Micro finance manager arrested for fraud

Page 30: The Mirror, May 5, 2012. By Albert K. Salia THE manager of Gold Consult Micro-Finance Limited, Ebenezer Inkum, has been arrested for allegedly defrauding some clients of the company to the tune of more than GH¢20,000. Inkum claims to have engaged 13 staff members who went round the markets in Accra to convince traders to save with his company for loans in return. Although he claimed to have given out loans to some of the clients, Inkum could, however, not refund the savings of other traders to them. He was arrested after eight of the clients reported his conduct to the Adabraka police. The Crime Officer of the Adabraka Police Station, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mr Ebenezer Nketiah, told The Mirror that when the police requested for Inkum’s company bank statement, there was nothing in the account. He said investigations have so far revealed that Inkum often told his clients that after saving with the company for between two to three months, they (clients) would be entitled to loans based on their savings. Mr Nketiah said some of the clients have saved between GH¢100 to GH¢3,000. According to him, investigations have also revealed that the company, although registered at the Registrar-General’s Department, was not licenced by the Bank of Ghana to engage in micro-finance activities. Inkum, he said, told the police that the company started operations in October last year. While this reporter was at the Adabraka Police Station, a victim of the Gold Consult Micro-Finance Limited, scam, Mr Francis Sebuna, who heard of the arrest of Inkum, rushed to the station with a letter of guarantee from Inkum for him (Sebunu) to take away three computers and an air-conditioner from the office in the event that he (Inkum) was unable to refund an amount of GH¢524 to him on a day they agreed on. The letter, dated April 24, 2012 and jointly signed by Inkum and Mr Sebunu read: “I Ebenezer Inkum on behalf of Gold Consult Micro-Finance Ltd owe Mr Francis Sebuna (sic) an amount of GH¢525 and promise to pay by Friday, April 27 2012. He has the right to take away three computers and one air-conditioner if I fail to pay the money on the said date.”

Two car snatchers arrested

Page 30: The Mirror, May 5, 2012. By Albert K. Salia TWO persons who allegedly snatched a taxi at Amasaman near Accra a fortnight ago and sent it to Kumasi to sell have been arrested. Emmanuel Asanboh alias Asamoah, 20, and Michael Donkor, 31, were arrested by the Sofoline police in Kumasi upon a tip-off. Asanboh, Asamoah and the taxi they snatched have since been brought back to Accra. Efforts are being made to trace the driver of the taxi whom the suspects claim they hit with an empty beer bottle after which they dumped him by the road side. Briefing newsmen in Accra last Saturday, April 28, 2012, the Deputy Accra Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP), Mr Christian Tetteh Yohuno, said Asanbo and Asamoah claimed that they hired the car from the Aphrodisiac Night Club area at dawn on April 27, 2012, to Amasaman. The driver, he said, allegedly charged a fee of GH¢24. While on their way, Mr Yohuno said, Asanboh, also known as Ziggy, bought a bottle of beer at Domi before they continued the journey to Amasaman. According to him, Asanboh was alleged to have asked the driver to pull up to enable him (Asanboh) answer to nature's call. He said just when the driver did, Asanboh started hitting him with the beer bottle after Asamoah had allegedly pointed a toy pistol at the driver. Mr Yohuno said Asanboh and Asamoah then allegedly dumped the driver by the road side after injuring him, drove the car to the Suame Magazine in Kumasi for sale. Upon reaching the Suame Magazine, Asanboh and Asamoah, he said, were allegedly advised to take the car to the road side mechanics for sale. Mr Yohuno said the Sofoline police were then hinted by some of the mechanics in Kumasi that they suspected that the car being offered for sale was a stolen one since there were no documents covering it. He said when the police in Kumasi moved to arrest them, Asanboh and Asamoah allegedly confessed to have snatched the car in Accra and had brought it to Kumasi to sell.

