Trade Fair Centre to get facelift

Trade Minister, Haruna Iddrisu

THE Ghana Trade Fair Centre (GTFC) is to receive a facelift to make the facility an enviable exhibition hub within the West African sub-region.

This follows the government's decision to ensure that trade becomes a tool for sustainable economic growth.
The Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, made this known at the launch of the 17th Ghana International Trade Fair in Accra on Thursday.

This year's fair, which began on Thursday on the theme, "Trade and Industry, heralding Ghana's Economic Growth", will run till March 10, this year.

About 460 local and international exhibitors from Benin, Guinea, Nigeria and Kenya are participating in the 11-day event.

According to Mr Iddrisu, the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) Law was being reviewed to ensure that local businesses had the needed capacity in line with the government's new direction for the trade sector.

"It is in line with achieving these set goals that the government intends to address the numerous challenges facing the trade fair company by carrying out massive infrastructural  refurbishment and capital injection," Mr Iddrisu said.

That, he said, would also put the country on a high pedestal as it prepared to host the Seventh ECOWAS Fair in June this year.

He was hopeful that the participating companies would use the trade and exhibition fair to attract more investments that would enhance trade beyond the sub-region.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the GTFC, Capt Kwadwo Butah (retd), in his welcoming address, said in spite of technological advancement, the company was confronted with serious challenges that had derailed its performance.

He said many trade fair centres worldwide had undergone significant technological and structural transformation, thereby making them economically viable.

Capt Butah said while trade fairs had a positive impact on the expansion of export base businesses and promoting growth for local small-scale enterprises, Ghana was yet to make gains in that direction, as the GTFC had witnessed setbacks which had made the centre unattractive to businesses within and outside the country.

He expressed the hope that the re-development project that the government intended to carry out on the company's facilities would introduce innovations to meet the changing demands in trade.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Sat, April 1, 2013

End of load shedding, VRA, GRIDCo give different dates

CONSUMERS of power have to brace themselves up for more blackouts as  the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo) and the Volta River Authority (VRA) provide different periods for the probable end to the load-shedding programme.

While GRIDCo has stated the end of April as the probable date to normalise power supply to Ghanaians, the VRA is projecting some time in May.

Ghanaians have, since August 2012, been hit by an erratic power supply as a result of a major fault on one of the pipelines supplying gas from Nigeria to help generate electricity in the country. 

Since then, a number of deadlines or periods for the end of the current load shedding have been changed from one month to another.

But there is hope in sight, as the Bui Power Authority (BPA) promises to add 133.33 megawatts from its first generation unit by the end of March this year to boost the national grid. 

With that boost, Ghanaians expect that the canker of “dum so, dum so” will minimise.

The national energy distributor, GRIDCo, however, hopes that the situation should normalise by the end of April this year, although the main energy generator, the VRA, has pegged May as the time when the challenges of power generation and distribution could normalise.

Officials of the West African Gas Pipeline Company (WAPCo) also hope that gas supply from Nigeria to Ghana will be restored by the end of April to give the power generation firms more energy to generate electricity.

According to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GRIDCo, Mr Charles Darku, the current generation inadequacy was likely to prolong the crisis until the end of April this year.

That, he said, would be informed by the inauguration of GRIDCo’s new substation at Kintampo, the Takoradi Thermal Three (T3) project and the resumption of gas supply from WAPCo. 

He told the Daily Graphic in an interview yesterday that generation inadequacy had seen a 25 per cent deficit in the reserve margin.

“Reserve margins have been eaten into and, therefore, we will need an additional 200 megawatts to make up for the shortfall,” Mr Darku said.

He said for stability in power supply, there must always be some 2,250 power reserve capacity to cater for the inadequacies in the system.

He further intimated that the increased demand for power required the generation of at least 200 megawatts annually, noting, however, that the “lack of investment in the sector over the past years has brought us where we are today”. 

Mr Darku took a swipe at officials of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for being unprofessional in their approach to power rationing.

The ECG had, on Monday night, cut power supply to most parts of Accra and its environs due to what its officials said was a directive from GRIDCo to shed an additional 400 megawatts across the country.

The company blames its inability to follow its own scheduled timetable for load rationing across the country on GRIDCo.

Mr Darku, who took exception to the ECG’s accusation, said the decision to instruct for the shedding off of the additional 400 megawatts was informed by trips on the generating systems at Aboadze and one of the Akosombo generation systems going off.

Meanwhile, officials of WAPCo have set April 30, this year as the tentative date for the resumption of gas supply to Ghana.

The General Manager in charge of Corporate Affairs at WAPCo, Ms Harriet Wereko-Brobby, who confirmed this to the Daily Graphic, said officials were working fervently to ensure the date was met.  

An External Relations Assistant of the BPA, Mr Gabriel Apatu, told the Daily Graphic that plans were far advanced to add the 133.33 megawatts of power to the national energy requirement.

He said one of the three generating units of the BPA would be ready to produce 133.33 megawatts by the end of March this year, while the remaining two generating units would be added to the national grid by June this year. 

However, at a public forum in Tamale on Monday, the Ghana News Agency (GNA) reports that the Head of the Corporate Communications Unit of the VRA, Mr Samuel Fletcher, urged consumers to brace themselves up for the load-shedding exercise until May.

