Mining firm donates to the Talensi-Nabdam District Assembly

29-11-2011                     

The Management of China Gold (Ghana) Resources Group Limited has handed over a vehicle valued at about 65,000 US dollars to the Talensi-Nabdam District in the Upper East Region. The provision of the vehicle is to mitigate the transportation needs of the assembly. Making the presentation, the Chief Executive Officer of the company, which is providing technical support for the Yeyenye Mining Company, a local mining firm, Mr. Wei Xing said they were proud to be associated with efforts at promoting development in the area. He said aside the vehicle; the company is also interested in promoting social economic development of its operational area. To that end it is in the process of extending a 34 KVA electric power supply from Pwalugu to Gbane, where it operates. The company will as well establish a health facility to help bring health care delivery to the door step of the workers and members of the community. Mr Wei Xing told Radio Ghana that his outfit has already provided furniture for schools in the locality where it operates. He however declared their preparedness to construct a Junior High School for the area to help increase school enrolment. As part of its corporate social responsibility, the mining firm will by the close of December this year, reconstruct a bridge to link and open up two communities in the area, notably Tarkwa and Kajetia. The motive, he said, is to facilitate easy movement of the people. Mr. Xing promised to donate 20 computers and 10 printers to the district assembly to support in its administrative work. The District Chief Executive for Talensi-Nabdam, Mrs. Vivian Anafo expressed the assembly’s appreciation to the company stressing that the assembly was happy to be associated with efforts of the company at promoting development in the area.  She moreover expressed gratitude to the company for creating employment opportunities, particularly for the teeming unemployed youth in the area and called for the strengthening of bond of partnership and cooperation amongst the two organizations to help ensure development in the district.  The Deputy District Coordinating Director, Mohammed Akalifa, praised the company for the gesture and the many interventions being carried out in the district by the company. He also called for more support in ensuring that mining in the area takes place successfully without creating health problems for the people.

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Binduri to be made a District- DCE assures

29-11-2011   

Narration: Government is taking giant steps to elevate the Binduri Constituency of the Upper East Region to a district. This will help pave way for massive infrastructural development in the area and to a larger extent showcase the rich potentials of the constituency. The Bawku Municipal Chief Executive, Musa Abdullai who made the pronouncement said government recognizing the endowed human and material resources in most parts of the country, will ensure that the status of such areas are upgraded to bring about development  and also bring governance to the doorstep of the people at the grassroot. Mr Abduallai was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the Binduri Constituency Development Association (BICDA) at Binduri, a constituency under the Bawku Municipality. Here is a report by Isaac Asare.

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Mr Abdullai also announced plans by the assembly to construct a police station in the Binduri constituency before the end of this year. He said 60 communities within the Bawku municipality including communities in Binduri constituency will soon be connected to the national electricity grid to help improve on the lives of the people. He disclosed that government is poised to developing every corner of the country, saying it behoves on all and sundry to support the developmental efforts of the government. Government he further said will not renege on its promise to Ghanaians indicating that efforts must be made to work collaboratively with the various municipal and district assembly’s to enable them articulate their concerns to the appropriate quarters for redress. On infrastructure, Mr Abdullai highlighted a number of development projects undertaken in the area and mentioned the rehabilitation of the Binduri-Kaade road network, the rehabilitation of the Yarigungu road which has being successfully executed with a bridge, the construction of 3 and 6 Unit classroom blocks for most deprived communities and the provision of boreholes as some of the projects executed by the assembly.  According to him, government through the assembly has provided computers, classroom furniture and school uniforms to needy schools and pledged that more schools would be made to benefit from such gestures. Mr Adbullai later appealed to members of the association to remain focus and work to foster unity among its members. He also cautioned members not to be partisan in their dealings, but work in tandem with any individual or organization for development. A member of BICDA, Mr John Atikiba said the association was established in April, 2006 through the tireless efforts of some illustrious sons of Binduri who were concerned about issues of development of the area. The formation of the association, he explained has helped to unearth the geographical landscape of Binduri and expressed gratitude to one, Richard Akambus and others for their role in tracing the geographical location of Binduri. Through their work it came to light that the first missionaries who came to area, precisely the Roman Catholics arrived first at Binduri in 1938 and settled there until they relocated to Bawku in 1950. He said notwithstanding all this achievements and considering the fact that Binduri is endowed with the required human resource, its development over the years has remain stagnant and called for a swift intervention by all stakeholders including the government. Mr. Atikiba told Radio Ghana that BICDA aims to foster unity and fraternal relations among members and is poised to ensure the promotion of investment not only to its members but the entire Kusaug kingdom. The association he added also has the objective of mobilizing resources for sustainable and progressive development in the Binduri constituency and will continue to advocate for the creation of the constituency to a district. Mr Atikiba appealed for the support of all in realizing their set objectives. A five member committee headed by Madam Laurentia Azure was set up to steer the affairs of the association. They were sworn into office by His Lordship Paul Alhassan, a circuit court judge. An appeal for fund was later held to support the association in its work. 

