Ronaldo 'wants £400k a week'

Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo wants to become the first footballer to earn £400,000 a week, according to an ESPN source.

PA PhotosCristiano Ronaldo has spoken of his "sadness" at Real Madrid

Because of Spain's punitive tax laws, Ronaldo would need to break through the £400,000-a-week barrier for a big pay rise to take effect.

As Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain look on with interest, negotiations to secure Ronaldo's future at the Bernabeu have got under way.

Ronaldo has issued a public statement insisting that his remarks about his "sadness" at the club were not related to finance.

But the source said he would want to double his current salary, and this would help to convince him the club was willing to fight for his future.

The Portugal international had been the world's best-paid player when moving to the Bernabeu on a £200,000-a-week deal in 2009, but he has since slipped down the pecking order, with the likes of Samuel Eto'o, Didier Drogba, Neymar and Wayne Rooney all earning more.

Additionally, Madrid currently own 50% of Ronaldo's image rights, and he has overtaken David Beckham as the game's most lucrative commercial property in terms of shirt sales.

Ronaldo remains under contract until 2015, and his buyout clause would appear prohibitive even for the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain. A move to Russia or China would not appeal to him, ESPN understands.

source:espnsoccernet

Five NACOB Officials Arrested Over Heathrow Cannabis Bust

Subsequent to the discovery of about 1.5 tonnes of cannabis on a plane from Ghana at the Heathrow Airport, five officials of the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB) have been picked up by the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), RadioXYZonline.com reports.
Four of the suspects, Kamaldeen Awudu, Wolanyo Fiano, Ibrahim Badoo and Marvin Amon-Kotei, are reported to have been employed barely six weeks ago.
The fifth person Ben Kusi Asante has been working with NACOB for some years now.
UK Border Agency officials on Thursday seized parcels of cannabis sealed in air freight containers and mixed with other containers with fruits and vegetables on a plane from Accra.
The seizure, according to border officers at UK’s Heathrow Airport is the biggest cannabis seizure in three years and it’s valued at £4.3m.
The arrested NACOB staff were stationed at the Aviance Cargo
where the said containers were supposedly checked before being sent to the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) and subsequently enplaned to the UK .

source: Ghanareporters.com

Prez Mahama’s Brother Sets The Record Straight

Engineers and Planners (E&P), the company said to be owned by Ibrahim Mahama, younger brother of sitting President, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, accused of indirectly helping in the insolvency of Merchant Bank after failing to settle a loan it contracted from the bank, has for the first time spoken to the issue.

E & P, the largest indigenous (Ghanaian) mining contract company with over 15 years experience and specializing in the management and hiring of heavy duty plant, equipments and machinery, haulage, oil and gas, land reclamation and restoration, dam construction and mining says they remain fully committed to the repayment of the loans.

Deputy Communications Director of the NPP, Yaw Buabeng Asamoah, at a press conference he addressed on behalf of his party, alleged that the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), has been forced by the President to use funds of suffering Ghanaian workers to retire a GH¢57.2 million debt owed by his brother, Ibrahim Mahama, to struggling Ghanaian bank, Merchant Bank.

Mr Buabeng Asamoah explained that SSNIT, which held a 98% stake in the Merchant, in August this year, sold 75% of its stake to South African Bank, First Rand. At the time of the sale, Merchant Bank was reeling under some GH¢330 million debt, with Ibrahim Mahama being the largest debtor, contributing 19.2% of Merchant Bank’s total indebtedness.




But in a statement signed by its Chief Finance Officer, Sulemana Ahmed Amidu, Engineers & Planners confirmed securing financing from two local banks during the previous NPP administration.

The statement however indicated that what has created “debt repayment difficulties” for E&P is that for some yet-to-be identified reasons, the banks decided in 2007 to convert the five-year term loan into a three-year term loan.

“…For some unknown reason, the banks in 2007 suddenly converted the financing into a three-year term loan. Naturally this created debt repayment difficulties for Engineers & Planners. Under the previous and current administration, arrangements have been made to refinance the loan through a multilateral funding agency. Engineers & Planners is mindful of its confidentiality obligations to third parties regarding the steps that are being taken to re-finance the debt, and therefore is unable to reveal the details of the funding, save to say that it has been approved after due diligence…The Finance documents have been signed, stamp duty and other fees in excess of GHs 2 million have been paid on all documents and collateral registered here in Ghana,” the statement said.



Source: Engineers And Planners Co. Ltd

Indecent Language: NPP Leads AGAIN...OmanFM and Radio Gold Fingered

MFWA’S REPORT ON ELECTORAL CAMPAIGN LANGUAGE USE ON RADIO

Introduction

Electoral campaign activities are gradually intensifying as the countdown to the December polls draws near. Consequently, electoral programming and political debates/discussions are also on the rise and this may be contributing to the rise in the use of indecorous expressions. For the period, September 16 - 22, 2012, a total of 27 indecent expressions were recorded on eight radio stations.

Three of them were rebroadcasts of indecent expressions on Accra-based Radio Gold; the only radio station that has been found to be replaying indecent remarks persistently.

The remaining 24 were made by officials/ affiliates of four political parties - New Patriotic Party (NPP), National Democratic Congress (NDC), National Democratic Party (NDP) and Independent People’s Party (IPP). Affiliates of the NPP led for the fifth week running by recording more than half (15) of the 24 indecent expressions. Nine (9) of the 15 indecent remarks attributed to the NPP were insulting and offensive remarks.