Presenting an update on the power situation in the country, he said the authority anticipated to add 200 megawatts of power from various power production units across the country to the national grid by May to restore normal power supply.

The forum, organised by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC), brought together utility providers, including the VRA, GRIDCo, the Northern Electricity Distribution Company and the Ghana Water Company Limited/Ghana Urban Water Limited (GWCL/GUWL), and consumers from the Northern and Upper East regions to share their concerns and experiences on the quality of utility provision.  

Mr Fletcher said work on the pipeline was expected to be completed in May to supply natural gas from Nigeria to the VRA to aid its operations and reduce the cost of power production.

The situation has compelled the VRA to buy light crude oil to power its thermal plants to produce electricity at great cost, without a corresponding increase in revenue.

Documents made available to the GNA by the VRA indicated that the authority spent close to US$3 million daily to run its thermal plants using light crude oil, which was double the cost of using natural gas.

Mr Fletcher said if natural gas did not arrive as expected and "if the VRA continues to sell electricity to the ECG at the current price, then production from our thermal  plants would have to be reduced or discontinued and that would mean further load shedding".

He, therefore, called on consumers to collaborate with the VRA to buy more crude oil to produce more electricity to eliminate the load shedding and reduce the financial loss.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Wed, Feb 20, 2013

Solar lamps for off-grid rural communities

THE government is set to distribute solar lamps to off-grid rural communities to replace kerosene lanterns as part of measures to mitigate any effect the removal of subsidies on fuel will have on the rural poor.

The withdrawal of subsidies on petroleum products has seen the price of kerosene being revised upwards from GH¢2.21 to GH¢4.71. 

Under the programme, to be implemented in three phases, 20,000 solar lanterns will be distributed to some 1,000 communities in remote island communities under  phase one at a cost of GH¢2 million between January 2013 and June 2014.

The Head of Public Relations at the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum (MOEP), Mr Edward Bawa, who disclosed this in an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra yesterday, said the targeted households would be required to turn in their kerosene lamps or pay subsidised prices for the solar lamps valued at GH¢100 each.

Under the second phase, which will span a period of two years (2014-2016), a local assembly plant would be established to assemble some 50,000 solar lamps for distribution through a grant of 50 per cent subsidy package, Mr Bawa said.

“This is aimed at ensuring a sustainable market for solar lantern promotion in the country and also serve to reduce the expenditure of rural people on energy for lighting,” he said, adding that the government intended to build local capacity and create jobs in the assembling and maintenance of the lanterns in the country.

He noted that phase three of the project, which will span a period of 18 months, would be aimed at supporting promotional support for the project as part of a sustainability and market chain development.
At that level, consumers would pay the full cost of the lamps, he indicated.

Mr Bawa said the government was working out sustainable modalities for the distribution of specially designed LPG bottles under its rural LPG programme.

“The modalities are being worked out to provide subsidy for the project through the rural LPG compensation fund,” he said.

He also said the installation of solar PVs for off-grid remote and island communities which had been ongoing since 2010 as part of a programme to reduce the use of kerosene in beneficiary communities would be upscaled, in line with the government’s programme to progressively extend electricity to rural communities across the country. 

“Our expectation is that while this project seeks to accelerate the development of rural communities, it will also help eliminate the impact of smoke-related diseases on the health of women and children who are at the centre of rural activities in remote communities nationwide,” Mr Bawa said.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo,  Daily Graphic, Tue, Feb 19, 2013

GNPC to host international conference on oil, gas

THE Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) has said that the continued investments in the country’s upstream oil and gas sector were clear indications that the country had chalked up phenomenal success in regulating the sector.

According to the GNPC officials, the country’s successes had stimulated further interest among players across the West African Atlantic Margin.

“These achievements, however, cannot be attributed to a small segment of obvious players in the industry but a large fraternity of players, some of whom are providing intangible services towards the attainment of the industry’s goal,” the Geophysics Manager at GNPC, Mr Theo Ahwireng, said in Accra.

Mr Ahwireng was addressing a press conference to launch the 2013 edition of Offshore West Africa (OWA) Oil and Gas conference and exhibition.

The three-day conference which is to be held from March 19-21 on the theme, “Exploring the dynamics of West Africa Offshore,” is expected to provide a platform for stakeholders to share ideas and learn from experts on the latest technologies and solutions relating to offshore exploration.

The programme; to be hosted by the GNPC with sponsorship from Tullow Oil, among other stakeholders; would combine a high class conference to demonstrate newer technologies in exploration and production of oil.

Plenary sessions, which would be held as part of the programme, would see various speakers from Ghana, the United States, the United Kingdom and other areas presenting papers on topics on Deep Water Project Economics, Well Construction and Drilling Operations, Field Developments, Floating Production Systems, among other topics.

According to the organisers, Penwell Corporation, a United States-based diversified business-to-business publishing company, the OWA, had become a leading oil and gas platform where experiences and technologies were shared and businesses were developed.

Over 60 exhibitors are expected to participate in the three-day event which would also bring together national and international operators.

