Kufuor shows up in court in GIA trial

Former President John Agyekum Kufuor Former President John Agyekum Kufuor was in court on Wednesday to hear charges against key appointees under his administration. The officials, Dr Richard Anane, a former Road and Transport Minister, Mr Kwadwo Mpiani, a former Chief of Staff, and Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, a former Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, are standing trial over the liquidation of the defunct national carrier, Ghana Airways and the incorporation of Ghana International Airlines (GIA). The fourth accused person, Sammy Crabbe, a former Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), represents the minority shareholders of GIA. This is the first major trial of former government officials who served under the Kufuor administration. Mr Kufuor, clad in a blue-black suit, and several other former officials and sympathizers of the NPP, stormed the Accra Fast Track High Court in solidarity with the four accused persons. Dr Akoto Osei was charged with seven counts, including wilfully causing financial loss to the state, Dr Richard Anane faces three counts, Mr Crabbe faces four counts, whilst Mr Mpiani faces one count. The four were granted GH¢300,000 bail to reappear on the 26th and 27th of April. Three of the accused former officials, Dr Osei, Mr Mpiani and Dr Anane, failed to show up in court on Tuesday when the case was first called because they had not been charged. Although Mr Crabbe was in court, the case was adjourned to today for the other persons facing trial to appear. Meanwhile the judge sitting on the case, Justice Bright Mensah, has warned the lawyers of the accused persons to desist from speaking to the press. He warned he would not take kindly to any act that prejudices the court’s verdict. Subsequently, the lawyers for Dr Anane and the other officials did not speak to the press. However, Mr Kwame Boateng, lawyer for Mr Crabbe, who is said to have withdrawn $1.7 million from government’s account without approval, told Joy News on Tuesday his client is innocent. Story by Fiifi Koomson/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

Carl Wilson Busted In Multiple Car Thefts

Who Will save Ghana from corruption?

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Alex Segbefia's boy, Carl Wilson, has been busted in the web of car stealing.

The lies he told on Asempa Fm yesterday were exposed when National Security operatives at about 4:00 pm arrested a 4×4 Chrysler Pacifica Wagon he illegally sold to one of his cronies.

The Chrysler with identification number 2A8GF78X37F365174 got missing from the Tema port under very obscure circumstances. It was realized that forged documents were used to clear the car from the port on 14TH August, 2009.

Very verifiable documents also available to the Daily Post indicate that the Chairman of the Confiscated Vehicles Allocation Committee (CVAC) unilaterally declared four genuine 4×4 cars as stolen and sold them for a pittance.

The vehicles in contention are GMC Yukon, Acura MDX Wagon and two Chryslers.

Though the importers of the said vehicles have provided Certificate of Titles to show that the cars were not stolen, Carl Wilson will not budge as he hurriedly fast-tracked processes to sell those cars under allocation.

On the part of the Acura MDX Wagon, a Certificate of Title numbered X0633223, a copy obtained from the United States Department declares it as a vehicle which has properly passed through the purchase and export processes from the State of Kansas.

It was signed by Joan Wagnon, Secretary of Revenue and Carmen Alldritt, Director of Vehicles.

Under mysterious circumstances, the Acura got missing from the Golden Jubilee Terminal.

Investigations have established that Carl Wilson sold the car to one Kofi Adjei. The car was cleared by shipping agent, Stewise Shipping.

The Chryslers which came from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania with vehicle identification number 2A8GM8L77RL28513 were signed by Allen D. Biehler, Secretary of Transportation.

The GMC Yukon with title and identification number 1GKEK63U65J139234 came from the State of New York and its Certificate of Title was authenticated by Moore Gregory, on behalf of the sellers.

Central Intelligence Agency and State Department files corroborated Bill of Laden details, stating they are accurate.

According to the United States security agencies, the cars in contention are not stolen ones.

Interestingly, Carl Wilson did not even await the outcome of investigations by the Ghanaian security agencies to prove that the vehicles were stolen.

He hurriedly allocated them to some of his friends and sold them at very ridiculously low prices.

In our next edition, check out how Carl Wilson forged documents and forced CEPS officers to clear the cars.

Additionally, a top man at the Castle aided in this dubious act.

Stay tuned

Source: Daily Post

NDC supporters lock out national officers, call for Carl Wilson's head

Angry supporters of the ruling National Democratic Congress have locked out national officers at the national headquarters of the party. They say the Chairman of Confiscated Vehicle Allocation Committee Carl Wilson must be sacked by National Executive of the party. According to them, Mr Wilson has been engaging in corrupt practices that seek to tarnish the image of the party. The youth, numbering over 200, invaded the party headquarters at 5am Thursday, and say they will stay there until Mr Wilson is sacked. Carl Wilson has been accused of unilaterally selling confiscated vehicles under questionable circumstances. More soon.

