President John Dramani Mahama has indicated that Ghana is no longer a safe haven for those who engage in corrupt deals. He says the days of defrauding the state are over.

The Operation Recover All Loot committee chairman by Foreign Affairs Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa presented it’s reports to the President a short ceremony at the Presidency on Monday, February 10,2025.

Chairman of the committee recounted that the total complaints during the period of the establishment of ORAL amounted to 2,174 comprising of emails, phone calls and petitions.

President Mahama who received the report of the committee assured Ghanaians that the fight against corruption will continue with a renewed vigour.

“As we receive this report, let me assure the Ghanaian people that the work does not end here. The recommendations of the report will be carefully studied and where legal action and investigations are needed, they will be pursued without fear or favor” he assured

He added that every pesewas retrieved will be Channelled into developmental projects.
“Every pesewa recovered will be channeled back into national development and mechanisms will be strengthened to prevent such losses in the future,” he stated.

He issued a stern warning to those who think they can defraud the state and escape justice.

“To those who think they can defraud the state and escape justice, let this serve as a strong warning: Ghana is no longer a safe haven for corruption.Authentic Ghanaian cuisine recipes

“To those who stand for integrity, accountability, and the rule of law, I assure you that this government remains your steadfast partner in building a nation where honesty and hard work are rewarded,” he declared.

President Mahama described this moment as a defining one in the fight against corruption, calling on all citizens, civil society, the media, and public officials to play their part.

“This is a defining moment in our fight against corruption. We must all play our parts, citizens, civil society, the media, and public officials alike. Together, we will build a Ghana that is just, transparent, and prosperous for generations to come,” he said.

He has since handed over the report to the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine

President John Mahama directed the Eastern regional Minister to as a matter of urgency replace a dilapidated bridge which has become a death trap for students who cross a river to access education at Asuokow, a farming community in the Lower West Akim district.

In a facebook post, the President said the specific community has been identified and with action will be taken to address the challenge.

“Earlier today, the MP for Lower West Akim, Owen Kwame Frimpong, visited the Asuokow community and assured them the Eastern Regional Minister will also visit, as we work to permanently and urgently resolve the challenge the people and the school children are confronted with,” the President stated.

He added that his Reset Ghana agenda prioritizes removing obstacles to education and healthcare, ensuring that every Ghanaian has equal opportunities.

“Our quest to Reset Ghana includes a determination to remove barriers to education and healthcare across the country,” he stated.

The Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) and Africa World Airlines (AWA) officials, led by Mrs Yvonne Nana Afriyie Opare, Managing Director of GACL, inspected potential locations at Ho Airport for establishing an Aviation Training Academy. Togbe Afede XIV, Chairman of AWA, and Agbogbomefia of Asogli, has envisioned making the airport an aviation training hub.

The team explored sites for a hangar and facilities, discussing plans with stakeholders, including the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority. The collaboration aims to develop a pilot training academy and maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility, fostering employment and economic growth in Ho and the surrounding areas. Togbe Afede emphasized the airport’s suitability for training and maintenance due to its serenity.

The project, expected to boost tourism and the aviation sector, is anticipated to commence construction within the year, pending necessary approvals, with collaborative benefits for institutions like Ho Technical University.

President John Mahama has promised to revive the abandoned Anomabo Fisheries College in the Central region.

The college built with the intention to train researchers into fishing and Acquah culture as well as providing hands on training to individuals with interest in fish farming.

Started under the National Democratic Congress in 2011 under late President John Evans Attah Mills, the college has administration block, lecture halls, laboratory, bungalow for the principal and a fish pond.

President Mahama who took time of his Thank You Tour of the Central Region to inspect the college bemoaned the state of wastage that has gone into abandoned projects

He has since promise to revive it after the Finance Minister presents the budget next month.

“I have asked the minister for Fisheries to rest assured because since it was election year we didn’t have a budget . So the Finance Minister presents the budget in March, we will look how we can raise money to complete the phase 1”

According to officials the capacity of the college in it current State is three hundred (300) with the intention of expanding access

Judge in Tunisia handed down lengthy sentences to prominent politicians and at least one leading journalist in a move criticized by a media union and leading opposition parties as the latest move targeting critics of President Kais Saied.

Among those sentenced Wednesday include 83-year-old Rached Ghannouchi, the country’s most prominent opposition leader, who has been behind bars for nearly two years.

Ghannouchi, the co-founder of the Islamist movement Ennahda and Tunisia’s former Assembly Speaker, was sentenced to an additional 22 years in prison for undermining state security. He boycotted the proceedings against him.

Ennahda condemned the trial as politically motivated and said the prosecutions were “aimed at revenge, violating basic human rights and freedoms, undermining the rule of law and blatantly politicizing the judiciary.”

