Kufuor shows up in court in GIA trial

Former President John Agyekum Kufuor Former President John Agyekum Kufuor was in court on Wednesday to hear charges against key appointees under his administration. The officials, Dr Richard Anane, a former Road and Transport Minister, Mr Kwadwo Mpiani, a former Chief of Staff, and Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, a former Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, are standing trial over the liquidation of the defunct national carrier, Ghana Airways and the incorporation of Ghana International Airlines (GIA). The fourth accused person, Sammy Crabbe, a former Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), represents the minority shareholders of GIA. This is the first major trial of former government officials who served under the Kufuor administration. Mr Kufuor, clad in a blue-black suit, and several other former officials and sympathizers of the NPP, stormed the Accra Fast Track High Court in solidarity with the four accused persons. Dr Akoto Osei was charged with seven counts, including wilfully causing financial loss to the state, Dr Richard Anane faces three counts, Mr Crabbe faces four counts, whilst Mr Mpiani faces one count. The four were granted GH¢300,000 bail to reappear on the 26th and 27th of April. Three of the accused former officials, Dr Osei, Mr Mpiani and Dr Anane, failed to show up in court on Tuesday when the case was first called because they had not been charged. Although Mr Crabbe was in court, the case was adjourned to today for the other persons facing trial to appear. Meanwhile the judge sitting on the case, Justice Bright Mensah, has warned the lawyers of the accused persons to desist from speaking to the press. He warned he would not take kindly to any act that prejudices the court’s verdict. Subsequently, the lawyers for Dr Anane and the other officials did not speak to the press. However, Mr Kwame Boateng, lawyer for Mr Crabbe, who is said to have withdrawn $1.7 million from government’s account without approval, told Joy News on Tuesday his client is innocent. Story by Fiifi Koomson/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

Ho Central MP accused of rape

A twenty-three-year-old lady has accused the NDC Member of Parliament for Ho Central, Captain George Nfodjoh (Retd) of sexually abusing her. Giving her name only as Sylvia, the lady claims Captain Nfodjoh, has since she came into contact with him in January this year, had sex with her under duress. She said on two separate occasions, the MP held a pistol to her head, and she had to acquiesce, allowing him to have his way. Recounting the first encounter, the 'victim' said when the MP pulled the pistol, she was too terrified and mollified to speak and “because I didn’t want [him] to harm me, I agreed and said ok protect yourself, he said ‘no, no’, he is not going to use any condom so he did it like that, raw.” After the incident, she claimed Captain Nfodjoh prescribed a drug for her to go buy and when she asked for money for the drug, he snubbed her. She maintained that even though she did not struggle with her aggressor, she was raped because she did it unwillingly. The victim rejected suggestions she was trying to unjustifiably malign the MP because he refused to give her money. "Have you ever asked him for any favour?", Joy News’ Kwaku Obeng Adjei asked, to which she responded, “I have never, since I met him he has never given me even five pesewas.” Sylvia told Joy News she broke her silence because she feels insulted by Captain Nfodjoh whom she claimed has objectified her to satisfy his sexual desires without recourse to her emotions and feelings. She denied having a love relationship with her accuser “because if it [was a relationship] the man will not be doing it like that. It’s too much. How can you be treating your girlfriend like this,?” She asked. She is yet to report the matter to the police and claims she has the MP on video, naked. Refusing to speak directly to the allegations, the MP said he knows the lady in question and that he had reported her to her father whom he said is a friend. “I say I have declined to talk to the press but the fact is that I know her,” and Obeng Adjei put to him a pointed question, “so you slept with her, you never had sex with her,” he responded faintly, “is not true, with all due respect I don’t want to carry on like this, everyone calling me and asking me questions.” Story by Malik Abass Daabu/Myjoyonline/com/Ghana

