Compiled by Richard Kofi Attenkah.

Tema-based Fixit Fast ICT Center has organised an ICT Quiz for selected schools within the Metropolitan area dubbed Tema Metro Fixit Fast ICT Quiz, to help the students to take their lessons seriously.

Initially, the Metropolis was divided into three, namely, Tema West, Tema East and Tema Central, where representatives of registered schools contested for honours.

“We started the quiz at the Tema East sub-metro. Each sub-metro was divided into two groups for the purpose of the quiz, and the winner from each group was selected to contest at the grand finale, which is the Tema Metro Fixit Fast ICT Quiz,” Mr. George Boateng, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Center, told Tema File.
He continued: “There were 11 schools in the Tema East Sub-Metro, and at the end of that contest, which was held at the Twedaase JHS, two schools – Shinning Star JHS and Twedaase JHS – came tops.
“There were nine schools at the Tema Central Sub-Metro, which took place at the Tema Community Eight No 1 JHS, and we picked the winners of each group,” he explained.
According to him, the quiz for the Tema West Sub-Metro, which comprised of 14 schools, was held at the Sakumono School Complex on September 29, 2016.
At the end of the contest, Star Junior High School (JHS) emerged winner of the maiden Tema Metro Fixit Fast ICT Quiz, which was organised by Fixit Fast ICT Center, based at Community One (1), a suburb of Tema.
The school received two sets of computers and a trophy as its prize, while each of the two students who represented the school, walked home with three sets of ICT books, a pen drive, as well as a certificate each from Fixit Fast ICT Center.
The first runner up was St. Stephen JHS, which had 22 points, one less than what the overall winner got (23), followed by Naylor SDA JHS, with 20 points.
St. Stephen JHS received, as its prize, a computer, while the two students who contested on behalf of the school, were given a certificate and pen drive each.
On its part, Naylor SDA JHS received a Samsung printer, and the two contestants each had a certificate and three sets of ICT books.
Speaking in an interview with the Accra File, George Boateng said the decision to organise the quiz came up, when “My team of ICT experts conducted a survey throughout the Tema Metro.”

He explained that during their research, they discovered that the students needed some support to make what they were being taught in school complete, adding, it was at this juncture that “we sent a proposal to the Ghana Education Service (GES) to conduct an ICT quiz for all the JHS schools within the Metropolis, to enhance teaching and learning of ICT in the various schools.
“GES gave us the approval, and sent letters to all the 174 junior high schools within the Metropolis to apply to participate in the quiz, and majority of the schools applied. Application was free, and the questions were based on the GES syllabus,” he continued.

The Fixit Fast ICT Center boss said it was their hope that, all things being equal, next year, they would include Ashaiman and Nungua to the quiz, and then, in their third year, they would go regional.
He was optimistic that by their fourth year, they hope to go national, adding, “It is our vision that we take this programme globally, where representatives of Ghana would be competing with other countries in ICT quiz.”

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Staff and students of Martin Luther King Jnr. Schools at Ashaiman-Lebanon, near Tema, over the weekend held a graduation ceremony for final year students of the school.

The ceremony coincided with the launching of the 25^th Anniversary of the school.

It was under the theme ‘Quality Education: a Vital Tool for Ensuring Peace and Unity’.

The Guest Speaker, Professor Emmanuel Acheampong of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), highly commended the school for its extraordinary academic and extracurricular accomplishments, and urged the management and teachers to do even more to further raise the enviable achievements of the school.

He noted that education serves as the pillar and engine of societal transformation in any country, of which peace and unity serve as pivot.

“Countries such as India, US and Germany have, and are, experiencing peace and unity, because of the priority they gave to education,” he pointed out.

In other countries, he said, bad leadership, mis-governance and inequity in resource distribution, among others, have contributed to lack of educational infrastructure and poor remuneration of teachers, leading to their lack of commitment, and subsequently, and a high level of illiteracy on the part of the citizenry.

He stated that policy inconsistency and politicisation of educational policies and programmes have also largely contributed to the high illiteracy rate in those countries.

