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Economic hardship not justification for ‘galamsey’, other crimes – Rev Minister
● Rev Charles Adom Darkwa
The North Kaneshie District Minister of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Rev Charles Adom Darkwa has said that it would be very unfair for people to justify wrong doing by using the current economic hardship as a yardstick.
He said, “a bad attitude is like a flat tyre, you can’t get far until you change it.”
In his opinion the current economic challenges should not compel the citizens to engage in acts which are detrimental to the society and the country as a whole.
The District Minister who spoke to The Spectator on Wednesday explained that negative activities such as galamsey wreaked havoc on society and that there was the need to collectively fight against it, because countries blessed with water bodies like Ghana guarded their resources and made judicious use of them but it is a pity that “we are destroying our beautiful natural reserves due to economic hardship”.
“We must rather find pragmatic ways of making good use of our forest reserves to our benefits not destroy them.”
Rev Adom Darkwa said, although Ghanaians were in hard times, like prophet Jeremiah admonished in Jeremiah 29:7 “we should seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile, pray to the Lord for it because if it prospers you too will prosper.”
It is a clarion call to action, for all citizens to manage in their respective trades and professions and work diligently for the betterment of their lives and society as a whole.
According to him, “praying for a country also involves supporting, having hope and working honestly, diligently and collectively for positive strides.”
The District Minister who is also the Minister-in-Charge of the Christ Family Congregation reiterated Maya Angelou’s quote that “We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated” to encourage Christians to say positive words about the nation not condemn or say negative things because there’s hope of glory in Christ Jesus.
By Portia Hutton-Mills
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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
