The National Youth Organiser of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Salam Mustapha, has appealed for harmony within the party, urging members to refrain from aggravating existing tensions in the wake of the “Thank You” tour.

Speaking to Channel One TV on Saturday, 3 May, Mustapha acknowledged that internal disagreements are to be expected but insisted they must be managed thoughtfully.

His remarks follow heightened calls for a pause in the tour after former flagbearer aspirant Kennedy Agyapong withdrew amid deepening factional disputes.

“What I will rather ask is that we do not deepen the cracks. It is okay to disagree but we should also mind the language,” Mr Mustapha advised, emphasising the need for respectful discourse even when opinions diverge.

He cautioned that intemperate rhetoric risks widening rifts that are already eroding party cohesion.

Despite the controversy surrounding Mr Agyapong’s departure, Mustapha expressed confidence that the tour will proceed uninterrupted.

He noted that recent visits to the Bono East and Savannah regions had gone smoothly, illustrating the tour’s continued momentum.

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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

Prof Ransford Gyampo is the Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Shippers Authority

The Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Shippers Authority, Professor Ransford Gyampo, has not minced words in his criticism of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), describing their electoral conduct and post-defeat posture as dangerously arrogant.

Reacting to the NPP’s “Thank You Tour,” the political scientist said the tour ignores the public anger that cost them the 2024 elections.

“When we complained openly, they arrogantly responded that regardless of their mayhem on us, they will still break the eight, as if we are all very dumb and stupid,” he said on social media sighted by MyNewsGH.

“When we rubbished their insistence to break the eight, they responded by saying ‘it is possible’. The height of NPP arrogance!”

According to Gyampo, five separate post-election surveys indicate that the NPP currently enjoys less than 25% support among the electorate.

He cautioned that rather than prematurely celebrating or criticizing the new Mahama administration, the NPP should focus on internal reforms and re-engaging Ghanaians with humility.

“This is not the time for leadership struggles in the party that has nearly collapsed and risks annihilation,” he warned.

Suzzy Pinamang is a second year student of Adventist SHS

After a heartfelt appeal by Suzzy Adwoa Pinaman, a second-year student at the Bantama Adventist Senior High School in the Ashanti Region, who was shot in the eye by a fellow classmate, Ghanaian businessman and philanthropist, Ibrahim Mahama, has extended his support to assist the young lady.

According to Rafik Mahama, Aide to Ibrahim Mahama, Suzzy, who resides in the Ashanti Region, is expected to arrive in Accra on Monday, May 5, 2025, to begin surgery aimed at restoring her vision, which is currently deteriorating.

In a post on his official Facebook account on May 3, 2025, Rafik Mahama also expressed his well-wishes to Suzzy, hoping for her swift and full recovery.

“Suzzy will be in Accra on Monday to begin the surgery process. Speedy recovery, Suzzy,” Rafik posted.

Earlier, GhanaWeb reported that Suzzy had appealed for support from former Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong, as well as from businessman and philanthropist, Ibrahim Mahama.

Suzzy, who is currently at home suffering from eye pains and unable to attend school due to her condition, explained that the residual fragments from the bullet fired into her eye has made it impossible for her to sleep or even close her eyes.

According to her, the situation has left her mother helpless, as they have received no assistance whatsoever.

“Hon Kennedy Agyapong and Ibrahim Mahama, I am pleading with you to hear my cry and come to my aid. I have no one. There are residual bullet fragments in my eyes and due to that I can’t sleep. I’m pleading with you to come and help me so my eyes can be treated and restored. All my mates are in school learning but I’m home. I’m always thinking about my situation. My mother is helpless and has no one to help her. Please help me get my eyes back,” she was heard appealing in the video.

Suzzy Adwoa Pinamang went blind after being shot in the face by a classmate during school hours.

The incident reportedly happened on Friday, April 4, 2025, during break time, when Bernard Amoabeng, a Form Two student, allegedly brought a firearm to school.

The gun became the subject of a heated debate among a group of students, some of whom questioned whether it was real or not.

In an attempt to prove a point, Amoabeng allegedly pulled the trigger, injuring two students in the process.

Meanwhile, the suspect, a 16-year-old second year student, has been remanded into police custody following his arrest.

MAG/AE

#TheAdutwumFactor! Watch as Yaw Osei Adutwum declares intent to contest NPP flagbearership for 2028

Featured

Mohammed Ali

May – 04 – 2025 , 08:29

1 minute read

Patrick William Dodoo, Betty Acquah, Enoch Yaw Mensah, and Emmanuel Mawuko Arkutu bring works together for a presentation in a large art exhibition hosted inside the lobby of Orca Deco Ghana as a highlight of the country’s Independence Day celebration month.

