IT is a truism to equate health with wealth.
Indeed, health, in some aspects, carries more weight than wealth, for while health can always engender wealth, not all wealth can secure health.
It is also worth pointing out that the difference in levels of socio-economic development between one nation and another, in many respects, comes down to the quality of health of their respective people.
This is largely so because the ability of individuals to engage in productive work to increase productivity to facilitate the creation of wealth on a sustainable basis is a function of the state of health of these individuals.
It is largely on account of the huge importance attached to the health of the people that the government devotes a substantial amount of state resources to develop health-related infrastructure and train and develop the requisite level of human resource for the sector.
Within the past three or four decades, Ghana has widely been acknowledged as one of a few African countries to have shown that they have the indigenous capacity to turn out hundreds of well-trained and competent medical practitioners, including doctors, pharmacists, laboratory technicians, nurses, among others, on an annual basis.
This notwithstanding, the number of health workers, particularly doctors, per the population is still very low and this is undermining the delivery of quality health care at affordable cost to the people.
One of the key factors responsible for this development is the general brain drain whereby competent and often more experienced doctors and other health personnel leave the country and take up appointments in other countries across the world.
It is no secret that unattractive conditions of service and lack of the requisite equipment to work with have contributed mainly to frustrate many of our doctors to abandon their jobs here and look outside for similar jobs with better remuneration and working conditions.
While there may be some justification for this movement of our health personnel, the full story, when told, also leaves them important questions to answer.
It is on record that the government, on an annual basis, spends colossal sums of money to train doctors and other health personnel to the highest possible standard.
The money expended is from taxpayers, many of whom are poor and cannot patronise the expensive medical care readily available at private clinics and hospitals.
It is, therefore, widely expected that this expenditure will be reciprocated by our doctors by staying back and rendering to the people the benefit of their expertise.
After all, doctors, in conformity with their Hippocratic oath, are enjoined to consider the health of their people first, more than any considerations, including monetary.
This is what makes the medical profession one of the most noble professions and an important calling to which not only the brilliant and persevering must respond but also the most diligent and humane.
It is on account of these and other factors that we want to add our voice to the call by President John Evans Atta Mills on our doctors living and working abroad to return home to help improve healthcare delivery in the country.
While the doctors cannot be given the kind of remuneration and conditions of service given them abroad, it is worthy to note that remuneration levels have, over the years, seen some improvement and efforts are underway to make them even better under the Single Spine Salary Structure.
We wish to take this opportunity to salute the many doctors and health workers who have sacrificed to stay behind and also the hundreds of Cuban doctors, many of whom are serving in rural areas, for the immense contributions they have made to improve the lives of the people.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
LET DECENCY PREVAIL (NOV 26, 2010)
Political parties are generally perceived as indispensable ingredients in the operations of a functional democratic political system.
This appears to be the case because of a number of important functions they exercise within that dispensation.
One of the most overt functions that political parties exercise is serving as the conduit for representing and realising the interest and aspirations of the people of a given political entity.
There are many more, and even though some may appear anonymous, they are no less important than this representative function.
One such function of political parties is serving as vehicles for the political education of the electorate in particular and the entirety of the populace in general.
In any democracy worth its salt, the political party system thrives on a free contest of ideas, policies, programmes, etc of the various parties on the political landscape.
Political parties, through the crafting and propagation of these ideas, policies and programmes in their respective manifestos, help educate the populace on the what, why, how and when the parties are seeking the people’s mandate to run the affairs of the state.
Thus in their direct and indirect interaction with the people, these parties help enlighten and conscientise the people on the better way forward for society and thereby position them well to make better and more informed choices.
One of the essential prerequisites for the provision of an enabling environment for political parties to educate their followers is the adoption of and adherence to a culture of civility, decorum and respect for the truth.
Any sacrifice of this sane political culture will inexorably lead to confusion and chaos and thereby undermine the ability of the system to realise this lofty objective.
Regrettably, our political discourse in the public sphere has traversed this negative terrain where bellicose, vituperative and obscene language not fit to be published in any decent medium is exchanged among our politicians in the name of politics.
Indeed, name-calling and the concoction and peddling of deliberate falsehood by politicians and their agents, mainly to score what is termed cheap political points in the false belief that it will boost their political fortunes, have assumed a more alarming dimension.
Only recently, many well meaning leaders of society, including President John Evans Atta Mills, religious leaders, chiefs, etc, have all decried this negative development and called for respect for the truth and decency to prevail.
Today, we are happy that our politicians themselves are not enthused about this development and are calling for truth, decency and decorum to prevail in our political discourse.
We unreservedly endorse the call by Mr Okudzeto Ablakwa, a Deputy Minister for Information, for an end to such culture of insults and the peddling of falsehood and non-dignified language and urge everyone, not just our politicians, to demonstrate, at all times, respect for one another, truth, honesty and the supreme national interest (see front page).
We, in this admonition, would want all of us to endeavour to let those positive attributes of telling the truth, respect for others, decency and decorum and the pursuit of the national interest commence from our actions in our homes, offices, churches, mosques, shrines and, more specifically, within our individual political parties.
For it is only when we demonstrate respect for these values at such basic levels that we will inculcate in ourselves and our youth, who are the leaders of tomorrow, the culture of adhering to them.
We also wish to urge our compatriots in the media to endeavour to exercise a great deal of circumspection in the manner in which such negative developments are reported and highlighted.
Sensational reporting in the name of commercialisation could undermine, if not compromise, our hard-won democratic gains, even though we may, as professionals, want to assert the right to mirror our politicians.
Let’s all exercise good judgement and moderation.
This appears to be the case because of a number of important functions they exercise within that dispensation.
One of the most overt functions that political parties exercise is serving as the conduit for representing and realising the interest and aspirations of the people of a given political entity.
There are many more, and even though some may appear anonymous, they are no less important than this representative function.
One such function of political parties is serving as vehicles for the political education of the electorate in particular and the entirety of the populace in general.
In any democracy worth its salt, the political party system thrives on a free contest of ideas, policies, programmes, etc of the various parties on the political landscape.
Political parties, through the crafting and propagation of these ideas, policies and programmes in their respective manifestos, help educate the populace on the what, why, how and when the parties are seeking the people’s mandate to run the affairs of the state.
Thus in their direct and indirect interaction with the people, these parties help enlighten and conscientise the people on the better way forward for society and thereby position them well to make better and more informed choices.
One of the essential prerequisites for the provision of an enabling environment for political parties to educate their followers is the adoption of and adherence to a culture of civility, decorum and respect for the truth.
Any sacrifice of this sane political culture will inexorably lead to confusion and chaos and thereby undermine the ability of the system to realise this lofty objective.
Regrettably, our political discourse in the public sphere has traversed this negative terrain where bellicose, vituperative and obscene language not fit to be published in any decent medium is exchanged among our politicians in the name of politics.
Indeed, name-calling and the concoction and peddling of deliberate falsehood by politicians and their agents, mainly to score what is termed cheap political points in the false belief that it will boost their political fortunes, have assumed a more alarming dimension.
Only recently, many well meaning leaders of society, including President John Evans Atta Mills, religious leaders, chiefs, etc, have all decried this negative development and called for respect for the truth and decency to prevail.
Today, we are happy that our politicians themselves are not enthused about this development and are calling for truth, decency and decorum to prevail in our political discourse.
We unreservedly endorse the call by Mr Okudzeto Ablakwa, a Deputy Minister for Information, for an end to such culture of insults and the peddling of falsehood and non-dignified language and urge everyone, not just our politicians, to demonstrate, at all times, respect for one another, truth, honesty and the supreme national interest (see front page).
We, in this admonition, would want all of us to endeavour to let those positive attributes of telling the truth, respect for others, decency and decorum and the pursuit of the national interest commence from our actions in our homes, offices, churches, mosques, shrines and, more specifically, within our individual political parties.
For it is only when we demonstrate respect for these values at such basic levels that we will inculcate in ourselves and our youth, who are the leaders of tomorrow, the culture of adhering to them.
We also wish to urge our compatriots in the media to endeavour to exercise a great deal of circumspection in the manner in which such negative developments are reported and highlighted.
Sensational reporting in the name of commercialisation could undermine, if not compromise, our hard-won democratic gains, even though we may, as professionals, want to assert the right to mirror our politicians.
