Kwami Sefa Kayi

Chairman General of the airwaves Kwami Sefa Kayi has stated categorically that no radio station in the country can poach him from Peace FM where he hosts the station’s flagship program “Kokrokoo”.

At a time when radio business is booming in Ghana and radio presenters are moving from one station to the other for unimaginable amounts of money, houses, cars and other benefits, Sefa Kayi believes no radio station can lure him from his current base.

Chairman made the startling revelation on Okay FM’s “Ekwanso dwo dwo” drive time program when he was hosted by Abeiku Santana on Wednesday August 19, 2015.

“Someone says I should ask you if there is a new radio station and they want to poach you, can you be poached?” Abeiku Santana asked and Chairman General answered right away in the negative without any hesitation “No!” he said.

Abeiku Santana also used the opportunity to ask Sefa Kayi about rumors that has been making rounds in Ghana for several years now that he (Sefa) owns some shares in Peace FM.

“I wish I had shares in Peace FM but no I don’t. Osei Kwame Despite said he will not give me any shares”, he stated.

Chairman General Kwami Sefa Kayi who has been doing radio for more than two decades now, started from the State owned Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), joined Radio Gold in 1993 and moved to Peace FM in 2000.

He hosts the biggest and most influential radio morning show in Ghana dubbed “Kokrokoo,”-Mondays to Fridays from 6:30a.m. to 10:00 a.m. He is also an extraordinary Master of Ceremony(MC) and a great communicator.

By Eugene Safo Nkansah

Nicolas Otamendi

Manchester City have signed defender Nicolas Otamendi from Valencia on a five-year deal worth £32m.

City will pay an initial £28.5m for the Argentina international, who was named in La Liga’s 2014-15 team of the season and played in the Copa America final.

“To be here inside a club that looks so wonderful from the outside is a dream,” said the 27-year-old ex-Porto player.

City manager Manuel Pellegrini said: “He’s strong, he’s excellent in the tackle and he’s very good technically.”

The Chilean added: “He is an established international for one of the best nations in world football and I have no doubt that he has the right mentality to fit into a squad where he will find many familiar faces, including Eliaquim [Mangala] and Fernando, who he played alongside in Portugal.”

Former Argentina coach Diego Maradona gave Otamendi his first senior cap when he was called up for the 2010 World Cup qualifier against Panama.

He was a member of the squad that qualified for the tournament in South Africa, but was dropped by coach Alejandro Sabella for the World Cup in Brazil four years later.

Otamendi is City’s third major summer signing following the arrival of England internationals Raheem Sterling and Fabian Delph.

Baba Rahman

Ghana assistant coach Maxwell Konadu has opined that new signing Baba Rahman should not be rushed into the Chelsea starting line-up.

The 21-year-old arrives with big reputation and at a huge transfer fee and may be handed a starting role in the English Champions’ trip to West Bromwich Albion this weekend following speculations over uncertainties regarding Branislav Ivanovic.

Konadu who mentored Baba three years ago in his first topflight season at Asante Kotoko says it will be better to have the youngster who has joined from German side Augsburg gradually eased into manager Jose Mourinho’s starters’ sheet especially due to the club’s shaky start to the season.

“He [Baba] can play on the left fullback, the right fullback and in central defense. The way things are not going well for Chelsea at this time it will be good for him to start from the bench,” Konadu told Angel FM.

Baba who has enjoyed a meteoric rise from Ghanaian lower tier side Dreams FC to stints with Kotoko, German sides Greuther Furth and Augsburg in a space of three years, signed a six-year deal in a transfer that cost the Blues a reported £21.7 million fee.

Top dignitaries including Opoku Nti at the launch of the programme in Kumasi on Thursday

KUMASI ASANTE Kotoko have signed a five-year contract with two companies, Primeval Media and Mobile Content, which will boost the club’s financial base significantly through the contribution of supporters.

As part of the deal, a short code, 1402, has been created on MTN and Vodafone, two leading telecommunication networks in the country, whereby Kotoko fans would contribute financially to the club on a daily basis through texting on their mobile phones.

Kotoko fans that are using MTN would only need to text the word ‘Fabu’ to 1402, whilst supporters that are hooked to Vodafone will type the word ‘Start’ give space and write ‘Fabu’,’ and then text it to 1402. Subscribers are supposed to text twice in a day for a fee of 40 pesewas.

A press conference was held at the Kotoko Secretariat in Kumasi on Thursday where the project, which had been piloted with huge success over the past six months, was officially unveiled. Kotoko players such as Stephen Oduro graced the event.

Jeffrey Asare, Communications Director of Primeval Media, an events organising firm, said Kotoko could generate a staggering GHC200,000 every month if at least one million Kotoko supporters subscribed, adding that subscribers would also be fed with fresh Kotoko news on their mobile phones.

Larry Opare Otoo, CEO of Primeval Media, described Kotoko as one of the greatest brands in the world of football, noting that the club would take home 60 percent of the monies generated whilst the remaining 40 percent would be directed to Primeval Media and Mobile Content.

Johnny Abdellah of Mobile Content disclosed that MTN and Vodafone are being used to start the programme for now, indicating that very soon other telecommunication networks in the country would be roped in to give it wide coverage and patronage.

Opoku Nti, Kotoko’s General Manager, on behalf of the club, accepted the venture, urging Kotoko fans to patronize it since it could boost the club’s financial base.

FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr, Kumasi

Muazu Issaka

Muazu Issaka, the younger brother of the late Adams Mahama has called on the judiciary and the police to administer justice in prosecuting the gruesome murder of their beloved brother.

According to Issaka, who is also the spokesperson for the Adams family, the untimely death of his brother was a big blow to the family therefore finding and convicting the murderers would bring some relief to the family.

“We as a family are pleading with the judges at the court and other stakeholders to help us get justice for our brother. We want to know who is behind the death of our brother. We want to know who sent the suspects and why he sent them or why they decided to kill our brother,” Muazu Issaka told DAILY GUIDE.

He continued : “We the entire family, we are really confused, his death shocked us because we were not expecting it but we take consolation in the only verse in the Quran which says ‘It is  God who gives and it  is He who takes”.

Adams Mahama had acid poured on him by two assailants and was confirmed dead at the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital in May this year.  The motive and masterminds behind the murder are yet to be ascertained.

Currently, Gregory Afoko – brother of the national chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Paul Afoko- and one Musah are before court for allegedly intentionally and unlawfully causing the death of Adams on May 20, 2015 at Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region.

Muazu Issaka asked the national chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Paul Afoko to step aside and allow the law to take its course since his brother, Gregory Afoko is the principal suspect in the murder case.

“I want to appeal to the NPP that if Paul Afoko the national chairman of NPP believes he is not aware of what happened to our brother then I beg him to hold himself aside. He should not be intervening in the matter. It is really hurting that till now the guy has not been remanded but he is still in police custody. We are not happy at all,” he stated.

In another development, Muazu Issaka discredited a media report which sought to suggest that the Adams family had a clash with the Afoko family in court.

He said he and his family had left the court peacefully before the scuffle began on Tuesday.

“We have been hearing from the media that Adams Mahama family and Afoko family clashed at the court to insinuate that we were fighting at the court. I was in court today and it was never true.”

“After the court hearing, we –the Adam family- left but before we went into our car, we saw a lot of people insulting each other but they were not our family,” he noted.

ogbameytetteh@gmail.com

By Nii Ogbamey Tetteh

Alfred Arthur

THE DOMESTIC Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Tema Regional Police Command has arrested a 24-year-old photographer for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old.

The culprit, Alfred Arthur was said to have lured the victim into his abode at Community 4, Tema where he defiled the Junior High School (JHS) graduate causing her to bleed profusely.

Information gathered indicated that on Monday, August 10, 2015, at about 9.30pm, the victim went to buy food at the Tema Community 4 Night Market and on her way met Alfred who she happens to know and he asked her to pass by his residence when returning home.

The victim, upon her return, did not meet Alfred in the house and called him on her mobile phone. Suspect told her to wait for him as he was also returning from Community 7, Tema where he went to get some food. Few minutes later Alfred turned in the two walked into his room.

Alfred was alleged to have started making sexual advances towards the girl which she resisted but the suspect was said to have overpowered her and had sex with her.

The suspect kept the victim till 4am the following morning before allowing her to go home when she complained of pains in her abdomen and legs.

The victim, however, kept the ordeal to herself until Saturday, August 15, 2015, when her mother, who had earlier thought her daughter’s bleeding was as a result of her monthly menses, realized that her daughter was in extreme pains and confronted her.

The victim told her mother everything and the matter was reported to the Community 4 police. The police arrested the suspect and the case was referred to the Regional DOVVSU for investigations.

Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Juliana Obeng, the Public Relations Officer(PRO) of the Tema Regional Police Command when contacted confirmed the incident. She disclosed that a medical form had been issued to the victim for medical examination and treatment.

ASP Obeng said suspect in his caution statement admitted the offence but explained that he has been dating victim for some time and that on the day of the incident, he was drunk but did not force victim for sex.

She, however, specified that Alfred has been charged with defilement and will be arraigned before court soon.

From Vincent Kubi, Tema

Samuel Thompson Essel

Samuel Thompson Essel, Chief Executive of Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), says criminals have currently invaded the Mobile Money platforms to perpetrate their illegal trade.

According to FIC Boss, the Mobile Money platform might be the next big challenge in dealing with money laundering if telecommunications companies and financial companies do not put serious security measures in place.

Speaking at a workshop yesterday in Accra on cash handling and security, Mr Essel stated that the registration of SIM cards by the telecommunication companies had not entirely prevented criminals from accessing mobile networks for their fraudulent activities.

The cash handling and security workshop is an annual event designed to create the platform to bring stakeholders within the cash handling ecosystem together to deliberate on challenges and best practices to enhance cash handling and management within the financial services and other allied sectors.

“Currently, criminals operating on the internet have resorted to the use of mobile money payments to perpetrate their illicit trade.  Issues of identification of Mobile Money patrons–both physical and electronic identity will thus become a major challenge in combating money laundering if stakeholders do not marshal forces to adequately regulate this sector,” he said.

He added that efforts being made by stakeholders to ensure uniformity of customer identification procedures on the mobile money platform needs to be commended.

“In particular, effectuating the provisions of the National Identity Register Law, 2008 (Act 750) with respect to mandatory use of the national identity card in conducting transactions and registration of SIM is very crucial. Accordingly, the National Identification Authority (NIA) needs to shore up its operations to achieve the desired mandate,” he noted.

Albert Antwi-Boasiako, Founder and Principal Consultant at e-Crime Bureau, also disclosed that it was important to create awareness of the risk that the Mobile Money platform poses in order to put the necessary mechanisms in place to avert any unforeseen events relating to security.

