jones Dotse, said following public outcry against the piling up of cases in the courts, the Chief Justice set up a committee to look into the matter for redress.
He said as a result, 426 cases, comprising robbery, narcotic offences, rape and defilement, were put before vacation judges who were currently hearing those cases.
He said it was the first time such an initiative had been taken and expressed the hope that other stakeholders would contribute their quota to ensure effective justice delivery.
Mr Justice Dotse said delays in the adjudication of cases could be attributed to poor handing-over notes by judges and police officers who went on transfer or peacekeeping operations.
He also called for the establishment of guidelines and deadlines for the adjudication of cases.
The Justice For All Project was launched by Mr Ghartey on September 27, 2008.
There are four components under the project, namely, the remand review, the sentencing policy, the prosecutor’s capacity building and the systems and procedures analyses project.
More than 56 prisoners have received their freedom since the inception of the project which is currently ongoing .
More vehicles switch to use of gas
September 13, 2008 (Back Page)
DEMAND for Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) at the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) has increased by 26.32 per cent within a year due to more vehicles switching from petrol to the use of gas.
The conversion from petrol to gas is attributed to the rising cost of petrol and diesel.
The Public Affairs Manager of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), Mrs Aba Lokko, told the Daily Graphic in an interview that LPG demand rose from 7,600 metric tonnes a month to 9,600 tonnes within a year.
She said the demand for LPG went up anytime crude oil prices rose on the international market and stated that more and more vehicles were switching from petrol to gas due to its cost-effectiveness.
Mrs Lokko stated that TOR’s enquiries had revealed that some commercial vehicle owners had replaced their petrol tanks with auto gas systems.
She said the demand for LPG had increased by 144.51 per cent within a decade, meaning more and more people either used the product for domestic or commercial purpose.
She also stated that the LPG market had seen tremendous growth over the past years and for that reason the refinery was putting the necessary measures in place to meet the increasing demands of consumers.
She stated that the refinery had increased the size of its loading pumps to deliver 800 metric tonnes of LPG instead of the previous 400 metric tonnes.
Mrs Lokko further explained that the refinery had increased the sizes of its storage tanks in order to store more LPG for public consumption.
DEMAND for Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) at the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) has increased by 26.32 per cent within a year due to more vehicles switching from petrol to the use of gas.
The conversion from petrol to gas is attributed to the rising cost of petrol and diesel.
The Public Affairs Manager of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), Mrs Aba Lokko, told the Daily Graphic in an interview that LPG demand rose from 7,600 metric tonnes a month to 9,600 tonnes within a year.
She said the demand for LPG went up anytime crude oil prices rose on the international market and stated that more and more vehicles were switching from petrol to gas due to its cost-effectiveness.
Mrs Lokko stated that TOR’s enquiries had revealed that some commercial vehicle owners had replaced their petrol tanks with auto gas systems.
She said the demand for LPG had increased by 144.51 per cent within a decade, meaning more and more people either used the product for domestic or commercial purpose.
She also stated that the LPG market had seen tremendous growth over the past years and for that reason the refinery was putting the necessary measures in place to meet the increasing demands of consumers.
She stated that the refinery had increased the size of its loading pumps to deliver 800 metric tonnes of LPG instead of the previous 400 metric tonnes.
Mrs Lokko further explained that the refinery had increased the sizes of its storage tanks in order to store more LPG for public consumption.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
5 Granted bail • In Bawku firearms case
September 11, 2008 (Page 3 Lead)
THE Accra Fast Track High Court yesterday granted bail to the tune of GH¢25,000 to five persons who have been charged with possessing firearms and ammunition without authority and dishonestly receiving.
The five — Daniel Yeboah, a Police Constable; Sumaila Seidu, Issaka Fuseini, Awinbilla John Ndego and Alhassan Hamza — were arrested on different occasions at Bawku.
Each of the accused persons was granted a GH¢5,000 bail with a surety each to be justified.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Charles Quist, also prohibited the accused persons from entering Bawku until the final determination of the matter.
It also ordered them to report to the Bolgatanga office of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) every Monday at 9 a.m.
The court also granted bail to a sixth accused person, Nuhu Fuseini, 15, and ordered a parent or guardian of the juvenile to stand as surety.
