THE Northern Star Tomato Factory (formerly Pwallugu Tomato Factory) in the Upper East Region is currently not functioning.
With about one month to the beginning of the major tomato planting season, farmers in the region have expressed fears that the current state of the factory would affect the purchase of their produce during the harvest season.
There was bumper tomato harvest last year in the region but tomato farmers lost heavily because the factory was not in operation, leading to a glut and consequently low prices.
The tomato farmers have, therefore, appealed to the government to urgently provide funds to put the government-owned factory on the right footing to purchase their produce at the end of the season.
The farmers made the appeal at a meeting organised by the Upper East Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, following a disclosure by the Farm Operations Manager of the Northern Star Tomato Factory, Mr Kwabena Darkwa, that the government had not yet released funds for the factory’s operations this year. The Upper East Regional Minister, Mr Mark Woyongo, attended the meeting.
Mr Darkwa said following the difficulties encountered last season, the Vice-President, Mr John Mahama, paid a working visit to the factory and was briefed about the challenges, plans and prospects. The Minister of Food and Agriculture, also visited the factory.
Mr Woyongo described as unacceptable the situation where large tonnes of tomatoes were made to rot on the farms last season due to the lack of funds, adding that such situations must not occur again.
He said Trusty Foods, which went to the aid of the farmers by buying their produce, had indicated its willingness to purchase the produce this year based on agreed terms.
The Regional Minister said he was liaising with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and the Ministry of Trade and Industry, to ensure that funds were made available to the factory to enable it to meet its operational costs for this season.
Mr Woyongo reiterated the government’s commitment to the development of agriculture, hence the drawing up of a comprehensive plan to turn the vast lands in the three northern regions into profitable ventures through programmes such as the Youth in Agriculture Programme.
Under the programme, he said the government would support people interested in farming to cultivate large tracts of land in the three regions into rice farms.
In addition, he said, the Nasia Rice Mills would be rehabilitated to support the rice industry.
He mentioned other measures such as the provision of a 50 per cent subsidy on fertilisers, the importation of combined harvesters and the construction of access roads to farms to open up the farming areas to ease the evacuation of food crops.
Mr Woyongo, however, advised against the smuggling of fertilisers across the borders, since such practices undermined the interest of farmers in the country.
He encouraged district assemblies in the region to acquire land banks to enable private businessmen and investors to invest in job creation ventures.
A spokesperson for the farmers, Mr Donald Samani, said with less than a month to the beginning of the major sowing season, it was the expectation of farmers that the factory managers would have come up with a comprehensive plan based on consultation with farmers on the exact amount the factory would pay for a crate of tomato.
The acting Regional Director of Agriculture, Alhaji Salifu A. Z. Ziblim, said the meeting was to prepare the minds of all stakeholders in the tomato business on steps to take to prevent last year’s situation from occurring again.
Sunday, 30 August 2009
Saturday, 29 August 2009
"Grab the Mic" stops in Bolga(Graphic Showbiz, Thursday, August 27-September 2, 2009, 2009. Page 5)
.JPG)
Story & Pix: Benjamin Glover
Twenty-Four -year old Joseph Buabeng emerged the winner of Star Beer’s Grab the Mic competition when the reality singing competition powered by Empire Entertainment made its final stop in Bolgatanga over the weekend.
Having missed the chance in the Takoradi and Kumasi events, the former Takoradi Senior High School graduate followed the train to the Bolgatanga where the final zonal competition for the Northern Regions was held.
In all 10 young superstar wannabes participated in the event under the watchful eyes of judges Cox Tamakloe Multimedia Broadcasting’s, Hiplife artiste, A-Plus and DJ Newman Dakora.
The judges had no difficulty setting of the third timer, Joseph as the line of local talents failed to impress both the judges and the crowd the converged at the crowd held at the New Life Line Bar.
The show kicked off with the hopefuls selected out of the lot the previous day, performing tracks of their choice. After that stage the number was cut to five.
The top five including Anthony Zuure Bagnaba, Mensah-Appiah Kwasi Ababio, Emmanuel Arhin, and Christopher Zobil proceeded to sing their personally composed Star Beer theme songs.
At the end of it all, the judges settled on Joseph Buabeng as the winner of the night. Settling for the second position was another second timer Mensah Appiah Kwesi Ababio while the local favorite Christopher Zobil took the third position.
Buabeng, Ababio and Christopher for their prizes, took home GH c 500, GH c300 and GH c 200 respectively as well as souvenirs from Star Beer.
