Toyota Ghana tops 2009 edition of Ghana Club 100

Toyota Ghana Company Limited (TGCL), a leading automobile dealer, has been adjudged the overall best company for the 2009 Edition of the Ghana Club 100 Awards in Accra on Tuesday. Nine other companies that made it to the best 10 category include Auto Plaza Limited, Stanbic Bank Ghana Limited, Ecobank Ghana Limited, UT Financial Services and Dan Adams Pharmaceuticals Limited. The rest were The Trust Bank Ghana Limited, Scancom Limited, All-Ship Logistics and Amalgamated Bank Ghana Limited.

"The Ghana Club 100 Awards" instituted in 1998, is an annual event to celebrate the top one hundred (100) companies in various sectors of the country's economy.

The Ghana Investment Promotion Center (GIPC) organised the event on the theme: "Enhancing Partnerships between Domestic and Foreign Investors for Sustained Economic Development". This year's awards, which were ranked, based on three factors of the competing companies, such as size, return on equity and growth was unique because rural banks put up a strong showing, sweeping a substantial amount of the awards.

Mr Takahiko Takabayashi, Managing Director of TGCL received the award on behalf of the company and promised to continue to do more to ensure customer satisfaction, which he said, is a core objective of the company. Ms Hanna Tetteh, Minister of Trade and Industry urged companies to continue to focus on what they do and even do it better to enable them to grow. Ms Tetteh said government was aware of the problems confronting the business environment assuring that it would continue to implement reforms to improve the sector. She appealed to the private sector to embrace and sustain the Ghana Club 100 Awards, calling on members to impress on other private firms to join it.

She also congratulated the GIPC for maintaining the momentum in the annual event. Mr Ishmael Yamson, Board Chairman of the GIPC observed that Ghana was experiencing interesting times; oil discovery and its attendant benefits among others, adding that the revenue from the sector should be used to create jobs

Mr Yamson called on the award winners to fashion out measures to ensure that they continued to be amongst winners in subsequent years. Mr George Aboagye, Chief Executive Officer of GIPC congratulated all companies that have participated in the event since its inception in 1998.

Mr Aboagye reiterated the importance of the private sector to the country's economic growth and realization of the government's Better Ghana Agenda, adding GIPC would continue to facilitate its improvement. He announced that GIPC would hold interactive meetings with corporate organizations on their perceptions about the awards and how to improve upon it.
Source: GNA

Training programme for Police personnel begins

A three-day training programme for 45 police personnel on international policing, marine law, human rights and how to combat criminal syndicates in the oil find zone opened at Takoradi on Tuesday.

Opening the training programme, Alhaji Hamidu Mahama, Western Regional Police Commander, said the programme was the first in a series being organized by the Regional Police to equip policemen to handle criminals when the drilling of the country's oil begins in the last quarter of the year. He said majority of policemen in the region would benefit from the training programme.

Alhaji Mahama, who is a Deputy Commissioner of Police, said those, who would be trained would form the nucleus of a special taskforce to patrol the oilfields with the Ghana Navy and other security agencies. He said the taskforce would be adequately equipped with the necessary logistics and equipment to ensure effective and efficient policing. The Regional Command would also establish police stations at Half Assini and Aiyinase to provide maximum security to oil installations and the entire citizenry. Alhaji Mahama said the Regional Police Command was gearing up to deal ruthlessly and swiftly with miscreants that might disturb the peace and harmony in the region.

He said in this regard, the Regional Police Command was re-strategizing, upgrading and equipping police personnel to meet international standard of policing.
Source : GNA

MTN's George Andah moves to Bharti Airtel (Zain)

Mr George Andah, the multi-award winning Chief Marketing Officer for Ghana's leading telecoms operator, MTN (Ghana), is moving to Bharti Airtel, owners of Zain Telecommunications Limited.

George Andah who was formally at Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited was last year awarded Marketing Man of the Year, along several other awards he has picked up for his marketing acumen.

He has also been credited as having played crucial roles in MTN Ghana's growth and huge success as a market leader in Ghana.

His move could be part of Bharti Airtel’s plan to capture the Ghanaian Market and also make it a leading brand as he has done with MTN and Guinness Ghana Limited.

Andah attained his first degree in Bsc Biochemistry at the Kwame Nkrumah Science and Technology..

He is also an old Student of Achimota College.


Source: Joy News

Transition Bill is to end acrimony - IDEG

Dr Emmanuel Akwetey, Executive Director of Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG), has said the Presidential Transitional Bill was to end acrimony that had characterised transitions.

"Transition is not about handing over presidential baton from an out-going regime to an in-coming regime; it has a broader and greater impact on socio-economic progress of the nation and generates uncertainty among District Chief Executives, government appointees in the assemblies.

"Insecurity of heads of boards and institutions creates loss of managerial time, anxiety among public and civil servants.the list is endless, the disjointed way of handling Transition in the Fourth Republic is destructive. The Transition Bill is an attempt to deal with the problem...," Dr Akwetey said.

Dr Akwetey was speaking at Akosombo at the weekend at the project launch and methodology workshop on the UNDP 2010 National Human Development Report (NHDR) for researchers, media practitioners, political economists, security experts and gender advocates. The report on the general theme: "Democratic Political Transition and Human Development," focuses on seven main thematic clusters. These state machinery, governance institutions and security establishment, the economy, social development and national cohesion, public and private corporate sector, general human development and theoretical and analytical framework.

The Presidential Transition Bill 2008 was launched by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) and the Ghana Political Parties Programme (GPPP) to end polarisation and acrimony that has greeted transition in the Fourth Republic.

The Bill is aims to make smooth transition from one government to the other and institutionalising a multi-partisan framework and ground rules and regulations to govern and guide transitions. Dr Akwetey said transitions should be viewed in a broader perspective affecting the social life of all Ghanaians irrespective of political persuasion.

He said the lack of a governance political transitional structure had over the years contributed to the increasing rate of corruption among public officials.

Speaking on the 2010 UNDP Report, Dr Kamil Kamaluddeen, UNDP Country Director, said the 20th anniversary edition of the HDR would examine decades of HD data trends, refine the original HD Index with new databases and methodologies and introduce new measures adjusting the Index to reflect gender disparities and other internal national inequalities.

He said the 2010 HDR also featured the multidimensional poverty index (MPI), which was developed by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) with UNDP support. This new index is designed to provide a fuller and more accurate picture of acute poverty on the household level than traditional "dollar-a-day" formulas. Dr Kamaluddeen said since 1990 the HDR had published the human development index (HDI) which looked beyond GDP to a broader definition of well-being.