All the accused persons had pleaded not guilty to the charge of possessing firearms and ammunition without lawful authority.
The six, except the juvenile, were present in court yesterday.
The court granted bail to the accused persons after their counsel, Mr Carl Adongo, had prayed the court to grant them bail on the grounds that the charges levelled against them were bailable.
According to the court, the law allowed bail to be granted to persons charged with similar offences, adding that in any case, the case had been adjourned four times in his court and on each occasion, the prosecution was absent.
Consequently, the trial judge granted each of the accused persons bail in the sum of GH¢10,000 but Mr Adongo pleaded with the court to reduce the bail, since the accused persons were poor peasant farmers.
The court obliged and accordingly reduced it from GH¢10,000 to GH¢5,000.
It also decided to order the accused persons to report to the Bolgatanga CID instead of the CID in Accra after the defence counsel had prayed it to review its decision. According to counsel, the accused persons did not have relatives in Accra.
The court, however, maintained its earlier order that the accused persons should not enter Bawku until the final determination of the matter.
A seventh accused person, Ibrahim, was not brought because the docket on his case had not been put before the court.
His case was adjourned to September 22, 2008, while that of the other six accused persons was adjourned to September 24, 2008.
Mr Adongo had earlier informed the court that the continuous detention of the accused persons was unreasonable because they had been on remand since January, 2008.
The brief facts of the case were that Sumaila Seidu was caught by security forces while in possession of a locally manufactured pistol loaded with live cartridges around 8.00 p.m. on February 4, 2008, while Nuhu Fuseini was arrested in possession of 16 rounds of ammunition.
According to the prosecution, on May 13, 2008, Daniel Yeboah allegedly stole an AK 47 assault rifle and 30 rounds of ammunition, while Ndego was caught in possession of two AK 47 assault rifles on June 27, 2008.
Issaka Fuseini and Daniel Yeboah were charged with dishonestly receiving and possessing firearms and ammunition without lawful authority, while Alhassan Hamza was charged with possessing firearms without lawful authority.
In a related development, the Osu District Magistrate’s Court on September 2, 2008 refused bail for eight persons who have been accused of committing murder during the Bawku conflicts.
The accused persons — Alhaji Fuseini Abugri, Amadu Abugri, Alidu Abugri, Imoro Salifu, Adamu Salifu, Haruna Ibrahim, Tanim Adam and Adamu Salifu — were arrested on different occasions by a joint military and police task force deployed in Bawku to restore law and order.
They have all pleaded not guilty to various counts of conspiracy and murder charges.
According to the court, the accused persons were murder suspects and it was, therefore, not prudent for the court to grant them bail.
It, therefore, gave the prosecution two weeks to put its facts together in order for the trial to begin.
The court, which refused to grant the bail after counsel for the accused persons had prayed the court to grant them bail, adjourned the matter to September 16, 2008.
The murder suspects were first arraigned before the court on July 4, 2008 charged with various counts of conspiracy and murder.
The prosecution informed the court that Alhaji Fuseini, Amadu and Alidu Abugri, all siblings, allegedly slit the throats of an 80-year-old man and children at a village in Bawku on June 25, 2008 in retaliation over the death of their relative.
The prosecution said Imoro and Adamu Salifu shot and killed a contractor who was returning from the mosque on May 4, 2008 without any provocation, while Haruna Ibrahim, a Kusasi, was accused of ambushing Muniru Adam and chopping off his head in the process on May 5, 2008.
Tanim Adam, a revenue collector, was accused of using an object to kill Yeremin Alhassan, a 53-year-old educationist, on May 13, 2008.
Adamu Salifu was alleged to have vandalised property, killing one person in the process, at a festival in Bawku on December 31, 2007.
THE Accra Fast Track High Court yesterday granted bail to the tune of GH¢25,000 to five persons who have been charged with possessing firearms and ammunition without authority and dishonestly receiving.
The five — Daniel Yeboah, a Police Constable; Sumaila Seidu, Issaka Fuseini, Awinbilla John Ndego and Alhassan Hamza — were arrested on different occasions at Bawku.
Each of the accused persons was granted a GH¢5,000 bail with a surety each to be justified.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Charles Quist, also prohibited the accused persons from entering Bawku until the final determination of the matter.
