Thursday, December 13, 2012
CHRAJ REPORT ON ELECTION 2012
Daily Graphic
Story: Caroline Boateng
The Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) has rated the December 7, 2012 Election as "free, fair and reflecting the will of the electorate."
It said although there were some irregularities and challenges during the polls, they were not significant enough to affect the outcome of the results.
The verdict of CHRAJ, captured in it's preliminary report on its observation and monitoring of the elections, is in tandem with other observation reports from the Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) and the ECOWAS observer group, since the release of the results on Sunday, December 9, 2012.
The eight page preliminary report of CHRAJ, signed by the Commissioner of CHRAJ, Ms Lauretta Vivian Lamptey, gives a brief on the the monitoring activities of the National Human Rights Commission, prior to and during the two day polling period.
Principally, the Commission, set out to monitor the right of Ghanaians to vote.
Significantly, the CHRAJ noted challenges in the enjoyment of the right as a result of the failure of verification machines in many parts of the country.
"The situation was more serious in Greater Accra, Northern and Upper East regions, where the Commission's observers directly encountered eleven of such polling stations," the report stared.
It said the challenges with the verification equipment, leading to the suspension of voting at certain polling station, created anxiety and frustration among voters.
Additionally, it resulted in the devising of unscientific methods, like the buying of coca cola to wash the hands, to enable the verification equipment capture the fingerprints, observed by CHRAJ at the Inti-Suariya Primary School polling station.
The report added that "at the Kanvilli R/C Polling Centre in Tamale, a hot coal pot was provided for voters to dry their hands after washing with soap and water before their fingers could be captured. Most of those affected by the problems of verification were elderly women, some young women who had dyed their hands and fingers with a local herb called 'lenle' were also affected."
CHRAJ also pointed out other challenges that tended to undermine the right to vote. The late arrival of polling materials at some stations, partisan broadcasts by some media houses, incumbency abuse and influences by some opposition parties, the flouting by chiefs of the constitutional injunction not to engage in active partisan political activity, and the flouting of the Code of Conduct of Public Servants by public servants who were seen openly campaigning for votes, as well as the use of children in political campaigning, were some of the observations that CHRAJ said impinged on Ghanaians right to vote.
The commission, deployed 335 monitors and observers and monitored about 2000 polling stations, including stations in some prisons.
caroline.boateng@graphic.com.gh
Submitted: December 13, 2012
Friday, February 10, 2012
OSAM'S INUAGURAL
The Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Legon, Prof E. Kweku Osam, says Ghanaians must decide whether it is more prudent to satisfy their basic needs or follow some “high flowing development agenda,” most often set by influential economic structures of the North.
“The one laptop per child is good, but what if the child is hungry?” was his rhetoric question in his inaugural lecture titled “Of cocoa, cassava and chocolate: the dilemma of an African Linguist.”
While not condemning the “one laptop per child policy,” Prof Osam wanted to know how useful that laptop would be to a hungry, deprived and destitute child. He recounted how as a child, some boiled cassava, sprinkled only with salt, could satisfy a famished person and put a soul at ease for some time.
He was of the view that the policy would be better served in an environment where the fundamentals were right, that is, where the child had his or her basic needs satisfied.
The lecture was a first by all standards and that was attested to by the Vice Chancellor, Prof Ernest Aryeetey in his remarks.
It was the first interactive inaugural lecture that witnessed, Prof Kweku Osam, using interesting slide presentations and involving the audience in an exposition of the linguistic structure of the Akan language.
What was more intriguing was his ingenious inferences from the study of a local language to show policy weaknesses in the country’s development policies.
He mentioned that from the early 1960s to date for instance, the standard set in the study of language and the dominant linguistic theory was that of Chomsky.
In those days, he said, it was fashionable to base research work on local languages on these dominant frames.
The result of that was that the study of local languages suffered.
They were not amenable to the dominant frames proposed by Chomsky, and research work in local languages criticised as being too descriptive and not backed by the dominant theories.
