Month: April 2021

The Speaker of the 8th Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Bagbin arrived in his home region, Upper West Region, on Wednesday, March 7, 2021 to a rousing welcome. This is the Speaker’s first visit to his hometown after his historic election as the Speaker of Parliament on January 7, 2021.

On arrival, Speaker Bagbin paid a courtesy call on the Overlord of the Waala Traditional Area, Naa Fuseini Seidu Pelpuo Vi, in his Palace.

He was accompanied by a delegation of some members and staff of Parliament, including the Member for WA Central, Dr. Rashid Pelpuo, brother of the Waala. In his introductory statement, Dr. Pelpuo said the Speaker was home after his election, to show gratitude to the people of the region, whose support and prayers have made him who he is today, adding that there was no better place to start his gratitude tour than the palace of the overlord.

Welcoming the Speaker into his Palace, the Overlord, Naa Fuseini Seidu Pelpuo Vi, stated that the whole Upper West Region was proud of his unique qualities that enabled him to attain the number three position in the country.

 According to him, the region’s desire for him to be Speaker was not just born out of regional favoritism but by their firm belief that, he was qualified in his own right to occupy that position. He said the success story of Rt. Hon. Bagbin, was his commitment, hard work and unalloyed patriotism.

The Overlord further stated that, so far, the Speaker has lived up to the expectation of many, by stamping his authority in the House: “If there was iota of doubt in any one’s mind about your suitability for the position it has have been expelled”, he said.

“The over-riding factor in your steady rise to prominence is your perseverance in education, in spite of a very disadvantage beginning, you rose to the three most enviable position in the country. This is a testimony that, for us in the region to move forward education must be a priority”, he added.

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The Member of Parliament for Kpando, Dela Sowah has showered praises on her colleague Member for Afram Plains North, Betty Krosbi Mensah for her hard work both in Parliament and in her Constituency.

Her commendation follows several initiatives by the young lawmaker to make like comfortable for the people of Afram Plains North and her passionate vociferousness on the floor of Parliament.

Madam Dela Sowah who referred to the Afram Plains North lawmaker as her daughter says she is a perfect description of a good student who has become better than her teacher.

The Kpando representative gave the commendation when her ‘daughter’ who is just four months into her second term (Level 200) as MP presented various training equipment to young girls and women in her Constituency to help curb increasing rate of teenage pregnancy and unemployment in the area.

According to the Girl Child Education Director of the Afram Plains North District, the area has the second highest teenage pregnancy record in the whole Eastern region.

The skills training equipment and the free enrollment of the young girls into apprenticeship will therefore help them learn a trade and create employment opportunities for themselves and stay away from unwanted pregnancy.

Mrs. Dela Sowah charged the people of Afram Plains North to keep and support their MP in her quest to deliver more development in the constituency.

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In her quest to curb the increasing rate of teenage pregnancy and unemployment in her area, Member of Parliament for Afram Plains North Constituency in the Eastern Region, Betty Nana Afua Krosbi Mensah has initiated an apprenticeship programs for her constituents.

She presented various items including deep freezers, hair-dryers, sewing machines, pieces of cloth, and rubber basins to women and young girls to help develop themselves and their businesses.

A total of 21 young girls received sewing machines, 10 received hair-dryers, while 10 women also benefited from deep freezers to enhance their fishing activities and promote income generation activities.

According to statistics available at the Girl Child Directorate of GES at Afram Plains North District, the District is the second in the Eastern Region with the highest rate of teenage pregnancy cases.

The young lawmaker who doubles as the Deputy Ranking Member on the Gender, Children and Social Protection Committee, and a member of the Health Committee of Parliament described the teenage pregnancy situation as unacceptable and inimical to the development of the area hence her response to the issue.

The donation of the skills training equipment and the free enrollment of the young girls into apprenticeship will therefore help them to learn a trade and create employment opportunities for themselves.

This, the MP noted, would enable them stay away from unwanted pregnancies to enhance the development of the Afram Plains North Constituency.

The deep freezers given to the women on a highly subsidized long-purchase basis will enhance their businesses.

