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Author: Akumaa GhanaMPs

“I am not promoting or encouraging child labour”—Afram Plains N. MP

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Member of Parliament for Afram Plains North, Betty Nana Efua Krosbi Mensah has dismissed notion that she is encouraging and promoting child labour by defending parents who introduce their wards to work.

According to her leaders who have been elected to represent the larger population should properly define what hazardous work is and provide alternatives to ensure children are provided with the rightful way to live and to enjoy being children.

In an interview with journalists in Parliament she pointed out that there are one hundred and fifty communities in her constituency with a limited number of one hundred and thirteen day basic schools, “what becomes of children in such communities who do not have schools?”

Again, she advised that issues of child labour should be looked at in a broader perspective and not play politics and be emotional, as those children would grow up and if parents are not impacting their occupation and knowledge in them, when the child attain eighteen and needs to fend for himself what profession does he have?

In addition, we should not come to Parliament and do the usual politics, governments talk about social intervention programmes going to the rural communities, she added that if they were really going to rural communities children would not migrate into the urban cities.

According to her, if government were committed to all these things social interventions and those who deserve it are really being impacted, parents and children would not have been migrating from the rural communities to urban centres.

Madam Krosbi Mensah further expressed worry over the school feeding programme being implemented in Accra whiles in communities in Afram Plains North children are suffering. They don’t have schools neither do they benefit from the social interventions. “At the end we are not having solution to the problems we talk about”

She made this remarks on Friday June 12, 2020 when the Minister for Employment and Labour Relations Ignatius Baffour Awuah made a statement on International Labour day.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Atiwa East DCE and parents thank MP for providing dual desks

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The District Chief Executive of Atiwa East, Atta Panyin Nkansa has applauded the Member of Parliament for the constituency for providing thousand dual desks to lower primary and Junior High schools in the district.

According to him, the MP Abena Osei-Asare has given a lot of scholarships to people in the district amounting to eighty-five thousand Ghana cedis last year alone to ensure the future of the youth are secured.

“When you get to most of our schools you would notice that the desk on which our children are sitting are not good and again we do not want to see our children sitting on the floor and writing, the MP came to our aid when we approached her”.

The District Director of Education, Mrs. Victoria Bampo in commending the MP also noted that most of the schools were in deplorable states when they approach her to help rehabilitate them; instead, she built new school blocks and only renovated those that were not too damaged structurally.

She further noted that without the desk learning would not go on properly as the provision of the desk would help learning and development in the district.

She was unhappy that in the outbreak of the pandemic, school children would be sitting on the floor to study.

Parents also expressed their gratitude to the MP together with government for providing various schools with veronica buckets and hand sanitizers to ensure that the COVID-19 spread is reduced, as final year students of Junior High School would be returning to school soon.

They also advocated that head teachers should move round the various schools in the district to demonstrate to students how to wash their hands and apply the hand sanitizers.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Defense and Interior committee to meet IGP

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Chairman for the Committee on Defense and Interior, Seth Kwame Acheampong has revealed that they are waiting to have a meeting with the Inspector General of Police (IGP) over allegation of police “planting weed” on suspects whiles they effect arrest.

According to him as far as he is concerned, the allegation against the security placing wee on prophet Owusu Adjei are just suspicion and he cannot authenticate that was done by the security operative at the time they effected the arrest.

“The prophet had his wallet on him I don’t need to go further on this issue, investigation is being carried out and that investigation would speak for itself, I do not think the security personnel are interested in planting things on people”, he said this at a media briefing with journalists.

Mr. Acheampong noted that it is criminal to act in that manner and against the laws of the country and nobody should be encouraged to do that.

The security would give Ghanaians better particulars on the matter since he was arrested in the presence of the former District Chief Executive of Kwaebibirem Mr. Agyeman Duah, and pleaded with his colleagues in the Minority to arm themselves with the facts.

On the issue of filming the arrested prophet he said it is difficult to know who the originators of the video were as the National Security do not lay claim to the video.

As to where the prophet was, he noted that he is in police custody as he had gone through the court process.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Gender Minister expresses worry over re-appearing of begging street children

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Minister of Gender Children and Social Protection Mrs. Cynthia Mamle Morrison has expressed worry of a practice where children who beg on the street are taken away but they re-appear on the streets of the capital.

