The governing National Democratic Congress has thrashed an intended Presidential debate yet to be held by the Institute of Economic Affairs in September.
The IEA on Tuesday disclosed at the launch of its Presidential debates and Evening encounters that it is considering organizing a presidential debate for the flagbearers of the two main political parties, President John Mahama of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and Nana Akufo-Addo of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).
This move however has been met with discontent from the ruling party which says it has reservations with the modus operandi of organizing the program.
National organizer of the NDC Kofi Adams told Accra-based Joy FM the party was not engaged prior to the announcement by IEA on the intended presidential debate.
“The IEA cannot just announce a program that it has not engaged the political parties on. After all they have platforms with our General Secretaries, they have platforms of Chairmen that do various activities and discussions with them. We are surprised that you don’t even give any signal and you would just get out there and go and announce it. So if the parties have their own program how are you going to organize it?” He asked.
Mr. Adams questioned the audacity of the IEA to organize presidential debates and stated that it is not the political party’s responsibility to beg the civil society organization over the debate.
“Who says that it’s the IEA that should organize the debate for us? They are a civil society group that wants to do something so they are the ones who are supposed to engage the parties. Why should we go and beg the IEA that organize a debate for us?”
He further stated that the NDC has not been engaged in any discussion on the matter and would therefore only focus on its programs.
He added “we are a serious political party and we have our programs.”
According to him, though president Mahama had earlier indicated his desire to debate Nana Akuffo Addo, the NDC as a party would decide on whether to participate or not and would not be the first political party to boycott the presidential debate if it decides to do so making reference to a similar boycott by former president J.A. Kufuor in 2004.
Presidential candidate for All Peoples Congress, APC, Hassan Ayariga has said the Peoples National Convention has no future in Ghanaian politics.
According to him, currently the PNC does not have even ten regional and constituency offices which has already disqualified them from contesting in the upcoming general elections because they will have to get hundred and seventy four offices which they cannot provide.
“I don’t think looking at the PNC there is future for PNC because as we speak now the PNC do not have up to ten offices. The PNC cannot contest in the 2016 elections because they will have to provide the Electoral Commission with 174 constituency offices,” he claimed.
The APC flagbearer noted that the party had no future when he was a member mentioning that the party could have shared power when it recorded 7.6 in the 2008 election but that was not the case, members sat there for the PNC to sink to zero.
He expressed his dismay at the stiffer opposition he faced when he invested in the PNC to revive the fortunes of the party mentioning that his efforts were stifled by sycophants and individuals who have and are making the party a business venture to satisfy their whimsical interest.
He however refuted claims that he formed his political party to sell it to the leading political parties in the country saying “The money I have spent in the APC is enough money for me to starch in the Bank and be taking interest every month without working. I leave PNC after one month and form a big party that has all offices than the so called big party and someone is saying this…then that person should think again.”
He was optimistic that the upcoming general election will go to a runoff and APC will only agree to go into power sharing with a party that stands for what the APC believes in.
F.C TANGA beat their counterparts from Tamale, Liberty Babies by four goals to two in a crunch Week 10 GN Bank Division One encounter.
The six-goal thrilling match saw hundreds of fans troop to the stadium before kickoff at 3:00pm on Sunday.
The match which was dubbed, “F.C TANGA Mothers’ Day Bonanza” started on a low tempo with both teams playing with no sense of urgency.
However, the match took shape after Liberty Babies threatened the goal area of F.C TANGA with some shoots from behind.
F.C TANGA reorganized and started attacking from all angles of the pitch, but the compact nature of Liberty Babies, prevented the Tanga boys from scoring.
The first half of the match registered 3 goals, with two of them being penalties for both sides and another goal from Kenneth Mbah. The first of the match came through F.C TANGA’s Kenneth Mbah in the 21st min. The second goal came from the player on 31st min, before Liberty Babies scored from a penalty kick on the 46th min.
F.C TANGA came into the second half relaxed, but picked up momentum when the Tamale lads dominated the midfield and looked like dreaded lions.
F.C TANGA’s Kenneth Mbah produced two breath taking goals in this half, one on the 49th min and the 77th min. In all Kenneth Mbah scored a total of 4 goals in this match. Liberty Babies pulled one back in the second half on the 90th +3 min.
The match ended 4-2 score with Kenneth Mbah of F.C TANGA scoring 4 goals. Ken has a total of 8 goals in 10 matches.
The founder and leader of the All Peoples Congress (APC) Hassan Ayariga has touted his life achievements which he says are enough evidence of his capacity and competence to lead Ghana.
The 2012 flagbearer of the Peoples National Convention broke away to form his own political party after losing the flagbearership position to Dr. Edward Mahama.
