POLICE GRIPS KNUST ROBBERS

Three suspected armed robbers have been arrested in connection with last Thursday’s robbery at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi.

The suspects, including a female, were arrested at Bomso in Kumasi about 3 p.m. last Friday.

The police declined to disclose the identities of the suspects and their ages, stating only that they were all in custody helping in police investigations.

A supermarket attendant, identified as Joyce Kwateng, 26, was allegedly shot in the head by suspected armed robbers on the KNUST campus last Thursday.

The Zongo Divisional Police Commander, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mr Nicholas Opare Ofosuhene, told the Daily Graphic that the suspects were arrested following a tip-off.

Ms Kwateng is currently receiving medical care at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH).

The incident created apprehension among the students, who demanded that the university authorities provide them with armed security, especially in the evenings.

That, according to the students, would enable them to move in and out from their halls of residence to their faculties.

In another development, the police are yet to arrest the Level 200 Republic Hall student of KNUST who allegedly stabbed her roommate three times in the chest a week ago.

DSP Ofosuhene said the police were making progress in their investigations and that hopefully the suspect, Patricia Enyonam, said to be hiding at Kasoa in the Central Region, would be arrested.

Source: Daily Graphic

 

OSCAR AWARD WINNERS 2012

The 84^th annual academy award took place at the Hollywood & Highland Center (formerly the Kodak Theatre) on Sunday. Among the high-wattage presenters for the 84th Academy Awards are Halle Berry, Tom Cruise, Natalie Portman, Michael Douglas, Penelope Cruz and Angelina Jolie. They were framed by a stage set evoking a classic movie theater and the evening’s theme was ; the enduring nature of the movie going experience. Below is the lists of winners

1. Best Picture: “The Artist.”

Film Synopsis

As the era of silent films draws to a close, two actors find their careers and their relationship influenced by the coming of talking pictures.  While popular screen star George Valentin resists the transition to sound, young Peppy Miller embodies a modern age that is leaving Valentin behind.

2. Actor: Jean Dujardin, “The Artist.”

Jean Dujardin portrays George Valentin, a silent film star unwilling to make the transition to talking pictures. This is the first Academy Award nomination for Jean Dujardin.

1. Actress: Meryl Streep, “The Iron Lady.”

Nominated Role

Meryl Streep portrays Margaret Thatcher, the formidable shopkeeper’s daughter who rises through the ranks of the Conservative Party to become Britain’s first female prime minister.

This is the seventeenth Academy Award nomination for Meryl Streep.  She was previously nominated for: JULIE & JULIA (2009)Nominee, Actress in a Leading Role , DOUBT (2008 Nominee, Actress in a Leading Role, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA (2006) Nominee, Actress in a Leading Role

4. Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, “Beginners.”

5. Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer, “The Help.”

6. Directing: Michel Hazanavicius, “The Artist.”

7. Foreign Language Film: “A Separation,” Iran.

8. Adapted Screenplay: Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, “The Descendants.”

9. Original Screenplay: Woody Allen, “Midnight in Paris.”

10. Animated Feature Film: “Rango.”

11. Art Direction: “Hugo.”

12. Cinematography: “Hugo.”

13. Sound Mixing: “Hugo.”

14. Sound Editing: “Hugo.”

15. Original Score: “The Artist.”

16. Original Song: “Man or Muppet” from “The Muppets.”

17. Costume Design: “The Artist.”

18. Documentary Feature: “Undefeated.”

19. Documentary Short: “Saving Face.”

20. Film Editing: “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”

21. Makeup: “The Iron Lady.”

22. Animated Short Film: “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore.”

23. Live Action Short Film: “The Shore.”

24. Visual Effects: “Hugo.”

Other awards

Oscar winners previously presented this season:

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award: Oprah Winfrey.

Honorary Award: James Earl Jones.

Honorary Award: Dick Smith.

Gordon E. Sawyer Award: Douglas Trumbull.

Award of Merit: ARRI cameras.

