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Scotland and England to meet at Hampden next year

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England and Scotland last met at Wembley during Euro 2020 last year

Scotland will host England at Hampden on 12 September, 2023 as part of the 150th anniversary celebrations of their first match in 1872.

That game, played at the West of Scotland Cricket Ground in Glasgow, which ended 0-0, is recognised by Fifa as the world’s oldest international.

Next year’s game will be the first between the pair since a goalless draw in June 2021 at Wembley at Euro 2020.

“This fixture is enshrined in history,” said Scotland manager Steve Clarke.

“I will be proud to lead our team out at Hampden as part of the 150th anniversary celebrations of our national game.

“This next chapter of the oldest rivalry in football will be a special occasion for our players and fans, especially after the recent experience at Wembley during Euro 2020.”

England and Scotland last met at Hampden in 2017, with the match ending in a 2-2 draw and all four goals coming in the final quarter of the game. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain put England 1-0 ahead but they needed an injury-time Harry Kane goal to draw the game after Scotland’s Leigh Griffiths scored two late free-kicks.

“Any meeting with Scotland is always special,” said England boss Gareth Southgate.

“Ourselves and Scotland are the oldest of rivals and passions are sure to be high at Hampden, but this milestone is much bigger than our two nations as it’s also an opportunity to celebrate 150 years of international football,” he added.

The Football Association also announced England will play their home Euro 2024 qualifier against North Macedonia at Old Trafford on 19 June.

Credit: bbc.com

Liverpool target Jude Bellingham for next summer

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Liverpool are determined to win the race for Jude Bellingham's signature next summer

Jurgen Klopp has agreed with Liverpool chiefs to go all in on Jude Bellingham next summer, according to reports in Germany.

Bellingham, 19, is one of the hottest properties in European football right now after becoming a key member of Borussia Dortmund‘s midfield at such a young age.

The race for his signature is expected to intensify at the end of the current season, with the likes of Real Madrid, Manchester City and Chelsea also circling as well as Liverpool.

According to Sport Bild, the Reds are now hellbent on luring Bellingham to Merseyside after Klopp made it clear he would be fully behind a big-money move next summer.

Anfield officials are understood to have set around £86million aside to get their hands on the England international – but that price falls way below Dortmund’s valuation.

It is believed the Bundesliga club, who tied Bellingham down to a new four-year contract in 2021, will demand at least £129m for his services.

Should Liverpool or one of their English rivals meet that valuation, they would smash the record Premier League transfer – Jack Grealish’s £100million switch to City last year – by almost £30million.

But according to El Chiringuito journalist Jose Alvarez Haya, as reported by Marca, Bellingham would prefer to sign for Madrid than head back to his home country next summer.

The teenager reportedly wants to spearhead a new generation in Los Blancos’ midfield, where he believes he can prove himself an ‘important’ player.

City are understood to have made contact with his representatives, only to be told that Madrid would be his first priority if the right offer came in.

Klopp will be looking to strengthen in central midfield as Liverpool have been decimated by injuries in that area so far this season.

The Reds made an emergency move for Arthur Melo on loan from Juventus in the summer as cover but even he has fallen victim to injury.

Bellingham has made 109 appearances for Dortmund after moving to Germany for £25million from Birmingham in 2020.

Manchester United gave Bellingham a tour of their Carrington training ground back in 2020 as part of their attempts to sign the highly-rated youngster when he was at Birmingham.

Such was the impact he had in a short space of time at St Andrew’s that the Blues controversially retired his No 22 shirt after letting him join Dortmund to ‘remember one of our own and to inspire others’.

Eight months shy of his 20th birthday, Bellingham has already earned 17 caps for England and is a certainty to be included in Gareth Southgate’s World Cup squad later this month.

He could also start England’s first game of the tournament in Qatar against Iran on November 21.