Corruption: Segbefia Defends Carl Wilson

Alex Segbefia THE DEPUTY Chief of Staff, Alex Segbefia, has mapped out a strong defence for Carl Wilson, stressing that the chairman of the Confiscated Vehicles Committee is innocent of all the allegations leveled against him. Putting up a defence for his darling boy in an interview with Oman FM, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) stalwart said Mr. Wilson has not been found guilty of any of the allegations made against him by his opponents. Mr. Segbefia contended that various committees set up by the government to investigate Mr. Wilson over allegations of selling confiscated cars have all cleared him of any wrongdoing. But interestingly the public has not been fed this wholesome information all this while, though the allegations the so-called committees investigated were made in public. Mr. Segbefia noted that because Carl Wilson is doing a marvelous work at the Castle, opponents of the government are bent on pulling him down with unfounded allegations. He indicated that Mr. Wilson would have lost his position by now if he had been found culpable of any of the many allegations leveled against him in recent times. Dismissing rumours that Mr. Wilson was his in-law, the Deputy Chief of Staff pointed out; “The government will not shield Mr. Wilson for any reason or whatsoever”. Mr. Wilson has in recent times made news headlines following his alleged active involvement in the selling of confiscated vehicles at cheaper prices to functionaries of the ruling party and sometimes outright stealing. The chairman of the Confiscated Vehicles Committee is in the news again as he has been fingered in a case where stolen goods from the United Kingdom (UK) were allegedly carted away. Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, MP for Manhyia has tasked the government to investigate the chairman for allegedly taking away 18 confiscated motorbikes from the Tema Harbour believed to have been stolen from London. According to the Manhyia MP, security detail at the Tema Port impounded the said motorbikes which were shipped into the country sometime in April last year, and that Mr. Wilson recently allegedly disposed of the motorbikes in question. Commenting on the issue, though Mr. Segbefia said he was not privy to the issue, he was quick to conclude that the allegation was one of the many unfounded ones made in the past to tarnish Mr. Wilson’s image. He dared Hon. Opoku Prempeh, affectionately called Napo, to furnish Interpol and other relevant bodies with concrete evidence if indeed his allegation has any basis. Reacting to Mr. Segbefia’s comments, Napo said he has concrete facts to support his allegation but was waiting for the Minister of the Interior to officially respond to the issue in Parliament before taking that step. He noted that he decided to first of all file to ask the Minister that question five weeks ago because he wanted to give the minister an opportunity to tell the nation what he knows about the issue. “I am prepared to come out with full details of the facts of the matter and also proceed to deal with the relevant bodies after the Minister has officially responded to my question”, Napo emphasized. Carl Wilson has been accused severally of allegedly stealing confiscated cars and selling them on the open market with assistance from some deviant garage operators in the nation’s capital. From Daily Guide/Morgan Owusu, Kumasi

¢28 Billion Vanish From Offshore Account

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A whopping $2,000,000.00 (Two Million United States Dollars), secured by President John Agyekum Kufuor and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, with a Sovereign Guarantee, to rehabilitate some Ghanaian embassies, appears to have vanished without trace.

The amount was part of a $5Million loan, whose term sheet, states “shall be utilized exclusively for the renovation of selected Ghanaian Chanceries for Ghana’s 50th Independence Anniversary Celebrations.”

A statement of account on the Ministry of Finance & Economic Planning (MOFEP) bank Account number 0232002034552 with Stanbic Bank, opened for the transaction did not show a release of the $2,000,000.00 to the Government of Ghana.

The term sheet, dated December 7, 2006 addressed to the Kufuor administration through its Minister of Finance, indicates that ‘US$2,000,000.00 of the loan shall be booked with Standard Finance (Isle of Man) Limited,’ an offshore account.

Dr. Anthony Akoto Osei, who was a Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, signed as accepting the terms of the $5,000,000.00 loan on behalf of the Government of Ghana.

On December 11, 2006 US$3,000,000.00 (Three Million Dollars) was released to the MOFEP Account at Stanbic Bank. This amount was repaid on April 20, 2007.

On 14th May 2007, the MOFEP account with Stanbic Bank was again debited with US$3,800,000.00, described as Loan Granted to MOFEP.

The release of this $3.8Million after the repayment of the earlier amount of $3.0Million, all within the term period of the loan made the transaction appear like a revolving loan, with a ceiling of $3.8Million.

Subsequent transactions on the statement following the release of the $3.8Million reveal the various interest charges as well as repayments made to Stanbic Bank.

The $2.0Million was never released to the Government of Ghana, and it was not clear into whose account the amount was paid in the offshore bank.

The $5Million was part of a $17Million Commercial Loan Agreement approved by Parliament on 29th November, 2006. The other $12Million of the loan was to be used for UN Peace Keeping Operations.

The Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MOFEP) subsequently requested for a disbursement of the approved loan and issued a Sovereign Guarantee to secure the entire $17Million facility.

The Sovereign Guarantee, dated 7th December, 2006 to Stanbic Bank Ghana Limited, was signed by Dr. Akoto Osei.

By a term sheet dated December 7, 2006 Stanbic Bank Ghana Ltd granted the term loan of US$5,000,000.00 (Five million United States Dollars) to the Government of Ghana.

The $5 Million and interest on it was to be repaid in full within 36 months from the date of drawdown, and had October 26, 2009 as the Final Repayment date.

As of October 31, 2009 days after all outstanding amounts on the loan account should have been cleared, however, an amount of $883,332.00 was still owed to Stanbic Bank.

