E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jan 24, 2012, 1:59 am
...prompting speculation NDC government will not have it easy in run-up to elections in December.
______________________________________________
sent from my Samsung tablet. . .
*twitter.com/ekbensah
*www.ekbensah.net
*mob: +233.268.687.653/+233.243.111.789
_________________________________... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jan 19, 2012, 11:37 am
...it sure is reminding us that it has not forgotten the customer!
I would have thought, though, that the media would have been awash with this very important information.
Rush and reserve before someone gets your favourite number. You have maximum 5 numbers per each mobile number you own.
Good luck... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jan 17, 2012, 10:45 am
There's no gainsaying Ghanaians are being sensitised increasingly to the need of improving their lifestyles, their health, their whole outlook on life every year. While it is habitual to take stock of the year and see what one can do better every year-end, I notice a positive trend expressed through... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jan 13, 2012, 12:41 pm
Come on now, it's 2012. Although Ghanaians might know that GHANA is the gateway to West Africa while Nigerians believe their country to be the destination, I think it is only fair to doff
one's hat as a sign of respect to Ghana's sister country.
I think I can sum it all into a tweet I posted a few d... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Dec 20, 2011, 11:36 am
To paraphrase the legendary Mark Twain, reports of my blog's death have been greatly exaggerated!
This blog--whether it is Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana; Accra Pictures by Day & Night; or Critiquing Regionalism; et al--are very much alive. The silence is attributed to... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Nov 30, 2011, 7:26 am
As Africa Trade Ministers meet in Accra between for the 7th Ordinary Session from 29th Dec-3rd Dec, 2011, one of the recommendations they have made in their "ACTION PLAN FOR BOOSTING INTRA‐AFRICAN TRADE" is for banks like ECOBANK to do better in supporting intra-African trade. In paragraph 25, the... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Oct 26, 2011, 10:53 am
I woke up this morning around 5.30am to the news on one of Ghana's leading private, English radio stations -- CITI 97.3 fm -- that people coming from Central region into the capital Accra were stuck because water from a bridge around the area had caused significant damage, and made roads impassable.... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Oct 20, 2011, 5:41 am
A good friend and blogger Golda Addo was (unnecessarily) assaulted in traffic this morning. I am copying and pasting this in her own words. Please see below. Spread the word on this. Thanks!
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: golda addo yahoo.com>
Date: 2011/10/20
Subject: Assault this ... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Oct 18, 2011, 12:52 pm
Real life regularly happens to us, taking us from our beloved blogging. Since my last entry, a LOT of real life has happened. The following is an article that's to appear in the Wednesday 19 October 2011's edition of Business and Financial Times newspaper under my column "Accidental Ecowas and AU ci... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 20, 2011, 11:15 am
1Over the weekend, Daily Graphic journalist Samuel K Obour (https://www.facebook.com/skobour) contacted me to seek my opinions for the "forum" section of Saturday's "GRAPHIC". Here are what you're likely to see.
Whatare your views on the spate of road accidents in the country?
Ithink it’s f... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 2, 2011, 9:57 am
For the past week, I have been struggling very hard to remember what has happened during the week -- and all I can think of is politics, more politics, and even more politics. Sometimes I wonder whether Ghana will ever change this predilection and grow up.
Truth be told, it is growing up: Ghana has ... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 1, 2011, 12:14 pm
Far be it for me to blow my own trumpet, but then I am used to it: if having a blog is not an exemplification of that, I do not know what is!
On a more serious note, Wednesday 24 August saw me entering, once again, the folds of columnists -- this time as a political science columnist(rather than a... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Aug 24, 2011, 12:34 pm
This is really getting out of hand.
Some of us saw the beginning of July not just as a hopeful period for the country, whereby our beleaguered cards would finally find themselves in our hands, but also a period when we could have faith that our institutions could deliver on "promises".
Almost two mo... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Aug 2, 2011, 8:50 am
I am just off the phone speaking to a customer service representative at the call center of SMART TV/SKYY PLUS. I am a very frustrated man.
A week or two ago, I received a text message from SKYY PLUS stating that from 1 August(yesterday), they would start charging 16GHC(US$10.6) a month for their se... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jul 25, 2011, 11:43 am
Two weekends ago, we spent the better part of the weekend trekking Accra far and wide to get sachet water to complement the water that we had(but had run out) due to water works on the Kpong Treatment Plant.
Now up until that time, I had not taken the issue of Kpong Treatment plant so seriously, but... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jul 5, 2011, 1:31 pm
Spent the better part of the weekend and monday chasing ECG and PURC, along with relentless neighbours who even managed to stalk the Electricity Company of Ghana van yesterday evening.
Learnt a lot, and realised am not as lazy as I think I am.
