Sixty-five aspirants are going unopposed in the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) parliamentary primaries slated for June 20, 2020.
The list of unopposed aspirants includes Defence Minister; Dominic Nitiwul, Minister for Education; Matthew Opoku Prempeh and Minister for Works and Housing; Samuel Atta Akyea who are vying for the Bimbilla, Manhyia South and Abuakwa South seats respectively.
This is the 4th time Mr. Prempeh is seeking to become a Member of Parliament for that constituency.
Matthew Opoku Prempeh is the Minister of Education and Member of Parliament for Manhyia South
The party on April 14, 2020, suspended its planned April 25, 2020, parliamentary primaries indefinitely in accordance with the President’s ban on public gatherings in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic in Ghana.
Many parliamentary aspirants subsequently suspended their campaigns due to the decision.
Atta Kyea is Minister for Works and Housing and Member of Parliament for Akim Abuakwa South
But with the easing of some of the COVID-19 induced restrictions, some aspirants have resumed their campaigns.
The party seeks to use the primaries to elect parliamentary candidates in constituencies where it has sitting Members of Parliament, ahead of the 2020 general elections.
The party at a Steering Committee meeting held on Monday [June 1, 2020], however, agreed to hold the election in electoral areas rather than at the constituency level in order to ensure social distancing.
The June 20 primaries will be held in 168 constituencies across the country.
Disqualification brouhaha
There has been tension in some constituencies following the disqualification of some aspirants aiming to unseat incumbent Members of Parliament.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has instructed constituency executives to suspend, with immediate effect, all delegates who invoked curses on leadership over the disqualification of some parliamentary aspirants.
These delegates of the party resorted to invoking deities to register their dissatisfaction with the national executives for not allowing some aspirants to contest and others to be contested.
According to some of them, the grounds for disqualification of some of these aspirants were not legitimate and just a move to ensure that incumbent Members of Parliament, in particular, go unopposed.
In the Offinso South Constituency, for instance, some delegates slaughtered a ram in River Offin and performed some rituals after they complained that the National Vetting Committee is scheming to have incumbent MP Ben Abdallah Banda go unopposed.
But addressing a press conference on Monday, June 8, General Secretary John Boadu said all those delegates stand suspended.
He said the party will not countenance such behaviour and the necessary sanctions will apply.
The primaries are scheduled to be held on Saturday, June 20 across the country but only in constituencies where the NPP has sitting MPs.
Member of Parliament (MP) of the Fomena Constituency, Hon. Andrews Amoako Asiamah, who entered the legislature on the ticket of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) in 2016 would stand for a second term as an Independent Candidate, Mynewsgh.com has confirmed. This comes only two weeks to the party’s Parliamentary Primaries which have been scheduled for Saturday, June 20 in all 168 constituencies where the party has sitting Members of Parliament.
The first-term legislator did not file to contest in the upcoming primaries, 2nd National Vice Chairman of the NPP, F.F. Antoh said in an interview monitored by mynewsgh.com. “I have heard he is going independent but I can tell him that is not going to help him; by this he has automatically evicted himself from the party”, he said.
Mynewsgh.com can confirm that the independent candidacy campaign of Hon. Andrews Amoako Asiamah has begun in earnest with his posters splashed at vantage points across the constituency and on vehicles that personally belong to him. A robust campaign team has also been instituted and has already hit the ground running.
There have been infighting within the rank and file of the NPP in The Fomena Constituency since Lawyer Amoako Asiamah became the MP in 2017; a dispute over the constituency album has been at the centre of the feud, with the MP and his followers on one side and the Constituency Chairman, Akwasi Anti Asamoah and his executives on the other side.
MyNewsGh.com reported in February that, Chairman of the NPP in the Fomena Constituency, Akwasi Anti Asamoah would stop at nothing to see Andrews Asiamah defeated at the primaries and if it means paying threefold to buy the votes, he “is prepared”.
“This MP is very dumb; I swear to God that, I will resign from the chairmanship if he is able to get 40 votes out of the 300 at the primaries; if he tries to influence the delegates with money, then I’m ready to pay GHC15,000 if he gives them GHC5000”.
