BBC African Footballer of the Year: Voting open as shortlist named

The five candidates for the 2015 BBC African Footballer of the Year have been revealed during a special live launch broadcast in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Algeria's Yacine Brahimi, the 2014 winner, is on the shortlist along with Gabon's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Ghanaian Andre Ayew, Senegal's Sadio Mane and Yaya Toure of Ivory Coast.
The winner will be decided by African football fans, who have until 18:00 GMT on 30 November to vote for their choice.

Airtel money

What is airtel money?
Airtel Money is a new mobile commerce service from airtel that will allow you to use your mobile phone as a mobile wallet. It will allow you to use your mobile phone to:
Pay bills - utility bills
Pay for goods and services
Direct payment for your savings and loans contributions
Buy airtime for yourself, friends and family
Purchase airtel data bundle
Send money from your airtel Money account to other airtel money customers
Send money from your airtel Money account to people on other networks
Receive money on your airtel Money account
Deposit physical cash for electronic money (e-value)
Withdraw cash from your airtel money account
Send money to and withdraw money from your bank account
Use your mobile phone to check your bank balance and request for bank mini statement

Vodafone Cash

What is Vodafone Cash?
Vodafone Cash is a fast, simple and secure service that allows you to use your mobile phone to transfer money and make payments.

What other payments can I use Vodafone Cash for apart from transferring money?
Vodafone cash can be used to send and receive money, top up airtime for self and other Vodafone numbers, pay bills (Vodafone Bills) as well as buy goods and services.

Diversity Visa Lottery Program (Stage 1)

Stage 1; October - December: Electronic Entry

Important Basic Diversity Visa Requirements:

The law creating Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV Program) states that to qualify for a diversity visa, you must have a high school education, or its equivalent, or two years of work experience. A high school education means successfull completion of a formal course of elementary and secondary education comparable to 12-year course in the United States. If you are qualifying with work experience, you must have two years of experience in the last five years in an occupation which, by U.S. Department of Labor definitions, requires at least two years of training or experience.

If you do not have either the required education or qualifying work experience, you are not eligible to be issued a Divesity Visa. Only you, as the principal applicant, must meet this requirement. Your spouse and children do not have to meet this requirement. Do not continue with this application if you do not meet the education and work experience requirement.

 

EDUCATION: Minimum Requirements To qualify using education, you must have:
Graduated from Senior Secondary School and passed the WAECS/SSSCE with a minimum of 5 passes (including English and Math; and pass is a minimum of 'E'); and/or
Completed A-levels or O-levels; and/or
Earned an HND (High National Diploma); and/or
Received a University degree.

NOTE 1: Vocational training does not replace the above requirements. Vocational training alone does not meet the DV education requirement.

NOTE 2: For each subject, we consider the most recent exam score. For example if you failed English in 2001, the passed in 2003, we will accept the Pass in from 2003 because it is the most recent score. However, if you passed English in 2001, then failed in 2003, you will not qualify, since the most recent score is a Fail.

OCCUPATION: Minimum Requirements
To qualify based on your occupation:
You must work in an occupation that has received a score of 7 or higher according to the U.S. Department of Labor's classifications. A list of qualifying occupations is posted in the waiting room; please review the list before paying the visa fee. You can find a complete list of all occupations and their scores online at O*net online: http://online.onetcenter.org. Scores are found by searching for an occupation, then looking at the "SVP Score" found in the "Job Zone" for each job.
You must have worked for at least two years in a qualifying job during the last five years AND completed at least two years of training to prepare you for work in that job. For example, if you worked as a Head Cook (a qualifying job) from 1995 to 1997, but have been working as a peety trader since 1997, you would not qualify.

Please make sure that you enter correct information especially:

Name

Date of Birth

Address

Gender

General Photo Requirements

The photograph for each visa applicant must be a full face photo, as described below

The photograph must have been taken within the last six months

Photo Size

The photo for each visa applicant submitted must measure:

2 by 2 inches (roughly 50 mm square) with the head centered in the frame.

