Month: June 2013

New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Asuogyaman constituency has called on President John Mahama to reinstate Martin Amidu as the Attorney General and Minister of Justice.

Kofi Osei-Ameyaw said the current A-G, Marietta Appiah-Opong has demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt that the Ministry is too big for her to handle.

The NPP MP was commenting on the claim by the AG’s Department that it supported the former Attorney General to retrieve the £25 million paid to Waterville in court.

A statement from the department signed by the Deputy Minister for Justice and Attorney General, Dr. Dominic Ayine stated that “the Attorney General’s office researched and supported the filing of processes leading to our identification with and support for Mr. Amidu”.

But on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme Wednesday, Osei-Ameyaw scoffed at the attempt by the AG’s department to share in Amidu’s victory over Waterville Holdings case.

According to him,it is very “shameful” for an institution mandated to prosecute cases on behalf of the state to metamorphose into a research unit for a private individual.

The NPP MP noted that the AG’s department by its action has turned itself into a laughing stock.

He added that Martin Amidu’s victory is an indictment on the A-G’s office for shirking its responsibility.

“This is just a charade; they [AG’s office] want to use Amidu’s victory to cover up their ineptitude. They must bow down their heads in shame.”

He said what Ghana needs is a citizen vigilante like Martin Amidu to be in the helm of affairs to expose corrupt officials in government.

The Asuogyaman MP challenged President Mahama to act on the call if he is really committed to fighting corruption in the country.

He wondered why the AG’s department had all the documentation on the Waterville scandal at their disposal and yet failed to go to court.

Osei-Ameyaw urged the AG’s department to quit the pettiness and walk the talk by retrieving the monies doled out illegality.

Myjoyonline.com

Member of Parliament for Adansi Asokwa, K. T Hammond has described the offer by RLG Communications to sponsor the drilling of bore-holes in the various constituencies of MPs as “immoral”

He said: “The concept, its implementation, it everything is immoral and I hate it…I’m beginning to think that this whole associated by malice and the malice is in the form of trying to compromise Members of Parliament.”

RLG on Wednesday wrote to Members of Parliament to select a site in his or her constituency for a bore-hole to be drilled at the expense of the company.

But sharing his thoughts on the matter on Eyewitness News on Wednesday, Mr. Hammond questioned the motive behind the company’s offer.

“We all know what is going on. Everybody is aware of what has taken place in this country with respect to some disbursement of hard earned national resources. What is this company s attempting to do; to compromise Members of Parliament or what?”

According to him, the offer is possibly to keep “MPs quiet by making sure that they have one bore-hole each in the constituencies” because the House debated and discussed the disbursement and alleged misuse of state funds by the mother company of RLG, Agams Group of Companies.

Mr. Hammond stressed that Parliament will reject the offer saying, “we don’t need it. We will say, thank you very much, let’s talk about the guinea fowl money, let’s talk about the monies that have come up in Parliament and we are debating. It’s come at a particularly bad time.”

Citifmonline.com

The Member of Parliament for Manhyia North in the Ashanti Region, Collins Owusu-Amankwa has attributed the high child labour in the country to psychological causes rather than poverty.

Mr. Owusu-Amankwa said from some observations made so far, he has come to conclusion that most children are subjected to child labour not because their parents are poor but the fact that their parents believed that they went through similar situation to become what they are today.

The MP was expressing his worry about the high level of child labour in his constituency indicated that most parents forced their wards to engage in income generation activities at an early age because they fill it is a cycle that must continue because they pass comments like “at your age I was providing for myself and the entire household”. Though he admitted to poverty being one of the major reasons for child labour, he noted that most parents of children in child labour are very capable of providing the needs of their children but failed to do so because of that mind set.

According to him, high numbers of children are engaged in economic activities ranging from hawking, “kayaye”, scrup collection especially those from Moshie Zongo and this is responsible for high schools drop outs in the constituency.

Meanwhile, the Mp has initiated measures to address the problem by first trying to help parents to appreciate the enormity of the situation and a call for change of mind. So far meetings have been held with parents and other stakeholders on the issue. The next step however, is to raise funds to assist these children to get back to the classroom.

Dominic Shirimori/Ghanamps.gov.gh

The Member of Parliament for Manhyia North in the Ashanti Region, Collins Owusu-Amankwa has attributed the high child labour in the country to psychological causes rather than poverty.

Mr. Owusu-Amankwa said from some observations made so far, he has come to conclusion that most children are subjected to child labour not because their parents are poor but the fact that their parents believed that they went through similar situation to become what they are today.

The MP was expressing his worry about the high level of child labour in his constituency indicated that most parents forced their wards to engage in income generation activities at an early age because they fill it is a cycle that must continue because they pass comments like “at your age I was providing for myself and the entire household”. Though he admitted to poverty being one of the major reasons for child labour, he noted that most parents of children in child labour are very capable of providing the needs of their children but failed to do so because of that mind set.

According to him, high numbers of children are engaged in economic activities ranging from hawking, “kayaye”, scrup collection especially those from Moshie Zongo and this is responsible for high schools drop outs in the constituency.

Meanwhile, the Mp has initiated measures to address the problem by first trying to help parents to appreciate the enormity of the situation and a call for change of mind. So far meetings have been held with parents and other stakeholders on the issue. The next step however, is to raise funds to assist these children to get back to the classroom.

Dominic Shirimori/Ghanamps.gov.gh

Work will soon commence on the construction of ten (10) new boreholes in the Afram Plains South Constituency, the Member of Parliament, Joseph Appiah Boateng has disclosed.

The project earmarked for some selected communities including Tiase, Agyata, Kwamenakwo, Foso, Forifori, Boakyekrom and few others is in line with the MPs quest to improve potable in the constituency.