Breaking from the mold, Prof Osam shared some of his research work which showed the use of an alternative paradigm, the Functional-Typological Syntax (FTS), which is a more utilitarian and practical approach to explain meaningfully some phenomenon of the Akan language.
In an example, he mentioned how work done had resulted in a systematic way of adjective sequencing in the language.
Prof Osam was of the view that the utilitarian approach to the study of language brought direct benefits to people.
It was contrary to modes of language study that served the needs of global empires, which made no impact on students studying their own language.
He proposed the learning and studying of Ghana’s local language in practical ways to bring benefit directly to the users.
He asked parents not to think it chic to speak English with their children, as children would pick up the wrong language in the streets if parents did not start with them in the use of the right language.
Such a situation, he added, would lead to what he called, linguistically engendered generation, that is children who neither spoke English right nor their local language.
He also asked the government to “keep the Bureau of Ghana Languages alive.”
The inaugural lecture was also a first in that it was used by Prof Osam to institute a scholarship in the name of his mother, Rachael Aggrey, who was murdered 20 years ago by assailants who inflicted cutlass wounds on her. The assailants were never found.
In an emotive tone, Prof Osam pledged, GH¢5000 for the Rachael Aggrey Memorial Prize for the best female student graduating in the Bachelor of Arts programme.
He expressed the intention to increase the seed money to GH¢30,000 in the next three years.
Prof Aryeetey in his remarks commended highly the lecture.
He said as an economist he was inclined to the utilitarian value in things, and endorsed the call for the practical study of language to benefit people.
He also endorsed the view of using language as a country to build peace and develop.
He appealed to all to be tolerant of each other’s language and also endeavour to learn each other’s for a peaceful future.
“The one laptop per child is good, but what if the child is hungry?” was his rhetoric question in his inaugural lecture titled “Of cocoa, cassava and chocolate: the dilemma of an African Linguist.”
While not condemning the “one laptop per child policy,” Prof Osam wanted to know how useful that laptop would be to a hungry, deprived and destitute child. He recounted how as a child, some boiled cassava, sprinkled only with salt, could satisfy a famished person and put a soul at ease for some time.
He was of the view that the policy would be better served in an environment where the fundamentals were right, that is, where the child had his or her basic needs satisfied.
The lecture was a first by all standards and that was attested to by the Vice Chancellor, Prof Ernest Aryeetey in his remarks.
It was the first interactive inaugural lecture that witnessed, Prof Kweku Osam, using interesting slide presentations and involving the audience in an exposition of the linguistic structure of the Akan language.
What was more intriguing was his ingenious inferences from the study of a local language to show policy weaknesses in the country’s development policies.
He mentioned that from the early 1960s to date for instance, the standard set in the study of language and the dominant linguistic theory was that of Chomsky.
In those days, he said, it was fashionable to base research work on local languages on these dominant frames.
The result of that was that the study of local languages suffered.
They were not amenable to the dominant frames proposed by Chomsky, and research work in local languages criticised as being too descriptive and not backed by the dominant theories.
Breaking from the mold, Prof Osam shared some of his research work which showed the use of an alternative paradigm, the Functional-Typological Syntax (FTS), which is a more utilitarian and practical approach to explain meaningfully some phenomenon of the Akan language.
In an example, he mentioned how work done had resulted in a systematic way of adjective sequencing in the language.
Prof Osam was of the view that the utilitarian approach to the study of language brought direct benefits to people.
It was contrary to modes of language study that served the needs of global empires, which made no impact on students studying their own language.
He proposed the learning and studying of Ghana’s local language in practical ways to bring benefit directly to the users.
He asked parents not to think it chic to speak English with their children, as children would pick up the wrong language in the streets if parents did not start with them in the use of the right language.
Such a situation, he added, would lead to what he called, linguistically engendered generation, that is children who neither spoke English right nor their local language.
He also asked the government to “keep the Bureau of Ghana Languages alive.”