He said the HDI provided a composite measure of three dimensions of human development: living a long and healthy life (measured by life expectancy), being educated (measured by adult literacy and gross enrolment in education) and having a decent standard of living (measured by purchasing power parity (PPP) income). Dr Kamaluddeen said HDI also provided a broadened prism for viewing human progress and the complex relationship between income and well-being.

The report would seek to give a coherent and cogent expression to concerns about the impact of democratic political transition on contemporary human development programmes and bring to the fore the need for radical changes for institutionalization of structures to handle the problem adequately.

Source: GNA

International Literacy Day celebrations commemorated with a National symposium and exhibition

The 2010 International Literacy Day Celebration has being commemorated with a Grand National Symposium and Exhibition. The program which was put together by the Non-Formal Education Division (NFED) of the Ministry of Education brought together key stakeholders such as Prof. Yaw Oheneba-Sakyi, Director, Institute of Continuing Education and Distance Learning, University of Ghana, Rev. Dr. Fred Deegbe, General Secretary, Christian Council of Ghana and Mrs. Gifty Baka, a Program Manager of Action Aid, Ghana who presented papers on the theme of the celebration “Functional Literacy – A Key to Job Creation and Poverty Reduction” and gave a profound insight into what Functional Literacy can do to create jobs and reduce poverty.

Speaking at the symposium in Accra last week, the Minister of Education Alex Tettey-Enyo said his ministry Ministry will support the establishment of a computer literacy and ICT Centers in the districts for the training of graduates of the NFLP as part of its post-literacy Program in order to open up job opportunities for the productive youth and especially women and girls seeking ways of creating wealth to improve their socio-economic conditions. This is in view of the fact that computer literacy itself provides thousands of job opportunities and is also a caveat for poverty reduction. “This era of information technology, literacy has gone beyond reading, writing and numeracy to include the use of ICT to identify sources of information in the global information super highway, the internet”.

“Am happy that plans are far advanced for the commencement of the NFED Vocational English Literacy Project in dress making and hairdressing which is expected to provide a building bridge for the professional development of learners in their requisite trades. If it proves successful, which I know it will, more trades such as masonry, carpentry, auto mechanics, joinery will be added” he said.

Mr. Tettey-Enyo said “it was virtually impossible for them to confidently lead the crusade to sweep illiteracy out of dear country and wish to confidently affirm that m, in order to construct a smooth road for our socio-economic development, it is imperative for all and sundry to put our shoulders to the wheel to ensure that the burden being exerted on the country’s economy by illiteracy is reduced if not totally eliminated. The pace of the NFLP in ensuring the eradication of illiteracy in Ghana is too slow and need to be accelerated a bit faster. I have noted with serious concern the current inadequate budget allocation to the NFED which is making y Ministry will take a critical look at increasing the budget allocation to NFED. In addition, my Ministry is in the process of sourcing external donor funding for the implementation of the Third Phase of the NFLP. We therefore invite all donor agencies interested in the development and progresses of this country to take up the challenge of funding the Third Phase to enable us reduce illiteracy to single digits and also to empower women.”

Talking on some achievements, he said it was gratifying to note that the NFED has provided functional literacy in 15 major local languages in Ghana in addition to English . “Through the development activities of literacy classes, several communities have benefited from the resourcefulness of adult literacy learners. Learners have been able to provide hand dug wells, constructed schools, nurseries, markets and planted trees in their communities in order to facilitate development in their areas of abode. It is reassuring that learners have not kept the skills they have acquired to themselves but used them to the benefit of their communities. Through Functional Literacy, women participants have contributed to family incomes.”

The Minister commended the management and Staff of the NFED, other providers of literacy in Ghana as well us collaborators of the NFLP for their immense contribution to the reduction of illiteracy in our dear country. “I want to extend special felicitations to the numerous volunteer facilitators, chiefs and other opinion leaders and district, municipal and metropolitan assemblies in the country for the contribution they have made towards improving the living conditions of their non-literate brothers and sisters”.

Functional literacy is indispensable in modern society. There is virtually nothing that could be done by an individual without utilizing reading, writing and numeracy skills.

To be literate is to be intellectually empowered. Intellectual empowerment leads to freedom and people who possess individual freedom have been able to discover their own identities and worked towards achieving them.

Functional literacy is the catalyst for realizing dreams, achieving goals and attaining objectives. Without Literacy, the world around us will be static, without promise and hope. There will be no cracking power to spark the engine of individual growth and development. There will be no key to open the door to development and achievement. The whole world will be locked up in a prison of underdevelopment and backwardness.

Countries with high illiteracy rate are at the cross roads of development and have become helpless and powerless to push the agenda of development forward.

BY: Michael Amedor

Cold war at GT Bank

Trouble is brewing at one of the emerging banks in the country, Guaranty Trust Bank (GT bank) Ghana Limited, over the alleged unfair treatment of workers by management.

The situation has led to a state of uneasiness among junior and mid-career workers of the bank who feel insecure at the hands of management.

This follows the dismissal of one Kwame Osiang Adjekum, an assistant banking officer with the bank.

A dismissal letter jointly signed by the bank’s head of Human Resource, Susan Okine and Group Head of Corporate Services, Iris Richter-Addo dated September 7, 2010, did not state the reason for the termination of Mr. Adjekum’s appointment.

It only said “your services are no longer required by the bank.”

The bank has since asked him to arrange to have his identification card, lapel pin, credit policy guide and all other documents belonging to the bank returned to the human resource department.

They have also resolved to communicate their indebtedness to Mr. Adjekum and whatever entitlements due him, including a month’s salary in lieu of notice by 30th September 2010.

His dismissal has sent threatening signals to workers of the bank since they feel insecure at the developments.

Several of these workers have been speaking with DAILY GUIDE on condition of anonymity about the cold treatment being meted out to them at the bank.

Public Relations Officer of the Labour Commission, Mohammed Affum, says the Commission has waded into the ‘strange’ circumstance under which Mr. Adjekum was dismissed from the bank, after he filed a petition at the Commission.

In his petition, a copy of which is in the possession of DAILY GUIDE, Mr. Adjekum stressed the belief that he was dismissed for the wrong reasons.

He narrated the circumstances leading to his dismissal following a complaint to his bosses by the Managing Director of Afrotropic Cocoa Processing Company (ACPL), Carlo Dagnino.