Oman FM (in Accra) was once again found to be the radio station on which a lot of the indecent expressions was made. As many as nine (9) of the indecent expressions were made during the station’s Boiling Point and National Agenda programmes. In the previous week’s (September 9 - 15, 2012) report, the station was cited as registering eight (8) of the 24 indecent remarks on the two programmes.

Kumasi-based Angel FM is also gradually becoming a platform on which indecent expressions are often made. For about four consecutive weeks (August 26 to September 22, 2012), Angel FM has been cited consistently as one of the radio stations on which indecent expressions are recorded. For this week, five (5) indecent expressions were recorded on the station.

Mr. Ken Kuranchie, the Managing Editor of the Daily Searchlight newspaper, was once again cited for having made an indecent expression. He is the only newspaper editor who has been cited for using indecent expressions on radio in several of the weekly monitoring reports.

The daily monitoring of electoral campaign language-use on radio is a project by the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) with funding from STAR-Ghana. The exercise seeks to name and shame individuals and political activists who make indecent expressions on radio with the aim of contributing to peaceful, free and fair elections in December 2012.

General Findings on Expressions Used
Within the period, a total of 27 indecent expressions were recorded on programmes monitored on the 31 radio stations selected for the project. With the exception of three, all the indecent remarks were recorded during political discussion programmes. The breakdown of the expressions is as follows:

• Insulting/Offensive Comments: 12

• Unsubstantiated Allegations: 8

• Provocative Remarks: 3

• Inflammatory Remarks: 2

• Remarks calling for violence/confrontation: 1

• Comment Promoting Divisiveness: 1

Expressions Used and Political Affiliation

Out of the 27 indecent expressions recorded, three were rebroadcasts of inciting remarks and the remaining 24 were remarks made by officials/affiliates of the NPP, NDC, NDP and IPP.

Three affiliates of the NPP were found to have made more than one indecent expression and so was the only member of the NDP who was cited for making indecent expressions in this week’s report. Below are their names:

• Mr. Richard Nuamah of the NPP (3)

• Mr. Fredrick Tahiru of the NPP (2)

• Mr. Attakorah Amaniampong, General Secretary of the NPP in Assin North Constituency(2)

• Mr. Ernest Owusu Bempah of the NDP (3)

Expressions Used and Gender
During the period, no female was found to have made an indecent remark. Neither was any gender-specific indecent remark recorded.

Below are the names of the individuals who used indecent expressions, the radio stations and the dates on which the expressions were made:

Insulting/ Offensive remarks

1. Mr. Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie (Sir John), General Secretary of the NPP – during Oman FM’s National Agenda programme of September 20, 2012

2. Mr. Fredrick Tahiru of the NPP – during North Star FM’s Hot Issues programme of September 20, 2012

3. An NDC representative who was only introduced as Nuamah– during Ankobra FM’s Breakfast Table programme of September 20, 2012

4. Mr. Richard Nyamah, a member of the Young Patriots of the NPP – made 2 during Angel FM’s Platformprogramme of September 22, 2012

5. An NPP supporter by name Anokye – during Angel FM’s Platform programme of September 22, 2012

6. Mr. Kofi Damoah of the NPP – during Oman FM’s National Agenda programme of September 20, 2012

7. Mr. Adomako Baafi, a member of the NPP Communication Team–during Oman FM’s Boiling Point programme of September 18, 2012

8. Mr. Ken Kuranchie, the Managing Editor of the Daily Searchlight newspaper and a sympathizer of the NPP – during Oman FM’s National Agenda programme of September 17, 2012. The host, Fiifi Boafo, interjected and asked him to withdraw the comment, and he did.

9. Nii Kwartei Titus Glover, a member of the NPP communication team– during Oman FM’s Boiling Point programme of September 20, 2012

10. Mr. Ernest Owusu Bempah of the NDP – made 2 during Oman FM’s National Agenda programme of September 20, 2012

Unsubstantiated allegations

1. Mr. Fredrick Tahiru of the NPP – during North Star FM’s Hot/Big Issues programme of September 20, 2012

2. Gyibilim, an NDC supporter – during Ankobra FM’s Breakfast Table programme of September 20, 2012

3. Mr. Richard Nyamah, a member of the Young Patriots of the NPP – during Angel FM’s Platform programme of September 22, 2012. The host, Karikari Agyeman, took the programme off air.

4. Mr. Attakorah Amaniampong, General Secretary of the NPP in Assin North Constituency– during Classic FM’s Kokrokoo programme of September 20, 2012

5. Mr. Osei Richmond of the NDC – during Classic FM’s Kokrokoo programme of September 18, 2012

6. Mr. Ernest Owusu Bempah of the NDP – during Oman FM’s National Agenda programme of September 20, 2012. The host, Mr. Fiifi Boafo, asked him to provide evidence, but Mr. Owusu Bempah rather said he was standing by his words.

7. Mr. Hopeson Adoye of the NPP – during Oman FM’s Boiling Point programme of September 18, 2012

8. Mr. Kofi Akpalu, Presidential Candidate of the IPP – during AngelFM’s Platform programme of September 17, 2012

Provocative Remarks

1. Mr. Issahaque Munawara of the NDC – during Radio Upper West’s Common Course programme of September 17, 2012

2. Mr. Attakorah Amaniampong, General Secretary of the NPPin Assin North Constituency– during Classic FM’s Kokrokoo programme of September 20, 2012

3. Mr. Kojo Owusu of the NPP – during Classic FM’s Kanawu programme of September 22, 2012

Inflammatory Remarks

1. Radio Gold replayed an inflammatory remark during the station’s Newspaper Review segment aired on September 17, 2012
2. During Radio Gold’s Newspaper Review segment of September 17, 2012, the station replayed another of such remarks.

