Armed Robber killed in a police shoot out in Kumasi

An armed robber was shot dead on Wednesday in a police shoot out after robbing a lady of her handbag containing three mobile phones and cash of GH¢300.

The body of the robber, believed to be in his mid-20s, has been deposited at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) for autopsy.

Briefing the press in Kumasi on Friday, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Kwaku Ayesu Opare-Addo, Ashanti Regional Police Commander, said the incident occurred at about 1900 hours on Wednesday at Atonsu Kuwait.

He said a Police Patrol Team had a tip-off from the lady who had been attacked by the robber.

DCOP Opare-Addo said the team got to the scene and met one Alhaji Abdulah, who had gone to the aid of the woman, shot in the forehead by the robber.

He said the robber who was hiding in an uncompleted building opened fire on seeing the police but was killed when the police fired back.

He said a locally manufactured pistol, three cartridges and a lady’s handbag containing four mobile phones and a cash of GH¢300 were found on him.

DCOP Opare-Addo said the Ashanti Police command had killed four armed robbers within four weeks and a fifth nabbed by a civilian.

He called on the public to report criminals to the Police.
Source:
GNA

Illegal arms dealer remanded into prison custody

Andrews Kofi Agyapong, a Prestea-based locally manufactured arms dealer, has been remanded into prison custody by a Tarkwa Circuit court presided by Mr Samuel Obeng Diawuo.

Agyapong 21, pleaded not guilty to trading in illegal weapons and would re-appear on March 10.

Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Anthony Danso said in the afternoon of February 21, 2009 the police had information that accused had seven locally made pistols on him in Prestea looking for prospective buyers.

He said the accused who claimed to be an apprentice to the manufacturer of locally-made pistols told the police that his ‘master’ now at large gave him the pistols for sale at 25 Ghana cedis each at Prestea and Kumasi.

Police Chief Inspector Danso said the accused led the police to a carpentry shop at Buoho near Tachiman where his ‘master’ was staying but could not identify him.

He said the accused’s residence was searched where a pistol was retrieved.
Source:GNA

Fineprint industry in Tema shut down

Personnel of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), on Friday shut down the Fineprint Industry, in Tema, for operating without operational permits.

The company, which produces exercise books and other paper products, including toilet rolls has been operating since 1992 without Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) permit and fire certificate.

The industry that has over 200 employees has also since 2007 defaulted in the payment of Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA)’s waste management fee.

Mr Lambert Faabeluon, Deputy Director of EPA, in-charge of the Tema Metropolis, who led the team that was supported by officials from TMA and the Department of Factory Inspectorate to close the factory, told GNA that the owner, a Nigerian, refused to regularize his operations after several warnings.

He advised factory owners to acquire EIA permit, which ensures the checking of solid, liquid and gas producing equipments and occupational and health hazards associated with their operations.

Mr Faabeluon said that apart from failing to comply with warnings, the construction of another plant has been started on the premises of Fineprint without permit.

Mr Jones Sarpong, Tema Regional Fire Officer, said the Service has advised management of the company to acquire a fire certificate since 2007.

He said that operators of companies, schools, hotels, fuel stations and other facilities were required by law to obtain fire certificates to ensure the safety of workers and property.

Mr Sarpong said that in 2008 the Service closed down some companies in the Tema Metropolis for failing to comply with the law.

Mr Abdulai Mahamadu, Head of the TMA Waste Management Department, said that apart from operating under unhygienic conditions, Fineprint owed the assembly over GH¢ 1,000.

The Head of the Department said TMA would summon the company before court for accumulating refuse on its premises, a situation which according to him could result in an outbreak of communicable diseases.
Source:
GNA

School pupil drowns at Adesu Nkyiase

A 13-year-old pupil of Adesu Nkyiase Primary school, Janet Amoasi got drowned in a swimming pool at Adesu Nkyiase in Wassa Amenfi East District.

An eye-witness account said Janet was seen swimming in the pool during school hours, after some few minutes they realised she was no longer swimming.

He said this attracted the attention of some residents who later found her body floating in the pool.

Some elders in the community informed her father, Mr John Amoasi on phone who reported the incident to Wassa Akropong police.

Mr Amoasi said, he attended a funeral at Wassa Saamang on that fateful day but had a phone call that his daughter had been found dead in a pool.

He said he had a report the previous day that Janet swam in the pool and warned her not to visit the pool side again but she did not heed to his advice and met her untimely death.

The corpse has been deposited at Wassa Akropong Government Hospital for autopsy, while the police continue with investigations.
Source:
GNA

Northern Regional Minister warns health personnel to stay at post in rural areas

Mr Stephen Sumani Nayina, Northern Regional Minister, has warned health personnel to stop staying in Tamale and commuting daily between their workplaces in the villages in the Region.

He said the habit was impacting negatively on their output since most of them report to work late and sometimes returned to Tamale well before closing time.

Mr Nayina gave the warning when addressing the 2008 Annual Performance Review Meeting of Ghana Health Service (GHS) in Tamale on Friday.

The three-day meeting would review the successes and shortcomings of service delivery of GHS and institute measures to improve on its performance.

Mr Nayina expressed concern about the high rate of maternal deaths in the Region noting that pregnant women were often conveyed to the hospitals in rickety vehicles, which in most cases arrived at the health facilities late.

However, he commended the hardworking health personnel in the Region but warned to deal ruthlessly with those who were negligent in their duties.

“Health issues are very dear to me and you would have my full support and cooperation but I would also be on you to ensure that you provide the people the needed health services,” Mr Nayina said.

Dr Akwasi Twumasi, Northern Regional Director of GHS said there was a critical shortage of medical practitioners, nurses, pharmacists and midwives in the Region.

He pointed out that none of the 10 medical practitioners posted to the Region had reported while one out of the 11 pharmacists posted to the Region was at post.

Dr Twumasi said financial and logistics inflows to the health service last year were not the best and GHS was heavily dependent on donors, a situation, which had prevented it from providing adequate interventions to some of the health facilities in the Region.

He said since 2007, GHS was faced with the problem of provision of adequate vehicles until late last year when it received 90 motorcycles and 19 pick-ups from the World Bank to support nutrition and malaria control programmes for child survival.

The Nalerigu and Bole Hospitals, he said, had no means of transport.

On Guinea Worm eradication, Dr Twumasi said in 2008 the Region recorded about 479 cases as against 3,227 in 2007, representing 85 per cent reduction in a single year.

He noted that GHS was determined to stop Guinea Worm transmission in the Region by 2009 and last year contained an outbreak of Cerebo-Spinal-Meningitis (CSM) and Cholera in the Region.

Dr Twumasi said with the assistance of Ghana National Red Cross (GNRC), an eye clinic had been provided at Yendi Hospital and polyclinics would be built at Karaga, Janga and Daboya.
Source:
GNA

President Mills names Anyidoho as Head of Communications

President John Evans Atta Mills has appointed Mr Koku Samuel Anyidoho as Head of Communications at the Presidency.

A statement signed by Mr Mahama Ayariga, Presidential Spokesman, on Friday, said the President has also appointed Mr Victor Emmanuel Smith as Presidential Staffer for Protocol.
Sorce:
GNA

Vice President enlists German support for government’s development agenda

Vice President John Dramani Mahama on Friday enlisted German assistance in the areas of agricultural mechanization and fertilizer production to enable Ghana to become a net exporter of food.

Granting audience to the German Ambassador, Dr Marius Haas, at the Castle, Osu, Vice President Mahama re-echoed government’s intention to transform the agriculture sector by way of local production of fertilizer and mechanization of arable lands and appealed for the support of Germany in this quest.

Recognizing Germany’s status as the largest economy within the European Union and her cancellation of Ghana’s debt of 275 million euros, the Vice President said Germany’s stride mirrored the efforts of Ghana to use agriculture as a basis for self-sufficiency.

He said immediate support would be required to help Ghana move away from capacity building policies to structural transformation in the agriculture sector since so much wealth could be generated in that area if the necessary investments were applied.

Dr Haas pledged support for Ghana in the areas of military cooperation to support peace initiatives on the continent.

He also pledged further economic and cultural exchanges between the two countries to enable Ghana to maintain her unassailable democratic credentials.

Vice President Mahama also granted audience to the regional chairmen of the NDC to discuss the role the party could play in satisfying the aspirations of the people.

He called for a platform between the government and the party so as to ensure a successful implementation of the party’s manifesto.

Mr Julius Debrah, Eastern Regional Chairman, pledged the unalloyed support of the committee in fulfilling government’s promises to the people.

GNA

MP’s ex-gratia awards paid out

Investigations conducted by The New Crusading Guide have revealed that the Bank of Ghana (BoG) actually directed the transfer of an amount of GH 14,871,954.00 to the office of Parliament’s P.E. Account No. 01256601120-10 being the Ex-Gratia Awards and Resettlement Grants due members of the Legislature of the Republic of Ghana.

The sum covered the period 2005 to 2008 as instructed by the office of the Controller and Accountant General in a Bank Transfer Advice (BTA) dated January 21, 2009.

The paper notes that investigations have further revealed that upon the strength of the BTA and the Warrant issued to the Office of Parliament, the latter accordingly and legitimately took steps to pay the Ex-Gratia Awards and the Resettlement Grants to the Members of Parliament.

