Author: newsfilegh

The outbreak of the deadly novel coronavirus in the country has forced the Electoral Commission (EC) to push forward the planned registration exercise for the compilation of a new voters’ register for the December 2020 general elections. It said in a statement Tuesday that it will go ahead with the controversial registration exercise because plans have reached an advance stage, but pointed out it will not be done on the April 18 originally scheduled. “The Commission wishes to state that the compilation of the New Voter’s Register has not been cancelled. Plans are far advanced for the successful take-off of…

Judith Ariho does not shed any tears as she recalls the church massacre in which her mother, two siblings and four other relatives were among at least 700 people who died. Exactly 20 years ago, in south-western Uganda’s Kanungu district, they were locked inside a church, with the doors and windows nailed shut from the outside. It was then set alight. Two decades on, the horror of the event is still too much for Ms Ariho, who appears to only be able to cope with the trauma by closing herself off from the emotion. The dead were members of the…

Euro 2020 has been postponed by one year until 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic. European football’s governing body made the decision during an emergency video conference involving major stakeholders on Tuesday. The tournament, due to take place from 12 June-12 July this summer, will now run from 11 June to 11 July next year. The postponement provides a chance for European leagues that have been suspended to now be completed. By moving the European Championship, Uefa now has a clash with the Women’s European Championship, which is due to be held in England in 2021, beginning on 7 July.…

March salaries of government workers are expected to be paid as scheduled as the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) debunks reports that one of its staff has been quarantined over a suspected case of coronavirus. A blog post widely circulated on social media on Tuesday claimed a staff who returned to Ghana from Italy had been quarantined as part of precautionary measures instituted by the government to prevent the spread of the deadly virus. It suggested payment of salaries of public sector workers for March was going to be delayed because management of CAGD was contemplating quarantining all workers…

Another case of the deadly coronavirus has been recorded in the country, the Ghana Health Service has confirmed. This brings the total number of confirmed cases to 7. “This afternoon (17 March 2020); we have received report from NMIMR that indicated one (1) more confirmed case as positive for COVID-19 in Greater Accra Region,” the Ghana Health Service said on Tuesday. According to the Service, the patient is a 35-year-old male, a Ghanaian citizen, who returned to Accra from France within the past 14 days. The statement on the Service’s website said the case is being managed in isolation and…

The Sekondi Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly is expected to close down all public toilets and bath houses in poor condition effective March 18, 2020. The assembly has already set up a 15-member committee to coordinate activities of sensitization and monitoring to enforce all laid down directives. The Committee which is chaired by the metro director of health is expected to visit the premises of industries, hotels, super markets, night clubs and other health facilities to assess preventive measures they have put in place for patrons of their premises. The assembly will also embark on fumigation exercises in the markets, lorry terminals,…

Doctors in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, have gone on an “indefinite strike” over delayed pay and unsafe working conditions. The announcement came just after Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, confirmed a third case of Covid-19. The president of the Abuja branch of the doctor’s association, Roland Aigbovo, said it was a “difficult decision”. But members had not been paid their salary for two months despite repeated “warnings and ultimatums”, he said. The problems stem from a new payroll system introduced by the authorities in Abuja. Other health workers at government-run hospitals in the city were also affected by the pay dispute…

The Minister of Finance, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, on Tuesday told Parliament that it cost the nation 8.97 million dollars to print the100 and 200 denominations recently introduced. He said the amount was made up of $4.45 million and $4.53 million for the GH¢100 and the GH¢ 200 cedi notes respectively. He added that information obtained from the Bank of Ghana showed that an amount of $5.39 million of the total contract had been paid. “Mr Speaker, the Bank of Ghana is in the process of finalizing their financial statements for 2019. Further details of the cost of the currency management…

The government of Ghana has reviewed the issuance of passports to citizens, effective Tuesday. Only applicants with emergency cases would be attended to, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration has said. A notice issued by the Ministry in Accra on March 17, said the decision is to complement government’s efforts to prevent the spread of the deadly corona virus, now referred to as COVID-19, which has claimed thousands of lives globally. The new measures are however temporary, the ministry explained. “Please note that only Passport Applications with ‘PROOF of EMERGENCY’ will be attended to for the next 4…