Let’s all exercise good judgement and moderation.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
GHANA ATTRACTS INVESTORS (NOV 23, 2010)
Just last September, President John Evans Atta Mills embarked on a trip to China and Japan where he signed a number of bilateral agreements with the two countries for the development of the country’s infrastructure, as well as its oil and gas sector.
In China, Ghana signed a comprehensive finance project facility with the China Development Bank for the development of infrastructure for the upstream, mainstream and downstream development of the country’s oil and gas sector. The Shangai Construction Company also agreed to build hospitals in Wa and Kumasi.
Barely three months after the President’s trip to China, we hear that Chinese investors are here to inject about $570 million into three major projects in the mining, health and agricultural sectors.
The investments include a $500-million project meant to facelift some parts of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, the construction of a $42-million gold refinery in Accra and a $25-million oil palm refinery and processing factory in the Central Region.
In all, these three projects are expected to create more than 200,000 jobs, particularly for the youth, and also have a major impact on the country’s economy.
Already, we hear officials of the China and Africa Fund Holding, a Chinese government agency for investments in Africa, are due in Accra pretty soon to conclude arrangements and sign an agreement on the agency’s commitment to provide funding for the Korle-Bu project. They will also hold meetings with officials of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to seek confirmation for the funding of the $25-million oil palm processing factory.
This should be good news for all Ghanaians, especially the establishment of the gold refinery project in the country in June next year.
At the moment, all gold produced here is sent to Europe to be refined, at a huge cost to the nation. What is sadder is that when we send, say, 1,000 ounces of gold out to Europe to be refined, we do not have the means to know what percentage is refined.
The establishment of the gold refinery here will enable us to derive maximum benefit from our gold production. It will also provide ancillary work and services for our people, as the production of jewellery, gold coins, medals and other gold products will boom in the country.
In addition, with a gold refinery here, we can upgrade the quality of our bullion to the standard required for sale on the world bullion market.
We believe that if the three projects are successfully established and become operational, the impact on the national economy will be immense.
By all means the Chinese investors will come and so the onus is now on us to put in place the necessary regulatory framework in terms of tax regimes, export procedures and what have you.
We want to believe that Dr Lorinda Liang, the Chief Executive Officer of Modern Gold Refinery, a part of the Chyuan Chya Group of Investment, under whose auspices the three projects will be executed, and her company are here to partner us to develop our economy and not to take advantage of us.
We can co-operate for our mutual benefit.
In China, Ghana signed a comprehensive finance project facility with the China Development Bank for the development of infrastructure for the upstream, mainstream and downstream development of the country’s oil and gas sector. The Shangai Construction Company also agreed to build hospitals in Wa and Kumasi.
Barely three months after the President’s trip to China, we hear that Chinese investors are here to inject about $570 million into three major projects in the mining, health and agricultural sectors.
The investments include a $500-million project meant to facelift some parts of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, the construction of a $42-million gold refinery in Accra and a $25-million oil palm refinery and processing factory in the Central Region.
In all, these three projects are expected to create more than 200,000 jobs, particularly for the youth, and also have a major impact on the country’s economy.
Already, we hear officials of the China and Africa Fund Holding, a Chinese government agency for investments in Africa, are due in Accra pretty soon to conclude arrangements and sign an agreement on the agency’s commitment to provide funding for the Korle-Bu project. They will also hold meetings with officials of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to seek confirmation for the funding of the $25-million oil palm processing factory.
This should be good news for all Ghanaians, especially the establishment of the gold refinery project in the country in June next year.
At the moment, all gold produced here is sent to Europe to be refined, at a huge cost to the nation. What is sadder is that when we send, say, 1,000 ounces of gold out to Europe to be refined, we do not have the means to know what percentage is refined.
The establishment of the gold refinery here will enable us to derive maximum benefit from our gold production. It will also provide ancillary work and services for our people, as the production of jewellery, gold coins, medals and other gold products will boom in the country.
In addition, with a gold refinery here, we can upgrade the quality of our bullion to the standard required for sale on the world bullion market.
We believe that if the three projects are successfully established and become operational, the impact on the national economy will be immense.
