Digital JUNE 22, 2020

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CONTENT
ANNIVERSARIES
Good Friday — Fri, 10 Apr 2020
Easter Monday — Mon, 13 Apr 2020
Labour Day — Fri, 1 May 2020
DAILY HERITAGE TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 2020
Published by: EIB
Network / Heritage
Communications Ltd.
Managing Editor:
William Asiedu:
0208156974
Editor:
Kweku Gyasi Essel:
0244744973
ISSN: 0855-52307
VOL 7
Location: Meridian
House (Starr FM) Ring
Road. Box AD 676,
Adabraka, Accra,Ghana.
Telephone: +233-0302-
236051, 020-8156974
026-5653335
Adverts/Mktg:
Paul Ampong-Mensah
024-4360782
Fax: +233-0302-237156
Email:
news@dailyheritagegh.com.gh
heritagenewspaper@yahoo.co.uk
www.dailyheritage.com.gh
Judge warns relatives
of murdered tenant
BY MUNTALLA INUSAH
muntalla.inusah@dailyheritage.com.gh
THE ABEKA
District Court in
Accra has issued
a stern warning
to the aggrieved
relatives of Benjamin
Okyere, the tenant who was
murdered by his landlord, over
their continuous disturbances at
the court.
Before the court even heard
the case, the aggrieved relatives
started chanting and drumming in
a manner that was disturbing activities
of the court.
Her Worship Mrs Achamaa
Ofosu, prior to adjourning the
case, schooled the leaders of the
aggrieved relatives on the procedure
of the case.
The court warned them to
speak to their followers not to exhibit
such conduct in the court’s
subsequent hearing of the case,
else they would be arrested and
prosecuted.
The court said it is a criminal
matter and there are procedures
that must be followed.
The court said even though it
was clear that the accused person,
Victor Nana Kankam, was seen
•Some relatives of Benjamin Okyere displaying a banner in court
committing the crime,
the procedure ought to
be followed.
The magistrate said
due to the Covid-19
pandemic, the accused
person had been remanded
in prisons
custody and would not
be brought to court
subsequently.
Meanwhile, the
prosecutor in the case,
Inspector Stephen
Ahiale, informed the
court that the autopsy
was ready and the duplicate
was being forwarded
to the Attorney
General’s Department
for advice.
The case has been
adjourned to July 6,
2020.
The accused, Nana
Kankam, allegedly shot
and killed his tenant at
Ofankor on Sunday,
May 24, 2020, because
he (the tenant) had refused
to vacate a room
he had rented the very
day the tenancy agreement
expired, which
was the day on which
he was killed.
Fallout from Saturday’s NPP primaries
Krachi East MP calls for ceasefire
BY PHILIP ANTOH
philip.antoh@dailyheritage.com.gh
THE ONLY New Patriotic Party
(NPP) Member of Parliament
(MP) in the newly-created Oti Region,
Mr Michael Yaw Gyato, has
called for truce in the party following
last Saturday’s losses some
MPs suffered in the primaries,
leading to the collection of some
items given out by some aspirants
for votes.
Fallout from last Saturday’s
elections is that some supporters
of defeated candidates are going
round collecting back items such
as bicycle and money given to delegates
because they failed to vote
for their candidates.
Based on this, Mr Gyato has
advised the losing MPs to gather
courage and fight ahead because
some of them would rise up and
come back to become MPs again.
He made this known immediately
after his acclamation last Saturday
at Dambai, the regional
capital for Oti.
Mr Gyato said even though the
Majority Leader, Mr Osei Kyei-
Mensah-Bonsu, once stated that
Parliament is an institutional
memory but the final authority
lies with the delegates and they
have spoken.
He, therefore, called on the
ousted MPs to work hard to support
the party in making sure
come December 7, 2020 the NPP
would retain power.
Achievements
Counting on his achievement,
Mr Gyato called on the people of
Krachi East to support the NPP
• CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

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DAILY HERITAGE TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 2020
Ayariga’s case:
Amidu’s witness missing
BY MUNTALLA INUSAH
muntalla.inusah@dailyheritage.com.gh
THE FIRST prosecution
witness in the
case in which Member
of Parliament for
Bawku Central, Mahama
Ayariga, and
six others are standing trial is out of
his telecommunication network coverage
area.
In court yesterday, the State was
expected to call its first witness, but
Michael Baafi, an official from the
office of the Special Prosecutor,
Martin Amidu, said they had not
heard from the witness.
