- 7/31/2023
Newspaper headlines review and other matters arising in Ghana.
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NewsTranscript
00:00 Hello there, thank you for staying.
00:02 It's time now for the news review
00:05 and we'll be getting into that shortly.
00:06 In a bit, we'll be joined by Suleymana Brahma,
00:09 Executive Director, Media Foundation for West Africa.
00:13 He'll be joining us shortly for that conversation.
00:17 But before we do, the segment is always brought to us,
00:20 Curtsy of Endpoint Homeopathic Clinic
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00:25 If you're a woman, free fertility screening.
00:27 Just make tracks to them, know your fertility status,
00:30 know your prostate health by getting it checked out.
00:33 Many of us complain on the back
00:35 of the harsh economic conditions.
00:37 Even before now, people, I mean,
00:38 most Ghanaians wouldn't check out their health.
00:41 No medical screening in a year.
00:42 Then boom, bam, you're hit with something.
00:45 That is what happens when you fail
00:48 to get yourself medically checked.
00:49 Think about it.
00:51 Your vehicle that you use,
00:52 at some point you go for maintenance, right?
00:55 It's same with your body.
00:56 Your body is like a machine,
00:57 but it doesn't run on just anything.
01:00 Over time, there's wear, there's tear,
01:02 there are things that happen.
01:04 And the important thing, some of these ailments,
01:06 if you find them at the outset,
01:09 they are very easy to deal with.
01:11 But when you let it grow, fester, become a monster,
01:14 then it gets you, knocks you down.
01:17 No one wants that.
01:18 So make tracks to Endpoint Homeopathic Clinic.
01:20 You can locate them here in Accra,
01:22 at Spintex opposite the Shell signboard.
01:23 Nkumase, Kronomwa, Bwehiya,
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01:27 There's Taku Ade Anaji State, Tema Community 22,
01:29 Techiman Hanswe, Nsiyama, Nzema.
01:32 Oh, you want to call them?
01:33 I have two numbers for you.
01:34 The first, 0244-867-068,
01:39 or 0274-234-321.
01:44 Endpoint Homeopathic Clinic, the end to chronic disease.
01:48 But just the start of the news review this morning.
01:51 And even as we await Suleyman Ibrahim,
01:55 and I'll be getting into the papers,
01:57 I'd like to share a bit of a scam story with you.
02:00 Yes, I got scammed a few days ago,
02:02 and it was interesting.
02:03 I laughed about it.
02:05 You know, we hear, and it's been proven,
02:07 that some of the scams,
02:09 a lot of them emanate from our prisons.
02:12 Yeah, I don't want to mention which prison,
02:14 but our prisons, yes, scamming going on.
02:17 Some of them are operating devices from there,
02:19 and they are scamming you right now.
02:20 They are trying to scam you.
02:22 So I wanted to purchase, make a purchase,
02:25 for the sake of the image of that company,
02:28 I'll not mention their name,
02:30 because elsewhere, if that has done your name,
02:33 you know, on a site claiming to be yours,
02:36 that could be problematic.
02:38 But I wanted to purchase something little to eat, okay?
02:42 And I wanted it to be ready by the time I got home,
02:45 because that day I had actually not eaten.
02:47 I was fasting.
02:49 Then I placed, I called the number that online,
02:54 this outfit, supposedly, has put up.
02:56 I called the number,
02:58 reached out to a certain branch of the entity,
03:01 this food company,
03:03 and I wanted to place an order.
03:05 But I asked them about the branch in a certain place.
03:09 I'm intentionally not mentioning,
03:10 so that you will not know the brand,
03:12 and so you will not think that they are being irresponsible,
03:14 though they are.
03:15 So I get the number for that branch,
03:18 and then I call.
03:20 I speak to someone, which is interesting.
03:22 Then the call is not so good.
03:24 So, I mean, I end the call.
03:28 The person calls me back on a different number.
03:32 And then, guess what?
03:34 I have to make payment.
03:36 On that day, they were doing a buy one, get one free.
03:40 Interestingly, the entity itself
03:42 was also doing buy one, get one free.
03:44 So I placed an order.
03:45 I lost 50 CDs.
03:47 And then I got to the place,
03:49 trying to get my order,
03:50 and they said, "Oh, that same thing again.
03:52 "Many people keep coming here, and that problem,
03:55 "and we've told our bosses
03:56 "that they have to remedy the situation
03:58 "and take down those numbers.
03:59 "There are only two official lines."
04:01 And I asked them, how will anyone,
04:03 many of us order online,
04:05 how will anyone, I order from different places online.
04:07 It's convenient.
