He said, “Ghanaians may love Americans but not to the extent of living with [the] foreign troops,” he said.

[contextly_sidebar id=”4NZIs060FW3T7c0MnzgsdUZBIMiG3doN”]Rawlings, a former military leader, suggested that the presence of US troops in the country as being championed by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government, could be considered as foreign domination on the economic and social lives of Ghanaians.

The government is actively pushing for the indefinite hosting of military personnel and equipment from the US in Ghana, following a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the countries earlier in March 2018.

The Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul, who laid the agreement before Parliament for consideration on Tuesday, argued that Ghana stands to benefit so much from the agreement.

While denying that a land will be allocated to foreign troops to serve as a base, he said a few buildings have been identified close to the Kotoka International Airport to be made available for the use of the US officers.

As part of the agreement, the US military will be exempted from paying taxes on equipment they will bring to Ghana.

They will also be allowed to set up a telecommunication system on Ghana’s radio spectrum for free.

Ghanaian authorities will also be restricted from accessing the facilities given to the US officials when they begin using them.

Also, the foreign troops will be permitted to wear their uniforms, carry weapons, and use their foreign documents including drivers’ licenses in the country without restriction.

Although many Ghanaians are crying foul over the agreement, Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul says their concerns are misplaced.

But Rawlings, who has so far been very supportive of decisions by the Akufo-Addo government is not enthused about the moves to host the US troops.

“Ghanaians may love Americans, but not to the extent of living with foreign troops on such a scale. Ghanaians have enough foreigners dominating their economic and social life. Adding foreign troops to the discomfort would be a bit too much. Ghanaians have felt stateless before in my lifetime. Let’s not go there again,” Rawlings said.

Meanwhile, the minority in Parliament has called on the government to immediately withdraw the agreement from Parliament.

The Minority Spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa in an interview on Eyewitness News on Tuesday said the government’s action was akin to selling Ghana’s sovereignty to the US for a paltry $20 million which the US Embassy in Ghana says the US is committing to Ghana’s security for 2018.

They are calling for wider consultations on the agreement before it is considered after a possible review of some of the clauses.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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According to him, the conditions stated in the agreement are akin to Ghana selling its sovereignty to the US.

The United States Embassy in Ghana in denying reports that the US government is planning to establish a military base in Ghana, said “This year, the United States of America is investing over $20 million in training and equipment for the Ghanaian armed forces. Ghana is also once again preparing to train U.S forces – as it did in 2017. The United States and Ghana are planning joint security exercises in 2018, which require access to Ghanaian bases by US participants and those from other nationals when included”.

It said it is only planning joint security exercises with Ghana, which will require that US military personnel are allowed access to Ghana’s military facilities.

[contextly_sidebar id=”T7VxxqRKhAMljraOot1WaqpKRDNFqQk8″]But speaking on Eyewitness News, the North Tongu Member of Parliament said government took a dangerous path by not consulting with political parties and other stakeholders on the agreement, knowing that the decisions taken transcend beyond a particular government.

“We need to withdraw this agreement from Parliament. Withdraw it, and let’s have broad stakeholder consultation, especially as you are seeking to bind the people of this country, to bind political parties, successive governments in perpetuity. Take your time, why the rush?  This business of $20million at a time that we are talking about Ghana beyond aid? So for $20 million, we are willing to sell our birthright?,” he quizzed.

The Government of Ghana on Tuesday presented before Parliament for ratification, a Memorandum of Understanding on defense cooperation between Ghana and the United States, that will give the Americans some space in the country to set up a base for its military forces.

The document sighted by citifmonline.com said Cabinet approved the MoU on March 8, 2018, and recommended to Parliament to ratify the agreement to allow the US forces and their equipment unhindered access into Ghana.

‘Details of agreement’

Among other things, the US military will be exempted from paying taxes on equipment they will bring to Ghana.

They will also be allowed to set up a telecommunication system on Ghana’s radio spectrum for free.

Although many Ghanaians have expressed resentment over the clauses of the agreement, the Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul, said the agreement is in the best interest of Ghana.

He said that the US personnel will only be given a few buildings to operate in, contrary to media reports that a portion of land was going to be allocated to them for the establishment of a base.

‘Ghana will face terror threats’

Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa told Umaru Sanada Amadu on Eyewitness News that Ghana will among other things face threats of terrorism if it goes ahead to sign the agreement.

