Wednesday, 14th September, 2022

Wednesday, 14th September, 2022
DAILY ANALYST
Page 7
GBA calls for
stringent measures to
circumscribe corruption
Mr Yaw Acheampong
Boafo, the
President of the
Ghana Bar Association
(GBA),
said the recent Auditor General’s
Report is a sad commentary on
the state of corruption, plundering,
and mismanagement of the
public purse.
He, therefore, called on the
Government to continue to
implement deterring policies and
best practices to deal with corruption
in all forms.
He added his voice to calls
by civil society organisations on
the Auditor General to exercise
his constitutional powers to
issue surcharges and disallowances
against persons cited for
various financial irregularities in
the 2019, 2021, and 2020 reports,
which had gained approval from
the country’s apex court.
Mr Boafo said this during the
opening of the 2022 Annual General
Meeting of the Ghana Bar
Association in Ho, on the theme:
“Ghana’s Democracy under the
Two remanded over 86
sacks of narcotic drugs
The Circuit Court in Accra
has remanded two
persons who have been
arrested for possessing
86 sacks of narcotics
drugs (marijuana).
The two – Rashid Adamu, a
truck conductor, and Kwaku Amedo,
a truck loader were charged
with two offenses.
They have pleaded not guilty
to two counts of conspiracy to
commit crime to wit possessing
narcotics drugs and unlawful
possession of narcotics drugs.
The court presided over by
Her Honour Mrs. Rosemary Baah
Torsu remanded them to re-appear
on September 26, 2022.
A third accused person said to
be Kwaku Isaac is at large.
According to EIB Network’s
Court Correspondent Murtala
Inusah, the exhibits are now going
to be sent to the crime lab for
analytical examination.
Brief facts
The brief facts of the case as
narrated to the Court by Chief
Inspector Amoah Richard were
that, accused Rashid Adamu is a
truck conductor and resides in
Aflao while Kwaku Amedo is a
truck loader and resides in Aflao.
He said, on September 8, 2022
at about 1800 hours, the National
Intelligence Bureau (NIB) acting
on Intelligence that a group of
individuals is engaged in the
enterprise of transporting and
trading in substances suspected
to be narcotic drugs in the Ketu
South Municipality.
Chief Inspector Amoah said,
personnel of NIB subsequently
proceeded to Denu and arrested
Fourth Republic: Gains, Challenges
and Prospects.”
He noted that despite efforts
by successive governments to
fight corruption, scarce state
resources were being plundered
to the detriment of the masses,
a significant number of whom
were poor and struggling to earn
a decent living.
Equally threatening was
political violence, monetisation
of politics, and partisan polarisation,
which were affronts to the
consolidation of Ghana’s fledgling
democracy for a progressive
and fair society, he said.
Mr Boafo said the GBA expected
the government to take
effective and sustainable steps
to ensure a fair and equitable
development across all sectors of
the economy.
He identified the unbridled
utterances and use of intemperate
language in the media, especially
by some political actors, as
part of the existential threats to
the country’s democracy.
“The level of vitriol on comthe
said accused persons hidden
in the “man diesel” vehicle with
registration number AE556-12.
The vehicle he said was loaded
with 86 sacks of compressed
parcels suspected to be Indian
hemp at Denu Market.
According to the prosecutor,
during interrogation, the two
accused persons mentioned one
Kweku Isaac as the owner of the
said substance who contracted
them to offload same.
The said owner the prosecutor
said, bolted with the driver
during their arrest and that, “exhibits
to wit ‘man diesel’ truck
with the registration number AE-
556-12 is impounded whilst the
86- sacks of the said substance
are in the custody of the Bureau
for further forensic examination.
The prosecutor told the court
that, the Accused persons were
cautioned accordingly with the
offence and brought before this
honorable court.
Chief Inspector Amoah said
efforts are underway to arrest the
other accomplices as investigations
continue.
ment threads on social media at
times with tribal undertones is
quite alarming,” he said, noting
that much as freedom of expression
and pluralistic media were
guaranteed and protected under
the 1992 Constitution, those
rights carried a corresponding responsibility
and circumspection.
