Month: January 2022

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Karaga constituency in the Northern Region, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam has yet again offered his profound assurances to play a pivotal role in the educational journey of students in Karaga.

He made these remarks when he addressed a gathering of 70 student-beneficiaries of the Anta Education Fund (AEF) and some members of the constituency at the district assembly hall in the Karaga constituency.

Dr. Amin recounted to all and sundry that his commitment to building the educational capacity of his constituents begun before his days as a parliamentary candidate of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), where he supported 33 students at different stages of tertiary as well as supporting the teaching staff with 50 laptops as an incentive and also to facilitate their work.

“I am very passionate about the agenda of educational capacity building because I have been a beneficiary of student loans and will forever be cognisant of the relief it brought to my parents, and I during the trying times of my childhood”.

“It is my hope that through the opportunities from the AEF, the burden of not being able to fund academic logistics would be lifted off deserving students”, he added.

The Karaga lawmaker thanked all the dignitaries present at the occasion for their support and assured the audience of his unflinching support to the people.

Ghanamps.com

As part of ensuring that local economic development moves on his constituency, Member of Parliament for Bantama, Francis Asenso-Boakye has presented knitting machines to some selected tailors and seamstresses in his constituency.

The Bantama lawmaker made this presentation over the weekend and posted it on his twitter account as part of empowering his constituents.

Ghanamps.com

The Commissioner for Macro Economic Policy and Economic Research, at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Dr. Kofi Konadu Apraku, who is in Ghana, has been throwing light on his job in Abuja, Nigeria.

According to him it is an opportunity to work on behalf of the fifteen (15) member states to uplift it in terms of its finance and ensure that there is a single currency in place for the West African sub- region.

Again, he pointed out that ECOWAS ensures citizens within member states are able to move freely, have one passport, and there is trading going on within the fifteen member states.

He, however, lamented that Africa as a continent, and the West African sub-region is lacking behind, and sometimes it is as if the African continent is not part of the rest of the world. “We need to pay attention to things that would uplift us as a sub-region for us to be recognised and Africa as a whole and for the citizens of ECOWAS to have a better life”.

Speaking on Asempa FM, a private radio station’s current affairs programme, ‘Ekosiisen’, he noted that his work at the ECOWAS Commission as a Commissioner, he is there to do his best as his predecessors.

“My job is to follow the microeconomic policy of the 15 member states and their trade policy and their research statistics through research, which we get to know that in this particular year we had this number of things coming in and out of a member country.

Again,  what they  are exporting and the funds coming into the various countries in member states are how much for instance in the case of Ghana,  how many things do we buy from other African countries; we juxtapose that with what we buy from outside the African continent. All of these bring progress to a nation”, he said.

My work is in every member states the policy they are formulating, would that bring progress and growth, policy on interest rate and inflation, trade and all on micro economic variable.

For instance, he pointed out that when he visits Ghana with his staff to look through the macroeconomic indicators in a year, what they look out for is the amount of money the country get and inflation, what interest rate is, what is the GDP, what are all the goods they have exported abroad, and how many of them stayed in West Africa.  “What, did we import from other countries and how is that affecting us, does that help in our growth or not?”

Dr. Apraku pointed out that on the issue of single currency convergence; Togo is leading in meeting the convergence criteria than every country in the West African sub-region when it comes to ECO, as the next is Senegal.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Member of Parliament for Akim Oda Constituency, Alexander Akwasi Acquah has appealed to the National Democratic Congress, NDC Minority MPs to support the NPP-Government to pass the E-Levy to promote development.

He said most of the times when they engaged the NDC on the E-Levy, they were reluctant to support them because they think the NPP-Government will make money and use it to develop the country.

“If the NDC is saying the E-Levy is not good, they should help us pass it, and let Ghanaians vote them in and let them come and use it to develop the country,” he said.

Speaking on Atinka TV morning show, Ghana Nie with Ekourba Gyasi Simpremu, the MP noted that, “it is left with three years, so they should help us pass it and let them come into power. Rather, they know that if we are able to pass it, Ghana will be a paradise.”

The Finance Minister, Mr. Ken Ofori Atta stated that government has engaged the Telcos on the controversial E-Levy and the Telcos have agreed to cut down their percentage on transactions by 0.25%.

Despite the 0.25% cut by the Telcos, he said 1.75% remains the same, adding that a new Bill will be heading to Parliament when it resumes.

The Finance Minister was addressing the Press on Wednesday, January 19, 2022 after consultations with the Minority, Corporate Society Organisations and a number of institutions.

When asked if the 1.50% is still okay to be maintained by parliament, Mr. Alexander Akwasi Acquah said, “The 1.50 should be easy because it is going to go into infrastructure, roads and others.”

He added that, “Look at how much money we spend on our car parts, shock absorbers and others, but someone can drive in abroad for a long time without changing shocks because the roads are good. We say we are spending much money to change shocks in our country, but what we are saying is that the E-levy will help us pay our road contractors so that they will fix our roads for us.”

