The Member of Parliament (MP), for Nkwanta South in the Oti Region, Geoffrey Kini has urged government to resource the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) sufficiently to enable it discharge its duties effectively.
According to Hon. Kini, he was unhappy about the recent happenings where NADMO officials would visit communities to assess disaster situation without being able to give victims some relief items.
The Lawmaker made the call when he donated several bundles of roofing sheets among other relief items to rainstorm victims at Nyambong.
Over 300 people including a 95-year old woman were displaced after heavy rainstorm on Thursday evening ripped off the roofing of their buildings, thus, forcing them to put up with friends and relatives.
Speaking to Voltaonlinegh.com, Nana Borfule Okugye of Guan-Akyode Traditional Area on behalf of his people thanked the MP for his kind gesture and swift response to their call at such a crucial time.
She called on other philanthropists and agencies to come to their aid to enable the victims repair their houses so as to live a normal life.
Meanwhile, some of the victims who received the relief items expressed gratitude to the MP for the support and appealed to other individuals and groups to also support.
A former National Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr. Kwabena Adjei has passed on.
He died Tuesday morning at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, formerly Ridge hospital, a reputable source of the party confirmed to Myjoyonline.com.
The politician, who was the chairman when the NDC won power in 2008, had been battling with a protracted sickness first reported in the media in August 2015.
He died three days after marking his 76th birthday on March 9, 2019.
Dr. Adjei graduated with a PhD in Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Scotland, UK in 1973.
He ventured into politics in 1978, getting elected as a Council Member of the Jasikan District Council in the Volta region.
The Psychology lecturer’s political decline began after 2014 after he lost his National Chairmanship post to Kofi Portuphy.
It ended his bid for a third tenure after first winning the position in 2005 while the party was in opposition. He was re-elected in 2009.
Dr. Kwabena Adjei popularly called “Wayo Wayo” is remembered for his controversial August 2010 comment “there are many ways of killing a cat.”
He said it in response to the serial losses the NDC government suffered in court under late President Mills.
Dr. Kwabena Adjei’s Political Profile
1978/1979: Elected Council Member: Jasikan District Council, Jasikan, Volta Region, Ghana
1979-1981: Parliamentary Candidate Biakoye for the Popular Front Party
1986-1987: PNDC Deputy Secretary (Deputy Minister of State) for the Volta Region, Republic of Ghana
1987-1992: PNDC Deputy Secretary (Deputy Minister of State) for Industries, Science & Technology, Republic of Ghana
1998/1992: Member of Committee of Secretaries (The PNDC Cabinet)
1992: Key Member since the founding of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in 1992
1993/1996: Member of Parliament (MP) for the Biakoye Constituency, Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana
1993/1994: First Deputy Majority Chief Whip: Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana
1994: Majority Chief Whip: Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana
1994: Deputy Minister for Lands & Forestry: Republic of Ghana
1994/1996: Minister for Lands & Forestry: Republic of Ghana
1996/2000: Member of Parliament (MP) for the Biakoye, Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana
1997/1998: Cabinet Minister for Lands & Forestry, Republic of Ghana
1998: Cabinet Minister for Food & Agriculture, Republic of Ghana
1998/2000: Leader of the House (Majority Leader), Parliament of 4th Republic of Ghana
1998/2000: Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, 4th Republic of Ghana
Chairman of Business Committee, Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana
Member of Select Committee, Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana
2001/2004: Member of Parliament (MP) for the Biakoye Constituency, Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana.
Member of Finance Committee, Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana
Member of Health Committee, Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana
2005: National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC)
2009: Chairman of Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund)
Mega Discount Online Store Ghana has expanded its products range and introduced new retail shopping experience aimed at delighting customers.
User Friendly Shopping Experience
Mega Discount Store, an e-commerce retailer in Ghana which can be accessed at www.mega-gh.com, has expanded its collections range and introduced a new ordering & delivery system.
The online store offers a wide range of products which are easy to order online and delivered to your doorsteps anywhere in Ghana.