Mr Ahwireng said in spite of a drop in the production level at the Jubilee fields, tremendous gains had been made with the production of 100,000 barrels of crude oil on daily basis.

“The focus on Ghana today in the West African sub-region, in spite of production activities still in its early days, is not accidental,” he said.

He indicated that the OWA platform would afford Ghana the opportunity to reflect and take stock of the various actors pursuing interests that were likely to be to the greater good of the industry.

He expressed the hope that the OWA would also afford local experts the opportunity to make contacts and strike business deals that would help the country to shape the agenda for the growth of the different facets of the industry.

The Coordinator of Local Content at the Petroleum Commission (PC), Dr Juliette Twumasi-Anokye, announced that the commission was registering all operators in the up-stream sector to enable officials to monitor the issues relating to procurement and employment as part of the local content policy.

The Director of Offshore Conferences, Mr David Paganie, had earlier in his welcome address, said the growing business opportunities in the sub-region had necessitated the need to aid the region to maximise the potentials of its resources.

He expressed the hope that participants would take advantage of the business opportunities that the forum would create to contribute their quota to the sub-region’s development.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Mon, Feb 19, 2013

Independence anniversary celebration launched

GHANA’S 56th Independence anniversary celebrations was launched in Accra yesterday with a call on Ghanaians to endeavour to do their best to leave a better nation for posterity.

This year’s celebrations, which will be on the theme; “Partnership and Innovation to build a better and new Ghana”, will be marked with a series of activities including wreath laying to commemorate the Christianborg Crossroad shooting, Special what-do-you-know competition, inter-schools debate among other events.

A nationwide clean-up exercise would also be undertaken as well as the presentation of the President’s award to deserving school children.

There will also be a re-enactment of the declaration of Independence by the Ghana Actors Guild (GAG).
Christian thansgiving services and Muslim prayers would also be held as parts of National Thansgiving for the nation.

An anniversary parade by the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), security services and school children would come off at the Black Star Square on March 6, would be held at the Independence Square to climax the celebrations.

The Minister of Information, Mr Mahama Ayariga, who launched the celebration, said the theme reflected the changing innovation that the nation had gone through.

“It is my considered opinion that the theme reflects the need for partnership in nation development as espoused by President Mahama in his inaugural address”, Mr Ayariga said.

He challenged Ghanaians to use this year’s celebration as a period of reflection and reconciliation, as they made strides in developmental gains.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Sat, Feb 16, 2013

‘Absence of Petroleum Exploration Law will not affect oil benefits’

The Petroleum Commission (PC) has denied that the absence of a new Petroleum Exploration Law, three years into oil production in the country, will deprive Ghanaians the benefits of petroleum resources. 

According to the commission, petroleum agreements were negotiated taking into consideration clear benefits to be derived by the state and the citizenry from petroleum resources.  

The Coordinator of Local Content at the PC, Dr Juliette Twumasi-Anokye, told the Daily Graphic in Accra yesterday that the model agreement for negotiations in the petroleum sector had stringent clauses which clearly specified such resources as the property of Ghana. 

In an interview on the sidelines of a press conference to launch the 2013 edition of the Offshore West Africa Oil and Gas exhibition, Dr Twumasi-Anokye said the delay in passing the law was to ensure the availability of adequate provisions that would lend credence to the benefits Ghanaians ought to derive from oil exploration and production activities.

The three-day conference and exhibition, to be held from March 19-21, 2013 on the theme: “Exploring the dynamics of West Africa offshore”, is expected to provide a platform for stakeholders to share ideas and learn from experts on the latest technology and solutions relating to offshore exploration.

The event, to be hosted by the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), with sponsorship from Tullow Oil, among other stakeholders, will combine a high- class conference to demonstrate newer technologies in the exploration and production of oil.

The draft copy of the new law, which is meant to replace the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) Exploration and Production Law, PNDC Law 84 of 1983, is yet to be finalised by the Attorney-General’s Department.

This has led to civil society organisations and other stakeholders raising concerns and urging the government to ensure coherence in the passage of the law to take cognisance of the challenges in the sector.

Dr Twumasi-Anokye said the PC had, since 2012, been reviewing the quarterly local content plan of the operators in the sector to ensure that their procurement, employment and succession plans were in conformity with regulations stipulated by the PC.

“We do these things to guarantee fairness as part of measures employed to ensure that incumbent contractors are not used in line with the PC’s succession plan provisions,” she said.

She further indicated that since the PC’s role was underpinned on provisions that would go to firm up local content provision in the upstream sector, officials were eager to put in place the Legislative Instrument (LI) to further strengthen the local content regime.

“We expect that  the Attorney-General’s Department will forward the LI which will replace the existing regulations of 1984 to Parliament for consideration and passage in the ensuing weeks,” she said.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Fri, Feb 15, 2013 

Gas company to respond to misappropraition queries

THE Ghana National Gas Company (GNCG) is finalising its 2012 accounts to appropriately answer queries raised by the Public Interest Accountability Committee (PIAC) on the issue of misappropriation of GH¢20 million of the company’s operational capital.

The PIAC, in January this year, raised concerns over the GNCG’s inability to account for GH¢20 million of its operational funds released to it by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.