WELL DONE, EC, BUT …

Page 7: Daily Graphic, May 7, 2012. THE 40-day nation-wide biometric voters registration (BVR) exercise officially ended on Saturday, May 5, 2012. If there is anything to go by, then the mad rush of Ghanaians to register, especially during the first three phases of the exercise, is an indication that the exercise has been a success. We must, therefore, pad ourselves on the back. From the technical and human perspectives, the exercise had its challenges but those difficulties seemed to have been overcome as it entered its fourth and final phase. Although official figures are yet to be put out, we believe the Electoral Commission (EC) may achieve its target of registering 12 million voters. The low turnout at various registration centres during the fourth and final phase of the exercise can only point to the anxiety and desire among many eligible voters to have their names on the electoral roll for the 2012 general election which compelled them to register during the first three phases of the exercise. We, however, believe it will not be out of place for the EC to give serious thought to extending the exercise in areas which recorded hitches, including violence, shortage of materials and breakdown of equipment during the first two phases of the exercise. The Daily Graphic is also concerned about the high number of cases of double registration recorded in the first three phases. The 8,000 figure, to us, is on the high side and we urge the EC to clean the register of any unqualified voter. We believe the EC and Ghanaians in general have learnt great lessons from the exercise and should begin taking steps to prepare for the general election in December 2012. The Daily Graphic appeals to the EC to begin to look for solutions to address the large number of voters who may turn up at particular polling stations, especially those stations which recorded high turn-outs during the first and second phases of the BVR exercise. This is because all those who registered at such stations and are desirous of voting must be allowed to do so. That is the only way we will allow the will of the people to prevail, instead of allowing others to impose their authority on us. The Daily Graphic believes that the elections will be peaceful if Ghanaians abide by the rules of the game and are also tolerant of one another’s views. We hope that all the political parties which will take part in the elections have a duty to themselves and the country to appoint well-trained agents to observe the elections on their behalf. That is necessary if the country is to experience vigilance on polling day to avoid disputes over the release of results from the polling stations through to the constituency levels. Most of the confusion that characterised the BVR exercise resulted from the lack of knowledge of the rules and regulations governing the exercise. We need no reminder that the whole world is looking at the way Ghana will successfully organise this year’s elections. The country is beginning to suffer from the unwarranted violence, acrimony and hate speech that is becoming part of our politics as speculators dictate the direction of the economy for fear that the elections may not be peaceful. We cannot afford to do anything to undermine the confidence reposed in the country by our well-wishers, including our development partners.

‘Clergy should not shy away from national issues’

Front Page: Daily Graphic, May 7, 2012 Story: Albert K. Salia THE Archbishop Emeritus of Kumasi, the Most Rev Peter Akwasi Sarpong, has urged the clergy not to shy away from commenting on issues affecting the state. “If the church is silent over the ludicrous and perplexing issues affecting the nation; if the church is not to be involved in the affairs of the nation without being accused of meddling in politics, then what is the church for?” he asked, and reminded the clergy not to give in to those who criticised the church for doing politics and being unpatriotic. “If we follow Jesus, we will see and hear Him say that political intimidation, bigotry and deceit are inhuman and that the church must stand up against them,” he said, and stressed that “the church’s role is not to please human beings; it is to please Jesus Christ who has clearly and loudly said ‘Follow me’”. The Most Rev Sarpong said this when he launched the Golden Jubilee of the National Catholic Secretariat (NCS) in Accra on Friday, May 4, 2012. The anniversary is on the theme, “NCS @ 50 – The Church in Ghana in Service of Reconciliation, Justice and Peace”. He said if sections of society would condemn and criticise the church for its comments on national issues, it could only be detrimental to the state and stressed that “we Ghanaians must know that without criticism, freedom yields to totalitarianism, justice gives way to exploitation, charity recedes into ruthlessness, peace dissolves into rivalry and hostility”. Although the NCS was established in 1960 as the executive arm of the Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference (GCBC), it was registered as a corporate entity in 1962. With five departments, the NCS is responsible for implementing the decisions and policies of the GCBC. The Most Rev Sarpong said when the church commented on educational or health issues, it was on a complementary basis with the view to assisting the state to fill in where the state fell short, stressing that “there is nothing like Catholic health and government health; it is the same health we are concerned about”. He also said the charge to cast out devils included “the devil of oppression, the devil of hedonism, the devil of political intimidation and deceit, the devil of the ethics that exclude God, the devil of the callous destruction of the family and all that this implies, the devil of new abominable habits entering our country, the devil of diseases, the devil of ignorance, the devil of poverty, the devil of abortion, the devil of rape, the devil of violence, the devil of vendetta”. “It is these and many other devils that the church in Ghana, in pursuit of peace, justice and reconciliation, has waged a relentless war against in the past 50 years,” he added. He noted that the communiques issued by the GCBC did not seek to praise any political party or persons and that they spoke the truth as it was and what they said was accepted and respected by the nation, although “we are sometimes condemned for making innocuous suggestions for the good of the nation”. The Most Rev Sarpong said the question of justice and peace formed part of the church’s mission of promoting human life through education, health and social welfare which alleviated poverty. He said the performance of the Catholic Church so far demonstrated that the church was still needed in the promotion of reconciliation, justice and peace for the country. He, therefore, asked the leadership of the NCS to use the Golden Jubilee celebration to ponder over whether the church in Ghana had “completely lived up to its ideal of effectively being at the service of reconciliation, justice and peace by offering itself as one of the principal agents under the judgement of the enduring values of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: Freedom, justice, peace, charity, compassion and reconciliation”. “In short, have we made the church absolutely necessary by proclaiming, without compromise, the dignity and worth of every person in Ghana?” he asked. In a goodwill message, the President of the GCBC, the Most Reverend Joseph Osei-Bonsu, expressed the hope that the anniversary would lead to a restoration of good relations in the church and in the state. “I would want it to be a year in which justice and peace will be championed everywhere; a year in which people’s human rights will be respected,” he said. The Most Rev Osei-Bonsu paid glowing tribute to the founding fathers of the NCS for their pioneering work in the midst of great difficulties and hardships.

