Daily Graphic

"The Sierra Leone Crises .......ECOMOG dares Rebels " is the Lead story in the Graphic. The report says President Rawlings has warned rebels in Sierra Leone that if they push ECOMOG to the wall, the peace -keepers will push them out of the country.

"We have the capacity to deal decisively with them, if they take any chances this time, they will be pushed out of the country", cautioned Rawlings at the Kotoka International Airport yesterday where he held a joint news conference with the visiting Sierra Leonean Head of State, Amhad Tejan Kabbah.

The report says he urged the rebel commanders to obey the cease -fire call by their leader, Forday Sankoh. Should anyone disobey him the consequence will be swift and decisive"

President Rawlings also promised that Ghana will do all she can to serve as a catalyst to the peace effort. He said "A lot of lessons have been learnt from the past military encounters" adding that he was hopeful that Forday Sankoh who has ordered a temporary cease-fire within 72 hours from Wednesday will supplement peace efforts being made by President Tejan Kabbah.

Meanwhile Sankoh is reported as having been sentenced to death for treason. President Kabbah has said the rebel leader could either be freed on an appeal he filed or benefit from a presidential clemency depending on the circumstances. Asked whether he regretted the execution of 25 other people convicted of treason, President Kabbah replied that he is convinced that he did the right thing.

"Government won't Rescue any Wrong Doer" Is another story on the front page of the Graphic.

The report has it that Mr. James Victor Gbeho, Ghana's Minister of Foreign Affairs, says government will not use any funds to transport into the country Ghanaians sentenced to jail in foreign countries for hard drug offences to enable them serve their jail- terms at home.

According to the report, Mr. Gbeho's remarks were prompted by sentiments raised by some members of the Minority in parliament who wanted to know if it was possible to transfer Ghanaian prisoners convicted for drug offences in other countries to local prisons. Claiming this is to emulate what the U.S and Britain do with their prisoners serving sentences abroad.

The Minister is however reported to have disagreed stating that conditions in developing countries are different from developed countries. He is also reported to have said that the petitions received from prisoners serving jail terms in Thailand for example had been forwarded to the Ministry of Interior under whose jurisdiction the Ghana Prisons Service as well as the Narcotics Control Board falls for it's comments.

Among other things Mr. Gbeho was asked what the Ministry is doing to unravel the mystery surrounding the Gruesome murder of Captain Abu Parker in Miami, U.S on July 16,1997.

He answered the enquiry by saying that the ship on which the captain was travelling was involved in drug trafficking, a fact allegedly unknown to the deceased. The Captain died in an ensuing shoot-out but Mr. Gbeho assured the members that Ghana's mission in Washington is awaiting the outcome of an investigation and will submit a full report to parliament once it has been received.

Finally the Graphic reports that Mr. Robin Cook; the British Foreign Secretary arrived in the country yesterday to begin a two-day symbolic visit.

Mr. Cook, was expected to be joined by Mr. Hubert Vedrine, the French Foreign Minister, to begin a landmark visit which includes a dinner hosted by Ghana's Foreign Minister, Mr. Victor Gbeho and a call on President J.J Rawlings today.

This is supposedly the first time Foreign Ministers from Britain and France have paid a joint visit to an African country; something propounded to be "a significant step in the commitment of the two governments to work together on issues affecting the African continent.

The visit follows the joint declaration and Co-operation in Africa agreed upon by Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Jacques Chirac at the British -French summit in St. Malo, in December last year.

The two dignitaries are expected to discuss issues related to the crises in Sierra Leone, Nigeria's transition to democracy and the debt crises.