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Gov’t has made enough money from petroleum proceeds –Jinapor

By
AGNES ANSAH
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Ranking Member on Committee of Mines and Energy, Mr John Abdulai Jinapor addressing the Parliamentary Press Corps

The Ranking Member on the Committee of Mines and Energy, Mr John Abdulai Jinapor, says the notion that government is not making money from petroleum proceeds is a fallacy. According to Mr Jinapor, the government has, this year alone, generated more revenue than it projected for.

Briefing the Parliamentary Press Corps, the Yapei/Kusawgu legislator said in the 2022 budget, government projected that it will receive a total amount of about 6 billion cedis.

“Today, as we speak, from the Public Interest and Accountability Committee report, in less than three months, government has received over GH8b from our petroleum resources.”

To him, this is an indication that government is making supernormal profit and is, therefore, capable of using some of the money to bring down the prices on fuel.

He called on President Akufo Addo and the Minister of Finance, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, to do something about increment in fuel prices.

According to him, the duo should sit up and use the supernormal profit it is making to cushion the ordinary Ghanaian.

Mr Jinapor also used the opportunity to raise issues about the price stabilisation and recovery levy, intended to subside fuel prices.

He told the journalists that, the government projected to rake in GH¢269m in the first two quarters, but records from the Finance Minister shows that the government has received about GH¢800m already.

“We have demonstrated to you that government got more than it required even in the first quarter. We have demonstrated to you that even with the price stabilisation levy, instead of the GH¢260m, they have got about GH¢800m. And so this notion that government is not making revenue is a fallacy, a complete falsehood. Government is making so much money from our petroleum resources,” Mr Jinapor said.

He said the Minority is of the view that government can do something about the fuel price increment in order to cushion the ordinary Ghanaian.

He contended that the exorbitant fuel prices is having a cascading effect on food prices and the general cost of living.

Mr Jinapor also said that the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) must be resourced to enable it process Ghana’s domestic crude that can give the country about 45,000 barrels of processed crude on a daily basis.

“This is not rocket science. This is something we attempted doing by giving TOR 2m barrels of oil from the TEIN fields under President Mahama,” Mr Jinapor said and called on the government to act.

Gun smugglers attempt to bribe police with GH¢15, 000

By
BERNICE BESSEY
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Court

Roger Nyarko, 62 years and a trader, is standing trial for offering GH¢15,000.00 bribe to influence a police officer to conceal a crime – illicit trafficking of firm arms and ammunition.

Nyarko attempted paying the bribe to the officer, after the Accra Regional Police, upon a tip-off, arrested Dele Fascaro, a 50 years old driver, with 315 boxes of cartridges and 35 Jojef Magnum Pump Action guns at Achimota Mile 7.

The ammunitions and pump action guns were allegedly being transported to Nigeria for financial, material or some other benefits.

According to the prosecuting officer, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Maxwell Oppong, Nyarko visited the crime scene while the officers were conducting a search on the truck that Dele was allegedly using to convey the fire arms to induce them with money.

The prosecuting officer told the Accra Circuit Court ‘9’, presided over by Samuel Bright Acquire yesterday that, the arresting officers collected the amount (GH¢15,000.00) as exhibit, before apprehending him.

ASP Oppong told the court that Nyarko disclosed to the officers that a big man sent him to bribe the police with the money.

Nyarko has, therefore, been accused of giving bribe to influence a public officer, a crime contrary to Section 252 of the Criminal offences Act 1990 (Act 29), but has pleaded not guilty to the offence.

Roger Nyarko is on trial together with Dele Fascaro and Daniel Obeng, 70 years and a arms dealer.

Dele and Daniel had also pleaded not guilty to possession of arms and ammunition without authority, illicit trafficking in explosives, firearms and ammunition and count of attempts to commit certain crimes.

