Tuesday, May 26, 2009

DEAF SHS GRADUATES NEED SPECIAL DISPENSATION (PAGE 18)

THE headmaster of the Sekondi School for the Deaf, Mr Samuel Torbor, has made a passionate appeal to the West African Examination Council (WAEC), the Ghana Education Service as well as the authorities of higher institutions to offer special dispensation to students from the school who complete senior high school (SHS) with low grades in English and Mathematics to enable them to pursue further education.
He expressed regret that most often pupils from the school who completed SHS with grade eight in English and Mathematics did not get admission into the higher institutions to pursue further education and that had made most of them school dropouts.
Mr Torbor made the appeal when the management of the Enterprise Insurance Company (EIC) presented a cheque for GH¢2,000 to the school to assist in the education and training of pupils of the school.
He said the acquisition of language was through listening and speaking, and that pupils from the school who were deaf from infancy lacked the necessary capacity and vocabulary.
“Most of them have completed SHS and become dropouts, since they could not pass the English Language and Mathematics to qualify them to pursue higher education,” he lamented.
Mr Torbor stressed that the deaf were very intelligent and creative with many ideas, and that if they were assisted to pursue further education, they could also contribute meaningfully to the transformation of the society and the country as a whole.
He said special education was very expensive and that the pupils were on full government scholarship.
The headmaster said the school, which was founded in 1971 with initial enrolment of 11 pupils, now had 274 pupils.
The Managing Director of the Enterprise Insurance Company, Mr George Otoo, stressed the need for effective collaboration between private business entities and the government to produce the expected results.
He said the company had selected the education and the health sectors to provide the needed assistance, since those sectors were crucial in the country’s socio- economic development.
“We chose this school because it is special to us and also the pupils have the capacity to develop”, he explained.
“As we do business in Takoradi, we have to give part of our earnings back to the society, ”he added.

RELIGIOUS ORGANISATION SCHOOLED ON TAXATION LAWS (PAGE 18)

TAXATION is the price we pay for living in a civilised society, according to Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, a famous American judge.
Taxes are used to finance development projects and it is the duty of every citizen to fulfil his/her tax obligation to the state, though this is not voluntary.
Funds provided through taxation have been used by states and their functional equivalents throughout history to carry out many functions.
Some of these functions are the enforcement of law and order, protection of property, building economic infrastructure and the operation of government itself.
Also, most modern governments use taxes to fund welfare and public services, including the education systems, pensions for the elderly, unemployment benefits and public transportation.
Energy, water and waste management systems are also common public utilities, with the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) as typical examples.
It is against this backdrop that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Value Added Tax (VAT) Service have jointly organised a seminar for about 300 representatives of religious bodies at the Ghana Shippers Council auditorium in Takoradi.
The seminar was to take the crusade on tax to a higher level as part of the intensification of tax education in the country.
The seminar, which was held on the topic, “Obligations of religious bodies in Ghana’s taxation system”, was on the theme:, “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s”.
The participants were taken through such other topics as the rights of taxpayers, the obligations of the taxpayer, personal reliefs, filing of tax returns, reasons for filing returns, benefits of filing returns, types of tax returns, gift tax, taxable gifts, exemptions and return on gift tax.
Other topics were, rent tax, withholding taxes, record of payment of tax withheld, payments of tax withheld, failure to withhold tax, exempt organisation, taxes and other classification, Ghana’s tax system, tax administration, some tax administration concepts and the imposition of VAT and the National Health Insurance Levy.
It was expected that by the end of the seminar, the participants would be able to explain the reasons for the payment of taxes and the rights and obligations to their congregations. They would have understood the reasons for filing tax returns and the various types of taxes to be paid.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Western Regional Head of the Value Added Tax Service (VAT), Mr F. E. Sapathy, said it was cheating for one to underdeclare or evade the payment of tax.
“You are either cheating compliant taxpayers or the state,” he explained, adding that “we all know that cheating in any form is a sin. This is the message we want you as religious leaders to carry to your flock”.
“I must emphasise that as revenue collection institutions, we have taken time to organise this programme because we expect that as religious bodies, you need to be informed about your tax obligations,” he emphasised.
Mr Sapathy, therefore, entreated them to go back to their churches to teach members of their congregation, who owned businesses or engaged in businesses that attracted the various taxes to pay the correct amount of taxes.
“This is a religious duty we must all obey,” he said.
“As you all know, like your churches and mosques, tax is a very important source of revenue to the country. We owe it to ourselves to build our country and our churches are to play a vital role,” he emphasised.
The Western Regional Director of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Mr Eben Osabutey, said as a result of the global economic downturn the country’s external sources of loans and grants were drying up or had dried up.
He said the government had to intensify the generation of revenue internally, hence the huge challenge confronting the revenue agencies.
Mr Osabutey stressed that it was absolutely relevant for the churches and the state to co-exist and co-operate with each other, since they all had a common central philosophy, which was development of their members.
The Chief Inspector of the Tax Education Unit of the IRS, Mr Kwasi Bobie Ansah, emphasised that filing of tax returns was both a statutory and constitutional obligation.
Mr Ansah said filing of tax returns enabled the taxpayer to claim personal reliefs, all allowable expenses, capital allowances and tax over payments.
He explained that gift tax was not a new addition to the tax law, but had been there since 1975 and gone through many amendments.
He further explained that it was the recipient of the gift who paid the tax and not the donor and that if the value of the gift was less than GH¢50 it did not attract any tax.
Mr Ansah stressed that gift tax was self-assessment in character and that taxpayers were obliged to report any taxable gifts received within the year of assessment to the commissioner within 30 days of the receipt.

