Fonkar Boy Fights Karbral Over Newspaper

Alfred K.  Dogbey

The Herald is in firm grip of information that Emmanuel Dela Coffie, the famous and controversial ex-member of Friends of Nana Konadu (FONKAR), is battling the National Media Commission (NMC) over the choice of name for his newspaper called “The True Statesman,” which hits the newsstands tomorrow morning.

 This paper gathered that, the NMC is denying him the right to his proposed name “The True Statesman”, on the basis that the paper’s name would conflict with Mr. Gabby Asare Darko’s “New Statesman”.

The Herald has it that Mr. Dela’s defense is that there are newspapers  with the same or similar names that have been registered at the NMC, rendering its (NMC’s) reason for not granting Mr. Coffie’s request porous.

This paper has learnt that on Monday, 21 November 2011, a meeting was held between the NMC and Mr. Coffie at which the Commission had asked Mr. Dela to change the name of his paper “The True Statesman”, but he had declined, demanding a written letter from the NMC on the Commission’s position on the matter so that he could consult his lawyers.

 But the Commission chaired by Kabral Blay-Amihere has failed to grant Mr. Coffie’s demand. 

Mr. Coffie is reported to have said the Commission’s request was being “ultra vires and an infringement on his right of choice”.

He cited the examples of Ghanaian Lens and Crystal Clear Lens, Crusading Guide, New Crusading Guide and Daily Guide, among other newspapers that are using similar names as compared to the case of his and Gabby’s newspaper.

The Herald has intercepted a letter signed by Mr. Coffie dated November 21, 2011, informing the NMC that “in the exercise of my right to work and earn a living, I shall consider that I have your tacit consent to publish “The True Statesman” if I do not receive a written letter to the contrary from the Commission by close of day 22 November 2011”.

Meanwhile, at the time this paper was going to bed, Mr. Dela hinted that his newspaper would be out tomorrow as planned.

JUJU SCARE HITS KETA SECONDARY...Two Headmasters Died !

By: Alfred K. Dogbey
Information picked up by The Herald indicates that there is a growing tension among the tutors of Keta Business Senior High (KETABUSCO) over the Headship position in the school after the bizarre death of two headmasters of the school early this year.
The death of Mr. Augustine Yoa Akpakli, a native of Tegbui a suburb of Keta, and his successor Mr. Afetorgbor, who was in office just for a month before he passed away in a slight car accident remain a mystery to some staff, students and the families of the deceased ones creating panic in the school.
Information gathered by The Herald indicates that most students and teachers were considering leaving the school for the fear of losing their lives.
Sources told The Herald that it took the intervention of the Regional Director of Education, who personally visited the school, to restore confidence in the students as well as the tutors, by asking the Municipal Director of Education, Mr.
Edmund Gbetodeme to act as the headmaster and one Mr. Adzibolosu a senior staff in the school as his assistance.
Narrating the genesis of the story, on conditions of anonymity, an insider source said the issue of who headed Keta Business School, had been an internal battle among the senior staff of the school for years now, generating intense hatred and division in the teaching staff.
The source hinted that somewhere around September 2010, Mr. Akpakli after a short strange illness, died suddenly.
Six months down the lane after his death and burial, another headmaster, called Mr. Afetorghor who had been transferred to the school from Juapong near Kpong, also met his untimely death through car accident.
The strange death of the two headmasters created chaos and fear among the staff and the students, compelling threats from worried parents to withdraw their wards from the school.
Some students who spoke to the paper said, “some of us have never seen the new headmaster’s face before his death”.
Meanwhile, there is the belief that the two headmasters were killed by juju perpetuated by perhaps some long-serving tutors, who felt that they were side-stepped in the appointment as headmaster of the school.
But when The Herald contacted the assistance headmaster, Mr. Adzibolosu on the matter, he confirmed the death of his former bosses, saying that Mr. Akpakli died last year while Mr. Afetorgbor’s death occurred this year.
However, he denied the allegation of juju, saying “Akpakli has been here for five years before he died, you see, people can talk about that, but there is no proof for juju allegations”.
When asked if he was not scared of occupying his current position as the Assistant Headmaster, he said; “oh my brother, fear for what..? after all very soon I would be going on retirement. After Christmas, then am off on retirement; he disclosed. What should I be scared about? Those saying juju, they are only saying it, they can’t prove it”.
Mr. Adzibolosu conceded to The Herald that there had been some disagreement among the staff but “that is how human society is, it is every where that people live and you can’t deny that, but no staff member is fighting for position”; he said.