The National Salvation Front, a coalition of opposition parties that includes Ennahda, said in a statement that the sentences issued against bloggers, politicians and former government officials totaled more than 760 years and marked “one of the darkest periods” for the country’s judicial branch, which has seen judges dismissed and power wrested from it by Saied’s executive branch.

“This particular chamber is becoming a specialized tool for issuing harsh sentences against politicians,” said one of its leaders, Ahmed Nejib Chebbi.

The charges stem from a 2019 case against a media company that provided services for Ennahda during that year’s presidential elections. Those involved are accused of defamation, spreading falsehoods, money laundering, undermining state security and illegally accepting funds from abroad.

Human rights groups have criticized such cases as a way to target Saied’s opponents. Saied won a second term last October in a landslide election while his leading opponents, including Ghannouchi, languished in prison.

“These rulings bring Tunisia back to a period the people sought to leave behind through their revolution,” an Ennahda statement on Thursday said, referring to the 2011 ouster of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the first Arab dictator toppled as part of the Arab Spring uprising that swept the region that year.

In the years that followed, the North African nation was seen as a success story for its transition to democracy, rewriting its constitution and winning a Nobel Peace Prize for political compromise. But signs of authoritarianism have re-emerged since Saied took power in 2019.

Throughout his tenure, Saied has suspended parliament, rewritten the constitution to consolidate his power and arrested politicians, activists and journalists who criticized him.

The court on Wednesday also sentenced in absentia a group of Ennahda politicians who’ve fled the country and now live in exile, including former Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi, who was sentenced to 35 years on state security charges similar to Ghannouchi’s.

Journalist Chadha Haj Mubarak was sentenced to five years in prison as part of the same case, the National Syndicate of Tunisian Journalists said. The union called for her immediate release and in a statement denounced the court’s lack of respect for press freedoms. In a statement Mubarak’s attorney, Souhail Medimegh, said his client was being charged purely for her journalism.

In a meeting held on February 6, 2025, Minister of Education Haruna Iddrisu has urged the University of Ghana to reduce its residential facility fees from GHC 3,000 to GHC 2,500 for both fresh and continuing students.

The meeting, which took place at the Ministry in Accra, included the University’s management, led by Vice Chancellor Prof. Nana Aba Amfo, as well as representatives from the Student Representative Council (SRC). Iddrisu emphasized the need for affordability in education, instructing the Vice Chancellor to lower the fees by 25 percent.

“I have asked the Vice Chancellor to reduce the residential facility fees by 25 percent and I have subsequently asked her to engage you (SRC) in the future on any fee announcement,” Iddrisu stated.

In response, Prof. Nana Aba Amfo assured that the University would comply with the directive, acknowledging both the Minister’s request and the concerns raised by students.

“We have listened to you our Minister and also our students, and we can afford to reduce it to 25 percent across the board, and going forward there will be adequate student engagement,” the Vice Chancellor assured.

The President of the SRC, Maradona Adjei Yeboah, otherwise known as Guru expressed gratitude for the reduction but also called for refunds for students who had already paid the higher fees.

“We are thankful for the reduction, at least it will reduce some sort of burden from our parents, there should be a refund for those who have already paid,” he said.

University management confirmed that approximately 80 percent of students have already paid the residential facility fees at the previous rate of GHC 3,000. The call for refunds is likely to be a key issue for the University to address in the coming weeks.

A former Polling Station Chairman for Subin Constituency and ally of Kennedy Agyapong, Lawrence Adu, has stated that the New Patriotic Party (NPP), will rot in opposition should the party present Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia for 2028 General Elections.

According to him, the former Vice President failed to market himself well which caused the humiliating defeat in the 2024 Presidential and Parliamentary elections.

Lawrence Adu made this statement in an interview with Agya Wusu on ‘Ka Wasem Morning Show on Radio XYZ.

He said, “bringing back former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia as flagbearer for the 2028 elections is highly suicidal because he failed woefully to win votes even from his own region. How do we present such a candidate?”

“It is however very nauseating and irritating to see how some elders and Members of Parliament of the party are seeking to use ways and means to impose Dr. Bawumia on us but we will resist them. How do u convince me that the NPP can win power in 2028 with Dr. Bawumia who performed woefully even though he was the establishment candidate”, he reiterated.

Touching on the issue of Hon. Kennedy Agyapong leading the New Patriotic Party in 2028, Lawrence Adu emphasized that the former Member of Parliament for Assin Central has marketed himself well to wrestle power from the NDC.

“Hon. Kennedy Agyapong is our sure bet for our victory in 2028 elections if the party is serious. Ken is intelligent, bold, brave, popular, loyal, kind and I believe that with these qualities he can win power back for our dear party”, he added.

Lawrence Adu further noted that Ghana currently needs to be ran as a business entity, stressing that Hon. Kennedy Agyapong is a very successful businessman and can be a good flagbearer for the New Patriot Party.