Ghana: Upper East Regional Minister Mark Wayongo in court for fraud

Upper East Regional Minister, Mark Wayongo Two employees of the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council have filed a writ against the Regional Minister for fraudulently awarding contracts to his nephew. Ibrahim Yahaya and Sumaila Abubakari claim Mr Mark Woyongo awarded a contract with a value of over a million Ghana Cedis to his nephew in contravention of procurement procedures. They want the Bolgatanga High Court to declare the award of the contract null and void. According to them, the minister published the contract a month after he had already awarded it to his nephew. That for them, was meant to cover up the shady deals of the minister. Lawyer for the two, Seidu Douglas, told Joy News the minister was in position of conflict of interest because “he awarded the contract to himself by giving it to his nephew....he knew that the contract was going to his nephew.” He said as part of the frantic efforts by Mr Wayongo to cover up his criminal conduct, he clandestinely interdicted two workers at the RCC. “In the letter of interdiction, they say that the people have leaked [confidential] documents when indeed these letters you gave to the contractors were public documents because you copied several other people. [How] can you turn around and blame somebody in the office for the leakage of a document you have already sent to the public?, Mr. Douglas asked. The two interdicted employees say they are contemplating legal action if they are not recalled by next week. One of them, Rosaline Akanwa, told Joy News she was accused of leaking letters she typed as the secretary at the RCC, meant for distribution to contractors. “They awarded some contracts and as the secretary I typed the letters and we sent the letters to the various contractors, about a week ago they came and said some letters were in circulation and they are suspecting myself and the records officer because we are in charge of confidential letters,” She said subsequently, she and her other colleague were given queries “and [when] we answered the queries, they said they were not satisfied with the queries, and gave us interdiction letters a week after.” Ms Akankwa said they were told they would be invited for questioning but nothing had been heard for about a week now. The Regional Minister admitted awarding the contract to his nephew but insisted the process was fair and transparent and satisfied all procurement regulations. “My nephew has been a contractor since 1988 and he tended for the job, it was assessed, they did their evaluation and the tender committee awarded the job to him. It would be ridiculous to say because he is my nephew, he shouldn’t be given a job,”he said. Mr Wayongo denied the charge that he advertised the contract after awarding it to his nephew. He said there were two different contracts all together but his accusers were mixing them up. He also denied any heavy-handedness in interdicting two employees of the RCC, saying their interdiction was done in accordance with civil service procedures. “There is every indication that the information was leaked from the Regional Economic Planning Officer’s office so the chief director asked that the two should step aside for investigations to commence”, he said. Related to this, a group calling itself the Coalition for the Welfare of the Masses in Bolgatanga has challenged Mr Woyongo to produce documentary proof that he indeed advertised the contract in question before awarding it to his nephew. According to the spokesperson of the group, the regional minister had been brazenly violating procurement laws in the region. He claimed he had a tall list of contracts that had been awarded under the watch of Mr Wayongo in clear contravention of procurement procedures. While he was due to address the media, a group of youth believed to be Mr Wayongo’s loyalists stormed the venue and scuttled everything. Story by Malik Abass Daabu/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

NDC youth in Yendi declare MCE persona non grata, threaten to kill him

Angry youth of the ruling National Democratic Congress in the Northern Regional Town of Yendi, have declared the Yendi Municipal Chief Executive, Mr Hudu Welvis a persona non grata. They have threatened to kill the MCE if he is not removed from office and taken out of the area. The youth issued the threat at a meeting Saturday between the Yendi Constituency Executive, Regional Executive and a delegation of national party officer from Accra. The delegation included the a Vice-Chairman of the NDC, Mr Kofi Portuphy, a Deputy National Organiser, the Northern Regional Minister Moses Mabengba and the Regional Propaganda Secretary of the party Umar Farouk. The obviously livid youth are incensed by Mr Welvi’s inability to provide them with jobs and accused him of working against the interest of the party in the area. Security operative in Yendi had to escort the MCE out of the district to avoid irate youth visiting mayhem on him. Earlier the youth smashed the windscreen of the Constituency Chairman’s vehicle for daring to attend a meeting at the MCE’s residence. The meeting initially scheduled at the Yendi Community Centre was redirected by the MCE to his residence upon hearing that the youth had planned to call for his dismissal in the presence of the national officers of the party. Following their vehement protests, the meeting reverted to its original venue but Mr Welvis could not attend because the youth vowed lynch him should he dare. At the meeting, the constituency executive of Karaga also accused their DCE of selling contracts to members of the opposition New Patriotic Party. They told the meeting that although the DCE had apologized for his actions on seven separate occasions, he had subsequently gone back to commit the same offence. They therefore called for his dismissal. However, constituency executive from Gushiegu, Chereponi, Zabzugu and Bimbilla, according to Joy News’ Northern Regional Correspondent, who sat through the meeting, commended their DCEs jealously guarding against the interest of the party. They want their DCEs retained. Story by Malik Abass Daabu/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

