Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta says his players are “hungry” for more after they maintained their position at the Premier League summit by overpowering north London rivals Tottenham in an outstanding display at Emirates Stadium.
His side were superior throughout and Spurs’ cause was not helped by Emerson Royal’s red card for a second-half foul on Gabriel Martinelli.
Arsenal made a fast start and took a deserved lead when Thomas Partey side-footed a precise finish into the top corner from 25 yards after 20 minutes.
Spurs were handed a lifeline before the break when Gabriel’s foul on Richarlison gave Harry Kane the opportunity to score his 14th goal in 18 derby games and his 100th goal away from home in the Premier League from the penalty spot.
Arsenal were gifted the lead once again when Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris fumbled badly to allow Gabriel Jesus to score four minutes after the break.
Conte was attempting to make three changes when Granit Xhaka effectively ended the contest with a low finish past Lloris from inside the area.
Erling Haaland has scored his third home hat-trick in a row
Manchester City’s Erling Haaland became the first player to score three successive Premier League home hat-tricks as Manchester United were humiliated in the derby at Etihad Stadium.
Phil Foden also scored a treble as City closed the gap on pace-setters Arsenal to one point. This was a brutal reality check for United after their recent improvement, as the reigning Premier League champions ran riot to illustrate the gulf in class between the teams.
City’s lightning start was rewarded when Foden swept home Bernardo Silva’s cross after eight minutes before Haaland inevitably joined the action with a header from a corner 11 minutes before half-time.
As United subsided, Haaland slid in a third then turned provider to set up a simple finish for Foden before the break.
United’s new signing Antony struck a superb goal from 25 yards to pull one back but it only provoked City to up the tempo again, Haaland thumping home his third and then again setting up Foden for City’s sixth.
Anthony Martial’s late goal for United was greeted in near silence, as was his added-time penalty.
The government has assured Ghanaians that the financial sector of the country will be protected in the negotiation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for economic support.
According to the Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta the country needs a viable domestic financial system to support its development programme, and will do everything possible to protect the sector.
“Therefore, everything must and will be done to protect our financial sector and there must be room for a win-win conversation through extensive stakeholder engagement, with both our domestic and external investors,” Ken Ofori-Atta stated, whilst addressing a news conference in Accra yesterday.
This assurance has allayed public fears that the IMF programme being negotiated by the government will cripple the financial sector, especially the banks.
According to Mr. Ofori-Atta, a five-member Committee, consisting of prominent financial service professionals will lead to extensive stakeholder engagements across all the key segments of the financial sector.
These engagements will add to ongoing activities with Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), social partners (labour unions, employers and FBOs), academia, industry professionals and the leadership of Parliament, with the minister assuring that “government shall continue to actively engage all stakeholders in a clear and transparent manner, as we seek to fast-track the IMF negotiation process.”
IMF PROGRAMME IN BUDGET
The media were informed that the government and the IMF on Monday, September 26, 2022, began formal negotiations for a Fund-supported programme and that discussions will cover a period of 10 days.
The Finance Minister said the negotiations with IMF, which started on Monday, this week, will be fast-tracked to ensure that key aspects of the programme are reflected in the 2023 Annual Budget Statement.
“Government is committed to ensuring that a comprehensive package is negotiated with the aim of restoring and sustaining macroeconomic stability, ensuring durable and inclusive growth, and promoting social protection,” he remarked.
7-PILLAR PROGRAMME
The reporters were told that the IMF programme hinged on seven pillars – debt sustainability; fiscal consolidation; strengthening monetary and exchange rate policies; and building strong financial institutions.
The rest are Macro-Critical Structural Reforms; Maintaining Peace and Security; and Economic Growth and Transformation.
Meanwhile, the government said it has not reached any agreement with the Fund on the parameters of any debt operations, “as we are in the process of completing the debt sustainability analysis.”
Read the Finance Minister’s full statement on pages 8 and 9.
The Vice President, Dr Mahamadu Bawumia, has indicated that though Ghana wants to contribute to reducing emissions, fossil fuel will be part of the country’s energy mix in the short term, while steps are put in place to rope in renewable energy in the long term.
