Seamen in Tema protest over poor working conditions

BENJAMIN GLOVER 

 

02 APRIL 2017

More than 300 sailors yesterday staged a protest at the Tema Fishing Harbour to demand better working conditions from operators and masters of industrial trawlers operating on Ghanaian seas.

The demonstrators claimed ship owners were employing seafarers at rates below the minimum wage for which reason they demanded better working conditions in the form of regular working hours as well as the payment of additional allowances according to the labour law.

The General Secretary of the local chapter of the National Union of Seaman, (NSU), Mr Isaac Impriam, in an interview after the protest, said for the past few years, the members of the association had been demanding signed conditions of service from the Ghana Industrial Trawlers Association, their employers, but their efforts had not yielded any results.

According to him, the existing pay structures did not provide for the payment of overtime, medical, public holidays, and night time allowances.

Petition

He said the union had already petitioned the Ministries of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development and Employment and Labour Relations through its national officers at the Ports, Seamen, Maritime and Dockers Union (PSMDU), and reiterated the need for the two ministries to ensure that their working conditions were improved.

“We want the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development to note that the Licence Owners has refused to sign the contract they, the license owners, submitted to the ministry for the acquisition of new licences or renewal of old licences per the ministerial directive of September 16, 2016,

“We want to notify the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations, through our National Union, that some of our employers told our members that if they were members of the union, then they, the employers, would not hire them. This is discriminatory and contravenes section 14 A of the Labour Act 2003, Act 651”, Mr Impriam said.

The sailors urged the government to take into account the harsh and unhealthy working conditions at sea and direct their employers to honour their obligations since they, the workers, also contributed to the national economy.

via: http://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/seamen-in-tema-protest-over-poor-working-conditions.html

The demonstrators claimed ship owners were employing seafarers at rates below the minimum wage for which reason they demanded better working conditions in the form of regular working hours as well as the payment of additional allowances according to the labour law

Disband political vigilantes to sustain democracy - Atik Mohammed

BENJAMIN GLOVER                      

29 MARCH 2017

The General Secretary of the People’s National Convention (PNC), Mr Atik Mohammed, has re-echoed the need for political parties in the country to disband all political vigilante groups to sustain Ghana’s democracy.

He noted that the continuous existence of such groups in the country was not healthy for the nation’s democracy.

In an interview with the Daily Graphic on the sidelines of a two-day post-election workshop organised by the Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) at the Aqua Safari Resort in Ada on Monday, Mr Mohammed said failure to disband such unauthorised vigilante groups could encourage other political parties to also set up such groups to defend their officers.

“PNC will not hesitate to also raise a vigilante group to provide security for its national officers if those of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) continue to operate in this country,” he stressed.

Groups

The governing NPP’s Invincible Forces and the Delta Force,  and  the NDC’s  Azorka Boys and the Bolga Bulldogs are the most popular political vigilante groups operating in the country in recent times and in the past.

Mr Mohammed  said the political parties were using these vigilante groups to do all kind of things and that phenomenon, if not checked and discarded from our body politic, could erode the gains made in Ghana’s democracy.

The PNC General Secretary said though there could be a correlation between unemployment and the recruitment of individuals into such groups, there was no justification for their existence.

Election review

Among the topics discussed at the workshop included the preparatory phase, the election-day phase and the post-election phase. The forum also examined the roles played by key stakeholders such as the Electoral Commission (EC), political parties, security agencies, the media and civil society organisations, with a view to identifying challenges as well as opportunities for future improvement in the conduct of elections in Ghana.

Participants in the workshop were drawn from key constitutional bodies, faith-based and civil society organisations.

Learning platform

At the programme, the co-Chairs of CODEO, Professor Miranda Greenstreet and Justice V.C.R.A.C. Crabbe, said the workshop would serve as the platform to take stock of valuable lessons from the conduct of the elections to help inform and improve the conduct of future elections.

The co-chairs indicated that various presentations and deliberations that were discussed at the workshop would be incorporated into CODEO’s final report on the 2016 election to serve as a source book on the 2016 election.

They said recommendation from the workshop would also inform advocacy for electoral reform to help improve the conduct of subsequent elections in the country.

Suggestions

The Director of Elections at the Electoral Commission, Mr Samuel Tetteh, said in spite of the numerous challenges that threatened the conduct of the 2016 polls, it turned out to be a very peaceful and successful election, commending the involvement of many stakeholders, including CODEO, for the roles they played.

