KLASSIC NEWS

Mental Health: Expert warns youth against drug abuse

A mental health advocate, Madam Ofosu Nkrumah Marjot, has cautioned the youth to desist from drug abuse in the interest of their mental health.

She warned that youths should stop abusing drugs and substances to forestall mental health problems, adding that over 90 per cent of mental illnesses were caused by drug abuse.

Marjot, Community Mental Health Officer at Saint Joseph Clinic (Koase) in the Wenchi Municipal of Bono Region, gave the advice in an interview with Adom-Nana Piesie Yaw Preko of Ewiase Fm in Wenchi.

Marjot regretted that many youths did not know the implications of drug involvement, saying that it could affect someone’s mental, moral, financial and physical behaviour.

According to her, it is imperative to make youths understand the mental health implications of their action in abusing drugs.

She explained that the chronic use of drugs by youths could lead to short and long term changes in the brain, which could lead to mental health issues such as memory loss, depression, anxiety and hallucination.

“If someone who has the inherit tendency of developing mental illness smokes cannabis, it may trigger the mental problem to surface and such person will start having metal illness.

“This is because an inherited mental illness requires other factors to push it out. So, to be on the safe side, it’s advisable to shun all forms of drug/substance abuse.’’

According to her, many persons who are addicted to drug and substance over a long period of time are often diagnosed of mental disorder.

Marjot lamented that many Ghanaians never knew that alcohol was also considered as drugs and the prolonged in-take of it could lead to mental health problems like memory loss, damages to the brain and vision.

She stated that in spite of the advocacies, campaigns and interventions to curb drug abuse, people (particularly youths) still had access to drugs.

She said, “It is unfortunate that most of the youths are into drug abuse.

Story: Adom-Nana Piesie Yaw Preko

Citizens’ participation in district-level elections strengthens our democracy – NCCE

The Wenchi Municipal Director of National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) Mr. Francis Cudjoe has urged the citizenry to fully participate in the upcoming District Level Elections to sustain grassroots growth, development and path for achieving democracy through decentralisation.

It underscored the need for the populace to continue to live by the principles and dictates of the 1992 Constitution to entrench democracy towards active participation in governance which provides opportunity to build a just society.

Speaking in an interview with Ewiase Fm’s News anchor, Adom-Nana Piesie Yaw Preko, the director disclosed that the low promotion of the District Level Elections by the electoral commission and stakeholders is the contributing factor to the low participation of citizens.

“It seems the national interest is on the 2024 general election as I’m speaking with you right now, we all know the date fixed for the general election, unlike that of the district level elections, meanwhile the District Level elections is equally important as the general Election”, Mr. Francis Cudjoe said.

Meanwhile, the Electoral Commission (EC) has set Tuesday, December 19, 2023, as the new date for the 2023 District Level Elections (DLE). The tenure of serving Assembly Members, who were elected in 2019, will expire in December this year, necessitating the election of new Assembly Members for the next four years.

“Every strong building can be seen through its solid foundation, and the based of our constitutional democracy can be traced to Decentralisation and Local Governance process. Therefore the need to encourage citizens’ participation at the grassroots of our democracy”, he remarked.

Mr. Francis Cudjoe added that the NCCE wishes to encourage especially the marginalised groupings, such as women, youth, and persons living with disabilities, to avail themselves in the upcoming district-level election to boost their participation in the decision marking process.

Story by: Adom-Nana Piesie Yaw Preko (Ewiase Fm)

Create Cashew Marketing Board to Stabilize The Minimum Price – Government Told

The Ghana government has been urged to establish cashew board, as has been done for cocoa, to enable cashew farmers to reap the maximum benefits from their labour.

The Patron of Ghana National Small Scale Miners Association and a farmer, Mr Emmanuel K Agyemang in an interview with Adom-nana Piesie Yaw Preko of Ewiase Fm, said the buying of the Cashew nuts by the Government is long overdue.

Mr Emmanuel K Agyemang said the farmers want the government to intervene and buy the nuts at the minimum price to stabilize the minimum price giving by the government.

“Even though there had been several actor associations like the Ghana Cashew Traders and Exporters Association, the sector still lacked proper organisation and pricing regimes so the government should set up cashew marketing board as it is in cocoa”, Mr. Agyemang said.

It will be recalled that December last year, the Deputy Agric Minister, Yaw Frimpong Addo, announced the minimum producer price for raw cashew nuts as GH¢8.50 per killogramme in the Bono East Region.

“It is disgusting to point out that cashew farmers in Ghana after toiling many years to take care of the cashew crops are offered Gh¢2 per kilo of raw cashew nuts, if the government really want the minimum price to stand and make farming attractive to the youth, then the government must build a warehouse and take part in the buying”, Mr. Agyemang added.

Story by: Adom-nana Piesie Yaw Preko (Ewiase Fm)

Buy Cashew Nuts to Stabilize the Minimum Price – Government Told

The Ghana government has been urged to take part in the buying of cashew nuts, as has been done for cocoa, to enable cashew farmers to reap the maximum benefits from their labour.

