Month: January 2011

Nana Akomea, Member of Parliament for Okaikoi South, says the jailing of Nana Kofi Yirenkyi, aka Jesus One Touch, Founder and General Overseer of the Jesus Blood Prophetic Ministry at Oblogo in Accra, should serve as a wake-up call for proper scrutiny of persons who set up churches.

According to the MP, several churches in the past few years have sprung up and are being run by people with shady character who often exploit the ignorant masses.

An Accra circuit court on Thursday after an 11- month trial sentenced Prophet Nana Kofi Yirenkyi to 10 years’ imprisonment each on two counts of incest and defilement.

The prosecution said he defiled his 10-year-old daughter, one of his six children. The court noted that the prosecution had been able to prove all the essential elements of the charges hence handed down the sentence. It said it found the evidence of the victim truthful.

However, it could not reconcile the evidence that Nana Kofi Yirenkyi, while at the Akropong Divisional Police Command, pleaded to offer money to the victim’s mother and settle the case amicably.

Contributing to a discussion on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana show on Friday, Nana Akomea, Member of Parliament for Okaikoi South, who welcomed the sentencing of the ‘man of God’ stated that this should send a signal to the charlatans parading around as pastors who take undue advantage of people that the laws of Ghana will surely catch up with them.

‘’you hear all sorts of outrageous demands by some pastors from their congregation and you wonder if really they are ‘men of God’ as they claim” he said.

Nana Akomea, added that the Christian Council of Ghana must be empowered to regulate the activities of churches to bring about some sanity and clamp down on such unfortunate acts that bring the Christian religion into disrepute.

Story by : Kwadwo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh

The NDC Member of Parliament for Mfantseman West, Aquinas Quansah, has described the recently held press conference by the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) over the Ivorian crisis, as a useless exercise.

He said the conference which was a waste of energy and time on the part of the opposition failed to come out with any positive suggestions which could help in finding lasting solutions to the crisis in Ivory Coast.

The NPP at a press conference addressed by its Party Chairman Jake Obetsebi Lamptey on Thursday 20th January 2011 catalogued instances of inconsistencies he said exposed the government’s confused position on the Ivory Coast situation.

The NPP, accused the president of diplomatic double-talk for saying he supports ECOWAS’s decision to resort to force as a last measure to remove incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo should he refuse to relinquish power, and at the same time saying he did not believe war would bring a solution to the Ivorian crisis and that Ghana would not be able to contribute soldiers to any military intervention.

But speaking on e.tv’s Breakfast TV show on Friday, the Member of Parliament for Mfantseman East, Aquinas Quansah, dismissed the NPP’s assertion, stating that President Mills has continued to reiterate the point that he stands by any decision taken by the ECOWAS group.

‘’Their press conference did not provide practical solutions to the impasse ,we expected the NPP who have severally criticized President Mills over his stance on the issue to state the way out, but their statement was a mere pack of accusations’’ he said.

Hon. Aquinas Quansah, further stated that President Mills will continue to remain committed to finding diplomatic solution rather than resorting to military action to solving the Ivorian crisis.

Story by : Kwdawo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh

NDC Member of Parliament for Lower Manya Krobo, Michael Teye-Nyaunu has accused Deputy Trades and Industry Minister Mahama Ayariga for orchestrating his exclusion from the last list of ministerial reshuffle, in which he was to be named as Sports Minister.

Hon. Nyaunu, who is an ardent critic of the Government and sometimes considered a traitor as one who made public issues about President Mills’ ill-health, told Citi News Mr. Ayariga and some vicious people around the President derailed his chances of becoming a Minister of State.

“I had information that I was nominated for position of Minister of Sports. I was informed about this the night before the announcement. The following morning, a different name appeared all together and subsequent investigations show that, people like Ayariga and the rest, cancelled my name and substituted with a different name”.

“The credibility lies in the fact that, I heard this from the Appointments Committee of the President. I am not interested in the post but I am interested in fairness. I am so content with where I find myself as a member and Leader of the ECOWAS Parliament. Interestingly, people who contested like Ayariga and lost their seats are those who are hovering around the President and confirming decisions or otherwise” he said.

The man who is unhappy about several happenings in his party for which he fears the party could lose the 2012 elections, wants the President to be wild awake to know those who surround him better.

