Apostle Boakye Agyarko poses with the management of the school
The media engages Apostle Boakye Agyarko in an interview
The Church of Pentecost has renovated two Boys dormitories for Obuasi Senior High Technical School at the cost GH¢62,910.00 to the relief of the school’s management.The gesture is part of the church’s social intervention under its Four-Year Vision (Vision 2023) aimed at transforming lives.
The intervention follows the attention of the church, which was drawn to some of the infrastructural challenges in the school including roof leakages.The Head of the Church, Obuasi Area, Apostle William Boakye Agyarko, who together with a section of the Obuasi Area Pastorals, handed over the project to the school management urged men of God and churches to contribute towards the development of communities instead of enriching themselves at the expense of
Vulnerable church members.
He tasked the Men of the gospel to always contribute to the socio-economic development of the communities especial within their catchment areas instead of enriching themselves at the expense of the Church members.Apostle William Boakye Agyarko said the church does not only preach
the word of God, but also embarks on community development in partnership with the government through social interventions following, which the church saw it imperative to renovate the dormitories to enable the students have a convenient place to lay their heads.
The renovated dormitory block
The Head Pastor assured that the church would keep on with the vision of supporting any sector that may need assistance whenever God endows the church with financial strength and entreated the school management to work hard for the success of the students.Mr. Ernest Wiafe, the headmaster of the school, expressed his profound gratitude of the school management to the church, the Area Head, the pastorate and the entire membership of the church for coming to their aid.
He appealed to other churches and organizations to emulate the shining example of the Church of Pentecost and support the school to make it an enviable Senior High School.
The Ashanti Regional branch of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) has told the government to urgently consider revamping the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) to refine petroleum products domestically. This, they argued would insulate the citizenry from the high fuel prices because of exchange rate fluctuations.
Mr. Simon Laarbik, who represented Daniel Amarfo Akwam, the Ashanti Regional Secretary of the TUC at this year’s May Day celebration, stated that the workers are feeling the impact of the depreciation of the cedi, not only in terms of its effects on fuel prices but also on the cost of imported food, medicines, and other essential items.
According to him, the rapid depreciation of the Ghana Cedi is also feeding into inflation, adding that, in July 2021, when workers were negotiating national minimum wage and public sector pay for 2021 and 2022, inflation was 9% but as of March 2022, inflation was 19%. He noted that between March 2021 and March 2022, food prices increased by 22.4% on average while prices of some essential commodities also increased at higher rates.
Mr.Laarbik indicated that many workers and their families are feeling the pangs of poverty, and if nothing is done about the situation, many more workers and their families would suffer severe poverty in the coming months.
He contended that this was the time salaries in both private and public sectors were indexed to inflation in order to avoid worsening living standards among workers and their families.
“This is time Ghanaian workers must be paid a living wage, and the government and private sector employers should acknowledge the sacrifices Ghanaian workers have been making, particularly in the last two years, to save the economy from collapse,” Mr.Laarbik stressed.
He underscored that a tripartite technical committee was constituted to review the Single Spine Pay Scheme, and during their last National Labour Conference, they were urged to present their report before the end of June 2022 to ensure that salary increment could be factored into the 2023 National Budget.
According to him, the TUC expects the committee to address the key challenges that have hindered the effective implementation of the Single Spine Pay Policy, particularly low levels of pay for workers on the Single Spine Salary Structure.
He regretted that some public sector workers on the Scheme are currently receiving salaries as low as GH¢415.00 per month, which he said was woefully inadequate for employees to enjoy any meaningful life in these difficult times.
Mr. Laarbik disclosed that one of the main objectives of the Scheme was to ensure fairness in the payment system of the public service but that has not been achieved for nearly over 20 years, since the implementation of the policy, rising concerns over pay differentials in the public service.
He bemoaned the situation where junior officers in some service institutions are not put on the Single Spine Salary Structure, yet earn much higher salaries than senior officers on the structure, saying it is a clear indication “workers on the Single Spine Salary Structure are receiving the lowest salaries as compared to their counterparts on other salary structures in the public sector.”
