Negotiations for teachers still in progress

Negotiations between the Ghana Education Service (GES) and the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) on salary proposals and collective agreement are still going on, the GES announced on Thursday.

A statement signed by Mr Samuel Bannerman-Mensah, Chairman of the Joint Negotiating Committee, said teachers and the general public would be informed about the outcome “as soon as negotiations are concluded”.
The statement gave no further details.

La Traditional Council takes Ghana@50 to court

An Accra High Court on Thursday ordered the La Traditional Council (LTC) to file an Application on Notice when it appeared before it with an Ex-Parte Motion on a disputed land at La Wireless in Accra, which is being developed by the Ghana@50 Secretariat.

The Court said its order became necessary because by coming on an Ex-Parte Motion, the Council was asking the Court to hear its side only without listening to the other party in the suit. By coming on Motion on Notice, however, the Court would then serve the other party so that both sides would have the chance to be heard by the court.

Last week, Mr Peter Ala Adjetey, former Speaker of Parliament, filed an interlocutory application at the Fast Track Court on behalf of the LTC praying the Court to restrain the Ghana@50 Secretariat from developing a piece of land at the La Wireless Station until the case had been fully heard.

Since the on-going project belongs to government, a copy of the Motion on Notice, when and if it is filed by the LTC, would be served on the Attorney-General.

The Court would then fix a date for counsel on both sides to make their submissions after which it would give its ruling. Mr William Addo represented LTC.

The Ghana@50 Secretariat is using a portion of the land on behalf of government for the construction of a number of presidential suites to accommodate presidents and high profile foreign dignitaries who would be attending the country's Golden Jubilee Celebrations in March next year. In 1950, government compulsorily acquired the land in question for a wireless project, but the project was later abandoned and the land was lying fallow.

Recently, the La Youth said it detected that the land was being developed and therefore reported the matter to the Council. Not satisfied with government's decision to use the land for the Golden Jubilee Project, the LTC said it was compelled to seek refuge at the law courts to get the matter resolved.

Consequently, it filed the interlocutory application at the Fast Track Court last week asking it to restrain the Secretariat from continuing with the project.Source:
GNA

UN asked to be proactive in controlling WMD

The Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama, on Thursday asked UN member States to be proactive in the control and movement of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) to make global peace and stability a reality.

He expressed the need for the implementation of legislations that would ban the manufacturing of WMD to facilitate development. Alhaji Mahama was speaking at a meeting with Mr. Nobuaki Tanaka, UN Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs at the Osu Castle. Alhaji Mahama said although some countries in the developed countries were proliferating WMD, Ghana remained committed to all UN ideals and resolutions to reverse the trend.

He said it was only through peace and security that the developing countries could nurture their development objectives, adding that this dream had inspired Ghana to play pacific roles n war- torn countries in the West African Sub-Region.

Mr Tanaka is in Ghana to attend a two-day seminar on the implementation of the United Nations Security Council resolution 1540 (2004), which seeks to impose binding obligations on all states to take measures to prevent the proliferation of WMD, particularly for terrorist purposes.

He said the Accra seminar, which was the second after China would be followed by a similar event in Peru.

Mr Tanaka said the UN was committed to assist African states to deal with the problem of small arms proliferation through the enactment of laws that would make the activity criminal.

He said proliferation of small arms was a major security concern globally and expressed regret that the Beijing seminar could not resolve the problem.

Mr Tanaka said the international environment on WMD was not favourable, citing the Iran and North Korea nuclear stand-off. He said peace was an indivisible issue, adding 93Whether we like it or not, terrorists can move into any country without consent.=94Source:
GNA

NPP flagbearer aspirant writes on "Presidential Temperament"

A decade ago, after then President Rawlings physically assaulted the Vice-President, I wrote an Op-Ed on the above. I return to this topic again because of the public quarreling of John and John, the President and his predecessor. This is an appropriate topic with which to begin my blog.

To put it bluntly, the ceaseless feuding between Ex-President Rawlings and President Kufuor is prejudicial to Ghana’s interest. Here is why. First, as a nation whose memory has been scarred by the history of coups, our morale is inevitably disturbed by the shrill exchange of charges between our two most prominent citizens. This is particularly so when the former president has been associated with coups in the past. Second, while
the President works tirelessly to attract Foreign Direct Investments ( FDI), most foreign investors look for stability in a country they plan to invest in. Reports or evidence of the President and former President trading accusations and the military brass re-iterating its loyalty to the current government makes them less likely to invest in Ghana and thus retards our economic growth. Third, the energy and time focused on their quarrels saps the will and focus that our leaders and institutions need to work on our development.

There has been a lot of finger-pointing between supporters of the two Presidents on who is to blame for the state of their relationship and this has divided along partisan lines.