STATE BUNGALOW LOOTER SNUBS GOV'T

By Alfred Dogbey 

The man fighting government for daring to retrieve a state bungalow that he bought from the erstwhile Kufour administration has now engaged the services of a private security company to crush any attempt by state agencies to take over the building from him for public use.
The private security company now has the building, called Bungalow 56 under a watertight surveillance, and under heir protection, masons and other artisans is briskly renovating it for private use.
The Herald witnessed a brazen disrespect to government’s orders to stop work on the building when the paper paid a visit to the bungalow allegedly sold to a certain Mr. Kumi, who is said to have also sold it to some Chinese nationals.
A very imposing notice from the government, the second of its kind which was consequently erected on the site after the paper’s publication, on the matter, asking Mr. Kumi and the general public not to venture onto the land, has been, yet again, ignored by him and his gang.
Last week, The Herald reported a tussle over this state bungalow, located adjacent the College of Physicians and Surgeons building at Ridge, near the Liberation Circle in Accra.
The notice with the inscription: “Keep Off, Government Property” which had once again been erected by government operatives after the first one was deliberately uprooted, could not even scare Mr. Kumi to leave the state property, rather he has held tight onto the state property.
What was more surprising to this paper, during its visit to the site, was that, Mr. Kumi had hired the services of private security firm to guard the bungalow which is located on a huge plot of land capable of housing four or five of its kind.
It is not clear to this paper what will be the government’s next action against the trespassers, including Mr. Kumi, who has refused to heed to the warning.
Meanwhile, the Committee for Joint Action (CJA) has expressed concern about the delay by President Mills in responding to its petition, asking for an independent committee of enquiry into the sale of state lands to government officials.
The Committee recently petitioned the Presidency over the sale of state bungalows and lands to public officials, and demanded that the issue be investigated.
The Committee said despite the delay in responding to its call for an enquiry into what it calls the “land grab” among public officials, it will not be discouraged in ensuring that the right thing is done.
The convener of the CJA, Kwasi Adu, has been quoted in the press as saying that various attempts by agencies like the Lands Commission to justify the appropriation of government bungalows and lands are disappointing.
“We are asking the President to set up a committee to investigate how all these things happened, so that the people of Ghana can well inform themselves on the issue. The Lands Commission is incapable of doing anything because they were the ones sitting there when the then government decided to change the use of the land without going through proper procedure”.
“So, the same people cannot come and say there were some things that went wrong. If some people were supposed to be filling some forms and they didn’t fill it and yet the Lands Commission gave them the lands, who are they now to tell us that they will do the right thing. What is our concern is that Government has kept quiet over this issue but this matter won’t be forgotten” he said.
A Deputy Information Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, announced recently that Government had started a process to retrieve all state lands and bungalows that were acquired by former State officials, particularly under the erstwhile Kufuor regime.

The Herald Vindicated- NPP Using Rawlings To Cause Havoc In Volta Region

By: Alfred K. Dogbey

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has vindicated The Herald’s intelligence report that, it is mobilizing some irate youths in the Volta Region through its constituency executives to engage in a series of violent demonstrations against leading Members of Parliament (MPs) and other government appointees within and outside the region.

Names making the rounds to be behind the attempt to cause confusion in the region include Kenwuud Nworsu, the NPP Volta Regional Chairman and Tommy Amematekpor with support from the Communication Director of Nana Akufo-Addo’s campaign and MP for Okakoi South, Nana Akomea.