According to him, the highest salary on the Single Spine structure in 2022 is Gh¢7,404 per month whereas some heads of public sector institutions earn more than four times the amount as basic pay, in addition to the numerous cash and non-cash benefits they are enjoying.
He also reiterated the fact that there are some heads of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are earning over three times the salary of the President of the Republic even though some of the SOEs are making huge losses.
Vice Chancellor of the STU, Professor Ing. Kwadwo Adinkrah-Appiah addressing the graduates
The Vice-Chancellor (VC) of the Sunyani Technical University (STU), Professor Ing. Kwadwo Adinkrah-Appiah has encouraged graduates from the university to use the skills they have acquired during the course of their training to start their own businesses.
Professor Adinkrah-Appiahnoted that the current challenges of unemployment in the country provide an opportunity for graduates to start their own businesses with the skills they have acquired.
“The numerous gaps created by the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic in the national and global economies serve as opportunities for engineering, TVET and entrepreneurially-skilled graduates, which you are. You must, therefore, apply all the technical, professional and entrepreneurial skills you have acquired from the STU to make a difference in your own lives and that of the nation”, he said.
Speaking at the 14th congregation of the university, the VC stressed, “start your own businesses and grow them into big enterprises. Form partnerships with your friends and families and with determination and God on your side, you will succeed.”
Professor Adinkrah-Appiah called on the government to give financial clearance to the institution to be able to employ more staff.“We thank the government for the financial clearance granted to the university last year that enabled us to recruit 114 new staff and faculty. However, the current faculty strength of 240 implies that the student-faculty ratio of the university stands at 1:28, which is in excess of the GTEC requirements. We, therefore, urge the government to grant a new financial clearance for the university to recruit more faculty members to improve the existing student-teacher ratio.”
GRADUATES
A total of 1,779 graduates were awarded Bachelor of Technology, Higher National Diploma and Diploma Certificates in Engineering, TVET, Applied Science and Technology, Applied Arts, as well as Business and Management Studies disciplines.
Out of the graduating list, 1,107 representing 62.2% were males, whilst 672, which is 37.8% were females. In all, 223 graduates representing 12.5% obtained first-class honours; 992 (55.8%) obtained second class upper honours; 541 (30.4%) obtained second class lower honours and 23 which is 1.3% obtained pass.
STEM
The Director of Tertiary Education, Dr Eric Nkanaah, who represented the Education Minister; Dr Yaw OseiA dutwum, noted that the government has put in place many initiatives to increase the number of students who study STEM at the tertiary level.“The government is expanding and resourcing the science laboratories of existing Senior High Schools (SHSs) and also building new resource centres. The government is also building 10 new STEM boarding schools across the country”, he said.
TECHNOLOGY FOR DEVELOPMENT
The chairman of the Sunyani Technical University, Dr Kwame Agyemang Boakye indicated that Technical Universities (TUs) must be positioned strategically to form the natural technology nodes for national development. To be successful in this direction, Dr Agyemang Boakye said stakeholders must work consciously to ensure that TUs are appropriately directed, resourced, supported and managed.
He expressed discomfort about the poor road network on campus, which housed some faculties including the university’s ultra-modern AVIC laboratory and the Mechatronic Laboratory is in a deplorable condition. He pointed out that “during the dry season the road is engulfed with dust whilst it becomes muddy during the rainy season.” Dr Agyemang Boakye, therefore, appealed to the government to provide an asphaltic overlay for the road, in particular, and other existing roads on campus.
STU IS 55 YEARS OLD
Dr Agyemang Boakye also launched the 55th anniversary of the institution and a GHc300 million education endowment fund to push human resource and infrastructure development.
He said the “STU Endowment Fund” targeted to mobilize GHc50 million by the close of 2022, and therefore, called on the more than 40,000 alumni of the university to contribute to the fund.
The theme for the anniversary celebration is “STU 55 years of progress and achievement in TVET and engineering education: mobilizing excellence for leadership in Ghana’s industrialization agenda”.
Dr Boakye who pledged GHc10, 000 in support of the fund, explained the university’s numerical strength has grown and added that it was imperative for the university to devise strategies to generate the needed revenue required to implement its Strategic Master Plans.
STRATEGIC AND MASTER PLANS
Last year, the STU launched its Strategic and Master Plans, which fashioned the development of the university over a five year period (2020-2025) as well as a focus on the long term sustainable infrastructure development respectively.
TVET
The Bono Regional Minister, Madam Justina Owusu-Banahene, said the government recognises and places a high premium on TVET, as a key driver and pillar of national development.
According to her, it is for that reason that President Akufo-Addo’s administration has given TVET higher priority and attention by introducing fundamental reforms to mainstream the sector for the benefit of the youth.
“The ultimate aim is to secure for ourselves, a skilled workforce to promote industrialization and self-reliance,” she said. The regional minister explained that TVET holds huge potential for the development of human capital for nation building, and therefore, it is important that the government gives it premium attention.
HISTORY
The STU was established in 1967 as Sunyani Technical Institute (SUTECH) by Ghana’s first president Dr Kwame Nkrumah to offer opportunities for middle school leavers, and later Junior Secondary School graduates, to undergo hands-on training in craft programmes.
The programmes included intermediate block-laying and concreting, carpentry and joinery, furniture craft, painting and decoration, electrical installation, motor vehicle mechanics, welding and fabrication.
In 1997, the institute was upgraded to a Polytechnic following the government’s decision to lay more emphasis on TVET and it then became Sunyani Polytechnic, running a wide range of tertiary, non-tertiary and certificate programmes, with a focus to produce middle-level manpower graduates.
In 2016, the institution was converted from a Polytechnic to a Technical University with a new mandate to provide higher education and awarded its own degrees, diplomas and other certificates in engineering, science and technology-based disciplines, TVET as well as Applied Arts and related disciplines, as enshrined in the Technical Universities ACT 2016 (ACT 922 as amended).
The Vice-Chancellor of the university, Professor Adinkrah-Appiah, paid glowing tribute to the founding fathers of the institution including the chiefs, opinion leaders and Dr Kwame Nkrumah under whose instrumentality, as well as the successive governments whose vision helped upgrade the institution from a technical institute to the present-day university.
“We equally acknowledge the great leadership of the current President Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo for his great vision of transforming the TVET sector of the country, which has gone a long way in retooling the STU on a
The CDS (r) together with Brig. Gen George Partington (Rtd) (m) cutting a tape.
CDS Vice Admiral Seth Amoama
The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Vice Admiral Seth Amoama, has recommended an intensified Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) to complement the government effort in addressing development shortfalls in the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF).
His call was underpinned by a new building constructed at the Burma Camp through a PPP arrangement to house the Headquarters of the 64 Infantry Regiment.
Delivering a speech at the commissioning of the 64 Infantry Regiment Headquarters Complex in Accra, the CDS said the Military High Command, in pursuit of supporting the government’s efforts, would continue to embark on PPP arraignments, as a way of easing the burden in the short term.
He also said the construction of the office complex was supervised by various leaderships of the regiment, starting from the tenure of Lt Col Fiifi Deegbe, Lt Col Owusu Appah, and Lt Col Frank Agyeman who saw its completion. The CDS said the ultramodern office complex was fully funded by the Chief Executive (CEO) of Omni Group of Companies, Mr Zormelo as a gift to GAF.
A picture of the new edifice
He was “particularly elated that the 64 Infantry Regiment through this strategy, with the support of a very patriotic Ghanaian, Mr Michael Zormelo, and some partners have been able to build this edifice to enhance the administration and operations of the Unit. Such Public-Private Partnership bolsters Civil-Military cooperation and indicates strong civilian goodwill towards the military, which must be strengthened.”
Vice Admiral Amoama added that infrastructure development was necessary because the army needed a good working environment in terms of office space and accommodation.
“The expansion of the Ghana Armed Forces calls for corresponding adequate office space and accommodation for personnel. To address this, the Government of Ghana over the years has made efforts to bridge this gap through the provision of infrastructure for the Ghana Armed Forces,” he stressed.
He indicated that the 64 Infantry Regiment started as Force Reserve Battalion and was sharing office space with 153 Armoured Regiment, hence the headquarters is a dream come true. According to him, the new edifice is also a testament to the hard training, motivation, and leadership skills imbibed in them by Brig General George Partington (Rtd) and a reason it was named after him.
Vice Admiral Amoama indicated Brig-Gen Partington was a pioneer of the Regiment, and his sterling contribution, hard work, dedication and exemplary leadership towards the formation of the 64 Infantry Regiment are evident to this day.
Brig Gen Partington, on his part, thanked the CDS, officers, and personnel for the honour and urged them to continuously work tirelessly for the betterment of the army and the country as a whole.
In a speech read on behalf of Mr Zormelo, he said the Omni Group of Companies funded the project as part of the commitment to support economic development, community sustainability, and the role security play in providing an enabling environment for attracting investment and businesses into the country.
He said GAF plays a crucial role in this regard, therefore, the company will keep faith to continuously provide support and invest in the Ghana Armed Forces for effective execution of their mandate.
“This gesture is also in the recognition of the fact that the Ghana Armed Forces Base has been a centre of excellence of international repute. The professional training of our own officers and those from other African countries, and for this reason, Ghana today is held in high esteem, as a pillar of support and the beacon of hope in Africa in the matters of peace, order and security,” he said.
Jemima Apedo Kallikrates (Mrs), Adentan Assembly Coordinating Director, making the presentation to Alhaji Issaq. With them are members of the Adentan Muslim community
The Adentan Municipal Chief Imam, Alhaji Mohammed Issaq, says any act of road traffic misconduct by Muslims across the nation during Eid festivities should not be condoned by the law enforcement agencies.
Therefore, the mounting of huge Public Address (PA) systems in the middle of busy streets to block the to and fro movements of vehicles in densely populated Muslim communities and the unlawful riding of motorbikes by some of the Muslim youth on such Eid days, Alhaji Issaq said should not be allowed to inconvenience the general public.
Speaking to a section of newsmen at the forecourt of the Adentan Assembly where he received some assorted food items from the former, ahead of this year’s Eid-dhul Fitr festival, for distribution to the Muslims in his community, Alhaji Issaq explained that Islam, which preaches peace and reverence to authorities and law and order, does not give room for any act of indiscipline or malfeasance.
“Islam preaches discipline and law and order. So, any act that is against the laws of the state must not be entertained. I, therefore, want to advise my Muslim youth to celebrate Eid with decorum devoid of disrespecting and disturbing public peace and order,” he advised the Muslim youth.
Alhaji Issaq reminded all Muslims that since not all Ghanaians are completely immune to Covid-19, they should continue to observe the vital Covid-19 health protocols at all public assemblies to drastically slow down the spread of the virus.
He prayed for peaceful co-existence among all the sects, tribes, and people of the country and thanked the Adentan Assembly for the gesture which was done by the Coordinating Director on behalf of the Municipal Chief Executive, Alexander Daniel Nii Noi Adumoah.
Kennedy Kankam addressing the delegates last Sunday
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) of the Asokore-Mampong Assembly, Kennedy Kwasi Kankam has assured NPP delegates in the Asawasi constituency that he would not rest until he works to wrestle the Asawase Parliamentary seat from the opposition National Democratic Congress NDC. The MCE emphasized that the NPP is on a mission and that until the mission of annexing the Asawase Parliamentary seat from the NDC is accomplished he cannot sleep.
“I will not sleep until the Asawase seat is converted to the NPP,” he told delegates at the constituency elections at Asokore Mampong on Sunday. The former Nhyiaeso lawmaker said research from his seven months of experience as MCE had revealed that the NPP dominates the NDC in the Asawase Constituency but because of disunity among the NPP, it has always lost the seat to the NDC.
Mr. Kankam reminded the delegates that the NPP cannot win the Asawase seat if they continue to be divided and called for unity among the delegates and members of the party to unite to win massively in the 2024 elections. MCE Kankam cautioned against any form of disturbances in the Asokore
He advised NPP sympathizers not to fall victim to the law because he would not relent in prescribing appropriate sanctions against all those who flout the law.
