February 21, 2023

Confusion rocks Berekum West NDC over alleged imposition of candidate

There appears to be a blatant disregard for guidelines of the National Democratic Congress on the election of parliamentary candidates as 28 out of 29 executives of the Berekum West constituency are alleged to have openly declared their support for one of the parliamentary hopefuls, Dickson Kyere-Duah, popularly called Stuttgart.

The declaration was done last Friday at Jinijini at an emergency meeting hurriedly organised a few minutes after the Regional Chairman of the party, Mr. Kwadwo Nyamekye Marfo, and some other regional executives had left the constituency, having taken the pains to explain the guidelines to the constituency executives.

This supposed action of the executives has generated serious tension among the rank and file of the party in the constituency, whose seat has been in the hands of the NPP for years.

The action by the 28 executives violates paragraph 13.1 of the party’s guidelines, which state: “No organ, institution, branch or structure of the party shall issue any public or press statements in support of any of the contestants. For the avoidance of doubt, no party executive member (national, regional and constituency) or any member of any organ of the party shall issue any public statements or make any public pronouncements which have the effect of committing the support of the whole of that organ, institution, branch or structure of the party to any contestant.”

The guidelines further add: “Any person who violates or breaches any part of these guidelines shall be subject to sanctions by NEC upon recommendations of the Disciplinary Committee.”

Confirmation

A source at the Berekum West constituency office of the NDC said in an interview that last Monday the constituency chairman, Mr. James Ntim, confirmed their action on Adinkanfo FM, a local radio station in the area.

“When we met and asked all the 29 constituency executives present whether or not any of them was against the Council of Elders’ advice to allow Kwabena Kyere ‘Stuttgart’ to go unopposed, only one executive disagreed. The rest of the executives voted in favour of the motion,” Chairman James Ntim was heard saying on the local radio station.

He claimed that some aspirants have their own agenda which tend to create divisions in the party after primaries, hence the decision not to allow any elections at all to curtail any possible divisions.

Imminent cracks

Prior to this, he had invited the three NDC parliamentary aspirants, namely Dickson Kyere-Duah, Barima-Agyekum Hinneh and Martin Lucas, and impressed upon Hinneh and Lucas to agree to the constituency executives’ proposal, but he was turned down.

Not even the kneeling down by some of the constituency executives, including the vice-chairman, could convince Barima-Agyekum Hinneh and Martin Lucas to back down and allow Stuttgart to go unopposed.

Some die-hard supporters of the party who spoke to our reporter on conditions of anonymity decried the action of the constituency executives and said this could create divisions and adversely affect the party’s chances in the next general elections.

“Considering the party’s performance in the last couple of parliamentary elections in the constituency, we stand a better chance of annexing the seat from the NPP if we create a level-playing field for aspirants and stay united after the primaries, which is just about two months away,” one of the supporters said.

Source: Modern Ghana

February 21, 2023

Kyeiwaa and I were mocked and hooted at Tema station for selling ‘fos’ despite being famous – Christiana Awuni

Two Ghanaian actresses, Rose Mensah, otherwise known as Kyeiwaa, and Christiana Awuni, have had their bitter side of being famous without money.

The two filmmakers, according to them, were known all over Ghana because of their roles in the old Sunday TV series ‘cantata.’

Due to the low or no remuneration at the time, the two decided to sell some second-hand clothes, known in Ghana as “fos,” at the Tema station.

Speaking in an interview on Accra-based Adom TV’s “The Journey,” Christiana Awuni said they were hooted at and forced to run out of the premises by some market women.

“There was a day myself and Rose Mensah (Kyeiwaa) went to sell ‘fos’ at Tema Station. The traders mocked and hooted at us. It was terrible.

“They chased us out, and we had to flee from the embarrassment,” the actress revealed.

Meanwhile, the two have since contributed their quota to the development of the Ghanaian movie industry, particularly the Kumasi-based Kumawood, due to their exceptional displays in numerous films.

Source: Modern Ghana

February 21, 2023

I have hated churches all my life; I only go when I’m the speaker – Majid Michel

Majid Michel, a talented Ghanaian actor has finally opined about what it feels like to be in church.

The filmmaker, who was reported to have turned a priest, said he despises the idea of going to church.

Speaking to Andy Dosty on Accra-based Hitz FM, the award-winning filmmaker said though he was attending church when he was a Christian, he found it difficult to comprehend the teachings.

Majid revealed that he has been absent from church for a very long time now, adding that he even goes to church because he is mostly scheduled to lead the sermon.

“Since I can remember when I was conscious at age 6, I knew there was God, nobody had to tell me there was God.

“I just didn’t understand the teaching being taught in churches and I have hated churches all my life, and in fact, I still don’t like church,” the actor disclosed.

“I don’t remember the last time I went to church. The only reason I am there is because I am the one talking there. If I am not talking, I don’t go to church,” he said.

