Kwesi Pratt: The Attorney General Is Wrong
The managing editor of the Insight newspaper, Mr. Kwesi Pratt has called on the Attorney General, Mrs. Betty Mould Iddrisu to retract her statement that the former Minister of Youth and Sports, Alhaji Muntaka Mubarak cannot be prosecuted since he had done nothing wrong and had been cleared of all corruption charges.
Speaking on Peace FM’s Kokrokoo show, Mr. Pratt said although he was not asking the Attorney-General to prosecute Hon Muntaka, he was of the opinion that she should not deny that the former Minister is guilty of some of the crimes. According to him, Hon. Mubarak himself admitted to using state money to finance his girlfriend’s trip to Germany and Cote d’Ivoire and also bought pampers and mouth gaggle for his baby. He added that Hon. Muntaka faked his girlfriend’s identity and passport by changing documents to make it look like she was working at the Sports Ministry which he used to defraud the German Embassy to acquire a visa for her – and that alone, he said, smacks of fraud, and therefore warrants prosecution. Mr Pratt was speaking about today’s Independent newspaper lead story captioned, “Muntaka Won’t Face Court”.
Hawkers bouncing back onto the streets
Hawkers who are being driven off the streets are said to be gradually returning onto the streets and pavements of the capital. Joy News reporter David Youngs visited some streets in the capital and reported the authorities are struggling to deal with the situation. At the Tudu, CMB, the Rawlings Circle, and the Tema Station areas – all in the central business district of Accra – police, fire and prison officers as well as AMA city guards are still struggling to check the hawkers off the streets. Although these hawkers were driven away by the AMA they have found a new way to ply their trade.
Rawlings is the Smoking-Gun
We intentionally decided not to comment on it when, recently, Mr. Rawlings and his wife traveled to La Côte d’Ivoire, reportedly, at the official invitation of President Laurent Gbagbo, on the occasion of the Golden anniversary celebration of the Ivorian National Bar Association. It is also interesting to recall that just about the same time, the Ghanaian media reported the credible sighting of Lance Corporal Amedeka, a wanted fugitive, in the Ivory Coast, reportedly, in the jolly company of some kin and kith. A sheer coincidence here? One can only suppose, of course.
Kwame Okoampa-Ahoofe, Jnr.
Into Proxy Mills Administration: A Study of Contradictions
Cowardice asks the question: Is it safe? Expediency asks the question: Is it political? Vanity asks the question: Is it popular? But conscience asks the question: Is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe nor popular – but one must take it, simply because it is the right thing to do.” Is NDC a voodoo party? Is Ghana a Banana Republic? These are questions that need to be asked based on some recent expeditions taken by the remotely controlled khakistocratic Mills administration which has its precedence from what the founder of that party, Dr “O” Level Rawlings, trained his cadres to believe in.
Justice Sarpong
An Open Letter to His Excellency President Barack Obama
Your Excellency:
Allow me the singular honour to say Akwaba! (Welcome) in advance of your historic visit to “Black Africa.” I applaud you for standing by Africa in the midst of the seeming encircling gloom and the fog of Afro-pessimism that hang over the continent.
As you make this monumental trip to your ancestral continent, I would like to make the following humble suggestions to you in this open letter.
Charles Quist-Adade
Hawkers bouncing back onto the streets
Hawkers who are being driven off the streets are said to be gradually returning onto the streets and pavements of the capital. Joy News reporter David Youngs visited some streets in the capital and reported the authorities are struggling to deal with the situation. At the Tudu, CMB, the Rawlings Circle, and the Tema Station areas – all in the central business district of Accra – police, fire and prison officers as well as AMA city guards are still struggling to check the hawkers off the streets.
So What if Nkrumah was a Thief?
I fully appreciate the kind and level of ire I am apt to provoke among fanatics of the Nkrumaist circles; and I am not the least bit perturbed to stir the proverbial hornet’s nest, since the caption for this article was practically foisted on me by an article that I read on Ghanaweb.com titled “Controversy Unlimited: Blay-Miezah’s Billions” (7/1/09), in which the author sought to validate the subject’s claim to having stashed billions of dollars in Swiss banks in trust for the Republic of Ghana, while simultaneously debunking a Blay-Miezah associate’s claim that he has the Abracadabra (Code-Word/Number) key for accessing the same.
Kwame Okoampa-Ahoofe, Jnr
Abrokyire Palaver: Where are the journalists in Ghana?
I have been observing with keen interest developments on the journalism front since the elections in December, and it appears that Ghanaian journalists—at least many of them—have gone on a long holiday.
Ever since the new government came into power every news item that makes the headlines is about politics. First, it was about cars. Then just as that issue appeared to die down, the issue about lands sold out to previous government office holders reared its ugly head; as if the issue of cars issue is some terminal cancer, it dies off and, by some divine journalistic intervention, it resurrects.
Enters BNI and Kwadwo Mpiani; the reading public has virtually been held hostage. They wake up to and go to bed with news of Mpiani’s interrogation. You tune in to any radio station on the internet hoping to hear something uplifting and all you hear is Mpiani, Kufuor, Frank Agyekum, etc.
Dot Asare-Kumah
Muntaka: The Full Report
I thought initially that this document had been widely publicised on the web. That’s why I didn’t put it out earlier. But it seems many visitors to this site have not seen or read it. So here is it in full. After reading help clear the “cobwebs” (ahem!) in my head by answering this question: how does this report exonerate Muntaka Mubarak Mohammed? Investigations by National Security into the allegations against Hon. Muntaka Mubarak, Minister of Youth and Sports, have been completed and a report submitted to the President.
The following could not be established:
The Minister collected US$2,000.00 imprest for the finals of the 1st CHAN tournament in Abidjan.
The Minister collected US$10,000.00 for landing rights for the aircraft which took the government delegation to the CHAN finals in Abidjan.
The Minister personally arranged for accommodation and feeding of the Black Star players in Kenya and Sudan.
The Minister was paid GHC15,200.00 as refund for meat and food items
The Minister’s wife was allocated VW Passat No. GT 1351 Z.
The Minister demanded immediate payment of or was paid GHC1,000. per match for the services of a Mallam.
The Minister requested or collected GHC12,000 for gifts for the Minister’s constituency on his last trip to Kumasi.
The Minister allocated to himself or was allocated five (5) official vehicles.
Ato Kwamena Dadzie
World Bank Approves $535 million Package for Ghana
Washington DC–June 30, 2009. The Board of Directors of the World Bank today approved a total of US$535 million to support three credit facilities aimed at helping improve economic governance and stabilizing Ghana’s economy. They are:
Economic Governance and Poverty Reduction Credit (EGPRC) US$300 million
Transport Sector Project US$225 million
Natural Resources and Environmental Governance (NREG) US$ 10 million
These first set of credits are part of US$1.2 billion the Bank plans to support the government of Ghana with over the next three years.
