Tag: Ghana

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Table Turned: 723 Nigerians Deported from Ghana

Ghana Must Go Bag: Trademark bag used in Nigeria to remember the 1983 order by Nigerian government that Ghanaians must go back to their country
Ghana Must Go Bag: Trademark bag used in Nigeria to remember the 1983 order by Nigerian government that Ghanaians must go back to their country

 

Table Turned: 723 Nigerians Deported from Ghana

Some thirty-six years after Nigeria asked foreigners, including Ghanaians, to leave the country, that was in 1983, the table has turned and Ghana is deporting Nigerians in droves.

There is a Ghana Must Go Bag pictured above: Trademark bag used in Nigeria to remember the 1983 order by Nigerian government that Ghanaians must go back to their country

The Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, Michael Abikoye, on Tuesday protested the deportation, calling it inhuman treatment of Nigerians by the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS).

News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported Abikoye to have said  this at a meeting between him and the Comptroller-General of GIS, Kwame Takyi, in Ghana, with report obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.

The High Commissioner said 723 Nigerians were deported on alleged illegal stay, cybercrime and prostitution between the January 2018 and January 2019.

According to him, 81 Nigerians are deported on alleged cybercrime and illegal stay in January, while 115 have so far been deported in February on the allegation of overstay and prostitution.

The High commissioner cautioned against inhuman treatment of Nigerians by Ghana, warning that any form of torture or ill treatment of Nigerians would not be acceptable to Nigerian Government.

He said, though the High Commission would not condone any form of criminality on the part of Nigerians, saying inhuman treatment and alleged torture of some Nigerians in Ghana would no longer be tolerated.

 “Although, the GIS had linked prostitution and cybercrimes as some of the reasons for the deportation, it is improper to deport Nigerians for alleged illegal stay in Ghana.

“There are several Ghanaians living in Nigeria and the Nigeria Immigration Service has never deported any of them on ground of illegal stay, because of a sense of brotherliness between our countries,” he said

The Ambassador, therefore, presented to the CG a copy of the Mission’s records on deportations of Nigerians from January 2018 till date.

He expressed displeasure that Nigerians were not being fairly treated, stressing that there had been reported cases of molestation, harassment and torture of Nigerians by GIS officials, especially those awaiting deportation at the GIS’s detention facility.

The Ambassador also showed photos of some of them who sustained injuries on their legs, arms and eyes in the process of the torture.

According to him, the inhuman act was against the United Nations Convention against Torture.

He appealed to the CG to prevail on his officials to treat Nigerians and other ECOWAS nationals with human face, caution and not as common criminals.

Abikoye expressed displeasure on the long detention of Nigerians in the GIS custody after proper documentation and issuance of Emergency Travel Certificate for their repatriation by the High Commission.

He appealed that considering the poor state of the GIS’s facility; the Ghana Immigration Service should expedite action in their early repatriation to Nigeria immediately after the issuance of Emergency Travel Certificates.

In his response, the CG acknowledged the existing bilateral relationship between the two countries as earlier pointed by Abikoye.

According to Mr Takyi, the GIS are being compelled to carry out repatriation because of the conduct of some Nigerian nationals in Ghana.

He alleged that besides engaging in cybercrime and prostitution, “some Nigerians had become laws in themselves; they do road blockages in major Ghanaian streets where they drink, fight and stab one another.

“This unruly behaviour” which contravenes the local laws in Ghana has led to directive from higher authority for their arrests and eventual deportation of those who do not have the requisite immigration papers.”

The CG, however, promised to investigate alleged torture of some Nigerians.

He, however, showed the Ambassador a video of some Nigerians, obstructing justice by preventing the official vehicle of the GIS the right of way after arresting a Nigerian in Kasoa area. 

 

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Politics

Ahead 2020 election, Ghana President fires electoral commission chief

Ex-Ghana Electoral Umpire, Charlotte Osei
Ex-Ghana Electoral Umpire, Charlotte Osei

Ahead 2020 election, Ghana President fires electoral commission chief

For “misbehaviour and incompetence”, President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana Thursday fired the head of the country’s Electoral Commission Information Minister Mustapha Abdul-Hamid said.

