[Music] welcome back this is still the good morning Africa sh and African television and this is the newspaper review segment you're welcome from wherever you're watching us uh we are well aware that our people in the north they don't take us for granted at all and we really do appreciate that and from across the country wherever you're watching us we do appreciate you thank you so much for always choosing us to bring you latest updates uh um here in Ghana across the African continent and around the world my name Isa AUM this morning I'm seated with my panelists very insightful and enlightened men who are ready to Enlighten us as well in our topics for discussion today and you know that you're always welcome to send in your submissions and contributions uh to all of our topics uh on 0559 91982 0599 0559 91982 you're most welcome to share with us what your thoughts and your concerns are now before I introduce my guest let me me share with you our topics for discussion today today I'll be talking about Namibia blocking ship over Israel war crime consent also Parliament approved 339 million USD for TMA Motorway Expansion Project not 660 million USD this is coming from quami Abuja uh group petitions OSP to probe 245 million expenditure for all African games and all so public not enthused about muhamed's 24-hour nightclub promise and he has stories we'll be treating this morning um one of my guests just came in Saka Saka is known for coming El but anyway we we really do appreciate our guests and I'm just going to introduce them not no particular order I don't want trouble this morning Hamza I don't want trouble this morning so in no particular order that's fine coun good morning is here this morning and real men wear pink or this is all pink this I know I know I'm a I'm a only colors red blue yellow but called it a version of pink I've not heard it we pink yeah we pink it looks good on you and I am I am employing you to wear pink more in the month of October because it signifies the fight against breast cancer we love I but when you said Saka it's not for I think you you should have added that Andrew is for com early sure we'll do that next time my next guest is hamini good morning good morninga good morning coun so I have two councils today and um a a a council in the micking also uh here today add yourself so to the yeah I'm just a vator thank you so much gentleman for coming um welcome sakas thank you very much M when I was coming you as somebody was telling me H this Nigerian actress genev ener that she was on the program what is she doing there so I when I enter I realized that you are the one please there's no of resemblance I I think the hair the hairstyle I see I don't know when the suddenly GRE like that this is my hair I've always I've always had hair yes good hair this my hair it's good anyway anyway thank you gentlemen good morning once again and if you just joining this is the newspaper review segment on panafrican television we're going to delve into several conversations our first topic will be the Namibia blockship over Israel war crime consent also Parliament approved 339 million USD for teamot Expansion Project not 660 million this is coming from quami Aja uh group petitions OSP to probe 245 million us the expenditure for all African games and also public not enthused about muhamed's 24-hour nightclub promise send in your contributions on 0559 91982 on Facebook we're live on there as well now let's delve into our conversation um just a little context to the namibian story Namibia blockship over Israel war crime concerns story captured on page five of The Daily Guide newspaper this there a vessel suspected by the namian authorities to be carrying military cargo intended for Israeli use in the ongoing war in Gaza has been blocked from docking in the southern African country this is just about it and I want to engage my panelist this morning let me start with you Council I want to find out what the legal grounds uh Namibia used to invoke this this this action specifically what legal grounds do they have to justify the blocking of the ship okay so let so let me take this opportunity to wish you a lovely morning it will be an untruth to say this the first time I'm meeting you but technically the first time we we we are meeting on set and uh I hope that we will have a very fruitful discussion also wish my brother Hamza a good morning and my own brother Salia I love I love the fighting him uh I encourage him not to stop fighting he should always stand by what he believes in no matter what anybody says after all we have a right to to disagree yeah so H I think as to do justice to this topic we all need to look at what even caus in the first place I think it flows from the issue Israel having with Hamas and Palestine and what it called and I think this has been on goinging for for some time now if you recall sometime in December 2023 South Africa brought a case against uh Israel at the interational court of justice and as the basis of the case is that Israel in how is handling the is in pistan is is is in breach of I think the 1948 uh Geneva Convention on on on on genocide so as a case has been brought against er er Israel and the cas his premise on one genal acts they are talking about H apar regime inra Manan AP regime in the Gaza Strip they speaking about the Israel the fact that the block and occupation of Israel also gal in in in n and and and er essentially namibia's decision to blockade ships they perceive to be carrying arms is premised on their support on the action Israel has brought against uh sorry South Africa has brought against Israel I think their Minister of Justice herself said it as she stated that the basis for the blockade is uh to prevent H what's it called uh as the continuation of the j social acts of Israel against the people of of of of of Palestine so to answer your question that's that's that's the legal basis namia themselves are claiming but you know like in the icg Israel has has is is opposed to the arguments of South Africa supported by Namibia in and and and then seen in h their blockade of the of the ship their argument essentially is that the actions they are taking one is born out of selfdefense if you I think some sometime in in octob more than thousand is Israelis were were killed somewhere captured by Hamas and isra is saying that the actions they taking against Hamas or the Gaz Gaza Strip is premised on his right to self-defense especially as Hamas uses civilian as a military weapon in their fight against Israel also Israel's argument also is that indeed I do not even have jurisdiction to to hear this matter because their action the the because the action experimented on the 1948 uh convention on genocide they saying that what is happening isn't a genocide per se and that is really an I'm struggle is a war and then because it's a war a legal War then South Africa cannot inter intervene on the basis of it being genocidal in nature so essentially that's the uh legal framework and and the basis for which NAIA feels that it can it can it can it can uh block ships they think contain contains arms m is it just a suspicion there has been no confirmation to this exactly and that's why so isra would need to take steps already so yeah they they suspect they they broke the ship I I don't know steps will be taken to inspect the the content of it but like I'm saying what they are claiming is that they they believe the ship has weapons they believe those weapons are going to be used by Israel to perpetrate genus acts in the Gaza Strip and and and and and and the basis is the action of South Africa is already brought against isra in the