It also ordered them to report to the Bolgatanga office of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) every Monday at 9 a.m.
The court also granted bail to a sixth accused person, Nuhu Fuseini, 15, and ordered a parent or guardian of the juvenile to stand as surety.
All the accused persons had pleaded not guilty to the charge of possessing firearms and ammunition without lawful authority.
The six, except the juvenile, were present in court yesterday.
The court granted bail to the accused persons after their counsel, Mr Carl Adongo, had prayed the court to grant them bail on the grounds that the charges levelled against them were bailable.
According to the court, the law allowed bail to be granted to persons charged with similar offences, adding that in any case, the case had been adjourned four times in his court and on each occasion, the prosecution was absent.
Consequently, the trial judge granted each of the accused persons bail in the sum of GH¢10,000 but Mr Adongo pleaded with the court to reduce the bail, since the accused persons were poor peasant farmers.
The court obliged and accordingly reduced it from GH¢10,000 to GH¢5,000.
It also decided to order the accused persons to report to the Bolgatanga CID instead of the CID in Accra after the defence counsel had prayed it to review its decision. According to counsel, the accused persons did not have relatives in Accra.
The court, however, maintained its earlier order that the accused persons should not enter Bawku until the final determination of the matter.
A seventh accused person, Ibrahim, was not brought because the docket on his case had not been put before the court.
His case was adjourned to September 22, 2008, while that of the other six accused persons was adjourned to September 24, 2008.
Mr Adongo had earlier informed the court that the continuous detention of the accused persons was unreasonable because they had been on remand since January, 2008.
The brief facts of the case were that Sumaila Seidu was caught by security forces while in possession of a locally manufactured pistol loaded with live cartridges around 8.00 p.m. on February 4, 2008, while Nuhu Fuseini was arrested in possession of 16 rounds of ammunition.
According to the prosecution, on May 13, 2008, Daniel Yeboah allegedly stole an AK 47 assault rifle and 30 rounds of ammunition, while Ndego was caught in possession of two AK 47 assault rifles on June 27, 2008.
Issaka Fuseini and Daniel Yeboah were charged with dishonestly receiving and possessing firearms and ammunition without lawful authority, while Alhassan Hamza was charged with possessing firearms without lawful authority.
In a related development, the Osu District Magistrate’s Court on September 2, 2008 refused bail for eight persons who have been accused of committing murder during the Bawku conflicts.
The accused persons — Alhaji Fuseini Abugri, Amadu Abugri, Alidu Abugri, Imoro Salifu, Adamu Salifu, Haruna Ibrahim, Tanim Adam and Adamu Salifu — were arrested on different occasions by a joint military and police task force deployed in Bawku to restore law and order.
They have all pleaded not guilty to various counts of conspiracy and murder charges.
According to the court, the accused persons were murder suspects and it was, therefore, not prudent for the court to grant them bail.
It, therefore, gave the prosecution two weeks to put its facts together in order for the trial to begin.
The court, which refused to grant the bail after counsel for the accused persons had prayed the court to grant them bail, adjourned the matter to September 16, 2008.
The murder suspects were first arraigned before the court on July 4, 2008 charged with various counts of conspiracy and murder.
The prosecution informed the court that Alhaji Fuseini, Amadu and Alidu Abugri, all siblings, allegedly slit the throats of an 80-year-old man and children at a village in Bawku on June 25, 2008 in retaliation over the death of their relative.
The prosecution said Imoro and Adamu Salifu shot and killed a contractor who was returning from the mosque on May 4, 2008 without any provocation, while Haruna Ibrahim, a Kusasi, was accused of ambushing Muniru Adam and chopping off his head in the process on May 5, 2008.
Tanim Adam, a revenue collector, was accused of using an object to kill Yeremin Alhassan, a 53-year-old educationist, on May 13, 2008.
Adamu Salifu was alleged to have vandalised property, killing one person in the process, at a festival in Bawku on December 31, 2007.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Court refuses bail for eight
September 4, 2008 (Page 3)
The Osu District Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday refused bail for eight persons who have been accused of committing murder during the Bawku conflicts.