04:08 How will anybody know that this is real and this is fake,
04:11 unless you make it categorically clear,
04:14 unless there are certain stipulations.
04:16 So I lost 50 CDs.
04:18 But it's not about losing 50 CDs.
04:20 It's about the number of people
04:23 who could be losing 50 CDs, 70 CDs.
04:26 In fact, there, they told me,
04:28 the people there, working there,
04:29 told me that someone who was celebrating his birthday,
04:32 a prominent figure, had, on that day, placed orders for,
04:37 okay, let me mention, pizza.
04:39 And it was over 1,000 CDs,
04:42 only for the person to get there
04:43 and realize no order had been placed.
04:45 He was ordering to go to his office and share.
04:48 And there he was.
04:50 So if these people,
04:51 maybe one person is making about even 1,000 CDs a day,
04:55 they are living large while in prison.
04:58 I'm not saying all of them are in prison,
04:59 but we know a lot of them are hiding in our prisons
05:01 and still perpetrating crime.
05:04 So it's a warning to you.
05:06 Be alert.
05:07 If you're going to order online,
05:08 be sure that that is the legitimate website
05:14 or online whatever,
05:16 or the number that you're using is legitimate.
05:19 I mean, something little clicked in my head.
05:22 There was a little warning,
05:24 but I just felt, oh, I mean, what?
05:26 And it turned out to be a scam.
05:27 So I lost 50 CDs.
05:29 Maybe you may be planning ordering online.
05:32 Be careful you don't lose more money.
05:34 That's just a little bit of caution to you
05:36 because the scammers are out there
05:38 and they're using every,
05:40 seizing every opportunity to try and scam you.
05:44 Okay, so let's get into the papers this morning
05:46 as we await Suleymana Brahime's companionship
05:51 throughout this period.
05:54 The Daily Graphic newspaper,
05:55 447,204 candidates sit the WASI exam.
06:00 Passage of wildlife resources bill progressive.
06:05 That's according to Janapo.
06:07 Financial irregularities auditor general
06:09 uncovers 15.1 billion Ghana CDs.
06:11 Public boards, corporations involved.
06:14 Curbing indiscipline in senior high schools.
06:17 Scrap boarding system education is proposed.
06:20 And there's also on the back page,
06:24 government makes strides in bridging gender gap in ICT.
06:30 Communications minister says so.
06:33 Farmers at Aveyuma call for investment
06:35 to develop irrigable lands.
06:39 Those are the stories in that newspaper.
06:44 And I'll be getting to them shortly.
06:48 But this bit comes to mind.
06:50 I'll note it down for later.
06:52 It has to do with the Sicilia Dapa saga.
06:55 I'll note it down for later because a certain spokesperson,
07:00 one of the spokespeople for the MPP
07:03 shared some thoughts about it
07:05 and the architects grouping in Ghana.
07:09 I'll save my thoughts on that and share them later
07:12 when Suleyman Abraima joins me.
07:15 So let's go to page 60.
07:17 That is where that story about the WASI is located.
07:21 That's where it can be found.
07:23 And the Ghana only version.
07:28 And yes, for some time now, that's what we've been doing.
07:30 It's not a proper WASI in terms of West Africa.
07:32 It's our own version of the WASI.
07:34 So the Ghana only version
07:36 of the West African Senior School Certificate Examination
07:39 for school candidates WASI SC 2023
07:42 begins today in the country
07:44 with project works in basketry, ceramics and graphic design.
07:48 In all, a total of 447,204 candidates
07:53 comprising 211,834 males
07:57 and 235,370 females will sit the examination
08:02 at 834 centers across the country.
08:06 Daily graphic, don't use sit for, just say sit.
08:09 Sit the examination.
08:11 Now the total candidature represents an increase
08:13 of 24,321 over last year's candidature of 422,883.
08:18 So that is the tale of the tape
08:25 as far as this examination is concerned.
08:27 We wish all those who are going to be sitting this exam
08:30 the very best.
08:32 Let's go to page 20 now and look at what the sector minister
08:36 for lands and natural resources is telling us.
08:38 In recent times, he's been talking about lithium
08:41 and being more responsible.
08:42 And I've had cause, justified cause to go after him.
08:47 The rhetoric is too much.
08:48 Our mineral resources are not yielding the sort of interests
08:52 or the sort of results we would want them to
08:54 in this country.
08:55 I'm tired of the talk.
08:56 If you can't walk the talk, just shush, keep quiet.
08:59 But on this bit, so after 14 years of remaining a draft,
09:04 parliament has finally passed
09:06 the wildlife resources management bill 2022.
09:10 The bill when it's sent to by the president
09:12 will become a major boost to the sustainable management
09:16 of wildlife resources
09:17 and the preservation of protected areas.