This is unfortunate. It is one in a long line of problems that have nothing to do with parties, including the cocaine scandal.

The former President, right from day one, has not been supportive of his successor. He has been critical of him both at home and abroad. Indeed, he has accused Britain and United States of propping the Kufuor administration up unfairly. This accusation is strange when one recalls how the West, particularly President Clinton was supportive of President Rawlings. Furthermore, he has accused the Kufuor administration of human rights abuses in a manner that given his own well-chronicled abuses, is audacious.

He has studiously refused to give the President credit for anything. If all this gives anyone the impression that I think the President is blameless, that is false. True, in dealing with a confirmed two-time coup-maker, the President has more than ample reason to be wary. However, he has shown some lapses in judgment and decorum while dealing with President Rawlings. To focus just on the current controversy, a campaign
appearance was not the proper forum to accuse the former President of planning a coup. Indeed, the only appropriate place for such an accusation should have been in a Ghanaian court-room, by a prosecutor!

The situation is unnecessarily exacerbated by my-boss-is-right supporters and advisors forever re-echoing whatever their hero has said in blatant disregard of the nation’s interest.

Historically, some nations have benefited a lot from collaborative relationships between their leaders and their predecessors. One example will suffice. In 1985, US President Reagan met with Ex-President Nixon who was planning to visit the new Soviet leader Michael Gorbachev in Moscow. They talked about the Soviet Union in general.

When Mr Nixon met Gorbachev, he told Mr Gorbachev of how much Mr Reagan respected him and looked forward to working with him, with a little embellishment. Of course, with that opening, Gorbachev also had some positive things to say. When Mr Nixon returned, he reported on his trip to President Reagan in terms perhaps more positive than warranted by the facts. That visit by President Nixon is seen as one of the critical catalysts to the Reagan-Gorbachev collaboration that ended the Cold War. This was an example of a former
President helping a successor to advance his nation’s interest. That is the true measure of a patriot.

We need our ex-President to be supportive of the current President. We need our President to exercise more circumspection in reacting to the tantrums of his often misguided predecessor. Our nation’s interest requires it. Here is how to approach the situation.

First Mr Rawlings must, in keeping with the temperament required of his status, pledge
NEVER to criticize the President personally in public and acknowledge that he, like every
Ghanaian is not above the law.

Second, the President must be mindful of how he addresses sensitive national issues. A leader
communicates in words as well as deeds and in certain situations, deeds may be more
appropriate than words.

Third, the Armed Forces and Security Agencies must resist the temptation to be drawn into
these verbal exchanges. Issuing a statement to re-affirm loyalty to the government each time
there is an incident only underlines how fragile our democracy is. If there is evidence that the
former President is plotting a coup, the place to address that is in court.

Fourth, the advisors of the two protagonists must counsel restraint and conciliation rather than
confrontation whenever there is thorny issue between their bosses.

Fifth, the Press must exercise judgment in reporting the pronouncements of our leaders. The
Press may have a right to publish everything but it is not right to publish everything!

Finally, the guide for all of us, the President, the ex-President, the Press, the armed forces and
the public should be our nation’s interest and a clear signal to the two John’s that we expect
them to behave as grown-ups.

Ghana Osee Yeee! Yee Yeee!
By:- Arthur Kobina Kennedy

Load Shedding to be relaxed

There are indications that the on-going load shedding exercise will be relaxed, over the next few days.

Currently, the pattern is that areas go off, once in 72 hours (three days). The new pattern is likely to be areas having power off once in five days, only in the evenings. There will not be any load shedding in the mornings.

Energy analysts believe that the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) are trying to avoid a situation in March 2007, at the peak of Ghana’s 50th anniversary celebrations, in which there will have to be load shedding. February is regarded as a drought month and there is the need to be wary.

There is likely to be a freeze on the load from December 23rd 2006 to January 3, 2007.

Cameroon Airlines Migrates To Sita Ip-Based Network Solution

8 November 2006 – As part of preparation for privatisation, and to increase operational efficiencies, Cameroon Airlines today announced it is the first airline in Central and West Africa to migrate their legacy communications system to SITA’s Internet Protocol Virtual Private Network (IP VPN) service. The five-year contract with SITA, worth $4.3 million, will link the airline’s headquarters and regional offices over a secure network, enabling staff in all locations to run applications in a protected environment and enable secure IP access to Internet services.

Cameroon Airlines is currently reorganizing its operations with the aim of improving overall performance in advance of privatization which is planned by the government in 2007. The airline relies heavily on Information Technology (IT) to help reduce costs and improve operational efficiencies. As part of the deal, SITA’s professional services consultants will be migrating Cameroon Airlines’ current legacy network infrastructure to Internet Protocol (IP); a move that opens the door to new technologies that leverage the Internet – such as Voice over IP (VoIP) – while driving down costs.