The head (measure from the top of the hair to the bottom of the chin) should me between 1 inch to 13/8 inches (25 mm to 35 with the eye level between 11/8 inch to 13/8 inches (28 mm and 35 mm) from the bottom of the photo.

Photo Appearance

The photograph must be a full-face view in which the visa applicant is facing the camera directly

The face should cover about 50 percent of the photo area.

Side or angled views cannot be accepted.

The photograph should be in color and must be taken against a white or off-white background. Photographs with dark, busy, or patterned backgrounds cannot be accepted.

In general, the applicant's head, including both face and hair, should be shown from the crown of the head to the tip of the chin on top and bottom and from hairline side-to-side. It is preferable that ears be exposed.

Head coverings and hats may only be worn in photographs if they are required by religious beliefs. Such coverings and hats should not cover any portion of the applicant's face.

Sunglasses or other wear which detracts from the face can only be worn in photographs if required for medical reasons (an eye patch, for example).

Photographs depicting a person wearing a traditional facemask or veil that does not permit adequate identification cannot be accepted.

Photographs of military, airline or other personnel wearing hats cannot be accepted.

Photographs of applicants wearing tribal, national costume, or other headgear no specifically religious in nature cannot be accepted.

Digital Photo

Digital reproduced photographs must be reproduced without discernible pixels or dot patterns. Photocopied photographs cannot be accepted.

Selectees will receive a letter through thier country's postal service notifying them of their selection. Entrant who are not selected for further processing will not receive any type of notificaton through mail.

Multiple entries will disqualify the entrant from participation in the Lottery.

Floyd Mayweather beats Manny Pacquiao

Floyd Mayweather emerged victorious from the most lucrative fight in history, beating Manny Pacquiao via a wide unanimous decision in Las Vegas. American Mayweather, 38, delivered a defensive masterclass against his Philippine rival, making the necessary adjustments after only a few rounds before disappearing out of sight. Mayweather, who added the WBO welterweight title to the WBC and WBA titles he already owned, was awarded the fight 118-110, 116-112 and 116-112 by the three judges. With his victory, Mayweather also cemented his status as the greatest pound-for-pound boxer of his generation. The five-weight world champion is now undefeated in 48 professional fights, stretching back 19 years. Six-weight world champion Pacquiao, 36, falls to 57 wins, six losses and two draws. Tickets for the bout - billed as 'The Fight of the Century' - changed hands for as much as $350,000 (£232,000) and American fans were charged almost $100 (£66) to watch on television.

Legon SRC Prez tried bribing me – Election IT Expert

The IT expert who designed the software for the conduct of the University of Ghana students’ elections, Stephen Forson has revealed that the current President of the Students Representative Council (SRC) tried to bribe him to manipulate the elections in favour of his preferred candidate.

Mr. Forson revealed on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme on Friday April 17, 2015 that Mr. Joshua Dogbey and two others including the losing candidate in the April 9, 2015 SRC election, Mikdad Muhammad sneaked into his house at midnight in the days leading to the elections to try to induce him to rig the elections for a candidate in the elections.

Citing his pregnant wife as his witness, he continued that the team from Legon promised to extend his contract with the University SRC if he does their bidding for their candidate to win.

IPRO Solutions Ltd has a five year contract with the University of Ghana (2012-2016), and also runs elections for all the polytechnics and some universities in the country.

"When they tried and they didn’t succeed, they thought others have also done so…the executioner fears to always lie with his head up of course…,” he revealed.

Olympic swimmer Missy Franklin turns pro

Missy Franklin has bid farewell to college swimming and is turning pro.

The four-time Olympic gold medalist went out with a bang, winning three individual events and helping her California team win the NCAA championship last weekend.
Now, Franklin can start competing for money and endorsement deals, and she's signed with a sports agent connected to Hollywood.
Franklin told The Associated Press in a phone interview that she's chosen Mark Ervin of WME-IMG to represent her. She will be the first swimmer in his client stable that includes Olympic champion skier Lindsey Vonn. Ervin used to work with Olympic snowboarder Shaun White.
''I am so confident in my choice,'' she said. ''I felt this incredible connection with him. I feel like 100 percent we stand for the same things.''
The swimmer, who turns 20 in May, had help in making the decision. Her parents vetted a slew of potential representatives and narrowed down the field, allowing Franklin to enjoy her second - and last - year as a collegiate athlete.
''There's no one that knows me better than my parents,'' said Franklin, an only child.
WME-IMG is based in Beverly Hills, California, and some of its other athletes include tennis player Maria Sharapova and NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Besides sports, the mega-agency has ties to entertainment, fashion and event management.

