Prince Charles wades into Jollof wars

Prince Charles has spoken about the ongoing dispute over whose Jollof rice is best, only to side step the issue of revealing his own preference.

Speaking in Nigeria at the end of his West Africa tour, he said: Having also visited The Gambia and Ghana over the past week, our visit to Nigeria may perhaps provide an invaluable opportunity to compare – if one ever dares do such a thing! – the relative merits of each country’s Jollof rice… however, for fear of sparking a diplomatic incident, I suspect I shall have to let you draw your own conclusions about which country’s Jollof we found to be the most delicious!"

 The last high-profile British person to dare to talk about Jollof rice was the chef, Jamie Oliver, who at least seemed to unite West Africans in condemnation of his own recipe.

The BBC said it suspects that Prince Charles was briefed about the ongoing rivalry over the traditional dish made with rice, tomatoes and spices because he was so careful not to reveal his favourite. There has even been a song written by a Ghanaian about how much she can't stand Nigerian Jollof rice.  The singer Sister Deborah explained in the Food Programme that the rivalry is a fun one - like a brother and sister who like each other in reality.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGEr7TQA2eQ&feature=youtu.be

 Credit: The BBC

Receivers of UT Bank drag MAHAMA to court over GHC358 million debt

Mr Ibrahim Mahama

The receivers of the collapsed UT Bank have dragged a businessman, Mr Ibrahim Mahama, and four of his companies to court for owing the bank GH¢358.8 million.

According to court documents, Mr Mahama’s companies owed the bank outstanding loan repayment balance of $35.7 million and GH¢189.1 million as of the time the bank’s licence was revoked in 2017.

The licence of the UT Bank was revoked on August 1, 2017.

The companies are Dzata Cement Limited, $35.7 million; MBG Limited, GH¢83.1 million; Holman Brothers Limited, GH¢86.4 million, and Engineers and Planners, GH¢19.6 million.

The receivers, Mr Vish Ashiagbor and Mr Eric Nipah, who sued in their capacity as joint receivers, are praying the Commercial Division of the High Court to order the companies, through Mr Mahama, to pay up the loans with interest.

Writ

A writ of summons issued on behalf of the receivers by Mr Joe Aboagye Debrah, an Accra-based legal practitioner, is praying the court to order the defendants to repay the outstanding loan amounts with interest.

The relief is specifically praying the court to order the first defendant to pay interest on the loan amounts with effect from November 30, 2016 to date of final payment.

The plaintiffs are further praying the court to direct the second, third and fourth defendants to repay the amounts from June 30, 2017; October 31, 2017 and April 11, 2017, respectively, till the date of final payment.

They are also seeking an order against Mr Mahama for the recovery of all outstanding amounts owed by his companies in pursuance of the personal guarantees he gave for the grant of the loan facilities.

Damages for the breach of contract, costs and any other relief the court might deem fit are also being sought by the receivers on behalf of the defunct bank.

Statement of claim

According to the statement of claim accompanying the writ of summons, the defendants were at all material times customers of the then UT Bank.

It said Mr Mahama was the Executive Chairman/Director of the companies, which were all registered in Ghana.

The statement of claim also averred that Mr Mahama was the majority shareholder of the four companies.

It said then UT Bank, over a period of several years, commencing from about 2012, granted the loan amounts to the defendants.

According to the statement of claim, Mr Mahama was the “driving spirit” and owner of the four companies that owed the bank.

The statement of claim further stated that several meetings had been held between Mr Mahama and representatives of the four other defendants in a bid to recover the outstanding loan amounts but all promises by the defendants to redeem the outstanding loans had not been fulfilled.

“The plaintiffs say that the defendants will not pay the outstanding loans unless compelled to do so by the fit of the honourable High Court,” the statement of claim added and, accordingly, prayed the court to grant the reliefs being sought against the defendants.