The inaugural lecture was also a first in that it was used by Prof Osam to institute a scholarship in the name of his mother, Rachael Aggrey, who was murdered 20 years ago by assailants who inflicted cutlass wounds on her. The assailants were never found.
In an emotive tone, Prof Osam pledged, GH¢5000 for the Rachael Aggrey Memorial Prize for the best female student graduating in the Bachelor of Arts programme.
He expressed the intention to increase the seed money to GH¢30,000 in the next three years.
Prof Aryeetey in his remarks commended highly the lecture.
He said as an economist he was inclined to the utilitarian value in things, and endorsed the call for the practical study of language to benefit people.
He also endorsed the view of using language as a country to build peace and develop.
He appealed to all to be tolerant of each other’s language and also endeavour to learn each other’s for a peaceful future.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
BRITISH COUNCIL LAUNCHES 'THE CHALLENGE'
The second season of “The Challenge,” a British Council Education initiative promoting the UK as a destination for personal development was launched in Accra today with the choice of 12 contestants who would vie for prizes in scholarship and other personal development programmes worth more than £100,000.
“The Challenge” is a reality educational television programme where contestants who are young university graduates are taken through a combination of aptitude and mental tests, demonstrations of academic excellence, leadership competencies as well as character and creativity exercises.
A selection is then made to select the best three who will win prizes that include postgraduate studies at prestigious universities in the UK, and opportunities for employment in organisations in the UK and Ghana.
For the second season of the reality show, three thousand applications were received and out of the number one thousand young university graduates underwent aptitude tests, interviews and group debates for the selection of 24 semi-finalists.
The 12 finalists selected from the 24 comprised of seven females and five males and they will be adjudged by a 3-member scholarship committee, called “The Board” made up of renowned business leaders.
The 12 finalists are Akosua Gyan, Anastacia Arko, Araba Abakah-Turkson, Sandra Barimah, Samia Dane-Selby, Maliha Abubakari, Dorinda Quarshie, Joseph Opuku, Micheal Quaye, Emmanual Sackey, Enock Quaye and William Offei.
The Board, based on set criteria will nominate three contestants to be evicted over a twelve week period and five top contestants will contest in a grand finale to determine the winner of the grand prize of a full board postgraduate scholarship from the University of Westminster with a total value of £40,000, fully paid accommodation at an international students’ hostel, a monthly allowance and a return air ticket to the UK valid for a year as well as a new laptop computer.
On completion of the post-graduate course, the ultimate winner will return to Ghana to pick up a pre-arranged lucrative job placement and a car.
The two runner ups will receive a one-year post graduate scholarships and accommodation from London Metropolitan and Thames Valley Universities while a third runner up will revive scholarships from PMC to study for post-graduate ICT related programme administered jointly by IPC and the Greenwich University.
The Challenge will begin airing on GTV from March 1, 2009 and will be a weekly reality programme where the progress of the contestants will be tracked on life TV as they contest in several tasks.
At the launch, several eminent personalities commended the British Council, its partners and sponsors of the show, including the Westminster, London Metropolitan and Thames Valley universities of London, TiGO, Stratcom Africa, United Bank of Africa Ghana Limited (UBA), IPMC and several others.
The new minister for Youth and Sports, Alhaji Muntaka Mubarak, highly commended the link that The Challenge sought to make between education and employment and asked other corporate organisations to follow the example and by that help government’s efforts at youth employment, while the British High Commissioner, Mr Nicholas Wescot, encouraged the finalists to endeavour to become the best even as a team of contestants.
“The best of the best are often those who work best with others,” he told them.
The Director of British Council, Mr Moses Anibaba, said The Challenge had won the British Council’s most innovative and creative programme award, while it had been aired on DSTV.
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2009, PG 24
“The Challenge” is a reality educational television programme where contestants who are young university graduates are taken through a combination of aptitude and mental tests, demonstrations of academic excellence, leadership competencies as well as character and creativity exercises.
A selection is then made to select the best three who will win prizes that include postgraduate studies at prestigious universities in the UK, and opportunities for employment in organisations in the UK and Ghana.
