MSF-backed Syria hospital bombed

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MSF-backed Syria hospital bombed

More casualties are feared buried under the rubble of buildings in Aleppo
More casualties are feared buried under the rubble of buildings in Aleppo

At least 14 patients and three doctors have been killed in an air strike on a hospital in the Syrian city of Aleppo, the charity Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF) says.

Among those killed in the MSF-supported al-Quds hospital was one of the city’s last paediatricians, MSF said. Local sources have blamed the Syrian government or Russian war planes, but there has been no official comment. Monitors say attacks by both sides left 34 dead and dozens wounded on Thursday. Violence in Syria has intensified in recent days, despite a partial truce. The upsurge in violence comes amid reports that the Syrian army, backed by Russian air power, is gearing up for a major offensive in Aleppo. The escalation has threatened to derail the UN-brokered peace talks, which resumed last month. On Wednesday, the UN envoy to Syria urged the US and Russia to intervene “at the highest level” to save the talks.

‘Direct strike’

“MSF-supported hospital in Aleppo destroyed, at least 14 patients and staff killed, toll expected to rise,” MSF tweeted on Thursday. It said that the hospital was well known locally and had been hit by a direct air strike on Wednesday. “We condemn the destruction of the al-Quds hospital, depriving people of essential healthcare,” the charity added. An activist at the scene, named as Zuhair, told the BBC that buildings around the hospital were also hit. “It was an air strike by two rockets, heavy rockets from [a] Russian air strike,” he said. “Near the hospital one building on five floors just crumbled and just crashed down and we don’t know how many dead will be under these ruins.”
Syrian family amid rubble of destroyed buildings in Aleppo on April 28, 2016
Image captionThe air strikes threaten to sink the Geneva peace talks
The civil defence agency, which is staffed by volunteers, said the hospital and surrounding buildings were hit by four consecutive air strikes. Rami Abdurahman, head of the monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, named the paediatrician killed as Mohammed Wasim Moaz, 36. He told the BBC that Mr Moaz was the last paediatrician in the rebel-held part of Aleppo and another was to be sent on Thursday to take his place. The Observatory said rebel rocket fire on government-held areas on Thursday had killed 14 civilians while attacks by pro-government forces on rebel neighbourhoods had killed at least 20 people.

Analysis by Jim Muir, BBC News, Beirut

The two-month-old “cessation of hostilities”, which brought at least a relative lull to some parts of Syria, is indeed “hanging by a thread” as the UN mediator Staffan de Mistura put it. One of the reasons why it is now at death’s door was reflected in the fact that from the outset it was not called a ceasefire or even a truce, because several factions were excluded, including not just the Islamic State militants but also the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front. Nusra fighters are present in almost all combat zones, and are mixed up with other groups such as Ahrar al-Sham that Russia is now pressing to have added to the international terror list. That has meant that hostilities have continued and intensified in many areas, with the government able to claim its attacks are legitimate. Now state forces are reported to be building up in Aleppo as violence escalates there, raising fears that a long and costly all-out battle for the contested city may be looming. That would put paid both to the lull and to the Geneva peace talks, prompting the UN envoy to urge the US, Russians and others to press their clients on the ground to ease off, so that stalled negotiations have a chance of resuming.
Syrian state news made no mention of the hospital attack but also said that rebel shelling had killed at least 14 civilians in government-held areas in the north of the city. Over the past week, more than 100 civilians have been killed in renewed bombardment by both rebel and government forces in Syria’s largest city, according to the UK-based Observatory.
Graph showing Syrian death toll
Speaking on Wednesday after briefing the UN Security Council on the peace process, the envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, warned that the fragile cessation of hostilities agreed in February could collapse “at any time”. He said that over the past 48 hours an average of one Syrian had been killed every 25 minutes and one wounded every 13 minutes. For the peace talks in Geneva to succeed, he added, hostilities would need to be reduced to the levels immediately following the February agreement. Calling on the US and Russia to co-operate, Mr de Mistura said the legacies of both President Barack Obama and President Vladimir Putin were linked to the success of the peace process in Syria. More than 270,000 people have been killed since Syria’s bitter civil war conflict erupted in 2011 and millions have been forced to flee.
Syria areas of control map
  Source: BBC

