Politics of Tuesday, 25 July 2023Source: www.ghanaweb.comA pastor in the Ashanti Region is trending on social media after a video of him “rubbishing” the presidential bid of Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia went viral. In the video, Apostle Kofi Nkansah Sarkodie popularly known as Saint Sark, outlined at least five reasons why Dr Bawumia should not be made the New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential candidate. The founder and leader of Open Arms Ministry at North Suntreso, Kumasi, said Dr Bawumia lacks credibility and can not be trusted because of previous lies he has told. Mention the name of one Ga person… Ga people belong to the UP tradition and have also suffered the most for the NPP. But none of them have been made the presidential candidate of the NPP,” he said.

According to Margaret Ansei, a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Communication team, it was the former minister’s husband who walked in on the house helps, catching them in the act. “From the story, Sarah Agyei lived with Madam Cecilia Dapaah and her husband, lived in their home, and stole money gradually to build a 3-bedroom house at Budunburam. And when she was leaving, she recommended Patience Maabena Botwe to Madam Cecilia Dapaah, and that is how she and Patience came together and kept stealing from the house. The NDC member added that until that day Cecilia Dapaah’s husband walked in on the ladies, they had no idea their monies were getting missing. Meanwhile, Madam Cecilia Dapaah has resigned from her position following public criticism about the monies stolen from her home.

The shocking incident involved her son being assaulted by a senior student in their dormitory on June 30, 2023, under bizarre circumstances. A video of the assault circulated on social media, showed the senior student forcefully hitting the victim's face against a metal bed, resulting in bleeding below his right eye. Although the elder brother of the victim had watched the video, Ms. Afari shared that she was yet to do so. The family was alerted to the incident when the elder brother saw the video and promptly informed the housemaster, who later contacted Ms. Afari to explain the situation. Even though the video started circulating very recently, the statement noted that: "the incident happened on the 30th of June, 2023 in Quaque house."

Renowned private legal practitioner, Martin Kpebu, has explained some of the legal implications of the arrest of the former Minister for Sanitation and Water Resource, Cecilia Dapaah. In an interview with GhanaWeb, lawyer Martin Kpebu said that the arrest of Cecilia Dapaah by the OSP and the subsequent search of her properties is necessary to get to the bottom of the matter. So, that is the law and that is what the OSP would be using,” he explained. The lawyer also explained that the laws establishing the OSP also allow it to investigate person it suspect have acquired wealth illegally under the lifestyle audit report. “So, the constitution is very clear, that if you have property that you cannot justify, that property would be confiscated,” he added.

Former General Secretary of the People's National Convention, Bernard Mornah, has alleged that the former Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Dapaah, was forced to resign from her position. Speaking in an interview on UTV on Monday, July 24, 2023, Monarh said that even though he is terrified by the amount of money stolen at Cecilia Dapaah's home, the former minister would still be working if she was close to the presidency. “What is more painful in all of this is that this woman was forced to resign. “So, it is evident that if you are close to the president, you cannot be forced to resign, but if you are not close to the president, you can be forced to resign,” he said in Twi. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

The majority leader, who is the Member of Parliament for Suame, added that even though it might be ethically wrong for a minister to be keeping such an amount of money in her home, the laws of the country do not stop people from keeping money in their homes. “She has not violated any law of the country by not keeping the money in the bank if it is hers… there are no laws like that. Meanwhile, the former Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources has been arrested by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP). This was contained in a statement from the Office of the Special Prosecutor dated July 24, 2023. The arrest by the Office of the Special Prosecutor indicates the gravity of the situation and the determination of authorities to investigate the alleged corruption thoroughly.

According to Martin Amidu, he casts doubt on the president's commitment to uphold democratic processes within the party. In a recent statement, Amidu expressed his disappointment with the lack of sincerity behind Akufo-Addo's previous assurance of a transparent internal election. Amidu further claims that the NPP Constitution has already been violated by the President and other establishment figures endorsing Dr. Bawumia, indicating a lack of adherence to the party's governing principles. "The NPP Constitution has already been violated by the President and other establishment endorsements of Dr. Bawumia. Amidu also urged other political parties preparing to contest the December 7, 2024, presidential election to closely observe how the NPP organizes its internal primaries.

Samuel Koku Anyidoho, former Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has expressed his support for the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) programme introduced by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government, asserting that it is a valuable initiative that will endure. During a visit to the Anlo Awomefia Senior High School in his hometown over the weekend, Koku Anyidoho shared his views with the media, highlighting the positive impact of the Free SHS programme. He acknowledged that while there are challenges associated with the policy, it has significantly contributed to producing more literate citizens in the country. So, I believe the programme has come to stay, and no government can cancel it," myjoyonline.com quoted him to have said. He went on to emphasize that the Free SHS initiative has opened doors for countless students, including some of his own family members.

