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The Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament, James Klutse Avedzi, has directed the Central Gonja District Assembly to pay its workers the daily minimum wage.

This directive was issued during the Committee’s public sittings in Tamale, which commenced on Monday.

Over the next two days, the Committee will review the Auditor-General’s reports for the fiscal year ending 31st December 2023.

The report indicated that the Central Gonja District Assembly has been employing contract workers and paying them as little as 100 Ghana Cedis per month, while also being in arrears for the past year.

Responding to the concerns raised, the District Chief Executive, Iddrisu Salia, assured that the Assembly has fully complied with the Auditor-General’s recommendations by recruiting permanent staff and ensuring that they are paid the daily minimum wage.

The zonal public sittings of the PAC will also review infractions cited in the Auditor-General’s report, including unearned salaries, unsupported payments, and uncollected rents from workers and institutions.

These institutions include Senior High Schools, Technical Universities, Colleges of Education, and Polytechnics located in the Northern, North East, Upper West, and Upper East Regions.

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Mr. Kwaku Agyeman Kwarteng, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Obuasi West Constituency, has donated 1000 desks to the Municipal Education Directorate for onward distribution to 12 public schools in dire need of furniture.

Procured from his share of the Common Fund for Members of Parliament (MPs), the expectation is that the desk would enhance quality teaching and learning in the beneficiary schools.

At a short ceremony to hand over the desks, Mr. Kwarteng said he had always supported schools in the constituency with furniture in his quest to address furniture deficit in schools.

He said the presentation of the 1000 desks was in response to a request by the Director of Education to fix the furniture challenges facing some public schools in the constituency.

“I have always put a premium on education, so, I had to respond quickly to the request of the directorate on the lack of furniture in some schools. We will continue to supply furniture to schools to ensure our children are comfortable in their classrooms,” the Obuasi West MP stressed.

Mr. Kwarteng seized the opportunity to highlight key interventions he had provided in the education sector, indicating that quality education was the most integral component of development in any society, and pledged to put premium on quality education delivery in the area.

He mentioned the rehabilitation of the Apitikooko School where a computer lab and staff common room had been provided, the provision of WASH facilities at Kokoteasua School and the Obuasi Complex Schools as well as the provision of classroom blocks at Nhyieso School as some of the key projects he has undertaken over the years.

The Former Deputy Minister of Finance said he would not relent in committing more investment into improving the quality of education in schools in the Municipality.

Receiving the desks on behalf of the schools, the Obuasi Municipal Director of Education, Mr. George Alfred Koomson commended the MP for the quick response to the request.

Mr. Koomson assured that he would liaise with heads of the beneficiary schools to ensure that the furniture was properly maintained.

Ms. Jacqueline Asante, Headmistress of Kwabena Fori Primary School lauded Mr. Kwarteng for the various educational interventions he had rolled out over the years.

She said the donation was a welcome relief to the heads of the beneficiary schools who had been saddled with the challenges of inadequate furniture in their schools.

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Gomoa Central, Mrs Naana Eyiah Quansah, has presented 15 motorbikes to Okada riders in the constituency on work and pay basis as part of efforts to empower them financially to improve on their livelihoods.

The MP also presented GHC200.00 each to the recipients as start-up capital to buy fuel to commence their operations.

She also presented driving licenses to 100 taxi drivers who had financial difficulties acquiring a license from the Drivers and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA).

Addressing the riders and party supporters, Mrs Naana Eyiah who is also the Deputy Interior Minister said the prevailing employment for many school leavers in Gomoa Central constituency was the driving profession.

According to the MP, she gave the motorbikes to the riders at reduced cost to enable them pay as they worked since it was difficult for them to purchase them outright.

The MP renewed promises by the government to create more job opportunities for the youth to avert economic hardship currently facing them.

She urged the youth to rally support for the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) to win the December 7, polls to continue its good policies and programmes.

The Deputy Minister called on the electorates in Gomoa Central constituency to vote massively to maintain her as MP and Dr Mahamudu Bawumia in the upcoming December elections.

Mrs Eyiah Quansah further explained the reasons to maintain her candidature as MP to enable her to do more to help improve the quality living of the electorates.

The Deputy Minister appealed to the chiefs and people in the Gomoa Central constituency to support the government and ignore propaganda campaigns by the opposition NDC since they had nothing good to offer Ghanaians.

Mr. Benjamin Kojo Otoo, District Chief Executive (DCE) for Gomoa Central, urged the recipients to well maintain the bikes.

The DCE urged the people in the Constituency to rally support for the party and government to continue rollout good policies and programmes to enhance quality living standards.

The beneficiaries expressed gratitude to the MP and pledged to support her and Dr Bawumia to win the elections.

The public hearing of Government Assurance Committee on Tuesday, August 27, 2024, had to be halted and pushed to Wednesday, August 28, 2024, due to a thick smoke that engulfed the first floor of Job 600.

Officials of the Ministry of Works and Housing were in Committee room 1&2, and administration block when the fire alarms went off.

The Committee could not have its public hearing. Despite an initial communications to the media that the hearing will come on later in the day, a later communication had it that it had been pushed to Wednesday.

It took personnel from the Ghana Fire Serve stationed in parliament and re-enforcement team almost an hour to put the smoke and fire under control.

Meanwhile, investigation is underway to ascertain the cause of the fire.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

The Minority has taken a swipe at government for owing suppliers of various items like food, stationery and tablets to the tune of six billion Ghana cedis to senior high schools yet at the launch of its manifesto, the ruling party boasted that it had distributed nine hundred tablets to senior high schools as part of the Free Senior High School programme.

According to the Ranking on Educational Committee Peter Nortue, the brouhaha surrounding the distribution is confusing, because some other person quoted the distribution to the tune of ninety thousand, “so I do not know which is which”.

At a press conference on Thursday, August 22, 2024, he noted that, “we in the Minority in our release said we support it very much, but when you are not prepared for it you do not have a budget allocation for it and you go into it you create problem for the supplies”.

Again, we know that one million three hundred and fifty thousand tablet were procured and the supplier has to look for a loan in dollars equivalent to cedis that means that anytime going to pay the loan back they would calculate the rate if it is eighteen cedis to the dollar, that is what they have to pay, and have been denied payment for a long time now and we do not know why government is refusing to pay.

According to him, when the issue came up on the floor during the approval of the formula for Ghana Education Trust Fund, the government was going to shift the payment to GETFund “and we resisted as the Committee on Education recommended that the finance and education ministries take up those payments”.

Speaker Bagbin, wrote to the finance ministry to take up the payment of nine hundred tablet and this has not been done.

“So our concern here is that why is the government refusing to pay for the tablet such that you are killing the business of the supplier; and how many schools have the tablet so far and the number of students who have the tablet so far?”

“You cannot be making noise about distributing tablets, when schools in my constituency have not received these tablets”, he added.
Minority accuses government of killing businesses of tablet suppliers

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Last Saturday, the Member of Parliament for Akyem Oda Constituency, Alexander Akwasi Acquah, held an important engagement with faith-based Christian leaders in the Akyem Oda Constituency.

The meeting was aimed to discuss various issues concerning the constituency, and an opportunity for the MP to be abreast with concerns from the clergy given the influential role these religious leaders play in guiding the masses.

During the session, Mr Acquah shared the challenges he has encountered in his role, while emphasizing the progress being made through God’s guidance.

He also articulated his vision for the constituency, highlighting forthcoming projects and initiatives that will benefit the church, its members, and the wider Akyem Oda community.

This dialogue, instituted by the MP serves as a platform for addressing the concerns of the clergy and reaffirms his commitment to the continued development and well-being of the people of Akyem Oda.

Present at the meeting was the Municipal Chief Executive, Hon. Joyce Adjoa Aggeiwaa, NPP constituency chairman, Hon. Kwadwo Ampaabeng, Mrs Heneritta Acquah and executives of the NPP in Akyem Oda constituency.

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Chairman of the Government Assurance Committee, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa is on the hills of the government to release the full list of state lands.

Mr Ablakwa challenged the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) Government under President Nana Akufo-Addo to produce the list of state lands stating that there is a state capture for the past eight years under the current administration compelling the Minority to demand for the full list of state lands; but that has not been provided.

“We have evidence to the effect that there is state capture and there is massive land grab going on all over the Country and field visit has revealed that”, he said at a press conference in Parliament House.

He further condemned the inability of the government to produce the list of public lands; adding that the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abdulai Jinapor was throwing dust into the eyes of Ghanaians that there is no state capture of lands.

He affirmed that Article 257 clause 1 of the 1992 constitution states that the President shall hold the state land in trust of Ghanaians; “we want to know how much of the States lands that is left, it’s our right, our constitutional right; we have to ask and there are faceless elements who are grabbing. It has been more than two years since we invited the sector Minister, he could not produce the list and said it’s a lot of work; we have come to the conclusion that Akuffo Addo and Dr Bawumia are refusing to disclose because they are deep neck involved in the state capture more than two years they have not been able to disclose this when we requested”.

Chairman Ablakwa, further challenged that, government officials cannot tell us how many state bungalows we have, but all they know is to connive with private developers to sell state bungalows.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

A friend to the Appointment Committee and Majority Leader Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin has insisted that the Chairman of the Committee has voting right despite his absence from the process.

This follows a split on the Committee’s yet to be prepared recommendation with fourteen members showing up to vet two nominees for the Supreme Court Justice Bernasko Essah and Professor Richard Frimpong Oppong.

The seven Majority members during the vetting voted for the approval of the nominees whiles the seven Minority members voted against their approval.

