SAVACEM To Destroy Significant Portions Of Yakumbo Forest Reserve

Savanna Cement Company Limited (SAVACEM), a subsidiary of Diamond Cement Company Limited is yearning eagerly to mine more limestone in significant portions of the Yakumbo Forest Reserve at Buipe in the Central Gonja District in the Northern Region of Ghana.  

SAVACEM, which has for the past 8 years been mining limestone –raw materials for the manufacturing of cement, is now yearning eagerly for its concession of 2.86 square kilometres of land to be increased to 49.6 square kilometres.

At a stakeholders’ forum in Buipe where an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report on SAVACEM’s request to mine limestone in the Yakumbo Forest Reserve was read, some citizens denounced the idea of mining in a forest reserve. 

They claimed mining in the forest would lead to the destruction of more economic trees such as shea and dawadawa as well as trigger serious environmental problems.  

The Yakumbo Forest Reserve is a habitat for thousands of economic trees such as shea, dawadawa, teak and rosewood. Following the mining of limestone by SAVACEM in recent years, the forest has come under serious threat of extinction or disturbance. 

This reporter can confirm that mining in the Yakumbo Forest Reserve further exposes it to more environmental problems such as land degradation, indiscriminate felling of trees, charcoal production, bush burning and fuel wood harvesting. 

For instance, the Central Gonja District is one of the leading suppliers of charcoal to towns and cities in southern Ghana. Charcoal production is one of the major economic activities of the people besides fishing, shea butter processing and the sale of fuel wood. In recent years, there have been reports of illegal logging and fuel wood harvesting in and around the forest reserve. Thus, granting SAVACEM a license to further mine in the forest is likely to open the floodgates for more people to invade the area in and around the forest to cut down more trees and increase its vulnerability to climate change effects.   

The stakeholders’ forum which brought together the Paramount Chief of Buipe, Buipewura Mahama Abdulai Jinapor II, opinion leaders, citizens, officials of the Central Gonja District Assembly, Lands and Forestry Commissions as well as the media, was meant to collate views, suggestions and concerns for the final determination of granting of license to SAVACEM. 

The National Director of Mining at the EPA Michael Ali Sandow, who read the EIA report, stated that excessive dust would most likely disturb communities staying close to the SAVACEM plant.

Mr. Sandow also said the natural vegetation of the forest and areas around it would be affected if permission was finally granted SAVACEM to mine the limestone. Shea trees, dawadawa and other trees he pointed out, would be cut down to pave way for the mining activities.

He however stated that, concrete steps would be taken to prevent any negative environmental disaster or public health problem in the event that SAVACEM was granted license to mine the concession they were requesting for. He gave the assurance that SAVACEM would reclaim the destroyed land after the project finally comes to an end.

He said the company would, on a daily basis, use water to douse the heavy and excessive dust produced as a result of the mining and manufacturing activities. SAVACEM as a company, he added, was also ready to pay reasonable compensation to persons who would be affected by its activities.

Mr. Sandow further allayed fears of any noise pollution in the area, stressing that the EPA would ensure that noise levels remained within the approved levels. Aquatic life, according to him, was safe because the distance between the Black Volta and SAVACEM was over 500 metres and therefore there was no any anticipation of water pollution and destruction of aquatic life as a result of the activities of SAVACEM.

Queen Mother of Buipe Bridge, Bridge Wurche Barchisu during an open forum, complained that the destruction of shea trees and dawadawa in particular, would most definitely deny many women of their sources of livelihood. The activities of SAVACEM in the last few years, she said, had also rendered farmlands close to the forest reserve uncultivable.  

Bridge Wurche appealed to SAVACEM to build a market for the women to enable them engage in trading activities on a daily basis. “Here, we have only one market day in a week and so, women who could not sell all their perishable goods on a market day ran at a loss when they have to send those goods back home. This is because we don’t have a modern market with stalls where people can come at any time and any day to buy and sell”, she maintained.

Mr. Nuhu, a resident of Buipe also told Savannahnews that communities that were severely affected by the activities of SAVACEM included Buipe, Alhassan Kura, Old Buipe, Benkura and among others. He said the dust from the factory was changing the colour of all trees from green to brown.

