Month: July 2018

President Nana Akufo-Addo has nominated four persons to the Supreme court, they are Justice Samuel K. Marful-Sau, Justice of the Appeal Court; Justice Agnes M. A. Dordzie, Justice of the Appeal Court; Professor Nii Ashie Kotey, former Dean of the faculty of Law, University of Ghana; and Nene A. O. Amegatcher a private legal practitioner and former President of the Ghana Bar Association.

The President acted in accordance with Article 144(2) of the constitution, the Judicial Council convey to him its advice on the appointment.

He forwarded the curricular vita of the nominated Supreme Court Justice to the Speaker which had been referred to the Appointment Committee of Parliament, chaired by the first Deputy Speaker, Joseph Osei Owusu who was in the chair.

Mr. Speaker it is my respectful hope and expectation that the approval of the nominees will proceed expeditiously, to enable them assume office as soon as practicable,” the President submitted.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Chairman for the committee on Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs, Kwame Asafo-Adjei is calling on government to support cashew nut farmers with credit on concessional terms, to ensure growth of the overall national economy.

According to the chairman, the commodity needs support as a major non-traditional export crop in other to narrow the estimated trade deficit in helping bring on board foreign exchange earnings to support the local currency.

He further added that an estimated one hundred thousand farmers (100,000) are involved in cashew nut cultivation and a further (100,000) labourers are directly involved in the picking and harvesting, whiles five thousand (5,000) more are involved in drying and processing the cashew nuts.

Mr. Kwame Asafo-Adjei pointed out that in 2014 cashew nut was the highest nontraditional export earner for Ghana, as at 2017 the nation had two hundred and seventy-one million dollars foreign exchange and increase of twenty-seven percent.

The contribution of cashew to agriculture and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) without cocoa is 13.69 percent, despite this, the industry is troubled with low level of modern farming practices and poor harvesting with post-harvest practices leading to low quality of raw cashew nuts, he said.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Privileges Committee of Parliament was compelled to adjourn sitting indefinitely following questions of objections raised by counsels for the Assin Central MP Kennedy Ohene Agyapong.

At the committee’s public hearing on Tuesday the 3rd of July 2018, Alexander Afenyo-Markin and Kwadwo Tahir Hammond, drew the Committee’s attention to a letter signed by three Members of the Committee who had willingly expressed their intent to disqualify themselves from the ongoing investigations involving Kennedy Agyapong over his alleged utterances against the legislature.

The three, Cynthia Morrison, MP for Agona West, Naana Eyiah, MP for Gomoa Central and Samuel Nsowa-Djan, MP for Upper Denkyira West, had argued based on Order 164(4) of the Standing Orders of Parliament that the “Respondent Contemnor is the Caucus Chairman for Central Region and all of us have a close relationship with. We are unable therefore to discharge our duties without bias”.

Order 164 (4) of the Standing Orders of Parliament,  “A Member of the Committee may disqualify himself from participating in any investigations of the conduct of a Member, officer or employee of the House upon a declaration in writing that he cannot render an impartial and unbiased decision in the case which he seeks to disqualify himself. If the Committee approves and accepts such disqualification, the Chairman shall so notify the Speaker who shall request the Leader of the same political party as the disqualifying Member to designate a Member from his party to act as a Member of the Committee in any proceedings relating to such investigation”.

Chairman of the committee, Joseph Osei Owusu, after listening to the argument advanced by the Counsels for the Assin Central lawmaker, granted their request and adjourned sittings indefinitely.

He had earlier quashed same objection together with two others on grounds that the Committee had not received a copy of the said letter signed by the three MPs.

On the insistence of the Counsels for Kennedy Agyapong that his refusal would amount to injustice on their client per the principles of natural justice and having served the Committee with a copy of the said letter, the Chairman was left with no option than to grant the request by the three MPs.

The Assin Central lawmaker was summoned to appear before the Privileges Committee for allegedly describing the legislature as “cheap” and “useless” without which it wouldn’t have elected Osei-Kyei Mensah-Bonsu as its leader.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com