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Chiefs and People of Sherigu demand fair share of the national cake

27-11-2011        

The 38^th Naba –Yeska festival of the chiefs and people of Sherigu in the Upper East Region has taken place with a call on government to respond to the plight of the people by ensuring that massive infrastructural development strives in the area as promised. The Traditional Chief of the area, Nana Apasinaba who made the call on behalf of his subjects expressed readiness to release parcel of lands for the construction of developmental projects including schools and the proposed Bolgatanga Teaching Hospital. He said Sherigu as a village under the Bolgatanga municipality, has for the past years suffered total neglection with regards to the sharing of the national cake though the area can boast of a population of about 15,000. Naba Apasinaba expressed graved concern on the deplorable nature of the Sherigu-Naaga roads, describing it as not only bumpy and dusty but has on it uncompleted culverts that has lasted about two to three years. According to him, there is no single kilometer of the Sherigu-Naaga road that is tarred though gravels used by contractors working on other major and access roads within the municipality are fetched from the Sherigu community. The, situation, he said calls for immediate action by the municipal assembly since the people are worried. Serious concern was also raised on the parcel of land released to the assembly to be used as a refuse dump site. The community, Naba Apasinana noted are not happy with the way the assembly is managing the site and appealed to the assembly to take drastic measures in constructing a fence wall around the site and regularly spray the area to prevent diseases. The spraying, he further, explained will go a long way in reducing the spread of malaria caused by the influx of mosquitoes. Touching on the theme for this year’s occasion:”Sustainable Livelihood and Self Independence through Education”, Naba Apasinaba disclosed that 90 percent of the entire populace of Sherigu lives in abject poverty with majority of the people engaged in peasant farming and basket weaving, whiles a few of them travel far and near to engage in irrigational farming. The poverty level he said is as a result of lack of education, stressing that most parents due to poverty are unable to cater for their wards through school leaving the children no option than to engage in low income generating activities which do not augur well for their wellbeing as future leaders.   Naba Apasinaba showed appreciation to both past and present governments for providing much needed educational infrastructure in the area and appealed to government to boost school performance and also speed up development in the area by providing more school infrastructure for students.  The occasion was used to launch the Naba –Yeska Educational Fund as a measure to assist brilliant but needy students, especially the girl child and appealed to the people to contribute their widows’ mite to ensure that the education of the girl child is pursued to the latter. An appealed for fund was later held to solicit money to support the fund.

Chiefs and People of Buru-Kazugu observes annual Womdai-Abu Festival

Inset: Mad. Wasai King, Mrs Kasisi and the U/E Deputy Reg Min

25-11-2011                              

Mrs Lucy Awuni : Dep U/E Reg. Min

Narration: The chiefs and the entire Buru-Kazugu divisional area of the Kassena-Nankana West District of the Upper East Region have celebrated their annual Wondai-Abu Festival with pump and pageantry. The occasion which saw a colourful display of Kazugu culture amidst drumming and dancing was also used to officially launch a programme dubbed” Operation Keep your environment clean and green”. The theme for this year’s Womdai-Abu festival was “Quality Girl Child Education and Empowerment of Women; Key to sound sustainable Environment Practices and Reduction in Communicable Diseases”. The Kazugu Pe, Parekuri Aluah who addressed the gathering said the focus for the theme is informed by numerous educational challenges confronted by girls in the area. Isaac Asare has the rest of the story for Radio Ghana.

