SSNIT addresses CLOGSAG’s ‘Acceptance form’ concerns
The management of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) has responded to claims by the Civil and Local Government Staff Association, Ghana (CLOGSAG) that a declaration form that ought to be completed before pension benefits are processed by state pension trust will be to the disadvantage of pensioners. “The form is designed in a manner that does not allow a pensioner to any claim, thereafter, if there are even genuine grounds for further payment”, a statement signed by CLOGSAG Executive Secretary Isaac Bampoe Addo said. It added: “This disingenuous practice has just surfaced and we are at a loss as to what motivated such a demand from SSNIT”. CLOGSAG has, thus, advised its members “to desist from completing the so-called” ‘Acceptance Form’. But SSNIT, in clarifying the issues raised by CLOGSAG, outlined the following in a statement: “That in our quest to serve members and clients better, we assist members of the scheme to vet their SSNIT statements of account to ensure completeness and accuracy. Members may then attest to whether the statements of account are accurate or not by signing the appropriate documents. “That if any inaccuracy is noticed, Members can draw the Trust’s attention for it to be rectified and indicate whether they want their benefits to be paid whilst the issues with the Statements are resolved later. Members may also exercise the right to wait for the anomalies to be corrected before their pensions are computed and paid”. The statement continued: “That a Member, by attesting to the completeness and accuracy of the SSNIT Statement of Account to be used for the computation of the benefits, does not forfeit any rightfully earned benefits when additional financial information is retrieved for that person at a later date. The statement further noted that “the said acceptance or attestation does not have anything to do with the payment of Past Credit and matters arising thereof”. SSNIT, therefore, assured all contributors and pensioners that it “will, at all times, pay their benefits accurately and promptly as has always been done”. The statement also urged all its members, pensioners, organised labour and anyone who may have any grievance, to contact management for redress. ClassFm Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
Ashanti region will never be short-changed under the Akufo-Addo government
Kwesi Amoako Atta the Roads Minister has told people of the Ashanti region that they will never be short-changed under the Akufo-Addo government. Mr. Amoako Atta made the pronouncement following some report that some personalities within the region are going round chanting lack of good roads in the Ashanti region after the massive support for President Akufo-Addo and the governing party. “I want to assure the people of this region that developmental programmes in Ghana as a whole will be looked at in its entirety and every region will get its first share of the national cake, but Ashanti Region will never be short-changed and your interest will not be toyed with as far as the road sector is concerned. Ashanti Region will always have its fair share of the national cake,” “I am privileged to lead that sector on behalf of President Akufo-Addo. So while looking at the whole situation, there is no way I will joke and toy with Ashanti Region. If you look at asphalt overlay, we started with 227 kilometres plan for Ashanti Region. As I speak, we have completed 174 kilometres,” the Minister added. Meanwhile, the Minority spokesperson on Roads and Transport Governs Kwame Agbodza has described the ‘second year of roads’ declaration by President Akufo-Addo as a mirage. Caretaker Minister for Finance, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu in his 2021 budget presentation stated the President’s declaration of this year as the second year of roads will see many roads receiving attention in the year. According to Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, the first declaration last year brought some attention to roads across the country. “Mr. Speaker, His Excellency the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in the presentation of the State of the Nation’s address declared 2021 as the second year of roads. Mr. Speaker, with this declaration we will continue the prioritization of road construction. The government will continue to pursue the following ongoing projects that are at various stages of completion under the Sinohydro master facility.” But the NDC MP argues government has not made enough allocation to the Ministry of Roads to execute the road projects enumerated in the 2021 budget. The reduction in allocation to the ministry for flagship projects is proof many roads will not be attended this year the minority spokesperson believes. The Ranking Member on the Roads and Transport Committee during a debate on the 2021 budget on Wednesday, March 17, 2021 urged the public to lower expectations. The Adaklu MP further described the President’s first year of roads declaration last year as a failure questioning the commitment of government. “Last year the government told us it was the first year of roads. The only amount provided by government in the budget for flagship projects was 1.2 billion cedis. Mr. Speaker in 2021 budget we are told that it is the second year for roads but the amount of money government has provided in that budget is less than 1 billion cedis. Where is the commitment of this government towards funding roads in this country?”. Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
