According to him, the government must implement the Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education policy as stipulated in the constitution, as a more comprehensive solution to problems in the sector.

[contextly_sidebar id=”QDQUsGjnl4HMQQArDWdK3s1p2nXFjRCs”]Dr. Nduom noted that, the challenges at the basic education level need to be addressed first, to serve as solid foundation for the improvement of secondary and tertiary education in the country.

He made the remarks at the 4^th National Convention of the Progress People’s Party (PPP) at Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region.

“Free SHS is good, but it doesn’t go far enough. What Ghana needs is free compulsory and continuous education, and the PPP will continue to push for it,” he said, while addressing thousands of PPP supporters.

The PPP in an earlier communication, said that the New Patriotic Party’s Free SHS policy which came into force in September 2017, will not help to address the backlog of Junior High School graduates who do not further their education because they do not qualify to enter Senior High School.

Meanwhile, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom has urged President Akufo-Addo not to fail in his promise to facilitate the election of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) by 2019.

He explained that electing MMDCEs would help ensure development in the country, particularly in rural areas.

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By: Farida Yusif/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Free SHS is good but limited – Nduom appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

In a rejoinder sighted by Citi News, the party described the rumours as completely “false.”

The rejoinder said the rumours has it that Dr. Ndoum made such a comment in an interview on his own media outlet.

[contextly_sidebar id=”bcluO60PQkoD8aEbDVCt2C87xX8fXBpK”]“We would like to state categorically that this report is absolutely false… On the said programme which took place on Thursday, 10th August, 2017, Dr Nduom never stated that he will or will not contest elections again,” the statement signed by PPP Communications Director, Paa Kow Ackon added.

It would be recalled that Dr. Nduom during the 2016 electioneering period said Ghanaians had the last opportunity to vote him as President.

The statement added that Dr. Nduom on the programme on GN media platform “rather bemoaned the usual attitude of Ghanaians in not paying attention to candidates who are into politics for the right reasons, but rather vote for politicians who will lie and promise heaven.”

“Dr Nduom called on Ghanaians to elect leaders who will represent the Ghanaians’ interests, and not their individual interests nor the parochial interests of a political party. He reiterated that our taxes pay the wages of our elected representatives and contribute, in part, to the bank accounts of political parties,” the statement added.

Below is the full statement:

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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The post Disregard claims Nduom won’t contest election 2020 – PPP appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

He believes the move is aimed at unlawfully extorting monies from drivers.

[contextly_sidebar id=”uV9fmkOyYyEFZY9e2iUtFYcpNSHx4VCi”]Dr. Nduom wondered why there are plans underway to charge drivers extra mandatory towing levy when the law already mandates the government to tow vehicles that are wrongly parked on roads for a fee.

“Existing laws allow government to tow vehicles wrongfully parked on our roads and charge a fee accordingly. So why assume that we will all engage in illegal parking and require towing and as a result make it mandatory for all vehicle owners to pay a road towing fee every year?” he asked in a statement.

He believes government should let those who “flout the law pay and leave the rest alone.”

Tow levy a total rip-off?

The NRSC has been criticised for attempting to introduce a nationwide towing programme, to ensure that all vehicles that breakdown on highways are cleared off the roads.

Drivers would be required to pay a road safety fee ranging between GHC 10 and GHC 200 in addition to their road worthy certification fees if the tow tax is implemented.

But several pressure groups and civil society organizations have kicked against the policy, calling on government to scrap it immediately.

Despite these calls, the Roads and Transport Committee of Parliament has recommended that government goes ahead with the implementation.

No decision taken yet on tow levy – Transport Ministry

Government has however indicated that it has not taken a decision on the implementation yet.

The Transport Ministry on Friday served notice that it is holding consultations with various stakeholders including the Parliamentary Select Committee on roads and transport on the way forward.

The Ministry in the statement further stated that the views of all stakeholders will be considered to enable it make an informed decision on the matter.

“Thereafter, the Ministry’s decision will be communicated to the general public,” the statement added.

The entire statement from Dr. Nduom is below 

Democratization of Indiscipline on our Roads?