Credit: dailymail.co.uk

Family Files  GH¢10m Suit Against Police, AG…Over Death Of Relative At Adomfe, Asante Akyem

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RICHARD OWUSU-AKYAW
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COP Kofi Boakye - Director General in charge of Legal and Prosecution
The body of the late Kofi Ampomah

Maxwell Boamah, a customary successor of late Kofi Ampomah, who was allegedly killed by some police personnel at Adomfe, in the Asante Akyem South Municipality of the Ashanti region, together with nine others, have filed a GH¢10m suit against  the Ghana Police Service and the Attorney-General (A-G) for the death of his kinsman.

According to the plaintiff, the deceased, without any cause or act of provocation was allegedly seized by nine officers of the Police Service, when he closed from work on October 15, 2019.

In the writ, filed on October 13, 2022 the plaintiff said the police, after seizing the deceased, assaulted him by using pepper spray on him, as well as butchering him with cutlasses or machetes.

Mr Boamah alleged that after the policemen took the life of Kofi Ampomah,they handled his mortal remains like an animal.

According to him, before Kofi’s demise, the policemen refused and failed to take him to hospital for medical attention, while he was bleeding profusely from the cutlass wounds he had sustained from their brutality.

As a result, the plaintiffs are seeking a declaration by the Human Right Court that the deceased,Kofi Ampomah, was killed or murdered by nine policemen of the Konongo Division of the Ghana Police Service.

“The police finally dumped the deceased at Konongo Odumasi Government Hospital and lied that he had been killed by armed robbers,” the writ said.

The late Kofi Ampomah

They are demanding a compensation of GH¢10 million from ten (10) officers of the Ghana Police Service, including the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr George Akuffo-Dampare.

Per the writ of summons, the amount would be used for the education, maintenance, upkeep and trauma suffered by the dependants of late Kofi Ampomah.

The plaintiffs also want the Police Service to build a statute in honour of late Kofi Ampomah to serve as a constant reminder to the police to protect life and not to destroy life.

The police officers name in the writ, as having a hand in the death of the deceased are;  General SergentSulemanSeidu (Sully Seidu), G/CPL Seth Agbango (Seth Abango), D/L/CPL SalifuYakubu, G/SGT Samuel Awrjamb, G/SGT Opare Samuel (Opare Samuel Antwi), D/CPL James Astikson Mensah (James Mensah), G/CPL NyameHayford, G/CPL Emmanuel Divines Delasi (Delasi Divine) and G/L/CPL Samuel Kwame Gorman (Gorman Samuel).

The IGP, Dr George Akuffo-Dampare and Attorney-General, Godfred Yeboah Dame, were respectively joined to the suit, as head of the police service and the legal advisor of the government.

The other plaintiffs are; Maxwell Boamah, suing for himself and on behalf Eunice Amoako, Samuel SiawAmmpomah, Vida Ampomah, Enoch AgyeiAntwi, Georgina Ampomah, BoatemaaPeprah Irene, Silas DansoPeprah and Nana Appiagyei Danka.

The plaintiffs’ claim

According to the plaintiffs, the deceased, Kofi Ampomah, aged 33, who was their younger brother at the time of his death, was a Sprinter trotro driver plying Adomfe to Kumasi.

Mr Boamah alleged that his brother met his untimely death because the defendants mistook him for a young man who allegedly reported the defendants to the Bompata Police for releasing a woman, who was alleged to be selling local gin, mixed with a substance suspected to be Indian hemp to the public.

He averred that the police, on two different occasions, arrested and released the woman in question, after extorting GH¢3,000.00 and GH¢4,000 00 respectively from her.

The plaintiff added that this was the incident that angered some youth of the town to report the matter to the Bompata Police Station for action.

He said the policemen mentioned in the suit retaliated by attacking the Adomfe town to deal with the young man who took the initiative to report them to the Bompata Police Station.

Therefore, he added that on October 15, 2019 at about 7:30 am, when the deceased had closed from work, he stepped out to go and buy food to eat at a food selling joint at Adomfe.

However, the defendants upon seeing the deceased rushed to seize him.He continued that the policemen, who arrived in two vehicles, sprayed the eyes of the deceased with pepper spray before inflicting wounds on him with cutlasses.