For the second season of the reality show, three thousand applications were received and out of the number one thousand young university graduates underwent aptitude tests, interviews and group debates for the selection of 24 semi-finalists.
The 12 finalists selected from the 24 comprised of seven females and five males and they will be adjudged by a 3-member scholarship committee, called “The Board” made up of renowned business leaders.
The 12 finalists are Akosua Gyan, Anastacia Arko, Araba Abakah-Turkson, Sandra Barimah, Samia Dane-Selby, Maliha Abubakari, Dorinda Quarshie, Joseph Opuku, Micheal Quaye, Emmanual Sackey, Enock Quaye and William Offei.
The Board, based on set criteria will nominate three contestants to be evicted over a twelve week period and five top contestants will contest in a grand finale to determine the winner of the grand prize of a full board postgraduate scholarship from the University of Westminster with a total value of £40,000, fully paid accommodation at an international students’ hostel, a monthly allowance and a return air ticket to the UK valid for a year as well as a new laptop computer.
On completion of the post-graduate course, the ultimate winner will return to Ghana to pick up a pre-arranged lucrative job placement and a car.
The two runner ups will receive a one-year post graduate scholarships and accommodation from London Metropolitan and Thames Valley Universities while a third runner up will revive scholarships from PMC to study for post-graduate ICT related programme administered jointly by IPC and the Greenwich University.
The Challenge will begin airing on GTV from March 1, 2009 and will be a weekly reality programme where the progress of the contestants will be tracked on life TV as they contest in several tasks.
At the launch, several eminent personalities commended the British Council, its partners and sponsors of the show, including the Westminster, London Metropolitan and Thames Valley universities of London, TiGO, Stratcom Africa, United Bank of Africa Ghana Limited (UBA), IPMC and several others.
The new minister for Youth and Sports, Alhaji Muntaka Mubarak, highly commended the link that The Challenge sought to make between education and employment and asked other corporate organisations to follow the example and by that help government’s efforts at youth employment, while the British High Commissioner, Mr Nicholas Wescot, encouraged the finalists to endeavour to become the best even as a team of contestants.
“The best of the best are often those who work best with others,” he told them.
The Director of British Council, Mr Moses Anibaba, said The Challenge had won the British Council’s most innovative and creative programme award, while it had been aired on DSTV.
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2009, PG 24
GROUPS EXPRESS DISPLEASURE WITH VETTING PROCESS
Some pressure groups have expressed their displeasure over the vetting process of some ministerial nominees.
They said they were particularly displeased with the way the nominee for the Ministry of Interior, Mr Muhammed Mumuni, was vetted and, therefore, asked the Appointments Committee of Parliament to further investigate him and other nominees, before coming out with its report.
The Coalition for Democratic Forces prior to the vetting, released a press statement that raised concerns about the eligibility of Mr Mumuni for the position of Minister of Interior because of some alleged arbitrary decisions he took while temporarily in charge of the Ministry of Interior allegations. They cited the extension of the Bawku curfew for instance.
Another organisation, the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) also held a press conference to raise concerns about the Mr Mumuni, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Ms Hannah Tetteh and Ms Sherri Ayitey, nominees for the Interior, Communication, Trade and Industry as well as Science and Environment ministries respectively.
Mr Kwabena Bonfe of the AFAG as well as Ms Frances Assiam and Mr Micheal Wadea of the Coalition for Democratic Forces, in separate interviews were also displeased with the arbitrary conduct of the Chairman of the Appointments Committee of Parliament, Mr Doe Ajaho for disallowing the admission of an Auditor Generals report on Mr Mumuni during his tenure at the ______.
For Mr Bonfe, if the AG’s report, which was a statutory body, was inadmissible, then the same argument had to be made for all other reports submitted by groups like his to the committee.
He said the Auditor General‘s report was also a of more clout than a report emanating from any Commission of enquiry. In addition the AG was in fulfilment of its mandate always instituting enquiries into government business; its report could therefore not be disregarded by the Chairman of the Committee.
