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Heavy military presence in Ketu South is to enforce border closure -VR Regional Minister
The Volta Regional Minister, Dr Archibald Yao Letsa has explained that the heavy presence of armed personnel of the military and other security agencies in the Ketu South Municipality is meant to enforce the closure of border.
According to him the number of personnel of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) at the borders was now inadequate to enforce the closure effectively, for which reason other security agencies were assisting to enforce of the closure.
Dr Letsa said this at a press conference in Ho on Friday to react to public concerns over the trend, stressing that “Since the closure of the frontier a few months ago to prevent the spread of COVID-19, some lawless people still crossed in and out of Ghana with impunity, using unapproved routes.”
He said that the recent claims by the Volta Regional Chairman of the NDC, Mr Henry K. Ametefee that the government had declared war on the Volta Region, and for that matter, the Ewe people, was unfortunate and totally untrue.
“The Volta Region is an integral part of Ghana and so, how can the government declare war on its own people,” the regional minister sought to know.
Dr Letsa revealed that human trafficking and other crimes across the border were still rampant, in spite of the closure of border.
In that regard, he said that the government could not stand aside and look on unconcerned while criminals had a field day to put the lives Ghanaians at risk.
He gave the assurance that the military personnel on duty in the area were all professional soldiers who would carry out their assigned duties diligently without intimidating anyone.
The regional minister, therefore, entreated residents of the area to go about their normal daily activities without entertaining any fear.
The Ketu South Municipal Executive, Mr Elliot Edem Agbenorwu, who was present, denied reports that the soldiers were storming the homes of the residents and demanding their identities at gun point, saying no such thing happened.
Source: Ghanaian Times
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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