Presently, Mr. Appiah Boateng noted that some of these communities do not have any suitable good drinking water. Residents are dependent on dams and streams for water which they do not even boil in some cases. The situation he noted raises a lot of concern and he cannot sit by a watch the situation to degenerate.

He said preparations are underway to actualize these drillings. He however called on residents who are privileged to have been provided with boreholes or any other form of good drinking water to handle them carefully to avoid getting back to the old state of depending on rivers and dams.

Dominic Shirimori/Ghanamps.gov.gh

Dr. Richard Anane, Member of Parliament for Nhyiaeso Constituency has noted with great concern the need to do more to improve the wellbeing of women and children who are most vulnerable in society.

He said aside all other interventions towards improving the well fare of his constituents, the most important to him is instituting measures to reduce maternal mortality and promoting child health.

Dr. Richard Anane who is also an Executive Member of Network of African Parliamentary Committees of Health (NEAPACOH) is hopeful of taking advantage of the organization to achieve this aspiration.
NEAPACOH focuses on human resources for health (HRH), improving maternal and child health, increasing access to family planning and reproductive health services, heightening access to HIV/AIDS services, and reducing the toll of malaria, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases.

Dr. Anane indicated that the focuses of NEAPACOH are in line with the attainment of Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 and since the country is also working towards it, he owes it a duty to ensure the best is achieved.

By this target priority will be given to girl child education and sensitization adding that it is only through these measures that teenage pregnancies which come with a lot of problems can be reduced. “When you keep them in school, they have focus for greater things and may not fall victims of teenage pregnancies”, he added. Mothers or would be mothers will also be sensitized to adopt best practices and adhere to advice from health professionals during pregnancy and thereafter to ensure quality health for themselves and their children.

Dominic Shirimori/Ghanamps.gov.gh

Parliament on Tuesday approved a term loan agreement facility of three billion dollars between the Government of Ghana (GoG) and China Development Bank.

This is in line with the deed of security confirmation and amendments to the Master Facility Agreement (MFA).

This agreement was approved by Parliament on 26th August 2011 and was signed on the 16 December, 2011 with an Addendum to the MFA approved by the House on February 21, 2012.

However, due to certain challenges, the disbursement of funds was stalled and amendments proposed.

Mr James Klutse Avedzi, Chairman of the Finance Committee of Parliament, said the amendments were aimed at minimizing government‘s obligations with regards to money required to be transferred into the Collection Account with each lifting and to eliminate conflict between the agreement and the Petroleum Revenue Management Act.

He said the proposed amendment sought to establish a defined amount to be transferred by Bank of Ghana (BoG) into the Collection Account and the Bank of Ghana was required, under the original five-party agreement, to transfer 70 per cent of the commercial invoice value of each crude oil lifting by UNIPEC into the Collection Account.

The amendment also establishes a standby letter of credit in the same amount at BoG as surety for the transfer amount.

Mr Avedi said government, in fulfilment of its obligations under the MFA, had paid a commitment fee of 30,012,909.86 dollars on the undrawn balance, upfront fee of 7,500,000 dollars with interest of 596,753.28 dollars and government contribution of 34,005,000 dollars towards the implementation of the gas project.

Mr Avedi said it was recommended that the legal departments of those state institutions and the Attorney General’s Department be revamped and the capacity of the staff built with the requisite skills and competences required for negotiations in such international transactions and contracts.

The committee was of the view that the conditions of service for staff of the AG’s Department and the legal departments of the state institutions be enhanced to attract and retain qualified and experienced legal personnel, he said.

The committee observed that the amendment to the MFA imposed an obligation on the borrower to pay all costs and expenses incurred by the lender in connection with the negotiation, preparation, printing and execution of the amendment document up to a cap of 295,000 dollars.

Mr Seth Terkpeh, Minister of Finance, therefore moved the motion for the approval of the loan agreement.

Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, Ranking Member of the Finance Committee, asked the majority leadership to ensure that contract between Government of Ghana and the gas project in the Western Region with Sinopec was brought before the House for approval.

Mr Edward Doe Adjaho, Speaker, said it was time Parliament engaged the necessary stakeholders on some of those challenges and how to avoid them.

Earlier, the Ghana Investment Promotion Center Bill, 2013, was read the second time and a report of Ghana’s representatives to the Community Parliament of ECOWAS on the First Ordinary Session of the Third Legislature of the ECOWAS Parliament was presented.

It was held in Abuja, Nigeria, from May 6- 21, 2013.

GNA

About 47 percent of teachers in schools under the Sissala East district in the Upper West region remain untrained, the Member of Parliament for the area, Hon. Sulemana Alijata Gbentie disclosed.

Indicating this in an interview with Ghanamps.gov.gh, the MP mentioned that the challenge is a debacle seriously affecting the standard of education in the district.

She said the problem coupled with other forms of challenges was causing a strain on the efforts marshaled by stakeholders to improve quality education within communities of the district.

With a boost in infrastructure in education by government, the need for more teachers in the basic schools has become apparent, but the MP contended that the teacher deficit in the district was disturbing.

She said there was no justification that teachers had no better incentives in recent times, however she observed that commitment by teachers to remain in the teaching field is utterly failing.

She alleged that more individuals are gradually leaving the field for other areas like politics, as she dared for a research to authenticate her position on how many teachers are even vying for DCE positions in the recent appointment by President Mahama.

Madam Sulemana Gbentie expressed unhappiness with the current teacher-pupil ratio across-board in the district, as she quoted about 1:60 or more in some villages.

She therefore advised teachers to be dedicated in their profession and give off their best to assist boost the standard of education in the district.

Jonathan Jeffrey Adjei/Ghanamps.gov.gh