“Security implications of mobile money have to do with identity of mobile money patrons. “We have instances whereby criminal suspects have actually used fraudulent documents to register SIM cards and other things. We need to come to terms to know what is coming in the industry so that we stay one step ahead of the fraudster,” Mr Antwi-Boasiako said.

He said the electronic platforms required constant monitoring and auditing to ensure that they are fit for purpose.

“Security is work in progress. We also need to be aware of the emerging dimensions, share best practices on how to prevent and detect some of these issues. The risk we are exposed to is technology like hacking threats, software configuration issues and insider related attacks, among others,” he disclosed.

ogbameytetteh@gmail.com

By Nii Ogbamey Tetteh

Plant Manager Briefing The Journalists

Leading producer of bottled natural mineral water, Voltic Ghana Limited has reiterated its commitment to adhere to best manufacturing processes and standards.

The company, which currently controls about 70 percent of the market share, said it would remain a market leader as it marks 20th anniversary in Ghana.

This was made known by the General Manager of Voltic Ghana Limited, Phillip Redman when a group of journalists toured the company’s new manufacturing plant at Akwadum, near Nsawam in the Eastern Region.

The tour was aimed at solidifying an existing relationship with the media and further deepening stakeholder confidence in the company’s operations.

It also afforded management of the company the opportunity to fraternize with media practitioners and recognize them for their enormous support to the Voltic brand.

Mr. Redman said, “Voltic has a good relationship with the media, and as such we have been a worthy supporter of the annual GJA Awards, as well as the World Press Freedom Day. Bringing you here is to enable you have a fair idea of how we do our work.”

He said the company would never compromise on quality since “we have the health and satisfaction of our cherished consumers at heart.”

Mr. Redman said Voltic would continue to lead the way with innovative packaging and merchandising.

The Akwadum Plant Manager, Eugene Djan-Simpson, who took the journalists round the manufacturing plant, said the company would offer quality products to consumers.

“Voltic is the natural mineral water of choice for discerning throats since it contains essential natural minerals in the right quantities required for the body.

Mr Djan-Simpson reaffirmed Voltic’s readiness to support the media in their quest to uphold the ethics of the profession.

A Business Desk report

Archie Hesse

Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS) on Wednesday launched two major payment services, the gh-link e-Commerce and the GhIPSS Instant Pay.

The gh-link e-Commerce would provide the platform for local businesses both in commerce and service industry to receive payments and donations online from domestic Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cards.

The GhiPSS instant Pay, on the other hand, would enable people to instantly transfer funds from one bank account to another, even if the accounts belong to different banks without visiting a banking hall.

The payment option is expected to facilitate transactions, as funds transferred through this medium would be credited to the account of the recipient instantly.

Launching the payment services, Dr Henry Kofi Wampah, Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), said the launch of the two products would extend the frontiers of cash lite society and urged companies, government agencies and the private sector to take advantage of the products to promote e-commerce.

He said it was a further demonstration of a cashless agenda and the move to modernize the payment system.

He said mobile money networks had an important role to play in promoting a cash lite society in partnership with the banks.

Dr Wampah said it was in that direction that the BoG recently announced regulations to strengthen the operations of mobile money to ensure the protection of customers.

Simon Dornoo, President of the Ghana Association of Bankers, said the banking landscape is changing and fully backed the move by GhIPSS to make payment faster.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GhIPSS, Archie Hesse, urged indigenous Information Technology (IT) players to position themselves in readiness to seize the opportunities that the gh-link e-Commerce will offer.

“Today, we are confident that by enabling the domestic ATM to be accepted for payment online a major void has been filled. This should serve as encouragement for potential e-commerce companies to start realigning their business strategy for the future,” he said.

Mr Hesse said e-Commerce has the potential to expand the country’s economy by creating jobs in courier, shipping, IT services industry and expressed the hope that the youth would seize the opportunity and run with it.

He assured the public of continuous efforts to ensure the security of all transactions and said they had implemented a cardholder authentication system to ensure protection from fraud and also reduce the incidence of chargeback for online merchants.

–GNA

An unemployed young man and resident of Adabraka in Accra, would spend the next five years in jail after admitting that he bit off a trader’s ear during an argument.

Emmanuel Mensah, who engaged the trader, Atoah Emmanuel, in a fight and were separated, ran after him (trader) as the latter was leaving the scene and chop off his left ear with his teeth.

Emmanuel Mensah, believed to be in his early twenties, was put in a court presided over by M.E. Essandoh, charged with causing unlawful harm.

He immediately pleaded guilty to the offence and was consequently convicted on his own plea.

Narrating events leading to the arrest and prosecution of Mensah, the prosecutor, Inspector E.O. Aaye, said on August 12, 2015, the complainant (Atoah Emmanuel) was pushing a truck-load of goods and wanted to enter the Odawna Market when the accused, for an unknown reason, blocked his (Emmanuel’s)  movement.

The police officer indicated that a misunderstanding ensued resulting in a fight between them and so some onlookers separated them.

Inspector Aaye stated that just as the trader was walking away, Mensah rushed on him, grabbed his ear and chopped it off immediately, causing the trader to bleed profusely.

Narrating further, the inspector claimed that those who separated them arrested Mensah and sent him to the police station.

Furthermore, the police officer said the complainant was given a form to attend hospital for examination and treatment after which his form was duly endorsed by a medical doctor as having been assaulted.