Speaking to Azongo Albert on A1 Radio’s Day Break Upper East Show, Monday, Mr. Hassan Ayariga controverted assertions that he formed a political party for monetary gains. While trumpeting his personal achievements as a successful businessman, he noted that he was a sole financier of the PNC during the 2012 campaign and has again single handedly formed a political party with offices across the country using his personal resources.
“At the age of sixteen-seventeen I went to Europe. At the age of 22 I built my first house…At the age of 24 I made my first 1 million dollars. At the age of forty I became a presidential candidate in the country and it is not by chance but it’s in the records,” he said.
He added that he owns the biggest mansion in his village which is supreme over all other splash mansions in northern Ghana.
“People will say when you out you don’t come back. I’m not boasting but I think I have put up a mansion in my own hometown that the whole of upper east and northern region nobody has put up that kind of mansion and I help my chiefs and everybody in my community.”
According to him, Ghana has the resources that can transform the lives of the people citing oil and gold but blamed the level of poverty in the country on poor leadership which he said the APC would rectify to transform the country.
He further disclosed that the APC would soon launch a vigorous campaign ahead of the November polls and would only support a party that would accept a power sharing deal in case of a run-off which he said is highly possible.
The Upper East Regional Directorate of the Electoral Commission has expressed satisfaction at the just ended limited voter registration exercise after it registered 54,735 new voters.
In an interview with Citi News, the Upper East Regional Director of the EC, James Arthur-Yeboah, said the figure represents 9.2% of the current figure of 594,765 registered voters in the region.
According to him, the figure shows that the commission in the region has been able to meet its target.
Mr. Arthur-Yeboah noted that during the limited voter registration exercise, the eligibility of 493 applicants were challenged.
Mr. Arthur-Yeboah said his outfit has commenced investigations into those who’s registration were challenged adding that, the various district registration review committees will sit on the cases to either give them their I.D cards or expunge their names from the register depending on evidence of national identity by the challenged applicants.
On the issue of secondary school students turned away for not being able to produce guarantors, Mr. Yeboah conceded that it was a challenge, but was optimistic the Commission will take steps to correct the situation in subsequent exercises.
He advised students in secondary and tertiary institutions whose schools are adjacent to their constituencies not to register in their schools but register in their constituency since there is no vote transfer between adjacent constituencies.
Mr. Yeboah implored on field staff, district and regional directors of the E.C to create more polling centers in second cycle and tertiary institutions to make the Electoral Commission’s work easier.
In another development, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Regional Director of Communications, Edmund Awuni, has accused the governing National Democratic Congress of busing in foreigners from Burkina Faso to register in Feo in the Bongo district.
He further bemoaned the poor publicity of the limited voter registration exercise and also appealed to the E.C to create more registration centers in all secondary and tertiary institutions should the exercise be extended.
But the NDC’s Regional Youth Organizer, Robert Yel-Oni, refuted the allegation made by the NPP stressing that, only Ghanaians who live in Burkina Faso were brought in to register and that the NDC is satisfied with the exercise.
The Electoral Commission said it was hoping to register about 1.2 million new voters at the end of the 2-week exercise.
Applicants are advised to be conversant with the following guidelines in order to minimize data entry errors in the online application. Applicants are warned to submit only one application each as multiple applications would disqualify the applicant. Initial short-listings will take age, height, SSSCE and WASSCE results into consideration. The examination results of successful applicants at this stage will be verified at WAEC and only those who meet the minimum requirements will be called for further activities. These applicants will then be sorted into groups according to their Selection Centres for body screening and inspection of original educational and other certificates. There will be an aptitude test for successful candidates immediately after the body screening. Those who pass this test will be called to the next stage which involves medical examination of the candidate together with the collection of fingerprints for criminal checks. In addition, there will be a comprehensive background check on everyone passing through this stage.
Instructions for online application
The applicant must buy an e-Voucher from any branch of GCB Bank Ltd across the country. The buyer / user must provide his exact names to the bank as part of the purchase. The e-Voucher contains a Serial Number (SN) and a Unique Code (PIN). These are the only means of accessing the online application forms. Keep these numbers safely and in a secured manner as they will be required later in further engagements with this process if you are successful in the initial stages.
The data fields marked with * are mandatory or required data fields; one must provide data at those points.
Applicants should note that this is an automated process. Qualifying criteria are pre-set and not subject to modifications. Nobody will have influence over this process to the extent that he can help another individual to by-pass this setup or secure enlistment for him / her outside this system. The Police Service does not have middlemen in these recruitment activities.
