Month: May 2011

The Chairman of the Konadu for 2012 campaign and one of the fiercest critics of President Attah Mills, Hon. Teye-Nyaunu, has once again waged an assault on the President saying he(President) has a blurred vision and cannot read due to his terrible eye defect.

According to the MP, several letters written to the President has to be read to him by his aids simply because his eyes are weak to enable him to do that by himself.

Mr Teye-Nyaunu is known to have a history of attacking the health condition of the President John Evans Attah Mills.

In the run up to the 2008 elections Hon. Teye-Nyaunu who is the Member of Parliament for Lower Manya Krobo is quoted publicly as saying ‘Let us go to Congress and elect another flagbearer!’, let’s not behave like ostriches and pretend we don’t have a problem’. “The Prof is sick as such we should concede”.

He added that the Professor’s health is such that the party must stand up and prepare for another congress so as to save the NDC from another shameful defeat in the December elections.

His comments then, was met with a lot of public condemnation which made the NDC party summon him before the National Executive Council of the party.

Just last week when Nana Konadu and her team met delegates of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) from Ablekuma North, South and Central at Extima Hotel at Mataheko in Accra, Hon. Teye-Nyaunu is reported to have described President Mills as virtually blind adding that the President’s health continues to worsen by the day and it is important that Nana Konadu is elected during the party congress to lead the NDC party come 2012 elections.

Speaking to the media, Hon. Teye –Nyaunu, who defended his comments was however surprised that his remarks had come to the public domain.

“I’m shocked that my comments have been aired; it was an internal party affair since the gathering was made up of only NDC delegates’’ he said.

He added that due to the President’s poor leadership skill, his position and power appears have been usurped by Ato Ahwoi who is currently running the show at the Castle.

Story by: Kwadwo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh

The allegation made by four Lawyers that the Judges and the Judiciary is corrupt appears to have been treated with the seriousness that it deserves as the Judicial Committee of Parliament has also waded into the controversy.

The Judicial Committee of Parliament is to conduct an investigation into the allegation to unravel the truth or otherwise of the assertion.

The Committee has expressed concern over the tagging of Judges and Judiciary as corrupt saying it is a serious statement worth investigating and must not be allowed to die a natural death.

The Chairman of the Judiciary Committee and Member of Parliament for Ashiaman Alfred Agbesi in an interview with the media, stated that the Committee views the allegation as in indictment of the very body or institution that should dispense justice for all manner of persons and not for the highest bidder.

Four Lawyers, Raymond Atuguba, David Annan, Abraham Amaliba and Larry Bimi made the corruption allegations at a round-table discussion on the Judiciary and Ghana’s justice system in Accra, organized by the National Commission for Civic Education as part of its annual constitution week celebration.

Another Lawyer Chris Ackumey, just last week repeated the same allegation on radio claiming that he has evidence of a judge taking a bribe of GHC 500 from an man whose case was before the very judge.

The Chief Justice, Mrs. Georgina Theodora Wood, has directed the invitation of lawyer Chris Ackumey to substantiate his claim.

He has indicated that he will respond to the invitation and mention the name of the judge, where he took the bribe and the witnesses.

Story by : Kwadwo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh

The Member of Parliament for Adentan, Kojo Adu Asare, has taken a swipe at critics of President John Evans Attah who have described him as an impotent leader due to his ineffective leadership skills.

According to the MP, whoever refers to President Mills as important is simply being insincere and just engaging in mischief to distract the President from the good work that he is currently pursuing.

A member of Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings’ campaign team Dr. David Sunu has described President Attah Mills as an impotent party leader, asserting that the NDC is suffering the ineffective party leadership of President Mills.

Dr. Sunu, during the launch of Nana Konadu 2012 Campaign, stated that President Mills was “an impotent party leader” who had failed to change the fortunes of Ghanaians and therefore needed to be replaced as leader of the NDC.

However speaking on NET 2 Television in Accra on Thursday 26th May, the Member of Parliament for Adentan, Kojo Adu-Asare, disagreed totally with that negative description of the President saying that leadership style differs among individuals.

He said President Mills should not necessarily tow the lines of previous leaders who have led the NDC party and Ghana, as he has his unique way of going about issues.

“Adolf Hitler was a very strong leader, high handed and very assertive and was always in the news but for the wrong reasons every time, is that what we want to see from our President’’ he asked?

Hon. Adu –Asare urged Ghanaians especially critics of the President to grant him the peace of mind to continue delivering the better Ghana agenda, adding that President Mills since assuming the Presidency has proven to be an effective leader with unmatched leadership skills.

