We shouldn’t be surprised by the chaos in the Netherlands
Conspiracy-fuelled riots sizzle on the streets of Amsterdam and Rotterdam and the Dutch cabinet has collapsed in a racist child benefit scandal. We are the last country in Europe to start vaccinating and have the second highest wealth inequality in the rich world. Our print media is owned by just two corporations and we are performing worse on climate change than our European neighbours. My adopted home likes to present itself as the prefect of Europe. But in reality, the Netherlands is a mess. Yet polls say that the shambolic ruling party, the Liberal Party (VVD), is set to gain seats in the national election on 17 March. Its leader, prime minister Mark Rutte will likely lead his fourth consecutive cabinet and his nearest rival, Geert Wilders, who wants to ban the Koran and deport Muslims, is also set to gain seats. I first moved to Amsterdam from the UK in 2004, and have lived here on and off with my Dutch partner ever since. I’ve often wondered “wtf is going on in this country?” With the election looming, I decided to find out. Netherlands in Revolt In January, violent riots broke out across the country. Instigated by fascists, conspiracy theorists and football hooligans, the early protests also included many people – including a friend of ours – who weren’t necessarily on the ultra Right, but who strongly objected to the first night-time curfew – an anti-COVID measure – since the Nazi occupation of the Second World War. Later on, in some areas, young people of Turkish descent also came out on the streets and caused damage. Though both extreme Right parties – Geert Wilders’ Party for Freedom (PVV) and Thierry Baudet’s Forum for Democracy (FvD) – have been criticised for initially spurring the riots on, both later blamed the violence on Turkish youths and ‘mass immigration’, and Wilders even called for the army to be brought in. Football hooligans who had been rioting earlier then came out to ‘protect their cities’ from other rioters. In some cities, police reportedly got these hooligans to help them (a claim that the police later denied, despite a local mayor saying he was ‘proud’ of the fans’ support). The idea that the riots were an immigrant problem was repeated by the media, and stuck. My partner, Erik, and I had been spending the winter in the countryside in the province of North Brabant, where much of the destruction took place. In a conversation between Erik and our landlord there, the landlord – a teacher in further education – said “luckily there aren’t any foreigners walking around here. Oh, except for Laura.” What is happening is what always happens in this country, we don’t talk about it. If we don’t talk about it, it does not exist Eerily, though the riots broke out only weeks ago, it already feels like they never happened. For Sylvana Simons, a former MTV presenter who is now the leader of the upstart anti-racist party, Bij1, which hopes to gain its first seats next week, this is a peculiar trait of the Netherlands. “What is happening is what always happens in this country, we don’t talk about it. If we don’t talk about it, it does not exist,” says Simons. This has led to crisis after crisis rumbling on unresolved for years. Intensive farming is producing dangerous nitrogen levels. Gas drilling by Shell and Exxon Mobil is triggering hundreds of earthquakes, wrecking homes in Groningen. Thousands of people have been bankrupted by false allegations of benefit fraud. But we’ll come to that. First, to understand what’s going on, you need to understand the country’s economic and political system. Fear, hope and discontent “There are three things that motivate voters,” says political consultant Sybren Kooistra, “fear, hope and discontent. And the extreme-Right parties are the only ones mobilising discontent”. There’s good reason for discontent. Since the 1980s, healthcare has been privatised, housing and labour markets have been deregulated. The public sector has been squashed. And this accelerated after the 2008 financial crisis. Between 2011 and 2016, Rutte-led cabinets implemented austerity measures worth €47.4bn, including big cuts to public sector pay, social security and care – even though government debt was low relative to its GDP. As a result, half the population can’t find an affordable home, and homelessness doubled between 2009 and 2019 to 40,000. A million people live below the poverty line. More than 30% of workers are in precarious jobs, the third highest proportion in Europe after Poland and Spain. There are teacher shortages and public transport is rusting. More than half of intensive care beds have gone in the past ten years. Healthcare has been privatised, housing and labour markets have been deregulated. The public sector has been squashed Simons thinks that COVID-19 was treated too much like a management problem and not enough like a social problem. “[Mark Rutte] feels like he’s the CEO of… this company called the Netherlands.” This, combined with the bureaucracy of a privatised health system, a highly decentralised administration, and a government that refuses to take decisive action that might antagonise voters, helps explain the high infection rates and the fact that the Netherlands was the last country in Europe to start vaccinating. The familiar story that no-one’s heard Such tales of economic and social carnage may sound familiar if you’re British, but they are virtually unheard of in the Netherlands. Merijn Oudenampsen, an academic who researches Dutch neoliberalism, says this has to do with the country’s particular version of proportional representation, where coalitions are formed after elections. There was no controversial Margaret Thatcher figure pushing the new settlement through. “Instead, the tradition is to depoliticise matters, and to try to frame them in a way that all parties can agree with. If you’re in a political coalition and you want your plan to be approved, it’s not very smart to highlight the ideological content of the plan.” Economic decisions were positioned outside the political terrain. “So you have this very technocratic neoliberal turn, which is not discussed in public as being a radical shift. It happened without
Netherlands suspends use of AstraZeneca vaccine over life threatening effects
The Netherlands has become the latest country to suspend use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine over concerns about possible side effects. The Dutch government said the move, which will last until at least 29 March, was a precaution. The Republic of Ireland earlier made a similar decision over reports of blood clotting events in adults in Norway. But the World Health Organization says there is no link between the jab and an increased risk of developing a clot. Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
Automobile company ‘recommended’ by MOFA disappears with farmers’ big cash.
