RETIRED TEACHERS ADVISED TO FORM GUILDS (PAGE 11, DEC 23)

THE Brong Ahafo Regional Secretary of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Mr Kwaku Asante Nketiah, has advised retired teachers in the various districts to come together and form “Retired Teachers Guilds” to serve as a medium for socialisation.
He observed that when some teachers went on retirement, they became miserable, a situation that, he said, caused their untimely and avoidable deaths.
However, he pointed out that if retired teachers could group themselves and organise periodic meetings and entertainment sessions, health matters and other educational programmes, they could forget about their problems and live longer.
Mr Nketiah gave the advice at an end-of-year get-together of the Sunyani Municipal Retired Teachers Guild, pointing out that with such a grouping in place, the members could come to the aid of a member who had a problem.
“It is in this vein that I decided to nurture the idea of bringing together all retired teachers, including former regional and district directors of education, education officers and other category of teachers’, to form the guild in the municipality,” he disclosed.
From a humble beginning of 12, he said, the guild could now boast 132 members, who met every month, paid monthly dues and discussed matters of mutual interest, adding that the association had been duly registered and was governed by a constitution.
He said the guild invited experts on health, who talked to members on important topics such as Hepatitis B, Diabetes and cancer, while the police also briefed them on crime and its prevention.
Mr Nketiah said since its formation, bereaved members had been assisted to organise befitting funerals for their departed family members, saying that when members met annually to wine and dine, they felt enthused about their meeting and hearty as they shared jokes and their retirement experiences.
He noted with satisfaction that the teaching profession was a noble one and a lucrative venture, saying that, “even Jesus was a teacher and so we are blessed as teachers and that is why teachers live long, even during their retirement”.
According to Mr Nketiah, because young people of today wanted to be rich overnight, they refused to enter the teaching profession, but rather opted for other job areas, forgetting that it was the teacher who taught them to achieve whatever position they now held.
He urged members of the guild to attend meetings regularly so that they could continue to share ideas and even discuss matters of national concern.
On the decision by the government to revert the duration of the senior high school from four years to three years, the Regional GNAT Secretary said it had always been the position of GNAT that students spend four years for their second cycle education since the three-year duration was not enough.
He, however, pointed out that since the government was the policy maker, it deemed it fit to choose three years, “so the government should ensure that materials, logistics and the needed infrastructure were provided for the smooth running of the three-year programme”.
He said a critical analysis would show that students did not spend exactly three years for the SHS course, and explained that they normally reported late October and wrote their examinations in April, stressing further that such a situation had given rise to extra classes to further burden parents and guardians.
According to him, education did not only mean teaching and learning but “it is also spiced with co-curricula activities which are also relevant. Therefore, the three-year period is not enough for senior high education”.

CHELSEA, ADUANA DRAW (BACK PAGE, DEC 21)

The Glo Premier League encounter between local Bechem Chelsea and Aduana FC failed to produce a goal at the Sunyani Coronation Park yesterday.
Both sides played rather cautiously right from kick-off in a bid to prevent their opponent from catching them on the wrong foot and were therefore less adventurous in attack in the first half.
The pattern continued after recess with Chelsea lifting their game slightly but a determined Aduana FC managed to hold their own to win a valuable away point.

SUNYANI POLICE ARREST SUSPECTED HEMP DEALERS (PAGE 15 DEC 19)

THIRTEEN persons were on Thursday arrested by the police in a dawn swoop at Bethel, a suburb of Sunyani, for allegedly possessing dried leaves suspected to be Indian Hemp.
Four of them, described as key suspects, were named as Kwadwo Moaba, Lucy Amisangah, Francis Eklu and Kwabena Tawiah. The names of the nine others are, however, being withheld.
Moaba, unemployed, who was first arrested with a quantity of the dried leaves, named Lucy as his source of supply and led the police to her house at Sunyani Zongo, where a search by the police uncovered eight bags of the dried substances in a corridor.
A press release signed by Chief Inspector Yaw Nketia-Yeboah, the Regional Police Public Affairs Officer, said police personnel drawn from Berekum, Sunyani and Wenchi Divisions who were led by the Regional Crime Officer, Superintendent Charles Domanban, successfully undertook the swoop.
The release said the Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Seth Charles Oteng, commended them for the success of the assignment which did not result in any injury and assured the general public that the exercise would be sustained in the region to apprehend criminals.
It said the commander also appealed to the public to volunteer information about suspected criminals to the police and gave the assurance that the police would not expose those informants.