Ghana tops in WAEC international examination

Ghana has for the past five years toped the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) Competition for the international excellence award, WAEC announced on Thursday.
For the year 2014, all three Ghanaian candidates who participated in the award with other WAEC students, swept all the three top awards offered at that level once again.
The overall top candidate, Hasan Mickail, a former student of Ghana Secondary Technical School (GSTS) in the Western Region, who was the best candidate in the General Science programme, both at the national and international level, also won the Bandele Award for the best performing candidate in the whole of West Africa.
Ghana, Nigeria, and the Gambia participated in the 2014 WAEC examination, while Liberia and Sierra Leone, the two other WAEC countries, did not participate in the examinations due to the Ebola pandemic and a change in those countries educational system.
The Very Reverend Samuel Nmai Ollennu, the Head of National Office, WAEC, who announced this at this year’s WAEC Distinction Awards ceremony organized to honour candidates, who excelled in the May/June 2014 edition of the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) said Ghana, since the period of the SSCE and when the WASSCE was introduced has been topping in the international exams.
He said for the past four years, Ghanaian WASSCE students have continuously topped in the international Exams.
Rev Ollennu explained that for a candidate to win such awards, he or she must obtain a minimum of eight grade A1s.
Candidates, who qualified for the awards, competed at two levels, consisting of the national (home country) and international (West Africa) levels with other WAEC candidates.
At the award ceremony held in Accra, the overall top winner, Mickail and four other awardees were given various sums of money, certificates, and laptops, whilst their former schools were given plagues.
Mickail was offered a full scholarship by the Universal Merchant Bank Ghana Limited to undertake a tertiary education in any university in Ghana, while the WAEC Endowment Fund, the main sponsor of the Distinction awards gave him the cedi equivalent of 300 dollars, and the Ghana National office of WAEC gave him 700 dollars, cedi equivalent.
Other award winners were Mr Kenyah Blaykyi, formerly of St Augustine’s College, who took the second position, received the cedi equivalent of 200 dollars and 300 dollars from the WAEC Fund and the Ghana National office, WAEC, respectively. FirstBanc Ghana, a financial institution is also giving Mr Blaykyi GH¢ 2,000 as part of the package.
Henry Enninful Archibald, a former student of Mfantsipim School, won the third position and was rewarded with 200 dollars and 300 dollars from the Fund and the Ghana National Office respectively.  The Enterprise Insurance Limited also gave GHC 1,000 to Mr Archibald.
Mr Elvis Okoh-Asirifi, formerly of Opoku Ware SHS in the Ashanti Region, and Ms Deborah Akosua Atuabea Attuah, a former student of Wesley Girls High School in Cape Coast, won the best candidate in business and General Arts Programmes respectively. They all received the cedi equivalent of 400 dollars each and certificates.
Rev Ollennu said by giving the awards, WAEC believed that it would be an incentive to spur the students on to work harder in future examinations and in other future endeavours.
Dr Iyi Uwadiae, the Registrar at the WAEC Council commended Ghana for the consistency in winning the awards over the past years, assuring that, in spite of the few examination malpractices, WAEC exams were “still valid and very reliable”.
Mr Enoch Cobbinah, the Chief Director of the Ministry of Education, who represented the Deputy Minister of Education, Mr Alex Kyeremeh, said the outstanding performances by the students indicated that “Ghana’s educational system is the best in the West Africa region so no one should think that our educational system is in shambles”.
Source: GNA

Checkout the Full List of Winners at the GN Bank Awards

Male Musician Of The Year
Shatta Wale

Female Musician Of The Year
Gifty Osei

Male Actor Of The Year
James Gardner

Female Actor Of The Year
Juliet Ibrahim

Movie Of The Year
Obroni Hiani (Sky Orange Productions)

