Category: General

The Gender-Based Violence Court has sentenced a 23-year-old carpenter to 10 years imprisonment for having sex with a 13-year-old girl at Ashalaja in the Greater Accra Region. Christopher Kavi, charged with defilement, pleaded guilty. Kavi was convicted on his plea and sentenced accordingly by the court housed at the Ghana Police Service headquarters. Prosecution led by Detective Chief Inspector Opoku Aniagyei said the complainant was a trader and mother of the victim, aged 13. The prosecution said Kavi, the complainant and the victim reside in the same vicinity at Ashalaja. The accused person is a friend of the complainant and the victim. On December 19, 2023, the victim told her mother that she would be attending church service. The prosecution said the complainant obliged the victim and asked that she took her younger brother along. According to the prosecutor, while the victim was on her way to church, Kavi called the victim, saying he was sick, so the victim promised to visit him after church. Th e prosecution said when the church was about to close, the victim left the church premises and went to Kavi's house at about 8:30 pm. It said Kavi took the victim to his room and she sat on his bed because there was no chair in the room. The prosecution said Kavi went to take his bath and came to lie on his bed while talking to the victim. The prosecutor said while conversing with the victim Kavi slept off. The prosecution said when Kavi woke up and found the victim in his room, he started kissing her and he had sex with the victim. After the act, the Prosecution said Kavi went to escort the victim to her house because it was late in the night. The prosecution said the complainant and other family members who searching for the victim, met Kavi and the victim. Kavi was apprehended by the complainant and her family members and sent to Danchira Police Station. On December 20, 2023, the Danchira Police sent Kavi to the Police at the Weija Divisional Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) and a medical report was issued to the complainant to seek medical care for the victim. When the medical report was fully endorsed by the Medical Doctor and after careful investigations, Kavi was charged. Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Member of Parliament (MP) for North Tongu in the Volta Region, has appealed to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) for support to provide the flood victims with permanent housing. He said though they had begun construction on a few houses and had delivered the first 300, and the second project was also almost complete, the number of impacted individuals was enormous and additional homes were needed to accommodate them. 'We are really in need of assistance. We have seen some of the beautiful shelters you have provided in other jurisdictions, and we want to appeal to you, the IFRC, to get us some of those shelters because very soon the rain will be upon us and these tents cannot survive that,' he said. Mr Ablakwa made the appeal when the Ghana Red Cross Society (GRCS), with support from the IFRC, presented some relief supplies, which included hygiene and dignity kits, jerrycans, blankets and treated mosquito nets to the affected persons at Mepe. The MP stated that single mothers and children were given priority during the first housing project and the second project would provide care for the aged and the physically challenged, bringing the total number of beneficiaries to 600. However, he said, there were 12, 633 displaced individuals in the area, according to data from the Disaster Management Organisation, and only 600 of those victims would receive homes from the two projects, leaving many people in need of assistance. Mr Ablakwa expressed his gratitude to the Ghana Red Cross Society and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent for the donation and their continuous support to, and interest in the welfare of the flood-affected persons. He said the supplies were of utmost importance because, as part of their medical outreach with the Ghana Medical Association, they had asked that the sanitation conditions be improved because they were beginning to detect cases of typhoid and cholera. Mr Ablakwa disclosed that the GRCS was on the gr ound helping with the evacuation process and providing tents to help with the victims' relocation during the first week of the tragedy when the flood was at its worst. The MP said without those initial efforts and tents, 'we don't know how we would have survived the rushing floods which were devastating at that time.' Mr Lawrence Lutaaya, IFRC's Operations Manager-Surge told Ghana News Agency that the affected individuals would also receive financial support to start businesses to improve their standard of living. He noted that one of the Federation's duties was to respond to disasters, so when the GRCS notified them of the difficulties facing the people, they promptly made the appropriate preparations to assist. Mr Lutaaya urged everyone to take the necessary precautions to protect the environment and to abstain from actions that could have a detrimental influence on it to prevent disasters. He asked the media to keep bringing attention to the needs of the vulnerable to get organisations and individuals to respond to them. Source: Ghana News Agency

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament Tuesday referred the management of the National Blood Service to the Attorney-General for prosecution due to alleged procurement infractions in the 2022 Auditor-General's Report. The Report says the National Blood Service (NBS) had engaged in the procurement of goods and services totaling over GHS130,000 without following proper procurement procedures, including the solicitation of alternative quotations. At PAC's public hearing on Tuesday at the Parliament House, Mr James Klutse Avedzi, the Chairman of the Committee, pointed out the serious nature of the infractions, especially the uncompetitive procurement practices observed at the Blood Service. 'The next infraction is uncompetitive procurement. So, there is a challenge at that office where you are doing restrictive tendering without seeking approval. If you want to do procurement, instead of looking for a minimum of three invoices or quotations, you failed to do so,' he said. 'For this one we don't ha ve any option than to refer you to the Attorney General for prosecution.' Mr Avedzi added that the Committee was performing its mandate of holding accountable those who breached procurement laws and ensuring transparency. He, therefore, explained that the NBS' referral to the Attorney-General depicted a recognition of the seriousness of the breach and aimed to ensure it faced the legal consequences. '…So, we are doing our part, you have breached the procurement law so when you are prosecuted the judges will decide on that,' he said. The PAC began its public hearing on Monday, January 29, to consider a report of the Auditor-General on the Public Accounts of the Ministries, Departments and other Agencies (MDAs) for the year ended December 31, 2022. It would also evaluate a report of the Auditor-General on the Public Accounts of public boards, corporations and other statutory institutions for the period. The PAC is expected to end its proceedings on Friday, February 23, 2024. Source: Ghana News Agency

The Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipal Health Directorate in the Western Region has commenced this year's Mass Drug Administration programme for Onchocerciasis in the municipality. The activity, which started on Monday, January 29, would end on February 12, 2024. The twelve-day exercise would cover eight districts and form part of efforts by the Ghana Health Service (GHS) to eliminate the disease in the area by 2030. Briefing journalists at Tarkwa, Ms Wilhelmina Tiwaah Duah, the Municipal Director of Health Services, said pregnant women, mothers within one week of delivery, seriously sick persons and those under 90cm in height would be exempted. She said it was important that all community members received full treatment as directed by their trained volunteers to break the cycle of transmission and eliminate the disease. 'Please cooperate fully with the community drug distributors and report to the nearest health facility, if you experience any side effects after taking the medication,' Ms Duah appealed. She said : 'The disease-carrying blackflies are present here. If you live in these communities, you are at risk of contracting river blindness'. 'The blackflies normally like areas with fast-flowing rivers or streams and we have a lot here, so the Directorate is, therefore, encouraging everyone to embrace this mass drug administration.' We should accept the people into our homes and take the medication as prescribed, there are directions and guidelines on the number of pills that each person must take based on their height measurement.' Ms Duah said river blindness could lead to painful itching, skin disorders, eye lesions and even permanent blindness if left untreated. 'Taking the drug during this campaign can prevent you and your loved ones from the severe consequences of river blindness. It can only take a small effort to gain lifelong protection,' she added. She assured the public that treatment was free and very safe, so they had no reason not to take part and secure their health. She pleaded with community members to assist the volunteers in GHS branded T-shirts who visited their homes and took the medication to help rid the community of river blindness. Source: Ghana News Agency

The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research of Institute of Industrial Research (CSIR-IIR) Cookstove Laboratory has secured an accreditation to test all improved commercial cookstoves. This follows the successful completion of an inter lab comparison test involving three countries, supervised by the Environmental Protection Agency of the United States of America (USA). The Centre now conducts series of tests, including efficiency, water boiling, durability, quality control to ascertain if the level of smoke from the cookstove is low and harmless to users. Dr Ferdinard Tornyie, a scientist at CSIR-IIR, said this during the working visit of Mr Michael S. Regan, the Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency to the Cookstove Lab in Accra, which serves other West African countries. It forms part of activities to deepen collaboration between Ghana and the US to share solutions on range of issues, including the promotion of clean energy cookstoves, climate change and illegal mini ng. Dr Tornyie said the Centre was seeking to ensure that all improved cookstoves were efficient and contributed to improve health of users, reduce air pollution, deforestation, and contribute to the global goal of reducing emission. He stated that a new Legislative Instrument; Cookstove Standard and Labeling, had been enacted to compel all cookstoves to pass the required tests and have a sticker from the Energy Commission - a move similar to 'Star' ratings on refrigerators and air conditioners. Mr Regan noted that the U.S was committed to continuing with the collaboration with officials of the Centre to ensure Ghana had the best and most efficient cookstoves to address climate change concerns and public health. He explained that the contribution of cookstoves to air pollution and the climate crisis was 'big' and hence the US's commitment to share and develop a much stronger expertise. 'We care about public health, especially women who use the cookstove and that is why we want to co-develop and share sol utions to save lives,' he said. Dr. Francis Boateng Agyenim, Director, CSIR-IIR, told the Ghana News Agency that smoke from inefficient cookstoves made users sick and was killing many. 'I have lived in the village and I have seen and can attest to how inefficient cookstoves affect the health of users. Physically people's eyes swell and their lungs are affected too,' he said. He noted that many river bodies and vegetation had disappeared in local communities partly due to drought associated with climate crisis and also felling of trees to power inefficient cookstoves. 'There are real examples around us. If we continue to use the firewood and charcoal without finding effective ways of ensuring sustainability, we are hurting our plant and causing existential threats,' he added. Poor air quality in Ghana is mainly caused by cooking using wood and charcoal, road transport, slash-and-burn methods of farming, open waste burning, energy generation, accidental fires and industry. While deaths from household air pollution have decreased since 1997, deaths from outdoor air pollution have increased. More than 70 per cent of Ghanaians use biomass fuel, such as firewood, charcoal, and agricultural waste for cooking, which expose them to harmful air pollutants. Around 13,400 deaths occur per year in Ghana from smoke related illnesses attributable to household air pollution from the use of biomass fuel for cooking. Due to their high exposure to cookstoves in the home, children under the age of five are considered most vulnerable. Source: Ghana News Agency