STOP PLAYING POLITICS WITH EDUCATION ...Ghanaians advised (PAGE 11, DEC 18)

THE Rector of the Sunyani Polytechnic (S-Poly), Professor Kwasi Nsiah-Gyabaah, has advised Ghanaians to desist from playing politics with education in the country, since it is key to the socio-economic development of every nation.
“If for political expediency, wrong decisions are taken on education, all sectors of the economy suffer,” he maintained.
He questioned why we should waste time and resources to debate the duration of the senior high school (SHS) system instead of finding strategies to adequately finance science-based education to reduce poverty and promote industrial transformation and the socio-economic development of the country.
Prof. Nsiah-Gyabaah gave the advice when he presented his report at the 4th Congregation of S-Poly, during which a total of 635 students who undertook various programmes received their respective Higher National Diplomas (HND), with Miss Esther Owusuwaa Deborah of the Electronics/Electrical Department emerging the overall best student.
The rector also sought to find out why the universities and polytechnics should be blamed for running business and arts-related programmes when the JHS and SHSs were non-science based.
He again declared, “If we do not pay attention to Science and technology education at the basic and secondary levels, we should forget about the rhetoric of achieving a middle-income status by 2015 or even a decade after.”
Furthermore, the rector pointed out that there was the need to focus on technical/vocational education and provide adequate resources to improve the practical content of technical education or else the resources of the country, including the oil finds, would be run by foreign technicians who he said came into the country as experts and repatriated their money to their countries of origin.
Prof. Nsiah-Gyabaah suggested that in a country beset with the challenge of high graduate un-employment, small business credit assistance was one thing which would help the graduates from polytechnics to start their own businesses.
The rector also pointed out that since the formal sector was not expanding enough to employ the young graduates, the government ought to set up what he termed a Small Business Administration (SBA) agency to help young entrepreneurs from the polytechnics to start their own enterprises.
He announced that S-Poly was not only involved in teaching but was also building capacities for applied science research and development, adding that the polytechnic had an Assurance Unit and a Research Department to improve quality of teaching and promote applied science and technology research.
“Our biggest achievement in this area is a two-million Canadian Dollar collaborative research grant provided by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Canada, which we won through hard work,” the rector stressed
In an address read on his behalf, the Minister of Education, Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, noted with satisfaction that from a very humble beginning, S-poly was now developing a number of programmes in science and technology, in line with the government’s policy of emphasising those areas of study, as well as technical/vocational education and training (TVET).
He said apart from providing full-time course in the field of manufacturing, commerce, science and technology at the tertiary level, polytechnics were expected to provide opportunities for development, research and publication of research findings.
Nana (Dr) Justice Owusu-Ansah, the Chairman of S-poly Council, in his welcoming address, pointed out that the poor salaries and unattractive conditions of service for staff, had been a big challenge for the polytechnics, and suggested that improvement in the salaries and conditions of service would enable the polytechnics to recruit and retain qualified and seasoned staff for the demanding tasks ahead.
He observed that it was disheartening that each year most of the polytechnic staff left to take up appointments in the universities and other analogous institutions due to the unattractive conditions of service in the polytechnics.