The NPP is hiding behind the bad blood between ex-President Jerry J. Rawlings and President John Evans Atta Mills towards, creating disaffection for the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the region considered a “danger zone” for the opposition party.

The names of Kenwuud Nworsu, Tommy Amematekpor who was ex-President Kufuor’s Advisor during his presidency and Nana Akomea were disclosed by Alfred Woyome, a co-opted member of the Volta Regional Executive of the NDC, on Hot FM in Accra, last Wednesday.

This paper on Monday, October 24, 2011 raised the alarm about plots by the NPP, to stir up trouble in the Volta Region. Interestingly, just a week after the publication, specifically on October 31, a group calling itself Volta Youth Network (VYN), holding claim to the Volta Region, held a press conference at the International Press Center in Accra, raining insults and attacking MPs, government appointees and the NDC party.

They distributed stickers which read: No Founder, No Vote Bank, Regional Movement.

The group’s press conference addressed by its President Mathias Johnson (Kabila) who doubled as the spokesperson claimed that “most Volta MPs are suffering from inferiority complex where their influence, does not even extend beyond the seats they occupy in Parliament”.

Mr. Johnson whose identity The Herald is probing, announced that “from the regional capital to every constituency in the Volta Region, we have mobilized and will continue to mobilize our bases and stage a legitimate protest daily, weekly, monthly till election 2012”.

He went on, “we shall recruit our own youth and mobilize human and material resources to send them to parliament to represent us”.

The group which had the red, blue and white colours of the NPP, descended heavily on the Volta MPs, calling them “wicked, selfish, greedy officials, nonentities whose interest is self aggrandizement”.

Hear Mr. Johnson: “The most notorious of these wicked hatchet men is the MP for Hohoe South and the Volta Regional Minister, Mr. Joseph Amenorwode, who has added physical brutality to demand loyalty from Voltarians,” as witnessed during a demonstration in Ho, recently.

He stated: “What MPs forget to note is that, if you suppress a man for a long time, the day of revolt will surely dawn and the revolution would be disastrous to such an oppressor,” and asked, “I am sure you all know of the Arab spring?”

Mr. Johnson claimed that “under President John Evans Atta Mills government today, Volta Youth constitute’ a chunk of highly educated, unemployed graduates that are deliberately left to rot to satisfy some greedy nonentities whose only interest is self aggrandizement”.

In their opinion, “the repeated cancelation of the President’s tour of Volta Region is a testimony to the fact that there is little or no development projects for him to commission hence the lies peddled by the regional executives to the effect that it was due to heavy rains forecast.”

He said “since our people’s condition’ of life, with the exception of government apparatchiks, does not even reflect that of a ‘Rural Bank’, we the youth of Volta Region today refuse to be known as the ‘World Bank’ of the NDC and any other political party”.

“The NDC should be prepared to sweat and earn every single vote in Volta like it does in places like Ashanti region and elsewhere. Employment and economic opportunities for our youth, good roads, hospitals, school infrastructure for our motherland will win our votes and not empty promises,” he insisted.

Sounding rather arrogant and furious, he said “we dare the NDC to go ahead and impose on us any greedy, selfish or wicked MP’ and it will see the consequence. We shall mobilize our exuberant youth, and actively promote and campaign for them as independent candidates to represent the interest of the region in the event that a candidate is imposed on us by the party in any constituency”.

Flanking Johnson at the press confab were Alphonson Abochiea, organizer and Peter Amegashie, secretary.

Meanwhile, true to The Herald’s publication, the group at the press conference mentioned Akatsi Youth Association (AKAYA) as part of the Volta Youth Network (VYN).

The Akatsi group, is dominated by the NPP executives in the constituency, including NPP parliamentary candidate Mr. Leo-Nelson Adzidogah, Mawuli Ocloo – president of the group and also the NPP constituency secretary, Mr. George Aho – NPP constituency treasure who is also an assemblyman, among others. The Herald reported that the NPP was busily mobilizing some individuals in the Volta Region through its constituency executives to engage in aseries of demonstrations against leading MPs and other government appointees in the region.

