News
ATU holds education outreach, clean-up exercise to mark 75th anniversary
Mrs Caroline Brown guiding students of St John’s Senior
High School through an experiment.
The Accra Technical University (ATU) as part of its 75th anniversary celebrations, held an education outreach programme for the Teshie Training Centre and Teshie St John’s Senior High School (SHS) in Accra last Friday.
Spearheaded by the Department of Science Laboratory, the university also presented some laboratory items to the two second cycle institutions.![Mrs Felicity Yankson [fouth from right] receiving the items from Mr. Kojo Ayittey a Lecturer with the Staff of ATU and students of St John SHS.](https://spectator.com.gh/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mrs-Felicity-Yankson-fouth-from-right-receiving-the-items-from-Mr.-Kojo-Ayittey-a-Lecturer-with-the-Staff-of-ATU-and-students-of-St-John-SHS-1024x461.jpg)
The outreach and donation was also aimed at contributing to the enhancement of teaching and learning at the schools as well as a commitment to community engagement and social responsibility.
The items presented were plastic beakers, 600ml glass beaker, 250 conical flask, plastic measuring cups, measuring cylinders, stirring rod, plastic pipette, glass test tubes, plastic test tubes and thermometers.
They also presented inoculating loops, pony beads, kidney beans, pinto beans, rubber gasket, plastic weighing bowls, flexible tube, tissue culture plates, magnet wires and aluminum foils.
The students were taken through some practical laboratory demonstrations and enlightened on the need to build careers in applied sciences.
Speaking at the event, the Head of Science Laboratory Department of ATU, Dr Phyllis Naa Yarley Otu encouraged young scientists, especially females to consider the prospects and impact of studying applied sciences.
“We need to develop suitable technologies for local community needs and expand our advisory roles to government and the industries,” she added.
On his part, the Outreach Committee Chairman, Mr Kojo Ayittey added that, it was important to have hands-on skills to ensure that students get employment after school.
He therefore urged the students to consider attaining higher education at the ATU, since they would be guaranteed jobs after completion.
The Principal of Teshie Training Centre, Mabel Asare expressed appreciation to the ATU for the support and vowed to utilise the items to make the ATU proud.
Prior to the outreach programme, the ATU also held a clean-up exercise at the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park and the ATU community.
Students, faculty members and volunteers came out in their numbers to engage in the exercise aimed at improving sanitation within the area.
By Michael D. Abayateye
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
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