Remarks calling for violence/ confrontation

1. Radio Gold replayed remarks calling for confrontation during the station’s Newspaper Review segment of September 17, 2012

Comment promoting Divisiveness

1. Mr. Sammy Gyamfi of the NDC – during Space FM’s Morning Flight programme of September 17, 2012
Note: As a policy, the MFWA has decided not to publish the indecent expressions people make since it will amount to rebroadcasting of those remarks. The MFWA has been urging radio stations to desist from the replay of indecent expressions on their networks since they tend to amplify such expressions and their potentially negative ramifications. Thus, the rebroadcasting of the specific indecent expressions recorded in this monitoring exercise will amount to the same inappropriate action. The specific expressions used by persons cited in our reports are, however, available at the MFWA.

Expressions Used and Radio Stations

All the 27 indecent expressions (including the rebroadcasts) were captured on eight (8) radio stations. Oman FM was once again in the lead by registering nine (9) of the indecorous remarks.

Conclusion

The increasing incidence of indecent expressions on Oman FM, Angel FM, as well as the persistent replay of indecent remarks by Radio Gold is alarming. The MFWA is calling on the management, editorial board, producers and presenters of the above mentioned radio stations and all others to make a conscious effort to reverse the trend. It is not healthy for the journalism profession and the peace of the country, especially in the upcoming elections. We are once again calling on all stakeholders, especially the media, to play their respective roles professionally so that together, we can contribute to peaceful, free and fair elections in the December polls.

Issued by MFWA in Accra


Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana

Dandelion; A Modern Herbal

Dandelion

Dandelion is a valuable herb that can be used as a food and medicine.

Dandelion is a rich source of vitamins A, B complex, C, and D, as well as minerals such as iron, potassium, and zinc. Dandelion leaves are used to add flavour to salads, sandwiches, and teas. The roots are used in some coffee substitutes, and the flowers are used to make wines.

Dandelion can also be used in local diets. Here is a recipe of a Ghanaian delicacy, Palm-nut soup with dandelion as a major ingredient. The soup can be served with fufu, Banku, rice, yam etc.

Ingredients:
Palm nut fruits, dandelion leaves, Kwawu Nsusua. You may want to cut down on meat for health reasons so dry fish then becomes the best option (Amane, Adwene, nsesaawa etc), pepper, onions, fresh tomatoes, salt, garlic, and prekese.

Preparation
• Wash and boil palm fruits together with pepper and “kwawu nsusuaa” in a saucepan; add washed dandelion leaves when the palm fruits are half-cooked.
• Add grinded onions, garlic and a little salt to your washed dry fish in a sauce pan don’t forget your tomatoes.
• Pound your palm fruits together with the dandelion leaves, Kwawu nsusuaa and pepper.
• Mix the paste with the stalk of the boiled palm nut fruits.
• Stir with hand to remove the fiber residue by squeezing the juice out of it.
• Strain to separate the juice from the nuts and the rest of the fiber.
• Put the saucepan containing your dry fish on fire and boil for just about five minutes and add you palm nut juice
• Wash prekese and an extra onion bulb and add it to the soup
• Remove tomatoes and onion bulb and grind and return mixture back into the soup
• Let soup simmer on low heat for 40 to 45minutes
• Serve with cooked local rice, fufu, yam ,plantain, kenkey etc

Dandelion Juice for Dessert
For desert you may want do away with the common ice cream and explore delicious nutritious dandelion Juice.

Ingredients

Dandelion and Water.
Preparation

• Wash dandelion leaves with salt or vinegar
• Blend dandelion leaves
• Pour mixture in a glass and Voila! !! You have you desert
You don’t want to mess with the kind of food you eat; not when health experts have proven that what you eat can actually cure you of certain diseases. My advice? Don’t just eat.

If you have to eat, you may want to go for something that does not only satisfy your hunger but at the same time cures an ailment or prevents you from getting certain diseases.

Source: The Globe

Ghost Names In Parliament; Register Bloated

The number of registered Members of Parliament who attended Parliamentary proceedings on Wednesday has been bloated from 45 to 118 as at Thursday, September, 20.

The Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Hon. Doe Adjaho suspended proceedings in Parliamentary on Wednesday due to absence of a constitutional quorum to transact business in the House.

There were reports of low turnout in Parliament by MPs and after a head count, it was recorded that only 45 MPs showed up for work on Wednesday.

But the register on Thursday showed that over 118 MPs turned up for work instead of the initial 45 members recorded in the register.

Citi News’ Parliamentary correspondent, Richard Dela Sky reported that “as at the time the Speaker was adjourning the house on Wednesday, “I personally [Richard Sky] counted less than 50 members of Parliament. The Minority Deputy Chief Whip and MP for Tarkwa –Nsuaem in the Western Region, Gifty Kusi announced to the Speaker that there were only 45 members in the house and after Honorable Isaac Asiaman also raised the issue of quorum which caused the Speaker to adjourn sitting.”

He added that “this morning the votes and proceedings of yesterday are showing that 118 members attended yesterday’s sitting of Parliament, but as at the time the house was being adjourned yesterday these MPs were not on the floor.”

