The fire is the fourth at the Dome Central Market, and the second in less than two months.

[contextly_sidebar id=”vBskiDUIpZbzxpm62PIbKccNWqQfiE4v”]”This is the fourth time the market is in this situation and it is intentional. Information we have gathered is that, someone deliberately started the fire,” the MCE told Citi News.

She added that “we are collaborating, and I have made a formal complaint to the police. We are on course. We will get to the bottom of this.”

A day after the fire, traders were counting their losses running into thousands of thousands of cedis.

“My goods are worth over GHc 20,000 cedis. I buy things from Togo. I have lost about GHc 1,200. We took loans to establish our businesses,” some traders lamented to Citi News.

The fire, which started around 7: 40 pm, gutted 15 metal container shops, and destroyed other properties, though no casualties were recorded, according to the Fire Service.

Fire Service personnel arrived at the scene to douse a large chunk of the inferno, and it eventually took two fire tenders to bring the situation under control.

The Greater Accra Regional Commander of the Fire Service, DCFO Ebenezer Simpson, told Citi News his outfit would need time to establish the cause of the fire.

“Unless we finish extinguishing the fire thoroughly, we don’t want to rush in arriving at the cause of the fire. We need to do some overhauling, check out what goes on, the activities carried out at the places that have been severely charred, and we have to interrogate those who use that container and other things for us to arrive at what caused the fire.”

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By: Jessica Ayrkor Aryee/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post ‘Dome market fire was intentional’ – Ga East MCE alleges appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The Western Regional Public Relations Officer of the Ghana Police Service, ASP Olivia Adiku, confirmed that the suspect is in custody.

All items belonging to the suspect’s mother and that of a neighbour were lost in the fire.

The young man, who has been identified only as Mawutorpe, committed the act after a misunderstanding with his mother, a retiree.

According to neighbours, the young man, who is suspected to be mentally unstable, has reportedly been terrorizing his mother and neighbours for a long time.

The neighbours have claimed that the suspect is a drug addict.

According to them, he normally exhibits wild behaviour after smoking, and in one case, he allegedly made nasty demands from the mother.

One neighbour recalled that on Monday, November, 20, 2017, he overheard Mawutorpe ask his mother to give him money to patronize the services of a commercial sex worker in the area.

The mother refused after which he went berserk and threatened to set the house on fire.

It took the timely intervention of fire personnel to prevent the fire from spreading to other houses close by.

Regina Baah, the occupant of the adjourning room narrated to Takoradi-based Skyypower FM, that she has reported the suspect to the Takoradi Police station on several occasions.

According to her, anytime the young man is picked up by the police, his mother ensures his release with the excuse that he is mentally unstable.

She also corroborated pronouncements that Mawutorpe is on hard drugs, but indicated Mawutorpe is very calm on days he doesn’t smoke, and is often seen having hearty conversations with his mother and neighbours.

Unfortunately for Mrs. Baah, as she was escaping the fire, she had only a cloth wrapped around her.

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By: Obrempon Yaw Ampofo/citifmonine.com/Ghana

The post Takoradi: Man arrested for burning mother’s house appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to him, UK pumped about 4 million pounds worth of medicines into Ghana which were destroyed in the fire hence the UK Parliament’s seeming interest in the case.

“In the Central Medical stores, there were 4 million pounds worth of medicines bought by the UK through our DFID programme that were there and were destroyed and we had to account for that money and questions were asked in the UK Parliament. So we had to say what had happened and what was being done about it. So I think that was a legitimate reason for us to raise our concerns,” added Jon Benjamin.

[contextly_sidebar id=”nyNkASfMpauVEm7jq5YSKybfuxz7yOyY”]About $80 million worth of medicines were burnt into ashes in 2015 when fire razed the Central Medical Stores at Tema in the Greater Accra Region resulting in the destruction of medical supplies and equipment.

A committee established to investigate the case blamed it on arson, naming one Samuel Dogbe, a labourer at the Medical Stores as being behind the fire.

In 2016, 12 officials of the Ghana Health Service who were also accused of playing various roles in the arson were also interdicted.

Speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show on Monday, the outspoken Jon Benjamin subtly called for the prosecution of persons indicted in the arson.

He noted that the interdiction of the officials was in the right direction but called for “sanctions for people found lawfully guilty of being the perpetrators.”

Donors threaten to cut funds to Ghana

Jon Benjamin’s remark comes on the back of comments by the Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyemang-Manu that some donor partners have threatened to cut funds to Ghana if government fails to bring the suspected arsonists in the Central Medical Stores case to book.

The Minister said the donors are “threatening to withdraw some of the donations they give to us until some issues have been resolved.”

The US Ambassador to Ghana, Robert Jackson, had also questioned the lack of action or prosecution on the matter of the arson.

He insisted that the arson could not be swept under the carpet because the warehouse had about $7 million worth of items donated by American taxpayers.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post UK Parliament worried over Central Medical Stores fire – Jon Benjamin appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The fire resulted in the death of Benjamin Ayem and left Lawrence Ayem in a coma.

The Public Relations Officer of the Tema Regional Police Command, ASP Juliana Obeng, narrated to Citi News that Comfort Agblozo last Thursday went to her husband’s house and took her three children aged 4, 7 and 9 out of the room where her husband and her brother-in-law were sleeping.

She proceeded to soak some clothes in kerosene and set them on fire in the room and locked the two men up in the house.

ASP Obeng said as the fire raged, some neighbours noticed and managed to rescue the two after they had sustained severe burns.

The neighbours rushed the two to the Tema General hospital. But Benjamin Ayem died on his way to the Korle-Bu Teahing Hospital where he was being transferred for while Lawerence Ayem is currently in coma.

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Woman sets home ablaze with husband, brother-in-law inside appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.