CURBING ROAD ACCIDENTS

Curbing Road Accidents

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COMMENTARY ON CURBING ROAD ACCIDENTS

Road accidents always bring pain to victims and their families. Currently in the news is the accident which has claimed more than 35 lives on the Tamale-Bolgatanga truck road over the weekend. When such accidents occur, one is compelled to ask whether the fight against carnage on the roads is being lost. Road accidents in Ghana continue to claim more lives than HIV and AIDS, malaria and other deadly diseases combined. This situation has given the country the tag of being one of the accident prone zones in the sub region. Regrettably though, majority of these fatal accidents can be prevented especially those caused through human errors. In the Central Region alone, 134 people have died from road accidents between January and October this year according to the MTTU. This is only an average of what happens in the country. Unfortunately, as a nation, it appears all efforts to reduce the carnage on our roads are not yielding the desired results. It is true that certain accidents are inevitable and of course that is why we call it accidents. It is also true that most of the accidents are self inflicted. The situation is so serious that today on our roads it is not enough as a driver to be extra careful. This is because another reckless driver can get people involved in an accident. It is a fact that most of the young people who drive are simply under the influence of drugs and alcohol and therefore have no business being behind the wheel. If the work of the doctor is tagged as an essential service, because he deals with lives, then the work of the driver should equally be regarded as essential because their actions also impact on human lives.

A couple of years ago, the GPRTU banned the sale of alcohol at lorry stations, yet the practice goes on with impunity. The net effects are accidents. This makes some people wonder if Ghana is actually committed to ending the needless accidents on the roads, after the formation of committees of enquiries and heated debates in the media on how to reduce such horrific accidents. The MTTU early this year started arresting drivers who use their phones while driving. Those who saw the exercise as cosmetic are being proved right as both commercial and private drivers continue to chat on phones whilst driving. For fear of being tagged ‘too known’, as we call it in Ghana, many passengers prefer to be quiet when the driver is over speeding, doing wrongful overtaking, talking on the phone or stopping to pick a passenger at the wrong place.

Tackling accidents on the road is multi-sector. The DVLA, Police, Road Safety Commission, government and passengers should not relent in their collaborative effort to effectively tackle the needless deaths through road accidents. The hard truth is that some of the vehicles that ply the countries roads right from the nation's capital to the remotest parts are death traps to say the least. Can the DVLA feign ignorance as to how such vehicles pass the test for road worthiness? The barking has only yielded brutal and costly accidents. The time to bite is now. Christmas is just about four weeks away, where we will witness many commercial drivers over speeding, all in an effort to make more money. It is their cocoa season and the wiser ones will want to reap supernormal profits at all costs and by all means. It is not enough to put numerous adverts, painting the picture that over speeding kills as well as construct more speed humps. The road safety rules need to be religiously enforced.

The decision by the Ghana police Service to deploy five thousand personnel on the roads is welcome news. The police must however bear in mind that it will be an indictment on their image if they look on for the wrongs to go on. Major transport companies should ensure that they use at least two drivers to ply long distance roads. Above all passengers should endeavour to speak with one voice when the driver is misbehaving, after all what is wrong is wrong even if everybody says it is right. Accidents are no respecter of ones status and this must be drawn in the consciousness of everybody. Whilst we pray for the souls of those who have perished through road accidents, Let us pray that the Holy Spirit will lead every vehicle on the road bearing in mind the scriptural admonition that by strength shall no man succeed. Indeed we need the intervention of God as we prepare for the yuletide and the New Year. Long live Ghana, long live all drivers.

BY: GEORGE ASEKERE OF GBC RADIO NEWSROOM IN ACCRA .

Effects Of Alcoholic Drinks

COMMENTARY ON THE ADVERSE EFFECTS OF ALCOHOLIC DRINKS AND THE NEED TO STOP TO ALCOHOL ADVERTISEMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH BEAUTY AND SUCCESS.

