THE Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has held a two-day training workshop to build the capacity of district assemblies and community members to manage water and sanitation facilities being provided under the Northern Region Small Towns Water and Sanitation (NORST) project.
The training, which took place in Tamale, brought together community stakeholders from Yendi, Karaga, Nanumba North and Bunkpurugu/Yunyoo, who discussed various environmental hazards that pose a challenge to water and sanitation in their respective communities.
These include bush burning, deforestation, surface mining, over-grazing, poor sanitation, poor agronomic practices and misuse of agro-chemicals.
The NORST project is a seven-year development project, being funded by the Canadian Government through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) at an amount of $29.6 million.
Its objective is to provide increased access to sustainable water and sanitation services for approximately 125,000 beneficiaries in 30 selected small towns in 13 districts in the region.
The Northern Regional Director of the EPA, Mr Iddrisu Abu told the Daily Graphic that the participants had been be trained to draft Environmental Management Plans that would address issues such as wastewater and solid waste management, land conservation and the protection of forestry.
“We also sensitised them to the negative environmental practices that could prevent them from reaping adequate benefits from the water and sanitation projects,” he stated.
Mr Abu noted that practices like tree cutting and bush burning could impact negatively on the continuous existence and quality of water sources.
He also explained that when waste materials were not managed properly, they could end up polluting water sources and this would make the water provided to the community folk unsafe.
In his address, during the opening ceremony, the Deputy Northern Regional Minister, Mr San Nasamu Asabigi noted that water was life and therefore all must embrace efforts being made to promote the provision of potable water to deprived communities.
He said the selected beneficiary towns were faced with acute inaccessibility to potable water and, therefore, the intervention of NORST was “timely and highly relevant to the needs and aspirants of communities in the beneficiary districts.”
Mr Asabigi stressed that the provision of potable water would eventually eradicate the incidence of guinea worm and other water-borne diseases.
“It will as well promote agriculture and facilitate a livelihood community value-chain associated with progressive agricultural, health and socio-economic development,” he mentioned.
The deputy minister commended the Canadian government for its unrelenting support to the country and pledged the commitment of the Ghana government to ensure the success of all the development interventions.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
RTU BOARD SHOULD BE DISSOLVED — KASSIM (GRAPHIC SPORTS, PAGE 11, JULY 30, 2010)
THE pride of the north, Real Tamale United (RTU), must be born again if it is to regain its past glory, so says the immediate past Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the club, Mr Abdallah Kassim.
According to him, the club has been plunged into a crisis which has stifled its progress for some years now.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic in an interview, Mr Kassim, who is also the Chairman of the RTU Old Players Association, said the first step towards revamping the club was to apply its constitution and “sanitize its governing and management bodies.”
The former CEO backed calls being made from some quarters for the dissolution of the Board of Directors, citing non-performance as the key factor.
“The present board has been in place for the past 17 years and they have little to show for it. They did relatively well at the inception of the professional league but since five years ago they have lost track, thereby dragging the club through relegation scares every year since 2006,” he noted.
Mr Kassim believes that the poor performance of the club in the premier league could be traced to the inefficiency of the board and not the management.
He observed that almost with each passing season, the club changes management, but the results remain the same.
Currently, the frenzy to dissolve the board is catching on rapidly and rising to a feverish pitch, but the pervasive question within the RTU fraternity is who has the power to reconstitute the Board when the need arises.
He noted that the power to do that is vested in the club’s chief patron. “This is contained in RTU’s constitution. RTU has a constitution that sets out the organizational structure of the club and how it must be managed,” he mentioned.
While some stakeholders deny the existence of a constitution, others acknowledge that there was one but it became null and void when the club became incorporated and came under the companies’ code and that once a company is incorporated it does not need a constitution.
“That assertion is misleading because, besides the companies’ regulations document which is statutory, ideally, a company requires a written statement of its principles, aims and objectives which it voluntarily develops, internally, to guide its operation - call it a constitution, a policy or a charter,” Mr Kassim countered.
“RTU has a constitution which the current Board has conveniently jettisoned, because they don’t want to be accountable to anybody,” he alleged.
The former CEO explained that the RTU constitution makes provision for a Council of Patrons chaired by a Chief Patron; the Council of Patrons is responsible for the Board of Directors which is also responsible for the Management Committee.
He said, as things stand now, neither the Board nor the management committee is working in accordance with any document, which spells out clearly their roles and responsibilities.
“There is no document to guide the governance and management of the club. There is no job description for the chief executive officer and this explains why the Board has a field day running the club at their own discretion and plunging it into dire straits,” he further asserted.
Mr. Kassim states that since the inception of RTU, the Chief Patron has always been vested in the Office of the Northern Regional Minister, and successive Regional Ministers have occupied that position, until some members of the current Board tried, and are still trying, to abolish the position-contrary to the constitution.
“It is evident that the Board of RTU has deviated from the path laid down by the constitution and using the fire brigade approach to decision making. The Board does not report to the Chief Patron, and it has never held any annual general conference,” he further stated.
The former CEO stated strongly that “the constitution must be revisited and applied to its letter and spirit. The organisational structure prescribed by the constitution must be adhered to. RTU must be born again. And the Northern Regional Minister is the only midwife to deliver it. And I mean the only Messiah to salvage it.”
According to him, the club has been plunged into a crisis which has stifled its progress for some years now.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic in an interview, Mr Kassim, who is also the Chairman of the RTU Old Players Association, said the first step towards revamping the club was to apply its constitution and “sanitize its governing and management bodies.”
The former CEO backed calls being made from some quarters for the dissolution of the Board of Directors, citing non-performance as the key factor.
“The present board has been in place for the past 17 years and they have little to show for it. They did relatively well at the inception of the professional league but since five years ago they have lost track, thereby dragging the club through relegation scares every year since 2006,” he noted.
Mr Kassim believes that the poor performance of the club in the premier league could be traced to the inefficiency of the board and not the management.
He observed that almost with each passing season, the club changes management, but the results remain the same.
Currently, the frenzy to dissolve the board is catching on rapidly and rising to a feverish pitch, but the pervasive question within the RTU fraternity is who has the power to reconstitute the Board when the need arises.
He noted that the power to do that is vested in the club’s chief patron. “This is contained in RTU’s constitution. RTU has a constitution that sets out the organizational structure of the club and how it must be managed,” he mentioned.
While some stakeholders deny the existence of a constitution, others acknowledge that there was one but it became null and void when the club became incorporated and came under the companies’ code and that once a company is incorporated it does not need a constitution.
“That assertion is misleading because, besides the companies’ regulations document which is statutory, ideally, a company requires a written statement of its principles, aims and objectives which it voluntarily develops, internally, to guide its operation - call it a constitution, a policy or a charter,” Mr Kassim countered.
“RTU has a constitution which the current Board has conveniently jettisoned, because they don’t want to be accountable to anybody,” he alleged.
The former CEO explained that the RTU constitution makes provision for a Council of Patrons chaired by a Chief Patron; the Council of Patrons is responsible for the Board of Directors which is also responsible for the Management Committee.
He said, as things stand now, neither the Board nor the management committee is working in accordance with any document, which spells out clearly their roles and responsibilities.
“There is no document to guide the governance and management of the club. There is no job description for the chief executive officer and this explains why the Board has a field day running the club at their own discretion and plunging it into dire straits,” he further asserted.
Mr. Kassim states that since the inception of RTU, the Chief Patron has always been vested in the Office of the Northern Regional Minister, and successive Regional Ministers have occupied that position, until some members of the current Board tried, and are still trying, to abolish the position-contrary to the constitution.
“It is evident that the Board of RTU has deviated from the path laid down by the constitution and using the fire brigade approach to decision making. The Board does not report to the Chief Patron, and it has never held any annual general conference,” he further stated.
The former CEO stated strongly that “the constitution must be revisited and applied to its letter and spirit. The organisational structure prescribed by the constitution must be adhered to. RTU must be born again. And the Northern Regional Minister is the only midwife to deliver it. And I mean the only Messiah to salvage it.”
Thursday, July 29, 2010
SILENT VOICES OF BAWKU AND DAGBON (PAGE 19, JULY 28, 2010)
THEY seem to be the minority, but in reality they may be the majority. Their views have not been taken on board and they are considered either dead or yet unborn. It is they who face the rough of ethnic extremism and share the spoils, though they commit no crime.
Unfortunately, the media and its agenda setters and gatekeepers have failed to hear them out. Instead, it is those who spit fire and beat war drums that have been given the space and airtime.
How then do we promote peace when the peaceful citizens are deprived expression, whiles the violent actors – who are usually not the victims – are given the air to throw tantrums? Are actors of war more valuable to society than actors of peace?
Well, I have come to accept that those innocent peace-loving citizens in Bawku, Dagbon and other areas, where conflicts have been protracted, have virtually been left out of the picture.
This is so probably because the media’s slanted reportage has made many to believe that when Kusasi’s and Mamprusi’s have a confrontation, then all of them are at loggerheads. No wonder, when a northerner meets outsiders, the question they ask him or her is: “why are you people always fighting?”
I met a newly wedded couple the other day and, during our conversation, I realised they were natives of Bawku. They had come to Tamale briefly since the man’s workplace had temporarily been closed down.
He told me: “Massa, my wife and I sometimes feel insecure. Whiles she is a Kusasi, I am a Mamprusi and we have been in a relationship for over five years. We legalised our union only recently. My wife is even pregnant. We love each other and are not willing to separate because of this pettiness.”
But how long can this young couple continue to be excluded from this conflict. Would the extremists in both families one day throw caution away and attempt doing the unthinkable? What would be the repercussions on the families and children, in particular?
This is not peculiar to Bawku alone. Intermarriages are common between and among most other ethnic groups in Ghana. The Konkombas may have been at loggerheads with the Dagombas some years back, but today there are families that consist of people of mixed blood tracing lineage to each of these groups.
In Dagbon, there are families that comprise people who trace their lineage to both the Abudu and Andani royal families.
The question I ask, therefore, is: why should somebody’s family of birth turn him or her into an enemy or a wanted fellow?
How do such people extricate themselves from this web and behave as they wish: that is, mix with whomever and deal with people not based on their family lineage but by the traits of humanity in them?
Should they deny their lineage, as Juliet asked her lover Romeo to do in their love story, ‘Romeo and Juliet’: “Romeo, doff thy name. And for thy name which is no part of thee...”
Aside this struggle of attempting to live a normal life, moderates –who are predominantly the non-violent actors – also suffer alongside those who cause the violence.
Anytime there are violent happenings in some parts of the country, houses and vehicles are burnt, people are killed whiles others are maimed. There is displacement and women and children suffer the brunt through hunger and homelessness.
The conflicts also affect economic activity, transportation, social relationships and all these contribute to retarding society’s progress.
Unfortunately, when these things happen, it does not affect only those who are actively involved in these acts of violence.
After all, when a man from a feuding faction is killed, people from his side find another person from the supposed offending side to kill in retaliation. And most often, it does not turn out to be an actor of the violence, but an innocent citizen. Sad as it may be, it is the reality.
As if not enough, some moderates are impeded from making progress in their endeavours, such as governance, commerce, academic pursuit and group membership.
I have witnessed cases where a potential leader fails to get his desired leadership position simply because of his ethnic or family affiliation.
I have also seen business people lose customers because of their ethnic of family affiliation. In such cases, these business persons are being made to pay dearly for the actions of their great great-grandfathers. Does this make any sense?
I have even seen people attacked or maligned simply because they went to worship at a particular worship centre, which has supposedly been aligned to a faction.
So you see, moderates are really going through a lot and need some help, even more than those engaged in these violent conflicts.
I know, don’t ask me. I have been asking the same question: what are these innocent moderates or non-violent actors doing to stop the conflicts or, at least, get their voices head?
It is true that those who do not like the use of violence as a means of resolving differences could play a critical role in bringing peace to troubled areas.
They could form very strong advocacy groups to psyche their people to understand that violence is not the panacea to conflict resolution.
The reality, however, is that these voices are silent because they fear to be victimised. They do not want to be seen as the black sheep in their families and thus tend to remain quite. They have seen it happen elsewhere.
In the Rwandan genocide, both moderate Hutus and Tutsis were among the about 800, 000 to 1, 000, 000 people killed in the ethnic carnage between the two groups.
“Hotel Rwanda”, one of the movies that attempts to demonstrate what happened during the conflict, shows clearly how difficult it was for the protagonists, a Hutu, to protect his wife, who was a Tutsi.
To the extent that even the blood brother of the protagonist hated this courageous and noble act of his brother and tried several times to separate them so as to harm the woman.
Similarly, this is the difficulty that moderates in conflict areas in Ghana are faced with. They have to choose between the devil and the deep blue see.
So then, who would come to their rescue? This is where the media need to come in. Journalists need to be the voices of these silent sufferers of these needless overt conflicts.
Journalistic works – news reports, articles, radio discussions and TV documentaries – must seek to psyche the minds of people in conflict zones to understand that there are people among them who prefer other means to conflict resolution.
These silent voices, the media must stress, need to be listened to. Their views must matter because they are equally, if not more, affected by the actions of the violent actors.
According to peace-building practitioners, the media could play a pivotal role in peace-building, if it gives a voice to various actors in society who do not contribute actively to violent conflicts.
They argue, for instance, that in conflict situations, journalists could focus much attention on persons from the feuding factions who are living together in harmony, irrespective of their differences.
“Such reports or documentaries would challenge the existing assumptions that say that feuding factions cannot live together,” explains Mr Abdullah Kassim, an executive member of the Rural Media Network (RUMNET).
What is wrong with a front page story that shows a Kusasi and Mamprusi in a friendly handshake, smiling and relishing the joy of living in harmony? Do our newspapers always have to show the disharmony?
All in all, one thing remains clear: that the victims of violent conflicts, as the media always want us to believe, are not just limited to those who lost their lives and property due to their participation, but, more importantly, the non-violent actors whose lives have been affected by these conflicts. And those are the silent voices.
Unfortunately, the media and its agenda setters and gatekeepers have failed to hear them out. Instead, it is those who spit fire and beat war drums that have been given the space and airtime.
How then do we promote peace when the peaceful citizens are deprived expression, whiles the violent actors – who are usually not the victims – are given the air to throw tantrums? Are actors of war more valuable to society than actors of peace?
Well, I have come to accept that those innocent peace-loving citizens in Bawku, Dagbon and other areas, where conflicts have been protracted, have virtually been left out of the picture.
This is so probably because the media’s slanted reportage has made many to believe that when Kusasi’s and Mamprusi’s have a confrontation, then all of them are at loggerheads. No wonder, when a northerner meets outsiders, the question they ask him or her is: “why are you people always fighting?”
I met a newly wedded couple the other day and, during our conversation, I realised they were natives of Bawku. They had come to Tamale briefly since the man’s workplace had temporarily been closed down.
He told me: “Massa, my wife and I sometimes feel insecure. Whiles she is a Kusasi, I am a Mamprusi and we have been in a relationship for over five years. We legalised our union only recently. My wife is even pregnant. We love each other and are not willing to separate because of this pettiness.”
But how long can this young couple continue to be excluded from this conflict. Would the extremists in both families one day throw caution away and attempt doing the unthinkable? What would be the repercussions on the families and children, in particular?
This is not peculiar to Bawku alone. Intermarriages are common between and among most other ethnic groups in Ghana. The Konkombas may have been at loggerheads with the Dagombas some years back, but today there are families that consist of people of mixed blood tracing lineage to each of these groups.
In Dagbon, there are families that comprise people who trace their lineage to both the Abudu and Andani royal families.
The question I ask, therefore, is: why should somebody’s family of birth turn him or her into an enemy or a wanted fellow?
How do such people extricate themselves from this web and behave as they wish: that is, mix with whomever and deal with people not based on their family lineage but by the traits of humanity in them?
Should they deny their lineage, as Juliet asked her lover Romeo to do in their love story, ‘Romeo and Juliet’: “Romeo, doff thy name. And for thy name which is no part of thee...”
Aside this struggle of attempting to live a normal life, moderates –who are predominantly the non-violent actors – also suffer alongside those who cause the violence.
Anytime there are violent happenings in some parts of the country, houses and vehicles are burnt, people are killed whiles others are maimed. There is displacement and women and children suffer the brunt through hunger and homelessness.
The conflicts also affect economic activity, transportation, social relationships and all these contribute to retarding society’s progress.
Unfortunately, when these things happen, it does not affect only those who are actively involved in these acts of violence.
After all, when a man from a feuding faction is killed, people from his side find another person from the supposed offending side to kill in retaliation. And most often, it does not turn out to be an actor of the violence, but an innocent citizen. Sad as it may be, it is the reality.
As if not enough, some moderates are impeded from making progress in their endeavours, such as governance, commerce, academic pursuit and group membership.
I have witnessed cases where a potential leader fails to get his desired leadership position simply because of his ethnic or family affiliation.
I have also seen business people lose customers because of their ethnic of family affiliation. In such cases, these business persons are being made to pay dearly for the actions of their great great-grandfathers. Does this make any sense?
I have even seen people attacked or maligned simply because they went to worship at a particular worship centre, which has supposedly been aligned to a faction.
So you see, moderates are really going through a lot and need some help, even more than those engaged in these violent conflicts.
I know, don’t ask me. I have been asking the same question: what are these innocent moderates or non-violent actors doing to stop the conflicts or, at least, get their voices head?
It is true that those who do not like the use of violence as a means of resolving differences could play a critical role in bringing peace to troubled areas.
They could form very strong advocacy groups to psyche their people to understand that violence is not the panacea to conflict resolution.
The reality, however, is that these voices are silent because they fear to be victimised. They do not want to be seen as the black sheep in their families and thus tend to remain quite. They have seen it happen elsewhere.