Speaking on the theme: “Youth Development and Women Empowerment” at the presentation ceremony held on Easter Sunday, the MP assured that the gesture will be replicated to enable more people to benefit.

She entreated all women in the area to help each other in every small way they can to help alleviate poverty in the area.

And disclosed that young boys in the area will also be assisted with training tools and freely enrolled unto any trade of their choice in the coming days.

The Special Guest of honour and MP for South Dayi, Nelson Rockson Dafeamekpor charged individuals and corporate institutions to support youth development in their operational areas since government alone cannot bring development.

He urged the beneficiaries to do their best in the payments of the freezers on monthly basis to enable others to also benefit.

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The Member of Parliament for Ofoase /Ayirebi, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has supported the first batch of the youth apprenticeship program with logistics and also paid fully for the cost for training.

The 400 beneficiaries received 200 sewing machines, 200 hairdryers among others to enable them to learn hairdressing, dressmaking, welding, carpentry, and other trades.

According to the MP, the donation forms part of his support to the Youth Apprenticeship program set up to assist apprentices to commence and maintain their own businesses adding that the initiative will provide job avenues for the youth in Akyemansa to address the issue of unemployment.

The District Chief Executive (DCE) of Akyemansa Mr. Paul Asamoah stated that a monitoring team in the next three years will be supervising their activities and also encouraged the apprentices to take their training seriously and asked them to respect their masters so they can complete their training on time.

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The Minority in Ghana Parliament has taken a swipe at the ruling government on the over centralization of the Free Senior High School (SHS) programme at the various centres accounting for the persistent challenges in running the system in the country.

According to the Ranking Member Peter Nortsu-Kotoe, before the introduction of the programme in 2017 school authorities were given free hands in the management of the funds in their schools.

“Unfortunately, the centralization of the disbursement of funds and procurement have also led to a large scale of corruption that continues to compromise the quality and quantity of items supplied”.

In view of this, he noted that the Minority believes that management of the Free SHS policy, disbursement and procurement must be decentralized with stringent monitoring mechanism to reduce the high rate of corruption in the system.

The Parent Teacher Association must be revamped and given the powers that they used to have to enable them make positive inputs into the running of our schools, as PTAs used to play very supportive roles in the development of Senior High Schools until the introduction of the Free SHS policy.

The infrastructure needs of the schools must be addressed as a matter of urgency so that the looming crisis can be averted. The crowded dormitories and classrooms have to be decongested to avoid the spread of infectious diseases in our schools and this must involve a committed effort on the part of government to address the infrastructure challenges.

He further noted in a statement that, the Ghana Education Trust fund (GETFund) must also have access to the loan approved by parliament to enable them make payments to contractors toward the completion of stalled projects in our schools within the shortest possible time.

And it is the responsibility of Ghanaians to demand from government that the necessary steps are taken not only to improve the living conditions of Ghanaian children in schools across the country, but also to ensure that our children gain access to quality education in the face of this good but poorly implemented policy of the Nana Addo led government.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

 

The Member of Parliament for Ketu South, Abla Dzifa Gomashie on Wednesday, April 7, 2021, paid a working visit to the Sector Commander of the Ghana Immigration Service, Mr. Dodoo, and the Municipal Chief Executive for Ketu South, Edem Elliot Agbenorwu.

Her visit to the MCE enabled her to discuss through which the two offices could work together in solving problems, needs, and concerns of the people of the Ketu South Municipality.

Other areas of deliberation involve the plight of the people of Agavedzi, continuity of the Sea Defense project, and how to address the sand-winning menace in the constituency.

She also enquired into the operations of Seven Seas Salt Company, and the conflicts between them and the catchment communities.

The discussions between the two leaders were also not without the impact of the border closure on the livelihoods of the people in the constituency, considering the fact that most residents ply their trades, including formal employment in Togo.

Meanwhile, Madam Gomashie also made a passionate appeal to the MCE to ensure that the new Immigration Service Barrier at Atiwuta, near the toll booth, is closed because complaints from persons plying the road suggest that the initial purpose for which this barrier was mounted has been lost; adding that the barrier has rather become a cash cow for persons working there who collect various sums of money from drivers and passengers for their personal gains.

Engaging with Mr Dodoo, the MP emphasized her concern over the continuous stay of the barrier and asked that something immediately should be done about it since it has lost its relevance and intended purpose of creation through the behaviours of some of the service officers.

Francis Vorsah/Ghanamps.com

 Member of Parliament (MP) for Asokwa, Patricia Appiagyei has said most Ghanaian youth do not use the internet on things that would benefit them but rather on pornography, fraud and others non-useful activities.

According to her the internet is a tool that can be of great help to life if put to good use but the youth would rather sit and cry for being unemployed.

 

She noted in an interview that, the internet can change the mind set of people to become creative by feeding the brain with an innovative ideas for one to become successful if used in a proper manner.

The MP stressed that, most Ghanaians have the mindset that, it is only government that is supposed to give  employment to the people but that is  not it, there are other areas where the youth can explore to create employment for themselves and to generate income by putting  what is thought in schools to a practical use.

“As long as the youth keep using the internet for watching pornography, gossiping, defrauding and many corrupt practices, the best side of the internet would not be obtained”.

The MP further explained that, there are both positive and negative activities of the internet and therefore called on Ghanaians youth especially to use the internet for something positive in order to bring development to themselves and the country at large.

She advised the ladies to develop themselves with the internet, instead of watching styles of dresses and the guys also using it for watching the shapes of women online.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Speaker of Parliament Rt. Hon Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin has named General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Johnson Asiedu Nketia, as a member of the Parliamentary Service Board.

The Parliamentary Service Board is a highest body that makes all and final decisions with respect to how Parliament of Ghana and workers within do their things, be it salaries, allowances, developmental projects, and how the Parliament should run.

Speaker of Parliament, Bagbin named the Six members that constitute the Parliamentary Service Board  as follow,  Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu  Majority leader, Haruna Iddrisu Minority leader,  Abraham Osei Aidoo former Majority leader,  Johnson Asiedu Nketia former member of Parliament,  Clerk of Parliament and  finally the Rt Hon Speaker of Parliament.

According to  Bagbin, the decision for constituting this Parliamentary Service Board was based on advised he received from the advisory committee of Parliament which the Constitution of Ghana and the Standing orders of Parliament mandates them to assist the Speaker with advise whenever there is the need to constitute a new Parliamentary Service Board.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Residents of Akyem Oda in the Birim Central Municipality in the Eastern Region are still counting their losses following a terrible torrential rain with heavy wind on Monday.

The rain has left many people injured and hospitalized, while over 200 government and individual properties including; houses, electricity poles, radio station mast, cars, shops, among others also destroyed.

Meanwhile, the Member of Parliament for Akyem Oda Constituency, Mr. Alexander Akwasi Acquah together with the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) personnel have visited the affected areas, as well victims to console them and access the extent of the damage.

The MP pledged to assist them with some immediate relief items.

They also appealed to other individuals and corporate organisations to render their support to help ameliorate the plight of the affected persons.

In an interview with the Birim Central Municipal NADMO Director, Mr. David Okyere said, we have educated the people in the Municipality especially those in and around the water banks to take very good care of themselves as we are entering the rainy season”.  But noted that what he and his men saw after the terrible torrential rainfall was abysmal.

Mr. Okyere called on the government for immediate interventions to some affected schools to enable the students to continue their studies.

Some of the Akyem Oda residents spoke to the media and explained what they saw before, during, and after the rainfall and further appealed to the government to intervene.

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Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu has said he is in charge of his side of the House and dismissed assertion that his side is in turmoil in the wake of Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa resigning from the Appointment Committee.

In an interview, he pointed out that he has been in touch with the Council of elders of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), and everything is fine.

Again, the NDC is focused on capturing power come 2024, and “the parliamentary organ led by “me would do what is needful to work in tandem with the party to hold the Nana Addo led government accountable, and whatever storm it is we would bring it down”,  he added .

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com