Mr. Akoto Ampaw, lawyer for the Chief Executive of the Ghana@50 Secretariat, had written to the Commission of Inquiry (Ghana@50) on December 8, 2009 denying his client’s knowledge of any transaction with Stanbic Bank.

In the said letter, which was titled: RE: CONTINUING INVESTIGATIONS OF THE COMMISSION OUTSIDE THE PUBLIC DOMAIN, and published by the New Crusading Guide of December 9, Mr. Ampaw complained that the Commission had written to Dr. Wereko-Brobby, ‘requesting for information in respect of a loan transaction between the Government of Ghana and Stanbic Bank Limited’ and that ‘he knows absolutely nothing about the transaction referred to in your letter.‘

According to Akoto Ampaw, ‘Neither the Ghana @ 50 Secretariat nor the National Planning Commission entered into any loan agreement with Stanbic Bank, either directly or through the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.’

Sipa Yankey to appear before CHRAJ today

Dr Sipa Yankey, former Health Minister Former Health Minister Dr George Sipa Yankey is expected to appear before the public hearings of the Commission on Human Rights and Administration Justice (CHRAJ) into the Mabey and Johnson bribery case, which begins today. Dr Sipa Yankey resigned after a UK court implicated him and other public officials as having received monies from UK construction firm Mabey and Johnson. He has maintained his innocence and at today’s initial hearing he is expected to put up his defence. The public hearings form part of the final phase of the commission’s investigations into the case. CHRAJ Commissioner Emile Short said a three-member panel will sit to hear Dr Yankey’s response. “In some cases that we investigate, it gets to a stage where it becomes necessary to take evidence; that is, witnesses are called to testify on both sides, that is from the commission and from the person that we are investigating…It is that stage that we have got to,” Mr Short told Joy News. “At the end of all the evidence, then we write a decision.” Other officials who were also named in the controversy include former Roads Minister Ato Quarshie, Alhaji Amadu Seidu and Boniface Abubakar Saddique. They have all denied the allegations of bribery against them. Your super station Joy 99.7 FM will bring listeners a live broadcast of the hearings. Source: Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

CJA Pushes For Prosecution Of Gh¢166m Embezzlers

GHANA WILL NEVER DEVELOP SO FAR AS THESE MEN CONTINUE TO WALK FREE

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The Committee for Joint Action (CJA) has called on government to immediately prosecute all public officials cited for embezzling about GH¢166.1 million in the 2008 Auditor General’s report.

According to the committee, it will be detrimental for government to ignore the call for accountability on the part of public officials, who have engaged themselves in financial malfeasance and blatant thievery, as has been officially captured by the report.

“Government must, as a matter of urgency, prosecute these crooked officials,” a leading member, Mr. Edward Bawah, charged, insisting that “punitive actions ought to be taken against the offending officials in order to deter others from engaging in similar practice.”

Mr. Bawah, who was speaking at a press conference in Accra, warned that, the CJA will not relent on its call for corrupt officials named in the report to face the law.

He regretted that despite numerous exposures made by the CJA in the past, government, especially the Kufuor-led administration, made no effort at instilling accountability in government agencies by prosecuting offenders. Giving details of the report, Mr. Bawah mentioned that over 20 government agencies, including some ministries were involved in cash irregularities which amounted to GH¢166.1 million, representing 177.4% over that of 2007.

He stated that the cash irregularities accounted for 92.8% of the total financial irregularities mainly due to four factors, which are imprest holders refusing to account for imprests, lack of supervisory controls over revenue collection; failure of officers to obtain supporting documents for funds disbursed, and the ineffectiveness of Internal Audit Units within the Ministries.

Procurement and stores irregularities cost the nation GH¢ 898,350 in 2008, indicating an increase of 24% over that of 2007. Payroll overpayments amounted to GH¢ 762,886, while contract irregularities amounted to GH¢3.4 million.

Stating some specific findings, Mr. Bawah mentioned that the VAT Service acquired the Bannet building, near Busy Internet, Accra, for GH¢874,154. He stated that interestingly, the building was rehabilitated at a cost of GH¢ 2,387,216 although it was leased for only 11 years with no possibility of extension.

He added that three Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs), which reneged on their scheduled payment plan to the tune of GH¢ 2,768,908.00 were not asked for guarantees and have not paid their debts.

MINISTRY OF TRADE

On Ministry of Trade, Mr. Bawah quoted from the report that “contrary to regulation of the Financial Administration Regulation, the Ministry opened and operated an account at the Accra High Street Branch of Barclays Bank in October 2005.”

“An amount of GH¢2 billion was transferred into it from the ministry’s main account which earned an interest of GH¢7.8 million, and the GH¢ 2 billion withdrawn,” he said, adding that the GH¢2 billion was not accounted for, neither was the GH¢7.8 million,” he asserted.

Still on the Ministry of Trade, the report captured that two private enterprises in the garment industry that were given grants totaling GHc288,000 to undertake capacity building abandoned the projects . “No attempt has been made to recover the monies,” he said, pointing out that a draft agreement commissioned at a cost of GHc 4,650 were never utilized. A building in Kumasi that was renovated by the ministry in 2006 at a cost of GHc11,492 was still standing unused in 2008 because additional funds were not made available for completion of the project.

