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Stars aim to finish off South Africa
After leaving their qualification to the 2022 Qatar World Cup hanging on the ropes, the Black Stars of Ghana will face the Bafana Bafana of South Africa tomorrow in a ‘redemption’ encounter at the Cape Coast Sports Stadium.
Ghana was hoping to beat Ethiopia and leapfrog the group leaders South Africa to cement their quest to get through to the next stage of the qualifiers but was stunned with a 1-1 draw by Ethiopia on Thursday, leaving their qualification hanging.
Skipper Andre Ayew had given the Stars the lead on the 22nd-minute mark of the crucial encounter and were hoping to cruise to victory till Getaneh Kebede equalised in the 72nd minute to deny the visitors the win.
South Africa, who played Zimbabwe in the late kick-off, remained on top of the group with Ghana occupying the second position with 10 points.
Ghana would need to beat South Africa decently in order to get to the next stage of the competition.
Tomorrow’s potentially absorbing cracker should see the Stars downing their familiar opponents in a bid to put themselves into the final phase of the qualifiers.
The Stars have been to three of the last four World Cup tournaments and are dreaming again to dazzle the world with its stunningly beautiful piece of football.
But they must grind the results at all cost as the South Africans had already indicated their interest at the next Mundial.
The likes of Andre Ayew, Mohammed Kudus, and Kamaldeen Sulemanu who failed to carry the team on their shoulders, must show up against South Africa.
Another miss at the Mundial would be a huge blow to Ghanaian fans as the Black Stars were gradually receiving a little bit of support after their disappointments in recent years.
BY MICHAEL D. ABAYATEYE
The Member of Parliament for Nsawam Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh Dompreh, has expressed concern over delays in the release of the District Assemblies Common Fund, warning that the situation is stalling development across the country.
On his facebook page, he described as a matter of urgent national importance, the Minority Chief Whip pointed to what he sees as a growing crisis of unpaid contractors, abandoned projects, and halted infrastructure works in many districts.
He noted that several communities are grappling with half completed schools, unfinished health facilities, abandoned markets, deteriorating roads, and stalled sanitation projects.
According to him, many contractors who have executed projects for district assemblies have not been paid, forcing some construction firms to demobilise from sites while workers lose their jobs.
He stressed that the District Assemblies Common Fund is not a discretionary allocation but a constitutional requirement under Article 252 of the 1992 Constitution, intended to support development at the local level.
In his view, years of delayed releases and accumulated arrears have weakened district development financing and disrupted projects meant to improve living conditions in communities.
He further argued that some payments made in recent years were largely the settlement of old debts rather than funding for new or ongoing projects, a situation he believes has affected contractor confidence and local economic activity.
He described the issue as more than a budgetary challenge, characterising it as a development emergency and a governance concern.
He therefore urged the appropriate authorities to pay outstanding DACF arrears, settle contractors who have completed their work, and ensure that transfers to districts are automatic and predictable.
He maintained that decentralisation can only succeed when district assemblies receive adequate and timely funding to carry out development projects.
He emphasised that stalled projects directly affect ordinary citizens, since they rely on such infrastructure for education, healthcare, transportation, sanitation, and economic activities.
He called for renewed attention to grassroots development, insisting that national progress should not be concentrated only in major cities but extended to all communities.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Richard Appiah, the footballer who killed two children and stored part of their bodies in a fridge at Abesim in the Bono Region in 2021 has been handed a lifetime sentence.
This was after a five member panel of judges at the Accra High Court returned a verdict of guilty against the convict.
Appiah, 32, also a draughtsman would spend the rest of his life in prison after he was convicted of murder.
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BY MALIK SULLEMANA