He made the pronouncement when an aspiring candidate, Philip Ofori Asante had gone to submit his nomination form.
“It will be in his best interest not to contest; I will not be contesting, but if he will use money to induce the delegates, then if he says he will pay GHC 5000, I’m ready to pay GHC 15000 to each person; but I know the delegates don’t vote on how much money they receive from an aspirant because they are educated and responsible”, a charged Anti told the press.
Barring any changes, Philip Ofori Asante would be candidate of the NPP in Fomena for the 2020 elections.
Some delegate of the governing New Patriotic Party, (NPP) in Nsuta Kwamang Beposo constituency of the Ashanti region have rejected alleged bribe money amounting to one thousand Ghana Cedis (GHc. 1,000.00), a mobile phone and GTP cloth. The items were given to delegates by Adelaide Yaa Ntim one of the parliamentary aspirants seeking to unseat the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency Kwame Asafo Agyei.
The delegates after accepting the gifts and lorry fare didn’t know that there were additional conditions attached as they were forced to swear with the dreaded Antoa Nyamaa deity. Delegates who spoke to Ultimate FM’s Isaac Bediako said, they were invited by Adelaide Yaa Agyeiwaa Ntim whom they thought was fair-minded but later suspected she was into juju and hence do not want anything to do with her money.
Yaw Poku alleged, Nana Nkansah Boadu, Agric Nzemaahene one of the ‘powerful chiefs’ in Kumasi who doubles as Ashanti Regional NPP Disciplinary Committee Chairman was supervising the meeting and tried convincing him and others to vote for Madam Ntim. However, Nana Yaw Osei, a delegate who was bold to refuse the money said, he was not ready to swear by the deity, “I am an honest and principled man, nobody can force me to make decisions against my will.”
The aspirant Adelaide Yaa Agyeiwaa Ntim denied forcing the delegates to swear by Antoa Nyamaa deity before taken the money, clarifying that it was just a lorry fare. She added that she is ready to give more to support the other 530 delegates in the constituency should any of the 2 other candidates give more than what she had already given to the delegates to facilitate her victory.
Yaw Poku disclosed that some concerned delegates who have already taken the items have decided to return it because of the condition attached which they are unwilling to honour during the primaries on Saturday, June, 20th 2020.
The National Communications Authority is set to begin the implementation of specific measures within the telecommunications industry to provide a level-playing field for all network operators and break the dominance of MTN Ghana in the telecommunications sector.
This is according to the Ministry of Communications.
Government says the growing control of MTN “has impacted negatively on competition and consumer choice, necessitating corrective action” though it acknowledges the investments MTN has made in their operations over the years.
It has thus directed the National Communication Authority (NCA) to enforce the provisions of the Electronic Communications (EC) Act 2008 and the National Telecommunications Policy “to address glaring disparities in market share and revenue share in the sector.”
A statement issued by the Ministry explained that, “the policy directive is motivated by evidence of a growing market imbalance and creation of a near-monopoly in the telecom sector.”
It fears this imbalance will “potentially expose the country to the dictates of the dominant operator and negatively impact on competition and choice for the consumer as well as investments within the sector.”
Instead, it wants to guarantee “proper and healthy competition” in the sector in addition to securing better pricing policy for the consumers.
Government further indicates that per Industry Statistics released from the Statistical Bulletin – Quarter 4, 2019 of the National Communications Authority (NCA), MTN has almost 75% of telecommunications market share.
A trend which MTN has shown over a three (3) year period and into the first quarter of 2020.
This it believes “clearly shows an uncompetitive and unprofitable environment for less dominant players in these industries” though the statistics are impressive and showing growth within the telecommunications and financial sectors.
Per the National Telecommunications Policy (NTP), “any operator with 40% or more market share in voice, data, SMS and value added services like Mobile Money, is considered a Significant Market Power (SMP). And MTN falls within that category.”