Also, a strategic plan prepared at a cost of GHc45,696 in 2006 has been left to gather dust, he added.

He stated that the ministry made payments amounting to GH¢ 273,310 for repairs and maintenance without certification.

MINISTRY OF INTERIOR

Under the Ministry of Interior, cash irregularities amounted to GH¢286,241 and US$13,485.

These were in respect of misappropriation of proceeds of tender documents; disbursements from revenue collected and unauthorized use of internally generated fund.

MINISTRY OF HARBOURS AND RAILWAYS

Here, management misapplied an amount of GH¢600,000 out of GH¢2,150,000 voted for the payment of end of service benefits for 674 retrenched Railway workers. “It is worth noting that during this period, workers of the Railway company had not been paid for years,” he said, hinting that it may have accounted for the non-payment of salaries.

MINISTRY DEFENCE

Mr. Bawah stated that in the Support Services Brigade, cash irregularities totaling GH¢473,61) for repairs was unsatisfactory completed and had no certification.

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

An amount of 76,761 euros which was transferred to the Copenhagen Mission on 2nd August 2006, could not be traced to the Mission’s accounts.

MINISTRY OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC PLANNING

The Audit report captured that, total release from Non-Road Accounts in violation of procedures for accessing funds from the consolidated amounted to GH¢3,066,742.

Also, the ministry failed to collect taxes amounting to GH¢2,590,922 at the Abeka Lapaz DTO alone. CEPS The CJA concluded that post clearance short collections amounted to GH¢13,655,166.

Source: Enquirer

THE UK & CORRUPTION IN GHANA: CRAIG MURRAY SPEAKS

British High Commissioner Nick Westcott is not afraid to step in to controversy. Having boldly told us that Vodafone did nothing wrong in their acquisition of Ghana Telecom, he now lectures Ghana that incoming governments must respect contracts entered into by the outgoing government.

Of course, that is true. As a general point, it is a simple statement of the legal position.

But we all know that Dr Westcott did not mean it as a general point. He meant that investigations into contracts including Kosmos and Vodafone must be stopped. Otherwise, he warned, investor confidence would be damaged – a warning that foreigners would take their dollars elsewhere.

But what is the logic of this position? No government may question any contract entered into by a predecessor, no matter how corruptly? That if you are a dreadfully corrupt foreign businessman, who has bribed a minister, you only have to hang on until the government changes, and then you cannot be investigated? Plainly this is a nonsense.

The fact is that, as detailed in a series of articles in the Financial Times of London, there are a whole number of questions about the Kosmos deal which give experienced observers great cause for concern.

One which particularly worries me is how, on the best oilfield in Ghana, Kosmos were able to get a royalty rate of only 5%, when the average on other fields is over 11%. There are suggestions that partners from EO were active on the Ghanaian government side of the negotiation.

There are also credible stories of Kosmos handing EO millions of dollars in cash notes for “marketing and publicity”.

Is Ghana forbidden from investigation because the government has changed? No, and they must not be bullied out of it by the British, Americans, IMF or World Bank. Those will always back wealthy Western companies against a developing African nation.

The Vodafone deal suffered – at the very least – from a lack of transparency and a lack of a level playing field for others – including France Telecom – who wished to compete. The final sales price was definitely too cheap.

I would like to know how Ghana Airways’ invaluable routes were awarded to GIA - a bunch of obscure and inexperienced investors who came only fourth in the official assessment of bids. The result has been the almost total disappearance of Ghana’s whole aviation industry.

I would like to know how industrial development funds were given to a network of companies the ultimate ownership of which traced back to the Minister of Industry.

The British High Commissioner has the problem entirely backwards. It is not that the government is not honouring existing contracts. I am Chairman of several companies, including Atholl Energy. Atholl had a contract with the NPP government which has been honoured by the NDC government, because we carry our our work diligently and honestly.

The problem is that where contracts are not honest, action has not been fast enough or decisive enough to root out corruption.

Two of the worst examples are in the energy sector. Let us look at the case of another British company, Zakhem International Ltd. They are building the Kpone Power Project for VRA. VRA bought the turbines from the manufacturer, Alsthom for US $70 million. They then paid Zakhem US $80 million upfront to install them and provide the ancillary equipment.

After three years, what do Ghanaian taxpayers have to show for their US $150 million? Absolutely nothing. An empty field at Kpone, surrounded by Ghana’s longest concrete wall so the Ghanaian public cannot see that their money has been stolen.

What is happening about it? Nothing, because Zakhem and their Ghanaian partners have stolen enough money to bribe all the officials involved. They are now claiming around town that the new government is also “In their pocket”.

Most of the $80 million has vanished forever, while the $70 million turbines are now badly damaged by disuse.

Or look at Balkan Energy. They claimed to have spent US $100 million on refurbishing the Osagyefo barge, at a time when they had really spent less than US10 million.

Under an astonishingly corrupt contract, Balkan are to lease the barge for $10 million per year, from the government of Ghana, but then charge Ghana over $40 million per year for its use as a “Capacity charge”. They will in addition charge the government of Ghana for the fuel, and make a profit on that too.