By all means the Chinese investors will come and so the onus is now on us to put in place the necessary regulatory framework in terms of tax regimes, export procedures and what have you.
We want to believe that Dr Lorinda Liang, the Chief Executive Officer of Modern Gold Refinery, a part of the Chyuan Chya Group of Investment, under whose auspices the three projects will be executed, and her company are here to partner us to develop our economy and not to take advantage of us.
We can co-operate for our mutual benefit.
A COMMENDABLE ACT (NOV 25, 2010)
The availability of natural resources has always been a significant contributory factor for the socio-economic development of the areas where they are found and, by extension, the nation-state within whose jurisdiction they exist.
However, the manner and extent of exploitation of these resources, the ownership structure and control of the instruments or institutions exploiting them, the extent of retention and use of the wealth so generated, among others, are decisive in influencing the quality of life of the people of those areas where they are found.
There is no doubt that Ghana abounds in substantial mineral wealth whose exploitation over the many decades of the nation’s existence has left in its wake a legacy of mixed blessings.
While mining has generated a lot of wealth for the nation and also enhanced its share of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and foreign exchange earnings, it has left in its wake a number of untold negative consequences for the communities where such exploitation goes on.
One just needs to take a cursory look at some mining communities, especially areas where galamsey is carried out, to appreciate the extent of destruction of water bodies, farmlands, forests, among others.
The deciding factors, therefore, have been whether or not the political system is willing and ready to work to secure a significant share and control of the mineral wealth and put it to good use for the generality of the people of the country.
The example of the difference in development between Obuasi and Johannesburg in South Africa, both of which are anchored on gold mining but with the former lacking in infrastructure and socio-economic development and the latter cited as a showpiece of progress in Africa and even the world, bears enough testimony to this assertion.
It is acknowledged that a lot of the country’s mineral wealth, ranging from bauxite, through gold and now oil, comes from the Western Region.
It has always been our contention that since Ghana is a sovereign, independent and unitary state, it behoves the government, as the trustee of the nation’s resources, to exploit and harmonise the benefits of resources from all parts of the country to pursue and realise a programme of balanced development for all the regions.
It is only in the pooling of such resources and their proper and efficient use that the interests and aspirations of all our people for a more dignified life could be met and sustained.
This is why we are elated at the action of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) to commence a comprehensive needs assessment programme to tackle serious development challenges in the Western Corridor of the country embracing the Central and Western regions.
The programme is expected to ensure the rapid infrastructure and other development of the area as the nation gets set to pour its first oil (see front page).
In commending this move, we take notice of the implementation of the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) which is designed to accelerate economic development and substantially reduce poverty in the three northern regions, as well as parts of the Brong Ahafo and Volta regions.
We believe that this development should provide a healthy platform for the chiefs from the Western Region who recently advocated for a 10 per cent share of the oil revenue for the development of the area to team up with the government to ensure the realisation of this laudable project.
After all, the common objective is to ensure the infrastructure and general socio-economic development of the Western Region and Ghana as a whole.
We, however, wish to urge the government to endeavour to speed up the assessment process so that whatever projects and programmes are needed will be carried out faster and sooner than later.
However, the manner and extent of exploitation of these resources, the ownership structure and control of the instruments or institutions exploiting them, the extent of retention and use of the wealth so generated, among others, are decisive in influencing the quality of life of the people of those areas where they are found.
There is no doubt that Ghana abounds in substantial mineral wealth whose exploitation over the many decades of the nation’s existence has left in its wake a legacy of mixed blessings.
While mining has generated a lot of wealth for the nation and also enhanced its share of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and foreign exchange earnings, it has left in its wake a number of untold negative consequences for the communities where such exploitation goes on.
One just needs to take a cursory look at some mining communities, especially areas where galamsey is carried out, to appreciate the extent of destruction of water bodies, farmlands, forests, among others.
The deciding factors, therefore, have been whether or not the political system is willing and ready to work to secure a significant share and control of the mineral wealth and put it to good use for the generality of the people of the country.
The example of the difference in development between Obuasi and Johannesburg in South Africa, both of which are anchored on gold mining but with the former lacking in infrastructure and socio-economic development and the latter cited as a showpiece of progress in Africa and even the world, bears enough testimony to this assertion.