Professor Acheampong said, in order for the nation to step up its literacy drive, it would be vital for teachers to display intellectual honesty, and also by disseminating the idea of peace and conflict resolution.

Earlier, in a welcome address, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the school, Mr. Emmanuel Max-Voy, recounted the history and said the laurels of the school were not achieved on a silver platter.

He indicated that private schools are playing critical roles, such as fostering academic excellence and high achievements, educating the child within a valve-based setting, and preparing the youngsters towards a successful future.

He said the uniqueness of private schools like Martin Luther King Junior is that they develop children’s talents through extra-curricular activities in music, sports and the creative arts.

“Our way of educating the child is not to crowd them into classrooms. The class size should be small, and quality of teaching, high,” he stated, adding that school proprietors should emulate the example set by Martin Luther King Schools to achieve perfect results.

The Chief Executive explained that pupils in private schools are not only taught book knowledge, but also trained to be critical thinkers and problem solvers, with the ability to foster and respond to today’s changing needs.

He urged parents to continue to invest in their children’s education, adding that they would reap the results in the not too distant future, when their children would take responsible positions in society.

Touching on the impending general elections, Mr. Max-Voy appealed to Ghanaians to give peace a chance, before, during, and after the polls.

“We should use other countries which have gone through election violence as case studies, and make sure it does not happen in Ghana,” he advised.

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By Pascal Kafu Abotsi

(pascalkafu@yahoo.com)

For not only neglecting, but also failing to protect the interests of the people of La and Ga-Dangme, a group calling itself the Coalition of La Youth (COLA) has waged war on the Mahama-led administration, drumming a loud message into the ears of its members to disband their association with the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

At a massively-attended press conference in Accra yesterday, the group maintained that “a government that does not listen to its people is not worth following,” a statement which pulled shouts of agreement from the gathering.

The Spokesperson, Nii Okpomansah I, having accused the government of refusing to invoke Article 20 (6) of the 1992 Constitution over unused state lands earlier snatched from them and were taken over by private developers, issued a week’s ultimatum to it to act on the matter.

Quoting the said constitutional provision “…lands acquired in the interest of the state for a specific project should revert back to their allodia owners when the project changes or government is no longer interested,” he indicated their preparedness to invoke the last lines of the National Anthem – ‘help us to resist oppressors rule’ – if the government failed to hand over to them those parcels of land – 350 acres across the Greater Accra Region.

By their actions, Nii Okpomansah I was convinced the government and its apparatchiks were bent on destroying the culture of Ga lands, and quickly laid claim to a sociological postulation that “any nation, race, community or society may lose their language and their very existence, and this is exactly what government is perpetuating on our land.”

Leaning on history, COLA revealed that during the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration under President John Agyekum Kufuor, their people witnessed a litany of unjust treatments, coupled with reported cases of land grabbing.

That situation, he said, was a contributory factor to the electoral victory of the then opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in 2008, since the party promised to re-distribute those lands to their rightful owners.

“The new NDC government, led by Prof. John Evans Atta-Mills, initiated action on the issue, resulting in not only the redistribution of lands to their allodia owners, but recognising and appointing quite a number of our Ga-Dangme compatriots, thus restoring the dignity and fortunes of the Ga-Dangme people,” the group posited.

When President John Dramani Mahama took over after the death of President Mills, the Ga people expected his government to continue with the latter’s supposed good works, only for that to appear as a delusion to them.

According to COLA: “The government was not only unable to sustain and consolidate, but has rather rolled back the gains made so far on this land issue,” alleging that “with the connivance of the Ghana Armed Forces, and the Lands Commission, Ga-Dangme lands have been plundered in an unprecedented manner.”

The group asked rhetorically: “Is the government not aware that the Ghana Armed Forces has arbitrarily destroyed farmlands without compensation to the affected, and the outright stealing of our lands under the guise of buffer zone creation?”

The coalition was also surprised that the Armed Forces defied the advice of the Attorney General to cease its illegal activities until the necessary acquisition processes had been consummated and compensation agreed upon, and had extended its activities to an area which had never been in dispute.

COLA further alleged that the government was contemplating the sale of the Ghana International Trade Fair, beseeching it, however, to abort the idea until all issues relating to the compensation of its acquisition had been trashed out.