Dagnino was said to have visited the bank on Friday, September 3, 2010 without a scheduled appointment and on arrival called Mr Adjekum’s personal mobile phone.

The petition indicated that the victim had then left his phone on his desk and gone to the washroom.

Thinking that Mr. Adjekum was avoiding him or his calls, Mr. Dagnino proceeded to lodge a complaint with the MD of GT bank, Dolapo Ogundimu.

Dolapo then invited Mr. Adjekum to his office and demanded his mobile phone in the presence of the General Manager, Jamiu Yussuf and the Group Head of Consumer banking, Anthony Mensah, which he respectfully gave out.

He followed it up with the submission of his itemized bill indicating the call traffic between him and the client which indicated that he had been in touch with the said client.

Despite this fact, Mr. Adjekum said that Dolapo called for his resignation before close of day on Friday or have his appointment terminated. Dolapo went on to make allegations that he took this action because a customer had called him 10 times in two days without answering the calls.

This, Mr. Adjekum described as erroneous since he had visited the customer’s office on the previous Thursday with the Head of Risk Management, Daniel Gaikpah, who saw the number of times he spoke with the customer, both on the way to and from the customer’s office and factory.

Mr. Adjekum thus believes that he was wrongfully dismissed and thus asked the Labour Commission and whoever might be concerned to intervene in the matter.

When contacted, GT bank’s Head of Human Resources, Susan Okine, she said she was at a meeting and could not talk.

Even though she promised to call back, she never did.

Guaranty Trust Bank was registered in Ghana in October 2004 and obtained its universal banking licence from the Bank of Ghana on 23rd February, 2006, thereby paving the way for the commencement of operations.

The bank is a subsidiary of Guaranty Trust Bank Nigeria Plc which owns 95.72% of the issued share capital of the bank with Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij Ontwikkelingslanden N.V. (FMO) holding 2.14% and Alhaji Yusif Ibrahim, a Ghanaian business entrepreneur, holding the remaining 2.14%.
Source : Daily Guide

Sawla-Tuna-Kalba DCE Dead

Information reaching peacefmonline.com indicates that the District Chief Executive(DCE) of the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District in the Northern Region,Hon. Alhaji Shakour Bukari Alhassan has died.

He died when the vehicle he was travelling with from Bole to Sawla was involved in an accident in the afternoon of Saturday May 22.

According to reports received from Peace Fm’s Northern Regional correspondent,Kwabena Ntow,the DCE had his car somersaulting three times after he failed to control his steer at a top speed in a sharp curve.

The 32-year old DCE died with two(2) other National Democratic Congress(NDC) activists in his official ford vehicle on their way to his district on official duty.

His body has since been deposited at the Sawla Government Hospital Mortuary.

Tullow To Begin Massive Exploration

... Oil giant seeks more black gold in Ghana, rest of world

Tullow Oil plc (Tullow), Operator of the Jubilee Field in Ghana, is set to commence a new round of massive oil exploration campaign with up to four wells in the company’s Deepwater Tano license in Ghana. The search for the black gold due to start in June this year follows the company’s successful work at the Tweneboa-2 oil well.

Tullow’s fresh exploration will not be limited to Ghana. Significant wells are also planned in Liberia, Sierra Leone, French Guyana and Guyana to test the extension of the Jubilee play in the Equatorial Atlantic region.

Tullow goes into these massive exploratory works, while looking forward to its first oil flow from Ghana’s Jubilee Field in the last quarter of this year. The company sees the expected oil flow in Ghana as a landmark event for itself, its partners and the people of Ghana.

According to Tullow, besides the Jubilee Field programme and plans for an accelerated basin-wide development to significantly enhance the value of the Lake Albert Rift Basin in Uganda, “a high-impact drilling campaign is planned for the second half of 2010.”

Given the extent of this activity, Tullow's Board believes the outlook for 2010 is very positive.