According to her, her Ministry is collaborating with the Office of the National Security to engage with more stakeholders to develop and implement a more sustainable strategy to permanently address the issue.

“Mr. Speaker with adequate funding, we would ensure that every citizen has improved access to quality social services and livelihood activities to reflect both national and international obligations such as the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) goal 1, 2 and 5”.

The Minister underscored the need to strengthen the social welfare programme that provides preventive and responsive child protection services as the current government continues to place emphasis on the implementation of strategies and programmes to reduce poverty and vulnerability.

And added that a caring society does not tolerate marginalization and exclusion of poor and vulnerable groups which include begging on the streets.

The Minister who was responding to the Member of Parliament for Afigaya Sekyere East, Mavis Nkansah-Boadu’s question on measures being taken by the Ministry together with National Security to get child beggars off the streets also told the House the issue has become a National Security issue as some of the begging children aid persons with disability, to solicit for funds on the street and the influx of foreigners from neighboring countries who use their children in begging.

The Minister noted that in other to address the issue, in 2017 the Ministry initiated a programme called “operation get off the street now for a better life”.

As the programme seeks to withdraw children from the streets reintegrate them with their families, and those of school going age sent back to school, while those who need to learn vocational trade were taken through skills training.

“Children beggars and other streets person were taken away from the National theatre, through 37 Military hospital, Opeibea, airport to the Ghana Standard Authority areas, as the children were sent social welfare centers in Madina”.

The Minister further noted that since she took over at the Ministry, she has been part of operations to rescue children from the street at Kwame Nkrumah Circle to Kaneshie with the support of the AMA taskforce as most of the children rescued are Nigerians.

“They have since been sent to the Nigerien Embassy and repatriated to their homeland same year. In December around the Marina Mall at Opeibea child beggars were rescued, over four thousand eight hundred and nine on the street of Accra. Twenty-one of them Nigerians have been repatriated to their home country”.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Ablakwa questions 202 MPs present in the House against 198 votes cast

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Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa on Wednesday morning questioned, why the votes and proceedings of the House page 6 for Tuesday recorded that two hundred and two (202) reported to the House but the ballot they cast indicates that there were one hundred and ninety-eight (198).

Speaker Oquaye quickly ruled him out of order but Deputy Minority Leader Dr. James Kluste Avedzi re-put the issue up by saying as a House of record it was not right to record 202 members in the House but when the House was voting it had 198 members around.

“It means four members came to the House and did not vote or even did not come to House but were marked present, we need to interrogate this issue”.

The Speaker intervene by pointing out to him that he has ruled on the matter and prevented him from going on that tangent.

Majority Leader waded into the matter by pointing out to his colleague that earlier in the day the Assin Central lawmaker Ken Ohene Agyapong was in the chamber but during the voting time, he was no were to be found to cast his vote.

“He was in the House earlier and had been marked present and it is outrageous for anyone to think there has been anything untoward with the ballot that was casted yesterday”.

Professor Oquaye unhappy with the development noted that such remarks are not parliamentary and allows those who are not vested with Parliamentary workings to misreport things like this “it is just creating wrong impression”.

He further pointed out that the House has done a good job for those who voted to come to the House and learn on what happened as everything went on properly, “we should be proud of ourselves when we do something good, let us not stoke fire when there is nothing to be stoked”.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

ECOWAS experts meet on easing of trade during pandemic

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Committee of experts set up by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for Transport, Logistics, Free Movement and Trade in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic held a virtual meeting on June 8, 2020 to firm up guidelines for the harmonization and facilitation of Cross Border Trade and Transportation in the region.

The experts are providing sectorial technical advice to the statutory decision-making bodies of ECOWAS to ensure uniform and coordinated improvement of the transport and logistics sectors while enhancing the growth of intra-regional trade, free movement and economic growth in the ECOWAS region.

Addressing participants, the ECOWAS Commission’s Commissioner for Infrastructure, Mr. Pathe Gueye said besides the coordination and strengthening of the fight against the COVID-19, the meeting is meant to help the region to navigate itself out of the difficult situation where it now finds itself.