Story by : Kwadwo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh

The New Statesman Newspaper has conceded it goofed in its publication Wednesday which alleged that Information Minister, John Tia had built a 20-bedroom mansion on a waterway in Tema.

John Tia has denied the allegation and threatened to file a complaint against the New Statesman at the National Media Commission. Mr. Tia demanded that they retract the publication and apologise.

Meanwhile, the Editor of the New Statesman, Kwabena Amankwa told Joy News they got their attribution wrong.

“First and foremost we want to say that we are very sorry for the story and accordingly want to retract and apologise to the minister for that.”

He said the building in questioned is rather owned by the Deputy Minister of Agriculture Alfred Sugri Tia.

In an interview with Joy News’ Dzifa Bampoh, Mr Alfred Sugri Tia admitted ownership of a five-acre waterlog land which the building in question is situated on.

He said the land was acquired in 1988 for poultry farming but had to be closed down in the advent of the avian influenza virus (bird fluid) in 2007.

He said before the closure of the poultry farm, he acquired a permit from the Tema Development Corporation to start constructing a housing unit for himself and his workers in 2005.

He was however not sure of the number of rooms, noting “the rooms are about 18 thereabout, it could be 20; I am not too certain”.

According to the paper, the cost of the said building was hovering around GH¢2.5 million, but the deputy minister vehemently denied that, arguing that the yet-to-be roofed building would not cost more than GH¢100,000.

Source: Joy News

After his bitter confessions some months ago that the people of Teshie have turned his compound house into an ‘out-dooring ‘square where naming ceremonies are held, DAYBREAK can confirm that Nii Nortey Dua, Deputy Minister for Youth and Sports keeps a tall list of persons he helps because his constituents say he is stingy.

Addressing a group called the ‘NDC GRASSROOTS’ in his constitency, the Minister noted that he is not the type of persons who keeps a list of persons he helps but had to adopt the attitude when news started making the rounds that he was very stingy. The MP for ledzokuku, said he therefore made it compulsory for anybody he offers help to, to sign against their names as prove of evidence.

So mad was the Minister that he said he nearly walked into the meeting with the said list to show that he was indeed helping his constituents contrary to the claims that he was not.

“He claims he has helped over 200 people and cites examples of persons he has given recommendations letters to, to look for jobs “, a source noted saying the Minister claims he has gotten a person employed at National Security.

The meeting schedule to take place at exactly 5:00 pm was not be as the Minister and his entourage comprising a certain Dromo, an aspirant in a yet to be voted for Assembly seat and the Constituency Chairman in the person of Boney Quist delayed the gathering till about 7:00pm.

The Minister who look helpless and could not answer most of the questions thrown at him sought to create the impression that the appointing authority was the cause of his woes saying that all the names he forwarded for the security services especially the Police service and the Ghana Armed Forces were not allowed into the service while others had their way.

“You would be sitting down and they would call you for your list but in the end, most of the names you forward would not go through and you people think am not doing well,…..you don’t know how annoyed we are with our leaders.

“If because of me you want the party to go into opposition, I don’t care because in 2004 when things did not go well I sat home, went to court, hired 2 buses for you and paid for the legal fee”, the Minister noted.

When asked about the traffic congestion on the Teshie-Nungua main road, the Minister stated that even though he has tried in convincing the Contractor to speed up the work, anytime he complains he is told since the inception of the Mills-Mahama administration, Teshie has received majority of the projects in terms of roads expansions.

“That claim is ridiculous, is it about employing sons to work at the municipal assembly or it is about house, he talks about building and rehabilitating bridges when in fact he made a lot of promises to us….he should come again because this explanation doesn’t wash”, the source said.

“The road leading to his home is in bad state and this man has no shame but to say that we have received majority of the projects, the open gutters and he says what…” another noted.

Our Editor was not spared by the Deputy Minister as he claimed he was as a member of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) and was being paid to write negative stories about him.

Concerning a publication that appeared in the Enquirer about the group after the chairman of the constituency was quizzed about the happenings in the constituency about the un-employment status of party foot-soldiers, according to sources, both Chairman and Minister denied knowledge claiming it was their first time of sighting the publication.

Source: Daybreak

Deputy Majority Leader in Parliament, Rashid Pelpuo, says the group calling itself Coalition of Democratic Forces (CDF), that accused the Majority side for non-performance cannot be taken seriously.

He said the group has a selfish and self-seeking agenda and must be treated with contempt. He was reacting to a statement by the group to the effect that the reputation of Parliament has been brought into disrepute since he and the majority leader took the realm of leadership.