In an Interim Management Statement released on May 12, 2010, the Group said it would announce its half year Trading Statement and Operational Update on 6 July 2010. The release said Tullow has continued to perform very strongly in 2010. Tullow said it has also strengthened its balance sheet by completing a £925 million equity placing. GHANA Giving an Operational Update on its activities in Ghana, Tullow cited the commissioning of ‘FPSO Kwame Nkrumah MV21’, named after Ghana’s first president. The official Commissioning of the FPSO was performed in Singapore on May 1, 2010. The vessel will set sail for Ghana at the end of May, to be connected to subsea equipment which have since been installed on the seabed. According to Tullow, the drilling phase of the project was finished in February 2010 and completion equipment are now being installed in the wells with production scheduled to commence in late 2010, while ongoing well completion work continue for a further three to six months. During this period, facilities will be commissioned and production will be steadily ramped up to an expected plateau rate of 120,000 barrels of oil per day, Tullow announced. They disclosed that in January, the Tweneboa-2 appraisal well in the Deep Water Tano license proved Tweneboa to be a major oil and gas-condensate field. The potential of this expansive 200sqkm turbidity fan system will be evaluated with an exploration and appraisal drilling campaign scheduled to commence next month. According to Tullow, drilling will start on the high-impact Owo-1 exploration well, which will test the upside potential of the greater Tweneboa resource range in the West of the structure. “This will be followed by a well on the Onyina prospect, which lies between the Jubilee and Tweneboa fields. The rig will then return to the Tweneboa field to drill further exploratory appraisal wells. In parallel, conceptual field development planning is in progress with the aim of completing an assessment of field commerciality in mid-2011. “In April, the Atwood Hunter rig drilled the Dahoma-1 well, in the southeast Jubilee area, some 11 km down-dip from known oil. Water bearing reservoirs were encountered below a possible oil-water contact. “Indications of oil migration in the reservoirs suggest potential for oil trapped up-dip. The rig is now drilling Mahogany-5 to test up-dip oil accumulations east of Mahogany-3,” the statement revealed. Uganda In Uganda, Tullow announced that it has made significant progress towards aligning equity interests across the Lake Albert Rift Basin. According to Tullow, on 17 January 2010, it exercised its right of pre-emption on the Heritage Oil Plc asset sale to acquire a 50% interest in Blocks 1 and 3A for a consideration of up to US$1.5 billion. Tullow said on 2 February 2010, a formal request was submitted for consent from the Government of Uganda for the assets to be transferred to Tullow, and the government has indicated its intention to approve this transaction in the next few weeks. Tullow said it has been working closely with the Government of Uganda to farm down a proportion of its interests in the Basin and has selected two partners, “CNOOC and Total, and each partner will acquire a one-third interest in each of the three blocks.” Tullow said the move “will result in a unified partnership with considerable technical, operational and financial capability. In addition, it will enable Uganda to become a significant oil producing nation with the potential to produce at rates significantly in excess of 200,000 bopd. The new partnership arrangements will be finalised and approved shortly after the pre-emption”. Tullow disclosed that “in Block 2, the Kasamene-2 and Kasamene-3 appraisal wells were drilled in January and March respectively. The wells successfully delineated the upside potential of this field and provided essential reservoir data for the future development project. Extended well testing on the Kasamene field is expected to commence in the second half of 2010, and the crude oil produced will be trucked to local industry. The ultimate objective of this appraisal programme is to support the development of the field with first commercial oil production targeted for the fourth quarter of 2011. “In April, the Kasamene-3A well made a further oil discovery adjacent to the Kasamene field in the Wahrindi North fault block. The rig has now moved to drill the Nzizi-3 appraisal well as part of the Nzizi gas development project, and the well is expected to complete later this month. First commercial gas production is targeted for the fourth quarter of 2011. “To facilitate an accelerated Exploration and Appraisal programme, a second rig is due to commence drilling in Block 1 in June 2010. The programme will include appraisal of the Ngiri (Warthog) discovery and a comprehensive exploration campaign, east of the Jobi-Rii field, including the material Mpyo (Crocodile), Bbegeri (Leopard) and Jobi-East prospects, before year end. Additional rig capacity is currently being procured for later in the year.” Rest of Africa Production performance from the African portfolio is in line with expectations. In April, Tullow completed the first of two planned wells in the Ruvuma Basin in southern Tanzania. The Likonde-1 well, located in the Lindi block, encountered thick sands with hydrocarbon shows which are encouraging for the future potential of the basin. In Gabon, drilling in the Onal licence area has yielded the Maroc Nord OMOC-N-1 discovery where Tullow has a 7.5% interest. Further wells are planned to appraise this discovery and additional prospects are being drilled in the region where Tullow has back-in rights. In addition, the Noix de Coco-1 well in the Azobe exploration license commenced drilling in April and is expected to reach total depth later this month. In the Equatorial Atlantic area, plans for four high-impact wells in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Mauritania during the second half of the year are well advanced. Europe Gas production in the UK is ahead of expectations. A well performance optimisation campaign on the Schooner and Ketch fields yielded excellent results and the Thames fields have performed strongly. An infill well on the Ketch field is expected to commence in May with drilling operations forecast to take approximately three months, with first production expected by year end. On 25 March, Tullow exited its exploration interests in Portugal. South Asia

In Bangladesh, production remains steady at 120mmscfd, the maximum processing capacity of the facilities. In March 2010, a hydrocarbon dewpoint control system was commissioned which has resulted in a considerable increase in condensate recovery from the gas stream and delivery of gas to the main pipeline. In Pakistan, drilling operations on the Shekhan-1 well are ongoing with results expected later this month.

South America

Activity has focused on the transform margin from Guyana through Suriname to French Guiana where the Group is seeking to replicate its success in Ghana. Acquisition of a 2,500sqkm 3D seismic survey in French Guiana was completed in March and initial interpretations are very encouraging. Plans are progressing for drilling operations to commence in both French Guiana and Guyana around year-end.

By J. Ato Kobbie/The Business Analyst

I stand for party's unity – Prof Frimpong-Boateng

Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, Flagbearer aspirant of New Patriotic Party (NPP), on Wednesday declared: “I stand for unity of our party, a pre-requisite for victory in Election 2012”.


He said NPP must reduce intra party antagonism, bickering and any negative tendencies that had the potential of derailing the party’s quest to regain power by electing a candidate who cut across any perceived divide.

“I am offering to lead our great party not because it is my turn but in order to secure a platform to transform the fortune of Ghana and Ghanaians,” Prof Frimpong-Boateng stated in Accra, as he officially launched his bid to contest for the Presidential primaries of the party for Election 2012.

He tagged the campaign as; “Forging Unity in the NPP Family in the Service of Our Great Nation; A Mission for Modernisation”.

Prof Frimpong-Boateng said: “ I want young people to have the education that would equip them with skills, vocation, knowledge and experience to enable them manufacture, fix and repair things as well as solve problems of this 21st Century”.

On ethnocentrism, he said his leadership would unite and work with all ethnic groups to help their rapid development to enhance livelihood of the citizenry.

Prof Frimpong-Boateng urged delegates to elect him as a flagbearer since he had the required technical skills to transform the nation’s economy in the fight against poverty, ineptitude, disease, drug abuse, filth, crime, indiscipline and incompetence.

“I am offering to lead our great party because I am passionate about healthy food, potable water, affordable housing, and reliable electricity and transport accessible to all,” he added.

Prof. Frimpong-Boateng promised to encourage women to participate more seriously in the socio-economic development of the country.

He said when given the mantle issues relating to corruption that cost the African continent about 148 billion dollars a year would be a thing of the past.

Prof Frimpong-Boateng said “If we are unable to deal with corruption in all its shades and sizes then we should as well forget about any dreams of achieving economic breakthrough.

“Ghanaians entrusted me all these years with their ailing heart. Surely you can trust me with the heart of our great party and the heart of our nation at a time when we all need healing”.

Ga Mantse Caught

*.Asks Security Agencies To Disrespect Supreme Court *

*.But Ga Chief Say He Should Rather Be Blacklisted *

Days after launching a vile attack on President Mills and some of his advisors, labeling them as "standard seven boys," because he and some Ga chiefs feel unimportant to the president, the Ga Mantse has been caught setting a vicious trap which could stir up trouble in an already volatile environment.

The Herald has laid hands on a letter purportedly authored by the Ga Mantse, Nii Tachie Tawiah III, asking the security agencies to disrespect a Supreme Court ruling on the Gbese chieftaincy dispute, and give his man, Nii Tetteh Quaye II, protection to enable him celebrate the forthcoming Homowo festival.

This is in spite of a decision by the highest court of the land on April 27, this year, that Mr. Thomas Okine of Accra Hearts of Oak fame should occupy the Gbese palace as the lawful Gbese Mantse under the stool name Nii Ayi Bonte II. This was after a protracted legal battle between the Ga Mantse’s favourite, Nii Okaidja III and Mr. Thomas Okine.

