Page 17. June 5, 2008
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Adenta, Mr Kwadjo Opare-Hammond, has admonished members of the party not to be complacent about the achievements of the Kufuor administration and has rather urged them to work hard to ensure resounding victory for the party in the December general election.
The MP noted that those laudable achievements should rather spur them on into active campaign to enable the party to improve upon its electoral success in the 2004 elections.
Mr Opare-Hammond was speaking to the Daily Graphic on the recent Adenta Constituency NPP delegates conference at which he was confirmed by popular acclamation as the party’s parliamentary aspirant.
The confirmation ceremony was supervised by the Greater Accra Regional NPP Youth Organiser, Alhaji Ahmed Yusif.
Mr Opare-Hammond said with the implementation of laudable government policies and programmes, such as the Capitation Grant, the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), the School Feeding Programme, among others, Ghanaians had come to terms with a better administration of the country.
“What we need to do is to go out there to spread the good news of the Kufuor administration and what the party’s presidential aspirant, Nana Akufo-Addo, has in store for the people,” he said.
The MP added that the country, under the two-term rule of the NPP, had made a lot of strides, making it a showpiece of democracy and good governance.
He said the situation had given the people enough freedom to go about their businesses, adding that “with such achievements, we deserve to be given another mandate”.
Mr Opare-Hammond stated that the elevation of Adenta to a municipal status demonstrated the government’s resolve to develop the area and called on the people to reciprocate that gesture by voting massively for the party.
He pledged to work hard to retain the constituency and, therefore, pleaded with the rank and file of the party to rally behind him towards that direction.
Mr Opare-Hammond thanked the party members in the constituency for the confidence reposed in him and promised to justify the gesture by ensuring that the area got its fair share of the national cake.
Portrait of Mr Kwadjo Opare-Hammond, the MP for Adenta.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Parliament approves Owusu-Adjapong, judges
Page 16 June 4, 2008
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
PARLIAMENT yesterday unanimously approved the nomination of Mr Felix K. Owusu-Adjapong by the President as the new Minister of Energy.
The House also approved the nominations of four judges — Mr Justice Jones Victor Dotse, Mr Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, Mr Justice Anin Yeboah and Ms Justice Rose Constance Owusu — for appointment as justices of the Supreme Court.
The House gave approval to the nominations of the five persons after the Chairman of the Appointments Committee of Parliament, Mr Freddie Blay, had presented the two reports of the committee after vetting.
In the reports presented to the House, the committee recommended the approval of the nominees by consensus.
Commenting on the reports, the Majority Leader and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Mr Abraham Ossei Aidooh, said Members of Parliament (MPs) were aware of the capabilities of Mr Owusu-Adjapong, who is the immediate-past Majority Leader.
“We, therefore, hope that you will bring your experience and expertise to bear on the ministry to ensure that proper things are done in the country’s electrification programmes,” he said.
He said it was unfortunate that a lot of shoddy works had been witnessed within the system and cited Tema where some poles erected for electrification had started falling even before the completion of the project.
He, therefore, urged the new minister to open his eyes and make sure that such shoddy works were avoided to ensure that the country got value for money for projects being implemented within the sector.
Mr Aidooh also charged the Parliamentary Committee on Mines and Energy to regularly visit project sites to do a thorough inspection in order to serve as a check on shoddy work.
The MP for Lawra-Nandom, Dr Ben Kumbuor, expressed worry about the haphazard manner in which the Self-Help Electrification Programmes (SHEP) were being implemented.
“I urge you to take a serious look about the abuses in the system and bring the implementation of the programme on track,” he said, explaining that it was unfortunate that some communities that had not been included in the programme had been presented with low tension poles to the detriment of those who had been pencilled in to benefit.
He noted that since the new educational reforms required that students became computer literate, electricity should be extended to all schools to ensure the success of the reforms.
When he caught the eye of the Second Deputy Speaker, Mr Malik Yakubu Alhassan, who was in the chair, the Minority Spokesman on Mines and Energy, Mr Moses Asaga, challenged the new minister to work closely with the Minority and heed their advice to help streamline the sector.
