Print Media Review Nov. 10

THE DAILY GRAPHIC – MONDAY, 10TH NOVEMBER, 2003

1. WE WON’T BOW TO PRESSURES. TO UNDERMINE MODEST ECONOMIC GAINS – PGS. 1 & 3

President Kufuor has given the assurance that the government will not succumb to pressures and temptations that will undermine the financial discipline and prudent management steps taken so far to build the country’s economy for the sake of next year’s elections.

“Prudent management thus far has brought a welcome stability to the cedi but this can be easily undermined if we succumb top the temptations of financial profligacy because of election fever” he said.

President Kufuor made the call at a retreat in Accra at the weekend for ministers from all over the country.

According to him, “there will certainly be strong temptations to go for the easy option, but we must resist this”.

The retreat afforded the opportunity for the ministers to discuss, among other things, the 2004 budget.

2. GHS INVESTIGATES CAUSE OF DISEASE IN HO DISTRICT – PGS. 1 & 3

The paper reports that, Ghana Health Service is working fervently to establish the cause of an outbreak of a contagious diseases in the Ho District of the Volta Region.

The disease, known in medical terms as “cutaneous leishmaniasis” is known locally as “Agbamekanu”.

It is believed to be spread by sandflies, which give the infected people boils on any part of the body like pimples, which later develop into wounds. It is also painful and itchy and after the wounds have healed, the scars deform the infected person, especially those attacked on their foreheads.

According to the paper, statistics obtained at the Ho District Health Administration revealed that 1,321 cases had been diagnosed from some of the affected communities between July and October this year.

A team of specialists from GHS led by Dr. Lawson Ahadzie, Head of surveillance Unit, has visited some affected communities to collect data on the disease.

3. WORK ON $1 MILLION ASSEMBLY PLANT BEGINS – PG. 3

According to the paper, work on the construction of a $1 million heavy duty trucks assembly plant in Accra has begun.

The plant, which is being established by CAITEC Modules Assembling Plant of China, will be operational in June, next year.

Mr. Tang Hong, Executive Chairman of the company, said the company was motivated to invest in Ghana because of the current conductive socio-political and economic conditions prevailing in the country.

4. HEALTH WORKERS TO GET VEHICLES – PGS. 20 & 21

The government has completed tenders for the supply of 415 vehicles for distribution to health professionals in the country.

It is also facilitating the establishment of a housing loan scheme for health professionals.

Alhaji Aliu Mahama, Vice President, announced this when he opened the 45th annual general conference of the Ghana Medical association (GMA) in Kumasi.

According to him, efforts were under way to streamline recruitment and promotions while other schemes were being evolved to minimise transportation and housing problems within the health sector.

THE GHANAIAN TIMES – MONDAY, 10TH NOVEMBER, 2003

UNIVERSE’S GREATEST – PG. 1

According to the paper, Miss Francys Barraza of Venezuela was adjudged Winner of this Year’s Model of the Universe competition held in Accra.

Maame Serwa Boakye of Ghana was the first runner-up.

The competition, the first to be held in Africa in its 10 years existence, attracted 35 ladies from all over the world.

The ceremony was attended by President Kufuor and the first Lady, Mrs. Theresa Kufuor, Ministers of State, and members of the Diplomatic corps.

2. ENFORCE FREE EDUCATION – DON – PG. 1 & 3

Professor D. K. Agyeman, head of the Sociology Department, University of Cape Coast, has urged the government to have the political will to enforce compulsory basic education in the country.

He said the enforcement would help in checking the wide gap between rural and urban dwellers as far as education was concerned.

He made the call at the sixth Pearson-Osae Appreciation lectures organized by the Prempeh College Old Boys Association (AMANFOO) in Kumasi.

Prof. Agyeman emphasized the need for well planned and sustainable education geared towards science and technology improvement.

According to him, that would pave the way for the country’s development and transformation within the shortest possible time.

3. GROUP TO INVEST IN VARSITIES INFRASTRUCTURE – PGS. 1 & 3

The paper reports that, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports is in touch with a group of Ghanaian investors in Amsterdam, for infrastructural development on the nation’s university campuses.

Mr. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, the sector Minister, disclosed this in an interview with the paper in Accra.

He said, the group had shown some interest in the project and hoped that consensus over the mutual benefits of a deal in respect of the project would be reached in the on-going talks as early as possible for the project to take off in earnest.

4. WIAFE PEPERA DEFECTS TO NPP – PG. 3

Mr. Wiafe Pepera, former Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, in the NDC regime, has defected to the NPP.

Mr. Peter Wiafe Pepera, the Managing Director of Paramount Distilleries, announced his defection at a press conference at Abetifi-Kwahu.

According to him, the principal factor for his quitting the NDC was the lack of internal democracy in the party which he said Ghanaians were aware of.

He made it clear that he was not motivated by any desire for a ministerial appointment.

According to him, his decision stemmed from the fact that the party was committed to free enterprise, private sector development and poverty eradication.

FREE PRESS – MONDAY, 10TH NOVEMBER, 2003

MP TO REFUND ?18.5M – PG. 1 & BK. PG.

Minister of State in Charge Fisheries and MP for Ledzokuku Constituency, Eddie Akita, has been ordered by the Ghana Aids Commission (GAC) to refund 18.565,650m cedis within 14 days or face a possible prosecution.

This is the outcome of a forensic audit carried out by the commission as a result of a front page-story of the paper captioned “MP HIJACK AIDS FUNDS”.

According to forensic audit report, Hon. Edward Akita could not account for 28,480,000 in the name of Christian Aid Mission (CAM), a local NGO with the purpose to educate members of the community on HIV/AIDS.