“Plaintiff avers that the deceased became unconscious after bleeding profusely, where upon the nine policemen dumped him in the bucket of one of the vehicles and moved to park at a distance from the murder scene,” the writ states.

The plaintiff asserted that his brother died from the mistreatment meted out to him by Seidu, Abango, Yakubu, Awrjamb, Antwi, Mensah, Hayford, Delasi and Gorman.

Gov’t to collaborate with Rand Refinery for LBMA certification

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Veep Bawumia with members of Rand Refinery and minister for Lands , Samuel Jinapor

The Vice President, Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, says the government is ready to collaborate with the board and management of Rand Refinery to help Ghana obtain London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) Certification.

Underscoring the importance of the LBMA certificate to the government’s plan to develop the mineral industry and make Ghana a key player in the refinery of mineral resources, Dr Bawumia said attaining the certification will propel Ghana to participate and exploit fully the benefits in the mineral value chain.

He stated that the gamut of experience and expertise of the Certification makes them strategic and beneficial partners to Ghana and that, partnering them will help the country evade the blunders other countries committed on their journey to creating refinery hubs in their mining sector, “because you have a very long history in this area and also help us not to repeat mistakes of others”.

Dr Bawumia made these remarks when the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel A. Jinapor, led the delegation from Rand Refinery to call on the Vice President on Monday, October 31, 2022 in Accra.

The meeting was to deliberate on ways of actualising government’s agenda to make Ghana a hub for the processing and refining of mineral resources and in particular, obtaining the LBMA Certification for the country.

The Chairman of Rand Refinery, Mr. Rams Ramashira, disclosed that his outfit has held positive preliminary talks with the Ministry and other key stakeholders.

He said the CEO of Rand Refinery is a member of the LBMA Board and “we are very happy to be of assistance and share some experiences and strike some alliances and hope the meeting with key stakeholders will help develop something concrete for the two parties”.

Earlier on Monday, 31 October, 2022 the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel A. Jinapor, received the visiting Rand Refinery delegation at the Ministry. He indicated that his invitation to the Rand refinery is to have them hold discussions and share ideas on how to move forward with the partnership that exist between the parties.

He advocated for an intelligent and effective collaboration between the government and LBMA to ensure that the certification is issued.

He took the team through the itinerary for the visit and hoped that it will be a fruitful one, as they get the opportunity to meet the Vice President, who he said has been very passionate about leveraging the gold industry and the gold value chain in Ghana, in support of the national economy.

“The idea is that, this visit is productive and substantive and that it gives us the opportunity to delve into the concrete issues with concrete outcomes”, he said.

The sector Minister thanked the team for their hospitality during his last visit to their Refinery in South Africa, indicating that the tour of their refinery was very enlightening and educative. He hoped that at the end of all meetings and discussions the Ministry would be able to acquire sufficient mentorship from Rand Refinery.

“We should be able to find a workable platform to engage, because as I believe all of us acknowledge that your refinery turns to be the leader when it comes to the business of Gold Refinery in Africa and therefore whatever we seek to do here in Ghana, our idea is to get sufficient mentorship from your outfit.”

The sector Minister said as much as possible it is his desire that Rand Refinery will be able to establish a branch in Ghana perhaps through a partnership with an existing Refinery.

The CEO of Rand Refinery, Mr. Praveen Baijnath on his part said they are excited and very expectant about the opportunity to partner Ghana on the event of establishing a Refinery in the country.

He alluded that their general objective on this trip is to meet all stakeholders involved in the gold value chain to better understand government expectations and to consider how best they can unlock their assets available to meet up on that level.

“Our general strategic objective is to collect much intelligence and data as possible to build a business case and see how we can develop it”.

Also with the Minister were the Deputy Minister in Charge of Mines, George Mireku Duker, the CEO of Minerals Commission, Mr. Martin Ayisi, the Advisor on Mines to the Minister, Mr. Ben Aryee, the Managing Director of PMMC, Nana AKwasi Awuah and other officials from the Ministry.