Alex Segbefia must go! - Alhaji Bature

Deputy Chief of Staff, Alex Segbefia A leading member of the National Democratic Congress is seeking the resignation of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Alex Segbefia whose fingers he says are tainted in the car fraud frenzy that has gripped the government. Alhaji Iddrisu Bature who was speaking onAsempa FM’s Ekosii sen programme on Friday said he has incontrovertible evidence to show that the Deputy Chief of Staff colluded with Carl Wilson, the sacked Chairman of Confiscated Assets Committee to forcibly take over vehicles legitimately imported into the country by a business man, a car dealer, on the basis that those vehicles were stolen. He said in spite of the fact that Al Wahab produced evidence that the cars were legitimately bought, with duties paid accordingly; the deputy chief of staff still will not release the two vehicles. In addition he said, Alex Segbefia has failed to substantiate his claims that the vehicles were stolen, since May, 2009 when the two vehicles, Nissan Murano and Toyota Camry were impounded by CEPS. According to Alhaji Bature, several interventions from the Vice-President John Mahama, National Security Advisor, Brig. Gen. Nunoo-Mensah and the Head of Communications at the Presidency, Koku Anyidoho, for the cars to be released to the man, have fallen on deaf ears. He finds it worrying, if not an aberration, for Alex Segbefia to remain in office when Carl Wilson has been sacked from office. “I call on him to resign honorably or be pushed out by the president,” he sniped, calling the bluff of Alex Segbefia who he claimed has threatened to expose him (Bature) over a RAV4 vehicle duly allocated to him by the government. He said Carl Wilson was brought into office by Mr Segbefia who must take ultimate responsibility for Mr Wilson's actions and resign accordingly. He said he was instrumental in bringing Alex Segbefia into the NDC and has every right to call for his resignation if his actions are tarnishing the reputation of the government. Al Wahab, whose vehicles have allegedly been seized told Bobiee, host of the Ekosii Sen programme that he saw the two vehicles being washed at the castle, but several efforts to retrieve them have proven futile. He has subsequently taken the matter to court for redress. Play the attached audio for excerpts of Alhaji Bature's submissions on the programme. Story by Nathan Gadugah/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

Rawlings tells NDC youth – Let the government know the truth

Ex-President Rawlings during the meeting Former President and founder of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Flt Lt Jerry John Rawlings has called on the youth of the party not to allow their sense of what is right to go waste. Speaking at youth forum organised by the Youth Wing of the party at Ho last Saturday, he lamented the failure of the NDC government to tap the adrenalin that came with the early 2009 victory leading to the increased confidence of persons who perpetuated wrongs during the New Patriotic Party regime. The founder of the NDC said there is an unfortunate disquiet within the country and the youth had to be bold and state the obvious. “If you lose your courage, we’ve had it. Be bold in saying what the reality is. “Today we are contending with some of these NPP characters misbehaving at various institutions. With the way things are going what are you going to tell the people when 2012 is approaching so they can take you seriously to retain power? He asked. The former President said nature had a way of correcting itself and will do so if the NDC failed to take the right actions. “The NPP expropriated the resources of this country. Tema Harbour was literally split down and taken. Can we not take action to redress the rot? Can we not investigate or re-investigate these wrongs? “Do not sleep; you must be thinking twenty four hours daily. The NPP does not sleep. It is easy to rule a people if you can divide them like the NPP did. It is only easy to rule a united people if you can give integrity throughout. A united nation has a sense of purpose – a sense of mission. “They cheated in 2004 and we allowed it. They tried again in 2008 but the people will not allow it. If we do not right the wrongs and economic pain sets in, our people will not be able to contain it. But if we are seen to be correcting the wrongs, doing the right thing, then when the economic pain sets in the people will be able to accommodate it,” the NDC founder said. Former President Rawlings said the NDC is a very special phenomenon that came out of the PNDC and AFRC and questioned how many of the youth of the party will report to the President on the negative happenings on the ground. “How many of you will for instance report the poor performance of District Chief Executives. Forty percent of them are under-performing. Some of them are outright incompetent. “If you the youth see things and do not say it and I say it then I become an easy target all the time. But the reality of what I say is out there and you have to voice it out,” the former President said. Former President Rawlings said the youth had a responsibility to guide government with the truth because the government is in power because of the electorate and not vice-versa. Touching on recent elections at all levels of the party, the former President said there were too many unacceptable issues with the conduct. “When the people elected do not have the heart of the people there is no way they will fight for such a person. Our party does not survive on money but on our beliefs. People have shed their blood to restore integrity back into the country - integrity that dissipated under the NPP regime. Unfortunately we have allowed the heat of the election victory to slip away.” The former President wondered why the NPP was bold enough to hold its Congress at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium while the NDC barricaded itself into an indoor venue and prevented the masses from partaking in the process. The NDC as a mass-based party, the founder noted, cannot succeed if it does not correct the dislocation within the major institutions of state. We have to submit to the will of the people or we will not make it. He lamented the failure of the government to re-investigate some of the persecution that took place within the armed forces and other agencies. He said he counselled the President to recall soldiers who had been wrongfully dismissed or retired from the forces but he was told not to do so by one of his advisors who said recalls were done only during war or state of emergency. “So I asked myself does the President not realise we have a state of emergency on our hands? I stated that it did not have to be a forced recall but a voluntary one. Nothing happened since but today some of our finest soldiers are being processed to be thrown out.” The NDC founder called on President Mills not to listen only to reports from his security apparatus but also from recognised interest groups so that he will know the realistic picture of what is happening on the ground. “Let the government know the reality on the ground. That is the responsibility I am giving you,” he charged the youth of the party. Credit:http://jjrawlings.wordpress.com