The modus operandi of the group, The Herald gathered, is to cause anarchy in the constituencies that are noted as strong holds of these MPs, and that, the supposed protest is intended to affect their fortunes of retaining their seats at the forthcoming primaries of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

This move by the NPP, The Herald has been reliably informed, would be replicated throughout the entire Region, and the brain behind the formation of the group is alleged to be the Communication Director of Nana Addo’s Campaign, Nana Akomea, who doubles as the MP for Okaikoi-South Constituency in the Greater Accra Region.

The Herald is monitoring the operations of the three key members of the NPP who are going around the Volta Region, mobilizing youths to stage the riots to create the impression that the NDC has become so unpopular in its world bank.

The three are said to have met the organizers in Akatsi last Friday with a form to fill at a meeting where some monies also exchanged hands. As at last Saturday, they were expected in Dzodze, Kpetoe and Ho.

Amongst the promises being made to the would-be rioters is to recruit lawyers, who have been lined up, to defend them in the event of an arrest.

They are to be bused from town to town to stage these well-choreographed demonstrations in areas where the NPP flag bearer, Nana Akufo Addo, has for inexplicable reasons not taken his ‘Listening Campaign Tour’ to, although some regions have witnessed many visits from the flag bearer.

One of such groups which has already been formed is at Akatsi, in the Ave-Avenor Constituency, called Akatsi Youth Association (AKAYA), and led by the NPP Constituency Secretary, Ocloo Mawuli, alias “Egos”, owner of “Egos Soundz” who is also the Assemblyman for Anyidzime Electoral Area.

The group is alleged to have teamed up with some disgruntled elements in the NDC party, including one Lawyer Evans Gadeto-Dzikunu, who the paper gathered is currently fighting to displace the incumbent Mr. Doe Adjaho from the seat.

Others named as members of the group are George Aho, the NPP Parliamentary candidate, Nelson Adzidogah and Dahume William Kodjo.

The Herald gathered that the Bureau of National Investigation (BNI) has been informed about the plot to start the riots from Akatsi, and had called Mr. Dzikunu via phone about the intelligence report, concerning the formation of the group, but he denied of having any knowledge of the group and the plan.

Mr. Dzikunu has reportedly told the BNI that, as a lawyer by profession, he would not embark on such lawless practice and that he would have sought permission from the authorities before engaging in such acts.

When The Herald tried to contact Mr. Dzikunu through several telephone calls and text messages, he did not answer.

Mr. Mawuli, confirmed to The Herald, that there is existence of a group. “Yes, we have a group called Akatsi Youth Association (AKAYA), and I’m their President”. He, however, denied any plot to stage a demonstration against the political authorities in the district.

He told The Herald through a telephone interview that, “the AKAYA was formed early this year but it is yet to be officially launched. It has not yet been registered; we are still working on our constitution after which we will do the launching.”

He insisted that AKAYA was not affiliated to any political party, even though he happens to be the NPP Constituency Secretary.

He noted that, the main aim of the group is to check their leaders who are not leaving up to expectations in the Constituency.

“It is not a political group, it’s a pressure group meant to put our leaders on their toes… I mean all the leaders in the district, and membership is open to anybody to join”.

Mr. Ocloo further confirmed to The Herald that Lawyer Dzikunu was a member of the group but holds no portfolio.

“He often comes to our meetings at times when he’s around”, said Mr. Ocloo.

Akatsi District Did Not Score Zero% In BECE

By : Alfred K. DogbeyThe recent damning report published by pro-NPP newspaper ‘The New Crusading Guide’ which was hyped by media giant, Joy FM, that schools in the Akatsi District of the Volta Region scored 0% in their latest Basic Education Certificate Examination (B.E.C.E), has been found out to be false.

A five-page official report from West African Examination Council (WAEC) titled: Analysis Of The 2012 Basic Education Certificate Examination Results – Akatsi District, available to The Herald, has revealed that the Akatsi District’s pass rate for 2011 BECE is 33.34%, but not zero per cent as blazingly reported by the two media houses.