The PIAC had, in a letter to the GNCG, requested the company to account for the said amount for publication in its report.

In his response to a questionnaire submitted by the Daily Graphic on the concerns raised by the PIAC, the Head of Corporate Communications at the GNCG, Mr Guure Brown Guure, said the company’s statutory accounts covering the period from January 1 to December 31, 2012 were being finalised for its officials to respond to the issues raised by the PIAC.

According to him, as a result of an administrative lapse, the letter from the PIAC requesting the GNCG to report on the said amount did not get to the appropriate desk.

“We have since traced the request and apologised accordingly to the PIAC, as well as assured it of our preparedness to share our audited accounts with it once the accounts are ready,” Mr Guure said, adding, “The GNCG is, therefore, not able to account for the GH¢20 million capitalisation amount now.”

He said contrary to claims that the amount had been misappropriated, the GNCG had used it to finance the conduct of aerial topographic and geographical studies necessary to map out the general construction area, as well as examine the dynamics of the terrain.

The two studies, he said, encompassed the onshore natural gas pipeline system area made up of a 111-kilometre main pipeline from Atuabo to Ntwaaban and a 75- kilometre lateral pipeline area from Essiama to Prestea.

Mr Guure said the environmental and social impact assessment of the gas processing plant to determine its long-term viability and assess potential risks and impact on the environment and communities in and around the project area to determine the relevant mitigating measures had to be integrated to eliminate such factors.

“Part of the money also went into the funding of construction enabling works along major bridges linking the project site to reinforce the structures to enable line pipes and other heavy equipment to be transported across,” he said.

Asked why the project continued to delay, he stated that some social, environmental and financial reasons, including issues with deities (smaller gods) at the project site, and procedural challenges in advance payments due Sinopec, the main contractor, had accounted for the delay of the project.

“These challenges have so far been resolved and the project is progressing in earnest,” Mr Guure said, adding, “Ghana Gas is, therefore, confident that with the current pace of progress, the project should be completed by the third quarter of this year.”

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Thur, Feb 14, 2013

Ghana’s Energy Ministry - Which direction ?

Energy Minister, Kofi Armah Buah

OVER the past few decades, successive governments have tried to improve the country’s energy sector. 

Millions of cedis have been spent, but little has been achieved.

The problems we face today are testimonies of the inadequacy of legislation and policies and these are the strongest possible signals that Ghana needs to adopt a radical approach to find solutions for the problems in the energy sector.

While admitting that the high capital intensive nature of the sector has contributed to the minimal growth, public sector funding has been inadequate for the maintenance of current systems and the development of new energy sources.

For instance, while infrastructure on electricity generation continues to be dependent on thermal power generation, activities in the petroleum sector are being hampered by the absence of legislation.

The new Petroleum Exploration Law to replace the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) Exploration and Production Law, PNDC Law 84 of 1983 is yet to be put in place to take cognisance of current activities, three years into production.

According to Dr Steve Manteaw of the Integrated Social Development Centre (ISODEC), while the necessary infrastructure for gas harvesting are still not available, the delay in putting in place the necessary legislation for an effective handling of the sector might end up short-changing the citizenry.

Tema Oil Refinery’s (TOR) role in the economy in the last four years can be described as unsatisfactory, due to the company’s increasing operational cost, making it less competitive.

Many are of the view that while TOR has over the years become a dumping ground for political foot-soldiers and activists, pilfering, stealing and inefficiency can also not be ruled out.

In the view of Dr Manteaw, the refinery’s existence is vital and bottlenecks must be addressed.

While government in December 2012 released $30 million to TOR towards its plant stabilisation process, the challenges facing the refinery may require a capital injection of over $500 million, following the long neglect over the last four years by the sole shareholder.

The capital injection can allow for plant configuration as cost cutting measures, since TOR currently processes Sweet Light Crude oil, which is one of the expensive crudes on the market.

Such measures would require the need to put in place desalters to remove salt and sulphur from the crude oil before processing.

In doing so, Isomerisation and Alkylation plants also need to be considered to improve on the company’s heavy naphtha feed to produce high octane gasoline and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG).

One other challenge, which is an albatross around the neck of TOR for the last four years, has been its inability to raise letters of credit (LCs) to purchase crude oil.

The period also saw the erratic shutdown of the refinery’s Residual Fluid Catalytic Cracker (RFCC) and Crude Distillation  Units (CDU).

An LC waiver regime that existed between 2001-2008 was withdrawn because of government’s attempts to turn TOR into a tolling facility, while the government hid under the cloak of the infamous TOR debt.

Can government alone take the blame? How about the refinery’s management’s inability to ensure profitability?

Do managers see the need to have in place a proper trading desk where they could monitor and predict the prices of petroleum products within the various trading windows?

With the Ministry of Energy being reviewed to have petroleum as a major component, what defining role will TOR play in this venture?

Will the incoming Minister, Mr Kofi-Armah Buah, who had previously supervised the petroleum sector at the same ministry extend the needed assistance to TOR’s profitability to ensure its competitiveness?

How about processing the Jubilee crude oil, which experts say has the same properties of Bonny or Brent?
President John Mahama on December 4, 2012 promised that his government would put the necessary measures in place to enable TOR operate at full capacity.