Carl Wilson must not go down alone - Kwesi Pratt

Managing Editor of the Insight Newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr The Managing Editor of the Insight Newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr. has described locking out of party leaders by some members of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) as disgraceful to the government and the country as a whole. Speaking during a panel discussion on Peace FM’s “Kokrokoo” programme on Friday, Mr Pratt said because of the personal and individual interest of some party members, the image of the government was being tarnished. Irate youth of the party Thursday morning besieged the party's headquarters, locked out national officers denying them access to their offices and demanding the dismissal of Mr Carl Wilson. Mr Pratt described the action as shameful, saying, “I am so disappointed...what disgraceful behaviour is this?” According to him, the action by the NDC youth created a scene of insecurity, thus playing into the hands of the opposition. "...insecurity costs government more and in fact the opposition benefits from insecurity. So it is the responsibility of those in government to first and foremost promote security and a certain level of stability. Unfortunately, it is the NDC in government who are destabilizing everything...because they want just one person dismissed, not a Minister not an MP...haba," he screamed. He wondered what the reaction of the security agencies would be should members of the opposition hit the streets when one of their leaders is arrested. "What will the NDC say? It is this culture of impunity which has infiltrated our country that we have to fight. It is terrible and people in gov't should set a better example than those in opposition," he noted. He continued; "Kwami, because of the action by this group of NDC fanatics, all attention was focused on Carl Wilson...no mention is made of the 1.6million jobs created by government...the amount of money government paid to GCB (Ghana Commercial Bank) to cover part of the TOR debt..Price Risk Policy for the NPA was agreed by government...all these issues were shelved...because of the behaviour by these NDC youth...people have to start thinking...there is no sense in this...if this is what they will do, 2012 is just around the corner...what disgraceful behaviour is this, totally disgraceful behaviour," Mr. Pratt fumed. Commenting on the dismissal of Mr. Carl Wilson, Chairman of the Confiscated Vehicles Allocation Committee, by President Mills, the Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper said, “it is obvious that he was sacked based on allegations.” He questioned why Carl Wilson was given the boot without any formal investigation into the allegations. "It doesn't matter whether its Carl Wilson or not, whoever is at the receiving end of such a decision, we need to [be worried]. If I were to be a member of the NDC party, I would be very sad and ashamed of myself...it's low, it's illegal...it's obvious his dismissal is based purely on allegations from party members and foot soldiers," he said. He said the police or a committee should have conducted further investigations to truly find out if he was culpable, adding that a competent court of jurisdiction should have processed his case to find out whether he was guilty or not. However, Kwesi Pratt Jnr. opined that though Carl Wilson was removed for no stated reasons, there were certain actions he took that were not pleasant at all. "There are allegations that he seized old cars imported into the country on the basis that they were outmoded, environmentally unfriendly and would be of no help to our economy...yet he turns round and gives them to party members or sells them to cronies," he said. Referring to the policy of seizing some vehicles, he said: “It is a particularly senseless policy....it happened in the NPP era and the same policy is being replicated by this administration...how do you sell a "stolen" car to someone else...it must be stopped with immediate effect," he stated. Source: Alex Ofei/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana

Why Africa Is Losing its Dignity

By Kurt Gerhardt

Africa needs aid, but not the kind the West is currently providing. Conventional development aid has turned the continent into a dependent recipient of charity. We should halt the handouts and adopt successful micro-lending models instead, helping Africans to help themselves.