“I am appealing to his Excellency to wake up and use a better lens than what he is using now. He has to reinvestigate the people around him to see how things are going. We have to pray for the President and acknowledge that he has a clear problem on hand. For me, I wish him the best of luck”.

Hon. Nyaunu was however optimistic that the newly appointed Sports Minister, Hon. Kofi Humado will do a better job.

When contacted, the former Spokesperson to the President, Mr. Mahama Ayariga said the allegations could not be taken seriously since he did not have the power to fire and hire Ministers.

“I am tempted to be flattered by Hon. Nyaunu’s comment because he elevates me to the status of a person who is capable of crossing out names that the President has sent out for appointment. If I had those powers, I am sure I wouldn’t be where I am. I want to state emphatically that His Excellency the President exercises the power to hire and fire, and if he found Hon. Nyaunu as fit and proper to occupy any of the portfolios, I believe that at the right time he would invite him to join the Government” he said.

Mr. Ayariga said although Hon. Nyaunu had said unkind things about him including the fact that he lost his seat as an MP, he fails to recognise that he (Ayariga) was part of those who campaigned for him to retain his seat in Lower Manya Krobo.

Majority and Minority in Parliament on Wednesday disagreed on whether Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo was qualified to lay a paper on behalf of the newly assigned Minister for Education.

Mr Tettey-Enyo was affected by recent reshuffle, dropping out as the Education Minister without reassignment.

Mr Cletus Avoka, Majority Leader said in the absence of the newly appointed Minister of Education, Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu, Mr Tettey-Enyo was to lay the Tertiary Institutions (Establishment and Accreditation) Regulations 2010 (L.I. 1984) paper.

The Minority sharply rejected him performing that role on the grounds that he was no more a Minister but conceded that any minister apart from him could perform that duty.

Mr Avoka argued that until January 21, 2011 he was still a Minister of Education.

He explained that a letter from the President intimated that from the time of the reshuffle to January 21, affected Ministers remained Ministers.

Papa Owusu-Ankomah, NPP Member for Sekondi, said parliament had oversight responsibility over the Executive and added that in the event of a reshuffle Parliament must be officially informed.

Quoting Article 81 of the 1992 Constitution, Papa Owusu-Ankomah said the position of a Minister of State or Deputy Minister shall become vacant if his/her appointment was revoked by the President.

He said Mr Tetteh-Enyo had not been reassigned for him to be regarded as a Minister.

Mr Ambrose Dery, MP for Nandom, said the former Minister could have been considered if he had been moved from one Ministry to another.

“The former Minister cannot stand for another Minister, he is not a Minister”, Mr Derry noted.

Mr Alfred Agbesi, National Democratic Congress member for Ashaiman, said Articles 78 and 81 presented two situations.

He said Article 78 was on the appointment of ministers while 81 was on revocation of Ministers from their position, and called on the House to allow Mr Tettey-Enyo to lay the paper.

The Minority then requested that if a letter was produced to that effect and the Majority was ready to lay it, then Mr Tettey-Enyo would be allowed to lay the paper.

Things twisted the more when Mr Avoka produced the letter to that effect and even began reading it but the Minority side refused to budge on their resolve.

He then called for the paper to be dropped for it to be laid another time to enable him to consult with the Leadership.

Mr Avoka explained that he wanted the Speaker to guide the house on the matter for them to be clear for the purpose of precedence.

Mrs Bamford-Addo, Speaker of Parliament, appealed to both sides to compromise and allow the paper to be laid while an effort was made to resolve the impasse.

Ms Akua Sena Dansua, former Minister for Youth and Sport and newly appointed Minister for Tourism, laid the paper finally as directed by the Speaker.

Source: GNA

The controversial NDC Member of Parliament for Lower Manya Krobo, Hon Michael Teye Nyaunu, has granted yet another explosive interview to Citi News, during which he expressed strong fears that his party could lose the 2012 general elections.

He told Citi News Parliamentary Correspondent Richard Sky, that instead of running the affairs of the party, many executives of the NDC – from the national level right down to the constituency level — have abandoned their duties and are busily amassing illegitimate wealth.

“During the campaigning, they made us to understand that every member is a shareholder of the organisation and the dividends will be shared accordingly. But when it came to appointing DCEs, they ignored the Constituency executives who worked so much. Instead, people who sat in the comfort of radio stations and made a lot of pronouncements were considered to have worked harder than those who walked to the villages and won votes to bring the party into power” he said.