09:20 Now the minister of lands and natural resources,
09:23 Samuel Abudinapoye in an interview with the daily graphic
09:25 described the new law passed last Friday
09:27 as revolutionary because it would bring the country's
09:31 wildlife law in conformity with existing policies
09:35 in the sector.
09:36 He said it also provided for the implementation
09:39 of international conventions on wildlife
09:42 to which the country was a signatory.
09:44 And interestingly, we are signatories to so many things,
09:47 but sometimes when it comes to the application,
09:50 that is where the devil is, the detail.
09:53 There's also financial irregularities,
09:56 Auditor General and covers 15.1 billion Ghana CDs,
09:59 public boards, corporations involved.
10:01 Let's take a step back to page 16 and get into that.
10:05 You know, if we were a serious country and we are not,
10:08 we are not a serious country
10:09 because our leaders remain unserious,
10:11 our misleaders remain unserious.
10:13 If we were serious, we would take them to task,
10:17 hold their feet to the fire of accountability,
10:19 and we would have no business going to the IMF.
10:22 The sums of money we lose every year,
10:25 every year to corruption, waste, every year.
10:30 It's like going to the IMF every year.
10:34 That's what it means.
10:35 We have a vicious cycle of going to the IMF
10:37 every four to six years,
10:38 but every year we actually go to the IMF
10:41 by way of what we lose to corruption, to wastage.
10:45 Every year, it happens.
10:48 I'll just read the story and then go to Suleymane Abrahama
10:51 who has now joined the conversation.
10:54 So more than 15.1 billion Ghana CDs in irregularities
10:59 have been uncovered in the operations of public boards,
11:03 corporations, and other statutory institutions for last year,
11:07 the 2022 Auditor General's report has found.
11:10 More details.
11:11 Now, the amount represents a 13.86%
11:15 or 2.4 billion Ghana CD reduction
11:18 from the 2021 figure of 17.48 billion Ghana CDs,
11:22 but still cold comfort, nothing to celebrate.
11:25 It is important to note that last year's irregularities
11:28 were made up of more than 15 billion Ghana CDs
11:30 that can be recovered.
11:32 That's the recoverable amount,
11:34 and that is where my interest is.
11:36 And an administrative infraction
11:38 of 47.28 million Ghana CDs.
11:41 Out of the irregularities,
11:43 the recoverable amount represented 99.69%,
11:49 with the administrative portion being 47.3 million
11:53 Ghana CDs, representing 0.31%.
11:55 This amount cannot be recovered,
11:57 and it is made up of procurement and other irregularities.
12:01 The Auditor General therefore asked for strict implementation
12:05 of its recommendations to ensure financial discipline
12:07 in the management of public resources.
12:10 Now, do the math.
12:13 Interestingly, and I have my own concerns
12:16 about even these figures, but let's stick to them.
12:18 Let's say these are legitimate through and through, okay?
12:23 15 billion Ghana CDs in dollars, how much is that?
12:29 That could be about 1.3, 1.4, 1.5 billion dollars
12:35 that we need to recover.
12:37 That is half the money we're getting from the IMF.
12:41 You see how shockingly bad leadership,
12:46 rulership, our system is.
12:49 You go to the IMF for three billion,
12:51 and yet you are bleeding 1.5 billion, approximately,
12:55 dollars to corruption, wastage.
12:59 Suleiman Abraima, a very good morning to you.
13:03 - What happened to you?
13:08 - I don't know how long you followed,
13:11 but as usual, we're playing the tale of the tape.
13:14 Auditor General, the circus that we like to play
13:17 as a country, merry-go-round, same situation.
13:20 At least this year, per the report,
13:21 the amount came down by about some 2 billion
13:26 odd Ghana CDs, but any reflections on this matter?
13:29 - Well, I think it is just right to say
13:34 that right now in our country, corruption has been normalized.
13:38 It appears to be no crime for people to commit acts
13:44 of corruption, and that's the unfortunate situation
13:48 that we find ourselves in.
13:50 And I would always say that, as you have said,
13:52 it's as a result of lack of leadership.
13:54 Unfortunately, over the last six, seven years,
13:59 we've had a president that we all believed
14:02 and touted as somebody who would really help fight
14:05 corruption, somebody who wouldn't entertain
14:08 any acts of corruption, but unfortunately,
14:10 it appears that it is actually under his leadership
14:13 that we are seeing monumental acts
14:16 of corruption being committed.
14:18 That's really unfortunate.
14:20 And the most unfortunate thing is that there appears
14:23 not to be any example.
