There is freedom of speech...

But freedom after speech? Can't guarantee.

Author

Chale News
October 17, 2024

Happy Thursday!!!

Here’s today’s lineup:

  • National: MIASA Investigator says scholars have academic peace, not freedom—big difference!

  • Politics: The EC tried to bench Joana, but turns out they misread the playbook. A temporary time-out doesn’t mean game over!

  • Economic: Anlo Beach fishers are losing their daily catch—and their livelihoods—thanks to galamsey pollution turning the sea into a toxic soup.

  • Politics: NAPO’s putting all his coins on the NPP being Ghana’s top pick in 2024, banking on Free SHS, stable electricity, and, of course, more schools.

  • Fact of the Day: Do you know the Mpemba effect!

  • Economic: Galamsey ain’t just dirtying water; it's tanking biz, says Joe ‘The Finance Guy’ Jackson!

  • National: So, turns out farmers are getting GH¢1K, not GH¢3K, and no, it’s not an election year bribe—Bryan Acheampong said so himself!

  • Crime: Three students on the run, five in custody—police are chasing down suspects in a shocking Mpraeso SHS gang rape case.

  • Crime: Caught in the act: 5 galamseyers nabbed, 40 Changfans toasted on the Birim!

QUICK BYTE

  • So, according to Dr. Chika Mba, Ghana’s academic world is kinda like that one class where the teacher says you can ask anything—but you know, deep down, there are some questions you just don’t ask. That’s what Dr. Mba is calling "academic peace." Scholars can critique and debate, sure, but challenging the big shots in power? Read more in the Deep Dive Section.

  • Fishers at Anlo Beach, are not just losing fish—they’re losing their entire livelihoods. Thanks to galamsey (illegal mining), toxic chemicals are rolling down the River Pra and dumping straight into the sea, making fishing almost impossible. The catch these days? Pretty much nonexistent. Fish stocks are tanking, and so are the incomes of folks who rely on them. Anlo Beach’s fishers are watching their lives get dragged under by pollution that wasn’t even their fault. They’re shouting out to the government like, “Yo, can you fix this, please?!” Want the deets in full? Check out the Deep Dive section.

  • So, NAPO (aka Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh) is out here telling everyone that the NPP is a sure bet for 2024. He’s rolling into the Eastern Region, telling Chiefs and party supporters at Anum Apapam that Ghanaians are backing NPP hard. The main selling points? Free SHS, more schools, and some solid electricity vibes. Not to mention Agenda 111 is happening. He’s basically like, "Ghanaians, remember all that cool stuff we did? Yeah, you want that again, right?" Get the 411 in the Deep Dive section below

  • You’re watching a game, and out of nowhere, the referee pulls out a red card because a player tied their shoelaces too slowly. Weird, right? That’s pretty much what the EC did to Joana Cudjoe. They disqualified her from the election over a temporary injunction from May 2023. But here’s the plot twist: that election doesn’t even exist anymore! A whole new one happened in September 2024, and Joana was officially declared winner. But somehow, the EC is stuck on last season’s drama. Our guy Samson Anyenini called it out on TV, saying the EC jumped the gun. An injunction is more like a holding pattern, not a full stop. So, EC... why you rushing? Read more

  • The GNASSM taskforce wasn’t playing games this time! Five galamseyers were caught red-handed mining in the Birim River, and if that wasn’t enough, the squad torched 40 changfans—yes, 40! It was like the ultimate "we warned y’all" moment, and these illegal miners did not see it coming. They even caught two of them smack in the middle of the river, doing their thing like it was just another day on the job. Just when you think the show’s over, the taskforce spots a truck sneaking in with two brand-new changfans. A quick chase, two people bolting, and—boom—arrests made. Read more

FACT OF THE DAY

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Did you know hot water can freeze faster than cold water? Yep, it’s called the Mpemba effect!

  • Now you might be thinking, "Okay, but why should I care about galamsey?" Well, according to Joe Jackson, if galamsey keeps raging on, it’s not just the rivers that’ll be dead; the entire economy could take a nosedive. Business stability? At risk. Tax revenue? Disappearing. Money for your pocket? L’argent for basic Boba tea? Forgrrit! Oh, and these guys are also knee-deep in money laundering schemes. So yeah, maybe this isn't just a small-scale problem—it's kinda like a whole Netflix thriller where the bad guys just keep winning. Read more

  • Yo, so this whole drama about farmers getting GH¢3,000? Bryan Acheampong just stepped up to set the record straight—nah fam, it’s only GH¢1K. The Agriculture Minister squashed those rumors fast, after Minority Leader Dr. Ato Forson accused the government of trying to finesse some votes with a sweet GH¢3K ahead of elections. But turns out, the cash ain’t even about that life—it’s for the real MVPs in farming, the ones hit hardest by the dry spell. Sure, GH¢1,000 might not sound like a lotto win, but when you're knee-deep in crop issues, it’s better than nada. Moral of the story? Nobody’s getting GH¢3K to plant election votes. Read more

