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Be cautious in interfering in governance process – Sammy Awuku to UK High Commissioner
The Director-General of the National Lottery Authority (NLA) has questioned the rationale behind recent utterances by the UK High Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson.
Sammy Awuku is concerned about what he sees as a seeming imbalance in the diplomat’s commentary regarding Ghana’s governance issues.
The former Organiser for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) indicated that the diplomat must channel some of the energy towards some issues engaging the attention of her home country, the UK.
He urged the High Commissioner to be mindful of her remits in order not to overstep her boundaries as a diplomat through her assertions.
“Sometimes I beg to differ with the way she also expresses her opinion. That doesn’t mean that we are gagging people. But I think that there’s definitely a code as well for diplomats and I think sometimes she might also be a bit cautious with the way she interferes in the governance process of the country,” he said on Monday.
Over the weekend, the British High Commissioner to Ghana, in an interview on JoyNews addressed certain developments in the country.
Mrs Thompson, among other things, asked that President Akufo-Addo stands with Ghanaians as the country goes through economic challenges by cutting down on expenditure as a sign of solidarising with the plight of the citizenry.
On her call for expenditure cuts, the NLA D-G explained that “once she begins to also express these opinions, they are good, but it’s important that she also becomes very balanced in what’s also happening back home in our country.
“She’s talking about cutting down costs, which I also find very interesting which is so good for the midst of this UK is also investing more in ammunition to support Ukraine, to the detriment of the British people, who are also feeling the pinch.”
Source: www.myjoyonline.com
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Prof Alidu Seidu files nomination for Tamale Central seat
The newly elected parliamentary candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for Tamale Central, Prof Alidu Seidu, has submitted his nomination forms to the Electoral Commission.
As of 10:00 a.m. today, he was the only person who had filed to contest the seat.
Nomination of candidates will close at the end of the day.
Associate Professor and Head of the Political Science Department at the University of Ghana Legon, Prof. Alidu Seidu won the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary primaries in the Tamale Central constituency with a landslide victory.
The elections, supervised by the party’s Elections and IT Directorate in the Northern Region, saw Prof. Seidu poll 840 votes out of the total valid ballots cast.
His closest contender, Lawyer Hanan Gundadow Abdul-Rahaman, secured 536 votes.
The other aspirants could not make significant gains, with Dr. Seidu Fiter obtaining 44 votes, Aliu Abdul-Hamid 23 votes, and the rest recording fewer than 10 votes each.
In all, 1,500 ballots were cast, with 6 ballots rejected and 7 spoilt ballots recorded.
The results were signed and declared by Dr. Arnold Mashud Abukari, NDC Northern Regional Director of Elections and IT.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) held parliamentary primaries in Tamale Central to choose a candidate for the upcoming by-election following the death of the sitting Member of Parliament, Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed. Dr. Mohammed, who also served as Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, tragically died in a military helicopter crash in the Adansi Akrofuom District on August 6, 2025, alongside seven others.
His passing left the Tamale Central seat vacant, as required by Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
The Electoral Commission has scheduled the by-election for September 30, 2025. While the NDC moved quickly to open nominations and vet aspirants, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) announced it would not contest the seat, citing the need to respect the somber circumstances and promote national unity.
By: Jacob Aggrey
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Ghana to locally refine its gold starting October 2025 – Sammy Gyamfi
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board, Sammy Gyamfi, has announced that plans are far advanced for the establishment of a state-owned gold refinery in the country.
Speaking at the 2025 Minerals and Mining Convention, Mr Gyamfi said the refinery will process locally mined gold into bullion instead of exporting it in its raw state.
According to him, it is unacceptable that Ghana, despite being a leading gold producer in Africa, continues to export raw gold known as dore.
He explained that the Gold Board, working with the Bank of Ghana and local refineries, will from October 2025 begin refining gold locally.
He also disclosed that an ultramodern assay laboratory will be built to ensure international standards in testing gold quality.
Mr Gyamfi noted that the refinery will be wholly state-owned and will help Ghana move away from raw mineral exports to value addition.
This, he said, will boost foreign exchange earnings, create jobs, and position Ghana as a hub for gold refining and jewellery production in Africa.
The CEO stressed that the project forms part of government’s strategy to ensure the country benefits fully from its natural resources and to transform the mining sector into a driver of economic growth.
By: Jacob Aggrey
