Home Blog Page 651

Businessman Accused of Defrauding Paramount Chief Granted GH¢3M Bail

By
BERNICE BESSEY
-
0
Prof. King Odaifio Welentsi III

Ismail Abass Iddrisu, a 53-year-old Businessman accused of defrauding the President of the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs, King Professor Odaifio Welentsi, to the tune of  GH¢4 million, has been granted bail by the Dansoman Circuit Court.

The accused was remanded for nearly a week before Her Honour Halimah El-Alawa Abdul-Baasit granted him bail on Tuesday.

The bail amount was set at GH¢3 million with stringent conditions: three sureties, two of whom must be salaried workers earning no less than GH¢3,000 monthly and residing within the court’s jurisdiction. The third surety is required to justify the bail sum with valid title deeds.

Additionally, Mr Iddrisu must deposit his Ghana Card with the court registry and report to the police every two weeks, as part of his bail conditions.

The case has been adjourned to September 10, 2025 for further hearing. Chief Inspector Portia Nuarko is prosecuting the case on behalf of the Republic.

Alleged Fraud Scheme

According to the facts of the case, the incident dates back to 2018. The complainant, King Professor Odaifio Welentsi, who is also the Paramount Chief of Nungua, claims he was lured by Mr. Iddrisu into investing in a purportedly thriving forex trading business, known as Tycoo Forex, located in Nungua and Abossey Okai.

Based on the accused’s representations, the chief allegedly invested substantial sums – $400,000 and €40,000 and a cheque of GH¢2 million into the business under a written agreement signed on December 11, 2015.

However, investigations later revealed that the accused, who also owns a construction firm, Is Abid Company, had allegedly diverted the invested funds into his private construction ventures.

The court heard that Mr. Iddrisu used the money to purchase heavy machinery, including four tipper trucks and a wheel loader, to execute projects under a contract with Ghana First Company Ltd, valued at GH¢1.3 million.

Despite receiving over GH¢4 million in investment, the accused is said to have only paid back GH¢60,000 in 2020 before becoming evasive. The complainant subsequently filed a report with the Teshie Police in 2023, leading to Mr. Iddrisu’s arrest.

Charges

Mr. Iddrisu is facing charges of fraudulent breach of trust, contrary to Section 128 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29). Prosecutors allege he dishonestly appropriated the complainant’s funds entrusted to him as a business partner.

The court will resume the case on September 10, 2025, as investigations and legal proceedings continue.

Why Treat Nana Addo, So?

By
admin
-
0
Opinion

It is said in politics; one does not have a permanent friend but permanent interest. For, people can use others to get what they want and then dump them.

Tho seat the top have lots of followers who will be willing to do anything for them, but when they drop down, that will be the end of loyalty.

H.E. Nana Akufo-Addo, always rewarded for loyalty and so, he got many people around him, who continuously sung his praises and were ready to do anything for him, even if it meant killing their love ones.

After January 7, 2025, when H.E. John Dramani Mahama became president, some of Nana Addo’s sycophants started saying foul things about him. And these are people who never rose to counter anything Nana Addo said or did, when he was in power. But now that he is out, they are educating the world about how Nana Addo was the wrong kind of president.

For example, Ernest Owusu Bempah, a political orphan, who was brought into the NPP by Nana Addo and awarded a top appointment in Ghana Gas, for eight years, could today come on air and tell Ghanaians that he had advised Nana Addo severally, to remove IGP Dr. Dampare from office, but all his pleas fell on deaf ears. If indeed he did, why did he not come public when Nana Addo was president? He went on to congratulate H.E. John Mahama for terminating the appointment of the police chief.

He has also been saying that picking Dr. Bawumia, Nana Addo’s choice, as flagbearer was very wrong. And no one heard him say so, when Nana Addo was president.

And then, there is this retired captain of the Ghana Armed Forces, who used to worship Nana Addo. This guy would attack anyone who held counter opinion to Nana Addo’s or spoke about wrong things he did.

On group platforms, he was all out, praising Nana Addo and condemning Alan without any provocation. Then he started attacking Nana Addo. Whatever went wrong?

Let me begin from what he posted when one Kofi Owusu Nkansa declared support for Fadi Dabbousi on his Facebook page.