Child Star Of The Year
Nana Yaa Amoakoaa (Kids Icon)

Song Of The Year
Mampi by Vybrant Faya

Male Sports Personality Of The Year
Asamoah Gyan (Black Stars captain)

Comedian Of The Year
Baba Spirit (Rainbow Radio)

Entertainment Journalist/Writer Of The Year
Halifax Ansah Addo (News One)

Male Radio Presenter Of The Year
Bola Ray (Starr Drive – Starr FM)

Female Radio Presenter Of The Year
Akumaa Mama Zimbi (Odo Ahomaso – Adom FM)

Male TV Presenter Of The Year
Kojo Frempong (Boys Boys – Viasat 1)

Female TV Presenter Of The Year
Nana Yaa Brefo (Badwam – Adom TV)

Favourite Celebrity Of The Year
Bola Ray

GN Bank Corporate Honorarium
(Lifetime Achievement Award)
M.T.N Ghana (Telecommunication)
D.K Poison (Veteran Boxer)

Samsung S6 and S6 Edge go on pre-order

Customers can now pre-order Samsung’s latest smartphones, the S6 and S6 Edge, on contracts from £39.50 and £43.50 per month respectively and an up-front charge of £79.99 and £159.99.

As already announced by Samsung the flagship models will be available from April 10, but customers will have to wait longer for certain models including gold colours and those with larger amounts of memory.

Gold versions of both models are expected for delivery in four weeks, according to the Carphone Warehouse website, as are 128GB versions of the S6 Edge and 64GB versions of the S6. The 128GB S6 is expected in "four to six weeks".

Details of the tariffs available from various operators have been published by the UK’s largest mobile phone seller Carphone Warehouse.

The new handsets were unveiled by Samsung at the annual Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona earlier this month, with the claim that they would “set a new standard for smartphones”.

The S6 Edge included a curved screen which extended slight around the front of the device to each of the sides.

It includes a feature called People Edge which assigns five contacts with unique colours. The phone can then be placed face-down during situations when looking at the screen would be impolite, but the owner can still see who is ringing at a glance.

Both phones include a five megapixel front camera and 16 megapixel rear camera.

Customers can place pre-orders today under contracts with Vodafone, EE and O2. Anyone making a pre-order with Carphone Warehouse will receive a free wireless charger.

Specifications

Display: 5.1-inch
Battery: Quad HD Super AMOLED 577PPI
Wi-Fi: LTE Cat. 6
Memory: 3GB RAM
Storage: 32 / 64 / 128GB
Sensors: Accelerometer, light, gyroscope, proximity, compass, barometer, fingerprint, hall
Size (S6): 143.4 x 70.5 x 6.8mm
Weight (S6): 138g
Size (S6 Edge): 142.1 x 70.1 x 7.0mm
Weight (S6 Edge): 132g

MTN M'afe Nie Promotion

2015 is the year that you’ve been waiting for. With MTN M’afe Nie promoting, you can live your cherished dream in the most convenient way ever. MTN customers simply need to keep their phones active. One can charge, chat, text and browse to accrue points. Simply performing any of these activities on your phone i.e. recharging, chatting, texting and browsing can lead to fulfilling a dream.

It’s that simply! Dial *120# to know and check your points threshold. Remember, every recharge of GhȻ1 gives you 10 point and every pesewa spent gives you one point. Accrue points to exceed your monthly threshold by higher percentage margins via recharging, chatting, texting or browsing and you could own:

·         Three bedroom houses in Accra
·         Iphone 6+ handsets
·         32” (inches) LED TVs
·         Nokia Lumia 535 handsets
·         Energy/Power banks
·         Huawei Y220 Phones etc

Others Premier League Four Universities Start Final Push For 2015 UPAC Basketball Championship

Ghanaian basketball talents descend at the University of Professional Studies (UPSA) court on Saturday March 14 ahead of the hugely-anticipated Greater Accra Zone 1 qualifiers. Players have entered the homestretch of their buildup for the 2015 UPAC Basketball Championship as they set up their respective camping base.