As a strong campaigner of the E-levy, he called on all to support it to help the government get enough money to develop the country.

“Because I know the importance of the E-Levy, it will not worry me when it is passed. I am looking at what the tax is going to be used for, I do not see it as a tax, I see it as a contribution because the moment you see it as tax, you think it is punitive, let us call it contribution,” he said.

Ghanamps.com

Headmistress of Apersua MA/primary Teye Korlekie Dina has appeal to the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) of the Yilo Krobo Municipal Assembly for her school to be considered in the next batch of schools to benefit from the school feeding.

According to her the current school population of ninety one (91) would have been more if the school had benefited from the school feeding programme. At the moment, she said most of the pupils have moved to the adjourning community schools because they enjoy the feeding programme.

In an interview she noted that as a farming community Apersua has a lot of children who are not in school and are home due to financial difficulties and the introduction of school feeding would motivate the children to come to school.

“One of our desired needs is the school feeding programme and we are most grateful to the MCE that when we appeal to him he indicated that this school would be considered in the next batch”.

As to how the relationship has been between the school and parents, she noted that it has been cordial as parents assist anytime they need their assistance.

Mrs Teye Korlekie was very grateful to the Yilo Krobo lawmaker for his intervention that has put smiles on the faces of teachers, pupils and the parents with the renovation of the Apersua primary and building of a new kindergarten block.

“When I was posted here I met a very deplorable school building our desire was that somebody comes to our aid; lucky for us the MP showed the zeal to work on the building and that is what we have seen done by him”.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

The Member of Parliament for Ketu South, Dzifa Gomashie has given out GHc 49,920 as seed money for a revolving fund to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) branch executives in the Ketu South Constituency.

 The amount which constitutes her six month salary was doled out in fulfillment of a promise she made during her parliamentary primaries to support the branches if she was elected.

The MP handed out cheques to the five Zonal Chairmen on behalf of the branch executives during her recent ward tour with the Constituency Executives.

She admonished the zonal executives to call zonal and ward meetings to deliberate on how to distribute the money.

According to the MP, even though the said amount is the seed money for the loan, any Zone that decides to put their share of the money into the ongoing party office project, will forfeit their obligation to repay as the money will then cease to be a loan and become an unconditional grant.

All Zones are to report to the Constituency Executives on the decision arrived at before disbursement commence.

The five Zonal Chairmen were in high praises for the Member of Parliament for fulfilling her promise.

Below are the various zones and amount received by the Zonal Chairmen.

*Klikor Zone (29) branches GHC 6,960.00

*Aflao Urban (83) branches GHC19, 920.00

*Somey Fugo (33) branches GHC 7,920.00

*Aflao Wego  (33) branches GHC 7,920.00

*Somey Wego (30) branches GHC 7,200.00

Bright Dzila/Ghanamps.com

As the 8^th Parliament starts its first meeting of the second session of the fourth Republic, lawmaker from the Yilo Krobo constituency has said he is set for the meeting and would continue to ask questions on the floor of the House which would benefit his constituents.

According to him as a caucus the Minority National Democratic Congress (NDC) is ready to do whatever they can to mitigate the sufferings of Ghanaians more especially when it comes to the E-Levy.

“You know what we have done about it and I am passionate about it because I believe it is the poorer section of society who would surfer the more when it is passed and comes to implementation, we would continue to fight”.

He added that looking at their numbers, when the Speaker comes to preside over affairs in the chamber they have vote and “you can guess the outcome, Ghanaians should know whatever would affect the poor negatively or the needy they have to be assured the NDC caucus would continue to fight it”.

Again, “we are opposed to the E-Levy; we would not let it happen if we vote and it happens you know our stand”, he said in an interview in his constituency.

On his view about physical fight that has happened on two occasions on the floor of the House, he noted that he does not expect the upcoming meeting to witness that; “I expect more debates, collaborations but not on the E-Levy, we have made our position clear on that”.

Again, “we did not plan to go and fight in parliament whatever we did we did it to protect Ghanaians, we would continue to do so”, he said.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

As part of his agenda to ensure that his constituents have access to quality healthcare, Member of Parliament (MP) for Yilo Krobo, Albert Tetteh Nyarkotey is building a health facility at Akpo Akpamu.

The Community had an old structure which was built long ago and had become dilapidated hence the MP had to build a new structure, as the nurses at Akpo Akpamu health center had to vacate the facility and move to Agogo.

In an interview the Yilo Krobo MP noted that by the end of February 2022, the people of Akpo Akpamu would have a newly completed health center; and added that he has plans for other communities like Opersika among others.

“Beyond putting up structures, I have gone to the Communities to pay for all those who are unable to renew their health insurance card. It would surprise you to note that some of the people would resort to herbal medicine because he or she does not have 10 or 8 Ghana cedis to renew his or her health insurance card, and it is something I do from time to time”,  he noted.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com