In the Rwandan genocide, both moderate Hutus and Tutsis were among the about 800, 000 to 1, 000, 000 people killed in the ethnic carnage between the two groups.
“Hotel Rwanda”, one of the movies that attempts to demonstrate what happened during the conflict, shows clearly how difficult it was for the protagonists, a Hutu, to protect his wife, who was a Tutsi.
To the extent that even the blood brother of the protagonist hated this courageous and noble act of his brother and tried several times to separate them so as to harm the woman.
Similarly, this is the difficulty that moderates in conflict areas in Ghana are faced with. They have to choose between the devil and the deep blue see.
So then, who would come to their rescue? This is where the media need to come in. Journalists need to be the voices of these silent sufferers of these needless overt conflicts.
Journalistic works – news reports, articles, radio discussions and TV documentaries – must seek to psyche the minds of people in conflict zones to understand that there are people among them who prefer other means to conflict resolution.
These silent voices, the media must stress, need to be listened to. Their views must matter because they are equally, if not more, affected by the actions of the violent actors.
According to peace-building practitioners, the media could play a pivotal role in peace-building, if it gives a voice to various actors in society who do not contribute actively to violent conflicts.
They argue, for instance, that in conflict situations, journalists could focus much attention on persons from the feuding factions who are living together in harmony, irrespective of their differences.
“Such reports or documentaries would challenge the existing assumptions that say that feuding factions cannot live together,” explains Mr Abdullah Kassim, an executive member of the Rural Media Network (RUMNET).
What is wrong with a front page story that shows a Kusasi and Mamprusi in a friendly handshake, smiling and relishing the joy of living in harmony? Do our newspapers always have to show the disharmony?
All in all, one thing remains clear: that the victims of violent conflicts, as the media always want us to believe, are not just limited to those who lost their lives and property due to their participation, but, more importantly, the non-violent actors whose lives have been affected by these conflicts. And those are the silent voices.
TEACHING OF ICT IN TRAINING COLLEGES POOR (PAGE 11, JULY 28, 2010)
AN Information Communication Technology (ICT) tutor at the St. Charles Senior High School in Tamale, Mr Raphael McClure Adomey has observed that part of the problem why some school children perform poorly in ICT is because teachers are themselves not conversant with ICT.
According to him, the teaching of ICT at the training colleges is very poor and this has resulted in the churning out of teachers who have very little skills in ICT and can therefore not influence positively on their children.
The ICT tutor made this assertion in Tamale at an ICT forum organised by the Savana Signatures, a non-governmental organisation that works to promote the use of ICT among the youth and women.
The forum, which brought together students, pupils and teachers from schools in the three Northern Regions, sought to create a platform for participants to discuss how to mainstream ICT effectively into education in the region.
Mr Adomey, who was delivering a presentation on “ICT and Teacher Training Colleges in Ghana,” noted that the teaching of ICT at the training colleges was below par and cited several reasons to back his claim.
“There are no syllabi to guide ICT training, the time frame for the course is also inadequate and most of the training is theory-based,” he enumerated.
The instructor also noted that the there were not adequate lecturers to handle ICT at the training colleges, adding that the computer laboratories were poorly resourced and in deplorable conditions.
He again revealed that a lot of training institutions did not have budgets to finance the teaching of ICT, adding that they depend largely on donor support for the supply of computers and other accessories.
The unreliable internet access in these institutions, he noted, was also impeding the use of the worldwide web for lessons.
Mr Adomey said there was the need for a proper syllabus on the teaching of ICT to be formulated for training institutions and stressed that the course content must be expanded to include many areas, including lessons on simple computer maintenance and the use of multimedia.
“Teachers also need to be introduced to teaching-enhanced software that can enable them to improve upon their methodology of teaching and also get their pupils or students to familiarise with these software programmes,” he further recommended.
The ICT instructor also observed that another reason why some children, particularly those in deprived communities, perform poorly in ICT was because they had nurtured some phobia for the computer.
“They think the computer is not meant for them and they see it as a device they do not have to touch,” he lamented.
Mr Adomey noted that students who feared the computer needed to be psyched gradually to see the device as a tool for learning.
“This is a cultural problem that can easily be surmounted if teachers are willing to use persuasion to encourage their students and pupils who have this phobia to appreciate the device,” he stated.
The team leader of Savana Signatures, Mr Agbenyo John Stephen revealed that a research conducted by his organisation together with IFID, showed that 55 per cent of students interviewed backed calls for ICT to be made un-examinable.
Among the reasons given by the students, he noted, were that the computers were not available for studies, other learning materials were also absent and there were not enough teachers to handle the subject.
According to him, the teaching of ICT at the training colleges is very poor and this has resulted in the churning out of teachers who have very little skills in ICT and can therefore not influence positively on their children.
The ICT tutor made this assertion in Tamale at an ICT forum organised by the Savana Signatures, a non-governmental organisation that works to promote the use of ICT among the youth and women.
The forum, which brought together students, pupils and teachers from schools in the three Northern Regions, sought to create a platform for participants to discuss how to mainstream ICT effectively into education in the region.
Mr Adomey, who was delivering a presentation on “ICT and Teacher Training Colleges in Ghana,” noted that the teaching of ICT at the training colleges was below par and cited several reasons to back his claim.
“There are no syllabi to guide ICT training, the time frame for the course is also inadequate and most of the training is theory-based,” he enumerated.
The instructor also noted that the there were not adequate lecturers to handle ICT at the training colleges, adding that the computer laboratories were poorly resourced and in deplorable conditions.
He again revealed that a lot of training institutions did not have budgets to finance the teaching of ICT, adding that they depend largely on donor support for the supply of computers and other accessories.
The unreliable internet access in these institutions, he noted, was also impeding the use of the worldwide web for lessons.
Mr Adomey said there was the need for a proper syllabus on the teaching of ICT to be formulated for training institutions and stressed that the course content must be expanded to include many areas, including lessons on simple computer maintenance and the use of multimedia.
“Teachers also need to be introduced to teaching-enhanced software that can enable them to improve upon their methodology of teaching and also get their pupils or students to familiarise with these software programmes,” he further recommended.
The ICT instructor also observed that another reason why some children, particularly those in deprived communities, perform poorly in ICT was because they had nurtured some phobia for the computer.
“They think the computer is not meant for them and they see it as a device they do not have to touch,” he lamented.
Mr Adomey noted that students who feared the computer needed to be psyched gradually to see the device as a tool for learning.
“This is a cultural problem that can easily be surmounted if teachers are willing to use persuasion to encourage their students and pupils who have this phobia to appreciate the device,” he stated.
The team leader of Savana Signatures, Mr Agbenyo John Stephen revealed that a research conducted by his organisation together with IFID, showed that 55 per cent of students interviewed backed calls for ICT to be made un-examinable.
Among the reasons given by the students, he noted, were that the computers were not available for studies, other learning materials were also absent and there were not enough teachers to handle the subject.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
RESIDENTS WORRIED ABOUT CONTAMINATED VEGETABLES (PAGE 23, JULY 29, 2010)
VEGETABLES are said to be nutritious supplements to our daily meals as they are rich in vitamins and other nutrients.
And yet, in spite of their health benefits, the activities of vegetable farmers could sometimes turn the vegetable into a poison.
This is exactly why some residents in Tamale are worried about the type of vegetables they consume following the realisation that some farmers were using contaminated water to irrigate their vegetable crops.
According to them, such vegetables, when eaten, could affect the health of consumers and discourage people from eating vegetables, in spite of their significance to sound health.
They have, therefore, called on the Agriculture Ministry and the Ghana Health Service to collaborate and nip this practice in the bud to avert any outbreak of infection.
A report carried by the Daily Graphic had revealed that some farmers in parts of Tamale, notably Kalpohin, Ward K and Gumani, were using contaminated water to irrigate their vegetable crops.
The farmers had raised their farms on pieces of land located along some major drains and this made it easier for them to source the waste water that runs through the drains for irrigation, even though the water is replete with all forms of toxic waste such as human and animal faecal matter.
Vegetables raised on these farms include cabbage, lettuce, pepper and okra.
The practice, according to some health practitioners, could impact negatively on human health because the vegetables become contaminated before they are harvested.
The Director of Public Health in the Northern Region, Dr Jacob Yakubu Mahama, who spoke to the Daily Graphic, noted that people who consumed such vegetables faced the risk of developing diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera and typhoid.
“Such vegetables,” he explained, “are likely to be contaminated by faecal matter contained in the waste water and this puts the consumer of the vegetable at risk of developing a diarrhoea disease”.
He said an outbreak of cholera through such a process could be difficult to control, “unless the consumption of the contaminated vegetables ceases”.
Dr Mahama, therefore, advised consumers of vegetables to wash them thoroughly so as to disinfect them of any contamination.
In an interview, the Tamale Metropolitan Agric Director, Mr Kwamina Arkorful, said his outfit was aware of this menace, but admitted that it was just a handful of vegetable farmers out of the lot who were engaged in this act.
He said the problem arose mainly because Tamale had no running water such as streams and rivers, and therefore, many vegetable farmers depended on dams, whilst a few used the waste water.
“We are doing our best to provide more dams and also teach the farmers safer irrigation practices for reducing vegetable contamination,” he stated.
And yet, in spite of their health benefits, the activities of vegetable farmers could sometimes turn the vegetable into a poison.
This is exactly why some residents in Tamale are worried about the type of vegetables they consume following the realisation that some farmers were using contaminated water to irrigate their vegetable crops.
According to them, such vegetables, when eaten, could affect the health of consumers and discourage people from eating vegetables, in spite of their significance to sound health.
They have, therefore, called on the Agriculture Ministry and the Ghana Health Service to collaborate and nip this practice in the bud to avert any outbreak of infection.
A report carried by the Daily Graphic had revealed that some farmers in parts of Tamale, notably Kalpohin, Ward K and Gumani, were using contaminated water to irrigate their vegetable crops.
The farmers had raised their farms on pieces of land located along some major drains and this made it easier for them to source the waste water that runs through the drains for irrigation, even though the water is replete with all forms of toxic waste such as human and animal faecal matter.
Vegetables raised on these farms include cabbage, lettuce, pepper and okra.
The practice, according to some health practitioners, could impact negatively on human health because the vegetables become contaminated before they are harvested.
The Director of Public Health in the Northern Region, Dr Jacob Yakubu Mahama, who spoke to the Daily Graphic, noted that people who consumed such vegetables faced the risk of developing diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera and typhoid.
“Such vegetables,” he explained, “are likely to be contaminated by faecal matter contained in the waste water and this puts the consumer of the vegetable at risk of developing a diarrhoea disease”.
He said an outbreak of cholera through such a process could be difficult to control, “unless the consumption of the contaminated vegetables ceases”.
Dr Mahama, therefore, advised consumers of vegetables to wash them thoroughly so as to disinfect them of any contamination.
In an interview, the Tamale Metropolitan Agric Director, Mr Kwamina Arkorful, said his outfit was aware of this menace, but admitted that it was just a handful of vegetable farmers out of the lot who were engaged in this act.
He said the problem arose mainly because Tamale had no running water such as streams and rivers, and therefore, many vegetable farmers depended on dams, whilst a few used the waste water.
“We are doing our best to provide more dams and also teach the farmers safer irrigation practices for reducing vegetable contamination,” he stated.
TAMALE LACKS TOILET FACILITIES (PAGE 23, JULY 29, 2010)
IT was estimated in 2008 by the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) that more than 1.6 billion people were waiting to have access to improved sanitation.
These people were waiting to have access to sanitary and environmentally-friendly toilets, which are non-existent. The situation is more prevalent in developing countries, particularly West Africa.
In Tamale, it is not clear how many people are waiting to have access to toilets, but the sad truth is that more and more people are compelled to explore new grounds to attend to the call of nature.
It is obvious that Tamale is no more a small town with many bushy areas that made it possible for residents to practise ‘free range’. It is now a sprawling city.
Today, more and more settlements are emerging. Many houses are being built on a regular basis and yet, only a few of these can boast of a toilet. Most houses are without a toilet and tenants have to roam round the community looking for places to defecate.
A lot of residents rely on public toilets, which is counter-productive as people have to walk long distances to access such toilets and again spend time queuing and waiting for their turn.
The state of public toilets is even an eyesore. Most of them are poorly-ventilated, smelly and unhygienic and this discourages sanitary-conscious citizens from using such facilities.
What happens, then, if people cannot find a place to ease themselves? They begin looking for alternatives, some of which could pose a danger to their health and that of others.
In January this year, the UN’s IRIN news network reported that in Kampala, the Ugandan capital, the lack of adequate sanitation facilities had led to the increased use of polythene bags – which they christened ‘flying toilets’ – for human waste disposal.
According to the report, the situation was worse in slums where infrastructure was very basic, such as poor drainage systems.
The health hazards of such a phenomenon are not far-fetched. According to the Director of Public Health in the Northern Region, Dr Jacob Mahama, when faeces are disposed of improperly, they tend to pollute water sources and this increases the likelihood of disease infections.
He also explained that in the dry season, the possibility of people consuming faeces was on the high due to the winds and the activities of flies, especially because some food vendors left their food items uncovered.
One may wonder if authorities of the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly (TaMA) are waiting for Tamale to be like Kampala (that is, if it isn’t already) before they take serious action.
There are regulations regarding the construction of residential buildings in every town in Ghana and Tamale is not an exception.
One of the regulations requires the landlord/ladies to provide toilets in their homes, but how many people comply with this directive.
So what has the assembly authorities done to ensure that this directive is followed? I asked the Head of the Waste Management Department of the TaMA, Mr Sampson Akwettey.
“What happens is that, when people bring their building plans for approval, they allocate areas for toilets, but after construction, they convert these places into rooms for other purposes”.
He said people converted these proposed toilets to living places, kitchens and stores, thus depriving the tenants of a place to ease themselves.
It is important to note also that not all landlords draw building plans for their houses and only a few of those who do so bother to send their plans to the assembly for approval to acquire a building permit. Again, not all areas have public toilets.
So usually, more needs to be done to ensure that people have toilets in their homes to prevent them from using unorthodox means when easing themselves.
According to Mr Akwettey, even though the assembly is unable to enforce these building directives, it had taken measures to promote the construction of household latrines in the metropolis.
He said under the 2nd Urban Environmental Sanitation Project, the assembly had helped home owners in the metropolis to construct more than 1600 household latrines.
“We provided them with financial assistance, alongside some technical directions to enable them to construct standard latrines,” Mr Akwettey mentioned.
He said the project had since folded up and efforts are being made to secure more funding to continue with this form of assistance.
The sanitation officer also mentioned that some private organisations were also helping to construct technologically-improved latrines for households at a less expensive cost.
He said the assembly was equally considering ways of making budgetary allocations to fund the provision of household latrines, but admitted that such an endeavour was costly.
If indeed the assembly has undertaken all these measures, as the sanitation officer has outlined, and still many people in Tamale are in search of a place of convenience, then it implies that a lot more needs to be done to salvage Tamale from turning into a city plagued with indiscriminate disposal of human waste.
The Northern Regional Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Mr Iddrisu Abu, suggested the strengthening of the building inspectorate and the environment and sanitation units of the assembly.
He said it was regrettable that such a unit such as the building inspectorate had just a single staff, “who has not got a vehicle or any significant assistance to do his job”.
To curb the phenomenon where people convert toilets to rooms, Mr Abu recommended that the assembly shies away from giving full permits to landlords/ladies, unless they stick to the approved building plans during construction, adding that this would ensure that proposed latrines are not converted into other rooms.
“If you give them the full building permits, then they can go ahead and do otherwise, after all they have the permits,” he stated, adding that provisional permits should be given to allow the prospective builders to commence their projects, while awaiting the full permit.
The EPA director further entreated the TaMA to mainstream health, environment and sanitation issues into its Medium-term development plans so that it could budget for these projects and proceed to implement them.
In a nutshell, it is clear that if the TaMA fails to take stringent measures to promote the construction of latrines in all households in Tamale, a major catastrophe awaits the city.
These people were waiting to have access to sanitary and environmentally-friendly toilets, which are non-existent. The situation is more prevalent in developing countries, particularly West Africa.
In Tamale, it is not clear how many people are waiting to have access to toilets, but the sad truth is that more and more people are compelled to explore new grounds to attend to the call of nature.
It is obvious that Tamale is no more a small town with many bushy areas that made it possible for residents to practise ‘free range’. It is now a sprawling city.
Today, more and more settlements are emerging. Many houses are being built on a regular basis and yet, only a few of these can boast of a toilet. Most houses are without a toilet and tenants have to roam round the community looking for places to defecate.
A lot of residents rely on public toilets, which is counter-productive as people have to walk long distances to access such toilets and again spend time queuing and waiting for their turn.
The state of public toilets is even an eyesore. Most of them are poorly-ventilated, smelly and unhygienic and this discourages sanitary-conscious citizens from using such facilities.
What happens, then, if people cannot find a place to ease themselves? They begin looking for alternatives, some of which could pose a danger to their health and that of others.
In January this year, the UN’s IRIN news network reported that in Kampala, the Ugandan capital, the lack of adequate sanitation facilities had led to the increased use of polythene bags – which they christened ‘flying toilets’ – for human waste disposal.
According to the report, the situation was worse in slums where infrastructure was very basic, such as poor drainage systems.
The health hazards of such a phenomenon are not far-fetched. According to the Director of Public Health in the Northern Region, Dr Jacob Mahama, when faeces are disposed of improperly, they tend to pollute water sources and this increases the likelihood of disease infections.
He also explained that in the dry season, the possibility of people consuming faeces was on the high due to the winds and the activities of flies, especially because some food vendors left their food items uncovered.
One may wonder if authorities of the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly (TaMA) are waiting for Tamale to be like Kampala (that is, if it isn’t already) before they take serious action.