14:26 In fact, on numerous occasions, he would even be the person
14:30 clearing those accused or suspected of being involved
14:33 in corruption, even before investigations are concluded.
14:37 And we saw the recent development where he says,
14:40 "Oh, I believe that at the end of the day,
14:43 your integrity will be restored."
14:45 So if you are a police officer assigned to investigate
14:48 this person in relation to this Cecilia Dappa incident,
14:52 and then the president says that he believes that
14:55 at the end of the day, his minister's integrity
14:58 will be restored.
14:59 As a police officer, you go into that investigations
15:03 with some caution.
15:04 And that's, for me, is the unfortunate thing
15:07 that we found ourselves in.
15:08 And it's not just only the president,
15:11 but we have parliament that is supposed to be
15:14 the watch of our public purse.
15:16 And I've always said that indeed,
15:18 if the executive and the president are not performing
15:22 the way they should, we should blame parliament.
15:25 And again, we had the hope that the people of Ghana,
15:30 in their wisdom, chose to elect a parliament
15:33 that was split in the middle, almost equal numbers,
15:37 so that the ruling government
15:40 would not have his way all the time.
15:42 And yet, as we are hearing from parliamentary leaders,
15:45 this appears to be even the worst parliament
15:48 in our fourth republic.
15:50 We thought the numbers could do the trick,
15:52 but the numbers appear to have even boosted
15:55 the inefficiency and all of that that we've witnessed
15:59 in terms of our parliament.
16:01 'Cause you ask yourself if we have
16:03 the parliamentary accounts committee,
16:06 and every year resources will be spent,
16:10 sometimes with live television broadcasts,
16:13 costing the nation hundreds of thousands of CDs,
16:17 if not millions, to bring the public accounts
16:20 deliberation to the public.
16:22 And year in, year out, we are just being told
16:25 that the acts of corruption and irregularities
16:28 and misappropriation and misapplications
16:31 have just been going on.
16:32 Then you ask yourself, are we better
16:34 off having a public accounts committee or not?
16:37 At this stage, I don't see what the usefulness
16:39 of the public accounts committee has been to our nation.
16:42 And perhaps the earlier we do reforms,
16:47 the better for all of us in terms of the integrity,
16:49 in terms of the stability,
16:50 in terms of the peace that we are enjoying.
16:52 Because as a country, I don't think we can continue
16:54 to go on like this, where people are continuing to loot
16:58 and others are continuing to suffer.
17:00 I think we have an end.
17:02 We cannot continue to go on like that.
17:04 - But speaking of those selfsame matters,
17:06 I don't know how, you say for how long can we do this,
17:09 but I also know that the Auditor General's department
17:13 has been following, I mean, it took Daniel Yau-Domilevo
17:17 to do some of the things that the law says ought to be done,
17:20 like surcharging and all of that.
17:22 And we all saw what happened with Kroll and associates,
17:25 among other matters, to the point where he was
17:27 literally hounded out, and now the justicial system
17:30 has come out to say that what happened
17:32 was a miscarriage of justice.
17:34 It was wrong, but it has happened.
17:36 And that is the problem with our fourth republic.
17:39 Now, the Auditor General's department has, I would say it,
17:43 maybe taking out the tenure of Daniel Yau-Domilevo,
17:48 has been pitiful in its approach.
17:51 A lot of what ought to be done is not done.
17:54 And we keep having these reports
17:56 that retrospectively deliver justice,
18:00 but in the end, you follow this and see how much
18:02 of this sum that can be, interestingly,
18:04 99.69% of this sum can be recovered.
18:08 The question is, will it be recovered?
18:10 So is it high time we changed our auditing system
18:13 as a country, and maybe this will shape
18:16 how we approach auditing of public offices and offices?
18:20 - Well, I really don't think that is a question
18:24 of the auditing system.
18:27 I believe that the Auditor General is just like a court.
18:30 - When I say auditing system,
18:31 I mean how the Auditor General works, the legal framework.
18:36 - Well, there may be a need to look into that,
18:40 but even with what we have now,
18:43 if we have a leadership that is really committed
18:46 to the fight against corruption, look, it doesn't matter.
18:49 If you are accused to have stolen someone's money
18:54 a year or so ago, I don't think that the fact
18:57 that the incident happened a year ago would exonerate you.
19:01 The law would still deal with you.
19:03 The Auditor General, in my view, is just like the courts.
19:07 When the judge says that you are convicted to one year,
19:12 I mean, you are sentenced to one year imprisonment,
19:15 and there are no mechanisms to ensure
19:17 that you are taken to the prison,
19:19 the judge cannot be the one coming to hold you
19:21 and dragging you to Insawaim Prison and so on.