The MPs have been required to attend proceedings in Parliament till after 21 days to enable the House to pass the Constitutional Instrument 78 which seeks to create 45 new constituencies into law.


Source: Citifmonline.com

"The Breast Is Not A Sex Organ"- Nutritionist

Mrs Esi Amoaful, Deputy Chief Nutrition Officer of the Ghana Health Service, has said the breast was not a sexual tool for men but a "feeding organ" for the newly born to aid in their growth and development.

She said it was wrong for some women not to breastfeed their children on the orders of their husbands saying "African babies survive largely because of the breast milk".

Ms Amoaful said this at a day's media workshop organized by the Ghana Health Service with support from the USAID, the Food and Nutrition Technical Assistance and the Science of Improving Lives, for journalists of the southern belt of the country.

The media training workshop on Nutrition formed part of efforts by the GHS and its partners to generate the needed support to reverse current trends in malnutrition and improve child survival as well as contribute to improving key development outcomes.

Ms Amoaful said it had become imperative for Ghana to invest in nutrition to increase productivity, decrease or prevent stunted growth and also save the lives of over 30,000 children.

She said proper breastfeeding could prevent malnutrition and save over 2500 infants from dying and encouraged mothers to exclusively breastfeed their newborns for the first six months of their lives.

She said exclusive breastfeeding could also prevent diarrhoea other childhood infections and help the parents to save money.

The Nutritionist encouraged women not to be shy to breastfeed their children in public places and even in the trotros.

For working mothers, she said the GHS and Ministry were in consultation with stakeholders to increase the maternity leave to six mothers to ensure that exclusive breastfeeding was properly adhered to.


Source: GNA/Ghana

Mikel Obi Forced Off Twitter After Racist Abuse

Mikel Obi

Chelsea’s Nigeria midfielder John Obi Mikel was forced to close his Twitter account on Thursday after suffering a barrage of racist abuse prompted by his costly mistake against Juventus.

Mikel removed his profile from the micro-blogging website less than 24 hours after his blunder contributed to Juventus’s late equaliser as Chelsea were forced to settle for a 2-2 draw in the opening match of their Champions League defence at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday.

Chelsea originally insisted it was coincidental that Mikel had decided to delete the ‘Mikel12Official’ account he only set up earlier this year.

But the European champions later admitted they had informed the police after being made aware of the unacceptable nature of the abuse Mikel had endured.

“We’ve been made aware of racist tweets targeted at Mikel which are totally unacceptable, disgusting and abhorrent,” a Chelsea statement read.

“We’ve informed the police and support taking the strongest possible action.”

Mikel gave the ball away with a careless pass 10 minutes from the final whistle and Juventus took advantage as Claudio Marchisio played in Fabio Quagliarella for the equaliser.

The 25-year-old apologised immediately afterwards, saying: “If I want to make up an excuse, I can. But, for me, I gave the ball away. I put my hands up, we move on.

“I’m sorry about the mistake, but there are no excuses.”

Ghana makes another oil discovery offshore

The Ghana National petroleum Corporation (GNPC) announced Thursday, another discovery at the Sankofa East-1 well.

The exploration well which is located in the Cape Three Point Block offshore Ghana, has encountered 18.5 metres (61 feet) of gas-condensate pay in Campanian-aged turbidite channel sands and 22.5 meters (74 feet) of oil pay in Cenomanian sequence.

During the production test performed in the Oil level, the well flowed about 5,000 bopd of 30°API oil.

The Sankofa East discovery is located 4 km east of the Sankofa gas and condensate discovery and drilled to a total depth of 3650 metres in water depth of 825 meters.

This discovery while confirming the important role of this block in the development of non-associated gas resources also reveals its oil potential.

It is planned that after completion of logging operations, the well will be suspended for possible future use in appraisal and development operations.

According to Mr. Thomas Manu, the Director of Operations, the Sankofa East discovery extends the presence of hydrocarbon to the East of the Main Sankofa Discovery.

Mr. Thomas Manu further stated that “the oil discovery has enhanced the value of the Sankofa and Gye Nyame discoveries, which is advancing toward a plan of development.”

Ghana National Petroleum Corporation has 15-percent carried interest in the Deepwater Tano Block.

The other Partners in the Block include Eni (47.222-percent working interest and operator) and Vitol Upstream Ghana Limited (37.778-percent working interest).


By Citifmonline.com

96 pregnant women tested HIV positive in Sunyani

Over ninety pregnant women are reported to have tested positive for HIV in 28 health facilities in the Brong Ahafo region, between the months of January and June this year.

This came to light following the screening of 3,928 women during ante-natal periods. The current figure is an increase from last year’s Seventy Four pregnant women who underwent the screening exercise.

The Regional Disease Control Officer, Samuel Addo, told Joy News though the number is alarming, it creates the opportunity for the unborn babies to be given the needed care in order to ensure they do not contract the virus.

Mr. Addo explained that the surge in the HIV cases could also mean that more women are now attending ante-natal care and have subjected themselves to HIV test.

According to him, the affected women will undergo the Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV to save their unborn babies.

source:myjoyonline

Presby Church PRO Backpedals

Johnson Asiedu Nketia

The Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG) has denied ever accusing Johnson Asiedu Nketia of speaking under the influence of alcohol.
The PCG came under a lot of criticism after its leadership waded into the controversial 45 new constituencies to be created by the Electoral Commission (EC). The church called on the EC to suspend the proposed creation of 45 new constituencies ahead of the December poll because it was too close to the elections and could therefore create chaos.