Alhaji Pelpuo said virtually all important Bills that were pending have been passed. He told GBC’s Radio Ghana that there is an excellent relationship between the Speaker and the Majority in Parliament.

Mr. Pelpuo said any group that wants to know the work of Parliament should be bold to approach the house. He said this is not the first time the Speaker has walked out of the House and stressed the need for people to appreciate the dynamic trend in which Parliament is growing.

Reacting to the same issue, the Minority Leader Osei Kyei-Mensah Bonsu, said it is not true that the reputation of Parliament has been brought into disrepute. He said Mr. Avoka and Rashid Pelpuo are doing well as Majority leaders in the House.

He told Radio Ghana that there is the need for people to appreciate the fact that work in Parliament is a learning process.

Source: GBC

Mr Seth Terkpeh, Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Planning said at the weekend that an amount of GH¢114,983,826.00 was realised from the Communication Service Tax, which became operational in June 2008 to December 2009.

He said 20 per cent of the amount was supposed to be used to fund the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP), however only GH¢8,000,000.00 was spent on the Programme while the rest was placed in the Consolidated Fund.

Mr Terkpeh was answering a question on the floor of Parliament tabled by Mr Isaac Kwame Asiamah, New Patriotic Party Member of Parliament for Atwima Mponua.

He however did not give a breakdown of how the money was utilised.

Mr Terkpeh said an amount of GH¢ 87.4 million was realised in 2009 and GH¢158.5 million in 2010 and GH¢32.2 million by the first quarter of 2011.

The Minister explained that GH¢35.4 million has been released so far while six million cedis was yet to be settled.

GNA

The NDC Member of Parliament for Adentan, Kojo Adu-Asare has urged the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to rise above the petty politicking that it has engaged itself in, as it does not inure to the democratic growth of the country.

According to the MP, the NPP has made a conscious attempt to discredit the efforts of President John Evans Attah Mills even when his efforts have been recognized by the international community.

His comments follow the statement from the Castle which disclosed that President Mills played an important role in resolving the Ivorian crisis by impressing upon the head of the Ivoirian Constitutional Court, Paul Yao Ndre to swear in President Ouattara based on the position taken by the African Union.

An Ivorian newspaper is said to have published that it was President Mills’ intervention that the Ivorian Constitutional Court declared Mr Ouattara as the duly elected president of that country, leading to the latter’s swearing-in.

However the NPP in a swift manner discredited what the Castle claimed was a “critical role” the President played in the Ivorian crisis saying the Presidency is only trying to score cheap political points with the issue.

Speaking on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana show, the Member of Parliament for Adentan, Kojo Adu-Asare, stated that the NPP should discourage the habit of always trying to find faults with everything President Mills does even when his efforts bring honour to the country.

“Why are we tearing ourselves apart with the kind of comments we are making about this issue, we should rather be speaking as a united country when our President’s effort has been recognized’’ he said.

He noted that the NPP since the assumption of power of President Mills has over the years tried to throw mud at the President which has never stuck, adding that the NPP negative propaganda has proved counter –productive.

Story by : Kwadwo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh

Communications Director of the opposition New Patriotic Party and MP for Okaikoi South, Nana Akomea, has discredited what the presidency claimed was a “critical role” played by President Mills to resolve the Ivorian crisis.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Top Story on Monday, he said various statements made by President Mills prior to the investiture of Alassane Ouattara as the president of Ivory Coast run counter to the claim.

An Ivorian newspaper is said to have published that it was President Mills’ intervention that the Ivorian Constitutional Court declared Mr Ouattara as the duly elected president of that country, leading to the latter’s swearing-in.

The presidency Monday corroborated the publication at a media briefing and also confirmed meetings held with the chairman of the Constitutional Court and talks with Mr Ouattara leading to the investiture.

But the opposition NPP is the least impressed about the turn of event, saying the presidency is only trying to score cheap political points.

“After Gbagbo’s capture, who else was there to be sworn in? Whether you like it or not, after Gbagbo has been taken out of the picture, the only person left, the only option left was to swear in Ouattara.

“Now we are being given the impression that if President Mills had not intervened, Ouattara was not going to be sworn-in? Is that the impression we are being given?” Mr Akomea queried.

He also disputed a report in the state-owned newspaper Daily Graphic attributed to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon that President Mills is the best leader in Africa.

“Happily we have been told that, the assertion is not true that Ban Ki-moon made a statement that President Mills was the best leader in Africa,” Mr Akomea asserted.

However, he refrained from taking anything away from the president if the UN boss deemed it fit to praise him for his leadership role.

But he said, the “facts on the ground” do not support the kind of praise Mr Ban is said to have showered on President Mills.

He recalled that upon his return from an ECOWAS meeting that decided to use force as one of the options to resolve the crisis then, President Mills in an encounter with journalists said he did not support the use of force.

“As it turned out, it is the use of force which has solved the Ivorian situation. So the stand that President Mills took has proven to be a wrong stand.”

Meanwhile, people have questioned the presidency’s silence on the issue for all this while, but Dr Antwi Danso, an international relations expert said the “quiet diplomacy” stance the presidency took on the issue was not unusual, saying “there is nothing wrong with that”.

He however felt the press conference to confirm the newspaper’s story was needless.

Source: Joy News

A pressure group, the Coalition of Democratic Forces is demanding the immediate replacement of the Majority leadership in Parliament. This follows what it said is the “horrifying and unprecedented” walk out by the Speaker of Parliament, Joyce Bamford Addo on Friday.

The Speaker walked out after an altercation with the leadership of the Majority when the deputy Majority Leader Rashid Pelpuo described the Ghanaian Parliament as “chaotic”.

The Wa Central MP was in agreement with a Zimbabwean MP whom he claimed had described the Ghanaian Parliament as chaotic.

The Speaker felt offended by the description and demanded a retraction and an apology from the deputy Majority Leader. But the Majority Leader Cletus Avoka who mounted a defence for his deputy did not see the need for an apology.

The intransigence by the leadership of the Majority side infuriated the Speaker who adjourned proceedings and walked out of the House.
She returned only after an appeal and insisted on a retraction and an apology from Rashid Pelpuo.

But the pressure group is appalled by the incident. A statement signed by a member of the pressure group, George Egbenunya described the action by the leadership of the Majority as irresponsible.

“We of the CDF are totally amazed though somewhat not too surprised that the leadership of the NDC has so far made no public statement denouncing the despicable and irresponsible behaviour of its leadership in Parliament to date. We are therefore calling on the NDC leadership, which appears to be in some disarray and internally combusting to issue a statement condemning the actions of its leadership in Parliament and relieve both the Majority and House Leader Cletus Avoka and his side-kick Mr Rashid Pelpuo, who serves as the Dep Minority Leader of their jobs as they have brought Ghana’s parliament into disrepute.

“We note that until recently, Ghana’s Parliament was considered as exemplary and the toast of all free and democratic people across the world. We have heard the commendation of Ghana’s democracy in every corner of the world. The reputation of Ghana’s Parliament was such that it was constantly cited as a success story in Africa by world leaders.

This culminated into the newly elected President of America President Barrack Obama choosing Ghana as his first destination for a state visit in Africa south of the Sahara without any hesitation and what a popular decision it was. Ghana’s democratic credentials were unparalleled in Africa only a few years ago.”

The group chided the Majority Leadership for what it said is the comedy of errors in handling the issues in Parliament.

“The period of the Avoka/Pelpuo comedy has seen the image of Parliament plummeting into an abyss and continues to erode with countless goofs through ineffective direction from the leaders of the House. Ministers have failed to turn up in Parliament to answer questions, officials who are strangers in Parliament are allowed to present papers on behalf of Ministers etc. Basic Parliamentary procedures are flagrantly flouted such that standing orders are increasingly becoming irrelevant under the current parliamentary leadership.”

The statement called on government to relieve the Majority leadership of Parliament of its duties.

“It is increasingly clear that the current parliamentary leadership is not up to the task of leading such an august house. Both Cletus Avoka and Rashid Pelpuo are so inefficient and ineffective they are lowering the standards of our democracy. These [people] have failed in other Ministries in the past and were sent to parliament which was considered by President Mills as less onerous positions. Unfortunately, the President who the CDF understands needs coffee to wake up from his slumber, has got his sums wrong again.

“…The culture of lawlessness and indiscipline should be stopped. We are further calling on civil society organisations to take note of the unacceptable behaviour and arrogance of the NDC leadership in parliament and call it to order. Ghana cannot afford to continue eroding our democratic credentials at the altar of stark inefficiency, ineptitude and irresponsibility.

“It is in this regard that we are requesting that the NDC leadership to relieve the NDC parliamentary leadership of their duties and appoint competent persons into the role forthwith. Any failure of the NDC to take action will be tantamount to acquiescence and support of the actions of its parliamentary leadership,” the statement said.

Source: Joy News