Investment expert bemoans Ghanaians attitude towards long term investment

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Investment expert bemoans Ghanaians attitude towards long term investment
first banc Fund Manager of the First Banc Heritage Fund, Winslow Sackeyfio has bemoaned the low level of interest of Ghanaians in long term investment. Mr Sackeyfio said this attitude has more to do with the Ghanaian culture and upbringing. He was speaking at the 5th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the First Banc Heritage Fund in Accra. “We are extremely short term. Very few Ghanaians think long term. Ghanaians are naturally short term, and when it comes to investment, we are extremely bad. The normal period for long term is 5-10 years, but in Ghana, its 3-5 years. If you talk to a Ghanaian about 5-10 years investment, you won’t see them again. It’s more of a culture thing, and its affecting our investment life style,” he lamented. According to him, education was the only means to salvage the situation “The only way out is education. We at Heritage Fund go out to schools, institutions, and hold seminars and forums, on the relevance and the need to venture into long term,” he said. He enumerated the returns the Heritage Fund has made, reiterating the funds commitment to risk management. “Compared to a market of 11.1, which shows we outperformed the central market. We attained this height based on astute measures and good customer relations. We are optimistic about the fund, and will make more returns come next year,” he optimized. In spite of the unimpressive performance of the stock market, the Heritage Fund made profit returns of 4.23% at the end of 2015, making more returns than the central bank of Ghana The First Banc Heritage Fund is a long term investment fund, which remains committed to ensuring solid growth and long term value.   Story by Grace Asare | 3FM | 3news.com                  

FDA to certify palm oil dealers in VR

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FDA to certify palm oil dealers in VR
palm oil The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) is working towards certifying traders in palm oil in the Volta Region.
The certification is to help bring some regulation into the industry and ensure that the public consumed quality palm oil. Mr Eugene Addo, the Regional Director of the Authority, announced this at a sensitisation programme for dealers in the industry at the Ho Central Market, on Tuesday. He said the initiative followed a post market survey, which indicated that some traders in the Region were adulterating palm oil with the “Sudan iv dye”, a chemical described as “genotoxic” and carcinogenic”. Mr Addo said out of 118 samples tested, 30 had traces of Sudan IV dye, an indication that there was adulteration of the product in the chain. He described the percentage of adulteration as alarming and warned that after the sensitisation and certification, culprits would be dealt with severely. Mr Addo said the Authority was compiling a database for traders in the industry, after which it would give tags for easy identification by the public as certified dealers. Madam Theresa Mansah Dagbe, the Ho Market Queen, commended the FDA for the efforts at protecting consumers and urged it to visit the market regularly to help check substandard foods and drugs. Some dealers in palm oil expressed concern about the adulteration of the product, saying that they were frustrated about their inability to detect fake products from suppliers.   Source: GNA | Ghana

Zanetor Rawlings now a registered voter

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Zanetor Rawlings now a registered voter
Dr. Zanetor Agyeman Rawlings Dr. Zanetor Rawlings has now been cleared to cast her ballot in the 2016 general elections after she got registered as a voter today. The daughter of former President Jerry John Rawlings registered Thursday at the Nyaniba Polling Station in the Klottey Korle constitution of the Greater Accra Region. Her registration would come as a big relief to supporters of Zanetor, who is the National Democratic Congress parliamentary nominee for the Klottey Korle constituency. Her candidature has been dogged with controversy following revelation that she was not a registered voter in Ghana. The incumbent Member of Parliament for Klottey Korle, Nii Armah Ashietey has even dragged her to an Accra High Court praying it to declare her election by the party as null and void. Dr Zanetor has also filed application at the Supreme Court challenging the capacity of the High Court to hear the case concerning her candidature. Hearing was adjourned on Wednesday to May 3. Zanetor ID As the challenge to her candidacy bothered on the fact that she is not a registered voter, the embattled medical doctor took advantage of the 10-day limited registration by the Electoral Commission which began today. It is however not clear if her opponent will prosecute the case further in court. Story by Isaac Essel | 3news.com | Ghana

First Banc’s mutual funds make huge returns

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First Banc’s mutual funds make huge returns
investmentTwo mutual funds managed by the First Banc Financial Services made substantial gains in the year 2015, bringing high revenues to shareholders who invested in the funds.
First Fund which is a short term investment and the Heritage Fund, a long term investment, made 38.76% and 4.23% return on investment respectively. The First Fund recorded a net interest income of more than GHC9.7 million as against GHC 4.7 million it earned in 2014 while the Heritage Fund made GHC 97,437 which is above the GHC 68,667 it made last year. Meanwhile, the total value of assets under the management of the First Fund reached GHC 44.75 million, rising by 94 per cent from 2014’s GHC22.8 million and the heritage fund also grew at a rate of 6.32% in 2015 hitting more than GHC 1.5 million last year. “Increase in net income is attributed to higher volume of business and higher market rates during the year,” the Chief Investment Officer and the Managing Director of the First Banc Financial Services, Samuel Annie Aseidu said at an Annual General Meeting. In addition, “the high performance of the funds is due to the risk mitigation measures and the diversified portfolios of the funds,” he said. He said the managers of the funds were committed to ensuring that contributors would receive high earnings on their investment. The First Fund alone has a shareholder base of almost 10,000 investors. “We are hoping for improvement in the investment portfolio this year as we hope to attract bulk investors to the fund,” he maintained. At the annual general meeting, shareholders passed a resolution to permit management of the First Fund to waive charges for investors that are willing to pay more than GHC 500,000 into the fund for a period of a year. This, according, to Mr Aseidu will position the fund to attract almost GHC40miilion worth of investment from the pension fund. “We are preparing to open an office in Tema to provide services to residents of the city and neighboring towns such as Ningo and Pampram, however, feasibility studies to possibly enter the Takoradi and Kumasi markets are also under way,” he said. Nii Okai Tetteh | Onua FM | 3news.com

EC’s nationwide limited voter registration begins Thursday

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EC’s nationwide limited voter registration begins Thursday
voter registration2 The Electoral Commission has begun registering potential first time voters in a 10-day limited registration exercise across the nation from today, Thursday, April 28.
At least 3,000 registration centers are expected to be mounted for the exercise, which is scheduled to end on Sunday, May 8. It is the first exercise of the Electoral Commission of Ghana as regards preparations towards the 2016 elections. Chair of the Commission Charlotte Osei has already assured of the EC’s preparations for the exercise. The 25 registered political parties are expected to be represented at each center by their agents. Poor education, wrong timing Some Ghanaians have expressed concerns about the low level of sensitization in heralding the exercise. Others think the EC appears to have a misplaced priority after it launched a five-year strategic plan including the launch of a new logo two days prior to the registration exercise. Head of the Political Science Department of the University of Ghana Dr Bossman Asare in an interview on TV3’s News 360 on Wednesday, April 27 said “not a lot of public education has gone into it”. He said most of the targeted Ghanaians – those who recently turned 18 – are currently in schools, questioning the timing of the exercise. “We know a number of the students are writing the WASSCE and most of them should be 18 and above and we know that the system should be very fair for them to take part in the process.” NDC ‘over-ready’ Speaking on TV3’s News@10 on Wednesday, National Organiser of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Kofi Adams expressed confidence in the EC ahead of the exercise. Mr Adams said the ruling party has already deployed agents to all registration centers, charging each of them to be bold to challenge any persons suspected to be less than 18 years. “I hear there are some people who are bringing fake birth certificates and the rest to justify their ages. We are checking very well on that and crosschecking with serial numbers of all those information to make sure that those who are not qualified to register will not find their names in the register. “We are more than ready for the exercise.” NPP not satisfied On behalf of his party, Director of Elections for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah said the NPP has put in place measures to “properly” accocunt for “whatever” registration that comes in daily. “We are going to seriously guard this process,” he stressed. He, however, expressed disappointment in the Commission’s preparedness in terms of sensitization towards the exercise. “Yesterday, today all media attention has been on a certain logo and a certain strategic plan when you are planning to bring about 1.2 million new voters on your register. Such an important exercise.” PNC taking exercise seriously The People’s National Convention (PNC) says the exercise is such an important process not only for its new members but also for Ghanaians. It says its flagbearer’s campaign has targetted potential first-time voters, tagging them the ‘New Force’. “The future of Ghana lies on the shoulder of these young people,” said Atik Mohammed, the General Secretary of the party. He said the PNC will deploy agents to all registration centers for the exercise. By Emmanuel Kwame Amoh|3news.com|Ghana Twitter: @kwame_amoh

