May 1

DIGITAL NO. 100864 FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
•The block that house the patients. INSET:
The kind of food served in the morning
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02
CONTENT
DAILY HERITAGE FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
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Tension at
GRIDCO
• As staff reject
Oath of Secrecy
NEWS DESK REPORT
THERE IS uneasy
calm at the Ghana
Grid Company
(GRIDCO) as
management is on
the neck of employees to sign
an oath of secrecy.
Irate staff have vowed to resist
any attempt that seeks to
gag them. According to the
staff, they will have a showdown
with management if they are
forced to sign the document.
A staff member who spoke
to Starrfm.com.gh on condition
of anonymity said: “We don’t
know why they are forcing this
on us.
“They want all of us to sign
this document in an attempt to
gag us. What do they want to
hide from us for which reason
they are suddenly forcing us to
sign this document, we won’t
sign it.”
“They want all of us to
sign this document in
an attempt to gag us.
What do they want to
hide from us for which
reason they are
suddenly forcing us to
sign this document,
we won’t sign it.”
Covid-19 more dangerous than HIV AIDS
BY KWAME ACHEAMPONG
• AIDS C’ssion boss warns
CORONAVIRUS IS more dangerous
than HIV AIDS, the Director-General
of Ghana AIDS
Commission has said.
According to Kyeremeh Atuahene,
while patients of AIDS can
live for many years on medication
and by healthy lifestyle, Covid-19
patients do not have such an opportunity,
particularly when they
have weak immune systems.
Speaking to Francis Abban yesterday,
Mr Atuahene, therefore,
appealed to Ghanaians to stick to
the safety protocols announced by
the government in order to avoid
the havoc that had been caused by
the virus in other places.
“HIV/AIDS has been around
for over 40 years and people still
live it with. Those who stick with
the drugs stay for a very long
time. It is not the same with
Covid-19. Covid-19 is more dangerous
than HIV AIDS,” he said.
He also warned that Covid-19
will spread rapidly if people continue
to stigmatise victims of the
virus.
He said patients of viral diseases
who could not stand societal
neglect often kept mute over the
status so they could be accepted
in society.
“If you stigmatise them, they
will hide their status and spread it
because nobody wants to be rejected
by society. If we do not
support them, we are putting
everybody’s life at risk,” he
warned.
Mr Atuahene’s remarks come
in the wake of concerns over rising
discrimination against people
who have recovered from the
virus disease.
According to the Deputy Director
in charge of Monitoring at
the Ghana Ambulance Service,
Yaw Osei, some communities in
Ghana had resorted to the use of
land guards to remove recovered
COVID-19 patients from among
them.
According to Osei, due to the
increasing level of stigmatization
in communities, most recovered
Covid-19 patients insist on returning
to the treatment centres after
going back home.
“We had a situation where
some people (recovered patients)
were sent home and they called
back that they can’t stay because
• CONTINUE FROM PAGE 6

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DAILY HERITAGE FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
03
No water at Pentecost
isolation centre
BY PHILIP ANTOH
philip.antoh@dailyheritage.com.gh
• Women haven’t bathed since Sunday
COVID-19 PATIENTS
at the Pentecost Convention
Centre (PCC)
at Gomoa Fetteh in
the Central Region,
now being used as an isolation
centre, say they are living in poor
conditions as they complain that
since Sunday, April 26, 2020, they
have not taken their bath because
water has not been flowing there.
They also give a host of other
complaints such as not eating balanced
diet, delays in serving them
food, plain disregard for the social
distancing protocol when serving
food and lack of sanitary pad for
the female patients.
“For the past three days, we
have not taken our bath, and my
four-month-old baby has not
bathed either because the taps are
not flowing. But we are told that
we need to wash our hands frequently
with running water as a
measure to contain the spread of
the novel coronavirus,” one of the
patients stated angrily.
• The block that
house the patients
Speaking to the DAILY
HERITAGE in interview,
some patients who only agreed
to speak on condition of
anonymity said even though the
centre looks very nice and attractive,
“we are going through
bad treatment because we are
served with ‘eba’, popularly
known as ‘gari fufuo’, sometimes
late in the night.