Commenting on the deal M. Mohamadou Hamassali, Head of Strategy and IT department at Cameroon Airlines remarked "We at Cameroon Airlines consider SITA as our partner for telecommunications and information services. SITA has always been there for Cameroon Airlines even during times of difficulties. We are happy to sign this long term deal for telecommunications and professional services and count on SITA's continued support to ensure that Cameroon Airlines maintains competitive advantage through the use of modern technology."

“Our focus with Cameroon airlines is to reduce their communication-related costs and effectively make them more competitive in the marketplace,” said Khodr Akil, SITA Regional Vice President, Sales and Relationship Management, Africa. “Cameroon Airlines is aware of the huge benefits of migrating to IP. It will enable the airline to deliver a faster, more personal and seamless service to passengers as it prepares for privatization. We are delighted to play an instrumental role in the airline’s move to this more advanced technology platform in a cost-effective manner.”

SITA has worked with Cameroon Airlines for 30 years providing data and ground to air communication services. In addition, the airline uses SITA’s passenger services portfolio Horizon, including, SITA Reservations, Ticketing, Airfare, Frequent Flyer and Credit Card Authorization. Cameroon Airlines’ implementation of electronic ticketing is in progress with SITA and the first e-ticket is scheduled to be issued by the end of December 2006, well ahead of the IATA deadline of December 2007.

-ENDS-

For further information (not for publication) contact:

Joanna Masson / Lorna Thompson
SITA Press Office
Octopus Communications
Tel: +44 (0) 1753 672 755
Email: sita@octopuscomms.net

Notes to Editors:

About SITA

SITA is the world's leading service provider of integrated IT business solutions and communication services for the air transport industry. SITA manages complex communication solutions for its air transport, government and GDS customers over the world's most extensive communication network, complemented by consultancy in the design, deployment and integration of communication services. Its broad range of airline and airport IT applications and services includes airport operations and integrated baggage services, common use and desktop services, flight operations and air-to-ground communications and end-to-end airline distribution and fares services.

SITA has two main subsidiaries: OnAir, which is leading the race to bring in-flight mobile telephony to the market, and CHAMP Cargosystems, the world's only IT company solely dedicated to air cargo. SITA also operates two joint ventures providing services to the air transport community: Aviareto for aircraft asset management and CertiPath for secure electronic identity management. In addition, SITA sponsors .aero, the Internet top level domain reserved exclusively for aviation.

SITA covers 220 countries and territories and the head office is in Geneva, Switzerland. SITA had aggregated revenues of US$ 1.554 billion in 2005 (€ 1.295 billion).

Further information can be found at www.sita.aero

Rejoinder: Ghana Embassy - The Most Inefficient Institution In The UK

The attention of the Ghana High Commission in London has been drawn to an article posted on this website on the afore-mentioned subject. Despite the negative impression that the author sought to create about the High Commission, we wish to emphasise that the Mission places very high premium on its duties and on the welfare of Ghanaians in the UK and many Ghanaians can attest to the vast improvement in the quality of its services over the past few years. We wish for now, to provide the following reaction to the matters raised in the article.
Firstly, calls made to the Mission are answered promptly and appropriately. Secondly, passport applicants living outside London can purchase their forms from any location in the UK by post via postal order/banker’s drafts and do not need to travel all the way to London. Indeed, Visa, Criminal Record Check and Dual Citizenship application forms can also be purchased through the post.

Processing of passports has now been fully mechanised and processing time for passports has been reduced to two weeks for direct applications and three weeks for postal applications. Barring any postage problems, the stipulated three week processing time would normally be met if the application form is correctly completed and supported with all the requisite documents and a stamped self-addressed envelope. We would however like to state that for now passport application forms cannot be made available on the internet because of security considerations.

The Mission has noted that the author of the article is Mr. Adumoa Sam. Records at the Mission have failed to locate any application from the author. Besides a letter which the High Commissioner has written to him inviting him to make contact with the Mission with a view to resolving the matters he complained of, have, up to date, elicited no response.

Sweeping statements and generalisations about the conduct of officers at the Mission are not helpful. Members of the public who have specific complaints about the Mission’s services or the conduct of specific officers are kindly encouraged to channel their complaints to the High Commissioner on telephone no. 02072015900 or Fax no. 02072450970.

The Mission is constantly reviewing its operations and procedures and has stepped-up interaction with the Ghanaian community to elicit the necessary feedback to enable it provide the best quality of service for Ghanaians

ISSUED BY THE
GHANA HIGH COMMISSION, LONDON
8 NOVEMBER 2006

Source:
GHANA HIGH COMMISSION, LONDON