Thursday, July 29, 2010

FORUM DISCUSSES UN REPORTS ON CHILDREN'S RIGHTS (PAGE 11, JULY 29, 2010)

Participants from various institutions and agencies, have attended a day’s consultative workshop in Wa to seek the views of stakeholders for the preparation and compilation of Ghana’s reports to the United Nations (UN) committee on the rights of the child.
They were made up of representatives from the security agencies, traditional rulers, the media, district assemblies, Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU).
Issues that featured were rights of children in the country to quality education, health, good nutrition and juvenile justice among others, which were described as negative factors militating against all the efforts made to improve the lot of children.
The forum therefore, called for realistic policies and a quick response to address issues affecting children in the country.
The participants were of the view that despite the government's Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE), there was still a wide gap between rural and urban children as far as education for children was concerned, and they mentioned inadequate infrastructure and human resource, as some of the challenges.
They said although the provision of free school uniforms and free meals under the School Feeding Programme were meant to improve on school enrolment and to ease the burden on parents, these policies have been over-politicised, while some parents have also shirked their responsibilities to send their children to school.
The Head of Research at the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs (MOWAC), Mr Sylvester Kyei Gyamfi, however expressed optimism that with a concerted effort by all the parties working to promote the rights of children, more positive results could be realised.
He mentioned the passage of the Domestic Violence Act, Child Trafficking and the Juvenile Justice acts, as some of the breakthrough made with respect to protecting the rights of children.
He said access to quality education, quality healthcare and good nutrition, children’s involvement in commercial sex work and child-trafficking among others, were some of the outstanding issues being dealt with by the MOWAC.
Madam Florence Ayisi Quartey, a resource person, catalogued some of the challenges confronting MOWAC and mentioned lack of funds and inadequate human resource but gave the assurance that everything possible was being done to address the problems facing children.
She stressed the need for proper data collection and record keeping on children in order to gather accurate facts about children and their activities.

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

NYC TO INTRODUCE YOUTH PARLIAMENTS IN SCHOOLS (PAGE 13, JULY 27, 2010)

THE Upper West Regional office of the National Youth Council (NYC) is to introduce youth parliaments in all second cycle and tertiary institutions in the region.
This is to serve as a regular platform for the youth to state their case as far as national issues and policies geared towards the youth were concerned.
The Regional Coordinator of the NYC, Mr Sulemana Mumuni, who announced this, appealed to policy makers to make the issue of youth empowerment a national issue of priority.
He said that was the only way to get many of the country’s youth into productive ventures so that they could be empowered.
Mr Mumuni was addressing the third of a series of regional youth dialogue in Wa in the Upper West region.
It was attended by students from educational institutions in the region and was on the theme: “Building regional capacities for youth mobilisation and effective coordination in a better Ghana agenda.”
“The development of every country revolves around its youth, therefore, it is about time we became realistic in our efforts at building their capacities and also empowering them,” he stressed.
Touching on the youth dialogue, Mr Mumuni expressed the hope that the workshop would address some of the peculiar challenges confronting the youth in order to pave way for reactivating and reorganising the Federation of Youth Associations of Ghana (FEDYAG) which, he said, was an umbrella body which coordinates the activities of youth associations in the region and the country at large.
He said the role of FEDYAG can not be overlooked as it collaborates with the NYC in its quest to seek the welfare of the youth of the country.
He was not happy about the lack of financial support for FEDYAG to be able to effectively carry out its mandate.
Mr Mumuni called on all stakeholders including opinion leaders, representatives of district assemblies and traditional leaders to liaise with the NYC to help develop the youth.
On the upgrading of the Youth Leadership and Skill Training Centre at Issa, the regional youth coordinator reiterated calls to the government to facilitate efforts at extending electricity to the institute to enhance academic work.
A representative of the Upper West Regional Minister, Madam Fati Koray, stressed the resolve of the government to improve the lot of the youth.
She said it was based on this that the government had introduced many programmes such as youth in agriculture and block farming, among other interventions, to empower the youth.