Some of the aggrieved patients
said for the two to three
•The kind of food serve in
the morning
weeks spent at the centre, they had not
shown any symptom of Covid-19 for
them to deserve living in such harsh conditions.
According to one of them, “my
brother, in the morning we gather together
and pray, no one wears PPE nor
use sanitizer. We the nursing mothers are
suffering because we don’t eat well to get
the nutrients to feed our babies, neither
do we get diapers to refresh them.”
She said information gathered indicate
that the centre was supposed to have 36
doctors and nurses but” as we speak, we
have only 12 of them and
that we are told they will
leave today or tomorrow.”
Another woman said, “I
got my menses on Monday,
April 27, 2020, and ever
since have not bathed; neither
have I changed my
pants or had sanitary pad
to control the flow of
blood. How can I can leave
in this condition when
clearly I am not showing
any sign of Covid-19?. I
want to end my life.”
“We don’t have routine
doctors that come to check
us and no toilet roll, making
life very difficult in this
place,” another isolated
person stated.
Covid-19 more dangerous than HIV AIDS
• READ FROM PAGE 2
everybody in the house is after
them. Most of our people live in
compound houses, so when they
• AIDS C’ssion boss warns
are exposed and they go back
there, acceptance becomes a
challenge. [Therefore,] we have
had a situation where we had to
go back and pick up the patients
from the house because they are
not being welcomed, so they
prefer to stay at the treatment
centre instead,” he revealed.
He added: “And we have had
a situation where people have
organized land guards to go and
move people from the community
because they believe that
they are Covid-19 patients and
we have had to go and move
such people back to the treatment
centre.”

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DAILY HERITAGE DIGITAL MAY 1, 2020
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Offer better protection for
financial consumers amid Covid-19
• Group urges BoG
AGROUP known
as the Alliance
for Financial
Consumer Protection
(AFCOP) has
called on the Bank of Ghana to
be proactive in protecting financial
consumers in the wake of
the Covid-19 pandemic.
The group says its call is
based on the approach adopted
by the Bank of Ghana in ensuring
that there is adequate relief
for financial consumers.
Although the Alliance for Financial
Consumer Protection
recognized the efforts put in by
the Bank of Ghana in reducing
the policy rate and removing
charges on mobile money transactions
below hundred cedis, it
says a lot more could have been
done.
They argue, for instance, that
the central bank could have directed
all banks and specialized
deposit-taking institutions to immediately
suspend account
maintenance charges and commission
on turnover charges for
all personal and SME customers.
In addition, the group is of
the view that the Bank of Ghana
must direct all banks to immediately
suspend all cards and ATM
charges for all personal and
SME customers as well as offer a
three-month repayment holiday
to personal and SME borrowing
customers impacted by
Covid-19.
On the mobile money front,
the Alliance for Financial Consumer
Protection called for a
similar move where a threemonth
repayment holiday will
be granted to all MoMo loan
customers.
Finally, the group is requesting
that the Bank of Ghana directs
all Mobile Money
Operators to immediately suspend
transfer fees for all
amounts and not just transactions
below hundred cedis.
&Env.
Ghana records over 2k
Covid-19 cases, 17 deaths
COVID-19 CASE
count in Ghana
has seen a massive
jump from
1,550 on Sunday
to over 2000 now.
According to the Ghana
Health Service, the current case
count in Ghana stands at 2,074
with 17 deaths and 212 recoveries.
This means 403 new cases
have been recorded over the last
few days.
Below is the regional breakdown
of cases
Greater Accra Region – 1,795,
Ashanti Region – 99, Eastern Region
– 70, Central Region – 21,
Oti Region – 19, and Upper East
Region – 19.
The rest are Volta Region – 16,
Northern Region – 13, Upper
West Region – 10, Western Region
– 9, North East -2 , and
Western North-1
Meanwhile, the Director-General
of Ghana AIDS Commission
says Covid-19 is more dangerous
than HIV AIDS.
According to Kyeremeh Atuahene,
while patients of AIDS can
live for many years on medication
and healthy lifestyle, COVID-19
does not offer such an opportunity
to victims with weak immune
systems.