Venezuela introduces two-day week to deal with energy crisis

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Venezuela introduces two-day week to deal with energy crisis
Shops have been operating without electricity for several hours a day because of power cuts introduced this year
Shops have been operating without electricity for several hours a day because of power cuts introduced this year
Venezuela’s government has imposed a two-day working week for public sector workers as a temporary measure to help it overcome a serious energy crisis. Vice-President Aristobulo Isturiz announced that civil servants should turn up for work only on Mondays and Tuesdays until the crisis was over. Venezuela is facing a major drought, which has dramatically reduced water levels at its main hydroelectric dam. But the opposition has accused the government of mismanaging the crisis. The measures announced on national television by Mr Isturiz affect two million public sector workers. “There will be no work in the public sector on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, except for fundamental and necessary tasks,” he said. Waiting for rain President Nicolas Maduro had already given most of Venezuela’s 2.8 million state employees Fridays off during April and May, to cut down on electricity consumption. He said Venezuela had been badly hit by the El Nino weather phenomenon and would return to normal when it started raining again. “We are requesting international help, technical and financial aid to help revert the situation,” he said. “We are managing the situation in the best possible way while we wait for the rains to return.” “Several countries in the region have been affected by the drought, caused by El Nino. But Venezuela has the highest domestic consumption of energy.” The government has already adopted a number of other measures to try to deal with the crisis. In February, shopping centres were told to reduce their opening hours and generate their own energy. Last week, the government said it would consider putting the clocks forward by half an hour to reduce demand for electricity in the early evening. It also announced it was introducing power cuts for four hours a day. The power shortages have deepened the country’s serious economic crisis. Many businessmen and opposition politicians blame the energy crisis and shortages of basic goods on government economic mismanagement. They say tough currency controls introduced in 2003 by the late president, Hugo Chavez, have only made this worse. But Venezuela’s economy has also been hit by a sharp fall in the price of its main export, oil. Source: BBC

Akufo-Addo inaugurates 19 campaign committees

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Akufo-Addo inaugurates 19 campaign committees
???????????????????????????????????? The 2016 presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, on Tuesday, April 26, inaugurated campaign sector committees of the party, tasked with the formulation of the policies and programmes the party will be presenting in the campaign to the Ghanaian electorate ahead of the conduct of this year’s polls. The 19 sector committees, comprising a total of some 150 members, are also to articulate the party’s messages in their respective areas, defend the party’s messages and contribute to the making of the party’s manifesto. The ceremony, which had Alhaji Dr. MahamaduBawumia, running mate to Nana Akufo-Addo; C.K. Tedam, Chairman of the Council of Elders; Hon. OseiKyei-Mensa-Bonsu, MP, Minority Leader in Parliament; KwabenaAbankwahYeboah, National Treasurer; OtikoAfisaDjaba, National Women’s Organiser; Sammy Awuku, National Youth Organiser; Kamal DeenAbdulai, National Nasara Coordinator; Peter Mac Manu, Campaign Manager,and members of the National Campaign Coordinating Committee attending, took place at the Nima residence of the NPP flagbearer. Addressing the members of the committees, Nana Akufo-Addo noted that the party was undertaking the final processes of its preparations for election 2016, having completed 273 out of 275 parliamentary primaries, and inaugurated all regional campaign teams and a majority of constituency campaign teams. The inauguration of the sector committees represented one of the final steps towards positioning the party for the battle ahead to wrestle political power from the incompetent Mahama government, and return the country back onto the path of progress and prosperity. The newly inaugurated campaign committees are in the following sectors: Economy; Trade and Industry; Agriculture; Employment; Energy; Roads and Highways; Infrastructure; Natural Resources; Education; Health; Science, Technology, Innovation and Environment; and Local Government. The rest are Foreign Affairs; Governance; Public Accountability; Security; Gender, Disabilities and Children; Tourism, Chieftaincy and Creative Arts; and Youth and Sports. These committees, Nana Akufo-Addo added, will help formulate policies that, God-willing from January 2017, will be implemented by a competent team so that the Ghanaian people will gain relief from the hardships and suffering they are currently facing under the incompetent Mahama government. “The difficulties facing our people are there for all to see and feel. As a result, Ghanaians are calling for the return of the NPP. We must answer the call. We need to show the Ghanaian people that we are, indeed, ready, willing and able to transform the fortunes of our country. I need your active support to reach this goal, for which I was elected by an overwhelming majority of the grassroots of the party,” he said. On the discordant voices within the membership of the NPP, who have made it a point of expressing all kinds of negative views, largely about him, Nana Akufo-Addo stated that “I’m not disturbed, because I understand that this is the price of leadership. “All members of our party have a role to play in the party’s victory, and I am calling on all members to work hard towards our victory. I welcome everyone’s contribution. I have always stood and will always stand for the collective,” he said. Below are the chairpersons of the various committees, who will act as their spokespersons: SECTOR COMMITTEES  
  1. Mahamudu Bawumia — Economy
  2. Alan Kyerematen — Trade/Industry
  3. Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto— Agriculture
  4. Stephen Asamoah Boateng   —- Employment
  5. Boakye Agyarko —- Energy
  6. Kwabena Owusu Aduomi  —-  Roads/Highways
  7. Joe Ghartey — Infrastructure (Communications, Maritime and Railways, Water & Housing)
  1. Christine Churcher —Natural Resources
  2. Daniel Anleu-Mwine Bagah — Education
  3. Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh — Health
  4. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng — Science, Technology, Innovation & Environment
  1. Hajia Alima Mahama —  Local Government
  2. Isaac Osei — Foreign Affairs
  3. J. Ayikoi Otoo — Governance
  4. Kwaku Agyemang Manu — Public Accountability
  5. Dominic Nitiwul — Security
  6. Ursula Owusu Ekuful — Gender, Disabilities and Children
  1. Kofi Dzamesi Tourism,  — Chieftaincy and Creative Arts
  1. Isaac Asiamah — Youth and Sports