Great crowds of people attended the art exhibition, which opened on March 4 and is set to remain until March 21. They were enthralled by the superb taste and style of the rich artworks exhibited.

In honor of the exhibition, Mohamad AL ROZ, the Sales Director of Orca Deco, kicked off the occasion with a speech expressing gratitude to the brand’s devoted customers and concluded with a video that projected the brand’s evolution and the incredible products customers can expect to find at their showroom.

To complete the celebration of Ghana’s Independence, a 20% discount was granted to all visitors to the art show on any purchases made during March 2023.

The artwork on display is stunning, and the pricing is excellent and appropriate for each piece. Those attendees who made it to the art exhibition had the opportunity to speak with the creators of each piece directly.

Painting from the Dark Age Series by Patrick William Dodoo, one of the artists whose works powerfully expressed the artist. Patrick went on to describe the rationale for a painting of an old, wrinkly man, whose face is obscured by numerous hands.

In his words, as paraphrased, Patrick mentioned, “This painting is to show a man who upon his old age, still feels restricted from voicing out his truth, and openly talking about issues facing humanity, this art was exhibited concerning Global Warming, and it’s negative effects yet those who truly care, feels their mouth sealed from speaking out.

The excellent saxophone tune played by Borsah is another one of the main highlights of the art exhibition! The event was a success, with delicious savory toppings and cocktails for everyone to enjoy.

PROFILE OF THE EXHIBITED ARTISTS

PATRICK WILLIAM DODOO: Patrick William Dodoo [B.1986] is an artist and educator who lives and works in Ghana. His interdisciplinary practice traverses the studio, the classroom, socially engaged interventions, and scenography for theatre productions.

He studied at the Takoradi Polytechnic and the University of Education, Winneba respectively. He is passionate about using his art to lend a voice to the needs of the vulnerable in society. Painting in the medium of acrylic on canvas, his instantly recognizable black and white palette brings to life in celebratory fashions the images of your everyday person.

His paintings usually have flat vibrant backgrounds juxtaposed with contrasting black-and-white portraits of people with different facial expressions and body postures.

Patrick is also the founder of Painting. The Open [PITO] is an initiative that seeks to demystify the process of artists working by setting up makeshift artist studios in public and inviting members of the public to join in the process of creating artwork. Patrick has exhibited widely.

ENOCH YAW MENSAH: Enoch Yaw Mensah is an artist living and working in Ghana. He is a graduate of Ghannatta College of Art. His works reflect on Ghana and its intricate connection to the rest of Africa. His formative years were spent in his father’s studio working with textiles and learning to carve.

Working in the medium of oil, watercolour, acrylic, charcoal, pastel, and ink, his work captures the social, environmental, and symbolic aspects of life in Ghana. He incorporates Indigenous symbols in his art not only to preserve his heritage and ancestry but also as a way of honouring the lessons learned as a boy from his father. His art depicts the daily scenes of Ghanaian children at play, market women, and people deeply engrossed in their occupations.

Enoch Yaw Mensah is a proud recipient of many awards including 20041st Prize: Shell GAVA Art Competition, 2005 1st Prize: Shell GAVA Art Competition, 2006 1st Prize: The Unimax Macmillan Children’s Illustrator Award for Africa, and 2nd Prize2007: Ghana @ 50 Art Award. He has had many exhibitions and his work can also be found in many private homes and businesses in the United States, Europe, and Ghana.

BETTY ACQUAH: Betty Acquah is an artist who lives and works in Ghana. She obtained both her B.A. (Hons) in Art and M.F.A. (Painting) from the College of Art and Built Environment, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi. Working mostly in the medium of painting, Betty’s works are characterized by bodies in various postures indicative of movements.

She depicts her female figures frequently in load-carrying postures and her male figures frequently in dance movements. She uses a technique she associates with pointillism in which she breaks down her images into tiny pixels and lines.

Betty Acquah is affiliated with the Ghana Association of Visual Artists and the Artists Alliance Gallery Accra. She has exhibited her paintings in Ghana, Nigeria, UK, India, Germany, Spain, Japan and USA.

EMMANUEL MAWUKO ARKUTU: Emmanuel Mawuko Arkutu is an artist living and working in Ghana. With an interest in African mythology, he uses a vast array of colours and a variation of style to draw the viewer into an old world of Africa symbolism.

Mawuko also treats each painting as an exciting opportunity for him to explore and experiment with his primary obsession with colour. His abstraction of African symbols and mask heads, explores the philosophy of rebirth and renewal associated with some of these symbols.