Speaking to Francis Abban
yesterday on the ‘Morning Starr’
show , Mr Atuahene appealed to
Ghanaians to stick to the safety
protocols announced by the government
in order to avoid the
havoc that has been caused by the
virus in other places.
have resorted to the use of
landguards to remove recovered
Covid-19 patients from among
them.
According to Kyeremeh
Atuahene,
while patients of
AIDS can live for
many years on
medication and
healthy lifestyle,
COVID-19 does not
offer such an opportunity
to victims
with weak immune
systems.

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NEWS
DAILY HERITAGE DIGITAL MAY 1, 2020
Human Rights Watch
calls for urgent action
• After Accra Psychiatric Hospital ‘records first Covid-19 case
AHUMAN Rights
Watch has said
there is concern
about the safety of
patients and staff
of the Accra Psychiatric
Hospital (APH) following
a positive coronavirus case at the
facility.
“The infected woman was admitted
to the acute care ward of
the government-run hospital on
April 20, 2020, and she developed
symptoms within days. She was
tested for Covid-19 and transferred
to an isolation unit on April
23, and her test was confirmed
positive on April 27,” the global
human rights advocacy non-governmental
organisation (NGO)
said in a press release.
The organisation has called on
the government to immediately
ensure that all psychiatric hospitals
in the country test staff and patients,
release as many patients as
possible to avoid overcrowding,
and ensure that staff and patients
have adequate personal protective
equipment to prevent spread.
“Despite the best efforts of
hospital staff, many patients, staff,
and their families are now at risk
because they had contact with a
patient who has contracted Covid-
19,” said Shantha Rau Barriga,
Disability Rights Director at
Human Rights Watch.
“Closed settings like psychiatric
hospitals act as incubators for the
virus. Wherever possible, people
with mental health conditions
should be allowed to leave if they
choose,” said Shantha.
According to the NGO, after
the woman’s positive Covid-19 diagnosis,
the hospital attempted to
transfer her to the Covid-19 treatment
centre, but the municipal authorities,
who have to approve any
such transfer, refused.
Dr Akwasi Osei, head of the
Ghana Mental Health Authority,
said they refused because she was
a mental health patient.
“This is obvious discrimination,”
he told Human Rights
Watch. “If this person didn’t have
a mental health condition, she
would have been allowed to go to
the treatment centre. They are just
afraid. But people with psychosocial
disabilities should have the
same access to Covid-19 treatment
as anyone else.”
370 in-house patients at
APH
The hospital has approximately
370 in-house patients, 11 of
whom are in the women’s acute
ward and 80 of them have been
admitted to the hospital through
Ghana’s court system.
“It is testing 87 staff [members]
and patients who came into
contact with the woman. Staff
have also been required to self-isolate
until their test results are
cleared. In the meantime, the hospital
needs to find staff from
other wards who did not have
possible contact with the patient,
to take additional shifts,” Dr Osei
said.
In March, the hospital issued
protocols for managing Covid-19,
detailing preventive measures and
screening practices for staff. The
protocols require healthcare
providers to “maintain one meter
distance at all times from service
users.” But the protocols are
geared almost entirely to the staff,
and do not inform residents how
to protect themselves.
Since 2011, Human Rights
Watch has been documenting the
situation in the mental health system
in Ghana and they say conditions
in psychiatric hospitals have
improved steadily, with patients
being released to reduce overcrowding.
Earlier in 2020, Accra Psychiatric
Hospital renovated the men’s
forensic ward, which previously
had filthy toilets and holes in the
roof of the dormitory-style
rooms.
However, people with psychosocial
disabilities, such as bipolar
condition or schizophrenia,
continue to be subjected to involuntary
admission and treatment,
with little possibility of challenging
their confinement.
As of April 28, the Ghana
Health Service reported 1,671
cases of Covid-19 – 1,433 from
Greater Accra Region alone and
17 deaths.
The country’s two largest cities,
Accra and Kumasi, were under
partial lockdown between March
30 and April 20.
Ghana ranks first in Covid-
19 test
In his April 19 national address,
President Nana Addo
Dankwa Akufo-Addo noted that
Ghana ranked first in Africa in the
number of Covid-19 tests administered
per million people and that
the government had scaled up the
domestic production and distribution
of personal protective equipment
to healthcare facilities.