Ms Assima and Mr Wadie also expressed similar sentiments.
They however gave thumps up to nominees like Mr Mike Hammah, Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu, Ms Sena Dansua and several others who they said had performed creditably before the Appointments committee.
Meanwhile, another pressure group, the Coalition fot he Protection of Individual Liberties and Constitutional Rights (COPCOR), is contemplating a defamation suit against the AFAG and the Coalition for what they call impugning the character of some nomines.
The Secretary, Mr Abraham Ferguson, said although they were not against any concerns of the two organisations, they had an issue with the way and manner in which the two had resorted to the media rather than raising those concerns only before the Appointments Committee.
He said COPCOR had also had some concerns about some nominees and had submitted to the Committe those concerns but had not raised them in the public through the media.
In response, however, Mr Bonfe has asked them to proceed as a legal right as AFAG was only engaged in letting the public know the real issues on the eligibility of the nominees.
He said if they would be taken to the courts then the appointments committer should also be taken to teh courts as they were holding the vetting in public and raising those allegations in public.
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2009, PG 17
They said they were particularly displeased with the way the nominee for the Ministry of Interior, Mr Muhammed Mumuni, was vetted and, therefore, asked the Appointments Committee of Parliament to further investigate him and other nominees, before coming out with its report.
The Coalition for Democratic Forces prior to the vetting, released a press statement that raised concerns about the eligibility of Mr Mumuni for the position of Minister of Interior because of some alleged arbitrary decisions he took while temporarily in charge of the Ministry of Interior allegations. They cited the extension of the Bawku curfew for instance.
Another organisation, the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) also held a press conference to raise concerns about the Mr Mumuni, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Ms Hannah Tetteh and Ms Sherri Ayitey, nominees for the Interior, Communication, Trade and Industry as well as Science and Environment ministries respectively.
Mr Kwabena Bonfe of the AFAG as well as Ms Frances Assiam and Mr Micheal Wadea of the Coalition for Democratic Forces, in separate interviews were also displeased with the arbitrary conduct of the Chairman of the Appointments Committee of Parliament, Mr Doe Ajaho for disallowing the admission of an Auditor Generals report on Mr Mumuni during his tenure at the ______.
For Mr Bonfe, if the AG’s report, which was a statutory body, was inadmissible, then the same argument had to be made for all other reports submitted by groups like his to the committee.
He said the Auditor General‘s report was also a of more clout than a report emanating from any Commission of enquiry. In addition the AG was in fulfilment of its mandate always instituting enquiries into government business; its report could therefore not be disregarded by the Chairman of the Committee.
Ms Assima and Mr Wadie also expressed similar sentiments.
They however gave thumps up to nominees like Mr Mike Hammah, Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu, Ms Sena Dansua and several others who they said had performed creditably before the Appointments committee.
Meanwhile, another pressure group, the Coalition fot he Protection of Individual Liberties and Constitutional Rights (COPCOR), is contemplating a defamation suit against the AFAG and the Coalition for what they call impugning the character of some nomines.
The Secretary, Mr Abraham Ferguson, said although they were not against any concerns of the two organisations, they had an issue with the way and manner in which the two had resorted to the media rather than raising those concerns only before the Appointments Committee.
He said COPCOR had also had some concerns about some nominees and had submitted to the Committe those concerns but had not raised them in the public through the media.
In response, however, Mr Bonfe has asked them to proceed as a legal right as AFAG was only engaged in letting the public know the real issues on the eligibility of the nominees.
He said if they would be taken to the courts then the appointments committer should also be taken to teh courts as they were holding the vetting in public and raising those allegations in public.
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2009, PG 17
AQUA VITENS HAS BEEN BENEFICAIL-SAKYI-ADDO
Officials of Aqua Vitens Rand Limited say that calls for the abrogation of a management contract between itself and the government are not defensible since the company has shown success in three years of its operations in the country.
The General Manager Communications, Mr Sakyi-Addo, said such calls were sometimes due to a misconception of the management contract under which AVRL operated and a deliberate refusal by some to acknowledge the gains made by the company so far.