“Don’t tell me that somebody is a PHD holder, a professor, a doctor and therefore he is more important than those who walked into the villages. The illiterate, the Form Four leaver and the foot soldier worked before we won power. When it comes to voting, we all have one vote including the illiterate, the professor and the Doctor. The grassroots are not happy. All that they are saying is that they must be recognised “he fumed.

“Indeed I really fear that the NDC could lose 2012. And I am praying to the good Lord to help us change our strategy before the end of this year. I get reports from many regions of the country and all is not well. I blame some of the party executives who are going round amassing some wealth for themselves to gain some of the little life pleasures that they didn’t get” he said.

Hon. Nyaunu alleged that some of the executives were giving contracts to members of the opposition NPP for kickbacks.

“I am appealing to his Excellency to wake up and use a better lens than what he is using now. He has to reinvestigate the people around him to see how things are going”.

The Member of Parliament for Assin North, Kennedy Ohene Agyepong, has warned the New Patriotic Party (NPP) against charging exorbitant parliamentary nominations fees, as it will have dire consequences for the party.

Aspiring parliamentary candidates, who intend to contest on the ticket of the NPP during the forth coming general elections in 2012 , are to pay a whopping GH¢30,000, plus GH¢6,000 to the party’s development fund, while incumbent Members of Parliament who intend to re-run are expected to pay between GH¢1500 to GH¢ 20,000 plus GH¢6000.

The filing fees proposed by the party’s Steering Committee and yet to be accepted by the National Executive Council (NEC) of the party, are expected to generate income to enable the party run a very comprehensive campaign during the upcoming 2012 general elections.

Speaking on Adom Fm’s Dwaso Nsem program, the Member of Parliament for Assin North, Kennedy Ohene Agyepong, who described the filing fees as outrageous stated that the move will definitely discourage many party members in good standing who wish to contest any of the seats.

“In as much as the party is in opposition and require enough funds to run our campaign, this high fee will subtly ward off the not too resourceful aspirants, money should not be used to deny party members of their democratic rights’’ he said.

Hon. Kennedy Agyepong, urged the party to learn from past events and not repeat previous mistakes that marred the party’s constituency elections in the run-up to the 2008 elections, which later created a lot of disaffection among party members.

“These among other decisions by the party leadership led to a lot of disagreement resulting in some people running as independent candidate, which cost the NPP its electoral fortunes’’he added.

Story by : Kwadwo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh

Majority Chief Whip and Member of Parliament for Mfantseman East, George Kuntu Blankson says the actions of the NPP seem like somebody who is at a menopausal stage.

According to him, there is a change when somebody hits menopause where the person refuses to see anybody’s point of view or listen to any other opinion but does what he or she thinks is right, and that the NPP is exhibiting such menopausal traits.

Mr. Kuntu Blankson was reacting to statements made by NPP Chairman, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey that Ghana’s image is sinking under President Mills.

Mr. Obetsebi-Lamptey stated that President Mills has since he took over, ensured that the international image of Ghana has been sullied and the country’s image has come under atttack.

Mr. Obetsebi-Lamptey told Adakabre Frimpong-Manso that when the Mills-Mahama government took over from the J.A. Kufuor government, Ghana was riding extremely high in international circles; “former President Kufuor had been chairman of ECOWAS twice and had been invited to the G8 and G20 Summits.

He said Ghana’s voice was heard in the corridors of power and its advice was sought because the country was seen as being the champion of democracy in Africa and a real hope for Africa to the extent that the first trip the US President Barack Obama made to the land of his forefathers was to Ghana.

According to him, because of what ex-president Kufuor was able to do; the trust he was able to build outside of the country and the emotional attachments that he was able to arouse on Ghana’s behalf, a lot of help came the country’s way such as how quickly Ghana was able to access and graduate from from HIPC, gaining access to a Millennium Challenge Account of 547 million dollars for developmental projects among others.

“President Mills inherited all these and his job was to take it up and build on it, to take it up to even higher heights but what is happening now: we are frowned upon by ECOWAS, there are some meetings that we are not invited to because they don’t feel that we are part and parcel of maintaining the unity of Africa.