The president listed these as
among the reasons for lifting the
partial lockdown.
But a week later, authorities reported
the highest single-day increase
in confirmed Covid-19
cases.
On April 28, the Ghana Medical
Association expressed concern
about the insufficient distribution
of personal protective equipment
to healthcare workers, after 13
doctors tested positive for Covid-
19.
Human Rights Watch says to
address the pandemic, the government
should ensure that hospitals
are fully equipped with personal
protective equipment and regularly
test staff and patients.
“Mental hospitals should avoid
new admissions as much as possible
to reduce and prevent overcrowding,”
it says.
Municipal authorities
The Watch says municipal authorities
should also confirm that
anyone with a mental health condition
who tests positive for
Covid-19 will be admitted to local
treatment centres without delay or
discrimination.
To minimise the number of
daily outpatient visits during the
pandemic, Accra Psychiatric Hospital
has looked into phone consultations,
having medications
delivered to patients, and creating
a home visit team. These initiatives
should be carried out or
scaled up, Human Rights Watch
said.
Ghana and its international development
partners, such as the
United Kingdom’s Department
for International Development
(DFID), should also expand community-based
services for people
with psychosocial disabilities to reduce
overcrowding in hospitals
and avoid restricting people’s liberty.
This is also an opportunity to
further develop the Quality Rights
Initiative – a training program for
mental health professionals supported
by the World Health Organization
that promotes attitudes
and practices that respect the dignity
and rights of people with psychosocial
and intellectual
disabilities.
“This is a chance for Ghana to
re-think a system that often restricts
people’s freedom and
choices and instead invest in services
that let people with disabilities
live independently,” Barriga said.
“It’s also a moment for the government
to ensure that people
with disabilities are included in the
Covid-19 response. People with
mental health conditions deserve
no less than others.”
Pentecost deacon hit by stray bullet in Takoradi
A CHURCH of Pentecost deacon
has been hit by a stray bullet under
a strange circumstance at Hwindo
within the Sekondi/Takoradi metropolis
of the Western Region.
The 44-year-old Jonathan Appiah
was on his way to his farm on
Wednesday morning when he was
hit in the head and rib region,
causing him to fall flat on the
ground.
Eyewitnesses told Takoradibased
Connect FM that just when
the victim bypassed them on his
way to his farm, they heard gunshots
and suddenly bullets hit him.
According to them, they have
been puzzled by the incident.
“We were really terrified by the
event because we all didn’t know
how it happened and where even
the bullets came from,” one of the
witnesses who spoke on condition
of anonymity said.
The victim, who is with the Assakae
Assembly of the Church of
Pentecost and a father of six, sustained
multiple wounds from in
the head and the ribs.
He was rushed to the Kwesimintsim
Hospital before being referred
to the Effia Nkwanta
Regional Hospital, where he is
currently receiving treatment.
A report has since been lodged
with the Kwesimintsim Police and
investigation has commenced.
However, no arrest has been
made yet.3news

WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
06
DAILY HERITAGE FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
Editorial
NADMO can advise, but should act more
OUR EDITORIAL yesterday made
reference to a piece of information
emanating from the office of the
National Disaster Management Organisation
(NADMO) that it had
cautioned persons who live in floodprone
areas to take precautions as
the rains set in and that the disaster
management organisation, is among
other things, asking such persons to
relocate to higher grounds while observing
safety procedures to avert
any incidents.
We could not comment on this
information and so promised to do
so in today’s editorial.
The NADMO advice apparently
is based on a prediction by the
Ghana Meteorological Agency
(GMet) that the 2020 major rainy
season will start from March and will
last till June 2020 and that the rainfall
would be “above normal”, which
means it will come in downpours.
The agency said “above normal”
rainfall should be expected for the
period of March, April and May
within the forest zones while normal
rainfall can be expected for the rest
of the country.
The Agency said the prediction is
based on observations of conditions
on land and ocean as well as outputs
from major world forecast centres
like the International Research Institute
for Climate and Society (IRI),
Climate Prediction Centre (NCEP-
CPC), the European Centre for
Medium-Range Weather Forecast
(ECMWF), UK Met Office and
Meteo France.