Perhaps, government’s decision to release the paltry $30 million could be a result of the President’s campaign promise which came back haunting officials who were variously accused by Ghanaians of attempting to rundown TOR so it could be disposed off.

Beyond the lip service, will the refocussed Ministry of Energy and Petroleum strengthen the energy sector regulation to reflect the market prices being paid by consumers of energy commodities?

What about legislation and legal frameworks that industry players and the general public have been crying for?

With load shedding on the increase and the Bui Dam Project (designed to generate some 400 megawatts of power to augment the country's debilitating energy shortfall) at a standstill, will the Ghanaian consumer see light at the end of the tunnel?

Mr Kofi-Armah Buah, the ball is in your court.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Wed, Feb 13, 2013

Containers with siezed scrap metals found empty

THIRTY-ONE containers of ferrous scrap metals impounded by the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) in March 2012 from being exported illegally have been emptied from the warehouses holding the containers.

The consignments were intercepted in compliance with an administrative ban by the Ministry of Trade and Industry in 2004.

The containers, which were kept under seal on the premises of Everest Limited and Star Limited, both scrap yards in the Tema Heavy Industrial Area, were virtually found empty when Customs officials in the company of members of the Ghana Steel Manufacturers Association went to inspect the consignments last Thursday.

The consignments were auctioned early this year on behalf of the government by the Tema Sector of the Customs Division of the GRA and procured by Special Steel Limited.

Officials of Special Steel and Customs who, on Thursday, visited the two warehouses to inspect the consignments, were, however, left in disbelief as, although the seals on the containers were intact, the containers were virtually empty when they were opened.

A member of the group who spoke to the Daily Graphic on condition of anonymity expressed shock at the turn of events and called on the government to, as a matter of urgency, institute investigations into the incident.

Officials of the Tema Command of the Customs Division who confirmed the incident to the Daily Graphic said the supervising officers of the containers had been tasked to submit a report on the incident.

According to the Public Relations Officer of the command, Ms Nunya Amedonu, the original seal had been confirmed to be intact at the time of the visit on Thursday, with no evidence of tampering.

“The officers who auctioned the containers have been tasked to present a report to the Sector Commander to allow for thorough investigations into the incident,” Ms Amedonu said.

The increasing demand for the exportation of ferrous scrap metals has seen the disruption of underground communication infrastructure and theft of cables (copper wires) in major cities across the country.

While the souring price of the commodity on the world market continues to entice local exporters to engage in the illegality, local steel companies whose production output depends heavily on these raw materials are faced with eminent closure.

The Ministry of Trade and Industry, stunned by the continued exportation, recently directed companies or persons intending to export copper scrap metals from the country to seek clearance from Office of the National Security Coordinator.

However, the absence of a legislative instrument to back the administrative ban on the export continues to spur on the people engaged in the scrap export business.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Tue, Feb 12, 2013

TOR rehabilitation begins

WORK has begun on the rehabilitation of two key units of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) to pave the way for the refinery to resume full-scale operations.

The units are the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) and the Residual Fluid Catalytic Cracker (RFCC).

The project was made possible following the release of $30 million by the government to TOR towards the rehabilitation of its plants.

The release of the funds was in response to appeals made by TOR to the government for $67 million to address challenges at the production units of the refinery.

According to an official source at TOR, the government had assured the refinery that it would release the remaining $37 million by the end of the first quarter of this year for the company to operate efficiently on a sustainable basis.

The company has, since 2009, had major challenges at its major production units, leading to periodic shutdowns which virtually crippled its operations.

The breakdown of equipment at TOR’s utilities department has also affected its generators and steam boilers which are also major components in the production activities of the refinery.

The company had, in 2010, requested $36 million. However, damage to the furnace of the CDU Plant, coupled with damage to the steam boilers and the electricity generation plant, necessitated an increase in the figure to $67 million.

It had also sought to install automatic measuring meters to replace the manual gauging equipment currently being used.

Over the past couple of years, TOR has engaged in significant proxy borrowing to finance its activities and the injection of capital by the government is expected to provide some respite for its operations.

 The source said the maintenance work, which had taken off, would be completed by the end of February.

“We expect to resume normal production work early March, after a four-month inactivity at the CDU and RFCC plants,” it said.

The leaders of TOR’s local union who welcomed the effort after four years of widespread agitation among workers were hopeful the government would commit itself to addressing the challenges.

“We would also expect President John Mahama to keep to the promise he made on December 4, 2012 that the NDC government would put the necessary measures in place to enable TOR to operate at full capacity, as well as ‘complete the retrofitting exercise’,” the Chairman of the TOR Senior Staff Association, Mr Daniel Fugar, told the Daily Graphic.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Tue, Jan 22, 2013

2 Legon students die in accident

Lordina Fobih, one of the two students involved

TWO female students of the University of Ghana, Legon, died in an accident at Okponglo Junction, near the university in Accra, early yesterday morning when the taxi on which they were travelling collided with a refuse truck at the junction where the amber lights of the six traffic lights were blinking simultaneously.