Dzifa Attivor’s tribal comments : NPP demands apology

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Dzifa Attivor’s tribal comments : NPP demands apology
Dzifa Attivor
Dzifa Attivor

The New Patriotic Party has asked former Transport Minister, Dzifa Attivor, to retract and apologise for the tribalistic comments she made to supporters of the National Democratic Congress.

Mrs Attivor, in the Volta region, urged NDC supporters in the region to vote massively to retain the NDC otherwise NDC members in the Volta Region would be jailed should the NPP win the 2016 election.

She said a New Patriotic Party (NPP) government in 2017 will arrest ministers under the NDC government just like it did in 2001, when the NPP assumed the reins of government. She mentioned the incarceration of Tsatsu Tsikata, Victor Selormey and Dan Abodakpi as examples.

But the NPP has taken exception to such comments describing it as unacceptable, noting it has the tendency to bring chaos into the country. “The comment is tantamount to chaos. It is not good for our democracy and it is not good for the sub-region,” Volta Regional Chairman of the NPP, Peter John Amewu, told host of Onua FM’s Yen Sempa Kwame Karikari  on Wednesday

He said “such comments are below the belt. They are ethnocentric comments and very tribalistic which has the tendency of breaking the nation”.

Mr. Amewu disagreed with Mrs Attivor on the claim that those people who were incarcerated were witch hunted, saying  “the people who were sentenced for causing financial loss to the State were not only Voltarians. As we speak today, the NDC is trying Woyome, so are we saying the NDC is victimizing the NDC?”

The NPP Chairman said “this comment is highly unacceptable and she needs to come back and apologize to the good people of Ghana”.

Touching on the call by Mrs Attivor to the people to invite their relatives in Togo to come and register in the upcoming limited voters registration, Mr Amewu said

By Kweku Antwi-Otoo|Onua 95.1FM| 3news.com

NPP must sit up because Mahama is working –Nyaho-Tamakloe assesses

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NPP must sit up because Mahama is working –Nyaho-Tamakloe assesses
tractor Suspended founding member of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakloe says President Mahama has provided ample evidence of working for the people of Ghana. He has therefore charged his own party to retrace it steps else it is bound to fail in the forthcoming general elections. The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has accused President John Mahama of abuse of incumbency citing the President’s ‘Accounting to the people tour’ as a campaign. The party says the President is deceiving the people of Ghana with the tour. But Dr. Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakloe in an interview on 3FM’s Sunrise Morning show stated that President Mahama has so far proven to Ghanaians that he is indeed working since he embarked on the tour. “Until quite recent all of us thought the NDC was sleeping and I’m being very frank with you until Mahama or Dramani started moving about then we got to know exactly that they are working and indeed they are working. “We all see physically all the commissioning of projects, and we are seeing all these with our own eyes so you can’t tell me that they are not working because they are working. “It is then that we are now awakened and know that we have to sit up and we can sit up and find an election when we have our house totally destroyed.” Responding to criticism that the President has been on commissioning spree and neglecting other important assignments, Dr. Tamakloe gave a few examples of previous governments that did the same and says he sees nothing wrong with it. “We have the colonial government where the governor and the governor general commissioned few projects. “We’ve had Nkrumah who definitely commissioned few projects as well “When we came into the civil setup that is after the overthrow of Nkrumah and we came into military rule, the generals were commissioning projects left, right and center. “Then we had Liman era and before even Liman we had Busia and projects were being commissioned so I don’t see what is wrong if the President commissions projects. “What I would say rather for my party is that we should rather focus on our own campaign as a political party and leave Dramani to do his thing. “We should not forget that there is nowhere in the law or constitution of this country is stated that the President cannot commission projects”.   Story by Nana Afrane Asante | 3news.com | Ghana
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