Author: Akumaa GhanaMPs

A man suspected to be the killer of the Abuakwa North MP, Joseph Boakye Danquah-Adu, has been arrested.

He suspect was busted by the police on Thursday is presently at the regional police headquarters being questioned.

Five persons on Friday were picked up by the police to assist in investigations.

The former Member of Parliament was JB Danquah, was gruesomely murdered at dawn on Tuesday February 9 at his home at Shiashie in Accra.

Police investigations showed he suffered two stab wounds, one to his rib, the other to his abdomen.

The wife of the MP was said to be in another room when the incident occurred.

The NPP had indicated that it suspected foul play in the murder.

Member of Parliament for the Abuakwa North Constituency of the Eastern Region, Joseph Boakye Danquah Adu, has been stabbed at his residence at Shiashi in Accra.

Reports picked up Tuesday morning by Ghanamps.gov.gh suggests he may have been killed by robbers.

Police have commenced investigations into the incident.

The Greater Accra Regional Police Commander COP Dr. George Akuffo Dampare and his men have visited the deceased residence to access the situation.

The Police say they are not at this point, able to verify whether the killing was carried out by robbers.

The late MP is a native of Old Tafo in the Eastern Region.

The late Danquah was born on July 2, 1965, and is the grandson of late Ghanaian statesman JB Danquah.

Following the killing of the Member of Parliament for Abuakwa North, J.B Danqua Adu Tuesday dawn, Parliamentary proceedings was brought to an abrupt end after only five minutes of sitting.

This was because the law makers who were obviously saddened by the death of their colleague were not well composed to conduct the government business for the day.

The Legislators were clad in red signifying their mournful state.

The Minority Leader Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu soon after proceedings had started proposed to the Speaker to adjourn sitting to Wednesday since MPs were not in a good mood to conduct business. The adjournment was also to the MPs visit the home of the departed colleague to sympathize with the bereaved family.

The Minority Chief Whip, Mohammed Muntaka Mubarack seconded the proposal following which the Speaker; Edward Doe Adjaho accepted the plea and adjourned the House to Wednesday.

The speaker informed the House that he had gotten briefing from the Police and will relay the information to the Leadership of the House.

All other Parliamentary business including committee meetings for the day have all been suspended.

The Appointment Committee which was expected to vet ministerial nominees at 9:00 -2:00 pm, while the Public Accountants Committee was also set to sit at 2:00pm- 5:00pm.

Meanwhile, five persons have been arrested by the police to assist in investigations into the murder of the late Member of Parliament for Abuakwa North, Joseph Boakye Danquah Adu.

The five include three men and two women.

The Accra regional Police Command PRO, Assistant Superintendent of police, Mrs Afia Tenge, disclosed this to the media but failed to disclose their identity.

She said the Police received a distress call from the late MP’s Shiashie residence at around 1:25am.

“On arrival, police found the victim in a pool of blood, he was rushed to the police hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival,” she said.

The body is in the Police hospital morgue. According to the Police, Mr Danquah died from multiple stab wounds.

Ghanamps.gov.gh

Minister-designate for the Upper East Region, Albert Abongo, has observed that he has no regrets over the failed STX Housing project that was meant to provide 30,000 housing units to bridge the country’s expanding housing gap.

In January 2011, the late President John Evans Atta Mills cut the sod amid fanfare to officially commence the construction of 30,000 housing units for the security agencies at the Ghana Police Service Training Center, Tesano.

The cost of the facility was US$1,525,443,468.

The project was part of the US$10billion housing project that was signed by then Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing, Albert Abongo on behalf of the Government of Ghana and a South Korean firm, STX Construction Group.

But a year after, that dream became a mirage after it became apparently clear that the construction firm, STX Engineering and Construction Ghana Limited, had no funds to execute the project.

A Supplier’s Credit Agreement between the Government of Ghana and STX Engineering and Construction Ghana Limited, for an amount of US$1,525,443,468 was withdrawn from Parliament to that effect after calls by the Minority to do so.

Abongo, who has now been assigned to manage the Upper East Region speaking on the issue at the Appointments Committee of Parliament, Monday, said he is not bothered about the failed the STX Housing project.

Nonetheless, he told the panel that he was worried about the quantum of money lost in the deal by the Government of Ghana.

He, however, did not mention the amount lost by the State in the STX Housing project.

Thirty (30) out of two hundred (200) ambulances procured by the government of Ghana did not meet specifications of the Ministry of Health.

Because of the situation, the ambulances have not been distributed to government hospitals that are in dire need of them. The ambulances are currently parked at the car park of the Parliament of Ghana.

Minister of Health, Alex Segbefia who disclosed this on the floor of Parliament on Thursday said experts will be dispatched to the manufacturing company to inspect the rest of the ambulances before they are shipped into Ghana.

“Mr Speaker, at the moment they are 30 in the country. The content of the ambulances is the issue, various things have to be in the ambulance to ensure that they are fit for purpose. What we have are not fit for purpose so at the moment we have refused to say that this can be ambulances that could be used for the purposes we bought them.

We have specifications, and the specification in these ambulances don’t appear to be met. It is the duty of the Ministry to ensure that we do not not take what we haven’t asked for. So we’re ensuring we have what we asked for, that is why we haven’t distributed the ambulances” Hon. Alex Segbefia noted.