He acknowledged that the rising cost of crude oil was a daunting task that should be tackled in a bi-partisan manner for a decision to be taken on whether the country should hedge or not.
For his part, the MP for Sunyani East and Chairman of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Mr J.H. Mensah, said although six months would not be enough for the implementation of any meaningful project, the minister designate could assist in the fashioning out of a sustainable energy policy for the country.
The Minority Leader, Mr Alban Bagbin drew Mr Owusu-Adjapong’s attention to lack of information within the energy sector and cited the West African Gas Pipeline as a case in point, saying that it was unfortunate that in spite of assurances given by officials, the project was yet to be realised.
He called for measures to enable Parliament to make an input into agreement being signed between Ghana and its partners on the project.
Commenting on the nomination of the Supreme Court judges, the MPs expressed shock about the admission of the nominees that corruption within the judiciary had moved from perception to reality.
They, therefore, called for measures to enable the Judiciary to purge itself of such practices to enable Ghanaians to have faith in the judicial system.
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
PARLIAMENT yesterday unanimously approved the nomination of Mr Felix K. Owusu-Adjapong by the President as the new Minister of Energy.
The House also approved the nominations of four judges — Mr Justice Jones Victor Dotse, Mr Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, Mr Justice Anin Yeboah and Ms Justice Rose Constance Owusu — for appointment as justices of the Supreme Court.
The House gave approval to the nominations of the five persons after the Chairman of the Appointments Committee of Parliament, Mr Freddie Blay, had presented the two reports of the committee after vetting.
In the reports presented to the House, the committee recommended the approval of the nominees by consensus.
Commenting on the reports, the Majority Leader and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Mr Abraham Ossei Aidooh, said Members of Parliament (MPs) were aware of the capabilities of Mr Owusu-Adjapong, who is the immediate-past Majority Leader.
“We, therefore, hope that you will bring your experience and expertise to bear on the ministry to ensure that proper things are done in the country’s electrification programmes,” he said.
He said it was unfortunate that a lot of shoddy works had been witnessed within the system and cited Tema where some poles erected for electrification had started falling even before the completion of the project.
He, therefore, urged the new minister to open his eyes and make sure that such shoddy works were avoided to ensure that the country got value for money for projects being implemented within the sector.
Mr Aidooh also charged the Parliamentary Committee on Mines and Energy to regularly visit project sites to do a thorough inspection in order to serve as a check on shoddy work.
The MP for Lawra-Nandom, Dr Ben Kumbuor, expressed worry about the haphazard manner in which the Self-Help Electrification Programmes (SHEP) were being implemented.
“I urge you to take a serious look about the abuses in the system and bring the implementation of the programme on track,” he said, explaining that it was unfortunate that some communities that had not been included in the programme had been presented with low tension poles to the detriment of those who had been pencilled in to benefit.
He noted that since the new educational reforms required that students became computer literate, electricity should be extended to all schools to ensure the success of the reforms.
When he caught the eye of the Second Deputy Speaker, Mr Malik Yakubu Alhassan, who was in the chair, the Minority Spokesman on Mines and Energy, Mr Moses Asaga, challenged the new minister to work closely with the Minority and heed their advice to help streamline the sector.
He acknowledged that the rising cost of crude oil was a daunting task that should be tackled in a bi-partisan manner for a decision to be taken on whether the country should hedge or not.
For his part, the MP for Sunyani East and Chairman of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Mr J.H. Mensah, said although six months would not be enough for the implementation of any meaningful project, the minister designate could assist in the fashioning out of a sustainable energy policy for the country.
The Minority Leader, Mr Alban Bagbin drew Mr Owusu-Adjapong’s attention to lack of information within the energy sector and cited the West African Gas Pipeline as a case in point, saying that it was unfortunate that in spite of assurances given by officials, the project was yet to be realised.
He called for measures to enable Parliament to make an input into agreement being signed between Ghana and its partners on the project.
Commenting on the nomination of the Supreme Court judges, the MPs expressed shock about the admission of the nominees that corruption within the judiciary had moved from perception to reality.