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Pe Alua said since education began in Paga in 1948, Kazugu had produced only one girl graduate and has for the past years failed to produce a female teacher , community health nurse, security female personnel or held any position in any of the decentralized departments of government. This, he lamented calls for stakeholders’ support in addressing issue of girl child education in the area and the region as a whole. He said as a first step, a Rural Education Development Fund (RED fund) was launched in 2009 during the first formal celebration of the festival to solicit fund to bring quality education to the doorstep of the people, particularly girls in order to help them realize their full potentials. The fund he added would also cater for female graduates especially medical professionals from Kazugu to make up for the gap in education. According to him, contribution from the RED fund this year will be used to start Bishop Abadamloora Girls Senior High School to immortalize the late Catholic Bishop’s name for bringing blessing to Kazugu. Pe Alua therefore, appealed to the people to contribute generously to the fund to make quality education in the area a reality. He thanked the Regional Minister, Mark Woyongo, for his valuable contribution to the development of the fund which has gone a long way to motivate most teachers in deprived Junior High Schools in the area. The fund, Pe Alua indicated, has also been used to support two orphans in the area. Stressing on the developmental challenges facing the area, Pe Alua called for the opening up of rural areas with irrigation dams and industries for the youth to move there to decongest the cities instead of constructing interchanges and flyovers to decongest them because such moves cannot force the youth out of the cities, it will rather attract more of them to the cities. He also appealed for two out of the 17 cocoa roads allocated to the Region for Kazugu to link it to Gomongo, Navro-Pungu and Nyangua and further appealed for a health facility or the posting of at least a community health nurse to the area to educate the people on preventable diseases who will as well attend to ailments and maternal health related cases in inaccessible areas of the communities. He also called for the rehabilitation of the Kazugu Small Scale Irrigation Dam and canals to assist in dry season farming. Pe Alua cautioned the youth against HIV and AIDS and urged them to cultivate the habit of tree planting to serve as vegetation cover. The Deputy Upper East Regional Minister, Mrs. Lucy Awuni, who was the special guest of honour assured the people of government’s support and urged them to make education of the girl child their outmost priority. She said with the inauguration of the SADA board, deprived areas of northern Ghana are poised to experience massive infrastructural development. On Education, Mrs. Awuni pledged to support school drop outs in the area, particularly lactating mothers who due to their predicaments could not proceed to the senior high school level and appealed to them to reconsider going back to school since education is the only way they can achieve success in life. The District Chief Executive for the area, Thomas Ada Dalu, in a speech read for him, pledged to incorporate the concerns raised in to the assembly’s annual and short term action plan and called for the support of the people. Mr. Dalu also called on the youth to remain focus and disciplined at all times since government is fully committed to the course of the youth. He moreover, called for good environmental practices.

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05-11-2011 Bolgatanga Regional Hospital Receives Medical Equipments Worth GH¢10,000