The accused persons — Alhaji Fuseini Abugri, Amadu Abugri, Alidu Abugri, Imoro Salifu, Adamu Salifu, Haruna Ibrahim, Tanim Adam and Adamu Salifu — were arrested on different occasions by a joint military and police task force deployed in Bawku to restore law and order.
They have all pleaded not guilty to various counts of conspiracy and murder charges.
According to the court, the accused persons were murder suspects and it was, therefore, not prudent for the court to grant them bail.
It, therefore, gave the prosecution two weeks to put its facts together in order for the trial to begin.
The court, which refused to grant the bail after counsel for the accused persons, Mr Carl Adongo, had prayed the court to grant them bail, adjourned the matter to September 16, 2008.
According to the counsel, the accused persons, who he said included minors, had been in custody since January, 2008.
He, therefore, prayed the court to grant them bail, since they would co-operate with the court during the trial.
Earlier, the court enquired why the accused persons were not in court, to which the prosecutor, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Patrick Morkeh, explained that the investigators in the case had arrived from Bawku and would, therefore, need a month to put the facts of the case together.
The murder suspects were first arraigned before the court on July 4, 2008 charged with various counts of conspiracy and murder.
They have all pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The prosecutor informed the court that Alhaji Fuseini, Amadu and Alidu Abugri, all siblings, allegedly slit the throats of an 80-year-old man and children at a village in Bawku on June 25, 2008 in retaliation over the death of their relative.
The prosecution said Imoro and Adamu Salifu shot and killed a contractor who was returning from the mosque on May 4, 2008 without any provocation, while Haruna Ibrahim, a Kusasi, was accused of ambushing Muniru Adam and chopping off his head in the process on May 5, 2008.
Tanim Adam, a revenue collector, was accused of using an object to kill Yeremin Alhassan, a 53-year-old educationist, on May 13, 2008.
Adamu Salifu was alleged to have vandalised property, killing one person in the process, at a festival in Bawku on December 31, 2007.
In a related development, the Fast Track High Court has ordered the prosecution to put its facts together by October 10, 2008 in the case where six persons have been charged with possessing firearms and ammunition without authority and dishonestly receiving.
The six, including Daniel Yeboah, a Police Constable; Nuhu Fuseini, 15; Sumaila Seidu, Issaka Fuseini, Awumbila John Ndego and Alhassan Hamza, were arrested on different occasions at Bawku.
Apart from Nuhu Fuseini who has been remanded at the Osu Juvenile Home, the rest have been remanded in police custody.
All the accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charge of possessing firearms and ammunition without lawful authority.
The brief facts of the case were that Sumaila Seidu was caught by security forces while in possession of a locally manufactured pistol loaded with live cartridges around 8.00 p.m. on February 4, 2008, while Nuhu Fuseini was arrested in possession of 16 rounds of ammunition.
According to the prosecution, on May 13, 2008, Daniel Yeboah allegedly stole an AK 47 assault rifle and 30 rounds of ammunition, while Ndego was caught in possession of two AK 47 assault rifles on June 27, 2008.
Issaka Fuseini and Daniel Yeboah were charged with dishonestly receiving and possessing firearms and ammunition without lawful authority, while Alhassan Hamza was charged with possessing firearms without lawful authority.
The Osu District Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday refused bail for eight persons who have been accused of committing murder during the Bawku conflicts.
The accused persons — Alhaji Fuseini Abugri, Amadu Abugri, Alidu Abugri, Imoro Salifu, Adamu Salifu, Haruna Ibrahim, Tanim Adam and Adamu Salifu — were arrested on different occasions by a joint military and police task force deployed in Bawku to restore law and order.
They have all pleaded not guilty to various counts of conspiracy and murder charges.
According to the court, the accused persons were murder suspects and it was, therefore, not prudent for the court to grant them bail.
It, therefore, gave the prosecution two weeks to put its facts together in order for the trial to begin.
The court, which refused to grant the bail after counsel for the accused persons, Mr Carl Adongo, had prayed the court to grant them bail, adjourned the matter to September 16, 2008.
According to the counsel, the accused persons, who he said included minors, had been in custody since January, 2008.
He, therefore, prayed the court to grant them bail, since they would co-operate with the court during the trial.
