Corruption Scandal Shakes Vatican

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The Vatican was shaken by a corruption scandal Thursday after an Italian television investigation said a former top official had been transferred against his will after complaining about irregularities in awarding contracts.
The show “The Untouchables” on the respected private television network La 7 Wednesday night showed what it said were several letters that Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, who was then deputy-governor of Vatican City, sent to superiors, including Pope Benedict, in 2011 about the corruption.
The Vatican issued a statement Thursday criticizing the “methods” used in the journalistic investigation. But it confirmed that the letters were authentic by expressing “sadness over the publication of reserved documents.”
As deputy governor of the Vatican City for two years from 2009 to 2011, Vigano was the number two official in a department responsible for maintaining the tiny city-state’s gardens, buildings, streets, museums and other infrastructure.
Vigano, currently the Vatican’s ambassador in Washington, said in the letters that when he took the job in 2009 he discovered a web of corruption, nepotism and cronyism linked to the awarding of contracts to outside companies at inflated prices.
In one letter, Vigano tells the pope of a smear campaign against him (Vigano) by other Vatican officials who wanted him transferred because they were upset that he had taken drastic steps to save the Vatican money by cleaning up its procedures.
“Holy Father, my transfer right now would provoke much disorientation and discouragement in those who have believed it was possible to clean up so many situations of corruption and abuse of power that have been rooted in the management of so many departments,” Vigano wrote to the pope on March 27, 2011.
In another letter to the pope on April 4, 2011, Vigano says he discovered the management of some Vatican City investments was entrusted to two funds managed by a committee of Italian bankers “who looked after their own interests more than ours.”
LOSS OF $2.5 MILLION, 550,000 EURO NATIVITY SCENE
Vigano says in the same letter that in one single financial transaction in December, 2009, “they made us lose two and a half million dollars.”
The program interviewed a man it identified as a member of the bankers’ committee who said Vigano had developed a reputation as a “ballbreaker” among companies that had contracts with the Vatican, because of his insistence on transparency and competition.
The man’s face was blurred on the transmission and his voice was distorted in order to conceal his identity.
In one of the letters to the pope, Vigano said Vatican-employed maintenance workers were demoralized because “work was always given to the same companies at costs at least double compared to those charged outside the Vatican.”
For example, when Vigano discovered that the cost of the Vatican’s larger than life nativity scene in St Peter’s Square was 550,000 euros in 2009, he chopped 200,000 euros off the cost for the next Christmas, the program said.
Even though, Vigano’s cost-cutting and transparency campaign helped turned Vatican City’s budget from deficit to surplus during his tenure, in 2011 unsigned articles criticizing him as inefficient appeared in the Italian newspaper Il Giornale.
On March 22, 2011, Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone informed Vigano that he was being removed from his position, even though it was to have lasted until 2014.
Five days later he wrote to Bertone complaining that he was left “dumbfounded” by the ouster and because Bertone’s motives for his removal were identical to those published in an anonymous article published against him in Il Giornale that month.
In early April, Vigano went over Bertone’s head again and wrote directly to the pope, telling him that he had worked hard to “eliminate corruption, private interests and dysfunction that are widespread in various departments.”
He also tells the pope in the same letter that “no-one should be surprised about the press campaign against me” because he tried to root out corruption and had made enemies.
Despite his appeals to the pope that a transfer, even if it meant a promotion, “would be a defeat difficult for me to accept,” Vigano was named ambassador to Washington in October of last year after the sudden death of the previous envoy to the United States.
In its statement, the Vatican said the journalistic investigation had treated complicated subjects in a “partial and banal way” and could take steps to defend the “honor of morally upright people” who loyally serve the Church.
The statement said that today’s administration was a continuation of the “correct and transparent management that inspired Monsignor Vigano.”
Reuters

Morgan Freeman to marry his step-granddaughter

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A few weeks ago, a disturbing story broke that Morgan Freeman was maintaining a 10-year relationship with his step-granddaughter with whom he had a questionable sexual encounter when she was young.
Yes, they are not related through blood, but Freeman is 72 and E’Dena Hines is now 27, which means she would have been 17 when they first… um… got together. Once Freeman’s wife found out about their secret affair she filed for divorce, and now the Enquirer is claiming that once proceedings go through, he and Hines are set to wed.
“Morgan has led her to believe that he wants to marry her,” says a family insider. Another source says, “Becoming Mrs. Morgan Freeman has been E’Dena’s goal.”

