Day: April 14, 2022

Accra, April 14, GNA – Christians in Ghana will join the rest of the world to celebrate Easter this weekend, a festival that commemorates the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity.

The festivity is a three-day celebration, which starts on the evening of Thursday with the Last Supper, and continuing through Good Friday with the crucifixion and burial of Jesus Christ.

It spans through to ‘Holy Saturday’ and ends with prayers on the evening of ‘Easter Sunday’.

Although the celebration could lose a bit of its taste to the COVID-19 pandemic, Christians across the world with Ghana not an exception, would not relent on their efforts to make the best of it, especially as the COVID-19 restrictions and protocol observation has been eased in some countries.

In Ghana, the festive season is commonly marked with church services, family get-togethers, exchange of gifts, donations to the needy, parties, concerts, and other entertaining events.

Many churches in Ghana hold services on Good Friday often with a drama portraying the suffering, crucifixion and burial of Christ and on Easter Sunday to celebrate the resurrection of Christ.

The Presbyterian Church holds a gospel outreach service on Easter Monday, while churches like the Catholic, Anglican and Methodist Churches hold picnics on Easter Mondays to mobilise the youth as a step to deter them from engaging in risky and unaccepted social behaviours.

The Public Holiday Global website indicates that, charismatic churches typically hold large conventions or special Easter retreats and prayer meetings during the festivity and the youth of different denominations often go to “Easter camps.”

One distinct event in Ghana during Easter is the annual celebration at the Kwahu South District of the Eastern Region where people from all walks of life and nationality throng the Kwahu Hills to celebrate the three-day-long event.

The annual Kwahu festival, popularly known with the slogan, “Kwahu ooo Kwahu,” entails activities such as paragliding, hiking, carnivals, street jams, picnics with lots of food and performances by artists.

It also serves as an annual homecoming for natives of Kwahu, and an occasion of celebration for holiday revelers.

Giving to charity in the form of food or money and throwing Easter party for orphans, widows, prisoners, and the mentally handicapped is also common in Ghana, especially among benevolent individuals and civil society organisations.

A report by Office Holidays website states that modern Easter celebrations revolve around eggs with the eggs painted, rolled down hills or eaten if they are of the chocolate variety.

The Christian tradition of an egg signifies an aid to rebirth and resurrection, or new life being born from the egg.

It said some schools of thoughts also believe that egg recalls the shape of the stone that rolled away on Easter Sunday from the tomb that held Jesus’ body.

Its adoption into the Christian traditions would have been quite seamless, as eggs are banned during the period of Lent preceding Easter.

The UKs Evening Standard explains that Easter known as ‘Semana Santa’, or Holy Week and observed for the entire seven days on the Iberian peninsula, finds people parading through the streets in costumes or in hooded robes.

They are then witnessed carrying intricate religious floats depicting different scenes from the Bible, while often accompanied by live music. Some take place in Zamora, Valladolid, Seville and Granada.

In France, tradition dictates that church bells stop ringing around Easter as a mark of respect for Jesus’ death.

To explain their silence, children are told the bells have flown to Rome to be blessed by the Pope.

On the morning of Easter Sunday – Jesus’ resurrection, the bells then fly back to France loaded with sweet treats which they drop into gardens for the children and once they are back in their steeples, they then start ringing joyfully again.

The Germans mark Good Friday and Easter Monday as public holidays and celebrate by lighting bonfires around sunset on Holy Saturday.

Some places in Germany turn the “osterfeuer” (Easter bonfire) into mini festivals with stands selling sausages, wine and funfair rides.

The Pope leads the Easter celebrations in Italy, holding a huge mass on Good Friday at St. Peter’s Basilica where the Via Crucis, or Station of the Cross, is celebrated.

During the mass, a huge crucifix made out of burning torches is raised in the night sky.

One of the most popular foods on the peninsula during this period is the Colomba di Pasqua, a traditional cake which is similar to a panettone.

In Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, people are spotted drenching each other with buckets of water, with men usually soaking women on Easter Monday.

The celebration in Finland and Sweden takes a unique toe as children dress up as Easter witches (påskkärring) and go door-to-door in their neighbourhoods in the hope of receiving chocolate.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Accra, April 14, GNA- Finals of the just ended Accra City Open Doubles Championship was a delight to watch as both young and old put-up thrilling performances at the Accra Lawn Tennis Club.

The tournament saw both Amateur and Professional tennis players battle against each other to win the grand prize of the day.

At the end of the week-long tournament, Ismaila Lamptey partnered Bernard Nii Bortey to beat Nana K Sam-Awortwi and George Heckson with a score of 6-1, 3-6, 10-5 to win the men’s 30-39 years category.

Elsewhere in the men’s 40-49 years category, Alfred Okang teamed up with Yaw Akotuah to defeat David Carreras and Laurent Piat with a score of 4-6, 7-5, 10-4 to win the category.

Godwin Ayindua and Michael Amoako Atta also showed class in the men’s 50-59 years category as they defeated the pair of George Mills and Philip Mensah by a score of 6-2, 6-1.

The men’s 70 years plus category recorded a shocking win as Nana Dadson paired with Charles Sagoe to beat Isaac Kisseh and Ebo Mends with a score of 9-1.

Kate Coleman and Precious Nunana paired up to book a perfect win in the Ladies ‘ year category after defeating Eugenia Asigri and Afia Oforiwaa with a score of 6-0, 4-6, 12-10.

The mixed doubles category also saw Reto Dennis Wicki and Precious Nunana teaming up to beat Nana K Sam-Awortwi and Faustina Tagoe by a 6-3, 7-6 (1) score.

It was more or less like a clash of the titans in the Men Semi-Pro category as Thomas Amoako Boafo and Robert Kpodo handed Andrews Adu-Appiah and Clement Alisi a 3-6, 6-1, 10-5 defeat.

The Men Professional was more exciting as Johnson Acquah and Ronald Lawer paired to defeat Reginald Okantey and Derick Ominde by a 6-2, 6-2 score

According to Mr Peter Annan, Coordinator and Tournament Director, this year’s was a success and commended all participants for turning up.

“We had a good tournament. As you can see, it was very competitive and we are glad members showed up. We are also grateful to our partners, National Lottery Authority, Volta River Authority, Quality Life Assurance, Soul Food Restaurant, Thomas Amoako Boafo, Baly Sarassoro, AFA Television and St Michael Fruits and Juice Bar for coming on board,” he mentioned.

He added that patrons should look forward to more exciting games this year as they prepare to host the Seniors Open.   

Winners of the various categories were presented with trophies and souvenirs from the sponsors.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Accra, April 14, GNA – Mrs Elizabeth Kwatsoe Tawiah Sackey, the Accra Metropolitan Chief Executive has met the Director of Projects at the Bloomberg Philanthropies, Madam Kelly Larson to discuss road safety interventions in Accra.

Madam Larson is in Accra on a three-day working visit to engage policymakers and to inspect road safety projects being undertaken by the Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS).

Mrs Sackey in a welcoming address expressed gratitude to the Bloomberg Philanthropies for their efforts over the years to help reduce road crashes and the related injuries and death in Accra.

She affirmed the Accra Metropolitan Assembly’s (AMA) commitment of continued collaboration with the organisation and other stakeholders to develop interventions that would assist in reducing road crashes in the city.

She said: “The installation of speed signs and rumble strips in communities with high pedestrian-related activities is in the right direction and that the ongoing road safety enhancement works being carried out on the London Market Street at James Town when completed would help address the issues of speeding on the stretch.”

Madam Larson said BIGRS was committed to improving lives through the provision of road safety interventions and that its new phase of the programme, which was expected to run until 2025 aimed at saving 600,000 lives and prevent up to 22 million injuries in low- and middle-come countries.

She expressed excitement over the commencement of the road safety work being undertaken on the London Market Street.