His comment was in response to a question posed by the Member of Parliament for Atebubu Amantin, Sanja Nanja. The legislator had asked when the Atebubu /Amantin District Hospital will be allocated an ambulance.

Meanwhile a report carried by Thursday Feb. 4th edition of the Ghanaian Times states that about 40 of the 130 ambulances procured for the National Ambulance Service in 2010, have been grounded at its workshop.

Although the vehicles have outlived their usefulness, the service is compelled to repair them for use but that too is constrained by lack of funds.

The remaining 90 ambulances are woefully inadequate for effective health care delivery in the country.

The Chief Executive officer of the NAS, Professor Ahmed Nuhu Zakariah said some of the ambulances were parked at the workshop because they had exceeded their lifespan while others have developed major faults.

“The lifespan, of every emergency vehicle is normally five years, which means that the NAS needs to get a new fleet of vehicles, but we are compelled to use the old ones since we don’t have that luxury,” he said.

“The reality is that if the major faults on emergency vehicles are not fixed before use again, it may be causing more harm than good; that is why it’s better to book it out of commission rather than use it in a bad state,” he added.

Ghanamps.gov.gh

Visiting Italian Prime, Matteo Renzi, Tuesday, told Ghana’s Parliament that his country is prepared to partner with the West African country to develop its agricultural and energy sectors.

“As Italian people we are ready for agri-business here but we are also ready for the energy sectors”, he said in his twenty-two minutes address to the country’s legislature.

The former British Colony has in recent times experienced a dip in its agricultural and energy sectors because of low investment.

For instance, budgetary allocation for the agricultural sector has since 2012 received a paltry amount. Unlike in 2009 where the sector received a 3% budgetary allocation of the country’s annual budget, in 2012, the amount reduced to 1.9%.

It further went down to 1.03% in 2013 whereas in 2015, the sector was credited with 1.1% of the country’s budget.

Low investment in the energy sector has also seen the country experienced a four-year erratic power supply, compelling many businesses to fold up with thousands of workers laid off.

The introduction of the Karpower and Ameri badges to generate about 500MW has brought some stabilization in the country’s energy mix.

However, Renzi in his address said, there is hope for the West African country since cooperation between Italy and Ghana will ensure growth in those sectors.

The new partnership in the energy sector, according to Renzi, will bring on board the European Country’s ENI S.p.A, a multinational oil and gas firm, to ensure that Ghana’s energy sector is further strengthened to meet is growing demands.

The ENI, he added, will be involved in gas supply to the Ghanaian market. The country already has a deal with ENI to develop the Sankofa block Offshore Cape Three Points.

“The new project will be for power generation and it will bring benefit to Ghana. This is a good message for friendship and cooperation between Italy and Ghana”.

He added “your wealth will be our wealth and your challenges will be shared across our collective efforts in finding solutions that work among the two countries in the spirit of collaboration”.

Renzi is in the country for a two-day official visit. He is the second Italian Prime Minister to visit Ghana after Giorgio Napolitano during the erstwhile Kufuor administration.

Mr Frank Annoh–Dompreh, Member of Parliament for Nsawam-Adoagyiri has pledged to provide water tanks to three clinics and a motorbike to the Nsawam-Adoagyiri Municipal Health Service Department.

The water tanks would be distributed to Kofisah, Adoagyiri and Djankrom clinics in the Eastern Region.

Mr Annoh-Dompreh made the promise in an interview with the Ghana News Agency after the Nsawam-Adoagyiri Municipal Health Service held a programme at Nsawam to review its 2015 performance.

He said the items would be his personal support to the health department’s educational programmes to sensitise the people in the area on the pneumococcal meningitis outbreak, which had already taken some persons lives in some regions.

Mrs Esther Duah Oyinka, Municipal Director of Health Service, called on the health personnel to vigorously carry the proper hand washing with soap programme to the inhabitants.

She advised the citizenry to report health cases early at nearby clinics for prompt attention before the situation gets worse.

Mrs Oyinka saidvery soon the health department would start its sensitisation on the meningitis in churches and schools and called on assembly members and chiefs to support the programme in their communities.

GNA

Mrs Freda Prempeh, the Member of Parliament for Tano North, has presented GH¢20,000.00 to support the smooth take-off of the newly established Presbyterian Midwifery Training School at Duayaw-Nkwanta in Brong-Ahafo Region.

According to the MP, maternal mortality and child morbidity remained a national health challenge but the problems associated with maternal health could be addressed if competent midwives were produced to handle deliveries.

She commended the Presbyterian Church in the area for its support and contribution to the development of the district.

Mrs Prempeh advised students in the district to take advantage of the training school and learn hard so that they would gain admission without difficulties.

The Reverend Daniel Asomah Gyabaa, the District Minister of the Duayaw-Nkwanta Presbytery, thanked the MP for the gesture.

He explained that work on the school’s administration block, lecture halls, dormitories were progressing steadily and would be completed soon.

Rev Gyabaa said the first enrollment would take-off in September 2016, and appealed to especially Duayaw-Nkwanta residents both at home and abroad to support the school.

GNA