The Financial Division of the
Accra High Court, presided over by
Justice Afia Serwah Asare Botwe,
has adjourned the case to October
13, 2020, next legal year.
The officer from Mr Amidu’s office
told the court that they had made
arrangement for the witness to stay in
• Martin Amidu, Special Prosecutor
Accra, but he had called to
say that his mother was indisposed.
He said when he called
the witness later, he said he
was the one taking care of
the home.
Mr Baafi said he called
the witness again last Saturday,
and he assured him
that he was at the bus terminal
ready to move in
Accra. The officer added
that when he called the witness
again later in the day
on Saturday,
the witness said
he was in the bus coming
to Accra.
But, Baafi said he did
not hear from the witness
again. He told the court
that he called him (witness)
at about 8:00p.m. on Sunday,
but all his phones were
off.
He informed the court
that they were planning to
subpoena the witness to
come to the court.
•Mahama Ayariga, MP for Bawku
Prior to adjourning the
case, Justice Botwe said due
to the Chief Justice’s directive
not to start new cases
that may not be concluded
before the end of the legal
year, she had made arrangements
for this case to, at
least, reach the stage of
submission of ‘no case’ before
the legal break.
But, the lawyers in the
case agreed to come back
after the legal year. Case
was adjourned to October
13, 2020.
Background
The OSP has
charged the MP and six
others, including the
current Municipal
Chief Executive for
Bawku, Hajia
Ninchema, for allegedly
engaging in
procurement breaches.
The seven accused
persons are facing
seven counts of conspiracy,
abetment, contravention
of the
procedure for request for
quotation, using public office
for profit and transfer
of foreign exchange from
Ghana through an unauthorized
dealer.
The seven are alleged to
have acted together to import
an ambulance without
following due procurement
process, as stipulated by
law
Krachi East MP calls for ceasefire
• CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2
because during President Kufour’s
era, Dambai became a district and
now is a regional capital.
He said when he came to
power in 2016, electricity coverage
in the area was 6% but now, “we
have increased it to 90% and
water supply in the municipality
has increased tremendously”.
Concerning education, the MP
said “we have established schools
in the island areas, shared dual
desks to schools, roofing materials
have also been distributed to various
communities and appointed
circuit supervisors to those places
where it is difficult for supervisors
to visit and assess the performance
of teachers.”
During the past four years,
road networks in the municipality
have increase while “we have
worked hard to secure Microfinance
and Small Loans Centre
loans for some people in the
Krachi East Municipality and construction
is currently ongoing at
the Dambai market.
He thanked the party executives
for their continued support
and urged them to work hard towards
December 7 general election.
•Mr Michael Yaw Gyato, MP for Krachi East
He said when he
came to power in
2016, electricity coverage
in the area was
6% but now, “we
have increased it to
90% and water supply
in the municipality
has increased
tremendously”.

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DAILY HERITAGE DIGITAL TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 2020
WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
Dear Ghana, have we
decided to live with the virus?
BY OCCUPYGHANA
THE OUTBREAK
of Covid-19 surprised
many leaders
around the world.
Several had to institute
lockdowns in
major parts of their countries to
stem the spread of the virus.
However, this led to massive
economic downturns in their
countries. To deal with this reality,
many leaders have opened their
countries up again and are countenancing
an express or implied policy
of ‘Living with the Virus.’
The health reality
in Ghana
We acknowledge the initial successes
that the government has
had with containing the spread of
Covid-19 within Ghana, which
has even attracted the favourable
attention of some international
commentators. However, we
should not be lulled into a false
sense of security.
Ambulances are not showing
up when people call 112. Tests are
delayed on account of suspected
depletion in reagents, short
staffing etc. There’s a complete
lack of candour from officialdom
on infections. A good case in
point is the real possibility that
there is an outbreak of Covid-19
among parliamentarians and yet
that fact is being hidden and all
we get are conflicting statements
and behaviour that is not in line
with how to deal with this disease.
The case count is growing
steadily by the day - about 200 to
300 new cases per day. At the last
count, we had 7652 confirmed active
cases even though that number
could be higher (the total
number of confirmed cases is
11,964.)
There is cause to suspect that
the death numbers are being massaged.
The reported 54 deaths so
far cannot be right. For instance,
even though 38 deaths have been
reported from the Ashanti Region
alone, less than 20 of those deaths
are included in the national count!
If the public suspects under reporting
etc, there will be a loss of
trust in the reporting system and
that will have consequences that
will influence public behavioural
responses.
Several healthcare workers
have been infected and some have
died, sadly. This points to the sad
fact that our doctors and nurses
and frontline health workers do
not have adequate PPE. Our
holding and treatment facilities are
running out of space and just a
few days ago, the Special Advisor
on Health at the Presidency
lamented the
fact that we do
not have
enough critical
care
staff. We
also do
not
have
enough
critical
care
beds.
Hospitals
are getting
overwhelmed
with spill overs of
designated areas for suspected
and confirmed cases into
emergency rooms and wards otherwise
not assigned. The result of
this, with delays in getting test results,
is a desperate attempt to
shorten hospital stay and increase
availability of bed space by discharging
patients before the posttreatment
test results. The
unfortunate occurrence has led to
some being discharged but with
their repeat tests coming back
positive after their discharge. This
is disheartening and should not be
allowed as we seek to fight this
pandemic with professionalism
and integrity.
Contact tracing is not being
done at the levels needed anymore.
The government must answer
allegations that because contact
tracers were paid GHS70
instead of the promised GHS150
per day, they have walked out. The
result is that there isn't much contact
tracing going on at the moment.
And yet we, Ghanaians, are not
doing the things that
have been
shown to
reduce
the
spread
of the
disease - no
physical or social
distancing and
an unwillingness to wear face
masks. Even elected and other
high-ranking government officials
are guilty of this. The country’s
success in suppressing the spread
of this disease was due in part to
the early and aggressive lockdown
strategy, minimising the opportunity
for transmission of the disease
in strategic areas. If the
lockdown is not economically feasible,
should we not be pursuing
other measures that reduce transmission
and do not affect the
economy as much?
Re-opening public schools
Following that line of thought,
is it a wise decision to reopen
schools even if it is just for Forms
2 and 3 SHS, Form 3 JHS and
final-year students in our tertiary
institutions?
We acknowledge that to ensure
social distancing, the President directed
that JHS 3 classes are to
comprise of a maximum of 30
students and SHS classes a maximum
of 25 students. Prior to the
students arriving, the schools are
supposed to be fumigated and disinfected.
Once the students arrive,
each student, teacher and nonteaching
staff are to be provided
with re-usable face masks by the
Ministry of Education.
Yet we worry about the wisdom
and safety of this measure,
looking at how fast the disease is
spreading now. The belief that the
virus does not affect children is
false. Children and teenagers do
get the disease and then spread it
to adults who are more vulnerable.
Also, the virus induces an inflammatory
condition in children
and teenagers that can be deadly.
Looking at the behaviour of
the general Ghanaian population,
how sure are we that the JHS and
SHS students are going to wear
their masks and social-distance
not only in the classrooms but
also when they leave the classrooms
and in the dormitories?
How good is personal hygiene
going to be at a time when it is of
utmost importance? For instance,
are all schools going to be assured
of the running water needed for
the basic hand-washing protocol?
If we are not careful, these
We are asking these questions because we do not think
that the need to get the students to be physically present
for exams is worth the risk of having the disease break
out in our schools. We are not convinced that if students
get sick in schools, there are adequate resources to test
and treat them.
schools could turn into hotspots
for disease transmission and the
students could become superspreaders.
Of course, students have been
impacted by lockdown. Their
learning has been affected, even
where there are robust online and
at-home lessons underway. But at
this point in the school year, is it
really worth the risk of reopening
schools? If the whole aim is for
them to finish their exams, can we
put resources into getting students
to take these exams online? How
about students being given timebound
extended essays and/or
open book examinations to write
at home? How about combining
all of those with continuous assessment
grades to arrive at a final
exam score for all such students?
We are asking these questions
because we do not think that the
need to get the students to be
physically present for exams is
worth the risk of having the disease
break out in our schools. We
are not convinced that if students
get sick in schools, there are adequate
resources to test and treat
them.
Concluding comments
If the government has decided
to pursue a policy of ‘living with
the virus,’ then the healthcare system
and the population should be
prepped for this. Let’s just remember
that Sweden tried the method
and has one the highest levels of
deaths per million in the world.
We acknowledge the renewed
emphasis on enforcing social distancing
and the wearing of masks.
This should be across the board
and must include all government
officials. They have to lead by example.
Large social gatherings should
be continued to be banned.We
should re-dedicate resources into
testing and contact tracing.
Recent studies have shown that
not all patients who get severely ill
need ventilators. We should invest
in cheaper non-invasive oxygen
therapy solutions.
Also, the use of convalescent
plasma has been shown to reduce
mortality. The Ministry of Health
should start an aggressive push to
harvest and store plasma from recovered
patients.
At the start of this outbreak,
Ghana showed the world that we
could do a lot with the little we
had. This took resolve and great
leadership. We should not lose
that now when the stakes may be
much higher.
For God and Country

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WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
NEWS
DAILY HERITAGE DIGITAL TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 2020
NPP primaries was an ‘auction,
not election’– Amoako Baah
POLITICAL SCIEN-
TIST and former lecturer
at the Kwame
Nkrumah University
of Science and Technology
(KNUST), Dr
Amoako Baah, has bemoaned the
influence of money in the justended
parliamentary primaries of
the ruling New Patriotic Party
(NPP).
According to him, majority of
the outcome of the Saturday primaries
was influenced by money
and not competence or ability to
impact good governance in the
country.
It comes after allegations of
vote-buying in the primaries. Some
candidates were reported to have
paid hefty amounts to delegates in
order to secure their votes. Deputy
Chief of Staff Francis Asenso-
Boakye, who contested the Bantama
primaries, was accused of
buying votes but he denied the accusations.
Speaking to Francis Abban on
the Morning Starr on Monday, Dr.
Amoako Baah said money had
compromised the value of elections
in the country.
“What we are doing is an auction,
not an election because the
highest bidder wins. As I have
been saying, whoever pays the
highest money wins. But in some
cases if the people are really angry
with you, it does not matter how
much money you pay, they will still
vote against you,” he said.
The National Organiser of the
New Patriotic Party (NPP),
Sammy Awuku, however, dismissed
reports of vote-buying in
the Bantama primaries of the
•Sympathisers of NPP
party.
The incumbent Member of
Parliament for Bantama in the
Ashanti Region, Mr Daniel
Okyem Aboagye, has accused his
competitor, Deputy Chief of
Staff Francis Asenso-Boakye, of
using money to induce delegates.
Mr Asenso-Boakye has denied
the accusation in a statement issued
last Thursday.
Speaking to Starr News on the
development, Mr Awuku said the
party had not been given any
credible evidence of vote-buying.
“There is no evidence of
vote-buying. Nobody has
brought anything of evidential
value to us. People just make
claims and such things can’t be
proven,” he told Naa Borle
Bortey on the campaign trail
Defeated Kumawu candidate denies
demanding refund of GH₡3k inducement
A LAWYER defeated in the New Patriotic
Party's (NPP’s) parliamentary primaries in
the Kumawu Constituency in Ashanti Region
has cautioned his supporters to cease
alleged chasing of delegates for money the
supporters claim to have given to the delegates
to solicit their votes for him.
The supporters' alleged action is based
on the fact that since their candidate did not
win, it has become obvious the delegates
have swindled them.
However, Mr Edward Kofi Osei says
the alleged chasing is without his consent,
hence his advice to his supporters to refrain
from doing anything untoward.
According to the US-based legal practitioner,
such an act does not promote the
unity needed in the party for its preparation
for the 2020 general election.
The parliamentary also-ran, who pulled
73 votes against 184 obtained by the incumbent
Member of Parliament (MP) for the
constituency, Philip Basowa, told GHone
News that although he was disappointed in
the outcome of the election, he was ever
prepared to support the elected candidate to
campaign for the 2020 general election.
Isaac Bediako of Ultimate FM in Kumasi
reports that four
members of the NPP in the Kumawu constituency
contested Saturday’s parliamentary
primaries.
They were Lawyer Osei, who pulled 73
votes, Dr. Philip Yaw Bannor 60, Robert
Ahomka Lindsay 52, and the incumbent
MP, who won the election with 184 votes.
It is reported that hours after the result
was declared, some followers of Lawyer
Osei allegedly stormed the homes of some
of the delegates whom they claim to have
paid them some monies for their votes to
collect back the monies.
They claim to have paid monies ranging
from GHc3,000 to GHc3500 for votes.
Kwadwo Gyesaw, a delegate at Liberation
Christian Centre, who admitted to taking
GHc3,000 from the campaign team of
the lawyer but failed to vote according to
•Photo file: Some delegates who voted at the just ended primaries
the agreement reached, said “a group of
four men stormed my house last night to
collect their money”.