19:24 So the Auditor General would do his part.
19:27 These are the findings that we are establishing.
19:30 People have embezzled money, people have misapplied money,
19:32 people have misappropriated money.
19:35 There are state institutions that are supposed to ensure
19:38 that once this thing happens,
19:40 that those who are liable are sanctioned.
19:43 But the point I'm making is the folks sitting on the boards
19:48 were appointed by the president, directly or indirectly,
19:52 either by a minister or the president himself.
19:54 And they know that, look, this is the system.
19:58 Everybody is here to chop, and we must all chop.
20:01 At worst, if you are exposed,
20:03 the president would either exonerate you or say that,
20:06 "Look, he believes that you are credible
20:09 and you are trustworthy."
20:11 It makes me wonder when the president said,
20:13 "Look, if those of you joining my government
20:16 thinks that you want to make money,
20:17 you are in the wrong place.
20:19 If you want to make money,
20:20 you have to go to the private sector."
20:21 I'm wondering really what he meant by that.
20:24 And what it would have been if the president hadn't said that
20:27 and actually created the impression
20:29 that joining his government was a way to make money.
20:32 Because, look, it is not a problem with our fourth republic.
20:36 It is a problem with leadership.
20:39 I just think that we haven't, as a nation,
20:41 had the kind of leader who would crack the whip
20:45 and ensure that, "Look, I'm going to do the right thing
20:48 and make sure that this nation thrives.
20:50 I'm going to make sure that the resources of this country
20:53 are utilized in ways that benefit the people.
20:55 I'm going to make sure that even if I serve this nation
20:58 for four years, after I leave,
21:01 I will be remembered for doing A, B, C, D."
21:04 That is what we have lacked.
21:05 And unfortunately, it's gotten worse, I believe,
21:09 under President Nduku Fuad.
21:10 - Let's look at some other stories.
21:15 Election of MMDCEs, and it's a big issue.
21:18 David Zanzopukwu, MP for Mpaisa, shares his thoughts.
21:21 He says, "The government needs to clearly communicate
21:23 the benefits and objectives of the proposed reforms
21:26 to all stakeholders."
21:27 There's Comfort Ajay Beidou,
21:29 an organizational development consultant, who says,
21:32 "In the 2017 Afrobarometers Round 7 survey,
21:35 which was conducted by the Ghana CDD,
21:38 two-thirds of Ghanaians, 69%,
21:40 believed that MMDCEs should be elected.
21:42 The government should, therefore,
21:43 be deliberate and intentional in their approach."
21:46 There's Dr. Richard Fyabdomo,
21:47 local governance expert.
21:49 He has his thoughts.
21:49 Dr. George Aseka, a lecturer,
21:51 University of Education, Weneba.
21:54 All of them share their thoughts on the matter.
21:56 But for you, especially as we approach 2024,
21:58 this conversation is coming up again forcefully.
22:02 What is your quick take on the election of MMDCEs?
22:06 - I think fundamentally, about 90 or more percent
22:11 of Ghanaians would say that, "Yes, let's elect MMDCEs."
22:15 But their approach to electing the MMDCEs
22:17 is what there's always disagreement over.
22:20 I think that the last time there was gonna be
22:23 a referendum about it,
22:25 it was all a question of whether, in the end,
22:27 we should be electing our MMDCEs on partisan basis.
22:30 Some of us thought that,
22:33 "Look, it is important to elect our MMDCEs,
22:36 but let's do so in a non-partisan fashion."
22:41 The government of the day,
22:43 under President Ndukufu Addo, thought otherwise.
22:46 And eventually, it was clear
22:48 that Ghanaians were not gonna endorse the view
22:50 that MMDCEs should be elected on partisan basis.
22:54 And so, out of that fear of losing the referendum,
22:59 the president decided to abort the process.
23:03 So yes, we need to elect our MMDCEs,
23:07 but let's do so in a non-partisan fashion
23:09 so that, in a particular district,
23:12 the people in the area would decide
23:14 who they think would be the best person
23:16 to lead them on in a non-partisan fashion.
23:20 If it is somebody who has been out of the country,
23:25 is not known to be aligned to any political party,
23:28 and the person is interested,
23:29 and that is who they want to elect,
23:31 yes, let's go for the person.
23:33 But to now reintroduce this partisan thing
23:37 at the grassroots level,
23:39 I think that it will even further poison
23:41 our very, very divided nation,
23:46 and may even entrench the whole thing about corruption
23:49 that we are talking about.
23:50 - Right.
23:51 I shared my thoughts on,
23:53 since we're talking about this issue,
23:54 I want us to get this out of the way.
