Police enforce order after Makola market attacks

Reports reaching Citi News indicate the Ghana Police Service has managed to restore order in the Makola Market area following clashes between persons alleged to be supporters of the ruling National Democratic Congress and the main opposition, New Patriotic Party.

According to an eyewitness who spoke to Citi News on condition of anonymity, the supporters of the two rival parties reportedly attacked each other with machetes.

Some of the market women, hawkers and pedestrians have reportedly fled the market.

Tensions have been high in the country after the NPP refused to concede defeat following the declaration of the results of the December 7 elections.

Supporters of the NPP have been protesting at the Obra Spot at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle in Accra for three days in support of the party's position to pursue legal options to address their grievances.

It is however unclear whether the clash at the Makola Market was as a result of reprisal attack initiated by the NDC supporters.


Source: citifmonline.com/Ghana

NPP have themselves to blame - Amakye-Boateng

A political science lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Mr Kwasi Amakye-Boateng, says the leadership of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) should stop crying foul, and rather blame themselves for the party’s defeat in the just ended general election.
He said the NPP leadership lacked strategic planning, and that there was little surprise the party lost.
Speaking in an interview with graphic.com.gh in Kumasi Monday, Mr Amakye-Boateng said the party’s electoral machine did not possess the firepower to outdo the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
“It is clear that the NPP needs a major shake up at leadership level if it wanted to recover its lost glory,” he stressed. He stated that it was clear the party leadership had lost touch with the political environment.
“On the whole, I think the party needs to take a second look at its understanding of politics.
“For instance, the NPP must start looking at how they relate to people who do not belong to their political tradition,” he stressed.
Mr Amakye-Boateng accused the elite in the party of influencing the selection of the presidential candidate who “was not competitive.”
He said having presented a presidential candidate who did not do well in the 2008 and 2012 elections, the NPP should be informed that the candidate was not competitive.
The political science lecturer said the fact that President Mahama carried some of the “garbage” associated with late President Mills into the elections and yet managed to win first time was enough grounds to tell NPP that all was not well with them.
For Mr Mahama to use a limited time to campaign, and yet win the elections first touch meant the NDC were tactically superior to the NPP in electioneering.
He said the defeat of the party should be a wake-up call to the NPP that the Ghanaian voter could not be taken for granted.
Mr Amakye-Boateng suggested that in choosing national leaders in future, the NPP should look at people who did not come from their support base.

Black Star 26-man list for AFCON revealed

The 26-man squad that will be representing Ghana at the Orange AFCON 2013 tournament has been released.

The announcement was made by Black Stars coach, Kwesi Appiah at a media briefing on Thursday.

The players include:

Goalkeepers
Adam Kwarasey
Fatal Dawuda
Daniel Adjei


Defenders
Isaac Vorsah
John Boye
Jonathan Mensah
John Painstil
Harrison Afful
Richard Kissi Boateng
Awal Mohammed
Rashid Sumaila
Jerry Akaminko


Midfielders
Albert Adomah
Kwadjo Asamoah
Christian Atsu
Andre Ayew
Emmanuel Agyeman Badu
Derrick Boateng
Mubarack Wakaso
Solomon Asante
Rabiu Mohammed


Strikers
Richmond Boakye Yiadom
Yaya Mohammed
Asamoah Gyan
Emmanuel Clottey


The Black Stars of Ghana have been drawn in Group B for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations alongside Mali, Niger and DR Congo.

Tournament host South Africa are in Group A with Cape Verde, Morocco and Angola.

Meanwhile, fellow top seeds and pre-tournament favourites Ivory Coast head Group D, which also contains Togo, Algeria and Tunisia.

Defending champions Zambia, are in Group C, arguably the easiest of the draw, which will see Chipolopolo square off against minnows Burkina Faso and Ethiopia, although the group also contains big hitters Nigeria.

2013 Africa Cup of Nations Groups:

Group A: South Africa, Cape Verde, Morocco, Angola

Group B: Ghana, Niger, DR Congo, Mali

Group C: Zambia, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Nigeria

Group D: Ivory Coast, Togo, Algeria, Tunisia

Ghana Money...

Submit GIPC funding report today – Prez Mahama demands

President John Dramani Mahama has instructed the board of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), to convene an emergency meeting on Tuesday to investigate allegations that the Chief Executive of the GIPC, George Aboagye ordered the payment of funds to the group, Volunteers for Mahama.

George Aboagye, who is the NDC Parliamentary candidate for the Ahanta West Constituency in the Western Region, issued a cheque for GHC 4,000 in the name of Volunteers for Mahama on 15th of November.