We have presented this information
already in the public domain for
the sake of our comments.
First, if NADMO is asking those
living in flood-prone areas to relocate
to higher grounds, the question
is “Which higher grounds?” We are
living in a country where the government
does not provide affordable
housing to the masses and so the
masses themselves struggle to provide
their own shelters in any space
they can acquire, as the rich have
bought all the good land and left no
open space to the poor. Where are
the higher grounds.
No one should think those living
in flood-prone areas are not conscious
enough of their plight and
that they don’t value their lives. No.
The problem is that they cannot do
otherwise. If the government would
help such people, they would in no
wise accept the perennial suffering
of flooding and related loss of life
and property.
Second, it’s heart-rending to hear
the government has provided so
many affordable houses. Which people
occupy these houses? Check it.
It is the politicians and their cronies,
and the wealthy who acquire these
houses. It is saddening to note that
these people usually buy these
houses and rent them out to others
because these houses are below their
standards.
Third, we leave in a country
where state institutions only know
best how to exact hardship and sorrow
on the ordinary citizens and
show favour to the privileged in society.
Who cares if the poor would
die?
There are other reasons but we
would like to hold on here, but point
it out to NADMO that they should
outlive the status quo and begin to
think of being proactive in saving
life and property rather than keeping
to their ‘business as usual’ function
of going to disaster scenes to express
sorrow and promise relief
items which most of the time do not
get to disaster victims.
COVID-19 restriction:
Court issues bench warrant
for arrest of 9 Okada riders
BY MUNTALLA INUSAH
captainmut@yahoo.com
• Convicted 1, grants bail to 4
THE CIRCUIT Court in Accra,
presided over by Her HonourMrs
Ellen Aryeh, has issued
a bench warrant for the
arrest of nine Okada riders
who were part of 14 persons accused of violating
the lockdown restriction orders imposed
by the President to contain the
spread of Covid-19.
The nine persons are Rabiu Ibrahim,
Kwesi Guiso, Isaac Owusu, Mohammed
Jamal, Yahaya Macaule, Sumaila Moro,
Proper Danu, IssahYussif and Umar Abdul
Rashid.
They all failed to show up in court and
the prosecution prayed the court for a warrant
to be issued for their arrest.
The warrant was issued after four out of
the 14 persons were arraigned before the
court and had pleaded not guilty.
The four, Amidu Hafis, Richmond
Azada, Nelson Adjorlolo and Bright Achiri,
were granted bail in the sum of GHc20,
000 each with three sureties.
As part of their bail conditions, they are
to report to the case investigator once a
week until the final determination of the
case.
One person, Samuel Duah, pleaded
guilty and was convicted on his own plea to
a fine of 1000 penalty unit, which amounts
to (GHc12,000), and in default, the court
said, he would serve four years' jail term.
The case has been adjourned to May 13,
2020.
Brief facts
Inspector Emmanuel Agyei, the prosecutor
in the case, said the complainant,
DSP MrSulemanaSulley, is a police officer
and the Commander of the Alpha SWAT
Unit of the Accra Regional Police Command.
According to him, the accused persons
are motor riders riding in various suburbs
of Accra.
He said, "on April 23, 2020, between
the hours of 8:00a.m. and 3:00p.m, pursuant
to the passage of Executive Instrument
No. (EI 65 ) and the President's
directives on social distancing with regard
to Covid-19, the Greater Accra Regional
Police Command embarked on Operation
Covid Safety to ensure social distancing
compliance within the Accra Metropolis.
Inspector Agyei said the accused persons,
who carried pillion riders, were arrested
and investigation caution statements
obtained from them.
After that, they were charged and arraigned.

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Article
DAILY HERITAGE MAY 1, 2020
Paternity leave: a necessity
for Ghanaian fathers
BY PREMPEH ZINOBIA, GIJ
THE WORLD’S population
is rapidly growing
as many, especially those
in less developed countries,
give birth to more
children. However,
today’s standard of living generally
compels and greatly influences the
numbers of children couples would
like to have.
