Press release

10/03/2020

PRESS RELEASE
*HAPPENINGS AROUND 63RD INDEPENDENCE ANIVERSARY IN HOHOE MUNICIPALITY.*


By George Bright Anni Bansah, Chairman Hohoe Constituency NDC.

On behalf of my party NDC, I wish to congratulate all Ghanaians on this day especially the people of Hohoe municipality.
Independence day celebrations have always been national true event in the true sense of nationalism. But this year’s celebration was turned into a party campaign, where a ruling party’s parliamentary candidate was the focus of the day. This would have passed without this statement but for the sake of posterity. We expected condemnation from the press about things that happened on the grounds.
Very shameful and disgraceful behaviour of the Municipal Chief Executive, by him allowing things of this nature to happen on the parade grounds since he was and is the leader of the municipality. When did Ghana’s Independence Day celebration become an NPP day celebration? Please Ghana is for Ghanaians and not for a political party in power.
Let me congratulate Hohoe Municipal GES, Teachers in Hohoe Municipality, St. Francis Demonstration JSS and its Teachers, Parents of Master Prosper Hotor and the boy himself for making Hohoe Municipality and the Volta Region as a whole proud in the President’s award reception some few weeks ago. This couldn’t have happen without you the teachers and the parents for preparing the students very well for the final exams, we say thank you for the sacrifices you make every day for lifting education up in Hohoe. How can you accept and trumpet the success of a young boy whose teachers and parents pushed so much for, to a desperate individual?
Performance of a student to win an award cannot be a result of one organized program because education is not an event but a process. To those who had high grades 24 and above, you are very good in your own respect, look at your God given talent and develop it. 
BECE SCIENCE PRACTICAL AND STUDENT SUMMIT IN THE HOHOE MUNICIPALITY – THE TRUTH ABOUT THIS PROGRAMME.
The BECE Science and Practical lessons started in Hohoe in the year 2014 with an education based NGO, Education Innovators, under Mr. John Teku who had an oversight responsibility over Hohoe from Kpando. He (Mr. Teku) approved the permission for the NGO to carry out the activity. Mr. Francis Doku and Mr. Cephas Denutsui were the executors of this program in 2014 and 2015 using a mobile laboratory for the training and mock examination. The team was led into the circuit centers by the STMIE (Science, Technology, Mathematics and Innovation Education) Coordinator in the Hohoe Municipal Education office and the Municipal training officer under the guidance of the Assistant Director in charge of Supervision.
The students paid for the program, which presupposes that not all of the students were participating in that first year. The practical lesson cost Ten Ghana Cedis (Ghc10:00) and the summit cost fifteen Ghana Cedis (Ghc15:00). Some students participated in the two and others in one of their choice. Lunch was provided for the participants on the days of the summit with the fifteen Ghana Cedis (Ghc15:00).
All the student summits were held at the Franco auditorium except the 2018 one which was held in the St. Augustine R C Chapel of which Madam Benedicta Akatse, the North Dayi District Director of Education, who had an oversight responsibility of Hohoe Municipal office after the retirement of Mr. Joseph Wordui.
Rev. Fr. Isaac Benuyena a member of MEOC (Municipal Education Oversight Committee) also represented the committee to observe the impressive summit. They saw the operation of the scannable machine that marks the objective answer papers for WAEC. The mock test was conducted and over one thousand (1000) students participated, the shaded answer sheets were marked in less than an hour, the results were analyzed and the best three students were awarded.
In 2016, the two (2) best candidates in the BECE from the Volta Region were both from Hohoe and received presidential awards. Both were from St. Joseph preparatory school. In fact Hohoe had almost always produced at least one of the two best candidates from the Volta region since 2009.
What happened last year was simply a continuation of what has been happening in the past years before 2019. The new twist in last year’s program was that the education directorate said they were instructed not to take any money from anyone for any activity, so the Municipal Assembly was supposed to sponsor the program for the first time in many years which other districts had been doing anyway, this appeal was to be made through MEOC.
This was licked to Hon. John Peter Amewu, he came in and said he was going to support the program. Hon. Amewu then asked a contractor (am told) to pay for the program, we do not know if it is his “Kick Back” that was to be used. Hence the teething challenges the program had because the financial obligations were not met on time.
For the Minister’s assertion that the current Municipal Director of Education said this was the first program of its kind, was completely untrue. She was completely unaware of happenings in the municipality in the educational front before she forced her way in. she did not care to ask or research what use to happen before she came and decided to peddle untruth. 
It is unfortunate Hohoe Municipality has been reduced to publishing lies all over the place, just because an individual feels and knows his government is almost out of power and wants to find a safe haven in Parliament. Less than 1 kilometer of road was done at Bungalow by urban roads and it was a minister who has finished 99% of the road from bungalow to Likpe. Some sections of the media houses and individuals within the media space continue to aid these falsehoods. NDC as a political party will continue to do due diligence on all developmental issues in this constituency and share them the way they are. We pray that others who could read in between the lines should also speak up on such matters.
Ladies and gentlemen, we must be on guard to prevent what happened to the generality of Ghanaians in 2016, from happening to the people of Hohoe constituency in 2020. We must not allow well calculated lies to lead us the wrong way just as it happened to us Ghanaians.
May God Bless our homeland Ghana
Thank you all.

...Signed....

*George Bright Anni Bansah*
*Chairman, NDC Hohoe Constituency*