RAIL BACK ON TRACK...Accra-Tema revamped...Other cities to be linked (LEAD STORY, OCT 29, 2010)

PRESIDENT John Atta Mills yesterday inaugurated a $23-million diesel engine train service with a capacity of 600 passengers on an expanded Accra-Tema rail network.
The President was one of the passengers on the train’s inaugural journey from Tema to Accra on the rail line which has been expanded at a cost of $14.7 million.
He used the occasion to assure Ghanaians that the railway sector would receive a major boost during the next two years to link various parts of the country, especially the rural communities where foodstuffs and mineral ore and cash crops could be transported to urban communities and the ports for export.
The President said the complete overhaul of the country’s infrastructural network, especially the rail sector, was uppermost in the scheme of activities of the government during its tenure of office, adding that, “we promise to work assiduously in actualising that objective”.
He said the government expected the Ghana Railway Development Authority (GRDA) to come up with innovations which would ensure that comfortable passenger coaches were rolled out to ensure that workers, especially those in the urban centres, availed themselves of the coaches during and after work.
He told the large gathering that the improvement of the rail sector would in no small measure reduce pressure on the country’s roads, which suffered massive deterioration after few years of construction.
President Mills catalogued other advantages of the rail sector over road transport as the avoidance of traffic jams, which have become a permanent feature of the country’s urban roads and other stretches of highways, and the carrying of bulk goods and precious metals at cheaper rates.
He urged the GRDA to devise more appropriate ways of maintaining the coach to prolong its lifespan, as well as maximise the needed revenue from its operations.
Apparently unhappy about the trading of insults among Ghanaians of late, the President asked the people to direct their energies into productive ventures, which is what would ensure the reconstruction of the country and renewal of the society.
He said the use of abusive language, especially on the airwaves, had the potential of sending wrong signals to the youth, who might perceive insults as a good thing and indulge in them when they grew into adults.
He said differences among the various political groupings should not degenerate into the use of intemperate language, which is not part of the country’s traditional values.
The Minister for Transport, Mr Mike Hammah, said the new train service was expected to ease traffic congestion within the Accra-Tema Metropolis and move commuters safely and conveniently to their destinations.
He noted that with the revamping process being vigorously pursued, the railway company would soon be able to stand on its feet and wean itself from government financial support.
Mr Hammah commended the contractor on the rail line project, M/S Amandi Investments, for the level of professionalism and competence exhibited during the period of execution.
The Board Chairman of the Ghana Railway Company Limited, Dr Clement Hammah, gave the assurance that the company would justify the investments made by the government to improve the country’s rail sector.
Mr Dan Markin, Board Chairman of the Ghana Railways Development Authority, said the authority was in discussion for the extension of other rail lines in the country and appealed to the public to assist the authority by being watchdogs to safeguard and protect the investment made by the government.

BOY, 10, DROWNS RESCUING A SHEEP (1B, OCT 28, 2010)

Story: Rose Hayford Darko & Della Russel Ocloo, Tema

A 10-year-old boy, Anas Malik, got drowned in a reservoir belonging to the Ghana Water Company Limited near the Tema Secondary School (TEMASCO) when he attempted to rescue a sheep that had been trapped in it.
The incident, according to eyewitnesses, occurred about 5:30 p.m. last Tuesday when the boy jumped into the reservoir filled with water after the stray animal had fallen into it.
Anas Malik, a Class Four pupil of the Anglican School at Tema Community One, was said to be playing on the nearby children’s park when the incident occurred.
His body, together with the dead animal, was retrieved from the reservoir by officials of the Ghana National Fire Service about 7 a.m. yesterday.
The Crime Officer of the Community One Police Station, DSP Reynolds Manteaw, who confirmed the incident, said the body had been released to the family for burial, in accordance with Islamic tradition, after an autopsy had been conducted on it at the Tema General Hospital.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic, Mr Bawa Ustarz, the boy’s guardian, said his nephew had gone to the Tema Children’s Park to play after returning from school.
According to him, the family became alarmed when, around 10 p.m., he had still not returned home, prompting them to file a complaint at the police station after a search party had fruitlessly combed the entire community looking for him.
Mr Bawa said the search team continued to search around the children’s park and its surrounding communities for Anas on Wednesday morning, during which they were informed of a body lying in the reservoir.
He said a close examination by family members among the search team revealed the body to be that of the deceased.
The Assembly Member for the Padmore Electoral Area, Mr Asumah Mohammed Danladi, indicated that the latest drowning was the third in two years, with two children aged 9 and 11 also having got drowned in the same reservoir.
“Several vehicles have also fallen into the trench which has been left uncovered over the last 35 years, resulting in fatal accidents,” he lamented.
Mr Danladi appealed to the Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA) and the Department of Urban Roads to, as a matter of urgency, cover the trench along the stretch to avert future disasters.