international Court of H Justice is an ongoing case let us what's called uh Monitor and then see and see and see how far but having said that uh I think a position on how Israel Palestinian Palestine is clear or the people of Gaza is clear and my position has always been that it it is time for the world to insist on the two State solution to the issues in in in in in in in the Gaza Strip CU if we say that one of the abiding principles of international law is the right of people to have to to to self determination I think it is important that we apply those same principles to the people of Gaza they should have a right to form their own nation and and and and and and and and and to and to asset their their area area sovereignty and all the problems that are happening there is because of a refusal or the refusal of the world or the use of that area as a a weapon in the J politics for me My My My worry is the ease with which we are we are we are able to depart from principle one of the abiding principles of in tal law is the right of people to selfdetermination I think those same principles should be applied in in in the area and to Grant the people of H Palestine the right to forge their own Nation right thank you counc yeah thanks Hamza uh good morning to you and of course to my colleague panelists and most importantly to our viewers out there but interestingly before going into the namibian case I woke up with a rather stressful news this morning about the possibility of Water Crisis that this country is likely to be ushered into unfortunately I think that we have been in crisis for some time now so what the Ghana Water Company Limited seem to be announcing is simply an alert for all of us to take caution and to know that within the coming weeks the watera situation in the country especially in great arra is going to become very bad perhaps wor if I should put it that way and you see it is woring especially at this critical stage of our economic life and most importantly the role water plays in our livelihoods our economy is already collapsed water has Health undertones and so any serious government must be interested in investing meaningfully in the water supply in the system not necessarily because people would have access to it to bath but largely because it's connected to our health Delivery Systems and most importantly to livelihoods and that is why it is disappointing that this government since it came into office seemed not to prioritize investments in the water sector and I see this with a bit of concern and comparing it to what happened in the past especially under John rman and Maham I can confidently see that we were able to move the water supply from about 55% to 73% in terms of increase in output and that resulted in about 110 million additional gons added to the water supply system in the country that's how come we invested in projects like the pr Water Project the aqu desination plant and a host of others unfortunately even treating the current water supply has become quite burdensome in terms of cost and that is the dire consequences of a depr iting City what this simply means is that now it is costing Ghana watera Company Limited more money to treat the the water that we have in the system you can imagine most of their treating equipments and the chemicals are brought B outside this country they would have to change into foreign currency to be able to import them to ensure that they treat the water supply it is therefore not surprising that there seem to be shortages because the cost has more than quadrupled and so it is difficult for what Ghana Water Company Limited to live up to the expectation of the people so I would want to use this platform to call on government to pay critical attention to the water sector and try as much as possible to cut down the waste associated with government expenditure and most especially the recently launched project that tamamoto we 3333 million I'm sure you will be discussing it another untimely event that could have been used at the critical moment to make sure that we address our water supply problems in the country but that said let me get into the namian case I think that what Namibia did is clearly within its legal remit and I say so because I'm sure that just like any other country when it comes to the management of your water bodies you quite apart from International agreements that we all subscribe to one is also given the freedom as a Sovereign Nation to develop your own internal control mechanisms especially when dealing with your water bodies and your if you like uh even your airports and stuff like that so yes I don't think that what Namibia has done is out of the ordinary and for me I think that they should be commended if they had encouraged or accepted that ship to at the namibian waters it would have been a tcid endorsement of The Reckless suicidal and genocidal acts of uh Israel in Palestine so it is commendable but they should have gone beyond that to the extent that the ship entered its water bodies I think that they were also clothed with this legal authority to even arrest that ship because I'm pretty much conv vinced that if the ship was carrying cocaine they would have arrested that ship for carrying cocaine and so if you did not know that the ship was carrying arms and later on discover that they were carrying arms you had you were within your legal remed to arrest that ship and this raises issues of sovereignty amongst African States and how we value that sovereignty and our reluctance sometimes to asset that sovereignty and I feel that in this particular case Namibia was simply reluctant to asset its own sovereignty any other Western Country wouldn't have just refused to allow that ship to dock but they would have taken it a step further by ensuring that that particular ship was arrested because you do not communicate that you are carrying certain things and on the contrary it turns out that you are carrying weapons intended for Warfare of which Namibia is not part so for me I think that they should have gone beyond that because what is happening in Palestine is totally unacceptable just this morning I was reading that we are now in the region of about 12,000 children who seem to have lost their lives to the barbaric Act of Israel 12,000 children these are children who cannot fire weapons these are children who cannot throw stones these are children who cannot organize against the Israel government these are children who cannot take part in any form of protest but they seem to be the worst culprit as far as this needless invasion of Palestine is concerned and these are things that we should be concerned about as a people and so it is not enough for self Africa alone like senior Council indicated I think that African countries must begin to have a say the African Union must indicate its position on this genocide and indicating the position is not enough we must see concrete steps intended to support South Africa in this bit to ensure that Israel is brought to book and I can assure you that if they are if we are able to do so as a unit as an African block it will compel most of the Western blocks to come to the negotiating table and we all can agree on an acceptable resolution to the problems confronting the Gaza Street until that is done we'll continue to sit around discussions like this pontificating ideas and Views as to the situation on the grounds whilst children and women continue to die if you look at the death to now I think it stands around 29,000 people and out of this 29 9,000 people over 60% of that number are women and children that is worrying and for some of us the United Nations has