The Law Society of Ghana (LSG) has put on record that never did the Speaker of Parliament state anytime during its interim executives’ courtesy call on him that he has resigned from the Ghana Bar Association (GBA). “In his remarks, he expressed in strong words, his revulsion about the state of the GBA and wishes to see a change for a better Bar Association committed to the aims, objectives and ethics as captured and practiced globally,” the Society clarified in a press release dated Sunday, September 25. This follows widespread reports that Speaker Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin announced his resignation from the Association during the courtesy call on him on Tuesday, September 20 by the LSG. The LSG led by Interim President Rockson Dafeamekpor was in the Right Honourable Speaker’s office to congratulate him on his elevation as President of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) of the world and also to introduce the new Law Society of Ghana to him. The press release noted that Mr Bagbin, a former Member of Parliament, welcomed the formation of the LSG and pledged his unflinching support to the Interim Executives and the Society to establish and develop a better professional group. He was very excited to learn from the Interim President, the novelty in roping on board not only lawyers but paralegals, law students at the Ghana School of Law and the Law Teaching Faculties at the Universities. But he never talked about resignation from GBA. It said the Speaker pointed out the fact that he together with learned senior Ward Brew, Esq, had actually earlier sponsored the formation of the Bar Association of Ghana (BAG) when the frustration from the GBA became unbearable, until the some impediments came their way, which impediments rendered the forward march of BAG impossible or near impracticable. Credit: 3news.com

His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo was not met with friendly cheers during his speech at the Global Citizen Festival on Saturday, September 24, 2022. President Akufo-Addo booed during speech at Global Citizen Festival The event which took place in Accra, Ghana was aimed at bringing together artiste and world leaders to achieve the policy agenda focused on empowering girls and women, defending the planet and creating change. Global Citizen Festival saw a host of performances including Ghanaian stars Gyakie, Stonebwoy, Sarkodie, Kwesi Arthur, Yaw Tog. Nigerian musicians Tems, Tiwa Savage, Oxalade also performed on the night with American musicians SZA and Usher Raymond IV crowing the show. Ghana’s president who was present at the event at the Independence Square was welcomed with boos when he was introduced to give his speech. The crown expressed their displeasure in the economic challenges Ghana has been facing that have affected the lives of many who were present to see their favourite musician perform. Some section of the crowd went on the clap while shouting ‘away’. However, the president continues with his speech as scheduled with those shouts eventually going down. An inattentive audience expressed their sentiments one last time with boos after the present shared pleasantries after his speech. In what could have been a coincidence, the DJ on the night following the president’s speech tried to put the audience back in a celebratory mood with Black Sherif’s ‘Kwaku The Traveller’ before changing the song on “who never f***** up, hands in the air, no hands?” Ghana has faced a number economic challenges in 2022. The West African country has battled hikes in fuel prices with the Cedi also struggling on the international market with an interest rate of about a dollar to 10 cedis. Some tariffs have also gone up with the Electricity Company of Ghana announcing an increase in tariffs starting September 2022. According to the Ghana Statistical Service inflation rate has moved from 13.9% in January 2022 to 33.9% in August 2022. Credit: Pulse GH

The Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia will be commissioning roads in Cape Coast in the Central region today, Monday September 26. The road project dubbed Sinohydro road’ forms part of Government’s agenda to improve on road networks across the country. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo , as part of his plans to address the poor road network declared 2020 and 2021, as the “Year of Roads”. Delivering his inaugural speech at the Fore Court of Parliament on Thursday, Nana Addo, said the year 2020 was declared the year of roads which saw a major improvement of the road networks in every part of the country, however, there is still a lot more work to be done to improve the flow of road traffic in Ghana. “Many roads were constructed at a faster pace than before and yes, there are still many more kilometres to construct. We defined last year as the year of roads. “This year will be the second year of roads as we continue with our focus on dealing with the deficits of our road infrastructure,” he added. Credit: 3news.com

