News
VP Bawumia commissions Police station for Asakraka Community
The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has commissioned an ultra-modern police station in Asakraka in the Kwahu South District of the Eastern Region.
The police station, beautifully built with bricks, is a departure from the usual block designs of various police stations in the country.
Speaking at the commissioning, Dr. Bawumia, who is also the Chairman of the Police Council, said the brick architecture, is a new model being adopted by the Police Service, and he commended the Service, led by the IGP, for the innovation.
“This is so beautiful, and one may mistake it for a bank,” Dr. Bawumia said.
“The brick-model police station, which is a departure from the cement and block type of police stations, is a novelty, which the police service, led by the IGP, Dr. Akuffo Dampare ought to be commended for,” Dr. Bawumia said.
“So far, we have completed two of such ultra-modern police stations and interestingly, all are in Kwahu here. I’m looking forward to commissioning more of such ultra-modern Police stations in other parts of the country.”
The Vice President noted that the commissioning of the police station will be of immense benefit to Asakraka and its environs, as it will improve law and order.
The Vice President acknowledged the good works of the Police Service in protecting lives and property and urged the public to support and cooperate with them.
“As Chairman of the Police Council, the Police Service has not taken for granted, the peace of this country. This is because of the commitment of the Government of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in retooling the police service through the provision of modern equipment,” he said.
Among equipment Dr. Bawumia listed were helicopters, armoured vehicles, motorcycles, etc.
“I want to commend the IGP and his team for the good work they are doing to sustain the security of the country through many initiatives,” he said.
The IGP, Dr George Akuffo Dampare, expressed delight at the commissioning and also thanked Dr. Bawumia for his support to him as IGP and the Police Service.
The Chief of the town, on behalf of his people, expressed gratitude to Presidemt Akufo-Addo and to Vice President Bawumia for giving the town a police station and other projects.
News
Swallowed by the Sea! …Keta’s coastal lines, landmarks, efforts to preserve heritage
The Atlantic Ocean is no longer a distant blue horizon for the people of Keta.
It now circles around their doorsteps, uninvited, unrelenting, pulling down walls and other structures, erasing memories, and threatening lives.
Hovering precariously between the restless sea and the Keta Lagoon, this once-thriving coastal town is slowly being obliterated.
Salt water has become both a physical and metaphorical threat, dissolving the town’s past as fast as it claims its future.
Madam Aku Atitso, 62, lives in a crumbling former Prisons Service quarters – one of the few structures still standing on the eroded stretch of Queen Street.
She sits quietly at the entrance, preparing a modest breakfast for herself and her granddaughter.
The air is thick with salt and silence. “The sea took everything,” she says softly. “My husband’s nets, our mattress, our memories all gone overnight.” Her voice trembles. “This place too is dying. But it’s the last place with a roof over my head.”
A few metres away, Aunty Esinam, 79, watches the sea from a low stool beside a wooden shelter. Her eyes do not blink. “That spot,” she points, “used to be someone’s living room, a whole family lived there”.
It’s not just homes that are vanishing. Landmarks that anchored Keta’s cultural identity are disappearing one after another. The once-imposing Fort Prinzenstein, a haunting relic of the transatlantic slave trade is now more of a ruin than a monument.
the encroaching waters along Keta’s
coast.
encroaching waters along Keta’s coast
The colonial-era Bremen factory, the old cinema where generations of children once laughed at flickering black-and-white films is also gone.
Queen Street, once the town’s bustling backbone, is now a watery corridor choked with debris.
Standing atop a section of the sea defence wall, 69-year-old retired teacher Efo Kwasi Agbeko surveys what remains.
“The first police station is mostly gone,” he says, gesturing part of the building stuck in the sea sand, only ruins and a few rooms remain.
“This town is fighting, but the sea is winning,” he said.
Even the Cape St. Paul Lighthouse, Keta’s historic sentinel, leans perilously toward the water, and fishermen say holes in the shore are opening more frequently, sometimes every week.
That leaves a thick cloud of uncertainty hanging around the historic town of Keta.
Once upon a time, it was a vibrant town noted for business but currently left with ruins with a few of the residents watching in awe the sea’s devastation.
From: Geoffrey Kwame Buta, Keta, Volta Region
News
Ghanaians climax Easter with fun-filled activities
Christians around the world and other faith based groups last Monday climaxed the Easter celebration with a number of fun-filled outdoor and indoor activities.
With streets empty, fun seekers stormed church premises where picnics were held while others partied in many ways.
Others spent the day at the various beaches and music and film shows occupying the others.
velleyball competition
at the Laboma Beach
Church in Tema Community 8 engaged
in a number of activities including the
popular draught competition
At the churches, participants engaged in bible reading, football, volleyball, playing cards, table tennis, horse racing, bouncing castles, swimming and oware.
one of the picnic venues
Others played ludo, tag of war, lime and spoon, draught, music competitions among others.
The Spectator captured some of the exciting scenes around Accra-Tema for the benefit of readers.
Story & pictures by Victor A. Buxton