While welcoming criticisms, he called on the participants to offer constructive suggestions devoid of partisan sentiments to help the EC to improve on its election management role.

via: http://www.graphic.com.gh/news/politics/disband-political-vigilantes-to-sustain-democracy-atik-mohammed.html

@glovben

Tema Shipyard and Drydock Company receives GH¢13.5m boost

BENJAMIN GLOVER                                                   

22 MARCH 2017

Mr Paul Asare Ansah (head of table) addressing members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Trade, Industry and Tourism

Tema Shipyard and Drydock Company Limited has received a major boost with the injection of GH¢13.5 million from the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) to enhance the effective operation of the company.

The money, which is refundable, will be used for the procurement of needed logistics for use at the facility.

Briefing Members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Trade, Industry and Tourism, the Director General of the GPHA, Mr Paul Asare Ansah, expressed the hope that the injection of capital would reposition the shipyard as a major player in Ghana’s drydock industry.

Bailout

The GPHA has been the backbone of the shipyard after it recently bailed out the facility from a Malaysian investment by paying $6,860,000 and an additional $500,000 to the Strategic Investment Advisors after negotiations between the governments of Malaysia and Ghana to abrogate the investment contract.

This allowed the transfer to Ghana of  60 per cent of the shipyard's equity previously held by a Malaysian company since 2011.

Mr Ansah said given the drydock’s  important role in the past, the management of GPHA believed that the company could reclaim its market position as the leading drydock hub in West Africa.

He explained that the new approach by the company was to revamp the ship building capacity as well as open up the facility to carry out fabrication works to make the company financially sound.

Integration

It would be recalled that workers of the drydock recently petitioned the government to fully implement a previous cabinet decision taken in June  2016 to fully transfer the operations of the shipyard to GPHA in a bid to revive it.

The petition, jointly signed by Messrs Christian Dogbee and Samuel Attram, Chairmen of the Professional and Managerial Staff Union (PMSU) and the Local Union respectively, said fast-tracking  the integration would bring enormous benefit to the country.

The workers revealed that since that announcement was made which saw GPHA coming on board last year, not less than 15 vessels had called at the facility to be worked on.

They, therefore, expressed the hope that the government would finalise the integration process of the facility to help solve some of the challenges facing the shipyard.

The Parliamentary Select Committee on Trade, Industry and Tourism, led by its Chairman, Mr Daniel Nii Kwartei Titus-Glover, was at the offices of the GPHA to familiarise itself with the operations of the ports.

Mr  Titus-Glover pledged the readiness of the committee to work with the management and offer them the needed support for them to realise their objectives.

 Members of the committee later toured the facility to have a first hand knowledge of its operations.

Writer’s email: benjamin.glover@graphic.com.gh

via: http://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/tema-shipyard-and-drydock-company-receives-gh-13-5m-boost.html

Another Suicide: Man found hanging at Ashaiman Jericho

BENJAMIN XORNAM GLOVER  

13 MARCH 2017

Aother Suicide: Man found hanging at Ashaiman Jericho

Another incident of suicide was recorded Monday morning at Jericho in the Ashaiman Municipality of the Greater Accra Region.

The man, yet to be identified and believed to be in his thirties, was found hanging on a neem tree at a site near at the Ashaiman irrigation development area.

He was in a pair of jeans trousers and had not shirt on.

Some residents in the area told Graphic Online they found the man hanging on the tree Monday morning.

The residents claimed the deceased is not a known person in the community and there was no suicide note to tell what the motive for the action was.

The Assembly man for the Nii Doku Electoral Area, Mr Yusif Gariba told journalists that he received a call around 6am from a member of the community watchdog committee that a young man believed in his thirties had allegedly committed suicide.

The incident has since been reported to the police.

There were three separate reported incidents of suicide last week at Achimota, New Tafo and on the University of Ghana, Legon campus.

Below are related suicide cases in the last one month

Driver commits suicide in Half-Assini

Legon student allegedly commits suicide

Police suspect foul play in Achimota suicide

JHS student commits suicide at Akyem Osiem

First year KNUST student commits suicide

via: http://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/another-suicide-man-found-hanging-at-ashaiman-jericho.html

Three more commit suicide. Scores call helpline for assistance

14 MARCH 2017

Three days after the Mental Health Authority (MHA) had set up a temporary helpline for those contemplating suicide,  three more persons have allegedly committed suicide.

The identities of the victims have been given as Belinda Gabla, a 14-year-old Primary Five pupil of Aggrey Primary School at Achimota, Accra,  Bright Worvi, 32, a resident of Ashaiman Lebanon, and another girl whose name was given only as Leticia, a resident of  Ekye Amanfrom in the Eastern Region.

The number brings to seven, persons who have committed suicide in less than two weeks in different parts of the country.