In view of this, there is the need
for the handful of children who are
brought forth to experience, if not
perfect, the best early childhood from
both parents, hence the need for paternity
leave.
It is quite sad to know that across
the globe, it is only a few countries
which do newly-born babies the good
by granting their fathers paternity
leave. A global check shows that Europe
generally has the lengthiest paternity
leave policy. For instance, Norway
grants 14 weeks, Iceland and Slovenia
12 weeks each, and Finland grants 11.
This leaves us to pose the question,
‘Which part of the world grants
the shortest leave?’ It is quite laughable
to note that it is Africa in spite of
her strict attachment to the family as
an institution. Just a handful of the 54
countries on the African continent do
newly-born babies this good.
In Africa, only Mali, Uganda, Tanzania,
Rwanda, and Algeria grant paternity
leave of five days and more
days are granted as the case may be.
Let me bring us to our homeland,
Ghana. I keep wondering when any
government will consider implementing
a law that will be enforced to do
newly-born babies and their nursing
mothers this good. Being oblivious of
the importance of paternity leave is
no ground for an excuse from any
government whatsoever.
Babies and their nursing mothers
embrace and enjoy both tangible and
intangible honours when their fathers
are with them at that early stage. Paternity
leave gives mothers and babies
a sense of security. Every mother feels
some sense of security whenever her
husband is around her during that
time. It gives the mother and the child
some sort of protection as the man
will, with his presence, defend and honour
his wife at all cost during that
period.
Paternity leave, when granted to
fathers, provides the grounds for fathers
to learn and feel the emotions
surrounding the child’s early years of
development. Fathers most often are
not applauded for their roles in early
childhood development when they
tend to work intensively in that period
so as to care for their families. I believe
that when paternity leave is
granted to Ghanaian fathers, they will
grow closer to understanding why and
how their children do certain things.
This can lead to fathers being celebrated
well on father’s day just as our
mothers are on mother’s day.
Another merit paternity leave
brings to fathers is that they get a
break from work with salaries. Fathers
will be granted weeks from work to be
in the comfort of their homes and
offer services as care-takers, cooks,
and comforters among other roles.
These services, although not offered
to the government, are paid for accordingly
by the employers of these
fathers in the form of wages for days
spent outside of work. Besides, not
only does dad gets a break from work
but his services at the home also
shove off some responsibilities off his
wife’s shoulders.
Paternity leave also creates a new
perception of fathers. Fathers are
mostly known for their roles of providing
food, clothing, shelter, security
and settling bills. Even with these, our
mothers support unconditionally. The
institution of the paternity leave policy
will see fathers wear a new cloth
than only being regarded as providers.
The true and real potential of paternity
will be unveiled in a very wide
sense. Fathers will cherish and respect
their wives and their children and feel
more bonded to them as they embrace
the family with diversity.
Why should mothers be left alone
with their newly-born babies? Why
should the idea of bringing in a nanny
even pop up for you to pay someone
who can’t guarantee the happiness of
your newly-born baby? Why would
you enroll a three-month old baby in
school just to make room for work?
Changing the perception about fathers
as just providers for the family
would greatly be aided by giving them
a break from work. And this in turn
would grant our mothers and the
newly-born babies the needed security
and assistance, and solidify the bond
between our children and their fathers..
The writer is a Level-300 Journalism
student of the Ghana Institute
of Jour nalism
The lesson of a pandemic
BY ESTHER EDINA WELBECK, GIJ
THE WHOLE world for some
months now has been hit with a
strange disease best described as
novel coronavirus disease (or
Covid-19) which emerged from
Wuhan, a city in China, in late 2019,
and has since been growing in terms
of cases across the globe.
The number of infections and
related deaths keep rising daily.
There are containment efforts, including
washing of hands, the use
of alcohol-based sanitizers, wearing
of nose masks, social distancing and
then a lockdown, but cases are doubling
each day, making the world a
scary place to live in.
Healthcare professionals have
since been working assiduously to
curb this infection and find cure for
people who have been infected with
the virus to get immediate relief
and researchers are working tirelessly,
spending most of their time
away from home to help infected
persons. But as I write, there hasn’t
been any vaccine yet for this disease
despite the countless efforts by
health professionals across globe.