Earlier, the court enquired why the accused persons were not in court, to which the prosecutor, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Patrick Morkeh, explained that the investigators in the case had arrived from Bawku and would, therefore, need a month to put the facts of the case together.
The murder suspects were first arraigned before the court on July 4, 2008 charged with various counts of conspiracy and murder.
They have all pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The prosecutor informed the court that Alhaji Fuseini, Amadu and Alidu Abugri, all siblings, allegedly slit the throats of an 80-year-old man and children at a village in Bawku on June 25, 2008 in retaliation over the death of their relative.
The prosecution said Imoro and Adamu Salifu shot and killed a contractor who was returning from the mosque on May 4, 2008 without any provocation, while Haruna Ibrahim, a Kusasi, was accused of ambushing Muniru Adam and chopping off his head in the process on May 5, 2008.
Tanim Adam, a revenue collector, was accused of using an object to kill Yeremin Alhassan, a 53-year-old educationist, on May 13, 2008.
Adamu Salifu was alleged to have vandalised property, killing one person in the process, at a festival in Bawku on December 31, 2007.
In a related development, the Fast Track High Court has ordered the prosecution to put its facts together by October 10, 2008 in the case where six persons have been charged with possessing firearms and ammunition without authority and dishonestly receiving.
The six, including Daniel Yeboah, a Police Constable; Nuhu Fuseini, 15; Sumaila Seidu, Issaka Fuseini, Awumbila John Ndego and Alhassan Hamza, were arrested on different occasions at Bawku.
Apart from Nuhu Fuseini who has been remanded at the Osu Juvenile Home, the rest have been remanded in police custody.
All the accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charge of possessing firearms and ammunition without lawful authority.
The brief facts of the case were that Sumaila Seidu was caught by security forces while in possession of a locally manufactured pistol loaded with live cartridges around 8.00 p.m. on February 4, 2008, while Nuhu Fuseini was arrested in possession of 16 rounds of ammunition.
According to the prosecution, on May 13, 2008, Daniel Yeboah allegedly stole an AK 47 assault rifle and 30 rounds of ammunition, while Ndego was caught in possession of two AK 47 assault rifles on June 27, 2008.
Issaka Fuseini and Daniel Yeboah were charged with dishonestly receiving and possessing firearms and ammunition without lawful authority, while Alhassan Hamza was charged with possessing firearms without lawful authority.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Ghana loses $200 million annually • Through importation of counterfeit products
Wednesday, September 3,2008 (Spread Lead)
GHANA loses $200 million annually through the importation of counterfeit products.
The loss to the state is as a result of smuggling of counterfeit products into the country. Manufacturers of the original products also suffer heavy losses because counterfeit products are preferred over the originals due to their low prices.
According to the Deputy Chief Executive of the Food and Drugs Board, in charge of Drugs, Reverend J. Y. Martey, the counterfeit products ranged from building materials, vehicle spare parts, pharmaceuticals, beverages to other consumable items that adversely affect the viability of legitimate local production.
He said a study by the European Union (EU) revealed that the trade in counterfeit products showed an increase of more than 90 per cent from 2005.
On fake medicines, Rev. Martey said another institution, the US-based Centre for Medicines in Public Interest, had predicted that the amount of such drugs alone would reach $75 billion globally by 2010.
He further explained that the human cost was the most critical especially in the area of pharmaceuticals and medical devices.
According to him, the report also observed that many countries in Africa, parts of Asia and Latin America had more than 30 per cent of counterfeit medicines on sale and further revealed instances where thousands of children and adults died from the intake of counterfeit drugs.
To this end, he said, a new system that would give consumers first-hand information on the genuineness or otherwise of pharmaceutical products being developed in Ghana.
The system, known as mPedigree, which would link producers and distributors on the one hand, with consumers and regulators on the other hand, had been designed to eliminate the information blockage on which counterfeiters thrive.
Consequently, a stakeholders mechanism involving institutions like the FDB and its partners would ensure that the mPedigree remain the public service platform it was designed to be, free to consumers and convenient to manufacturers and other supply chain actors.