Meanwhile, the 1,050 delegates maintained Mr. M. D. Moro (472 votes), Mr. Nap (331 votes), and Saeed (471 votes) as the constituency chairman, Secretary, and Nasara Coordinator respectively. Other elected executives for the Asawase constituency are Mr. Noah (572 votes) first Vice-chairman; Zakaria Seidu (485 votes), Second Vice-chairman; Adam Amar (607 votes) Assistant Secretary; and Rasheed (574 votes) Organiser.
The rest are Mohammed Ibrahim alias JIGA (591 votes) Youth Organiser; Maa Janet (626 votes) Women’s Organiser; and Mr. Gyimah (478 votes as Treasurer.
New Manhyia South chairman Adjei Mensah Ofori Atta (second left) and some of the elected executives after the elections
Chairman Adusei Bonsu in a post election address
The 900 delegates made up of five executives, each from the 170 Polling Stations, 10 Electoral Areas, the Member of Parliament, and some members of the Council of Elders, last Thursday retained Mr. Michael Adusei Bonsu as the Subin Constituency Chairman of the New Patriot Party (NPP)
He polled 754 votes at the end of the polls at about 5.47 pm, which saw eight of the former constituency executives having been re-elected and declared as winners for the various positions by a team of Electoral Commission (EC) officials led by the Subin Sub-Metro Elections Officer, Madam Hildegord Q. Ofori.
Two voting centres were created to speed up the process, which was conducted under heavy security presence. Other elected executives were Francis Osei-Hyeaman, 1st Vice-chairman who polled 575 votes, Isaac Amo- Nti, 2nd Vice-chairman (722 votes), Akuamaoh Boateng, Secretary (767 votes) and Lily Ampofowaa, Assistant Secretary (793 votes).
Angelina Frimpong polled 736 votes to become the treasurer while Yaw Anokye was elected the Organiser with 624 votes with the post of Women’s organiser going to Ama Konadu Boateng who polled 739 votes. Razak Abdulaziz (718 votes) and Ibrahim Osman (716 votes) emerged as the Youth Organiser and the Nasara Coordinator respectively. Chairman Michael Adusei Bonsu who retained his position called for unity among all the contending factions to strategize toward breaking ‘the 8’.
The Subin lawmaker, Eugene Boakye Antwi said the outcome of the elections was an indication of democracy at work and assured to resource the executives to deliver on their mandate in support of party activities. At the Manhyia South constituency elections, Mr Richard Adjei Mensah Ofori Atta was elected the chairman of the constituency. He contested unopposed and got the approval of the over 500 delegates present.
Mr. Adjei Mensah Ofori Atta alias Tom Tom replaces Mr Gabriel Kofi Anane, the former constituency chairman who did not seek re-election. ‘Tom Tom’ is the CEO of Eon3 group and proprietor of Thunder newspaper and thunderonline.com network.
The Post of 1st vice and second vice chairman went to Seth Twumasi and Bonsu Kyeretwie while Alhaji Abubakar Alhassan alias Abuba became the unopposed constituency Organiser. The new Youth organizer is Henry AduPoku while Mary Coker emerged as the Women’s organizer.
Haruna Alhassan retained his position as a secretary with BashiruIssaka and Kofi Asamoah being elected Nasara Coordinator and Treasurer respectively.
The newly-elected constituency chairman thanked the delegates for electing him and promised to unite and work together with all contestants to break ‘the 8’. He said he identifies with the vision of the Member of Parliament of the constituency and assured to mobilize resources for party activities and continue from where his predecessor left off.
TomTom as he is widely known said he would not countenance a lackadaisical attitude by members and promised to maintain discipline among members of the party through a Disciplinary Committee. The chairman, however, cautioned that his leadership would not tolerate any kind of imposition or interference from the Regional secretariat.
Lagos residents have called for stiffer measures to check the growing trend of underage persons being allowed access to hotels, alcohol and drugs.
A cross-section of residents in the metropolis who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in separate interviews on Tuesday, said the responsibility to check the act rest majorly on parenting.