Health experts agree that alcohol do have effect on human beings ranging from headaches to heart failures and abnormal behaviours . It is true that alcohol can make people feel confident, less inhibited and more euphoric. This stimulant effect is the main motivating factor for the increasing popularity in alcohol consumption. Alcohol is credited for its notoriety in inducing depression, sleep disturbances and sometimes make people fall into coma thereby making the drug a dangerous depressant. Alcohol affects the liver, pancreas and the entire cardiovascular system with women at a greater risk. The sad aspect is that a woman who drinks passes on the effects to the unborn child. In Ghana there is ample evidence of broken relationships, disintegration of families and untimely deaths as a result of alcohol. Several lives have also been lost on the roads due to drink driving.

One can therefore comfortably conclude that alcohol presents a fatalistic prospect for the future and at best a pessimistic and deceitful bliss for its users. Unfortunately, Ghanaians on one hand condemn alcohol intake especially among children and at the same time demonstrate pictorially yet falsefully that alcohol is simply a sign of good living. The media continue to associate alcohol with beauty, success, love and worse of it all, an antidote to all sexual disorders with impunity. The National Media Commission, the Advertisers Association of Ghana, the Food and Drugs Board and other state agencies, which are supposed to correct this anomaly, look on helplessly. Are we by this admitting that the monetary gains in these adverts are more important than the potential dangers to society? The laws of Ghana make it criminal for anyone to send a minor to buy alcoholic beverages as well as sell alcohol yet this practice goes on day in day out across the country. May be the time has come for the state to take a second look at how alcohol is dignified in the country. Alcohol affects Ghanaian society everyday, yet the battle against drugs seems to be centred on only cocaine.

The question as to whether one drinks alcohol or not is immaterial since drinking has a trickle down effects on the entire society. This makes it mandatory for all to help wage a relentless war against alcoholism. Many are those who have never taken alcohol before yet have died from alcohol induced lorry accidents. Those who drink in the hope of forgetting their worries must remember that the same problems will resurface after sometime, with additional health hazards. Those who have conditioned their minds to remain alcoholics should stop blaming witches and other unseen spiritual powers as responsible for their actions. They must make conscious efforts to quit or start preparing their wills, if any, because alcohol is a hidden magnet that attracts its cohorts to the grave. A word to the wise is enough.

BY: GEORGE ASEKERE, GBC-RADIO NEWSROOM IN ACCRA.

University Of Ghana Students Demo

 

 

NEWS COMMENTARY ON NUGS-BACKED UNIVERSITY OF GHANA STUDENTS DEMONSTRATION

An African proverb has it that a toad does not run in day time for nothing. If this is anything to go by, then students of the University of Ghana, Legon, may not be on the streets for nothing. They really might have a legitimate case and should be listened to. Over the years demonstrations have always been used to express dissatisfaction over a policy or an action. Today’s demonstration by the students of the University of Ghana should not be seen as a misplaced priority. It is true that a solution to a problem has never been found on the street, rather through dialogue. Reports that all attempts by the students to dialogue with the University of Ghana authorities have not gone through are unfortunate. The action of the students may be seen by many as an act of disrespect because at their last meeting with the Deputy Minister of Education, Mahama Ayariga, they were asked to call off the planned demonstration. It must be emphasised that it is the students who are wearing the shoes and feel how severe the pain is. Based on the University of Ghana calendar, students at the main campus are expected to register by August 5. If they fail to meet this deadline they will not be able to write their end of semester examination in December. This means automatic deferments of their programmes. The sad truth is that any student who cannot pay his or her fees this year may not be able to do so next year because fees at the University of Ghana have always been on the ascendancy. The students therefore have a legitimate case.

