Bawku Curfew Hours Reviewed

A statement signed by the Interior Minister, Martin Amidu said the Curfew hours imposed on the Bawku Municipality and its surroundings have been reviewed and renewed.
The statement also said with effect from Monday July 19th, the curfew hours has been changed from 6:00pm - 5:00pm to 10:00pm - 5:00am each day.
It further said that government continues to be encouraged by the sustained peace in Bawku and appealed to the Chiefs, Elders, Opinion leaders, youth and people of the area to be tolerant of each other to ensure Bawku regains its status as a commercial centre in the region.

Government repeated that there was a ban on all people in the Bawku Municipality and its immediate environs; Zabzugu, Binduri, Pusiga and Zoasi from carrying arms or any offensive weapons. Any person found violating the directive would be arrested and prosecuted.

The Ministry also on the advice of the Northern Regional Security Council and by an Executive Instrument renewed the curfew imposed on the Gushegu Township and its immediate environs for a week with effect from Monday, July 19.

The curfew hours for the Gushegu Township remain from 12 midnight to 4:00 am each day

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Floods Destroys Farmlands In Keta

Hundreds of hectares of farmlands have been submerged by the recent downpour destroying crops worth thousands of Ghana cedis in the Keta Municipality
Togbe Azadagli III, Keta Municipal Director of Agriculture told members of the National Task Force on Floods during a visit to the area on Saturday that about 100 acres of maize farms belonging to the Farmer Based Organizations that received support under the Millennium Challenge Authority (MCA) Project at Anloga were among the crops affected.
The Task Force,led by Mr. Joseph Yileh Chireh, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, toured flooded areas in the Keta Municipality and Ketu-South District,
Togbe Azadagli noted that the farmers received GH¢76,525 of MCA support in terms of fertilizers, seeds and land preparation.
Mr Kofi Portuphy, National Coordinator of the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) expressed the need for the development of appropriate infrastructure in support of projects.
He explained that the floods could have been prevented in the farms if drainage was considered at the planning stage of development.
Mr. Sylvester Tornyeava, Keta Municipal Chief Executive, called for the dredging of the Keta Lagoon to enable water to flow through it and also to minimize the extent of floods in the Keta area.
He called for more MCA support for the farmers to enable them to grow vegetables when the floods recede in August.
The team also visited Vodza, Kedzi and Anyanui areas in the Keta Municipality and Adina Denu and Agbozume in the Ketu-South District.
Mr Yileh Chireh noted that the devastation caused by floods in the area was extensive and had given new lessons in culvert designing and the height or thickness of roads.
He noted that there was the need to revive communal spirit, which had died down in communities.

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Sack Milovan Rajevac: Nana Akomea

Nana Akomea, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Okai-koi South said categorically that Black Star’s coach Milovan Rajevac should be sacked.
He made this known on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana show hosted by Shamima Muslim when he was asked to comment on the performance of the Black Stars in the tournament.
Nana Akomeah explained that he felt Prince Tagoe was one lousy player who needed to be taken off the field. “Milovan’s timing for substitution is very poor. Why will you let a player who is not performing well play full time when you have other players on the bench? Of what use is a winger who can’t even cross the ball for strikers from the wings?” He said.
He further asked that why are we keeping the coach if the team is not playing well.
In another development coach Milovan Rajevac insisted that he will carry on with his traditional 4-3-2-1 formation in our pending matches.
He further defended his tactical formation, which the critics cited for Ghana’s inability to score more than one goal in a match.
Coach Milovan is more concerned about his team’s conversion rate; he does not only consider the 4-3-2-1 formation as the most progressive, especially, at such high levels, but rather blames the frontline players for not being able to utilize their chances created in matches.
Addressing the issue of Ghana’s poor conversion rate during matches, Milovan explained that the players sometimes hold on to the ball for too long. He noted that in our match against USA on Saturday it is very important that the Black Stars scored a ‘proper goal’.

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We Have Been Vindicated – AMA Boss

The Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, Alfred Vanderpuije says the AMA was not wrong in pulling down houses supposedly built on waterways in most parts of the capital.
Alfred Vanderpuije explained that the demolishing exercise carried out at Osu, Mataheko, Sakaman, Odorkor, Kaneshie, chorkor and other surrounding areas in the capital helped to prevent some of these areas from experiencing severe floods as compared to the previous years
He noted that the demolishing exercise was a move in the right direction, adding that AMA would continue to demolish houses built on waterways to prevent floods during severe rainfall.
“Ghanaians must thank the president and government for taking such a bold step to decongest the city,” the AMA Boss said, and advised all citizens to stay away from unhelpful politics.
17 people were reported dead at Ashaiman due to the torrential rains which led to severe flooding in most parts of Ashaiman and the Tema Municipalities.
A total of 35 bodies have so far been retrieved from floodwaters across the country by volunteers and rescue workers and hundreds of people are reported to have lost properties amounting to millions of Ghana Cedis in what Ghanaian media consider the nation’s worst flood disaster.