It is as if I rented your car from you for 100 Ghana cedis a month, then rented it back to you for 500 Ghana cedis a month plus charging you a premium on all the petrol you use.

Balkan stand to make a total of about $1.5 billion dollars in profit from the people of Ghana from this terrible deal. It is the most corrupt contract I have ever seen. It is astonishing that a country like Ghana would enter into a contract with Balkan, whose owner, Gene E Phillips, has stood trial as a gangster in the United States.

These are not crimes without a victim. Everyone who pays any VAT or other tax in Ghana is putting money into the pockets of these disgraceful conmen. Most of the taxpayers of Ghana are very poor, and the money is being taken by people who are very rich.

That is why I am speaking out. I am not supporting any political party. I am supporting the ordinary people of Ghana.

I first spoke out about corruption in Ghana back in 1999, when I was Deputy High Commissioner there. It caused a sensation in the Ghanaian media at the time. But people do not know that I was nearly sacked by the British government as a result.

The British government did not object at all to my attacking corruption in Ghana. The reason I was nearly sacked was because I said “Sadly some British companies have been involved in this corruption”. I was carpeted by the British government and told I must never mention British companies’ corruption.

At the time I was thinking of the British company International Generics Ltd and their involvement in scams over the La Palm and Coco Palm hotels.

The hypocrisy of the British government in defending corrupt British companies was most famously seen when Tony Blair ordered an end to a prosecution of the arms company BAE over massive bribes they had paid in Saudi Arabia. Blair declared that prosecuting BAE was not “In the national interest”.

Last week BAE again escaped criminal prosecution and were allowed to pay a fine instead, for corruption in Africa including Tanzania.

So Nick Westcott is only continuing a British hypocritical tradition of condemning corruption, unless it is British corruption.

The truth is that sadly there was a major increase in corruption in Ghana especially in 2007 and 2008. That was a major reason why the Ghanaian people voted to change their government. But so far there is little indication that the new government has done much to root out the corruption.

The danger in this is that ordinary people will become disillusioned with the political process.

Ghanaians are not stupid. People know who stole money, and they see them swanning around town in their fancy cars, unashamedly living the highlife. This can corrupt society. Young people can easily draw the conclusion that the way to make money is to be a corrupt politician or a drugs dealer.

The further danger is that, just like in Nigeria, they conclude that all the politicians of all the parties are into the corruption, and that is why everyone gets away with it.

I did not used to think that was true in Ghana, but I really am beginning to wonder, unless we see some effective action soon.

So rather than protecting the corrupt, the British High Commissioner should be offering help and assistance actively to attack corruption. That includes corruption by British companies.

He should also remember that, with oil revenues within touching distance, Ghana will soon have her own investment funds and no longer be so dependent on foreign investors. It is not for the colonial master to kick Ghana. The boot will soon be on the other foot.

By Craig Murray

Craig Murray was formerly a deputy High Commissioner for Britain in Ghana

This article is taken from his blog: http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/

Parliament to probe Balkan and Zakhem contracts

Moses Asaga The Parliamentary Select Committee on Energy will soon commence investigations into allegations of financial impropriety against the Volta River Authority over contracts it signed with Balkan and Zakhem. A British diplomat, Craig Murray blew the whistle over what he referred to as a rip-off by Balkan Energy PLC as a result of an “unintelligent contract” signed by an “extremely stupid” Ghanaian official. Balkan, a US company, was contracted in 2007 by the Kufuor-led administration to operate the Osagyefo Barge which was expected to produce about 185 watts of electricity. Following the allegations by Murray, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Energy, Moses Asaga said he has always been suspicious of the Balkan agreement even when his party was in opposition. He told Joy News, the project manager of the Balkan company was very “rude” to him and the media when they visited the facility. Asaga was then the ranking member on Energy. He said the behavior of the project manager struck a cord of suspicion, adding, the issues raised by Murray were quite valid. On Zakhem, Mr Asaga intimated that the US company has been paid money for doing virtually nothing. He confirmed that officials of the VRA will be hauled before the committee to answer questions on the status of the two projects But the former Deputy Energy Minister in the erstwhile NPP government, KT Hammond, says the government must not be quick in drawing conclusions. Even though he does not remember the full details of the two contracts, he believes due process was followed in awarding them. Story by Nathan Gadugah/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

Feature: Do we have to die for NDC and NPP?