A close look at developments at the University of Ghana appears the current management is not listening to divergent views. The current Vice Chancellor, Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, on assuming office is reported to have stated that students should not bring their poverty to destroy his policies. This was at a meeting, when a student observed that the decongestion policy will prevent many poor students from studying at the University of Ghana. True to his words, all pleas by the Legon SRC and NUGS to bring a human face to the decongestion policy have fallen on deaf ears. Come next academic year which begins in August the lucky students who will have rooms in the traditional halls of the university will pay four hundred Ghana cedis as hall fees. In addition Level 200 and 300 students in the Humanities and Business School will pay academic facility user fees of four hundred and twenty seven Ghana cedis and four hundred and eighty two Ghana cedis, with those in the physical science paying five hundred and twelve Ghana cedis. The story is worse for those pursuing the Distance Degree programme and those at the Accra City Campus considering the disparity in facilities at their disposal and the fees they pay.

In a statement issued on July 18 and signed by the Acting Registrar, F.K. Yeboah, the University agreed that students can pay 50 percent of academic facility user fees and pay the remaining at the commencement of the second semester. In the absence of no reduction, this is a feasible alternative but the truth is that paying in instalment does not take away the effects of the fee increment on parents. Looking at these figures aside from feeding, photocopying, clothing, one can conclude that not even the best paid Civil Servant in Ghana can afford to cater for two children at the University of Ghana, and also think of building a house let alone buying a car. As for peasant farmers, fishermen and petty traders at Makola, the least said about them, the better.

Students of the University of Ghana have been chained with these sky rocketing fees for far too long, and if there is anything to lose in demonstrating, it is rightly the chains. The University authorities have argued that they have installed CCT Cameras in the school in an effort to curb exam malpractice and these among other things have led to the increases in fees. This is certainly a good move but why is it that the cost cannot be spread over a period of time? In any case how good is good when it can undo the happiness of many. In fact, if this is allowed to go on, chances are that the public funded University of Ghana will soon be an institution for only the rich and this must not be entertained. Management of the University must bear in mind that they have been entrusted to run a public facility and should not run it like their private property. They must be told in clear terms that the University of Ghana is made up of students of single mothers, teachers, fishermen and even orphans who have to travel to farming communities during semester breaks to work on farms and get money for school fees. May God save students of the University of Ghana, as they fight for their legitimate right.

BY: GEORGE ASEKERE, A JOURNALIST

2011,world press freedom day

Commentary on World Press Freedom Day-2011

Press Freedom is generally seen as the right guaranteed by the first amendment to the U.S Constitution to publish and distribute information in books, magazines and newspapers without government intervention. World Press Freedom Day which was instituted by a U.N. General Assembly Resolution is observed globally to highlight the principles of Press freedom and remember those who fought and died trying to exercise them.

For the first time in world history, the US is partnering UNESCO to host the day at Washington D.C on the theme: “21st Century Media- New Frontiers, New Barriers”. The day is significant not only to media practitioners, but everybody considering the fact that, 84 per cent of the about six-point nine billion people in the world live in nations where the media is partly free from government control or not free at all. Besides, there is also an overwhelming response to the growing popularity of internet based applications such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Blogs. Leaders in democratic and authoritarian states have no qualms in admitting that the establishment and fostering of an independent, pluralistic and vibrant media is the cornerstone of development.

Unfortunately, as the global community marks World Press Freedom Day today, the Journalists Memorial at Newseum in Washington D.C is adding the names of 59 journalists who died in 2010 to eighteen others who died earlier this year to the list of the over two thousand deceased journalists worldwide. Aside from this, 75 journalists are being held in Turkey for trying to expose rot in the country. The story of the eight journalists who were attacked in Uganda recently whilst trying to report on the walk-to-work campaign in protest against fuel price hikes is still fresh in our minds.

In Ghana, many still remember the story of the murder of the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the GJA in 2006, Samuel Anim. The truth is whilst lovers of democracy see free and unfettered flow of information as the lifeblood of a joyful and functioning world, the same cannot be said of dictators and criminal cartels. US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton said it all when she stated that when a free media is in jeopardy, all other human rights are also threatened. Also, a blogger described the five days that former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak blocked mobile phone communications and internet access in an attempt to stifle press freedom, as a period when Egyptians lived in a big prison.

The good news is that Ghana has made significant strides with press freedom in the last decade. Surprisingly the Global Press Freedom rankings for 2011 released yesterday by Freedom House ranked Ghana 54 and Mali 45 on the list of 196 countries. This ranking makes Mali the number one country in Africa with the freest media followed by Ghana which occupied the first position in 2009 and 2010. The level of freedom enjoyed by Ghanaian journalists is not in doubt. Records at the National Media Commission indicate that Ghana has over a thousand registered newspapers, 200 Radio Stations and ten T.V. stations with 25 channels besides the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation. The Criminal Libel and Sedition laws have been removed from the law books. Also the Whistle Blower Act is now operational in the country. Ghana’s Parliament is also leaving no stone unturned to get the Freedom of Information Bill passed into law. There is therefore no justification for anybody to feel intimidated for what he or she writes or says.

As we celebrate World Press Freedom Day today one will want to remind journalists of the need to be guided by their professional ethics and be mindful of the Nation’s cultural diversity as they try to gather and disseminate timely and accurate information. The time has also come to take a second look at the powers of the NMC and the resources that are allocated to the commission so that it can function effectively.

The Ghana Journalists Association must also fast-track its unionization process to bargain for better working conditions for media practitioners to avoid the current practice where some journalists have become bootlickers and remote-controlled devices for politicians. Long live Ghanaian Journalists, Long live all media practitioners, Long live Ghana.

BY: GEORGE ASEKERE OF GBC- RADIO NEWSROOM IN ACCRA

Witch camps in Ghana

NEWS COMMENTARY ON THE NEED TO ABOLISH WITCH CAMPS IN THE COUNTRY

Many Ghanaians believe witchcraft is real and can be destructive. This non-empirical and intuitive mentality with no justification in today’s scientific world, is unfortunately the bane behind the inhumane treatment meted out to people perceived to be witches. It is embarrassing, that in the midst of Christian and Islamic teachings and the claim that rule of law is supreme in Ghana, as many as over 966 women and six hundred and seven (607) children are detained in three out of the six witch camps in the Northern Region. These are Ngani witches camp in Yendi, the Kukuo witches camp at Bimbila and the famous Gambaga witches camp at Gambaga.

Unfortunately the Ghanaian media only highlights the plight of witches in the northern part of the country as if it was a deliberate attempt to paint a dark picture of virtually everything in the north. In a recent report, titled “killing the witches”, Manase Azure Awuni, a journalist exposed the pathetic story of how some witches are beaten, vilified and locked up in homes in the nation’s capital, Accra . The story of the 72-year old woman, who was burnt in the industrial city of Tema, by five adults for allegedly being a witch, is still fresh in our memory. The police in Takoradi also made public, the story of a couple who kept their nine year old son indoors until his death on the orders of a spiritualist that the boy was possessed by witchcraft. The list is endless with prayer camps seemingly playing a dominant role.

Without attempting to endorse the purported acts of witchcraft, it is only fair that in the absence of any authentic proofs all human beings are treated fairly. In virtually all cases, alleged witches, apart from being beaten mercilessly, are forced to drink unhealthy herbal concoctions to prove their innocence most of which are injurious to their health. There is scientific evidence that some people who profess to be speaking with the devil or hearing voices of others including voices of the dead are simply hallucinating. Science has proven that there are many psychological disorders that manifest in people especially at the menopausal or old age that make sufferers to sometimes behave in ways that some people may attribute to witchcraft. Yet there is no correlation between the two.

The question is for how long shall we continue to infringe on the fundamental human rights of these so called witches most of whom are either from very poor homes or are very old in the name of culture? The 1992 constitution makes it clear that no one is guilty unless otherwise proven by a court of competent jurisdiction. It is therefore criminal for anyone to hide behind culture and religion to infringe on the rights of others under the pretext of witchcraft. Certainly the rights of some people have been grossly abused, in the name of witchcraft, and the time to end it, is now. One is therefore making a passionate appeal to the government to ensure the immediate closure of all witch camps in the country.