With the exception of Dele, who the prosecution claimed do not have a fixed place of abode and  a flight risk, the two others were granted bail in the sum of GH¢20,000 each with two sureties who are government workers, earning not less than GH¢1,500 a month and also live within the jurisdiction of the court.

Nyarko and Daniel were ordered to report to the police twice very week till the end of the trial.

The court further ordered that the truck, which Dele was in charge of, the ammunition and guns should be impounded by the police and kept in the custody of the Greater Accra Regional Headquarters till the end of the trial.

The brief

In the brief facts presented by ASP Oppong, the complainants in the case are police officers from the Accra Police Headquarters, adding that Dele is a Nigerian while Nyarko and Daniel are Ghanaians.

He said on October 15, 2022, the Accra Regional Police Command received information that a Benz truck with registration No. GS 8603-13 was carrying concealed boxes of ammunition and pumps, which would be from Accra to Lagos.

The prosecutor added that the Regional Police Headquarters,acting on a tip-off, dispatched a team of officers led by ASP Nafiu Shittu to the scene and had Dele Fascoro arrested, they had searched the truck, and found boxes loaded with cartridges concealed in hidden compartments created beneath the truck.

He said whilst the arresting officers were searching the truck, Nyarko arrived and with a cash of GH¢15,000.00 to offer to the arresting officers in a bid to conceal the crime.

The arresting officers collected the GH¢15,000.00 and, subsequently, arrested Nyarko and handed him over to the  Regional CID together with the exhibits, including the truck.

ASP Oppong narrated that when the truck was sent to the Regional Police Headquarters for further search in the presence of Dele and Nyarko, the officers found a total of 315 boxes of cartridges and 35 Jojef Magnum Pump Action guns in the hidden compartment of the truck.

After this discovery by the police, Dele alleged admitted the offence of possessing cartridges and Pump Action guns without authority but revealed that it was Daniel who organized people to load and conceal the cartridges and Pump Action guns in the truck to be taken to his “Boss”, Henry Chuku alias Suzu, who also is an arms dealer in Nigeria.

Dele also mentioned another accomplice by name Taye Naja who would be driving the truck with the arms from to Nigeria but managed to escape before the arrival of the police.

The court was further told Dele police to a house at Achimota Mile 7 and identified Daniel as the one who sold the weapons and cartridges to him and further organized people to load and conceal the exhibits in the truck.

Dele also led police to a storeroom where 70 year old Daniel keeps his cartridges and guns.A total of 426 Pump Action gun handles and 39 Pump Action gun butts were retrieved from the said storeroom in the presence of Dele and Daniel.

The prosecutor informed the court that efforts are underway the accused persons’ accomplices.

Nana Akwesi Campaigns For Re-Election

By
SEBASTIAN R. FREIKU
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Augustus Nana Akwesi Andrews, Ashanti Regional NDC Chairman

Mr. Augustus Nana Akwesi Andrews, the incumbent Ashanti Regional Chairman of the

National Democratic Congress (NDC) has embarked on a tour of the 47 constituencies in the region to canvass for votes in the impending Regional elections.It follows his declaration for re-election bid after four successful years ofhis tenure.

His operational vision include ensuring continuity of his team with the view of adding to the margin of votes and thus improve upon the 26.1%votes in Ashanti region in 2020, from 23% in the 2016 elections.

Nana Akwesi intends to adopt the all inclusive leadership based on a stronger grassroots participation at all levels of party activities and the involvement of the Cadres Council of Elders, Ashanti Confederation,Ashanti caucus, Volta caucus, Zongo caucus and former

appointees to work hard to increase parliamentary seats for the party in the region.

The aspirant indicated that his administration would be guided by transparency and accountability and that he plans to reward loyalty and had working members with or without certificate.

The incumbent NDC Regional chairman assured that he would continue to adopt and adapt innovative and scientific methods at elections,especially the 2024 election.

Nana Akwesi, who claims he is the man to beat in the NDC in Ashanti region, says his re-election bid is rooted in his achievements over the last four years.

