The Hohoe District Police have arrested 50-year-old driver, Robert Ofosu Nyanor and his conductor, Godwin Aniwo, 32, in connection with two cartons of AAA and BBB Cartridges found on board a Yutong bus traveling to Kpassa in the Oti Region.
This follows an intelligence operation embarked by the police to search all vehicles entering the district from Accra on Wednesday, November 3.
A brief to the media from the Volta Regional Police Public Affairs unit, stated that, at about 3: 45 pm on the said day, a team stopped a red Yutong bus with registration No. GT 5919-16 traveling from Accra to Kpassa.
A search was conducted in the said bus and two cartons containing AAA and BBB cartridges respectively were found concealed in the side compartment of the bus.
Upon interrogation, all twenty-nine passengers on board the vehicle denied ownership of the cartridges. As a result, the driver and his conductor were immediately placed under arrest for further interrogation and the bus impounded.
The two later released on Police Enquiry bail as investigation continues.
The Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Dr. Mustapha Abdul-Hamid has iterated the resolve of his outfit to eradicate the disturbing menace of fuel adulteration in the country.
He said the practice, do not only affect the quality of petroleum products, but also poses danger to vehicle engines and machinery, while depriving consumers of value for money.
“Fuel adulteration increases emission of harmful compounds such as Carbon dioxide, volatile organic compounds and affects air quality and the environment,” he added.
Dr. Hamid was speaking at durbar in Ho, on Thursday, to climax the 2021 NPA Consumer Week Celebration on the theme “Adulterated Fuels, A Menace To The Consumer And The Economy.”
The celebration was aimed at sensitising the public on their rights and responsibilities as consumers of petroleum products and how best to assist the regulator to better serve their interest.
According to NPA Boss, the authority has instituted some stringent measures to check the negative practice in the sector.
These include, “the revision of operating procedures in the importation, exportation, and production of fuels by petroleum service providers (PSPs) and the introduction of Petroleum Product Marking Scheme (PPMS) and Bulk Road Vehicle (BRV) tracking system to ensure that products are devoid of adulteration and meet the required specification along the supply chain.”
NPA Boss, Dr. Mustapha Abdul-Hamid
In addition, a standby intelligence and security team has been set up to respond swiftly to consumer complaints regarding fuel adulteration and other unscrupulous conducts on the part of service providers.
Dr. Hamid thus entreated Consumers to give prompt alert to the regulator through its customer complaint platforms – via phone calls (0545006111/0545006112) or through their website (www.npa.gov.gh) within 48-hours upon encoutering such incidences, for the necessary sanctions to be taken against the culprits.
The Minister of Energy, Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh, in a speech read on his behalf, underscored the effect of the contaminated fuel menace on the national economy, saying, ‘
‘in no doubt, the effects of contaminated fuels deprive government of needed revenue to empower its people, promote good health and you the consumer seated here is cheated. You do not get value for the money you spent on a contaminated fuel.’
While throwing the ministry’s support behind the NPA to deal with the menace ruthlessly, the minister also urged the public to be vigilante and report persons engaged in the selling of fuel in gallons, since such a practice illegal.
Mr. Kwaku Agyemang-Duah
Mr. Kwaku Agyemang-Duah, CEO, Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMC) on his part said the group was in fully behind the regulator to eradicate the contaminated fuel menace from the industry.
He assured the Association would continue sensitise members against the practice and expose recalcitrant ones for sanctions.
He however advised the consumers also desist from buying cheaply priced fuel from table dealers, as they were likely to be adulterated product.
The Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Letsa in his address, said the health and environmental implications of adulterated fuels cannot be underestimated, and as such commended the NPA for bringing such a campaign to the region.
Dr. Archibald Letsa
He however used the forum to invite stakeholders to the region’s fifth Trade and Investment Fair (Volta Fair-2021), scheduled for November 15 to 28, 2021 in Ho.
The event chaired by Togbe Gbogbi Atsa, Paramount chief of Adaklu, wwas graced by musician, Wendy Shay who entertained patrons with her craft.
There was also a fire drill at the event by personnel of the Ghana National Fire Service to educate the public on the safest way to put out domestic fires.
The Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Yao Letsa has announced his intention to offer a Gh¢20,000 donation towards the construction of the National Cathedral complex in Accra.
According to him, he said the wife, Victoria deemed the project a laudable one, for which they were glad to support.
Dr. Archibald Letsa addressing the press
“My wife and I have already committed to give Gh¢ 20,000.00 towards the building of the National Cathedral,” the minister announced at a media briefing in Ho on Wednesday, (November 3,2021) ahead of a launch of a Regional fundraising for the project.
He said, though the project was envisioned by President Akufo-Addo, it was only prudent for those who buy into the vision to freely contribute towards it.
‘This is not a tax’ and as such, no one is under complusion to donate towards the cathedral construction, he added.
Rev. Seth Mawutor, Chairman of the Regional Fundraising Committee said the national Cathedral should be seen a partisan project but rather a unifying monument for the nation, which all must support.
Rev. Seth Mawutor
He announced the lauch of the Regional fundraising would be held on Wednesday, November 24, 2021 at the E.P. Church, Dela Cathedral, Ho-Kpodzi.
He therefore called on individuals and religious organizations to donate generously towards the national Cathedral, which is estimated to cost 250 million dollars. Ten percent of which has been borne by the government, in addition to the provision of land.
When completed, the 5000-seater national cathedral would have the following facilities and features, Bible Museum, Chapels, Baptistery, Conference centers, Board rooms, Banquet Halls, Prayer Rooms, among others.
It will also have a national crypt where key leaders of the country are buried, as well as a specialized library on African Christianity.
The official stamp of the Keta Municipal Chief Executive has been reported missing.
This was contained in a public notice signed and issued by the Municipal Coordinating director, Kodjoe Dekro.
The notice sighted by Volta Online, stated that, the stamp was detected missing after the new MCE was confirmed on 7th October, 2021, and efforts to trace its whereabout went unsuccessful.
‘The general public is hereby informed about the missing stamp. Anybody whose document(s) are stamped with such stamp will come face to face with the law and such documents declared null and void,’ the notice added.
Mr. Emmanuel Gemegah succeeded Mr. Godwin Effah as the new MCE, following the former’s confirmation by assembly members on October 7, 2021.
The Akatsi Police is expected to put before court today (November 3), a 30-year-old man for allegedly raping a 40-year-old woman.
Suspect, Emmanuel Kusorgbor was arrested last Friday (October 29) after he was reported to the police for sleeping with the woman on Sunday, October 24.
DSP Effia Tenge, PRO of the Volta Regional Police Comand, in a brief to the media, said the suspect popularly known as ‘Sir’ on the afternoon of the said Sunday, sneaked into the room of a mentally incapacitated woman and had sexual intercourse with her and afterwards scaled over the wall upon sensing danger from relatives of the victim.
A police medical form was issued to the victim for examination and treatment at the Akatsi Municipal Hospital.
Upon receipt of medical report from the Hospital, Police swiftly arrested the suspect to assist in further investigations, the PRO stated.
The 1999-year group of Peki Tsame D/A JHS, also known as Early Birds ’99, in the South Dayi district has donated office equipment and stationery to their Alma Mater.
Items donated included an all purpose printer with inbuilt scanner and copier, 500 customized exercise books, 132 Mathematical sets, a carton of white chalk, a carton of A4 sheets, 10 boxes of Bic pens, a football and a volleyball.
The gesture by the group was in a bid to promote quality teaching and learning at the school, which has seen a decline in its academic performance in recent times.
In addition, the group also recognized and appreciated their six surviving old teachers by presenting a hamper, a citation and an undisclosed amount of cash to each of them.
Ms. Benedicta Baka, an Executive Member of the group, presenting the items to the school on October 30, noted that even though the group completed school 22 years ago, they still appreciate the role of the school in shaping their lives academically and socially, hence deem it fit to contribute to the growth of the school in their own small way.
She pledged the group’s continuous liaison with the school’s authorities in order to make a positive impact on the school. She revealed that the group plans to change the black boards in the three classrooms to white marker boards within the shortest possible time.
On her part, the Headmistress of the school, Mrs. Bless Apetorgbor, commended the old students for their kind gesture, noting that in the history of the 65years existence of the school, it was the first time such a thing had happened. She used the opportunity to call on other well-meaning old students and citizens of the town to contribute to the growth of the school in whatever way possible.
Mr. Newlove Johnny Markham, who spoke on behalf of the old teachers, expressed their profound gratitude to the old students for remembering and appreciating their efforts. He urged the students to be very respectful and obedient, because those are the virtues that will propel them to higher places in the future. Another Old Teacher, Madam Delight Afflu, also called on the current teachers to see their profession as a passion and a humanitarian job instead of a money-making venture. She urged them to invest their time in shaping their students for a better tomorrow because “there is no greater reward than seeing your students become great in future”.
The School Prefect of the 1999-year group, Mr. Bright Rockwell, who spoke on behalf the group’s Chairman of the , Mr. Richard Nunekpeku, called on the students to take their studies seriously. He encouraged the final year students who are preparing for their Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) to shun vices that will distract them from their main goal, which is to study and pass their exams.
Assembly Member of Peki Tsame, who was Chairman for the occasion, Mr. Sebastian Okyere and Secretary of the ’99 group, Mr. Samuel Afrifa, both urged the teachers and students to put the items donated to good use.
There were cultural performances and drama from the school’s cultural troupe as well as football and volleyball games between the current and old students.
KALD I Voltaonlinegh.com | The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has began its 2021 Consumer Week celebrations in the Volta Regional capital, Ho.
The week-long event which commenced Monday, November 1, 2021 would be climaxed on Thursday, November 4 at the Jubilee Park.
It is on the theme, “Adulterated Fuels, A Menace To The Consumer And The Economy.”
As part of activities, officials of NPA would engage the public on the mandate and operations of the authority, as a regulator of the country’s downstream Petroleum sector.
They will also educate the public on their rights and responsibilities as consumers, the safe use of petroleum products and best practices for operators of retail outlets and other Petroleum Service Providers in the industry.
The Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Letsa is expected to join Energy Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh and NPA Boss, Dr. Mustapha Abdul Hamid at a durbar to climax the celebrations on Thursday.
Following their two unsuceesful attempts at confirmation, the District Chief Executive (DCE) nominees for the Adaklu and Akatsi North Districts have been replaced.
The two, Mr. Phanuel Kadey Donkor renominated DCE for Adaklu, and Mr. Prosper Kofi Patu, nominee for Akatsi North, both failed to secure the required two-thirds majority votes of their respective assembly members on two different occasions.
Reject Adaklu DCE, Phanuel Kadey Donkor
At their first confirmation polls early October, the two garnered less than 50 percent of votes, resulting in their outright rejection by their respective assembly members. Similar fate befell them three weeks later, when they were re-nominated for a second chance by the President.
Consequently, the President through the Minister for Local Government and Decentralization, Mr. Dan Botwe has nominated new persons to replace the rejected two.
They are, Mr. Bright Kwame Nyatsikor for Adaklu and Mr. Paul Agbesi Ayrah for Akatsi North.
Paul Agbesi Ayrah
Until their nomination, Mr. Nyatsikor was the NPP Constituency Secretary, while Mr. Ayrah was the NPP Constituency Communication director.
Meanwhile, Volta Onlinehas gathered that, the confirmation meeting of the two assemblies have been slated for Friday, November 5, 2021.
A cybersecurity expert, Mr. Carl Amanor Sackey has advised Ghanaians against the use of public internet Wi-Fi, in order to safeguard their information online.
He said using such free Internet connections without due diligence, would expose users to cyber threats, such as hacking from internet fraudsters.
Speaking at a Bright Media Series, a virtual forum organized by telecom giant, MTN on Cybersecurity, Mr. Sackey advised the use of Virtual Private Network (VPN) to secure one’s information when accessing Internet connectivity through public WiFi.
He noted that, fraudsters were now using various approaches, including phishing and spear-phishing to access people’s confidential information online, and as such, caution the public against publishing of their personal details on online.
According to him, such publications on social media, become information sources for fraudsters to profile the unsuspecting user for their fraudulent activities.
‘You need to be alert always. Know what to share online and what not to. Also don’t be quick to click on every link that you see online, because some of them contain malwares that will harvest data from your devices and expose you to hackers,’ the I.T expert added.
Mr. Sackey, who is also Deputy General Manager at Ghana Community Network Services Limited (GCNet), further advised the public to safeguard their information online, by installing anti-virus to block malicious softwares on their devices.
He also cautioned against the use of single password accross multiple accounts, and suggest the use complex passwords, which cannot be easily predicted.
‘Don’t use familiar things around you as passwords. Names, dates of birthday, should not be used. They could easily be predicted,’ he emphasized and also advised against saving of passwords in browsers, as they could be easy to access.
Mr. Sackey also entreated corporate organization to invest in cybersecurity infrastructure and training for their staff, in order to protect their systems from being compromised.
Enterprise Security Specialist at MTN Ghana, Mrs Jacqueline Hanson Kotei, urged consumers to conscious of their safety and not to fall prey to the many ‘socially engineered’ scams within the digital space.
The MTN Bright Media Series is an initiative of the telecom leader as part of its 25th anniversary celebration for media practitioners to engage experts on topical issues.
The First Sky Group, an indigenous Ghanaian business conglomerate, has extended a major support towards this year’s Volta Trade and Investment Fair (#VoltaFair21), with a donation of Ghc100,000.
In addition, the company also announced a Ghc20 million insurance cover for the two-week fair, to be under written by Serene Insurance, a subsidiary of the Group.
Group Chairman of First Sky, Mr. Eric Kutortse, announced the Insurance package during a brief ceremony in Accra to present the Ghc100,000 cheque to the Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Letsa and some officials of Volta Regional Coordinating Council (VRCC), lead organizers of the fair.
Video: Interaction between First Sky Group Chairman and the Regional Minister
He also assured of the full participation of the company and its subsidiaries – Volta Serene Hotel, First Sky Construction Ltd, First Commodities Lted and Serene Insurance
in the Fair.
On his part, the Regional Minister, expressed profound gratitude to Mr. Kutortse and the First Sky Group for the huge sponsorship, which he noted would ensure a successful organization of the fair.
The 2021 Volta Fair, which is in conjunction with the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI-Volta/Eastern/Oti branch), Ghana Tourism Authority and Advert Tower, is slated November 15 – 28, 2021 at the Ho Sports Stadium. It is expected to attract hundreds of exhibitors accross various industries, and about 8,000 patrons, from Ghana and neighbouring West African nations.
Other sponsors of the Fair include, GCB Bank, Bui Power Authority, Interplast, MTN, Japan Motors, SIC Insurance, Zoomlion, Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors , Maphlix Farms, Adonai Estates, Salaria Eyemed Clinic, Agartex Paints and Victor Electronics.
Volta Online is also an official online media partner.
Visit www.voltatradefair.org or Volta Fair 21 on Facebook for details on the upcoming Fair.