NPP and NDC are fooling Ghanaians, our economy and the lives of our future leaders? Lord Aikins Adusei ( politicalthinker1@yahoo.com) Finally the NPP's Dr. Kofi Asare has been declared winner of the Akwatia Parliamentary election, but does someone have to die? Do we have to fight, destroy lives and property in order to vote for a candidate. Why should the entire residents of Akwatia have to suffer curfew because of NDC and NPP? Why should Salifu Maikankan has to die for NPP and why should Danny Ofori Atta has to die for NDC? It still beats my imagination that someone will die for politicians who have kept them poor, uneducated and unskilled and who do nothing to help them. You may be mad about NDC or NPP and will go heaven and earth to defend them but do you think these parties care about the plights of Ghanaians? NDC ruled Ghana for 8 years and NPP has also done the same but did any of them help to make Ghana a developed country? Did any of them solve the unemployment problem in Ghana? How about electricity, education and health? Look at the poor nature of roads in Ghana. Do we deserve that? Can Ghanaians recall anything extraordinary that the NDC did before it was replaced by the NPP in 2000? Or anything remarkable that the NPP did before it was replaced by the NDC in 2008? And since taking office 7 months ago has the NDC done anything tangible to alleviate the suffering of Ghanaians? Any person who has been to Europe, Asia or America can say for sure that both major parties have not done much for Ghanaians. Look at the state of Ghana's manufacturing sector. What do we produce? Close to nothing. What do we do with the cocoa that we produce? Don't we export the raw beans for peanuts? How about the gold and the diamond and the many minerals we mine? Aren't they exported to Switzerland and Dubai before Ghanaians go there to buy the wedding rings and bracelets to sell to us? Computers, cars, mobile phones, fridges are made in Europe, Japan and the US and they are affordable there but Ghanaians cannot buy common chocolate even though the vital raw material which is cocoa is produced here. And the same is true about gold and diamond. We cannot buy products made from them even though they are mined right here. Look around yourself and see if any of the goods you see are made in Ghana. I mean the mobile phones, computers, televisions, cars and all the flashy things that Ghanaians are crazing for. It is sad to note that almost all the raw materials needed to build these phones, cars, plasma TVs, camcoders, satellite dishes are obtained from Ghana and other African countries. Has the NDC or the NPP helped us to build any of these things? No. The reason why we are unable to convert these rich natural resources into finish goods to benefit ourselves is the poor manner in which the NPP and NDC have managed our country. Don't forget it is government that must take the initiative, provide the necessary environment and policy direction and resources for a strong manufacturing sector to take root. Look at the policies of both major parties and see if they can even put Ghana on the level of Korea, Taiwan or Hong Kong in the next 20 years. Ghanaian business men and women are frequenting Dubai and China importing every good you can think of. Investigate to find out how the Chinese and the Koreans did it and whether any of the parties can help Ghana do the same. Didn't the NPP throw the NDC Vision 2020 Document that was supposed to make Ghana a middle income country into a dust bin? And do you think the NDC is going to implement Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy II (GPRS II) prepared by the NPP? This is the politics that has brought us no development but unemployment, poverty, hunger, misery and hopelessness and divisions. So do they care, I mean NPP and NDC? Look at the state of Ghana's infrastructure: energy, roads, harbours, telecommunication, health, education, rail system, market and airport. What are the records of the two major parties on infrastructure? Have they been able to add anything to what Dr. Nkrumah built? Haven't they even neglected the few that Nkrumah built to decay? If you think I am not making any point just look at the state of our railway sector. Most of the tracks have been left to rot to the extent that there are no train services in many parts of the country which once relied on that vital important means of transport. For decades that sector received no investments and no modernisation to the extent that it now takes about 10 hours to travel by train from Kumasi to Accra, a mere 200km. Compare that with a train service in Japan where it takes one hour to cover more than 270km. Despite having the advantage of being cost effective, cheap, reliable and business friendly 11 years of PNDC rule plus 8 years of NDC and another 8 years of NPP did not help the rail sector and our country except turning former poor soldiers and politicians into billionaires at the expense of our nation. After 52 years of independence and more than 27 years of (P)NDC and NPP rule our trains still run on engines that are 50 years old. NDC and NPP have neglected Ghana's infrastructure needs for years, yet we have forgotten that no nation can develop without investing in infrastructure and technology. That is why Democratic Republic of Congo has every mineral you can think of yet it is one of the poorest in the world. That is why Malaysia, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong have developed and that is why President Obama is talking about building US infrastructures because they are the engines that run the economy. You cannot export if you do not have harbours and airports to support it. You cannot attract tourists if you do not have airport, hotels, well developed roads and other infrastructures that support it. You cannot move goods from centres of production to centres of consumption if you do not have roads, rail lines and inland water infrastructures to deliver it. You cannot supply the industries with doctors, architects, bankers, lawyers, planners, engineers, teachers, nurses if you do not have the educational infrastructure to deliver it. And you cannot run an efficient and vibrant economy if you do not have the energy and telecommunication infrastructures in place. Look at the state of Akosombo dam. Ghana is shut off anytime it refuses to rain yet we have had parties and their political leaders who have promised us so much yet have delivered so little. Ghana has been experiencing serious disruptions in the energy sector for years and no political party has seen any wisdom to solve it. As a result factories are folding up and are laying off workers and we are waiting for nature to help fill Akosombo Dam before we rectify the problem. Will this do nothing approach to problem solving help our nation? What are we doing with the abundance of sunshine in the country? We have not taken advantage of it, have we? We have sunshine 365 days and we