Govt's efforts at raising education standards...STUDENTS URGED TO BE DISCIPLINED (PAGE 11, DEC 30)

THE government’s determination to raise standards of education cannot be achieved without discipline on the part of students, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Dr Joyce Aryee has stated.
She said discipline was a precondition for effective learning and that tackling indiscipline which had become rampant of late in schools, was as much part of improving the performance of students as good teaching.
Addressing the annual carols and awards day of the Komenda Senior High Secondary and Technical School at Komenda, Dr Aryee said education was about values as well as knowledge and skills.
Dr Aryee said values such as respect for others and for authority, courtesy and consideration were the foundations of any civilised society.
The Chief Executive Officer said many teachers left the profession because of inadequate remuneration, but research had also indicated that about 45 per cent of teachers did so because of indiscipline among students.
She said teachers, headteachers and other school staff deserved respect and that there could never be any justification for subjecting them to either verbal or physical assault.
Dr Aryee said restoring respect for authority in schools meant a sustained drive to strengthen school discipline.
She described neglecting responsibility for discipline as criminal, and called on all stakeholders, especially parents, to live up to their responsibilities by ensuring that their children were disciplined.
Dr Aryee advised students to obey school rules and regulations to ensure their success in life.
The headmaster of the school, Mr David N. Bonney, urged parents to take active interest in the progress of their wards by giving them the necessary support and providing their needs.
Mr Bonney called on the government to provide the needed infrastructure to improve teaching and learning.

150 FISHERMEN BENEFIT FROM NETS (PAGE 14, DEC 29)

The Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe, has advised fishermen to emulate the example of the Elmina Premix Committee by ensuring transparency and accountability in all their dealings.
She also called on them to utilise profits from the sale of premix fuel for the benefit of their communities.
She was speaking at a ceremony where one hundred and fifty canoe fishermen from Elmina benefited from fishing nets valued at GH¢45,000.00 purchased with profit from sale of the premix fuel by the Elmina Premix Committee.
The committee also presented cloths to eight aged fishermen who had contributed towards the promotion of the fishing industry in Elmina.
The member of Parliament for Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem, Dr J.S. Annan, advised the fishermen to put to good use the nets to compensate for the efforts of the committee.
A Deputy Minister of Agriculture in–charge of Fisheries, Nii Amassah Namoale, also advised the committee to invest part of their profit in educational funds for the youth in the area.
He said the government was focused on safeguarding the operations of canoe fishermen in the country.
At the ceremony in Elmina last Tuesday, the Secretary of the Elmina Premix Committee, Alhaji Mohammed Dauda, said the committee decided to present the nets to the fishermen in support of their efforts.
Alhaji Dauda said the profit was realised from the sale of premix fuel within six months of the committee’s operations.
He commended the government for the continued supply of premix fuel to support them in their operations.
The Chairman of the National Premix Committee, Mr Kwaku Nicol, said the government would continue to offer the necessary support and protection to canoe fishermen to sustain their livelihood.
He called on landing beach committees to ensure that fishermen derived maximum benefits from the sale of premix fuel in their communities.
The Committee in appreciation of President Mills’s support for fishermen in ensuring the supply of premix fuel and the measures he had taken to enhance their livelihood, bestowed on him the title of a chief fisherman, “Ofarnyi Kwegya Atta Mills” and presented him with a stool.

PREMIX C'TTEE ASSISTS 150 FISHERMEN WITH NETS (PAGE 19, DEC 28)

One hundred and fifty canoe fishermen from Elmina have benefited from fishing nets valued at GH¢45,000.00 from profit made from the sale of premix fuel by the Elmina Premix Committee.
The committee also presented cloths to eight aged fishermen who have contributed towards the promotion of the fishing industry in Elmina.
At a ceremony at Elmina last Tuesday, the Secretary of the Elmina Premix Committee, Alhaji Mohammed Dauda, said the committee decided to present the nets to the fishermen to support their livelihood.
Alhaji Dauda said the profit was realised from the sale of premix fuel within six months of the committee’s operations.
He commended the government for the continued supply of premix fuel to support them in their operations.
The Chairman of the National Premix Committee, Mr Kwaku Nicol, said the government would continue to offer the necessary support and protection to canoe fishermen to sustain their livelihood.
He called on landing beach committees to ensure that fishermen derived maximum benefits from the sale of premix fuel in their communities.
The Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe, advised fishermen to emulate the example of the Elmina Premix Committee and ensure transparency and accountability and utilise the profit from the sale of premix fuel for the benefit of their communities.
The Member of Parliament for Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem, Dr J.S. Annan, advised the fishermen to put to good use the nets to compensate for the efforts of the committee.
A Deputy Minister of Agriculture in charge of Fisheries, Nii Amassah Namoale, also advised the committee to invest part of its profits in educational funds for the youth in the area.
He said the government remained focused on safeguarding the operations of canoe fishermen in the country.
The committee, in appreciation of President Mills’s support for fishermen in ensuring the supply of premix fuel and the measures he had taken to enhance their livelihood, bestowed on him the title of a chief fisherman, “Ofarnyi Kwegya Atta Mills,” and presented him with a stool.

CHIEFS MUST KEEP AWAY FROM PARTISAN POLITICS (PAGE 23, DEC 28)

The Omanhene of the Breman Asikuma Traditional Area, Nana Amoakwa Boadu VIII, has advised his colleague chiefs to abide by the constitutional provision that bars chiefs from engaging in active politics to safeguard the sanctity of the chieftaincy institution.
Nana Buadu said the chieftaincy institution was a time-tested and noble one which could not be wished away and denigrated to the extent that the people could mount platforms to engage in debates that could compromise the respect and authority of chiefs.
He was speaking to the Daily Graphic after he had been introduced to the Central Regional House of Chiefs in Cape Coast last Tuesday.
Nana Buadu enjoined chiefs to be development partners of the central government and remain resolute in their development agenda.
He said chiefs had, before and after the colonial era, championed the development of their areas and saw no reason why they should not strive to do same under the present day circumstances.
He said since the Constitution also made provision for the recognition and appointment to other state institutions, it would be in their own interest to play the role of watchdogs and advisors to politicians and the society at large.
The President of the Central Region House of Chiefs, Dasebre Kwebu Ewusi, advised chiefs to use alternative dispute resolution mechanism to adjudicate in cases since the process was speedy, easy and less costly in order to avoid protracted disputes which could affect the development of their respective areas.
He also advised them to set up educational funds in their respective areas to promote the education of the youth in their areas.

CONFAB ON CLIMATE CHANGE (PAGE 23, DEC 19)

Nineteen Regional Directors of the German Development Service (DED) who participated in the conference on climate change visited the Western and the Central regions as part of a familiarisation tour to assess the technical support that would be needed to combat it.
The delegation visited the Takoradi harbour and the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Municipal Assembly.
The Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe, welcoming the delegation recalled the close co-operation between Ghana and Germany and the immense contribution of the German Government to Ghana’s economic development.
She said Ghana continued to benefit from programmes of the DED through its technical support agencies such as building the capacity of district assemblies including some in the Central Region which benefited.
She expressed the support of the Regional Co-ordinating Council towards the realisation of the objectives of the DED’s programmes.
The DED Representative in Ghana, Mrs Anet Turmann, said the DED was providing technical support for assemblies in the 10 regions throughout the country.
She said currently the DED was supporting the KEEA Municipal and the Twifo-Hemang-Lower Denkyira District Assemblies to build the capacity of their local governments and traditional authorities in the two districts.

29 FARMERS HONOURED AT ASSIN KRUWA (PAGE 23, DEC 19)

Mr Daniel Ankoma Mends, a 33-year-old farmer from Assin Dominase, was adjudged the best farmer out of 29 farmers awarded at Kruwa in the Assin South District.
For his prize, Mr Mends took home a mist blower, half packet of roofing sheets, a bicycle, wax print, pesticides, machetes, a pair of wellington boots, a radio cassette player, among other farming inputs.
In an address, the District Chief Executive, Ms Sabina Appiah-Kubi, said the Government, with the support of the Danish International Development Agency(DNIDA), was pursuing the Local Service Delivery and Governance Programme aimed at providing interventions and intermediate means of transportation to facilitate the conveyance of agricultural produce to the marketing centres.
Ms Appiah-Kubi said the Government was also scaling up credit facilities for agricultural producers and that through the micro enterprise financing, the Root and Tuber Improvement and Marketing project was supporting small-scale cassava producers.
She said 13,540 farms, belonging to 12,333 farmers and covering 56,664 hectares, were sprayed in the district under the Cocoa Disease and Pests Control project.
She advised the award winners to form an association to share ideas and experience with other farmers.
She further advised them to stem the menace of bush fires on their farms and protect the environment.
The District Chief Executive appealed to owners of dogs and cats to immunise them against rabies to prevent the transmission of the disease to people they bit and the wild animals they hunted.
She commended farmers for their efforts at ensuring food security despite the enormous challenges they had to grapple with.

POVERTY HIGH IN MFANTSEMAN (PAGE 20, DEC 18)

The Mfantseman Municipality in the Central Region was created out of the Cape Coast District by Legislative Instrument 1374 in 1988. It covers an area of 612 sq km and forms 1.16 per cent of the land area of the region.
It is bordered on the west by the Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese District, on the north by the Assin South District, on the east by the and the Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam District and on the south by the Gulf of Guinea.
The two constituencies - Mfantseman East and West - are represented in Parliament by the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
It has a population of 170,883, which is 19.6 per cent of the total population of the Central Region. The percentage distribution is 45.9 per cent males and 54.1 per cent females with an annual growth rate of 3.0 per cent.
The municipality has 164 settlements with Saltpond as its capital. The urban settlements are Anomabo, Mankessim, Otuam and Yamoransa constituting one per cent of the population.
There are five traditional areas in the district - Anomabo, Ekumfi, Dominase, Mankessim and Nkusukum.
Fishing, constituting 51 per cent; farming, 30 per cent; and commerce, 19 per cent, are the main economic activities.
Currently, 52 per cent of the total population live below the poverty line (the figure is higher than the national average of 39.5 per cent.) with 34 per cent in the category of “hard core poverty”.
The area is served by the Saltpond Hospital and community health facilities including Community Based Health Promotion Services (CHPS).
Despite these health facilities, the cultural beliefs of the people tends to hinder health delivery because the people prefer to patronise prayer camps instead of visiting health centres.
Diseases such as malaria, HIV and AIDS and tuberculosis which have been on the ascendancy have significant socio-economic implications for the municipality. Persons aged between 20 and 49 years, which represents 86.5 per cent, are victims HIV and AIDS infections.
For instance in 2008, 14,621 cases of malaria, 229 of HIV and AIDS and 140 of tuberculosis were recorded. The key factors for the high increase in HIV and AIDS infection are poor paternity, lack of income-generating enterprises and broken families.
Other factors are lack of education facilities and potable water, poor road network, difficulty in land acquisition, inadequate access to credit facilities, inadequate storage facilities, high unemployment rate, among others.
The situation calls for urgent intervention in the area of poverty reduction, which is the current thrust of the government’s development policy direction in reducing poverty, especially in the rural communities.
Investment opportunities exist in tourism, agro processing, fisheries, industry and mining.
The Fort William at Anomabo, Fort Amsterdam at Abandze, Tantanquire at Otuam, Nananompow at Mankessim, the United Gold Coast Convention Office (UGCC) and that of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) at Saltpond, the Epitaph of George Ekem Furguson at Anomabo and the peculiar beach features at Hinii and Narkwa.
Agro processing, ceramics, pottery, canoe repairs and handicrafts are the major industrial concerns of the district.
The assembly is conducting feasibility studies into mining and processing of mineral resources, oil exploration, salt, clay and kaolin deposits.
Currently the Saltpond Offshore Oil Company produces 500 barrels of crude oil a day.
Incentive packages which have been lined up for potential investors include facilitating the acquisition, registration and documentation of land for investors, extension of utility services, water, power, communication facilities to project sites and a grant of one to five years tax holiday to prospective investors.
Besides, the assembly would enter into partnership with investors or facilitate partnership between foreign investors and their local partners. The trading centre at Mankessim provides ready distribution outlets for products of investors.
To speed up the strategy on poverty reduction and an accelerated development, the Municipal Chief Executive, Mr Benjamin Kweku Hayfron, said the municipal assembly would soon establish a rural technology facility at Mankessim and that it had started building a cold store at Kormantse to enhance the incomes of fishermen.
Mr Hayfron said it was also drawing plans for a modern market complex at Mankessim and that a group from Germany had already held fruitful discussions with the assembly in that direction.
The Mankessim market generates greater part of revenue for the assembly.
He said educational infrastructure, the road network, as well as good drinking water in the district, would be improved.
The Municipal Chief Executive said under the Community Based Rural Development projects classroom blocks were being built at Saltpond and Pomadze whilst sanitation facilities were being provided at Gyedu and Asaman.
Staff quarters for a judge is to be provided at Essakyir from the assembly’s own resources with sanitary facilities at Otuam and Nanaben.
Mr Hayfron expressed concern at the low revenue-generation of the assembly and advised traders to pay their taxes to improve its revenue base.
He expressed the hope that all and sundry would complement the assembly’s efforts to make life better fo r the people in the municipality.

