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Australia’s new PM flags ‘difficult’ China ties, as he heads to Tokyo

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Australia PM, Anthony Albanese

Ahead of meeting with Biden, Kishida and Modi in Tokyo, Anthony Albanese warned Australia would always stand up for its values against China Anthony Albanese has flown to Tokyo to take part in the Quad leaders’ meeting, just hours after being sworn in as the new Australian prime minister and warning that relations with China would remain “difficult”.

The Labor party defeated the Coalition government, led by Scott Morrison, on Saturday. It is not yet known whether the Labor party, which Albanese leads, will reach the 76-seat majority needed to govern in its own right.

In his first press conference as prime minister, Albanese said he had received a guarantee of supply from independent and minor party MPs to ensure he can govern no matter the outcome.

Albanese said Australia’s relationship with China, which has soured in recent years, “will remain a difficult one” but signalled his government would take a less aggressive approach to pursuing Australia’s national interest.

Credit: theguardian.com

 

Iraq sandstorm grounds flights, sends 1,000 to hospitals

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Iraq sandstorm grounds flights

Iraq closed public buildings and temporarily shut airports Monday as another sandstorm — the ninth since mid-April — hit the country. More than 1,000 people were hospitalised across the nation with respiratory problems, health ministry spokesman Seif al-Badr told AFP.

Flights were also grounded in neighbouring Kuwait for a second time this month, as the region grapples with the increasingly frequent weather phenomenon.

The Iraqi capital Baghdad was enveloped in a giant dust cloud that left usually traffic-choked streets largely deserted and bathed in an eery orange light, AFP correspondents said.

Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi ordered all work to cease in state-run institutions, except for health and security services, citing “poor climatic conditions and the arrival of violent sandstorms”.

Air traffic was suspended at the international airports in Baghdad, Arbil and Najaf, before flights resumed at Baghdad and Arbil.

Credit: Aljazeera.com

Iran vows revenge after colonel’s assassination

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Family gather around the car where Colonel Sayad Khodai was shot dead

Iran’s president has promised to take revenge after a colonel in the powerful Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) was shot dead in Tehran on Sunday. Two gunmen on a motorbike opened fire at Sayad Khodai as he sat in a car outside his home, state media reported.

Col Khodai was a member of the elite Quds Force, the IRGC’s shadowy overseas operations arm, they said.President Ebrahim Raisi blamed “the hands of global arrogance” – a reference to the US and its allies.

IRGC spokesman Ramazan Sharif said the killing of Col Khodai would strengthen its determination to “defend security, independence and national interests and to confront the enemies of the Iranian nation”

No group or country has claimed it was behind the killing, which was the most high-profile in Iran since the top nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was shot dead in an attack on his convoy outside Tehran in November 2020. Iran blamed that assassination on Israel. Israel neither confirmed nor denied involvement, although the former head of its Mossad intelligence agency said last year that Fakhrizadeh had been a target “for many years”.

Credit: bbc.com

Russian soldier jailed for life over Ukraine war crime

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Vadim Shishimari, 21, watched proceedings silently from a reinforced glass box

A court in Ukraine has jailed a Russian tank commander for life for killing a civilian at the first war crimes trial since the invasion.

Captured soldier Sgt Vadim Shishimarin was convicted of killing Oleksandr Shelipov, 62, in the north-eastern village of Chupakhivka on 28 February.

He admitted shooting Mr Shelipov but said he had been acting on orders and asked forgiveness of the man’s widow.

Many other alleged war crimes are being investigated by Ukraine.

And in a conflict where the deliberate targeting of civilians has become one of the defining features, Monday’s outcome sets a significant legal precedent.

Moscow has always denied its troops have targeted civilians, despite a wealth of evidence to the contrary, while Ukraine says more than 11,000 crimes may have occurred. Ukraine, however, is likely to bring more cases like this to unpick Moscow’s blanket denials.

This sentencing is unlikely to lead to an immediate change in tactics from the invading forces, but it does bring Oleksandr Shelipov’s widow Kateryna Shelipova justice.