have not tap into solar energy which is cheap and more reliable than hydro. In a situation that mimic problem facing the entire African region, the Finnish president on a visit to Nigeria in March 2009 asked, “Nigerian people have so much sun and wind, why don’t they use it for the generation of light for cooking and every other thing”? She queried, and added that “we do it in Finland for our renewable energy”. Source: www.dailytrust.com, 12 March 2009. The sad story is that Finland and most of the nations in Europe are locked up for most of the year by cold winter but take advantage of the short summer to convert the little sunshine they receive into solar energy while here in Ghana we have sunshine most of the year but do nothing with it. Dwindling rainfall has limited the ability of Akosombo dam to produce the needed energy to support the economy. It is another indication of the useless institutions that we have and lip service paid by the various political parties and their leaders to Ghana's development. Look at the state of the agricultural sector. How many of our farmers have their own tractors and farming equipments to produce beyond the level of subsistence? Virtually all the important equipments needed to make the agric sector viable and productive have to be imported and how many of our farmers have their own resources to buy even the basic machinery to expand their farms? Today after 52 years of independence our farmers still depend on nature for water for their economic activities despite the availability of irrigation technology and what has the NDC and NPP done so far to help them? Aren't they still using cutlasses and hoes to plant and harvest their crops, technology our forefathers used before they were colonised? Aren't they still relying on nature to plant their crops in this 21st Century? Aren't we still importing rice from India and China after 52 years of self governance? We cannot even feed ourselves after 16 years of NDC and NPP rule. Where are the food sufficiency policies of the two major parties then? What are the many directors at the ministry of Agriculture who enjoy fat salaries and bonuses doing? Although we are in the 21st Century yet our farming practices indicate that we have still not moved beyond the 19th century. Fishermen are always faced with the constant shortage of premix fuel despite the pledge by both parties to help them. This is the more reason why we continue to hunger even though rich soils abound in Ghana. We under utilise our land for lack of political commitment. It is common to hear Ghanaians say that 'Malaysians got their palm fruit seed from Ghana'. Well Malaysians use the oil they get from the palm fruit as fuel for a number of engines including cars, something they accomplished through research and we what do we use the oil for? It is sad to say that Malaysia got independence about the same time as Ghana but they have made great strides economically, while we have been marking time curtesy NDC and NPP. While the rest of the world is moving forward scientifically and technologically we are still marking time because of corruption, poor leadership, poor governance, bogus agricultural and economic policies, politicisation of every national issue, tribalism, ethnicity and military incursions into our social, economic and political life. If Agriculture which provides us with about 35% of our GDP is bad, then can our educational sector upon which the development of the nation rest be any better? Aren't the NDC and NPP toying and playing politics with our secondary school system. The SSS (now SHS) was a three year programme when it first started. When the NPP replaced the NDC in 2001 they changed it to four years and now the NDC is considering reversing it to three years. Who are they fooling? Is it not Ghanaians, our economy and the lives of our future leaders? Is the entire educational system anything to be proud of? Just look at the world ranking of Universities and see where the first university falls. Of the about 9,760 Accredited universities in the World, Ghana's prominent universities including University of Ghana and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology only managed to place 5,702 and 6,703 positions respectively in the World University Ranking. Even in Africa, our own backyard they only managed to secure 43rd and 63rd positions respectively. (Source: topuniversities.com/2008) Can we afford to develop the nation with ill-prepared graduates not to mention the millions of illiterates and semi-literates who roam around the cities and countryside? Dr. Ave Kludze, the top Ghanaian born NASA Scientist in a rebuke of our leaders and our education system said in an interview with the CNN "no empire has ever achieved greatness without technology and the earlier the leaders realise this the better". He later told BBC that, "But where African schools have a problem, is that they focus heavily on theory, whereas [universities in the west] focus on the practical - solving real world problems.” Source:bbc.co.uk, Thursady, 12 February 2009. It is abundantly clear that our education system is not producing the architects, engineers, planners, bankers, lawyers, doctors, teachers, social workers, nurses and the scientists that we need in the 21st Century. That is why every major architectural and engineering activity in Ghana is undertaken by foreigners and foreign companies especially from USA, Japan, China, India and the European Union. The Universities lack well trained lecturers. They lack modern facilities such as state of the art libraries, laboratory simulation facilities, studios, computers, and books. They lack them because we cannot build them; we cannot build them because the curricula have not prepared our students to build them. As a result we have to import the equipments and books from countries that have done their home work well and have invested heavily in education notably in science and technology. In many of our universities, Polytechnics and secondary schools lecturers/teachers are still teaching students the same way the 19th century academic institutions taught forgetting that we are in the 21st century. The same notes given a final year student four years ago are still being given to first year students with no addition or subtraction. Lecturers cannot write books for students because they do not have the resources to carry out research that form the basis of any academic material. Whereas students in advanced countries get their hands on books immediately they are released those in Ghana have to wait 4 years or even more to get the same books. What is more the academic facilities including libraries are in a state too appalling to describe. Not a single of our universities can boast of a million volumes of books in their libraries. Even the few text books that they have are so old that information contained in them are useless. Very few books have been published by Ghanaians. Due