40 VEHICLES IMPOUNDED FOR VIOLATING ROAD SAFETY RULES (PAGE 29, 0CT 28, 2010)

A task force made up of personnel from the Tema Regional police Command, Driver and Vehicle licensing Authority (DVLA) in Tema and the Road Safety Commission on Tuesday impounded about 40 commercial and private vehicles for violation of road safety regulations.
The drivers who are to be processed for court were arrested for driving on the shoulders of the road causing traffic jam, driving without licences, careless driving, overloading, drink driving, underage drivers and heavy duty trucks loaded with chippings that had not been covered, which posed danger to other road users.
The exercise was also to check roadworthiness of vehicles and fake documentation.
The task force which undertook the exercise on the main road linking the Ashaiman Timber Market and the Motorway Roundabout, was on the road before 8am, and by 10 am, 40 vehicles had been arrested for various offences. The vehicles were escorted to the Ashaiman Divisional Police Command park whilst the drivers waited to be processed for court.
The Tema DVLA Director, Alhaji Iddrisu Huseini, who was part of the task force, said from his technical point of view at least one vehicle out of 20 which used the road during the period they were around was not roadworthy.
He explained that some had their certificates expired while others had worn-out tyres with others having used transparent waterproof materials as a substitute for damaged windscreens.
Alhaji Huseini noted that when vehicles were not roadworthy passengers suffered the risk most and appealed to passengers to ensure that they played greater roles in checking drivers on the road.
He said the number of vehicles arriving in the country kept on increasing, stating that every year the number of vehicles registered increased by about 80 per cent and the greater number of the vehicles operated in Accra and Tema.
The Regional Police MTTU Commander, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Daniel Ansong Dankyi, who led the exercise, said it was targeting to achieve discipline on the road from now and beyond Christmas and warned that those arrested would be processed for court.
He said a number of indisciplined practices were recorded on the road during this period of the year, stressing that during the third quarter of the year, the police recorded 109 accidents in the region involving 188 vehicles, which caused 37 deaths, with 97 people suffering various degrees of injury.
The Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Chief Inspector Olivia Turkson, said the exercise was undertaken to bring sanity on the road.
She said it would also be used as a platform to educate the drivers on the need to observe road traffic regulations to prevent accidents and therefore appealed to the public to co-operate with the police to make the exercise a success.
Chief Inspector Turkson commended the DVLA for providing a vehicle for the exercise.

E P YOUTH BUILDERS MARKS BIENNIAL RALLY (PAGE 18, OCT 23, 2010)

THE Tema Zone of the West Volta Presbytery of the Lorenze Wolf Evangelical Presbyterian Church Christian Youth Builders (CYB), has held a thanksgiving service to mark the second Biennial Rally of the Tema Zone.
Activities marking the celebration included Bible quiz, clean-up exercises, blood donation and sporting activities.
An Associate Pastor of the Lorenze Wolf congregation of the West Volta Presbytery Rev. Dzandu Helidor, who preached at the thanksgiving service urged Christians to help society fight crimes such as adultery, stealing at work places, pilfering and other social vices.
Rev. Dzandu was speaking on the topic “ Rejoice over the repentant sinner” and the theme was "Striving for Newness in Christ,- A challenge for all”.
He said although the scriptures abhors such conducts, God forgives repentant sinners because of His kindness to mankind.
He called on Christians to appreciate this kindness and close the chapter on committing of sins.
Rev. Dzandu appealed to the youth to desist from anti-social vices and direct their energies to the work of Christ and national development.
The Zonal Secretary of the CYB, Mr Michael Asempa called on the church to equip the youth with employable skills to reduce unemployment and poverty among members of the congregation.
He said the society had acquired land to put up a resource centre to train people in employable skills like dress-making, catering, block-laying and engineering .
Mr Asempa mentioned lack of funds as a major challenge to the project and appealed to patrons of the CYB, benevolent societies and NGOs to extend support to the CYB to enable it complete the resource centre.
Mr Jimmy Fugah, who chaired the programme commended the membership of the CYB for undertaking a project to train unemployed youth in the church, and called on the church to get involved to make the project a reality because its success would benefit the entire congregation and the youth as a whole.
The three-day event brought together seven youth groups from the E.P Church in the West Volta Presbytery

ANKAFUL HOSPITAL DECLARES WAR ON DRUG ABUSE (PAGE 46, OCT 18, 2010)