Throwing more light on the system, a strategist of the mPedigree platform, Mr Bright Simons, said the system was being fully developed right here in Ghana, and would, once comprehensively operational, be the world's first consumer protection system of its kind. He said under the system, drug buyers and/or consumers would have the opportunity to check whether their purchases were genuine or not, for free, by using their mobile phones to send special, non-duplicable codes embossed on drugs and to receive in a few seconds a response confirming or denying the authenticity of the product concerned.
Mr Simons further explained that expiry dates and other alerts may also be communicated to consumers through the system, which began on a pilot basis in January 2008 and ended in April.
He said other collaborating agencies under the new system were the telecom operators in the country, the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Ghana, the FDB and other collaborators.
Mr Simons pointed out that other upgrades to the system may include electronic product registration across the sub-region and aimed at eliminating the current hurdles faced by manufacturers and distributors who sold across borders.
He said discussions were ongoing with stakeholders for a nationwide implementation of the system.
As part of efforts to curb counterfeiting in the country, the first National Dialogue on Counterfeit Products ended in Accra on July 23, 2008 with participants poised to deliver on the commitments made in the final communiqué.
The participants, namely, the FDB, the EU BizClim Facility, and the Institute of Packaging (the last two acting through the Coalition Against Counterfeiting & Illicit Trade) identified four major areas in which significant improvement would lead to significant results in the fight against counterfeiting in Ghana.
GHANA loses $200 million annually through the importation of counterfeit products.
The loss to the state is as a result of smuggling of counterfeit products into the country. Manufacturers of the original products also suffer heavy losses because counterfeit products are preferred over the originals due to their low prices.
According to the Deputy Chief Executive of the Food and Drugs Board, in charge of Drugs, Reverend J. Y. Martey, the counterfeit products ranged from building materials, vehicle spare parts, pharmaceuticals, beverages to other consumable items that adversely affect the viability of legitimate local production.
He said a study by the European Union (EU) revealed that the trade in counterfeit products showed an increase of more than 90 per cent from 2005.
On fake medicines, Rev. Martey said another institution, the US-based Centre for Medicines in Public Interest, had predicted that the amount of such drugs alone would reach $75 billion globally by 2010.
He further explained that the human cost was the most critical especially in the area of pharmaceuticals and medical devices.
According to him, the report also observed that many countries in Africa, parts of Asia and Latin America had more than 30 per cent of counterfeit medicines on sale and further revealed instances where thousands of children and adults died from the intake of counterfeit drugs.
To this end, he said, a new system that would give consumers first-hand information on the genuineness or otherwise of pharmaceutical products being developed in Ghana.
The system, known as mPedigree, which would link producers and distributors on the one hand, with consumers and regulators on the other hand, had been designed to eliminate the information blockage on which counterfeiters thrive.
Consequently, a stakeholders mechanism involving institutions like the FDB and its partners would ensure that the mPedigree remain the public service platform it was designed to be, free to consumers and convenient to manufacturers and other supply chain actors.
Throwing more light on the system, a strategist of the mPedigree platform, Mr Bright Simons, said the system was being fully developed right here in Ghana, and would, once comprehensively operational, be the world's first consumer protection system of its kind. He said under the system, drug buyers and/or consumers would have the opportunity to check whether their purchases were genuine or not, for free, by using their mobile phones to send special, non-duplicable codes embossed on drugs and to receive in a few seconds a response confirming or denying the authenticity of the product concerned.
Mr Simons further explained that expiry dates and other alerts may also be communicated to consumers through the system, which began on a pilot basis in January 2008 and ended in April.
He said other collaborating agencies under the new system were the telecom operators in the country, the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Ghana, the FDB and other collaborators.
Mr Simons pointed out that other upgrades to the system may include electronic product registration across the sub-region and aimed at eliminating the current hurdles faced by manufacturers and distributors who sold across borders.
He said discussions were ongoing with stakeholders for a nationwide implementation of the system.
As part of efforts to curb counterfeiting in the country, the first National Dialogue on Counterfeit Products ended in Accra on July 23, 2008 with participants poised to deliver on the commitments made in the final communiqué.
The participants, namely, the FDB, the EU BizClim Facility, and the Institute of Packaging (the last two acting through the Coalition Against Counterfeiting & Illicit Trade) identified four major areas in which significant improvement would lead to significant results in the fight against counterfeiting in Ghana.
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