The Online Application Form can be accessed and edited as many times as you would like before clicking the submit button. Note that once submitted, your application/information cannot be changed.
The supporting documents should be uploaded before submitting your application. Each document to be uploaded must be of JPEG/JPG/PNG/GIF image format only. It must not exceed 1.0 MB in size. The absence of any of them may lead to disqualification of your application. Please make sure that your documents meet the requirement for upload.
All communications with applicants will be conducted via email only. Applicants are therefore encouraged to maintain an active email during this period. Similarly, their family members, referees and others quoted in this application must have active email accounts. There will be no telephone calls, SMS or other social media messages to applicants through their mobile phones.
Criteria for Referees
The following list forms the set of people who will be acceptable as referees for applicants. This list is not exhaustive as others of comparable standing may also be accepted. However, no family member or a Police Officer is to be used as a referee by any applicant.
a) The Head-teacher of a local Junior High School.
b) A Head-master of a Senior High School.
c) A lecturer of any Polytechnic or University.
d) A recognized pastor, priest or imam of at least five (5) years standing.
e) A senior public servant occupying a position not below that of a director.
f) A lawyer, chartered accountant, medical officer, pharmacist or similarly qualified other professionals of at least five (5) years standing.
g) A Senior Officer of the Ghana Armed Forces, Ghana Immigration Service, Ghana Prisons Service or the Ghana National Fire Service.
h) A farmer
Declaration
Applicants are expected to read the declaration on the accuracy of information provided and assent to it before the application is submitted. Applicants may note that the detection of any falsehood at any stage of the enlistment process will disqualify them. These may also entail criminal prosecution of the applicant. Where the falsehood, misrepresentation or impersonation is detected after the applicant has been successfully enlisted in the Police Service, he will be dismissed immediately and prosecuted. The declaration is:
“I declare that all the information provided on this form are accurate and genuine to the best of my knowledge and I understand that any false representation may make me liable for criminal prosecution. I further agree that, if at any point in time, any falsehood is detected in the information I have provided above, the Ghana Police Service reserves the right to disqualify me from the process or withdraw me from either the training programme or the Service as the case may be.”
Criteria for short-listing
The general criteria for short-listing eligible candidates are described below. These are the basic minimum that the Service will consider. Applicants must assure themselves of meeting them before buying the voucher for online application. The applicant:
1. Must be a Ghanaian.
2. Must be NOT less than eighteen (18) years and NOT more than twenty-five (25) years of age by 1st April, 2016.
3. Must be, at least 5 feet 8 inches(1.73 meters) tall for males, and 5 feet 4 inches (1.63 meters) for females.
4. Must be physically fit.
5. Must be of good character without any criminal records.
Physical Inspections
Applicants having the basic minimum requirements outlined above will be shortlisted. Their examination results will be checked online against WAEC database for inaccuracies and potential fraud. All those whose results are confirmed from WAEC will be notified to proceed to their chosen Selection Centres for physical examination of their persons.
Applicants will be expected to come along with all relevant certificates like birth, BECE, SSSCE / WASSSCE and Driving License, if any. Only original documents will be accepted at this point. Particularly, the original BECE Certificate (not results’ slip) is compulsory here. Copies will be made from these documents for further actions. Applicants should also come along in dresses that would allow for quicker and easier inspection of the body.
Aptitude Tests
Successful applicants with the appropriate physique will write an aptitude test at the Selection Centre immediately after the selections. Applicants are therefore expected to carry pens, pencils and erasers along with them to the Centres. The aptitude tests will cover English and General Knowledge. Applicants are expected to pass all the tests in-order to continue to the next stage. The tests will be organized under strict examination conditions. Any malpractice or misconduct by a candidate automatically disqualifies him or her, without any option of an appeal. Some acts that lead to disqualification include, but not limited to, the following:
1. Teaching another person
2. Copying
3. Having any foreign material
4. Whispering or talking to another person other than an invigilator
5. Any form of distraction
6. Any form of disturbance
7. Exhibiting any act of disrespect
8. Changing examination papers
9. The use of mobile phones or any digital device.
Successful candidates at this stage will be notified through their email to prepare for medical examinations.
Medical Examination
A comprehensive medical examination will be conducted on each successful applicant. This examination will be at the Police Hospital, Cantonments, Accra on specific dates for each group of candidates. The medical examination covers a wide range of tests. Applicants who skip any of the medical processes will be eliminated automatically. Applicants will have to pay for the requisite tests and laboratory reports. The arrangements for payment of the fees and tests will be communicated to each qualifying applicant through his or her email address.
Criminal & Background Checks
Applicants would be expected to provide adequate information, including fingerprints, for criminal checks. In addition, the Service would undertake a comprehensive background vetting of every applicant who reaches this stage of the process.