proven in this particular case to be a useless organization excuse my language utterly useless and that is the more reason why African countries must begin to band together and demand that the Western World try as much as possible to beat down on the politics when it comes to foreign policy and it relationship with weaker States because you see if they succeed in Palestine we may not know where the next train will stop there's the need for us to name that in the B and the only way to do that is for the African Union and African leaders like South Africa has done South Africa has done it has shown the way we must also follow in that suit no amount of commentary will help the situation in Palestine what we need now is action and that action can only be driven by Africa as a block because most of them have their economic interest to Africa and so our bargaining position is strengthened by their economic interest and if we begin to band together and make those demands and indicate our unwillingness to open up certain sectors of our economy that they are interested in until that case is resolved or until the war the senseless genocide I w't call it war in Palestine is brought to an end I can assure you that if we are able to master the courage to do that the Western World will respond and mount the necessary pressure on Israel to take a backstage but I will be disappointed if the international court of justice at the end of the day takes the position of of South Africa because it all has to do with International politics and South Africa is out there as a Lone Ranger with no State support from other countries so do not be surprised if if at the end of the day they are unable to reach any meaningful outcome and the international court of justice decides to go the way of Israel unfortunately that is what is likely to happen until we mall all the necessary powers to go and give South Africa the necessary support so I can only wish the people of Palestine well and pray and hope that Sovereign nations would suddenly see the need to come and protect lives of you know you the lives of children and women especially within that region and hopefully it doesn't more and L escalate to other countries as well all right thank you Hamza great submission then Saka yeah thank you very much [Applause] uh let me take this but please just pardon me I lost my voice a bit let me take this opportunity to say good morning to my fellow panelists and to your good self a good morning to our flag bearer and the president of Ghana and the MPP Fraternity in general first of all I did not want to start in in political notes or or partisan notes but as usual Hamza just did something that clearly I need to respond to Ghana water came out to explain to certain communities within the great AR region why there will not be water supply and it's as a result of an a problem that they encountered and they assure them that they assur the communities like denta and other other environs East Leon and other other and communities around the reason for the intermittent water supply and assure them of what they are doing I mean has that warrant hey when we you you people didn't do in terms of water supply what the MPP did what the NDC said they have done P into significance so I me that is not a topic here for us to to continue with if not I think that we will you know we will delve into that and take the whole time I mean I know I mean water supply the White Water Supply almost everywhere more than twice what the indc did and you come and sit here and and and just throw dust into the into the eyes of I mean with the Namibia situation I give you oh please please please please let me talk with a Namibia situation I think that as a nation let's be honest with ourselves I mean as as as as a not as a nation as the world Community I think we have allowed Israel far too long to misbehave everybody knows I mean the history is so palpable you don't need to even go and then do some research to realize that the Palestinians are staying in their home you don't need anybody to tell you that the aggresses is the the Israelis the Palestinian they are in their home and they are protecting their home now some people say it's War what kind of War what we get this whole thing was in the 11th of October last year when Hamas in their usual defense of themselves and their territory did what they did and Israel decided Ed to bomb the whole of Gaza because that was what they were waiting for they just were they were just waiting for something to trigger so they take advantage of that and cause genocide they are Exterminating almost everybody within Gaza and we know I mean it is not because of what hamama it we all know that this a long-standing thing that the a peace treaty upon peace treaty upon peace treaty and Israel have has always flouted the agreement just give them the right to self-determination they said no these people do not have right to even you know be called a state in 1985 there was an agreement and that even led to the death of Y harat we have said this and we have discussed this matters here time and again Israel contined their aggression no matter what anybody says but blame the United States of America because they have been guarding them on they are their backers and is do not fear anybody because they know that the most powerful nation in the world is behind them and pushing them to cause atrocities and I believe I mean if if the the the the I I'm disappointed actually in the Arab League it's like the Arabs themselves are not together Saudi Arabia Egypt you know Yen those countries are around because you don't need to go and be fighting Israel but there are other ways of fighting them one of which is even the Namibia situation one of which is what sou Africa is doing you understand but it's as if first of all I mean Israel has to you know go into some Unholy Alliance or agreement with Egypt in order that all of them stand as indiffer and and and turn the other way around and people have been killed M destroyed families home livelihood a victim they want to destroy Gaza in the name of I don't know in the name of what in the name of what which is against the United Nations Protocols of aggression and taking over Nations I mean in the past it used to be so it was like the might was right those days I mean the dark days and they were conquers here and there but after the formation of the United United Nations and when Enlightenment came those things belong to those Medieval Era but because of the United States and their inordinate desire see that Israel have have a home have a place that they can also call a home they have allowed they are taken by force the Palestinians land and the Namibia situation what what Didia what did they do wrong they are saying that there were some explosive weapons that way to dock in their territory and they believe it was I mean there was permission that was asked it was in route to uh what do you call it Israel and they think that is not good enough and they decided to decline that permission and to block the dog uh the the ship there's nothing wrong with that this this a nation that wants peace for the continent of Africa and to a large extent the world and therefore any anything that will will will jeopardize the peace that we all year for they are not for it that's that's the way that all of us should should do Israel can live side by side with the Palestinians but you see they said they don't trust that they can live and be surrounded within their because they are brothers we all know I mean historically if if if if you read religion you know that they are brothers all of them I mean came