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Privacy is dead, but lawsuits are alive

Ken’s suing.

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Chale News
March 12, 2025

So, what’s in the bag today?

  • Crime: When National Security pulls up uninvited, even former Finance Ministers start calling their lawyers.

  • National: Government says it’s cutting costs, but the math is mathing in the opposite direction.

  • Crime: Illegal miners thought they were slick, but drones don’t lie

  • National: Cocoa farmers just formed a union. Singing, “Things aren’t the same anymore”.

  • Regional: Accra’s glow-up is coming, one street at a time.

  • Fact of the Day: How long will it take to know if the sun has exploded? Find out below.

  • Economic: Ghanaians borrow like champs, repay like ghosts.

  • National: Ghanaian parents said, "Alexa, place my child in Presec," but the government is like, "Nah, let the algorithm cook."

QUICK BYTE

  • Now, if someone randomly showed up at your house, flipped your mattress, and left without saying a word, you’d probably be on edge, right? Ken Ofori-Atta’s legal team isn’t playing. He’s demanding damages from the National Security for trespassing, breach of privacy, and basically emotional damage that might require international PR. He claims the whole thing has made him look like a criminal, which, considering Ghana’s history with missing funds, is not the best PR for a former Finance Minister. To make things worse, attempts to get answers from the powers that be have been met with nothing but blue ticks. So Ken Wants His Peace, and Some Coins Too. Read more

  • Government says they’re cutting costs, but Oppong Nkrumah just hit them with the “show me the receipts” energy. The budget’s looking thicker than last year, with spending jumping from GHC 250 billion to GHC 291 billion. Even compensation alone is giving billionaire energy—GHC 2.7 billion? Somebody’s clearly not eating gari soakings. And don’t even get us started on the GHC 50 million for “research.” Oppong Nkrumah says if the government is serious about cutting costs, they need to show their working. Read more

  • Imagine being the backbone of Ghana’s billion-dollar cocoa industry but having zero say in how things run. That’s been the struggle for smallholder cocoa farmers—until now. With the launch of the Ghana Cooperative Cocoa Farmers and Marketing Association, farmers have officially entered their “we’re not taking nonsense anymore” era. Get the 411 in the Deep Dive section below

  • You know what’s worse than getting caught? Getting caught TWICE. Illegal miners who ghosted the first raid thought they could sneak back into the Tano Anwia Forest like it was some secret hideout. Bad idea. The Forestry Commission said, “Surprise!” and bagged 11 miners, along with their excavators.

    Now, the only thing they’ll be digging into is a legal case, while the forest takes a much-needed deep breath. Hopefully, next time they put their energy into legal mining—or at least find a new hobby that doesn’t involve deforestation and handcuffs. Read more

FACT OF THE DAY

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If the sun exploded, you wouldn’t know until eight minutes later.

  • Accra’s streetlight upgrade is halfway done, meaning we’re now officially in a relationship with visibility but still have commitment issues. Minister Linda Ocloo is pushing to finish the job, but copper thieves are moving mad. Ocloo admits the challenges are plenty, but she’s determined to push through towards a fully lit Accra where people can actually see where they're going at night—crazy concept, we know. But as long as thieves don’t turn this into a tug-of-war, we just might get there. Until then, if your street is still giving ‘haunted house vibes,’ just know your turn is ‘loading…’ Read more

  • You know that one friend who keeps ordering expensive food but mysteriously disappears when the bill arrives? Yeah, turns out, Ghana as a whole might be that friend. According to Old Mutual, borrowing is at an all-time high, but repaying those loans? Ehh, that’s like fourth on the priority list—right after rent, food, and probably data for TikTok. Get the 411 in the Deep Dive section below

  • You know that moment when you order jollof, but the waiter brings you plain rice because “that’s what the system selected for you”? Yeah, that’s how Ghanaian parents feel about the Computerized School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS). At the Catholic Education Forum in Koforidua, stakeholders basically said, “Enough of this AI wahala, let’s do this the old-school way.” Their argument? Parents should be the ones deciding where their kids go to school, not some mysterious algorithm doing Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe with school slots. And it’s not just about placement, the double-track system is also on the chopping block, plus Catholic mission schools want a "reserved seat" policy with a 20% admission quota for Catholic students. If this were a concert, they just asked for VIP access. Read more

DEEP DIVE

Cocoa farmers just formed a union

For years, cocoa farmers in Ghana have been like side characters in their own movie, doing the hard work while big players in the industry made all the decisions. But plot twist! The Ghana Cooperative Cocoa Farmers and Marketing Association just dropped, and it's giving “main character energy.” With 75 cooperative unions rolling deep, they’re here to make sure cocoa farmers finally get a say in how things go down. No more playing background extras while the industry bigwigs pocket all the coins.

Think of it like this. Before, it was every farmer for themselves, trying to negotiate prices like someone haggling over tomatoes at Makola. But now? It’s a whole squad move. Backed by the RECLAIM Sustainability! programme (big name, even bigger impact), they’re stepping up, speaking out, and demanding better conditions. Imagine forming a WhatsApp group with all your cousins before facing that one stubborn uncle for family land negotiations. E for energy.

And let’s talk representation! Not only is this the first of its kind in Ghana, but the new leadership team is out here making sure women farmers get their shine too. Comfort Kwaasibea, the newly elected second vice president, said she’s on a mission to get more women in leadership because, for too long, they’ve been treated like spectators. This is the kind of plot development we love to see!

The best part? These farmers aren’t just forming committees for the vibes. They’ve already linked up with big industry players like the World Cocoa Foundation and the Côte d'Ivoire-Ghana Cocoa Initiative. Moves are being made, and Ghana’s cocoa industry might finally get the level-up it deserves. The goal? Better prices, fairer treatment, and making sure your chocolate cravings actually benefit the people growing the beans. Read more

Why pay back your loans when you can just... stress about them?

So basically, Ghana is in its “I'll pay you back next week” era, except next week never comes. Borrowing is going up, but debt repayment is moving like trotro in traffic—slow and stressful. According to Old Mutual, only 6% of household income goes into repaying loans, but 55% of people are losing sleep over their debt. So we’re all out here, owing money and catching premium anxiety.

And let’s not forget, people are borrowing from everywhere; banks, MoMo, micro-lenders, even family members who now pretend they don’t see our calls. If we keep up this Vibes & Inshallah approach to debt, we might soon be borrowing from the kelewele seller just to make it through the week. Read more

NEWS SOURCES

Today’s stories are curated from: