Category: National

Increasing security measures ahead of the New Year was the focus of a working session held between Prime Minister Ahmed Hachani and Interior Minister Kamal Feki, on Wednesday, at the Prime Ministry. The Minister of the Interior reviewed the organizational and logistical preparations to be undertaken by the end of the school and university winter break. Hachani stressed the need to ensure the safety of all Tunisian citizens as well as foreign nationals across Tunisia, calling on drivers to comply with the traffic rules during this winter break, reads a statement of the Prime Ministry. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Mr Daniel Nana Addo Kenneth, the Okere District Chief Executive (DCE), has filed nomination for the Okere NPP Parliamentary Primaries to replace Mr Dan Botwe, who has declared his intention not to contest come December 2024. The DCE, started his political career as a polling station Executive and became Okere constituency NPP secretary for nine years, until his appointment as DCE for Okere five years ago. A few days ago, Mr Dan Botwe, the widely acclaimed 'Generalisimo' of Ghana's politics and Member of Parliament (MP) for Okere, disclosed his intention to bow out from Parliament after the tenure of his term in 2024. Mr Dan Botwe, a former General Secretary of the NPP and Local Government Minister, leaves Parliament in 2024 after serving four terms and a total of 16 years as the Okere MP for his Party. Following that, the DCE picked his nomination form and submitted same to contest with five others, who had also picked nomination forms to contest for the Okere NPP parliamentary candidature at the close o f nomination on December 25. Speaking to enthusiastic party supporters and functionaries on Christmas day after filing his nomination, Mr Kenneth said he believed that he was the best candidate to replace Mr Dan Botwe. 'When a huge tree is uprooted, you replace with an equally strong tree so that the void is not felt,' he said, whiles recounting the legacies of Mr Dan Botwe. He said all the contestants seeking NPP parliamentary candidature including himself, would undoubtedly stand on the legacies of Mr Dan Botwe to win the hearts of the people, to maintain the Okere seat for Party 'and having worked closely with him all these years I am the best replacement'. A huge crowd of NPP supporters, party functionaries including polling station coordinators and executives thronged the NPP party office at Adukrom to throw their weight behind the DCE as he filed his nomination. Source:Ghana News Agency

Mr. Charles Bissue, the Aspiring Parliamentary Candidate for the Essikado-Ketan Constituency has submitted his forms to solidify his interest in appropriating the seat for the party. Mr Bissue, the former Western Regional Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), accompanied by market women, some polling station executives, market queens, and delegates presented his nomination forms at the weekend amidst brass band music. Also, the former Secretary to the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining, Mr Bissue pledged a clean campaign devoid of insults. 'I am very aware of the fact that insults and name-calling can never win an election, it is about truth, facts and what the people want, and I am confident that I am the right person.' However, the astute NPP loyalist is faced with the bigger challenge of succeeding the long-standing Member of Parliament, Joe Ghartey, who has represented the constituency for over two decades. 'I acknowledge the stiff political landscape, referring to the previous gene ral elections where the National Democratic Congress (NDCs) came close and called for all party faithful's involvement for the expected victory in Essikado-Ketan. 'I am not the big man, everyone has his/her own politics; the NDC closed the gap in the last elections, and they feel they can win the seat this time. The Essikado-Ketan seat cannot be joked with -so we need someone with experience.' He narrated how he worked for the party to maintain majority seats for the NPP in the region adding, 'We need to continue where Joe Ghartey left off, solidify the base of Essikado-Ketan in parliament, and that's what I'm seeking to do.' Mr Bissue had been the Regional Secretary for eight years, national council member for eight years, Northampton chair, presidential staffer among other responsibilities in the Party. Source:Ghana News Agency

Former President John Dramani Mahama Friday, ended his two-day tour of the Central with a pledge to rebound growth in agriculture particularly the cocoa sector. Reacting to some concerns of farmers at separate durbars, the Flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), said the cocoa sector played a pivotal role in Ghana's economy. However, due to ill-thought policies by the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) government, the once buoyant cocoa industry was on the verge of collapse. The former President said the NDC government's supply of free fertilizer, seedlings, and inputs to cocoa farmers led to an increase in the annual crop yield, but that policy change by the current government had drastically national yield. 'When we started giving out free fertilizers, it was because we realised it would help improve yield, and in the 2016/17 crop year, we recorded a massive increase in produce. 'I cannot understand why this government will decide to stop that and sell the fertilizers to the farmers… It is wickedness to leave the fertilizer in warehouses because the farmers cannot buy them,' he indicated. Mr Mahama promised to bolster the country's cocoa sector with well-thought-out policy interventions towards enhancing the cocoa value chain, a vital sector to the country's economic recovery. The move is not only geared towards increasing the income of cocoa farmers, but also towards creating employment opportunities and fostering economic development in these regions. As well, Mr Mahama said the fisheries sub-sector had encountered depressing outputs for some time now, 'resulting in very high deficits in national fish supply, relative to demand and consumption requirements'. His major concerns in the fishing industry included weak infrastructure to develop the post-harvest sub-sector, unsafe and insanitary landing beaches and the proliferation of illegal fishing methods and activities. Therefore, the NDC government's construction of the processing plant would help 'reduce post-harvest losses, add value t o the fish catch and thereby optimise the value the nation derives from its fishing industry.' For premix fuel, Mr Mahama accused the government of undermining the efforts of artisanal fishers and contributing to the challenges they faced. 'When we were in power, we set up the landing beach committee, and at that time, anyone could be a member. The premix was distributed judiciously. 'But now, fuel diversion and mismanagement of the distribution of premix fuel appear to have reached its peak. The NPP government is politicising the distribution,' he criticised. Mr Mahama on Friday began a two-day campaign tour of the Central Region dubbed: 'Building Ghana'. He interacted with traditional authorities, supporters, and interest groups across the Region. Source:Ghana News Agency

Five persons have successfully filed nominations to contest in the upcoming New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary primaries in the Sefwi-Wiawso Constituency of the Western North Region. After close of nominations on Monday, December 25, four males and a female had submitted their nomination forms to contest in the elections. They are; Mr Festus Bumangamah Agyapong, Mr Atta Boamah, Dr Francis Xavier Andoh-Adjei, Mr Martin Bonye and Mrs Golly Antwi Bosiako, the party's Regional Women Organizer. Mr Emmanuel Atta-Marfo, the Constituency Secretary, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) indicated that vetting of the aspirants would commence between January 3 and 5 next year. He called on aspirants and their supporters to run their campaigns devoid of insults to help maintain the peace and unity within the party before, during and after the primaries. Dr Kwaku Afriyie, the incumbent Member of Parliament for the area, won the Wiawso parliamentary seat for the first time in 2016 with 31,736 votes as against National Democratic Congress' (NDC) Evans Paul Aidoo who polled 26,206 votes. He retained the seat in the 2020 general elections but has decided to step down after the end of his second term. Source:Ghana News Agency