By Fidelia Achama

Nana Akomea

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has asked the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) to not act prematurely in criticising genuine endeavours being made by the party to ensure free, fair and transparent elections in the country.

According to the NPP, its claims that the electoral roll was seriously flawed and bloated had been backed with evidence for examination by all parties as a basis for the call for a new voters register.

This was contained in a statement signed by the party’s Director of Communications, Nana Akomea, in reaction to issues raised by the NDC at a press conference in Accra on Wednesday addressed by its General Secretary, Mr Johnson Asiedu Nketia.

In his presentation at the press conference, Mr Asiedu Nketia had claimed that the Togolese electoral register that the NPP used to illustrate that the names of thousands of Togolese had found their way onto the Ghanaian register was a misconception that ought not to be taken seriously.

Togo register

But in the statement, the NPP said the original documents on the Togolese register submitted by the NPP to the Electoral Commission (EC) had clear headings, names, ages and gender of people, adding that “all Asiedu Nketia has to do is to also access the Togolese register and check out the cross-border registrations for himself”.

“The NPP has presented evidence for examination by all parties as a basis for the call for a new voters register. How such a call can be described by Asiedu Nketia as motivated by malice just to raise political tension and mask the NPP’s disunity is difficult to understand,” it said.

It said the NPP was motivated by the same concern for the integrity of the electoral process that motivated Mr John Mahama to remark, for example, in 2008 that a register of over 50 per cent of the population was unheard of, “that motivated Dr Afari-Gyan to remark in 2008 that a register in excess of 50 per cent of the population will be statistically unacceptable by world standards”.

It, however, maintained the party’s stand that the registers for the parliamentary elections and the presidential election had a difference of over 500,000 votes that had still not been accounted for.

Singling out Volta Region

The statement described as false the assertion by the NDC that the NPP singled out constituencies in the Volta Region for the alarming increases in voter population between 2008 and 2012 and that that was a sign of the NPP’s “disrespect and disdain for certain tribes”.

It, however, pointed out that of the 13 constituencies listed as having dramatic increases in voter populations, only three — Ketu South, Hohoe and Nkwanta North — were in the Volta Region

It also described as false the accusation that the NPP was calling for retroactive application of the Supreme Court ruling on the NHIS cards in order to disenfranchise voters who registered with the NHIS cards.

“Indeed, the only people who may not be able to re-register will be non-Ghanaians from neighbouring countries who were issued NHIS cards to register,” it emphasised.

Minors

The statement said the NPP did not make any direct reference to minors at its press conference, adding that in its recommendations for reforms, the party suggested modifications that could prevent wanton registration of minors.

It contended that the matter of a new voters register was absolutely crucial for the success of the 2016 elections.

“All parties generally agree that there are defects in the register and have suggested ways of correcting these defects.

The NDC obviously believes that some auditing process can correct these defects; the NPP believes that it will serve the country’s interest better if we have a new register due to the nature of the defects.

“According to the NDC’s General Secretary, our simple suggestion, backed by compelling evidence, amounts to ignorance, falsehoods, incompetence, mediocrity, fraud, frivolous concoctions, lies and fabrications. He even accuses the NPP of preparing the grounds for our imminent defeat in the 2016 elections,” Nana Akomea said.

Source: Graphic.com.gh

One of Nelson Mandela’s grandsons has been charged with raping a 15-year-old girl in South Africa.

The 24-year-old, who cannot be named until he enters his plea, is accused of raping the teenager in the toilets of a restaurant in Johannesburg.

Earlier in the week, the family of the alleged victim said that Mr Mandela’s ex-wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, had sent her bodyguard to dissuade them from pressing charges.

The Mandela family has not commented.

Senior members of the Mandela family, including the former president’s daughter Makaziwe Mandela, were in court during a brief hearing.

The accused cannot be named until he formally enters his plea.

BBC Southern Africa correspondent Karen Allen says the family of South Africa’s first black president have found themselves constantly in the public spotlight.

Just three months ago, another of his grandsons, Mandla Mandela, was given a suspended sentence after being convicted of assault, following an attack on a teacher after a road rage incident.

BBC

The Electoral Commission has tasked the various political parties to submit proposals  for a new voters register.

The parties have been given up to September 22, 2015 to make the submissions. This was made known by the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission at a press conference after an Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) held in Accra today.

The NPP and the PPP are spearheading the campaign for a new register which they say will ensure credible elections.

The NPP believes that the current register is bloated citing instances of registering some foreigners. District Assembly election On the district level elections, Charlotte Osei said a total of  18,938 comprising 17,783 men and 1,182 women  are contesting in the polls.

According to the EC notices of poll, ballot papers and registers have been printed and sent to the various regions.

Charlotte Osei disclosed that some candidates were disqualified from the election comprising students, persons above 70 years and those who used party emblems. Major decisions She said polling stations for the election will be increased to 30,000 from 26,002.

According to her, this is to ensure that no polling station has more than 850 people on the register. The chairperson also stated that all parties have been given up to end of the year to make sure they have offices in all the districts as mandated by the political parties Act 2000.

Source: Citifmonline.com

Charlotte Osei, EC Boss and her Deputy Sulley Amadu

The Electoral Commission (EC) has acknowledged receiving the petition submitted by the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) for a new electoral register.