There are regulations regarding the construction of residential buildings in every town in Ghana and Tamale is not an exception.
One of the regulations requires the landlord/ladies to provide toilets in their homes, but how many people comply with this directive.
So what has the assembly authorities done to ensure that this directive is followed? I asked the Head of the Waste Management Department of the TaMA, Mr Sampson Akwettey.
“What happens is that, when people bring their building plans for approval, they allocate areas for toilets, but after construction, they convert these places into rooms for other purposes”.
He said people converted these proposed toilets to living places, kitchens and stores, thus depriving the tenants of a place to ease themselves.
It is important to note also that not all landlords draw building plans for their houses and only a few of those who do so bother to send their plans to the assembly for approval to acquire a building permit. Again, not all areas have public toilets.
So usually, more needs to be done to ensure that people have toilets in their homes to prevent them from using unorthodox means when easing themselves.
According to Mr Akwettey, even though the assembly is unable to enforce these building directives, it had taken measures to promote the construction of household latrines in the metropolis.
He said under the 2nd Urban Environmental Sanitation Project, the assembly had helped home owners in the metropolis to construct more than 1600 household latrines.
“We provided them with financial assistance, alongside some technical directions to enable them to construct standard latrines,” Mr Akwettey mentioned.
He said the project had since folded up and efforts are being made to secure more funding to continue with this form of assistance.
The sanitation officer also mentioned that some private organisations were also helping to construct technologically-improved latrines for households at a less expensive cost.
He said the assembly was equally considering ways of making budgetary allocations to fund the provision of household latrines, but admitted that such an endeavour was costly.
If indeed the assembly has undertaken all these measures, as the sanitation officer has outlined, and still many people in Tamale are in search of a place of convenience, then it implies that a lot more needs to be done to salvage Tamale from turning into a city plagued with indiscriminate disposal of human waste.
The Northern Regional Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Mr Iddrisu Abu, suggested the strengthening of the building inspectorate and the environment and sanitation units of the assembly.
He said it was regrettable that such a unit such as the building inspectorate had just a single staff, “who has not got a vehicle or any significant assistance to do his job”.
To curb the phenomenon where people convert toilets to rooms, Mr Abu recommended that the assembly shies away from giving full permits to landlords/ladies, unless they stick to the approved building plans during construction, adding that this would ensure that proposed latrines are not converted into other rooms.
“If you give them the full building permits, then they can go ahead and do otherwise, after all they have the permits,” he stated, adding that provisional permits should be given to allow the prospective builders to commence their projects, while awaiting the full permit.
The EPA director further entreated the TaMA to mainstream health, environment and sanitation issues into its Medium-term development plans so that it could budget for these projects and proceed to implement them.
In a nutshell, it is clear that if the TaMA fails to take stringent measures to promote the construction of latrines in all households in Tamale, a major catastrophe awaits the city.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
NIGHT OF JOY FOR NORTHERN GHANAIAN JOURNALISTS (PAGE 35, JULY 28, 2010)
ON the night of Saturday, July 17, 2010, the Radach Memorial Centre in Tamale was alive as many young, middle-aged and retired journalists converged on the place to receive recognition for their past and current journalistic work, which has contributed immensely to the development of northern Ghana.
It was a historic night as there had never been such an event where the soldiers of journalism in northern Ghana had been duly recognised for their services and sacrifice for that part of the country.
For many years, a number of journalists who were plying their trade in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions worked like coal miners to present to the world events in these areas in a professional manner.
These were times when electricity was a scarce commodity in northern Ghana, fax machines were not common and mobile phones and Internet were non-existent, but the absence of those facilities never prevented them from carrying out their duties efficiently.
In those days, it could take the journalists several hours to travel from one place to another to get good stories due to the poor nature of roads in these three regions. Aside of that, they had to risk their lives in precarious situations to get news for the general public, be it on sports or general news.
The noble men and women who were honoured included Mr George Sydney Abugri, Mr Mohammed Ibrahim Awal, Mr Yaw Boadu Ayeboafo, Mr Fred Osei Agyemang, Alhaji Razak El-Alawa, Mr Alhassan Imoro, Mr Issaka Goodman, Alhaji A.B. Fuseini, Mr Breda Atta-Quayson, Mr Edward Ameyibor, Mr Adam Cockra and Alhaji Haruna Alhassan.
Others were Madam Sawuratu Alhassan, Mr Abdallah Kassim, Mr Zakaria Abdul-Kadir, Mr Justice Abban, Mr Alidu Baba, Mr John Akologo Tia, Mr Ahmed Baako Alhassan, Mr Ahmed Amidu Damba, Mr Chris Alalbillah, Mr Mark Woyongo and Alhaji Haruna Atta.
Saturday night was, thus, a victory night for these gallant, industrious and unrelenting journalists who have imprinted their footsteps on the dry sands of the savannah for the young ones to follow and deepen.
At least, if for nothing at all, these journalists could derive some joy from the fact that they were not asked to wait and get their rewards in heaven, even though those rewards still await them.
Mr Imoro summed it all up when he said: “It’s a great moment, which we would forever remember. Knowing that our toils have not gone in vain gives us a great feeling”.
He expressed the hope that many other journalists who had served in northern Ghana wholeheartedly and deserved to be celebrated, would in due course be recognised and honoured accordingly.
Indeed, Saturday night was not reserved for celebration not only by the torchbearers of journalism in the north, but also to reward current practising journalists as a way of encouraging them to do more.
The head of the editorial department at the Graphic Communications Group Limited in the Northern Region, Mr Zakaria Alhassan emerged the overall best journalist for the three northern regions.
This was in acknowledgement of his long-standing and consistent professional reporting of events in the Northern and Upper East regions, which had endeared him to many readers of the Daily Graphic. He had on many occasions reported on conflict situations in a manner that left readers with no choice than to applaud him for his objectivity.
Other practising journalists whose works earned them awards were Mr Abdul-Karim Nantogma of Citi FM, who was awarded the best development journalist, Mr Edmund Gyebi of the Chronicle newspaper, who received the best investigative journalist award, Mr Samuel Adadi Akpule of the Ghana News Agency, who was awarded the best rural journalist, and Madam Bernice Agyekwena of the Advocate newspaper, who took home the best female journalist award.
The best human rights journalist award went to Mr Stephen Zouri of the Daily Guide, the best environmental journalist award was given to Mr Isaac Nongya of Metro TV, while Mr Salifu Mohammed Nurudeen received the best health reporter and the most promising young journalist awards.
Other notable awards included the best radio news editor, which went to Alhaji Sule Adam of Diamond FM in Tamale, the best features writer was Mr William N-Lanjerborr Jalulah of Chronicle, best radio news anchor award was won by Mr Emmanuel Akayeti of GBC in Bolgatanga, while the best sports journalist award went to Mr Yakubu Zambanga of Radio Justice in Tamale.
The overall best radio station for the three regions was awarded to Justice FM while the others won awards at the regional level.
Another special category of awards went to four young promising journalists of northern origin who are currently making giant strides in their areas of endeavour, but outside northern Ghana.
They are Ms Shamima Muslim of Citi FM, who is also a host of Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana, Mr Anas Aremeyaw Anas, award-winning investigative journalist of the New Crusading Guide, Alhaji Abubakari Marizuuk of the Bilingual Free Press and Mr Musah Yahaya Jafaru of the Daily Graphic in Accra.
Ms Muslim was honoured not only for her outstanding performance, but also in recognition of the fact that she had become a role model for young ladies in northern Ghana who are taking inspirations from her to become journalists.
“I am happy that the little that I am doing is being recognised and to the extent that it is motivating young ladies, like myself, to aspire to greater heights. I feel great joy,” Ms Muslim told the Daily Graphic in an interview.
The General Manager of Newspapers of the Graphic Communications Group Limited, Mr Yaw Boadu Ayeboafo, who was the guest speaker for the function, had a word of advice for young journalists.
He cautioned them to be mindful of the role they had been tasked to play, stressing that journalism was a make or break affair, where a single act of irresponsibility could ruin one’s work and impact negatively on the development of the nation.
With such words of wisdom from an experienced brain, the award winners and their colleagues in the inky fraternity had no excuse to do the wrong thing, than to act in accordance with the ethics of the profession.
“For me, it is a reminder of the need to use my pen and paper to enlighten my people, foster unity and promote understanding to facilitate development,” Mr Alhassan, the overall best journalist, remarked.
By the close of the event, patrons were full of praise for the organisers, of the event, Flip Africa Media Consult – Ghana (FAMeC – Ghana), as well as the sponsors and other partners, for spearheading such a worthy course.
All who spoke to the Daily Graphic insisted that the event be sustained and staged each year. That, they noted, was the sure way of encouraging more young people to aspire to be celebrated journalists.
“I think such an event would send signals to journalists to know that their work is being monitored and so any shoddy work on their part would receive a bashing instead of honour, ”a CO-manager of Duraqua Company Limited, Mr Badu Patrick stated.
The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Tamale Teaching Hospital, Mr Nii Otu-Ankrah, had a word of advice for the organisers: “This event has come to stay and so they need to do much to make it live up to its billing. Issues like time and reward packages need to be given priority in future events,” he stated.
In fact, it was a night of joy for both young and old journalists, and also the beginning of great things to come.
It was a historic night as there had never been such an event where the soldiers of journalism in northern Ghana had been duly recognised for their services and sacrifice for that part of the country.
For many years, a number of journalists who were plying their trade in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions worked like coal miners to present to the world events in these areas in a professional manner.
These were times when electricity was a scarce commodity in northern Ghana, fax machines were not common and mobile phones and Internet were non-existent, but the absence of those facilities never prevented them from carrying out their duties efficiently.
In those days, it could take the journalists several hours to travel from one place to another to get good stories due to the poor nature of roads in these three regions. Aside of that, they had to risk their lives in precarious situations to get news for the general public, be it on sports or general news.
The noble men and women who were honoured included Mr George Sydney Abugri, Mr Mohammed Ibrahim Awal, Mr Yaw Boadu Ayeboafo, Mr Fred Osei Agyemang, Alhaji Razak El-Alawa, Mr Alhassan Imoro, Mr Issaka Goodman, Alhaji A.B. Fuseini, Mr Breda Atta-Quayson, Mr Edward Ameyibor, Mr Adam Cockra and Alhaji Haruna Alhassan.
Others were Madam Sawuratu Alhassan, Mr Abdallah Kassim, Mr Zakaria Abdul-Kadir, Mr Justice Abban, Mr Alidu Baba, Mr John Akologo Tia, Mr Ahmed Baako Alhassan, Mr Ahmed Amidu Damba, Mr Chris Alalbillah, Mr Mark Woyongo and Alhaji Haruna Atta.
Saturday night was, thus, a victory night for these gallant, industrious and unrelenting journalists who have imprinted their footsteps on the dry sands of the savannah for the young ones to follow and deepen.
At least, if for nothing at all, these journalists could derive some joy from the fact that they were not asked to wait and get their rewards in heaven, even though those rewards still await them.
Mr Imoro summed it all up when he said: “It’s a great moment, which we would forever remember. Knowing that our toils have not gone in vain gives us a great feeling”.
He expressed the hope that many other journalists who had served in northern Ghana wholeheartedly and deserved to be celebrated, would in due course be recognised and honoured accordingly.
Indeed, Saturday night was not reserved for celebration not only by the torchbearers of journalism in the north, but also to reward current practising journalists as a way of encouraging them to do more.
The head of the editorial department at the Graphic Communications Group Limited in the Northern Region, Mr Zakaria Alhassan emerged the overall best journalist for the three northern regions.
This was in acknowledgement of his long-standing and consistent professional reporting of events in the Northern and Upper East regions, which had endeared him to many readers of the Daily Graphic. He had on many occasions reported on conflict situations in a manner that left readers with no choice than to applaud him for his objectivity.
Other practising journalists whose works earned them awards were Mr Abdul-Karim Nantogma of Citi FM, who was awarded the best development journalist, Mr Edmund Gyebi of the Chronicle newspaper, who received the best investigative journalist award, Mr Samuel Adadi Akpule of the Ghana News Agency, who was awarded the best rural journalist, and Madam Bernice Agyekwena of the Advocate newspaper, who took home the best female journalist award.
The best human rights journalist award went to Mr Stephen Zouri of the Daily Guide, the best environmental journalist award was given to Mr Isaac Nongya of Metro TV, while Mr Salifu Mohammed Nurudeen received the best health reporter and the most promising young journalist awards.
Other notable awards included the best radio news editor, which went to Alhaji Sule Adam of Diamond FM in Tamale, the best features writer was Mr William N-Lanjerborr Jalulah of Chronicle, best radio news anchor award was won by Mr Emmanuel Akayeti of GBC in Bolgatanga, while the best sports journalist award went to Mr Yakubu Zambanga of Radio Justice in Tamale.
The overall best radio station for the three regions was awarded to Justice FM while the others won awards at the regional level.
Another special category of awards went to four young promising journalists of northern origin who are currently making giant strides in their areas of endeavour, but outside northern Ghana.
They are Ms Shamima Muslim of Citi FM, who is also a host of Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana, Mr Anas Aremeyaw Anas, award-winning investigative journalist of the New Crusading Guide, Alhaji Abubakari Marizuuk of the Bilingual Free Press and Mr Musah Yahaya Jafaru of the Daily Graphic in Accra.
Ms Muslim was honoured not only for her outstanding performance, but also in recognition of the fact that she had become a role model for young ladies in northern Ghana who are taking inspirations from her to become journalists.
“I am happy that the little that I am doing is being recognised and to the extent that it is motivating young ladies, like myself, to aspire to greater heights. I feel great joy,” Ms Muslim told the Daily Graphic in an interview.
The General Manager of Newspapers of the Graphic Communications Group Limited, Mr Yaw Boadu Ayeboafo, who was the guest speaker for the function, had a word of advice for young journalists.
He cautioned them to be mindful of the role they had been tasked to play, stressing that journalism was a make or break affair, where a single act of irresponsibility could ruin one’s work and impact negatively on the development of the nation.
With such words of wisdom from an experienced brain, the award winners and their colleagues in the inky fraternity had no excuse to do the wrong thing, than to act in accordance with the ethics of the profession.
“For me, it is a reminder of the need to use my pen and paper to enlighten my people, foster unity and promote understanding to facilitate development,” Mr Alhassan, the overall best journalist, remarked.
By the close of the event, patrons were full of praise for the organisers, of the event, Flip Africa Media Consult – Ghana (FAMeC – Ghana), as well as the sponsors and other partners, for spearheading such a worthy course.
All who spoke to the Daily Graphic insisted that the event be sustained and staged each year. That, they noted, was the sure way of encouraging more young people to aspire to be celebrated journalists.
“I think such an event would send signals to journalists to know that their work is being monitored and so any shoddy work on their part would receive a bashing instead of honour, ”a CO-manager of Duraqua Company Limited, Mr Badu Patrick stated.
The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Tamale Teaching Hospital, Mr Nii Otu-Ankrah, had a word of advice for the organisers: “This event has come to stay and so they need to do much to make it live up to its billing. Issues like time and reward packages need to be given priority in future events,” he stated.
In fact, it was a night of joy for both young and old journalists, and also the beginning of great things to come.
POLICE SAVE 29 PERSONS FROM TRAFFICKERS (PAGE 11, JULY 27, 2010)
AN attempt by two suspected human traffickers to recruit 29 persons from the Upper East Region to the southern part of the country to engage in menial jobs has been foiled by the police.
The suspects, a male and a female, who were found moving along with the children, as well as the driver of the bus on which the children were about to travel, have been arrested by the police to assist in their investigations.
The driver, whose identity was not disclosed by the police, has been cautioned and granted bailed.
The Northern Regional Police Public Relations Officer (PRO), Chief Inspector Ebenezer Tetteh, who briefed the Daily Graphic, said the man had been identified as Aba Ani Akaba, 34 while he gave the woman’s name as Abanin Akapri, 31.
He said the victims were picked up from various locations in the Upper East Region and aided to purchase tickets for a Metro Mass Transit bus en route to Accra.
He said they were then loaded onto the bus, with registration number AS 9908 Y on Saturday morning and set off towards Tamale.
“Upon a tip-off from the Upper East Regional Police, we mounted a search on the Tamale-Bolgatanga route and this resulted in the interception of the bus when it got to Tamale Airport Junction,” Chief Inspector Tetteh stated.
He said the victims, aged 19 and below, were suspected to be heading towards the south to engage in ‘Kayayei’ and other forms of exploitative labour.
He said the police had aided them to return to the Upper East Region and noted that the suspects would be interrogated to enable the police expose other agents who might be behind the trafficking.
Chief Inspector Tetteh commended the public and the media for blowing the whistle regarding the attempted incidence of trafficking and noted that such effective police and public relationship could save more people who faced the risk of being trafficked by unscrupulous persons.
The suspects, a male and a female, who were found moving along with the children, as well as the driver of the bus on which the children were about to travel, have been arrested by the police to assist in their investigations.
The driver, whose identity was not disclosed by the police, has been cautioned and granted bailed.
The Northern Regional Police Public Relations Officer (PRO), Chief Inspector Ebenezer Tetteh, who briefed the Daily Graphic, said the man had been identified as Aba Ani Akaba, 34 while he gave the woman’s name as Abanin Akapri, 31.
He said the victims were picked up from various locations in the Upper East Region and aided to purchase tickets for a Metro Mass Transit bus en route to Accra.
He said they were then loaded onto the bus, with registration number AS 9908 Y on Saturday morning and set off towards Tamale.
“Upon a tip-off from the Upper East Regional Police, we mounted a search on the Tamale-Bolgatanga route and this resulted in the interception of the bus when it got to Tamale Airport Junction,” Chief Inspector Tetteh stated.