They, therefore, called for measures to enable the Judiciary to purge itself of such practices to enable Ghanaians to have faith in the judicial system.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Feeding grant to 3 northern regions GH¢4.2m so far paid
Frontpage (1a), May 29, 2008
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE government has so far released GH¢4,255,149.92, out of the GH¢7,344,413.92 to be paid as feeding grant for second-cycle schools in the three northern regions for the 2007/08 academic year.
The Minister of Education, Science and Sports, Professor Dominic Fobih, who made this known in Parliament yesterday, said only last week a cheque was issued for GH¢1.7 million and wondered why the heads of second-cycle schools in those areas had refused to re-open the schools.
Professor Fobih was reacting to a statement made on the floor of the House by the Minority Leader, Mr Alban Bagbin, on the cumulative effect of the disruption of the academic calendar of senior secondary schools in the three northern regions.
The minister said efforts were being made to pay the balance of GH¢3,079.264 to enable the schools to pay their creditors.
He indicated that the Scholarships Secretariat was in a fix as to why the intake of schools in the three northern regions was 7,000 more than what was expected and said an audit would, therefore, be conducted to ascertain the veracity of the figure.
In his statement, Mr Bagbin had called on the government to, as a matter of urgency, release the feeding grant for senior secondary schools in the three northern regions.
He observed that the cumulative effect of the disruption of academic calendar in those schools would wipe out any gains made in addressing the historical imbalance between the north and the south.
Mr Bagbin said notwithstanding the disruption of the academic calendar in those areas as a result of delays in the release of feeding grants, the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) would not change its examinations schedule to accommodate students from the north.
Mr Bagbin, who is also the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West, said it was sad that despite persistent calls by both parents and heads of those second-cycle institutions, the government had turned a deaf ear to those pleas.
The MP said what was regrettable was that the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund), set up primarily to promote education, had been compelled by the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports to metamorphose into a ‘Father Christmas’ doling out money to the Ministry of Manpower, Youth and Employment.
Mr Bagbin said people from the northern regions would not believe that it was the intention of any post-independent government to perpetuate the colonial government’s policy of keeping the northerner as a low-class citizen.
“Any wilful marginalisation of the north by any government is detrimental to the overall development and growth of the country. Ghana is a unitary state and, like the human body, if one part suffers pain, it is the whole body that suffers,” he said.
Mr Bagbin said sight should not be lost of the fact that students from the north would write the same examinations with students from other parts of the country.
“This lackadaisical attitude by the government will rather deepen the woes of these unfortunate students who, even in their present circumstances, do not have access to a lot of facilities enjoyed by those in the south,” the MP said.
Other MPs who contributed to the statement were Mr Stephen Balado-Manu (Ahafo-Ano South), Mr Mark-Anthony Awuni (Binduri) and Mr Anthony Akoto Osei, MP for Old Tafo and Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance.
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE government has so far released GH¢4,255,149.92, out of the GH¢7,344,413.92 to be paid as feeding grant for second-cycle schools in the three northern regions for the 2007/08 academic year.
The Minister of Education, Science and Sports, Professor Dominic Fobih, who made this known in Parliament yesterday, said only last week a cheque was issued for GH¢1.7 million and wondered why the heads of second-cycle schools in those areas had refused to re-open the schools.
Professor Fobih was reacting to a statement made on the floor of the House by the Minority Leader, Mr Alban Bagbin, on the cumulative effect of the disruption of the academic calendar of senior secondary schools in the three northern regions.
The minister said efforts were being made to pay the balance of GH¢3,079.264 to enable the schools to pay their creditors.
He indicated that the Scholarships Secretariat was in a fix as to why the intake of schools in the three northern regions was 7,000 more than what was expected and said an audit would, therefore, be conducted to ascertain the veracity of the figure.
In his statement, Mr Bagbin had called on the government to, as a matter of urgency, release the feeding grant for senior secondary schools in the three northern regions.
He observed that the cumulative effect of the disruption of academic calendar in those schools would wipe out any gains made in addressing the historical imbalance between the north and the south.
Mr Bagbin said notwithstanding the disruption of the academic calendar in those areas as a result of delays in the release of feeding grants, the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) would not change its examinations schedule to accommodate students from the north.