The Vice Chairman of Cashew buyers association in Wenchi Municipality, Mr Osei Eric, in an interview with Adom-nana Piesie Yaw Preko of Ewiase Fm, said the buying of the Cashew nuts by the Government is long overdue.

Mr Osei Eric said the farmers want the government to intervene and buy the nuts at the minimum price to stabilize the minimum price giving by the government.

Even though there had been several actor associations like the Ghana Cashew Traders and Exporters Association, the sector still lacked proprteer organisation and pricing regimes.

“It is disgusting to point out that cashew farmers in our municipality after toiling many years to take care of the cashew crops are offered between Gh¢5 and Gh¢6 per kilo of raw cashew nuts, if the government really want the minimum price to stand then he must take part in the buying”, Mr. Osei said.

Story by: Adom-nana Piesie Yaw Preko (Ewiase Fm)

Ramadan: Hon. Alhaji Seidu Haruna donate bags of rice to Muslims in Wenchi Constituency

Hon. Alhaji Seidu Haruna, the Member of Parliament for Wenchi Constituency in the Bono Region has donated food items to be distributed to Moslems in support of the Holy month of Ramadan.

The items donated include 20 bags of Sugar, 20 bags of rice, boxes of Victoria Lipton Tea, cartons of milk, cartons of milo among others.

The gesture is to support all the Muslims in their Ramadan 30 days fasting and prayers .

Hon. Seidu Haruna said the donation would help the adherents of Islam in the Holy month as they seek the intervention, mercy and goodness of Allah.

He reiterated that Ramadan is a period for Muslims across the globe to seek Allah’s forgiveness, blessings, sanctification, purification and guidance to enable them endure the challenges associated with the period of fasting.
In a short ceremony, the MP urged all Muslims to use this holy period to pray for peace for the country, the Wenchi Constituency and the NDC party.

In a short ceremony, the MP urged all Muslims to use this holy period to pray for peace for the country, the Wenchi Constituency and the NDC party.

He seized the opportunity to pledge his continuous support to the people and wishes the Muslim community a fruitful fasting period.

The Municipal Chief Imam, Sheikh Imam Alhaji Issa Abrahim receiving the items thanked Hon. Alhaji Seidu Haruna and his team for standing by the Muslims of Wenchi at their time of need and prayed for Allah to reward him abundantly.

Source: Ewiase Fm

Halt the encroachment on Wenchi Agricultural College lands

The Wenchi Agric College (FARM INSTITUTE) has marked its Maiden Graduation Ceremony with an appeal to all stakeholders to act together to stop the massive encroachment on the school’s lands.

Nana Owusu-Ansah Sasraku Bessea, Chief of Koase in the Wenchi Traditional Area and Chairman for the ceremony, described as worrying the take-over of the school’s idle lands by encroachers.

He said given the growing student population, the need for infrastructural expansion had become exigent and that was why the school administration should be given every necessary support to safeguard the remaining “un-encroached land”.

“The school’s prime location has made it become attractive to encroachers. Established in, 1964 under Former President, Dr. Kwame Nkruma’s regime when Hon. Krobo Adusei was the Agric Minister then Farm Institute before becoming College which Bonoman is proud of”, Nana added.

Nana Owusu-Ansah Sasraku Bessea used the occasion to advice his fellow Chiefs, The Municipal Assembly to keep eagle eyes on the school land because the school might need another land in coming years.

Story by: Adom-nana Piesie Yaw Preko (Ewiase Fm)

Akufo-Addo must apologise to Ghanaians – NDC

The Deputy Communications Officer of NDC in the Wenchi Municipality in the Bono Region, Abdul Carlos Mumin has admonished President Akufo-Addo to apologise to Ghanaians over his reshuffle comment.

I watched and listened with regrets as the President made the worst of a political vituperation on radio I am saddened with unfortunate situation and subtly, appeal to the President to unconditionally render an unqualified apology to Ghanaians.

The Communicator who was speaking to Adom-nana Piesie Yaw Preko of Ewiase 95.7 FM on Tuesday, August 9 bemoaned the comment made by the President of Ghana.

The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, is not known to be someone who often responds to a lot of public talks, but there have been times that when he does, it punches a lot of holes in the impression created about him as being a listening president.

Increasingly, and for many public-interest reasons, a number of Ghanaians have had cause to ask the president to reshuffle his ministers.

And in the hope of most of these people, this should help improve the country’s economy.

But President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo feels the calls are ill-motivated.

Speaking recently, he said such persons have ulterior motives for calling for a reshuffle of government appointees under his administration.

He also suggested that some of these people may be ‘jobless’ persons.

“The calls come for all kinds of reasons; NDC wanting to destabilise the government is one. There are people who are also looking for jobs,” he said while speaking in an interview.

President Akufo-Addo also added that his ministers had performed well; therefore, he had no reason to reshuffle them.

Responding to this, Abdul Mumin Carlos, mentioned some non performing Ministers rating the Health Minister, Hon. Kwaku Agyemang Manu as the worse Minister.

“Nana Addo should as a matter of urgency render an unqualified apology to Ghanaians”, Carlos quizzes.

Story by: Adom-nana Piesie Yaw Preko (Ewiase FM)