CHIEF OF EDINA ESSAMAN DEBUNKS CLAIMS (PAGE 17, DEC 17)

THE Chief of Edina Essaman, Nana Kwesi Tandoh IV, has debunked claims in a section of the media that President J.E.A. Mills is putting up a mansion for himself at Edina Essaman.
According to Nana Tandoh, who is also the Gyasehen of the Edina Traditional Area, President Mills was not involved in the project.
“It is his two brothers — Dr Cadman Atta Mills and Sammy Mills — who have lived in the United States of America for about 30 years who are financing the project,” he explained, and stressed that he had been associated with the President and his father since his enstoolment as the chief of Essaman in 1979 and, therefore, knew them well.
He said he would vouch for President Mills’ sincerity and honesty and said those spreading the wrong information were only up to mischief.
Nana Tandoh produced a copy of the agreement on the parcel of land measuring 59.30 acres and leased by Nana Kwesi Tandoh III and his elders dated January 23, 1960 and signed by Y. Kenneth Blaidoo of Kisi, which spelt out the details of the lease.
The copy bore the marks of Nana Kwesi Tandoh II, R. Tando, Kweku Atta, Kodwo Appoinyah, Kwesi Fori, Kodwo Kyee, Kwaw Akondoh and Kobina Onsu Nyame Ye.
He said the signatories to the lease from the President’s father’s side were Mrs Emma Afful, Mr Kofi Sam Atta Mills, Mr Cadman Atta Mills, Mrs Mary Davies, Mrs Mercy Quarshie and Mr Samuel Atta Mills.
He said due to the trust, confidence and cordial relationship existing between the two parties, they decided to renew the lease on mutual and satisfactory terms.
He said he started discussions with the President as far back as 2000 on the renewal of the lease agreement and since there was no need to rush, it was suspended for the convenience of both parties.
“The President is truthful to a fault and I want the whole world to know this after knowing him personally for well over 30 years,” Nana Tandoh said.
It would be recalled that a private newspaper carried a story that President Mills was building a mansion on a piece of land at the Atabadze Junction.

CHIEFS, PARTIES, OTHERS MUST WORK IN UNITY ...Yamson advises (PAGE 16, DEC 11)

A former Chairman of Unilever (Ghana), Mr Ishmael Yamson, has called for a harmonious relationship among chiefs, political parties and district assemblies for the development of the country.
Mr Yamson, who is also the Gyaasehene of Breman Kuntanase, said since the three institutions shared the single objective of bringing about development and prosperity and ensuring the well-being of the people, they should not be seen as sources of conflict, tension and sharp division.
Speaking on the topic, “Sustaining Democratic Governance in Ghana: The dichotomy between the chieftaincy institution and the political parties and the district assemblies”, Mr Yamson said the only difference between the three institutions was the level of operation.
The symposium formed part of activities to mark the Odwira Festival of the chiefs and people of Breman Baako and the 10th anniversary of Barima Kweku Adu-Twum Brawiri II, the Chief of Breman Baako and Akyempimhene of the Breman Traditional Area.
Mr. Yamson said currently the chieftaincy institution and political parties seemed to be drifting poles apart for no reason, while the assemblies, which were supposed to be non-partisan, toed party lines.
He urged the people to be vigilant and demand accountability and transparency from the district assemblies which he said had been engulfed in corruption and remained unaccountable for the huge sums they received from the central government.
He was critical of some district chief executives who squandered money meant for development for their personal and selfish interest.
Mr. Yamson said unless the people lived together, maintained vigilance and moved in one direction, not even the oil money could save the country.
He challenged politicians to stand up against corruption and other actions which were not in the interest of the people.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Search-lite Foundation and Chairman of the National Service Board, Mr Nkunu Akyea, described the dichotomy in governance as self-inflicted because the people had either allowed it or rather adopted or visited it upon themselves.
The Omanhene of the Breman Asikuma Traditional Area, Nana Amoakwa Boadu VIII, who chaired the function, advised the people to look into the frivolous dichotomy which existed among the three institutions in order to avoid conflicts and live in harmony for mutual benefit and development.

PLANNING C'SSION EMBARKS ON CAPACITY BUILDING (PAGE 23, NOV 27)

The National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) has embarked on a nation-wide capacity-building exercise on planning guidelines for all the 170 metropolitan/municipal and district assemblies.
The programme is to enable the assemblies to translate national policies into implementable activities that can reduce poverty in the various districts.
It is also aimed at sensitising the assemblies to national planning strategies.
The first training workshop has taken place in the Central Region. It attracted four participants each from the 17 districts in the region, made up of MMDCs, district co-ordinating directors, planning officers and district budget analysts.
The two-day workshop, which was funded by the NDPC, the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Children’s Fund was also attended by representatives from the regional coordinating directors, regional economic planning officers and their assistants.
The Central Regional Planning Officer, Mr Frank Obeng-Dapaah, in his opening remarks, emphasised the importance of the workshop and asked the MMDCEs and staff of the assemblies to involve all stakeholders in the planning process.
Mr Kobina Okyere, a Deputy Director of the NDPC and a resource person, said the Government was pursuing the Vision 2020 Development Agenda, the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategies (GPRS) one and two, all aimed at achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
He said those programmes targeted poverty reduction, job and wealth creation to enable the country attain middle-income status.
Mr Okyere said the medium-term national development policy framework which would replace the GPRS two would address the economic imbalances, restabilise the economy and place it on a path of sustained growth and poverty reduction.
The Cape Coast Metropolitan Planning Officer, Mr Justice Amoah, said since planning was a collective responsibility of all those who worked with the assemblies, it behoved them to make the necessary inputs for effective planning.
Mr Amoah called on chief executives to support planning officers with the necessary resources to enable them to discharge their duties efficiently.
The Municipal Chief Executive for Effutu, Nii Ephraim, said the workshop had made them understand the challenges facing planning officers and budget analysts and expressed the hope that the assemblies would assist them with the needed logistics to enable them work efficiently.

CONTENT OF SECONDARY EDUCATION CRUMBLING (PAGE 17, NOV 27)

THE Minister of Education, Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, has stated that in spite of the expense and expansion in infrastructure by policy makers, secondary education seems to be crumbling in content.
Mr Tettey-Enyo said until Ghanaians of all political persuasions regarded secondary education as vital to nation building, questions of the quality of secondary education would continue to haunt the nation.
These were contained in an address read on his behalf by Mr Emmanuel Owusu Ansah-Asare, Deputy Director, Teacher Education Division of the Ghana Education Service (GES) at the 25th anniversary celebration of the Assin Nsuta Senior High School at Assin Nsuta in the Assin South District in the Central Region.
Mr Tettey- Enyo said that was why the Government was encouraging private-sector development, and was also partnering religious bodies, communities and other private educationists in establishing schools, colleges and universities in a bid to ensure total enrolment of children in both basic and secondary schools to progress to tertiary levels.
He said it was also in line with this that the community of Assin Nsuta and its surrounding neighbours co-ordinated their efforts to establish the Assin Nsuta Senior High School under the patronage of the then PNDC Secretary, the late Richard Kojo Ampomah, and others, and nurtured it into a fully-fledged school.
He asked them to use the occasion to reflect on the idea and the circumstance that prompted them to come out with the laudable idea of establishing the school and identify its shortcomings and provide solutions.
The minister also urged all stakeholders to support the Government in the struggle to liberate “our minds of ignorance and poverty”.
In his report, the Headmaster of the school, Reverend Franklin K. Boadu, said the school, which started as a community day school in 1984 with its core mission as an agricultural school, with seven students and three masters, now had a population of 800.
Since its inception, Rev. Boadu said not much had changed as the school continued “to languish in the borrowed walls of its birth”.
He, therefore, appealed to the Government to assist in providing accommodation at the new site to ease the plight of both staff and students.
He commended the founding fathers, namely Nana Brefuor Apenten II (Chief of Assin Nsuta), Mr Vincent Pinkrah, the late Mr Philip Afrane Gaisie, Mr D. N. Enin and Professor Dominic K. Fobih for their invaluable contribution to the school.
The Chief of Nsuta, Nana (Dr) Ohemeng Awere V, expressed his appreciation for the achievements of the school, despite its challenges, and promised to explore more avenues to assist in providing the necessary infrastructure to enhance teaching and learning.
Mr Augustine Abankwa, who chaired the function, commended all those whose contributions had brought the school to its current level.

INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN CR CONTRADICT POVERTY LEVEL (PAGE 40, NOV 26)

THE immense investment opportunities in the Central Region contradict its poverty level.
Apart from its comparative advantage in tourism, the agricultural front offers major crops such as oil palm, citrus, pineapple, cassava and fish.
Other potential includes Information Communication Technology, real estate development, salt mining, quarrying, gold mining and education.
The region’s strategic location — proximity to Accra-Tema, Takoradi and Kumasi has made it accessible to the nation’s only two international seaports, the only international airport and the hinterland.
Opening a day’s investment forum in Cape Coast, the Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe, said with those potential and many others, it was only logical that the region maximised the benefits of the potential.
The forum, organised by the Central Region Development Commission (CEDECOM), was aimed at providing a platform for a dialogue among public and private sector operators to promote trade and investment in the region.
Dubbed, “Making Central Region the preferred investment destination — prospects and challenges,” the forum was to identify and determine interventions that would stimulate investments in the key sectors of the region’s economy.
It is also aimed at exposing investors and entrepreneurs to various financing options and other support programmes, as well as bringing to the knowledge of investors and entrepreneurs the various incentive packages and investment guarantees made available by the government to prospective investors.
Mrs Benyiwa-Doe, however, stated that the potential had been hampered by challenges such as multiple sale of lands, high cost of utilities, inadequate infrastructure, inadequate human resources, weak market access, high cost of financing and chieftaincy disputes.
She said those challenges were being attended to through a number of interventions, and gave the assurance that the Regional Co-ordinating Council would give the necessary support to enable CEDECOM to play its expected role in the development of the region.
In his welcoming remarks, the acting Executive Director of CEDECOM, Mr Spencer Taylor expressed the hope that the forum would address the challenges to create more jobs, enhanced incomes and the overall improvement in the standard of living of the people in the region.  

AGRIC MINISTRY TAKES STEPS TO BOOST ACQUACULTURE (BACK PAGE, NOV 14)

The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) is to establish a farming chain development to boost aquaculture to address the shortfall in the production of fish in the country.
It will soon meet all stakeholders within the fish chain as a sequel to the move aimed at adding value to fish production and enhance aquaculture.
The acting Central Regional Director of the Fisheries Commission, Mr George Anti, made this known at the closing of a four-day sensitisation and training workshop in non-traditional farming businesses for farmers and fishermen in the Central Region at the Craft Production Centre at Abrafo-Odumase last Thursday.
The workshop, which was organised by the Central Regional Development Commission (CEDECOM), attracted 135 participants from the 11 districts in the region.
It was on the theme, “Inducing high economic growth in the Central Region through farmer’s capacity development in the non-traditional farming businesses”.
Participants were taken through pond construction and management, fish preservation, fish farm marketing and financing, snail farming, business planning, strategies and record keeping.
Mr Anti said the government had prioritised the promotion of aquaculture to solve the shortfall in fish production in the country.
About 300,000 metric tonnes of fish is imported annually to meet the fish requirement of about 700,000 metric tonnes.
He said the farming chain development project would provide a link among hatcheries, aquaculturalists, processors, users and distributors to enhance and strengthen their associations and make them viable.
Dr Fischen Prempeh of the University of Cape Coast advised snail and fish farmers to set standards to meet international requirements.
He further called on them to change their attitude towards their customers and package their products to make them more attractive.
He also called for collaboration between MoFA and the universities for information and technology, since the universities were engaged in research and had the relevant data on most of the challenges that confronted farmers.
Mr Atta Boakye, who gave an overview of the workshop, called on the participants to form associations and networking to facilitate their activities and boost their growth.
Mr E.N. Erskine, on behalf of the participants, urged the government to give non-traditional farming businesses the needed support to enable them to contribute their quota towards the economic growth of the country.
Earlier in his opening remarks, Mr Spencer Taylor, the acting Executive Director of CEDECOM, had said his outfit would continue to offer the needed technological know-how to those engaged in non-traditional businesses to enable them to create wealth and reduce poverty in the region.

BOAARDS OF DIRECTORS OF CEDECOM INAUGURATED (PAG 21, NOV 13)

THE Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Hannah Tetteh, has inaugurated a 15-member Board of Directors for the Central Regional Development Commission (CEDECOM) with a call on members to tap the abundant advantages of the region for its development.
Ms Tetteh said the region had the potential to use its rich cultural heritage to boost tourism so as to create jobs and wealth to reduce the poverty level it found itself in.
Addressing members of the board, she said the fort and castles which had been declared as international heritage sites, offered one of the best advantages to be tapped.
She said as a cradle of education, it also had the potential for human resource training to take advantage of private schools which were springing up, adding that with the oil find in the neighbouring Western Region, it could equip people with skills for the industry.
The minister said CEDECOM, as a catalyst for development, should have the leverage to spearhead the drive to galvanise the needed resources and attract investment to the region.
She stressed the need for foresight and industry on the part of the members, and expressed the hope that they would live up to the task.
The Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe, said the Regional Co-ordinating Council had the mandate to provide technical support for the region’s development.
She, however, expressed regret that even though the region was the citadel of education, it had not reflected in the level of development and poverty reduction.
Mrs Benyiwa-Doe urged the members to use the occasion as a springboard for reinvigorating the mission and vision of CEDECOM for the region’s accelerated development.
A member of the board, Nana Sam Brew Butler, on behalf of the members, promised to accept the challenge to ensure that the faith reposed in them was accomplished.
The 15-member board has Mrs Benyiwa-Doe as its chairman, with the other members as Mr Spencer Taylor, the acting Executive Director of CEDECOM, Mr Frank Obeng Dapaah, the Regional Planning Officer, Mr Sintim Barimah, of the Ministry of Trade, Mr Ato Forson, Member of Parliament (MP) for Ajumako-Enyan-Esiam, Dr J.V. Mensah of the University Cape Coast and Madam Veronica Essuman Nelson, the Municipal Chief Executive for Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem.
The rest are Nana Kwamina Ansah IV, the Omanhen of the Eguafo Traditional Area, Mr Gustav Addington, Legal Practitioner, Mr Joe Appeah, Private Consultant, Dr Joseph Teye Nuertey, Clergy, Nana Sam Brew Butler, an Opinion Leader, Dr Mrs Entsua Mensah and Mr Abraham Fokuo, both opinion leaders, and Mr Kwame Oppong, a Co-ordinating Director.

ASSEMBLY DONATES BRAILLE TO BLIND STUDENT (PAGE 40, NOV 12)

THE Assin South District Assembly has donated a Braille valued at GH¢840 to Mr Albert Nartey, a visually impaired student at the Akropong School for the Blind.
Making the presentation at Nsuaem, the District Chief Executive, Ms Sabina Appiah-Kubi, said the donation was in response to Mr Nartey’s appeal for support towards his education.
She said the assembly also took into consideration Mr Nartey’s quest for education, despite his predicament.
Ms Appiah-Kubi expressed the hope that the Braille would assist him to achieve his desire.
Mr Nartey thanked the assembly for coming to his aid and said he would use it to enhance his education.

ILO ORGANISES FORUM FOR TAILORS AND DRESSMAKERS (PAGE 40, NOV 12)

THE International Labour Organisation (ILO) has organised a day’s forum for stakeholders from the districts in the Central Region engaged in the Ghana Decent Work Project to prepare them for the use of local tailors and dressmakers in the provision of free school uniforms to children in basic schools in the country.
At a forum at Agona Swedru, International Project Consultant on Local Economic Development (LED) of the Ghana Decent Work Project, Dr Nii Moi Thompson, said the government’s decision to provide free uniforms presented an opportunity for micro, small and medium enterprises in the garment and textile industry in the participating project districts to expand their work and improve their competitiveness.
Dr Thompson said the workshop selected the ILO project-participating districts to enable them to develop their local enterprises to increase productivity and create employment as well as increase income.
He said the workshop was to create awareness for the tailors and dressmakers to take advantage of the programme, adding that the technical preparation would be followed later.
According to Dr Thompson, should they perform well, they might be given the chance in the provision of uniforms for institutions such as nurses, the police and military since those uniforms were procured outside the country.
The participants were of the view that the award of contracts under the uniform policy should be transparent and devoid of partisanship.
The National Project Officer for Local Economic Development (LED), Mr Emmauel Baisie, advised members of the Ghana National Traders Association to formalise their businesses to enable them to benefit from the programme.
In a related development, the District Chief Executive for Gomoa West, Mr Theophilus Adioo-Mensah inaugurated the sub-committee on Product and Gainful Employment, an International Labour Organisation (ILO) programme under the Decent Work-Ghana Project at Apam in the Central Region.
In an address, Mr Adioo-Mensah said the committee would play a vital role in poverty reduction in the district. He said as a public and private interface at the local level, it would serve as an institution for social and economic dialogue.
The DCE said the fundamental role of the committee was to identify local economic potential and formulate strategies for realisation of the potential for inclusion in the development plans and mobilise both local and other resources in support of the plan.
He said the government had the desire to create decent employment for the teeming unemployed youth because job creation was one of the pillars that held the National Democratic Congress (NDC) manifesto.
Mr Aidoo-Mensah, therefore, expressed the hope that the partnership with the ILO would be able to create gainful employment.
He charged the committee members to be innovative in their quest to facilitate employment creation.
An International Project Expert with the ILO, Mr Nii Moi Thompson, said the sub-committee in Gomoa West was the eighth to be inaugurated in the region, and promised to train the members on how to assess funds to support small scale businesses in the district.
The 15-member committee is being chaired by Mr Ekow Eyanful, who also promised on behalf of the other committee members to work hard to justify the confidence reposed in them.

30 HEADMASTERS ATTEND PROFESSIONAL DEV COURSE (PAGE 40, NOV 12)

THIRTY headmasters from basic schools within the Cape Coast metropolis and the Elmina Municipality have benefited from a two-day professional development and leadership training programme under the British Council’s “Connecting Classroom” project.
The “Connecting Classroom” project, run by the British Council in 18 African countries, is aimed at forging sustainable partnership between Ghanaian teachers and their United Kingdom counterparts.
It provides young learners the opportunity to engage one another to provide international communication skills for learners and impart to them knowledge as agents of positive change in society.
The project is being executed by the British Council in conjunction with the Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (IEPA) of the University of Cape Coast (UCC).
The Project Co-ordinator, Ms Ivy Apreku, told the Daily Graphic in Cape Coast that the project was also based on the principles of diversity, curiosity, respect, mutuality and dialogue.
She said the programme had run since 2006 in Ghana and about 75 schools had been involved.
Ms Apreku said 16 teachers from the United Kingdom on a study tour joined their counterparts in the programme, dubbed: “Leadership in Learning and Community Cohesion”.
The Director of the IEPA of the UCC, Dr George K.T. Oduro, said research by the IEPA indicated that most headmasters at the basic school level did not know how to promote learning.
He said the IEPA entered into collaboration with the University of Cambridge to design a project to strengthen the capacity of headmasters in learning and leadership skills.
Dr Oduro said the Ghana Education Service (GES) mandated the IEPA to prepare headmasters in basic schools in learning and leadership skills.
That, he said, was to provide means of making schools benefit from the programme.
He said by institutionalising the programme, the IEPA had provided a monitoring and supervision system for the benefit of people.
Dr Oduro said there were also a number of training programmes by different bodies and non-governmental organisations in building the capacity of school heads but the methodology and focus used were different and often confused teachers.
He, therefore, appealed to the GES to co-ordinate to know which direction the programme should go.
Dr Oduro called on the GES to come up with an agenda that clearly defined the philosophy underlying headmaster preparation in the country and the methodology that it deemed appropriate for achieving such a philosophy.