The management of the Ghana Rural Opportunities for Women (GROW), an NGO working in the area of women empowerment in the Upper East Region has donated medical equipment worth GH¢10,000 to the Bolgatanga Regional hospital to improve health care delivery in the region. The equipments include drip stand, surgical supplies, weighing scale, measuring cylinders, surgical gowns, OPD trolley, orthopaedic instruments, as well as laboratory and wound care supplies. The Project facilitator of GROW, Vida Yakong, stated that management of GROW in partnership with some students at University of British Columbia in Canada saw it as an honour to assist the hospitals. She said the donation which forms part of GROW’s corporate social responsibility is targeted at addressing issues of increased malaria cases and high maternal and infant deaths in the region and the country as a whole. Similar donations according to her had been undertaken in some deprived health facilities in the region including the Nangodi health centre and the Sakote CHP zone among others. Other health facilities she assured would receive their fair share of the gesture. Mrs Yakong added that GROW as a local based NGO gives priority attention to women of rural communities especially in the area of girl child development and health and had since its inception in 2007 provided financial and material assistance to women in most deprived communities of Northern Ghana. Their main objective she indicated is to basically assist vulnerable women and children grow positively to achieve their full potentials in life. She outlined plans of assisting some health institutions in the region with medical reading materials to enhance their knowledge. According to her deprived Schools and orphanages would not be left out.  The Medical Superintendent of the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital, Dr Peter Baffoe, who received the items on behalf of management, expressed appreciation to GROW and its foreign partners for the gesture and gave the assurance that the items would be well maintained to improve health care delivery in the hospital. He passionately appealed to other well meaning Ghanaians and organizations to emulate the gesture and come to the aid of the health facilities in the region.  

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Kusasi Youth of Bawku Expresses concern

02-11-2011            

The Kusasi Youth from Bawku have expressed deep resentment over a letter purported to have been written by the Nayiri, Bohugu Mahami Sheriga, notifying and requesting the permission of the Assistant Commissioner of the Ghana Police Service and the Police Administration in Bawku to enable him perform the final funeral rites of one Alhaji Adam Zangbeogo, whose demise occurred 31 years ago.  According to them, adherence of the Nayiri request could foment anarchy in Bawku if care is not taken because the Nayiri’s Jurisdiction ends at Nankpanduri whereas the overlord of Kusaug starts from Siisi to Zangoyiri. At a press briefing held in Bawku, the leader of the Kusasi youth, Azuma Alhassan, supported by other high profile personalities stated that the late Chief in question died as a commoner after he was deskinned through the PNDC law 75 in 1983, which restored the Kusaug Kingdom to the late Abugrago Azoka I. He said per the 1992 constitution, the Supreme Court has the judicial authority in dealing with chieftaincy disputes in Ghana, adding that the   court in 2003 ruled in favour of the Kusasis after the Mamprusis petitioned it to reverse the Bawku chieftaincy. Power was thus bestowed to the successor of the late Abugrago Azoka I, based on the Supreme Court ruling.  Therefore the Nayiri’s letter casts insinuations and undermines the Constitution in respect of the gazetted Bawku Naba, which he said is unacceptable and a blatant disregard to the country’s constitution. Mr. Alhassan also pointed out that paramount chiefs do not perform funerals of divisional or sub-chiefs outside their jurisdiction in any part of the country, let alone asking the security to perform the funeral of a deskinned chief, though he was buried and the funeral performed after his demise. He however called on the security agencies to call the Nayiri to order in order not to generate violent conflict. An Aspiring Parliamentary Candidate for the Binduri Constituency, Stephen Atubiga who chaired the briefing, emphasized the need for the security agencies to ensure the continuous prevailing peace in Bawku by going according to the court order. He said Bawku is tired of the conflict and that any issue that is likely to jeopardize the peace efforts in the municipality should not be tolerated. He cautioned the youth of Bawku to remain calm and allow the law to take its course. He also appealed to the Mamprusis to contribute their quota to the peace process in Bawku as the Kusasis are ever ready to partner them in the ongoing peace efforts in the area.

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Vodafon Shows Commitment to Increase Communication Connectivity

02-11-2011           

Narration: As part of its commitment to substantially increase communications connectivity in the north of the country and beyond, Vodafone Ghana with support from the government has officially laid a 120 km fiber cable from Bolgatanga through Bawku and to Senkase in northern Togo. This project will connect Ghana and four other countries in the West African Sub-region including neigbouring Burkina Faso. At a sod cutting ceremony held at Bolgatanga, the Deputy Minister of Communication, Ernest Attuquaye Armah said the construction of the fiber connectivity which includes the establishment of a number of cell sites along the routes will give real meaning to the country’s quest for regional integration with its associated trade and commercial benefits to Ghanaians. Correspondent Isaac Asare was at the event and has the rest of the story for Radio Ghana.