“But truth be told I didn’t vote for him.
So when they came to my house last night
after the elections for the money, I felt guilty
and peacefully handed the money back to
them. Though I was the only person in the
house at the time they came, they didn’t
threaten me. I just did as they demanded.
I’m not the only delegate they went to,’’ he
said
Mrs Gifty Dwumah, the Deputy
women's Organizer of Liberation Christian
Centre polling station, told GHone News
the group stormed her house when she had
gone out and that she would not refund the
money to the group.
“As for me when they came to my
house for the money last night I wasn’t at
home, so they tried to take away my son but
my neighbours resisted their action. When I
heard what has happened in my absence I
decided to sleep at Honourable Philip
Basoa’s house. I just returned home this
morning. I want to use this opportunity to
tell Lawyer and his boys that I will never refund
the GH 3,500.00 they paid for my
vote. Though I didn’t vote for him,” she
warned.
“We [delegates] did not beg the group
for the monies they paid for our votes.”
They, however, told the parliamentary
primaries also-ran to call his boys to order,
explaining that they could not tell whether
he was aware of the boys' actions or not
and that they did not take the money from
him directly.
Responding to the development in the
constituency, Lawyer Osei, the former NPP
USA constituency Chairman, said he had no
hand in the collection of money from delegates.
“This is news to me. I have no idea of
what is going on in Kumawu this morning.
My focus is to make peace with my opponent
after the election. Let me state it clear
now that I have not authorized any of my
campaign team members to collect any
money from delegates. Those who are doing
that with my name must stop doing that,’’
he stressed.
Stranek-Africa demands
questions from NCA
STRANEK-AFRICA has
raised concerns about the way
telecommunication companies
are dishing out data of subscribers
from all nooks and
crannies in Ghana.
According to the group, it
has come to the attention of
Stranek-Africa that the National
Communications Authority
(NCA) has indicated
that all Mobile Network Operators
(MNOs), namely MTN,
Glo, Vodafone and AirtelTigo,
complied with the request for
information which was subsequently
processed and forwarded
to the Ghana Health
Service for contact-tracing
purposes.
In a release signed by the
Executive Director, Nii Tettey
Tetteh, there was no objection
by any party in respect of
Covid-19 contact-tracing data
request until an application for
injunction order was filed.
Based on this, Stranek-
Africa is asking, “Why has
NCA refused to file a defence
in the Francis Kwarteng
Arthur case, in what format
did the telecommunications
supply the personal data –
hashed or unhashed, and in respect
of which services did
the telecommunications networks
supply the personal information-
does it include
mobile money transactions or
not?”
Other pertaining question
are “in which period did the
telecommunications supply
the personal informationfrom
before or after Covid-
19?”; “What was the objection
of MTN about and “Did
NCA respond to that objection?”
Nii Tetteh said Stranek-
Africa has credible information
that some
telecommunications networks
started sharing subscriber’s information
with the government
before the outbreak of
Covid-19 in Ghana.
He said based on this, the
NCA and government could
not hide behind contact-tracing
to violate the privacy rights
of subscribers.
“What is more disappointing
is that the NCA, as a regulator,
is required to protect
consumers. By its conduct, the
NCA is rather aiding and abetting
the violation of the rights
of subscribers. No wonder
telecommunication services
remain poor in Ghana due to
poor regulation,” Stranek-
Africa stated.
“For the sake of subscribers,
we at Stranek-Africa
wish that these questions will
be answered expeditiously to
clear the notion about the private
data of subscribers of
mobile phone companies
being dished out.”

Digital JUNE 22, 2020.qxp_Layout 1 6/22/20 7:38 PM Page 6
WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
DAILY HERITAGE TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 2020
Editorial
Do we need officials to confirm NPP’s daylight vote-buying?
A POLITICAL scientist and former
lecturer at the Kwame
Nkrumah University of Science
and Technology (KNUST), Dr
Amoako Baah, has condemned
the influence of money in the justended
parliamentary primaries of
the ruling New Patriotic Party
(NPP).
According to him, majority of
the outcome of the Saturday primaries
was influenced by money
and not competence or ability to
impact good governance in the
country.
His comments are said to be
based on allegations of vote-buying
in the primaries.
For instance, the incumbent
Member of Parliament for Bantama
in the Ashanti Region, Mr
Daniel Okyem Aboagye, has accused
his competitor, Deputy
Chief of Staff Francis Asenso-
Boakye, of using money to induce
delegates, an accusation Asenso-
Boakye had denied in a statement
issued last Thursday.
The National Organiser of the
NPP, Sammy Awuku, however, has
dismissed reports of vote-buying
in the Bantama primaries of the
party.
Speaking to Starr News on the
development, Mr Awuku said the
party had not been given any credible
evidence of vote-buying.
“There is no evidence of votebuying.
Nobody has brought anything
of evidential value to us.
People just make claims and such
things can’t be proven,” he told
Regina Naa Borley Bortey on the
campaign trail.
Even if the Bantama case is not
true, what about the Kumawu case
in which some delegates have admitted
to taking at least GHc3,000
or GHc3,500 from members of
the campaign team of Lawyer Edward
Kofi Osei, who lost the election
and as a result the campaign
team members are going round demanding
refund of the monies
paid as inducement for votes from
delegates? (See story on page 5)
The DAILY HERITAGE
wishes to inform Sammy Awuku
that legally, he may be right now,
but he could be proven wrong if
the candidates who lost the primaries
would be given hearing without
let or hindrance, without intimidation
of being sacked from the party
or any of them going to suffer any
harm.
After all, the media is awash with
stories of vote-buying both in cash
and in kind. Has Sammy Awuku
not heard of the distribution of bicycles,
television sets and other
items, as well as giving of money
to delegates before the day of the
primaries and immediately after
voting?
Should Ghanaians wait for
NPP’s official statement to confirm
this sleaze and political rot before
even eye-witnesses and others
can condemn it or simply talk
about it?
If the party frowns on this, then
it should investigate the so-called
allegations without evidential value,
punish offenders, but retrieve their
monies and items for them, and
caution delegates for their political
misconduct.
Test us for Covid-19
• Workers of Wangkang Ceramics Company Limited to govt
NEWS DESK REPORT
SOME WORKERS
of Wangkang Ceramics
Company
Limited in the
Sekondi Free Zones
enclave have expressed
worry about the reluctance
of their management to
allow for their mass testing of
Covid-19.
In view of their management’s
alleged stance, the workers are
pleading with the government to
dispatch its Covid-19 medical
team to the company to conduct a
mandatory mass testing of the
workers.
The worried workers, who
spoke on condition of anonymity,
said their demand was born out of
fear that some of them might be
carrying the deadly virus unknowingly
though they confirmed that
their management provides them
with some personal protective
equipment at work.
The workers wondered why
their management, unlike managements
of other companies in
Tema, where companies and factories
are dense, would not want
to invite government health personnel
to carry out mass testing of
them to know their Covid-19 status.
“Some companies in Tema, for
example, welcomed the government’s
mandatory testing of their
staff and the subsequent onemonth
closure of some companies
in that area, including Sentuo
Ceramics, also a Chinese company.
“You (reporter) will agree with
us (workers) that the Coronavirus
pandemic is surging in the Western
Region and as workers of
Wangkang Ceramics, we need the
government to send its health
team to our company to conduct a
mandatory testing of us so we
know our status,” one the workers
noted.
The workers were emphatic
that no health personnel had visited
their company to test them
for Covid-19 “and our humble request
to our management to get
health personnel to come and test
us has been rubbished. Seriously,
we are living in fear because we
don’t know our status, though we
go about our duties looking very
healthy,” another of the workers
said.
Another said: “Today, the staff
of our major competitor in Tema,
Sentuo Ceramics, knows their
Covid-19 status after their management
allowed the mandatory
testing. We want our management
to do same for us and we beg the
government to help us.”
The reason the workers said
they wanted the government’s
mandatory testing is that it is free
and reliable.
Efforts to reach Mr Zhang, the
Managing Director of Wangkang
Ceramics Company Limited, via
the telephone on the request for
mass testing by his staff, were unsuccessful.

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WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
Politics
DAILY HERITAGE TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 2020
NPP Primaries:
Quaittoo loses Oda seat
to Akwasi Acquah
BY PRINCE ESSIEN, ODA
THE INCUMBENT
Member of Parliament
(MP) for
Akim Oda constituency
in the
Birim Central Municipality,
William Agyapong
Quaittoo, has lost his seat to
Alexander Akwasi Acquah in the
New Patriotic Party (NPP) primaries.
The Akim Oda constituency is
believed to be a stronghold of the
ruling NPP.
The incumbent MP pulled 170
of the total votes cast but he lost
with a margin of over 40 votes to
Akwasi Acquah, who pulled 215
• Mr William Agyapong Quaittoo
votes.
Delegates
A total of
393 delegates
cast their
votes for
three contestants.
Incumbent
Mr Quaittoo
secured 170
of the votes
while Akwasi
Acquah
gained 215,
with Richard
Asante Bediako
gettng
two.
The constituency
chairman of the party,
Mr Abu Issaka, said three delegates
were suspended while one
passed on sometime before the
primaries.
However, in an interview with
the media, he refused to give reasons
for the suspension of the
three delegates.
Akwasi Acquah assured the
people of Oda of good service
and leadership.
"Let me thank all the delegates
for the hope they have reposed in
me. I will never disappoint them,"
he said.
Attempt to speak to Mr Quiattoo
yielded no result as he declined
to speak to the media.
Eli Kharis launches new project ‘Shine On Queen’
BY ERICA ARTHUR
AWARD-WIN-
NING media
personality, Eli
Kharis, has
launched ‘Shine
On Queen
(SOQ) initiative, a lifestyle hub, to
celebrate women, empower each
other to evolve and collectively advocate
positive change in the society.
According to her, there are a
number of projects under the initiative,
which include mini-workshops,
interviews that will focus
on equipping individuals with the
right tools to become successful
entrepreneurs and building brands
with the help of resource personnel
have been planned as part of
activities of the initiative.
Asking about what inspired her
to start this project, in an interview,
she said, ”Throughout my
journey, I have come to understand
how much genuine support
from the people around you contribute
to our goals (be it family,
friends, colleagues or even
strangers). Unfortunately, not
many have had a share of that. I
have reflected on what more I can
personally or a group of women
do to support one another, as well
as raising awareness about issues
concerning us in the society,” remarked
Kharis on the reason behind
founding the initiative.
“I stan women who strive for
excellence no matter the obstacles.
As an individual working towards
her goals, I often think about how
I can encourage my fellow women
to do same so we can all win! As
the saying goes, “A true Queen
lifts other women all the way up.”
The ‘SOQ’ team is confident
the planned projects will help in
achieving the mission of ‘Shine
On Queen’ to applaud, create a
supporting space to foster a culture
of unity, and improve open
exchange of knowledge and entrepreneurial
skills among
women/girls.
Engagements of the initiative
will be done virtually via its social
media platforms due to the impact
of Covid-19.
Kharis hosted two
talk shows on campus
radio station,
Focus FM -- ‘A Health
Talk’ and ‘Every
Woman’s Corner’, a
lifestyle show that
sought to empower
the youth to live
healthy life and purposeful
lives on campus.
Elinam, as she is affectionately
called, is a television presenter,
producer and an event host.
Her media career started in
2012 while a student of the
Kwame Nkrumah University of
Science and Technology
(KNUST).
Kharis hosted two talk shows
on campus radio station, Focus
FM -- ‘A Health Talk’ and ‘Every
Woman’s Corner’, a lifestyle show
that sought to empower the youth
to live healthy life and purposeful
lives on campus.
She was also part of the news
team of the station for two years.
She later joined GhOneTV as a
national service person when the
station was owned and managed
by Charter House after a successful
audition.
She was the producer of
‘GHToday,’ GhOneTV’s flagship
morning show program and presenter
of ‘News Xtra,’ the entertainment
news segment on the
show.
She hosted ‘Glam Blogger’ – a
fashion news segment on GLAM
TV, and the entertainment news
segment on award-winning ‘E-
Talk’ in 2016.
She was the host of ‘Buzz’ on
‘Rhythmz Live’ and ‘Let’s Go
Shopping’ (an advertising show),
both on GhOneTV; Season one of
‘Baby Chef ’ (first ever cooking
competition show for children in
Ghana); ‘Hashtag Trending’ segment
on the Phenomenal Lady
show; ‘The Cake Fair 2017’; ‘Glitz
Africa’s SHE Summit – Campus
edition’; launch of ‘Yenko Taxi’
app; Mr. Model Africa 2017;
UNFPAGH Ambassador Unveiling
2018; and Accra Mall Fashion
Weekend.
The 2018 West African Youth
Awards ‘Television Host of the
Year’ and 2019 ‘Media Personality
of the Year’ (at the Young Entrepreneurs
International Summit)
winner believes in staying true to
oneself, and describes herself as
free-spirited, compassionate, dynamic
and hardworking young
lady, who is set to make great impact
in the world with her work
and personality.
She is the Founder of the
‘Earn Your Crown’ series; which
seeks to project inspiring stories
shared by people who managed to
create a goal out of struggles and
tough decisions made at a point in
their lives.
She is a product of the
Mfantsiman Girls’ High School,
and KNUST and has a degree in
Industrial Arts.
Eli Kharis was born Elinam
Amenyo to Alex K. Amenyo (currently
Assistant Commissioner of
Police, Upper East), and Madam
Sena Akakpo, a caterer.

Digital JUNE 22, 2020.qxp_Layout 1 6/22/20 7:38 PM Page 8
DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
TUESDAY , JUNE 23, 2020
Complacency killing footballers
in Ghana – Abdul Salam
BANKROLLER OF
Division One League
side New Edubiase
United, Abdul Salam
Yakubu, has shared
that Ghanaian players
are unable to reach their full
potential because of complacency.
According to him, self-satisfaction
has become a chronic disease
for many footballers in the country
which is killing talents in
Ghana.
In an interview with a Kumasibased
radio station, he said, “Most
of the Ghanaian players are very
lazy. When they are able to travel
outside to continue their footballing
career, they become complacent
and think they have made
it. They don’t set targets for themselves
but keep enjoying luxurious
life and before they realize they
have become rusty”
He cited his former employee
Asiedu Attobrah as a clear example.
“Asiedu Attobrah gained
recognition by K.V Kortrijk in
Belgium after having a great season
in 2015 with Edubiase. When
he arrived in Belgium, instead of
him having to work hard to gain a
position in the starting line-up, he
became totally complacent, thinking
he has reached his self-actualization
stage. He terminated his
contract without my knowledge
(not even his agent) and came
back to Ghana,” he said.
When he arrived in Belgium,
instead of him having to
work hard to gain a position
in the starting line-up, he
became totally complacent,
thinking he has reached his
self-actualization stage.
•Bankroller of New Edubiase United, Abdul Salam Yakubu
KP Boateng cancels
contract extension option
— Besiktas President
THE PRESIDENT of Turkish
giants Besikta, Ahmet
NurÇebi, has revealed that
Kevin-Prince Boateng has voluntarily
removed from his contract
agreement an option that
would have triggered an automatic
contract extension.
The 33-year-old signed for
the Super Lig side on loan in
January. In the contract, an option
was included. Boateng had
to play for at least 45 minutes a
game for 10 games to trigger a
1.7 million euro a year extension.
So far, he has made seven
appearances out of which six
meet the criteria.
The coronavirus pandemic
has hit a lot of clubs hard, including
Besikta. They asked
the Ghanaian to remove the
clause in the contract and he
has agreed.
"He had the option of 1
million 700 thousand euros,
but he erased it. He said," Do
not be tied to me, I want to
play ball, "and we removed the
option," Ahmet NurÇebi told
CNN Turk.
The former Barcelona star
has scored two goals for Besikta
so far.
•Kevin-Prince Boateng signed for the Turkish
side on loan in January
My job is not only about
answering calls and granting
interviews — Henry Asante Twum
COMMUNICATIONS DIREC-
TOR of the Ghana Football Association,
Henry Asante Twum, has
said his job is not all about granting
interviews to the media every day.
Asante Twum has often been
criticized by some sports journalists
for not availing himself when the
need arises for them to get answers
on issues that affect the game.
However, according to him, he
handles both the digital space and
the Public Relations as a Communication
Director so his media colleagues
should not harbour the
notion that they are the only entities
who require his services.
Asante Twum made this statement
in an interview with Takoradibased
Skyy Power.
“There are media colleagues
who think the GFA Communications
Director is supposed to answer
all calls and grant interviews
all the time,” he said.
“So when you wake up in the
morning, they expect you to just be
by your phone from Monday to Friday,
so you grant interviews from
Fanteakwa, Bechem, and Bolga,
etc…. That’s what, to them, is the
definition of a Communications
Director, which is not the case,” he
stressed.
“Under me [my office], I am
supposed to have someone directly
responsible for Public Relations, another
person directly responsible
for Digital Media of the FA.”
“It is huge. In the past, we didn’t
pay attention to strengthening and
equipping the department.
“I am praying the ExCo, as they
have promised, will consider, they
will discuss, and hopefully, approve
the new structure I have submitted,”
he said.
• Communications Director of GFA,
Henry Asante Twum