from Abraham and why can't they live together and you say that even when the agreement was was reached that within the sped of 5 years Palestinian State should be controlled by Palestinians the Israelis decided to move away from the interior and they were now in charge of the bodies so they if you Palestinian you want to even leave your own country you need permission of Israel I mean what sort of slavery is this and the whole world is quiet as if nothing is happening and waiting and and any time hammer or hisbah or any other country in support of Israel does anything in defense they say oh these are the terrorists meanwhile there's there's a group of people who are terrorizing some people in their home and nobody is saying anything and it's becoming annoying it has moved from annoyance to irritation and and and and to some extent anger and when it explode I think that the world would not be able and he can leave to third or fourth world world war third world war because of the way the indifference of world superpowers I do my heart to the UN General Secretary because you could see that he's doing all that he can but he's not getting support from others if the isra were that good why would they expelled from other areas Spain UK and other areas and then instead of them to also go and then leave side by side with their neighbors and ensure development they want to take full control of the people not even that kill them ex exterminate them and and let them exist no more and I think that is is something that that is abhorrence and the world must rise up all right thank you Saka um this is still the newspaper review segment and my panelists have done due diligence to this very subject let me read some comments on WhatsApp says NPP communicators on were given fake information and as NDC communicators must not rely on the source of MPP communicators information but find their own sources of information from different sources or when they left power what was the status of the sector I'm sure it's in relation to the water issue now this one says please anytime Saka appears on your show listeners don't benefit fully how don't they benefit okay he should credit listeners with a bit of respect and not unnecessarily interject and make he was making his he didn't interject anyone I'll be your lawy person wrote it yesterday yester night 8 a.m. 8 8 a.m. all right so it says good morning OHA and your beautiful panelist December 7th is just around the corner we will we will I'm not sure what he was trying to say we will this corrupt government the exit way isshah we will show I'm sure my greetings to comrade hamini this is alaj Ali alassan from tamali um thank you so much all right so I'll be taking more of your messages on WhatsApp and on Facebook as well please do well to send in your messages now we have several other interesting stories to digest um our Second Story is supposed to be the parliament story which happens to be the fact that Parliament approved 339 USD million USD for TMA Motorway expansion but I'm going to exercise disc question here to jump to the um group that has petitioned OSP to probe the 245 million USD expenditure on the all African games now interestingly not too long ago um the public be moed the humongous 15 million USD that was expended on the feeding of 5,000 athletes for 18 days during the all African games which happened here in Ghana interesting interesting uh concerns have been raised we've heard from the general public and just yesterday the forum for account accountable governance a civil society organization devoted to ensuring good governance rule of law and accountable Democratic dispensation yesterday petitioned the office of the special prosecutor regarding the massive expenditure of over 245 million USD on the recently held 13th African games in Ghana now just last week we we did a breakdown of the 15 million that was expended on the feeding of 5,000 suppos 5 ,000 athletes during the all African games and people were asking why what kind of foods were they fit some made funny statements like they were fed horses among other things now it still baffles the minds of ghanians how 245 million USD was spent on the all African games there was a tweet by sadik Adams and he actually jaapos this to okay he said that all African games Walla upsa is literally Contracting an entirely new school campus that is a 10f floor multi-purpose twin tower edifice and two new 10 story hostel block facilities a 10 Flo Twin Tower with offices lecture rooms commercial centers and Halls of residential areas and will be replaced and will replace the administrative complex on the old campus the two students hostel 10 Story Each will accommodate about 3,250 persons the Project's Ultra Modern Nature has been described as unprecedented in the history of the university all four ground projects cost 230 million Ghana cities which when is converted um happens to be $14 million us and he says meanwhile the the African game organizers didn't need to build anything from scratch so it happens that these facilities used for the African games already existed it was just a matter of refurbishing it and when you um look at the stats it says um the refurbish four legon Halls the Elizabeth sayon the man and Nelson hall for 250 million Ghana cities which is $16 million they use $16 million out of the $245 $5 million to refurbish these four Halles just like um repainting installing ACS electrical Works among other things cost 16 million USD now it says both the upsa construction and Lego refurbishment happen around the same period the students who returned to the 16 million renovated facility can attest to the changes there when I say only a breakdown will clear doubt this is what I mean Council what sayth thou so uh first of all uh let me use this opportunity to recommend what the name of of the CSO um forum for account accountable governance yes so this morning I listened to my own brother on ctfm explaining the the the his his his his objective in seeking the special prosecution to investigate into suspicion of corruption in in in in how procurement was done how monies were expended H during the all all all African games now the reason for my Commendation is uh because I believe firly that his decision to take on and and and and and and petition the OSP builds or or help build the right political culture which I think can help sustain our democracy and that's a culture that not only tolerates diverse opinions but also demands accountability from from from from our leaders cuz frankly figures are are interesting yeah CU Beyond uh they spending 50 million on food I think there's an allegation that they spend about $4.5 million also on the accreditation tax yes um I I have the figures here so it is actually for accreditation it is actually yeah 4.5 million USD so this is the breakdown for construction of state of the Arts Sports Center at biman 145 million USD renovating the University of Ghana Stadium 35 million USD renovation not building from scratch refurbishment of the games Village 16 million USD and also the coverage of games 3.6 million USD which the GBC came back to say that they received just 105,000 us feeding of athlet 15 million USD and accreditation 4.5 million USD yeah so there are there are a number of issues that clearly this brings one is the action by CRI which is really commendable because of his impact in a desire to build the right political culture which is the only way in which we can sustain the Democracy we have so that's the that's the first issue then the second issue is the need for us to move from this procurement uh de democracy CU our democracy essentially has