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The President Has Said It Well, But?

President Mills has cautioned that government would not hesitate to demolish structures that are situated on waterways in every part of the country.

His statement follows the Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Alfred Vanderpuije’s position that the demolishing exercise that took place around some areas like Osu and Sakaman earlier this year prevented those areas from flooding.

On Tuesday, The AMA Boss said that more lives would have been lost had they not done that job.

A lot of lives are lost every year just because people continue to build on water ways, and also because of inadequate drainage facilities in most communities, and even in places where they exist people keep dumping refuse and other solid waste in them; this makes it difficult for water to flow to where it is supposed to when it rain.

There is a big argument surrounding the flooding issue. Every year when the rains come, parts of the country always get flooded.

Some parts of Abose Okai, Kaneshie and other part of Accra got flooded in 2009 as a result of choked gutters and poor drainage system in the area.

Ghana has been facing the issue of poor drainage for a very long time.

There are areas in Accra that do not have drains and as a result, these areas flood anytime the rains come.

As the issue of demolishing of structures, which have been built on water ways is being tackled, the districts, municipal and metropolitan assemblies and the government in collaborating with the Ministry of Roads and Transport should also try to identify ways of planning the drainage systems in the country and how to distil choked gutters in the country.

It is about time that horrible attitude of dumping refuse in the gutters by residents be stopped.
The masses also should be educated on the dangers involved in dumping them in the drain and how to properly dispose refuse in order to save us all and our properties.
Bismarck Nii Ogbamey Tetteh

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GFA Clear the Atmosphere of Doubt

The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has confirmed that Sulley Muntari is still a member of the Black Stars team for the World Cup tournament underway in South Africa.

The GFA noted that Sulley Muntari reacted angrily and in a way that was offensive to the team’s Code of Conduct in the outcome of Ghana’s game against Australia last Saturday at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg.

He was accordingly reprimanded for his behaviour with the player explaining that, his actions were borne out of his frustration by the team’s inability to record a win.
Muntari has since apologized to the Management, technical team and playing body of the Black Stars.

The player has also reiterated his commitment and loyalty to the team and his readiness to play and give off his utmost best to the team.

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Checks and Balances in the Media

It has become a common say that the media is the fourth estate of a nation besides the executive, the legislature and the judiciary. The media is suppose to bridge the rift between the government and the governed, providing a platform for social debate and consensus building as well as the stage for diverse ideologies on the best development prospects for the nation.
Many international organizations in formulating their index variables for measuring the development of a country don’t fail to consider the “freedom of expression” in each country. Due to the pivotal role of the media in the worldwide campaign for greater freedom, the expression freedom of speech is frequently used interchangeably with freedom of the media.
Freedom of speech has never been practiced in its absolute form but has been curtailed by various forms of limitations from governments, agencies and trade associations.
In its broad sense it isn’t just the liberty towards verbal speech but also the will to seek, receive and to impart ideas or facts on a subject.
In Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, freedom of speech forms part of the fundamental human rights of an individual likewise in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights where it stands for “the right to hold opinions without interference. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression.”
Reporters without borders, a team of global media monitors in a publication in the first quarter of the year ranked Ghana as first in terms of press freedom in Africa and the twenty seventh in the world. This comes as an indication of the increasing respect for freedom in the country.
Indeed Ghana has come a long way in terms of press libration. Backtracking to the regime of the first President of the republic, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, informed by his socialist ideas intended to make the media a partner of the government in their development efforts. The media will associate with the government and communicate the intent of policies so it can galvanize mass support from the governed.
Though many who buy into such socialist ideas believe it was the best thing for a young independence, it can equally be argued that it places some undesirable limitations on the practice of journalism. Particularly, it does not allow public debate and stifles the quest for alternative developmental ideas.
Subsequently, the country witnessed even more stringent limitations under different regimes through the enactment of draconian laws and jurisprudence. A classic example of such a law is the Criminal Libel Law to which many media practitioners have fallen victim.
In May 1999, an Accra High court leveled civil damages to the tune of 40 million cedis (4,000 Ghana cedis) against the publishers of the Ghanaian Chronicle after the court found libelous a report by the paper alleging self-dealing and other misconduct by the then Minister of Roads.
While public officials could resort to the law to protect their reputation to provided no excuse of libel for journalists, not even for those who genuinely err in practice without the share intent to do so.
Thankfully, 2001 saw the repeal of the Criminal Libel Law through a unanimous vote by parliament and the passage of the Criminal Code (Repeal of the Criminal and Seditious Laws-Amendment Bill) Act 2001
On the flip side of the coin, there is the need for some form of regulation for any kind of profession. This helps to wean off unprofessional tendencies as well as maintain decency within the profession.
In the first quarter of this year, Ghanaians were stupendously dismayed by the confessions of Baby Ansabah, (whose real name is Ebenezer Ato Sam) the editor of the ‘Punch newspaper’ about how he deliberately published maligning stories about the health of the then candidate Mills now president of Ghana.
He was relentless in publishing how sick his subject (President Mills) was, suggesting that the professor was going to drop dead anytime. This sought to score point for an opposing candidate and render Mills unpopular.
So the question still remains as to the best way to maintain checks and balances in the media practice. One suggestion is self regulation and the observation of ethics in the media.
The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), a professional body for media practitioners is championing this course with its adoption of the code of conduct for the media.
Article 1 for instance stipulates that, “the duty of every journalist is to write and report the truth, bearing in mind his/her duty to serve the public. The public have the right to unbiased, accurate, balanced and comprehensive information as well as express themselves freely through the media. A journalist should make adequate enquiries and cross-check his/her facts.”
But can an organization whose membership is wholly voluntary and again without any legal enforcement powers manage such a vibrant and devise industry like the media. Either way, the media excruciatingly cries for some regulation.
To prevent the reoccurrence of the earlier mentioned external regulation, the media must be seen to be performing it’s duties with every iota of professionalism. After all, it’s the fear of the media that leads governments to take protective measures.
As put by Napoleon Bonaparte, "I fear the newspapers more than a hundred thousand bayonets."
ARCHIBALD MANU OWUSU-ANSAH JNR