This retired captain, in 649 words, went on about how in 2017, he was invited down from the US for a taskforce job at one of ministries. For six months in Ghana, nothing came for him until he was informed that Nana Addo had discontinued the taskforce.

He claimed he was promised a job in NPA and was assured he would start in a month. To satisfy US immigration requirements, he asked permission and flew back to the States for a week and came back home, awaiting the job. Unfortunately, after three more months, nothing came up. He claimed in 2018, Fadi accompanied him to the north on government assignment. But was it not this Fadi Dabbousi who said he cut ties with Nana Addo and government in 2017? Who is speaking the truth here?

The retired captain said he was given another offer where he was to work under a police inspector. But being a retired captain, he declined it, since he was going to work under someone lower in rank than him.  He left back to the States after he was given GH¢5,000.00 which was $1,000.00 in 2018. He had to rush back in July 2020 when he was given another offer, which he claimed, turned out to be a fiasco.

Well, well, well, what he claimed turned out to be a fiasco was about a job appointment he had with the National Security. He brought this up on another platform and said he was posted to a galamsey site and was later withdrawn and dismissed. And so that ended his relationship with Nana Addo. Since then, he started condemning Nana Addo and his government, without provocation. What he hid from us was why he got sacked. Apparently, instead of stopping the illegal miners, he demanded bribe in gold to allow them have their way.

At least, he was offered a job and but was corrupt and got dismissed. So, why is he blaming Nana Addo?

This retired captain, has a way of lying so that he looks innocent and draw sympathy to himself. And so, I do not want to believe in his 649-word narration. I am sure that the people he mentioned would come out with different versions.

I feel sorry for Nana Addo. He has this strong dislike for people with diverse opinion to his and classifies them as disloyal, hence he will not work with them. This is rather unfortunate, because it is such people who love him most, and would always tell him the truth, no matter how bitter.

Most of his loyalists may only be pretending, seeking selfish interests, and are now abandoning ship, when the captain was gone. This is politics and here, Nana Addo was no exception. I know how he will be feeling now; very disappointed in some people he lifted up in life, but are now rejecting him. People who destroyed other people’s image to him for him to hate them, are now destroying his image. This is sad, very sad. This ingratitude is very bad.

I will continue praying for him. He will not get this opportunity again, but he can educate the young ones on life’s moral lessons.

Hon. Daniel Dugan

Editor’s note: Views expressed in this article do not represent that of The Chronicle

Editorial: Police Crackdown On Violent Crime Is Welcome News

By
THE CHRONICLE
-
0
Editorial

The Ghana Police Administration has launched an intensified and largely silent operation across several regions aimed at curbing violent crime. Spearheaded by the Police Intelligence Directorate (PID) and various elite operational units, including the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT), Formed Police Unit (FPU), Anti-Armed Robbery Unit (AARU), Rapid Deployment Force (RDF) and Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), these efforts have begun yielding significant results.

In our center page of today’s issue, we carried a story about how the Police has embarked on a nationwide ‘war’ to combat violent crimes. In the Ashanti Region, arrests were made at snap checkpoints in Asawase where arms and ammunition were seized, while in the Volta Region, two armed robbers were arrested through CCTV footage and intelligence tracking. In the Western Region’s Esiama Division, police foiled a robbery at a gold-buying shop, leading to the arrest and eventual death of a suspect.

In Ashanti Bekwai, armed robbers attacking a mining vehicle were met with force, leading to the recovery of weapons and arrest of suspects. In Atebubu (Bono East), police responded to highway robberies and neutralised multiple gunmen after they opened fire on patrol units. This coordinated, intelligence-driven approach shows a committed police force working tirelessly to suppress crime, reclaim public trust and ensure safer communities nationwide.

For far too long, crime in the country has grown in both boldness and sophistication. Reports of highway robberies, residential thefts and gang activities have plagued communities all over the country.

The crackdown on violent crime by the Police Intelligence Directorate and operational units marks a new era of policing in Ghana. This could not have come at a better time.

Over the past year, Ghana has witnessed an upsurge in crimes involving firearms, armed robbery and organised criminal groups, especially in mining regions and along major highways.

What makes this development commendable is not just the success of arrests and recoveries, but the strategy behind it. Intelligence-led policing, a globally acknowledged best practice, is finally taking root in Ghana’s law enforcement structure. It ensures that police officers are not merely reacting after crimes are committed but are now disrupting criminal plots before they unfold. That is the mark of a professional force and it is working.