has become a procurement one and it's become a procurement one because there the reason why our politicians in my view want leadership is not because they want to bring about transformation the reason why they want leadership is because they think that's the shest way in which they can they can FL in their pockets and I think this belief H has been enforced during the M Ru M of n a sadly we've built a political culture that is very parochial in nature so the reason why people want political power the reason why people take decisions they take the reason why people or politicians or people in as in government even pursue certain policies it's not because of what is in the best interest of the country but it's because of what is in their parial interest I think is is is is it is that culture that has led to this H very interesting figures in the African G have you told us how wasn't in terms of the economics the economics of it what we gained we spent 200 and something million what did in terms of the economics you just you simply take the feeding as in the feeding budget the issue even goes beyond just the figure about who the contract was given to the contract was given to the wife of a company own by the secretary people don't he minister at large mention you know owned by understand they claiming that they spend $15 million on uh 5,000 people when when when you break it down what it simply means is that in a day they spend 3,000 Ghana cities per atlete so when you break it out supposedly they eat three times in a in a day meant that for each meal they spend th000 GH cities apparently the breakdown um reveal that each athlete spent 855 cities on breakfast 855 cities on lunch 855 cities on dinner or what it is it is outrageous and and you see it is because it's a because of also because of what it does to the belief of the people of this country in democracy being the best system of Governors especially in the light of the afro barometer report we said that the young people of this country increasingly are become disenchanted with democracy so in this simple all African games one in in granting the contract there was no regard for conflict of interest no regard for conflict of interest and and I think this issue has been persistent over the past few years you were mentioned by aamp case you mentioned the fact that what's it called the finance ministers company uh most of the time is the transaction adviser when we are procuring loans and and and and and see what this does is that it undermines the trust the public the people the demos have in democracy as the best form of governance ER that will best create a society where individual Ambitions can met so what is at stake is not just about the monies but what is at stake is the extent to which these acts undermines the Democracy we all agreed to be the best system of governance to protect our individual liberties understand that is what is a stick here and that's why I commendam and I call on all ghans all of us because the Constitution entreats us to Pro defend not not not just prove because it's not is to defend the Integrity of this country to to to Def defend the country to defend the Constitution cuz what is happening is an attack on the country what's happening is an attack on the country because you see when you when you act in a manner when you use the powers that we've granted you to act in a manner that seeks to undermine the confidence the people have in the system especially when we are a republic so when we are Republic means that the power resides with the people understand and they Grant powers to political leaders to to to to serve now immediately the people the the public loses confidence in that transmission of power or what the powers they give to the position what they use it for then really what you're attacking is the Republic yeah and that's why I'm saying that it is the duty of every single ghanian to stand up and fight in defend the Integrity of this country because clearly clearly when when you take into consideration everything that has been done to this country from the attempted seal of uh the hotels hotels when you take into consideration the the evil of the ambulance contract awarded to nado's daughter's baby daddy M when s daddy n's daughter's baby daddy baby daddy yes baby daddy Salah is no all those things yeah when when when when you take into consideration all the breaches of conflict of interest when you take into consideration the the the fact that the president had no quals to appoint people who are perceived to be MPP apars into the EC yeah yeah you understand then clearly for me what it tells me is we need to save our Republic we we need to save our Republic and for me like saying Beyond we suing them in 7 December 2024 Beyond we second them there must be a Day of Reckoning there must be a day of reing and I keep on saying the people whose head must be on the chopping board should not just be the politician it not just be n and his and his people but the people who should be on the should also be the neers you because ask yourself as an what kind of environment enabled this non leader to lead what kind of environment enabled this sin to be perpetrated against the Ghana what kind of environment enabled this depravity of leadership to happen because right now where we are at the moment political leadership has lost credibility so whoever becom the next leader what he has to deal with is not just the want breakdown of our economy but he needs to also restore the confidence of the people of this country in political leadership understand that's the evil that has been done to our country and there must be a Day of Reckoning there must be a day of Reon because people we grant our powers to why they use those powers in a manner which is adverse to the collective interest of the people of Ghana then they must be held accountable and that accountability must go beyond we just voting them out that's what I'm saying that Beyond just voting them out there must be a Day of Reckoning and the the the people whose heads must be on the chopping board should not just be the president's people but the people who enabled it the MPP political as a political party there must be a day of recing for them the the the media men who clearly have forgotten their role as being one of the key Fates in the building of the right political culture that's the only way you can sustain this democracy they failed to do that to jump they fail to do the CSUS this issue about the peace C the peace counc relevance cuz peace Council you keep on telling about peace come and sign peace Parts but you never question the milit the the the the security agencies who had no issue killing eight of our compat just because of of an election and and you want to for people to sign what what PE what when you have failed to hold accountable the the security agencies who had no qus to kill it of our competitors eight ghanians lost their lives in their call in in in in in in taking their civic responsibility they they lost their lives what has the peace Council said what has the peace Council said so what right to the peace Council have to about peace peace when the president was undermining or was creating a situation where the EC con virtually made it impossible for the EC to undertake his job because what's the job of the EC the job of the EC is to deliver an election which is not only free and fair but which is perceived also to be free and fair what did the Peace Council say the peace Council kept quiet so it's not about calling come and sign peace so concede as when you lose concede they understand but when the president sat down