THE JFT EDIT

Director of the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER) at the University of Ghana, Professor Peter Quartey, has backed government in terminating the deal between the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and Power Distribution Service (PDS), saying it is economically right. Government, a few weeks ago, terminated the concession agreement between the ECG and PDS after it uncovered issues which defy the sanity and fidelity of the contract, when it established that the PDS provided a forged Demand Guarantee as security for the contract.

The termination of the PDS deal, however, did not sit well with the US government; and as a result it withheld the US$190million grant for the concession – arguing that the termination was unwarranted based on revelations of the forensic investigation into the matter. Despite acknowledging that withdrawal of the grant will obviously impact negatively on restructuring of the energy sector, the economics professor says government made a decision that was economically prudent.

“If truly there was no guarantee; if the insurance was not valid, then as a country we cannot give our national asset to a foreign entity without any guarantee or cover. If what I am hearing is true, then I think I support government’s position. “It is right economically. In the long-term, how much is PDS going to raise over the 20-year period? Let’s estimate that. If we are going to lose so much as a result of their presence and already they are starting on such a bad footing, then I think we should be cautious about our comments. I trust that government will seek the national interest, and therefore I give government the benefit of the doubt. I would not rather support a foreign company against my country,” he told the B&FT in an interview.

Prof. Quartey however advised that any future deal regarding selecting another concessionaire should be transparent, as much as possible, in order to avoid running into similar problems; and also to get the best deal that will better restructure the country’s energy sector. “Going forward, let’s be transparent with our selection process. I believe there were things other companies were unhappy about, and that’s why they left. So, let’s review those kinds of things again; bring them back to the table and let’s get the best deal out of it. If this deal is done in a very transparent manner, we will get the best out of it,” he said.

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Earlier this month, Meghan Markle sued The Daily Mail for publishing her private handwritten correspondence, and Prince Harry’s subsequent statement explained that the couple was taking action now because “I lost my mother and now I watch my wife falling victim to the same powerful forces.” There’s been rumors that the rest of Harry’s family isn’t necessarily on board with these actions, and now it’s confirmed: Even the Queen (allegedly) disapproves.

Royal correspondent of the Daily Express Richard Palmer had tweeted out in early October that the British royal family was, quietly, upset with the Sussexes. “Nobody in the Royal Family or the Royal Household is supporting Harry and Meghan at the moment. Even the couple’s aides seem embarrassed by their actions. William, who dropped his brother like a ton of hot bricks earlier this year, and Charles have distanced themselves,” he wrote.

“Obviously, if that changes it will be a story but at the moment the Sussexes appear out on a limb. Whatever the merits of their various legal actions, they didn’t inform their family that Harry was going to release that inflammatory statement.”

Now, a month has passed, and apparently it’s just as true now as it was then. “This rather bald statement of the facts remains true 25 days later, as far as I can tell. While there is concern for Harry and Meghan’s mental health, their attitude has disappointed the Queen and other members of the Royal Family, according to several sources.”

That…is so depressing, I won’t lie. I can certainly understand Harry’s position of trying to protect his family, even when it goes to (what some might say is) an extreme degree.

It’s a pirate’s life for Adele this Halloween, and she’s definitely here to plunder our hearts.

The celebrated songstress stepped out for the spooky holiday dressed like a sultry Captain Hook. Her elegant costume saw the “Hello” singer rocking a red-and-black animal print dress with a matching pirate’s hat, some bold eye make-up, long blonde flowing locks and, of course, a giant hook for a hand.

Adele spent the night at a star-studded Halloween bash where she posed for pics with some of her celebrity friends at a photobooth. The beloved singer got playful while posing with friends — including Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul and his wife, Lauren, and other various partygoers, many of whom shared a slew of snapshots to their Instagram stories and Twitter.

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A fire has destroyed all the main structures of Shuri Castle, a Unesco World Heritage site on Japan’s southern island of Okinawa.

Firefighters battled the flames for more than 10 hours, extinguishing them by Thursday afternoon. No injuries have been reported so far. The wooden castle, built 500 years ago, was almost completely destroyed during World War Two. The current structure is a reconstruction. The castle served as a campus for Okinawa’s largest public university until the 1970s, and has been a popular tourist attraction since.

