Day: December 22, 2023

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Thursday launched the evaluation of Ghana’s maiden National Anti-Corrup­tion Action Plan (NACAP), urging stakeholders and citizens to unite and support the fight against graft.

He stressed that anti-corruption initiatives in the country required the collaborative efforts of the public, private, and civil society sectors to guarantee good governance, transparency, and accountability.

NACAP is a ten-year strategic plan adopted in 2012 as part of a coordinated policy document for combating corruption in the country.

The plan is structured around four thematic areas including building capacity to condemn and fight corruption and make it a high risk and low gain activity, institutionalising efficiency, accountability and transparency in the public, private and not for profit sectors, engaging individuals, media, and civil society organisations in reporting and combating corruption and conducting effective investigations and prosecution of corrupt conduct.

The Plan had
135 broad activities for implementation by stakeholders towards the realisation of the 4 strategic objectives.

The evaluation report, which will inform the second phase of the plan, is expected to be completed in June 2024.

President Akufo-Addo noted that though the state held the primary responsibility to implement robust anti-corruption measures, the fight against graft cannot be solely won by the government but by the united efforts of all sectors of society.

He stated that corruption knew no limits and that its negative repercussions are seen across society, not only the public sector, adding that the raft of measures instituted by his government to ensure that the institutions of state relevant to the anti-corruption agenda are properly equipped to discharge their mandate reflected his resolve to fight corruption to the hilt.

President Akufo-Addo emphasised that after almost ten years of implementing NACAP, there was a need to understand how the action plan had contributed to reducing corruption in G
hana.

This would enable the necessary adjustments to policies and institutional arrangements based on the evaluation results.

The President said the evaluation exercise was important to assess the contribution of NACAP to the fight against corruption in all spheres and to form the basis of developing the next Plan for the period 2025 to 2034.

He underscored the significance of the exercise, given the enormity of the work of reviewing anti-corruption actions and methods, and urged all stakeholders to support the effort.

‘Fighting corruption is a shared responsibility. This is why we must all see the evaluation of the maiden NACAP and the development of NACAPII as the responsibility of all stakeholders in this nation, citizens and non-citizens alike.’

The NACAP will be evaluated by a team of experts. The team is led by the Statistical Service and supported by international evaluators from the UNODC to gauge the exercise with global best practices to guarantee credibility.

The President was optimistic that
a high-quality evaluation of NACAP would be conducted using a wide range of information sources with several appropriate methods and tools

He said the evaluation results would promote accountability and integrity.

‘I urge all stakeholders to give the exercise the priority it deserves to ensure a successful evaluation…Let us embrace it as a beneficial learning tool rather than a threatening scrutiny,’ he said.

Mr. Emmanuel Adumua-Bossman, Deputy Chief of Staff at the Presidency and Chairman of the NACAP High-Level Implementation Committee, stated that the Plan, which had been in place since 2009, would concretize the plethora of anti-corruption measures that the country has worked to achieve to ensure resilience against corruption.

He stated that the NACAP, which requires a complete examination, required stakeholders to commit to delivering a comprehensive, reliable, and feasible action plan by the end of the process in June 2024.

‘Our goal is to ensure that at the end of this evaluation, Ghana would be r
eady to implement NACAP II and thereby consolidate our gains made under the current dispensation,’ he said.

Mr Richard Quayson, Deputy Commissioner, Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice and Vice Chairman of the NACAP High-level Implementation Committee told the gathering that the programme had played a pivotal role in strengthening Ghana’s commitment to the ideals of transparency, accountability, and integrity over the past 9 years.

He said corruption was still a major threat to sustainable development because it continued to undermine good governance and the rule of law, eroded public confidence in the merit rewards system, fostered public sector incompetence and ineptitude, promoted poor inefficient service delivery, and perpetuated poverty and underdevelopment.

‘We, in Ghana, are familiar with the devastating effects of corruption, hence the Mission of NACAP to mobilise the efforts and resources of all stakeholders to prevent and combat corruption,’

‘The importance of National Action P
lans, especially those focused on anti-corruption, cannot be overemphasised. For us in Ghana, the development and implementation of NACAP since 2015 has been a collective endeavour. From government agencies to civil society, from the private sector to everyday citizens, it has indeed been a ‘United Ghana Against Corruption,’ he said.

Mr Quayson said though the evaluation of the NACAP would lay the foundation for the development of a NACAP II, ‘we must see NACAP II as not just a continuation, but an opportunity to consolidate the gains and commitment we have made in the fight against corruption.’

‘It is an opportunity to refine our approaches, address emerging threats, and engage a broader spectrum of stakeholders to ensure inclusivity and effectiveness,’ he said.