The blinking of the amber lights meant that drivers should drive cautiously, since any of them could cross the intersection.

The two, Lordina Fobih, 19, and Deborah Akosua-Denkyiraa Benaye, 18, both Level 100 students and residents of the Elizabeth Sey Frances Hall, were said to be returning to the campus around 1:30 a.m. after socialisation when the incident occurred.

Lordina was identified as a daughter of Professor Dominic Fobih, a Minister for Lands, Mines and Forestry in the erstwhile Kufuor administration.

The driver of the taxi, with registration number GE 4707-12, Gilbert Darko, 26, is in critical condition at the 37 Military Hospital.

The bodies of the deceased have been deposited at the 37 Military Hospital mortuary.

When the Daily Graphic visited the scene yesterday afternoon, scores of students and residents of the area had visited the accident scene to see the mangled cab.

The Legon District Police Commander, Chief Supt Frank Anning, who confirmed the accident to the Daily Graphic, said the taxi driver, who was travelling from Bawaleshi towards the university campus, collided with the refuse truck, with registration number GE 645 X, at the traffic intersection which had amber (yellow) on display at the time.

According to Mr Anning, the refuse truck, which was travelling from Madina towards the Tetteh Quarshie Interchange, rammed into the taxi and dragged it along the road to the bus stop near the University of Ghana Sports Complex, killing the two students instantly.

The driver of the refuse truck, Kwaku Ababio, who escaped unhurt, has been arrested by the police pending investigations.

Supt Anning expressed worry at the increasing impatience among motorists, even at night, and cautioned commuters to be extra careful when driving at night to avoid such mishaps.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Sat, Jan 19, 2013

Late Kamel’s family informs House of his demise

THE family of the late Volta Regional Minister and Member of Parliament for Buem, Henry Ford Kamel, has formally informed the leadership of Parliament of his demise.

The delegation, led by Nana Barima Kumessey, the District Chief Executive (DCE) for Jasikan, also officially informed the leadership of Parliament that the late MP would be buried at Bueman, his home town, on February 23, 2013.

According to Nana Kumessey, custom demanded that the family inform Parliament, where Kamel had been re-elected to before his sudden death.

The Minority Leader, Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, for his part, said the late Kamel was a personification of a gentleness, adding that “good things don’t last”.

He said the House was prepared to support the family in any way to ensure that their late colleague was given a fitting burial.

The Majority Leader, Dr Benjamin Kunbuor, said he was devastated when he heard the shocking news of Kamel’s death, noting that, “This is a shared loss.”

He urged the family to accept with courage what had happened and also accept the challenges of the loss, since Kamel contributed immensely to the country’s development in diverse ways.

The Speaker of Parliament, Mr Edward Doe Adjaho, said he was short of words, since the late MP had been more of a brother to him.

He said he and the MP had been encouraging each other in their parliamentary work, saying the deceased was one of the finest politicians the Volta Region ever produced.

The Speaker described Kamel as a team player and unifier who had been able to bring the various interest groups in the Volta Region together for its rapid development.

He said the House would work closely with the family to give him a fitting burial, since he was a statesman and astute politician.

SOURCE: Daily Graphic, Fri, Jan 11, 2013

Parliament denies reports on intended strike

THE Leadership of Parliament has denied media reports that they intended to go on strike over unpaid emoluments.

They have therefore urged the media to be circumspect in their reportage of proceedings in Parliament.

Addressing a joint news conference called by the leadership of house in Accra today, Dr. Benjamin Kunbuor and Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu said the press conference was occasioned by a misreportage of an intervention made by the Member of Parliament  (MP) for Old Tafo, Dr Anthony Osie-Akoto on the floor of house last Tuesday.

Dr Osei-Akoto in making a contribution had said that members would not be encouraged to attend parliamentary sittings when their outstanding allowances in the previous parliament remained unpaid.

That they said was, however, misreported by sections of the media that MPs had resolved to go on strike to back up their demands for unpaid allowances.

The Minority Leader, in reacting to the said report, indicated that there may be occasional slips which were part of human nature.

Mr Mensah-Bonsu , however, said that the media ought to focus on principal issues to fashion out national cohesion and development.

"Innocuous matters may crop up, but let us all be in the same boat together to deal with the big issues and not be distracted by minor sidekicks,"Mr Mensah-Bonsu said.

He also said that issues relating to parliament as an institution needed to be vetted appropriately by the media before being put out.

The Majority Leader, Dr. Kunbuor for his part, said that it was very early in the day in the life of the Sixth Parliament for such unhealthy publications to be making rounds.

That, Dr Kunbuor, said would go to create a negative perception in the minds of the public that Members of Parliament were not necessarily in the House to serve the interest of the people.

He also cautioned politicians and members of the House to desist from engaging the press for their parochial interests.

Dr Kunbour called for another level of engagement with the press to focus on larger national interest.
He assured of the leadership and members co-operation to building networks that would positively project Parliament to the general society that they represent.

The Director of Public Affairs of Parliament, Mr Jones Kugblenu wondered why the Sixth Parliament would boycott proceedings because emoluments of the Fifth Parliament which had ceased to exist had not been paid.

"Although most members of the previous parliament have returned to the House, the issue of payments of benefits are being formalised and could therefore not be an obstacle in the business of the current parliament," Mr Kugblenu said.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Fri, Jan 11, 2013

New MPs hopeful of informed debates

SOME new Members of Parliament (MPs) have expressed the belief that the sixth Parliament would see  improvement in scope and informed debate as well as consensus buildings and compromises.

According to them, the era where Parliament was seen as partisan had given way to bridge building between the majority and minority.

The NDC MP for Chiana-Paga, Mr Abuga Pele, told the Daily Graphic that one of his aspirations in the new Parliament would be to see a review of the formula for the allocation the District Assemblies Common Fund, that would make communities rely on their own efforts before they are rewarded with the fund.

"The present system where communities have to wait or lobby central government for the allocation of resources is dwarfing creativity," Mr Abuga Pele said.

The NPP MP for the Komenda Edina Eguafo Abirem (KEEA) constituency, Dr Nana Ato Arthur for his part said his first meeting was insigting since he met friends from both sides of the house.

"Although its relatively early, I can foresee exciting and challenging times ahead with both sides forging ahead in national cohesion", Dr Arthur said.

He said even though Parliament was a legislative body, he intended using his position as an MP to developed Elmina through sister-city partnerships.

The PNC MP for Builsa North, Mr Alhassan Azong, who faulted the previous leadership of Parliament for not placing him on an effective committee, did not ruled out lobbying for selection on any of the effective committees.

According to him, the process where MPs were ask to submit curriculum vital (CV) for placement on committees that reflected their expertise and experience was not effective as lobbying have overridden these  principles.

"It is committees that makes MPs effective, thus if you are put on a committee that meets once in a year to draw a budget, as in the case of the Judiciary Committee that draws an annual budget for the judiciary, your constituents sees you as ineffective,' Mr Azong said.

He added that his expertise in the area of works and housing, local governance and water and sanitation would beneficial to serve on any of the committees that deals with such matters and not for "monetary purposes".

Mr Azong also task the general public to disabuse their minds from the fact that it is only when their governments were in power that they could benefit form development.

"There is statutory funding for all MPs to access for the development of their constituency and when manage well could bring development to heir local communities and the country as a whole," he said.

Mr Azong was hopeful that the  Sixth Parliament would lived up to the expectation of Ghanaians owing to the calibre of elected members, who have so far demonstrated their willingness to rise above partisanship.

 Meanwhile, parliament adjourned sitting on Tuesday to deliberate on the formulae for the composition of membership of committees.

The leadership will also consider the for action of parliamentary delegations and other parliamentary groupings and associations.

The Speaker, Mr Edward Doe Adjaho adjourned the sitting to allow for the formation of the committees which are vital and integral part of parliamentary proceedings and processes.

With the commencement of the formation, intense lobbying for membership of committees that carry clout and power, such as the Appointment committee, Public Accounts Committee (PAC),finance Committee, Works and Housing.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Thur, Jan 10, 2013

Parliament approves composition of three commitees

PARLIAMENT on Tuesday approved the composition of three committees because of their critical nature in the facilitation of the business of the House and that of the government.

They are the Committee of Selection, chaired by the Speaker, Mr Edward Doe Adjaho; the Business Committee, chaired by Dr Benjamin Kunbuor, and the Appointments Committee, headed by the First Deputy Speaker, Mr Ebo Barton Odro.

 The composition of the committees was based on the ratio 55 per cent for the Majority, 45 per cent for the Minority.

The debate on the adoption of the report was characterised by heckling and boos from both the Majority and Minority sides.

Contributing to the debate, the NPP Member of Parliament (MP) for Manhyia, Dr Mathew Opoku-Prempeh, cautioned the newly constituted Business Committee to ensure that ministers of state availed themselves to the House to answer questions.

His contribution, however, attracted jeers from the Majority, who argued that ministers were yet to be appointed, for which reason his argument was out of order.

The NDC MP for Ketu North, Mr Fiifi Kwetey, contributing to the debate, commended the report for including new MPs on the Appointments Committee, since their involvement would afford them the opportunity to learn the work of Parliament from more experienced hands.

That, however, attracted comments from the Minority, who said Mr Kwetey's comment implied that the previous Appointments Committee failed to live up to expectation.

The NPP MP for Akwapim North, Mr William Ofori Boafo, appealed to the Speaker to ensure the Majority Leader furnished the House with the list of caretaker ministers of state at the various ministries, in line with the Presidential Transition Act.

According to the act, the President is supposed to furnish the House with caretaker ministers until the appointment and approval of new ministers of state.

The Speaker ruled that the Majority Leader furnish the House with the list of caretaker ministers and other appointees.

Earlier, the Majority Leader, Dr Kunbuor, had informed the House of the decision of the three independent MPs and the PNC MP for Builsa North, Mr Alhassan Azong, to do business with the Majority in the House.

That followed the call by the MP for Sekondi, Papa Owusu Ankomah, on the four MPs to declare which side of the House they intended to do business with.

The Speaker subsequently informed the House  of a memorandum to the effect that the four MPs had decided to align themselves with the Majority.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Wed, Jan 7, 2013

Doe Adjaho is New Speaker

THE Sixth Parliament of the Fourth Republic was inaugurated in the early hours of Monday, with Mr Edward Doe Adjaho, taking over as the new Speaker.