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Water Performs Miracles

Drinking a lot of Water has magical effects in curing so many diseases.


You will never believe it unless you try it.

It has been proven my doctors that it is very healthy to drink about two glasses of water in the morning when you get out of bed even before you brush your teeth.

It is healthy to eat any food an hour before or after drinking a glass of water.

It is advisable to drink about two liters of water which is equivalent to eight glasses every day. When starting, one may find it difficult to drink two glasses of water every morning but with practice, it is possible and your body will gradually get used to it.

Drinking a lot of water you can prevent some diseases and cure others.

If you drink water sufficiently, it will help in enhancing your glow of skin and keep you physically fit.

Drinking water is useful in regulating the temperature of your body.

If you consume water properly then you can be free from constipation.

Acidity also can be cured by drinking a lot of water.

Diabetes can be treated by drinking about 8 - 10 glasses of water or more every day.

According to experts in Water Therapy, one can control hypertension with about four weeks of water therapy.

Some cancers are also controlled with water therapy.

If you have pulmonary Tuberculosis, then three months of water therapy will help.

Since it is entirely natural treatment, it has no side effects.

If one is suffering from the following diseases. These include; Anemia, rheumatism, general paralysis, obesity, arthritis, sinusitis, tachycardia, giddiness, cough, leukemia, and asthma.

Water therapy is the best remedy for these diseases.

If water is said to cure all these diseases, then water indeed is life.

The Ministry of Health therefore advises Ghanaians to drink a lot of clean water daily to prolong their lifespan.

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Fabio Capello: I will announce my squad 2 hour to the match.

England manager Fabio Capello insists he will not release his starting eleven for the match against USA even to his players until two hours to kick-off.
Journalists and analyst are trying as much as possible to guess his selection and formation for the match but the clever Italian also confirmed he already knows what his starting XI will be.

However, rather than serving the purpose of simply keeping the nation on tenterhooks ,Capello stated that his decision has sound logic.

"I will not tell the players who is playing until two hours before the game, which is what I always do," he told a press conference.

"The reason I do that is because if you name the side overnight and then someone is injured, it is not easy to recall the other player who was not originally picked”.

"What I am looking for is the same spirit that England showed in qualification games for the World Cup. I want us to be really compact on the pitch. These players are physically fine and their minds are very focused on this game coming up. They have a lot of desire and appetite to do well. The players here are the best English players. I am confident."
The Italian coach faces his international tournament as England take on the USA in Group C.
The England boss confirmed that Gareth Barry, the Manchester City midfielder, would be among the substitutes for the match, as he hasn't fully recovered from the ankle injury he suffered at the end of the season.

"He has been training normally for three days and has trained hard. He will be on the bench, but I am not sure of the first 11," Capello continued.

"England is ready for this match. The first game is always hard because expectation levels are really big.
"But we have been here eight days, training has gone very well and we are confident.
"We know the expectation levels of the fans are really good. I am sure the team can reach the finals. I genuinely believe we have a squad that can make it to the final."

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Kojo Antwi Happy about BET nomination

Ghana's music icon and legend Kojo Antwi has been nominated for the International Act category at the BET awards.
Kojo Antwi, a true son of Ghana, expressed much enjoy and noted that he was glad that such a prestigious group like Black Entertainment Television (BET) had recognized his work and had nominated him in the International Act category which happens to be a new one.
"Awards are meant to widen the horizon of musicians and I am happy I have being nominated." he said
The BET awards, which will be held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, would come off on the 27th of June 2010. Other African musicians like M.I., Peter and Paul popularly known as P Squared and K'naan have also been nominated.
Some fans of Kojo Antwi were excited about the nomination and noted that Kojo has made Ghana, African and his fans all over the world very proud.
Some also added that they would try as much as possible to watch the show and also added that they hope he wins the award.
Kojo, all the lovely people of Ghana wish u luck.

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