A momentary look at the report indicated that 1,445 candidates were registered from 52 schools in the Akatsi District, out of which three candidates were absent, reducing the total number of the candidates to 1,442.

Thorough analysis of the report showed that, four schools, namely, Ami Preparatory Junior High School (JHS), Holy Childhood Preparatory Junior High School, Avenorpedo Junior High School and Emmanuel Preparatory Junior High School scored 100% while 13 schools scored between 94.7% to 50.4% with the rest scoring below 50%.

It was further noted that out of the 52 schools registered, only three scored 0%. These were viewed as the most deprived schools in the Akatsi District.

With these facts available at both the Ghana Education Service and the District Assembly, it is still not clear in the mind of the people of Akatsi, including the District Chief Executive, Mr. Peter Kwasi Nortsu-Kotoe, “the motive of ‘ The New Crusading Guide’ to publish a front page story headlined: Akatsi District Scores Zero% In B.E.C.E”.

The story which became Joy FM’s main agenda for discussion for the day, The Herald gathered, sparked chaos, with people asking why the media houses did not check their facts well.

Among the teachers in the district, the story paints them as lazy, while parents feel that they have been portrayed as irresponsible, with students who are on the way to the secondary school, also holding the notion that the would-be mates will be seeing them as persons who had to pay bribes to gain admission to the school.

Some officials of the Ghana Education Service (GES) who also spoke to this paper last Friday, expressed their disapproval about the way and manner the media houses shaped the story, compelling the public to believe that, indeed, the district had scored a complete zero percent.

They insisted that a little crosschecking would have avoided the reckless journalism which has tarnished the image of district’s GES office and that of the Assembly.

According to one official, “though our performance had fallen drastically by 15% against the previous year, we believe that we could do better in the upcoming years”.

He noted that “it is unfortunate that whenever the district does well, the media does not see it newsworthy for publication, rather in hasty to publish unreliable information to the public.”

A visit to Akatsi, the district capital, revealed that the people of the area, most of who perceived Joy FM to be fair, had failed to test the authenticity of the story but also went ahead to hype it.

For them, even if the radio station wanted to discuss the story, the right person the station should have called is the Director of G.E.S or the DCE, and not the Volta Regional Minister, Mr. Joseph Amenowode, who knew nothing about the story as at the time.

Meanwhile, The Herald’s information is that the concocted story was a schemed agenda to discredit the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ave-Avenor, Mr. Edward Doe Adjaho and the DCE, to run them down ahead of the forthcoming parliamentary primaries of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Followers of the MP say that those desperately angling to unseat the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament are the brains behind the malicious publication, calculated at bringing disgrace to the district and, for that matter, the constituency at large forgetting that the negative story affects them and their wards as well.

In an exclusive interview with the DCE, told The Herald that the Assembly which he heads would not be distracted by the actions of the detractors, but would focus his attention on achieving the Better Ghana Agenda of the Mills-led government.

He disclossed that the Assembly is aware of the meetings which have been taking place behind closed door and targeted to cause disorder in the district.




Mr. Nortsu-Kotoe emphasized that it’s about time they all come together and nurture their differences to restructure the district. He said he is in possession of the BECE result, and that every fair-minded journalist or press house can reach him for the truth.

He cadded that his outfit is committed to achieving the mandate given him, and assured parents that he would re-organize the fallen standard of the performance of the students. He applauded the industrious schools for their excellent performance.

The assembly, meanwhile, has set up a committee to investigate and make recommendations to enhance academic performance in the district.

Mr. Nortsu-Kotoe was certain that it is only through education that the area can be developed.