Buabeng and Ababio in addition book their place to compete in the final event in Accra in September.
Featuring as a guest performer was K.K. Fosu who livened the atmosphere with a repertoire of songs from his previsous ulbums. Also on hand to entertain the crowd was “home boy”, Nkantanan who starred as side attraction and thought the amateur performers a few skills if they are to make it to the top.
Later in an interview with the Showbiz, Joseph asserted that having been to three events, he has now seen the performance for all those who have qualified adding that he is going to sharpen his skills to win the grand event.
Prior to the declaration of the results, the crowd for no reason become rowdy and nearly marred the show with the throwing of bottles unto the stage. The timely intervention by the police averted any trouble.
Twenty-Four -year old Joseph Buabeng emerged the winner of Star Beer’s Grab the Mic competition when the reality singing competition powered by Empire Entertainment made its final stop in Bolgatanga over the weekend.
Having missed the chance in the Takoradi and Kumasi events, the former Takoradi Senior High School graduate followed the train to the Bolgatanga where the final zonal competition for the Northern Regions was held.
In all 10 young superstar wannabes participated in the event under the watchful eyes of judges Cox Tamakloe Multimedia Broadcasting’s, Hiplife artiste, A-Plus and DJ Newman Dakora.
The judges had no difficulty setting of the third timer, Joseph as the line of local talents failed to impress both the judges and the crowd the converged at the crowd held at the New Life Line Bar.
The show kicked off with the hopefuls selected out of the lot the previous day, performing tracks of their choice. After that stage the number was cut to five.
The top five including Anthony Zuure Bagnaba, Mensah-Appiah Kwasi Ababio, Emmanuel Arhin, and Christopher Zobil proceeded to sing their personally composed Star Beer theme songs.
At the end of it all, the judges settled on Joseph Buabeng as the winner of the night. Settling for the second position was another second timer Mensah Appiah Kwesi Ababio while the local favorite Christopher Zobil took the third position.
Buabeng, Ababio and Christopher for their prizes, took home GH c 500, GH c300 and GH c 200 respectively as well as souvenirs from Star Beer.
Buabeng and Ababio in addition book their place to compete in the final event in Accra in September.
Featuring as a guest performer was K.K. Fosu who livened the atmosphere with a repertoire of songs from his previsous ulbums. Also on hand to entertain the crowd was “home boy”, Nkantanan who starred as side attraction and thought the amateur performers a few skills if they are to make it to the top.
Later in an interview with the Showbiz, Joseph asserted that having been to three events, he has now seen the performance for all those who have qualified adding that he is going to sharpen his skills to win the grand event.
Prior to the declaration of the results, the crowd for no reason become rowdy and nearly marred the show with the throwing of bottles unto the stage. The timely intervention by the police averted any trouble.
Friday, 28 August 2009
ONION FARMERS COMMEND PAGEV (MIRROR, Saturday August 29, 2009 PAGE 35)
From Benjamin Xornam Glover, Sakom.
Onion Farmers in the Sakom community in the Upper East Region have expressed appreciation to PAGEV, a Ghana-Burkina Faso trans-boundary project for improving water governance in the Volta Basin, for the rehabilitation of the only dam in the community.
According to the farmers the rehabilitation of the dam, which was done in partnership with the Bawku West District Assembly, has ensured an increase in onion production and subsequent improvement in the finances of the farmers.
The collapse of a portion of the dam walls led the farmers to relocate to another community, 15 kilometers away to engage in farming, which affected yield.
However, through the partnership of PAGEV and the Assembly, the dam was repaired and this has boosted onion production in the community.
This was confirmed by the District Agriculture Development Officer, Mr Charles Akwotiga, during a tour of some of the farms by a team of media practitioners from Ghana, Burkina Faso and Togo on a visit to PAGEV’s field activities.
Mr Akwotiga said to ensure the effective use of the facility, water users association have been put in place and they are in charge of the day-to-day management of the dam.
He said through the support of Technoserve, an NGO, a storage facility has been built to enable the farmers keep their produce and sell later at better prices.
Mr Kwame Odame-Ababio, PAGEV’S Project Coordinator, said 75 per cent of cost of rehabilitation amounting to 45,000 Euros was borne by his oufit, while the District Assembly took care of the remaining 25 per cent, with the community providing labour.
The field trip was organised by the Water Resources Commission as part of its sanitation programmes for media persons in Ghana and Burkina Faso on the institutional and established legal frameworks for the management of water resources shared between the two countries, especially the Volta Basin.
