APA – Accra (Ghana)
The report that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, at the invitation of the President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, left Ghana on Tuesday, August 22, 2023, to attend the 15th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa is one of the leading stories in the Ghanaian press on Wednesday.
The Graphic reports that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, at the invitation of the President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, left Ghana on Tuesday, August 22, 2023, to attend the 15th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The Summit, which is being held from August 22 to August 24 will be attended by the leaders of Brazil, India, China and South Africa. President Vladimir Putin of Russia will not attend the Summit but the Russian Federation will be represented by Foreign Minister, Mr Sergey Lavrov.
BRICS is a grouping of the world economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa formed by the 2010 addition of South Africa to the predecessor BRIC. Whilst the BRICS Summit is a meeting of Heads of State and Government, there is also an extensive business programme arranged around the Summit culminating in the BRICS Business Forum.
President Akufo-Addo is expected to deliver a statement at the summit. He was accompanied by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway; and officials of the presidency and Foreign Ministry.
The President will return to Ghana on Friday, August 25, 2023, and in his absence, the Vice President, Alhaji Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, shall, in accordance with Article 60(8) of the Constitution, act in his stead.
The newspaper says that the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has announced a 4.22 per cent increase in tariffs for electricity.
The decision comes after a comprehensive review conducted for the third quarter of 2023.
According to a statement signed by the Executive Secretary of PURC, Ishmael Ackah the primary objective behind the tariff adjustment is to ensure that the real value of the cost of providing utility services is upheld.
The new tariff structure maintains the existing rates for lifeline customers, as well as for industrial customers and non-residential entities like hairdressing salons, barbering shops, chop bars, tailoring and dress-making shops, cold stores, and other small- to medium-scale businesses.
Therefore, these segments of customers will not experience any changes or increments in their electricity tariffs.
In terms of water tariffs, the lifeline customers will also benefit from a freeze on tariff adjustments, with no increase or alteration (0%) in their rates. However, for all other categories of water consumers, the PURC has approved a 1.18 per cent increase in tariffs.
The Ghanaian Times reports that Railway Workers Union (RWU) has lamented delays in workers’ salaries which it claims sometimes runs into four months before payments are effected.
It also complained about the dwindling fortunes of Ghana Railway Company Limited (GRCL).
“Again, SSNIT payments are in arrears from October 2022 till date which has compelled SSNIT to take GRCL to court to enforce payments,”
General Secretary of RWU, Godwill Ntarmah, revealed at a news conference in Takoradi yesterday.
He added “Again, workers’ deductions to their various credit unions had not been paid since September 2002. The company is also owing GCB Bank millions of cedis while the workers’ tier 2 payments have also not been settled since May 2022 to date. The fate of retrenched staff of 2006 also needs to be addressed.”
On statutory issues, he argued “A limited liability company without shareholders is just a gimmick. All assets are vested in the Ghana Railway Development Authority (GRDA). The company is for the state, but, we can’t run GRCL with this arrangement. It’s not easy.”
Mr Ntarmah told journalists that workers expected that since GRCL was state-owned, government should have provided supports as in the past, but, they had been told the company was a limited liability company and should generate enough to fund itself.
GRCL, a fully state-owned company with staff strength of over 1,000, he said, faced serious challenges operating the narrow gauge rail line which is in a very bad state, saying that old and aged rolling stock resulted in series of derailments.
He reported that leadership had made frantic efforts to engage the President on their plight but, these had proved futile, and, urged the media to publicise the matter to save GRCL from total collapse.
The newspaper says that at least 2, 262 women died of breast cancer in the year 2020, the Acting Programme Manager, Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) Control Programme, Ghana Health Service, Dr Efua Commeh, has revealed.
According to her, their deaths were as a result of refusal to conventional treatment and late visit to the hospital, adding that more than 4000 women in Ghana were diagnosed with disease in the same year.
Dr Commeh, who made the revelation at the 4th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the BSoG, explained that though over 4000 women were diagnosed, but there were more women to be screened.
“There are a lot more lumps that have not been picked up at the hospitals and some are also hiding behind alternative medicine,” she said.
She expressed worry about breast cancer patients who default treatment, adding that health workers, especially the women must take self-breast examination seriously.
According to her, though health workers actively engage in breast screening exercises, yet they themselves do not take advantage of the screening.
“We come into contact with many health workers who confirm to us that they do not examine their breasts or have their colleagues do the examination for them. This is bad considering the number of health workers we are seeing with late presentation of breast cancer. So we continue to tell them they are also humans therefore the need to examine themselves just like every other person,” she said.
She explained there was the need for health workers to be abreast with breast cancer screenings, adding that well-trained and well-informed nurses could teach through demonstration to patients.
“Female nurses have a unique opportunity to identify with women, empowering them to take charge of their personal health,” she said.
Dr Commeh said breast cancer was not a death sentence but “ as for Ghanaians once you diagnose them of cancer then it is death sentence, it becomes a death sentence when you do not report on time or decide to seek other treatment , such as resorting to herbal and prayer camps,”.
She said the ministry would continue to work with other partners to increase awareness in the communities, targeting traditional authorities, queen mothers and opinion leaders in order to channel the message to their subjects.
The president of the BSoG, Dr Hannah Ayittey Anie, said the mission of BSoG was to provide coordinated medical, allied health, and social interventions for improving standards and outcomes of breast care.
GIK/APA
Ghana: Press focuses on President Akufo-Addo’s trip to South Africa for 15th BRICS Summit, others