“With this designation of SMP, the Regulator is required to take corrective measures under the law to facilitate more market competition, ensure proper pricing for consumers and facilitate the overall growth of the telecommunications industry,” the statement explained.
To correct the imbalance, government is immediately putting in place an Asymmetrical Interconnect rate in favour of the disadvantaged operators.
It will also put a floor or ceiling pricing on all minutes, data, SMS, Mobile Money and review and approve all pricing by the SMP as required by law.
Additionally, it will require the SMP to not have differential prices for on-net and off-net transactions and ensure various operator vendors are not subject to exclusionary pricing or behaviour.
Ghana may breach the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) protocol on elections, if it goes ahead to procure new voters register under a new law less than six months to the December 7, 2020 elections, according to conflict resolution and peacebuilding expert, Mr Emmanuel Habuka Bombande.
Explaining, Mr Bombande made a specific reference to the protocol on democracy and good governance.
This is the supplementary protocol to the main ECOWAS mechanism for conflict resolution, peacekeeping and security.
It basically underscores that no new substantial modification shall be made to the electoral laws in the last six months before elections, except with the consent of a majority of political actors.
Speaking in a radio interview with Accra based Class FM, which was monitored by Graphic Online last Thursday, Mr Bombande noted that because it was less than six months to elections [December 7, 2020], and “because there is no consent from the other political actors, to now go ahead and allow a Constitutional Instrument (C.I.) to mature into law, whereas it would be the legal procedure in our laws, it will be a violation of the [ECOWAS] treaty that we [Ghanaians] are bound by.”
The comments of the former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration in the President John Dramani Mahama’s administration followed an earlier comment he wrote and published on Facebook on June 3, 2020, on the issue.
“Keep in mind, we [Ghana] are a key member of the ECOWAS community and so the implications then would be huge in terms of not only what reverberates in our country but also across the region,” he said in the Class FM radio interview.
Explanation
“The EC is asking for us to totally put aside and discard the voters register as we know it up to now, and re-configure completely a new voters register, which then will have serious consequences on the voting that will happen on 7th December because, some people might not be able to vote on the principle that they were not able to register and the reason for that will be because, they either don’t have a Ghana Card, or they don’t have a passport.”
“Now even without a petition, ECOWAS, I believe will remind Ghana, that you cannot do what you are proposing to do, especially if the tensions continue, because there is no consent, and ECOWAS then is monitoring everyday, and begins to feel that the elections in December are likely going to have repercussions that we can describe as violent, as in the frame of prevention, which is then provided in the protocol on democracy and good governance, ECOWAS will definitely draw attention.”
“And keep in mind that before any elections there are normally what we call the advanced ECOWAS mission for monitoring of those elections but because we are in the Covid period {Coronavirus] and travel restrictions are still in place, you probably have not seen that happening yet, but it will definitely happen because, not only is it within the remit of a protocol that is being breached, but its also within the purview of where Ghana sits and stands in the ECOWAS community, because if Ghana goes down, it means it is going to be a huge setback for the entire West African sub-region,” he added.
Consent
Commenting on whether or not in relation to the consent of all political actors made reference to in the protocol, and the fact that the EC in Ghana have been consulting with all political actors on its move on the new register and that on January 10, 2020 for instance, the EC held an Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting together with an Eminent Committee it formed on the issue, Mr Bombande argued that at that meeting, it was not made clear that the existing voter ID would be excluded as a source document for the new register.
When he was also prompted that at that meeting a majority of members from that meeting agreed on the need for a new voters register and pointed to the number of 13 political parties being, a majority supporting the new register, Mr Bombande said:
“Let me not go into the discussions about the credentials of the political parties referred to because that will be politics. I want us to stay above politics.”
“At the meeting you referred to, the EC did not indicate to this Eminent Advisory Committee that the voters register as we have it now would be excluded as a major document of identity if a new voters register were to commence.”
“So the principle of agreeing to a voters register at that time, did not also tell the people of Ghana that, your voters register, which you have, and I’m talking about the voters registration card, will become an illegal document by the time that the registration starts and that for me, marks of insincerity.”