It is acknowledged that a lot of the country’s mineral wealth, ranging from bauxite, through gold and now oil, comes from the Western Region.
It has always been our contention that since Ghana is a sovereign, independent and unitary state, it behoves the government, as the trustee of the nation’s resources, to exploit and harmonise the benefits of resources from all parts of the country to pursue and realise a programme of balanced development for all the regions.
It is only in the pooling of such resources and their proper and efficient use that the interests and aspirations of all our people for a more dignified life could be met and sustained.
This is why we are elated at the action of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) to commence a comprehensive needs assessment programme to tackle serious development challenges in the Western Corridor of the country embracing the Central and Western regions.
The programme is expected to ensure the rapid infrastructure and other development of the area as the nation gets set to pour its first oil (see front page).
In commending this move, we take notice of the implementation of the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) which is designed to accelerate economic development and substantially reduce poverty in the three northern regions, as well as parts of the Brong Ahafo and Volta regions.
We believe that this development should provide a healthy platform for the chiefs from the Western Region who recently advocated for a 10 per cent share of the oil revenue for the development of the area to team up with the government to ensure the realisation of this laudable project.
After all, the common objective is to ensure the infrastructure and general socio-economic development of the Western Region and Ghana as a whole.
We, however, wish to urge the government to endeavour to speed up the assessment process so that whatever projects and programmes are needed will be carried out faster and sooner than later.
HELP INTEGRATE THESE RELEASED PRISONERS (NOV 24, 2010)
The Centre for Human Rights and Civil Liberties (CHURCIL), a non-governmental organisation fighting for the release of 160 remand prisoners, through a motion at the High Court in Accra, has managed to secure the freedom of 82 remand prisoners from the Nsawam Medium Security Prison.
The prisoners, whose cases have not been heard since their long incarceration, were released under the Justice for All programme.
The programme, which is meant to grant the release of prisoners under incarceration between 1993 and 2005, forms part of a series of measures institutionalised by the Judicial Service to decongest prisons in the country.
According to CHURCIL, it filed the motion at the High Court to secure the release of those whose warrants of arrest had expired and whose dockets could not be traced, pointing out that that action was in compliance with Article 14, Section 4 of the 1992 Constitution.
It is self-evident that one is not guilty of a crime until it is proved in a law court that he or she is guilty beyond all reasonable doubt, after which he or she is convicted of the crime and either incarcerated or fined.
The 1992 Constitution states categorically, “Where a person arrested, restricted or detained under Paragraph 4 or 13 of Article 14 is not tried within reasonable time, then without prejudice to any further proceedings that may be brought against him, he should be released unconditionally or upon reasonable conditions, including in particular conditions reasonably necessary to ensure that he appears at a later date for trial or proceedings preliminary to trial.”
It is based on this constitutional provision that we agree with CHURCIL that those remanded and whose cases have not been heard but have been incarcerated for too long a time should be released.
We are of the belief that detaining suspects without trying them is a clear violation of their fundamental human rights.
These remand prisoners are invariably forgotten when they are thrown into prison and in one instance a remand prisoner was reported to have been incarcerated for 30 years or so.
The CHURCIL has done well in fighting for the interest of those remand prisoners. However, we caution that those released do not revert to their bad ways to infringe on the civil liberties of law-abiding citizens of this country.
The released remand prisoners should be made to sign bonds to be of good behaviour for at least three years.
They should also be monitored strictly by the security agencies and other social service organisations and be helped, through skill training, so that they can be reintegrated into society.
It is the belief of CHURCIL that some of these remand prisoners were innocent individuals who got caught during police swoops and dumped in the prisons without the due process.
We want to call on the police that during these swoops to smoke out criminals, they should carry out due diligence to separate the criminals from the innocent ones and also follow due process to avoid sending innocent people into custody.
The prisoners, whose cases have not been heard since their long incarceration, were released under the Justice for All programme.
The programme, which is meant to grant the release of prisoners under incarceration between 1993 and 2005, forms part of a series of measures institutionalised by the Judicial Service to decongest prisons in the country.
According to CHURCIL, it filed the motion at the High Court to secure the release of those whose warrants of arrest had expired and whose dockets could not be traced, pointing out that that action was in compliance with Article 14, Section 4 of the 1992 Constitution.