Sunday, July 25, 2010

WA POLICE ARREST 28 SUSPECTS (PAGE 22, JULY 24, 2010)

THE Wa police have arrested 28 suspects believed to be farmers from Domangile, near Nyoli in the Upper West Region in connection with the murder of one Munya Seidu, a 27-year-old Fulani herdsman.
Seidu was said to have visited his brother, Mr Dong Nayayiri, the complainant on April 13, this year at Nyoli and volunteered to send his brothers cattle into the bush to graze when he was allegedly murdered.
The Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Roy Amuni, who briefed the media in Wa, said on April 13, this year, Seidu visited his brother, Mr Nayayiri at Nyoli and volunteered to guide the brothers cattle into the bush to graze.
He said after staying in the bush with the cattle for sometime, Seidu did not return home with the cattle but the animals found their way back home.
DCOP Amuni said Mr Nayayiri became worried and, therefore, organised a search party to trace Seidu in the bush.
He said after a fruitless search, Mr Nayayiri reported the matter to the Wa police the next day.
DCOP Amuni stated that the police immediately mobilised and accompanied Mr Nayayiri to the bush where they found the body of Seidu lying in a supine position with lacerations on his body, a swollen eye and a deep cut on the neck.
He said after preliminary investigations, the police suspected foul play and, therefore, requested for a post-mortem examination at the Wa Regional Hospital.
Mr Amuni said the post-mortem examination results revealed that the deceased died as a result of acute loss of blood (traumatic homicide).
He said the police intensified their investigations into the matter until the first week of this month when they had information that about 13 people from Domangile had a hand in the murder of Seidu.
He said the houses of those suspects were kept under surveillance until at about 1:30 am on July 14, 2010, when the police raided the houses of the suspects and arrested 28 men, all believed to be farmers and whose ages range between 20 and 55 years.
DCOP Amuni said a search conducted in the rooms of the suspects led to the discovery of a shot gun and a cartridge as well as a number of bows and arrows.
He gave the assurance that the suspects would be screened and those found to be connected with the crime would be charged with the offence and arraigned.
The Regional Crime Officer, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Wisdom Lavoe, advised residents to regularly volunteer information to the police.
He said that would enable the police to clamp down on all criminals in the society.
Meanwhile, the regional police command has initiated moves to give the regional police headquarters a facelift.
To this end, an estimated GH¢2,500 has been earmarked to be used to fund the refurbishment, which included painting, replacement of old electric cables among other minor works.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

TRANSFORM MORE DAY SHS INTO BOARDING (PAGE 42, JULY 8, 2010)

HEADS of Assisted Senior High and Technical Schools (CHASS/APTI) in the three northern regions have called for the transformation of more day senior high schools in northern Ghana into boarding schools.
This, they said, would make the Computerised Schools Selection and Placement Systems (CSSPS) as a means of admission to senior high and technical schools more meaningful and effective in the area.
They said it would also enhance the contact hours teachers have with students as well as minimise the frequent interruptions in their termly academic calendar, particularly during the delay in the release of feeding grants for schools in the three regions.
The groups have, therefore, appealed to the government to be apt in the release of feeding grant for schools in northern Ghana and suggested that it must be released at least two weeks before the reopening of the schools.
In a communiqué issued and signed by the three respective chairpersons of the CHASS/APTI after the 10th annual joint conference in Wa, the Upper West regional capital, the group further urged government to come up with attractive measures to boost the morale of teachers and also motivate, attract and retain qualified teachers in the three regions for effective quality education.
The conference was on the theme: “Search for Quality Education for Northern Ghana , Challenges and Roles of the Stakeholder”
The members of CHASS/APTI further called for the establishment of teacher colleges of education in northern Ghana which they said, would enhance the production of more quality teachers for schools in the area.
They also called on the government and all other stakeholders in education to assist schools in northern Ghana with logistics and equipments such as computers and other ICT facilities.
They assured the government of their commitment to work saying “We would use all our resources for the effective running of our schools for quality education to prevail in northern Ghana ”.