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said he is committed to ensure the development of women in the country. Mr Akufo-Addo indicated that empowering them is critical to speeding up Africa’s progress. “Women and girls account for 51 per cent of the population of Ghana, the majority and that is the same everywhere on the continent. So, empowering them is critical to speeding up Africa’s progress”, the President said at the 2022 Global Citizens Festival on Saturday September 24. He added “As President of Ghana, as co-Chair of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and as AU gender champion, I am committed to putting in place policies and programmes aimed at improving the development of the girl child in Ghana.” “I’m equally committed to ensuring access to a minimum of senior high school education for the girl child in Ghana, a policy that has already begun to work. “Together, we can achieve gender equality, empower the women and girls and achieve the global needs and goals of the SDGs, and one day, we are going to have a female President of Ghana.” During the event, artists including Stormzy, Sarkodie, Usher, Gyakie, Stonebowy and others have left massive footprints on Ghana’s memory as this concert is being touted as the most organized sound engineering ever. Credit: 3news.com

The Black Stars were humbled by Brazil in their matchup at Le Havre in France on Wednesday. Tottenham attacker Richarlison scored a brace as Brazil got three unanswered goals against Ghana. It was a disappointing evening for Ghana as they were dominated in all areas of the pitch from start to finish. Here are five things we learned. During the week, GFA President Kurt Okraku, head coach Otto Addo, and others all highlighted how good of a game it was for Ghana against Brazil. Brazil are currently ranked first on the globe in men’s football and the tie was a way of determining Ghana’s true level ahead of the world cup. Indeed, the result is a bad one. But it’s a good lesson for the team with Portugal, Uruguay and South Korea lying in wait. The technical team would understand that a lot of work has to be done, fans would understand that the expectations should be lowered as the team later makes the trip to Qatar. Ghanaians were glad to see Thomas Partey return to fitness and make the starting lineup for the game against Brazil and with good reason. The Arsenal man is a key player at club level and possesses the quality to go toe to toe with the best in the globe. He is well known for his press resistance and his penchant for breaking lines easily with accurate passes. During the team’s warmup, he complained of a knock and was quickly replaced by Baba Iddrisu leaving Ghanaians scared of what would happen. And those fears were justified, with Brazil easily suffocating the Black Stars with their pressing early in the game. Partey needs to get himself fit, and fast. Qualification to the 2022 FIFA World Cup gave many Ghanaians hope of a 2010 repeat where the Black Stars made a triumphant run to the quarter-finals, impressing the rest of the world along the way. The hope was even heightened when Inaki Williams, Tariq Lamptey and others switched allegiance to Ghana. But, inside the first 10 minutes, Brazil struck. The Seleccao struck again just before the half-hour mark and for the rest of the encounter, it looked like the Black Stars had faced something bigger and better than them. The level of the team is now understood by fans; not the one ready to at least make it to the round of 16. Mohammed Kudus has been on fire at Ajax this season, mostly playing in the false nine role. His form has translated to seven goals so far and it doesn’t look like he is slowing down soon. The 22-year-old was perhaps the brightest light in a subpar team performance against Brazil. However, he had to weave his magic deep in midfield with Andre Ayew taking up the number 10 role, a role Kudus usually wants to play in for his country. To get the best out of the team, players need to be put in their best positions. And Kudus will do even better further up the pitch. When Otto Addo released his lineup to face Brazil, fans were surprised to see Felix Afena-Gyan and Jordan Ayew start alongside Kamaldeen upfront. Afena-Gyan has barely played for his club and Jordan Ayew has not had much luck production-wise for Crystal Palace. But, they were chosen regardless and the performance of both players left little to be desired. With an abundance of options now for Otto Addo, some consideration should be made on the places of Jordan and Felix with the likes of Inaki Williams, Ransford-Yeboah and others available. Story by: Bill Eshun