The Ankaful Psychiatric Hospital in the Central Region has instituted an annual regional educational programme to declare war on drugs to save young people from addiction.
The programme, which has come as a result of the rate at which young people are being admitted at the hospital for drug use, takes the form of symposia and cultural performances for students in various senior high schools.
The medical team has already been to Cape Coast and Takoradi and plans to cover the Ashanti and northern sectors of the country soon.
More than 500 students from senior high schools in Tema, Nungua and Ashaiman took part in the Tema programme.
A clinical psychologist at the Ankaful Hospital, Dr Kojo Sagoe, expressed concern over the high rate of youth indulgence in cocaine, marijuana and alcohol.
He said hospital records showed that people between 13 and 35 abused drugs, while those in the range of 60 also indulged in drugs and alcohol.
Dr Sagoe said the situation spelt doom for the next generation and, therefore, called for serious efforts to reverse the trend.
Speaking on the theme: “The drug epidemic facing our youth”, he said the drug epidemic was a ticking time bomb in the heart of civilisation, adding, “We need to act fast or we lose our future generation.”
He said many people started abusing drugs because of the lack of information on their harmful effects and, therefore, experimented with them.
He advised parents to spend more time with their children and endeavour to make them their priority.
He said some effects of drug addiction included low intelligence quotient, suicidal tendencies, isolation, withdrawal and the tendency to commit crime.
Dr Sagoe suggested the inclusion of education on drugs and their effects in the school curriculum to sensitise the youth to abstain from their use .
A Registered Mental Nurse at the Ankaful Hospital, Ms Diana Ahiabor, said people abusung drugs were living dangerously because the drugs affected them morally and spiritually.
She explained that the programme was to create awareness among the youth to save them from falling into the trap of abusing drugs.
Ms Ahiabor tasked various organisations and churches to collaborate with state institutions in the fight against drug abuse to save the youth who were the future managers of the nation.

GPHA WORKERS URGED TO CLOSE RANKS (PAGE 46, OCT 18, 2010)

Workers of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) have been advised to close their ranks to save the nation from losing billions of cedis through diversion of business to competing West African ports.
According to them, for the first time in the records of the GPHA, it recorded losses in the three consecutive quarters of 2009, leading to great losses to the nation, with their attendant job losses.
Addressing a press briefing which had in attendance shop stewards representing workers’ leaders in the various sub-divisions of the GPHA in Tema, Mr Emile Asiedu, a representative of the workers, cautioned workers not to do anything that would be misinterpreted by the international community and other vested port operators to mean that the ports in Ghana were not safe for business.
He said the GPHA was a strategic state asset and any misinformation on it would not augur well for the nation .
Mr Asiedu said the last quarter of the year was the normal peak period for port work since many ships called at the ports.
He was of the view that the level of work now was assuring and that “the GPHA has its head above water”, compared with last year when they felt that the port was being threatened by the fate that befell some state-owned enterprises.
He said workers were meeting their work contracts with the authority and called for peace to prevail.
He denied that there was tension among the workers, noting that workers of private operators in the port also referred to themselves as port workers which could be misleading.
Mr Asiedu said the GPHA had structures in place to address the concerns of staff which should be channelled through the shop stewards, the local unions and finally relayed to management and that they would not act without any justification.
He denied that the workforce was contemplating embarking on any industrial action and called on people who wanted to write about the GPHA to cross-check their facts.
He explained that being one of the highest revenue generators, the GPHA would need the support of all people to work assiduously to move the country forward.
Mr Asiedu called for co-operation from the community to assist those entrusted with the responsibility of managing the port to do so honourably in a peaceful atmosphere to generate enough revenue for national development .
The press briefing was attended by some workers of the authority.

TEMA CANOE OPERATORS URGE GPHA TO RESCIND DECISION (PAGE 18, OCT 16, 2010)