 

Meanwhile, SAVACEM since it started operations has been able to execute some projects for the benefit of the people. The projects include a borehole, a six-unit classroom block and a 25MW VRA substation which supplies 6MW of electricity to the cement factory while the rest is supplied to homes in the nearby communities.     

Christian Council Staff in Tamale Accused of Rape

James Nahyi

A SENIOR Staff of Christian Council of Ghana, Tamale, James Nahyi popularly known as “Odenden” is reported to have forcibly slept with an unsuspecting married woman (name withheld), who happens to be his former school mate. 

The alleged rapist, who was pronounced guilty of the rape scandal by the Paramount Chief of Tamale, Naa Dakpema Alhassan Dawuni and his Elders on January 30^th 2015, now have another hurdle to clear as the angry husband of the victim is seeking for his immediate removal from the Christian Council of Ghana.

James Nahyi was sentenced by the Dakpema for not only flouting the traditional laws of Dagbon, but for causing emotional trauma and distress as well as defiling the matrimonial oath of the couple and disrespecting the dignity of the woman. He was then fined to provide two fowls, a goat and two bottles of schnapps among others for rituals to appease the land and the gods of Dagbon. 

The husband of the victim, Mr. Peter Asiamah Yeboah, a businessman in Kumasi told Savannahnews that he wanted nothing but a stiffer punishment and public exposure to deter the “unremorseful James” from visiting other unsuspecting or innocent married women with his “uncontrolled sexual desire”. 

According to him, although he was happy about the way the Chief of Tamale handled the issue and how he was able to cause James Nahyi to admit his guilt, he and the victim were still not satisfied with the final judgement or the fine slapped on the accused, which he said was not deterrent enough.

Savannahnews gathered that there was no compensation whatsoever given to the victim or any formal apology to her or the husband, and because of that the alleged rapist still does not show any regret for his action.

The husband, Mr. Asiamah Yeboah told the paper that after the judgement was passed by the Dakpema, the accused person had consistently been sending some insulting and provoking text messages to him some of which read “I pity you”, “I believe when you see your wife or hear my name your heartbeat goes up” and “Forgive yourself for allowing your wife into my hands” among others.

He said that the frequent text messages and the refusal of James to even show a little remorse had always put his wife in a very traumatic mood and causing her to cry almost every time.

He asserted that the “bizarre circumstance” under which his beloved and trusted wife was raped by James Nahyi had caused her (the victim) to suddenly become a high blood pressure patient as a result of the traumatic moment she went through.

According to him, the behavior of James Nahyi did not only portray him as a “mad dog” but also as a “monumental disgrace to the Christian Council of Ghana, society, humanity and the Christian fraternity”. Mr. Yeboah who has also sent a copy of his petition to the office of the Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection and the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) is therefore demanding the Christian Council of Ghana to sack the alleged rapist with immediate effect in order to protect the image of the council and also bring justice to the victim.

“People like James Nahyi ought to be exposed to prevent other unsuspecting women from crossing his way”.

According to the husband, the woman who is a mother of two was still battling it hard to overcome the trauma and the shame James had put her into.

Meanwhile, Savannahnews gathered that the rape incident happened somewhere in 2012 when the victim, who is based in Kumasi, visited her twin sister in Tamale with her two children. 

During her stay in Tamale, the husband said, the victim and the children used to spend the day in her twin sister’s house and then go to sleep at a different location. Eventually the victim in the company of her twin sister met James Nahyi whom they knew during their school days and also stays in the same neighbourhood. 

He (James Nahyi) was always ready to drive the victim and her children to their sleeping place every night. On the day of the alleged rape incident, the victim, according to Mr. Yeboah after reaching their destination (sleeping place), remembered that she had forgotten the children's breakfast for the next morning. At that time the children were already sleeping so James Nahyi offered to send my wife back to her sister’s place to pick up the food. My wife said that after picking the items at the sister's place James, said that he had to pick some documents from his house along the way for some work to be done in the office since he will be travelling early the next morning. Upon reaching his house he asked my wife to make herself comfortable in a chair whilst he looks for the said document. My wife, sensing no danger, said immediately she sat on the chair the said James pounced on her to forcibly have sexual intercourse with her. All attempts and struggles to stop could not work as James overpowered her, muzzled her, almost suffocated and raped her”. She felt seriously traumatized but was very ashamed to tell anybody including me. However, a high blood pressure she developed as a result of that encounter kept on worsening her health condition whenever she remembered of it. She therefore gathered the courage and informed me”. 

