Akosua Mikesh's Container Drama is Over

Why is it that people who embezzle money never do anything worthwhile with it (think Cecelia Dapaah’s house help)? Today, it’s some woman in Texas oo. You, you went and finessed $1.2 million from your boss, just to go and boost your TikTok game. Ah, Staci paa. Anyway, now, “do it for the ‘Gram” has gone wrong, and she is going viral for getting two 35-year sentences.

Stares in disbelief

The moral of the story is, “if you ever steal money, please do something useful.” Okay?

Now, let’s see what is happening in our homeland, Ghana.

• Economic: Say goodbye to Dollar drama. Import duties are going Cedi, flat, and predictable in 2025!

• National: For NTC, every cedi owed is a cedi collected as they hunt down debtors and looters.

• Economic: Korle Bu vs. The stuck supplies: Renal patients hold their breath for a port clearance miracle!

• Politics: Bawumia ready to sign anti-LGBTQ Bill if it passes the legal test.

• Fact of the Day: Ever met someone who offers opinions on topics they know nothing about? There’s a name for them

• Crime: Family drama goes from 0 to 100 real quick leaving mother unalived in Manchester.

• Entertainment: From gospel to glow up, Mr Muzic Mensah wins big in Highlife.

• Education: CETAG is back to school.

QUICK BYTE

• This morning, Akosua Mikesh is rolling up to Tema Harbour, ready to offload a container of, let’s say, designer slippers. But wait—how much does she actually owe in import duties? With the current dollar-based system, it’s like playing a game of “guess the exchange rate” on hard mode. But hold up, change is on the horizon. Starting in 2025, our import duties are ditching the dollar drama and going full Cedi-based with a predictable, flat rate. No more guessing games, no more fluctuating fees—just straight-up, no-nonsense cedi numbers. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah and the NPP gang are promising to make life a little less stressful for anyone importing goods. Want the deets in full? Check out the Deep Dive section.

• The New Times Corporation (NTC) finds itself playing detective after discovering that a former cashier, Salomey Quarcoopome, made off with over GH¢100,000. She’s already been caught, sacked, and now the police are on the case. With GH¢70,275 still missing, NTC isn’t just sitting back—they’re on a mission to recover every cedi. And it’s not just Sister Salomey who owes them; NTC is also chasing down over GH¢8 million from various organizations, with government agencies topping the list of debtors. It’s a messy financial tangle, but NTC’s got a plan to clean it up. Get the 411 in the Deep Dive section below

• Renal patients at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital are on the verge of going full protest mode. Why? Because the life-saving consumables they desperately need are chilling at Tema port, stuck like a broken download. Korle Bu's management, playing the classic "we’re working on it" card, assures that the supplies will be cleared soon. The patients, though, are like, “We’ve heard that before.” With the hospital’s renal unit shut down for three weeks, everyone’s on edge, waiting for this drama to end. Read more in the Deep Dive Section.

• Manchester’s Ghanaian community is straight-up shook after a 22-year-old, literally the son of a church elder, turned a peaceful Sunday into a nightmare. His mum, Alberta Obinim, 43, sadly didn’t make it, and now the elder and his daughter are in the hospital, fighting for their lives. The streets are buzzing, and everyone’s asking, “How did this even happen?” Prayers up for a plot twist with a happy ending, but right now, it's all major bad vibes. Read more

• According to Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Bawumia is ready to put pen to paper and make this law official—if it clears all the legal hurdles. But remember back in May, Bawumia was telling us that no rainbow flags will fly under his watch; "Bible says no, Quran says no, so it's a no from me too." So right now no, wetin dey sup? Anyway, the bill ankasa kraa no, it is tangled up in some legal drama, with critics claiming it didn’t tick all the right boxes before hitting Parliament. Some MPs are also out here daring Bawumia to flex his VP muscles and nudge Nana Addo to sign the bill ASAP. Read more

• CETAG is finally packing up the picket signs after two months of campus silence. Following a crucial sit-down with the Ministry of Labour and Employment Relations, they’ve decided to hit pause on their nationwide strike. Yep, that means students at all 46 Colleges of Education might just see their lecturers back in action soon. But hold up—CETAG still has a council meeting to finalize the deal, so don't pop the confetti just yet.

  The government’s promising to drop those long-awaited July and August salaries by month’s end, which probably helped smooth things over. Read more

• Amex is making big moves in Africa, aka the last cash-obsessed continent. They’re basically on a mission to convince everyone (or at least 75%) to ditch the paper and start swiping that plastic. Amex is sliding into DMs of hoteliers, restaurants, and tourist spots, trying to make them see the light of going cashless. All because tourists are flocking to Africa like it’s the latest trending destination.