“This particular agreement deviates from the norm. Having studied all the agreements we have had, this is too expansive, this surrenders the sovereignty of Ghana, this does not pay attention to Ghanaian law, and it’s quite an affront to the people of this country. It will also expose us unnecessarily to terrorists and all of those who have made it their point to go after installations and bases of the United States of America,” he said.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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“It’s not a military base. We don’t even have enough space in the agreed area for them to put up big structures. It’s just around the airport area,” he stated.

According to Nitiwul, it is only a facility to camp US soldiers in the country saying “they will not be stationed here.”

The Government of Ghana has sent to Parliament for ratification, a Memorandum of Understanding on defence cooperation between Ghana and the United States, to give the Americans some space in the country to set up a camp for its military forces.

[contextly_sidebar id=”zwuh7Zt9kpReCJ2bPg6GyRSc4l3VenLS”]The document, sighted by citifmonline.com, said Cabinet approved the MoU on March 8, 2018, and recommended to Parliament to ratify the agreement to allow the US forces and their equipment unhindered access into Ghana.

Per the agreement, the US military force is among other things, to be exempted from paying tax on the equipment to be brought into Ghana.

They will also be given the chance to set up their own telecommunication system, although they will be allowed to use Ghana’s radio spectrum free of charge.

This has raised some eyebrows in the country with many questioning why the government will take such decision.

But defending the move in a Citi News interview after laying the document in Parliament on Tuesday, Dominic Nitiwul insisted that it is in the interest of Ghana.

Dominic Nitiwul also clarified the tax exemption part of the agreement saying it is in the best interest of the US military.

“If you give them a building it is up to them to be able to make some corrections in the building to suit the purpose which they are looking for. Military buildings and military purpose vehicles are different from the civilian ones. So if you give them a building or facility, they deserve the right to bring in contractors to make sure that they correct it to the standard they are looking for. And they are saying that when the contractors are working here in Ghana and they are bringing facilities in, Ghanaians should not take tax from them.”

Mr Nitiwul also said the US government has established such facilities in over 50 countries in the world with Ghana being second in Africa after Senegal.

“They have this agreement with over 50 countries. Ghana will be the 52^nd country they are going to do this with; in Africa, we are the second. And from there they are going to do with other countries. So it is not as if the US has targeted Ghana. This agreement has been in my office for eight months. I have been dealing with them trying to correct it and make sure it is something Ghanaians can accept,” he added.

Gitmo 2 row

This comes on the back of the camping of two former Guantanamo Bay detainees, Umar Bin Atef and Khalid Al-Dhuby in Ghana; a decision taken by the previous Mahama administration that was widely criticized by individuals and groups including the then New Patriotic Party [NPP] in opposition.

Although the agreement for hosting the two elapsed on January 6, 2018, it later emerged that the former detainees have been given refugee status.

The US government subsequently said they ceased taking responsibility for the two after the agreement ended.

What is a Military base?

A military base is a facility directly owned and operated by or for the military or one of its branches that shelters military equipment and personnel, and facilitates training and operations.

In general, a military base provides accommodations for one or more units, but it may also be used as a command centre, a training ground, or a proving ground.

In most cases, a military base relies on some outside help in order to operate.

However, certain complex bases are able to endure by themselves for long periods because they are able to provide food, water and other life support necessities for their inhabitants while under siege.

Military bases for military aviation are called military air bases. Military bases for military ships are called naval bases.

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

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The document sighted by citifmonline.com said Cabinet approved the Memorandum of Understanding on March 8, 2018, and recommended to Parliament to ratify the agreement to allow the US forces and their equipment unhindered access into Ghana.

Details of agreement

Per the agreement, the US military force is among other things to be exempted from paying tax on the equipment to be brought into Ghana.

The US will also be given the chance to set up its own telecommunication system, but will also be allowed to use Ghana’s radio spectrum free of charge.

The document supposedly sent to Parliament by the Minister of Defence, Dominic Nitiwul, had an introductory letter signed by Cabinet’s Secretary, Mercy Debrah-Karikari.

“Cabinet at its twenty-eighth meeting held on Thursday, 8^th March, 2018, discussed a report presented by the Security Committee of Cabinet on a Memorandum submitted by the Minister of Defence on the above subject.”

“The Memorandum sought Cabinet approval for an Agreement between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Ghana on Defence co-operation, the Status of the United States Forces and Access to the Use  of Agreed Facilities and Areas in the Republic of Ghana. Cabinet approved the Memorandum and recommend same to Parliament for ratification. I should be grateful if you could take requisite action on the decision by Cabinet,” the letter added.

Gitmo 2 row

This comes on the back of the camping of two former Guantanamo Bay detainees, Umar Bin Atef and Khalid Al-Dhuby in Ghana; a decision taken by the previous Mahama administration that was widely criticized  by individuals and groups including the then New Patriotic Party [NPP] in opposition.

