In the wake of some group of people in the Volta Region demanding independence for a Western Togoland state, Kosi Kedem, a former Member of  Parliament  for Hohoe South has argued that Ghana does not legally exist. “There’s no union document on the so-called union between Ghana (Gold Coast) and Togoland. De facto, they are one [unit], but legally, Ghana does not exist,” Kosi Kedem said on Joy News’ PM Express on Tuesday. He explained that Ghana as a country is made up of the Gold Coast and the UN Trust Territory of British Togoland, adding that, for a union to be constitutionally legal, a union document needs to be legalized. Kedem said, “Resolution 1044 which recognizes the recommended union, the same UN Resolution 1044 invited the British Government which was the administering authority to take such steps as necessary to bring about the union.” He continued: “So, if a Trust Territory, being ruled by the UN and a colony being ruled by Britain are to come into union, what do y...

Some persons suspected to be members of a secessionist group have attacked a State Transport Company bus in the Volta Regional Capital, Ho, and burnt one of its buses. According to a Citi News report, the incident which occurred at midnight on Monday, September 28, involved the members of the group firing gunshots before proceeding to beat up the drivers. There is currently a heavy security presence at the scene. This latest incident comes just days after some 31 suspects alleged to be secessionists were remanded by an Accra Circuit Court into BNI custody for two weeks. They are facing five provisional charges including conspiracy to attend a prohibited meeting, unlawful gathering and rioting. They reportedly pleaded not guilty when they appeared before the Accra Circuit Court Two on Monday September 28. They are being prosecuted on the provisional charges of conspiracy to attend a meeting of a prohibited organization; unlawful gathering; gathering under a prohibited name and organiza...

The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has assured President Nana Addo Akufo-Addo, that going into the December 7, polls his record in office “will speak for him”. He made this known on Monday, when President Akufo-Addo paid a courtesy call on the Asantehene at the Manhyia Palace, at the commencement of a three-day working visit of the Ashanti Region. Addressing a durbar held in honour of the President, the Asantehene thanked the President for his continuous visit to Manhyia, both as leader of the opposition before the 2016 elections and as President of the Republic. To this end, he stated that “Your good works in office will speak for you going forward into the election. We, in Asanteman, remember, we do not forget. Asanteman will, therefore, remember your good works on election day. All I can offer you is prayers and blessings.” Even though Chiefs and traditional rulers are not to engage in partisan politics vote, the Asante noted that “we vote. We will vote based on the good works of...

The Greater Accra Regional Office of the Electoral Commission (EC) located at Sapeiman near Amasaman has been gutted by fire. The fire started at about 2:30 am on Friday, August 14, 2020. According to the police, they received the information about the outbreak at that time and immediately informed the Ghana National Fire Service. Four fire tenders from Amasaman, Kotoku, Nsawam and Abelemkpe were brought into the scene to quench the fire and provide security according to a statement from the Ghana Police Service. It was observed that the room that accommodates used electoral materials was on fire. The Greater Accra Regional Director of the Commission Mr. Kwame Amoah informed the Regional Police Commander DCOP Mr. Afful Boakye Yiadom who was at the scene that the fire will not affect the recent registration and the upcoming December 2020 elections. The fire was finally brought under control at about 5:am. The cause of the fire is not immediately known. There was no casualty. Meanwhile, ...

Interpol has issued an arrest warrant for Samuel Adam Foster, also known as Adam Mahama for prosecution over his role in the Airbus bribery scandal. He is being charged with accepting a bribe to influence a public officer and acting in collaboration with a public officer for the public officers private gain. Adam Mahama is facing up to 25 years in prison. The warrant sighted by  Citi News  noted that "extradition will be sought upon the arrest of the person, in conformity with national laws and/or the applicable bilateral and multilateral treaties." On January 31, Ghana was cited as one of five countries in which global aerospace group, Airbus SE, allegedly bribed or promised payments to senior officials in exchange for business favours between 2009 and 2015, according to the UK's Serious Fraud Office. This led to a record £3 billion in settlement by Airbus with France, the United Kingdom and the United States to avoid corporate criminal charges. President Nana Akufo-Addo...

A VIP bus en route to Wulensi in the Northern Region on Thursday morning plunged into River Oti at Dambai in the Krachi East Municipality. The bus with the registration number GT 5313-19 was travelling with passengers from Accra to Wulensi when it plunged into the river while maneuvering to get onto the pontoon to cross to the other side. As at 8 AM when the Ghana News Agency (GNA) got to the scene, the personal effects of passengers and other items such as motorbikes and bicycles had been salvaged from the river. Obed Kagbetor, a passenger onboard said that the driver instructed them to alight from the bus to enable him pack on the pontoon and the next thing was the pandemonium and struggle for safety. He suspected brake failure. There were no casualties but an excavator that was deployed to pull out the bus was unsuccessful until a Winch tractor successfully recovered the bus from the River. The Motor Traffic and Transport Division (MTTD) refused to speak to the GNA as well as the dr...

The headmistress of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology Senior High School (KNUST SHS) has been interdicted after the death of a student at her school on Tuesday evening. The headmistress, Felicia Asamoah Dankwaa, was accused of negligence by her students who went on to demonstrate and vandalise her car. A statement from the Ghana Education Service (GES) said the Regional Director of Education in the Ashanti Region will take over her duties. Meanwhile, academic activities are expected to resume at the school tomorrow following the protests. There is heavy police presence at the school to quell the protests. Officials from the Ashanti Regional Directorate of the GES have been at the school to ensure calm is restored. Speaking to journalists after meeting the management of the school, the Ashanti Regional Director of the GES, Mary Owusu Achiaw, said: "classes will begin tomorrow, by which time we hope the school will have returned to normal." "Everything...