  But let’s be real—it’s not gonna be a walk in the park. In Nigeria, 55% of peeps still say, "Nah, I’ll stick with cash, thanks." But Amex isn’t giving up. Read more

• Mr. Muzic Mensah just snagged the ‘Best Highlife Artiste of the Year’ at GMA-USA, and it's giving major glow-up vibes! This guy made the bold move from gospel to secular music, and clearly, it’s paying off. After not getting the love he needed in the gospel scene, he decided to switch lanes, and now he’s cruising in style. Who knew the key to success was dropping those heavenly beats for some highlife heat? Read more

DEEP DIVE

Flat and Cedi: The New Import Duty Combo, You Didn’t Know You Needed

You’re planning a big business move, importing a container of goods, and suddenly, you’re hit with the dreaded thought—what’s the dollar rate today? Will your duties skyrocket? Well, if Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has anything to say about it, that anxiety is about to be a thing of the past. The man’s got a plan, and it’s all about bringing the power back to the cedi. Starting in 2025, import duties will be cedi-based and at a flat rate. That means no more sweating over exchange rates or surprise fees. It’s like switching from a mystery box to a “what you see is what you get” deal—finally, a win for the small guys trying to make big moves.

Now, let’s talk about why this matters. Right now, the import duty game is about as predictable as . Businesses are left guessing, hoping that the dollar won’t pull a fast one on them when it’s time to pay up. But with a cedi-based system, you’ll know exactly how much you’re paying before your goods even touch Ghanaian soil.

This isn’t just about making things easier; it’s about leveling the playing field. Our neighbours in Togo are out here with their stable CFA francs, making import duties look like a walk in the park. Ghana? Not so much—until now. With this move, Ghana’s setting itself up to be the cool kid on the block, competitive and ready to attract more business.

And don’t even get us started on VAT. Dr. Bawumia is on a mission to simplify that too, collapsing the current spread into a single, flat level. Read more

Please, if you owe NTC, come and pay oo

The New Times Corporation (NTC), the powerhouse behind the Ghanaian Times and the Spectator, is on a serious money hunt. Imagine finding out that a former staff member, Salomey Quarcoopome, had been siphoning funds like a sneaky bank robber in broad daylight. Over two years, she played a twisted game of hide-and-seek with receipt books, tearing out leaflets and pocketing the cash. The Auditor-General caught wind of the scheme, flagging her in his 2023 report.

But NTC’s not just shrugging this off. They’ve sacked Quarcoopome and handed the case over to the police, who are digging into the dirty details. With GH¢70,275 still missing, it’s like a high-stakes treasure hunt, and NTC is determined to find the loot. It’s not just about catching the thief, though—NTC’s also beefing up its audit department, bringing in top-notch talent to make sure this kind of mess doesn’t happen again. They’re locking the doors and changing the locks, so to speak.

But the money chase doesn’t stop with Quarcoopome. NTC’s got a bigger battle on its hands, trying to recover over GH¢8 million owed by 45 different organizations. Think of it like trying to collect IOUs from a room full of forgetful friends, but the stakes are way higher. Most of this cash is tied up with government agencies, and NTC’s been sending out demand notices like party invitations. The only problem? The RSVPs are coming in slow. Government institutions, it turns out, aren’t the quickest to settle their debts, and NTC’s left waiting, hoping these payments don’t get lost in the bureaucratic shuffle.

To speed things up, NTC’s rolled out a new credit management policy and given its Credit Control Unit a major facelift. Read more

The supplies Korle Bu needs are chilling at the port.

Don’t imagine needing something as critical as air to breathe, but it’s just out of reach—literally stuck in a container at Tema port. (we said don’t imagine). That’s the situation for renal patients at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital. For three weeks, they’ve been left hanging as their essential medical supplies are held hostage by red tape. Now, these patients are gearing up to hit the streets in protest, because waiting for life-saving treatment isn’t exactly their idea of fun.

Korle Bu’s PR team, led by Mustapha Salifu, is on damage control, trying to keep the peace while the clock ticks. They’ve apologized (like, a lot) and assured everyone that the Ministry of Health is on it. But after two weeks of hearing that, the patients are like, “Y’all better be serious this time.”

Baffuor Kojo Ahenkorah, the spokesperson for the renal patients, is cautiously optimistic but clearly tired of the waiting game. It’s a bit like waiting for your crush to text back—you’re hopeful, but you’ve been ghosted before. Ahenkorah’s words echo the collective sigh of the patients: “We’ll believe it when we see it.”

In the meantime, the pressure’s on. The whole situation feels like watching a pot that refuses to boil—frustrating and nerve-wracking. The stakes are high, and the patients are running out of patience. Read more

CHECK OUT WHAT’S TRENDING

• Petrosol will reduce fuel prices on one condition

• The Grand Master kicks the bucket

NEWS SOURCES

Today’s stories are curated from:

1. www.myjoyonline.com

2. www.ghanaweb.com

3. www.citinewsroom.com

4. www.norvanreports.com

5. www.channel1new.com