It is self-evident that one is not guilty of a crime until it is proved in a law court that he or she is guilty beyond all reasonable doubt, after which he or she is convicted of the crime and either incarcerated or fined.
The 1992 Constitution states categorically, “Where a person arrested, restricted or detained under Paragraph 4 or 13 of Article 14 is not tried within reasonable time, then without prejudice to any further proceedings that may be brought against him, he should be released unconditionally or upon reasonable conditions, including in particular conditions reasonably necessary to ensure that he appears at a later date for trial or proceedings preliminary to trial.”
It is based on this constitutional provision that we agree with CHURCIL that those remanded and whose cases have not been heard but have been incarcerated for too long a time should be released.
We are of the belief that detaining suspects without trying them is a clear violation of their fundamental human rights.
These remand prisoners are invariably forgotten when they are thrown into prison and in one instance a remand prisoner was reported to have been incarcerated for 30 years or so.
The CHURCIL has done well in fighting for the interest of those remand prisoners. However, we caution that those released do not revert to their bad ways to infringe on the civil liberties of law-abiding citizens of this country.
The released remand prisoners should be made to sign bonds to be of good behaviour for at least three years.
They should also be monitored strictly by the security agencies and other social service organisations and be helped, through skill training, so that they can be reintegrated into society.
It is the belief of CHURCIL that some of these remand prisoners were innocent individuals who got caught during police swoops and dumped in the prisons without the due process.
We want to call on the police that during these swoops to smoke out criminals, they should carry out due diligence to separate the criminals from the innocent ones and also follow due process to avoid sending innocent people into custody.
POLICE NEED OUR SUPPORT (NOV 22, 2010)
THE notorious fugitive criminal and two-time jailbreaker, Johnson Kombian, is reported to have been arrested in Togo and handed over to the Ghana Police.
The 35-year-old recidivist, also known as the Nakpanduri Terror, was said to have been shot in the arm after a violent struggle between him and the Togo security officers and eventually handed over to the Ghana Police in Aflao under heavy security.
Before the police declared him wanted, with a reward of GH¢3,000 for information leading to his arrest, Kombian was alleged to have killed a number of his robbery victims in the course of his deadly and brutal operations at Nakpanduri, his last victims being two policemen, Constables Prince Agyare and Owusu Frimpong.
After killing the two constables, Kombian escaped from the country through the northern border post at the Nakpanduri area to Togo and Burkina-Faso.
The police quickly gave his picture to the Daily Graphic to publish to alert the public to his identity.
From their intelligence report on his movements, the police contacted Interpol in Burkina Faso and also made available to them Kombian’s picture.
According to police intelligence report, Kombian, described as the brain behind a number of robberies, had earlier escaped from jail at the Tamale Prison on January 15, 2010 and crossed the border into Togo from his hideout at Gomsuka, a small village near Nakpanduri.
The Ghanaian authorities again alerted Interpol in Togo and provided them with vital information on the fugitive, including his picture, to facilitate his arrest.
From our information, the Police Command in the Upper East and Upper West regions also worked in close collaboration with their counterparts in both Togo and Burkina Faso, sharing information on Kombian’s whereabouts and movements.
These operational activities of the police, we believe, eventually led to Kombian’s arrest in Togo last Friday.
We have always held the belief that the Ghana Police Service, under the leadership of the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Paul Tawiah Quaye, is one of the best in Africa, if not the world.
This is not the first time they have arrested and brought back a fugitive who has broken jail and escaped into one of our neighbouring countries.
About three years ago, the police arrested and brought back a fugitive, John Malm, 12 days after he had broken jail at the Nsawam Prisons and escaped to Togo.
They have done that again, barely five weeks after Kombian had escaped from the country.
We, like all well-meaning and patriotic Ghanaians, are very much elated at the arrest of this dangerous and deadly criminal and wish to congratulate the Ghana Police Service on this splendid professional performance.
Our policemen are professionals and very competent and if they are given the necessary logistics, support and fair opportunity to exhibit their expertise, they will stand out for all to acknowledge them.