“Another shocking revelation is where a Regional Minister, entrusted with the coordination, peace and tranquillity and development of the region, rather commissions land guards to terrorise the people of Amrahia and Ashie, and to the extent of dispossessing them of their land,” the Spokesperson announced.

The land issue aside, the people of La and Ga-Dangme, as pointed out by Nii Okpomansah I, claim to have been marginalised, “especially, in the areas of appointments, job placements,” which they argued was no secret.

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By Bernice Bessey.
Japan, in its bid to provide essential security to support deprived communities in the country, has granted an amount of US$240,000 to three different districts.
The districts that benefited donation, titled Japan Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGHSP) scheme, are Zabzugu District, Northern Region, which had US$81,200, Kpone-Katamanso, Greater Accra Region received US$80,800, and Mfantseman Municipality, Central Region, US$77,200.
The GGHSP scheme is supporting the Zabzugu District to construct a Children’s Ward at the District Hospital; the Kpone-Katamanso District to undertake culvert and drain works at Kpone-Bethlehem, and Mfantseman Municipality to construct a CHPS compound at Asafora.
Handing over the donations to representatives of the beneficiary districts was the Japanese Ambassador to Ghana, H.E. Kaoru Yoshimura, recently in Accra.
According to the Ambassador, since the introduction of the GGHSP scheme in Ghana in 1989, it had supported basic needs in the areas of health, education, agriculture, public welfare, basic infrastructure, capacity building, and empowerment.
He thanked the assemblies and other development bodies for their initiative, contribution and preparation to embark on the various projects.
“I am confident that the hard work invested into this venture will go a long way to improve the standard of health delivery and accessible roads in these respective communities and environs, and also benefit generations to come,” he stated.
Receiving the donation on behalf the people of Zabzugu, Mr. Shei Fuseini, District Director of Health, said the assembly applied for the grant to promote the health of children in the district, and thanked the Japanese people for the kind gesture.
Alhaji E. A. Tetteh, Chief Executive Officer, Kpone Katamanso District, said the Bethlehem community gets flooded whenever it rains, due to two major culverts in the area being in bad condition, which cannot support the volume of water that flows through them.
He added that the poor condition of the culverts had also affected the community’s road network, saying, “Residents in the area are compelled by the deplorable roads and blocked drains to stay indoors throughout the rainy period, making them unproductive.”
Signing for the grant on behalf of the Mfanteman-Asafora people was the Country Director of The Hunger Project, Samuel Afrane, who said the construction the CHPS compound will benefit approximately 5,000 people in 13 surrounding communities.
He said the CHPS compound is purposed to improve healthcare delivery, especially in maternal and postnatal care.

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An Accra Institute of Technology (AIT) final year student has developed technologies that are geared towards tackling socioeconomic problems of industries and institutions, and enhance the livelihoods of citizens.

For instance, the employee movement/danger alert system, designed by Valentine Obeng, focuses on the safety of employees, as it uses GPS and GSM to track their movements.

Other final year students from the school of Advanced Technologies, Engineering and Science, developed interesting software like path following driverless vehicle, power harnessing vehicle speed brakes, and solar power FM transmitters for remote villages.

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By Bernice Bessey.

The United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) as part of its measures to address leadership failures and equal representation in Africa, especially in Ghana, organized a one-day gender dialogue event improve women participation politics and governance.

The event, “Nkitahodie” dialogue series that seeks to bring on single platform gender activists, practitioners, academics, political parties, and policy makers to examine address the state gender equal participation, and leadership in politics and electoral process in the county.

The UNDP engagement with gender activist groups among others was dubbed “gender equality and women participation in politics and political process in Ghana: the role of political parties.”

Country Director UNDP- Ghana, Dominic Sam welcoming participants from Ghana and other African countries last Thursday in Accra said the dialogue aimed to deconstruct the role of political parties in in promoting gender equal political participation.

Also, he said dialogue hope to reach out to political parties on the role they can play in supporting women inclusive and participation in political processes at all levels.