CAF Duties: GFA Hands $30,000 to Kotoko, Hearts

The Ghana FA has handed $30,000 to Asante Kotoko and Accra Hearts of Oak ahead of their CAF Inter-club matches this weekend, DailySoccerGhana .com can exclusively report.

Kotoko will rely on the cash boost to offset the hotel accommodation expenses and flight ticket costs as they face Algerian club MC El Eulma at the 25,000 seater Stade Messaoud Zougar on Saturday.

Fire Outbreak At Kotoka Airport

Fire yesterday  morning gutted a private restaurant at the cargo section of the Kotoka International Airport (KIA), destroying a lot of equipment and other valuables.
The fire outbreak, which started around 8:45 am, injured two people who were believed to be kitchen staff of the gutted restaurant called, Cargo D’ or Combined Farms.
A statement by the Ghana Airport Company Limited (GACL) confirming the incident said, “At about 0845 hours on Thursday, parts of the kitchen of Cargo D’ or Combined Farms – a building close to the Airport Post Office – caught fire.

Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Named Best In Show At Mobile World Congress 2015

The Samsung Galaxy S6 edge has received the special honor of “Best New Handset, Tablet or Device” from the GSMA at Mobile World Congress 2015.

The award recognizes the best new device launched during the show. This is the second consecutive year Samsung received this award, following the Samsung Gear Fit in 2014.

Daddy Lumba, Kwabena Kwabena and Okyeame Kwame lead #MOGOAwards nominations

The annual Citi FM Music of Ghanaian Origin (MOGO) Highlife Awards Night is returning this year with a bang, to climax the annual MOGO Festival.

But prior to the glitzy affair, Citi FM has announced the categories for the expanded MOGO Awards, and is set to honor deserving individuals, groups and stakeholders who have contributed to the development and sustenance of Highlife music and Music of Ghanaian Origin in general.

Daddy Lumba, Okyeame Kwame and Kwabena Kwabena lead the nominations with four each. Bisa KDei, R2Bees and Efya have two nominations each. Gospel artiste and producer, Nacy, has two, MOGO Best Performer (with No Tribe) and MOGO Best Music Producer.

Mountcrest University College breaks grounds for Medical School

Mountcrest University College has broken the ground for the construction of a medical school lecture hall complex and a teaching hospital at Larteh.

The lecture hall complex expected to be ready in September would also house the School of Nursing and Midwifery and would be named after the late son of the founder of the college, Kwame Ansa-Asare.

Mr Kwaku Ansa-Asare, Founder and Rector of the School, said the School had forged a partnership with the College of Medicine at Penn State University and the partnership involves course work development, medical student exchange and expansion of the Global Health Scholars Programme to Ghana.

Vodafone Ghana Music Award (VGMA) 2015 NOMINEES LIST

Overall Artiste(s) of the Year

● Daddy Lumba
● Stonebwoy
● Guru
● Edem
● MzVee
● Sarkodie
● Samini

My relatives do drugs but I don't – Ken Agyapong reveals

Maverick Politician Kennedy Agyapong has revealed that some of his relatives were ‘drugs dealers’ but he said he personally does not do 'drugs'.

Responding to a question on whether he was a genuine businessman or had dealt in drugs before in an interview on TV3 Friday morning, Mr. Agyapong said: “Hell no…as for my relatives yes; my relatives have done it [drugs] and they linked me to it. But there are evidences there to show that I was not part of it…so me I am okay; I do a lot of things and I work hard”.

"About 85 per cent of Ghanaian businessmen do drugs" - Ken Agyapong

Maverick Politician Kennedy Agyapong has alleged that most Ghanaian businessmen are drug dealers.

In his estimation, about 85 percent of indigenous businessmen are drug barons.

Ironically, Mr. Kennedy Agyapong, a successful businessman and a hothead politician of the opposition New Patriotic Party, is not insulated from the drug tag. For many years, Mr. Agyapong’s political opponents, particularly in the National Democratic Congress, have equally painted him as a drug dealer although none of his accusers have proven the allegations.