“And that is why we have to move out of this type of acrimony and suspicion that includes the type of misleading processes, hopefully with the view that we can arrive at solving problems… people now have become concerned that we are not transparent enough and we are not capable of building the consensus on the basis of the principles of integrity.
“So if I were to make that summary, once the issue of the documents of identification emerge, we should have then gone back to build consensus on how that means in terms of Ghanaians who are entitled, keep in mind, the political and civil rights to vote, is a human right, so that if now we are preparing to start the voters register, and the consequence of the documents that will be used to register to vote will now disenfranchise, and we are not prepared to talk about it and find a common resolution based on principle, then it reinforces why the ECOWAS protocol in the first place was a very important treaty so that we are able to prevent conflicts from happening.”
“That, we do not have a situation in which towards the end of preparations for an election, we begin to see new elements that inform the preparation that will not be commensurate with the agreed principles that we [Ghana] are part of and we are a key contributor that now violates peoples basic rights and now becomes in my view dangerous ground, that could now impact negatively on the credibility and the peacefulness of an election.”
Below is a copy of Mr Bombande’s full facebook post
Is it not sad, Ghana has to make a decision on the crucial laws that should guide elections in 2020, not through our best practice of consensus building first, before legitimisation in Parliament, but this time, through a vote on the basis of a winner, the majority, and the loser the minority?
There are serious implications for such an outcome.
1. While the CI (law) in question will make legal the rules for the conduct of the elections, it will equally violate the ECOWAS Protocol A/SP1/12/01 On Democracy and Good Governance. This Protocol states under Elections in Section II, Article 2 (1). “No substantial modification shall be made to the electoral laws in the last six (6) months before the elections, except with the consent of a majority of political actors.” It is already less than six months before the elections on 7th December.
If on the basis of division through voting, the CI is passed and allowed to mature in June, first it would have violated the six months threshold. It would violate a treaty we are bound by. It is instructive that because the CI will allow for an entire new Voter’s Register, it is substantive. Because the CI was passed through voting, there would be no consent of a majority of political actors. It should be noted here that political actors does not refer to Politicians. It is the understanding of all the actors whose consent enhances good governance. This includes the Traditional Chiefs, CSOs, Women Organisations, Academia, Labour Unions etc. All these actors are calling for consensus on the law that governs the elections, not a split in Parliament of a winner and a loser on how the law is passed.
2. Ghana is a key member of the ECOWAS Community. The Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance is supplementary to the Protocol Relating to the Mechanism For Conflict Prevention, Management, Resolution, Peacekeeping and Security. Both Protocols emerged out of bitter experiences of ravaging wars in West Africa beginning with the Liberian Civil War that spread to Sierra Leone. Guinea was on the brink at a point.
Then was the case of Guinea Bissau, later on Cote d’Ivoire and much later a turbulent political transition in Burkina Faso. Out of these experiences, Ghana was a leader in how we must act collectively to prevent bloodletting and wars. Under the stewardship of President Rawlings, Ghana led the ECOMOG Mission to Liberia with a Ghanaian as first ECOMOG Commander. The Protocol referred to as the “Mechanism” was signed in 1999. The Supplementary Protocol was signed in 2001 when it was the turn of President Kufour. As Chair of ECOWAS, President Kufour presided over the Accra Talks that ended the Liberia Civil War. President Mahama as Chair of ECOWAS mediated the first phase of political crisis in Togo before elections in 2015. He later Mediated in the political transition in the Gambia with his colleague Heads of State, Presidents Buhari, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, and Koroma. President Nana Akufo Addo Mediated the second phase of the Togolese crisis before elections. All this is to say, we were /have been well placed in such Mediation and Leadership roles because Ghana has always been a reference. Our elections have been competitive but the rules governing each election was built on consensus. the outside world admired Ghana for this. Elections outcomes were therefore acceptable because the rules of the game was fair to all political parties. In the political competition, fairness in the game is the golden rule. In the way and manner this CI will mature in a divisive and polarised manner, it could be the beginning of Ghana losing that prestige and convening role as Mediator in West Africa.
3. When we are confronted as we are now; the EC supported by the Ruling Party argue that the Voter’s Register is not credible and on the other hand, Opposition parties and CSOs say the Voter’s Register is credible, you do not solve such impasse through the passage of the Law (CI) in Parliament. You dialogue over the impasse and build consensus before you pass a law based on the consensus built. If such dialogue were allowed and convened, the Ghanaian creativity of problem solving together would have prevailed. That is the spirit of Ghanaians looking out for one another. I cannot make the detailed reference here. I have been part of a high level mediation with similar impasse in a Country over a Voter’s Register. Through dialogue, all sides of the political divide in that Country together with their CSOs, EC, Chiefs etc. agreed for an independent auditing of their Voters Register with the prior agreement that they will accept the audited report. The Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF) put together Experts who verified and audited the Voter’s Register. The verification report was accepted by all . The Country went on to organise a very peaceful election. In our current context, one side says the register is not credible and that is it. There is no discussion. This is dangerous and not a good development. As it stands, the maturity of the CI in parliament could be or begin to be the slippery road downhill of our revered democracy.
4. We understood at first hand how conflicts can be devastating not only to those who fought it but an entire region. The collective resolve of all the 15 countries to prevent such armed conflicts and chaos informed our Protocols that I have referred to earlier. These protocols are binding treaties. When we sign a treaty we are obligated to it. It is binding. We cannot for partisan political interest in Ghana, violate a treaty that has been a collective effort and that has worked so far to prevent conflicts. Our very Honourable Members of Parliament who will vote a CI without the consent of the other Parties would be guilty of a treaty violation. They will no longer have the moral right to sit in the ECOWAS Parliament that is the institution through which we are bound by treaties. Ghana will lose its legitimacy to be a good Mediator because we will not be different from those we go to help who find it difficult to build internal consensus.
In an election in which the political environment is highly polarised with unbridled partisanship, we do not make it worse with a law that deepens the divide.
Finally, the global appeal from the top leadership of the UN and across board is simple; it is compelling that as part of the response to COVID-19, all countries in the World organising elections should build and seek consensus in the conduct of the elections. We in Ghana seem not to care or heed to this appeal
Nollywood actor, Somadina Adinma, recently became a topic of discussion after his alleged ex-girlfriend Regina Daniels got married to a much older billionaire, Ned Nwoko.
Well, it seems Soma is also now in a new relationship. According to reports, the handsome actor is now dating a lady named Ebube Nwagbo, who happens to be a an actress .
Recently, Ebube Nwagbo got Somadina Adinma, drooling over photos she’s shared on social media.
The actress shared the breathtaking photos of herself showing her donning a short black stretch that revealed her toned body and hot legs.
Known for having eyes for beautiful things, Somadina couldn’t resist the beauty of Ebube as she looked too hot for any man to handle.
He moved to the comment section to write: “Picture Perfect ” with love emoji at the end.
Government has approved an increase in the Research allowance of University Teachers from GHc 500 to GHc1,500.
According to Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh, the Minister for Education, the University Teachers have seen a 200% increment in their Research Allowances under the Akuffo-NPP leadership.
The Minister disclosed this in his address to the Press on Tuesday, June 2, on measures outlined by his ministry towards the reopening of schools for final year students.
President Akuffo Addo has announced resumption dates for Final year students in the various tertiary institutions in the country.
The President made this revelation on Sunday, May 31, 2020, during his tenth state address on the update of events concerning COVID-19 pandemic.
University Students
According to the president, final year university students are to report to their universities on 15th June 2020 to continue with their Academic works including examinations.
He added, that University lectures will take place with half the class size in respect of the COVID-19 social distancing protocols.
Training Institutions
The president further indicated, that all final year students of educational and training institutions, which are being managed by Ministries other than the Education Ministry, are to return to school on 15th June to complete their exit examinations.
The question as to whether the Electoral Commission of Ghana will be able to deliver a credible electoral roll before the December 7 general elections has become a topical issue for discussion among Ghanaians across the globe.