FINANCIAL SCAM HITS EASTERN REGION

By: Alfred K. Dogbey
Some farmers, market women, “Galamsey” operators and artisans in parts of the Eastern Region have fallen victims to another financial scam akin to Pyram and R5 which took place in Ghana in the late 80s and early 90s.
One Eric Asempa, a native of Gomoa Adam in the Central Region, is on the run with over ¢1billion (GH¢100,000) belonging to those who had deposited their monies with his company called Excel Financial Investments Ltd.
Mr. Asempa operated a financial investment company in Kade, Osenase, Esuom and Abomouso, all in the Eastern Region.
According to The Herald’s enquiries, Mr. Asempa started operations in January last year, taking money from farmers, market women, “galamsey” operators and artisans, with the promise of paying them high interest rates and giving out loans of twice the amount they had saved in a period of three months.
The enquiries indicate that the operations were on course until December last year, when clients started having difficulty in retrieving part of their monies and also accessing the loans they had been promised.
The Herald gathered that the relationship between Mr. Asempa and some of his workers, including a partner, one Daniel Ofori-Awuku, got strained, leading to the latter breaking away and forming another financial company, named Hallmark Financial Investment at Abomuoso.
Reports have it that Asempa’s relationship with his workers and clients started deteriorating when he started visiting “jujumen” and fetish priests to help him boost the business by attracting more clients and deposits.
Other reports suggested that he had gone in for a girl lover who had cast a spell on him, making him grant any financial requests she made.
Early this year, operations of Excel Financial Investments Ltd at branches in Abomouso, Esuom and Kade collapsed, leaving only the one at Osenase.
The Herald’s check at Osenase revealed that managing even this branch was a problem as managers were frequently changed.
Mr. Brown Eshun, in his early twenties and a Senior High School (SHS) leaver who now manages the Osenase branch, told The Herald that he was also looking for his boss, Eric Asempa, whom he had never set his eyes on since he took over the job of handling the Osenase branch of Excel Financial Investment Ltd.
“I have never seen him before, I always talk to him on phone. And that is when he is prepared to talk to me, otherwise, he will not pick my calls”, Eshun Brown told The Herald.
According to him, not too long ago, his boss came to the office in his absence to take an amount of GH¢3,500.00 from the secretary, Juliet Oforiwaa.
“I am now saddled with accounting for that money because it belongs to our clients, and all calls to Mr. Asempa to return the money have been in vain. So I also want to get him arrested”, said Brown.
Asked how he has been banking the deposits from his clients since he has never set eyes on his employer, Eshun Brown said Asempa had directed him on phone to open a personal account, for the time being, to run the operations of the company.
News about The Herald’s reporters in the towns that Excel Financial Investment Ltd operated brought people who had fallen victims to its operations to narrate their stories.
A pregnant woman who claims she is in the ninth month of her pregnancy, and is known as Yaa Joyce, said that she had lodged GH¢800.00 with Excel Financial Investments in the hope that upon delivery, she would be able to use the money and the interest accruing thereof, in meeting the expenses associated with the arrival of a new baby.
“But now that the manager is gone with my money, and my time is due, I don’t know what I’m going to do”, she lamented.
A farmer, Jacob Dotsey, told The Herald that his savings and that of his son, Edem Dotsey, lodged with Excel Financial Investments, are almost GH¢1,000.00, insisting that he would do everything possible to get his money back.
Another man who refused to disclose his name, said that he had put not less than GH4, 000.00 in Asempa’s company.
According to him, a couple of friends and other people he is aware of, had also lodged money of several thousands of Ghana Cedis in Excel Financial Investments.
At Abomouso District Police Station, Detective Inspector Kumi told The Herald that sometime this year, some people made reports at the station, concerning their inability to retrieve monies they had invested in Excel Financial Investments Ltd.
He said that his men were able to get Asempa to the station, where some kind of agreement was reached for him to pay them what he owed.
“Since then, I have not heard anything concerning this matter”, Inspector Kumi told The Herald, adding, “I thought he had settled his debtors. I never knew he has absconded without meeting his obligations.”
Before The Herald’s reporters left the Abomouso police station on Friday at 7pm, other creditors of Excel Financial Investments who had given up hope of ever getting back the money they had invested in the company, started trooping in to lodge complaints.
Meanwhile, Inspector Kumi assured the people who had come to make report on the scandal that the police would step up investigations into the matter, and organize for an arrest warrant to be issued for the arrest of Eric Asempa.
Asempa is believed to be hiding either in Kade,Accra or Gomoa Adam.
Readers will recall that some time ago in the late ‘80s, some financial investment companies, namely Pyram and R5, surfaced in Accra, where they lured people into depositing huge sums of money with them, with a promise for large returns, only to abscond with hundreds of thousands of Ghana Cedis.

GBC Office Shut Down !

By Alfred K. Dogbey

The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) station at Akatsi, in the Volta Region, which transmits visuals to television sets to the people of Akatsi, Keta, Aflao, Denu, Sogakope and the surrounding rural communities, has been disconnected from electricity supply for non-payment of bills.

The disconnection which was carried out by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) in Akatsi, according to reliable sources within GBC and ECG, took place a couple of months ago, denying the people of the area, who are citizens of Ghana, access to information on events in other parts of the country.

The Herald visited the transmission station last week Thursday, September 22, to double-check the claim that a very large area of the Volta Region has been cut off from National television, confirming the embarrassing situation in Twenty First Century Ghana.

This paper was again informed that the Amedzofe GBC station which also serves northern part of the region including Kpando, Hohoe, Ho and others has also been shut down since July, this year, and therefore, the whole region has been cut off from accessing the station which prides itself as the station with a nationwide coverage.

At 7 pm the same day, the entire GBC compound in Akatsi was in total darkness without a soul of security personnel around to protect the equipment belonging to the state-owned corporation.

It was later found out that, the securityman there was on leave, compelling the authorities at the station to seek the services of a former labourer of the station who was sacked, to take over the security duty.

Efforts made by this reporter to meet the Officer-in- Charge of Transmission (OCT) at the station, Mr. Shine Fiagbedzi, the following day to inquire about the paper’s information about the electricity disconnections proved futile, as at about 11:00am he had not reported for work.

When The Herald eventually got Mr. Shine through a phone call for an interview, he conceded that “indeed, the electricity power has been disconnected for two months now, for non-payment of ECG bill”.

According to him, the matter has been reported to the Regional Director based in Ho, Mr. Ralph Quarshie Avornyo, “but the payment has not yet been effected,” Mr. Shine said.

In the interim, the O.C.T told The Herald that the regional office has been providing the Akatsi office with fuel to power a faulty stand-by generator which is only able to “telecast only the vital programmes, for a few hours,” after which they go off air.

He disclosed that “the evening transmission, as at now, starts somewhere around 6:45pm, to the end of 7:00pm major news bulletin,” and they are off again because they cannot bear the fuel price.

When the paper followed up to the regional office, in a telephone interview, the regional director told The Herald last Tuesday: “Yes, this is a fact, we have been disconnected, and we’re on a process to settle with the debt”.

He confirmed supplying “fuel to the transmission station regularly which they used for transmission,” but The Herald swiftly reminded the Regional Director, that for the whole of last week, there was no single transmission at all.

Mr. Avornyo conceded, saying: “I’ve been informed the generator had broken down for a couple of days now and that technicians are working on it, adding that, your checks are true”.

The Herald gathered, even as at the time the station was using generator for transmission, that there were irregularities in the station’s purported telecast of vital programmes such as the GTV Breakfast Show.

Mr. Avornyo gave assurance that GBC would soon clear up the debt, and also repair the stand-by generator for full-time transmission and broadcasting to begin.

Meanwhile, intelligent information picked by The Herald during its visit to the station indicates that the fuel which the regional Director supplied to the Akatsi GBC for the transmission has always been drained secretly from the drum by some greedy staffs and sold to cornmeal machine operators in the surrounding communities.

Reports were that the fuel stealing habit has been in existence since the tenure of Mr. Tetteh Mensah, the former O.C.T, and later got intensified after the death of Mr. Easy Agbodze, a former technician then in charge.

But Mr. Fiagbedzi denied having any knowledge of such a deal, adding the fuel has always been kept safe, and that he doubts if this could be happening, especially under his watch.