Story: Rose Hayford Darko, Tema
17/03/08
The Tema Metropolitan Electoral Officer, Mr Michael Boadu, has expressed satisfaction with the rate at which eligible voters in the metropolis are responding to the replacement of voter identification cards exercise.
He said the Electoral Commission (EC) was not expecting that many people would turn up for the exercise because it was meant only for the few who might have misplaced or lost their cards or had them destroyed.
Mr Boadu said the exercise had a smooth start in the Tema metropolis with an average record of eleven replacements at the centres within three to four hours after the exercise had started on Friday.
He noted that the replacement exercise was very necessary because of unexpected eventualities which could result in some people being dispossessed of their voter identification cards.
He indicated that the Tema metropolis, including Ashaiman and Adenta had 59 replacement centres at various electoral areas.
Mr Boadu explained that Ashaiman and Adenta were included because at the time of compilation of the voters register, they were part of Tema.
He said his office was closely monitoring the exercise to ensure that no one took advantage of it for personal interest.
Mr Boadu appealed to residents who had their cards destroyed, defaced or lost but had not gone to register for new ones to endeavour to do that before the close of the stipulated 10 days.
He said the usual habit of doing things late would not apply in this case because the EC would not entertain any complaints after the period.
When the Daily Graphic went round some of the officials claimed that the patronage was normal because there were some more days ahead.
At the Uhuru Electoral Area which had five polling stations, the replacement officer, Mr Joseph Kwofie, said they did not expect to have people rushing to have their cards replaced because they might not have their cards missing or defaced.
He said the few people who went to register were educated on the implication of having more than one voter ID card.
Mr Kwofie was of the view that some people might think of hiding under the guise of having lost their cards and by so doing register twice but warned that there was a mechanism which the EC would use to detect that anomaly and the culprits would be punished according to the electoral law.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Sunday, March 9, 2008
SENSITISATION EXERCISE FOR TRANSIT DRIVERS ENDS (MARCH 6TH, PAGE 34)
A sensitization exercise to educate transit drivers and transporters who conveyed cargo from the Tema port to Mali , Niger and Burkina-Faso on road regulations has been held in Tema .
The exercise which was organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in conjunction with the West African Trade Hub and the Shippers Council was also to afford the drivers the opportunity to make public some allegations of bribery and delay which they encountered in the performance of their duties .
The meeting brought together officials of the Improved Road Transport and Governance Project ,(IRTG ) Senior Police officers , Immigration and Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) Officials who responded to questions from the drivers .
The programme was held mostly in French and translated by Mr Kossi Dahoui of the Centre Pour Le Commerce en Afrique de’Ouest / Accra brought together about 50 drivers and representatives of the land locked countries
The drivers complained among others lack of parking lots on the route from Tema to Paga , short interval barriers , demand of monies by the Police and CEPS officials and ineffectiveness of Insurance policies in Ghana .
According to the drivers the law allows for resting after driving for four hours but there are no parking lots and security considering the activities of armed robbers .
They claimed that the mode of checks by some police patrol officials on the high ways posed danger to life explaining that they sometimes hid behind trees and appeared suddenly with hands raised .
The drivers were alleged that for failing to stop immediately where the police men stood landed them in cells and sometimes had their back tires shot at .
They appealed to the Police Command to consider their distance and the goods they carried to treat them accordingly to serve the country .
About the motorway , they asserted that government was loosing revenue because the scale did not take care of excess loads and yet some officials at the check points charged for excess alleging that the amount paid in the name of excess load went into individual pockets .
They therefore suggested that the Highway Authority must mount a digital scale which would determine the amount to be paid covered by receipts so that government would benefit from the road tax as done in other neighbouring countries .
The Highways Authority was also urged to make road designs which would be easily assessed by both small and big vehicles .
The drivers were of the view that certain portions of the countries roads and roundabouts which they used to their destinations were not convenient .
They said some of the trucks had to climb pavements before negotiating the curves making them dangerous .
The Tema Rgional Police Commander , DCOP John Kudalor in response to some of the questions cautioned the drivers that free movement did not mean they should not be checked .
He advised them to ensure that they carried genuine documents which granted them the permission to travel out of the country .
DCOP Kudalor said the police officer had the tool which empowered him to check vehicles but called on the drivers to report any official who through the excuse of performing his duties would want to extort from them .