“I’ll rate Wontumi’s performance 6 over 10– FF Antoh
The former Ashanti regional chairman of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) FF Antoh has said the current regional Ashanti chairman Bernard Antwi Bosiako performed above average in the 2020 general election. According to Mr. Antoh, people blaming the current chairman known popularly as Chairman Wontumi for the party’s vote decrease in the region are not being kind. Speaking to Starrfm monitored by Apexnewsgh.com, the former chairman said… “Our performance in the Ashanti Region wasn’t bad but our performance in Asawase was very poor. Muntaka stretched the gap from 5000 to 20,000. That’s what we should look at. I’ll rate Wontumi’s performance 6 over 10. He took the party from 70% to 76% and then brought it down to 72% which is above average,” “The most important thing is how to help Akufo-Addo succeed in his second term and that’s the cardinal point. All of them must be careful unless they’re joking. What happens to the party in 2024 depends on how Akufo-Addo‘s second term will be successful, then you can think of becoming president. “I don’t think it’s fair to the President because he’s even yet to form his government in his second term. I think it’s too early for people to say they want to be president. The Prez hasn’t even constituted his gov’t in his second term so why the rush? I’m not comfortable with it,” he stressed. Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
Tanzania’s John Magufuli: a brilliant start but an ignominious end
John Joseph Pombe Magufuli was a man who deftly played the long political game. He was nevertheless a puzzle both to Tanzanians and the world. When he first entered the presidency in 2015, he gained worldwide acclaim for his no-nonsense approach to fighting corruption and imprudent government spending. But as he settled into office, his true political colours – the authoritarian and “the bulldozer” of human rights – showed up. He was born in 1959 in Tanzania’s Chato district in the Lake Victoria zone, and was only 2 years old when Tanzania got independence in 1961. After attaining his basic education he trained as a teacher at Mkwawa College of Education, Iringa in central Tanzania, and became a secondary school science teacher. Magufuli then obtained a degree in education science from the University of Dar-es-Salaam in 1988. The following year he was employed as an industrial chemist at Nyaza Cooperative remaining there until 1995. He then ran for the Chato parliamentary seat and won. In 1995 President Benjamin Mkapa, who passed away in 2020, appointed him deputy minister for works, transport and communication. Magufuli drove an ambitious road building project, earning himself the nickname, ‘the bulldozer’. He served in Cabinet in different portfolios until 2015 when he ran for presidency. The bulldozer moniker Throughout his 20 years as a cabinet minister he was known to be a hard worker. He also kept a corruption-free record, a rare feat given the portfolios he was responsible for. As minister for works between 2010 and 2015, he built a road network connecting many parts of the country and a new rapid bus system in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania’s commercial capital. During these two decades he wasn’t associated with any major corruption. This is despite the fact that infrastructure projects, which often require huge investments spread over time, are generally associated with corruption. Also, Tanzania was plagued by major corruption scandals between 2005 and 2015. Magufuli’s clean record, and his reputation for getting things done, became useful during the 2015 general election campaign. He promised to fight corruption, discipline the civil service, and create employment for the youth. But the ‘bulldozer’ moniker went on to haunt him as he increasingly began to be seen as the man who bulldozed human rights. Magufuli’s rise to power In June 2015, four months before election day, Magufuli was not seen as the Chama cha Mapinduzi party’s strongest candidate. The front runner had been Edward Lowassa, who had served as prime minister for three years under Mkapa’s successor, Jakaya Kikwete. Lowassa was forced to resign after being caught in a corruption scandal. Magufuli eventually won the nomination, which came as a surprise to some within his party. Mkapa quietly pushed the party to nominate Magufuli. The former president and other party elders were for the first time advising the ruling party’s central committee on the nomination of the presidential candidate. The “bulldozer” went on to become Tanzania’s fifth president. And two years into Magufuli’s first term, Mkapa publicly gave his performance a thumbs up. Two factors appear to have been critical to Magufuli’s nomination