Credit: bbc.com

US would defend Taiwan if attacked by China -Biden

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US President Joe Biden

US President Joe Biden says he would use force to defend Taiwan if it was attacked by China, appearing to signal a shift away from Washington’s decades-long policy of so-called strategic ambiguity towards the East Asian democracy.

Biden made the remarks on Monday while visiting Japan, where he is on the second leg of his first trip to East Asia since taking office last year. Responding to a reporter’s questions about Taiwan at a press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Biden said defending Taiwan was a “commitment we made”.

He said while the US agrees with the “one China policy” – which states there is a single China but does not define it – the idea that “Taiwan can be taken by force” is “not appropriate”.

He warned Beijing was already “flirting with danger right now by flying so close and all the manoeuvres undertaken” – referring to a growing number of Chinese sorties, naval exercises and other power projection in the Taiwan Straits.

Beijing still claims Taiwan, whose formal name is the Republic of China, as a province and has not ruled out unifying the two sides by force.

Credit: Aljazeera.com

‘More wonderful chapters’ to write at PSG -Mbappe

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Kylian Mbappe and PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi spoke in a news conference on Monday

Kylian Mbappe says his decision to remain at Paris St-Germain was partly based on sentimental reasons – and believes there are “more wonderful chapters to write” at the club.

The France striker, 23, rejected a move to Real Madrid to sign a new three-year contract with the Ligue 1 champions at the weekend.

Spain’s La Liga reacted angrily to the news, calling the deal “scandalous”.

“Leaving my country isn’t the right thing,” Mbappe said.

“There is a sentimental aspect to this. It is my country.

“The ongoing project has changed as well. That has made me want to stay here because I don’t think my story is over yet.

“That goes for me collectively and individually. I think there are many more wonderful chapters to write.”

‘We want to win the Champions League’

Mbappe started his career at Monaco before moving to PSG in 2017, initially on loan before joining permanently.

Since being at the club he has won four Ligue 1 titles and three French Cups.

Champions League success has so far eluded PSG but the club’s president Nasser Al-Khelaifi believes that, with Mbappe now staying, European glory can be achieved.

“We want to create more trophies. We have won plenty so far, we want to win many more,” he said.

“We want to win the Champions League. We are headed down the same path with our sporting goals.”

There had been reports PSG offered Mbappe more control over sporting decisions in an effort to convince him to stay.

But the forward said his sole focus and responsibility for the club is what he can do on the pitch.

“I remain a footballer, who is part of a team, and I will not go beyond this role,” added Mbappe.

“Everyone knows that last year I wanted to leave and I was convinced that it was the best choice, but the years go by and things change.”

‘Ligue 1 needs respect as well’

In its response to Mbappe’s decision to stay at PSG, La Liga announced plans to file a complaint to Uefa as well as French and EU authorities.

As well as calling the deal “scandalous”, La Liga president Javier Tebas said it “threatens the economic sustainability of European football”.

But Al-Khelaifi responded: “Maybe it is a good thing if Ligue 1 is doing better than La Liga.

“La Liga isn’t what it was three or four years ago. I have respect for all the clubs, but we need respect as well.

“We have the best player in the world, that’s what matters to us. As for what other people are saying, that is not an issue. I am not listening to that.”

Credit: www.bbc.com

RE: ACHIMOTA FOREST MATTERS

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An aerial view of achimota forest reserve
The late Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie

 The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has been keenly following the spirited public debate relating to the Achimota Forest. Significantly, having responded to the initial allegation that the Achimota Forest Reserve has been de-gazetted and sold, the Ministry has observed that a section of the Public are concerned, and rightly so, about the acreage de-gazetted.

The public interest and scrutiny in this matter is highly welcomed by the Ministry, as that is the only time-tested avenue of protecting our natural resources, which are the heritage of the nation.

Having painstakingly reviewed the files relating to this subject, beginning from 16th December 1921 to 29th April 2022, the Ministry wishes to provide the background and full facts relating to the acreage de-gazetted as follows:

  1. In 1921, the Government of the then Gold Coast, by a Certificate of Title dated 16th December 1921, made under the Public Lands Ordinance, 1876, acquired from the Owoo Family the parcel of land on which the Achimota School is situated.

 

  1. Subsequently, by another Certificate of Title dated 17th May 1927, the Government acquired from the same family another tract of land measuring approximately 1,185 acres as an extension to the Achimota School. Although there are receipts indicating payment of compensation for the 1921 acquisition, there are no records of payment of compensation for the 1927 acquisition.
Samuel Abu Jinapor, Minister for Lands and Natural Resources
  1. By Order 31 of 1930, dated July 17, 1930, the Government, pursuant to its power under the Forests Act, 1927, (Cap 157), constituted the land, acquired in 1927, as a Forest Reserve for the purposes of Fuel Wood Plantation for Achimota School.

 

  1. By a petition dated 14th August 2006, addressed to the then President of the Republic, H.E. John Agyekum Kufuor, the Owoo Family prayed for the release of the encroached lands of the Achimota School.

 

  1. While this petition was pending, the Family submitted another petition, dated 25th September, 2007,requesting for the release of a portion of the Achimota Forest adjoining the Tetteh Quarshie – Mallam Motorway.

 

  1. Following the second petition, the Office of the President held consultations with the Family and other relevant state agencies, including the Forestry Commission and the Land Commission.

 

  1. It was recommended, following these consultations, that due to “the choked nature of the current Accra Central Business District and the reconstruction of the Tetteh Quarshie – Mallam Motorway, a portion of the land forming part of the 1927 acquisition [the Achimota Forest]… should be redeveloped as a complementary Business District to facilitate the decongestion of the Accra Central Business (CBD) and appropriate benefit determined and accordingly extended to the Owoo Family, while at the same time preserving the Achimota Forest.”
Achimota Forest
  1. Pursuant to this recommendation, Government, acting by the then Minister for Lands, Forestry and Mines, Hon. Esther Obeng Dapaah, MP, and the Owoo Family entered into an agreement dated 24th November, 2008, where Government agreed to grant to the Owoo Family a lease over a portion of the Forest Reserve measuring ninety (90) acres.

 

  1. On 27th November, 2008, the then Minister wrote to the Lands Commission, directing the Commission to take the necessary steps to implement the agreement reached with the Owoo Family. However, the lease could not be executed due to change of Government.

 

  1. Following Government’s failure to execute the lease in favour of the Family, as agreed, the Family, on 5th June, 2009, submitted another Petition to the then President of the Republic, H.E. John Evans Atta-Mills.

 

  1. In May, 2011, the then Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Mike Hammah, constituted a Special Committee, chaired by the then Chief Executive Officer of the Forestry Commission, Mr. Samuel Afari-Dartey, to consider the petition submitted by the Family, and to determine whether the petition was legitimate and the area to be granted to the Family.

 

  1. The Committee, after its deliberations, concluded that “the request for the release of a portion of land of the Achimota Forest is legitimate and reasonable for consideration.”

 

  1. The Committee, however, found that the area the Family was requesting, that is, the portion of the land adjoining the Nogahill hotel area along the Tetteh Quarshie Mallam Motorway is “a prime section of the Reserve where the forest is richest.”

 

  1. The Committee, therefore, recommended that the area opposite GIMPA up the University of Ghana boundary and the area bordering the Agbofu Community, adjoining the Forestry Commission Regional Office, and behind the staff bungalows, measuring 118.023 acres (48.017 hectares), which the Committee described as “the peripheral sections,” be granted to the Family, and that “steps should be taken to de-reserve the granted portions after the grant.”

 

  1. The Committee noted that, although the land being granted to the Family exceeded the original 90 acres agreed in 2008, it was “a fair compromise to make up for the loss of the prime areas of the Eco-Park project.”