Some farmers are in life-and-death grief in the Upper East Region as an automobile company said to have been officially recommended to them by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) is believed to have fled with some large amounts of cash they deposited individually to acquire subsidized tractors and other automobiles for farming purposes. Amos Abane, one of the affected farmers, told Starr News he made a partial payment of GH¢36,200 in 2013 (8 years ago) to ADPL Auto Services for a 70-horsepower tractor valued at GH¢76,000. Then, he was assured that the tractor would be delivered in 3 months’ time as part of an agreement he had with the company. His expectations grew into uncertainties as the company failed to keep its word. Anxious, he placed a complaint call to the company soon after the promised period had elapsed; but the firm, in response to that call, rather sought to dispatch a 50-horsepower tractor to him on the excuse that the price of the 70-horsepower brand he requested had been increased generally on the market. “They said I should go for the tractor at the MOFA office in Bolgatanga. When I went there, it was a small one I met— 50 horsepower— not the 70 horsepower that I paid for. I called them again and told them the agreement was 70 horsepower and asked why they were giving me 50 horsepower without a trailer and a harrow. “I asked them how much I was supposed to pay for the small one even if I would have to accept it like that. They told me it was the same cost as the 70 horsepower because inflation had made tractor prices go up. I said the 50 horsepower could not serve the purpose. Then, they said if I wanted the 70 horsepower, the price had gone up and that I should add Gh¢15,000 to the Gh¢76,000. I paid the extra Gh¢15,000 but the tractor never came,” Abane said. He said he kept pressing for the tractor until the company finally came clean about its inability to provide the tractor and promised to return his money. Later, he received a letter from the company saying the promised refund would be made through a post-dated cheque in 6 months’ time. The cheque came through MOFA but it could not be processed when Abane took it to a branch of the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) in the Upper East regional capital, Bolgatanga. The amount that was discovered in the company’s account at the bank at the time was just a little over GH¢36, according to him. He says the company does not answer telephone calls from him anymore since then— since 20th August 2015. The company “fails” to show up at High Court Robert Ababil, another agro-businessman, suffered the same disappointment after he paid Gh¢17,500 to the same company to procure a subsidized Kia truck for a sachet water packaging business and for farming activities. Ababil also complained to the company in a telephone call about the non-delivery of the long-paid-for truck and he, too, received a post-dated cheque from the company for a refund of his money. But, as it did happen to Abane at last, he, too, had his hopes dashed after the cheque “bounced back in his face” at the ADB’s branch in Bolgatanga. The amount of money he met in the company’s account could not even help him back home on a cheap public minibus if he withdrew it at the bank. Frustrated, Ababil and Abane resorted to legal action. But they became even more depressed as the company reportedly remained evasive by failing to appear at the Bolgatanga High Court Two from the time the case began in 2015 up to a moment in 2016 that saw the two complainants suddenly decide on their own (out of increasing weariness) to stop appearing for the hearing. “What I am going through is worse than what anyone can call challenges. I was selling cement and I put all the money I had from that cement business into trying to purchase a tractor for farming. That ended it. Now, I’m out of business. The most painful part was when my children got admissions and couldn’t proceed. One of my children gained a university admission to study architecture but I could not raise money for him to join his colleagues because of what had happened to me. He is now in Kumasi working miserably as a loading boy at a lorry station. “My daughter also had admission at the Navrongo College of Education. The extended family had to sit in a meeting to mobilize money in bits before she was able to go to school. I have suffered a lot. Ababil’s business, too, as I am much aware, is suffering today because there is a limit to how far he can distribute the pure water he is selling without the Kia truck he paid so much for. He is struggling seriously,” Abane said. Telephone calls placed to the company by Starr News upon receipt of the complaints from the bankrupt farmers went unanswered. When Starr News approached authorities at the MOFA’s regional department in Bolgatanga with copies of documents bearing the MOFA stamp and detailing transactions that have left some already-poor farmers in the region rather more impoverished, the authorities said they would contact the “National Agric Engineering Directorate” on the matter and investigate the staff involved in the deal. Starr News will keep the spotlight on this subject. Starrfm Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
NDC to take further actions against Allotey Jacobs, Koku Anyidoho – Ofosu-Ampofo reveals
National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo has said the leadership of the party will heed calls from supporters to take further actions against Koku Anyidoho and Allotey Jacobs who have all been suspended from the party. In a radio interview, Mr Ofosu-Ampofo said “What I can tell our supporters is that let us ignore Koku Anyidoho and Allotey Jacobs and focus on our party. “As we speak, they have all been suspended from the party. If you wish that we take further actions against them following their action we will listen. We will go and look at exactly what has to be done to ensure sanity. “Only last week a newspaper published with the headline ‘John Mahama you are no longer leader of the NDC, hand over to Ofosu Ampofo to come and redeem the party’ which was attributed to Koku Anyidoho. “It is not Koku Anyidoho who will teach us what the NDC’s constitution says. We have a constitution and we know what the constitution says.” The Functional Executive Committee (FEC) of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) suspended Mr Koku Anyidoho who is a former Deputy General Secretary of the NDC and Allotey Jacobs, a former Central Regional Chairman of the party, with immediate effect. In the case of Mr Anyidoho, his suspension letter stated that the petitions from Oti Region’s Communications Officer, Mobarak Abdul-Karim, and Bono Region’s Deputy Communications Officer, Eric Adjei, have been referred to the Disciplinary Committee for further action. “You are therefore by this letter to take note, and notice is hereby given, that your membership of the NDC is suspended pending the hearing and final determination of the petitions against your conduct,” Mr Asiedu Nketia, who was contested against by Mr Anyidoho at NDC’s last national executive congress, stated in the letter dated Monday, February 8, 2021. Since losing the 2020 elections, Koku Anyidoho has taken to Twitter to make comments that have not gone down well with many members of the party. Regarding Mr Allotey Jacobs, his letter signed by Mr Ofosu-Ampofo, said he was suspended for “persistent anti-party conduct”. “The Functional Executive Committee (FEC) of the National Democratic Congress, acting on behalf of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party, at its meeting held on Wednesday, the 6th day of May, 2020, has suspended you forthwith as a member of the party, pursuant to articles 46(1), 46(6) and 46(8) of the party’s constitution for your persistent anti-party conduct,” the letter indicated. He has since declared that he no longer belongs to the NDC. To him if the NDC says it has suspended him, he has also “dismissed” himself from the party. 3news Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
VIDEO: New multimillion-dollar Kumasi Market flooded after 18mins rain
A heavy downpour that reportedly lasted for 18minutes maximum within the Kumasi metropolis on Sunday has exposed the poor engineering works of the Contractor who constructed the multimillion-dollar Kumasi city Market at Kejetia as it got flooded. Traders who operate in the market on Monday Morning March 15, 2021, were left stranded following the incident as their wares were soaked in water with some seen counting their losses. Some Traders who spoke to Pure FM’s Osei Kwadwo blamed the contractor and the city authorities for not doing enough to fix the flooding in the Kejetia market which is becoming a perennial situation. According to the traders, “anytime it rains, this market become flooded and it is affecting business activities in the market” “Sometimes we have to wait for 2hours before we can open our shops after a heavy downpour. The contractor and KMA have failed to address our grievances” they said. The Chairman of the Kumasi Petty Traders Association Nana Akwasi Prempeh who spoke to the media also blamed the contractor who constructed the market indicating that he has failed to fix the problem. He added that the leadership of the traders will meet today around 10am to access the damages caused by the flooding after heavy downpour and thereafter determine the next line of action. Other areas which were also flooded within the Central Business District included Adum, Roman Hill, Pampaso and Alabar. Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
Nana Aba Anamoah ‘shakes the internet’ after revealing balance on her MoMo wallet