BOAT owners and fishmongers at the Tema canoe beach have called on the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) to rescind its decision to lease out the parcel of land where they operate their business to an international palm-oil processing company, Wilmar Limited, to prevent the reoccurrence of any confrontation.
According to them, over 11,000 people would be out of employment while poverty will be on the rise , if the GPHA carried out its plan.
The fishermen made the call at a sensitisation forum organised by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority to address their concerns .
Some youth and fishermen went on the rampage on September 17, 2010 and destroyed property running into thousands of Ghana cedis in an attempt to protect the land from being developed by the company.
They claimed that two people, Emmanuel Mantey Martey 26, and Annan Abo, 24, died during the shoot-out on the day of the incident and called on the authorities to release the over 23 suspects who were still in police custody to ease tension in the area.
The fishermen vowed to chase out any one who would make any attempt to develop the land.
They claimed that fishermen and the government were partners in development, hence the need for peace to prevail in the area.
The forum was attended by fishermen and fishmongers from the area, who made various contributions.
A contributor, Woleinye Korkor, said their great grandfathers lived in Tema at the Old Meridian Hotel site long before being re-located to their present place .
She noted that during the 50 years celebration of the Tema Development Corporation (TDC) , Ghanaians were deceived into believing that Tema was celebrating 50 years of existence, explaining that their great grandfathers lived in the area and were fishermen long before TDC was established to manage the city.
She said the beach stretches from Benin through Tema to Axim but Tema has been a converging point for many fishermen hence the presence of visiting fishermen swelling up the population of those involved in the industry.
Woleinye appealed to the government to step in and stop the GPHA from taking the land away from them, since that would lead to collapse of the fishing industry.
Another contributor Woleinye Naa Kale, said the fishermen had been cheated for too long, noting that 'this is the only land left for us to operate our businesses to cater for our children and households .'
Woleinye Kale said they would fight with their blood to recover the land.
The Management of GPHA was represented by the Public Affairs Manager , Mr Oscar Cudjoe. He called on the people to exercise restraint and stop any violence. He assured them that their concerns would be conveyed to stakeholders.
Mr Cudjoe said all wrong actions would be corrected to put to rest all matters which triggered the disturbances.

CHRISTIAN NGO SUPPORTS RURAL COMMUNITIES (PAGE 15, OCT 16, 2010)

A Christian non-governmental organisation (NGO), the  Meaningful Life International (MLI), is making impact on the lives of some deprived rural communities in the country by supporting them with boreholes and free medical care.  
The communities dotted across the country include Jumpo in the Nkwanta District of the Volta Region, Opijua in Kokomba South, Yadodo in the Wulensi District of the Northern Region, Chasea and Sietore in the Jirapa District of the Upper West Region and Kpakplabuni communities, as well as Jyanvuuri in the Wa East District.
Other beneficiary communities are some cocoa farming communities in the Ashanti, Eastern and Brong Ahafo regions and Ga Rural. 
An industrial technologist and Chief Executive of the Meaningful Life International, Pastor  Godwin Ahlijah, told the Daily Graphic that the gospel was not just about preaching but also improving upon the living conditions of deprived people.
He said: ' There is the need to empower  individuals to fulfil their God-given dreams'.
Pastor Ahlijah also stressed the need for the local people to be oriented to basic management and creativity skills to free their minds from poverty, which was mind-related. 
He said the MLI had trained the local people in basic management techniques to enable them to undertake maintenance and repair works on the boreholes.
Pastor Ahlijah said they were also encouraged to form water committees. 
He explained that one of the objectives  of the Meaningful Life International was to support the needy in deprived communities. He announced that MLI would embark on a project to operate a mobile  medical van system which would provide affordable  medical care and educate rural folks on their health needs in support of the efforts of the government in providing quality and affordable healthcare to the underprivildged in the country.
Pastor Ahlijah said in line with the vision, the  Meaningful Life International had with support from its local and foreign partners completed the first phase of the medical centre off the Afienya road  at a cost of US$ 430,000  to serve as the hub of the operations of the mobilie  Medical Van. 
The Executive Director said the medical centre would have a 52-bed ward, a well-equipped surgical theatre, intensive care unit, conference facility for the training of health personnel and modern facilities estimated to cost over US$ 800,000 when completed.
Pastor  Ahlijah said water-related diseases were some of the major challenges rural dwellers suffered and this called for  the provision of potable water to enable the people to access clean and disease -free water. 
He said a medical team led by Dr (Mrs)  Lenusia Ahlijah of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital  made the assessment when the team visited many rural areas including cocoa- growing villages in the West Akim District in collaboration  with  the Meaningful Life International. Some of the communities visited included: Mensah Krom, Roll Call on the Asamankese-Nsawam road and Akyease among others.   
  Pastor Ahlijah said the medical team, made up of  laboratory technicians, nurses, doctors and community health nurses numbering about 20, went on each trip.
Pastor Ahlijah expressed the view that the mobile medical van system would help expand  programmes of the MLI and enable the  medical team to treat the rural dwellers at their doorsteps while referring those in critical condition to hospitals at a minimal fee.
He said the MLI was considering to partner the National Health Insurance Scheme to offer healthcare-related services for a minimal fee.
Pastor Ahlijah called on all Christian organisations to join hands to support the deprived in society  not only by providing them with health care and potable water, but also construct educational facilities to help accommodate the ever- increasing number of schoolchildren. 