ASIKUMA HOLDS CONFERENCE TO ATTRACT INVESTORS (PAGE 40, NOV 12)

DESPITE being endowed with vast fertile land, which supports the cultivation of varied cash crops such as cocoa, oil palm, maize, cashew, chilly (black pepper), coconut and cassava, the Asikuma Traditional Area lacks the needed investment to accelerate the development of the area.
It is for this reason that the Omanhene of the area, Nana Amoakwa Boudu VIII, has left no stone unturned since his installation to attract investors to the area.
For a start, under his leadership and with the active collaboration of the Asikuma-Odoben-Brakwa District Assembly and the Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, Mr P.C. Appiah-Ofori, a stakeholders conference has been organised at Breman Asikuma to find ways of attracting investment to the area to speed up its development.
The Breman Development Conference, which attracted prominent citizens from the area, was on the theme: “Uniting for accelerated development,” and brought together stakeholders within and outside the area, to deliberate on a number of issues affecting the development of the area.
The forum offered the participants an opportunity to provide information leading to a resolution for a five-year strategic plan for the district.
It was aimed at establishing partnership with the district assembly to implement decisions of the forum.
The forum also afforded the participants the chance to market the district’s available investment opportunities.
At the ceremony, Nana Amoakwa Boadu thanked the people for rallying behind to his peaceful installation.
He said he was prepared to lead the people to undertake projects to create jobs and reduce poverty in the area.
Nana Amoakwa Boadu said his other priority would be to improve upon education and the health delivery in the area, and therefore, advised the people to avoid disputes because they retarded development.
He urged the chiefs and land owners to be prepared to release land to investors to undertake investments.
Nana Amoakwa Boadu entreated the people to unite, live in peace and harmony for the progress of their communities.
The MP, Mr Appiah-Ofori, said he welcomed the moves by the Omanhene to mobilise the people and resources for the development of the area.
He said since the government alone could not develop the country, it behoved chiefs to mobilise their people to complement the efforts of the government.
Mr Appiah-Ofori stated that he would support efforts to revive the chilly project he initiated to generate revenue and employment for the people in the area.
The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Asikuma-Odoben-Brakwa, Ms Georgina Aboah Nkrumah, pledged the assembly’s support for the Omanhene.
The participants in the forum called for the establishment of business and technical schools, a college of education and a nurses’ training college in the district.

AJUMAKO TO SERVE AS UEW CAMPUS (PAGE 21, NOV 12)

THE decision of the government to hand over the Ghana Education Service Development Institute (GESDI) at Ajumako to serve as a campus of the University of Education, Winneba(UEW), is irrevocable.
The Minister of Education, Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, who made the declaration, said his ministry would, therefore, speed up the process for the benefit of the UEW, adding that the government had set up a committee that was working on the final process.
That was a personal assurance before he read a speech on behalf of the President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills, at the 14th congregation of the UEW in Winneba, during which 5,439 graduates were awarded diploma and degree.
President Mills said the government would support the UEW and other universities to expand their distance education programmes to address the problem of limited access to tertiary education.
He commended the universities for using the medium of distance education to expand access to tertiary education.
He, however, expressed the need for them to co-ordinate their activities in that area to achieve maximum results.
The President said considerable efforts were being made to create congenial conditions for effective and efficient education delivery across the country, adding that the government was committed to rectifying all salary distortions to give teachers their due by applying the single spine salary structure.
The Vice-Chancellor of the UEW, Professor Akwasi Asabre-Ameyaw, said currently the student population stood at 33,271, noting that both students and staff lacked the requisite residential and office accommodation, and asked the government for massive financial support to improve facilities to facilitate the training of quality teachers.
He commended the staff, donors and individuals whose support had immensely sustained the university.
The Chairman of the University Council, Dr Emmanuel Kenneth Andoh, also known as Okofo Amoako Bondam III, the Omanhene of the Enyan-Maim Traditional Area, advised the new graduates to lead lives worthy of emulation.

I'LL HELP BRING PEACE, JUSTICE TO MANKIND — CARDINAL TURKSON (SPREAD, NOV 2)

Archbishop Peter Cardinal Kodwo Appiah Turkson says even though his new appointment as the President of the Pontifical Council of Justice and Peace is a daunting task, he would live up to the challenge to bring peace, unity and justice to mankind.
Speaking to the faithful at the Saint Francis de Sales Cathedral last Friday after his return from the Vatican, where he received the award, Cardinal Turkson said he accepted his elevation with humility, and expressed the hope that with God’s guidance and the support of the church and Ghanaians, he would live up to the task.
Cardinal Turkson told the congregation, which included the Apostolic Nuncio to Ghana Leon Kalenga, Archbishop Emeritus of Kumasi, His Grace, Akwasi Sarpong, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra, Gabriel Charles Palmer Buckle, Bishop Daniel Cannon Allotey, the Anglican Bishop of the Cape Coast and the Bishops of Obuasi, Goaso and Techiman, that his appointment underscored his deep quest for peace and justice for mankind.
Cardinal Turkson serves as the Chairman of the National Peace Council in Ghana and as a member of the Eminent Persons Mediating for peace in the Dagbon crisis.
He said he had foreknowledge of his appointment and was not surprised when it was made at the Vatican Summit in Rome before he made a presentation at the conference.
He said what dawned on him most about the challenge were the approaches made by the Archbishops of Congo, Rwanda and Somalia to him to assist them in solving their crises soon after his appointment was announced.
Fraternal messages were read by the Catholic Bishops Conference and the Archdiocesan Priests Association.
Earlier, Cardinal Turkson had arrived to a rousing welcome by faithful at the Holy Child Senior High School Junction, near Ekon, from where he was driven in an open-top vehicle through the Savoy Street to the London Bridge road to the Emintsimadze Palace of the Oguaamanhen.
The Oguaamanhen, Osabarima Kwesi Atta II, who poured powder into the palm of Cardinal Turkson, also presented him with a palm branch to signify his triumph return to Cape Coast with another feather in his cap.
Osabarima Kwesi Atta commended Cardinal Turkson for his humility, which, he said, had brought honour and glory to Cape Coast, the Central Region, Ghana and Africa.
He said the Oguaa Traditional Council would support him in all his endeavours to achieve higher and greater laurels in the hierarchy of the Church.
Cardinal Turkson said even though he would be out of the country, he would continue to keep in touch with his people for their mutual benefit.
Bishop Allotey later told the press that he would not be surprised to see the first black Pope in the person of Cardinal Turkson.

BOARDS OF FIVE HEALTH INSTITUTIONS INAUGURATED (PAGE 15, NOV 2)

THE Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe, has inaugurated advisory boards for five health training institutions in the region, admonishing them to help address challenges facing the institutions.
Each of the five training schools has a seven-member board with representatives from the regional co-ordinating council, regional health directorate, traditional councils, communities, Ministry of Education, religious bodies and the training institutions themselves.
The five health training institutions in the region are the Nurses and Midwives Training College in Cape Coast, the Nurses Training College at Ankaful, the Community Health Nurses Training College in Winneba and the Health Assistants (Clinical) Training schools at Twifo Praso and Dunkwa-on-Offin.
Mrs Benyiwa-Doe advised the board members to be proactive and dedicated to their work and help the institutions to meet internationally accepted standards.
She reminded them of such challenges as poor staffing, inadequate learning and teaching materials, lack of classrooms and hostels for students and accommodation for staff, tasking them to come up with constructive ideas for improving conditions in the institutions.
The regional minister said the government was quite aware of the challenges enumerated above and was making efforts to address them.
Mrs Benyiwa-Doe, however, implored the board members to be charitable and realistic in their demands and requests in the face of the limited resources at the disposal of the Government.
The acting Central Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Samuel T. Kwashie, said all misfits who sneaked into the noble profession would be smoked out.
He said two students who were caught with Indian hemp were handed over to the security agencies for investigations, whilst a third one practically dismissed himself when rolls of Indian hemp were found on him whilst on admission at the psychiatric hospital.
He said a case of stealing was also being investigated, adding that two final year students who gained admission with fake certificates had also been handed over to the police about two weeks ago, when the school authorities were alerted by the West African Examinations Council, after verifying their results.
He said the Central Regional Health Directorate had empowered the principals of the training institutions and continued to offer them strong support to ensure discipline in order to continue to produce disciplined, high performing and committed nurses.
A representative of the boards, Nana K. Owusu-Boampong, Deputy Regional Health Director (Administration) and member of the board for the Health Assistants (Clinical) Training School, on behalf of the members, promised that they would work with commitment, dedication and diligence to enhance smooth running of the institutions.

WORKSHOP TO ENHANCE SCIENCE, RESEARCH OPENS AT UCC (PAGE 11, OCT 30)

A TWO-WEEK workshop on multispectral light imaging microscopy for applications in agriculture and biomedical diagnosis has opened at the University of Cape Coast (UCC).
The workshop which is being attended by participants from Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Kenya, Mali and Senegal, and sponsored by the International Science Programme (ISP) of Uppsala University, Sweden, is aimed at enhancing science and research by equipping the various universities of the participating countries.
The equipment will be used on some biomedical or agricultural samples.
In her welcoming address, the Vice-Chancellor of the UCC, Professor Naana Jane Opoku Agyemang, commended the (ISP) of Uppsala University for initiating the programme which covers electronics, laser optics, spectroscopy, image processing computer programming and statistical analysis data to the doorsteps of laboratories of developing countries.
Professor Naana Opoku-Agyemang appealed to ISP to consider Ghana and Senegal as centres of excellence for their programme for the benefit of the sub-Saharan region.
She said the two centres had shown maturity in the use of such equipment for research work and graduate training with positive results.
She urged participants to take advantage of the programme to enhance science and research in their respective countries.
The Project Leader for Ghana, Professor Paul Kingsley Buah-Bassuah said the project was to help train young scientists from deprived developing countries and help them to get equipment of modest cost to do their training at their various home countries.
He said the UCC had been able to train five M.Phil and one PhD. students under the project.
He expressed hope that the School of Physical and Biological Sciences of UCC would institute such a research scheme to make science real at the colleges of education to benefit basic schools.
The Head of Optometric Department, Dr Alfred Owusu, who chaired the function, commended the participating countries and the Swedish government for the project.

THREE STUDENTS CAUGHT WITH 'WEE'

From Kwame Asare Boadu, Kumasi

A LARGE number of people at the Kumasi Central Market looked on in utter shock when two young women using blades, inflicted wounds on a 24-year-old shop attendant and bit her left breast.
One of the assailants identified as Wasila alias Princess, was arrested but the other, whose name was given as Jemai is on the run and police have mounted a search for her.
The victim, Adisa Ahmed, was rushed to the Manhyia Hospital, but was transferred to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital for further medical examination.
Narrating her ordeal to The Mirror, Adisa expressed shock about the attack, especially as she had no problems with the two ladies.
According to her, the women had beaten up her junior sister the previous day when she was not present.
She stated that she never said anything about the attack on her sister and wondered why the two turned on her later.
Adisa recalled however that about a year ago, Wasila’s mother threatened to harm her (Adisa), something she reported to the police.
Since then, the case had been pending at the Ashanti New Town Court.
Adisa appealed to the police to speed up investigations into the attack to ensure that justice took its course.
Meanwhile, the Zongo police says they are doing everything possible to put the suspect before court.