Mr Bagbin, who is also the Member of Parliament for Nadowli West, said it was sad that despite persistent calls by both parents and heads of those second-cycle institutions, the government had turned a deaf ear to those pleas.
The MP said what was regrettable was that the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund), set up primarily to promote education, had been compelled by the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports to metamorphose into a ‘Father Christmas’ doling out money to the Ministry of Manpower, Youth and Employment.
Mr Bagbin said people from the northern regions would not believe that it was the intention of any post-independent government to perpetuate the colonial government’s policy of keeping the northerner as a low-class citizen.
“Any wilful marginalisation of the north by any government is detrimental to the overall development and growth of the country. Ghana is a unitary state and, like the human body, if one part suffers pain, it is the whole body that suffers,” he said.
Mr Bagbin said sight should not be lost of the fact that students from the north would write the same examinations with students from other parts of the country.
“This lackadaisical attitude by the government will rather deepen the woes of these unfortunate students who, even in their present circumstances, do not have access to a lot of facilities enjoyed by those in the south,” the MP said.
Other MPs who contributed to the statement were Mr Stephen Balado-Manu (Ahafo-Ano South), Mr Mark-Anthony Awuni (Binduri) and Mr Anthony Akoto Osei, MP for Old Tafo and Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance.
‘DCE aspiring to become MP’s must resign’
Page 15, May 29, 2008
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE Member of Parliament (MP) for Nkwanta South, Mr Geshon K.B. Gbediame, yesterday called for the resignation of District Chief Executives (DCEs) who were aspiring to be parliamentary candidates of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
He said a situation where such DCEs, who had won primaries in their various constituencies were using state resources to campaign, did not create a level playing field for aspirants from other parties.
Mr Gbediame was contributing to comments raised on the floor of the House on the preparations towards the conduct of the forthcoming December elections.
He said it was because the government wanted to create a level playing field that some DCEs, who declared their intentions to contest primaries, were sacked by the President to enable them pursue their political ambitions.
Mr Gbediame said that notwithstanding, some DCEs, especially those in the Volta Region managed to hold on to their positions and contested their primaries and won.
He stated that efforts should be made to avoid the use of state resources by aspiring NPP candidates who were also DCEs for campaigning, since that would set a bad precedence.
Other MPs who contributed to the statement called for measures to be put in place to enable the electorate acknowledge contributions being made by MPs in the House.
The MP for Asawase, Alhaji Muntanka Mubarak, said it was sad that during the ongoing primaries to elect parliamentary candidates, sitting MPs were not being assessed by their works.
He blamed the situation on the lack of measures to educate the electorate on the actual work of MPs, saying that was rather unfortunate, and that as a result of ignorance, most people did not even consider law making as a development process.
For his part, the MP for Mfantsiman East, Mr George Kuntu-Blankson, called for a clean campaign by aspiring MPs from all the political parties.
“It is unfortunate that some colleague MPs make disparaging remarks about their colleagues in their bid to make them unpopular to lose their seats, due to political expediency”.
He noted that if MPs continued to do that the House would eventually lose the respect accorded it by the populace.
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE Member of Parliament (MP) for Nkwanta South, Mr Geshon K.B. Gbediame, yesterday called for the resignation of District Chief Executives (DCEs) who were aspiring to be parliamentary candidates of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
He said a situation where such DCEs, who had won primaries in their various constituencies were using state resources to campaign, did not create a level playing field for aspirants from other parties.
Mr Gbediame was contributing to comments raised on the floor of the House on the preparations towards the conduct of the forthcoming December elections.
He said it was because the government wanted to create a level playing field that some DCEs, who declared their intentions to contest primaries, were sacked by the President to enable them pursue their political ambitions.
Mr Gbediame said that notwithstanding, some DCEs, especially those in the Volta Region managed to hold on to their positions and contested their primaries and won.
He stated that efforts should be made to avoid the use of state resources by aspiring NPP candidates who were also DCEs for campaigning, since that would set a bad precedence.
Other MPs who contributed to the statement called for measures to be put in place to enable the electorate acknowledge contributions being made by MPs in the House.
The MP for Asawase, Alhaji Muntanka Mubarak, said it was sad that during the ongoing primaries to elect parliamentary candidates, sitting MPs were not being assessed by their works.
He blamed the situation on the lack of measures to educate the electorate on the actual work of MPs, saying that was rather unfortunate, and that as a result of ignorance, most people did not even consider law making as a development process.
For his part, the MP for Mfantsiman East, Mr George Kuntu-Blankson, called for a clean campaign by aspiring MPs from all the political parties.
“It is unfortunate that some colleague MPs make disparaging remarks about their colleagues in their bid to make them unpopular to lose their seats, due to political expediency”.
He noted that if MPs continued to do that the House would eventually lose the respect accorded it by the populace.
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE four Appeal Court judges who have been nominated by the President for the Supreme Court yesterday suggested that there should be a deliberate effort to educate people to know that they could win or lose their cases without influencing judges and magistrates.
Admitting that corruption within the Judiciary had moved from a perception to reality, they were, however, of the opinion that even though studies had shown corrupt practices within the system, the situation had been blown out of proportion.
The judges, Mr Justice Anin Yeboah, Mr Justice Jones Victor Mawulom Dotse, Ms Justice Rose Constance Owusu and Mr Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, shared their thoughts on the subject when they appeared before the Appointments Committee of Parliament for vetting.
Buttressing the assertion when he appeared before the committee, Justice Baffoe-Bonnie told the committee that studies had established that on a percentage of 100 corruption cases, 15 per cent could be attributed to judges while the remaining 85 per cent was attributable to other staff of the Judiciary.
He said in the Ashanti Region, where he was a judge, it was found out that in 90 per cent of all cases which went to the Kumasi courts, the litigants expressed the interest of “seeing the judges”.
Mr Justice Baffoe-Bonnie explained that out of that percentage, less than 10 per cent actually succeeded in “seeing the judges”, while the rest ended up going to “all manner of persons such as bailiffs, brothers and girlfriends of judges” to convince them to adjudicate the cases in their favour.
“Even among the lawyers, when they are charging their fees, they will tell their clients that a percentage of the amount is for the judge,” he said.
He said in all these matters, “people should be made aware that bribery does not deliver justice”.
On whether the Constitution should be amended for a ceiling on the number of judges to be appointed, all the four judges stated that since the Constitution was a growing one, attempts should not be made to touch the entrenched clauses.
They added that although the Constitution did not put a ceiling on the number of Supreme Court judges, none of the two presidents under the Fourth Republic had exceeded 14.
They justified their nomination to the Supreme Court and said that if they were given the nod, they would help administer justice at that level since out of the current 12 Supreme court judges, two were due for pension while three were not working because of ill health.
Out of the remaining seven, the Chief Justice was an administrator while one was on an international assignment, leaving only five judges as active ones at the Supreme Court.
One issue which was discussed extensively by all the four judges had to do with the lack of logistics and poor infrastructure of the Judicial Service.
Mr Justice Yeboah told the committee that much of the problems besetting the Judiciary could be solved, if about 50 per cent of the internally generated funds by the service was retained for the construction of more courts and the renovation of the dilapidated ones. Currently, only 15 per cent of the fund is retained by the service.
Mr Justice Baffoe-Bonnie said, for instance, that as an Appeal Court judge with an oversight responsibility over the Brong Ahafo Region, he had toured the region extensively.
He said structures used by the Judiciary in the region depicted “ a sordid tale of neglect of the Judiciary”.
For his part, Mr Justice Dotse advocated the establishment of more courts throughout the country to ensure speedy trial of cases, stressing that courts should be sited in places such as Teshie and Madina in the Accra metropolis.
Ms Justice Owusu stunned members of the committee about her strong conviction of the administration of capital punishment.
To her, there was no need to remove capital punishment from the country’s statute books, since “he who kills needs to die”.
Her conviction about capital punishment was shared by Mr Justice Baffoe-Bonnie but their other two colleagues, however, called for the law to be expunged in line with the current thinking in the international community.
Other subjects which were dealt with during the vetting included the law of causing financial loss to the state and the decoupling of the Attorney-General from the Ministry of Justice.
THE four Appeal Court judges who have been nominated by the President for the Supreme Court yesterday suggested that there should be a deliberate effort to educate people to know that they could win or lose their cases without influencing judges and magistrates.
Admitting that corruption within the Judiciary had moved from a perception to reality, they were, however, of the opinion that even though studies had shown corrupt practices within the system, the situation had been blown out of proportion.
The judges, Mr Justice Anin Yeboah, Mr Justice Jones Victor Mawulom Dotse, Ms Justice Rose Constance Owusu and Mr Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, shared their thoughts on the subject when they appeared before the Appointments Committee of Parliament for vetting.
Buttressing the assertion when he appeared before the committee, Justice Baffoe-Bonnie told the committee that studies had established that on a percentage of 100 corruption cases, 15 per cent could be attributed to judges while the remaining 85 per cent was attributable to other staff of the Judiciary.
He said in the Ashanti Region, where he was a judge, it was found out that in 90 per cent of all cases which went to the Kumasi courts, the litigants expressed the interest of “seeing the judges”.
Mr Justice Baffoe-Bonnie explained that out of that percentage, less than 10 per cent actually succeeded in “seeing the judges”, while the rest ended up going to “all manner of persons such as bailiffs, brothers and girlfriends of judges” to convince them to adjudicate the cases in their favour.
“Even among the lawyers, when they are charging their fees, they will tell their clients that a percentage of the amount is for the judge,” he said.
He said in all these matters, “people should be made aware that bribery does not deliver justice”.
On whether the Constitution should be amended for a ceiling on the number of judges to be appointed, all the four judges stated that since the Constitution was a growing one, attempts should not be made to touch the entrenched clauses.
They added that although the Constitution did not put a ceiling on the number of Supreme Court judges, none of the two presidents under the Fourth Republic had exceeded 14.
They justified their nomination to the Supreme Court and said that if they were given the nod, they would help administer justice at that level since out of the current 12 Supreme court judges, two were due for pension while three were not working because of ill health.
Out of the remaining seven, the Chief Justice was an administrator while one was on an international assignment, leaving only five judges as active ones at the Supreme Court.
One issue which was discussed extensively by all the four judges had to do with the lack of logistics and poor infrastructure of the Judicial Service.
Mr Justice Yeboah told the committee that much of the problems besetting the Judiciary could be solved, if about 50 per cent of the internally generated funds by the service was retained for the construction of more courts and the renovation of the dilapidated ones. Currently, only 15 per cent of the fund is retained by the service.
Mr Justice Baffoe-Bonnie said, for instance, that as an Appeal Court judge with an oversight responsibility over the Brong Ahafo Region, he had toured the region extensively.
He said structures used by the Judiciary in the region depicted “ a sordid tale of neglect of the Judiciary”.
For his part, Mr Justice Dotse advocated the establishment of more courts throughout the country to ensure speedy trial of cases, stressing that courts should be sited in places such as Teshie and Madina in the Accra metropolis.
Ms Justice Owusu stunned members of the committee about her strong conviction of the administration of capital punishment.
To her, there was no need to remove capital punishment from the country’s statute books, since “he who kills needs to die”.
Her conviction about capital punishment was shared by Mr Justice Baffoe-Bonnie but their other two colleagues, however, called for the law to be expunged in line with the current thinking in the international community.
Other subjects which were dealt with during the vetting included the law of causing financial loss to the state and the decoupling of the Attorney-General from the Ministry of Justice.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Owusu-Bio secures NPP Atwima-Nwabiagya seat
Page 17, May 15, 2008
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE incumbent New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Atwima-Nwabiagya, Mr Benito Owusu-Bio, has once again secured the mandate of the party to contest its parliamentary seat during the December polls.
He beat his rival, Mr James Adusei-Sarkodie, a former MP for the area, by 112 votes to two at the constituency’s delegates congress held at Abuakwa in the Ashanti Region last Monday.