 

  1. On 20th March, 2013, the Family again petitioned the then President of the Republic, H.E. John Dramani Mahama for the release of portions of the land.

 

  1. Desirous of converting the Forest Reserve into an Eco-Park, a concept which was conceived sometime in 2011, the then Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Alhaji Inusah Fuseini, constituted a Strategic Development Committee, chaired by the then Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Barbara Serwaa Asamoah, to develop a strategy and roadmap for executing the Eco-Park Project.

 

  1. The Committee, as part of its work considered the Report of the 2011 Special Committee, and agreed with all the recommendations of the Committee. The Committee also recommended that the request of the Family “should be expedited for the smooth take-off of the [Eco-Park] project.”

 

  1. Following the submission of the Report of the Strategic Development Committee to Hon. Inusah Fuseini, the Minister, on 20th August, 2013, wrote to the then President of the Republic, H.E. John Dramani Mahama, for Executive Approval to implement the recommendations of the Committee.

 

  1. On 5th September 2013, former President John Dramani Mahama granted Executive Approval for the development of the Eco-Park and the release of the land to the Owoo Family, in accordance with the recommendations of the Committee.

 

  1. On 12th September 2013, Hon. Inusah Fuseini granted approval to the Forestry Commission to implement the recommendations on the release of the peripheral portions of the land measuring 118.023 acres to the Family in accordance with the Executive Approval.

 

  1. Despite the fact that the said Afari-Dartey Committee recommended the release of an acreage of 118.023, on 30th September 2013, the Forestry Commission executed three (3) leases in favour of the Owoo Family totalling One Hundred and Forty-Eight point Four One One acres (148.411 acres).

 

The lands granted in the three (3) leases are

 

  1. Lease 1 – 69.453 acres
  2. Lease 2 – 50.09 acres
  3. Lease 3 – 28.898 acres
  4. From this time, the Family, with the consent of the Forestry Commission as the Head Lessor, granted portions of the 148.411 acres to private developers.

 

  1. On 20th February 2014, the Forestry Commission and the Owoo Family executed a Deed of Variation to the 2013 leases, as a result of what was described as “an omission of the root of title and the actual size of the demised land.”

 

  1. By the said 2014 Deed of Variation, the Forestry Commission granted the Owoo Family another Fifty point zero nine acres (50.09 acres), bringing the total acreage granted to the Family to One Hundred and Ninety-Eight point Five Zero One acres (198.501 acres).

 

  1. By a letter dated 4th April 2014, the then Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Alhaji Inusah Fuseini, MP, wrote to the Lands Commission to amend its records to reflect the grants made to the Owoo Family.

 

  1. On 14th February 2018, the Forestry Commission submitted a Draft Executive Instrument to the then Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. John Peter Amewu, for the de-gazetting of the portions of the land leased to the Owoo Family.

 

  1. While the Draft Executive Instrument was receiving attention, the Forestry Commission, on 3rd May 2018, wrote to the Owoo Family, indicating that portions of the land leased to them, particularly the Nursery and the Seismology Station, were ecologically sensitive areas requiring critical protection by the Commission, but were “inadvertently allocated.” The Commission, therefore, indicated to the Family that it was withdrawing these portions from the lands covered by the lease. In place of these portions of the Forest Reserve, the Commission offered to grant to the Family portions of the Forest behind the GIMPA wall around the Railway Station, and another portion known as the “Island” located near the roundabout on the George Bush Highway.

 

  1. Following this letter, the Family entered into negotiations with the Forestry Commission. The Family requested for more land on the grounds that, among others, they were being deprived of a more valuable land for a less valuable one. The Family also argued that they had already granted portions of those part of the land being retrieved by the Commission to private developers, and that the Family will be overburdened with legal actions and costs due to their failure to deliver those lands to the sub-lessees. This stalled the processes for the de-gazetting of the land.

 

  1. The negotiations between the Forestry Commission and the Owoo Family culminated in another Deed of Variation executed in 2020, varying the schedules to the 2013 leases. By this Deed of Variation, the total area of land released to the Family was Three Hundred and Twenty-Nine point Zero One Two acres (329.012 acres).

 

  1. The Forestry Commission, then, on 14th July 2020 and 3rd December 2020, wrote to the then Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Kwaku Asomah-Cheremeh, recommending the de-gazetting of the lands granted to the Owoo Family.

 

  1. On 17th December 2020, the Family wrote to the Forestry Commission requesting for expedited action on the de-gazetting of the portions of the Forest Reserve released to them.

 

  1. Subsequently, on 23rd March 2021, the Family petitioned me, as the new Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, to de-gazette the lands granted to the Family to enable the Family and its sub-lessees develop the lands in accordance with the Lease agreement.

 

  1. By a letter dated 7th April 2021, I wrote to the Forestry Commission requesting for background information, and seeking the advice of the Commission on the Petition.

 

  1. In a response received from the Forestry Commission on 20th April 2021, the Commission recommended that, since the lands had already been granted to the Family, which had also granted subleases with the consent of the Forestry Commission, “to avoid public outcry, the portions of the Achimota Forest granted to the Owoo Family should be de-gazetted by the Ministry as soon as practicable.”

 

  1. I further sought the expert opinion of the Technical Directorate for Forestry at the Ministry. In a Memorandum submitted to me on 21st May, 2021, Technical Directorate associated themselves with the recommendations of the Forestry Commission.

 

  1. Based on these recommendations, and the totality of this protracted matter as set out above, by a letter dated 2nd July 2021, I sought directions from the President of the Republic, pursuant to article 257(1) of the Constitution, and sections 2 and 19 of the Forest Act, 1927 (Cap. 157), in respect of the de-gazetting of the portions of the land already granted to the Owoo Family, stating the background to the request.

 

  1. By a letter dated 15th July 2021, the President of the Republic gave Executive Approval to cause the said land, mostly referred to as the peripheral portions of the Forest, to cease to be a Forest Reserve.

 

  1. By a letter dated 21st February, 2022, the Ministry requested the Forestry Commission to submit Schedules for the areas to be released as Forest Reserve. In their response, the Commission submitted Schedules totalling Three Hundred and Fifty-Five point Four Six Six acres (355.466 acres) as the recommended area to be released from the Forest Reserve. The Commission explained that “thorough analysis and field visits to the forest revealed that there have been discrepancies in the estimation of the total area of the Achimota Forest Reserve, hence the newly estimated total land area for the respective areas.”

 

  1. In the said letter, the Forestry Commission explained that the total area of the Forest Reserve, was 1185 acres, and not 1223.17 acres as had earlier been submitted. The Commission also explained that field visits and thorough analysis showed that the area granted to the Owoo Family by the 2018 Deed of Variation was 355.466 acres and not the329.012 acres quoted in the Deed.
  2. On 3rd March 2022, the Ministry submitted the Schedules submitted by the Forestry Commission, together with the site plans to the Office of the Attorney-General for the preparation of the Executive Instrument.

 

  1. By a letter dated 15th March 2022, the Attorney-General requested for a Site Plan prepared by the Survey and Mapping Division of the Lands Commission with a Plan number.

 

  1. Accordingly, the Ministry requested the Lands Commission to prepare the Plans using the Schedules submitted by the Forestry Commission.

 

  1. From 16th March 2022, officials of the Lands Commission and the Forestry Commission undertook field visits to take the coordinates of the area being recommended to be released from the Forest Reserve.

 

  1. After the field visits and its validation, the Lands Commission, by a letter dated 28th March 2022, submitted a Validated Schedule and Site Plan which showed a total area of Three Hundred and Sixty-One point Five Zero acres (361.50 acres) or One Hundred and Forty-Six point Three Zero hectares (146.30 ha), delineated as Sites A to E on Plan No. 073/2022. According to the Commission, the Forestry Commission’s Site Plan was not up to scale, and, thus, the difference between the size submitted by the Forestry Commission and the final one by the Lands Commission.