He said the victims, aged 19 and below, were suspected to be heading towards the south to engage in ‘Kayayei’ and other forms of exploitative labour.
He said the police had aided them to return to the Upper East Region and noted that the suspects would be interrogated to enable the police expose other agents who might be behind the trafficking.
Chief Inspector Tetteh commended the public and the media for blowing the whistle regarding the attempted incidence of trafficking and noted that such effective police and public relationship could save more people who faced the risk of being trafficked by unscrupulous persons.
Monday, July 26, 2010
TRUCK PUSHER NABBED FOR SODOMY (PAGE 20, JULY 19, 2010)
A TWENTY-THREE year old push-truck operator has been arrested in Tamale for allegedly having anal sex with a 15-year old boy under the pretence of using his semen to conjure money for his victim.
The young man, Yahaya Adam, was apprehended by the father of the victim with support from other residents who had helped in rescuing the boy.
The Northern Regional Crime Officer, Superintendant Peter Baba, who related the story to the Daily Graphic, indicated that the incident occurred on July 6th at Shishiegu, a suburb of Tamale.
He said on that day, the victim, who resides at Nyohini – also in Tamale – was on his way to visit a friend at Shishiegu and met the suspect on the way.
Supt Baba said the suspect engaged the minor in a conversation and in the process threatened the boy with a charm.
“He later lured the boy into a collapsed building, where he forcibly had anal sex with him and promised to use his semen to conjure money for the boy,” he narrated.
The crime officer mentioned that after the act, the boy realising what he had been through and not convinced about the man’s self-acclaimed magical powers, attempted raising alarm and this angered the suspect, who dished up the boy with some few slaps.
“But that did not prevent the boy from attracting the attention of people nearby and, consequently, a mechanic, identified only as Mr Osman, who was operating around the area, heard the cry and rushed to the scene together with other people,” he further narrated.
The crime officer said after the victim recounted his story to his saviours, they quickly informed his father, who also hurried to the scene, and helped in apprehending the push-cart operator.
“He was brought to us, subsequently. We are now conducting investigations into the matter and when found liable, Yahaya would be charged and arraigned,” he assured.
The young man, Yahaya Adam, was apprehended by the father of the victim with support from other residents who had helped in rescuing the boy.
The Northern Regional Crime Officer, Superintendant Peter Baba, who related the story to the Daily Graphic, indicated that the incident occurred on July 6th at Shishiegu, a suburb of Tamale.
He said on that day, the victim, who resides at Nyohini – also in Tamale – was on his way to visit a friend at Shishiegu and met the suspect on the way.
Supt Baba said the suspect engaged the minor in a conversation and in the process threatened the boy with a charm.
“He later lured the boy into a collapsed building, where he forcibly had anal sex with him and promised to use his semen to conjure money for the boy,” he narrated.
The crime officer mentioned that after the act, the boy realising what he had been through and not convinced about the man’s self-acclaimed magical powers, attempted raising alarm and this angered the suspect, who dished up the boy with some few slaps.
“But that did not prevent the boy from attracting the attention of people nearby and, consequently, a mechanic, identified only as Mr Osman, who was operating around the area, heard the cry and rushed to the scene together with other people,” he further narrated.
The crime officer said after the victim recounted his story to his saviours, they quickly informed his father, who also hurried to the scene, and helped in apprehending the push-cart operator.
“He was brought to us, subsequently. We are now conducting investigations into the matter and when found liable, Yahaya would be charged and arraigned,” he assured.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
MORE WOMEN BENEFIT FROM AGRIC YOUTH PROJECT (PAGE 11, JULY 17, 2010)
OVER 5,000 young women in the Northern Region have been registered under the 2010 Youth in Agric Block Farm programme being undertaken by the Ministry of Food and Agric (MoFA).
The women are among a group of 15, 000 young people who are benefiting from the project in the region. This is a clear departure from previous programmes, which were dominated excessively by males.
The Northern Regional Director of Agriculture, Mr Joseph Yeng Faalong, made this known when he addressed a meeting of the Northern Regional Co-ordinating Council in Tamale.
He said the group were to undertake the cultivation of rice, maize, soybeans, sorghum and onions.
“For rice, a total of 16,878 hectares has been targeted for production, whiles that of maize is 4,997 hectares,” he indicated.
Mr Faalong said an estimated 2,043 hectares was being targeted for soybean production, 472 hectares for sorghum and 50 hectares for onions.
He said already some progress had been made, even though land preparation was largely underway, and indicated that over 4000 hectares of rice, 2000 hectares of maize and 244 hectares of soybean had already been produced.
Mr Faalong expressed particular interest in the participation of the women, explaining that, that could go a long way to help advance the course of gender empowerment.
“We hope that through such initiatives, more young women would get into agriculture, reap the benefits and impact positively on welfare of their families and communities,” he added.
The regional director further noted that the success of the youth in agric project would encourage the government to expand it to benefit more young people.
He said aside this project, there were other measures being implemented by the MoFA, which could have a positive impact on the 2010 production season.
The women are among a group of 15, 000 young people who are benefiting from the project in the region. This is a clear departure from previous programmes, which were dominated excessively by males.
The Northern Regional Director of Agriculture, Mr Joseph Yeng Faalong, made this known when he addressed a meeting of the Northern Regional Co-ordinating Council in Tamale.
He said the group were to undertake the cultivation of rice, maize, soybeans, sorghum and onions.
“For rice, a total of 16,878 hectares has been targeted for production, whiles that of maize is 4,997 hectares,” he indicated.
Mr Faalong said an estimated 2,043 hectares was being targeted for soybean production, 472 hectares for sorghum and 50 hectares for onions.
He said already some progress had been made, even though land preparation was largely underway, and indicated that over 4000 hectares of rice, 2000 hectares of maize and 244 hectares of soybean had already been produced.
Mr Faalong expressed particular interest in the participation of the women, explaining that, that could go a long way to help advance the course of gender empowerment.
“We hope that through such initiatives, more young women would get into agriculture, reap the benefits and impact positively on welfare of their families and communities,” he added.
The regional director further noted that the success of the youth in agric project would encourage the government to expand it to benefit more young people.
He said aside this project, there were other measures being implemented by the MoFA, which could have a positive impact on the 2010 production season.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
FATHER, SON HELD OVER MURDER (PAGE 51, JULY 15, 2010)
THE police in the Northern Region have arrested a father and his son in the Bunkpurugu/Yunyoo District for allegedly beating a 62-year-old woman to death after they had accused her of being a witch.
The two, Sulley Kumong, 60, and Sulley Nuhu, 23, his son, were said to have tortured their victim, Kombien Tajong, to force her to confess to being a witch and that might have led to her death.
The incident, according to the Northern Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Chief Inspector Ebenezer Tetteh, happened on July 9, 2010.
He said Kumong had accused a woman (name withheld) in a village called Jilik of bewitching his son. He said when the woman was approached, she confirmed that the son had been bewitched but denied responsibility for that act.
“Instead, she pointed an accusing finger at another woman, the deceased,” the PRO stated, and added that when the two questioned the second woman, she also denied knowledge of the matter but she was pressurised by her accusers.
“In the process of forcing her to accept her guilt, they beat her up and, in the process, she collapsed,” the PRO said.
He said in trying to ascertain whether she was still alive or not, both the father and his son used fire to torch the soles of her feet and “it was then that they realised she had passed away”.
Chief Inspector Tetteh said the body of the deceased had since been deposited at the Baptist Medical Centre for autopsy, pending further investigations.
He said the two were in custody helping the police in their investigations.
The two, Sulley Kumong, 60, and Sulley Nuhu, 23, his son, were said to have tortured their victim, Kombien Tajong, to force her to confess to being a witch and that might have led to her death.
The incident, according to the Northern Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Chief Inspector Ebenezer Tetteh, happened on July 9, 2010.
He said Kumong had accused a woman (name withheld) in a village called Jilik of bewitching his son. He said when the woman was approached, she confirmed that the son had been bewitched but denied responsibility for that act.
“Instead, she pointed an accusing finger at another woman, the deceased,” the PRO stated, and added that when the two questioned the second woman, she also denied knowledge of the matter but she was pressurised by her accusers.
“In the process of forcing her to accept her guilt, they beat her up and, in the process, she collapsed,” the PRO said.
He said in trying to ascertain whether she was still alive or not, both the father and his son used fire to torch the soles of her feet and “it was then that they realised she had passed away”.
Chief Inspector Tetteh said the body of the deceased had since been deposited at the Baptist Medical Centre for autopsy, pending further investigations.
He said the two were in custody helping the police in their investigations.
DON'T HESITATE TO ASSIST WOMEN IN LABOUR (PAGE 11, JULY 15, 2010)
THE Northern Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Akwasi Twumasi, has deplored the attitude of some Ghanaian men, who are reluctant to support pregnant women are due for labour.
He said that attitude had resulted in some complications that had contributed to some incidence of maternal deaths in the country.
Dr Twumasi cited particular instances when some men were unwilling to use their cars to pick women in labour to health centres with the flimsy excuse of preventing their cars from being soiled with blood.
“They have soon forgotten that it is these blood-soaked wombs that they emerged from and that without it, the world would cease to function,” he stated.
The regional director was addressing a meeting of the Northern Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC) in Tamale, which was attended by the various local administrators, heads of institutions, traditional rulers and members of the security services.
He observed that some transport operators were still hesitant to assist women in labour and this he found very disappointing.
Dr Twumasi mentioned also that men were very eager to claim ownership of new babies and even make attempts to name them and “yet, when the time comes for the babies to be delivered, the men shun the company of the women.”
He also chastised some Ghanaian men who ordered their wives to seek permission from them before seeking medical attention when in need, stressing, “It is high time we realised that these negative attitudes of ours are contributing very much to the incidence of maternal deaths, which could have been prevented if the women were assisted”.
The regional director revealed that in the first quarter of this year, 25 women in the Northern Region died as a result of labour-related complications, which raised the possibility of a higher figure by the end of the year.
He said in 2007, 155 women in the region lost their lives in the course of labour and this figure dropped to 91 in 2008.
“In 2009, the number of deaths began to increase again from 91 to 96 and as things stand now, we cannot tell what the situation would be by the end of 2010, that is why all hands have to be on deck,” he stated.
The director mentioned that more efforts must be made towards ensuring that women had access to trained and skilled birth attendants and services, that included antenatal care, postnatal care, family planning and basic and comprehensive obstetric care.
This, he noted, would be possible if there was an increase in the number of healthcare facilities and the requisite human resource to man these centres.
Currently, the region has 263 health facilities, 19 of which are hospitals, four maternity homes, three polyclinics with the majority being Community Health and Planning Services (CHPS) compounds.
Dr Twumasi hinted that five additional clinics were under construction and would soon be completed to serve residents of Janga, Tatale, Chereponi, Kpandai and Karaga.
The human resource, he noted, was also seriously inadequate as there were only 15 doctors and 210 midwives currently working in the regional and district health facilities in the region.
He said last year, only 34.8 per cent of births were conducted by skilled birth attendants, which implied that more than half of the births were either conducted by traditional birth attendants or untrained persons, and these contributed to some of the complications that led to the deaths.
Dr Twumasi further recommended that more work should be done to improve the road networks in the region so as to facilitate access to health care, particularly in emergency situations.
As of 2009, only 31 per cent of roads in the region were rated good, whiles 22 per cent were considered poor. The rest are fairly motorable.
This situation, according to Dr Twumasi, had adverse effects on maternal health as it impeded rural women from seeking adequate health care at district health facilities.
He said that attitude had resulted in some complications that had contributed to some incidence of maternal deaths in the country.
Dr Twumasi cited particular instances when some men were unwilling to use their cars to pick women in labour to health centres with the flimsy excuse of preventing their cars from being soiled with blood.
“They have soon forgotten that it is these blood-soaked wombs that they emerged from and that without it, the world would cease to function,” he stated.
The regional director was addressing a meeting of the Northern Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC) in Tamale, which was attended by the various local administrators, heads of institutions, traditional rulers and members of the security services.
He observed that some transport operators were still hesitant to assist women in labour and this he found very disappointing.
Dr Twumasi mentioned also that men were very eager to claim ownership of new babies and even make attempts to name them and “yet, when the time comes for the babies to be delivered, the men shun the company of the women.”
He also chastised some Ghanaian men who ordered their wives to seek permission from them before seeking medical attention when in need, stressing, “It is high time we realised that these negative attitudes of ours are contributing very much to the incidence of maternal deaths, which could have been prevented if the women were assisted”.
The regional director revealed that in the first quarter of this year, 25 women in the Northern Region died as a result of labour-related complications, which raised the possibility of a higher figure by the end of the year.
He said in 2007, 155 women in the region lost their lives in the course of labour and this figure dropped to 91 in 2008.
“In 2009, the number of deaths began to increase again from 91 to 96 and as things stand now, we cannot tell what the situation would be by the end of 2010, that is why all hands have to be on deck,” he stated.
The director mentioned that more efforts must be made towards ensuring that women had access to trained and skilled birth attendants and services, that included antenatal care, postnatal care, family planning and basic and comprehensive obstetric care.
This, he noted, would be possible if there was an increase in the number of healthcare facilities and the requisite human resource to man these centres.
Currently, the region has 263 health facilities, 19 of which are hospitals, four maternity homes, three polyclinics with the majority being Community Health and Planning Services (CHPS) compounds.
Dr Twumasi hinted that five additional clinics were under construction and would soon be completed to serve residents of Janga, Tatale, Chereponi, Kpandai and Karaga.
The human resource, he noted, was also seriously inadequate as there were only 15 doctors and 210 midwives currently working in the regional and district health facilities in the region.
He said last year, only 34.8 per cent of births were conducted by skilled birth attendants, which implied that more than half of the births were either conducted by traditional birth attendants or untrained persons, and these contributed to some of the complications that led to the deaths.
Dr Twumasi further recommended that more work should be done to improve the road networks in the region so as to facilitate access to health care, particularly in emergency situations.
As of 2009, only 31 per cent of roads in the region were rated good, whiles 22 per cent were considered poor. The rest are fairly motorable.
This situation, according to Dr Twumasi, had adverse effects on maternal health as it impeded rural women from seeking adequate health care at district health facilities.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
WORK TO SUSTAIN PEACE - NR MINISTER (PAGE 14, JULY 14, 2010)
THE Northern Regional Minister, Mr Moses Bukari Mabengba has implored traditional rulers, opinion leaders and local administrators to work in harmony towards consolidating the relative peace being enjoyed in the region over the past few months.
According to him, any disruption of this peace would erode gains made in the various areas of development, notably health, education, security, commerce and roads infrastructure.
Mr Mabengba made this appeal when he addressed a meeting of the Northern Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC) in Tamale, which was attended by heads of institutions, local government authorities, political heads, traditional rulers and personnel of the security services.
It was the maiden meeting of the RCC since it was reconstituted last year.
The minister observed that modest progress had been made in various sectors of development in the region and this called for more efforts towards sustaining these gains.
In the area of security, he observed that even though the chieftaincy disputes remain unresolved, they have largely been contained “thanks to the increased appreciation and understanding of the role of peace in development by all parties.”
He said the major hurdles continue to be the Yendi crisis, Bimbilla skin affair and, lately, Buipe crisis.
“While the Yendi issue is before the Otumfour Committee and national security, the Bimbilla issue is also pending at the Northern Regional House of Chiefs,” the minister noted.
He also mentioned that reports received from the various districts indicated an atmosphere of relative calm, “except for isolated incidents from a few of them.”
Mr Mabengba said the crime rate, which was a major source of worry, was gradually coming under control, but for some highway robberies on the Tamale-Salaga, Fufulso-Junction-Sawla, Buipe-Kintampo, Savelugu-Diare and Wa-Bamboi roads.
“A combined team of police cum military has been set up to patrol on such routes to nip the problem in the bud,” he assured.
For the roads sector, the minister indicated that modest infrastructural works had taken place on some of the region’s trunk and feeder roads, adding that as at the end of 2009, 31 per cent of roads were considered as good, 47 per cent considered fair and 22 rated poor.
“For 2010, we intend to continue with rolled over projects from 2009 and also award contracts for the construction of roads whose engineering studies have been conducted,” he added.
Mr Mabengba said similar progress was being made in the education and health sectors.
He mentioned that over GH¢26 million was to be used to provide dormitories, classrooms, staff accommodation, fence walls and dining facilities for over 20 senior high schools in the region.
“This figure would also cater for the refurbishment of the Tamale Youth Centre (Phase one) and the Data Capturing Centre for the Biometric Passports,” he further mentioned.
The minister cited the rehabilitation of the Tamale Teaching Hospital as a major development in the health sector, adding that more would be done to boost the quality and quantity of health personnel in the region.
According to him, any disruption of this peace would erode gains made in the various areas of development, notably health, education, security, commerce and roads infrastructure.
Mr Mabengba made this appeal when he addressed a meeting of the Northern Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC) in Tamale, which was attended by heads of institutions, local government authorities, political heads, traditional rulers and personnel of the security services.
It was the maiden meeting of the RCC since it was reconstituted last year.
The minister observed that modest progress had been made in various sectors of development in the region and this called for more efforts towards sustaining these gains.
In the area of security, he observed that even though the chieftaincy disputes remain unresolved, they have largely been contained “thanks to the increased appreciation and understanding of the role of peace in development by all parties.”
He said the major hurdles continue to be the Yendi crisis, Bimbilla skin affair and, lately, Buipe crisis.
“While the Yendi issue is before the Otumfour Committee and national security, the Bimbilla issue is also pending at the Northern Regional House of Chiefs,” the minister noted.
He also mentioned that reports received from the various districts indicated an atmosphere of relative calm, “except for isolated incidents from a few of them.”