The trip also included Mognori, where through the intervention of PAGEV, a number of trees have been planted along the banks of the White Volta river to prevent siltation.
The Volta Basin is the main and largest shared waters for Ghana and Burkina Faso. The two countries share the Volta Basin with four other West African countries, namely Cote d’Ivoire, Togo, Benin and Mali.
Ghana and Burkina Faso share 85 per cent of the basin between them with 67 per cent of Burkina Faso and 64 per cent of Ghana being drained by the White Volta.
The water body also serves as a source of water supply, hydropower and irrigation for both countries.
Onion Farmers in the Sakom community in the Upper East Region have expressed appreciation to PAGEV, a Ghana-Burkina Faso trans-boundary project for improving water governance in the Volta Basin, for the rehabilitation of the only dam in the community.
According to the farmers the rehabilitation of the dam, which was done in partnership with the Bawku West District Assembly, has ensured an increase in onion production and subsequent improvement in the finances of the farmers.
The collapse of a portion of the dam walls led the farmers to relocate to another community, 15 kilometers away to engage in farming, which affected yield.
However, through the partnership of PAGEV and the Assembly, the dam was repaired and this has boosted onion production in the community.
This was confirmed by the District Agriculture Development Officer, Mr Charles Akwotiga, during a tour of some of the farms by a team of media practitioners from Ghana, Burkina Faso and Togo on a visit to PAGEV’s field activities.
Mr Akwotiga said to ensure the effective use of the facility, water users association have been put in place and they are in charge of the day-to-day management of the dam.
He said through the support of Technoserve, an NGO, a storage facility has been built to enable the farmers keep their produce and sell later at better prices.
Mr Kwame Odame-Ababio, PAGEV’S Project Coordinator, said 75 per cent of cost of rehabilitation amounting to 45,000 Euros was borne by his oufit, while the District Assembly took care of the remaining 25 per cent, with the community providing labour.
The field trip was organised by the Water Resources Commission as part of its sanitation programmes for media persons in Ghana and Burkina Faso on the institutional and established legal frameworks for the management of water resources shared between the two countries, especially the Volta Basin.
The trip also included Mognori, where through the intervention of PAGEV, a number of trees have been planted along the banks of the White Volta river to prevent siltation.
The Volta Basin is the main and largest shared waters for Ghana and Burkina Faso. The two countries share the Volta Basin with four other West African countries, namely Cote d’Ivoire, Togo, Benin and Mali.
Ghana and Burkina Faso share 85 per cent of the basin between them with 67 per cent of Burkina Faso and 64 per cent of Ghana being drained by the White Volta.
The water body also serves as a source of water supply, hydropower and irrigation for both countries.
Thursday, 27 August 2009
UNSAFE SCHOOL ENVIROMENT AFFECTS GIRL-CHILD EDUCATION (D/G, Thursday, August 27, 2009.PAGE 11)
A survey conducted by ActionAid Ghana, an international non-governmental organisation in 12 countries, including Ghana, has identified unsafe school environment as one of the main reasons for low girl-child school attendance.
A Senior Programme Officer of ActionAid Ghana, Mr Alhassan Sulemana, who announced this at this year’s annual regional girls camp for selected pupils at the basic level in Bolgatanga, indicated that the problem which posed insecurity for girls in schools, also tended to affect their performance.
Mr Sulemana said some of the causes of insecurity for girls in the school environment were poor school infrastructure, poor sanitary facilities, especially during the periods of the month when the girl-child had to battle with the biological discomforts of womanhood.
One hundred and twenty girls, drawn from various junior and senior high schools from all the districts in the Upper East Region are attending the one week course, on the theme: "Empowering girls through education: Providing safe schools to secure girls success”.
It is aimed at supporting and building the confidence levels of the participants and also encourage them to develop greater interest in schooling. It is also targeted at raising their self-esteem to help them aim high in life.
He said in 2008, for example, the Ministry of Education reported that only 48 per cent out of the total number of 13,247 primary schools and 52 per cent of public junior high schools had access to toilet facilities in the country.
Mr Sulemana explained that the lack of separate and decent toilet facilities and changing rooms for girls, affect their regular school attendance, leading to poor performance or sometimes, resulting in them dropping out of school.
While commending the government and civil society organisations for pursuing programmes that promote girl-child education through interventions such as fee-free basic education, the school feeding programme and the recent free school uniform for basic schools, he called for pragmatic measures to address the problems to help achieve the Millennium Development Goal on Gender Parity.
“Ghana unfortunately missed attaining the target of gender parity ratio in basic schools in 2005 and to date, it is yet to achieve the 1:1 gender parity ratio in basic school enrolment, retention and completion”.
He, however, said the country made modest gains with the current statistics being 1:0.97 gender parity index (boys against girls) compared to 1:0.93 in 2005.
He again said girls’ enrolment and retention in primary schools continued to be as low as 1:0.70 in many deprived districts and communities in that region and Ghana as a whole.
The Regional Girl Child Education Officer, Madam Silvia Samari, said the Ghana Education Service would continue to collaborate with organisations such as ActionAid Ghana and other civil society organisations to provide environmental, nutritional and intellectual safety for the education of the girl-child.
The Deputy Upper East Regional Minister, Mrs Lucy Awuni, who opened the camp, said the government would not relent in its efforts to place the education of the girl-child high on its agenda to uplift the social, economic and political status of women.
She said that would be achieved through the building of more school infrastructure and also rehabilitate old school buildings, with the provision of sanitation facilities to promote teaching and learning.
She bemoaned the ritual of girls migrating to the southern part of Ghana in search of non-existent jobs at the end of every term, and said the regional co-ordinating council, with support from the Department of Children of the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs had instituted a programme to prevent young girls below the ages of 16 from travelling unaccompanied to the south to engage in menial jobs.
The Vice Principal of the Bolgatanga Technical Institute, Mr Francis Bambogo, admonished the girls not to shy away from technical and vocational education, adding that through that, some of them could make a headway in life.
During the one-week stay, the participants would visit some institutions; have discussion on issues including sexual and reproductive healthcare,career development and self-assertiveness. They would also visit some tourist sites in the region.
A Senior Programme Officer of ActionAid Ghana, Mr Alhassan Sulemana, who announced this at this year’s annual regional girls camp for selected pupils at the basic level in Bolgatanga, indicated that the problem which posed insecurity for girls in schools, also tended to affect their performance.
Mr Sulemana said some of the causes of insecurity for girls in the school environment were poor school infrastructure, poor sanitary facilities, especially during the periods of the month when the girl-child had to battle with the biological discomforts of womanhood.
One hundred and twenty girls, drawn from various junior and senior high schools from all the districts in the Upper East Region are attending the one week course, on the theme: "Empowering girls through education: Providing safe schools to secure girls success”.
It is aimed at supporting and building the confidence levels of the participants and also encourage them to develop greater interest in schooling. It is also targeted at raising their self-esteem to help them aim high in life.
He said in 2008, for example, the Ministry of Education reported that only 48 per cent out of the total number of 13,247 primary schools and 52 per cent of public junior high schools had access to toilet facilities in the country.
Mr Sulemana explained that the lack of separate and decent toilet facilities and changing rooms for girls, affect their regular school attendance, leading to poor performance or sometimes, resulting in them dropping out of school.
While commending the government and civil society organisations for pursuing programmes that promote girl-child education through interventions such as fee-free basic education, the school feeding programme and the recent free school uniform for basic schools, he called for pragmatic measures to address the problems to help achieve the Millennium Development Goal on Gender Parity.
“Ghana unfortunately missed attaining the target of gender parity ratio in basic schools in 2005 and to date, it is yet to achieve the 1:1 gender parity ratio in basic school enrolment, retention and completion”.
He, however, said the country made modest gains with the current statistics being 1:0.97 gender parity index (boys against girls) compared to 1:0.93 in 2005.
He again said girls’ enrolment and retention in primary schools continued to be as low as 1:0.70 in many deprived districts and communities in that region and Ghana as a whole.
The Regional Girl Child Education Officer, Madam Silvia Samari, said the Ghana Education Service would continue to collaborate with organisations such as ActionAid Ghana and other civil society organisations to provide environmental, nutritional and intellectual safety for the education of the girl-child.
The Deputy Upper East Regional Minister, Mrs Lucy Awuni, who opened the camp, said the government would not relent in its efforts to place the education of the girl-child high on its agenda to uplift the social, economic and political status of women.
She said that would be achieved through the building of more school infrastructure and also rehabilitate old school buildings, with the provision of sanitation facilities to promote teaching and learning.
She bemoaned the ritual of girls migrating to the southern part of Ghana in search of non-existent jobs at the end of every term, and said the regional co-ordinating council, with support from the Department of Children of the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs had instituted a programme to prevent young girls below the ages of 16 from travelling unaccompanied to the south to engage in menial jobs.
The Vice Principal of the Bolgatanga Technical Institute, Mr Francis Bambogo, admonished the girls not to shy away from technical and vocational education, adding that through that, some of them could make a headway in life.