However, Mr. Asiedu Nketia and Allotey Jacobs, Central Regional Director of Communication for the NDC felt otherwise.

The NDC General Secretary, reportedly slammed the Moderator of the PCG and accused the church of doing the bidding of the opposition after the Church issued a communiqué saying the timing for the creation of the constituencies is wrong and could mar the beauty of the upcoming elections.

General Mosquito, as he is affectionately called, asserted that since the Presby Church failed to comment on the creation of 30 constituencies in 2004 during the Kufour era, it had no business to talk about the yet-to-be created 45 under the current NDC government.

Incidentally, Mr Asiedu Nketia is a member of the Hope Congregation of the Presby Church at Sakumono.

On the part of Benard Allotey Jacobs, he is reported to have accused the church of being pro-NPP and only finding its voice to comment negatively on national issues when the NDC is in power. He opined that though he respects the Presby Church, it is not above criticism so anytime the PCG goes wrong, he will chastise them.

Clearly not enthused by the comments, Emmanuel Osei Akyeampong, Public Relations Officer of the PCG, in sharp riposte, allegedly said that the NDC Chief Scribe was perhaps under the influence of alcohol when he made those comments about the Moderator and the Presbyterian Church “because any normal person cannot speak like that.”

“We don’t know whether Mr Asiedu Nketia was drunk before he went on air, but we think that what he said was highly irresponsible...He (Asiedu Nketia) is gradually becoming a political liability more than an asset to this country and we expect him to come out openly to apologize to the leadership of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana…We are a responsible institution; what the Moderator said is the position of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana. Asiedu Nketia is highly irresponsible...You cannot insult the leadership of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana and expect that you enter into our churches to campaign and sell your message….We think that he should be brought to order together with Allottey Jacobs and all other leading political parties from both NPP and NDC and all other political parties, who think they are in political positions they can just insult anybody,” he said last Saturday onAsempa FM.

Emmanuel Osei Acheampong, Public Relations Officer of the Presby Church of Ghana

However, in a quick volte-face, the mouthpiece of the Presby Church denied in an interview with Kwami Sefa Kayi on Peace FM’s morning show, ‘Kokrokoo, that he made any unsavoury remarks against the NDC capos and implied that if any such tape exists, then it must have been doctored.

“We want to place on record that the Presbyterian Church of Ghana is a non-partisan institution and so we should not be branded as belonging to the NPP. We respect the NDC as well as the rest of the other parties. So we will not do anything that will mar that relationship…we have never said that…..When the issue came, Allotey Jacobs and Asiedu Nketia made some remarks which we found to be quite offensive because the Presbyterian Church is not an NPP church. During the NPP era we talked about ROPAL... Asiedu Nketia really insulted the Presbyterian Church; meanwhile we work hand in hand. We were not happy with what they said and requested that they retract and apologize. I never described as a drunk...The first interview I granted was with myjoyonline and...so the tape can be listened to, but if anyone has gone for it and doctored it, it is up to them…” he added.


Source: Rebecca Addo-Tetteh/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana

What've I Done...Everywhere You Turn To Afari Gyan, Afari Gyan, Why?

"My God, it is becoming very nauseating. Everywhere you turn to [you hear] Kwadwo Afari Gyan… What have I done? I don’t know. That is an insult to the other members of the commission. We are seven and one person alone can have his way?”

These are the words of a clearly exasperated Dr Kwadwo Afari Gyan, Chairman of the Electoral Commission (EC).

He was speaking at a public event organized by the Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG) in Accra.

The EC boss wondered why he has been singled out for public persecution. He pointed out that there are seven other members on the commission thus it is an insult for one to suggest he (Afari Gyan) holds sway over them.

Whiles calling on those spearheading the crusade against him to "please cease”, the EC was emphatic that he is not in the least bit intimidated and will discharge his constitutional duties as mandated by law.

“Why personalize it, why single me out? Maybe the intention is to do harm to me, maybe to frighten me. Let me say that I will not be frightened. I will do my work, the commission will do its work in accordance with the understandings of the rules and regulations under which it operates,” he assured.

Touching on accusations that the EC is in bed with government, Dr Afari Gyan derisively said the commission must be "special prostitutes" to have been able to allign itself with virtually every government.

"Every time we are accused of being in bed the government; during the Rawlings time, we were in bed with the government; in the Kufuor regime, we were in bed with the government; now we are in bed with the government; we must be special prostitutes to do that," he said.



Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana

The ‘Sexy Lord’ of Abortion ... Aborted 1000s of pregnancies as well as had unprotected sex with the girls

The ‘Sexy Lord’ of Abortion

A quintessentially clean, calm and quiet clinic environment, the calm caresses you with the kind of cautious care that you cannot help but be conscious of as you come close to the compound.

Enter Dr. Joshua Drah’s theatre room and you cannot fail to be struck by the fantastic dreariness of the facility, a far cry from the exterior fanfare.

The conscientious looking medical practitioner is resplendent in his trademark white apparel with his stethoscope dangling daintily over his shoulders. No professional ever looked more focused and serious on his job than this self – mitered apostle of abortion operations.

But as Shakespeare put it in Julius Caesar; ‘Every like is not the same.’ And so the pristine cleanliness of the surgical bed in the corner, clad in immaculate white bed sheets only looks, but never really is, cozy and luxurious, if the ordeal of female clients of this ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ of a doctor is anything to go by.

