Day: March 14, 2024

Amnesty International (AI) and its partner, Civil Society Organisations (CSO's) Centre, have paid a courtesy call on the office of the Minister of Justice and Attorney General to discuss i human rights issues in Ghana. The meeting was attended by AI Ghana's Country Director, Genevieve Parting ton, accompanied by staff, board members and representatives of Sanneh Institute, Perfector of Sentiments (POS) Foundation and Legal Resources Centre. During the meeting, Madam Partington and CSO's highlighted' concerns over recent human rights developments in Ghana and the need to address the issues with immediate attention.' On the Witchcraft Accusations Bill, she expressed concern with the continued prevalence of witchcraft accusations in Ghana, saying 'such accusations often lead to violence, discrimination and human rights abuses against innocent individuals, particularly elderly women.' She called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo to protect people from being physically and mentally abused because of wi tchcraft accusations. She urged government to take decisive action to address this issue, 'including implementing comprehensive awareness campaigns, providing support services for victims, and enforcing laws to hold perpetrators accountable.' On Death Penalty, Mr. Francis Nyantakyi, board chair of AI Ghana, expressed concern on the President's refusal to sign the Armed Forces bill Amendment to abolish the death penalty. He said the death penalty was violating fundamental human rights and the President's refusal to signed the bill into law threatened to undermine Ghana's progress in upholding human rights standards. He further inquired on the necessary steps to take to reintroduce the bill to parliament and how Non-Governmental Organisations could support to ensure its finally abolishment. He expressed the need to commute the sentences of those on death row to life sentences and inquired the steps to be taken for and how CSO's could support. Other human rights issues such as prison conditions and over-cr owding were highlighted by the partner CSO's in attendance. They inquired on the progress made so far on the Community Sentencing Bill to reduced over-crowding in prisons and improve methods of reform for offenders. Madam Partington urged the office of the AG to take immediate action to address those human rights concerns, adding that upholding human rights was not only a legal obligation but also a moral imperative that defined our commitment to justice and equality for all. She expressed AI's readiness to collaborate with government and other stakeholders to advance human rights in Ghana and ensure that every individual lived with dignity and respect. Source: Ghana News Agency

Ghana will host an Entrepreneurial fair and book launch in May this year 2024. The event which seeks to bring together entrepreneurs from all over the country, is aimed at creating the much needed platform and awareness for entrepreneurial engagements, to network and do business. The event, which will climax the week-long Entrepreneurship week 2024, will be preceded by Entrepreneurship Seminars at Mikaddo Conference Centre from 29th-30th April 2024, whilst the Main exhibition and launch takes place at the Accra International Conference Centre on 2nd May 2024. This was made known by Nana Dr. Micheal Addo Agyekum, an astute entrepreneur and author of several entrepreneurship books. According to Nana, Ghana abounds in great entrepreneurs and that, harnessing their potentials for effective mobilization will not only enhance the fortunes of the country but will also enhance the employment potentials of the country and reduce the unemployment challenge. He said the event would also cultivate in unemployed grad uates the need to set up businesses themselves instead of relying on government and others for employment. Nana further stated that until government and private sector embraced the nurturing of entrepreneurship in the youth of today, unemployment coupled with social vices would still abound in the society. 'We all as a people and government need to come together and address this canker holistically. Creating entrepreneurship minds today is creating tomorrow billionaires. Any country with a good number of its youth being engaged has great future prospects, ' he emphasized. As part of the week-long activities, a 2 day seminar will be organized. The seminar will afford the entrepreneurs the opportunity on how to seek new ways of boosting their entrepreneurship potentials to excel in the 21st century. During the exhibition, a book authored by Nana Dr. Addo Agyekum would be launched by Sir Sam Jonah. The book titled, Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship book 1 and 2, gives an insight into the entrepreneurial mind set, how to start, and grow business with innovation funding and marketing. Mr. Albert Ocran is set to review the book. Dr. Daniel Macaulay is penciled to chair the book launch. Several personalities who have accepted to grace the occasion include, Dr. Siaw Agyepong of Zoomlion, Kwesi Twum of Multimedia, Dr. Anyaa of Holy Trinity Hospital. The events which will be aired live on GTV. Source: Ghana News Agency

Mrs Abena Osei-Asare, the Minister of State nominee at the Finance Ministry, says Ghana has not defaulted in the payment of its international debts but rather announced a debt restructuring, which is being pursued. During her vetting at the public sitting of the Appointments Committee of Parliament in Accra, she said Ghana's nominal debts now stood at GHS621 billion, which included the Energy Sector Levy Act (ESLA) bond, Daakye bond and the Sinohydro loan. Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, the Minority Leader and Ranking Member of the Appointments Committee, asked the nominee that 'currently, Ghana has defaulted in the payment of all external debts, all the debts that we owe to other countries - bilateral (excluding multilateral), banks and country to country. Is this the case?' Mrs Osei-Asare: 'Mr Chairman, we haven't defaulted on the payment of our eternal debts, we announced on the 19th of December, 2022, that we wanted to do a debt restructuring and so, we are halting on.., we did not wait to default but we rather announced.' She said the Government began and completed the domestic debt exchange and currently working on the external debts, hoping to make inroads and then go to the commercial. 'So, that is what we have done. It is not the same as debt default.' Touching on the ongoing intermittent power supply (dumsor) in the country, Mrs Osei-Asare mentioned illegal meter?connections as some of the contributory factors. She urged Ghanaians to reframe from illegal connections and pay their electricity bills promptly to enable the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to provide better services to them. 'Yes, it is a big issue in the energy space, but we also have to do our part, ECG loses about 30 per cent of the investment of the power they produce. How does this come about? The illegal structures, illegal meters and everything, they are human beings who do these things,' she said. 'In as much as government is doing its part, we as citizens will also have to change our attitudes towards these things and that is the only way together, we can succeed and address these issues.' 'Whenever your payments for electricity are due you have to go ahead and pay. As citizens who love our country and want institutions to succeed, we also have to do our part to help our nation.' Responding to a question on whether the Government would reintroduce the road tolls, Mrs Osei-Asare answered in the negative. Asked whether she was part of those in Government, who ordered the removal of the road toll on November 18, 2021, the Nominee said the decision was a political one made by the Government. Source: Ghana News Agency

Dr Alexander Ampaabeng, the Deputy Finance Minister-Designate, has declared his endorsement of the betting tax being implemented by the Government. The Nominee made this known in his response to questions during his vetting at the public sitting of the Appointments Committee of Parliament in Accra. Mrs Elizabeth Ofosu-Agyare, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Techiman North, had asked the nominee what his position was on the concept and implementation of the betting tax. Betting tax is a tax on betting transactions by operators with customers. Dr Ampaabeng, a tax expert, reiterated that the tax was not new, and said it was introduced in 2015 by Ghana's Parliament as part of Act 891 (Customs Acts, 2015). It was amended again as Act 907 (Income Tax Amendment Act, 2016), he stated. He noted that the difference between Act 907 and the current provision (Act 1094) was that in Act 907, there was a GHS2,590.00 exempt amounts, which meant a gambler would not be taxed until he made it in excess of GHS2,590.00. 'What this current tax means is that it seeks to take away that exemption minimum. Betting tax is not new across the African continent, especially in East Africa,' Dr Ampaabeng said. 'My position on it, as an individual and as a tax person, sitting here looking for revenue opportunities for the country, I think the betting tax presents a revenue potential for the country.' The Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2023 (Act 1094) introduces a withholding tax of?10 per cent on all winnings. Winnings from betting, lottery, and games of chance are subject to the withholding tax at the point of payout. Touching on expanding the tax net to cover online businesses, he aid it was time for Ghanaians to rethink through it and assess the options. He underscored the need to ensure that the Government did not lose the huge revenue potentials going on online. Source: Ghana News Agency

The Accra High Court trying Michael Nyinaku, former Chief Executive Officer of the defunct Beige Bank, Wednesday adjourned the trial to Monday, March 18, 2024. This followed the absence of both Nyinaku and Mr Thaddeus Sory, his counsel, when trial was supposed to have continued after the Court ordered that the defense counsel filed all witness statements at the last sitting. Mr Sory presented to the Court presided over by Mrs Afia Serwaa Asare-Botwe, an Appeal Court Judge with additional responsibility at the High Court, an excuse duty from the Military Hospital. The content said he was seen on March 7, 2024, and was given 15 days excuse duty. However, Justice Asare-Botwe said the excuse duty did not qualify as a medical report that required him to excuse himself to be absent from the Court. The Court then ordered the accused person to be present on March 18, 2024. The Court was earlier informed by the prosecution that when Beige Bank's license was revoked in August 2018, a review of the financial and o ther records of the Bank revealed some suspicious and unusual transactions, which were subsequently reported. Investigations revealed that from 2015 to 2018, Nyinaku, the accused person, had allegedly transfer huge sums of money to companies related to him and for his personal benefit. The funds transferred were depositors' funds lodged with Beige Bank from 2017 to 2018 and Nyinaku caused the transfer of 10,071 fixed deposit accounts held with Beige Bank in which various customers placed a total of GHS448,636,210.21 to Beige Capital Asset Management Limited (BCAM), without the knowledge and consent of the customers. The prosecution detected that Nyinaku, between 2017 and 2018, transferred 35 fixed deposit investments of 23 customers of Beige Bank totalling GHS141,042,348.92 to the Beige Group. The Court heard that in March 2018, Nyinaku allegedly caused a fictitious second account to be opened in the name of First Africa Savings and Loans (FASL), an existing account holder with Beige Bank, without the kno wledge of the Board and management of FASL. Nyinaku, the prosecution said, also transferred GHS320 million from the accounts of various Beige Bank customers into the bank account of BCAM held with Beige Bank. The prosecution continued that between 2015 and 2017, Nyinaku, through payment vouchers, caused the sum of GHS1,465,000.00 of depositors' funds lodged with Beige Bank to be paid to himself and other persons. Those transactions were recorded in a general ledger account of the Bank, described as Directors Account, the prosecution told the Court. The Court heard that investigations revealed that the accused person, through payment vouchers, e-mails and memos, had transferred GHS20,599,052.58 of depositors' funds lodged with Beige Bank to several companies and individuals for his benefit. Nyinaku has denied all the charges and been granted GHC200 million bail with three sureties. Source: Ghana News Agency