NDC PC for Essikado: My Lord, I’m no more interested in the case

By
KWESI ALFRED ADAMS
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Court

A SEKONDI High Court, presided over by Justice Richmond Osei Hwere, has struck out an election petition brought by National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for Essikado-Ketan, Dr Grace Ayensu Danquah, against her New Patriotic Party (NPP) opponent, Mr Joe Ghartey and the Electoral Commission. The decision was based on application for discontinuance of the case filed by the plaintiff on October 14, 2022.

The court had scheduled October 31, 2022 for Case Management Conference (CMC) after the same court in its last adjournment had ordered the 1st respondent to file his Witness Statement (WS).

The judge also ordered that the proceedings of the court be served on the 1st respondent to guide him file his witness statement. This was after the 1st respondent and his counsel failed to appear before the Court.

However, when the case was called for the CMC as scheduled for the day, Counsel for the petitioner, David Ametekpe moved the notice for discontinuance of the case.

Counsel Ametekpe told the court he has been instructed by his client to file notice of discontinuance and that, the parties in the petition have both been served.

The reason for the action, he told the court, had been stated in his notice before the Judge.

However, he opined that discontinuing the matter did not mean they did not have evidence to support their petition, but his client believes time was far spent in determining the mater.

Emmanuel Tsibuah, who held brief for Frank Davies, as counsel for the 1st respondent, did not file any paper on notice to either object to the discontinuance.

 

However, he told the court that in as much as he was happy the petitioner had filed notice of discontinuance, he was not entirely happy, considering where the case had reached. He said though they were not opposed to the notice, he wanted to bring two things to the attention of the court.

First, being the fact that paragraph 5 of the petitioner’s suit alleged that 1st respondent had not complied with pre-trial terms.

This, Tsibuah explained to the court that his client was not bound to file witness statement (WS) because they had the right not to testify at all and this was what they were going to tell the court for the matter to be determined on the strength of the petitioners processes filed.

The second issue, he raised, had to do with cost. He told the court that considering the expenses his client had incurred in hiring the best of lawyers to handle the petition, surely his client had incurred cost. For this reason, he prayed the court to award a GH¢50,000 cost against the petitioner.

OBJECTION

But counsel for the petitioner objected to the cost as argued by the 1st respondent counsel. According to him, though issue of cost was at the discretion of the presiding Judge, the Judge should consider certain cost incurred by the petitioner in the suit.

For instance, he mentioned how the petitioner had to raise a security of GH¢20,000.00 and same file to pay for the appeal processes filed by the 1st respondent in the earlier objection to their petition.

BY COURT

In awarding a cost, Justice Osei Hwere said the petition was a Public Interest Matter (PIM) and that cost should follow the event and consequently arrived at a GH¢20,000.00 cost against the petitioner, in favour of both 1st and 2nd respondents.

RELIEFS

The petitioner had filed the petition seeking annulment of certain results and re-run of some polling centres on grounds that there were several infractions on the day of the parliamentary election and collation of the results.

She also alleged that subsequent to the collation of the results, the 2nd respondent in connivance with the 1st respondent had created the impression that the day scheduled for the collation of the results was not conducive and made the petitioner’s representative to leave, only to collate and declare the results in the absence of her representatives.

PRELIMINARY OBJECTION

When the petition was filed, 1st respondent raised preliminary objection against it on the grounds that it did not comply with the orders governing election petition and invited the sitting Judge to strike out the case.  After arguments and counter arguments, Justice Richmond Osei Hwere overruled the applicant respondent’s objection.

APPEAL COURT

Unsatisfied, 1st respondent filed an interlocutory appeal at the Court of Appeal in Cape Coast.

As the appeal was pending, the High Court ordered 1st respondent to file his Witness Statement in the petition and scheduled October 31 for the CMC, only for the petitioner to file notice of discontinuance.