Although the agreement for hosting the two elapsed on January 6, 2018, it later emerged that the former detainees have been given refugee status.

The US government subsequently said they ceased taking responsibility for the two after the agreement ended.

–

By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Gov’t signs MoU to host US ‘military base’ in Ghana appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

He had been sent to the area by the President to supervise the inauguration.

Although a lawsuit is a democratic action, the Bimbilla MP suggested that it was wrong for the plaintiffs to frustrate the President’s efforts at developing the country, especially because the President hails from the area.

“…You have struggled since 1957, and if the almighty God and the people of Ghana and blessings of the almighty God have blessed you with your son as President, all you can do is to help him succeed and not pull him down. We are inaugurating all district assemblies [nationwide] and only in the president’s hometown somebody had decided to take the matter to court. Who do you think you are disgracing? Not the president, you are disgracing yourselves,” he fumed.

[contextly_sidebar id=”FIFJ8DKpRly5ol1pOdD6Q6u0KewbcM8i”]A livid Dominic Nitiwul made the comment after a court injunction prevented the inauguration of the newly created Abuakuwa North Municipal Assembly.

Some newly created districts and others elevated into municipal status, were inaugurated on Thursday with the exception of the Abuakwa Municipal Assembly.

38 new district assemblies have been created by government.

In the case of the Abuakwa Assembly,  two residents of Akyem Old Tafo —Adjei Boateng and Addo Sarpong secured an injunction from a Koforidua High Court to stop the inauguration arguing against the decision to make Akyem Kukukurantumi the Municipal Capital.

The plaintiffs contend that, Akyem Tafo is more qualified as a municipal capital than Kukurantumi considering the number of governance offices and infrastructure at Akyem Tafo.

Speaking to residents after the event was called off; Mr. Nitiwul described the democratic action as unacceptable.

“The reason why today we will not inaugurate the Assembly is because some people have decided to put an injunction on this inauguration today. I’m just telling you that the Assembly has been created in capital names and unless we send another L.I. to Parliament the matter is closed. So if some people decide to take the matter to court to say we should not inaugurate the Assembly, yes, we will not inaugurate it.”

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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According to Mr. Nitiwul, he only advised the former President to leave the disputed land to avoid being drawn into the ongoing battle over the site.

[contextly_sidebar id=”f87MufMO7htLIlVe2xlvZ8YRCd5ozbA7″]”I mentioned former president Mahama and said that where he was living, that land is in dispute between several Labadi families and the military. It would not be in his interest as former Commander-in-Chief to live there because people are making reference to him as the one living there with others also encroaching,” he said on Eyewitness News.

“If you want to take on somebody, they say the former President is living there as well. I said that if I were him, I would not stay in the place. I said that where Mahama is living is not good for him or for us because big people, top politicians have appropriated military lands so he should leave the area as it won’t help us as a people.”

A fiery Dominic Nitiwul had appeared to appeared to state, when he addressed a Meet The Press event last week, that top government officials who were living on land taken from the Armed Forces “should leave.”

He criticized the previous administration for their poor handling of matters relating to the country’s Armed Forces, claiming that land belonging to the military had been sold off under their tenure.

“…I am talking about the former President, John Mahama. I will say no more, but I am very disturbed about this.  It is happening in Tamale, it is happening in Takoradi and Lands Commission is colluding to do that. People in Lands Commission were selling Armed Forces lands. Not under this watch, that cannot happen any longer, and anybody who decides to encroach on Armed Forces lands should leave. It is not in your interest. I am sorry; but that is the truth that we did not manage the Armed Forces lands very well, ” he noted.

However, Dominic Nitiwul has now insisted that he did not order Mr. Mahama to leave the said land as he had no power to do so, but only recommended that he relocated in his interests.

“I said that I don’t have the power to order [Mahama] to leave the area, but I advised that it would be good for him to leave the area because he was the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, and the military have made it very clear that they need that land.  If you go to some portions of Burma Camp, you may not be able to differentiate military property from civilian property, and that is not good for any us, ” he added.

‘Reckless, Distasteful’ 

The Defence Minister came under fire for his comments, with many critics claiming that it was a political vendetta against John Mahama.

The Office of the former President also responded, rubbishing the suggestions that Mr. Mahama had appropriated military land for his benefit.

In a strongly-worded statement which was released in the wake of the Minister’s comments, John Mahama’s Special aide, Joyce Bawah Mogtari stated emphatically that the former President had not taken possession of any land owned by the military and also called for an apology from the Minister.