The fire started just before 02:40 local time on Thursday (17:40 GMT Wednesday). It is still unclear what might have triggered it. and was  eventually put out at around 13:30, but all seven key buildings of the castle were burnt down.

Shuri Castle, which was was once the seat of the Ryukyu dynasty, sits on top of a hill overlooking the city of Naha – Okinawa’s capital – and is surrounded by curved stone walls. One resident said the castle was seen as “god-like”. “To us, the Shuri Castle is a god-like existence,” 84-year-old Toyoko Miyazato told the Asahi Shimbun. “I am so sad I don’t know what to say.”

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North Korea has fired two unidentified “projectiles” into the sea, the South Korean military says. If confirmed as a missile test, it would be the North’s 12th this year.

The projectile was fired into the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan. The launches are thought to have come from South Pyongan province, according to Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. Earlier this month, North Korea test-fired a new type of a missile capable of being launched from a submarine. That missile was, in theory, able to carry a nuclear weapon. Being launched from a submarine can make missiles harder to detect, and allows them to get closer to other targets.

Thursday’s projectiles landed outside Japan’s maritime exclusive economic zone, the Japanese coast guard said. The South Korean military said it would maintain its readiness to track and monitor further launches. North Korea is widely believed to have missiles capable of striking long-range targets, including the US mainland.

It also claims to have a nuclear bomb it can mount it on a missile. The apparent testing comes as nuclear talks between Pyongyang and Washington remain at a deadlock.

The last time US President Donald Trump met the North’s Kim Jong-un was in June, when the two leaders met at the inter-Korean border. Talks between US and North Korean officials in Sweden earlier this month failed to make any progress.

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Four men have been arrested after Australian police found 400kg (882lb) of crystal methamphetamine hidden inside imported hot sauce bottles.

Authorities searched a consignment of sriracha chilli sauce shipped to Sydney from the US to discover drugs worth roughly A$300 million (£161m; $207m). They subsequently arrested four men aged 30, 34, 36 and 45 – the oldest of whom was detained on Thursday. Police are in touch with US authorities in a bid to find the shipment’s origin.

Acting Assistant Commissioner Stuart Smith said the 768 bottles were en route to a “clandestine lab” in Sydney when they were found.

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At least 73 passengers died when a train travelling from the Pakistani city of Karachi to Rawalpindi caught fire.

Minister for railways, Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, said the fire was caused by the explosion of a gas cylinder being used by passengers cooking breakfast.

The blaze is thought to have spread to at least three carriages. According to officials cited in local media, many of the victims died as they tried to jump off the burning train. Another 40 people have been injured. Officials say the number of dead may still rise. The accident happened near the town of Rahim Yar Khan in the south of Punjab province. Many passengers were pilgrims heading to Raiwind near Lahore for one of Pakistan’s largest annual religious congregations, organised by the Tablighi Jamaat Sunni Muslim missionary movement.

“Two cooking stoves blew up. They were cooking, they had [cooking] oil which added fuel to fire,” Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said. Passengers bringing stoves onto trains in order to cook meals on long journeys is a common problem, the minister said. Though it is common to carry food on board, gas cylinders are banned. District deputy commissioner Jamil Ahmed said some of the victims were so badly burnt they could not be identified, and they would need to use DNA to find out who had died. Prime Minister Imran Khan said he was “deeply saddened by the terrible tragedy” on Twitter, adding that he had ordered an “immediate inquiry”.

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Twitter is to ban all political advertising worldwide, saying that the reach of such messages “should be earned, not bought”.

“While internet advertising is incredibly powerful and very effective for commercial advertisers, that power brings significant risks to politics,” company CEO Jack Dorsey tweeted. Social media rival Facebook recently ruled out a ban on political ads.

News of the ban divided America’s political camps for the 2020 election. Brad Parscale, manager of President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign, said the ban was “yet another attempt by the left to silence Trump and conservatives”. But Bill Russo, spokesman for the campaign to elect Democratic front-runner Joe Biden, said: “When faced with a choice between ad dollars and the integrity of our democracy, it is encouraging that, for once, revenue did not win out.”

Reacting to the move, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg defended his company’s policy. “In a democracy, I don’t think it’s right for private companies to censor politicians or the news,” he said during a conference call with journalists. Twitter’s ban will be enforced from 22 November, with full details released by 15 November.

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