Remain resolute, loyal to NPP – Farouk Aliu Mahama urges TESCON Members

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Mr Farouk Mahama addressing the students

Alhaji Farouk Aliu Mahama, New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Yendi has stressed the need for the Tertiary Students Confederacy (TESCON), of the party to remain determined and resolute in working for the interest of the party.

He also implored them to at all times stick to the founding principles of TESCON, which has become the intellectual organ and the number one breeding grounds for future leaders of the party and the nation at large.

Alhaji Farouk Aliu Mahama made the emphasis when he addressed members of Greater Accra Regional TESCON Boot Camp at the University of Ghana Business School in Accra. He reminded them of the fact that young people represent the life and soul of the NPP’s political tradition, and urged them to remain very instrumental in promoting the ideas and ideals of the party tradition, which his late father lived and died for.

Alhaji Farouk Aliu Mahama, who is also the Board Chairman of the Ghana Integrated Iron and Steel Development Corporation (GIISDEC) used the opportunity to task the TESCON membership to sell the good works of the NPP government, which has demonstrated a strong commitment to tackling the very challenges confronting the nation’s youth through various interventions and policy frameworks.

He said: “As youth of the NPP, we may have more tougher responsibilities but breaking the eight (8) is a MUST DO for us. We must convince Ghanaians that changing a productive regime merely because they have lasted for eight years is not healthy for a country that seeks progress.

“We must prove beyond any reasonable doubt to Ghanaians why the party must not go after its two-term regime cycle. Beyond singing the chorus of ‘Breaking the Eight’, we must critically engage our minds forthwith”.

The Yendi legislator also made a donation of Gh₡10,000 to support the programmes and activities of the Greater Accra TESCON and pledged to support the National TESCON when the need arises.

Mrs Francisca Oteng, a Deputy Minister Designate for the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection advised members of the confederacy to remain loyal and continue to work hard for the party’s success in the 2024 election to break the eight.

Mr Sammy Awuku, the Director-General of the National Lottery Authority eulogised the late Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama and made comments about his good works and how that has transformed to his son, Alhaji Farouk Aliu Mahama, which made him MP for Yendi.

He charged TESCON Members to be good ambassadors of the party by propagating the good work of the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo led administration and also defend the NPP whenever a lie is told against the party.

Minority vows to block EC on use of Ghana Card for voter registration

By
AGNES ANSAH
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Minority Leader, Mr Haruna Iddrisu

The Minority in Parliament has vowed to prevent the House from taking action on the Public Elections (Registration of Voters) Instrument (C.I) proposed by the Electoral Commission.

The C.I. when laid and passed will recognise the Ghana Card as the sole identification card for demonstrating one’s eligibility for purposes of voter registration.

The Minority Caucus, in a petition presented to the House yesterday, which was advertised on the Order Paper but later stood down, said that the C.I. should not be laid until the backlog of Ghana cards have been cleared.

The National Identification Authority reports it has some 1.3 million outstanding cards to be collected.

The minority also said any further action on the proposed C.I. by or in Parliament should be frozen until consultations have been initiated and concluded with major stakeholders, especially the political parties, including the National Democratic Congress and civil society groups.

Explaining why they are taking such an action, Minority Leader, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, who spoke to the Parliamentary Press Corps said the use of the Ghana card as the sole identification card for voter registration will deny people their rights, which have been enshrined in Article 42 of the 1992 constitution.

Article 42 states that: “Every citizen of Ghana of eighteen years of age or above and of sound mind has the right to vote and is entitled to be registered as a voter for the purposes of public elections and referenda.”

He said the Caucus has a duty to preserve Ghana’s democracy, protect and ensure the fundamental rights and privileges of citizens enshrined in Article 42.

Mr Iddrisu also questioned why the EC is not undertaking any exercise to expand the register but rather seeking to rely on data from the NIA.

According to Mr Iddrisu, Article 45(e) of the 1992 constitution mandates the EC to undertake an exercise that will expand the register.