This was the second time that the MP had been elected to contest the Atwima-Nwabiagya seat on the ticket of the ruling NPP.
Mr Owusu-Bio, who was highly elated when he spoke to the Daily Graphic on phone soon after his elections, expressed appreciation to the delegates for the confidence reposed in him and promised not to disappoint them.
“I am going to work hard to win the seat once again to maintain NPP’s dominance,” he said, adding that the National Democratic Congress and other parties would not be able to pose any threat to his ambition to win the seat again.
Mr Owusu-Bio said now that the contest was over, it was necessary for the entire membership of the party to unite in order to defeat their opponents, both in the Presidential and parliamentary elections.
The MP stressed the need for NPP supporters to avoid complacency and work harder than ever before to educate the people on what the government had been able to do in the face of difficulties over the past seven years.
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE incumbent New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Atwima-Nwabiagya, Mr Benito Owusu-Bio, has once again secured the mandate of the party to contest its parliamentary seat during the December polls.
He beat his rival, Mr James Adusei-Sarkodie, a former MP for the area, by 112 votes to two at the constituency’s delegates congress held at Abuakwa in the Ashanti Region last Monday.
This was the second time that the MP had been elected to contest the Atwima-Nwabiagya seat on the ticket of the ruling NPP.
Mr Owusu-Bio, who was highly elated when he spoke to the Daily Graphic on phone soon after his elections, expressed appreciation to the delegates for the confidence reposed in him and promised not to disappoint them.
“I am going to work hard to win the seat once again to maintain NPP’s dominance,” he said, adding that the National Democratic Congress and other parties would not be able to pose any threat to his ambition to win the seat again.
Mr Owusu-Bio said now that the contest was over, it was necessary for the entire membership of the party to unite in order to defeat their opponents, both in the Presidential and parliamentary elections.
The MP stressed the need for NPP supporters to avoid complacency and work harder than ever before to educate the people on what the government had been able to do in the face of difficulties over the past seven years.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Lands Bill to go before Parliament
Page 55, May 12, 2008
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah, Koforidua
THE Lands Commission Bill aimed at integrating the operations of all public service land institutions under one umbrella is ready to be placed before Parliament for consideration.
The bill seeks to establish a new Lands Commission that will serve as a one-stop-shop for all land matters in order to secure effective and holistic land administration.
The Legal Specialist of the Lands Administration Project (LAP), Mr Kwame Gyan, who announced this in Koforidua, said barring any hitch, the Bill would receive Cabinet approval this week to enable it to go to Parliament for passage.
He was speaking at a four-day workshop organised to sensitise members of the Parliamentary Press Corps in Koforidua to enable them to adequately report on the Bill when it is finally placed before the House.
The bill proposes the establishment of a Lands Commission under which the Survey Department, the Lands Commission Secretariat, the Lands Valuation Board and the Lands Title Registry would be placed as divisions.
He said LAP was in the process of awarding a contract for an organisation management and operation studies to be conducted to ascertain the number and calibre of staff that the new Lands Commission would require when it was established.
“Staff of the various public land sector agencies, which will be dissolved after the bill has been passed, will not gain automatic entry into the new organisation,” he stressed, and gave assurance that adequate measures had been taken to compensate those who would become casualties of the exercise.
He stated that the present regime of land administration posed a serious threat to the achievement of socio-economic targets set by the country and gave the assurance that the Bill would become a time-tested law that would enhance the country’s land administration.
The LAP Co-ordinator, Dr W. Odame Larbi, said the project, which began in 2004, was scheduled to end by the end of the year.
He said, however, that an appeal had been made to the World Bank and other donor partners for a two-year extension to enable the LAP to complete its work.
Dr Larbi said apart from the Lands Commission Bill, LAP had also been charged with coming out with a National Lands Bill, that would bring together all laws on lands to curb the current confusion in the system.
He explained that if the extension was not granted, then the Lands Bill would suffer, since efforts were now being made to collate views through fora across the country for the drafting of that bill.
Dr Larbi announced that an office complex would soon be constructed in Accra to serve as the headquarters of the Lands Commission while another one would be constructed in Kumasi to provide office accommodation for the staff of the organisation.