Mr Mabengba said the crime rate, which was a major source of worry, was gradually coming under control, but for some highway robberies on the Tamale-Salaga, Fufulso-Junction-Sawla, Buipe-Kintampo, Savelugu-Diare and Wa-Bamboi roads.
“A combined team of police cum military has been set up to patrol on such routes to nip the problem in the bud,” he assured.
For the roads sector, the minister indicated that modest infrastructural works had taken place on some of the region’s trunk and feeder roads, adding that as at the end of 2009, 31 per cent of roads were considered as good, 47 per cent considered fair and 22 rated poor.
“For 2010, we intend to continue with rolled over projects from 2009 and also award contracts for the construction of roads whose engineering studies have been conducted,” he added.
Mr Mabengba said similar progress was being made in the education and health sectors.
He mentioned that over GH¢26 million was to be used to provide dormitories, classrooms, staff accommodation, fence walls and dining facilities for over 20 senior high schools in the region.
“This figure would also cater for the refurbishment of the Tamale Youth Centre (Phase one) and the Data Capturing Centre for the Biometric Passports,” he further mentioned.
The minister cited the rehabilitation of the Tamale Teaching Hospital as a major development in the health sector, adding that more would be done to boost the quality and quantity of health personnel in the region.
COMMIT MORE RESOURCES TO RISK REDUCTION - PORTUPHY (PAGE 46, JULY 14, 2010)
THE Co-ordinator of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Mr Kofi Portuphy has stated that Ghana could only tackle disasters effectively if more resources were devoted towards disaster risk reduction.
According to him, too much emphasis has been placed on relief interventions for disaster victims, instead of putting in place sustainable measures to prevent and manage disasters.
Mr Portuphy made these observations in a speech read on his behalf during the maiden meeting of the Northern Regional platform on disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation.
The body is mandated to design and implement programmes and measures to prevent, mitigate, prepare for and respond adequately to disasters in the region.
Mr Portuphy noted that five things were crucial for Ghana to successfully control and manage disasters through disaster risk reduction.
These, he mentioned, were the institutionalisation of disaster prevention in all sectors of the national endeavour, risk identification assessment, monitoring and early warning, knowledge management and education, reduction of underlying risk factors and preparedness for effective response and recovery.
Mr Portuphy said there was a need for a sustained effort to identify risks, assess their impact, monitor their evolvement and institute early warning signals to pre-empt early response.
“This needs to be a continuous effort and not only seasonal or when disasters are apparently impending,” he explained.
The co-ordinator again mentioned that there must be evolving technology on buildings and road construction in manner to reduce the impact on disasters on them.
In the area of knowledge sharing and education, he explained that Ghana must institutionalise disaster education into the education curriculum to raise a disaster-risk-conscious youth.
Mr Portuphy noted that these measures were the recommendations of the Hyogo Framework for Action and therefore urged the regional platform to take these ideas on board.
“The platform should also develop specific mechanisms to engage the participation and ownership of relevant stakeholders including communities in disaster risk reduction measures, in particular, building on the spirit of volunteerism,” he further urged.
The co-ordinator observed that disasters were assuming alarming dimensions and intensity due to the effects of climate variability and climate change.
This surge, he noted, was the main reason why, disaster risk reduction efforts needed to be strengthened.
The Deputy Northern Regional Minister, Mr San Nasamu Asabigi pledged the commitment of the Regional Co-ordinating Council to support the work of the platform to ensure that it reduces disasters, which, he noted, ultimately guarantees security.
According to him, too much emphasis has been placed on relief interventions for disaster victims, instead of putting in place sustainable measures to prevent and manage disasters.
Mr Portuphy made these observations in a speech read on his behalf during the maiden meeting of the Northern Regional platform on disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation.
The body is mandated to design and implement programmes and measures to prevent, mitigate, prepare for and respond adequately to disasters in the region.
Mr Portuphy noted that five things were crucial for Ghana to successfully control and manage disasters through disaster risk reduction.
These, he mentioned, were the institutionalisation of disaster prevention in all sectors of the national endeavour, risk identification assessment, monitoring and early warning, knowledge management and education, reduction of underlying risk factors and preparedness for effective response and recovery.
Mr Portuphy said there was a need for a sustained effort to identify risks, assess their impact, monitor their evolvement and institute early warning signals to pre-empt early response.
“This needs to be a continuous effort and not only seasonal or when disasters are apparently impending,” he explained.
The co-ordinator again mentioned that there must be evolving technology on buildings and road construction in manner to reduce the impact on disasters on them.
In the area of knowledge sharing and education, he explained that Ghana must institutionalise disaster education into the education curriculum to raise a disaster-risk-conscious youth.
Mr Portuphy noted that these measures were the recommendations of the Hyogo Framework for Action and therefore urged the regional platform to take these ideas on board.
“The platform should also develop specific mechanisms to engage the participation and ownership of relevant stakeholders including communities in disaster risk reduction measures, in particular, building on the spirit of volunteerism,” he further urged.
The co-ordinator observed that disasters were assuming alarming dimensions and intensity due to the effects of climate variability and climate change.
This surge, he noted, was the main reason why, disaster risk reduction efforts needed to be strengthened.
The Deputy Northern Regional Minister, Mr San Nasamu Asabigi pledged the commitment of the Regional Co-ordinating Council to support the work of the platform to ensure that it reduces disasters, which, he noted, ultimately guarantees security.
IS THE MEDIA PROMOTING WAR OR PEACE (PAGE 10, JULY 13, 2010)
IT is a known fact that violent conflicts make news and it is even worse when it involves groups already touted as violent. So even when there is no fighting in Sudan, two families quarrelling is still reported as ‘war’.
In Dagomba land, when a supposed innocent person steals, it is blamed on the mouse, because the mouse has earned the unenviable reputation of stealing.
In Ghana, the north seem to have been the unfortunate mouse, so when two youth groups mess up at the club, it is reported as “violence in the north.”
The news media has been blamed for this stereotyping of the north as in such unpalatable manner, even though violent conflicts are rife in several other parts of the country.
But the response that the operators usually put up is “we are reporting the news.” The questions that arise then are: when does reporting the news become detrimental to peace and are there times that the news should be swept under the carpet?
It is true that conflicts make news, but it should also be noted that violent conflict is an unwanted human phenomenon, which humans, if they had the power, would ensure it was extinguished forever.
So the underlying understanding here is that, even though conflicts make news, they are actually bad news and should not excite reporters.
Violent conflict brings misery, loss of lives, destruction of property and trauma. It strains relationships, threatens the binding fabric of society and dismantles families built over several years.
Violent conflicts also retard progress and make nonsense of both human and natural resources or capital.
If journalists accept that violent conflicts are unwanted, then they must equally ponder over how to report on conflicts in a way such that their reports or articles do not end up rather aggravating the conflict, particularly transforming it into overt conflicts.
This is the simple reason why peace-building practitioners have been blaming the media for violent conflicts in the north, because they have realised that reports on events in the north usually tend to exacerbate the already tensed situations and in no way serves the interest of society.
Many reports about events in Yendi, Bimbilla, Bawku and Bunkpurugu/Yunyoo have their facts exaggerated, sometimes to the extent of the inclusion of mere fabrications.
Some of the reports have tended to favour sides in the conflict and use words that portray some ethnic groups in a derogatory manner.
A lot of the reports have also created panic and caused people to leave their homes with weapons prepared to attack others in anticipation of major conflicts.
In some cases, the panic has discouraged travellers from visiting the north, working in the area or even contemplating investing. Worst of all, it has prevented northerners outside the north from advancing in their endeavours due to these negative perceptions that hangs over their image.
So, you see, there are economic, social and political costs of media reports on conflicts in the north.
Implying, the media must do things differently if they really want to promote peace and not war. What then is this reporting format or genre that the journalists in Ghana must strive to follow?
At a recent peace-building workshop for media personnel, two veteran journalists and development practitioners with the Rural Media Network (RUMNET), Mr Abdullah Kassim and Mr Imoro Alhassan described this desired and well-intentioned form of journalism as “conflict-sensitive journalism”.
Conflict-sensitive journalism, Mr Kassim explains: “injects context, an appreciation for root causes and a new capacity to seek and analyze possible solutions.”
According to him, this type of reporting is preferable to the otherwise daily repetition of violent incidents as news, which does not help in transformation.
Mr Kassim argues that just as medical, environment and business reporters go beyond the news to analyse causes, trends and remedies, so should journalists reporting on conflicts seek deeper understanding into conflicts, their dynamics and possible solutions.
“Journalism which repeats simplistic or stereotyped claims about violence, without seeking deeper explanations, will mislead citizens into believing violence is the only recourse in all conflicts,” he stresses.
For his part, Mr Alhassan insists that in adhering to conflict-sensitive reporting, journalists must aim to bring about healing and restoration of relationships that have been destroyed by protracted conflicts.
He says in cases where reporting the facts could be harmful, the journalists should use his gumption to judge which option to take and if necessary avoid the reportage.
“If the journalist insists on reporting the news, he or she must remain fair, balanced and accurate and also avoid stating the facts that may incite more violence, such as disclosing the identities of victims,” Mr Imoro further explained.
Another peace-building expert, who is also the National Network Co-ordinator of the Ghana Network for Peace-building (GHANEP), Mr Justin Bayor, explains that the basic idea in conflict-sensitive journalism is that “the report must not cause any harm.”
Instead, the report, he said “should stress on ways of resolution, the common agreeing points between the factions and also hit on the plight of the ordinary people who are mostly the victims.”
Mr Bayor again remarked that the media does positive peace-building only when it tackles the attitudinal and behavioural aspects of conflicts, prior to their escalation.
“If conflict reports can seek to build cultural bridges and break down structural barriers that seem to foster conflict, then journalists can be seen to be promoting peace,” he added.
Closely-related to conflict-sensitive journalism is peace journalism, which according to experts, consciously adopts an agenda for peace, believing it to be the only genuine alternative to an agenda for war.
In Conflict & Peace Courses (1998), peace journalism “maps the pre-violence conflict, identifying many parties and more causes, invariably opening up unexpected paths towards dialogue and peacemaking.
“It humanises all parties to the conflict and often influence between their agendas and real effects, building an alternative framework for understand the process of change.”
Directly opposed to peace journalism is what Johan Galtung describes as ‘war journalism’. It focuses on violence, propaganda, elite actors and victory, emphasising the violent aspect while ignoring the causes or outcomes.
So, do Ghanaian reporters, especially my northern colleagues, want to be ‘war journalists’ or ‘peace journalists’ The decision is theirs, but whichever they choose, they must remain mindful of the larger interest of society’s wellbeing and progress.
In Dagomba land, when a supposed innocent person steals, it is blamed on the mouse, because the mouse has earned the unenviable reputation of stealing.
In Ghana, the north seem to have been the unfortunate mouse, so when two youth groups mess up at the club, it is reported as “violence in the north.”
The news media has been blamed for this stereotyping of the north as in such unpalatable manner, even though violent conflicts are rife in several other parts of the country.
But the response that the operators usually put up is “we are reporting the news.” The questions that arise then are: when does reporting the news become detrimental to peace and are there times that the news should be swept under the carpet?
It is true that conflicts make news, but it should also be noted that violent conflict is an unwanted human phenomenon, which humans, if they had the power, would ensure it was extinguished forever.
So the underlying understanding here is that, even though conflicts make news, they are actually bad news and should not excite reporters.
Violent conflict brings misery, loss of lives, destruction of property and trauma. It strains relationships, threatens the binding fabric of society and dismantles families built over several years.
Violent conflicts also retard progress and make nonsense of both human and natural resources or capital.
If journalists accept that violent conflicts are unwanted, then they must equally ponder over how to report on conflicts in a way such that their reports or articles do not end up rather aggravating the conflict, particularly transforming it into overt conflicts.
This is the simple reason why peace-building practitioners have been blaming the media for violent conflicts in the north, because they have realised that reports on events in the north usually tend to exacerbate the already tensed situations and in no way serves the interest of society.
Many reports about events in Yendi, Bimbilla, Bawku and Bunkpurugu/Yunyoo have their facts exaggerated, sometimes to the extent of the inclusion of mere fabrications.
Some of the reports have tended to favour sides in the conflict and use words that portray some ethnic groups in a derogatory manner.
A lot of the reports have also created panic and caused people to leave their homes with weapons prepared to attack others in anticipation of major conflicts.
In some cases, the panic has discouraged travellers from visiting the north, working in the area or even contemplating investing. Worst of all, it has prevented northerners outside the north from advancing in their endeavours due to these negative perceptions that hangs over their image.
So, you see, there are economic, social and political costs of media reports on conflicts in the north.
Implying, the media must do things differently if they really want to promote peace and not war. What then is this reporting format or genre that the journalists in Ghana must strive to follow?
At a recent peace-building workshop for media personnel, two veteran journalists and development practitioners with the Rural Media Network (RUMNET), Mr Abdullah Kassim and Mr Imoro Alhassan described this desired and well-intentioned form of journalism as “conflict-sensitive journalism”.
Conflict-sensitive journalism, Mr Kassim explains: “injects context, an appreciation for root causes and a new capacity to seek and analyze possible solutions.”
According to him, this type of reporting is preferable to the otherwise daily repetition of violent incidents as news, which does not help in transformation.
Mr Kassim argues that just as medical, environment and business reporters go beyond the news to analyse causes, trends and remedies, so should journalists reporting on conflicts seek deeper understanding into conflicts, their dynamics and possible solutions.
“Journalism which repeats simplistic or stereotyped claims about violence, without seeking deeper explanations, will mislead citizens into believing violence is the only recourse in all conflicts,” he stresses.
For his part, Mr Alhassan insists that in adhering to conflict-sensitive reporting, journalists must aim to bring about healing and restoration of relationships that have been destroyed by protracted conflicts.
He says in cases where reporting the facts could be harmful, the journalists should use his gumption to judge which option to take and if necessary avoid the reportage.
“If the journalist insists on reporting the news, he or she must remain fair, balanced and accurate and also avoid stating the facts that may incite more violence, such as disclosing the identities of victims,” Mr Imoro further explained.
Another peace-building expert, who is also the National Network Co-ordinator of the Ghana Network for Peace-building (GHANEP), Mr Justin Bayor, explains that the basic idea in conflict-sensitive journalism is that “the report must not cause any harm.”
Instead, the report, he said “should stress on ways of resolution, the common agreeing points between the factions and also hit on the plight of the ordinary people who are mostly the victims.”
Mr Bayor again remarked that the media does positive peace-building only when it tackles the attitudinal and behavioural aspects of conflicts, prior to their escalation.
“If conflict reports can seek to build cultural bridges and break down structural barriers that seem to foster conflict, then journalists can be seen to be promoting peace,” he added.
Closely-related to conflict-sensitive journalism is peace journalism, which according to experts, consciously adopts an agenda for peace, believing it to be the only genuine alternative to an agenda for war.
In Conflict & Peace Courses (1998), peace journalism “maps the pre-violence conflict, identifying many parties and more causes, invariably opening up unexpected paths towards dialogue and peacemaking.
“It humanises all parties to the conflict and often influence between their agendas and real effects, building an alternative framework for understand the process of change.”
Directly opposed to peace journalism is what Johan Galtung describes as ‘war journalism’. It focuses on violence, propaganda, elite actors and victory, emphasising the violent aspect while ignoring the causes or outcomes.
So, do Ghanaian reporters, especially my northern colleagues, want to be ‘war journalists’ or ‘peace journalists’ The decision is theirs, but whichever they choose, they must remain mindful of the larger interest of society’s wellbeing and progress.
GHANA TO BE DECLARED FREE OF GUINEA WORMS (PAGE 46, JULY 15, 2010)
GHANA recorded only eight cases of guinea worm from January to June this year, with the hope that the country would soon be declared a guinea worm-free country.
According to the Ghana Health Service, more than 200 cases of the guinea worm infection were reported between January and June in 2009, as against eight recorded this year.
The former President of the United States of America, Mr Jimmy Carter, told the people of northern Ghana through a radio message that he was very optimistic Ghana could break the transmission of the guinea worm disease.
Mr Carter, whose Carter Centre is a major player in the Guinea Worm Eradication Programme (GWEP), said his optimism was derived from statistics provided from the Ghana Health Service and appealed to all residents in the northern part of Ghana to get involved in the eradication programme.
The former US President said, “We are now within reach of our collective goal of totally eradicating guinea worm disease. I would like to thank the Government of Ghana, the people of this great country and all partners for their collaboration and support in getting us where we are today”.
“I caution everyone that the battle against guinea worm is not over until every case has disappeared. It was in Ghana that I saw my very first case of guinea worm and I promise you that the Carter Centre and I would continue this battle with you until the very last case is gone,” Mr Carter added.
In a similar radio broadcast, the Minister of Health, Dr Benjamin Kunbour, implored Ghanaians to complement the government’s efforts towards the eradication of the disease.
He asked them to be on the look out for any suspected guinea worm case and report immediately to the healthcare centre for effective response.
Dr Kumbour pledged the government’s continuous support towards the eradication project and commended the partners for standing by the country during difficult times.
In 1989, when the eradication programme began, the country recorded 189,000 cases of guinea worm but the cases have been reduced by over 98 per cent through eradication efforts.
According to officials at the Guinea Worm Eradication Programme (GWEP) secretariat, the main issues that were likely to hinder the eradication programme were the threat posed by migrant populations and a cut in funding.
The migrant populations, they explained, were mostly unaware of measures instituted to curb the disease and therefore, sometimes acted in ways that were likely to expose them to the disease or spread the disease.
They also noted that funds were needed to continue implementing the control measures, which included provision of care, policing and treatment of dams, payment of staff and the provision of alternate and potable sources of water.
According to the Ghana Health Service, more than 200 cases of the guinea worm infection were reported between January and June in 2009, as against eight recorded this year.