Korle-Bu records 5,000 neurological cases in 2010.

Page 32: Daily Graphic, May 8, 2012. Story: Albert K. Salia THE Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital recorded more than 5,000 cases of neurological disorders in 2010. What is alarming about the problem is the fact that out of the more than 100 patients who attended, five of them reported with broken spines. Neurological disorders also constitute about 15 per cent of admissions at the nation’s premier hospital. Although the figures for 2011 are yet to be released, a neuro-surgeon at the Neuro-Surgical Unit of the hospital, Dr Thomas Dakurah, told the Daily Graphic that the figures were alarming and called for urgent steps to address the situation. Neurological disorders are conditions that affect the nervous system, comprising the brain, the spinal cord and the nerves. The disorders cause deterioration in the movement, speech, balance and co-ordination of victims and, at worse, can lead to memory loss. Expatiating on the problem in an interview, Dr Dakurah said although neurological disorders could be congenital, most of them were acquired. He said the congenital problems could mostly be identified in patients suffering from hydrocephalus (patients with abnormal heads), persons born with a swell at the back and myelomeningocoele, a deformity in the spinal cord. He said most of the congenital cases could be helped if the problem was detected and reported early. According to Dr Dakurah, acquired neurological disorders included patients suffering from stroke, psychological trauma as a result of accidents, injury to the head, meningitis, epilepsy and cynosis. He explained, for instance, that persons suffering from hypertension, diabetes and high cholesterol, which many people acquire through lifestyles, were predisposed to getting stroke. He said the most common neurological disorders were low back pain, neck pain and numbness. Regrettably, he said, most people who suffered from these disorders believed it was normal but paid a heavy price when they deteriorated into stroke or paralysis. He said it was important that people sought full neurological assessment to determine the extent of damage or disorder before embarking on any form of treatment. He said as a result of space challenges at the Outpatients Department (OPD) of the hospital, the unit only attended to OPD cases every Thursday, from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m., stressing. “We sometimes go beyond 11 p.m.” That, Dr Dakurah explained, was because some of the patients travelled from across the country and other parts of the sub-region to be attended to at Korle Bu because the hospital had the expertise to deal with the problem.

