Ashanti Today

The President of the Ghana Association of  Bankers  , Alhassan Andani, has described as appropriate recent interventions by the Bank of Ghana in the banking sector, especially its takeover of three indigenous banks said to be unprofitable.  According to him, even though government or the Central bank has no justification paying off depositors’ funds when their banks fail, the regulatory organization has a duty of taking proactive steps to safeguard deposits of customers of financial institutions and to protect the industry.  Interacting with some journalists in Kumasi, Mr. Andani, who is also the Managing Director of Standbic Bank, cautioned that the era when any individual or group considered to have the financial muscle was allowed to set up banks or financial organization must give way to new way to new means of capital formation.  However, there must be a conscious national plan to build very robust indigenous financial institution even if it m...

Only two of the women aspirants at the Ashanti Regional Delegates’ Congress of the ruling New Patriotic Party, NPP, won their respective positions.  They are Nana Ama Ampomah who retained her position as the Women Organizer and Hajia Zeinab Sallow, who was elected as the new regional Treasurer.  A total number of 909 delegates of the NPP from 46 out the 47 constituencies in the region were expected to be present to vote at the Congress held at the premises of the College of Agric, Ejura in the Ejura-Sekyedumase constituency.  Information gathered by our correspondent had it that delegates from the Adansi Formena constituency could not be part for a reason yet to be ascertained.  Eventually, 883 delegates were present to vote. Also voting were the Members of Parliament in the region, members of Council of Elders, Patrons, TESCON among other affiliate organs of the party operating in the region. Ten substantive regional positions were up for grab by t...

The Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, KMA, will next month launch a city-wide operation to provide litter bins at vantage points throughout the metropolis to encourage responsible rubbish disposal among both residents and visitors.  The exercise forms part of an initiative of the Chief Executive, Osei Assibey Antwi, code-named ‘Keep the City Clean and Green’ to restore Kumasi to its former status as the Garden City of West Africa.  Mr. Osei Assibey Antwi made this known in Kumasi when he received on behalf of the KMA, a six-wheeler truck and four brand new tricycles popularly known as Aboboyaa valued at 500 thousand Ghana Cedis from the VIP Transport company.  The machines are part of the transport company’s contribution towards the operation ‘Keep the City Clean and Green’.  The Metro Chief noted that the initiative has so far received very encouraging support from both the corporate world and religious groups some of which have made substantial contri...

Everything is set for this year’s Ashanti regional Delegates Congress of the ruling New Patriotic Party, NPP, to take place tomorrow, Saturday April 21.  The Congress, to be held at Ejura in the Ejura-Sekyedumase Constituency, is to elect new Regional Executives to manage the party in the next four years.  Speaking to Ashanti Today in Kumasi, the Regional Communications Director of the NPP, Akwasi Kyei, said the Congress will be made up of all Executives from the 47 Constituencies, Founding Members, the current Regional Executives, the 44 Members of Parliament among other party loyalists.  Mr. Kyei said so far, vetting of all aspirants has been successfully conducted without any disqualification saying that the conduct of their respective campaigns has been decorous so far without any cause for worry.  The Regional Communications Director said, apart from the position of the Regional Chairman which being contested by only the incumbent, Bernard Ant...

Wife of the Vice President, Hajia Samira Bawumia, has cut sod for construction of a permanent Regional Office complex for the ruling New Patriotic Party, NPP, in Ashanti.  The office is being funded jointly by the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the party, Bernard Antwi Boasiako and the Chief of Agric Nsemaa near Kumasi, Nana Sasraku Boadu Ayeboafo.  Since the formation of the New Patriotic Party, NPP in 1992, the regional branch of the party has been operating from one rented premises to another with the current regional office at New Tafo in Kumasi rented in 2016 for 10 years by the current Regional Chairman, Bernard Antwi Boasiako.  It is to protect the funds of the party that Mr. Antwi Boasiako affectionately called Chairman Wontumi has teamed up with the chief of Agric Nsema near Kumasi, Nana Sasraku Boadu Ayeboafo who is also a businessman, to finance the construction of a permanent Regional Office complex.  The office, a three-storey building wi...

The chiefs and people of Ninting in the Mampong Municipality of the Ashanti region have given the Ghana Highway Authority up to the close of this week to construct speed rumps in the town.  Failure to comply with this will compel the citizens to go ahead to construct the rumps as a measure against the incessant pedestrian knock downs by vehicles in the town.  An opinion Leader, Nana Adu Asare, told Ashanti Today  on behalf of the aggrieved people, noted that the town can no longer tolerate the apathy of the Ghana Highways Authority to help compel speeding vehicles to reduce their speed whenever they get to the town to save lives.  Ninting is the town located right after the famous Mampong Scarp and it is when drivers reach the town that they are able to see their way clear and therefore begin to speed without regard for other road users like pedestrians.    According to Nana Adu Asare, who is also the Head of the Royal Family of Ninting, a...

 President of the National House of Chiefs, Togbe Afede, has advised the Commission of E nquiry  considering petitions for the creation of new regions to always endeavour to hold and present themselves as a fact-finding body and not as agents to enforce a predetermined agenda.  In this regard, the processes involved in the national exercise should be fair to the people in whose interest the objective is being pursued.  Togbe Afede, who is also the Agbogbomafia of the Asogli State in the Volta region, admonished also the Commission of Enquiry to be sensitive about its decision regarding who qualifies to vote in any possible Referendum and the determination of boundaries.  He gave the advice in Kumasi at the opening of the 2 nd Meeting of the National House of Chiefs this year.  The Guests at the Meeting were the Commission of Enquiry into the Creation of new administrative regions led by its Chairman, Justice Stephen Brobbey.  ...

A Newscaster of a Bekwai-based private radio station, Portia Agyeiwaa Kodie, has been killed by unknown assailants at her rented apartment at Bekwai in the Ashanti region.  Confirming the incident to Ashanti Today in a telephone interview, the General Manager of DESS FM, Gordon Donkor, said the he was informed about the news at about 7 pm yesterday, Sunday April 15, hours after Agyeiwaa Kodie had left the office.  He said circumstantial evidence at the scene of the incident points to the fact that she was stabbed just beneath the ribs on her left side where the heart is located leading her to bleed profusely.  Mr. Donkor indicated also that Agyeiwaa Kodie is believed to have struggled with her assailants and that her two phones had been taken away.  The General Manager noted that the deceased was employed by DESS in November last year as both a Newscaster and a Front Desk Officer and that she reported to work yesterday, Sunday April 15 and left at...

Construction of the Boankra Inland Port Project in the Ashanti region is expected to resume by July this year under a public-private partnership arrangement on a Build-Operate and Transfer, BOT, model.  The cost of the next phase of the project is estimated at a minimum of 400 million Dollars and would be completed within two years upon resumption of the construction works.  The Minister for Transport, Ofori Asiamah, made this known to Ashanti Today in Kumasi after briefing the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu, on steps being taken to re-start the Inland Port Project.  The Project, which was initiated by the previous NPP government about 10 years ago, stalled following the change of government.  Before the project came to a standstill, the Administrative Block complex had been built at a cost of about five million Dollars.  However, a recent visit to the site showed substantial damages to the building as a result of non-occupation and lack ...

Ashanti Today  can confirm that there is a re-emergence of the Fall Army Worms on maize farms in the Ashanti region.  This follows a visit to some affected farms in the region to ascertain the level of infestation and havoc being wreaked by the pests. It emerged however, that an early application of the recommended agro chemicals on the maize farms can substantially subdue the destructive worms.  Our Correspondent who has been closely monitoring the development following the start of this year’s major cropping season reports that, the Ashanti Regional directorate of Agriculture has confirmed that traces of the worms invasion have been found in most parts of the region, even though not at an alarming rate.   The Fall Army Worms The Fall Army Worms, identified to be migratory with the Americas as the origin, were first detected on farms in the Ashanti region during the minor maize growing season of 2016.  Their infestation however became pronou...

The Kumasi Area Controller of the West African Examinations Council, WAEC, Alex Boapem Bosompim, has blamed the Ghana Education Service, GES, for the continuous blatant involvement of officials in examination malpractices during external exams in the country.  According to him, the GES has over the years failed to apply punitive sanctions against the numerous offending examination invigilators and Supervisors who officiate WAEC-organized examinations.  Speaking to Ashanti Today in Kumasi, Mr. Bosompim explained that, most of the Supervisors and Invigilators engaged by WAEC to ensure smooth examinations are staff of the GES.  For this reason, anytime any official is caught in a compromising situation in the conduct of external exam, evidence and the culprits are referred to the GES to apply the appropriate sanctions.  However, there has been very little done over the years to deter potential culprits thereby emboldening successive exam officials to ...

    President of the Ashesi University, Dr. Patrick Awuah, has traced Africa’s under development and myriad of challenges to leadership failure riddled with what he calls ‘corrosive corruption’.  To address the problem to propel the continent to leap-frog in its development, there is the need to deliberately nurture a new generation of critical thinkers, inventors and innovators imbued with quality leadership to take advantage of technological advancement.  Dr. Awuah was giving the key note address at Pakyi in the Ashanti region at the opening of the Africa Regional Round Square Conference.  Round Square is a world-wide organization of about 150 schools that share in the work of a philosopher and educationist, Kurt Hahn.  The three-day Conference being held in West Africa and for the first time, is on the theme: “Leadership in the Service of Africa.”  It was participated by high school delegates and teachers from about 25 member sc...

There has not been any impact of the strike action declared by the National Association of Graduate Teachers, NAGRAT, on the conduct of the ongoing West Africa Senior Schools Certificate Examination, WASSCE, in the Kumasi metropolis.  A visit by Ashanti Today to some of the examination centres showed that the exercise is being conducted in a congenial atmosphere.  At the Kumasi Anglican Senior High School, the Assistant Headmaster, Owusu Ansah, noted that all 138 candidates registered for the English Literature Paper had reported and that all the invigilators and other officials were at post supervising the exam.  Some of the teachers were also seen attending to terminal examination papers of the continuing students.  The Assistant Headmaster was emphatic that the strike action had not had any impact on either school activities or the WASSCE. At the T.I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School, out of the one thousand, 100 registered candidates for this year’...

Very soon, Ghana Education Service will enter into performance contract with all heads of second cycle schools in the country to engender improved academic performance and quality education.  The Minister for Education, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, made this known in Kumasi at a meeting with Heads of Senior High schools graded as low performing from the Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions.  Dr. Opoku Prempeh noted that no school head should have any cause to complain after applying and accepting appointment to his or her duty post with a foreknowledge of the challenges prevalent in the school.  What is required is for the school heads to be creative and innovative in their leadership while always keeping themselves abreast of the trend of their school’s academic performance.  The Education Minister assured that government, on its part, is committed to addressing the infrastructural and teacher deficits while providing tea...

  Cocoa farmers are now adopting innovative means of sustaining their businesses in the face of the harsh and unreliable climatic conditions including rainfall.  One such farmer is the Tano South District Chief Farmer, Charles Gyamfi, who has now switched to the application of organic manure on his 200 acre cocoa farm at Anokyekrom.  Mr. Gyamfi explained that aside from the failing rainfall pattern in recent years, the high cost of the fertilizer is also encouraging him to stick to the use of poultry manure which he said is relatively cheaper and easily accessible for his farming business.  The District Chief Farmer disclosed this on his farm during an interaction with members from the Ashanti and Brong Ahafo regions of the Ghana Agriculture and Rural Development Journalists Association, GARDJA.  It was part of a field trip organized by GARDJA with the support of Utz  for the journalists to familiarize with sustainable cocoa production. Mr...