Mawuko has had several public art commissions, notable among them are his murals at Kotoka International Airport (Departure Hall), the Ghana International Trade Fair Centre (Accra), the Vodafone Ghana (Head Office Airport City), and the Holiday Inn Hotel (Accra) just to mention a few. His works can also be found in the collections of Apex Shipping Company Ltd, Diamond Capital Ltd, Ampco Heavy Equipment, First Banc Financial Ltd, and the University Of Ghana Legon.

This article was originally published on TrenderHQ.com (March 7, 2023): At the Orca Deco Art Exhibition, Patrick William Dodoo and others display luxury art in honor of Ghana Independence Month

Fitch Solutions revises Ghana’s GDP target

Through its subsidiary, BMI – a British multinational research firm Fitch Solutions has kept Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for 2025 at 4.2 per cent.

The moderate economic growth is marginally higher than the four per cent projection the Government announced in the 2025 Budget and by the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) April 2025 Regional Economic Outlook.

“We maintain our 2025 growth forecast for Ghana at 4.2 per cent. We believe that the impact from global trade tensions will be offset by the rise in gold prices, which will boost Ghana’s export earnings,” it said in its Ghana Country Risk Report.

The report noted that counterbalance in gold prices, combined with lower energy costs, would drive the current account surplus to a record 6.9 per cent of GDP in 2025, supporting the country’s reserves and helping to stabilise the cedi.

“That said, we maintain our view that growth will slow in 2025, following the strong 5.7 per cent in 2024, caused by the end of election-related fiscal stimulus, plateauing oil production, and tight credit conditions,” Fitch stated.

“Our hope for the future is that as the economy stabilizes, as inflation goes down, as the deficit moves back on track with the program objectives, that it will strengthen confidence,” said Mr Stéphane Roudet, IMF Mission Chief for Ghana.

He said this during a roundtable media engagement with Ghanaian journalists on the sidelines of the just-ended IMF/World Bank Group (WBG) spring meetings in Washington, DC, USA.

“… It will also bolster investment and the role of the private sector, and not just in one sector, but our hope is very much that this is going to be the case across the board,” Roudet said.

He urged the government to strictly adhere to the planned targets of the implementation of the US$3 billion Extended Credit Facility (ECF) programme, aimed at restoring macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability and stimulating economic resilience.

“This is very important. It’s not just today, but it’s in the next few years. Programme commitments have to be continued to be implemented,” the IMF Mission Staff echoed.

“We remain steadfast in meeting the IMF programme targets while restoring Ghana’s creditworthiness,” Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, Finance Minister, said when he delivered the 2025 budget earlier this year.

He said the Government would implement a 24-hour economy policy to address the country’s structural economic challenges and stimulate growth and job creation.

Dr Forson said that would be done by creating an integrated, efficient and increasingly export-driven industrial economy that fully utilised its national resources, capital and labour power.

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By Iddi Yire, GNA Special Correspondent Libreville, Gabon 

Libreville (Garbon), May 03, GNA – Gabon on Saturday, May 3, returned to constitutional rule following the successful inauguration of President General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema as the fourth leader of the Central African nation.

He will be serving for a seven-year term.

The historic colourful inauguration of President Nguema, which took place at the Gabonese national Sports Stadium in Libreville, was witnessed by Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama, in line with Ghana’s  good neighbourliness policy.

There were 15 other African leaders in attendance.

President Nguema, who is the immediate past military junta of Gabon, overthrew the longtime leader in August 2023, ending the more than five decades rule by Bongo family since the independence of the country in 1960.

His inauguration follows his landslide victory in Gabon’s this year’s April 12 Presidential election, which he won with 90.35 per cent of the valid votes cast.

President Nguema in his investiture remarks promised to diversify Gabon’s largely oil-dependent economy and to reduce youth unemployment.

He also promised to serve, protect and unite all Gabonese.

Other African leaders at the investiture were President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea,

President Felix Tshisekedi of The Democratic Republic of Congo, President Bassirou Diomaye Faye of Senegal and President Adama Barrow of The Gambia.

President Mahama’s delegation include Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Foreign Minister, Mr Prosper Douglas Bani, National Security Advisor, Dr Callistus Mahama, Executive Secretary to the President, and Mr Stan Xoese Dogbe, Deputy Chief of Staff in-charge of Operations.

President Mahama, with his delegation, has since returned home. 

GNA

Leading NPP member and former CEO of the National Petroleum Authority, Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid

Leading member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and former CEO of the National Petroleum Authority, Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid has expressed unwavering confidence in the party’s achievements despite their defeat in the 2024 general election.

Speaking during the NPP’s ongoing Thank You Tour, Dr Abdul-Hamid urged party members not to be disheartened by the loss, emphasizing that the party’s ambitious goal to “Break the 8”, a slogan aimed at securing a third consecutive term and breaking Ghana’s eight-year political duopoly between the NPP and the National Democratic Congress (NDC)—was a bold attempt to achieve the unprecedented.

“Tell yourself the truth, why were you saying ‘Break the 8’? Because you knew it has never happened before. You were trying to do the impossible,” Dr Abdul-Hamid said.

He argued that the party should not be hard on itself for failing to accomplish what he described as a formidable challenge, especially since no first-time presidential candidate has ever won an election in Ghana’s Fourth Republic.

The NPP’s candidate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, lost to the NDC’s John Mahama, who secured 6,328,397 votes (56.55%) against Bawumia’s 4,657,304 (41.61%) on December 7, 2024, as declared by the Electoral Commission.

Dr Abdul-Hamid dismissed feelings of regret or blame within the party, stating, “Walaahi, I am not beating myself, I understand it. I am not upset, and I don’t think anybody is responsible for anything.”

Quoting Bob Marley, he added, “He who fights and runs away, lives to fight another day. In our case, we didn’t fight and run away, we fought, and we are here, and we are fighting again.”

He contrasted his stance with other party leaders who have taken a more apologetic tone, noting, “The general secretary and others are nice guys, but I am not a very nice guy. They might say they are sorry, but walaahi, I am not sorry about anything.”

He expressed strong pride in the NPP’s record, asserting that no policy implemented by the party warrants regret.

“We did our best for this country, and there is nothing that John Mahama will do that will match up to what we have done. Nothing, walaahi, nothing,” Dr Abdul-Hamid declared.

He criticized the current NDC administration under President Mahama, pointing to what he described as chaotic governance, including frequent changes in appointments.

“Look, already see what is going on in governance. They appoint a chief executive one day, replace them the next,” he remarked, citing instability in leadership at institutions like the Tema Oil Refinery.

Dr Abdul-Hamid’s comments come as the NPP reflects on its electoral loss, which saw the NDC not only win the presidency but also secure a historic parliamentary majority with 183 seats compared to the NPP’s 88.

The party’s defeat has been attributed to voter dissatisfaction with issues such as the rising cost of living, corruption allegations, and a debt crisis, which Dr Bawumia, the party’s flagbearer himself, acknowledged stemmed from the party’s failure to listen to Ghanaians and address concerns like the e-levy and haircut policies.

Despite this, Dr Abdul-Hamid remains defiant, urging party members to stay united and prepare for future battles, drawing on his experience as an opposition member since 1991-92 to emphasize resilience.

The Thank You Tour is part of the NPP’s efforts to regroup and rebuild following the 2024 election loss.

GA

Ibrahim Mahama has offered to cover all of Suzzy’s medical expenses

Ghanaian businessman and philanthropist Ibrahim Mahama has pledged to cover all medical expenses for Suzzy Pinaman, a second-year student at Adventist Senior High School in Bantama, Ashanti Region, who was shot in the eye by a classmate.

The commitment comes after Suzzy made a heartfelt appeal to Ibrahim Mahama and former Assin Central MP Kennedy Agyapong for assistance to fund her treatment.

On April 4, 2025, during a school break, Suzzy sustained a critical gunshot wound to her forehead when a fellow student, Bernard Amoabeng, allegedly discharged a firearm during an argument about its functionality.

The incident left Suzzy visually impaired, with residual bullet fragments in her eye causing severe pain and preventing her from sleeping or closing her eyes.

Unable to attend school and with her family struggling to afford treatment, Suzzy publicly appealed for help in a video, stating, “Hon. Kennedy Agyapong and Ibrahim Mahama, I am pleading with you to hear my cry and come to my aid. I have no one.”

Following the viral appeal, Ibrahim Mahama, through his aide Rafik Mahama, announced his support.

In a Facebook post, Rafik confirmed that Ibrahim Mahama would fund Suzzy’s medical expenses, both locally and internationally if needed.

“Suzzy will be in Accra on Monday to begin the surgery process. Speedy recovery, Suzzy,” Rafik wrote.

The family according to GhPage which spoke to Suzzy, is expected to arrive in Accra on May 5, 2025, to commence treatment at Dr Agarwals Eye Clinic.

Suzzy was initially rushed to Kwadaso Hospital and later transferred to Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) for emergency surgery to remove the bullets.

Despite efforts, her condition remains severe, prompting plans to fly her abroad for specialized treatment.

GA