She also described the comments made by Mr. Nitiwul as irresponsible, and dismissed them as mere propaganda from a state official who is expected to act with more decorum.

However, Dominic Nitiwul has defended his comments suggesting that he sought to assure the military that land belonging to them would be reclaimed as his government had promised.

“We said in our manifesto that we were going to protect military lands, so we didn’t just wake up and start talking about military lands. We’ve done a lot of what we said we’d do except a few things, he explained.

“We have increased the allowances for the soldiers, we have got the 11.1% for the civilian workers, we now pay soldiers at the UN at the operation theaters, and we’ve made sure that we’ve paid all the arrears, and that soldiers are given what they are supposed to get.”

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By: Edwin Kwakofi/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The shoe factory had been tasked with solely producing boots for purchase by the Armed Forces and other security agencies, and footwear for students locally and for export.

[contextly_sidebar id=”3x6Q591B1HCkDfCBzKkLwnWrX87hyG5K”]However, according to them, importers of shoes from India and China, were misleading the Defence Minister and seeking the downfall of the factory in order to protect their interests.

Addressing a press conference on Monday to respond to the comments, the acting General Manager of the DIHOC Footwear Division Limited, Nii Konney Laryea said they did not intend to “attack the Minister, but rather to use this fine opportunity to let him know that he is being misled by people who do not have the interest of the company at heart, and who are bent on doing anything and everything to collapse the company in order to have the free hand to import boots and shoes from India and China for the security agencies.”

Nii Konney Laryea added that, the management of the company knows the identities of these persons and would ‘name and shame’ those who were attempting to cause the downfall of the factory  ‘at the appropriate time.’

“This is a big business for [the importers], and as far as DIHOC Footwear Division Limited is in operation, it constitutes a threat to their business of importing boots and shoes to the security agencies,” he said.

“The Management of DIHOC Footwear knows these enemies of the nation, who have vowed to slow the progress to this forward march of our great country. At the appropriate time, we shall name and shame these people.”

‘Let soldiers buy our shoes’

Since its revival in 2012, the factory has been on the verge of collapse, with a tour by government officials in August revealing that only 49 workers were currently employed there.

The managers of the facility have called on the Minister to direct the Armed Forces to purchase all their footwear from the Kumasi Shoe Factory, as had originally been intended, instead of importing them from Asia.

According to them ” a definite government policy” directing students and officers in the various security agencies to wear local shoes would go a long way to ensuring that the factory is able to operate at full capacity and employ more workers.

“We, therefore, want to use this platform to humbly request Dominic Nitiwul to assist the Company by directing the Ghana Armed Forces to order all their boots and shoes from the Company, and to appeal to his colleagues the Honorable Ministers of Interior, Finance, and Education to give similar directives to the other security agencies and educational institutions in the country to stop the importation of boots and shoes from China and India, and to buy from the company as a way of assisting the company,” Nii Konney Laryea said.

“This in our view, is the solution to restore and even increase the workforce of the company, in order to create more jobs for the youth of Ghana within the shortest possible time. The company can easily create an additional 600 jobs within the next two to three years, through such an initiative alone.”

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By: Edwin Kwakofi/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post ‘China shoe’ importers misleading Nitiwul for personal gain – DIHOC appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Mr. Nitiwul had earlier attributed the current deplorable state of the Kumasi Shoe Factory, to the ineffective management of the company.

[contextly_sidebar id=”IcJdm8VIEKNR5XOLaE92Xd3ZTPX3qaPP”]Speaking at the Meet the Press Series last Thursday, he also said the Ghana Armed Forces who are also shareholders in the business have been sidelined, with no accounts rendered to them by the private managers of the facility.

“Up until now, we haven’t been able to hold a single board meeting because for some reason, government wanted to give a grant of six million cedis from one of the funds. We then picked an individual, gave him this money and gave out, as part of the six million, a grant of four million. That individual has 60%, and the armed forces have 40%. I have paid a lot of money to this individual,” he said when he took his turn at the Meet the Press Series today [Thursday],” the Minister had alleged.

However, addressing a press conference today [Monday] to respond to the comments, the acting General Manager of the DIHOC footwear division limited, Nii Konney Laryea, dismissed the claims made by Dominic Nitiwul, explaining that the company had made a presentation to him, a little while after he had been sworn in as Minister

“With great sadness, this statement is untrue, and we would wish to set the records straight. Immediately after the swearing into office of the Defence Minister, a meeting of the Company’s Board was held at Burma Camp, with the Company’s management in attendance. The agenda of the meeting was to discuss all the issues confronting the Company, and to forward same to the Hon. Minister and the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) since both of them had just assumed office and were not yet briefed about the activities and challenges of the Company,” he said.

Nii Konney Laryea added that, the Board had decided to meet with the new Minister, to brief him on the operations of the company, based on which an appointment was made for a meeting at 1:30pm.

“However, the Minister was held up at the Flagstaff House and we patiently waited at till 8:00pm to meet him. We made a 15 minutes summary presentation of the content of the dossier and handed same, together with copies of the minutes of the last Board Meeting to the Minister as per the Board Meeting resolution,” Nii Konney Laryea added.

The management of the company attributed the inability of their Board to meet as regularly as they used to, to the failure of the Minister to respond officially to the dossier they had presented him.

“The Company’s inability to hold a Board Meeting every quarter, which used to be the case, can only be attributed to the Hon. Minister’s neglect or inability to act on the dossier sent to him.”

Shoe factory troubles

Formerly known as the Ghana Industrial Holding Footwear Company Limited (GIHOC), the Kumasi Shoe Factory was revived in 2012 through a joint partnership between a Czech company, Knight Ghana Limited, DIHOC, which is owned by the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF).

The company was tasked with solely producing boots for purchase by the Armed Forces and other security agencies, and footwear for students locally and for export.

However, since then, the factory has been on the verge of collapse, with a tour by government officials in August revealing that only 49 workers were currently employed there.

The factory has reportedly trained over 200 workers, but because of irregular orders, only one-third of them are currently working.

At full capacity, the factory could have about 800 workers, and would create an extra 200 jobs indirectly for distributors.

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By: Edwin Kwakofi/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Nitiwul ‘lied’, he was briefed on Kumasi Shoe Factory – Managers appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

He explained that government remained committed to ensuring the growth of the mining sector but insisted that illegal miners will be dealt with it so long as Operation Vanguard is still functioning under the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government.

[contextly_sidebar id=”RZcOOIg0Cu7Busi8R8A80lELg5OZZM81″]“Nobody is stopping mining, mining will continue to go on still whether it is small or big, but it must be legal. It must be coordinated and it must be regulated so the President decided to form a taskforce with the Military and the Police, 400 men to go and stop illegal mining or Galamsey,” he said.

He further indicated that the state of water bodies has not changed so government is involving the navy to go augment the efforts of the operation vanguard who were already there, the engineering regiment has also moved in to assist to control the activities of illegal mining.

Government set up the anti-illegal mining tax force to flush out illegal miners from mining areas.

Their work has however been hampered by miners on water bodies who often outwit them leading to this latest measure.

The Defence Minister said the government was bent on ending illegal mining.

He pleaded with Ghanaians to support and help government curb this situation once and for all.

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By: Eugenia Tenkorang & Farida Yusif/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The Minister had said Mr. Mahama had  wrongfully acquired lands belonging to the Ghana Armed Forces, and demanded that he vacates his current residence which is reportedly sited on a land belonging to the military.

[contextly_sidebar id=”gtn0PuuWWbvtMP9iAcVg5qmQJSf9uOAu”]According to Mr. Nitiwul, top officials of the Mahama administration sold lands belonging to the Ghana Armed Forces to cronies during the tenure.

The former president’s office issued a statement debunking these claims, describing them as unfounded.

After that earlier statement saying Mr. Nitiwul’s claims were reckless, Madam Mogtari is now calling on him to apologize to the former Head of State and his family.

Speaking on Eyewitness News, she said: “I will call on him to do what is needful; to extend an appropriate apology to the former president and to his office.”

She stressed further that Mr. Nitiwul could have used more appropriate avenues to air his concerns over the land issues instead of ranting to the media.

“I believe there are several modes that he could have used to approach the office of the former president… He could have easily have called me. He could have sent me a text message. None of this was done. In any case, no effort has been made to reach the Office of the former president.”

“…I believe we should all take this matter very seriously. No private individual, no minster should engage the nation and use the name of the former president in such disparaging terms… I think his comments were most unfortunate,” Madam Mogtari added.

Defence of Mahama

As far as the allegations are concerned, Madam Mogtari, in a stern statement released on Thursday, asserted that Mr. Mahama had not taken possession of any land owned by the military.

The statement added that, the property in which the former first family currently resides has been at the site for years.

A former Minister of Lands and Natural Resources under the National Democratic Congress [NDC], administration, Inusah Fuseini, who also owns a property on the supposed military land, said the lands were no longer in the custody of the military when they were sold out.

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

The post Nitiwul must apologize for disrespecting Mahama – Mogtari appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.