It may be true that many of the accused may have committed demonic acts with witchcraft. It is also true that many have been falsely accused and are suffering for accusations they have no knowledge of. Let us jointly fight for the release of these accused witches and ensure that their human rights are respected at all times.

BY: GEORGE ASEKERE, GBC RADIO NEWSROOM.

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world press freedom day 2011

Press Freedom Day-2011

Commentary on World Press Freedom Day-2011

Press Freedom is generally seen as the right guaranteed by the first amendment to the U.S Constitution to publish and distribute information in books, magazines and newspapers without government intervention. World Press Freedom Day which was instituted by a U.N. General Assembly Resolution is observed globally to highlight the principles of Press freedom and remember those who fought and died trying to exercise them.

For the first time in world history, the US is partnering UNESCO to host the day at Washington D.C on the theme: “21st Century Media- New Frontiers, New Barriers”. The day is significant not only to media practitioners, but everybody considering the fact that, 84 per cent of the about six-point nine billion people in the world live in nations where the media is partly free from government control or not free at all. Besides, there is also an overwhelming response to the growing popularity of internet based applications such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Blogs. Leaders in democratic and authoritarian states have no qualms in admitting that the establishment and fostering of an independent, pluralistic and vibrant media is the cornerstone of development.

Unfortunately, as the global community marks World Press Freedom Day today, the Journalists Memorial at Newseum in Washington D.C is adding the names of 59 journalists who died in 2010 to eighteen others who died earlier this year to the list of the over two thousand deceased journalists worldwide. Aside from this, 75 journalists are being held in Turkey for trying to expose rot in the country. The story of the eight journalists who were attacked in Uganda recently whilst trying to report on the walk-to-work campaign in protest against fuel price hikes is still fresh in our minds.

In Ghana, many still remember the story of the murder of the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the GJA in 2006, Samuel Anim. The truth is whilst lovers of democracy see free and unfettered flow of information as the lifeblood of a joyful and functioning world, the same cannot be said of dictators and criminal cartels. US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton said it all when she stated that when a free media is in jeopardy, all other human rights are also threatened. Also, a blogger described the five days that former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak blocked mobile phone communications and internet access in an attempt to stifle press freedom, as a period when Egyptians lived in a big prison.

The good news is that Ghana has made significant strides with press freedom in the last decade. Surprisingly the Global Press Freedom rankings for 2011 released yesterday by Freedom House ranked Ghana 54 and Mali 45 on the list of 196 countries. This ranking makes Mali the number one country in Africa with the freest media followed by Ghana which occupied the first position in 2009 and 2010. The level of freedom enjoyed by Ghanaian journalists is not in doubt. Records at the National Media Commission indicate that Ghana has over a thousand registered newspapers, 200 Radio Stations and ten T.V. stations with 25 channels besides the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation. The Criminal Libel and Sedition laws have been removed from the law books. Also the Whistle Blower Act is now operational in the country. Ghana’s Parliament is also leaving no stone unturned to get the Freedom of Information Bill passed into law. There is therefore no justification for anybody to feel intimidated for what he or she writes or says.

As we celebrate World Press Freedom Day today one will want to remind journalists of the need to be guided by their professional ethics and be mindful of the Nation’s cultural diversity as they try to gather and disseminate timely and accurate information. The time has also come to take a second look at the powers of the NMC and the resources that are allocated to the commission so that it can function effectively.

The Ghana Journalists Association must also fast-track its unionization process to bargain for better working conditions for media practitioners to avoid the current practice where some journalists have become bootlickers and remote-controlled devices for politicians. Long live Ghanaian Journalists, Long live all media practitioners, Long live Ghana.

BY: GEORGE ASEKERE OF GBC- RADIO NEWSROOM IN ACCRA.

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