Author: Web Desk

Two small-scale miners who appeared before the Tarkwa Circuit Court for robbing a businesswoman of her gold and money to the tune of GHS97,977, have accordingly been sentenced to 20 years imprisonment each in hard labour. Eric Aheli alias Abiggy and Steven Oppong alias Sabato Particulars, both 25 years old, pleaded guilty to the offence. The two prayed for mercy and promised they would not commit such a crime again. Prosecuting, Superintendent of Police Juliana Essel-Dadzie, told the court presided over by Mrs Hathia Ama Manu that Doris Zawu, is the complainant while Aheli, Oppong and their accomplice Michael Arhin who is at large resided at Wassa Dompoase in the Wassa Amenfi East Municipality. On February 20, 2024, the complainant retired to bed and around 0100 hours, Aheli, Oppong and Arhin entered her room with a single barrel gun and robbed her of her gold worth GHS62, 977 and cash sum of GH S35,000 after which they bolted with the gold and cash. Superintendent Essel-Dadzie said the complainant repo rted the matter to the Nkonya police for investigation. The prosecutor said while investigation was ongoing, the complainant identified the convicts, and they were picked up by the police where a cash sum of GHS4,255 and GHS6,400 were retrieved from Aheli and Oppong, respectively. She said Aheli and Oppong further revealed that they sold the gold to a gold buyer at Wassa Akropong, but all efforts made by the police officers to apprehend the said buyer did not yield any results. During the ruling, the judge said Aheli should be sent to the Sekondi Takoradi Prisons, while Oppong would serve his sentence at the Tarkwa Prisons. Mrs Manu ordered the convicts to pay an amount of GHS30,000 each to the complainant which might be recovered by way of a civil action. She also issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Michael Arhin, and said the GHS 10, 655 retrieved from Aheli and Oppong should be given to the complainant. Source: Ghana News Agency

The Government will, by September this year, complete the construction of 1,006 remaining rural telephony sites to extend voice and data connectivity to people in underserved and unserved communities across the country. Mrs Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, who announced this at the 2024 World Telecommunications and Information Society Day ((WTISD), in Accra, on Friday, said already, 1,010 of these cell sites had already been completed, nationwide. Government, in 2020 commenced the construction of the rural telephony sites under the Ghana Rural Telephony and Digital Inclusion project, to construct over 2,000 cell sites across the country. The goal was to extend voice and data connectivity to some four million people in underserved and unserved communities and to promote digital inclusion in the country. In 2022, the Government announced that it had completed 1,008 of these sites across the country with an additional 560 sites expected to be completed by the end of the ye ar, 2023. Speaking at this year's WTISD, Mrs Owusu-Ekuful assured that the remaining sites would be completed by September this year to extend connectivity to the remaining 20 per cent of the population who were currently not connected. 'We've successfully done about half of it and we're on course to complete the other half by September this year. We're going to build 1,006 by September this year, having already done 1,010,' she said. She added: 'This will ensure that about 20 per cent of our population that are currently unconnected would also get the opportunity to benefit from the digital innovations introduced in the public space and to ensure there's sustainability, enhanced connectivity across networks.' The WTISD is to help raise awareness of the benefits citizens and economies could derive from the use of the internet and communication technologies (ICT) to bridge the digital divide. The theme for this year is: 'Digital Innovation for Sustainable Development.' Mrs Owusu-Ekuful said since assumin g office in 2017, the Government had been steadfast in fostering a culture that embraced innovation, adaptability, and continuous evolution. She said, that over the past seven years, it had implemented numerous projects to promote digitalisation and bridge the digital inclusion gap, stressing that Ghana was on course to becoming an ICT hub in the West African sub-region. For instance, to enhance connectivity across networks, the Minister said, the Government was implementing a national roaming policy to ensure that consumers benefited from strong and seamless internet connectivity. 'We're hopeful that that will also enable us to bridge some of the connectivity gaps that we have in the country,' she added. On citizens' empowerment, the Minister said the Government had undertaken several initiatives to foster citizens' competencies, capabilities, and skills to use digital technology. 'We've done a lot to ensure that women use older persons, persons with and without disabilities and people living in both th e urban and rural areas have the necessary skills to leverage and use digital innovations,' she touted. Additionally, she said, 'We're working hard to implement initiatives and programmes that address the Sustainable Development Goal 17, which calls for innovation through digitalisation.' Dr Joe Anokye, Director-General of the National Communications Authority, disclosed that repair works on all subsea cables which got damaged recently had been completed. Ghana on March 14 this year experienced disruption in data services because of undersea cable outages. All four subsea cable landing service providers in Ghana (ACR, MainOne, SAT-3 and WACS) were completely cut off from international data services. Giving an update on the situation at the WTISD, Dr Anokye said repair works on the damaged cables had been completed and internet services fully restored. 'Repair works on SAT-3 cable was completed on 6th April 2024; the ACE cable was repaired on 17th April 2024; the WACS cable was repaired on 29th April 202 4 and the MainOne cable repairs were completed on May 8, 2024,' he stated. Source: Ghana News Agency

The Forest Services Division, Sunyani has commenced the distribution of seedlings to stakeholders in preparation for the Green Ghana project scheduled for?June 7th, 2024. It has?targeted the distribution of?400,000 seedlings for this year's planting initiative, which is on the theme, ''Growing for a Greener Tomorrow'. This initiative aims to promote environmental sustainability and increase greenery within the country.? During a media briefing following an inspection of nursery sites at Nsoatre, Atronie and Sunyani in the Sunyani West and East Municipalities, Mr. Francis Brobbey, the District Manager, emphasized that they were fully prepared for this year's Green Ghana Day.? He said the office?had successfully raised 260,000 seedlings?ready for distribution but?was still waiting for other stakeholders?who?have been?contributing?to?the additional seedlings?to reach the district's goal of 400,000 seedlings.? He expressed optimism that the Sunyani District would surpass their target, just as they did in th e 2023 exercise.? Mr. Brobbey stated that?a variety of tree seedlings, including teak, mahogany, malania, cassia and ceiba have been?raised, adding that the seedlings were carefully nurtured for the purpose of reforestation and environmental restoration. ?He expressed the office's?dedication to environmental sustainability and forest conservation, emphasizing the Division's commitment to ensuring the success of such an important initiative and anticipated collaborating with their partners to achieving their shared goals. Source: Ghana News Agency

N'Akoa Prophet Nazareth Ansah Jamson, Leader and Founder of the Israel King of Jews Church, has called on stakeholders to put their best foot forward to ensure peaceful elections in the upcoming presidential and parliamentary polls. He said: 'We are one people with one nation and for that matter, we don't have to make elections bring division among us.' N'Akoa Jamson made the call at the celebration of this year's Passover of the church at Dome in Accra on Friday. The celebration was on the theme: 'Deliverance and Total Liberation of the Israelites from Bondage.' The Passover commemorates the way the Jews were spared from the plagues and other painful experiences through the manifestation of God's power through Moses as against Pharaoh and his sorcerers. It also marks the passing over of the Egyptian homes when their first-born babies were being killed and marks the command by the son of God to celebrate it in memory of Him. N'Akoa Jamson who is also the spiritual leader of Prophets and Spiritual Churc hes Council, Ghana said in the spirit of peace politicians should understand that there was only one Ghana and that elections were meant to choose leaders. 'It must not become an avenue for conflict and bloodshed rather comportment and civility must be the guiding principles in our campaigns,' he said. N'Akoa Jamson said as the country approached the general election in December, all must resolve to eschew tendencies that could compromise the peace of the country before, during and after the elections. Source: Ghana News Agency

The first aid lorries to use a temporary US-built pier have come ashore in Gaza, the US military announced on Friday. No US troops went ashore during the operation, US Central Command (CENTCOM) wrote on X. 'This is an ongoing, multinational effort to deliver additional aid to Palestinian civilians in Gaza via a maritime corridor that is entirely humanitarian in nature, and will involve aid commodities donated by a number of countries and humanitarian organizations,' the statement said. The temporary harbour is to serve as a hub for the delivery of aid supplies as Gaza itself has no harbour deep enough for larger cargo vessels. According to earlier Pentagon statements, around 90 lorry loads per day will initially reach the Gaza Strip via the floating pier. At a later stage, up to 150 lorry loads per day are expected. A lack of basic supplies has led to a humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, over 7 months after the war between Israel and Hamas began. One border crossing had been closed in recent weeks leading to a drop in aid deliveries. A spokesman for the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Jens Laerke, welcomed the start of aid operations at the pier. He said however that 'getting aid to people in need into and across Gaza cannot and should not depend on a floating dock far from where needs are most acute.' The eventual plan is for freighters to bring aid supplies from Cyprus to a floating platform a few kilometres off the coast of the Gaza Strip. The goods are to be loaded there onto smaller ships that can sail closer to the coast. The smaller ships will then dock with the lorry loads at the temporary pier attached. There, the aid deliveries will be received and distributed by aid organizations. Hundreds of tons of relief supplies are ready for delivery on ships in the eastern Mediterranean, said Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, deputy commander of CENTCOM. 'As a point of emphasis, this a 100 percent humanitarian mission and any attack on those working on it, on this mission, is a n attack on aid for the people of Gaza. We will continue to assess and reassess security to inform our operation every day,' he warned during a briefing earlier this week. Source: Ghana News Agency