Of course the pain of surgical operation cannot be wished away even by the most comfortable of surgical beds. But this is an entirely different kind of operation; an orgy of sexual assaults by the sex maniac who calls himself a doctor, the New Crusading GUIDE can confirm.

That a person be called a doctor is a source of pride and accomplishment to them, their families, friends and society at large. To their family and acquaintances, they [doctors] are special people for the simple reason that their calling is to do their best to save lives.

An indubitably justified pride that stems from the years of hard work and sacrifices embedded in their training and more so their very heavy work schedule allied with an oath (the Hippocratic) binding all medical officers to act in ways that protect the lives of others at all times.

And so, several persons in the field have lived up to the very professional and upright values that constitute the noble profession, people that Hippocrates (often regarded as the father of modern medicine) would have been proud of, people who graced the world of medicine and healing and who the history books would keep a very good account of.

Some other people in masquerade, parade illegally operating ‘clinics’ under the guise of having the healing hand, yet theirs is the ‘hand of disease and destruction. Such is the story of the sexy and quack abortion expert, Joshua Drah, the man at the center of our latest under cover exposé.

Having gathered information about the existence of the ‘illegal abortion hub,’ operated by Drah, we [the Special Investigations Team] of the New Crusading GUIDE, headed by our ace undercover reporter Anas Aremeyaw Anas, went in to ascertain the truth, during which time we managed to plant our cameras in the ‘theatre’.

The videos that we got were simply unbelievable. It was a peek into the activities of a man who has for over a decade demeaned womanhood, flouted laws of the land and supervised numerous abortions – some of which have gone horribly wrong leading to complications and death of clients in extreme cases.

‘Dr.’Drah – now in the grips of the law following a security raid, operates an abortion clinic, in an unassuming structure situated at Madina New Road, around Rawlings Circle. From the outside, the place has no sign board: ‘Universal Mission Clinic’ is imprinted atop the inner wall just upon entry.

When quizzed by the Police at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Headquarters about the absence of a sign board, he explained that it was as a result of an expired operating license which he was working to renew.

For him, there was always a price to pay for an abortion. Beyond his fee of between GH¢ 50 and GH¢ 100 that is taken before the operation, there is for the beautiful clients an extra charge; Sex in the middle of an abortion.

THE ABORTION ROOM

The ‘theatre’ where the entire action [abortion and sex] takes place is an estimated 12 by 14 ft space – one of several rooms in the clinic. Incidentally, the room is labeled ‘male ward’ a part of which is the non-functioning pharmacy.

It contains two beds, one with a mattress with bed sheet and the other- the abortion bed is customized with black leathered mattress and a pillow. In spite of successive scrubs, visible signs of blood clots adorn the feet of the bed.

Close by is a black rubber bag filled with rubber gloves, with which he probes the crevices of the female ‘underworld’ either to insert pills or to pull out fetuses.

Then there is some cotton with which he wipes off blood and whatever residual matter that is disgorged in the cause of his operation. When clients become nauseous or feel like vomiting, there is a medical renal dish at their service.

His operation tools are placed in a nearby rubber bowl filled halfway with water, the last is a blue bucket in which all the blood clots and fetal remains are collected.

Other rooms in the clinic are the female ward, treatment room,a laboratory full of cabinets, toilet and bathroom area, consulting room and Drah’s office.

The volume of a television set in the reception area is almost always tuned very high whiles the operation is ongoing. ‘Dr’ Drah is usually seated in the course of the operation, the only time that he stands is when he gives his own form of anesthesia to clients who keep moaning and groaning presumably from the pain of the sharp instruments – the ‘anesthetic sex’ is brief but intense and usually comes in the middle of the operation.

NO ASSISTANTS: PAYING THE ‘SEXY’ PRIZE

When we go to hospitals, we see doctors always working with assistants, but not our man Drah. An expert that he is, Drah is able to single handedly operate as many clients as troop to his outfit. Hard core video evidence on Drah’s activities shows that his assistants are only good for cleaning out whatever blood is left on the operating bench or which might have dripped on the floor- after an operation.

That is barely the only piece of the abortion ‘action’ that his assistants can see. Theirs is to dispose of the aborted fetuses. The mode of disposal is simple, add lots of water to the fetal material and flush the mixture down the clinic manhole. Only God knows how many fetuses have ended up there.

The reason why our ‘dr’ works without any assistants is quite simple: their presence would not allow him to do what he does best in the middle of an operation- our videos show how this ‘doctor’ has paused in the middle of several operations to loosen his belt and have sex with the very clients he is operating on whiles the clients lay on the operating bench groaning.

In one such footage he explains why he has to have sex with the particular patient.

Doctor: It’s been a long time since you did the ‘thing’
Patient: What did you say?
Doctor: You did the ‘thing’ a long time ago.
Patient: You said I did what?
Doctor: You haven’t had sex in a long while.
Patient: Yeah!
Doctor: Eii! Your ‘thing’ is cute. If you won’t mind let’s have sex to open you up.
Patient: You said?
Doctor: I said if you won’t mind let’s have sex so that it will open you up.
Doctor: Or you don’t like that. Let me check and see. I’m doing this but the thing is rather closing up, why? Mm!
Patient: I don’t know.
Doctor: I’m inserting my fingers in there but it is still closing up why?
Patient: I don’t know.
Doctor: I have to do the ‘thing’ to open it up and you are saying no. I’ll just have to put it in there one, two, three that’s it, and then it will open up.
Patient: Ok!
Doctor: should I put it inside? Are you sure? Then come forward so I will put it inside. When I put it in there ‘one, two, three’ then that is it, it will be ok.
After Bout
Doctor: Push back.
Patient: She pushes back
Doctor: Good!
Patient: She makes small screams when the doctor starts the procedure.