Source: Modern Ghana

February 21, 2023

Don’t just help any poor person, some can kill you prematurely – David Osei advises

Ghanaian actor Prince Davids Osei has advised people to be extra careful about how they go about gifting money to poor people.

The award-winning filmmaker said not everyone who claims to be a beggar is really poor.

In a tweet sighted by Modernghana News, David Osei explained that some of these so-called beggars can harm the givers.

He emphasised that some of them can even kill the people who genuinely opted to help before their time, so people need to be extra careful and apply wisdom to their philanthropic deeds.

“Not every poor person deserves your help!! Be careful out there, before they kill you before your time!! #wisdom,” he tweeted.

His assertion comes at a time when many people with a good heart who want to give find it difficult to do so because of the alleged instances that some of the beggars are agents of devil who are out to destroy people.

Other schools of thought even have it that most of the foreigners begging on the streets are doing so to raise money to sponsor terrorism operations and groups.

Source: Modern Ghana

February 21, 2023

Telecel Group acquires majority shares in Vodafone Ghana

Accra, Feb. 21, GNA – Vodafone Group Plc has completed the transfer of its 70 per cent majority shares in Vodafone Ghana to the Telecel Group after obtaining all necessary regulatory approvals.

A statement issued jointly by the parties said the agreement was the most recent major change for the Ghanaian telecommunications company since 2008 when Vodafone Group Plc purchased a controlling interest in Ghana Telecommunication Company Limited and established Vodafone Ghana.

Telecel is an Africa-focused telecommunication company, with a brand founded in 1986, operating primarily in Africa and converging telecommunication with fintech, e-commerce, and tech startups.

It said the completion of the agreement to acquire Vodafone Ghana by Telecel Group presented an opportunity for further innovation and continued delivery of unparalleled services to Ghanaians.

The statement said operations of Vodafone Ghana and its three subsidiaries – National Communication Backbone Company Limited (Vodafone Wholesale), Vodafone Ghana Mobile Financial Services Limited (Vodafone Cash), and the Vodafone Ghana Foundation, would continue operations uninterrupted while embracing exciting new possibilities.

Mr Malek Atrissi, Telecel Group’s Chief Operating Officer, said “this acquisition is a testament to our enthusiasm and positive outlook for the Ghanaian market, which we view as a vital market with unlimited potential for digitalisation and innovation in Africa.”

The Chief Operating Officer said the Telecel Group was eager to develop and bring forward-thinking offerings to subscribers, enterprises, and communities in Ghana.

“We look forward to a transformation journey of Vodafone Ghana with the contribution and growth of its human capital. ”

Mrs Patricia Obo-Nai, Vodafone Ghana’s CEO, assured customers and stakeholders of unwavering commitment to continuity across all services and products.

She said: “We are fully committed to delivering excellence across all facets of the business and providing our customers with innovative products and services. We embrace this change as an opportunity for us to explore new and exciting areas of growth.”

Source: Ghana News Agency

February 21, 2023

Government adopts PPP approach to solving housing deficit

The government has adopted a Public-Pri¬vate-Partnership (PPP) approach to addressing the housing deficit in the country, Minister for Works and Hous¬ing, Francis Asenso-Boakye, has said.

According to him, the gov¬ernment alone could not address the housing deficit which cur¬rently stands at 1.8 million, and called on the private sector to help address the deficit.

Inaugurating the No. 1 O’Grantson Communities at East Legon Hills in Accra on Friday, Mr Boakye called on both local and international in¬vestors to take advantage of the housing deficit in the country and invest in the sector.

The 17-unit three and four-bedroom housing apart¬ments are to be constructed by Sucasa Properties Limited, a real estate company.

It formed part of a four-phase project which is expected to deliver 2000 housing units by the end of 2023.

As part of the programme, the Minister visited the second phase of the No. 2 O’Grantson Com¬munities which is a 55 housing unit apartments currently under construction and cut the sod for the third phase which compro¬mises 800 units.

Mr Boakye said the govern¬ment was reviewing existing and enacting new legislation to promote the housing industry.

The Minister commended Sucasa Properties Limited for the role it was playing to address the housing deficit and charging his properties in the local currency.

“It is gratifying to note that Sucasa has taken into consider¬ation a comprehensive planning concept that provides for a self-sustainable community that provides relevant social ame¬nities, including a police post, healthcare facilities, shopping and recreational centres,” Mr Boakye stated.

He said such projects provid¬ed an opportunity for Ghanaians to access housing that meets international standards and entreated all private sector devel¬opers looking for opportunities to invest in housing projects in Ghana to study the Sucasa Prop¬erties Limited’s model and invest accordingly.

He pledged that the govern¬ment would continue to initiate policies to help the housing industry to flourish and thrive.