The former President of the United States of America, Mr Jimmy Carter, told the people of northern Ghana through a radio message that he was very optimistic Ghana could break the transmission of the guinea worm disease.
Mr Carter, whose Carter Centre is a major player in the Guinea Worm Eradication Programme (GWEP), said his optimism was derived from statistics provided from the Ghana Health Service and appealed to all residents in the northern part of Ghana to get involved in the eradication programme.
The former US President said, “We are now within reach of our collective goal of totally eradicating guinea worm disease. I would like to thank the Government of Ghana, the people of this great country and all partners for their collaboration and support in getting us where we are today”.
“I caution everyone that the battle against guinea worm is not over until every case has disappeared. It was in Ghana that I saw my very first case of guinea worm and I promise you that the Carter Centre and I would continue this battle with you until the very last case is gone,” Mr Carter added.
In a similar radio broadcast, the Minister of Health, Dr Benjamin Kunbour, implored Ghanaians to complement the government’s efforts towards the eradication of the disease.
He asked them to be on the look out for any suspected guinea worm case and report immediately to the healthcare centre for effective response.
Dr Kumbour pledged the government’s continuous support towards the eradication project and commended the partners for standing by the country during difficult times.
In 1989, when the eradication programme began, the country recorded 189,000 cases of guinea worm but the cases have been reduced by over 98 per cent through eradication efforts.
According to officials at the Guinea Worm Eradication Programme (GWEP) secretariat, the main issues that were likely to hinder the eradication programme were the threat posed by migrant populations and a cut in funding.
The migrant populations, they explained, were mostly unaware of measures instituted to curb the disease and therefore, sometimes acted in ways that were likely to expose them to the disease or spread the disease.
They also noted that funds were needed to continue implementing the control measures, which included provision of care, policing and treatment of dams, payment of staff and the provision of alternate and potable sources of water.
GAYS AND RIGHTS: HEALTH, NOT MORALITY (PAGE 19, JULY 15, 2010)
A QUOTATION from Kwame Anthony Appiah’s “Cosmopolitanism” (2006:16) certainly provides me a sound footing to commence this article.
And it states: “A dog asked a donkey to eat with him and gave him meat, the donkey asked the dog and gave him hay: They both went hungry.”
Meaning: The dog’s appreciation of good food is meat (which is poison for the donkey) and that of the donkey is hay. Logic: Not all persons or groups would by their nature or nurture desire or exhibit the same attitude.
The emerging debate over whether the rights of gays should be respected or not still rages on.
“Abomination,” our elders would say, “it can’t happen here,” they add fervently. Ask me, and I would say they are right. How can you accept a practice which is cruel and inhuman?
But you see, just as you can’t understand why a full grown man in his right senses would allow alcohol to capture his sanity and reduce him to a foul afflicted by Coccidiosis, you cannot prevent that man from befriending the bottle.
As things stand now, whether gay practice is legal or not in Ghana’s legal statutes, it is a matter for more introspection.
Be that as it may, gays are among us and they are doing their own thing. So whether the law comes out unequivocally to back their practice or criminalise it, they would continue to practice it.
What we must realise is that our society is fast becoming a cosmopolitan one and gay practice is one of the features of a cosmopolitan area. It is no more shared values, but one of individual preferences guided by the law of criminality.
So, if the action of your neighbour does not infringe on your rights, then he or she has committed no crime.
You see, I would have ended here by saying that if the activities of gays do not affect the welfare of others, then fair enough. Let them be; live and let’s live. The fact that I do not smoke does not mean I should prevent my neighbour from smoking in his or her own home, isn’t it?
The rights advocates are, however, forgetting one thing: the issue of homosexuality goes beyond rights: It is about the health and well-being of individuals, who are supposed to be valuable members of society.
Meanwhile, those opposed to the rights debate have equally been making the same mistake over the years by limiting their judgement of gay practice to one of normative.
The truth is that the issue of whether gay practice is right or wrong has been reduced to a moral judgement determined mainly by our religious and cultural inclinations, as well as our personal desires and up-bringing.
It is the same way we treat matters relating to abortion and prostitution. Our prejudices always cloud our judgements.
We can agree that we don’t subscribe to homosexuality because it irritates our senses and it is repulsive, unthinkable and irrational. But come to think of it, that is some people’s way of life. Our evil is their good and vice versa.
Now, back to the health issue. Allowing man-to-man relationship would not have been an issue if not for the eventual practice of anal sex to satisfy the sexual desires of both partners.
According to scientists, the anus is the natural opening of the rectum, made for the passage of faecal matter, which is the by-product of digestion.
So the anus is not an opening that allows objects, like the male reproductive organ, to penetrate through it unlike the vagina, which opens to accommodate these objects. This is why anal sex is made possible through the use of a lubricant.
Indeed, the location of the anus, according to medical experts, may cause some sexual gratification to the receptor during anal sex, due to its nearness to some sexual organs in the body.
But the reality is that, it is not meant for sex and would only be exposed to severe damage and infections if forced to accommodate this act.
The logic therefore is that anyone who attempts to force things through the anus would only be destroying this organ and in fact, threatening the physical and psychological make-up of the receptors.
In view of this, it is clear that even though gays do not harm other people, they are a threat to themselves and must be protected from harming their bodies.
Some have often sought to argue that if gays act the way they do as a result of their genes, then they cannot be treated as criminals, but as persons who are afflicted by some acute sexual disorder and need treatment.
Do we conclude therefore that those who do things (considered irrational) not by choice, but by their biological make-up, are freed from society’s punishment?
So kleptomaniacs cannot be punished, but need to be treated with kid’s gloves? Well, I hope that is not the argument.
Methinks that whether biological or adopted, same-sex relationship is criminal, because it gives licence to an individual to cause harm to him/herself and another person, just like attempting to commit suicide or having sexual relationship with one’s siblings or parents.
How then do we tackle it so as to protect society and, at the same time, be seen to be helping the perpetrators to cure this strange disease? Three things are crucial.
The first being legislation. However harsh it may seem, Ghana needs an explicit law that makes anal sex — whether by married couple or gay men — a criminal act. It also means that same sex marriage must also be outlawed, since all these are interrelated.
We must enact such a law, so that it is clear to anyone coming to Ghana that in Ghana, people are prevented from harming themselves.
Interestingly, most of those who advocate gay rights would scream if one calls for the legalisation of incest or suicide.
Second, we need to protect and promote what has been scientifically proven to be the right way of sexual intercourse, which is linked, directly, to our family value systems.
The point I am trying to make here is that instead of over-indulging in the gay debate, we need to refocus much of our energies on showcasing what we believe is good practice and exposing the hazards of gay practice.
Who knows, our actions could even convince some gays to change their ways.
Since the institutionalisation of a legal framework against gay practice is not enough guarantee that gays would cease to operate, it is better we focus on our children.
It is always better to teach your child why it is not good to abuse hard drugs than to keep him away from the drug abusers. Why, because you cannot continue to control the movement of your child.
So if your child understands that some people abuse harmful drugs by choice and that they face health hazards, your child won’t be shocked or tempted into doing same when he or she comes into contact with drug abusers.
We need to teach our children what constitutes ‘right’ sex, at which time, with whom and how.
In actual fact, the way we are fighting gays might only ignite the curiosity of our children and many others who never knew or did not understand what gays do.
Last, we must continue to explore ways of helping gays to abandon this strange trait and live what is scientifically proven as normal lives.
So even though there is the need to use legislation to protect gays from harming themselves, it is equally important to understand their psychology make-up and see possible ways of bringing them back to sanity.
I was excited to read in the Daily Graphic of Monday, June 21, that homosexuality could be treated. This was attributed to a medical practitioner at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra, Dr Kofi Nutakor, who mentioned that the most effective techniques that could be used include Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalysis and group therapy. I hope these really work well.
Indeed, my interaction with some gays have revealed that some gays adopted this practice as a result of past experience: rape, abuse, disappointment and, in some cases, fixation with same sex relationship usually developed at same sex schools and among security personnel.
In short, gays would continue to be there even with legislation and so campaign for healthy sexual relationship and the rehabilitation for gays would be very crucial to our efforts to eradicate this practice.
And it states: “A dog asked a donkey to eat with him and gave him meat, the donkey asked the dog and gave him hay: They both went hungry.”
Meaning: The dog’s appreciation of good food is meat (which is poison for the donkey) and that of the donkey is hay. Logic: Not all persons or groups would by their nature or nurture desire or exhibit the same attitude.
The emerging debate over whether the rights of gays should be respected or not still rages on.
“Abomination,” our elders would say, “it can’t happen here,” they add fervently. Ask me, and I would say they are right. How can you accept a practice which is cruel and inhuman?
But you see, just as you can’t understand why a full grown man in his right senses would allow alcohol to capture his sanity and reduce him to a foul afflicted by Coccidiosis, you cannot prevent that man from befriending the bottle.
As things stand now, whether gay practice is legal or not in Ghana’s legal statutes, it is a matter for more introspection.
Be that as it may, gays are among us and they are doing their own thing. So whether the law comes out unequivocally to back their practice or criminalise it, they would continue to practice it.
What we must realise is that our society is fast becoming a cosmopolitan one and gay practice is one of the features of a cosmopolitan area. It is no more shared values, but one of individual preferences guided by the law of criminality.
So, if the action of your neighbour does not infringe on your rights, then he or she has committed no crime.
You see, I would have ended here by saying that if the activities of gays do not affect the welfare of others, then fair enough. Let them be; live and let’s live. The fact that I do not smoke does not mean I should prevent my neighbour from smoking in his or her own home, isn’t it?
The rights advocates are, however, forgetting one thing: the issue of homosexuality goes beyond rights: It is about the health and well-being of individuals, who are supposed to be valuable members of society.
Meanwhile, those opposed to the rights debate have equally been making the same mistake over the years by limiting their judgement of gay practice to one of normative.
The truth is that the issue of whether gay practice is right or wrong has been reduced to a moral judgement determined mainly by our religious and cultural inclinations, as well as our personal desires and up-bringing.
It is the same way we treat matters relating to abortion and prostitution. Our prejudices always cloud our judgements.
We can agree that we don’t subscribe to homosexuality because it irritates our senses and it is repulsive, unthinkable and irrational. But come to think of it, that is some people’s way of life. Our evil is their good and vice versa.
Now, back to the health issue. Allowing man-to-man relationship would not have been an issue if not for the eventual practice of anal sex to satisfy the sexual desires of both partners.
According to scientists, the anus is the natural opening of the rectum, made for the passage of faecal matter, which is the by-product of digestion.
So the anus is not an opening that allows objects, like the male reproductive organ, to penetrate through it unlike the vagina, which opens to accommodate these objects. This is why anal sex is made possible through the use of a lubricant.
Indeed, the location of the anus, according to medical experts, may cause some sexual gratification to the receptor during anal sex, due to its nearness to some sexual organs in the body.
But the reality is that, it is not meant for sex and would only be exposed to severe damage and infections if forced to accommodate this act.
The logic therefore is that anyone who attempts to force things through the anus would only be destroying this organ and in fact, threatening the physical and psychological make-up of the receptors.
In view of this, it is clear that even though gays do not harm other people, they are a threat to themselves and must be protected from harming their bodies.
Some have often sought to argue that if gays act the way they do as a result of their genes, then they cannot be treated as criminals, but as persons who are afflicted by some acute sexual disorder and need treatment.
Do we conclude therefore that those who do things (considered irrational) not by choice, but by their biological make-up, are freed from society’s punishment?
So kleptomaniacs cannot be punished, but need to be treated with kid’s gloves? Well, I hope that is not the argument.
Methinks that whether biological or adopted, same-sex relationship is criminal, because it gives licence to an individual to cause harm to him/herself and another person, just like attempting to commit suicide or having sexual relationship with one’s siblings or parents.
How then do we tackle it so as to protect society and, at the same time, be seen to be helping the perpetrators to cure this strange disease? Three things are crucial.
The first being legislation. However harsh it may seem, Ghana needs an explicit law that makes anal sex — whether by married couple or gay men — a criminal act. It also means that same sex marriage must also be outlawed, since all these are interrelated.
We must enact such a law, so that it is clear to anyone coming to Ghana that in Ghana, people are prevented from harming themselves.
Interestingly, most of those who advocate gay rights would scream if one calls for the legalisation of incest or suicide.
Second, we need to protect and promote what has been scientifically proven to be the right way of sexual intercourse, which is linked, directly, to our family value systems.
The point I am trying to make here is that instead of over-indulging in the gay debate, we need to refocus much of our energies on showcasing what we believe is good practice and exposing the hazards of gay practice.
Who knows, our actions could even convince some gays to change their ways.
Since the institutionalisation of a legal framework against gay practice is not enough guarantee that gays would cease to operate, it is better we focus on our children.
It is always better to teach your child why it is not good to abuse hard drugs than to keep him away from the drug abusers. Why, because you cannot continue to control the movement of your child.
So if your child understands that some people abuse harmful drugs by choice and that they face health hazards, your child won’t be shocked or tempted into doing same when he or she comes into contact with drug abusers.
We need to teach our children what constitutes ‘right’ sex, at which time, with whom and how.
In actual fact, the way we are fighting gays might only ignite the curiosity of our children and many others who never knew or did not understand what gays do.
Last, we must continue to explore ways of helping gays to abandon this strange trait and live what is scientifically proven as normal lives.
So even though there is the need to use legislation to protect gays from harming themselves, it is equally important to understand their psychology make-up and see possible ways of bringing them back to sanity.
I was excited to read in the Daily Graphic of Monday, June 21, that homosexuality could be treated. This was attributed to a medical practitioner at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra, Dr Kofi Nutakor, who mentioned that the most effective techniques that could be used include Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalysis and group therapy. I hope these really work well.
Indeed, my interaction with some gays have revealed that some gays adopted this practice as a result of past experience: rape, abuse, disappointment and, in some cases, fixation with same sex relationship usually developed at same sex schools and among security personnel.
In short, gays would continue to be there even with legislation and so campaign for healthy sexual relationship and the rehabilitation for gays would be very crucial to our efforts to eradicate this practice.
Monday, July 12, 2010
CONTINUE KUFUOR'S HOUSING PROJECTS ...Prez directs Ministry (SPREAD LEAD, JULY 12, 2010)
President John Evans Atta Mills has directed the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing to re-start work on the affordable housing project initiated by the Kufuor administration.
This is to help boost current efforts being made by the government towards the provision of housing units for workers in the country.
A Deputy Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Dr Mustapha Ahmed, announced this during a meeting with contractors and consultants working on the Wamale Affordable Housing Project in Tamale during a visit to the site.
The visit was to enable the ministry to assess the current state of work and reassure the contractors of the government’s willingness to recommence work on the projects.
He addressed various concerns, one of which was the additional cost of construction which had not been factored into the initial contracts.
The contractors complained that in the course of construction, they had been faced with certain difficulties, such as dealing with clay, which necessitated the spending of more resources on the project.
Others also raised concern over the non-payment of full funds for the construction of access roads to the site.
The deputy minister assured the workers of the government’s readiness to factor those concerns into the overall cost before recommencing work.
He, however, noted that the government was very concerned about ensuring that the housing units were, indeed, affordable, explaining that the objective of the project would be betrayed if the units were beyond the reach of workers.
“The government is, therefore, taking a serious look at the timeline for completion, terms of purchase and cost of construction so as not to defeat the goal of producing affordable houses,” Dr Ahmed explained.
Asked about financing for the project, he noted that the government was to re-estimate the current cost of the project and seek funding to complete it, since the previous government did not put in place any sustainable funding mechanism.
Dr Ahmed later told journalists that the ministry would visit all the sites to see the state of work and report to the President on the next line of action to take.
“We will strategise, continue the work and complete it in due time so that workers can benefit,” he added.
He said when completed, the project, together with the STX Housing Project, would provide more than 35,000 housing units, which would still not be enough to bridge the country’s one million housing deficit.
Mr Daniel Gyarteng, the Deputy Chief Architect of the Amalgamated Group, the consultant for the Wamale Project, said the project involved the construction of 10 separate four-storey blocks.
He said each block contained eight single-bedroom flats and 12 two-bedroom flats for 50 families.
On progress of work, Mr Gyarteng said most of the blocks were between 10 and 30 per cent completed.
This is to help boost current efforts being made by the government towards the provision of housing units for workers in the country.
A Deputy Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Dr Mustapha Ahmed, announced this during a meeting with contractors and consultants working on the Wamale Affordable Housing Project in Tamale during a visit to the site.
The visit was to enable the ministry to assess the current state of work and reassure the contractors of the government’s willingness to recommence work on the projects.
He addressed various concerns, one of which was the additional cost of construction which had not been factored into the initial contracts.
The contractors complained that in the course of construction, they had been faced with certain difficulties, such as dealing with clay, which necessitated the spending of more resources on the project.
Others also raised concern over the non-payment of full funds for the construction of access roads to the site.
The deputy minister assured the workers of the government’s readiness to factor those concerns into the overall cost before recommencing work.
He, however, noted that the government was very concerned about ensuring that the housing units were, indeed, affordable, explaining that the objective of the project would be betrayed if the units were beyond the reach of workers.
“The government is, therefore, taking a serious look at the timeline for completion, terms of purchase and cost of construction so as not to defeat the goal of producing affordable houses,” Dr Ahmed explained.
Asked about financing for the project, he noted that the government was to re-estimate the current cost of the project and seek funding to complete it, since the previous government did not put in place any sustainable funding mechanism.
Dr Ahmed later told journalists that the ministry would visit all the sites to see the state of work and report to the President on the next line of action to take.
“We will strategise, continue the work and complete it in due time so that workers can benefit,” he added.