aloof not just sitting aloof he himself perpetrated acts that made it practically impossible for the E to deliver on his mandate that essentially what the president was doing was making it impossible for peace for peace to be upheld because right now I can tell you any result apart from MVP losing will be questioned will be question because the president has appointed into the E people who are perceived to be MP so not to talk to much I think this issue with concerning how money have been expended is a Sy of so many wrongs M Ru that has happened beyond the outrageous nature of the being banded around the the conflict of interest what's called issues and and and and then clearly show all of us the way that we all have a role to play in sustaining this democracy and we can play that role if we collectively as the people of Ghana come together to forge that right political culture m because that's the only way in which we can sustain democracy that right political culture that do not only tolerate diverse views like I'm going to tolerate Sal's View and I hope he tolerates that will tolerate diverse views but most importantly that will hold political leadership accountable until we create that culture right then our democracy will always be at R all right thank you so much Council um for the purposes of you know feeding you with the information of what happened yesterday especially those who haven't seen the video of kuam Sudan so if our producers have that video please let's quickly take a look and return to the studio for our discussion sh has sparked significant public debate as the amount question is a substantial s particularly in the context of GH is ongoing developmental needs the controversy began when the minister of Youth and sports Mustafa YF disclosed during a public accountant committee session on Tuesday August 20 2024 that the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation GBC had been allocated over $3.6 million for its coverage of the games you had an arrangement with uh GBC to cover the all Africa games right can you share with this committee how much that coverage was was for and whether payment has been made for same yes uh GBC was the official broadcaster for the African games 20 the 13th African games and I can confirm that full payment have made made to GBC do you can you do you do you have per chance what the amount was I don't I can't recall the exact amount but I know that in the asset of3 million us you paid GBC in excess of $3 million us for coverage of the all Africa games chairman I think that I would rest here and maybe the next time GBC appears before us because most of the technicians who worked on the all Africa games have still not been paid and so we wanted to ascertain if you have paid and how much has been paid chairman I'm grateful however this claim was promptly challenged by gbc's management which asserted that the state broadcaster only received 100 and $5,000 for its services this sharp discrepancy between the reported allocation and the actual funds received has raised serious concerns prompting further scrutiny from the public and media the benefit total payment to gbc's for gbc's benefit I repeat was $15,000 us and that is what we got now but does GBC have any evidence to back what you're saying because I mean the minister is the one in charge he has made a statement of course what what what evidence do we have course we definitely have enough documentation these mons are not paid in backs they are paid through the bank and they are indicated what the money is for and before we do that there's a letter we receive from the ministry telling us whose payment it should be for and so we don't act on our own we act upon instructions and that we have all the documentations and we are not we have everything in in in place to show that this Mone is you see public funds are not easily dispersed like that GBC needs $3 million to do a lot of things and if we got the $3 million we would have gone ahead to start spending on gbc's needs including procuring an Obi van we didn't get that money in response to the growing outcry the ministry of Youth and sports released a statement detailing a breakdown of a $3.6 million allocation desp this GBC remains firm in its position stating that it has documentation to prove that it received only $15,000 for the coverage this discrepancy suggests that over $3.5 million equivalent to more than 54 million Ghana cities at the current exchange rate of State funds is unaccounted for fearing suspicions of possible misappropriation or theft in light of concerns a civil society organization fir for accountability led by lawyer quami U Dano petition V special prosecutor kissy Ain to launch a full scale investigation into V matter addressing the media after petitioning the special prosecutor Mr Danel said the inquiry is essential to uncover the truth ensure accountability and protect the Integrity of public finances in the country I think uh that every ghanian citizen is interested in accountability and I want to believe that the office was set up for the purposes of ensuring expeditious accountability and so I would not want to give them any ultimat but I know that they have the interest of the good people at heart and they must do what is right by their conscience and they must do what is right by the loss of this country um to that end I expect that they get back to us uh as soon as possible so that we can be assured that they are interested in investigating this matter and bringing finality to it he told the news team that he's ready to accept the outcome of a petition in good faith well I mean to the extent that I I told you that I have so much confidence in the office of the special we are all law abided CI um and so if investigations are conducted and properly so done and the outcome is that there are no corruption uh related matters inherent in your oranization of the all African games I think the matter would have been brought to be and so I would not further query or ask questions about it at least my conscience will be satisfied that I've done the Lost Duty for uh the good people of ISL all right so that's what transpired yesterday at the office of the special prosecutor led by K Danel Esquire uh Hamza let me come to you on this subject um one of the many concerns is that the stakeholders and members of the ruling New Patriotic Party don't seem to find a problem with these humongous figures because Common Sense would tell us that you cannot use or utilize 15 million USD in feeding 5,000 people and when you look at the nature of any sporting activity the further the game the they decline the participation and so a beets believe that um these amounts were utilized in you know funding this whole project tell me what your thoughts are first of all uh it is important to state that just like many of the inflated figures we have had to deal with since this government assumed office in January 2027 this adds to the ly of cases that justifies why like my senior councel indicated we should do everything within our power to make sure that the life of this government does not go beyond 7th January 2025 you see ohima the entire nation is becoming numb to the series of scandals that seem to be the only achievement of the n b Administration and the most painful part of it is the share arrogance with which these guys go about it and sometimes it is even difficult to see reason sorry sometimes it is difficult to understand why we have been so tolerant as a nation to this point because you see the only way to put a reckless corrupt and insensitive government in check is not true elections elections must not only