It is our expectation that the government will do everything possible to furnish the Ghana Police Service with good and durable vehicles, modern communication gadgets and the necessary tools for it to combat crime, especially armed robbery which is taking a sophisticated trend in the country.
The police need support not only from the government but also all the citizens of this country. Giving vital tip-offs that will lead to the prevention of crime and arrest of criminals will help the police to discharge their statutory duties.
Once again, we say well done to the Ghana Police Service.
The 35-year-old recidivist, also known as the Nakpanduri Terror, was said to have been shot in the arm after a violent struggle between him and the Togo security officers and eventually handed over to the Ghana Police in Aflao under heavy security.
Before the police declared him wanted, with a reward of GH¢3,000 for information leading to his arrest, Kombian was alleged to have killed a number of his robbery victims in the course of his deadly and brutal operations at Nakpanduri, his last victims being two policemen, Constables Prince Agyare and Owusu Frimpong.
After killing the two constables, Kombian escaped from the country through the northern border post at the Nakpanduri area to Togo and Burkina-Faso.
The police quickly gave his picture to the Daily Graphic to publish to alert the public to his identity.
From their intelligence report on his movements, the police contacted Interpol in Burkina Faso and also made available to them Kombian’s picture.
According to police intelligence report, Kombian, described as the brain behind a number of robberies, had earlier escaped from jail at the Tamale Prison on January 15, 2010 and crossed the border into Togo from his hideout at Gomsuka, a small village near Nakpanduri.
The Ghanaian authorities again alerted Interpol in Togo and provided them with vital information on the fugitive, including his picture, to facilitate his arrest.
From our information, the Police Command in the Upper East and Upper West regions also worked in close collaboration with their counterparts in both Togo and Burkina Faso, sharing information on Kombian’s whereabouts and movements.
These operational activities of the police, we believe, eventually led to Kombian’s arrest in Togo last Friday.
We have always held the belief that the Ghana Police Service, under the leadership of the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Paul Tawiah Quaye, is one of the best in Africa, if not the world.
This is not the first time they have arrested and brought back a fugitive who has broken jail and escaped into one of our neighbouring countries.
About three years ago, the police arrested and brought back a fugitive, John Malm, 12 days after he had broken jail at the Nsawam Prisons and escaped to Togo.
They have done that again, barely five weeks after Kombian had escaped from the country.
We, like all well-meaning and patriotic Ghanaians, are very much elated at the arrest of this dangerous and deadly criminal and wish to congratulate the Ghana Police Service on this splendid professional performance.
Our policemen are professionals and very competent and if they are given the necessary logistics, support and fair opportunity to exhibit their expertise, they will stand out for all to acknowledge them.
It is our expectation that the government will do everything possible to furnish the Ghana Police Service with good and durable vehicles, modern communication gadgets and the necessary tools for it to combat crime, especially armed robbery which is taking a sophisticated trend in the country.
The police need support not only from the government but also all the citizens of this country. Giving vital tip-offs that will lead to the prevention of crime and arrest of criminals will help the police to discharge their statutory duties.
Once again, we say well done to the Ghana Police Service.
GIVE WESTERN REGION AN EAR (NOV 20, 2010)
ON Wednesday, November 17, 2010, the chiefs and people of the Western Region petitioned Parliament to cede 10 per cent of Ghana’s petroleum revenue to a Western Regional Development Fund to be established under the Petroleum Revenue Management Bill.
That, according to them, was for the purpose of developing the region.
In addition, they called for the establishment of a special fund to take care of any disaster that might occur during the exploration and production of the oil and gas in the area.
After the presentation of the petition by the President of the Western Regional House of Chiefs, Awulae Atibrukusu, the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mr Edward Doe Adjaho, referred it to the Joint Committee on Finance and Mines and Energy for consideration.
The committee, in its deliberation, acknowledged that the region was endowed with many resources which had been used to support the development of the country over the years.
It also acknowledged that the Western Region had suffered under-development over the years, despite its numerous natural resources, and stated that it was important that the government come up with special interventions to expedite the development of the region.
However, for one reason or another, the committee stated that ceding 10 per cent of petroleum revenue to a fund for the region might defeat the primary objective of the Petroleum Revenue Management Bill, which is to avoid “the ring-fencing of petroleum revenues”.