Existing law allow government to tow vehicles wrongfully parked on our roads and charge a fee accordingly.

So why assume that we will all engage in illegal parking and require towing and as a result make it mandatory for all vehicle owners to pay a road towing fee every year?

This smells badly. Chop chop for whom? At whose expense?

Let those who flout the law pay and leave the rest alone.

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By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @EfeAnsah

The post Tow levy “smells badly” – Nduom appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

His comments come in the wake of recent developments, where there were a lot of agitation and confusion over the acceptance of some MMDCE nominees across the country.

[contextly_sidebar id=”78FicxMcH6VrbVyjeObfgUUxQRettMCg”]It will be recalled that during the 2016 electioneering campaign, Dr. Nduom and his PPP had championed this course, calling for the political will to give the franchise to the people at the local level to elect their chief executives.

Speaking on Eezy FM’s Morning Edition, Dr. Nduom described the notion of the appointment of mayors and district executives by ruling political parties to advance their parties’ goals of re-election as archaic and fruitless, since incumbent governments have still lost elections despite such appointments.

Considering recent scandals that have rocked the appointments of some chief executives across the country, Dr. Nduom quizzed why MMDCEs are still being appointed when it has offered no incentive for development.

He said, “Ghana will benefit greatly when the people are able to cast a vote to elect their own metropolitan municipal district executives.”

He intimated that “Ghanaians are smart enough to vote for a president, smart enough to vote for a member of parliament, smart enough to vote for an assembly member and then they are certainly smart enough to vote for their own chief executive.”

He said the district assembly formed an integral part of the governance structure of the country, hence the need for successive governments to resource them.

Ghanaians to elect MMDCEs in 2018 – Nana Addo

President Akufo-Addo has already announced that Ghanaians would be electing their MMDCEs from 2018.

This was announced by the President in the Central Region, after he won the 2016 elections. The election of MMDCEs was one of the promises in the New Patriotic Party’s 2016 manifesto.
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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The business magnate was early this year recognised and commended by the State of Georgia in the United States of America (USA) for his tremendous impact on his community through his spirit of service and desire to improve quality of life in the United States and West Africa.

Dr. Nduom was among some distinguished Ghanaians who were on Saturday evening, June 3, 2017, recognized for their contributions to the development of the country and humanity by the Ghana UK Based Achievement (GUBA) in the UK.

The renowned entrepreneur was the proud recipient of the Ultimate GUBA Black Star Award 2017 in the Excellence in Business Category.

Dr. Nduom and wife, Mrs. Yvonne Nduom, jointly own Groupe Nduom, with over 60 companies, offering employment to many Ghanaians and others in Liberia, Togo, La Cote d’Ivoire (West Africa), the UK and USA.

Groupe Nduom businesses include banking, investment banking, media, electronics, logistics, hospitality, insurance, private equity, pension, sports, academia, estate development among others.

In the USA, Dr. Nduom owns ISF Bank based in Chicago, Illinois.  Also in Liberia, GN Bank, a member of Groupe Nduom, has eight (8) branches.

Dr. Ndoum expressed appreciation to God for the honour done him. According to him, it was through faith that he has been able to get this far.

He also thanked the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GUBA Awards, Dentaa Amoateng, for putting together such an excellent programme.

Other awardees on the night included Mr. and Mrs. Mensah of Uncle John’s Bakery, Ace Investigative Journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas, Vice President, Unilever Francophone Africa, Maidie Elizabeth Akutu, and Managing Director of FACS, Dr. Michael K. Obeng.

The rest were Founder of Kristo Asafo Church, Apostle Dr. Kwadwo Safo, President of Group Ideal, Dr. Nii Kotei Dzani, Kelvin Doe, Dr. Jason Sarfo, Founder and CEO of Rigworld International Services, Dr. Kofi Amoa-Abban, CEO of Angel Herbal Products Industry Limited, Dr. Kwaku Oteng and CEO of Hills Oil Marketing.

Dr. Nduom was accompanied by his wife, his son, Papa Wassa (Chiefy) Nduom, and some of his managers.

