Month: October 2017

Minister of Aviation and former Member of Parliament (MP)for  Bantama, Cecilia Abena Dapaah has indicted that as part of addressing Ghana’s challenge of shortage in pilots and their crew members, the Ho airport after construction next year will have with it a training school to address the situation.

Ghana is facing shortage of these “two professionals Pilots and their crew members”, getting a training school attached to the Ho airport is very important, she said.

She further hinted that the Ministry has started talking to investors who had shown interest in the whole project and will come on board to partner government in addressing this situation.

The Minister who was speaking with Ghanamps.com also indicated that being a progressive government, every project should benefit the Country and the Ministry will always “think out of the box in the interest of mother Ghana”, she said.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minority in Parliament has indicated that it will go ahead with its plans to boycott deliberations on the Mines and Energy committee on an urgent motion, filed to reverse the AMERI power agreement.

It is as a result of a motion to withdraw 2015 AMERI deal, which was not debated on the floor before being sent to the committee.

Member of Parliament for Adansi Asokwa K T Hammond, brought the question before the House.

Ranking member on Mines and Energy Adams Mutawakilu in an interview with ghanamps.com noted that, the Minority does not want government to use parliament as the back door to rescind decisions that were reached between the government and the company involved.

Mr. Mutawakilu further stressed that, K.T. Hammond does not have the standing to use Parliament to rescind the $510 million agreement with AMERI.

“Once government approves an agreement without indicating in the approval that they still have a say in respect to the recession, Parliament cannot come later to rescind it. So we believe that, Parliament has no hands, and K.T Hammond cannot use Parliament to rescind a decision that has been approved, and based on that we will not take part,” he said.

K.T. Hammond, who was the ranking member of the Energy Committee of Parliament in 2015 when the deal was approved, filed an urgent motion seeking to reverse the deal because of his position that the deal was suspicious.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamp.com

Former Minister of Environment Science and Technology, Mahama Ayariga has indicated that until the attitude of owners of gas and fuel stations are dealt with, Ghana will continue to experience disaster at its gas and fuel stations.

He noted that owners, of gas and fuel stations when they apply for permit they do not meet all the requirements, but go ahead and start operating.

“We need to work on a very heighten ways of diligence to ensure safety and should become a culture of this enterprises, also employing competent hands in this field is very important”, he said.

According to the Bawku Central legislator, it is now time for owners of gas and fuel stations to get sued, I believe the financial bit will help shape the attitude of the owners, the last one that occurred before this I have not heard anyone suing for damages.

Again, we need to give judges the opportunity to hand out some hefty damages for owners of gas and fuel stations to  sell other properties to pay,  that  will send a strong signal to them. His comments comes in the wake of the atomic junction gas and fuel station disaster.

“Even in jurisdictions that you have the highest of standards accidents occur; accidents are accident but the general attitude of recklessness should be the issues that we should deal with”, Mr. Ayariga said.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Vice Chairman of the committee on Defence and Interior, Collins Owusu Amankwah had indicted he is considering hauling the Ranking member of the committee on foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa before the Privileges Committee of the House.

He wants the North Tongu legislator dragged before the committee over claims that some Ghanaians are fighting for ISIS in Libya.

Mr. Ablakwa called on government to investigate the alleged participation of some Ghanaians in ISIS activities, at a press conference last week, and noted that his comments stem from a report released by the Head of Investigations at the Libyan Attorney General’s Office.

The Manhyia North MP noted that, the North Tongu MP’s comments were unsubstanciated and had the potential of jeopardizing national security.

“Foreign policy is different from national security. He could talk about it, but not the manner in which he did. We need to double-check such facts before we put it out there to create unnecessary tension and create fear and panic,” he said.

He added that, “Not everything must be put before the public especially when it borders on defense and security… The port of call must be through the national security or ministry of interior… What is his motivation in the first place?”

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Ranking Member of the Government Assurance Committee, Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah has said, the Majority side of the House are rushing Bills to the House without thinking through it, hence the delay and withdrawal of the Bills.

He noted that the new Bill, like the Northern Development Authority Bill which is replacing the Savana Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) has nothing new in it, it is the old “same thing they are rushing it but are not getting it right”.