He said the Police has a unit established to monitor the activities of the personnel and therefore any policeman found culpable was tried and dismissed .
DCOP Kudalor also said the official barriers from Accra to Paga were supposed to be 11 but added that in times of operations the police could mount additional barriers to check vehicles and persons .
He however urged them to avoid stopping by any one police personnel who will be found on the road in uniform explaining that “ no one person would ever be sent on road duties .”
The drivers were later introduced to the required interstate documents needed by transit Ghanaian truck drivers .
These include international driving permit ,National Identity Card or Passport ,Ecowas certificate ,valid roadworthiness certificate, Ecowas Log Book to be checked by CEPS and wood conveyance certificate, waybill and VAT receipt to be checked by Forestry officials.
Other items were International certificate of vaccination ,Ghana Standard Board quality export certificate among others .
The exercise which was organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in conjunction with the West African Trade Hub and the Shippers Council was also to afford the drivers the opportunity to make public some allegations of bribery and delay which they encountered in the performance of their duties .
The meeting brought together officials of the Improved Road Transport and Governance Project ,(IRTG ) Senior Police officers , Immigration and Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) Officials who responded to questions from the drivers .
The programme was held mostly in French and translated by Mr Kossi Dahoui of the Centre Pour Le Commerce en Afrique de’Ouest / Accra brought together about 50 drivers and representatives of the land locked countries
The drivers complained among others lack of parking lots on the route from Tema to Paga , short interval barriers , demand of monies by the Police and CEPS officials and ineffectiveness of Insurance policies in Ghana .
According to the drivers the law allows for resting after driving for four hours but there are no parking lots and security considering the activities of armed robbers .
They claimed that the mode of checks by some police patrol officials on the high ways posed danger to life explaining that they sometimes hid behind trees and appeared suddenly with hands raised .
The drivers were alleged that for failing to stop immediately where the police men stood landed them in cells and sometimes had their back tires shot at .
They appealed to the Police Command to consider their distance and the goods they carried to treat them accordingly to serve the country .
About the motorway , they asserted that government was loosing revenue because the scale did not take care of excess loads and yet some officials at the check points charged for excess alleging that the amount paid in the name of excess load went into individual pockets .
They therefore suggested that the Highway Authority must mount a digital scale which would determine the amount to be paid covered by receipts so that government would benefit from the road tax as done in other neighbouring countries .
The Highways Authority was also urged to make road designs which would be easily assessed by both small and big vehicles .
The drivers were of the view that certain portions of the countries roads and roundabouts which they used to their destinations were not convenient .
They said some of the trucks had to climb pavements before negotiating the curves making them dangerous .
The Tema Rgional Police Commander , DCOP John Kudalor in response to some of the questions cautioned the drivers that free movement did not mean they should not be checked .
He advised them to ensure that they carried genuine documents which granted them the permission to travel out of the country .
DCOP Kudalor said the police officer had the tool which empowered him to check vehicles but called on the drivers to report any official who through the excuse of performing his duties would want to extort from them .
He said the Police has a unit established to monitor the activities of the personnel and therefore any policeman found culpable was tried and dismissed .
DCOP Kudalor also said the official barriers from Accra to Paga were supposed to be 11 but added that in times of operations the police could mount additional barriers to check vehicles and persons .
He however urged them to avoid stopping by any one police personnel who will be found on the road in uniform explaining that “ no one person would ever be sent on road duties .”
The drivers were later introduced to the required interstate documents needed by transit Ghanaian truck drivers .
These include international driving permit ,National Identity Card or Passport ,Ecowas certificate ,valid roadworthiness certificate, Ecowas Log Book to be checked by CEPS and wood conveyance certificate, waybill and VAT receipt to be checked by Forestry officials.
Other items were International certificate of vaccination ,Ghana Standard Board quality export certificate among others .
TOR PIPELINE BURSTS ( MARCH 3RD, PAGE 24)
Story: Rose Hayford Darko , Tema .
The largest of the pipelines carrying crude oil from the port to the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) got burst on Friday draining off large quantities of the product into the Chemu drain which runs behind the refinery causing an estimated loss of about 2000 gallons of crude.