They included Chief Executive of Gold Coast Financial Holding, Mr. Kwame Asomaning, Simpson, CEO, GN Life Assurance, Mr. Andrew Fiifi Simpson, and CEO, GN RE-Insurance, Mr. Joseph Kusi-Tieku.

The rest were General Manager (GM), Groupe Corporate Affairs, Mr. Richmond Duke Keelson, GM, Accounting Financial Reporting (AFR), Patricia Agyekum and GM, GN Bank Diaspora Services, Mrs. Hilda Malm.

GUBA Awards is a prestigious annual awards ceremony inaugurated in October 2010.  The event is held to showcase the talent and the achievements within the British Community, and the outstanding and valuable services provided to Ghanaians in the UK and Ghana.

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Source: Groupe Nduom

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The offices of GN Bank, Gold Coast Securities, Amansan TV and Business Television Africa, were all affected by the fire at the hotel, which the fire service said could have been avoided if some basic fire prevention systems were in place.

Speaking to Citi News, the Deputy Public Relations Director of the Fire Service, Prince Billy Anaglatey, stressed that, “there was nothing put in place to protect the place in terms of fire safety.”

Among other things, he said the Service’s preliminary investigation into the fire suggests that “they do not even have smoke detectors on their premises. That was how they didn’t detect the fire in time… even the structure itself is supposed to have total suppression systems, sprinklers, but they did not have all that.”

But Groupe Nduom in a rebuttal statement described the comments of the Deputy PRO as lies.

Below is the full statement

The Ghana Fire Service Can Do Better Than This!

Groupe Nduom has been very measured in our public comments on last Saturday’s fire that swept through a section of Coconut Grove Regency Hotel in Accra. As a responsible corporate entity with international standing, Groupe Nduom believes that rather than taking the Ghana Fire Service (GFS) to task for shortcomings demonstrated, we should support efforts aimed at determining how to resource the GFS better to achieve optimum results.

Groupe Nduom is however compelled to react to some negative comments made by Prince Billy Anaglate, the Deputy PRO of the Ghana National Fire Service. Mr. Anaglate has in media interviews blamed our company for not putting in place basic fire prevention measures at the affected Groupe companies.

For example, he told Citi FM, an Accra based Radio station that Groupe Nduom had not put anything in place to protect the company in terms of fire safety. Groupe Nduom does not only find Mr Anaglate’s assertion unfortunate but pedestrian and reckless. We do not know who he is trying to protect with his blame game. A PRO’s job cannot be to peddle lies and paint others in a negative light.

He should not test our resolve on the issue; we have lost millions of Ghana Cedis as a result of last Saturday’s fire. We do not need the state organization whose job is to assist those facing fire accidents to rather put pepper in our wounds. There is no doubt that we lost a lot through the unprofessional handling of the fire by the GFS and we were silently albeit painfully counting our losses. But we cannot allow our reputation to be dragged in the mud by someone who obviously has not taken time to get his facts straight.

We realized through our ordeal that the GFS faces obvious logistical problems. This, we believe should form the basis of a broader discourse with the view of avoiding similar fire situations in the future. In effect, we the most affected entity have tried to avoid any form of emotional and parochial discussion of the issue.
But for Mr. Anaglate to suggest that our offices at the Coconut Grove Regency Hotel did not have fire detectors and extinguishers at the time of the incident is something we cannot allow to pass without correction. We emphasise that every facility at the Coconut Grove Regency compound has fire detectors and extinguishers. Ironically, we bought these equipment from the Ghana Fire Service itself and we have receipts to that effect.

Coconut Grove Regency Hotel has a standing relationship with the Ghana Fire Service where they (Fire Service) take our staff through periodic fire fighting measures. We want to tell Mr. Anaglate that we have a GFS certificate commending us for taking up the GFS orientations. Amansan Television (ATV), one of our offices that was gutted by the fire last Saturday has a special fire segment on its ‘Anopa Bosuo’ morning show programme that he appears on to educate people on Fire Safety measures. So what is he talking about?