The Director of Projects reassured of Bloomberg Philanthropies’ pledge to helping selected cities around the world including Accra by developing interventions to preventing road accidents as well as create awareness of road safety risk factors to save lives.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Accra, April 14, GNA – For the first time in the history of the Kwahu Easter Paragliding Festival a Ghanaian Tandem pilot, Mr Jonathan Quaye, will be among the 12 pilots to fly passengers during the festival.

He, among 11 other foreign national pilots, would fly passenger from the Odweanoma mountings in Atibie, Kwahu, from April 14 to April 18, 2022.

Mr Kofi Atta Kakra Kusi, Deputy Head, Corporate Affairs, Ghana Tourism Authority, made this known in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Accra.

He said the other 11 pilots, include Ed Stein -USA, Chuck Smith-USA, Blake Pelton -USA, Cherie Silvera -USA, Tim Meehan – USA, Marc Theissen- Germany, Hagen Muhlich -Germany, Kabisch Raymond Chase -USA, Jorge Reategui – Peru, Eduardo Reategui -Peru and Lionel Mury– Switzerland.

He said the festival which resurfaced after two years of inactivity due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic had become a key highlight of the Easter Festival and had gained international recognition.

Mr Kusi noted that over the years it had been organised under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, by the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), in collaboration with the various Assemblies in Kwahu East, West and South and the Kwahu Traditional Authority and this year’s was no different.

“Other activities earmarked for the festival include Hot Air Balloon, the Kwahu Marathon, a food Bazaar, Kwahu Dwaso, Pool Parties, Musical Concerts, Church Service,” he added.

He noted that the proposed fee for a paragliding flight this year is GH¢550 inclusive of an Antigen Test for passengers before they would be allowed to fly.

Mr Kusi assured patrons that the Kwahu Easter Guide, which seeks to provide information about the various events and activities and other vital information about Kwahu Easter had been published and would be made available in due course.

He urged Ghanaians to take advantage of the festival, to have fun, meet family and friends as well as new people and socialize after the long break due to the COVID-19.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Prosecutors investigating the 2020 death of Argentina football legend Diego Maradona have asked that the medical staff who treated him be tried for negligent homicide.

In their request on Wednesday, the prosecutors said “omissions” and mismanagement by eight medical professionals in charge of Maradona placed him in a “situation of helplessness” and abandoned him “to his fate” during his home hospitalization, according to the court filing cited by the official Telam news agency.

Maradona died at age 50 in 2020 while recovering from brain surgery for a blood clot, and after decades of battles with cocaine and alcohol addictions.

Neurosurgeon and family doctor Leopoldo Luque and psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov are under investigation over his death as the main people responsible for the health of the former football star.

Six others, including psychologist Carlos Diaz and medical coordinator Nancy Forlini, are also accused.

The prosecution accuses them of “simple homicide with dolus eventualis,” an offense in which a person is negligent while knowing their negligence can cause someone’s death.

They could face sentences ranging from eight to 25 years in prison.

According to the prosecutors, the defendants “were the protagonists of an unprecedented, totally deficient and reckless hospitalization at home”, and allegedly committed a “series of improvisations, mismanagement and shortcomings”.

The defence must now present its arguments and may ask for the case to be dismissed.

Maradona is widely considered one of the greatest footballers in history and led Argentina to victory in the 1986 World Cup.

Source: Modern Ghana

Amanfrom Official Town (G/R), April 14, GNA – The Ghana Police Service is on a manhunt for suspects in the murder of a 56-year- old woman, Madam Velynob Wagner also called Evelyn in her apartment at Amanfrom Official Town in the Ga South Municipality, on Wednesday, April 6, 2022.

The deceased was slashed in the throat and again stabbed in the neck down to the heart and left in a pool of blood.

She is said to have gone missing on Wednesday, only to be found lying in her apartment dead in a pool of blood, Friday, April 8 in the evening.