The GBA President, therefore,
called for more responsibility, decency,
restraint, and circumspection
on the airwaves with the
expectation that the talk-shops
would be for exchange of ideas
rather than avenues for anarchy,
confusion and violence.
“Media houses cannot hide
behind dishonest click baits to
tarnish the reputation of others
who hold positions they disagree
with,” he said, and urged the
hosts to review panelists on their
shows.
Mr Boafo expressed worry
over the reported incidents of
threats, violence and thuggery
visited on some media houses
in the discharge of their duties,
and appealed to the Ghana
Police Service and the Office of
Dr Ishmael Evan
Yamson, the first
President of the Governing
Council of the
Private Enterprise
Federation (PEF), has called on
the private sector to align and
engage the government on issues
of national development.
He said, “it is good for the
private sector to come together,
think together and act together
on measures that will address
the challenges confronting the
country.”
Dr Yamson made the call
during a ceremony to honour
him for his contribution to the
establishment of the Federation
in Accra.
In 1994, the Private Enterprise
Federation (then Foundation)
was incorporated as an
autonomous, non-profit-making
institution to unite the domestic
private sector to be able to exert
greater influence on national
policy initiatives for the creation
of an enabling environment in
which private sector businesses
can thrive.
He said when the private
sector was able to put its acts together
with a common and unified
front to inform programmes
and policies of the government,
it enabled the government to
listen.
The Economist said the
government alone could not
address or solve challenges but
would need partnership from
the private sector, explaining
that “we do not have that sense
of partnership anymore as a
country.”
Dr Yamson said the private
sector needed to go to the
government with constructive
criticism and dialogue for last-
Yaw Acheampong Boafo, President of GBA
the Attorney-General to swiftly
arrest, investigate and prosecute
such offenders.
“We are appalled by the
2022 edition of the World Press
Freedom Index as Ghana was
ranked 30 places lower than its
more recent position in the 2021
ranking.”
He urged the government to
continue to bridge the technology
gap within the justice delivery
system through the introduction
of the electronic court system,
among other things, and said the
increase in the number of courts
would enhance access to justice.
Chief Justice Kwasi Anin-
Yeboah, in an address read on his
behalf by Mr Justice Jones Dotse,
Justice of the Supreme Court,
Private sector players urged
to engage government
ing solutions.
“We do not want PEF to speak
to itself but rather, we want the
Federation to build a strong
coalition with its own ideas,
which should be shared with the
government,” he said.
He expressed the hope that
the government would continue
to listen and engage the private
sector in its activities.
The Federation, through its
President, Nana Osei-Bonsu,
described Dr Yamson as a trailblazer
and a player in the private
sector space.
A citation presented to him
reads: “Thanks to your efficient
and effective leadership, the
Federation is confidently poised
to ensure that the hopes of the
domestic private sector are met
to make it competitive and profitable
for enhanced economic
growth of Ghana.”
Nana said the story of PEF
could not be told without the
urged the Bar to begin to question
the delays in adjudication of
cases and come up with rules in
case management to stem time
wasting.
He urged the conference to
evolve time-tested reforms to
fast-track the adjudication of
civil and criminal cases, which
should be reflected in the communique’
after the weeklong
retreat.
The conference, which will
see a sod-cutting in Ho for the
first regional Bar Centre of the
Association, also features legal
outreach in selected schools,
medical screening at the Volta
Serene Hotel, and visit to tourist
sites in the Volta Region.
mention of Dr Yamson and
through his leadership, the
Federation was inaugurated on
January 25, 1995, with USAID offering
to sponsor its operations
for the first five years.
USAID supported PEF’s operations
for more than ten years,
making it possible for PEF to
exert its influence in policy formulation
and capacity building
for the enabling environment
for its members.
He said Dr Yamson, who was
the President for 10 plus years,
was instrumental in securing
the landed property for the Federation.
“Considering his impact in
manufacturing, telecoms, banking,
finance, education, health,
extractives, and the domestic
private sector, we think it would
be prudent to celebrate this
beautiful milestone with him,”
he said.