Development aid for Africa has never fallen under such radical and massive criticism as in recent years -- and it comes from representatives of both the "North" and of Africa itself. Nevertheless, this hasn't kept Germany's Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) from concluding, in one of its brochures: "Africa is not the continent of catastrophes, crises and wars. Africa shows evidence of the dynamics of reform and stabile growth and, with its ideas and potential, is taking its development into its own hands."

REUTERS

A road construction site near Nairobi: Infrastructure projects are among those favored in development aid. But without proper maintenance, the roads deteriorate quickly.

The assessment of development of Sub-Saharan Africa is highly ideological. Large parts of the development community take for granted the adage that: "We are exploiting poor Africans, and we deny them all trade opportunities. We must forgive all of their debt, because the loans were forced upon them. A significant increase in financial development aid is needed, because more money means more development."

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This is music to the ears of African kleptocrats. It exonerates them and allows them to continue to engage in their standard, irresponsible behavior. The utopians in the lands of the North are the de facto fan clubs of those African leaders who systematically abuse their power and stand in the way of homegrown African development efforts.

The same effect is produced by the many who insist that Africa's prospects for development are being destroyed by unfair international trade relationships. Criticism of these relationships is undoubtedly justified. But why is trade flourishing, under identical conditions, in many developing countries outside Africa? The fact that this obvious truth is eclipsed by the constant talk of catastrophe is an indicator of the quality of discourse over Third World development.

The most successful trading partners among the poorer nations export industrial goods, not agricultural products. China initially brought technically uncomplicated devices onto the world market, but with time its products became increasingly sophisticated. Why doesn't this work in Africa? Has anyone ever seen an iron, a bicycle or a hair clip with "Made in Togo" or "Made in Uganda" printed on it? For generations, the international community has promoted technical and entrepreneurial competency among Africans. Where have its efforts paid off?

The Outstreched Hand Is the Continent's Symbol

After half a century of development aid for Africa, the entire world of donor nations remains covered with a network consisting of all sorts of public and private aid agencies. Governments, communities, church-affiliated relief organizations, corporate groups, trade unions, a vast number of charitable groups, schools and sponsorship organizations -- all are helping Africa or, more precisely, are trying to help. And Africa, for its part, is a willing recipient of their largesse, even when it violates the continent's dignity. Indeed, the outstretched hand has literally become a symbol of Africa. People here and there are so accustomed to this state of affairs that its absurdity seems normal to them.

But the cycle of giving and receiving solidifies Africa's dependency and impedes development. It ignores the banal insight that development can only be what people and societies achieve themselves. What we do is of little interest, while what they -- the Africans -- do is key. Nothing can replace their internal dynamics, not even the most well-intentioned assistance from abroad.

KURT GERHARDT

Kurt Gerhardt served as a journalist for the German public radio station WDR from 1968 to 2007. He is also the former country director for the German Development Service (Deutscher Entwicklungsdienst) in Niger in West Africa and has first-hand experience observing the problems created by African development aid policies. He is co-founder of the political initiative Primary Education in the Third World (Grundbildung in der Dritten Welt) and Makaranta e.V., which promote education initiatives in Africa. He is also an co-initiator of the "Bonn Appeal" for an alternative development policy.

The dynamics of Africa's development are in bad shape. Of course, there are good and shining examples for anything, but they are not typical of the continent. Anyone seeking to witness dynamic development should look to the lively bustle of activity in rising East Asian countries, where international development aid plays only a small role.

But anyone traveling through Africa will encounter a completely different picture: a great deal of lethargy and not enough of the urge to succeed. Economic development, in particular, suffers from a lack of thoroughness, planning and reliability, and from the fact that African family clans typically demand a share of the economic success of their more successful members, instead of allowing them to enjoy the fruits of their labor. Another impediment to development, and to rational thinking and activity, is a belief in spirits that is still deeply entrenched at all social levels. Socio-cultural explanations of such behavior are interesting, but they do not promote development.

Despite these obstacles, the only true measure of the quality of our development aid is the extent to which it manages to generate and strengthen internal African dynamics. Too little attention is paid to this simple and fundamental insight in the practice of development aid. Instead, the performance of donor nations is judged on the basis of the so-called ODA, or Official Development Assistance, quota, which is the share of a country's gross national product devoted to development assistance. But this is nothing but self-delusion, because the ODA quota has little to do with development. In fact, it has more to do with the opposite of development.

Source:Spiegel Online