He said when completed, the project, together with the STX Housing Project, would provide more than 35,000 housing units, which would still not be enough to bridge the country’s one million housing deficit.
Mr Daniel Gyarteng, the Deputy Chief Architect of the Amalgamated Group, the consultant for the Wamale Project, said the project involved the construction of 10 separate four-storey blocks.
He said each block contained eight single-bedroom flats and 12 two-bedroom flats for 50 families.
On progress of work, Mr Gyarteng said most of the blocks were between 10 and 30 per cent completed.
RAINSTORM CAUSES HAVOC IN NORTHERN REGION (PAGE 51, JULY 12, 2010)
MORE than 900 houses, 11 school buildings and 832 acres of farmland have been destroyed by rainstorm in parts of the Northern Region.
Some public and private properties were also destroyed by the rainstorm, which has been described as one of the worst to hit the region.
The worst affected districts are Chereponi, Gusheigu, West and East Mamprusi and West and East Gonja.
The Tamale metropolis is the latest to experience extensive destruction following a heavy downpour accompanied by strong winds.
Briefing the Daily Graphic on the disaster, the Northern Regional Co-ordinator of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Alhaji Abdulai Mahama Silimboma, said NADMO needed more logistics to support the victims.
“For immediate relief, we need foodstuffs, but later building materials and other items will also be needed,” he said, adding that his office was linking up with the national office for support.
He said some of the displaced people were currently perching with their relations until they were able to rebuild their homes.
Meanwhile, there is still uncertainty over the rainfall pattern and, according to the NADMO co-ordinator, the rains would peak between August and October this year, thereby raising concerns over the possibility of floods.
“The fear we have is that excessive rains in neighbouring Burkina Faso could equally have dire consequences for communities in the north due to the possible outflow of major dams in that country,” Alhaji Silimboma said.
The flood disaster of 2007 is still fresh in the minds of many residents of the region because of the level of devastation it caused.
Figures collated by NADMO indicated that 20 people died in the floods, while 9,707 houses, 22 health facilities, 18 school structures and 1,499.1 kilometres of roads were destroyed. Also, over 220,000 people were displaced.
Some public and private properties were also destroyed by the rainstorm, which has been described as one of the worst to hit the region.
The worst affected districts are Chereponi, Gusheigu, West and East Mamprusi and West and East Gonja.
The Tamale metropolis is the latest to experience extensive destruction following a heavy downpour accompanied by strong winds.
Briefing the Daily Graphic on the disaster, the Northern Regional Co-ordinator of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Alhaji Abdulai Mahama Silimboma, said NADMO needed more logistics to support the victims.
“For immediate relief, we need foodstuffs, but later building materials and other items will also be needed,” he said, adding that his office was linking up with the national office for support.
He said some of the displaced people were currently perching with their relations until they were able to rebuild their homes.
Meanwhile, there is still uncertainty over the rainfall pattern and, according to the NADMO co-ordinator, the rains would peak between August and October this year, thereby raising concerns over the possibility of floods.
“The fear we have is that excessive rains in neighbouring Burkina Faso could equally have dire consequences for communities in the north due to the possible outflow of major dams in that country,” Alhaji Silimboma said.
The flood disaster of 2007 is still fresh in the minds of many residents of the region because of the level of devastation it caused.
Figures collated by NADMO indicated that 20 people died in the floods, while 9,707 houses, 22 health facilities, 18 school structures and 1,499.1 kilometres of roads were destroyed. Also, over 220,000 people were displaced.
CHIEFS GIVE APPROVAL TO SADA BILL (PAGE 51, JULY 12, 2010)
CHIEFS in the three northern regions have given their backing to the draft Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) Bill and entreated Parliament to pass it into law.
According to them, the bill, when it becomes law, would mark a historic move towards bridging the development gap between the north and south.
The chiefs advanced their position at a consultative forum organised in Tamale during the weekend to educate the chiefs on the content of the bill and enable them make informed inputs into the bill, pending parliamentary approval.
Key among the recommendations made by the chiefs was the need to place much focus on education, which they noted, was a critical element in nurturing the requisite human resource to champion the development of the region.
The need to provide enough incentives to the private sector to encourage investments in the area of natural resource exploitation, agric, education and energy was also discussed.
Shea nut procession and value-addition was among the key resources that the chiefs said, if given the needed attention, could enhance the economic fortunes of the north.
Again, the chiefs raised the issue of the funding mechanism put in place to run the programme, which relies heavily on direct funding from the government purse.
They noted that relying on government funding would endanger the programme, because such funding could not be guaranteed due to increased strain on the government’s budget.
The chiefs, therefore, suggested the need for a more sustainable funding arrangement that would ensure regular funding to support the authority’s programmes.
Explaining the various funding options that had been proposed, a Development Policy Advisor to the Government on the SADA, Dr Sulley Gariba, noted that so far two mechanisms seemed plausible.
“The first is for Government to levy 1.5 per cent of all non-petroleum imports, while the second is to designate a proportion of the Value Added Tax (VAT) for SADA, as has been done for the Ghana Education Trust Fund and the National Health Insurance Scheme,” he stated.
Dr Gariba said implementing any of these mechanisms had implications, “and so we will continue to analyse them and explore other funding methods.”
He said other sources of funding incorporated in the bill included interests to be accrued from the authority’s investments, loans, grants and other moneys that the minister responsible for finance may approve.
The President of the National House of Chiefs, Professor John S. Nabila, who chaired the deliberations, reminded the chiefs of the critical role they would play if SADA programmes were to make the desired impact.
“It is we the chiefs who would own and facilitate the implementation of the programmes at the grass-root level so we need to appreciate and give it the needed support,” he said.
One area in which the role of chiefs would be much needed is in the allocation of lands for the numerous proposed agric, energy, roads, health and educational projects.
The chiefs thus pledged their readiness to make land available because, in their estimation, the projects would inure to the benefit of their people.
The SADA initiative is a multi-pronged approach which focuses on transforming northern Ghana through modernised and market-based agricultural systems, utilisation of the north’s tourism, mining and human resources, private sector investments and improved livelihoods through pro-poor and social-protection initiatives.
It would as well seek to improve infrastructure in critical areas such as in roads, transportation, energy and irrigation to facilitate the development process.
According to them, the bill, when it becomes law, would mark a historic move towards bridging the development gap between the north and south.
The chiefs advanced their position at a consultative forum organised in Tamale during the weekend to educate the chiefs on the content of the bill and enable them make informed inputs into the bill, pending parliamentary approval.
Key among the recommendations made by the chiefs was the need to place much focus on education, which they noted, was a critical element in nurturing the requisite human resource to champion the development of the region.
The need to provide enough incentives to the private sector to encourage investments in the area of natural resource exploitation, agric, education and energy was also discussed.
Shea nut procession and value-addition was among the key resources that the chiefs said, if given the needed attention, could enhance the economic fortunes of the north.
Again, the chiefs raised the issue of the funding mechanism put in place to run the programme, which relies heavily on direct funding from the government purse.
They noted that relying on government funding would endanger the programme, because such funding could not be guaranteed due to increased strain on the government’s budget.
The chiefs, therefore, suggested the need for a more sustainable funding arrangement that would ensure regular funding to support the authority’s programmes.
Explaining the various funding options that had been proposed, a Development Policy Advisor to the Government on the SADA, Dr Sulley Gariba, noted that so far two mechanisms seemed plausible.
“The first is for Government to levy 1.5 per cent of all non-petroleum imports, while the second is to designate a proportion of the Value Added Tax (VAT) for SADA, as has been done for the Ghana Education Trust Fund and the National Health Insurance Scheme,” he stated.
Dr Gariba said implementing any of these mechanisms had implications, “and so we will continue to analyse them and explore other funding methods.”
He said other sources of funding incorporated in the bill included interests to be accrued from the authority’s investments, loans, grants and other moneys that the minister responsible for finance may approve.
The President of the National House of Chiefs, Professor John S. Nabila, who chaired the deliberations, reminded the chiefs of the critical role they would play if SADA programmes were to make the desired impact.
“It is we the chiefs who would own and facilitate the implementation of the programmes at the grass-root level so we need to appreciate and give it the needed support,” he said.
One area in which the role of chiefs would be much needed is in the allocation of lands for the numerous proposed agric, energy, roads, health and educational projects.
The chiefs thus pledged their readiness to make land available because, in their estimation, the projects would inure to the benefit of their people.
The SADA initiative is a multi-pronged approach which focuses on transforming northern Ghana through modernised and market-based agricultural systems, utilisation of the north’s tourism, mining and human resources, private sector investments and improved livelihoods through pro-poor and social-protection initiatives.
It would as well seek to improve infrastructure in critical areas such as in roads, transportation, energy and irrigation to facilitate the development process.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
CROCODILE EVICTS CHIEF ...From Palace (MIRROR, LEAD STORY, JULY 3, 2010)
From Nurudeen Salifu, Tamale.
In what is believed to be a mysterious turn of events, three crocodiles have taken over the palace of a paramount chief of the Basare Traditional Area in the Zabzugu/Tatale District of the Northern Region (name withheld), after forcing him out of his residence.
According to residents of the town, the crocodiles moved to the palace in 'protest' against alleged maltreatment by the chief, who had allegedly leased the dam in which the animals dwelt to fishermen from a nearby village.
The fishermen, the residents explained, had failed to catch enough fish from the Tatale Dam on many occasions and in their desperation to make up for what they had allegedly paid the chief, killed about 10 crocodiles and consumed their meat.
The residents said the action of the fishermen 'angered' the remaining crocodiles, and that might be the reason for the three crocodiles taking over the chief’s palace that night. Other crocodiles were said to have abandoned the dam and sought refuge in nearby bushes.
A source close to the palace told The Mirror that from about June 11 to 13, the crocodiles lay in the palace, forcing the chief and family members to abandon the palace.
News of the new palace dwellers quickly spread through the town, compelling the residents to rush to the scene.
“I was shocked; I could not believe my eyes because it seemed impossible for crocodiles to move from the dam to a residence even under provocation,” a resident stated.
Some other residents were of the view that the crocodiles might not be ordinary ones, but rather spiritual beings that had come to caution the chief to be wary of his activities.
The Tatale Dam is about 500 metres away from the palace and it is estimated that more than 50 crocodiles reside in it. Apart from fetching water for domestic purposes, Basare customs prohibit fishing and swimming in the dam and for that reason, the crocodiles have remained friendly.
A palace source indicated that efforts were being made to pacify the gods and calm the crocodiles.
He said since the commencement of the raining season, there had not been any rain in the community and that had angered the youth of the town, who nearly lynched the chief, blaming him for incurring the wrath of the gods.
At the time of filing this report, the three crocodiles had vanished from the palace. In a telephone interview, the chief denied the incident and said he left Tatale on June 27 to attend his father’s funeral in Kumasi.
He also denied any links with the fishermen and said that he would consult his elders to find out what happened to the crocodiles.
“The fishermen brought the crocodiles to my house or what?” he asked this reporter, and added, “Please, I have never heard about this thing.”
“I will consult my elders and see,” the chief further stated, and gave the assurance the crocodiles were safe in the dam, adding that no one was still permitted to fish in the dam.
In what is believed to be a mysterious turn of events, three crocodiles have taken over the palace of a paramount chief of the Basare Traditional Area in the Zabzugu/Tatale District of the Northern Region (name withheld), after forcing him out of his residence.
According to residents of the town, the crocodiles moved to the palace in 'protest' against alleged maltreatment by the chief, who had allegedly leased the dam in which the animals dwelt to fishermen from a nearby village.
The fishermen, the residents explained, had failed to catch enough fish from the Tatale Dam on many occasions and in their desperation to make up for what they had allegedly paid the chief, killed about 10 crocodiles and consumed their meat.
The residents said the action of the fishermen 'angered' the remaining crocodiles, and that might be the reason for the three crocodiles taking over the chief’s palace that night. Other crocodiles were said to have abandoned the dam and sought refuge in nearby bushes.
A source close to the palace told The Mirror that from about June 11 to 13, the crocodiles lay in the palace, forcing the chief and family members to abandon the palace.
News of the new palace dwellers quickly spread through the town, compelling the residents to rush to the scene.
“I was shocked; I could not believe my eyes because it seemed impossible for crocodiles to move from the dam to a residence even under provocation,” a resident stated.
Some other residents were of the view that the crocodiles might not be ordinary ones, but rather spiritual beings that had come to caution the chief to be wary of his activities.
The Tatale Dam is about 500 metres away from the palace and it is estimated that more than 50 crocodiles reside in it. Apart from fetching water for domestic purposes, Basare customs prohibit fishing and swimming in the dam and for that reason, the crocodiles have remained friendly.
A palace source indicated that efforts were being made to pacify the gods and calm the crocodiles.
He said since the commencement of the raining season, there had not been any rain in the community and that had angered the youth of the town, who nearly lynched the chief, blaming him for incurring the wrath of the gods.
At the time of filing this report, the three crocodiles had vanished from the palace. In a telephone interview, the chief denied the incident and said he left Tatale on June 27 to attend his father’s funeral in Kumasi.
He also denied any links with the fishermen and said that he would consult his elders to find out what happened to the crocodiles.
“The fishermen brought the crocodiles to my house or what?” he asked this reporter, and added, “Please, I have never heard about this thing.”
“I will consult my elders and see,” the chief further stated, and gave the assurance the crocodiles were safe in the dam, adding that no one was still permitted to fish in the dam.
EPA INTENSIFIES TREE-PLANTING EXERCISE IN TAMALE (PAGE 38, JULY 5, 2010)
THE Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has increased its efforts towards the establishment of woodlots and greening of various parts of the Tamale metropolis.
This is to protect the city from being affected by desertification, which is consuming some other parts of the Northern Region due to practices such as bush burning, incessant logging and mechanised agric.
As part of the efforts, the Tamale secretariat of the EPA has established a nursery at its premises to enable it to raise various tree seedlings to support the greening of schools, communities and offices.
So far, the office has succeeded in raising more than 10,000 seedlings, which are currently being distributed to some beneficiaries, including the University of Development Studies (UDS) and some basic schools.
Some of the tree seedlings, which are being distributed, include varieties of Cassia, Albizia, Neem, Mango, Milk Bush and Cashew.
In an interview, the Northern Regional Director of the EPA, Mr Iddrisu Abu, said the EPA had gone beyond its core mandate of being a regulatory body by playing an active role in the restoration of degraded areas.
“We decided to establish our own nursery to enable us to raise more seedlings and support the government’s drive to green Ghana ,” he stated, adding that the north had a peculiar case because of the spate of land degradation in the area.
Mr Abu said initially the EPA acquired seedlings from the Forestry Department and other bodies and then distributed them to various communities and institutions.
“But we were overwhelmed by demands for seedlings. Therefore, we had to devise a way to be able to provide these seedlings on our own and this is why we started this operational nursery,” he further mentioned.
The director expressed the hope that with such efforts, Tamale could be protected from desertification.
The EPA recently estimated that the Northern Region loses 38,000 hectares of its tree cover every year due to activities such as indiscriminate bush burning, deforestation, overgrazing by livestock and surface mining.
It said due to those practices, some parts of the region had been reduced to desert-like conditions leading to the severe reduction in food and water resources and the increased intensity and duration of droughts and disasters in the north.
The tree-planting exercise is therefore considered as a key measure towards restoring deforested areas even though it can not totally recover the state of the natural forests.
This is to protect the city from being affected by desertification, which is consuming some other parts of the Northern Region due to practices such as bush burning, incessant logging and mechanised agric.
As part of the efforts, the Tamale secretariat of the EPA has established a nursery at its premises to enable it to raise various tree seedlings to support the greening of schools, communities and offices.
So far, the office has succeeded in raising more than 10,000 seedlings, which are currently being distributed to some beneficiaries, including the University of Development Studies (UDS) and some basic schools.
Some of the tree seedlings, which are being distributed, include varieties of Cassia, Albizia, Neem, Mango, Milk Bush and Cashew.
In an interview, the Northern Regional Director of the EPA, Mr Iddrisu Abu, said the EPA had gone beyond its core mandate of being a regulatory body by playing an active role in the restoration of degraded areas.
“We decided to establish our own nursery to enable us to raise more seedlings and support the government’s drive to green Ghana ,” he stated, adding that the north had a peculiar case because of the spate of land degradation in the area.
Mr Abu said initially the EPA acquired seedlings from the Forestry Department and other bodies and then distributed them to various communities and institutions.
“But we were overwhelmed by demands for seedlings. Therefore, we had to devise a way to be able to provide these seedlings on our own and this is why we started this operational nursery,” he further mentioned.
The director expressed the hope that with such efforts, Tamale could be protected from desertification.
The EPA recently estimated that the Northern Region loses 38,000 hectares of its tree cover every year due to activities such as indiscriminate bush burning, deforestation, overgrazing by livestock and surface mining.
It said due to those practices, some parts of the region had been reduced to desert-like conditions leading to the severe reduction in food and water resources and the increased intensity and duration of droughts and disasters in the north.
The tree-planting exercise is therefore considered as a key measure towards restoring deforested areas even though it can not totally recover the state of the natural forests.
RESIDENTS REGISTER SIM CARDS (PAGE 61, JULY 5, 2010, DG)
MANY residents in Tamale are on a daily basis rushing to the offices of their telecommunications service providers to register their SIM cards.
The Ministry of Communications had indicated that by the end of July next year, all SIMs that were unregistered would be collapsed and that all new SIMs would have to be registered before usage.
At the offices of TIGO, MTN, ZAIN and KASAPA, many customers queued to get their SIMs registered, even though the deadline was still several months ahead.
Details taken by the providers included the owner’s name, residential address, voter I.D. card data and other relevant data.
Officials at Vodafone said the company would commence its registration exercise next week.