Mrs Opeyemi Adebayo, a teacher, said that the family had a major role to play on deciding how a child would turn-out or behave in the society.
“Parents need to spend more time with their children, yes Lagos stress is there but you should create time to monitor the activities of your children since you are capable of bringing them to the world.
“If you can’t do this everyday, create time. Parents should also be good examples because children mostly display outside, what they see or learn from home.” he said.
Mr Samuel Oseni, a clergy, however, told NAN that children should be taught in the way of the Lord so that the society would be a better place for all.
“The Sunday schools are there to teach these children what they may not teach them in school. Teach them to be better persons and lay good examples while at home with them,” he said.
MrChijiokeNwokonko, a lecturer in Ogun, said checking underaged access to hotels, alcohol and drug was one difficult thing to do in this part of the world, adding that government policies also make it difficult.
“I mean government policy like the citizens having their national ID card once they get to their secondary level of education.
“It should be strongly implemented by the government that before allowing one entry into a pub, club or a hotel, the ID card should be checked to be sure that such person has attained the required age limit to enable them visit such environment.
“Also, there are instances where these underaged children already have strong influences, they can call the manager to gain access and make the security man asking for ID card look useless,” he said.
Nwonkoko said that to correct or check this, law enforcement agencies that would act as the watchdog of such act should be created and adhere strictly to instructions by the government.
Train travel is deemed safer by passengers travelling from Abuja to Kaduna
Dozens of passengers kidnapped on a high-speed train in northern Nigeria are being used as human shields by their abductors, making their rescue difficult, President Muhammadu Buhari said on Monday.
In an address to mark Eid al-Fitr, the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, President Buhari said rescuing the hostages was a “delicate situation”.
“They are using civilians as human shield thereby making it difficult to confront them directly… They don’t care about killing their hostages if they come under attack,” he said.
“Any rescue operation that results in the death of any hostage cannot be deemed a success. The government doesn’t want this kind of tragic outcome.”
He said the situation required proper handling with the objective to “free the hostages safely, unharmed and alive”.
Kidnapping for ransom has become commonplace across Nigeria.
This was the second time the railway line between Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, and Kaduna city had been targeted in the last six months, but it’s by far the most serious.
A photo taken on May 2, 2022, shows Muslim faithful participating in the Eid-el-Fitr prayer at the Airport Road praying ground in Abuja.
Governors across the country have congratulated the people in their respective states, especially the Muslims on the occasion of the Eid-El-Fitr which signals the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.
As Muslim faithful in Nigeria join their counterparts around the world in celebration, this year’s Eid-El-Fitr coincides with the commemoration of the annual international Workers’ Day.
The people of Adamawa were among the first to be greeted by their governor, Ahmadu Fintiri, who congratulated them on the successful completion of the fast.
“May Almighty Allah make Eid a great occasion for interaction, harmony, tolerance, and happiness for all,” he was quoted in a statement by his press secretary, HumwashiWonosikou.
Governor Fintiri who described peace as an essential ingredient to the development of any country, urged the people to keep praying and working for the peace and unity of the country and Adamawa State.
Glad that the people would be celebrating without the restrictions of COVID-19 this year, he admonished Nigerians to focus on the things that bind them together and eschew issues capable of dividing the country, especially going into a political year.
The governor also challenged Nigerians to see the nation’s diversity beyond artificial divisions such as ethnic and religious differences and abide strictly by the teachings of the Holy Quaran as propagated by the Holy Prophet Mohammed.
“Sacrifices you have all made during the holy month of Ramadan should draw everyone closer to the Almighty Allah,” he said.
“I enjoin all our Muslim brothers and sisters to draw enduring lessons from the holy month of Ramadan, which include personal sacrifices and self-denial. I call on you to emulate the good virtues and teachings of Prophet Mohammed.”
According to Governor Fintiri, Adamawa is known for peace and it is important for citizens and residents of the state to ensure the hard-earned peace is sustained.
“On behalf of my family, the good people and government of Adamawa State, I heartily felicitate and rejoice with all the citizens and residents of our dear state as we celebrate Eid El-Fitr,” he said.