But the Ga Mantse insists that although the Ga Traditional Council is aware of the decision by the Supreme Court on the occupation of the Gbese Palace, it has decided to set aside all contending parties in Gbese and place the performance of rites and ceremonies under the supervision of Ga Dzasetse, Nii Tetteh Quaye II, to prevent any public disturbance.

Nii Tackie Tawiah III in his letter dated May 10, 2010 attributed his call to disregard the Supreme Court decision to what he claimed are opinions expressed in the media on aspects of the matter thus sparking “grave uncertainty”, hence the Ga Traditional Council has resolved to take control of the Homowo celebration in order to minimize any incidental conflicts.

Nii Tachie Tawiah’s letter which was served on the Inspector General of Police (IGP), the Greater Accra Regional Minister, the Minister of Chieftaincy and Culture as well as all media houses demanded all security agencies to co-operate fully with the council on this decision.

When reached, the Gbese Mantse was utterly shocked at the letter especially when the Supreme Court has declared him the proper custodian of the Gbese Mantse Palace, and described the Ga Mantse, known in private life as Dr. Jo Blankson, as a fraudster and a lawless person.

In an interview yesterday in his pharmaceutical office near the Rawlings Park in Accra, Nii Ayi-Bonte, threatened to drag the Ga Mantse to the Supreme Court on contempt charges for what he called “his blatant disregard for the highest court”.

According to him, the Gas currently have no king and “whoever is claiming to be the king of the Gas is a fraud” and must not be entertained by the public especially the security agencies. Present at the interview was Nii Bi Ayi-Bontey, former Member of Parliament for Odododiodioo and one other person.

Brandishing, a copy of the Supreme Court judgment, Nii Ayi Bonte, told The Herald that he has been given the authority to perform the necessary traditional rites and ceremonies towards the celebration of the Homowo, and he has since taken over the palace and performed some of the rites.

He warned the security agencies not to offer any form of protection sought by Dr. Blankson to celebrate the annual Homowo festival, adding “when the Supreme Court gives a ruling even the president must obey. He is a trouble maker and the security agencies must watch him”.

The Gbese Mantse maintained that Dr. Blankson was not customarily nominated, elected and installed as Ga Mantse and even the Abola Kpiam Royal Family which he claims he hails from, has disowned him, therefore, he is not recognized and must henceforth desist from holding himself out as Ga Mantse.

Another person who identified himself as the Ga Dzasetse, in a separate interview, asked that the Ga Mantse who prefers to be called Dr. Jo Blankson, must be ignored.

Nii Yartey Otoga, described Dr. Jo Blankson as a provocative person who the security agencies must keep on their radar else he would cause trouble.

He advised Dr. Jo Blankson to deal with all the numerous cases filed against him before the Greater Accra House of Chiefs by all the royal families; Nii Amugi We, Teiko Tsru We, Tachie Kommey We and the Abola Kpiam We and get himself gazetted before holding claim to Ga Stool.

Both The Gbese Mantse and Ga Dzasetse denied knowing who Nii Tetteh Quaye II is, and his connection to Ga Mantse?

Meanwhile, documents obtained from the Supreme Court by this paper revealed that the court has by majority decision ruled in favour of Mr. Okine to take control of the Gbese Mantse’s Palace in Accra.

The Supreme Court judges who sat on the case include Justice Sophia Akuffo, Justice Mrs. S.O.A. Adinyira, Justice Sule Gbadebge, Justice Mrs. V. Akoto-Bamfo with Justice William Atuguba, the Deputy Chief Justice presiding.

Nii TackieTawiah III whose status as Ga Mantse has consistently been challenged recently openly criticized President Mills for ignoring him and other Ga chiefs by refusing to invite them to state functions since he took office in 2009. But government insists Nii Tackie Tawiah II must first be gazetted before he will be officially recognized.

However, the Ga Mantse insists it was time President Mills discards the notion that he (the GaMantse), was installed by the NPP government; therefore his administration will never be associated with him. He accused the Mills' administration of deliberately sidelining him and sought to remind the president that Ga chiefs are not fools to be sitting in Accra and not be invited to state functions.

"The President of the Republic of Ghana is so fully persuaded that the NPP had installed the Ga Mantse, the least he can do is provide evidential proof. He must be able to tell us how this manifested. He more than anybody else knows that this is impossibility. Additionally, we're not fools sitting in Accra, because the President cannot proceed on the basis he is doing," he averred.

A visibly angry and highly agitated NiiTackieTawiah opened up to what he perceives as injustices being perpetuated by the Mills' administration against the Ga State during an exclusive press briefing held after a durbar of chiefs at the GaMantse's palace recently.

By Larry-Alans Dogbey

Africans look up to Ghana as a toast - Bagbin

Mr Alban Kingsford Bagbin, Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, on Tuesday observed that the rest of Africa was looking up to Ghana as a toast to move the continent forward. He said in order not to fail people on the continent, Ghanaians should strive to live on values and principles, and work hard to improve the lives of majority of the people.

Mr Bagbin made the observation when he paid his maiden working visit to the Tema Development Corporation (TDC) in Tema to interact with management and staff of the Corporation. He pointed out that the country would not develop if the citizenry continued to live in the culture of corruption. The Minister, therefore, advised Ghanaians to reflect soberly on their lives, and strive to lead upright lives devoid of corrupt practices. Mr Bagbin advised management of TDC to guard against gluttony and greed in the allocation of lands, since they were major drawbacks on the country's development efforts.

On encroachments, he pointed out that they were part of insanity and indiscipline in society, and appealed to the law enforcement agencies to assist TDC to enforce the laws on its encroached lands. He advised management and staff of the corporation to help reduce land litigations at the law courts, by ensuring that the right thing was done at the right time.

Mr Joe Abbey, Acting Managing Director of TDC, expressed worry about regular encroachments on the corporation's lands at Communities 23 and 24 by land guards, and urged the Ministry to help abate the encroachments. Mr Abbey suggested that a ministerial intervention was the only possible way of bringing an end to the impasse between the Corporation and the Tema Metropolitan Assembly on the issuing of land permits.

Kasa Organises Financial Management Workshop for CSOs in the Natural Resource and Environment Sector

Kasa, a civil society support mechanism operates within the natural resource and environment sector in Ghana with the main objective of supporting civil society, research and media organisations to advocate in a concerted manner for transparency and accountability in the natural resource and environment sector.