Mr Quayson urged all stakeholders to actively participate in the exercise to ensure that NACAP II reflects the aspirations and needs of all Ghanaians.

‘If we approach the evaluation of NACAP with a commitment to continuous improvement, together,
we will pave the way for a more transformative NACAP II that repositions our People for nation building,’ he said.
Source: Ghana News Agency

As the Christmas festive season gathers momentum, there has been an increasing human and vehicular traffic at the Central Business District (CBD) and other main markets in the Kumasi Metropolis.

Most people are seen around from the early hours of the day until late night transacting business.

It has always been the norm that during this time of the month in December (18th-23rd), people are seen buying foodstuff for the house and clothes for their wards towards the festive season.

There has, been a twist in the general perception of trading activities at the CBD this year.

More people are spotted buying hamper gifts, instead of the normal food items, clothes, shoes and jewelry, which are traditionally the targets for sales for the Christmas period.

When the Ghana News Agency (GNA) visited some busy trading areas on December 22, it was uncovered that the most sought for commodities in town were hamper gifts.

Ms Evelyn Oti, a provision shop owner at Adum, said she had converted all the consumables into ha
mper gifts and had made sales smoother.

According to her, people who walked in preferred items like drinks, milo, milk, rice, oil, tin tomatoes and soaps wrapped as gifts during this Christmas period.

She explained that, as an old business woman, in the past seasons few buyers opted for wrapped gift items, but the demand for these hampers had shot up incredibly this year.

Some of her displayed wares were selling for as high as GH?3,000.00 although others cost only GH?250.00 depending on the contents.

Several other shops at the city centre were seen displaying hampers for sale with other contents, including clothes, dresses, bed sheets, shoes and bags.

Mr. Kwasi Akyena, a customer, who spoke to the GNA, said he had come to make bulk purchases of hampers to be distributed among some work colleagues.

He said buying varied items for distribution had become costly and he believed the already made hampers could cut down some cost.

Bigger shops at Adum such as Melcom and Poku Trading, all had several hundreds
of hampers displayed for sales.

At the basket weavers’ base, the GNA interacted with Abass Aziz, who confirmed that since the beginning of this month, together with his colleagues, they have sold almost 3,000 pieces of baskets to some individuals and institutions.

However, to Madam Comfort Agyeiwaa, a makeup seller, business has been slow as compared to last year.

She feels there is economic hardship and that is hindering most people from visiting her beauty and cosmetic shop.

Madam Agyeiwaa attested that a parent as herself, would rather save around this period to buy provisions for her daughter who is in Senior High School (SHS).

Vendors for vegetables anticipated that consumers may troop in during the weekend when various households start to prepare delicacies for Christmas.
Source: Ghana News Agency

The Western Regional Command of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) has launched an anti-bush fire campaign to deepen citizens’ awareness on measures to protect forest reserves from undesired fires.

Launched on the theme: ’60 years of existence, fire prevention key to sustaining our natural resource and food security’, the campaign sought to remind members of the public on their responsibilities in ensuring forests were free from fire destruction, especially during the dry season.

Assistant Chief Fire Officer I (ACFO I) Frederick Ohemeng, Western Regional Commander of the GNFS, speaking during the launch at Odaakotoameso, a suburb of Asankrangwa in the Wassa Amenfi West Municipality of the Western Region, said the effects of bush fires could be devastating on livelihoods, natural resources, aquatic habitat, crop yield and the agricultural ecosystem.

In that regard, he said there was the need to devise strategies to increase citizens’ awareness on how best to tackle the issue through various campaign pl
atforms to help preserve the forest reserves.

However, ACFO I Ohemeng said illegal mining activities popularly known as ‘galamsey’ threatened possible bush fire fighting, saying ‘A worrying concern is the illegal mining in water bodies which serve as reservoirs for continuous water supply during bush fire fighting have all turned muddy’.

He, therefore, called for a collective efforts of all stakeholders to take firm actions against those involved in the menace to help protect water pollution and its associated impacts.

Deputy Chief Fire Officer (DCFO) James Owusu Adjei, Director of Rural Fires, said in 1983 Ghana recorded the worst ever bush fires where about 50 per cent of forest and vegetation were destroyed.

According to him, to mitigate future reoccurrence of bushfires and its impacts on livelihoods and the economy, it was imperative to deepen public sensitization on bush fires and preventive measures.

‘Bush fire prevention is a collective responsibility of everyone and I am certain that we can maint
ain a bush fire-free environment to protect our investments, food security, jobs and government flagship programmes,’ he added.