Information available to the Ghana News Agency indicates that the deceased was seen with a family friend named Kofi, on Tuesday when she (deceased) engaged him for an errand in her apartment.

According to the source, her mobile phone had been unreachable since the day of the incident and a tracker however, located her mobile phone to Achimota, in the Okaikoi North Municipality.

A search conducted by her siblings at her apartment, her building site and other known areas proved futile.

At her apartment, it was observed the entrance was locked from inside while from behind the house, the bedroom lights and the fan were on.

Family members were told by neighbours during the search, that the said Kofi drove off the deceased’s Nissan vehicle with registration No. GW-1877-21 from the compound, that fateful Wednesday and is currently at large.

Subsequently, the case was reported to the Amanfrom District Police Command on Friday, and in the company of a police officer and some family members, the apartment was forcefully opened and Madam Evelyn was found dead in her bedroom lying sideway with her head under her bed.

Checks from the Amanfrom district police confirmed the incident and said investigations were currently ongoing.

The body has since been deposited at the Police Hospital mortuary pending autopsy.

It has been more than a week but no arrest has been made yet.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Ghana’s President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo announced the reopening of Ghana’s land borders to people traffic from Monday 28th, March after almost two-years of shutdown in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

Although residents and state agencies operating in border towns are excited about the news, they have also recounted the harsh impact of the closed borders on their revenues and livelihoods.

According to Assistant Commissioner Fred Duodo, Ghana Immigration Service’s Sector Commander for Aflao, the shutdown of the borders has taken a huge toll on the Service’s revenue mobilization efforts.

“The revenue we generate from processing visas on arrival, penalties for overstays, and others go to the government but the Service has a percentage but now that those monies have stopped coming in, we can’t have our expected revenue,” he told Single African Market.

He said even though Ghana has reopened its borders, it is required of the Togolese government to also open its land borders to bring life to normalcy.
“We pray and hope that the Togo side will also be opened to human movement; if they don’t do that then travelers cannot cross to Ghana as expected,” he added.

He also assured of the Service’s readiness and commitment to secure the country’s land borders to ensure that people do not take advantage of the reopened borders to come and cause mayhem.

AC Duodo indicated that they have enough officers to man the main borders: “We have enough men on the ground assigned to the main borders.”

Residents of Aflao say the impact of the border reopening on commercial activities will be witnessed when the Togolese border is also opened to commuters.

Meanwhile, Prof. Paul Nugent, Professor of African History at the University of Edinburgh has argued that the region should have reopened its borders quite earlier and attributed the delay to sheer inertia.

“It was a kind of collective decision to close the borders and so you’ll need everyone to agree to reopen which was going to be a long and complicated process,” he said.

He was also of the view that African governments were satisfied with the movement of critical or essential goods through their seaports and were not much concerned about the physical movement of people due to the deadly pandemic.

Source: Ghana Web

The European Union in Ghana Agriculture Programme (EUGAP) is collaborating with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and the National Seed Trade Association of Ghana (NASTAG) to host the 2022 edition of the Seed and Agro Input Fair.

The two-day Fair, which is slated for April 26-27, 2022, will be hosted at the Jubilee Park at Wa in the Upper West region.

As typical of any fair and exhibition, the event will bring prominent seed companies to display quality certified seeds, agro-input dealers as well as farm equipment and machinery dealers.

“The Fair will attract farmers within Wa and its adjourning districts and across the country with the aim of bringing quality certified seeds and other agro-input products to the doorstep of farmers”, Managing Consultant of the Fair and Executive Director of Carbon AV, Kojo Soboh, said.

“As farmers prepare for the planting season, it is imperative for them to also have access to quality seeds that will complement efforts in anticipation of good harvests. This event is timely as it presents an opportunity for farmers to access quality standard seeds for the upcoming planting season” Kojo Soboh added.

Interested exhibitors and prospective partners are invited for inquiries through info@carbonav.com for information and exhibition space before Friday, 22nd April 2022.

Source: Ghana Web