The Majority Leader in an interview with the media at the vetting of the two nominees noted that the chairman Joseph Osei-Owusu who is out of the jurisdiction and could not make it to the vetting of the nominees has a voting right and the standing orders of the House allow that.

According to him the recommendation of the Committee would come before plenary for approval but was quick to point out that the chairman was unavoidably absent because he is out of the jurisdiction but has a voting right and the rules of the House permit that.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

Mr Kwasi Ameyaw-Cheremeh, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sunyani East Constituency says the constituency has witnessed unprecedented level of development since he became the MP.

He said the constituents had benefited from numerous development projects in his 16 years in parliament, and therefore, deserved another term and called on the electorate to retain him in the Election 2024.

“What I have done is enough to be retained as MP” Mr Asomah-Cheremeh stated when he visited the Sunyani Traditional Council to officially introduce himself as the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Election 2024 Parliamentary Candidate.

He said his visit was also to enable him to account for his stewardship to the chiefs and queens and rally their support in the elections.

Accompanied by Mr John Ansu Kumi, the Sunyani Municipal Chief Executive, constituency executives of the party and some Assembly Members, Mr Ameyaw-Cheremeh touted some of his achievements, and called on the chiefs and queens to support his candidature and vote for him when they go to ballot on December 7.

He said health, education, sports, and road infrastructure had all seen remarkable improvements in the Sunyani Municipality, saying “I have served well, and I haven’t failed my constituents”.

Mr Ameyaw-Cheremeh said virtually all the Community-based Health Planning Services (CHPS) co mpounds in the municipality as well as the Sunyani Teaching Hospital had benefited from modern medical devices and equipment.

He said the CHPS compounds and nurses’ bungalows constructed at Atronie, Benue Nkwanta, Wawasua and Nkrankrom communities were all spearheaded by him.

The MP said he had improved physical education infrastructure at Atuahenekrom, Daadom and Wawasua among others, saying work on a standard artificial football facility was also progressing steadily at the Sunyani Penkwase ‘Sakora Park’ while construction work on a similar facility at the Sunyani Newtown and the Sunyani Senior High School (SUSEC) would commence soon.

He said very soon work on another artificial football pitch would begin at the Abesim community, stating that SUSEC had also benefited from a dining hall and several classroom blocks.

Work on the construction of a Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) facility at Sunyani Ridge Experimental Basic School would be completed and handed over for use very soon.

Nana Kwaku Sabeng II, the Akwamuhene (sub-chief) and the Acting President of the Sunyani Traditional Area commended the MP for bringing the development of the Municipality to the next level and assured that the council would continue to support him to improve the development and socio-economic lives of the people.

Dennis Peprah/Christopher Tetteh

The Minority believes the recently advertised recruitment into the security services is politically motivated and cast doubt on a non-existing backlog as the move is to recruit party vigilantes and goons to help achieve a favourbale outcome in the upcoming 2024 general election.

According to the ranking on defense and Interior Jamse Agalga, advertisements come on the back of a recent petition by the Minority to the Commissioner of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to investigate our complaint of unequal and unfair recruitment of personnel into the security services based on a purported backlog.

The Minority is amazed that the security services under the Ministry of the Interior namely; the Ghana Police Service, the Ghana National Fire Service, Ghana Prisons Service and the Ghana Immigration Service have all placed open advertisements which restrict the 2024 recruitment process to only persons who applied in 2021, at a time the legality of recruiting from a purported backlog is the subject of a petition before CHRAJ.

“Again, it is an attempt to stampede CHRAJ in its investigations and to mislead Ghanaians into believing that the right thing is finally being done. This development has confirmed our long-held position that the reason why the recruitment was being shrouded in opacity is to create unequal access to some people in the name of a so-called backlog, when no such backlog exists on the record.

Ghanaians have not forgotten how the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia NPP government unleashed party vigilante and goons clothed in uniform on innocent civilians during the 2020 general elections. Eight (8) innocent Ghanaians were killed in the process, including the dastardly shootings at Techiman South”.

The Minority asserts that the peace and security of our dear country and the stability of our democracy will once again be in serious jeopardy should this government be allowed to have its way through this ongoing restricted recruitment into the security services.

“The Minority hereby calls on the National Peace Council, the Christian Council of Ghana, the Office of the National Chief Imam, our Development Partners, Civil Society Organisations and all lovers of peace to speak out before it is too late.

Also, the Minority wishes to renew our call for a strict adherence to a balanced structuring of all the security services including the Ghana Armed Forces, through the creation of equal access and opportunity for all by the security services in terms of recruitment”.

The Minority reiterates that they are in principle not against the recruitment of the youth of this country into the security services. “On the contrary, our objective is to guarantee equal access and opportunity for all regardless of one’s gender, ethnicity, religion or creed when it comes to recruitment into the security services”.

Ghanamps.com