According to the Vice President, government is indeed committed to achieving the net zero carbon emissions by 2070, but steps must be taken to accelerate the production and utilisation of Ghana’s oil and gas reserves, hence the decision to use fossil in the short time.
“…What this means is that even though we want to contribute to reducing emissions, we are of the view that a balance must be struck and maintained in the context of our social, economic and environmental requirements.
“So fossil fuels, particularly natural gas, will continue to be part of Ghana’s energy mix in the short term, whilst strategies will be put in place to increase the share of renewable energy in the mix, from medium to long term,” the Vice President said.
Mr Bawumia was speaking at the 5th edition of the Ghana International Petroleum Conference (GhIPCon), held under the theme: “Energy Transition in the African Petroleum Downstream Context: Prospects, Challenges and the Way Forward.”
Petroleum downstream industry players at the conference
The program, which commenced yesterday and will end on Friday, September 30, 2022 has the overall objective of focusing on the readiness of Africa’s petroleum downstream on transitioning.
Ghana is set to transition from the use of fossil fuel to renewable energy by 2070.
Government has in response to this target set up the National Energy Transition Committee (NETC), which aim is to develop a national energy transition policy.
The NETC is expected to set up national objectives and targets for the energy transition and prescribe policies and measures for achieving these targets.
It will, in addition, assess the benefits, risks and costs of the global energy transition and determine risks mitigation measures, along with cross-cutting issues that must be addressed.
Despite these measures by government, the Vice President explained at yesterday’s conference that in the quest to transition, a balance must be stuck and maintained in the context of Ghana’s social, economic and environmental requirements.
“…We ought to be forward thinking in a rapidly changing world, not only in terms of energy transition, but in terms of all aspects of the energy-mix”, he said and questioned how industry players intend to insulate the energy sector from global economic shocks, especially, considering how the Russia-Ukraine war has affected the energy sector in the last few months.
He, therefore, called on industry players at the conference to use the opportunity to deliberate on how governments in the West Africa region can fully participate in the energy transition process, while remaining faithful to the needs and aspirations of their citizens.
He appealed to the NPA to ensure that it implements the recommendations that will be reached and not leave it on the shelves to gather dust.
The Chief Executive of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Mr Mustapha Hamid, on his part said that the Authority is committed to reducing the emissions from the energy products. This has culminated in the reduction of sulphur content in transport and industrial fuels from a maximum of 5000ppm to a maximum of 50ppm, as well as the implementation of the Cylinder Recirculation Model policy.
He, however, admitted that there will be pressure on government’s spending in the country’s quest to transition from fossil to renewable energy because government would still have to ensure that the diversification process meets global needs. He, therefore, called on all industry players to intensify their efforts in the transitioning process.
“The reality of fulfilling the energy transition commitment is that there will be further pressure on government spending to ensure that our diversification process meets global needs. It is, therefore, imperative that we intensify our efforts,” the NPA boss said.
The Minister for Energy, Mr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, who had a speech read on his behalf also said that Ghana remains committed both to an energy transition agenda and the development of its petroleum industry including the downstream sector and believes that the way forward is “to strike an important and fair balance between the two, without compromising our determination to maximize the benefits we need for our industrialization.”
Other industry players who spoke at the event were the Chief Executive, Africa Refiners & Distributors Association (ADRA), Mr Anibor Kragha, CEO, Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD) and others.
The retired judges in group photograph with the Chief Justice
The Association of Magistrates and Judges of Ghana (AMJG) has bid two justices of the Supreme Court – Agnes Dordzie and Justice Clemence Honyenuga – and ten others of the lower courts farewell after many years of service.
The Association sent off the retiring members amid cheering, acknowledgements, and presentation of plagues and envelopes at their annual conference held in Accra yesterday, under the theme: “Maintaining the Integrity of the Judiciary amidst the challenges of Democratic rights and Freedom.”
The retirement of the judges was announced by the AMJG President, Justice Henry A. Kwofie, while reading his address to welcome the members to the Conference.