In the nut shell, the dialogue seeks to provide space for honest and critical reflection on the role of political parties in promoting gender equal participation in politics and political processes.

“One main expected outcome from the dialogue will be a thorough analysis and account of constrains to gender equal participation and leadership in political process in Ghana. It will offer opportunity to political parties, practitioners and advocates to interacts and begin a process of building common group on improving gender balance in Ghana politics,” he stated.

To echo the dialogue beyond the walls of Alisa Hotel where the programme took place and put what had been discussed into action, the Minister of fisheries and Aquaculture, Madam Shirley Aryitey charged women groups to be proactive in ensuring the affirmative bill is made law.

According to her women are the majority in the country, yet the affirmative bill had taken too long a time in the pipeline for parliament to pass it into law.

Madam Aryitey believed that equal participation in governance and electoral processes could only be achieved if the constitution is amended by providing certain concession for women.

She said women are the main source of men victory but they are often relegated to the background when it come position and decision making, adding that to achieve equal representation in governance, barriers that prevents women participation in politics must be eliminated.

To inspire Ghanaian gender groups on the way forward, personalities like Dr. Ekuru Aukot, Former Chair of Selection panel, Independent Electoral and Boundaries (IEBC) – Kenya and Madame Fatou Diop, president-National Gender Observatory, Senegal shared their respective countries experience on achieving some form of balance gender equal participation.

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By Bernice Bessey

The Ghana National Education Campaign Coalition (GNECC) has called on political parties to consult civil society in the development of manifestos.

This, it noted, will ensure broader policy and strategy options for political parties in developing manifestoes, especially, in areas concerning education.

According to the GNECC, promises must take into consideration existing global and national frameworks on education, to sustain progress in this relevant area of human resource capacity building.

This recommendation was contained in GNECC’s “Civil Society Evaluation of promises under education: Achievements, challenges and way forward”, launched in Accra recently.

Chairing the launch was Child Rights Activist Bright Appiah, who observed that some promises on the manifestos were mostly not measurable and definitive, making them impossible to evaluate.

Using the ruling National Democratic Congress 2012 manifesto as a classic example, he said promises such as 200 senior high schools and elimination of schools under trees were ambitious, in view of resource constraints in the economy.

“Some of the promises were strategically weak. For example, the promise to build 10 new colleges of education to increase teacher enrolment was misplaced, since the existing 36 were operating at 50% capacity, due to government-imposed admission quotes,” he noted.

To him, promises should lend to measurement within the time frame of four years to enable assessments of what has been achieved during the party’s term.

According to him, manifesto promises should place more emphasis on addressing improvement of learning outcomes, and inequalities in distribution of education facilities and resources.

Mr. Appiah noted that political parties must take into consideration available resource, more so, when Ghana already commits over 5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) into education.

However, he recommended that political parties should make their manifestoes more definitive, specific, measurable, realistic, time-bound and costing plan.

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By Bernice Bessey.  
Though Kwashieman, surrounded by two of the country’s finest roads, George Bush Motorway and Kaneshie-Mallam highway, links the capital, Accra, to the Central Region, it cannot boast of a single asphalted road.
Most of the link roads in the community are in deplorable condition making it uncomfortable for commuters, drivers and residents.
The Accra File toured the Kwashieman Electoral area to assess the state of the roads from complaints by the residents, and noted that most of roads have developed potholes due to lack of a proper drainage system in the community.
This journalist also found out that since there were no gutters in the vicinity, erosion had worsened the already bad state of the roads.
Some residents the Accra File interviewed described the potholes as being manholes during the dry season and fish ponds in the rainy season.
Edward Lomo, Assembly Member for the Kwashieman Electoral area, blamed the government and Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), when contacted, for failing to address certain social challenges of his people.
According to him, the promise made by President John Dramani Mahama to asphalt Accra roads to improve transportation has not been extended to certain areas within the Metropolis.
Mr. Lomo said his area was not benefiting from the Accra roads project being propagated by the President, because it was considered as a stronghold of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).
To him, this act should not be tolerated in the country’s democracy, if we really want to progress in development, alleging that most roads being asphalted are in the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) strongholds.
“I want to plead with the government to divide and distribute the national cake equally to all citizens, not only those who voted in their favour,” he charged.
The Assembly Member, in an effort to salvage the situation, after several letters to the AMA, Urban Roads Department and Member of Parliament for the area failed to yield results, mobilised some resources from the residents to construct gutters, which were enough to address the poor drainage system in the area.
Another member of the community, Abraham O. Quarmyne, General Manager of Happy Kids School, added that residents have being battling with the poor condition of the roads over decades.
He said his school had lost a substantial number of students to other schools with better access road networks.
Mr. Quarmyne explained that some parents opted to remove their children from Happy Kids, because their vehicles develop mechanical faults whenever they brought their children to school.
The Managing Director of the school also added that he had written to the necessary authorities, but all his efforts had failed to yield the deserved outcome.