Some of the officials at the four telecommunications companies that had started the registration told the Daily Graphic that the exercise had already been ongoing even prior to the Communication Ministry’s directive.
“As for us, we always encourage our customers to come and register their SIMs, especially when they buy it from street vendors,” one of them noted.
The officials said it was surprising that for once, Ghanaians had responded to a directive in time.
“It appears some people took it for granted, until recently when they realised that the Communication’s Ministry meant serious business,” one of the officials stated.
“This makes the exercise more difficult, because we have to spend a significant chunk of our time to ensure that all our customers have their SIMs registered before the deadline,” he further mentioned.
Some of the customers however opined that the ministry should do more publicity about the exercise, because many people, particularly those in the rural areas were unaware of the exercise.
“They should constantly remind people through the airwaves and television about the exercise,” stated Mr Francis Npong, one of the customers.
In defending the rational behind the exercise, the Minister of Communications, Mr Haruna Iddrisu recently indicated that the registration of SIM cards was to facilitate the deployment of the Mobile Number Portability in the telecommunications industry in the country.
This technology, he explained, would enable mobile phone users in the country to shift from one service provider to another, whiles still retaining their numbers.
Such a system, he noted, would also discourage poor service delivery by the operators because customers would be free to switch to any other provider when they are dissatisfied with the quality of service from their current provider.
Mr Iddrisu further indicated that the registration of SIM cards would provide a database of users which could be relied upon in cases where the SIM is used to transmit insults and threatening messages either in the form of phone calls or text messages.
The Ministry of Communications had indicated that by the end of July next year, all SIMs that were unregistered would be collapsed and that all new SIMs would have to be registered before usage.
At the offices of TIGO, MTN, ZAIN and KASAPA, many customers queued to get their SIMs registered, even though the deadline was still several months ahead.
Details taken by the providers included the owner’s name, residential address, voter I.D. card data and other relevant data.
Officials at Vodafone said the company would commence its registration exercise next week.
Some of the officials at the four telecommunications companies that had started the registration told the Daily Graphic that the exercise had already been ongoing even prior to the Communication Ministry’s directive.
“As for us, we always encourage our customers to come and register their SIMs, especially when they buy it from street vendors,” one of them noted.
The officials said it was surprising that for once, Ghanaians had responded to a directive in time.
“It appears some people took it for granted, until recently when they realised that the Communication’s Ministry meant serious business,” one of the officials stated.
“This makes the exercise more difficult, because we have to spend a significant chunk of our time to ensure that all our customers have their SIMs registered before the deadline,” he further mentioned.
Some of the customers however opined that the ministry should do more publicity about the exercise, because many people, particularly those in the rural areas were unaware of the exercise.
“They should constantly remind people through the airwaves and television about the exercise,” stated Mr Francis Npong, one of the customers.
In defending the rational behind the exercise, the Minister of Communications, Mr Haruna Iddrisu recently indicated that the registration of SIM cards was to facilitate the deployment of the Mobile Number Portability in the telecommunications industry in the country.
This technology, he explained, would enable mobile phone users in the country to shift from one service provider to another, whiles still retaining their numbers.
Such a system, he noted, would also discourage poor service delivery by the operators because customers would be free to switch to any other provider when they are dissatisfied with the quality of service from their current provider.
Mr Iddrisu further indicated that the registration of SIM cards would provide a database of users which could be relied upon in cases where the SIM is used to transmit insults and threatening messages either in the form of phone calls or text messages.
A NIGHTLIFE IN ACCRA (PAGE 36, JUNE 28, 2010, DG)
IT was just a single night, not two or three, but by the time I went to bed, I could count one by one the problems facing the nation’s capital city, Accra.
I had arrived from Tamale and checked into a hostel to spend the night to enable me run some errands the next day and leave again for Tamale.
We got to Ofankor around 5:30pm after travelling for about 12 hours. I was excited, because the long journey had finally come an end and all one needed was to wait for just some few minutes to alight.
But it was not as I thought, why, because between Ofankor and State Transport Corporation (STC) yard around Circle, it took us not less than 1 hour, 30 minutes to get through the traffic. Whew! The vehicles flowed incessantly like a parade performing the slow march.
Indeed, it was not my first visit to Accra, but the situation seemed to have gone worse.
Later, we realised that one reason for the delay in traffic was due to a major construction work between Ofankor and Achimota. But, was this enough to cause such a heavy traffic, I asked my sitting mate.
As a city, are they not enough link and alternate roots linking the various suburbs? Does everybody have to use the same route till he or she gets to the intended destination?
Aside the construction, there appears to be too many automobiles in the capital city. Every Tom, Dick and Harry is driving, whether for leisure or serious business.
Come to think of it, don’t we think the country needs a policy directive regarding the usage of cars in the country? I remember I gentle once suggested that cars should be given odd and even numbers and allocated days to operate. Well, that is not a bad idea.
Also, there is the need for a national programme aimed towards making public transport the most effective means of transport. I learnt the Bus Rapid Transport system could be the panacea.
Not until we change these life threatening ‘trotros’ and open up more areas through link roads, we would continue to find more people desiring to use private vehicles. It is true that some people use private cars to satisfy social stratification demands, but how many are they.
Sometimes I wonder if the architects, planners, surveyors and engineers we have in the country are working or is it that their views are not taken on board. Whatever it is, we have to wake up.
Well, after finally arriving at the STC yard and taking another vehicle to Castle road, where my hostel was located, I settled for a while and decided to take a stroll to town to get some nice meal to close the day.
From Ridge Hospital through to Adabraka and to Circle, none of the traffic lights were working. Knowing Accra as it is, I began to feel insecure, especially between Hotel President and the Mental hospital. The area is so dark that one has to master courage to go pass these areas.
Also, from Adabraka to Circle, another reality and characteristic of life in Accra dawned on me. People were lying by the streets, in front of shops, resting their backs on electric poles and also sharing places with watchmen.
This is reflective of the difficulties that people have to go through when living in Accra without a good job. In fact, it is a characteristic of most other cities, such as in Mexico and India.
After a hard day’s labour for some peanuts or nothing at all, these helpless individuals have to look for somewhere, irrespective of the dangers and discomfort, to lay their heads and wait for the next day. And this is a daily cycle.
When our governments talk of affordable housing, I ask myself what that means. Is it housing for public and civil servants, politicians and business people?
I thought that due to the various categories of people (in terms of income) that we have in the country, housing schemes would target each group appropriately.
It is a fact that there are some people who provide us with some services, but the incomes they make cannot afford to pay for rent in a supposed “affordable” housing. Talk of security men, cobblers, hawkers, market women, ‘trotro’ mates and sanitation personnel.
What type of houses are we building for this category of people? Do we consider their needs when drafting policies and programmes? Can’t there be truly affordable indigenous, but well designed, housing schemes to cater for their needs.
We all know about bricks, bamboo, wood, plastics and other materials that could be utilised innovatively to provide places for our gallant menial workers, who we cannot do without. May be, our leaders, who are living in glass houses, are too comfortable to ponder over such matters, isn’t it? God save mother Ghana.
Now back to Adabraka, where I spotted several fast food joints known as ‘check check’. Some of them provide a mixture of incredible vegetables, rice and ‘chemicals’ served as a meal. Some of the food I realised must have stayed for only God knows how long and the so-called pepper sauce could be equated to poison.
Yet, the people of Accra eat these foods and hope to be healthy. No wonder, a lot people report for work at the OPD, whiles many others are developing irregular body shapes. Ghanaians, let’s watch what we eat, it can kill us.
The heavy traffic I mentioned earlier was missing during the night, obviously because many of the drivers had gone back home, but how I wished Accra was like this during the day.
It was these less busy roads that I followed and eventually got back to my hostel where I rested and waited impatiently for dawn to break.
By the time my eyes was finally subdued, I had realised that Accra, our beloved capital city, was faced with several challenges, notably poor traffic flow, non-functioning traffic lights, housing difficulties and the people’s over indulgence in the consumption of unhealthy foods. Something needs to be done.
I had arrived from Tamale and checked into a hostel to spend the night to enable me run some errands the next day and leave again for Tamale.
We got to Ofankor around 5:30pm after travelling for about 12 hours. I was excited, because the long journey had finally come an end and all one needed was to wait for just some few minutes to alight.
But it was not as I thought, why, because between Ofankor and State Transport Corporation (STC) yard around Circle, it took us not less than 1 hour, 30 minutes to get through the traffic. Whew! The vehicles flowed incessantly like a parade performing the slow march.
Indeed, it was not my first visit to Accra, but the situation seemed to have gone worse.
Later, we realised that one reason for the delay in traffic was due to a major construction work between Ofankor and Achimota. But, was this enough to cause such a heavy traffic, I asked my sitting mate.
As a city, are they not enough link and alternate roots linking the various suburbs? Does everybody have to use the same route till he or she gets to the intended destination?
Aside the construction, there appears to be too many automobiles in the capital city. Every Tom, Dick and Harry is driving, whether for leisure or serious business.
Come to think of it, don’t we think the country needs a policy directive regarding the usage of cars in the country? I remember I gentle once suggested that cars should be given odd and even numbers and allocated days to operate. Well, that is not a bad idea.
Also, there is the need for a national programme aimed towards making public transport the most effective means of transport. I learnt the Bus Rapid Transport system could be the panacea.
Not until we change these life threatening ‘trotros’ and open up more areas through link roads, we would continue to find more people desiring to use private vehicles. It is true that some people use private cars to satisfy social stratification demands, but how many are they.
Sometimes I wonder if the architects, planners, surveyors and engineers we have in the country are working or is it that their views are not taken on board. Whatever it is, we have to wake up.
Well, after finally arriving at the STC yard and taking another vehicle to Castle road, where my hostel was located, I settled for a while and decided to take a stroll to town to get some nice meal to close the day.
From Ridge Hospital through to Adabraka and to Circle, none of the traffic lights were working. Knowing Accra as it is, I began to feel insecure, especially between Hotel President and the Mental hospital. The area is so dark that one has to master courage to go pass these areas.
Also, from Adabraka to Circle, another reality and characteristic of life in Accra dawned on me. People were lying by the streets, in front of shops, resting their backs on electric poles and also sharing places with watchmen.
This is reflective of the difficulties that people have to go through when living in Accra without a good job. In fact, it is a characteristic of most other cities, such as in Mexico and India.
After a hard day’s labour for some peanuts or nothing at all, these helpless individuals have to look for somewhere, irrespective of the dangers and discomfort, to lay their heads and wait for the next day. And this is a daily cycle.
When our governments talk of affordable housing, I ask myself what that means. Is it housing for public and civil servants, politicians and business people?
I thought that due to the various categories of people (in terms of income) that we have in the country, housing schemes would target each group appropriately.
It is a fact that there are some people who provide us with some services, but the incomes they make cannot afford to pay for rent in a supposed “affordable” housing. Talk of security men, cobblers, hawkers, market women, ‘trotro’ mates and sanitation personnel.
What type of houses are we building for this category of people? Do we consider their needs when drafting policies and programmes? Can’t there be truly affordable indigenous, but well designed, housing schemes to cater for their needs.
We all know about bricks, bamboo, wood, plastics and other materials that could be utilised innovatively to provide places for our gallant menial workers, who we cannot do without. May be, our leaders, who are living in glass houses, are too comfortable to ponder over such matters, isn’t it? God save mother Ghana.
Now back to Adabraka, where I spotted several fast food joints known as ‘check check’. Some of them provide a mixture of incredible vegetables, rice and ‘chemicals’ served as a meal. Some of the food I realised must have stayed for only God knows how long and the so-called pepper sauce could be equated to poison.
Yet, the people of Accra eat these foods and hope to be healthy. No wonder, a lot people report for work at the OPD, whiles many others are developing irregular body shapes. Ghanaians, let’s watch what we eat, it can kill us.
The heavy traffic I mentioned earlier was missing during the night, obviously because many of the drivers had gone back home, but how I wished Accra was like this during the day.
It was these less busy roads that I followed and eventually got back to my hostel where I rested and waited impatiently for dawn to break.
By the time my eyes was finally subdued, I had realised that Accra, our beloved capital city, was faced with several challenges, notably poor traffic flow, non-functioning traffic lights, housing difficulties and the people’s over indulgence in the consumption of unhealthy foods. Something needs to be done.
WEEP NOT, SOUTH AFRICA (PAGE 7, JUNE 28, 2010, DG)
WHY should South Africa be moaning their early exit from the 2010 world cup? Is it because they are hosting it or they actually had realistic belief that their national team could outwit teams like Uruguay and Mexico.
Let us be pragmatic here. South Africa’s hay days in football have been dwindling for a decade now and, as far as I know, it has not awoken from its slumber yet.
What South Africans have to pride themselves in is their ability to host this tournament successfully and, so far, they have passed the test.
It is clear for everybody to see ‘filli filli’. The beautiful stadia, accompanying magnificent landscape, cultural displays, tourist attraction and, more importantly, peace and security for all persons tell the story.
The vuvuzelas and makarapas have equally added some uniqueness to South Africa 2010. As for the Jabulani, though it has no direct link with South Africa (except for the colours), it has added some uniqueness to the tournament.
The fun aspect of the ball is that it has been declared the most perfect football ever manufactured and yet it has been the nightmare for both players and goalkeepers.
If we remember, in the run up to the tournament, some western sceptics, especially the news media, kept raising eyebrows about the capability of South Africa to complete all the projects before the commencement of the tournament.
The Europeans felt that Africa did not have the kind of economic muscle and logistical wherewithal necessary to stage an event of such international significance.
They, equally, over exaggerated concerns about security of players and visitors, with the famous story about possible Al-Qaeda attacks being aired regularly.
A British sports journalist, Matt Scott, in an article in his Digger Column, reported that German insurance giant Munich Re was holding off on a decision to provide coverage for the event citing fears of inadequate progress, crime and insecurity, and an uncertain political climate.
“The problem is they need 10 stadiums and some of these are rugby grounds that are run down and in very bad condition,” a spokesman for Munich Re is reported to have said.
Well, to do their dismay, SA proved Blatter right: it did what was said to be supposedly beyond its ability.
Not only was it able to upgrade five existing stadia, but also constructed five new magnificent stadia right on time.
SA, as well, successfully executed other major projects that could cater for security, transportation, accommodation and tourism as well.
For instance, they completed their new improved rail line systems just before June 9th and a new flyover was opened on the R21 highway between Pretoria and OR Tambo airport.
The City of Johannesburg had reportedly launched the bus rapid transit system owned by the mini-bus taxi industry, to facilitate transport. And all these projects were said to have met World Cup standards.
Since the tournament started, events in SA have indicated that SA really prepared for the Mundial. See the speed with which World Cup related crimes are adjudicated. The special courts that have been established have worked tirelessly just like the players on the field.
By this spectacular hosting, South Africa has saved Africa from shame and sent the message to the world that Africa is really emerging from its doldrums, which they, the west, are partly to blame for.
And even with the football, Africa is still in the tournament. The Black Stars of Ghana have qualified to the round of 16 and there are prospects of the team moving beyond that stage.
In view of these, I see no reason why SA should weep. In fact, Africa would still triumph at this Mundial, whether Ghana progresses to the final or not.
Let us be pragmatic here. South Africa’s hay days in football have been dwindling for a decade now and, as far as I know, it has not awoken from its slumber yet.
What South Africans have to pride themselves in is their ability to host this tournament successfully and, so far, they have passed the test.
It is clear for everybody to see ‘filli filli’. The beautiful stadia, accompanying magnificent landscape, cultural displays, tourist attraction and, more importantly, peace and security for all persons tell the story.
The vuvuzelas and makarapas have equally added some uniqueness to South Africa 2010. As for the Jabulani, though it has no direct link with South Africa (except for the colours), it has added some uniqueness to the tournament.
The fun aspect of the ball is that it has been declared the most perfect football ever manufactured and yet it has been the nightmare for both players and goalkeepers.
If we remember, in the run up to the tournament, some western sceptics, especially the news media, kept raising eyebrows about the capability of South Africa to complete all the projects before the commencement of the tournament.
The Europeans felt that Africa did not have the kind of economic muscle and logistical wherewithal necessary to stage an event of such international significance.
They, equally, over exaggerated concerns about security of players and visitors, with the famous story about possible Al-Qaeda attacks being aired regularly.
A British sports journalist, Matt Scott, in an article in his Digger Column, reported that German insurance giant Munich Re was holding off on a decision to provide coverage for the event citing fears of inadequate progress, crime and insecurity, and an uncertain political climate.
“The problem is they need 10 stadiums and some of these are rugby grounds that are run down and in very bad condition,” a spokesman for Munich Re is reported to have said.
Well, to do their dismay, SA proved Blatter right: it did what was said to be supposedly beyond its ability.
Not only was it able to upgrade five existing stadia, but also constructed five new magnificent stadia right on time.
SA, as well, successfully executed other major projects that could cater for security, transportation, accommodation and tourism as well.
For instance, they completed their new improved rail line systems just before June 9th and a new flyover was opened on the R21 highway between Pretoria and OR Tambo airport.
The City of Johannesburg had reportedly launched the bus rapid transit system owned by the mini-bus taxi industry, to facilitate transport. And all these projects were said to have met World Cup standards.
Since the tournament started, events in SA have indicated that SA really prepared for the Mundial. See the speed with which World Cup related crimes are adjudicated. The special courts that have been established have worked tirelessly just like the players on the field.
By this spectacular hosting, South Africa has saved Africa from shame and sent the message to the world that Africa is really emerging from its doldrums, which they, the west, are partly to blame for.
And even with the football, Africa is still in the tournament. The Black Stars of Ghana have qualified to the round of 16 and there are prospects of the team moving beyond that stage.
In view of these, I see no reason why SA should weep. In fact, Africa would still triumph at this Mundial, whether Ghana progresses to the final or not.
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