The Chemu drain which served as an outlet for flow of water from up town through the industrial area to the Chemu Lagoon and finally into the sea was dried up at the time of the spillage .
Observers were of the view that such unexpected spillages could pose danger to industries and companies situated along the drain .
According to some observers who were among the first to arrive at the scene of the spillage , the product was found flowing freely from the pipelines onto the shoulders of the drain and therefore a report was made to the TOR authorities .
As a result of the report ,the Management personnel of TOR responded promptly and rushed to the site during which technicians from the refinery immediately made efforts to arrest the situation to avert any disaster that the product could cause to the refinery and the public .
Fire tenders were used to cordon the area while police personnel took positions to prevent people from attempting to collect the spilt crude .
Speaking to the media later the Security Services Manager of the TOR , Captain ( rtd ) Edward Coffie explained that the burst was caused by a technical failure of one of the joint components of the conveying pipelines.
He was optimistic that the burst will not have any adverse technical effect on the refinery and its operations .
He gave assurance that the TOR technicians had taken sufficient precautions to avert any danger that the burst could cause to human life and property .
Captain (rtd ) Coffie disclosed that the drained crude would be scooped with a pumping machine for recycling .
Throughout the weekend technicians were found busily working on the pipelines, fastening the bolts and nuts at the joints of the pipelines .
They hoped to restore the situation immediately for work to continue at the refinery without any problems .
As on Sunday the spilt crude was heavy in the gutter were the drain occurred but because of the security measures put in place , no intruder was found attempting to collect it .
The burst on Friday brings to two spillage at the refinery this year with the first occurring on 2nd January 2008 when crude was drained from one of the refinery’s under ground pipes .
#
The largest of the pipelines carrying crude oil from the port to the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) got burst on Friday draining off large quantities of the product into the Chemu drain which runs behind the refinery causing an estimated loss of about 2000 gallons of crude.
The Chemu drain which served as an outlet for flow of water from up town through the industrial area to the Chemu Lagoon and finally into the sea was dried up at the time of the spillage .
Observers were of the view that such unexpected spillages could pose danger to industries and companies situated along the drain .
According to some observers who were among the first to arrive at the scene of the spillage , the product was found flowing freely from the pipelines onto the shoulders of the drain and therefore a report was made to the TOR authorities .
As a result of the report ,the Management personnel of TOR responded promptly and rushed to the site during which technicians from the refinery immediately made efforts to arrest the situation to avert any disaster that the product could cause to the refinery and the public .
Fire tenders were used to cordon the area while police personnel took positions to prevent people from attempting to collect the spilt crude .
Speaking to the media later the Security Services Manager of the TOR , Captain ( rtd ) Edward Coffie explained that the burst was caused by a technical failure of one of the joint components of the conveying pipelines.
He was optimistic that the burst will not have any adverse technical effect on the refinery and its operations .
He gave assurance that the TOR technicians had taken sufficient precautions to avert any danger that the burst could cause to human life and property .
Captain (rtd ) Coffie disclosed that the drained crude would be scooped with a pumping machine for recycling .
Throughout the weekend technicians were found busily working on the pipelines, fastening the bolts and nuts at the joints of the pipelines .
They hoped to restore the situation immediately for work to continue at the refinery without any problems .
As on Sunday the spilt crude was heavy in the gutter were the drain occurred but because of the security measures put in place , no intruder was found attempting to collect it .
The burst on Friday brings to two spillage at the refinery this year with the first occurring on 2nd January 2008 when crude was drained from one of the refinery’s under ground pipes .
#
Monday, March 3, 2008
TRUCK DRIVERS UNDERMINE PORT DECONGESTIVE EXERCISE (PAGE 53)
Story: Rose Hayford Darko
MORE than 200 loaded vehicles spent the night at the Tema Port, despite warnings and monetary fines instituted by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) in its bid to decongest the port, Daily Graphic investigations have revealed.
This defiance by the recalcitrant drivers is thwarting the efforts of the authority to achieve its goal of decongesting the port in pursuit of development and performance improvement programmes.
It has also taken a heavy toll on the performance and efficiency of the port, impeding the movement of heavy equipment and people.
As part of the several initiatives to improve the performance and efficiency of the port, the GPHA has developed a transit truck park to cater for trucks waiting to be processed.
The park has, however, remained underutilised, while the port is congested with loaded trucks waiting to process their documents.