TAKORADI NEEDS MODERN MARKET (PAGE 18)

THE Takoradi Central Market, which is also known as Market Circle, is completely overwhelmed and needs some kind of decongestion.
The interior of this popular market of about 200-metre radius is highly congested.
All the pedestrian walkways or pavements have been completely taken over by hawkers and petty/table top traders as well as food stuff and vegetable sellers.
Apart from this, owners of stores bring out their wares and display them on the pavements in front of their stores,worsening the situation.
This has created a situation where pedestrians have to compete with motorists for the use of the roads leading to and from the market, thereby creating unnecessary traffic jams, particularly during rush hours.
About three years ago the then Shama Ahanta East Metropolitan Assembly (SAEMA), now the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA),carried out a massive decongestion exercise and most of the traders selling outside the market were relocated to the Apremdo Market.
The Apremdo Market, which is located about five kilometres from the Takoradi Central Market, is a well designed and constructed market, built in the late 1990’s but the traders have virtually abandoned it.
Now, this market is virtually empty since all the traders who were relocated there during the decongestion exercise have found their way back to the Takoradi Central Market.
Those who have acquired stores/stalls and sheds have also locked them and gone back to the Takoradi Central Market.
Decongestion of the market needs political will to ensure its success, since it has been observed that the exercise has been highly politicised, which made it difficult for past governments to effectively implement it.
Takoradi is too big to have only one market. The city needs more satellite markets in the suburbs to ease pressure on the Takoradi Central Market.
Almost all residents of the harbour city and even Sekondi, where there is a market, come to the central market for shopping.
The Takoradi Central Market needs rehabilitation or reconstruction since there are clear signs of deterioration of the facility.
Also numerous fire outbreaks in the market over the years have combined to facilitate the deterioration, and indications are that the market has outlived its lifespan and that something urgent must be done about it.
The Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly and the new metropolitan chief executive need to take the bull by the horns and muster the political will to decongest the Takoradi Central Market to ensure sanity and discipline in the area.
This will also help to minimise, if not to curtail, the frequent fire outbreaks at the market.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

3 ILLEGAL MINERS DIE IN ACTION (PAGE 32)

THREE illegal gold miners, popularly known as galamsey, died in a pit, while five others sustained various degrees of injury when the wall of the pit in which they were working collapsed on them at Anlokrom near Mpohor in the Western Region.
The bodies of the deceased have been deposited at the Effia Nkwanta Hospital in Takoradi, while the five who sustained injuries were treated and discharged.
The dead have been identified as Negbi Kumah, 30, the pit owner; Ibrahim Issakah, 19 and Raymond Ahiagbe, 34.
The Kwesimintsim District Crime Officer of the Ghana Police Service, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Boakye, who briefed the Daily Graphic on the incident, said at about 11.a.m. on May 4, this year, the eight illegal miners went to their galamsey site at Anlokrom near Mpohor to mine for gold.
He said while working, the wall of the pit collapsed and trapped them.
Mr Ansah said a rescue team was organised to bring them out of the pit.They were rushed to the Effia Nkwanta Hospital but the three died shortly after arrival, while the five others who sustained injuries were treated and discharged.
The crime officer said the bodies of the deceased had been deposited at the mortuary of the same hospital awaiting autopsy.
Meanwhile, the police are conducting investigations into the matter.

TAKE CHILDREN'S FUTURE DEV INTO ACCOUNT...Rev Aboagye-Mensah urges churches (PAGE 22)

THE Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church of Ghana, the Most Reverend Dr Robert Aboagye-Mensah, has urged churches to take the future development of children into account when it comes to budgeting for church activities.
He noted with regret that when it came to budgeting for the activities in churches, the future development of children were not considered.
“It is important to take into consideration the future of children who are our hope, and the budget must express that,” the presiding bishop emphasised.
Most Rev. Aboagye-Mensah was addressing the 12th annual connexional children’s festival of the Methodist Church at Agona Nkwanta in the Ahanta West District in the Western Region.
The one-week festival, organised by the Christian Education Division of the church, was attended by about 650 Sunday School children from all the connexions in the country, as well as 14 children from the Republic of Benin.
The event had the theme: “The child: Our future hope”.
Most Rev. Aboagye-Mensah said children had the potential of becoming professionals such as doctors, engineers, lawyers, nurses, pastors and pharmacists who could move the country forward.
“That is why the Methodist Church is committed to the development of education and it will continue to make the educational system better,” he stressed, adding, “As a church, we are committed to the development of the potential of the children through the educational system that we have.”
Most Rev. Aboagye-Mensah said children had been seen as the hope for the future and that was the reason why marrying and having children was very important in the church and “in our customs”, because without children, there would be no hope for the future.
The presiding bishop stressed the need for good character training, since without it, intelligent children who had gone through the high schools built by the church would be social misfits.
He stated that the religious and moral character the children acquired was not only to prepare them to enter Heaven, but also to enable them to become nation builders.
The Lay President of the Methodist Church, Mrs Araba Ata Sam, said ethical behaviour and the fear of God were very critical for the orderly development of children.
The Bishop of the Sekondi Diocese of the Methodist Church, Right Rev. John Harvey Ewusi, advised that the negative attitudes and wrongs such as child trafficking, child labour and child slavery done against children should be stopped.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

PRESTEA-HUNI VALLEY ASSEMBLY CONFIRMS DCE (PAGE 15)

The Prestea-Huni Valley District Assembly has confirmed Mr Robert Wisdom Cudjoe as the District Chief Executive.
A former teacher of Fiaseman Senior High School, he polled all the 40 votes of the members, representing 100 per cent.
Speaking after the confirmation, the Western Regional Minister, Mr Paul Evans Aidoo commended the Wassa Amenfi District Assembly for providing beautiful structures for its offices at Wassa Akropong, after just about three years of existence.
He, therefore called on the newly created districts to construct offices befitting their status and to facilitate their activities.
The Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipal Assembly, however, failed to elect its presiding member after six rounds of voting.
As a result, the assembly could not confirm or reject the President’s nominee, Mrs Christina Kobina for the position of Municipal Chief Executive, since the presiding member had to preside over the confirmation of the chief executive as stipulated in the Standing Orders of the assembly.
GNA reports said that those who carried powder and perfume to celebrate her anticipated victory went home disappointed.
The election of the presiding member and the confirmation of the municipal chief executive have therefore been postponed.
Earlier, the assembly member for Dompim Electoral Area, Robert Mensah and the Assembly member for Benso Electoral Area, Gordon Opoku Boateng who contested for the position of presiding member initially, failed to obtain the two thirds votes of the 37 members of the assembly after three rounds of voting and were automatically disqualified, as required by the standing orders of the assembly.
In both the first and second rounds of voting, Mr Mensah polled 22, while Mr Opoku polled 15 votes. But in the third round, Mr Mensah had 23 votes with Mr Opoku Boateng getting 14.
Also, Messrs Alex Quarm and Moses Ackah who filed for fresh nominations did not obtain the two thirds of the 37 members required after three rounds of voting and the session had to be postponed.

