News
Red Cross arms Central Region against cholera outbreak
The Ghana Red Cross Society (GRCS) through the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have presented various health emergency response relief items to the Central Regional Coordinating Council to tackle the cholera resurgence in the region.
The items included 540 cholera vaccines, 3,000 tablets of chlorine, knapsack engine-powered spraying machines, personal protective equipment, Veronica buckets and hand washing stands.
The items are for onward distribution to health facilities to contain the outbreak which began in October 2024, spread to more than 36 districts across five regions – Greater Accra, Central, Western, Eastern and Ashanti.
The region also benefited from a healthy volunteers training programme by the Ghana Red Cross Society with 80 out of the 250 trainees from the region.
The volunteers are operating in the Greater Accra, Western, Ashanti and the Central regions.
The Central Region recorded more than 3,000 suspected cholera cases with 260 confirmed, four health workers were infected in late 2024 and 19 people died from the disease.
Cholera is a highly fatal disease that spreads through contaminated food and water, leading to severe diarrhoea, dehydration, and, if left untreated, death.
In severe cases, a healthy individual can succumb within hours due to rapid fluid loss.
Although entirely preventable through access to clean water, proper sanitation, and good hygienic practices, cholera continues to pose a recurring public health challenge, particularly in areas with inadequate waste management and limited healthcare services.
The ongoing outbreak had placed immense strain on health facilities, stretching both medical staff and resources to their limits.
The Red Cross volunteers would operate in three districts in the region, including Mfantseman, Cape Coast and Komenda-Edina-Eguafo- Abrem.
Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Cape Coast, Mr Solomon Gbolo Gayori, Secretary General of the GRCS said the interventions were essential relief measures to enhance public health education drive and containment.
He said the GRCS had been at the forefront of the response, providing sanitation resources and engaging communities to curb the spread of the outbreak.
It had implemented multi-faceted interventions in the region through house-to-house campaigns by trained volunteers and promoting hand washing practices.
The volunteers had also made schools and community outreach, with media engagements leveraging radio/ TV broadcasts for awareness creation, complemented by distribution of posters and leaflets at markets and public gatherings.—GNA
A 30-year-old man has been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment with hard labour by the Bekwai Circuit Court for his role in a 2022 robbery at a mining site at Manso Akwasiso in the Ashanti South Region.
The convict, Dominic Ofori, also known as Fanta, was arrested on 16th February 2026 after years on the run. He pleaded guilty before the Bekwai Circuit Court to robbery contrary to Section 149 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 Act 29, and was accordingly sentenced to 25 years imprisonment with hard labour.
On March 20, 2022, the Manso Adubia District Police received intelligence that a group of armed men from Manso Abodom were planning to attack a mining site at Manso Akwasiso to rob the owner of gold concentrate. Acting on the information, police mounted a coordinated operation and laid an ambush at the site.
At about 5:30 pm the same day, four-armed men arrived at the site, fired indiscriminately, and robbed the miners of their gold concentrate. The police team on surveillance intervened, resulting in an exchange of gunfire.
Three of the suspects, Abu Abubakar, Musah Latif, and Gideon Takyi, sustained gunshot wounds and were pronounced dead on arrival at St Martins Catholic Hospital at Agroyesum. Dominic Ofori escaped at the time but was later arrested and put before the court.
The Ashanti South Regional Police Command has assured the public of its continued commitment to combating violent crimes and bringing offenders to justice.
The Ashanti Regional Police Command has arrested 45-year-old Isaac Boafo, also known as “Duabo King,” for allegedly publishing false news intended to cause fear and panic.
Police said the arrest follows a viral TikTok video in which Boafo claimed that four officers at the Central Police Station in Kumasi engaged in inappropriate conduct with commercial sex workers during night patrols in Asafo.
Officers from the Police Intelligence Directorate (Ashanti Region) apprehended Boafo after receiving intelligence about the video.
During questioning, he admitted to creating the video to attract views and engagement online, and acknowledged that he could not prove the allegations.
Boafo also admitted making comments about the President of the Republic for content purposes and could not defend those statements.
He has been formally charged and is in detention as investigations continue.
The Ashanti Regional Police have warned the public against publishing or sharing false information on social media, noting that such acts can cause fear, panic, and damage reputations.
They said anyone found engaging in similar conduct will face legal action.
By: Jacob Aggrey