“The Electoral Commission shall undertake programmes for the expansion of the registration of voters,” Article 45(e) states.

Mr Iddrisu noted yesterday that the caucus is convinced that the discrepancies in data, between the National Identification Authority and the Electoral Commission may affect the people’s fundamental rights to vote.

He said the caucus will ensure that the EC complies with provisions of article 45(e).

“So that’s the essence of the motion we will seek to move, to enforce the respect for Article 45(e) of the constitution,” Mr Iddrisu said.

Explaining why the petition was stood down, Mr Iddrisu said it was to enable him have further consultation with the Speaker and leadership of the House.

Yesterday, the Leader also shared his views on the President’s Address to the Nation on Sunday, especially on the issue of haircut.

According to Mr Iddrisu, indicated that there will be a haircut for as long as the government wants to restructure its debt sustainability.

Editorial: DR Congo’s allegation against Rwandan must be probed by AU

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THE CHRONICLE
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Editorial

Some of the major problems thwarting the development of sub-Saharan Africa are wars and conflicts. Though the region has severed political ties with her former colonial rulers decades ago after bitter independence struggles, peace is still eluding it.

The Chronicle admits that the development can sometimes be attributed to thousands of languages spoken across the continent, thus making it difficult to run proper Federal or Unitary system of government. We nevertheless think some of the problems too are attributable to sheer greed of the leaders.

As we put this piece together, there is no peace in northern Nigeria because of a rebel group, calling itself Boko Haram, which has taken up arms and killing innocent civilians in the name of religion.

The same thing is happening in Somalia, which can best be described as a failed state. As if this is not enough, there is a serious conflict currently going on in Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan, Chad, Mali and Burkina Faso just to mention a few.

And just as Africa Union (AU) is trying to find ways and means to solve these intractable disputes, The DR Congo has also started accusing Rwanda of financing  the ethnic conflict going in the country.

The President of DR Congo, Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo, took advantage of Ghana’s current membership of the United Nations Security Council to lodge a formal complaint to his Ghanaian counterpart about the conduct of Rwanda.

In his meeting with President Akufo-Addo, Mr Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo alleged that Rwanda was financing rebel activities in his country and pleaded with Ghana to report the Central African country to the Security Council.

Though the meeting with Akufo-Addo was not the first time DR Congo was making the accusation, Rwanda is yet to officially deny or confirm it.

But on Sunday October 31, 2022 Aljazeera, which has revolutionised international broadcast in our modern world, reported that thousands have protested in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) city of Goma, denouncing Rwanda’s alleged support of M23 rebels, as Kinshasa recalled its interim acting ambassador from Kigali in a further souring of relations.

The protests on Monday come as M23 have tightened their grip on the surrounding countryside. “We denounce the hypocrisy of the international community in the face of Rwanda’s aggression,” Mambo Kawaya, a civil society representative attending the demonstration, told AFP news agency.

A mostly Congolese Tutsi group, the M23 resumed fighting in late 2021 after lying dormant for years, accusing the Congolese government of failing to honour an agreement to integrate its fighters into the army.

The group’s resurgence has destabilised regional relations in central Africa, with the DRC accusing its smaller neighbor, Rwanda, of backing the rebel group, the media conglomerate reported.

It is instructive to note that Rwanda herself fought an ethnically induced civil war in the early 1990s, which resulted in the slaughter of thousands of innocent civilians. It is, therefore, mind boggling that a country that has come out of such a situation will allegedly be funding similar conflict in a neighbouring country.

The Chronicle is, therefore, calling on the UN Security Council to conduct thorough investigations into the claim being made by DR Condo against Rwanda.

The AU should also summon the Rwandan president, Paul Kagame, to defend himself and his country about the allegation being made against them. Africa is the richest continent in the world, but as we stated earlier, because of wars and senseless conflicts, we are lagging behind when it comes to development.  Some of the leaders are using powers they have grabbed for their personal aggrandisement.