At her maiden press conference in Accra yesterday, Chairperson of the Commission, Charlotte Osei, said her outfit was yet to study the full content of the petition and investigate the complaints therein – the basis for which the NPP is pushing for an entirely new register.

This remark was made after a meeting with members of the Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) over a number of issues.

Present were representatives of the various political parties, including the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), who were represented by the National Chairman, Kofi Portuphy and General Secretary, Johnson Asiedu Nketia.

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) was represented by its General Secretary, Kwabena Agyepong; Director of Elections, Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah and Osei Bonsu Amoah, Member of Parliament for Aburi.

The EC has therefore given all political parties in the country up to September 22, 2015 to submit their proposals and inputs on the issue, which has since provoked a national debate as to whether or not Ghana needs a new register.

It follows claims by the NPP that it had uncovered not less than 76,286 Togolese in Ghana’s existing voters’ register, thereby raising questions about its credibility for use in the conduct of the crucial 2016 general elections.

Decision

“We have acknowledged receipt of the request from the New Patriotic Party but we have also called on all the other parties to give us a position on how they think the issue should be managed,” Mrs Osei said, adding that “we have given all the parties until the 22^nd of September 2015 to give very detailed propositions on what their position is on the register.”

She followed up with a call on civil society organizations, people with expertise and all stake holders to submit presentations on the subject.

After that, the EC said it was considering the option of holding a stakeholders’ workshop to enable it take a decision on the matter.

If the workshop is unable to draw a conclusion on the matter, the Commissioner noted, “the EC will take a position based on the presentations that were made at the workshop” – a decision she said all the political parties had welcomed.

Agreement

General Secretary of the NPP, Mr Kwabena Agyepong, welcomed the EC’s decision to allow various political parties and stakeholders to make an input into the debate, which he believed would help arrive at a concrete decision.

“We are building a consensus; I don’t want the media to carry the view that the NPP is trying to dictate to the rest of the country and we will also not dictate to the Electoral Commission,” he emphasized.

That notwithstanding, he said, “We are making a strong case and that’s what it is and we hope that as a result of discussions and dialogue, we can come to a certain accommodation that will be beneficial to the future of the electoral process.”

Mr Agyepong added, “People want to have an electoral process that they can have confidence in; that’s all we are trying to build.”

Chairman of the NDC, Kofi Portuphy said, “There is no reason why we should create panic over a voters’ register… we may at the end of the day agree to have a new register but we look at the circumstances.

“We will look at what we have now; are we going by the laws that govern registration, exhibition, that govern voting?”

Once the EC takes a decision on the matter, he said, “the NDC is willing and ready to abide by it to deepen democracy in the country.”

Meanwhile, the NPP has furnished the various political parties with soft copies of the evidence that is impelling the demand for a new register.

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

Charles Antwi

The Attorney General (AG) has said that the intention of arraigning Charles Antwi, the 36- year-old man jailed over assassination attempt on President John Mahama, is not about conviction.

According to Mrs. Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa, acting Director of Public Prosecutions, the intention of the AG is to have the convict remanded into “lawful custody,” pending further investigation into the case.

Ironically, on the day Charles was convicted, the police prosecutor representing the AG, made a passionate appeal to the court to jail Charles Antwi who had admitted the offence, insisting that his intention was clear.

The turn of events however, appears to be a stab in the back of the trial judge, Mr Francis Obiri, who had received widespread public flak for jailing the man, believed to be mentally unstable.

Mrs. Obuobisa, who was at an Accra Human Rights Court seeking the re-trial of Charles, said that that was the reason the AG had come for an appeal.

The AG had in a notice of appeal dated August 11, 2015, asked that the judgment convicting and sentencing Charles be set aside because it was wrong in law.

It further stated that “the judge should have observed and had reason to believe from the composure, demeanor and utterances of the accused person who was unrepresented, that he was of an unsound mind and incapable of making a defence and thus the court should have caused him to be medically examined.”

Charles was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment by the court on July 28, this year, for possessing firearms without lawful authority.

This was after he had confessed in the open court that he attended the Ring Way Gospel Assemblies of God Church in Accra on Sunday, July 26, 2015, with a locally made pistol ostensibly to shoot President Mahama.

Charles stated among other things that he had to fight to eliminate President Mahama because he was not ruling the country properly.

At the hearing of a certiorari application to quash the decision of the circuit court, Francis-Xavier Sosu, a human rights lawyer for Charles, said that he had not yet been served the AG’s affidavit in opposition to the application.

He told the court that the AG in its notice of appeal, was arguing on the same grounds as the lawyers for Charles.

As a result, Mr. Sosu said he would consider the option of abandoning his certiorari application and rather join the AG.

The trial judge, Justice Ken A. Okwabi, adjourned hearing until Monday, August 24, 2015 to enable the parties take a decision.

jeffdegraft44@yahoo.com

By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson

Dr Kwabena Adusei Opoku, GMA President

Members of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) have suspended the three-week industrial action they embarked upon to demand for written conditions of service.

The decision to call off the strike was taken by the National Executive Council (NEC) of the GMA at an emergency meeting in Accra yesterday.

“The ongoing withdrawal of out-patients and emergency services by members of the GMA is suspended. That the suspension takes effect from Monday, 24 August, 2015,” GMA indicated in a statement.

The statement, issued after the meeting and jointly signed by the association’s President Dr. Kwabena Opoku Adusei and General Secretary Dr. Frank Serebour, also instructed that “all members of the GMA should fully restore their services effective 8am on the said date.”