ARREST

With the video footage we obtained from our secret cameras, we sought collaboration with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and Panthers Unit of the Ghana police Service , to conduct a raid on the premises.

With about a dozen armed men and other officers, the joint team [CID/Tiger Eye] mapped out a strategy that was eventually to lead to the arrest of Drah.

The modus operandi was for Tiger to go with his girlfriend to perform an abortion. After the doctor had agreed so to do, the team would leap into action.

The plan worked perfectly, as the doctor was eventually picked and the entire clinic searched. The CID picked a few exhibits that were to be used as evidence during prosecution. Amongst others, the operating table, the abortion tools, a bucket with some blood and polythene filled with cotton and gloves were all picked up. Also found in his office were boxes of aphrodisiacs.

FROM A GENEALOGY OF QUACK DOCTORS/ SON OF A QUACK DOCTOR

So why would someone without any medical training take to such a delicate trade that involves lives?

We gathered from a conversation at the premises, two workers discussing how far the doctor has come; amongst other things, the heart throbbing moments when the place was on the verge of closure and how they had to ‘recoil’ to the current place to escape visibility.

The also reveal the ‘Doctor’s’ long family history with abortion trade which dates back to his father, a pioneer of abortion clinics in the area. The doctor is no stranger to controversy as he was once arrested and the clinic closed because he purchased a ‘connection’ car.

Excerpts of the recording are as follows:
Worker 1: It became a police case, doctor was arrested, the man said all doctor did here was abortion; he is a disgraced doctor.
Worker 2: Really?
Worker 1: Yes, They came here very early in the morning all over this place, the police, camera people (TV Africa crew)
Worker 2: Hmm
Worker 1: At first, we had so many clients …
Worker 2: Abortion?
Worker 1: Abortion and other treatment, there were so many clients. So the place was closed down for about five months. During this time, he conducted the abortion at home. So we ended up having to change location because of the man’s posturing
Worker 2: I thought an abortion had led to loss of life or something as serious as that
Worker 1: No, here if you take such a case to the Police, it would become a foolish case because in the whole of Madina, it is his father who first brought abortion to Madina. So even when the Police hears Universal, they know its abortion.
They’ve never arrested anyone here and no life’s ever been lost. They know that when it comes to abortion, we [Universal] are champions. Doctor as you see him, has gone through a lot!
Worker 2: Really, I thought it was death of a client or something grievous
Worker 1: No, everyone in Madina knows it was his father who brought abortion here. There was no clinic when Universal opened, so Mighty Clinic also learnt from doctor’s father.

CLIENTELE BASE

From all the video footage that we have on tape of his activities, one thing stands tall, the class of people who patronize his services, they are predominantly young girls.

The young girls, we estimate were in their ‘twenties,’ even though occasionally we saw teenage girls who were in to have abortions.
When an operation – the highest of which lasts 15 minutes leaves a patient in some pain, they are made to lie on beds in the female ward and be monitored by medical assistants.

On one occasion, as a girl lay on the bed in agonizing pain, the doctor upon being informed of the pain by an assistant, prescribed that she drinks ‘Malta Guinness’ – a non alcoholic beverage.

His clientele brought into sharp focus the issue of sexual enthusiasm that leads to teenage pregnancy allied with the dangerous and lethal issues of abortion, which was a first point of call to many girls.

In the second part of this piece, we bring you exclusive answers that ‘Dr. Drah’ gave to the Police CID during questioning at his clinic and the Police Headquarters and also give you his reaction when evidence was played to him.

We take a peek into the abortion statistics and also bring into focus the position of our laws on abortion. Was the consent he obtained from the girls before having sex with them valid in law? Book your advanced copies NOW. Stay Tuned!

This exposé together with several other intriguing wild aspects of people would be shown in a documentary on Multi TV today at 10:00 pm sharp. Grab your digibox and stay glued to your set. Don’t miss it! Children under 18 must desist from watching this.


source :myjoyonline

16 Year-Old Girl Sentenced To 100 Lashes For Having Sex With An Older Man

A Maldivian court has ordered 100 lashes and eight months' house arrest for a 16-year-old girl convicted of having sex with an older man, a report said Monday.

She 'confessed' to having sex with the 29-year-old after her family pressed charges.

The man was found guilty of having sex with a minor and sentenced on Sunday to 10 years in jail, the private Minivan News reported.The pair were found having intercourse in the Raa atoll, about 200 kilometres (125 miles) north of the capital island Male, the report said, adding that the girl would be flogged when she reaches adulthood.

'As she is legally a minor, the court stated that the girl's sentence would be implemented when she turned 18,' Minivan News said.It was not immediately clear when the couple had sex.

The court ruling came 10 months after UN Human Rights chief Navi Pillay urged the Maldives to stop publicly flogging women for having extra-marital sex.

Pillay noted during a visit to the country that the Maldives had progressed in safeguarding the rights of its 330,000 Sunni Muslims, but more needed to be done to protect women.

Flogging is normally handed down as a punishment by village chiefs who also act as local judges. A cane is used.

The Maldives, better known as a luxury tourist destination, adopted multi-party democracy in 2008, but faced political unrest leading to the resignation of the first elected president, Mohamed Nasheed, in February.