19 STUDENTS RECEIVE FINANCIAL SUPPORT (PAGE 11, OCT 28)

NINETEEN students from Komenda who are in senior high schools have benefited from the Dr J.S. Annan and Elizabeth Aba Annan Memorial Educational Fund.
The amount depends on how much the beneficiaries pay at their respective schools as day or boarding students
The fund, launched in 2006, is designed to provide financial assistance to the underprivileged brilliant children to further their education at the senior high school level.
It is also aimed at empowering the youth to be role models and inspire others.
Making the presentation to the beneficiaries, made up of 12 males and seven females, the secretary to the board, Mr Samuel Nana Sarpong, said the fund had since its inception sponsored 12 students in senior high schools.
Mr Sarpong advised the beneficiaries to study hard to justify the award, and urged them to participate in extra curricular activities, as well as take up leadership positions in their schools.
He encouraged them to engage in community work while at the same time setting high academic standards,
In a related development, the Omanhene of the Komenda Traditional Area, Nana Kodwo Kru II, has appealed to the KEEA (Municipal Assembly) to complete work on the library and the Information Technology Centre at Komenda to enhance ICT education in the area
Nana Kodwo Kru further appealed to the assembly to carry out the expansion work at the health centre to facilitate health delivery at the centre.

OBAMA'S VISIT YIELDS POSITIVE RESULTS IN CR (SEPT 26, PAGE 22)

THE visit of the United States President, Barack Obama to Cape Coast has begun to show signs of positive results for businesses in the Central Region.
This follows an invitation from the US President’s office to a delegation from the Cape Coast Business Club to visit the US for a business deal between US businesses and the club.
The deal was made possible through the instrumentality of the Oguaamanhen, Osabarima Kwesi Atta II.
The Chairman of the Club, Mr Gustav Anokye-Yeboah told the Daily Graphic, that the visit was scheduled for November, this year.
Mr Anokye-Yeboah said the club which groups about 300 businesses in the Central region was introduced to the US President by Osabarima Kwesi Atta during his visit to Cape Coast.
He said the club comprised businessmen and women who had joined hands to collectively work to accelerate the development of the region through private sector initiatives and collaboration with the aim of complementing the Government’s efforts to develop the economic potential of the region.
Mr Anokye-Yeboah said the Central Region lagged behind in development as compared to other regions.
He said the region was tagged as one of the deprived regions in the country despite priding itself as the cradle of education, the seat of the first capital, besides being the tourism hub of the country.
He said it was for that reason that the club was determined to make an impact by harnessing all available resources, and seeking the support of all interested parties to propel the region in economic development.
Mr Anokye-Yeboah expressed the club’s appreciation for the crucial role the government could play to assist its members to revive the industrial potential of the region, and called on the government to support the club to realise its aims and objectives.
He also commended the Italian Government for granting 22 million euros for small and medium enterprises in (SMEs) in the country under the second phase of the Ghana Private Sector Development Facility (GPSDF).

BENYIWA-DOE CALLS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (PAGE 23, SEPT 26)

THE Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe has added her voice to the call for responsible behaviour towards the environment.
She stressed the need to eschew indiscriminate bush burning, irresponsible felling of trees, deforestation, illegal sand wining and other practices which affect the environment.
She said climatic change which was the result of bad environmental practices, threatened the very basic elements of life such as water supply, crop yield and food supply, human health and land use, among others.
These were contained in a speech read on behalf of the regional minister at the world environment day celebration at Assin Jakai in the Assin South District.
Mrs Benyiwa-Doe said in some parts of Africa, climate change was a contributory factor to increasing poverty of the people, and that coupled with the gradual irreversible degradation of the ecosystem, was the result of the migration of population from the affected areas.
She reminded the people of the essence of trees in helping to check climatic change and asked them to plant and nurture trees to reverse the trend.
The Regional Director of the Environmental Protection Agency, Mr Zakari Alhasan said the effect of climate change manifested itself in variability in climate conditions such as rising temperatures and very low temperatures around the globe, erratic rainfall in some areas as well as heavy rainfall patterns in other parts.
He called on the district assemblies and school authorities to join hands in planting and nurturing trees to save the environment.
In an address read on behalf of the District Chief Executive for Assin South, Mrs Sabina Appiah-Kubi, she said apart from providing shade and serving as wind breaks in times of storms, trees also helped in purifying the air by taking in carbon dioxide and giving out oxygen.
Ms Appiah-Kubi, therefore, called on the people to plant trees in their communities to avert any catastrophic consequences of climate change.
The Headmaster of the Jakai Junior High School, Mr Kobina Kwegyir-Aggrey called on the Forestry Services Division to provide teak tree seedlings for the school to cultivate.

CAPE VARS ADMITS 4,251 (SEPT 21, PAGE 45)

Only 4,251 applicants out of 11,730 qualified candidates were admitted to the University of Cape Coast (UCC) for the 2009/10 academic year.
The number of matriculants is made up of 3,829 undergraduates and 422 postgraduates. Out of the total number of the undergraduates, 1,301, representing 34 per cent, are females, representing an increase of two per cent over last year’s admission of female undergraduates.
The 422 postgraduate students comprised 30 per cent female representation.
The Vice Chancellor, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, gave the statistics at the matriculation ceremony at UCC last Saturday.
Professor Opoku-Agyemang said whilst the undergraduate student intake reduced slightly, the intake for the postgraduates had a healthy increase from last year’s figure of 314 to this year’s 422.
Even though she did not assign any reason for the low intake, it was speculated that the admission might have been guided by lack of lecture theatres, students’ accommodation and other facilities.
She reminded the matriculants of the rules and regulations of the university and the need for a sense of discipline in order to achieve their mission.
The Vice Chancellor advised them not to involve themselves in such reprehensible acts as cyber fraud, drug abuse, robbery and petty thefts.
She said the university would continue to work with the law enforcement agencies to deal drastically with those who might be culpable.
“Work for what you own, the result is peace that cannot be purchased. May it never be said that a student of UCC is involved in any ignoble act,” she cautioned, and asked them to resist the tendency for ethnic, political and religious intolerance.
Professor Opoku-Agyemang said coercion was not allowed on the campus, and that what had place on the campus was respect for divergent views and ideologies.
She further advised them to take advantage of the facilities, the numerous programmes and activities on the campus to study diligently to obtain optimum benefits from the university.

GOVT TO IMPLEMENT ONE-TIME NHIS PAYMENT (SEPT 17, PAGE 14)

THE Government is determined to implement the one-time premium payment for the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) by the end of 2010.
The Minister of Health, Dr George Sipa-Adjah Yankey, who gave the assurance at a stakeholders forum at Elmina yesterday, therefore, called for efforts to ensure that its implementation became a success.
Dr Yankey warned officials of the scheme and service providers against fraudulent practices which impeded the smooth operation of the scheme and its sustainability and said the government would not spare anyone whose omissions or commissions hampered the scheme.
He said currently the NHIS had engaged the services of competent auditors to scrutinise the operations of the scheme.
He also called for a strong management and regulatory system which must be accountable to the beneficiaries and contributors.
Dr Yankey said the system had been going through some turbulence hence the forum to smoothen those challenges.
The minister said the last monitoring exercise exposed some of the challenges and encouraged the participants to be open about them and find ways of minimising their effects on the sustainability of the scheme.
Dr Yankey said the scheme would be made more sustainable if malaria was eliminated, adding that the government was committed to the elimination of the disease in the next three years.
In an overview, Dr Nicholas Tweneboa, the Director of Operations of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), said from 2004 to date the scheme had registered about 13,804,198, representing 67 per cent of the population.
He said 12 million cards had been issued and 721,163 pregnant women had been catered for under the free maternal care since July, 2008.
He said 4,098,244 outpatients had benefited from the scheme whiles 295,798 in-patients had also benefited between January and June, this year.
The Chief Executive Officer of NHIA, Mr Sylvester Mensah, said the one-time premium payment was feasible and irreversible.

EXPECT BETTER DAYS AHEAD ...Says President Mills (BACK PAGE)

The President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills, has asked Ghanaians not to lose hope but to expect better days ahead.
President Mills said while the Government would ensure judicious use of resources, it would also not feast on the people’s money.
Addressing separate durbars at Gomoa Assin and Esuehyia in the Central Region, President Mills said the Government would neither countenance corruption nor shield anyone found to have misappropriated state funds.
He, therefore, asked the people to stand by the truth and hold public officials accountable.
He said his administration would remain focus on its efforts to set the economy on a sound footing, adding that he came to serve the people of Ghana.
President Mills reiterated that the Government inherited a weak economic base and a huge debt at the Tema Oil Refinery which called for pragmatic measures to handle.
He said within the few months, the Government had succeeded in making the necessary arrangements for the supply of crude oil.
He commended the people for their loyalty and support and asked them to unite for the development of the country.
Both Obenefo Ahumako Ahor Ankobea II, the Omanhen of Akyempem Traditional Area, and Nana Imprem VII, the acting President of the Ekumfi Traditional Area, appealed to the Government to rehabilitate roads in their areas.
Obenefo Ankobea also appealed to President Mills to ensure that the Gomoa East Assembly got a chief executive.
At a meeting with chief fishermen and fishmongers later at the Residency, fishermen called for the increase of allocation of premix fuel to the region. They also called for the early supply of fishing inputs such as outboard motors before the peak season.
The fishermen expressed concern about unorthodox fishing practices by some fishermen and called on the Government to act swiftly to stop the culprits.
They also appealed to the Government to build landing sites and cold storage facilities for fishing communities in the region.
Reacting to their concerns, the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr Kwesi Ahwoi, said the Government was sourcing funds from the Italian and the Indian governments to build landing sites and cold stores in 14 fishing communities.
Mr Ahwoi said already the Government had secured seven million euros for the construction of cold stores in six communities along the coastline.
He said two of the cold stores would be sited at Nyanyano and Kormanste in the Central Region with the rest being established in the Volta, Eastern and Greater Accra regions.
The Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe, said the cold storage facilities built at Apam would be reactivated to prevent post-harvest losses.

19 PERISH IN ACCIDENT (1B)

Story: Joe Okyere, Cape Coast

A NASTY dawn accident in which 19 passengers were killed occurred at Aduagyei, near Elmina, when a 38-seater Mercedes Benz bus was involved in a head-on collision with an articulated truck on the Takoradi-Cape Coast highway.
The incident was said to have occurred at between 12 midnight and 1 a.m. yesterday and 16 of the passengers died instantly, while three others also reportedly died later at the Central Regional Hospital in Cape Coast.
Fourteen other passengers are on admission at the same hospital for various injuries they sustained.
A one-year-old boy who survived the accident is yet to be identified. None of the survivors had claimed the boy, thus raising the suspicion that whoever was travelling with him might have perished.
The bodies of the deceased have been deposited at the morgue in the hospital and are yet to be identified.
According to the driver of the articulated truck, with registration number AS 6091 N, Yusif might have perished.
The bodies of the deceased have been deposited at the morgue in the hospital and are yet to be identified.
According to the driver of the articulated truck, with registration number AS 6091 N, Yusif Tanko, the driver of the Mercedes Benz bus, with registration number GR 8612 E and loaded with passengers from Takoradi, might have burst a tyre and veered into his lane.
The driver of the bus is believed to be among the dead.
The Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe, visited the injured at the hospital and donated GH¢5,000 for their upkeep.
She expressed her condolences to the bereaved families and wished the injured speedy recovery.

BEAR WITH GOVT...As it takes steps to fix economy (SPREAD)

The President, Professor J. E. Atta Mills, joined the people of Oguaa Traditional Area to celebrate their annual “Fetu Afahye" last Saturday and asked Ghanaians to bear with the government as it took measures to fix the economy.
He said the government inherited an ailing economic situation which would need sometime to turn around.
Addressing the durbar of chiefs and people to climax the annual festivities in Cape Coast, President Mills said the previous government spent eight years in office but his administration had been in office for only eight months of its four-year mandate.
He said the period so far spent in office by his administration was too short to be used as a yardstick to measure the performance of the government.
Giving the assurance that the government would not renege on its promises and responsibilities to deliver on its campaign promises and party manifesto, President Mills said what the government needed was patience and the support of the people to take the necessary steps to solve the economic problems confronting the country.
Professor Mills also called on the people to be patient, stand by the truth at all times and rely on their time-tested wisdom and intelligence to discern the truth from falsehood.
He called on the people of the Central Region to unite for the region to reclaim its past glory and image.
He recalled the nasty and ugly incident which took place at last year’s durbar during which one of his security personnel was allegedly assaulted by former President Kufuor’s bodyguards.
The President described this year’s celebration as peaceful and warm, an indication that the people cherished peace and development.
He said steps were being taken to restore the Fosu Lagoon, rehabilitate the bridge across it and complete the new stadium to befit the status of the metropolis where football began in the country. Additionally, he said, efforts would also be made to reconstruct the Kotokuraba Market.
President Mills expressed his appreciation for the warm welcome accorded him and the wonderful display by the asafo companies at the durbar grounds.
Earlier in his welcoming address, the Omanhen of Oguaa Traditional Area, Osabarima Kwesi Atta II, said the visit of United States President Barack Obama to Cape Coast had positioned the municipality on the international scene as a tourist and investment destination.
He advised the people to take advantage of the visit and help to improve the tourism industry and the general outlook of the town.
Touching on the theme for this year’s celebration, “Convergence between Christianity and Tradition,” Osabarima Atta explained that it was chosen with the realisation that there was misunderstanding among Christians, Muslims and traditionalists and expressed the hope that the occasion would bring them together for the betterment of Oguaa.
The Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa-Doe, who had presented items and cash on behalf of President Mills to the chiefs, asked them to continue to maintain the closer links between the Central Regional Co-ordinating Council and the House of Chiefs.
The Central Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress and Ambassador designate for Serbia, Mr S.V. Akyianu, later expressed the hope that the cohesion that had been witnessed within the metropolis recently would be maintained for its development.

MFANTSEMAN ASSEMBLY OWES 5 SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLS, COLLEGES (PAGE 13)

The Mfantseman Municipal Assembly owes five senior high schools and colleges of education GH¢57,546.35 being fees for students who were awarded scholarships by the assembly last academic year.
The schools are Kwegyir Aggrey, Mankessim Secondary Technical, T.I. Ahmadiyya Secondary, Biriwa NVTI, Methodist High, as well as teacher training colleges.
This was contained in an address by the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Henry Kweku Hayfron, at the second ordinary meeting of the third session of the fifth assembly.
According to Mr Hayfron, almost all students who gained admissions to the senior high schools in the municipality last academic year were awarded the scholarship without recourse to the laid-down procedures for the award, resulting in the huge debt to the schools.
He described the situation as not sustainable and proposed that the assembly partially weaned itself off the fund and established an independent seven-member scholarship board with representation from the assembly, a private sector and some public-spirited people in the society.
He said the board would come up with modalities for the award, and urged all and sundry to endeavour to furnish the administration with inputs on the matter to facilitate its speedy take-off.
The MCE also proposed for the establishment of Mfantseman EducationS Fund with sponsorship from corporate bodies, philanthropists and other prominent citizens of the municipality.
He outlined a number of ongoing projects, including reshaping of roads, accommodation for nurses and teachers and measures to improve upon education, as well as a way to tackle teenage pregnancy and the HIV and AIDS menace in the municipality.
The Presiding Member, Mr Kofi Aikins, said a committee had been set up to investigate an allegation that some members of the assembly collected various sums of money from the Ghana Highway Authority as a compensation due the assembly for damages caused to its property during the construction of the Kasoa-Yamoransa road, but failed to pay them to the assembly.
The Member of Parliament for the Mfantseman West, Aquinas Tawiah Quansah, commended the members for their sacrifices, and asked them to maintain links with him to find solutions to the challenges confronting the municipality.

SOCIETY EMPOWERS VULNERABLE GROUPS (PAGE 20)

THE Society for Women and AIDS in Africa (SWAA)-Ghana, is currently working in two districts of the Central Region to empower vulnerable groups such as women and children on child labour and HIV and AIDS.
The beneficiaries are the Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam (AEE) District and the Mfantseman Municipality where the two problems are prevalent.
While the AEE has a high rate of child labour, the Mfantseman municipality has been identified as one of the areas in the region with the highest prevalent cases of HIV and AIDS.
HIV and AIDS cases in the Mfantseman Municipality went up from 80 cases last year to 200, this year, according estimated figures.
At a workshop for volunteers in Saltpond to sensitise them to its programme expected to start in October, this year, the President of SWAA-Ghana, Ms Cecilia Senoo, said SWAA in partnership with the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) had already undertaken the exercise in the AEE District which involved voluntary testing and counselling.
Ms Senoo said during the programme, SWAA established 120 condom outlets in the district.
She said SWAA used interactive theatre method in the district.
 Ms Senoo said the programme in the Mfantseman Municipality, which was expected to start in October, would be undertaken in partnership with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
She called on all stakeholders, especially the assemblies, to support the SWAA in achieving the desired results.
In a related development, the SWAA has undertaken a free, voluntary health screening exercise for the general public at the Jubilee Park (Victoria Park) in Cape Coast in connection with Panafest and Emancipation Day.

AJUMAKO-ENYAN-ESSIAM ASSEMBLY HOLDS MEETING (PAGE 20)

THE Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam District Assembly in the Central Region is indebted to the tune of GH¢460,000 in outstanding expenditure.
The debts, which were incurred by the previous administration, include uncompleted projects, procurements, an expired overdraft facility from the Enyan Denkyira Rural Bank, the Rahama Loan Facility, the Bisease Land Issue, consultancy fees payable to the Public Works Department at Cape Coast, among others.
The District Chief Executive, Mr Light Koomson made this known at the second ordinary meeting of the third session of the fourth sitting of the assembly at Ajumako.
The occasion was also used to inaugurate a GH¢380,000 grader machine procured with funds from the assembly and which is payable within two years.
Mr Koomson, therefore, recommended that efforts must be made to streamline the assembly’s management and also take appropriate steps to address the issue of the indebtedness.
He said despite the challenges , the assembly had planned to construct a doctor’s bungalow and initiate work on one semi-detached building to house some senior staff members as well as the completion of a three-unit classroom block each at Akotogua, Osedzi and Bisease.
The DCE said projects which were awarded on contract in October, last year, and did not followed due process, were to be reviewed, and re-awarded.

OIL MARKETING COMPANY DONATES TO CANOE FISHERMEN ...In two districts (PAGE 20)

AN Oil marketing company, Oando Ghana, has donated computers and other office equipment to the Central Regional Canoe Fishermen Association for the effective management and co-ordination of premix fuel transaction in the region.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture, Nii Amassah Namoale, expressed gratitude to Oando for the gesture.
He said the biggest problem associated with the delivery of premix fuel was the lack of proper documentation on the part of the fishermen.
Nii Namoale said the donation would go a long way to solve the problem since the National Premix Fuel Secretariat would communicate with the fishermen as soon as a tanker was sent with the product through email and fax.
He added that with the measures the Government had put in place and the acquisition of a new office and equipment, the problem would be a thing of the past.
The Chief Fisherman of Elmina, Mr Tsuwa Thompson expressed his gratitude to the donor.
He said at a stakeholders’ meeting with the fishermen, they were happy about the establishment of a new secretariat to facilitate their day-to-day activities.
Mr Thompson said the company procured the computer and its accessories, the fax machine, printer, photocopier and other ICT equipment at a cost of GH¢3,200 to enhance the activities of the fishermen.
He, therefore, advised the fishermen to handle the equipment with care.
The President of the Central Regional Fishermen Association, Nana Joojo Solomon, thanked the oil company for the gesture.

MFANTSEMAN ASSEMBLY TO CREATE JOBS FOR THE YOUTH (PAGE 20)

THE Mfantseman Municipal Assembly is bracing itself to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) Ghana Decent Work Project and the National Youth Employment Programme (NEAP), to create jobs for the youth and reduce poverty in the municipality.
 Apart from inaugurating the special committee to see to the successful implementation of the ILO project, the assembly has also set up another task force for the smooth implementation of the NYEP.
The Municipal Employment Task Force (MELTF) is to play a supervisory role over the NYEP by identifying the shortfalls within the programme for redress at the national level.
 The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Benjamin Kweku Hayfron, who inaugurated the MELTF at Saltpond, cautioned those engaged under the NYEP against acts of truancy.
Mr Hayfron advised the youth to desist from acts that could impact negatively on the smooth implementation of the programme.
He said so far, the assembly had implemented six modules under the NYEP.
According to him, 389 out of the 500 youth engaged under the six modules of the NYEP were at post.
 Mr Hayfron expressed the hope that the programme would achieve the desired results if it was given the necessary patronage by the youth.
The National Project Officer, Youth Employment and Women’s Entrepreneurship, Mr Patrice A. Caesar-Sowah, explained that the NYEP was not a permanent avenue for employment, but a transitional arrangement to engage the youth while organising themselves for their real career.
He said Africa needed strong institutions to enhance its development.
Mr Caesar-Sowah added that the ILO would help strengthen institutions through capacity building and empowering of the youth and the vulnerable such as women, since development depended on productive youth with skills and gainful employment.
He said apart from making the youth responsible, it would also ensure security and stability.
The Omanhen of the Mankesim Traditional Area, Osagyefo Amanfo Edu VI who chaired the function, called on the Government to give legal backing to the NYEP to give meaning to its establishment.

UCC GOVERNING COUNCIL INAUGURATED (PAGE 11)

THE Minister of Education, Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, has inaugurated the Governing Council of the University of Cape Coast (UCC) with a call on the council to ensure that the vision, mission and the management of the university to produce quality teachers for quality education is achieved.
The 13-member council has Mr Justice A.K.B. Ampiah as its Chairman. Other members are the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, Nana Sam Brew Butler, Ms Araba Bentsil-Enchill, Dr Mawuli Adjei, Professor D.D Kuupole and Dr E. A. Obodai.
The rest are Reverend Paa Solomon Grant Essilfie, Mr E.A. Abole, Nana Kusi-Appiah, Mr Peter Aboadwe, Mr George Maxwell Essel and Mr Richard Asumah Kyere.
Mr Tettey-Enyo reminded them of their role in the effective management of the university, which was initially established to train the core of teachers required for all levels of educational system, particularly the pre-tertiary levels.
He commended the UCC for expanding its mandate in response to the diverse manpower needs of the economy and for the international frontiers, and cited the establishment of the School of Medicine at the university as an example of its response to the manpower needs of the health sector.
The minister called on the university to mentor colleges of education in order to meet tertiary status, whilst upgrading the staff, improving educational management of the colleges and continuously reviewing the curriculum to meet challenges of tertiary education.
Mr Tettey-Enyo advised the university to ensure that its primary focus was not compromised within the diversification of its programmes.
He pledged the ministry’s continued support for the university to meet its mandate to the education sector and other manpower needs of the economy.
Earlier in her welcoming address, Professor Opoku-Agyemang had commended the Government for the support it continued to give to the university in enhancing its growth.
On behalf of his colleagues, the Chairman of the Council, Mr Justice Ampiah promised to uphold the confidence reposed in them by working assiduously towards the achievement of the vision and mission of the university.
He called for the co-operation and support of all stakeholders to move the university to greater heights.

GHANA RED CROSS ASSISTS FLOOD VICTIMS IN C. REGION (AUGUST 15)

THE Ghana Red Cross (GRC) has started supplying relief items to 1,500 households in the Central Region who were affected by the recent floods, to assuage their plight.
So far, the GRC has supplied items made up of plastic buckets, rice, blankets, soap and treated mosquito nets to some of the displaced people in the Upper Denkyira Municipality,Abura in the Cape Coast Metropolis and Semew and Ankaful in the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) and the Mfantseman Municipalities, respectively.
The Secretary-General of the GRC, Mr Andrew Frimpong, accompanied by the acting Central Regional Coordinator of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Mr Tony Arkorful, presented the items to 208 affected households at Semew in the KEEA Municipality.   
Mr Frimpong said lack of logistics was affecting the GRC in providing emergency response to disasters in the country.
He stated that the items worth US$150,000, were donated by the Swiss Red Cross.
Mr Frimpong said even though the presentation of the items was belated, it would go a long way to help the victims in the interim while they were in the process of reconstructing their houses.
The Municipal Chief Executive for the KEEA, Reverend Mrs Veronica Essuman-Nelson, later told reporters at Semew where floods from the Surowi River destroyed several houses, that the Municipal Assembly would talk to the people over the possibility of resettlement as a lasting solution to the problem.
The Country Representative of the Swiss Red Cross, Mr Seth Addae Kyerematen advised the people not to build in water courses to prevent future occurrences.
In a related development, the Assin North District Coordinator of NADMO, Mr Patrick Danso has called on the people in the district neither to settle nor farm closer to river banks to avoid perennial floods.

IGP EXPRESSES CONCERN ABOUT DISCIPLINE (PAGE 20)

The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Paul Quaye, has expressed concern about the enforcement and maintenance of discipline among the rank and file of the service.
Mr Quaye said reports reaching his office indicate cases of reckless handling of weapons and the indiscriminate resort to the use of firearms, especially, by subordinate officers tending to suggest that some officers in command positions have woefully neglected their supervisory responsibilities.
Addressing officers and men in Cape Coast last Friday during a day’s visit to the Central Region, Mr Quaye described the state of affairs as unacceptable, and that any act of indiscipline reported to the administration would be swiftly met with appropriate sanctions in the context of the relevant disciplinary code.
He tasked the police commanders to ensure that their policing methods and techniques were human rights-friendly.
Mr. Quaye said the country’s constitutional democracy makes it imperative that they should not engage in activities that were incompatible with the principles of the rule of law and the tenets of democratic policing.
He, therefore, warned that the police administration would not countenance any unprofessional practices on the part of police officers which undermine the respect for human rights protection and which tend to distance the police from the public they serve.
The IGP said it was also unacceptable for any policeman or police woman to abuse the powers that the law conferred on him or her to facilitate the performance of legitimate official duties at the expense of individual citizens.
He said such untoward behaviours could only create mistrust and suspicion between the citizen and the police.
He further reminded them of the need for cooperation between the police and the public for effective policing and that the police should act as public relations officers and ambassadors of image repair.
He asked the police to be vigilant at all times even though the Central Region has a low crime rate and asked them not to dabble in land and chieftaincy disputes which is a challenge to region.
The IGP urged the police to intensify their patrols to curb crimes such as armed robberies and accidents on the highways, and condemned taking the law into their own hands by lynching of suspects and vandalising police stations.
Mr Quaye said the doors of the police were open to the public and that we should see ourselves as partners in the crusade and quest to create a society devoid of unnecessary violence, disorder and lawlessness, adding that everyone was a stakeholder and beneficiary in a society where law and order reigned supreme”.
The Central Regional Commander , Assistant Commissioner of Police, Mr Patrick Kampara commended the people and the chiefs for their warm attitude towards the police in their duties, but cautioned against instant justice which was becoming common in the region these days.

FISHERMEN ASSURED OF PREMIX SUPPLY (BACK PAGE)

THE Chairman of the National Premix Committee, Mr Kweku Nicole, has assured fishermen of regular and adequate supply of premix fuel to enable them to reap maximum benefits from this fishing season.
Shortage of premix fuel has been a source of worry to the fishermen along the coastline as a bumper catch is anticipated this fishing season.
With the development, most of them, especially those in the Central Region, have resorted to buying super fuel, which they described as expensive and uneconomical.
For instance, a fisherman who wanted to remain anonymous told the Daily Graphic that whereas he could spend about GH¢170 for a fishing expedition with premix fuel, he now had to buy about GH¢300 before he could undertake an expedition.
Mr Nicole said the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) had enough stock of premix fuel for supply to fishermen and advised them not to panic.
He entreated them not to sell the fuel to unauthorised users such as chainsaw operators, divert or hoard it, since it would not be in their interest.
He asked them to reconstitute their local premix committees to ensure regular supply.
Mr Nicole, who was on a tour of some fishing communities in the Mfantsiman Municipality, also advised premix committees to be transparent and accountable.
He said some premix committees collected fuel from companies, but refused to pay them after sales and shifted to other companies.
Premix committees in 11 communities within the Mfantsiman Municipality were inaugurated during the tour.
The communities are Ekuampuono, Arkra, Immuna, Otuam, Narkwa, Biriwa, Abandze, Anomabo, Kormantse, Nankese and Ankaful.
The Municipal Chief Executive for Mfantsiman, Mr Benjamin Kweku Hayfron, advised members of the committees to show commitment and use profits from the sale of the fuel for community development projects.
He announced that the district had decided to deal with Star Oil company for its supplies.

MAN LYNCHED (PAGE 3)

A MAN believed to be between 35 and 40 years of age was lynched at Adisadel Estate, a suburb of Cape Coast, in the early hours of yesterday.
Briefing the press, the Cape Coast District Police Commander, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) William Gyamfi, said the police received information around 7 a.m. that the body of a man suspected to have been lynched was lying by the roadside in the estate.
ASP Gyamfi said police personnel dispatched to the scene found the deceased naked and immediately plunged into investigations.
He said one suspect who had been mentioned in connection with the lynching was yet to be picked up whilst investigation continued to apprehend any other suspects.
He said so far the police were yet to establish the offence committed by the deceased.
ASP Gyamfi said the body of the deceased, who is yet to be identified, had been deposited at the Central Regional Hospital morgue in Cape Coast.
He denied earlier reports that the legs of the deceased had been chopped off.
ASP Gyamfi said that was the second lynching within the month and appealed to the public not to take the law into their own hands but to hand over suspects to the police for investigations.

LIBRARY BUILT IN HONOUR OF MILLS (PAGE 17)

THE US$50,000 children’s library built by the African Trust Tokyo-Japan in honour of President John Evans Atta Mills has been inaugurated.
Dr Don Arthur, who performed the inauguration on behalf of President Mills at Ekumfi Nanaben last Friday, advised parents to ensure that their children reaped maximum benefits from the project.
Dr Arthur said even though one was not against parents asking their children to support their daily chores and occupation, it was necessary for the children to have adequate time to study.
This, he said, would enhance their education to make them useful citizens in society.
He commended the Africa Trust Tokyo-Japan for the honour done to President Mills, and said the library would help improve education in the area.
The Minister of Transport, Mr Mike Hammah, advised children in the community to emulate the humility, dedication and disciplined qualities of the President, and use them as an inspiration to attain greater heights in life.
The Africa Trust Ghana representative, Reverend Eldab N. Bonney, said the library was to honour the Mills family for the proper nurturing and good parenting qualities of Prof. Mills.
He said the siting of the library at Nanaben was to constantly encourage children in the area to aspire to the pinnacle of the academic ladder, as well as a reminder that there was virtue in patience, a testimony to the challenges Prof. Mills went through before assuming the leadership of this country.
Both the Municipal Chief Executive, Mr Benjamin Kweku Hayfron, and the Chief of Nanaben, Okufo Gyesi IV, commended Africa Trust Tokyo-Japan for their educational assistance to the children in the area.

REMAIN COMMITTED ON PANAFEST (PAGE 14)

The President, Prof John Evans Atta Mills, has challenged the organisers of the PANAFEST to remain committed to the noble aim upon which the event was founded.
PANAFEST establishes the truth about the history of Africa and the experience of its people using the vehicle of arts and culture to provide a forum to promote unity between Africans on the continent and those in the Diaspora.
In a speech read on his behalf at the opening of PANAFEST and Emancipation Day in Cape Coast by the Minister of Transport, Mr Mike Hammah, President Atta Mills said lack of sustenance and support for the festival had led to a decline in patronage and standards set at its beginning.
Prof Atta Mills therefore charged the PANAFEST Foundation to work with the appropriate agencies to restore the event as the leading international Pan-African festival on the continent.
He called on African-Americans in the diaspora to help create a viable PANAFEST Foundation to use as a catalyst in building the necessary bridges to the future.
He commended the organisers and those who sacrificed for its sustenance over the years inspite of the difficulties.
President Atta Mills said the organisation of the two events under one umbrella would definitely maximise its effectiveness as the pilgrimage festival for all Africans to come home to celebrate “ our heritage as one people”.
He expressed Ghana’s commitment to strengthen her ties by revisiting issues of common interest and the attainment of tangible goals and set targets to ensure recognition by the African Union (AU) of the diaspora as the sixth region and a crucial pillar for the development of Africa.
He said also that Ghana would continue to recognise and support the African Diaspora Forum and also rebuild PANAFEST and Emancipation Day as strong institutions and important dates on the heritage tourism calendar of the country and elsewhere.
He called on the AU to renew its pledge of support for the festival and ensure its sustainability in pursuit of using culture as a means of unifying the African continent.
He reminded the gathering about the heritage left to Africa by their ancestors, and urged them to take inspiration from those who championed black emancipation and the liberation of the continent.
The Minister of Tourism, Mrs Juliana Azumah-Mensah, said the celebration should be targeted at removing some of the misconceptions and negative publicity on the African people.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah said the celebration of the two events should be a forward march for political and economic liberation for all, and called for the reinforcement and strengthening of the structures set up to effectively manage the event officially for future celebrations.
She stressed the need to put in the right strategies and programmes with world-wide appeal to attract and generate interest in more people than it is doing now.
The Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Begyina Doe, said the event should be used as a forum for the unity of people with common ancestry.
The Ogua Manhen, Osabarima Kwasi Atta II, who chaired the function, described the event as significant, coming immediately after the visit of US President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, to the dungeons of Cape Coast.