He said the justices of the High Court going on retirement were Irene Charity Larbie and Merley Wood of the Court of Appeal, Fred Awuah, Nathaniel Osam, Rebecca Sittle, and Cecilia Donchebe.
The rest are Robert Agleze, Anthony Abiri Abebrese, Korkor Owusu Achaw and Seth Alafa of the Circuit and the District courts.
Justice Kwofie told the members that the package presented to the retiring judges this year had been increased, and that the decision was also based on the number of years they had severed and contributed to the Association.
According to him, the pervious practice where long serving members were bracketed with those who had served as judges and paid dues only for a short term, were unfair, adding, “We have also increased the amount paid to members in the event of bereavement.”
His Lordship Justice Anin Yeboah also announced to the members that the event was the last he would be attending as the Chief Justice of the Republic of Ghana, and thanked them for their contribution for justice delivery in the country.
He urged the members of the Association to use the occasion as an opportunity to take stock of their performances over the year, and identify where they fell short and strategise to secure the future and perform better.
Infrastructure development
Although Justice Kwofie was thankful for the infrastructural development being undertaken by the government, the he decried the deplorable state of the Cape Coast Court Complex, which urgently needed fixing, as well as the Wa Court Complex, which had also been abandoned.
Being particular about the Cape Coast Court Complex, he said: “I had the opportunity to visit one of my colleagues who works in the building this year in June, when it happened to be raining and although I am aware the court was in [a] deplorable state, I was shocked by what I saw; bowls and pans in various corners where the water was dripping to the judge’s office and [the] court room.
“It was definitely unacceptable, and no matter how determined you are to work [in] such an environment, [it] is not conducive to hard work. Something seriously needs to be done urgently about the Cape Coast Court Complex,” he lamented.
He noted that building more across the country requires an increase in the budget of the Judiciary to enable it purchase the materials the Association members needed to discharge their duties.
The Chief Justice gave an assurance that the government had not turned a blind eye on the deplorable conditions of the Cape Coast Court Complex and others that needed renovation, and that something was being done about them.
“We know that the working conditions of some of you, especially in the semi-urban areas are disappointing. We are working to improve the situation. We are investing more resources and refurbishing more court infrastructure including accommodation while we construct new ones,” he assured.
He added that the Service was making efforts to improve the application of technology to the work in the court rooms, and that they were equally working to acquire funding the World Bank for the expansion of the E-Justice system.
The Media General, TV3 Network Limited and their Morning Show icon, Johnny Hughes, might be paying the Comptroller-General of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), Kwame Asuah Takyi, GH¢20 million in the event they are found guilty in a law suit brought against them by the latter.
In the writ of summons filed on September 27, this year, at the Accra High Court by the Comptroller-General, Mr. Takyi, is seeking, among other things, GH¢20 million damages from the defendants, due to defamatory statements made against him.
He averred that Johnny Hughes, who is an employee, servant and/or agent of Media General and TV3, between August 24 and September 23, 2022, on a Morning Show segment called “Johnnies’ Bite,” made certain defamatory statements to the effect that the Comptroller-General was allegedly engaging in corrupt practices, as well as abusing his office.
Some of the supposed utterances captured in the writ include the Comptroller-General was indulging in visa and permit malpractices, for which he was once punished. For which, the Comptroller-General was interdicted from 2013 to 2017.
According to the writ, Mr. Hughes also accused the plaintiff of painting the Service with political colours, and as such, Mr. Takyi recruits political immigration officers, protocol immigration officer, leaving out proper immigration officers.
It further quoted the third defendant of saying that there were some senior officers at the top who were benefitting, perhaps, from the rot in the Service, and such persons did not want somebody to go, because once that was done, their cover would be blown.
Following the aforementioned statement, the writ alleged that the 3rd defendant made an emphatic statement that “… the corruption must stop; Takyi must go.”
It continued: “… are you still aware that those receipt issuing syndicate, the corruption, the money under the table like Nana Addo spoke about, which is why you have centralised all permits renewal for foreigners at Assistant Commissioner of Immigration for six years, and has not been promoted, meanwhile, there is four year convention or rule if you ask any uniformed person they may tell you, unless, of course, there are certain circumstances…?