Brian Dzidefo Dzansi (www.watsuptek.com)

 

RED CARPETS, LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION… THE OSCAR AWARDS

• The Oscars is an award conferred by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers
• The first Academy Awards ceremony was held on May 16, 1929, at the Hotel Roosevelt in Hollywood to honor outstanding film achievements of the 1927/1928 film season.
• The first Best Actor awarded was Emil Jannings, for his performances in The Last Command and The Way of All Flesh.
• As of the 83rd Academy Awards ceremony held in 2011, a total of 2,809 Oscars have been given for 1,853 awards. A total of 302 actors have won Oscars in competitive acting categories or been awarded Honorary or Juvenile Awards.
•  Oscar statuette is made of gold-plated britannium on a black metal base, it is 13.5 in (34 cm) tall, weighs 8.5 lb (3.85 kg) and depicts a knight rendered in Art Deco style holding a crusader’s sword standing on a reel of film with five spokes.
• The five spokes represent the original branches of the Academy: Actors, Writers, Directors, Producers, and Technicians.
•  Mexican film director and actor Emilio “El Indio” Fernández. pose nude to create what today is known as the “Oscar”.
• During World War II, the statuettes were made of plaster
• Winners are voted for by the 5,783 members of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) as of 2012.
• A film must open in the previous calendar year, from midnight at the start of January 1 to midnight at the end of December 31, in Los Angeles County, California, to qualify for nomination (except for the Best Foreign Language Film).
• From the 70th Academy Awards, winners of the best picture awards were; Titanic, Shakespeare in Love, American Beauty, Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind, Chicago, The Lord of the Rings The Return of the King, Million Dollar Baby, Crash, The Departed, No Country for Old Men, Slumdog Millionaire, The Hurt Locker, The King’s Speech

• Kodak lost naming rights to the traditional venue of the Oscars, the Kodak theatre due to its bankruptcy

 FUUNY SIDE OF THE OSCARS

• JACK PALANCE stepped up to receive his Supporting Oscar in 1991 (for “City Slickers), the then-73-year-old actor celebrated by performing several one-armed press-ups onstage…

• In 1973 ROBERT OPAL briefly interrupted the awards ceremony by streaking naked across the stage while live on national television.

• Actress GREER GARSON holds the record for delivering the longest acceptance speech…. (for “Mrs Miniver in 1942). the recommended time was 45 seconds per speech but Ms.Garson (known in the industry at the time as “the Queen of Hollywood”) spoke for all of seven minutes!

RECORDS

• WALT DISNEY holds the record for the highest number of individual Oscars awarded… In his lifetime he received 20 Oscars, but he was posthumously awarded a further 6, making a total of 26. Of all the statuettes awarded him, the most famous “set” were an Oscar and seven miniature statuettes in 1938 for the film “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”.

• KATHERINE HEPBURN achieved and still holds the record of four Oscars for Best Female Acting in a Leading and/or Supporting role. Nominated 12 times (and all for Leading Roles only) during a span of 48 years, her four Oscars were awarded for 1933 (“Morning Glory”), 1967 (“Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner”), 1968 (“The Lion In Winter”) and 1981 (“On Golden Pond”).
• WALTER BRENNAN and JACK NICHOLSON have achieved a record 3 Oscars for Best Acting in Leading and/or supporting roles.
• First animated film to be nominated for Best Picture is Beauty and the Beast (1991)
• First African to win an acting award is charlize theron  (from south Africa) who won Best Actress for Monster (2003).
• SIDNEY POITIER is the first black man to win the Best Actor Oscar had  for “The Lilies In The Field” in 1963

• Three films share the record for the highest number of awards received:
  •  the 1952 epic BEN-HUR set the record by achieving 11 out of a possible 15 Oscar categories (nominated in 14 of them).
  • Since then James Cameron’s TITANIC (1997) and Peter Jackson’s LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING (2003) have each won 11 out of a possible 17 Oscars (nominated in 12 and 11 categories respectively)

• In 2002 at the 74th Award show saw Afro-Americans win both top honours, Best Actress for the first time, and Best Actor. first HALLE BERRY (for her 2001 performance in “Monsters Ball”) and then DENZIL WASHINGTON (for his portrayal of a bad cop in “Training Day”).

• The 1939 film Beau Geste is the only movie that features as many as four Academy Award winners for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, Susan Hayward, Broderick Crawford) prior to any of the actors receiving the Best Actor Award.
• PETER FINCH and HEATH LEDGER are the only persons to have won an Acting Award posthumously – and both were Australians.