I so love this country when you're able to get results ... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jun 17, 2011, 12:19 pm
Back in March 2009, I wrote a piece on my ghana blog entitled The Unbearable Lightness of Being...ECOWAS-ian & Fighting Crime in ECOWAS/AU Member States ("http://ekbensahinghana.blogspot.com/2009/03/unbearable-lightness-of-being-ecowas.html) in which I opined:
"I was very happy to read at the beginn... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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May 30, 2011, 1:23 pm
Arguably, it's a terrible title for a Ghana-based blog, but the situation behind the title is equally terrible.
As you may know by now, President Goodluck Jonathon was inaugurated yesterday to the usual pomp and pageantry that accompanies such events. BBC Worldservice was there and covered it extens... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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May 26, 2011, 11:06 am
The celebration of AU day has both encouraged and mobilised me to action, so I finally decided to do something constructive...like taking a walk across the street from work to the hotel there. Now I have covered Eastgate Hotel in my Accra blog before--you can read it here -- so it is not like I am c... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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May 24, 2011, 1:44 pm
Every 25 May, Ghana, along with many African Union(AU) member states, celebrates what has now come to be known as Africa Liberation Day(ALD). It is erroneously celebrated as African Union day, which is actually celebrated on 9 September, when the Sirte Declaration was conceived to transform the-then... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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May 5, 2011, 1:14 pm
In our highly-politicised culture, I often forget to remind myself about the beauty of my country--we tend to let foreigners remind us instead--till I take a walk. Walking has always been cathartic--and this afternoon was no exception.
Deciding to walk to the tailor who fixes some of my clothes, I w... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Apr 26, 2011, 12:43 pm
I spent Easter Sunday with the folks, and it saw me watching "Paranormal Activity" at night. Was freaked out...then decided to watch "WOLFMAN" with Anthony Hopkins and Benicio del Toro as father/son werewolves.
Around 1am!
I cracked up more. DEL TORO as a werewolf?? WTF! Can't ever shake off De... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Apr 21, 2011, 1:04 pm
Before I offer the expected rant, let me provide context.
It's a busy Thursday before Easter and so people have been preparing left, right, and center. In that respect, I was half-expecting to meet things that would get my goat. Still, I think Ghanaians should know better.
So I called an organisatio... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Apr 15, 2011, 11:21 am
As I was plodding back to the office at lunchtime, I came across this sticker on the back of a motorbike.
"What a lame sticker!" I instinctively thought, then paused mentally.
What actually is peace? In Ghana, we like to bandy it around a lot, but what's really our conception of it?
Martin Luther Ki... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Apr 8, 2011, 9:37 am
Imagine this: you're at home watching TV around 22h00. You're kind of winding down for the evening. Dishes done. Stuff packed. You're anticipating a delicious sleep in an hour or so. Suddenly, darkness falls.
Sadly, it lasts too long. Two hours later, you're still in darkness--and it looks like you'... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Feb 28, 2011, 11:28 am
I thought I'd eschew any vestige of melodrama by being as incisive about my point as possible.
But knowing me, it was always going to be difficult!
It is not so much that I have goofed or erred -- just that I've become more of a human being, both pretending to be, and actually being busier than I e... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Feb 9, 2011, 1:11 pm
It is a recondite fact that a lot of our Ghanaian media practitioners need capacity-building to be more discerning, but this has got to take the biscuit.
As I was winding down things to leave the office, I come across an article on Google News, which claims "ECOWAS ‘recognizes’ Gbagbo as preside... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jan 31, 2011, 10:31 am
Too much has been happening in my life that it's bound to make me a bit soporific, and let me just add that I was in no such state in this picture! Merely planning the year, or at least pretending to do so!
I like the "domino-effect" metaphor being bandied around to describe the events from the Jasm... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Dec 30, 2010, 5:40 pm
For the past few days, the folks and I have been in the capital city of Africa's newest oil-producing capital of Takoradi.
There are two incontrovertible truths about this beautiful, littoral city by the Atlantic ocean: it made news in the oil world on 15 December, 2010 when Ghana officially bec... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Dec 17, 2010, 12:00 pm
So much has happened over the past month that it's difficult to know where to start.
I have been to a wedding and quite a number of funerals; gotten ill (for which I am recovering); been swamped by work (as you do at this time) and generally taken time out to do more tweeting than blogging and faceb... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Nov 11, 2010, 4:54 am
For the past couple of days, I have been mulling over the state of this beautiful nation.
I don't quite get the fact that there's so much indiscipline. And when you get to that stage of wondering, you might inevitably wonder what it does to one's internal cosmology.
If it is true that the violence... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Nov 3, 2010, 1:02 pm
It all began on 26 October, when a Ghanaian tweep mentioned something about Ghana Police being on twitter.
Quizzed, I followed through a few links and realised they were on the @ghanapolice address. They had asked a question about community policing, and tips to assist. They appeared to b... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Oct 22, 2010, 1:28 pm
The other day, I was over at the Vodafone shop in Accra Mall, trying to figure out why I no longer enjoy the 50% bonus credit Vodafone had been banging on about for the past couple of weeks.