SUPERVISE SMALL-SCALE FISH MEAL PRODUCERS (PAGE 38, OCT 11, 2010)

WITH Christmas approaching , poultry and livestock farmers have intensified their business activities to attract buyers. However, all is not rosy for some poultry farmers who claim they have to incur additional costs in the purchase of drugs for the treatment of poultry and livestock diseases.
An interaction with some poultry farmers with the Daily Graphic in Tema and its environs, indicate that poultry farmers have to invest more in the purchase of antibiotics to keep their birds healthy leading to an increase in the prices of poultry produced locally, while the markets for those engaged in the sale of imported chicken, has become lucrative.
After the interaction with the poultry farmers, this reporter followed up with a visit to some drying sites at Tema New Town to find out how fish meal was processed, and that revealed that the it was done under unhygienic conditions.
Some workers of the small-scale fish meal companies disclosed that drying was done either by spreading fresh unwholesome or steamed fish gathered from the beaches and offal on the ground.
Apart from the environmental pollution caused by their activities as a result of the stench from the fish, the drying process attracts migrating birds, and vultures and creates an unsightly scene.
The unhygienic way of producing fish meal goes on despite the fact that Ghana Protein Ltd., a company located in the heavy industrial area in Tema and engaged in the production of fish meal, has a capacity to produce 360 tons daily but cannot meet the market demand because of lack of materials to feed the mill. The company presently produces at less than 30 per cent capacity.
Speaking in an interview with the Daily Graphic, a Manager of the company Mr Anthony Adu–Nketia expressed concern about the activities of some fish meal producers noting that the blame of high cost of running poultry farms must be put at the doorstep of those people.
He called on the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to streamline the operations of all registered companies engaged in the production of fish meal to ensure that they practised under hygienic conditions to reduce the cost involved in operating poultry farms.
On their operations, Mr Adu-Nketia said the company employed 50 workers who operated the machines which produced the fish meal but had not met the market demands, adding that the activities of indigenous fish meal producers had made it difficult for the factory to have adequate raw materials and that has thereby affected their operations.
He said the company imported fish meal from South Africa and Senegal and other places to augment its production and were in the process to install equipment to boost aqua culture.
The General Manager of Ghana Protein Ltd. Mr Fabrice Pizano said the company was the only mechanised fish meal producing factory in Ghana and operated with international standards.
He said the market would be streamlined if the ministry intensified animal and poultry health education to create awareness among operators in the industry.
He called for more support to enable the company install adequate equipment to generate products from their operations for export and in the production of pharmaceuticals including cosmetics and Omega H3 products .
Some people interviewed by the Daily Graphic said many Ghanaians had turned to the consumption of fish and therefore called for strict measures to supervise those in the business and curb the situation where some people diverted unwholesome fish to the market.
They also urged the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to take a critical look at how animal feed products are produced in the country to boost the livestock and poultry industry.

FIRE SERVICE TO GET MODERN EQUIPMENT (PAGE 19, OCT 2, 2010)

THE government is expecting in the country very soon modern fire fighting equipment ordered for the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS).
The first consignment of the equipment is expected to arrive from the United States of America (USA) by December, this year.
The Minister of the Interior, Mr Martin Amidu, who announced this, said the government would soon sign a €9.7 million partnership agreement with the Government of Belgium to supply 75 fire tenders, including hydraulic platforms, to enable fire personnel to fight fire from heights of about 36 floors of buildings.
Already, he said, Parliament has given approval for the government to secure a concessionary loan for the purchase of modern equipment for the fire service.
Mr Amidu made this known when he led a delegation from the Interior ministry and the GNFS to inspect what remained of the Midland International Company, which was gutted by fire, killing four persons in the process.
He was conducted round and briefed by Mr Jecty Obese, the Managing Director of Midland International Company.
Mr Amidu expressed surprise at the extent of damage caused by the fire and called on the GNFS to conduct intensive investigation into circumstances that led to the incident and present its report as early as possible.
He said the law required that GNFS give approval before any operation was conducted at areas where inflammable materials were kept.
Mr Amidu said the ministry would ensure that its mandate of saving lives and property was fulfilled and, therefore, appealed to Ghanaians to learn the rudiments of how to prevent fire to safeguard property.
The minister and his delegation later went to the residence of Mike Safo-Mensah, 40, the deceased engineer of M&B Engineering Company, who perished in the fire incident last Saturday, to console the bereaved family.
A spokesman for the bereaved family, Mr Emmanuel Opare Asiedu, thanked the minister and his delegation for their concern.
The Chief Fire Officer of the GNFS, Mr William Acquaye Brown, and the Deputy Fire Officer in charge of Tema, Mr Godwin Damalie, were part of the delegation.