But beyond the tactical victories, there is something more powerful at play – deterrence. Crime thrives where there is impunity. When criminals believe that the police are absent, under-resourced or incapable, they act without fear.

However, the recent wave of arrests and encounters, some of which ended in the neutralisation of armed attackers has flipped the narrative. Fear is now where it belongs, in the hearts of those who plot violence against society.

Retired security experts like Col. Festus Aboagye have rightly emphasised the need for more logistical support from surveillance technology to protective gear and communication infrastructure.

President Mahama’s commitment to retool the service must translate into quick and tangible resourcing. Ghana cannot afford to have a demoralised or under-equipped police force in this critical hour.

The police should continue engaging local leaders, chiefs, youth groups and neighborhood watch committees, especially in volatile areas. Trust breeds cooperation and cooperation makes intelligence work easier.

To the men and women in black, risking their lives quietly and consistently, The Chronicle says ‘ayekoo’ to you. You have chosen action over excuses and professionalism over publicity.

Kudos for a job well done, so far so good.

FDA sensitises Santase market women on food hygiene and safety

By
ERNEST BEST ANANE
-
0
John Laryea Odai-Tettey, Ashanti Regional Head (FDA)

The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has sensitized women at the Santase Market in Kumasi on food hygiene and safety. The initiative is part of the FDA’s efforts to ensure that food sold in markets meet the required standards and is safe for consumption.

Mr. John Laryea Odai-Tettey, Ashanti Regional Head of FDA, revealed the importance of food safety, explaining that food production involves various stages, from farm to table.

The market women at the sensitisation programme

He noted that all stakeholders, including farmers, manufacturers, distributors and regulators have a role to play in ensuring that food is consistently produced to meet the required standards.

The FDA’s sensitisation programme focused on key areas, including handling and storage of food, while market women were educated on how to handle and store food safely to prevent contamination.

The Ashanti Regional Head reiterated the importance of washing hands regularly, especially before handling food, proper disposal of waste to prevent the spread of diseases.

He disclosed that the FDA is working with environmental health officers to ensure that food vendors comply with food safety regulations.

Mr. David Oppong Darko, Ashanti Regional Environmental Health Officer, noted that the sensitisation programme was part of a series of activities aimed at educating market women on food safety and hygiene.

He stressed that the FDA’s sensitisation programme was a step in the right direction towards promoting food safety and hygiene in markets by educating market women on the importance of food safety.

He stated that the FDA was helping to prevent the spread of food borne diseases and promote a healthier environment for consumers.

KMA boss gets tough with encroachers on public school lands 

By
SEBASTIAN R. FREIKU
-
0
The mayor and his team during the inspection tour

The Kumasi Mayor, Richard Ofori-Agyeman Boadi, has directed the eviction of squatters from all public school premises within the Kumasi Metropolis. He is enraged by the chaotic encroachment of school lands by residents and prospective developers.

School premises being used by a food seller

During an inspection tour of basic schools last week, the mayor, in the company of key officials, including Mr. Francis Dwira Darko, Metro Coordinating Director and Mr. David Oppong, Metro Director of Education, realised that the squatters were using school lands for various unauthorised purposes, including shelter, trading, cargo stations, drug peddling, mechanic workshops, sanitation and religious activities.

Schools visited by the mayor and his team included the Asem Cluster of Schools, Amankwatia Cluster of Schools and Bantama Methodist Primary School, during which he engaged assembly members, head teachers and Ghana Education Service staff in discussions.

He said the misuse of the lands does not only defeat the intended purposes of these lands, but also obstruct effective academic activities, as well as raising serious security, moral and sanitation concerns, besides noise pollution by the encroachers.

As a result, the KMA boss has instructed personnel from the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Physical Planning and the Works Department to ensure the eviction of all encroachers on such lands as soon as possible.

Bosome-Freho DCE courts government’s support to address infrastructural challenges 

By
admin
-
0
Charles Appiah Kubi, Bosome-Freho DCE

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Bosome Freho District in the Ashanti Region, Charles Appiah Kubi, has called on the central government to help address the infrastructural challenges facing the district.

