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Ghana Badminton raises Africa’s flag at the World Championships in USA
In the fantastic city of Spokane, Washington, where the 2023 BWF World Junior Badminton Championship is taking place, Ghana made history and a name for the country, with the teenagers fighting as if their very existence depended on not giving up the events.
The World Championships also serves as an Olympic qualifier for the Paris 2024 global event.
Before this, the Ghana Badminton team participated in South Africa, Nigeria events and a National Open last summer.
A 16-man contingent of players and officials led by Ghana’s Badminton President, Yeboah Evans, is all the motivation the players need to self-motivate themselves, chalking the historic most significant achievement in the Mixed team event by any African country in 23 years of the World Championships.
Over 54 countries are in the United States fighting for honours, with Ghana presenting a few players for the tournament but registering gains that can only inspire a more significant achievement sooner than later.
The young players, with some of them travelling outside the country for the first time, are impressing even officials of their opponents, drawing commendations for having a great future ahead towards the 2023 African Games, 2024 Paris Olympics, 2026 Youth Olympics, and other international open and invitational events.
Ghana became the first African Country to have reached the finals of its Mix Team Group, having lost to Norway in the final stage. Ghanaian Players Andy Amofa and Elvis Osei won the Mixed Team Event’s 4th and 5th best players, whilst Moslena Adu placed 10th in the overall player rankings.
Ghana had to settle for second place in the group match, which nonetheless marked a historic achievement. Amofa committed a rare service error but quickly recovered, delivering a cross-court smash to regain the lead at 11-09.
In a crucial moment, Amofa surprised the Norway Aldrin NELSON by returning a shuttle that appeared to be heading wide, but the Norway player managed to keep it close to the net. Amofa returned the shuttle and secured the point with a well-executed backflip to the other side of the court, taking an 11-09 lead.
Despite Nelson saving two match points, he failed to return a body smash by Amofa near the net. With a final score of 3-0, Ghana lost the last game and handed Norway a winning match, concluding the Ghanaian players one of their career’s most riveting badminton games.
Ghana performed far better than the earlier 2017 World Championships in Yogyakarta, Indonesia and pole position for the 2024 France Olympics Qualification ranking with four other international matches until the deadline of April 28, 2028.
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Focus on more pressing issues like Galamsey, not hate speech – Ellen Ama Daaku to Mahama
An aide to former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia,Ellen Ama Daaku has advised President John Dramani Mahama to shift his attention from social media hate speech to more urgent national issues such as illegal mining.
Speaking in an interview, she noted that the President’s recent comments about tracking the IP addresses of people who spread hate speech were unnecessary.
According to her, President Mahama must first define what he considers to be hate speech before seeking to punish people for it.
Ms. Daaku argued that the President himself had benefitted from hate speech and social media attacks in the past when he was in opposition.
She said even during his time in government, he described his opponents and their tribesmen in unpalatable terms, which later drew complaints from former President Nana Akufo-Addo to the Catholic Bishops’ Conference.
She stressed that harsh criticism of leaders on social media should not automatically be considered hate speech, adding that former leaders, including former President Nana Akufo-Addo had all been subjected to it.
“He is only feeling what Nana Akufo-Addo went through for eight years,” she remarked.
While acknowledging the need to regulate misconduct online, Ms. Daaku insisted that going after social media activists should not be a priority.
She noted that many political activists, including herself, had been insulted and attacked online but never called for arrests.
She concluded that President Mahama should focus his energy on solving pressing problems such as galamsey and the economy instead of concentrating on critics on social media.
By: Jacob Aggrey
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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