Nana Kwesi Boah ll, Divisional Chief Asankran Odaa, expressed appreciation to GNFS for launching the campaign in his area, and pledged his commitment to ensure a bush fire-free environment in his jurisdiction.

As part of anti-bush fire campaign launch, 112 fire volunteers were outdoored to assist the GNFS to prevent bush fire and manage possible outbreaks at the community level.
Source: Ghana News Agency

The Principal of GHS Oku, Motika Emmanuel, has been in Amba capacity for more than a week.

He was kidnapped on his way to distribute Report Cards to students, after the end of first term.

CNA is reliably informed that he has paid FCFA 1.5 million out of the FCFA 6.5 demanded as ransom for his release.

Motika was later forced to write a message on his Facebook page requesting the Manager is his account at BAPCUL in Bamenda, North West region, to loan him FCFA 5 million so he can complete the ransom.

He described the situation as ‘life threatening’ and further pleaded on the Manager to disburse the money to his wife.

No group fighting in the restive region has claimed responsibility.

But the kidnappers said they had banned school in the area and see Motika’s presence as violation of their order.
Source: Cameroon News Agency

The Ghana Airport Company Limited (GACL) is committed to realizing its vision of positioning Ghana as the Preferred Aviation Hub and Leader in Airport Business in West Africa.

A statement copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra said the expression of commitment followed President Akufo-Addo’s appointment of Mrs. Yvonne Nana Afriyie Opare asthe Managing Director for Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) with effect from December 24, 2023.

The appointment followed the retirement of Mrs. Pamela Djamson-Tettey on the 23 of December 2023.

The statement said the Board had been directed to facilitate the exit of the underlisted Management staff, who had attained the statutory retirement age of 60 years.

They are Me Emmanuel Akotoa Fanko Group Executive, Procurement; Col. (Rtd) Emmanuel Akohene Mensah; Director, Aviation Security and Mr Yaw Appiah-Danquah; Director, Airports Planning and Projects.
Source: Ghana News Agency

The Sunyani-based Sompa FM on Friday presented Christmas packages to widows in the Sunyani Municipality to mark the festive season.

In all more than 200 widows, mostly aged, each received five kilo bag of rice, cooking oil and a number of sardines and tin tomatoes and non-alcoholic drink.

They also benefited from free health screening exercise, conducted by the Alma Medical Laboratory to know their health conditions, and were screened for body mass index, sugar levels, blood pressure and hepatitis ‘B’.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on the sidelines of the exercise held at the premises of the radio station, Mr Yaw Aboagye Boadi, the General Manager, Sompa FM, said the items were to put smiles on the faces of the beneficiaries.

He said Christmas was a period to share, care and show love to, especially the needy and vulnerable in society, and called on the wealthy citizens to support the upkeep of the needy in society, particularly in the festive season.

Mr Boadi said, ‘we are happy and
God is happy when the vulnerable and the needy in society are happy.’
Source: Ghana News Agency

Charles Nii Armah Mensah aka Shatta Wale, self-acclaimed dancehall king, has been ordered to appear before the Family and Juvenile Court in Accra on January 10, 2024.

This follows a hearing notice posted on the Family and Juvenile Notice Board in Accra dated December 21, 2023.

In an order for Substituted Service which read, ‘this order for substituted service, Hearing notice and the form for custody and maintenance be served on the respondent who cannot be

traced for personal service to be effected on him by posting copies of the processes at the following places for 14 days, after which period this shall be deemed sufficient service.

It read: ‘When the case is called and you do not appear and answer, the court will proceed to hear the case without you.’

This was after Michelle Gbagonah, ex-girlfriend, had dragged Shatta Wale before a Juvenile Court in Accra.

Madam Michelle Gbagonah is applying for monthly maintenance for their eight-year-old son and his custody.

According to the applicant, the respon
dent has ‘failed or refused ‘to contribute any expense towards the child’s medical bills unless he’s asked and consistently reminded of this responsibility.

The applicant contended that the respondent has ‘blatantly shirked his responsibilities as a parent’ since she moved out of the respondent’s house.

The court has directed that the court notice on hearing should be posted on the respondents (Charles Nii Armah Mensah) instagram handle Shatawalenima.

The court has therefore ordered that the hearing notice should be posted at the Family and Juvenile Court at the former Commercial Court building High Street Accra

It further directed that the processes should be posted at his last known address at an unnumbered house, East Legon around Islamic University in Accra.

‘By service to the respondent through his WhatsApp Number 0552222500.’

The GNA gathered that when the matter was called before the magistrate Anna Akosua Appiah Gottfried Anaafi, on December 18, 2023, Shatta Wale failed to turn up.
Source: Ghana
News Agency