REGISTRATION OF SIM CARDS NOT FOR MISCHEVIOUS PURPOSES-ABED A.BANDIM

Mr.Abed A. Bandim the corporate Affairs Manager of the National Communications Authority has said that the directive by government to all mobile operators to have their subscribers register their SIM cards is not meant for any mischievous purposes as some people believe. He said that rather the exercise will ensure cohesion and also bring development as unscrupulous people will not be able to use the phone to threaten people and also dubiously collect people`s money as it is happening these days. He added that the registration of the SIM cards will also ensure security in society as people can no longer use the phone to commit crimes.
Mr. Bandim said this when he met some official of the Information Services Department and some radio station representatives in the Brong- Ahafo Region at the conference hall of the Brong-Ahafo Regional Co-Coordinating Council in Sunyani on Monday October 4th.The meeting was meant to equip the information Services Department officials and the radio stations with the requisite information to send out to the people on the need to register their SIM cards.
Addressing the participants, Mr. Bandim said the registration of SIM cards as directed by the National communication Authority is ongoing through out the country but there is the need for more education on it especially for those in the rural areas and hence the need to get the information services and the radio stations to carry out more public education in those areas .Mr. Bandim continued that the public education will take place in all regions and districts in the country starting from the Brong-Ahafo Region. He further said that for proper registration, operators should make valid passport, voter’s identity card, National identification card, National Health Insurance card and valid driving license a requirement for registration. He maintained that the situation whereby some operators call people on phone to register them or register them in traffic without recourse to this proper procedure in registering people is unacceptable.
Mr. Bandim ended his speech by reminding Ghanaians that the SIM card registration exercise is compulsory and not optional and that if by the deadline which is 2011 anybody has still not registered his or her SIM card, service on the phone will automaticallyly go off.
Mr. Bandim and his delegation led by the Regional Information Officer, Mr. Seth Aboagye had earlier in the morning called on the Deputy Brong-Ahafo Regional Minister Hon.Eric Opoku who is acting as the Regional Minister in the absence of the substantive Minister in his office. After knowing the mission of the delegation, Hon. Eric Opoku pledged the full support of his outfit and the co-operation of the people of the Brong-Ahafo Region in such an important national exercise.

MCE FOR SUNYANI MUNICIPAL ASSEMBLY COMMISSION`S ACCESS ROADS AT ADJEI ANO NORTH.

The Municipal Chief Executive for Sunyani Hon. Kwasi Oppong Ababio on Wednesday the 1^st of September, 2010 commissioned a 10.7km access roads at Adjei Ano North a suburb of Sunyani. Adjei Ano north which is part of the Penkwasi electoral area in the Sunyani Municipality is a new developing area with very magnificent buildings.

Unfortunately however the area lack social amenities like portable water, street lights, access roads among others. According to the Assembly man of the area Hon. Baffoe Ocrah the lack of access roads in the area made living there very difficult. According to him people had to walk some distance from their houses to the main road from Sunyani to Techiman before they could get the services of Taxis and any time there was a calamity like fire outbreak, fire thunders had difficulty in entering the area. He was therefore full of praise for the MCE and the Assembly for constructing the roads for them.

A unit committee member and the leader of the Adjei Ano north Association Mr. Kasim Adams appealed to the MCE to provide the area with street lights on the new roads, portable water, bridge on the stream between Adjei Ano north and South to make movement between the two areas easy. He also appealed to the MCE to help check the encroachment on lands earmarked for some development projects in the area.

The contractor of the project Mr. M.K Sakyi thanked the inhabitants of the area for their co-operation and help in making the project a reality. Commissioning the project the MCE Hon. Kwasi Oppong Ababio thanked the inhabitants of the area for their immense support to the assembly which has led to the fruition of the project adding “but for your support by buying the fuel needed for the construction of these roads, the assembly alone couldn`t have afforded it at our present financial circumstances”. He continued “Government alone can not do every thing for the people and that is why there is the need for public and private partnership if we can develop as a nation".

He appealed to the rest of the municipality and Ghanaians as a whole to emulate good example of the people of Adjei Ano north for development. Responding to the request by the people the MCE said plans are far advanced to provide every street in Sunyani with street lights and Ajei Ano north is not exempted. On the issue of portable water for the area the he said the assembly will liaise with the Ghana water Company to solve it for them. He continued that now that the assembly has constructed the access roads in the area, the department of urban roads will also better them up even to the level of tarring.

On the encroachment of some lands meant for some specific protects and the need for open spaces, the MCE regretted that in our part of the world unlike others like South Africa, land is used any how without thinking about the future adding “recently I got a Korean who wanted land to build a shopping mall here in Sunyani but I could not get one so he took that important project to Cape coast”.

. “We also needed land to build a new stadium in Sunyani, do you know how I suffered before getting one”?. He finally appealed to all to protect the lands and live in peace. The short ceremony attracted enthusiastic inhabitants of the area, workers of the assembly and some media men and women.