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In a bid to revolutionize Ghana’s communication infrastructure and services, Vodafon, one of the worlds’s leading mobile telecommunications company with a significant presence in Europe, Africa, Middle East, Asia Pacific and the United States, had once again shown its commitment to achieving high telecommunication standards in the West Africa sub-region. It may be recalled that on May, 9, 2009 in Tamale, the sector Minister of Communications and his counterparts from Burkina Faso, signed the ministerial declaration which brought forth the urgency to achieve fibre optic connectivity of the two countries in the realization of the decisions and commitment of the World summit on the Information Society and the summit ‘Connect Africa’, which urges government to develop broadband linkages connecting the main towns and capitals of Africa by 2012. Government  in  pursuant of the objectives outlined under the said declaration and  being mindful of the benefits to be derived from implementation of the project, have put in place measures to commence the project to meet the international deadline of 2012. Therefore, the laying of the 120km fibre cable from Bolgatanga through to Bawku and Zebilla to Senkase in the north of Togo is demonstrative of government and Vodafon’s commitment to providing quality services in Ghana and beyond. This connectivity is to also foster economic integration within the ECOWAS sub region. The Deputy Communications Minister, Mr. Ernest Attuquaye Armah, who cut the sod to officially commence the project, commended the efforts of the government of Togo and Burkina Faso for their support and cooperation, which to him defines their level of commitment and brotherliness despite our geographical boundaries. According to him, the project will be undertaken by three contractors to ensure its speedy completion and appealed to the chiefs and people of the communities along the routés to lend the contractors their maximum support and utmost cooperation since the project will involve the digging of trenches even under buildings. Mr. Armah also stressed the need to take advantage of the project to initiate job opportunities for the youth and also make use of the enabling environment to create a healthy socio-economic environment in the region. In a speech read for him, the Managing Director of Vodafon Wholesale, Edwin Provincal, described the occasion as historic and called on the people to support the project to achieve its purpose. He said the fibre connectivity will also have important implication for education in Ghana since it will provide schools and universities with fast link to a world of research and data, and make a significant contribution to the long term goal of building the knowledge-based economy in Ghana. Mr. Provincal commended Vodafon’s partnership with government and expressed their commitment to create ICT infrastructure in the country with the view to promoting digital literacy.  The occasion attracted various dignitaries from Burkina Faso, Togo and Ghana including the Upper East Regional Minister, Mark Woyongo and other revered chiefs from the region.

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More Ghanaians draw sword against UK Prime Minister's gay conditionalities

UK Prime Minister, David Cameron

01-11-2011           

Ghanaians continue to take a swipe at UK's Prime Minister, David Cameron's position to withdraw aid to countries which do not adhere to what he called proper human rights.  Dr Yao Graham of the Third World Network says the rights of gays and lesbians should be respected, but kicked against aid conditionality.  He said it has always been the ploy of the advanced countries to use imperialist tactics to bully third world countries.  A legal practitioner and a lecturer in Media law at the Ghana Institute of Journalism, Osei Kwadwo Addo however disagreed with the call to legalise Gayism and Lesbianism in the country.  He said human rights must be looked at within the context of societies that do not frown on norms, culture and values.  Mr Addo said Ghana should not subject itself to UK's pressure to legalise the rights of the Gay and Lesbians in the country. Meanwhile, the Northern Regional Chairman of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Reverend Dr. Bugri Nagbo, has strongly endorsed the widespread condemnation on comments made by the UK Prime Minister, David Cameron on threats to cut aid to countries that do not conform to legalities of anti gay legislation. He said Ghana is touted to be one of the decent and well behaved countries worldwide, so it is highly imperative for us as a country to maintain our sovereignty and not kowtow to pressures and caprices of donor countries all in the name of grant and aids. He however underscored the urgent need for all political parties, religious and youth groups to stand up and kick against such ungodly comments since adherence will spell doom for the country.  While lambasting the west for their unacceptable influence on most African countries, Rev. Nagbo told Radio Ghana in Bolgatanga that there is a clear cut difference between foreign aid and morality and that developed countries offering aid of any sort to needy countries have no moral obligation to infiltrate their cultural values, which according to him is an act of racism and bully. He said in as much as we cherish our rich heritage and believes, efforts must be made to protect such values.