We believe that the issues raised by the chiefs and people of the Western Region were pertinent and the House should have taken more time to go into them because the exploitation and control of oil have become some of the contentious intractable issues in some countries, as is happening in the Niger Delta in Nigeria.
Really, the chiefs have the right to make some demands because as custodians of the assets and heritage of the people, they have the duty to protect and promote the interest, aspirations and welfare of the people, including enhancing their standard of living.
The region is one of the poverty-endemic areas in the country and even in sections of the capital, Sekondi-Takoradi, one can see abject poverty.
The Takoradi Harbour, the Ghana Railway Company offices and workshop, known popularly as Location, and other allied companies which in the past offered employment to the people are not as vibrant as they used to be.
If, for the reasons assigned by the committee, the petition of the chiefs and people of the Western Region are to be rejected, then we call on the government to set up an institution similar to the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) for the Western Region to serve as a vehicle for the accelerated development of the region.
Another way out, as we said some time ago, is for the government to increase resource allocation for the purpose of building more economic and social infrastructure in the Western Region and also help empower those with employable skills in the oil sector to be absorbed into the oil industry.
We should not lose sight of what is happening in the Niger Delta where, as a result of neglect and the destruction of the environment resulting from oil exploration, the people are waging an armed struggle to have a stake in that industry.
The demand for 10 per cent of oil revenue by the chiefs and people of the Western Region is coming at a time when Ghana’s oil is yet to hit the international market to accrue revenue for the nation, for which reason the demand can be nothing more than an act of desperation arising out of what the chiefs and people see as the marginalisation of the region in the past.
We, therefore, appeal to the government to give the chiefs and people of the Western Region an ear.
That, according to them, was for the purpose of developing the region.
In addition, they called for the establishment of a special fund to take care of any disaster that might occur during the exploration and production of the oil and gas in the area.
After the presentation of the petition by the President of the Western Regional House of Chiefs, Awulae Atibrukusu, the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mr Edward Doe Adjaho, referred it to the Joint Committee on Finance and Mines and Energy for consideration.
The committee, in its deliberation, acknowledged that the region was endowed with many resources which had been used to support the development of the country over the years.
It also acknowledged that the Western Region had suffered under-development over the years, despite its numerous natural resources, and stated that it was important that the government come up with special interventions to expedite the development of the region.
However, for one reason or another, the committee stated that ceding 10 per cent of petroleum revenue to a fund for the region might defeat the primary objective of the Petroleum Revenue Management Bill, which is to avoid “the ring-fencing of petroleum revenues”.
We believe that the issues raised by the chiefs and people of the Western Region were pertinent and the House should have taken more time to go into them because the exploitation and control of oil have become some of the contentious intractable issues in some countries, as is happening in the Niger Delta in Nigeria.
Really, the chiefs have the right to make some demands because as custodians of the assets and heritage of the people, they have the duty to protect and promote the interest, aspirations and welfare of the people, including enhancing their standard of living.
The region is one of the poverty-endemic areas in the country and even in sections of the capital, Sekondi-Takoradi, one can see abject poverty.
The Takoradi Harbour, the Ghana Railway Company offices and workshop, known popularly as Location, and other allied companies which in the past offered employment to the people are not as vibrant as they used to be.
If, for the reasons assigned by the committee, the petition of the chiefs and people of the Western Region are to be rejected, then we call on the government to set up an institution similar to the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) for the Western Region to serve as a vehicle for the accelerated development of the region.
Another way out, as we said some time ago, is for the government to increase resource allocation for the purpose of building more economic and social infrastructure in the Western Region and also help empower those with employable skills in the oil sector to be absorbed into the oil industry.
We should not lose sight of what is happening in the Niger Delta where, as a result of neglect and the destruction of the environment resulting from oil exploration, the people are waging an armed struggle to have a stake in that industry.
The demand for 10 per cent of oil revenue by the chiefs and people of the Western Region is coming at a time when Ghana’s oil is yet to hit the international market to accrue revenue for the nation, for which reason the demand can be nothing more than an act of desperation arising out of what the chiefs and people see as the marginalisation of the region in the past.
We, therefore, appeal to the government to give the chiefs and people of the Western Region an ear.
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