The project facilitates strengthening of civil society engagement in natural resource and environment sector through supporting of research and evidence-based advocacy, provision of grants to aid organisations in their work and facilitate information-sharing platforms between stakeholders in the sub-sectors of forestry, mining, environment, oil and gas, etc in various national forums bringing together state and non-state actors.

Capacity building support is another core tenet of Kasa’s work through which learning events are organised to meet capacity building needs of partners. In line with this, a financial management training workshop is being organised for fifty-two (52) financial staff of partner civil society organisations working in the sub-sectors of mining, environment, land, forestry, the media and others. These organisations have a national spread from the north to the south of the country.

The three day programme which is being held in Noda Hotel, Kumasi from May 17-19, 2010 has the objective of assisting participants to enhance skills in financial management and to ensure that partner financial officers have a clear understanding of the basic financial books and records that need to be kept to present a complete true and fair view of the financial activities of their organisation. Some of the areas for the training include general principles of Donor Funds Management, Budget and Budgetary controls, Roles and Responsibilities of Finance and Programme Management, etc.

At the opening session, the Kasa Project Manager mentioned that, the Financial Management Workshop is important because Kasa provides grants to partners to facilitate their in their different sub-sectors and this brings into sharp focus the essential point of providing grantees with the current trends in financial management principles in order for funding to be well utilised and to upgrade the skills of partners to be able to source for funding from various organisations and manage it well in order for continuity in their work in the sector.

Participants’ expectations cut across learning on internal controls, managing risks, the role of budgets, basic accounting principles and budgetary controls, financial transparency and the issue of fraud both perceived and real.

In the first session of the workshop presentations on the issues of Corporate Governance and General Principles of Donor Funds were made and a discussion session followed to clarify some issues. Under general financial management the issues to be highlighted during the workshop are issues of accountability and internationally acceptable financial standards, budgets and financial planning, internal controls, book-keeping and accounting, Financial Reporting etc.

At the end of the workshop it is expected that participants would have enhanced their knowledge and skills in the concepts of financial management and review of financial reports and also be exposed to donor guidelines for grants.

Nigerian Pirates Seize Ghanaian Captain

Pirates have demanded a one-and-half-million dollar ransom for two sailors they seized at the weekend off the coast of Cameroon but close to Nigeria, a Nigerian navy officer said on Tuesday.

A Ghanaian captain and his Cameroonian engineer were attacked on Saturday off the restive Bakassi peninsula and taken from their vessel, Nigerian Navy spokesman commodore David Nabaida told AFP.

The yet-unidentified pirates "have asked for a ransom of 1.5 million dollars (1.1 million euros)," said Nabaida, adding the seamen are being held in Abana. Abana, a major town in oil-rich Bakassi peninsula, was part of Nigeria before the territory was ceded to Cameroon.

"MV Seagull was coming from Cameroon when it was attacked very close to Bakassi peninsula in the Cameroonian waters," he said.



"They (the pirates) didn't find anything valuable to steal, so they took the captain and the engineer off the ship," added Nabaida.

The ship, which is believed to be used for general trading along the west coast of Africa, has been towed to Nigeria's southern coastal city of Calabar, capital of Cross River State.

Seven Chinese fishermen were this month freed by an armed gang in Cameroon's southwest Bakassi region after a six-day hostage ordeal.

Several groups, mostly armed, are active in the Bakassi peninsula, which was handed over to Cameroon by Nigeria in August 2008 under an international court settlement of a border dispute between Douala and Abuja.

The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) identified Africa as a piracy hotspot following an increase in attacks in 2008, with Somali and Nigerian waters the most dangerous for seafarers.
Source:AFP
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India celebrates ITEC day in Accra

The High Commission of India in Accra has formally celebrated the Indian Technical and Economic Corporation program (ITEC) day over the weekends at the residence of the High Commissioner in Accra.

The program was launched by the Government of India on September 15^th, 1964 as a bilateral program to assist developing countries like Ghana.

Speaking at the event, India High Commissioner to Ghana said, ITEC program has really benefited thousands of students and professionals from Africa including Ghana. Her Excellency Ruchi Ghanashyam said “Government of India bears the entire cost of the program and since its inception in 1964, spends over Rs 500million annually on ITEC activities and provided technical assistance of more than $2billion to developing countries”.

Since the commencement of the program, over 1100 Ghanaian students and professionals have been trained in India. They have also benefitted from other existing schemes such as annual scholarships awarded by Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR) to Ghanaian students to pursue undergraduate/post graduate and higher courses in India such as United Nation Peacekeeping courses, professional courses for Foreign Diplomats and ‘Know India Programme’ for Ghanaian Citizens of India origin among others.

Her Excellency Ghanashyam further reiterated that, India’s initiatives such as “Focus Africa Policy”, TEAM-9 and ITEC have strengthened cooperation between the two countries which today extends to key sectors of agriculture, rural electrification, infrastructure and human resource development.

“I commend the two personnel from the Ghana Narcotic Control Board who have returned to Ghana with their two Indian dogs, Sunny and Fame after receiving training in narcotic dog training course at the National Training Centre for Dogs, Border Security Force Academy in Tekanpur, Madhya Pradesh, India.” She said this training will help the Government of Ghana fight vigorously against narcotic trafficking in the country.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional integration of Ghana, Alhaji Muhammad Mumuni commended the high Commission and the people of India for the long fruitful relationship between the two countries. He also commended the Indian Government as a whole in offering great assistance to Africans especially Ghanaians in diverse fields of human development which has contributed positively to the Ghanaian economy. “I pledge Governments total support to these programs anytime the need arises”.

Source: Michael Amedor

Passion for Needy pays tribute to the recent past commanding officer of Nsawam prison

Passion for Needy, a local Non Governmental Organization (NGO) has paid tribute in memory of the recent past Commanding Officer of the Nsawam medium prisons, DDP Alexander Ansong-Agyepong.

This was at a short ceremony during which the organization took the opportunity to donate items worth GH¢1,201 to the inmates of both the male and female prisons at Nsawam.

Mrs. Janet Torgbor El-Aschker, chairperson of Passion for Needy said that the news of the incidence came as a shock to the organization members. She lamented that the nation cannot continue to loose the needed human resource through road accident.

Finally, she appealed to drivers to ensure safety on our roads since nothing can replace human life.

Superintendent of Prisons, Richmond Adiaba who received the items on behalf of the inmates, thanked the NGO for their continuous

Some items donated included, washing powder and soap, ladies under wears and pressing iron.