to this most students have to rely on the notes that lecturers give them. This is state of our universities and the little I say about our Polytechnics and secondary schools the better. The streets of Accra, Kumasi and other major cities in the country are swarmed with children selling ice water, bread, chewing gums and anything that can be hawked. Children head potters are visible every where in Kumasi, Accra, Tema and Koforidua, a clear manifestation of the misery and hopelessness that the NDC and NPP have brought to Ghanaians. These are the children who are supposed to be in the classroom and be trained as future leaders but have to abandon the classroom and scavenge for food because the NPP and NDC do not care about them. When they drive in their expensive tax-payers' Land Cruisers do the NPP and NDC MPs, ministers, Vice Presidents, the Presidents and their advisors see the children who live, sell, and are taught by the street in Accra, Kumasi, Tema, Takoradi and Koforidua? Do you know why NDC and NPP keep toying with Ghana's education? Because they want to keep the people in darkness like poorly cooked rice, so no one will rise up to challenge their corrupt and useless administrations. Ask your President or his vice or their ministers where their children are schooling now and you will understand why they don't give a damn about SHS, Poly or University education. Their children are schooling in expensive universities in Europe and North America. And as to how they pay for those expensive fees your guess will be as good as mine. When their children finish their education overseas they stay there and work. They only return to Ghana when there are big contracts where they would make millions of dollars for staying away and doing nothing for the nation, and what do the poor Ghanaians who could not travel to study outside and had to pass through God knows what get? Nothing - no contract, no retirement packages, just poverty. Our research institutions have achieved very little because they are underfunded and the researchers do not have the expertise and the facilities to carry out any meaningful research. A case in point is Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG) located at New Tafo in the Eastern Region. Despite decades of its existence we still export raw cocoa beans for peanuts. No value has been added to the cocoa. CRIG has not been able to come up with other ways in which to use the beans to benefit Ghanaians despite the mounting evidence that the beans have several potential uses. Have you visited Korle Bu or Komfo Anokye or any of our hospitals lately? Didn't you see patients lying on the floor even though they are sick and are suppose to be receiving care? If Korle Bu and Komfo Anokye hospitals are crying for resources then you can imagine the situation at Donkokrom. And where is the NDC and NPP that you want to die for or support so blindly? Where in Ghana are mosquitoes not widespread? Are we not still dying from mosquito bites and other minor and preventable diseases? Despite NDC and NPP pledges, our hospitals are without the basic essentials needed to run a hospital not to mention the advanced technologies that save millions of lives in Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Europe, Japan and America. And NDC and NPP what are they doing? According to peacefmonline "888 out of every 100,000 pregnant women in Ghana who visit the hospital, end up dying. Another expert, whose statistics were even more frightening said, out of every 1,000 pregnant women about 451 die". Source: peacefmonline.com, Thursday, 23 July 2009. How about the state of the housing infrastructure? A visit to any village or town gives the same picture of poor housing and poor quality of public service. People are living in mud/thatched houses with bamboo/raffia leafs as roofing sheet with no electricity, potable water and clinics. They live in a subsistence environment without social security, health insurance and are condemned to poverty, desperation and hopelessness. Those living in urban areas are without jobs, without mortgage, and face high utility bills with poor public services. They face constant barrage of water and energy disruptions everyday. In every region the situation is not different. Go to Nima, Agbogloshie, New Town, James Town, Sodom & Gomorrah and see the kind of living conditions and environment in which fellow Ghanaians are living in this 21st Century. People are living in squalid conditions not even fit for animals yet we have NDC and NPP always promising to build us castles, swimming pools and what have you. Majority of the people in Teshie and Nungua have no access to toilet facilities and have to use the coast as places of convenience and even in those places where there are few toilet facilities you could hardly stand the stench. Please you can verify this by going to where Dutch Hotel is situated at Nungua and witness how people troop to the coast in the morning to attend nature's call. On the other hand our MPs, ministers, vice president, the president, their cronies and families live in total luxury with mansions, sport utility vehicles, bodyguards, fat salaries, fat bonuses, house servants and they have all the resources of the state at their disposal. When they leave office they propose special emolument packages for themselves yet they claim to be serving the poor. How can it be? I can continue all day but it is a fact that both the NDC and NPP are a bunch of hungry politicians with no concrete economic and social agenda to move Ghana beyond the level of importing used computers, used cars, used televisions, used underwear and any used thing you can think of. What are all these telling you about Ghana, the NPP, and the NDC? Do we have any option not to vote for them? Why should Ghanaians continue to die and suffer for such people who only think about their stomach? These leaders and their parties always play on the ignorance of the people promising them heaven but failing to even provide them earth. Until we have leaders who have vision like Dr. Nkrumah and are committed to industrialise Ghana beyond agro raw material production and export, Ghana will continue to be classified as a developing and poor country and even though we will continue to vote we will continue to wallow in abject poverty as we have always done. I want to urge every Ghanaian to seek education and knowledge which I believe will help us to question our leaders and demand accountability from them. I also want to challenge the various TV and radio stations to devote money and resources to embark on documentaries on what it really means to live in poverty in Ghana under the NPP and NDC, documentaries and programmes that will show Ghanaians the living conditions of the people in rural areas and expose the lies of the NDC and NPP. And to the parasitic NDC and NPP I say 52 years is enough for us to see real development in the country. Source: www.myjoyonline.com