 

  1. By a letter dated March 28, 2022, the Ministry submitted the revised Schedules and Plans prepared by the Lands Commission to the Office of the Attorney-General for the preparation of the Executive Instrument.

 

  1. The Office of the Attorney-General prepared the Executive Instrument with the said revised Schedules, which was signed on 31st March, 2022 and gazetted on 19th April 2022 as Forests (Cessation of Forest Reserve) Instrument, 2022 (E.I. 144).

 

  1. It was based on the same Validated Schedule and Site Plan prepared by the Lands Commission with officials of the Forestry Commission that the Forests (Achimota Firewood Plantation Forest Reserve) (Amendment) Instrument, 2022 (E.I. 154) was prepared and gazetted.
  2. The Ministry intends to initiate a process of an independent audit on the specific issue of the acreage de-gazetted and will act accordingly in the public interest, should that become necessary.

The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources is committed to the protection, proper management and utilisation of the lands and natural resources of our country. Government will act on any improper acquisition of public lands, regardless of how it was procured, whether now or in the past, and the Achimota Forest Lands will not be an exception.

The Ministry wishes to reiterate that the Achimota Forest is an integral part of Government’s plan for the protection of our forest cover and our agenda for aggressive afforestation and reforestation. As always, Government will continue to deal with the matters relating to the Forest with the highest standards of transparency and integrity and act with utmost good faith and in the public interest. END

                                                             SIGNED

                                      HON. SAMUEL A. JINAPOR, MP

                                                       MINISTER

 

Look, Watch & Report

By
JENNIFER AMBOLLEY
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Mr Kojo Oppong Nkrumah addressing the media yesterday

The Minister for Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has called on persons in the Ghanaian jurisdiction to be more observant and vigilant about the security ecosystem and to draw the attention of Police, other security agencies and local community leaders immediately they observe anything out of the ordinary.

Addressing a news conference in Accra yesterday on terrorism related matters facing the country, he said in the coming days the Ministry of National Security will be rolling out a full campaign aimed at mobilising and providing persons in the jurisdiction with more security education.

“The campaign, dubbed ‘See Something, Say Something’ spearheaded by the National Security Ministry and facilitated by the Ministry of Information is aimed at creating public awareness and sensitising citizens on issues of National Security and empowering the citizenry to report suspicious activities that could potentially compromise the security of their communities”, he said.

The West African Region has in recent times been inundated with attacks by extremist elements some of which have occurred as close as 50 kilometers from Ghana’s northern borders. About 8 military personnel were killed during terrorist attack on May 11, 2022 in Togo

Increasingly, intelligence reports suggest some Ghanaians have been involved in terrorist acts in the Sahel Region, signalling the possible recruitment of Ghanaians by some of the terrorist groups in the West Africa sub region.

Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said the state security and intelligence apparatus have, as a result of this heightened terrorism threats, authorised an increased level of awareness among the intelligence community and seeks to deepen engagement with the Ghanaian public in line with contemporary security practices.

Deputy National Security Coordinator, Edward Kweku Asomani, who also addressed the media at the same news conference, said the campaign would be launched by Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia on Tuesday, May 24, 2022 at the Ministry of National Security, as part of a whole-of-government and a whole-of-society approach to mitigating threats that confront the state.

He said it is expected that through this campaign and further education, the Ministry will highlight the challenges in the sub-region regarding terrorism and other activities that threaten the security of the country and at the same time help increase awareness for such activities.

Nothing will deter us from executing our constitutional mandate –Police

By
JOHN BEDIAKO
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George Akuffo-Dampare, Inspector General of Police

The Police Administration is cautioning those capitalising on the crisis in Nkoranza for their own interests to desist from it, since that would not deter them from executing their constitutional mandate.

According to the police, through sustained operation, the law and order situation in Nkoranza has been restored and that they are in firm control of security in the area.

This was contained in a release from the police, dated Sunday May 22, 2022 and signed by the Director General, Public Affairs, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Kwesi Ofori.