The report indicate that, Hon. Edward Akita, had replaced one Ben Markwei, third signatory to the CAM’s account which enable him withdraw the said amount which contradicts GAC directives.

BUSINESS & FINANCIAL TIMES – MONDAY, 10TH – 16TH NOVEMBER, 2003

FOREIGN COMPANIES NOW TO INSURE LOCALLY – PGS. 1 & 3

The paper reports that, there are strong indications that the National Insurance Commission may clamp down on foreign projects registered with the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) doing their insurances offshore.

According to the paper, these firms have for a long time ignored the law, which stipulates that all insurance transactions should be underwritten locally.

Industry sources maintain that the practice of insuring local risks with foreign insurers undermines the growth of the local industry.

NETWORK HERALD – MONDAY, 10TH 11TH NOVEMBER, 2003

PARLIAMENT WILL DECIDE ON ASHANTI …. OSAFO-MAAFO – PGS. 1 & 3

The paper reports that, Finance and Economic Planning Minister, Yaw Osafo-Maafo, has re-opened the debate on the Ashanti-Anglogold merger with the contention that the merger arrangement is not yet over, explaining that government’s approval of the merger has not made the deal final.

According to an AFP report, the Minister was of the view that the country’s legislative body has the power to say “yes or no, or modify the whole package”.

Moreover, “parliament will also be required to decide on tax exemptions as part of the process”, he added.

THE GHANAIAN VOICE – MONDAY, 10TH NOVEMBER, 2003

NDC SEEKS INT. SUPPORT IN QUALITY GRAIN CASE … THEY MEET INTERNATIONAL LAWYERS IN ABUJA, NIGERIA – PGS. 1 & 3

The paper reports that, NDC now seeks international legal support against the jail terms handed over to three members of the party who were involved in the Quality Grain Case.

The three, Ibrahim Adams, Kwame Preprah, and Dr. George Sipah Yanky were sentenced to various jail terms by the Fast track High Court in Accra following their involvement in the Quality Grain Scandal, which caused Ghana to loss several billions of cedis.

According to the paper, a team of NDC Parliamentarians led by Hon. Mohammed Mumuni, MP for Kumbugu were in the Nigeria capital, Abuja last Thursday, November 6, 2003 to meet members of renown International Human Rights Lawyers, where they presented what they described as political trial in Ghana.

At a press conference at the Sheraton Hotel in Abuja, to team involve International Human Right Lawyers Association in the fight against the NPP government.

They presented a document titled “A political trial, a political judgment and three political prisoners” which indicate that the NPP is bent on pursuing its diabolic agenda to annihilate the NDC.

THE INSIGHT – MONDAY, 10TH – 11TH NOVER, 2003

ECONOMY … TIMES ARE MORE THAN ROUGH! – PGS. 1 & 4

According to the paper, when Mr. Osafo-Maafo, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, appeared before Parliament, he disclosed that, inflation had dropped from 29.8 per cent in May to 26.8 per cent in September.

He provided many other indicators including the fact that the real Gross Domestic Product is said to be growing at 4.7 per cent and the rebuilding of gross official reserves holdings is equivalent to 2.3 months of imports.

According to the paper, what he failed to emphasize in his presentation to Parliament is that the Ghanaian economy is still not out of the woods and that the suffering of the masses is getting worse.

In less than three-years utility tariffs have cumulatively gone up by more than 200 per cent. The price of petroleum products have also shot up cumulatively by more than 200 per cent.

Other service whose costs have gone up significantly include education, health and insurance.

DAILY GUIDE – MONDAY, 10TH NOVEMBER, 2003

1. EDUMADZE SPITS FIRE – PG. 1 & BK. PG.

According to the paper, Hon. Isaac Edumadze, the Central Regional Minister, has warned his political opponents to find worthwhile things to do rather than resorting to plots to bring him down.

He maintained that because of his hard work, the NDC who fear that his continued stay as Central Regional Minister, will not auger well for them in the 2004 general elections, have been planning various strategies to vilify him but these so far have failed.

He noted that in spite of all that his political opponents have been saying about him he doesn’t care. The NDC can go to hell, he roared.

He made the above comments in connection with his alleged usage of a derogatory word to describe the status of Prof. Mills, NDC flagbearer.

According to him what he said was that the NDC and Prof. Mills are like the chamber pot which even before it gets out of the assembly line in a factory, has already become discredited.

2. NDC DOES NOT NEED RAWLINGS SAYS NDC GURU – PG. 1 & BK. PG.

Mr. Vincent Asisseh, former Press Secretary of the NDC, has stated that Prof. Mills can manage the campaigns for the forthcoming elections, and so bringing on board the former President Rawlings, is superfluous.

He also confirmed the paper’s report in which he was quoted as stressing that the NDC should focus its meagre resources on 2008 electoral campaign instead of 2004.

According to him, he made this suggestion so that NDC can stand on its feet again.

He called on the NDC to woo back those who had left the party to beef up its qualitative position.

THE INDEPENDENT – MONDAY, 10TH NOVEMBER, 2003

I. C. QUAYE’S CRONIES. THREATEN INDEPENDENT – PG. 1 & BK. PG.

Suspected cronies of the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Sheikh I. C. Quaye, have threatened to rough-up the paper’s editor Richmond Keelson, and other journalists of the paper for writing about the Minister’s misconduct over the phone to two of its reporters.

About twelve callers who managed to get through to the Editor on his cellular phone, according to the paper, churned out curses and threats to deal with him and all others who might have had a hand in a front page news item that appeared in the paper last week that the Regional Minister has insulted the paper’s journalists amidst threats to sue it, if it dares write anything about him.

The callers who either gave their first names or refused to identify themselves swore fire and brimstone to take by storm the offices of “The Independent” in the immediate future.