One Hundred persons, drawn from various parts of the country have begun a one-month training as part of efforts to protect the Ghana's riverbodies from activities of illegal miners. The One Hundred (100) guards which comprises Ninety-Seven Males and three Females were handed over officially to the Eastern Naval Command by the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Minerals Commission on Friday, September 23, 2022 to undergo the training. Addressing the trainees, Commodore Emmanuel Ayesu Kwafo, the Flag Officer Commanding the Eastern Naval Command detailed the scope of the training. He explained that by the end of the month-long training, the riverguards will be equipped with skills in speedboat operation, swimming, among others. He charged the trainees to treat the drills with the seriousness it deserves so as to implement them effectively when they pass out. Commodore Emmanuel Ayesu Kwafo disclosed that the Ghana Navy is setting up a Rivery Command that will work with the riverguards to clampdown on galamsey activities on riverbodies. “The Ghana Navy itself is forming a rivery command so that after this training, we will support you to fight galamsey operations. For the next one month, we are going to give you some basic and essential skill that you’ll need out there” “Swimming is one of the skills we will give you. We will show you what to do when the water is deep and how to deal with mining pits. We will teach how to detect the place and how to give reports and feedbacks”, he said. Speaking on behalf of the Sector Minister, the Deputy CEO of the Minerals Commission in charge of operations, Mr. Samuel Tika said the training forms part of government’s multi-faceted approach to the fight against illegal mining. “They have been specially selected to be trained to work on the areas of our country affected by galamsey activities. The Minerals Commission is not against mining but we want people to go through the due process. We have a lot of people around who are not following due process and are mining in ways that is polluting our riverbodies and posing health threats to the public. “The government thought it very wise to as part of the measures we are adopting against illegal mining to employ you so that you can help check these illegalities. You’ll be training on how to swim, be disciplined so that you will help Ghana to clean our riverbodies,” he said. When they passed out, the trainees will be deployed to the various riverbodies to provide permanent patrolling activities on those riverbodies. Government has earlier this year purchased some speedboats to aid in the fight against illegal mining. In all 300 persons are expected to undergo the training in three batches. Below are some pictures: Story by: Fafa Nyame

After few weeks of closure of the Accra Zoo, following police investigations into the Lion - intruder case, Hon.Benito Owusu-Bio, the Deputy Minister resposible for Lands and Forestry at the Lands Ministry says preparations are underway to reopen the zoo to the public as soon as practicable. He said this when he paid a working visit to the Zoo on Friday, 23rd September, 2022 to among others inspect the progress made on preparations towards the reopening of the Zoo in the coming month. Having toured the zoo, he tasked the Zoo Manager, Mr. Stephen Tamanja to get a  security post some meters close to the lions den to wade off intruders and an outer parameter fence all in efforts to give the public the best assurance of saftey when they visit the zoo. He also tasked them to get mordenised restroom facilities for visitors and tourists around the waiting area with signages in the various animal cages and street lights all over the Forestry to brighten the place up at night. Mr. John Allotey, the CEO of Forestry Commission told the Deputy Minister that in efforts to ready the zoo, a transformer with its electricity polls have been  installed with cables ready to light up the place even at night. He noted that new species and breeds of animals will soon be brought from Kumasi Zoo and the Shai Hills Resource area to populate the animals in the Accra Zoo sighting Zebras, ostriches, chimpanzees and others as examples. Speaking to the MNLR PR team on the sidelines of the visit, the Zoo Manger Mr. Stephen Tamanja disclosed that a number of Ghanaians and other nationals have been placing calls to the zoo requesting and looking foward to its reopening. He cited a number of importance and reasons why all efforts are being made for the zoo to be opened as soon as practicable. " This zoo is not only for relaxation purposes but also for education as most students come here for thier research purposes, and as you know for tourist purposes and this will also help boast the local economy, create employment and aid in the furtherance of the tourism sector" He assured that by time of reopening, all suggestions for preparations indicated by the Deputy Minister will be fully implemented; the security check post, cameras, electricity and all other requirements will be in place and ready. Also with the Deputy Minister on the working visit was the Deputy CEO of the Forestry Commission, Mr. Sulemana Nyadia. Below are some pictures: Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith

A Personal Bodyguard for President Akufo-Addo, Jibril has built and handed over an ultra modern Islamic Hospital for Muslim community in the Greater Accra Region. He, together with his foundation, Jibril Foundation built the new Accra Newtown Islamic Hospital and handed over the keys to the Muslims in the community. The project is targeting our Muslim brothers and sisters who cannot afford to expensive health care delivery in the country now and it's the first of its kind in Ghana since the country doesn't have any purely Islamic hospital that caters the needs of Zongos. However, according to Jibril, the project when commissioned will be open to all diverse of religious fraternity and not only Muslims. His gesture has received a lot of accolades from fellow Muslims and Christians at large. Source: Gabsfeed.com