Nana Aba Anamoah has shaken the foundation of the internet after she revealed the money left in her mobile money (popularly called MoMo) wallet shortly after she received a transfer from her goddaughter, Serwaa Amihere. We don’t know on what premise Serwaa sent the money to the eloquent broadcast journalist and boss of GHOne but it looks obvious that she was very appreciative of her gesture. The celebrated journalist however drew much attention to herself after sharing the balance she has in her wallet after the transaction. She took to her verified Twitter handle to write; “See who sent me momo this morning, @Serwaa_Amihere’s balance is close to 20K. Be nice to her and drop your numbers”. GH Base Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
KP Boateng makes fresh revelation about Black Stars
Ghana midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng feels elated to have opted to represent Ghana at international level. The Monza SC star switched nationality to represent Ghana in 2010 having played for Germany at Youth level. Boateng appeared at his first World Cup with the Black Stars in 2010 and went on to play in the 2014 edition. The 32-year-old claims he made the best decision in his life by choosing Ghana. “I don’t feel German at all, even though I was accepted in Germany. I realized that my character and my principles didn’t suit them and vice-versa. So I made the choice to play for Ghana, and it was the best decision I ever made in my life. “I wanted to go to my country, to see my people and to get to know my roots. I’m really proud of my decision” The former AC Milan and FC Barcelona player is currently serving a suspension from the Black Stars team in what was described as misconduct. Ghanasportsonline Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
Grammys 2021: Burna Boy and Wizkid win at music awards
Nigeria Afrobeats stars Burna Boy and Wizkid have both won awards at the 2021 Grammys. Burna Boy won the Best Global Music Album category while Wizkid won the Best Music Video for his song with Beyoncé; Brown Skin Girl, from Lion King: The Gift album. Beyoncé’s daughter Blue Ivy was also a winner on the song. The Best Music Video award is given to the artist, video director and video producer. Burna Boy, real name Damini Ogulu, a nominee for a second consecutive year, won with his Twice As Tall album. The 63rd Grammy Awards is being held in Los Angeles. Traditionally billed as “music’s biggest night”, this year’s ceremony is different because of the coronavirus pandemic. There is no audience, and performers have been separated onto five stages, arranged in a circle inside the Los Angeles Convention Center to maintain social distancing. Burna Boy, 29, beat four others including the Malian band, Tinariwen. The Grammys nomination described Twice As Tall as “a masterclass in the vibe and hustle that have made Burna Boy an international musical force”. “[He] continues to torch limitations, seamlessly blending styles and genres and fearlessly fuelling the fire heating the melting pot of pop, Afrobeat, dancehall, reggae and more,” it said. The album features a wide range of international artists such as Stormzy, Youssou Ndour, Naughty By Nature, and Chris Martin of Coldplay, and had Sean Combs as executive producer. Second time lucky Burna Boy was nominated in the same category in 2019 – then known as Best World Music Album – but lost out to Angelique Kidjo at the awards ceremony in 2020. However, Kidjo dedicated her win to him, saying: “Burna Boy is among those young artists that come from Africa that is changing the way our continent is perceived and the way that African music is the bedrock of all music.” Born in Nigeria’s Port Harcourt, Burna Boy released his first album, LIFE, an acronym for Leaving an Impact For Eternity, in 2013. That album was followed by the release of Redemption in 2015 and Outside in 2018 that included the international hit track, Ye. But it was with his 2019 African Giant album that Burna Boy really hit the international scene and earned his first Grammys nomination. Often compared to Nigerian superstar Fela Ransome-Kuti, whose songs Burna has sampled generously, he has become increasingly vocal about social causes in Africa. At the height of the xenophobic attacks in South Africa in 2019, he threatened to never set foot in the country again unless the government took action, although he has since performed in the country. He was also closely involved in the #EndSARS anti-police brutality protests in Nigeria last year, setting up a fund for victims and releasing a song in memory of those killed on 20 October 2020 at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos. He also recently tweeted his support for protesters in Senegal who took to the streets after the arrest of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko. BBC Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
JUST IN: Supreme Court Orders EC Boss Jane Ansah to step aside after election ruling
A Supreme Court has ordered Electoral Commission boss, Madam Jane Ansah to step aside after conducting what it says is a sham election which had the potential that lead to full blown Civil War. This comes after the Electoral Commission boss conducted an election in 2019 in which Malawi’s incumbent President Peter Mutharika was retained. The two losers, Chakwera and Chilumba petitioned a Malawian High court over the results and won. The court found the results highly fraudulent and ordered a new election be held in 150 days. President Mutharika appealed to the Supreme Court and lost. The Supreme Court upheld the lower courts decision. The Supreme Court ordered a re-run and also ordered that Mrs Jane Ansah steps aside and be barred from conducting any elections anywhere in the world as she is incompetent. In the rerun ordered by the court, opposition leader Chiluba won by a landslide Before her sacking by court order, the Malawi EC boss, madam Jane Ansah said the election she conducted was “excellent” and dared the defeated candidates to anywhere they want to challenge it. The Panel of five top judges who found the election a sham have been awarded by Chatham House for their courage and valour in ruling against the incumbent in Malawi when they declared the election a sham. For many Ghanaians who have Jean Mensa as EC boss, it will come as a surprise that the EC boss of Malawi whose election was disputed and overturned is called Jane Ansah. Jane Ansah, born 11 October 1955 was appointed to head the EC of Malawi after she served the country as a Supreme Court Judge. She is also the country’s first female Attorney General. She is married to a Ghanaian from where she got her Ansah name. MyNewsgh Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
CONFIRMED: Daniel Domelevo appointed European Union’s External Auditor, set to Audit Govt of Ghana
In what is rather a miraculous drama of fate, forcefully retired Auditor General of the Republic of Ghana, Mr. Daniel Yaw Domelovo has been appointed by the European Union Commission as part of its broad team of External Auditors who monitor and audit EU grants and funding support to outside agencies and countries around the world. The appointment was confirmed to MyNewsGh.com by credible sources in Ghana’s EU office who said they can’t yet confirm which countries or EU partner agencies Domelevo will he assigned to audit as that does not lay in their ambit here in Ghana. We were however hinted that he could be assigned auditing roles for EU-Government of Ghana projects giving his wide level of local experience and familiarity with Ghanaians issues. “But this is not assured”.MyNewsGh.com learnt the EU entered into negotiations with the Auditor General not because he was facing woes in his work in Ghana but because he was due for retirement “at the time we approached him with a contract offer and this is not new”. The EU says it offers such consultancy contract opportunities on an “approach basis” for retired Civil servants especially Judges, Auditors, and Security personnel in Immigration, military, police, and intelligence in African nations where the EU has an interest in order to facilitate its work all on the record. This will not be the first time Mr. Daniel Yaw Domelovo is working with an external body as he has a rich experience working on World Bank Auditing projects and has worked in Tanzania and Zimbabwe on various external initiatives. Mr. Daniel Domelevo holds an Executive Master’s degree in Business Administration (Finance) from the University of Ghana Business School. He is also a professional accountant and has been a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Ghana since 1992. His expertise in Public Financial Management (PFM) includes a proven track record serving in several senior staff roles for the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning of Ghana for over 18 years. Prior to his appointment as the Auditor General for the Republic of Ghana and the head of Ghana’s Supreme Audit Institution (SAI), Daniel Domelevo held numerous positions including Senior Financial Management Specialist with the World Bank. While working at the World Bank, he was responsible for the PFM project in Malawi and Zimbabwe.He has also worked as the Chief Accountant for the Ghana Film Industry Corporation (now TV3).In December 2016, he was appointed as Auditor General for the Republic of Ghana. He succeeded Mr Richard Quartei Quartey, who retired after 7 years of service (2009-2016). He was ordered by President Akufo-Addo to proceed on accumulated leave last year prior to the election and was forcefully retired when he resumed work with only 3 months to go. The presidency claimed he had retired and was born in 1960 instead of 1961. Domelovo continues to enjoy wide support both home and abroad as Ghana’s anti-corruption fighter who was barred from doing his work. MyNewsGh Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093