It turns out the Vodafone was being rather deceitful about the whole promotion. It had conveniently forgotte... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 30, 2010, 1:22 pm
As a blogger, there's definitely one thing you cannot escape -- your
private life. When you're blogging, the assumption is that a lot of
much of your life is put up for public scrutiny.
We all now know that this is rarely the case. The smarter blogger is
the one who is consistent with the themes he ... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 27, 2010, 1:43 pm
There I was at a funeral of a relative over the weekend when I experienced an epiphany: I discovered a hard-and-fast rule for managing one's mortality in Ghana.
Before I reveal it to a crowd of claps, let me just say this.
In this country, attending a funeral is a matter of course--and not because t... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 22, 2010, 9:00 pm
I have always been a fastidiously-slow learner, but when I see the light, it is often very bright.
I am not too sure that it was coincidence to be seated at a hotel, near work, for a two-day meeting, and catch the Ben Affleck-starring 2006 film "Man About Town". The story revolves around a Hollywoo... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 20, 2010, 1:23 pm
Work colleagues perhaps best know the state of the Ghanaian weather more than I do, as they have seen many more of them than I have, but I cannot quite get my head round the fact that we have had no less than two rainy seasons all along?
My colleagues tell me that September/October is a time when th... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 17, 2010, 1:12 pm
Oh yes. We are all going to be counted the night of 26th September. Quite why it will be at night--and not daytime--is beyond me, but, hey, let us all rejoice and merry-make in the knowledge that we shall be counted. Last time Ghanaians were counted was in 2000. Given that it is done every ten yea... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 9, 2010, 1:09 pm
The problem with emergencies...is the way they kind of "emerge" from nowhere and consume the time you would spend on other things. So it is that I was caught up in an emergency work-related meeting on Wednesday, which flowed into today, which consumed practically the whole day.
While some are bent o... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Sep 2, 2010, 1:44 pm
For the second time, I have taken "unofficial" leave from this blog--and not necessarily because it was a choice.
Last week, I was at school. Specifically at a school for activists trying to understand the global financial crisis.
This week, I am winding down to prepare full-throttle for September, ... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Aug 20, 2010, 1:01 pm
Somehow, somewhere, there is a 16-yr-old budding American journalist who must be looking behind her shoulder wondering what next to write about the country she's currently visiting. Somehow, somewhere, she must be regretting ever claiming that:
These people are lucky if they have power until 2 p.m
T... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Aug 18, 2010, 1:36 pm
" Johnny's always running around
Trying to find certainty
He needs all the world to confirm
That he ain't lonely " --Robert Palmer
It's one of those day when you don't get much done--despite the fact that you're at the cusp of a maelstrom of impending activity.
Started the day needing to attend a... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Aug 13, 2010, 12:55 pm
At a time when consumers are shouting blue murder about tariff increases, it might strike one as odd that I'm advocating a praise!
I certainly have not forgotten the load management programme of 2006 that saw many Ghanaians rationing electricity, because of the over-dependence on Ghana's hydro-power... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Aug 6, 2010, 12:32 pm
A few months ago, I sent a blog entry to a friend whom I had quoted in the entry. In that quoted piece, I had used a picture of her, which was a few years old, and some of what I had written probably no longer applied in 2010.
I had written the post in 2006, and was referring to it in 2010. On the p... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Aug 2, 2010, 9:02 am
The epiphany of working for five years seemed to have passed me last year, so I am a bit surprised that it has not in 2010. Perhaps it is the fact that today is exactly six years to the day that I arrived at this office in a tie to a very clean desk ready for me to do my work.
Whenever I think back ... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jul 30, 2010, 9:58 am
It was never supposed to end like this.
I was supposed to call Mr.Atikpoe--a driver of Gold Cab services, which is a private taxi-hiring service I have been patronising for four years now--on Tuesday morning to remind him to come pick me up from work.
Instead I got hold of his wife who informed me s... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jul 28, 2010, 11:19 am
Last night, I almost lost my appetite because of a visit to the Accra mall I had entertained earlier. This was less of a case of a "mauvais quart d'heure"; it was more of a mauvais TWO hours!
I had gone to an ATM to withdraw a substantial amount of money, only to have a message flash across "your fi... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jul 23, 2010, 10:59 am
It's been a week since I was back, and I have to confess to having written many blog entries--in my mind!--without translating them to an entry proper!
Some of the issues percolating in my small mind include:
achieving all my personal objectives before the MONTH is out--never mind the year!
maintain... Comment - Like
E.K. Bensah Jr. posted an article on
The Trials & Tribulations of a Freshly-Arrived Denizen...of Ghana
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Jun 23, 2010, 12:57 pm
So the title is this side of melodramatic (am talking both about the "Daily Graphic" headline and yours truly), but there is a degree of seriousness.
Kevin-Prince Boateng is not the only "Star" Ghanaians are counting on to deliver "for Africa", but he is naturally in the spotlight as his brother JE... Comment - Like
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