Invitation to Training
Candidates meeting the requisite positive vetting would be called to training. Candidates would be notified of their reporting dates and venues for the recruit training. All instructions for reporting to the Training School will be sent to the successful candidate through his or her email address.
General Communication
All communication with the applicants would be by email through the email address he or she would provide in the online application. There would be no phone calls to applicants or messages to their mobile devices by use of current mobile applications. The Police Service would not tolerate applicants trooping to the Police Headquarters or any police formation to check on the status of their applications.
Application Fees
1. The e-Voucher costs a non-refundable amount of One Hundred Ghana Cedis (GHS100.00) only. Every applicant must buy one to start the online application process.
2. Medical Examination would cost the applicant “One Hundred (100.00)” Ghana Cedis Only. This fee does not include the cost for X-ray, ECG and other diagnostics services. Applicants would pay for these at the Hospital at the time of examination. The medical examination fee would be paid by only successful applicants.
3. Criminal Checks at the CID Headquarters would cost the applicant “One Hundred (100.00)” Ghana Cedis. This fee would be paid only by successful applicants.
Teams participating in this year’s A1 Radio Invitational Tournament have been drawn into two groups of four.
In all eight teams are participating with staff of A1Radio and Tanga Radio playing the curtain raiser on the Day.
The A1 Radio Invitational tournament is an annual corporate games organised by A1 Radio to being corporate bodies on one platform to compete in Sporting activities and fraternize.
In a short ceremony to group the teams, General Manager for A1 Radio, Kolog Justine mentioned that the number of participants was trimmed down to eight this year in order to achieve the purpose of the tournament, which is to fraternize.
He therefore intimated the need for participating organizations to field members of their staff in order to achieve the objective of the tournament.
On her part, Head of sports at A1 Radio, Humul Khlusum Tahiru was grateful for the interest shown in the tournament but reiterated the need to field staff in order to create a broader socializing platform.
Participating organizations includes Happy Man Bitters, Bolgatanga Municipal Assembly, Vodafone Ghana, MTN Ghana, BOST, First Allied Bank, SSNIT and Ghana Health Service.
Paired in Group A are MTN, SSNIT, First Allied Bank and BOST whereas Ghana Health Service, Happyman bitters, Bolga Municipal Assembly and Vodafone Ghana make up the Group B.
In all, each team Will play three matches after which two teams that were able to amass greater points from each group will proceed to the semi final and then the final.
This year’s A1Radio invitational tournament will be held on May 14 at the Ramsey Sports Stadium.
Ghanaian boxer, Braimah Isaac Kamoko aka Bukom Banku has declared his dislike for the Black complexion.
Photos of Bukom Banku’s bleached skin flooded social and traditional media and received heavy criticism from the public.
But speaking in interview on Accra-based Joy TV, Friday, the boxer mentioned that he hates to be black.
According to him, being black will rid him off the opportunity of being appointed an ambassador to Germany by President John Mahama.
Bukom Banku (Middle)
Answering questions as to how he was introduced to bleaching, the boxer disclosed that his wife and some friends introduced him to it and he has since not regretted bleaching because it was going to afford him the biggest opportunity of being appointed an ambassador.
Bukom Banku who recently released a campaign song for the President pleaded with the Founder of the ruling NDC, Jerry John Rawlings to support President John Drama Mahama in the upcoming general elections.
Music Producer, Dr. Ray has bemoaned the low quality of songs produced in the country and has asked upcoming producers to go back to the basics and learn the art of music production.
According to him, currently there are several music producers who produce songs with low quality which does not help in the growth of the industry.
“I hear some songs played on air and I go like no… this producer needs to learn more. We have been there, we have learnt so these upcoming sound engineers need to learn more.”
He indicated that being a sound engineer entails a lot, therefore the need for them to go back and learn.
“Upcoming producers should really go back and learn hard before they come out. The Name producer entails a lot. You really have to learn how to balance your tone, the kind of kicks You put on your sound.”
The VGMA nominee of the year was however quick to add that his doors like other sound engineers are opened to any upcoming sound engineers who want to humble him/herself to learn under them.
Dr. Ray who was speaking to Kofi Asante on Bolgatanga based A1 Radio noted that some artistes now produce their music which he believes is a good step but called on them to learn in order to mix their masters on their own.
“Shatta Wale and Bisa Kdei produce their own music which is a good step but they don’t mix their masters which I think they need to learn more in order to produce good music.”
The VGMA nominee was optimistic of winning the music producer of the year because the song that won him the nomination, “ye wo krom” was everywhere under the year of review.