The Western Region Chief Imam, Shieck Alhaj Mohammad Sani Abdullahi Bawa, has died. The sad news was confirmed by his Special Aide, Alhaji Kamal, in an interview with Nhyiraba Paa Kwesi Simpson, the host of Connect FM’s Omanbapa morning show, on Friday. According to him, the 74-year-old Chief Imam visited his family in Kumasi and had a slight domestic accident. “He visited his family in Kumasi for a meeting and had a domestic accident. He was descending the home stairs when he fell and became sick afterward. He came back a few days ago fit and active. He, however, fell ill again and we rushed him to the Effiankwanta Regional Hospital but he could not survive and died,” he solemnly indicated. The Western Region Chief Imam was installed on May 21, 2022 and died on Thursday, September 22. He replaced Chief Imam Sheikh Ustarz Dr. Ali Hassan Ali, who died after having occupied the position for some years. According to Alhaji Kamal, he will be buried this Friday, September 23, as the Muslim customs demand. “Arrangements are in place to ensure he is buried today. We have informed the Muslim community in the region to observe the day and be present as our leader takes his final journey,” he added. Sheikh Alhaji Mohammad Sani Abdullahi Bawa was a proponent of peace and unity in the Western Region during his four-month reign. He was one time a goalkeeper for Eleven Wise and the Ghana Black stars. He was popularly known as Sani. Story by: Eric Nana Gyetuah

Member of Parliament for Effutu, Alexander Afenyo-Markin has said all politicians must come together and support the government in the fight against illicit small scale mining (Galamsey) which is destroying water bodies and the environment in general. He intimated that galamsey has resulted in the high cost of treating water by the Ghana Water Company Limited. In addition to this, he said, people are dying out of cancer by drinking polluted water from the rivers that have been destroyed by the miners. Addressing a gathering in Effutu, the Deputy Majority Leader said “President Akufo-Addo made me Board Chairman of Ghana Water Company Limited and I know how much it costs to treat water Because we the politicians have made every thing partisan, we are looking at the next elections, we are unable to boldly confront the challenges that face our nation. So galamsey is destroying us" “People are dying of cancer, people are dying without knowing why they are dying, the water we drink, you think it is safe for you?  Let us confront galamsey, let us confront the challenges that face our nation. “I call on my colleague politicians CPP, NDC, NPP, let us come together, build a consensus  on the key national issues that will benefit our people in the long term. That is what these Europeans and Americans have done and we all want to go there. If we continue with this type of parochial politics trust me, our country will go nowhere.” Meanwhile, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor has served notice that in the coming weeks, he is going to announced a decision by the government to to increase the level of enforcement of the measures against galamsey. Mr Jinapor said this has been a preoccupation for his Ministry over the past two weeks. He explained that the fight against galamsey is not the function of the Ministry alone, rather , he said, it is a collective duty of all citizens. “We are going to ramp up the enforcement measures. This has been occupying all my time in the past week or two” the Damongo lawmaker said" “In the weeks to come, the Ghanaian people will see that the enforcement measures are going to be ramped up. I need to stress that it cannot be the responsibility of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, alone, it is going to be our collective responsibility,” he further said on Joy FM Saturday September 17" The Director of Finance for the Ghana National Association of Small Scale Miners,  Francis Opoku has said members of his association do not destroy water bodies. He explained that they need clean water to wash the minerals therefore, they cannot be the ones destroying the water bodies. Opoku explained that the Galamseyers are the ones mostly seen mining in rivers thereby, destroying the water. Speaking on the Key Points on TV3 Saturday September 17, he said these galamseyers are mostly from “Benin, Togo, they have the expertise to swim.” “A lot of these people are not Ghanaians in the first place,” he stressed. Tamale North Member of Parliament, Alhassan Suhuyini also said the Akufo-Addo administration is not committed to the fight against illegal small scale mining (Galamsey). He said the government has only been engaged in rhetoric when it comes to fighting the menace. Speaking also on the Key Points, he explained that it was the Media Coalition against illegal small scale mining which is made up of some journalists, who took it upon themselves to highlight the dangers of galamsey and the need for it to stop. It was only after this that the government started initiating some moves to deal with the situation. "The government was not really committed to the fight against galamsey,” Suhuyini stressed. He added “They have only engaged in rhetoric and waste of money money.” The government has been trying to deal with the activities of these miners. A taskforce has been set up to that effect. Credit: 3news.com

A Deputy Minister of Finance Dr John Kumah has said that the YouStart programme was to deliberately grow start-ups and make them contribute to the Government’s agenda of creating three million jobs but depend largely on the support of banks. He said this during a signing ceremony with 13 Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs) to support the implementation of the commercial part of the GH¢10 billion YouStart entrepreneurship programme. Dr John Kumah said the partnership was critical in the Government’s quest to build future entrepreneurs and make Ghana an entrepreneurial State. He, therefore, urged the PFIs to sustain their support to the programme and ensure its extension to entrepreneurs with businesses in rural areas to help create jobs and uplift many living in those areas from poverty. The funds would be used to meet the working capital requirement of businesses, support their expansion needs and purchase of equipment or machinery to enhance productivity and create more well-paid jobs, especially for the youth. Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, the Minister of Finance, signed for the Government, with Managing Directors of the 13 PFIs signing for their respective banks. Mr John Awuah, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Ghana Association of Bankers (GAB), signed for the coordinating institution of the PFIs, which is GAB. In his speech at the programme, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, Minister of Finance, said the signing of the agreement showed the commitment on the part of the Government and the private sector to strengthen links between education and job market stakeholders. He explained that the partnership would provide access to finance, skills, and markets for young Ghanaian entrepreneurs and increase the ability of the private sector to create decent and sustainable jobs. “Fundamentally, we had to adopt this approach because the pandemic taught us, we must re-orient our approach towards structural transformation and react with a clear plan to reap the benefits of our population dividend by building an Entrepreneurial State,” Mr Ofori-Atta said. He noted that the three components of the YouStart programme (Commercial, module, District Entrepreneurship and YouStart Grace Modules) were to ensure that “no one is left behind in building Ghana as an entrepreneurial nation. The CEO of GAB, told the Ghana News Agency that the banks saw the support as a responsibility to help grow businesses with financial and other needed support to build the economy. “Part of the COVID-19 pandemic has taught as that we need to have a homegrown economy, one that is owned and managed by Ghanaians. This signing is an attestation that the public and private sector can work together to create value and the entrepreneurial nation we’ve all been yearning for,” Mr Awuah said. He noted that the Banks had worked with the Finance Ministry to design the YouStart programme to help propel businesses forward, particularly younger and smaller businesses. “It is a positive development. We only must ensure that what we’ve put on paper, when it gets to execution, we all come to the table in a way the agreement has been signed,” Mr Awuah encouraged. Providing a brief on the programme, Mr Andy Ameckson, Acting Coordinator, YouStart, said under the commercial part, Banks would provide loans to beneficiary businesses at interest rates lower than the market rate. “There will not be any collateral for businesses to access loan under the programme, and the recovery is also dependent on them [beneficiaries],” Mr Ameckson pointed out. The pilot phase of the YouStart programme was implemented in February 2022, involving 85 young entrepreneurs, and currently awaiting the availability of the President for the launch and full-scale implementation of all three modules. The Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) and National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP) are the implementing agencies of the programme, whose goal is to create a Wealthy, Inclusive, Sustainable, Empowered and Resilient (WISER) society. They would be supported by the National Youth Authority, Ghana Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Service and Nation Builders Corps (NABCO) in its roll-out. Source: 3news.com

The Tufohene of Ekumfi Akwakrom, Nana Crack, who was arrested over the death of a nursing trainee,  and one other suspect Christopher Ekow Quansah, have been remanded by a Cape Coast District court, on Thursdays September 22. They are to reappear on the 4th of October. They have been charged with conspiracy to commit crime, with murder and murder, contrary to section 46 of the Criminal Offenses Act 1960, Act 29. Police in Mankessim had mounted search for the nurse trainee, who has been missing for some weeks now. Nana Crack, who is also said to be the President of the Mankessim Traders Association, was arrested less than 24 hours after the incident. He has been on the run. The pastor, who was arrested on Tuesday, led investigators to the chief’s room, where the remains of Georgina Asor Botchwey were exhumed. Source: 3news.com