Author: Kwaku GhanaMPs

The Member of Parliament for Karaga constituency in the Northern Region of Ghana, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam has supported 600 women in the constituency with interestfree loans.He was represented by his constituency and officials fromthe MPs secretariat.

At the launch of the program at karaga, the researchAssistant to the MP, Mr. Abukari Bikun indicated that this kind gesture fromthe Affable member of parliament is to empower women economically in order toalleviate poverty in the area.

The research Assistant further stated that the MPs onewoman, one acre initiative is also coming on this year’s farming season. Thisand many other interventions of the MP primarily focused on how to empowerwomen in the constituency economically.

Tizaa Rural Bank Manager as a consultant to the project,advised  beneficiaries to put the  facility into good use in order to pave wayfor others to benefit from it and also to encourage the Member of Parliament gofurther to get more support for the women. The women on their part sent appreciative messages to the Memberof Parliament, commending him for coming to their aid in this distress anddifficult times.

The beneficiaries couldn’t hide their ecstasy and joytowards the kind gesture bestowed on them by their humble legislator.

Ghanamps.com

Six Branch executive members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Ningo-Prampram Constituency have sued the Party’s General Secretary, the Party and Constituency Executives.

According to the Members their action was to avert the situation in their last primaries where 27 eligible voters were denied voting to favour a candidate.

This time, 54 members comprising 6 branches of which three have gone through elections and awaiting induction into office and for the three others, the party is yet to conduct elections to elect their leaders.

Jonas Tetteh Obinya, a branch executive and Plaintiff and Five others, according suit no E12/208/2023 are suing The Party’s General Secretary, the first Respondent, and Greater Accra Regional NDC Chairman, the Constituency Chairman and the Organizer of the Party.

The Plaintiffs are seeking in their writ among other things an order directed to the party to swear in the executive of Mobole D/A Basic School Branch.

The Plaintiffs also seek an order for the defendants to hold Branch elections at Loweh-Kobiaweh( Old Ningo Branch), Dawa-Oteng Kope, Mangotsonya D/A School, Christian Praise Church International Branch and New Ningo South A Branch.

The Plaintiffs, Jonas Tetteh Obinya, Mathew Ayiku, Mathias Narh, Sylvester Tetteh, Emmanuel Tawiah and Joshua Tetteh are also asking the court to declare their not- swearing in as unlawful.

In their conclusion, according to their writ, they pray the court “ for an order of interlocutory injunction to be granted and to protect their rights and ultimately determined in their favour and the constituency has already conducted some activities without and further activities will make them suffer more harm”

Ghanamps.com

The Member of Parliament for the Keta Constituency in the Volta region, Kwame Dzudzorli Gakpey has once again appealed to government for the commencement of work on the phase two of the Keta Sea Defence project as permanent solution to the perennial flooding of communities along the coast as a result of tidal waves.

According to the lawmaker, several appeals to central government to commence work on the Blekusu stretch of the sea defence project has proven futile leaving the people at the mercy of the tidal waves annually with devastating effects to lives and properties.

Mr Kwame Gapkey’s renewed appeal follows the flooding of households in several communities in the Keta constituency.

The phenomenon of Keta and its adjourning communities being hit by tidal waves with its attendant negative impacts on livelihoods have become a norm in recent times due to the increasing eating up of habitable lands by the sea.

Communities such as Keta central, Kedzikofe, Agbotsakofe, Dzelukofe, Nugbesekofe, Tetelikofe among others are currently immersed in water and properties such roads, roofings of buildings as well as tourist sites including emancipation beach and parts of Aglor Lodge have all been damaged as a result of the tidal waves.

Speaking in an interview with TV3 News about the disaster, Hon Kwame Gakpey expressed disquiet about the regular kneejerk approach by government to finding a permanent solution to the problem which kept recurring.
He indicated that the time has come for government to act quickly by resuming work on the sea defence project once and for all.

Mr Gakpey noted that despite a pledge by the minister for Works and Housing to parliament following a question he posed that some Ghc 10 million has been allocated for feasibility studies for the project and a follow-up visit by the minister to the community, nothing has been done since.

The MP also appealed to benevolent institutions including corporate bodies and NGOs to come to the aid of the people even as he urged the National Disaster Management Organisation to act as a matter of urgency to brief relief to the residents.

In April last year, Keta and its neighboring communities especially Agavedzi were hard hit by tidal waves disaster destroying several properties including close to 100 houses and curtailed economic activities of residents for several days.

Ghanamps.com

The Member of Parliament for the Obom Domeabra constituency in the Greater Accra Region, Sophia Karen Edem Ackuaku has been adjudged winner of the Africa Iconic Female Parliamentarian of the year award for 2023.

She emerged as winner of the coveted Africa Iconic Female Parliamentarian of the year category among several other women from the continent in the African Iconic Women Recognition award AIWRA 2023 after going through vigorous democratic process of nomination, screening and voting.

Ms Sophia Karen Ackuaku who made the shortlist of five remaining nominees beat off the completion from four other female lawmaker nominees, two from Nigeria, one each from Kenya and South Africa respectively to emerge victorious.