Charlotte Osei was appointed by former President John Mahama as the Electoral Commission chairperson in 2015 and she presided as the Returning Officer for Ghana’s December 7th 2016 Presidential and Parliamentary elections.

Former foreign minister Nana Akufo-Addo of the opposition New Patriotic Party was elected President on his third attempt, defeating incumbent President John Mahama of the National Democratic Congress.

Ghana is awaiting next general election by November or December 2020

The removal of Charlotte Osei and her two deputies was based on a recommendation by a special committee set up by the chief justice to investigate complaints against them, Abdul-Hamid said in a statement.

“The committee recommended their removal on the basis of stated misbehaviour and incompetence, pursuant to Article 146(1) of the Constitution,” the minister said.

The three were directed to transfer their duties to the director for human resource and general services of the commission.

The presidency said last year it had referred a petition from some workers at the Electoral Commission, accusing Ms Osei of abuse of office, to the chief justice for investigation.

Osei denied the accusations and the main opposition has repeatedly said they are trumped up.

Osei, a former corporate lawyer, was appointed by former President John Mahama in mid-2015. She successfully supervised a general election in 2016 which was won by Mr Akufo-Addo, then leader of the main opposition.

The West African major commodity exporter will hold presidential and parliamentary elections in December 2020, in a vote that will be a close contest between Mr Akufo-Addo’s New Patriotic Party and the main opposition National Democratic Congress.

The election results were announced on 9 December 2016 due to a delay of voting in two areas. At 19:51 local time, Mahama called Akufo-Addo to concede defeat. At 20:45, the Electoral Commission declared that Akufo-Addo had defeated Mahama in a single round, the first time that a sitting president of Ghana had failed to win a second term.

 

 

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Latest News Politics

Ghanaian politician says young people can’t rule Ghana

A night view of Kumasi. Credit/ How Ghana
A night view of Kumasi. Credit/ How Ghana

 

Ghanaian politician says young people can’t rule Ghana

A frontline politician and academician in Ghana and presidential aspirant on the National Democratic Congress(NDC) platform, Prof. Joshua Alabi, has said Ghana is not yet ready to be governed by young people.

Asked if he is not too old to govern the country, the former vice chancellor of the University of Professional studies (UPSA) now Opoku Ampomah University of Professional studies told Francis Abban on Morning Starr that the country has not gotten to the level where it can be left in the hands of younger ones.

“We still have not gotten to the level where we can leave the country in the hands of the younger ones. They have to be groomed. I don’t think I am too old to serve the country. In this country, we believe that 60 years is enough to serve a country but it is different in other parts of the world”.

Alabi disputes calls for the review or removal of constitutional age limits for Ghanaians who wish to contest the high office of the presidency.

A local report says former President John Mahama is on record to have declared called for the review or removal of constitutional age limits for Ghanaians who wish to contest the presidency.

“In my country, young people are in Parliament and contesting other positions but not the presidency. Our constitution says you must be 40 to contest to be president. Some advocacy has started for age restriction to be removed or reduced and I support it,” Mahama said.

A former Chief of Staff who served in the Kufuor administration, Kwadwo Mpiani  has also said the country may be missing out on some competent persons by limiting the pool of potential leaders.

‘If in other places, people below 40 are able to offer themselves to be elected as Prime Ministers, Presidents and they do well, why can’t we do this in Ghana? Are we depriving ourselves? Maybe there are exceptional youth in the country who can become Presidents and maybe perform well. I really don’t fancy the idea of putting in this limit.”

Under the Fourth Republic, the average age of the presidents when they began their terms has been 59.

Jerry John Rawlings was 45 when he was elected President in 1992.

His successor, John Kufuor, was 61 when he became President in 2001 after the first civilian change of power.

He was followed by John Atta Mills, who was 64, John Mahama who was 54 and the current President, Nana Akufo-Addo, who was 72 years of age, the oldest of the lot. 