“There are other ECOWAS meetings that will be held that we may not be invited to because our stance may not be seen as a country that is helping the rest of the body to be moving forward or in the direction that has been agreed on,” he stated.

He continued that the Mills-Mahama administration almost got Ghana banned from FIFA and has succeeded in getting the country suspended by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) thereby probably ruining Ghanaian footballers’ chances of winning Olympic gold saying all these developments are totally unnecessary and destroy the reputation of the country.

However, the Majority Chief Whip totally disagrees with Mr. Obetsebi-Lamptey saying it is sad that a person whose government has ruled this country before can make such statements.

He revealed that, the American government had in a letter commended President Mills for helping reduce to the barest minimum, the drug menace in the country while insisting that projects like the STX Housing deal are all helping to positively project the country’s image.

Mr. Kuntu Blankson said everything was all fun during the NPP era where they travelled incessantly and drug peddling increased phenomenally.

He urged that as a people it is important to join hands to solve pertinent national problems than to behave like ostriches and bury our heads in the sand.

He however stressed that what has been destroyed in eight years cannot be repaired in two years so people should exercise some patience.

Story by Adomonline.com

A Minister of State at the Finance Ministry under the Kufuor administration and Member of Parliament for Old Tafo is under investigation for allegedly divesting 20 per cent government shares in the Ghana Oil Palm Development Company (GOPDC).

Joy News has learnt the former minister has been in-and-out of the offices of the Bureau of National Investigations over the past week in an attempt for the investigative body to gather information that could lead to his prosecution.

The investigation is however said to have stalled. Sources say the ex-minister has refused to cooperate with the BNI over allegations the BNI is leaking confidential sources to pro government newspapers.

Joy News’ Sammy Darko who is following the beat reports that a brother of Dr Osei Akoto, is the Ghana Director of the French company, SIAT, which bought the 20 per cent government shares of GOPDC.

Investigators suspect the relationship between the ex minister and the Country Director of SIAT must have influenced the deal in favour of the company.

Dr. Anthony Osei Akoto has refused to go public on the matter but his lawyer, Atta Akyea insists the government is wrongfully persecuting his client for his ‘F’ grading of government.

Dr. Osei Akoto has however been explaining the propriety in diverting funds allocated for the TOR recovery levy to finance other government officials.

Pro government groups have been vociferous in their quest to have Dr. Osei prosecuted for allegedly diverting part of the TOR recovery levy to the ministry of information.

The groups insist the action by Dr. Osei Akoto has led to skyrocketing of the TOR debt culminating in the recent 20-30 percent fuel price hikes.

But the former minister said it is normal practice for government to take money from one account for use by other government agencies-monies which will be replaced at all cost.

Dr. Osei Akoto argued that on a daily basis government calls for funds to be paid into one account or another for use by government agencies.

He said rather than going to borrow money from other sources to expend on an important government activity, it is prudent to transfer money sitting in one government account for use.

Per a daily cash balance employed by the Kufuor government whilst in office, Dr. Akoto Osei noted all statutory monies taken for use in other sectors are paid back and the TOR levy is no exception.

But a deputy Information Minister James Agyanim Boateng insists the practice is wrong.

He quoted portions of the law that set up the TOR recovery levy, insisting Dr. Osei Akoto flouted the law in directing that monies from the levy be transferred for other things other than payment of the TOR debt.

Mr. Boateng also disclosed that he has no information about ongoing investigations by the BNI on Dr. Akoto Osei’s role in the sale of the 20 per cent shares of the GOPDC.

Source: Joy fm

Communications Minister, Haruna Iddrissu and Member of Parliament for Tamale South, has directed that a committee be set up immediately to work out the modalities for the payment of royalties to musicians in the country.

The committee is also expected to investigate the fracas that took place in Sunyani where equipments belonging to three radio stations were seized.

The Committee, which is to be made up of four representatives from the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association (GIBA) and the Interim Copyright Management Team (ICMT), would be chaired by Major (Rtd) Emmanuel Owusu-Adansi of the National Communications Authority.

The decision was taken after GIBA and ICMT met with the Communications Minister Haruna Iddrissu.

In an interview with Citi News, President of GIBA Chief Crystal Djirackor indicated that the committee would hold its first meeting by Friday January 21, and is expected to present its report in two weeks time.

He further adds that the royalties being charged by the musicians are too high and would also be reviewed by the committee.