He mentioned road, health, education and security sectors as the major areas needing urgent attention.

He identified the challenges following engagement with the chiefs and people of the 90 communities constituting the Bosome-Freho District, with Asiwa as its capital.

The district was carved out of the Amansie East district created by a decree of President John Agyekum Kufuor on February 29, 2008.

Speaking in an interview with The Chronicle, the DCE stressed that the road network was vital in the livelihood of the residents, 85 percent of who are dominantly farmers and traders.

However, the district has one of the deplorable road networks in the country with few tarred portions, thus affecting productivity, as farmers experience post-harvest loses.

The DCE mentioned the Juaso-Adansi Bodwesango-Adansi Asokwa-Kumasi/Cape Coast, Asiwa-Bomfa, Asiwa-Asante Bekwai roads as major roads within the district that “need” to be reconstructed to boost economic growth, assuring that the District Assembly in its small way would tackle the feeder roads in the district.

Currently, the district is faced with shortages of teachers because they refuse postings to the district due to lack of accommodation facilities and bad road network.

He said the district can boast of only one secondary school, the Bosome Senior High Technical School, for which reason President Mahama, in his previous administration intended to construct E-block SHS for the district, but his vision could not be realised due to the change of government in 2016.

The DCE, therefore, appealed to the President to construct the E-Block SHS to complement the existing one.

Appiah Kubi also complained of the lack of a District Hospital, stressing that the Health Centre in the district, as well as CHP compounds alone cannot cater for the health needs of the district, hence the need for the Central government to assist in this area.

DCE Appiah Kubi also revealed that though the district has a Police Command at its capital (Asiwa), as well as Police Stations at Nsuaem and Tebeso (yet to be officially commissioned), security is still not adequate due to the sparse nature of the communities within the district.

He disclosed that the Nsuta community has been able to construct a Police Station and appealed to the Ghana Police Service to provide them with personnel to beef up security in the enclave.

The DCE announced that he has established a Foundation to help the youth and less-privileged with good grades to further their education and discourage them from indulging in social vices, such as drug abuse and peer pressure, among others.

“Three individuals have benefitted from the Foundation since its establishment in May, this year”, he said.

From Oswald Pius Freiku, Kumasi

Insecurity: Plateau women threaten naked protest, accuse government of inaction

By
admin
-
0
Plateau women threaten to protest

A women’s group in Plateau State has threatened to protest naked over the recurring attacks and killings by suspected Fulani militias, especially in Berom communities.

The group under the aegis of the Berom Women Development Association, BWEDA, who made the threat in a statement on Saturday, also declared that the ongoing violence in the state is a clear case of genocide and not a result of farmer-herder conflicts as widely believed.

the statement signed by its President, Abigail Banga, BWEDA demanded immediate and decisive action from the government and security agencies to stop the relentless bloodshed in the state.

Describing the wave of attacks as mindless and unprovoked, the women’s group lamented the repeated killings and destruction of entire communities despite the presence of military personnel and armoured equipment.

The women also expressed deep frustration over what they term as the failure of the government to provide security and justice to the victims of such attacks.

They criticised the governments resort to condolence visits and palliatives, instead of a firm, decisive, and long-term security solution to avert the violence.

“Our hearts bleed with each butchered child and burned home. We are traumatised, we are grieving, and we are angry. This is not a conflict—it is a campaign of extermination,” part of the statement said.

The group further called on the federal government to urgently review its security framework in the state, stressing that allegations of military indifference and possibly collusion with attackers should not be swept under the carpet.

Credit: dailypost.ng

NDLEA Intercepts Cocaine Hidden In Mirrors, Lipsticks

By
admin
-
0
NDLEA Intercepts Cocaine

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted consignments of cocaine and tramadol hidden in vehicle side mirrors, lipsticks, and footwears in a string of operations that led to multiple arrests across Lagos, Abuja, and several states.

Spokesperson for the agency, Femi Babafemi, disclosed in a statement on Sunday that operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, intercepted a consignment headed to Libreville, Gabon, containing 57,420 pills of tramadol 225mg and 57 pellets of cocaine weighing 1.60kg concealed in 71 vehicle side mirrors.