If USA and Europe, where Africans are aspiring to visit or stay had also adopted the same strategy – financing conflict – they wouldn’t have reached the stage where they are today. In our view, it is time Africa to put an end to such useless conflicts by ensuring good governance and proper integration of all the ethnic groups.

Any president on the continent promoting conflict must be dealt with according to the AU chatter. Time to stop the wars and conflicts is now!

Akropong Class of ‘68 organize Maths & English Competition for Junior High Schools

By
ISAAC AKWETEY-OKUNOR
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Class of 68 in a group picture after the ceremony

In their quest to give back to the society, the Class of ‘68 year group of Akropong Salem has decided to institute a Maths and English competition among Junior High Schools (JHS) within Akropong, the capital of Akuapem North Municipality.

The brilliant initiative, dubbed “The Class of ‘68 English and Maths Contest, covers Maths and English Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) syllabus for JHS, with the aim to develop positive attitudes towards analytical thinking and mathematics.

According to the Class of ‘68 year group, the contest would contribute to building interest and confidence in Mathematics and English among JHS students and teachers in Akropong, and by extension the entire municipality.

Throwing light on why they decided to choose English and Maths, the chairman for the Class of ‘68 group hinted that recent national students test scores showed a decline in reading and arithmetic.

According to him, the average JHS student does not know how to calculate, read critically, write expressively or debate intelligently, attributing the situation to increasing deterioration of classroom instruction.

He continued that, even though there is a school of thought that examination is not the surest way to test the ability of students, the class of ‘68 group hold the view that examination is the most important, since life itself is a form of examination.

This, therefore, formed the basis to put together the Maths and English contest to examine the ability of the students with corresponding awards and prizes to deserving students and schools.

In all, 28 students, out of seven (7) schools, participated in the second edition of the class of ‘68 Maths and English competition, with three students from Presbyterian College of Education Demonstration JHS winning all three prizes.

The students are;Wiafe Nana Darfour Edmund who came first, whilst Ernest Kwasi Asuming Ahwa and Israel Akorante Arthur took the second and third positions respectively.They were given cash prizes and certificates for participation

Speaking after the quiz competition, some students of the PCG Demonstration Junior High School said they have benefitted from the quiz, including giving them more insight and motivation to study hard to achieve higher academic excellence.

The Special Guest of Honour for the ceremony, Evangelist Dr. Aboah Offei, bemoaned the bad attitude among the youth, compared to the early generation, adding that the youth don’t take advice from the elderly people, which is of serious concern to teachers and parents.

He added that the youth do not submit to cultural instructions as a result of social media influence, a situation he said has led to moral decay and unacceptable social behavior.

Evangelist Dr. Aboah Offei charged the youths to take lessons from their culture and apply it in their education.

“But these days, people think going to school is to learn how to speak English, learn how to be smart and take advantage of social media, and that is all, which I totally disagree with,’’ he said.

Suggesting solutions to tackle the bad behavior among the youth in the country, Mr. Offei called on parents to live up to expectation, adding that good parental care is a shared responsibility among teachers and parents.

He stated that the government needs to come out with good policies to help the youth in their education and urged the youth to take advantage of the free senior high school initiative by enrolling into various programs in the secondary level.

Newmont Africa Provides Skills Advancement For Dressmakers In Birim North  

By
ISAAC AKWETEY-OKUNOR
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Group picture of the fortunate women for the 6 months training

Twenty five Seamstresses drawn from 10 communities in the Birim North District of the Eastern Region have benefited from a six month free training, under the Women Economic Resilience Programme (WERP), being implemented by Pyxera Global, with funding from Newmont Ghana.

The six-month training program aims at upgrading the sewing skills of the 25 women beneficiaries, in order to sew items for Newmont Ghana, the Security services and other sub-contractors, will take place at Adausena in the Birim North District of the Eastern Region, at the newly refurbished training centre.

Beneficiary host communities, within which the 25 women were drawn include;Hweakwae, Adausena, Ajenua, Old Town, Mamanso, New Abirem, Ntronang, Yayaaso and Old Tano.