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Extreme Sport

Ghana Eagles lifts 2018 Rugby Africa Bronze Cup

The Ghana Rugby Eagles lifts the 2018 Rugby Africa Bronze Cup
The Ghana Rugby Eagles lifts the 2018 Rugby Africa Bronze Cup

 

Ghana Eagles lifts 2018 Rugby Africa Bronze Cup

The Ghana Rugby Eagles managed to lift the 2018 Rugby Africa Bronze Cup (Bronze Cup) on the Nduom Sports Stadium in Elmina-Ghana by beating Mauritius by 23 points to 17 on 12 March 2018 in a nail-biting final.

The win ensured that Ghana Eagles was promoted to the 2019 Rugby Africa Silver Cup – a step closer to the mission of the Union’s (http://GhanaRugby.org) President, Mr Herbert Mensah, to take the Ghana Eagles to the global stage of Rugby.

The President of Rugby Africa, Mr Abdelaziz Bougja, sent a congratulatory message to Mensah, in which he said:

“On behalf of Rugby Africa, please accept my sincere thanks and congratulations for hosting the 2018 edition of the Rugby Africa Bronze Cup in Elmina, Ghana. From the feedback I received, our executive member Mr Zahui as well as all the staff members from Rugby Africa and World Rugby, the match officials, and the visiting teams felt welcome and enjoyed your hospitality.

Please pass on my thanks to your team for a well organised and successful tournament. I know how much work is required to deliver a well-run competition and appreciate the efforts of Ghana Rugby Union. It is the second time you are hosting a regional competition on our behalf, and we value your collaboration to grow rugby in Africa and raise our standards.

Finally allow me to congratulate your team for their victory, winning the tournament while it was your first participation in the Bronze Cup is a big deal, and I wish you all the best in your future preparations for the Silver Cup 2019.”

Mensah, in response to Bougja’s letter, replied as follows:

“Dear Mr President

Your comments touch me. As Africans, hospitality is always a mark of our upbringing and we recognise that having been given the honour of staging this prestigious event that we make Africa Rugby proud.

The change in venue at a late stage in our preparation radically increased our various exposures, but we strived to ensure that we kept the word we gave when making the bid.

In winning and getting promoted to the Silver Cup, my plans were in line with all our previous discussions and our trajectory of development and success over the past three years is a vindication both in our planning and in the trust that you have placed in Ghana. Our programme of getting into rugby, development of women rugby and other areas of compliance have been undertaken as directed and with the close assistance and supervision of the excellent Coralie and your team.

My Brother, thank you once again, thank you.

Respectfully and with kind regards

Herbert

PS. We will be submitting a bid for the 2019 Silver Cup (by which time the Accra Stadium will have been refurbished.)”

Mensah also said that Ghana Rugby is grateful for the support and guidance that the Union had over the years from its governing body, Rugby Africa and specifically from its President.

“When my administration and I took over the reins of Rugby in Ghana on 5 June 2014 with nothing to show after 11 years, my first step was to reach out to Rugby Africa for guidance on the way forward. That guidance together with a focus and relentless pursuit of the important and right things to do culminated in this sweet victory and step closer to the stage of global competitions,” Mensah said.

The Tournament Commissioner, Mr Charles Yapo, had the following to say on arriving back home after the tournament, “I arrived safely in my country. Thank you to the GRFU (Ghana Rugby Football Union) for all the attention we received throughout this friendly week.

Congratulations for this beautiful organisation of the competition and especially thank you to all volunteers who have contributed to its success. The best is yet to come.”

The first match on Saturday was played between Lesotho and Rwanda for the 3rd Place Playoff.

Rwanda managed to beat Lesotho by 32 points to 15 and survived relegation to the Rugby Africa Regional Challenge. Unfortunately, Lesotho, who managed to get promoted to the Bronze Cup only last year, will have to return to the bottom Rugby Africa Regional Challenge.

Mensah also said that the successful hosting of the Bronze Cup was a feather in the cap of Ghana as country as a whole, and not just to Ghana Rugby.

