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NPP primaries: Former Deputy Attorney General rides bicycle to submit nomination forms
former Deputy Attorney General, Joseph Dindiok Kpemka, has ridden a bicycle to submit his nomination forms to contest in the New Patriotic Party primaries in the Tempane constituency in the Upper East Region.
Flanked and cheered by his supporters, the legal practitioner, rode the bicycle for about seven kilometres from his house in Kpikpira to the party’s constituency office in Tempane to file his forms.
While some spectators were of the view that the former Deputy Attorney General was broke because he had not been given appointment in the second term of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s government, he clarified that, he wanted to identify himself with his constituents who were predominantly rural poor.
“My place is a place of underprivileged people, poverty stricken area and when somebody rides a bicycle, it is a toil the people are able to afford a bicycle, it is the most common and cheapest means of transport.
“Majority of my people are poor, so, I have to identify with them on the occasion of my filing by saying that the common thing they do every day, I share with them and whatever they do and I am one of them,” he emphasised.
Mr Kpemka served one term as Member of Parliament for the Tempane constituency after winning the 2016 elections against Mr David Adakurugu, the late husband of Madam Lydia Lamisi Akanvariba, the current MP whom he lost the election the 2020 elections to.
Mr Kpemka explained the current MP had done nothing to improve the development initiatives that he started as an MP and that he was making a triumph return to Parliament in 2024.
He said the 2024 elections was going to be an easy job for him as their four years development records would be compared in which he stood tall, indicating that in terms of human resource and infrastructure development, his records were visible for the electorates to see.
He said “it was under my initiative that we had a Polytechnic constructed from start to finish, we started 13 school blocks, we completed nine, under the one village one dam, we did eight and rehabilitated a major dam to serve as irrigation facility for the farmers and procured subsidized fertilizer for the poor and needy who could not afford.
In addition, he said, through his efforts, about 200 youth in the area who had diploma and degrees were recruited permanently under the Ghana Education Service during his tenure, while the area had the most number of beneficiaries under Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) than any district in the Upper East and Upper West Regions.
Under the Rural Electrification project, he said, about 54 communities were initiated under his regime and efforts were still ongoing to ensure that the communities were connected to the national grid.
The Deputy Attorney General faces stiff competition in the NPP primaries as he would have to beat Ibrahim Bashiru, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer for the Youth Employment Agency who had also filed nomination forms to contest in the primaries in the area.
Mr Kpemka said he had impressive development records to regain the seat than his competitors and appealed to the delegates to endorse him in the primaries to lead the party in the 2024 elections.
He said his networks went beyond the NPP fraternity and added that although he was confident the Party would break the eight he had the connections to lobby for development projects even if the NPP does not retain power in 2024.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
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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
