Accra, Nov. 28, - Mr Vincent
Sowah Odotei, Deputy Minister of Communication has refuted claims from the
Minority NDC that the NPP has failed to implement the National Identification
programme as promised in their 2016 manifesto.
According to him, the National
Identification programme has already started and that the procedures to ensure
that all citizens including newly born babies and adults are registered is on
course.
He said government has already
issued contracts and procured all the needed materials and was waiting for
Parliament to amend the National Identification Authority Act, which is before
the House to rollout the programme.
Mr Sowah Odotei challenged the
assertions during an interview with the media in Parliament.
Mr Samuel Nartey George, Member
of Parliament (MP) for Ningo-Prampram had made claims that the NPP has failed
to implement its 2016 manifesto promise of carrying out the National
Identification programme in its first year of administration.
Mr Sowah Odotei also explained
that the amendment of the National Identification Authority Act has come about
as a result of the Supreme Court Ruling that the NHIS cards cannot be used to
identify people’s nationality.
He clarified that in the original
Act the age for registration was 16 years but with the new amendment all
citizens would be issued with the National Identification card including newly
born babies.
He said he does not understand
why the NDC is saying the NPP has failed to implement its promise when the year
has not ended.
Mr Samuel George on his part
maintained that the NPP, contrary to its 2016 manifesto promise, has failed to
undertake the National Identification exercise in the first year of its
administration.
He said despite Parliament’s
approved budget of GH₵125
million in addition to an existing $25 million World Bank facility to the
National Identification Authority (NIA) there is nothing to show for all the
allocations given to the organisation.
He challenged the government to
explain to Ghanaians why the 2018 budget was silent on the National
Identification programme.
Mr Samuel George also refuted
claims by the NPP that the registration programme would commence before the end
of the year as false.
He said so far only President
Nana Akufo-Addo has been issued with the Ghana card, and that, even, Vice
President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and the Speaker of Parliament, Prof Mike Ocquaye,
who are second and third gentlemen of the land, have not been issued with any
card.
“Why is it that the 2018 budget
is silent on the National Identification programme, is it an admission of
failure by the NPP to implement their manifesto promise,” he questioned.
Court orders third subpoena on
Pathologist
Accra, Nov. 28, - An Accra
District Court for the third time has subpoenaed the pathologist who conducted
autopsy on Member of Parliament for Abuakwa North, J.B Danquah-Adu to furnish
the court with the full report on the deceased.
The pathologist was not in court
when the matter was called.
According to the court, it was
doing that “for the benefit of doubt” since the subpoena had not been personally
served on Dr Lawrence Edusie of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital.
It further directed the case
investigator to assist the court bailiff so that Dr Edusei would be personally
served.
At today’s sitting, Deputy
Superintendent of Police (DSP) George Amegah in charge, the prosecutor said
based on the court’s orders a subpoena was prepared by the Registrar and same
was served on the Head of the Pathology Unit of Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital and
Dr Edusei.
DSP Amegah said the two subpoenas
were served at 1230 noon by a Court bailiff known as Habib.
The prosecution said Habib’s
report was that since he did not meet the Head of Pathology Unit and Dr Edusei
personally, an administrative Assistant, Judith Gankui who received the earlier
invitation on November 14, this year received the two subpoenas on November 24.
Prosecution said the
administrative assistant promised to ensure that the subpoenas were delivered
accordingly.
The matter was therefore
adjourned to December 14, for the third subpoenas be served on the Pathologist
and Head of the Pathology Unit in Korle Bu Teaching Hospital personally.
The court presided over by Ms
Arit Nsemoh ordered the case investigator to ensure that the subpoenas were
served.
Lawyer Nana Obiri Boahene who was
watching brief commended the judge and prosecution’s effort in securing the
full autopsy report.
Nana Obiri Boahene told the media
that he would not comment over the behaviour of the Pathologist.
The prosecution has recounted
difficulties in accessing the pathology report of the victim, hence the delay
in prosecuting the matter.
J.B Danquah Adu was murdered in
his apartment in 2016 at Shiashie.
Two suspects, Daniel Asiedu and
Vincent Bosso, were subsequently arrested and charged with murder following the
incident. Their pleas have not been taken and they have been remanded into
Prison custody.
The facts of the case, as
presented by DSP Amegah, were that the deceased MP lived with his family in a
one-storey house at Shiashie, near East Legon, a suburb of Accra, whilst Asiedu
and Bosso lived at Agbogbloshie, also in Accra.
About 11:40 p.m. on February 8,
2016, the MP arrived home in his private car driven by his driver.
The driver had handed over the
ignition keys of the car to Danquah-Adu and left for home, after which the MP
retired to bed in a room located on the first floor of his house.
At about 1 a.m. on the same
night, Asiedu and Bosso, armed with a catapult, a cutter and a sharp knife,
went to the legislator’s house.
Bosso is said to have assisted
Asiedu to enter the house by scaling the fence wall on the blind side of a
security man who was fast asleep.
On entering the house, Asiedu
picked a ladder and climbed onto a porch on the top floor and entered the MP’s
bedroom through a window, whilst Mr. Danquah-Adu was sleeping.
Whilst Asiedu was searching the
room, the MP woke up and held him. There ensued a struggle, during which Asiedu
stabbed the MP in the right chest above the breast.
The MP consequently held the
knife, and Asiedu pulled it through the MP’s hand, making a deep cut in his
palm.
The legislator, who bled profusely,
fell by his bed, after which Asiedu stabbed him several times on his right
chest and neck.
On realizing that the MP was
dying, Asiedu left the room and took with his three iPhone smart phones.
Meanwhile, the struggle between
the MP and Asiedu had drawn the attention of the security man in the house, who
alerted other security men in the neighbourhood.
Having been alerted of an
impending danger, Bosso took to his heels, leaving Asiedu behind.
However, Asiedu managed to
descend from the top of the house and jumped over the electric fencing on the
walls of the house into an adjoining house and escaped
GNA
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