According to the Ho West legislator the practice where new governments come in with new things and refuse to build on what has been started is not helpful to the country, “we make two steps forward and a step back, this will not make us develop as a nation”.

“Office of Special Prosecutor was withdrawn when it was introduced, the Zongo Development Bill has been withdrawn twice, and the majority is in a hurry rushing Bills and keep making mistakes as a country”, he said.

“They rushed and recall MPs back to the House from recess, knowing very well Bills are not ready for us to work on”.

Mr. Bedzrah further stated that, what is happing in Parliament is a reflection of how the country is being governed, we voted for change, and we are seeing change “substandard governance” he remarked.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Vice Chairman of the Constitutional Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, Alexander Kodwo Kom Abban has dismissed suggestions that the Office of Special Prosecutor’s Bill 2017 has delayed, with the Bill being advertised but has not gone through second reading.

The Gomoa West legislator further noted that, the Bill has not witnessed any withdrawal since the House came back from recess and remarked that, withdrawal of the Zongo Development Fund Bill 2017 should not be confused with Special Prosecutor’s Bill.

The MP was speaking with Ghanamps.com in an interview also indicated that the Office of the Special Prosecutor Bill is a novelty and needs broader consultation which the committee is doing, he quickly added that it was the same reason that informed the committee recommending to government that, the Bill should not be taken under a certificate of urgency.

And added that the committee has done consultation with stakeholders and civil society extensively; what is left is for the clerk of the committee to make the necessary corrections for the report to be presented to the plenary.

He further revealed that the Special Prosecutor Bill will be insulated from any interference from the Attorney General in the current Bill, this will prevent a situation where we will have an AG say, “this is our man or woman please leave him or her”.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minister of State in charge of procurement and Deputy Majority leader Sarah Adwoa Safo has said government is working on a policy document to ensure 70 percent of contracts go to local contractors.

She noted that, the move will help grow local business, whiles a quota of 30 percent of the contracts will be reserved for women.

“So the 70% and the 30% we will be engaging all of you. The 70% we are going to rely mostly on the data that we get from the Ministry of Trade because they have all that database. So we don’t have to reinvent the wheel on who our local companies are and what government can engage them on”

According to the Minister, the new policy will be embedded a move to develop the capacity of local contractors to address concerns about the capacity of contractors to execute quality works.

And further added that, African countries like Kenya, Tanzania are already implementing a similar policy aimed at empowering indigenous contractors.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Member of Parliament (MP) for Kintampo North Kwasietu Bonde has revealed that starting of sitting on the floor of the House by midday when the House is in session, brings a lot of inconvenience to members and wish the House can start proceeding at 8:00am

Parliament started sitting late afternoon when a rainstorm took of portion of the roofing of the chamber which called for urgent attention to get the roof back in place.

According to the Kintampo North law maker it’s not an issue of the House closing late, whether it is helpful or not rather, “we are in here to work”.

And further made a case on behalf of his colleagues who were not in the chamber, pointing out that some of them whiles the House is sitting on the Plenary they are also at committee meetings.
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He noted that most MPs are not happy with the current inconvenient, but just that we are here to work and they have had assurance for leadership that everything is being done to get the situation to normal.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minister for Inner-City and Zongo Development, and Member of Parliament for Madina, Boniface Abubakar Saddique  has given assurance that, despite the withdrawal of the Zongo Development Fund Bill 2017 it will be passed in October 2017, before the 2018 budget is presented to the House in November 2017.

“ I am the Minister and I am telling you from what I know that, the Bill will be passed before next year’s budget is presented in November 2017”, when ghanamps.com enquire to know if the withdrawal will not affect the Bill being captured in next year’s budget in an interview.

He noted that the Bill was withdrawn in other to have a good package since there were certain things that were not well placed in the Bill.

And added that, after a workshop with MPs to consider the Bill at the committee level and engaging the Attorney General, “we all agree that it is better we bring a new Bill that will not have a lot of amendments and will take a week to complete rather than a whole year”, he said.
He further pointed out that all that is being done is to prevent unnecessary delay that the Bill will encounter and has been the experience with other Bills that come before the House.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com