In an interview, Mr Sakyi-Addo, as well as the Communications Manager, Mr Stanley Martey, said AVRL, in three years of its operations in the country had posted increasing profits each year.
In 2005, when the company signed a management contract to operate water systems and ensure the efficient and effective production and distribution of water, billing and revenue collection on behalf of the state owned Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), AVRL recorded a profit of GHC1.9 million.
This increased to GHC13.4 million in 2007 and GHC20 million in 2008, making it a 121 percentage increase in operating surplus over the past two years.
“We’ve got figures that speak for themselves,” Mr Sakyi Addo stated.
The two however emphasised the fact that the profits made were given back to GWCL to invest in capital investments in the water sector, such as, the expansion of treatment plants and the laying of new pipes.
They said in three years of operations in the country, the company had successful delivered on all its key mandates.
For instance, apart from the surpluses posted, the company had been able to efficiently improve on its production and distribution of water.
Operational figures on non-revenue water, that is, water produced and distributed but not paid for had improved by about 49.6 per cent over the years.
They explained that in most instances non-revenue as not water that had gone waste but was used up by people.
However, illegal connections, the siphoning of water by some, among others, accounted for most non-revenue water, something AVRL was working at to redress.
Other successes, they mentioned, were the efficient use of power and chemicals that had ensured quality water and net operational surpluses for investment by GWCL.
On claims that the AVRL had imported used water meters from Holland, Messrs Sakyi-Addo and Martey, said the meters were free donations by subsidiaries of the company to Ghana.
They also refuted claims that calibrating the meters for Ghana’s specific needs might rather make customers pay more for water consumed.
“All new meters are calibrated to ensure that customers pay the right amount for the right volumes of water,” they said.
DAILY GRAPHIC, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2009, PG 44
The General Manager Communications, Mr Sakyi-Addo, said such calls were sometimes due to a misconception of the management contract under which AVRL operated and a deliberate refusal by some to acknowledge the gains made by the company so far.
In an interview, Mr Sakyi-Addo, as well as the Communications Manager, Mr Stanley Martey, said AVRL, in three years of its operations in the country had posted increasing profits each year.
In 2005, when the company signed a management contract to operate water systems and ensure the efficient and effective production and distribution of water, billing and revenue collection on behalf of the state owned Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), AVRL recorded a profit of GHC1.9 million.
This increased to GHC13.4 million in 2007 and GHC20 million in 2008, making it a 121 percentage increase in operating surplus over the past two years.
“We’ve got figures that speak for themselves,” Mr Sakyi Addo stated.
The two however emphasised the fact that the profits made were given back to GWCL to invest in capital investments in the water sector, such as, the expansion of treatment plants and the laying of new pipes.
They said in three years of operations in the country, the company had successful delivered on all its key mandates.
For instance, apart from the surpluses posted, the company had been able to efficiently improve on its production and distribution of water.
Operational figures on non-revenue water, that is, water produced and distributed but not paid for had improved by about 49.6 per cent over the years.
They explained that in most instances non-revenue as not water that had gone waste but was used up by people.
However, illegal connections, the siphoning of water by some, among others, accounted for most non-revenue water, something AVRL was working at to redress.
Other successes, they mentioned, were the efficient use of power and chemicals that had ensured quality water and net operational surpluses for investment by GWCL.
On claims that the AVRL had imported used water meters from Holland, Messrs Sakyi-Addo and Martey, said the meters were free donations by subsidiaries of the company to Ghana.
They also refuted claims that calibrating the meters for Ghana’s specific needs might rather make customers pay more for water consumed.
“All new meters are calibrated to ensure that customers pay the right amount for the right volumes of water,” they said.
DAILY GRAPHIC, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2009, PG 44
SERVICE PERSONS NOT PAID FOR JANUARY
Some National Service Personnel have appealed to the government and the National Service Secretariat to pay allowances due them for the month of January.