Perhaps we should not be surprised at the latest spin by Mr. Anaglate. This is a man who has since day one of the incident sought alibi in many lame and ungrounded lies. First he said the Fire Service got hint of the fire incident through a commercial taxi driver when in fact the distress call to the office of the Fire Service was made by a staff of Groupe Nduom Corporate Affairs.

After falling flat to that obvious lie, he tried albeit unsuccessful to impugn that they got to the fire site just three minutes after report by the so-called faceless taxi driver. The truth however has emerged that the Fire Service personnel got to the scene well over twenty minutes after getting the distressed call from our employee.

He has also wrongfully suggested that the generator at the Coconut Grove Regency Hotel was running and that resulted in the widespread of the blazing fire. Indeed the generator at the hotel was immediately put off when the fire started.

In any case, if the Fire personnel were up to the task, why didn’t they put off the fire when it started as something small at only one of the 12 offices that the fire finally destroyed?

Unfortunately for him, many Ghanaians watched the blazing fire live as they went round their work rather amateurishly. We have many videos that show how it took almost two hours for the fire to spread while GFS people watched and did nothing to help.

We still insist that the Ghana Fire Service needs help. Some weeks ago at Teshie-Nungua in the Greater Accra Region, some four Fire Service personnel got injured in a fire combating operation. They were made to take a loan of GHC1000.00 to cater for their hospital expenses. Where is the motivation for anyone to offer his all in any fire fighting mission?

Again we want to point out that 20 officers of their National Headquarters share seven (7) fire fighting uniforms in operations similar to what was experienced at the Coconut Grove Hotel. Also, during their abortive fire combat at the Coconut Grove Regency Hotel, fire fighters had only four oxygen masks which got finished within a matter of 20 minutes.

As a result, the officers could not enter the building to put out the fire. How can we expect personnel of the Service to offer their best in any firefighting situation? The GFS needs help and their PRO will do the service well by focusing on this rather than seeking to blame victims of their inadequacies.
We suggest that Mr. Anaglate should learn the art of Public Relations better rather than resorting to propaganda that in the end only exposes the weaknesses of his employer.

Richmond Duke Keelson
Groupe Nduom Corporate Affairs
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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Groupe Nduom blasts Billy Anaglate for ‘lying’ about Coconut Grove fire appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Speaking to Citi News after inspecting the extent of damage from the fire incident, Mr. Brew Hammond said they believe that the extent of destruction from the fire could have been minimal if the Fire Service was adequately resourced to deal with the fire on the onset.

[contextly_sidebar id=”GuFnJNwnA037FiOxap892zwXPxlNQB0T”]“It was a shock to all of us, the CEO of Groupe Nduom is aware of it, he has been informed. The fire department has come to do its best together with the Airforce fire department, we are now out to assess the damage…. He was shocked. In my interaction with him a few hours ago was a sense of shock and believes that it was something that could be avoided if the fire department was properly resourced with water and fire hydrants and all of what it takes to put out a small fire that ought not to spread to the degree it did,” he said.

A part of the hotel that houses Business Television Africa (BTA), Amansan TV (ATV), GN Bank and Gold Coast Securities was ravaged by fire around 4.30pm.

Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, who owns the affected properties and is also the founder of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP).

Only two weeks ago the roof of the presidential  candidate’s Elmina Stadium was ripped off by a rainstorm.

It took the combined efforts of personnel from the Ghana National Fire Service and the Fire Department of the Ghana Air Force more than 3 hours to contain the fire.

Meanwhile, managers of the hotel have revealed that the inferno was sparked by fire from an air-conditioning facility at Amansan Television (ATV) which shares a compound with the hotel.

A statement from the hotel clarified that its restaurant, conference facilities and guest rooms were not affected by the fire.

“It is important to note that the Regency Hotel and its restaurant, guest rooms and conference facilities are intact and were not touched by the fire,” it said.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @jnyabor

The post Nduom ‘shocked’ by Coconut Grove fire appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to him, the incident is a “major loss” to the country’s hospitality industry.