Acting Auditor-General, Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu has expressed satisfaction with documents presented by the Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo Maafo challenging the $1m surcharge on him. This comes at a time when the substantive Auditor-General, Daniel Yao Demelevo has been asked to proceed on his accumulated annual leave by the President, Nana Akufo-Addo. Mr. Domelevo had recommended the disallowance of the payment of the US$1million made by the government, through the Ministry of Finance to a private UK firm, Kroll and Associates. He surcharged Mr. Osafo Maafo and four other officials of the Ministry of Finance, following what he said was the persistent failure of the Senior Minister to provide proof of actual work done. A memo from Acting Auditor-General and sighted by  citinewsroom.com  advised both parties to continue the legal tussle given the successful inspection of the documents on the deal. "We wish to state that we are satisfied with the processes and therefore propose ...

Six students of the Accra Girls Senior High school have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. Citi News  gathered that some students of the school showed symptoms of COVID-19 and were isolated in the school's sickbay on Monday, June 29, 2020. Health officials from the Ayawaso North Health directorate were called in to deal with the matter. COVID-19 tests were subsequently run on 11 students. Six of them tested positive and were on Saturday, July 4, sent to the Ga East Municipal Hospital for treatment. Meanwhile, calm has returned to the school after agitations over COVID-19 fears among the students. Reopening of schools Three days after Ghana recorded its first two cases of the novel coronavirus, President Akufo-Addo on March 15, 2020, directed the closure of schools at all levels to curb the spread of the virus. But after almost 10 weeks of closure, final year Senior High Schools (SHS) students were asked by the President to return to school on Monday, June 22, whereas their ...

Former General Secretary of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, popularly known as Sir John, is dead. He is reported to have died in Accra after a short illness. Until his death, Sir John was the CEO of the Forestry Commission. He died after testing positive for Covid-19. He succumbed to complications of the disease while undergoing treatment at the ICU of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital. Mr Owusu Afriyie became CEO of the Forestry Commission in March 2018 after being appointed to that position by President Akufo-Addo. The lawyer cum politician had previously served as general secretary of the governing party between 2010 and 2014. Profile Sir John was born in the Ashanti Region and he attended Seventh Day Adventist Secondary School in Bekwai from where he obtained his GCE Ordinary level certificate. He proceeded to obtain his GCE Advanced level certificate from Konongo Odumase Secondary School in Konongo. Mr Owusu Afriyie was admitted to study political scien...

What was believed to be an earth tremor on Wednesday evening was actually an earthquake, according to Ghana Geological Survey Authority. Nicholas Opoku, a senior Seismologist at the Authority, said the earthquake had a magnitude of 4.2 on the Richter scale and described it as a mild earthquake. "This is a small earthquake. If you are moving from 4.5 to 6.0 [on the Richter scale], you are moving into a moderate earthquake. Then from 6.0 going, you are moving into a bigger one," Mr. Opoku explained on the  Citi Breakfast Show . He noted that the epicentre of the earthquake, which was felt outside the Greater Accra Region, was "between Dansoman towards Bortianor." The foreshock of the earthquake was measured at 3.7 on the Richter Scale, the mainshock registered at 4.2 on the scale and the aftershock was the weakest measured at about 3.5 on the scale. In the past few years, environs of Accra have been hit by a series of earth tremors of magnitudes ranging between 2.6 an...

The Ghana Geological Survey Authority has confirmed that many parts of Accra were affected by three earth tremors on Wednesday night, saying the nature of the incidents is an indication of an imminent major earthquake. The tremors were made up of a foreshock, which struck at 10.48 pm and measured 3.7 on the Richter scale, then the main shock which occurred at 10.54pm and measured 4.2 on the Richter scale.  This was followed by the aftershock at 10.57 pm, which measured 3.5 on the Richter scale. Mr. Nicholas Opoku, a senior Seismologist at the Ghana Geological Survey Authority, told GNA in an interview that the source of the tremors was strongly believed to be the coast of the Dansoman Beach, and estimated to be between 200 and 500 meters into the sea. He said it was worth noting that Accra was an earthquake-prone zone with active fault lines. Mr. Opoku said whenever minor earthquakes occurred closely after each other as had been happening since 2018, it meant a major quake was defi...

Venezuela's Administrative Service for Identification, Migration and Foreigners, known as SAIME, plans to accept bitcoin ( BTC ) as a new payment method for citizens seeking a Venezuelan passport. The information was  originally leaked  via a Reddit post on June 23. News of the update soon reached Twitter, with some Venezuelan users abroad confirming the information. Cointelegraph Spanish  managed  to verify this news as well. "I have just verified it personally and it is totally true. #Venezuela, the immigration service, is accepting bitcoin for payments. Renew passport or request an extension,"  wrote  Twitter user, BTCLovera. Similar payments can already be made in the country using Venezuela's own pseudo-cryptocurrency, the Petro (PTR). Before now, the only other option was to purchase with bolivares through the national bank. Not available to Venezuelans in Venezuela Surprisingly, the option does not seem to be available to users actually living in Ven...