They were Jennifer Nyarko, a Level 400 student of the University of Ghana,  Adwoa Agyarka Anyimadu-Antwi,18, a first year Chemical Engineering student of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST); James Ayiem, a taxi driver at Half Assini in the Jomoro District, and another taxi driver whose body was found hanging on a tree at Achimota last Wednesday

As of last Saturday, the MHA had received 30 calls from people in different parts of the country and the number increased astronomically last Sunday.

Tragic 2016

On December 31, 2016, a few hours before the New Year, a 28-year-old man, identified as Kwasi Affum, allegedly ended his life.

The deceased was said to have committed suicide in his room at Akyem Hemang in the Fanteakwa District in the Eastern Region on New Year’s Eve in circumstances the family is yet to come to terms with.

In October, last year, after leaving a lengthy suicide note in Arabic that he was tired of living on this earth, a 62-year-old Lebanese man reportedly committed suicide by shooting himself. Ahmed Chaaban reportedly shot himself with a single barrel gun at his Taifa Baukina residence, near Kwabenya in Accra.

In the same month, a woman believed to be in her late 30s reportedly committed suicide by drinking a poisonous substance at Asuofia in the Ashanti Region.

Number of calls

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the authority, Dr Akwasi Osei, told the Daily Graphic that  the number of  calls  showed that “there is a real need out there and we are mapping out strategies to deal with it.”

He said some of those who called were counselled and given re-orientation  because they just needed a hearing ear, while others were directed to the nearest health facilities where there were psychiatric units or psychiatric nurses. Some, however,  needed follow-up visits.

Background

The authority established the temporary helpline as a short-term measure in response to the current spate of suicide cases the country was experiencing.

It is also in discussions with telecommunication companies for the establishment of permanent  toll-free numbers for the same purpose.

Dr Osei explained that those who committed suicide did so as a last resort and not because they wanted to die.

“Even though they are happy when their attempt fails, they are likely to do it again if they do not get the needed intervention,” he said.

He described the trend, particularly among students, as very worrisome and an indication that “we are not paying proper attention to mental health care in the country.”

Causes

Dr Osei said 95 per cent of attempted or completed suicide cases were as a result of  mental illness.

He explained that 80 per cent out of this 95 per cent was due to depression, while 15 per cent was the result of other mental illnesses, including bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, acute stress reaction, alcohol and drug abuse.

The other five per cent, he said, was due to  decisions  based on politics or religion, citing  suicide bombings as an example and  the decision of a person suffering from a chronic ailment such as cancer, HIV or diabetes, for instance,  to end it all.

via: http://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/three-more-commit-suicide-scores-call-helpline-for-assistance.html

Manye Foundation School Fan Club inaugurated

JUNIOR GRAPHIC  

01 MARCH 2017

Mr Benjamin Xornam Glover, a Senior Reporter of the GCGL swearing in the five-member executive of the Manye Foundation School Junior Graphic Fan Club

   

The Junior Graphic Fan Club of the Manye Foundation School at Tema Community 25 has been inaugurated. The club is to encourage reading among pupils in the school and help the members and the rest of the pupils to become enthusiastic readers.

Mr Benjamin Xornam Glover, a Senior Reporter of the Graphic Communications Group Limited, Tema Office, who inaugurated the club, swore in a five-member executive to steer its affairs.

The club has Mr Stephen Kofi Akadjah as its Patron. The President is Master Morritious Nartey Tetteh, Ms Clara Hiamabe, Vice President; Master Prince Arhin, Secretary; Master Isaac Mensah, Organiser, and Ms Bertha Agbovi, Treasurer.

Mr Glover said as future leaders, the members must develop the habit of reading since it is a good habit which needs to be purposefully developed.

The Proprietor of the Manye Foundation School, Mr Daniel W. Kabutey Nartey, said the school was founded in 2003 to serve the educational needs of children in the community whose parents were peasant farmers and artisans.

Mr Nartey said the introduction of the Junior Graphic Fan Club in the school would encourage reading and help students improve on their academic performance.

As part of the inauguration ceremony, a quiz contest was held among members of the fan club and prizes were awarded to the winners.

via: http://www.graphic.com.gh/juniors/junior-news/manye-foundation-school-fan-club-inaugurated.html

Work begins on $ 600 million gas terminal project at Tema

BENJAMIN GLOVER  

02 MARCH 2017

Mr Claudio Bartolotti, Vice-President of Micoperi, the offshore contractors, operating the excavator to mark the start of work

The management of Quantum Power Ghana Limited has cut the sod for the construction of a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal in Ghana to support power generation in the Kpone Power Enclave.

The $600 million project is expected to provide about 3.4 million tonnes of LNG per year, which is equivalent to 500 million standard cubic feet (mscf) of gas per day, through sub-sea and onshore pipelines to the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), the country’s natural gas aggregator, and other power producers in the country.

The project is a public, private partnership between Quantum Power Ghana and the GNPC on a build, own, operate and transfer (BOOT) basis for a period of 20 years, after which the asset will be transferred to the GNPC.

Micoperi S.p.A of Italy is the contractor of the Tema LNG Terminal which is expected to be completed in a year.

The project entails the construction of an LNG import and regasification terminal to receive natural gas in a liquid form to be turned back into its normal natural gas form to fire thermal plants in the Kpone Power Enclave, near Tema.

The project will also have a floating, storage and regasification unit (FSRU) moored 12 kilometres off the shores of Tema to allow for cost-effective refuelling and regasification without disturbing maritime and port traffic.

Benefits

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Quantum Power, Mr Matty Vengerik, said the Tema LNG was expected to provide Ghana with reliable, flexible, independent and scalable fuel source for power generation.

Gas-fuelled generation is considered a cheaper alternative.

He said the project was designed to help alleviate the country's significant energy shortfall and support the government's efforts to put an end to the protracted challenges with power supply, while ensuring efficiency and cost reduction.

The CEO said the LNG terminal would also contribute to critical infrastructure required to support the country’s plan for energy security and accelerated economic growth.

Mr Vengerik said 50 years ago, Ghana was a beacon of hope and industrial revolution to its neighbours, thanks to the Akosombo Dam which generated power at a cheaper cost.

“We will be providing Ghana with the option and ability to have a completely reliable power sector that can accommodate its growth for the next decade and beyond to make Ghana a leader in the sub-region,” Mr Vengerik stated.

The Managing Director of Quantum Power Ghana Limited, Mr Ruben Atekpe, said the FSRU, being built by the Hyundai Heavy Industries Shipyard in South Korea, was expected in the country by May this year.

via: http://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/work-begins-on-600-million-gas-terminal-project-at-kpone.html

Roads Minister inspects ongoing works in Tema

BENJAMIN GLOVER      

04 MARCH 2017

Mr Kwasi Amoako-Atta (4th right) being briefed on the project by Mr Mohammed Samara, CEO of MPS, during the visit. Picture: BENJAMIN XORNAM GLOVER

The Minister of Roads and Highways, Mr Kwasi Amoako-Atta, yesterday inspected a number of ongoing road works in the Tema metropolis. They include the Tema Roundabout road improvement network, the Africa Unity, Agba Mami/ BBC/ Police Station/ Polyclinic, as well as A-Lang roads.

• The 19.2-kilometre Tema town roads projects are being executed by Construtora Queiroz Galvao Sucura, Ghana.

The Tema Motorway Roundabout improvement project involves the construction of four by-passes to reduce the number of vehicles approaching the roundabout, construction of an additional third lane to widen the roundabout itself, upgrading of a section of the Akosombo Road into a dual carriageway and the rehabilitation of a section of the Harbour Road. Some roads are also undergoing asphaltic overlay.

He was accompanied by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Meridian Port Services (MPS), Mr Mohamed Samara; the Director-General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA), Mr Paul Asare Ansah; the Chief Director of the Roads Ministry, Mr Godwin Joseph Brocke and the Members of Parliament for Tema West and Central, Messrs Carlos Kingsley  Ahenkora and Kofi Brako, as well as other heads of departments.

Commendation

During the visit to the Tema Roundabout project, Mr Amoako-Atta commended the management of MPS for investing in the project to improve on the road network in the area.

Work on the project, which is being funded by the MPS at the cost of GH¢28 million, is expected to be completed by August this year.

He pledged the government's support towards the successful execution of the project.

Mr Amoako-Atta, however, urged the contractors, SinoHydro Corporation Limited, to take steps to reduce the inconveniences to the travelling public.

“This is an important project for the people of this area and Ghana as a whole and we are pleased MPS is doing this. We will co-operate with you at our level to ensure that you have all the utilities needed to execute this project. If you have any challenges please do not hesitate to let me know so that we can assist you,” he said.

Corporate responsibility

For his part, Mr Samara said the project, which formed part of MPS corporate social initiative, was aimed at alleviating difficulties on road transportation within the Tema enclave.

The acting Director-General of GPHA also lauded the initiative and emphasised that the intervention would facilitate the movement of goods and people within the port.

“At the moment, Tema Port is handling about 80,000 TEUs every month and this creates a lot of congestion along this road. If nothing is done by 2018, there will be crisis and so for us, this is a heart-warming intervention by MPS,” he said.

 Background

MPS, in October 2016, announced the start of the project in collaboration with the Ministry of Roads and Highways.

Construction work is currently ongoing on the four by-passes, including the widening of the roundabout.

To date, about 40 per cent of work has been executed.

via: http://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/roads-minister-inspects-ongoing-works-in-tema.html