When the Daily Graphic visited the transit yard, it found that the situation had rather become the haven for unauthorised people.
The Public Affairs Manager of the port, Mrs Esther Gyebi-Donkor, blamed transport owners and truck drivers for converting the port area into their garages.
She explained that the authority had acquired land at Tema Industrial Area which would be developed into a parking lot for trucks for a fee.
She said discussions were ongoing with the Customs Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) and the various freight forwarding associations to find permanent solutions to the problem of congestion.
The public affairs manager said other problems to be discussed would include loading of trucks beyond the legal weight and height limits.
She cited some of those trucks that caused severe damage to the assets of the port and on the highways.
The Director-General of the GPHA, Mr Ben Owusu-Mensah, told Members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Roads and Transport who toured the port last week that squatters had unfortunately invaded the port area.
Mr Owusu-Mensah said those encroachers had ‘hijacked’ the land space of the GPHA, making it difficult for the authority to expand.
He also recounted the GPHA’s initiated programmes geared towards accelerated development and growth to improve performance and efficiency.
Mr Owusu Mensah said the GPHA was relocating some of the activities previously undertaken in the port to the western area to transform the roads into four lane dual carriageways with a flyover to cope with the current situation.
He said the design was necessitated by the ever-increasing vehicular traffic at the port.
Mr Owusu Mensah said availability of equipment was one area customers were not satisfied with, but gave the assurance that the GPHA had taken a bold step to address this problem on a permanent basis.
He said the equipment maintenance management function had been contracted out to improve performance.
Mr Owusu Mensah said the equipment stock of the Golden Jubilee Terminal and the port operations department of the authority had all been beefed up in recent months to cope with demand.
He said the port reform project, which commenced in 1998, was in its final phase, and it was expected to make the port capable of supporting the development agenda of the country.
MORE than 200 loaded vehicles spent the night at the Tema Port, despite warnings and monetary fines instituted by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) in its bid to decongest the port, Daily Graphic investigations have revealed.
This defiance by the recalcitrant drivers is thwarting the efforts of the authority to achieve its goal of decongesting the port in pursuit of development and performance improvement programmes.
It has also taken a heavy toll on the performance and efficiency of the port, impeding the movement of heavy equipment and people.
As part of the several initiatives to improve the performance and efficiency of the port, the GPHA has developed a transit truck park to cater for trucks waiting to be processed.
The park has, however, remained underutilised, while the port is congested with loaded trucks waiting to process their documents.
When the Daily Graphic visited the transit yard, it found that the situation had rather become the haven for unauthorised people.
The Public Affairs Manager of the port, Mrs Esther Gyebi-Donkor, blamed transport owners and truck drivers for converting the port area into their garages.
She explained that the authority had acquired land at Tema Industrial Area which would be developed into a parking lot for trucks for a fee.
She said discussions were ongoing with the Customs Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) and the various freight forwarding associations to find permanent solutions to the problem of congestion.
The public affairs manager said other problems to be discussed would include loading of trucks beyond the legal weight and height limits.
She cited some of those trucks that caused severe damage to the assets of the port and on the highways.
The Director-General of the GPHA, Mr Ben Owusu-Mensah, told Members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Roads and Transport who toured the port last week that squatters had unfortunately invaded the port area.
Mr Owusu-Mensah said those encroachers had ‘hijacked’ the land space of the GPHA, making it difficult for the authority to expand.
He also recounted the GPHA’s initiated programmes geared towards accelerated development and growth to improve performance and efficiency.
Mr Owusu Mensah said the GPHA was relocating some of the activities previously undertaken in the port to the western area to transform the roads into four lane dual carriageways with a flyover to cope with the current situation.
He said the design was necessitated by the ever-increasing vehicular traffic at the port.
Mr Owusu Mensah said availability of equipment was one area customers were not satisfied with, but gave the assurance that the GPHA had taken a bold step to address this problem on a permanent basis.
He said the equipment maintenance management function had been contracted out to improve performance.
Mr Owusu Mensah said the equipment stock of the Golden Jubilee Terminal and the port operations department of the authority had all been beefed up in recent months to cope with demand.
He said the port reform project, which commenced in 1998, was in its final phase, and it was expected to make the port capable of supporting the development agenda of the country.
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