The council also charged the association’s negotiating committee to continue to negotiate on behalf of the GMA with government such that the conclusions of negotiations would be fed into the 2016 budget for their implementation.

Reasons

The association indicated that all documents in the public sector proved that it has the tenacity to fight for its future, adding that the decision to call off the strike was taken to ensure that its ultimate goal to secure signed conditions of service document is achieved.

“The determination and dedication of the members of the GMA to fight for negotiated and signed conditions of service document for doctors in the Ministry of Health (MoH) and its agencies cannot be                                 over-emphasized,” it stated.

The NEC in its deliberations indicated that it took into consideration the appeals by the ordinary Ghanaian, the wise counsel of certain eminent individuals and some credible organizations.

Former heads of state; the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II; the Okyenhene, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin; the Christian Council; Catholic Bishops Conference; Ghana Pentecostal Council; Association of Ghana Industries (AGI); National House of Chiefs; the Peace Council; the Trades Union Congress (TUC); the Ghana Health Service Council; the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health and sections of the media pleaded with the doctors to call off the strike.

“It is the hope of the GMA that all these people who have intervened will not relent on their efforts to ensure that doctors in this country get their conditions of service to forestall future occurrence of this industrial unrest,” the statement underscored.

“It is clear to everybody that the fight has just started and the determination to get negotiated and signed conditions of service document shall never be abandoned until it is achieved,” it noted.

GMA’s Reaction

The association responded to attacks and other issues raised during the three-week strike.

First, it reiterated its lack of confidence in the National Labour Commission (NLC), saying in time past the commission had woefully failed to enforce its rulings in favour of the GMA against government.

“It is our hope that the NLC would live up to its expectation this time round,” the GMA said.

Further the council said the threats by government and its agencies rather increased the resolve of the GMA to push for the completed and signed conditions of service.

“It is the position of the GMA that the government has taken an entrenched position throughout the process of negotiations.

“The government, instead of adopting a problem-solving approach, rather chose to go on the tangent of threat and intimidation. We would like to indicate that these threats, intimidations and ultimatums do not solve any problems in the industrial front,” it stated

The GMA also found it very unfortunate that some individuals who call themselves labour consultants, chose the part of emotions in expressing their opinions in the matter.

“Indeed some of these so-called labour consultants have proven to all and sundry that they are more of government communicators and propagandists than professionals,” it stated.

Forgiveness

The GMA said that it had forgiven all the individuals who out of ignorance and other motivation took the part of insults in their attempt to resolve the industrial unrest by the doctors.

“It is our hope that some of these people could have been more professional in their work instead of choosing to only see one side of the coin and in all their communications clearly showed bias towards the GMA,” it posited.

The association urged them to take a cue from the protracted industrial dispute and realize that insults and threats of armed robbery attacks do very little to help matters when it comes to labour disputes.

Members of the association, particularly those in the Ashanti Region, were receiving death threats from people suspected to be NDC members. Some of the threats are currently under investigations by the police in Kumasi.

One Vincent Agyapong, said to be a National Democratic Congress member in Kumasi, reportedly said on a local radio station last weekend that the doctors’ strike was illegal, and likened them (doctors) to armed robbers, because their action was causing deaths.

He was said also to have encouraged armed robbers in the city to direct their illegal operations to the medical doctors, not members of the public who are dying because of the strike action.

The police in Kumasi are said to have invited the NDC man for questioning over his distasteful remarks about the striking doctors on radio.

By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri

Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo

The 2016 presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, says the idea of having non-Ghanaians on the voter register – who eventually have a say as to who becomes president – must no longer be countenanced by well-meaning Ghanaians.

According to Nana Akufo-Addo, the evidence gathered by the NPP, which shows that Ghana’s biometric voter register contains the names of thousands of foreign nationals, is indicative of the fact that the electoral roll is fundamentally flawed and unfit for the 2016 general elections.

“We don’t want a West African election; we want a Ghanaian election. We only want an election of Ghanaian people who are entitled to vote,” he stressed.

The NPP flagbearer made this observation when Alex Kojo Abban, NPP parliamentary candidate for Gomoa West; Gabriel Nsoh Agana, parliamentary candidate for Bongo; Ekow Quansah Hayford, candidate for Mfantseman and Daniel Okyem Aboagye, for Bantama paid separate courtesy calls on him at his Nima residence on Thursday to introduce themselves formally to him after their respective victories in the June 13 parliamentary primaries of the party.

Towards ensuring that a new register is compiled for 2016, Nana Akufo-Addo stated that “The NPP will continue to agitate peacefully and advocate for a new voter register for 2016. At the end of the day, the Electoral Commission will have to look at our evidence, do what is right, and do what the people of Ghana are demanding.”

Nana wondered why the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), led by its General Secretary, had taken upon itself the role of “chief advocate for the Electoral Commission, an independent body.”

The NDC kicking against a new register, according to him, would not deter the NPP from stressing the need for Ghana to have a new and credible electoral roll before 2016.

“We will not be perturbed (by the actions of the NDC). We want a register that is fit for the purpose. We don’t want an ‘ECOWAS register,'” Nana Addo reiterated.

The ‘fight’ being put up to ensure that a new voter register is not compiled for the 2016 election, Nana Akufo-Addo said, is indicative of the fact that “President Mahama and his NDC party will not want to let power go off easily.”