Entertainment of Monday, 24 July 2023Source: www.ghanaweb.comMidway through the July 22, 2023 edition of UTV’s United Showbiz, Pappy Kojo, one of the guests, engaged in a series of heated exchanges with fellow panelist Mr. Logic. At some point, Pappy Kojo, who felt disrespected, threatened to exit the set but was impressed upon by the host to retain his seat. I am an award-winning artiste,” Pappy Kojo stood up reached for some food, and walked off the set. Mr. Logic responded, “You? Immediately after that move, he took to Twitter claiming that Mr. Logic was organizing ‘macho men’ to assault him.

Okyenhene Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin has lamented the rising insecurity and land degradation in his domain. According to him, the deterioration of security in Kyebi started in 2012 when galamsey – illegal small-scale mining – was started in parts of the Eastern Region. He stressed that before 2012, Kyebi was serene and secured but that is no longer the case. 66 years after independence and if you are traveling from Accra to Kyebi or Kumasi then you are frightened because the roads are not good. “So, if the assembly says there is no money and Okyenhene also doesn’t have money then it means that we will suffer, and the people suffer,” he stressed.

General News of Monday, 24 July 2023Source: www.ghanaweb.comThe General Secretary of the Convention Peoples Party (CPP), Nana Yaa Jantuah, has said it is time to pause in the case of Gyakye Quayson to address pressing bread and butter issues facing the country. There are issues to talk about, bread and butter issues,” she said. The General Secretary highlighted alarming food inflation figures, citing a World Bank report indicating that food inflation stands at 54%. “Food inflation is 54%, 850,000 Ghanaians are poor because they cannot buy food, it’s a World Bank report. The General Secretary also raised concerns over the struggles faced by Buffer Stock Suppliers, who have picketed due to delayed payments by the government.

General News of Sunday, 23 July 2023Source: www.ghanaweb.comFollowing a news report that a Ghanaian woman was deported over failure to procure the required documents to prove her stay in the United States of America, Frimpongmaa has been reported dead. Background:A Ghanaian lady identified as Frimpongmaa was deported to Ghana from the United States of America after her friend reported her to authorities. She said Frimpongmaa had made over US$70,000 but her money was locked up with the Ghanaian she was using her papers to work. This led to an argument," Frimpongmaa told Freda Afriyie. Following her arrest, she was investigated and processed for court as she had no documents to prove her stay in the USA.

But businessman, Raymond Archer, has wondered why government embarked on the clean-up exercise worth GH¢20billion when these collapsed banks needed only GH¢9billion to be in business. Speaking on Radio Gold monitored by GhanaWeb, he said there was no sense in the move taken by government. "When this government came into office, they targeted Duffuor's bank, brought it down, targeted Agongo's bank because he is supposed to be linked with the NDC, brought it down. Like I said to you, it's either they know what they are doing and they don't care...Now, they came for my business," Raymond Archer told Sena Nombo of Radio Gold FM. Finance Minister, Ofori-Atta supervised the banking sector clean-up from mid-2017 to January 2020.

Business News of Sunday, 23 July 2023Source: www.ghanaweb.comGeneral Secretary of the Ghana Federation of Labour (GFL), Abraham Koomson, has called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to relieve Ken Ofori-Atta of his post as the Minister of Finance. He opined that Mr Ofori-Atta's performance over the years has been below the belt, therefore, he needs to be sacked. "The Finance Minister has a serious problem...about 90 MPs of his party rose up and said the man is not correct so they should remove him," Mr Koomson said. When asked if he wants the Minister of Finance sacked, Abraham Koomson said, "Why not, it has taken too long. The IMF programme, according to the government is aimed at restoring macroeconomic stability and safeguarding debt sustainability among many others.

General News of Saturday, 22 July 2023Source: www.ghanaweb.comThe Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Dapaah, has said the figures stated in media reports of a robbery incident at her home in Abelemkpe were wrong. But in her letter of resignation addressed to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the minister stated that the figures in the police report she filed with her husband differ from those reported in the media. “Whereas I can state emphatically that those figures do not represent correctly what my husband and I reported to the Police, I am very much aware of the import of such stories around someone in my position,” parts of the statement read. Cecilia Dapaah stated that by the end of investigations into the matter, she would be exonerated. “I intend to cooperate fully with all state agencies to enable them fully establish the facts," the former sanitation minister said.