by the Chama cha Mapinduzi and his rise to the presidency. One, that prior to his candidacy, he had not been implicated in any corruption scandal while Lowassa was directly associated with a corruption deal. Two, he was not affiliated within any factions within the ruling Chama cha Mapinduzi. After Lowassa was forced to resign as prime minister in 2008 after a fraud case, sharp divisions emerged between Chama cha Mapinduzi members who supported him and those who supported then president Jakaya Kikwete. Magufuli remained neutral and that worked in his favour. Throughout his political career before the presidency, Magufuli appeared to eschew party politics. As a minster under Mkapa’s and Kikwete’s administrations, he focused on work, not party politics. This – plus his clean governance record – made him the go-to-guy when his party needed a presidential candidate with a clean record and who was not aligned with any party faction. The authoritarian Back in 2015, when he was first elected president, Magufuli earned praise nationally and internationally. “What would Magufuli do” became a catch phrase to compare him with underperforming leaders in the region. However, after less than a year in office his authoritarianism side began to show. He spent most of his first term cracking down on the opposition and cementing the ruling party’s power position. Over the years he has turned into a full-blown populist, claiming that he has the people’s interests at heart. But his subsequent actions have called these claims into question. This included tightening the noose on the media, as well as aggressive action against opposition figures, a rise in arbitrary arrests and crackdown on civil society. More recently, his COVID denialism has been well documented. He became more focused on cementing his power and less concerned with his election promises. By the end of his first term in 2020, there was still much left to be done, including completing construction on a speed railway and hydroelectric dam. Regardless, and despite a flawed election, he was re-elected in October 2020. The election was marked with violence and a systematic crackdown on the opposition. As he began his second term, there were questions about what kind of legacy he would leave. When speaking of his legacy, one must start with the Magufuli’s effect on Tanzania’s economy. There are mixed feelings about his economic performance. While some assessed him positively others underscored the negative impact of his administrative style. Magufuli’s nationalistic rhetoric scared off investors, despite his administration’s attempt to convince the world that Tanzania was a good business environment. More recently, his denial of the COVID-19 pandemic as straight out of his nationalistic and populist playbook. And the state violence that surrounded 2020’s general election will forever be a stain on his legacy. Looking back Tanzania is as polarised as ever. The 2020 election entrenched the ruling party’s dominance and set a bad precedence for the suppression of dissenting voices. A country that was once lauded for its progress in democracy has rapidly regressed to authoritarian rule under Magufuli’s watch. Most recently, his administration denied the existence of COVID-19 while its people and many others across the world died. In Tanzania today, speaking truth to power is a crime. As a result Magufuli will be remembered for rolling back Tanzania’s democratic gains,
NABCO committed to absorb all trainees – Coordinator
Mr Seth Cudjoe, the Sunyani Municipal Coordinator of the Nation Builders Corps (NABCO) has announced that Government will collaborate with its Model Implementing Partners (MIPs) to absorb all trainees on the NABCO programme for permanent jobs. He told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Sunyani that the MIPs would select only hardworking and competent trainees for permanent employment at their various institutions and organizations they were attached to during their three years capacity building training. He expressed worry that some of the NABCO trainees refused to fill the career pathway online registration. Mr Cudjoe said about 30 trainees in the Municipality who failed to do the online registration upon several prompts by the system were of indication that they have been self exited from NABCO. The coordinator advised trainees to work assiduously at their various workplaces and wait on the government for further actions to be taken for their permanent employment.GNA Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
Takes immediate steps to deal with the growing spate of armed robbery attacks, the rampant cases of murder. NDC to government