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FDB cautions the public against the sale of expired corned beefs

01-11-2011       

Information obtained by the Food and Drugs Board (FDB) has it that a large consignment of expired corned beef with the brand names “Grace Corned Beef” and Libby’s Corned Beef’ has been found in a warehouse in Neigbouring Togo. The information further indicates that the expired corned beef brands believed to have been stored under deplorable conditions since 2008, show signs of bloating, rust and leakage cans, which could cause severe health implication if consumed. In a release signed by the Chief Executive of the FDB, Dr Stephen K. Opuni and copied to the GBC in Bolgatanga, confirmed that the expired corned beef products have been spotted in some market around the port in Lome (Togo) and could filter through Ghana. The release is therefore cautioning the general public against the patronage of the expired corned beef products for the purpose of sale in Ghana since such acts contravenes Section 1 (1) (b) and 8 (1) (b) of the Food and Drugs Law, 1992 (PNDCL 305B), which stipulates that “Any person who sells or offers for sale any food that is unwholesome or unfit for human consumption” commits an offence. The law in that same section goes on to state that “any person who deposits with or consign to any person for the purpose of sale, any food intended for, but unfit for human consumption” commits an offence. According to the release, consumption of expired canned beef products could lead to botulism and possible death. The Food and drugs Board therefore advices consumers to be cautious and not patronize the said brands of corned beef products. While assuring the public of its resolve to protect public health and safety, the FDB advises all well meaning Ghanaians to report any person or group of persons who may have or may be distributing the expired “Grace and Libby” Corned Beef brands or any other expired food products to the Food and Drugs Board for appropriate action to be taken. The general public is therefore reminded to call the following telephone numbers: 0244-337235, 0244-337243, 0244-337247 and 0244-33725.

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PAS Rounds Up Its Advocacy Programme for Small holder Farmers

31-10-2011       

The Presbyterian Agric Station (PAS) in the Garu-Tempane District of the Upper East Region has rounded up its advocacy review meeting with a call on participants to explore avenues of lobbying for projects to improve their standard of living and also ensure development in their respective communities. The review meeting was a follow up to previous capacity building advocacy and training programmes held for the participants, who are mainly smallholder farmers with women constituting the majority. The said training programme which is captured under the advocacy component of the Food and Agriculture Recovery Management project (FARMplus) is being implemented by Care International and Oxfam in partnership with the Presbyterian Agric Station. The training, according to the Advocacy Officer of PAS, Awuni Baba Foster, was to influence agriculture policy and practice to have improved focus on vulnerable small holder farmers.  Through the programme, beneficiaries would be able to identify their community problems, analyse and prioritize them to benefit themselves and their communities. This is to also help them lobby and solicit support from policy makers and stakeholders who matter in addressing problems identified in a particular community. He said the project with sponsorship by the European Union is being implemented in 10 communities out of the 40 communities captured under the food and security component of the project. Beneficiaries Mr. Awuni Foster emphasized are expected to present to the appropriate quarters their problems for consideration and support through the training they have acquired. Mr. Awuni told Radio Ghana that the training has offered a lot of opportunities for small holder farmers since they have undergone community advocacy, lobbying and campaigning skills. He added that beneficiaries through the programme were engage in community interface meeting with MOFA to expose MOFA activities to community members to enable them demand for their services. Moreover, Community exchange visits were also organized for beneficiaries to enable them learn and adapt to modern agricultural practices to improve their yield. The motive he explained is to assist in addressing the problem of food insecurity in the district. Mr Awuni expressed the hope that partners involved in the project will put in place pragmatic and workable interventions to ensure its sustainability since it will be ending soon. Mr Aba’an Philip, a beneficiary from the Kunsabilla community, commended PAS and its implementing agencies for their support and assistance. The programme he noted has impacted positively on the lives of beneficiaries and urge his colleagues to impart the knowledge they have acquired to benefit other farmers.

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