We, however, cannot lose sight
of the fact that throughout history
strange things have happened,
which claimed lives of many such as
earthquakes, volcanoes, floods such
as the June 3, 2015 flood disaster in
Accra that claim many lives and
famine such as the 1983 one that hit
our country. However, this virus has
caused a lot globally, killing the confidence
of most countries in the
world as it has claimed a number of
lives unheard of pertaining to a single
disaster in recent decades.
Leaders of various countries are
working hard putting in conscious
efforts to deal with the virus. Truth
is that the virus’s assault on human
health, cutting down human enterprise,
attacking the economic and
political stability of countries and
causing various institutions to face
in-house calamities were not foreseen.
As I read some notifications
beeping from my WhatsApp and
other social media handles in connection
with the Covid 19 and the
new world in which we live, it was
amazing but funny reading or listening
to what people were saying
about the situation.
I was just amazed at how this
virus, which has a funny way of
preventing it, could leave people in
uncomfortable situations and they
have no other option than to conform
out of fear and panic. However,
one thing I realized on the lips
of many was the name of GOD,
and so I was elated when the President
Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-
Addo invited some pastors to come
pray at the Jubilee House and even
declared a national day of fasting
and prayers.
And so I asked myself, what
happened to the so-called people
who call themselves men of God ,
prophets, people who claim they see
what happens in heaven, people
who sell stickers believed to heal
various diseases, people who sell
holy water amongst many items.
Why are they not bringing a vaccine
since there hasn’t been one yet, and
as I thought deeply about this, I was
saddened and felt sorry for all these
fake pastors because the truth had
been seen by all, and I pity and will
always pity people who follow these
people as pastors or men of GOD.
Back to senior high school days,
I read a poem with the title ‘The
Pulley’ by George Herbert, a religious
metaphysical poem unveiling
the truth as to why human beings
Leaders of various countries are working hard putting in conscious efforts
to deal with the virus. Truth is that the virus’s assault on human health,
cutting down human enterprise, attacking the economic and political stability
of countries and causing various institutions to face in-house calamities
were not foreseen.
are so restless and dissatisfied despite
all the things he has. George
Herbert explained in his poem that
after God made this universe he
gathered all the blessings of the
world and distributed to human beings
one after another, starting from
strength, to beauty to honour and
then pleasure, and when almost all
was gone, God kept rest from man,
thinking that when man gets what
he wants in all sufficiency, he may
forget God.
Reading through the lines of the
poem I understood why God had
kept rest from human beings. He
knows how ungrateful humans can
be when we have everything in sufficiency
and as such would not acknowledge
the fact that He gave
them to us, as we would rather give
vain glory to ourselves and credit
ourselves for our selfish gains. So,
for me, this virus is a punishment to
us a nation and the world at large.
Drawing a lesson from this pandemic,
seeing the president’s move
of inviting pastors to pray and declaring
a national day of fasting, it is
an undeniable fact that human possessions
are of no use because none
of it could help the situation and
this point God as the man of the
game and I believe strongly that
even people who do not know how
to pray said words of prayers for
protection from this strange disease.
I am only hoping that after this
pandemic, whose vaccine is probably
some months away, the world
would be a better place to live in.
Many of us who are struggling to
comprehend the new world in
which we find ourselves in should
learn to humble ourselves, care for
each other as people and see each
other as one people just as we are
working together to fight this disease.
But one major thing I need to
state is that looking at how people
are mentioning the name of God as
the only person who can keep us
and has really kept us till date in a
country like Ghana through our
prayers; I hope we now believe that
this world has its owner.
Despite the famous preventive
ways we know, specifically wearing
of nose masks, washing hands with
soap under running water and using
alcohol-based sanitizers, let us, as
people, not forget to keep praying
for Gods intervention for the country
and the world at large.
The writer is a Level-300
Journalism student of the Ghana
Institute of Journalism.

DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
FRIDAY, MAY 1, 2020
NYA boss fumes over K'dua
Sports Stadium project delay
BY KOJO ANSAHANTE
THE CHIEF Executive Officer
of National Youth Authority,
Mr Sylvester Mensah
Tetteh, has fumed over the
slow pace of work done on
the upgrading of Koforidua Sports Stadium.