CHRISTIAN DIVINE CHURCH MARKS 50TH ANNIVERSARY (PAGE 35, JULY 13)

THE Central Regional Pastor of the Christian Divine Church, Pastor Techie Menson, has urged Christians to endeavour to influence others positively for the benefit of the Christian community and society.
Pastor Menson said the best legacy a good Christian could leave society was to lead a life that impacted positively on people.
Preaching at the 50th anniversary celebration of the church at the Jubilee Park in Cape Coast, Pastor Menson said Christians could do so if they were able to change the bad behaviour, character and attitude of other people.
He said the biblical David was able to influence others due to his courage and that Jesus also changed the profession of the fishermen he commanded to follow Him to preach the word.
Pastor Menson wondered why some Christians had waited this long in impacting good virtues into their generation.
He however, cautioned against negative tendencies such as extremism which could lead to destruction.
He, therefore, advised Christians to avoid joining bad groups, chart a good cause and shine like the light which brightens a city.
Activities which marked the seven-day event included ministration, talk on prostitution,child labour and prayers for the nation.

CAPE COAST READY FOR OBAMA'S VISIT (PAGES 34 & 39, JULY 9)

IN spite of numerous reports in the media about the deplorable state of some ancient buildings in the Cape Coast Metropolis which include the Omanhene’s Palace, the Cape Coast Castle, Court buildings, the Ministries’ Block, the Ghana Commercial Bank building, among others, nobody made any attempt to have them renovated until recently, when it was announced that the President of the United State of America (USA), Barrack Obama was to visit the historic town.
As one of the most historical cities in Ghana, Cape Coast was the centre of British Administration and capital of the Gold Coast from 1700 until 1877, when the capital was moved to Accra. Most of the oldest and best schools in Ghana are also in Cape Coast. The Cape Coast castle is one of the biggest of the trade and slave castles on the coastline of Ghana and has one of the country's best-organised museums.
Of late, most of these historical monuments which defined the city had been in ruins but the announcement that the visit of President Obama and his wife would include a trip to Cape Coast where the US President will address a durbar of chiefs, has stimulated the spirit to rebrand the town and its landmarks.
This has totally changed the face of Cape Coast as our Central Regional correspondents Joe Okyere and Shirley Asiedu-Addo report.


THE town of Cape Coast has seen a significant facelift as the town anxiously awaits the historic visit of President Barrack Obama of the USA.
The drains are being cleared, pavements are being fixed and hedges are being trimmed. Thanks to the scheduled visit of President Obama.
The Victoria Park has been painted and the pavement along the park is regularly being worked on as the countdown to the visit begins.
The palace which is undergoing significant transformation is still receiving finishing touches before it receives President Obama tomorrow.
The Cape Coast Castle has been repainted, though authorities of the Castle say it is part of the routine painting, it is obvious that it was done because of the visit since the painting of the Castle was usually not done during the rainy season.
One place that has seen extensive renovation is the palace of the chief, Osabarima Kwesi Atta as President Obama is billed to pay a courtesy call on the Omanhene. Osabarima Kwesi Atta II told the Daily Graphic that it had become necessary for the palace to be renovated since it would host the US President, Barrack Obama.
“We are ready to make him feel at home.” he said.
Osabarimba Atta II said the traditional area was happy to be part of the historic visit and to host the US President adding that there was the need for the chiefs and people of Oguaa to put their house in order to receive such an important personality who is part of us.
All major buildings around the castle including the Ghana Commercial Bank, the Ministries Building, the SSNIT block and the Court Complex have enjoyed a significant facelift.
The newness of the place has elicited a feeling of anxiety and expectation from the people.
The Oguaa traditional council has banned funerals in the metropolis at the moment because of the visit.
The Siwdu Park that is expected to receive the President, is also being put in a good shape. Chippings are being put on the frontage of the park to prevent the usually soggy state in case it rains.
Frantically, people along the streets are making extra efforts at cleaning the place for the visit of the US President.
The castle, which is one of the World Heritage sites, and which was a major transit point of African slaves to the Americas, is also being painted.
The over 200 workers of the Zoomlion Waste Management company in the metropolis are working extra three hours to clear the beaches, paint and clean the drains.
The Regional Co-ordinator of Zoomlion, Mr Rhoda Donkor says the workers are not being paid any extra monies because it is their contribution towards the preparation for President Obama’s visit.
Radio Central, the regional station of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) in Cape Coast has also introduced a segement on their morning show tagged Obama’s corner to help sensitise residents to the visit and to encourage them to keep the environment clean while they await Obama’s visit.
Some residents the Daily Graphic spoke to said they were grateful to the committees involved in planning Obama’s visit for including Cape Coast.
A few people could be seen having Obama and President Atta Mills stickers on their cars while a few others wore the cloth with the inscription of President Obama.
Mr Kofi Asare said, “I believe the country deserves the visit of President Obama, we are doing well as a nation. Coming to Cape Coast is also in the right direct as it is a very historic town.”
A groundnut seller said “all I know is that Obama is coming and if for nothing at all, everything suddenly looks new here and we are happy.”

Cape Coast Castle
The Cape Coast Castle, standing magnificently in the ancient city of Cape Coast was built around 1665 by the British.
The Castle which was once a major sea port for the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade between the 17th and 18th centuries, was listed by the UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1979 and is now one of the most popular tourist attractions in the country.
It was once constructed as a fort by the Swedes in 1653, changed hands about four times until it was handed over to Ghana in 1960 when the country became a Republic.
For example, in 1658, Henrich Karloff captured it for the Danish Company of Guinea. Again, in 1661, it was seized by the Fetu people of Cape Coast.
The Dutch occupied it between 1663 and 1664 but due to the Dutch war the subsequent year, the British took over the fort and developed it into the status of a castle in 1665.
Over a period of about 60 years, the British developed the fort then known as Fort Carolusborg into a castle.
With its stature and place in history, the Cape Coast Castle cannot be missed by any visitor to Cape Coast.
It is bordered on the west by the Victoria Park, East by a landing place for canoes where hundred of fishermen virtually live to make a living, North by the Wesley Methodist Church and office buildings, and South by the deep blue Gulf of Guinea.
It occupies approximately 73,600 square feet with many rooms including the Palaver hall, the Governor’s Residence, the Maclean’s Hall, the English Church, the Magazine and the Slave dungeon.
The occupants of the castle were many and of varied categories. These included administrators or governors, chaplains and clerks of the church treasurers, medical officers, warehouse keepers, accountants, auditors, regular soldiers and ad hoc recruits and captives which numbered about 1,300 in a “favourable” season.
There were also skilled artisans such as masons, carpenters, tailors and armourers.
There were two kinds of captives, those intended to be domestic slaves in the castle and the other group, the commercial slaves who were transported by sea.
The English administration of the castle was under the absolute command of the governor or administrator, who was a direct representative of the Queen of England. He had the jurisdiction in both civil and criminal matters over all inhabitants of the castle as well as on other English settlements on the coast.

Gothic House
A visible and unique part of the cultural heritage of Cape Coast , is the Gothic House, commonly known as the Public Works Department building.
Lying just to the west of Cape Coast Castle and adjacent to the historic Victoria Park (now Jubilee Park), Gothic House is a reminder of the Gold Coast era.
Built during the third quarter of the 19th century by a British merchant, Gothic House (the name implies the style of decoration-Gothic Revival) became the property of Jacob Wilson Sey (Kwabonyi) in the 1890s. Sey, a prosperous palm wine tapper, and founder of the Aborigines Rights Protection Society (ARPS), transferred the property to the Gold Coast government before his death in 1905.
It was during this time that Queen Victoria, a sympathetic supporter of Sey and the ARPS, transferred title to all lands along the Gold Coast to the Crown. As a result, the Queen presented a bust of herself to a delegation representing the Gold Coast government.
This bust was placed in a park close to the Victoria Park and adjacent to Sey’s Gothic House. In 1925, the bust was uneveiled by prince Edward, the grandson of the late queen, and the park commissioned.
Both Gothic House and Victoria Park (Jubilee Park) express the history of the struggle and triumphs of the Aborigines Rights Protection Society which are in need of restoration.
Until it was donated by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government to the Oguaa Traditional Council for use as a palace and its seat, the Gothic House remained the property of the government of Ghana. It was managed by the Central Regional Co-ordinating Council as lettable space for government and non-governmental agencies.
The first period of construction consisted of the main dwelling, a garden to the west, the anterior courtyard, various ancillary structures and the underground cistern to the southeast.
The main dwelling enclosed a modified hall and parlour supported by extensive vaulted storage areas on the ground floor. Exotic architectural details, loosely categorised as the Gothic Revival style, decorated the interior and exterior of the dwelling.
The second phase of architectural change might have occurred during the first quarter of the 20th century when the building served as a public/government office.
At this time, it was presumed that several changes occurred. First, timber additions, in the form of enclosed porches and rooms, changed the facades and rooflines of the dwelling.
Second, original ancillary structures were demolished and replaced with a low-pitched one storey wing to the west and enlarged as a two-storey wing to the east. Third, the garden was transformed into a paved courtyard.
Post-independence changes were assumed to be minimal and might have included the addition of partition walls, a sandcrete block extension connecting the main dwelling to the east and infrastructure improvements.
Considering the location and size of the building, and its historic links to the Gold Coast era, and notable Cape Coast citizens like Jacob Wilson Sey, make the property ideally suited and adaptive reuse by local authorities.
It is based on this that it was recommended that the main dwelling could be reused as the palace for the Omanhene of the Oguaa Traditional Area. The paramount stool and traditional shrines could be housed and customary rites performed.
Traditional court hearings and meetings of the council could also be held in the main dwelling. In addition, the paved courtyard to the southeast could serve as a small durbar or festival ground. Larger festivals such as the Oguaa Fetu Afahye are currently held in the nearby Victoria Park (Jubille Park).
Current scope of work is to transform the adjacent wings of the dwelling to house an exhibition on the history of the Gold Coast, Cape Coast and the building itself. The exhibition could be manufactured locally and could be maintained by entrance fees to both the palace and the museum. Community residents could be hired as site guides and interpreters.
Other unused rooms, and the entire eastern wing could become lettable space as guest rooms for hire, a small restaurant/bar and gift shop. Proceeds from the rent could be channelled into a fund which could be used for the maintenance of the property.
By expanding the the scope of the preservation/restoration efforts beyond Cape Coast Castle, the sustainability and the economic development of the historic and culturally significant town surrounding will be insured.
Model rehabilitation and adaptive reuse projects serve to promote increased pride and valuation of neighbourhoods, family houses, open spaces, forts and shrines and encourage enterprise activities and the development of a culture of maintenance in the public and private realm.