The Women Economic Resilience Programme (WERP) is an integrated business and community support initiative that seeks to empower and sustain women-owned micro, small, medium and informal dressmaking businesses through technical and business management training,within Newmont Ghana’s host communities.

The WERP is expected to ultimately create about 300 jobs for women and young dressmakers in Newmont’s catchment areas, including Ahafo North, Ahafo South and Akyem areas.

The WERP is an integrated business and community support initiative implemented by PYXERA Global and funded by Newmont Corporation.

The program aims to empower and sustain women-owned micro, small, medium and informal dressmaking businesses through technical and business management training in the Akyem district of Ghana.

The event will highlight WERP’s goals and objectives, key partners, target groups, as well as outline its program activities. There will also be the official commissioning of the Sewing Centre and outdooring of beneficiaries.

Speaking at the official launch of WERP at the Adausena Social Centre on Friday, Mr. Derek Boateng, Senior Manager in charge of Sustainability and External Relations at Newmont Ghana indicated that, the socio-economic empowerment of their host communities is integral to the operations and sustainability of their mines.

He said at Newmont, they believed that for women to succeed and advance economically, they require skills and resources to compete, as well as fair and equal access to economic institutions, hence their involvement in the programme.

To Mr. Derek Boateng, the company would continue to play an important role in catalysing the economic development and social well-being of host governments and communities through job creation, local sourcing, community investments and paying taxes and royalties.

“This is why we value investment in women and youth within our host communities. By doing so, we are able to build resilient communities with good social capital beyond the life of mine and in the face of global pandemics such as COVID-19” he stressed.

According to him, women all over the world, particularly in resource rich communities, should be given the requisite tools to increase their access to wealth creation and decent employment, in order for them to thrive and promote their socio-economic wellbeing.

He said at Newmont, they believe that inclusive growth is the way to go. This is one of the many reasons why they have partnered with Pyxera Global to implement this significant programme, as Newmont continues to contribute to equitable and economic empowerment for women and youth in their host communities.

“WERP will support women in our host communities to enhance their skills in casual, industrial and domestic garment making. This, we believe, will boost their financial wellbeing and provide them with the needed business and technical knowhow, to make them competitive in the garments value chain.”

Mr. Boateng continued that providing jobs especially for women in their local communities can stimulate the local economy in the Birim North District and by extension, the Eastern Region to achieve sustainable development.

He said, in May, this year, they launched and implemented a similar programme in our Ahafo North host communities with their partners Pyxera Global and others where thirty women were beneficiaries.

He added that the short-term impact of the programme has resulted in their being here today to witness another launch for twenty-five women in their ten host communities.

“As you can see, we have set up this centre and equipped it with industrial sewing and knitting machines to support the training needs and logistics of the beneficiaries. It is our hope that they will make the most of this investment so we can all benefit from its multiplier effect.

“Would it not be such an exceptional feat if we can nurture global fashion brands of the likes of Joyce Ababio, PISTIS and Kweku Bediako, coming out of small towns in the Birim North District? This is a great opportunity to make a meaningful impact across our host communities.”

He, therefore, charged the twenty-five beneficiaries to make optimum use of this 6-month opportunity, adding that “you were selected out of the many who could have qualified. Do not let anything hold you back.

“Eschew negative attitudes that will hinder your success and the future of this programme, as its progress depends on each one of you. We all know that partners may not be encouraged to reinvest in this programme to the benefit of others if your commitment to its success is poor.”

On his part, Mr. Kofi Koomson, Programme Director of Pyxera Global, indicated that“under the WERP, participating dressmakers within selected communities in the district will receive training and business advisory support to enable them to improve their technical and operational capacities, broaden their customer base and enter new markets.”

He advised young women to equip themselves with all the skills and knowledge required to become economically independent and also to be able to impact the younger generation and step into the world of economic freedom, break the gender-bias barriers by taking advantage of opportunities available to them.

The beneficiaries thanked the organisers of the programme and hoped that it would help enhance their capabilities.

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