• The 1968 Oscar awards ceremony was notable for producing the only tie in votes for Best Actress, resulting in 3 female acting Oscar awards being presented. The tie for Best Actress occurred between KATHERINE HEPBURN (for “The Lion In Winter”) and BARBARA STREISAND (for “Funny Girl”).

• Rapper EMINEM’s  “Lose Yourself” is the only hip-hop song( uncompromising lyric) to win best song writer Oscars in 2002

• TATUM O’NEAL,is the youngest person to win a competitive Academy Award who was 10 years old when she achieved Best Supporting Actress for 1973’s “Paper Moon” (in which she starred alongside her father Ryan O’Neal)
• GEORGE BURNS is the oldest male Oscar winner in a competitive category when he won the 1975 award for “The Sunshine Boys” at age 80, until at the 1989 awards 80-year old JESSICA TANDY won Best Actress for “Driving Miss Daisy”.

• TITANIC is the most nominated film (14 out of 17 possible) – alongside Joseph L. Mankiewitz’s ALL ABOUT EVE (winner of Best Film in 1950), nominated in 14 out of 15 possible at the time but going home with only six

Brian Dzidefo Dzansi (www.watsuptek.com)

 

Goran Stevanovic’s AFCON technical report

Below is the full text of Ghana’s coach Goran Stevanovic’s  AFCON technical report

MEMO

 FROM   : TECHNICAL TEAM

 TO     : EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

 DATE : 07-01-2012

 SUBJECT : REPORT – THE 2012 AFRICAN CUP OF NATIONS IN GABON / EQUITORIA GUINEA.

1.                   PREPARATIONS

The Ghana football Association in consultation with the technical team selected 25 players for preparation in South Africa.

 Camping in Rustenburg was excellent and accommodation, feeding, training facilities were all good. We had ten training sessions and played two friendly games.

 INVITED PLAYERS

1. ADAM KWARASEY – Norway          15. EMMANUEL BAFFOUR – Edubiase

2. DANIEL ADJEI – Liberty                                      16. DEREK BOATENG – Dniprcr

3. ERNEST SOWAH – Chelsea              17. JORDAN AYEW – Masselle

4. KWADWO ASAMOAH – Udinese             18. JOHN MENSAH – Lyon –

 5. SAMUEL INKOOM – Dnipro                    19. JOHNATHAN MENSAH – France^

6. MASAWUDU ALHASSAN – Genoa          20. ISAAC VORSAH – Hofenheim ~

7. DANIEL OPARE – Standard                    21. ANTHONY ANNAN – Vetesse – Hol

8. JOHN BOYE – France                          22.JOHN PAINTSIL- Leister City ^

9. MOHAMMED ABU – Norway               23. PRINCE TAGOE – Turkey f

10 DEDE AYEW – Masselle                        24. LEE ADDY – China ^J

11. CHARLES TAKYI – St. Pauli                  25. ASAMOAH GYAN – AL Ain,

12. AGYEMANG BADU – Udinese

13. DEREK ASAMOAH – Pohang

 14.SULLEY MUNTARI – Inter

OFFICIALS

1.              GORAN STEVANOVIC

2.                   KWASI APPIAH

3.                   EDDIE ANSAH

4.                   ALEKS GUSIC

5.                   PERCY ANNAN

6.                   OPOKU AFRIYIE

7.                   ALLEN AKABA

8.                   CHARLES BOTCHWAY

9.                   SHERRIF MUSAH

10.               ANKAMAH

11.               SHILE ( PHYSICAL TRAINER)

12.               MARIANA ( PHYSIOTHERAPIST)

 

 

INJURIES AND THE FINAL 23 SQUAD

 After five training sessions in South Africa the technical team dropped Emmanuel Baffour and Derek Asamoah to bring the squad to 23.

 John Mensah and Asamoah Gyan were nursing muscle injuries so the management brought in  physiotherapist ( Mariana) from Serbia to help treat the muscle problems in the team.

 Fortunately both players recovered miraculously within two days to join our training sessions.

 Agyemang Badu also had an injury before camping in Rustenburg but recovered within some few days in camp.

TECHNICAL MEETING

On the day of every match we showed the players clips of the opposing team.

