Religious Affairs

Bantamahene, Baffour Owusu Amankwatia VI has celebrated his six years anniversary on the Bantama Stool. People from all walks of life came to pay homage to the warlord of the Asante Kingdom.

Baffour used the occasion to thank Otumfour Osei Tutu II for giving him that honour to serve Sika Dwa.

He also thanked his elders for their support since he ascended the throne as the Chief of Banatama.

Baffour Owusu Amankwatia VI assured the indigenes of Bantama his commitment for development and pledged to make the community free of filth and crime.

Baffour Amankwatia made the call when his Akonferehene, Nana Obeng Oduro who double as Atwima Akrofromhene spoke on his behalf during the sixth Anniversary at the Bantama palace.
The Akonferehene however appealed to the government appointees from the region to team up with Nananom to restore the lost glory of the Garden City.
Nana further emphasized on the nature of the bad roads in the region and urged the regional minister Simon Osei Mensah to work hand in hand with the Roads and Highways minister, Akwasi Amoako Atta to give a facelift of the roads in the region especially the regional capital, Kumasi.
Dignitaries who were present to grace the occasion were the Kumasi Mayor, Samuel Pyne , representative of the Trade and Industry minister Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen in the persons of Joseph Agyemang Dapaah , former Ahafo Ano South West DCE , Joseph Amoah and former Suame NPP Chairman, Kennedy Atta Marfo. Dr. Samuel Sarpong, former Ashanti regional minister, Kwasi Ofori Agyemang ,former MCE, Obuasi and executives of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC). Story by a new Desk report

Former General Secretary of the Christian Council, Rev Dr Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong

A former General Secretary of the Christian Council of Ghana (CCG), Rev Dr Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong has asked the Board of Trustees for the National Cathedral project to clear the air on the alleged release of ¢200 million by the Finance Ministry for the construction of the edifice.

He says it will be important for the trustees to provide clarifications on the matter for Ghanaians.The North Tongu Member of Parliament (MP), Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, alleged in a social media post that government in 2020 released $25 million for the project without Parliamentary approval.He said a total of ¢200 million has so far been released for the project which government said will not put undue financial burden on the state.

“On October 29, 2020; Ken Ofori-Atta on the request of Presidenty Akufo-Addo’s Chief of Staff, authorised the release of a gargantuan ¢142.7million for national cathedral ‘planned activities. ¢200 million of unconstitutional releases so far,” he claimed.

In a reaction to this, Dr Opuni-Frimpong called on the Board of Trustees to come clean on the whole issue.

“So far, I have only heard the side of the story from Honourable Ablakwa. The current trustees of the Cathedral must quickly come out and tell us whether they have received the money or not; whether churches are building the cathedral or now government has taken over.

“I want to hear their side of the story – what has changed; what have they received; what have they not received?” he said in an interview with JoyNews on Wednesday, June 8.

The former Secretary under whose tenure the Cathedral project was birthed says government, at the initial stages of the project, said it would only be a facilitator, while the churches provide funding for the project.“The then Minister of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Honourable Kofi Dzamesi, was one of those who explained to us again and again that the churches in Ghana are going to build the Cathedral and not the government.

“In a clear language, [he said] the President would give us the land and we [churches] would mobilise, and that the government would facilitate the process. We accepted that challenge that churches in Ghana, all of us are coming together to build the Cathedral,” he recounted.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Finance Minister, John Kumah, has said the amount the North Tongu MP is alleging is in the budget of the Office of the President, which makes the spending on the project legal. Source: Christian Yalley 

Dr Opuni-Frimpong

Following the brouhaha about some State lands being given to Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and the criticisms against the government’s action, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor, has sought to disabuse the minds of Ghanaians of the notion that the government engaged in an illegality.

The Minister, in an interview on Peace FM’s “Kokrokoo” programme, told host Kwami Sefa Kayi that the over 400 acres of lands reportedly possessed by the Asante King were legitimately acquired by him.

Samuel Abu Jinapor explained the lands were first seized from the Asantes by the colonial government, Britain, with them paying no compensation but, after independence, the lands were supposed to be given back to the right owners.

He disclosed that Otumfuo has since taken legal action to reclaiming his lands.

“He fought all the way to the Supreme Court”, he stated.

Clarifying the issues to the general public, the Minister stated emphatically that “when you go to Asanteman, for example, 90% of all lands in Asante are stool lands. 90 percent of all lands in Asante are vested in the golden stool”.

“There is no concept like family lands in Ashanti and public lands are just 10 percent”, he stressed, adding “today, we have corrected this wrong; I don’t think that anybody can quarrel with us about it”.Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana

 

Hon.Samuel Abu Jinapour,Lands Minister       Otumfuo Osei Tutu II,Asantehene