During the one-week stay, the participants would visit some institutions; have discussion on issues including sexual and reproductive healthcare,career development and self-assertiveness. They would also visit some tourist sites in the region.
Monday, 24 August 2009
BAWKU SHOOTING: 33 PERSONS RELEASED (D/G, Monday August 24, 2009. PAGE 3)
All the 33 persons who were rounded up by the security agencies in connection with last Thursday’s shooting incident in Bawku, have been released.
The Deputy Upper East Regional Police Commander, Mr George Tuffuor, in an interview with the Daily Graphic, said the arrested individuals were granted their freedom after an initial screening exercise exonerated them from any wrongdoing.
The suspects were arrested by the military after an unknown assailant shot and killed two persons including a fire service man and injured two others in Bawku last Thursday night. They were later handed over to the police for further investigation.
The deceased were identified as Abdul Ganiru, aged 30, and the Fire Officer, DO II John Atubiga, while those who sustained injuries were named as Razak Abdul Rahman, aged 60, and Ambia Fuseini, aged 15.
The injured were rushed to hospital for treatment.
Mr Tuffuor, who is also an Assistant Commissioner of Police, said the atmosphere in Bawku was relatively calm, adding that the entire municipality had been flooded with police and military personnel to ensure that nothing untoward happened.
He gave the assurance that the security personnel were alive to their duties and would deal firmly with any individual who disturbed the peace of the area.
The Deputy Upper East Regional Police Commander, Mr George Tuffuor, in an interview with the Daily Graphic, said the arrested individuals were granted their freedom after an initial screening exercise exonerated them from any wrongdoing.
The suspects were arrested by the military after an unknown assailant shot and killed two persons including a fire service man and injured two others in Bawku last Thursday night. They were later handed over to the police for further investigation.
The deceased were identified as Abdul Ganiru, aged 30, and the Fire Officer, DO II John Atubiga, while those who sustained injuries were named as Razak Abdul Rahman, aged 60, and Ambia Fuseini, aged 15.
The injured were rushed to hospital for treatment.
Mr Tuffuor, who is also an Assistant Commissioner of Police, said the atmosphere in Bawku was relatively calm, adding that the entire municipality had been flooded with police and military personnel to ensure that nothing untoward happened.
He gave the assurance that the security personnel were alive to their duties and would deal firmly with any individual who disturbed the peace of the area.
Sunday, 23 August 2009
UPPER EAST NPP ACTIVISTS DISAGREE WITH PORTIONS OF AMENDMENTS (D/G, Saturday, August 22, 2009. PAGE 14)
SOME activists of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Upper East Region have disagreed with portions of the proposed amendments to the party’s constitution which they claim, have the potential of damaging the unity and advancement of the party.
This was contained in a statement signed by Mr Mark Wanaba on behalf of a group of NPP activists who also claimed to be part of the “amendment delegation” from the region.
The statement said it had found the proposal for the expansion of the presidential electoral college very dangerous “because the argument that the expansion of the electoral college will do away with the perceived use of money to influence delegates does not fly since those elected as flag bearers for the party in the recent past have proven to be credible persons”.
It further contended that the rather large size of the proposed electoral college would become a serious drain on the party’s resources.
The statement said the enlargement of the electoral college would destroy electoral confidentiality in the sense that the election of the party’s flag bearer would now be done at the various constituencies as in a general election and the results declared right from the constituency level.
“As a result, a candidate who emerges as the flag bearer will know which constituencies supported his presidential ambition and those which tried to sabotage that dream”, it said, adding that such a development would breed suspicion and disunity in the party.
“On the basis of the aforementioned argument, the proposed expansion of the electoral college for presidential, parliamentary and constituency level elections should be rejected and the status quo maintained”, the statement cautioned.
Arguing further, the group said the proposed amendment which sought to restrict party membership and eligibility to only card bearers appeared to be highly discriminatory.
It cited for instance, the difficulty in acquiring party cards which, they said, had become a serious challenge to many loyal rural party members at the grass-root level.
“The highly centralised processes involved in the acquisition of membership cards seriously discriminates against thousands of loyal members outside Accra”, the statement said.
According to the information in the amendment document, over 4,500,000 Ghanaians voted for Nana Addo Danquah Akufo Addo in the 2008 presidential election but NPP card bearing members were just about 200,000.
That, the statement claimed, clearly indicated that an overwhelming majority of party members, sympathisers and loyalists did not bear cards, adding “How then can card-bearing be used as a yardstick to judge one’s membership of, and loyalty to the party?