These include increasing the parliamentary seats from 3 to 4 in Ashanti region; increasing votes from 400,000 plus to over 650,000;working to  ensure the completion of the construction of the partyoffice project and ensuring transparency in the management of partyfunds by involving constituency chairmen, secretaries, organisers and treasurers.

The chairman has used his hotel and other facilities for party activities,including accommodating constituency, regional and national party officials at no cost.

He regularly does personal visitations to party branches, attends funerals, “adua”, wedding and other party activities at the branches to enhance membership drive.

Nana Akwesi’s strength lies in being a grassroots man and the use of door to door campaign at markets, lorry parks and rural communities.

He constantly encourages improved cordial working relations withregion, constituencies, branches, MPs, former appointees, Ashanti caucus, Cadres, Volta caucus, Zongo caucus and parliamentary candidates, among others.

Mr. Augustus Nana Akwesi Andrews is seeking a re-election in the Regional elections of the party on November 12 and 13, 2022.

He willpitch his strength against other aspirants like Yaw Owusu Obimpeh, a former Regional chairman of the party, Mr. Enoch Amoako-Nsiah, a former Ashanti Regional Security Co-ordinator and Lawyer Evans Amankwa.

No matter the capabilities of the other aspirants, Augustus Nana Akwesi Andrews believes that given the second chance, a united party will deliver and contribute to the annexation of the ultimate in the 2024 elections.

Agape Love launched to help the needy & elderly in society

By
admin
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Agape Love being launched

The Agape Love Initiative (ALI), which will function as a non-governmental organisation has been launched in Teshie, Accra, with the vision of helping the elderly and needy persons within the Ledzokuku Municipal Assembly, as its operational starting point.

The vision of ALI is, therefore, to extend God’s Agape Love of willful sacrifices into the homes of the elderly and needy through projects and programmes in the area of healthcare and educational support.

This is an initiative of some old students of Sunrise Preparatory School, located at Teshie. However, membership is opened to the general public to help fast track and positively impact target groups.

In a speech read on behalf of the President of ALI, Mr Bright Asamoah, he affirmed that the recent global crisis came with adverse impacts. These have made lives very difficult for many.

However, because the organisation could not sit idle with the excuses and look on, they were inspired to intervene, culminating in the vision to develop the initiative.

He, therefore, called upon all well-meaning Ghanaians and all global citizens to join hands with ALI, in order to positively contribute to the wellbeing of the vulnerable in society.

As the Sustainable Development Goals steadily reaches its 2030 deadline, he believes that the objectives of the initiative will be sustained on basis of desirable partnerships in promoting a prosperous and peaceful planet, where no one is left behind.

The Chairperson for the launch, Mr Edward Anum, lauded the initiators of ALI for extending a helping hand to society and asked for unity and God’s direction for them.

He also advised them to be fair, firm and flexible in their decision-making processes. He encouraged the leadership of ALI to work efficiently on their deliverables to meet set objectives and to positively impact lives, especially those of the elderly and needy in society.

Editorial: The Forex Bureau Association and COPEC have made a good call

By
THE CHRONICLE
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Editorial

Prices of petroleum products are skyrocketing by the day and their ramifications on the economy are evident in the astronomical price hikes in goods and services.

Ghana practices a deregulation policy, meaning changes in prices on the world market have a direct impact on prices at the pumps.

That notwithstanding, several variables determine the final price build-up, some of which are beyond the control of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), the regulator, importers and the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs).

The variables include the world market price, as a huge chunk of all petroleum products in the country are imported.

At the time of putting this piece together, the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil price for November 2, 2022 was $88.10 per barrel. The effect is that all the costs incurred by the importer, such as shipping, landing and discharge are added to the world price, before it is sold to the OMCs locally.

Another determining factor in the final price build-up is the depreciation of the local currency, in this case, the Ghana cedis. This means the performance of the cedi against the dollar is a determining factor.