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has pointed that the alleged killing of Sheikh Ali Ahmed Maikano AbulFaili Jallo, son of the late Ghanaian Tijaniyya Cleric, Ahmed Maikano Jallo of Prang, is open evidence of the general state of insecurity across the country. The respected Shaykh, the son of a renowned late cleric, Shaikh Abdulai Maikano of Jallo fame in Prang, died this Wednesday after he was allegedly shot by unidentified people. According to the statement signed by NDC General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketia, the late Shiekh Ali Ahmed Maikano AbulFaili Jallo was described as a renowned and devoted Muslim cleric who carried himself with dignity and commanded great respect among the Islamic community. “The NDC considers the news report that the Shiekh met his untimely demise in an armed robbery attack as most painful, suspicious and worrying, as it further goes to deepen the general state of insecurity in the country. “We use to this opportunity to urge the President to direct the Ministry of Interior to launch a full-scale investigation into the sad event that led to the death of the Sheikh, apprehend the perpetrators of the dastardly act, and offer true justice to his memory and the bereaved family. “We demand, as a matter of urgency, that the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia administration takes immediate steps to deal with the growing spate of armed robbery attacks, the rampant cases of murder, and the general state of insecurity in the country. There can neither be progress or development in Ghana without peace. “The NDC wishes to express its deepest condolences and sincere sympathies to the Jalo family, the Tijaniyya fraternity, and the entire Muslim community for their loss.” Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
Most Ghanaian workers are thieves, employers should pay particular attention to them–Ken Agyapong
The Assin Central Member of Parliament (MP) Kennedy Agyapong has said a majority of Ghanaian workers are thieves and they steal from their employers to amass wealth for themselves. He however used the medium to call on all employers to pay serious attention to their workers to enable them to prevent the chances of collapsing their businesses. Mr. Agyapong made the revelation in a television programme monitored by Apexnewsgh.com “I have a project I am doing at Tema, one of the boys who watches over the project told me that thieves come around so I should fix lights all over the place. Meanwhile he was the one planning with the thieves to steal the iron rods and other materials meant for the project,” he said. He added “I got him arrested. Let me state without fear that most Ghanaian workers are thieves. They steal from their employers and amass wealth for themselves.” “Politicians steal and carry the money out of the country but the civil servants and other workers are doing worse than the politicians,” Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
Mahama didn’t lose the election, he should have come to court prepared– A-Plus
According to A-PLUS, in an interview monitored by Apexnewsgh.com, the 2020 elections should have gone for a run-off as he believes none of the candidates reached the threshold mark of 50 + 1%. “He (John Mahama) didn’t lose the elections. In an election, there can be two winners and the election will go to a run-off so I think the election should have gone to a run-off,” he said. “When you take a case to court, you don’t tell your truth and expect the judges to listen to your truth and make a judgment based on your truth. The judges were not at the polling station so if you tell the judge that you are not satisfied, you have to come prepared,” he stressed “What is anybody going to do differently. The only reason I would have been happy had John Mahama won was that Ghanaians would have shown the government that we’ve got to a stage where they can kick you out after one term if you are not fighting corruption,”. Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093
The Speaker would not have the authority to reject budget– Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu
The Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has stated that the Speaker of Parliament does not have the authority under the law to reject the budget. Last week, Speaker Alban Bagbin has threatened to reject the budget because there has been a cut down in the budget for the Legislative and Judicial arms of government. In an interview monitored by Apexnewsgh.com, Mr. Osei Mensah Bonsu expressed, that it would have been prudent if the Speaker of Parliament had engaged with the leadership of the House before coming out those remarks. “I think that this is not really a matter that, honestly, the Speaker should have spoken to in the plenary. I think that he should have continued the engagement. After all, I’m the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs; I’m also the Majority Leader. This is not a matter for the Parliamentary Affairs Ministry though but it is for the Majority Leader,”. “Maybe he could have sought my intervention to engage the presidency. The truth is Parliament cannot make a request which indeed and in truth may perhaps go outside what the basket of the national resources can contain. There is a reason why when we made the request, there will be this backstage consultation.” “Well, if I have to be blunt, the Speaker would not have the authority to do that but I’m saying that if there is a misunderstanding, we can resolve it without escalating the misunderstanding.” He said in an interview monitored by Apexnewsgh.com Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093