23:56 I shared my thoughts on the Sicilia Abnada part issue,
23:59 and of course, the OSP, among others,
24:02 are delving into that issue.
24:03 No one is hanging her.
24:05 We're merely talking about the surrounding issues.
24:07 But one thing I've seen come up,
24:09 I mean, I've heard the bit about a funeral in Sawa,
24:12 in Sawa, but they had debunked.
24:14 I've heard the bit about a brother of hers
24:16 who probably would have owned the money,
24:18 who was a chief in somewhere in the Ashanti region,
24:22 who also was a cobbler at some point,
24:24 and some people saying
24:25 he couldn't have raised that sum of money.
24:27 Then there's been talk, interestingly,
24:30 from one of the party's communicators on a radio station
24:34 that her husband, the architect,
24:37 who, by the way, has been an architect of longstanding,
24:40 very qualified person,
24:42 that he is recognized in Africa,
24:45 and that even one contractor could earn him $5 million.
24:49 I ran some checks on how much these architects are paid.
24:53 My own father was an architect and a civil engineer,
24:57 and one who was globetrotting,
24:58 going around the world doing that work.
25:02 And my checks don't corroborate this,
25:04 but what do you make of that suggestion that I made
25:08 in terms of the sums of money?
25:10 I don't think anyone wants to say she did this or did that.
25:12 We just want to know, where did you get the money from?
25:15 What's your take on that before we move on?
25:18 - Well, for me, it's quite surprising
25:21 that this thing is again taking a partisan twist
25:26 where you have MPP party communicators
25:31 trying to establish one reason or the other,
25:35 assign this or that.
25:37 I just wonder at what point do we as a nation,
25:41 would we pause to say that, look, for this matter,
25:43 let us just let the investigators go into it.
25:47 If anything at all, let's put pressure
25:49 on those who are supposed to be investigating
25:51 to ensure that they do a diligent job
25:53 so they don't end up basically endorsing
25:59 what the president has said,
26:00 that, oh, in the end, your integrity will be established.
26:04 For me, it's a wonder.
26:06 And again, it relates to the whole moral fabric
26:11 of our society where people feel,
26:14 look, if I can defend this person to get a cut, why not?
26:17 If this person would do me a favor so I defend them,
26:20 why not?
26:21 I think it is really problematic.
26:22 That is why I say we cannot continue as a nation
26:25 on this path for long.
26:28 We need to get to a point where we say,
26:29 look, wrong is wrong, right is right.
26:31 And the appropriate agencies
26:33 that are supposed to investigate matters
26:36 to establish whether people are guilty or innocent
26:39 are there, let them do their job.
26:41 So for me, like I said last week, around the same time,
26:45 I said I would have been surprised
26:46 if the OSP had not come in.
26:49 And I'm happy that on that same day,
26:52 action was taken and we were told
26:55 that investigations have commenced.
26:56 He was put under arrest.
26:58 Houses were searched.
27:01 And so far, well, OSP has given an assurance
27:05 that the public will be treated
27:07 and we should look forward to that.
27:08 - Right.
27:09 Let's get into this final story and then we can move on.
27:12 Curbing and discipline in senior high schools.
27:14 Scrap boarding system education is proposed.
27:16 So two educationists have proposed the scrapping
27:18 of the boarding system as a major step
27:21 in curbing and discipline in senior high schools.
27:24 A former rector of the Ghana Institute of Management
27:26 and Public Administration, Professor Stephen Adai,
27:28 and a former director general
27:30 of the Ghana Education Service,
27:31 Professor Kwesi Opoku-Amankwa,
27:33 contend that the rationale for the introduction
27:35 of the boarding system at the pre-colonial time
27:38 to date had outlived its relevance.
27:42 That's what they are saying.
27:42 From the pre-colonial time till this point
27:45 has outlived its relevance.
27:46 In separate interviews,
27:47 Professors Adai and Opoku-Amankwa converged
27:50 on the proposal to establish at least two well-resourced,
27:54 strategically located quality day SHSs
27:57 in each district within the communities
27:59 that would be easily accessed by students.
28:04 The two expressed the belief
28:06 that the current circumstances
28:07 did not support the boarding system,
28:09 indicating that the huge numbers of students
28:11 in a boarding school put under the care
28:13 of a few teachers with limited resources,
28:16 had serious health, economic, social,
28:19 and disciplinary implications for education management.
28:22 That's the final bit from the Daily Graphic.
28:24 Your take.
28:26 - Well, I really don't know the basics.
28:30 Is it that, are they saying the problem
28:34 is the huge numbers under the care of few teachers,
28:38 or the problem is just the fact of having a boarding system?