For instance, if the OMCs purchased a litre of fuel at $1, under the current exchange rate, the same quantity of fuel would be sold for ₡13.

The government has also imposed about 12 different taxes and levies on petroleum products, including the Sanitation and Pollution Levy and the Energy Debt Recovery Levy.

We have monitored public debates on the petroleum prices over the last few weeks and have observed that the industry players know of the challenges and how to arrest them.

On an Accra-based Asempa FM programme yesterday, the president of the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs, Patrick Ofori lamented the cost of purchasing dollars with cedis to import crude oil.

He indicated that though the government gives some forex, it was not enough to import adequate products and as such the OMCs go the extra mile to find more forex to top up, as failure may result in shortage of the product.

Due to that, they have to sell at prices that would give them the returns they need to pay their banks. He said that sometimes they even have to resort to the black market for dollars.

Meanwhile, the Forex Bureau Association of Ghana and the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) are singing the same song.

In an interview on the same radio programme, the Executive Secretary of COPEC, Duncan Amoah, made an advocacy. He said that the government should guarantee a fixed exchange rate for petroleum products, for a quarter of a year, and immediately the prices of petroleum products would reduce.

According to him, importers of petroleum products cannot compete for dollars with importers of cow feet, tiles or clothes, as the former’s impact on the economy far outweighs the rest.

At a meeting with the president at Jubilee House, ahead of his address to the nation last Sunday, the president of the Forex Bureau Association of Ghana, K.T. Dadzie, suggested to the government to look at which sector of the economy consumes more forex and inject enough.

He argued that the importers of petroleum products use more dollars and should be considered first, as their industry holds the entire value chain of the economy.

We agree with the arguments mounted by the Forex Bureau Association of Ghana and the COPEC. They are the experts in the petroleum and forex markets and understand the nitty-gritty of the pricing.

Their advocacy, we believe effectively responds to the concerns raised by the president of the OMCs, so we will suggest that the government put measures in place to deal with this issue and help reduce the price of petroleum products.

In the end, it is the ordinary consumer who suffers the brunt of the hikes in prices, as has been witnessed in the country lately.

We agree that the economy is in crisis, but we believe that if the government moves to guarantee for the OMCs for a longer period as suggested by COPEC, it may encourage the OMCs to sell their products at fixed and reasonable prices to the consumers.

AVS launches Fund to support accident victims

By
BERNICE BESSEY
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Some road crash victims at ASV Foundation function

President and Founder of Accident Victim Support Ghana (AVS), Revered Cyril Benedict Crabbe has launched a campaign to raise funds to support road crash victims.

The fund will aid provision of relief items such as wheelchairs, beds, clothes, as well as payment of medical bills for some of the victims who cannot afford treatment.

Launching the projects in Accra recently, Rev. Crabbe stated that about 90 percent of road traffic crashes in the country are a result of human attributes, namely overspeeding, wrong overtaking, drunk driving,  red light jumping, avoiding safety gears, non-adherence to lane driving and fatigue driving. All these resulted in the death of about 2,924 people last year.

He said  about 12,898 people are either left without limbs or arms, had developed fractures, or were bedridden in 2021 as a result of road traffic crashes.

According to him, the AVS is poised to provide assistance to these victims, but poor access to funds had been the main challenge impeding the NGO’s tracks to reaching its goal.

Rev. Crabbe added that, since any member of the public can fall victim to road traffic crashes, the responsibility lies on individuals, organisations and corporate institutions to contribute their quota towards providing the necessary support to road traffic victims.

“I receive a lot of calls from victims, but I’m unable to help because I sometimes do not have what they are asking for. So, we are launching this to expand our scope and introduce the organisation to the entire country that we are here, and we’ve been doing this for a long time,” he said.

He explained that the funds, when mobilised, would be used for three things – relief for victims, a monument built for crashed victims who got burned beyond recognition, and the NGO’s operations.