Votes
Madam Sophia Ackuaku pulled 329 votes out of a total 694 representing 47% of the total public votes cast against Senator Uche Ekwenife of Nigeria who pulled 163 votes representing 23%, Hon Nkeiruka Nyejeocha also of Nigeria who got 162 votes (23%) , Hon Busia Ruth Odinga of Kenya who had 20 votes (3%) and Rt. Hon Ms Mapisa Nqakula of South Africa who also had 20 votes representing 3%.

The award
The Africa Iconic Female Parliamentarian of the year is awarded to a female parliamentarian in Africa, a woman in leadership who has initiated all manner of innovations to ensure improvement in the economy of her country and Africa as a whole.

The award vetting panel has a mandate to ensures that recipients of the award is that woman that has lived traits of kindness and commitment of service to people, exhibits constant desire to improve quality of life in society and create opportunities for future generations through the positions she held.
Appreciation

An elated Sophia Ackuaku in an acceptance video expressed gratitude to the organisers for the award which she noted will motivate her to do more for the development of Ghana and Africa as a whole in transforming lives.
The MP who is a social worker, a philanthropist and a politician said she is a firm believer in investing in people as a virtue that is important than anything else.

She dedicate the award to former President John Dramani Mahama and his spouse Lordina Mahama, Speaker of Parliament, Rt Hon Alban Kingsford Bagbin who gave her the opportunity to shine, her constituents, her children and family, Dr Fazam and the Future Trends Collective Rights of Africa fraternity, OLA Girls, Mrs Kwakye and family, Ghanaian children, and her colleagues MPs and staff of parliament, all Ghanaian women and the voting public who voted for her among the several finalists.

Hon Sophia Ackuaku is expected to formally receive the award on June 1, during at the awards event to be held at Abuja, Nigeria.

Profile
Hon Sophia Ackuaku is a product of OLA Girls, Accra Workers College, School of Social Works, Ghana Institute of Journalism, Nalitary Institute, University of USA, and Kofi Annan International Peace Keeping Training Centre and holds an honorary doctorate degree from the Charisma University in the USA.

She is the founder of Womanhood Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organisation, as a vehicle for empowering young women and the youth in general.

Sophia Ackuaku is a member of the Ghana Association of Women Entrepreneurs, Association of African Women Entrepreneurs and National Association of Women Entrepreneurs and serves as the focal officer for these international bodies in Ghana.

She is also the ambassador for Future Trends Collective Rights of Africa in Ghana.
The Obom Domeabra lawmaker is the owner and Chief Executive Officer of a cosmetic empire, Eligreen Enterprise Ltd that deals in shea butter based products, providing jobs for women especially in northern Ghana and also owns two other companies, Amosos Ghana ltd and Donkomi.

The MP previously worked as deputy director in-charge of operations at the National Service Secretariat during the era of former President John Dramani Mahama.

Due to her quest of championing development of deprived communities, Hon Sophia Ackuaku has been installed Queen mother for two traditional areas, Adenkrebi in the Greater Accra and Anyarko in the Volta regions where she masterminded several community development projects.

Sophia Karen Ackuaku is a versatile politician who easily adapts to any new environment she finds herself. She first served as the parliamentary candidate for the National Democratic (NDC) in the Dome/Kwabenya constituency but was unsuccessful and subsequently contested on the ticket of the party for the Obom Domeabra constituency also in the Greater Accra region and won the 2016 polls and was re-elected in the 2020 elections for a second term.

Hon Sophia is on verge of making history as she moves from the Obom Domeabra constituency and is seeking to secure the parliamentary candidate ticket of the NDC to contest the Ayawaso Central constituency in the capital for a third term bid to the lawmaking house.

She is a mother of three biological sons (boys), Ransford, Richmond and Raymond as well four adopted children.

AIWRA is a prestigious annual international Democracy Heroes Awards event organized by FDN Projects (Friends of Democracy Nigeria Projects) to strictly celebrate women of notes who have consistently and committed to the development of Africa through various women and youth development initiatives.

Ghanamps.com

Gradually the tenure of the current Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament is coming to an end, but a question that remains answered is whether the Rt. Hon Dr. Sidie Mohammed Tunis’ crusade of getting lawmakers elected would be achieved?

A member of Ghana’s delegation to the ECOWAS Parliament, Mahama Ayariga has said electing lawmakers to the Community Parliament is workable as resources budgeted to the Parliament when managed well can be used to achieve this.

According to him what is lacking is the political will and further added that elections are being held in the sub-region all the time, be it presidential, parliamentary and local government level elections. “Infrastructure for holding the elections are there, the capacity to allocate and determine boundaries is also there”.

In a telephone interview with the Bawku Central lawmaker in his constituency, he pointed out that, heads of States the Parliament have gotten in touch with have pledged their support but when it comes to implementation, there is no real push by “the leadership of the Parliament because MPs seems to enjoy the current practice”, where member states MPs double as Community lawmakers.

And further added that the new arrangement of electing lawmakers directly would mean you cannot belong to your national assembly at the same time in the ECOWAS Parliament, as most likely all the current MPs in the Parliament “may be swept out of the Parliament and definitely they do not want that”.