The Chief Executive Offi¬cer (CEO) of Sucasa Proper¬ties, Michael Kwabena Owusu O’Grantson, said the objective of the O’Grantson project was to build communities to address the housing deficit and add on to the housing infrastructure of the country.

He said the company would soon start the fourth phase of O’Grantson Community at Ayi Mensah which would involve 80 housing units.

He said Sucasa Properties Limited had come into the Ghanaian Real Estate industry to stay, saying, “We are here to stay forever”.

Mr O’Grantson called for collaboration to help address the housing challenges facing the country.

“With collaboration, there is nothing we cannot achieve,” he said.

The Executive Director of the Ghana Real Estate Develop¬ers Association, Samuel Amegay¬ibor, in a fraternal message, said the real estate had not been spared of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and com¬mended for the construction of the new housing apartments.

Source: Ghana Web

February 21, 2023

‘80% of Ghanaian youth are a bit lazy’ – Fashion entrepreneur

A Ghanaian fashion entrepreneur, Karen Kash Kane, has attributed laziness among the Ghanaian youth as the reason for the persistent unemployment rate in the country.

According to her, about 80 percent of Ghanaian youth are ‘a bit lazy’ although she did not categorically state how she came up with the figure.

She made the comments while speaking at an event on Accra-based Joy Prime TV which focused on Ghana’s unemployment rate and tackling the menace.

According to the female entrepreneur, many youth have reached out to her to assist with job opportunities adding that she sometimes gets skeptical if they have the requisite capacity to undertake jobs from employers.

She explained, “Sometimes I feel like it’s the educational system, the upbringing, you know, like the mixture of everything. But technically I’ll say that, and this is my honest truth, I feel like 80 percent of the youth right now are a bit lazy,” she said.

“I work 6 days, I run my own business and this is our 12th year of doing this, and this is supposed to be my own business, however, I am more concerned at the end of the month about the salaries I have to pay but why am I working more than everybody else when everybody else has a day off,” She continued.

“This is my own business and people who are supposed to be doing the work for us to have the money to pay them are either complaining…you know there’s always an excuse,” the fashion entrepreneur added.

Her views which have now gone viral has also received widespread backlash online.

Source: Ghana Web

February 21, 2023

Ghana’s economy is now a ‘borla’ economy thanks to Bawumia – Sammy Gyamfi

National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi, in September last year accused the Vice President of the Republic, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia of leading the Ghanaian economy into crisis.

His comment came after government and IMF attributed the economic crisis to the outbreak of the global pandemic – coronavirus.

According to Sammy Gyamfi, the economy took a nose dive before the outbreak of COVID-19.

Read the full story originally published on September 21, 2022 by www.ghanaweb.com.

The National Communications Officer of the NDC, Sammy Gyamfi, has rejected assertions by the IMF and the government that the current hardship in the country is a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to him, Ghana’s economy was already going down the drain before COVID-19, with the country’s currency depreciating by almost 13 percent in 2019 because of the bad management of the country’s Economic Management Team, which Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia leads.

Speaking in a Joy News interview monitored by GhanaWeb, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) communicator added that the COVID-19 pandemic rather helped stabilise the Ghana Cedi because of the reduction in imports and thus the demand for dollars.

“How can any objective mind blame the alarming depression of the cedi on COVID-19 when we know that the main reason for the alarming depreciation in the cedi is the huge capital fight from our country?

“Investors are pulling out their monies. Why are they pulling out? It is because our debt position is no longer sustainable. That is why we have been downgraded by all the sovereign credit rating agencies … to junk status; our economy is now a ‘borla’ economy.

“In 2019, the cedi had depreciated by 12.9 percent; that was before COVID. In 2016 if you want to use the Mahama era as a benchmark, the cedi depreciated by 9.6 percent, but even before COVID, we were doing depreciation of almost 13 percent.

“COVID rather helped the situation because it reduced demand for dollars in 2020, so you realise that the cedi was relatively stronger in 2020 and in 2021. Immediately that fizzled out, we saw the cedi depreciating again, and as we speak, the cedi has depreciated by over 30 percent for this year 2022 alone,” he said.

He added that the country was so broke before COVID-19 that it could not raise $100 billion to start its fight against COVID-19 when the pandemic reached the shores of Ghana.

The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, stated that contrary to the narrative by some opposition elements, Ghana’s economic challenges are not because of the bad policies of the Akufo-Addo administration.

“We have started very constructive discussions already, and to the people of Ghana, like everybody on this planet, you have been hurt by exogenous shocks,” she said.

She mentioned the extraneous factors which have contributed to Ghana’s economic woes leading to the West African country seeking a programme from the IMF.

“First the pandemic, then Russia’s war in Ukraine. We need to realise that it is not because of bad policies in the country but because of this combination of shocks, and, therefore, we have to support Ghana,” she said.

Source: Ghana Web