In spite of this, Nana Akufo-Addo was confident about the party’s chances in the 2016 elections because “Ghanaians have come to realise that there is no other party in Ghana capable of delivering progress and prosperity than the NPP. Our track record, under President Kufuor’s government, from 2001 to 2009 is unmatched, and the reason why Ghanaians are desperate for change in 2016, so that we can resume our work of progress and development.”

He reminded the rank and file of the party that an NPP victory in 2016 is critical, as additional four years under Mahama would be disastrous for the nation.

Akufo-Addo also urged NPP members to refrain from airing their grievances in the media, stressing that “Even if an NPP member insults me, don’t retaliate. If you don’t retaliate, the issue will die. Let us keep our focus – which is winning the 2016 election. Please take the NPP’s message of hope and progress to every household in your constituencies because that is what will bring us victory. We have to make sure that our polling station executives do this work.”

All the candidates assured Nana Akufo-Addo that they would work hard to ensure that their constituencies were delivered to the NPP next year.

Present at the flagbearer’s residence were Yaw Osafo-Maafo, former Finance Minister in the Kufuor administration (former Akim Oda MP and current Chairman of the NPP Council of Elders in the Eastern Region); Dr. Kwame Amoako Tuffuor, a member of the National Council Fred Oware, former 1^st vice national chairman of the NPP.

“DAMIRIFA DUE”! Samuel Nuamah

Details are emerging of the gory accident that claimed the life of Ghanaian Times Presidential correspondent, Samuel Nuamah and left others fighting for their lives.

News about the accident on the Accra- Akosombo Highway involving the Presidential Press Corps on Thursday spread like wild fire, leaving many asking questions about the safety of journalists detailed to cover the presidency and other high-profile officials.

A number of journalists, in life – threatening conditions, are meanwhile, receiving treatment at the 37 Military hospital.

The deceased was thrown off the vehicle, crashing his head, when the driver applied the brakes upon bursting a tyre, which obviously precipitated the vehicle’s somersault.

The press corps was returning to Accra from the Volta Regional capital, Ho, where President John Mahama had attended the annual convention of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, which he climaxed with the donation of a vehicle to the church.

Interesting Revelations

It has emerged that the GMC Savanna mini bus with registration GB 506 – 12 in which the journalists were travelling, was hired at Ho by a Presidential Staffer in charge of the media for use to Accra as the Civilian Bus with which they had travelled to the Regional capital was said to be engaged over there.

This revelation has angered Ghanaian Times journalists who have lost their colleague in the line of duty.

Reporters were said to have been in a hurry to return to Accra and file their stories on time and in this haste, the boisterous Presidential Staffer went to the Ho main station and chartered two mini buses for them, one of which got involved in the fatal crash at Shai Hills.

Arrogant

Members of the presidential press corps said they had often complained about the safety of the vehicles allocated to them but their complaints had fallen on deaf ears as the presidential staffers thwarted every attempt to report the issue to the President.

A staffer even cynically remarked that “you are not part of the Presidential staff,” when the journalists at one point tried to complain about the state of a vehicle allocated them.

Interestingly, on every Presidential trip, the presidential aides are always seen driving in expensive and more secured four-wheel cross-country vehicles, leaving the poor journalists to their fate.

DAILY GUIDE learnt that journalists at the presidency are treated separately from all other staff around the President.

They are allegedly asked to bring in their own cutlery sets for lunch and are not supposed to use anything from the Flagstaff House.

The Injured

So far, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation’s Pascaline Amenyo Adadevoh and Napoleon Ato Kittoe of GTV, Patrick Biddah of the Enquirer and William Gyentu of Peace FM are receiving treatment.

The rest are TV3’s Edward Frimpong Kwabi and TV Africa’s Mawusi Gborglah who are also on admission.

Mr Gyentu is said to have regained consciousness but was yet to speak; while Pascaline, Atto Kittoe and Biddah were able to grant interviews.

Ato Kittoe had major parts of his face covered with plaster while TV3’s Edward Kwabi’s neck and right leg were bandaged. Enquirer’s Patrick Biddah had some cuts around his mouth, spotting a swollen jaw.

Police Version

Preliminary investigations conducted by the Police into the accident indicated that the sudden brake applied by the driver when the tyre burst, led to the vehicle veering off the road and somersaulting before landing in mud.

Chief Superintendent Oduro Amanning, Commander of the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) of the Tema Regional Police Command told DAILY GUIDE yesterday that observation on the road revealed signs of brake applied by the yet-to-be identified driver from a distance after a suspected tyre burst.

“We suspect the vehicle was on top speed and, applying brake after a tyre had burst, definitely the car would veer off and summersault,” he said, adding, “The driver could have handled the car carefully after the tyre burst but we suspect he applied the brake.”

He said the police observed that the driver might have exhibited unprofessional driving tactics when the left rear tyre got burst.

Presidential Visit

President John Mahama and his Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, together with Communications Minister, Dr Edward Omane Boamah, visited the injured journalists at the 37 Military Hospital, Thursday night.

The President gave the assurance that the government would ensure that the victims received ‘proper’ medical care.

Dr Omane Boamah personally telephoned Samuel Nuamah’s wife, Lillian, who is domiciled in the United States to console her on the unfortunate loss and promised her of government’s support.

Family Visit

Management staff of New Times Corporation, publishers of Ghanaian Times as well as a delegation from the presidency and the National Media Commission (NMC) paid separate visits to the bereaved journalist’s family yesterday.