A statement signed by the Communications Director for the John Mahama 2012 campaign, Hanna Tetteh described the act as unacceptable and unethical.


Below is the full text of the statement

PRESS STATEMENT FROM THE JOHN MAHAMA 2012 CAMPAIGN REGARDING SOLICITATION OF FUNDS BY VOLUNTEERS FOR MAHAMA
The John Mahama 2012 Campaign wishes to disassociate itself from the recent actions of a group of campaigners referred to as Volunteers for Mahama who have been canvassing for support for the John Mahama 2012 Campaign. While we do appreciate the support given by groups such as Volunteers for Mahama, we do not subscribe to their request for funding support from Government Agencies. We therefore wish to request the Group to refund any money’s that they may have received from the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre at once, and certainly within 24 hours.

We further would like to bring to the attention of all sympathizers, campaigners and affiliates of the NDC that soliciting funds from State Organizations is unacceptable, unethical and we believe not to be in line with the tenets of the Political Parties Act (Act 574). In the circumstances we are instructing all our sympathisers and affiliate organizatons not to solicit funds from any state agencies or entities that do not conform to the provisions on party financing in this Act. We take a very serious view of this conduct and consider it to be unacceptable and we advise all those who are working for the success of our campaign in the 2012 election to take note of this directive.

We encourage all our sympathizers and loyalists to work hard for the success of the party in the 2012 election, in order that the Party achieves resounding success in the upcomming elections which are not much more than a week away. Let us continue to demonstrate to the People of Ghana our commitment to be working for them.


Hanna S. Tetteh
Communications Director
John Mahama 2012 Campaign

Dear sweet talker, My heart is in a deep grief to write to you today. As I was on board this car to drop my letter, the driver was soo much irritated by your campaign advert you were playing on his radio. He started furiously to wonder how you can take us for granted and think all of us can not reason like you. "Is it because all of us are not coat-coat, that is why they think we can not read between two lines? He opined. He mentioned among other things his displeasure on how the ordinary citizenry is being treated by you and your likes. Sir, he even wished we go back to the military regime.. The disappointment in his eyes can not be hidden in anyway. His hope and trust in you to change things around for him to see improvement in his life is far fading. But, I have seen the 'wakye' seller's daughter in a new school uniform. She was telling her mother that you gave her some books too and she still enjoys one meal at school. Thank you. However Sir, I know you have not forgotten you promised me a stable power supply. But, my light has never be on uninterrupted even for a week nowadays. My water too has not come. The last drop from my tap was seen about a month ago. last night, I couldn’t hold my tears when I was walking through town. Many of the young children you promised good life are sleeping on pavement in the cold. Their life if not worse has not seen much improvement. These and many unfulfilled promises make me wonder how the man I wasted my time to queue in the sun and vote for can tell me he works and cares for me. How can you work for me when you sat down or complicitly allowed 52 million Ghana cedis to be dolled out to Mr. Woyome without sighting any contractual evidence binding us to that 'fraudulent' claim? I wondered how someone who was on his knees begging for my vote to come into power to manage state resources and properties prudently can sit down and leave a state of an art Presidential Palace to get rotten and taken over by rats and bats will have such courage to tell me he works for me... I can not reconcile the action of a person who accepted a 92 million CP arbitration deal without names of the signatories and various correspondences given at the arbitration with this sweet talk, I work for you. You can not work for me when I' can only afford one meal a day whiles Ministers spend my money on private secretaries abroad and when quizzed, you tell me, it is not the first time. How can you say, you care about me, when my neighbours daughter has to sleep with someone before getting a job...? Why should I believe that you care about me when after spending years in University the only job you can tell me to do is to learn barbering... I would have been naïve to believe this your sweet lyrics, but 'tufiakwa' and God forbid, my eyes are wide opened now. You have taught me a bitter lesson I will never forget. You never cared for me...you have never worked for. What you cared most was how to protect your interest. What you sweat and worked for all these years was to secure you family and friend's interest. From my base here in Donkorkurom, I will continue to walk on my untarred road. I will continue to sleep on the pavement and hustle to be able to afford at least two meal a day. But, what I can never do again is to believe this your political rhetoric ' I work for you' What I will never do again is to go and sleep in the mosquitoes overnight to queue and vote for you. Who can we believe to change this our country for the better? From the economic hardship and the cedis instability to the corruption in Government, it seems the country is facing a leadership crises. Until then, let us meet on December 7. Yours Truly Ato Kwamena Haizel Donkorkurom-Asemasa Dehay155@yahoo.com