The representative of Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Chairman of the meeting, Captain Musa Nuhu stressed the importance of finding the balance between the health well-being and economic well-being of Community citizens by ECOWAS Member States while achieving desired synergy in handling the COVID-19 pandemic.

As  proposed guidelines for the harmonization and facilitation of cross-border trade and transportation are in line with the West Africa Health Organization (WAHO) and other specialized international organizations such as World Health Organization (WHO), World Customs Organization (WCO), International Migration Organization, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), International Maritime Organisation (IMO), African Union Commission, Africa Civil Aviation Council, and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) among others, the experts identified appropriate trade and transport humanitarian corridors and propose measures to ensure these corridors are open for medical supplies and personnel so that the fight against Covid-19 is efficient in the short to medium term while ensuring continuity in community trade, transport, free movement and cross border businesses in the medium to long term.

The recommendations and the proposed guidelines from the Experts will be submitted to the ECOWAS Ministers in charge of Transport and Trade who would meet on June 12, 2020 for validation.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Some Speakers are allergic to questions that embarrass government—Osei-Kyei

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Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Osei-Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has said some Speakers since 1993 were uncomfortable and allergic to statements that would embarrass government of the day, hence they prone statements that come before them.

According to him since the inception of the fourth Republic, some Speakers have played tricks with their authority to singularly admit questions by delaying those questions where eventually lose their potency.

“They also prevent the sequential follow of questions to hard-press Ministers and a day with a lot of questions, an hour is allowed for question time to save face of government, the current speaker Profess Oquaye has been open in admitting questions. Except that some Ministers do not respond to questions timorously in Parliament we should have improvement on this”.

Mr. Osei-Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu was speaking at a forum organised by the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs with the core leadership of the various Committees in Parliament, on the theme “Parliament and the Sustenance of Ghana’s Democracy 2020 and beyond”.

“Do Speakers have authority to grant motions per our standing orders, this is something that MPs must interrogate, and we must come to some determination in this direction?”

The Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, lamented over a growing practice where lawmakers make statements that are not well researched and are saturated with half truths, untruths and others opinions expressed from social media.

He acknowledged the role of the Seventh Parliament as the nation fight against COVID-19 adding that for the first time in the history of the fourth Republic in the Seventh Parliament, the first meeting of the fourth session was suspended, “instead of rising sine die”.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Parliament would jealously guard its record outside the House—Speaker

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Speaker of Ghana’s Parliament Professor Aaron Michael Oquaye has revealed that the House is interested in guarding jealously its record outside the House as representative of the people.

According to him truth is truth and should reflect in every communication that goes outside the House to all relevant persons and correct figures should be given when reporting on issue that happens in the House.

The Speaker made this remarks on Wednesday morning when the Majority Leader, Osei-Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu drew the attention of the House that there had been miss reportage by some news portal on adoption of the report of the Subsidiary Legislation Committee.

He told the House what actually happened on the floor of the House on Tuesday after a head count was taken to adopt the report of the Committee, for Constitutional Instrument (C. I) 126 ninety-two (92) voting for the report not to be accepted and one hundred and six (106) voted for the report to be accepted.

“I wonder who filed that story, I do not want to believe it is part of any rigging racket what is right should be recorded”.

He sounded word of caution to reporters that they should ensure that they do not report what is not the fact.

However, when Deputy Minority Leader, Dr. James Kluste Avedzi caught the eye of the Speaker, he pointed out that the Leader of the House was right and whatever happened outside the House should not change the outcome of what has been reported in the votes and proceedings of the House.

“Our record does not show so, and nobody is changing that; votes and proceedings page 14 is very clear on that as we can see this morning”

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Invitation to PNC chair by police CID was reckless — James Agalga

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Former Deputy Minister of the Interior, James Agalga has taken a swipe at the Ghana Police Service, Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for inviting chairman of the Peoples National Convention (PNC), Bernard Mornah for his advice to the Electoral Commission on the new voters register.

“Do we want to see this country in flames if someone does his analysis and points out, why should that form basis for police invitation?”

According to him, the PNC chair is a citizen of Ghana and if in his analysis what is happening relative to the decision of the EC to compile new voters register can lead to chaos, he has to voice it.