They said their allowances were to be paid by January 26, this year, however, they did not receive anything in their accounts and that had put them in difficult circumstances as they have no money for their food and to pay their rent at their various service posts.
They said they had also had no communication from the Secretariat as to the reasons for the delays in the payment of their allowances.
While the service personnel suggested that the directive by the President for all payments to be suspended might be due to the delays in their allowances, some also contended that payment of service allowances were statutory and was not affected by the President’s directive.
Others close to the National Service Secretariat said a legal judgement against the government to pay Rockshell International Limited an amount of more than GHC700, 000 had resulted in the use of the allowances of service personnel to offset part of the judgement debt.
However, officials of the Bank of Ghana, who did not want to be mentioned, said the suggestion was not plausible as the debt was paid out of a contingency operational account.
Officials at the National Service Secretariat, on the other had while confirming that due to some challenges allowances could not be paid at the end of last month, would not say what these challenges were.
They added however that the challenges had been overcome and cheques had been signed to be lodged at the various banks for payments.
DAILY GRAPHIC, WEDNESDAY, FEBRAURY 18, 2009, BACK PAGE
They said their allowances were to be paid by January 26, this year, however, they did not receive anything in their accounts and that had put them in difficult circumstances as they have no money for their food and to pay their rent at their various service posts.
They said they had also had no communication from the Secretariat as to the reasons for the delays in the payment of their allowances.
While the service personnel suggested that the directive by the President for all payments to be suspended might be due to the delays in their allowances, some also contended that payment of service allowances were statutory and was not affected by the President’s directive.
Others close to the National Service Secretariat said a legal judgement against the government to pay Rockshell International Limited an amount of more than GHC700, 000 had resulted in the use of the allowances of service personnel to offset part of the judgement debt.
However, officials of the Bank of Ghana, who did not want to be mentioned, said the suggestion was not plausible as the debt was paid out of a contingency operational account.
Officials at the National Service Secretariat, on the other had while confirming that due to some challenges allowances could not be paid at the end of last month, would not say what these challenges were.
They added however that the challenges had been overcome and cheques had been signed to be lodged at the various banks for payments.
DAILY GRAPHIC, WEDNESDAY, FEBRAURY 18, 2009, BACK PAGE
MPS UP IN ARMS, DECISION TO SLASH EX-GRATIA WRONG, THEY TELL PRESIDENT
Ex-Parliamentarians say they are considering all options, including legal against President J. E. A. Mills for varying their end of service benefits.
Mr Abraham Osei Aidoo, an ex-parliamentarian in an interview with the Daily Graphic said President J. E. A. Mills by revising the end of service benefits of Parliamentarians had engaged in an unconstitutional act.
He said the determination of the end of service benefits of particular parliamentarians and a particular president was constitutionally set within a period of time where the tenure of the two run together or was coterminous.
Thus, the salaries of parliamentarians who served from 2001 to 2004 and 2004 to 2008, by the constitution had to be determined by the President who served within the same period, that is, President Kufuor and the salaries of President Kufour also had to be determined by the parliamentarians of the same period.
He said constitutionally, President J.E. A. Mills had no right determining or revising any allowances or payments due ex-parliamentarians whose tenure was not coterminous with his.
MORE....
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2009, PG I
Mr Abraham Osei Aidoo, an ex-parliamentarian in an interview with the Daily Graphic said President J. E. A. Mills by revising the end of service benefits of Parliamentarians had engaged in an unconstitutional act.
He said the determination of the end of service benefits of particular parliamentarians and a particular president was constitutionally set within a period of time where the tenure of the two run together or was coterminous.
Thus, the salaries of parliamentarians who served from 2001 to 2004 and 2004 to 2008, by the constitution had to be determined by the President who served within the same period, that is, President Kufuor and the salaries of President Kufour also had to be determined by the parliamentarians of the same period.
He said constitutionally, President J.E. A. Mills had no right determining or revising any allowances or payments due ex-parliamentarians whose tenure was not coterminous with his.
MORE....
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2009, PG I
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