“We are really finding it difficult to travel across the country to attend to our operations. The victims, not all of them, need money or recovery aid, but some of them need care, concern and compassion. And we give them.

“So when they call us and we are there, they feel that at least somebody cares for them. The reason is that it is not the situation that they call for, but somebody calls them so they need another person to help them. In situations that you cannot go, they feel that they are lonely, rejected, neglected and nobody cares for them.”

Minister for Roads and Highways Kwasi Amoako-Attah, in a prepared speech read on his behalf, opined that the government was committed to developing and improving measures that would ensure safety and security for all road users through road design, maintenance and the installation of other infrastructures.

He stated that road safety was a major project in the road sector and by which the Highway Ministry was working closely with the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority to sensitise and educate drivers and road users on the safe use of road infrastructure.

The acting Director-General of NRSA, David Adonteng, said it was unfortunate that the country continues to record a high number of crashes yearly, due to absolute disregard for road safety protocols by both motorists and pedestrians.

He noted that simple obedience to traffic rules and regulations could save the lives of thousands each year.

Security is improving in Upper East -Regional Minister

By
AGNES ANSAH
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Upper East Regional Minister, Mr Stephen Yakubu

The curfews, sufferings and hardships being experienced in Bawku and its surrounding communities will soon be a thing of the past, as the Upper East Regional Minister, Mr Stephen Yakubu, has assured that the security situation in the area is getting better.

According to the Regional Minister, some measures that were put in place to ameliorate the situation are yielding results.

He noted that rigorous sensitisation campaign on “See Something, Say Something”, as well as the establishment of Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) in our border communities with Burkina Faso and Togo, have gone a long way to improve on security in the region.

Some road crash victims at ASV Foundation function

He also said the government, through the Ministries of Defence, Interior and the National Security has equipped and supported Security Agencies in the region with relevant logistics required to maintain peace and order and protect the territorial integrity of the country.

“I can tell you confidently that things are getting better. With the unflinching support of Government, the Regional Security Council (REGSEC) and other stakeholders, peace and order has since returned to these areas and the region at large,” Mr Yakubu said.

He made this known at the State of Region Reports, a news conference put together by the Ministry of Information to enable Regional Ministers disseminate developmental projects in their respective regions to the country.

The conflict in Bawku and its surrounding communities, which was started decades ago, has resulted in the loss of lives and properties.

A total ban on the carrying of arms, ammunition or any offensive weapon within the area, were some of the measures put in place, in a bid to curb insecurity in the communities and the region as a whole.

That aside, tricycles which are the main source of transportation in the region were banned and curfews were imposed on affected communities to salvage the situation.

Mr Yakubu noted yesterday that most of these restrictions, which were placed in the conflict communities, have been relaxed and this has enabled socio-economic activities in these areas to bounce back.

He expressed appreciation to the government and other stakeholders for the role they played in ensuring that calm is restored in the region.

Mr Yakubu indicated that in order to sustain the gains made in the area of peace and security and further improve on regional collaboration and socio-economic resilience of the region, the government has rolled out the Gulf of Guinea Northern Regions Social Cohesion (SOCO) Project, where a colossal sum of GH¢311,229,134.00 would be injected into the region over the next five (5) years.

He, therefore, called on people, who due to insecurity in the region, are not considering investing in the region to do so, because their security is assured.

“I wish to allay the fears of all those who do not know the region very well and encourage investors who intend to invest in the region to please do so,” Mr Yakubu said.

Fans start crowd funding account to make Kanye West billionaire again

By
NANA KWESI COOMSON
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Kanye West

Fans of Kanye West are trying to help him regain billionaire status via crowd funding.

Supporters launched several pages; one succinctly being named “Make Kanye West a Billionaire Again” with a fundraising goal of $1 billion after West’s net worth took a serious hit last week when Adidas dropped him.

That specific fundraiser only raised $5 and has since been taken down, as have copycats that popped up in its place.