The agency noted that the shipment was seized on 19 July, leading to the arrest of cargo agent Ihekweme Osinachi Benedict. Follow-up operations resulted in the arrest of Uzochukwu Godspower Chukwurah, from whose residence an additional 11 parcels of cocaine weighing 1kg were recovered. The total haul of cocaine reached 2.60kg across 68 parcels.

In a separate case, NDLEA operatives arrested a businesswoman, Mrs Nwafor Roseann Nneka, at the Trade Fair Complex, Ojo, Lagos, after tracing a July 10 consignment of cocaine and phenacetine concealed in ladies’ lipsticks bound for Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

Two cargo agents were earlier arrested. While Nneka was reported to have confessed to purchasing the lipsticks used for concealment, her husband and accomplice, Remigus Nwafor, remains at large.

Credit: channelstv.com

I’m Not Really Nigerian By Identity -UK Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch

By
admin
-
0
UK Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch

UK Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, says she no longer considers herself Nigerian and does not hold a Nigerian passport.

Badenoch admitted that although her ancestry is Nigerian and she spent part of her upbringing in the country, she does not identify as Nigerian.

“I’m Nigerian through ancestry, by birth, despite not being born there because of my parents, but by identity, I’m not really.

“I know the country very well, I have a lot of family there, and I’m very interested in what happens there,” Badenoch said on the Rosebud podcast hosted by Gyles Brandreth.

Born in Wimbledon, London, in 1980, the politician said that she had not renewed her Nigerian passport in over two decades.

Badenoch spent a significant part of her childhood in Nigeria and the United States before returning to the UK at the age of 16.

“I know the country [Nigeria] very well, I have a lot of family there, and I’m very interested in what happens there,” she stated.

Despite her roots, she emphasised a personal sense of detachment from the West African country.

Reflecting on her early struggles, she recalled, “The toughest thing I had to do was to fend for myself at 18.”

She also shared her feelings of not fully belonging while living in Nigeria, saying, “Never quite feeling that I belonged there.”

Now firmly rooted in the UK, Badenoch described what “home” means to her.

She said, “But home is where my now family is, and my now family is my children, it’s my husband and my brother and his children, in-laws. The Conservative party is very much part of my family, my extended family, I call it.”

Badenoch is among the last group of people to receive British birthright citizenship before the policy was abolished in 1981 by Margaret Thatcher’s government.

Credit: channelstv.com

Saint Lucia PM Faults Opposition Backlash Against Tinubu’s Visit

By
admin
-
0
President Bola Tinubu and Saint Lucia Prime Minister Philip Pierre

Saint Lucia’s Prime Minister, Philip Pierre, has faulted the backlash trailing President Bola Tinubu’s recent visit to the Caribbean nation.

Pierre, who spoke during his 2025 Emancipation Day address on August 1, 2025, lamented the “vilification and denigration” of Tinubu’s June 29, 2025 visit, branding it as a harmful residue of colonialism that still distorts perceptions of African leadership.

“The vilification and denigration of the President of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu, by a politically-motivated group tacitly supported by the opposition group was another demonstration of the harmful effects of the legacy of slavery — self-hate and readiness to accept African people and their descendants as inferior,” he said.

In the wake of Tinubu’s trip on July 29, many critics in Nigeria, especially opposition politicians, had questioned the necessity of the visit, especially in the wake of a deadly flood in Minna, Niger State, which claimed the lives of scores of residents.

Similarly, opposition parties and commentators in Saint Lucia scrutinised the cost of the visit, temporary airport closures, and the nature of any resulting bilateral agreements.

But Pierre said such criticisms were politically motivated and steeped in disrespect toward African heritage.

The Prime Minister reaffirmed Saint Lucia’s appreciation for Tinubu’s visit and emphasised a commitment to building stronger ties with Nigeria.

“That behaviour was nothing short of shameful and disgraceful. Had the visit been by a head of state from another country, the reception from that group would have been at least respectful.

“To the government and the people of Nigeria, the government and the people of Saint Lucia have been honoured by your president’s visit,” he added.

Emancipation Day in Saint Lucia marks the abolition of slavery in the British Caribbean and is commemorated with reflections on racial justice, Pan-Africanism, and solidarity with the African diaspora.

Credit: channelstv.com

1...650651652...3,047Page 651 of 3,047

EDITOR PICKS

POPULAR POSTS

POPULAR CATEGORY

©
The Ghanaian Chronicle