be the only way to keep such governments in check there are so many arsenals that we can deploy as a people to make sure that that Reckless insensitive corrupt regimes like that being led by n b is kept in check Kenya showed the way we saw it in Kenya when the Youth of Kenya to rise to defend their future and so if you look at what is happening now and the pain that some of us have is not just directed at the n b government to a reasonable extent and justifiably so it is directed to us as a people when did we lose our confidence and courage as a republic and as citizens of this country of in Kuma Ghana why are we so reluctant to draw into the spirit and aspirations and and and Legacy of our forbearers who fought for the independence of this country many of them lost their lives so that today could become better for us Market women who did not even understand the four corners or never saw the four corners of a classroom stood up when they were called upon to protect our country from foreign occupation and governance under the a pmdc the ghanian citizens once again Rose to the occasion to support a military regime to once again reset this country after it was plunged down by corrupt acts and deeds of political class and the most painful aspect of what is happening today is that tracing back from Independence never have we ever been subjected to such broad day robbery with ve and with no ating arrogance like we have been subjected to under n b and you see it didn't start today so why are people surprised why are these expenditures surprising people it is simply because we have encouraged it or enabled it like senior Council indicated by our decision not to act when the government came into office and we started raising their lambers especially with PDS we did not get the needed support so that was what emboldened the senior minister to recklessly pursue the cruel associate Saga and at the back of that embezzled over $15 million that could not be accounted for even according to the auditor general the ghanian people did not see the sense in rising up even when the opposition demanded that there was a need for us to hold these people accountable so they were further emboldened and they took it to a higher level that is why today the president's government and his cousin finance minister at the time would have the fantry to award a 30 $34 million so-called ambulance servicing project to the president's baby uh what's the name daddy daddy daughter's baby daddy because we have become a group of timid citizens that n and Dr mam can simply wake up on any side of their bed and decides to jump into our Mega resources to do to do with with it what it pleases because we've encouraged it we've enabled by inaction we've enabled that planr that is going on and the most painful thing is that people think that it is too remote from them it is not it is this Reckless Looting of our Mega resources that is reflecting in the prices of goods and services you buy at the market it is this Reckless looting that is reflected in the cost of water and electricity it is this Reckless Looting of our resources that has had D consequences on the dollar and to the city exchange rate that we are battling with what the heck when have you ever heard this a Sit minister of state would hold dollars and pounds to the tune of over3 million dollars in her house under her bed and wardrobe in a developing economy in a developing country what more evidence of corruption and looting do you need just weeks ago we woke up to the horrifying stories of the what's the name the amount of money GBC was was supposed to have received still associated with African games in terms of his broadcasting right hasn't been brought to that issue and on basis we are now beginning to know that there are far more horrifying stories associated with the entire expenditure that we ever made to believe under the gbac GBC Saga like sadic indicated if you can if building a 10 story facility twin story facility can cost the University of professional studies $4 million how on Earth renovation Works renovation works of existing infrastructure that students sleep in at University of Ghana cost you over $16 million I'm an illuminous of of University of Ghana I know those houses those hostels they making references to what kind of renovation did they do is it painting curent they painted the room installed ACS did a few electrical Works incredible what kind of most of them most of those facilities already have air conditions so what kind of renovation but then again are you surprised like I indicated we have emboldened that kind of Reckless looting it is not the first time that we are hearing that inovation is more expensive than building this same Dr mam B awarded a project to renovate is it the uh is it the whole terminal airport and the cost of the renovation over 120 million Ghana cities renovation alone over 120 million Ghana cities and the whole nation kept quiet and one interesting thing about it was it was even so source to the gentleman Dr mm B's brother it was Soul source to him so the only thing this government seemed to have done pretty well is their coordinated effort to loot the resources of this country and my brother is wondering whether after they are booted out of office actions will be taken and I can assure you that we have indicated president mam indicated and that is why it was important for president mahamad to have presented the NDC Manifesto himself because he argued that at the end of the day the expectations of the ghanan people will be on him and he is the leader of the national Democratic Congress and will be in charge of implementing our Manifesto and so insisted to be the first to let ghanians know what would be contained in the NDC Minister Manifesto and one can appreciate the verth president muhamad exhibited in making reference to what we call AA the operation retrieve all loot senior council do don't H about any fears I think I have said it around this table that people are taking president mahama for granted they think that the president mahama who is coming is the president mahama they have been used to over the last two three decades as far as the politics of this country is concerned but I have always maintained that the greatest mistake one can make is to conclude rather erroneously that because this person has demonstrated humility throughout his political life you can always take that for granted when such a person changes when such a person changes you can rest assured that your actions and the consequences of your actions would be met brutally by such a person right and president mahama has indicated that within 120 days in office the oral operation retrieve or routs will be in in in full operation right because he understands that the only way to reset this country is to do so using a two-prong strategy the First Fundamental pillar of setting is to ensure accountability and that is why the oral is important is after ensuring accountability that you can now proceed on the basis of that and get the support of the ghanian people to implement your economic transformation agenda all right but if you fail to ensure accountability you would be unable to get the needest support to implement economic policies to ensure economic transformation let me commend our brother k for taking this bold initiative he's a media man yeah and as a media man many of them would have avoided this spectacle of trying to hold the government accountable largely because in their own sense of the word neutrality they are expected to be neutral but he understands that being a media practitioner goes beyond being a neutral player you