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A Board Member of the Ghana Peace Council, Bishop James Saah, has urged journalists to be agents for promoting peace and unity, not destruction and confusion.

According to him, journalists are the mouth and ear piece of the public, through which the country can continue to enjoy peace and economic tranquility, if they avoid statements that would create tension among the populace.

According to him, Ghana is currently at a stage where individuals hold divergent opinions about issues and events.

Speaking under the theme “Reportage on hot spots for Election 2016: Conflict map of Ghana,” he said disagreements, problems, disputes, conflicts, violence and war would occur if the citizens fail to accept and tolerate one another’s opinion.

Bishop James Saah added that journalists hold the responsibility, as the agents of change, to inform and educate the citizenry on issues that would promote peace and development.

The renowned motivation speaker made this statement at a special media training workshop on Peaceful Election 2016 this week in Accra.

Dr. Enyonam Canice Kudonoo, Senior Assistant Professor, Ashesi University College, addressed the journalists on “Why the media must play a positive role for Peaceful Election 2016.”

She advised journalists to take precautions on their choice of words in their reportages, and for them to communicate effectively, they should prepare, engage and analyse concerns to explicate the kind information they pass out into the public domain.

The workshop, which was attended by 40 journalists selected from the southern belt of Ghana, had the Director of Communication, National Commission for Civic Education, addressing the topic “Why peace matters before, during and after Election 2016.”

The work shop was powered by Creative Storm and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and was aimed at raising awareness about the critical need for peace before, during and after the elections.

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Ideally, the 21 Century presents the world with the opportunity to develop its economy through harnessing Science, Technology and Innovation (STI), however, Ghana appears to be lagging behind, says Dr. George Essegbey, Director CSIR-STEPRI.

According to him, the inability of policy makers to place premium on STI, as the main driving force of development, is what has resulted in the slow growth of the country, and the entire Africa Continent.

He cited that the proportion of the nation’s budget allocated to science, technology and innovation has fluctuated between 0.3% and 0.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

“This is well below the target of 1% of the countries agreed upon by African Heads of States over 30 years ago, as a critical means of realising the goals and objectives of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD),” he said.

Mr. Essegbey noted that even before NEPAD, the Legos Plan of Action of 1980 entreated African countries to meet this target, which, he simply said, “we failed”.

The CSIR-STEPRI Director made this assertion at the opening of International Research Initiative Conference (IRIC) 2016, championed by the Accra Institute of Technology recently in Accra.

He noted that while Ghana is failing to allocate the 1% agreed upon to enforce STI, her counterparts like South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan spend up to 2% of their GDP on Science, Technology and Innovation.

Thus, in the year 2014 alone, South Korea spent a whopping $91.6 million on research and development (R&D) expeditions, which was 4.3 % of their GDP.

Other developed countries that place so much interest in STI, like the USA, spent $473.4 billion and China, $409 billion on R&D.

To him, the Ghana’s ambition to become an upper middle-income country requires that it applies and integrates science, technology and innovation, as well as R&D, outputs into the national development strategies.

“The poor performance of the various sectors of the Ghana’s economy, including the industry, agriculture, health and education sectors could partly be attributed to the very limited effective application of advances in research and development,” he lamented.

He strongly argued that STI and R&D have the potential to aid the nation’s objective for poverty reduction, competitiveness of enterprise, sustainable environmental management, and industrial growth.

