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New Times Corporation, partners move to ensure road safety
The Commanding Officer of the Greater Accra Regional Motor Transport and Traffic Department (MTTD), DCOP Mr. Martin Ayiih, has advised drivers to avoid practices that increase the risk of road accidents in the country.
addresing the gathering
Photo: Lizzy Okai
He said instead of attributing road crashes to the “work of the devil,” drivers must drive cautiously and observe road safety regulations as Christmas approaches.
Highlighting some safety measures, the police officer urged drivers to keep safe distances between vehicles and avoid the practice known in local parlance as ‘bumper-to-bumper’ driving.
DCOP Ayiih made the remarks at the launch of New Times Corporation (NTC) Road Safety Campaign dubbed “Road Safety in Ghana: Preserving Lives, Sustaining Our Nation,” on Wednesday in Accra.
Speaking on behalf of the Regional MTTD Director, he said drivers must “give sufficient information to other road users when vehicles encounter faults on the road.”
He said drivers must avoid drunk-driving and the use of mobile phones, adding that police surveillance cameras remained active in the city, therefore, drivers should drive responsibly so as not to be “caught in the web.”
“We must be conversant with the Highway Code which is the bible for the road. When you think that the policeman is not there the surveillance camera is the policeman.
Editor Ghanaian
Times making a
presentation to DCOP
Martin Ayiih
Ing. Mrs May Obiri-Yeboah and other management members of NTC
“There are other things that do not directly contribute to accident on the road but they may disable other people you might come into contact with on the road. Do not wait until road certificates expire before you go and renew them,” he said.
Acknowledging the collective responsibility towards road safety, he said the police would offer the needed support to achieve the aims of the NTC road safety campaign.
Mr. Martin Adu Owusu, Managing Director of NTC, noted that road indiscipline had to be addressed from diverse perspectives hence the corporation’s partnership with stakeholders to tackle “acts of recklessness” on the road.
“If we begin to look back at the number of talents we have lost and the number of families that are traumatised in diverse ways due to irresponsible driving, we would begin to appreciate the urgent need to scale up our effort in fighting this canker.”
He said the road safety campaign was, therefore, one of the many initiatives intended to reduce the number of “unwarranted deaths on our roads.”
Engineer (Mrs) May Obiri-Yeboah, Director General, National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) noted that road crushes had adverse economic implications so the public should “exercise greater caution in the days leading to Christmas.”
Praising the Corporation for the initiative, she said that the launch was in line with the “Stay Alive Campaign” which sought to “induce positive behavioural change among road users.”
“Building a fatal free road system is not just an idea but it is an achievable vision and all of us including the media must be part of the campaign to realise this vision,” she said.
Mr. Alfred Koomson, Marketing Manager, NTC, also said the Corporation as state owned entity, had an obligation in the fight against road indiscipline hence the move to partner stakeholders to promote road safety from an “economic and emotional point of view.”
By Ernest Nutsugah & Priscilla Efriyie Ankapong,
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GEXIM deepens relations with US EXIM Bank
A management team of the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) led by the Acting Chief Executive, Sylvester Mensah met with the leadership of the Export–Import Bank of the United States (US EXIM) on Wednesday April 23, 2025 in Washington DC, United States of America.
The Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM, Mr. James C. Cruse and Vice President, International Relations, Ms. Isabel Galdiz received the GEXIM delegation, which included Deputy CEO for Banking, Mr. Moses Klu Mensah and Head of International Cooperation, Mr. Jonathan Christopher Koney at the headquarters of US EXIM.
The meeting offered the GEXIM team the opportunity to share the strategic direction of the Bank in line with the resetting agenda of the President of the Republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama for the repositioning of the Ghanaian economy into an export-led one by providing the requisite investment to Ghanaian businesses.
Mr. James C. Cruse expressed US EXIM’s eagerness to deepen its existing relations with GEXIM and proposed the signing of a new Cooperative Framework Agreement following the expiration of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2019 to utilize US EXIM’s medium term loan guarantees to procure machinery by GEXIM for qualified Ghanaian Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).
Mr.Sylvester Mensah thanked the Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM for hosting the GEXIM delegation and reaffirmed the Ghanaian government’s commitment to strengthening trade and investment between Ghana and its global partners for economic transformation of Ghana with GEXIM playing a pivotal role.
The two teams will be meeting on the sidelines of the 2025 US EXIM Annual Conference on 29th and April 30, 2025 to explore possible areas of collaboration and matching Ghanaian businesses to American companies. The meeting ended with an exchange of gifts.
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Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation –Pres.Mahama
President John Dramani Mahama has expressed concern over the misuse of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) for personal financial gain by individuals in leadership positions.
Speaking during a meeting with Chief Executives of specified entities under the State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA) on Thursday, March 13, the President directly attributed the dire state of SOEs to their leadership, accusing chief executives, management teams, and governing boards of prioritising personal enrichment over organisational efficiency.
He pointed to bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures as factors draining public funds while SOEs continue to rely on government bailouts.
“Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation by appointees. The chief executives, management, and boards of these enterprises are responsible for this situation. Some SOEs have become perennial loss-makers, draining public funds with bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures while relying on government bailouts as if entitled to them. Many of these entities are at their lowest point in the entire history of the Fourth Republic,” he said.
President Mahama further noted that many SOEs have been plagued by inefficiencies, corruption, and mismanagement, leading to consistent financial losses. He cited the 2023 State Ownership Report by the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), which highlighted systemic inefficiencies and wasteful expenditures within these entities.
He therefore reaffirmed his commitment to reforming under-performing SOEs and ensuring they serve national interests.
He warned that loss-making SOEs will no longer be tolerated and will either be merged, privatised, or closed.
“I will assess you based on your performance. If you do not align with the pace of the reset agenda, you may be asked to step aside. If that adds to the horror movie, so be it,” he added.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