also ow this Republic as a citizen of Ghana the responsibility of ensuring that accountability tries in our body politics and that is why many of you especially those in the media must take inspiration from the Bold step of kod right and encourage others to follow seit to be a media practitioner is not just to sit and host programs and interview politicians it goes beyond that don't always forget your own responsibil as a c of this country to the rep and your commitment to ensuring that our Democratic process is handled in a way that is acceptable and Corruption free right until that is done look we can do whatever we want to do in this country cost of living will continue to be high because we are allowing the likes of n Bia to continue to loot the mega resources of this country and I will be disappointed if my brother for the sake of partisanship attempt to defend this broadly right we we we'll hear we'll hear from we'll hear from Saka and it will confirm whether he's going to defend for the first time I hope that what we are discussing but with regards to U media personalities name there is a message says czen of Ghana Dan Dan Amos Danos says good morning to you good morning to you and your panelists I am so disappointed with some of the media Personalities in this country they see themselves spectators not citizens the media personalities are the Crusaders of this country but some of them are in bed with a corrupt government it's alleged that they were paid 20,000 Ghana cities each at the end of the vice president Meet the Press program last Sunday is is it is it a normal thing or it's part of vote buying from Amos as all right messages keep coming through uh good morning panafrican TV uh Randol here from Freetown seron I have been keenly monitoring the upcoming election debates in so many Ghana media institutions what comes out clear is that Dr BAL of MPP has not been found wanting in any corruption issues you only heard about the you only heard about the sports minister Health minister in CJ which clearly tells you that Balia is edging his Rivals uh because some people will vote for him as most Alle as most allegations of corruption practices do not directly point at him Bravo Dr Bia okay uh this one says OHA can you please tell Saka to Shan the petty politicking and unnecessary comparison but he hasn't even spoken oh in his earlier submission okay Saka please for us be patriotic enough to speak for Ghana for once and not for the MPP good morning to council and my former English teacher St Joseph's oh councel you're a teacher no no you oh from bandex tamale okay um let me take this last one and then we proceed to our conversations good morning OHA Nana and his uh Kasa Nostra Clans has truly taken the advantage of ghanian timidness as dump as dumps to Rob us as a nation but we are still reminding them of the day we were lined up we be AA okay let me take a last one and we move good morning panafrican TV please tell presenter to call us uh US dollars in full because not everyone understands USD okay uh we've taken note of that and we will do that accordingly all right over to you yeah thank you very much uh I hope you know the reason why I was quiet no because it is due you to be quiet someone is talking yeah it's it's just theal so that when I'm speaking others will reciprocate that is the more reason why I was so quiet right and I hope I hope the two people we take the Heats I've always been a citizen and I'll continue being a czen speak yeah I'm going to speak in the interest of the nation as usual the first of all there are certain let me be honest I mean uh I will ask questions and then I will provide when they need when I when I have knowledge of the issue first of four I don't know I mean I been could to K yeah and he's group you know is is seriously entering the Civil Society space some of us have been there long ago and will continue to be there and therefore when when kame was a lawyer and the and the the substantive presenter of this show tried to bring some clarity to issues through the special prosecutor we can only Praise Him h and I'm sure he has seted and will not sleep first of all let's be honest I mean the number of people who have fed are they 5,000 indicated by the sports minister they 5,000 yes because I have information ear information that we have 5,000 at Le yeah we have 3,000 technical officials we have another 3,000 volunteers and then we have another 2,000 uh guests what's the source of this information this coming from the uh Ministry of uh can you let me finish those were other other words there were other aspect of the funding no no I'm but during the No No you listen to me during the the pack I mean the uh Public Accounts committee setting he indicated categorically that 5,000 people were fed for 18 days with amount of no problem I said I will ask questions okay but I know that it's not only athletes who affect if you are a technical official and you come with your athletes they will go eat and then you you you go to the to the to the a Cen or the bush H H uh Market to go and then eat is that how it is funded by who I am saying asking I'm saying if really the athletes are 5,000,000 yeah as you also agreed yeah that means I'm man of technical officials I agreed I've agreed the information that yeah so so I'm saying that it cannot be true that the people who were fed were only ATL and you are challenging the sports Minister I am telling you who listen this information also came from sport Ministry okay to ghans when just Google you see those things so don't tell me when when you have your no the expenditure can I provide you no no you you are not working there you are not working there they should keep 5000 please please please that 5,000 he she she this a problem of g m sometimes when you sometimes sometimes you see I'm just giving you yeah and I'm saying that you they come to that conclusion my brother my two brothers where they sat here even though K had gone to the office of the special prosecutor to investigate the matter they have already jumped to conclusion they have already investigated it and they are saying the government should be booted out they sit in the in the comfort armchair critics they sit here you know air condition room and they have already investigated and come to that conclusion and recommended that the government should be voted out this is look at them I mean the camera should just I'm disappointed disappointed I'm so disappointed in you at the end of the day the viewers will come at me we don't have much time we should have pleas we should have time for me to deal with them no deal with the issue we deal with I deal with both with maybe maybe after the show but now let's do all right s please let's proceed proceed watching you so so I'm saying that even the number because when they talk they they mention number of athletes yeah an official is not an athlete a guess we know I mean people come president diplomates come to visit and they are official guests that have been given accreditation they are part and they eat the the they part indeed volunteers even though they were is volunteer they are giv siping okay so all these and they eat ask the volunteers whether or not they eat or not when they go there do they give them food or they don't give them food they watch the the athletes eat and after that then they go for their for for their leftovers so what's your point so so the point is that the 5,000 cannot be okay I I I I I so it has been overestimated or underestimated under underestimated okay so the number of people who should be more by far about 1,000 so you defending the fact that defending the fact that