“We were honoured to be given the hosting rights uncontested for the second year in a row. With the forced change by the National Sports Authority (NSA) of the venue from Accra to Cape Coast the tournament hosting presented huge challenges and specific challenges and losses on the financial side of things.

Without our sponsors, this tournament could not have taken place, and I take my hat off for Mr Paul Kavanagh and the Golden Tulip Accra for their massive support. With that Panafrican Equipment, Komatsu, Interplast, the Gino Brands, Groupe Nduom, the GBC and others such as Ernest Chemists and Accra Brewery Limited all helped to make the 2018 Bronze Cup a significant milestone in the history of the sport of Ghana.”

 

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Finance Latest News

Ghana leads Sub-Saharan Africa in resource governance ranking

President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Ado
President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Ado

 

Ghana leads Sub-Saharan Africa in resource governance ranking

Ghana has scored 67 of 100 points, in the 2017 Resource Governance Index (RGI), making it the best performer in sub-Saharan Africa.

Nigeria scored 42 out of 100 points and ranks 55 among 89 assessments.

The Guardian notes that Ghana has a favorable enabling environment and also performs well in revenue management, while its sovereign wealth fund is the second-best governed among 34 funds assessed in the index.

RGI noted that Ghana’s Petroleum Revenue Management Act allocates oil revenues transparently between the budget, the national oil company and two funds, yet accumulated a large budget deficit and borrowed heavily against future oil revenues, even though oil revenues presently constitute only four per cent of total government revenues.

RGI said that value is lost particularly in licensing and in the sales of government oil by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), as well as when revenues from oil and gas are shared and saved.

It said that a history of scandals involving top officials and the NNPC has plagued the sector and drawn public attention to corruption and asset recovery.

Licensing, the report admitted, is the weakest link in Nigeria’s value realisation component, with a score of 17 of 100, placing it 77th among 89 country-licensing assessments.

RGI explained that this score and ranking reflect high levels of opacity in key areas of decision-making, including qualification of companies, process rules and disclosure of terms.

It disclosed that despite some progress in transparency of revenue collection over the past five years, tracking payments from oil and gas companies remains challenging.

“In terms of revenue sharing, Nigeria ranks 11th, alongside the United States (Gulf of Mexico) and Ecuador. The public lacks access to audited information on revenue flows to lower levels of government, and this contributes to the gap between the quality of the legal framework and actual implementation.

“The corporation mainly scores well on indicators that measure elements of transparency required by EITI reporting, such as transfers to government and production volume disclosure.

“NNPC has recently strengthened some of its reporting practices, particularly for high-level financial data. However, the company does not disclose detailed annual reports on its finances, despite top officials having made a commitment to do so.

“Little information is publicly available, particularly concerning some of NNPC’s least efficient and most questionable activities, notably earnings by its subsidiaries, the costs of its operations and its significant spending on non-commercial activities.

“Government agencies and external auditors have disputed NNPC’s interpretation of rules set in the constitution and the NNPC Act governing monetary transfers between NNPC and the government.”

Officials exercise significant discretion around how NNPC sells the government’s share of oil production—for example, when selecting buyers, pricing exports or transferring sales proceeds to the government,” it added.

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, said that new acreages will be awarded for exploration and production under the new Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB), especially offshore, which is likely to account for much of the growth in the nation’s reserves.

“For too long we have waited for this moment with bated breath and sheer excitement, knowing that the bill disentangles us from the manacles of inefficiency, low investment drive, and opacity,” he added.

Categories
Africa Latest News US

Trump Shithole comment: We did not Summon US Ambassador— Ghana

 

 

We did not Summon US Ambassador— Ghana
We did not Summon US Ambassador— Ghana

Trump Shithole comment: Ghana Denies Summoning US Ambassador

 

Despite the emotional and image pain cast on African countries, including Ghana, by Donald Trump’s uncomplimentary shithole remarks, Ghana’s foreign ministry has denied reports that it has summoned the US ambassador to the country over the derogatory remarks.

United States President, Trump, had said African countries and Haitians are ‘shithole countries’.