The statement expressed the hope that the party was capable of coming back to power in 2012, and therefore, called on all members to learn from their past mistakes and not to do anything to divide the party over mere constitutional amendments which had no direct bearing on the decisions of the electorate.
This was contained in a statement signed by Mr Mark Wanaba on behalf of a group of NPP activists who also claimed to be part of the “amendment delegation” from the region.
The statement said it had found the proposal for the expansion of the presidential electoral college very dangerous “because the argument that the expansion of the electoral college will do away with the perceived use of money to influence delegates does not fly since those elected as flag bearers for the party in the recent past have proven to be credible persons”.
It further contended that the rather large size of the proposed electoral college would become a serious drain on the party’s resources.
The statement said the enlargement of the electoral college would destroy electoral confidentiality in the sense that the election of the party’s flag bearer would now be done at the various constituencies as in a general election and the results declared right from the constituency level.
“As a result, a candidate who emerges as the flag bearer will know which constituencies supported his presidential ambition and those which tried to sabotage that dream”, it said, adding that such a development would breed suspicion and disunity in the party.
“On the basis of the aforementioned argument, the proposed expansion of the electoral college for presidential, parliamentary and constituency level elections should be rejected and the status quo maintained”, the statement cautioned.
Arguing further, the group said the proposed amendment which sought to restrict party membership and eligibility to only card bearers appeared to be highly discriminatory.
It cited for instance, the difficulty in acquiring party cards which, they said, had become a serious challenge to many loyal rural party members at the grass-root level.
“The highly centralised processes involved in the acquisition of membership cards seriously discriminates against thousands of loyal members outside Accra”, the statement said.
According to the information in the amendment document, over 4,500,000 Ghanaians voted for Nana Addo Danquah Akufo Addo in the 2008 presidential election but NPP card bearing members were just about 200,000.
That, the statement claimed, clearly indicated that an overwhelming majority of party members, sympathisers and loyalists did not bear cards, adding “How then can card-bearing be used as a yardstick to judge one’s membership of, and loyalty to the party?
The statement expressed the hope that the party was capable of coming back to power in 2012, and therefore, called on all members to learn from their past mistakes and not to do anything to divide the party over mere constitutional amendments which had no direct bearing on the decisions of the electorate.
TWO SHOT DEAD IN BAWKU ...Assailants unknown (D/G, Saturday, August 22, 2009. PAGE 3)
TWO people, one of them a fire officer of the Ghana National Fire Service, were last Thursday shot dead by unknown assailants in separate incidents at Bawku in the Upper East Region.
Two others were seriously wounded in the attacks.
The names of the deceased were given as Abdul Ganiru, aged 30, and Fire Officer DO II John Atubiga, and the injured were Razak Abdul Rahman, 60, and Ambia Fuseini, 15.
Briefing the Daily Graphic, the Deputy Upper East Regional Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police, George Tuffuor, said at 8:20 p.m. on Thursday, unknown assailants, with no known motive, attacked and shot Ganiru, a storekeeper, at North Natinga, a suburb of Bawku.
He was shot from behind and the bullet penetrated the neck.
Mr Tuffuor said the deceased was rushed to the Bawku Presbyterian Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
He said a post-mortem had already been carried out and the body released to the family for burial in line with Islamic beliefs.
In the case of the fire officer, Mr Tuffour said the late DO II Atubiga sought permission to go out to buy food but on his way back to the office located in the same vicinity (North Natinga), he was ambushed and shot about five times.
Mr Tuffuor said the two injured persons were hit by what were believed to be stray bullets in the same neighbourhood by the unknown assailants.
He added that both were sent to the Bawku Presbyterian Hospital, where they are responding to treatment.
Mr Tuffour could not put a finger on what might have precipitated the latest round of attacks but said the police had mounted a search for the assailants and were also trying to unravel the reasons behind the attacks.
Meanwhile, the Minister of the Interior has renewed the curfew imposed on the Bawku municipality and Gushegu and their immediate environs for another week with effect from August 17, 2009.
The decision was based on the advice of the Upper East and Northern Regional Security Councils and by an Executive Instrument.
The curfew hours for the Bawku Municipality and Gushegu remain unchanged and are from midnight to 4 a.m. each day.
A statement issued by the Ministry of the Interior in Accra said the government would continue to commend the chiefs, elders, opinion leaders, citizenry and the various factions in the Bawku conflict for the sustained peace in their respective communities.
It assured all of the government’s commitment to protect all parties in the conflict, as well as work with the various factions towards finding a lasting peace.