You can find products from drones, phone cases, phone accessories, apparel, dental care, car and motorcycle accessories, sunglasses, fishing accessories and watches.
Also, there are adult toys, GPS, smart phones, cameras and all the latest in electronic gadgets you can think of.
Express Delivery Service
Ordering a product on Mega is an easy process. You see it, place an order and get it delivered on time.
Mega offers 2 shopping systems: Cash on Delivery (24-hour delivery) and Pre-Order (10 days delivery-upfront payment) for items not available in local warehouse and requiring that it be shipped and delivered directly to customers.
Mega offers several payments method: Cash on Delivery, Mobile Money & Paypal.
Customers can reach customer support service 24 hours a day by messenger or what-app chat from the homepage.
Mega warrants all sold products and provide an after sale return policy stated on the home page.
The Mega team is increasingly winning the trust of online shoppers as more and more Ghanaians are shopping from the comfort of their homes for all kinds of items.
Online Affiliate Marketing Programme
As an online store & retailer, Mega will soon be providing an “Online Marketing Affiliate Programme” where any individual can join and work as an online sales executive and make money online by promoting Mega products on social media and earn a commission in return.
Mega regularly do what is termed “Fire Sales” with up to 50% discounts, hence the name Discount Store.
Customers get instant notifications by SMS when the sales are on while a new section is also being introduced for stocks liquidations to enhance shopping experience
On Customer Satisfaction Guarantee, Mega is determined to ensure customer satisfaction at all times during shopping process.
Faith Baptist Child Development Centre (CDC), a non-governmental organisation (NGO) in collaboration with Compassion International Ghana has charged society to help protect the Ghanaian child from abuses to enable children become future leaders of the nation.
This call came over the weekend during a ceremony held to celebrate the importance of protecting children as part of activities to mark Ghana’s 62nd Independence Day celebration at Mafi-Zongo in the Central Tongu District of the Volta Region.
The celebration which was under theme “Protecting the Future Leaders through Christ to Unearth their Potentials”, saw massive attendance from surrounding communities.
The children receiving teaching on identifying their rights in society
Faith Baptist Child Development Centre has been working for the past 6 years in communities around the Mafi-Zongo Electoral Area including Mafi-Zongo, Mafi-Amerika, Manase, Avukorpe, Adiekpe, Korpedeke, Seva, Kpedzeglo and Mawoekpor with the aim of educating children on identifying their rights and responsibilities in the society.
The partners, Compassion Internal Ghana, an NGO interested in the wellbeing of children since its presence in the area, had among other things, built ultra-modern latrine, simulation rooms for babies and mothers to help reduce maternal mortality at the Mafi Health Centre and championed a campaign to reduce all forms of abuses against children.
Speaking to Voltaonlinegh.com, the Project Director for Faith Baptist CDC, Jah-Rule R. J. Gozzah disclosed that over 326 children were benefiting from the NGO and their main aim was to get the children out of poverty.
In explaining what happens at the Centre, Mr. Gozzah said they identified the various challenges the children faced and categorised them to receive the needed support including provision of teaching and learning materials, health screening and medical reviews, socio-economical needs as well as taking care of their spiritual welfare.
He emphasised that children needed to be protected from things that threatens their welfare so that they could become useful in the future.
Officials from the District Department of Social Welfare were also present and taught the children on safe and unsafe places that could affect their lives and urged them to focus on their studies to become great men and women in the future.
Minister of Energy, John Peter Amewu has said government is aiming at 100 percent electricity penetration and to also ensure that there is affordability.
According to Mr. Amewu, currently, about 83 percent of the population have access to power adding that a lot would need to be done to achieve that goal of universal access.
He was speaking at a forum on Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) in the oil and gas sector organised by the American Chamber of Commerce Ghana (AmCham).
The Minister put the nation’s power demand at 2,600 megawatts and said it was presently generating close to 5,000 megawatts.
He indicated that Ghana was paying between US$30 million and US$35 million for the excess capacity and projected that by year 2020, “this could reach in excess of US$400 million per annum”
“There was a higher capacity and higher excess charges and that was why no PPAs were going to be signed,” he explained
He announced that 11 of the PPAs had been put on hold and that other producers were also taking another look at their rates.
Mr Amewu underlined the government’s unswerving determination to ensure that there was transparency in the oil and gas industry.
The Vice President of the Republic, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has announced 10 measures introduced by various Ministries, Departments and Agencies over the past nine months in an effort to improve on the country’s business environment.
A multisectoral technical team from across government agencies presented the ambitious business reform plan to key stakeholders at Labadi Beach Hotel.
The planned reforms are within the framework of the World Bank Group’s Doing Business Report, which provides objective measures of business regulations for local firms in 190 economies and selected cities at the sub-national level.
The reforms will cover starting a business, obtaining construction permits, getting electricity, trading across borders, and resolving insolvency.
“These reforms are further demonstration of government’s commitment to removing the obstacles that have long kept businesses in Ghana from reaching their full potential. We aim to unleash the Ghanaian entrepreneurial spirit and open our doors to the world” Dr. Bawumia said.
The Doing Business Report has become the global benchmark for measuring how friendly countries are for businesses. The “zero-sum ranking” fosters keen competition among countries as those that do not reform faster than their peers can go down in the ranking even if their business environment does not change.
Ghana is ranked 114th in the 2019 ranking, up from 120th in 2018.
IFC Country Manager for Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Niger, and Togo, Ronke-Amoni Ogunsulire said “through our work in advising government in over 80 countries globally and over 30 in this region, we know that having the commitment at the highest level of leadership is one of most important ingredients of the reform agenda,”
“With the appropriate reform structures in place, efficient coordination and accountability mechanisms, Ghana has the right formula to succeed and implementing an investment climate conducive to growth of businesses,” she added.
Ghana’s reforms which will take effect between March and June 2019 include:
For companies applying to register without a TIN number, the TIN number will now be generated automatically online at the point of application;
Launch of a mobile app and an online platform for the ease of filing tax returns; Individuals will be able to file their taxes online by April 2019
Implementation of an electronic justice system that allows the automated serving of court process with speed and ease;
Removal of the requirement for a commissioner of oaths in registering a company when the Companies Bill is passed;
Merger of all four starting-a-business application forms: TIN application, SNNIT application, Business Operating Permit application and Business Registration forms;
Automation of the application for Business Operating Permit along with instant online issuance following payment;
Reduction and automation of the steps to getting electricity;
Automation of the construction permit system along with instant online issuance following payment;
Reduction in physical examination of containers through the use of risk engine;
Government is working towards the passing of the Insolvency Bill and the Companies’ Bill into law by Parliament.
The objective of the Doing Business Stakeholders workshop was to engage and create awareness within the private sector which is ultimately the beneficiary of the ambitious reforms introduced by the Government of Ghana.
The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has sent a message of condolence to the Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed, on the news of the Ethiopian Airlines crash on Sunday, 10th March, 2019, which killed all on board.
In his message, President Akufo-Addo stated that “Like all Ghanaians, I have been deeply saddened by Sunday’s news of the tragic loss of 157 lives who perished on board an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa to Nairobi, in Kenya.”
He continued, “on behalf of the Government and people of Ghana, I extend deep condolences and sympathies to the families of the deceased, and to you, Mr. Prime Minister, the Government and people of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in these difficult times. May the souls of the departed rest in peace.”
According to a statement from Ethiopian Airlines, the aircraft, a Boeing 737 MAX 8, which was carrying 149 passengers and 8 crew members, lost contact with air traffic controllers, some six minutes after take-off, crashing near Bishoftu, southeast of the Ethiopian capital.
The statement did not say, immediately, the cause of the plane crash, but indicated that the plane was a new one, and had only been delivered to the airline in November.
The pilot, who had been working for the carrier since 2010, sent out a distress call shortly after take-off and was given clearance to return.
Ethiopian state media has stated that more than 30 nationalities were on board flight ET 302, including 32 Kenyans, 9 Ethiopians, 18 Canadians, 8 Chinese, 8 Americans, 8 Italians, 7 French, 7 British, 6 Egyptians, 5 Dutch, 4 Indians, 4 Slovaks, and 2 Spaniards.
The announcement of Keeny Ice, born Barnabas Amu as Volta’s new Artiste of the Year was greeted with thunderous claps and cheers from patrons at the Volta Music Awards (VMA) night on Saturday at the Ho Technical University (HTU) auditorium.
The reaction from the patrons was expected because Keeny Ice found himself in the same category with equally talented and favourite artists including winner of the category at the maiden edition of the Awards, Agbeshie, the sensational KD Bakes and Fiamor of the famous sarcastic yet inspirational song, Yaka who were all tipped to take home the award.
The second edition of the prestigious Awards dubbed helloadipa Volta Music Awards 2019 themed, “Keeping Volta Music Alive”, started minutes after 10pm and lasted till about 4:00, Sunday morning.
The night witnessed awesome performances including poetry recital, cultural display, musical rendition by the nominees punctuated with music provided by three excellent djs just to avoid dull moments on the night.
A section of patrons at the Awards
Keeny Ice, prior to grabbing the ultimate award, won two other categories, Best Rapper of the Year and Best Collaboration of the Year.
There were two other big winners, KD Bakes and Mawuli Younggod who bagged two awards each.
KD Bakes won the categories of Best Male Vocalist of the Year and Best Music Video while Mawuli Younggod, Hiphop Song of the Year and Discovery of the Year.
KD Bakes (in white)
Messages at the Awards
In a message read on his behalf, Chief Executive Officer of headline Sponsors, helloadipa, an online store, Adipa Stevenson said he was happy to be a part of such an award scheme.
He said the region abounds with talents and expressed hope that it would grow bigger and bigger.
CEO of Eventic GH, organisers of the Awards, Kwamivi Ashiaby explained, the Awards was instituted to celebrate artists and groups who are promoting Volta excellence through music and encouraged everyone to keep on supporting music from Volta.
Member of Parliament for Ho West, Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah who is yet to miss the Awards, bemoaned the lack of government’s interest in the event.
According to Hon. Bedzrah, he expected Deputy Minister of Information, Pius Hadzide’s presence on Saturday to share what his Ministry thinks of the event explaining, the music industry offers many opportunities including selling Ghana to the world, thus, the need to support it.
The Nominees, Winners
Nominees who spoke to Voltaonlinegh.com before the awards, expected to win in the category(ies) they were nominated for.
They however, believed that deserving artists were going to carry the day adding, no matter the outcome of the awards, nothing was going to change in their efforts to promote Volta music.
KD Bakes after the awards said he was expecting the ultimate but was grateful for what he got.
He thanked his fans for the support and promised to double his efforts for bigger wins in the region, the country and beyond.
Remy J who won in one category, said though his expectations were more, the award was important to him and would motivate him to do more.
Remy J (right)
The Fun Moment
There was some excitement from the crowd when another fan of Volta Music Awards, Sammy Flex who speaks for Zylofon Media (subsidiary organisation of embattled gold dealership firm, Menzgold), hit the stage for a short message.
The gathering chose to greet him with shouts of “NAM1” (name of Menzgold CEO) rather than give him audience.
And when he asked whether to extend their (crowd) love to NAM1, the shouts of “NAM1 NAM1” ceased and instead, there were “no ooo” from a section of the crowd where from another, burst of laughter.
Full List of Award Winners
Gospel Song of the Year – Kwame Gabby
Song Writer of the Year – Fiamor
Best Entertainment School of the Year – Keta Business College
Hiplife Song of the Year – Chris Phoebus
Best Female Vocalist of the Year – Queen Eyram
Discovery of the Year – Mawuli Younggod
Traditional Song of the Year – Selorm Razzy
Best Male Vocalist of the Year – KD Bakes
Hiplife Artist of the Year – Dan Zaki
Highlife Artist of the Year – Erastus
Best Music Video of the Year – KD Bakes
Lifetime Achievement Award of the Year – Kwame senyo
Reggae/Dancehall Song of the Year – Wolfman
Highlife Song of the Year – Remy J
Best Entertainment Company of the Year – Mac D Empire
Producer/Sound Engineer of the Year – Jay Watt
Best Collaboration of the Year – keeny Ice ft. Victor AD
Girls of the Global Women Development Promoters’ (GLOWDEP) Sister’s Club from some basic and senior high schools in the Central Tongu District have called for an enabling environment to allow young girls access equal opportunities like their male counterparts.
The call came during a panel discussion initiated by GLOWDEP in collaboration with the Ghana Education Service on Adidome-based Dela Radio, on the theme, “Think Equal: Build Smart and Innovate for Change” to mark 2019 International Women’s Day.
The panel made up of schoolchildren highlighted issues on gender inequality, gender biases and gender discrimination.
Schoolchildren having a conversation on gender issues
One of the panelists, Rose Achi from Adidome R.C Junior High School said she was encouraging all girls to think at par with boys adding, this was the only way they could embrace male dominated courses like Science, Mathematics and IT.
“My fellow girls must be bold and confident to make the right choices and also must know that, we are smart and we can do anything that is normally regarded as impossible for other girls. We can also pass the mathematics exams and become the engineers and doctors,” she said.
Meanwhile, in an interview with the Executive Director of GLOWDEP, Victora Amaglo Norgbey, she asked that more training opportunities for women in the workplaces must be encouraged in order to build their capacity in the areas of IT, and data analysis.
Madam Norgbey added that it was about time parents motivated their girls to think equal as boys saying, equal opportunities for both boys and girls would pave way for equal employment and equal pay for comparative jobs.
“We are also aiming at a planet 50-50 by year 2030. This means that, we will soon have a world where all women and girls have equal opportunities and rights by the year 2030.”
Madam Norgbey who disclosed the organisation has been organizing the programme since 2014 called for more mentoring and coaching programmes for girls to increase their confidence levels to participate in development activities.
In an interview with the Coordinator of GLOWDEP Sister’s Club, Evelyn Agblese, she noted that everyone should be interested in the development of the girl child.
“The development of the girl child shouldn’t be the concentration of only women and civil society organisations. We must all get involved. We must make sure our girls are provided with enabling environment in order to access equal opportunities in their schools and workplaces as well.”
The day also saw the team visit the Adidome Girls Model Schools to speak to the girls on the need to hope and aspire to become better female leaders in society.
International Women’s Day is celebrated World Wide yearly on 8th March, to mark the achievement of noble women in the society.
Some participants trying their hands on what is being taught
By: Shallom Lumor | Voltaonlinegh.com |
Nneka YouthFoundation, a non-governmental organisation has chosen to train some 75 young women in soap making and beads designing at Mafi Sasekpe in the Central Tongu District of the Volta Region on the day the world celebrated women, International Women’s Day (IWD).
For results, some 5 young women were given equipment to kick-start their business after the skills training.
In an interview with the Executive Director of the Foundation, Madam Cecilia Fiaka, she said one of the ways to make women “Balance for Better”, theme for the Day was to empower them economically, hence the gesture.
She said many young women were being abused daily in their marriages and working lives because they have not been empowered to stand on their feet to defend their rights.
“Some of them are in certain unfavorable situations because they have not been empowered economically. One of the ways is to get a job on their hands.”
“Some of these women will be able to take care of their children’s education with this skills training we organising for them, hence their children will also have opportunity to be educated well,” she added.
Meanwhile, speaking with the Queen mother for the area, Mama Klebetesi II who hosted the training programme said, “Mafi Sasekpe is the hardest hit in the district in terms of school dropout” owing to teenage pregnancy.
She complained the situation had resulted in violence against women and children which explained her decision to collaborate with the Nneka Youth Foundation to help train some of these unskilled women.
She added that the beneficiaries would now have a work to do to take care of themselves and their children.
The Nneka Youth Foundation also used the opportunity to engage community leaders, women and children to remind them of the rights of the child and the responsibilities of parents in reducing child marriage and abuse in the community.