John Mahama, who also contested the 2016 presidential race on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) posted on Facebook on Sunday, April 23, 2017 that; “Yesterday’s fire at Coconut Grove Regency Hotel is a major loss to our hospitality industry. My thoughts are with Dr and Mrs Nduom and workers of Group Nduom.”

A part of the hotel that houses Business Television Africa (BTA), Amansan TV (ATV), GN Bank and Gold Coast Securities was ravaged by fire on Saturday evening.

It took fire officers more than 3 hours to contain the fire which started at about 4.30pm.

The affected properties are all owned by Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom.

Meanwhile, owners of the hotel have revealed that the inferno was sparked by fire from an air-conditioning facility at Amansan Television (ATV) which shares a compound with the hotel.

A statement from the hotel clarified that its restaurant, conference facilities and guest rooms were not affected by the fire.

“It is important to note that the Regency Hotel and its restaurant, guest rooms and conference facilities are intact and were not touched by the fire,” it said.

Nduom stadium roof ripped off

Dr. Nduom last week suffered a similar fate when his stadium which serves as home grounds for his football club, Elmina Sharks, had its roof ripped off following a heavy storm in the capital city of the Central Region, Cape Coast.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Coconut Grove fire: Mahama commiserates with Nduom appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The hotel owned by businessman and the 2016 flagbearer of the Progressive People’s Party, Papa Kwesi Nduom was gutted by fire on Saturday.

Reports indicate that the fire spread from TV station, ATV which is also close to the hotel.

The Deputy Public Relations Officer for the Ghana National Fire Service, Prince Billy Anaglatey told the media that no casualties were recorded.

He said 12 fire tenders were deployed to the place to contain the fire.

Rooms intact

Citi News’ Jonas Nyabor reported that the hotel rooms were not affected adding that only the adjoining structures were razed.

Interior Minister arrives at hotel

The Minister of Interior, Ambrose Dery who was also at the place told the media that the President has been briefed on the matter.

Mr. Dery said he expects a full scale investigation and a report to provide guidance on how to effectively tackle such fires in the future.

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

The post Fire at Coconut Grove hotel brought under control appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to him, the mere presentation of the Joe Ghartey committee report does not end the issue of bribery against the house.

[contextly_sidebar id=”BRW6VYmWQxCCZ05gGanuq9nxkHwjHTa6″]In a statement copied to citifmonline.com, Dr. Nduom said, many Ghanaians still believe that legislators take bribes from persons who seek favours from them.

“The report presented by the Ghartey Committee on the alleged bribery of Appointment Committee members cannot end that matter. A section of the public believes that MPs demand inducements before they act. This perception must not be allowed to stand. Some even say that bad loans and laws approved by Parliament are due to such inducements,” the statement said.

The statement warned that “people may take matters into their owns hands” if parliament does not deliberately work to clear the perception of corruption tied to Members of Parliament.

“The responsibility lies with the Speaker and the Leadership to address this matter positively. If the representatives of the people don’t open up and address these allegations in a manner that receives the approval of many, the people may one day take matters into their own hands.”

Parliament is still reeling from a bribery allegation that was raised by the Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga, against the Minister for Energy, Boakye Agyarko.

Mahama Ayariga alleged that, Mr. Agyarko sent a bribe of GH¢ 3,000 each, to minority members of Parliament’s Appointments Committee through its Chairman, Joe Osei-Owusu, to ensure that he was easily approved by consensus during his vetting.

With Mr. Osei-Owusu and others mentioned in the scandal denying it, the speaker of Parliament constituted a fact-finding committee to look into the matter.

The committee, led by Joe Ghartey in its report presented to parliament last week, found Mahama Ayariga guilty of contempt of parliament, and recommended that he unreservedly apologize to Joe Osei Owusu and the Energy minister for smearing them.

But an unhappy Ayariga who reluctantly apologized on the floor of the house, had left the matter still inconclusive, with the Speaker of Parliament, Prof. Oquaye, indefinitely deferring his ruling on the matter.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Joe Ghartey c’ttee report doesn’t end bribery case – Nduom appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.