Veep Urges Telecos To List On GSE

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Vice President John Dramani Mahama has urged the country’s telecommunication companies to consider offloading some of their shares on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) to allow for participation of Ghanaians.
He said after 10 years of liberalization of the Telecommunication sector it was now time for the companies to open up to enable Ghanaians to acquire stakes and to share in the growing influence and gains in the sector.
The Vice President’s comment comes after recent calls by stakeholders for a capital market local content provision to encourage companies in the mining, oil and gas and telecommunication sectors to float shares on the local bourse after five years of operation in the country.
Vice President Mahama, who was speaking at the opening session of the third Graphic Business Forum on the theme: “Leveraging ICT and Oil and Gas Resources to Accelerate Ghana’s Economic Development,” said Information and communication technology had become a powerful tool to increase the competitiveness of the small and medium scale enterprises.
Mr Mahama, therefore, called on the SMEs to harness and build close relationship with ICT firms to leverage the opportunities provided by the revolution in communication to enhance efficiency accelerate job creation and business growth. To this end, he said, government was encouraging SMEs in ICT through initiatives aimed at facilitating the active participation of the local ICT industry and services .
These include the promotion of the production of information, knowledge and technology products such as business outsourcing and Technology Parks as well as training in basic skills for use of ICT sector. There is the provision of mentoring and incubation opportunities for start-up companies.
On oil and gas industry, Mr Mahama said the Government was encouraging the development of Offshore Broadband Network to extend optic fibre infrastructure to cover all the oil fields and areas under exploration. This, he said, was so because the availability of unlimited bandwidth capacity will facilitate the transmission of data, and also provide real time monitoring of production activities.
“This is underscored by the fact that the optic fibre possesses enormous advantages over satellite and wireless broadband infrastructure, especially as our oil fields lie in active weather and atmospheric conditions,” he said.
He said the availability of sub-marine cable, being promoted by government as private sector activity, would provide critical service to Ghana’s oil and gas industry and create a supportive environment not only to promote efficiency in operation but also reduce the cost of exploration and oil production in our fields.
Such infrastructure will benefit all the stakeholders, including the investors (who need information promptly at their various sites, security agencies, responsible sector Ministries, production units, etc. The ICT infrastructure will facilitate information-sharing in real time mode, and this will help build confidence and openness in oil and gas operations (including monitoring of volumes being produced and transported).
Besides, as a clear manifestation of government commitment to the transparent and equitable management of the oil resources, Parliament passed into law the Petroleum Revenue Management Act. This, he said, made it possible for government to access resources through the annual budget from oil and gas proceeds for economic development.
The Act also makes room for the setting up of a Stabilization and Heritage Fund to cushion the country against the vicissitudes of global financial trends and to also meet the needs of future generations.
In addition, Parliament has also passed the Petroleum Commission Act to regulate activities in the use of petroleum resources, with a goal to achieving optimal resource exploitation while ensuring sustainable environmental standards.
“Furthermore, Ghana is committed to the principles of the EITI by extending it from the mining sector to include oil and gas and other non-renewable resources,” Mr Mahama said.
The country should also take advantage of ICT to produce energy at cheaper cost to feed industries and also reduce the cost of importing energy at high cost into the country. This will help boost industry and give it the capacity to employ more people, thereby helping to address the problem of unemployment while creating high value jobs.
It is in this direction that government plans to speed up the development of the gas infrastructure project to transport gas from the Jubilee Field to enable it reap the benefit of boosting electricity generation for our industries and to export to neighbouring countries to bring in additional revenue. To this end, government will make the completion of the gas project a priority in order to make gas a major source of energy.
Mr Mahama said all these sectors would not fully benefit the country unless there was a backward integration into the economy by allowing increased local participation in these critical industries,” he said. “Increased local participation will make these companies truly integrated in Ghanaian economy and society,” he added.

How Ghanaians React Over Recent Cabinet Reshuffle

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Ghanaians on Wednesday afternoon were greeted with shocking news in the much-awaited Cabinet reshuffle made by the President of the Republic of Ghana, H.E Prof John Evans Atta Mills.
The Cabinet reshuffle was extensively reported by the country’s vibrant media with interesting headlines and twists.
Some Ghanaians in the Greater Accra Region praised the President for bringing new forces which the government needs most to execute the Better Ghana agenda. Most residents in Accra say the President undertook the cabinet reshuffling at the right time.
Residents in the Central Region praised President Mills for relieving the Health Minister, Joseph Yieleh Chireh from his post.
They expressed satisfaction of dismissal of Yieleh Chireh because he recently went on leave while the medical doctors were on strike with people dying in the process.
Mathew Donkor, a resident at Twifo Praso contended that he smiled when news came that the minister has been relieved of his position.
Yaw Amoah, a driver at Agona Swedru contended that President Mills engaged in the reshuffle to divert attention from the Woyome financial scandal that has rocked his government.
But Aba Akyere, a petty trader in Cape Coast says the reshuffle was in the right direction, claiming that some ministers have overstayed in their positions for far too long that was making them pompous.
She explained that the appointment of Mr Fritz Baffour as the new Information Minister would help bring sanity in that ministry as Baffour is expected to bring his communication expertise to bear.
Kofi Tawiah Amoako, a farmer at Dunkwa -On-Offin did not take it kindly at all as he criticised President Mills for diverting attention from the Woyome’s case, adding that until the truth comes out of that case he would not forgive the government.
In the Western Region, the Youth for Nzema-Manle and Western Development, a youth group in Nzema land has commended the President of the Republic of Ghana, His Excellency Prof. John Evans Atta Mills for appointing Lee Ocran, High Commissioner to South Africa as Minister of Education designate and Steve Ackah, Member of Parliament for Suaman as the Deputy Minister designate for Local government.
The Director of Communications at the Youth for Nzema-Manle and Western Development, Evans Osei stated that: “The two appointments are very crucial to us the youth and entire citizenry at large since it would serve as a major boost to the development of the Western region and Ghana as a whole”.
Although we have been waiting for this far too long we believe it has come at the appropriate time where the region is experiencing massive development both in the oil and gas sectors, he added.
According to the group, it is however evident that the President’s appointment to the distinguished personalities in the region cuts across the various groups in the region made up of the four major walls of the such as Ahanta, Wassa, Aowin and Nzema as compared to previous regimes which focused on only the few groups that yielded nothing but sought to deepened the woes of the region.
They were quick to add that: “We commend the President for his vision to equally give the people of the Western region a fair share by appointing individuals who hails from the region and would urge his to do more; since we believe there are more of such untapped able-resourced individuals from the region who can be brought on board to execute and achieve his goals”.
If the President in his first term can allocate to the region a remarkable and enviable portfolios then if given the chance can do more for the people in terms of engaging the human resource base of the region who will assist him to embark upon his better projects for all, they noted.
For residents of the Upper West Regional capital, Wa the relieving of the Regional Minister, Alhaji Isahaku Salia of his post was a big party. Youth in the municipality were happy over the news. They accused him of being unaccountable and a seasoned dictator.
While in the Upper East Region, the appointing of Moses Asaga, a Member of Parliament for Nabdan as Minister for Employment and Social Welfare on that afternoon filled all the drinking spots in Bolgatanga, and other communities in the region.
Furthermore, some Ghanaians encouraged the new appointees to use their influences to create platforms that would always bring the fortunes to the welfare of the people which will go the way to improve their living standards.
Once again, they thanked the President for his visionary leadership style that has reflected positively on the sudden rise of the country’s development and urged all to pray for both new and existing appointees for divine health and wisdom.

Gov’t concedes errors in Chinese loan documents

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Government has denied claims that the country will pay as much as 2.3 billion dollars more for the loan it is contracting from the Chinese Development Bank in addition to the principal and interest.

The Minority in Parliament raised concerns on Thursday that the country will commit nearly 7 billion dollars worth of the country’s crude oil to the Chinese.

They claim this violates the Petroleum Revenue Management Law and smacks of corruption.

But Deputy Finance Minister, Seth Terkper has told Joy News the claims are false.

“Ghana’s oil is not being collateralized. The proceeds from the off-take will be paid into bank of Ghana just like any sale of crude oil and out of the proceeds that go into the Petroleum Holdings Account, the distribution will be made into the Stabilization Fund, Heritage [Fund] and [the] annual budget funding amount.”

He explained that the part of the proceeds that go into the Consolidated Fund will be the only resource that will be used in servicing the loan.

Mr Terkper also denied claims that government has set the price at which the Chinese will buy the country’s oil at 85 dollars, well below the prevailing market price. Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh had earlier accused the government of pegging the cost at an unreasonably low price compared to the prevailing crude oil price.

Mr. Terkper, said the volatility in crude oil price makes it unrealistic to fix the price, adding that the “off-taker agreement calls for the use of average prices that will be adjusted periodically.”

He, however, conceded that there were errors in the documents presented to Parliament which must have informed the Minority’s views on the matter.

Source: Joy Online

How Media Reported Prez Mills Cabinet Reshuffle

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Ghanaian media on Thursday gave extensive coverage over the ministerial reshuffle that was undertaking by President Mills in last lap of his administration.
Interesting headlines and twists were given by the various newspapers, radio, television stations and news websites to catch the eyes of readers as well as ears of listeners.
As usual the state-owned “Daily Graphic” the most widely circulated newspaper in Ghana ran the story with a banner “ Ministerial Reshuffle – 6 IN, 3 OUT” while it continued that six new faces have been brought into the government following ministerial reshuffle splashing pictures of affected ministers and incoming ones in front of the paper.
Another state-owned newspaper, “Ghanaian Times” came out with a headline “Heads Roll-More to go today” and went ahead to state that three ministers lost their positions and five new appointments were made.
It went on to mention the minister who lost their positions as Mark Woyongo, Upper East Regional Minister, Joseph Yieleh Chireh, Health Minister and Cyril Neku (rtd) Deputy Volta Regional Minister. It also splashed the pictures of these ministers in its front page.
“The Chronicle”, “Daily Dispatch” and “Today” newspapers all daily private newspapers ran the story with twists banners. The Chronicle says “Gargantuan Cabinet Out” –as Aki and Porpor reunite at Information Ministry. This refers to the return of former Deputy Minister of Information, Jones Agyenim Boateng from Tourism Ministry to the Information Ministry to work with his colleague Deputy Minister, Samuel Okudzato Ablakwa. The two are among the numerous young ministers in Mills’ Government.
The Dispatch, a newspaper which specialises in elections went out with a banner “Ministerial Reshuffle”- 22 affected splashing portraits of the affected ministers in front page while the Today newspaper wrote “Mills fires Yieleh Chireh, John Tia and others”.

Sudan, S. Sudan Leaders Fail To Reach Oil Deal

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The presidents of Sudan and South Sudan failed on Friday to resolve an oil dispute that has led to the shutdown of the South’s crude output and threatened both countries’ economies.
The row centres on how much landlocked South Sudan, which became independent last year, should pay to send its oil exports through Sudan to a Red Sea port.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, using a walking stick, and South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir met on the sidelines of a meeting of East African officials in Ethiopia.
The two discussed a deal that “would have frozen the situation and reverses the unilateral actions that had been taken by both”, a source close to the talks told Reuters.
However, the source said the talks broke down when Kiir pulled out.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, who chaired the East African meeting, said the two had agreed to sign a deal even though they had reservations on numerous points, according to the source.
“Then Salva said, ‘I regret to say that my delegation is still discussing the deal and I can’t sign’,” the source quoted Zenawi as saying.
South Sudan seceded in July under a 2005 peace deal that ended decades of civil war with Khartoum. It took with it about 75 percent of roughly 500,000 barrels per day of oil production.
Both countries depend heavily on oil and have put forward widely differing figures for a possible transit fee. Sudan has publicly proposed $36 per barrel, while South Sudan has listed figures under $1 per barrel.
The dispute heated up this month when Sudan said it was confiscating some oil exports from South Sudan to make up for what it called unpaid fees. In response, South Sudan said on January 20 it was shutting down its output.
Wells Shut Down
South Sudan’s oil minister Stephen Dhieu Dau said on Friday that his country was continuing to shut down its oil output in protest at Sudan seizing part of its oil shipments.
“Now 50 percent of the wells are off,” he told reporters during a visit to the Palouge oil field in Upper Nile state. However, he did not say whether he was referring to the whole country or Upper Nile fields only.
Zenawi said the two sides hadn’t agreed on a deal yet, but oil would stay on the agenda in Addis Ababa, where the leaders of Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia also met.
“It was agreed that the two parties will continue their negotiations during the summit. We have not come to conclusion as yet,” he told reporters.
Zenawi said an African Union mediating panel had proposed a “reversal of unilateral measures” taken by both sides, but did not spell out what that meant. “Many of those issues are agreed, but there are some sticking points,” he said.
According to oil industry sources, Sudan has already sold at least one cargo of crude seized from South Sudan at millions of dollars discount, and is offering more.
Sudan’s civil war was fought for most years from 1955 to 2005 over issues of ethnicity, religion, ideology and oil. An estimated 2 million people died in the conflict.
Southerners voted overwhelmingly to secede in a referendum held last year in January.
Reuters

Nigerian Traders Shot And Burnt

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At least 15 village traders were shot dead in northern Nigeria’s Zamfara state as they returned from a market on Thursday night.
The local police commissioner told AFP that armed robbers waylaid the traders, who were travelling in an open truck, and opened fire. They burnt some of the bodies in the truck.
The agency reports that villagers said 100 people came out of the bush and stopped the truck.
The attackers’ motive may be robbery.
The incident reportedly occurred close to the town of Birnin Magaji, several hundred kilometres west of Kano, where nearly 200 people were killed in a wave of gun and bomb attacks last week.
The BBC’s Haruna Shehu Tangaza in the neighbouring state of Sokoto says the trouble may be linked to several incidents in the village of Lingyado in Zamfara state.
Earlier last year, vigilantes from Lingyado evicted a group of people from the village who they suspected of being behind a series of cattle and other robberies.
Those flushed out regrouped and attacked the village with heavy weaponry – including rocket-propelled grenades – a few months later, killing 26 villagers.
Some believe the attack on Thursday night has the hallmarks of the group as the traders from Birnin Magaji village were ambushed and set alight, our reporter says.
BBC

Teachers Threaten Strike In Two Weeks

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The Greater Accra Regional branch of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has threatened to embark on an indefinite strike if the culprits behind the assault of their colleagues are not found.
They have therefore given a two-week ultimatum to the Ghana Police Service to arrest the attackers of the head teacher of the Duffour Osu-Doku Methodist Basic School, Ms Juliana Teiko Quarshie and other teachers of the academic facility.
The members who expressed displeasure about the poor manner in which the police are handling the incident also registered their discomfort about the rate at which teachers in the rural areas are being attacked.
Mr George Yamoah, the Regional Chairman of GNAT who addressed the press in Accra on Friday blamed the police for not coming to the aid of the staff of the school on time when they had been notified.
He called for legal action to be taken against those who assaulted the headteacher while an appropriate compensation is given to her and the affected teachers.
“We feel that the lives of our teachers are insecure in Duffour Osu-Doku, and are therefore calling on the Inspector General of Police to ensure that perpetrators of the attack are brought to book,” he said.

Ghanaians urged to remember Nigeria in prayer

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Global Intercessory Prayer Organisation (GIPO), a non governmental organization, has call on Ghanaians to show more concern  for Nigeria’s current instability by praying for that country.

This according to the NGO, was due to the crucial deepening relationship that existed between the two countries.

In a statement copied to the GNA on Friday, the Association noted with concern the rate at which churches were being burnt and property destroyed.

The statement extolled the huge role Nigeria played in the socio-economic development of some countries in the West African sub-region including Ghana.

“It is a well known fact that Nigerian investments have helped a lot in the socio-economic development of this country.

“The West African Gas Pipeline project and the proliferation of Nigerian-owned  banks in the country are typical examples of the corporation between the two countries”.

It said Ghana and Nigeria were the two major powers in the West African sub-region and should therefore stand together and take the leading role in promoting cooperation among other African countries.

Some of the prayer topics include “God’s wisdom for President Goodluck Jonathan to enable him deal with the issues that confront the country”, “Peace between Christians and Muslims” and “Total peace for the embattled country”.

Source: GNA

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