Giving the overview of the project, the Planning Officer of LAP, Mr Issahaq Mohammed Jalaludeen, stated that the objective of LAP was to lay the foundation for the establishment of self-sustaining land administration system that was fair, efficient, cost-effective and which guaranteed security of tenure.
He said its long-term aim was to reduce poverty and enhance social and economic growth through the improvement of security of tenure, simplifying processes of land acquisition, fostering prudent land management practices, developing the land market and establishing an efficient and sustainable system of land administration.
Mr Jalaludeen added that the drafting committee of the new land bill had been formed.
He said through the assistance of the project, five new land courts, which were being constructed in Accra, would start operating in October to clear the backlog of land cases in the country.
In addition, an inventory of state acquired lands had been completed in some regions, while seven land registries had been established in seven regions to facilitate easy titling of lands.
The Communication Specialist of LAP, Mrs Ama Kudom-Agyeman, called on the participants to use the knowledge acquired to educate people about the bill.
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah, Koforidua
THE Lands Commission Bill aimed at integrating the operations of all public service land institutions under one umbrella is ready to be placed before Parliament for consideration.
The bill seeks to establish a new Lands Commission that will serve as a one-stop-shop for all land matters in order to secure effective and holistic land administration.
The Legal Specialist of the Lands Administration Project (LAP), Mr Kwame Gyan, who announced this in Koforidua, said barring any hitch, the Bill would receive Cabinet approval this week to enable it to go to Parliament for passage.
He was speaking at a four-day workshop organised to sensitise members of the Parliamentary Press Corps in Koforidua to enable them to adequately report on the Bill when it is finally placed before the House.
The bill proposes the establishment of a Lands Commission under which the Survey Department, the Lands Commission Secretariat, the Lands Valuation Board and the Lands Title Registry would be placed as divisions.
He said LAP was in the process of awarding a contract for an organisation management and operation studies to be conducted to ascertain the number and calibre of staff that the new Lands Commission would require when it was established.
“Staff of the various public land sector agencies, which will be dissolved after the bill has been passed, will not gain automatic entry into the new organisation,” he stressed, and gave assurance that adequate measures had been taken to compensate those who would become casualties of the exercise.
He stated that the present regime of land administration posed a serious threat to the achievement of socio-economic targets set by the country and gave the assurance that the Bill would become a time-tested law that would enhance the country’s land administration.
The LAP Co-ordinator, Dr W. Odame Larbi, said the project, which began in 2004, was scheduled to end by the end of the year.
He said, however, that an appeal had been made to the World Bank and other donor partners for a two-year extension to enable the LAP to complete its work.
Dr Larbi said apart from the Lands Commission Bill, LAP had also been charged with coming out with a National Lands Bill, that would bring together all laws on lands to curb the current confusion in the system.
He explained that if the extension was not granted, then the Lands Bill would suffer, since efforts were now being made to collate views through fora across the country for the drafting of that bill.
Dr Larbi announced that an office complex would soon be constructed in Accra to serve as the headquarters of the Lands Commission while another one would be constructed in Kumasi to provide office accommodation for the staff of the organisation.
Giving the overview of the project, the Planning Officer of LAP, Mr Issahaq Mohammed Jalaludeen, stated that the objective of LAP was to lay the foundation for the establishment of self-sustaining land administration system that was fair, efficient, cost-effective and which guaranteed security of tenure.
He said its long-term aim was to reduce poverty and enhance social and economic growth through the improvement of security of tenure, simplifying processes of land acquisition, fostering prudent land management practices, developing the land market and establishing an efficient and sustainable system of land administration.
Mr Jalaludeen added that the drafting committee of the new land bill had been formed.
He said through the assistance of the project, five new land courts, which were being constructed in Accra, would start operating in October to clear the backlog of land cases in the country.
In addition, an inventory of state acquired lands had been completed in some regions, while seven land registries had been established in seven regions to facilitate easy titling of lands.
The Communication Specialist of LAP, Mrs Ama Kudom-Agyeman, called on the participants to use the knowledge acquired to educate people about the bill.
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