News
Ghana Publishing Company launches nationwide Gazette 360 campaign
The Ghana Publishing Company Limited (GPCL) has rolled out Gazette 360, a nationwide public education campaign designed to deepen public understanding of the Ghana Gazette and make access to the official journal easier for all citizens.
The campaign, which will feature media engagements, community outreach, and digital learning platforms, seeks to demystify the Gazette, highlight its importance in legal and civic life, and protect the public from fraudulent publications.
It also aims to ensure that individuals, businesses, and institutions know how to obtain authentic gazettes and use them as reliable legal references.
Under the theme “Know it, Use it, Trust it,” Gazette 360 emphasizes transparency, accountability, and the protection of Ghana’s democratic governance.
Launching the initiative in Accra, GPCL’s Managing Director, Nana Kwasi Boatey, said the Gazette had been upgraded with new security features, including a gold coat of arms and watermarks, to prevent counterfeiting.
He explained that the features were not ornamental but crucial safeguards to track authenticity.
He revealed that electronic verification systems were also being developed to make it easier for the public to confirm genuine publications.
Mr. Boatey cautioned that fake gazettes were damaging the reputations of many Ghanaians through fraudulent marriages and name changes.
He stressed that those who falsify the Gazette were “waging war against the state” and warned that offenders would be pursued, arrested, and prosecuted.
He urged the media to support the fight against fake gazettes, describing the campaign as a national responsibility to protect the integrity of Ghana’s most authoritative legal record.
GPCL’s Corporate Affairs Manager, Lantam Papanko, explained that Gazette 360 was created to break down misconceptions about the Gazette and highlight its relevance to everyday life.
He said the campaign would not only involve the press but also extend into schools, universities, churches, mosques, and community forums, so that every Ghanaian could understand the Gazette and its role in governance.
Mr. Papanko stressed that Gazette 360 was not just a GPCL initiative but a national campaign calling on citizens to value truth, legality, and integrity in public records.
He thanked MarryRight Ghana and AngloGold Ashanti for their partnership and called on the media to keep the conversation alive.
Operations Manager at MarryRight Ghana, Barimah Agyemang, said marriage officers and venues must be published in the Gazette to give weddings legal force.
He warned that ceremonies conducted without proper gazetting risked lacking binding legal authority, which could expose couples and institutions to legal disputes.
Mr. Agyemang pledged MarryRight’s support in spreading the campaign’s message nationwide and commended GPCL for taking steps to protect the integrity of marriages and other legal processes.
Background
The Ghana Gazette is the official journal of record of the Republic of Ghana. It publishes laws, parliamentary instruments, government notices, company registrations, and other legal documents.
Any information published in the Gazette is legally recognized and enforceable, making it a trusted source of communication between the state and the public.
By: Jacob Aggrey
News
Abu Trica’s extradition case: Prophets, fetish priests demand pay for spiritual solution …Lawyer reveals
Mr Oliver Barker-Vormawor, a lawyer for embattled Frederick Kumi, affectionately called Abu Trica and has made a shocking revelation over the behaviour of some members of the clergy.
According to him in a post on social media, the difficult part of Abu Trica’s trial is not the law but the number of ‘Men of God’ and fetish priests demanding financial sacrifices to help resolve the matter spiritually.
Oliver Barker-Vormawor posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2026, “The most difficult part about the Abu Trica case; is not the law.”
He continued: “It is the number of, prophetesses, evangelists and fetish priests, who have called or messaged to ask us to pay for spiritual solutions.”
It would be recalled that in March this year, the Gbese District Court dismissed a preliminary objection filed by Abu Trica, challenging the extradition proceedings initiated at the request of the United States.
The court, presided over by Anna Akosua Appiah Gottfried Anaafi Gyasi, in its ruling held that the offences forming the basis of the extradition, particularly wire fraud, constitute extraditable offences under the 1931 treaty between Ghana and the United States.
He was then given 15 days counting from March 27 to appeal the decision of the court or be surrendered for extradition to the US.
Against this backdrop, he was on Tuesday, April 22, granted a bail in the sum of GH¢30,000,000 by an Accra High, pending the appeal of his extradition
Mr Kumi was arrested in Ghana in December 2025 following an indictment by United States authorities, alleging that he played a role in a romance scam network that defrauded elderly American victims of more than $8 million.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
News
From panic to pass: how parents, teachers can help children beat BECE, WASSCE exam phobia- Part 1
Walk through any Junior High or Senior High compound in Ghana as BECE or WASSCE approaches and you will see it.
A bright girl suddenly quiet. A boy who led class debates now sleeping at his desk. A Form three student with stomach pains every Monday morning.
This is not laziness. This is academic stress. When left unaddressed, it hardens into exam phobia-overwhelming dread that pushes children into burnout, avoidance, and sometimes silence.
As a mental health professional who sits with these children and their parents at Counselor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC) in Adenta Oyarifa-Teiman, I see the pattern clearly.
Research confirms it. Putwain and Daly (2014) found that high test anxiety predicts lower grades independent of ability. Zeidner (1998) showed that chronic academic pressure raises cortisol, weakens memory recall, and increases school dropout risk. The brain under fear cannot retrieve what it studied.
Understanding the storm: What academic stress really looks like
Exam phobia is not just “being nervous.” It shows up as headaches before mocks, sudden anger when books are mentioned, night-time insomnia, or perfectionism that ends in blank scripts.
Some children over-study until 2 a.m. and forget everything by 9 a.m. Others avoid books completely, scrolling phones instead. Both are distress signals. Dr Kenneth Ginsburg, a paediatrician specialising in adolescent resilience, notes: “Stress is not the enemy; feeling alone with stress is.” Too many Ghanaian children feel alone with it.
The home front: How parents and couples become safe havens, not extra pressure
The first antidote is at home. Structure beats shouting. Set a predictable study slot-same time, same place, with water and a light snack. Then protect sleep like you protect school fees. A tired brain fails faster than an unprepared one. Use the “15-minute start rule”: “Just sit for 15 minutes. If you still can’t, we close and try after a walk.” Often, starting is the hardest part.
Couples must watch their language. “Don’t disgrace us” plants fear. Replace it with “We see your effort. What part feels hardest today?” Praise process, not only position: “You revised three topics and asked for help—that is maturity.” Research by Dweck (2006) confirms that process praise builds resilience while outcome praise increases anxiety.
For caregivers, check your own anxiety. Children borrow our nervous system. If BECE makes you panic, they will panic. One parent grounds—keeps meals, prayer, and bedtime steady. The other pivots—talks to teachers, adjusts timetables, arranges counselling. Both protect rest. An empty cup cannot pour calm.
Resources
– Counsellor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC): Award-winning Clinical Mental Health and Counselling Facility, accredited by the Ghana Psychology Council.
– School-Based Support: Speak to Guidance & Counselling units, or licensed school counsellors. E.g. Counsellor Blessing Offei – 0559850604 (School Counsellor).
– Contact CPAC for Parent Coaching/Counselling & Student Therapy: 055 985 0604 / 055 142 8486