Mr Adjaho, who until his appointment was the First Deputy Speaker of the Fifth Parliament, replaced Justice Joyce Adeline Bamford-Addo, who was the Speaker of the Fifth Parliament from 2009 to 2012.

By his elevation, Mr Adjaho has vacated his seat as a Member of Parliament in accordance with Article 97 (1) b which stipulates that “a Member shall vacate his seat in Parliament if he is officially sworn in as the Speaker of Parliament.”

The position of the First Deputy Speaker went to Mr Ebo Barton-Odro, the MP for Cape Coast North and outgone Deputy Attorney General and Deputy Minister of Justice.

The MP for Essikado Ketan and a former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey was appointed as the Sond Deputy Speaker.

The Outgoing Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Dr Benjamin Kunbuor replaced Mr Cletus Avorka as Majority Leader, while MP for Ashaiman, Mr Alfred Kwame Agbesi took over from Wa Central MP, Alhaji Abdul Rashid Pelpuo as the Deputy Majority Leader.

While many believe Mr Adjaho’s selection for the position was based on merit and his experience in Parliamentary issues, others believe he lacked the fatherly figure attribute a speaker should have.

Mr Adjaho, a product of Accra Academy studied at the University of Ghana for the L.L.B. Degree in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Ghana School of Law, graduating in 1986 with a Barrister-at-Law.

He began his career at the Attorney-General’s Department before venturing into politics, standing on the ticket of the NDC, after the 1992 referendum that brought the Fourth Republic. He has retained the seat till date. 

He rose through the ranks becoming a Minority Chief Whip, Deputy Minority Leader, one time member of the Pan-African Parliament before attaining his current position as the First Deputy Speaker.

Mr Adjaho, a Christian and married with four children, and hails from Wlitey in the Volta Region.

Mr Adjaho’s elevation is the first time a in the Fourth republic that a Speaker has been selected from within the House.

Mr D.F Annan, Speaker for the First and Second parliaments, Mr Peter Ala Adjetey, Mr Ebenezer Sekyi-Hughes and Mrs Joyce Adeline Bamford-Addo, Speakers of theTthird, Fourth and Fifth Parliaments had all been selected from outside Parliament.

Others on the front bench are Alhaji Mohammed Muntaka (Asawase), Majority Chief Whip, Hajia Mary Boforo (Savalugu), First Deputy Chief Whip and Sampson Ahi (Bodi) Second Deputy Chief Whip.

On the Manority front bench are Mr Ossei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, Minority Leader, Mr Dominic Nitiwul (Bimbilla), Deputy Minority Leader, Mr Dan Botwe (Okere) Minority Chief Whip Ms Irene Naa Torshie Addo (Tema West) and Mr Ignatius Baffuor Awuah,  (Sunyani West) as the minority deputy whips.

With the election of Mr Adjaho as the Fifth Speaker of the Fourth Republic, the Electoral Commission has to start preparations for the conduct of two bye-elections following the death of the Volta Regional Minister, Mr Henry Ford Kamel, who is also the NDC M- elect for Buem.

The Sixth Parliament the Fourth Republic is made up of 148 NDC MPs, 122 NPP MPs, four Independent MPs and one PNC MP.

However, until a bye-election is conducted in the Akatsi South Constituency, the NDC will have its number reduced by two as a result of the death of Mr Kamel and the elevation of Mr Adjaho to the Speakership position.

The new Parliament has 97 new MPs and 177 MPs, including Mr Adjaho and excluding the late Mr Kamel, who were in the Fifth Parliament of the Fourth Republic.

While the Fifth Parliament had 230 members, the Sixth Parliament is made up of 275 MPs as a result of the passage of the C.I 78.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Mon Jan 7, 2013

Two nabbed for fraud

THE Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) have arrested two people who used fake credit cards for the fraudulent purchase of clothing from a retail shop in Japan.

The two, Kofi Afrifa, 23-year-waiter at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Accra and his accomplice, Ernest Ofori, 18-year-old second year student of the Accra Technical Training Centre (ATTC), were arrested when they attempted to take delivery of the items at the Accra Central Post Office.

The Assistant Commissioner of Customs in charge of Preventives at the James Town Collection point, AC Alhaji Mohammed Abubarkar, who disclosed this to the Daily Graphic, said the two successfully purchased the items to the tune of $500 from Japan.

According to him, the owner of the shop in Japan, Morgan Bowman, detected the fraudulent nature of the transaction after the items,which the two suspects had route through Italy had arrived in Ghana, notified the Commissioner of the Customs Division, Major General Carl Modey.

He said the James Town sector office mounted a surveillance on the suspects, who later turned up at the Post Office last Wednesday afternoon to pick up the parcels.

“We suspect Afrifa might have stolen the credit cards from guests at the hotel where he works”, Alhaji Abubarkar said.

He said the two suspects admitted the offence and would be handed over to the police for further investigations and prosecution.

SOURCE: Della Russel Ocloo, Daily Graphic, Sat Jan 5, 2013