Johnny was said to have accused the plaintiff of failing to attend the funeral rites of DCOI Peter Claver Nantuo, the GIS Volta Regional Commander, whom he claimed was known to be the Comptroller-General’s enemy, and as a result, he replaced the deceased while battling for his life at the Ridge Hospital.
Johnny is alleged to have further accused the Comptroller-General of supervising an Immigration Service, now known to be the second most corrupt institutions in the country.
To add insult to injuries, the plaintiff said the 3rd defendant said: “…in a regimented space there is order, there’s discipline. Is that the kind of discipline you teach your officer? To molest people who are going about their normal duties. Did you molest Aisha Huang? When you were busy giving her whatever it is on Sunday.”
Additionally, it said on the Johnnies’ Bite show, the plaintiff was accused of promoting persons within his secretariat over and above their seniors, and to the extent that he promoted a family member twice in a day.
In the suit, Johnny is reported to have said if Mr. Takyi dared him, he would be compelled to open more cans of worms to prove that the Comptroller-General was corrupt, used his position to settle personal scores with his officers; used the GIS to make money for himself, and had a questionable character.
The law suit, which may serve as a fine opportunity for the television icon and his employers to prove their case, is seeking an order directed at the defendants to retract and expunge or remove from their website any records and archives related to all the defamatory publications and statements related to the plaintiff.
It also wants an order directed at the defendants to remove or pull down from all search engines or links from which the alleged defamatory publications and statements regarding the plaintiff were accessible.
It also wants an order to be directed at the defendants to retract defamatory statements and render an apology to the plaintiff, while an injunction should be placed on the defendants from making or publishing similar defamatory statements about the plaintiff.
The plaintiff averred that the statements made by the 3rd defendant on the Media General and TV3 platform were false and a calculated attempt to disparage him and lower his hard earned reputation in the eyes of right-thinking members of the society.
The defendants have been given eight days after service of the summons to enter appearance.
After missing out on the last edition of the FIFA World Cup in Russia four years ago, the rest of the world, and the Continent of Africa in particular, would be expecting the Black Stars to make a strong impact as they go to Qatar for the Mundial in November.
This is highly obvious in the face of the footprints and enviable feat the Stars have achieved in their last three appearances from 2006, which marked their maiden appearance, through 2010 to 2014.
During the maiden appearance in Germany, the four times AFCON champions were drawn in a group of death, made up of Italy, USA and the Czech Republic.
The Azuries disciplined the debutants with a painful defeat, but the Stars made amends and proved their mettle by beating both USA and the Czech to progress to the next stage of the competition.
Their impressive achievements in the tournament put a spotlight on the Stars, and raised high the flag of Ghana around the world.
Appearing for a second time four years later in South Africa, the Black Stars made a greater impact with a flamboyant display that nearly propelled them to the semi-finals of the World Cup.
Having gained much experience from their previous two appearances, hopes were high for the third consecutive appearance in Brazil. However, the Stars could not secure a single win in a group made up of USA, Portugal and Germany.
Some bizarre and off the pitch circumstances characterised their campaign. Though Ghana managed a respectable 2-2 score line against the mechanical Germans, who eventually won the cup, the off the field distractions led to the Stars bowing out in a shambolic manner.
All these antecedents are illustrations that the Black Stars of Ghana have not been mere participants in the previous world cup appearances, but they have always been a real force to reckon with.
The Stars failed to qualify for the last edition of the world cup in Russia. Perhaps, diminishing returns has set in and this was to be expected, as most of the experienced players were fading out for others to take over.
Following that disastrous qualifying campaign, adequate preparations were made and the Stars qualified at the expense of old foes, the Super Eagles of Nigeria. The zeal with which the players sacrificed their all and played their hearts out to beat Nigeria to qualify did not just endear them to the hearts of Ghanaians, but it also brought back the love for the gallant Black Stars.
Like several thousands of disappointed Ghanaians who watched the Stars in the last two international friendlies against Brazil and Nicaragua, The Chronicle is equally concerned with their inconsistent performance.
In the first pre-World cup trial match against Brazil, the Stars appeared absolutely disorganised and could not play to any rhythm, suffering a 3-0 defeat.
The Chronicle is very much alarmed not just because Ghana has lost to Brazil but due to the fact that the Stars could not play as a team that is going to the world Cup in a few months from now.
In our honest view, the team lacked direction and clear cut formation, as we looked so miserable in all departments of the game.
As a practice match, one could say the defeat afforded the technical handlers the opportunity to fine-tune by plugging all the loopholes exposed by Brazil.
The focus shifted to our second trial game against Nicaragua, a weaker side ranked 139th by FIFA, where the Stars were expected to redeem their image.
Rather, the game exposed the Stars the more, as a dogged display by the opponent proved how vulnerable our team is, ahead of the world cup.
The poor performance put up by the Stars has set the pace for questions to be asked about the technical competency of head coach Otto Addo, who prior to picking up the Black Stars job, had no experience in coaching a national team.
However, there is the final opportunity for coach Otto Addo to fine-tune his team with a final friendly against high-flying Switzerland next month.
In our sincerest opinion, the performance of the Stars in the last two friendlies was not satisfactory, as the team prepares for the final showdown in Qatar, in Group H made up of Portugal, Uruguay and South Korea.
If Otto Addo does not pull his weight, the FA must not hesitate to hand Chris Huston the opportunity to lead us to Qatar.
Football is indeed the opium of the Ghanaian masses and, therefore, the Mundial cannot be the grounds for any “ma try ma kwe”, (to wit ‘I will try and see’).
Lottery over the years has contributed to national growth and development. Established in 1962 as the Department of National Lotteries, Ghana’s first present invited a young man Mr. Brennan from Malta to help setup up the DNL and now operates as the National Lottery Authority (NLA) after Act 722 was enacted in 2006.
NLA remains the leader in the lottery business in the sense that it has the legal mandate to regulate the industry and also operate lottery the country.
In addition to this autonomous role, the main objective of NLA is to raise revenue to run it’s affairs, and to pay whatever is left to government to support developmental needs or projects in the country. Against this background, NLA undoubtedly is a national asset, but this feat did not come with ease.
The NLA brand was built with solid integrity as its core value while other values such as respect, excellence, accountability, leadership, and teamwork equally complemented the success story.
The NLA has its spread across the sixteen regions in Ghana, and continues to expand its tentacles to every nook and cranny. The expansion project is duly on course under the current leadership of Mr. Samuel Awuku, Director General of the authority.
Some successes and gains have made by NLA particularly under the current administration headed by Mr. Awuku.
To mention but a few include unity among staff, payment of huge backlog of unpaid wins, discipline and punctuality at work, introduction of new games, fight against illegal lotto operators, among others, as part of the social responsibility.
The Good Causes Foundation has been established with the mandate to carry out or reach out to the needy and the destitute in the society.
It basically operates in four areas namely, education, health, sports, and culture. In the past, what existed was commonly referred to as Special Projects.
The NLA boss believes that the authority through the foundation wants to give back to society by offering assistance to the vulnerable, people with disability, and the poor in the country.
Under Mr. Awuku, NLA has been readmitted into African Lottery Association and World Lottery Association, where the authority is expected to restore to its former status as a respected body in the global lottery business.
Challenges
As with all public organisations, the NLA as a state parastatal faces some challenges, but which are surmountable, the Director- General admits. Foremost challenge is the illegal lotto operators.
The operation of these people is giving the NLA boss a sleepless night as their continued activities affect the revenue generation of the authority.
They do not pay licence to operate, and take some part of the market of the lotto business. Another problem is the lotto fraudsters, who use the name of NLA to swindle innocent people and lovers of the game. The authority loses revenue and at the same time creates bad image for it’s brand.
Link to this is social media scammers. They use Facebook and WhatsApp to trap unsuspecting individuals to promise them winning numbers, which they claim emanate from the strong room of NLA. No such room exists though.
Anniversary Launch
On Thursday, September 29, 2022, the NLA will officially launch how it intends to celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of its existence as far as lottery business is concerned.
Media people, celebrities, government officials, stakeholders, former director generals, traditional chiefs etc are expected to attend the launch.
Mr. Awuku will use the occasion to announce the programme of activities line up for the celebration from September to December, 2022.
The climax of anniversary is scheduled for December 9, when all director generals of the lottery within the African continent will converge in Accra to support and participate in the anniversary celebration.
The Ghana insurance industry has held its 22nd Annual Conference of the Association of Insurers and Reinsurers of Developing Countries (AIRDC) as part of its goal to expand international collaboration and cooperation in the fields of insurance and reinsurance.
The conference was organised by the National Insurance Commission (NIC), Insurance Brokers Association of Ghana (IBAG), Ghana Insurers Association (GIA), Chartered Insurance Institute of Ghana (CIIG), Chartered Insurance Ladies Association of Ghana, and the National Association of Ghana Insurance Agents (NAGIA).
The conference was held under the theme “Building Resilience in the heat of a Global Economic Tussle” in Accra on Monday.
AIRDC’s main objective is to strengthen the insurance market in developing countries, and to foster inter-regional cooperation within the insurance industry.
Speaking in a keynote address at the Conference, the Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and Sahel (UNOWAS), Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, noted that from his experiences with the United Nations (UN), the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), he had come to appreciate the value of collective action in resolving common challenges.
According to him, the persistent challenges of poverty in parts of the world led to global deliberations, resulting in the adoption of the United Nations Global Compact, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with the noble objective of ensuring development that leaves no one behind.
“Several global macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges, such as rising inflation, ongoing cross-border disruptions in some regions, and continuing COVID-19 concerns, threatened to decrease growth and profitability” he added.
He continued: “The difficulties associated with embargoes on some economies, and the disruptions to supply chains and maritime transport have threatened our efforts to establish a global [a] economy based on the principle of the free flow of goods and services.
“Yet, in my opinion, things would have been much worse if we hadn’t had insurance to play a critical role in promoting disaster resilience, by providing financial protection and preventing negative economic hardships after the disasters.”
The Commissioner of Insurance, Dr. Justice Ofori, in his remarks noted that insurance policy for the uncertain future became more conspicuous to persons and organisations which, hitherto, were averse to insurance.
Dr. Justice Ofori stated that the insurance sector globally had witnessed appreciable growth in the past two years, albeit the many challenges, including high claims payments.
“Ghana’s insurance industry, like the insurance industry worldwide, was challenged by circumstances due to COVID, but we managed to keep our heads above waters. I am sure the same is true for my colleague regulators.”
He reiterated that the insurance business was built on trust and the commitment to fulfill promises, so a suitable dose of prudential supervision was necessary for it to grow and flourish.
Despite the opportunities, he acknowledged that the insurance market in developing countries still faced some notable challenges, key among which were lack of trust in insurance, unhealthy competition, bad corporate governance practices, and fluctuating boardroom ethics.
The suspected illegal consumers arrive at the police station
Inj. David Boadi Asamoah, Ashanti Regional Director ECG
The Ashanti Regional Taskforce of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), in a joint operation last Monday night, arrested about 200 customers, 18 of whom had connected electricity illegally, at Abuakwa and Suame, after they had been disconnected.
The company realised about GH¢90,000 after they were charged GH¢1,000 each for the illegal reconnection, and GH¢600 as penalty.
Madam Grace Garshon, Ashanti Regional Public Relations Manager, explained that the billing and revenue task force of the ASBU embarked on the exercise towards improving revenue mobilisation and reduction of commercial losses.
As part of the terms and reference, the Taskforce would undertake night monitoring to ensure that customers, who do self reconnection after they had been disconnected, were apprehended by the police.
She stated that about 27 recalcitrant customers had been apprehended within a period of two weeks by the police for the offence.
Madam Garshong stressed that the aim of the exercise was to stop the intractable behaviour of some customers, and to also ensure a reliable and sustainable power supply to residents in the Ashanti Region.