Source: Isaac Ametepe

Ghana and Germany Joining Forces to Promote the Agric Sector

The Government of Ghana and KfW, the German Development Bank acting on behalf of the German Government signed on Monday a loan and financing agreement for a 10.0 million Euros loan and a 1.0 million Euros grant for the establishment of an “Outgrower and Value Chain Fund” (OVCF).

The Agreement was jointly signed by Honorable Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning and Dr. Klaus Mueller, KfW First Vice President in the presence of Mrs. Harriet Ludwig (Head of Cooperation at the German Embassy), Mr. Martin Mueller (GTZ Director West Africa and Pan-African Programmes), Dr. Helmut Schoen (KfW Country Director, Accra), and Mr. Fred Brandl (GTZ Country Director, Accra).

The ceremony was attended by Hon E. T Mensah (Minister, Employment and Social Welfare), Mr. Okyere-Nyako (MoFEP Director Bilateral) and other officials from MoFEP.

Agriculture is one of the three focal sectors of German Development Cooperation with the overall goal to improve the income of the rural population by supporting value chain approaches and strengthening small scale commercial farmers.

Access to finance is a major problem for the development of the agricultural sector. This problem is specifically addressed by the Outgrower and Value Chain Fund which will provide improved access to medium to long term financing of investments by small scale farmers and will contribute to the development of outgrower schemes and the integration of small holder farmers into market oriented agricultural development.

To further underline the importance of the agricultural sector for Ghana the German Government announced on the same day the new commitment of an amount of 3 Mio. € for technical assistance for this sector. This is additional to the 130 Mio. € envelope already committed to Ghana in December 2009.

The visit of two high ranking officials from the Headquarters of two of the major implementing agencies of Germany’s support - from KfW Development Bank and GTZ -demonstrate the joint approach in the sector.

The Government of Ghana and KfW, the German Development Bank acting on behalf of the German Government signed on Monday a loan and financing agreement for a 10.0 million Euros loan and a 1.0 million Euros grant for the establishment of an “Outgrower and Value Chain Fund” (OVCF).

The Agreement was jointly signed by Honorable Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning and Dr. Klaus Mueller, KfW First Vice President in the presence of Mrs. Harriet Ludwig (Head of Cooperation at the German Embassy), Mr. Martin Mueller (GTZ Director West Africa and Pan-African Programmes), Dr. Helmut Schoen (KfW Country Director, Accra), and Mr. Fred Brandl (GTZ Country Director, Accra).

The ceremony was attended by Hon E. T Mensah (Minister, Employment and Social Welfare), Mr. Okyere-Nyako (MoFEP Director Bilateral) and other officials from MoFEP.

Agriculture is one of the three focal sectors of German Development Cooperation with the overall goal to improve the income of the rural population by supporting value chain approaches and strengthening small scale commercial farmers.

Access to finance is a major problem for the development of the agricultural sector. This problem is specifically addressed by the Outgrower and Value Chain Fund which will provide improved access to medium to long term financing of investments by small scale farmers and will contribute to the development of outgrower schemes and the integration of small holder farmers into market oriented agricultural development.

To further underline the importance of the agricultural sector for Ghana the German Government announced on the same day the new commitment of an amount of 3 Mio. € for technical assistance for this sector. This is additional to the 130 Mio. € envelope already committed to Ghana in December 2009.

The visit of two high ranking officials from the Headquarters of two of the major implementing agencies of Germany’s support - from KfW Development Bank and GTZ -demonstrate the joint approach in the sector.

PR Section/ German Embassy,Accra

Silverbird Watch & Fly Promotion Flies Vera Armah to Kenya

“This must be a joke; you don’t mean I’m going on a trip to Nairobi with my partner this Easter holiday, for just shopping at the Silverbird Lifestyle stores?” Vera Armah, winner of the month long Silverbird Watch & Fly Promotion asked, when she was called on the phone by officials of Silverbird and Kenya Airways in the presence of the press and other shoppers with the good news after the grand draw today at the Silverbird Lifestyle Store.

The watch & Fly Promotion was organised by Silverbird in collaboration with Kenya Airways to reward loyal customers of both companies. The lucky winner and her partner will go to Nairobi on a pleasure trip with Kenya Airways. Vera and her partner will have the unique opportunity to experience Silverbird in Kenya and also go on a Safari at the Nairobi National Park which is home to beautiful African animals.

General Manager Albert Mensah said, “We are delighted that we bring so much joy to our customers. Silverbird is all about entertainment and total entertainment means enjoying exotic and out-of-the-ordinary experiences such going on a trip to interesting places. This is what we have done. We just gave out a car to a lucky customer to commemorate our first year anniversary in Ghana. There is more to come in the basket because for Silverbird, the limit is not yet defined”.

Launched in February 2010, customers had the opportunity to enter the Silverbird ‘Watch & Fly Promo’ by only spending Thirty Ghana Cedis (GHC30) or more at the Silverbird Cinemas or at the Silverbird Lifestyle Store. Vera Armah, the lucky winner spent Eighty-eight Ghana Cedis, Fifty Pesewas (GHC88.50) at the Lifestyle Stores and will fly to Kenya for the fun-packed all-expense paid trip.

Kenya Airways is one of the leading and most respected airlines in Africa; flying to the most popular, leisure and business cities in Africa and the world. Silverbird Entertainment Ghana Limited a joint venture between the Silverbird Group and Global Media Alliance (GMA) and is one of the leading entertainment companies in Africa with major holdings in major cities in Africa. The Silverbird Group boasts of excellent locations in Kenya with 18 screens at five premier shopping centers.

Source : Brooke Nuwati

Bench Warrant for Anane, Others If…

The prosecution in the case in which the former Road Transport Minister, Mr Richard Anane, and three others are accused of causing financial loss to the state may request the Fast Track High Court to issue a bench warrant for the arrest of three of the accused persons if they fail to appear before the court today.

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Ms Gertrude Aikins, made the prosecution’s intent known following the inability of Dr Anane, Mr Kwadwo Mpiani, a former Chief Of Staff, and Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, a former Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, to appear before the court yesterday.

The fourth accused person, Sammy Crabbe, a former Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), was, however, present in court with his lawyers.

The four are expected to be charged with stealing, causing financial loss to the state and fraud regarding the roles they played in the formation of Ghana International Airlines (GIA) and the subsequent liquidation of Ghana Airways.

When the matter was called around 9.15am, only Crabbe stood up when his name was called, prompting the trial judge to enquire of the whereabouts of the other accused persons from the prosecution, but Ms Aikins could not explain their absence and further indicated that the three had been duly informed that they were expected to appear before court yesterday.

Counsel for Crabbe, Mr Kwame Boateng, said he and his client did not know which specific court was scheduled to hear the case and for that reason, they had to roam from one court to another before they finally got to know that the matter was before Mr Justice Bright Mensah.
Replying, Ms. Aikins reminded counsel that the matter was a serious one, especially when the accused persons had duly been informed about the court, which was billed to hear the matter.

According to the state, Dr. Anane allegedly misrepresented facts on GIA, which was then not in existence, to Cabinet and misled the then government to pay shares into a fraudulent company.

His action, according to the state, also led to the liquidation of Ghana Airways. Dr. Osei allegedly signed a loan agreement committing the government to a financial obligation of paying GH¢15 million to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT). The SSNIT gave the said amount to the GIA as a loan, without parliamentary approval and at a time when the minority shareholders of the airline had abandoned the company.

Mr Mpiani is alleged to have authorized the release of funds into the GIA, without parliamentary approval. According to the prosecution, which is yet to read the facts of the case to the court, Crabbe, who represented minority shareholders in the company, on June 27, 2005 withdrew $1.9 million from the government of Ghana’s account, without approval from the government (majority shareholder).

It said Dr Anane declared that four companies had expressed interest in the then Ghana Airways and later presented a letter of intent which was signed between the government of Ghana and the GIA to form a new company called the New Ghana Airways (NGA), although the GIA was at that time not in existence.

It said although Prince WaterhouseCoopers had rated the NGA, which had signed an agreement with the government to form the GIA, third beneath KLM and Ghanaair, two companies which had also bid for Ghana Airways, the NGA won the bid.

It said although the memorandum Dr Anane presented to Cabinet to sign was dated September 9, 2004, the GIA was not in existence as of September 9, 2004. It said GIA-USA-LLC was formed in Utah, USA, on September 10, 2004 and further pointed out that Dr Anane misrepresented those facts to Cabinet and fraudulently misled it to pay for shares into a fraudulent company.

According to the state, Mr Mpiani, on June 2, 2005, wrote to the chairman of the government task force on Ghana Airways Limited authorizing the task force to take all necessary steps to put the airline into formal liquidation. The GIA was subsequently formed as a joint venture between the government of Ghana and had its maiden flight on October 29, 2005.

Source: Daily Graphic/Ghana

Government Absorbs Fuel Increase For 2 Weeks

The government has decided to absorb the expected increase in fuel prices in the country for the next two weeks. Government subsidy on fuel between March 16 and April 15, this year amounts to GH¢12million,according to the acting Chief Executive of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Mr. Alex Kofi Mensah Mould. He told the Daily Graphic yesterday that the government decided to absorb the expected increase when the NPA informed it of the rise in the price of oil by 10 per cent since October last year. “There is not going to be any increase in fuel prices. The government has decided to absorb the fuel price,” Mr. Mould said. He said the price of oil hovered between $75 and $80 per barrel. He said the NPA was still monitoring the market and indicated that if the increase was temporary, the NPA would not recommend any increases in the prices of fuel. He explained that that was to curtail any increases in transportation fares, since transport owners increased transport fares whenever fuel prices were increased but refused to reduce the fares if fuel prices went down. Mr. Mould said if the price of oil hit above $80 per barrel or the increases in fuel prices remained permanent, the NPA would recommend an increase in fuel prices. In the same way, he said, if the price of oil went down to between $65 and $70, the NPA would recommend a reduction in fuel prices. He said the government was sensitive to the effect of fuel prices on consumers. Mr. Mould said the NPA had held a stakeholders meeting with the Ministry of Information, the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU and the Ghana Transport Association on how to protect consumers. Source: Daily Graphic

N.G.O Donates to Nsawam Medium Prison Inmates.

Passion for Needy Association, a Non –Governmental Organization (NGO) established by prophet T.B Joshua has donated goods worth two thousand, four hundred and seventy-four Ghana cedis (GH¢2,2474) to inmates of the Nsawam Male and Female medium prisons at Nsawam in the Eastern region.

The items donated includes, drugs, sanitary pads, slippers and printed T-shirts for the “Redeemed singers” of the female prisons. This was donated in response to an appeal made by the authorities of Nsawam prison and inmates.

Presenting the items, the chairperson of Passion for Needy, Mrs. Janet Torgbor El-Aschkar said, the organization will continue to meet the needs of people as to when it is called to do since it forms part of the organizations objectives.

Deputy Director of Prisons and the officer-in-charge of the Nsawam Prisons, AlexanderAnsong Adjapong who received the items on behalf of the inmates thanked the NGO for their kind gesture, especially for the quick response to the appeal made.

A short church service was held after the donation to encourage the inmates and the need to develop their spiritual lives.

Present at the presentation were Maame Araba Dadson, Mrs.Irene Nuama Donkor, Mr.Samuel Sackey, Anthony Haick, executives and other members of the NGO.

Source :Isaac Ametepe

MP apologises for 'wild' sex allegation

MP for Evalue-Gwira, Catherine Afeku has apologized for wrongfully accusing a section of women of being sexual appendages on sports trips.

In an interview with Joy News’Sammy Darko on Wednesday, the embattled MP said her assertions were to help curtail the exploitation of women in the country.

Mrs Afeku on the floor of parliament Tuesday alleged that one of the criteria for selecting the women delegation to Angola to support the Black Stars in their game against Egypt was their ability to provide sex to their male counterparts.

The women were part of some 440 government sponsored supporters who went to Angola on Sunday to lend support to the the Black Stars.

Even though she was made to retract the allegations for failing to provide evidence, the Evalue-Gwira MP has been heavily criticized for what is said to be an unguarded comment.

She told Sammy Darko after siting today that her comments have been misconstrued.

“It was a platform to bring to the fore the issue of sexual exploitation. The Angola incident that was attached and made the focus of my statement is quite unfortunate and the apology for those who travelled on the trip is easily rendered. I have absolutely no qualms at all.”

She hinted that some women have in the past agreed to travel with high profile personalities based only on their ability to offer sexual favours, adding her comments were targeted at those women and not at those who made the Angolan trip.

“I got up to speak as a woman that young women who are intelligent, bright and can travel [must do so] on their own merit without giving any sexual favours,” she explained.

She intimated that the issue of sexual exploitation is a reality and the earlier the nation addressed it the better.

Source: myjoyonline.com