SPEAK OUT ON NATIONAL ISSUES

Page 7: Daily Graphic, May 8, 2012. THE Archbishop Emeritus of Kumasi, the Most Rev Peter Akwasi Sarpong, might have stirred up a real hornets’ nest when he called on the clergy not to shy away from commenting on issues affecting the state. In time past, communiques issued by the Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference (GCBC) and the synods of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana and the Methodist Church of Ghana were often looked forward to by all. In critical times in the past, the pastoral letters of the Catholic Church touched on the conduct of national affairs, such that even non-Catholics sought after them because the epistles offered hope for the future. As recently as during the Kufuor era, the GCBC took a firm position concerning the removal of Religious and Moral Education from the curriculum of basic and second-cycle institutions until it was reinstated. The conference also took a firm position on the issue of voter verification during the just ended biometric voters registration exercise. Although the GCBC continues to address issues of national importance, most of the clergy shy away from commenting on national issues for fear of being verbally attacked or tagged as belonging to one political party or another. Indeed, think-tanks have also recently received their share of labelling and verbal vituperations. But this is where we disagree with those members of the clergy and respected citizens who have decided not to comment on or discuss issues affecting the state. And, as the Most Rev Sarpong said, refusing to comment on national issues for fear of being condemned or criticised by sections of society could only be detrimental to the state. Ghana has had a tortuous journey in its quest for democracy and we cannot afford to let it slip off since, as he said, “... without criticism, freedom yields to totalitarianism, justice gives way to exploitation, charity recedes into ruthlessness, peace dissolves into rivalry and hostility”. We need not also forget the popular Akan saying that he who beats the path will never know that the path is not straight. That is why the Daily Graphic thinks that if our beloved country is to reach its glorious destination, the collective effort of all of us is needed in thought, word or deed. It is, therefore, incumbent on every individual or organisation to contribute its quota to the holistic development of the country. We believe the clergy will be doing this country, their calling and themselves a great disservice if they remain mute on vital national issues. After all, even in critical times under military regimes, our clergy found their voices to talk about issues affecting the state. The Church of God exists to serve and protect its members and not please any political party or persons. The church does not have to wait for conflict, violence or disease to break out before acting. It must seek to prevent them now. For those who have made it a habit of castigating or pouring invectives on our clergy and respected citizens, they must bear in mind that insults do not provide food, peace, health or even a safe haven in times of need. They also need not forget about the critical role played by members of the clergy when the country almost went to the brink after the 2008 general election. Are such critics suggesting that the value of the clergy can only be found in times of crisis? We must appreciate the fact that the key drivers of democracy include freedom of political expression, freedom of speech and freedom of the press, so that citizens are adequately informed and be able to vote according to their own interests.

Desist from comments that incite violence - Baffour

Page 17: Daily Graphic, May 9, 2012. Story: Albert K. Salia THE Supreme Knight of the Knights of Marshall, Sir Knight Victor Derx Baffour, has called on Ghanaians to desist from justifying comments that seek to incite violence and conflict in the country. He reminded Ghanaians that the road to the present stable democratic dispensation had been long and difficult hence the need for a greater determination and tenacity of purpose to create and sustain the peace in the country today. He, therefore, urged Ghanaians to work towards the maintenance of peace in the country and ensure that everything that does not promote peace, especially conflict and violence, was put to an end. Sir Knight Baffour made the call in a speech to commemorate the feast of the Knights of Marshall at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Winneba on Sunday. Present at the ceremony were the Deputy Supreme Knight, Worthy Brother Ekow Paintsil, the Executive Secretary at the Supreme Secretariat, Sir Knight John Abraham, and the Supreme Master of Ceremonies, Worthy Brother Mark Taylor. The Knights of Marshall is a Catholic friendly society seeking to promote charity, unity and fraternity in the Catholic Church. Members of the Noble Order, drawn from Saltpond and Agona Swedru joined their counterparts in Winneba to celebrate the feast of Sir James Marshall, through whose efforts the Catholic Church was re-established in Ghana in 1880. Sir Knight Baffour said the practice of democracy was a call to respect divergent opinions and help the people to harness the differences for the total development of the people. He said the existence of different political parties were essential for any true democracy to be practiced, stressing that “The differences in political ideology should, however, not divide us.” Sir Knight Baffour, therefore, admonished that rancour and acrimony needed not to characterise politics in the country since the goal of each political persuasion was to achieve good and peaceful governance. He said any elections in the country should, therefore, be seen as providing an arena for the healthy contest of ideas and not about inciting people against each other. He expressed regret about the violence that characterised the recent biometric voters registration exercise in the country. Sir Knight Baffour urged Christians, particularly Marshallans, not to look on unconcerned since the cost of any civil strife would be too much for Ghanaians to bear. “To avert this looming and disturbing image, it must be the duty of every Marshallan to double his/her efforts towards deepening democratic rule in Ghana and the sub-region,” he said. In line with that, he said, the Knights of Marshall would mount a crusade to caution Ghanaians “against acts, omissions, hate speeches and inflammatory utterances that threaten the peace and stability of our country.” “As we commemorate this year’s feast day, lets us reflect on our roles as Marshallans in the promotion of peace and the entrenchment of democratic rule in Ghana and the West-African sub-region,” he said. Sir Knight Baffour said peace could only be certain when the citizen’s personal freedom was evidently assured because he or she was governed by the rule of law, stressing that “such a milieu exists when democratic rule is entrenched.”