For STI and R&D to be realised, he emphasised, “our indigenous researchers need to be supported to move to the frontiers of scientific knowledge to search for solutions to the myriad of development challenges we face in our country

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By Bernice Bessey

A group, by name JM Brigade, has congratulated the 2016 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) candidates for their awesome performance.

According to the group, out of 460, 930 candidates who sat for the BECE, 3,994 got more than 500 out of the total score of 600.

To the group, Ghanaians must not only be interested in bad news, but should be ready to recognise sterling achievements by individuals in their various fields of endeavour.

A statement released by the political activists group stressed: “We at JM Brigade wish to put on record our profound satisfaction with the achievement of this feat, and wish to congratulate the Directorate of Ghana Education Service (GES), and the leadership Ministry of Education (MoE), and urge them to keep up with their good work.”

The statement, which was compiled by Dr. Lawrence Narteh, Dr. H. Kwame Afaglo and Shamsu (resource fellows of JM Brigade), congratulated the Ministry of Education and Ghana Education Service for putting in place strenuous measures to enhance the country’s education system.

According to them, they are happy with the excellent performance of the students, with the Director General of the GES, Mr. Jacob Kor, has described the BECE results as one of the best in history.

Dr. H. Kwame Afaglo said: “We, therefore, salute the gallant officers who, through hard work supported by clear policy and financial inputs, were able to achieve this feat. Ayekoo!”

He added that they pleaded for the commencement of the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) in Accra, which had created more vacancies for the 860 public and private senior high, technical and vocational institutes.

Dr. H. Kwame Afaglo stressed that lack of access to senior high schools would be a thing of the past, since vacancies are also available in the newly-established Community Day Senior High Schools.

“All these achievements could not have happened by accident. Many strenuous and consistent programmes were put in place within the school system to bring about this. For example, when President John Mahama marked World Teachers’ Day at the national durbar held at the Jubilee Park in Brong Ahafo regional capital, Sunyani, on October 5, he took the opportunity to  congratulate MoE for its aggressive efforts in stamping out teacher absenteeism in public schools,” he stated.

He thanked the government for proposing to establish Specialist Teacher Training Colleges dedicated to the development and training of the critical mass of teachers, devoted entirely for the Basic School system in the country.

“We, at the JM Brigade, are ready to work with government to find lasting solutions to this, so Ghana can become an exciting place to live in, and for the collective advancement as a country,” he stressed.

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To empower women economically to support in the development of their homes and the society as a whole, Weep No more Women Foundation (WNMWF) has organised another seminar and workshop to equip the female gender with skills training.

The workshop/seminar is the 5^th and final programme for 2016, embarked upon by the non-profit organisation to equip women economically and socially.

The last training programme, in which 35 women participated, was under the theme: “The effects of Divorce on children,” was held on Saturday at Madina, a suburb of Accra.

To encourage women empowerment through self-employment, the participants were taught how to make bread, doughnuts and ice cream.

Rev. Mrs. Grace Boateng, Founder and Leader of WNMWF, in her speech said many women go through brutalisation and assaults because they lacked skills that would enable them to be self-resourceful and self-reliant.

According to her, empowering women did not necessarily mean taking up the roles of men, or totally pushing men out of the picture of nation building, but rather of women identifying and harnessing their unique features into a symbolic human resource.

She said women must endeavor to break away from limitations imposed on them by society to take up the mantle as social beings, with the responsibility of caring, nurturing and fostering the developmental agenda of the country.

“From the times past, and even, until now, it cannot be denied that women play equally important role in the affairs of everyday life. From bearing and upbringing of children to sustaining the home, women are highly involved. However, in several instances women have also been tagged as weak beings,” she stressed.

With women empowerment, as being echoed from many quarters of society, she questioned to what extent the campaigns had reach its targets, and what results had been achieved so far, adding, “If we are doing well, we should thank God and give ourselves more encouragement. However, if we still have not done enough, then it only tells us that there is more to do,” she added.