But Ghana’s president, Nana Akufo-Addo, had in a tweet yesterday condemned Trump shithole comment, stating that Ghana could not take that from any leader of a friendly country no matter how powerful he could be.

Disturbed by the ‘shithole’ comment South Africa reportedly summoned a top U.S. Embassy official for a Monday meeting.

There is currently a wide range of criticism for Trump’s uncomplimentary and vulgar language in disrespect for African countries.

Trump’s alleged shithole comments caused shock internationally and incurred allegations of racism, with the UN, the African Union and many individual African governments denouncing it.

News Agency of Nigeria said in a statement on the Monday summons, the South African government referred to Trump’s comments as “disturbing” and said that while Trump has tweeted a denial, it “was not categorical.”

“Relations between South Africa and the United States, and between the rest of Africa and the United States, must be based on mutual respect and understanding,” the statement said.

On Friday, after the alleged comment prompted a media storm, Botswana’s government summoned its ambassador to the US to ask whether Botswana was considered “a shithole”

However, despite his consistent uncomplimentary remarks about Africa and Haiti and his stance on immigration, Trump has denied has he is a racist.

Anger boiled over last week when Trump labelled African countries and Haiti “shit-hole countries”. Although Trump did not expressly deny the shit-hole remarks, he has expressly said that he is not a racist and he has always said the truth.

BBC reports that the President told White House reporters at his Florida golf resort on Sunday : “I am not a racist. I’m the least racist person you have ever interviewed.”

It is the first time the president has responded directly to the racism accusations. 

Categories
Africa Latest News Politics

Problem of Ghana Remains Extreme Political Partisanship, Says Mahama

The historic Ghana event, held under an atmosphere of unity, brought together the former Presidents of the Fourth Republic; Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings, John Agyekum Kufuor, and John Dramani Mahama, as well as Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, the Speaker of Parliament Prof. Mike Ocquaye and Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo.
The historic Ghana event, held under an atmosphere of unity, brought together the former Presidents of the Fourth Republic; Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings, John Agyekum Kufuor, and John Dramani Mahama, as well as Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, the Speaker of Parliament Prof. Mike Ocquaye and Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo.

 

Problem of Ghana Remains Extreme Political Partisanship, Says Mahama

 

As Ghana marks the Silver Jubilee of its Fourth Republic, former president of the West African country, John Mahama has identified political intolerance and extreme partisanship as monsters to deal with collectively.

Although Mahama said that Ghana has made tremendous progress in democratic governance and economy, Ghana, according to Mahama, ought to make commitment in spending ‘time and resources on how best to overcome the remaining hurdles that still stand in our way of establishing an ideal democracy”

According to him, while Ghana has advanced significantly in democratic governance and economic progress during the last 25 years of the country’s fourth republic,” we still have the challenges of political intolerance and extreme partisanship to deal with.”

“Today is an important day in the annals of our country. It is a day that heralds, the global recognition of our country as a worthy example of Democratic Governance and Stability for other states.

“I have accepted and will be participating in a National Thanksgiving Church Service this afternoon to thank God for the strengthening of our democracy over the last 25years,” the statement read in part.

Ghana on January,07, 2018 marked the Silver Jubilee of the Fourth Republic of the country with a thanksgiving service at the Independence Square in Accra.

The event brings together Ghanaians from all walks of life, and was graced by all three living former Presidents – Jerry John Rawlings, John Agekum Kufuor, and John Dramani Mahama.

The government says the programme is intended to celebrate the “goodness of the Lord” for a stable democracy under the Fourth Republic.

Ghana web-based news, Ghana.com said the first regime of the Fourth Republic saw the reign of Former President Jerry John Rawlings, whose leadership transitioned from a military government to a constitutional rule in response to demands for a more democratic process concerning the governing of the country.

“After two terms in office, barred by the constitution from standing in any election, Rawlings endorsed his vice-president John Atta Mills as presidential candidate in 2000.

Other leaders under the Fourth Republic are ex-President John Agyekum Kufuor, late Professor John Evans Atta Mills and ex-President John Dramani Mahama.

The Fourth Republic is currently headed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo who was elected in December 2016”, said Ghana.com.

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