BRONG AHAFO GJA CONDEMNS ATTACK (SPREAD, DEC 15)

The Brong Ahafo Regional branch of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has condemned the attack on some of its members by persons believed to be supporters of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) during the Golden Jubilee Awards Ceremony to climax the Brong Ahafo@50 celebrations in Sunyani last Saturday.
The association has also resolved to boycott all official functions of the RCC, the municipal and district assemblies, as well as the NDC, until the culprits are arrested and brought to book.
A press release signed by the Regional Chairman of the GJA, Mr Ian Motey, and the Secretary, Mr Larry Paa Kwesi Moses, and issued in Sunyani yesterday, pointed out that the assault on Messrs Dennis Peprah, a reporter of the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Sunyani, Paa Kwesi, the Regional Correspondent of TV Africa, Michael Boateng, the Regional Correspondent of the Ghanaian Chronicle, Akwasi Ampratwum-Mensah, the Regional Correspondent of the Daily Graphic, and Motey was “unwarranted and should be condemned in no uncertain terms”.
According to the release, the GJA’s own investigations had revealed that the assault happened in the full glare of ex-President Flt Lt. J. J. Rawlings, who is also the founder of the NDC; a Member of the Council of State, Mrs Cecilia Johnson, ministers of state, as well as some municipal and district chief executives in the region.
The release pointed out that the GJA had identified some of the culprits, including drivers of some of the cheif executives, but said for security reasons it wanted to withhold those names.
It alleged that the attackers snatched two mobile phones and a wristwatch from Messrs Ampratwum-Mensah and Paa Kwesi while the wallet of Mr Peprah and a reporter’s notebook were forcibly taken from Mr Motey.

BA HONOURS CITIZENS, OTHERS (SPREAD, NOV 14)

Former President J.J. Rawlings has called on Ghanaians to support President J. E. A. Mills in his quest to deliver on his electoral promises.
He said President Mills had good intentions for the country but achieving them would demand the support of the entire citizenry.
Former President Rawlings made the call at the Golden Jubilee awards ceremony organised by the Brong Ahafo Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC) in Sunyani on Saturday to honour citizens of the region for their immense contribution towards the development of the region.
The ceremony, which climaxed activities marking the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Brong Ahafo Region, was attended by a large number of people.
Former President Rawlings, who was the guest of honour, stated that his criticism of President Mills should not be misconstrued as an attempt to wash the NDC's dirty linen in public. Rather, it should be seen as a self assessment to enable the President to deliver to the expectation of Ghanaians.
In all, 104 individuals and corporate institutions were honoured at the ceremony for their meritorious services to the Brong Ahafo Region.
Prominent among the awardees were former President Rawlings; Mr Ernest Apraku, the Managing Director of Asuo Bosomadu Timbers and Sawmills Limited; Nana Kwasi Gyau Gyan, aka Agyemang Gyau; Mr Maxwell Oti Yeboah, the Managing Director of Oti Yeboa Complex Limited; the late Catholic Bishop of Sunyani, the Rt Revd James Owusu; Mr James Baah, Senior Photographer, Graphic Communications Group Limited, Sunyani, and Mr Kwame Asare Boadu, the Ashanti Regional Editor of the Daily Graphic.
Others were the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Alhaji Collins Dauda; the Minister of Chieftaincy and Culture, Mr Alex Asum Ahensan; Mrs Cecilia Johnson, a member of the Council of State, and the Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, Mr Kwadwo Nyamekye-Marfo.
The ceremony was chaired by Pemampem Yaw Kagbrese, the Yejihene and Vice-President of the Brong Ahafo Regional House of Chiefs.

JOURNALISTS ASSAULTED IN SUNYANI (PAGE 47, DEC 14)