Mr. Peter Asiamah Yeboah told the paper that he could not doubt his wife or take any action against her, simply because I trust my wife very much as a virtuous and God fearing woman”.

 

When contacted by Savannahnews, the rape suspect, James Nahyi refused to speak about the matter. After several attempts by the blogger he still would not give any account but could only deny ever sleeping with the victim or being summoned before the Chief of Tamale. 

An Officer at the Tamale Metropolitan Office of Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU), Corporal Imoro Yussif confirmed his outfit could not readily handle the case because the victim failed to report on time and could not also present any impeccable evidence. “The incident happened in 2012 but they came to report it after two or three years so we advised them to allow the sleeping dog to lay but we later heard they had sent it to the Dakpema so that is all we know about the case”.

In an interview with Savannahnews via telephone, the General Secretary of the Christian Council of Ghana, Rev. Dr. Opuni Frimpong confirmed receiving a copy of the petition from the husband of the rape victim, Mr. Peter Asiamah Yeboah. 

He said that rape case was a criminal issue and that the Council would not connive with that, but appealed to the victim and the husband to give him a little more time to investigate the matter.

The Chairman of the Christian Council of Ghana told the paper that he was already arranging a meeting between the victim, the husband and the accused in Accra before any other actions could be taken.

He however expressed worry as to why the matter should come to the media before the end of their investigations.

The Paramount Chief of Tamale, Naa Dakpema Alhassan Dawuni also confirmed to Savannahnews that he and his elders sat on the rape case involving James Nahyi and the married woman three times before the final judgement was pronounced. 

He was therefore very angry about why James should blatantly deny ever coming before his court concerning the rape case. The Chief said that he could not take it kindly with James because he did not want to tolerate such immorality in his community and warned other young men who go after married women to desist.

Rain Storm Hits Nasia: Over One Thousand Displaced

David Wuni

OVER 1, 203 persons including pregnant women and children have been displaced at Nasia, a farming community in the West Mamprusi District of the Northern Region, following a devastating rainstorm disaster that hit the area on Sunday.

Seventy eight (78) houses comprising 319 rooms were completely ripped off and the displaced persons are now living with families and friends. An undisclosed number of the victims are also taking refuge at the palace of the Chief of Nasia, Mozurana-Dan N. 

Abdulai in the interim. Twenty seven (27) pregnant women and over 80 babies between one week and five years are also victims of the disaster.

Apart from the undisclosed quantity of rice, maize, millet, beans, sorghum and groundnuts that were destroyed, a large number of textbooks and other teaching materials were also ravaged. 

Students of the St. Paul Senior High School also had their new dormitory block completely ripped off. The school authority has created makeshift structures to accommodate the students who are from outside the Nasia community. Over 482 pupils at the Nasia D/A primary school also lost their school block which was constructed and funded by the Millennium Development Authority and furnished with computers, a television and other learning materials.

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Walewale, Dr. Sugre Bambangi and the District Chief Executive (DCE) for West Mamprusi, the Chief of Nasia and the District NADMO officials visited the victims to assess the level of damage caused by the disaster and also to sympathize with the affected persons.

The MP was particularly worried that the rainstorm disaster in the Walewale constituency was becoming consistent and therefore advised the residents of the area to cultivate the habit of tree planting to serve as wind breaks to mitigate the impact of similar disasters.

The MP assured the people of his commitment to link up with the relevant stakeholders especially NADMO and the Northern Regional Coordinating Council to assist the victims with relief items. Dr. Sugre also appealed to NGOs and other bodies to come to the aid of the victims.

At the moment, roofing sheets, mattresses and foodstuffs are required. The Head teacher of the Nasia D/A Primary School, Yamusah Tahiru appealed to the Member of Parliament, the District assembly and NADMO to rapidly re-roof the school block. 

He said any delay in re-roofing and supporting it with some learning materials could affect the reopening of the school scheduled for May 12, 2015. He also complained about overcrowding in the classrooms and appealed to the government to improve on the infrastructure needs of the school.

The District Chief Executive for West Mamprusi, David Wuni said that the District Assembly was making the necessary move to get the affected persons some immediate support. 

He stated that the Assembly in the interim was going to construct a temporal structure for the Nasia D/A primary school before the reopening of school. But that notwithstanding, the Assembly according to the DCE was also making efforts to raise the needed funds to renovate all the affected schools.

The Chief of Nasia, Mozurana-Dan N. Abdulai attributed the magnitude of the rainstorm to the indiscriminate cutting of trees by illegal chainsaw operators. He vowed to deal with anyone found engaging in illegal chain-saw activities in the area.

SOS: Mentally Ill Patients In West Mamprusi District Relapsing

OVER TWO HUNDRED (200) persons suffering from various forms of mental illness and epileptic conditions in the West Mamprusi District in the Northern Region of Ghana, are relapsing due to lack of medication at the Walewale Government Hospital.

According to officials of the Mental Health Unit of the Walewale Government Hospital, the last time the hospital received consignments of medication for persons with mental illness and epilepsy (PWMIE) was in February 2014.

“Medicines such as phenobarbitine, fluphenazine decanoate, olanzipine, haloperidol, cabarmazipine and others which we give to clients are not available at all at the moment. This is making a lot of our clients who have recovered or stabilised to relapse,” Mental Health Officer of the Walewale Government Hospital Adambil-Laar Nixson told Savannahnews when BasicNeeds-Ghana recently presented working tools to some forty (40) stabilised PWMIE in Walewale to go into apprenticeship.

The tools presented to the PWMIE which included, dressmaking equipment, soap making equipment, carpentry tools and among others, were sponsored by Big Lottery, UK and JOAC, UK. Some 35 stabilised PWMIE in the Zabzugu District, Karaga District and Yendi Municipality also received similar tools.  

Ayambire Awinsugya, a Community Psychiatric Nurse who corroborated what Mr. Adambil-Laar told this reporter, also added that between January and April 2015, the hospital’s psychiatric unit had recorded 40 new clients but unfortunately did not have medication for them.

“We don’t have a single means of transport to even go round the communities to monitor and see how old clients are faring. We come to work each day just to sit down idle.....no drugs to give to clients who travel far and near for their drugs”, Mr. Ayambire lamented.

Mr. Adambil-Laar further added that, though some of the drugs are sold in pharmacies it was only those who could afford that were buying them to treat themselves. But he indicated that, some of the pharmacies were selling fake or substandard psychotic drugs to unsuspecting clients, and appealed to the Ghana Health Service to make new consignments available as soon as possible.    

Mr. Dassah presenting a sewing machine to a beneficiary

The presentation of the tools to PWMIE, according to Projects Coordinator of BasicNeeds-Ghana Timothy Kayelle Dassah, was part of the implementation of ‘Empowering People with Mental Illness in Ghana’ project which started in 2014 and expected to end in 2016. 

The main objective of the project, he said, was to improve the mental health of about 3,700 men, women, boys and girls with mental illness and epilepsy in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions of Ghana as well as 2,700 carers in poor rural areas to collectively express their needs and self-advocate through self-help groups to have those needs met.  

Mr. Dassah told the stabilised PWMIE to consider it a privilege to be beneficiaries of the project and make judicious use of the opportunity being given to them to learn a skill. “It’s not because you’re special that you’re getting this support but it’s because you’re stabilised enough and can do something to help yourselves”, he stressed.

“Those who will not get this support should not get angry and leave the various groups they belong to. As and when you’re stabilised, you’ll also benefit.

“And let me make it clear that it’s the duty of parents or relatives of direct beneficiaries to pay for the apprenticeship fee of their wards or relatives to enable them go through the training successfully”, Mr. Dassah stated.

Mr. Umar Mustapha, a representative of the West Mamprusi District Chief Executive David Wuni who presented the tools to the PWMIE, admitted that the onus was on government and District Assemblies to provide social protection services to all their vulnerable group of citizens.

But he noted that it hadn’t been the case due to budgetary constraints faced by government and District Assemblies, thereby making it almost impossible to provide services to their people.

“You should therefore be grateful to BasicNeeds for this support that you’re receiving from them. The items are not for sale and neither are you to use it to decorate your rooms. Take very good care of them and also take your skills training serious so that when you complete it you’ll be able to help yourselves and your families”, he advised.