THE THOUGHTS ROOM

Government has accrued over one hundred percent increment in wage bill on emolument for public sector workers following the implementation of the Single Spine Salary Structure two years ago. According to the Director in charge of Grievances, Negotiation and Collective Bargaining at the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), Mr Cornelius Yawson, a total of GHC5.6 billion was accumulated by government in the last two years against a previous amount of GHC2.9 billion before the implementation of the SSSS. At the moment, he said, about 99.2 per cent of workers have been migrated unto the pay policy. The remaining one per cent, he said were workers in the education, research and regulatory institutions. Mr Yawson who made this known on e.tv Ghana’s morning show, Awake , noted that the migration has been smooth except for some people who have agitated against their salary grading. He explained that, these grievances are as a result of the misunderstandings

The Ghana Police Service has cautioned the public not to misconstrue its calmness as a sign of weakness in the face of rising allegations that the Service is not discharging its duties to protect citizens. “Nobody should misconstrue our calmness as a sign of weakness for those comments will not in any way daunt our resolve to stay committed in ensuring that we enforce the laws of the land fairly and passionately without regard to position, power, and religion, social or political status.” “We want to assure those people that we are professionals and will therefore continue to remain calm and discharge our constitutional responsibilities in the face of these unwarranted provocations.” The Inspector General of Police, Paul Quaye who made these remarks when the Interior Minister, Mr W. K. Aboah paid a visit to the Service at its head quarters, said “The Police Service is poised to undertake its duties professionally and will deal decisively with any person or group of p

Film Producer and Chief Executive Officer of Movie Africa, Socrates Safo has damned and described his movie critics as “ignorant”. He said, “People who complain about my movies are ignorant because they fail to read the synopses which come with my movies.” According to him, his movies are all religious ones and not based on sex and nudity as perceived by some sections of the public. The controversial producer who is known for his famous movies with sensational titles such as  Hot Fork , Sexy Angel , Love and Sex and Sons of Satan has been heavily criticized by some sections of the public who claim his movies do not portray and uphold the values of the Ghanaian culture. Socrates who was speaking on e.tv Ghana’s morning show, Awake, said “All my movies, I will say are gospel movies, from Hot Fork to Love and Sex to Sexy Angel . You see, people don’t think deep. If you watch Hot Fork, it is deeper. The Bible talk about patience and tolerance and that is what

Ghanaian politicians who are using intemperate language as a means of gaining political will could as well be writing their own dockets which could be used as evidence against them at the International Criminal Court (ICC) should their actions and inactions throw the country into mayhem. The warning which came from the Ghanaian chapter of PEN International, a human rights advocating body, said it is in the process of compiling reports of acts of intimidation, violence and impunity in relation to election 2012 that could be used as evidence at the ICC should Ghana be thrown into a state of disarray. Throwing more light on e.tv Ghana’s morning show, Awake, editor of The Accra Mail and President of PEN International Ghana, Mr Harruna Atta, said for the first time in the fourth republic he has never seen any election characterized by desperation from the two main political “protagonist”. He observed that the state of tension and violence being brewed in the country was a

Ghanaian polymath, Professor Stephen Addae has challenged Ghanaians to take control over its oil and gas find in order for it to inure to their benefits. According to him, although the initial process of managing the oil find will be done by expatriates, it is important as Ghanaians to learn the skills and take charge as was done by the Saudi Arabians in the 90’s. Speaking on e.tv Ghana’s morning show, Awake, Prof Addae shared his 10 years experience in Saudi Arabia, where he worked as a physician and the lessons he drew from them. To his credit, the Emeritus has several books, one of which is titled “Experiencing the Saudi Oil Wealth: Lessons.” The book is expected to be launched in Accra on Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at the British Council. In the book, Prof Addae talked about the potential of oil becoming the major provider of wealth that is capable of transforming a backward underdeveloped country into a modern country and society. However, he als

Steve Bedi, Ghana's saxophonist One of Ghana's most sought-after saxophonists, Steve Bedi, thinks that jazz music should be given a category of its own in the next Ghana Music Awards. Steve who picked up an award for being the best instrumentalist of the year at the just ended GMA made these remarks when he took his turn on e.tv Ghana's morning show, Awake . Whilst Steve was elated to have won the award, he expressed his dissatisfaction that jazz did not have a category of its own. He remarked that “There should at least be a category for jazz music [as opposed to the more generic Instrumentalist of the Year]... not necessarily because Steve is there but because jazz music has been there for a while,” he added. He said his favourite jazz musician is John Coltrane of blessed memory because “he inspires me.” At the moment, he says he is working on his new song, “You’re Beautiful” which he exclusively previewed to fans on e.tv Ghana (watch video

Executive Director of WANEP, Mr Emmanuel Bombade Several interpretations have been read into the arrest and detention of NPP Member of Parliament, Mr Kenndy Agyapong,, following his declaration of war on his own radio station, Oman FM. Some believe that the arrest of the MP is a tit-for-tat by the NDC government for his exposure of the administration in the payment of GHC54 million to the party's acclaimed financier and businessman, Alfred Agbesi Woyome. Others are also of the belief that the arrest of Mr Kennedy Agyapong is a lesson to loud mouthed politicians who think the state institutions are not functioning as they are supposed to. In the light of events, Security Analyst, Mr Emmanuel Bombade, has advised Ghanaians to desist from questioning the professionalism of state institutions in the country. According to him, the situation has led to the politicization of matters of state interests and is causing unneeded tension in the country. R

Ghana’s movie landscape has been taking a different swift for some time now with the introduction of foreign elements. Movies such as Shirley Frimpong Manso’s “Adam’s Apples”, “Perfect Picture”, “Mummy’s Daughter”, “Wanna be” amongst others can be describe as some of the “glamorous” movies which have stolen the hearts of many Ghanaians, especially the youth. Kofi Adjorlolo is one of such actors who has also featured in a countless number of movies such as God Loves Prostitutes, Mummy's Daughter, My Mother's Heart, Official Prostitutes and Ghana-Nigeria collaborations such as My First Experience, Golden Adventure and Power of the Gods. He has played alongside renowned actors like Ini Edo, Genevieve Nnaji, Patience Ozorkor, Ramsey Nouah, Emeka Ike, Olu Jacobs and Nkem Owoh aka Osuofia. Contrary to what people might think that the actor would not take any role alongside actors like Agya Koo, Kyeiwaa and the likes, Mr Adjorlolo says he is looking forward to a day

With less than nine months for Ghana to go to the polls, the Ghana Journalist Association (GJA) is being called to institute punitive measures against media houses that encourage temperate language on their airwaves. In recent times, the media landscape has been charactised by indecent languages from both politicians and their followers and the GJA is being cautioned that the trend could spell doom for Ghana if the necessary steps are not taken to address the problem. Speaking on e.tv Ghana’s morning show, Awake, the Communications Director of the Progressive Peoples’ Party and former Managing Editor of the Today newspaper, Mr Richmond Keelson, praised the GJA for its efforts to ensure temperance on the airwaves. He, however, noted that the recent launch of the 4- part project aimed at using the media to enhance transparency and credibility in this year’s elections would be futile if standards are not measured effectively. Mr Keelson questioned the paunchiness