 We analysed the opponent set pieces, defensive and attacking tactics and how we can penetrate their defence. All players were made aware of their roles and those who should take our set pieces.

 Players were always psyched up and always made aware about the importance of this tournament to themselves and Ghanaians.

 I also showed them films which were very motivational and inspiring.

 ASSESSMENT OF TOURNAMENT

We played our first match against Botswana at Franceville which ended 1 – 0 in our favour.

Every first game of a tournament is always difficult and the Botswana team tactically sat back and relied on counter attacks.

 I realised that most players’ performance was not as expected due to lack of games in their various clubs.

John Mensah scored the only goal for Ghana.

 Our second game was also played at Franceville with Mali and the match ended 2 – 0 in favour of Ghana.

 The goals were scored by Asamoah Gyan and Andre Ayew. I was really satisfied with our performance technically and tactically.

 The third group match was played against Guinea at Franceville and the final score ended 1-1.

 Guinea was my best team in the tournament and I was not surprised when they gave us a really good game.

 John Mensah scored our goal from a corner kick

We qualified to the quarter final stage after being on top of our group.

The match was played at Franceville with Tunisia and it ended 2 -1 in favour of Ghana.

The goal scorers for Ghana were Agyemang Badu and Andre Ayew.

The match was very competitive but I was satisfied with our game and the players fighting spirit.

We reached the semi finals of the competition playing against Zambia. We played our best game in the tournament outplaying the Zambians technically and tactically.

We created many scoring opportunities but unfortunately could not utilise our chances. The Zambians created two chances and were fortunate to get a goal. We lost 1-0 but there was vast improvement in our game compared to the group stage matches.

After the loss every individual in camp was devastated and spirit in camp was zero. I held a meeting with the playing body the following day to encourage and to psyche them for our next game with Mali.

Unfortunately, the meeting turned out to be accusations and blames amongst the players which needs to be addressed by the FA management and the technical team for a better future.

The third place match against Mali was played at Equitorial Guinea. After missing our target which is the gold, the willingness to fight was lost in the players and we lost 2 – 0 to Mali.

CONCLUSION

After losing to Zambia, there arose so many accusations amongst the players during my meeting with them. I have learnt great lessons from African football and also about Ghanaian players’ behaviour on and off the field.We all need to help in changing some players’ mentality about using black power to destroy themselves and also make sure we install discipline and respect for each other.

 I am very grateful to the Ministry of Sports, Ghana football Association Management, and the Black Stars Management Committee for their assistance and support during the qualifying stages, preparations and the competition in Gabon / Equitorial Guinea.

 I also thank the technical team and Coach Oti Akenten who assisted in monitoring other teams for us. My gratefulness and thanks goes to my Gallant players who stayed in camp for almost seven weeks and worked tirelessly to reach quarter finals and finally to all Ghanaians who prayed and also supported us throughout the competition.

 GORAN STEVANOVIC – HEAD COACH

Brian Dzansi

(www.watsuptek.com)

 

 

NATIONAL UNION OF GHANA STUDENTS (NUGS) OPERATES ON TWO BANK ACCOUNTS

Last year, the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) was surrounded by a lot of controversy regarding who the legitimate President of NUGS was. There were two factions claiming Presidency of NUGS; Hamza Suhuyini and Anthony Abotsi Afriyie. Hamza Suhuyini paraded himself as the President of NUGS for a while and was given all the media attention when issues bothering the student front was to be discussed. Then Anthony Abotsi Afriyie also surfaced claiming he is the President of NUGS and that the case of who is the legitimate President of NUGS is still pending in court. The impasse in NUGS quietened for awhile then it was time to elect a new President for NUGS so the Hamza Suhuyini faction had a congress and elected Osman Ayariga as President. The other faction led by Anthony Abotsi Afriyie also had a congress and elected Peter Kwasi Kodjie as President.

To some of us who were following this situation in the NUGS, we were of the view that the situation had been resolved. Over the weekend, Peter Kwasi Kodjie, President of NUGS and Nana Abrakwah, Treasure were interviewed on Leadership Corner on Focus Fm by the host of the program, Bernard Buachi. According to Peter Kwasi Kodjie, there are still wrangles within NUGS regarding who the Legitimate President was. He added that efforts have been made from his faction to settle this wrangle by inviting the other faction led by the President Osman Ayariga and proposing a way of settling the issue but the proposal was declined by Osman Ayariga. As it stands now there are two students parading themselves as Presidents of NUGS; Osman Ayariga and Peter Kwasi Kodjie. Why have the student body and alumni of NUGS been silent on this matter? Doesn’t this situation in NUGS affect us in one way or the other? According to Peter Kwasi Kodjie, the current situation is beyond the control of students and therefore needs the intervention of the alumni of NUGS. He says the attitude where some SRC Presidents as well as students show solidarity and attend Congresses of both factions to elect NUGS executives is quiet unfortunate. Hence it would be entirely difficult for students to solve this situation on their own. When asked if he would step down for Osman Ayariga to be the President of NUGS, he stated that it would be unfortunate to allow incompetent people to lead NUGS.

When the Treasurer, Nana Abrokwah was asked about the financial situation of NUGS, he disclosed that NUGS is currently operating two separate accounts by the two factions of NUGS. He added that the situation is rather unfortunate since some Universities pay the dues to one particular faction they are inclined to.

By Nabil Ahmed Rufai

 

THE BEST VOCALIST OF OUR GENERATION- WHITNEY HOUSTON

“She had everything, beauty, and a magnificent voice. How sad her gifts could not bring her the same happiness they brought us.”

HUMBLE BEGINNING

Whitney Houston was born in what was then a middle-income neighborhood in Newark, New Jersey, the third and youngest child of Army serviceman and entertainment executive John Russell Houston, Jr.  and gospel singer Cissy Houston (née Drinkard) Her mother, along with cousins Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick and godmother Aretha Franklin were all notable figures in the gospel, rhythm and blues, pop, and soul genres.

Houston was raised a Baptist, but was also exposed to the Pentecostal church. After the 1967 Newark riots, the family moved to a middle class area in East Orange, New Jersey when she was four.

STELLAR CAREER

Over the course of a 30-year career in which she established herself as one of the most-admired and influential singers of her time, Houston won six Grammys, 30 Billboard awards and 22 American Music Awards. She released seven studio albums and sold some 170 million CDs, singles and videos. The soundtrack for a hit movie in which she starred, “The Bodyguard,” was among the best-selling soundtracks in movie history.

Her 1985 debut, “Whitney Houston,” became the best-selling debut album by a female act at that time, and spawned several hits including “How Will I Know.” Her second studio CD, 1987’s “Whitney,” became the first album by a female artist to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart.

She crossed over from music success to TV and movies, appearing in “The Bodyguard” (1992), as well as “Waiting to Exhale” (1995) and “The Preacher’s Wife” (1996).

MARRIAGAE

Throughout the 1980s, Houston was romantically linked to American football star Randall Cunningham and actor Eddie Murphy, whom she dated. She then met R&B singer Bobby Brown at the 1989 Soul Train Music Awards. After a three year courtship, the two were married on July 18; 1992.Nearly a year later, Houston gave birth to their daughter Bobbi Kristina Houston Brown, her first and only child, his fourth. Brown would go on to have several run-ins with the law, including some jail time

PERSONAL TURMOIL

Though Houston was seen as a “good girl” with a perfect image in the ’80s and early ’90s, by the late ’90s, her behavior changed. She was often hours late for interviews, photo shoots and rehearsals, and canceling concerts and talk-show appearances. With the missed performances and weight loss, rumors about Houston using drugs with her husband circulated. On January 11, 2000, airport security guards discovered marijuana in both Houston’s and husband Bobby Brown’s luggage at a Hawaii airport, but the two boarded the plane and departed before authorities could arrive

The pair also starred in a reality TV series, “Being Bobby Brown,” which painted an often unflattering portrait of the couple.

SHE GOT FIRED

Houston was scheduled to perform at the Academy Awards but was fired from the event by musical director and longtime friend. Her publicist cited throat problems as the reason for the cancellation

After years of controversy and turmoil, Houston separated from Bobby Brown in September 2006, filing for divorce the next month. On February 1, 2007, Houston asked the court to fast track their divorce. The divorce was finalized on April 24, 2007, with Houston granted custody of the couple’s daughter.

Houston appeared on Oprah Winfrey’s season premiere on September 2009. The interview was billed as “the most anticipated music interview of the decade. The interview was so candid that Whitney admitted using drugs with former husband Bobby Brown, who “laced marijuana with rock cocaine. By 1996, she told Oprah, “[doing drugs] was an everyday thing… I wasn’t happy by that point in time. I was losing myself

The last 10 years of Houston’s life were dominated by drug use, rumors of relapses and trips to rehab.

She launched a comeback tour in 2009, and in April 2010 she called media reports she was using drugs again “ridiculous.” In May 2011, Houston enrolled in a drug and alcohol rehab program.

Despite her personal troubles, Houston commanded great affection among her music industry colleagues, and emotional tributes flooded the media in the hours after news broke of her death.

Rapper Nicki Minaj summed it up with a tweet “Jesus Christ, not Whitney Houston. Greatest of all time.”

HER NOTABLE QUOTES

“I was aware of people staring at me. No one moved. They seemed almost in trance. I just stared at the clock in the center of the church. When I finished, everyone clapped and started crying”

“I’ve got a good man. He takes care of me. I don’t have to be scared of anything because I know he will kick every ass… disrespect him and you’ve got a problem.”

Dzansi Brian Dzidefo

(www.watsuptek.com)

 

Prostitutes celebrate Zambia’s win over Ghana by offering free sex

Prostitutes in Lusaka’s Kanyama, John Laing, Chawama and Kalingalinga compounds last night offered themselves free of charge to every Jim and Jack as part of their celebration after Zambia beat Ghana 1-0. A check by The Independent Post (TIP) at nightclubs such as Kanyama’s Kanchembele and Chine Chikayeba found long queues of men waiting to have sex with a limited number of prostitutes. A single prostitute served nearly 11 men and there were more than 200 men wanting to celebrate Zambia’s first qualification to the Africa Cup final since 1994 in style. The situation was the same at John Laing’s Corogo night Club which is Prostitutes in Lusaka’s Kanyama, John Laing, Chawama and Kalingalinga compounds last night offered themselves free of charge to every Jim and Jack as part of their celebration after Zambia beat Ghana 1-0

 

Dominion University to start admission

Archbishop Nicholas Duncan Williams’ University College is expected to kick off this year as it opens its doors to potential students who look forward to pursuing further education.

Dominion University College (DUC), founded by Archbishop Nicholas Duncan Williams of the Christian Action Faith Ministries International (CAFM), would be fully functional before the last quarter of 2012.

Archbishop Duncan Williams made the disclosure in Accra when he addressed some members of the church during a Sunday service at the main auditorium of the church on the Spintex Road.

Though it’s a university owned by a church, it would provide tuition in other secular academic fields apart from theology.

“The first batch of students who will begin classes in September 2012 would undertake degree programmes in Business Administration, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Theology,” he stated.

According to Archbishop Duncan Williams, all the required documentation for the university college had been secured from the National Accreditation Board and that the first matriculation of students would take place in November this year.

The university college, he said, was endowed with reputable lecturers, adding that management would ensure that all courses were taught by experienced and reputable lecturers from Ghana and outside the country.

Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, former Minister of Education and Ghana’s former Ambassador to the USA, was named as the one to act as president of the university college.

Archbishop Duncan Williams reiterated that Dr. Spio-Garbrah, who is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Action Chapel International, would be the acting president until a full-time university president was identified and engaged.

He noted that arrangements were also underway for students of the university to spend up to two years at reputable American universities on exchange programmes.

The DUC will occupy the second floor of the CAFM Headquarters at Spintex Road, where a large number of offices and meeting rooms have already been refurbished for the use of students as lecture halls, meeting rooms, as well as offices for the professors, lecturers and the administration.

CAFM has also acquired a 100-acre site just outside Accra, which is intended to become the permanent location of the university college in the future.

Dr. Spio-Garbrah, on his part, invited prospective students who wished to enrol to contact the office of the registrar of the university, located on the second floor of the CAFM headquarters building, for details of admission requirements and other relevant information.

The acting president of the university college stated that beginning in April 2012, the DUC would also offer short-term courses on selected subjects.

The selected subjects would include Marketing for Financial Services; Accounting for Non-Accounting Personnel; Risk Management; Tax Planning and Implications of Budget 2012; and Computer Competency for Professionals and Non- Professionals.

Dr Spio-Garbrah thanked the church members who had over the years made various contributions towards the funding and establishment of the college, and asked for God’s blessings for them.

A reconstituted council of the university college comprises a number of very eminent Ghanaians and non-Ghanaians including Jendayi Frazer, former US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa; Dr. Alex Danso, a renowned Ghanaian neuro-surgeon based in Harare, Zimbabwe and Oby Ezekwesili, Vice President, Africa Region, World Bank, Washington DC.

Others are Edward Dua Agyeman, a former Auditor-General of Ghana; Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, CEO of ACI; Acheampong Kyei, Executive Chairman of GLICO Group of Companies; and Lady Rosa Whittaker Duncan-Williams of the Whittaker Group of Companies, among others.

 

ROAD LINKING UNITY HALL AND THE LAW FACULTY TO BE TARRED

The vice president of the student representative council SRC Mr William ofosu has delivered the state of the SRC address before the parliamentary council over the weekend.

Acting on behalf of the president Mr. Philemon Laar who is currently away in South Africa, the vice president highlighted some key high notes of the current administration.

Key amongst them is the construction of a network operating system at the newly constructed examination centre.The vice president also touched on the provision of a 2000 gallon capacity tank at the SRC hostel to curb water shortages.He expressed his satisfaction over efforts by the SRC to assist 634 needy students as provided by the SRC welfare policy

William Ofosu stated also that the road linking unity hall and the law faculty would be tarred as per their projects for the semester.

He however admitted that all has not been rosy for his administration due to financial constraints. He conceded this has slowed down some initiatives

 

 

HASSAN AYARIGA THE MAN TO LEAD PNC IN THE 2012 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE

Hassan Ayariga has been voted the 2012 presidential candidate of the People’s National Convention (PNC). He beat veteran Dr Edward Mahama.
So who is the man hoping to occupy the number one position of the Republic of Ghana?

Hassan Ayariga has a remarkable record of leadership and experience in business that embodies an unwavering passion and commitment to service. Hassan was born on 4th September 1971 in Bawku in the Upper East Region of Ghana.

His father Frank Abdulai Ayariga, was a member of parliament for the Bawku constituency during the third republic administration of Dr. Hilla Limann and his mother Anatu Ayariga, a business woman, whose passion for child education in the then impoverished northern sector of Ghana, made her stand her ground to ensure all her children and those in the community were educated.

Hassan grew up partly in Accra and Bawku before settling in Nigeria when his parents went on Exile after the overthrow of the Limann Administration. All through his childhood his parents taught him the values of service and responsibility and the blessings of his faith, Hassan Ayariga carries with him to this day.

Due to the moving around by his father Hassan went to schools in Accra, Bawku and Tamale where he had his secondary education at Ghana Secondary School before moving to Nigeria where he attended Barewa College in Zaria, where he studied ACCA and then to the London School of Accountancy.

Hassan is an entrepreneur with many business interests both in Ghana and abroad, however, he started out as an accountant with WaffenSchimdt GmBH in Germany and the as Quality Control manager at Peter Huppertz Ford motors in Germany for 10 years before going into business. He is currently the chairman and CEO of Hassan Ayariga & Co. Haulage Company, which deal in trucks for infrastructural development.

He also owns Hallo Pizza, a restaurant chain in Ghana and recently started Clean Us Ghana, a waste management company.

Being born into the Nkrumah-Egala-Limann tradition, Hassan has never forgotten his political roots and in 2002 he joined the PNC, a political party formed by Dr. Hilla Limann in 1992 when the ban on party politics in Ghana was lifted. His leadership skills immediately came to the fore and was elected chairman of the Germany (Koln) Chapter.

In 2004 he contested for the vice chairmanship of the PNC but later withdrew from the contest and supported Hon. John Ndebugri.

Hassan Ayariga believes this country deserves better and he is seeking the leadership reins of the PNC to seek the mandate of the people of Ghana for an inspiring leadership and rapid development.

Hassan Ayariga is married to Anita Ayariga, a graduate from KNUST who has a deep passion for child education and is working towards ensuring children of school going age in the community get that right. They have a blended family that includes three daughters, two sons and live together in Accra.