  • Bro, this is some seriously messed up stuff. The Kwahu Nkwatia Police are hunting down three students from Mpraeso SHS who allegedly took part in a gang rape on Sunday. Out of the eight involved, five are already in cuffs, while the other three are out here playing hide-and-seek with the law. And trust me, this is no game. The girl in question, bless her, has been treated and is getting the support she needs, but the school is in a full-blown mess. Management’s backing the police to get to the bottom of it, but the whole thing feels like a nightmare that no one should ever have to go through. Read more

DEEP DIVE

Catch of the Day? Not Anymore, Thanks to Galamsey

Imagine waking up every morning to your job, only to find that it’s getting harder and harder to do because someone else trashed the place. That’s the daily reality for fishers at Anlo Beach. Their once-vibrant sea is now murky and poisoned, courtesy of galamsey activities happening upstream on the River Pra. Illegal miners are dumping harmful chemicals into the river, which then flow down and mix into the sea, making it look more like soup than water. And guess what? Fish don’t vibe with toxic soup.

George Ahiaku, one of the local fishers, summed it up perfectly: “We can’t catch much anymore, the fish just aren’t there like they used to be.” The pollution isn’t just killing aquatic life; it’s also sinking the local economy. For these fishers, fishing isn’t just a hobby—it’s their bread and butter. With fewer fish to catch, there’s less to sell, and that’s putting a serious dent in their pockets. Imagine fishing all day and coming home with an empty net and an emptier wallet.

But the fishers aren’t just watching their livelihoods disappear without a fight. Godwin Kumah, the Unit Committee Chair, says they’re desperate for action. They aren’t the ones doing galamsey, but they’re the ones feeling the pain. They’re begging the government to step in and do something, or else they fear a full-blown disaster is looming. Read more

Free SHS, More Schools, and Another 4 Years? He’s Confident!

NAPO’s got that "We’ve done it before, and we’ll do it again" energy, and he's convinced Ghanaians are vibing with the NPP enough to hand them another four years.

He is also throwing some serious shade at Mahama, basically saying, "Yo, that guy didn’t do squat when he had the chance." And look, NAPO’s got receipts. He's pointing to the Free SHS, Capitation Grant, and the School Feeding Programme like a flex on social media. You can almost see him telling the Chiefs, “Look, we gave you Free SHS—what did Mahama give you? Exactly.” He’s making sure everyone remembers those days when school was free, the lights stayed on, and more schools popped up.

But let’s talk Ayensuano for a sec. NAPO’s banking on this area to be a game-changer for the NPP in 2024. He’s got the locals feeling like they're part of the NPP’s master plan to secure another term, like they’re about to become the MVPs of this election. The NPP is out here with big dreams, and they think Ayensuano’s got their back. Read more

Peaceful, But Is It Truly Free?

Ghanaian academics chilling in the shade—like, real calm and intellectual—but there's an unspoken rule: Don’t drag the government too hard. That’s what Dr. Chika Mba is calling "academic peace." It’s this low-key vibe where everyone’s cool to critique, but the second you try to get into the deep, messy business of politics? Yeah, the vibe changes. It’s not that you can’t speak; it’s more like you’re playing it safe, like when you have tea to spill but you’re not trying to get blocked on social media.

Dr. Mba’s saying, yeah, there’s freedom, but only to a point. And the reason behind this ‘peace’ goes all the way back to when university heads were tied to government appointments, from Kwame Nkrumah to Jerry John Rawlings. Basically, the history of Ghana’s academia is sprinkled with political strings, and that’s why scholars sometimes feel like they’re walking on eggshells. They can drop knowledge bombs, but not nuclear ones aimed at those in power. And that’s the difference between freedom and peace.

Tunisia's vibe? Prof. Emma Beitaief shared that before 2011, their academic scene was more locked down than your phone after five wrong password attempts. But after the revolution, things opened up—scholars can now flex a bit more freedom. Germany, on the other hand, according to Prof. Rashid Quaissa, is out here talking about getting creative under authoritarian regimes. Like, finding ways to say the heavy stuff without ruffling too many feathers. Kinda like sneak-dissing but in research papers.

And while this convo might sound super academic, it’s actually a big deal when you think about it in terms of real-world problems like galamsey. Prof. Joseph Awetori Yaro of the University of Ghana put it best: Should scholars stay quiet on the big issues just because it might clash with political vibes? Read more

NEWS SOURCES

Today’s stories are curated from: