The Prisons Service has intensified its “Clean Ghana Campaign” to clear all major streets and highways within the capital of filth.
The exercise which commenced a year ago, received sterling remarks from the general public until it was temporarily put on hold in March 2020 by the Prisons Authority to observe the partial lockdown and safety protocols outlined by the President.
Contributing its quota in sanitation to make Greater Accra the finest city in Africa, the Service, recognised constitutionally with a core function of the safe custody and welfare of inmates, in collaboration with Zoomlion Company Ltd has mapped up strategies to dispose of all garbage on the streets, desilt gutters, clear the weeds along highways, pavements, roundabouts, sweep the sand of the streets and maintain a clean and welcoming environment during and after the novel coronavirus.
The Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has clarified that only 12 million cedis out of the 54 million cedis captured in his mid-year budget review presentation was used for provision of hot meals during the Covid-19 lockdown.
Many including the minority questioned the amount asking for details following the Minister’s presentation.
Mr Ofori-Atta also expressed displeasure over the seeming politicization of the distribution of food to the vulnerable during the lockdown.
He said “it is truly unfortunate that an attempt has been made to politicize the issue of providing food for our brothers and sisters in need during the lockdown. It is also unfortunate that the impression has been created that the total amount of 54 million was used for hot meals over the three weeks lockdown period.”
“We estimated we would need an amount of approximately 40 million to provide hot meals to the vulnerable at 5 cedis per pack during the lockdown period. However, we spent 12 million on hot meals including the cost of distribution.”
He explained “government budgeted 40.3 million for basic uncooked food items. We spent 42.2 million. It is this 12 million spent on hot meals and the 42 million spent on uncooked food items that gave a total of 54 million as stated in the mid-year review. The 12.1 million for hot meals served 150,000 people during the lockdown including the cost of transportation and other operational cost.”
In concluding the budget debate today, Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu pointed out what he termed as unnecessary expenditure of the Nana Addo administration including the 21 billion on the banking sector clean up when the distressed financial institutions needed far less to survive.
But in a reaction Mr. Ofori-Atta argued every penny government has expensed was prudently done.
The runningmate of the opposition National Democratic Congress Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang says her decision to sign the Montie 3 petition was not an endorsement of the utterances of the convicts.
According to her, the move was to extend an appeal to the judges to temper justice with mercy.
In 2016, the former Education Minister joined hundreds of senior NDC members who signed a petition to then President John Mahama asking him to pardon the trio, which he did.
Following her announcement as the running mate for NDC Flagbearer for the 2020 election, the former UCC Vice-Chancellor has been criticized by a section of the public for calling for the release of the trio who had verbally attacked and threatened judges.
Reacting to the comments, the academician told Central region-based Live FM that the then NDC government did not interfere with the judicial process.
“The case was not tampered with, the court process was allowed to continue to its conclusion. Those of us who listened to the comments, we told them their utterances were wrong and so they should go and apologise and so made them apologise until the sentencing came. And in the judicial process, there is something called pardon or clemency; even in recent times, they have pardoned a lot of people.“So are they saying that if someone commits an offence and they are being taken away and they run to you to apologise on their behalf, as a mother will you throw them away? or that when you go and apologise on their behalf it means you endorse what they had done? no. If your child smashes the mirror of somebody’s car and you go and apologise does it mean your support what your child did? Mahama could have covered them but he didn’t do so, he allowed the law to work; what do we see today?”
It comes in the wake of reports that the Audit Service Board ordered the locks to his office to be changed.
Speaking to Francis Abban on the Morning Starr Wednesday, Dr. Duah-Agyemang said the keys to Mr. Domelevo’s office were changed because they were not sure who else had the old one.
“What’s this with Mr. Domelevo always running to the media. Is he a baby? We are fed up with Domelevo always going to the media. He can go wherever he wants to. When Mr. Domelevo left on the 1st of July, the board felt there was the need to secure his office so the locks were changed and the keys were left where they belong,” he said.
Meanwhile, anti-Corruption campaigner Vitus Azeem says the decision by the Audit Service Board to change the locks to the office of the Auditor-General is unfortunate.
“It’s a bad perception. Coming from a president who said he was going to fight corruption and was tagged incorruptible by his people but unfortunately, personal interest supersedes national interest. But the way and manner Mr. Domelevo was asked to proceed on leave showed they want him out of the way and they are having a field day. For them to change locks to Mr. Domelevo’s office is very unfortunate. I don’t think it’s the best approach and it’s a dent on the image of the A-G’s office,” he said.
Some Ghanaians abroad petitioned the Presidency to bring back the Auditor General saying the decision to ask him to go on leave was an affront to Ghana’s democracy.
But responding to the petition, the Presidency said the various arguments being raised in the petition were first considered by the President before the directive was issued.
A former Local Government Minister during President Jerry John Rawlings regime, Professor Kwamena Ahwoi, has revealed that but for late President Mills’ intervention, many of President Kufuor’s appointees will have gone to jail.
This according to him, this infuriated President Rawlings whom today always criticizes President Mills’ administration for failing to deliver.
He said he and late PV Obeng supported by Alex Segbefia had prepared about 100 dockets to prosecute Kufuor’s appointees.
He added that President Mills was too good to be a politician, a reason why he couldn’t prosecute the wrongs of some NPP appointees.
“I went to him with the brief and everything. After I had finished, he said back to me, look at me…we spoke Fante. Kwamena so you want us to do it to them. When they come back, they will do to us. When we come back then we do it to them, then it will be doing and flowing aaaaa; did Ghana go or did Ghana come”, he told Joy SMS Kojo Yankson monitored by MyNewsGh.com
Professor Ahowi added “that is why the NPP got away with it quote and unquote. Today they get up and say that if they had done anything wrong we will have prosecuted them.”
“They don’t know that we had a president who said he was the Asomdwee Hene [Mills] , and that he was prepared to forget about the past in order that we move forward”, he pointed out.
“Many people in the NDC were very disappointed and their disappointment is reflected in Rawlings anger with President Mills that even if he has done quarter of what we think of what a politician should have done, maybe, maybe today’s reaction of the NPP would have been different”, he stressed.
He noted that “I can tell you President Mills, that is why some people say that he is not a politician because he didn’t have that cutting edge…because in politics you don’t always have to be good.”
“President Mills was good so he assumed every human was good. But in politics there are very bad people, and when you encounter the bad people, you must deal with them”, he stressed.
Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has reminded former President John Mahama that the 2020 Presidential elections is a choice between his eight year record as Vice President and President and the three and half year record of Nana Akufo-Addo as President.
Former President Mahama has been making series of promises in an attempt to woo Ghanaians, but in a post on his official Facebook page, Dr. Bawumia has reminded the former President that Ghanaians will judge him by his terrible record as President, not by his new-found promises.
“The choice Ghanaians face on December 7th is between John Mahama and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. Thankfully both of them have records. John Mahama was Vice President and President for 8 years and Nana Akufo-Addo has been the president for three and half years,” Dr. Bawumia wrote.
“It is not about what you say in opposition. It is about what you did in government. What matters ultimately to Ghanaians is how these two leaders were able to manage the economy and alleviate the suffering of the people when they were given the opportunity to serve,” the Vice President added.
The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has said the Auditor-General Daniel Yao Domelevo should learn to keep issues of national concern private and dialogue rather than always running to the public when issues come up.
According to Ken Ofori-Atta, since he assumed office as Finance Minister, there are a number of things he has learned but have had to bottle them up in order to help make his work smooth and easy while the issues are dealt with in private.
He was commenting on the Auditor-General’s clash with the Senior Minister on the work of Kroll and Associates.
“When I hear this issue, I feel shy. There was a problem at COCOBOD so we brought in these international investigators to investigate the matter and Senior Minister was responsible for that. Me, I don’t even understand the whole thing because what work were they doing that they were looking for evidence and all of a sudden, they had to be taken to court.”he told Peace FM.
“So, when the Auditor-General took the case and started handling it, the Senior Minister said how the evidence found by Kroll and Associates looks like, it’s not something that he can disclose to him so he should rather come to the office and have a look at the report.”
Explaining the work done by the International Investigative body and matters arising from their work, the Minister said “It’s a little bit shocking because the work the International company is doing was to look at value for money in a number of things that had happened at COCOBOD. When I gave Auditor-General’s Department this work, they said about six billion or so could not be validated. There were plenty of people to be surcharged on a local level most of whom would have been past government people so how come only that of COCOBOD when we started to investigate it has become a top-line issue of concern.”
“What was also worrisome is it also surcharged a number of civil servants in addition to that. So, with that, you create a certain unnecessary fear with how they do their work. I don’t know but I’m sure it will be resolved. They went to court and the Judge was quite clear that they should go and see the report and ascertain for themselves whether the work has been done.”
“Kwame, I don’t see why when we are engaged in our professional work there should be a bit of mutual respect and discuss things before we escalate it because things I’ve come to see at the Finance Ministry if I bring everything out, I wouldn’t have had the time to work. Some of the things it’s better to sit with the individuals and talk it over and resolve it so that the country can move forward. I hope that we will understand each other so that we can go forward”. The Minister concluded.
Transport fares have been reduced by 10% effective Saturday August 1, 2020.
This leaves only 5% of the 15% increment which will take effect from August 1. The decision was taken after a meeting between transport operators and the Ministry of Transport.
On July 7, 2020, government approved a 15% hike in transport fares to cushion transport operators against the impact of the social distancing directive on their businesses.
However the easing of covid-19 restrictions on the transport sector ignited calls for a reduction in the fares.
Vice chairman of the Ghana Private Road Transport Union Robert Sarbah told Citi Business News the earlier 15% increment is no longer applicable.
“In view of the fact that the social distancing is no longer applicable in the commercial vehicles especially taxis, trotro and the buses, after the end of the meeting with other transport operators, which included State Transport, Metro Mass, VIP, Cooperative, Protoa and others, it became possible that the transport fares should be reduced.
Instead of the 10% that was given to operators on the 11th of July, it is now 5%, which will take effect from the 1st August.”
The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC), had echoed the voices of many commuters by calling on stakeholders within the transport sector to reduce transport fares.
The call came hours after President Akufo-Addo in his 14th address to the nation on Sunday, 26th July, 2020, said commercial vehicles can now take full capacity.
According to COPEC, every revenue that commercial drivers had lost before the announcement is now restored thus the call for a reversal of the new fares.
Government approved a 15% increment in transport fares following fuel price hikes amid social distancing in vehicles early this month. The increment took effect from Saturday, July 11, 2020.
COPEC however suggests that, ’the above thus renders any possible argument on the part of transport operators for stay of current transport fares at this point, citing the marginal fuel price increases as an excuse ostensibly to deny Ghanaian commuters the deserved reductions in transport fares moot since the fuel price variance before and after the lock-down period remains a distant 10%+ positive to the commercial transport operators at this point.”
Former President John Dramani Mahama on Monday, outlined 16 promises the party will implement should he win the presidential polls.
One of such is the implementation of a free primary healthcare for all Ghanaians.
Read the 16 policies below
The involvement of women in the decision-making process will not end at the level of Vice President. We will work towards the attainment of a minimum of 30% of all appointments going to women.
We will implement a set of robust health policies and plans aimed at aggressively tackling and reducing maternal mortality by half from the current 319 per 100,000 live births.
We shall ensure female socio-economic empowerment, enact the Spousal Rights Law, establish exclusive and secured shelters for abused women and children, and provide opportunities for all.
As a Social Democratic Party, we seek to harness the best qualities in all our people to transform the destiny of our nation. In that direction, and as the fulcrum around which our Health Policy will evolve, we will before the end of 2021, introduce and begin the implementation of a Free Primary Health Care Plan. This will make the provision of primary health care to all Ghanaians, young and elderly, FREE. Our free health care plan will guarantee a healthy people and provide the healthy workforce needed to accelerate our development.
I pledge on behalf of the NDC that we shall pay within one year all who have funds locked up with the collapsed financial institutions. Within one year. I promise! We shall not put up any long-term payment plans that will further worsen the living conditions of the victims.
As has been introduced in other economies, the next NDC Administration will establish a Financial Services Authority that will be responsible for ensuring that consumer financial markets work for consumers, providers and the economy as a whole.” The Authority will oversee all financial products and services that are offered to consumers, and will effectively and efficiently prevent and stop the challenges that have confronted customers of Menzgold, DKM among others.
We will restore Ghanaian indigenous investment in the banking and financial sector through a tiered banking structure in order to restore viable credit sources for Ghanaian SMEs. We will make amends for those whose businesses were collapsed due to political victimization.
We will send all contractors with valid contracts who have been sitting at home for 4 years without being paid for legitimate work done for government back to site. We will make immediate arrangements to pay them their hard-earned monies deliberately with held by the Nana Addo administration due to politics.
We will build a peaceful, secure and strong economy that provides sustainable jobs through a transformed, industrialised and digital economy.
We will reinforce the independence of state institutions such as the Electoral Commission, Auditor General’s Department, EOCO and CHRAJ.
Single sourced procurement – sole sourcing – will be an exception not the rule.
In pursuance of social justice, I will vigorously push through a constitutional review that creates a fairer and just emoluments system and removes the distortions between Article 71 Office-holders and other public sector employees.
We will as part of an Integrity for Development action plan, launch “Operation Sting.” Operation Sting is an anti-corruption crusade, which under my watch will involve massive, far reaching and practical governmental reforms. It will be ruthless against all corrupt political appointees and public sector workers.
It will be a requirement for all who serve in my Government to publish their assets declaration and have same audited by the Auditor General.
Of course, the elephantine-size government of 125 ministers we have been burdened with for four years will be reduced drastically. The savings made from emoluments of reduced number of ministers and the privileges they enjoy will be channelled towards paying Assembly Members to perform the function of collecting accurate births and deaths information in their various electoral areas.
Our plans include an aggressive job and entrepreneurial programme in the public and private sector; that will deliver a minimum 250,000 jobs every year. A total of 1,000,000 jobs across the country by the end of my term in office in 2024. We will put Ghanaians to work to earn a decent living.
The flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama has promised to create over one million jobs for Ghanaians before the end of his tenure should he be voted as President on December 7, 2020.
“Our plans include an aggressive job and entrepreneurial programme in the public and private sector; that will deliver a minimum of 250,000 jobs every year. A total of 1,000,000 jobs across the country by the end of my term in office in 2024. We will put Ghanaians to work to earn a decent living,” said Mahama.
The NDC flagbearer said this when he outdoored his running mate on Monday, July 27, 2020 at an event held at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA).
According to John Mahama, the first term of President Nana Akufo-Addo administration has been full of massive job losses in the country.
Akufo-Addo’s first term full of nepotism, corruption and massive job losses
Mahama at the event took a swipe at President Nana Akufo-Addo and his governing New Patriotic Party.
According to him, the first term of President Nana Akufo-Addo administration has been full of nepotism, corruption, stagnation, and loss of jobs.
“My brothers and sisters, the 2020 election will be a referendum on the four years of Nana Akufo-Addo’s presidency – four years of nepotism, corruption, stagnation, deliberate abandoning of badly needed social infrastructure, dehumanisation, disenfranchising Ghanaians, stripping Ghanaians of their citizenship, deliberate collapse of indigenous Ghanaian businesses, massive job losses and the attendant socio-economic hardship. This will be a referendum on the term of a president who has no real solutions for Ghana, a president, hell-bent on doing whatever it takes to stay in power – including, against sound advice, replacing the very voters’ register, which brought him into office,” he said.
“My heart goes out to the many who have been affected by this Government’s unjustifiable collapse of Ghanaian-owned financial institutions,” Mahama added.
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