Many Ghanaians doubted the electoral processes of the Electoral Commission ahead of the December polls where some people are hopeful that the EC will successfully compile a new voter register for credible elections.
Another controversial issue has to do with the eligibility requirement for the new voter’s register and acquiring a the voter ID card. The Electoral Commission earlier outlined some eligibility criteria for getting oneself onto the new voter’s register which include;
one must be a Ghanaian.
one must be 18 years and above and of sound mind.
One must present a passport or Ghana card as a proof of identification or
present two guarantors who have already registered.
The eligibility requirements published by the Electoral Commission exclude the birth certificate and the old voter’s ID card for the compilation of the new voter’s register.
The exclusion of the birth certificate and the old voter’s register is a worrying situation to many Ghanaian making the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) among others to petition the EC on their basis for eliminating such key documents from the exercise.
You will also recall that the Supreme Court presided over by the Chief Justice, Justice Anin Yeboah has requested from the Electoral Commission to provide the legal basis why it has refused to accept the existing voter’s ID card as a form of identification in the upcoming voter’s registration exercise.
Responding to questions and clarifying issues on the EC’s electoral processes ahead of the December 7 elections on TV3 during THE KEY POINT monitored by Coverghana.com.gh, the Director of Elections of EC Dr Serebour Quaicoe said, the birth certificate has never been used as an eligibility requirement for registration and acquisition of a voter’s ID card. He added that even the birth certificate is not considered the sole requirement for acquiring a passport.
According to him, the Electoral Commission led by “Mrs Jean Mensa has not removed the Birth Certificate from the eligibility requirements for new voter’s register. The fact is that the Birth Certificate has never been used as an eligibility requirement for new voter’s register. The claims that EC has removed the Birth Certificate is not properly explained by many. ” He augured.
He, therefore, dares anyone with evidence to provide an instance where the birth certificate has be used as an eligibility requirement for a new voter’s register in Ghana.
Following the outbreak of the worldwide novel Coronavirus pandemic, many countries have been strongly affected leading to the closure of borders.
In Ghana, there have been numerous suggestions made by Ghanaians, civil society organizations, think tanks including the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) to evacuate Ghanaian national leaving abroad to Ghana.
The proposals, according to some individuals including members of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) have been described as needless and may be dangerous, since it may escalate the Coronavirua pandemic on the basis of World Health Organization (WHO) protocols.
Meanwhile, other countries like Italy, USA and others have earlier evacuated their nationals from China at the beginning of the outbreak.
You will also recall that the government of Kuwait has deported two hundred and five (245) Ghanaians on 23rd May 2020 who are illegally living in Kuwait back to the Republic of Ghana despite the President’s directive to close all borders.
In the latest development, the Ranking Member on Foreign Affairs who is currently the Member of Parliament for North Tongu Tongu Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has disclosed a list of Ghanaians who are stranded abroad and wish to return home. The list he revealed includes eight (8) countries.
According to the list, about two thousand, four hundred and twenty-three (2,423) Ghanaians were shortlisted to be in urgent need for assistance.
Mr. Ablakwa also said, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is currently collecting data on stranded Ghanaians in Nigeria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, South Africa, Spain, Netherlands, Niger, Norway, Kenya, Ethiopia and Switzerland
Read below, his post disclosing the information.
The number of stranded Ghanaians seeking to return home and having made contact with our diplomatic missions abroad per data made available to Parliament by Ghana’s Foreign Minister:
China: 675
USA: 634
UAE: 500
UK: 435
Benin: 141 (language students)
Mauritania: 19
Burkina Faso: 14
Turks and Caicos: 5
This comes up to 2,423 Ghanaians in urgent need of assistance.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Minister indicates that data gathering and arrangements continue for stranded Ghanaians in Nigeria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, South Africa, Spain, Netherlands, Niger, Norway, Kenya, Ethiopia and Switzerland.
Quite obviously, a significant number of our compatriots out there are in dire need of our support and solidarity. Some of the emails and video footage are really heartbreaking.
Let’s remember them and their dependents in our prayers. Their lives also matter.