David Etse Agbenu, Editor of Ghanaian Times, described Mr  Nuamah’s death as a ‘big blow’ to the profession, clarifying that “he was a gem, he was flawless and dedicated to his work. It is a big blow to the newspaper. I cannot find words to describe it, it is a real blow.”

Mr Nuamah’s mother, Georgina Opoku said she was devastated at her son’s untimely death.

“Sammy means so much to me; I don’t know how to put myself together…this loss has taken a toll on my life. I wish I had rather woken up to the news that he’d been in coma and not this tragic loss.”

Emmanuel Asamoah, younger brother of the deceased, said the family was shattered over his death and struggling to come to terms with the situation.

“For now, it has been disclosed to everyone but they are not taking it easy at all. We are still circulating the information so maybe by tomorrow, the family would meet,” he said.

Mr Nuamah’s body is currently deposited at the 37 Military Mortuary Morgue. He left behind a wife and a two-and-half year old son.

By Nii Ogbamey Tetteh & Vincent Kubi, Tema

I am pleased that the Attorney-General’s Department has filed an application at the Accra High Court, praying the Court to set aside the 10-year prison sentence imposed on Charles Antwi by Mr Justice Francis Obiri on 28 July 2015.

The appeal is welcome because the current trend in this country is that government departments not to pay the slightest heed to public opinion. Secondly, the judgement in question was so bad that were it to prevail, it would constitute a blot on the administration of justice in the country. Finally, the judgement was so bad that it would have undermined the work being done at our universities and the Ghana School of Law to impart a true knowledge of jurisprudence to their students.

I mean – a guy sweats a lot, after obtaining his first degree, to pass his entrance examination to the Ghana Law School. He sweats even more profusely to pass his exams and become qualified to practise as a lawyer in the courts of Ghana.

Then he goes to court to practise law. And he meets a judge like Mr Justice Francis Obiri.

He sees Mr Obiri conducting a case brought before him in a manner that rubbishes everything he has been taught. The judge does not know that if a person gives the appearance of being of unsound mind, his plea must not be taken. For the case to go ahead, the judge must first send the accused person to a psychiatrist hospital, where a qualified psychiatrist would put him through tests to establish his true condition of mind. It is only when a competent psychiatrist has certified that the accused person is of sound mind that his trial can begin.

Mr Justice Obiri also said that he had listened to the accused person and was satisfied that the accused was ‘confident’ in what he said!

Shock horror! Does being ‘confident’ about what one says mean it cannot be nonsensical? If that were so, we would have, ages ago, seen the fulfilment of the prophesy often made by psychotics that “The end of the world is nigh!”

But that aside, a judge simply cannot transform himself into a psychiatrist. What would a newly-qualified lawyer make of that? If a man who had successfully passed through years of legal instruction and had practised in the courts of the land enough to be adjudged competent to sit as a circuit court judge, could make such elementary mistakes, then what was the point of legal education? All that sweating at the Law School?

And look also at that change of plea by Antwi from “Not guilty” to “Guilty”. What pressure can result from this sort of advice: “Change your plea, because your case is so “weak” that a plea of “Not Guilty” can only earn you a harsher sentence, you hear?” Innocence be damned!

It was almost like something that was happening in the inferior, traditional courts of yesteryears, where a plea of “guilty with explanation” was almost always accepted. It was the forte of semi-literate court registrars.

No – If the judgement had remained unchallenged, it would have set a very bad precedent for the prosecution of cases before the country’s courts. Even in places like Britain, where miscarriages of justice are rare, one or two judges used to get the reputation of being a “hanging judge” during the days when the death penalty was still legal). So just imagine lazy prosecution officers in Ghana being able to say, “Let’s send him to this or that court! They will bang him in!”Would it not undermine the administration of justice altogether?

With regard to the inflexible attitude adopted by government departments to matters about which the public clearly expresses unease, we have the evidence before our very eyes right now. Here is a government that is in dispute with the doctors I employs, over their conditions of service. Negotiations begin. But the government seeks to crush the doctors by all means, in order to demonstrate that it is a macho government. So it leaks the proposals which the doctors have sent to it. When that fails to win the argument, the government threatens the doctors with the mass importation of doctors from Cuba.

But has the government tried to find out what the relationship is between what the Cuban government pays its doctors and what it pays its ministers and deputy ministers? Has the government bothered to study the history of medical education in Cuba? Is it aware that when Castro took over power in 1959, many doctors left the island and that the new ones who were trained subjected to a socialist orientation in an economy in which whatever the country had was shared equitably? Does Ghana, with its IMF-inspired economic policy based on “market forces,” think our society is akin to a socialist society?

Our president now says that he is no longer “a dead goat” but a “living” one. Well, he’d better apply a “living goat” approach to the doctors’ issue. For the Cubans cannot be in Ghana for ever. In any case, so many people and institutions that are aware of the hardship caused by the impasse l have appealed for an equitable settlement of the dispute that to ignore them and continue with the machismo policy will cost the Government dear in the long run.

The Attorney-General’s Department, in appealing against the Francis Obiri decision, is exhibiting an attitude which other arms of government would do well to emulate. As the saying goes in one of our proverbs: “If you didn’t hear what was said the first time, do go back and listen again!”

In a word: Sankofa!

Does our government realise that this ancient principle is embedded on our Sword of State and our presidential chair, for instance?

That emblem is not there for nothing.

www.cameronduodu.com

By Cameron Duodu