Since 2014, when the foundation was established, it has made donations to foster homes, held parties for the less privileged, prayer festivals, workshops & seminars, and has trained over 100 people on how to use flour to generate incomes.

Interestingly, the last workshop and seminar was marked with awarding participants with gas ovens, flour, ice chests, bowls and other prizes to help them set up their own businesses.

Though she complained bitterly about lack of sponsorship, some companies like Smeam Global, Saki’s Bakery, Special Ice Mineral Water and Pantang Hospital were supporting the programme.

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By Bernice Bessey.
Statistics indicate that about 1,000 men are diagnosed of prostate cancer every year, and an estimated of 800 die of the disease annually, figures that have compelled President John Dramani to devote himself as a Chief Advocate of Prostate Cancer, since his father suffered a similar fatal fate.
“I am aware of prostate cancer, because my father died of prostate cancer. And so I know what he went through… so it made me very aware of prostate cancer,” he said.
A prostate cancer patient goes through the aches of dullness, stiffness in the pelvis, low back and ribs, or upper thighs and pain in the bone.
Other symptoms associated with prostate cancer include loss of appetite and weight, fatigue, nausea, vomiting and swollen of lower extremities.
The Chief Prostate Cancer advocate shared how cancers have had devastating toll on his family, adding, “My step-mother died of breast cancer, so it made me very aware of breast cancer too.”
President Mahama made these statements on a Koforidua-based radio station, GBC Sunrise, last week, when he was questioned on whether he will consider declaring Father’s Day as National Prostate Cancer Day.
Even though he didn’t answer yes or no, the first gentleman indicated: “I believe we must create awareness of prostate cancer, because it is the number one killer of men. And most people die of ignorance.”
He, however, advised men to visit the hospital regularly to have their prostate-specific antigen (PSA) taken, saying: “The PSA is a test done to see whether the prostate is giving a signal. And if it goes above a certain figure, you need to know whether it rising or declining, if it is rising, then you must go for a biopsy.”
The PSA is a protein produced by cells of the prostate gland. The PSA test measures the level of PSA in a man’s blood. For this test, a blood sample is sent to a laboratory for analysis. The results are usually reported as nanograms of PSA per milliliter (ng/mL) of blood.
He added that men must be aware of their prostate health, by, at least, visiting the hospital twice every year, stressing: “I call on all my colleague men, you know, at least twice every year you do a PSA test, and make sure your PSA numbers are not rising, if they are rising, consult your doctor.”
President Mahama further urged his male counterparts to consider their lifestyle choices, as it is believed that prostate cancer is a result of lifestyle, “depending on what you are doing, smoking or eating late, or you are obese or things like that.”
Aside, these predisposing factors, he drew public attention to occupation hazards and chemicals that workers are exposed to, which can also increase the risk of prostate cancer.
He called on all men to come together, just as the women had done with breast cancer, to advocate against prostate cancer, and also have its treatment listed on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
However, scientists have found some ways that can help reduce the risk of prostate cancer, which is choosing a healthy diet – choose a low-fat diet – eating more fruits and vegetables, and fat from plants than from animal

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From Ernest Best Anane, Kumasi.

MR. JOHN Yaw Donkor, Deputy Director of Waste Management at the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) has entreated the general public to accord the National Sanitation Day the fullest support it deserves to serve its purpose.
He said those who default in observing the day would face the full rigours of the law.
According to him, the day has come to stay, and for that matter needs the support from every good citizen to ensure its sustainability.
Mr. Donkor, who was speaking to the media after the 24th National Sanitation Day recently, underscored that the exercise is a great concept and must be embraced since it would help reduce most of communicable diseases.
He said it was incumbent on all to ensure a clean environment in our lives when ensure that, at least we would take the bull by horn to take it upon ourselves to clean our environment or surroundings clean at least once in a month.
He expressed worry over the attitude of business concerns in the Central Business District of Kumasi, who do not fully participate in the exercise as most of them close their shops or stores and fold their arms while others actively work.
The Waste management director charged all Ghanaians to take the exercise seriously because a clean environment or sanitation is a shared responsibility of every responsible citizen, irrespective of one’s religion, political affiliation or tribe is a concern to all.

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