 

Finding Inspiration ------ WHEN, WHERE & HOW

                                    
We all know the power of a great idea hitting us from nowhere or a beautiful daydream sucking us in whole. This is the type of inspiration that is wonderful to experience, but is often fleeting, and impossible to control. What happens when a client needs a photograph in a hurry and no ideas come to mind? What happens when life takes over and things do not work out as planned? What happens when our usual method of brainstorming fails and there is no time left to sit and wonder?

The answer to these questions is the answer to how we de fine inspiration. I believe that there is no clear de finition for what inspiration is, and even less of a concrete method of how to find it. Inspiration is everywhere. We just have to look for it.

To start, figure out what you love at the most basic level. If you could photograph anything in the world what would that be? From fi nding meaning in every little part of your daily routine, to looking back on memories to find stories you can use, potential inspiration is part of your whole life if you choose to open your eyes to it. When you are honest with yourself and take a step back to reevaluate yourself as a person, then you will find out who you are as an artist.

Though it can look different for all of us, I suspect this is the feeling we wait for in life: a sense that there’s boundless beauty out there, and we have the capacity to feel, channel, explore, and express it.
We all want to feel moved, and then to use that to create love, joy, passion, and purpose.
If you’ve been feeling stuck or uninspired, these ideas may help you find inspiration:





         
 

                        Find Inspiration in Nature

1. Go for a walk in nature, practice mindfulness, and lose not track of time for a while.

2. Meditate or practice yoga in a nearby park.
3. Watch children playing at the park then make a point to carry their spirit with you throughout the day.
4. Watch your cat or dog in nature and try to emulate your pet’s mindfulness and playfulness.
5. Take a camera outside and photograph everything that looks beautiful to you.
6. Practice deep breathing while listening to nature sounds.

Find Inspiration on the Web

1. Watch a TED video to learn about inspiring ideas.

2. Search for tweets with the hashtag #inspiration using the Twitter search functionality.
3. Post an inspiring video, like Validation. Then be an active part of the conversation in the comments.
4. Read blogs written by people who have overcome adversity.
5. Join a forum of people who can relate to your challenges.
6. Browse through inspirational quotes
7. Share yourself vulnerably and authentically in a blog post—give inspiration to receive it.
8. Learn about ways to change the world through social media.

Find Inspiration in Possibilities

1. Try something you’ve always assumed you can’t do but secretly wanted to try.

2. Teach someone to do something and tap into your potential as a leader.
3. Immerse yourself in learning something new and allow yourself to forget about the limitations of time.
4. Write a bucket list of all the things you’d like to do in your lifetime.
5. Create a vision board with pictures of all of those things.
6. Brainstorm for ideas for a new project.
7. Think about the challenges you face and identify possibly solutions.
8. Submit your resume for a dream job instead of assuming you can’t get it.
9. Attend a conference or retreat to connect with like-minded people.

Find Inspiration in People

1. Ask someone you love what they consider to be the most important thing they’ve ever learned.

2. Ask everyone you see today what they’re grateful for.
3. Ask someone to tell you about the thing they love the most in life, and watch how they light up sharing their passion.
4. Ask your parents to tell you what you were like as a child, and remember what mattered to you then.
5. Notice what matters to someone and focus solely on how they experience it.
6. Join an organization of people making a positive difference in the world.
7. Read an autobiography by someone who has marched to the beat of their own drummer.
8. Listen to music that moves you and think about what the songwriter felt when s/he wrote it.
9. Make a list of all the ways your friends and family members are your heroes. Odds are, there’s a lot of inspiration around you already.
10. Spend time with children and see the world through their eyes.
 