The statement reminded the people in the Bawku Municipal Area, Zabugu, Binduri, Pusiga, Zoasi and Gushegu and their environs that there was a ban on them from carrying arms, ammunition or any offensive weapons, and any person found with any arms or ammunition would be arrested and prosecuted.
Meanwhile, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bawku Central, Mr Adamu Daramani Sakande, has appealed for calm following the death of two persons at Bawku, reports Mabel Aku Baneseh.
He also expressed his condolence to the bereaved families and appealed to the families to remain calm while the police conducted investigations into the deaths.
According to the MP, Ganiru was his (MP’s) avid supporter who accompanied him (MP) to court and prayed to God to give him (deceased) a peaceful rest.
Mr Sakande appealed to the security agencies to be firm and impartial while investigating the incident.
He said he appreciated the difficulties associated with their work and expressed the belief that they would surmount all challenges and let justice prevail.
He gave the assurance that he would continue to pursue the path of reconciliation and peace in the Bawku muncipality.
Two others were seriously wounded in the attacks.
The names of the deceased were given as Abdul Ganiru, aged 30, and Fire Officer DO II John Atubiga, and the injured were Razak Abdul Rahman, 60, and Ambia Fuseini, 15.
Briefing the Daily Graphic, the Deputy Upper East Regional Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police, George Tuffuor, said at 8:20 p.m. on Thursday, unknown assailants, with no known motive, attacked and shot Ganiru, a storekeeper, at North Natinga, a suburb of Bawku.
He was shot from behind and the bullet penetrated the neck.
Mr Tuffuor said the deceased was rushed to the Bawku Presbyterian Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
He said a post-mortem had already been carried out and the body released to the family for burial in line with Islamic beliefs.
In the case of the fire officer, Mr Tuffour said the late DO II Atubiga sought permission to go out to buy food but on his way back to the office located in the same vicinity (North Natinga), he was ambushed and shot about five times.
Mr Tuffuor said the two injured persons were hit by what were believed to be stray bullets in the same neighbourhood by the unknown assailants.
He added that both were sent to the Bawku Presbyterian Hospital, where they are responding to treatment.
Mr Tuffour could not put a finger on what might have precipitated the latest round of attacks but said the police had mounted a search for the assailants and were also trying to unravel the reasons behind the attacks.
Meanwhile, the Minister of the Interior has renewed the curfew imposed on the Bawku municipality and Gushegu and their immediate environs for another week with effect from August 17, 2009.
The decision was based on the advice of the Upper East and Northern Regional Security Councils and by an Executive Instrument.
The curfew hours for the Bawku Municipality and Gushegu remain unchanged and are from midnight to 4 a.m. each day.
A statement issued by the Ministry of the Interior in Accra said the government would continue to commend the chiefs, elders, opinion leaders, citizenry and the various factions in the Bawku conflict for the sustained peace in their respective communities.
It assured all of the government’s commitment to protect all parties in the conflict, as well as work with the various factions towards finding a lasting peace.
The statement reminded the people in the Bawku Municipal Area, Zabugu, Binduri, Pusiga, Zoasi and Gushegu and their environs that there was a ban on them from carrying arms, ammunition or any offensive weapons, and any person found with any arms or ammunition would be arrested and prosecuted.
Meanwhile, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bawku Central, Mr Adamu Daramani Sakande, has appealed for calm following the death of two persons at Bawku, reports Mabel Aku Baneseh.
He also expressed his condolence to the bereaved families and appealed to the families to remain calm while the police conducted investigations into the deaths.
According to the MP, Ganiru was his (MP’s) avid supporter who accompanied him (MP) to court and prayed to God to give him (deceased) a peaceful rest.
Mr Sakande appealed to the security agencies to be firm and impartial while investigating the incident.
He said he appreciated the difficulties associated with their work and expressed the belief that they would surmount all challenges and let justice prevail.
He gave the assurance that he would continue to pursue the path of reconciliation and peace in the Bawku muncipality.
Thursday, 20 August 2009
TWO UPPER REGIONS TO EXPERIENCE LESS RAINFALL (D/G, Thursday, August 20, 2009. PAGE 35)
THE Upper East and Upper West regions are unlikely to experience floods as recorded in August and September, 2007, that led to massive destruction of lives and property, the acting Executive Secretary of the Water Resources Commission (WRC), Mr Ben Ampomah, has disclosed.
Mr Ampomah was speaking to the Daily Graphic at Bolgatanga on the sidelines of a workshop for journalists and information officers selected from Ghana, Burkina Faso and Togo, on Water Resource Management.
He explained that the situation had come about as a result of an agreement signed between Ghana and Burkina Faso to open more channels of communications for quicker exchange of information and response to spilling and possible flooding.
The northern regions are vulnerable to floods that damage property and lives.
It would be recalled that in 2007, due to excessive rains coupled with the opening of the sluice gates of the Bagre Dam in Burkina Faso at short notice, the entire area was flooded and a number of lives were lost and property worth several thousands of cedis was destroyed.
The Volta Basin is the main and largest shared waters for both Ghana and Burkina Faso. The basin serves as a source of water supply, hydro power and irrigation for both countries.
According to Mr Ampomah, the water level in the Bagre Dam this time round was low as compared to previous years.
“Officials of both countries have been meeting to discuss the issue and we are very hopeful that we are not going to experience that incident again”, he said.
“It’s not every year that there is going to be a spillage, it depends on the water levels. So far this year, indications are that the water levels are low, and we hope that that we are not going to experience that but whenever there is a change we will quickly inform the population along the banks of the White Volta and make them aware of the dangers that lie ahead”, he said.
Mr Ampomah stated that key stakeholders, including NADMO as well as the Volta River Authority, (VRA) and their counterparts in Burkina Faso, SONABEL have all been informed and made aware of the situation.
He, however, stated that once there was a change, the population of the communities along the White Volta would be notified and the necessary contingency measures taken to avert flooding.
The sensitisation programme for the journalists which was sponsored by PAGEV (a trans-boundary project for improving water governance in the Volta Basin) was to expose the selected participants from the three countries on the institutional and established legal frameworks for the management of water resources with the view to equip them to assist in informing and educating the concerned population.
The Acting Executive Director, who also co-chairs the Ghana-Burkina Joint Technical Committee Integrated Water Resources Management, (JTC-IWRM), said although Ghana and Burkina Faso had come a long way towards addressing their trans-boundary water management issues, a lot more work remains to be done to improve the shared responsibility for managing trans-boundary waters of the two countries
He called on the government of Ghana and Burkina Faso to demonstrate improved political will to continue nurturing the opportunities for trans-boundary cooperation.
Mr Ampomah was speaking to the Daily Graphic at Bolgatanga on the sidelines of a workshop for journalists and information officers selected from Ghana, Burkina Faso and Togo, on Water Resource Management.
He explained that the situation had come about as a result of an agreement signed between Ghana and Burkina Faso to open more channels of communications for quicker exchange of information and response to spilling and possible flooding.
The northern regions are vulnerable to floods that damage property and lives.
It would be recalled that in 2007, due to excessive rains coupled with the opening of the sluice gates of the Bagre Dam in Burkina Faso at short notice, the entire area was flooded and a number of lives were lost and property worth several thousands of cedis was destroyed.
The Volta Basin is the main and largest shared waters for both Ghana and Burkina Faso. The basin serves as a source of water supply, hydro power and irrigation for both countries.
According to Mr Ampomah, the water level in the Bagre Dam this time round was low as compared to previous years.
“Officials of both countries have been meeting to discuss the issue and we are very hopeful that we are not going to experience that incident again”, he said.
“It’s not every year that there is going to be a spillage, it depends on the water levels. So far this year, indications are that the water levels are low, and we hope that that we are not going to experience that but whenever there is a change we will quickly inform the population along the banks of the White Volta and make them aware of the dangers that lie ahead”, he said.
Mr Ampomah stated that key stakeholders, including NADMO as well as the Volta River Authority, (VRA) and their counterparts in Burkina Faso, SONABEL have all been informed and made aware of the situation.
He, however, stated that once there was a change, the population of the communities along the White Volta would be notified and the necessary contingency measures taken to avert flooding.
The sensitisation programme for the journalists which was sponsored by PAGEV (a trans-boundary project for improving water governance in the Volta Basin) was to expose the selected participants from the three countries on the institutional and established legal frameworks for the management of water resources with the view to equip them to assist in informing and educating the concerned population.
The Acting Executive Director, who also co-chairs the Ghana-Burkina Joint Technical Committee Integrated Water Resources Management, (JTC-IWRM), said although Ghana and Burkina Faso had come a long way towards addressing their trans-boundary water management issues, a lot more work remains to be done to improve the shared responsibility for managing trans-boundary waters of the two countries
He called on the government of Ghana and Burkina Faso to demonstrate improved political will to continue nurturing the opportunities for trans-boundary cooperation.
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