A REPORTER at the Sunyani Office of the Ghana News Agency (GNA), Mr Denis Peprah, was last Saturday assaulted by some unidentified people during the Golden Jubilee awards ceremony in Sunyani.
The ceremony was organised by the Brong Ahafo Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC) to honour individual citizens from the region for their immense contributions towards the development of Brong Ahafo.
The Brong Ahafo Regional Chairman of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mr Ian Motey of the Ghanaian Times; Messrs Akwasi Ampratwum-Mensah, the Regional Correspondent of the Daily Graphic; Michael Boateng, the Regional Correspondent of the Ghanaian Chronicle, and Larry Paa Kwesi Moses, the Regional Correspondent of TV Africa, who attempted to cool down tempers in the confusion that broke out at the end of the ceremony, were also manhandled.
In the resultant commotion, Messrs Ampratwum-Mensah and Moses lost their mobile phones and wristwatches, while Peprah and Motey lost their wallets and reporters' notebooks.
According to some female journalists and Mr Boateng, who were seated with Mr Peprah at the function, a young man whose identity could not be established allegedly carried Mr Peprah from his seat and dropped him to the ground.
He then allegedly started stepping on Peprah’s belly while some women also assaulted him.
They said in the course of an address by former President J.J. Rawlings, the Regional Cameraman of Ghana Television, Mr David Agbezuge, picked his microphone for an interview with some of the recipients of the awards.
According to an eyewitness, former President Rawlings questioned whether Mr Agbezuge was afraid of his frank statements.
The eyewitness said some women who were seated nearby added their voice to that of former President Rawlings and told the reporters to write and publish the words of the former President accurately.
According to the eyewitness, one female journalist questioned whether the women were better placed to report the event.
Suddenly, the young man came around to carry Mr Peprah and dropped him to the ground, a situation which paved the way for some angry women to pounce on him.
But for the timely intervention of the security personnel around, Mr Peprah could have been lynched.
According to the eyewitness, while a taxicab, with registration number BA 944 Q, was trying to whisk away Mr Peprah to the Sunyani Municipal Police Station, the irate mob repeatedly banged on the roof of the taxi and in the process damaged the left side glass of the cab.
The eyewitness said when Mr Peprah was being escorted to safety by the police, some colleague journalists who were seated somewhere else saw him and quickly went to find out what had happened.
He said in the event, the angry mob, who were still bent on punishing Mr Peprah, vented their spleen on the those reporters.

TWIN SISTERS GRANTED BAIL (PAGE 27, MIRROR, DEC 12)

From Akwasi Ampratwum-Mensah, Sunyani

THE Sunyani Magistrate Court A in the Brong Ahafo Region, has granted bail in the sum of GH¢3,000 with two sureties each to be justified to the twin-sisters, Patricia Konadu, alias Ataa Panin and Ataa Kakra, both 25, who were alleged to have severely beaten Mr Yaw Boadan, alias Ata Kuma, the husband of Ataa Panin, resulting in his death at Nsoatre in the Sunyani West District.
The court, presided over by Mr Frank Yaw Gbeddy, has still not taken the plea of the accused persons, who have been charged on two counts of conspiracy to commit murder and murder, contrary to Sections 23 and 46 of Act 29 of 1960 of the criminal code.
In granting the bail, Mr Gbeddy took into consideration an interim autopsy report, which indicated that, the deceased took in some chemical substance and the fact that both accused persons were nursing mothers and the children should not suffer while their mothers were in prison custody.
The court also said, it was waiting for the outcome of an examination of certain organs of the deceased which had been sent to Accra as well as the final autopsy report from the Regional Hospital, Sunyani, before any further action is taken. The accused are to reappear on December 21, 2009.
However, at the time of filing this report, the accused had still not been able to meet the bail term and so were in custody.
The fact of the case as presented by the prosecution were that, the twin sisters and the deceased lived at Nsoatre and that, the first accused person was married to the 42-year-old Boadan who is also a twin, and has a one-and-a-half-year-old boy while Ataa Kakra also has two male twins.
The prosecutor, Chief Inspector Baafi indicated that, on Friday, November 12, 2009, the deceased went to his wife’s house and while there a misunderstanding ensued between them, forcing him to leave for his own house.
The prosecutor indicated that, not quite long after the deceased had left, Ataa Panin rushed to his house with a drink to end the marriage, and that after presenting it, she returned to her house.
He said, the husband who was not happy about the dissolution of the marriage returned to his wife’s house to seek reconciliation and alleged that, the first accused not happy with the presence of her husband, called her twin sister and the two then subjected him to severe beating.
The prosecutor said since the police strongly believed that Boadan died as a result of the assault by the twins, the prosecution would pray the court to remand them into custody to enable the police to conduct thorough investigations into the case.
The Mirror in its November 21, 2009 edition reported that twin sisters have been remanded in prison custody by the Sunyani Magistrate Court for allegedly beating a farmer, the husband of one of the twins to death.