Dozens of people have since promoted their own GoFundMe pages encouraging others to make them billionaires instead of West.

A fan previously started a GoFundMe page to raise $53 million for the Grammy winner after he claimed in 2016 that he was in debt for that amount. The fan, Jeremy Piatt, crowd sourced $57,398, but West declined the funds. The money was instead donated to Notes for Notes, a music charity.

The latest round of fundraisers started after Adidas ended its lucrative partnership with West.

The 45-year-old’s deal with the athletic company for his Yeezy clothing line made up $1.5 billion of his net worth, so without the partnership, he’s at a mere $400 million, according to Forbes.

Adidas along with Balenciaga, Vogue and Gap cut ties with West after he made several anti-semitic remarks over the last few weeks.

Gabrielle Union and Dwayne Wade get Ghanaian names

By
NANA KWESI COOMSON
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Gabrielle Union and Dwayne Wade

American Actress, Gabrielle Union and her husband, retired basketball star Dwayne Wade, were given new names at a ceremony on their arrival in Ghana.

The couple arrived in Ghana with their daughter Kaavia James on Tuesday and attended the enstoolment ceremony of Diallo Sumbry as Nkosuohene (Chief of Development) in Nyame Bekyere, a community between Adawso and Koforidua in the Eastern Region of Ghana.

Diallo Sumbry is the first African American Tourism Ambassador of Ghana.

Gabrielle and Dwayne were honoured with Ghanaian names when they attended the ceremony, adorned in Kente clothes.

Because they were both born on Sunday, the couple was named Kwesi Sarfo and Akosua Sarfoa.

Gabrielle, Dwayne and Kaavia’s arrival in Ghana was met with a rousing welcome both at the airport and on social media.

At the airport, Wade and Gabriel were greeted with a display from a traditional dance troupe.

Chief Executive of the Ghana Tourism Authority, Akwasi Agyemang welcomed them by handing them sashes as a welcome gift.

This is part of the family’s world tour, which they dubbed the Wade Tour 2022 – African tour in celebration of Gabrielle’s 50th birthday.

They made their first stop at Zanzibar in Tanzania, before making their way to Ghana.

Davido removed his clothes and wanted to run into the streets upon hearing son’s death

By
NANA KWESI COOMSON
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Davido and late son Ifeanyi

“Davido ran mad. He literally removed his clothes and wanted to run into the streets. He was held back. He and Chioma are inconsolable,” a family source disclosed.

Davido is reported to be broken and inconsolable over the death of his son, Ifeanyi Adeleke.

The Nigerian singer’s son died on Monday October 31, 2022 after he reportedly drowned in a pool at home. “The boy was inside water for too long and they pulled him out and rushed him to the hospital,” the family said.

“By the time they rushed him to Lagoon Hospital it was already too late,” the source said under anonymity to await an official statement

A report by lindaikejisblog.com detailing how the incident happened said “the Nanny was with Ifeanyi and the Chef came to join them. The Nanny was said to have moved slightly away to receive a call. When she returned, she couldn’t find Ifeanyi and assumed he was with the Chef but the Chef said he had left Ifeanyi with her”.

The source close to the heart-breaking incident who spoke to the website added that “they began to frantically look for Ifeanyi all over the house for close to 20 mins until a security guard spotted him in the pool. No one could explain how the boy got in the pool.”

Davido and Chioma travelled to another state and left their son behind. The lovers are said to have returned from their trip to the devastating news which broke them down totally.

The report adds that “all friends, staff and colleagues have been banned from visiting Davido’s father’s house where he and Chioma are held.”

So far, the Nigeria police have arrested eight workers at Davido’s home, including Ifeanyi’s nanny. Lagos Police spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed that the drowning happened at Davido’s residence.

According to him, an investigation into the matter has commenced. “Yes, we have invited eight people over the death of his son,” Hundeyin said.

The singer and the mother of his son, Chioma Rowland, recently marked their son’s third birthday on October 20.

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