He noted in an interview that by stretch of imagination no one should think he want to breach the peace of the country and rather he was warning the nation that EC is taking the nation down a very sloppy ground if care is not taken.

“EC would ignite a problem for the country that advice should not constitute basis for an invitation. What they did was reckless, we in the Minority would not tolerate the police for trying to suppress freedom of speech”.

Mr. Agalga further explained that he was at the police headquarters as part of the legal team of the PNC chairman and confirmed some of his colleagues were there to show solidarity.

And expressed disappointment in his colleague second Deputy Majority Chief Whip Mr. Matthew Nyindam for describing the conduct of his colleague marching up to the police headquarters as “stupid”, all of a sudden we cannot show support?”

The Ranking member on Defense and Interior pointed out in shock that he would represent his colleague the second Deputy Majority Whip should he be arrested, and the argument by his colleague that the Minority marching up to show support, was not allowing the police to do their work was unfortunate.

In addition, he noted that even in America people are demonstrating and it is their right which should be respected same with the case under discussion.

“Under the current government increasingly the right to demonstrate is being eroded and should be resisted”, he said.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Government to evacuate stranded Ghanaians in phases—Ayokor-Botwe

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Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayokor-Botwe has told Parliament government has plans to evacuate stranded Ghanaians abroad in phases following the alert by the World Health Organisation that COVID-19 would remain global health issues until a vaccine is developed.

According to her, her Ministry together with Ghana’s missions abroad, Interior and Aviation with the Immigration Service have been working closely to bring back home stranded Ghanaians in several countries.

Madam Ayokor Botwe further told the House the phases of evacuation was informed by financial and logistical consideration such as capacity of isolating centers to hold huge numbers of evacuees as wells as the human resources capacity of the National COVID-19 Task Force comprising various security agencies.

This was when ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa wanted to know plans to evacuate Ghanaians currently stranded abroad due to closing of international borders and measures to prevent the importation of COVID-19.

The Minister noted that the stranded Ghanaians abroad are in four categories, the ability to pay, they comprise private individuals, business sponsored employees as well as government, student yet to complete their courses but without any compelling reason insist on returning home.

As their evacuation requires Government to provide travel documents and guarantee safe passage as well as Ghanaian residence permit holders including diplomats and their dependents.

The second is government funded evacuation made up of government officials who travel for official business as well as government sponsored students yet to complete their course but who are compelled to leave their place of residence.

Third categories comprises of distressed and destitute: these are Ghanaians who traveled to various countries before the advent of the pandemic whose circumstances have been worsened due to the crisis and consequent travel bans and other restrictions imposed by different countries around the world.

Final categories are deportees that is Ghanaians who have been scheduled for removal from various countries.

In the case of phases two arrivals by charter flights on Saturday June 6 2020 nineteen Ghanaians from Mauritania, fourteen from Burkina Faso, thirty-five from Washington D. C, five from Turkey and seven from Nigeria.

Whiles phases three June 17, 24 and 28 2020 evacuation by KLM three hundred from Washington D. C. two hundred and ninety-nine and four hundred thirty-four from the United Kingdom.

She was however quick to point out that the arrangement was subject to requirement in the host countries, such as permits, over flight and landing clearance, which may result in changes in the scheduled dates of arrival.

And further told the House negotiation are underway between Ghana’s mission in Beijing and Ethiopian Airlines for the evacuation of some six hundred and seventy-five stranded Ghanaians in China.

The same with the county’s mission in Abu Dhabi where discussion with the UAE authorities for the evacuation of over five hundred Ghanaians stranded in that country.

Whiles one hundred and forty-one Ghanaians students who have completed their language proficiency courses in Benin last month using STC buses, “now arrangements are in place to evacuate them on June 13 2020.

The Foreign Minister added that plans are far advanced to evacuate Ghanaians stranded in Canada, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, South Africa, Italy, Spain, Netherland, Niger, Norway, Kenya, Switzerland and Ethiopia.

“Priority would be given to urgent evacuation request that require minimal Government intervention, such as pre-arrangement charted flights awaiting landing clearance from Government”.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com