Monday, May 4, 2009

EIGHT DCE NOMINEES CONFIRMED IN WR (PAGE 14)

EIGHT out of the 17 President’s nominees to be considered for the positions of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives in the Western Region have been confirmed at separate sessions by their respective assemblies.
The assemblies also elected their presiding members.
All the confirmations and elections went on smoothly, except for the Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai and the Sefwi Akontombra District Assemblies where the election of the presiding member and the confirmation of the district chief executive, nearly ended in a stalemate but after some negotiations, a truce was reached.
Balloting was conducted by the Western Regional Director of the Electoral Commission, Mr Stephen Opoku-Mensah, with the support of his deputy, Mr Ben Baah Bioh.
Mr Peter Nkua polled all the 15 votes of members present at a second round of voting to become the District Chief Executive (DCE) for the new Sefwi Akontombrah District, while a 31-year old District Manager of the Transroyal Company, a private cocoa buying company, Mr Moses Nkrumah also polled all the 15 votes to win the presiding member position.
Mr Moses Kofi Armah polled 43 votes with one abstaining, to be confirmed as the DCE for the Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai District, while Mr Gyapong Okumawuo got 41 out of the 44 votes to become the presiding member of the assembly.
Mr Stephen Wilks Kofi Mensah a 57- year -old teacher, polled 37 out of the 38 votes to become the DCE for Sefwi Wiawso, with Mr Lawrence Arkaah Santana, getting 35 out of the 38 votes to become the presiding member of the assembly.
The Bia District Assembly confirmed a 43-year-old District Manager of Armajaro (Ghana) Limited, a private cocoa buying company, Mr Francis Kottoh as its DCE. He polled all the 47 votes, while a 45-year-old farmer, Mr Dominic Ntere was elected as the presiding member.
The 27-member Juaboso District Assembly confirmed a 39-year-old District Manager of Armajaro (Ghana) Limited, Mr Solomon Fuachie as its DCE. He got 26 out of the 27 votes, while Nana Kwabena Nkua was elected the presiding member by polling 24 out of the 27 votes.
A 43-year old driver, Mr Oscar Ofori Larbi polled 42 out of the 44 votes to be confirmed as the DCE for the Aowin Suaman District, while Mr Alexander Yaw Hedidor, got 33 out of the 44 votes to become the new presiding member of the assembly.
The Wassa Amenfi West District Assembly had also confirmed Mr Victor Samuel Kwasi Mesu, a Marketing Officer of Armajaro (Ghana) Limited as the DCE. He polled all the 46 votes, while Mr James Adama got 33 votes out of the 46 votes to become the presiding member of the assembly.
Mr Stephen Baidoo Acheampong polled 31 out of the 32 votes to be confirmed as the DCE for the Wassa Amenfi East District, while Mr Anthony Darko got 23 out of the votes to become the new presiding member of the assembly.
Speaking after the confirmations the Western Regional Minister, Mr Paul Evans Aidoo said the absence of the DCEs and the presiding members had created a situation where funds allocated for the administration and development projects in the districts had not been released.
He said it was only when the DCEs and the presiding members were at post that the funds could be released for its intended purposes.
Mr Aidoo added that now that the two key positions had been filled, the various district assemblies should immediately form their subCommittees to pursue their development agenda.
A Member of the Council of State, representing the Western Region, Mr George Kofi Dadzie said the trend of voting showed that the assembly members had resolved to put the past behind them and move as one people with a common front.
He emphasised that the numerous challenges confronting the region included chieftaincy disputes, bad road network, security, sanitation among others with chieftaincy disputes as the major problem.
“This entails hard work and collaboration with all stakeholders to surmount these challenges”, he stressed adding, “Time has come for us to come together as one people and collaborate with one another to see our way forward”.
Mr Dadzie said the DCEs would need the support and commitment of the assembly members to succeed.
He, therefore urged them to let acrimony, rancour and bitterness be a thing of the past.