The Commission President and Heads of States have pledged their commitment, it’s for the current leadership of the parliament to take the step to create a new system which they are likely not to be part of and they are not just ready for that, he emphasized.

“Is for the heads of states to take this up and any one can test this issue in the community court of justice”, he told Ghanamps.com in an interview on the subject matter.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Re-construction work on the burnt Oda market has started two years down the line after it was raised down by fire.
After government cut sod for the re-construction to start work did not start as expected but monitoring done by Ghanamps.com can reveal that work has started and this website can reveal that the Member of Parliament for Akim Oda, Alexander Akwasi Acquah has donated street light to the contractor at the site.

Speaking to journalists at the site, the MP noted that they had to mount pressure on the contractor to start work because there were agitation and when the question is asked as to when work would start he did not know what to tell his constituents.

According to him the contractor has indicated that he would work day and night hence the need to donate streetlights to aid him in his work to fast track the construction work.

The lawmaker for Akim Oda further assured those moving around radio stations trying to take advantage of the delay in the re-construction of the burnt market for political gains that their wishes would not work as work has started in earnest.

Ghanamps.com

Speaker of Ghana’s Parliament, Rt. Hon Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin by Order 42 (3) of the Standing Order of the House has recalled Parliament from recess to consider “urgent parliamentary business”.
The House will reconvene on Tuesday, May 2 at 10 am.

Ghanamps.com

Coordinator of the Friend of the Earth (FoE) Africa, Madam Rita Uwaka has disclosed that they would engage Community lawmakers who represent the various member states in the West African sub-region as part of addressing issues of human rights abuses.

FoE African made a presentation at the May & June 2022 Ordinary Session of the Community Parliament in Abuja.

FoE Africa – a non-governmental environmental organization which operates in 72 countries around the world with 11 countries in Africa, (of which the West Africa sub-region is one) to check abuse and other human right violations by multinational companies operating on the continent, made a presentation at the May & June 2022 Ordinary Session of the Community Parliament in Abuja

In an interview with journalists after a three days training in Ghana which saw participants from Cameroon, Tanzania, Togo, Liberia and Ghana, the coordinator of FoE Africa noted that they have identified significant number of human rights violations, social, environmental and gender impact issues in communities and countries like Nigeria , Liberia, Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone.

And it’s something that member states governments see as development opportunities, and they have the opportunities to expose these human right violations; and they are determined to take this fight to the ECOWAS lawmakers and journalists to make a case to national governments.

She further admonished national governments not to see the workings of these multinationals as development opportunities since they rather destroy lands and the forest which contribute to climate crises, biodiversity crises, food crises, and care crises because Africa is facing a lot of multiple crises.

“A lot of us do not understand the implications of these things. We, as civil society organisation and a regional body that is concerned of our environment, the right of forest dependant, the indigenous people and local communities, women are victims of these dangerous eco-businesses”.

Again, there are wrong definitions being sold out to member states governments by the foreign cooperation’s, and added that one cannot deprive people of their resources and turn to say there are development, “when you take away their ancestral lands?”

“We are not only facing colonialism as Africa, we are now facing agric pro-colonialism where our forests have come to their knees for the takeover of plantations; they are not for public good but taken over by private interest to feed international market and they constitute a lot of environmental nuisance because they cause a lot of agro toxins that flow through our forests, water bodies that our communities depend on for their daily survival. Our water bodies, surface water, soil pollutions were not seeing all kinds of diseases which has become prevalent as a result of forests being cut down”.

She further pointed out that of these diseases, we did not see all these when our forests were there and not touched but we are now seeing all these bad weather pollutions now that corporations have become more influential they are backing bad practices and policies on the ground and they are mobilizing our government against our people.

And sub Committees whose areas of work is connected to issues that we talk about, a lot of our forests have been cleared; our land, soil have been grabbed by multinational corporations and most of them are oil palm plantation and rubber plantations. There are unregulated lobbying practices especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo, part of Nigeria, Ivory Coast; and in Ghana there are international syndicates engaging in illegal timber trade and pollution of forest mangroves, she stated.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Seven beneficiaries of the Kotokuman Educational Trust Fund together with their parents have today expressed appreciation to the Member of Parliament for supporting them throughout their tertiary education.

According to the beneficiaries, they are not going to keep mute over the good things Mr. Alexander Akwasi Acquah is doing in the constituency to go unnoticed hence their resolve to appreciate his goodwill.

Mr. Alexander Akwasi Acquah in his brief remark noted that, the Kotokuman educational trust fund hasn’t been collapsed, but that the promise people gave didn’t go as expected.

“I will try my possible best to sustain the trust fund so that others can benefit”.

He received a citation and thanked them for remembering where they started.
The Kotokuman Educational Trust Fund was established as far back as 2018 when Mr Akwesi Acquah, then an aspiring Member of parliament for the Akim Oda Constituency had a vision to support the youth in the area who aspire to progress and attain greater heights in their formal academic pursuits are supported to achieve so through scholarship program from the fund.

Ghanamps.com