28:43 In other words, if we had fewer numbers
28:46 taken care of by adequate teachers,
28:48 would it still be a problem?
28:49 Because we must look at the problem
28:53 and find a solution to it
28:56 rather than saying, look, because there is a problem,
28:59 let's scrap the system.
29:00 I have been told, for example,
29:02 that Professor Adai runs some schools
29:05 or has some private schools that he's running.
29:08 And as far as I know, those schools
29:10 are running a boarding system.
29:13 Is he saying that even those ones too
29:16 would have to be revised into day schools?
29:21 I really don't think so.
29:24 If we've gotten to a point
29:26 where the numbers in our boarding systems
29:28 or the boarding schools are too large,
29:31 the solution would be, do we need more secondary schools?
29:36 Do we need more secondary schools built?
29:38 And do we need to appoint more teachers
29:40 so that we can have more housemasters,
29:44 more senior housemasters,
29:46 more dormitory supervisors, and so on and so forth,
29:49 rather than saying, oh, well,
29:51 we've gotten to a point where the numbers are too large,
29:53 the teachers are too few,
29:55 and so the way to go is to scrap the boarding system.
29:57 They are talking now about community day schools,
30:01 perhaps aligning more with what
30:04 the President Mahama Regime had started.
30:09 If it is so, what really are the perspectives to it?
30:12 Because I know people have also said,
30:14 well, the day schools in some areas are working,
30:16 in some areas they are not working
30:17 because school kids have to commit
30:20 to far longer distances to be able to get to the schools.
30:24 And that is also a problem by itself.
30:27 Only last week, I had one professor also talking about
30:31 the fact that a day school that has been established
30:33 in one of the communities that he comes from,
30:38 is said that they think it's gotten to a point
30:42 where they need to build something
30:43 to accommodate a few students as boarders.
30:46 So, what do we draw the line?
30:48 I think it's quite problematic.
30:50 - Let's get into the Daily Guide and the Finder newspapers.
30:52 That is how I'm going to cap it all off.
30:55 Draboso MP and near fatal accident,
30:57 Kwame Nnamintah Akando there.
30:59 And we thank God for your life, sir.
31:01 Ascent Central delegates root for Bamiya.
31:04 Nana Saks Bosome Frejon DCE,
31:07 probe 50,000 annual child deaths.
31:09 That's according to the CRI.
31:11 And hot race for Mahama Veep, pictured there.
31:14 Julius Debra, former chief of staff,
31:17 also there, Professor Joshua Alabi,
31:20 who used to be with the University
31:21 for Professional Studies, Accra.
31:22 Let's get into the stories.
31:24 On page three,
31:25 there is an intense lobbying to replace Professor Jane Nana
31:30 Opukwajiman, the 2020 running mate to John Mahama,
31:33 following reports that she has been dropped
31:35 for the 2024 elections.
31:36 In view of this, several names have popped up
31:38 for the vice presidential slot
31:40 to pair with former president John Dramani Mahama.
31:44 Most of the potential candidates are people
31:46 who have worked with him at various levels
31:47 when he was the president.
31:49 Each candidate brings unique strengths and shortcomings
31:51 that could impact their suitability for the role,
31:54 with Mr. Mahama desperate to clinch victory,
31:56 having lost the last two elections.
31:59 And it goes on and on,
32:00 but even the likes of Alex Mould,
32:04 former CEO of the GNPC,
32:07 there's also Kingsley Kwame Iwadako,
32:10 former boss of Bost,
32:11 the bulk oil storage and transportation company,
32:15 among others whose names have popped up
32:19 as being those who are front runners.
32:21 But let me get to that story now.
32:24 A child-centered organization, Child Rights International,
32:27 has expressed as shocking and unacceptable
32:30 a recent data from the Ghana Health Service
32:32 that indicates that 50,000 infants lose their lives
32:35 every year due to asphyxia.
32:40 The organization has therefore called for a probe
32:42 to be carried out to identify the underlying
32:44 and related causes for this incident
32:47 in order to inform policy decisions
32:49 and actions in that regard.
32:51 In a statement issued and signed by its executive director,
32:54 Brighta Pia, CRI also stressed the need
32:57 for parliament to initiate the formulation
32:59 and passing of a bill to investigate the way and manner
33:02 in which Ghanaian babies are handled at birth.
33:06 And we're talking about 17 per every,
33:09 17 per every thousand live births.
33:12 So 17 per every thousand live births.
33:17 And let me just do that story on page six
33:19 and then I can take your quick reflections.
33:21 So there is Nana Sacks, Bosome Freho DCE,
33:28 and the district chief executive
33:30 of Bosome Freho District Assembly
33:32 in the Ashanti region, Yaudanto,
33:33 has been sacked by President Akufu-Addo.
33:36 Yaudanto, who was suspended in October 2022
33:38 for allegedly engaging in illegal mining,
33:41 has now been officially relieved of his position.
33:44 I'm sure you remember that story.
33:45 Quick thoughts on these three.
33:47 - Well, the Yaudanto story,
33:52 I was under the false impression
33:54 that the president had actually fired him long ago.
33:58 I didn't know that all this while,
34:01 from June to this time,
34:06 which is about a year,
34:07 he was still just basically on suspension.
34:10 I really don't know how long it must take
34:13 for the president to be able to establish certain facts,
34:17 even at as basic as the district level.
34:20 And I don't know what the difficulties are
34:22 when the president has to fire people
34:25 for one thing or the other.
34:27 Well, be it as it may,
34:29 we are told now that he's been sacked.
34:31 I'm hoping that they'll get the right person to replace him.
34:36 Child Rights International's cry
34:41 over the number of deaths of children,
34:45 I think it's really worrying.
34:46 And as a country, we need to take the appropriate steps
34:50 to ensure that some of these things are dealt with.
34:52 50,000 a year is just quite worrying.
34:57 And I just hope that again,
35:01 leadership will be minded to think along the lines of,
35:05 think about how we can get these numbers
35:10 at least brought down considerably.
35:13 And it's about our health sector.
35:15 It's about the policies that we make.
35:18 It's about our social welfare programming.
35:20 It's about how our nurses are being treated.
35:23 And now we know about the droves of nurses
35:26 who are leaving for the UK and other countries.
35:29 The impact on our health system certainly would be palpable.
35:32 So a lot has to be done within our health sector
35:36 to improve our infant mortality situation and all of that.
35:41 President Obama's running mates,
35:44 well, it is his decision to make.
35:46 And I believe that the considerations would be,
35:48 who is it that can help him win the elections?
35:53 A number of names have come up, as we've said.
35:57 We've all been hearing about them.
36:00 I think Ashanti region remains a critical area.
36:04 And I wouldn't be surprised
36:06 if indeed Professor Nanaji Nopukwajiman is to be replaced.
36:11 I wouldn't be surprised that President Obama
36:13 would have to look into Ashanti region.
36:15 And I think we are at a point where people are really,
36:19 really, how do you say, angry,
36:22 but not happy with mainstream politicians.
36:26 And therefore it will be perhaps prudent
36:29 if any of them look at picking somebody
36:33 who may not have been known to be overly partisan
36:38 or even known to be partisan,
36:40 but has the radical ideas and radical posturing,
36:43 radical profile to be able to help improve governance
36:48 in our country.
36:49 - Suleymane, this is where we have to hang it up.
36:52 Thank you so much.
36:52 The Finder newspaper, the only news stories there,
36:55 stop gap solutions, widening rich poor divide.
36:58 That's according to Dr. Angra,
36:59 he wants to be president of Ghana.
37:01 There's also Bank of Ghana incurs 60.86 billion
37:04 Ghana cities in losses in 2022,
37:07 leading to 55.12 billion Ghana city negative equity position.
37:11 Suleymane, I wish you the best of the day.
37:13 Thank you, sir.
37:14 - Thank you for having me, have a great week.
37:17 - Right, Suleymane Abrahama, Executive Director,
37:19 Media Foundation for West Africa.
37:20 That's how we cap off the news review,
37:22 but of course, Endpoint Homeopathic Clinic
37:24 helping us bring you this review.
37:26 They're offering free prostate screening,
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37:29 Here's where you can locate them.
37:30 Here in Accra, Spintex office of the Shell signboard.
37:33 Kumasi, Kronuma Abwehi behind the Angel Educational Complex.
37:36 Takra De Anaji State, Tema Community 22,
37:39 Techiman Hanswa, and Asiama Nzama.
37:41 Their call lines, 0244-867-068
37:44 or 0274-234-321.
37:48 Endpoint Homeopathic Clinic, the end to chronic disease.
37:51 Now in the friendlies that were played
37:53 as well as the Women's World Cup,
37:55 there has been a lot of action.
37:56 And for me, that Colombian, 18 year old or so,
37:59 passed out a few days ago.
38:01 She's had her bouts with cancer
38:03 and she returned on the pitch
38:05 to score another goal against Germany.
38:07 Lots of stuff in sports coming up right up next.
38:10 (dramatic music)
38:17 (dramatic music)
38:20 (dramatic music)
38:23 (dramatic music)
38:27 (dramatic music)
38:29 (dramatic music)
38:32 (dramatic music)
38:35 (tires screeching)
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