Find Inspiration in Yourself

1. Disconnect for a while and write in a journal.

2. Make today the day you embrace a new healthy habit that can change your life for the better.
3. Give yourself a pressure-free day with nothing to do except the things you enjoy.
4. Try something new and revel in the sensation of stretching beyond your comfort zone.
5. Express yourself creatively in a way you never have before, by sculpting, for example, and see what comes in your mind and heart.
6. Enjoy something you created in the past—a blog post, a video, a drawing, or a project.
7. Sing in the shower. Put your heart into and release your feelings through music.
8. Recognize in yourself the strengths you see in other people.
9. Make a conscious decision to let go of something that doesn’t serve you.
10. Reflect on everything you’ve learned and accomplished and how you’ve made a positive difference in the world.
What inspired you today?

be positive today

Mensa Otabil, ICGC, William Ato Essien and Others Sued Over Capital Bank Collapse

Pastor Mensa Otabil, and his church International Central Gospel Church are among 15 shareholders and directors of defunct Capital Bank sued over the collapse of the bank in 2017.

The Plaintiffs Messrs Vish Ashiagbor and Eric Nana Nipah from Price water house Coopers say the bank’s collapse was a “direct result’ of defendants’” “‘misgovernance” and “willful” breaches of banking regulations.

The writ of summons named the ‘sins’ of each of the defendants and confirmed a financial autopsy report that said the failed bank’s founder William Ato Essien used depositors funds as his ‘personal piggy bank’.

 In one such ‘personal piggy bank’ transactions, Ato Essien request for ¢130m loan to be given to an investment company he is related to, Capital and More Ltd.

But the senior management of the bank declined the disbursement which was public funds from the Bank of Ghana injected to save the troubled bank in 2015.

 
Pastor Mensa Otabil who as Board chairman provided a personal guarantee that the loan to the founding CEO’s other company will be repaid.

The statement of claim said the money given out in 2015 has not been paid after three years.

The writ faulted the pastor for guaranteeing the disbursement explaining, he was “conscious at all material times” that it was in breach of banking regulations as well as against the “expressed opposition” of the senior managers

Photo: William Ato Essien




 That ¢130m was not the only loan William Ato Essien took from his bank. There was another ¢29.9m he caused to be granted companies he owned or was related to.

He later came for another ¢78.9m in loans.

The failed CEO who is under criminal investigations has been asked in the writ to cough up more than ¢580m in shareholder loans he took as well as loans granted to companies he owned or is related to.

In another episode of severe and acute culture of mismanagement at the defunct bank, the directors and shareholders kept ¢482m in “non-existent investments” on their books.

The central bank would later grant their request for this imaginary investment to be converted into actual loans to be paid by the shareholders.

To date, a shareholder Otabil and Associates founded by the pastor and management expert has been unable to pay ¢51.6m which is they share of the loan converted from the imaginary investments.

 

Otabil’s church, the International Central Gospel Church, which was a shareholder in the bank has also failed to pay ¢51.6m which is also their share of the ¢482m loan.

A third defendant, Oheneba Osei-Akoto took a ¢2.42m loan in December 2016 using his residential property at Regimanuel Gray Estates at East Legon as collateral.

The defendant and shareholder has failed to pay back the money.

The plaintiffs said these defendants are responsible for ‘serious financial loss’ at the defunct Capital bank.
 

             



 source: myjoyonline

Ahuofe Patri Has Become ‘A Drug Addict’…Smokes Too Much Weed–And Her Family is Deeply Worried About Her Wellbeing

Ahuofe Patri of Kalybos fame (real name Priscilla Opoku Agyeman) has become the next Bob Marley in Ghana, smoking too much weed such that her own family is deeply worried about her general wellbeing,

A source close to the actress’ family says singer-Efya, Afia Schwarzenegger and musician Kwabena Kwabena who are friends with Ahuofe Patri have managed to influence the once innocent actress to become a weed addict–and her mother has become distressed over this habit.
“Ahuofe Patri smokes too much and everyone around her who really cares is now worried. She sometimes even becomes unstable and her mother who she takes care of is deeply distressed about this,” the source told
Over the years, we’ve seen how illicit drugs such as weed, cocaine and heroin have destroyed various entertainers locally and international–and it’s, therefore, shameful that Ahuofe Patri is said to be on a journey to destroying herself.

 

source :Ghanacelebrities.com