It reads: The police announce for the information of the public that through sustained operations, the law and order situation in Nkoranza and its environs has been restored and the police are in firm control of the security of the area.

The release further stated that, the high-profile team sent by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) which is led by the Director General of Administration is still on the ground leading the operations. The team has met with the family of the deceased, and held engagements with the Regional Minister, opinion leaders and some community members.

The release continued that so far, all the suspects arrested in connection with the disturbances have been put before court and remanded into lawful custody. It went on, that, “we are pursuing others who have been identified for their involvement in the violent attacks and those who escaped from lawful custody to bring them to face justice.We further announce that all the injured persons are in stable condition and responding to treatment.

That, as part of our investigation the police forensic team including ballistic experts have been deployed to Nkoranzato assist in the investigation. The investigation by the Police Professional Standards Bureau (PPSB) is ongoing and has been extended to include the police response to the mob attacks at the police station. We assure the public that we will continue to work to ensure justice is served to the satisfaction of all stakeholders.

We would like to caution those who are capitalising on the crisis for their own interest, to desist from it since that will not deter us from executing our constitutional mandate. Six platoons of armed men drawn from Accra, Kumasi and Sunyani reinforced the local stand-by on the ground at Nkoranza.

Information available to The Chronicle from a deep throat source indicates that police’s interest in an abandoned laptop at the scene of the particular robbery operation is paramount to the inquisition.

Music Producer sends SOS message to A-G to save GHAMRO

By
SEBASTIAN R. FREIKU
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Collins Agyemang Fordjour - Concerned Musician

A Kumasi-based music producer cum broadcast journalist, Collins Agyemang Fordjour, has appealed to the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice to take steps to resuscitate the operations of Ghana Music Rights Organisation (GHAMRO).

Agyemang Fordjour has bemoaned the alleged threat by the Attorney-General not to renew GHAMRO’s licence, until all court cases against it are determined as posted at the GHAMRO office in Accra.

He pleaded with the A-G to ensure the speedy trial of cases most of which have been initiated by members against GHAMRO in order to streamline its operations.

Agyemang Fordjour also called on the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Justice as the industry regulator to come out and state clearly its position with regards to the operations of the Ghana Music Rights Organisation.

He noted that the swift intervention of the Attorney General and the effective running of GHAMRO would go a long way to resuscitate and save the already dying music industry from collapse and ensure that copy right owners benefit from its formation.

He has also urged the executives and leadership of GHAMRO to rise up to the challenge and be proactive with the execution of its mandate, as well as ensure that they speed up the determination of all legal suits which he said is eating deep into the coffers of the organisation.

According to the concerned music industry player, the music industry is in crisis, following the inefficient running of the organisation which is supposed to be the Collective Management Organisation (CMO) and thus champion the welfare of musicians and copyright owners.

He observed that GHAMRO, which has been rendered ineffective by the litany of legal suits, is wasting funds fighting endless legal battles in court at the expense of members whose interest it is supposed to fight for.

He lamented on the current state of affairs of GHAMRO and the plight of musicians as copy right owners whose major source of income remain royalties from their works.

Agyemang Fordjour also expressed worry about the expiration of its Licence on April 3, 2022 which had been issued on April 3, 2017 in accordance with the Copyright Act of 2005 (Act 690) and the Copyright Regulations of 2010 L.I. 1962.

The music producer noted that GHAMRO is currently finding it difficult to collect royalties for copyright owners because the leadership is not effective coupled with the many legal suits confronting it at the law courts.

According to him, GHAMRO has failed its mandate to collect royalties on behalf of its members the reason why most musicians are suffering and resorting to soliciting financial assistance from the public in times of need.

He stressed that the resources of the organization are not managed well and advised the Administrator and the leadership to use the required modalities for the collection and management of the royalties.

It is for these reasons that he is pleading with the A-G to take the necessary steps to rescue GHAMRO and the music industry from collapsing from mismanagement.

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