The BTAs of January 20, 2009 and January 21, 2009 were both signed by Deputy Controller and Accountant-General, Grace Adzroe and were addressed to (BoG) and the subsequent payment of the Ex-Gratia monies into the personal accounts of Members of Parliament, our investigations showed, transpired before the letters of reversal of the transfer from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP) and the Controller and Accountant General (Mr. Christian Sottie) both dated February 4, 2009, were issued and addressed to the Director, Banking Department, Bank of Ghana.

A highly-placed source at the Bog who spoke to The New Crusading Guide on condition of strict confidentiality, indicated that the ‘reversal letters’ were written and delivered to the Bog 14 CLEAR WORKING DAYS after the January 21, 2009 Bank Transfer Advice (BTA) from the Controller and Accountant-General’s Office/Department.

“There had been no controversy, no sign Presidential displeasure; no Minestirial directive to stop the processing and transfer and no indication from the CAGGD for BoG not to execute the BTA of January 21, 2009, and so how could anyone have expected the Bog to sit idle over the BTA for 14 clear working day’s without doing anything about it”, he queried.

He underscored that the subsequent presidential directive and initiatives from the MoFEP and the CAGD all came too late and could not have cured the ‘mischief’ since “it was futile seeking to lock the stable when the horses had already bolted.”

Our unofficial parliamentary sources expressed similar sentiments and indicated that the February 4, 2009 letter issued by the Chief Director of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP), to the Controller and Accountant-General, to direct the BoG to reverse the payment of the Ex-Gratia Awards and Resettlement Grants, was of no effect because, “It came at a time when some of the Members of Parliament had already accessed the money from their personal accounts.”

“We (Office of Parliament) did absolutely nothing wrong. We paid out the monies on the strength of the January 21, 2009 BTA and the Warrant issued to the Office of Parliament”, added our unofficial parliamentary sources who also said it was about time the Government displayed some transparency, honesty and candour about the Ex-Gratia saga.

“It is about time a full disclosure is made to the public. Government should let the public know the details and not pretend a presidential/ministerial/CAGD directive froze the transfer of the Ex-Gratia for the Members of Parliament. The facts must come out and let the nation face the challenge squarely, instead of this ‘hide and seek’ approach which only sustains the politics of unbridled populism”, they quipped.

Meanwhile, official enquiries by The New Crusading Guide at the Bank of Ghana (BoG), office of Parliament and the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department in the last few days produced a mixed bag of evasiveness, refusal to comment on specific questions, non disclosure and outright back-passing.

Source: New Crusading Guide

HIV\AIDS Testing is now free in Ghana

The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has directed that henceforth all HIV/AIDS tests at settings, facilities and during outreach programmes must absolutely be at no cost to clients.

This was contained in a circular signed by Dr. Elias K. Sory, Director- General of the Ghana Health Service and released in Kumasi on Thursday.

It said the directive had become necessary to help increase and encourage many people to participate in the Voluntary, Counselling and Testing (VCT) exercise to improve their health status.

The release urged heads of facilities at hospitals and health centres to ensure that all fees previously collected for HIV Testing should be duly accounted for and a report submitted to the Regional Directorates of Health Services at the end of February 2009.

Dr. Thomas Agyarko Poku, HIV/AIDS Co-ordinator in charge of Ashanti Region told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) the directive was laudable and hoped it would pave the way for many people to undertake VCT to improve their health.

He advised people to take their health seriously and attend hospitals and clinics when necessary.

Dr Poku urged the public to practice regenerative health by eating healthy and balanced diet, exercising their bodies as well as resting at all times.

GNA

British Council, AGISS engage in tree planting exercise

The InterAction Strategic Leadership Programme (IASLP) of the British Council has undertaken a tree planting exercise at the Accra Girls Senior High School as part of an environment protection programme.

The tree planting exercise was undertaken by 22 participants from across sub-Saharan Africa and the United Kingdom with 60 students from the school as part of British Council’s Climate Change Project and School Linking Programme, Connecting Classrooms.

The participants were made up of heads of civil society and leaders in various institutions who interacted with the students on the vision of transforming the lives of people through better leadership and networking.

Mr Napoleon Enaghogho Esemudje, Head of Human Resource/Administration of Fidelity Bank in Nigeria and a participant, told GNA that the programme supported by the British Council was aimed at educating the students on how to keep the environment safe and be strategic leaders.

Some 60 seedlings of various tree species including Blighia Sapida, Terminalia Montalis, Cassia Siamea and Cassia Spectabilis were planted on the school compound.

The students have been given the task to nurture and take pictures of the trees and send them to the participants in their various countries as the trees grow.

GNA

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