The Sports Minister, Mr Isaac Kwame
Asiamah, in March 2018, cut the sod for
the upgrading of the Koforidua Sports
Stadium to a modern standard sports facility
with a seating capacity of 5000.
The $1.8 million project was expected
to be completed within nine months after
the sod-cutting.
The facility, when completed, will
house an 8-lane athletic track, a FIFA
standard pitch, a career counseling centre,
basketball and handball courts, a multipurpose
sports hall, a restaurant and an
ICT centre.
However, two years on, the project is
about 69% complete, raising serious
worry among residents.
Inspecting the project on Wednesday,
April 29, 2020, in the company of a team,
including the Board Chairman of the Authority,
Mensah Tetteh expressed his disappointment
in the slow pace of work on
the project.
He said the Authority was not indebted
to the contractor, so he had summoned
the consultant to Accra to explain
reasons for the delay.
The Board Chair of National Youth
Authority (NYA), Francisca Oteng-Mensah,
said the Board would diligently advise
the Authority on the way forward as
far as the Koforidua project was concerned.
But the Project Manager, William
Darko Mensah, told the media that the
main challenge of the company was nonpayment
of certificates raised.
Pastors told me I have
been tied up spiritually
• Daniel Agyei reveals how
juju wrecked his career
UNDER-20 WORLD Cup winner
Daniel Agyei has revealed the reason
behind his surprisingly underwhelming
football career.
Agyei was the man between the
sticks as Selas Tetteh-led Black
Satellites conquered the world in
2009 on African soil.
With his heroics in the
tournament and Olele on
the wrong side of age, the
path to success was well
laid for the then teenager
to have a lasting career as
Black Stars goalie.
The crown of the
‘next Black Stars goalkeeper’
was rightfully bequeathed
to Agyei, who
was then with Liberty
Professionals.
But like many others
of that all-conquering
squad, Agyei has had his
career being the exact opposite
of what people envisaged
and the former
Liberty man has become somewhat
a journeyman, travelling the continent
in search of stability and consistency
in post.
In the immediate aftermath of
the World Cup, a chunk of Agyei’s
teammate had breakthrough deals
with clubs in Europe but his luck
• Daniel Agyei
shone almost four years later.
The move from Liberty to South
African side Free State FC was
meant to herald him into an unprecedented
level of success where
his much-touted potential would be
realized.
But his career was short-lived
and less than twelve months after
that move, he had to return home
to his beloved Liberty.
After two years with Liberty, he
switched camp to Medeama and
since then his career has been on
a downward spiral with his last
club being Ethiopian side Sebeta
Kenema.
In a tell-it-all interview with
Jeffries Kwabena Sintim-Koree
of Television CK, Agyei revealed
spiritual battles he had
encountered in his football career.
Agyei, a firm believer in the
juju phenomenon, says he has
been a victim of spiritual machinations
by some people who
saw him as a threat.
He said some men of God
told him that he had been “tied
up spiritually”.
Abednego Tetteh eyes
hat-trick in first
match against Kotoko
WINNING AGAINST Asante
Kotoko in a Hearts of Oak shirt
is important but newly-signed
striker Abednego Tetteh is looking
forward to bagging a hat-trick
against the Porcupine Warriors
when the two sides clash.
Tetteh had revealed in an earlier
interview with footballmadeinghana.com
that he swerved
signing for Kotoko because he is
a dyed-in-the-wool Phobian.
The new Hearts of Oak
striker insists he can play for
any club against the Phobians
but can never face
the Phobians in a Kotoko
shirt.
To make his love
for the Phobians
evident, Tetteh said
he would love to
bag a hat-trick
against the Porcupine
Warriors to set
a historic record.
“I’m not just a
Hearts of Oak player but
a fan as well,” he said.
“Inasmuch as I will love to win
every trophy with Hearts, I want
to score a historic hat-trick
against Asante Kotoko in my first
game against them,” Tetteh revealed.
The former Bechem United
striker has signed a two-year deal
with the Phobians and is itching
to see himself scoring against the
Porcupine Warriors.
• Abednego Tetteh