Source: dailymail.co.uk

Doctor Rapes 52 Girls…In Anas Sex Video

‘News One’ has watched a secretly recorded video that captures a Ghanaian Medical Student forcing his female patients to have unprotected sex with him right in his theatre.

The women, some of whom are known faces in society had gone to the clinic for surgical abortion at various times and the doctor, after making them strip naked for the operation, forced them to have sex with him with an excuse that without the sex, the abortion would not be successful.

The doctor is currently in police grips being prepared for court as investigations continue into the case. The must-watch video was secretly recorded by mysterious investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, at a private clinic located at Madina, a suburb of Accra. The scenes are mind-boggling and the acts brutal. The name of the clinic starts with the letter ’U’ but the full name would be withheld for now because the illegal acts of the doctor seem to have been secretly done on the blind side of the clinic’s management.

For the three month period that Anas and his team placed the secret cameras in the theater, the doctor was captured having a sex with over 52 different ladies who had gone to him for abortion. The women were aged between 20 and 40 years and were charged various amounts from GH150 to GH400, depending on the age of the pregnancy. He told the unsuspecting women, midway into the abortion, that unless an erected penis entered them, the exercise would be unsuccessful so they had no choice but to let him enter.

Interestingly, the doctor slept with all the women without using a condom and he bonked them standing, while they lay haplessly on the operation bench. Anas, in planting the camera, had to disguise himself as a cleaner and then later as a medical assistant sort of.


Source: News-One/peacefmonline

Prez Yahya Jammeh's 22-Year-Old Ghanaian Wife Unveiled

The Gambia leader’s Ghanaian wife, Nora Jammeh with police protection at the wedding ceremony in Kumasi

There was massive police presence at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Kumasi when the Gambian President, Alhaji Sheikh Prof. Dr. Yahaya Abdul Aziz Jamus Junkung Jammeh tied the knot with his 22-year-old Ghanaian wife, Nora Jammeh last weekend.

The wedding ceremony was held in secret, reportedly at the instance of the Gambian president, to prevent the media, both in Ghana and the Gambia, from making so much noise about the event.

But pictures of the festive event which was attended by some government officials, had found their way into the public domain, once again due to the investigative acumen of Omanhene Yaw Adu Boakye of Kessben FM in Kumasi.

DAILY GUIDE learnt that important dignitaries like Samuel Sarpong, the Kumasi Metropolitan Chief Executive, Yaffa Mohammed, Gambian Counselor in Accra and the Ashanti Regional Chief Imam, Alhaji Abdul Mumin were among the top officials invited for the event.

Pictures of the wedding, in possession of DAILY GUIDE, revealed a happy-looking Mrs Nora Jammeh, dressed in a white wedding gown decorated with golden colours, but with a veil covering her head, according to Islamic culture.

The bride, in one of the pictures, was seen swamped by policemen who were said to be present at the occasion in their large numbers to provide security and deal with any eventuality.

Mrs Jammeh was also seen in another picture looking charming, with His Excellency Huseini Yaba, the Gambian Ambassador to Nigeria, who has oversight responsibilities in Ghana, the representative of President Jammeh at the ceremony.

Sources disclosed that though the wedding was held in a low key fashion to avoid media attention, the massive police presence at the venue alone gave an indication that an important ceremony was taking place at the Golden Tulip Hotel.

DAILY GUIDE had been able to get hold of an invitation for the wedding which was decorated in gold colours with the inscription, ‘Forever Love’ at the back.

The inscriptions in the invitation card to the programme read “In the name of Allah, The Most Merciful, the entire family of Alhaji Yahya Amadu in collaboration with the Islamic Mission Secretariat has the pleasure to invite the company of ……… to the Waleema of the Marriage ceremony between their daughter Nora Muniratu Yahya and Alhaji Yahya. Date: Sunday 26th August 2012, Venue: Golden Tulip (City Hotel), Time 12:00-4:00pm.”

The invitation catalogued the names of the important dignitaries for the show as Alhaji Abdul Mumin, Ashanti Regional Chief Imam; Alhaji Yakubu Manu, National Chairman, IMS; Sheikh Ibrahim Twene, National Chief Imam, IMS; and Sheikh Harun Appau, National Co-ordinator, IMS.

The other dignitaries were Sheikh Ishaak Nuama, Secretary General, IMS; Sheikh Zakaria Mensah, Financial Secretary, IMS; Mallam Ishaak Konadi, father; Hajia Aisha Adam, mother; Mr. Sarpong, KMA boss; Hon. Yaffa Mohammed, Gambian Counselor, Accra; and Sheikh Osman Gyimadu, National Youth President, IMS.

Organizers of the wedding succeeded in shielding the event from the public for almost 48 hours until Omanhene made the issue public when he posed as a former teacher of Mrs. Nora Jammeh, a graduate of Sunyani Polytechnic.



Yahya Jammeh

In a telephone chat with Omanhene, Mrs. Nora Jammeh confirmed the wedding, indicating that plans were far afoot for her to travel to The Gambia last Wednesday to stay with her husband.

The latest marriage was the fourth for the Gambian leader who recently executed nine people on death row in his country. The Gambian leader first got married to Tuti Faal Jammeh, but his marital relationship with her ended prematurely.

After the departure of Tuti Faal, Jammeh married a Moroccan lady, Zeinab Suma, who is now the first lady, and later adding Alima Sallah, the daughter of the country’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia.


Source: I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi